Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Patterns of Change ❯ Six Months Later ( Chapter 3 )

Kat: Hé, sorry about the delay, university is a bit demanding at times…..

 

Duo: Well, it's about time you finished this one girl!

 

Heero: Hn… You should learn to organize your time and then it might get easier for you to get this out more often than not…

 

Kat: *sighs* Yeah I know…. Enjoy this chappie, but I warn you that there is attempted rape…. poor girl….

 

…Six Months Later…

 

“DUO MAXWELL, I TOLD YOU NOT TO DO THAT!” Katrina's voice was filled with anger, but Heero knew that she was smirking at Duo's antics. She was standing by the stove with a wooden spatula smacking his male lover's hand, keeping him from picking the food from the skillet. “Heero Yuy, get him out of my kitchen before I fry his hand with supper!” Not wanting her to make due on her threat, Heero dragged his lover from the kitchen. He still remembered when she threatened to cut him with her knife if he didn't stop trying to take the veggies, and Duo had the scar on his hand to prove it. Before Katrina had moved in with them, the pair had been living on take out and restaurants for a while. She piled them in the truck and took them grocery shopping. Buying a collection of food, she also had to buy cooking utensils, considering the two had none. For the past six months, Katrina's cuisine skills saved the house over $500 alone per month. Getting them a new diet, she also changed some things in the house as well. Since they knew laundry, she left that to them, but she did renovate the basement into a library, dance studio and work out room. The boys left her the library, and it became her study. They were surprised, however, at her dancing abilities. She taught them the Mambo, the Cha-Cha, the Salsa, the Tango, Swing, Latino Dances, and many other techniques. Her music collection was massive, and most of them were classics, making Heero pleased with her selections. However, cooking was her domain, and she took it seriously. Heero was brought out of his musings when Katrina put the food on the table. Smiling at the two, she could tell that they were busy thinking again, and motioned them to sit with her. Duo might try to pick at the food while she was cooking it, but he waited for everyone to be served before he started eating his share, or adding things to it. Both men remembered when she stopped cooking for a week because they insulted her when they didn't even taste the food before adding condiments to it. When Relena came over and said that they were well trained, Heero and Duo were confused, until Sally said that they were whipped and wrapped around Kat's finger. Even if they made things difficult for her sometimes, they know that she is quite happy where she is. However, when she first arrived at the office, many people thought that she was also a rebel force that aided the Gundam Pilots, since she had such a high record and kept her training intense. However, that thought was dropped when they noticed her easy infiltration into crowds and her other differences to the five Gundam pilots. Katrina had excelled in all of her training and was just finishing weapons handling. Thus, she would be put in their office when she was done. Once done, both boys had a surprise for her.

 

