The Passage of Time

Scene from my first story and regular canon happen if they are not contradicted. Also each section is timed after the collapse of the tower.

"Regular speech"

'Thought'

"Video call or voice chat"

Setsuna (Three weeks)

Setsuna's eyes shot open, sweat running down his forehead. 'It happened again.' In the past couple weeks, a combination of nightmares about Feldt dying along with memories of killing his parents had begun haunting him. He looked over to see Feldt asleep, snoring softly. A small smile crossed his face and he kissed her on the cheek, unable to resist her soft expression. He got up, needing to get some air. He knew he couldn't fall asleep right now, not after a nightmare like that. Setsuna closed his eyes tiredly, before opening them again. 'I probably look like a mess.'

He slipped on a black undershirt and his uniform pants, and headed to the cafeteria, hoping food will help him. He sighed heavily, his internal fears causing him to not want to tell Feldt about what was going on. He didn't want to worry her or have her be worried about him. They had enough to deal with at the moment. They had been attacked a couple of times out of nowhere, the enemy seemingly knowing where the Ptolemy was. 'Maybe all this stress is because of the attacks.' Setsuna's gut said that was a lie, but it was comforting.

As he entered the cafeteria, he saw Marlene sitting down at a table, sipping at a coffee in her full uniform. He remembered she was on shift, her and Sumeragi swapping off command of the bridge, especially due to the fact they were getting attacked one or twice a week at random times. He looked at her curiously and she responded by looking up back at him, clear bags under her eyes. She gestured over to him to join her, smiling tiredly, "Shouldn't you be asleep?" She yawned, badly trying to hide she was also exhausted.

Setsuna walked over, slumping down into the chair, "I could say the same about you." He sighed, "But I couldn't get much sleep."

She rolled her eyes at that, her expression showing she was not buying his lies, "Setsuna, you look just as tired as I feel. If I was that tired, I would be dead asleep right now. What's really bothering you?"

Pursing his lips, he blew so air out of them before he spoke, a frown coming to his face, "I had a nightmare." His face twisted in pain, "I just wanted to try to get it out of my head, so I thought I would distract myself."

"Well a snack is usually a decent distraction." She gave him a curious look, "What happened in it? I can't imagine what would get you looking so worried and out of it. It must be intense to get you to react like this."

Setsuna looked at the table in front of him, internally debating if he should tell her. 'Would it be good to tell someone? Marlene has lost people, including her husband.' He wrung his hands, letting out a breath, "It's been a nightmare that's been haunting me for the past couple weeks." He described the events of the nightmare that first happened to him after he had been shot, not looking Marlene in the eye, his chest weighted down by the guilt of being so weak.

Marlene just nodded along and as he finished, she gave him a sad smile, placing a hand on one of his, "I'm sorry that you have been going through that. I can see why you can't fall asleep after that."

Setsuna sputtered, "I thought you would be mad or act like you did in the nightmare. It would be my fault if Feldt got hurt."

Marlene squeezed his hand, "Setsuna, we both know Feldt chose her path. She willingly followed you into battle. She wanted to be a pilot." She had a bittersweet smile, "I can't help but be proud of her, even though I worry every time you two go out to fight." Setsuna's chest filled with warmth hearing the maternal worry in her voice. 'I'm surprised she's worried about me too.'

"But if I didn't-"

"Setsuna, she was begging to pilot before you even showed up. You know she wanted to follow in my and her father's footsteps." Her voice softened, "It's sweet you are so protective of her. But you know what she wants. As long as you two work together, both of you will be fine." She grinned with pride, "Besides, she has been doing pretty good in recent battles."

Setsuna nodded at that. For the last couple of weeks, Feldt had become the pilot of the 00 to avoid stressing Setsuna's wound. Anew had said after two months he should be clear to pilot again, so he was impatiently waiting for that. Feldt had done an admirable job filling in for him. She wasn't as good at melee as him, but he was unashamed to admit she was a better shot than him. She had seemed happier than ever, even under the circumstances. 'I suppose being able to actually pilot a Gundam is helping, on top of getting married.' Setsuna had also realized that trying to run the sensors in a fast-moving battle wasn't easy. 'She deserves credit for that. I'm never going to take her for granted in the 0 Raiser.'

Setsuna smiled warmly, "Yeah. She's a natural. It looks like the apple doesn't fall far from the tree."

"Yeah, she makes me and her father proud." Marlene gave him an even look, "Setsuna, you should tell her about these nightmares. She deserves to know. She's your partner and you can trust her." He could see Marlene looking at him like she knew this from experience.

