Title: A Little Too Late

Author: Jusrecht

See Disclaimer and Warnings in the first chapter.

Chapter Three

Kira stepped out of his bedroom, eyes still barely open at seven in the morning, and was greeted with the sight of Athrun pacing to and fro in his living room, shouting to his cell phone.

"That's not what I said two days ago! Three containers of grains! Who said anything about cranes? Draught and famine is striking New Heliopolis and who knows how many lives have been lost owing to your stupidity! You do that before I return, Under Secretary, or I'll send you to starve with them for the rest of your life!" A deafening pause, then, "No! That's not for you to decide! Ask Meyrin if–"

Mind still under the spell of sleep, Athrun's tirade was only absentmindedly registered as he went to the pantry, intent for a cup of coffee. He still had an hour to spend in complete leisure before ORB's traffic would force him to leave if he wanted to arrive at his office in time. He was adding his second teaspoonful of creamer when Athrun slammed his phone to the couch.

"A bunch of imbeciles," his friend muttered, fury and impatience lining every word.

"Exploding in the morning is bad for your blood pressure you know," Kira put in a comment and went to fetch hot water, completely ignoring Athrun's murderous glare.

"If you were in my place, I think you would already have a heart attack," the younger man retorted, and then returned to his rant, "I have stated my instruction to them, carefully, word-by-word, and God only knows how it still can go wrong. Cranes! Why would a full-built colony need three containers of cranes? There is something wrong with his common sense. And why didn't Meyrin mention anything to me?"

Pouring hot water to his cup, Kira sent a sidelong look from the corner of his eyes. "Maybe you need to return for a while."

"No."

He sighed. "Listen, Athrun–"

"No, you listen, Kira," Athrun cut him off, emerald eyes glowing with serious stubbornness. "I'm not leaving ORB at least not until the day after tomorrow, and I'm not leaving you. Is that clear?"

Aware that his friend would not change his mind, Kira admitted defeat and focused on stirring his blended coffee. Across the room, Athrun was still marching back and forth, occasionally throwing nasty looks to his cell phone. Kira was in the verge of telling him that it was not the poor little mobile's fault when the navy-haired Coordinator looked up, halting his striding for a moment.

"Don't you read newspaper, Kira?"

"Yeah, but I do that in my office," Kira replied, shrugging his shoulders. "I seldom use this place, only if I have to return really late from work. You know how far my mother's house is." Noticing the deflated look in Athrun's face, he added, "I can get you one if you want to. There is a store downstairs."

"I'll get it," his friend quickly said, already advancing to the door. Before disappearing behind it, he looked back and nodded to the dining table, "I made breakfast, by the way. Which means you get to wash the dishes."

Kira's protest died halfway since Athrun had closed the door with a wide grin. Both of them hated that particular chore – and his friend must have known about it – but Kira couldn't say that he really minded it much. In fact, he had a suspicion that it was merely Athrun's effort to show that he cared without seeming too patronizing, and who was he to refuse such subtle display of affection? One thing for sure, he would never say no to his friend's homemade bagel, which he had yet to find any match anywhere in term of taste.

He was coating his fourth piece with honey when the door was opened so suddenly and Athrun's footsteps came up to him in hurry. A moment later his friend appeared, sporting an angry-anxious look on his face, crumpled newspaper in one hand. Kira was about to ask when the other man spoke first, voice strained as if there were too many emotions bottled inside.

"You don't have to think what to do with you and Cagalli anymore."

Kira raised a pair of eyebrows as Athrun tossed the newspaper to his direction. Putting down his bagel, he caught the creased paper with his other hand and unfolded it, looking straight at the headline news. That stopped his heart from beating.

Printed in big letters was the title: An Astonishing Revelation: They Are Twins

Under a large picture of he himself and Cagalli was the long article begun with the words: Kira Yamato, protector of the world peace and a war hero since C.E. 71, and Cagalli Yula Athha, the leader of the Emirate of ORB, who have just revealed their relationship to the public recently, according to several sources were apparently siblings related by blood. Following was the description of proofs like those he had received from the journalist, added with a testimony of a former assistant who had worked at the laboratory where the experiment to make the ultimate Coordinator had been conducted.

In front of him, Athrun was still muttering, "It was Inter ORB, newspaper with a high reputation. I can't imagine what is reported in less honorable paper or tabloid. How did they find out anyway? We haven't done anything that might trigger them to do something this drastic."

Kira looked up from the paper, his voice small and croaked, "Do you think Cagalli has given her answer already?"

"Impossible," his friend answered instantly, "she would have told you if she intended to do so. I'd rather say that this is a trap– wait. What's that?"

A muted noise, which sounded like a group of wilds horses were trotting towards them, chimed in the room. Kira jumped out of his chair and ran to the bedroom, shouting to his baffled friend in process, "My cells! Change the ring tone last night."

A quick 'Hello?' later and Cagalli's firm voice cruised through the receiver. "Can you put me on display?"

