Gundam Wing: Genesis Part 11
Trowa looked up from a random spot on the floor as Duo collapsed into the seat next to his with a snort. "What's the news?"
The braided man stretched tiredly. "They're on their way- not bothering to leave off their suits. She's dead- Quatre blew the headquarters up behind them. I told them where to park- they should be here in about twenty five minutes."
Trowa asked, "And... is it... how did they do it?"
Duo's face reflected his concern for both Trowa and Quatre. "Heero said... Une used some kind of poison on her- he wasn't there. He took Mariemeia out and refused to watch."
"Quatre?"
Duo's gaze turned away. "He stayed. He watched."
"Hn." Trowa felt a familiar stab of pain and heartache at the news. Dammit, Quatre! Why can't you get past it?! This is going to drive you crazy- it's gonna hurt us both...
"Hey, you listening?" Trowa was abruptly aware that Duo had been speaking to him, and he looked up at his friend in apology.
He tried to smile. "Sorry, Duo. I was thinking about it."
The braided man tried to lean back and cursed as something dug into his spine- he reached behind himself and unclipped a back holster, stripping it off and laying it on the seat next to him. "Look- I know it's none of my business, and you can tell me to shut up and leave it be if you want, but he's important to me, too. To all of us. He needs help to deal with it, Tro. He might need more help than any of us can give- you get what I'm saying?"
Trowa's green eyes were tormented. "Yes- I know. But... how do you tell him that? I can't force him to..."
"You won't have to, Trowa," Duo interrupted gently. "I think he knows it, too. He's just... he's going to need someone at his side to deal with it all." Duo stood. "I'm going to check on Fei, okay? I'll be back in a few."
Trowa gave his friend a wave, but his mind was still on Duo's words. Quatre... It wasn't something that surfaced under normal conditions, but the Zero system had changed something in the blond, and when he became abnormally stressed, he was no longer in complete control. While Trowa didn't anticipate going through another experience like this, it was risky- it was too risky to just let it be. He had ignored it for long enough. But how on Earth can I begin to make him see it...
"Trowa! Where's my Fei? How bad was it? Can I go in to see him..." He looked up in shock as someone called his name and began firing questions off at him. But if I was her, I would be the same way.
He stood to face the arriving Sally Po with as much courage as he could muster under her glare. "Wufei is alright- we stabilised him on the ride over here, but he's still asleep. He will be fine."
Sally looked relieved, but her eyes still flashed dangerously. "And where's Maxwell? When I find him, I'm gonna hang him from his own braid, and..."
"He's sitting with Wufei right now, Sally," Trowa cut her off in mid-rant. He put his hands on her shoulders to calm her. "I know you're worried, but we did what we had to do out there. Be as nice as you can manage."
She glared up at him. "Why do you have to be right all the time, dammit? I just want... Ah, shit!" She threw her hands in the air. "Where is he? They will let me in there, or I'll..."
Trowa felt a smile twitching at his lips as he took her arm and led her to the nurses' station. "Ma'am- this is Commander Sally Po of the Preventers, here to see Agent Chang."
The nurse looked up with a smile and a sympathetic nod. "Of course, Ma'am. If you'll follow me, please?" She stood, and Sally followed her down the hall with a last nod of thanks to Trowa.
The pilot sighed as he sank back into his seat. He wished Duo luck.
~*~
Sally watched from the doorway in silence for a moment.
Duo was sitting next to Wufei's bed, his head bowed into his hands, his shoulders trembling slightly. She could barely make out the words he was whispering. "I never thought- if anyone was going to have a problem, it would have been me, cuz I was still powering up when the shockwave hit. I failed you, man, and I'm sorry. But you're going to be alright. And Heero and Quatre, too- they're okay. They'll be here soon- Sally's on her way- she's gonna cut my braid off in punishment..."
"Well, I won't say the thought hasn't crossed my mind," she said, breaking her silence.
Duo's head came up, but he didn't smile. "I'm sorry, Sally. He shouldn't have been hurt- it was a dumb risk to take with his life. And with Trowa's."
She approached the bed on the opposite side and ran her fingers through Wufei's loose hair gently before leaning over and brushing a kiss on his forehead. "But not with yours?" She walked to the foot of the bed and picked up Wufei's chart to read over.
Duo turned back to his injured friend. "I knew the risk- I was in no danger, and I knew it."
Sally approached him and stopped only a foot away, looking down into his face where he sat. "It was stupid. Stupid... but right. Now clear on out of here before I change my mind about cutting that braid off!"
Duo finally gave her a little smile as he stood and mock saluted. "I usually don't follow orders, but I know when to take a hint!" He walked to the door and stopped before stepping out to look back. "My kind of woman, Sally."
He was gone with another grin before she could throw anything at him, and Sally chuckled as she took his chair and sighed. "Fei... you've got some of the strangest friends on the planet. I think I want to keep them."
~*~
Relena looked up in relief as the door to her office opened again, this time to admit Lady Une, along with her daughter. "Mariemeia! You're okay!" She dashed over to give the girl a hug.
The phone rang again, and Relena pulled back from her hug to glare at it angrily. "What is it these people don't understand about implementing emergency measures!" She stalked back across the office and gripped the phone receiver. "Yes, what is it?"
Une watched in amusement as the Chancellor listened for a moment and then snapped out, "We talked about that already, Chief. You know what the procedures are... No, I don't care if Senator James doesn't like it! He will obey the law, like anyone else around here, and that's final! ... That's fine- tell him to bring it up with me, if he can get a spot on my calendar, okay? Look- I don't have the time... Yes- that will do nicely. You know the rules. We need to get people into safe locations and deal with the injured, and... Fine- I am counting on you." She hung up.
