Gundam Wing Fan Fiction / Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Between Times ❯ A Chronicle of Mars ( Chapter 1 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Crystal Rose 
What if Queen Serenity accidentally sent the girls to different dimensions? Here are their stories.
Anime/Manga: Gundam Wing Fan Fiction / Sailor Moon Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 05.29.2002 | Updated On: 05.29.2002 | Pages: 7 | Words: 6.2K | Visits: 1.1K | Status: Completed
What if Queen Serenity accidentally sent the girls to different dimensions? Here are their stories.
Anime/Manga: Gundam Wing Fan Fiction / Sailor Moon Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 05.29.2002 | Updated On: 05.29.2002 | Pages: 7 | Words: 6.2K | Visits: 1.1K | Status: Completed
Hello readers! This is my first SM/GW crossover! I hope it's somewhat entertaining for you all. There is some swearing and violence, so don't be surprised, I warned you.
Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and Gundam Wing DO NOT belong to me.
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Between Times by Crystal Rose
~ A Chronicle of Mars ~
Out in the dark depths of space, the stars shine brightly, a sea of light and hope to grasp onto in the overbearing silence. Among the billions of dazzling stars, a single star shines brighter than the rest, a blazing beacon of red, a warning to those who dare come near. Strong and steady, it will not falter though at times it will dim, it continues unwaveringly to the beat of a young woman's heart.
Now, had someone drawn closer, they would have seen a large metal structure, its slick gray surface gleaming in the dim glow of a red light sitting atop a tall watch-out post. Through the large glass windows surrounding the large structure, two figures could be seen within.
"Damn it!"
Larry swore for the hundredth time that day. His partner, a calmer and much more patient man by nature, sat quietly and listened with great attentiveness.
"Who the hell do they think they are! Throwing us up here as if...as if we were..." he trailed off, too furious to speak and more than a little flustered.
"New recruits?" his new partner, John, supplied.
"......" Larry tensed, his jaw clenching momentarily before he sighed in resignation, his body relaxing as he flopped back into his chair, automatically reaching for a cigarette, which he lit irritably. He inhaled deeply, holding in the smoke as his eyes closed in a moment's pleasure. Exhaling, he opened his eyes to stare up at the ceiling, his cigarette in hand as he leaned back in his chair thoughtfully.
Being a new OZ soldier, Larry was ambitious, restlessly so. Why shouldn't he be? He was as good as any other man and no less competent. He was also smart and twice as cunning as most soldiers. It was guaranteed that he'd make it to the top. It would just be a matter of time before his superiors recognized his potential; that was why he was stuck up in the watch tower on guard duty where nothing ever happens. The only event ever worth mentioning was the capture of that rebel bitch they'd been after, and even then it had been taken care of so quickly that there had barely been cause for alarm. Hell, the sentries had captured the little rebel before the first line of soldiers could be dispatched. He sighed once more. Nope, not a damn th-
WHOOSH
"What the..." Squinting with visible effort, the two men could make out the vague outline of...
"Shit!" Larry growled, a hint of fear in his voice.
"Guard to Control, there is a gundam on the premises! I repeat, a gunda-"
KABOOM
The entire structure shook and trembled from the massive explosion.
BEEP...BEEP...BEEP...
The alarms went wild and the ship came to life as people rushed to their posts and awaited further orders.
"We're under attack!"
Larry swore under his breath as he was answered with static yet again. He pounded his fist down hard on the com in frustration.
"Relax. Things'll be fine," John's smooth and even voice came from behind him.
CLICK
"Whaddya mean rela-" His last words were interrupted when a bullet ripped through his chest, effectively silencing him. He tumbled to the ground immediately, staring uncomprehendingly up at his traitorous comrade. His eyes frozen open in shock, the look of confusion and betrayal stayed on his face even in death. Tucking the gun back into his belt, John turned around and walked out of the room.
BEEP...BEEP...BEEP
The alarms flashed an angry red. How appropriate, Rachad smiled grimly as he ran through the crowded hallways of L472, or at least what was left of it. Originally a subcolony built for the use of both colony citizens and soldiers of the United Sphere Alliance, the goal had been to help diplomatic relations between the two, but somewhere along the way, the soldiers began militarizing things, driving away the common citizens as they did so. In the end, only the soldiers remained, and when the OZ organization finally emerged, the entire subcolony revealed itself to be a part of OZ as well. 'Operation Camaflouge' his lips pressed together to form a grim, straight line. They'd discovered the secret organization's plans too late, and now L472 was nothing more than a stepping stone in OZ's plans for domination. He shook his head slightly. Now was no time for wandering thoughts. He had to keep the mission in mind at all times.
"Name and rank," the soldier posted at the door demanded, momentarily disrupting his train of thought.
"John Lesham, specials unit," he replied easily.
He smirked slightly as he was cleared immediately. Infiltrating their system had been child's play, he thought as he threaded through the narrow passageways lined with prison cells. The gundams had been an unexpected run of luck and served as the perfect diversion. The sons of bitches had captured their leader, but she wouldn't be imprisoned for long, not if he had anything to do with it! His hands clenched at the thought of her and his eyes became slightly unfocused as he thought back to another time, another place.
"Raye!"
He'd burst in to the room through the wall and had caught her off guard. There she sat, stiff and rigid with shock before she relaxed into a look of great relief when realizing who it was. His eyes had softened considerably from the intense, dark look he bore on a mission, and no longer looked so frightening. Raye smiled in welcome and stood to go greet her friend.
Suddenly, the door burst open and a group of OZ soldiers stood there, guns in hand as they stared on in momentary confusion. The slight hesitation was all he needed, though, and he rushed towards Raye with lighten-fast reflexes, reaching for his laser gun as he did so. They tumbled to the ground as the first barrage of shots came. A bullet lodged itself into his shoulder and he grunted in pain, but nevertheless turned to finish off the bastards that had dared to fire at his Raye.
The corpses of the OZ soldiers lay strewn about the room as he panted heavily, Raye sitting beside him on the ground. He looked down at her, concern gracing his features.
"You okay?"
He held out a hand to her. She reached for it immediately without thought and was pulled to her feet. Slightly dazed, she fell against him awkwardly, her face pressed against his chest. She blushed and began to move away, but there his hand was on her arm, steadying her and preventing any further movement. Before she knew it, she'd been swept up into his arms like a maiden in distress as he made his exit.
She blinked in surprise and her gaze settled on his bloodied arm. Her eyes widened considerably as she took in the wound and a small gasp escaped her lips.
"You're hurt!" She seemed to accuse.
"I'm alright," he replied neutrally.
"But..."
"Hey," He chided, looking down at her tenderly, "You know I'd die for you."
He snorted, disgusted with himself. She'd been silent the rest of the day and had avoided him like the plague. He sighed as he came to her cell door. At age fourteen, she was a bit too young for his twenty years anyway. He'd probably scared the hell out of her, he reflected. He shook his head, a small smile forming on his lips. Well, Raye will be Raye.
Light spilled into the room as he opened the cell door, illuminating the figure of a young woman sitting in the corner with her legs drawn up against her chest. Her face rested on her knees, around which her arms were wrapped. Upon opening the door, she had immediately raised her head, her arms held up to shield her eyes as she squinted in an effort to make out the shadowy figure standing before her.
"Raye..."
The sound of his own voice echoed hollowly off the metal walls.
"Chad?" her timid voice finally reached his ears.
She rose hesitantly from her place on the floor.
"Let's get outta here," he smiled into the darkness and Raye could almost feel the warmth he emanated. She smiled as well, tears prickling her eyes.
