Author's Note: This chapter originally started out as a filler but it just didn't get to the point that I was satisfied with it. So, I combined it with the next chapter and voila, we have a set-up chapter instead. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing.

Warning: language

An Ill Wind Upsets Animals

Out of all the things that Trowa Barton valued, it was a peace of mind that was his most precious possession. To achieve this state was not much of a challenge for the circus worker but there was really only one place he could get the Zen of it all, or at least enough of it to block out the usual traffic that attacked his mind every hour of every day.

That would be right next to the lion cages stroking the head of the large male lion like he was a housecat. Ever since he had been young, Trowa had always found he had an affinity for animals. It was a connection of sorts and the animals themselves seemed attracted to him as well since even the most ferocious of beasts could be tamed with just a touch from the young man.

There was an understanding there, something so deep and so primal that no amount of pondering over it could solve. So he just let it be. A simple solution, yes, but what else could he do? It wasn't as if he was bothered by it, no, he welcomed it wholeheartedly.

It was noon right now and business as usual was starting up again. It was the lunch time of the day so there weren't many people about. However, there was the mid-afternoon show to get ready for and Trowa could honestly say he wasn't looking forward to it.

To make a long story short, Catherine had discovered the bed, forced a confession out of the two perpetrators Heero and Relena, and had them cleaning all their laundry, including the bed covers and comforter, as reparation. Trowa was so glad that he was a natural early rising as he was able to miss most of the drama though he couldn't say the same for all of their guests. Solo and Duo were conspicuously absent in physical presence and Dorothy hadn't come back to the trailer at all until Catherine was in the midst of her cloud of righteous fury. The blonde girl seemed to have stayed up the entire night and was paying for it but since Catherine was on a rampage, she too had vanished, probably begging one of the other circus workers for a place to sleep.

Not that he was really concerned. No, he was more concerned about what was to be coming. Catherine would undoubtedly be still in her foul mood and who exactly would be bearing the brunt of it? That's right, it would be him since he would be the one tied to a target and the knife thrower would be throwing sharp objects at him. It was not something he looked forward to, not at all. Just the thought of it alone was another to disrupt his Zen and allow the usual noise to intrude on his inner solitude

So the best solution was to get back to his center and to do that involved him petting and stroking the head of a large male lion, the oversized feline purring as he sprawled out next to the youth. It did not matter to Trowa that this beast could strike at him with a massive paw or bite his hand off with ferocious teeth. He took the risks head-on and had yet to experience any sort of backlash from it. Plus, being in such a situation always made him oddly calm, his head becoming so clear that he could focus on a task before him and not concern himself with minor details that could distract him.

It was needless to say that he took this opportunity readily to try and coax out some answers to the mystery that had been plaguing him ever since yesterday. Who exactly were Solo and Duo? How could they do the things they could, well at least the things he had seen Solo doing. He wasn't aware if Duo was capable of such feats but it would be a good idea to keep an eye out just in case. Back to Solo, though, he knew that those displays of strength the blond had been showcasing couldn't have been natural. The fellow had been picking things up that the circus strongman couldn't lift up to save his life and Solo's build in no way, shape, or form hinted at the strength that he possessed. So how had he gotten it? Had someone given it to him? Or had it been forced? He did not want to go there quite yet as that drudged up some intimate memories (or were they nightmares?) that hit too close to home. The fingers of his free hand twitched spasmodically, as if recalling a pain from long ago.

No! He did not want to go there! As if sensing his agitation, the lion he was petting lifted his head and turned golden-brown eyes on him, his purring rumbling from his chest. He just focused on accepting the comfort that the lion beside him could offer. That was how it always happened, didn't it? Whenever he got upset, one of nature's creatures would seek him out to try and aid him in his time of need.

Calming down and refocusing on his center, he relaxed against the lions' cage and the large animal plopped his head back down as soon as he was sure that the human was better. Trowa sent a mental "thank you" which he was sure was received, even though the lion didn't seem to acknowledge. Then again, all felines had that same reaction from the mightiest of lions to the meekest of housecats. Now, if it was a dog…

Then again, he was more of a cat person anyway, he could only tolerate so much loving attention that a dog could bestow and his tolerance for it wasn't very large.

So what had he been thinking of again? Oh yeah, that was right, Duo and Solo. What secrets were those two hiding? What was the key to solving the riddle those two represented? He always did like solving mysteries mainly because he hated to leave them alone and unsolved.

