Rock Bottom

Seeds Sown under the Earth's Crust

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Seed

Author's Notes: First, let me thank everyone who has reviewed, especially Thawn716 who has been reviewing every chapter. I greatly appreciate it. Secondly, I have a request, or rather an offer. I'm unsure of how to go about writing this. One way is to have one chapter for the angst/romance side of the story, then one chapter for the war and alternate, so it would go in a loop of Kira;Hargthern;Kira;Azrael. The other option is to go the more simple route, in mixing them up in each chapter, in a broader and more unkept fashion.

Also, Does anyone know the reason why I can't seem to divide my drafts into sections using asterisks anymore? I know it couldn't be done originally, but then they were usable, and now aparantly they're not. Anyone know why? It's kind of annoying.

Phase 13 – First Impression

Panting, gasping, out of breath, the girl allowed her mouth to hang open as she clutched at her chest. She struggled to gain control of her breathing and slow her wildly beating heart.

She could feel it pounding painfully, thrashing and battering at the interior of the infernal cavity of her torso.

She literally felt as though her insides were on fire.

Why… why did I tell them… why didn't I just let them drop me off right outside the entrance? She internally cursed herself for her vain stupidity.

She had wanted to make a good impression. She figured she could waltz in just as the school-bell began to ring, then head for her first class. She already had her timetable. She held onto it tightly as though it were her last remaining lifeline. The last thing she wanted was to lose it.

Her footsteps pounded obnoxiously against the hard concrete pavement below her as she ran like a freight train heading straight ahead at full steam – except in her case, her steam was nearly entirely exhausted.

She glanced quickly at the watch she had been given to check the time.

She was already late. First period had begun ten minutes ago.

Funnily enough, the watch had only been given to her so that she could be on time – and now she was technically already late. How ironic.

Wait – she thought – That's not irony, that's just a horrible coincidence. There had been a lot of those lately, terrible coincidences. One such example was the fact that Shani had been beginning to open up to her and Stella and then all this happened. Now he seemed to be as big a recluse as ever and as for the pinkette's idolized blonde, the close friend she looked up to and respected oh-so much, she was nowhere to be found.

Lacus felt her periwinkle eyes widen. She caught herself before she was able to drift off into her own little world of reminiscence again. She was late. She needed to push her body further and run faster than she ever had before.

Her much sought after 'good first impression' had already shattered under her very feet. She had missed it completely, letting it slip through her butterfingers like an awfully untalented baseball player who surely had no business being an athlete.

The car pulled up to the side of the road and stopped. After a few minutes of movement from within, the door opened.

"Lacus, are you sure you don't want me to drive the rest of the way?" her father asked her.

"No, this is fine," the girl answered." It will do me good to walk some of the way. I also should get to know the area a bit as well."

"Very well," the man inside replied. "I'll see you when you get back. Will you be okay walking home this afternoon?"

"Yes, I'll be fine," Lacus confirmed.

"Very well, I'll see you at the church later on then." The girl nodded and withdrew her bag from the vehicle and closed the door before heading on her way toward the high school.

"Great thinking," the girl said in a quiet tone filled to the brim with self cynicism.

Because of her independence she was now going to be late. Why did she have to be so darn stubborn?

She let out a sigh.

This wasn't helping. Her mind was just going around in circles. She had to just stop thinking and turn that part of her brain off. What she should have been focusing on was getting to her classroom on time – or before any more time was able to elude her.

She checked her timetable and headed for her classroom which just so happed to be up a flight of stairs.

She hated stairs.

Why did they have to have multi-story schools anyway? Couldn't they just spread it all out around the school grounds? It wasn't as though they were short of room. The place was huge, unlike her old school. All the schools in Eurasia were single multi-story buildings. This new school was nothing like that. Why did everything have to be built so far apart?

Eventually, she found herself in the classroom and checked her timetable once more to make sure she had it right.

She also checked what subject she had. Once the acronym registered she was forced to sigh once again.

I hate math…

She knocked on the closed door and waited for it to open.

After a minute or two, a tall man with a long purple ponytail opened the door for her. He looked down on her and scratched his chin.

