Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Shinigami's Stage; Behind the Jester's Mask ❯ Chapter eight ( Chapter 8 )

Date posted: Sunday, October 17, 2004
Chapter warnings: Extreme funniness and language. A lot of cuss words a head.
Pairings: 1x2 :: 3x4 :: 5x? Still a surprise.

Shinigami's Stage: Behind the Jester's Mask
By: Mira Watanabe

:.: Chapter Eight :.:
Day ONE of the Reunion:

Wednesday, May 26, AC 201
Age: 21

………………………… ;……………….

It was well past late, coming close to midnight, when everyone started to go home. Jacob and Kyle being the last to leave, but only after answering the rest of the boys' questions. The two men were embarrassed to realize they forgot to answer the first question at the beginning.

Well, Jacob was since he was the only one asked, "Why did everyone come over to the party in pairs, or something close to it."

Simple, everyone was someone from the war, didn't matter who. No one cared. And with war comes nightmares and such. Solo was the one to set this rule up as well and no one argued. 'No person was allowed to be alone. Even if they were to go on vacation or travel somewhere for work, they must have another person tagging along.'

The gundam boys, as everyone still called the, also found out that the 22 people that come over for the reunion was only a small part of a bigger picture. And boy was that picture big. The 22 people were only from this small city. There were more out there all over the Earth and the Colonies.

So the Fam was gone, midnight was coming close, and guest that were staying the night was in the living room watching the tube.

Two three setter couches were set out in an L shape, one acting as a wall to separate the living room and nook, the other couch in front of the bay window. The entertainment center sat in its left corner. The round coffee table in the middle.

Solo, Johnathan, and Nataku sat on the couch-wall with Solo in the middle and Chi sleeping and Nataku's arms. Heero, Quatre, Trowa, and Wufei on the other couch, Quatre asleep in Trowa's arms and lap. Duo laid on the floor with Harry at his back and Rasha and Bagheera at his front. Harry had his arm over Duo's waist, and Duo had his arm over the large cats. Just a bunch of sleepy kitties.

Solo smiled, content.

"C'mon, love," Johnathan said, "Let's get everyone to bed." Solo nodded.

Stretching, the three hosts got up. "We'll take you to Duo's room," Solo said to the others, "He doesn't mind. He wont be using it tonight anyway." He moved a hand to the pile on the floor.

Solo went to the foyer real quick and brought back a pre-made futon. Someone moved the coffee table and he sat it on the floor and unrolled it. "They'll move to it when they get uncomfortable."

The three headed out of the living room. "Come," Solo beckoned.

Nataku put Chi in Duo's arms so he could cradle both his daughter and the cats. Duo moved in his sleep, putting his chin on Chi's head, sighed and went still. Chi sucked on her pacifier in her sleep.

Nataku went to follow the rest upstairs.

The stairs ended in front of Eric's room where you could see the boy sleeping through the open door. In front was a hall, to the right was the sitting room. In the sitting room, located on the wall closest to them, was a desk and computer. Behind the banister sat another three setter couch adjacent to a two setter. In the middle was a rectangular coffee table.

They went forward down the hall to the door directly before them, passing Sam's room where he now slept.

They entered a room far greater than the great room - living room and nook together. The opposite wall had a window, a canal, counter, a few cupboards above, a lot of cupboards below, and a wheel for turning clay in the right corner. On the counter, in neat order, was a whole bunch of paint. To their right was a door and to the left of the room was humongous bed by the window with a great many pillows spilling off of it. The window was located in the middle of the wall, taking up about one fourth the wall. A lot of space laid in the middle of the room.

"It's Duo's room," Solo said moving to the door to the right, "But the Fam sleeps here at times." He opened the door, "Here's the storage room, it's half as big as this one, but you can still use it as a closet and put up your hang-able clothes. We cleared a space you."

He motioned to the bed, "There are empty draws under the bed for the rest."

