It was getting later into the tournaments now and the beginnings of the sunset was approaching. As expected the new team of football players had lost, no disappointment there. They were poorly prepared for the hardships of the tournament. Relena was more concerned with her own team though. She saw they were barely able to keep above the other teams due to the fact that Cathy was now gone. Lucrezia was her name… she was doing decently well, but not quite as well as hoped. Dorothy didn't seem one bit surprised, which was strange, but what was the point of thinking about it. It wasn't going to accomplish anything.
Relena sat down in a small corner, the boys had gone to play another game and the girls were left there to ponder over their own thoughts. Relena was thinking about what was going on between the players. Heero still would question her about that night he came to see her at the Rat House and those certain extensions (Chapter 5). So far, everyone didn't seem to see what she had figured out years earlier, so maybe she would end up just having to explain what she meant after all, instead of learning it for themselves. As she was contemplating the multiple reasons for the existence of the death matches between various teams, Natria walked over and sat down with a dull thud. Her legs were bent and her elbows were propped on her knees, allowing her hands to dangle in midair. After a few moments of silence, she turned to look over at Relena.
"What are you thinking now?" she asked with mild curiosity.
"Am I thinking of anything?" Relena said forlornly. Natria smiled slightly as she played around with a lone ant. She smashed it before she continued to speak to Relena with a small hint of amusement.
"You have that look on your face. You always get it whenever you're thinking something over really hard and that seems to be one of those times."
"If you do want to know, I was thinking about something that happened a few months ago." Natria seemed to think a few moments and then gave Relena a confused look.
"When Heero and Duo showed up unexpectedly?" Relena nodded absently. "Why? There's nothing to think about back then." Her friend shrugged, as if she knew something, but didn't feel it needed to be said.
"Why did he show up that night?" Natria asked curiously. Relena sighed and leaned further forward and picked up a stick, twirling it between her fingers before she answered.
"When I first met him, I said some things and he wanted some answers, that's all." Natria looked incredulous.
"It must have been some pretty confusing stuff." Once again, Relena gave an indifferent shrug. "So, what did you tell him?" Relena seemed to debate for a long moment on whether or not to say anything and finally made her decision.
"I told him…" she hesitated, and then pushed on. "I told him that there was more to the game than just freedom." Natria's eyes widened for a moment of slight surprise, but then narrowed back into a look of amusement and wryness. This was Relena? Whenever she talked of the game she would always connect the word freedom there. Any sentence without it was completely alien to the captain of team 135. Natria had not seen this side of a conversation involving Relena before.
"Relena… that doesn't sound like you." A small cynical smile spread over Relena's face.
"No, it doesn't, does it? But, Natria, I've believed that there's something more to this game than just freedom for a long time now. What I know is something that other people had to learn on their own. Unfortunately, some people can't figure out what it is."
"And what is it, Relena?" Relena didn't even have a chance to reply. Dorothy interrupted.
"The games are symbols of the strength and determination of slaves. The encouragement for others to succeed." Relena smiled up at Dorothy.
"You know, slaves are supposed to figure that out on their own." Dorothy only grinned back at her friend.
"Well, I figured it's just easier to do it that way. Either way, they know." Natria's eyes were wide for a moment.
"That's what both of you believe in? That the games are more than just ways for slaves to get out?" Relena and Dorothy nodded in unison.
"That's really…"
"Noble," interjected a voice. All eyes turned towards Hilde. She was smiling slightly as she sat down to join her teammates. "It's corny but noble. It would have taken me a long time to have figured it out, but now that it's out in the open, I guess I really have to agree with Relena and Dorothy."
"And it's…" started Natria.
"The answer to the riddle," came a deeper voice. Natria sent an annoyed look straight over to Heero, being that this was the second time she was interrupted. He was staring at Relena, who had assumed he had overheard as well.
"Yes, the answer to the riddle." Recognition flashed over Relena's face as she turned to stare at the young man. He was looking over at her grimly.
