Kitty~chan: GIVE ME SUGAR!!!!!!
Quatre: Y-y-you're back? Oh! Hehehe. We still have to rescue Duo from that cat. Well, read the story, and pray that we are still alive by the time you get finished.
Wufei: Why are we reduced to chasing a dangerous and hyperactive cat around trying to save some dipwad from certain doom at the hands of the cat?
Heero: Hn... you got me.
Duo: Hee~chan!!!! Help me!! Shoot her or something!!!!!!
Heero: It would be my pleasure.
Trowa: No!!!! You remember what happened last time, don't you?
Kitty~chan: SSSUUUUUUUGAAAAAAAAARRRRRR!!!!!! *leaps at Heero*
Heero: *steps out of the way revealing Wufei behind him*
Wufei: O_O AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!
Kitty~chan: *latches onto Wufei's face*
Wufei: *writhing around* FIT ER O!!!!! FIT ER O!!!!!!!!
Quatre: While we try to comprehend that, you read the story! Alright! Let's GO!!
Trowa: Oh, and Kitty~chan doesn't own Gundam Wing or anything, so... yeah. Uh, read the story for now. I must go to help rescue Wufei.
Clues leading to Betrayal
She finally broke out of her reverie and turned on the news. The reporters were just ending a report on a murder downtown when a picture of Shakaju Masaki appeared on the screen.
�Hey. There�s that guy that�s trying to salvage the gundams. Do you remember him?� she asked, turning to Heero.
�I remember hearing about him before I left to come here. Are you talking about during the war?� he asked, meeting her eyes.
�Mmm-hmm. He used to work for OZ. He worked just under Treize. Treize didn�t like his ideals, and no one listened to him, so he quit. He then tried to spread his ideas around White Fang, but no one accepted him there either. So he quit.� She explained, looking back at the television screen.
Heero�s eyes widened when she said he was from OZ. Something in his gut told him he needed to learn as much about this guy as possible. �What were his ideals that no one accepted?�
�Well, he disagreed with the way Treize was handling the Gundam problem. He believed that the Gundams and their pilots were to valuable and powerful to just destroy. He felt that it would be more useful to capture the gundams and their pilots and use them for OZ.� She said, turning off the TV and turning to fully face him.
�Well, he must�ve had a way to use them. I mean I bet even he knew that we would rather die than work for OZ or White Fang.� Heero leaned foreward a bit.
�I don�t know. You know what, why don�t we go talk to my brother? He would know more about this guy than I do.� She suggested, standing up.
Heero loathed the idea of going to visit Milliardo�s temporary office, but he would do it� for Relena.
Milliardo looked up from his laptop as someone knocked on his door. He told the person to come in and smiled brightly at the sight of his sister. His smile instantly vanished at the sight of Heero as he entered behind Relena.
�What is he doing here? Get out of my office.� He commanded.
Relena set her hand on Milliardo�s shoulder. �Now, listen. Heero just wants to get some info on someone, maybe to get a lead on these attacks.� She said gently.
Milliardo sighed and glared at the brown haired man. �What?�
�I want to know about a man named Shakaju Masaki.� He answered evenly.
�Well, he was a man that came from OZ to work with White Fang. He wanted to use the Gundams rather than destroy them. No one really liked his ideals, so he quit. What else is there to know?�
�I want to know some details on him. How did he plan to use us? I�m pretty sure that even he knew that all five of us would rather die than work with OZ or White Fang.� Heero wanted to know.
�He did. He was a master when it came to technology. He showed us blueprints for a mind control device. It was well hidden, effective, and could be useful. However, the proposition to try and capture the Gundams or their pilots was just too dangerous and it wasn�t worth the effort it was to require. So he left.� Milliardo explained with little emotion.
�What was the mind control thing like?� Heero wondered.
