Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ It's All Been Done ❯ L2 Colony ( Epilogue )

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

A/N
-Thank you to those who have read this fic, even more to those who have reviewed, and the most to those few who kept reading straight through my horrid writer's blocks and huge bouts of laziness. It means more to me than you could possibly realize.
-Questions? E-mail me at Kacfrog711@cs.com, or review with your e-mail address. Thank you!


Warnings:
Deja-vu.


Warnings:
Deja- vu.


(Chapter 10) Epilogue: L2 Colony

"Alone and bored on a 30th century night,
will I see you on The Price Is Right?"

It's all been done...
It's all been done before."

"It's All Been Done"
- Bare Naked Ladies


This week just plain sucked. It's like the whole week was cursed or something. And as the week went on, it just seemed to get worse. Something about that one day, though... I just knew it would be bad. Call it supernatural if you believe in that shit, but I just KNEW it. Sunday: the last day of the week, or the first day of it, depending which end you look at it. Either way, it's supposed to be bad; but what happened that day this week wasn't bad, it was just ridiculous! And through it all, I had the worst sense of deja-vu...

I stole some jewelry from this woman. I should've known that wasn't a good idea, just by the way she looked. I've been a thief all my life! You'd think I'd know this sort of stuff by now. Well, I guess I just wasn't thinking 'cause I stole a few golden hoop bracelets off her anyway. It was the perfect thing to steal, really; I'm not an idiot: pilfering wallets means carrying someone else's ID tag, and it's way too easy to track those things. Give me pure gold, you can sell it anywhere. It was a good idea... or so I thought at the time.

It's still a blur about what actually happened, though you'd think that by now I'd know. Well, one minute I was running like heck out of that woman's grasp, and the next thing you know I ran into this tall guy (who was also dressed oddly). Just my luck: a crowd of hundreds, and I run into her husband. Well, this blonde guy saw the bracelets in my hand and lifted me up by my dirty black shirt into the air until my feet were literally off the ground.

His icy blue eyes stared into me and I knew I was as good as dead. I mean, it was odd: I knew this particular guy wouldn't kill me (don't ask HOW I knew, but I just knew it) but those frozen blue eyes made me sick to my stomach, like I was going to die soon. You have no idea what I meant, do you? Well, at least ONE of us knows what I'm talking about, so get off my case. Anyway, just then, the woman I stole the bracelets from walked over and joined in the "Stare at the Thief" game. Man, they both looked really mad... They spoke to each other in some weird language, which wasn't uncommon for any colony, but didn't help my situation, either.

Just as I was sure the tall guy was about to strangle me, a girl about my age came over and started talking to them in the odd language. She had short dark hair and deep blue eyes. Life and energy just radiated off her as she spoke fluently in the quick language. She cast a glance over at me with a small, reassuring smile, and continued talking. Judging from the sound of the language, it wasn't too common around here, and the fact that all three of them just -happened- to speak it, made me guess she was their daughter. ... well, that and the little fact that she looked almost -exactly- like the woman I had robbed (except that the older woman had bright violet eyes instead of blue).

The whole family was just... off somehow. They all had this air of danger and mystery that surrounded them... not to mention the strange clothes and language. Heck, even their skin was a few shades darker than mine (at least the two women's skin was), and it's pretty hard to get a tan when the atmosphere's as fucked up as it is, so it had to be genetic. I wondered, as I hung there from the iron grip of the blonde man, just where their ancestors had come from that these three looked and spoke so differently. Even so, some other part of me said that I didn't really want to know.

After a few minutes of the girl's talking, the woman and man exchanged glances, then nodded. I was very relieved to feel the asphalt beneath my black sneakers once again as I was set, none too gently, back on the ground. Before I had the chance to run off, or even say anything, the young girl with the dark blue eyes grabbed my arm. I swear I heard her say, "Come with me." but it was so heavily accented that I could've been wrong. Either way, she pulled me along behind her towards wherever she was heading.

Rather than risk the wrath of her parents, I followed the girl through the massive crowds to the outskirts of the city, just inside the walls. There she pulled me into a tent and sat down on a few blankets. She gestured for me to sit as well, so I did. Like I said, better to listen to her than face the adults. We sat in silence for a few minutes, the girl just staring at me, before I spoke.

