Behind Marigold Eyes Chapter 5: His Nightmare, Her Reality, a gundam seed fanfic

A/N: while this story is mostly focused on Murrue, I thought this might be a nice follow-up chapter to Nightmare.

Key:
normal font: story,
lyrics
italics: thoughts or dreams

theme: love, hurt/comfort, tragedy

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam SEED, nor do I own Linkin Park's "Leave out all the Rest". If I had owned Gundam, then Mwu wouldn't have died and blah blah blah. Okay, enough with my rantings, enjoy!

Mwu tossed and turned in his bunk. Dreams plagued him during his few moments of sleep; and when he was awake, the nightmarish reality of war numbed his senses and perception of reality. Waking or sleeping, he was in a never ending nightmare. This one was particularly bothersome. It was all too real for him.

The empty void of space. His GUNDAM soared through the skies as a battle raged on. His scanners picked up something, mobile suits. He quickly maneuvered through and incapacitated all of them. He stared out, glancing at the heavenly ship that he called "home". Valiantly, she held off her attackers. Laser bullets sped past him, "What the?" turning around, he fires his gun at his attacker, but a few shots hit him. Realizing the danger he was in, Mwu flies off to return to the Archangel. Just as he is about to enter the docking bay, he sees a something that looks like the Archangel charging its cannon, preparing for a final attack. The black ship fires its charge. It hits him! The target is the Archangel. Fear overwhelms him. Without a second thought, he speeds towards the bridge of the ship to block the hit. He turns on the comlink to the Archangel's bridge. Smirking, he stares at the brunette captain, his sky blue eyes, meeting the captain's marigold ones, twinkle with his signature mischievousness, "Didn't I tell you I can make the impossible possible?" He shouts as the Strike takes the hit full on. Murrue's eyes widen and tears pool up in the corners of her eyes. The GUNDAM shatters, "Goodbye Murrue, I love, I always have. Finish the war so you can live in a better place." His last thoughts before a bright light consumes him.

I dreamed I was missing, you were so scared
But no one would listen, 'cause no one else cared
After my dreaming, I woke with this fear
What am I leaving when I'm done here?

Blinking, Mwu opens his eyes, a bright fluorescent light temporarily blinds him. Blinking a few times, he puts his arm over his eyes to help them adjust. He stares out towards the light source. His door was opened, light from the hallway flooded in and left a path of light right to where his face was. He saw a shadowed figure, feminine. He tried to make out her face, but the shadows were too stark. "Mwu," she whispered, and immediately, he knew who his visitor was.

"Murrue." A smile formed on his lips as he stared at the beautiful woman in front of him. Murrue walked forward, towards him.

"I heard you shouting in your sleep. I…I was worried."

So if you're asking me, I want you to know

When my time comes, forget the wrong that I've done
Help me leave behind some reasons to be missed
Don't resent me, and when you're feeling empty
Keep me in your memory, leave out all the rest
Leave out all the rest,

"It was just a bad dream," he replied, smiling at her reassuringly, "sorry to bother you." She sat down on the bed and wrapped her small arms around him from behind.

"Something tells me this isn't the first time you've dreamt this is it?" His silence gave her the answer she needed. Oh Mwu, you fight so hard and then have to face this at night. Why can't this war be over? Mwu turned around so that he now faced her. He pulled her further into their embrace and placed a light kiss on her lips.

"Ya know something? You worry too much." Murrue stared at him, looking hurt. Mwu just flashed her his signature smile, "Being worried all the time isn't good, plus, don't worry 'bout me. Just get some rest okay?" Murrue rested her head on his shoulder. "Okay."

Don't be afraid
I've taken my beating, I've shared what I made
I'm strong on the surface, not all the way through
I've never been perfect, but neither have you

The next morning, Mwu awoke. Trying to get out of bed, he realized that he was tangled in the bed sheets and a brunette woman. He smiled to himself, kissed her temple, and held her closer as he drifted back to sleep. Murrue stirred. She had felt a shift in weight on the bed and wondered it Mwu had gotten up. She turned her head and saw that he was still there. Unable to sleep anymore, but not wanting to disturb his sleep, Murrue's thought drifted to the previous night's conversation.