"May I help you?" he casually drawled. She didn't know why but Lacus could distinctly picture this man wearing maroon velvet robe and smoking a pipe.

"A-ah, yes. I'm in this class."

"Is that so?" the teacher said, looking quite perplexed as though he didn't quite understand. "Because it looks to me as though you're standing out in the hall."

"Oh, yeah… well, it's my first day."

"I gathered as much. The fact that I've never seen you before was an explosively subtle hint, I must admit." He stood aside for her and led her to his desk. "So you're Lacus Clyne, I take it."

"Yes."

"You are aware that first period begins at eight, I assume."

"Um, yeah. I'm sorry I'm late. I… I got lost."

"And how does that excuse your tardiness?"

"I… I said I was sorry."

"Fifteen minutes, Miss Clyne."

"Ex- excuse me?" she asked, desperately trying to regain control of her breath, preying to the amnesiac deity that nobody would draw attention to her panting breaths.

"You are fifteen minutes late. That would normally constitute a lunch-period detention but seeing as you're new, I'll let you off with a warning just this once."

"Thank you" Lacus replied, turning to find a seat. Judging from the way everyone was sitting close to the front, there appeared to be some kind of seating plan in effect.

"I don't suppose you have plans for lunch-period?"

"No, however… I wouldn't want to spend it in detention, especially not on my first day."

"That's not what I mean," the teacher replied with a grin, shuffling papers on his desk. "Look for a grey sedan parked adjacent to the dead tree at the rear of the track field."

"Um, excuse me?"

"I'll be in there. I'll be waiting for you."

"Why?"

"I know things about you, Lacus. I know things that you wouldn't want other people to know. I can make you very comfortable… or I can make your life here a living hell. All I want is some company. Like I said, I'll be expecting you. Lacus narrowed her eyes distastefully. Just what kind of impression was she giving off?

"I don't know what you think you know about me but there's clearly been some kind of mistake." She spoke indignantly, her pleasant mask slipping, just like it had with Cagalli the day before. "I've been told that the place I came from is known to the rest of the world as a filthy cesspool and that things would be better in here in Atlantic Federation territory… I guess I was lied to, if degenerate filth like you is the prime example of the people here." The teacher angrily narrowed his eyes.

"Why don't you just take your seat, you filthy whore."

"Why is it that whenever a woman refuses to be used as a sex-object she is labeled as a whore?" the girl hissed. "That kind of discriminating thinking defies logic."

"You're a whore no matter what. You think we'd give you a choice in the matter?"

"I guess that makes sense… after all, men like you smell like pigs no matter how much cologne you bathe in."

"I said take your seat" the teacher ordered in a dangerous tone.

"I'd love to; however, you haven't assigned me one."

"Sit in Yamato's seat for now, just get the hell out of my face before I am forced to tell your father about your acting up on your first day" He dangerously wheezed.

"Yamato?"

"fourth row, far left. Sit, go. The next time you speak in my classroom, you'll find yourself in a personal, private detention with me."

Without a word, Lacus turned and headed toward her seat. As she passed, she noticed a red-haired girl eyeing her suspiciously.

What's her problem? The pinkette mused bitterly.

Her first impression of the Atlantic Federation was now branded into the interior of her skull.

I hate this place.

Damn her – the blonde thought indignantly. How the hell could she say that? Yasura burned down because there were Coordinators there? Maybe, but it wasn't their fault. It was all because of people like her.

Cagalli turned to face the brunette sitting beside her.

"Cagalli, what is it?" he asked her.

"Uh, nothing" she replied.

"Really?" the brunette asked her with a skeptical eye.

"Yeah."

"Well, it sure doesn't look like it."

"I'm fine, just drop it, okay Ahmed!"

"Miss Yula!" their teacher called out, approaching the two teens. "In my class, we don't call out across the room. We don't shout and we don't talk. We listen and we work. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Miss Badgiruel" Cagalli conceded.

"Consider this a warning. Don't let it happen again," the teacher chastised, walking back to her position at the head of the class.

She was a slim, tall, strict woman with short black hair and stern amethyst coloured eyes with which she watched over the class like a hawk.

"God, what a hard-ass" the blonde uttered under her breath.

"You can act strong all you want but I know what's bothering you," Ahmed told her.

