I’m such an ass, Jason grumbled to himself as he walked down the hall. Despite himself, he couldn’t help feeling like a jerk for what he’d done to Brittney, but he also knew he couldn’t stay with her knowing he was in love with someone else; it really wouldn’t be fair. "Still," He said to himself, "I shouldn’t have called her an over-possessive bitch…"
"Who’s an over-possessive bitch?"
Jason looked up and saw Seth standing in front of him. "Your sister," He muttered.
"Oh…wait a minute! WHAT?" he glared at Jason’s retreating form. "Oh well, I guess this means they’re not going out anymore." He was heading down to see Brittney anyway.
He walked down to the girls’ dorms and knocked on his sister’s door. There was no answer, so he let himself in, maybe she was asleep. But when he stepped inside he noticed something wasn’t right.
The entire room was ransacked and some of her clothes were scattered about the room. Her drawers were open and a few articles were hanging over the edge.
"Brit…?" He called. She was probably upset about breaking up with Jason. "That bastard," Seth growled, Jason was going to get the beating of his life.
He looked over at the bed and saw a crumpled piece of paper lying on it. Seth read it twice before he realised what Brittney had done.
The note simply read:
Goodbye.
"Argh!" Seth threw the paper back on the bed and stormed out again. He had to find Brittney before she got herself into trouble.
~
The hanger seemed normal when Seth arrived, but upon closer inspection, he noticed that one of their unmarked, armoured shuttles was gone. "Fuck! What the hell is she planning?" He glared at the empty spot where the shuttle used to be. "BRITTNEY!"
Slamming his fist into the nearest wall, he headed straight for Noin’s office. They were going to find her and bring her back.
~~~
"I can’t wait to tell the others about this!" David grinned as he led Alexis back towards the base.
"Mm hmm," Alexis agreed. She was still too busy studying her ring to answer him properly. It was a beautiful ring, with a white gold band and a huge sparkling diamond in the middle, complimented with two rubies that matched the colour of Alexis’s hair.
The entered the base and took the elevator down to the basement levels.
"Who should we tell first?" Alexis asked excitedly.
"Hm, how about my parents, and whoever we see on the way?"
"Sounds good to me." she smiled. David grinned and kissed her softly and took to where his parents probably were: the adult’s lounge.
As they made their way down the halls, David couldn’t help but feel that something was out of place. He saw Seth going down another hallway, looking mad as hell. David was almost afraid to look at him. Ten seconds later, Noin came down the hall ahead of them.
"Hey Noin, guess what…!"
"Not now David," Noin snapped.
"Wait, Noin! What’s going on?" David called after her.
"It’s Brittney! She’s gone."
David looked at Alexis and winced. "This isn’t good," He sighed, "Come on,"
He pulled her through the halls after Noin.
They caught up with Noin and Seth in the conference room where Jason was as well.
"Jason, I swear to God…" Seth warned him.
"What? What did I do?" Jason complained.
Helen was sitting in the corner next to Carol and she rolled her eyes and sighed. "That sentimental little brat is probably off sulking somewhere." She grumbled.
"Shut up, Helen!" Seth snapped, "I don’t know what you did Jason but whatever it was, it made Brittney leave!"
"What!"
"Yeah, she’s gone, with all her stuff too! All she left is a note."
"Whoa, you mean Brittney really is gone?" Helen choked. I thought you just couldn’t find her."
Carol blinked at the group. "Is every day this exciting at the Preventor headquarters?"
"Unfortunately," Helen groaned.
"Um, guys…" David cut in,
"What, David?" Noin groaned. "Would now be a bad time to tell you Alexis and I are getting married?" He looked around at the dumbfounded expressions of his friends and blushed. "Oh, well maybe it was…" He laughed nervously. "I’ll come back later and try again…"
~~~
"Hey Cassy! I think we may have a problem!" Jeff called to Cassius. He brought up a screen as Cassius came over.
"What is it?" She asked, exasperated.
"I think it’s a Preventor shuttle, but it’s not marked."
"Then how would you know it’s a Preventor shuttle?"
"It’s been receiving transmissions on Preventor lines, but none of them have been answered. Should I contact the pilot?"
"Yes, find out who he is."
Jeff nodded and called the suspected Preventor shuttle. "You are entering an area controlled by the Matatara Foundation. Turn back now or suffer the consequences."
Surprisingly, the pilot of the shuttle actually answered his transmission. The pilot’s face was stern and angry, and Jeff instantly recognised her.
"Brittney?"
"Yes, this is Brittney Norris. I’m requesting permission to enter your base. I want to speak with Cassius Matatara."
"What do you want, you Preventor brat?" Cassius snapped at her.
"Let me in and I’ll tell you." Brittney replied evenly.
"Well…" Jeff asked. "What should I do?"
Cassius thought for a moment. "Let her in, but send a group of soldiers to escort her to my office."
