"It's scary, seeing Ms. Murrue like this." Cagalli whispered to Lacus as they sat across from her at the table. It was about six o'clock pm, and there was only about thirty minutes to go before they were due to leave for their double dinner date with Athrun and Kira. Murrue looked through them blankly, not really seeing them. Lacus and Cagalli had taken her over to their side of the house in an attempt to liven her up with some private chatting, but the idea had not panned out. Murrue was just as unresponsive with them as she had been when Kira and Athrun were around. At least she had stopped crying.
"She used to be so strong." Lacus whispered back.
"She was no stronger than you or I. She just hid her true feelings better." Cagalli refuted. "Besides… she had her true love taken away forever… twice within a two year period. I don't know what I would do if I lost Athrun… much less losing someone like him again a few months later."
"Me either, with Kira. I think I'd die if he ever was lost." Lacus replied.
"Speaking of Kira… could you get him under control?" Cagalli asked, seeking to change the subject.
"What do you mean?" Lacus asked.
"I mean, stop him from interfering with Athrun and me! It's hard enough to find time alone with Athrun as things are, without Kira always making sure the door is cracked or that he can hear us. It's driving me crazy." Cagalli said, her voice cracking.
"He's just concerned for you. He doesn't want either of you to rush into something you may regret later." Lacus replied.
"My apologies… but FUCK THAT!" Cagalli half shouted. "I'm touched and all, that my little brother is feeling protective of me… but he's not my guardian. It's not his choice about what I do with my boyfriend."
Lacus looked uncomfortable. "I see your point… but…"
"But nothing! How would you like it if I started watching you and Kira make out? Huh? Or always made sure that I was in sight when you were together, so you wouldn't ever really be alone to get the mood right?" Cagalli said angrily.
"I wouldn't like that at all." Lacus admitted.
"Then why is it okay for Kira to do so?" Cagalli asked, calming a bit.
"I don't know. It might stem from his memories of Flay. Most of his problems do. What he went through with that girl… grrr, it makes me wish she wasn't dead, so I could kick her out an airlock!" Lacus said, trembling with feeling. "But anyway, since he felt like he failed to protect Flay, he might have vowed not to do the same in your case. And in his mind, protecting you from doing something he considers stupid is just as important as protecting you from assassins."
"Like his track record is that good in that area either." Cagalli remarked sarcastically. Lacus looked at her indignantly.
"Take that back! Kira tried his best. He always does. Athrun was lying out in the field like a comatose log, while Kira fought off the pain of that horrific bite wound in an attempt to stop Zacharis!" Lacus said with more than a hint of nastiness. Cagalli blinked in surprise.
"I shouldn't have said what I did." Cagalli managed.
"Me, either. What came over me?" Lacus asked, looking scared, this time of herself.
"This whole situation, with our boyfriends… it's started to leak over to us as well." Cagalli replied.
"I'll talk with Kira on the ride over tonight. I can't promise you anything… you know how he is once he makes a promise to himself to do something… but I will bring up your feelings." Lacus told her, glad to try and patch up the situation.
"You can tell him that if he doesn't back off soon, I'm going to chain him to his bed and screw Athrun right there in front of him, on the floor of his room! Maybe once the first step is irrecoverably taken, he'll ease up about it all!" Cagalli said with fire in her eyes. Lacus looked at her with shock in her eyes.
"You… wouldn't really do that, would you?" she asked slowly.
"The hell I wouldn't! I'm at the end of my rope! I swear on my dead father's grave I'll do just that if Kira hasn't eased up by this time next week!" Cagalli said with conviction. "And you can tell him I said that too."
"I hope you don't have to do that… it would irrecoverably damage your relationship with Kira, I believe." Lacus whispered.
"I hope I don't have to do it either. The mere thought makes me sick, really. But right now, Athrun is more important to me than Kira's feelings! I don't know how to explain it to you, but I think you know what I mean when I say I fall more in love with Athrun every day! He was hiding something from me earlier today and I'm pretty sure I know what it was and when he's going to reveal it!" Cagalli replied.
"What's that?" Lacus asked.
