Happy Fourth of July! My holiday present to you is an earlier update! Whoo!
Whoo, got this done faster then i thought despite my recent...problem... (read the Jabber Bomb just to find out what stupid thing i did this time -.- )
Anyhoo, this chapter...welllll it's not my normal plot-driven chapter so for those who have been staring at the screen thinking: "Enough is enough, woman! give us some dang Asucaga!" then enjoy what tid bits i have thrown in for you today =P =3
Cagallifangirl- gracias and, there's really not much happening next. Out side of a deep in look into how Cagalli's feeling so plz don't be too disappointed =(
FushionAC- between you and this dork (moi) i actually love fantasy stories concerning dragons. Heck, if i want a Mobile Suit that looks like a dragon then so help me i will have one! (slams fist on table) ... =) anyway, yup, too cool for words, huh? =P And Lacus doesn't really know-know her,, uuh, i don't know how to explain it. hahaha, anyway, is dramatic bad or no? cause i can ease up on that. Sometimes i can be very Anne of Greengables dramatic lol. And of course Lacus has a part in the war ;)
Falconrukichi- mhmm ^_^ and we shall see =P hahaha, look to the next chapter =D
Memeylupht- hahahahah wooow you reviewed and PMed me! Thanks! feel free to PM anytime, i'm a chatter box, remember *laughs* and i sorta feel evil for misleading you with the idea that Cagalli was returning to ORB =P but, i have a rather complexish long plot (well, to me...), so we got a ways to go still =) Kira... we'll find out what happened to him next chapter and Cagalli... Well, this is a chapter focusing alot on Cagalli so i hope you don't mind a rather depressingish chapter. =/ And i can't tell you where the msg came from =P but between you and me, i personally loath Yunna. hahahahah but he has his part just as much in the story... (sigh) can't kill him yet =( Thanks again, and her's a pretty long chapter =) so hope you enjoy =D
Thanks everyone for reading and reviewing =) it makes me ecstatic! Hope you enjoy this chapter =)
Oh and to be clear, Yuna was in the space craft with Kira when the 'dragon' attacked.
*disclaimer- I don't own Gundam Seed
CHAPTER 7
Drip. Drip. Drip.
I don't understand.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
He was gone. Didn't the world realize that?
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Why wasn't it just stopping? Time just completely freezing. Why weren't people realizing what had happened?
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Is this how it always is? We die and it is like we never existed in the first place.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
My finger slid across the cold pane glass of the bus stop I sat under, making shapes in the fogged up window. My other hand clutched my left abdomen where the clothing I wore was soaked from where I had been pierced with a metal fragment. Pain stabbed at my mind but I hardly noticed, too wrapped up in sorrow.
Outside, the bustle of city life of Octus five went on, cars honking, people hurrying to get out of the rain. It doesn't rain often in PLANT. But because the 'dragon' tore a hole in the 'sky' their weather program has been all wack for the past couple hours and now rain poured down from the silent, dark heavens.
A tear trickled down my grubby cheek and I shivered but made no move to wipe away the tear or rub my arms in warmth.
I was a mess. My dark red shirt damp from water and rain, blood oozing despite my efforts to staunch it. My hair was mostly dry, curly from not being brushed and bedraggled and my face was covered in tear tracks. A bead of blood slid it's way down from my hair line and I resisted the urge to scratch it and possibly irritate whatever injury I had up there.
Kira.
My heart squeezed painfully in my chest and my breath shuddered in my lungs.
Kira… Kira…
I squinted feeling the tears gather in my lashes. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." My forehead thumped against the cool glass, my body hunched over on the flat bench I sat on.
I was in shock. I had just seen my closest friend die right in front of my eyes- murdered by a dragon-like machine!
The previous hours I had spent fluctuating out of denial, into self-misery and now all I felt was…needy. Or maybe… I had always be needy…
I shook my head, lifting my clean hand up to wipe my snotty nose before flipping it over and pressing the back of my hand to my mouth where I bit my index knuckle. A muffled moan slipped through my lips and I half-choked, curling up slightly.
"Noo…" It hurt so bad. Feeling…this feeling of loss again. Always… the people I love… I lose.
Needy.
I needed to cry, to ball my eyes out. But like always, there is never anyone there for me when I need them.
When she died. When my crew, Kisaka and Manna died. And now Kira.
"I know…" I whispered to my logical, strong heart. "I know it's not fair! I know I need to be strong! I'm soldier… I'm a soldier!" Tears threatened to over fill but I merely rocked back and forth. "But… I just… I just…" I looked up wordlessly, making loud sobbing sounds in the back of my throat. My eyes landed the fogged glass and I realized that I had absentmindedly written something their with my finger.
'It hurts to be alone'
What was left of my heart twisted like a wrung rag and I fell silent, my mouth open, my free hand moving to lay over my still-beating heart.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Kira. Kira. Kira.
Rain plunked down on the glass matching the pace of my heart. Matching the only thought I could make.
The rain echoed my tears. The sky crying along with me.
I looked up at the sky, feeling shattered. "Kira…" I whispered again, wanting to sob but feeling as if I did that…now… I would lose all resolve to continue.
"Akira!" called a voice.
I ignored it. "You didn't have to die. It's all my fault!" I wanted to plead with the Death, beg him to lay down sycth and pass over this one spirit. Return him to the world of warmth and light. Return him so I could say sorry, and…and…
Was I so selfish to wallow in my need for him to come back? My only friend? My Kira?
"Akira, there you are!"
"I'm sorry!" I burst out, ignoring the present company as if some how my message would go beyond the grave. Tears brimmed in my eyes but didn't over flow more then a single drop.
"Akira?" Athrun's voice penetrated my mind and I looked at his concerned face, feeling confused. Lost. He was holding a black umbrella over his head and as he took a step forward, one hand out stretched to me, I lost myself.
"He's gone!" I cried, jumping up and throwing my arms around Athrun, trying to find the warmth I so desperately needed. My hand that had been holding my wound was red from blood but Athrun didn't notice. I didn't care.
Hug me. Hug me like Kira did. Hug me as if I'm your closest friend, the one who knows you inside and out.
Just don't leave me alone.
Athrun's body was stiff for a moment before he slowly pulled me to sit down beside him. I didn't release him as I pressed my face into his black cardigan. Yet even now, the flood of tears never came.
I was still stuck like glue in my one spot. Torn between wanting to believe in the impossible, that Kira was alive. Torn between wanting to move on- Kira or not, I knew this could happen, he only did as any soldier would for their Princess.
Torn between wanting to properly mourn the best friend a girl a could have. I didn't deserve him. And now he was gone.
Hesitantly he murmured. "Akira? Whats wrong? Whose gone?" his arms lightly wrapped around me and I shivered. Athrun was more broad then Kira. His presence swallowed me up and I couldn't decide then if it was comforting or bewildering.
With Kira, I always felt the same. Kira had a lighter build, though Athrun still a rather feminine appearance. But Athrun's presence threatened to consume me.
