Sally was good at fishing information in the beginning, because her upperclassman buddy was Wufei's lab partner the year before. He was second-year Pre-med now, so technically only one year ahead of Sally. They were in one or two classes together for that year, and the next following. The buzz around the department was that Wufei's grandfather had been a recognized politician in China, not to mention a favourite relative to Wufei. But then he died of cancer - I forget which one, it wasn't a popular topic - I just know that it could've been cured if it was caught in time.
Our general consensus of these findings determined that he switched programs in hopes that he could prevent other people from losing their grandfathers - or well-meaning politicians - to cancer. Even if we asked him now about it, it kind of wouldn't seem right - to ask, I mean. "Oh, hey Wufei, did you switch programs 'cause of your dead grandpa?" Not exactly the best way to maintain relations. But if you think about it, it says a lot about Wufei's character. I mean, he could've just gone onto following in his grandfather's footsteps and paid homage that way - I don't doubt he would've been very successful. He could probably get people to vote for the abolition of sliced bread if he put his mind to it. But instead he chose to pursue medicine, heading for a life of non-profit cancer research - targeting the cancers with no found cure. Wufei's a stand-up guy, really, with a heart of gold - though you wouldn't know it from looking at him.
Since I first saw him, to present day, his appearance has not changed for the most part: his face is generally stoic, or scowling, behind the tiniest reading spectacles imaginable, and his hair is bound so tightly that you swear you can watch as his forehead slowly bald by the millisecond from the pull. If you ever caught him with his hair down, you were subject to a wide range of pain, because it meant you were someplace you weren't supposed to be. He, too, had resided in the honours dormitory along with Heero and Trowa.
All we knew about Trowa or how to get to Trowa were mostly rumours. The only people he ever talked to, if he did talk, were in his clique. I don't think it was because he was stuck up or anything... Sometimes you find people you're comfortable with and you stick with them. Quatre and I have been together nearly our whole lives and even though we talk to other people, it eventually comes back to the two of us at some point. So when we heard that Trowa and Heero had been dorm mates since freshman year, it was no big surprise. I'd have imagined Quatre and I planning it all out the same way.
The facts about Heero and Trowa that were common knowledge were that they were both on the track team, both on academic scholarships, and both in the honours society (obviously). Heero started dating Relena in first-year right up to when I met her. So Trowa would've been around for the whole courtship and everything else. There was a long period where I was sure, beyond a shadow of a doubt - if anyone could tell me what the hell it was about Heero Yuy that was so damned attractive to Relena Peacecraft, it would've been Trowa. Granted, that was when we could get him to speak... something he still doesn't do very much, I think, out of habit.
Quatre checked in with his family and his sisters, several of which were phenomenal gossips, to filch whatever information he could about Relena, Dorothy, or Heero. Sally kept tabs on Wufei, mostly for her own intentions to get her claws into him, while Hilde jumped across the board when she could. Sometimes she would hear an interesting titbit about Relena's stepbrother roaming around the History department. I think Hilde was just into it for the 80s Gen Y nostalgia element of it. I mean, it was kind of like we made our own drama and that became our lives. Although I remember getting on Quatre's last nerve whining about Relena, or dragging him and our friends into the crazy mixed up world of the honours society - I can always look back and smile 'cause I can think to myself, 'Well, at least I'm not that young and stupid anymore.'
He also proved invaluable to our investigation with his marvellous talents for networking. Our side had the odds against us, after all. We were all first-years, so none of us were in the honours program, though we could apply for our second year. We didn't really know anybody yet, except maybe our upperclassmen buddies that administration paired us up with and each other. My upperclassman buddy was an eccentric engineering student who would only be addressed to as "S". I don't think he signed up for the buddy program for anything other than something to put in the volunteer section of his resume. It had to be a mistake, too; seeing as I'm signed up as an English student - what do I have to talk about with a guy in chemical engineering? So he wasn't much help at all. Quatre's, believe it or not, was some guy who got expelled at the last second for drug use or something... anyway, he didn't have one when we started out, though administration promised to assign him a new one before the end of term.
The girls of my St. Elmo's were infinitely luckier with buddy placement. Sally's was, as aforementioned, Wufei's ex-lab partner, Sylvia. They were affable from what I can remember, but I think Sylvia got tired of Sally pumping her for information.
Hilde's upperclassman buddy was a co-operative student who was working for course credit on campus. It turned out that she was a daughter of one of the head of the History department, though it wasn't exactly publicized anywhere. Whatever Hilde's buddy's connections could've leant our investigation - we weren't going to get any access to them. I guess when your dad is a department head - you learn to keep school and personal life separate to the nth degree. Hilde said she was glad she didn't know off the bat, 'cause she was just young and stupid enough to take advantage of the situation. They've remained close, though there was speculation in our second and third years as to how close. After all, I couldn't help but think about it after being teased with the fantasy of girl on girl action in Relena's dorms.
Trying not to let the shower scene play in my mind was rather difficult when I would be sitting next to Relena in tutorial. She used this shampoo that smelled like some kind of perfume, like lilac or lavender or something with an "l" sound. Relena also has a tendency to toss her hair over her shoulder, particularly her left one, with me sitting directly to her left. I remember being very fond of baggy pants in those days; even if it meant sweating my balls off for the sake of hiding my semi-erect penis. Because young and stupid people get aroused over young and stupid things - not to say I don't still get aroused or anything, just not over young people - or well, very young people - what I mean is, over stupid things... stupid being a very relative term, which I can argue the semantics of till kingdom come thanks to my English degree. Anyway, I'm more than well aware of the fact that I was not the only person wearing baggy pants in those days, and I doubt I was the last.
I maintain to this day that as long as there are dicks in this world, they will get hard. As long as there are short skirts, tight jeans, irrepressible hormones, and Viagra - the madness will continue, forever and ever, Amen.