I apologize for the long delay with this chapter, I don't really have much of an excuse, other than that I was writing something else, a We Never Learn story called The Snowy Dilemma, a love story between Mafuyu and Nariyuki. Anyhow, I hope you guys are doing well, and will enjoy this chapter. I'll try and hurry up with the next one.
Chapter 93
Stepping into Orb's main shopping center, Lacus dressed up with a thick purple wig, to hide her long pink hair, looked around the massively huge building, everything seemed to be mostly intact, parts of the roof had collapse in a certain area, which had destroyed the entrance to a clothing store, yet there were already a few people cleaning up and tending to the repairs.
"I am so relieved to see that this place is still standing" Lacus finally said after few minutes of looking around, a bit disappointed that the only shop that was open was the bookstore, and that was only because Cagalli had personally called the owner, and asked if it was possible for them to stop by, and take a look around for some new reading material, which the woman owning the store had loudly said yes to under the condition, they told Gilbert Durandal to go to hell and search for Djibril there, the next time they encountered the dumb son of a bitch.
"Me too Lacus. It's fortunate that the shopping center is so far away from any military targets. With it being Friday yesterday, I do not even want to image how many innocent people could have been killed, from just being here shopping for the weekend if this building had been destroyed. But to talk about something else Lacus honey, I have to admit that I am amazed by how big this places feels, with so few people around" the musing Kira said, while giving his wife's hand a small squeeze.
It was at that point Meyrin stepped up beside them. "You know, I think I could easily spend most of a day in here, just shopping and having fun. I do hope I get a chance to do that at some point in the future" the redhead said, sincerely hoping, that on her next visit to this humongous shopping center, she could bring Lunamaria along.
"Yeah it can be a total blast, except for shoe shopping with mom and big sister Miriallia, that is just such a drag!" Mayu half shouted, a bit amused by how much of an echo her voice could produce, in the mostly empty shopping center.
Reaching over, Miriallia gently ruffled up Mayu's hair a tiny bit. "I resent that remark, you mischievous little troublemaker, shoe shopping can be pretty fun. Especially searching for just the right type of shoes".
Hastily ducking down under Miriallia's hands, Mayu quickly distance herself from her frowning sister. "Going through who knows how many shoe shops, trying on about half a million pairs of shoes, is not what I would consider to be fun, big sis. The only thing more boring than that, is math in school!" The girl said, then swirled around and raced off even further into the shopping center, making certain that her steps made as much noise as humanly possible.
Still not happy about Mayu criticizing the wonders of shoe shopping like that, Miriallia immediately took off after the laughing child. "Get back here you villainous little scoundrel, I am far from done telling you, about why shoe shopping is so great!"
Turning her head slightly, Mayu stuck her tongue out at Miriallia. "NO way, big sis, I don't want to hear it!" The girl shrieked, running full speed past a huge toy store, which she was kinda disappointed was closed for the day.
Watching Miriallia chase Mayu around, the empty shopping center, Kira smiled slightly. "I'm happy to see, that her mood has improved so much since yesterday. I guess a small trip away from the Archangel, was just what she needed. Perhaps we can somehow arrange it, so she can go to Reverend Malchio's place for a few days, I am sure that spending some time there playing with the other kids and my mom would do her a world of good".
"That's a great idea Kira, we should make sure to talk with Murrue about that, once we get back to the Archangel" his at present purple haired wife said, the smile on her face, making it clear, just how much enjoyment she found in watching Mayu and Miriallia happily playing tag like that. If it was not because her stupid high-heeled shoes, made it so difficult to run properly, she would very much have loved to join in. And as Meyrin with a loud shout, took off after the two laughing girls, the cheerful smile on Lacus' face, grew even deeper.
It was at that moment Dearka stepped up beside the two Yamatos. "You know, seeing her running around like that laughing so joyfully, is almost enough to make me forget all the crazy bullshit, Murrue told Miriallia and me yesterday. I still don't get how the hell a sweet cheerful girl, like our Mayu, can be related to an angry snot-nosed brat, like Shinn. The whole thing, just seems so preposterous to me" the Yami pilot said in a low bitter tone.
Nodding slowly a couple of times. "Yeah no kidding. Just trying to make sense of it, is almost enough to give me a headache Dearka, but for now let's put this discussion on hold until we get back to the Archangel. If she overhears us, it could ruin the whole trip for her" Kira said, glancing briefly over at Mayu, who was presently racing in and out between and few blue and yellow benches, letting out a loud squeal, that could be heard far and wide, before quickly changing direction when Meyrin almost succeed in catching her.
Yet the very instant the small Ramius did that, Miriallia leaped gracefully over another bench, then reached out to try and get a hold, on the fleeing girl. "There is no escape Mayu Ramius, you will NEVER get away from us!" The brunette shouted, however like always Mayu was quick on her small feet, hastily jumping backwards away from the danger, then once again change direction.
Watching his girlfriend and the two other girls having fun, Dearka felt a small smile run across his face. "I see your point Kira, besides it's not like us talking about it, is going to change anything. So let's just enjoy the peace and quiet, while we can" he said, then stepped a bit away from the two Yamatos taking a thorough look around the shopping center, while one of his reasons for going on this trip was to spend a bit of time with the people who were important to him, another more crucial reason, was to serve as Lacus' bodyguard. With ZAFT already having tried to kill the pink haired girl twice now, Dearka had NOT wanted her to go anywhere without somebody carrying a gun. And apparently the DOM Trooper pilot Hilda Harken agreed with him on that notion, since she was standing close by, scouring the place, like a hungry eagle looking for its next meal. She especially seemed to be keeping her one eye firmly fixated on the three men working on cleaning up the rubble around the clothing store.
Looking a few times between Hilda and Dearka, Lacus rolled her eyes a single time. "Please do try and calm down a bit you two, there is no need for you to be so tense. I seriously doubt that the Chairman, or anyone else from ZAFT knows that we were going out book shopping today. Kira and I only brought it up this morning" the young woman softly told her two bodyguards, while she was sincerely grateful that they were so keen on keeping her safe, she really did feel like, they were being a bit too overprotective right now.
Finally turning her narrowed gaze away from the three hard-working men at the clothing store, Hilda glanced over at the purple haired Lacus. "You can never be too careful, miss Lacus. You do not know if ZAFT actually left a few troops behind, before they retreated yesterday" the one eyed woman said, before she again went back to looking around the shopping center, for anything that could threaten miss Lacus and her husband.
"Hilda, is totally right, Lacus. ZAFT has already proven, how sneaky they can be, when those creepy bastards with the ASH type mobile suits snuck in here, and destroyed our home without the Orb military noticing them. So until I am absolutely sure, that your life is no longer in danger, I am probably going to keep being just a bit on edge, when all of us, are out in public like this" Dearka said.