"Oh, and what would you know about anything?" Cagalli curtly questioned.

"I know your mother threw you out."

"She's not my mother, Ahmed," the girl reminded him with exasperation draining the enthusiasm from her voice."

"Okay, stepmother, whatever," Ahmed replied impatiently. "You're avoiding the point."

"What do you think of the new guys?" Cagalli asked.

"You're doing it again."

"Shut up. Just answer the question."

"I dunno," Ahmed replied with a sigh. "Clotho and um, Orga, I think the other one is."

"Yeah, I know their names. What I want to know is, uh, well…"

"I know. They seem kind of odd but remember that they're from Eurasia. They might all be like that."

"Yeah, all the people I've met from there are pretty strange, I must admit. I think their sanity might need to be called into question."

"Uh, right; so did you ever meet up with that guy again?" he asked, but Cagalli wasn't listening. She was busy thinking.

The blonde girl walked angrily toward the only place she could think of. The residence of her closest friend, Ahmed.

He was her best friend for a reason. He'd even been there that evening when Kira neglected to meet them. They'd been in the same class for so long, every year.

"Oh my, what happened to you?" the woman – Ahmed's mother – asked, referring to the state of the blonde's face. It was still bright red from its rather physical date with Alga's slap-happy hand."

"It's nothing," Cagalli answered angrily. "Alga and I just had an argument, that's all."

"Alga?"

"Cagalli's stepmother," Ahmed explained.

"Your stepmother… she hit you?"

"You don't need to make a fuss. She does it all the time, when she can't win a fight with words."

"How immature," the older woman stated.

"Yeah, she always resorts to violence when she can't get her own way," Ahmed said, his face telling all that he seemed to find something exceedingly funny."Say, don't we know someone like that? That reminds you of someone, right guys?" he asked.

From the room behind him, a couple of young brunettes appeared, walking hand in hand. One aqua eyed with short hair that curled upward where her head met neck, the other's hair a mess of thick curls. Both wore grins of amusement – Miriallia and Tolle.

After the bell rang to signify the end of class, the hands of students could be seen only in semi-opacity and as blurs of motion as they hurried to throw their belongings safely into their respective bags with all the tenderness and care of a cordless bungee jump.

Lacus watched them all move with such velocity and wondered how much practice they must have. It was difficult to believe that all these people were naturals, given the speed and reflexes that they each possessed.

The pink haired girl followed suit, albeit allowing her hands the slothful liberty of traveling at their own pace.

Once finished, she followed the rest of the class outside, her face set in a troubled expression. As she walked at her own leisurely pace, people pushed and shoved past her in a hurry to get to wherever they wanted to go.

She couldn't help but wonder why all of these people happened to be in such a rush. Well, to be honest… not all of them were. Some of them seemed to be about as laid back as she was, if not more so.

The girl pulled out her timetable to check on her next class, and grimaced at the sight.

Chemistry, great, she mused. This day was going from bad to worse. Why did she have to have two of her least favorite subjects, one after the other?

Then again, maybe it wouldn't be so bad. After all, that previous class was easy enough. This school seemed to be quite far behind in the curricular. She didn't know why, and it certainly wasn't a good thing, but Lacus couldn't help but feel at least partially relieved. Moving and changing schools was stressful enough at the best of times, without the added anguish of having lost just about everything one held dear.

"Um, excuse me?" a voice called out.

What is it, the girl couldn't help but wonder. Don't they know I'm new here? What could I possibly tell them?

Lacus turned around and saw a boy with medium-length blue hair approach her.

"Ah… hi," he said.

"Hi," Lacus awkwardly replied. "What is it?"

"Well, I just wanted to introduce myself. I'm Athrun, Athrun Zala."

"Oh, I'm Lacus."

"I saw you at the memorial."

"Did you?"

"Yeah. It's nice to see that everyone got a place to rest peacefully."

"Yeah, I suppose it is… assuming they can actually rest, given what happened."

"What do you mean?"

"Well… never mind. I have to go," the girl resigned, turning to leave.

"Wait!" the bluenette called out.

"What is it?" Lacus asked him, stopping and looking over her shoulder.

