Gundam Wing: The First Chapter Part 21
"Milliardo, I'll see you on the other side," Treize smiled softly before his eyes closed. All around him, sparks from Tallgeese's controls filled his cockpit before the white mobile suit was taken in a large ball of flames.
Watching with wide eyes below the explosion, Wufei shouted, "Treize!" When the explosion faded, the Chinese pilot's eyes squeezed closed as he raised a tight fist, yelling, "Damn it!" Slamming his fist down to his control paned, tears fell between his closed eyes as Wufei whispered in a pained voice, "I didn't think I'd win."
* * * * * *
Standing in her maroon uniform, Lady Une walked towards the large monitor of the satellite M.O.2 from where she watched the horrendous battle that was taking place around her. One of the soldiers at the controls behind her frowned as he informed her quietly, "We've connected with the White Fang on Libra and the Colony Delegation, Lady Une. We're ready to transmit your message when you are."
With a firm nod and tears in her eyes, Lady Une stood straight and tall with her hands as she took a deep breath. In a clear, firm voice, she announced to all listening, "I, Cornel Lady Une, on behalf of the World Nation, hereby announce our defeat. " Her glistening eyes narrowed as she warned, "This, battle, however is not yet over. Heaven help those who oppose the few still fighting for what's right! They will not be as merciful as we would have been! And to the Colony Delegation, I call for a formal announcement so that once and for all, we will finally know where you stand in this fight!"
* * * * * *
Commander Dalton's golden cup slipped from his loosened fingers onto to the red carpet of one of the guest lounges. As the dark wine within the glass stained the floor below his luxurious chair, the young OZ leader asked in a hushed, threatening tone, "What did you say?"
The pale soldier standing before him answered, "Demetris-"at his voice cracking, he cleared his throat nervously before continuing, "Demetris left the Colony along with Capricorn when the rebels came. He... he said that he had a bad feeling about this and he wasn't being paid enough to stay and die."
With a loud cry of rage, the blonde man rose to his feet quickly. Looking away from the frightened soldier, he began to pace the floor like a wild animal, panting heavily. Taking a deep breath, the pale officer spoke quietly, "Commander... the World Nation announced their defeat and proposed for the Colonies to unite and announce their own stance in this war."
Pausing in his footsteps, Dalton's brown eyes narrowed thinly as he looked to his messenger. Turning sharply on his heels, stalked towards the windows opposite of him. Looking up to the sky, he watched the ongoing struggle raging between the rebels and his men. As far as he could see, mobile suits from his troops along with those from the rebels filled the heavens. Mason continued to lead the attack without signs of slowing down. While there was little ground gained by his enemies, Dalton knew that he underestimated them by thinking that they would not have lasted this long.
Glaring up at the battle, he thought aloud, "As long as we hold them back, the Colony Delegation can make no such announcement. They need all Colonies to be free and united in their decision." Turning back to his officer, Dalton continued, "We still have dominion over more than fifty other Colonies that have not been liberated by those rebels as of today. Once we wipe out this threat, we'll regain those Colonies that were lost. From there, the White Fang will be easy for OZ to crush. But everything rides on what happens here."
Just then, his brown eyes widened as they filled with realization as his lips parted slightly. Without warning, he turned quickly and walked towards his door with hurried steps as he yelled back to his officer, "I want that minx brought to my private office! I'll want a full update on where the battle stands when I'm finished with her!" With a hasty salute, the soldier ran through the door behind the Commander as they parted ways down the main hall.
* * * * * *
With the loud explosions overhead ringing louder than before, Dalton's eyes narrowed as he watched three of his guards enter his private office on the mansion's top, fifteenth floor. Rising to his feet, he met them in the center of the room. The soldier at the front stepped aside as the two guards behind him roughly threw their prisoner before the Commander. Landing on her side with a sharp grunt of pain, Kumi struggled to lean onto her elbow with her wrists tied tightly behind her back. Her bruised face looked up with narrowed cobalt eyes while a line of blood ran down the side of her mouth.
