Reviews...
Thanks to everyone that reviewed! You know who you are...lol. Since everyone seems to ask the same questions, I'll just answer in one long reply:
Ah yes...the long waited return of Ray and Lucia. It's going to be an all out war so watch out! XD. And why Arabella has the ZAFT records? Well, I can't say everything in this chapter...in fact, there won't be too much on it this chapter, but it will become VERY clear later on. Oh...and that's not all she has...(hint hint). And of course, more and more intrigue...by the way, did I happen to mention that there will be some unexpected appearances in this chapter? XD And what insanity will Cagalli cook up? Lol...And will the tension between Dearka and Miriallia lessen? What's going on with Kira and Lacus? Uh oh, I see tension between Ray and Yzak...XD.
So, let's go!
(and yes, hard to think up a title...lol)
Ch. 18: Inevitable Decisions (or Struggles of a New Beginning)
"No, that's the wrong color! And that's not supposed to be there!" Elise shouted at the maids, exasperated. "This happens every year..."
"Things looking any better?" Elise turned around to see Nora smirking at her.
"Grandma, why am I the one that's in charge of the decorations?" Elise protested. "Why can't someone else do it?"
"The place won't look so great otherwise." Nora smiled. Elise just rolled her eyes.
"I told you before, I'm not going to wear a dress!!" A yell echoed throughout the place. Curious, Elise abandoned her duties for a moment to see what the commotion was about.
"Hey, what's going on?" She asked, seeing Kira, Lacus, Dearka, Miriallia, Yzak, and Arabella standing outside Cagalli's door, looking amused.
"Cagalli's having one of her dress fits again." Kira explained, struggling to keep from bursting into laughter. "Poor Athrun is at the receiving side of her rage."
"But Cagalli, it's a ball. You have to wear a dress..." Athrun protested.
"Well then I just won't go." Cagalli pouted.
"Just wear the thing already!" Yzak yelled, annoyed, ignoring the disapproving looks coming from Arabella.
"Yea who knows, you might actually look decent for once." Dearka joked.
"What did you say?" Cagalli glared at Dearka furiously.
"Dearka, run." Not even waiting to be told twice, Dearka sped away from the room as fast as possible.
"You come back here!" Cagalli started to chase after him, until Arabella managed to stop her.
"Well Cagalli, if you really don't want to wear a dress, you don't have to, but Lucia will probably..."
As if on cue, Lucia and Ray appeared. Ray gave a shy wave to everyone, while Lucia held her head up high. However, in passing by Yzak, she gave him a smile, and then proceeded to have the ugly look on her face once again. However, she looked delighted when she spotted Cagalli. "Oh, you're going to be at the ball too? It's such a pity. You'll probably look fat in a dress. Why don't you just stay in your room for today?"
"We'll see about that!" Cagalli gave Lucia a cold glare. "All right, I need to get ready so everyone out!"
"Well, looks like that's taken care of." Arabella smiled. "I need to make sure that everything's going according to plan and then get ready, so I'll just see everyone during the ball." With that, she left.
"I'm going to go and see if she needs any help organizing something." Ray said, and followed after Arabella. Yzak looked after them, almost tempted to follow. But unfortunately, at that moment, Lucia instantly clung onto him.
"Yzak," she said in a fake sugary voice. "I don't really have a partner. You don't have one either right? So let's go together."
"Actually, I'm going with Yzak." Elise replied, causing everyone to stare at her in disbelief.
"Is this true, Yzak?" Lucia asked, trying to use puppy eyes.
Yzak contemplated. He had to either answer yes, or be stuck with Lucia for the night. The answer was really obvious. "Yes, I'm going with Elise." He told her straight-off, escaping from her grasp.
"Fine!!" Lucia shouted angrily. She proceeded to march out of the room.
"You're lucky I saved you there." Elise remarked, once Lucia went out of earshot. Yzak couldn't help but nod.
"Dearka, can I talk to you?"
Dearka turned around, surprised to find Athrun, looking serious. "Yea sure, what's the matter?"