Une finally spoke up, "When did you get here?"
Relena collapsed back into her chair. "Fifteen minutes ago, and the phone hasn't stopped ringing for more than ten seconds since." She dropped her face into her hands and groaned before looking back up again. "I'm glad to see you're okay- Duo asked me to tell you that Wufei is going to be alright, as well. He called... I don't know- five minutes ago?"
Une's arm wrapped around her daughter's shoulders. "Where is Dorothy? Or Catherine?"
Relena didn't look up. "Dor's dealing with the press, and Cathy's still at the bunker for the moment. She's going to the hospital to see the others, as soon as one of the Manguanacs gets a moment to give her a ride." She looked up, her eyes glinting in her pale face. "I hate to say it, but we need to make an official statement, and it looks like you're nominated for it, Une."
Une nodded. "How much can we say?"
Relena stood to pace in her office. "Um... nothing about the pilots yet, especially telling where they are. Not until they're ready and expecting it. We've known about the threat, but we had to keep it secret in order to combat it effectively, I approved building the Gundams, so it was all legal- something like that. Make it sound good."
Une smiled. "No problem. Can Mei stay here with you?"
Relena stopped her pacing and turned to face the pair with a slight smile. "Of course!" She turned to look at Mariemeia. "Is that okay with you?"
The girl waited for a nod from her mother before she stepped forward into the office. "Sure. Maybe I could help? Or something?"
Relena smiled at the girl as Une quietly left the office. "Sure you can- talk to me and keep me from going nuts here..."
~*~
Duo was waiting as the two Gundams touched down, still cloaked, not ten meters away. He watched from Deathscythe's cockpit and smiled. "Nice landing, guys."
Quatre shot him a mock glare after his not-so-gentle performance. "Not everyone is used to doing this while cloaked, Duo!"
The young American simply laughed. "You'll get used to it! Come on- Trowa's waiting upstairs, and Wufei seems to be doing pretty well!"
He didn't wait for any answers- he hopped from his seat and bypassed the levers to jump from his place to the ground.
A pair of arms closed around him almost before he touched the ground, though, and Duo smiled happily and hugged back, ripples of tension flowing from him as he breathed in Heero's scent. He hugged the other man as hard as he could.
The Japanese young man held on tightly, his eyes slipping closed for a moment. "We did it, Duo. Ninmu kanryou."
Duo laughed, pulling back from his lover at the familiar phrase, though their arms remained locked around each other. "You bet your ass, kid."
Quatre finally reached the ground, and Duo released Heero to spin and catch the blond in yet another hug. "You doing okay, Q?"
The blond hugged back. "Yeah. Just fine, Duo- just fine."
The braided young man stiffened slightly- there it was. But he would have to leave that for Trowa to deal with. "Well, let's get inside. The press knows that something's up, and I don't think it'll take them long to figure out who we are." His hand snaked into Heero's. "Wufei might be awake, too! Come on!"
Heero smiled to himself as he was dragged along behind his lover. They would have to have a talk later, as well, but he was content for the time being to simply be there.
To belong there.
~*~
Dorothy was slowly floundering in front of the news cameras when the doors opened behind her, and the crowd of reporters hushed quite suddenly. She turned-
Une smiled at her as she neatly slid behind the podium and took a sip from the glass of water there, using the moment it took to gather her thoughts. She flashed a serious look over the still silent audience. "At ten thirty this morning, you all witnessed a shuttle being blown up by attacking, unregistered mobile suits. Directly after that, a battle ensued between the attacking enemy suits and four Gundams, a battle that the Gundams won." She paused for a moment, listening as a ripple of sound went through the crowd- she had just confirmed the involvement of Gundams!
Une continued, "The shuttle was unmanned. Your government has known for quite some time of the threat posed by a factionary group that had managed to build their own mobile suits, but we had been unsuccessful in tracking them down. The Gundams were commissioned by Executive Order to combat the threat posed by these suits, and the shuttle launch was a staged trap, in order to draw the hidden suits out. I wish to emphasise that at no time was the government out of control, and all actions taken both today and in preparation for the battle were done in strict compliance with the law!"
In a slightly lower tone of voice, she continued, "The faction responsible was known as the Independence Front and was led by Madeleine Dumoulin, a political activist and insurgent. She was killed during the fighting. Though we are, of course, saddened by the regrettable loss of life that occurred today, it is with a sense of great relief that I inform you that the threat has been completely neutralised and contained. Are there any questions?"
There was a moment of stunned disbelief as reporters stared at her in open shock, but they recovered quickly and, behind her, Dorothy flinched in sympathy at the sheer number of questions being shouted at the tall Lady. Une held up her hands and shouted over the din, "One at a time, please!"
She pointed to a reporter whose hand flew into the air, and he cleared his throat importantly. "Lady Une, who piloted the Gundams? Who are these pilots?"
She shook her head. "The same people as piloted them before. Next question!"
But the man shouted back, "And who are they?"
Une raised her hands for silence as several people began shouting their support of the question. "Their identities must be concealed at this time, and do not repeat the question! I will not reveal that information at this time!"
"The people deserve to know! You are evading the question!"
Une's eyes flashed. "And the pilots deserve their privacy! Both their identities and location will NOT be discussed! Is that clear?"
Another reporter raised her hand, and Une acknowledged the woman with a point. The woman shouted, "For how long has this been in motion, Lady Une? Why were the Preventers unable to find this Miss Dumoulin?"
