Update time…
I know, some people have been wondering if I was even still alive XD. (could tell by the lack of responses) My apologies…I'll try to update more often.
Angel of Dreams-Oh, I don't mind that you used the name Elise…go right ahead XD. And of course I'll read your fic…as soon as I find ample time that is…
Eternal Affinity- As much as Lucia is a pain, for the sake of plot development she needs to stay…for now…And MEND? LoL…XD. Well, Elise was only half-way through spelling out the word…good try though. Well, thanks for the review…I always enjoy hearing from you.
OpposingForce- Hm…comparing Lucia with Mia? Interesting concept…(although it was not intentionally done…I created Lucia long time before Destiny even came out XD). And yes, I should add some more details. I noticed it before too, and attempted to fix the problem. If I had more time on my hands and less stress, I would fix it better…but of course, that's not an excuse. Anyways, I'll try harder this time. Thanks for the tip.
cherri-chan- Oh, it will eventually end…XD. And all of it will come together…
Thanks also to AnimeSiren, Kagome1992, DarkFusion, tennisprincess15, sailor-z-360, and athrunlovescagalli.
Well, on with the chapter…
Ch. 25: Measurement of Perseverance
Dearka paced about in the garden out of sheer boredom. Not that he didn't appreciate the leisure time away from Yzak's constant grumbling, but life was a bit too constant at the current time. Well, there was the whole murder fiasco, but that wasn't exactly the excitement he was hoping for.
He passed by several rosebushes, the flowers still encased in their buds. But of course, it was still winter. Even with the favorable weather the place was having after the bizarre snowstorm that caused them to plummet down here, that didn't change the timing of the roses. It still wasn't spring for them.
"Dearka, what are you doing?"
He turned around abruptly. Behind him stood Miriallia, in an all too familiar orange mini-dress, holding onto an armful of wintersweets. She was smiling at him. Spring.
"Dearka? Dearka? Are you okay?" Miriallia asked a dazed Dearka, concerned.
"Huh? Oh…um yea…heh heh…" He scratched his head nervously.
"Are you up to something?" She asked, suspicious.
"What could I possibly be up to?" Dearka shrugged, looking above her head, beside her head, just everywhere away from her face, while fidgeting nervously. Well, it wasn't as if he was planning anything, but just seeing her "I'm going to figure out what mischief you're up to" look made him want to run for his life.
"I'm going to keep an eye on you." Miriallia stated, not wholly convinced. Dearka sweat-dropped.
"Um, ok…I was just going to walk over there…" With that he proceeded in a random direction. In a few seconds, he stopped, realizing something. "Would you like me to carry those for you?"
"Uh…sure." Miriallia applied slightly curious about his sudden offer. Dearka held the flowers with no effort as they proceeded to walk around the garden.
"So, what are you doing out here?" He asked her.
"I was just picking flowers to decorate inside." Miriallia replied, matter-of-fact.
"Oh."
The two proceeded in silence, until they came across a particular section of the garden. "Wow, look at that!" She pointed.
Pure white dauphne covered the ground, giving an illusion of shifting snow, as the breeze gently moved the flowers. Miriallia ran across them, laughing out of pure joy. Dearka followed her, not quite understanding her demeanor, but happy that she was enjoying herself.
"I know this seems a bit silly." She started to explain as Dearka caught up with her. "It's just that it's been such a long time since I saw something so simple and peaceful, yet beautiful at the same time…I couldn't help myself." She stopped, seeing Dearka's incredulous expression. "Well, I guess I'm starting to sound ridiculous again…"
"No, no…" Dearka replied, shaking his head. "It's just that I didn't realize that until you mentioned it."
"Oh, then it's a good thing I pointed it out then." The two continued, until they arrived at the middle of the section, where a lone tree stood.
"Hey, a rope swing." Dearka pointed it out. "Want to try it?"
"I've love to. But are you sure it's not going to break?" She asked nervously, eyeing the branch that held up the swing.
