Disclaimer: Sadly, I will never own GW nor any of their characters, but I love them very much, so I enjoy the privilege of twisting their lives around my own will.
A/N: I have written this chapter alone, many times. The original story in its complete, original form is under my old account, LadyMaxwell. It will not be a spoiler, if you so choose to go read it and see just how lamely I wrote then in comparison to how semi-lamely I write now! Hahah. I'm changing it completely, as you can see, this submission is way different from the previous I had up. So please, please, pretty please with Chibi Duos on top...review! And now, on to the story!

An Angel of the Sky

Chapter 1: Fallen & Wingless

By: ABeautifulDisgrace a.k.a. Jamie

Hospital Nurse's Station, Located Somewhere on the Space Colony L2...

Her fingers flicked elegantly through the thousands of files. The filing cabinet was kept in a nurse's station in the hospital she was in, and fortunately, the nurses were nowhere to be seen. The young girl, with a head full of purple hair, had woken up in a bed, surrounded by sanitized walls and many machines. Each machine had a needle at the end of their outreaching, mechanical arms and each one of these needles had been, at least once or twice, embedded somewhere in her skin. She had immediately ripped them out, confused and distressed at lacking the knowledge as to where she was. It had taken her a long time to coax her legs into working decently again. She had been awake for several days, nearly a week, and had been feigning sleep while the nurses were around and flexing her thighs, knees, calves, ankles and toes when they weren't. Apparently, she was lucky to have had attendants who had exercised her legs and kept up with her circulation. Otherwise, her legs would have either taken much longer to function properly or they probably wouldn't work at all due to muscle deterioration. The hardest part was keeping her sanity. Through this long week of being awake, she had to calm herself down, wondering so many different questions. Wondering how she got there, where she was and where was the braided pilot who was the last glimpse of life she remembered seeing? How long had she been there? It was obviously a hospital, but where was she, exactly? Am I on Earth, she mused without humor, or a colony? The only piece of information that did manage to stay in her brain was that the war was over. Or, at least, for now. She had stealthily gained presence on Libra and had stolen the necessary disk to give to Duo Maxwell and the other Gundam pilots. She had figured she would end up at a hospital, for she had taken quite the fall. If it wasn't for Duo, she wouldn't even be standing here, let alone standing here with the ability to be confused. But her wounds weren't even sore. They don't hurt, not even a little, her mind tried to push the pieces of the puzzle together, with no luck. As she checked a few on her arms, she frowned. The only thing that was sore was her back and she knew without a doubt that was simply from laying in that pathetic excuse for a bed.

But where's Duo, her heart moaned deep within her chest, why isn't he here? Such questions are what had led her to wandering the halls in the first place. Since she had woken up a few days before, she hadn't seen him once. Nor had anyone spoken of him while she had lay there, motionless. She didn't even have a clue as to how long she had been asleep. It felt like she had been asleep for days. She felt well rested and healed, but that couldn't be. It would take much longer than a few days to heal completely. She pushed such thoughts out of her mind and focused on her task.

The petite woman, still having a figure resembling that of a mobile suit pilot, froze. Her arms were held in mid-air and a file with her name written in cursive upon the tab was held tightly within a small hand. The script read Hilde Schbeiker. Voices sounded from around the corner, startling her from the motionless state that bound her in such an uncomfortable position.

"That's right, Dr. Levelle, she's gone," a woman in a white ensemble confessed to her superior, her head shaking in disbelief. She clung to the clipboard that she had in her hands, pressing it hard against her chest as her knuckles turned white, distressed as to what amount of trouble she would be in after the girl was found. If the girl was found, her mind corrected.