Leaning forward, the blonde Commander's own brown eyes thinned as he growled in a low hiss, "You're up to something, even now as you're sprawled out before me." At those words, the Japanese pilot's eyes never lost their intensity, but slowly, a wicked smirk tugged the cut corner of her lips. With an enraged cry, Dalton lunged forward, grapping the front of her purple tank top and hurling her to her feet instantly. Tugging her that way against him until their noses nearly touched, he shouted, "You came here as a distraction! You knew that getting to me last night wouldn't work! What are you hiding?!"
In his grasp as he panted heavily in her face, Kumi's smirk grew to the other side of her face as she chuckled deeply. "What's the matter, Dalton," she asked quietly. "I thought someone as confident as you never broke a sweat. You are, after all, the Commander of the OZ organization..." Her voice gave another low chuckle as she added, "Or what's left of it."
Dalton's eyes widened before narrowing threateningly before he threw her back into the arms of two of his soldiers. Stepping back as the two men held the silver-haired pilot to her feet, the blonde Commander removed a piston from his belt and aimed it at her with a click from the safety being removed. Speaking slowly, he ordered, "I want to know why you really came here."
Stealing a quick glance at her right wrist, Kumi noted her small digital watch click down to 00:09. Looking back into the young man's burning gaze with a sinister grin as she replied calmly, "You'll have your answer in less than nine seconds."
With wide eyes, Dalton's arm lowered. Looking to his soldiers, he shouted, "Get down!" In that instant, the Commander ran towards his desk as Kumi quickly took advantage of the shocked and confused men holding her. Shoving herself forcefully into the three guards to knock them off balance, she managed to break from their grasp. As the first explosion filled the air, she took shelter in the large wooden doorframe as the mansion violently shook around them. A chain of loud crashes followed the first as the main fuel line that was linked to the detonator placed the night before was ignited. The ceiling to the mansion began to crack as large blocks of granite fell all around. Unable to steady themselves on account of the trembling ground, the three guards shouted as they tried to find shelter.
Miles above, the battle came to a near halt as the deafening repercussions from the explosions captured the shocked attention of those above. Sette's eyes widened as she watched in awe as the immense fortress of metal below erupted in flames. A wide smile spread on her face as relief filled her blue eyes before they narrowed in anticipation. "There's our break!" she shouted through her intercom. At that, she soared Mason through her opponents. Behind her, Matt and a large fleet of their army broke their way through their shocked enemies as they shot for the mansion.
Dalton coughed violently as he pushed his way past the debris that had fallen from the ceiling, he made his way from under his desk. When he climbed to the top of the pile of rock and metal, his eyes squinted through the cloud of smoke and the bright, artificial sunlight now shining on what was once his office. The three guards that had been in the room had been crushed from the rubble.
Slowly, a slender form made its way towards him, then stopped just a few short feet away. A cold, flat voice spoke, "Commander Dalton, you are hereby under arrest. Any resistance, and I won't hesitate to shoot you." As the dust cleared with a gentle breeze, he looked upon Kumi as she stood before him with narrowed cobalt eyes and a pistol aimed for his head.
Rising to his feet, the blonde man chuckled deeply as he smiled and shook his head. "You... you and that other bitch," the Commander hissed, "After all of this, you expect me to rot in as a prisoner of war behind bars the rest of my life?"
Clinking off the safety from the pistol in her right hand, Kumi replied flatly, "There are other options."
Laughing with his head falling back, Dalton took a moment before meeting her eyes again. "You're right about that," he nodded as he stepped backwards, never looking from the silver-haired pilot. With a wicked smirk, he concluded, "I'll see you in Hell." Without hesitation, he leapt over the exposed ledge behind him.
Running to the edge, Kumi watched with wide eyes as the blonde man fell from the great height into the flames rising from the continuous explosions below. Releasing a deep sigh, the Japanese pilot looked up just as Mason approached from above. As the Gundam hovered before her, Sette's voice spared any greeting as she informer her partner, "We have a team moving through the mansion to collect any surviving Assembly members inside."
Jumping into Mason's opened tight hand, Kumi nodded, "Good. Just get me to Excalibur so we can finish this." With an affirmative reply, Sette took them through the fiery remains of the OZ fortress.