Setsuna nodded in agreement, a knot in his chest, "You are right. I think I was just afraid to tell her. Like I didn't want to bother her about it." He gave her a curious look, "Do you still have nightmares about your husband dying?" She nodded, and he continued, "Do they ever go away?"

"It would be a lie to say that they do. But they get better, easier to deal with."

He nodded as he stood up, a grateful look on his face, "Thank you for the help."

She smiled at him, "No problem. Now get some sleep." Setsuna smiled and gave her one last nod, leaving the cafeteria.

As the raven-haired meister re-entered his room, he was caught by surprise at seeing Feldt looking up at him. She looked confused, scanning him, "Where did you go?"

Setsuna took a deep breath, "I just had to get some air." He frowned, images from the nightmares coming back to his mind.

She looked worriedly at him, sitting up in bed, only wearing a loose shirt and underwear, "Are you ok?"

Setsuna sat down next to her, leaning on her shoulder. 'Now's the time.' Just touching her caused him to relax a little as he spoke, describing the nightmare he just told Marlene about. Feldt's looked at him with worried concern, brushing a hand along his face when she saw a tear come down his cheek when he mentioned her death.

When he finished, she gave him a soft look, kissing him, "Oh Setsuna, you should have told me sooner."

He looked down at his lap, guilt ridden tone in his voice, "I'm sorry. I just felt so weak and didn't want to worry you."

Feldt placed a hand on his face, flicking his nose, "Setsuna, I'm your wife. It's my job to be worried about you." She spoke in a comforting tone, "I'm not going to die. Not when you and I fight together. That's what partners are for."

Setsuna kissed her deeply, the guilt in his chest being replaced by warmth and affection. 'Now I just feel silly not telling her.' He internally chastised himself for being so reluctant to talk to her. He smiled warmly at her, "That's right. I wouldn't want to fight alone, not anymore. I promise I won't keep my nightmares a secret from you anymore."

"And I'll tell you if I have any." She looked down at the bed, "Now let's get some rest. We never know when we'll be attacked again." He nodded and wordlessly got into bed, pulling Feldt to his chest. She snuggled up into him, humming happily as her breath became steady.

Setsuna kissed her on her forehead, "Good night." With the love of his life in his arms, he fell asleep, and no nightmares visited him that night.

Feldt (1 Month)

Feldt rested in the pilot ready room, leaning back onto the bench attached to the back wall, still in her pilot suit. They had been attacked in the middle of the sleep cycle of the ship, leaving all the pilots tired and just wanting to go back to sleep. The attack had been relatively easy to fight off, but that was beside the point. 'Can they give us one week without an attack?' The only time they had a break was the week after the Break Pillar incident, where she and Setsuna had gotten married. Ever since then, they had attacked at seemingly random times once or twice a week. So the crew was always on edge, waiting for the next attack.

She jumped when she felt something sat down next to her, and she looked over to see Tieria looking just as tired as her, frowning slightly. She just nodded at him, which he returned, "You hate all these attacks too?"

Tieria just chuckled bitterly, "I would like to get a good night's sleep before we have to fight, but it seems the A-Laws and innovators won't allow us even that."

Feldt harumphed, frustrated, "How do they keep finding us? We are keeping mostly radio silent. Messages are being tracked as they are sent out. We have checked all the systems and the hull for trackers, but we've found nothing. There is no way they should be able to find us."

"I believe that is a problem even your mother and Sumeragi are having." Tieria sighed, annoyed, "It's pretty clear we have a mole aboard the ship, but we have no way of knowing who."

Feldt looked up at the ceiling of the room, "If we didn't know Lyle's true allegiance, I would have said it was him. But we know where he stands, so he's out. And my mom would be the most paranoid about tracking any potential methods of leaking our location." The redhead had been trying to help her mom and Sumeragi about this issue, but it was becoming apparent this mystery would never be solved.

Tieria lips became a thin line, "The only thing I can think of it maybe being Anew? She was the last person to join us and this only happened after she joined. But once again, no proof that she is doing anything. So for now I'll hold off."

Feldt leaned forward, looking at Tieria, curiosity filling her voice, "Hey Tieria, are you ok with fighting innovators? I know we have been fighting them for a while and you killed one, but I wanted to make sure you were feeling ok."

Tieria smiled warmly at her, causing Feldt to smile warmly back at him. His voice was lighter as he spoke, "Nice distraction." He then frowned, and Feldt could read the conflict in his face, "I won't say that I have a real issue with killing them. It's the same as you guys being able to kill other humans. And the innovators have done something with Aeolia's plan and we need to stop them. No one else can." He took a breath, looking down at his lap.