Dearka rolled his eyes. "With something as light as you on it, I doubt it." With that, he scooped her up, and propped her on the swing. "I'm going to push, so hold on tight!"
"Um…I'm not sure if this is a good…" Miriallia didn't get a chance to finish her sentence, for she was busy gasping for breath as Dearka suddenly pushed her high into the air. "Dearka!" She wanted to shout, but all was forgotten, as the air breezed past her, exhilarating her.
"Having fun?" Dearka asked. He received laughter in response.
Eventually, his arms started to grow tired. Not that he would admit it to her, of course. He had a reputation to keep, not to mention, a mission to keep her happy. He continued to look at her, as she continued to swing back and forth. How ironic.
He wanted to laugh bitterly at his predicament. Here she was, the woman of his dreams. Yet just like the current situation, she came and went. When she was far away, in a few moments, she came closer. Then all too soon, she became distant again. Swinging back and forth. Tolle, Dearka, Tolle, Dearka…the allegory of the swing went on and on. But what if, instead of pushing her, as she wished him to do…what if he held onto her…
"Dearka?" She questioned, as he gently stopped the swing by holding onto her.
Now was his chance…"I thought you were getting dizzy, so I stopped." He blew it.
"Oh…thanks."
"So…uh, you want to pick these too?" He proceeded to pluck a dauphne, trying to get rid of the awkwardness.
"Um, you know that they're poisonous, right?"
"What!" Dearka dropped the flower, and went away from it as far as possible, making Miriallia laugh.
"Well, I doubt you can get poisoned just by touching it, but apparently if it gets inside your system, it has some nasty effects." Miriallia explained, once she regained her composure.
"Oh…I see…" Dearka blushed, feeling quite stupid.
"Well, I guess a couple of these wouldn't hurt." With that, Miriallia kneeled on the ground, and proceeded to gather them. Dearka picked up a flower, still thinking about her.
Poisonous, she said. Something that looked so harmless and pristine had a bit of a bite of its own. Kind of like her, wasn't it? She was perfect in his eyes, yet she was poison. She was poison only because he wanted her, and yet he had to wait patiently because he wanted her to want him too. She was killing him, yet he wanted more. She really was in his system.
"So, you really weren't up to anything." Miriallia remarked.
"Now you believe me." Dearka feigned exasperation. Miriallia couldn't help but giggle.
"Well, at least we enjoyed ourselves. That matters, right?" She commented.
"Yes, it matters. It matters in everything." He murmured to himself.
The library lights were gently lit, creating a cozy atmosphere, along with comfortable velvet sofas and cups of hot chocolate. A certain pink-haired songstress walked in quietly, making sure not to disturb anyone inside. Her eyes scanned the area back and forth, as they glided in search of a troubled ultimate coordinator. "I know he's in here somewhere." Lacus continued her search, until she spotted him near a corner. His face was covered by gigantic textbook. Was he attempting to study? She couldn't help but giggle.
"What are you doing Kira?" She asked, as she started to approach him. To her surprise, she got no response. "Maybe he's concentrating too much on the book that he didn't notice me." She thought. Slowly, she stretched her arm, and with her index finger, poked his arm. Still no response.
Now, Lacus knew better than to bother someone when they were busy doing something. That would be rude. But just this once, the fact that Kira was paying more attention to something else was…well…quite irksome.
"Um…Kira…" Poke. "I know I shouldn't be bothering you." Poke. "But I was wondering…" Poke. "What you were doing." Poke. Poke. Poke. She was about to continue poking him, until she got a better look at him. He was sleeping.
"Uh…" Lacus couldn't help but sweat-drop. "Good thing no one noticed." She looked around just to make sure. That was embarrassing.
"I wonder what he was reading." Her attention shifted towards the blue book he was holding. The title, in bold black letters read: Special Studies in Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics.
"Lacus?"
She looked up to find a sleepy-eyed Kira looking back at her in puzzlement. "Have a nice nap?" She asked, smiling.
