Gundam Wing/AC 1. Chapter 1

AN: Okay, you guys can get mad at me... ZERO is undergoing yet another re-write. And I would REALLY like reviews to tell me how it's going. It would really help me get on a single track and stay there. This story has been a real challenge for me. And I'm not sure why. I get to a certain point, then I get stuck. So please let me know how I'm doing. And PRAY this is the last time I put off or re-write this!

ZERO

Chapter One

The dark eyes of Wufei Chang stared at the computer screen, finding concentration on his project very hard to hold. An odd pang inside his chest throbbed with each heartbeat. The unexpected phone call earlier in the evening was sad news, indeed. But he never thought it would affect him this way. Sally Po, his long-time partner in the Preventers organization, had been involved in a terrible automobile accident that afternoon. Paramedics declared her dead on arrival.

She had been a valuable colleague, certainly. Since the day they met, during the war, he identified something within her that he had lacked. Their partnership within the Preventers had been almost perfect. Their strengths and weaknesses balanced with each other in a true yin and yang fashion. But it was just a professional relationship, wasn't it? There might have been a genuine friendship, even a small admiration for the woman, but nothing more than that. Then, why did his heart ache so much?

He sat back in the chair, rubbing his tired eyes, body and mind begging for rest. But he couldn't get the ache to stop. Insomnia completely claimed him in the late hour. He had thought getting some work done would take his mind off the words burning as bright as flames. _Sally's dead… _But he couldn't concentrate on the work, finding himself more focused on things Sally would have said or done. Once her face appeared in his mind, she was all he could think about, and the pang in his chest worsened.

He gave an angry sigh as he stood, slamming close the laptop lid so hard, he wouldn't be surprised if it didn't work when he opened it again. Not that he cared, at the moment. He walked to the open window and looked out into the cool night. He was still trying to get used to the constantly changing climate on Earth, compared to the controlled atmosphere of the colonies. One night would be hot and dry; the next would be cool with the promise of rain. Even though the meteorologists could predict the Earth's weather patterns, there was still a margin of error, of uncertainty. Like Sally.

As long as they had been partners, he knew what he lacked, she had. He knew the way she worked, the passion for her job. As well as he knew her, though, she always managed to surprise him in some way or another. That was one of the things he admired about her, she was never dull. Admired? That wasn't right. He reached a hand to his eye as he felt an unfamiliar sting. He pulled it back, eyes wide open is surprise, feeling a wetness that began streaming down his cheek. Tears that fell made him truly understand the pang in his chest.

* * *

><p>The funeral had been nice, small. It was only a gathering of friends and colleagues, including the former gundam pilots, all but one he noticed. But that wasn't all that surprising. A few nice words had been said, primarily from the Lady. Even Relena Dorlain had taken time out of her busy schedule to make an appearance, though it was more for moral support than an official presence for the late Preventer, which Wufei found endearing.<p>

He knew that Sally would have appreciated the simplicity and sincerity. Her casket had remained closed during the service, a decision made by Lucrezia Noin, who had planned the funeral. She had been the one that called Wufei with the news. He closed his eyes, remembering the conversation, the quiver in the woman's voice. He knew they had been close friends, soul sisters, and it was very apparent at the graveside service.

His eyes opened, settling on her as she stood next to the casket, her back to him. The shaking of her shoulders were the only sign of her silent tears. He had thought everyone had already left. He had things he wanted to say himself, but didn't feel it appropriate for the others to hear, so he had waited. He didn't expect Noin to linger.

In three quick steps he stood beside her, laying a hand upon her shoulder. He didn't know why he felt the need to comfort her, as much as he was hurting, himself. He felt her shoulder tense and her head jerked just slightly as she looked up at him. He hadn't meant to startle her; it was obvious that she believed she was alone, as well.

"I didn't think you would be here," she said, softly, taking in a deep breath to halt her tears. She released it in a long sigh, relaxing her shoulders.

"Why wouldn't I be?" he replied in a steady voice after a long pause. He had no other answer for her, not without betraying his pain. "She's… she was… a good friend…" He didn't look at her, his eyes resting on the casket lid, wanting desperately to open it, to make sure the woman he was already missing was inside; that this wasn't just some long horrible dream.

She watched him for a long moment, unable to decipher the look in his eyes. "You ass…," she said in a hard voice. She slapped his hand away from her shoulder. "She wasn't _just_ a… good friend… Damn it, she loved you!" she screamed at him, unable to control the emotions running through her. A fist jabbed into his shoulder as she turned and stormed toward her car.

He rubbed his shoulder idly, watching her walk away. It didn't really hurt, but the words stung. "I know she did," he said, knowing she wouldn't hear it, mostly confirming it for himself. He looked back to her casket, resting a hand on its lid. He sighed, wanting to say so much, but he couldn't find the words. After a long silent moment, he walked away.

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><p>It was quiet in the bar that night, as it usually was during the middle of the week. She loved working nights like these. Though the sales were few and the tips almost nonexistent, there was no trouble on these slow nights. Not that there was much trouble on busier nights. The usual patrons of the bar knew better, Kailyn didn't allow it. More than one fight she had broken up, not without breaking a few bones herself. Sure, there were always newcomers that got a little rowdy, but a single glance from her usually quieted them down. She was a silent person, but the owner knew she kept to herself for a reason, having been her caretaker for years. She kept his bar and his patrons safe. And he had no problem, whatsoever, letting her run the place alone.<p>

Cobalt eyes occasionally stared through chocolate bangs at the only patron, a Chinese man in a Preventers' jacket at the opposite end of the bar, as she tallied up the night's sales and closed down the cash register. It was closing time, but she knew the pain in his eyes as he just stared into the drink he had ordered when he'd first arrived, the ice having melted some time ago. She wouldn't disturb him. She shut the register drawer and walked to the door, turning off the 'open' sign and locking the door.

"You don't have to leave," she said in a low, almost monotonous voice, as he started to slide off the barstool. "You're welcome to stay as long as you need to." She walked back behind the bar to begin putting things away.

"A little careless of you, saying that to a strange man," he said, sliding back into his seat. He watched her curiously. He really hadn't intended to stay this late, and the last thing he wanted to do was to stereotypically pour his heart and soul out to a bartender over a couple of drinks. But this young woman was something else. She never asked him his problems. She just let him be. He gently pushed his glass towards her as she approached, meeting her eyes, briefly. In them he could see she was anything _but_ careless. And, he could swear he saw something familiar in them.

"Maybe," she said, taking the glass, pouring its contents into a sink just behind her. "But I'm capable of taking care of myself. And I don't think I have anything to worry about from you, Mister… Chang…" She nodded towards the Preventers' identification badge on his chest as she placed the glass in a tub full of soapy water. "You've got way too much on your mind to even think about causing me any trouble." She gave him a brief glance as she washed the few items in the tub, setting the sudsy dishes on a clean towel next to the sink.

"So bartenders really _are_ mind readers?" he asked, raising a brow in her direction as she now rinsed the dishes, placing them carefully up on shelves to air dry. She didn't smile, but her eyes showed a hint of amusement. He got the impression that she didn't show emotion often. He had seen this stoic character type before, but not from a woman.

"Only those that let their patrons drink so much they forget that they've spilled their guts." She lifted the plastic tub and slowly poured the dishwater into the sink. "The rest of us are just good at reading people, and listening to our friends." She set the empty tub down, grabbing a hand towel. She dried her hands as she walked back to the register and dropped the towel next to it, pulling off a photograph she had taped to it. She stared at it for a long moment before carrying it back over to him and set it down on the bar next to him.

Curious, he picked up the photograph, staring at it for what seemed like an eternity before looking up to her. "You were Sally's friend?" he asked softly, looking back to the picture of three women at the bar: Sally and Noin, in their Preventer jackets, bright smiles spread across their faces, and this bartender, still wearing the stoic expression, but her eyes were lit with pride and her arms were wrapped around the waists of the older women. He stared at the image of Sally and a small smile curled his lips. She had had a beautiful smile, one he saw often when they first began working together. But the longer their partnership, the rarer he saw it. He sighed, the smile fading from his face.

She nodded only slightly before leaving him for a moment, making sure bottles were closed tight and put in their places, taking care of a few other minor details to closing up, finding something to keep her busy to give him a little bit of privacy. "We had many of these late night conversations… She never had anything bad to say about you. Lu, on the other hand…" She left the thought unfinished as she walked back towards the door.

"Lu…? Oh, Lucrezia… Noin… I can imagine the things _she_ said…," he said, laying the photograph back down on the bar, looking back to her as she pulled closed curtains on the windows around the door. "I can't say that I've ever heard her mention you, Miss…?"

"Kailyn," she said, as she walked around the room, stacking chairs on top of tables, picking up bits of trash up off the carpeted floor she knew the vacuum wouldn't pick up. "Doesn't surprise me… She always said she had to take care of how… personal the conversation between you. She never wanted to compromise your working relationship." She stood still for a quiet moment, sighing. She walked back behind the bar to drop pieces of trash into the garbage can. "She was always hurting. But she was more worried about hurting her… friendship with you…" She looked back to him as he silently stared down at the photograph. "I know… not the kind of conversation you want to have with a perfect stranger… you're hurting too. But, as a friend of Sally's I can tell you she never wanted to be the reason for your pain." She picked up a cleaning rag and started wiping down the bar.

"Hn…," he said, the small smile tugging at the corner of his lips again. "She always did put others before herself, no matter the cost… I wish I had been as strong…" He glanced back to her, noticing she was just wiping the same spot over and over, but the spot wasn't that soiled. She clutched the rag tightly and he raised his eyes to hers as they stared down at the rag. Still no emotion on her face, but her eyes showed everything, she was hurting, also. He leaned towards her, laying a hand on top of hers as she stopped wiping the counter. "I'm sorry…," he started. He didn't know what else to say. He didn't know this woman, but Sally must have placed a great deal of confidence in her.

"She was on her way here…," she said softly, the monotonous tone gone from her voice. She didn't look at him, closing her eyes instead, attempting to control the emotion in them. "I was on the phone with her when the accident happened. She said there was something important she needed to discuss with me, but she wouldn't say anything over an open phone line. Before I could ask anything, I heard the impact…" She took in a deep breath, letting it out in a long sigh as her eyes opened, her stoic mask over them, and the monotonous tone resumed. "Then the line went dead… Lu called later that night to tell me she was dead. I never found out what she wanted to tell me..." Her grip on the cleaning rag relaxed as she stared down, finally noticing his hand over hers and her eyes again began to betray her emotion as the phone on the wall behind her started ringing.

He released her hand, watching her as she seemed to ignore it, continuing to stare down at her hand. "Don't you need to get that?" he asked, giving a glance to the phone.

She resumed her cleaning of that one spot on the counter, shaking her head. "I don't answer it after closing. The machine will pick it up." It continued to ring several more times before a click sounded, indicating the answering machine picking up the call.

