Disclaimer: Same as Chapter One!
Chapter Fourteen
"New Acquaintances"
By Magic and Little Fairy From Nam
"You know, the jell-o really isn't all that bad after a couple of days. It losses that 'plastic, I've been bottled in a hospital next to hazardous drugs' taste sooner lately, don't you think?" The brunette attempted to catch the attention of the blonde sitting next to her.
But the blonde just mumbled something about how hospitals were defiantly giving illegal drugs to their patients in their sleep and continued to watch the television in front of her bed. Trinity sighed deeply and spooned another helping of green jell-o into her mouth. 'I hate green jell-o,' she thought as she took another bite, 'but the way they feed us here, you'd think they were training us all to be anorexic. What I wouldn't do right now for some of Hannah's spaghetti.'
She glanced over at her friend who was now bashing the remote control violently against the side of the bed as it had gotten jammed on the weather cannel again. That wasn't really Hannah though. As Trinity had found out over the past two days after the blonde had waken up, Hannah was gone and Samantha had taken her place. 'Stolen her body' was actually the phrase Trinity deemed the best in describing the situation. It was as if Hannah had flown off somewhere and left someone else to house keep for her body; perhaps that wasn't so far from the truth. Trinity had talked to one of the doctors and explained that they had all been in a terrible car accident. The doctor told her it wasn't too uncommon for people to loose their memories after a traumatic event.
Trinity was quite sure that being chased around by the poster child for psychotic disorders could be placed in the 'traumatic event' folder. She now believed that her late-step-brother Nadir would have been any psychologists dream; a fortune in the making for a therapist.
A small shiver ran up and down her spine at the thought of her brother and her hand instinctively reached out and touched the stitches that ran down her leg where he had stabbed her. 'Let's think about something happier than that,' she mused as she attempted to envision happy sheep running through a green field. Puppies, kittens, giant smiley faces; anything would have been better than the image that replayed itself over and over in her head.
"He's dead. Get a grip," Trinity hissed at herself under her breath as she rubbed her temples with her fingers.
Samantha glanced over at the brunette crouched in the bed next to hers; what in all hell was her problem? Every once and awhile she seemed as if she was going to have a nervous breakdown, and for some odd reason, she felt as if she was going to have one too. After two days of talking to the brunette, who's name was Trinity Renada or something like that, she wasn't sure whether her room mate was completely wacko or whether it was just the painkillers that were doing it to her.
And then there were the guys. The first thing that she had realized about those five was that none of them had any fashion sense. At all. Spandex? She wasn't exactly she felt comfortable with that. It was like guys in tights, only not as tightish. On that note, she remembered that she despised tights; the epitome of all evil really. And you could never be too careful with them. They were always in a position to bite your ass.
She blinked, unsure if that was actually a lost memory returning to her or if she was just going a bit wackish herself from the effects of the painkillers. The others had insisted over and over again that her name was actually Hannah and they seemed to have plenty of memories and stories to back up their statements. The only problem was that she didn't remember any of them. Then again, she didn't remember anything except for that she enjoyed sprinkles, Chex mix, and just now, that tights were something to avoid in the future. It was just those few things and the name Samantha that she clung to. Maybe, in all reality, Sam wasn't her real name, but it was the only thing that she had left, so everyone was just going to have to deal and drop the Hannah stuff.
"Damn weather channel," she swore under her breath. The least they could do on the weather channel would be to play good music, but even that seemed to elude the forecasters. They really couldn't get anything right. "I," she bashed the remote over the bed rail, "just" THWUAP! - the remote hit the wall behind her head "want to watch" DING!! - she smashed it against the railing again "something other than the weather!" SCHITZ!- clunk. The remote fizzled on the floor where it landed after Samantha had chucked it over at the wall.
The blonde crossed her arms in defiance, and then realized that the channel had actually changed. She was now watching some really wrinkly old man with a southern accent give the news. His voice stretched out monotonously over the room, and she felt her eyelids dropping.
"What an improvement," she grumbled just as a loud beep came from the screen. Her blue eyes snapped open and locked on the newscaster.