"Chad!"
She made a dash for him and leapt eagerly into his waiting embrace.
"Hey princess."
She colored slightly, though luckily it went unnoticed in the dim light. He'd taken to calling her that lately and especially enjoyed the way it seemed to embarrass her. He liked ruffling her feathers every once and while.
"So how are we doing?"
Her voice snapped him out of his daze. It was time to get serious.
"No deaths or casualties reported, diversion in progress, rescue under way."
Thus said, both turned and headed for the cell door with Chad leading the way. He turned back to smile at her, a gesture that warmed her heart.
"You know Raye, you really shouldn't--"
"Shouldn't what? Chad? Chad!"
She watched in horror and disbelief as Chad fell to the floor, clutching his stomach, the shock playing over his face as he looked down at his bloodied hand. He gazed up at her from the floor, his eyes glistening with tears.
"I'm sorry, Raye."
She crouched beside him as he fell to the floor, supporting his head in her lap. She smiled down at him, the tears in her eyes blurring his face.
"What for?" Her lips trembled as he looked up at her.
"I've failed you...you and our mission. Forgive me." She shook her head in denial.
"What are you talking about Chad. You haven't failed me anything. You're gonna be just fine!"
She began to cry as he reached up to cup her face in his hand, his thumb gently wiping away the tears.
"Raye, get those bastards for me. I love you."
And with that, his hand fell from her face, making a dull thud as it hit the cement floor. She could feel him go limp, his eyes closing for the last time. She screamed, a sound so horribly inhuman, so full of raw and unshielded hate. The sound was so savage that the guard standing at the door was momentarily stayed. Hesitant to move, he almost didn't see her come at him with the large laser. He barely got in a shot before he was struck down by the furious young woman.
She panted heavily, a thin sheen of sweat gleaming on her forehead. Blood trickled down her arm from where the guard's bullet had impacted. The anger left her body as swiftly as it had come; both physically and emotionally drained, she collapsed onto the floor in a heap of misery. Tears stung her eyes once more as she saw Chad's body, still and unmoving. Crawling to his side with tears flowing down her face, she gathered his corpse into her arms and wept bitterly.
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15:27
Wufei sat silently in the shadows, patiently awaiting the start of the mission. Around him, OZ soldiers bustled about, unaware of the intruder amongst them.
15:30
Time to move.
BOOM
The explosion shook the entire structure and soldiers began running about in confusion. He smirked slightly.
"Right on time," he muttered as he headed off towards the cargo storage area. Dressed in a stolen OZ military suit, he easily passed for a new recruit, no questions asked. Quickly punching in the storage room's entrance code, he stepped inside and set to work. Mere minutes later, he was done and ready to leave, the launching of the cargo having been simple enough to accomplish in the mass confusion. Walking through the hallway, his eyes narrowed slightly when he noticed no sentry guarding the prison facilities. This was odd since prison sentries stayed at their posts no matter what the situation was, the only exceptions being emergency evacuation. Also, none of the pilots had been instructed on a jail break, either.
His eyes hardened as he headed toward the door. There's been a change in plans, he thought as he stepped inside.
It was quiet, too quiet. He walked on, his eyes darting back and forth with extreme caution. The cells were all empty from what he could see. He stopped dead in his tracks. Just a few feet ahead, the corpse of an OZ soldier lay in the doorway of one of the cells. The missing sentry.
He stared suspiciously into the dark cell. Carefully stepping over the corpse, he entered the room. He was immediately engulfed in darkness and the room reeked of death. As his eyes adjusted to the dark, he spotted the vague outline of a small figure in the center of the cell. His hands itched for a gun.
"Damn it Wufei, you're starting to act like Yuy," he grumbled, still wishing for a gun.
Slowly, cautiously he walked towards the body. Just from the long hair alone, he could tell it was a woman. Kneeling down to examine the corpse, he noticed a large laser lying on the floor just beside them. Judging from the position, she'd been shot in the back.
'How dishonorable.'
He reached down to flip the girl over, but stopped suddenly when his hand made contact. His eyebrow rose slightly. She was warm. He quickly let go and took her pulse.
'Well, what do you know. She's alive,' he thought, amusingly enough.
He stood for a moment, just staring at the motionless woman. She was alive all right, but barely so. He doubted she could survive the night. Her wound wasn't terribly serious, but she had lost an incredible amount of blood. He tilted his head skyward, closing his eyes in frustration. Fate had such a sense of humor, always at the wrong times. He sighed. There was nothing left for him to do, but take her with him. He couldn't just let her die here. It went against everything he stood for and his sense of justice was too strong to be ignored.
He stooped down and lifted her into his arms. Turning to leave, he eyed the laser on the floor and grinned evilly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bac k at the ship, Wufei received all sorts of curious looks from the other gundam pilots as he jumped down from the cockpit of Nataku with a girl in his arms. Duo sauntered up, smiling his big goofy smile.
"So, Wufei..." The chinese pilot's eyebrow rose a bit, "I see ya finally caught yourself a girl!"
Wufei snorted derisively, "This? Just some woman who was obviously too weak to protect herself. I found her lying on the ground, half dead."
"So, what are you going to do with her, Wufei?" Quatre walked up, concerned.
"Well, I suppose her life is my responsibility now," he replied, walking off towards his chambers.
"Gee, he sounds enthusiastic," commented Duo.
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Back in his room, Wufei carefully cleansed the girl's wounds, wiping the blood from her soft skin before removing the bullet lodged in her arm and bandaging the area. When he finished he sat down in a wooden chair, studying the girl that lay in his bed. Long black hair flowed like silk down past shapely hips, sharply contrasting her pale skin, and her skirt rode up a bit to provide a nice view of her long slender legs. She was dressed completely in black, a short leather skirt and vest that just barely covered her now because of the numerous rips and tares they had suffered.
Looking up into her face, partially obscured by her long bangs, he suddenly wondered what color her eyes were. Standing up, as if in a trance, he found his hand brushing aside a few bangs and willing her eyes to open. Finally realizing what he'd done, he jerked away, his eyes widening in shock before sending the unconscious girl an accusing glare. Shaking his head at his odd behavior, he quickly pulled the sheets over her, blocking the enticing view from sight. Dropping his head into his hands he sighed.
'What have I gotten myself into?'
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Hey! Fei!!" A feminine voice called from behind the bathroom door.
"Don't call me that!"
"Could you hand me a towel?"
Wufei sighed as he spared a scathing glance towards the large steel door behind him. It had been a month since he'd rescued the pestering woman. She'd proven to be an endless source of annoyance and frustration, not to mention she'd developed a most disturbing nickname for him and, on top of it all, had become strangely 'attached' to him, as Barton had quietly commented one day. In other words, the woman simply wouldn't leave him alone! He gritted his teeth at the thought of all the indignities he'd suffered, wondering for the hundredth time why he'd ever saved her in the first place.
"Fei!" The voice whined, "It's getting cold. Please?"
"Che," the irate boy snorted as he went to fetch her towel. He returned shortly to stand impatiently in front of the bathroom door.
"Uh...Wufei? You still there?" He could hear her soft voice coming from behind the door, slightly hesitant and unsure now.
"Open the door, woman." A pause. Then the sound of giggling reached his ears.
"Gee, I didn't know you were that kind of guy." More laughter.
"Damn it! Do you want the towel or not?!"
"Okay, okay."
