*Note: The candidates and repairers are around the age of fifteen in this story.

Partner or Lover? Chapter 3: Plan of Action

(Rewritten: 1/14/04)


Along with the rest of the candidates and repairers, Kizna and Zero headed out towards the mess hall for lunch.



"Kizna, let go of my ear!!" screamed Zero, as he was dragged to the mess hall.



"Ok, ok, just quit complaining about your stomach." Sighed Kizna. Zero had been complaining about his stomach ever since they had left the pro-ing hanger and Kizna took it upon herself to make sure Zero wasn't out of line, explaining the pulling-on-the-ear.  The group of nine teenagers walked into the mess hall and found a table to sit at.



"Ok you guys. Put the plan in action!  If it doesn't work, then we'll just leave one by one until it's just Kizna and Zero.  That's our backup plan," said Saki, to everyone when out of earshot from Kizna and Zero. They nodded their heads, except for Yamagi who took no part in this. All the candidates- other than Hiead- and the repairers got their lunches and sat down to eat.


"I wonder where Hiead is.  I did not see him come in the mess hall for lunch." Kizna muttered to herself as she placed a piece of food in her mouth.


Zero's veins boiled at the sound of his name.  He heard Kizna perfectly well, since she was sitting right beside him.  Before pro-ing battle today, Zero and Hiead got into a fight in their room. 

Flashback

"Hey Clay! Hurry up! I don't want to be late today otherwise he might make us run around GOA like he made Hiead!" Zero said, snatching a glance in Hiead's direction. 

"Don't insult me Enna, otherwise I'll see to it that you pay for the comments that come out the big hole in your head that you call a mouth."   Hiead snarled.

Zero just mimicked him, making funny faces at Hiead.  Hiead growled and ran at Zero.  "I told you!" Hiead sharply whispered.  He grabbed Zero by the neck and rammed him into the wall.  Zero's eyes narrowed. 

"What the hell are you doing Hiead!" Zero asked as he pushed Hiead off of him. 

"I told you, don't insult me!"  Hiead growled.   Zero glared at Hiead.

"Well you don't have to get all tense about it!" Zero said.  Hiead lost his temper and let a punch loose at Zero, hitting him square in the mouth.  Zero felt a drop of blood in his mouth and grimaced. 

"You're going to pay for that Hiead!"  Zero said as he knelt down a bit, getting ready to pounce on Hiead.  Zero gave Hiead an uppercut, sending him sprawling onto the floor. 

"How dare you!" Hiead screamed. He rammed his head into Zero's chest knocking them both down to the ground.  Both boys started grabbing, twisting, and punching each other till they were satisfied.  Clay finally came out and broke up the fighting.  After that, Hiead just walked out of the room ignoring both boys.  Zero cleaned himself up and went with Clay to the battle room.

End of Flashback

"Don't mention him!!" growled Zero. Everyone looked at him wondering what happened to change his behavior so suddenly.  Only Clay knew his reason for being so angry with Hiead. 

'Guess Hiead had a bad night or something and woke up on the wrong side of the bed…' Clay thought.



"Well sorry!" said Kizna as she turned her back on Zero. Saki leaned over to Wreka and whispered to her. "It looks like it's not going to plan. What should we do?  At this rate, if we try to make them talk, it'll only make matters worse."



"Don't ask me." Wreka whispered back sharply.  "You're the one who made up the plan in the first place!" said Wreka trying to get out of this mess. Saki let out a frustrated growl and poked her fork rather harshly into her food.  She whispered, "Go to plan two," to Wreka and continued eating. 



Kizna heard a 'clang'- Saki's fork banging against her plate- and looked up, throwing a questioning glance at Saki and Wreka. Wreka decided to cover this one and shot a 'you-owe-me' glance at Saki. 

