7A.C. 191
St. Gabriel Institute
Japan
Right now I need an escape
From this gravity that holds me down
We gotta leave here today
'Cause insanity is all around
"This is Black Alpha. I've sighted the Darlian estate. I believe that if the operation fails, it'll make a better refuge than St. Gabriel…"
The boy spoke quietly into his tiny communicator device, which resembled a flash drive, as he folded his binoculars. From his place on the balcony, the sprawling Darlian estate was a series of dots along the tree-lined landscape. Beyond the horizon, the sparkling blue Pacific beckoned.
He smiled to himself as he signed off on his report and pocketed his device in the pocket of his Oxford shirt. He didn't care for the school uniform, but at least it helped him blend in better than the dirty and disheveled clothes he'd arrived in. Given the nation's stance on refugees, he knew he would be accepted into the private boarding school, even if his rumpled appearance earned him disgusted looks from his fellow students.
That was, save for one.
The boy turned then, positive that he felt someone staring over his shoulder. But when he glanced back, no one was there. He frowned and turned back toward the view.
The Darlian girl… He thought morosely. She'll wind up a casualty if I'm not careful.
But her life wasn't something he'd been told to take into account. Quite the contrary; he had been trained to eliminate all obstacles.
The attack on the Alliance military base near the school and estate had been planned down to the last detail. He had no choice but to complete the mission he'd accepted. That night, under cover of darkness, he would execute it, then await further orders. Whether that involved continuing to hide out in his school dormitory, or…
His mind ran over the possibilities. If he'd played his cards right, he probably could have gotten himself adopted. Mrs. Darlian seemed like a nice lady, and her daughter had been the only classmate of his who had dared to look him in the eye. Although she'd looked just as shocked to see him in his ripped, dingy clothes when they'd bumped into each other in the hallway the other day; she hadn't even tried disguising her surprise. He noticed that she had opened her mouth to say something to him, though. That was more than anyone else had bothered, other than the principal and a few of the nuns who seemed to take pity on him. Pity; that's what it was. That look in her eyes…
The Darlians may have pitied him, and taken him in, he thought. But that didn't mean he'd have been able to save them. If anything, it probably would have sealed their fate.
But, what if… Some small, thoroughly human part of him piped up in protest. A family…
"No," he chided himself under his breath. "I'm not involved."
He realized he was scowling and coaxed his facial muscles into a smile. He shouldn't get caught looking pissed off all the time; as if he didn't already look conspicuous enough.
The sound of children's voices rose up from the grounds beneath the balcony. He leaned forward and watched as a group of middle school girls emerged from the front doors underneath the awning.
She walked ahead of the rest of them, alone, her blonde hair falling softly around her shoulders, a few strands gathered together with a ribbon at the back of her head.
"Relena, wait up!" one of the other girls called out, racing up to her. She turned and offered a smile. She didn't seem to notice him watching from above.
Relena…
He could already picture the blood. Trickling down the side of her head. Those bright blue eyes wide open in shock before she'd crumple to the ground.
Abruptly, he turned his head, willing away the dark thoughts. Why?! She's just a girl…
The mission, came the answer. Eliminate all obstacles.
He narrowed his eyes. He could feel a tension headache coming on. He pressed his pointer fingers to either of his temples, and squeezed.
"I'm sorry," he whispered. "Relena…"
'Cause we're works of art
We're falling stars
We're fire waiting for a spark
Later that night.
The boy pushed the button on his handheld device, and watched as it triggered a series of explosions. He watched each fireball as it erupted, one by one, as flames tore through the base. He rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck before reporting his status.
"Mission: accomplished."
"Nice work, Alpha," an older man's voice answered in his hidden earpiece. "Will you proceed with the next phase of the plan?"
Like he had a choice? His heart thumped. Interesting.
"No," he said decisively, glancing around his hiding place under a nearby dock. Sailboats and yachts bobbed around him, as if nothing were amiss just a short distance away, their shadows dancing across the surface of the blood red and orange waters.
"And why not?" the older man asked sharply. The boy thought for a minute.
"The Vice Foreign Minister was called away. He isn't even home," the boy explained. "It would be pointless to assassinate the wife and daughter. It would draw too much unnecessary attention to ourselves."
Silence elapsed for a few seconds, and he fully expected to be told to do it, anyway. What did the lives of the two females matter? There was a chance, given the way the girl had looked at him, that she already knew… something. He had his suspicions. And anyway, he was still certain someone had been watching him earlier that day. He couldn't risk it.
Wouldn't risk it.
Shouldn't.
"I see," his superior said at last. "Then what will you do instead? Go back to the dorms, as if nothing's happened?"
The boy shrugged to himself, out of habit. "I guess. For now."
To his surprise, the older man chuckled. "You are just a boy, after all."
"Huh?" The approximate 11-year-old immediately took umbrage with that. "What's that supposed to mean?" Hadn't he just blown an enemy base to kingdom come, all by himself?
What more could these people want from him?
"The girl," his superior said more harshly. "She's about your age, isn't she?"
The boy's heartbeat quickened, and his face burned with shame. "That's not-"
"Pretty little thing, too."
His palms began to sweat. "I-"
"If you were older, I'd accuse you of thinking with your other head. I don't think you're quite there yet. But you're still soft, eh?" The older man snickered.
The boy tightened his eyes into the fiercest glare he could muster, even though no one could see him. "It's not… that," he said tersely. "If she, or anyone else, gets in my way, then I won't hesitate." He imagined it then. Raising his gun, pointing it straight at her head, unblinkingly. He'd shoot her right between those ocean-colored eyes. He could - he would - do it.
His breath hitched, and his heart began to race even faster. What's wrong with me?
