This story is really coming together, and so, instead of rambling on and on and knowing how bored you probably will be if I do, I leave you to go ahead and read. And I apologize for any stress I may cause.


Year: After colony 232

November 17

Early Morning

Location: Colony cluster L5; Colony 46FJX8

"I'm coming with you!" Ami told him defiantly. Tarak sat with her on bench in the part the morning he had to leave. He shook his head and looked into her tear filled blue eyes. He leaned forward and kissed her lips.

"No. It's too dangerous."

"You mean it's too dangerous for a woman?"

"Of course that's what he means." Trevet came up behind them and stuck his head over Tarak's shoulder. The green eyed young man kept his face straight, but suddenly swung his hand back and hit Trevet square in the nose with his fist.

"Ow! Barton! What was that for?"

"If you need to ask, Maxwell, you're even more of a Baka than Haru believes."

Trevet rolled his eyes and threw a bag at him. It was Tarak's duffle bag. "Da… I mean, Commander Maxwell's waiting. We're leaving." His face became serious as he talked. He sighed. "Time's up Barton." He shook his head and turned to Ami, nodding in acknowledgement that she was there. "It was nice meeting you, Ami. You and Nikki take care, alright?"

Ami smiled. Over the week she had gotten to know Trevet, Yul, and Ayman. She liked them all, just as she knew that Tarak did, despite how he might act. She nodded.

"We will, Trev. And you too," she said as she and Tarak stood and gave one another a passionate kiss goodbye. She released his hand and stepped toward Trevet. She gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Take care of Tarak and Haru for me? And come back alive?"

Trevet blushed. "I will." He croaked as he watched her walk down the path out of the park, on her way to her first class of the week. "She's really something, Tarak."

"Yeah." He glanced over at Trevet. "Just remember that she's already someone's something."

"Yeah! Yeah." He paused a moment, thinking. "Are you absolutely positive she hasn't got a twin sister?" He asked following Trevet out of the park, in the opposite direction ami had gone in.

"Baka!"


Year: After colony 232

November 7

Midnight

Location: Colony cluster L7; Military Training Base

Yul Chang stood with his hands by side, his eyes focused on the ground hundreds of feet below him. The ground at feet of his gundam was littered with pieces of MSs and MDs, and human beings; missles and rockets lay both whole and in pieces, mixed in with blood and flesh. The grass was covered in blood stains; a sheet of dark red broken up by small patches of green.

The wind blew through his hair making him look up. Ayman's gundam had moved until it was directly in front of Yul's. The hatch opened slowly, making a bridge with Yul's. As the smoke caused by an earlier fire withing the MS cleared, Yul could make out the outlining shape of a small boy. Ayman stumbled forward into the sunlight, blinking his eyes slowly and coughing as the smoke entered his lungs. His clothing was scorched, as was his skin. His face was streaked with soot, and there was a bloody gash on his face. He leaned against the edge of the entrance way and slid down until he could sit, his knees pulled against his chest. He turned his weary face toward Yul who watched him, a look of worry on the older pilots face. Ayman gave him a weak smile.

"Alright there Winner?" Yul called across the gap.

The small boy coughed. "Hanging in there. You?"

"Could be better."

"Oi! You two alive up there?"

"Yeah, Maxwell! But I don't think Winner can get down alone."

"I can too."

"Are you sure, Ayman?" Duo called from the ground, worry in his eyes. Ayman lay down on his stomach and peaked his head out over the edge of the gundam's hatch. He glared at his commander. Trevet and Tarak stood with him. But where was Haru? Oh well. Haru was a big boy. He could take care of himself.

"YES I'M SURE! Who is the one that took down twelve Mobile Dolls in one shot? Who is the one that put out a fire in a Mobile Suit while managing to keep from being killed by enemies? WHO?"

"Alright, Winner. We get the picture." Trevet said, shaking his head and looking at Tarak. "See, he doesn't need help. Now, we've still got one more to find, better get started."

"Don't bother." Haru said, hopping down from on top of a pile of MDs. His hair was matted to his forehead, and his left cheek was bleeding. He limped on his right leg, the left one seemed to have been twisted and mangled. However, he looked no worse than the other four, who all sported wounds of their own. Only one seemed unharmed. He wasn't even sweating. Haru studied their commander.

"We're the only ones that made it?" he asked 02. Duo nodded, studying the battle field. The man placed his hands in his pockets. So Shinigami, you still live up to your name… yet you use innocent boys to do it? That voice. It was the same that came from the gun. Why did it always speak to him when Haru was near? Or better still, when he was thinking about Haruko.

"You mean no one else lived?" Tarak said, his mouth lined from blood. It seemed he had been knocked in the jaw at some point during the fighting.

"Yes."

"What now?" Ayman asked as he finally managed to climb down from the cockpit. He even been Yul down. Duo smiled out him. His secret keeper. The boy had brought the crisis to his attention. He hadn't betrayed him, and thus Duo wouldn't betray him. He would never tell the other boys that Ayman knew. No. He would not feed the lamb to the wolves with his own hands.

