Impossible

A Gundam Wing Fan Fiction

Rambled Off by The Manwell

Book Three: PARTNERS

Duo Maxwell

The average person would take one look at me and assume that I'm in perfect control of the situation. That person would also assume that I find the aforementioned situation somewhat humorous.

The average person would be wrong. And that individual may very well be dead wrong, considering the mood I'm in right now.

So, despite my flippant greeting to Heero, I'm all for bludgeoning Adamsson's assistant to a painful and agonizing death with whatever's handy. I suppose the gleam of that bloody fantasy must have been dancing in my eyes because Heero hadn't even waited for me to make the suggestion before insisting that putting the bastard out of our misery would not succeed in delivering justice. If only for the sole reason that it would make mountains more paperwork for us if our suspect happens to die while in custody.

Needless to say, that little factoid doesn't make me happy. So I commence with shooting off jokes and flashing razor sharp smiles. Heero doesn't seem to be too bothered by the fact that I'm quite obviously not treating this entire situation with the degree of sobriety it deserves. But honestly, the frequent and inappropriate use of humor is the only way I can let off enough steam in order to keep my hands off the bastard.

And it's just as well that during the inevitable circus which follows no one had attempted to... regulate me. Because if some poor, random fool had been stupid enough to try to deny me my facetiousness, I would have launched my fist into Nedly's sweating face in a heartbeat.

It also doesn't help that Heero and I had been forced to ask the local law enforcement people for a place to keep our prisoner. Seeing as how nobody's life is in obvious danger at the moment, Heero and I can't really justify borrowing the first ship that suits our purposes and hightailing it back to HQ. Especially since I'm technically not even supposed to be in uniform. The only reason Une had agreed to send me instead of Wufei had been because it'd been made completely obvious during that first meeting in Une's office following Heero's convalescence that Heero trusts me without reservation. Which implies that I have the ability to handle him, as crude as that sounds.

So here I am, stuck on the moon for the time being, stalking through the halls of the local law enforcement division. Halls that are very familiar to me... for good reason.

I'd kinda hoped to never-again-for-as-long-as-I-live see the inside of another Lunar Base detention cell, but Fate really seems to enjoy raining on my parade.

Beside me, Heero's presence is somewhat... grounding. We both know I'm not calm and we both know I'm unlikely to be calm anytime soon. But his acceptance of my volatile temper settles me just enough to prevent me from losing it completely. Which, let me assure you, is necessary. Especially considering the interview we're about to begin.

For a moment, my attention is directed away from my own fire-and-brimstone ire and I wonder if Heero is going to be all right. After all, he hasn't heard our suspect's story yet. But I'm curious how much of it Heero'd managed to put together before he'd made his grand entrance into the lab.

We draw even with the detention cell door and by unspoken agreement, we both hesitate. The halls echo with our silence and I find myself reaching for his hand. "Heero?" I whisper, letting him see my concern.

He nods once and summons up something that looks kinda like a smile, but because of the flat look in his eyes obviously isn't. I suppose it's the best answer I'm going to get, so I pull the access card from my pocket and swipe it through the reader beside the door.

"Knock knock," I call as I step over the threshold to face the man who'd had the nerve to fuck with my partner.

I give myself a moment to get my roaring emotions under some semblance of control. As I do so, I absorb the sight of the man. Being arrested, it appears, hasn't really agreed with him. He looks shaken and ill but that doesn't deter me. In fact, I feel my predatory instincts rising to the forefront.

"You can guess the reason for the visit, I'm sure." I grin and I show so many teeth my lips hurt from the stretch. "You're going to repeat the story that you told me to my partner." I pause long enough to heat up my glare another hundred degrees. "You're going to explain – in detail – what you've done to one of your subjects," I spit out viciously just to see him wince. And yes, it is rather gratifying.

Heero takes a seat at the table, across from our Nedders but I remain by the door, leaning in the corner. I still don't trust myself not to come across the table at the guy, but like fucking hell I'm leaving Heero in here alone with him.

His story is actually rather fascinating – if you overlook the fact that he's done this to real people – and fantastic. Hell, I'm still having a hard time believing it even with him stumbling through yet another explanation of it for Heero's sake.

It all revolves around a drug. Which, considering the man's profession, isn't that much of a stretch of the imagination. But imagine a drug that when vaporized and inhaled by a subject grants a varying level of access to that person's subconscious mind. How had he managed to control something like that? Well, he'd had quite the sweet little set up in that lab of his. Independent ventilation systems had been installed in every laboratory as a safety measure and he'd rigged his to administer the odorless vapor. He'd created various excuses to see people in that room and had thoughtlessly used them to test his pet project. One by one, his coworkers had been asked the same basic questions. Questions specifically chosen to encourage that individual's subconscious to recognize their deepest, fondest desire... and formulate a plan to achieve it. And none of this is the subject consciously aware of.

