A Daughter's Will

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing and it's characters... No, really. I don't.


A/N: Here is chapter 2. Sorry if the first one was hard to read. It was for me. I have to figure out how fanfiction and my Word documents can cooperate and show up the way I want them to. Anyways, quit reading this and go on to the next chapter.

Jacob looked over at his little sister, still lying motionless in the hospital bed that she'd been in for over a year. It felt much longer than that, though. And with all the recent uprisings in the Sank Kingdom, he felt much older. Whenever he visited her, he would wonder if she was better off in the coma, completely safe and oblivious to world outside her that was turning back to the days during the wars.

He sighed and looked at his watch, wondering what Caterina was doing at this particular moment. She had left the house with a smile on her face, but he knew she wasn't being sincere. It was her "brave" face she had put on. That was one of the things he admired about her. She dealt with whatever life threw her way with a smile on her face and the tough Winner demeanor she was born with.

But he still felt horrible for causing her to leave on her own this night when he'd promise he'd take her out on a night on the town. He'd ended up getting home early that morning, the raid the agents took on an abandoned factory on the outskirts of the Sank Kingdom carrying out later than expected. While it was a small victory against the riots, it still wasn't enough to find out who the person was behind the uprisings.

On top of that, he was set to have another mission the following morning. His father was bent on getting the people behind the church burning. Jacob had a sneaking suspicion that it was in part to the fact that he and Caterina had planned to marry in that church, but he wasn't going to question his father's motives.

Unfortunately, it meant that he would have to call in an early night and not spend New Year's with his fiancé at what was supposed to be the party where all the important people would be. He felt horrible for leaving her alone there, as he knew her parents would be too busy talking with associates and the likes and not her.

He hated breaking promises. But he supposed it was all right in the sense that at least Lisette wouldn't be alone this night. He had decided to go and visit her, since his parents were out having their own special dinner and nobody would be at the hospital with her.

He reached out his hand and took hers in his, suddenly having the brotherly urge to protect her. He missed having her around. Contrary to what everybody thought, they did love each other. The frequent fights were all just for fun. It was something they had done since they were kids. It was practice for winning arguments against their parents. They never actually meant the things they said to each other.

Though he now regretted saying some of the harsh things he'd said to her in the past. He would do anything to take back those words and have her back.

He wished she could wake up and everything could go back to normal. He missed having a sister. And with the wedding coming up, he wanted her to be there. It just wouldn't be the same without her. And ... it felt wrong. To celebrate something with her trapped in the state she was in.

He had desperately waited the last few months for her to make a miraculous recovery. Or give just a small sign that she was still in there, not just... there...

He kissed her hand and watched her silently, realizing at that moment that he would be getting home later than he had planned. He just couldn't leave her lying there, helpless.

He closed his eyes in a feeble attempt to hold back a tear he felt coming, unsure why it was even coming out. Was it because he had been holding back so much this past year? Was all the stress coming out in the last few hours of the hard year?

He bowed his head down in his lap, gripping Lisette's hand tighter as he decided that he might as well let it all out now. Nobody was around and could see him and then feel bad themselves in turn. He had to be strong in front of everybody to keep everything together. But right now, he began to weep with the comfort that no one was going to hear him. Except for the one person who'd seen him cry as a child when his favorite aunt had died. Maybe if she heard him, she would realize how much everybody, especially him, missed her. And she would wake up.

Maybe.

Elysia gave a sigh as she tried to find somewhere to sit. She still wasn't feeling well and was starting to wonder if coming here was even a good idea.

As always, the social gathering was rather boring for her. She wasn't one to mingle or drink or enjoy such ludicrous things. She still didn't know what exactly this party was for.

She watched as her father wandered around talking with the former pilots, all of whom decided to come under the guise that they were protecting the party. Their children knew better.

Her gaze landed on Theo, who was currently dancing with Caterina. She smiled at how handsome he looked, wishing she could just be alone with him for a while. The few moments he was with her, he'd been taken away by his father to talk to someone or a random girl trying to dance with him.

She sighed again and looked to Caterina who was smiling, a rare sight these last few months. Despite her coming alone, as Jacob was being "held up at work", she seemed happier tonight.

"Would you like a drink, miss?" a voice asked from behind.

Elysia jumped a bit and turned around to find that she'd somehow wandered over to the bar.

She frowned a little, trying to decide what she wanted to drink, even though she wasn't all that thirsty. Or the legal age, for that matter.
The bartender, a small, slightly bald man, smiled at her and gestured around at the various bottles around him. "Anything in particular you want?"