The door slowly creaked open and a small slender hand emerged. Quickly dropping the towel into said hand, Wufei quickly turned about and headed back to the couch he'd been sitting on to rest. They'd just finished a new mission and he was wiped out, both physically and mentally. Not surprising considering who he'd been partnered with. He shook his head, a wry look on his face. God must have been laughing at him when he'd been assigned Raye as a partner.
'Or at least the guys were,' he thought, thinking back to the day Yuy had suggested the pairing.
'Yuy...never thought he had it in him...damn was I wrong. Must be Duo's doing. The idiot's certainly pig-headed enough,' he sighed again.
It wasn't that she was a bad partner. No, he had to admit that for a woman, she was better than most as well as better looking, though she could never measure up to him...in either department. Sure, she could handle a gun, but that was almost a given in such times of war. She had nearly no other skills to speak of save running away.
He tensed when a pair of hands fell to his shoulders, then relaxed as they began gently massaging his tight muscles. Her long raven hair curtained his face from view as his eyes fell shut; he buried himself in her scent, sighing in pleasure. He had to admit, though, she also made a very good masseuse.
Raye looked down upon the boy, no man, who had saved her. She took in his muscular arms and chest, his beautifully sculpted nose, his shapely lips, and his silky unbound hair. She loved these times, when he'd just relax and let his guard down. These were some of the rare times when a peaceful sense of quiet seemed to exist, where he let her into his space, near him. She knew it was ridiculous, but from the moment she'd first met him, she'd felt something, something important and had vowed perhaps subconsciously to break through that cold façade.
She thought back to when she'd first awoken on his bed, his scent still lingering on the sheets, she almost blushed. It was true that Wufei was a fine specimen of the male species, but he was...well, lets just say that she'd acted like quite the idiot the first time they'd met, though his attitude hadn't helped the situation. However, the one thing she remembered was how gentle he'd been when he'd treated her wounds. Just remembering the way he'd touched her made her shiver.
"Are you cold?" His voice snapped her back to reality.
"Huh?"
"I said, are you cold?" he asked again, a hint of annoyance beginning to seep back into his voice.
"Oh, um no. Not really," she mumbled, somewhat stung by his words, even though she knew she had no reason to be.
As if to make up for his harsh words, he gently removed her hands from his shoulders and stood facing her.
"Go to bed. We've a long day ahead of us."
She nodded in acknowledgement as he walked past her and into his room. After a few moments, she followed his example and headed towards her own room. It was only a few hours later that she was able to fall asleep, but when she did, she was plagued with nightmares.
"Chad!"
There he was, reaching to her in his need. She watched in horror as he was shot over and over again. Blood splattered the walls and she herself was drenched in blood. He reached out to her, calling her name.
"Raye, how could you?"
"Chad, I'm so sorry. Please, come back! I-I didn't mean it!"
"Liar!"
"CHAD!"
"I loved you!"
"Ah!"
She woke up shaking, her pillow damp with tears. She could recall the nightmare vividly and Chad's voice still rung in her ears. Why was she dreaming of him again? Slowly calming down, she eased herself back down to the bed. She'd thought her nightmares had ended for good a couple of weeks ago, yet...Perhaps it was the fact that he loved her that made her feel so guilty about his death. A death that she had been the cause of. She'd never loved him the way he'd wanted her to. She'd always viewed him as the big brother she'd never had and was so shocked when he'd confessed his love to her, but was she wrong? Could she have perhaps accepted him and made him happy?
"Chad...I-I didn't mean it!"
The words drifted back to her from the nightmare.
'But...I did,' she thought miserably, fighting tears that threatened to burst forth.
She clutched at her throbbing head and pushed the thoughts away. Wufei would say that she was being stupid, trying to change the past. He'd say that she shouldn't regret the past because that means she regrets the present and future; that was always enough to snap her out of her thoughts and theories. Wufei...
"Liar..."
Shaking her head, she slipped out of bed, unable to rest let alone sleep. Tiptoeing from her room, she found herself facing his door. Of course, this wasn't the first time she'd done this, but it felt different this time somehow. She wondered if he really cared...or was just concerned about her level of performance. She really didn't want to bother Wufei, and she definitely couldn't allow this to affect their mission.
'Just go back, Raye,' she told herself silently, 'You can deal with this by yourself.'
Just as she'd made up her mind, the door opened and there stood a stoic Wufei, his face just visible in the soft glow of light from earth. She stood there; feeling like a child caught red handed as he stood, silently watching her. Then, finally...
"Are you coming in or not?"
She started at the sound of his voice and found herself momentarily mesmerized by his dark eyes before she quietly walked past him and into the dark room. There lay his bed, just large enough for two to fit. She crawled beneath the covers silently, waiting for him to do the same. His lean body was warm and comforting as she snuggled against his broad back in the foreboding darkness. He sighed as he relaxed and fell back asleep, the sound of his even breathing obvious proof of his unconscious state. She smiled, breathing in his strong scent as she slept peacefully, resting against his backside.
'Goodnight Wufei.'
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When Raye awoke, she felt warm; even more important, she felt safe and knew exactly where she was. Turning to press her face into the material of Wufei's shirt, she reveled in the sound of his steadily beating heart and thought back to the very first time she'd found herself in his bed. She'd never forget that night, that one night that had changed everything between them.
Of course, the very first time she'd ever awaken in his bed was the day she'd been rescued, dragged from that cold cell and thrown into his life. She remembered how utterly disoriented she had been; how, even then, the same sense of awe had touched her when she first saw him. She'd been so flustered. Her temper had burst at every opportunity. At the time, she'd thought nothing of it, believing Wufei to be possibly the most stubborn man alive. Having never experienced such, she had no explanation for her actions except that Wufei was definitely to blame, seeing as he was always so impossible. The first week had gone rather badly. His tart attitude having exacerbated her state of distress, she had been rude and nasty, her irritability so great that she wondered how he had managed to put up with her. Then, the nightmares started coming.
She'd finally started accepting her fate when he came to haunt her dreams. She'd been terrified, screaming out in the night as Chad's face loomed before her. Thinking she was under attack, Wufei had charged into her room, half dressed with a gun in hand.
"Chad NO!"
She'd woken up in bed, frightened out of her wits, only to see Wufei leaning over her, his hand on her shoulder. She'd collapsed onto him, holding onto the front of his shirt as if her life depended on it; through it all, the one thing that she remembered to this day was how gentle his hands had been upon her, soothing her fears away without a single word as she wept. She'd been nearly asleep when he moved to get up and leave. Panicking, she had pulled on the sleeve of his shirt, a pleading look on her face. When they'd woken up in the morning, she'd expected ruthless teasing and taunting from him, but instead, he'd simply caressed her cheek, a soft look in his eyes.
She smiled from the memory and snuggled even closer to Wufei's warm body. That was one of the rare times she'd seen that soft side of him. The rest of the time he acted as if he couldn't stand her. However, she found those times endearing as well, since she was at fault with all her shameless flirting. She nearly laughed as he mumbled grumpily.
"Damn it Raye...not your teddy bear..."
"But 'Fei, your just so cute! Are you sure you don't wanna be my teddy bear?"
"Yes," he replied, fully awake now, "I wouldn't want people thinking I was some kind of weak woman just because of that ridiculous name you insist on calling me."
"Hmm," she sighed in content as she snaked her arms about his slim waist, feeling his strong abs.
"Are you going to be getting up anytime soon? We have a mission in about three hours."
She didn't reply, but tensed as he turned over onto his back before settling down again. She relaxed again, sneaking over to lay her head on his chest. Her face colored slightly as his arm wrapped around her shoulders. She wondered what he was thinking about. Even in bed, he wasn't usually so...affectionate.
