Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Broken Wing ❯ Broken Wing - Chapter Seventeen ( Chapter 17 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Authors Notes: Chapter Seventeen



Authors Notes: Chapter Seventeen! Whoo hoo! Alrighty, answering questions: blue wind: Not end on a cliffhanger? ::blink, blink:: NOT end on a cliffhanger? Whyever would I want to do something silly like that? ::grin:: Silver Dragonfly: Actually, I thought this wasn't as much of a cliffhanger as some other chapters, so I thought that was a good place to stop! And I can't tell you not to worry about Usagi-chan, because I can't promise anything! ::evil cackling:: Blue Angel: ::gapes and stares:: And I thought Rashaka-chan wrote some long reviews! I'm VERY glad you like how I'm writing Duo and especially Relena. I happen to believe Relena is vastly more intelligent and capable than many people give her credit for. As for Mamoru… I think I answered a question like this for chapter 16, but I'll respond here too; Mamoru's whereabouts will be explained, don't you worry. The evil entity… hehe, the evil entity would take a bit more to explain… all I'm going t say is this: You won't get an answer to that in Broken Wing. Thanks for forgiving me! Affection between Usagi and Duo? Whatever gave you that idea? ::blinks innocently:: And I'll mail in a nomination for you to the Guinness Book, okies? ;o) Golden Goddess: I'm reveling nothing about pairings! Nothing at all I say!!! Phoenix of Blood Red Mars: I just haven't seen a review from you before… thanks! Anime Princess: Ooooh… have one of the G-Boys get hurt… a chance for some more carnage!!! WHOO HOO!!! But unfortunately I've already got how Usagi comes out of her catatonic state all worked out! Hiko-chan: Lookie! More!!! Usagi Asia Maxwell: Don't kill me!!! If you kill me, I won't be able to finish!!! Sam: Usagi let Duo call her Usagi-chan because she felt that considering the fact they were about to go into battle, it might be time. Even if Usagi and Duo DO get together (which I'm not telling!) I doubt he would call her Usako for two reasons: 1) He is American and doesn't understand the full complexities of Japanese; he wouldn't know to come up with that name on his own and 2) Usagi probably would not let him use that even if he did come up with it because it was Mamoru's name for her. Tuxedokamen-sama? Hmm… who knows? ::grins:: UmaDeva: Ah, a moonie after my own heart! You miss Mamoru and the Senshi, do you? Well… sorry, but I can't reveal anything about where Usagi will end up! Darcey: ::shudders at the DiC names:: I'm revealing nothing that deals with the future selves of Usagi or the Senshi. Mamoru/Endymion's whereabouts will be explained. And… um… looks like this is the next chapter! YAY! Usa-chan: What did you update?!? What?? Dangit, guess I'll just haveta go look …Time for thankies now! Thanks to Trenchcoat Man and VeeBees, and to ALL OF YOU!! YEAH!!! And a special thankies this time to Marika Webster, who wrote the vast majority of Wufei's vision scene in return for me writing a scene in her fic, Precious Are These Things. THANKIES!!!!!!

Disclaimer: ::sniff, sniff:: Not mine… not Sailormoon or Gundam Wing… only the story of Broken Wing belongs to me…

Commands: I have TWO fanfics I want you guys to read!! First one: Great Duo Hunt by TrenchcoatMan. Second one: Precious Are These Things by Marika Webster. Go read! NOW!!! Oh no wait… read BW first… teehee!