"_This is Jack… we're closed… just leave us a message…"_ The voice must have belonged to the owner, Wufei supposed. After another click, the machine beeped once, and the caller spoke, in the same voice, but full of impatience and concern. And there were pauses in between his words, the pauses filled with the sound of heavy breathing, like he was running. Wufei's brow rose, watching the younger woman as the look in her eye changed and she stopped her idle cleaning to listen, her grip around the rag tightening.

"_Kailyn, get out of there… They're coming for you… Find your brother… Your Preventer friends should be able to locate him…"_

Her eyes widened as what sounded like a gunshot resonated through the line. She spun around, dropping the cleaning rag to pick up the receiver. "Jack?" Her voice really didn't change in pitch, but the concern was emphasized as she repeated his name, not receiving a response from the caller. "Jack!" A split second later, she felt the sting in her arm.

Wufei's senses were already on alert, having heard the urgency in the warning, but he caught the movement on the other side of the door just a hair too late as the glass shattered from the shot fired. He couldn't get the message to Kailyn fast enough as she dropped the receiver. He glanced down to her upper arm as she turned to face the intruder, now making his way through the broken glass door, preparing to fire another shot towards her. It wasn't a bullet that had hit her; it looked like a tranquilizer dart.

Her eyes hardened, narrowing on her attacker as she pulled the dart from her arm and hurled it back towards him in one swift movement, causing him to drop the gun as the dart hit him in the hand. The effect seemed to set in quickly as he slumped to the floor. In a quick jump, she was over the counter, but she misjudged her landing as she felt her senses dulling in response to the tranquilizer.

Wufei was quick to catch her before she hit the floor, but she seemed to immediately regain her senses, steadying her stance as the fallen intruder was quickly replaced by another. "How long can you fight it?" he asked, a firm hold still on her arm, his eyes settling on the larger man as he stumbled over the first man.

She didn't answer, needing her full concentration to fight the medication, relying on pure instinct to do the rest. She rested her hand on his arm for a moment, gaining her senses as a quick kick sent a barstool sliding into the man's gut, simply giving him another obstacle to trip over, but it gave her the moment she needed to get her head straight. He would feel the muscles in her arm tighten as she fought the tranquilizer's effect, tugging him toward the back. She stopped as the door opened and her eyes settled for a moment on the gun barrel aimed in their direction. Her lips barely released a "shit" before she focused on the mirrored eyes behind the gun. For a brief moment, she wondered if this was a hallucination created by the drug's attempt to conquer her mind.

Wufei looked at the newcomer, taking a moment for his identity to click in his mind, as he fired off two shots past them. "Christ, Yuy," was all he said as he released his grip on Kailyn's arm, causing her to drop to the floor. He ducked to the side at the same time, finally noticing that the eyes of a soldier were more focused in the targets behind them, only two other men that had entered, with no ease stepping over their fallen accomplice.

Both shots hit their intended targets with deadly precision, and Wufei was helping Kailyn back to her feet when the two sets of cobalt blue eyes met, both glares softening in each other's reflection. "You can let go, now," his voice said, in a soft tone Wufei couldn't remember hearing in the former gundam pilot. "It's okay to go to sleep." His eyes shifted to Wufei, narrowing, silently asking, _have you got her?_

He just nodded, feeling her compliance through the dead weight falling into his arms. He looked down to her as he shifted her around so that he could easily lift her without possibility of injury. His eyes settled on her face as the connection finally clicked in his mind. This woman, a freaking bartender he had just met, that had been a friend, a confidante of Sally's, the unconscious bundle in his arms, was Heero Yuy's sister.


	2. Chapter 2

Those of you that have been with me a while know that this story has been kicking my butt and I've rewritten it twice now. I WAS planning on rewriting parts a third time, but after my hiatus and taking a look at it again... I'm just going with the second rewrite... I'm really happy with where it was going. If you've read all this before, sorry for the trouble. If this is your first time reading, thanks and I hope you enjoy it! It still may be some time before I get it new chapters up, working on other projects to get my mind working again. Thanks everything!

ZERO

Chapter Two

"I don't know what the hell you were doing there," Heero said in his usual tone, setting a cup of fresh coffee down on the desk in front of Wufei. "But, thanks." A change in the pitch, similar to the way he had spoken several hours before, caused Wufei's eyes to tear away from the computer screen to meet his friend's. There was sincerity in them that mirrored his tone as he continued, "She wouldn't have fought it as long as she did if you weren't." He was, of course, referring to the tranquilizer that resulted in the sleeping young woman in the next room. A few steps away from the Preventer and Heero stood in the doorway, leaning against it, occasionally nursing his own cup of coffee, keeping her within his peripheral vision.

Wufei picked up the coffee, staring into the black liquid for a few moments as he turned in his chair to face the other ex-pilot. He couldn't say he was surprised to find that this former soldier had a sister, as private as he kept himself, but the circumstances surrounding their meeting had certainly been interesting, if not creative by whatever god controlled fate. Still, he had questions about the situation that needed answering by his friend. And he couldn't help the knot in his gut as he suspected it was connected to the death of his partner. He was certain that her wreck was no accident.

Heero felt his dark eyes upon him and he stared at Wufei over the rim of his coffee cup. He nodded, affirming that his unspoken suspicion was correct. "I told Sally when she called me to lay low until I got here. I knew she wouldn't, but I had expected her to tell you before she did anything." He watched Wufei's eyes drift back down to the cup in his shaking hands, confirming the sting in Heero's mind that told him she didn't tell him anything at all. "The Preventers don't have an official stance in this…," he started, knowing there was no evidence to suggest Sally's death was anything other than a typical traffic accident. After a glance to his sleeping sister, he added, "Not yet, anyway…"

Wufei closed his eyes, breathing deeply to force down the anger building within him. His grasp around the cup steadied and he set it down on the desk. "What the _hell_ did Sally get herself into, Yuy?" he asked, eyes opening to look at his friend, the fire still burning within him. Only the edge in his voice betrayed his lack of total control. He blinked a few times before looking at the surprising softness in Heero's eyes as he looked at his sister, quelling his anger underneath what felt like genuine concern for him, for them both.

It was a long moment of strained silence before Heero's gaze turned to Wufei. "I was afraid our past would catch up to us, someday… I tried to find them before they found her…" He sighed, walking away from the bedroom door, satisfied that she was safe. The only window in the room was too small for an intruder, so as long as he stayed in the common room, he could still keep watch over her. If the effect of the tranquilizer lasts as long as he suspected, she would be out for quite some time, a full day at least. "I never wanted to involve anyone else…" He paused a moment as he set his cup down on top of the desk next to Wufei's, thinking. He walked to the window, fully aware of the Chinese man's constant gaze.

"I've got nothing left to lose…" Wufei said softly, his eyes falling to the floor. Heero's silence was less than comforting, but he knew the former gundam pilot offered it in respect, as much as hesitation. Dark eyes returned to the man at the window, narrowed in determination. He had done a great dishonor to Sally by not confiding in her his feelings for her, by not letting her know she could confide in him hers. The least he could do is avenge her death. "I'll provide you with what you need… but I need honesty in return…" If the Preventers were eventually going to be involved in this, he could get a head start and stop whatever was coming before it claimed any more lives. "_Complete_ honesty…"

Heero nodded, expecting no less. He leaned against the window frame so that he could keep one eye on the apartment's surroundings. He knew that Wufei would honor the secrecy of what he was about to reveal, as much as it pained him to relive it. But he needed help, and Wufei was unwittingly already involved. There was one man at the bar who would survive to pass on that information. "This goes back before Operation: Meteor, before the gundams, before the gundam scientists even conceived the notion. An organization in L1 was already planning an attack on Earth, but their soldiers were… less than ideal. So the organization took the patience to bide their time and forge the perfect soldier, knowing that the only way to mold such a soldier is to start the training and conditioning at a young age. It's in human nature to fight for survival, and they encouraged those instincts. Disobedience brought harsh… and often fatal disciplinary action..."

Wufei leaned forward, his hands closed together, elbows resting on his knees. His eyes widened as they now stared at the floor, a knot forming in his throat and a bad taste in his mouth, trying to wrap his mind around the information. Did he understand this right? These guys… no _monsters_… trained children to fight because they didn't have the guts? What cowards! Where was their honor? And what kind of 'disciplinary action' was Yuy talking about? "How many…?" he started to ask, but his voice wouldn't finish the question, the words choked by the knot in his throat. How many kids were put through this? He looked back up to Heero who seemed to understand the question.

His eyes settled on the open doorway to where his sister was sleeping. "I don't know. I never saw anyone else, but I knew there were others. Though, only two of us survived the training. By that time, Doctor J presented the gundam design to the organization. And they decided I would become its pilot. They didn't need any more than one perfect soldier… if Operation: Meteor went as it was planned." His eyes turned to Wufei, knowing he wouldn't have to explain that particular mission any further. He closed his eyes as the dark almond-shaped eyes asked another silent question. He didn't respond, giving Wufei the impression that he didn't want to know the answer.

"The organization's leader had a liking for little girls…" She leaned against the doorway, her arms folded, tired eyes staring down the two men. A few slow deep breaths implied she was still fighting the drug's effect but a hard gaze meeting between two sets of blue eyes told Heero that he better not tell her to go back to bed. "He did, however, show an incredible amount of restraint… as long as his soldier did as he was told." She walked towards them, her stiff posture revealing tense muscles, confirming that the drug was still running through her. She picked up one of the two coffee cups on the desk, not really caring which was which, and took a drink.

Wufei stared at the young woman, surprised that she could fight the effects when he saw the larger man in the bar collapse instantly. Even more impressive was that she was now so alert having been under for several hours already. But, he figured, waking up in a strange bed in a strange room would be enough for any trained soldier to come to his… or her senses quickly. He had more questions, but as he opened his mouth, a tone sounded from his computer. He glanced at the screen to the blinking icon signaling an incoming call from headquarters. After watching Heero approach the desk and pull Kailyn out of the line of sight of the computer's camera, he clicked open the communication line, as the siblings continued a conversation of their own in whisper.

"_Is the line secure?_" came Noin's voice as her face appeared on his screen. Without waiting for the nod he offered, she continued. "_Jesus, Wufei, where the hell have you been? I've been trying to call you for hours… I need your help finding someone … It's… sort of connected to a… project Sally was helping me with…" _She looked to her side, to her partner, Zechs, Wufei supposed. A worried expression crossed her face as she turned back to him. "_I know she didn't tell you about it, we wanted to limit the number of people involved…"_

Wufei's hands clenched into tight fists as they rested on the desk top. His eyes narrowed as he stared at the woman. "What project…?" he said, the edge in his voice giving Noin the impression that he already knew more than she figured.

"_Sally was helping me with an investigation for Miss Relena on the new colony in the L1 area … The financial records and development reports they submitted to the Vice-Foreign Minister's office were… too perfect for Zechs to stand, so she okayed us to do our own research on the colony before she made the decision to visit._"

"You were able to confirm the reports were forged?" Heero asked, raising a brow as he stepped into the camera's view, just over Wufei's left shoulder. There was no way in hell the organization would have made it that easy, not if they were that involved. _Unless_… he met his sister's eyes as she entered the frame to Wufei's right side.