* * * * * *
As they ran through into Quason's control room, Kumi and Sette panted as a young pilot approached them. "We've confirmed the breakdown of OZ's military on the remaining Colonies that they occupied," he confirmed. Both Kumi and Sette's eyes widened at the announcement. Smiling at their shock, the young soldier answered their unspoken question, "I know that we were to head there immediately, but another large army of liberators beat us to the punch. The army was organized and led by King Devion. The moment he heard of the movement here and his daughter's involvement, he took immediate action."
Gasping sharply, Sette's eyes widened as a wide smile spread on her lips. With a loud cheer, she leapt into the air and cheered loudly, "That's my Daddy!" She continued to laugh and cheer as she ran through the control room, hugging people at random.
Releasing a shuddery breath, Kumi whispered to herself, "We did it... All of the Colonies are finally free..." Behind her, Matt smiled to himself as he leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed.
With a nod, the messenger continued, "King Devion sent a message that he would like to assure us that the Colony Delegation with be making an official announcement of support for the Gundam pilots and their disgust at groups such as the White Fang who wish to threaten peace."
Still overtaken by the sheer disbelief that their long struggle was finally over, Kumi could only give a small nod as the exhaustion that had she had hidden finally made its make on her face. "Thank you, Pierce," the silver-haired pilot replied in a soft sigh as she placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it. Saluting her out of respect, Pierce smiled warmly before walking off.
Glowing with pride and joy, Sette bounced beside her partner with a wide grin. Slapping Kumi's back, the tomboy cheered, "We really did it, Kumi! We did the impossible!"
A small smirk fell on the Japanese pilot's lips as she nodded, "Hai." Her smile faded into a curious glance as she asked, "Sette, you said that before you stole Mason from H7 because your father refused to allow you to pilot it, right?"
Her smile never fading, the princess shrugged and laughed, "Yea. Stole it right from under his scientists' noses. I told my father I was going on a personal trip to visit with some of the Colony leaders near the Earth. Why?"
Raising an eyebrow, Kumi smirked at her friend, "Oh, I just thought that you might want to think of a pretty good explanation for him during our trip back, now that he knows what you've really been up to, and where his Gundam disappeared."
Not having considered that, Sette's eyes widened as she shoulders slackened with an, "Oh shit."
* * * * * *
Moments later, a voice from rang out, reaching all ears throughout Space and the Earth. "In accordance with the declaration of defeat by the World Nations, we, the Colony Delegation have an announcement from all Colonies. We wish to pursue the withdraw of the White Fang's demands, and hereby announce our desire to coexist with the World Nation. We further declare our rejection of any combat, regardless of the reason,, and strongly hope that the World Nation will follow in suit. We would also like to apologize for the suffering endured by many people as a result of our unclear stance."
And just like that, one half of the war was over.
* * * * * *
Looking up to the power supply in Libra, Heero told himself quietly, "Here it is." As he powered down and stored away Wing Zero's laser blade, he sighed inwardly at the relief of knowing that he all he needed to do was destroy it to take out the large ship.
Commanding his suit's shoulder barrels to take aim, he pulled back the trigger. The dull clicking of the barrels as they cycled on their mounts filled the air without one shot fired. Not one bullet was spared for a safe way to trigger the power supply. Heero's cobalt eyes narrowed. Slamming a fist into his controls, he growled deeply to himself. There was always a chance this would happen, however, it didn't make matters any easier.
Regaining his composure, the Wing pilot's mind relayed his next move, 'My only choice is the self-detonation device.' At that conclusion, he took hold of the small detonator stored away and always ready for this moment.
Clutching the detonator in his right hand, Heero's head was lowered and his eyes were closed as he thought to himself, 'Farewell, Relena.' Silently, he hoped that the last discussion they had would be enough to help her do whatever was needed when the war was over. Taking a deep breath, he reached up to his controls with his free hand. Flipping a small switch, he opened his connection to the other Gundam suits through his comm link.
Panting heavily, Duo looked to his handiwork in attempting to break down as much of Libra's Block A as possible. Wiping sweat from his brow, he frowned in concern, hoping silently that what he and the others were doing would be enough. His thoughts were interrupted when a familiar voice spoke, "Trowa, Quatre, Wufei, I've reached the power source here in Libra."