The purple-haired meister's voice was tense as he continued, "But I find it hurts to see my kind doing this. I can't say I know our exact role, but I'm certain we aren't supposed to be ruling over humanity. Why would Aeolia put someone who isn't human in charge of Veda? All the info we have on him suggests he was a humanitarian, if on a big picture scale."

Feldt smiled at him, putting a hand on his shoulder, "What do you think innovators should be doing?" Tieria had always been dedicated to the plan of Celestial Being, so she wondered if Tieria thought this was in line with the original plan.

"Ever since I opened up, I learned more and more what it is to be human. Don't know if I ever will fully be like one, but trying to oppress and control humanity just creates more issues, based on what I have learned." He smiled at her, "You humans are very unpredictable. If a small group like the crew is like that, the rest of the world is no different. I just want humanity to follow their own path, with us helping at their side. That's what the innovators should be doing."

Feldt grabbed one of Tieria's hands, squeezing it, "I would love if us and the innovators could get along. You are a great example. I wouldn't be the same if you hadn't helped me out of my funk. And for all of the attitude you had back then, you cared about the plan and helping humanity."

Tieria blushed as he looked back up, "Admittedly, I was more focused on the plan part than the humanity part, but now I can see both sides of the issue."

She gave him a teasing smile, "I did hear your whole speech to that enemy innovator. 'I am a human!', huh?"

Tieria laughed, clearly embarrassed. The laugh filled her chest with warmth, happy to see Tieria relaxed. Tieria looked away, and the redhead could tell he was trying to hide his expression, "I was feeling a bit dramatic. I probably picked up a few habits from you guys."

Feldt rolled her eyes, "Mr. 'You deserve ten thousand deaths'? Got drama from us?"

"I didn't say that all of it came from you guys." Tieria squeezed their still linked hands, "But thanks for the talk. I think that both of us needed this." He then smirked at her, "Also didn't you marry Mr. 'I am a Gundam'?"

"He's not that bad." Feldt blushed, embarrassed as she laughed. Feldt then nodded, "Now let's both get some rest. I can feel the bags under my eyes." The pair let go of their linked hands and stood up, ready to get more rest. 'A little stress relief would also be good. Thank god I have a very…active husband.'

Marlene (1 Month)

Marlene strolled through the halls. It had been a few days since the last attack and the blonde had finally relaxed, her paranoia still there but pushed to the back of her mind. She knew there would probably be an attack in a couple days at a minimum, so it might be a good idea to get a feeling for the morale of the crew. She suddenly winced, a spark of pain going through her. 'Well at least Saji took my place on the bridge. That's less stress on me.'

Opening the door to the small gym on the ship, she spotted Soma in workout gear pushing herself hard on the treadmill, sweat pouring from all over her body. 'She's been pushing herself too much. I know she's grieving, but this isn't healthy.' Marlene casually strolled in and glanced at the speed setting on her machine. 'Geez. But I guess super soldiers do have more endurance and capabilities than the rest of us.' Soma's voice rung out in the room, a hard edge to her tone, "Can I help you?"

Marlene sighed reluctantly, "Just checking up on the crew." Marlene bit her lip, worry going through her looking at the tense body language of the white-haired super soldier, "Soma, you know what you are doing isn't helping. Killing Andrei in revenge will not help with anything." Marlene wanted to cut right to chase.

Marlene heard the sound of the treadmill slowing down and stopping, and Soma got off, turning to face the blonde woman. Marlene could almost sense the frustration, grief and anger that was just below the surface as Soma narrowed her eyes at her, "I would think you would be happy that I am fighting. Weren't you the one who told Marie she was supposed to be useful?" She swept her arms out wide, "Well now you have another pilot! Shouldn't you be happy?!"

Marlene looked away, the building storm from Soma causing the Celestial Being commander to flinch slightly. Soma wasn't completely wrong. She did tell Marie that, but it seemed those words were biting her in the ass right now. Having another pilot to fight the A-Laws was a boon. Soma was a good soldier and a skilled pilot, and Marlene wouldn't lie and say that she hadn't been useful in this last month. 'If only it didn't happen in this way.'

The distance between Allelujah and Soma, who had seemingly taken over from Marie, was clearly something that had hit Allelujah hard. He had been more detached from the crew since then, still friendly, but not really interacting as much with the rest of the crew. Marlene's heart could only clench seeing him like that. 'I would be the same if something like that had happened to Ruido.'

Marlene steeled herself as she responded, "I don't need a suicidal pilot, one so focused on revenge it can be a distraction." Marlene narrowed her eyes, "What would you do if you saw him? Would you be able to follow orders if I told you to not engage him? Or would you ignore those?"