If it wasn't now… today… my heart might have skipped a beat.
But my heart felt dead and cold in my chest.
He wasn't Kira. No one was.
"Him. He's gone. He left me." My hands formed fists in the back of Athrun's shirt. I couldn't bare to look up. "No…I betrayed him. I'm the reason he's dead… it's all my fault!" I twisted slightly, wanting to push away and I felt my cut burn. My knees wobbled and gray clouds seemed to creep at the corner of my vision.
"Shhh, shhh, you're not making any sense. Akira." Athrun gently stroked my blonde hair, his hand running down my golden locks, smoothing them before trailing lightly down my spine. His arms tightened around me, holding me there and I was thankful. I felt like I was about to fall.
As if I had lost my back bone.
But I knew I had one. Hell, I was the spit-fire daughter of Uzumi!
So why was I so broken?
"Athrun…" I murmured absentmindedly. "Why are you so cold?"
"Yamato?" Athrun asked politely but I hardly heard him. All I could hear was this loud thumping sound in my ears.
My eyes drifted slightly over the crook of Athrun's arm and I wondered if the sound was my heart or perhaps the rain drops.
So, cold… Athrun…
Or was it the world in general? Would it ever feel a tiny glimpse of warmth? Or did that too start die?
"Shhhh…Shhhh…" Athrun soothed, and I closed my eyes, relaxing, my body still trembling against him. Feeling the tremors, his embrace tightened even more so and I sank into it. I didn't care if he was the Dumbass who was ruining my life. I didn't care if he was the son of the chairman of ZAFT. All I cared about was if he let me go, I was afraid I was going to break and splinter into thousands of pieces.
"My name's Cagalli! What's yours?" I asked the boy standing across from me. He smiled at me hesitantly, still wearing his cadet uniform from the ORB academy we went to together.
"I'm Kira."
I yanked his hand from his mouth, wiping it for him on his own shirt. "Don't your parents teach you to behave?" I demanded.
"You just climbed out of your window." Kira pointed out to me and I flushed.
"That's different. My daddy doesn't let me come out all the time." I sat down on the porch step, my head tilted back, my amber eyes on the moon. A crease formed on my forehead as I chewed on my bottom lip.
"Whose your daddy?" Kira asked, sitting down beside's me, his little legs swinging.
I glanced at him. "My daddy is the lion of ORB! Whose your daddy?"
Kira looked down at the piece of grass he was twisting in his chubby hands. His brown hair hung, shaggily cut over his brown eyes. "I don't have a Daddy." He said softly.
I shivered at the thought, feeling sad for him. I scooted closer, leaning against him slightly. "Do you have a mommy?" I asked.
He shook his head and I saw the trembles in his shoulder. My blunt little tomboy heart softened and I did what my mommy always did for me when I was sad or scared. I wrapped my arms around him in a hug.
"Shhhh, it's okay. You can have my mommy and daddy." I patted his back.
Kira giggled.
"Kira." I sat back.
Looking a little bit happier the boy nodded. "Mhmm?"
"Where did you come from?"
"I came from the sky." The boy grinned a wide toothy grin and I laughed. That was ridiculous. But I liked it.
"So you're an alien!"
The boy hesitated. "No." he said unsurely and I giggled, grabbing his hands in mine.
"Kira! Do you have a friend?"
He shook his head and I stuck out my pinky.
"I don't either! So lets be each other's friend! We'll be best friends? Do you want to be best friends?"
Kira stared puzzled at my proffered pinky but he nodded, wiping his eyes with the heels of his hands. "Yes!"
I sighed. "It's called a pinky promise, dummy. You wrap your pinky around mine!" I grabbed his hand, yanking out his pinky and holding it up to mine.
Regarding me with a sweet, slow smile, Kira wrapped his pinky around mine and I grinned.
"See, now we made a pinky promise to be friends forever. Don't ever break it, promise?"
He shook on it with his pinky. "Promise!"
A fresh gale of tears came at the memory of that promise, but I swallowed tightly, thrusting them back. I pushed Athrun back, freeing myself of his embrace. Okay…it's okay, Akira. You're doing okay. I told myself feeling as I was on stilts. "I-I'm sorry."
He watched me carefully as I stood up, my face blotchy from so many unshed tears. "I'll…I'll see you… later… okay?" I forced a broken smile.
Just as I turned to walk back into the rain towards the military base- where else did I have to go?- Athrun grabbed my hand. The wrong one.
"Wait, Akira." He stood up, picking up his umbrella and holding it over my head.
Couldn't he see that I wanted to be alone. I had… had to figure this out. My life was breaking again and I needed to re figure things out. Because, despite how it should be, life still went on. The world continued to thrive, and Kira's death wouldn't change that nor the fact that I was still a princess of ORB.
I wiped my runny nose. "Athrun…" A determination rose in me, battling out my pain and I sniffed.
"Yes?"
"I'm sorry about your shirt."
"It's nothing. Just what's wrong?"
"Nothing." I turned to face him. "Athrun. Did you destroy the spy ship?"
Athrun frowned. "I was meaning to talk to you about that-"
"Did you?" I clutched at my cut, trying not to show how much pain I was in just standing their forcing conversation.
Athrun sighed. "No. Somebody else did. The Chaos."
"The Chaos?" I repeated, my free hand clenching. I gritted my teeth at the fresh onslaught of pain.
"A machine like a GUNDAM." His gaze flickered to me, his jaw clenching. "That's why I was trying to find you. That's why I ended up having to gps your cell phone. If the Chaos is here, then so is the Harmony, and so is Cagalli."
And so is Kira's killer. My gaze hardened. "Then we will find them." I snapped. "That's all that matters." Kira, I will avenge you and protect ORB!
Yes. Anger. Anger felt so good, it made me powerful and sure, and strong when I knew I wasn't. That's what I need to focus on. Avenging Kira and her. That's what mattered.
"Akira, I order you to tell me where you've been all day!" Athrun grabbed my arm, spinning me about to look at him once more.
Wrong arm.
My hand jerked free from my cut for a third time and I swore under my breath, wincing as the blood started to really run down my skin from my irritated wound.
I stumbled slightly into a puddle, glaring at him as I tried not to fall to the ground. I was so dizzy!
Glaring at Athrun, needing a target for my anger I thought: Athrun was lucky he wasn't the one to have killed Kira other wise he would already be dead! "I lost someone important to me, Athrun." I choked slightly on the words. "Someone who can't be replaced." A tear dribbled down my cheek and I reached up to wipe it away hastily.
But before I could touch my cheek, a warm, big hand stroked my cold, pale cheek, cradling it for a moment.
I looked up, confused at Athrun who was studying me carefully. "I couldn't." I whispered, not to him, not to anyone in particular. "I just… It's just…" I reached up, holding his hand to my face. Despite the person, the touch was comforting. "It's all my fault. And I'll never be able to say sorry." I sighed deeply, letting go of his hand. "I'm sorry, Athrun. For not being there with you." My body swayed slightly and I clenched my teeth tighter..