Gasping with a wide, relieved smile, Duo shouted, "Heero! You know, you never cease to amaze me, man! So fire a few shots and let's get the hell out of here!" There was a pause of silence over the airwave. At that moment, the braided pilot felt his heart leap into his throat. Something was wrong.
Faintly, Heero released a shuddery breath before his voice replied quietly, "Duo... Thank you for everything. Take care of yourself when this is all over." Paling at those words, Duo's lips parted as his violet eyes widened in horror.
The Wing pilot frowned sadly as the American's nervous voice asked, "Heero? What's going on?" Grasping the detonator in his hand even tighter, Heero closed his eyes, unable to answer.
In his own cockpit, Duo's eyes widened further with realization as he gasped sharply. "No! You're going to self-detonate Wing again, aren't you!?" he yelled.
Closing his eyes as he lowered his head, Heero frowned, "It's my only option, Duo. We're almost out of time." Funny... there was a sharp pain in his chest that he never felt before.
From where they watched on M.O. 2, Lady Une, Sally Poe and Relena watched in horror as Libra continued to fall towards the Earth. The soldier in charge of the main controls shouted, "Two hundred seconds before Libra's Block A enters the atmosphere!" Wide-eyed, Relena's breath caught in her throat as the same man yelled, "We're out of time!"
For some reason that he didn't understand, Heero's hand was trembling slightly as he raised it before himself. With his thumb moving over the red button, he whispered, "Until we meet again... Duo."
Sitting up in his seat, Duo's wide eyes narrowed slightly as he screamed, "You listen to me, we'll never be another meeting if you go through with this, Heero! You got that!?" The Japanese pilot's unruly bangs fell in his eyes as his frown deepened in sorrow. Hearing the harshness in his lover's voice, his thumb never moving from the detonator's trigger as Duo's voice continued to shout, "If you're going to end it, end it now! You've wanted nothing more for as long as I've known you! But I swear to God, I won't so much as visit your grave!"
Wanting nothing more to jump out of his seat, Duo clenched as he growled deeply, held in place only by his harness. Both hands squeezing their control grips unbearably tightly, the braided pilot's eyes squeezed shut and his head lowered as he hollered, "You can take your thanks for what I've done for you and shove it up your ass! Apparently, none of it meant a fucking thing to you!" Tears began to leak from his closed eyes as he cried, "Goddamn it, I loved you!"
At those words, Heero's thumb slipped from the button as he gasped sharply, his lips parted and his cobalt eyes wide in shock. "Yea, you heard me," Duo's shouting voice continued, "I was in love with you since that night I pulled you from that hospital! And so help me, I'm still in love with you!"
Sitting up in his seat, Heero's eyes widened further at that desperate confession. He was numb. He couldn't even feel the tears running down his cheeks. Everything around him faded suddenly and time no longer existed. "Heero," a faint voice whispered. Gasping softly, the Japanese boy blinked in shocked as his vision was filled with the sight of the braided pilot appeared before him as so many times before.
The naked braided pilot smiled lovingly on him as he wrapped his arms protectively around his partner, whispering, "Don't doubt your emotions now that you've finally started to open to them. Until now, you never knew they existed." Pulling back slightly to smile down on his love, Duo continued quietly, "Heero... You've always said to follow your emotions. Now's your chance to follow your own advice." His voice faded into a faint whisper as he disappeared.
With a small gasp, Heero blinked his tear-filled eyes as he finally noticed a few small floating drops before him. At the sight of them, his eyes widened as his voice asked softly, "Tears?" Bringing a gloved hand to his face, he realized for the first time that he was crying. Looking down to his wet glove in wonder as he pulled it away, the Wing pilot whispered, "I... I was able to cry all along?" After a brief pause, Duo's voice shouted his name through the intercom.
Slamming his gloved fists into his controls, Duo's eyes squeezed closed with tears ran down his face as he sobbed quietly, "Please don't do this. I love you, Heero! " Opening his teary eyes, he narrowed them as he yelled, "After everything that we've been through... after everything that I just said, go ahead and show me how you don't give a shit and push the detonator! Prove to yourself and everyone how much of a machine you are!"
