"Case number seven hundred thirty two. Leighlei Noin, charged with massive assault and battery on Oz bases." The guard proclaimed grumpily and waved his hand.

"Careful with this one," He warned. "She has been known to put up quite a fight."

"Well." The judge, a middle aged woman, responded. "She won't have a chance to fight." She gestured to the ring of security, all of which held a high powered stun gun. "She won't be fighting anyone for awhile if she does."

"Okay then." The guard nodded. "Send her in!" He called and a sixteen year old girl with stunning long gold hair and burning gold eyes was prodded in. She was obviously a fighter, she wore a short army tanktop and baggy green army camoflauge pants. Her piloting gloves and combat boots were both worn black leather, and the dogtags around her neck probably aluminum, but the cuffs on her wrists shone like gold. She was shoved roughly to the floor by a security man behind her and fell to one kne.

"Sonofabitch.." She swore under her breath. "I aughta..."

"Leighlei Azura 'Azulmirage' Noin. Pilot of the gundam Psyche, daughter of the decorated late Lt. Lucrezia Noin, am I correct?" The judge asked, peering down at her over her spectacles.

"If you think I’m gonna let you take advantage of my wearing handcuffs, then you got another thing comin’." The girl mumbled, roughly wiping droplets of blood away from her lips, leaving red smears along her cheek.

"Guilty." The judge said it like she was ordering a pizza.

 

 

 

 

Wufei stood on the platform, awaiting his shuttle. He was due on colony 127 in an hour, and it took at least three to get there. He sighed and glanced at his watch.

"Goddamnit." He muttered. He turned towards the direcction his flight was supposed to be landing from and sheilded his eyes against the setting sun. At this rate, he'd probably never get there.

"Excuse me, sir." A pretty young flight attendant in a uniform smiled at him. He took one look at her shiny, flowing blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes and knew that she was asked (and probably paid) for more than drinks during the flight. He turned to her.

"Yeah?"

"Sir, this flight has been canceled." She said in a tone that said 'I don't give a damn about your flight….but how about a nice blowjob to make up for it?'

" Damn!!" He clenched his fists. "Any idea why?"

"Well, we lost contact with the shuttle about fifteen minutes ago, the signal went dead. We don't think they'll be coming back, sir." She replied innocently, but with no feeling whatsoever.

"Good God." He put his head in his hands and sighed. "Okay, thanks miss."

"No problem." She smiled playfully and left. He glanced back at the sky.

'Great.' He thought. 'I didn't think Oz would stoop so low as to shoot down a civilian shuttle.' As he peered at the horizon, a loud explosion sounded behind him, he turned sharply as another explosion – and this time accompanied by shreiks of terror – took place. Before he knew it, the people near him on the platform were crowding around the stairs like flies, screaming and scrambling to get away. He watched the beautiful disaster with a serene distatefulness. Of course he was scared. There was no question. But he wasn't worried for his life. And that was the diffence between him and these people. And as he turned slowly once more, he saw another round of explosives fly his way, it hit the platform but a few feet from him and in an eruption of metal shards the shrapnel beneath him grouned and then gave way. He heard himself shout something, and in essence it was as if he was watching himself from outside his body. Like a movie. He saw himself hold up his arms, crossed in front of himself, to sheild his face as the metal rained down upon him and the red fire and smoke swirled around the platform like an evil mist. He saw himself slip backwards as the metal beneath him buckled under the pressure. Then he watched as he fell, and at the instant he landed, he was once again joined with his body, and for a breif instant, he saw through his own eyes, and then they slowly closed, succumbing to his ruin.

Chang woke up slowly, his head spinning and pounding. He looked around groggily, but could only make out shifting shapes Cool, metallic colors gleamed from the things he saw, and he felt dizzy and sick.

"Shhhhh….lay back down, Mr.Wufei. You need your rest." He felt a soft touch on his shoulder and a warm kind voice filled his ears. A slight prick in his arm restored his view, he saw a pair of warm, kind looking deer eyes looking into his.

"Huh…?" He muttered. He sat up and immediately wished he hadn't. His head spun even more and he flopped back down, shutting his eyes.

"Oh, dear." He felt something cool and wet touch his forehead gently, and his head stopped spinning somewhat. "Try to rest, calm down. You lost a lot of blood, Mr.Wufei, you're heart rate is erratic, you haven't the strength to be wasting."

"Whor'e you? Where am I?" He murmured feverishly, he felt a soft touch on his neck and then the pain he had been feeling seemed to disappear.

"I am Leighlei Khusch-Renatta…you're on colony 197…in a public facility." She said softly. He heard a chair scrape back and the cloth and touch in his neck both were removed.

"Renatta, time to go." A gruff voice ordered.