"This just in," he continued the newscast in the same monotone voice as if nothing in the world could ever surprise him, "Nadir Renada has been reported dead. Murdered in his late-father's house along with eighty-three of his soldiers, his body was found today by a backup squad of soldiers sent to check out what happened. Footage taken from the security cameras set around the house have confirmed that his killer was actually non other than his step-sister, Trinity Renada, the teenage girl who was also found guilty of murdering her mother and step-father just a few months before." A picture of Samantha's roommate flashed on the screen as the announcer continued, "The five Gundam pilots were also seen on the footage and are responsible for the deaths of the eighty-three soldiers. They are said to be armed and dangerous. It is thought that they hold fourteen year old Hannah Date in their custody. Hannah disappeared from school around the time of 'Aurora Adaner', the pseudo name that Trinity had been hiding under, and it is unknown whether she is conspiring with the murderers or if she was kidnaped. Any information about their whereabouts is requested by the Renada Foundation as they have been labeled rebels, killers, and disturbers of the peace. The Earth's Sphere Alliance on the other hand has not charged the seven with anything and has refused to comment on the subject, though Vice Minister Darlian was overheard saying she supported any who oppose those trying to overthrow the governments of the colonies." The old man ruffled his mustache. "Now, the weather for today was..."
Samantha blinked. Her picture, along with Hannah Date's name had been flashed on the screen. Not only that, but so had Trinity's and all five of the guys. What in all hell was going on here? Who the hell were they and what did they want with her? "You're a....a..." She turned to look over at Trinity, but found the bed empty. The brunette was instead standing right next to her bed, a large roll of duct tape outstretched over Sam's head. "What the h--!!!" The sticky grey substance covered her mouth. Her hands shot out in an attempt to both rip the tape from her mouth and shove Trinity away from her.
"This is for your own good! You don't understand anything yet!!" Trinity struggled against the blonde's grip. It was mono-et-mono; survival of the fittest. But after a few months of spending time with Hannah's random attacks and change sock, Trinity had worked up quite a defense herself. If she had been fighting Hannah at that moment, true, she would have been tied up, bound, gaged, and whimpering for mercy in the corner, but Samantha didn't have Hannah's battle knowledge, thought Trinity had to admit her instinct was quite good. And she did know how to use Hannah's inch long nails to her advantage. This couldn't save the blonde completely though; it just delayed the inevitable. Limbs, clothes, and the random chuck of hair went flying as the two shot around the room, until all of a sudden silence ensued.
"Fhonsh I gesht oout off thish, you're su deash," Samantha screamed through the duct tape the covered her mouth. Her hands were bound behind her back and her legs were tied together (both with duct tape, bien sur). Her eyes narrowed on her forehead as she glared at Trinity hot enough to melt plastic.
"Listen. I had to. I couldn't have you go screaming around the hospital that there were murderers in your room an-"
"Sof you didsh murdersh 'em!?"
"NO! Okay. It's a really long story. I didn't kill my parents or anything," Trinity censored the fact that she actually had killed Nadir for now so not to completely creep out her friend's alter ego. "They guys, they're helping out the 'good guys', okay? The Renada Foundation wants nothing but to take over the colonies and split them up from the Earth. We don't know what they plan after that. They may even plan on destroying the Earth...but the guys are trying to keep that from happening. My brother was a bad breathed psycho with a really bad sense of style - not, mind you, that's an odd thing for most of the guys around here...--, and now he's gone but we still don't know who the leader of this is...ugh," she shook her head as Sam was still glaring uncertainly at her, "I'll explain it all later. Just know this: we didn't kidnap you. You and me are FRIENDS. If you don't believe anything else and you want me to be a psycho, ego-centric, serial killer, fine. But you're with us. Your friends. Chums."
Samantha narrowed her eyes more at Trinity. "Yoush exshpect mesh tof beliesh zat vhen I hash my moutsh couvershed wish duct tape?!"
Trinity sighed again. She reached over and gently as she could, removed the tape from Sam's mouth. "That better?"
"Much."
"I'm going to go get the guys. You just sit tight right here until I get back. We have to get out of her as soon as possible," Trinity glanced around nervously.
"Mind undoing my arms and legs. I can walk too you know. Two legs here."
Trinity sat still for a second as if deciding what was the best way to do this. "You swear you wont run off or start screaming or anything?"
"If you want me to trust you, you're going to have to trust me."
"Good point."
"Of course."
"Alright. Fine then. Just don't run off. If Nadir's people got a hold of you, they could blackmail us all into giving ourselves up." Trinity quickly ripped the duct tape off Samantha before standing up and stuffing all of her belongings (and a bit of jell-o) into a sheet which she tied shut to hold everything.
Samantha rubbed her wrists and then her ankles before standing up. "Wow. I feel kinda...important and all." She gave Trinity a sly smile. "You're going to have to teach me that move where you flip someone over their head while duct taping them to the wall though. I must admit, that was quite good form."
