Heavenly

Chapter 13: Reunion part 1

The faint sound of footsteps echoed through the darkness. Barefooted, he continued to walk, not knowing where his feet could take him. He had been walking for a long time, not getting tired even though he's not sure where to go.

In the darkness of the tunnel, nothing could be seen. What is waiting for him at the end of the tunnel? There was no way he could find out when the only sense he has is his hearing sense.

"Oniichan…" said a small, faint voice.

Suddenly the darkness faded and light was slowly lighting the way.

"Oniichan…" the familiar feminine voice repeated clearly this time

Adjusting to the sudden light, he saw a faint image of a girl younger than him. Her appearance felt so familiar to him, but he couldn't bring himself to remember her name or how they met.

And as his vision finally became clear, he saw with his ruby orbs the person who is standing before him.

"Mayu…?" he muttered as he blinked his eyes that are starting to water. In an instant he paced forward and gave his little sister a comforting hug.

And as he opened his eyes once again he saw another two figures making their way towards them.

"Mom… Dad…?" he said then let go of Mayu to go to his parents and give them a hug.

"Shinn… we're so proud of you…" said his father as he patted his son on the head in a fatherly manner

"You're not a little boy anymore, Shinn. You've grown up to be a responsible young man" said his mother happily, tears of joy overflowing from her eyes

Shinn just looked up at them and enjoyed every second with his family

"Sorry if we weren't able to be with you for the past few years…" said his father solemnly

"No, you don't have to apologize. What happened to us in Orb was very tragic. That's why I joined the military to make sure that that will not happen again" said Shinn determinedly

"Yeah, we know. We've been watching over you since then. I can't believe that my big brother is now considered a hero in other places" said Mayu sweetly

Shinn blushed in embarassment as he looked up to his parents once again.

"But you must always remember, Shinn, that you must use the power given to you to protect those who can't protect themselves. Use your power in a good way and don't hold any grudges to anyone. Once hatred takes over your emotions, you will be a killing machine who will cause sorrow" said his father as father and son looked at each other eye to eye

"Father, I promise that I will use my power only when it is necessary and I will use it to protect the people" he said, his ruby eyes filled with determination.

Then slowly, the light was starting to fade and the darkness is beginning to surface again.

"What's happening?" asked Shinn nervously as he looked around

"It's time for you to return, honey" said his mother as she smiled sweetly at him

"But I don't want to! I want to be here with you!" he answered back, tears threatening to spill from his eyes

"Someone is waiting for you back there. Go to her" said his father, his proud smile not fading away

"Luna…" he muttered as the image of her smiling sweetly at him and pulling him back came to his mind. That's right. He still has Luna, his life. It might be sad to part with his family again but when this is all over they will meet again.

"Yeah big brother, don't keep her waiting. That's rude!" said Mayu as she put her hand on her side and started tapping her left foot like a nagging mother. Shinn chuckled at her expression.

"Of course, I won't do that to her. I love her!" said Shinn happily. Then the image of his family becomes fainter as the darkness becomes more vivid.

"Just remember that we will always be here for you, watching over you" said his mother in a caring tone

"Go make the most of your life" said his father with the same tone as his mother

"Oh, and thanks for safely keeping my cellphone, big brother" said Mayu and finally the darkness resurfaces again. Then through the dark tunnel, he saw a bright light, indicating that the end of the tunnel is near.