"Did Yuy debrief you on the mission?"
Surprise was clearly on her face. He had never before discussed a mission until they were on standby. He looked down at her carefully, as if trying to gauge her reaction.
"Clean-up at L472." Her eyes widened minutely.
"But no attack has occurred there recently..."
She trailed off, not understanding. Clean-up meant total annihilation of a target, usually bases or large units like L472. However, Clean-up almost always followed an initial attack in which the head of the group was cut down first. It's like a worm: if you just start hacking away, it'll keep growing back, but if you burn off the head, then all that's left is to dispose of the body. If they indeed were responsible for both the initial attack and the Clean-up, then why wasn't he telling her? For what possible reason could he be stalling? Why?
"No," he sighed, "Your right."
"Then...who's our target head?" She was met with silence once more. Raye felt her frustration grow and was about to demand him to tell her (not that he'd listen) when he spoke.
"Lyre...Rachad Lyre."
Her heart seemed to stop then. All color had drained from her face and all she could feel was this numbness.
"No..."
"Raye," his voice was soft and gentle, but she wouldn't listen.
"No, it's not possible!" She said, now sitting, "Fei it's not him! IT CAN'T BE HIM!"
She jumped out of bed and rushed into the bathroom, locking the door.
"Raye! Damn it," Wufei swore as sounds of her weeping reached him. He began pounding on the steel surface in vain, "Don't do this! I need you for the mission. You have to stay strong!"
"You don't understand."
"Of course of I do," he said, suddenly exhausted as he slid to the floor, leaning against the wall. He thought back to the destruction of his colony. His family, his people...everyone was gone.
"Wu-Wufei?" He sighed.
"Just a couple of months ago, I had the pleasure of witnessing the complete destruction of my colony. My friends and family all perished..."
Silence. Then...the sound of the door squeaking open as she stepped out, her head down.
"Wufei...I'm...I'm sorry." He snorted.
"What for." She kneeled down before him, her knees almost touching his feet as she apologized.
"I'm just being childish and irrational. My behavior is unacceptable. I...it won't happen again."
She was surprised when she felt his hand beneath her chin, urging her to look up into his own dark eyes, eyes filled with heated emotion in their endless depths. She watched, entranced, as he leaned forward to place his lips upon hers. In that instant she could feel a flash of heat surge through her body as she leaned into him. Pulling away, she saw an odd sort of wonder in his eyes, but more prominently, the heat that smoldered at the surface, a heat she knew she would be consumed by.
He pulled her down against him, kissing her briefly on the forehead as he held her close, his heart racing. For moments they stayed like that, silent in their thoughts. Finally he shifted, bring Raye to stand with him.
"Get ready. It's almost time to go."
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Raye fidgeted as she awaited her entrance. Wufei was to set off a bomb in the west wing as a distraction while she went after the target. He'd actually offered to do the job, but she'd refused. She had to do this, for Wufei if not for herself. She didn't ever want to be just another weak woman in his eyes. She had to prove herself.
BOOM
That was her signal. She quickly ran out into the smoke-filled corridors, racing to the room she knew he'd be in. Chad...She shook her head and forced herself to focus on the task at hand.
'The control room...Where is it?'
"Bingo," she whispered morbidly as she found the room.
Bursting in, she steeled herself to face her old friend.
"Raye?! I thought you were dead!"
She thought she saw a look of dismay on his face, but when she blinked, all she saw was concern and relief.
"Shouldn't that be my line?" she asked, raising the small laser gun she held.
"Raye, what are you doing?" He stepped closer, forcing her back a step "I love you." Her resolve weakened.
"RAYE!"
A streak of white flashed by her as Chad was tackled to the ground. A small pistol skittered across the floor from Chad's outstretched hand.
"Damn it! Raye, help me," Chad called out to the horrified woman.
"Chad..." She flashed back to when she first met him, how they became close friends, and how he'd...died. "It's all been a...a lie?"
A painful cry pierced the air as Wufei's shoulder was punctured by a small dagger. Chad scrambled away from the pilot to retrieve his gun while Wufei struggled to lift himself up.
"Pathetic," Chad sneered as he pulled the trigger.
"NO!"
A shout of anger exploded from Raye as she jumped towards Wufei. She jerked as she felt something rip through her. There was a dull stinging sensation as she fell to the ground, breathing hard. Silently, Wufei came to her side, cradling her in his arms, indifferent to the pain in his shoulder.
"Raye..."
"Fei, I'm sorry I screwed up..." she began coughing. "I wanted to prove myself to you, but I guess I'm just another weak woman in the end, huh?" She tried to laugh, but ended up choking on all the blood. She knew the bullet had punctured her lung; she didn't have much time.
"Damn it," Wufei swore, "How could you...I told you to watch yourself! You never listen..."
"Fei...I just want you to know that I...I love you."
"Raye," he whispered as tears threatened to spill.
"Forgive me..."
And then she was gone.
Laying her body down gently on the cold steel floor, Wufei stood carefully, his eyes filled with cold fury as he turned to stare at Rachad, who for once seemed shocked by his actions.
"Look. I didn't mean for her to die, okay? How about I let you go and we forget about this whole thing. No hard feelings?" Rachad stood, his hands held up submissively.
A shot rang out clearly in the silence as Wufei stepped carelessly over the corpse, his face drained of emotion.
"No hard feelings."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sitting back in Nataku, Wufei awaited death. The explosives hadn't quite destroyed the entire base, giving him a perfect excuse to self-destruct.
'Who would have thought.'
He knew how dishonorable it was of him. Suicide was a coward's way out, but wasn't that what he'd been all along? A coward? He'd been in denial since the beginning. It was too late, though. Too late for her. Too late for him...
'Thirty seconds left.'
He couldn't wait. He watched with satisfaction as the last seconds ticked away before everything disappeared in a brilliant flash of white. What blissful oblivion...
Wufei...
A soft voice whispered in his ears.
Wufei Chang...awaken
He felt strangely aware...
Do you love the child of fire?
'That voice again,' he thought, 'Where am I? If this is heaven then I'd rather be in hell...'
Is that so?
A woman robed in a long white dress appeared before him, her long white hair pulled up into twin buns.
"Who are you?" he demanded.
I am Queen Serenity and I apologize for your pain, which has resulted from a mistake that I've made.
"What's going on? Why are you here, interrupting my eternal sleep?"
Do you want to be with Raye?
The question threw him off balance as hope swelled from deep within him.
"How?"
I can send you there to be reborn with her. You would be able to live and love again as you wish.
His answer was obvious before he even spoke. He smiled as he felt himself fading.
'Soon Raye,' he thought, 'Soon."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was a chilly autumn morning when Hino Rei sat before the sacred fire, meditating. Grandpa was sick, so it was her duty to take care of the shrine in his absence. Clearing her mind, she tried to relax in the soothing heat of the room, but her concentration broke as a small jingling could be heard outside. She closed her eyes and tried to refocus herself. Just as she began to calm once more, the jingling of bells came again, even louder than before. She sighed in frustration, preparing to run out there and yell at whoever was making the racket.
"Hey you! The shrine doesn't open 'till..." she stopped short as she realized no one was out there. Stepping out, she looked around cautiously, wondering where the person may have run off to. The sun chose that moment to peek out from behind the clouds as she stood there bewildered. Something sparkled to the left of her field of vision. She turned and found the object beneath the sacred bells of prayer.
'A necklace? Whoever that was must have dropped it...'