"It's about what I found yesterday while researching with Cagalli."
"Oh, that." Dearka brushed it off. "We could all talk about that tomorrow. It's not that urgent..."
"She has ZAFT records."
"She...WHAT?!!" Dearka stared at him, completely disbelieving. "You're kidding right? How would she have access to them?"
"I have no idea. All I know is that I saw them. And I only got a glimpse of the contents. Who knows what other things are down there."
Dearka slumped into a nearby chair. "This is getting a bit too big. It's not fun and games anymore, is it?"
"It never was."
"Is this why you didn't say anything about it when the others were around?"
Athrun nodded. "I didn't think it would be a good idea to tell them. After all, they never were associated with ZAFT."
"Should we tell Yzak?" Dearka asked, hesitantly.
"No. Otherwise we would have to explain to him how we managed to find the information in the first place."
"I see. Besides, we don't want to spoil his fun right now, do we?" Dearka smirked.
Athrun smirked back. "You noticed too?"
"Of course I did. It's just that he's too stubborn to admit it to himself." The two became silent for awhile.
"You know, I don't really think Arabella is bad. A bit troubled, yes, but she doesn't seem to have any bad intentions." Dearka remarked. Athrun nodded in unison.
"Hopefully there's a good reason for her holding the information. I wouldn't be surprised if there was."
"Yea, there probably is." Dearka replied.
Athrun sighed. "Let's hope so. At least for our sakes, and especially Yzak's."
She looked at herself in the mirror. Smile. Perfect. After all, none of this amounted to anything more than a game. All acting. And she was a very good actress. If only it were otherwise...
But that was just her foolish ideals. Politics never went that way. And it could never change. So she had no choice but to play her part. Self sacrifice. Always.
Sometimes she got sick of it. She wanted to live for herself. If she could just step down...but no, she couldn't. Especially not now, with so many people in danger. Oh, she knew that her guests and Elise were trying to find information about her and this place. She even knew to what extent Cagalli and Athrun went to just to get their hands on some restricted information, and she also knew exactly what information they found. Not only because she knew what section they hacked into, but the look on Athrun's face told everything. He had no reason to worry though. After all, she had every right to have the information. But she wasn't going to tell him that. It wasn't only her secret, but also the country's secret. She couldn't afford such a sacrifice. No, not now.
If she knew, just why was she letting them continue? She couldn't believe herself for letting it all go on. When anyone else had attempted to do something like that, she had eliminated them swiftly. So why did she turn a blind eye? Was her true self retaliating? Wanting someone to help...desperately wanting someone to understand...No! She could not have that! She had to do this alone. It was her responsibility. To let others in will result in them getting hurt, and she will fail, not only in keeping the country safe, but in keeping those close to her safe.
"What would you have me do?" Arabella asked, facing a part of a wall covered by an array of curtains. "And what would you have me do?" She asked again, this time looking at a certain drawer in her desk. No answer.
She sighed. It was always this way. Always up to her to decide. She shifted her attention towards the two cases in front of her. One contained a brilliant platinum set with glaring blue diamonds that would cause anyone to blink a couple times, yet praise its beauty. The other contained a silver star necklace and dangling earrings, both inlaid with sapphires. It looked like nothing compared to its rival, and yet, somehow, it shined just as beautifully to Arabella. The second set had it's own beauty, and in a sense, it had more elegance and serenity compared to the other one...
One was the one that she had been set up with. The one she was expected to be with. Other one...A member of the ZAFT High Council...And she...It could never it? She reproached herself. How could she indulge in something so foolish? How could she even hope? Dreams never became reality. Especially hers. Besides, she didn't quite know her feelings yet either. She could be plunging into something and regretting it later on. But...she wanted to, for once, choose for herself...at least for the moment...
Taking a deep breath, she decided, and walked out with her choice, hoping that it was the right one.
Yzak and Elise slowly followed the others downstairs into the ballroom. Everyone looked happy, except for Lucia, who kept on giving side glances to Yzak, and Arabella, who was absent at present because she had to make her own entrance.