"Don't worry Kizna.  It's just some petty argument between us, that's all." Said Wreka, throwing a mean look at Saki just for show, though she silently praying that Kizna would buy the excuse. Kizna gave her a weird glance and then resumed talking to Ikhny thinking that they were just being weird.


Nobody decided to go with the plan since Zero was still fuming over Hiead and they didn't want to take the risk of him getting mad at them. 

Suddenly he brightened up. "Hey Clay! How about we go check out the goddesses today?" Clay turned and looked at Zero as if he had grown another head.


"Are you crazy? You know how much trouble we would get into if we did that?"  Clay looked incredulously at Zero.  Zero just shrugged and continued eating. Clay sighed inaudibly and just changed the topic.


"What are you guys going to do for the rest of the day?" said Clay trying to start up a conversation. Roose and Yamagi said they were going to go and have a practice battle with the pro- ings later.  That got Zero all hyped up and he said that he would come along too.

Once Clay was done eating, he turned to Saki and nodded at her- indicating that they could still go on with plan B. He gave her the signal and she told the others that the second plan was in action.


Saki and Clay got up and said their good- byes, mentioning about going to research on something. Soon they both left the mess hall. Wreka winked at Tukasa deciding that she'd be the next to leave. After about five minutes, Wreka got up and said that she was going shopping- there was a small shop in GOA where they could buy things- and dragged Ikhny and Roose out of the mess hall with her. Now there was only Zero, Kizna, Yamagi and Tukasa at the table.


After a while, Tukasa and Yamagi stood up… actually, Tukasa demanded that Yamagi stand up. "Kizna, sorry about leaving you both here, but I want to show Yamagi something I installed in his pro- ing before lunch ends because he is planning on battling Roose, so I'm taking Yamagi now.  See you guys later." said Tukasa as she and Yamagi left.


There was an uncomfortable silence that settled over the table and neither Zero nor Kizna knew what to say. "Um… So…" Kizna tried to start a conversation but did not know what to say.  The two of them sat there in silence, eating their food quietly.



Outside the mess hall, six heads peeked through the mess hall doors keeping a watchful eye on the two that were sitting at the table.



"So Zero, what are you going to do all day? Because if you do not have any plans, we can work on you anti- gravity sickness." said Kizna, as she looked up from her food and looked at Zero.



"Uh, I was thinking of battling Roose or Yamagi but I guess that is later on in the evening so I am free until then, but I really don't feel like going into space today." Zero glanced up at Kizna. "Ok?"



Kizna saw Zero look up and she ended up looking straight into his eyes.  They were captivating blue eyes and she couldn't pull her eyes away from his.  She heard him murmur something on the lines of a question to her, but she was so captivated with his eyes, that she totally missed what Zero said.


"Kizna? Are you still here?" said Zero waving a hand in front of her face breaking her trance.

"Huh?"


"I said, I don't feel like going to space today so I'd rather just hang out inside." Said Zero as he gave her a weird look. "Are you feeling OK Kizna?  You zoned out for a few minutes."



By now, Kizna was staring at the table too embarrassed to look up at Zero.  "I'm fine.  Just forget whatever happened."  Zero shrugged his shoulders and continued eating.  He cleaned up his plate and threw it into the trash.



After watching her eat for a few minutes he said "Come on Kizna, everyone is busy and you are the only one who can keep me company, so hurry up." 

He took a seat across from her and rested his head in his hands. Kizna heard Zero asking her to eat faster so she shoveled down her meal, threw the plate in the trash, and got up.



"All right, where are we headed to Zero?" Kizna said as she followed the brown haired boy out of the mess hall.  The six heads waiting outside the mess hall noticed Zero and Kizna coming out and they scrambled to their feet and went in different directions making sure that Zero and Kizna couldn't find them.

 

"Hey Zero I got an idea! How about going shopping? You know the store where they sell all those dresses and other accessories? We can go there," said Kizna turning towards Zero to see his reaction.