She picked the piece of jewelry up for a closer look. A beautifully handcrafted dragon, sculpted in gold was the centerpiece. She turned it over and a look of confusion crossed her face. Carved on the back was a message.
"I forgive you. Fei."
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Hey what'd you guys think? Good? Bad? Okay? REVIEW and tell me!!!!
For those of you that actually liked it, this is going to be the first in a series of four or five. Depends on how I feel and how much I get done! Hope this wasn't a waste of your time.
Crystal Rose ^_~
Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and Gundam Wing DO NOT belong to me.
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Between Times by Crystal Rose
~ A Chronicle of Mars ~
Out in the dark depths of space, the stars shine brightly, a sea of light and hope to grasp onto in the overbearing silence. Among the billions of dazzling stars, a single star shines brighter than the rest, a blazing beacon of red, a warning to those who dare come near. Strong and steady, it will not falter though at times it will dim, it continues unwaveringly to the beat of a young woman's heart.
Now, had someone drawn closer, they would have seen a large metal structure, its slick gray surface gleaming in the dim glow of a red light sitting atop a tall watch-out post. Through the large glass windows surrounding the large structure, two figures could be seen within.
"Damn it!"
Larry swore for the hundredth time that day. His partner, a calmer and much more patient man by nature, sat quietly and listened with great attentiveness.
"Who the hell do they think they are! Throwing us up here as if...as if we were..." he trailed off, too furious to speak and more than a little flustered.
"New recruits?" his new partner, John, supplied.
"......" Larry tensed, his jaw clenching momentarily before he sighed in resignation, his body relaxing as he flopped back into his chair, automatically reaching for a cigarette, which he lit irritably. He inhaled deeply, holding in the smoke as his eyes closed in a moment's pleasure. Exhaling, he opened his eyes to stare up at the ceiling, his cigarette in hand as he leaned back in his chair thoughtfully.
Being a new OZ soldier, Larry was ambitious, restlessly so. Why shouldn't he be? He was as good as any other man and no less competent. He was also smart and twice as cunning as most soldiers. It was guaranteed that he'd make it to the top. It would just be a matter of time before his superiors recognized his potential; that was why he was stuck up in the watch tower on guard duty where nothing ever happens. The only event ever worth mentioning was the capture of that rebel bitch they'd been after, and even then it had been taken care of so quickly that there had barely been cause for alarm. Hell, the sentries had captured the little rebel before the first line of soldiers could be dispatched. He sighed once more. Nope, not a damn th-
WHOOSH
"What the..." Squinting with visible effort, the two men could make out the vague outline of...
"Shit!" Larry growled, a hint of fear in his voice.
"Guard to Control, there is a gundam on the premises! I repeat, a gunda-"
KABOOM
The entire structure shook and trembled from the massive explosion.
BEEP...BEEP...BEEP...
The alarms went wild and the ship came to life as people rushed to their posts and awaited further orders.
"We're under attack!"
Larry swore under his breath as he was answered with static yet again. He pounded his fist down hard on the com in frustration.
"Relax. Things'll be fine," John's smooth and even voice came from behind him.
CLICK
"Whaddya mean rela-" His last words were interrupted when a bullet ripped through his chest, effectively silencing him. He tumbled to the ground immediately, staring uncomprehendingly up at his traitorous comrade. His eyes frozen open in shock, the look of confusion and betrayal stayed on his face even in death. Tucking the gun back into his belt, John turned around and walked out of the room.
BEEP...BEEP...BEEP
The alarms flashed an angry red. How appropriate, Rachad smiled grimly as he ran through the crowded hallways of L472, or at least what was left of it. Originally a subcolony built for the use of both colony citizens and soldiers of the United Sphere Alliance, the goal had been to help diplomatic relations between the two, but somewhere along the way, the soldiers began militarizing things, driving away the common citizens as they did so. In the end, only the soldiers remained, and when the OZ organization finally emerged, the entire subcolony revealed itself to be a part of OZ as well. 'Operation Camaflouge' his lips pressed together to form a grim, straight line. They'd discovered the secret organization's plans too late, and now L472 was nothing more than a stepping stone in OZ's plans for domination. He shook his head slightly. Now was no time for wandering thoughts. He had to keep the mission in mind at all times.
"Name and rank," the soldier posted at the door demanded, momentarily disrupting his train of thought.
"John Lesham, specials unit," he replied easily.
He smirked slightly as he was cleared immediately. Infiltrating their system had been child's play, he thought as he threaded through the narrow passageways lined with prison cells. The gundams had been an unexpected run of luck and served as the perfect diversion. The sons of bitches had captured their leader, but she wouldn't be imprisoned for long, not if he had anything to do with it! His hands clenched at the thought of her and his eyes became slightly unfocused as he thought back to another time, another place.
"Raye!"
He'd burst in to the room through the wall and had caught her off guard. There she sat, stiff and rigid with shock before she relaxed into a look of great relief when realizing who it was. His eyes had softened considerably from the intense, dark look he bore on a mission, and no longer looked so frightening. Raye smiled in welcome and stood to go greet her friend.
Suddenly, the door burst open and a group of OZ soldiers stood there, guns in hand as they stared on in momentary confusion. The slight hesitation was all he needed, though, and he rushed towards Raye with lighten-fast reflexes, reaching for his laser gun as he did so. They tumbled to the ground as the first barrage of shots came. A bullet lodged itself into his shoulder and he grunted in pain, but nevertheless turned to finish off the bastards that had dared to fire at his Raye.
The corpses of the OZ soldiers lay strewn about the room as he panted heavily, Raye sitting beside him on the ground. He looked down at her, concern gracing his features.
"You okay?"
He held out a hand to her. She reached for it immediately without thought and was pulled to her feet. Slightly dazed, she fell against him awkwardly, her face pressed against his chest. She blushed and began to move away, but there his hand was on her arm, steadying her and preventing any further movement. Before she knew it, she'd been swept up into his arms like a maiden in distress as he made his exit.
She blinked in surprise and her gaze settled on his bloodied arm. Her eyes widened considerably as she took in the wound and a small gasp escaped her lips.
"You're hurt!" She seemed to accuse.
"I'm alright," he replied neutrally.
"But..."
"Hey," He chided, looking down at her tenderly, "You know I'd die for you."
He snorted, disgusted with himself. She'd been silent the rest of the day and had avoided him like the plague. He sighed as he came to her cell door. At age fourteen, she was a bit too young for his twenty years anyway. He'd probably scared the hell out of her, he reflected. He shook his head, a small smile forming on his lips. Well, Raye will be Raye.
Light spilled into the room as he opened the cell door, illuminating the figure of a young woman sitting in the corner with her legs drawn up against her chest. Her face rested on her knees, around which her arms were wrapped. Upon opening the door, she had immediately raised her head, her arms held up to shield her eyes as she squinted in an effort to make out the shadowy figure standing before her.
"Raye..."
The sound of his own voice echoed hollowly off the metal walls.
"Chad?" her timid voice finally reached his ears.
She rose hesitantly from her place on the floor.
"Let's get outta here," he smiled into the darkness and Raye could almost feel the warmth he emanated. She smiled as well, tears prickling her eyes.
"Chad!"
She made a dash for him and leapt eagerly into his waiting embrace.
"Hey princess."
She colored slightly, though luckily it went unnoticed in the dim light. He'd taken to calling her that lately and especially enjoyed the way it seemed to embarrass her. He liked ruffling her feathers every once and while.
"So how are we doing?"
Her voice snapped him out of his daze. It was time to get serious.
"No deaths or casualties reported, diversion in progress, rescue under way."