Sitting back in his seat as the floating tears around him dissolved, Heero smiled to himself and dried the last of his heads with a brush of his hand. "We're all waiting!" his lover's voice shouted. "This is you chance to prove yourself to everyone, Heero!" Looking down to the detonator in his other hand, the Japanese pilot moved his thumb from the red button.
From above, Epyon lowered between Wing Zero and the power supply. Gazing on the white Gundam, Zechs said quietly, "There's only one more thing to obtain total peace... a strong heart that can emphasize with people... like yours." Sitting still in his dry cockpit, Heero watched the red suit indifferently. "You're too pure and kind. I guess that's what gives you the right to live." Narrowing his eyes, the blonde man shouted, "Just watch me! I'm gonna live right to the bitter end!"
At that, Zechs stabbed Epyon's laser blade into the heard of the cylinder-shaped power supply. With wide eyes, Heero cried his name in shock. Golden beams poured from the wounded steel as they filled the dimly lit room. Holding his blade in place, the blonde pilot yelled, "I'll live the hard life of a warrior!"
"Zechs, stop it!" the Wing pilot hollered back as he gripped his controls, the light pouring through nearly became blinding through his monitor sensors.
Calmly, the older man's voice replied, "Until we meet again, Heero." Light and heat erupted forth as the room was consumed by the explosion.
* * * * * *
All around Deathscythe, Libra shook violently in testimony that the power supply was destroyed. Gasping with wide, frightened eyes, Duo leaned forward in his seat. Tears still streaming down his cheeks, he screamed over the deafening blast, "Heero!"
* * * * * *
Lady Une, Relena and Sally stood on the satellite with held breaths as they watched a large part of Libra ignite. Before them, one of the soldiers monitoring the ship, "Detonation of power system confirmed!" Before anyone could breathe relief at that news, the young man's startled voice then shouted, "Huh!? One art of the block is still falling! It's not disengaging!
With her eyes widening slightly in fear, Lady Une watched that indeed, a large part of Libra refused to dissolve as it continued to fall for the planet below. "It's going to hit the Earth for sure," she whispered gravely to herself. Raising a hand and sweeping it before her, she cried, "Tell the Gundams to retreat!"
* * * * * *
Walking through a crumbling wall, Heero looked to his monitors and relayed information that there was more than enough of the ship still falling to wipe out life on the Earth. Lowering his head and closing his eyes he said quietly, "Zero, please guide me through this." Slowly, the cockpit around him began to glow the golden light from the Zero system.
Before his Gundam, another wall came crashing down. When the smoke cleared, Nataku stood with Wing Zero's Buster Riffle. Inside his own suit, Wufei smirked, "You forgot this! Take it!" After being thrown into the air, the riffle landed easily in Wing Zero's possession again.
Gripping tightly onto his controls' Heero's eyes narrowed as he growled, "Mission accepted."
* * * * * *
"Look! It's Wing Zero!" a voice shouted from the controls within the satellite observation room. With wide eyes, everyone present watched as the Gundam flew past Libra's remaining block as it entered the Earth atmosphere.
Relena gasped quietly to herself as she blinked in shock, "Heero?" The image of the white suit was almost lost by the red haze caused by its swift descent into the Ozone layer.
"He's not gonna make it," Howard commented quietly.
Placing a hand on her shoulder, Sally replied calmly, "No he'll make it. I think he'll be okay."
One of the officers standing by answered in a concerned voice, "But he's gotta get through the atmosphere's high temperatures."
"From what I have seen, the Gundams can overcome any difficulties," Lady Une smiled in pride as she gazed on the large monitor.
"That's true. I know we can believe in him. Because Heero's the kind of person who can give everybody hope." Her hands tightened around the small, ceramic cottage in her hands.
* * * * * *
"Duo!" Quatre cried as Deathscythe flew past Sandrock, Heavyarms and Shenlong after Libra as the others watched helplessly.
Narrowing his violet eyes, Duo shouted, "Come on, Heero! Knock that goddamn rock out of the sky! I know you can do it!"
Grunting in pain as he struggled to pull back on his controls to life his Buster Riffle, Heero's eyes remained narrowed on the sight of the falling block above him. At the sound of his lover's voice, he called inwardly. Groaning loudly as his suit's arm slowly began to rise, he's strained voice cried out as his scanner shakily tried to stay locked on target. With sweat dripping from his brow, the Wing pilot "Duo... This is if for you... for both of us."