"Alright Cassy,’ Jeff nodded. He gave Brittney some docking information and opened the hanger doors to let her in. Once everything was taken care of, he got up and joined the escort to meet her. He was curious as to what she was doing there.
~~
"Explain yourself, Brittney," Cassius glared down at the younger girl.
"I want to join the Matatara."
Cassius was taken aback. "You what?"
"I want to join you,"
"Why?"
"Because I hate the Gundam pilots as much as you do."
Cassius snorted, "You are a Gundam pilot!"
"Not for the Preventors, I’m not."
"Oh really, and tell me; why would you betray the Preventors after working with them for so long? And from what Jeff has told me you’re also an item with that Yuy brat."
"Not anymore. I’ve hated the Preventors my entire life, I guess it’s hard to go back on old habits."
"You’re lying,"
"Huh?"
"Surprised, aren’t you? I can tell that’s not the reason."
"Fine," Brittney sighed, "I’ll admit that I’m angry at them. None of them have treated me the way I deserve to be treated, and now Jason left for Maxwell!"
"Oh, I see," Cassius chuckled, "This is a matter of revenge," She laughed, "I like it."
"So you’ll let me join?"
"Of course, but you’ll have to excuse me if I have Jeff keep a close eye on you."
"I understand," Brittney promised. "I think I can be of use to you. I know all the pass-codes to the mainframes, and I could practically build my own Gundam."
"Really?" Cassius looked interested. "I’m glad you came to us, Brittney. But before you start, I’m afraid we may have to fix your wardrobe a bit."
"Huh? What’s wrong with my clothes?" Brittney looked like she’d been slapped.
"Nothing, except their not suited for the Matatara. Remember, we’re the bad guys. I like the gloves though, they’re a nice touch."
"Of course," Brittney smirked, "Of course…"
~~~
"What are we going to do?" Jasmine whined. "With Brittney gone, we’re short a pilot again."
"Yeah…" Helen agreed, "But at least you’re ready to come back, Jazz."
"I hope Brittney’s OK." Seth said as he rubbed his chin. "I don’t want to lose her again!"
"Why, what happened to her before?" Carol wondered. No one answered her.
"Well, she left her Gundam here," Indigo pointed out, "Maybe she’s going to come back."
"I don’t think so, it looks like we may have to scrap the Gundam and use it for parts for the others." Jason sighed. "The note said ‘goodbye’, right? It doesn’t sound like she’s coming back."
Carol looked around the room, her mind churning. "Hey…" She said quietly. The others ignored her.
"Maybe we could ask Saber to pilot it," David suggested.
"I doubt he’d take us up on the offer."
"Why not, Helen?"
"He’s strange that way," Helen shrugged, "Besides, I think he’s grown attached to his Taurus."
"Well, it’s worth a try." David argued. "You never know."
"I don’t know if I like the idea of Saber piloting a Gundam." Joel said.
"And why not?" David snapped.
"Because I still don’t trust him! And we should be arresting him anyway! He’s a part of an illegal guerrilla group, remember! He’ll probably be going back there soon too."
"He’s got a point," Indigo sighed.
"But where are we going to find another pilot?" Jasmine said.
"Hello…" Carol continued to try and get their attention.
Still they ignored her; Carol was beginning to get frustrated. "Hey!" She called. The noise of the others was too loud for them to hear her. She clenched her fists into balls and took a few deep breaths, "EXCUSE ME! I’M TRYING TO SAY SOMETHING!" She screamed.
Amazingly, the others finally did look at her; but they all looked a little pale.
Carol smiled sweetly, "As I was trying to say, I could pilot the Gundam."
"Huh?" Came the unified response.
"Y-you…?" Helen choked. "Carol, I don’t think…"
"I don’t think you know anything about me." Carol retorted. "With a little instruction I could pilot that suit no problem.
"I don’t know…" Helen said cautiously.
"Don’t you think I can do it?" Carol pouted.
"It’s not that but, do actually have any experience piloting a mobile suit?"
"Well, I stole a suit once when I was younger. Actually, I found it in a military scrap yard and tried to pilot it."
"Oh, and what happened?" Joel snorted.
"I got a block down the road when I think I pressed the wrong button and blew up half a city block." She sweatdropped, as did the rest of the group.
"Um…tell you what Carol, I’ll give you some personal instruction for two weeks, and after that, we’ll see." Helen said slowly.
"Yay!" Carol cheered.
"Helen…think for a minute," Joel said. "Carol has no experience,"
"I learn very quickly, thank you very much," Carol said haughtily, sticking her nose up in the air.
Joel snorted and crossed his arms in front of him.
"Well, time to change the subject!" Jason said suddenly. "Who didn’t know that Alexis and Davie were getting hitched?"
Jasmine and Indigo’s eyes widened. "WHAT!"
"David, when did this happen?" Jasmine choked. "Where is she? Where is that girl and her ring?" Jasmine jumped up and ran out of the room, Indigo close behind.
