On The Road

"I don't know how to take it." Gin wrapped his arm around Middie. She patted it affectionately. "Just, my bro, gone one day. Then they found him, One Song. Dead on some random colony. A colony, he was shoved up inside of a colony. Can you believe it?"

She shook her head showing as much sympathy as she could, but cautious as well. She noticed a long time ago they weren't going in the right direction. They were going a long ways away from his address. They were already in another city, but she couldn't complain.

"I always told him his side business would get him. There were better ways to make money." He smiled and touched her cheek. "Better ways to meet girls. I mean? They were rubbing up on him for better pay, you can't trust girls like that." Distant for a moment. "It's put a crack between the family though, everyone's blaming everyone." He sighed and started to drive faster. "Things just got worse when they found out who it had been. You can't keep my family out of the loop. You know who it had been?" She shook her head. "Some blonde. Some blonde with pretty hair and gorgeous looks and a kind smile. Played him for a fool."

Uh oh. She wasn't here for comfort in the way she thought. "I'm not her." She struggled to say it, but she'd left her phone behind.

"Of course you aren't her. I mean? So you like playing me like she did my twin brother. You've got real nice long hair, a face that screams innocent but eyes that wink back and say you aren't. No, you're nothing like her."

Middie watched him grab her hand. "Never. Played." She fully intended on paying him back. She would never play Gin.

"I know I'm jumping the gun, One Song. I don't mean to scare you," he promised. "I know you were good for it. It's just? Life's hard right now. With my brother, and my family, and this whole situation? I just need some comfort right now. You know?" He stole a kiss on the side of her head once they reached the lights. "Promise. A guy like me can take care of a girl like you for a real long time."

I'm not a bad girl. He could see her past hiding in her eyes, but she hadn't done anything wrong in many years. Yet, what she did. It would always linger in her eyes. He could see that, and he was casting punishment because of it. She had to get out. Find another way to pay him off, steal and sell something if she had to at this rate, but she didn't want to be a-

"You did intend on paying me back, right?" Gin asked as he finally turned into a drive. "You weren't trying to stab me in the back." He lightly choked. "Like that Catalonia woman did to my brother! Even that last name, you knew she was someone terrible." He pulled her hair gently toward him. "He probably just saw the pretty girl staring at him. No idea what lied beneath. Get out."

Middie got out of the car. Gin was seeing her as some substitute for this Catalonia woman that just killed his brother. How to get out? She didn't know if 'One Song' was enough to comfort him, or if he'd want to strike her dead in anger. He was close to his brother, very close. A little crush might not matter at all in the bonds of brotherhood. Using her as a substitute though, how cowardly.

"Middie!"

Ooh. He didn't call her 'One Song'. She had to get out.

"Middie!"

Damn. He was physically grabbing her now. She went into the house but tried to watch herself.

"He never did anything wrong. I mean? Not really. It was just business." Gin walked around the room lightly. "It was just business. You remember him, right?"

Not much. Her and Gin's brother met only briefly. She gestured toward her throat.

"Oh, don't. I paid for medication too. It's been a couple of days and you've said a few words." He grabbed her by the hair. "Talk. What did you think about my brother?"

His brother? She barely knew him. Uh? "Nice."

"Nice what? Nice jacket? Nice pants? Nice smile? Nice money?"

She was trying. "Nice. Smile."

"Yeah. He had a nice smile. He was a nice guy. He didn't deserve that."

Middie took a few steps back. She looked around herself for a possible weapon as he went over toward a little bar area, but he dragged her along.

"I don't know, One Song. I mean? On one hand, I've never seen you do a thing wrong." He let go of her as he reached the bar and started to pour himself some whiskey. "On the other? You can just tell. When you look at someone, when they are hiding something." He smelled his whiskey and handed it to her. Then he poured himself another one. "What are you hiding, hmm?"

Middie set the whiskey down. If she said nothing, he'd only get madder. If she told him the truth, he might get so mad that he killed her.

"Are you sure you're not. I don't know?" He took a drink of his whiskey. "A spy?"