"I appreciate your concern for my safety Dearka, but at least try and relax when you are around Mayu, she knows that Hilda went along with us on this trip to keep all of us safe. But if she finds out Dearka that you did not come along with us to have a good time, it might take a bit of the fun out of the trip for her" Lacus said, just before she grabbed tightly onto Kira's arms, pulling him with a light giggle along with her towards the turned off escalator, which Mayu was presently racing around, with Meyrin and Miriallia still hot on her tail, trying to grab her.
Quickly going over everything Lacus had just said, Dearka took a couple of deep long breath to calm himself down, then glanced over at Hilda that was standing not that far behind him. "If the goal of this trip, is for all of you to have fun, especially the little tornado. Then hurry up and go join them, I'll be sure to keep watch" the lead DOM Trooper pilot said in a reassuring tone, before she hurried went after the married couple, that were clearly just enjoying being there together.
'Hmm little tornado, I kinda like that pet name for Mayu, it suits her SO damn well' the Yami pilot thought with a small grin, then quickly decide to join the chase.
Immediately upon reaching the second floor, Lacus again latched tightly onto Kira's arm, which she had been forced to let go off to safely ascend the escalator without falling over, cuddling in nice and close. One simple action that made Kira smile brightly, ever since Murrue had said yes to let them go on this small outing, his wife had been in an overly chipper mood, a clear sign of just how excited she was about spending a little time away from the Archangel, behaving like a normal girl, who did not have to worry about the outcome of a war or whatever else might be troubling her, like her crazy doppelganger Meer Campbell. Lacus might never have state it out loud, but those few times he had found her listening to Meer's versions of her songs, it was always with a small, barely visible frown on her face. But Kira, of course knew better than anyone else, that there was more to it, then just that. It especially seemed to bother Lacus, whenever Meer said anything about, her being the daughter of Siegel Clyne, which wasn't really all that surprising, considering how much Lacus loved and missed her father.
'Ahh knock it off Kira, now is neither the time nor the place for you to be trying to come up with an idea to deal with Meer Campbell, you are here to have fun with your wife and famil...' however before Kira could finish that thought, he was abruptly brought back to reality, by Lacus suddenly changing direction, which resulted in him almost stumbling over. It was only thanks to Lacus' tight grip on his arm, that he manage to stay on his feet. Hearing his wife let out a soft giggle, Kira glanced over at her, seeing an amused, but also slightly bewildered expression on Lacus' face, as she kindly told him to pay a bit more attention to where the two of them were heading, but also asked him what he was pondering so deeply about.
"Most of all you sweetheart, and how much I love spending these peaceful moments with you, and the rest of our, at times bizarre, but still great family" Kira said, with a gentle smile on his lips.
Smiling brightly at those sweet affectionate words, Lacus nodded slowly a single time. "I love spending time with you too, Kira. Do you want to go get a something to drink, I don't think Mayu will be ready to leave this area anytime soon" the pink haired girl softly informed her husband, pointing over at Mayu who was presently pulling her second teddy bear out of a giant claw machine, which she with shiny eyes looked over, while gently stroking it's round purple and yellow head, before handing it over to Meyrin, who was already holding onto the first prize she had won, then quickly stuffed even more money, into the claw machine, to try and win something else.
Knowing, from personal experience, how much Mayu loved hanging out at the arcade playing either air hockey for an endless amount of hours, or trying to win something interesting from one of the many claw machines there, Kira knew Lacus was absolutely right, it was going to be awhile before they could get out of there, and with it having been such a long time since they had last been at the arcade, Kira really didn't have the heart to pull Mayu away from what she was presently doing. Fortunately, from what Kira could remember, this one claw machine, only had teddy bears inside it, so he was certain that sooner than later, Mayu was going to grow tired of playing this one game.
Purchasing a couple of sodas from a vending machine, the young married couple, got comfortable on one of the benches up there. "Mmm, this is nice, Kira" the 'purple' haired woman sighed contently, taking a small sip from her soda, then leaned in, affectionately nuzzling the tip of her nose against her husband's shoulder.
Reaching up, Kira gently wrapped his arm around her, holding her close, while placing a light kiss in her forehead. "Yeah it is Lacus, who could have image having an entire shopping center to ourselves would be so fun and calming" he said back, looking away from Mayu and Meyrin and over at Miriallia and Dearka, who were over by the lingerie store not that far away from Lacus and him, looking in through the window, Miriallia was pointing at a mannequin, dressed in a red pair of sexy panties a matching bra, stockings and a garter belt, flirtatiously questioning her boyfriend about what he thought of that. One single glance at Dearka was all Kira need to tell, just how embarrassed his friend was about having to answer those questions, which knowing Miriallia was likely why she was asking him THAT in the first place, she just loved messing with the 'poor guy' like that.
"Umm, do I really have to answer that, Mir?" He asked, while awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck.
"Of course you do, I am veeery interested in knowing about your taste in women's lingerie" she answered with a cheeky slightly seductive grin on her face.
Slowly opening and closing his mouth, like a fish out of water, all the red-faced Dearka could do was stand there, staring at Miriallia. "Umm I... I am going to go get a soda" he hastily said, then practically ran away from his smirking girlfriend.
"Heeh, that was fun! He is just so cute, when he gets all embarrassed like that" Miriallia said to herself, then after watching her flushed boyfriend a bit more, she again turned her attention back towards the sexy underwear in the window.
'Hm, but judging from his reaction, he does like this set. Maybe I should buy it next time this store is open, and I am alone here, I'm sure that the two of us could have a lot of fun with this' the girl thought with a small blush, as she turned and start making her way over to where Dearka was standing.
Chuckling slightly at Dearka's embarrassed reaction to Miriallia's playful teasing, Kira took a small sip of his soda, just as he heard Meyrin loudly asking Mayu if she didn't have enough stuffed toys now. Looking over at the two girls, Kira saw, much to his mild amusement, Meyrin barely able to keep hold on, the five different colored stuffed toys, she was currently holding onto.
"You think so, big sis? Hm, if you spread your arms out a bit further, and I pile them up a bit differently, I think you should be able to carry at least two or three more" Mayu said with a playful grin, that Meyrin could not even see from all the teddy bears.
Frowning slightly at that. "No I can not Mayu, if I have to carry around so many of these things, there is just no way I can get down the escalator without breaking one of my legs in the process" Meyrin said, not entirely succeeding in sounding reasonable.
"All right, I'll knock it off with the claw machine. Even though I do kind want a few more of these guys, they make great gifts, I am sure that both Rizu and Rebecca, are just going to love them" Mayu said still grinning brightly.
"Who are they?" Meyrin curiously asked.
"The two of them, along with Mike, Casper and Ash are some of my best friends, they are all living at Reverend Malchio's place, I haven't seen them for such a long time, I really miss them, along with Kira's mother Caridad. I do kinda wish I could find a few gifts for the boys, knowing them, they are not going to be all that excited about getting a stuffed toy" Mayu said, taking the stuffed shiny Charizard out of Meyrin's grasp, this one was definitely her best prize of the day, and one she was fully intending to keep, it was just going to be perfect on her shelf together with the stuffed Gengar, Lacus and Kira gave her for Christmas last year.