He went outside the room for a few minutes before coming back, "The girls can take Sam's room. He went to sleep with Eric. There's an extra mattress under the bed for one of you. You four guys can take the bed. It's big enough. If you don't want to do that, there are pre-made futons in the storage." Solo looked towards the bed and gave a nervous laugh, "Don't worry about the pillows. Just put them down on the floor."

He then gave Wufei a hug since he was the closest, "Have a good nights rest, you're going to need it for tomorrow." He smiled.

Nataku choked down a laugh, "I hate to be the one to tell you this and overwhelm you, but tomorrow's going to be a lot like today was." He turned to leave the room, escaping.

"Yeah," Johnathan spoke, "But instead of a whole bunch of hot males, you get a lot of bratty kids." He, too, left the room, almost at a run.

"Our bedroom is across the sitting room. Goooodniiighht…" Solo left, closing the door.

Heero, Wufei and Trowa looked at each other. Quatre whimpering in his love's arms, sleeping.

Day TWO of the Reunion:

Thursday, May 27, AC 201
Age: 21

………………………… ;……………….

The next day everyone was woken up by 8:00am. That was about eight hours of sleep. After breakfast, Duo went up the stairs with Harry to make phone calls, and Solo took the pre-made sandwiches from the fridge and some paper bags from the pantry.

Nataku and Johnathan got chips, fruit cups, juice boxes, and bags and put them on the table.

There, on the table, now sat a tower of bread, two boxes of juices, a bucket of fruit, clear sandwich baggies and brown paper lunch sacks.

Solo got up to get the clean cut carrots and celery, and sat the bowl on the table too.

The began to sack everything up and put them in an empty cardboard box, making lunch for an army of kids. About half way through, Sam and Eric came down to help. Then Duo and Harry, Duo caring Chi.

"Already to go," Duo called and Chi giggled at him.

By 10:30 everyone was ready to go. They cleaned up and piled into Duo's red van, the one Solo used to pick up his old comrades up in. Harry picked up a few red checkered picnic blanks on his way out the door.

The trunk was shut; Duo took the driver's place and Harry road shotgun. Chi was buckled into her car set next to Heero. The little girl seemed to have got attached to him. Giggling and playing with and his hair, she played the "grabbed you nose, ate it" game with him the whole 30 minute ride there, and he just smiled softly and watched her.

No one but Solo saw Duo watching them through the rearview mirror with a wistful , small smile.

The van stopped at a park where three small busses were already located. Today was one of the days Duo takes the orphans out to do something. Every Thursday that is.

The kids yelled, screamed, and yelled some more. Not even OZ, the Pacifist, the Romefeller Foundation, the Alliance, Doctor J, Professor G, Doctor S, Instructor H and Master 0, the Preventers' Intelligence Agency, and the Gundams put together would stand up agents them. They were that scary.

The kids pushed. One boy pulled a girl's piggy tail. One boy pushed another. One boy had a headlock on another, giving him a noogy. One boy took a girl's dolly. Two girls were bawling. It was chaos, as their caretakers and teachers looked on, trying to figure out what to do.

Duo took out a plastic whistle and blew in it hard. A loud shrill went through the air and the kids went quiet. The silence made your ears pop.

"DUO!" They yelled, rushing up to him like an up coming storm.

He blew the whistle again. They stopped. He yelled, "File in!" and they did.

"Okay Chiclets," Duo said pacing in front of the two groups of five by five kids, "We are here to have fun, but no one is to act up, or it's back on the buss for you. Am I clear?"

"Yes, sir!" they yelled.

"Okay, get out! Have fun!"

They cheered and went out to play, pulling with them a few boxes and bags full of games and balls.

The picnic blankets with their red squares were set out on the grass under a cluster of trees. Boxes and coolers were set beside them.

