Chapter Six: Tell Tale Hiiro, Tell Tale Serena

 

            * Everyone had gone to sleep. The house was silent, and not a raging train could have woken them up. So why couldn’t she sleep? It wasn’t the night before Christmas, it was simply the same as any other night. Sighing, she sat up in the bed, looking into the dark room. Hiiro was next to her on the floor. They were married yet she had refused to sleep near him. It was actually quite a nice memory for her.

---Flash---

            “Serena.” Hiiro stalked up to her coldly. They had just finished dinner and she had decided to head for bed.

            “Yes?” She asked him briskly. Their fight was still fresh in her mind, and she was still fuming that he had had the indecency to speak to her the way he had.

            “Taliesin already went to sleep.”

            “Thanks for the heads up Ro, but I do remember saying good night to him myself. I’m not senile yet you know.” She spat at him.

            “Look. I know you’re mad. I’m just as angry. But you can’t sleep in your room.”

            “Why’s that? I’m not allowed to sleep anymore under your watch?” She sneered. Who did he think he was to try to tell her what she could and couldn’t do?

            “Taliesin might notice we don’t sleep together. Your mission is to be my wife, and that includes sleeping with me.”

            “Sleeping with you?”

            “In a very chaste sense.” He added quickly, realizing what he had just said had come out wrong. Emotionless or no, he was going to have to tread very carefully around this woman.

            “Hmm.” She muttered. At least he had fixed his statement. She had been ready to lash out at him for his utter rudeness. “Fine. I’ll sleep with you. In a strictly innocent sense. On a few conditions.”

            “Name them.”

            “One, I get the bed, you sleep on the floor.”

            “Logical.”

            “Two, I get the bathroom in the morning first.”

            “Hnn. You’re pushing it.”

            “But you need me.” She smirked. “And three, no more complaining about the name Ro. Ro.” She heard him sigh. She actually heard him sigh. Maybe he wasn’t as distant and uncaring as he let on. But then, what made him act as he did normally?

            “Deal. Now go sleep.” He turned and began to leave calmly. Then he turned back around and grabbed her wrist. “I want a blanket and pillow.”

            “I’m  not that heartless.” She laughed. “You shall have your blanket and pillow Mr. Yui.” With that, she withdrew her hand from his and swayed out of the room. He stood there, stunned. She was a truly different one.

            True to her word, Serena had gone to the hall closet and pulled out a blanket. Then from the bed she took what she was sure his favorite pillow and made up a makeshift bed for him on the floor next to the bed. Then she herself had gotten into the bed and tried to sleep. She had drifted in and out of a light slumber for two hours more until he came in.  Without making a sound, he had slipped into the bathroom and right back out. He looked so tired and- depressed? Was that it? Before he glided under the blanket on the floor, he stopped and stood over her. She was sure he would realize she was awake. But he didn’t. He stood there, not moving for a second before e bent down and very quietly whispered in her ear.

            “I’m sorry.”

---End Flash---

            She could still feel his warm lips against her ear. It had tingled and made her feel giddy. But she had ignored the feeling, hoping it would go away. So far it hadn’t. And now, here she was, back to the same room, with the same man. It was unnerving and gave her a feeling of great unrest. As silently as she could, she got out of the bed and slipped on her robe. Her bare feet padding gently on the carpeted floor, she made her way downstairs and into the kitchen.

            Serena searched the cupboards and cabinets for just the right ingredients. Soon with everything gathered, she began to put together a nice hot cup of cocoa for herself. Sitting down at the kitchen counter, she was left with her thoughts.

            Hiiro was a strange one. She had no knowledge of his past, yet she knew everything about him. He had seen much, she could read that in his troubled and frustrated eyes. But he seemed to be indifferent about it all. There was no way he could not care. Everyone cared, it was just that some people were better at hiding things than others. He was one of them.

            “There any extra?” A dark and lost voice resounded through the vacuous room

            “In the pot on the stove.” She answered, shivers running up and down her spine.