"You know, you don't really have to stay with me if you don't want to. I just said that to get Lucia away." Elise whispered to Yzak.
"I don't think she'll let me off that easily though." Yzak replied, suppressing a groan.
"Well then, just stay with me until you lose her and then you can do whatever you want."
"Got it."
Elise looked at him surprised. "Since when have you gotten so agreeable?"
"Don't push your luck." Yzak retorted.
"Getting defensive aren't we?" Elise teased.
Yzak began to retort when suddenly...
"Well, it looks like you're enjoying yourself too much to even miss me." Yzak turned around to see the person speaking...
"Mother!" He stared in disbelief. "What are you doing here?"
"You almost sound as if you didn't want to see me." She reproached, yet smiling.
"Um...of course not mother...it's just that it's so surprising...hey, what are you laughing at?" Yzak suddenly turned towards Elise, who had a hard time controlling her laughter, seeing Yzak cower before his mother.
"Well, it was unplanned actually. But an invitation came from the ruler herself to all ZAFT High Council members, and I thought it was a good opportunity to scope the country and to see how my son was doing. Although it's a bit strange since it's a very rare opportunity to even set foot in this country, much less be..." Ezaria stopped all of a sudden, hearing Yzak's remark to the girl next to him. Her face suddenly brightened in interest. "Oh, and who might you be?"
"Oh, I'm Elise. And I'm just..."
"And I'm Lucia." Lucia suddenly butted in. "I'm sure Yzak told you all about me. You see, he and I are..."
"Um Lucia, let's go over this way, I need to talk to you about something..." Ray came to the rescue, dragging Lucia away. "I'm so sorry, she can get a bit rude sometimes." He apologized, clearly embarrassed.
"And as I was saying..." Elise continued, watching Lucia and Ray moving away from them. "I'm doing Yzak a favor by keeping that annoying girl away from him."
"Oh, I see." Ezaria replied, although sounding a bit disappointed. "And here I was hoping that Yzaky finally got a girlfriend."
"Mother!!"
"Sorry to disappoint you Mrs. Jule. You'll have to wait longer for that to happen, unless of course, you want that annoying girl to be your future daughter-in-law." All three repressed shudders. "And by the way, did you say Yzaky? Wait till I tell Arabella about this!" Before Yzak had a chance to protest, a crowd started to gather around the staircase entrance.
"Ladies and gentleman, presenting her highness, Arabella Shante!"
All eyes glued towards the figure that glided down the twirling staircase, to catch the gleam from the silver hair, shoulder-cut cerulean dress, and mysterious cobalt eyes.
"She's so young!"
"Not to mention, beautiful."
"And what about the accessories she's wearing?"
Upon hearing the last statement, Yzak focused his attention on her neck and ears. What he found knocked him out of his senses. She had on his necklace! His earrings! Not the gorgeous ones that Ray gave her, but the ones that he gave. Seeing Yzak stare at her, she smiled, causing him to forget about everything else...But the moment broke as Ray stepped forward and lead Arabella away.
Yzak went on with his witty remarks towards Elise, acting as if nothing happened. But Ezaria knew better.
"Princess Cagalli Yula Attha, it's a pleasure to see you, although this is quite a surprise." Cagalli turned around, surprised that someone bothered to address her.
"Oh, thank you. Just out of curiosity, have we met before?" Cagalli asked, confused.
"I don't think so, but I have had glimpses of you during some of the negotiation meetings."
"Really? I'm sorry but I don't quite remember you. Which organization do you belong to?"
"I'm with the Earth..."
"Earth Alliance? But then why would you be here?" Cagalli remarked, surprised. Then she realized her tone, and apologized. "I'm sorry, hopefully I didn't sound too rude."
The man laughed. "It's quite alright. Actually, I'm quite surprised myself. Who would have thought that of all the places to get an invitation from, it would be Icedale?"
"Is it really that rare?" Cagalli stared to ask, ready to get information from him. Unfortunately, it got cut short, due to the fact that others started to note her presence as well.