"I was just wondering. Are you… were you from Yasura?"

"Yeah."

"So, did you..."

"Did I what!?" the girl snarled.

"I'm sorry. I didn't want to offend you. I was just curious to see... I was just wondering, no, hoping that everyone you knew managed to get out safely. Burning alive is a fate no one deserves.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Yeah, my father and I managed to get out but my mother..."

"I see. I'm sorry for your loss, especially since I know how it feels." The girl widened her eyes.

"You see, I also lost my mother in the fire, as well as my best friend, Nicol."

"So did I," Lacus tried to say, but all that escaped was a whimper.

"What was that?"

"I also lost my best friend. I mean, it's not official, but nobody knows where she is. No one's seen her since the fire. The last thing we did together was plan a study party. I just wish I knew whether or not she was alive and okay."

"If it's consolation, she's probably dead."

"Gee, thanks. That makes me feel much better," lacus replied bitterly.

"I figured as much. I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault" Lacus replied.

"I know, but still, I should have kept quiet. It was a bad choice of words, and for that, I apologise."

"Yet you felt compelled to say it… look. I really need to get going," the pinkette replied.

"What's the rush?" Athrun asked her.

"I've already been late once today."

"Really, we've only had one class so far."

"That's my point" the girl lamented.

"What happened, did you sleep in?"

"No!" the girl snapped, looking down in embarrassment, seemingly content to stare at her shoes despite what she'd said about the need to hurry. "I… I got lost." Athrun couldn't help but laugh at that.

"Well, I suppose that's your right as a Eurasian citizen," he joked, stopping when Lacus narrowed her eyes dangerously at him.

"I've been through enough today without you laughing at me."

"You're right, I'm sorry. So where are you heading, anyway?"

"Science block," she replied, pulling out her timetable once again. "Room G3"

"I see," Athrun pondered. "That's a strange coincidence, since that's where I'm going."

"You mean we share a class?"

"It looks that way, doesn't it," the bluenette teased. "That being the case, should we walk together?"

"I don't see why not," Lacus replied. He quickly fell into place beside her and they began walking in silence for a while, until someone called out to them."

"Athrun, over here!" a voice said. The bluenette looked over and waved.

"Those are my friends. Do you mind," he asked the pink haired girl beside him.

"Go ahead," she said, waving him off.

Athrun flashed her one last sheepish grin and hurried off towards his friends. She shook her head slowly and walked in the direction of her class.

After visiting chemistry and a full school assembly, Lacus was faced with an interval period. She walked the school grounds alone, unsure of what to do with herself.

That was until she ran into an unsuspecting Cagalli. The blonde didn't even notice her. Both she and a brown haired youth were engrossed by the scene playing out before them. Something that appeared to be a large brawl had broken out.

Lacus didn't know all of the people involved in the fight, but she did notice Athrun… and Shani.

After further inspection of the scene, it appeared that the group was all ganging up on Shani. It wasn't so much of a fight as it was a public beating. She looked over the people involved and her thoughts froze.

I know those people, she realized. She gasped when she recognized them. Sting, Auel, and those other two that had wanted to speak with Shani on the day of the fire. She wasn't sure of the others. She had no idea what was going on. Why was Athrun fighting Shani?

"This… is pointless," Shani spat hatefully.

"Shut up," Auel taunted. "Why don't you show me what you've got, huh?"

"Hurry up and fight us, Shani," Sting added.

"If you mean to beat me then just do it," Shani retorted. "Why should I give you the satisfaction of a proper fight? Tell all these people that there's no show to see."

"What more can you expect, these Yasurian Coordinator-lovers are all pussies at heart," a boy with short blond hair remarked, receiving an approving smirk from the red haired girl standing proudly beside him, her entire body seemingly wrapped tightly around his arm.

"That girl," Lacus breathed. That was the one from earlier, the one who eyed her suspiciously when she arrived in that accursed math class.

"She a new friend of yours," Cagalli asked. Lacus shook her head.

"No, the one with green hair is."

"You mean the one getting his ass beaten?"

"Yeah… I think."

"What do you mean you think?"

"I'm not exactly sure."

"Don't give me that," Cagalli asked, angrily raising her voice. "How the hell can you not be sure!?"