Katrina walked down the corridors after her last exam for training. Normally the chipper young woman would be bouncing off the walls, but an angry solemn look was marring her lovely features. When she had woken up, Heero and Duo had surprised her with a well cooked breakfast, and gave her extra time in the morning before her last day. When she had left the house, she was ecstatic and almost nothing could ruin her mood. However, she had to be in the class with the one person who seemed to hate her because she did not respond to his advances. He had harassed her several times before the instructor arrived, and now she was trying to calm herself so that Duo and Heero wouldn't worry too much. As she approached the office Katrina plastered a smile on her face and was surprised to see Relena and Dorothy in the small room. “Hello Kat,” Relena hugged her friend and looked her sharply in her eye; “I hope you aren't pushing yourself too hard.” Her face hardened into a mock glare, and a soft chuckle came from Katrina's lips. “Don't worry Relena-babe, Heero and Duo turn into mother hens if I even try to do a little extra work. But, now that I have more time now that I'm done my training, why?” Her tone was light and carefree, but the answer given to her killed the small bit of happiness that was slowly blooming inside her. “Who is harassing you, as of late?” Heero and Duo's head snapped up, and Kat's voice went cold, “I dealt with the problem already. He's being spoken to about it and I already warned Lady Une that if he doesn't stop I'll knock him flat on his ass, why?” Dorothy, the one who didn't know Katrina, asked, “How long has he been harassing you?” Katrina sat down and began to work as she replied, her voice dropping a few more degrees, “I thought I heard him say some things over the course of the week, but I was never close enough to hear it. Today, I was in earshot of several provocations and I made my complaint just after the exam. Happy?” Kat knew how to deal with idiots, considering her past, but Dorothy was only silenced when Relena dragged her out of the office telling Kat to call her that night. Giving a grunt as acknowledgement, Relena bid the three a good day. Seeing the suppressed anger in the young lady's eyes, Duo asked, “You want to talk about it, or let it rest for now? We understand which ever you decide.” Looking at both men in the office a small smile came to Katrina's lips as she let out a sigh. Starting from what she had heard today, Katrina explained how she had refused Agent Jones' advances, and then told them, in snippets, what Jones' had said about her. When she had finished, Heero was the first to speak. “You were in the right, considering he had no reason to harass you for turning him down on his offer. He will face the proper consequences to his actions. Also, congratulations, we knew you would pass.” Smiling in relief, Katrina nodded her thanks and felt arms wrap around her. “Good job babe. Oh, and no cooking tonight; we have a surprise for you.” Intrigued, Kat began to wonder what the two had in store for her and finished the rest of the work day with a lazy smile on her face.

 

The ride home was fairly silent, and it allowed Katrina to catch up on some rest as Heero drove them home. She felt someone poke her shoulder, and she stepped out of the car. Upon entering the apartment, Duo spoke, “Wear something nice, yet comfortable. We have to go in half an hour to meet the reservation time.” Nodding in acceptance, Katrina went to her room to change. Choosing her favorite shirt and pants, she quickly changed and applied her makeup. Adding just the right amount of mascara and lips stick did wonders to the cobalt blue dress shirt that she wore, and the tight black dress pants. After styling her hair in an old fashioned French-twist and putting on her high heeled ankle boots, Katrina walked out to the main entrance where both men were waiting. Duo gave a low whistle of appreciation and Heero's eyes raked over her attire. Giving them a quick spin, she gave them a teasing smirk, and asked them if they were ready. All the way there, Duo and Heero were acting more like the old “gentlemen” by opening her doors for her and looping their arms with hers. Katrina giggled in a childish delight, but gasped when she saw the restaurant. It was a traditional Italian restaurant and Katrina had to hold back her squeal of delight. Instead she kissed both men soundly on the lips before going into the building, leaving the two temporarily stunned before following her in.

 

The meal and restaurant made Kat smile at the beauty around her. The walls had different landscape paintings from the period before the colonies. The setting was old style Italian, and the air was so thick, you could taste the wine in everything. Duo and Heero knew what to do, so she was trying to hold back her excitement and her natural tendency to jump the two before her. Katrina kept looking around at the artwork, and didn't notice the young man come up to her. “Excuse me Madame, but I can't help but notice your attention is towards the paintings.” A blush of embarrassment crept up her face and she replied, “The last time I saw pre-colony art, I was too young to appreciate it. I didn't mean to be rude.” She saw the smiles on Heero and Duo's faces, and held back the urge to stick her tongue out at them. However, the man surprised her and said, “It is alright, most newcomers look around as well. If you want, you can look around the room, the restaurant is also an art gallery. Please enjoy your evening.” Katrina felt that her face was going too spilt from smiling so much, but she just loved art! Her mind has always been attracted to the expressions and the colours. “After the meal, can we look around?” Her voice was timid, and full of suppressed awe, that her two chaperons agreed to the question. With that, the three enjoyed their meal, and kept the talk to simple chatter. “Oh, Relena wanted us to go to one of her balls. She is trying to promote orphanages on the poorer colonies and other similar ideas, and she wanted us to be there for idealistic support.” At the mention of the word ball, Katrina began to pray that she be put on security, but she had a feeling that she would have to wear a gown again. “How formal is the ball?” Katrina's voice was curious, but she knew that they heard the fear in it. The last few times she had been there, drunken ambassadors and other high officials kept trying to steer her away from Relena, but now she would be a guest, and it would be harder to keep them at bay. “It's pretty formal, but you'll always be with either Heero or me. You don't have to go you know it's just to give Relena more push with her words if there are people there who agree with her.” Katrina nodded in understanding, and looked around the room again. She had no watch, and by the depth of the darkness outside, she knew they should be going home. As if reading her mind, Heero spoke, “We should go home, and we have to be in early tomorrow for Une's meeting.” Agreeing to the obvious facts, Duo paid for the meal, and they left for home. Katrina knew something else was going on, but she was too tired to care.

