Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Lean On Me ❯ Preparation For Trouble ( Chapter 20 )

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing (Gee, that's getting old)

Chapter Twenty

Sleep hadn't come easy for the nervous and scared Solo as he lay on a bed in one of the small cabins. The idea of being far away from Riley and Duo was scary enough, but the thought that a big, mean looking man guarding the door was even worse. He didn't know what was going on, but he knew it dealt with Riley and Duo and their friends.

He curled up into a ball and pulled the covers up to his chin. With a sigh, he closed his eyes and attempted sleep, but it wouldn't come. His fright and nervousness wouldn't allow it, and images of what these people would do to him continued to run through his mind.

He jumped when he heard the door being opened. He sat up in the bed and pulled the covers tight around him, as if he could use it as a shield. A head poked in through the doorway; Solo recognized it as the face of the man who had pulled him into the helicopter.

"Mind if I come in?" the man asked politely. When Solo didn't reply, he stepped inside and closed the door. Solo moved closer to the wall as the man walked past him and sat down in a wooden chair in the corner. He crossed his legs and folded his arms across his chest. He smiled. "I'm not going to hurt you, Solo. Riley would kill me for sure if I did that."

Solo frowned. "How do you know my name, and how do you know Riley? She isn't a friend of yours."

The man paused. "Riley is a friend of mine, matter of fact. Or, at least she used to be." He removed a small tin from his jacket pocket and opened the lid. The faint smell of chocolates wafted over to where Solo sat on the bed. Solo eyed the tin of chocolates warily, not sure whether he should take one should the man ask. They sure did smell good, though.

Rawthorne noticed the boy's interest in the tin of chocolates. He held the tin out to him. "Would you like one? They're homemade chocolates. They taste a whole lot better than store chocolate, let me tell you." He watched silently, waiting. He could almost see the thoughts running through the boy's mind. Finally, Solo reached out and took one. He stuck it in his mouth hungrily. "Good?" Rawthorne asked.

Solo nodded, letting the delicious chocolate melt in his mouth.

"I'm glad you like them." He closed the tin and set them down next to Solo on the bed. "You can have them, if you like. I have more in my cabin."

Solo hesitated before slowly reaching out and taking the tin. "Thank you," he said quietly, not sure what else to say.

"You're quite welcome," Rawthorne said pleasantly, sitting back in the chair. He then feigned surprise. "I don't think I introduced myself. I'm Agent Rawthorne, but if you prefer, you can call me-"

Just then, the door was thrown open again and the angry, burly looking man stood in the doorway. "Agent Rawthorne, Commander Rosco wishes to speak with you by vidphone."

The annoyance was evident on Rawthorne's face. "Tell her I'll be there in a moment. I'm busy right now."

"She will not wait," the man said.

Rawthorne bit back a frustrated groan. He stood and smiled at Solo. "Maybe we can talk some other time, Solo. Enjoy the chocolates." The guard shut the door behind him, leaving Solo to himself.

Now that he was alone, Solo lie back down on the bed and put the tin of chocolates next to his pillow. No matter how many chocolates and friendly smiles Agent Rawthorne gave him, Solo knew that there was no way that that man could ever be, or ever have been, a friend of Riley's.

------

Riley stood just outside the front doors of the Peacecraft mansion, watching the snow fall, blanketing the ground and trees in a white sheet. She smiled sadly, thinking how better an evening it would have been if Solo had been here to enjoy it with her. She balled her hands into fists. She couldn't stand the thought of Solo in the hands of -that man. Her jaw clenched thinking about him. "Rawthorne," she growled under her breath. How she and Vienna had ever trusted him she would never know.

She wanted to punch something, anything, to vent this anger out on. She couldn't just stand there. She started down the porch steps and walked across the front yard to the left side of the mansion, heading to the back of the estate. The two pathways on either side of the mansion both led out onto the wide portico out back, where Relena had lawn chairs and a table set out. A pool was to the left, and a Jacuzzi on the right side; Riley was walking on the pool's side of the portico. She walked around the pool and past the portico. Her destination was the gardens.

Once she reached the entrance to the gardens, her long hair, which was loose down her back, was covered in snowflakes as well as her clothes, which only consisted of flare jeans and a jean jacket over a white t-shirt. If she had planned on going to the gardens, she would have worn something warmer.

