Chapter 10: A Night out on the Town
Morgenroete Facilities
"Take this Gai!" yelled out Alex as he charged Gai's Blue Frame. The I.W.S.P's anti-ship sword made contact with the Blue Frame's own sword which was considerably larger than the Strike's. The two were doing battle testing for Morgenroete in exchange for being able to dock in Orb. The Blue Frame took advantage of its sword's superior mass and quickly disarmed the Strike.
"Humph, is that all you've got?" questioned Gai as he moved away to give the Strike a chance to get up.
"Not even close." smirked Alex as he fired two smoke grenade rounds from his rail cannons and retrieved his anti-ship sword while pulling out his other one. "Bring it." Alex simply stated.
"You're so dead." grinned Gai, but at that exact moment Kira had sent a message to all of the unit commanders, telling them to meet him and the others at the palace.
"Well, looks like the kid's calling us." muttered Andrew as he looked at the ending battle.
"Kira's, calling all of you to the palace?" asked Murrue looking puzzled as Andrew proceeded to put on his jacket despite it being a hot day.
"Yes, he is. Apparently he's made up with the pink princess." Grinned Andrew as he moved to call the others away from the Eternal and leave for the palace.
"Do you mind if I tag along?" asked Murrue wanting to see for herself what kind of a man Kira had become since she found him in the Heliopolis factory.
Orb Residential Palace:
Athrun and Cagalli were the first to return to the palace and as he parked his car they saw Kira's parents leaving.
"Should I talk to them now?" asked Cagalli watching them walk away.
"I think it might be a good idea for you to explain the situation to them." responded Athrun taking off his sunglasses and locking the car doors.
"Mr. and Mrs. Yamato!" yelled Cagalli as she ran towards them.
Kira's parents' heads turned upon hearing the Head Representative's voice. They looked pleasantly surprised at seeing Cagalli as they had hoped to speak to her.
"Cagalli. It's wonderful to see you again. Do you know where Kira is?" asked Caridad Yamato.
"I've been okay. Lot's of paperwork you know. Life's hectic, but I try to enjoy it as much as I can." responded Cagalli smiling at the two people who had treated her like their daughter after the war. "Kira should be returning soon. He had to set things straight with a very important person to him."
"Really, the reason why we're here is because we saw Kira's face all over the news, and have you seen those magazines? They're always printing rumors and fake stories about him." added Kira's father joining the conversation.
"Well, we were supposed to meet here at seven and it's six fifty-eight now so if you're willing to wait for another two minutes he should be here." said Athrun stopping next to Cagalli.
As if on cue the gates slid silently open and the rumble of Kira's car could be heard as he drove into the circular driveway and around the fountain so that it once again pointed towards the gate. Once the car had halted Kira switched off the headlights and shut the engine down.
"Good thing the reporters went home instead of looking for me." thought Kira looking lovingly over at Lacus who was asleep on his shoulder. Kira pulled out his cell phone and contacted the Eternal to insure that it had docked at Morgenroete and was being repaired correctly.
Phone Call
Kira: "Hi, June you there?"
June: "Yes, Commander?"
Kira: "How are the repairs coming?"
June: They're fine, sir. The units are being repaired as we speak; however, the Morgenroete experts say that the fact that we have so many mobile suits on board is a ridiculously absurd fact. They say that the Eternal can't take all the stress we're putting on it for much longer. We've received a proposal for the Orb forces to integrate the Astrays back into their military.
Kira: I'll discuss it with the others, but for now allow them to remove them from the ship and restore the original design.
June: Yes, sir.
Kira: Oh, yes, and one more thing. Did Alex make the reservations I told him to?
June: Yes, sir.
Kira: I'll come around to check on the ship tomorrow. Good night.
June: Good night commander.
End Phone Call
"Lacus, Lacus, hey Lacus we're back. It looks like Cagalli and Athrun are already back." whispered Kira softly into Lacus' ear.
Her only response was to clutch his arm and she began to mutter something unintelligible. Kira strained to hear what she was saying and once he deciphered it he felt a stab of guilt though his heart. She was begging him not to leave her again.
"I'm sorry." whispered Kira into Lacus' ear, waking her from her deep slumber. She sat up and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and looked at Kira.