With another loud cry, Heero raised the Buster Riffle into its target. As his suit shook violently at the high velocity it fell and the incinerating heat, he worked to hold his mark on target. With his eyes locked on the falling block, the Japanese pilot grunted, "I will..." As the fall worked to keep him from keeping his aim, he gritted his teeth and growled deeply, "I will..." Finally sure in his lock, Heero yelled in a strained voice, "I will survive!" Pulling back on his trigger, he fired Wing Zero's riffle. The golden beam shot forward, taking out the last part of Libra as it shattered into hundreds of thousands of pieces.
The jolt from the blast forced Wing Zero back violently as Heero cried out in pain. Even in his cockpit, he could feel himself plummeting helplessly. With his eyes closed, he prepared himself for the end. Over the deafening shaking of his suit, he head a voice cry, "Heero!"
Slowly opening his cobalt eyes, he another vision of his lover appeared, falling towards him with his eyes filled with fear. "D-...Duo?" he whispered. At that, the braided pilot stretched a hand forward to lift him. A small, relieved smile fell on Heero's lips. Lifting his right arm, he could almost feel their bare skin contact when Duo's hand wrapped around his wrist tightly. Knowing that he was dreaming, the Wing pilot dared not disturb it when the American pulled him up.
Looking up into his partner's glistening violet eyes, Heero smiled at him before sighing and fell into his arms. Feeling Duo's arms wrap around his own naked body, the Japanese youth could feel their bodies come together in a tight embrace.
The war was over. The soldier no longer had any missions waiting for him. The weapon no longer had any targets. And yet, for the first time, Heero felt more worthwhile than he ever had in those strong arms. Raising his arms, he brought his hands to the controls.
As he flew towards the other Gundam pilots, he was vaguely aware of Duo's relieved voice yelling, "He made it!" as he smirked inwardly.
Lifting his head as the sun's light began to shine though his monitor, Heero said quietly, "Mission... complete." Free for the first time in his life, he flew without looking back.
Meanwhile, far below, people gathered in the streets to watch the thousands particles left from Libra streaked the night... like hundreds of falling stars.
* * * * * *
Sighing deeply in content on the satellite, Relena peered out to the Earth as she gazed out one of the craft's large windows. Looking down to the small gift that Heero asked her to hold onto, she smiled sadly to herself, lowering her hand from where it was pressed against the glass. Gently running a finger over where the roof had once been, she whispered, "Heero... I hope that you find happiness with whoever your home is." Her smile brightened a bit as she said quietly, "I'm glad I don't have to return this to them. Whoever they are, they must be special to be so important to you."
Taking a deep breath, she walked over to a small deposit meant for small waste. After dropping the small trinket into the opening, she walked over to the window again. Watching it drift into space, she smiled warmly, "Good luck... both of you."
* * * * * *
Two months later...
Heero Yuy stepped from the spaceport after giving Relena her birthday gift... a small way of thanking her for her understanding. Shrugging off the blue uniform that he had stolen, he smirked as he recalled how she stood in the shuttle window and tore the small card he left with the teddy bear. She had finally grown up.
As he walked through the main doors and towards the parking lot, twp figures stood atop the tall building, looking down on him. With one leg drooped over the roof and her backwards baseball cap in place, Sette sat with her arms folded in her lap and a smile on her face. Standing over her, Kumi had arms folded over her chest and her long silver hair back in its high ponytail. A small smirk of pride tugged at her lips as she watched her cousin walking away.
Chuckling deeply, the tomboy rose to her feet and grinned at her friend, "Well, they might have given us one hell of a scare, but those boys came through."
Peering out of the corner of her cobalt eye, Kumi smirked, "Was there any doubt?"
Laughing, Sette replied, "Oh, come on! After everything that they had up against them, do you really mean to tell me that they didn't have you even a little nervous?" Turning towards the other girl, the silver-haired pilot shrugged.