Oh no. Revenge of the Lost gave him information about her past. He was going to assume she was the one who ratted out his brother! "I didn't know him." It came out echoey, but she tried.

"Oh no? Didn't you just say he had a nice smile?" He took his whiskey glass and tossed it to the floor, and then pulled a gun on her. "You expect me to believe a spy, a dirty girl like you, didn't give up my brother?"

"I wouldn't have!" Ah. "Asked for money!" She took a few steps back. "From you, if I had!" Looking for anything. "Him." Nothing but furniture. Not even a single thing to throw. Time to switch gears. This wasn't going to remain friendly for much longer, but Middie Une was a survivor.

"I think my One Song? Was one naughty bird, singing like a parakeet." He held his gun at her again. "Death is so easy though, isn't it? You still owe me, and like I said? I'll take care of you for a real long time." He took another step forward to her. "After ratting out my brother, you still had the gall to ask for my help afterwards. Just, laughing at it all, weren't you? Didn't get enough from him, did you?"

Middie shook a moment as she watched a bullet graze the couch. Involuntary. It wasn't going to be that fast. A doorway? Nothing near her. A way out? The furniture was laid out eclectically, she'd trip if she tried to run.

"Honestly? I was pretty jealous. He owned a lot. You know? Left me in that dead-end job while he had enough money to cruise the world." He held up a key to her. "His house was a mansion too. This is just his little second house. A little reserve, 'cause he didn't want to be too far from me. But you know what? He earned it. He earned every dime. Now, this is what you are going to do," he said to her. "I don't know what's what, and I don't want to really kill you if your innocent, One Song. So? You are going to prove to me that you are a good girl. That you didn't do any of this. You are going to beg for me to believe you, and you are going to make me believe that you are just a sweet girl. A sweet girl that had nothing to do with this. You've got a week." He came toward her more steadily. "A week to make me forget how much you look just like the one who took him down. A week to make me believe you are just a timid bird. You start tonight, and then tomorrow, we are going on a trip. To his mansion. I have his extra key. Even though I was jealous? He trusted his brother. He trusted me. Now, what are you going to do?"

Gin was going to make her do anything she could to desperately save her own life. Yeah, survivor mode. His eyes were vicious and he firmly believed she ratted out his brother to the woman who killed him. Middie would either give him everything he wanted for a week and then be killed, or be convincing enough to make him see it wasn't her.

She closed her eyes. "Of course, Gin," she agreed. "I hurt but. I. Would never. Hurt. Him."

"Great. Then, explain your spy time? Go ahead, sit down. Use your own voice and explain everything you can. In as much detail as you can. One Song."


Earth Hospital

"Thanks, Trowa," Duo said as he came back into the hospital room. "Helluva day for the God of Death and all." Trowa gave a light nod. "I'll try to help find that Middie Une if I can. Once somebody's some place long enough, a foot print is kind of made." Still, Trowa didn't look any better. "You got any information to share?" It was clear that whoever took her was worrying Trowa.

"I shouldn't have stayed back," Trowa blamed himself. "Found her phone and an address she wasn't at."

"Huh." That was bad. "Maybe she'll come home." Yeah, maybe not. Duo pulled up his phone. "Anyway, got some information for you. All of the pilots actually. Turns out the scientists were real thorough. Howard had information on his computer." He smirked at Trowa. "Cool information. It was worth the trip." He downloaded it to Trowa. Duo watched his expression. His poker face didn't change much. "Not real surprised?"

"I was in the general vicinity of one of the markers they always set up at," Trowa admitted. "I've always been close to Catherine."

"Glad to see you take it well. Mine?" Duo looked at Hilde. Still sleeping. "My parents weren't in it for love, and my dad's even still alive. I even got brothers. Half brothers. Twins." He sighed. "Look into that another day, right now I just want to concentrate on Hilde. Found a link to the sepsis and my past. It turns out, that's how my biological mother died." He noticed Trowa's poker face slip slightly. "Howard says sepsis is common. It's hard to tell but murder by mother's death sounds like it might be up RTL's alley." Duo watched as Trowa dug through the files. "We'll find her."