"Isn't that the Princess of Orb?"
"Yea, it is. I didn't expect the princess to be here."
"Hey, that's Representative Cagalli Yula Attha. Don't you remember that she doesn't like being called princess anymore?"
Suddenly, people started to address her left and right, causing Cagalli to be a bit lost in the attention. "I told you you'll be happy to come to the ball." Athrun whispered into her ear.
"Well...I...I guess so." Cagalli admitted.
Unfortunately, a disgruntled Lucia came along. "How come she's getting more attention than me? She's only a Natural!" Lucia thought to herself. "Well, I guess people feel so sorry for you that they have to continuously talk to you." Cagalli froze for a moment. Lucia always had to ruin her happiness. It was unfair. Then she spotted Arabella near. Cagalli thought up a brilliant scheme. She glanced at Arabella, who acknowledged her, and indicated that she'll follow Cagalli's plan.
"That was very unnecessary Miss Lucia!" Cagalli said, pretending to be very shocked. "Princess Arabella, do you usually let your subjects act in such way towards representatives of other states?"
"Oh, I'm very sorry Representative Attha." Arabella replied with mock apology. "I'll move her from the premises instantly if you want."
"Oh no, that isn't necessary. I'm sure it was all a mistake."
"Hey, you know that I meant everything I said!" Lucia yelled, completely aware that they were making fun of her.
"Well then, I'll have to say that you're very rude." Cagalli replied, still using the haughty air. "I have better things to do than to be in your company." With that, Cagalli moved away, knocking a wine glass towards Lucia."
"Hey!" Lucia yelled after her, furious, but retreated instantly, seeing that those surrounding her started to laugh at her.
"You're pretty good at playing court games." Arabella whispered to Cagalli as they went on their way.
"Huh?" Cagalli asked, confused. "I was just trying to defend myself against Lucia, and I just happen to come up with this bizarre idea. It's surprising that it even worked."
"Well, it's a good thing that you got some practice then. This is another war in Politics. In fact, this one's probably harder to deal with than the ones present on the negotiation table." Arabella sighed. "At least those are solid. It's hard to figure out what angle your opponent will approach you when it becomes a war of words."
"Thanks." Cagalli smiled. "You know, I'm still new at ruling a country, and I don't think diplomacy is exactly my strong point...anyways, can I depend on your help sometimes?"
"Anytime."
"Miriallia, could we talk?"
This was the moment she had been dreading. She didn't want to hurt Dearka, but she couldn't lie to herself either. If only she had been able to avoid him a little longer.
"Let's just be friends for now."
"Huh?" Miriallia burst out, definitely not expecting that.
"I'm not saying that my feelings changed. It's just that I rather forget about the issue for now. I've rather just stay friends rather than to make you feel uncomfortable." Dearka explained. Inside, it pained him to say those words. But this was all for Miriallia's sake. What was the point of pursuing her if she ran away from his presence the first chance she got? After all, wasn't it her happiness that mattered to him the most? He could wait. Perhaps being her friend first would be a good idea after all. He would get to know her better, and vice versa. Then, maybe...
"Um...sure!" Miriallia replied, a bit more cheerful this time. Although she felt guilty, in a sense she also felt relieved. He came up with an easy way out for both of them. But the corner of her mind kept on bothering her. How could someone say no to someone who's so considerate? Apparently her.
"So, how about a dance?" Dearka suggested, smiling.
"Well, I'm not very good..."
"Neither am I." With that, he dragged her towards the dance floor. "Maybe we could correct each other's mistakes."
"Perhaps." Miriallia smiled back, taking his hand.
"Ah Princess, it has been awhile." Arabella turned around, only to end up forcing herself to hide her disdain.
"Nice to see you too, Senator." She replied.
"Father!" Lucia ran towards them, followed by Ray. "You have no idea what happened to me today...
"Yes, yes, you can tell me all about it on the way home." He said, trying not to sound too annoyed.
