December 5th

Exact Location Unknown

She'd watched silently as the nurses gave him less and less drugs, slowly weaning him off of the mixture so he'd wake up soon. She'd insisted on it, convinced that he was stronger than what everyone else assumed. The man who'd saved them both and was arguably in charge of their fates finally agreed, and gave the order.

Now she watched. He shifted occasionally, the movements minute considering he was still basically unable to move his whole lower body which was swathed in bandages. She was glad to see the burns on his arms and torso were healing now, the time had done well for his body.

She had watched with quiet horror when they changed his bandages, him being unconscious sort of helped the process, made it easier for the nurses. The burns and cuts made her wince and recoil inwardly, but she kept a stoic expression. The price of heroism. She was fairly certain she'd have a few scars herself from the gunshot wounds but she didn't care.

"Ughn..."

She turned, watching him wince, eyes still closed. He groaned quietly, head tossing and turning from side to side. She winced in sympathy, wishing she could do something to ease his pain but all she could do was sit and wait. His eyes fluttered open finally, dazed and half-glazed over.

He groaned again, eyes squeezing shut in response to the bright light above him. "Murrue."

She sighed, shaking her head a little. It didn't surprise her very much, but she was slightly disappointed that he was pretty much still stoned. 'And here I was hoping for some company...' He groaned again, and she winced again. Leaning forwards, she gently pat his bandaged hand and murmured quietly, "It's alright. Go back to sleep..."

He muttered something incoherent, eyes sliding shut again and soon he was fast asleep, snoring quietly. After a long moment of watching him, she palmed her face and groaned, "I'm going crazy."

She sat there, confined really to his side, watching his progress. She was glad he was sleeping normally now, instead of the drug induced coma he'd been in for the past few months. She had to admit that watching him was slightly entertaining, he muttered occasionally in his sleep.

She took care not to listen too closely, not wanting to embarrass him once he woke up. 'He dreams about her often...' She mused to herself, listening to him mumble and groan a little. 'He keeps saying her name...' When he half smiled in his sleep, she couldn't help it, she smiled too. 'Hopefully good dreams...'

She was barely paying attention when she heard him mutter the kid's name, and she whirled to look at him in confusion. She couldn't help it, the laughter started before she could stop it, and she was giggling into her hands before she knew it. 'Stupid thing to laugh over but after hearing hours of "Murrue, Murrue" it's a nice, if not disturbing, change of pace.'

"Ugh..." He groaned, more loudly this time. She turned her full attention on him, watching his eyelids shut tightly, then open a fraction. He shut his eyes immediately, moaning, "Someone turn the world off, it's too damn bright."

"I would Commander," She found herself replying almost automatically, adding wryly, "but I'm kind of stuck here myself."

He opened his eyes again, slowly letting them adjust to the light. He felt oddly numb, detached from the rest of his body. He turned his head towards the sound of the woman's voice, trying to catch a glimpse of the speaker. His eyes widened once his mind kicked in, and he gaped like an idiot.

She smiled wryly, waving with her good arm when his jaw dropped with a soft popping sound.

"L-Lieutenant?" Mu asked with a soft gasp, wondering why his voice sounded so hoarse and his jaw ached with the simple movement.

"Well technically that's not right, but since I'm no longer attached to the military it doesn't matter." She answered him with another bitter smile, watching him blink, absorbing her reply slowly.

He kept staring at her, mind spinning fuzzily, trying to make sense of where he was. He didn't recognize the surrounding area, it wasn't anything like the ArchAngel infirmary, the room was standalone, and tiny. And the mere fact that she was here only added to his confusion. "Where am I?"

"I wish I knew." She answered with a helpless shrug, gesturing to the small hospital room. "I only got to the next room before I got shipped back here. No one's given me answers either... Considering that we're both alive, well more or less, it's probably a safe bet to say we're somewhere neutral."