"Uh, thanks, I guess." I said grinning at her. The girl nodded and smiled, just sitting there staring at me. It was weird. I was starting to think that she didn't speak English at all... I looked around the small tent to find some answers, but found only the tent's walls and a few blankets and the like scattered across the cool black ground. Huh. "So... what's your name?"

The girl smiled slightly mischievously before replying, "Hilde."

"Hilde. Hi, nice to meet you. I'm..."

"Duo Maxwell, right?"

I laughed but nodded, "Am I that famous?" Despite my oh-so-cool exterior, I was curious and just a little scared. ....that was just weird. I didn't think there were any bounties on my head at the time, so how did this girl know my name? And who was she? So many questions rattled through my mind, I barely knew where to begin. Before I could get out the first words of my next question, though, she spoke again, nodding.

"Yes, they are my parents. I told them that there was no point in killing you since it'd just cause suspicion. I also said that you'd be good practice for me."

I had to raise my eyebrow at that, slightly fearing what she would tell me, I asked, "Practice for you? What am I, a lab rat?"

She laughed lightly, her head was bent down slightly to hide any real expression. Her glimmering blue eyes staring up at me as she responded, "We're fortunetellers. My ancestors were Roma, and we just like following the tradition." She smiled, "And knowing a dead language helps when you don't want people to hear what you're talking about."

I nodded, taking this in. "I bet it does." Then began to ask, "So what..."

"My mother tells fortunes for a living, and she's teaching me how to so that I can help raise more money. I'm getting better, but I still need more practice."

I laughed, "Fortune telling? You mean you guys are con-artists?"

She rolled her eyes at that remark and rested her elbows on her knees. She sighed slightly, still smiling, answered, "You -would- say that," and rested her cheeks on her hands. "Everyone does. But it's not fake. We're the real deal." Those glittering eyes never left me. "Trust me about this."

"So, you want to tell my fortune, then?" My violet eyes challenged hers. "That IS why you brought me here." She slowly nodded. I laughed lightly and leaned back onto my arms. "Sure, go ahead. I dare you to."

Shrugging, she sat up and said, "I need something close to you, like a lock of hair."

I glared dangerously and grabbed my braid with both hands protectively. "Oh no, you don't. NO ONE touches the hair."

She laughed, "Okay, okay. Well, clothing would work, too." She smirked, "The hair or the shirt, Duo?"

I smirked. Don't ask how, but I knew this game... so why not play along? "All right, have it your way." And pulled off my shirt, handing it to her.

I don't know why, but I felt like I knew this girl, like she was a close friend or something. Hey, look, I don't go stripping for strangers, okay? ...er, normally, anyway. But ever since I stepped into the tent, I got the weirdest feeling of deja-vu, and I felt... oddly safe. I mean, I trusted her. Don't ask me why, 'cause I still don't know. I regret it, even. Okay, she gave me fair warning but... Maybe if I hadn't of trusted her so much, then things wouldn't have went the way they did and I wouldn't have...

The girl blushed slightly, shaking her head and muttering about "Didn't think you'd really..." before saying to me, "Jewelry would've worked too, you know."

I shrugged, "Too late now." An afterthought hit me and I asked, "You're not gonna hurt it, are you? I mean, it's the only shirt I've got!"

"I won't." Hilde replied without a second thought, raven bangs fluttering across her shining eyes at the motion. The girl wrapped up my shirt and placed in on the ground next to her, then took a thin flowered cloth from around her waist and put it next to my shirt. After some rummaging through a nearby sack, she placed a small pot and a pitcher on the blanket as well. When her eyes flew back to me, she noticed the silver chain around my neck and the beat-up cross hanging off of it. "Nice necklace." She muttered noncommittally.

I smiled. "Thanks, it's been in my family for ages. My mother said it had something to do with God protecting me or something."

"God, huh?" She asked softly, not meeting my inquisitive glare.

"Yeah, God. You know, 'Our maker of Heaven and Earth...' ...Why do you ask?"

She shrugged, her eyes still not meeting mine, "No reason, really." Hilde placed my shirt on a blanket in front of her. I was confused, but my eyes were glued to her nimble hands as they danced around the objects efficiently. She poured some water out of the pitcher and into the bowl, then offered it to me. "Take a sip." With no room to make witty comments as the bowl was pressed to my lips, I obeyed silently, then continued watching. The girl wrapped my shirt in the cloth, then put them both into the water, which splashed all over the blanket as a result. Once they were soaked, she took a sip.