"One second," he replied and rushed back to the living room, phone in hand. He put it on a device set atop the television and searched around for a remote control, during which Athrun had plopped himself on the couch, ready to watch. A second later, Cagalli's face appeared on the screen, under her chin the front page of an Inter ORB was spread out widely, covering her whole body but half of her fingers and the desk.

"Nice choice of outfit," Athrun remarked, a finger scratching his chin.

Cagalli shot him a sour look and lowered the paper stiffly as if she had been posing for hours. "I take it you two have known about this then." She smoothed the paper on her desk and turned to them, "Any comment?"

"I have no idea," said Kira as he slumped into an empty couch. "What about you? Got any situation there?"

She leant back to her high-backed chair – which had never been a good sign according to their experiences – and replied gravely, "My board wants you and me to take a blood test."

They all lapsed to silence. Kira broke it a moment later, clearly in disbelief, "Why? Don't they trust you?"

"You talk as if you don't know the world of politics, Kira," Athrun sighed from across the coffee table. "They don't care if a politician is prodigious – or even godlike – as long as he or she has the slightest indication to be involved in a scandal. I won't argue if you find that world disdainful because I do too." He stopped, still scratching his chin, and then spoke up again, "Alright. How big is the possibility that they're just playing with the two of you?"

Kira offered him a grim smile. "And they wanted her to abrogate the gun law? Nil."

"They could have just tell us," Cagalli added from the screen. "In the end we still know about this and lose nothing. I don't even have to abrogate the law now that the news has leaked out."

"There is the scandal though," Kira reminded her.

"We can clear it up," she answered with a defiant look on her face. Kira was about to argue again when a small beep interrupted him. He leapt out of the couch, took a look at the screen on his cell phone, and groaned once he had read the name there

"It's my mother."

Cagalli gave him a look and started to collect her newspaper. "Well, I'll call you again later then."

"No, I'll get back to her after this," he quickly said. "Where were we?"

"Are you sure?" She was still looking uneasily at him.

"Yes, I know she's going to discuss the news. I need to think of what to say to her anyway," Kira slumped back to the couch, suppressing the hollow laugh that was floating in his throat. "So where were we?"

"The possibility of a scandal," Athrun supplied helpfully.

There was a stern, instantaneous respond from Cagalli. "It isn't a possibility. It is already a scandal."

"Point taken. So this scandal–" Another beep went off and the blue-haired Coordinator threw an exasperated look to Kira who had gotten on his feet for the second time and walked to his mobile. "I really think you should pick it up."

Instead of following his friend's advice, Kira only returned to his seat. "Nope, it's my boss. Maybe he just can't wait to fire me, so let's continue, okay?" He averted his eyes to Cagalli's waiting gaze. "How are you doing there yourself?"

"Nobody up here can fire me," she replied with a touch of pride – or something less self-centered since her smile could be only described as benign. "Only the people can."

"That's good to hear," said Kira quietly.

"Why?"

"Your people love you," he stated, feeling proud himself at the fact. "They are not going to change that only because of this piece of news."

"'This piece of news' you're talking about is pretty serious, you know?" she pointed out, the faintest hint of bitter amusement in her voice. It made Kira smile nonetheless.

"They'll be with you," was his firm but softly uttered reply, unaware that his friend was observing him from the side with a little smile on his lips. When he did though, he sent a half-hearted glare at Athrun's direction and cleared his throat, "So, how is it–"

Again, there was a ringing sound – this time not a beep – cutting him and Cagalli looked as if she was ready to terminate the communication link just on the basis of the number of interruptions it kept dealing with. Kira sighed and glowered at Athrun who was taking his cell phone out from his pocket and grinning apologetically at his two friends. "Sorry, people," he stood up from his seat, mimicking a 'go ahead' gesture at both of them, and disappeared behind the bedroom's door.

Kira stared at the closed door for a little while, suddenly feeling marginally uncomfortable with his friend's absence, but then turned back to the screen, fingers fondling with one end of his shirt. The subject that rose however, wasn't exactly what he had intended.

"He can't seem to get away from his cell phone since last night."

"I think I understand that," Cagalli said with a light smile.

Another silence settled between them – a heavy one which Kira didn't quite enjoy – and so he once again took the responsibility to break it into his hands. "So, uh, have any of them said anything yet?"

"Them?" she raised her thin eyebrows.

"Your important people, the board, anyone?"

She nodded her understanding, answering with a slight shrug, "Just that, the blood test. I've made a statement that I really had no idea of this fact before today."

"So, they take it as a mistake? That this is purely an accident on our part?"" he pressed on, his voice coming out more anxious than he intended.

Cagalli set him an uneasy gaze. "Kira, look–"

The door to the bedroom flung open and Athrun's head appeared, the cell phone still held below his ear. "Excuse me, Kira, is there any chance that that is a dual-display?" he asked, pointing at the device resting on the television.

"Yeah, why?"

Athrun was practically grinning now as he strode back into the living room. "Yzak has something to tell you both." He placed his own mobile into the slot behind Kira's and went to his previous seat. "You want to hear this, believe me."