Thus said, both turned and headed for the cell door with Chad leading the way. He turned back to smile at her, a gesture that warmed her heart.
"You know Raye, you really shouldn't--"
"Shouldn't what? Chad? Chad!"
She watched in horror and disbelief as Chad fell to the floor, clutching his stomach, the shock playing over his face as he looked down at his bloodied hand. He gazed up at her from the floor, his eyes glistening with tears.
"I'm sorry, Raye."
She crouched beside him as he fell to the floor, supporting his head in her lap. She smiled down at him, the tears in her eyes blurring his face.
"What for?" Her lips trembled as he looked up at her.
"I've failed you...you and our mission. Forgive me." She shook her head in denial.
"What are you talking about Chad. You haven't failed me anything. You're gonna be just fine!"
She began to cry as he reached up to cup her face in his hand, his thumb gently wiping away the tears.
"Raye, get those bastards for me. I love you."
And with that, his hand fell from her face, making a dull thud as it hit the cement floor. She could feel him go limp, his eyes closing for the last time. She screamed, a sound so horribly inhuman, so full of raw and unshielded hate. The sound was so savage that the guard standing at the door was momentarily stayed. Hesitant to move, he almost didn't see her come at him with the large laser. He barely got in a shot before he was struck down by the furious young woman.
She panted heavily, a thin sheen of sweat gleaming on her forehead. Blood trickled down her arm from where the guard's bullet had impacted. The anger left her body as swiftly as it had come; both physically and emotionally drained, she collapsed onto the floor in a heap of misery. Tears stung her eyes once more as she saw Chad's body, still and unmoving. Crawling to his side with tears flowing down her face, she gathered his corpse into her arms and wept bitterly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
15:27
Wufei sat silently in the shadows, patiently awaiting the start of the mission. Around him, OZ soldiers bustled about, unaware of the intruder amongst them.
15:30
Time to move.
BOOM
The explosion shook the entire structure and soldiers began running about in confusion. He smirked slightly.
"Right on time," he muttered as he headed off towards the cargo storage area. Dressed in a stolen OZ military suit, he easily passed for a new recruit, no questions asked. Quickly punching in the storage room's entrance code, he stepped inside and set to work. Mere minutes later, he was done and ready to leave, the launching of the cargo having been simple enough to accomplish in the mass confusion. Walking through the hallway, his eyes narrowed slightly when he noticed no sentry guarding the prison facilities. This was odd since prison sentries stayed at their posts no matter what the situation was, the only exceptions being emergency evacuation. Also, none of the pilots had been instructed on a jail break, either.
His eyes hardened as he headed toward the door. There's been a change in plans, he thought as he stepped inside.
It was quiet, too quiet. He walked on, his eyes darting back and forth with extreme caution. The cells were all empty from what he could see. He stopped dead in his tracks. Just a few feet ahead, the corpse of an OZ soldier lay in the doorway of one of the cells. The missing sentry.
He stared suspiciously into the dark cell. Carefully stepping over the corpse, he entered the room. He was immediately engulfed in darkness and the room reeked of death. As his eyes adjusted to the dark, he spotted the vague outline of a small figure in the center of the cell. His hands itched for a gun.
"Damn it Wufei, you're starting to act like Yuy," he grumbled, still wishing for a gun.
Slowly, cautiously he walked towards the body. Just from the long hair alone, he could tell it was a woman. Kneeling down to examine the corpse, he noticed a large laser lying on the floor just beside them. Judging from the position, she'd been shot in the back.
'How dishonorable.'
He reached down to flip the girl over, but stopped suddenly when his hand made contact. His eyebrow rose slightly. She was warm. He quickly let go and took her pulse.
'Well, what do you know. She's alive,' he thought, amusingly enough.
He stood for a moment, just staring at the motionless woman. She was alive all right, but barely so. He doubted she could survive the night. Her wound wasn't terribly serious, but she had lost an incredible amount of blood. He tilted his head skyward, closing his eyes in frustration. Fate had such a sense of humor, always at the wrong times. He sighed. There was nothing left for him to do, but take her with him. He couldn't just let her die here. It went against everything he stood for and his sense of justice was too strong to be ignored.
He stooped down and lifted her into his arms. Turning to leave, he eyed the laser on the floor and grinned evilly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bac k at the ship, Wufei received all sorts of curious looks from the other gundam pilots as he jumped down from the cockpit of Nataku with a girl in his arms. Duo sauntered up, smiling his big goofy smile.
"So, Wufei..." The chinese pilot's eyebrow rose a bit, "I see ya finally caught yourself a girl!"
Wufei snorted derisively, "This? Just some woman who was obviously too weak to protect herself. I found her lying on the ground, half dead."
"So, what are you going to do with her, Wufei?" Quatre walked up, concerned.
"Well, I suppose her life is my responsibility now," he replied, walking off towards his chambers.
"Gee, he sounds enthusiastic," commented Duo.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Back in his room, Wufei carefully cleansed the girl's wounds, wiping the blood from her soft skin before removing the bullet lodged in her arm and bandaging the area. When he finished he sat down in a wooden chair, studying the girl that lay in his bed. Long black hair flowed like silk down past shapely hips, sharply contrasting her pale skin, and her skirt rode up a bit to provide a nice view of her long slender legs. She was dressed completely in black, a short leather skirt and vest that just barely covered her now because of the numerous rips and tares they had suffered.
Looking up into her face, partially obscured by her long bangs, he suddenly wondered what color her eyes were. Standing up, as if in a trance, he found his hand brushing aside a few bangs and willing her eyes to open. Finally realizing what he'd done, he jerked away, his eyes widening in shock before sending the unconscious girl an accusing glare. Shaking his head at his odd behavior, he quickly pulled the sheets over her, blocking the enticing view from sight. Dropping his head into his hands he sighed.
'What have I gotten myself into?'
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Hey! Fei!!" A feminine voice called from behind the bathroom door.
"Don't call me that!"
"Could you hand me a towel?"
Wufei sighed as he spared a scathing glance towards the large steel door behind him. It had been a month since he'd rescued the pestering woman. She'd proven to be an endless source of annoyance and frustration, not to mention she'd developed a most disturbing nickname for him and, on top of it all, had become strangely 'attached' to him, as Barton had quietly commented one day. In other words, the woman simply wouldn't leave him alone! He gritted his teeth at the thought of all the indignities he'd suffered, wondering for the hundredth time why he'd ever saved her in the first place.
"Fei!" The voice whined, "It's getting cold. Please?"
"Che," the irate boy snorted as he went to fetch her towel. He returned shortly to stand impatiently in front of the bathroom door.
"Uh...Wufei? You still there?" He could hear her soft voice coming from behind the door, slightly hesitant and unsure now.
"Open the door, woman." A pause. Then the sound of giggling reached his ears.
"Gee, I didn't know you were that kind of guy." More laughter.
"Damn it! Do you want the towel or not?!"
"Okay, okay."
The door slowly creaked open and a small slender hand emerged. Quickly dropping the towel into said hand, Wufei quickly turned about and headed back to the couch he'd been sitting on to rest. They'd just finished a new mission and he was wiped out, both physically and mentally. Not surprising considering who he'd been partnered with. He shook his head, a wry look on his face. God must have been laughing at him when he'd been assigned Raye as a partner.
'Or at least the guys were,' he thought, thinking back to the day Yuy had suggested the pairing.
'Yuy...never thought he had it in him...damn was I wrong. Must be Duo's doing. The idiot's certainly pig-headed enough,' he sighed again.
