Title: Mirai
Rating: K+
Warnings: Unbeta-ed, some OOC-ness
Genre: General
Main Character(s): Shinn, mentions of Luna, Rey, Cagalli
Ship(s): None
Summary: You will always be a pilot. One shot.
Disclaimer: Kidou Senshi Gundam Seed, Kidou Senshi Gundam Seed Destiny, characters and places are copyright to Hajime Yate, Yoshiyuki Tomino, Sotsu Agency and Sunrise.
Author's Notes: Rather short one this time. I have deadlines looming.

This wasn't the job he wanted or liked. It wasn't even what he wanted to do at all but beggars can't be choosers and he didn't have much choice in the matter. He didn't have a wide range of experience, save for piloting a mobile suit, assembling a gun and blowing up in the face of an important figure of a country. The first time he'd went for a job interview, the manager had snidely told him that a gundam pilot belonged to the military and not in this world of peace; there was no place for him here, so he might as well leave.

He had tried several, most turning him down flat when they knew his old job had been. No one wanted a volatile former pilot, much less one who piloted one of those gundams for ZAFT. So, he had rewrote his resume, exclude out the name of the military organization he had been in and listed his previous experience as just a mobile suit pilot. If anyone asked, he would just say he had flown a mobile suit unit before, and that was all.

He was hired, briefly by a rather crotchety old man, who ran a trading store. The working period lasted less than two days, ending as soon as he fudged up the purchase orders for one of the old man's most important clients. It hadn't even been his fault; he just had never done paperwork in his entire life, not counting assignments during his academy days. How was he to know to what to fill in and where to file? Deep down, though, he knew that it was partially his own fault for not asking for help and doing it right. He had this rebellious streak in him that does the opposite of what he had been told to do. He had never been good at following orders.

He had circled nearly every available job openings on the island, went for interviews, only to be turned down flatly or given the weak excuse of, "We'll call you" by them. He gripped at his hair, giving it a vicious yank as he pushed the newspaper aside angrily. It wasn't that he was in a desperate need to work or for the money, but he needed something to do, to occupy his time. Something to give back to this place he had called home. Call it his penance, for attempting to destroy it some months back.

His eyes fell on the application forms which Rey had requested for Mwu-san to pick up from the base for him. Luna had picked the sheaf of papers from the La Fllaga home, handing it over to him silently earlier that day, her indigo eyes filled with hope and a plea for him to just consider it. She had said nothing to him about it, afterwards, leaving for her afternoon classes, telling him she would be home late.

He stared at the papers before him, at the insignia of ORB, the lion, a symbol of strength and pride. He didn't want to, really but even he knew when he had come to a standstill and was beaten. There wasn't any choice left for him, unless he wanted to remind working as a waiter or a delivery boy his entire life.

You want to give back to ORB? Then, consider it. What's the worse that could happen? Luna's voice rang in his head. This isn't who you are. You're a pilot, will always be one.

The worst could happen was he might get rejected.

Reluctantly, he drew the first page towards him, picked up the pen that had been at the table and began to fill it in.

When he went to the base to handover his filled out forms, he saw the smile on Cagalli's face and knew that his future was going to look much brighter than what he had now.

Owari.