What the Future Holds

Chapter 22

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Hi and thanks for the reviews. The reason why Janie wasn't mention in the last chapter is because she was unconscious and there wasn't any change in her.

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  Heero, Trowa, Millardo, and Duo stood side by side, mouths almost hanging open while the three men try to figure out where the extra bullets they where suppose to bring where. They had run out of the ones in their guns already. The gundam pilots could do nothing but stare. Heero finally snapped out of it and raised his gun. He said in that emotionless voice that everyone knew so well, "Stop moving or we'll shoot."

  The intoxicated men looked up and one almost fell. Heero rolled his eyes as Trowa raised his gun. The men just stared dumbly and Heero began giving out orders.

  "Duo, go and grab two of them and Millardo get the other one. We'll lock them open in the room that the kids were in," he said and everyone began to do as he bided.

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  Jake was falling asleep, despite Amber's chatter and questions. He wanted to sleep so badly and it was getting to the point where he didn't care if he didn't wake up. He started to close his eyes when Amber began shooting off questions.

  "So how did Heero and you meet?" Amber asked.

  "Didn't he tell you?" Jake asked and looked up sharply at her. Amber sighed and pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them.

  "No. When we first came up with the 'arrangement', strange callin' a marriage that but that's what was, Heero and I agree we would keep whatever we wanted from each other and that we didn't have to tell each other anythang unless we wanted to. I think he agreed to it so I wouldn't feel like a prisoner," Amber said.

  "Did you?" Jake asked. He, like just about everyone one else, wondered what it would have been like to marry a complete stranger.

  "Yes. Heero was still makin' me go to school. Said I was just too young not to. But not many people were willin' to get friendly. The teachers gave me odd looks; the guys avoid me altogether. I was whispered about and there was no way to escape it. I'd come home cryin' and Heero would try to comfort me but you could tell he felt awkward about it. And then there was Reuben. I swear there wasn't a day that went by when he wasn't cryin' about somethin,'" she said.

  "I can't imagine what that was like," Jake said.

  "Well, you've be avoidin' my question," Amber said with a slight, rueful smile. Jake sighed and said, "Well, the band that we were in was looking for a piano player because our old one quit. Heero answered the ad and I was suppose to show him 'the ropes.' I think he did more of that for me than I for him," Jake said. Amber smiled and asked,     "Did he tell you where he learn how to play?"

  "No. Did he tell you?" Jake asked. Amber scoffed and said, "Yeah, right."

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  Heero kept his gun next to the back of one guy's head as they walked down the stairs. Heero was in the back of the line and Duo was in front walking backwards. Needless to say, things were moving very slowly. No one spoke except the captives.  They muttered softly and didn't seem to know what was going on.

  They were coming to the bottom level of the boat and they could hear the girls talking. Heero didn't think anything of it. As they continued down Duo stepped a step that creaked. Heero hadn't noticed it until now, mostly because his mind was focusing on other things. But when Duo stepped on the step, the talking that was only twenty steps away stopped, and Wufei said something about getting ready though Heero couldn't truly understand it.

 Duo looked up at Heero and called, "Hey, it's us and you want believe what we have."

 Wufei called back, "You know I'm going to have a gun pointing at you when you come down."

 "I'd be disappointed if you didn't," Heero called and they continued they're slow process down the steps that seem to go on forever.

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 Lady and Quarte sat on either side of Mariemaya. They had stopped the bleeding and were now wrapping bandages around the wounds. Lady had stopped crying and gotten back under control. Her hair was a mess and there were trains of mascara running down her cheeks. She almost looked funny with the clam, collective appearance yet Quarte didn't feel like laughing and probably won't for a long time.

 He sighed and looked at Mariemaya. She had lost a lot of blood and he wasn't sure if she'd make it. Then again he wasn't sure any of them would make it.

 "Lady, maybe you should get some sleep," he said. Lady looked at him and, after a moment, nodded. She curled up next to Mariemaya and wrapped her arm around her. There's was silence for several minutes.

 "Quarte, why do you think this all happened?" Lady asked, suddenly.

 "You should ask Heero that," Quarte said.

 "Why?"

 "He's the one with all the answers," Quarte said and sighed.

 "You know that's not true," Lady said. Quarte sighed.

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 Wufei waited for Heero and the others to come down. His gun pointed straight ahead and his body couldn't get and tenser. He was afraid. He was afraid that he wouldn't be able to handle any danger that was to come. The last time something like this happened; he had ended up in the hospital.

 He sighed slightly, so no one would hear. He then saw a foot on the step and all thoughts stopped. He went on "soldier mode" as Duo appeared, walking backwards. Wufei began to relax when he saw Heero.

  "Someone open the door that the kids where end," Heero said as they stopped once they reach the landing. Hilde opened the door and Heero and Duo began walking with the ones in between. They shoved the intoxicated men in the room and shut the door. Heero locked it and said, "We need to get Janie to a bed ASAP and we need to get out of here."

 Wufei went to the door and called out to Reuben to let him know whom it was. They all went in and Heero began to give instructions.

 "Zech and Duo, I want you to guard those guys. Reuben, Wufei, Trowa, and Jake, you're helping me carry Janie. Leanna, can we put her in your room?" he asked.

 "Yeah," she said. He nodded and rubbed his eyes.

 "William's dead and Mariemaya is almost near death. Relena, I need you and Amber to help Quarte and Lady take care of her," he said softly. Amber, Sophie, Sammy, and Leanna's eyes had widened. Leanna softly began to cry and she roughly wiped away the tears. Amber rubbed her eyes and kept her hand there. Sophie and Sammy just stared.

 "Sophie, Sammy, I need you to watch Victoria and Hannah. The rest of you can help us with Janie," Heero said in that soft voice, like he would to comfort a child. It seemed strange coming from Heero to Duo.

 Heero walked over to Janie and gently slip his hands under her head and shoulder. Jake sat up and slip his hands under Janie and soon everyone else followed the suit.

 "On the count of three, we lift her," Heero said when everyone was ready. He received nods and began to count.

 "One."

 "Two."

 "Three," he said and they all slowly raised her. They walked out of the room with the others fallowing them.

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Hey. Please review and thanks to those that did.

Ja ne,

Pinkmoon.