Broken Wing - Chapter Seventeen




From the third story terrace of Sanch Palace, Hiiro watched as Duo lead the catatonic Usagi around, showing her flowers and insects in the garden. The braided one even plucked a red rose from a bush and, after carefully picking off the thorns, threaded it through Usagi's golden hair just above her ear. A red rose . . . for love. Hiiro thought it quite ironic and telling that Duo had chosen that particular color when the gardens of Sanch Palace overflowed with roses of all hues. He also thought it pitiable that she didn't seem to notice at all, as she didn't notice so much now. It wasn't as if she had noticed Duo before, however. All of them, at some point, had seen how the braided one poured his every whim and wish towards the golden goddess. But she never noticed. Not because she was cold, oh certainly not. Simply because she was both too naïve to think that her dear friend could ever feel more than friendship for her, and because she was too much in love with someone from her own time. Endymion's reincarnation, Hiiro assumed.
As Hiiro continued to watch the pair, a strange pattern began to emerge in their actions. A parallel evolved from Duo's patient attention and Usagi's indifference to his every word and action. He saw in the silent girl a vision of himself, and Relena in Duo.
That's how I treat her, isn't it? Like something not important . . . like I can't even hear her.
"Hiiro? What are you thinking about?"
Perhaps he should have been surprised at the suddenness of the soft voice, or the incredible timing the girl had. He wasn't, of course. Nothing ever surprised him.
Except for her smile.
When he turned, Relena was sharing with him one of her small smiles, the type that was weighted down with the burden she carried as a fifteen year old princess but still managed to reveal her kindness. This always succeeded somehow in stupefying the Wing pilot. She knew so much pain, and was still so innocent. She had the fate of a kingdom on her shoulders, along with the lives of its people. Yet still she found the strength to smile. At him. Of all people in the world she could smile at, she chose him. And that was what surprised him most.
"Hiiro?"
She tilted her head to the side, waiting for his answer, or at least a characteristic 'Hn.'
"I'm thinking about Duo and Usagi-san."
Relena blinked. He could see the shock in her gaze, the astonishment that he had actually answered her in a complete sentence, and not only that, but had actually told her what was on his mind.
"What about them?" she asked quietly, moving over to the window beside him, to look down on what he saw. He was silent, allowing her to watch the two for a moment, wondering if the parallel, the irony would be as apparent to her as it was to him. He gazed at her, seeing the blue of her eyes soften. Now he knew why they radiated so much kindness; Quatre's original theory must be correct. Relena was Usagi's descendant . . . she had the golden girl's eyes. "It's sad isn't it?"
"Hn?" The sound slipped from his throat before he even realized it. A habit, he supposed.
"He loves her so much, but she can't see or hear him."
"She wouldn't love him anyway. She's got someone in the past."
"Then the happy ending is only for her. Duo will be left here, alone. Wishing things could have been different." He heard the note of some emotion enter the girl's voice. Although he couldn't place it, he realized that it must mean she saw what he had.
"Relena . . ."
She sighed and smiled, turned her eyes up to him, and waited. But the weight of those clear blue eyes grabbed his words and pulled them back down into his throat. He felt his mouth moving, aware that no sound was emerging. Then she chuckled lowly, almost under her breath.
"Speechless, Hiiro?" Relena lighted up on her toes and placed a gentle, chaste kiss on his cheek before turning away, "Don't worry about it. I'm used to it."
She was going to walk away. She was going to leave him here and there would be the chance that something could happen between now and the future. Something that would create a situation worse than Duo's with Usagi. At least Duo could hope that Usagi might be able to hear him, or might wake up one day. Then he would be able to tell her how he truly felt. Hiiro knew that he could be killed at any moment if she left him now, and then the chance would never come.
"Relena!"
His slender legs carried him swiftly over to her, where the girl was just beginning to turn back to him. He didn't wait for her to question him, or even to complete her movement. Hiiro grabbed her by the arm and pulled her close, planting his lips on hers in what he knew was a clumsy kiss. He'd never kissed anyone before . . . he'd always had the mission and never had he met anyone like Relena Darlian/ Peacecraft, who could smile even if OZ were knocking at her peaceful door. Those smiling lips were soft beneath his, and gave way, even if she must have been completely shocked.
Hiiro pulled away, a carefully calculated motion, designed to allow him to keep his exterior of apathy intact. He watched Relena as she watched him, confusion in her blue eyes. He knew she couldn't quite figure out what had just happened. He'd forgotten why he kissed her. Wait . . . to show her what he couldn't say. Yes, that's right. To show her what was going on inside of him that he couldn't put into words because he didn't have the programming. Did she understand? She had to. It was so blatant, so obvious, and coming from him it should have been a glaring neon sign over his head with a blinking arrow and the words 'IN LOVE WITH RELENA' emblazoned in the air.
But was it?
"I have a meeting," the girl finally said, voice quiet and calm, "I'll see you later, Hiiro." But there was a distinct smile on her face, brighter than her usual sad one.
Hiiro followed her as she left, followed her with his indifferent gaze. When she was around the corner and out of sight, the Wing pilot gave a heavy sigh and leaned against the wall, head back, eyes now staring at the ceiling. And then, in what had to be the miracle of all miracles . . . a slow smile spread over his tight mask of a face.