 

She felt a nudge on her shoulder before she heard the whispered words that she was home. Stretching out her sore muscles, she blinked sleepily at the two. Working her way out of the car, Duo opened the door, and Heero steered her into the house. As Duo did the rounds to make sure that the house was secure, Katrina removed her make-up and Heero got the coffee ready for the morning rush. Katrina was just about to undress for bed when she felt arms encircling her waist. “Stay with us tonight, we'll be good.” Still to tired to say no, Katrina nodded and said, “Only if you help untangle my hair.” A murmur of agreement was heard, and as soon as she was dressed in a pair of boxers and a tank-top. Duo and Heero stripped down as well and got ready for their nightly ritual. Katrina sat on the bed so Heero could fix her hair, and so she could redo Duo's braid. Every brush of Heero's hand brought Kat closer and closer to sleep, but she forced her attention on Duo's hair, and re-braided it for bed. With that out of the way, Kat curled up between both men and fell into her first dreamless sleep in a long time.

 

Kat was a nervous wreck this morning. Her body was reacting a lot slower than usual, and she knew that it was probably from fatigue. The evening out with Heero and Duo felt as if it had been years ago, but in reality it was only two weeks prior. With her reserves so low from being awake for forty-seven hours and only sleeping two hours before the problem arose, she knew that coffee wasn't going to help this time. Une had told their field that it would be a two day mission tops, but with the new information pouring in, their replacements could not allow the switch in case of bringing point of their location. Katrina knew that she was on borrowed time, and if Heero or Duo saw her now, she would be in more trouble than it was worth. The crew was tightly strung, and they all realized that she was putting extra hours on because the newest agent in the group had come down with a stomach virus, and she was doing most of his duties. Luckily Heero choose that particular time to enter, but she had yet to look in his direction. “Marx, where's that new lead you found? Johnson, I need those recordings and documents that you picked up.” Katrina's voice was low and firm, but Heero heard the tiredness in it, and he intervened. “Carter, go find Maxwell, I'll take over for now. Tell him to get here quickly, and get some rest. We'll wake you in five hours, and if there is an emergency we'll get you.” Nodding in consent, she said, “I'll get Maxwell. Oh, Phillips is on bed rest, he's got a stomach virus.” Accepting the information, Heero nodded, and Kat went to get Duo so she could pass out in a dreamless coma. “Maxwell, Yuy needs you in the main centre, and he told you to wake me in five hours unless there is an emergency.” Duo looked at her, and pushed her onto the bed. “Sleep, I'm going. How long you been awake for?” Letting loose a yawn that could swallow Manhattan, she said, “Forty-seven hours, I think. Just wake me in five, thanks.” She passed out before she saw the look of concern cross over Duo's face, and the agent he had posted next to her bed telling him that she was to get ten hours sleep, no questions asked.