Now how was he going to solve this one?

---

A small twister drunkenly crossed the unforgiving desert but for some reason its winds weren't tearing apart the landscape like its deadlier cousins would. Slowly, it began to die down before the winds holding it together blew apart and fled away to reveal a group of seven boys clad in black, skintight uniforms.

The leader of this group, the master of the wind himself, stumbled ahead of the other six, a large bottle of half-drunken alcohol clutched protectively in a hand. He hiccupped and nearly tripped over himself but managed to catch himself before plummeting to the hard earth.

Behind him, a particular redhead was glaring balefully at a certain fire wielder.

"I can't believe you got him drunk, again, Mobias," Kyle reprimanded. "I bet you did it on purpose, didn't you?"

"What? It's funny!" Mobias defended himself, enjoying every moment of Jason making a fool of himself.

Zipping ahead and returning just as quickly, Risk reported that the circus they were heading for was just up ahead and that it would only be a few minutes worth of walking before they reached it. Whether or not he was taking into account that his walking pace was much faster than those of his comrades remained to be seen.

"Then let'ssssss goooooo…" Jason slurred happily as he stumbled ahead in the wrong direction.

Vera "helped" the drunk-off-his-ass boy out with one of his stretching arms, sneaking a grope or two while he was at it, and led the drunk in the right direction. Watching the spectacle, Kyle shuddered and cast another glare at Mobias before stalking off after the group.

Feeling two gazes on him, Mobias snapped his head around to see Curtis and Yun and demanded, "What?"

Shrugging, Curtis ignored him and followed after the others, Yun at his heels only because he didn't want to get left behind. That left Mobias to his lonesome, the boy glaring at the backs of the others which was soon replaced by a smug grin at seeing Jason one more time.

Once they had taken care of Solo and his twerpy sidekick, Mobias was going to make sure that Jason would have an "accident" somewhere along the way. It would be what he deserved for humiliating him.

---

The animals were on edge for some reason, not even Trowa could calm them down. Now, if it had been just one of them, he wouldn't have been so worried but all of the animals? Those that could were pacing in their cages while the elephant had to be retied to its post three times already and had almost trampled someone over.

It was an ill wind that passed over the circus yet the Ringmaster declared that the show would go on as scheduled, despite many of the circus worker's superstitions. However, each worker put a smile on their face so as to not scare away any of the circus-goers and rake in some money before closing for the night and maybe getting the hell out of here come morning.

And did they mention that it was only the cash that was keeping them there?

There's was a lot of it coming in, especially since the denizens of the nearby town didn't seem to feel anything wrong in the air and were packing themselves onto the circus grounds fervently in search of anything to provide them entertainment and who were they to refuse them and their wallets?

In the midst of the crowds, taking full advantage of their "free admittance" to every single ride, were Duo and Solo, the two have just gotten off one of the rides and both looking for the next one to get on.

"How about that one!" Duo pointed out excitedly, his finger aimed at an odd metal…thing that had the word "Gravitron" emblazoned on the front with neon lights.

Seeing how some of the circus-goers were coming out it stumbling, as if they couldn't keep their proper footing, Solo wholeheartedly agreed. It looked good even though the outside was really plain-looking. The inside was a completely different story. With the exception of the entrance/exit, it was one circular wall covered not with seats but flat, plastic plates that had bars separating one another. In the center of it was what seemed to be a circular booth-like station that was obviously where the controls for the ride were located. Watching other potential riders situating themselves against plates, Solo and Duo shrugged to each other and copied the multiple examples before them, having no clue as to what was going to be happening soon.

As soon as the ride operator was sure no one else would be getting on, he closed the entrance and got into the center booth, giving last minute instructions that nobody listened to. Then as soon as the operator was done speaking, there was a slight jolt and then everything began to move. While the central booth remained stock still, the circular room spun, slowly increasing its speed by the second. Solo snorted, unimpressed.

As the seconds ticked by though, Solo felt his body being pressed up against the flat plate that his back was situated on and he was finding it a bit harder to move his limbs. Never did it occur to the blond that the natural force of gravity was what was holding him in a tight grip, the power of G-force keeping him pinned back. Then, as the ride approached a certain speed, the plates behind all the riders shifted upwards, taking the riders with them.