"Hmm, maybe if you are lucky, you will be able to find something for the boys over in the book store" Meyrin thoughtfully suggested.
Nodding slowly, "I hope so big sis, Ash does like reading quite a bit. So, I am certain, that he would appreciate getting a new book, it is a bit more of a challenge with the other two" Mayu said, while gently stroking the Charizard's soft head and round belly.
However, even as Mayu was doing that, she wondered if it was somehow possible for her to get a hold on the stuffed Glaceon, she had seen inside the claw machine. But since the ice Pokemon was buried beneath quite a few other toys, she knew that getting a hold on it, was going to be a bit of a challenge and very expensive, besides she had already promised big sister Meyrin, that she would stop with the claw machine.
"If you want to play it that badly, then just do it" Meyrin said in her usual friendly tone.
Immediately upon hearing Meyrin say those words, Mayu tore her purple gaze away from the shiny Charizard. "How...? How did you know that I wanted to keep on playing?" Mayu bewilderedly asked.
"You make it pretty obvious from the way you keep glancing over at the machine Mayu dear, there is a certain prize in there, you really want, ain't there?".
Nodding slowly. "Yeah there is, Glaceon is my favorite ice Pokemon. It's just so cute and adorable!. But what about you carrying way too much, big sis?" the girl questioned softly.
"I thought a bit about that Mayu, we can always just leave your prizes on top of the claw machine, then come get them latter. With so few people in here, I doubt anyone is going to steal them. However, I most admit I am kinda impressed, that you were able to get so many stuffed toys out of that thing" Meyrin said, nodding in the direction of the claw machine.
Smirking brightly at Meyrin's praise. "Getting stuffed toys out of a claw machine are not really all that complicated, big sis if you know what to aim for. It's much more difficult with flat stuff, like game cartridges or anything that comes in boxes" Mayu explained in a prideful tone, before stepping back over to the claw machine, absolutely determined to do her very best, to get the poor Glaceon out of the giant device, it was trapped inside. Yet before Mayu Ramius, had a chance to start that project in earnest, an older blue haired woman, with a thick pair of glasses, suddenly appeared, calling out to the seven of them.
"I'm so sorry to interrupt your quiet little moment here. Considering what ship you people are a part of, and how hard you all fought yesterday to protect Orb, I understand your need for some peace and quiet. But would you please hurry up and get over to the book store, I need to hurry up and get back home to deal with the outcome of what happened yesterday" the woman bitterly informed them all.
Sincerely worried about what might have happened, Lacus stood up from her sitting position beside her husband. "Why? Did something happen to your family?! If so, then we are sorry to bother you at a time like this. I know that you got a grandson not that long ago, Miss Nakano" the young 'purple' haired woman said. While Lacus, might not know Miss Nakano all that well, she had always felt a certain amount of respect for how hard she and her husband worked at their book store, so if something bad had happened to Miss Nakano's family, Lacus wanted to do everything she could to help the woman out.
Deeply grateful for the young lady's concern, Nakano smiled slightly at her while slowly shaking her head. "It's nothing you should worry about, Miss Lacus. My husband, grandson, son and daughter-in-law are all just fine, and our house is standing too, it's just that yesterday at some point during the battle, some nincompoop in a BAKU, ZAKU or whatever the hell those damn things are called, stepped on my car. And everyone who has had the misfortune of talking with their insurance company, knows how unbelievable frustrating that can be" the book store own said, with a loud sigh.
Standing up too, Kira stretched a bit as he stepped over beside Lacus. "I am sorry about your car Miss Nakano. But I think I speak for both Lacus and myself, when I say that we are each relieved to hear, that your family is ok" the young man said.
"Thank you very much, Kira, I appreciate your kind words. Now, enough chit-chat people, let's get over to the store, I am hoping that you are all going to buy enough today, so I wouldn't have to go through the hassle of talking to my stupid insurance company" the book store owner grumpily said, then turned and started making her way back towards her store.
Letting out a loud whistle that could be heard far and wide. "Okkkkay, there is someone here, who is seriously overestimating just how much money we actually have, if the prices in her store, have increased that much, I think we should hurry the hell up and get the hell out of here before we all end up in serious debt" Dearka said with a small grin, while he along with everyone else went after, Miss Nakano.
Having never been to this store before, Meyrin was more than just a little astound by how enormous it was, the front part of the store was fully dedicated to normal everyday books from fantasy novels to crime novels followed by science fiction, and who knew how many other genres. To her right, was a huge white queen figure from a chess game, holding an arrow sign with the words board games written on it, point in a certain direction, seeing a totally excited Mayu immediately take off down that way, made the already cheerful smile on the red head's face, grow even bigger.
Once Mayu was out of sight, Meyrin kept on looking around, to her left was a figure of none other than Ichigo Kurosaki, his ZanpakutÅ had the word Manga imprinted neatly on it, and was pointing in another direction, which the married couple, along with Dearka head off in. Leaving the slightly dumbfounded Meyrin alone with Miriallia.
"This place is totally amazing, I don't think I ever want to leave. Hmm, I wonder how many romantic novels, Lunamaria would be able to find in here" she mumbled softly, knowing very well that her older sister, would be just as excited about this store, as she was.
"Probably a lot. Even as she by some small miracle, did not find the book she was looking for, there are more than enough romantic novels in here, to make even the most devoted fan of that genre grow sick of it" Miriallia said in a friendly tone, as she stepped over beside the redhead.
Chuckling softly at that. "Heh you don't know Luna if she ever grew sick of romance novels, I seriously want to be there to witness that happening with my own eyes, you have no ideeea how many of those stupid things she has read, and when I don't want to talk with her about it, she always gets angry and starts complaining about the stuff I read" Meyrin explained with a small frown.
"Hmm, I think she and I would get along splendidly, I do enjoy reading a good romance novel at times, even though I do prefer a good detective novel most of all, especially Sherlock Holmes. But enough about what I like, do you need my help finding anything, Meyrin? I know this shop like the back of my hand" Miriallia said, sounding just a bit prideful over how well she knew her way around this store.
Slowly shaking her head. "I appreciate the offer Miriallia, but since I can see the science fiction and fantasy novels from here, I don't think that will be necessary" Meyrin said, as she stepped slowly over to the closest shelf with those types of books.
At the same time, not that far away from Miriallia and Meyrin. Lacus had already stuffed over thirty mangas into her shopping basket, and was now looking at the shelf, with crossed arms and a small displeased frown on her forehead. "Kira, I can not find number twelve of, Nisekoi" she pouted softly to her husband who was standing not that far beside her.
"Give me a second, sweetheart, then I'll help you look for it. But if you can not find it here, it might be better you ask Miss Nakano if they have it in stock" Kira answered, while placing the final copy of the Persona Nine manga down into his own shopping basket, seriously looking forward to reading those again, since his collection of Persona mangas, had all gone up in smoke, when their house had been destroyed.
