JC: It was one sweet moment for Athrun and Cagalli in the last chapter. It was a treat to all the loyal fans of the couple. And now…This chapter will tackle about Cagalli's attempt in persuading the principle and many more…

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Seed.

Gundam Seed: Mythical Legends

Phase 26: Conversation with an Obstinate

Athrun sat with her on the bench, chatting with her. It was incredible to him that he was able to confess his love for her. He hadn't been sure how or what to expect from Cagalli after telling her the deep admiration he felt since the day he laid eyes on her. And he couldn't help being so happy when Cagalli reciprocated his feelings. It was all too good to be true. Definitely a dream come true, he thought yet again.

"I love you," he said, looking peaceful, and he reached out and took her hand, and held it. He had said those 3 wonderful words to her so many times and he has lost count. But he didn't care as long as he could utter those words with importance to her.

"I won't get tired of hearing that from you," Cagalli said, looking into his emerald-green eyes. "And I won't get tired of saying 'I love you too.'" She giggled and leaned her head on his shoulder.

Athrun smiled as he held her closer. They both sat in silence as they enjoyed each other's company. The time they had at the moment would be an unforgettable one. It was just simply precious to them. And for Athrun it meant a lot to finally be able to love Cagalli more freely and not anymore hiding it in the depths of his heart.

"You know, I never thought this day would ever come. I thought you had had some other girls in mind and—" She heaved a sigh of relief and looked at him, with golden-brown eyes that were so captivating. "I was really worried. But now I'm glad."

Athrun understood what she meant. Though he was humble and a complete gentleman, he was also very handsome, dashing, and cool. Athrun had everything a girl would desire. To be sought after thousands of beautiful girls was rather flattering yet annoying. Of course, he was completely paranoid with girls like Meer Campbell. Not that he was angry with the girls or anything. He was just getting sick and tired of hiding from girls all the time. It was like he wasn't free to walk around the campus. "Cagalli, you're the only girl for my eyes. You're unique and special to me."

Her eyes softened because of his profound words. Her mother, her mortal parent, always told her she was a very special girl. But she didn't know how special she was until the day she met the other gods and goddesses. However, she knew Athrun was telling her another thing of being special, and she completely understood it. "Thanks… I'm flattered," she said, feeling a bit embarrassed, as her cheeks turned pinkish red. She looked rather cute when blushing and Athrun found it to be amusing yet adorable.

But there was one question lurking in Cagalli's mind. Although she remembered Athrun saying it wasn't him, she was starting to doubt him. The whole admirer thing and the A-guy perfectly made sense to her now. She didn't bother to check on her other admirers for the A-guy, but she was sure that it was Athrun. Who else could there be?

"Athrun, tell me the truth…" Her voice sounded firm and solid, as he stared at her curiously. "Are you the mysterious A-guy?"

Truly he didn't want to tell her about the whole admirer thing, but he explained to Cagalli that it was important to get close to her. For him, courting a girl would be hard thing to do, especially if don't have any experiences before. And he couldn't just lie to Cagalli now that she had uncovered a vile secret.

Athrun nodded slowly in acknowledgement and said, "I hope you're not mad."

"I'm not mad. I'm just sad about what you did. You lied to me. You deliberately told me you weren't the A-guy," pouted Cagalli, turning her head away, and stared down at the grass.

"I guess I wasn't ready before," he said solemnly, as she looked up at him again. "I'm sorry for not telling."

And she smiled tenderly. "Well, that was before and we should only focus on what's happening now."

"You're right. I agree with you, Cagalli." He leaned forward and kissed her temple again. Then he pulled her closer and gave her one warm hug. He whispered "I love you" into her ear again, and she smiled.

Sadly, their moment had to end. Cagalli needed to do something important, not for herself, but for her best friend Shinn. She had to talk to the principal and she considered it to be a troubling task. She told Athrun about Shinn's predicament, and Athrun was even willing to help her. "Are you sure? You could get in trouble for this." As memory served, Cagalli knew Athrun had an outstanding record in school. Like her, he was a good athlete and a model student. But Athrun was also a straight-A student material. She couldn't possibly risk Athrun's perfect record just for the sake of Shinn's problem.