Soma's lips became a thin line, "You would tell me not to go after him? The man who killed my father?!"

Marlene's tone softened, "I need a living pilot. Do you think that people won't miss you? That your father would want you to throw your life away trying to avenge him?"

Soma scoffed, "I don't think many people on the crew like me. It's Marie they miss. Allelujah keeps calling me Marie, like I'm not a person. So who would care if I died? I only had Sergei." The blonde can see Soma's fist shaking, not in anger, but in fear and loss.

Marlene walked up, putting a hand on her shoulder, "I can agree that is not fair. You are a person the same she is. And don't you think Marie wouldn't want you to throw away your life? Not only would dying kill you, it would kill her as well."

"Didn't you just say I am my own person?" A tear rolled down Soma's cheeks, which she quickly wiped away, but some of the anger had dissipated, leaving just frustration, "So what should I do? All I have to keep me going is avenging him."

Marlene chuckled sadly, "I don't know exactly. But you need to find something to live for, to fight for after all of this is over. Try to make friends with people on the ship. Let them get to know you. As a mother, I wouldn't want my daughter to keep risking her life trying to avenge me. I would want her to live a happy life." She then shifted to a serious expression, "You should talk to Allelujah, tell him how you feel. He's suffering too, even if he is hurting you in the process. Make it clear with him." Marlene sighed, "And I'm sorry for saying about Marie dying with you. It's just that both you and Allelujah both have more to lose than just yourselves and that is worth considering."

Soma bit her lip, her yellow eyes hardening like a stone, "That is a whole lot of nothing you just gave me." Marlene could still see the fire of revenge burning in her eyes. Marlene frowned at the response, the fact that she couldn't get through to her bothering her.

Soma nodded at her, "I guess I'm just going to get take a shower and relax. I need to think on things." Soma began to walk away, Marlene following her with her eyes. Halfway to the door, Soma turned around and spoke, her voice still hardened, "Every time before we are attacked, I feel quantum brainwaves hitting the ship. That maybe why we are being tracked."

Marlene's eyes widened at the realization, that never having been a thought. 'That certainly would get around our normal tracking. But who would have access to that?' Marlene spoke appreciatively, "Thank you for the information."

"No problem." With that, Soma left the room, still tense, and probably more confused. 'I hope things go well with them. Having four personalities between two people must be rough.' Marlene staying in the room for a minute or two, then exited, heading back to her room.

As she rounded a T-Junction, she was caught by surprise at the sight in front of her. Anew and Lyle were floating in the hallway right in front of her door, both of them only in their uniform pants and black shirts. The pair was pulling out of a kiss, both of them smiling warmly at each other. 'Wait, when did this happen? I know I saw them being friendly at the wedding, but when did they get this close?'

She hid behind the corner peeking around the corner. She caught some of the words from Lyle as the kiss ended, his tone teasing, "C'mon babe, you know we don't have to keep it secret."

Anew rolled her eyes, "I just want to keep it secret for now while we figure this all out." Marlene found it strange that Anew said this, when they had a married couple and another couple on the ship, along with the fact another married man and his daughter was on the ship.

Lyle sighed, clearly annoyed, "I'm certain they would be happy for both of us."

"Lyle…"

"Yeah, yeah. I just want to be able to make out with you in public."

Anew blushed and Marlene rolled her eyes. 'Why am I not surprised Lyle is like that?' The couple kissed one more time and Marlene could not make out what the two said before Lyle took his leave. Anew closed the door behind herself and Marlene was left in the hallway alone. 'What did I just see?'

There was a twinge of annoyance inside Marlene at this. It was private, yes, but not knowing about a relationship might cause issues to happen. They weren't a military, but secret relationships were not encouraged under her command. 'I'll need to think about this.' As she thought about it, the unsettling feeling about Anew came back, which did not make this any better.

Feldt (2 Months)

Feldt sat in her and Setsuna's room next to Mileina, who had mentioned that she wanted to talk to the redhead. Mileina sat nervously on the bed, which is very unlike her. 'I wonder what has her like this?' The brunette was silent, looking at her feet, very much looking like Feldt did when she was Mileina's age.

Feldt decided to break the awkward silence, "So, how has the bridge been? I heard Saji is getting the hang of it."

Mileina perked up, "Oh yeah! He's doing a great job. He even has a hard time tell me no! Did you know he has a pretty girlfriend?"

Feldt sighed, knowing Mileina would definitely take advantage of that, "Setsuna told me, yes. And do you really need to pester him? You know that's not fair."

Mileina pouted, "But it's so much fun!" She crossed her arms across her chest, puffing out her cheeks, "I don't go too far. Just get some fun stories and maybe cover some of my shifts."