"_Heero?" _She gave another side glance to her partner with a nod. "_You were right, Zechs… he knows._" She looked back to the screen as Kailyn appeared on the other side of Wufei. "_Kailyn!" _She paused a moment as a look that could only be described as a 'thank GOD' expression crossed her face as she saw the younger woman step into the camera's view. "_Damn girl, you look like shit…"_ Her eyes went back and forth between Kailyn and Heero for a moment before finally recognizing the resemblance between them. "_I am so gonna kill you for not telling me Heero Yuy was your brother…"_

"Thanks, Lu… I love you, too." She rolled her eyes, leaning against the wall beside the desk, muscles tensing even further as she fought to stay awake. "The reports?"

She nodded. "_Yes, they were forged, but we still can't find the original reports. The one thing we've been able to find, so far, was that these guys are actively looking for you and Heero… You're not listed by name, but your pictures are all over this place… And they are desperate enough to hack into Preventer computers to find information. Zechs is pretty sure the forged reports were a set up to get into our systems. We have yet to find out __**why**__ they want you…" _ She stopped a moment to glance to Zechs and nodded, brows furrowed in worry and her eyes settled back on the screen. "_Zechs… just finished going through Sally's personal computer… apparently she was doing outside work of her own… He found a file called 'Project Zero'…_" She paused, receiving twin glares from blue eyes, darker than she thought possible from even Heero. "_He won't tell me what the file contains, but he looks… shaken…_"

"Trust me, Lu…," Kailyn started, quietly, looking away from the screen, staring down into the coffee cup she still held tightly on to, her grip emphasized by shaking hands. "You don't want to know…" Her grip around the cup finally closed tight enough to crack the ceramic. She felt Heero pry the cup from her grasp before any further damage, or injury for that matter, was done.

Heero looked back to the screen as he set the cup back down on the desk, keeping one hand closed around his sister's. He hadn't wanted to get anyone else involved, but damn it all if they weren't already. He couldn't help the thought in his mind that this was more serious than finding him and his sister if the Vice-Foreign Minister's office was involved. But then… everyone knew there was some kind of emotional connection between the minister and himself. "Maximize security around Relena…" He paused a moment, and Noin saw obvious frustration and concern in his eyes. Whether his concern was for Relena or his sister wasn't in question. He worried about both of them.

Noin glanced to Kailyn, her face full of worry, flinching slightly as she heard the ceramic crack. The way Heero regarded his sister and the look in his eye said that whatever was in that 'Project Zero' file was, indeed, something she didn't want to know. But she had a feeling she'd hear of it before all was said and done. Her eyes met back with Heero's and she resumed. "_I take it you don't want us to tell her anything… Zechs is already taking care of security issues, but you know Miss Relena, she's not going to be satisfied until she gets an explanation… I suggest you and Kailyn get moving… Zechs says it's not safe for you to linger… If they got into our computers, they could be monitoring our communiqués… even on secure channels…_"

"I want to have a talk with Zechs, first. I'll be there in fifteen minutes." He looked down to Wufei, laying a hand on the back of his chair, and another silent question was spoken by his slight glance to his sister. He felt her hand relax in his and he moved quickly to catch her as she finally lost her battle with the drug, sliding into his chest as her eyes closed. His arms wrapped tightly around her and his eyes closed for a moment as he held her close. "Wufei…?"

He nodded as he looked back to Noin, "I'll take care of Kailyn…" Before Noin could get another word out, he closed the connection. He sat with his back to Heero and his sister, leaning back in his chair, his arms folded, remaining silent a little while to give them a moment of peace. He couldn't imagine what was going through Heero's mind at the moment, but he was quite sure the only thing that ultimately mattered to him was her safety. "Noin's right, Yuy… We can't stay here…"

"Take her to L4…," he said after a moment, remaining still, holding his sister. He opened his eyes looking down to her. "Talk to Quatre… He's got the resources to help Noin and Zechs get through their computer systems…"

"Hn… and the added security around the Winner heir wouldn't be a bad bonus. But wouldn't they expect you to put your trust in the gundam pilots?" Wufei spared a glance over one shoulder, frowning with a silent sigh before looking back to the computer screen, just sort of staring through it as his question went unanswered. He found himself envious of his friend, having the chance to have his family back. Everything Wufei had ever loved, everyone, was gone in an instant. That was why he piloted Nataku, he remembered, to avenge those that were lost for the cause of a dishonorable war, to destroy his enemies.

His focus settled on the reflection of the brother and sister in the monitor's glass. Wufei had chosen his place as a gundam pilot… as had the others, he remembered. But Heero hadn't, which got Wufei to wondering. How had a kid who had been raised to be a mindless obedient soldier become the 'heart of outer space', as Quatre had once called him? He was able to show all of humanity exactly who, or rather _what_, their true enemy was, war itself. Wufei stared at the reflection of the face of the woman cradled in Heero's arms and answered his own question. _Because he still had someone worth fighting for._

* * *

><p>"If you want something done right, you've got to do it yourself…," his sentence cut off, firing a single killing shot to the last living man he had sent to the bar. "I should have known Larry, Curly, and Mo wouldn't be able to handle this." Long legs stepped over three corpses as he walked up to the bar, spying a photograph on the counter. He picked it up, and calloused fingers traced over a familiar face that was longer and leaner than he remembered. His gaze settled on the dark blue eyes of his quarry and a small cruel smile curled his lips. <em>You were a pretty little girl<em>, he thought,_ but you've become a beautiful young woman… _

"Do we go after the other Preventer?" asked his associate from behind.

"No…," he responded, eyes never leaving those in the picture. "She's the Preventers' liaison to the Vice-Foreign Minister, not to mention being engaged to the minister's brother. We're not ready to draw that kind of attention, yet." He stopped, as the handheld computer in his associate's hand chimed, indicating a communications transmission broadcasting from one of the Preventers' computers. He continued to stare at the photograph, listening closely to the conversation, so glad that they had taken the bait.

He couldn't help releasing a small chuckle at hearing the woman's voice. "_I am so gonna kill you for not telling me Heero Yuy was your brother…"_ The candidness of some phrases among friends never ceased to amaze him. His eyes met hers in the photograph again as the transmission continued. _You're in Preventer custody… your brother's pretty smart, but he lets his emotions get the better of him… He always did… _

"Chang Wufei," his associate said, over the continued conversation, earning him a hard glare from his boss. "He was Po's partner. He's also a former gundam pilot, the one they called zero-five. I've got an address."

His eyes returned to the photo as the conversation ended. _Smart boy, indeed, your brother… _"We'll need to move quickly," he turned to face his associate, slipping the photograph into his coat pocket. "Order our second unit to Chang's address. I wouldn't mind having the pilot, as well, if they can manage. He could be useful. Just emphasize that they are NOT to harm the girl… and find out who the other gundam pilots are… If the brother is so trusting with one of them, he's bound to be in contact with the others…"


	3. Chapter 3

ZERO

Chapter Three

Heero looked up as a slim hand gripped the elevator door to keep it from closing. It slid back open and crystal blue eyes regarded him for a moment before their owner stepped in to join him. He folded his arms, leaning against the back wall of the elevator as she pushed the button to close the doors.

"You didn't honestly think you could slink through my office and avoid me for long, did you?" Relena pushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear and leaned against a side wall, facing him, after taking a moment to note the floor in which he selected and selecting her own. "On your way to see Milliardo? I guess he found something important, he's strengthened my security and cancelled all my trips to the colonies." She just watched his eyes as they met hers. In the years she had known him, she'd learned to read his eyes like an open book. They were full of concern, but not for her, she knew. "You're worried… about Lucrezia's friend, Kailyn… your sister... about this 'Project Zero'…" She gave him a small, almost amused smile as his brow rose, her fingers lightly touching over his lips as they parted to ask a question she already saw in his eyes. "I'm not without my resources, Yuy. There's not a whole lot that goes on in this office that I _don't_ know about." The smile left her lips as she stepped closer towards him.

He closed his eyes, inhaling a deep breath, taking in the scent of strawberries in her hair, and exhaled slowly, allowing a soft sigh as he felt her fingers trace up the side of his face, sliding almost effortlessly through his dark impossible tangles. "Relena…," he started, but found himself unable vocally to finish his thought. _I'm worried about you, too. _His eyes opened as he felt her lips brush a light kiss on his cheek. His eyes met hers again as she stepped back.

"I don't know what's in that file," she said, assuring him that she wouldn't push to find out. "But I know it has caused you pain." She placed on hand over his folded arms. "If nothing else, Heero, I'm your friend…," she paused a moment with a heavy sigh, as if those words were painful to say. He knew he meant something more to her, her demeanor around him had always betrayed that. "It hurts me to see the toll the war has taken on you. And now this… You're not alone, Heero. You never will be. Trust your friends. Lucrezia and Milliardo will give you whatever aid you want… and Wufei will take care of Kailyn… although, with Lucrezia's description of her… I'd be more worried about someone taking care of _him_…" She gave him a small smile and gently patted his arm as the elevator doors parted on her floor. "My door is always open for you." She turned and stepped off the elevator and walked down the hallway away from him, never giving him a second glance as the doors closed.

He watched her as she walked, noting that her hair had permanent crimps in the small locks she used to wear in constant braids, their scent still lingering in his nostrils. _How have you come to know me so well?_ The silent question hung in his mind as he lightly traced his fingers over the place on his cheek where he could still feel her kiss. He stared at the closed doors as her scent began to fade, a sudden feeling of loneliness taking place in the pit of his being.

He stepped up to the elevator doors as they began to part again. "_Trust your friends,_" she had said. Two sets of eyes met his from their respective desks as he exited, pausing just a minute to settle his gaze on those belonging to the man who had once been his enemy. A long time ago, they had understood each other, soldier to soldier. Now, sensing the emotion Zechs' gaze regarded him with, they understood each other, brother to brother. _Trust your friends… Mission accepted._

"Noin…," his ever-throaty voice said, still calling his partner and wife-to-be by her surname, his eyes never left Heero's. And his request went unsaid as she simply nodded, standing from her desk. She knew the two men wanted this conversation as private as possible. So, she politely excused herself, slipping past Heero into the elevator before the doors slid shut.

* * *

><p>Damn it, he'd fallen asleep. His eyes quickly surveyed the private plane, finally settling on the sister he'd charged himself to watch over. Her eyes scanned the pages of the book he had been reading when he nodded off, but he could see she wasn't really reading it. It looked more like she was trying to take her mind off something. Then he noticed the open laptop computer on the table in front of her.<p>

"That is _my_ computer." He didn't ask, knowing the answer. He removed his reading glasses and tucked them into his laptop bag before leaning towards her, noting the open folder she had been looking through.

"Yes, it is," she replied in her flat tone, not taking her eyes off the characters on the pages as she slid the computer back over to him. "I needed to talk to Lu." She flipped back to the beginning of the book attempting to concentrate on its contents. "I had her forward a copy of the… the project file… I just wanted to make sure."