"Um...I... well..." She bit her lip as she tried to figure out what to do.

The bartender smiled some more and nodded. "No problem, my dear. I have just the drink for you." He ducked down under the counter and started grabbing bottles.

She frowned, a bit weirded out by how he'd been smiling at her, and looked back to the dance floor. The song was just about over and Caterina was actually starting to laugh. Theo also had a bit of a smile on his face, not looking worried or stressed liked he'd been lately.

She bit back a feeling of sadness, wondering what it was that Caterina did to make him smile like that when she herself had been trying to do that for weeks.

"All done! Here you go, miss," the bartender announced, causing her to jump again.

She turned back to him and grabbed the wineglass from his outstretched hand, smiling politely. "Thank you." She looked to the purple, almost red liquid in the glass, trying to figure out what this particular drink was called.

The bartender smiled broadly, creeping her out even more, as he moved back a bit. "A special drink for a beautiful girl. Secret recipe. Don't tell anyone." He winked at her and gave a little laugh.

Elysia laughed back, trying to hide the feeling of anxiety she got. "Well, thanks again," she said, turning around and quickly walking away.

"No problem, my dear! Please, come again! But whatever you do, don't look behind the bar. Wouldn't want you stealing my secret recipes." He waved at her as she left." Enjoy your drink!"

Elysia frowned again and walked a bit faster, not daring to glance back. "What a strange man."

She raised the glass to her lips, taking a sip of the drink. She bit back a cry of disgust at the bitter taste that went through her mouth, then frowned in confusion as it suddenly began to taste really sweet, almost like caramel. She went to have another sip, when a blonde girl dancing nearby bumped into her.

Elysia jumped back as the glass fell out of her hands, trying not to spill on the dress her father had paid so much for.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" the girl said, pulling away from her partner to check on Elysia. "Are you okay?"

Elysia closed her eyes, trying to fight back her disappointment at not getting another gulp full of the drink and nodded. "Uh, yeah. Just... nearly missed spilling all over the place." She looked down at the puddle on the floor, wondering if she should say anything.

The girl, who looked unusually young to be at the party, looked Elysia in the eyes, showing Elysia familiar bright green eyes, and said," Just making sure. Wouldn't want anything to happen to you." She smiled slightly and Elysia thought she saw the girl wink.

Elysia frowned, not understanding the comment, but before she could say anything else to the girl, her dance partner twirled her around in his arms and pulled her away, getting lost in the many couples on the dance floor.

Elysia stood quietly, not knowing what to make of the encounter.

"Ah, there you are! I've been looking all over for you!" a voice announced loudly.

Elysia smiled as two muscular arms reached out from behind her and turned her around.

Theo smiled back at her as he kissed her lips and pulled her closer to him. "Where were you?"

Elysia looked up at him and casually maneuvered him away from the spilt drink and broken glass. "Oh, I was just... "She glanced to the bar and frowned when she noticed the bartender was gone. "Looking around," she finished confusedly.

He smiled even more at her and kissed her again. "Well, I've been waiting all night to dance with a particular gorgeous girl and I'm just wondering if she'd do me the honor now." He pulled back and bowed, holding his hand out to her.

Elysia smiled a bit and took his hand, but shook her head a little. "Theo, you know I don't know how to dance."

Theo shrugged and pulled her deep into the middle of all the dancing couples. "That's okay. Just follow my lead."

He pulled her closer to him and wrapped his arms around her tightly as he began to sway to the slow music playing.

Elysia smiled some more, glad to be in his arms, even though she had no clue what to do.

She held back a frown as she began to feel a bit weird, her body starting to feel all tingly. She gripped Theo's shoulders tighter as she began to feel herself lose her balance.

The music began to fade from her hearing and the room was starting to darken. She closed her eyes, trying to process what was happening.

A loud noise came from her right and what sounded like cries for help, but she couldn't quite understand what was going on. She started to feel light, as if she were floating. She pulled back to look at Theo, wondering if he even noticed as another loud bang was heard, this time from behind her.

"Theo?" she managed to choke out, her body completely numb.

She looked up to his eyes, seeing him first confused, then concerned. "Elysia? Are you okay?"'

Her vision blurred for a second, then everything just got darker. She felt herself slip down under his arms as everything went black, still hearing Theo saying her name.

What's going on? Why am I feeling like this?

She tried hard to stay awake, but the darkness was overcoming her. She couldn't hear or see anything, her senses seeming to disappear from her. She tried to speak, but nothing was coming out. She then completely blacked out.