Une nodded her understanding. "We first became aware of the problem nearly four months ago, when it was discovered that someone was monitoring the progress and results of the Genesis program, as conducted by Winner Enterprises. Due to the sensitivity of this information," she shouted over the sudden burst of questions, "we have asked Mr. Winner not to address the media at this time. As you are all aware, he has been at an undisclosed location, since the threats made to him were even more severe than those made towards Chancellor Peacecraft.
"As for Miss Dumoulin," Une continued, "She evaded us for months, and without the help of the Gundam pilots, we would never have found her. Next question, please."
She pointed, and another reporter asked, "What is Mr. Winner's role in this?"
Une glared at the reporter in question. "You don't really expect me to reveal that at this time, do you?"
~*~
Quatre's eyes widened in horror as he watched the press conference on the television in Wufei's hospital room. "Duo! Phone!"
He caught the object as it flew towards his head and speed-dialed the office, his eyes glued to the screen. His secretary picked up. "Winner Enterprises Incorporated, office of the Director, how may I help you?"
Quatre winced at the tired, nervous sound of her voice. "Cindy, it's me, Quatre."
"Mr. Quatre!" she cried, relief flooding her voice, "Thank goodness! Reporters have been flooding the lines, and the directors have no idea..."
He laughed at the picture of their clueless faces that formed in his mind. "No- they don't! Look- prepare this statement. The Genesis Project and everything related to this morning's tragic occurrence was overseen by me, personally, and kept apart from all other company workings for security reasons. I will be making a statement in due time, as soon as it is approved by the government, and no more can be said until then. Something like that. You know what I mean."
Cindy laughed. "Good- I already wrote something to that effect. I'll get it out immediately."
Quatre smiled. "You're a gem, Cindy. Thanks. Talk to you later." He shut the phone off and turned to the others, his smile fading. "Oh shit."
A newly awakened Wufei shot him a glance. "You said it- we can't get around it this time." He squeezed Sally's hand gently. "We should have seen this coming."
Quatre was still staring at the screen. "If I admit to being... well, to being me- WEI stock is going to plummet, and who the hell knows about Mars now..."
Trowa squeezed his shoulder in support. "We can handle this, Cat."
The blond was staring into space, though, his mind clearly somewhere else. "And Une- we'll have to cover for her, somehow. It wasn't really her fault, regardless of what I said at the time..."
"Hey Quatre, will you just chill for a minute?!" Duo drawled, earning himself twin glares from the blond pilot and Trowa, at his side. "We're not doing or saying anything for the moment, okay? We've got time to plan this out, and no one here will leave you to face them on your own!" Heero's hand closed over Duo's arm protectively as Trowa's glare darkened.
Sally snorted as the two couples stared at each other. "You're all being a bunch of big idiots, you know? The five of you just single-handedly defeated an entire army and saved the Earth Sphere as we know it, and you're worried about bad press? Hell, you've probably got better public approval ratings than Relena right now!"
Quatre turned his annoyed gaze on her, and Sally simply glared right back at him. "Save it for someone who cares, Winner! Fei's right- we should have been prepared for this. We should have known."
Quatre was aware of the tightening of Trowa's grip on his shoulder, and the touch grounded him. His eyes fell in shame at the thoughts that had been running through his mind only seconds before. "You're right, Sally, Wufei. Forgive me." He sagged back against his tall lover's chest-
Trowa's arms wrapped around him from behind, and the taller pilot whispered in his ear, "We need to talk later about this, okay, koi?"
The blond nodded, and he looked up again. "Alright. Guys, I'm sorry, but I think I need to get downtown right now..."
Heero smiled. "I think we all do. Are you up to it, Wufei?"
The Chinese man nodded.
~*~
Relena stared at each person in turn as the door swung shut, a Manguanac guard on either side. "Well, first of all, congratulations. We won, and the damage done to New Port City was minimal, loss of life almost non-existent, on the civilian side. You did well." She stopped and allowed the five pilots a moment to be proud of that. Her face was still grave, though. "But now we have a new problem. How much can we tell the world of what happened?"
Wufei frowned as he bit his lip. "We aren't going to be able to disappear this time. Even if we got out of here again without being seen, the Senate hearings on both Genesis and this incident will drag our names out eventually. So the question isn't what do we tell them, but how and when do we do it?"
Everyone nodded their agreement to the Chinese Preventer's statement- it made sense. Relena looked over at Quatre. "What do you say? Of anyone here, you have the most to lose in this, Quatre."
He nodded. "I know- and I will reveal my part in this myself, and choose both the time and the turf."
"Hey- we want to be there, too, Cat!" Duo objected, frowning sharply. "If anything, we should all be there when you make the statement so we can protect you if something goes wrong."
"What?" Une asked, surprised. "Why would something go wrong?"
Duo's sad smile slid to center on the Lady. "There are still plenty of people out there who hate and fear the Gundam pilots, not to mention ex-Ozzies."
Une shook her head. "But what happened today..."
"Won't mean much to some poor guy who lost a family member, back during the war," Trowa finished for her quietly. "Terrorists don't make friends easily."
Relena tapped her pen on the table top. "So what do we say? How do we spin it?"
Heero finally broke his silence. "We consented to fly the Gundams as a final option, when we were unable to either destroy all enemy suits during production or find Madeleine Dumoulin and execute her before her plan came to term. We make no claim of ownership to the suits- they should remain under Preventer control."
Relena gave him a blank look for a moment before she smiled faintly. "Not bad. Keep going."
The Japanese man chewed his lip thoughtfully, and his eyes locked with Duo's. "We set a trap to draw the suits out and destroy them after sabotaging them, so we could predict the outcome of the battle. But another factor was drawn into the game when Mariemeia was kidnapped, as a way of trying to get the government to capitulate."