"Well, I'd like to consider him a friend but I'm not sure how he…" she trailed off, unable to speak any more. At that moment, Lacus made eye contact with Auel. She locked onto his lifeless, hollow eyes. "What the…?" She asked. What was different about him? Something was inferably wrong.

"Lacus-Chan," he cooed with a sadistic smirk, approaching her.

"Wha… you've never called me that before," she commented. One quick look into his eyes was enough to set the alarm bells off in her head. She tried to back away but wasn't fast enough. Auel was able to close in on her and spin her around with ease, as though she were putting up less resistance than a ragdoll.

He was easily able to twist the pinkette's arm painfully up her back. He moved so fast. He was so forceful, so dangerous, and so scary. He was inhuman.

"Ahn," the girl whimpered from the sharp pain mercilessly crawling up her right arm. "How did you get… so strong?" she quietly asked.

"That's for me to know, Lacus-Chan."

"Please… stop calling me that."

"Why, what's wrong, Lacus-Chan?" the boy asked tauntingly.

"Will you fight us now, Shani?" Sting threatened the greenette. "Don't make your friends suffer because of your own stubbornness." When Shani looked over to Lacus, it was a dark look that scared her to her core. His gaze was every bit as hollow as Auel's had been, if not more so.

"She's not a friend," he stated coldly. Do what you will with her, why should I care?" Lacus froze in horror, unable to take in any more. Her mind was overloaded.

"That's very cold of you," Sting replied. He looked over to Auel, giving him a gesture.

The boy with the light blue hair applied pressure and tightened his grip on Lacus, causing her arm to sear once more in pain.

"Now do you see what happens," Sting began, positioning himself in a fighting stance and launching his fist into a powerful jab, right into Shani's abdomen. "…when you don't cooperate?" The greenette winced from the force of the physical blow. He looked over to Lacus once again and sighed.

"Attacking in a group… involving the ignorant… and you call me pathetic. Your vanity is surpassed only by hypocrisy."

"What was that," Auel asked, "what are you trying to say?"

"I didn't want any of this, but screw it," Shani hissed. "Don't say I didn't fucking warn you when these bastards chew you up and spit you out!" From seemingly nowhere, the victimized greenette pushed Sting out of his face with a potent uppercut.

"Auel," he responded just as soon as he touched the ground.

Understanding perfectly, Auel pushed Lacus aside and charged strait at his target. He reached striking range but was pushed back by a long leg.

Shani sent a roundhouse kick to the younger boy, and then spun around, throwing a second attack at Sting while continuing the momentum. Before anyone could react, he sent his knee crashing into Sting's skull, knocking him unconscious, before turning his attention once more to Auel.

Two more punch combos and a few kicks later, both of his opponents were down. The crowd that had gathered to watch the fight could only stand by and look on in awe.

"Where… where did he learn to fight like that," Lacus asked herself absentmindedly, unaware that she had expressed the question out loud.

Meanwhile, one of the members of the group, a tall boy with blonde hair, snapped shut the paperback book he'd held before his eyes. His expression turned sour as he glared hatefully at Shani, who merely returned the gaze with an air of indifference.

"You know what to do, guys," the blond announced calmly. "Take this asshole down."

As the fight wore on, Lacus wished she could turn away, but she found herself unable to move a single muscle. The horrific sight was too much for her.

Needless to say, the brutal pummeling that the greenette was forced to endure was not a pretty sight. While Sting and Auel hadn't stood a chance against him, Shani couldn't hope to fight off such a large group all at once, no matter how strong he may have been.

Funnily enough, in a bitter sort of way, it wasn't until after he'd been beaten to the verge of unconsciousness that a teacher decided to come over and break it up, as well as escort all students on the scene over to a classroom for detention.

While the group thinned out, Lacus approached one of the bodies that lay on the ground. She offered her hand, to help the body up.

A beaten and surely bruised Shani looked up at her and refused her help, opting to instead stand by himself.

"It would have been better off if I'd simply taken the minor beating from those two" he mumbled, looking up to meet Lacus' eye. "You were just in the way, so I had no choice but to fight them."