It had been another long day at the orphanage. Jennifer usually had her problems with the children, but today was exceptionally hard. The teenagers didn't help the situation much, either. Normally, when she'd have a problem with any of the orphans, she would send them to the orphanage's counselor, i.e. Elysia. Since Elysia knew most of the kids there and, obviously, had been in their shoes, she was the best person to handle them when they felt the need to act up.

But since Duo sent Elysia home early because she was looking rather pale and didn't seem all that well enough to work, Jennifer was stuck alone to watch them. And the kids took advantage of that. She was finally freed from the place an hour later than she was supposed to, but she wasn't complaining. She was glad to be out for that night. She'd let the nuns deal with the orphans all night for New Year's. She just wanted to go home and relax, hoping to bring in the New Year peacefully.

And that's where she was at now, the television on low, displaying the many different parties that were going on that evening, her wondering what was going on at the Preventers' party and how everybody else was holding up. She was curious, but didn't want to resort to calling them as that might make her look desperate and lonely. Which she wasn't. She was just the only one who wasn't invited and she hated not being in on everything.

She looked up from the couch she was laying on as the phone began to ring. She sighed, wondering who'd be calling her so late and why they'd want to interrupt her lazy hour. Everybody was too busy at the party to be calling her. Who else could it be?

She got up resentfully and walked over to the coffee table to pick up the phone. "Hello?"

"Jennifer, darling, is that you? You sound grumpy."

Jennifer closed her eyes in annoyance and flopped back down on the couch. "Mother?"

"Yes, it's your mother! Or did you forget that you had parents? Your father and I have been worried sick about you, wondering why on earth our little girl hasn't called us and fearing the worse has happened..."

Jennifer rolled her eyes, knowing her mother was trying to lay another guilt trip on her and tried to divert the rant. "How are you, mother?"

"Oh... Well, I'm doing what I can. I just have a broken heart about my little Jenny not being here, working by my side as she always did... You still sound grumpy. Is that orphanage treating you right? I knew you shouldn't have taken that job! They're wearing you out! You should've kept that job your father took so much trouble getting for you!"

Jennifer closed her eyes and tried to hold in her aggravation. "I like my job. I'm not being worn out. I'm just tired from staying up all day. I woke up early this morning and was at the orphanage 'til about an hour ago..." She sighed, not wanting to mention her rough day at the orphanage. "I'm just tired, mother."

"Tired or not, I just don't like you being there. I still can't believe you actually took a job in that hell hole. You were so glad when we adopted you and got you out of there and now, here you are, defending that place!"

Jennifer let out a groan as her mother went off into the same lecture she always did whenever she called. "Here we go..." she muttered.

"You know your father and I aren't fond of you being there in that wretched place. That city is in ruins and it's definitely not safe for a young girl like you to be, especially all by herself. I'd much rather you be here with us. But you seem so attached to that horrid orphanage. I don't understand why you even want to work there... I can't wait until they get a new leader to take over that area and bring it back to its former glory. Your father and I were thinking that perhaps we should just sell our summer home there and go to one of the colonies for our vacations instead."

Jennifer frowned and opened her eyes quickly. "What?"

"Well, it is starting to fall apart, dear, and it just doesn't seem worth the effort to-"

"No, mother, the other part. What of the new leader? I haven't heard anything about this."

"Why, Jennifer, darling, it's been an issue for over the last fifteen years! Ever since that Peacecraft woman was killed, there have been legal battles and procedures and fights over who would take her place and the whole Sank Kingdom. This is why it's falling apart and becoming the trashy place that it is. People are caring too much over who's in control and not over what's going to be controlled. A shame, I might add..." Her mother sighed to emphasis this point and then added quietly," A lot could've been done to save it."

Jennifer sat quietly as this went through her mind. People were feuding over a new leader? Why hadn't she heard about this before?

She made a face when her mother sighed again on the other end, as if Jennifer was the one who had called her so late. "Well, darling, I must be going. Your father and I are scheduled to play a game of tennis with the Mitchells tomorrow morning. And you know how much your father loves to beat them. I just wanted to make sure you were still alive. Do try and keep in touch with us more often, dear. You'll kill us both if you don't. Bye, bye. I love you... Oh, and Happy New year."

"Same to you. I love you too. Bye, mother."

Jennifer gently hung the phone up as she replayed the conversation in her mind. Why hadn't anybody mentioned the feud to her? Didn't the former pilots know about this?

She sank back into the couch, trying to get comfortable as she tried to connect the dots.