Une shook her head. "But that's not..."
"Hush, Une," Sally said quietly, placing a hand on her superior's arm in a calming gesture.
Heero continued, "We used the attempted blackmail to set up our trap, and modified our plans so that we could get in and get the child out before we blew Madeleine's headquarters to bits. She was sadly still in there when it went off. How's that?"
Quatre nodded. "That way we won't have to explain the poison..." He fixed Une with a stare. "How did you know about that, by the way?"
She frowned. "It was her trademark... back in the old days." Her eyes became distant as she focused on a memory. "We were all the same age, you see- in the same class. Treize, Leia, me, Madeleine... we had been friends before... A teacher dared to tell her that her work- it was an essay on human rights- he said that her views were disturbing. He asked her to stay and discuss it with him after class..." Une shuddered. "Everyone heard him screaming, and by the time anyone could get there, he was dead, and she was laughing." Une scowled. "I don't know how she escaped the police, but she disappeared, and we didn't hear from her again."
She hung her head. "I don't deserve for you to cover for me- I betrayed you all! I gave in..."
"No! Don't say that!" Heads turned sharply in surprise as the words burst from Heero's mouth. His eyes were flashing in distress, and it shook them all to see it. Duo squeezed the other man's hand, surprised to find how cold it was. Heero continued, "She took advantage of your humanity, but if you hadn't given in, you would have been just like her!" His breath hitched in his throat. "She didn't have feelings- she didn't care. She was dead, inside..." He fell silent.
He could feel the warm, steady pressure of Duo's hand and he closed his eyes, blocking out everything but that. He clung to it.
Duo's heart was in his throat as he stood and pulled Heero up with him. "We'll be back in a bit, okay? You know how we both feel, so... You know what I'm trying to say."
Quatre nodded, and everyone turned away tactfully as the two left the room.
~*~
Duo pulled Heero into a side room and sat him down on a sofa, pushing the other man's chin up to look him in the eyes. "Heero, talk to me, please! Are you okay?"
A shaking, callused hand came up to gently brush Duo's bangs back from his face. "I'm... Duo, this is... hard to say."
The braided man leaned into Heero's caress and gave him a small, encouraging smile. "Just say what comes to you- don't think about it and don't worry. Just... just let it out."
Heero gave an absent nod of his head. "Madeleine... she was... a lot like me. I was like that, once."
Duo's eyes widened. "No! You're not a bit like th..."
"But I was," Heero interrupted quietly. "There was a part of me... I didn't care, and I didn't want to." A tear fell from his eye and slid down his cheek. "That part of me nearly killed you, Duo."
Duo's eyes became very serious as his hands captured Heero's face and held him steady. "Heero, listen to me, and listen very carefully. There is a big difference between you and her- there always has been. And I'll tell you what it is- you care. You always have, even when you didn't want to, and she never would have. And you have me- she didn't have a soul on Earth to care about her. Don't ever make that comparison again!"
Heero's arms closed around Duo in a vice-like grip, and the Japanese man buried his face in the other man's chest as he let his tension flow out of him in a torrent of tears, such as he had never allowed himself to indulge in. Duo rocked him and held him tightly through it all.
The braided man smiled as he felt Heero's breathing evening out and his lover's dead weight in his arms. "Let it all out, Heero, and never look back," he whispered, rubbing his cheek against the other man's soft, tousled hair.
~*~
The hall was packed.
It had been all over the news since the announcement, made just in time for the six o'clock Evening News broadcasts- following the day's explosive events, neither Chancellor Peacecraft nor Master Winner of WEI had made any official comments, but both would be appearing the next morning, promising to answer as many questions as they could, in a joint news conference at the Chancellor's palace in New Port City. No one could remember the last time they had been so in the dark over what was going to be said!
From their positions behind the speaker's podium, Trowa, Wufei, Sally, Heero and Duo could see the entire room and were amusing themselves by picking out the security people, interspersed through the crowd of reporters and dignitaries. They straightened smartly, though, as a side door opened and Lady Une joined them, in her crisp uniform. "Everything is set."
Trowa nodded to her. "Good- let's get this over with."
She looked to the others for approval and, getting a nod from each, she went back through the door. Trowa watched her leave and patted the pistol hidden in his waistband reflexively. He still didn't like this, but he had become resigned to the idea that he was not going to like it, whenever it happened.
He just wished that Quatre didn't have to be at center stage for it!
The door opened again, and the buzzing level of sound in the room quieted completely as Lady Une reappeared, this time trailed by both Relena Peacecraft and Quatre Winner, both dressed in appropriately dark attire, out of respect for those who had died the day before. Quatre and Une moved directly to the seats prepared for them, but Relena went straight to the podium.
Her serious gaze swept the room before she took a deep breath and began. "Thank you for coming, ladies and gentlemen, on such short notice. I assure you- we did not give out the answers you were looking for yesterday, but such answers will be provided today, given that you respect our request that questions be posed in a civilised manner.
"Now, I would like to run through a complete timeline of the events, the end of which you all witnessed yesterday. I have spoken with Master Winner," she gestured to the silent blond, seated near her, "and at one point in the narration, he will take over the story."
She took a sip of water and clutched at the podium to hide the shaking of her hands. "On the day Genesis went through its final testing and analysis, the chief of security at the WEI facility became aware of a suspicious warble on their security logs- for those of you who are not familiar with the term, a warble is an electronic signal that appears on a security long when an intrusion attempt is made unsuccessfully. Due to the sensitivity of the project and the nature of the material being designed, Mr. Winner immediately took steps to increase project security. Even still, there was an attempt made to break into the facility and steal the plans for the Genesis Martian Shield, again unsuccessful, thanks to Quatre's efforts."