"We're back already?" she asked surveying the palace driveway once more with a smile. "Maybe we should find everyone else, Kira."
"Sure thing." grinned Kira remembering the surprise that he had set up for them.
Upon stepping out of the car, Kira saw two people that surprised him almost beyond belief. His parents were walking towards him with big grins on their faces. Kira could only smile back nervously and hope that they were not mad at him for not returning home after the war.
"Mom, Dad, what are you guys doing here?" asked Kira obviously confused. His mother was crying and his father was smiling widely, they had finally found their son.
"Are these your parents, Kira?" asked Lacus as she stepped out of the car and turned around to see what all the commotion was about. She walked quickly around the car to Kira's side and took his hand and whispered, "Don't worry, we'll do this together."
"Kira, how have you been?" asked his mother looking very preoccupied and worried about Kira's wellbeing.
"I'm fine Mom, I just want to know if you guys got to safety okay after the destruction of Orb." replied Kira.
"We were fine, Kira. We were worried about you so when I saw the newspaper today with your name on every headline I knew you had to be here." Said his Dad.
"Well, I have to say you caught me. I remember when we used to live on the moon you would always catch me when I sneaked over to Athrun's place." Laughed Kira trying to lighten the tension that was literally tangible.
"So, who is this fine young lady beside you?" asked Caridad Yamato attempting not to dwell on the past. Kira shuffled his feet nervously blushing a little.
"This is my girlfriend, Lacus Clyne." Introduced Kira as looked over at her with a warm look on his face.
"The Lacus Clyne?" asked Kira's dad honestly amazed. His son was not only back home, but rather he now had a girlfriend who happened to be one of the most powerful political figures in the world. She was the daughter of the late PLANT Chairman, Siegal Clyne and the leader of Clyne Faction as well.
"It's very nice to meet you , Mr. and Mrs. Yamato." Greeted Lacus extending her hand to shake either one of theirs.
"And it is very nice to finally meet Kira's girlfriend." Replied Caridad shaking Lacus' hand. Kira's father shook it soon afterwards.
"Kira, I assume you're doing something tonight with Cagalli and your friends, right?" asked Kira's father looking him in the eyes.
"Yes, I am, but I'd love to meet you guys for lunch tomorrow." Replied Kira hoping that his parents would not mind.
"Sure that would be great. We were leaving anyway. Bye, Kira we'll see you tomorrow. Feel free to bring Lacus along." Smiled Caridad nudging her husband in the ribs while leading him away.
"Your parents certainly are nice." Commented Lacus as they began walking towards the palace once again.
"Thanks, Lacus, but no one is as wonderful as you." Grinned Kira giving Lacus a chaste kiss on the cheek.
"Kira! You shouldn't say that. They're your parents." Scolded Lacus playfully, Kira could only nod and think to himself how lucky he was to have Lacus in his life.
They lapsed into silence as they continued towards what could be considered the oversized den. The attendant had informed them that Cagalli had gone to freshen up and that Athrun had left to do so as well. At this point none of the others had returned yet and so Lacus merely suggested that they sit in the den and wait. Upon sitting down Kira's phone began to ring with a ringtone reserved for the captains.
Accepted Call
Kira: Yamato here.
Alex: Hey commander
Kira: Alex, good job on getting those reservations on short notice.
Alex: Thanks, but that's not why I'm calling. This is a much more serious matter.
Kira: Huh, what is it? I know we got a request to commission us for the PLANTS in order to guard their convoy.
Alex: I guess you didn't hear the last part.
Kira: What?
Alex: There's a target for assassination also on the commission. The target, well, let's just say that this isn't going to make you happy and personally I think this is some shady shit they're asking for.
Kira: Who's the target?
Alex: Is the pink princess next to you?
Kira: Yeah, why?
Alex: Get up and move out of her earshot first. This is going to shock you and you're probably going to go into a fit of rage or something.
Kira: Ok… I'm out of range. Who is it.
Alex: The white queen. In other words, Lacus Clyne.
Kira: Holy shit… Have we accepted the commission yet?
Alex: No we haven't. Should we decline?
Kira: Yes, this really isn't a serious matter if we decline, but increase the security unless I give you the orders to leave. Stay hidden and have Allen look into this further.