"Are you crazy?" screamed Zero as he stared at her in disbelief. Suddenly Kizna started cracking up, her face turning red from the lack of air.  "HAHA… Zero you should have seen your face it was so funny!"  Kizna took a look at his face and saw his eyes filled with anger.  "Sorry.  Well I'm not a person for shopping so you can forget about that. I just wanted to see your reaction…" said Kizna as she burst out in a fit of giggles.


"Hey! It's not funny.  Me and shopping do not go together." He said growling.

"It's shopping and I, Zero." Corrected Kizna.

"Whatever… Let's get out of here."  Zero led the way to the recreation room as Kizna followed him there.


They both entered the recreation room and sat down under a tree that was near by.  An uncomfortable silence settled in between the two teenagers.  "So, Zero…" started Kizna trying to make a conversation.


"Hey, Kizna," Zero said suddenly, looking off into the distance.  "I was wondering, you never talk much about your past. Like when you came to G.O.A, and how it was back home for you." Kizna got silent at the mention of this. But, Zero didn't take notice of this and kept on talking. Kizna looked towards the ground, her eyes narrowed, and shining with tears. 


"Kizna? A-are you ok?" asked Zero, finally taking a look at Kizna only to find out that she was about to cry.


"I'm fine Zero." Said Kizna sharply, pulling back that tears that were threatening to fall. Zero didn't believe her.


"Is it something I said?" Zero asked tentatively.  "If it is I didn't mean it."  He said with a sad smile on his face.

"It's okay Zero. I just don't like to remember about my past… it's not exactly what you would call cheerful…" Kizna said, carefully picking out her words so she will not give away too much information.  She knew she would end up telling Zero about her past sometime or another, but she was not ready to tell him just yet. 

Zero just looked down and mumbled an apology under his breath, but Kizna did not hear him. 

All of a sudden, Zero felt a pounding on his back and his head shot up towards her.  He gave her a questioning glance and she answered, "It's okay.  I don't like dwelling on the past that much anyways. It is the future that I care about!" said Kizna as she gave him a thumbs-up.


Zero blinked a few times.  'What's with this girl? First she's mad at me in the mess hall, then she's about to cry, now she's hyper!!' He thought to himself, counting off with his fingers.  He sat upright and gave her a weird look.


"What? Something wrong?"  Kizna asked after looking at his weird look.

"Um, it's nothing Kizna.  It's just...how do I put this?" asked Zero scratching the back of his head. "How can you be sad one minute, and cheery the next?" asked Zero in wonder. 



"Well, it's not good to be dwelling on one thing for too long. Makes your brain hurt." Kizna said giggling as she lay down on her back looking up at the top of the room.


Zero just stared at her as if she were crazy. "So much for an answer… I ask her a question, she gives me a cryptic message."  Zero muttered under his breath.  ' But that's what I love about her. She's funny and smart too.  She's always free, and looking towards the future.' Zero thought, a smile on his face.  After a minute of dwelling on Kizna, reality finally hit.  'What the hell was I thinking about??? This is Kizna here!' Zero thought, yelling at himself mentally. 


Kizna glanced over at Zero and saw that he was making funny faces and his eyes were really big. "Zero, is anything the matter?"


"Huh? Oh… nothing's wrong. I was just thinking about something that's all," said Zero as his face turned pink.  Kizna raised an eyebrow at him and giggled. 

'He looks cute when he blushes.' She thought as her face was painted in a slight hue of pink. She glanced over to Zero and caught him looking at her and both turned away instantly.


----



Everyone ran in different directions as they saw Zero and Kizna exit the mess hall. After five minutes - when they thought it was safe for them to come out- Clay, Saki, Ikhny, Wreka, Tukasa, Roose and Yamagi saw Zero and Kizna head out for the recreation room. The seven who were spying decided to follow them there.



Saki peeked through the door to see what was going on. She felt a sharp pain in her back and turned around to see what caused it.  "Hey!! Wreka, get your elbow out of my back!" hissed Saki, trying not to give away their cover.