But Athrun insisted on helping her until she finally agreed. "Don't worry… I'm sure we can sort things out with the principal." Athrun had known the principal since he was still in 1st year High School. The principal had always admired Athrun for his academics and great leadership in class. It put him in a great advantage of gaining the principle's favor.

Principle's Office

There was no hesitation in Cagalli. Though the thought of being at risk was 100 sure, she was still up to the challenge of facing the principal. "I can do this…" she said, raising her hand to knock on the door. She was certain the principal was there. It was almost closing time, but she knew the principal always stayed late in school.

Athrun placed his hand on her shoulder. "We can do this," he said, gazing into her golden-brown eyes, as he smiled.

Cagalli lighten up and nodded. "I know… Thanks…" She focused her eyes on the door and finally started knocking. There was a voice, obviously belong to the principal's, saying "Come in." Without another knock, Cagalli turned the knob and pushed open the door. "Good afternoon, Ma'am." Cagalli greeted as soon as she spotted the principal working hard on her desk.

The principal shifted her eyes from her paperwork to the two students who stood at her doorway. Her lips immediately curved a smile as soon as she saw Cagalli and Athrun. She stood, with a pen in her hand, and walked to them. "Well, good afternoon to you, Athha-san," she said," and to you too Zala-kun." She was well-aware those two were the school's top students and she was pleased to see them both in her office.

"Ma'am, we wish to talk to you about a certain matter," Cagalli straightly said, her eyes full of seriousness.

"And what is this certain matter?" the principal muttered, offering Cagalli and Athrun to sit down. As the two of them settled in their seats, the principal noticed something lucid in Cagalli's eyes. The principal, well, thought of it as just Cagalli's normal expression.

But Cagalli had a serious matter in her hands. "This is about Shinn Asuka." She sounded solid as she glanced up at the principal. "Please reconsider him."

The principal gasped at what she said. It was definitely a surprise and the first time she heard a student defending another student. And it wasn't just any student, it was Shinn! "He's no longer a student here. I already expelled him for a valid reason," the principal said strictly, as Cagalli slowly rose from her seat.

"Ma'am, Shinn Asuka has done nothing wrong. The guy he fought was actually the one who provoked him first. Shinn, being the hothead, couldn't resist picking a trouble with that guy." Cagalli blamed Rey Za Burrel for the trouble he was causing to Shinn. But she wasn't mad at him or anything, even though he had threatened her before. Cagalli clearly remembered how Shinn stated that he was good friends with Rey in the past. It seemed so unbelievable because of what was happening to between them. Nevertheless, she wasn't disappointed with Rey, or Shinn, or anybody. Nobody was to blame for their wrong actions except for Odin. Up until now Odin still haunted her mind.

"I know the guy whom Shinn fought. He's name is Rey Za Burrel," Cagalli said, almost saying Heimdall out loud. She had had to make a note about her talking about the gods or else she's sunk. "Rey is a trouble-maker, but he's not entirely like Shinn." She wasn't so sure about Rey's description but she said it anyway.

"But Shinn Asuka still fought with him inside the campus, which is a violation of school rules." The principal didn't want to reconsider her decisions. What she had said was final and nothing could ever change it. She was awfully stubborn, but Cagalli was even more stubborn. Cagalli wasn't going to take a negative response from the principal. She had to do whatever she could in order to help her best friend. "Athha-san, I can't do anything. What is done is done. Shinn Asuka is expelled and the school can't take him back."

Trying to keep her cool, Cagalli sat down again and stared hard at the floor. She wondered how or what she could explain to the principal about Shinn. Seriously, she didn't expect the principal to be steady with her decisions. Cagalli thought about Shinn for a while, remembering how he used to skip classes all the time and even sleeping through history class. Shinn had never liked studying history and he definitely disliked memorizing important dates and time. Sometimes she would be the one to tutor him whenever he refuses to study. Shinn was one intelligent guy, she mused, but not really the diligent one. He may be a delinquent student, but he always got good grades because of Cagalli's influence.

