Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Mission Complete ❯ Explanations ( Chapter 41 )

Explanations

You sigh, leaning back in the black leather chair. "Fine.  I'll talk." You sense the tensions in the air ease a bit, and you close your eyes. "You understand that I can't tell you everything, for obvious reasons…?"

"Yes.  Now get on with it," Heero orders.  Normally, you would've rolled your eyes, but this isn't a normal situation.

"All right…" You pause, thinking over how you're going to word this, before you begin. "Yes, I work for someone, but I'm not exactly allowed to tell you who.  I will say that he runs an organization that fights OZ, but I'm not under liberty to say much more." They nod, and, slightly relieved, you continue. "As far as I know, he was against OZ ever since… oh, about twenty-two years ago?  Rumors around base say that he worked on Tallgeese but disappeared once the plans were completed, since he apparently didn't like OZ too much anyway."

"We've heard that before…" Duo mutters, but he's completely serious. "Keep going."

'What is WITH these guys and giving me orders?  Not like I have much of a choice at the moment…' Nevertheless, you go on. "As far as I know, he started the organization about two or three years ago.  I myself joined during the Eves war.  Our main goal is to prevent OZ from coming back - obviously, since I did blow up that base - but we also have a policy of strict secrecy which gets in the way sometimes.  Most of the people who are in this little organization used to be soldiers or rebels against OZ and the Alliance during the Eves war, and who want to continue fighting them while still keeping the peace for civilians."

"That's interesting…" Quatre muses. "So they can fight the way that they're used to without endangering others.  But what about you?"

You quirk an eyebrow. "That right there can be considered a personal question, Winner.  Nevertheless… I guess I have no choice but to answer it.

"I've been against OZ for about as long as I remember… not much of a surprise, since my brother was a rebel and they completely demolished our colony to destroy the people who were opposing them.  I was about the only person there who got out alive, and that was because I snuck onboard an OZ shuttle and stayed there as they left."

"Wait a minute… are you talking about Colony L6-X16789?" Heero asks.

You nod. "Yup.  Apparently, you've heard of it… but whatever.  Anyway, I got caught once they got back to Earth, and only got away when they left me to die in a forest.  Well, I managed to survive that, and I managed to hitch a ride back to the colonies a few years later.  Joined the rebels when I was eleven… became an MS pilot… and from there, the rest is history." You yawn. "I met Y during the Eves war, joined him a couple months later, when White Fang popped up and the less radical rebel groups kind of died down.  After the war, I kind of just stayed around to be able to fight OZ whenever they tried to pop up again… and that's where I am now."

"Hm…" The five of them consider that for a moment. "Anything else?" you ask.

"Yes, one other thing," Wufei says seriously. "How was it that you were at that base at just the right time to meet us?  Even if you were with OZ, it would take quite a bit of luck to time it like that - and to have the switch in your hand at that moment."

"Well…" you try to figure out how to answer that, when something else hits you. "Hey!  You didn't think I was with OZ at all, did you?" Duo and Quatre sweatdrop slightly, but you ignore them and continue ranting. "You just said that I had the switch in my hand at the moment that Duo found me, but why would I even have it out if I didn't blow the base?  If I was with OZ and was supposed to attack the ESUN, then I wouldn't have had it out for any good reason!  That plus all the other evidence showed that I was the one who destroyed the base, but you didn't tell me that you actually believed me!  And what about that attack on the ESUN?  If there really was one, wouldn't you guys be out stopping it instead of sitting here interrogating me?"

Full-blown sweatdrops, now.  Trowa and Wufei sigh, and your eyes land on Heero. "You made that up, didn't you?" you say accusingly. "Why did you lie to me?"

"It was only to find out how trustworthy you were, and to see if you would give us any more information," Heero tells you calmly. "If you were with OZ, you would've known for a fact that there wasno attack planned."

"So you lied," you say flatly. "You lied to trap me and force me into doing something I normally wouldn't do." You hesitate for a moment before turning to Duo. "Believe me, I wouldn't have done that if I didn't feel so… threatened… and if there was another way.  The five of you were about one inch from killing me, and I needed to get out of there." Duo holds your gaze, his eyes unreadable.  You sigh and rub your temples before continuing, "I guess what I want to say is that… I'm sorry.  I'm not saying that I regret my decision, as it was the only way for me to get out of a potentially dangerous situation, but I didn't see another way out.  If there was… I didn't mean for it to be you, Duo.  Believe me." Duo's eyes flash for a moment with an emotion you can't recognize, but he nods.  You take that as acceptance - for now.