The nurse knew very well who - and what - the girl had been and why she had come to them in the condition she was in. She had also had the pleasure to talk with the young man who had submitted her - all too aware of how he felt about the young woman and what their consequences would be if something were to happen to her. He had been supported by four others of his kind - young men who wore black suits that identified them as mobile suit pilots. Severe expressions had dominated their faces, the nurse having noted that they were way too young to have any worries that would bring forth such looks. In the back of her head, she felt drums pounding. She was anxious and was to be the one who would have explained to Miss Schbeiker why Mr. Maxwell wasn't there and where, exactly, he was. But the girl had apparently become conscious just as no one was around, had panicked, and ran. Neither she, nor the doctor had any suspicion of the awakening of their patient.

"I know she's been here for a little over a year now, Ada, but that still doesn't mean she didn't need constant watching! She had an extremely strong will to survive and you know who gave her the hope to hold on and that he would be gone when she returned to consciousness. I told you that she would wake sooner or later," the doctor took a deep breath before continuing, "And need I remind you of Mr. Maxwell's terms and conditions? He will not be pleased," Dr. Levelle finished, stuffing a pen in his pocket with evident agitation, a scowl twisting his moustache and lips into a deep frown.

The woman called Ada stuttered in reply and he hushed her with a hand. Meanwhile, Hilde stifled a sob and shoved the file under her gown. She slipped down the hallway, just as the doctor and nurse rounded the corner, their eyes falling upon the place where she had just stood. Hilde's legs were still weak, but the large amounts of emotion that now coursed through her kept her going. As Hilde walked down the hallway, she fished out the file, eyes misting with tears and heart racing a hundred miles an hour. They surely couldn't be talking about her and if they were, they must have been mistaken. But who else by the surname Maxwell could strike such worry and fear into the hearts of professionals who dealt with trauma daily? There is no possible way I could have been here for over a year, the small voice within Hilde's head whispered in desperation, and where the hell is Duo? But Hilde knew deep down it was true, for she remembered the promise of life after pain that Duo had made to her.

Hilde remembered fighting in her mobile suit and remembered Duo saving her life just at the last possible moment. Now that she was thinking, she even remembered being submitted into this awful place. Despite that her heart fought against the knowledge that Duo had indeed left her, she began to accept, deep down, that he hadn't stayed. She had no idea how long, exactly, he might have perched by her side or if he left right after her submission. She didn't know and she had no clue where Relena was in order to contact her to find out. But then again, there was the file. It was the reason she had gone to snatch it. That, and she wanted to know the facts about her condition.

The particular wing she now found herself in looked familiar. She recognized it to be the one in which her room resided in. She peered at the chart upon her front door, having neglected the instinct to check it before she made her way to the nurse's station. With squinted eyes, she read aloud the words that were in scrawled handwriting, "Name: Hilde Schbeiker; Condition: Comatose; Date Submitted: January 23, AC 196; and Progress: None as of March 13, AC 197." A signature was beside the date and Hilde's heart dropped further into the pit of her stomach as she simply gawked at the information. She couldn't doubt it. The right corner of her mouth twitched, then sagged and more tears pushed forcibly at the brims of her wide, gray-blue eyes. Her right hand dropped the file she had been holding, bringing her attention back to it. Papers had fallen out and splayed across the tiles and as Hilde squatted down to pick them up, she began seeing even more evidence that not only was she indeed previously comatose, Duo had left her, but not immediately after she had been submitted. Truthfully, it read that he had left only two months ago, but it lacked the information as to where he went and why. She stood up, hands clenched in tight fists at her sides and kicked a bare foot at the file, succeeding at scattering the folder and its contents across the hallway. One thing that Hilde could never deal with, was being left in the dark, especially when she was already the vulnerable one.

Just as the last paper settled, she felt a hand grip her on the shoulder. With a start, she swung around, her legs buckling. That wasn't smart, her mind retorted bitterly as she felt the hands catch her. The shock had finished off her remaining strength, sending her into a state of complete vulnerability.