"Yessir." She responded respectfully, he heard a sink run, then stop, and a few rustling noises.

"How many days left on the countdown?" The gruff voice asked, a slight hint of mocking entering his tone. He heard a distinct clink and click of metal.

"Tomorrow…" She whispered, a bit sadly, he wondered why, but he wasn't allowed the chance to ask. A door shut and the room was silent.

He fell asleep.

Later, he awoke again to something warm wrapped around him. He opened his eyes. It was dark, a few candles in the room were lit, but none of the lights were on. The moonlight from the window turned everything an ethereal shade of silvery blue.

"..Whaaa…?"

"Hush." She said softly. "I'm re-wrapping your bandages, I lit the candles so as not to wake you." He looked down. He saw a pair of arms wrapped over his chest, tying a bandage over his ribcage. She sat behind him, and he lay resting against her, her head was upon his shoulder and she hummed as she worked, tying and wrapping bandages over his many wounds.

"Hm?" He made a sound and she turned her face towards his so her lips were so close to his cheek he could feel her sweet, warm breath over his face. He blinked and cleared his throat. "Uh.."

"I'm almost done, I'll be leaving after this, you'll have a new doctor named Cairn." She informed, tying another bandage.

"Why will you be leaving?" He turned his head and she pulled hers back. She was silent for a moment, staring at him intently as if contemplating.

"I'm due for execution tomorrow morning." She said finally, clearing her throat, she returned to wrapping a bandage over his arm. They passed the next few minutes in an awkward silence. Wufei spoke up.

"…..Why are you helping the sick people?" He changed the subject. A warm expression and faraway look crossed her face.

"It was always a dream of mine to be a doctor, I love to help people…I was wounded many a time myself so..I learned how to take care of bleeding that way. When I grew up I….was going to be a pediatrician…I love children. And so, when I was sentenced to death, they gave me a community service job at the ER because I was so qualified." She stopped and fell silent.

"Why?" He asked.

"Why what?"

"Are you going to be executed? I don't mean to be rude but you don't seem to be the kind of person who-"

"I destroyed space colonies 201, 205,206, 209, and 211. I have a gundam and I killed over three thousand people – all of which, I might add – were part of Oz." She said quickly and coldly. He blinked.

"Oh." They were silent again, this time for a span of ten minutes, the only sound was her rapid, uneven breathing.

"I have to be going." She announced suddenly. She tied the last bandage over his chest and stood. Leighlei eased him onto the pillow and blew out all but one candle. "Need anything before I leave?"

"Could you open the window?" He asked. Nodding, she leaned over him and slid it open, a cool breeze fluttered through the curtains, her hair, blue and cool in the moonlight, was swept across her face. He narrowed his eyes. "Let me see your face."

"Why?" She took a step back as if in alarm.

"Because..I want to see what you look like.." He said uncertaintly. Her eyes glittered in the dark, and sho took a breath and held it as if she was going to say something, then sighed, she raised the candle up so the light fell across her cheeks and nose. She had long, wavy, strawberry blonde hair, large, deer colored eyes, and fair skin. She lowered it and took another step back

"How old are you?"

"Eighteen." She said simply. She blew the candle out, a door slammed, and all was silent.

Chang awoke yet again, but this time to the sound of shouts coming through the open window. He turned his head and looked out. There he saw a huge crowd of rioting colonists shouting and cheering. He saw a man dressed all in black – an executioner, leading a woman dressed in long, flowing (but simple) white satin. She had her head bent so her wavy, golden hair covered her face and hung loose in ripples to her waist.

It was Leighlei.

Her hands were bound together in shackles behind her back. The executioner led her through the crowd, pulling on a thorny noose around her neck. He yanked hard on it and she fell to her knees.

"Hurry up, kid." The man said in a rough voice. The citizens were cheering and throwing things at her, spitting at her feet. She remained untouched though, as if a protective aura surrounded her.

"Don't…..call me kid.." She said, out of breath. The executioner grinned crookedly and yanked harder on the rope, she fell all the way down onto her side, and lay still, staring at the crowd. Tears filled her eyes and she blinked slowly as they pooled on the ground. 'I am going to die right now.' She thought. 'If God has any mercy he will let me die right now.' She thought about standing and yanking the rope out of his hands, but she had neither the strength nor will to do so.

"No! Stop! How much would it cost for this prisoner's release?" A familiar voice said, she turned her tear filled eyes towards the sound. A person in a black cloak rushed up to the executioner, who looked at him.

"Nothing, she is sentenced to death, and no amount of money could change that!" He laughed at the person. The individual held out what looked to be an ID card. The executioner looked at it and coughed.