Now able to make the comment I wanted to, I scoffed, "Hey, you didn't tell me you were going to get it dripping wet. That wasn't part of the deal. Now what am I going to do? I hope you have a hair dryer or something..."

Ignoring my complaints, Hilde took her soaked scarf out of the bowl and tossed it to the side. The strange girl then stared into the pot. I watched her for a minute. She just sat there staring. Wondering what could possibly be so interesting in there, I leaned over and joined her in looking into the water. I wasn't shocked by what I saw. My eyes met with the pot, my shirt, water, the dark reflection of a pair of deep blue eyes, and the darker reflection my own blue-violet ones. I sat back, sighing, and waited for her to finish. Who knew fortune telling could be this boring? After a few more minutes, the girl frowned and looked up at me. I blinked in confusion. "What? Do I have something on my face? What did you see?" The girl dumped the water unceremoniously out into the ground next to her and handed the dripping wet shirt back to me. I muttered, "Gee, thanks a lot." and began ringing out my shirt.

"Are you sure you want to know, Duo?"

I put on the sopping shirt with a disgusted face. "Hm? Know what?"

"Your future."

I laughed, buttoning the cold, wet, black cloth. "My future, huh? Yeah, sure, why not? It's good to know the future, then I know what to expect." I winked at her, but the girl didn't share my cheer. Her face was serious and deep creases marred the tan skin of her forehead.

"Are you really sure?"

Not quite understanding why she had asked twice, I nodded again, "Yeah, of course. Didn't you hear me agree the first time?" Hilde sighed lightly and looked back up to me.

"You're going to die tonight."


The words stopped my breath and I blinked in shock. I must've misheard her or something, that had to be it. Then my insecurities kicked in, and I laughed. "Yeah, I'm going to die every night. That's the life of a colony brat."

She replied solemnly. "I mean it, you're actually going to die tonight."

I shook my head in response, "Not -tonight- tonight, right?"

Her shoulders dropped as if to say, 'You're kidding.' "What other 'tonight' is there?"

I laughed, "Oh, please. You must've read the water wrong or something. You're still practicing right?"

She shook her dark head, "I -did- do it right. Trust me; I know it. And I know what I saw, Duo." Hilde sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything."

I sat in silence for one of the few times in my life. No way. She's joking or something. I couldn't die. It's impossible to die at fifteen. I was, like, immortal: the God of Death himself. I don't die, I bring death. Didn't she know that? No, she didn't. That's why. See, if she knew, then we wouldn't be having this conversation. With this reassurance, I said. "Yeah, sure. So where did the 'magic water' tell you I'm supposed to die?"

She looked up from where her eyes had rested on her hands, "Not supposed to. You're -going- to die on Earth."

I laughed in relief. "Now I know you're kidding! Only rich people go to Earth." I smiled comfortingly. "It's all right, Hild. With a little more practice, you'll make a fine con-artist. You almost had me going for a second there..."

Her demeanor remained serious, her eyes remained hard. "I'm not a con-artist."

I muttered, "Well, not a GOOD one..."

And she corrected forcefully, "I'm NOT. Fate has determined that you will die tonight, on Earth, by a warrior's hand." She paused, her strong eyes lowering with regret. "I'm sorry, Duo. I really am. But I don't decide these things."

My mind ran through the possibilities. "Oh, it's a 'warrior's hand' now?" I laughed. "How many 'warriors' do YOU know?"

She shook her dark head, "It's an old expression, it could mean any--"

"You know what?" Ignoring her, I continued solemnly with an edge of sarcasm, "This was fun. Really it was. But I have to be leaving... right now. And get as far away from you as possible. No offense, but I'd just rather pretend I never even met you. So, have a nice day, and a nice life, and good-bye." I stood and began walking away.

"Duo, you can't..."

"You're wrong! I'm -not- going to die tonight!" I shouted, turning on her. Bad manners, I know: shouting at a girl, and a stranger, no less. But I didn't exactly -care- at the time. And like I said, it felt like I was yelling at someone I knew and, don't laugh, but it felt right yelling at her; like, it felt like I'd yelled at her hundreds of times, so what did one more matter? It didn't really matter either way, because Hilde wasn't even moved by my screaming. Maybe she felt like she knew me, too.