"We get ready."

"For what?" Yul asked, standing directly in front of Duo. His face was battered and bruised. "We won, didn't we?" He pointed toward the "base" they had "captured."

"A party," Trevet joked, coughing up a bit of blood. He sank to the ground and leaned back against the leg of a MS. He closed his eyes. "But can we make it tomorrow? My head is pounding."

Duo shook his head. "I've got to tell you boys something." You can't tell them. You're too weak.


Year: After colony 232

November 18

Early Morning

Location: Colony cluster L5; Colony 46FJX8

"AMI!" Nikki screamed from the living room of their apartment! "Oi! You lazy… AMI! Lets go!" She stood at the front door, her hands crossed over her chest, a pout on her face. Haru had been gone not even a day and while he wouldn't tell her exactly where he was going or what he was doing, she was sure he would not be in the safest place imaginable. No. Haruko Yuy go somewhere where it was safe? That would have been like his father being unable to accept a mission involving danger. She needed to stay busy in order not to think about her beloved. "Ami! If you don't get out here right now, I'm gonna.."

"Alright! Alright! Keep your pants on!" Ami said as she came down the hall, pulling on a pair of jeans with one hand; her hair and makeup already done. All that was left was to slide her feet into her shoes and grab a piece of toast as it came flying out of the toaster.

"You torment me on purpose, don't you?" Nikki asked as she handed her friend her coat. She had been ready for the past fifteen minutes, and she didn't put it past her blond friend to have woken up less than fifteen minutes before. Ami grinned from the behind the toast she held in her mouth as she nodded and pulled her arms through the sleeves. She accepted her bag from Nikki and threw it over her shoulder with one hand, removing the toast from her mouth with the other.

"Yeah. Other than Tarak, that's the only reason I live," she chuckled, seeing Nikki roll her eyes slightly. "I don't see why you always wait on me. I mean you have two legs and a mind. Ok, well, you have to legs."

"Ha ha! Very funny. Can we go now?" Ami nodded and led the way out of the apartment and down to the busy street below.

"It's so fuckin cold," Nikki complained rubbing her gloved hands together. She looked up at the dome above them and sighed as she saw a rocket go shooting past. Haru could have been on that one. "What?"

"I said 'when ever you really miss Haru, you complain about the cold' and I'm sure I'm right considering the fact that you totally missed what I said a second time!"

"Did you say something."

"Point. Set. Match. He's gonne be fine, just relax. He's got a good group of men with him."

"Correction. He's got two men, a boy, and Trevet with him."

Ami shook her head. She understood why Nikki was worried, but at that moment the guys didn't need them to be worried, and Ami knew something Nikki should be more worried about at the moment.

"So did you study for the history exam?"

Nikki glared at her. Ami looked down at her feet. Obviously that was a no. She looked back out in front of them as they approached the main area of campus. In other words… hell after high school, aka college classes. Ami sighed when she walked into the main area: A grassey field surrounded by buildings. No way to escape.

"Nikki! Ami! What took you so long?" A girl with long curly brown hair and lavender eyes called out. She was grinning from ear to ear as she came towards the pair. A smaller girl, the same age, with short pale brown hair and grey eyes followed her, a smile equally big on her face.

"What do you think, Bren?" Nikki asked her friend. Bren just laughed.

"How late did you over sleep this morning Ami," Kat piped up, giggling. Ami flushed red gave her friend a mock death glare. She poked Kat in the ribs. "Ouch!"

"Not too late."

"Late enough."

"I said you could go without me."

Bren and Kat rolled their eyes as the roommates continued to argue back and forth. "Hey Kat."

"Hey what."

"This sounds like two girls who are tense because they forgot to study for their history exam." Bren laughed.

"Yep. Glad we don't have to take it," Kat snickered, hugging Nikki around the shoulders. Nikki peered at her from under one raised brow.

"You know, if you'd like to take it for me, I could easily arrange that."

"Could not."

"No… she probably could." Ami said with a smile as they walked. "And if she failed, I'd be happy to resume the mission."

The girls began to laugh hysterically as they walked to their class. Ami yawning as they went. A small sound in the bushes caught Kat's ear. She turned and saw a man standing across the street watching them through bright blue eyes. Haru? No! He was much older than Haru, but the resemblance was there. However, before she could place him, he disappeared behind a car that passed by. Kat shook her head.

The sound a walkie talkie reached her ears as she looked around for him.
"Hee-o! He-ro! Com- in! Do y-o copy?"


Oh yes! Hehehe! And the amazing twists just keep coming. What next? Honestly, I don't know what I'm going to do next. All I know is that I'm having a whole lot of fun coming up with ways to make you all think, as well as make myself think. I keep posing all these questions, and I have only a small idea of how to answer them. Anyway. I hope you enjoyed that, and don't forget to hit "submit review"!