Trinity smiled slightly. "Once you start to remember, you'll be able to do that better than I can. To Wufei actually, as easy as pie."
"Speaking of Wufei, did you ever actually get him castrated?"
***
His eyebrows furrowed on his forehead in an expression of deep concentration. His tongue stuck out the side of his mouth as his eyes scanned the playing board. He shifted his black pawn up two squares and sat back with a pleased expression on his face.
"There! I'd like to see you match THAT move," Duo's voice rang through the white walls of the hospital room the five boys were roomed in.
Wufei quickly shot his chess piece across the board and crossed his arms across his chest. "There." He smiled smugly. "Check mate." He swiftly snatched up his winnings from the table; Duo's rations of green jell-o and a candy bar that one of the nurses had given the braided pilot.
Duo's cobalt blue eyes bulged as he looked over at Wufei with disgust. "Cheater. You would have never won the game unless I hadn't let a few of those crazy moves slip."
"Actually, Duo, I've been watching and it was Wufei who let those 'crazy moves' slip from you." The blonde smiled innocently from across the room where he lay on his bed. Quatre sat up, flung his legs over the side of his bed, and tested to see whether or not his leg would support his weight. "I think it's about time we headed out," he declared to the other four pilots as he walked gingerly around the room. "We're all almost completely healed-"
"Hey! Speak for yourself!"
"-and we shouldn't stay here for any longer in case someone finds us." He gave Duo his best fatherly 'hush it' look and continued with his explanation. "Their going to be looking for Trinity...and I think it'd be best if we take Hannah--"
"You mean Samantha," Duo interrupted with again.
"--yes...Samantha... I think it'd be best to get her our of here and to a more-"
"Protected."
"-- no, Duo, secretive....well, a place where we can explain everything to her. You can never be too sure who is listening in a hospital." He glanced over his shoulder and nodded to one of the nurses who had been hanging around the door for a longer than was needed to check to see if everyone was in the room.
"I agree with Quatre. We're also not getting anything completed sitting here," Heero told the group.
"I am." Wufei shot a smirk over at Duo. "I don't think I've ever won so many games of chess in my life." He nibbled on the candy bar for emphasis.
"You eat like a chick, Wu-less," Duo shot back. He sighed afterwards and nodded. "That...and I'm running out of comebacks. But still, we've only been here for five days and 'Hannamantha' just woke up two days ago. Would she really be ready to travel in, ah, her 'condition'?"
"As long as you don't annoy her to death, I think she'll be fine, Braidy," the girl's voice joked from the doorway as Trinity flew into their midst. She had her street clothing on and a bag made of sheets hanging by her side. Her face was flushed as if she had just ran all the way from the girls' wing, up the stairs, and into the men's, which, by the appearance of her wild hair, she had. "In fact, I think it'd be best if we left soon. As in, oh, how about the next five SECONDS."
A blonde head popped into the room and Samantha took a look around. "I like what you've done to it. Very...late-barn I'd say," she commented as she saw all of the guys' belongings sprawled out over the floor, chairs, window, and shower. "It could do with some flowers though. Maybe some fake fruit as well. And a soft serve machine." She nodded.
All the time while she had been talking, Wufei had been slowly edging his way after from the doorway. "So. Who are you now? Is Hannah back yet?"
The other guys and Trinity couldn't help but notice his reaction. Trinity and Duo were just going to comment on it, but Quatre realized that the girls, especially Samantha, wouldn't have been up in their wing unless something was up.
"Why are the two of you here?" The blonde stepped forward towards the girls so he wouldn't have to talk to them from across the room.
Trinity smirked slightly. "We're famous, boys. On the news and everything."
"Psychopathic, killer Gundam pilots. Tsk-tsk-tsk. Not a good profession to go into these days. So little demand for it," Samantha chided from Trinity's side. The remark sounded so much like Hannah that the others had to remind themselves that she still had amnesia.
"Well, if you'll excuse us," Duo hopped out of his bed and ushered the girls into the bathroom. Quatre and I have to change, then we'll get this train on the road." Before he shut the door, his stuck his braided head in and ordered, "No peaking."
"Being blind isn't one of my future goals in life, Duo," Trinity shot back as she crossed her arms defiantly.
"Well said," Sam commented from where she sat on the edge of the sink.
Trinity's brown eyes centered on the figure. "Thank you...you know...it's really odd. You talk and act almost exactly like Hannah, and yet--"
"I'm not?"