"Is that what your theory was?" he asked quietly. Relena looked down with a strange smile on her face and nodded.
"It is something that I have been thinking of for many years now. I was here once before and found this out on my own." At this point everyone had gathered around the conversation, looking very interested. Lucrezia seemed to be the most confused out of all of them. She stood close to Dorothy.
"What's going on?" she whispered. Dorothy sent her an annoyed look.
"Nothing. Just things only a slave would understand," she whispered back. Lucrezia pulled back as if she were slapped and turned to sit a little further off, not far enough to be out of hearing range, but far enough so she wasn't hit again by one of Dorothy's barbs. She was still not forgiven for the scene that had occurred out in front of the Ice Cage gates. At least, she was not forgiven yet for her failure to prevent Dorothy's sudden transfer.
Dorothy looked slightly regretful as Lucrezia moved away from the group, looking thoroughly penalized. Ignoring her guilt, her attention returned to the conversation unfolding in front of her.
"It was really quite simple, Relena. You could have just blurted it right out. It wouldn't have made a difference," he said with irritation lining his words. Natria watched the beginning signs of her friend's hackles going up, but saw that she was making a visible effort to be sound.
"I did not tell you for the exact reason of what's happening now." He along with everyone else was looking rather confused so Relena strove to pacify their puzzlement. "A person changes if they come to this conclusion on their own. I did. I was here… at the championships… many years ago and I was only seeking freedom, just like you Heero. My team was playing against the winning team of that year and we had nearly won, but one of our team members faltered. We lost. One of the other team members came up to me afterwards and presented me with a few words. I scorned him for those words because I thought he was gloating over his victory, but I see what he meant now." There was a moment of silence as Relena was lost in her memories.
"If you're looking to make a dramatic pause, you've accomplished that," said Duo with annoyance. "What did he say?" Relena shook herself visibly and turned to look at her friends.
"He said that, if he could have traded places with me, he would have done it, but only for one reason and one reason only. He wanted to be able to encourage his friends he had to leave behind to keep on trying. I, on the other hand, still had that opportunity. It took me over a year to figure out what he was saying. After the games, Owner sold the rest of the team and had bought Dorothy, Hilde, Cathy, and Natria. The members from the original team had separated into all directions and I don't think I'll ever know if they won their freedom. I was always the one striving for freedom, pushing them… who was to take my place in their lives, to encourage, and push them on? When I saw the games the next year I realized that it was the essence of the game that kept all of us going. It was something that we all loathed, but yet we needed to keep going on with our lives. Some people don't see that and therefore players who do win have to turn back and pull along the others that have lost their hope of ever getting free. Or the ones who come so close to their freedom, must show their resilience of starting over and working all over again from the bottom." There was a reigning silence that spanned throughout the two teams. Then Trowa spoke up, drawing all attention to him. His face held bitterness.
"That is wrong." Relena's eyes narrowed and questioned his reasoning. His full gaze was turned on her now, sending every ounce of his disapproval straight at her. "The reason why it is wrong is because, only five make it from each blood sport to their freedom. In this particular place in the Southern Hemisphere's market, that is only fifteen. If only fifteen make it, you can't give hope to others because there isn't any hope in the first place. Lost Children are forced into their sports…"
"In some cases it should be considered a blessing," interjected Dorothy. All shocked eyes flew back to her, including Lucrezia's. All any of them had heard was Dorothy's curses put onto the children's market, but this was a sudden change and all of them were not prepared for it.
"If you think of it in another way, we all could have ended up in the slave market only meant for servitude. At least as players, we have a chance at getting out, whereas others do not."
"She does have a point," interjected Duo. Heero sent a withering look over to his teammate, but it was only shrugged off.
"I don't see what the big deal is. It really isn't our problem," stated Trowa coldly. Dorothy sighed and shook her head, as if pitying his statement. He glowered over at her and then the attention shifted back to the subject.