"Uh…well, em, that's a horse of a different color. She belongs to you, use her as you like! She is now your legal property." The thrust the rope to the person and walked off. The crowd, upset at the loss of such a wonderful show, dispersed almost immediately, leaving the frightened girl alone with the stranger. Closing her eyes, Leigh could feel her heart pounding in her throat, worse then death, living and not fulfilling her dreams or mission. She was scared, as well. Who was this person? Would she be forced to be their slave? Were they cruel or kind? Would they hurt her? These questions raced through her mind, and all the while the footsteps of her fear came closer and closer…

"Well, guess this is it." The voice said softly. She opened one eye, the hood hid all of the persons face save for a glimmer of blue in their eyes. The person's gloved hands reached for her, she braced herself for the worst. They touched her gently and began removing the noose, she relaxed a little and opened her other eye. Blood poured onto her dress, dying the white satin scarlet. She began to feel faint. Fighting to stay conscious, she stared up at the person.

"W..who.." She asked feverishly. The person shoved back the hood. In an instant she was momentarily snapped back to reality. She knew that face. The blonde hair, the kind, gorgeous blue eyes. "Quatre…." And then even he was enveloped in complete and utter nothing.

She awoke in a hospital bed. Sitting up, she braced herself as a wave of pain, nausea and fatigue hit her. She stood, and ignoring the weakness she felt, staggered weakly over to the door. She tried to open it but the room began to spin and she slumped against the wood.

"I…have…to get….out.." She whispered, pounding her fist once hard against the door. "I..can't stay, I have to..finish..Psyche's….repairs..agh.." She grabbed her neck as blood began to run down her chest and sank to the floor. The door opened and Quatre looked down at her.

"At it again, I see? Never were one to let yourself heal, were you? You're just like Heero." He commented, smiling kindly. She growled and stood, letting go of her neck.

"Well, you can change that, I am your property now." She commented, "But..if you're still as you were when I met you, you'd be too gentle to stop me from leaving."

"You're right." He agreed. "But hey, Wufei's not, and thanks to you hes strong enough to deal with this. Wu-FEI!" He shouted down the hall. Wufei came walking down it in his pants without a shirt on. She looked down the hall at Chang. "He's not strong enough, not even at 100% and I could kick both of your asses...but hey, I can escape another way." She shrugged, then took a step foreword. "If we are talking about the old days, I owe you this.." She pulled him close and kissed him passionately, then stepped back. She saluted.

"Uh…" Wufei stood beside Quatre in the doorway. "You know her?" He asked. Quatre nodded.

"Long story."

"I don't even wanna know." Wufei held up his hand, Leigh backed up against the window, undid the latch, and opened it.

"Things are still as they were, I never stopped loving you, I kept my promise, Quatre." She looked at him, and her eyes were full of love, pure and untainted. Wufei was wondering what was going on when she blew a kiss and a wink towards him. He raised a jet black eyebrow.

"Oh yeah. Thanks for the help." He remembered she had in fact saved his life. She nodded and then did a back-flip out of the second story window.

"No!" Quatre rushed foreword and looked down out of the glass. She stood on the pavement below, looking around, she looked up, smiled, then ran down an alley to the left.

"Shit." She said to herself as she ran. "Damn they're following me." She heard the clatter of footsteps in the alley behind her . "Fuck, oh crap." She kept running, forcing herself up and over a large metal fence at the end of the alley, when she got down the other side, she fell on her back and lay still, her blood, black as midnight, running all over her arms and chest. She lay there, her chest heaving, and turned her head to see who had followed her. Quatre stood on the other side of the fence smiling at her. She stood up, and, miffed beyond belief, turned and ran off again. Quatre followed in hot pursuit, she disappeared around the corner and into the park. As she ran, Leigh recounted how they had met:

It was seven years ago, she was eleven, and he was thirteen, they were both young, but they were so different. It had been on this very colony. They were both at the boarding school. It was like a sleepaway camp for rich army type people's kids.

She was in a long, flowing, simple green dress, barefoot, very similar to what she wore now. She was wading in a pond, watching the dress swirl around her feet in the cool clear water.

"Lovely day isn't it?" She whirled, the water around her feet spraying across the hem of her dress. There he was. Her heart jumped and she swallowed. She hadn't known love had blonde hair, blue eyes, and asked about the weather, she was soon to find out.

"Y-yes." She stammered, her young heart beating so fast inside her throat. He smiled and she practically melted.

"I'm Quatre Reberba Winner." He offered his hand and she looked at it.

"Leighlei Khusch-Renatta." She said softly, the nervousness vanished at the thought of her parents and sadness took it's place, she turned back to the horizon and stared at the blue sky. He came at stood beside her.

"Are you all right? Do you want to be alone?" He looked at her. She looked back.