"Mileina!" Feldt really should have warned Saji about her. 'I'll talk to mom about this if this goes further.' She remembered Christina doing it a few times with Lichty. She smiled slightly at the memory.

Mileina huffed, "He said he was ok with it!"

Feldt rolled her eyes, "Of course he did. He is a polite person that doesn't want to step on anyone's toes. Can you please stop doing it as much? At least on the shift thing." Feldt did cover some of Christina's shifts back in the day, but usually that was reciprocal. 'I get the feeling it's kind of a one-way street.'

Mileina looked back down at the ground, guilt crossing her features, "Ok. I just wanted to have some fun and relax."

Feldt chuckled, "Thanks. We all need to be in top shape right now. We can't afford to have people tired." Mileina nodded and Feldt gave her a kind smile.

Mileina looked at Feldt, "When did you change your hair?" Feldt ran a hand through her hair, blushing at Mileina's observation. Since getting married, Feldt had debated changing her hairstyle, finally she decided to get rid of the ponytail, and instead had a tight bun near the top of the back of her head. Her bangs hung like normal, but now most of her hair was above her neck, instead of hanging down. This hair would be easier to fit in her helmet and Christina would probably approve of her changing up her hair. 'I wish that you could have been here to see all of this. And I'm happy Setsuna has gotten better cutting hair.'

"Today actually. Thought I might change it up."

Mileina chirped happily, "It looks good on you! Does Setsuna know?"

"He helped me with it this morning actually, so yeah. He said I look hot in it." She decided to change the topic before Mileina fell into a rabbit hole, "Now what did you want to talk to me about?"

The teenager once balled her fists on her knees, nervousness overtaking her again, "So you know how you and Mr. Seiei had your whole thing four years ago?" Feldt nodded, not knowing where this was going, but she assumed Mileina meant her and Setsuna slowly getting together. Mileina continued, "So when you realized you liked Setsuna…you know…romantically, what did you do?"

Feldt's eyes widened, her cheeks warm at the mention of that. 'That was certainly a fun day, if kind of awkward. And it's clear Mileina has a crush if she's bringing this up, but who?' Feldt let out a breath, then answered Mileina, "Well, I was about your age, but when I realized I liked him, I didn't act right away. Neither Setsuna or I were really ready at that time. I also didn't want to pressure Setsuna about it, as he was my best friend at the time. And still is." Feldt smiled, more color coming to her face, "I probably could have done something earlier, but I don't regret not telling him." She smiled teasingly at the girl, "So who do you have a crush on?"

Mileina wiggled in place and Feldt could tell the girl was blushing bright red. 'It feels so strange to be in the position that Christina was in four years ago.' Feldt smiled warmly at the thought. 'I'll be the help for Mileina that Christina was for me.' Mileina swallowed and spoke nervously, looking up at Feldt's eyes, "Mr. Erde."

Feldt looked at Mileina, flabbergasted. Of all the people she could have said, Tieria was not up there on the list. Granted it's not like she has any really appropriate options for her age, but Tieria is probably the furthest away from being available. Feldt chuckled, smiling at Mileina, "How long have you had a crush on him?"

Mileina crossed her arms, "You are making fun of me!"

"No! No! I was just surprised is all."

The brunette uncrossed her arms, a pout on her face, though her face was still red from embarrassment, "For a little bit. He's so strong, kind and reliable. He's also been really nice to me. Also he's kind of hot." A smile came to her face at the last comment, Feldt internally chuckling at her bluntness.

Feldt remembered when her feelings were so fresh and innocent. She still loved Setsuna with all her heart now, but those feelings had evolved, a simple crush and infatuation evolving into love. 'It's so strange to see and think back on. But those feelings had to start somewhere.'

"I'm so happy for you. Crushes are nice."

Mileina nodded happily, "Yep! But what should I do? Tell him my feelings? Do you think Tieria will respond to my feelings?"

The girl looked at her with hopeful eyes and Feldt was filled with guilt, her chest feeling heavier. She knew Tieria would never feel that way for her, not with the way that Neil was a part of Tieria's heart. 'Great, a conflict of interests. I never expected a talk about a crush would cause this guilt.' Feldt looked at her own lap, internally debating about what she should say. She could see Mileina looking at her nervously as the seconds past.

"Feldt?"

Feldt took a deep breath, "Well Setsuna and I slowly got to know each other, so I would say to try to connect with him. Long term relationships aren't built in a day." Feldt frowned, "But not all crushes are reciprocated. Sometimes it's one-sided. It happens and I consider myself lucky I avoided that."

Mileina frowned, "Are you saying that Tieria will say he doesn't like me?"