He took even longer to absorb that, and several emotions flashed across his face. Shock, confusion, worry and pure horror ended his transformation. "Where's Murrue? And the ArchAngel? Is everyone okay?!"

"Mu, Mu, calm down!" She hastened to calm him down, slipping and using his given name instead of his title. "Everyone's alright! She's not here, but I know she's okay! You saved their lives, everyone's okay! Just breathe, don't move around too much!"

Mu froze, shock cutting through the horror, adding some mixed feelings of relief. 'She used my name...?' That was when he was aware of a blindingly painful searing sensation across his chest, and he glanced down in apprehension. He saw the bandages without really feeling them, and when he saw the IV needle in his arm, he put the pieces together. He took a few long moments to calm his racing mind down, and asked quietly, "What the hell else do I not know?"

She visibly winced to the coldness in his tone, wishing vainly that she had good news for him, something that would calm him down. But she had no clue to where she was either, she'd been holed up in the same room for about three months as well. She knew as much as he did.

"Do you know where we are?" He finally asked, voice becoming considerably warmer after a few long moments. The confusion was still quite evident on his face, but now he was curious as well.

"You, my friends, are onboard the Kaminari of the Lunar Fleet of the Alliance, technically now one of the rebel ships that belong to Copernicus." A chuckling voice suddenly came from the doorway. The two turned at once to see him, and he stepped into the room, wearing a broad smile across his handsome face.

"Who the–" Mu cut himself off, glancing beside him to see she was staring at him with an expression of dislike. "Who is that Natarle?"

"The man in charge." Natarle answered dryly, rolling her violet eyes up to the ceiling and back. She focussed on the man and added with a huff, "He only gave me his rank and first name."

"Commander Justin B Halberton at your service." The man laughed, his tone jovial and amused at their puzzled expressions. He had short dark auburn coloured hair that topped his head in a casual mess, with dark emerald eyes that were warm with cheer. He corrected himself with a snort of amusement, "Ex Commander really, since I'm awol from the Alliance."

"Wait, so we're at Copernicus?" Mu asked in surprise struggling to rise but his lower body refused to answer any signals from his mind. His arms however seemed to have some small amounts of strength left, and he forced himself to a somewhat upright position.

"Around the area, yeah." The man answered an affirmative, casting a glance at the dark haired woman but she stubbornly glared away, refusing to meet his glance. He turned back to the more curious blond man and informed him seriously, "You two were damn lucky you were found when you were. A scout from the EA was travelling the exact same course we were." Natarle made a disbelieving snort in the back of her throat, causing Halberton to look fairly sheepish. "And your friend here has a problem with me."

"Hard to blame her." Mu replied with raised eyebrows, not missing the grateful look his former comrade shot him. "I think you owe us both some answers."

"Well that's not too hard to deal with." Halberton said without missing a beat, instantly recovering. "Go on then... What are your questions?"

"Why'd you rescue us?" Mu asked first, beating Natarle to the questions.

"Well really... When you come across an escape pod or some floating pilot with his helmet still on, you tend to want to help whoever it is regardless of side." Halberton answered with a cocked eyebrow, gesturing towards the still stubborn violet eyed woman. He turned his gaze back to Mu, and spoke seriously, "And we all know about you, your reputation speaks volumes even when you're out for three months."

"Three months?" Mu gasped, the knowledge hitting him like a wrecking ball as the pieces of the puzzle began to all into place/ it explained a lot. The gap that felt like it had simply dropped out of his mind, the confusion, his being here and the half-healed wounds. He closed his eyes, trying to remember, but he came up with a blank beyond his launch the day of the battle. "I was... Floating?"

"You don't remember, do you?" Natarle asked quietly, her voice honestly concerned and somewhat troubled. He stared at her, the answer was sincere in his eyes. She sighed softly, shaking her head a little. "What do you remember?"

