Fic AGAIN!
A/N: Takes place during episode 9.
Connection
“Why are you here?”
She hadn’t heard him coming, but Relena wasn’t too startled when she heard Heero’s voice and his harsh question. She looked up from her book at the boy who had just appeared next to the tree she was sitting under and raised her eyebrow at him. “I live here, for the time being.”
Heero shook his head. “That’s not what I meant.”
Relena took a deep breath. “Well, St. Gabriel’s was destroyed, so I had to go to school somewhere. My mother’s childhood friend lives here - this is her house and garden - and we thought that mother needed a change of scenery and some help, now that father...” her voice broke, and she had to take several large gulps of air before she could continue. “That’s the official reason, anyway. It was convenient. I wanted to see you.”
Heero didn’t say anything, but he crouched down next to her. Feeling encouraged, she pressed on: “The headmaster knows that we both used to attend St. Gabriel’s. I thought you would have covered your tracks better.”
He was shocked into responding: “I put in for a transfer before the attack. I just thought it would be better to have been attending a school I actually knew, in case someone else knew it. Stupid. Too risky. I’ll do better next time.”
“Well.” Relena placed her bookmark in her book and put it down on the grass. “He asked me if either of us needed to talk to someone. I told him that I’d been outside when the ‘accident’ as they call it happened, but that I thought you may have been trapped inside, and that the counsellor at St. Gabriel’s said that you should be allowed to talk when you were ready, and not to push you. The headmaster said that this would explain your antisocial behaviour.”
Heero blinked at her, speechless, before he found his voice. “You...you covered for me?”
Relena nodded.
“Why?”
“I don’t know. Why did you save my life?” When he didn’t respond, she sighed and looked down at her lap. “Heero, I’ve never met anyone as focussed and determined as you. I think you might be able to do anything if you put your mind to it, but you’re just a bit careless, especially with your own life.”
Heero looked away. “You don’t understand anything.”
“Maybe not. But I have to wonder...what did you do, that made you want to die so badly?”
Heero shot to his feet and bolted.
The burning plane fell down, and became a mobile suit collapsing into a residential complex. Heero stared. He thought he could hear his own heart breaking, or maybe it was a shot, because suddenly Odin was there, bleeding, and he was just a nameless eight year old boy.
“Guilt, kid,” Odin said. “It’s as fatal as any bullet.”
Odin died, and he was fourteen, burying the corpse of a puppy. He felt Doctor J’s claw on his shoulder.
“They want me to retrain you. They don’t like that I left so much personality. I’m going to do it. Softer emotions have no place in war.”
He could taste chicken soup laced with a sedative on his tongue, and he was lying down, while Doctor J pulled a sheet over him.
“Let go of it, boy. Let go before it destroys you.”
The nameless boy closed his eyes, but the sheet never reached over his head. And now he was Heero, fifteen, and he looked up to see that Doctor J’s claw had been replaced by a slim hand.
He sat up. “Relena.”
She looked at him with infinite compassion, and he struggled for something to say. “I’m not as strong as you think I am”, he finally bit out.
Relena shook her head. “You’re not as strong as I think you could be”, she corrected gently. Her hand was sinking into his chest to caress his heart. “Fix this...and you will be invincible.” She leaned forward, and her lips met his.
Heero woke up, panting. He sat up in bed and swung his legs over the side. He rubbed his chest where Relena in the dream had touched him.
“Fix this, huh? Fine. I will.”
He checked his watch. One more hour before he was going with that other Gundam pilot to destroy the next target. He lay back in bed and touched his lips gently. A minute smile teased at his mouth.
“Invincible.”
Connection
“Why are you here?”
She hadn’t heard him coming, but Relena wasn’t too startled when she heard Heero’s voice and his harsh question. She looked up from her book at the boy who had just appeared next to the tree she was sitting under and raised her eyebrow at him. “I live here, for the time being.”
Heero shook his head. “That’s not what I meant.”
Relena took a deep breath. “Well, St. Gabriel’s was destroyed, so I had to go to school somewhere. My mother’s childhood friend lives here - this is her house and garden - and we thought that mother needed a change of scenery and some help, now that father...” her voice broke, and she had to take several large gulps of air before she could continue. “That’s the official reason, anyway. It was convenient. I wanted to see you.”
Heero didn’t say anything, but he crouched down next to her. Feeling encouraged, she pressed on: “The headmaster knows that we both used to attend St. Gabriel’s. I thought you would have covered your tracks better.”
He was shocked into responding: “I put in for a transfer before the attack. I just thought it would be better to have been attending a school I actually knew, in case someone else knew it. Stupid. Too risky. I’ll do better next time.”
“Well.” Relena placed her bookmark in her book and put it down on the grass. “He asked me if either of us needed to talk to someone. I told him that I’d been outside when the ‘accident’ as they call it happened, but that I thought you may have been trapped inside, and that the counsellor at St. Gabriel’s said that you should be allowed to talk when you were ready, and not to push you. The headmaster said that this would explain your antisocial behaviour.”
Heero blinked at her, speechless, before he found his voice. “You...you covered for me?”
Relena nodded.
“Why?”
“I don’t know. Why did you save my life?” When he didn’t respond, she sighed and looked down at her lap. “Heero, I’ve never met anyone as focussed and determined as you. I think you might be able to do anything if you put your mind to it, but you’re just a bit careless, especially with your own life.”
Heero looked away. “You don’t understand anything.”
“Maybe not. But I have to wonder...what did you do, that made you want to die so badly?”
Heero shot to his feet and bolted.
The burning plane fell down, and became a mobile suit collapsing into a residential complex. Heero stared. He thought he could hear his own heart breaking, or maybe it was a shot, because suddenly Odin was there, bleeding, and he was just a nameless eight year old boy.
“Guilt, kid,” Odin said. “It’s as fatal as any bullet.”
Odin died, and he was fourteen, burying the corpse of a puppy. He felt Doctor J’s claw on his shoulder.
“They want me to retrain you. They don’t like that I left so much personality. I’m going to do it. Softer emotions have no place in war.”
He could taste chicken soup laced with a sedative on his tongue, and he was lying down, while Doctor J pulled a sheet over him.
“Let go of it, boy. Let go before it destroys you.”
The nameless boy closed his eyes, but the sheet never reached over his head. And now he was Heero, fifteen, and he looked up to see that Doctor J’s claw had been replaced by a slim hand.
He sat up. “Relena.”
She looked at him with infinite compassion, and he struggled for something to say. “I’m not as strong as you think I am”, he finally bit out.
Relena shook her head. “You’re not as strong as I think you could be”, she corrected gently. Her hand was sinking into his chest to caress his heart. “Fix this...and you will be invincible.” She leaned forward, and her lips met his.
Heero woke up, panting. He sat up in bed and swung his legs over the side. He rubbed his chest where Relena in the dream had touched him.
“Fix this, huh? Fine. I will.”
He checked his watch. One more hour before he was going with that other Gundam pilot to destroy the next target. He lay back in bed and touched his lips gently. A minute smile teased at his mouth.
“Invincible.”