"Uh…yes." He replied, smiling. Maybe the sleep was getting to him.
Lacus took this moment to sit across from him. "If you don't mind me asking Kira, why were you reading that?" She pointed at the thick book.
"Well…I…um, just wanted to." Kira scratched his head. "This is going to be a long explanation."
"I don't mind." Lacus replied sweetly.
"Well, I was reminiscing about the war again…" Kira stopped, seeing Lacus frown. "No, I wasn't wallowing in angst again." He assured her "And I was just thinking about the differences between Coordinators and Naturals, and how I'm supposedly the ultimate coordinator…to make it short, I wanted to find out more about it, and also how Coordinators can continue to survive…"
"I understand." Lacus smiled. "It's quite noble of you to go about such a task."
Kira couldn't help but turn slightly red at that statement. "Thank you Lacus." But then his eyes turned a bit wistful. "I guess this is the one time that I might be able to prove a bit useful…"
"Don't degrade yourself." Lacus reproached him. "You're useful in a lot of ways Kira. For one, you provide me with a lot of support."
Kira's eyes opened wide, confused. "But Lacus, I thought that it was the other way around…"
"Support is a give and take situation. And you do give me support in your own special way." Lacus beamed.
"Well…" Kira smiled back. "If you say so."
Eventually, Kira went back to his book, and Lacus scurried around to find a book of her own. Many cups of hot chocolate were finished, as the two silently read their respective books. However, one thought constantly came up in their heads: If you're my support and I am yours, two pillars can hold up anything the world decides to pile.
Elise popped her head out of her door. "Ouch!" She yelled as it bumped into the wall. "Clumsy me…" She rubbed her head, reproaching herself. "Well, at least no one saw that…" Quickly her head darted back and forth, making sure her statement proved to be correct. She had been so paranoid these days, with good reason of course, but that made her even clumsier than she usually was. In fact, her bumbling acts have brought on a lot of suspicion. Just the other day Arabella asked her if she was feeling alright when she ran into the wall two consecutive times. If this kept up, she would loose her sanity, among other things…but her conscience kept nagging at her from both sides…
She shook her head, clearing her thoughts. No, she had to continue. She had already chosen her direction. Doubts had to be suppressed. Elise looked around her surroundings once again. The hallway stayed deserted as usual. Good. She purposely had set it up that way, lest anyone would walk in on her…
A door opened nearby, revealing the lady behind it. "Oh, hello grandmother. What brings you here?" Elise asked, trying to act natural, while stepping out of her room.
"Well, I just wanted to ask you…Elise, watch out for that vase!" Nora warned.
"Eh, what…" The instant Elise turned around, something toppled off the counter, shattering into fragments on the floor. "Oops! Not again!" Elise moaned, and proceeded to pick up the pieces.
"Don't worry about it. I'm sure one of the maids will come and take care of it." Nora reassured her, although she looked a bit exasperated.
"Heh…sorry grandmother…I haven't quite been myself lately." Elise grinned sheepishly.
"Actually, your usual clumsiness had been amplified significantly." Nora scolded her, yet smiling. "But regardless, I wanted to ask you where Arabella is right now."
"Oh, I don't know…I just woke up a few minutes ago." Elise confessed, looking a bit embarrassed.
"Apparently." Nora commented, looking at Elise's current state. Her straight blond hair was currently disheveled, and the big puffy yellow shirt she wore to bed stayed crooked, dragging along her arm, one of her shoulders exposed. Not to mention, her eyes had a lazy look, and were red.
"Have you been getting enough rest?" Nora eyed her suspiciously.
"Yes, grandmother." Elise lied. "It's just that yesterday's incident was well, a bit tiring."
Nora nodded her head in understanding. "Well, just make sure to get enough sleep." Elise nodded back. "Oh, and if you see Arabella, tell her that the doctor's here to see her." Nora continued. "And I suggest that you get a shot as well just for safety measure, once you wash up."
"Okay grandmother." Elise replied. With a nod, Nora went on her way.