"I… I'm sorry," Lacus apologized wholeheartedly. She hated being the one to cause another's suffering.

"Don't concern yourself," Shani told her dismissively. "It wasn't your fault. Those bastards were the ones to drag you into this. I'm sorry you had to see it."

"No, don't worry about me. I'm just sorry you got hurt." Shani managed to sneer at her apology, but it wasn't one of scorn. It was merely an expression of amusement.

"I would've gotten hurt anyway."

"Who are those guys, and why are Sting and Auel with them?"

"Because their worthless, misguided, malleable fools," Shani replied, spitting venom. "They're nothing but puppets… like I once was."

"Do you think Stella could be with them too?"

"I doubt it."

"I see… how do you know those guys, anyway?"

"It's a long story… you'd better go before that teacher comes back and yells at you."

"Oh, yeah," Lacus agreed, looking over to see the nearby teacher escorting the students to the detention room. "I guess we'd better follow them. We don't want to get into any more trouble, do we?" She looked back, only to see that Shani had completely disappeared. That's strange, she mused, where did he go?

At least it can't be considered boring, she thought bitterly. If only Stella were here… I know she'd get a laugh out of it. "Stella," she said, whispering the blonde's name for all with the most sensitive ears to hear. Where are you? You can't be dead.

It just wasn't fathomable. It wasn't possible. How could a girl so lively and energetic become so still and lifeless? How could she have died? There was no way. If Lacus had managed to escape Hell's blaze, then surely Stella would have as well. She had always been so competitive after all.

She looked around the room. Where is Shani? How is he able to so effortlessly make himself disappear? It was funny. Shani was actually involved in the fight and he wasn't even here, whereas Lacus was sharing the blame with the others.

First, she convinced her father to drop her off a few blocks away from the school so she could get some fresh air and prepare herself before entering the School grounds. That had been her first mistake.

After that, she'd made the second mistake of angering her teacher by showing up to class fifteen minutes late. She'd been sexually harassed and then angered him further by rejecting his advances.

After meeting with Athrun, she saw him again, in her reunion with the people she thought were her friends in Yasura, as they mercilessly pummeled the life out of Shani, even involving Lacus herself, only to provoke him.

And now I'm here, serving detention with all these delinquents. To make matters worse, she knew most of them. It truly made her question why she had once hung around with these people. Did she truly know nothing of her supposed friends?

"Uh, Athrun?" the pinkette asked the blue haired person sitting beside her.

"Huh, what is it, Lacus?"

"Well, I was wondering. Why were you with all those people?"

"Well, they're my friends."

"I see," the pinkette admitted, "that's what I thought."

"Why, what is it?"

"Nothing, I was just wondering. That's all."

"I see… wondering about what?"

"Well, I don't know you at all, we've only just met today in fact, but you don't seem like the kind of person who would want to fight someone for no reason at all."

"Well, I guess you're right. Why?"

"So then why were you fighting Shani?"

"Shani?"

"You don't even know the name of the person you were beating to a pulp?"

"Oh, right, him. I don't actually know. There seems to be some bad blood between him and my friends."

"If it doesn't concern you, then why get involved?"

"If it concerns my friends, then it concerns me. You have to back up your friends, no matter what it is you're involved in. I mean you wouldn't just turn your back on your family, would you?" Lacus' eyes suddenly widened in horror.

"M-m-mother…" she whimpered, her voice higher in pitch than she would have liked.

"What is it?"

Lacus snapped her eyes shut and shook her head violently, sending her hair in all directions, forcing all thoughts of her mother from her mind, and cramming her face back into that ingenious mask she had crafted for herself.

"It's nothing, don't worry about it."

"Are you sure," Athrun asked, concerned. "Mental breakdowns like that have to be some kind of warning or something. Maybe you should see the school councilor."

"Look, I'm fine. Just drop it, okay," Lacus hissed. This conversation was heading in a dangerous direction. How was she supposed to act like everything was fine when people kept reminding her of what had happened, of what had been done, of what she had done?

"Hey, I'm just trying to be helpful," Athrun stated, aggressively defensive. "There's no need to be so elusive.

"It's better to keep to oneself than act as a mindless brawler, overwhelming and beating someone you don't even know."