"So, the rumors about your bad health must be false, since you felt well enough to come to the ball." Arabella replied.
"Well, how could I resist an invitation from my future daughter-in-law? Especially since I've been under house arrest for quite a while." He added at the end.
"Well, the invitation was out of courtesy. But if you're implying that I should discontinue the house arrest, I will not listen. My mother had thought it necessary, and I also support her opinion in this case."
"I suppose it's a natural way of doing things." He sneered.
"Perhaps." She replied curtly, knowing just exactly what he implied. "Ray, I think it would be a good idea if you give father a short tour of the place, since it had been such a long time before he was allowed to step inside here. I have other things to attend to right now, so please excuse me." With that, she left three very startled Coordinators.
"Kira, why are you here?" Lacus asked, seeing him alone in the garden.
"I don't think I should go in." He replied dejectedly.
"Why not?"
"Well because..."
"Because why?"
"I don't feel comfortable."
By this time, even Lacus's infinite patience started to wear away. "Kira, why don't you feel comfortable? I mean, we're all inside too. In fact, it was quite fun seeing Lucia get all flustered..." She stopped, seeing that Kira hadn't cheered up.
"Kira, what's wrong?" She asked gently.
"I don't know. Seeing all those people, brings back memories again."
Lacus had two choices. She could either comfort him like she always did, or make him come to his senses. Obviously, the right one was...but she didn't know if she could bring herself to do it. It would pain her just as much to add to Kira's depression. But then again, she wanted what was best for him, didn't she? Then she had to.
"Kira Yamato! Listen to yourself! Is this what you really wanted to degenerate into?" Lacus reproached.
"But...you don't understand..." Kira protested.
"I don't understand? I don't?" This time Lacus looked hurt. "I had to go through the war too. We all had hardships."
"But still, it's different...I wasn't able to save..."
"Kira how do you think I really felt after my father died? Sure, I had to keep a mask on, acting as if nothing happened, except to give a few confessions to certain people. But how do you think I had to deal with the guilt that my father died because of me? Sure, Patrick Zala had already been weary of my father, but it wouldn't have come to assassination, if I hadn't led you to Freedom. What then? Should I have not done that?"
"No, but..."
"Kira, I know that letting go of the past isn't easy, but you need to still live your life. If you had another chance would you honestly have done things differently?"
Kira stayed silent, not even looking at her. Seeing that he wasn't going to answer her, she continued. "Kira, until you figure this out on your own, I'm going to have to keep my distance." With that, she walked off, causing Kira to stare blankly after her. Little did he know about the tears that kept on rolling out of her eyes.
"Princess, may I have a word with you?"
Arabella turned around to find a woman with silver hair, resembling...wait was she the...
"My name is Ezaria Jule." She smiled, realizing that Arabella figured it out. "And yes, I'm Yzak's mother."
"It's so nice to meet you!" Arabella smiled.
"How is Yzak? Still as stubborn as ever?"
"Of course, as always." Both women laughed in unison.
"By the looks of it you two seem to get along pretty well." Ezaria slipped in.
Arabella blushed nervously. "Well, compared to how he acts towards others...well, I guess you can say he gets along well with me."
"That's good to hear. The only person he ever decently got along with was me, and now he added you to his list. I'm getting jealous." She laughed.
"Well, you're his mother so I'm sure you have nothing to worry about." Arabella smiled back.
"Oh, I'm not sure about that. He might end up getting closer to you." She hinted, her eyes glinting.
"Well...I..." Arabella stammered.
"Hey Bella, watch Miriallia and Dearka trying to dance. It's so cute to watch!" Elise interrupted, dragging Arabella with her.
Ezaria smiled after her. Yes, her son did know the right girl to pick.
"Athrun, what are you doing out here?" Cagalli asked, joining Athrun at a balcony.
"Well, I wasn't certain if I should show myself too much to ZAFT officials. After all, I did dissent from them, and not to mention all the trouble my father caused." He sighed. "I'll just have to wait until things get cleared up. Before that, I will have to use evasion tactics for awhile."