It was at that point Dearka cut into their conversation. "Found it Lacus! It is over here between the isekai mangas!" The Yami piloted loudly yelled out to Lacus, hastily pulling the Nisekoi volume twelve manga out from the spot where he had found it, looking it over for a brief moment to make absolutely certain, that it was in a good condition, before handing it over to Lacus, who had immediately stepped over beside him, when he had informed her, that he had found what she had been looking for, these last few minutes.
"Thank you, Dearka" the pink haired girl said, with a small grateful smile on her bright red lips, carefully placing the manga down into the basket by her feet, then stood up straight again, taking a quick glance down into Dearka's basket.
Giggling softly. "Heh, heh, why am I not surprised to see all the Inuyasha mangas in your basket, Dearka?".
"Well, what can I say Lacus, I like that series a lot. Pretty much my only gripe with it, is that I hate Naraku with a passion, and I can not beat the snot out of the creepy bastard myself, there are so many times I really want to do that, especially when he gets that Kohaku kid, to kill his own father" Dearka said, with a small frown.
Nodding slowly in agreement. "Yeah that really was one of his most evil actions, along with poisoning poor Kagura just after giving her, her heart back" Lacus said, while looking around the isekai mangas for something else to read, preferably something funny, but not too overly crazy. Maybe something with a man and woman from two different worlds meeting and falling in-love.
It was at that exact moment, Mayu appeared from the other side, carrying four different board games. "I want these" Mayu declaimed softly, then after placing the games and the shiny Charizard laying on top of them, on the floor, the girl stood up straight again, taking a deep breath, just before she started talking so loudly, that it could be heard all over the store.
"Listen up, my dear brothers and sisters! I hereby challenge you all to a game of Monopoly when we get back to the Archangel! Speak up if you need to be taken down a peg or two!" The girl dared them all.
"Damn, Mayu sweetheart, those are fighting words right there. I am up for it. You just say the word, then I'll show you, that unlike poker, Monopoly is a game I am actually pretty good at!" Dearka said, more than happy to spend some quality time with his sweet little sister, especially after what Murrue had told Miriallia and him yesterday, he was still having his fair share of trouble believing, that Mayu could be related to someone as crazy as the Destiny brat.
Glancing over at each other, Kira and Lacus nodded slowly in agreement a single time. "We are in too, Mayu" they said at the exact same time.
"If it's all right, I too would like to participate" Hilda said from where she was keeping watch near the entrance to the enormous store. The orange haired woman, might only have met Mayu Ramius this morning, but she could easily tell just how important the girl was to Miss Lacus, Kira and the rest of the Archangel crew, so there was no way, she was going to pass up this chance, to get to know the girl better.
"Of course it is all right! Miriallia, Meyrin, are you in too?!" Mayu asked next, while carefully looking the mangas over, hoping to find something fun and interesting to read, sincerely delighted to hear both of her sister shout yes to play Monopoly with her. With so many people, it meant that they could get quite an intense, but interesting game going, which Mayu was absolutely determined to do her utmost to win, no matter what.
"You know, little one, if you are that excited about playing Monopoly. I got quite a few different variations of that game out back!" Miss Nakano yelled from her location by the shopping counter.
"Oh, that does sound interesting, I'll be there shortly, Miss Nakano! I just need to find a 'few' mangas first!" She yelled back, just as she pulled two thick mangas out from their location on the shelf.
Having finally finished gathering together all the Persona Nine and Eight mangas he could find, Kira joined in on the conversation. "That reminds me, Miss Nakano, do you have any special versions of Risk in stock? There is a certain one I want, but I do not remember the name of it, I just know that it goes on, on a different planet where you supposedly fight for the few last remaining resources. Athrun and I talked about getting that one, before the war broke out" the Freedom pilot said, mentally cursing the fact that he had forgotten the name of that special game of Risk, but he was relatively sure, that once he saw the games, he would know which one, he was looking for.
"Risk sounds great too, big brother Kira! I am definitely joining in, when big brother Athrun is well enough to play! I call dibs on red!" Mayu loudly informed them all.
Of course, not willing to run the risk of being left out of the fun, Dearka immediately called out, that he wanted to be blue then, in the honor of his good old Murasame. Just as Miss Nakano, kindly told them all, that she would being out all the Risk and Monopoly games she got, out back.
"Thank you, Miss Nakano, we appreciate the effort" Kira called back to the woman, then pulled out a new manga from a shelf, studying the cover for a few seconds to read what it was about, once that was done, he put it back where he had found it, then kept on looking through the long rows of mangas for something more appealing.
The seven of them spend over an hour in the enormous book store, even Hilda manage to take a quick look around, finding a couple of books she wanted, while Dearka kept watch at the entrance. Once they were finally done, they left the store with an unbelievable amount of books, mangas and board games, they had so much stuff that it was only thanks to Miss Nakano's son Casper, that they were able to carry everything to the cars in one go. Once everything was packed up and ready to go, Mayu had insisted firmly on going back to the shopping center, telling them all that there was a cute fluffy Glaceon back there, she needed to catch and add to her pokedex, of stuffed Pokemon.
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At the same time back on the Archangel, Athrun was sitting up on his bed, zapping rapidly through the many channels on the TV for something interesting to watch, not that he had much luck with that, stopping briefly at a channel that was showing the Chairman's speech to the world, about LOGOS.
"Damn, I wonder how many times that stupid speech has been shown up until now, it's like the whole world can't get enough of him and all of his crazy bullshit" the blue haired man mumbled to himself, before he once more continued searching for something to watch, hoping to find either some cartoon or a sitcom, that could entertain him for at least little while.
"Boring, boring, totally mindless, and back to boring". Finally, just when Athrun was about to give up and turn the TV off, he stopped at a channel that was showing a stand-up comedian he liked, the man was talking loudly about having children, and while he did love his two kids and would do everything for them, there were times when they, along with his wife was slowly but surely driving him crazy.
'Children... Hmm, I wonder if I'll be a good dad, it's not like my own was a shiny example of fatherhood... I really wish mom was here, both, so she could meet her grandchildren, but also, so I could ask her for advice about being a good parent' Athrun thought, having little to no trouble imaging just how unbelievable delighted and excited his mother would be over becoming a grandmother, she would without a doubt have loved to help out with the twins and taking care of them. Even though knowing her, she would likely have scolded both Cagalli and him a little over not using protection, since she was way too young to become a grandmother.
Chuckling softly over how unbelievable embarrassing that would be, not just for him but also Cagalli. Athrun once more turned his attention back towards the stand-up comedian on the TV, who much to his slight relief had changed the subject from children, to food.
However, while Athrun normally found this guy to be quite hilarious and entertaining. Cagalli and him, had even gone to see him live at one point for one of their dates. It did not take long before he was just sitting there on the bed, absentmindedly listening to the comedian's yammering. There was something important he needed to do today, but he was unsure about what the best approach to handling this matter would be.