"Well, congratulations, Davie." Helen grinned, "I hope I’m invited," She winked as she got up and left.
"Yeah, congratulations, David," Carol nodded. Then she quickly headed after her sister. She’d been sticking close to Helen since she’d arrived at the base. She didn’t really know anyone anyway, and she felt most comfortable around Helen.
Eventually, everyone else filed out of the room and left David sitting by himself. "Well, I might as well go find Alexis and tell my parents before someone else does."
~~
"Did I hear you correctly, David?" Quatre choked. "Y-you’re doing what?!"
"I’m going to marry Alexis." David stated firmly.
"But you’re only seventeen!" Quatre argued. You can’t!"
"Actually dad, I can if you sign the marriage license, and if you won’t, I’ll just wait until we’re eighteen."
Quatre paled and dropped his head. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
"Of course," David looked at Alexis and smiled.
Dorothy stood behind them grinning maniacally. "Wow! A wedding!" She gasped. "We’d better get to planning it right away! Since Alexis’ parents are dead, we’ll have to deal with the expenses. Not that we mind, right Quatre."
"Of course not…" Quatre groaned.
Alexis shuddered at the mention of her late parents, but Dorothy ignored it. "This is so great! I’m glad you’re going to settle down David. Where are you going to live anyway?"
"Um…I haven’t thought about that." David admitted.
"Are you going to be OK on your own? Who’s in your wedding party? How are you going to pay for everything? Are you going to help Quatre with his company, or get your own job?"
David paled, he’d never thought about any of that. Getting married would mean a whole lot of extra responsibilities.
"Listen mom!" David cut her off, "If you’re trying to scare me, it’s working. But Alexis and I will be able to handle everything."
"OK…" Dorothy pouted, "But I still get to pay for the wedding. And it had better be a nice big one! I’ll even help you plan it!"
"Ok…" David sighed. Alexis giggled beside him. "I’m so happy!" She squealed as she hugged him tightly. "This is great!"
"Yeah," David said with a smile. "Of course it will be."
~~~
"Are you really gonna teach me how to pilot the Gundam?" Carol asked Helen excitedly.
"Yeah, sure," Helen said with a shrug, "But only if Brittney doesn’t come back." she warned.
"I understand I guess." Carol said with a sigh. "But I’ve always wanted to be able to get inside one of those Gundams. They’re legendary, you know! And it was so cool to find out that my sister is a Gundam pilot! A girl! And my dad too, I figure it must be in my blood."
"What do you mean, ‘ a girl’? What’s so incredible about that?"
"Oh, well I knew this teacher once who was a major male chauvinist. He would always tell me that a girl would never be a successful mobile suit pilot, let along a Gundam pilot! I guess you showed him, huh?"
"I guess so," Helen smiled.
"By the way Helen, what’s up with you and that Jason guy?"
"Huh? What do you mean by that." She’d noticed that Carol could be very cryptic sometimes.
"Well, it’s just that I noticed him looking at you a lot back there."
"He does that," Helen snorted.
"Does he like you or something?"
"He used to, but now I’m not so sure…"
"Do you want him to?" Carol teased, poking her playfully in the ribs.
"No!" Helen snapped, surprised. "He’s so annoying!" She grumbled and shoved her hands into her pockets and walked a bit faster. Carol didn’t believe her. She hurried after her and continued, "Come on Helen, admit it! You do like him! You just don’t want to."
Helen stopped suddenly and stared at her sister.
"Oh, hit the nail on the head, didn’t I?" Carol laughed.
"No," Helen muttered.
"Come on Helen…just tell me!"
"Carol! Just drop it, OK!" Helen snapped. Carol was taken aback by her harsh tone.
"I was just teasing, Helen…" Carol whined. Helen ignored her as she stormed off towards the gym. It had been too long since she’d gotten a good workout and she needed to calm her nerves.
Carol’s eyes watered and she turned the other way and ran for the dorms. It hurt that her own sister could be so rude to her.
She had her head down as she walked, and ended up running right into someone.
"Oomph." Carol gasped as she fell onto the ground.
"You OK?"
Carol looked up and saw Saber standing over her. She accepted his hand as he helped her up.
"Do you like, follow me around or something?" She asked, a little harshly.
"I’m sorry if I’ve upset you, Miss Carol." Saber sad politely, studying her puffy red eyes.
"Wha…? Oh no! It’s not you!" She chuckled. "It’s just that, Helen…Helen yelled at me that’s all."
Saber raised his eyebrow at her, as if to say ‘is that all?’.
"I-I know it sounds weird, but I really want them to like me, you know?"
Saber just nodded.
"I’m gonna go…" Carol sighed. She walked past Saber and back towards her room. Saber watched her go with curiosity. She was nothing like Instructor Helen, but he still found her very interesting. It was strange how two sisters could actually be so different. Sighing, he turned around and went the other way. These Gundam pilots were too complicated; he couldn’t wait to get back to the Averis.