Once she was gone, Elise heaved a sigh. She really was losing it…
"Why, you look quite lovely today Elise." Elise turned around, and took a good look at the speaker.
"I would like to say the same to you." She laughed back at him.
"I take it that you just woke up too." Ray smirked, while trying to fix his hair, which was sticking out in all directions.
Elise nodded. "I couldn't sleep. And I guess you couldn't either."
Ray nodded back. "I was tossing and turning. And of course, when I finally managed to sleep, I was completely knocked out. Hence, the late awakening." Ray moaned. " I can't believe I left Lucia alone all this time. Who knows what trouble she got into by now."
"You really do worry about her, don't you?"
"Well…I don't know." Ray scratched his head. "She and I are…well…so different. And I get fed up with her all the time. But I suppose it's inhumane to leave her as she is."
"Well, they say blood runs thicker than water." Elise commented.
Ray shook his head. "I don't think it's even that." He started to sound nervous. Elise started to have her suspicions that he was hiding something, but she wasn't going to pry. Not yet anyways.
"So, how's Arabella?" Ray quickly changed the subject.
"You're her fiancée. Why are you asking me?" Elise asked, her suspicion growing.
"But you're her best friend." He countered back.
"She's under a lot of stress." Elise stated, her concern evident.
"Ah, I see." Ray replied. "So you're obviously trying your best to help her out. That's what friends do for each other, right?" He added.
Elise nodded her head. "Yea…"
"Friend before ruler…Well, I should go pick up Lucia now. I'll see you later." With that, Ray proceeded on his way."
Elise stood there for a few moments. "I hope I know what I'm doing."
Athrun blinked as Miriallia gave him a bouquet of flowers. "Huh? What…"
"You know what to do, Zala." Dearka gave him a wink, before the two of them disappeared from Athrun's presence.
Athrun stared after them blankly for a few seconds. Sighing, he started towards Cagalli's room. Yes, he knew what he had to do. But the question was, how would she take it? He gently knocked on her door.
"Come in."
Athrun took a deep breath. Slowly, he entered the room. "Um…Cagalli, these are for you."
"Thank you." She stated, with a small smile on her face. Athrun stared, confused. Is she suddenly feeling better now? What's going on? "Sit." She ordered, and of course, Athrun complied. The two just stared at each other in silence. They were both contemplating what was going on in each other's mind.
Athrun knew she was undergoing a lot of stress. Situation in Orb wasn't the best, although the island nation has been recuperating quite well. She was basically cooped inside here…not that the relaxation wasn't necessary, or that the hostess has not been agreeable, but Cagalli Yula Attha wasn't the type that liked to stay quite in one place. The schemes she constantly plotted were evidences of that. Of course, a certain redhead wasn't helping to improve the situation…
"Athrun, maybe it's time I explained myself." Cagalli said, breaking the silence. "I know you know about Orb, my getting restless, and annoying Lucia. So I'm not going to bother talking about them, cause I'm not good with words."
"Cagalli…"
"No, don't interrupt." Cagalli cut him off. "Let me finish. I won't talk about them, but I'll tell you something you don't know. Maybe that will clear off some confusion." She glanced up to see his reaction. Athrun looked back patiently, waiting for her to continue. "I just feel helpless."
So that was it. He should have guessed it sooner. Athrun wanted to say something, but decided to let Cagalli finish.
"I always believed that if one had the will, the ideals, one could accomplish anything. That one just had to try hard enough for the right thing, and it would eventually work out." Cagalli suddenly got off from the chair, and circled to the other side of the room, fists clenched. "But now, things happen that can't be controlled. Things happen and go about the wrong way. Even when I'm in a position of power, when I believe in what is right, nothing ever seems to run smoothly. There are always complications, always stumbling blocks. And a lot of times, what has been planned end up completely different."