Sighing loudly, he reached over, and picked up the glass standing on the table beside the bed, a bit disappointed to discover, that the glass was still empty, after he had drained it from its contents not that long ago, it had not miraculously filled itself with water.
"Ahh damn it all..." he mumbled displeased putting the glass back where he had found it, then turned his gaze back towards the television, trying to keep his mind focused, on what the comedian was saying, not that he had overly much luck with that. Yet as he sat there staring mindlessly off into space, he spotted a certain blond haired man walking past the room, using a fluffy orange towel to dry his hair, which meant that he had likely just finished taking a dip in the hot spring.
"Hey Mu, can I speak with you for a second?!" Athrun hastily asked.
Hearing the loud familiar voice call out after him, the Hawk of Endymion stopped in his tracks, then stepped through the open door to the medical bay, a room he quite frankly had seen more than enough of in his time onboard the Archangel. But despite that, he honestly did not mind, spending a little time talking with his blue haired friend.
"So what's up, buddy?" He asked while sitting down on his old bed.
"I was hoping I could get you to tell Kira and Dearka, that I need to talk with them, once they and the others get back from their shopping trip, I got something important, I need their help with. Also, could you get me a glass of cold water? My throat feels almost as dry as sandpaper" Athrun requested in a slightly hoarsely tone.
Tossing the towel on the floor, Mu pushed himself up from the bed, then picked up the empty glass standing on the table beside Athrun's bed, the Akatsuki pilot then stepped over to the sink, turning on the water, once he was sure that it was as cold as it could be, he went over and handed the glass to Athrun, who took it was a small grateful nod. Watching the youngster quickly swallow half of the liquid in the glass, Mu again got comfortable on his old bed.
Once he was done satisfying his deep, intense thirst, Athrun let out a deep sigh. "Thank you, Mu, I really needed that".
"Don't mention it, buddy. As for your other favor, I'll be sure to keep an eye out for Dearka and Kira, but from what I could tell at breakfast, they were all pretty ecstatic about going on this trip, especially the girls. So I doubt they are going to return anytime soon" Mu explained to the Justice pilot, then chuckled slightly at something the comedian said.
Nodding slowly in understanding. "Just as long as I get a chance to talk with them today, then that's fine" Athrun said back.
"I see" was the only response he got from Mu. Afterwards neither one of them said anything for a long time, they just sat there watching and listening to the television, as the comedian started talking about going on vacation and how God damn problematic that could be at times, and how he would ALWAYS forget something important, no matter where he was going, apparently he had even managed to forget his ticket and passport at one point, when going on a trip.
It was about twenty minutes or so later, when Athrun loudly cleared his throat. "Em, by the way Mu, can I ask you something, I am kinda curious about?".
Taking a brief glance away from the television and over at Athrun, Mu send him a friendly smile as he nodded slowly. "Of course, ask away".
"That purple Windam and that purple mobile armor, those were yours, right?" Athrun asked in a somewhat quiet tone.
"Mmm, yeah they were. The Windam got wrecked by Kira and Dearka at Berlin, and I have no idea where the Exus is now. But if I had to guess, I would say, that it is still on board the Girty Lue or being kept at the Arzachel Base, not that the Earth Alliance have all that many people left who can pilot those things. Actually now that I think about it, the only other Exus unit I know about, belongs to the Moonlight Mad Dog" Mu explained, in a thoughtful tone, trying for a brief moment to figure out if he knew any other Earth Alliance pilots, who could use the Exus.
Rapidly going over everything Mu had just told him. "I have no idea who this Moonlight Mad Dog person is Mu, but I have to admit that is quite an intimidating nickname, he got there" the Red Knight said.
"His real name is Morgan Chevalier, I met him during my time as Neo Roanoke, he is one of the most cranky people in existence, but despite that angry demeanor, there is denying how skilled a pilot and strategies he truly is" Mu said, looking thoughtfully up at the ceiling.
"He sounds like a pretty nasty opponent, I do hope we can avoid running into him in the future".
Letting out a slightly musing sound at those words. "Hmm, I don't think you have to worry all that much about that Athrun, with ZAFT being the true bad guys, in the war, we don't really have any reasons to fight the Mad Dog. Hell, he might actually end up fighting on our side at some point in the future, not that I would hold my breath, waiting for that to happen. He is Alliance through and through, no matter what awful things they do" Mu said, only to laugh loudly a second later, over something the comedian said.
Nodding slowly. "It's quite a relief to know, that we do not have to deal with somebody with a nickname like Mad Dog, we got plenty of strong opponents, waiting for us in the wings" Athrun growled, with the images of Nicol, Shinn and Rey flashing ever so briefly through his mind, along with their mobile suits. Rapidly shaking his head a couple of times, to get all thoughts of those three imbeciles out of his mind, Athrun with a small sigh, once more focused his attention on the TV. Sincerely hoping that it would be awhile before they had to go out into combat again, his stupid rips needed time to heal, and he was relatively certain, that if he tried to enter the Justice again, in this condition, both Murdoch and Sara would beat him up, then throw him down in the brig, to keep him from causing any further problems.
Mu and Athrun were still quietly watching the comedian, when Murrue almost soundlessly, stepped into the room. "I did not expect to find you in here, Mu, so what are you two up to?" She asked in her usual friendly tone.
Sending her a small flirtatious wink. "Not much, gorgeous, we are just talking a bit and watching some television. Why don't you join us?" Mu asked, patting the spot next to him.
More than happy to take Mu up on his offer, Murrue sat down on the bed beside Mu, leaning in she rested her head against his broad shoulder, as he gently wrapped his arm around her, holding her close. After that, they both turned their gaze back towards the TV.
Feeling a deep immense warm in his heart at the sight of Murrue and Mu being so affectionate with one another, Athrun felt a deep sincere smile run across his lips. He was so, so happy for the two of them, and he knew that he would do everything in his power to protect the both of them and their well deserved happiness, he did not want to see Murrue go through the heartache she had gone through two years ago, when Mu had 'died' in the Strike gundam, protecting the Archangel.
Sensing Athrun's kind eyes watching her and Mu, Murrue slowly turned her brown gaze away from the television, looking over at the blue haired man, he was just sitting there, quietly observing them. It was impossible to tell exactly what was going through his mind at the moment, but it was obvious from the deeply emotional smile on his face, and the look in his eyes, that he was extremely pleased and happy about seeing Mu and her together like this again. Sending him a kind look, the Archangel Captain again looked back at the TV. However, despite doing that, Murrue could still feel Athrun's green eyes, firmly fixated on her and Mu.
"Umm, Athrun, could you please stop watching us so intensely? It's a bit embarrassing" Murrue requested softly.
"Ohh sorry about that, I kinda got lost in my own thoughts there" Athrun immediately answered, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck.
Grinning brightly at their exchange. "Ohh let the man watch Murrue, it is not like we are doing anything overly naughty here, we can always throw him out, if we start on something like that" Mu said, clearly finding all of this funny as hell.