He looked back to her as he pulled his laptop, only glancing at the contents before he closed the laptop shut. He watched as sad eyes regarded the pages of his book. As curious as he was about the project, he couldn't help the warning he remembered her giving Noin earlier. "_Trust me Lu, you don't want to know._" He placed the laptop back into his bag, zipping it shut as he looked back over to her. He would take a look at it in depth later. "You read Chinese?" He raised a brow, watching her eyes scan the characters thoughtfully. Maybe an attempt to turn her attention elsewhere was in order. After all, the promise he had made to Heero wasn't just to protect her, but to take care of her.

"Read it… Speak it… Fluently…" She closed the book and handed it to him. "Chinese, Russian, German, Spanish, etcetera, etcetera…" She leaned back in her seat, folding her arms, turning her attention to the window. "It was part of the training…" She remained silent for some time as she looked out into the night sky. She hated space. It was empty, cold, not unlike the atmosphere in which she and her brother had spent nearly their entire childhoods. Thank goodness she was semi-conscious when her brother had discussed the plan with Chang, she would have beaten them both into the next century if they'd carried through. Unconscious would have been the _only_ state in which they would have been able to get her into a shuttle to space.

"It's all there," she waved a hand toward the laptop he had just put away. "Project outline, what came to be standard training procedures, performance scores…" She paused, closing her eyes. "Even part of the bastard's personal diary on the project…" She had only scanned the contents, not having had the courage to actually read that part. After a moment, she opened her eyes, a familiar mask over them, meeting his gaze. "It's not complete, in any way, but that wasn't the point… It's bait… With the trouble Zechs and Lu have had getting anything else out of them, there's no way Sally could have simply come across this information… It was given to her…" She unfolded her arms and her hands clenched into tight fists as she rested them in her lap, knuckles turning white. She closed her eyes as she fought the urge to beat the shit out of the back of the seat in front of her.

"They knew it would find its way to Heero…," he concluded as he placed his book in another pocket of the bag. He watched her as she remained quiet, only silently nodding her confirmation to his statement for a moment before her eyes opened, meeting his with clear anger flashing within them. A similar look from any other woman, and he'd gotten it several times from Sally, Noin, and Une, wouldn't had phased him. But what became known as Heero's death glare seemed even more threatening coming from this woman than it did from Heero. And to affect Wufei… that was saying something. He did well in hiding the discomfort; he wouldn't even admit to himself that it was fear. He zipped his bag shut, forcing his gaze to remain on her, hoping he could offer her some form of comfort without touching her. Even if it was just a touch on the arm, with the glare in her eyes, she was likely to turn that anger on him, and there was just no room to be able to defend himself.

Though, when they settled in to where they'd be hiding for a while, he found himself thinking that he probably wouldn't mind a spar with her. Her muscles were well-defined underneath the navy sweater she wore. And, if she'd been through the same training that Heero had, she'd definitely be at least evenly matched with him, despite the fact she was a woman. But he wouldn't dare challenge her when she was angry. Anger tends to cloud one's judgment, and he felt, surely, that he would be seriously injured if he tried to fight her angry. Yes, she was a woman, but damn it, he knew how to read people. And this was one person whose bad side he didn't want to be on.

Kailyn closed her eyes again, inhaling a deep breath as his soft eyes watched over her. It was… oddly comforting… She held the breath for a long moment before releasing it slowly, unclenching her fists. "I've tried… I've tried so long and so hard to forget about the organization… about the past." Her tone was soft, slightly wavering while she tried to gain control of her emotions. As she opened her eyes, the mask was, once again, in place and her monotonous tone resumed. "After all these years… I was beginning to think they were gone for good… How naïve of me…"

"Having wishful thoughts doesn't make you naïve, Kailyn…" Wufei offered her a small smile as she met his eyes again. He carefully chose his next words, even though the glare was gone from her eyes, he knew damn sure that she still held the anger. But he hoped she'd read his meaning as one of teasing rather than seriousness. "Maybe a little stupid… but not naïve." Crap… That did NOT come out AT ALL like he thought it would. Why was it so difficult for him to get his head straight around this woman?

She raised a quizzical brow. He did NOT just call her stupid… "Hn…," she simply said. No, he wasn't, not really. He was trying to joke with her. Honestly? This guy obviously had no real sense of humor. Still, the attempt was definitely amusing. His smile was returned with a one of her own, hardly noticeable, as she shook her head with a small chuckle. "Stupid, then… I'm an idiot for believing they were gone, that they'd ignore me…" She laid her head back against the headrest, looking at the roof of the cabin. "You're an odd man, Chang…" She gave a side-glance to him, with a more visible smile. "Thanks for staying last night…"

* * *

><p>How cliché is that…? Hiding out under the guise of a couple on vacation… At least they could easily blend in where they were at. Wufei didn't care much for most Americans, but for once, it was advantageous that most of them couldn't tell one Asian from the next. So no one was suspicious of a Chinese man with a Japanese woman. At least, no one in this tiny little town. They were just passing through and were stopping for the night. It was actually quite… 'cute' was not a word in his vocabulary... But for lack of a better word to describe it, he had to go with that, which took a below-the-belt shot to his pride. Not that it wasn't already suffering. This woman just seemed to bring out a side of him that was in complete contrast of his normal self. Call it an out of body experience, but he just prayed he could keep enough of himself to be able to do his job.<p>

Example… walking into the lobby of this little motel, Kailyn played the part of his girlfriend or wife, pretty well. He saw that the stoic mask she usually wore was only one of many masks. The 'significant other' was another, it seemed. He draped an arm around her as they walked in, though it was an act, he was rather stiff. Yet, as soon as she stepped into him, wrapping her arm around his waist, she seemed to mold right into him and it just felt… right. They briefly exchanged glances that turned both their faces a small shade of pink and he could swear the smile she wore was made just for her face. He couldn't help but just stare at that smile for several moments while waiting for the desk clerk. And he certainly couldn't help the smile he gave her. What the hell was wrong with him?

The little clerk didn't help matters any. The moment he walked up to the desk, he started. The punk apparently didn't believe in the sanctity of marriage. Not that this was a real marriage, but he obviously didn't give a damn as he started in on comments and suggestions towards Kailyn. But, of course, he was probably just looking to get a rise out of the 'groom'. Strange as it might have been, Wufei felt he wouldn't have been putting on an act; he WANTED to tear the kid in half. Kailyn beat him to the punch, muttering a phrase he'd heard a hundred times from her brother, and obviously, the look that went with it was a universal translation.

Kailyn's eyes flashed into that familiar glare, narrowing on the punk, who couldn't be too much younger than she was, but certainly twice her size. "Omae o korosu…," she said in that cold, flat voice. She shot Wufei a glance, which was filled more with annoyance than a threat as he tried to hide a chuckle. But she sort of had difficulty keeping her own amusement in as the punk held his hands up, backing away from the counter.

"Easy, babe, I didn't mean nothin'… I dunno what you just said, but I'm pretty sure I don't wanna. Just trying to get a rise outta ya." He handed them their room key and gave them brief directions to their room, assuring them they'd have total privacy.

The moment they were sure they were out of earshot of the kid, they both laughed so hard they had to lean on each other for support otherwise they'd fall over. It was that kind of laugh that just drove every worry away. He'd forgotten the last time he laughed like that, if there ever was such a time. He couldn't remember feeling such comfort. And, for the moment, he completely forgot the reason he was there, simply enjoying the feeling… and the company.

"That…," he cleared his throat as his voice cracked just a little. _Pull it together, Chang!_ "That was priceless… One Yuy glare is worth a thousand swords…," he muttered as he worked the key card, opening the door, his smile still clinging to his lips. _Or in your case, two thousand,_ he added, silently, giving her a glance as he stepped aside to let her in. As their eyes met, suddenly everything just came crashing back into his consciousness. Why were they standing so close? He blinked a moment, as if not recognizing his own arm around her, and quickly withdrew it.

And the moment was gone. Kailyn shook her head, as she walked in. "Yuy glare… is that what you call it?" Named for her brother, no doubt. She shook her head again, sighing as she slumped onto the one freaking bed in the room, dropping her bag on the floor. Noin had lent her a few changing of clothes since it was decided it wouldn't be safe to return to her place, which was directly above the bar. She ran a hand over her face. She wasn't really tired, having slept most of the previous day. Not that she would have been able to sleep, anyway. She had this phobia of new places, new sounds in the night. Well, not really a phobia, it just took her some time to feel comfortable in a new place enough to relax. And she had a feeling they wouldn't be staying in one place long enough for that to happen.

Her eyes followed Wufei as he checked the room, likely looking for bugs… the electronic kind, but she was certain there were bound to be the living things somewhere in this dump, which would add to the not being able to relax bit. She leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees, hands folded together as she watched him. She didn't know what the hell happened between them out in the lobby, but whatever it was, it was apparent he was wondering the same thing. Several times he had to force himself from looking at her while he did his inspection. And she wondered if he'd have fought as hard if she wasn't watching him. Odd man, indeed. But there was something that she felt was certain.

When he held her, she felt safe, physically and emotionally. The genuine laugh they shared walking down the hallway was proof. The only other person to come close to making her feel that comfortable was her brother. But it was a different kind of comfort. She had the distinct feeling this was a side of himself that he'd kept from Sally, because Sally would have told her about it. Sally had been Wufei's partner and friend for, what…? Nine years? And she never saw this side of him… Kailyn had only known him for two days.

Wufei walked out of the small bathroom, setting his bag carefully on a small table in the corner. "I wouldn't say it's clean… but it'll do for the night." He pretty much collapsed into one of the two chairs at the table. "The Preventers have a safe house about three hours drive north of here, so we'll head there in the morning." He ran both hands over his face, rubbing his eyes for a moment.

"You need sleep, Chang." Kailyn stood after picking up her bag, walking around the bed, and dropped it in the other chair. "I know you didn't get much rest on the plane."

"I'm fine…," he said, though he really wasn't, he was fucking exhausted. It was an automatic response, more than anything. He wouldn't be able to rest in a place like this, just like she wouldn't. But he didn't think he could safely drive the three hours it would take to get to the safe house. Even a little sleep would help. But that wasn't coming any time soon.

"Hn…" She gave him a skeptical glance. The smile wasn't there, but it was in her eyes. "Sure you are…" But she just waved it off, understanding completely. "Mind if I take a shower?"

He gave a wave of his hand, the universal 'go ahead' signal as he unzipped his bag, pulling out his laptop.

"Do I need a tetanus shot before going in?" She raised a brow, picking up her bag again and their eyes met. She smiled at the soft and tired chuckle he offered as he opened his laptop, shaking his head. She shook her own head, walking to the bathroom door, stopping at it to give him one more look. She frowned, knowing what it was he was going to be looking through. She clutched the strap of her bag, tightly, closing her eyes. _If you want any chance at sleep tonight, Chang…_ she thought to herself. _I wouldn't suggest reading that…_ She walked into the bathroom, closing the door.

