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DISCLAIMER:
Gundam
Wing belongs to Sunrise and its affiliates, not the author. AUTHOR’S
NOTE:
Okay, readers, enjoy this! This is the LAST you will get
from me until... I don’t know... summer? The next lull in
my ever-growing mountain of schoolwork? @_@ Of course, I may
pick up the pen again sometime sooner than that. ^^ Um...
let's see... warning: language. Oh, and please keep in mind
that the following events occur SIMULTANEOUSLY. Watch
the dialogue as scenes/points of view shift—you'll
see what I mean—some
of the dialogue REPEATS to indicate that
these things are happening to different
characters, but all at the same time.
I'm pointing this out because a certain
SOMEONE complained that she didn't
understand it. Enjoy, and... I
know... what’s going on here? EYES
By To reiterate this for those who do not read my Author's Notes: Please keep in mind that most of the following scenes occur SIMULTANEOUSLY. If you don't get what I mean, read the last segments from "The Reception" and then read this chapter. ^^ Notice what Wufei hears on his microphone.
Sally listened as someone reported over the broadband
of the Preventers’ microphones.
“Sir, this is Bomb Squad 335. We may—“
Frowning, she called, “Heero, wait, something’s
happening.”
“—have a situat—“
BOOM!
The area around her seemed to erupt into flames, and
Sally was thrown off her feet by the force of the blast. As
her head hit the hard marble tiles, her eyes registered the
sight of Heero, who had turned at her call, also being
thrown to the ground. Darkness consumed her as she vaguely
heard from her tiny microphone,
“Woman!” ~*~
Heero Yuy
grunted as he felt several of his ribs break when he hit the
hard floor. Several people fell with him, and he had some
difficulty turning his head to search the sea of dancers. Relena...
Struggling to get to his feet, a second blast threw him back
to the ground again. He raised his head to see a flash of
her familiar blond tresses moving far across the room, to
the north. Losing consciousness, he whispered into his
microphone, “Duo... Wufei... Relena... the north side.”
His eyes slowly closed and his voice faltered as he
reluctantly succumbed to the encroaching darkness. ~*~
Wufei cursed. “Duo, get to the north side! You
heard Heero!” Not bothering to wait for an answer, Wufei
rushed to the east side, seeking out a flash of red.
Stumbling over the unconscious Yuy, Wufei lifted Sally,
calling into his microphone, “Get emergency medical
vehicles here immediately, Squad A! Squad B, move into the
reception hall and evacuate the delegates! 335, search for
and deactivate any more bombs in the building!” Slinging
Sally over his shoulder, Wufei grabbed hold of Heero Yuy,
literally dragging the perfect soldier along as he left the
dangerous ruins of the east side. ~*~ Relena
Darlian stumbled wildly after her bodyguard. He had, as
usual, appeared conveniently out of nowhere the moment
danger had threatened and begun pulling her out of the crowd
of panicking dancers. “Heero,
slow down!” He said nothing, simply continuing to keep a
tight grip on her slender wrist. “You’re
going to break my wrist, Heero!” She tugged at her black
skirt as she nearly tripped on it; precariously, she
followed Heero’s lead up the north stairs, weaving through
the panicking crowd. As they passed through the doors and
out into the dry air of the L1 cluster, Relena thought she
saw movement on the periphery of her vision.
“Heero! Someone is...” He tugged roughly on her
arm, and she stumbled into one of the dark back alleys of
L1.
“Hurry Relena, it’s dangerous here.” Nodding,
she continued to follow him. ~*~
The blasts continued to disorient and panic the crowd
before her. When the first explosion had gone off, Catherine
had been standing at the top of the north stair. Scanning
the crowd, she felt a sense of relief to see Relena Darlian
moving toward her, being led by her ever-effective
bodyguard. “Miss
Darlian will soon be attending a conference on L1, and the
Winners would like to ensure that she will be safe...” The
bodyguard’s eyes were to the ground, and his hand tightly
grasped the wrist of the girl just behind him as he pulled
her along at a reckless speed. When he reached the foot of
the north stair, he looked up, his face visible to Catherine
for the first time since the explosions had begun. Heero
Yuy... with his characteristically unruly hair, glaring
eyes, cautious gait... Suddenly, her eyes focused on his
neck.
He was wearing a red necktie. “...
the Winners would like to ensure that she will be safe...”
Without hesitating, the black-clad girl quickly faded
into the shadows before the bodyguard could catch sight of
her. Silently, she watched them pass and, after a moment,
stealthily followed the pair through the doors. ~*~
Duo Maxwell scowled as he forced his way through the
crowd.
“Duo... Wufei... Relena... the north side.” The
fading of his old buddy’s voice worried him intensely.
Cursing, he searched the north stair and caught sight of
Relena about to follow someone out the doors.
“Duo, get to the north side! You heard Heero!”
Wufei’s voice crackled over the microphone.
Shoving aside a shocked delegate, Duo cursed as he
stumbled into yet another person.
“Duo! I’ll be getting delegates out of here!
Follow Miss Relena!” He vaguely nodded to acknowledge
Quatre as he shoved his way through the delegates the
Arabian was trying to direct to the exits. He reached the
north stair, startled to see a figure emerge from the
shadows and slip through the closing doors just behind the
minister. As he mounted the relatively empty north stairs,
he opened his mouth to shout at another figure that had
emerged to his left at the top of the stairs.
“Hey, man, use the south and west ex—“ A quick explosion interrupted him, effectively blocking his path to the north exit. Damn... ~*~
Relena gasped for breath as Heero finally stopped in
a dark corner alley, far from the conference building.
“Where are we, Heero?” He didn’t answer her,
continuing to stand alertly, as if expecting someone to
confront them. Relena stayed silent for a while, clutching
his sleeve.
“Heero?”
“But Heero, I should make a statement, to the
delegates. I should try to help calm everyone.” She
tugged, trying to reclaim her wrist. Ignoring her protests,
he pulled her along, but at a slower pace this time. They
soon reached an empty port area, and she watched as he moved
searchingly about the deserted docks. He nodded to himself,
as if satisfied with his survey of the area, and return to
the shadows where he’d left Relena.
“We’ll wait here for our transport.”
“But Heero, I should go back to help—“
“No, Relena, it’s too dangerous.”
“It doesn’t matter, Heero, the people matter.
Take me back, Heero. I can help. I WANT to help.”
“Relena, it’s dangerous—“
“It’s dangerous for everyone, Heero. My life
should not be valued above others’ li—“
“It matters to me, Relena. I value your life above
that of others.” His voice was low, and gentle. He’d
never spoken to her that way before.
“It matters to me, Relena,” he repeated,
intensely, as if trying to convince her of its truth.
She watched, fascinated, as his arm slowly encircled
her waist, pulling her close. She turned to stare at him, wide-eyed, as he
leaned toward her. “Heero?” Ever
so slowly, his lips touched hers in a passionate kiss.
All I’ve ever wanted from Heero... It frightened her, then, that all she could do was shudder in his embrace.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Someone told me that my chapters are too short. With the exception of Chapter 5 (which I couldn't help), are they?!?!?! @_@ If they are... grrrrr... I'll have to work on that... but I like where I stop!!! ^^ |