Athrun sighed. "Well, it's not that big of a deal."
It was, pilots have gotten retired for things like this.
"Just don't let it happen again. ZAFT is your first responsibility." His green-eyed gaze hardened.
I nodded, feeling cold from his words. "I understand, sir." I saluted, my eyes drifting to the wet ground.
"And…" Athrun sighed softer. "I'm sorry for your loss." He looked as if he wanted to say more, perhaps ask if he could be a help and I saw his hand extending towards me. But he shut his mouth and looked down at his feet for a moment looking unhappy.
I shivered. From the corner of my eye I saw him look away again before sliding off his outer coat and placing it on my shoulders. My eyes widened and I stared at him. Warmth from his body clung to the coat and his scent immersed me as he tucked it around my shoulders. And in the moment of my pathetic-itis, it felt sooo good.
"You're going to get sick. Your…friend wouldn't want that. No matter what happened." The smile Athrun gave me was all kindness and patience and I wrapped the coat around me.
He was right. If Kira was here he would be all over me right for being a Dumbass (though I'm sure he would put it nicer).
My knees trembled beneath me and I could feel blood running down my skin.
What are you doing? The Akira side of me shrieked in my mind. What are you doing, you fool! You've already messed up enough!
Please? I begged. Please, just for today. Let me… let me be Cagalli. Let me cry, let me laugh. Let me go.
If he figures anything out! Then! Then! ORB could lose their princess!
The world hurts. Kira's gone. I've lost my only friend. All I have is my father and he's in ORB. Please. I want… I need… someone. Just one person to be with me. To remind me on the inside that I'm not Akira. I'm not all logic and cold-hearted. That I can feel, and love, and cry.
And you think Athrun is someone who can help you? He's your enemy! YOUR ENEMY! THE SON OF THE CHAIRMAN OF ZAFT! A COLD-HEARTED COORDINATOR WHO IS IN CHARGE OF YOUR DEATH!
I don't want to be alone. My mom died. Kisake and Mana and my crew died. All for me. And now Kira is dead. Because of me again! Please, give me someone to protect, someone who I can trust, even if it's only with Akira. Even if he'll never know who I really am. Even if, in we're really enemies and one day, one of us will die because of who we are.
Then a deal. You can't replace him. You know that. So you must forget Kira. You must move on. You must focus on the future. Can you do that?
For ORB. For my father. For Kira. I promise.
A warm hand tugged at mine and I was interrupted from the mental war between my logical side and my passionate side.
Athrun watched me unsurely, holding the umbrella steadily above. Rain dripping down from the black brim.
I struggled to stand. I needed to get…back to ZAFT safely and with out Athrun noticing my injury. If he took me to a doctor and they examined my blood… Or even looked at my body.
"Akira… you don't look so good."
If you knew who I was, Zala, would you even care what little you may for me? "I'm…fine…" I whispered, feeling torn. Conflicted and desolate.
Helplessly, I looked up at Athrun's brilliant emerald eyes, wishing that some where in their smoky-green depths I would find an answer to a question I didn't even know. His eyes widened as he finally noticed the sheen of sweat creeping on my skin, the bead of blood uncovered by my hair, the lack of strength as I staggered.
Let's be friends, Athrun. Even if it is only for now.
Pain like a hot knife stabbed through my stomach and I jolted forward, falling into darkness. No…No…
I heard my lieutenant cry something but I couldn't discern his words.
"I can't…"I whispered.
Was I dying? Was this it? I had lost quite a bit of blood so was this my rather lame finale?
Warm arms encircled me from behind, pulling me back against a hard muscular chest and I felt a pair of lips whisper into my ear and my heart fluttered in hope- Kira?
"Stay with me, Akira! Stay with me!"
And my heart shattered.
Who was Akira? And what did she do with Cagalli?
OOOOO
Narrator POV
Akira then stumbled slightly, clutching her side and Athrun reflexively wrapped his arms around her slim waist, supporting her.
"Ah." She flinched as his hand grazed her side and Athrun's eyes widened. He spun her around again in the rain, noting for the first time the pain in her expression.
He pulled her hand away from her stomach and gasped. Blood had soaked the dark red shirt she had worn, bleeding from a cut in her stomach. A small piece of metal glinted in the wet dark liquid that was pooling from her.
"Akira! You're injured!" Seeing her pale (he had thought it was the from the cold rain) face, and her haggard expression Athrun's heart burst into a sprint, his eyes wide with alarm and fear.
Her gaze flickered to her wound and she grimaced. "I can't…" she mumbled then she fainted, falling back. Athrun grabbed her, his arms wrapping around her.
"Stay with me, Akira! Stay with me!" he begged softly into her ear before gritting his teeth and sweeping her up bridal style. A wound that small wouldn't be a bother to any Coordinator unless it had been in for hours- in which case Akira had fainted from blood loss which was extremely dangerous.
"Hold on, Akira!" Athrun murmured to the unconscious pilot. Questions would come later- care for the injured girl would come first. His arms tightened around her protectively and he started carrying her to the nearest shop. If he could staunch the blood flow then she would last until she got medical care back at the base.
Walking into a restaurant he ignored the shocked looks of the waiters and customers, lying Akira down on an empty table. "I need some hot water and bandages! And some pain relievers and antiseptic if you have any! Now! Please!"
Carefully, he pulled up her shirt, not even caring enough to blush, completely focused on helping the feverish pilot. He checked her forehead, she was burning up.
"You stupid, stupid girl. What the hell you were doing out in the rain with that wound?" he growled, examining the jagged, oozing cut in her stomach.
The girl stirred slightly, her body twitching. "Mmm. Don't…"
"Shhh, stop moving. You're weak enough."
Her hand trembled, reaching up to grab Athrun's and his eyes looked up to meet her weary violet ones. "Don't… "
"Don't what?"
She sighed. "Please…"
"You're not making sense- shut up."
She gripped his hand tightly and he felt a sheen of sweat on her clammy hand. "Don't take me to a doctor…Dumbass" she gasped.
"What are you talking about? That's what you need most!" Athrun exclaimed incredulously, ignoring the insult she had managed to place on the end. Seriously, she was looking like a corpse and she still managed to sneak those comments of hers in. Truly Akira.
A waitress handed him some rags with a bowl of hot water and he dipped a rag into the bowl. Wetting it, he started to wipe carefully around the cut. Akira seemed to weak to make a response. Definitely blood loss.
"We'll have to give you a transfusion when we get back…" Athrun went pale and he gripped the younger pilot's arm. "What the hell were you thinking not coming back to base? Do you want to die?" did she? She seemed to be broken in spirit. When she had hugged him earlier he didn't know what to think.
But what he felt was an overwhelming feeling of being protective and being warm and…
What had been that strange feeling that had sparked in his chest? One that the cold-hearted son of Patrick Zala had never really come to feel since the death of his mother, Lenore Zala.