Hospital Front Lobby, One Week Later…

I sat as still as granite, glaring at the empty chair in front of me with a temper that was nearing the end of its fuse. My mind was a mental void and my heart was resting in the pit of my stomach. I rubbed the bruise on the top of my hand, one of the several places an I.V. had been and shook my head sadly. After being caught in the hallway, I had been put back in my room. No machines were hooked back up, but a nurse continued to reside in the corner of the room, watching me, talking with me, and helping exercise the circulation back into my legs. I now was capable of walking, running, jogging - you name it. I was released legally. I was supposed to wait for the nurse named Ada, the one I had overheard a week ago talking to Dr. Levelle, but was growing impatient and she appeared to be late. Dr. Levelle said she had some important information to share with me. I was anxious to talk to her. I knew deep down that she was going to tell me something referring to Duo, but the front lobby was growing nearer to closing time and it seemed she wasn't going to show. I kept my eyes glued on the empty chair. Despite the happiness that my newly perfected health brought me, I found myself sad, depressed, and falling into a black abyss of longing.

"You said you would be the first thing I saw when I opened my eyes, Duo Maxwell. Did you not realize, Duo, that I believed you when you said that I could make it if only I remembered the plans we made with the rest of the crew? The plans that we would all move to Colony L2 and settle down? To put our pasts behind us and to say goodbye to mobile suits? To live as normal couples, raising families and working - staying good friends forever," I asked the vacant air, regret dripping off my voice. Yes, regret. I was now living, without Duo, and it hurt. I hadn't wanted to hurt anymore. Not like this. Not emotionally.

I raked a shaking hand through my long locks of soft, dark violet. When Duo had given me the reassurance that my heart would never yearn nor break again, he had shattered it into a thousand and one pieces. I felt as if this time, for sure, it would never be put back together again. I didn't want it to. Not again. Duo was one of the few who truly knew me besides Relena and yet he showed his ignorance with leaving me alone and unknowing. I did not know how to get in contact with Relena as of yet and had no where else to go. If I had looked at the file more closely, I would of found Relena's information. I'm pretty sure she would have left all her current and updated contacts, but no, Duo had been first and foremost on my mind. I had been staying with Duo at the scrap yard, but he was gone.

"Gone," my lips whispered hoarsely in confirmation.

Hospital Front Lobby, Only Moments Later…

Ada glanced in the lobby, her chest rising and falling with pants from her sprint across the parking lot. She nearly whimpered when she did not see Miss Schbeiker in the lobby. She left I didn't…I didn't get to tell her…She doesn't know, her mind was now numb with failure. The lights flickered off, signaling that this part of the hospital was to be closed, leaving the ER and the many wings of waiting rooms in other parts of the establishment available. But she was told to come here, she wouldn't have wandered anywhere else… She leaned against the wall, a hand to her laboring chest, and hung her head.

Down a Couple of Blocks, Same Time…

It came to the time when I had to leave, due to my own impatience as well as the impatience belonging to other hospital staff, and I found myself strolling aimlessly along the street curb, my hands like blocks of ice in my pockets. Ada had never appeared, but the others had supplied me with clothes. A pair of baggy jeans, a shirt with more than one hole, and a rather large, but thin jacket clothed my body. The crisp, nightly winds licked my skin and sent shivers up and down my spine. It felt like icy fingers were wrapping around my throat, wishing me to never breathe again. If it wasn't for the fact that I desired to give Duo a good piece of my mind, I would have instantly curled up into the gutter neighboring the hospital and allowed nature to snuff out the remainder of my life. It wasn't necessarily cold, but my morose mood allowed it to sink deep into my bones.

Finally, not only did the day become dark, but my mind began to cloud over with a pitch black haze as well. I saw a familiar face. She was real, I realized, my mind beginning to falter. Honey blond hair fell in long shards around her chin and shoulders. Solemn aqua eyes stared down at me, boring into my soul. Relena, my mind registered faintly. Another face flashed before my eyes. It belonged to my rescuer, Duo Maxwell. He was grinning and waving at me, but this was but a vision, a notion that had shortly crossed my mind. Love for this man bubbled up deep inside of me, but it did not last long and before I could experience the disappointment and mild hatred for the deserter, my mind shut down entirely, leaving me oblivious to the scraping of asphalt against the soft skin of my cheek.