"I am." She whispered, sudden tears welled up in her eyes and she turned and ran off to her room in the massive dorm. He watched her, his innocent heart experiencing the strangest feeling, he didn't want her to be alone. The strange part was, he wanted to end her loneliness with his own company, forever.

She had reached a large willow growing at the edge of a lake. She hoisted herself onto a large, thick branch that went out about ten feet, over the deepest part of the pond, she crawled o the end and lay on her back, hardly breathing. She didn't notice the red droplets falling like rain into the water, creating scarlet ripples. She closed her eyes, the weather was lovely, maybe she would take a small rest… Quatre ran up to the edge of the pond. 'That's odd.' He thought. 'The trail of blood ends here.' He noticed the ripples and red water where the scarlet drops fell. He climbed into the tree and looked at the girl sleeping there. Her long golden hair mingled with the drooping, graceful branches of the willow. Her hands were clasped over her chest, which gave very little, if any movement. Her face was serene and relaxed. He stepped on a branch. It snapped and he fell into a deep part of the pond-about 16 feet deep. Her eyes fluttered open and she sat up slowly, drawing her legs under her. She looked down and saw Quatre swimming strongly to the edge of the pond, crawling onto shore, he coughed a few times then flopped onto his back and tried to catch his breath.

"I didn't know kids from the desert could swim." She commented, he looked at her. Nothing more. She smiled and stood on the branch. She wobbled a little, almost swooning into the dark water, but kept her balance.

"Wait! don't-"

"I can take care of myself, Quatre. I'm more capable than most women. Look." She jumped off the branch and landed in the water, she rose to the surface and grinned, hiding her pain and exhaustion. "My mascara isn't even running."

"You're crazy! If you keep risking your life you could die!" He exclaimed, she blinked.

"Why would you care? The way I see it my death would be a better experience for all mankind, not to mention you." She muttered. She swam weakly with the last of her strength to the opposite side of the pond and drew herself out of the water, she looked into the lake. A trail of scarlet left a path in the liquid. She looked up at him, hoping he wouldn't notice. She had wanted to stay out of his life forever, and not make him suffer as she had before;

When she saw him the next day it was at the dance hall, ballroom lessons. She had stood in her satin green dress, back against the wall, watching. Nobody ever asked her to dance, only the popular girls, namely everyone else, danced with the popular boys, namely every guy in school. She knew there was an uneven number, and there would always be one left over. It was always her left out, never picked for teams, never called upon, but she didn't mind, it was her life and she was used to it. She had grown tired of watching all the happy couples. She turned and left the dance hall, returning to the quiet seclusion of the pond. She climbed into the large tree beside it, much like the willow she was in now, and sat, staring at her reflection, a few times a tear would land in it, distorting it with ripples. She turned her face away from the image in the water and leaned against the trunk of the old oak. Was she really Noin's and Khusch- Renattas images combined? Or was she a completely original creation, she shut her eyes as the tears burned them, but none came.

"Leighlei?" She practically fell out of the tree. Looking down, she saw Quatre standing below her. "That is your name, right?"

"Yeah.." She muttered uneasily.

"Why are you out here all by yourself? I thought that a pretty girl like you would have guys flocking to dance with you." She shrugged and slid off the branch, landing on the ground beside him.

"And what's a handsome face like yours doing looking at mine?" She replied, reaching out and touching his cheek with a trembling hand. He reached up, gently took it in his, and, like a prince, bowed and kissed the top of it. She blushed.

"May I have this dance?" He asked.

She felt dizzy and the sky spun around her as she stared at the trail of blood. Quatre didn't notice. She felt on the edge of blacking out and fell foreword onto her hands. 'Oh God.' She thought. 'He'll just have to save me again. Another example of just how weak I am. I am no soldier to rely on others to help me.' She shoved herself up. Ignoring the wet satin clinging to her form, she hurried off into a back alley and pressed her back against the blockade at the end. She slumped over to the ground and lay there, the blackness closing in on her, she fought it as long as she could. She stood and forced herself over the brick wall, and landed hard on her back. She felt a shock go through her spine like electric needles going through her hands and pushing through her toes, she winced in pain and rolled over onto her side, gasping for air, blood dripping onto the pavement. She used the wall to lean against as she pulled herself to her feet. Leighlei was so tired, so faint, she didn't care anymore what happened.

"Hey kid, you okay?" A pair of friendly eyes peered at her from a window above, she looked up. Slowly a face and a long brown braid appeared. "Hey you don't look so good-I mean, you look great…. but not so healthy…uh..uhm I'm sorry, you need help?" Her vision went double as the blood ran from her head. She dropped to the ground and blacked out.