�Well, he called it a mind star. It was a flesh colored five-point star that attached to the person�s chest. It sent electric waves through the person�s body and up to the brain, carried by a special unique substance. It has a micro phone in the star that would allow him to speak through the person and control what they say. However, it was never built. It would�ve taken a short amount of time for White Fang to build it, but it would�ve taken years for him to build. I wouldn�t worry about him. The Gundams were destroyed and no longer pose a threat.� He explained.
�Well, thank you Milliardo. That might help.� Relena said. She gave him a quick hug before briskly walking out.
Heero stopped before walking out the door, turned and gave a bow to the man before leaving. Milliardo raised an eyebrow as he left.
Relena and Heero returned to her room and sat down in the same places they had left. �Well, that didn�t get us anywhere.� Heero stated glumly.
�Aww, it�s okay, Heero. We�ll figure it out. But for now, let�s try and relax. You look all tense, and you�ll never figure anything out like that. Why don�t we go downstairs? I have a gym down there, and gymnastics always helps me loosen up when I�m tense. What�dya say?�
Heero shrugged. �It�s up to you.�
�Do you want to try anything? Like the balance beam or something similar?� she asked, going to her dresser to get her change of clothes.
�Nah. That�s alright. I�d probably hurt myself anyway.�
�Not that that would bother you, right?� Relena smiled as she entered the bathroom. Heero again shrugged. When she came back out, wearing a red and white leotard, she spoke. �Well, would you be willing to spot me? I just need some one to make sure that I don�t kill myself while I�m exercising.�
Heero shrugged and the two left for the gym.
Relena lifted herself up onto the balance beam and stood up. She spread out her arms and steadied herself. Heero stood on the floor next to the apparatus and lifted his hands up, ready to catch her if she wavered.
�So, did you teach yourself how to do this?� he wondered as she took a shaky step foreward.
�No. I took gymnastics for about eight years before my father died. Since then, I just fiddle around down here. I can do quite a bit. I might pick it up again sometime, but right now I�m taking tennis.But the balance beam isn't my strong suit.� She answered, readying to do a cartwheel.
�Really? Neat.� Heero looked at the narrow beam she was about to roll on. �Do you fall off often?�
�No. Not really. I did a lot of practicing, and I make mistakes less and less often. However, I�m probably going to be more clumsy than usual today because of everything that�s going on. If you know what I mean.I'm a lot better on the paralell bars.� She said, taking a sideways glance at him.
Heero nodded a bit as she took one more step. Finally, she bent over and swung her legs into the air, then landed, completing her cartwheel. She stood up and spread her arms again, shaking and seeming ready to fall any second. She steadied herself and then walked to the end, Heero following her on the floor.
She hopped down and turned to look at him. �May be we ought to come back to this. I might want to try something else. I�m not warmed up yet, and this is a bit hard.� She walked over to the parallel bars, and took hold of the lowest one. She swung herself up onto it, then did a few warm up flips before grabbing the second highest one and performing a few flips on that one as well.
Heero watched as she flipped and dipped above him. She was so graceful. Every move she made seemed to melt in with the next making it smooth as water. He held out his arms ready to catch her if she fell.
Relena looked down at him as she turned upside down and spun around on the bars. He was holding out his hands to make sure that she wouldn�t get hurt if she were to fall. Though, to her, it was as if he was holding out his arms to catch her, then pull her into a warm embrace. Yeah right. In your dreams, Relena. She mentally berated herself.
After a few more minutes, she finally lowered herself to the ground and headed back over to the balance beam. She lifted herself onto it, then steadied herself. She felt shakier than before. She took a shaky step foreward, then went into another cartwheel. She finished the trick, but wasn�t able to stand fully before she lost her balance and fell off.
Heero moved under her, and caught her under the arms. Relena hit him full force, but he didn�t stagger backwards like she expected. He stood his ground as she slammed into him, her arms flying foreward and wrapping around his neck. She was able to stop her face from slamming into his (weather she wanted to, or not) about an inch away. Her legs dropped, but Heero just held her there. She moved her hands onto his shoulders and the twos� eyes locked.