She paused for another sip of water. "It was at this time that the warbles were brought to the Preventers' attention, and were traced to an unlikely source. However the evidence, as you will see in the press releases you shall be in possession of when you leave, was quite clear that the Independence Front was both attempting to steal Genesis and had dropped off the map both politically and actively. We began digging at that point in time.
"The situation became dire when Mr. Winner and his staff came to Earth for the final project briefing to the Senate," Relena said, her voice reaching to every corner of the room. "I would like to ask Mr. Winner to discuss the events that followed. Quatre?"
The blond was careful not to fidget as he took his place behind the podium. "Thank you, Chancellor. I must emphasize that my security team kept the project under tight surveillance, ladies and gentlemen, and that we had anticipated another attempt to steal Genesis that would be made at some point in time during the presentation. As you know, Genesis was approved by the Senate. That night, another attempt was made to steal the Genesis project.
"The information stolen from my suite was falsified. Unbeknownst to myself, the security staff had taken extra steps to guard the information, which included locking up the real information without my knowledge and planting older information, containing a more unstable version of the Genesis shield, in case the intruder was successful. He was."
Quatre took a sip of water. "It was at this point in time that large purchases of titanium and other metals were made by dummy corporations around the world, all traceable to the Independence Front. The Gundam pilots were called in to consult when it became apparent that Genesis would be used to augment the shields and weapons on a new set of mobile suits, and the new Gundams were commissioned." A tremor of sound had passed through the room at the mention of 'Gundam pilots' and 'Gundams,' but silence was quickly restored.
"You know much of the rest already, including the bombing of my research facility in Space and my consequent disappearance from public view. I now wish to discuss the events of yesterday morning." The room was completely silent as Quatre took a deep breath. "A few days before, in an effort to compromise the government at its highest level, Miss Dumoulin had ordered the kidnapping of Lady Une's ward, Mariemeia Kushrenada. She then tried to force Lady Une to reveal Miss Relena's whereabouts, so as to wipe out the government and step into her place. Upon consultation with the pilots and with the Chancellor, Lady Une informed Miss Dumoulin that Relena Peacecraft would be leaving for a trip to one of my holdings on L4 on the shuttle you all saw explode yesterday morning. She obviously wasn't there," he added, with a slight grin.
As the light chuckle that passed through the crowd died down, Quatre continued, "Winner Enterprises funded and provided supplies for a team that constructed the Gundams you all saw yesterday, given input from the pilots and an Executive Order authorizing the operation, granted by Chancellor Peacecraft. Three pilots, with their new suits, waited in ambush for the Front's Genesis-class suits to attack, and then counter-attacked, as you all know, and won. In the meantime, the other two pilots accompanied Lady Une and a Preventer team in the recovery of young Mariemeia, before the Front's headquarters were destroyed by Gundam 04."
He smiled as Relena stood and took the podium again. She took in the white, disbelieving faces of the people around her and almost laughed as she asked, "Any questions?"
Several hands shot into the air, and she pointed to one man, who stood and gave her a respectful bow. "Why was the Senate not informed of the Executive Order and the threat that prompted it, Chancellor?"
She answered, "It was imperative to strictly guard the information and the plans being made, not to mention the identities of the pilots, themselves. Under section four of the Constitution, sub-paragraph fifteen C, I was within my rights as Chancellor to authorize the project. Next question, please."
More hands shot up, and Relena pointed to another man, who respectfully asked, "If you could not trust your own Senate, why did you trust Master Winner with the information?"
Relena sighed. "Mr. Winner helped us to compile the intelligence data, and has been in on numerous high-sensitivity projects in the past. We value both his opinion and his integrity at the highest level." The pilots smirked at her use of the royal 'we.' You had to hand it to Relena- she knew how to handle the press!
Another hand shot up, and everyone seated on the platform held their breath as they anticipated the next question: "Who are the Gundam pilots?"
Relena smiled dangerously. "I suppose it would be impossible for me to ask that you respect their wish for privacy, wouldn't it?" She sighed as almost every face in her audience seemed to flash indignant stares at her at the very idea. "They are here today and right in front of you. Please stand as I call your name- pilot of Gundam Wing, designation 01, Heero Yuy. Pilot of Gundam Deathscythe, designation 02, Duo Maxwell. Pilot of Gundam Heavyarms, designation 03, Trowa Barton. Pilot of Gundam Shenlong, designation 05, Chang Wufei. Pilot of Gundam Sandrock, designation 04, Quatre Raberba Winner."
The noise level in the room had been steadily rising as, one by one, the pilots stood, flashes blinding them as several hundred cameras went off simultaneously. But as Quatre's name was announced, the din rose to an almost unbearable level. The blond rose to his feet- he couldn't help smirking at the open looks of disbelief on the faces he saw!
The five pilots shared rueful looks as the press conference dissolved into a shouting match. Relena was ineffectively calling for order and calm to be restored- no one was listening as every reporter and dignitary present stood and began talking at the same time. With a roll of his eyes, Quatre stepped back up to the podium and brought his fist down with a sharp crack against the wood. Heads turned and eyes widened as people looked on Quatre Winner in a new light. He was no longer just a billionaire business genius- he was a Gundam pilot. Silence fell.
Quatre gave a small smile of thanks as Relena stepped back to let him have the podium. "You've probably got many questions for me- as long as you promise to respect the etiquette of this conference, I will answer as many as I can." He pointed to a young woman in the front row, whose hand had shot into the air.
She blushed as she stood. "Mr. Winner, why did you keep this news from the world? We had a right to know who was responsible..."