"Hey Murrue,"

"yeah?"

"What would happen if I was gone?"

"As in disappear for a while gone or…"
"Dead, gone." Murrue's face dropped, "If…If there ever comes a time that I can't be there for you, please move on."

"How can you say stuff like that?" Murrue's mind reeled back to the last person who told her those lines, a young mobile armor pilot. He said those exact lines right before he died later that day.

"Murrue, I'm being serious. We're in a war. I promise that I will stay be your side as long as I live. But, with the types of bastards we're up against, I can't guarantee that I'll be alive to see the end of this war."

"You won't die. You…you can't right? I said you could make the impossible possible right? You promised me. That…that you wouldn't leave." Murrue look sat Mwu, gazing out the window and out to the space beyond. "Mwu?"

"Damn these dreams. I keep seeing me throwing myself in front of the Archangel, protecting its clone," he speaks out loud, almost sounding distant.

"Mwu. The Archangel has no clone. It's just a dream. We'll all be alright…and alive at the end of this."

"Heh, yeah. Enough worrying. Let's go to sleep."

So if you're asking me, I want you to know

An alarm blared throughout the ship, awaking the sleeping couple. They jumped out of bed, changed their clothes and rant o the bridge to see what was going on. A large battleship and fleet of mobile suits had engaged them in combat. Mwu and Murrue stared out to the large black ship in front of them. Except for the difference in color, it was an exact copy of the Archangel. Mwu headed immediately for the loading bay. Just as he was about to get ready to leave, he sees Murrue floating towards him on the camera. Unbuckling himself, he goes outside the suit.

"I thought I wouldn't make it in time."

"For what?" Murrue's locket floats up between the two, "oh. He was a mobile armor pilot wasn't he?" Murrue nodded. Mwu held her shoulders and softly kissed her. "Don't worry, I'll be back sooner than you think, with victory in hand." He smile and got back in the cockpit. Murrue returned to the bridge.

Forgetting all the hurt inside you've learned to hide so well
Pretending someone else can come and save me from myself
I can't be who you are

The battle raged on that day. The Earth Alliance, led by the prejudiced Murata Azreal, had fired nuclear bombs at the PLANTs, and in relatiation, Zaft had launched its own nuclear strike with the Genesis. The crew of the Dominion fled from the ship in a mutiny by it's captain, Natarle Badgiruel, against Azreal. As the Dominion approaches, it charges to fire it's lohengrins at the Archangel. A bright green light lights up the emptiness of space.

"Captain," shouts Tonemura.

"Evade!" Murrue's commanding voice of battle ringing throughout the bridge

"Too late."

Murrue and the rest of the Archangel crew prepare themselves of the worst. But when that fateful explosion did not occur, Murrue dared to open her eyes. In horror, her eyes widen and she sees who blocks the deadly shot.

"Didn't I tell you I could make the impossible, possible?" asks Mwu. His Gundam, the Strike, lies there, in front of the ship where the laser blows the Strike into many pieces. Murrue cries as she covers her face with her hands.

"MWU!!!" she shouts.

"The Dominion is still closing."

"Aim lohengrin..." Murrue said, her voice a mix of fury, rage, hurt, and grief, "FIRE!" Aimed at the Dominion, the lohengrin not only destroys the ship, but the lives of two individuals. One was her former lieutenant, Natarle Badgerule, and the other was the maniacal anti-coordinator leader of Blue Cosmos, Murata Azreal.

Murrue kept a brave face on during the peace talks. But the second the door shut behind her in her room, the tears surfaced and poured out like there was no tomorrow. For Murrue, there might as well not be a tomorrow, her grief was so strong.

Forgetting all the hurt inside you've learned to hide so well
Pretending someone else can come and save me from myself
I can't be who you are

I can't be who you are