~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~


The castle in ruins . . . Endymion dying . . . the soldiers falling . . . Beryl laughing . . .
A new life, a new mother . . . the cat . . . the brooch . . . fighting, always fighting . . . Beryl again . . .
The four sisters . . . the Black Moon mark . . . the white prince . . . Death Phantom!
Dream mirrors? A tiger . . . a hawk . . . a fish . . . the four Amazons . . . the Pegasus . . .
ChibiChibi . . . Starlights . . . Princess Kakyuu . . . the soldiers fallen again . . . no . . . no . . .
GALAXIA!


~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~


Quatre screamed, twisting, unable to free his arms or legs from the strong thing that bound him together. He rolled and there was a world- jarring THUD that knocked the breath from him. Wrapped up in a darkness that refused to let him see, Quatre sobbed quietly, partially from the unknown darkness, partially from the fuzzy remnants of his dream.
"Quatre," came Trowa's calm voice from somewhere in the pitch black, "calm down, let me get those sheets." The blonde obeyed, relaxing as well as he could and in a few moments the darkness was seared by a pale shaft of moonlight and the image of Trowa's face. Quatre launched himself from the cocoon of twisted sheets and blankets into the taller boy's arms. Tears trekked resignedly down his face like soldiers marching off to war. "What was it, a bad dream?"
Quatre nodded, his arms tightening about Trowa's neck.
"It's okay now. You're awake."
Oddly enough, the silent boy's short and simple statement was more comforting than a long, heartfelt speech could have been. It took only moments after that for Quatre to calm himself enough to detangle his arms from Trowa and back away.
"I think it was more than a dream," he said finally, "I think . . . I think I saw Usagi-san's past. The entire thing."
"And?" Trowa was gazing at him, showing nothing, but even in the dim moonlight Quatre could see the faintest touch of interest gleaming in the one visible green eye. All he could do in answer, however, was shudder. "That bad?"
"First she died on the Moon . . . then she was reborn and her life was peaceful for a while. When she turned fourteen though . . . after that point I saw nothing but constant, endless fighting. And death."
"She's sixteen now. Two years of fighting? That's nothing. We've been fighting our entire lives."
"You have. Hiiro has, and so has Duo from what he's told us. But Wufei and I haven't. We started fighting because we wanted to save the colonies, and the Earthsphere. He and I have been fighting less than a year. And already I understand what a terrible thing it is. But even we aren't normal. All of us are different in some way than all of those people who live blissfully without really understanding the danger they are in. You, Duo, and Hiiro were orphans. Wufei a young widower. I am the only heir to the richest family in the colonies." Quatre paused in his rant, looking to Trowa, who said nothing. So the blonde continued, "Imagine that you're a normal teenager. All you have to do in life is go to school, talk to friends, and think about future romance. You like this life, you're happy with it. Then suddenly from no where you're told that you're destined to fight in a great war against evil, and your life is never the same. From that day forward you aren't normal anymore; you're far from it. You have powers, you have a secret love, and you have a court of protectors. In the daytime you go about your business acting like everything is just fine when it isn't, because at night you have to risk your life for the sake of people who will never meet you and never thank you. And all you want, your only wish in this life, is for things to go back to the way they were. All you want is to be normal again. But you can't have that, because then you find out that your destiny isn't over yet. You'll grow up to take over a kingdom and not only that . . . you'll be immortal. You will be fighting and ruling and protecting for the rest of eternity. That is the reality of what Usagi-san lives with every day! It is so much more than what we live with, because we will die one day. We will be able to rest. She won't."
As the last of the words fell from his lips, Quatre looked up to see the shadow of understanding on his companion's already hidden face. Trowa could never fully comprehend what it was Quatre spoke of, because he could not feel it as the blonde could. But he could understand the idea of fighting for eternity . . . and not like it.
"Then I can understand," began the tall one, "why Usagi-san hasn't woken up yet. She doesn't want to."