She remembered where the pond was- in the gardens center. A thin layer of ice was forming over the pond, and the surrounding area wasn't as welcoming as it had been the last time she had come. She turned around in a full circle, looking around her. She tilted her face up and let the snow fall on her face, the snow latching onto her eyelashes. Like a little girl, she stuck her tongue out, and the snow fell onto her tongue. She smiled, and started spinning again. This was what her teenager years were supposed to be like. Having fun in the snow, laughing, playing games. There was so much stuff she was missing.

Duo stepped out onto the portico and looked about. Where had Riley gotten to, and how long had she been gone? When Trowa realized she wasn't in the house, he had called for a sweep around the entire estate. Duo and Hilde had been sent out to the backyard.

"Duo, I found her footprints," Hilde announced by the pool. He jogged over to her and, with his eyes, followed the footprints to see where they led.

"They go to the gardens," he said. "I think she likes it there."

"Maybe we shouldn't disturb her then," Hilde replied. "She probably went there to be alone."

"I know, but Heero wants everyone to get to bed early, and she could stay out here all night. It's too dangerous for her to be out here alone, anyways. Go on and tell Trowa we found her and that I'll bring her back in a few minutes. I'll wait for her here, but if she doesn't come in four minutes, I'll need to go get her."

Hilde hesitated. "Okay. I'll be inside, then." She started walking back inside, glancing over her shoulder just as Duo started walking toward the gardens. She frowned. So much for waiting four minutes.

Riley stopped spinning around and looked up at the sky again. She folded her arms tightly across her chest and just watched. She wondered how many minutes had past since she left. It felt like only five, but to her, time moved slower than it really did. She looked down at her watch and blinked in surprise. She had been gone for the past fifteen minutes. She frowned. That protective brother of hers would be worried by now, or if he wasn't, he was about to be. It was then she noticed the second set of footprints. They pretty much followed hers, but they turned off abruptly into a small alcove in the bushes, where she remembered there was a bench, only four feet from where she stood in the center of the gardens. Who was he, and how had she not seen him coming?

Cautiously, she crept up to the alcove, but stopped short when Duo appeared. She stared at him blankly for a moment before the reality of the situation hit her. Her eyes narrowed. "How long have you been standing there?"

Duo shrugged. "Not long. I was coming to find you, but when I saw you I didn't want to interrupt your, uh, dancing?" A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

Riley scowled. "So you have been standing there awhile. Great, just great." She sighed. "Why were you looking for me anyway? Did Trowa send out a search party?"

"Cut him some slack. The guy just found out his youngest sister is alive, only to realize she's being chased by a dangerous group. You can see where he's coming from."

"I guess, but it still doesn't mean I need to be smothered." She started to yawn and, without success, tried to hide it. Duo cracked a smile. "Let's go," Riley said grumpily. "I'm starting to freeze to death anyways."

The two started walking back to the mansion in silence, with Duo walking at a slower pace than Riley, who was in a hurry to get back so she could be warm. "Where's the fire?" Duo asked.

"Shut up, Maxwell."

"It isn't my fault you didn't wear warmer clothing. Maybe you should think the next time you go out."

"I don't need two older brother's, Duo, so just be quiet until we get inside," she said through clenched teeth. The snow was still falling, and she was getting colder and wetter the longer they stayed out there.

Duo didn't say anything, but Riley could hear him doing something. She didn't know what it was until she felt him drape his warm jacket around her shoulders. He then fell into step beside her. "Thanks," she said after a pause. She pulled the jacket closer around her. It was warm from his body heat, and it warmed her quickly.

Just before they stepped onto the portico, Hilde came running out to greet them, followed soon after by Midii. "Took you guys long enough!" Midii exclaimed. "Trowa's been pacing in the hall, Quatre is still out getting the few extra supplies, Meiran and WuFei are annoyed that they're doing all the loading up by themselves, and Heero's angry at everyone for some reason or other."

Riley shook her head. "Heero takes things too seriously."

"Either way, the entire place is in a whirlwind," Midii added.