Now the screen was split vertically into two, the sullen face of Yzak Jule appeared on the screen, clearly showing that he was not having the time of the world. His voice was no less truculent when he started, "Listen. The first and foremost, I do this only because I am interested at the difficulty and the lack of provided information I have received. Do not assume that I am willing to do this to help any of yo– hey! Are you grinning there?"

"No, not a bit," Athrun immediately put up his most neutral, innocent face while Kira was biting his own laugh back. "Please continue, Commander,"

Still glowering at his former rival, Yzak continued, "I made a research about the man whose profile you had sent me and it appears that Josh Lynkan, the reporter of Heliopolis Today, does not exist."

"I've checked that too," Cagalli spoke up quietly. "No reporter in Heliopolis Today has the name Josh Lynkan and no one matches his criteria either. He's faking his ID."

"Apparently," Yzak agreed, "but I checked a little further and found this," and produced from nowhere a black-and-white photograph which he held high for them to see. "Is this your man?"

"Yeah, that's him," Kira verified at once. "How did you find him?"

"A couple of old files and a copy of a video from a security camera in front of the Athha's residence," he explained offhandedly while Cagalli looked severely astonished. "Durk Langorn, 34 years-old, several small crime records, nothing really worth mentioning. It's sort of surprising that he can be involved in a case this big."

"Wait," Athrun suddenly interjected, "I didn't recall telling you that this man...was that man."

"Do you think I'm stupid, Representative Zala?" Yzak's glare intensified for several volts. "In ZAFT, if you are investigating someone, it will be advisable for you to obtain and memorize every single information about the subject. It is unbelievable that you have forgotten that particular policy."

Athrun grinned. "No offense, Commander,"

"Noted," the white-haired officer smiled tartly at his colleague, then returned to his report. "I sent Dearka down there and this is the result he gave me: Target is sighted in HoldMe Seaside Motel, the west coast of Onogoro Island. I'm ready to shoot him from where I am on your signal, Sir. I got it just this morning, approximately twenty minutes ago."

Athrun looked exceedingly impressed. "A very good work, Commander,"

"Thank you, Sir," was the short, sour reply.

"You have my deepest gratitude," a small, soft voice rose and Yzak turned a pair of nervous eyes to Cagalli. Kira would be willing to bet his every single money that he saw a blush on the young commander's cheek. That was for being so pale.

"Don't mention it," Yzak responded with a strained voice. "Like I said, this is also an interesting case for me."

"I bet," Athrun remarked, overlooking the death glare sent on his way and hiding his smile openly beneath another question. "How do you get the information from ORB by the way?"

Yzak fixed him a stern, fierce look. "I worked under the pact signed between ZAFT and the ORB Military. I said that we had an escaped convict who had brought with him crucial information of which we could not disclose, and of course they were 'willing' to help us. Under the pact, mind you."

"I love you, Yzak."

"Rejected," the officer said acidly and terminated the connection, leaving Athrun grinning widely to Kira.

"What do you think?" he asked Kira, ignoring the heart stabbing act his best friend was mocking, and then turned to Cagalli who was eyeing both of them in patent incredulity.

"I must review that pact."

"Oh, come on, Cagalli, that's just for this once," Kira waved his hands desperately. "You can review it later – much, much later – but what's he said again? HoldMe Seaside Motel? What kind of name is that?"

Cagalli had already risen from her seat. "I'm not complaining now. Let's get down there and see who's waiting for us."

"Does your schedule actually permit that?"

"I permit that," she answered sternly. "And I do think that a raid will be much more productive than attending a meeting which sole purpose is to discuss my choose of husband." She crumpled the newspaper into a small ball and tossed it to the paper bin Kira knew was placed strategically under the desk, still muttering, "A full-Congress meeting! And that's only because I miss something during my endless search of a spouse." She set her glare back at her friends, "So are we going or not?"

Kira shrugged. "Sounds good to me," and the communication link was off.

"You may want to wear a bulletproof vest," said Athrun as he rose from the couch.

Kira paused on his strides and turned back to face his friend, incredulity and apprehension battling on his face. "Is there any chance that the man is a hysterical lunatic?"

"No," the other Coordinator was now suppressing a smile, which Kira was unfortunately aware of. "I'm just anticipating the whole lots of reporters and mass who may be waiting for you downstairs."

"Let's get through the back door then," he said, resuming his walk to the bathroom. "Do we have a revolver?"

"ORB's C.E. 75 Personal Possessing of Gun Act article one stated that–"

"Right, I remember that," he smiled grimly to his friend, then added before closing the bathroom's door, "Which means none of us has a gun?"

"Dearka does if he's still down there," Athrun said with a patient look. "By the way, your office?"

"Forget it, I'll just give my boss a ring," Kira muttered and shut the door behind him.

"And your mother too!"

- To be continued -

Notes: Faster but also shorter than my usual standard. I can guarantee that the next chapter won't be as fast though. I'm sorry that some people seem to disagree with me about Cagalli's 'harsh' personality. That's really your problem though and I won't change her in this fanfiction. Still, thank you for reading.

For some reasons I think that I need a beta-reader. Is there anyone who can help me in this? Thank you for all who have reviewed. Hope you still enjoy this story.