~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~


I have to make them understand. I have to make them see that even though what I did may have unforeseen consequences . . . it was right. It was right because now they will live, and so will Relena.
Setsuna paced the Realm Between Times nervously. Her Staff propped against the Gate, waiting for her to pick it up once more, waiting to be used. Her hands shook as they had ever since her hasty and beaten retreat from AC 195. Only now it wasn't entirely because the pilots had rejected her.
The entity, the darkness . . . it shrouded over everything in her Realm now. She felt its consciousness flooding through the mists, attacking the Gate with its silent onslaught, unable to break the mystical guards on those white doors. For now. But even the Gate of Time couldn't stand against this assault forever. Eventually it would fall and all of Time would be at the entities mercy. Setsuna was determined that this would not happen. The Senshi would fight this evil and win.
But she had to return Usagi to her own Time first. Only then could she take any of the Senshi anywhere, because the risks of having two Usagi's misplaced in Time were just too great. But Usagi could not go home in her current state. She would never make it through the Warp.
Serenity-sama, give me strength, prayed the Time Senshi to her long dead queen.
Nothing about Time had changed as far as Setsuna could tell, which could be a sign that the entity would be defeated and never make any changes. Or it could mean simply that it had not broken through the Gate yet and brought attention to itself. There was always the risk that once it did break through, they would not be able to find it.
I can't let that happen. Usagi-chan, please wake up soon! You have another duty, you have another battle to fight! And this one could affect the entire stream of Time!
But first, the pilots. A fight against the darkness could not begin until the pilots were proven safe, and Usagi revived. And Setsuna knew that she had to talk to them, to regain their trust. She had to talk to them. But only one at a time . . . that way she could win them back slowly, and have the ones already won behind her when she approached the others.
Who first, then? Who to contact first? Quatre? Certainly he would be the most understanding of the five. Then the image of the blonde's bloodshot eyes and disgusted expression invaded her mind and she shook her head. Duo, then. Duo never could keep a grudge . . . but he loved Usagi, and he was the one who saw her day in and day out because he was her keeper. That fueled his anger on. Trowa? No, too close to Quatre. Wufei? Too hard-headed. Hiiro?
Setsuna stopped to go back and consider. Hiiro would probably be the best option, for he was calm and objective at all times. He would be the most likely to listen to her with his mind completely open. But Wufei . . . who better to help stop the tragedies of the future than the one who would set them in motion? Surely if she told him . . . then he would understand.
Yes. Wufei, then.


~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~


Wufei's mind registered the presence of another person before he even heard the boots clicking over the hard floor of the hangar. Boots . . . then it would be Noin, one of the defected OZ soldiers, or . . .
"Wufei."
Setsuna.
"I'm busy, Onna." He didn't look at her, just kept working on Altron, and hoping that by his words and his lack of interest she would get the point and go away. She really had some nerve to even come back at all. He thought they'd made it perfectly clear that she was not welcome here or anywhere near Usagi.
"I need to speak with you. It's important."
"We've said all that needed to be said when we told you to leave."
"No, Wufei. I want to explain to you why I've done this thing. I'm hoping that I can make you understand."
"We understand." Wufei stood straight and turned to the woman, tossing his wrench aside carelessly. "You wanted to save our miserable lives, lives that we've willingly offered up as sacrifices for a greater good. So you instead destroyed the life of an innocent girl, one whose destruction might actually cause us more harm than good. Congratulations."
He watched her clutch her staff tightly. She was angry, he could tell. But there was more than anger beneath that calm and controlled exterior. What that other emotion was he couldn't tell; Setsuna was too adept at hiding her feelings. Too much like that damned Yui.
"I wanted to tell you what that future will be like, the one I'm trying to prevent." Her words came out slowly, constrained within the confines of her tight lips.
"It is a little late now, don't you think? Shouldn't you have told us this a long time ago?" Wufei shook his head to show her just how disgusted he was and began to turn away.
"You will kill them!"
He paused, noting both the ridiculousness of the words and the desperation with which they were said. That was it, the thing that lurked beneath Setsuna's eyes and oozed from her pores: desperation. Wufei allowed himself to look back towards her. Her mouth was set thinly, lips pressing together. The staff might break at any moment, she was squeezing so tightly. But her eyes called out to him in that way that words can't, pleaded with him to stop and to listen.
"Quatre, Duo, and Trowa," she said when he did not move again, "you will kill them. You will beat Quatre to the point of death, then try to make it look like a suicide. You won't be so kind to Duo; he will receive four bullets. One to the chest, three to the face. Trowa you will gut and then hang from a tree like a trophy. Then, you will slit your own throat. That was the future I saw, the one I am trying to prevent."
"You're either lying or were hallucinating, Onna," Wufei growled, a great upwelling of indignation and anger growing inside his chest, "I would never do anything so dishonorable as kill my friends. And certainly not in such dishonorable manners."
"You will. Or you would have, if I hadn't brought Usagi-chan here to bind you to them."
"Get out."
"WUFEI!"
In a moment he saw her motion as she brought the butt of her Time Staff clanking to the ground. He vaguely heard the resounding tap echo through the hangar, and then all was whiteness.