"That's why people don't see what I mean as often. It isn't their problem," said Relena. "If everyone said it wasn't their problem, all of us would end up losing in the games. If one player shares a problem, everyone else might as well claim the dilemma as well."
"I still don't agree with you," argued Heero.
"I didn't ask you if you agreed. I didn't even ask you for anything to begin with. All I wanted was for you to figure this out on your own." Heero looked away indifferently and the air suddenly seemed to drop to a dismal shape.
"All we're accomplishing at the moment is getting angry with one another. Some of us are ready for this new little… revelation," said Hilde. "Others are not." She sent a meaningful glance at Heero and Trowa. Trowa merely snorted and looked in a different direction. The PA system prevented her from saying anything further.
"Team 135. Team 135 come to the gate."
"That's us," stated Natria. She stood up and dusted off the loose dirt clinging to her rear and then turned and waited for the other girls, who had followed suit. Lucrezia moaned audibly and also prepared to go back out for one of those gruesome games. She didn't know how they could all stand it! She held her aching back with one of her hands, twisted back around her body as she dramatically limped her way behind the rest of the team. She was going to have to kill Zechs for this. Dorothy smirked slightly and then followed the rest of the team.
Hilde's mind was definitely not on the game at the moment. Yes, her reflexes did assist her, but her thoughts remained on the topic from earlier. It was corny, as she had stated before hand, in more ways than one, but it still made you stop and think. All her life, all she could remember was thinking of how she was going to the games and win the championships and therefore live the life like any normal person, but the concept of letting others join in on that dream never occurred to her, at least, not until Relena had said it.
In reality, Relena was right, as well as Dorothy. It was the notion of winning the games that drove her so hard, nothing else, that and freedom, but some people don't get to experience that even until their death. Some lose their hope of ever winning their freedom and don't even try. Hilde used to despise looking at the people without their hopes and dreams. That's what she had run on all of her life and that's what got her to the championships, but seeing the odds made her change the way she saw everything. What else can a person do if they know they have no chance of escaping slavery? The only thing they can do, forget their hopes and dreams. It was people like Relena and Dorothy that tried to give back those hopes.
Hilde's thoughts were jarred as the ball came flying at her, making them lose the ball momentarily. Natria shot her a confused glance at her teammate when she realized that Hilde had missed a pass and allowed their opponent to take the ball. Relena of course had seen what was happening and snatched the ball away, scoring a point for their team. Hilde blushed slightly as Dorothy sent her a questioning glare. Shrugging, as if nothing had happened, the dark haired player forced herself to concentrate on the game unfolding before them.
Natria was walking around the cage, being that once again, Wufei had been swept off to another game and found a small girl, trying to peer through the turned backs of the slaves, who were watching the games closely. She struggled to see around the bulk and unyielding backs. Natria, letting her curiosity get the better of her, walked over. The girl had to have been no more than five years of age. What on earth was she doing inside of the Cage? Natria approached as the little girl saw her and shied away for a moment. Seeing that her height over the girl intimidated her, Natria squatted down on one knee and smiled gently. The little girl tentively smiled back.
"Hello, what's your name?" asked Natria.
"Geneva," said the girl with a small voice. Natria's smile broadened.
"Well, Geneva, I was wondering what you were doing in here? Shouldn't you be on the other side of the fence?" The little girl shook her head, as if she had been asked before. Natria was slightly confused.
"No, I should be in here, that's what my mommy said."
"Your mother?" The girl nodded vigorously.
"She's playing one of the games out there right now."
"But…" Natria let a moment of a mystified silence fall, and then continued. "Who is your father?"
"My mommy said that our owner was my daddy, but he doesn't seem to want to talk to me much." Natria sighed in understanding. The little girl was the daughter of a Lost Child. She guessed that the owner had taken one of his slaves and Geneva was a result of that ownership.