"How about Shinn's grades and academics?" muttered Cagalli, shifting her eyes at the principal who was looking keenly at her and Athrun. By the way she looked, Cagalli had guessed she was thinking about her relationship with Athrun. She didn't mind it, though. "Shinn never gets bad grades and he is always in the top 10 honorable students in his year." Cagalli was proud to say that.

"I'm well aware of that…" The principal let out a deep sigh as she massaged her temple. "But the school can't possibly…" She stopped and turned her head away from Cagalli and Athrun. Of course, she knew about Shinn's grades and she was somewhat proud of him. And knowing Shinn Asuka for two years had given her migraines almost everyday. Dealing with a bright yet trouble-maker student was very tiring. And because of Shinn, she feared she might get old faster. "Shinn Asuka is a handful of trouble. He brings a bad name to the school." It wasn't the exact same words she wanted to say, and Cagalli frowned.

"Truthfully, Shinn has a bad reputation in school and in the city. He's hard to control at times, but I can still manage him."

"Athha-san, no matter what you say, I can't take him back."

"Shinn Asuka has done nothing wrong. It's unfair for him. He didn't deserve to be expelled." Cagalli would never give up defending Shinn.

"It can't be helped."

"Yes, it can!" Cagalli raised her voice this time, not caring her status as a student. She just cared about helping Shinn. "He should've been given a chance."

"He's been under probation for a long time. Don't expect me to give him a chance."

It seemed it was no use to persuade the teacher, and Cagalli didn't expect to fail. She was disappointed with herself and she felt so useless to Shinn at the moment. "It was really Rey's fault." She lowered her head and sighed deeply.

Athrun felt sorry for Shinn and for Cagalli as well. It was sad for him to see Cagalli feeling so down. "Cagalli, we can't do anything if the principal refuses. We better break the news to Shinn while it's still early," Athrun said, and Cagalli looked up at him.

She shook her head vigorously and said, "I won't accept it!" She turned to the principal again and asked her if she could gamble her academics for Shinn's admittance to school again.

"What?!" the principal gasped, her eyes were wide and vivid. "You're willing to put your academics on the line just for the sake of a delinquent student." The principal had always considered Cagalli as one of the school's best students. Truly she adored Cagalli and was proud of her. So, it was a total shock for her to hear something so crazy from her favorite blonde student.

"I'm going to risk everything for my best friend, because I believe he has done nothing wrong to deserve the punishment of expulsion." Cagalli's tone of voice was well-rounded and profound.

"And based from my own thorough observation, I noticed how Rey Za Burrel loathed Shinn Asuka," Athrun added, taking her hand into his, and Cagalli just blushed a little.

"But Athha-san, Zala-kun… This is something…" The principal tried to make an excuse, as the two students watched her intensely.

"I don't want to sound rude or anything…" Athrun had noticed how the principal speaks of Shinn. She sounded like she didn't care about him one bit. "But why are you so hooked up in ridding Shinn for good?" he had asked her, and Cagalli nodded in agreement.

"Ever since Asuka-kun studied here," the principal started, looking angry, "the school's name was ruined." Shinn had made a big impression on the other schools that other principals threatened her to discipline Shinn. But no matter how hard she had tried her efforts of disciplining Shinn would be end up in vain. There was no stopping Shinn Asuka.

"Like the fight Shinn had with Rey Za Burrel, your excuse isn't good enough at all," Athrun said firmly, as the principal looked nervous.

"You do have to consider Shinn's grade and performance before deciding on expelling him from school," Cagalli added strongly as her lips curved into a smile. Her smile even widened as she saw the principal sweating a bit.

The both of them, she admitted, were unquestionably right. No matter how delinquent Shinn was, he was still a fairly-good student. Though at times she got irritated by his number of tardiness and absences, she put them aside and just thought about his outstanding grades. "All right… I'll give Asuka-kun another chance," the principal finally said the words Cagalli and Athrun were waiting for.

"Thank you… This means a lot, ma'am." Cagalli said, as all of them rose from their seats.