Wufei gave her a glance when he noticed her pausing at the door. With her eyes shut and her knuckles turning white as she clutched her bag… She knew what he was doing. He pressed the power button; anxiously waiting for the system to boot up so he could see what was in that file. Maybe it included something to give the Preventers probable cause for an official investigation, but he knew that hope was slim. Kailyn had made it clear it was just information on the project she and Heero had grown up in, and there would be no indication of this colony wanting to reopen the project. He typed in his password, wondering how the hell Kailyn figured it out when she 'borrowed' the computer earlier. He moved the cursor over the project file and hesitated a moment before opening the file. He closed his eyes briefly, waiting for the file to open, attempting to brace himself for what he was about to read.


	4. Chapter 4

ZERO

Chapter Four

Kailyn stood in the doorway, running a towel over her wet head. She leaned against the doorway as she pulled the towel off her head. Her eyes settled on Wufei, standing at the window, staring out through blinds into literally pitch black. There should have been some illumination from stars or even the moon this far out in the country with no city lights to obscure it, but she could hear thunder in the distance. Any of that would have been hidden by storm clouds. She tossed the towel into the bathroom before walking into the room.

His laptop sat open on the table, but had gone into hibernation mode. She wondered how far he got into the content before he couldn't stand it. She couldn't see but one side of his face as he looked out the window, but the focus in that one eye wasn't… well, wasn't so focused. She sighed inwardly, her hand resting on the lid of the laptop as she watched him, sliding her bag off her shoulder into the chair. She shook her head, closing the laptop as she stood beside him, finally drawing his attention, merely a brief side-glance. "Penny for your thoughts?"

He didn't answer. He just closed his eyes a moment, taking in a deep, fortifying breath before opening them. Whatever he'd been thinking about saying just… disappeared from his mind as he looked at her. His brow rose as he finally did. "What ARE you wearing…?" His dark eyes scanned her from top to bottom, shaking his head. He'd seen this particular ensemble before, ages ago, it seemed. But the woman wearing it then didn't wear it nearly as well as the woman wearing it now.

"Hn…" She narrowed her eyes on him a moment, an attempt to hide the sheer amusement at his response. Sure, okay, she'll excuse this change of topic; she wasn't exactly thrilled about revealing anything… unless he asked. "Lu's idea of a joke…" She gave him a partial grin with a shake of her head. "I used to make fun of some of some pictures she had of her in this ugly green tank top and sweats… I think they were taken when she was an OZ instructor…"

"Well, it certainly looks better on you than it did on her…" He nearly clamped a hand over his mouth, but decided against it, to keep what little dignity he had, he did NOT mean to say that OUT LOUD! And the look on his face clearly betrayed the mental beating he was giving himself. And she was LAUGHING about it! Deep breath in, deep breath out. Kailyn was managing to get under his skin as much as, if not more than any women Wufei had ever met, but she wasn't DOING anything. And it wasn't the 'let's annoy Wufei until he gets pissed' kind of bother, either. It was a 'why the hell am I not thinking straight around this onna?' kind of bother. Wufei was just damned confused when it came to this woman. And he did NOT just comment on Heero Yuy's sister's body!

She wasn't really laughing, but she was clearly amused about the remark, as well as his reaction, but to ease his mind, or perhaps salt the wound even more, her lips quirked into a smirk. "Well… I suppose I should take that as a compliment…" But her smirk didn't remain as she gave a small glance and a nod towards the laptop, forcing her mask back in place. "You have questions…" Her mask fell when his expression changed as he met her eyes again. She frowned, looking into those dark eyes, tearing her gaze away at the pain she could see in them. She looked down to the closed laptop, her eyes showing a glimmer of hatred towards it. She should have known that the parts of that bastard's diary would have included certain items she'd wanted to keep from her brother.

"It's… difficult to concentrate… I only get one or two sentences in and…," Wufei just shook his head, closing his eyes. "I have to make myself read more…."

"…but you just see the words, you're not actually reading it…" She reached into her bag and dug around for a comb she knew she'd seen in there while in the bathroom, attempting to busy herself while she thought the best way to word things. "I never saw anyone other than my brother, but from the glance I took earlier, there were only fifteen of us that were… chosen… to participate in the project. Don't ask me where they all came from, because I don't know. I don't remember anything before our… training. I was only four when it started. I couldn't even tell you what our names were before they were taken, replaced by a fucking number."

She finally found the comb and started running it through her wet tangles and knots, not even flinching as it caught and tugged on her head. "Most of what I remember was conditioning us to no longer feel pain. Different trainers had different methods; some were… harsher, more extreme than others. Those of us that began to fight back were encouraged to do so, to enforce the basic human instinct to fight for survival. Only the strong survived, only the strongest would do for their 'perfect soldiers'." The last words hissed through clenched teeth. She remained silent a moment as she finished combing the tangles out of her hair. "And, naturally, the further along we were in our training, the harsher the discipline, since pain was becoming no longer an issue."

She took in a deep breath and held it for a moment as she let herself fall onto the side of the bed, continuing to run the comb through her tangles as she released the breath in one long sigh. She paused her combing, resting her elbows on her knees and put her head in her hands for a moment. Never in her life did she think she'd ever have to dwell on that hellhole ever again. And ever since this mess began… Sally's call, her 'accident', and then Jack… She lowered her hands as she felt a sag in the bed beside her and a strong hand on her back. She turned her head to meet his eyes and he could see a conflict within them, as if she wasn't exactly sure what she was feeling.

He had remained completely silent and still as she spoke, the knot having returned yet again to his chest. There were hundreds of questions going through his mind, but he couldn't bring himself to ask any of them. Now just wasn't the time, he knew. He walked over and sat beside her, lightly rubbing her back, offering whatever comfort he could. "I promise you," he said softly as their eyes met. "I won't let them find you. I won't let them hurt you anymore."

She gave him a small genuinely appreciative smile that quickly fell. "The last thing I want, Chang, is for someone else to die because of me. Sally… Jack…" She shook her head as she stood, walking over to the window, staring out, as if anything could be seen through the country darkness. She gave him a brief glance as he continued to sit quietly on the bed. She knew the question in his eyes, and nodded her understanding. "You didn't know Jack." She leaned against the window frame, looking back out the window. "Jack Caine was a member of the organization; he was over the unit that was in charge of training me and my brother. He hated his job; he was one of the few that actually cared about the children he was responsible for. I sometimes wonder if he was the only reason we survived."

She read another silent question in his eyes, and Wufei wondered if she and her brother had some kind of extra-sensory perception that allowed them to read the questions, or they were just that good at reading people.

She gave a slight shrug. "He needed the money. He had a sick wife and a daughter to care for. Employment options were limited with war looming and all… and he was far too deep in the organization by that time to drop out without bringing danger to his family. Every day I saw him, it seemed a little more of his soul had disappeared." She fell into the chair after moving her bag, crossing one leg over the other. "By the time the gundam came along and Doctor J took over my brother's training, his wife had died and his daughter had gone missing during all the chaos. He made a deal with J to get me out of there and take care of me and J would make sure my brother was taken care of."

She turned her attention back out the window. "Jack was just about the closest thing to a father I've ever known. And I was just as much his daughter; he even gave me her name." She uncrossed her legs, leaning forward in the chair, again resting her elbows on her knees, folding her hands together. "I've lived with him since then. I…" She paused, looking down to her hands, nervously wringing them together. "You were right last night… about me being careless… I don't like to be left alone, and it got to a point that I didn't care what kind of company I was left in… I'd prefer a fight with a would-be rapist or robber as long as I wasn't alone."

There was a sudden change in her voice, an almost timid whisper, and he instinctively reached across the small distance between them, taking both her hands in his, drawing her gaze up to his. "Kailyn, you are anything BUT careless. You wouldn't have asked me to stay if you weren't aware of the possible consequences." He offered her a small smile as he held her hands, his thumbs tracing small circles over her wrists. "I've no doubt you could take care of yourself in a dangerous situation…"

She stared down to their hands, for a moment with wide eyes, never blinking. Anyone else and she would have snapped back to her senses, putting her guard up, pulling away. She was amazed at her willingness to let him offer this comfort. And she was even more amazed that it was no effort in opening up to him. "…except with that bastard…" She gave a distasteful glance to his laptop. "When I'm alone… I hear _his_ voice… memories of that damned place I've tried hard to bury just creep back into my mind. Hell, for the first three years Jack and I were on our own, I wouldn't sleep in my own room. I slept on the floor next to Jack, if I slept at all…" She looked back down to their hands, feeling an indescribable urge to just collapse into him, have him embrace her, hold her, hide her. Instead she squeezed his hands tightly, afraid to let go.

"There aren't many men I'm afraid of, Chang. And Jack's willingness to allow me to run a bar alone is testament to that. But that son of a bitch is at the top of the list. I don't even know what to call him. We never knew a name, just like the organization itself didn't have a name. I'd be less afraid if I knew what to call them…"

Wufei released on of her hands, catching her gaze before what looked like panic could settle into her eyes, as her other hand began to tremble. He reached up, running fingers through her still damp hair. "Kailyn… Courage isn't the absence of fear… It's because of fear that we learn to fight. Courage is the resolve to do what's necessary in spite of fear. That's what it means to survive. That's what your training was about, right?" His hand lingered a moment, his thumb gently tracing down the side of her face.

He watched her close her eyes and take a deep breath in, holding it a moment before releasing it slowly. When her eyes opened again, they were focused and her trembling stopped as she gave a single nod. "You're a strong young woman, Kailyn. Fear isn't a weakness as long as you have the strength to overcome it." It was clear, at that point, as he dropped his hand from her face, he had redefined his meaning of the word 'weakness'. Another question rose as to why this woman affected him the way she did.

"You'll find that strength, eventually. Until then, I'll be right here, lending mine…" He hadn't truly understood what it was he said until she leaned in, giving him a soft, brief kiss on the cheek. He blinked for a moment, meeting her gaze when she pulled away.

"Thank you, Wufei…"


	5. Chapter 5

ZERO

Chapter Five

Quatre ran a hand over his face. It was quite apparent to Heero exactly how tired the Winner heir was. His almost teal blue eyes met Heero's cobalt gaze with equal intensity, though. They had a problem…

"Wufei hasn't contacted you at all?" Heero's question came out more like a growl as he folded his arms, leaning against Quatre's desk as the blond ex-pilot simply shook his head. He closed his eyes, his anger clearly reflected in them, forcing his stoic mask into place. He took in a deep breath. At least, if he didn't know where they were, it was likely that the organization didn't know where they were, either. He released his breath in a slow, drawn out sigh as he opened his eyes.

"Heero, they knew you'd be turning to us for help. I've been working the last twenty hours trying to track someone that keeps hacking into Winner Corp. systems. And not just my computers here, every property my sisters and I own has been reporting breaches in security. This started shortly after Miss Noin called me. Wufei was right not to bring her here." He leaned back in his leather office chair, after meeting Heero's eyes again.

Heero nodded, reluctantly. "Have I become that predictable?" Most likely. It wasn't exactly a secret how much trust he put in the gundam pilots, or Relena, for that matter. It would make sense for the organization to target his friends, especially if they knew that Kailyn was in Preventer custody, and there were only a handful of Preventers he would trust his sister with. Heero ran a hand through his hair. Okay… this means that they're still on Earth. Kailyn hates space travel, thinking back to their conversation before he left, so any of the colonies was out of the question. If he was lucky, the organization wouldn't have seen it that way. All of the other gundam pilots were spread throughout the colonies, and as much as he hated dragging them into it, it was already done. "Okay… so what else have you found?"