Reality shock. That was what it was. Athrun looked at the strong woman before him. Or rather, a scared girl that was hiding behind that façade. Cagalli was outspoken, loud, and even obnoxious to a certain extent. However, she was extremely idealistic. Even amongst many battles, whether it was physical warfare, or a contest of wits, she was naïve. She had a lot of growing up to do. And she was denying the fact.
"It's just…I feel so useless!"
He knew that Cagalli couldn't live a lie forever. She couldn't always put everything on ideals and disregard practicality. Someone had to break it to her. Preferably someone understanding. He looked at the frustrated princess before him. He couldn't bring himself to do it.
"Cagalli don't worry too much. Everything will work out in the end. We're all here for you. I'm here for you." With that, he slowly approached her from behind, wrapping his arms around her. A flash of light reflected off his hands, where a certain band rested. Then he realized that another flash was present as well.
"Thank you…" Cagalli managed to say. "You'll never leave me alone, will you?"
"Never."
"Good." Cagalli turned around, now with a playful smirk. "Cause I'm going to break your bones if you do!"
He seemed to get into a lot of situations lately in which he asked himself later on how he managed to fall into such predicaments. Yzak incessantly grumbled, as he continued to follow Arabella, shop after shop.
"We could rest a bit if you're getting tired." Arabella suggested. She only got a grunt in response. Feeling that if he wasn't bothered enough to give her a direct answer, he didn't deserve a break, Arabella continued on. To tell the truth, she wasn't exactly enjoying this either.
Yzak once again reviewed how he managed to get into this situation. He had decided to final settle their chess score, an event that continued to be interrupted by other fiascos. Today also contributed to the interruption. Right when he was about to enter, she was about to leave, almost causing them to crash into each other. So they went into one of their usual word bouts, an act which Dearka would refer to as "foreplay", which eventually led to the blond pilot's escape out of the room as Yzak's temper exploded. Of course, this time, Dearka wasn't present, so the contest went on until Arabella declared that she would be late for an appointment if they kept this up. Yzak being himself, couldn't help but comment that she was just trying to find an excuse to get away from him, because she couldn't think of anything to say back to him.
"Well then Yzak, if you insist so much that we continue this, I suggest that you come along with me. I wouldn't mind the company actually."
He set himself up. Just one simple word, "no." Of course, that vocabulary seemed to be lost to him when it came to Bella. Maybe he was just out of practice. He should talk to Zala more often. In the corner of his mind however, he knew that no amount of practicing would ever change him when it came to a certain princess. How irksome.
Having agreed to come along, he noticed something as the two of them sat in the car. "Wouldn't the people be surprised that their princess is roaming around the city unguarded?"
"Yzak, take a good look at me." Arabella smirked.
He did. She did look different, he gave her that. None of the usual pretty dresses, or even the nice, tailored, customized pants that she occasionally wore. Instead, she had donned on a regular pair of blue jeans, and a non-descriptive black shirt. But she still looked liked Arabella. She hadn't even bothered to put on her disguise.
Arabella smiled, sensing Yzak's confusion. "The reason I didn't bother putting on a disguise was because no one would recognize me anyways." She laughed, slightly bitter, the tone barely caught on by Yzak. "The people don't know me. They know an image. I could have Lucia dye her hair, wear color contacts and dress like me, and the public wouldn't know the difference." She snorted in contempt.
They got off the car, and instead started walking. Arabella smiled once again, this time out of amusement. "Besides, I am guarded." Yzak couldn't argue with that. If he did, he would technically be degrading himself. It was a lose-lose situation.
The two of them basically went into every shop they came across, although they skipped some, much to Yzak's relief. Once they passed by a lingerie shop, and he almost had a hard attack, thinking that they were going to go in there. He thanked whatever fortune that was with him when they went into a store two shops away instead. Even Arabella wasn't that sadistic. Besides, only the truly insane would buy Lucia lingerie.
The shop they currently went into seemed to be an art supply store, with a vast array of paints at the back wall, and oil pastels and other assortments stacked everywhere else. "Hm…let's see, I know Lucia took some art lessons and actually enjoyed it…" Arabella scrutinized the items. "But I don't think she worked with pastels that much…" She put back the set she had been looking at. "Maybe some paints will do…" With that, she walked towards the back wall, and soon an assistant approached her and offered help.