Glaring with slight anger at him. "Nobody asked you, Mr Endymion" the Captain said in a scolding tone, that frankly reminded Athrun a bit about the tone of voice, she would usually use when Mayu had misbehaved and needed to be scolded.
However unlike the small troublemaker who under such circumstances at least had the common decency, to look a little guilty over what she had done, it had the complete opposite effect on Mu, who was smirking even more mischievous now, than before. "Hmm, I guess that would make you Mrs Endymion, then. Now that I give it some thought, I do kinda like how that sounds. Mrs Endymion, Mrs Endymion, she is my adorable, red Mrs Endymion!" He happily sang.
Immediately upon hearing that, Murrue felt the already intense blush on both of her cheeks growing even deeper, as she pushed her face into Mu's shoulder in a somewhat desperate attempt to hide her embarrassment, not that she had all that much luck with that, since he was still singing out of tune about how she was his, Mrs Endymion.
"Ohh Mu, please stop singing already! It is just so embarrassing" The red-faced Captain said, when realizing that the childish man was not going to stop on his own.
"All right already, I'll stop. But I do hope you realize my lovely Murrue Ramius, that you might just have ruined my whole singing career, I can easily image myself up on stage with a bunch of screaming female fans, I am after all quite charming" Mu boasted, the happy playful smirk on his face not waving on bit.
Rolling both her eyes a single time. "That you certainly are, Mu. But not to burst your bubble, you don't really sing all that well. It's noway near as bad as Athrun, but it is pretty close" Murrue said, figuring that now that she was teasing her boyfriend, she might as well throw Athrun under the bus too.
Frowning slightly at that. "Hey, I kinda resent that remark Murrue, even though I know it's true" Athrun growled displeased, a bit annoyed that no matter how hard he struggled to overcome it, he just couldn't get over the whole tone deafness thing. He loved music and had at one point tried his utmost to learn how to play the trompet, since he had always liked the sound of that instrument. But after hearing him play his newly purchased trumpet just once, Cagalli had, while rubbing her poor aching ears, told him that whenever he played that thing, all the cats in Italy would cry out in pure and utter horror.
"Yeah, you tell her Athrun, our musical 'talent' is nothing to scoff at! You should hear me sing in the shower" Mu continuously boasted.
Instantly rolling her eyes again, upon hearing him say that. "I have, and it sounded downright terrible, Mu" Murrue informed him.
"Ohh, you wound me so deeply, Captain. Ok, so no singing career for me. Hmm, perhaps I should consider becoming a stand-up comedian once this crazy war is over, I think I would do pretty well in that field" the blond man said in a tone, that made it close to impossible for both Murrue and Athrun to tell, if he was actually serious about becoming a comedian.
Rubbing his chin thoughtful a few short seconds. "Hmm, now that I think about it, I can easily picture you as a stand-up comedian Mu, you have a good sense of humor and can be quite sarcastic at times. So if you decide to switch careers, I think working as a comedian would be a pretty good choice for you" Athrun said thoughtful.
Smirking even more brightly than before. "Thank you buddy, at least I now know that I have something to fall back on, if the whole mobile suit pilot thing doesn't work out for me".
"While I will of course support you if you decide to get a new job once the war is over. The two of you sound so silly right now, I know Mu can be kinda childish most of the time, but I thought you were a bit more mature, Athrun" Murrue said, the smile on her face showing, that she too, found this whole discussion quite funny.
"Well what can I say Murrue, being cooped up in here by myself most of the time, is slowly but surely driving me crazy, it is just so tedious, I miss spending time with the married couple and the rest of you guys, but most of all I miss being with Cagalli and the kids, I know she spent the night in here, but she was gone when I woke up. I have not even been able to touch her stomach today, and say good morning to the two little ones, in there" Athrun said his right hand twisting a tiny bit, ever since he had first woken up on the Archangel, it had quickly become a habit to him to rub Cagalli's stomach in the morning and just feel the life growing in there.
Quietly studying the young man's face, for a few long seconds. "You are feeling lonely, ain't you, Athrun?" Murrue kindly asked.
Nodding slowly. "Yeah I am, but me being stuck in here is kinda my own fault Murrue, if I hadn't made that boneheaded decision to join ZAFT again in the first place, I would never have ended up in here. So I kinda see this as my punishment, for my own stupidity" Athrun said, staring intensely down into his lap.
Standing up from her position beside Mu, Murrue stepped over and sat down on the bed beside Athrun, gently taking a hold, on his hand, giving it a light comforting squeeze. "That's stupid Athrun, I know you joined up ZAFT again with the best intentions in mind. You were hoping that by doing that, you could keep, Cagalli, the married couple and the rest of us out of this war, there was no way you could have known back then, just how crazy the Chairman is. So stop punishing yourself Athrun, you do not deserve it. Even I thought, the Chairman was doing what was best for this world, when the war first broke out" Murrue said, just as she wrapped her arms around the blue haired man, hugging him gently.
Feeling her do that, Athrun sobbed loudly, only then realizing that he had started crying from everything Murrue had just said to him. "I... I'll try to stop... Stop with the self-loathing Murrue, I... I just feel like I messed up so badly by believing the Chairman's words... And... And joining up with ZAFT again... Even when I was told at Crete that a group of ZAFT forces tried to kill Lacus, I still thought that fighting together with ZAFT was the best way to bring this war to a quick conclusion... But it was the complete opposite... I'm just such a screw-up...!" He sobbed.
Tenderly stroking his head. "Maybe you did mess up Athrun, but you are back home now where you belong, doing your utmost to help and protect us all, you even went out in the Justice yesterday despite your injuries. I do not even want to image, how much that hurt. So Athrun, stop blaming yourself, none of us thinks any less of you, we all still consider you to be a vital part of our family" Murrue softly reassured him.
"Thank you Murrue... I really need to hear that...".
Nodding slowly. "Yeah, I know".
Nothing more was said, nothing needed to be said, Athrun kept on crying deeply into Murrue's shoulder a few minutes longer, until he with a small sob slowly backed away, using his right sleeve to rub away the remaining tears, in his eyes.
"Daaaamn, Captain Murrue Ramius! That hit me right in the feelings. If I was not already head over heels in-love with you, my dear Captain. I would most deeeeefinitely fall for you, after that. You truly are the most wonderful woman in the world" Mu said, from his position over on the other bed, sounding both slightly playful, but also deeply serious.
Blushing deeply over receiving such a compliment, Murrue stared down into her lap, unsure about how she was supposed to response to such sweet words. While it was true that she was somewhat use to Mu spontaneously flirting with her like that, it had just been such a long time since he had last done it in such a meaningful way, that it truly made the Archangel Captain feel like, she was the most important person in the world to him. It made her heart beat so unbelievable fast, like it was about to leap straight out of her chest.