"Well, it was small, box shaped and was wrapped in expensive paper. I'll give you three guesses, and a hint. It's meant to be worn on the finger. Think you can figure it out?" Cagalli said, a bit hysterically. Lacus placed a hand over her heart.
"A ring? An engagement ring? He's going to propose? But it's only been about three months!" Lacus said, her head spinning.
"I don't know it's an engagement ring for sure, but I'm about 95 certain. And I'm pretty sure he's going to bend the knee after dinner tonight. As for the time… does it really matter to you how long you spend with Kira? Do you love him any less after one month versus after 3 months? Of course not. I just know that Athrun is the right guy for me. I just do. I have total faith in that and in him." Cagalli babbled out. "Besides… it's just a formal way of publicly confirming what we already have. I mean, we can't get married until we both turn 18 anyway. That's not for one and a half more years at the earliest. We'll be just like you and he used to be… but with real feeling."
"Congratulations, I guess. I'm just overwhelmed. Has Athrun told Kira yet?" Lacus stammered out.
"No…" Cagalli said, drawing the word out for several seconds.
"Don't you think he should know?"
"Well you can tell him on the drive over… but only if he promises… swears on his life… that he won't let on to Athrun that I know about the surprise." Cagalli decided. "And if Kira doesn't like the whole thing, then you can tell him what I said earlier."
There came a sudden knock on the door. Lacus jumped up and ran to get it, glad to be out of the uncomfortable conversation. Her Haro robot pet bounced around excitedly as it always did when there were visitors about. Lacus opened the door to see Miriallia and a slightly queasy looking Dearka standing outside. "Come on in." Lacus invited. Miriallia prodded Dearka along and closed the door behind him.
"Do we really have to do this?" Dearka whined.
"Yes, we do. Hopefully Ysak will get Kira and Athrun in here in a moment and then we can get the whole thing over with…" Miriallia's voice trailed off as she sighted Murrue. "Captain Ramius! When did you get here? I'm so glad to see you…" Miriallia trailed off again. "Captain? Are you okay?"
"She doesn't look very good." Dearka observed.
"She's in a depressed fugue." Cagalli told them.
"Over Mu?" Mir asked. Murrue cried a few silent tears at the sound of her beloved's name. "Stupid question. Of course it's about him. I still can't believe he's gone myself."
"Mr. Waltfeld brought her by, hoping that by meeting us she would snap out of it. As you can see, it didn't work." Lacus explained. "Her heart is broken, and so badly I don't know if it can be fixed. She's wasting herself away in grief. She hasn't spoken a word since she collapsed while on duty a week ago, and has only eaten three or four times in that time period as well."
"That's so sad." Mir said. She went over to Murrue and placed a hand on her shoulder. Murrue didn't even look up. "I know what you're going through, Captain. At least partially I do. Killing yourself isn't the answer. It won't make anyone happy, least of all Mu." Mir whispered. Murrue blinked slightly, but that was all.
"We tried everything. And before us, Kira and Athrun tried everything. And before them, Andrew Waltfeld tried everything. Nothing gets more than a blink or two out of her." Cagalli said gently.
"There has to be something that we can do. Maybe bring her with us to our nightmare counselor?" Mir suggested.
"It's worth a try." Lacus allowed. The door opened and Kira, Athrun, Ysak, Chanel and Katie flowed through it into the room. Kira and Athrun were dressed in casual-formal wear, consisting of nice jeans, belts, dress shoes, and a cerulean blue collared long sleeved shirt for Kira and a crimson red one for Athrun. Athrun had his motorcycle jacket folded over one arm.
"So what is this important issue you want us all here to discuss?" Athrun asked, going over to Cagalli and giving her a quick hug. Kira did the same to Lacus, turning away to give Athrun and Cagalli a bit of privacy.
"I'll get this over with quick so you guys can get on with your evenings." Miriallia said. "Earlier today, Dearka told me about a particular weakness peculiar to Coordinators of second generation and later. I felt this was some information that everyone needed to know about."
"What is it?" Kira asked. Athrun had a sinking feeling in his chest. He was pretty sure he knew what Miriallia was talking around. It was something he'd been meaning to tell Cagalli himself.