"Looks like your girlfriend really enjoys painting."
Yzak nearly jumped when another assistant snuck up at him. After regaining his composure, he protested. "She's not my…"
"Alright Yzak, I got everything I need now. We could go back." Not wanting to bother explaining to the assistant any longer, Yzak followed Arabella out.
"So…you paint?" Yzak asked.
"No, I never really tried." Arabella answered back, as she handed Yzak one of the bags. He gave an annoyed look, but didn't protest any further. After all, she was carrying the others.
"Wait, so all of these are for Lucia?" Yzak stared at her in disbelief. Two complete paint sets, palette, sketchbooks, stuffed animals, music box…only a few items out of the assortments they were currently carrying. "Why?"
Arabella sighed. "I told you about my no tolerance yet mercy policy, right?" Yzak nodded his head. He did remember Arabella mentioning it vaguely to him before. "I can't let Lucia roam around freely, saying whatever she wants just for the heck of it. There is absolutely no way I'll let her escape the consequences for her actions. However…" Her eyes softened. "I could understand that she's afraid, and insecure about things that she doesn't know much about. That's why she lashes out so much. To hide the fact that she's scared and uncertain. Oh, I know that she acts ill-natured just out of spite sometimes…" She laughed. "So I guess some things don't have sound explanations. But there's a bit of understanding…and also the fact that she just lost someone dear to her…" Arabella stared at the ground. "I can't let her get away with things, but I can try to make her a bit more comfortable with the little things."
"I see…" Yzak replied, not quite sure what to say.
"I do what I could do."
"Ray, I can walk by myself, leave me alone!"
"But I don't think you're stable…"
"Why is she so loud? I can hear her loud and clear inside." Dearka commented, clearly annoyed.
"I can be as loud as I want to if I feel like it!" Lucia screamed back as she and Ray entered the room.
A wave of sympathy filled them for a quick second. True, Lucia seemed disagreeable and bratty as usual. However, this time there was an unmistakable desperation, a trace of unbearable pain in her eyes. She didn't even bother to fake gracefulness anymore, and if it weren't for a very haggard looking Ray, she would have crumbled to the floor, raving mad.
"Come one Lucia, you could behave better than this…" Ray scolded.
"Your brother has a point." Cagalli added coldly yet offering useful advice. "Just wallowing in self-pity wouldn't accomplish anything. I doubt, regardless of how your father was, that he would want to see you in such pitiful state."
"What the hell would you know? You're just a spoiled natural brat!"
Infuriated, Cagalli swung her arm, ready to slap Lucia again. To the surprise of everyone, Lucia caught her arm. Now, Cagalli could have easily overpowered her and proceeded with the slap. However, the fact that Lucia managed to intercept her arm surprised Cagalli, stopping her for a second. And that second was enough for Lucia.
While holding onto Cagalli's wrist with her right hand, Lucia managed to pluck the ring off Cagalli's finger using her left hand. "So this is what he gave you." She commented with a malicious smile. "Idiotic girl, when will you learn to give up these fantasies of yours and realize that a Natural can never be with a Coordinator?"
With that, Lucia threw the object with all the strength she had left. The ring sailed across the room, through the window, shattering the glass, and into the garden, where it became lost.
Chapter done…
(Sigh) You would think that after such a gap between updates, the chapter would turn out halfway decent…
I don't know, maybe it's because of that gap that the characters seemed to be a bit OOC…constant thing I have to struggle with, along with adding descriptions…
Just when things were getting better, Lucia just had to ruin things…more Athrun and Cagalli troubles in the next chapter, along with other things XD.
Oh, and there were a lot of clues in this chapter dealing with: 1) In correlation to what Elise was spelling out. 2) What is going on with Elise in general.
All right, hope everyone is doing well, and I would love to hear from everyone! XD