With a determined smile, he approached the light with newly found motivation and determination to live, to return, to return to her…

~~~*~~~

"He's waking up"

Slowly, he opened his eyes and through blurry vision, all he could make out is the white ceiling.

"Norma, the boy is waking up"

Finally taking notice of the masculine voice, he turned to his side and saw an elderly man, about 60 years of age, wearing a pair of eyeglasses and a white coat. His once black hair has already turned to grey and you could clearly see the wrinkles on the side of his eyes and on his forehead.

Slowly, he sat up but stumbled back on the bed as pain stabbed his middle section and his back. Seeing the pain he's in, the elderly man went to his side and made sure that he lay comfortably on the soft bed.

"Don't do that again, Idiot!" yelled the man, making sure that his voice didn't startle him but still held a reprimanding feel to it.

After relaxing for a few minutes, Shinn tried to sit up again with the help of the elderly man. He took notice of his sorroundings. The room he is in has white walls and ceilings. The blue curtains swayed as the soft sea breeze entered the said room. It looked peaceful, like the place wasn't part of the war between Naturals and Coordinators. Then he stared at the elderly man again.

The elderly man cleared his throat before answering his unspoken question

"My name is Doctor Ivan Lovino. You're here at my house in Babuyan Island. My son, Kenneth, and his wife, Kate, found you along the seashore barely alive. You've been staying here in my house for almost two weeks" he said casually, filling him in with the primary information.

"My name is… Shinn Asuka" he said slowly, trying to register the information Doctor Ivan said earlier.

"That's good. It seems that your memory is not damaged. What happened? You got serious injuries. If my son was late in bringing you here then surely you won't be in the land of the living anymore" said the doctor

"We were taken down by Zaft forces-" he said but paused momentarily when he felt that someone is missing. He looked around hastily, hoping to catch even just a glimpse of the magenta-haired lady whom he'd come to love.

Luckily, Doctor Ivan was there to stop him from getting out of bed and reopening his wounds.

"What are you doing!?! Your wounds are not yet healed and doing that might reopen them again!" he raised his voice and sighed in relief as Shinn relaxed in his bed

"Where is Luna?" asked Shinn worriedly. He will never forgive himself if something bad happened to her.

Startled by the noise inside the room, the door opened. It revealed an elderly woman, about Doctor Ivan's age.

"Oh my! He's awake!" said the elderly woman as she entered the room and placed the tea she prepared earlier on the bedside table.

"I already told you that he was starting to wake up. Didn't you hear?" asked the doctor somewhat annoyingly. Then he turned to Shinn who was staring at the elderly woman curiously.

Once again he cleared his throat as he introduced Shinn to his wife.

"Shinn, this is my wife Norma. She is my nurse"

"Oh, Shinn is your name, right? My name is Norma Lovino. I'm sorry if my husband startled you by raising his voice, he just couldn't control himself" said Norma as she smiled sweetly at him, ignoring the look that her husband is giving her.

"What was that about?" asked Dr. Ivan as he sipped his tea

"I was just saying that it's rude to raise your voice in front of our patients" replied Norma as she frowned at her husband and turned to Shinn with a comforting smile.

Shinn watched them carefully. If this was a normal situation then he should've laughed aleady. But his worry for Lunamaria is getting the best of him. So he turned to Norma with hopes of finding out where the magenta-haired lady could be.

"Where's Lunamaria?" he asked worriedly

"Lunamaria? Who is she?" asked Norma as she stared at Shinn curiously

Oh no, what happened to her? Where could she be? Is she alright? Who could've found her? Is she in good hands?

Countless questions flooded through Shinn's mind. What could've happened to her if she wasn't here with him? Just before the Destiny hit the water, he had Luna in his arms. And as they were fleeing he promised her that he will take her to safety. What happened to his promise? Did he fail to keep his promise once again?

"Oh… you mean the girl…" said Norma, snapping Shinn from his thoughts of horror. Shinn stared at her full of hope that she knows where Luna is.

"She's in the other room. I'll go and get her" said Norma then exited the room.

Dr. Ivan stared at Shinn as he sighed in relief. Shinn and the female patient surely are close to each other because they were in each other's arms when his son found them along the shore.

Shinn played with his fingers nervously as he waited for Luna to come. What if her condition is worse than him? What if she forgets her memories again?

And then the door opened, distracting Shinn from his thoughts. And then entered Luna sitting on a wheel chair, accompanied by Norma.

"Shinn!" she said as she felt tears of joy welling up in her eyes. Norma pushed the wheelchair just beside Shinn's bed and then she and her husband left the room, letting the two lovers have privacy.

"Luna!" he said as he reached out and hugged her intimately, careful not to hurt her or himself.

"I thought I lost you completely" he whispered through her hair as he felt his eyes start to water with tears.

Heavenly. That's how he felt right now. Just to be there next to his love, knowing well that they are both safe and alright after what they have been through. The only thing he could ask is for the war to end and live a peaceful and happy life with her.

After a few minutes of being in each other's arms, they finally let go of each other.

Lunamaria stared at Shinn and gave a light chuckle. A part of his head is bandaged and his lef arm is in a sling. She is in a better situation than Shinn, at least that's what Norma said to her after she woke up. Shinn was hit badly at his middle section and his back but it will heal with proper medication and time.

And while most of Shinn's serious injuries centered on his middle section and on his back, hers were on her legs. Yes, her legs got damaged the most. But just like Shinn's injuries, hers will heal too with proper medication and time. But Dr. Ivan said that it will be a while before she can finally walk on her own again.

"Look at you… you're all bandaged up" said Luna as she wiped her tears away with the back of her hand

"Look who's talking…" said Shinn playfully, also wiping his tears away and laughing slightly

"I woke up just yesterday. It really is a miracle for us to be alive after that incident. It's a good thing that Dr. Lovino took us in and nursed our injuries" she said, her smile not fading away

"Yeah…" he murmured as the image of his best friend appeared on his mind "It's all thanks to Rey…"

"Rey… I never really expected him to do that. But it's because of him that we're still here. I just wish that we got a chance to thank him personally for all that he's done for us" she muttered as the image of the Legend sinking down on the ocean appeared in her mind.

The two of them were silent for a while, thinking about Rey.

"Come on! Rey wouldn't want us to be sad, right?" said Shinn, obviously breaking the awkward silence between them.

"Yeah…" said Luna as she smiled sweetly towards Shinn. Shinn returned her smile, somehow he felt like she wants to say something.

"Uhm… Shinn, I-I want to t-tell you something…" she stuttered nervously as she played with her fingers

"What is it?" asked Shinn curiously, sometimes he doesn't get girls at all.

Then her next actions surprised him greatly. In just a couple of seconds, Luna leaned to him and kissed him on the lips. Shinn was surprised for a couple of seconds but decided to return it. The kiss was so passionate, like he felt all of her emotions with just one kiss.

Perhaps, actions really do speak louder than words. He had great time learning about it.

Preventing the risk of suffocation, the couple decided to break the kiss. Their smile not leaving as they did so.

Shinn stared at her, her blush remained in her face. He didn't expect her to be the one to initiate the kiss, he didn't expect her to be so straight forward. Well, at least he learned something new about her today.

"Thank you" she muttered, the blush never leaving her face.

Shinn stared at her curiously, what did he do for her thank him?

"You've done so much for me already. You even risked your own life just for me. I can't thank you enough for all you've done" she said sincerely as she stared into his ruby orbs.

Shinn smiled at her and pulled her in a loving embrace. She closed her eyes as she relaxed in his arms and he stroke her hair gently as he took in her scent.

"You know that there's no need for you to thank me. We love each other and that's all that matters"

And then he cupped her chin and stared at her pure amethyst orbs. Her eyes showed happiness, love, hope and many more things that Shinn loved about her. Then he inched closer and their lips met in another passionate kiss overflowing with love.

Shinn smiled unconciosuly. He finally felt relieved that he had kept his promise to Luna. And they'll be able to see tomorrow together, hand-in-hand, never letting go.

She is his life, he is her life

She is his future, he is her future

She is his love, he is her love

They broke off after a few minutes and stared out of the window and into the sun shining above.

Gee, what a great way to start the day