Alex: You got it chief. Talk to you later. Sorry to have worried you.
Kira: No problem. When are the reservations?
Alex: The cars will be there at seven thirty, restaurant reservations are at seven forty-five, and the club has you at the top of the priority list. The VIP lounge is open and by the way, Captain Ramius is headed for the palace so look sharp. Bye.
End Call
Kira hung up and headed back towards the den, deciding to ignore the commission that seemed to have been out of the ordinary. He was determined to have a good time and to go through his vacation peacefully. As he returned to the den, Lacus looked up at him and gave him a smile.
"Where'd you go, Kira?" asked Lacus as he sat down and placed his arm around her shoulder.
"I was talking to Alex. I just have to go down to Morgenroete tomorrow for a while after we have lunch with my parents, but don't worry it won't be for long. We'll do whatever you want to do afterwards." Kira plainly stated plopping down next to Lacus on the cushioned couch.
"Did you know that I'm taking two weeks off after the anniversary ball and meeting? I was wondering if…" trailed off Lacus.
"Are you thinking about taking a vacation to somewhere?" asked Kira obviously interested. He had several other proposals for commissions, but after a year of mercenary work he decided that two weeks was not too much to ask.
"Hey guys how's it hangin'" waved Dearka as he walked in hand in hand with Miriallia. Soon after, Yzak and Karissa followed deep in what seemed to be a friendly conversation.
"So everyone's here now, right?" asked Cagalli as she and Athrun walked in dressed in what could be called upscale casual with Cagalli in pants as usual. "Does anybody have any idea of what we're doing tonight?"
Everyone lapsed into silence and Kira took this as his cue to inform every one of the plans he had made for the evening. Kira raised his hand in a gesture to get the attention of the others.
"Ok. I took the liberty of making plans for tonight if you guys don't mind. I had Alex get a reservation at the restaurant Town in the Chambers Hotel1. Then I thought we could go clubbing, so I got us into Tao. Oh yeah, and instead of having to have us all travel in different cars, I had Alex rent two, so basically four to a car." Spoke Kira clearly attempting to make an impromptu speech.
Everyone just gaped at him for approximately twenty-five seconds making Kira more nervous than he already was. Soon after everyone except Lacus burst into discussion while Kira just plopped back into his seat and waited for everyone to stop.
Cagalli was the first to speak, "Okay, wow. I think we all agree that this would be a great night out, but how the heck did you get all of us into the most popular places in the capital, hell on all of Onogoro!"
"Well, uh Tao is easy to explain because Alex knows Alan Finch the owner of the place. Town is, uh, just because Alex mentioned he was making a reservation for me." Explained Kira
"So when do we leave?" asked Miriallia. Kira looked at her and simply replied that they were going to leave within five minutes. As soon as he finished his sentence his phone began to ring with Alex on the other side telling him that the cars had arrived.
"Okay, it's time to party!" yelled Dearka, which earned him a smack on the back of his head by Miriallia and sharp reprimand to calm himself down. Lacus giggled making Kira smile. Cagalli could only look upon the situation and grin as well, but not only out of anticipation for what was sure to be a great night, but rather that her brother had returned and that he was happy. Upon walking outside the group of eight found in front of them two Maybachs2 each one with a different color scheme. Dearka whistled in surprise as the chauffeurs rushed to open the doors. Kira, Lacus, Karissa, Yzak took the first one and the others quickly scrambled into the other.
"Mr. Yamato, we will be heading to the Chambers Hotel and then to Tao correct?" inquired the driver to Kira who was sitting in a plush seat next to Lacus in the back of the car.
"That's correct. Thank you." Responded Kira sinking back into his seat and smiling to himself knowing that tonight would be a wonderful one, not only for him, but for the friends he had missed over the last year.
TBC…
READ AND REVIEW OR I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN AND SMITE YOU WITH MY… uh… forget it… JUST REVIEW.
Authors Note: Sorry, guys. Thanks to all of those who reviewed. I know I promised you all a quick update, but my life's been hectic recently. I'm now going to boarding school so that made a big difference in my life. School's a lot harder now and so I haven't been able to write very often. However, this time I hope that I can get another chapter up in about two weeks or so.
UNTIL THEN, READ; REVIEW; and ENJOY!
GATX – 105B