Riley noticed Hilde was taking in the fact that she was wearing Duo's jacket while he simply wore a long-sleeved black shirt. She looked sidelong at Duo; he hadn't noticed. Figures. "I'm going to head inside and change," Riley said. She shrugged off Duo's jacket. "Thanks for letting me use it, Duo."

"I'll come with you," Midii said. Riley noticed that her eyes were shining, and that a curious look was in them too. She knew what would be coming when they could talk alone in her room upstairs.

As soon as Riley and Midii stepped into the main hall, a wave of relief seemed to rush over Trowa when he saw them. "Where have you been?" he asked Riley, walking up to her.

"I was outside in the garden, thinking," she replied.

Trowa took in her bedraggled appearance. "I can see that."

"We'll be back down to help in ten minutes," Midii said, pulling Riley toward the staircase.

Upstairs in her room, Riley closed the door behind Midii and went to the closet, while Midii jumped up onto her bed and watched her expectantly, waiting. Riley turned from the closet with a change of clothes in her arms. She looked at Midii. "I know what you want to hear, and trust me, it's nothing to talk about."

"Oh, come on," Midii said. "You come back wearing his jacket while he wears a simple long-sleeved shirt in very cold weather, and you call that nothing?" But Riley had already closed the bathroom door before her friend had even finished. Midii frowned when she heard Riley lock the door. "I'm not lesbian, Riles. I'm not going to walk in on you."

"Did I say you were?" Riley called through the door. The door opened again three minutes later and Riley stepped out. "I'm just used to locking doors behind me, is all." She tossed the wet clothes in a hamper that was hidden behind a potted plant by the bathroom door. "We should probably head back downstairs. If Heero's in a bad mood, then we should at least be doing something so he doesn't vent his anger out on us."

Midii jumped up and grabbed her friend's arm. "Not until you tell me what happened outside."

Riley gave her friend an exasperated look. "Nothing happened. I was in the gardens, Duo found me, we walked back, I got cold, he gave me his jacket, and then you guys appeared. Again, nothing happened."

The others were all gathered in the kitchen; each face, save Quatre and Duo, looked either annoyed or tired. Mostly everyone was sitting, but Trowa and Heero were standing. Riley leaned up against the doorframe and Midii jumped up onto the counter. "I take it that everything that needed to be done is done?" Riley asked.

WuFei glared at her. "And you just happened to not be around. What a coincidence."

"Shut up, WuFei."

"Cool it you guys," Quatre cut in. "It isn't anything worth arguing over."

Hilde, who was staring out the kitchen window, commented absently, "Sure is pretty out there. Too bad it's wasted on us." Relena followed her line of sight.

Meiran stood up from her seat at the island. "I'm heading up to bed. We have an early start in the morning and I know I can't work on five hours sleep."

"Guess we all should head up," Duo agreed. "It's only eight o'clock, but if you do the math, that leaves maybe six hours of sleep, maybe more."

Riley frowned. "What time do we leave in the morning?"

"Four," Heero replied.

Riley stared at him. "Four in the morning? Do you know how early that is?" She sighed. "I pity anyone that gets in my way tomorrow," she said under her breath.

Midii smiled at her. "I'll be sure to have Duo wake you up."

A few minutes later, Heero grabbed Riley's arm as she prepared to follow the others up to bed. "Riley, I want to talk to you before you head upstairs."

She stopped and looked back him. "Okay, sure." She furrowed her brow.

Heero waited until he was sure everyone was upstairs before he said anything. "I just want to make something clear to you," he started; Riley's eyebrows rose. "At Granger, you are not to go looking for Solo. If he's in any of the prison cells and we have enough time, we will try to get him out, but otherwise, we will have to wait until another time to get him out."

Riley gritted her teeth. "I'm not going to leave him there in the hands of -of -that man!" she exclaimed, refusing to say Rawthorne's true name. "He's my responsibility. He's only around five, Heero. He doesn't know what's really going on. They could do anything to make him spill information he doesn't know. I can't let that happen!"

His gaze hardened. "If you look for him, you put everyone in jeopardy, not just yourself, not just your team -everyone, as in every person that lives and breathes on either Earth or a colony. If you look for him, you will be captured, no question, and the Rebellion will have everything they need to get started. Heck, they already started, remember? So I tell you again, you are not looking for that blasted kid."