"….loner….leave……doesn't belong…" Leighlei crouched outside the principals door, listening to a phone conversation about her. She stood and shook her head. Like her parents would ever let her go back. She looked at the old grandfather clock, eleven forty five, almost time. She rushed up to her room and slipped out of her dress and into a pair of baggy green pants and a tight tank top, she hopped into her sneakers and ran back down the stairs, out into the field beside the estate, and into the woods. She kept running until she had reached a clearing in the middle of it. Then she did a back-flip and a few cartwheels, she finally skidded to a halt in front of it, a huge, towering, mobile suit Aeries she had found. She knew how to fly it, she knew how to hack into the system, she knew Oz was bad. She was hoping to infiltrate it, us it's computers to find her parents, then blow the whole organization to pieces. She smiled to herself and leaned against a tree, looking at it's scarred metal hull. Every night at twelve o'clock, she came here, to work on it and tink about the past day until morning, she hardly ever slept or felt the need to sleep, and when she did she never slept within the walls of the school. A twig behind her snapped.

"Woah!" She whirled her head around towards the entrance, her hands held up, ready for action. In an instant her scared face melted into a smile almost as warm as the one facing her.

"Nice clothes." Quatre commented from before her, he had never seen her wear pants before.

"Quatre Reberba Winner, did you follow me?" She asked, putting her hands on her hips. He smiled softly and she advanced on him. "I hope so." She added quietly. His arm wrapped around her waist warmly, making her shiver and giving her goosebumps, and he leaned over into her willing lips, kissing her gently…

 

"AK!" She sat straight up but flopped back down immediately, the pain in her head was immense. She was in a normal bed now, beside her was a chair with a wrinkled blanket on it. She looked around, a simple room looked back at her. A brown carpet, T.V, chairs and a table, a door and mirror to her right, another to her front, and a window behind her, she turned her head and stared at the sky, it was night, the stars shone like dew on blue velvet.

"So you're awake now? I'm glad, kid. You scared the bejesus outta me." She snapped her head around, there stood the guy from the window in a lumberjack hat, black pants (Which she thought were kinda..tacky.) and shirt, and a reverend collar.

"Huh?" She took a deep breath through her nose and stretched her arms. "How long have I been knocked out?"

"This is the sixth night, I finally got the bleeding to stop. I think you might be anemic." He sat in the chair beside her.

"No." She smiled and shook her head. "But there is a lot of blood going through the throat arteries to get to the brain. Anyway…thanks for helping me. God have I got a migraine, though. Ugh…" She put a hand on her head.

"I bet. I had to keep you sedated because you kept having nightmares and trying to leave." He answered, he reached over and put two fingers on her wrist.

"You have sedatives?" She asked in shock. He grinned.

"I have vodka."

"Oh God….how much did I drink?" She closed her eyes.

"Two bottles." He replied simply and let go of her wrist. "Your pulse is still a bit weak, try to get some rest, all right kid?"

"Mmm-hmm..ok…gosh I made the mistake of not taking care of myself once." She felt so serene here, so taken care of, she didn't know why but she felt she could trust this guy.

"Need anything?" He asked.

"Your name." She smiled. He grinned.

"Duo Maxwell."

"Duo…Maxwell? The….the Gundam pi-pilot?

"Yeah…"

"Do..you know a..guy named..Quatre..?" She asked shakily, her eyes widening

"Oh yeah, we're real good friends. What's your name?" He responded with a question of his own.

"No, it can't be! I gotta get out of here!" She jumped up and looked around. " Uh Duo?" She asked reproachfully.

"Mm-hmm?"

"Where are my clothes?" She asked, feeling a cold draft around her body. She looked down. Luckily, she was still wearing underwear, but not a bra. He blushed.

"Nice name." He commented, she winced and rubbed her neck, glaring at him and swearing inwardly for being such an idiot.

"Look I have no time for your stupid games, I have to leave this colony, I'm due for assassination tomorrow!" She lied. He blinked.

"Ok, ok, hey, your dress is ruined, how about I give you some of my clothes?" He offered. She turned and looked at him, he was staring at her chest. She didn't care.

"Pervert…" She muttered. "Yeah that would be great if you could lend me some old clothes, preferably pants, that is, if you have any of those..." She smiled deviously. "I have to get going now, so if you could give me something comfortable or loose.." He was already at the closet, he threw a pair of baggy black pants and a tight white beater at her, she looked at them. "That'll work." She said. She slipped into them, the pants were baggy and the shirt tight and form fitting, and looked in the mirror. She looked ok…for a crossdresser.

"Here are some boots." He threw them at her and they hit her in the shin. She grabbed it in her hands so she was standing on one foot.

"Yowch!" She yelped and hopped around. "Ow ow ow ow ow!"

"Ups. Sorry." He blushed and stood. "Well, nice meeting ya, whatever yer name is, come back and see me again sometime."