"I have private contractors that I've been relying on, as much as I can, with the computer issues, but none of them have turned up anything more than Zechs has. And I don't want to send any of them into the path of potential danger. Although a couple of them would probably find a way onto the colony itself and try to directly tap into their computers. I've been trying to find Trowa, but it wouldn't surprise me if he's already inside. His sister, Catherine, said she hasn't seen him since he left for Sally's funeral. And that was the last time I saw him." Quatre stood from his chair, giving a small stretch, feeling pops down his spine that he was certain he shouldn't be feeling at this age. He laid a hand on Heero's shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "Wufei will protect Kailyn, Heero. Trust your friends."

"Leave it to Trowa to be in the middle of things…" Heero shook his head, letting out another sigh. "_I_ should be protecting my sister. _I_ _should_ have been protecting her from the beginning, the bastard would have never used her, never _touched _her!" Heero's hands clenched into tight fists as he stood from his spot against Quatre's desk. A jerk of his shoulder took it out of Quatre's grasp.

Quatre closed his eyes, placing a hand over his chest. Empathy was pretty convenient when conducting business but it just plain sucked when friends were hurting. His fingers massaged his chest, as if that would ease the sting. He opened his eyes again, looking at his friend. "Heero, we are all your family, now. You're as much our brother as you are Kailyn's. We will _all_ do what's necessary to protect our own. Duo will tell you the same thing, even Trowa accepts this. You and Wufei still continue to isolate yourselves. Quit it. You and Wufei are NOT alone. We are family. Trust us."

"I DO trust you, Quatre, and the others. Even Zechs and I have a new understanding of each other. It's just…" He paused, giving another sigh as his fists unclenched.

"You think you let her down by not being able to prevent this, everything that's happened to the two of you?" Quatre didn't know any of the details. Heero's description had been vague, and he knew he was leaving a LOT out of the story, but he knew whatever it was, it was not something worth repeating.

Heero nodded. "I was nine when the organization took us in, Kailyn was only four. But I don't remember anything about the life we had before our training, except that our parents were dead. But I don't remember them at all. Training was severe, and the more we forgot about the past, the better we could get through it. Kailyn and I were lucky that we were allowed to retain the knowledge that we were siblings. Our unit trainer allowed us to stay together. That was, until J took over…"

Quatre closed his eyes again for a moment. "Heero, you don't need to explain anything to me. Wherever your past was, it led to the man you've become. A man that has nearly single handedly saved the world. A man any of us would give our lives for. Don't give me that look, Heero…" He offered his friend a small knowing smile as he opened his eyes, meeting Heero's skeptical gaze.

"It was you that had faith in me to conquer the ZERO system in order to lead the others to fight while you took on Zechs in 195. It was you who succeeded in destroying that piece of Libra in Earth's atmosphere. And it was you who succeeded in getting through Dekim Barton's shelter in 196. At any time you could have walked away from that. And I'm sure Kailyn knows that you did all of that for her, to give her the world of peace that she didn't have. You didn't fight for the colonies or Earth; you didn't fight for Relena… You fought for Kailyn."

Heero remained silent for a long moment, looking down to the burgundy carpet in Quatre's office. "I _was_ fighting for Kailyn." He gave a glance to Quatre as an alarm rang on his computer, raising a brow as the blond muttered a few words in Arabic he was quite sure were curses.

"They know you're here…," Quatre said as he glanced down to his screen a moment. "Duo's waiting at the spaceport for you. Go. We'll buy you some time." He reached into his top desk drawer, withdrawing a gun he kept there for emergencies. He glanced to his office door as it opened, giving a nod towards the door as one of his sisters ran in. "Aliyah will lead you out of here; she knows all of the secret passages." He gave Heero a brief look before checking that his weapon was loaded. "What? Every mansion has secret passages, just like the game Clue. Except the passage from the lounge doesn't go to the conservatory…"

"Quatre, I'm not…" He was interrupted as Aliyah took his arm.

"As I said… any of us would give our lives for you, Heero. It's what families do." He shot Heero a dangerous glare as he started to say something else. "Heero, what is going to happen if they catch you? Everything we've bled for, everything we've killed for is in danger. We won't let that happen again. And I'd rather die than to have to fight against you again." He pressed a hidden button on the desk and one of the wall panels slid open like a door. "It's not up for discussion. Ya-Ya, make sure he gets to the spaceport and you go with him and Duo." He shook his head as she began to protest. "No 'buts'... You're the only one of our sisters that doesn't have other means of protection. And Duo would kill me himself if anything happened to you."

He gave a tired smile at her wide-eyed surprise as she tried to stammer out a reply. "Ya-Ya, everyone knows." He chuckled, giving her a nudge towards the secret door. "How you thought you could keep that relationship a secret in a house full of gossips, I'll never understand."

* * *

><p>He didn't know exactly how he had managed to fall asleep with the storm raging outside. It had gotten worse as it drew nearer and apparently the power had gone out some time ago. He gave a glance to the window as the lightning flashed in the night before his eyes fell to Kailyn who had fallen asleep on his chest, and blinked a moment, just now realizing he had been absently stroking her hair since the crash of thunder had awoken him. He gave a small smile, feeling her steady breath through his cotton t-shirt as he dropped the book he had been reading before nodding off on the side table.<p>

His eyes turned to the window as another flash of lightning illuminated the otherwise black sky. The large crash of thunder came instantly. The storm was right on top of them; at least the worst of it would be over in another hour or so. That had to be the only thing about Earth he truly despised, the weather. Oh, the weather control systems on the colonies were capable of producing rain, and they did often to hydrate the artificial atmosphere and the growing plants that supplied oxygen. But never were the 'storms' violent in any way, unless there were problems with the system. And after going through a category five hurricane while on a mission with Sally a few years ago, he almost considered going back to the colonies. He definitely did NOT want that experience ever again. But he was glad to have had that experience with Sally. She had known exactly what to do. And that was the first time he had ever accepted her help, she called it orders, without question.

He looked back down to Kailyn as she began to shake, clutching his shirt in one fist. He draped his arm around her, giving her shoulder a light squeeze as she made a slight whimpering sound. "Kailyn," he said softly, gently shaking her. He didn't want to wake her too quickly. He learned, the hard way, that waking Heero from a nightmare was hazardous to his health. He didn't figure Kailyn would be much different. And, he was right. After shaking her once, he barely blinked and she was over him, her hand clutched tightly around his throat. That cobalt glare which he deemed worth two thousand swords met his onyx eyes, those two thousand swords running straight through him.

He ignored his instinct to fight against her, knowing she didn't attack on purpose. She was probably still asleep to some degree so he immediately released her, pulling his hands back in typical surrendering fashion. Until she was completely awake, he didn't want to take his chances by provoking what was obviously her defensive consciousness. He forced his gaze to remain calm as he tried to keep from panicking at the inability to draw breath as she tightened the grip around his throat.

"Kailyn," he attempted to whisper, drawing further focus from her eyes, their color black in the darkness, the flashes of lightning illuminated her face long enough for him to see the dull lack of emotion in them.

She blinked for a few moments, relaxing her grip. She stared at him, wide eyes, as if it took her several minutes to recognize him. She finally scrambled off of him, backing away to the point she rolled off the end of the bed. "Wufei… I'm sorry…," she whispered, forcing her gaze away from him towards the window as she sat, pulling her knees to her chest, leaning against one of the table legs.

He took in a gasping breath as her grip relaxed and sat up as soon as he felt her weight gone, coughing a moment until he could catch his breath. "No," he rasped. "I'm sorry." He sat on the side of the bed facing her, but he didn't get too near. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"It's… easy to do when I have the nightmares…" After a long moment, she allowed herself to meet his gaze. "It's… been a while since I've had them…" She ran a hand over her face, taking in a deep breath, laying her head down to rest atop her knees as she exhaled. She didn't know which embarrassed her most, the attack she made on Wufei or the nightmares confirming her weakness. "Jack woke me from them only once. I apparently threw him down a flight of stairs…" She shook her head, giving him a nervous chuckle. "I suppose, as a gundam pilot, you don't bruise easily…" She shut her eyes tightly as a crash of thunder rattled the glass of the window behind her. She hated thunder. It sounded way too much like a gunshot. When her eyes opened, Wufei was gone from his spot on the bed and he stood at the door, his ear pressed against it.

That WAS a gunshot, and she immediately replaced her stoic mask as she slid into 'soldier mode', quietly rising to her feet, her eyes meeting his as she carefully padded across the room.

The walls of country motel were paper thin but neither of them could understand the loud words exchanged between two men far down the hallway. Wufei did come to the conclusion that they were in the lobby, and he couldn't help the small second that a grim smile crossed his features, wondering if that little punk of a desk clerk was wetting himself yet. He glanced over his shoulder briefly as he felt her nudge it and the gaze that met his was filled with slight amusement with a quirked brow. She'd known exactly what he'd been thinking, how the HELL did she do that?

A second shot drew his attention back to his task as the loud conversation ceased, but he sensed no movement heading in their direction. He reached for his gun, eyes drifting back to her, silently relaying instructions as he handed the weapon to her.

She shook her head, pushing it back towards him. "I will never… EVER… lay a hand on one of those things…" She tore her gaze away from his eyes demanding that she take it, shaking her head. "I'm afraid of what I'd do with it…" She took a step away from him as he rested a hand on the door knob. Her voice continued in a whisper. "I think you know what ZERO does to people…"

The moment seemed to stop as his eyes widened in shock, suddenly understanding it wasn't the project Kailyn was referring to. She had been exposed to the ZERO system. His grip around the doorknob tightened, knuckles burning white, a reflection of the pain that had resumed in his chest. He replaced his weapon in its holster as he nodded. He wouldn't force her to take it, and he knew she was perfectly capable of defending herself without it. There wasn't room enough in the motel room for too much of a fight, but as small as Kailyn was, she could easily maneuver her way to an escape.

"Stay put," he said, quietly turning the knob on the door. The hallway, because of the lack of power, was pitch black compared to the room, occasionally illuminated by flashes of lightning, and Wufei found himself silently wishing for insight to Duo's stealth expertise as he slipped out the door, carefully pulling it shut.

Kailyn stared at the door for several moments, as though she could see Wufei's hesitation on the other side before he carefully treaded away from the door, keeping against the wall. There was a long moment that she held her breath, listening to nothing but silence. Then she heard the gunshots again.


	6. Chapter 6

ZERO

Chapter Six

It didn't take long for Kailyn to decide that she wasn't going to sit there and wait. She wasn't about to let another person die for her. Her brother had trusted Chang with her, which made it quite obvious Chang was important to him, and not just because he had been a fellow Gundam pilot. Her head jerked to the window as she heard the sirens, red and blue flashes shining through the blinds.