A man came up. "I'm a doctor, I have medical tools with me. I can stitch her wound and give her a blood transfusion here." The silver haired Coordinator glanced down at Akira whose eyes were closed again, her hand slack in Athrun's.
"First though we have to clean this wound and bandage it."
"Don't… I can't…not… your…blood." Akira whispered, panting slightly.
Athrun winced, feeling slightly hurt at her words as if she found his blood disgusting. "You don't know what you're saying, Akira. You lost a lot of blood."
"But…" she stammered and her pain-riddled eyes opened again to stare at Athrun as if she was trying desperately to communicate something to him. "You…you don't under…st…stand."
"What are you trying to say?" he murmured, holding her hand tightly, trying to distract her from the doctor who was cleaning her wound with hot rags.
Akira shook her head wordlessly. "I…I…I'm…not…like…you…"
Now what was that supposed to mean?
"She's got something in there." Mumbled the doctor, peering into the wound. "Hold her down tightly, youngster."
A man came over and pressed down on Akira's legs to keep her from kicking. Feeling slightly self-conscious, Athrun leaned over Akira, placing his forearms on her forearms, leaning all of his weight over her chest, his nose only a few inches away from Akira's. This close he noticed the bruises on her jaw once again and a thin trickle of dried blood that ran down her hair line. What had happened to her?
He lifted his hand slightly and wiped at her grimy face with her thumb, tracing the clean teartracks down her dirty face.
Her eyes stared at him looking bewildered and tired. "A-Athrun Zala." She whispered and those close enough to hear gasped.
"Athrun Zala?" a girl a little older looking then Athrun murmured, her hand to her mouth. "THE Athrun Zala? Ace pilot and son of Patrick Zala?" The murmurs spread through the restaurant and Athrun grimaced, trying to ignore them.
"Shhh. Hold still, this is going to hurt." He shook his head. "Seriously, how did this happen?"
"A-Athrun." The girl repeated. "I'm not dying." She forced a small smile that vanished in a heart beat. "It's a puny wound."
"It's a puny wound that should have been treated hours ago- not left alone in the cold rain to fester, and bleed." Athrun snapped quietly.
"I forgot."
"How did you forget?"
Her eyes looked wet and she gazed past him at the ceiling. "Some things…hurt more then pain."
"Here we go! Hold her!"
From the corner of his eye, Athrun saw the docter yank a small black jagged object from Akira's stomach. Akira jerked, her mouth opening in a silent yelp.
Then her head slumped to the side and her eyes closed.
"Akira!"
"It's okay, she only fainted. Just keep an eye on her pulse. I'll stitch up her wound." The doctor pulled out a small case, whipping out medical instruments. He went to work quickly, a crease in his brow as he focused hard. The whole restaurant seemed to hold their breath as he went to work.
"Youngster, set up the blood-transfusion kit. I want to start getting some blood into her immediately."
Athrun nodded. "I'll be the donor." He added, still holding Akira's pale hand in his.
She won't die. I won't let her.
The thought flickered unbidden through his mind and he paused for a moment in getting out the tubes and needles, his eyes widening. He shook his head then and continued to set it up.
Done threading her wound- Coordinators were fast- the doctor hurriedly helped Athrun finish setting up, directing the others to put bandages over the wound, carefully.
Athrun tugged up his sleeve, sitting down in a chair next to Akira's head, his eyes never leaving her cold face. The doctor slid a needle into his forearm, then another into one of Akira's veins.
"This is going to be a bit messy." The doctor mumbled and Athrun sighed, relaxing back into his seat. His hand still gripped Akira's, his thumb stroking the underside of the wrist, feeling her steady, yet slow pulse.
Once they were done- Athrun feeling lighter and slightly dizzy, the manager of the restaurant called for a cab to take them to the base and Athrun offered the doctor payment.
The doctor shook his head, regarding Akirat curiously from where she lay unmoving on the table. "She's a peculiar one…" he murmured, furrowing his brow.
"Huh?" asked Athrun and the doctor shook his head, waving his red-stained hand.
"It's nothing." The older man said, turning to wash his hands off in what was left of the luke-warm water. "As long as she doesn't re open the wound and is allowed to sleep for a while she'll be fine. She lost a lot of blood but with that transfusion hopefully she'll be feeling better by tomorrow night."
"Do you need help carrying her out?" the short-cut brown-haired man who had helped brace Akira down asked.
"Nah," Athrun said with slight smile of thanks. Gently and very carefully he picked up Akira. "As long as I don't irritate her wound she should be fine, right?" he checked again.
The doctor looked up, nodding. "Indeed. Coordinator blood heals incredibly fast so she should be quite all right." He assured.
A waitress came up to Athrun, holding something carefully in her hands. "Here, sir. We didn't know if you wanted it but we cleaned it up." She held out the black object that had pierced Akira.
Athrun glanced at Akira then shifted her wait carefully, and held out one hand from underneath of her body.
The waitress dropped it in his hand and then bowed.
"Thank you," Athrun said then his eyes swept the room. "Thank you, and my apologies for the disturbance."
The manager waved his hand, brushing his apologies aside as she grinned and the customers clapped politely, cheering.
"Tell your girlfriend to stay out of trouble and get better." The doctor said.
"Er," Athrun flushed, "Um, she's, um. Not my…"
The taxi pulled up and he shook his head, giving up before running out side and hopping into the cab.
Settling Akira on the seat, he hesitated before lowering her blonde-framed head on to his lap. Her legs dangled off one side of the seat.
"ZAFT base." He told the taxi driver.
The taxi driver shot one curious glance at Akira's bandaged stomach before nodding and steering away from the curb and back on to the street.
"mmmm." Akira turned her head slightly, shivering.
"Idiot." Athrun sighed, taking his now-blood-stained coat and draping it over her now-seemingly frail form.
"Mmmm….mmmy fault." She murmured. "You….never come…first place…"
Athrun raised his eyebrow, dismissing her words for random sleep talk. He opened his hand up, uncurling his fingers from around the cool metal object.
It looked like a random broken piece of metal, but it was tough, high class metal and looked brand new but was mangled and jagged. His eyebrows squinched as he examined it. "I guess I'll have to ask one of the repairers on the ship to identify it for me." He checked his watch and sighed. "Cinderella needs to get home." He mumbled, tapping his foot impatiently.
"Unnngh." Akira groaned at the disturbance and he stopped. She squeezed her eyes shut and her breath came out in pants. "Dead… All dead… Have…have to go home!"
"Akira?"
Evidently she was still asleep, but she seemed to be in pain as her back arched slightly and her hands formed fists.
"Akira!" Athrun struggled to hold the squirming girl down. "Akira!" he repeated, panicking over the thought of her tearing the stitches and re-opening her cut.
"Shshshshshhh."
He froze as suddenly the girl changed moods, her hands reached up to cradle Athrun's face, unerringly with her eyes close.
"Remember… best friends…" she stroked her face and Athrun blushed, trying to deny the impulse to lean his face in to her soft, warm hand.