"I understand." Cagalli remarked, encouragingly.
"Thanks." Athrun replied. "It makes me feel so much better that you're always there to support me."
"Likewise."
Both smiled at each other. "That's nice to know." They spent the next couple moments staring into the dark sky, enjoying the moment.
"You should go back inside and have fun Cagalli." Athrun suggested. "You shouldn't let me spoil it."
"I actually like it better here." She confessed. "You know I don't like formal events very much. Besides," She looked smug, "I had my daily enjoyment by bashing Lucia."
"True." Athrun couldn't help but laugh. "I think everyone got enjoyment out of that."
"Yea." Cagalli replied, and then suddenly contemplated. "You know, I don't think I would treat her so badly if she was a bit nicer. It's kind of sad in a way."
"I suppose." Athrun remarked. "So anything else on your mind?"
"You." With that, she drew closer to Athrun, leaning against his shoulder. Anyone passing-by would know instantly that they were the happiest people on earth.
"Yzak, why are you walking around aimlessly, all alone? Aren't you happy that your mother came?"
Yzak stopped for a second, waiting for Arabella to catch up. "Sure I'm happy. But right now, I want to do some thinking."
"About what?"
"Well, that...Hey, what makes you think I'm going to answer that?"
"I never said you had too." She replied innocently.
"Sometimes I have to wonder why I'm so fascinated by you." Yzak murmured. Fortunately for him, Arabella didn't hear any of it. "By the way, why are you wearing that?" Yzak pointed to the star necklace, changing the subject.
"Why, you don't like it?" Arabella asked, pretend to be hurt.
"No, no, it's not that...It's just that you probably have so many better things to wear." Yzak hurriedly replied, thinking that she misunderstood, but seeing that she had been joking, he couldn't help but smile.
"Well, I happen to like this necklace." Arabella replied, trying not to blush. "It stands out from the others."
"You really think so?"
"Of course." Arabella nodded her head in affirmation.
"Hey Bella, there you are!" Ray approached them, completely ruining the moment. "Let's go and dance."
"But I don't really want to right now." Arabella protested.
"Come on now, don't be like that." Ray proceeded to drag Arabella until...
"She said she DIDN'T want to dance!!" Yzak yelled, forcing Ray to let go of Arabella's arm. The two boys glared at each other, as the tension between them increased.
"You two, stop it now!" Arabella shouted, pulling the two boys apart. "Ray, I'm sorry that I can't dance with you today. I'm really tired and I think I'm going to retire early." She then looked at Yzak. "Well, I'm going to go now, so enjoy the rest of the time, and try not to get in trouble." She smiled, and then left, leaving the two boys utterly bewildered.
"Come now dear brother, don't try to act serene and content. I know you're boiling inside." Lucia teased.
"What makes you say that? It was just a misunderstanding." Ray shrugged.
Lucia circled around him, smirking. "I know you well enough to know that although you may seem like the nice guy all the time, when you don't get what you want, things get ugly."
"Perhaps." Ray smirked back."
"You have a plan, don't you?" Lucia asked, excitedly. "Otherwise, you wouldn't be so calm right now."
"I don't know what you're talking about Lucia." Ray denied. "But I suppose you're excited because you want to receive some benefits as well."
Lucia snorted. "It's pretty obvious what I want."
"So it is. But is it really the man that's going to make you happy, or is it the fact that you took him away from someone?"
"It doesn't matter to me. As long as I get what I want." Lucia replied flatly. With that, she stalked off.
Ray watched as she disappeared. "Sometimes you're so simple-minded, sister."
That's it! Longer than usual, huh? Hope I didn't mess up in the process...lol
So how was it?
I sort of got the feeling that Lacus was OOC, but I couldn't figure out another way for the scene to go on otherwise. Oh and PLEASE don't kill me! Lol...
Yea, I think I might have done a lot of things that the readers would disapprove. Sorry...
Well, next time, there will be a Forum event, and what's this? How did they find out who she was? Lol...until next time!