"Hey, my friends needed my help."

"Yeah, it sure looked like it from where I was standing."

"You're just angry because you got involved. I'm sorry-"

"I'm angry because you helped those bastards gang up on my friend," the girl hissed furiously, cussing for the first time in her life.

"I'd lay off him if I were you," Cagalli warned. "Who knows, you might end up as big a target as Kira."

"Who's Kira," Athrun asked.

"He's a Coordinator, he used to be the only one around before all you refugees showed up, now there's no telling who is one and who isn't. It's not like they want to advertise it or anything."

"I'm a coordinator," Athrun admitted. Lacus and Cagalli both widened their eyes in surprise at him. "Is that really so shocking," he asked them incredulously. "You must have known that there were bound to be some of us around. We can't have all died in the fire, and personally, I've never seen a reason to hide what I am. It's not something to be ashamed of. It's not something to be hidden like a bad report card."

"I agree with what you're saying," Lacus uttered, her voice by far the quietest of the three, "but this world is in a frail state right now, especially this city that has just taken in Coordinator refugees. Letting people know who you are may well label you as an outcast, like this Kira person Cagalli speaks of."

"Where is this person, I might like to talk with him."

Hey, I'd love to introduce you," Cagalli offered, "but I have no idea where he is. He just up and disappeared a week ago. We were supposed to meet one evening, but he never showed."

"He probably just doesn't like you," Lacus stated absentmindedly.

"Whatever, I'm the only friend he has. How could he not like me?"

"That's a very vain statement, Cagalli. Have you considered the fact that just maybe he doesn't consider you a friend? Maybe he doesn't have any friends, or maybe he prefers to be alone."

"Nonsense, who in their right mind would prefer loneliness?"

"Someone who knows only cruelty."

"You've thought a lot about this."

"Not really."

"Just don't go near him, okay? Don't even talk to him. Just avoid him."

"Like the way he is, you?"

"Shut up, I just don't want racist people like you poisoning his mind."

"Racist," Athrun asked, bewildered, looking Lacus in the eye. "You?"

"No, I'm not," she pleaded, her eyes longing to be believed.

"Yeah," Cagalli continued. "This girl would make a better friend for all those guys than you would, Athrun. You should stay away from her."

"What do you mean," Athrun asked her.

"Sai and his friends are the ones who were always picking on Kira. You should go introduce yourself, Lacus. I'm sure you'd fit right on in with them. You'd be a perfect addition to their gang."

"Oh for God's sake," the pinkette said, losing her patience for the infuriating blonde once again, "I am not Anti-Coordinator!"

"You three in the back, detention is not a place to talk! I don't think you understand how punishments work and as such, need more practice. Therefore, you will serve an afterschool detention today at three PM." The three students sighed at the unfair treatment.

"Sorry, Miss Badgeruel," Cagalli apologized for the second time that day.

"What a day," Lacus muttered. "This has to be the worst first day in history."

"Aw, I'm sure you say that about all your first days," Athrun joked.

Athrun swung the backpack over his shoulder and headed out on his way. He, Cagalli and Lacus had gotten together at the end of the school day in order to serve their second detention, since they'd been caught talking during their first one. In all honesty, it wasn't exactly fair, but it didn't matter. At least it gave them all something to do in the afternoon.

Athrun couldn't speak for the others, but personally, he didn't actually mind. Anything was better than spending the afternoon alone in that empty house, where the deafening silence could only remind him of the tragedy.

It was truly a shame that Lacus and Cagalli couldn't get along. Otherwise, the three of them could have established themselves as a group of friends. The way things were heading, he would likely be forced to choose which one to befriend, and he honestly didn't know which he preferred.

He didn't know either of them particularly well. On one hand, Lacus was a fellow refugee and she looked like she could use all the friends she could get. On the other hand, his brief experiences with the girl had told him that Cagalli was more of a low-maintenance kind of girl, she seemed so much be easier to be around. At least when she lashed out at him, it was because he'd said something to upset her.

When Lacus did it, he wasn't quite sure of the reason.

What about that Shani guy… I wonder if Lacus really does know him. If I was involved in beating up one of her old friends, then she may not even want to talk to me anymore.