Everyone was crammed up near the door to see what was happening in the room. They saw Kizna lay down and Zero's face turn red. At that point, Yamagi burst into laughter when he finally got a glimpse at Zero's face.


"Shhhhh!!" everyone whispered as Tukasa grabbed his mouth in an attempt to shut him up. They continued to watch the scene unfold before them, but unfortunately, they couldn't hear what was being said.


----


"Hey Zero, it's just a theory, but do you really think that the others had things to do? They all looked a bit too excited to leave if you ask me." Said Kizna, finally getting her nerve back to look at Zero.  



"Uhhh… the guys were acting funny today." Zero said just to agree with Kizna.  He did not want to get onto Kizna's

bad side right now.  He thought about what she said for a few minutes and realized that she might be on to something.   "You know, now that I think about it, you might be right."  Said Zero standing up.


Kizna pulled him back down a little too roughly. "And where do you think your going? If they know that we are onto them, then they'll deny it." Kizna frowned, then got an evil look in her eyes. "We can go with their plans for right now, if my theory is right that they do have a plan of some kind, and we'll get them back for it later." She said grinning.


Zero stared at her, wondering if it is safe to be near her when she is concocting a plan.  "They just left us together and went off on their own." Said Zero as too he tried figuring out what was going on.


Kizna had an inkling that they were trying to get her and Zero together, but she thought that would never happen. Especially if the other person is Zero.  But the more she thought about it, the more she came to believe that it was really the other's plan to set them up.  She thought of telling Zero, but immediately refused because if there was any chance of her and Zero being together, then that would ruin all her chances.



Then a thought struck her. 'Why am I thinking of all these things? Do I even care for Zero in that way? He's JUST my partner right?  Sure I love him and feel attracted to him in more than a friendly manner, but is that love?' She stared off into the distance until Zero brought her back down to earth… err… G.O.A.

"Hey, you've been zoned out for at least five minutes.  What's been on your mind?" Zero asked.



"Oh, nothing much.  Hey Zero, I'm going to close my eyes for a bit. Can you wake me up in fifteen minutes?"  Zero nodded.  He saw Kizna slowly shut her eyes, falling into a light slumber…or so he thought.



Those same thoughts about love came back into Kizna's head as she closed her eyes. 'Does Zero care about me? And the feelings I have for him, are they really love? Or is it my stupid hormones?  How will I ever know if he likes me or not?' thought Kizna as she tried to sort out her feelings. After going through a ton of emotions and trying to figure out her feelings, she finally realized that she truly loved Zero. Now all she had to figure out is whether Zero loves her. She realized that it was Zero she was talking about and he was not exactly the brightest bulb on GOA.  'Guess I'll have to wait a bit longer for him.'

Zero couldn't stop his eyes from trailing over Kizna even though he knew it was wrong.  It was like his eyes were drawn towards Kizna and he could do nothing about it.  'She looks so peaceful.' He noticed as he stared at her facial features, from her ears to her hair and to her reddish lips.

His eyes dimmed a bit and he kept his eyes poised on her lips.  He unknowingly started to lean downwards, closer to Kizna than he meant to be. Millions of emotions started running through his head.


His face slowly neared Kizna's as he felt her soft breath on his face.



Outside, the group of seven was watching expectantly, hoping Zero would kiss Kizna. "Come on, you're so close!" Saki murmured under her breath.  Some of their faces started turning blue from holding their breath for too long, the tension climbing.   


Zero had no clue what he was doing, but he knew it was right. It was what he wanted and in his mind, there was only one emotion really standing out to him in the midst of all this. 'Is this what love feels like?' thought Zero as he closed his eyes and leaned in a bit closer preparing to kiss Kizna. 