"Second generation Coordinators have about a 1 in 5 chance of not being able to have children. This chance gets greater every generation the Coordinator is after the second. It's not that they can't make love…" Miriallia blushed a bit. "… Just that their efforts do not produce children. They are, for all genetic purposes, sterile. In the simplest possible terms that means that Dearka, Athrun, Lacus and Ysak each have a 1 in 5 chance of not being able to have children. I thought everyone should know, for future reference." Miriallia blushed again.
"You're kidding." Cagalli said, her face drained of blood. Kira looked unnerved as well. Athrun and Lacus looked embarrassed and a little afraid.
"I'm afraid she's not. I was going to tell you later tonight, Cagalli." Athrun admitted. "There's actually no way of knowing if the lack of children is from genetic problems or because of just plain old bad luck… not until years have passed. Please, Cagalli… forgive me for not telling you sooner." Athrun said, tears in his eyes as his heart started to plummet like a lead weight. This couldn't have come at a worst possible time. He fingered the ring box in his pant's pocket. Might as well toss that out, now. He thought bitterly.
"Oh… Athrun… I don't care if you can't have children… it would hurt me if we couldn't pass on a legacy… but not so much that I'd forsake you because of it." Cagalli mumbled, pulling him close and weeping into his chest. "I can forgive you for anything. This isn't even your fault, so don't worry about it. It's not like we've had much chance yet anyway." She continued, shooting a burning glance at Kira. Kira looked abashed.
"Lacus… I…" he started to say.
"I'm sorry as well, Kira. I should have informed you sooner, too. It's just… I didn't foresee it becoming an issue any time soon… and…" Lacus started to sob.
"Shhh, Lacus. It's okay. I still love you. The ability to have children is not something I have as a requirement. I'm still getting used to just being in love, myself. Besides, there's no guarantee of anything being wrong with you like that. In fact, the odds are you'll be just fine. I'm willing to trust to luck. After all, it brought you to me in the first place." Kira said, wiping away her tears.
"Now I feel terrible for having brought this up." Miriallia said softly, tears forming in her eyes as well.
"No… don't. You were right to get this out in the open. It's better to see how everyone feels so we can work it out, rather than letting it fester like a secret wound that might eventually poison a relationship." Cagalli replied.
"Definitely." Athrun added.
"I agree." Lacus said simply.
"Me too." From Kira
"You always have my support." Dearka said, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"I guess you had good intentions. Can I leave now?" Ysak asked. Katie and Chanel each gave him an elbow to the gut, one from each side.
"How can you be so insensitive?" Katie declared in exasperation.
"Those were two of the most beautiful things I've ever seen." Chanel added.
"Ugh. I'm sorry." Ysak managed. "You know… you four are going to be late if you don't leave soon." He said to those people going to dinner. Without further ado, Athrun, Kira, Cagalli and Lacus hurried out the door, to their motorcycle and car. "Now… you two were teasing me about something earlier… I think its time to make you pay the price." Ysak said with a broad smile, gently dragging Chanel and Katie back to his room, over their mock squeals of protest.
"He's turning into Athrun." Dearka remarked after the door had shut.
"Maybe so." Miriallia allowed, dropping her ruined backpack in the trash. "Though maybe that's not a bad thing. We could all take a page from Athrun and Cagalli sometimes, I think." She continued, swaying her way over to him. Murrue was still sitting in her chair, staring at nothing. "Come this way." Miriallia ordered, leading Dearka up to her room and locking the door after them.
"We don't have to do anything you don't want to…" Dearka began. Miriallia shushed him.
"To simplify what I said downstairs… sometimes a little passion is warranted." She whispered, starting to unbutton his shirt while kissing his skin as it became available.
"Oh god…" Dearka whispered. "This must be heaven."
---------------------------------------------
"I can't believe how nice it was of Alkire to loan you the use of his fancy car." Lacus shouted over the wind roar as Kira sped along at exactly the posted speed limit of 100 kilometers per hour (60mph).
"Shh, I'm trying to concentrate. Driving a car is much more difficult than he made it out to be. You have to keep your foot on the pedal, your hands on the wheel and your eyes constantly moving so that you don't run into other people or obstacles. Added to that is the fact that the other people frequently seem to be trying to do their best to crash into you." Kira replied, intently watching the road ahead of him.