            “Thanks.” He said. Frankly, he was surprised she had been awake. When he had woken from his unmerciful nightmares, he had looked for her lithe form under the covers in the bed, hoping he hadn’t awoken her as well. She had been missing. Perhaps he wasn’t the only one with sleep problems.

He wondered what kept her awake. It seemed as if she had the perfect life- no fights, no wars, hardly any politics, a lovely and happy daughter, beautiful looks, a nice job and home, yes, it seemed she had everything. What could possibly be keeping her from the sweet dreams he was sure played through her slumber?

“So Ro, why are you up on this night before Christmas Eve?” She asked quietly, half smiling and eyes down, watching her hand stir her cocoa.

“Dreams.” He answered her truthfully. It just tumbled out of his mouth, he didn’t know what had gotten into his mind, yet here he was, suddenly ready to spill everything to this stranger. Then, they weren’t strangers- they were married.

“Dreams? What sort of dreams could keep you up? Nothing seems to phase you while your awake.”

“Nightmares keep me awake. Nightmares of what I’ve seen and done. That’s what can keep me up.” He spat out viciously. Serena’s head shot up and her eyes analyzed Hiiro. He looked like a shadow of what he had been, no longer the perfect specimen of a man, but a mere shimmer, a glimpse of his former self. Her heart ached for him. Not with pity, but sympathy.

“Hiiro.” She spoke his name. He looked up. Dark circles framed his sapphire eyes. They almost glowed in the dim light. It was the first time she had spoken his full name. “Hiiro. Tell me, what have you seen? What have you done?”

“It isn’t important.” He shrugged it off.

“ That’s what your mind wants you to believe. But if you don’t tell someone, your nightmares will only get worse.” She told him quietly.

“No.” He warned her, his eyes holding a look of fear and defensiveness.

“Hiiro.” She soothed. His shoulders sagged and his head drooped.

“I saw death. Death and destruction. Massacres, blood, I saw machines and doctors, needles, drugs, no food and little sleep. Training and beatings. That’s what I saw.” His confession came as a shock to her.

“You were a soldier?” He nodded a confirmation.

“Who did you fight with?”

“Who did your husband fight with?”  He countered. This time it was her turn to let her head drop to her chest.

“ We weren’t married. He didn’t fight. He left.” She sighed. “He left us when Rini was seven. That was nearly four years ago. Two and a half years after he left he returned for a day, only to leave again. The next day I received a telegram that he had been killed in a drunk driving accident.”

“Not your fault. I made a mistake. But I loved him. I was so screwed up that I loved him. Couldn’t help it. I knew he was cheating on me and everything. Oh well, C’est la vie.” She gave a short laugh.

“I’m sorry you think you made a mistake.” She looked up at him sharply. Everyone always commented on how they were sorry he was dead. Hiiro had said he was sorry she thought she had screwed up. Hmm. He was unusual.

“Thanks. Now, tell me. Who were you in the war? And, if you say you with OZ, I will have to kill you.” She smiled again.

“Why?”

“I have this thing against OZ. I don’t know. That Treiz fellow I guess. He never settled well with me. Yet I do understand his reasoning. I was getting tired of the Alliance anyway.”

“I fought against OZ.”

“White Fang? They were a little eccentric…”

“I was a Gundam pilot.” He blurted out. Once again he silently cursed himself for letting this woman work her way under his skin so much that he would let his secrets slip. It just felt so natural around her, so comfortable that he couldn’t help it.

“A…a…Gundam pilot? But… how? Why?” She gasped in confusion. How could she, a mere little girl, be living with a Gundam pilot? They were the most feared men who had ever had their names spoken. And here she was, living with one. No wonder he was so… reserved. No wonder he had such a practiced death glare, and no wonder he was so inept at the Christmas spirit and traditions. He had probably never experienced anything close to a normal Christmas. Things became understandably clear to her. Still. A Gundam pilot! Imagine!