"You can't run from Fate, Duo."

"Oh, so you're Fate now, too?" I barked back sarcastically.

"I didn't say--"

I turned my back on her once more, prepared to leave. "Well then, Fate, watch me run."

As I was about to storm out victorious and all manly, she called out, "Duo, wait!" and I was forced to stop. My back still turned to her, I waited to hear what she said. "Look, I know you intend on fighting your destiny. And I can't stop you. I wish I could, but I know can't. You're too damn stubborn." I glanced back over my shoulder, but before I could get in a snide remark, she continued, "However," She held up a finger, "I don't want you making the same mistake repeatedly..." She paused, her voice dropping off, "...again." The girl sighed. Taking her pause as a sign, I reluctantly sat back down. My nerves were on end, though. Why, I don't know. Something, something was wrong. Very, very wrong. Something was going bad. I had to get out of this tent before... before what? I just had this gnawing feeling in my gut that I had to leave and fast.

"Do you believe in past lives?" I gave her a, 'what do you think?' look. "Well, you should. Fate can't be changed. Even if you can alter it a little, it'll still snap back and kick you in the ass, and you'll be right back where you started, only with a sore ass." I gave her a skeptical look. "Trust me on this, Duo! This life, or the next, you're still going to die on this day." Again, before I could argue (I was getting pretty pissed at her continuously cutting me off and talking like she knew -for a fact- what my future was when she couldn't possibly), she continued, "Everything you've done in your life has been done before and will be done again." She sighed. "I don't know how I can make you understand this, though, and I'm running out of ideas."

"Prove it."

Her head shot up, and she gaped at me. "No way, Duo, not this time. You don't kn--"

"C'mon." I egged her on, "You think you're all high and mighty, 'I know something you don't.' Well, let me see it for myself, you're so sure." I didn't quite understand what I was asking for, but it sounded like she would let me relive my life over again, or something like that. Whatever it was, it sounded interesting. And I never turn down a challenge.

Hilde shook her head, then closed her eyes. After sighing, she smiled. "It gets harder every time, you know that, Dust?"

I laughed, ignoring the odd nickname she had given me. "Now how would I know if you haven't even let me try yet? If it gets harder, then I'll get tougher." Before she could clarify her true meaning, I continued, "And I only need one shot."

"You can't change Fate." She paused, "In the future, I can make you aware of your past lives. That will prove it." She muttered, "For a while."

My heart was beating faster. ...I don't know why I was believing it.. but I did. "Yes. Prove it. Try. And I'll prove to you that I'm not going to die yet."

She smiled falsely and nodded. Touching the cross around my neck, her fingers cold as they pressed the wet fabric of my shirt against my chest, Hilde muttered some foreign words and closed her cyan eyes. When she opened them again, she said in a soft monotone, "From this life onto the next, you'll remember this day. I hope you realize the consequences, the chain of events you've just started." Her voice grew in intensity and her fingers began pushing harder on my cross until I was sure there was going to be a deep red mark. "Don't seek me out again, Duo, I don't want a part of it anymore. I'm sick of it. Sick of it!"Her voice dropped off, and she shook her head, "And I'm tired. I give up." Then her head shot up, and she shouted. "Damn the game! Damn it all! I forfeit!"

I only heard her up to the word, "consequences" before my mind began ticking. Damn. There always had to be something, didn't there? All my life as a thief and I -still- didn't know that you can't get anything without a price. "Consequences?" I stuttered out.

Ignoring me, she said hurriedly, "Shut up and listen!" She grabbed my chin and forced me to look at her. "Listen!" She paused, her midnight blue eyes burning into mine with a bright intensity. "The game's over. I - give - up. Don't come back, Duo. Never come back to this tent, do you understand me? Remember not to come back here, ever. Remember it!"

I turned quickly as the flaps to the tent opened and revealed her father. Hilde nodded to him and the man grabbed me by my collar. "Hilde! What're you doing?! Stop him!"

She shook her head. Looking at the ground, she sighed, muttering. When her intense eyes locked with my shocked ones, she spoke softly.

"I'll see you next time, Duo."




"Hilde!"