Quatre interrupted her, "Miss, let me tell you something about rights. Yes, you wanted to know who we were, but I want to ask you all to step back for just a second. Imagine that- imagine you never knew who your parents were, for any number of reasons. Because you grew up in a mercenary corps, because you lived on the street, and later in a church orphanage, because you were adopted by a mad scientist who decided to use you as his personal science project. Imagine that you lived on a colony, every day in fear for your life, watching the Federation's violence up close. Imagine... that everything you've ever loved in your life has been taken from you, everyone you've loved killed right in front of you. Imagine that you never even were given a chance to live- that you existed to follow orders and die, if necessary, on command. If you can imagine all those things, then maybe you will understand what I say next.
"Now imagine that you've fought a war and won." Tears filled Quatre's aquamarine eyes. "The pain, the fear, the danger, the torture- it's all over, and you have a chance at a new life. That was the chance we were given, and we all reached for it with both hands." He gestured to the other pilots, standing behind him. "If you think we wanted to have to fight again, you are mistaken. There is nothing that any of us could have wanted more than to leave that part of our lives behind us forever."
Another man stood to address Quatre, waiting respectfully until the blond acknowledged him. "But... you're all so young! You couldn't have been older than sixteen during the War!"
Quatre shot the man a smirk. "Fifteen, actually, when the war started. We were young- we still are."
The man nodded. "Too young, perhaps, for the responsibility you held!"
Quatre's eyes flashed. "Was it any fairer that the weight of the World government fell on Miss Relena's shoulders? We are the same age, sir."
Another reporter's hand caught Quatre's attention, and he pointed to the girl. She stood and asked, "Mr. Winner, you mentioned such terrible things that, we can only assume, are the other pilots' stories. What about you? Why would someone who, to all appearances, had everything he could ever want, become a terrorist?"
Quatre was acutely aware of Trowa's presence behind him, supporting him, as he took a deep breath and prepared to answer. "There are two viewpoints, Miss, and mine was the second. True- my comrades were confronted by the injustice of colonial rule every day. And what was I doing? I was watching from afar- I was being told that none of that mattered in my world, because I was far away from it. Because I could buy my way into favour and out of trouble. Because money was power. It was a rude awakening to find, at age thirteen, that you were living on broken backs, a false peace that your every action was making worse. I had everything I wanted- food whenever I wanted it, but how many people in the colonies, not to mention on Earth, counted themselves lucky to eat even once a day? And I was being told to ignore it, because it wasn't worth my time or regard! It was wrong!"
Quatre's hands clenched the podium tightly. "You ask why I chose the fight- it was because I knew from personal experience just how much the colonial government cared about the people it was supposed to be protecting! And I could not be a part of it!"
The room was silent for a moment, before another man's hand slowly snaked into the air. As Quatre pointed to the man, he stood and gave a respectful nod of his head. "Are you going to resign as Chairman of WEI?"
Quatre blinked hard. "I don't see any reason to do so. I worked very hard to keep Winner Enterprises and my life as a Gundam pilot as two separate entities. I love the Colonies and Earth, but I also love my family, and I hold my obligation to them and to my employees and customers close to my heart. You see me now- I am the same person you saw here a half hour ago. I ask you, on behalf of all us pilots- let us leave the past behind! I am not ashamed of the role I played in the war, as much as I regret the actions I was forced to take. I don't think any of us will ever get past our nightmares and doubts, the fear that still wakes us if a car door slams out in the street. But I ask you this- are we evil people? Are we monsters? If you had been in our place, would you have been able to live with yourself if you hadn't done as we did?"
Relena put a supportive hand on his shoulder and sent her serious, intent gaze out over the captivated audience. "If I might, I'd like to remind you all that these young men voluntarily revealed their identities to you. They were not forced to do this. They have saved our lives several times over and, regardless of the things they have done in the past, I ask you to take that into account. I can think of no other group that has given as much in service to the world. Thank you."
Everyone began shouting as the five pilots, Sally, Une and Relena turned and left out a side door.
The door firmly shutting the noise out behind them, all eyes swung to Quatre as he leaned against the wall on crossed arms, his face buried in his jacket sleeve. Duo moved to the blond's side and rubbed reflexively at tense shoulders. "Cat? You okay in there?"
The blond finally looked up and gave a weary smile. "Yeah- I think so. Allah- all we can do right now is wait. Damn!"
Trowa moved to his side and let the blond lean against his shoulder. "They just might forgive us- that was a pretty good speech."
Quatre's mind was already on the future, though. "My stock is going to take a serious beating..."
Wufei snorted. "You and your damned stock! How about your life, Winner?!"
The blond shot his friend a look. "I was raised to take my place in this company, Wufei."
Heero's head came up. "And if, for the well-being of the company, you had to step back from your role and hand it over to one of your sisters, would you do it?"
Quatre's head came around with an audible snap and his eyes focused on the Japanese man. "I'm being given a lesson in obligation by the guy who self-destructed for the Colonies! Of course I would!"
Duo shook his head. "You missed the point, Q- what he meant was, you care about WEI, and everyone knows it. They'd be idiots if they wanted anyone but you at their head... as long as you don't arrive for board meetings with a mobile suit. CEO's who really care are hard to come by."
From their spot by the television, Relena and Dorothy called the others over. "Breaking news- we're on!"
The pilots crowded close.