Relena Darlian's Apartment, One Week Later…

A girl with hair just past her shoulders, it being the color of crushed grapes, sat quietly in a white, wicker chair. The chair was located upon the terrace where rays of sunshine rained down in warm, golden strands. The girl had the build of one in the military, specifically of one who was a mobile suit pilot and despite the fact that she had spent many months on a hospital bed, her body had not lost its muscular shape. It was different and not as strong, but daily training had cured that. It was all that the girl could do, think about, feel comfortable with and concentrate on completing. She worked out every day, nearly all day. She couldn't even think properly. All she concentrated on was gaining back muscle and strength. She wasn't as buff as she was once before, but she looked a lot healthier. Plus, her strength had always radiated from her presence. Her aura. Her facial expressions boomed with personality and attitude. She was a tiny sprite of a human being, but a fiery side pulsated in her veins, always coming out when you least expected it.

Another woman exited from the back door of the apartment and glided toward the lost soul before her, a friendly smile upon her face. "Good morning, Hilde," Relena chimed, noticing the change in the other female's body. She smiled even warmer, realizing that despite that Hilde could not remember anything else about her life, nor the people in it, she had a sense of physical determination that had always stuck out about her before the incident. The young pilot had always claimed that she had to stay fit in order to keep up with the love of her life, the pilot of Gundam 02 Deathscythe, Duo Maxwell.

"Morning," the girl replied back, not a smile coming to her face, like Relena had wished for.

And in response to that, Relena couldn't help but cringe, pushing back the unwelcome tears that threatened to fall. The younger pilot, Hilde Schbeiker, her best and dearest friend, sat before her, not even knowing who she was and what was around her. A nurse named Ada from the hospital Hilde had stayed in had called her, alarmed. She had told Relena everything. About Hilde's attempt at escape, of her release, and of Duo Maxwell's warnings. Relena had known most of these things, being Hilde's closest friend, but knew now that she was the only one who knew of her waking up and being somewhere out there in the night. She had quickly gathered her purse and car keys, driving like a maniac toward the hospital in order to locate Hilde. She had found her, staggering in a dark alley a couple of blocks down from the hospital. She had been holding her head, crying and delirious. Before Relena could reach her side, she had collapsed, slamming down, unconscious, to the asphalt. Relena wanted nothing more than to spill out all the news. That Duo didn't want to leave her, but had to. He couldn't let his comrades go off fighting without him. They needed him and he needed the distraction. He had left just at a year, sometime in late January of AC 196. Now this love-filled young woman did not even remember him. She had no clue who she was nor who Hilde Schbeiker, in general, was. When she had come to in the guest room in Relena's apartment, Relena had quickly realized that her friend had amnesia. How bad, she didn't have a clue, nor did she know when it would end and bring back her Hilde. Relena's heart had sank and had sunk deeper every time she saw her or was around her, which was every waking moment.

Hilde did not remember anything they had done together. All the good times with the Gundam pilots were gone. How she, Relena, Catherine, Dorothy, and the other females of their group had softened the hearts of the fearsome men who were merely fifteen to sixteen years of age. She didn't remember how they had all sat together and planned to all move to Colony L2 to settle down, leave this other world behind, and start families like normal people. Relena would be Vice Foreign Minister for how long it took, then retire with them.

A tear slipped down Relena's cheek and she managed to swipe it away with the back of her hand before the girl, who was definitely mentally out in space, would notice and ask questions. She could not bombard her with memories just yet. It was still too early. Relena had to wait until Hilde showed some signs of recognition. And for the moment, she would only tell Heero, but not just yet. She would wait and make sure she had a plan first. At the moment, she herself was not on steady footing with the man who had captured her heart. As always, Heero was being the typical Perfect Soldier. He was being heartless and difficult.