"It was supposed to be a raid." Trowa looked confused. "Quick death by gunshot." He put his phone away. "I'll take any assistance that any of the previous Gundam pilots and/or the Earth forces want to give."

Yeah. Duo saw that too. Trowa's mother's cause of death was being beaten to death. "I hope the others are having a better day than us."

"They checked in. Heero's running with Relena Peacecraft to avoid a hefty sentence on her. Quatre's trying to run with Dorothy Catalonia, she apparently is being blamed for killing someone. Wufei avoided war by collecting Mei-Lin Wang."

"Well, Wufei's the winner today. I'll text him congratulations later," Duo muttered. "Right after I text the others their information." Everybody deserved to be aware.


Not Far From the Medical Colony

"What do you mean we can't go back down?" Quatre asked. Check-in should have been fast. He had Dorothy Catalonia stashed in the back but a few Maguanacs were still waiting there with him. As far as he knew, Heero made it out. Hopefully.

"Quarantined," the voice came back to his ship. "Sorry, Mister Winner. No one is returning to Earth. You can head out to your own colony for the time being. The Quarantine is just between Earth and the colonies."

"Quarantine?" What a time for this. "My other volunteer supply shuttle just passed here, maybe half an hour ago. Nothing was said about problems."

"It's just started, Mister Winner," the check-in said. "It's real vicious though. People are getting flanked left and right who came into space and back to Earth. No one knows how it traveled or what's infected. If I were you? I'd go to my own colony. No telling what's going to happen until we figure it out. I'm sure your other one will get stopped. No one's going to get much closer, Sir."

"What is it?" Quatre asked.

"The CDC is heavily involved. I've just heard rumors but it makes liquid mincemeat out of your insides. Trust me, you do not want to travel downward. Go back home."

"Is it in the shuttle areas?" Quatre tried to reason with them.

"It's striking everywhere. I even want to go home, Sir. Nobody knows where it's coming from. Until everything is checked out to be safe, no one can go through to Earth. Sorry. Checkpoint says no and there are a ton of authority shuttles to make sure no one else goes through. It has to get contained."

"I understand." Alright, for the time being, Quatre would have to divert to his own colony. He left the main room and headed to the back. Dorothy Catalonia wasn't very pleased with him interrupting. She didn't understand anything. He'd get to it. "We are going back to my home colony. There's some kind of quarantine going on right now. It won't let us go back to Earth."

"I don't mind that," Dorothy answered politely. "I find the colonies quite lovely. The only thing I don't find lovely? Is your actions. Some explanation as to what is going on would be quite welcomed, Quatre Raberba Winner."

"I told you. I'll explain." Yeah. When he got home. They could relax. He'd explain. "Just not right now." She was safe with him, no one would find her. He had time to explain it all in the right way. Then, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket.

It was a message from Duo.


A Little Further Than Quatre's Shuttle

"Quarantine." What timing. Heero listened to what Rasid said. They were separated from Quatre, but they would be stopped soon. Authorities weren't taking chances. Sometimes things like this happened, especially in the earlier days of the colonies. Still, it was coincidentally bad timing. He should be careful. Relena had real medicine and plenty to eat that was cold. His duty there was fine. "If they stop us, where will they direct us?"

"Master Quatre admits that he doesn't know," Rashid said. "We are further than him. He had a chance to redirect back to his colony. I don't know if we'll get that or be sent to a quarantine base."

"We can't do a quarantine base." Relena and him were practically hot celebrities as much as the social communications were focusing in on them. She would be noticed and taken in. It could be RTL, he didn't put anything above them right now. Options? Quatre would let them stay with him, or a quarantine base. Heero had a third option. Outrun the authorities. It would put them both into more hot water, but he doubted twenty years doubling to forty was much difference to Relena. A long time was a long time.

All he could do was wait for now. His phone chirped. He expected to see more information about what would happen, but it was a message from Duo instead.