Feldt thought of the words she wanted to say, not wanting to hurt the teenager, "Of course he will like you. But I can't confirm that he will like you like you want. You have to get to know him. So I wouldn't try to push for it. You are a bit young, so just stick with friends for now. It's inappropriate at your current age."

Feldt didn't want to talk about the whole Neil situation with her. Tieria trusted her and she wouldn't break that trust. If Tieria wanted to tell Mileina, then he would. She hated she couldn't be completely honest, but this is more complex than what was going on between her and Setsuna. 'There is the issue of the age gap…'

Mileina frowned, her cheerful demeanor disappearing, "I can't make my feelings disappear. I really like him." Feldt could see tears beginning to form in Mileina's eyes.

Feldt put a gentle hand on her knee, "I know. I'm not saying you can't like him. It's hard to fight your feelings, especially when you are attracted to someone. But right now, I don't think Tieria will respond to you the way you want. I will be here if you ever want to talk about this. You aren't alone."

Mileina had a bittersweet smile on her face, "…Thank you. It's just my first crush and I don't know…"

Feldt squeezed her knee, "It's alright. I'm here to help you. I'm certain you will find a person to love, who you can really connect with. You are a beautiful, smart girl and it would be a crime for you to not find someone."

Mileina hugged Feldt, holding her tight, "Thank you! Thank you!" Feldt could feel happiness from the embrace, a strange feeling of pride being able to help Mileina like Christina helped her.

Feldt ran a hand through her hair, "It's alright." Just then the door opened and Setsuna walked in, looking at the sight, confused. Feldt smiled at him, "Hey Setsuna."

He smiled back and Mileina turned to look at him, embarrassed as she left Feldt's embrace, wiping away the tears threatening to spill, "Well, I have to get to my shift, so I'll talk to you later." Feldt could tell she wanted to get out of here, this talk being a lot, so waved at Mileina as she left.

Setsuna looked at her confused, "What was that all about?"

Feldt gave him a mischievous look, "Oh, just girl talk. Not important."

"If you say so." Setsuna just shrugged his shoulders, taking off his jacket and uniform top.

Feldt's expression shifted to a coy look, "Say Setsuna, we have some free time, right?"

He looked at her curiously, "Yes…"

Feldt shrugged off her own jacket, swaying her hips as she strode towards her husband, "Well I was thinking we could…relax."

Setsuna immediately caught onto her tone, and gave her a coy smile in response, "Who am I to deny my wife?" He pulled her into a deep kiss, crushing their chest together as she fell back on the bed. 'I hope my mom doesn't need me for a while. We'll be a little busy.'

As Setsuna pressed her into the bed, his weight on top of her lighting a fire in her, his tongue in her mouth, he pulled out of the kiss and blew on her ear, whispering, "Anew said my shoulder is all good." She could see a smirk in the corner of his mouth, and him blowing on her ear caused her to shiver with anticipation, "I promised I would ravish you when it was better…"

Her face was red as she smirked back at him, "They why don't you show me what you've been wanting to do~" He began to kiss her neck, pressing her hands above her head, the redhead moaning airily. The last coherent thought she had for a while came rushing through her head. 'This is exactly what I needed.'

Marlene (3 Months)

Marlene knocked on Sumeragi's door, needing to remind her that her shift has started. But as the seconds passed, she heard no response. Frowning, she knocked again, but there was no response again. 'Is she asleep?'

Marlene opened the door with the override password and she was surprised to see Sumeragi staring at a picture on her desk that had a younger looking her and a stern looking woman with short, brown hair, an AEU officer uniform and purple eyes. The pair had arms wrapped around each other's shoulders. Marlene couldn't see the expression on her face, but if she had to guess, it was probably nostalgic.

Marlene cleared her throat and the brunette turned to face her, eyes wide, "Marlene!"

Marlene put her hands on her hips, "Just coming to remind you that you have to pick up your shift. I came in when you didn't enter."

Sumeragi let out a breath, "Sorry about that. I was caught up in old memories."

Marlene shook her head, her tone friendly, "It's alright. You aren't late yet. Lasse has the bridge right now." Marlene looked at the picture on her desk, curiosity lacing her tone, "Who is that?"

Sumeragi looked down at the picture of Kati, a frown coming to her face, "She is an old friend." She mumbled under her breath, "Though I don't know if she still thinks I'm her friend, if I have to be honest."

"What do you mean?" Marlene's curiosity was piqued. She knew some of Sumeragi's past, but she had never mentioned this woman before. 'But her face isn't unfamiliar. I swear I have seen it before.'