"It's just," he gasped, pressing a hand to his pulsing chest. He was far too young to experience a heart attack, so what was this? "She… she's nice," he finished, feeling another wash of deep, burning shame.
The boy paused, waiting for the inevitable reprimand. Which would no doubt include a beating, later.
"And that," his superior hissed, "is exactly why you need to stay away."
The warning evaporated into the night as the call disconnected, and the boy stayed beneath the docks for what might have been hours, watching the flames dance against the dark, starless sky.
'Cause we're works of art
We're falling stars
We're fire waiting for a spark
Yeah, we're gonna be miles up, up, up
No, we're never gonna come down
No, we're never gonna come down
Yeah, we're gonna be miles up, up, up
No, we're never gonna come down
The next morning.
"There was a terrorist attack at the military base yesterday! I hear that boy was one of them…"
"How awful!"
"The teachers say he might have infiltrated the school to guide the others…"
He smirked at that. Over the years, he'd come to learn that most conspiracies and rumors contained a grain of truth. He slipped around the corner of the building and headed toward the main gate. He made no effort to hide himself; let them think what they wanted. Besides, what kind of "terrorist" would be foolish enough to show himself in broad daylight?
He couldn't help but chuckle a bit under his breath as he made his way across the school grounds.
Maybe one of these days, these rich brats will figure out who the real terrorists are…
Not that it mattered much to him. His work here was done.
He'd decided to quit school, already. It was probably the shortest stint he'd ever done in one location. He'd spent the night in his dorm room debating whether to stick it out a while longer. Maybe he could work up the nerve to assassinate the Vice Foreign Minister. But something told him Darlian might not have been aware of the full extent of the Alliance's corruption. He was just a kid, sure, but he thought, perhaps, not all politicians were self-obsessed blowhards trying to push a sadistic elitist agenda. Perhaps some could actually be agents of change.
That's what he told himself that night, when sleep was out of reach. There may have been other reasons to keep the man, and his family, alive. For now.
He wasn't going to stick around to dwell on it any longer, though. Let it be someone else's problem.
Early that morning, before classes began, he hacked into the school's computer system from the PC they'd issued him, and proceeded to wipe all records of Odin Lowe, Jr. from the database.
"Goodbye, Junior…" He'd smirked to himself as he completed the task. Truth was, he'd already tired of the nickname. "Alpha" wasn't much better. Maybe one of these days, he'd get himself a real codename. One that didn't suck.
As he walked out of St. Gabriel, he mused over possibilities. John… Mark… Clark… He blanched. Too white. He knew he was half-Caucasian, probably, but an Anglican name just… didn't suit him. His mind clicked over some of the names of boys in his class. Shin… Sora… Shiro…
"Wait!"
He frowned at the sound of the young girl's voice coming from some distance behind him. He had a feeling he knew who it belonged to, but he wouldn't risk turning around.
Couldn't.
Shouldn't.
It's getting harder to breathe
In this atmosphere from these dizzy heights
With you close to me
We can disappear in this endless night
"Hey! Wait!"
He didn't want to break into a run, and draw even more attention to himself. Besides, he was close enough to the front gate now; he could slip out and disappear down the street before she'd catch up to him. He could hear her running across the common, the sounds of her hurried footsteps, her skirt rustling in the wind. But she was a small girl and the quad was pretty big...
"Wait!"
He fought the urge to turn around, just to see what she wanted. Why she wanted to speak to him. But talking to her, or anyone, wouldn't do any good. He remembered what he'd been told. He was lucky he hadn't been issued a harsher warning.
All the more reason to stay away…
"I'm not involved," he reminded himself, resolutely, and strode through the gate. "Goodbye, Relena…"
If you follow me in this mystery
We could swim inside these clouds
Yeah, we're gonna be miles up, up, up
No, we're never gonna come down
Yeah, we're gonna be miles up, up, up
No, we're never gonna touch the ground
No, we're never gonna touch the ground
Yeah, we're gonna be miles up, up, up
No, we're never gonna come down
No, we're never gonna come down
-"Miles," Phillip Phillips
A/N: Happy Sunday Funday! So, I don't write a lot of songfics (I don't think I've done any with this account, actually, although you can find a few under my old username Aeris-Eithne), but I couldn't get this Phillip Phillips song out of my head after I heard it on the radio recently. Today I sat down at my desk and knew I wanted to write a one-shot, so I turned on the song and played it on repeat. It made me think of the Episode Zero manga, so... this is the result. I hope you liked it!
The manga story this is based on is one of my favorites, not only because 11-year-old Relena and Heero are SO FRIGGIN' CUTE, but because it explains so much backstory that the TV series never bothered to flesh out (thus why Relena's self-introduction made her look like a crazy person!). If only this manga had been an actual episode of the show; it would have tied up so many loose ends. Apparently this is what the Glory of Losers manga is setting out to accomplish, but not as successfully since the scenes are so awkwardly jumbled. ANYWAY, I digress!
I just love how the manga shows Relena's heart going out to war orphan Heero, just a troublemaking terrorist kid (aww) who's clearly lost his way. Their paths may not have crossed then, officially, but I can't shake the idea that Heero already knew exactly who Relena was when he went to St. Gabriel years later (because, gee, he'd been there before; remember when his teacher tells him to take the seat next to Relena, he doesn't have to ask who that is... Dun dun dunnnn!). Of course, there's no way the two of them could have become friends back then (sniffle) but I enjoyed painting young Heero's struggle, and Relena's compassion from a distance.
Anyway, clearly I'm a huge GW nerd and could write a thesis on this stuff... Stay tuned for updates on my WIPs later in the week!
Hugs and Heero!
- RFP