This didn't make sense. None at all.
He tried to think of her hands as Lacus's, touching his face. But they weren't- Lacus's were too smooth, too slim and delicate. Akira's were rough, small yet not at all delicate. And he realized that he was becoming fine with that.
"I…love you…you're my…closest…friend." She smiled but even as she did, tears leaked out from under her eyelids and traveled down her cheeks in thin streams.
Athrun's eyes widened in astonishment. He knew she wasn't talking about him- it almost seemed to hurt to realize that fact but yet he couldn't stop himself from wiping away her tears. "Why are you crying?" he murmured, leaning closer. "Why don't you ever smile?"
"Because…you left me… you're gone and you can't come back." Her voice twisted and she seemed to choke on her tears for a moment. "My mommy was murdered… Kisake and Mana were killed with the crew… my daddy I haven't seen in years… and now my only friend is dead too. Why…Why do I hurt…everyone...I love…?"
Athrun's eyes widened in astonishment. Her mother was murdered? Her crew? Who was Kisake? Why did it seem that Akira had a more painful past then she was letting on?
But wait… her dad was gone? He flashed back to reading her bio- it had clearly stated that she had no living family relation… unless… that's what she had meant…
But this…this explained a lot. Why she didn't want to get close to anyone. Because… she was afraid to… for them.
Athrun sighed, stroking the blonde locks out of the young pilots face. "Don't be stupid, Akira." He leaned closer still till their faces were hardly an inch apart and murmured.
"It's okay. I'll be your friend." He took a deep breath, part of him demanding a reason as to why he was doing so much for this practical stranger. First, he was the son of Patrick Zala; he had a reputation. Second, he was engaged to Lacus Clyne! Third, he barely knew Akira and already he was trying to deny the beginning of what was starting to feel like attraction to the feisty girl.
He gripped the hand she held to his face tightly in his own. Her hand was so hot, her fever wasn't going down.
"Who…" the girl stirred, as if her dream she was conversing with was just now starting to not make sense.
"I won't leave you, Akira."
And just as her violet eyes began to open the cab hit a small bump and her head came up slightly, only a bit but just enough.
Her warm, soft lips grazed Athrun's like a feather, her breath brushing his face. It was no where near a kiss but Athrun's eyes flew wide in astonishment as he met the girl's dazed purple eyes. His cheeks warmed red at the barely noticeable touch.
She blinked long and slow, relaxing back into his lap. A moment passed and then her eyes opened again. "Athrun…" she murmured, recognizing him after a long moment.
Athrun nodded, unable to answer, unsure of what she would do.
"I'm sorry…"
He blinked, overcoming his surprise enough to talk. "Wha- that's stupid!"
She ignored him her eyes closing. "Athrun…"
Athrun slid his hands off of hers, feeling them drop back down. Swallowing tightly he responded. "Yeah?"
"Don't trust me."
OOOOOOOOO
Narrator POV (Archangel)
"Captain…they should be back by now…" mumbled a unit and Murrue bit her bottom lip, swallowing tightly.
"I know…" she whispered through her gritted teeth.
"Does this mean the princess…" a younger female soldier began to cry over her console.
The captain needed to be strong for her crew. "No! Kira would not risk Cagalli! Not for himself! Cagalli is still alive! We still have a mission." She grinned. "I bet Kira is alive too, him and Yuna! They just ran into some trouble, that's all." she sighed, rubbing her forehead. "For now we'll await orders from ORB. It's all we can do really with engaging with ZAFT or rising suspicions on Cagalli. We'll head back until we're close enough to receive orders. Understand." Everyone could tell it went against her feelings to do that and yet, they understood that she had no choice so with a small prayer they turned towards home with heavy hearts.
OOOOOOO
Narrator POV
Elsewhere.
In a dark room, a wide moniter with three separate screens cast an eery glow.
Leaning back comfortable in his seat a man drummed his fingers on the keyboard. At last he was waiting for happened, and two of the screens flickered and then cleared again with a visual image two other figures.
"Good gentlemen and my Lady." He murmured, tapping his chin. "Thankyou for taking time today."
The person in the middle screen of the three, stood pacing in a small dark room, his or her face thrown into shadow but their thick hair was rather apparent. "It is no trouble," from the tone of his smooth, yet low voice it could be deterred that he was male.
The person in the first screen nodded in agreement, half-busy with rifling through files.
"Ah, but we are missing one." The first speaker spoke, glancing at the first blank-blue screen. It was a conference of three men and one woman, but one of the men was missing.
The man in the middle screen waved his hand irately, his golden eyes glinted slightly as he threw a glance at the first man who was leaning back in his seat. "My sources have told me that he has been accidently detained." He took a step closer and the bottom half of his face became seeable in the light, a grimace forming on his pale lips.
"Really." The man in the seat murmured, stroking his jaw. "By ZAFT?" he seemed amused. "I heard that was where he was."
The man in the middle screen resumed pacing with a snort. "No. That damn rouge ship interfered!"
"Honestly," the person in the first screen- obviously the woman in their conference from her voice- spoke, sounding amused. "You can't take care of one small ship."
The man in the middle screen looked furious but then he regain his smooth and persuasive composure. "I wouldn't go there, Lady. It's too far long in the game to make enemies, am I right?"
The woman smirked but said nothing, pleased with whatever she had put together. "Now, about the Project."
The man in his seat sat up straighter. "Ah, Project Pauper." He grimaced. "Everything was going along perfectly with plan. Until that woman just had to ruin it!" his fists clenched but then sighed. "But all is well. There is no immediate danger and everything is progressing smoothly. There is an ORB ship out there in space I believe which will work quite well alongside our plan." He grinned and his fellow leaders chuckled. "It was rather unfortunate seeming the devastating switch that occurred in the beginning but honestly…" he laughed. "This girl plays her part exceptionally well and is the most aggressive and farther advanced of our three… I'm quite pleased with our Kimi-hime."
OOOOOOO
Cagalli POV
"Mmmm." I rubbed my eyes, sitting up slightly. Feeling a numb ache from my stomach I winced, my eyes snapping open. "Damn!" I cussed as my eyes burned. They were dry from the lack of proper moisture and I wondered how long I had had my contacts in for byu now. It wasn't good for my eyes to go so long with them in.
"Oh good you're awake."
"Hm?" I looked up to meet Athrun's steady green as he sat at his desk across the room.
"Athrun…" I looked around, I was back in our room on the ship. Then I winced as my head throbbed with a migraine.
"What happened?"
Athrun's eyes narrowed. "Don't you remember?"
I stared at him curiously and shook my head. Was it just me or was Athrun slightly red?
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, forcing myself to remember. "No." I remembered everything and the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach intensified at the memory of Kira's death. I struggled not to cry in front of Athrun, I had done enough of that already. I hated feeling weak, hated being the source of trouble for everyone. I hated be so pathetic!
I had to be strong, for Kira.
I gritted my teeth and replied. "I remember… meeting you in the rain." I flushed as I remembered hugging Athrun tightly. "And that's it." I froze then, touching my stomach wound.