Rolling her eyes, the princess placed a hand on her hip raised an eyebrow, "Okay, let's just elaborate on the things that that we managed to catch on television alone," Sette began. "There was your cousin's self-detonating his suit when he was still standing in its cockpit, for starters. That was soon followed by the announcing of the Colony's stance against the Gundam pilots when two of the guys attacked one of OZ's launch pads, which nearly got them both killed... Hmmm... Oh, and let's not forget pilot Zero Two being captured by OZ capped off nicely with the destruction of his suit during a televised OZ recruiting test for volunteers from the colonies to join their army. Skipping ahead a bit, then there was that ever popular attack from Libra that took out a huge plot of land on the side of the Earth. And you mean to tell me with all that, they didn't even make you one bit nervous?"
Allowing a small snicker, Kumi nodded, "Alright, so they did have me a little worried on a few occasions." Satisfied with that answer, Sette smiled and nodded firmly. Taking a deep breath, the Japanese pilot sighed softly and waked towards their Gundams waiting behind them as she suggested, "We better head back to Quason and check back with Matt if there are any more ties to where Demetris is hiding." Turning to look over her shoulder, she smirked wickedly, "Besides, a someone here has to report their whereabouts to their father before they're grounded again." With a wink, she turned and walked from a wide-eyed tomboy.
Narrowing her eyes after the initial shock of that cocky remark, Sette followed her friend, shouting after her, "Oh, you had to go and bring that up, didn't you!? ...You know? If there's one thing I'd never imagined you being so relentless about, it's being cocky!" A small laugh echoed back as they returned to their suits.
* * * * * *
Setting down the tall glass of soda that he was drinking onto the table, Duo sighed deeply in content, "Man this is nice." Having retired his priest outfit, he wore a black, long-sleeved top and a pair of tan pants. Pushing his shades to fall at the end of his nose, he sat back in his seat and smiled as the wind blew through his unruly bangs, "I think the others will like this place." The outside patio of one of the more popular restaurants was pretty full as two waitresses kept busy taking orders and bringing out food to the other customers. As he waited, Duo played with the long, purple jewel strung around his neck. Over the crowd, a familiar voice shouted, "Duo!" Looking over the heads around him, the braided pilot spotted his blonde friend walking up with a bright smile as he waived excitedly.
Returning the bright smile, Duo removed his sunglasses and waived back, "Hey, Quatre!"
Taking a seat across from his comrade, the Arabian grinned, "I know that at least two of the others said they would be here. They're probably on the way."
With a snort, Duo rested an elbow on the round table as he rested his head in its hand. Closing his eyes, he commented, "Yea, well, I'm not the only one here, but a certain stick in the mud opted to sit by himself." Lifting his free hand to cup the other side of his face, the American stared forward and chided, "And I know that he's listening right now, because he's sitting right next to us."
A deep voice snorted from the table beside them, "And if a certain loud mouth would keep his mouth shut, I would have said hello, myself." Looking to the table at his right, Quatre smiled at the back of a dark head with hair pulled in a short, tight ponytail.
"Wufei," the blonde teenager greeted warmly. Folding the newspaper in his hands, the Chinese pilot turned in his seat to meet his friend's eyes. Smirking, Wufei gave Quatre a small nod in greeting.
"Forgive me for not wishing to sit at the same table," the raven-haired pilot began. "As much as I was looking forward to seeing all of you again, it's still a little too soon for me to simply forget the war. Seeing all of you again is just as welcoming as it is... uncomfortable." The Arabian's smile faded just a bit, but he nodded in understanding. At that, Wufei reopened his newspaper and turned away to return to the article he was reading.
Turning to straddle his seat, Duo folded his arms over the chair's back as he glared at the Chinese pilot and frowned, "Well, personally, I think that this is the best way to move on after everything that happened. We're the only ones who understand each other and what we went through."
Without looking back, Wufei closed his eyes and shrugged, "That's one of the only reasons I came here." Sighing softly that he couldn't argue after that, Duo turned back around and faced Quatre again. They couldn't fault Wufei for his wish to be as much a part and yet separate from this reunion. It was only two months ago that the war was still being waged. Until now, the only time they were together was when they were fighting.
Sitting up in his seat, Quatre's face beamed as he called, "Trowa!" Looking over their shoulders, the others watched as the tall pilot approached them with a small smile.