"Yeah, thanks for everything, you're an angel." She finished putting her boots on and kissed him on the cheek. "I'm Leighlei Khusch-Renatta, gotta run!" She waved and rushed out the door, the dogtags that read 'Q-R-W'-the one thing that remained on her body always-jangling around her neck.

"Uh…bye?"

She slammed the door to the apartment building shut behind her and hurried over to the payphone down the street, inserting her money, she dialed the zero button.

"Hello, operator here." A nasal women's voice announced over the phone.

"Uh, I'd like to place a collect call to 764-689-4247, a uh…Trowa Barton?" She said, stamping her feet to stay warm.

"May I ask who will be making the call?" The voice asked, she sounded as if she was filing her nails, because she didn't really sound like she was listening. Leigh had the right mind to smash the phone and rampage on over to wherever the operator lived.

"Uh…Ayah, A uh….Lady Noin KR?" She responded. She lady put her nail file down, Leigh could hear it in the background.

"Please hold." The phone dialed, then rang four times.

"Hello?" A boy answered the phone.

"You have an incoming collect call from Lady Noin KR, will you accept the charges?" The lady asked. Leigh wanted to hang up from embarrassment as Trowa gasped and another, mocking gasp was heard in the background.

"Uh..uh of course!" He stammered.

"Thank you for calling collect." The Lady hung up.

"Hello, uncle T? It's me." Leigh whispered nervously, was it just her or was ice fogging up the windows of the glass booth? She shrugged it off and continued. "I'm in trouble."

"What else is new, kiddo, how ya' doin?" Another voice joked. She couldn't help but grin.

"Shut the hell up Heero, it's not funny!" She shouted. Trowa said something and a smacking noise and an 'ow' were heard, Heero handed the phone back to him.

"Sorry..." He whispered. "I kinda spiked his tea again."

"I could tell." She laughed. The laugh turned into a cough, and she could feel a faint gargle deep inside her throat. "Listen Trowa..I was due for execution about a week ago and-"

"Quatre saved you? It's all over the news. Where have you been? I have been trying to call you forever! Listen Psyche is here waiting for you, I'll pick you up in the shuttle in about an hour, ok?"

"No, wait, the other two are here." She whispered, she coughed again, it was getting hard to breathe. "Wufei and…what was the other ones name? Duh..duhduh? Uhm.." She giggled. "Duo! Duo Coffee house, and Chang Wufei….Quatre's here too, so if they see you I won't be able to sneak back."

"All right. I'll keep that in mind..hey, leggo the phone! He-" The phone line went dead. She hung up and sighed. Meeting them wasn't always as easy as this to get back to peacemillion to work on her gundam, Psyche. She winced and her hand flew to her throat, tiny, frozen droplets of blood crumbled beneath her fingers, she brushed them away and left the booth. She walked the streets for awhile alone, looking at the stars, until she reached the old Boarding school. It was old and abandoned, but the wild, tangled gardens and long grass were enchanting. She walked slowly over to the old pond. She looked down and saw the reflection of a little girl….

She was crying, the rain washed her tears into the mud as she worked, strapping the suit over her clothes, over his dogtags, the ones she wore around he neck, the ones he gave her. They were going to eliminate her, they had found her parents, they worked for Oz, this was an anti-Oz colony. She put the helmet on and tears fogged up the glass. She stood a moment more beside the Aeries. Quatre walked into the clearing, the rain matting his blonde hair to his head.

"Why are you leaving?" He asked softly. She thought she saw tears in his eyes, but brushed it off as raindrops.

"They're gonna kill me, Quatre. There gonna shoot me to death on the shooting stick, or hang me, or shove me off a cliff, put rat poison in my Spam.... I don't know how but they will." She reached out as if to hug him and stretched her fingers towards him. "If only I could turn back time…would you come with me if I could?" She asked softly. He turned away.

"I would have…when…I thought I loved you…..but then again, I also thought you loved…me…" She had taken off her helmet. He turned around and his eyes went wide. She had cut off all of her beautiful wavy, curly hair. It hung to her chin now, when it was wet. He doubted, when dry, if it would come to her jaw. She put a hand on his shoulder.

"I love you. Always have, always will. We'll meet again. I always keep my word." She kissed him one last time. "I owe you one more of these when we meet up again, my love. I swear I'll return to you." She climbed into the Aeries…and that was the last time he saw her for six years…

A cold rain had begun to fly in her face, and the coldness of it stung her warm tears. She shoved her hands in her pockets and crouched beside the pond, she put a hand into it's water, then held it up to her face so she could see the reflection of that young girl in her cupped palms.

"I love you." She whispered to her memories, to her hopes and wishes. "Why did fate do such cruel things to me?"

"Maybe because fate works in mysterious ways, just like God. I mean, look at me, I'm a clown." A voice said from behind her. She suppressed a smile.