And it just seemed like it was still speeding up. The one major clue to the blond that the ride was coming to a close was when the plate he was pressed against slid back down to its original position and about a minute later everything came to a slow stop. With wobbly legs, his hands shaking for some reason unknown to him, Solo managed to stumble his way out of the once spinning chamber and back out into the open where he immediately found the nearest trash can and perched himself next to it, the worst coming from his mouth a dry heave. He was disoriented, he couldn't walk straight, and he felt like he could barf at any second.

As Duo finally reached his side, he looked down at the smaller and they made an unspoken agreement between themselves. They were getting back on that thing again!

Had they not been so focused on their plans, they probably would have noticed a particular blond speedster in a skintight, black uniform stumble out from the ride the two had vacated previously and disappear into the crowd before them.

---

Trowa frowned.

Just a minute ago, he had witnessed one of the lions almost barrel out of its cage, its fang bared wickedly. He knew that this particular animal was usually docile and never once had it acted like it was currently doing. However, this couldn't be put to something wrong with the lion itself since it was not the only one behaving in such a matter. Even the tigers were snarling at some unseen threat.

There was no way they could let these animals out for the Big Show. It would not only be dangerous to them but also the spectators who had no clue as to what was going on backstage. It was drawing closer and closer to Showtime and even the Ringmaster himself was at a loss of how to proceed. He was there, staring at the ferocious beasts like he had never seen them before, wondering how he was going to work with this.

Trowa found that not even his presence could calm them down and if anything, he was getting the sense that the animals were trying to warn him. Warn him about what? What could be so bad that it could raise even this threatening reaction from even the gentlest of beasts?

---

Heero gripped his hands tightly on the hand, his eyes determined as Relena watched on anxiously, rooting for him all the while. Raising up the large mallet, he put all his strength into it as he swung the large object in an arc onto a large pin. In reaction, a small projectile shot straight up until the satisfying ringing of a bell sounded. Accomplishment, nothing could give the Japanese youth anymore satisfaction than that.

Once again, he had won at the strength test carnival game and had won a large stuff animal to give to Relena, a prize that the giddy girl took from him delicately, as if the large, fluffy object was going to vanish from his grasp. He had always been good at that game, even when he was young so it was no surprise to Heero that he won so easily.

"What now?" he asked Relena conversationally, draping an arm around the blond's shoulders.

"Hungry?" Relena asked back in reply, her eyes not on Heero but on a concession stand where a circus worker was selling cotton candy.

Chuckling, Heero said, "I'll be right back, don't wander off too far."

"I won't," Relena assured him.

"HEY! What a ripoff!" a boisterous voice shouted from behind, startling the two teens. "Game'ssss rigged!" the voice slurred, followed by another voice shouting out, "Hey, there's no alcohol allowed on the premise! Security!"

Turning around to peek at the crowd slowly growing behind them, both Heero and Relena froze in their places at the person in the center of it. Waving a nearly empty bottle of gin around, there stood an all too familiar boy dressed in an odd, skintight, black uniform. Seeing the black hair with the white tips, both teens felt rush of terror grab a hold of their hearts.

They recognized that boy and neither of them were glad about it. It was the same boy, the same one that had been involved with the destruction of their hometown. It was too surreal seeing him again and drunk to boot.

"My money'sss good 'round here like everybody elsssseee…" the boy slurred, taking another swallow from the bottle.

"But you haven't even paid anything!" the game operator exclaimed.

"Sssezzzz you!" the boy shouted. "Get out of my face. I dun like ya anymore. Sssshhhhoo!"

A gentle wind blew past Heero and Relena ominously, gathering within the game booth before tearing the booth apart in the next second. However, it didn't seem like the boy had full control of his powers while he was inebriated since only what was inside the booth was blow out into the gathering crowd, including the game operator.

"Get Solo!" Heero hissed to Relena, his eyes not leaving the drunken boy for a second. "I'll try and hold him up here."

"Heero! Don't!" Relena protested.

"Just go!" Heero ordered. "The sooner you get Solo, the more chance I get of coming out of this unharmed. GO!"

Nodding fearfully, Relena backed away and vanished from Heero's sight, leaving the youth all by his lonesome.

In the direction of the Big Top, an inhuman shriek pierced through the revelry, shattering irreparably the atmosphere that only a circus possessed.