It was at that very moment, Athrun decide to chime in and share his two cents. "You are a lucky man, Mu" Athrun said with a small smile, as he reached over and picked up his glass of water, taking a small sip of the refreshing liquid.
"Heh, yeah, I really am. But then again so are you buddy. You know if we ever get a chance to go out drinking, we are definitely making a toast to the wonderful women, in our lives. We should make sure to ask Kira and Dearka, to join us!" The Akatsuki pilot half yelled in a tone of voice, that made it abundantly clear, that he was not going to take no for an answer.
Slowly raising his mostly empty glass. "To Murrue, Lacus, Miriallia, and most especially the mother of my children, Cagalli!" Athrun said.
"Along with that Meyrin girl, who helped you get away from ZAFT, and our little troublemaker, also called Mayu" Mu added, as he pretended to raise a glass.
Looking a few times between them, Murrue slowly rolled her eyes, while it was true, that she felt somewhat flattered by the thoughtfulness of their gesture, it most of all made her feel quite a bit embarrassed, which was something the Archangel Captain was relatively certain, she would have in common with all the other girls they had mentioned.
"You two dunderheads are really dealing this up to eleven, you do realize that if Cagalli had been here, she would likely have given both of you a good smack or two, out of pure and other embarrassment" Murrue said with a hint of a smile on her lips, as she stood up and went back over to the other bed, sitting down beside her smirking boyfriend. Heh, she really loved calling him that in her mind.
However, Murrue was quickly pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of Athrun's voice. "Yeah I do realize that Murrue, Cagalli has always been easily embarrassed, but despite that, I still kinda want to tell her all about this, so she knows just how much I appreciate her being with me, how much APPRECIATE that she is willing to become my wife, once all of this is over".
"I for am sure, that she already knows how much you love and care about her, kid. But now that we are talking about the whole husband and wife thing, I call dibs on being in charge of your bachelor party, I already got a few fun 'ideas'" Mu said, clearly loving the large amount of craziness he had in mind.
Feeling a freezing cold shiver run down his spine. "Um Mu, that sounds more terrifying than anything else" Athrun said, feeling both worried and uncomfortable by the wicked look Mu was sending him.
"Don't overdo it Mu, I do believe I speak for all of us when I say, that we want Athrun back alive" Murrue added.
"Ahhh, come on Murrue, it's not that bad! You are making it sound like I am going to throw him out of an airplane without a parachute. I might do it with a parachute, but other than that, my ideas are not that crazy!" The blond man insisted loudly, the smirk on his face making it clear to both Murrue and Athrun, that he still had some crazy ideas in mind.
"Hmm, perhaps I'll just skip my bachelor party, the whole thing sounds pretty hazardous to my health" Athrun mumbled to himself under his breath, knowing full well even before he said that, that there was simple no way Andrew, Mu, Dearka or Kira would permit him to do that.
Speaking of Kira, the Freedom pilot chose that precise moment to enter the medical bay. "Hey you three, we are back" he cheerfully informed the three of them.
"Did you have a nice trip?" Murrue asked, tilting her head slightly to the side in a curious manner.
"That we did Murrue, Mayu spend a small fortune on games, mangas and stuffed toys she got out of a claw machine, but as long as she had fun, the money doesn't matter one bit" Kira said, which immediately made a deep sincere smile run across Murrue's lips, as she thanked him for taking such good care of her daughter, then asked him what Mayu was up to now.
Smiling back, as he stepped a bit further into the room. "Don't mention it Murrue, spending time with Mayu is always fun, and I think it did Lacus and me a world of good, to get away from the Archangel a bit. As for what Mayu is presently doing, she is down in the mess hall, preparing a game of Monopoly. I promised, that I would join her and the others, once I was done checking up on, how you were holding up, Athrun" Kira said in a friendly tone of voice, then place a board game and a stuffed green and blue alien, that quite frankly looked a lot more creepy, than anything else, on Athrun's lap.
Picking up the creepy alien, Athrun spend a few seconds looking the ugly thing over. "Ugh! Damn, this 'toy' is gross and downright nightmare inducing, why the hell would they put something like this in a claw machine?" The blue haired man asked nobody specific, wondering if there was anyone in his life, he disliked enough to give this creepy thing to, maybe he could send it to Rey on the Minerva. Athrun, also wondered a bit why Mayu didn't keep it herself, since she always enjoyed watching horror movies with Dearka, but maybe this 'toy', was too creepy for even her.
Receiving no real answer to his question about whose bright idea it was to make this ugly alien, the prize in a claw machine, Athrun threw it over on the other bed, where Mu immediately picked it up to take a close look at it, his expression making it clear, that he too thought that the alien, was a little disturbing. Athrun on the other hand was now totally occupied with looking the second gift Kira had brought him over.
"Risk Andromeda! Thanks, Kira, we are definitely playing this, once I am feeling better" the blue haired man said, with a small but happy smile on his face, that showed them all, just how much he was looking forward to playing the at times complicated board game.
Nodding slowly in agreement, Kira hoped that it would not take too long before Athrun was well enough to play the game. "You know now that I give it some thought, we never actually had a real game night here on the Archangel, I think that's something all of us could really use, if we could find the time for it, and if you just stay put in your wheelchair Athrun, I am sure that you will be alright for a little while".
"It's not my wheelchair, Kira. I hate that stupid thing, almost as much as I hate Rey and the Chairman!" Athrun growled, displeased, glancing in the direction of the piece of medical equipment standing just by the edge of his bed.
Arching his right eyebrow at that. "Jeez Athrun, I get that you do not like the wheelchair, but the way you are talking about it, kinda reminds me a bit of the way Dearka at times bellyaches about the Minerva, and while his hatred for that ship is perfectly justified, since that ship and its crew has tried to kill us. You do realize Athrun that, that old wheelchair has helped you out quite a bit" Kira said in a rational tone.
Sighing loudly upon hearing Kira's words. "Yeah, I guess you got a point Kira, perhaps I am taking my hatred out on a simple wheelchair, I am just so tired of being rolled around in that thing, whenever I need or want to go somewhere, I want to get out of this cramped room without help, go up on the deck, to get some fresh air and help wherever I can, you know I kinda want to go take a look at the Justice's OS, I think the backpack needs a bit of fine-tuning, to function just the way I want it" the blue haired man mumbled thoughtfully.
Nodding slowly a single time in understanding. "Hmm, I did take a pretty thorough look at the Justice OS, before Lacus and I left the Eternal, but I mainly stayed focused on making certain, that it was as safe as possible for Lacus to pilot and more importantly, land here on the Archangel, so I might have overlooked something" Kira said, his mind racing and going over everything he remembered doing when he had programmed the new Justice gundam's OS, he did not believe he made any mistakes.