Sumeragi chuckled bitterly, "Her name is Kati Mannequin. She and I went to train as tactical forecasters, and I looked up to her, even had a small crush on her." Sumeragi blushed and looked embarrassed, "Nothing came from that, but of course an eighteen-year-old would look up to a confident woman like that."

"I think every girl had a crush on someone older than her at some point. How much older was she?" Marlene spoke in a teasing tone

Sumeragi thought for a second before she responded, "I think around eight years or so."

Marlene smiled, "So you were a young genius back in school then. Because you can't be any older than twenty or so in that picture."

Sumeragi smiled proudly, "Yeah. Kati was always complimentary of my skills and encouraged me to get better. Half the time I felt like she was over praising me and I could never live up to her. I got over that eventually, but she always tried to beat it into my head that I was good." A nostalgic look came over her, "She said to get better so she could try to match me, and vice versa. I can certainly say the competition was good for me."

Marlene could see the happiness in her eyes, though it was tinged with sadness, and nodded, "It certainly can do good for improvement. I can't say that I was driven by that, but I'm happy you developed the skills you did. We wouldn't be here without you."

"Thank you." Sumeragi smiled for a second before frowning, "Kati was the person who I was training against when I lost my fiancé. Both of us had bad intel and everything went wrong." She looked away, "At the time I thought she was much stronger than me for saying, and I still think that a little bit."

Marlene put a hand on her shoulder, her voice having a comforting tone, "It took you a while to find your path, but you did it. Not everyone finds what they were meant to do right away." Marlene pursed her lips, memories of taking a while before being comfortable with Celestial Being and her fellow meisters."

Sumeragi put one of her hands on top of Marlene's, "Thank you." Letting go of her hand, Sumeragi looked up at Marlene, "I learned when we left Earth, Kati was a part of the A-Laws. I should have recognized it earlier, but their tactics were very similar to hers when we fought the A-Laws. I didn't want to believe she would do that, but I had to accept the reality." She deeply sighed, "It hurt to know my old friend had joined them. I wondered why she would support a group that was so cruel. A part of me still questions if she's the same woman I knew before."

"Everyone changes with time, at least partially. I hope she isn't the war criminal the rest of the organization is, but it's always a possibility." She could see Sumeragi frown deeper at that and Marlene felt a little guilty saying that, "But for all we know she could have left them after Break Pillar. Some people must have realized the A-Laws are lying and deserted them."

Sumeragi bit her lower lip, "I can only hope. I don't want to keep fighting her." She looked into Marlene's blue eyes, "Not that I won't, but it hurts to have to fight old friends."

Marlene smiled at her, "I completely get you. I would have a harder time fighting the A-Laws if some of the members of them were members of my old team." She then whispered, the thought coming unbidden in her head, "Especially my husband." If her husband had been a part of the A-Laws, she would be fighting tooth and nail to get him back.

Sumeragi must have caught her last words, "I would be the same with Emilio." Sumeragi chuckled, tension leaving her body, "Look at us two old maid, bantering about our pasts."

Marlene lightly glared at her, "I'm not that old. And you are only in your thirties. The old maid on this ship is Ian."

Sumeragi snorted, "I don't think he would appreciate you calling him that."

"Let him complain. It's not like he doesn't have a laundry list of things to complain about."

The brunette nodded in agreement, "Definitely. But let's keep it secret for now."

Marlene smiled, "Right." She looked at the time and realized several minutes had passed, and gave Sumeragi an apologetic look, "The time flew by. For once, I can excuse you being late. But you owe me some stories when we have free time."

The tactical forecaster rolled her eyes but grinned, "I'll be careful about being late next time. And only if you tell me some of yours."

Marlene laughed, "Agreed."

Setsuna (4 Months)

Setsuna scanned over the 00's systems, having just finished up repairs on it. Setsuna had finally been able to pilot the 00 about a month ago, which was something of a relief for him. While he tried his best to supply info to Feldt, it never felt fully comfortable with being in the 0 Raiser. He could help her with the shoulder weapons, but otherwise had to sit and watch combat. 'Also Feldt set the seat forward, which was a little annoying.'

Feldt didn't fight it when he was good enough to pilot, but he could tell she was a little disappointed by having to go back to the 0 Raiser. He tried to apologize, but she said it was fine, mostly meaning it. She could tell that he missed being in the 00. 'She isn't wrong.'

He must have been entranced in studying the systems, because Mileina's happy tone caught him completely by surprise behind him, "Hi Mr. Seiei! How's the 00?"

Setsuna barely resisted jumping and turned around to see the teenager smiling at him, her hands behind her back. His gut and something in the back of his mind told him she was up to something. Nonetheless, he smiled at her, "Mileina. The systems are all set. Only had to fix a few things."