"Hello, uncle." She said softly, she turned towards him and the tears now were of happiness. He opened his arms and she walked into them, into his warm, comforting embrace. Her uncle Trowa was one of the two only persons she had ever hugged, ever since she had left Quatre. She remained there for an eternity of a minute, and he held her as long as she needed. When she pulled back she sniffed a little, her nose warm and prickly, yet dry and hot. She shivered a little, dripping with rainwater. He wiped away one of her tears.

"A sad face doesn't suit a pretty girl like you." He commented. " Smile! Hey, I'm a clown, I know how to make you, you know.'" He said matter-of-factly, putting a hand on his hip. She giggled.

"Oh Trowa you haven't changed at all." She took a step back. "Where's Heero?"

"He passed out right after you called, he's going to wake up with one hell of a hangover." She laughed a little.

"He should have known better then to trust you to make him tea, so he deserves it. Hey, where's the shuttle?" Leighlei looked around. Trowa took her hand and led her around the pond, across the field, and into the clearing in the woods. The shuttle was there. How had Trowa known how much this place meant to her? Had it just been coincedence? No matter what the cause, the pain enveloped her in a second, she dropped to her knees in the mud and put her head in her hands. "What did I do?" She muttered through her anguished tears. "What did he do…to deserve me?"

"Oh shut up." Another familiar voice slurred. Heero staggered out of the shuttle. Trowa rolled his eyes. "Hey babe!" He hiccuped, practically falling over onto Leigh. She caught him in her arms and looked at him.

"Oh boy." Trowa said. She looked over at her uncle and grinned. She dropped Heero.

"Uhm….whups?" She said sweetly.

"Owww….what's the big idea.." Heero rubbed his bottom. "That hurt!"

"Well..get some padding or..something…C'mon." She grabbed his arm and dragged him into the shuttle, Trowa followed and shut the door behind them. She looked around and let go of Heero, leaving him on the floor. "Trowa, where'dja steal this one? It's nice." She commented. He grinned a bit and scratched his head.

"United airlines." He answered. She sighed.

"One of these days….just you wait and see…" She muttered, smiling. Her uncle was the master of stealing and some bad habits such as pick pocketing and the like, he didn't set a very good example. She was always trying to catch him in his deeds, but so far she had had no luck.

"Mommy don't let the bunnies get me…" Heero twitched and rolled over, a string of drool still connected to his mouth. He had passed out again when she had left him on the floor. Rolling her eyes in exasperation, she walked over and pulled him into a chair.

"And here I thought you were a brave and courageous Gundam pilot…… you sissy." Leighlei muttered in his ear. She grinned at Trowa, and sat in a seat by the back window, staring at the cloudy sky as her uncle set the destination course for Peacemillion. She leaned against the window and was surprised to find it cool for only a second before it heated up to her own temperature. She noticed that she was still cold and damp but didn't have time to think about it.

"Hey." A voice said, she looked up. A flight attendant looked down at her. She smiled, suddenly losing reason.

"Hello, I'll have a coffee…" She trailed off as she noticed the attendant had unusually thick legs, a flat chest and a lump in the bottom of her skirt. A pair of familiar crystalline blue eyes peered down at her. Her golden ones widened.

"Are you sure you want the coffee?" A deep voice asked. She practically crawled up the window. She almost screamed.

"You're not a flight attendant! You're Zechs Merquise!!!!" She shrieked. Her old friend, Zechs Merquise was alive! She thought her father had killed him a year ago because she had seen reports of it on the news. Two years ago they had met, and he had taken care of her when she had been shot in the stomach and side by a prison guard. He was a really good guy, except for when he hit on her. She was too afraid to admit to him that she didn't like him that way because he was not afraid of hitting girls. He had hit her once in a drunken fit of rage and thrown her against a wall, broken her arm and a rib. He had apologized so much after that and she had forgiven him every single time.

"Yep." He responded, sitting beside her and pulling off the hat, letting his whitish-blonde hair fall loose and his bangs hang in his eyes. He smiled and leaned over across the seat, staring at her chest. "My, you've grown since I last saw you." He said, still staring intently at her breasts as if he expected flowers to grow from them any minute. She sucked in a sharp breath and pressed her back against the seat, hoping he wouldn't go for her. He was much quicker than her in her weakened state, and twice as strong, and Trowa would make no move to stop him. At this moment in time, she was genuinely afraid of the dreamy Lightning Count, and he didn't know. She normally wouldn't have been, but she felt drained and tired and weak and afraid. She didn't want to have to be tough anymore. His eyes traveled up her body to her wide, fearful eyes and trembling lower lip. She didn't know why, but just then she felt like weeping, she felt like a scared lost child. A tear run helplessly down her face and Leighlei instantly regretted letting it happen. His face softened and he took her in his arms like a baby as the silent tears slid over her cheeks.