Is that, like, the biggest load of bullshit or what? I'd seriously thought ol' Nedly had just been fucking around with me. But when I'd asked him how he'd managed to avoid the effects of his goofy gas, he'd succinctly replied that if he wore a specifically medicated patch, the gas was completely harmless.

I don't even want to think about how many subjects that took before he'd managed to brew up the right formula.

So... Wufei and I had been right after all. It hadn't been brainwashing. Or even memory manipulation. But someone had still dared to screw with Heero's mind. And for that, the little geeky bastard is going to fucking pay. And not because he'd done something with complete disregard for morality and an individual's right to privacy. No, he's going to pay for a far simpler reason: he'd hurt Heero.

Because of his idiotic and ill-researched experimentation, Heero's subconscious had been fairly ordered to formulate a plan that would result in Heero achieving his most cherished dream. A plan which had included his near-death and my cavalry charge to save him. All of it timed so precisely that, had any individual event occurred with the slightest variation, Heero would at this moment either be dead or plotting a new scenario to follow through on.

All without his knowledge.

Think about that. Heero Yuy. Former Gundam pilot. Terrorist. Assassin. Soldier. Formulating missions without conscious thought. And for what end?

Now, if that doesn't give you nightmares, nothing will.

And I'm wondering how Heero's going to take it.

I tune back in just as the great Ass of an assistant is wrapping up his little spiel: "I was only testing its effectiveness with normal people. The drug isn't nearly as effective if the subject is aware of it, so it had to be done secretly. I just want to help people! It's designed to encourage individuals to move beyond their fears in order to achieve happiness!"

I watch Heero's face and note his complete lack of expression. Both of his hands are on the table and both are curled into fists. But otherwise, he's as still as stone.

"They help me by providing data and I help them find happiness. It's a true symbiotic relationship. If I can perfect it, think of what it could do for people with phobias! It has the potential to eliminate their irrational fears and let them live full, healthy lives! Isn't that worth it?"

A very long moment stretches painfully taut in the dull room. So taut that I think the next breath I take will vibrate in the air like a tuning fork.

And then Heero replies. His voice is so soft, so incredibly quiet, but I hear him with perfect clarity.

"Your first mistake, was to assume I was exactly who I said I was. You trusted the cover story I gave you and performed your experiment on someone who is not and never has been 'normal.'"

The assistant blinks at Heero, clearly surprised by this response.

"You were careless and missed crucial information about my background which could and did affect the results of your experiment. If I'm to believe your account, and if I can find evidence to support it, then I will make sure additional charges are filed against you."

"A-additional charges!" the man sputters.

Tonelessly, Heero informs him, "The endangerment of peacekeeping officers is a serious crime."

And with that, Heero moves to stand up from the table.

"Wait!" our suspect barks out suddenly. "Didn't the experiment help you confront your fears? Aren't you closer to achieving your goal of happiness than you were before?"

In a way, I can almost understand this man's desperation. For sure, he doesn't want to spend the rest of his life in prison. But certainly, he doesn't want to spend it there knowing that his life's work which he'd intended for the betterment of humankind had actually caused harm.

Heero pauses and gazes down at the man. With complete calm, he replies, "I'm not even close to facing down my fears. Which brings me to your second mistake."

In a barely-there whisper, the man chokes out, "Which was?"

"You assumed that you could cure fear. It's not a disease. It is, in fact, every person's right to face down his or her fears. To take not only that decision but also that potential victory away from someone is to deny them their greatest desire." Heero pauses a moment and draws in one more breath. "All desires come from a fear of something. Fear of loneliness, rejection, uncertainty, death, life... The greatest satisfaction a person can experience in and of themselves is the conquering of that fear."

And with that, Heero Yuy turns away from the startled scientist and meets my gaze.

I have known many honorable people in my life. I have also known many brilliant ones. There have been the tenacious and the talented as well. The kind and the generous. But I can honestly say that I have never been more proud of anyone in my entire life than I am of my partner, Heero Yuy, in this moment.

All of my zealous rage fizzles down, suddenly so insignificant compared with what I feel for this man in front of me. I suppose I could try to name an emotion this intense, this all-encompassing. I could try to trap it with words. Could try to physically capture it in my callused hands.

But I won't. And I don't. I simply put my hand on Heero's shoulder and steer him out of the room. I make our excuses to the police officers who try to waylay us along our journey and all the while I keep Heero moving in the direction of the door. Somewhere out there in this cursed former-Oz base is a quiet room with a comfortable couch just waiting for Heero and me to curl up on it.