"How old is your mother?"
"She just turned 20." Natria felt her gut fall out at the thought. Her mother must have been very young when… A sudden cheer from the crowds attracted Geneva's attention and she resumed her shoving to see what was going on. Finally, not able to stand it any longer, Natria pulled the little girl aside.
"Geneva, what are you doing?"
"I want to see my mommy play! I'm going to be out there some day and I want to see how it's done! Mommy won't show me yet!" Natria smiled again and then reached under her uniform to pull out a necklace, barely noticeable against the skin. She held Geneva's hand with the palm open and dropped the object in her hand. Geneva's eyes widened and she kept on looking from Natria to the jewelry resting in the small nest of flesh.
"I want you to keep this, Geneva. It's a sign of what Lost Children stand for." Geneva examined the necklace closer. There was a pendent on it and carved into the metal was a beautiful dove, flying high in the air, looking so free. Geneva's eyes filled with tears for a moment at the beauty of the small picture. "Come on; let's see if we can't get you a better seat." Natria looked around and spotted Malcolm and waved him over. Geneva's eyes widened when she saw this giant sauntering towards them. He had a gentle smile on his lips as he looked from Natria to Geneva.
"Don't worry Geneva. Malcolm may be as big as a bear, but he's as gentle as a kitten. Malcolm, I'd like you to meet Geneva. Geneva, this is Malcolm. Geneva's mother is out on the courts right now and she wants to see the game." Malcolm frowned for a brief moment.
"Are you sure that's a wise thing…"
"Trust me. It's best that she know now what Lost Children must stand for and fight against." Malcolm nodded in understanding and turned a million watt smile on Geneva.
"Well, I guess we're going to have to out shine them all." Geneva, warming to this man's face, sheepishly stepped forward as Malcolm swept her up into a big bear hug, Geneva letting out a whoop of excitement as she was placed on top of huge shoulders. Together, they made their way over to the barrier of the Cage. The people standing there, preventing Geneva from seeing parted now, like the Red Sea did for Moses. Natria watched grimly as they disappeared from sight.
Perhaps Relena was right. Maybe there was more to the game than winning. Her gaze continued to stare after Malcolm and Geneva.
Relena sat down in a small corner, the boys had gone to play another game and the girls were left there to ponder over their own thoughts. Relena was thinking about what was going on between the players. Heero still would question her about that night he came to see her at the Rat House and those certain extensions (Chapter 5). So far, everyone didn't seem to see what she had figured out years earlier, so maybe she would end up just having to explain what she meant after all, instead of learning it for themselves. As she was contemplating the multiple reasons for the existence of the death matches between various teams, Natria walked over and sat down with a dull thud. Her legs were bent and her elbows were propped on her knees, allowing her hands to dangle in midair. After a few moments of silence, she turned to look over at Relena.
"What are you thinking now?" she asked with mild curiosity.
"Am I thinking of anything?" Relena said forlornly. Natria smiled slightly as she played around with a lone ant. She smashed it before she continued to speak to Relena with a small hint of amusement.
"You have that look on your face. You always get it whenever you're thinking something over really hard and that seems to be one of those times."
"If you do want to know, I was thinking about something that happened a few months ago." Natria seemed to think a few moments and then gave Relena a confused look.
"When Heero and Duo showed up unexpectedly?" Relena nodded absently. "Why? There's nothing to think about back then." Her friend shrugged, as if she knew something, but didn't feel it needed to be said.
"Why did he show up that night?" Natria asked curiously. Relena sighed and leaned further forward and picked up a stick, twirling it between her fingers before she answered.
"When I first met him, I said some things and he wanted some answers, that's all." Natria looked incredulous.
"It must have been some pretty confusing stuff." Once again, Relena gave an indifferent shrug. "So, what did you tell him?" Relena seemed to debate for a long moment on whether or not to say anything and finally made her decision.