She could still hear the gunplay in the lobby. She knew enough about police procedures to know they wouldn't enter the building until it silenced. And it was clear that whoever started the mess in the lobby weren't there for her, otherwise they'd have had her and gone by now. This work was too sloppy for men of the organization.

The decision finalized, she slipped her bare feet into her tennis shoes and had just turned the knob on the door before it was shoved in from the other side. She allowed her instincts to kick in as the larger man grabbed her by the arm before she could dodge him. Obviously not Chang, he would have given her some kind of warning.

It was a matter of seconds before she had the man on the floor in a hold similar to the one she'd had on Chang merely a few moments before, his weapon safely out of reach. The only difference was that she had one of his arms pinned underneath him, held down by her weight sitting on his chest, his other pinned by one of her legs. He wouldn't have simply surrendered as Chang had earlier.

"Who are you?" the monotonous tone familiar to those that knew her and her brother inquired. Her grip was loose enough for him to breathe, but she leaned her weight further down on his chest to emphasize that he should answer quickly.

There was a pause in his struggle against her as she felt him hold his breath a moment. "Kailyn?"

She blinked a few moments, her grip around his throat loosening just a little more. She knew the voice, and her eyes tried to focus in the dim lights offered by the red and blue strobes of the police cars outside. "Aiden?"

Power was restored at that moment and the lights inside the motel room gave her a clear view of the man she was sitting on. Cobalt eyes widened as she recognized the gray eyes they finally met. "What the hell are you doing here?" she demanded as she rolled off of him.

Jack had several friends in law enforcement. Aiden Taylor had been one of them, once, until an incident two years prior caused him to lose his job and Jack's trust.

"Working…," he said after taking in a really deep breath. He sat up, coughing, showing her the police badge he removed from his pocket as he did. "Bastard that killed one of our sheriff's deputies has been hiding out here. Didn't know someone else was using the place for drug dealing. We weren't prepared. Got it under control now." He pushed himself to his feet, picking up the gun she had taken from him.

"I should be asking you that question, though." He was hardly calm standing here with her. She was the last person he'd expect to see in a place like this. And he certainly wouldn't expect to see her halfway around the world. He'd recognized her as soon as she'd had him pinned, but it wasn't until she spoke in that unmistakable voice, void of emotion, that he'd realized who she was.

She grabbed his wrist, eyes narrowing on the weapon in his hand that obviously wasn't his. "Where's Agent Chang?"

The question itself was enough to make him cringe and the glare that rose to meet his eyes was one that he knew, very well. He looked at the weapon in question, now realizing why it hadn't felt familiar when he had picked it up in the darkness outside. The Preventer's insignia and an identification number stamped along the barrel confirmed it.

"Oh shit…," he muttered. He could feel the glare harden as her grip around his wrist tightened. He reached for the radio clipped to his belt with his other hand. "Matthews, would you mind checking one of those guys for a Preventer's identification badge?"

"_You've got to be kidding me…,"_ came the voice. It was a long moment of silence before it replied. _"Uh… yup… Agent Wufei Chang… And he is NOT happy. We're in even deeper shit, aren't we?"_

Aiden closed his eyes, hoping that by not seeing Kailyn's glare would soften its effect. He was wrong, if anything it just made it that much worse. He swore that even a blind man would feel the effects of a glare from that woman. "Yes, Chase, that would be a safe assumption." First the flubbed up raid, and during the disaster they'd manage to accidentally arrest a Preventer agent. Oh this night was turning out to be just peachy…

"Bright man, you've got there…," Kailyn deadpanned as she released her hold on his wrist. Inside, she was laughing at the thought of what threats Wufei might be making to the poor officer outside.

"About as bright as you can get in the middle of fucking nowhere," he hissed under his breath, chancing a glance to Kailyn as her glare completely disappeared, turning her attention back down to the weapon to avoid his eyes. She knew where the pain in that remark was coming from.

"But he's got it where it counts." His brow rose as she continued to stare at the weapon in his hand. "You in trouble? It's obvious you're not on vacation; you wouldn't have chosen this shit-hole to spend the night."

"I'll just say that it's best if Chang and I get moving as soon as possible. And, I know I have no right to ask any favors of you but… it would help if you and your guys forgot that you saw us."

"That would include falsifying a police report, Kailyn." He frowned as she remained silent. He was in enough trouble as it was, but knowing her as well as he thought he did, she wouldn't ask unless there was a reason. "Must be something big for Preventers to be involved…" He replaced his radio in its clip and placed Wufei's gun in his own holster until he could return it to him. The removal of the weapon from her line of sight drew her eyes back up to his. Silence never meant she wasn't saying anything. The visual connection was intense for a long moment, even as Wufei walked into the room.

"I'll take care of it. But you and the agent are coming with me until morning. This storm took down several trees along the main road, and they won't be able to clear them until daylight. And you're going to tell me what's going on."

Wufei had prepared a very lengthy rant during his walk down the hallway after the officer had removed the cuffs and stuttered an apology. He opened his mouth to go into said rant but Kailyn's hand quickly clamped over his mouth, her glare meeting his eyes. She'd done it again, that mind reading thing. She and Heero had to be mind readers. How else did they always seem to know what he was thinking?

"I want you to think long and hard about what it was you were going to say, Chang. I'm certain it's very clever and Aiden probably deserves it, but think. He has the power to compromise your mission. Considering the possible outcome should your mission fail, is pissing him off something you want to chance?" Kailyn knew Aiden probably wouldn't, but things would go a lot easier and quicker if Wufei's temper was quelled right then and there. Her glare remained on him until he shook his head and it turned to Aiden, who had wisely kept quiet, but the amusement was far from hidden in his eyes.

"Fine…," she said after removing her hand from Wufei's mouth. That earned her a glare from the former pilot, which she met with one of her own.

"Let me talk to my guys outside. I'll give you a few minutes to get your stuff together. They'll be more than willing to forget about you," his eyes settled on Wufei for a moment. "The last thing these country boys need is to end up knee deep in the paperwork it takes to tangle with the Preventers. Oh… this is yours…" He removed the gun from his holster and handed it to Wufei, who took it, muttering a string of Chinese curses, his eyes still locked with Kailyn's.

Wufei expected the hard glare Kailyn regarded him with. She'd already told him she knew the language. But he didn't expect the snort from the red-headed cop.

"I don't know whether to be insulted or flattered by that…" The Chinese man certainly had every right to be angry. He gave Kailyn a small smile for trying to curb his temper. "Give me fifteen minutes to clear my guys out. Paramedics will take another twenty, but they don't need me for that. I'm not the ranking officer on scene." He met eyes with the Preventer agent and shook his head, knowing he was probably going to go off on him about protocols. He glanced to Kailyn briefly before walking to the door. "Something tells me you're more important, Kai…" His hand rested on the doorknob for a moment. "And I don't need another reason for Jack to hate me…"

He gave them both a nod and left.

Any anger that had been in Kailyn's eyes had disappeared when he mentioned Jack and she was just thankful Aiden was out the door before he noticed.

"What the hell was that about?" Wufei's eyes had been fixed on the man until the door closed, then they turned down to Kailyn. He found he couldn't stay angry, not when her eyes held such sadness. His eyes softened as hers met them.

"He's an… old friend…" She nodded. The story was a long one. And he'd certainly hear about it before they could get back on the road. She didn't feel like going into it, now. "Not that we have much of a choice, but Aiden can be trusted…"

"You don't sound sure about that…" Wufei frowned, and he felt an ache in his chest at her silence as she walked over to her bag, pulling out the sweater she'd worn the previous day. He thought for a moment that it was the man's mention of her father figure. But after hearing her hesitation over the designation she'd given him as an 'old friend', Wufei had the inclination that something had happened between her and the policeman that had something to do with her silence. Especially considering that the man had said he didn't need ANOTHER reason for the old man to hate him. Instantly, that added another reason that Wufei hated him. It also added to Wufei's confusion regarding this woman. He'd done things over the past few days, felt things he never had before. All because of Kailyn.

He shook his head, knowing he'd hear nothing else from her for the time being, and reached for his laptop to return it to its bag.

Kailyn closed her eyes a moment as she slid her arms into the sweater, taking advantage of the moment to force her mask in place as she pulled the sweater over her head. The next few hours until daylight were going to be very, VERY long.

* * *

><p>"No buts, 'Ro. Me and Quat already talked about it. You're goin' where we put ya, and you're gonna stay there. We don't know what's goin' on, for sure. An' until we hear from Tro, the only thing we can do is make sure they don't find you or your sis." Duo leaned back in his pilot's chair, a hand running over his braid, avoiding the glare of the man sitting next to him. He never took Heero Yuy for the big brother type, but in another set of circumstances, it would be pretty damn funny to see the anxiety the normally stoic ex-pilot was displaying.<p>

"I'm not you, Duo… I don't 'run and hide'…" Heero folded his arms, the glare never leaving the American beside him. But damn it if it wasn't as effective as it used to be. Of course, it had never seemed to affect Duo, but Duo was an enigma as it was.

"Don't matter." Duo tossed the braid over his shoulder, swiveling in his chair to face the Japanese man. He leaned forward, resting one elbow on his knees, pointing a finger towards Heero. "I know we're not in a position to be makin' orders. But you might wanna consider this a mission. You know how to hide… Not so much about blendin' in, but hidin' definitely. And damn it if we all don't already know that if you don't wanna be found, you won't."

Heero had to say… he didn't have a retort for that one. But the people hunting him and his sister knew his strengths and weaknesses. They'd know how to pull him out of hiding. And he'd rather keep that from being necessary. Because there were only two things that would do that, two people. Kailyn and Relena. But if he could keep their attention on him, he could keep it away from them.

Still, he had come to know Duo and Quatre far too well, and if it took them hogtying him and gagging him to carry out their mission once they'd set their minds to it, they'd do it.

He had to trust Wufei. And he did, to a point. Wufei had always been a comrade he thought he understood, even when he fought against him during Dekim's rebellion in 196, Heero had known exactly how to handle the misguided pilot. But still… the object he'd entrusted to Wufei's protection was his baby sister. Heero would gladly turn himself back over to the organization if it meant they'd leave her alone. But he knew that wasn't going to happen. They'd made it clear they want her as bad, if not more so, than they wanted him. Two lives that had meant a lot to her had already been lost. Who knows how many more on Quatre's security team will follow. And Quatre was willing to stay behind and offer himself as sacrifice.

Heero leaned back in his chair, obviously defeated by his friends. It wasn't something he liked the feeling of. But they were nothing, if not persistent.

"That's what I thought, Buddy…" Duo gave him a bright smile, to which he just rolled his eyes, looking out the cockpit's window, to keep his attention off the braided pilot. He might just strangle him with his own braid before all this was said and done with. And he had no doubt once Duo got him to wherever the hell he was taking him, he wouldn't leave him alone. He didn't think he could take more than a few days of Duo and his girlfriend.


	7. Chapter 7

ZERO

Chapter Seven

The fifteen minute drive had been quiet. Aiden expected it to be. The agent had been none too pleased about the situation, but he seemed to have a weakness regarding Kailyn. He'd do whatever it was she wanted. And he didn't think that was normal for the agent, he didn't seem like the type of guy to follow a woman on a whim, no matter WHO that woman was. And he knew from experience that Kailyn can be pretty persuasive.