Was Relena taken out, so that a new, perhaps even cruel, person could take over? But why would someone do that and why would they want the Sank Kingdom? There was really nothing that set it apart from the other countries, or colonies. Was there some sort of secret value to it that nobody knew about? Could Relena have known about it? Was this why she was murdered?

She sighed, and closed her eyes, not wanting to think about it anymore. Even if this new bit of information was useful, it still didn't explain what had happened to Elysia.

She groaned as her phone began to ring. Who else could be calling her? She let out a sigh and pushed away the new information to the back of her mind, and picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"Uh, Jennifer? ... It's you, right?" a deep male voice asked on the other end.

Jennifer sat up straight in a mixture of shock and confusion. "Jacob? Why on earth and the colonies are you calling me?"

Jacob paused and then chuckled a little, obviously understanding Jennifer's surprise. He couldn't argue the facts that he never called her unless he was looking for Caterina. This wasn't a friendly call. Especially when it was so late at night. "Well, I'm not going to lie to you. I have an ulterior motive for calling you."

Jennifer let this go through her mind and frowned. "Okay," she said slowly.

Jacob gave a nervous laugh, causing Jennifer to be even more surprised, as he never laughed. At least, not in front of her. "I was unable to go with Caterina to that party tonight. I had to work late again. The problem is that I had also promised her I would take her out shopping for her wedding dress tonight."

Jennifer raised an eyebrow at the act of kindness Jacob had planned. "You actually volunteered to go shopping with Caterina?"

"Heh, yeah... But I screwed up again." He let out what sounded like a groan. "She's not going to be happy when she gets home."

"Because you didn't go with her? Caterina's pretty understanding about that sort of thing. I mean, her parents did it to her all her life. She's grown accustomed to that."

"That's why I'm mad at myself. I was kind of hoping I could try and give her just one decent night where she wouldn't have to stress or worry about the wedding plans or her work or me doing my late missions... I wanted to give her a nice evening out on the town. And I ended up doing what's always happened to her... False hopes and broken promises."

Jennifer bit back the urge to say "aw" at Jacob's display of affection. It was so odd as he never showed any sort of emotion other than annoyance or anger.

Then reality set in. "So, why are you calling me? I really doubt you would use me as a gossip buddy. Don't get me wrong, it's nice chatting with you and all, but it's really weirding me out."

"I was wondering if you could help me out with a surprise for Caterina."

Jennifer blinked and repeated back," Surprise for Caterina?"

"Yeah... I want to make up for not being there for her these last few months and... really being MIA with wedding plans."

"And what are you proposing we do?"

"Well, I was kind of hoping you could actually go and... Er, first off, take her out shopping. You know, the usual girly girl thing and somehow find out what particular dress she's looking for. Then, you go to me and relay the information and we can get her the dress as a surprise and-"

"Whoa, now, Peacecraft," Jennifer interrupted. "That's a nice idea and all, but you don't just go out and buy a woman her wedding dress without any sort of input from her and then expect her to like it, when she herself hasn't technically seen it."

Jacob paused and then said somewhat quietly," So it's not a good idea?"

Jennifer hesitated, not wanting to crush his good intentions. She sighed, regretting what she was about to get herself into. "Well, it's not that it's a bad idea. It's just that... Caterina is pretty picky... She'll say she likes one thing, but then change her mind an hour later... You know this will be hard."

"Hence why I'm asking you. If anybody knows her more than I do, it's going to be you. And I figured that you would be the one who could decipher her moods and lingo, so to speak, better than anybody."

Jennifer frowned, not sure if that was a good thing. "All right, so I'm just going to try to figure out what sort of dress she likes?"

"Yeah, and her dress size too, for obvious reasons. I don't want to ask her, as women are touchy about that sort of thing. And Caterina's pretty unpredictable."

Jennifer closed her eyes, wondering how she was going to manage that. "Okay. Dress size and the dress itself."

"For now," Jacob added.

Jennifer's eyes widened at the statement. "What? What do you mean 'for now'?"

"I may need you for future reference... Anyways, I better leave you now. Thanks, Jennifer. You have no idea how much this means to me."

"Bye," Jennifer said absentmindedly as the phone clicked to signal Jacob hung up. She slowly lowered the phone back on the hook, wondering why she's agreed to do this. Now, she was going to have to figure out a way to keep this all a secret from everybody. Why did she answer the phone?

She sank into the couch, wanting to go to sleep and pretend she had had a good day.

A/N: Well, there you go. I hope this is turning out okay for all of ya'll. As usual, R&R and I'll see you next chapter.