"I told him…" she hesitated, and then pushed on. "I told him that there was more to the game than just freedom." Natria's eyes widened for a moment of slight surprise, but then narrowed back into a look of amusement and wryness. This was Relena? Whenever she talked of the game she would always connect the word freedom there. Any sentence without it was completely alien to the captain of team 135. Natria had not seen this side of a conversation involving Relena before.
"Relena… that doesn't sound like you." A small cynical smile spread over Relena's face.
"No, it doesn't, does it? But, Natria, I've believed that there's something more to this game than just freedom for a long time now. What I know is something that other people had to learn on their own. Unfortunately, some people can't figure out what it is."
"And what is it, Relena?" Relena didn't even have a chance to reply. Dorothy interrupted.
"The games are symbols of the strength and determination of slaves. The encouragement for others to succeed." Relena smiled up at Dorothy.
"You know, slaves are supposed to figure that out on their own." Dorothy only grinned back at her friend.
"Well, I figured it's just easier to do it that way. Either way, they know." Natria's eyes were wide for a moment.
"That's what both of you believe in? That the games are more than just ways for slaves to get out?" Relena and Dorothy nodded in unison.
"That's really…"
"Noble," interjected a voice. All eyes turned towards Hilde. She was smiling slightly as she sat down to join her teammates. "It's corny but noble. It would have taken me a long time to have figured it out, but now that it's out in the open, I guess I really have to agree with Relena and Dorothy."
"And it's…" started Natria.
"The answer to the riddle," came a deeper voice. Natria sent an annoyed look straight over to Heero, being that this was the second time she was interrupted. He was staring at Relena, who had assumed he had overheard as well.
"Yes, the answer to the riddle." Recognition flashed over Relena's face as she turned to stare at the young man. He was looking over at her grimly.
"Is that what your theory was?" he asked quietly. Relena looked down with a strange smile on her face and nodded.
"It is something that I have been thinking of for many years now. I was here once before and found this out on my own." At this point everyone had gathered around the conversation, looking very interested. Lucrezia seemed to be the most confused out of all of them. She stood close to Dorothy.
"What's going on?" she whispered. Dorothy sent her an annoyed look.
"Nothing. Just things only a slave would understand," she whispered back. Lucrezia pulled back as if she were slapped and turned to sit a little further off, not far enough to be out of hearing range, but far enough so she wasn't hit again by one of Dorothy's barbs. She was still not forgiven for the scene that had occurred out in front of the Ice Cage gates. At least, she was not forgiven yet for her failure to prevent Dorothy's sudden transfer.
Dorothy looked slightly regretful as Lucrezia moved away from the group, looking thoroughly penalized. Ignoring her guilt, her attention returned to the conversation unfolding in front of her.
"It was really quite simple, Relena. You could have just blurted it right out. It wouldn't have made a difference," he said with irritation lining his words. Natria watched the beginning signs of her friend's hackles going up, but saw that she was making a visible effort to be sound.
"I did not tell you for the exact reason of what's happening now." He along with everyone else was looking rather confused so Relena strove to pacify their puzzlement. "A person changes if they come to this conclusion on their own. I did. I was here… at the championships… many years ago and I was only seeking freedom, just like you Heero. My team was playing against the winning team of that year and we had nearly won, but one of our team members faltered. We lost. One of the other team members came up to me afterwards and presented me with a few words. I scorned him for those words because I thought he was gloating over his victory, but I see what he meant now." There was a moment of silence as Relena was lost in her memories.
"If you're looking to make a dramatic pause, you've accomplished that," said Duo with annoyance. "What did he say?" Relena shook herself visibly and turned to look at her friends.