As he had predicted, his guys were more than happy to avoid any conflict with the Preventers and had managed to keep their attention elsewhere as he led them out to his vehicle. The rental car they had driven to the motel currently had a tree limb embedded in the windshield, confirming the severity of the storm that had long passed, now.

"So… Where's Jack? You hardly go anywhere without him… or is he the reason you're in trouble…?" He glanced up to the rearview mirror at her reflection as he turned down the long dirt driveway. She knew he didn't like the silence; he'd just rather get whatever un-pleasantries out of the way as soon as possible. She would know that was best, the sooner they got this over with, the sooner they could concentrate on finding transportation to get on their way.

Kailyn had been avoiding eyes from both men during the short trip. She had stared out the window the entire time at the debris that littered the road after the storm. Even IF their rental hadn't had the limb fall on it, they wouldn't have been able to drive it over this mess. Even Aiden's SUV was just barely getting through. She could feel his gaze at her through the mirror, but she kept her attention out the window, watching the lightning in the distance. "Jack's gone…"

Her soft voice wasn't something he was expecting. He could see that she still wore her mask, her face void of emotion, as her voice usually was. She didn't come right out and say Jack Cain was dead, but he could hear it in her voice. His grip tightened around the steering wheel as he glanced at her reflection again before coming to a stop just in front of an old farmhouse.

"You and Jack used to be close. How much did he tell you about where we came from?" She still avoided his eyes as he put the vehicle in park and shut off the engine. The dome light came on and his eyes narrowed on the reflection in the mirror.

"Quite a bit… but the only part of it I even half-way believed was that you came from the L1 colonies. I realize that means you were brought up in a war zone, and it's only natural that you'd have such a guarded personality. But I've seen you take down five guys twice your size without so much as a scratch. I have a hard time believing it's just some sort of self-defense training. Especially considering you've had me in a death grip on two different occasions. You were raised to be a soldier, weren't you…?"

"I was raised to be a Gundam pilot…" She didn't skip a beat in answering as her eyes met his as he turned to look at her. He had good instincts if he could put that together just from the years he's known her.

"Jack used to work for the organization responsible for my training and the training of others. Jack didn't like the way things were being done. The training procedures were… harsh, to put it nicely. My brother and I were the only ones to survive. Jack made a deal with the Gundam scientist and he smuggled me to Earth."

"So your brother became the Gundam pilot?" She nodded and Aiden briefly glanced to the agent who'd been silent the entire time. He didn't even meet Aiden's eyes, his remained on Kailyn. There was nothing in the man's face to indicate she was lying, quite the opposite, in fact. But he did see that there was a hell of a lot more to the story than what she said. And he knew he likely wouldn't hear all of it. Not that he really had any right to the knowledge, and she knew that. He'd be satisfied with what she would tell him.

"Now you're hiding out from this… organization… they have a name? What do they want?"

"No name… and if we knew what they wanted, the Preventers would be doing more than just hiding me…" The monotonous tone returned to her voice as she turned her attention back to the window, staring up at the house.

Aiden glanced down to her hands as they fisted in her lap, shaking ever so slightly. That was an indication he had gotten all the information he was going to out of her at that moment. He opened the car door after giving the agent another brief look.

"Come on in. Doesn't look like much from the outside, but it's a hell of a lot nicer than that shit hole in town." He stepped out, stretching a bit before opening Kailyn's door while shutting his at the same time. "There's still about four hours 'til daylight. They'll have the roads clear by the time the shop opens up so you can get that windshield replaced."

Kailyn slid out of the car, taking a moment to look around. Her brow rose as her gaze settled on the Camaro parked in front of Aiden's SUV, more specifically, the bumper sticker that read: _Never piss off a dragon, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup._

"Sarah still lives with you?"

Aiden gave a small smile and a shake of his head as he saw where her attention was at. "Yeah. She wouldn't let me come out here without her. It's been difficult for her to adjust out here, but we like the privacy. That's the thing about these small country towns, everybody knows everybody and everything. But, as long as she's got a decent satellite connection, she's happy…"

Kailyn gave a very small smile before looking up to Wufei as he walked around the car to join them. "Aiden's sister is a first rate hacker. There's nothing she can't get into, including the Preventers' network…" Her smile fell as his brow rose, reading the inquisitive remark in his eyes, even in the darkness. "No one else has had luck with them. But if anyone can, Sarah can… I just… I don't want to ask her…"

"Then you'd better reconsider telling me everything going on," Aiden frowned as he met her eyes as he closed the car door, heading up the front porch steps. "Because I texted her while I was waiting on you earlier. I guarantee she's probably already done some digging."

Kailyn stopped on the bottom step as Aiden opened the screen door and unlocked the front door, hand gripping the wooden railing so tightly the wood, weakened by the rainwater and years of age, threatened to break. Having her brother's friends involved was one thing. They were soldiers and they sort of knew what they'd be walking into. She'd been apprehensive about telling Aiden as it was, he's no soldier, but even a cop stands some chance, he was strong, she knew. But Sarah… Kailyn knew she was good at what she did, and she could cover her tracks well, but the organization was just as good, considering not even her brother had managed to get the information he needed. She hoped Sarah was better. She felt Wufei's hand on her back as Aiden walked inside the house. She met his eyes, her soldier's mask still firmly in place.

Wufei didn't buy it. Her mask was just like Heero's and he and the other pilots had learned to see through that mask long ago. He knew she was frightened to get another friend involved. Though seeing how she and Aiden had been reacting to one another, he wondered if 'friend' was the right word for the guy.

"We don't have to stay, Kailyn," he said softly. The officer might be listening, so he kept his voice low. "I can call the office here in the States and have them send someone for us…"

"That would defeat the purpose of us coming here, Chang…" She shook her head. "You cut communications with the Preventers because they're being watched. They knew where I was after the call with Lu. We just barely left your apartment before they hit it. We can't rely on them right now."

Wufei frowned. She was right. How had he not thought that through? He hadn't thought clearly at all since meeting this woman. Otherwise, he wouldn't have wound up in this position, in the first place. No matter who her brother was, he wouldn't have 'volunteered' to do this. And he certainly wouldn't have allowed her to change plans that he and Heero had set in place. Forget all this emotional crap he desperately wanted to save her from. What the hell was wrong with him? He wasn't near as confused about Sally as he had been this woman, and that was saying something.

"It's not the most ideal of situations. Aiden's not the first person on the list I would have come running to for help, but I'll take it since he's offered."

There was another comment about this guy that he didn't like, and he looked to the door with a scowl as his hand slid up her back and around her shoulder, pulling her towards him almost possessively. Before he realized this, her arms were wrapped tightly around his waist. The fact that she accepted the gesture so willingly added to his confusion. And again, he figured it had something to do with this guy. He glanced down to her as she purposely avoided his eyes, staring at the door.

"Don't ask, Wufei... not now. I promise I'll tell you about Aiden when we're on the road…"

There was the mind-reading thing again. And yet another comment to add to the list. Why did he care? He told himself because it was a favor for her brother, but that felt like a lie. He really wondered about his sanity since this mess started. He had a problem thinking straight when he was around her, but her instincts had always countered that. And he felt a hell of a lot more comfortable letting her than he ever had Sally.

Before he could respond, they heard heavy footfalls running down stairs from inside the house. They immediately released each other as the screen door was thrown open. Wufei took a quick step away from her as they both looked at the red-headed woman, her wide eyes connecting with Kailyn.

She went off on a string of frantic hand signs and gestures towards Kailyn, and it took a long moment for Wufei to realize the woman was deaf as Kailyn tried to get in an answer between her long line of questions. It didn't surprise him one bit to find out sign language was another item on the list of languages she knew.

Aiden gave him a tap on the shoulder and he cursed himself for not even hearing the man approach. He nodded off to the side and Wufei followed him as they took a few steps away from the women. "They know where she is…," his voice was a lot less demanding than it had been earlier, but still held an edge of emotion. Sarah had apparently been successful to a degree. "Sarah says she's got some sort of tracking device, probably something like those ID chips people used to have injected just under the skin of their pets."

Wufei found yet another reason he hated the situation. He knew the other man was simply looking for a comparison to explain why they might not have discovered the device, but he didn't like the idea of Kailyn being compared to a pet. But… from what he read the night before, that's exactly what she was to these people… Damn it… Tracking devices meant they had known where she was all along. So why did they wait ten years? And why had they gone through all the trouble with the Vice-Foreign Minister's office and the Preventers' computers? Of course, that also meant that Sally's sacrifice was a damned waste… That was something he couldn't stand for. He already knew these monsters had no honor, but this was just… He didn't have the word to describe it. He fought to keep his anger down as he met with Kailyn's eyes a moment, seeing the same reaction in them.

"Sarah says she can scramble the frequency, but the device has to remain within range of her wireless signal. She keeps losing the connection to their server, so they know she's been snooping, but she doesn't think they've tracked her." Kailyn looked back to the other woman as she continued signing. "She says the storm may have interrupted their signal, but not to count in it. Even if it did, it won't take long for them to reestablish a connection, they may already have. Sarah found it by accident."

Damn, damn, damn, DAMN… Wufei leaned against the porch railing, completely forgetting about the previous rainfall a moment until he felt the cold water soak into the back of his pants. He ignored it as he folded his arms. It wasn't a difficult assumption to make… they were completely fucked…

"Sarah says they've completely infiltrated the Preventer computers… She has a friend that works part-time for the agency, and they both have been working to try to trap them, but they haven't been successful." Aiden frowned at his sister as she signed. She had neglected to tell him about that. She'd apparently known about the situation for quite a while…

"If they have full access to the database, then they know where all the safe houses are. " Wufei muttered another string of Chinese curses, some words emphasized more than others.

"That was… creative…" Kailyn raised a brow at him before nodding her agreement. She looked back to Sarah as she signed, speaking aloud so that Wufei would understand. "If you try to jam the frequency they may put two and two together, confirming you're the one that's been hacking their system."

Aiden's frown grew down even further as she responded, folding his arms, noting that his sister refused to meet his eyes. "She says her friend has advised her to abandon her part of their mission and lay low somewhere safe… There's a house about an hour and a half away that he and his companions used as a safe house during the war. She says if you go with her, she can work her magic on the road so they can't track where you're going, and she can keep you hidden when you get there."

"I'm not sure I like that idea…" Kailyn frowned at her as she signed again. "Her friend is supposed to meet her there…" If she hadn't told Aiden about the situation, which she was sure of as she had watched his response to his sister this whole time, then she was planning to be gone before Aiden had returned from work. If he hadn't come upon Kailyn and Wufei, he would have been gone for several more hours than he was.

"Who's the friend? You said he was a part-time agent?" Wufei looked at Sarah, apparently she was a terrific lip-reader because she started signing a name before Aiden or Kailyn could interpret. He didn't really know sign language, but he knew the letters. And he could swear she just spelled out 'Trowa Barton.'


End file.

Gundam Wing/AC