~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~


Gradually the whiteness faded, and Wufei found himself in his own body but somewhere far away from the Gundam hangar at Sanch Palace. There were the sounds of waves . . . the smell of salt . . . wind buffeting at his sides . . . and before him kneeled a bruised and beaten Quatre. Quatre, what happened to you? The words never left his lips. He couldn't control his own body! What was going on??
Was this a vision? Was this what Setsuna was telling him about? If it was . . . then Quatre . . .
He screamed in his mind as his foot came in contact with Quatre's face. NOOOOOOO! No, this is wrong. This is not the honorable thing! Yui's death does not make this thing right! He tried to stop his body as he landed another punch in the gut of his former friend, who doubled over on his knees. Clear crystal aqua eyes stared at him, bewildered, silently asking why. Wufei heard his voice, harsher now. "Because you are weak." Weak? His mind screamed again. Quatre is not weak. He is perhaps the strongest of all of us. How could I say or do such a thing? How? But somewhere in the mind that was his, yet not his, Wufei found the real reason, the one this warped version of himself had not told Quatre.
He felt his body stoop to lift the battered boy from the ground, holding him close, almost like a lover. A wave of relief passed over the observer Wufei. Good... I've come to my senses. Now we'll get him some help... no. Stop. Wait. No!! What are you doing? Why are we walking to the cliff? He'll die! Listen to me, there is no honor in murder! No stop! Don't let go. QUATRE! Hold on to my hand. Why am I prying your fingers from mine? What am I doing? Gods why won't it stop? Wufei could only watch in horror as his friend's body tumbled down the rocky cliff, bouncing like a ragdoll at the bottom. He felt the sadistic smile spread across his face as he turned to go.
A brilliant flash of more whiteness and he was standing now before Duo. MAXWELL! Good, it's you. Surely you can help. You can go help Quatre... it may not be too late. Please. Stop me. I can't make my hand stop. The thoughts continued, growing in magnitude as Wufei noticed that he held a gun. "I told you I would kill you. Don't act as if you thought I wouldn't." What?!? He squeezed the trigger without hesitation, no remorse. No! No! I did not mean it! I'm sorry, Maxwell. Please forgive me. He heard the gun fire again, felt it recoil in his hands, the cool metal growing hotter with each shot. He flinched as he saw Duo's head explode before him, the brain matter spattering over his clean clothes. Wufei felt his lips curl into a smile. "Two down. Two to go." NO! Trowa. Not Trowa. Please. Wasn't it enough that Quatre and Maxwell had to die? Where is the justice in this? Wait . . . two? Who . . . no . . .
The whiteness again and he knelt on the ground beneath the body of his quiet friend. The bloody, gutted body dangled from a rope, swaying back and forth like a windsock in the breeze. Wufei felt rage boil over in him at last. He'd murdered three of his friends. This was not possible. This was the act of a coward. Words resounded in his mind, words that his future self allowed to repeat over and over: As Gundam pilots we represent a risk to the Earth and the colonies. I cannot allow that risk to exist. This was the reason. He thought he was doing it for peace . . . for the Earth . . . for the colonies . . .
This was not the way to preserve the peace!
None of his friends had deserved to die this way. And he certainly did not deserve an honorable death, as his future self was planning. He felt the sword touch his chest briefly and he shook his head, surprised when he felt the muscles move at his bidding. No. He would not have an honorable death. He did not deserve it. He moved his hand, positioning the sword at his throat. He would atone for his actions, by dying the cowards death. He brought the blade swiftly across his throat, watching in mute fascination as the crimson blood dripped down his blade. At least I can make it right in some small measure. Forgive me, Quatre. I'm sorry Trowa. Duo... I beg you... do not hate me. Meiran... where is my honor now? He felt his body hit the ground with a distinct thud and he smiled, letting his world fade to blissful black.