"Yeah." Trinity took a seat next to her on the toilet; it wasn't exactly a pretty toilet-good god not again. "Maybe you're just playing a really cruel joke on us all."
"Listen, kid, I swear to the god of pants that I haven't a clue who I am. Or who you are, for that matter." Samantha rubbed her wrists gingerly where the duct tape had left its mark; friend or not, Trinity was going to pay for that when they got out of this hospital. It was like being attacked by a five foot six inch tall wombat with a vengeance for blonds.
A brunette head stuck through the doorway. "We're leaving now. You two will probably want to get ready."
"Ready for what exactly, Trowa?" Trinity inquired suspiciously as she took a step towards the back wall of the bathroom.
Heero pushed the door open and swiftly grabbed Trinity's wrist. "We're going to have to go out the fire escape," he informed her as he dragged her towards the window.
Samantha blanched as she heard the swear words and what sounded like multiple punches erupt from the other room. She stuck her head around the corner only to be lead by the magic haired on towards the window.
"You're not afraid of heights, are you?" The one with slicked back black hair asked her jeeringly. A small smirk rounded the corners of his mouth.
The blonde shrugged. "Well, if I am, I wouldn't be able to remember it."
The magic haired one, who she believed was named Trowa, nodded with approval and pointed towards the escape. "Quatre's already started down there." The pair glanced over at the frenzy struggle that was going on between Heero and Trinity. "She will be going last as it's going to take everything we've got to get her out of the window. I'll be following you, so if you need any help just ask." He pushed back the window blinds for her so that she could step through the window. "Try to be as quiet as possible. It seems they already know we're here."
Samantha nodded silently and hopped onto the metal platform, to be followed close behind by the green eyed Trowa, then Wufei, leaving Heero, Trinity, and Duo in the room.
"Why didn't you bring the tranquilizers?" Duo demanded of Heero jokingly. He stood in front of the pair, arms crossed, and eyes filled with amusement as he gazed at the struggle. Heero grunted (as only Heero can) in a way that told Duo his joke was not appreciated.
At Duo's sarcasm, Trinity stopped struggling for a second and was held suspended from Heero's outstretched arms which held her up from under her armpits. Being as she was taller than the pilot, she was surprised that her feet didn't quite reach the ground, but she didn't worry about that at the moment. She kicked out her leg in an attempt to hit Duo in the stomach, but the lean pilot neatly dodged her move.
"I've had to jump off a cliff. I've been thrown out of a window. And before my life turned into a living circle of hell...I hated heights to start with!! There is no way that I'm going out there!! You'll have to carry --- HEY!"
In the middle of her speech, Duo had walked on over and grabbed her. He now held her like a small child as he quickly hopped through the window and onto the fire escape platform before Trinity could realize what was going on. Now out on the platform, she clung onto Duo's shirt with the Grip-o-doom as she wasn't going to step out there on her own.
"Yo-you can't be serious!" She exclaimed in a hushed shout so as not to attract attention from the street below. She looked down over the side to see Quatre at the bottom, waiting for them, and Wufei, Samantha and Trowa several stories below them. "It's at least twenty stories or so....no...I'd rather-"
"Rather what?" Heero asked from beside her. "We can leave you here if you want it that way, but the soldiers will show up any second. I am sure, though, that for a Renada as yourself, they would give you a royal welcome." Pilot 01 continued his way down the sets of ladders and platforms, leaving them at the top.
The two blinked in confusion and then looked at each other.
"Did Heero just attempt to make a joke?"
"Maybe he was being sarcastic."
"Sarcastic? I thought he just grunted and said 'mission accepted'."
"That's usually-ow! You're getting heavy you know! Wufei is never going to let you hear the end of this if you stay up here."
Trinity jumped out of Duo's arms and pushed him away from her. "I'm just fine now, thank you. Wufei and Hannah, when she comes back that is, don't need to know about this." She lifted her chin defiantly and started down the ladder, arms shaking and teeth chattering. "I hate you all. Why is it always the fire escape."
"Because it's usually the only way out."
"It's so damn cliche." She stepped onto the next platform. "You know, if I was writing a story or something, they would NEVER get out through the fire escape."
"Oh yeah," Duo plopped down beside her and pointed at the next ladder, "then how would they get out?"
"They'd plant some magic beans and grow a really large beanstalk." She shivered as she began down the next ladder. "With an elevator."
"An elevator. Of course."
"Or maybe they'd just sprout wings and fly away."
She heard Duo give a snort from above her as she started on the next ladder. "Or maybe...maybe they'd just walk out the front door. Or take out a nurse and all dress up like nurses and just...ah...walk out the front door."