Noticing the deep contemplating expression on his friend's face, Athrun could easily guess what Kira was thinking about. "You made no mistakes whatsoever Kira, I just got my own special ideas, about how precisely I want that backpack to function, there was noway you could have known that, unless you could read my mind, all the way from the Eternal, and as far as I know, Cagalli is the only one I know capable of mind reading, she always claims she can read me like an open book, you know there are times, I kinda take offense to that, I always saw myself, as a bit of a unsolvable mystery, nobody could figure out. But anyhow, please do not worry about the Justice Kira, I will take care of that myself".
"So what you are really telling me Athrun, that you, wanting to mess with the Justice's OS, is most of all just an excuse to get out of here a bit" the Freedom pilot said.
"Pretty much Kira, but I have to admit, I am much more excited about the game night thing, it's been such a long time since we did something nice and quiet like that, I never actually thought the day would come where I would miss getting beaten in poker by Miriallia, so even if I am forced to use the wheelchair I am more than up for the whole game night thing" the blue haired man said, not doing anything to hide how overly excited he was about spending time with his nearest and dearest, without having to worry about fighting a war.
It was at that moment Murrue cut into their conversation. "If game night is that important to you Athrun, I'll see if we can't get something like that set up. But please do try and come up with something else to play, other than poker, I know Mayu can play that game, but it always bugs me just a bit, whenever my eleven-year-old daughter, plays poker" the Captain said with a small frown.
"What about pictionary? That's always fun" Kira suggested thoughtfully.
That immediately got Kira a highly positive response from both Murrue and Athrun. "That's a great idea Kira, that something I will not have to feel guilty about Mayu playing, and it's a game I enjoy quite a bit too" the young mother said.
"I'm in, just as long as I don't have to move around too much. So it seems like, I got no other choice, but to rely on a certain crappy wheelchair, for this endeavor" Athrun said, now sounding a bit less hostile, when talking about the wheelchair.
"While I can't lie when I said that I would have preferred poker, I am in too, I am the true master of pictionary, you are all going down" Mu said with his usual cockiness, which instantly made Kira, Athrun and Murrue shake their heads slightly and rolled their eyes, despite the smiles on their faces not waving one bit.
Reaching up, Murrue ever so gently comb her fingers thought Mu's long blond hair. "It's nice to see, that you are still as mature as ever" she softly told him, like she was talking to a small ill-behaved child.
Enjoying having Murrue mess around with her hair like this, Mu smirked mischievously at her words. "You know me, mine dear Captain of mine, I am the very definition of a mature, well-mannered person!" Mu boasted in a loud, purposely childish tone of voice, that did a lot to contradict the whole mature thing he had just bragged about, yet the blond man was greatly pleased, when he heard his tiny audience, chuckle slightly in mild amusement.
Watching Murrue and Mu for a few seconds, Kira stretched both of his arms up over his head, while letting out a small yawn, he was still pretty tired from not sleeping all that well last night, even after he had finished talking with his sister up on the Archangel's deck, and he had gone back to bed, it had still taken him such a long time, to get Rau Le Creuset and his fight with the Providence gundam out of his mind. It had only helped when Lacus had slowly turned over in her sleep, then snuggled up into his arms. Having the woman, he loved so close, had finally helped him relax enough to drift off to sleep again.
"I'll see you guys later, I better hurry up and get going, I promised Mayu to play a game of Monopoly with her, knowing my little sister, she is already running low on patience waiting for me" the pilot of the Freedom said, cracking his neck a bit, before he slowly turned and started heading towards the door. However, before he could leave, Athrun called out after him.
"Hold on a sec, Kira, I got a pretty important task that I need your tech skills with".
Turning, Kira immediately took notice of the overall serious expression on his best friend's face. "Can't it wait, Athrun? I really hate breaking my promise to, Mayu" he asked, already having a sneaking suspicion about what the answer was going to be.
"It's about Nicol, Kira and how to deal with him" Athrun said, the look in his green eyes turning even more serious now.
Letting out a long breath, that made the hair on his forehead fly around a tiny bit. "Ok, it can't wait, so what's your plan, Athrun? Kidnapping him and locking him up somewhere until he sees reason? When I tried to talk some sense into him yesterday during the battle, he pretty much told me to shut up and go to hell, and Dearka told me he got about the same response, so I do not think any of us have the ability to get the old kind-hearted Nicol back, I think the only one who could actually do that is... is Mayura" Kira said with a hint of sadness in his voice.
Narrowing his eyes slightly. "I might know of somebody else, Kira, if we can get a hold, on her. One thing I have been doing, while laying here, is search for her phone number, it took longer than I had expected, but now that I got it, we need to have a serious chat with her" the blue haired man said, reaching over, he picked up a book laying on the table beside, then after quickly turning a few pages, he found a tiny piece of paper, that had a number written on it.
"So who exactly are you talking about, Athrun?"
Glancing up from the piece of paper with the bit of information, Kisaka had helped him find. "Hmm, I do believe that it's best that you wait and see, Kira. But since we are going to call somebody who lives up on the Plants, Aprilius One to be precise, we are definitely going to need some of the equipment up on the bridge to scramble the signal, so ZAFT does not intercept it, I do NOT, under any circumstances, want the Chairman to find out about this, it could very well put the person we are going to try and get a hold on, in serious danger, and she does not deserve that. That's why, I need your tech wizardry for this, Kira" Athrun explained.
Brushing a bit of his brown hair away from his eyes, Kira nodded slowly a single time. "Can't deny, that I am still pretty curious about who we are going to call Athrun, but I understand, I'll do what you said, and just wait patiently".
It was at that moment Mu cut into their conversation. "I assume you are going to need Dearka's help too Athrun, since you mentioned him to me earlier, why don't Murrue and I go find him, since he was with you guys on your little trip to the city, it's safe to assume that he wants to join in on the game of Monopoly, so he should not be hard to find. That way we can explain to Mayu what's going on, then join in on the game instead of you guys, that would give me a chance to get to know her better. I have to admit that I am a bit disappoint that I got no family title yet, like the rest of you guys, she either calls me Mu, you, or the much more flattering one, idiot" the blond haired man said.
That made a light chuckle escape Murrue's lips. "Hmm, I don't think you need to worry, Mu. While my little troublemaker might try to hide it, I can tell, that she really does like you. As for the title thing, I don't know why she hasn't come up with a title for you, but if I had to guess, I would say it's because, she can't figure out what to call you" Murrue said, knowing that the title, her daughter, was likely considering giving Mu, was simply not something, she was ready to call him quite yet, she would need more time, to mentally prepare herself for that.
Standing up from her sitting position beside Mu, Murrue took a hold on the old wheelchair, moving it over, so Kira could easily help the scowling Athrun get into the 'vehicle', once the Justice pilot was at least somewhat comfortable there, Murrue send him a small smile, she had honestly fully expected, that he would start whining about the wheelchair again, but he kept his mouth firmly shut, even when Kira started rolling him out of the room, with her and Mu following closely behind them.
To be continued.
One thing, I don't have the foggiest idea about what the kids at Reverend Malchio's place are named, but I do think I read somewhere, that the boy who kicked Athrun is called Mike, but that is not something I am absolutely sure about.