I jumped out of bed, ignoring Athrun's protests and bolted to the mirror, yanking my shirt half way up to reveal a bandaged wound. My heart seemed to freeze.
"Is that a tattoo?" Athrun sighed, coming up behind me.
I glanced at him, wary and scared. "Oh, the three? No that's a birthmark?" I stumbled over my words slightly as I recalled the dark '3' like birthmark that was at the base of my spine over my pants line.
Athrun sighed again. "Akira, are you all right?"
"I'm freaking peachy!"
"Calm down. We just got your pulse to go steady; we don't need you getting excited and hurting yourself.
I spun around and gripped him by the collars of his uniform, trying not to panic. "Did…Did you take me to the doctor?" I demanded, shaking him slightly.
Athrun regarded me calmly, coolly. "No. You threw a fit in your sleep every time we tried. We gave up, and just made sure that you got enough blood and were stabilized and not infected."
I groaned, flopping back onto my bed. Then his words sank in. "You…gave me blood?"
"Well…yeah." Athrun raised his eye brow. "Mine in fact."
"Damn…" I hissed under my breath. Glancing once at Athrun I checked my bare arms and pulled up my pant legs to check my legs. There were no burnt spots though and I sighed in relief, feeling slightly puzzled. Naturals always knew it was a strict no-no to use Coordinator blood just because their blood was chemically enhanced for a different kind of body. Though they didn't have blood types like Naturals did, their blood did kill us if we used it. It was like acid in a Naturals body, eating it's way out from the inside.
But obviously… "I'm still alive." I mumbled, once more holding my forearms up to check.
I don't know what kind of luck I have but it really needs to get its priorities straight. I go from having incredibly terrible, crappy, and super-sucky luck to one in a million, rather useless-timing good luck. Damn, my good luck really did have some bad timing.
"Yeah… I was going to ask you about that." Athrun hesitantly got up and sat down beside me. I mostly ignored him, too caught up in my revelation.
It was so weird… how I was still alive? I was a Natural! Yet, Athrun's blood hadn't hurt me at all! "First, how long has it been?" I at last thought to ask.
Athrun stared at me, his expression unreadable. "You really don't remember much, huh?"
I shook my head. You would think that he would have caught on to that when I asked him.
"It's only been a day. This morning we disembarked."
I nodded, sitting up again, pleased with how strong and capable I felt. Really, it only had been a small wound compared to others I have gotten before. "Blood loss." I mumbled, remembering how I had sat out in the rain crying. I felt my forehead feeling it slightly warm. "My fever's going down." I noted.
"Yeah," Athrun paused, fiddling with the blanket on my bed. "Akira…What happened to you? You kept saying that someone had died."
I felt my heart shut down and I swallowed tightly, looking at the ground.
Sensing my pain, Athrun scooted slightly closer, offering the comfort of companionship.
I was struggling not to wallow in my grief, searching for an excuse. "Um… My friend got in a car crash… I was on the side walk when it happened and the piece of metal flew up and stabbed me." I glanced up at him, wondering if he would see through my crappy explanation. "My…my friend died." I took a deep breath. "I'm sorry I didn't report in, Lieutenant."
Athrun studied me for a moment, nodding. "It's alright. You had a tough day yesterday."
I turned my head away. "Yes…"
Trying to distract me, Athrun took my hand and squeezed it gently. Yesterday's Akira would have yanked it from his hand and punched him. But right now… the warmth his hand spread through mine- the tingle of hope in the pit of my stomach; I needed that. I needed it like a flower needed the sun. Athrun would be my new sun.
For ORB, I had to be strong.
"By the way, we caught on to the Harmony." Athrun smiled bleakly. "Right now, our ship is pursuing theirs but it's going to be quite a chase. The Harmony is incredibly fast and we keep losing it every couple hours or so."
My head snapped up. The Harmony… and if the Harmony was there then so would the Chaos be… And so would the pilot- the person who had killed Kira. Not to mention Kimi-hime. I smiled a long, curved smile, feeling very un-Cagalli like. "I can't wait." My spirit thrived with a ferocious energy. It was a hunt and they would be my prey.
Athrun gave me a funny look and I wondered what his problem was and why he was acting so edgy. It made me feel awkward as if was missing something.
"Ummm…yes?" I asked, wrapping my arms self-consciously around my chest, feeling a twinge from my cut.
"You sure you're okay?"
I hesitated, confused by the sincerity in his tone but touched. We were so close to becoming friends and I was afraid to. Afraid of causing his death. Afraid of betraying him. Afraid of getting to know him and exploring that warm feeling in the pit of my stomach that tingled every time he looked at me.
But why was I so afraid? Normally I just didn't get to know people out of respect and self-preservation!
Yet why was this thorn-in-my-freaking-side causing me so much turmoil.
You're over thinking it, Cagalli. You're just emotionally wrecked cause of Kira. Don't worry about it. My logical side assured but it didn't help much. "I'm just hungery." I told Athrun, biting my bottom lip. I was hungery! I made a face as the realization struck me and my belly let out a plaintive wail of abuse.
Athrun stared at me hard for a moment then cracked a smile, laughing at my red face. "So I hear, Come on. Lets go rustle up some food."
He walked ahead of me towards the cafeteria and I made faces at his back, one hand resting on the wall as I walked, holding me up as I swayed every now and then.
Glancing back at me, and noticing my focused-expression Athrun sighed.
"Hey, you holding on okay? You are a little jumpy for a person who was suffering blood-loss the other day." He slowed down and to my surprise wrapped an arm around my waist, supporting me slightly.
I hesitated, Wanting to eat soon and wanting to keep my distance. My stomach gurgled again and I snorted and let Athrun tug me along in the direction of the cafeteria.
Letting him lead me, his warm arm snug around my body I let my eyes half shut, enjoying the warmth and a I reminisced in my last embrace with Kira.
Hearing me sigh, I felt Athrun's gaze rest on my expression and his hold tightened for a moment then loosen.
"The person…you lost… were you… close?" Athrun asked.
I blinked my eyes open, startled. "Um…" I looked at Athrun's unreadable expression, wondering what he could be thinking before I nodded. "Yes…we were…very close."
"A lover?"
I raised an eyebrow and remembered what had happened in the bar the previous day. I snorted, shaking my head. "No… he was just the closest person to me in the world."
"Oh… I'm sorry for your loss." Athrun sounded like he truly meant it and I watched him curiously from the corner of my eye. Just how many people got to see this this quieter, more gentle side of Athrun- see past his polite and aloof character?
"Thank you." I murmured.
"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Athrun asked again. "If you need…" he struggled for the words. "Someone to talk to… we share a room." He laughed and I made a face which only made him laugh harder in a gentle way as if he was trying to lift my spirits.
I nudged him with my shoulder. "Thanks but when it's put like that…"
Athrun nudged me back. "Really, Yamato. I know you don't want to be friends… but… honestly, I think you need one." His face twisted slightly and I wondered what he was thinking as he said that.