"Never become a writer."
She yanked on his foot and he came crashing down besides her on the second to last platform. "That wasn't very gentlemanly."
Duo gave her a flashy grin as he waved his arms in the air. "Since when was I a gentleman in the first place."
"Point well taken," Trinity quipped as she started on the last ladder than went to the ground. "But now," her feet touched solid ground and she resisted the urge to kiss it and pet it lovingly as Wufei was watching her closely, "that we have escaped all cliche like, where now?"
"I've contacted an friend who's agreed to take you in for a few days," Quatre explained as they headed for the alleyway. "Their house is a little far, but we can't chance taking a cab at the moment. I hope you all don't mind the walk."
Trinity and the others followed behind their strategist quietly for a few blocks before the brunette finally got it into her thick skull what Quatre had said.
"You said take 'you' in. Where are you five going to be staying? You're just leaving us?" Trinity's voice became slightly panicked, but she covered it well as she didn't to have a nervy spaz right in front of Wufei.
Quatre's face flushed a bit as he turned back to look at her. "Well, we're going to stay with the two of you a couple of days to get you situated. After that, one of us will stay behind with you at the house for awhile while the others are out trying to, uh, well, figure out our next plan of action."
"So, you're just going to keep one of you five there to...to..."
"Babysit," Samantha shot in for her.
"Good word for it." Trinity wasn't sure how she felt about this recent change. She was beginning to feel like a burden to the guys.
"We want to be sure that nothing will happen to you, but don't take it too harshly," Heero told her. "We have to leave in order to get things done."
"And there is no way that we're you two with, especially in Han-Samantha's state," Wufei informed the two girls.
"Hey, I'm not in a 'state'. You all speak as if my limbs were dangling off my body and my brain was slowly being eaten by a strange disease." Samantha regarded their confused stares. "Which, by the way, it is NOT. Sheesh. It's like talking to a pack of five year olds." She and the others went silent for the remaining walk.
It took until the sun was almost hidden beneath the buildings for the septet to finally reach the house Quatre was leading them to. It rested in a typical suburbia neighborhood. The ones where all the families had a dog, a cat, two cars, and a swing set in the backyard for their average 2.34 children to play on. All of the houses looked exactly the same except a window change here or there or perhaps a different color of metal siding, and the families would sit on their back porches and have BBQ every Saturday night in large groups.
Trinity looked at the house they were walking up to; it looked completely normal to her. Blue siding, a small front porch with a few steps, split level house with a basketball hoop in the driveway. "Talk about mundane," she mumbled to Duo who nodded.
Pilot 04 reached for the doorbell and rung it once. He stepped back a little to make room for the door to open. The door was answered very quickly and the seven found themselves being rushed into the house by a girl not much older than they were.
"You all made it! I was so worried you'd get caught along the way or something, but I made some supper just in case you didn't," a seventeen or eighteen year old blonde said excitedly. "Whoops! Yikes, almost forgot that the two of you don't know who I am. Name's Tina Rudevic." Without stopping to take a breath, the young lady continued with. "Did you know that you seven have been on TV all day long. Seems as if you've become quite famous these past few hours. The news station even said that the true leader of the Renada Foundation is going to make a speech about it in just a few--"
"What did you say?" Heero took a step towards the girl.
"Ah," she flushed a bit, "the leader. He's going to finally come out in the open soon they said."
"When's soon?" Trowa inquired earnestly.
"They, ah, said Monday."
The atmosphere in the room became more relaxed. "That's not for another three days!" Duo exclaimed. "And here I thought we were finally going to get a chance to see the guy and we have to wait another THREE DAYS!"
"Patience is a virtue," Wufei informed as he leaned up against a wall.
The girl looked between Wufei and Duo uncertainly before saying, "Well, let me get you all ready for supper. I'm sure you guys have had a ruff day, so let me show you to your rooms."
"Our rooms?" Trinity whispered to herself. "I don't want to be sitting around here. I don't want to be babysat." She frowned as she watched the backs of her friends exit towards the stairs. "I want Hannah back. I want the way things were before that damn mission." She kicked the wall sharply with her foot only to cringe as the pain seared through her big toe. She gingerly stepped towards the others and the stairs. "And if I was ever normal, I'd like to be normal again."
"Normal?" Duo had caught the last phrase of her conversation she had been having with herself. "You have never been normal. No Renada I have met yet has had a complete set of marbles."
She glared. "Thank you, Captain Obvious."