Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Belladonna - Chapter Two
Series: GundamW, Sailormoon
Genre: Crossover, Romance, Supernatural
Main Pairing: Duo/Usagi/Hiiro
Word Count: 1,515
It was refreshing to have a friend who didn't see her for her money or her power and position, even if she was a bit odd, Ririna thought to herself with a faint smile. Oh, her bodyguards, currently on loan from the Preventers, were none too keen on the idea of the Vice-Foreign Minister bringing home some amnesiac war orphan she'd met glad-handing at a hospital on Earth in her latest goodwill mission, but she didn't really care. Usagi was the one of first real friends she'd had in what seemed like forever, since Hiiro vanished two years ago once he was recovered from the Mariemeia Incident.
Hiiro hadn't been on her mind much except in the periphery as of late, she recalled in amusement -- at least not until Duo called to wake her up late -- very late -- last night (And she wasn't going to ask how he'd gotten the number to the personal, unlisted line in her bedroom. One just didn't ask Duo those kinds of questions; the answers tended to be a bit on the alarming side and generally tended to make her glad they were friends.) and let her know that he and Hiiro were on their way here.
She had to stifle another smile. It was good to know at least one person was able to track down the Japanese man and stay by his side. She worried about her friend a lot less than she might otherwise have since Duo was so frequently with him. One of these days, though, she'd like to see them when it didn't involve herself and/or the Earth Sphere and the colonies being in danger. A friendly visit would be a welcome change.
In the years that she'd know them, though, she'd never heard worry in Duo's voice like she'd heard on the phone. She'd always assumed that he didn't let things worry him, that he just acted on what was bothering him and moved past it. Or, at least as she'd come to learn, that's how he was when what was bothering him didn't directly affect Hiiro as well, at which point all bets were off. She could relate, since the same held true for her with her few friends, Hiiro especially. He deserved the rest of his life to be without worry or war. She would do anything and everything in her power to make sure that happened, and it reassured her to know that Duo would do the same -- and probably more since he wasn't quite as bound by legality as she was.
Usagi was making that list as well, though, short though it might be. For not having a memory to speak of, the blonde's blue eyes reminded her of Hiiro's: world-weary, tired, sad, the eyes of someone who had seen too much and had no need or want to talk about it ever again. At least Usagi didn't remember what had happened, whatever it was. How she wished she could say the same for Hiiro. That was one of many wishes for her friend she had, though, and she didn't foresee any of them coming true.
"Ririna-san?" She started at the sound of Usagi's voice. The girl had an absolute talent for sneaking around. She glanced up to see the blonde standing in the doorway to her home office, a worried look in her blue eyes. "Are you all right?"
Her friend did always seem to have a way of knowing when something was bothering her. It was uncanny, since they'd only known each other a few weeks. "I'm fine, Usagi. I'm just worried about Hiiro and Duo getting here okay in this weather." She looked over her shoulder at the torrents of rain pouring down outside the house.
"It is looking pretty nasty out there." As if to punctuate her words, a bolt of lightning shot down, close enough to hear the pop inside. "Your friends shouldn't be out there in this mess."
She frowned in worry, turning all her attention to the weather beyond the window. "No, they shouldn't. I wish they were here already."
At her side, Usagi stiffened, just briefly, like she tended to do when anyone started a sentence like that. Usually Ririna was careful to avoid saying those words, mindful of the way they seemed to make her friend uncomfortable -- but also equally mindful of the fact that whatever was 'wished' for around the younger girl had an alarming tendency to come true. This time, though, she couldn't have avoided it if she'd wanted to: she
would prefer Hiiro and Duo to be here already.
As if on cue, the ringing of the front doorbell echoed through the large house, loud enough to startle her from her reverie. Usagi looked a little pale and the wan smile on her face seemed pasted on, but she was making the attempt to be cheerful. "What do you want to bet that's your friends?"
Given what she'd witnessed over the last few weeks, that two of the former Gundam pilots were at the door was a pretty strong chance. So in answer, she just smiled and headed out of the room, dimly aware of Usagi following her.
* * *
Ririna looked... good, he supposed. It wasn't like he hadn't seen her in the two years since the Mariemeia Incident, but her television appearances hadn't really show how she was. She'd cut her hair a bit but otherwise looked much the same as the last time he'd seen her. That was... good as well, he supposed.
He just wasn't too sure why he was here. He'd told Duo about seeing that girl, the so-called angel, near Ririna, dating her at a point they could investigate -- and somehow within a day, they'd ended up on the road to the Vice-Foreign Minister's estate. They'd driven through the night, making good time till they hit this storm and had been forced to slow down. Then somehow they'd gotten from the highway to the estate in the blink of an eye. It didn't seem like something Duo should be able to do, even with this odd new ability of his, so that left a whole new set of possibilities that he didn't really want to consider too heavily just yet.
Duo had both their bookbags, one slung over each of his shoulders, wordlessly acknowledging something he'd never verbally told his friend: that weather like this made his whole right arm and shoulder ache in remembered pain of the abuse it had taken two years ago. Not that Duo hadn't taken his own fair share of beatings in the wars, but if it bothered the American, he never gave any sign of it. "Hi there, Princess," he greeted Ririna with an easy smile. Even he couldn't tell if the other man was faking it or not, and he liked to think he could read Duo fairly well. "How've you been?"
The smile she returned was a lot easier to read: she was genuinely glad to see them. "I've been well, thank you. What about you?"
Duo shrugged. "Same old, same old."
Sometimes Duo amazed him. How could he just be standing there making small talk after what had just happened? Wasn't he at all curious about how they'd come to be here so suddenly? For the moment, he continued to bite his tongue. Who knew? Maybe Duo was leading up to it. Or was this one of those 'being polite' things he'd never quite mastered?
A quiet shuffle of noise, barely loud enough for even him to notice, drew his attention to the open door behind Ririna. Less than a moment later, a familiar face, framed by long blonde hair, peered around the door. Blue eyes, a shade or two brighter than his own, glanced at him then Duo briefly before locking onto Ririna's back. It was just as well she hadn't said anything; he was pretty sure the breath had been shocked out of him: it was the angel, the same girl he'd been seeing in his dreams.
The quiet around him was what drew him back out of his surprise. Apparently Ririna had asked him something, and when he didn't respond, they'd both turned to see what was distracting him. Duo was following his gaze -- and he looked a little pale himself. She was the same girl they'd tracked down, the one from the past, the same age and exact identical appearance to her photograph online; a little shock was certainly allowed in extenuating circumstances like this.
Ririna was smiling though, seemingly oblivious to the surprise on their faces, and took a few steps back to grasp the girl's hand lightly in her own. "Hiiro, Duo, I would like you to meet my new friend, Usagi. Usagi,
this is Hiiro and Duo."
She smiled very faintly and sketched an even fainter bow, an archaic gesture that seemed so out of place, yet... "I'm very pleased to meet you."
And for just a moment, all he could think was
'I'm not going crazy -- she is
real'.
posted by Apollymi @ 4:26 PM
Name: Apollymi
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