I turned my head away, biting my lip, feeling anxious. "I…" I shook my head, my tangled blonde hair rustling. I didn't know what to say to him. What to answer… Shrugging off his arm, I hurried into the cafeteria, intent on satisfying the only thing I could.
My stomach.
OOOOOOO
Narrator POV (Octus Five)
"Stay with me, hold me tight.
Keep me warm through out the night.
Be my sun until dawn's light." Lacus sang softly under her breath, feeling rather preoccupied mentally. Her colorful friends bounced about her, their flaps opening and closing as they danced to her whimsical tune.
Her fingers tapped lightly on her desk in her room, her head was turned to the open window through which breezes were blowing, making her light pink, sheer curtains flutter.
"hmmm…" Lacus propped her elbow up, leaning her chin on her hand. So much had happened, and she couldn't make up her mind if it was for good or for worse. Not that she would be able to tell.
And of course there was that other thing that surprised her. That girl, Meer, at the bar. She had seemed a friendly sort but goodness did she resemble the original songstress!
Past a few physical features, only her style really held sway over the person's eye- being so much more…showy…and attention-getting then Lacus herself preferred.
"Strange." She cocked her head slightly and looked at her pink haro. "But I suppose… that perhaps she is a fan?" she smiled slightly. "Copying is the greatest form of flattery I hear…"
Yet still the girl, Meer Campbell, troubled her. And not just because of the way she acted towards Athrun- though that to was rather upsetting- but no there was something that bugged Lacus if only she could put her finger on it.
Two voices broke her focus and she heard a whispering from outside her room as two maids walked past her door way.
"Yes, I heard the same thing too! Master Zala was at a resteraunt with a girl who apparently was very injured!"
Lacus's head snapped up, and she turned it towards the doorway.
The other maid nodded, seeming annoyed. "But I heard that the girl was his girl friend!"
Her friend gasped. "What! That can't be! Athrun is engaged to our Lady! He wouldn't dare be with another!"
The other girl shrugged. "Who knows, but if he messes with our Lacus-"
And Lacus didn't hear the rest of her maid-friend's threat and a warm feeling rose in her. How sweet it was of her loyal friends to defend her. Even if it seemed impossible for honorable Athrun who was always so composed.
But who was the girl he had? Could it be Akira? "Honestly, Akira. You should take better care of yourself then that!" Lacus murmured. She sighed. Honestly she wished she could help everyone some how but she had to make her moves carefully. This was not a chess board with sacrificial pawns. She needed to take care of everyone! Providing one person too much intention and forgetting another could prove…disasterous.
Frowning, she turned back to look out the window, wondering who her mysterious opponents were. Who had sent ZAFT that message about the ORB scout ship. "I guess… it's your move…" she murmured, returning to her brooding.
"When will peace sing sweet and sure?
How long this battle must we endure?
Gather up arms when we want to gather up love.
Wars upon land and wars above."
OOOOOOOO
Cagalli POV
I had been sitting at my desk for who knows how long. My contacts freshly lubricated only slightly bothered my tired and dry eyes. I could feel them shafe against the inside of my eyelids, I could feel the burn of tears wanted to fall but didn't seem to know how.
Kira.
I know…I know… I had my time to mourn him yesterday…but I really…I just wanted to…
I held the only picture I had of us, taken a few years ago at the ZAFT ball.
With out realizing it, i lay my head down, my eyes fluttering close with mental and physical exhaustian. "What am i going to do..."
It seemed only a split second later that I opened my eyes to find my self standing on what seemed to be a beach in the middle of the night. The moon gleamed down eerily, and I noticed that it was red...
The ocean was in a temptest and the wind whipped brutally. A wave crashed down at my feet and I screamed. With every wave came a body, washed up on shore. A rotted, disfigured corspe with hollowed out eyes and a gaping mouth that stank of death.
The urge to puke rose in me as an alone hand rolled up to my feet, frozen in it's last shape as if it was trying to reach up and grab me from where it lay in the sand.
Swords stuck out of the sand like grave stones, glinting in the light and as I leaned over to retch i noticed a figure standing up.
"Kira?" I whispered, spotting the brown mane of hair. I ran forward, tripping and stumbling over dead bodies that came up and then were sucked back into the ocean.
The person stumbled and fell to the ground and I shrieked as I caught sight of Kira's rotted corpse, blood leeking from his eyes, nose and mouth, running down his face, down the sand and into the ocean. His milk-white eyes stared at me accusingly and I covered my mouth in a soundless scream. Then I noticed the other bodies around me. Bodies that littered the sand along sides Kira. My crew, Kisaka, Mana and my mother. All of their mouths were open, their milk-white eyes gazing at me with a haunting look.
"I'm sorry!" I moaned and then a towering wave crashed down, knocking me over.
"Eyaaah!" I gulped and was swallowed under the wave for a moment. My eyes were open but i couldn't see anything though i felt things...bodies brush around me in the swirling rushing water.
I burst upwards with a gasp and I screamed even louder when i found myself surrounded by the corpses.
Then i realized that the ocean wasn't made of water...no... it was blood. A sea of blood.
I took a breath to scream again but then i felt something grab my ankle and yank me down.
"Noommphh." I floundered, struggling to hold myself above the blood's surface.
Then the corpses came alive, their pale, worm-infested hands reaching towards me, grabbing me and pushing, pullling and dragging me down.
"Nooo!" But I was swallowed up by another wave, weighed down by the dead as they brought me into their tomb.
The eery red moon shined over the surface and I cried. I didn't want to die...
My eyes closed... but then I felt a touch... no a memory of a touch. A graze across my lips like a sweet kiss, so gentle and warm but only lasting a second. And I tried to open my eyes in time to see who it was... for a second i thought i caught a glimpse of a glittering green.
And then the blood filled my eyes and I surrendered.
OOOOOOOO
Narrator POV
Later that night on the Demi-god.
"Thanks for doing this for me," Athrun clapped a hand on the technician's shoulder. He had given the man the piece of metal he had found in Akira's side and asked him to identify it for him.
"No problem." Polk responded with a cheery smile, sliding into his seat at the cafeteria table.
Athrun saluted him then walked out, heading back to his room to check on Akira who had retired their hours ago.
He knocked on the door to his and Akira's room. "Akira? May I come in?" When she didn't respond he walked in carefully, ready to duck at the soonest sound of a scream and a throw of a heavy object.
Surprisingly enough, Akira was asleep, her head resting on her arm on top of the desk and Athrun sighed. "Idiot."
Walking over, he looked down at her small form, her blond hair covering her face. In one hand, he noticed, a picture clamped tightly and he peered at it curiously.
It was a picture of her in front of a ZAFT banner.
She looked a few years younger, her face slightly rounder, the haunted look in her eyes gone. She looked so young and happy, despite her expression of mock horror as she stood, frozen in mock-fight next to a boy around the same age.