His prussian blue eyes paralyzed her, keeping her from moving or even speaking. He just held her suspended in mid air for what seemed like an eternity.Heero noticed that her face seemed to be slowly inching towards his. Finally, he slowly set her down and looked away, breaking their gaze. He then turned back to her.
�Sorry. Are you alright?� he asked. Relena swore she saw a hint of embarrassment flash in his blue eyes for a fraction of a second, but she dismissed it.
�Yeah. Thanks.� She said, turning to get on the balance beam again. As soon as she knew that he could not see her face, she smiled. Wow! That was so cool!I almost kissed him! I should have! Or at least told him! I am such an idiot, letting a chance like that slip by. Grrr.
Heero stepped back from the balance beam as she mounted it. He could feel the familiar electricity coursing through his body that came from being close to her. Only then did he realize how close the two had come to kissing. He let an extremely faint smile curve his lips as he watched her successfully do a nice cartwheel.
�Heero, I can�t sleep. Not with those things around. What if the next one is stronger? He could hurt you.� Relena complained as she propped herself up on her elbows in her bed. Even in the darkness, she could see the outline of his slender form against the balcony window.
Heero turned to her. He slowly walked over to her bedside and put his powerful hands on her shoulders. He pushed her down onto the bed and pulled the light sheet over her. �Relena. Don�t worry about me. You�ve been exhausted lately. You need to get some rest.�
He turned to leave but was stopped at her voice. �Don�t you ever think about yourself?�
�Not too often. Do you?� he asked, she couldn�t see it, but he raised an eyebrow. ��Cause you�re not right now.�
�Heero, what about that nightmare? I couldn�t stand to see that again.� She pleaded.
�If you have another nightmare, I�ll be here. I�m not going anywhere.� He said, turning halfway to look at her. �Settle down. Things are going to be fine. I know things have been rough lately, but I�m here to try and make that easier. Now go to sleep.� He walked over to the balcony window again, and opened it. There was a slight breeze that felt good. He walked out onto the large balcony and spread his arms slightly.
The breeze was calming. Now that he was in the dim light of the moon, one could see that he was wearing no shoes, a pair of long jeans, and an open brown flannel shirt. The wind blew back the flannel shirt and seemed to cool his burning bare chest. Every time he was around Relena, a fire seemed to flare up inside of him and almost physically make his chest hot. He wasn�t sure if it was the wind or the fact that he was no longer close to her that was cooling him down.
Relena tried to go to sleep, but the threat of watching Heero killed in her nightmare was just too scary, so she kept quiet, but her eyes remained open. She watched him as he walked out onto the balcony and allowed the wind to blow back his flannel shirt. Relena blushed. What she wouldn�t do to be standing in front of him, maybe giving him a hug right now. She shook her head. THAT was a stupid thought. She continued watching him in silence.
Heero�s chest and the rest of him seemed to be cooled down, so he began to button up his flannel shirt to go back in. He had only buttoned it up about three-quarters of the way when he heard Relena scream. He whirrled around to see what was plaguing her, but instead, came face to face with yet another shadow. The man had a knife in his hand, raised up, ready to throw it down at Heero�s chest it seemed like. Heero raised up his hands and caught the attackers wrists as they came down at him. They stood at a stalemate, both putting all their strength at one another.
Heero still wasn�t at full strength, so resorted to trying to pin the man instead. He put his leg behind the man�s shin and kicked his leg out from under him. The man fell, Heero on top, until the two were rolling over and over, kicking and punching, trying to gain the best of the other. Heero was doing the best he could to avoid the knife that was repeatedly being stabbed at him.
Finally, they stopped rolling, Heero had the man�s arms pinned to the ground, straddling his waist. He spoke in a low dangerous tone. �What do you want to kill Relena for? Who do you work for? Tell me!�
The man gave no response, but raised his leg up and planted it in Heero�s stomach, then shoved him off, and into the wall. Heero stood up and looked at the shadow. This one was as tall as he and had dark brown eyes. The shadow ran at him, the knife drawn, ready to run Heero through.
