Chapter Three!



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Millardo and Noin had been there for a very long time. Relena waited for about as long as an hour--there were no clocks, so she wasn't quite sure of the time--before she absolutely couldn't stand it. Except for a nurse, who came in briefly to check on her progress, the room was uninterrupted. Deathly silence but for an occasional moment, when Noin would stifle a sob. And the look in her brother's eyes . . . that darkened look she had managed to glimpse when he had taken control of Libra . . . it was all far too much for her to handle.

To a point, she was surprised that she felt little sorrow over her actions . . . mostly just worry and fear. Heck, wasn't she dead in every sense of the word anyway? What could she do? Plus, the body lying, so still and pale on the bed, was something she simply could -not- look at.

She tried pacing, but the more she stayed in that horrible little room, the more she seemed to be driven insane. She -had- to get out.

So, that decision made, she passed by Millardo and Noin quickly, grabbing at the handle of the door. Out. Out. Anywhere, anywhere that was -out-!

She twisted the doorknob, pulling it open. . . no, wait. The door didn't open. She twists it again, yanking on the door. Nothing. Was the handle even turning?

. . .Was she trapped? A cold feeling swept over her. What if . . . what if she could never leave this room?

Movements becoming almost frantic, she pulled at the door with all her might. It couldn't be locked! What was wrong? What the Hell was--?

Abruptly, the door swung open, immediately knocking Relena back and forcing her to fall, quite undignified. She sat in stunned silence, staring up. The form of the nurse stood there.

"I'm sorry, but visiting hours are over . . ." She began, but Relena couldn't wait. With near-panic in her step she darted forward, through the open door and past the nurse's figure.

She didn't hear her own heavy footsteps as she entered the tiled hallway, but she didn't care. Obviously, it was late. One other nurse, far down the hall, stood by a cart, but Relena gave her barely a notice. Steps quick and light, she moved for the end of the hall to the elevators. They were closed, and little traffic was around the hospital at this hour. Relena jabbed at the 'down' arrow button. Out of the room was enough to relieve immediate insanity, but . . . the stress was still there, clutching her heart. She needed to be out of the hospital completely.

The light in the button hadn't turned on. Frowning, she pressed it again. Nothing. Were the elevators not working?

At that moment, she did not have the patience of mind to wait around and find out. Turning to the stairwell, she turned and walked quickly down that, not having to bother with a door as the way to the stairs was open.

She finally made it to street level. The exit to the stairs was conveniently placed apart from the main exit. A locked gate stood in front of her. She frowned at it for a moment, then took a step forward. Without much difficulty, Relena managed to lug herself up and over the bars, to land on the side walk outside.

Only now did she pause, and turn back. The wind ruffled her hair lightly. It was dark enough to see the stars, yet the vast shape of the hospital shown quite clearly. Now that she was out . . . it seemed to be a part of some horrible dream.

She turned. A few people walked along the city streets even at this hour. They huddled in their coats, breath blowing frost into the air.

Taking a step, Relena thought nothing of it . . . and suddenly the thought hit her hard enough she make her lose her balance. It was -cold-. Even huddled up in jackets, the people looked freezing.

Carefully, Relena glanced down at herself. She was clad in one of those white hospital gowns, with short sleeves and ankles bare. She didn't even have -shoes-! Yet she felt nothing. No warmth, no cold. Nothing. She felt the wind even as it teased her hair . . . but not the faintest hint of a chill crept upon her arms.

Relena shivered, and, of course, not from the cold. The utter reality of her situation was beginning to dawn on her, and she wasn't quite sure if she'd ever been as scared in her life. She really -was- just a little lost ghost, wandering around the world to find . . . something.

With sudden passion and fury, she spun around to scream at the sky. "I didn't want this! I didn't want this at all! I wanted a way out, Damn you! Let me go! LET ME OUT!"

The stars blinked. The moon laid resting, half full. And the other people of the street continued onward, noticing nothing.

Relena realized that her fists were clenched. Her eyes seemed to water, which was impossible, right? Wasn't she a ghost?

Carefully, she forced herself to relax, closing her eyes tightly. Her chest still felt tight and her wrists . . . they still throbbed. How? How was it possible to feel so much emotion and pain, yet not even feel so much as the temperature?

As suddenly as that, she realized that she had no where to go.

Where -was- she? She'd never been to the hospital before--not this one, anyway--and these road were unfamiliar, untraveled.

A solitary car road by. The wind ruffled the skimpy hospital gown, and Relena watched it pass, suddenly emotionless. She felt . . . well, she wasn't sure what she felt.

A vision of the door and the elevator button came to her. They way they hadn't moved . . . It didn't make any sense. Doors and buttons were unmovable, yet the wind she felt? No, wait. She had been knocked over by the door.

The rules of this new . . . what? Life? Form? Were utterly hidden to her. Why couldn't this be like in the movies, where she had a nice guardian angel to explain everything? To gently stand there with feathery white wings, and preach what she had done wrong, and what to do to right the actions?

Her steps began. She had no one, and nothing. She was . . . lost. Her eyes watched the ground almost distractedly. Could she cry in this form? Did she want to? She felt something clutching at her heart . . . and her wrists still pained, a constant throb to remind her of the desperation that had sent her on this path.