"But this is going to be his last chance." The principal had to be stricter if she were to handle Shinn yet again.

"I'll let him know that," Cagalli replied, extending her hand to shake hands with the principal. "Again, I thank you."

The principal nodded and took her hands. She showed Cagalli a smile, a genuine smile, even though the concerned look was still there on her face. She wondered if she did the right thing. She wondered if it was okay for Shinn to back to school. She wondered what the faculty staff would say about this. All of these were rumbling around her brain and they were just plain annoying.

Cagalli and Athrun politely excused themselves from the principal and went outside. As soon as she closed the door behind her, Cagalli sighed and leaned against the wall. "It went well as expected," she murmured, glancing up at Athrun.

Athrun nodded. "Shinn can come back to school now."

"Yeah… I can't wait to tell him the news." Cagalli started imagining what would be the look on Shinn's face when she'll tell him. "I better go find him fast." She was about to walk away until Athrun grabbed her wrist. When she faced him again, she saw his emerald green eyes and blushed a little.

"Are you also going to tell him about us?" Athrun asked, smiling.

In the midst of her excitement, Cagalli almost forgot about her and Athrun. They were officially on and it would be big news to tell Shinn. "Of course," she answered gaily, "and I'm sure he'll be happy for us."

"That's good to hear." He grinned, and then pulled her close to him and kissed her. He kissed her hard. They stood alone in the hallways, and he felt the softness of her body against his as he leaned toward her. He wanted to feel her next to him, and she didn't stop him. When they pulled away, they gazed into each other's eyes, with excitement and thrill.

"Cagalli, I love you so much," he said, brushing his fingers through her golden locks.

"I love you too," she replied, feeling warm and safe in his arms. Her eyes looking up at him were filled with love and trust.

They walked to the rooftop hand in hand without saying a word, and when they reached the said place, both Shinn and Fllay noticed immediately.

"What took you so long, Cagalli?!" Shinn questioned his blonde best friend, looking fairly bored and annoyed. But he grew appalled when he saw them holding each other's hand. "Don't tell you guys are—"

Fllay instantly knew what was going on with Athrun and Cagalli the moment she saw them walking hand in hand. "Athrun-san, you've told her at last. I'm so happy for you," she beamed.

Athrun smiled and thanked Fllay as she said it.

"Fllay already knew about your feelings?" Cagalli looked questionably at Athrun. She thought of him as a very secretive person, but she couldn't believe he had actually told someone of his feelings.

"Yes," Athrun answered, "and Stellar too." He had recalled the time they were talking about his feelings in Shinn's own living room. Stellar had asked him so many questions and Fllay had assured him that Shinn and Cagalli were only best of friends. And he was extremely grateful to Fllay for that.

"I knew you were in love with Zala. How come you didn't want to admit it before when I asked you?" Shinn crossed his arms and grinned at her.

"Well… I wasn't so sure about it at that time. Sorry…" She faced Shinn, looking apologetically, and bowed her head. As she straightened, she gently pulled her hand away from Athrun and rubbed his head. "But now I admit that I'm in love with Athrun Zala!"

"Get away from me!" Shinn shouted, backing away from the blonde goddess. "Geez, my hair is already messed up and you have to worsen it."

Cagalli lightly laughed as she gave Shinn a big hug. She was trying to give Shinn the impression of being happy to have him as a friend. And as she faced him, his ruby red eyes were gazing at her own. Smiling thoughtfully, she said, "Shinn, you're a student of this school once again."

"What?!" gasped Shinn. He wasn't expecting anything, though he had trusted Cagalli to knock some sense into the principal. But as he heard her saw he was a student again was great! He felt so relieved that he hugged his best friend tighter than ever. "You did it, Cagalli! Thank you!"

"No problem," she whispered into his ear.

To be continued…

JC: That's it for now. Nothing much happened here and it was all talk. I had to save my ideas for the next chapter. Anyway, how's the AsuCaga moment here? Sorry if it wasn't much. The good news here is that Shinn's problem was finally resolved. Next chapter will be updated soon. Please review and no flaming.