"I... I remember launching... I don't remember any of the battle." Mu answered after a long moment, brow furrowed as he searched his memory. He knew that the battle should have been there, the last thing he remembered but he could only see himself getting into the Strike after saying goodbye to Murrue. "How did this end up happening to me? What went on out there?"

"I can only tell you up to the point where you got yourself injured... I don't really remember how I got myself out of there either." Natarle answered him quietly, her voice weak and troubled. "You launched and we started the assault... You ended up engaging Rau Le Creuset but lost... You were on your way back to the ship because of the damage..." She winced remembering what happened next as though it was happening now. The bullets fired, the blood flying... She winced away from the memory but continued anyway. "Azrael took control of the ship... Fired the Lohengrin after I locked the ship down... You flew in, saving everyone... The Strike took the whole thing, when it exploded I was sure you were dead... Then the ArchAngel returned fire. I don't remember getting out, I just remember waking up here."

Mu blinked, closing his eyes finally to let her words sink into his mind, to hopefully catch the distant memories. The sensations were coming back, playing in his brain like a silent movie. He was there again, sitting in the cockpit, watching the Dominion charge, the ArchAngel having not seen it. He flew as hard as he could, hearing the thrusters whine, and then he was there, absorbing the blast, everyone safe. He opened his eyes, glancing around in amazement. "I... I should be dead."

"You both should be." Halberton said with a chuckle, shaking his head at the bemused soldiers. They honestly looked startled with their luck.

Natarle was silent for a long moment, frowning. There weren't new memories for her, but the doubt that had been clawing in her stomach ever since she had realized she was still alive, was growing more. She had been injured, horribly so, in all rights she should have been dead. If she'd managed to escape, who would be to say that a fully grown and healthy man didn't escape as well? "Did you find another life-pod?"

"No." Halberton answered calmly, voice suddenly serious, emerald eyes darkening a little as he understood what she was trying to get at. "You're the only one who survived off that ship. We watched the battle ourselves, we've got the tapes. Azrael died on that ship, blasted to atoms and it fits him."

'How in the world did I escape?' Natarle asked herself in amazement, shaking her head at the sheer luck that had saved her life.

As if he sensed her unease with her fate, Halberton leaned on the wall and said calmly, "Sometimes you survive out here because you're skilled. Other times you make it because you've got a horseshoe up your ass. It wasn't your time, why complain about it?"

"He's got a point." Mu agreed grudgingly, casting a glance over at the still troubled woman. He doubted she'd ever really accept that calmly, but she looked as though she'd be fine with the facts for the moment. He turned back to the commander, face serious again. "When can we leave?"

"Thinking of booting it already, eh La Flaga?" The man chuckled, looking honestly amused once again. He shook his head, gesturing to the state the pilot was in, bandages and all. "You won't be able to stand without help for weeks. When you can walk around freely again, then I'll let you go home."

"And her?" Mu gestured to Natarle and the crutches on the far side of the wall. He knew that she was probably ready to leave anytime she wanted, he could tell she was in much better shape than him. He was surprised she was still here in all truths.

"Same deal. When she can get around without those crutches, I'll send her on her way." Halberton answered smoothly, noticing that the woman said nothing, merely looked back out the window with no interest whatsoever. "Both of you are technically dead. And war criminals to boot if someone figures out you're alive. Well, maybe not you," He nodded towards Natarle, watching her flinch visibly at the words, "considering you're just a civilian here because you were rescued... But the thing is, I can't exactly return you anywhere. The world's not that nice. If the Alliance finds out you're alive, here, things would get very messy."

"So we're screwed, is that it?"

"Well... Yeah."

ORB

December 5th

Murrue laughed triumphantly, brushing the sweat from her brow as she finished with the weeding, tossing the last plant into the wheelbarrow. She stood up, brushing the dirt from her gloves as she surveyed her now prepared garden. She had the seeds and clippings ready to plant, and now that the garden had been effectively weeded she was ready to get started.

"You've been working hard."