“I was picked up when I was six by a man who refers to himself as a doctor. Doctor J to be exact. He trained me and then gave me a code name: Hiiro Yui.”

“I, I, wow. No wonder you have nightmares. Even just a regular soldier has a hard time sleeping, but a Gundam pilot.”

“How would you know?” He asked her coolly.

“I would know because during and after the war I worked for the Preventers. Specifically, as a nurse who dealt with soldiers who had been in the battles. Even in a mobile suit a soldier receives great damage mentally.” Hiiro was confused. How could being in a mobile suit cause damage? Mobile suits protected men, not harmed them.

“I see the questions in your eyes.” She looked at her in disbelief. Who did she think she was, a psychic ? How would she possibly… “Ro.” She giggled. “The eyes are the windows to the soul. Ever heard that expression?”

“Hnn.”

“I thought so. Your eyes show questions and disbelief. You want to know how even in a suit someone can be harmed. Just because you aren’t hurt physically doesn’t mean you don’t see things. It doesn’t mean you haven’t killed just as many people, it’s just slightly more impersonal. But as a Gundam pilot, not only did you suffer the emotion damage in the suit, but outside when you blew up a base or well, did whatever else you pilots did. I really don’t know that much about your personal history, but it suffices to say that all soldiers go through the same phase, it just hits some harder than other at later times than others.” She finished and watched Hiiro look up and slightly smirk.

“You’re so rational and precise.” She blushed.

“It’s what I’m good at.” He smirked at her.

“And you’re not good at anything else?” The blush gracing her face deepened.

“I’m not good at relating to others, but I can see the things that are causing the problems in the first place. I’m told I’m too opinionative and brash to help people much.”

“Who told you that?” He asked her.

“Why?” She answered him back.

“They were absolutely correct.”

“Well, thank you so much Mr. Yui.” She replied dryly.

“You’re welcome.” Her eyes skimmed his face. He was no longer the depressed and harried man he had been when he had stepped into the kitchen. Now his face was, dare she think it, animated. His eyes held fiery laughter, and his lips were pulled into a thin smirk. The circles that had hung under his eyes had receded, and his skin was not as deathly pale.

Hiiro watched her watch him. This was the most comfortable he had ever been. He felt safe and relaxed. He had come down and expected to be typing to Doctor J all night long. Instead, here he was with the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Now he was openly admitting to himself she was gorgeous. But that hadn’t taken long. He was content to watch her. Long silken strands of honey cascading in soft waves down her shoulders and back. Bright, alert pacific blue eyes and full pouting rosy lips. A long graceful neck and full curves followed the rest of the way down, only stopping to continue with her incredibly long and shapely legs. It wasn’t helped by the fact that the long, white, satin nightgown she wore accentuated every last curve. Her smile and blush made him feel funny. Though she was a loudmouth, he didn’t mind as much now that he was used to her. She was easy to talk to, easy to be around in general. And she cared for him, even if it was only slightly. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have made him come in when he had been putting those lights on the roof up, or taken the time to explain what a good Christmas tree encompassed.

Serena was absolutely the most perfect woman he had ever met. She was a diamond in the rough, a true gem. So she couldn’t cook very well. She had tried. She had pulled them all together, dragging him in even through his unwillingness to comply. Her smile, her laughter, her voice and eyes, they all gave him the sense of completion and fulfillment. As much as he had wanted to distance himself from her, she had crept under his skin and engraved her own soul into the core of his being.

They sat for another hour and a half, drinking their hot cocoa and talking over their situations. He was surprised at how much insight she had. When she began yawning uncontrollably, he decided it was time for bed.

“No, I’m not tired. Let’s just stay like this for a while.” She argued when he suggested they go back to bed.

“Serena, you’re practically asleep.”

“So?’ She yawned again, this time leaning forward and laying her head on his shoulder.

“Come on.” He stood gently, careful not to jog her too much. Picking her up, he carried her back up the stairs and lay her gently in the bed. Giving her on last look, he kissed her forehead, then slipped under his own blanket and sighed himself to sleep.*