It wasn't that she was a bad partner. No, he had to admit that for a woman, she was better than most as well as better looking, though she could never measure up to him...in either department. Sure, she could handle a gun, but that was almost a given in such times of war. She had nearly no other skills to speak of save running away.
He tensed when a pair of hands fell to his shoulders, then relaxed as they began gently massaging his tight muscles. Her long raven hair curtained his face from view as his eyes fell shut; he buried himself in her scent, sighing in pleasure. He had to admit, though, she also made a very good masseuse.
Raye looked down upon the boy, no man, who had saved her. She took in his muscular arms and chest, his beautifully sculpted nose, his shapely lips, and his silky unbound hair. She loved these times, when he'd just relax and let his guard down. These were some of the rare times when a peaceful sense of quiet seemed to exist, where he let her into his space, near him. She knew it was ridiculous, but from the moment she'd first met him, she'd felt something, something important and had vowed perhaps subconsciously to break through that cold façade.
She thought back to when she'd first awoken on his bed, his scent still lingering on the sheets, she almost blushed. It was true that Wufei was a fine specimen of the male species, but he was...well, lets just say that she'd acted like quite the idiot the first time they'd met, though his attitude hadn't helped the situation. However, the one thing she remembered was how gentle he'd been when he'd treated her wounds. Just remembering the way he'd touched her made her shiver.
"Are you cold?" His voice snapped her back to reality.
"Huh?"
"I said, are you cold?" he asked again, a hint of annoyance beginning to seep back into his voice.
"Oh, um no. Not really," she mumbled, somewhat stung by his words, even though she knew she had no reason to be.
As if to make up for his harsh words, he gently removed her hands from his shoulders and stood facing her.
"Go to bed. We've a long day ahead of us."
She nodded in acknowledgement as he walked past her and into his room. After a few moments, she followed his example and headed towards her own room. It was only a few hours later that she was able to fall asleep, but when she did, she was plagued with nightmares.
"Chad!"
There he was, reaching to her in his need. She watched in horror as he was shot over and over again. Blood splattered the walls and she herself was drenched in blood. He reached out to her, calling her name.
"Raye, how could you?"
"Chad, I'm so sorry. Please, come back! I-I didn't mean it!"
"Liar!"
"CHAD!"
"I loved you!"
"Ah!"
She woke up shaking, her pillow damp with tears. She could recall the nightmare vividly and Chad's voice still rung in her ears. Why was she dreaming of him again? Slowly calming down, she eased herself back down to the bed. She'd thought her nightmares had ended for good a couple of weeks ago, yet...Perhaps it was the fact that he loved her that made her feel so guilty about his death. A death that she had been the cause of. She'd never loved him the way he'd wanted her to. She'd always viewed him as the big brother she'd never had and was so shocked when he'd confessed his love to her, but was she wrong? Could she have perhaps accepted him and made him happy?
"Chad...I-I didn't mean it!"
The words drifted back to her from the nightmare.
'But...I did,' she thought miserably, fighting tears that threatened to burst forth.
She clutched at her throbbing head and pushed the thoughts away. Wufei would say that she was being stupid, trying to change the past. He'd say that she shouldn't regret the past because that means she regrets the present and future; that was always enough to snap her out of her thoughts and theories. Wufei...
"Liar..."
Shaking her head, she slipped out of bed, unable to rest let alone sleep. Tiptoeing from her room, she found herself facing his door. Of course, this wasn't the first time she'd done this, but it felt different this time somehow. She wondered if he really cared...or was just concerned about her level of performance. She really didn't want to bother Wufei, and she definitely couldn't allow this to affect their mission.
'Just go back, Raye,' she told herself silently, 'You can deal with this by yourself.'
Just as she'd made up her mind, the door opened and there stood a stoic Wufei, his face just visible in the soft glow of light from earth. She stood there; feeling like a child caught red handed as he stood, silently watching her. Then, finally...
"Are you coming in or not?"
She started at the sound of his voice and found herself momentarily mesmerized by his dark eyes before she quietly walked past him and into the dark room. There lay his bed, just large enough for two to fit. She crawled beneath the covers silently, waiting for him to do the same. His lean body was warm and comforting as she snuggled against his broad back in the foreboding darkness. He sighed as he relaxed and fell back asleep, the sound of his even breathing obvious proof of his unconscious state. She smiled, breathing in his strong scent as she slept peacefully, resting against his backside.
'Goodnight Wufei.'
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When Raye awoke, she felt warm; even more important, she felt safe and knew exactly where she was. Turning to press her face into the material of Wufei's shirt, she reveled in the sound of his steadily beating heart and thought back to the very first time she'd found herself in his bed. She'd never forget that night, that one night that had changed everything between them.
Of course, the very first time she'd ever awaken in his bed was the day she'd been rescued, dragged from that cold cell and thrown into his life. She remembered how utterly disoriented she had been; how, even then, the same sense of awe had touched her when she first saw him. She'd been so flustered. Her temper had burst at every opportunity. At the time, she'd thought nothing of it, believing Wufei to be possibly the most stubborn man alive. Having never experienced such, she had no explanation for her actions except that Wufei was definitely to blame, seeing as he was always so impossible. The first week had gone rather badly. His tart attitude having exacerbated her state of distress, she had been rude and nasty, her irritability so great that she wondered how he had managed to put up with her. Then, the nightmares started coming.
She'd finally started accepting her fate when he came to haunt her dreams. She'd been terrified, screaming out in the night as Chad's face loomed before her. Thinking she was under attack, Wufei had charged into her room, half dressed with a gun in hand.
"Chad NO!"
She'd woken up in bed, frightened out of her wits, only to see Wufei leaning over her, his hand on her shoulder. She'd collapsed onto him, holding onto the front of his shirt as if her life depended on it; through it all, the one thing that she remembered to this day was how gentle his hands had been upon her, soothing her fears away without a single word as she wept. She'd been nearly asleep when he moved to get up and leave. Panicking, she had pulled on the sleeve of his shirt, a pleading look on her face. When they'd woken up in the morning, she'd expected ruthless teasing and taunting from him, but instead, he'd simply caressed her cheek, a soft look in his eyes.
She smiled from the memory and snuggled even closer to Wufei's warm body. That was one of the rare times she'd seen that soft side of him. The rest of the time he acted as if he couldn't stand her. However, she found those times endearing as well, since she was at fault with all her shameless flirting. She nearly laughed as he mumbled grumpily.
"Damn it Raye...not your teddy bear..."
"But 'Fei, your just so cute! Are you sure you don't wanna be my teddy bear?"
"Yes," he replied, fully awake now, "I wouldn't want people thinking I was some kind of weak woman just because of that ridiculous name you insist on calling me."
"Hmm," she sighed in content as she snaked her arms about his slim waist, feeling his strong abs.
"Are you going to be getting up anytime soon? We have a mission in about three hours."
She didn't reply, but tensed as he turned over onto his back before settling down again. She relaxed again, sneaking over to lay her head on his chest. Her face colored slightly as his arm wrapped around her shoulders. She wondered what he was thinking about. Even in bed, he wasn't usually so...affectionate.
"Did Yuy debrief you on the mission?"
Surprise was clearly on her face. He had never before discussed a mission until they were on standby. He looked down at her carefully, as if trying to gauge her reaction.
"Clean-up at L472." Her eyes widened minutely.
"But no attack has occurred there recently..."