 

“Yuy, tell me why Carter has been awake for forty-seven hours straight.” Duo's voice was cold and the whole room stopped working. “Forty-seven hours? She's been awake that fucking long? Why didn't one of you inform us?” Heero's voice escalated and the senior field agent said, “She told us that she was fine, and when ever we asked her to get some sleep, she brushed it off. If it helps any, even though she slowed down from super fast to fast, her work was still efficient.” The looks of surprise that he was getting form Heero and Duo kept the man going. “Not once did she make a wrong decision, and she forced Phillips into quarantine because of his condition and took on his work personally. We've taken most of Phillips' jobs, but she made sure that she typed up all the reports that he would have written.” Nodding at the man, Duo turned to Heero, “I gave her a guard, and told him that she was to get ten hours of sleep, that alright with you?” Giving a curt nod, Duo continued where Katrina left off in the report. The reports would have continued if a high pitched scream hadn't startled the crew. Duo recognized the scream as Katrina's and he ran to where she was bunked. When he entered the room, he had to control the urge to kill. Katrina had been chained to the bed, and on the floor was the guard he had posted. Phillips, who looked like he had seen better days was holding a pipe and was murmuring something. “…can't touch her. You can't touch her like that. She was sleeping and you broke the trust…” Duo took a step forward and said, “Good job Phillips, you can restrain him, and I'll unlock Agent Carter.” The pale man nodded, and Duo gave him a pair of hand cuffs to use. Taking his picks from his hair, Duo removed Katrina's swollen writs and ankles from the too tight cuffs and held her tight. “Your safe girl, I'm here. It's me, Duo. You want to sit with Heero and me in the main room. Nothing will hurt you there, I promise.” Nodding in consent, Duo picked up the shaking woman. “Phillips, good job; you can shackle him to the bed if you want, and Agent Yuy and myself want a report on what happened. When you're up to the task that is; understood?” Giving a weak salute Phillips agreed and Duo brought Katrina into the command room. Putting her in his lap as he typed, the tremors that rocked her body began to subdue, and Heero plucked her from Duo's lap once she fell asleep. Putting her on the makeshift bed, he bandaged her wrists and ankles, while making sure that everything kept running smoothly. Luckily, they had enough information to close the small terrorist group and called in for backup to make the arrest.

 

Katrina woke to the sound of murmurs and an angry voice. The words slowly registered and she realized that it was Relena. “What gave that man the right to try and rape her while she was suffering from exhaustion?” A sigh of suppressed anger came fourth, “It was Agent Jones.” Duo's voice was as cold as ice, and Katrina began to piece the puzzle of what had happened in her mind. “We thought he would have learned that a chance with Katrina was out of the question, but he decided to put matters into his own hands. Luckily Phillips was nearby, and managed to knock him out. If it wasn't for the fact that he was closest, she would have been raped.” The soft whimper brought Heero's attention to the bed, “Kat, can you hear me? We're at the apartment, and Relena was still here after feeding the cat and watering the plants.” Tired eyes opened, and a shaky hand clasped onto his arm, “Why did he try?” Kat's voice was scared and trembling, showing how damaging Jones' attack on her was. Pulling her into a safe and comforting hug, Heero replied, “He couldn't get over the fact that you didn't want him, and so he was going to force you to be with him, one way or another.” Another whimper came fourth, and within moments, she was crying softly into Heero's shoulder, missing the masks of pain flicker across the faces of the people in the room. The bed shifted again, and two more arms wrapped themselves around the shaking and crying woman. Murmurs and endearments were whispered in her hair, and soon Katrina feel back asleep just as Lady Une came into the room. More information was given, but when Katrina's wrists were touched, a muffled scream was heard. Duo woke up the depressed Katrina, and her sketchy tale was told. The rawness of her wrists and ankles caused most of her discomfiture, but the memory of waking up to being tied down to the bed caused her main dilemma. After the other members of the room left, Katrina told her main fear to Heero and Duo, and waited for their response. “Une gave us leave for a few days to catch up on sleep,” Duo began, “If you want, we could go out around town and go on a few picnics.” Thinking over the proposition, Katrina nodded and received two breath taking smiles from the two handsome men.

 

Kat: Well, that was a bit demanding…..

 

Duo: Wow…

 

Heero: 0_0 …. You're really out of practice, aren't you.

 

Kat: Stop it! *cires at unfairness* Just R&R

 

Ja!

 

Katrina