"Yeek!" Murrue jumped at the unexpected sound of her friend's voice. She whirled to see Erica leaning on the porch, grinning from ear to ear as she took in her friend's messy appearance. Her knees were caked in dirt, as were her gloves and the hem of her shirt. It was obvious she'd been at it for quite awhile.

"Sorry." Erica grinned, not looking the least apologetic. She watched as Murrue hastily got to her feet, removing her gloves and tossing them into the wheelbarrow. "You've caught on fast. You started without me."

"I got bored." Murrue answered with a laugh, brushing the dirt from her knees. "Besides," She gestured to the small amount of weeds that sat in the wheelbarrow, "there wasn't that much left to do. And I need a break."

Erica grinned, delighted to see the change in her friend's attitude. It wasn't as dramatic as she'd have liked, the sad smile still lingered occasionally on her pale face but... She smiled more often now, enjoyed herself when she was having fun and she was laughing again, which was a great change.

She'd seen the little changes, and she knew that the kids had also seen it. They invited her down to the beach often, and she'd play with the orphans and relax with the others. Erica couldn't hide a little smile at the thought of the children. Each and every one of them were simply in love with the former captain, and she returned the affection happily.

Murrue came to sit on the porch beside her, sighing in relief when she got to sit down. "Whoo. I'm bushed."

"You've been at it since morning haven't you?" Erica scolded with a laugh, tossing her arm casually around her friend's shoulders as she admired her hard work. The weeds had been effectively removed and the ground was ready for planting, and it looked quite set. "Nice job."

"Well when boredom strikes..." Murrue laughed, leaning on her friend and gazing at her handiwork too. She was quite proud of herself, she was certain she'd be at it all week removing the weeds. Her friend had offered to stop by and help, but she stubbornly insisted on fixing the mess herself. And now that she had, she felt rather smug.

"You ought to get bored more often, you could run Morgenroete for me." Erica teased, watching her friend pull a face in reply and pretend to look disgusted. "I was joking!"

"I know but I never get that bored." Murrue pretended to still be annoyed, earning a hard ruffling on the head, effectively screwing up her already windswept hair. "Or at least I hope I never get that bored."

"Spend more time at the kid's, him and his little ones will keep you busy." Erica advised with a snort, while Murrue turned to give her a startled stare that had her nearly laughing. "Can you not take a joke or are you so out of it everything I saw sounds serious?"

"If you told me you were leaving your husband for Amy in Block C, I might actually believe you right now." Murrue answered wryly, stifling a yawn with the back of her right hand.

"Well then you're right to assume." Erica answered with as serious of an expression as she could. Murrue turned to look at her, face a picture of horror that had the redhead in a mad fit of laughter. "You need sleep. And I mean really."

"Shut up." Murrue grumbled, hiding her face in her hands as her friend's raucous laughter continued beside her. She was fairly certain that Erica was enjoying embarrassing her, but she really couldn't find it in herself to be honestly annoyed. She needed the laughter, needed the light moments. She found them more often now that she didn't hide her emotions, and she delighted in having them.

"Go on, take a nap, I'll finish up for you." Erica offered unexpectedly, shooting the tired brunette a hundred-watt smile. She ruffled her hair gently and explained pleasantly, "You really need to sleep and I said I'd help, didn't I? Don't worry about it."

Murrue smiled sheepishly but got to her feet anyway. She wandered inside, leaving Erica alone on the porch. The redhead got up after a few moments, wandering over to the wheelbarrow. She found the seeds easily enough, setting the packets gently on the ground before wheeling the weeds to the edge of the yard to be disposed of.

Wandering back to the fresh soil, she let herself muse over her friend as she examined the packets of seeds. 'Murrue's been much better lately... She's working with that old enthusiasm I saw when she was captaining... Not that I want her to overwork herself, but she'd been so listless when she worked, like it didn't really matter.'