"Well that's great!" She smiled at him, tilting her head in curiosity, "So I was talking to Mr. Crossroads and he was telling me the story of how you two used to be neighbors years ago. Is that true?"

Setsuna sighed. Mileina was a chatterbox at the best of times and when she had questions on her mind, nothing would stop her curiosity. He could see the hunt for info in her eyes and pursed his lips as he spoke, looking away from his mini terminal, "I did have an apartment in Japan, yes. And it did happen that we were neighbors, though I didn't see him that often, being out on missions."

Mileina's eyes shined, "What did you do in Japan? We don't get to do that now so it must have been so cool!"

Setsuna shrugged, "To be honest, not much. Back then I was too focused on my missions to do anything beyond supply basic needs. Feldt tried to encourage me to try to decorate my apartment, but I never had the time and interest." He chuckled at himself, "I am kicking myself for not taking advantage of it now. Neil was right about that."

Mileina was about to speak when Lyle floated on the catwalk, calling up to the pair, "He did tend to have moments like that."

Mileina looked chirped at Lyle, "Hi Mr. Dylandy! Want to join us?"

Lyle shrugged casually, "Sure, why not?" Lyle floated up to above the cockpit, a casual grin on his face, "So what are we talking about?"

Mileina responded immediately, "How Setsuna was neighbors with Saji five years ago! And how Setsuna was boring." Setsuna frowned at that. 'I'm not that boring.'

Lyle nodded at the last comment, "Setsuna doesn't exactly scream excitement outside of Gundams. And maybe the bedroom."

Mileina looked at Setsuna with unrestrained curiosity, "What does he mean by that?"

Setsuna could feel some heat in his face as he glared at Lyle, who just playfully grinned at him, "It's private. You don't need to worry about that." He didn't want to have to explain to anyone about his and Feldt's sex life.

Mileina tilted her head before shrugging, "Ok. But you must have done something in Japan."

Setsuna thought for a second and he spoke slightly embarrassed, "Well I bought Feldt a gift once." He wished she still had the kimono, but he still had the picture of her in his mini terminal, so he still had a reminder of it.

The teenager raised a hand in recognition, "Oh! That was the kimono Feldt had, right?" Setsuna nodded and Mileina continued, excited, "She looked so pretty in it! I wish I had one?"

Lyle looked at the pair, curious and intrigued, "Setsuna got a gift for his girl? Did you need to apologize?" His voice was tinged with a teasing tone, a smile on his face.

Setsuna just shook his head, "No. Feldt was the closest friend I had on the ship at the time and Neil suggested I buy a gift for her. So I got her that, which she loved. And she and I weren't really a thing till months after that."

"Well you were a very smart man to snap her up so soon. Other guys would be chomping at the bit to scoop her up." An ugly feeling of jealousy surged in Setsuna, not at Lyle, just at the concept of Feldt being with someone else. 'Relax. She married you and waited three years, when she could have moved on.' He shook his head and Lyle continued, "You have this picture? I would like to see it."

Setsuna picked up his mini terminal and pulled up the image easily. He smiled warmly looking at her, remembering how cute and full of happiness she was at the moment. He handed it to Lyle, who took it and grinned looking at it. He whistled and turned his head to look at Setsuna, "If I was your guys, age at the time, I would consider myself lucky to have a girl that cute. How old were you guys back then? You couldn't have been older than 15 or 16."

Setsuna spoke evenly, controlling his annoyance, "I was 16 and she was 14."

Lyle looked away, "I would say I'm surprised they picked people so young, but Mileina here is probably close to that age. Though I'm pretty sure everyone would say she's too young to be on a ship."

Mileina puffed her cheeks, "I'm 15!"

Lyle laughed, "And you are a smart kid too. Just most people would frown on that is all." Setsuna looked over and saw Ian waving at the three of them.

Mileina pouted, "My dad needs me, but this isn't over Setsuna! I will get more info from you!" She pushed off the Gundam, waving at the pair of men as she headed to her father.

Lyle looked at Setsuna, "Thank god she was bothering you and not me." He then smirked at Setsuna, "And I saw your jealousy. You should be the proud one. You snapped her up first! There's something to be said for that."

Setsuna smiled as he looked down at the suit, the ugly feeling in his chest disappearing, "Yeah. You're probably right." An image of a beaming Feldt jumped into his mind, causing him to blush. 'A long road ahead of us, but she will always be there.'

Author's Note

Woo! That was a beast! But I enjoyed it a lot. I hope you guys enjoyed and I will see you guys next week! Please review, comment, etc.!