Second Chances

Chapter 1: Shattered Glass

IMBSA: OK, this was a bit of a challenge for me to do on my own, so I enlisted the help of my good friend/"sister"/coauthor, KAHBG:cheers: Oh, this is the same girl who's helping me write "The Storyteller". I misspelled her name in that one. :GASP:

Disclaimer: "Needed elsewhere/To remind us of the shortness of our time/Tears laid for them/Tears of love tears of fear/Burry my dreams/Dig up my sorrows/Oh Lord why/The angels fall first?"

IMBSA: Enjoy!

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These ghosts I keep inside

Shards of glass in my veins

Release me from myself, release

From my duality

I face this as a soldier would

But useless is my war

"Veins of Glass" Lacuna Coil

Murrue Ramius was in a type of second mourning. She had known that Randall had had…problems that were severe enough to warrant her leaving him, but….It wasn't in her nature to be cruel. 'Mwu would've never….' She broke off, refusing to let her thoughts drift to the man she had loved with all her heart. Seeking to banish such sadness from her mind, Murrue went into the kitchen to pick up the pieces of glass that remained after Randall had smashed one of the plates. The wall was still stained and wet from when he had thrown a coffee mug at her, only to have it shatter on the wall.

As she swept the trash up, she got the strangest feeling that someone was watching her. The feeling wasn't altogether unpleasant, just a bit startling. Looking up from the dustpan, her dark eyes scanned the room quickly. Satisfied when her visual search turned up nothing, Murrue continued to clean, only to look up sharply again a few moments later. She couldn't shake the prickling feeling that ran up her spine. Unprompted, her eyes flicked to the two Earth Alliance officers' hats that were in a glass case set into a niche in the wall. One was her own, and the other, Mwu's, one of the only pieces of him she had. She often looked upon them for comfort. Whenever she laid eyes on them, and odd sense of peace and contentment seemed to wash over her.

Yet, at the same time, they filled her with a longing she'd thought had died. The sensation caught her off guard, and she returned to the dusty portion of her mind that held recollections of Mwu. His face surfaced, and a montage of tender moments flew by unbidden. She sat heavily on a kitchen chair, running her fingers slowly through her hair, then rubbing her temples in firm, quick circles. As usual, neither of these calmed her. She stood, about to head to the bathroom for an aspirin, when something outside caught her eye. She turned and peered through the thin curtains adorning the window. Noticing nothing unusual, she rebuked her overactive imagination and walked quickly to where a small white tablet waited to soothe her pounding migraine.

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Mwu pressed against the house under the window, silently cursing himself. It would do nothing good if she saw him watching her in the dead of night. She'd probably scream and run, or worse, go for a gun. Mwu had no intention of losing her again.

When he was sure she was gone—for the moment, at least—he peeked back over the sill of the window. The room that met his eyes was warm and comforting, if one disregarded the glass Murrue had been in the process of sweeping up. The lingering odor of marinara sauce hung in the air and the still-filled pot waited for the attentions of its beautiful cook.

She seemed to be getting along fine without him. That thought saddened Mwu. Of course, he wanted her to be happy, but….He also wanted her to love him.

But then he saw their hats, the ones that had been part of their Earth Alliance uniform. They sat, enclosed in glass, side by side, on display for all to see. If one sat at the table, one would have a perfect view of them. As close as he had been watching her, he had never been this close, usually content with watching her from across the road. He had never had the nerve to gaze into her house. He imagined her eating and gazing at the case.

He rested a moment longer, his fantasies driving logic to an unseen part of his mind, only to be retrieved by the rustling of the trees. He turned, stalking down the street, consoling himself with the prospect of returning the next night.

With a swirl of the tail of his coat, he was gone.

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IMBSA: Well, hope it was good. Oh and you guys don't have any complaints about the length of the chapters, do you? We know it's pretty short….Well, R & R!

REDKC: Ah yes, lil bro. Thanks, as always for the encouragement!

ShinigamiZero16: Well, we have plans for this to be a bit of a lengthy stor— :KAHBG glares at her. IMBSA turns sheepish: Well, alright, I have plans for this to be lengthy—she's just being dragged along. (KAHBG: DAMN STRAIGHT I AM!) Anyway, we will explain how he was revived a little later on in the story.

Yami Tenshi Neko-Chan:blushes: You really think so? Well, here's the update….De nada?.?

Lady Une-chan a.k.a. Mirai: YAY! Well, I hope you like this one.

bondfan: Words cannot express how honored we are to receive praise from you. You are one of our (many) favorite authors! I'm addicted to your "A Story of Heroes" and KAHBG is getting there….Slowly….:tosses glare in KAHBG's general direction: But thanks for reviewing!

Read and Gold Phoenix: YAY! Another one of my fave authors! Huzzah! I whole-heartedly agree, which is why he was doing that. He's been killed and then he all of a sudden reappears and Murrue takes him back and every thing's fine and dandy? I think NOT:ala the psychotic teacher in the Incredibles movie: Thanks for the review! (P.S. YOU update She is the Angel in Archangel!)

Wander Cat: No problem, Wandering Cat! I wanted to write a good multi-chaptered MwuxMurrue fanfic, but, 1) didn't know what you guys wanted and, 2), didn't know if I would do a good job. But I'm sure you write well yourself. Thanks for the feedback about the wounds. I hate that too. Byes!