"He said that, if he could have traded places with me, he would have done it, but only for one reason and one reason only. He wanted to be able to encourage his friends he had to leave behind to keep on trying. I, on the other hand, still had that opportunity. It took me over a year to figure out what he was saying. After the games, Owner sold the rest of the team and had bought Dorothy, Hilde, Cathy, and Natria. The members from the original team had separated into all directions and I don't think I'll ever know if they won their freedom. I was always the one striving for freedom, pushing them… who was to take my place in their lives, to encourage, and push them on? When I saw the games the next year I realized that it was the essence of the game that kept all of us going. It was something that we all loathed, but yet we needed to keep going on with our lives. Some people don't see that and therefore players who do win have to turn back and pull along the others that have lost their hope of ever getting free. Or the ones who come so close to their freedom, must show their resilience of starting over and working all over again from the bottom." There was a reigning silence that spanned throughout the two teams. Then Trowa spoke up, drawing all attention to him. His face held bitterness.
"That is wrong." Relena's eyes narrowed and questioned his reasoning. His full gaze was turned on her now, sending every ounce of his disapproval straight at her. "The reason why it is wrong is because, only five make it from each blood sport to their freedom. In this particular place in the Southern Hemisphere's market, that is only fifteen. If only fifteen make it, you can't give hope to others because there isn't any hope in the first place. Lost Children are forced into their sports…"
"In some cases it should be considered a blessing," interjected Dorothy. All shocked eyes flew back to her, including Lucrezia's. All any of them had heard was Dorothy's curses put onto the children's market, but this was a sudden change and all of them were not prepared for it.
"If you think of it in another way, we all could have ended up in the slave market only meant for servitude. At least as players, we have a chance at getting out, whereas others do not."
"She does have a point," interjected Duo. Heero sent a withering look over to his teammate, but it was only shrugged off.
"I don't see what the big deal is. It really isn't our problem," stated Trowa coldly. Dorothy sighed and shook her head, as if pitying his statement. He glowered over at her and then the attention shifted back to the subject.
"That's why people don't see what I mean as often. It isn't their problem," said Relena. "If everyone said it wasn't their problem, all of us would end up losing in the games. If one player shares a problem, everyone else might as well claim the dilemma as well."
"I still don't agree with you," argued Heero.
"I didn't ask you if you agreed. I didn't even ask you for anything to begin with. All I wanted was for you to figure this out on your own." Heero looked away indifferently and the air suddenly seemed to drop to a dismal shape.
"All we're accomplishing at the moment is getting angry with one another. Some of us are ready for this new little… revelation," said Hilde. "Others are not." She sent a meaningful glance at Heero and Trowa. Trowa merely snorted and looked in a different direction. The PA system prevented her from saying anything further.
"Team 135. Team 135 come to the gate."
"That's us," stated Natria. She stood up and dusted off the loose dirt clinging to her rear and then turned and waited for the other girls, who had followed suit. Lucrezia moaned audibly and also prepared to go back out for one of those gruesome games. She didn't know how they could all stand it! She held her aching back with one of her hands, twisted back around her body as she dramatically limped her way behind the rest of the team. She was going to have to kill Zechs for this. Dorothy smirked slightly and then followed the rest of the team.
Hilde's mind was definitely not on the game at the moment. Yes, her reflexes did assist her, but her thoughts remained on the topic from earlier. It was corny, as she had stated before hand, in more ways than one, but it still made you stop and think. All her life, all she could remember was thinking of how she was going to the games and win the championships and therefore live the life like any normal person, but the concept of letting others join in on that dream never occurred to her, at least, not until Relena had said it.
In reality, Relena was right, as well as Dorothy. It was the notion of winning the games that drove her so hard, nothing else, that and freedom, but some people don't get to experience that even until their death. Some lose their hope of ever winning their freedom and don't even try. Hilde used to despise looking at the people without their hopes and dreams. That's what she had run on all of her life and that's what got her to the championships, but seeing the odds made her change the way she saw everything. What else can a person do if they know they have no chance of escaping slavery? The only thing they can do, forget their hopes and dreams. It was people like Relena and Dorothy that tried to give back those hopes.