Riley's hands clenched into fists. "And I guess you're going to stop me?" She scoffed, "I'd like to see you try!"

"You know the consequences, and if you're so blinded by your own need that you risk the lives of billions of people, then you aren't the person I thought you were," he growled. He brushed past her aggressively and stalked away, leaving Riley alone to think in the dark.

That next morning, Riley was awake an hour before anyone else. The first person to wake up after her, Hilde, found Riley in the kitchen holding a cup of coffee in one hand and a photograph in the other. Hilde noticed that Riley's eyes were clear of any emotion, and yet a single tear was rolling down her left cheek. Riley hadn't noticed her yet, and Hilde used this to her advantage. She maneuvered around until she could see the photo without Riley seeing her. She squinted, trying to make it out. It was of two girls standing side-by-side with their arms around each other's shoulders. Before Hilde could identify who the girls were, though she had a good idea who, Riley tucked the photo away into a pocket on the inside of her brown bomber jacket.

"Stealth obviously isn't one of your strong points is it, Hilde?" Riley asked with her back still to her.

Hilde looked away, as if she was ashamed about spying on the pretty brunette. "Sorry, you looked so absorbed about whatever was in the picture, that I didn't want to disturb you."

Riley turned around so she could look at Hilde's face. "And curiousity got the better of you and you just had to see what the picture was of." Her face was clear, Hilde noticed, of any tears or signs that she had been upset. How Riley could change moods so quickly seemed to catch Hilde off guard.

Hilde smiled half-heartedly and shrugged her left shoulder. "Again, I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it. Doesn't make any difference. Can't hide much around here, anyways."

Hilde would have contradicted that, had she not caught herself beforehand. "Mind if I make myself some coffee and join you?"

Riley shrugged and turned back around in her seat. "If you want. I'm not much company."

Hilde soon joined Riley at the island with one empty seat separating them. She didn't know what to say, so she kept quiet and sipped her coffee.

Riley watched the girl out of the corner of her eye. So this is Hilde Shebeiker. Quiet, somewhat reserved, and easily intimidated. Hm, that contradicts what I've been told about her. So what's going on then?

Hilde moved her right thumb in a circular motion on the side of her mug. She was studying Riley. From what she could tell, the girl was definitely not someone who talked about her feelings much; the change in moods Hilde had witnessed proved that much. She kept everything to herself, but Hilde guessed that the only person who knew the most about Riley's thoughts and feeling was WuFei's sister, though she couldn't remember the girl's name. From what I've been told, Riley's a fun person to be around, so why do I seem to be seeing a totally different person?

Though it wasn't visible, some sort of solid wall seemed to have been built between the two girls. How it had been built, neither was sure of, but it had been somehow, and something -or someone- had caused it.

"I thought you weren't a morning riser," Duo said to Riley, walking into the kitchen. WuFei and Meiran followed him in.

"I could say the same thing for you," Riley replied, giving him a twisted smile.

"So I decided to be good this morning and get up on time, should a man be criticized for that?" he asked with mock surprise.

"We don't have time for friendly banter," WuFei said, looking from Duo to Riley and back again. "Heero and Quatre are already pulling the vans up."

After everyone had eaten a quick breakfast, they all said good-bye to Relena and Midii, who was staying back to hold down the fort, and went out front. Before everyone climbed into his or her team van, they all gathered together to have one last meeting.

"Everyone knows what to do?" Heero asked; he waited until every head nodded. "And everyone's synchronized their watches?" Again, all heads nodded. "Alright then. Everything each team will need is in their van. And if anything goes wrong at all, get out of there and notify someone as soon as you're able. Everyone got it? Okay, let's go." The huddle broke, and everyone said their quick good-byes.

Trowa hugged Riley tightly and let her go. "You better get back here safe and sound," he said, looking her in the eye.

She smiled and nodded. "I will, I promise."

Heero and Duo shook hands. "Good luck, buddy," Duo said. "You guys better come back in one piece, especially you. No matter the job, you always seem to come back with some sort of injury."

"I could say the same for you."

Meiran gave Riley a brief hug. "I'll see you when you come back, okay? And when you see Vienna, give her a big hug for me."