She smiled a little when she examined the package Murrue had insisted on getting planted in the garden for reasons beyond everyone else involved. Erica understood though, and she agreed silently with Murrue's insisting. She knew, even though their coworkers quietly whispered in the background for her to try again, that murrue had closed off her heart to any other chances. Twice burned, that was enough.

Forget-me-nots. Erica pat the little satchel, feeling the small seeds inside. She proceeded to plant the little seeds, knowing the rain in the forecast would prove good news for them. She'd effectively gotten her hands dirty by the time she finished with the planting, and when she glanced at her watch she wasn't quite surprised with how much time had gone by.

'She's still sleeping, good.' Erica let herself in, knowing Murrue would have no complaints with her entry. She found herself glancing around the mostly empty home, her smile disappearing slowly.

It was homey, at first glance anyway. Murrue's warm personality shown through with the pale and warm colours that painted the walls, but it still looked hauntingly empty. The furniture sat where it was to be expected, everything looked like it had been picked out of a catalogue. She couldn't deny that her friend had excellent interior designing sense.

But she couldn't shake the feeling that something was missing, that it was still somehow empty. 'It's like Murrue's thoughts just make it that way.' She washed her hands at the sink, clearing the dirt off efficiently. She wandered again, this time into the living room.

She paused at the cabinet that sat inconspicuously at the far wall, beside the east porch door facing the water. No one would have glanced twice at it, almost as though it was putt here for that exact reason.

But Erica stopped in front of it, reaching out to gently touch the honey-coloured wood. She ran her fingers over the smooth surface, sighing a little when she looked through the glass to see what precious items it carried. A few china plates, obvious hand-me-downs from relatives, adorned the top shelf, the pretty floral patterns standing out against the white china.

The bottom shelf was less formal, cluttered with a few random objects across the wood. A tiny glass figurine of an angel, a stuffed teddy bear that was worn around the seams, a few faded pictures that were too hard to make out through the glass, random shot-glasses that probably didn't belong there, and Erica snorted when she saw the short bottle of dark alcohol. "Go figure..."

The second shelf was what caught her attention the most, even though it had the least interesting assortment of items in there. Two caps sat in the centre, displayed nearly proudly side by side. The first was smaller, a woman's, it was obvious it'd been used several times. The second was larger and looked like it'd never been touched. On either side of the caps were pictures.

The first made Erica wince, it was a group shot of all the pilots onboard both the Kusanagi, Archangel, and Eternal. The picture was crowded, and her gaze lingered on the three young women she remembered coaching through the Astray project. 'The memories...' The second made her smile weakly, she wasn't sure why Murrue had chosen to put it in there at all but it was amusing to see.

With the two bridge officers on the opposite far sides, it seemed like the photo was meant to be a shot of the senior officers. But it was the commander, captain, and lieutenant that stood out the most. The cheery blond stood between the women, either hand on their shoulders and tugging them in. He winked at the camera, grinning as both women gasped in alarm, causing the perfect picture.

The third picture was rather amusing, she wasn't sure who it had been to sneak up on the poor man but it still caused a funny shot. La Flaga had been working on something and the kid had done something to scare him. In the moment he bolted straight in his chair and hollered, someone snapped the picture. Kira was in the far corner, snickering, Mu sat straight in his chair, mouth open and face frozen in surprise, and if one looked close enough, the fellow mechanics were laughing in the far right corner behind him.

She smiled a little, touching the glass with the tip of her fingers, staring into the cabinet at the precious items held there. 'She loves him... And I doubt she'll ever get over him... Maybe the memories will help make it easier someday...'

AN

Lol, I hate the ending. And I dislike the rest of it too... Bah... Anyway, I hope you like it and please review. There may or may ir may not be a bit of a lapse in my updating due to the release of Breaking Dawn, depending on how it ends. If there's a happy ending, that equals a hyper me and lots of writing, lol. A sad ending equals a depressed me with little writing. Let's pray happy. XD

Sky