Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing, I merely write Fan Fiction about it! I also do not own the songs that I have used in this chapter, "Time After Time" From Detective Conan, Ending Theme "Like the Moon" From Love Hina.

Authors Note: Lately I have been getting back into the mood to finally complete my stories that I left dangling for so long, sorry about that to all of you who enjoyed them. Over the course of the week I'm going to be re-vamping the chapters since my writing skills have greatly improved, and finishing the stories. Also, if people could possibly review that would be awesome, I really love feedback and criticism because it helps me to improve.

Chapter 3: Getting Acquainted

Alemsa Beach

The waves crashed gently around the rocks on the beach shore. Seagulls cried in the air as they circled over head while the glare from the sun overshadowed them, casting them in shadow above the sandy beach. The blue sea glinted and twinkled like tiny diamonds off in the distance. Aika Orez stared out at the crystal blue ocean, her eyes squinting, searching for something far off in the distance. Her platinum blonde hair swayed in the wind every few seconds as the warm breeze swept over the land, the humid air swirling and creating beads of perspiration on her forehead. Aika's hands were clutched tightly at her side, her knuckles turning white from the pressure. She brought her hand up slowly to her chest and opened her fingers one by one. An aquamarine blue butterfly hair clasp glistened in her hand. Diamonds glittered around the edges of the wings woven into the intricate steel that jutted out from the sides of the small body. Aika opened the clasp on the underside of the clip and pulled her hair back. Unsteadily, she placed the clip in the back of her head, securing the large amount of silky hair and walked down the side of the rock. Walking slowly, her shoes left imprints in the wet sand. Her hands would fidget occasionally by her sides, touching the fabric of her shorts every now and then like a nervous tick. She looked up when the sand came to a halt and black tar met her feet. She raised her head and stared at the parking lot. It was empty except for the two cars that were parked side by side, one of them being her own. As she came closer she noticed someone leaning against her car door. Smirking to herself she ripped the clip out of her hair and strode over to the figure, her hair billowing as the wind picked up.

"Shitsukendayo." Aika muttered as she walked past him and pulled open one of the doors roughly to her car. She was rummaging through her gym bag that was on the seat trying to ignore the figure on the opposite side of the Porsche. He smiled and pulled down the sunglasses that had been shading his eyes from the sun. His ocher eyes shimmered as he smiled.

"Good job last night." Aika stopped momentarily and looked up, staring at the man. He grinned and leaned more comfortably on the car. His long white hair fell around his face in tufts, wrinkles evident on the skin of his forehead and neck. He appeared to be around his late fifties to sixties, give or take a few years. He was dressed in a windbreaker and black slacks, dark colors for a hot day. Aika lowered her gaze and returned her attention to the faded green duffle bag.

"Of course I would expect nothing less of perfection, although I'm not too happy that the image was actually displayed for prodding eyes. Be more careful next time, or are you trying to get yourself killed?" The man glared at Aika who had shifted suddenly so she was part way covered from his sight.

"Orders are that I'm supposed to be at the X5926 area. I don't have time for chit chat." Aika reached her hand into the small pocket of her blazer and pulled out a small set of keys. She pushed the small round button on her chain and the car's engine came to life, the gentle hum providing an interlude from the hostile conversation at hand.

"Yes, however I advise you to watch your back, security will be tight, not to mention the target is constantly surrounded at all times. It should be quite simple for someone of your stature. In and out, should only take about ten seconds, tops." He smiled ruefully and stood straight, turning his whole body to face Aika. She wasn't looking at him but rather past him when she answered him.

"Omae maji mukatsuku." Aika turned and closed the door abruptly. Walking to the driver's side of the vehicle she shrugged past him and yanked the door open, sliding in gracefully and shutting the door after she was situated. The man smiled and patted the roof of the car. Turning on his heel, he held up a hand as he walked to his own car. The red Porsche screeched and left the desolate lot, raising a cloud of dust in the wake.

Madnug High School

"Eh?! Cheater!" Nikki stomped her foot and threw down the cards on the desk. She crossed her arms over her chest and pouted like a little girl, falling back down into the metal chair. Rikku shook her head and picked the cards up to reshuffle them and deal out a new hand.

"Sorry but a flush beats two pair." Rikku gazed apologetically at Nikki although she silently was jeering at her antics. Nikki could be a sore loser at times. Natalie watched the scene unfold from the corner of the room. She didn't feel like being in close proximity if Nikki and Rikku were going to be playing cards. It never ended well. She chuckled lightly to herself and switched her gaze to the front of the room, waiting for someone of interest to come through the door. Just as she was about to move to sit down, two familiar people walked into the room. Elise and Andrea stopped mid-way in the classroom, looking around to spot either one of the girls. They had come from a different homeroom so they weren't sure exactly where Nikki or Natalie were seated. Spotting Rikku's silvery head from the crowd, she smiled and tugged Andrea after her in their direction. Nikki and Rikku had been engrossed in another round of poker when Elise's up-side down face caught Nikki's attention. She smiled as her hair fell into view and poked Nikki in her side.

"What's going on?" Nikki sighed and closed her eyes, annoyed that Elise was blocking her view of the cards she was holding in her hand. She pursed her lips and moved the curtain of blonde hair from her view. Elise corrected her stance and eyed Rikku warily, knowing full well that Nikki was in compete mode. Andrea walked around to the side of the table and sat down right in the middle, just missing the stack of discarded cards by a few inches.

"Trying to beat little Miss. Sunshine over here at a game of Poker. However if you keep obstructing my view and Andrea's big ass devours the cards, that won't happen." Nikki's temper flared as she spoke in a hushed tone. Elise frowned and Andrea flicked the cards in Nikki's hand. Catching her off guard, she dropped all five of them.