"Sure thing, but you can give her one yourself when we both come back."

Meiran smiled.

"Let's get a move on," Heero said, climbing into the driver's seat of the first black van.

Riley watched as her brother and Meiran climbed into the van. With a sigh, she turned to climb into her team's van when Duo gave her a big hug from behind. She started. "Duo, I can't breath," she managed to gasp out.

He let her go. "Take care of yourself, okay?"

"You too. Don't scare all the guards at Gemini too much."

"Har-de-har-har. But seriously, if it gets too dangerous, get out. We can't have you being captured."

Riley bit the inside of her lip. It always came back to that -if the World Rebellion got her, all hope was lost. Did everyone have regrets about including her in on this? "Yeah, I know. See you around, Duo." The only seat left in her teams van was the front passenger seat, next to Heero. She held back a groan and climbed in. She slammed the door shut and stared out the large front window. It was going to be a long drive.

------

Vienna's head snapped to the right as a hand made contact with her left cheek. She spat out some blood that rose up in her mouth. How long had this been going on? She couldn't even remember.

Katana yanked Vienna to her feet and slammed her up against the wall again and again. After the third time, she let the Chinese girl slump back down to the floor. She turned and strode over to a table set up in the center of the room. She picked up a washcloth, dipped it into a water bowl, and tossed it at Vienna. "Clean up before you're taken back to your lovely guest room." A guard stood just outside the door, and he jumped in surprise as the door was slammed open. "When she's done cleaning herself up, take her back to the prison cell," Katana snapped. She looked down at her watch as she walked down the corridor. Rawthorne should be here by now.

Rawthorne was disembarking from the shuttle as she entered the hangar. When he saw her coming toward him, he smiled at her with a pleased smile on his face. "Mission accomplished, ma'am," he said. "The kid should be coming along any second now."

"Good." She looked up and watched as a man dressed in all black walked down the ramp to the hangar floor, a small boy in tow. Katana looked down at the young boy. She bent down so she could look at him face-to-face. "You must be the kid Riley has come to adore," she said evenly. "I'm Katana, and you are?"

Solo looked at her warily. He didn't like the looks of her. There was something about her that didn't seem right. He didn't answer her question.

She raised an eyebrow. "Cat got your tongue?" She stood up to her full height. "I want you to watch him. Don't put him in a prison cell. Who knows what could happen if you put him in there with Vienna."

"Of course, but I must speak to you on an important matter," Rawthorne said in a secretive tone. "Alone."

"I see. I will meet you in my office then in ten minutes. Have one of your men keep an eye on the boy in your quarters until you get back."

Vienna buried her face into the warm, wet cloth. She leaned her head back against the wall and rested. The cloth felt good on her face. She wished she could stay there long enough to enjoy it, but she knew that was impossible. She took it off and wiped the blood off her face, arms, and legs. She had many cuts and bruises, and her head was pounding. She finally wiped the blood splatters off the floor and wall, and pushed herself up onto her feet. She walked slowly to the table, her body aching with each step. She dropped the cloth onto the table and made her way to the door. It opened before she even reached it. The guard came forward, took her arm firmly in one hand, and started walking her quickly out into the corridor.

Her arm was throbbing in his vice-like grip, and with the fast pace he was walking her body was screaming at her to stop. They turned a corner and walked past a man dressed in black carrying a young boy over his shoulder. Vienna frowned and looked back at the boy. He looked at her with a blank stare and a small smile. He knew that both of them were there unwillingly.

They neared the door that led down to the prison cells, and while the guard was opening the door, Vienna glanced further down the hall. She froze when she recognized a familiar man walking down the hall. What the heck is he doing here?

Rawthorne stepped into Katana's office four minutes after he had seen Vienna. He had winced when he had seen her. She had been beaten up badly, for what he wasn't sure, but he had a pretty good idea as to who was the beater.

"Rawthorne, take a seat," Katana said, waving her hand at a chair across the desk from her.

Rawthorne closed the door and sat down. This office once belonged to Raphael. Katana seems to have had no problem moving in.

"Now, what was so important that you had to speak to me about?" Katana asked. "Did you finally here something vitally important on the listening device you planted some time ago? That thing has yet to have been of any use."