"Where are Athrun and Cagalli?" Lacus asked.
"Beats me. I lost them about five minutes after we started. Since Cagalli was shouting with glee and calling "faster, faster" even though they were already going twenty over the limit… they could already be in jail right now, arrested for speeding." Kira answered, swerving around a slower car.
"Speaking of them… Cagalli asked me to talk to you about something." Lacus said.
"About how I keep interfering with Athrun and her in private moments?" Kira asked. "I've been thinking about that all day long. And I've realized what a total jackass I've been. I mean, Athrun's my best friend. I trusted him to protect Cagalli in the heat of battle. How could I not trust him to protect her in the heat of passion?"
"That's a really mature thing to say." Lacus allowed.
"Besides, Cagalli probably gave you an ultimatum I wouldn't want to hear while I'm driving, to be delivered to me if I didn't cooperate, right?"
"She's very strong willed, and she really loves Athrun." Lacus admitted.
"I figured as much. I'm glad you didn't have to tell me the ultimatum. Was it really bad?" Kira asked.
"You'd probably have fainted." Lacus told him. "And then we would have crashed and probably both died."
"I see. Promise me you'll NEVER tell me what it was or I may not be able to get the vision out of my head and then I might have to do something drastic in reply." Kira requested.
"I promise. There was another thing though. I need you to promise to me on your love for me that you won't let on to Athrun about this though." Lacus replied.
"Umm… okay. I promise on my love for you, Lacus Clyne, that I won't say a word to Athrun about whatever it is you're going to tell me."
"Athrun's going to propose to Cagalli after dinner tonight. She glimpsed the ring box earlier today." Lacus said simply. Kira swerved a bit sharply around a corner, tires squealing.
"That's a hell of a step forward." Kira commented, regaining control.
"Not really. More just a formal affirmation." Lacus replied.
"I suppose you're right. Okay, I should be able to keep that under wraps for a few hours." Kira said. "There's the restaurant up ahead."
"They're probably going to want to consummate tonight." Lacus added. Kira's knuckles whitened as he death gripped the steering wheel. He pulled into a parking space and turned the car off… then gripped the wheel again. "Kira?"
"Can… can I borrow your couch then? If I'm nearby I don't think I'd be able to stop myself from trying to stop them." He whispered.
"Sure you can… though I think I'll probably just have you sleep in my room instead. I can put some cushions on the ground or something. That'll spare you any possible embarrassment in the morning or night. Miriallia sometimes sleepwalks, you see."
"Your room?" Kira half choked.
"Come now, Kira. You've seen me in my sleepy clothes before. And I'm not like Cagalli… I won't do anything scandalous while you're sleeping or waking up." Lacus told him coyly.
"I seem to recall you sitting on my lap to wake me up once. That wasn't exactly ladylike behavior." Kira said with a grin, releasing the steering wheel and unbuckling his seat belt.
"Would you have preferred I strip to my underwear and put your head in my lap? That's what Cagalli suggested I do." Lacus asked.
Kira shivered. "I can't believe she's related to me. Or that she's a princess. Where does she GET thoughts like that?"
"Don't ask me. I'm just her friend. Now, shall we go inside?" Lacus replied. They did so and found that Athrun and Cagalli were already seated. The dinner was quite enjoyable, with both guys acting like the close friends they had always been. None of them were used to spicy Thai food, which caused several rounds of laughter as first one person, then another drank copious amounts of water and complained of being able to see flames on their tongues. Finally, the dinner started winding down and the conversation slackened off. Kira, Lacus and Cagalli shared a secretive look when Athrun excused himself to go to the bathroom.
"He's going to come back with the ring in hand." Cagalli said gleefully.
"Haven't you ruined the surprise though? Doesn't that take a lot of the fun out of it?" Kira asked.
"No." Lacus and Cagalli said together and then laughed. "The anticipation is what makes it worthwhile. Besides, I can still be surprised by the ring itself, what it look likes and all, and how he presents it. You'll understand, after you give it a try. Now shh! Here he comes." Cagalli said. Athrun came back to the table and sat down nonchalantly.
"What's everybody looking at?" he asked, finishing off the last bit of his food. Lacus, Kira and Cagalli traded surprised looks.