Lowering himself into at the table where the blonde and braided youths sat, Trowa have a lopsided smirk and greeted, "Good to see the three of you again. I hope that I'm not too late."
Duo shook his head and grinned, "Not at all. Looks like everyone who responded to the invitation I sent is here, so we can eat." Raising a hand, he flagged a waitress down and the four young men gave their orders.
As they waited for their food, the reunited pilots caught up on some of the things they had been doing since the end of the war. Occasionally, even Wufei joined in their discussions and laughter. In the middle of their conversation, Quatre suddenly stopped in mid-sentence, stiffening in his seat. Looking past Duo, his eyes widened with a small gasp before a wide smile lit his face as his voice caught in his throat.
With wide violet eyes, Duo turned in his own seat, only to gasp at his own shock. Standing a few feet behind him stood Heero. The Wing pilot words a loose gray sweater with an open jean cat that was cut off at mid-chest. His spandex shorts were traded in for a pair of pale blue jeans while a large duffle bag was draped over his right shoulder. Duo rose from his seat with a huge smile, never taking his bright eyes from the Japanese pilot as he shouted, "Heero!"
A very small smirk fell on Heero's lips as he walked towards the group. Stopping before the braided teenager, he looked to their friends and stated, "If it's alright, may I borrow Duo for a few minutes?" He found no argument from the others as they all gave their own affirmatives. With a firm nod, the Japanese boy turned and walked off again, with Duo following as he bit his lip.
* * * * * *
Lowering his duffle bag beside him as they stood on the bridge bowing over the city's main river, Heero leaned his back against the steel railing, lowering his head in thought. "You didn't follow me," he said at last in a quiet tone.
Duo rested his elbows on the barrier and looked up to the sky, smiling wistfully, "You didn't want to be followed. I could understand and respect that." He snorted, "And a certain Prime Minister finally seemed to catch on to that, too." Heero couldn't help but smirk at that. Frowning as he lowered his head slightly, the braided youth scratched his nose and added, "Besides, you needed time to figure things out on your own. You need to figure out on your own what you want and need in this life. I just hope that you're able to piece together what those things are?" Staring ahead at nothing in particular, Heero nodded.
There was a brief pause before a small laugh left the Wing pilot as he shook his head, "You always did know me better that anyone" Taking a deep breath, he sighed and commented, "Do you remember, back when the war had just started, what you vowed when we were back in that boarding school?"
Blinking in confusion, Duo replied, "Huh?" Then realization filled his eyes as he smiled and laughed, "Oh yea, I remember." The wind played with his braid as he smirked, "That was back in the day when you were threatening my life every other hour and calling me baka constantly. Funny how quickly a year goes by and things change. But, yea, I remember what you're referring to. I told you that one day you would be begging me to stick around."
"Your prediction was right," Heero cut in softly, but without any hesitation. "This would be that day." With wide eyes filled with shock, Duo turned to the other boy.
Needing to remind himself to breathe, the braided pilot replied quietly in disbelief, "Heero... W-what did you say!?"
Turning to face his lover, meeting his uncertain eyes with his own, sure cobalt, Heero answered, "I bought a house here on the Earth not long ago. It's a nice size but... it's too big for just myself. And about your letting me have time to sort out what I need and want in my life, I didn't take long for me to come to one conclusion. That's why I'm here." Licking his lips, he took another deep breath before speaking clearly, "Duo, I'm here to ask you..." shaking his head, he corrected himself before continuing sincerely, "I'm here to beg you to stay with me... if you'd like to do so."
Gasping faintly, Duo stood speechless as he mentally processed those words over and over in his head. Finally, he bit off a small sob as he wrapped his arms tightly around Heero, resting his head on his shoulder as his violet eyes closed. Relaxing in his partner's hold, the Wing pilot rested his own head on Duo's shoulder, returning the embrace. For a long moment, they simply held each other as the wind blew around them.
Pulling back with small tears in his eyes, Duo smiled and whispered, "Heero... All you had to do was ask." At that, Heero gave a warm smile of his own. Slowly, they leaned in and pressed their lips together in a gentle kiss as their arms tightened around their lover.
* * * * * *
And in the far reaches of space, the remains of a small, ceramic cottage comet soared through the stars.
OWARI......
for now...
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