~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~

A hand gripped Quatre's shoulder, holding him back from helping Wufei. The blonde glanced over his shoulder and saw a serious-faced Duo with a finger over his mouth, signaling for silence. Behind the braided one stood Hiiro and Trowa, both of whom seemed ready to let their comrade's torture continue for the sake of knowledge. Quatre did not fight; he knew Wufei would do the same in their situation, and would expect them to use this opportunity to glean as much information as possible.
Returning his eyes to the hangar floor, he saw Wufei finally take his hands from his head and look up at Setsuna.
"W-What . . . that was the future?"
"The one without Usagi-chan's intervention, yes."
Wufei was silent a moment. He stared down at his hands as if at the most disgusting thing of his nightmares. He still sat on his knees; he'd been that way since Quatre had arrived, knowing something was happening.
"What caused . . . what could cause me to lose my honor like that?"
"It is unimportant now, Wufei-"
"It IS important!" Wufei pushed himself to his feet with a determined vehemence, his shouted words pummeling Quatre's ears. "I cannot imagine the thing that could cause me to kill my friends in cold blood. If there is still the slightest chance for this thing to occur, I need to know."
Kill his friends?
"I remember . . ." Wufei continued without waiting for Setsuna to answer, no doubt because he thought she wouldn't, "something . . . while I was in my future self's mind I knew the reason . . . I can barely remember now . . . it was . . ." The Chinese boy sucked in a breath and passed his dark eyes up to the woman's face, "Hiiro. He died."
Three of the four pairs of eyes hiding in the shadows turned to face the fourth. Hiiro stood, arms crossed, looking unsurprised and completely unaffected.
"Yes. In that timeline Hiiro was killed in a battle against the White Fang."
"White Fang?"
"You will know the name soon enough."
It took all of Quatre's inner strength not to run to Wufei when he saw the boy lean backwards against Altron, weak, needing the support. Duo's hand, still on his shoulder, reminded him of his duty to the Gundam pilots.
"Why? Why did you go through all of this trouble for us? We can't be so important to the Timeline that you would risk Usagi-san's sanity for us."
"There are two reasons." Setsuna sighed and the four hiding pilots waited in breathless expectation for those reasons. "The first I cannot say much about, for it is still an important part of your future. The five of you will play a vital role in an upcoming war, one after the current war."
Wufei nodded, accepting this.
"And the second?"
"Relena Peacecraft is indispensable in the future. She is the main advocate for peace on the Earthsphere and the colonies. In the Timeline you just witnessed, Relena committed suicide."
This time when Quatre looked to Hiiro the boy still showed nothing on the outside, save for paling by several shades. But within him roiled a profound pain from the knowledge that in some existence somewhere his Relena died early by her own hand.
"And you say that this future is prevented now?"
"Perhaps."
"What?!?" Wufei took a wobbling step towards her, a growl settling into his throat, "Perhaps?!? After everything you've put us and Usagi-san through?!?"
"It all depends on Hiiro. In the previous Timeline, he went into that battle never intending to come back alive, and that is why he didn't. He had no one he cared enough to live for. He didn't know friendship and he didn't know love. Now, after knowing Usagi-chan, we can hope that he chooses differently this Time."
When Quatre turned one last time, Hiiro was gone.


End Chapter Seventeen.