~~~*~~~

After two weeks…

"Hey! You better not take your eyes off of that girl! She still can't walk properly and yet she's already wandering around!" yelled Dr. Lovino as he pointed towards Shinn who was staring out in the window and into the beach.

"Yeah, yeah, old man…" replied Shinn, not really caring about what the old man said.

"Coordinators… You really are troublesome" said Dr. Lovino while chuckling lightly then left. It really shocked him to see how fast his two patients healed themselves. Maybe it was because he never had a Coordinator patient.

Shinn smiled to himself and let out a small laugh. The Lovino family has been very nice to them, treating their injuries and offering them their hospitality without asking for anything in return at all. Although Dr. Lovino told them to leave once when he was drunk, they both knew that the family enjoyed their company.

Noticing what time it is, Shinn decided to leave and join his love at the flower field. She always makes it a point to go there every afternoon and watch the sunset. Normally, he would go with her but he dozed off earlier.

So off he went to the flower fields. Most of his injuries are healed by now, but he is still advised to take plenty of rest and not do strenous work since the injury on his stomach is not completely healed yet. And Luna is somewhat in a better situation than him. All of her injuries are already healed but her legs are still not capable of supporting her. It will take a couple of days or weeks for her to be able to walk properly again. So for the mean time, she walks with the help of arm crutches.

Slowly, he approached the flower field and saw her leaning against the bark of a tree. She had her eyes closed and her head is swaying in rhythm with the song she is humming.

Alerted by his presence, she slowly fluttered her eyes open and beckoned him to sit on the patch of grass beside her. Shinn, finding no reason to refuse, accepted her offer and sat on the soft grass beside her, leaning on the bark of the tree in the process.

"We got used to experiencing war that it's hard to imagine that a place like this exists" she said happily as she rested her head on his shoulder.

"I just wish that the peace we are experiencing right now can be experienced throughout the whole universe too" he said, hope evident on his voice.

"Yeah…" she replied as they both turned to look at the sun setting.

"So..." she started as she smiled brightly at him

"What are your plans after this?" Knowing Shinn, he'll do everything in his power to make a change and finally end this war.

"Put an end to this war" he said determinedly. Although he still doesn't know what to do first, he knew that he must help stop the war.

"That was to be expected" she said, her smile not fading away, as she turned her attention back to the setting sun. She leaned her head against his broad shoulder and he wrapped his arm around her on instinct. They will enjoy this peace and once their injuries are healed they will be back on the battlefield, but this time the purpose is to stop the war, not help it spread.

They just sat there, enjoying each other's company as they watched the sun setting, until something big caught their attention.

In the depths of the sea, something big emerged.

The both of them stood up to get a better look, Luna leaned on to Shinn for support. Although it was quite far, they managed to make out the site before them to be a warship.

A very familiar warship.

The Archangel

Author's Notes: Thanks for having the patience to wait! This is the second to the last chapter! I just hope that I'll have time to finally start with the last chapter.

Anyway, I'm not on my old and cheerful mood today. Well, two sad things just happened. First is my pet cat passed away last week. And I wasn't even by her side when that happened because I was at school. So Sony Ninja, I really know how you felt when you pet died too... But anyway, life must go on...

And the second sad thing that happened to me, well it's probably best for me to keep it to myself for the time being. I guess I really shouldn't keep my hopes up for something like that to happen. I should've learned my lesson the first time it happened. Well... I just hope that I'll get through this immediately.

So, the last chapter is coming up!

Thanks for all the reviews and don't forget to write one!

Anyway, I have to sleep now. It's already 11 pm and I still have school tomorrow...

(*^o^*) Peace out! (*^o^*)

Kaycee