"It's okay." He assured her. "It'll be okay. I'm sorry I scared you. I'd never hurt you or do anything to you against your will, I swear. Don't cry." He hugged her tight and laid his cheek on her hair. "I'll protect you from your problems from now on." She nodded and her arms found their way around him as they embraced.

"Aww, ain't that key-oooooote!" Heero stood before them, a little, but not much, soberer. Leighlei looked up at him and sniffled, the tears in her eyes made Heero stop taunting them.

"Fuck off, you drunken dumbass." She mumbled. "Zechs is like my guardian, my best friend, and my onii-chan."

"Ooji what?"

" Onii-chan." Leighlei repeated. "Beloved big brother. Like Trowa." She nestled against Zech's strong chest, resting her cheek against that warm, beating heart. She had been so long without a true friend, human comfort, she felt like a baby girl again, warm in the loving arms of her family. Warm, all over with a heat that was suddenly uncomfortable. She sat still for a moment, short of breath suddenly, panting as sweat ran off her forehead in tiny beads she had not noticed before.

"Leigh? You okay?" Zechs asked, worried.

"Yeah, I'm just tired, I guess, can I sleep here?" She asked looking up at him and indicating she wanted to sleep with him as her pillow. He smiled.

"Sure."

"Thanks." She nestled up against him and shut her eyes. "I havn't had a good nights sleep in a while..."

"Leighlei?" She was kneeling by that pond at the boarding school, it was a sunny, warm day. She was, for some unkown reason, wearing her combat gear, the gear she had worn to her trial. She stood up as a rustling noise came from the bushes, followed by a voice calling her name.

"‘Sup?" She nodded her head towards Quatre, who had entered the clearing and was now walking towards her.

"Leighlei...We need you to be strong for us. Be yourself and not a soldier." He said, suddenly wrapping his arms around her.

"O-kaaaaayy..." She hit a flat in vocal tones as she was embraced. "Uhhh...how do you know a soldier is not what I am?"

"...Soldiers...aren’t pretty..." He whispered this in short spurts, drawing in a breath and holding it, then letting the word escape his lips in a quick burst. She felt tears start to run down her face as her arms found their familiar places around him. She was laughing and crying, sort of hiccuping. He stroked her hair and when she finally looked up, he was fading away, like a ghost. All that remained of him were his beautiful blue eyes and a faint outline, like a freakish Cheschire. She wasn’t scared. Leighlei knew she would see him again. Instead of crying any longer, her face broke into a warm smile.

"You know..." She whispered. "I dream about you." He smiled, his eyes twinkled warmly.

"I know."

Leighlei woke up slowly. When she had regained all her senses again, she realized she was in one of the bedrooms on Peacemillion. She blinked lazily up at the lights of the ceiling. Flourescent. Hideous, tacky, bright. She rolled her head to the side on the pillow and rolled over onto her side, tucking the blanket up under her chin and curling into a warm ball. She sighed and closed her eyes.

"Leighlei?" It was Heero, he was walking into the room, she smelled food. Pancakes, bacon, eggs. Breakfast. She wasn’t hungry, not at all. She wanted to sleep, to see Quatre again. She sighed, knowing she had to wake up, anyway, and sat up.

"Morning." She mumbled drowsily, wiping the sleep out of her eyes. She looked at him. "What’s up?"
"Brought you breakfast in bed. Thought you might need it. You were asleep for..." He stopped and checked his watch. "14 hours, that’s longer than usual, by about fifteen minutes."
"Ha ha, very funny." She sneered sarcastically. She stood up and stretched, groaning a bit. She looked down on the tray of food he had brought her and her stomach did flip-flops, her throat tightened as she had to turn her face away from the sight and smell.

"You Okay?" Heero asked, stepping foreward. She held out her hand to stop him.
"Fine." She mumbled, then brushed past him, the rich smell of food in her nostrils still lingering. "I just don’t feel so good."

She walked down the hallway of her old home, so familiar and full of memories, she glanced around and rolled her eyes. "Oh geez, I’m getting all wishy-washy." She muttered to herself. She reached the top veiwing level of the big gundam storage room and leaned against the railing and looked down at the two people inspecting Wing Zero and the Epyon, letting the memories catch up with her for a minute or so. Then she smiled and kept walking. Leighlei shoved her hands in her pockets and realized she hadn’t changed yet. ‘Oh, the horror!’ She thought sarcastically. ‘Big whoop.’ She continued through the dimly lit halls of shrapnel and bolts quietly, thinking of nothing in particular until she reached (ah, after much journeying!) the brightly lit control room and slid into a seat near the back, in front of a panel of screens and operating mechanisms. She did’t give any o