"So," you murmur, turning back to the others, "what next?  Do you throw me in a jail cell and leave me there for who-knows-how long?  Do you toss me out this window here?  Do you just let me go, though I highly doubt that'll happen?  Or do you just keep me here until the building collapses or the world ends?"

"Interesting theories, but no," Trowa says. "I think Une would like to have a word with you.  We'll let her decide what happens next."

You raise an eyebrow. "Une, as in the OZ general Une?  You mean she's the leader of Preventers?" They nod. "Well, that's interesting…"

Which is how you end up sitting in front of the desk, staring at the former second-in-command of OZ.  It's her desk, which is the only reason why you agreed to get out of the comfy leather chair and into one of the harder wooden ones, with the boys standing in the background.  You squirm slightly, annoyed at how uncomfortable your chair is.  Obviously, it was made this way to make it seem like she had more power over whoever was in her office at the moment.  Unfortunately - for Une, that is - it doesn't work on you.

You crack a grin at Une, feeling slightly more relaxed and falling back into your normal mood. "Well, this is certainly an interesting place.  I like the way it's set up.  Intimidation tactics, ne?"

Une studies you for a moment. "You're acting like Duo Maxwell," she observes.

You mess with one of her paperweights for a moment. "I wouldn't say that.  Truthfully, I think it's Duo that acts like me."

She ignores your comment. "They've told me about you, and I know what you said." You roll your eyes in an oh-I'm-so-scared manner, but Une doesn't notice. "It's been decided that your intentions are good, or at least enough so that we don't consider you an enemy."

"That's nice to know, but why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"We needed to check if you were truly on our side, and if you were someone we could trust." You cock an eyebrow inquisitively, and she elaborates, "You did rather well on both counts, though by no means did you score perfectly."

"Ah.  So what you're saying is that you now believe me?" Une nods. "Well, then what are you going to do with me?"

"That depends," Heero says from behind you. "If you were in our situation, what would you do?"

"Oh, that's the way it goes." You sigh. "You make me choose my own punishment, but it has to be fitting?  Well, let's see…" you consider your options for a moment. "You've already said that you believe my story, but I'm pretty sure that you're wondering if I have any ulterior motives, correct?" They don't bother to answer. "In that case… I would let myself… the person… the, um… aw, heck with it.  Anyway, I'd let them go on a kind of probation… make sure that I know how and where to reach them, and also keep in contact.  Have a sort of backup, in case they decide to run away and never be heard from again.  It would also help to gather any more information on OZ, so that's about the best choice I can think of in this situation."

Une is nodding the whole time that you speak. "You have a good mind for analysis.  I agree with you, but you have to leave us some way to contact you, and tell us if anything else comes up.  I don't expect you to give away all your secrets, but just enough for us to be able to keep track of you."

The next few minutes are spent sorting out the details of the agreement.  Finally, you figure out just how much information to give them, along with a few different ways of contacting you.  You agree to meet up with the boys once every week or so, just so you can keep track of each other, along with various other, minor things.  Afterwards, Une tells you that you're free to go, and you do so happily, wondering for a brief moment why there has to be so much security on the office of the head of Preventers.

You breathe in slowly as the elevator stops at the first floor and opens, exposing the lobby of the building, where various people in Preventer uniforms are scurrying around, along with anxious-looking professionals who seem to be here on business.  But none of that is your concern; you're free to do as you please, and now the only problem is coming up with a nice cover story for Y when you get back to base.

You saunter over to the sliding glass doors of the complex, smirking at anyone who looks your way.  You're acting like you practically own the place, but don't really care, seeing as how everyone who sees you automatically looks away, thinking that you're someone important.  Inwardly, you're laughing your head off, but that stops rather quickly as soon as you spot the person leaning against the wall next to the doors.

'Duo…' you think, your heart skipping a beat at how hot he looks, his head bowed slightly as if deep in thought. 'But what's he doing down here?  Doesn't he have something to do?'

You hesitate for a moment, staring at him.  You know that he didn't completely accept your somewhat-decent apology, and you can't help but feel that you owe him a better one.  Duo sighs deeply and shakes his head, mumbling something to himself, and you think quickly… should you talk to him privately and explain it to him?  But then again, apologies aren't your strong point… it would make you highly uncomfortable, and it would be easier to just leave.  You want to say something to him, knowing that he'll probably never treat you the same way again unless you do, but you have no idea what to say…

Wing it.  You go up to Duo and talk to him privately, apologizing for what you did and saying how you didn't mean it… - go to page seventy-five

Just leave.  It's too hard to do this, and besides, it's not like it matters… too much… - go to page seventy-six