Kizna suddenly felt someone breathing really close to her. She cracked her eyes open slightly and was shocked to see Zero leaning over her, his eyes closed and inches away from kissing her. Kizna frowned and her eyes narrowed.  She felt like she was being watched from somewhere and didn't seem so comfortable all of a sudden. 

She leaned in a bit closer, her lips brushing past Zero's cheek accidentally as she whispered in to his ear, "Zero, I think someone's watching us." 

She giggled when Zero's eyes shot open and he backed away about a good ten feet.


"I- I-…Kizna…I'm so sorry.  I don't know what I was thinking."  Kizna silently chuckled to herself as she saw the look on Zero's face.


"Zero it's ok."  She blushed and said, "I actually wouldn't have minded if you kissed me actually." She looked over at Zero for a reaction, wondering if he actually loved her or just got carried away with the moment.


"I -I -" Zero just sat there, his face turning beet red as he stuttered. Kizna smiled and crawled over to him. 'I guess the only way for me to get it out of him, whether he likes me or not is by giving him a little push. Sheesh do I have to do everything for him?'


"What happened back there Zero?" Kizna asked, hoping she would get the answer she wanted.


"Um…I really don't know… It was as if a surge of emotions took over me and, and…I do not know," Zero whined.  "I wasn't myself.  But, I know… I felt a strong connection towards you…" Said Zero as he just stared at the ground, face turning pink.  He was sure Kizna probably thought he was crazy by now. 

Kizna smiled. It was as she expected.  Zero did care for her, even though she was not sure if it was love, she knew that Zero liked her on a level more than friendship.


"You know, I care for you too Zero…" Almost as an after thought, she added, "More than a friend would."


By this time, the others outside were pissed that their plan did not go accordingly, but little did they know that it was working. Since they could not hear what those two were talking about, they could only tell by the actions they did.  Saki sighed in frustration. "We were so close! Oh well, I guess we'll have to continue on tomorrow." She said as she turned and continued watching the two in the recreation room.


"Hey, Zero. I have a feeling that someone's watching us." Said Kizna as she turned to face the doors that led out of the room. As she was doing so, she spotted a red, brown and purple blur in front of the door one second and gone the next.

Kizna's eyes narrowed and her eyebrows furrowed as she stared at the door for a few more minutes. Her theory was conformed. Their friends were setting Zero and her up, but she would not tell the others that she knew of their plans, especially Zero.  That would just ruin everything…


"Hey Zero, after dinner today can you meet me back here fifteen minutes before lights out? I need to tell you something," said Kizna as she turned to go.


As she made her way to the doors where Zero and herself entered, she felt a hand grab her arm softly and pull her back. She turned around only to meet two bright blue eyes that were staring at her with an emotion that she never thought Zero was capable of having towards her.


"Zero…" she whispered as she stared back at him, waiting for him to say something.  Zero broke the gaze, knowing that his emotions would come back and take over him if he stared at her any longer, getting hypnotized by her cat- like eyes.

"Kizna, I- I… oh forget it.  I'll tell you when I see you here later today." said Zero, as he tried to figure out how to tell Kizna that he loved her… or did he?  Kizna smiled at Zero and softly pulled her arm out of his hold and walked towards the door.


The others peeked back into the room, hoping it was safe for them to look back in.  A few seconds later, they saw Kizna heading towards them and they all panicked and started running towards where they were supposed to be.


Kizna came out of the recreation room looking a bit confused. "I swear I heard voices out here. Or maybe it was just me." Kizna said under her breath.



"Maybe it was just you!" said a voice from behind, making Kizna a bit jumpy.



"OH! Zero it is just you. Come on, you're going to be late for your practice with Roose and Yamagi." Said Kizna noticing that Zero was back to his normal self, which relieved her.  She did not want to explain herself to Zero just yet.


Once Kizna said that, Zero smacked his forehead in remembrance and raced down the hallway towards the pro- ing hanger ready for a battle as Kizna came running behind him, yelling for him to slow down.