Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ For Eternity ❯ Another Wreck ( Chapter 12 )

Disclaimer: Standard disclaimers apply here.  I do not own Gundam Wing; however, I DO own Alexandria, Adjani, Joshua, Frank, Eve and anyone else who is unfamiliar to the show.  If you should wish to borrow them, PLEASE let me know!   Series: Gundam Wing For Eternity Chapter Twelve: Another Wreck Written by: Tiasha   ~ Driving away from the wreck of the day And I'm thinking 'bout calling on Jesus 'Cuz love doesn’t hurt so I know I'm not falling in love I'm just falling to pieces   And if this is giving up then I'm giving up If this is giving up then I'm giving up, giving up On love, On love   Maybe I'm not up for being a victim of love All my resistance will never be distance enough   --Anna Nalick, “Wreck of the Day” ~            & nbsp;  A frown tugged at her lips as she read through the report a third time.  Her stomach clenched in anxiety, which was something it had not done often in the past few years.  If her suspicions were correct then there would be a possible coup after the New Year; and that was something none of them at Preventer could afford to let happen.  The question was: who would be leading it?  Despite the intelligence that had been gathered, there was nothing that would lead to a possible Rebel Leader.             Her eyes narrowed as a thought occurred to her.  The intelligence gathered had not been looked over by a pilot however, certainly not a former Gundam pilot.  Perhaps she should send the information and reports off to him…  It made sense, and with them all being in the same vicinity, they would more than likely trade off on reports…especially if she pressured them with a due date.             Nodding to herself, Lady Une moved to press the intercom on her desk and buzzed for her secretary.  When her secretary answered, she hesitated momentarily.  The pilots were supposed to be focusing on the McCloud case…           &nb sp; “Ma’am?” her secretary questioned, her voice unsure. “Was there something you needed?”              “Yes, I’m sorry. I need the emergency number for Anaya’s office immediately.”             ;     “Oh crap! My exams!” Relena cried out as she glanced at her watch.  With speed, agility and coordination the pilots had never seen her with, she dashed out of the kitchen into the office to grab her book-bag and slip on her jacket while grabbing her keys and a Nutri-Grain bar.  “Catch ya later! Alex, don’t burn the house down!”  And just like that, she had vanished into the garage where a car engine could be heard a moment later.             “Oi! What the Hell is that supposed to mean?!” Alex exclaimed, clenching her fists in a menacing manner, but quickly dropped her anger when she saw that Relena was already gone.  She then heaved a heavy sigh and stretched back out on one of the couches, arms behind her head.             “When’re you gonna start the fire? It’s freezing!” complained Adjani as she entered and frowned down at the redhead.  “You aren’t planning on lying around all day are you?”           &nb sp; “Possibly,” the redhead answered with a smug smile on her face.             “Oh?” Adjani questioned, crossing her arms and frowning further.  When Alex nodded her head, she gave a pitiful whine and pouted. “Please, Alex?”           &n bsp; “Why don’t you ask one of the boys?” Alex said in a bored tone, eyes closed and expression neutral.  “I’m sure none of them would mind doing it since they all seem to be more than capable of helping out around here.”           &n bsp; Adjani’s pout turned into a frown, knowing very well what Alex was getting at.  “You could be a little nice to them. I mean, they’re supposed to be working with us. What better way to defeat McCloud than to have them understand our rhythms and mannerisms? You know I speak the truth.”           & nbsp; “Doesn’t mean I have to like it; and besides, I act like this on the field anyway.”              “Well, that part’s true. You’re a bitch twenty-four-seven so I guess if you’re actually nice it would throw things off.”           &nb sp; Alex’s eyes shot open at that. “Oi! Are you looking for a fight, you Roman twit?”           &n bsp; Adjani’s eyes narrowed; “Greek, Alexandria Le Faye. Do not make me remind you again.”           & nbsp; Alex’s deep amethyst eyes roamed over Adjani’s stiff figure, assessing the damage she had done.  With a heartfelt sigh, she apologized. “I don’t know why I’ve been so on edge lately,” she lied, not really wanting prying ears to hear the truth.             Adjani looked thoughtful for a moment, before softly venturing, “What exactly did you talk to Relena about a week ago? You know, when you were out in the mud…”          &nb sp;  Alex stared at the ceiling, her silence testimony that this was a touchy subject.  She blinked a few times before glancing at the blonde Greek who still towered over her form.  The young woman’s blonde curls fell in nearly perfect tendrils about her face, her hazel eyes vibrant as always and her make-up was light today, the eye-shadow and lipstick barely noticeable.           &nb sp; “My past…” Alex answered quietly.             Adjani blinked in surprise; “Your past? What about it?”           &nbs p; “My…brief marriage…”         &nbs p;   “M-m-marriage?! You were—but I thought that you hated—Alex, why did you never tell us?”           &nbs p; “He died many years ago and there’s nothing that can change that. It’s in the past and it will not affect me while on missions, so there was no real point in saying anything. And I would like for it to continue being that way.”           &nb sp; Adjani nodded slowly, “Who else knows?             “Relena.”           ;   “Oh…”         &nb sp;   “Did you honestly want that fire?” Alex asked, fidgeting in the couch now.             Adjani nodded her head, allowing the topic change when she saw how uncomfortable the redhead had become. “I’m sorry…” she whispered to the Irish woman in Gaelic.  It was one of the few phrases that she had been able to grasp and Alex understood that for Adjani to use Gaelic meant that she was sincere.             “Thank you,” Alex also whispered in Gaelic as she sat up and went about preparing the fireplace.  “He was a good man,” she then said in English.             Silence reigned between them before Adjani said merrily, “Christmas will be here in a week or so. You excited?”            ;  “About the same as every year,” Alex replied in an indifferent tone.             “Mou…you’re as bad as Barton or Yuy…”          &nb sp;  “So I’ve been told.”           &n bsp; “You could show a little enthusiasm. I know you enjoy the caroling and snowfall.”          &nbs p;  “And that means what exactly? I’ve always liked singing and snow. Snowball wars are the best.”           &n bsp; Adjani shrugged, sinking onto the couch with a sigh and looking out the window. “Do you think it will snow tonight?”            ;  Alex paused in her task to look critically at the gray clouds in the sky through one of the living room windows.  She then cracked a window open and took a deep breath, sniffing the air before cautiously saying that it was possible.  “If not tonight then tomorrow evening at the latest,” she commented, closing the window and locking it.  She returned to wadding up newspaper and placing it in the hearth.             “Really? Eve’s not going to sit still when it does.”           &n bsp; “She hardly sits still ever.”           &n bsp; “You really are a big sister.”              “So are you, Adjani. And besides, someone’s gotta be.”           &nbs p; “Mmm, I guess so…”          &nbs p;  Again silence fell between them.             “Do you think Eve will be all right?”           & nbsp; Alex turned and looked at the Greek woman incredulously; “How so?”           &nbs p; “With the pilots being here and her taking to them so well. They’ll have to leave sooner or later and I’m just concerned with how this is going to affect her.”           &nb sp; Alex nibbled on her lower lip as she considered this.  This was perhaps a concern all the women held and were dreading the day when it would occur.  “I think…we should leave it to Relena to worry about…”          & nbsp;  “But Lena’s already got so much to worry about! We shouldn’t just dump all this stuff on her and—”          &nb sp;  “I understand what you’re saying Adjani, but Eve is Relena’s responsibility. Relena is the child’s legal guardian and—in Eve’s eyes—her mother. Eve will turn to Relena first…she always has and always will. That is just the way it is.”           &nbs p; Adjani was silent as she absorbed this and chuckled lightly a few moments later.  “You know, you really enjoy keeping people guessing… You act all mean and unapproachable and distant…yet when you want to, you can be calm, patient and wise.”           &n bsp; Alex nodded her head, not the least bit insulted, and finished stacking the last of the wood. “Yes, well…it is safer to keep others guessing. Unpredictability can be a valuable asset. Remember that, Adjani,” she said, lighting a match.             “Sure thing…witch.”         & nbsp;   “Mmhmmm…you better believe it sister.”   ---         & nbsp;   Relena flexed her writing hand as she walked to the parking lot after slipping her sunglasses on.  Her hand was beginning to cramp towards the end of her third exam and she had been worried that it would mess up her essays.  Thankfully, the writing was still legible and she had been able to finish it with a half hour to spare.             As she approached the minivan, she began to dig through her purse for the car keys, a slight frown on her face as she was unsuccessful for the most part.  A few choice words left her mouth as she had to pause in front of the driver’s side door while she searched for her missing keys.  She shuffled her wallet, lipstick, credit card holder, checkbook and pens around the inside of the bag, hoping to catch a glimpse of her keys.  When she still could not find the keys, she closed her purse and peered into the car, squinting to see through the tinted windows.             A groan of dismay escaped her lips as she saw her prize sitting in the cup-holder of the seat console.  How had she not realized that she had not grabbed her keys?  How could she have been so stupid to leave her keys inside the car and the lock them in?  This was just the perfect ending to the last day of her exams.             Her head lightly hit the glass of the door window and stared longingly at the keys that mocked her from the inside of the minivan.  She frowned and glared at the keys, silently mouthing how she was going to melt the pieces of metal down and shape them into something, as if her silent threat would cause the keys to miraculously unlock the door for her.  When this still produced nothing, which she knew it would but continued to silently threaten anyway because it made her feel better, she sighed loudly.             “Problem?” a young male voice asked her and she whirled around to face the owner of the voice, her body tense for a fight should it be needed.  She had been sneaked up on one too many times in the past for her to NOT get paranoid.  And it had never been a good sneaked up on either…           & nbsp; She took in the young man’s spiked black-red-tipped hair and dark attire.  His black nail polish and baggy pants (which were staying up by some form short of a miracle) told her that he was more than likely Gothic.  But that was also her first impression too and those could rarely be trusted either.             “Not really,” she said somewhat stiffly, eyeing him warily.  He seemed to notice this because he spread his arms out in hopes of placating her nerves.  His deep navy backpack, which had hung precariously on one shoulder, slid down his arm to catch on his elbow and yank the appendage downwards.  He grunted in surprise at the sudden yank and threw an ungrateful look at the navy bag.  She chuckled lightly at his look, to which he returned his gaze to her and smiled a bright grin.             “I’m sorry if my attire offended you and made you think I was gonna mug you or somethin’ because I wasn’t. I just saw you look at your car like there was something wrong and thought I might be able to help.”           &n bsp; She nodded her head slowly, a small smile on her face. “Actually, I locked my keys inside. And since I didn’t crack the window open, I can’t get in.”           &nbs p; The young man approached her and the car, and then peered inside to find the offending keys.  He clucked his tongue before casting about him for something, chewing on his lower lip as he did so.  His eyes alighted on her and he leaned forward, one arm reaching up towards her neck.  She stiffened and watched him like a deer in headlights, her breath catching in her throat.  He wasn’t going to try something out here in public was he?!             A yank on her hair told her that he just might and she prepared herself to slap him away.  However, his hand then retreated from her hair, bringing with it one of the bobby pins she had used to do up her hair with that morning.  She blinked in slight surprise before giving him a disbelieving look.  She was fairly certain that unlocking a car with a bobby pin was just an old wife’s tale.  Especially since neither she or Hilde could ever accomplish the feat at home.             Yet this young man was indeed trying to do so.  She watched him fiddle with the metal and lock, his tongue protruding between his lips as he concentrated.  For a moment, Relena found herself watching him with the same fascination she used to have with Heero.  And the realization of this caused her cheeks to flush in embarrassment and shame.  How could she betray Heero that way and what on earth was she thinking?!  This was a civilian!  An outsider!  An innocent young man who had no idea that he was helping an undercover Preventer Agent!  And hadn’t she given up on Heero anyway?             “Damn, I hate these new models…could never get it to work with these…” the young man muttered in annoyance as he once again fiddled with the lock.             “New models?” she echoed, quickly returning from her thoughts and watching as he nodded his head.             “Yeah…they thought of everything it seemed. Sadly, I use to do this before the first war, you know—jack cars and stuff to earn money… And then low-and-behold—the war turned my whole life around. I nearly lost an arm when a car bomb went off and it made me realize that I didn’t want to continue doing this for a living…”              “Ah, I see said the blind man.”           &nb sp; “Yeah, pretty much. I went back home and moved back in with my parents—finished school and applied here. I’m working on a master’s degree for physics.”            ;  Relena smiled brightly and nodded, “Good luck with that.”           &n bsp; He grunted in acknowledgement and Relena felt her stomach clench at how similar it sounded to the ones Heero made when he was preoccupied with something.  