They all recognized the young reporter onscreen- they had just seen her in the conference room. "More fireworks this morning, when Chancellor Relena Peacecraft and WEI Chairman Quatre Winner spoke to a crowd of reporters and dignitaries, minutes ago." The screen cut to a replay of Relena, naming the pilots, the camera focusing on each of them individually before coming to rest on Quatre as his name was given. The voice over started back up, "One can only ask what other surprises the government has in store for us! There is already talk of Mr. Winner's resignation, as well as severe criticisms of both Miss Relena and Lady Une of the Preventers for concealing the Gundam pilots' identities for so long, but one must ask a few questions. As Mr. Winner himself said, in a rather emotional speech, how would we have measured up against these five young men, under similar circumstances, and, given the great service they have done us all, do we not owe them the right to live their lives with some semblance of normalcy? The next few hours will tell."
Quatre tossed his hands in the air. "How come it's so easy for her to get the words out!"
"Because she has an entire station of writers telling her what to say, Quatre," Relena responded dryly. "She sounded pretty sympathetic. Good sign."
~*~
Une was surprised to find Mariemeia in her office as she closed the door, but she managed a smile. "What's up, little one?"
The girl was trying to be brave, though her bottom lip was trembling slightly. It was the first time the two had been alone together in quite a long time. "Um, would you mind... can we talk a second?"
Une nodded and sat quickly, pulling the girl close by her side. "What is it, Mei?"
The redhead didn't meet her eyes, but gesture to the television. "He said- he called me your ward. But you called me your daughter yesterday..." Her fumbling words stopped and fearful blue eyes swung up to meet Une's. "Who am I, really?"
Une swallowed a smile at the question, forcing herself to be serious. "Mei... I had wanted to tell you the truth for a long time now. I really did. I loved your father... he was more important than anything else on Earth to me. And we thought... I should start at the beginning."
She took a deep breath, her eyes locking with her daughter's. "Treize and I almost got married. We loved each other so much... But I can't have kids. My body is too weak for it- some sort of weird medical condition. So we decided to try it another way- Leia Barton, who was a good friend of ours, consented to carry you for us. Since I couldn't... we found someone who could. But your grandfather..." Une's eyes flashed in anger and sorrow as she choked up.
Mariemeia's hands were cold as she spoke up in a weak voice. "He found out and he killed her, didn't he? He took me from you... and you never knew. My father never knew!"
Tears slipped down Une's cheeks. "He would have loved you, Mei! He would have thought you were the most precious thing in the world! We would have stayed together..."
"Mom," Mariemeia whispered, her own eyes spilling hot tears down her face. She threw her arms around Une and squeezed.
Une clutched at the trembling girl. "I love you, Mei, I love you so much..."
Mariemeia's breath hitched in her throat as she pulled back to give the brown eyed woman a warm smile. "I love you, too... Mom."
~*~
"Well, it's been a day of surprises, folks! After today's surprise news conference at the Palace in New Port City and the revelation of the identities of the Gundam pilots, most notably that of Mr. Quatre Winner himself..." Cathy waved the others over excitedly. "Another announcement! Get over here!"
Quatre and Trowa were at her side in seconds.
The reporter continued, "... can only imagine the difficulty of the choice to go public with this news. It may well prove to be the best decision young Winner has ever made. After a slight stumble of WEI stock, immediately following the announcement, the company's holdings soared in value, jumping nearly twenty points in a day..."
"Ooph!" Quatre laughed as he was engulfed in two bear hugs at the same time and Catherine laughed happily.
"You see?" She waved at the screen, where pictures of the five pilots were once again being flashed. "And you were all worried! They love you guys!"
The blond relaxed back into the arm Trowa had around his shoulders. "How was I supposed to know? I'm not a God, you know!"
Catherine snorted. "Glad to hear you accepting that as a fact! Trowa was dead right about you."
Quatre cocked an eyebrow. "Was he? What did he say?"
She smiled saucily, ignoring her brother's urgent shake of the head. "Oh, he just said that you need to let other people help you out more often- you take on too much."
Quatre turned his look on his blushing boyfriend. "You think I'm a control freak?"
Trowa managed not to laugh out loud, discussing this in front of his sister. "What do you think?"
A devilish grin lit the blond's face. "I think you've got to cure me of that."
Catherine laughed as she back away from the couple. "Alright, you two! I get the hint- I'm outta here. Have fun!" She winked at them as she closed the door.
Trowa and Quatre gave each other disbelieving looks before they both burst out laughing. Trowa finally regained enough control to laugh out, "Heaven help the person who falls for your innocent act, Cat!"
The blond attempted a hurt look. "You wound me, Trowa!" His expression slid a bit, though as his arms tightened around his lover's waist. "You're right, though. I need to learn control- better than I've got it right now."
"Quatre..."
"It isn't good for me- it isn't good for us." Quatre stared up into Trowa's eyes. "I'm going to talk to Sally- she can probably recommend someone to talk to. What do you think?"
Trowa smiled. "It's a good choice, Cat. I'm proud of you, you know."
The blond's expression turned playful again. "Glad to hear it. Now show me."
Trowa tsked as he squeezed his lover tightly. "None of that! I thought I was the one giving the orders now! You will do as you are told!"
Quatre smiled as innocently as he could manage. "As you wish."
~*~
Cathy smiled to herself as she pulled her ear from the door and walked off down the corridor. She was proud of both of them, but, as proud as she was, she had no wish to hear any more!
~*~
Trowa kissed the smaller man thoroughly, leaving Quatre both breathless and slightly dizzy by the time he pulled back. He smiled into the slightly dilated aquamarine eyes and flushed face. "Take off your clothes, Quatre."