Heero stepped aside as soon as the person got close enough grabbed the man�s hand, and giving his wrist a powerful twist, wrenched the knife from his hand. He then grabbed the man�s shoulders and threw his stomach down on his knee.
The shadow gave a groan and hung limply over Heero�s knee. Heero lowered him to the ground as Relena got out of bed and inched over to where the two were. Heero held up a hand to stop her approach. �Relena, stand back. You don�t know what this guy will do when he wakes up.�
Relena stood still as Heero lifted the mask off of the intruder�s face. This revealed a head of slicked back black hair, caught in a tiny ponytail at the base of his skull. Heero stared in disbelief at the man. �W-W-Wufei?!� he stuttered.
Relena looked ready to cry. �What? Why would Wufei want to hurt me?�
Heero scanned the man�s face. It was definitely Wufei. Physically, anyway. Mentally, he wondered if Wufei was really all there. In a split second, Wufei�s eyes snapped open, and his hand flashed out, grabbing Heero around the neck in an iron grip. Heero tried futiley to remove the hand, but to no avail.
Finally, Heero spoke in a strained voice. �W-W-Wufei. W-Why are y-you doing this?� he wondered of his former comrade.
�That is none of your concern.� Said that same faintly familiar voice. However, Wufei�s lips were not moving! Wufei gave an icy glare at Heero before slamming his head into the wall, sending him into darkness. He released the bodyguard and the man slumped to the ground, unconscious.
Relena stared in horror at the fallen man. Wufei began to approach her bodyguard, but Relena threw herself between them. �I don�t know why you want to kill Heero, but it�s me you�re after! Leave him alone!
Wufei�s face cracked into a gut wrenching smile. He kicked Relena�s shin, causing her to drop to her knees. She sat back against Heero�s chest, pretty much sitting in his lap. She looked behind her at Heero�s limp form, when something shiny caught her eye. She pulled the special gun from his belt and pointed it at Wufei.
�Get away! I know that there�s something wrong with you Wufei, but I demand that you get out of here now!!� she shouted.
Wufei�s face turned to one of annoyance, as he darted out the open window.
Heero: *innocently* What's that? You want some cheeze? Oh of course!
Quatre: Heero, you know what he's saying, don't you?
Heero: Duh.
Wufei: MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMPH!!!!!!!
Quatre: Well then, why don't you help him?
Heero: Because, he did the same thing to me!
Wufei: MMMMMMMMMMMPH!!!!
Quatre: Heero, now you know the golden rule, don't you?
Heero: Yeah, so? He's a traitor! We just read it!
Wufei: MMMMMMPH!!!!!
Quatre: Heero, that was in Kitty~chan's story, not in real life!
Heero: How do you know he's not secretly planning to kill Relena in a black outfit? And what about you? You and the other three have been acting pretty strange as of late!
Wufei: MPH!!!
Quatre: Again, in Kitty~chan's story, now stop stalling and do something!
Heero: Why should I? He's a jerk!
Wufei: *passes out* THUD!!
Quatre: *looks nervously at Wufei* Now look what you've done!!!!
Heero: Good, now I'll pull her off. *easily pulls Kitty~chan off of Wufei's face*
Trowa: WHY DIDN'T YOU DO THAT BEFORE!!!
Heero: HEY! I didn't see YOU doing anything to help!
Kitty~chan: *twitch twitch twitch* s-s-s-s-s-s-s-u-u-u-u-u-u-g-g-g-g-g-g-g-g-a-a-a-a-a-a-r-r-r-r-r-r-r
Duo: *whimpers and hides pixie stix* leave and read the next chapter. Okay wit u? k. I'm going to hide in my room for a while with my pixie stix. Bye.