She swallowed the sudden lump in her throat and nearly jumped out of her skin when the young man stood and turned towards her.  He raised a brow at her reaction, causing the sunlight to glint off of his eyebrow piercing.             ; “Afraid to say that I can’t help ya,” he said with an ashamed half-grin. “But I can walk you to the Admin building so you can wait for someone if you like.”           &n bsp; She smiled again and while she appreciated the offer, she refused him. “I’m sure you’ve got a part-time job you need to get to,” she explained.  He nodded and scratched the back of his neck nervously.           &nbs p; “Um—well—listen, maybe we can get together for a coffee at the café sometime,” he said and while he tried to keep his voice neutral, Relena could hear the childish hope underlining his casual suggestion.           &nb sp; She smiled, though somewhat sadly at him, and nodded. “Well, I’d have to explain to my hubby that it’s just a classmate-thing…but sure, I’d love to. Maybe you could help me with my science courses next semester.”          &nbs p;  She watched the hopeful look in the young man’s eyes dim as he caught the word ‘hubby’ and realized that she might be married.  She inconspicuously hid her left hand and was happy that she had, for no sooner had she slid the hand into her pocket, his eyes flicked to the said hand.  With a final smile, she waved her right hand and turned to walk off toward the Administration building.  As she did so, she pulled her cell-phone off the belt-clip and flipped it open.  With a quick glance at the traffic, she crossed the street and hit the speed-dial on her phone for the house.  She listened to the rings and had reached the Administration building when someone finally picked up.             “Daniels Residence,” the voice said and Relena smiled brightly.             ; “Frank! It’s Len! Listen, I was a dork this morning and locked the keys in the car. So I need someone to bring me the spare. Can you—”          &nb sp;  “Yes, someone will be out there soon. Where will you be when they come?”           &n bsp; “The Administration building. I’m just going to sit on the sofas on the ground floor and fish through notes to see what’s worth keeping. Catch ya later.”           & nbsp; “Hn. I’ll see you when you return. Later, ‘jousan,” and with that Relena heard the telling click of the line going dead.  She looked at the cell-phone with a slight frown on her face.  Frank had not told her who would be coming.  That was…unlike him…           &nbs p; She shrugged it off and entered the building, slipping her sunglasses to the top of her head.  Moving with a grace she continually perfected over the years from training on tightropes and poles, she sidled into one of the plush sofas that dotted the spacious ground floor of the Administration building.  Ignoring some of the appreciative looks she received from both genders, she began to sift through pages of various notebooks, marking the top of a few pages with large stars to indicate that there were some notes worthy of keeping.             It was perhaps forty minutes later when a shadow fell over her and she looked up, rather startled at the intrusion of her solitude.  She was even more so startled to find that the shadow belonged to Heero Yuy.  Oh, she was going to hit Frank for his sneakiness and for him joining everyone else in the matchmaking of her and Heero.             The young Japanese ex-pilot did not seem pleased to see her and with a pang in her heart, she forced herself to take on the same annoyed look he sported.  He raised a brow at her in question and she understood what he meant.  He wanted to know if she was ready to leave.  A heavy sigh escaped her as she shoved her notebooks into her backpack and stood, shouldering the pack and her purse.  He turned and headed out of the building, a clear indication that she was expected to follow.             She frowned at that and had half a mind to stay where she was, rooted to the floor to spite him.  But this was Heero Yuy and if he really wanted her to go with him, she would never be able to resist.  All he had to do was drag her or throw her over his shoulder and cart her off…  She would never be able to out-best him in a match of physical strength, although if she caught him off-guard she might, but she doubted she would be able to accomplish that in this situation.           &nbs p; He had just reached the doors when she again sighed heavily and jogged after him to catch up.  He frowned down at her as she passed through the door he held open and continued to frown at her as they walked to the minivan.  The silence between them was starting to unnerve her but she did not know what to say.  That she was sorry she had locked her keys inside the car?  Well, that was a given, so what good would it do to voice it?             “It seems unlikely that you would be so careless as to forget your keys inside the car,” he said, his displeasure obvious.  She fell back enough so that she could give the back of his head an odd look.  Was he really upset about it?!  Goodness!  She’d hate to see him when she’d forget to pay a credit card bill!  Honestly!  It was a harmless mistake!  And one she would most likely not repeat!             Or was he upset that he’d been chosen to come and give her the spare key?  She felt that odd little pang in her heart again as she realized that that had to be the reason for his anger.  Why did it bother her so much anyway?  It was not like she had had any chances with him right?  Or had she and that was why it hurt so much now?  She really had destroyed her chances with him then… What a wreck she had made of all this…           &nb sp; ‘But that’s a good thing, right?’ she asked herself silently.  No attachments.  That was what she always told herself when she met an attractive young man who’d show interest in her.  So how was Heero Yuy any different?  ‘I would have given up everything for him…’           ;   As Heero Yuy unlocked the driver’s side of the door to the minivan, Relena glanced past him and found her gaze resting on the child’s car-seat in the back.  ‘No…not everything… I would never trade Eve… She deserves a mother who loves her and right now, that mother is me.  I can’t give her up like some trading card…’         &nbs p;   Heero moved away from the door and it was a moment or two before she realized that he was watching her stare at the car-seat.  She jerked in embarrassment and shifted her gaze to the asphalt, not wanting him to see the pinkish hue of her cheeks, although the pink could easily have been caused by the harsh, cold, winter wind.             “Does she really mean that much to you?” he asked after a moment and she swiftly brought her head up to meet his intense gaze.  She nodded her head slowly.  Yes, she loved Eve with every fiber of her being.  The only things that kept her from being Eve’s mother were gene traits and the birthing process.  But if it had been possible, Relena would have gladly carried Eve for nine months…           & nbsp; “Why?”          &n bsp;  She blinked at such a simple question and contemplated what answer she was expected to give.  A complicated answer?  A simple one?  None at all?  There were so many reasons to say why and no definite way to say it.  “Because I love her,” she finally said.             He seemed to have trouble understanding this as a valid reason and so she gave him a patient smile.  