"Let's play a new game, fifty-two pick up. I'm sure you can beat her at that." Andrea retorted as she let her hand slide and drag the pile of cards behind her onto the tiled floor.

"OH YOU SHUT UP JUSTICE GIRL!" Nikki yelled at Andrea. She stood up and poked her hard in the shoulder blade. Rikku sighed and bowed her head onto the table. She really wasn't in the mood to break up another fight between the two of them.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY YOU GREASE MONKEY?" Nikki gasped as Andrea poked her back even harder. It was on now as far as Nikki was concerned. She rolled the sleeve of her blazer up and motioned for Andrea to give her best shot. It was then that Elise decided to interject before they both got out of control. Nikki and Andrea had bad tempers at times; although they were friends they had a lot of spats, ever since they were little. It wasn't until they got older that they would become more violent and prominent since learning and mastering a martial art of their choice. Drawing attention right now would not be a smart thing. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted Natalie who had started to come over knowing full well that Elise couldn't restrain both of them on her own and Rikku surely wasn't helping. She almost lost an eye the last time those two lashed out.

"Am I interrupting anything?" All heads turned to stare at the velvety voice who'd spoken. Aika Orez stood before them, an eyebrow quirked at the scene they were making. She had her backpack slung over one shoulder and her hair tied back in a butterfly clip. The top two buttons of her blazer were unfastened showing the white undershirt required by all female students to wear.

"Can we help you?" Andrea looked Aika up and down, sizing her up. Andrea and Elise both hadn't seen her yet due to their detention the previous day. Aika stared back at Andrea before she replied.

"No, you can't, but she can." Aika pointed her index finger to Natalie. Natalie looked around and then pointed to herself not understanding why Aika had wanted to talk to her of all people. This was the girl who had humiliated her in front of gym class and then proceeded to call her weak afterwards. Talk about keeping your enemies close.

"Me? Umm, what did you need?" Aika watched Natalie as she shifted under her stare. Natalie shivered internally at her piercing gaze. It wasn't that she was afraid of her; on the contrary, her features made her seem like this eloquent, poised lady. It was the intensity that startled her, it just seemed very surreal, unnatural to be coming from someone so pretty.

"I wanted to apologize for the other day. It was rude of me to say that to you after dodge ball." Natalie was taken aback. She definitely wasn't expecting an apology from Aika. It sounded sincere enough though. Thinking to herself, the accent that she spoke with seemed familiar, like she had heard someone talk with the same style before.

"It's alright, really. So you said that you were from L1, but you have a strange accent. I can't seem to place it though." Aika looked startled for a minute but recovered quickly, replacing her look to one of mild intrigue. She smiled crookedly, the corner of her mouth twisting upward.

"I am Japanese." Natalie smiled. Now she understood where she had heard something similar. Uncle Heero would speak like that occasionally, he was Japanese as well.

"That's so cool! Our Uncle is Japanese as well!" Nikki who had previously been ready to deck Andrea in the face was now all smiles as she joined in the conversation. Natalie rolled her eyes; she swore this girl was bi-polar at times. It was absurd the way she went through mood swings, you would think she was pregnant.

"Well I don't think that we've been properly introduced. I'm Natalie; this is Nikki, Rikku, Elise and Andrea." Natalie stated as she pointed to each person individually. Aika nodded in each person's direction before turning her attention back to Natalie.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Aika smiled sweetly. Nikki jumped from behind Natalie and moved so she could stand in front. This had been the opportunity she had been waiting for. Being Ms. Snoop, she had to find out more about Aika. It was like a pass time of Nikki's, she had to know every detail about each person in the school. Most people were surprised when they found out that Nikki didn't write detailed reports or keep files.

"So your parents are Japanese, that's really cool." Nikki prodded. Rikku raised her head and smacked it with the palm of her hand. Apparently we all knew where this was going. Andrea shifted uncomfortably and leaned back against the table. Elise sat on the unoccupied chair that Nikki had been in previously and watched as she worked her magic.

"I'm guessing they were. I never knew my parents." Nikki gasped and grabbed Aika's hands.

"I'm so sorry! You live by yourself? How do you survive?" Natalie groaned, sometimes they way she said things made it sound so fake! Nikki probably was sorry for her but after asking questions like that right afterward just screamed gossip time. Aika seemed reluctant to answer which piqued Nikki's interest even more.

"I was adopted when I was younger. I live alone now because the man who took me in was always busy. Hey pays for all of my expenses and drops in occasionally. Although, I have a job for my own spending money." Rikku picked her head up, curiosity now dancing in her eyes as well. Natalie would never understand, what didn't these two understand about privacy?

"So what kind of job is it?"

"I work as a helper in a garage. I work on cars and other parts that people give me to fix." Nikki smiled at Aika. She stomped her feet around in place, looking like an over excited fan girl at the news.

"My mom and dad have a garage, how cool is that?! We have something in common!" Nikki smiled to the point where her eyes had to close. Aika smiled as well at her exuberance. Andrea huffed and stared out the window.

"Thrilling." Nikki turned her head to glare at Andrea. The two of them were always at it, it seemed. Rikku and Elise chuckled.

"Hey, I've got it!" All eyes turned to look at Rikku. She was smiling and clapping her hands together. Instead of the trademark light bulb switching on, this was Rikku's way of letting people know that she had an idea. Which sometimes didn't turn out so great in the end.

"I'm having a sleepover at my place, why don't you come over Aika? I bet you and my Uncle would hit it off pretty well. Maybe you two could talk. I know you're new here as well and sometimes it sucks not really knowing anyone, so you can come over and hang out with us!" Aika looked at Rikku who was literally jumping for joy in her seat over her master plan. Nikki also seemed excited from the way she was nodding her head, like one of those bobble heads with a really big grin.

"Sure, that would be nice."