Quatre and Trowa were off playing with the children. Wufei was hiding. Heero wished he was hiding too, but was sitting on one of the blankets with Chi, leaning his back agents a tree. Solo and Duo were out with kids hanging off their arms. Harry played hid-and-seek with another group. Nataku sat on a different blanket with Johnathan's head lying on his lap. Iran and Cathy where sitting on another blanket with a handful of girls. Sam and Eric couldn't be seen, probably off somewhere to cause trouble or planning it. Tails came along for the ride to play, but Rasha and Bagheera were stuck at home.

Chi giggled as she crawled on Heero's lap. She looked up at him as if she felt him watching her and gave him big violet-blue eyes. Her face then burst out into a smile as she moved to stand up, grabbing shirt. She hanged on him as leverage for her uncertain legs. She laughed, having a great time.

Jacob came out of the parking lot just then to join them, "Having fun soldier?"

Heero grunted, his head to the side to loosen the pressure of Chi pulling on his hair.

Jacob laughed, "Chi, no-no. Daddy will get mad if he sees you." Chi let go and blinked innocently up at him. "Looks like she's attached to you, Heero." Chi wrapped her arms around Heero's neck and put a wet kiss on his cheek, and laughed.

Jacob smiled and ruffled her hair.

"They are so much the same…"

Confused, Jacob moved to see what Heero was looking at, "What? You mean Duo and Solo?" He laughed, "Boy you got that wrong! Sure they are similar, but the same? Hell no."

A crease formed between Heero's eyebrows, a sure sign he was confused but wouldn't say it.

Jacob shook his head and explained, "Duo's like a kitten, loves to play. But everyone knows a kitten, no matter how cute and playful, still has claws and teeth." He leaned back, "Now Solo on the other hand is a kitten too that loves to play," he paused, "But he is the type of kitten that would sit next to a birdcage or fish tank, just to watch them get nervouse. He is also the type to sneak up on people and pounce."

Jacob laughed at the mental image to his metaphor, "Duo likes to have fun for sake of having fun and Solo is a Machiavellian bastard that always has something planed, to put things simply."

Chi laughed, "Kitty."

"Why did Duo get the orphanages?" Heero asked, looking around to all the kids.

Jacob shrugged, "It's his occupation. He's good with kids. It's something he likes and has good memories of. And it makes him feel like he's fixing or paying debt to something he did back during the war."

He didn't elaborate. He didn't need to. They all killed their fair share of people with families.

End Chapter: To Be Continued.

Annoying Author's Notes:

Ou, I like this chapter. Chi's so cute.

So what do you think? Do you still have some questions? Anything confusing? Any complaints? Any praises? Any cookies? Gimmy cookies, please?

(--laughing--)

I see that a lot in my story, the character's laughing. I think they are having a good time. I hope you guys out there are laughing as well. I find this story very funny and mysterious myself.

Chapter 9 is getting you ready for chapter 10. Chapter 10 will make you laugh your ass off. Chapter 11 it continues. Chapter 12 is the turnaround, it was chapter 13, but I distributed the chapters a different way in a better order.

I finished reading through all the chapters for the nth time. I took notes, looked through notes, and found nothing out of place. I almost forgot about something. Thank god I re-read through it all and took notes. So everything's cool.

Nothing much to tell you. I have to write up chapter 12, but I'm too scared too. Don't ask why. It's probably because it's the big turnaround on things and it intimidates me. I can't help thinking; What if I missed something? What if it doesn't sound right? What if the reads don't like it? I tell you, it's stressful. So I'm trying to get back in my "fuck it! I don't care anymore!" kind of mood.

My thumb is better. It's not fully healed and it still feels funny. It's taking longer to heal than expected, but I can work again, slowly. I'll probably write a chapter every 4 days or so. Or at lest try too if I'm not busy. But I still have the rest of the chapters for you.

Give me courage guys, I'm ganna need it.

Need poems, anything to do with the title, angst, love, sadness, two sides, unrequited love, ect…

P L E A S E
R E V I E W!