The blond pilot wordlessly stepped back and reached for the buttons of his shirt, his eyes never leaving Trowa's. The green-eyed man barely stopped himself from groaning out loud- while Quatre was not really doing a striptease, the sheer sensuality of his movements, the sculpted look of him, usually kept hidden under his business attire, excited the circus performer more than he would have been able to say. He stepped forward as Quatre kicked his trousers and boxers away and slowly circled the blond, the fingers of one hand trailing slowly over exposed skin. "Very nice, Quatre." He stopped behind the other man and slowly moved forward until their bodies were just barely touching, and spoke again, his hot breath running over the back of Quatre's neck. "Very nice, indeed."
"Trowa..." Quatre bit his lip- this was not his game. All the same, the heat of his lover's body behind him and the coarse texture of the fabric the other man was still wearing against his skin ... It took everything in the small blond not to turn and demand to be touched...
Trowa smiled to himself as he watched the effect his teasing was having. He leaned in close and pressed a kiss to the back of Quatre's neck, his eye slipping closed as he pressed a line of kisses and nibbles along the base of the other man's neck.
Quatre couldn't hold back a small moan as he felt Trowa rubbing against him, but he was still aching to be touched by more than lips, and the green-eyed man was enjoying making him squirm. "Allah-Trowa, please..."
A hand smacked his rear, making him jump both in surprise and enjoyment, and Trowa purred, "I'll decide when to do what I want to do, thanks." The lips teasing him parted and Trowa bit Quatre's shoulder gently, flicking his tongue over the red mark he left there. "You taste good, Cat."
"Trowa..." Quatre whimpered in disappointment as the heat behind him pulled back, yet it returned almost immediately. Trowa's bare chest pressed against his back as two long arms wrapped around him and pulled him back into their embrace. He could feel the hardness still encased in the green-eyed pilot's tight jeans, rubbing against him in a slowly rocking rhythm, and he tried to turn-
"Uh-uh. Not allowed!" Trowa stepped away from him, and it took everything in Quatre not to turn and pounce on his lover. He gasped in surprise, though, as something was wrapped over his eyes, taking his sight away.
Trowa grinned as he stepped back again and he watched- Quatre was reaching around himself blindly, a smile tugging at his lips. He quickly stripped off his remaining clothing as he moved silently to stand right in front of Quatre, waiting patiently to be discovered.
Quatre could feel the heat of another body, and he reached for it with both hands. Trowa's skin was warm and soft under his fingers, covering tight, powerful muscles. The blond ran his hands over the chest he found, up to Trowa's neck and then slowly down again.
Quatre gasped as he realized that his lover was naked as well, and his hands fell lower and unerringly found their prize.
Trowa groaned as Quatre touched him. "Jesus, Cat!" His hands clenched into fists in the effort not to touch the Arabian, but he was not going to let Quatre have that... yet. He thrust into the stroking hands, unable to stop himself.
But as Quatre moved to kiss him, he pulled away, biting his lip in order not to crush the blond in his arms and never let go. "Tell me what you want, Quatre."
The blond stopped moving, his breath shuddering shallowly in his chest. "You. I want you, Trowa. Now."
The green eyed man bit back another moan at the words. "Is that all?" Drawing close again, he flicked the tip of his tongue against the sensitive skin of Quatre's neck.
The blond gasped, his cock twitching in response and open need. "I want to be touched and loved. Trowa..."
"Sh!" Trowa said, covering Quatre's lips with a fingertip. The blond promptly forgot the rules and sucked the digit into his mouth, simultaneously pulling Trowa closer with one hand and finding the other man's cock with the other and stroking. Trowa's words dissolved into a groan. He gave up any idea of control as his arms closed around Quatre and lifted him bodily- he was across the room in seconds to their bed, depositing his lover carefully before joining him and kissing him immediately, deeply, one hand pinning both of the blond man's wrists above his head.
His hands still pinned, Quatre could feel Trowa moving over him, feel the silken caress of lips sliding over his skin and the wet heat of a tongue dancing, swirling... "God, Trowa! Please..."
Trowa ground his hips forward, thrusting against his lover so that both of them cried out, and he reached for the tube of lubricant in the nightstand silently. "Please what, Quatre?"
As he thrust his hips again, though, Quatre was reduced to small, whimpering sounds, and Trowa grinned widely, biting his lip to keep from moaning as he coated his cock in the slippery substance. He knew exactly what Quatre wanted- and it was what he wasn't going to get... yet.
Quatre groaned in surprise and need as he felt Trowa's cock at his entrance, and he swung his legs around the other man, opening himself completely to the invasion. Forcing his body to relax, he felt a shiver of lust as his lover entered him achingly slowly, still holding his wrists tightly in one hand. "Trow-ahhh..."
The brown-haired man moaned as he was slowly enveloped in the tight heat of his lover. "Oh Jesus- Quatre... Qua-tre..." He thrust harder and harder into the smaller man, feeling his control slipping away faster each second. He released Quatre's hands and wrapped his arms around the blond's torso, hands sliding down to his hips and Trowa lifted, immobilizing the other man.
Each thrust was hitting his prostate, and Quatre felt his helplessness acutely, gasping for breath as each invasion sent stars dancing through his mind. "Trowa! Please... more..."
He screamed as a hand finally wrapped itself around his cock and began pumping in time with Trowa's nearly frantic thrusts. Quatre came almost immediately, his entire body singing out-
"QUATRE! God- Quatre!" Trowa followed him almost immediately.
As Trowa relaxed back into the bed next to his lover, he gently undid the blindfold and smiled down into the eyes that were smiling up at him. "I like seeing your eyes."
Quatre hugged Trowa hard, his breathing still ragged. "I love you, too, Trowa." He gently leaned in for a slow, sweet kiss.
Spent, the two simply held each other.
TBC...
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