She walked for quite a ways. Still, street signs and such held little meaning for her. She truly had no idea where she was, or where she was going.

So, after walking aimlessly for a while, she finally sighed, stopped, and forced herself to stop and sit on a bus-stop bench. What was she searching for, anyway? A way out, most likely. She regretted doing what she'd done. Perhaps, if she had talked to someone . . . but at the time, it had seemed the only solution . . .

Her head tilted up to watch the night sky again. "I regret it." That was a mumbled admittance. "Is that what you wanted? I regret it, and if you send me back now, I'll never do it again."

Absolutely nothing.

"Please?"

Still silence. Even the winds seemed to be dead.

Relena sighed and rested back against the wooden bench. What now?

"I don't know where to go." A newspaper fluttered across the street before her, she barely noticed it. "What do you want? Just . . . give me a -little- help to figure out whatever lesson you wanted me to learn." She wasn't even sure who she was talking to. God, she supposed, if there was such a being.

Still silence, and the low rumble of an approaching vehicle.

Relena was starting to feel helplessly frustrated. How was she supposed to do anything when she didn't know what she was supposed to -do-?

She blinked when she suddenly realized the bus was pulling up. She only sat there, waiting for it to pass. Then it stopped, surprising her, letting it's doors swing open.

Relena jumped up, staring around to see if someone else was there. No one. She was the only one there.

"Well, dear?" Asked a kindly voice. Relena spun to face the person who had spoken. The bus driver? She seemed to be an older women, perhaps in her fifties, with assuring blue eyes. Relena kept staring.

A sigh from the driver. "Come on, little one. We'll take you where you need to go."

Well, obviously, this was not a normal bus. After all, no one -else- had seen her. So, all confused and cautious, Relena stepped forward, and then unto the steps. It was only after she had gotten completely in when she winced, feeling at her gown, although she knew it was pointless.

"I don't have any money . ." She admitted, in an apologetic tone.

The lady smiled and chuckled, reaching forward to close the bus doors. "Don't you worry about that, Dear. Just take a seat."

Relena blinked at her, but had little time as the bus jumped into motion. Stumbling, Relena nearly feel backwards and into the nearest seat. She watched the front window in stunned silence for a moment, before earning courage and turning to stare at the back of the bus. It was strangely empty; there were only three other passengers besides herself. One, a man probably in his mid-30's, with a solemn face and business suit. Another, a younger girl-- perhaps 17 or so?-- who had a haunted look in her face, and clothes as if she'd just come from a party. The last, a sight that strangely made Relena's heart twist in her chest, was a young boy, not more then 10. He sat in the very back seat, knees pulled up to his chin, and a small baseball cap on his head. Motherly instinct made Relena want to go and comfort the poor child, but fear held her in her seat.

"That one has the longest ride," The driver murmured, almost sadly. Relena spun around to face her. The driver had seen where her eyes had landed last, and Relena wondered how.

"Where -are- you taking us?" She asked.

"No talking to the driver while she's driving," Came the only reply, strict enough to make Relena immediately obey.

She wasn't quite sure how long the ride lasted, and a few checks back let her know that none of the other passengers had niether changed their positions or expressions. It made her wonder if they were the same as her. Bodies alive, yet somehow, the spirit had escaped and was wandering.

The bus stopped once. When it did, it was in a neighborhood Relena had -never- seen before, and she wondered how far they had gone.

The girl had stood up, though she carried no baggage. Carefully, she made her way to the front of the bus, and Relena started when she saw the girl carried an empty bottle, something that had probably before contained alcohol.

"See you at the next stop," Nodded the driver, leaning over to open the doors. The girl said nothing, only turning to leave, and gave Relena her second shock-- the right side of her face was purple and bruised, a wound leading down to the collar of her shirt and probably farther down.

Even after the girl had left and bus had started up again, Relena felt very unsettled. She wondered what had happened to the girl-- party clothes and alcohol, in any case a bad combination. She realized that she did not want to know.

The next time the bus stopped, no one got up. They sat there for a few moments, and though Relena twisted around to check, neither the business man nor the child moved. So Relena turned to face the driver questioningly.

"Your stop." Only two words, and then the driver had opened the doors again. Relena sat, saying nothing. The driver sighed, sounding sympathetic.

"Now, come on-- everyone has their stops. Don't be afraid, dear, because this is supposed to happen. Now scoot."

Relena stood slowly, walking uncertainly towards the steps. Where were they, anyway? She turned to the driver again.

"If you could just explain--"

But the driver cut her off, waving her hands impatiently if not gently. Relena sighed and got off.

One step off the bus and Relena was shocked again. The grass and the buildings . . . a road before that curved too perfectly upward . . . She spun around, eyes wide.

"But we're on a colo--!"

The bus was off, driving down the road. Relena stared after it, eyes wide. Suddenly, she was scared. More scared then before. They had literally driven off of the earth and to a colony without any space shuttle whatsoever.

This was . . .! . . . Or was anything impossible, now?

Her shaken mind finally began to register the buildings before her. Wait, wait. She knew this colony, didn't see? Yes! She had been here before, many times. Or, at least, she had been here when she'd had her body.

Wasn't this Quatre Winner's colony?