She trailed off, not understanding. Clean-up meant total annihilation of a target, usually bases or large units like L472. However, Clean-up almost always followed an initial attack in which the head of the group was cut down first. It's like a worm: if you just start hacking away, it'll keep growing back, but if you burn off the head, then all that's left is to dispose of the body. If they indeed were responsible for both the initial attack and the Clean-up, then why wasn't he telling her? For what possible reason could he be stalling? Why?
"No," he sighed, "Your right."
"Then...who's our target head?" She was met with silence once more. Raye felt her frustration grow and was about to demand him to tell her (not that he'd listen) when he spoke.
"Lyre...Rachad Lyre."
Her heart seemed to stop then. All color had drained from her face and all she could feel was this numbness.
"No..."
"Raye," his voice was soft and gentle, but she wouldn't listen.
"No, it's not possible!" She said, now sitting, "Fei it's not him! IT CAN'T BE HIM!"
She jumped out of bed and rushed into the bathroom, locking the door.
"Raye! Damn it," Wufei swore as sounds of her weeping reached him. He began pounding on the steel surface in vain, "Don't do this! I need you for the mission. You have to stay strong!"
"You don't understand."
"Of course of I do," he said, suddenly exhausted as he slid to the floor, leaning against the wall. He thought back to the destruction of his colony. His family, his people...everyone was gone.
"Wu-Wufei?" He sighed.
"Just a couple of months ago, I had the pleasure of witnessing the complete destruction of my colony. My friends and family all perished..."
Silence. Then...the sound of the door squeaking open as she stepped out, her head down.
"Wufei...I'm...I'm sorry." He snorted.
"What for." She kneeled down before him, her knees almost touching his feet as she apologized.
"I'm just being childish and irrational. My behavior is unacceptable. I...it won't happen again."
She was surprised when she felt his hand beneath her chin, urging her to look up into his own dark eyes, eyes filled with heated emotion in their endless depths. She watched, entranced, as he leaned forward to place his lips upon hers. In that instant she could feel a flash of heat surge through her body as she leaned into him. Pulling away, she saw an odd sort of wonder in his eyes, but more prominently, the heat that smoldered at the surface, a heat she knew she would be consumed by.
He pulled her down against him, kissing her briefly on the forehead as he held her close, his heart racing. For moments they stayed like that, silent in their thoughts. Finally he shifted, bring Raye to stand with him.
"Get ready. It's almost time to go."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Raye fidgeted as she awaited her entrance. Wufei was to set off a bomb in the west wing as a distraction while she went after the target. He'd actually offered to do the job, but she'd refused. She had to do this, for Wufei if not for herself. She didn't ever want to be just another weak woman in his eyes. She had to prove herself.
BOOM
That was her signal. She quickly ran out into the smoke-filled corridors, racing to the room she knew he'd be in. Chad...She shook her head and forced herself to focus on the task at hand.
'The control room...Where is it?'
"Bingo," she whispered morbidly as she found the room.
Bursting in, she steeled herself to face her old friend.
"Raye?! I thought you were dead!"
She thought she saw a look of dismay on his face, but when she blinked, all she saw was concern and relief.
"Shouldn't that be my line?" she asked, raising the small laser gun she held.
"Raye, what are you doing?" He stepped closer, forcing her back a step "I love you." Her resolve weakened.
"RAYE!"
A streak of white flashed by her as Chad was tackled to the ground. A small pistol skittered across the floor from Chad's outstretched hand.
"Damn it! Raye, help me," Chad called out to the horrified woman.
"Chad..." She flashed back to when she first met him, how they became close friends, and how he'd...died. "It's all been a...a lie?"
A painful cry pierced the air as Wufei's shoulder was punctured by a small dagger. Chad scrambled away from the pilot to retrieve his gun while Wufei struggled to lift himself up.
"Pathetic," Chad sneered as he pulled the trigger.
"NO!"
A shout of anger exploded from Raye as she jumped towards Wufei. She jerked as she felt something rip through her. There was a dull stinging sensation as she fell to the ground, breathing hard. Silently, Wufei came to her side, cradling her in his arms, indifferent to the pain in his shoulder.
"Raye..."
"Fei, I'm sorry I screwed up..." she began coughing. "I wanted to prove myself to you, but I guess I'm just another weak woman in the end, huh?" She tried to laugh, but ended up choking on all the blood. She knew the bullet had punctured her lung; she didn't have much time.
"Damn it," Wufei swore, "How could you...I told you to watch yourself! You never listen..."
"Fei...I just want you to know that I...I love you."
"Raye," he whispered as tears threatened to spill.
"Forgive me..."
And then she was gone.
Laying her body down gently on the cold steel floor, Wufei stood carefully, his eyes filled with cold fury as he turned to stare at Rachad, who for once seemed shocked by his actions.
"Look. I didn't mean for her to die, okay? How about I let you go and we forget about this whole thing. No hard feelings?" Rachad stood, his hands held up submissively.
A shot rang out clearly in the silence as Wufei stepped carelessly over the corpse, his face drained of emotion.
"No hard feelings."
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Sitting back in Nataku, Wufei awaited death. The explosives hadn't quite destroyed the entire base, giving him a perfect excuse to self-destruct.
'Who would have thought.'
He knew how dishonorable it was of him. Suicide was a coward's way out, but wasn't that what he'd been all along? A coward? He'd been in denial since the beginning. It was too late, though. Too late for her. Too late for him...
'Thirty seconds left.'
He couldn't wait. He watched with satisfaction as the last seconds ticked away before everything disappeared in a brilliant flash of white. What blissful oblivion...
Wufei...
A soft voice whispered in his ears.
Wufei Chang...awaken
He felt strangely aware...
Do you love the child of fire?
'That voice again,' he thought, 'Where am I? If this is heaven then I'd rather be in hell...'
Is that so?
A woman robed in a long white dress appeared before him, her long white hair pulled up into twin buns.
"Who are you?" he demanded.
I am Queen Serenity and I apologize for your pain, which has resulted from a mistake that I've made.
"What's going on? Why are you here, interrupting my eternal sleep?"
Do you want to be with Raye?
The question threw him off balance as hope swelled from deep within him.
"How?"
I can send you there to be reborn with her. You would be able to live and love again as you wish.
His answer was obvious before he even spoke. He smiled as he felt himself fading.
'Soon Raye,' he thought, 'Soon."
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It was a chilly autumn morning when Hino Rei sat before the sacred fire, meditating. Grandpa was sick, so it was her duty to take care of the shrine in his absence. Clearing her mind, she tried to relax in the soothing heat of the room, but her concentration broke as a small jingling could be heard outside. She closed her eyes and tried to refocus herself. Just as she began to calm once more, the jingling of bells came again, even louder than before. She sighed in frustration, preparing to run out there and yell at whoever was making the racket.
"Hey you! The shrine doesn't open 'till..." she stopped short as she realized no one was out there. Stepping out, she looked around cautiously, wondering where the person may have run off to. The sun chose that moment to peek out from behind the clouds as she stood there bewildered. Something sparkled to the left of her field of vision. She turned and found the object beneath the sacred bells of prayer.
'A necklace? Whoever that was must have dropped it...'
She picked the piece of jewelry up for a closer look. A beautifully handcrafted dragon, sculpted in gold was the centerpiece. She turned it over and a look of confusion crossed her face. Carved on the back was a message.
"I forgive you. Fei."
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Hey what'd you guys think? Good? Bad? Okay? REVIEW and tell me!!!!
For those of you that actually liked it, this is going to be the first in a series of four or five. Depends on how I feel and how much I get done! Hope this wasn't a waste of your time.
Crystal Rose ^_~