The boy had thick shaggy brown hair, with gleaming brown eyes and a wide grin as he struggled to get a crown on top of his partner's hair.
Akira was obviously batting him away and the two of them were dressed for dancing. Akira in a floor length gown, a simple dark blue V-neck halter, that had a darker sash going under the chest, a crystal brooch in the center. The boy wore a black suit with a dark blue tie that matched the girl's dress.
Was this... her friend?
They had gone dancing together, that fact was obvious but Athrun couldn't help but wonder if they had gone as friends or more. Akira said that the boy wasn't her lover... but did she love him? Or vise versa?
"Idiot!" Athrun snapped, this time at himself. "Stop worrying about things that aren't your-"
Akira suddenly screamed, flinging herself backwards off the seat, making Athrun jump backwards in surprise. "I'm sorry!" she cried, plastering herself against the wall, the photo dropping to the ground. Her eyes were big and vauge, as if she wasn't there in spirit and her chest heaved as she breathed hard.
"Akira?"
Her eyes started to focus and they landed on Athrun, looking terrified and huge.
"Are you-"
She cut him off again as she ran forward and he braced himself to get punched.
Instead she tackled him, her arms wrapping around him as the fell to the ground.
And Akira burst into tears, hiccuping as she buried her face into his chest. "Why can't I be strong?" she sobbed. "Why do i feel so weak?"
Athrun struggled to cough, wincing from hitting the floor, but remaining frozen.
Hesitently, for a second time, his arms wrapped around her, his head coming down slightly to rest his chin on the top of her golden head. "Whats wrong?" he murmured, red in the face but trying to help his comrade as he best as he knew how.
"I'm sorry." Akira repeated again and again into his chest and Athrun shivered. "I don't know what to do."
"Live..." Athrun said after a moment, stroking her soft hair. For a moment he got snared in the image of entangling his hand into her thick hair and leaning his head down to inhale her sweet scent.
He shuddered, suddenly very aware of her body pressing down on top of his. "Live and love. Don't cut yourself off from the world."
Minuites passed of Akira's soft crying and Athrun felt a wetness through his shirt where her tears soaked it.
At last her head came up slightly, and her tear-filled eyes met his. "You don't understand." she whispered. "There's so much I give up."
"Why?"
She shook her head, turning away. "Do you trust me, Athrun?"
Lacus told him he could and he trusted Lacus. And even with out Lacus, he would say this, "Yes." he tried to meet her eyes, feeling bewildered. Her arms tightened around him.
"Don't... If you stop trusting me... then we can be friends." the smile she gave him was bitter and Athrun flinched.
he didn't understand what she was driving at. "You're in shock." he murmured softly. "You're not making sense."
"I don't want to..." she took a deep breath, laying her head on his chest. "Don't ask me for more then i can give. My past is mine alone. My sorrows are mine alone. But my friendship i will give you as long as you don't trust me."
Athrun knew he could make no promise like that and even though he felt like a replacement he whispered. "Alright..."
Why, Akira? Why are you so confusing to me? Why do i feel the need to have to decode you and support you?
Why does it hurt to think that you don't want to be friends with me?
He opened his mouth to say something, he wasn't sure what but then he felt the gentle breathing.
She was asleep.
Athrun flushed red and struggled to get up despite her strangle hold around him.
"Warm..." she murmured, tears dried on her face. "Being alone...isn't warm..."
Athrun shook his head, smoothing her hair one last time before untangling himself and picking her up. He laid her on her bed gently and then straightened up, looking down at her with his hands on his hips.
"I look forward to being on more neutral grounds, Yamato." he murmured with a slight smile. "And maybe, you'lllearn to trust me."
Okay, first of all, a quick explanation for some holes in this chapter.
loss and Cagalli. Blood loss actually takes a pretty good long while to recover on depending on how severe. For my own purposes though I completely skipped that fact. So don't flame me for that plz.
seeming weak. Incase you are a person who always views Cagalli as an unbreakable person, I just want to share with you my understanding of the Princess. She is strong, but with her feelings. If you remember in Gundam Seed they point that out to her that she can't fight alone with her feelings. So, how I see it is she's really devastated from Kira's death and it's making her act slightly bi-polar, weepy, and slightly dependent. While at the same time her logical side is telling her to get her rear in gear.
it's my excuse for some 'getting to know ya' 'I need someone' and fluffyish-to-me parts concerning her and Athrun. I did say this was adventure/romance, did I not? Just because I'm taking my time and letting them get to know each other doesn't mean it won't be there =3 Don't worry though, she'll probably be back to her strong-blunt-self come next chapter. =)
4. And yet, no, this sudden 'fluffyish-to-me' won't be an instant start of love for eachother – sorry. They're still progressing as… (wow, it's happening) 'friends' =3 Sorry
5. The thing about Coordinator's blood burning through a Natural. Meh, I stuck that in cause I felt like it and honestly if you think about it, it could be possible…maybe… My logic: Coordinators have, in their own way, different bodies. Their bones are different (more resilient to breakage) and so on and so forth, so who knows, maybe their blood is different and chemically enhanced to support them, ya know? So there we go. Hope that helped =)
Oooo… so much going on =3 The Pauper Project… I wonder what that could be, hm? =) And who are the mysterious leaders of the project, huh? (two of them you guys might know =P so kudos if you can figure them out *chuckle*)
Anyway, this chapter mainly served a feeling-feeling thing. So yeah, tons of details, maybe too many, who knows but I really wanted to express the desolation and despair Cagalli felt as she struggled to find the right way to deal with her anguish over losing her best friend.
Meanwhile Athrun's just plain confused with how she's acting. He wants to help her but he doesn't know how, he's eager to get to know her while at the same time he can't figure out why he's so interested.
And then their's Lacus... hahahhaa, i feel like she's the mastermind behind everything some times the way she seems to be one step ahead.
Well... we shall see. Don't know if i'll have a chapter in time by next week. We shall see...
Review your thoughts cause you know i love to hear them and I hope you enjoyed this =)
Apologies for any OOC, mistakes and lameness
thanks
-Azetta
Ma' Jabber Bomb
Speaking of super-sucky luck, Cagalli isn't the only one with it… I was curling my friend's hair and when I went to pick up the nicy toasty hot curling iron I stupidly didn't look to see which side I grabbed.
Yup, that's right folks. Currently three of my fingers are smothered in um…something I can't remember (some sort of healing thingy) and bandages.
Cause I…I…grabbed the toasty hot side of the curling iron with my fingers and DANG WAS IT HOT!
Oh and of COURSE it HAD to be my RIGHT hand. And if I was left-handed. Sure whatever, but since I'm apparently not, and no where close to being…that word for duel handed… (foo)… (stares murderously at right hand)
I never realized how pathetically incapable my left hand was until I tried to kill a bug and missed… a hundred or so times.
Foo….
Anyhoo, I still managed to type this out though while I watched the Patriot staring Mel Gibson so we all good… Sorta.
Stupid…useless…left…hand… D= =P ;)