He was still learning and trying to understand his emotions and humanity, even after all these years.  It was endearing to see him instill so much determination to something he could have walked away from and still could if he wanted.  But he was choosing to accept the peace and find a way to cope with it.             “She’s not yours though.”              “I raised her and have grown to love her, faults and all. That’s what love is.”           &nbs p; He still had difficulty understanding this and so she merely smiled again.  “That’s what love is? I never bothered with trying to understand and define something as intangible as love… How can you be so sure that what you feel is love?” he finally said.             She gave him a thoughtful look and finally said that she didn’t know but that even if it was called something else, the result would be the same and that the feeling would remain the same.  Eve would mean the world to her.  Eve was her center and nothing would change that.             He frowned slightly at that but said nothing.  She gave him a look that said he would understand someday.  “We should be getting back,” she said gently and slid into the driver’s seat.  She had just placed the key in the ignition and was moving to close the driver-side door when Heero stopped her movement.  He leaned in to still her hand on the ignition and looked at her with his ever-intense gaze.             Her breath hitched in her throat at his close proximity and much to her horror, realized that she was behaving like a little school girl with a crush.  Gods, she thought she had gotten past that phase!             “Drive carefully. There was an accident on the highway headed north. The clean-up crews should be finishing by the time you get there but there may be some leftover debris that could cause problems.”          &nbs p;  And with that, he left her personal space and closed the minivan door with a precise thud.  She continued to stare at him in stunned silence and finally regained her thoughts when he frowned at her and told her to lock the doors and head home.  The look in his eyes when he said home, however, had her trembling.  Now, what she was trembling from she could not tell, but her hand shook slightly as she moved to turn the engine and slid the gears into reverse.             She had just finished backing out of the parking spot, when Heero moved towards a black GMC SUV a few parking spots over.  She watched him climb in and start the SUV before she slid the minivan into drive, the shift of gears initializing the child-safety locks to lock.             It was going to be a nerve-wracking afternoon…            &n bsp;    “Where’s Heero?” Duo asked in slight confusion as he entered the study and found only the Aborigine man, Frank.  He could have sworn that Heero had disappeared into here after breakfast this morning…              A lone laptop that was still running told Duo that Heero had indeed been in here, but there were no programs up on the computer.  So that meant one of two things: Heero was just getting sloppy and leaving his computer around or something more urgent had captured his attention and he’d left the computer on so he could easily return to it.             ‘Knowing Heero…it’s the second of the two,’ Duo mentally laughed.             The Aborigine man looked up at him in mild surprise before turning back to the papers on the large oak desk he was seated at.  “He went to give ‘jousan the spare key to the minivan. She locked herself out of the car,” he replied, signing something and moving it to a pile at one corner of the desk.             “Oh…” Duo said, somewhat shocked that Heero had ‘dropped everything’ to go help Relena with something as mundane as a car key.  ‘But this is Relena, we’re talking about,’ he silently amended as he turned and left the study.  He called out a ‘thanks’ to Frank but only received a half-hearted ‘your welcome’ for his efforts.             Scratching his head in boredom, he looked around himself, trying to find something to occupy his time.  The girls were scattered around the property or had gone to headquarters for mandatory reports and Eve was at daycare.  The boy was at school and had his play to work on after that was over and Frank was busy with the finances of the property.  He really had nothing to do, as did the other ex-gundam pilots.  They had all left each other to themselves to occupy their own time.  Wufei was in the basement yet again and Trowa was down at the stables yet again.  Quatre had found the small music room a few days ago and had spent his free time in there since then, and Heero had been keeping to himself.  SO that left Duo to fend for himself…              An idea hit him and he moved back to the study to ask Frank a question.             ; “Hey, you got any maintenance that needs to be done on the cars?” he asked in a hopeful manner.  Frank paused in his work to consider this, tapping the ballpoint pen he’d been using against his nose.  He finally nodded, saying that there were a few things he could be doing.             “Ojousan has her old Shelby Cobra that she and Hilde have been trying to restore. She paid a bundle for it but claims that it was worth it. Joshua also has his old ‘67 Camero that is almost fully restored. The oil could be changed in all the cars and any other simple things like that.”           &n bsp; Duo grinned, his eyes sparkling as he thought of working on this Shelby Cobra of Relena’s. “Great! Thanks! See ya later, pal!”           &nb sp; He shrugged on his coat as he left the large house and headed towards the barn-like structure that housed the cars that were not constantly in use, like the silver and black Ford Mustangs they had used for the club a week or so ago.  He rubbed his hand together to generate some warmth as he approached the barn door.  He frowned however and slowed his steps when he saw that the door was slightly ajar and that music was lilting softly out through the open space.             He could not begin to imagine who would be in there at this time.  Trowa did not have much interest in the cars, or at least not to his knowledge.  Quatre was in the music room, this he knew because he had been able to hear the soft notes of the piano before he had left.  And Heero was not back yet, but Duo was fairly certain that the young Japanese man would be at his laptop instead of out here.  So, who was in the “car garage” as they all seemed to call it?             Cautiously, Duo peeked in through the doorway, his eyes scanning the room for any intruders.  His eyes alighted on two familiar figures, which put him at ease but at the same time, caused his stomach to clench in suspicion.  Hilde was supposed to be at Headquarters giving her monthly reports and briefings, or at least that was what she had told everyone…  And what was Trowa doing in there?  The two of them weren’t…seeing each other now, were they?  They couldn’t be!  Could they?             “And then! She had the nerve to call me a short Nazi wanna-be!” Hilde’s voice could be heard over the notes of the Christmas music an old stereo was producing. “Really! A Nazi wanna-be! I mean, does it look like I’m going for a Hitler look when I wear the uniform?! I think not! I nearly popped her one on the head for that comment!”            ;  “You mean you didn’t?” Trowa’s voice asked casually.             ; “No. Her superior was standing behind her. Stupid twit didn’t even know it. I didn’t have to say or do anything either. She now has been given all the Holiday shifts for her division without overtime pay for that little stunt,” Hilde explained, and Duo watched as she bent under the hood to fiddle with something on what looked like an old Chevy Camero.  He guessed that it was Joshua Anaya’s ’67 Camero.             “And you didn’t raise a finger in protest.”            ;  “Of course not! Not after that Nazi comment! Serves her right if you ask me!”           &nbs p; “So aside from the Nazi reference, there were no problems at Headquarters?”              Hilde shook her head, though it was difficult to tell with her being so far bent under the hood of the car.  “None that I could tell. Although Lady Une did give Josh something to give to Heero. Josh then gave it to me since I was able to leave early.”           & nbsp; “Did he say what it was about?”           & nbsp; “No. I don’t think he knew. Contrary to popular belief, Josh does keep an eye on what comes and goes in this house, and that includes assignments from Headquarters. He would have mentioned it if he knew, whether he was supposed to keep his mouth shut or not.”           &nb sp; Duo unknowingly mirrored Trowa’s raised brow at this new information. “And can Anaya really be trusted if he disregards orders for secrecy so easily?”              Hilde pulled away from the car to give Trowa an odd look. “You know, I wondered about that when I first came here, but then I realized that this family of Relena’s has a slightly odd caste system of loyalties. The first and foremost is “The Family” and then I think Relena is second and Preventer is third… or maybe Relena’s third and Preventer’s second… But “The Family” is always first. You just get used to it after a while.”           & nbsp; “So by that reasoning, Anaya is to be trusted,” Trowa concluded.           &nbs p; Hilde nodded; “Yup.”          &n bsp;  There was a pause in their conversation and Duo felt that now was a good time to “make a dramatic entrance.”  He pushed open the door, pleased that the hinges squeaked loudly in protest and feigned surprise at seeing the two of them there.  He waved cheerfully as they turned to look at him and grinned when Hilde’s eyes widened in surprise.  She quickly averted her eyes however and returned her focus to the Camero.  Trowa pushed away from the wall he had been leaning against and gave Duo a friendly nod.             “I should start bringing the horses in. It’s getting too cold to leave them outside for long,” Trowa explained, excusing himself.  Duo watched the fellow ex-gundam pilot leave the car garage, pulling the door closed behind him with a slightly loud ‘thwack.’  He was a little surprised that Trowa had left so quickly and once again his stomach clenched in suspicion.           &nbs p; He turned back to Hilde, her form bent over the Camero again, and he could not help but stand there in silence for a few moments to admire her.  While she did not have a drop-dead-gorgeous figure, she was still very pleasant to look at.  And while other men did not find the tomboyish interests all that attractive, he did and that was probably what had caused him to fall for her.  Her ability to help him when doing repairs on any machinery and her ability to know exactly what tool he needed before he even asked her—and the uniform he’d seen her in when they’d first met…           &nbs p; Duo swallowed his suddenly dry throat as his heated gaze roamed over her.  God, she was beautiful…  He closed his eyes to calm the sudden rush of desire.  It would do no good now.  She had left him to come here, although lately she had been giving him mixed signals.  Reflecting on that, Duo returned his gaze to her now straight, tense form.  She was looking at him in such a guarded manner that it nearly broke his heart.  What had he done to make her that wary of him?  Aside from getting upset at her for keeping her Preventer position a secret…           & nbsp; “If it bothers you that much, I can leave,” she said, looking away and moving to clean up her tools.             He frowned, “What makes you think I don’t want you around?”              “The look on your face just now.”           &nb sp; His frown deepened.  What was he to say?  He couldn’t tell her the real reason, she’d be embarrassed—not to mention himself too—and he could not come up with a feasible excuse either.  He decided a change of subject would be a wise course of action.  “So, this is Joshua’s Camero?” he asked amiably.             Hilde watched him for a moment before sighing heavily. “Let’s cut to the chase, Duo,” she said, throwing the last of her tools into the toolbox with a loud metallic ‘clang.’  “We’re both adults and we should be able to have a decent conversation.”              He gave her an odd look, not able to resist the jib she had set herself up for.  “Really? I couldn’t tell with the way you’ve been avoiding me.”           &nbs p; Her back stiffened even further and he watched her carefully, trying to see how much damage his mouth had caused.  Well, she was avoiding eye contact still, and her fists were clenched…  “Would it make you feel better if you got a good throw in at me?” he asked jokingly.             ; She looked at him then, seriously considering his ‘offer’ before sighing again and turning to slam the hood of the Camero closed.  “As much as it might, I have to decline. The cars are yours to work on as you please,” she said formally, as she moved passed him.  He moved to grab her arm but her flinching away from him caused him to pause and drop his hand back to his side.             “Look Hilde, you gotta understand that I have every right to be upset,” he said slowly, sensing that that was where the real problem lay.  She glanced at him before crossing her arms and looking down at her feet.             “I never said that you didn’t, Duo. I just said that I was able to make my own decisions.”          &nb sp;  “Yeah well—that doesn’t mean I have ta like ‘em…”         &nb sp;   “No, it doesn’t.”           ;   Silence reigned between them as Duo tried to find the words he wanted to say.  He wanted to tell her that everything was okay between them.  Sure he didn’t like her being a Preventer, but from the looks of it, the Erinnyes did not get that many mission assignments anyway.  He could live with that and he wanted to tell her so.  He wanted her to move back in once all this was done and over with.  And he wanted to tell her that he loved her, before he possibly lost her again…           &n bsp; “We’re still friends right?” her slow and hesitant voice jerked him out of his thoughts immediately and his frown deepened.  She had thought that this disagreement had ruined their friendship?  No wonder she had seemed so stand-offish and unsure around him…           &nbs p; He gave her an incredulous look and grinned as her cheeks flushed. “Is that what you thought?”  The color in her face intensified and assured him that she had thought that.  He laughed aloud, unable to contain himself although he knew it would probably make her feel even more embarrassed than she already was.             “Jeez, you don’t have to act like it’s the funniest thing you’ve heard in your life,” she griped, glaring at him to show that she did not appreciate his sense of humor at the moment.  When she still did not join him in laughing after a few minutes, he smothered his laughter with as serious of a look as possible.             ; Apparently, he had not done as good of a job as he had thought he had, for she started giggling and finally broke out in laughter, shaking her head and wiping tears from her eyes.  He raised a brow at her once she had calmed and she gasped out that it had been the look on his face.  “You—you—oh god, I can’t even begin to describe it!” she laughed, moving to hit his arm playfully.           &nbs p; He grinned and wrapped an arm around her neck, ruffling her hair like he used to when they were living together.  She squealed in mock horror and tried to escape him but he would not let go.  They ended up wrestling for a good ten minutes and to Duo’s chagrin, Hilde won the match.  Although he would never tell her, but she usually won the matches because he let her; that sparkle in her eyes when she believed that she had out-bested him for once was too beautiful to extinguish with something as minor as the truth.  Let her keep her little fantasy.  He wasn’t about to complain.             ; Especially not when she was sitting astride his stomach, arms in the air with a triumphant smile on her face and looking as beautiful as ever.  With his usual grin on his face, he put his arms behind his head and reclined into the hay they had thrown each other into during their wrestling match.  She was still smiling triumphantly down at him and he really did not mind.  The smile quickly turned smug though and he raised a brow at that, curious as to what she thought she had up her sleeve.  Her hands were now on her hips as she looked at him, her smug smile and sparkling eyes making him start to regret her position on his stomach.             “You’re at my mercy now,” she gloated in a teasing manner and he froze, his pilot instincts warning him that caution was definitely in order at the moment.  What exactly did she mean by that statement and what the Hell did she have planned?!             ; He opened his mouth to speak but she cut him off, wagging a finger in front of his face.  Not one to be swayed so easily, he began to speak anyway, ignoring the angered look on her face. “And just what do you think you could possibly do to a Gundam Pilot, Babe?”           &n bsp; “Actually, I was just going to lay out a few guidelines now that we’re on steadier ground,” she said, crossing her arms and looking quite put out.             “Guidelines?” he repeated dubiously.  What did they need guidelines for?  There couldn’t be that much that they needed to discuss!             “I promise that I will tell you as much as I can about any missions I’m assigned,” she said in all seriousness, but he could make out the slight tremor of worry in her voice.  She was still unsure about how he would take things; she still could not trust him, and that was what hurt most.             “You’ll tell me if I can help, right?” he questioned, still not keen on the idea of her going on missions without him there to protect her.             Her look of surprise told him that she had expected a worse reaction, “I—I guess so…if I’m allowed to, then yeah, I’ll tell you but…”          &nb sp;  He sighed in resignation.  There was not much he could say or do at this point in regards to her orders and privileges.  Although, he might be able to if he went and made a nuisance of himself to Lady Une and Preventer Headquarters…          & nbsp;  “You’re really okay with this? Well, I know you’re not okay okay with this, but you’re not going to hassle me about it?” she asked, almost babbling in her surprise and nervousness.  Babbling for Hilde was indeed rare and when she did start babbling, he found himself enraptured by it.  Any time he learned something new about her or she did something on a rare occasion, he felt a deep need to remember it, to know it by instinct.  He needed to know everything about her…           &nbs p; “Are you spacing out again?” she teased, waving a hand in front of his face.  Blinking and dragging himself back to the present, he grabbed her wrist lightly and grinned up at her.             “Yeah, sorry. I was just thinking about…stuff,” he said truthfully.           &nb sp; She gave him a curious but unconvinced look, “Stuff, huh?”           &nb sp; He nodded, his eyes as innocent as he could make them.  She still did not seem convinced and was about to say something when the static crackle of an intercom interrupted them.  Frowning in suspicion and caution, Duo cast his eyes about the large barn in an attempt to locate the machine.  Hilde on the other hand, knew exactly where it was and was glaring at it in annoyance.           &nbs p; “Hello~o?” a sing-song voice called, static interfering here and there. “Are you still in there or what?”           &n bsp; With a huff of annoyance, Hilde stood from where she sat straddling Duo’s stomach and moved to press the ‘talk’ button on the intercom.  “And what if I am?” she asked, one hand on her hip.             Duo stood and began brushing straw off of his person while whoever was on the other side spoke.  “Lena just got home and took a look at the weather radar. There’s a fairly large snowstorm coming up on us real soon. She’s gonna go get essentials and wants to know if you’re coming. I think she just wants an excuse to not have Yuy tag along,” the person said the last sentence as a whisper before there was a loud resounding smack.  The person cried out in pain before Hilde could even answer.             “Adjani…what did you do?” the petite young woman asked and Duo was having slight difficulty figuring who had just smacked who right then.             “I didn’t do anything! Alex hit me I swear! I didn’t hurt myself!” the person protested and Hilde’s shoulders were shaking in the effort not to laugh out loud.             “Who’s going so far?” Duo asked from behind her.             “Um…me—oh! She also has to pick up Eve from daycare on the way. Alex said she’s not going now…idjit… Relena’s going around asking the others if there’s anything they want her to get… So, are you gonna come?”           &n bsp; “Sure, why not!” Duo said, grinning.  Hilde raised a brow at him and he winked in response. “It’ll be fun! We can push each other around in the carts and make a nuisance of ourselves!”          &nb sp;  Hilde shook her head but the smile on her face told him that she wouldn’t disagree.  With his usual carefree grin, he turned off the intercom and dragged her back to the main house.  “Relena’s gonna want to kill us,” Hilde laughed.             “Why’s that?”           &n bsp; “Because Eve will want to join us in our ruckus.”   ---         & nbsp;   Relena pinched the bridge of her nose as she held Eve against one hip.  The child was still waking up from her short nap from the daycare to the grocery store.  Holding her daughter with one arm, she grabbed her purse and closed the van door with the other, using the keyless remote to lock it.  She gave a gracious smile to Adjani as the other young woman pushed a shopping cart over to her side and Relena placed the drowsy child in the metal contraption.  Eve gave hardly any protest and Relena brushed a few of the girl’s bangs out of her face tenderly before she pushed the cart to the entrance of the store.             “Get in!” she heard Duo exclaim and she briefly glanced behind her to see Hilde hop into another shopping cart.  Duo then began pushing Hilde, gaining speed as he went before finally hopping onto the footrest in the back and coasting past her, Eve and Adjani.             “Twenty dollars says they knock a display over,” Adjani said amiably to her as they walked to the front of the store.  