Hilde's thoughts were jarred as the ball came flying at her, making them lose the ball momentarily. Natria shot her a confused glance at her teammate when she realized that Hilde had missed a pass and allowed their opponent to take the ball. Relena of course had seen what was happening and snatched the ball away, scoring a point for their team. Hilde blushed slightly as Dorothy sent her a questioning glare. Shrugging, as if nothing had happened, the dark haired player forced herself to concentrate on the game unfolding before them.
Natria was walking around the cage, being that once again, Wufei had been swept off to another game and found a small girl, trying to peer through the turned backs of the slaves, who were watching the games closely. She struggled to see around the bulk and unyielding backs. Natria, letting her curiosity get the better of her, walked over. The girl had to have been no more than five years of age. What on earth was she doing inside of the Cage? Natria approached as the little girl saw her and shied away for a moment. Seeing that her height over the girl intimidated her, Natria squatted down on one knee and smiled gently. The little girl tentively smiled back.
"Hello, what's your name?" asked Natria.
"Geneva," said the girl with a small voice. Natria's smile broadened.
"Well, Geneva, I was wondering what you were doing in here? Shouldn't you be on the other side of the fence?" The little girl shook her head, as if she had been asked before. Natria was slightly confused.
"No, I should be in here, that's what my mommy said."
"Your mother?" The girl nodded vigorously.
"She's playing one of the games out there right now."
"But…" Natria let a moment of a mystified silence fall, and then continued. "Who is your father?"
"My mommy said that our owner was my daddy, but he doesn't seem to want to talk to me much." Natria sighed in understanding. The little girl was the daughter of a Lost Child. She guessed that the owner had taken one of his slaves and Geneva was a result of that ownership.
"How old is your mother?"
"She just turned 20." Natria felt her gut fall out at the thought. Her mother must have been very young when… A sudden cheer from the crowds attracted Geneva's attention and she resumed her shoving to see what was going on. Finally, not able to stand it any longer, Natria pulled the little girl aside.
"Geneva, what are you doing?"
"I want to see my mommy play! I'm going to be out there some day and I want to see how it's done! Mommy won't show me yet!" Natria smiled again and then reached under her uniform to pull out a necklace, barely noticeable against the skin. She held Geneva's hand with the palm open and dropped the object in her hand. Geneva's eyes widened and she kept on looking from Natria to the jewelry resting in the small nest of flesh.
"I want you to keep this, Geneva. It's a sign of what Lost Children stand for." Geneva examined the necklace closer. There was a pendent on it and carved into the metal was a beautiful dove, flying high in the air, looking so free. Geneva's eyes filled with tears for a moment at the beauty of the small picture. "Come on; let's see if we can't get you a better seat." Natria looked around and spotted Malcolm and waved him over. Geneva's eyes widened when she saw this giant sauntering towards them. He had a gentle smile on his lips as he looked from Natria to Geneva.
"Don't worry Geneva. Malcolm may be as big as a bear, but he's as gentle as a kitten. Malcolm, I'd like you to meet Geneva. Geneva, this is Malcolm. Geneva's mother is out on the courts right now and she wants to see the game." Malcolm frowned for a brief moment.
"Are you sure that's a wise thing…"
"Trust me. It's best that she know now what Lost Children must stand for and fight against." Malcolm nodded in understanding and turned a million watt smile on Geneva.
"Well, I guess we're going to have to out shine them all." Geneva, warming to this man's face, sheepishly stepped forward as Malcolm swept her up into a big bear hug, Geneva letting out a whoop of excitement as she was placed on top of huge shoulders. Together, they made their way over to the barrier of the Cage. The people standing there, preventing Geneva from seeing parted now, like the Red Sea did for Moses. Natria watched grimly as they disappeared from sight.
Perhaps Relena was right. Maybe there was more to the game than winning. Her gaze continued to stare after Malcolm and Geneva.