"Umm… you didn't forget anything did you?" Cagalli asked nervously.
"Nope. I've forgotten nothing. I'll get the bill." Athrun replied. He seemed oblivious to how queasy Cagalli was looking. Kira stared at Athrun hard before turning his lips upward ever so slightly.
"He's been on to you girls." He breathed in Lacus's ear. "He's stringing Cagalli along. So much for anticipation. Surprise IS everything." He continued, so quietly even Lacus could barely hear him.
"What are you two whispering about?" Cagalli asked, terribly suspicious.
"After dinner plans." Lacus replied instantly and placed her hand on Kira's neck. "I think we should let her stew for a while. Would serve her right." She whispered back to Kira. Athrun paid the bill and everyone got up to leave. Cagalli seemed a bit listless. She kept starting at Athrun's hands, as if expecting that if she wished hard enough, the ring would magically appear. The four friends left the restaurant, which was situated along the banks of one of the impressively clear Swiss rivers. Instead of heading back to his motorcycle though, Athrun paused and took Cagalli's hand.
"You two go on ahead. Cagalli and I have a few things to talk about." He said to Kira and Lacus. They nodded and headed off to their borrowed car. Athrun led Cagalli along the riverbank for a ways, ignoring her protests and inquiries. Finally he reached the place he had scouted out earlier in the day, when everyone else had thought he was working on the bike with Vlad and Alkire. In actuality, they had fixed the bike in less than thirty minutes, and then gone along to help him choose his proposition spot.
The spot was a slight peninsula that extended out into the river for a dozen feet or so. A gazebo with a marble bench sat at the very tip of the peninsula. It was to this structure that Athrun led Cagalli. The stars blazed overhead like a cloud of diamond dust scattered across a black felt blanket. There was a slight breeze… just enough to cause Athrun's shoulder length hair to stir slightly. The air around the gazebo was cool because of the proximity to the river.
"Athrun?" Cagalli asked, hesitant. Athrun decided he had punished her enough for peeking at the ring box earlier in the day. He turned and knelt before her on one knee in a single fluid motion.
"Cagalli Yula Attha… will you marry me?" he asked calmly, producing the gift wrapped ring box from out of a sleeve like a magician. Cagalli started to tremble as she slowly took the box from his hands and… still staring into his wonderfully soulful green eyes the entire time, unwrapped the box. She opened the box and gasped in awe upon seeing the ring. Instead of the standard gold or platinum ring set with a gem, the ring Athrun had bought was made from crystal pure carved amber, inlaid with gold wire in the shape of two hearts that overlapped like two leaves of a plant at the apex of the ring. In the area of the hearts that overlapped was cunningly mounted an emerald of the exact same color as Athrun's eyes.
"The amber reminded me of your eyes, the gold of your hair. The emerald is there to show to all the world just who always has his eyes on you." Athrun explained as he gently lifted the ring from its depression and slipped it onto Cagalli's right ring finger. It was a perfect fit, not that either of them was surprised by that. "Cagalli… will you marry me?" Athrun asked again.
"Yes." Cagalli said in a very tiny voice. "Yes… Yes… YES! I'll marry you, Athrun Zala!" she cried, throwing her arms around him and weeping with joy. "I thought you were never going to ask."
"You shouldn't have tried to peek at the ring earlier. Surprise is the best part of the whole ritual, after all." Athrun reminded her.
"You jerk… you were onto me the entire time?" she whispered.
"Yep. You should have seen your face when I sat down at that table without doing anything. It was priceless." Athrun chuckled.
"You're lucky I love you so much, or I'd kick you right now." She told him, holding him tighter. "Athrun?"
"Yes, dear?"
"You have more planned, right?"
"Of course. The proposal was just the first tiny little bit. I've got a suite rented at this luxurious lodge up in the mountains. That's our next stop."
"Little early for a honeymoon."
"I mainly did it just in case Kira was going to be a bother. He doesn't know about it… no one but you and I do. We'll have two days of uninterrupted time alone, at the very least. Now… enough chit chat. I've been waiting for this night for weeks. We have a date with solitude, love. Let's not delay." Athrun said, physically sweeping her off her feet and carrying her in his arms back to the motorcycle at a lope.