"I overheard their game plan. Somehow they got the plans for Granger and Gemini from so unknown source, and they plan to attack both bases at the same time. The two teams should arrive at both bases around 3 P.M." He went on to explain the entire plan for both teams, while Katana listened with a smirk on her face. While he talked, Rawthorne could see the wheels turning in Katana's cold eyes. Yes, she definitely had a plan.

------

"They've started loading," Heero whispered to his teammates. Riley, who was crouched beside him, gave him a look as if to say `duh, we figured that'. He glared at her. Things were definitely not good between the two of them. Neither had said a word to each other since the night before, but the rift between them was noticeable to WuFei and Meiran, though neither of them had commented on it.

Meiran leaned up against the wall behind her and crossed her legs. She smiled at Riley encouragingly. Riley smiled half-heartedly back, and turned her gaze elsewhere. She was distracted about something.

WuFei sat next to her with his eyes closed, perfectly content. He looked to be meditating, or so Riley thought.

The group was hidden behind boxes of crates and barrels that were being shipped out later that day. It was in a corner of the loading area, a few feet from the cargo ship they would soon be boarding. They had arrived less than fifteen minutes ago and had barely found a hiding place before being caught.

"They're halfway done loading," Heero announced fifteen minutes later. He looked back at them. "Let's get on early. While they go back to get more crates, we'll sneak aboard and hide amongst the crates and boxes already on board."

"Sounds good to me," Meiran said, shrugging her shoulders.

"You're the leader," WuFei said.

"Okay, it's settled then. Get ready to move." Heero went back to watching the progress of the workers. Riley looked over at him with a glare. He hadn't even asked what she thought of the idea. Meiran noted the exchange. I wonder what happened between the two of them. Everyone put their small backpack's on, which were filled with various things they would each need, and got ready to run.

"Let's go," Heero said abruptly. He got to his feet and sprinted for the cargo ship. WuFei, Meiran, and Riley were close at his heels. He climbed up into the cargo hold, reached back down to help Meiran up, followed by Riley; WuFei climbed up on his own. The four hurried to the front of the cargo hold and ducked down behind the crates. They had to shift some of them around a bit, but they managed to get situated before any of the workers returned.

A minute later, the workers came back. Two of them climbed into the cargo hold, waited for the heavy crates to be placed inside by a forklift, and then pushed them further inside. As they drew closer to the team's hiding places, the team didn't breath and didn't move an inch. The workers finished and left for the next load. The team let out the breath they had been holding in.

After another six trips, all the crates and boxes were loaded, and the cargo hold was locked shut. Five minutes later, at six A.M., the ship pulled out and headed off to its destination.

------

Duo slowed the van to a stop alongside the jet Relena had hired for them, and got out. He looked about with a hand over his eyes in an effort to see through the falling snow. He smiled and waved when he saw Howard, his old friend, walking toward him.

"Howard, how've ya been, man?" Duo asked, giving the man a hug. "It's been a long time."

Howard returned the hug. "Yes, it has been a long time. I've been doing fine, and you?"

"Great, considering what all's been going on."

"Yes, I know. Well, the pilot's ready when you guys are. Need any help unloading?"

Duo glanced back over his shoulder; through the snow, he could see that the others had everything out of the van, but would, indeed, need help carrying them into the jet. "Yeah, we could use some help."

When everything was secured in the jet, everyone climbed aboard and shut and locked the door. Duo walked to the cockpit and placed a hand on the pilot's shoulder. "We're ready when you are," he said.

The pilot nodded. "Get ready for take-off then. Everything's already been cleared."

Duo returned to the main cabin area and sat down in his seat beside Hilde. He looked at her. "You ready for this?"

She smiled. "As ready as I'll ever be."

And at 5:50, the jet took off.

Authors Note: Okay, I decided to cut it off there, and even though I think I said I was going to post the action scene in this chapter. Sorry! If I added everything into this chapter, it would most likely be over twelve pages, so I figured `why not cut it into two chapters?' Well, the next chapter should be up soon. Where I live, we're in the midst of a winter mix "storm" so I seriously doubt I'll have school tomorrow, and there's even a chance I won't have school Tuesday, either, so I just might be able to get chapter 21 out quickly, if I put my mind to it.