Relena glanced around to make sure there were no cars before she entered the crosswalk, pushing the cart and her daughter quickly.             “Fifty says they knock over more than three,” Relena said, raising the stakes of the bet with a smile on her face.  Adjani blinked a few times before agreeing.             ; “I think Hilde’ll be embarrassed after knocking down one anyway,” Adjani claimed as she grabbed a 2-liter bottle of Coke from a large array that was right inside of the entrance doors.             “Don’t count on it,” Relena muttered as she pushed Eve into one of the first few aisles.             Adjani did not press the matter and followed after Relena, all the while keeping a watchful eye on Duo and Hilde.  “So, what exactly do we need to get? I know we have plenty of water jugs in the basement, and we also have oil lamps and gas stoves should the power go out.”           &nb sp; They turned down the chips and salsa aisle, ignoring the squeals of fear and surprise that came from Hilde.  “Essentials. Fresh bread, lunchmeat, milk, juice, cheese, canned soup and vegetables, feminine products—cause we all know that Alex doesn’t admit when she’s running low, waffles, cookies…”           ;   “The essentials, huh? What about other stuff?” she asked and Relena responded by grabbing a bag of Tostitos chips and spicy salsa and placing them inside the grocery cart.  Adjani smiled and dropped a bag of BB&Q potato chips in as well.  They moved to the next aisle but paused when Eve began grabbing the sleeve of Relena’s jacket.             “Mommy! I’m hungry!” the child whined and Relena quickly shushed her daughter’s cries with a Ziploc bag of Chex Mix.  She knew that while the daycare provided the environment that Relena wished Eve to be in, the facility did not provide large enough snacks for the children.             ; With her daughter taken care of, Relena joined Adjani in stocking the cart full of food.  It was not until about ten minutes later when Hilde and Duo zipped past them, this time with Duo inside the cart and Hilde pushing the cart.  Adjani shook her head while Relena ignored the two; Eve on the other hand, watched them go by curiously before blinking up at her mother with a thoroughly confused look on her face.             “Why aren’t you yelling at them to behave?” she asked, her Chex Mix momentarily forgotten in light of her Aunt’s lack of punishment.           &nb sp; Relena stared at her daughter flabbergasted, unable to scrounge up an answer while Adjani laughed so hard that she had to hold on to the shopping cart to keep herself standing.  Once Adjani’s laughter had died to mere chuckles, she was quick to provide an answer for the child since Relena was still floundering for one.             “Because…it’s part of their mating ritual,” the blonde Greek said, waggling her eyebrows as she did so.             “Adjani!” Relena gasped, drawing attention to themselves inadvertently.  “Hush your mouth! You shouldn’t be saying such things!”              The blonde laughed, nodding her head in acquiescence before commenting that it was nice to see the two getting along.  Relena nodded her head, immediately agreeing and smiling as she heard the two whizzed by in their shopping cart, tires shrieking every so often.  There was a sudden crash and Relena paused to meet Adjani’s gaze, both knowing that the two had destroyed some display of canned goods.  What they did not know was how soon it would take the manager to come out and scold them.             “That’s one…” Adjani announced gleefully, rushing to the end of the aisle to see if she could catch a glimpse of the damage the two rambunctious adults had caused.  Relena continued with her shopping, noting when a second display was knocked over, this time the sound of cardboard skidding on the floor replacing the earlier dings of cans falling.             “But why?” Eve suddenly asked, looking up expectantly at Relena.  Relena raised a brow at her child, unsure of what the girl was inquiring about. “Why aren’t you yelling at them?”           &n bsp; Nodding her head in understanding, Relena took this into serious thought because she knew that her daughter would use her answer as an excuse if given the opportuntity.  “They are adults. They choose how to conduct themselves and until it affects you and I, there will be no scolding.”  Eve pouted and stuffed Chex Mix in her mouth to placate her disappointment.            ;  “Oh man...you gotta see this Len!” Adjani called back to her from where she stood at the end of the aisle, surveying the damage done by the Maxwell/Schbeiker Cyclone.  Relena took her time getting to the end of the aisle and spared a glance at the disaster area before moving to the next aisle.  And it was exactly that.  A disaster area.             Relena had gone through three more aisles when Adjani finally rejoined her and Eve, commenting that the manager had caught them.  Relena rolled her eyes, smiling at a few other customers who paused momentarily to fawn over Eve.  The child had that cuteness aura about her, that was for sure, and when she had first taken the baby shopping, it had greatly disturbed Relena.  Eve had found it amazing and entertaining.  Now however, Eve continued to live up the attention while her mother gritted her teeth in annoyance instead of anxiety.             “So I owe you fifty, right?” commented Adjani as the woman began to dig around her back pockets for her wallet.  Relena shook her head and paused to place a few cans of baked beans into the cart.  When she noted the confused expression on the blonde’s face she explained the rules of the bet.             “No, I said more than three. They only got to two. We keep our money, no?”           &nbs p; Adjani watched Relena thoughtfully, nibbling on her lower lip as she did so.  “Yeah, I guess so…but I don’t really mind, Len.”           &nb sp; “I don’t need you’re money. Save it for the rent.”           &n bsp; Adjani nodded in understanding. “Gotcha.”          &nbs p;    They had just turned the corner of the second to the last aisle when Hilde and Duo joined them, breathing heavily and trying to catch their breath in between bouts of laughter.  Adjani grinned childishly at them, claiming to want the details of the manager’s lectures, and Eve stared at them blankly, head cocked to the side and still eating her Chex Mix.  Relena gave them the disapproving look of a mother.  “Had enough fun for today?” she asked them calmly but her tone dared them to tell her no.             They gulped simultaneously and nodded their heads.  They announced their readiness to leave and followed Relena down the last aisles in a docile manner.  Eve now wore a childish grin on her face, the one that said they were in trouble and she wasn’t.  Indeed with the way the two were trudging behind her shamefully, one would think that they were in trouble their mother.             “Hilde?” a masculine voice called suddenly and Relena paused to throw a dark look at the owner of the voice.  The young man ignored her and moved to stand in front of the petite young woman with a bright smile on his face.  “I thought it was you. I haven’t seen you in a while. How have you been?”           &n bsp; Hilde shifted uncomfortably and shot Relena and Adjani a pleading look before answering tentatively.  “Well, I had to return home for a couple major projects and work. You know me, work work work,” she laughed nervously.  She shot a furtive look at Duo when the ex-pilot placed a hand on her shoulder in reassurance.           &n bsp; “Excuse us, Paul, but we really must be going. We need to run a few more errands before the storm,” Relena lied as she finally caught the young man’s attention.  The young man turned his attention to her and poorly hid his disgust towards her and her child.  He placed a fake smile on his face and pulled a lollipop from his pocket and held it out towards Eve.             Eve for her part, glared at him before staring at the candy warily.  She held no trust towards the man and Relena quickly took the sweet and explained that it would be for later.  He nodded with disgust clearly in his eyes for her lack of ‘virtue’ before turning to smile at Hilde.  His eyes then alighted on the hand that lay protectively on the young woman’s shoulder and threw a challenging look towards Duo.             Relena watched as Duo stiffened at the challenge but refused to take the bait.  “And you are?” she heard Paul ask the braided young man.  Duo drew himself to his full height and smiled his usual grin while introducing himself.  “Ah, so he is your brother Hilde?” Paul then asked Hilde, ignoring Duo’s presence.             ; “Actually—” Duo began to answer but Hilde cut him off quickly, smiling lovingly at Duo as she did so.             “He’s my fiancé,” she explained, and Relena swore silently.  This could turn out badly if Duo did not catch on.  Fortunately, he did and placed a peck on the young woman’s cheek to emphasis the point.  Relena sighed in relief internally.  If Duo had not figured out what Hilde was getting at then their argument would have been one more wreck to add to the others that had already occurred that day.             Paul did not seem convinced but decided that now would not be the proper place to have such a discussion.  “I see, well, then I’ll see you around. Later, Hilde.”  And with that he left, continuing with his shopping.             ; Once he was out of sight, Hilde shivered and did a little jig to show how creeped out she was from her encounter with him.  Duo gave her an odd look and waited for an explanation.  He received one while Relena and Adjani unloaded the groceries at the checkout.  He was not pleased with this Paul guy to say the least and seemed to have half a mind to find the man and ruff him up.  Hilde laughed and pulled Duo out of the store behind them, saying that she doubted he would bother her again anytime soon.             “I swear, I can’t take any of you anywhere,” Relena commented, a teasing twinkle in her eye.  They all laughed, save Eve who was trying to understand what was so funny.             They were loading the minivan when Adjani slanted a sly look in Relena’s direction before asking for the rest of the details about the young man who had tried to unlock her door earlier that day.  To her dismay, Relena felt her cheeks flush with color at the reminder of the good-looking gentleman.  She refused to comment further on him however and that caused Hilde to pout since she had not heard about the ‘car guy’ until then.             “Oh come on! It’s not that big of a deal!” Adjani pressured, placing the last few bags into the minivan, that sly look still present on her face.  Relena slammed the back down, leveling a look at the Greek woman while Hilde ran the shopping cart back to the front of the store.  “Please?”           ;   “No, end of discussion.”          &n bsp;  “You’re not talking because of me, right?” Duo suddenly piped up, giving Relena a knowing look.  She returned his gaze with a bland one, not really wanting him to know that what he said held some weight to her decision.  He shook his head, grinning at her in his usual manner. “I won’t say a word. Promise!”            ;  “And if a certain someone finds out you knew? Then what?” Hilde asked the braided young man from behind, having returned from her duty of returning the cart.  Duo blanched as he realized that Hilde had a point.  He did not want to be on the receiving end of Heero’s gun when the Japanese man found out about Relena’s little ‘crush.’              “I still think you should have gone out with him to the café. I mean really, what’s so wrong with that.”           &n bsp; “He was a civilian.”          &nbs p;  “That’s a poor excuse.”              “I wasn’t interested.”          &n bsp;  “Obviously, since you told him you were married.”            ;  “Married? To who?” Duo butted in, interest piqued and the threat of a Heero Yuy-induced-death far from his mind now.             “No one! Can we just go? Please?!” Relena growled in extreme annoyance.  Hilde continued to keep her mouth shut and elbowed Duo in the ribs when he seemed ready to open his mouth again.  Adjani quickly shut her trap and crawled into the front passenger seat.  The ride home was a tense one and poor Eve looked as confused as could be as she glanced at the adults who were her ‘family’.  She had even come to see Duo as an uncle of sorts and when looked to him for answers on why everyone was so upset, he merely smiled and turned his gaze to the window to keep from saying anything.  His lack of interest and reassurance only confused and worried the child further.  In fact, she almost seemed to be in tears.             “Mommy…” she finally called out in a teary manner when they were five minutes from home.             “What baby?” Relena answered, concerned about her child’s tone.             “Will you play with me tonight?”            ;  Relena was about to reply no due to the reports she really needed to finish, but paused when Adjani cleared her throat.  Shooting a warning look at the blonde woman, she nodded nonetheless—an indication that the woman could speak.             “You need to spend time with her. All this tension isn’t healthy for her. She’s scared,” Adjani said loud enough for only Relena and the other adults to really hear.             “Scared?” Relena echoed doubtingly.           &nb sp; “She doesn’t know why there’s all this tension and she doesn’t know what to do to make it better. She needs your reassurance.”          & nbsp;  Throwing a glance in the rear view mirror to see if Duo and Hilde wanted to add their two-cents in but found that they were artfully dodging the topic.  After a moment’s deliberation, she finally agreed to play with her daughter.  Upon hearing that, Hilde immediately offered to make dinner for the night.             “You do it nearly every night, Len,” Hilde stated when Relena tried to protest. “Let us do some of the work.”           &n bsp; “But—”         &n bsp;   “You do nearly all the chores, along with school, groceries, work at Headquarters and then all the horse showing. Take a break. You’re not a single—”              “I am a single parent by law,” Relena interjected, frowning and glaring at the driveway as they headed towards the house.             “Yeah but you’ve got us… Let us help.”           &n bsp; Silence reigned for a long while and it was not until Relena had parked the minivan and cut the engine that she sighed deeply.       “Fine…you can make dinner tonight.”            ;  “Good! It’s a start! We’ll get you trained yet!”           &nb sp; Relena gave Hilde an odd look, “So, now I’ve got more training to do?”           &nbs p; Hilde nodded enthusiastically, “Yup yup!”           &nb sp; Relena sighed in exasperation as she climbed out of the minivan, rolling her eyes heavenward and praying for patience.  This was turning out to be such wreck of a day compared to what she had planned it to be.