Was it even worth it? What had that guy done, anyway? Was he really deserving of such a massive public beating? Exactly what was the bad blood between he and the others? Sure, he didn't seem like the most charming or sociable guy, but he must have done something to warrant a beating like that.

The more Athrun thought about it, the more he found himself feeling sorry for the poor guy. He gave a sigh.

"I suppose it's too late to do anything about it now," he figured.

Step after slow step, Lacus steadily made her way home, like the tortoise that won the race against the hare. She gave a weary sigh at her first day, and some first day it was. Arriving late, being sexually harassed – by her teacher no less, getting involved – against her will – in a fight, and getting detention, twice. Some first day it was indeed.

Once having reached the place she now called home, there was little more to do than turn the doorknob and cross over the threshold.

She did so, hoping desperately that the reverend and her father would be out somewhere, lest they know exactly what time she got back.

"Lacus, there you are."

Of course, the control freak upstairs never listens to anyone's prayers, why should this instance be any different?

"Lacus, where have you been all this time?" It was a valid question. School ended at three PM. It was currently four thirty.

The pink haired girl took to staring at the floor, allowing its prudent blandness to hold her captivation in its pure, extravagant simplicity.

"Lacus, where have you been," her father asked once more.

"Detention…" the girl squeaked.

"I see," her father replied. He didn't raise his voice, but Lacus could hear the disappointment staining his words, and that crushed her more than physical contact or anger ever would. "I would have hoped you'd made a new friend or two. I was beginning to think that maybe you'd gone home with someone without telling me. That would have been a bad thing to do, but in lieu of the present circumstances, I think I could have forgiven it." Lacus' eyes widened, and then closed in melancholic fashion. Her father had just told her that he wouldn't be forgiving her.

"I'm sorry," she choked.

"So why were you in detention after school anyway? What is it that you did?"

"I… was talking with someone during the lunch break."

"How is that an offence?"

"It is… in the detention room."

"I see this is going in a strange direction," the reverend stated, unable to keep the amusement from showing on his features."

"Would you mind leaving us?" Siegel asked.

"Of course," the reverend replied.

"Lacus," the blond man continued after the reverend had departed. "Why were you in detention in the first place? You weren't late were you?"

"Well, actually, yes but that wasn't the reason," the girl answered hurriedly.

"Oh? Then why?"

"I was… involved in a fight."

"You… in a fight?

"Yes."

"That… does not sound like you. Is there anything you wish to tell me?"

"I was only there because I saw a friend of mine from Yasura being beaten by a large group of people… people who I later found out had large anti-coordinator dispositions."

"I see, and you were sticking up for this friend of yours?"

"I wasn't able to do anything, really." Lacus closed her eyes in self-loathing. "I just made it worse," she added, her voice coming out as not but a raspy whisper.

"So your intent was noble?"

I wouldn't say that exactly, I was just curious, the girl mused, but she nodded her head silently.

"Then I can forgive you. You should be proud of yourself. Many people would have just walked away and turned their back on a friend in need. You didn't take the coward's route. You took the harder road… and I am proud of you for it." Lacus' eyes snapped open and she looked at her father in disbelief.

"R-really?" Siegel nodded.

Lacus closed her eyes once again and threw her arms around her father, unable to help the grin creep up the sides of her face. He was proud of her…

He… was proud.

"God, what the hell is her problem, anyway? Whose side is she on? She's such a closet racist. Humph, she's so far in the closet she's gone through the wall on the other side."

Cagalli walked through the streets, loudly complaining about certain pink haired Coordinator haters as she went, while the brunettes on either side of her attempted to block her out.

"You know, Cagalli, Lacus really isn't as bad as you make her out to be."

"Oh, and how would you know that?"

"Ahem, we were her friends," Tolle reminded the blonde.

"Give her a chance, Cagalli," Miriallia pleaded. "The two of you just met on bad terms, that's all. She's going through a lot right now. It's affecting her in the worst way."

"You mean she's mental?"

"No… not exactly… you're anger is just blinding you to her true character, that's why you hate her so much."

"I think your old friendship is blinding you. You can't see her for what she really is. What's worse, you're actually defending her."

"But, I'm serious. Just give her a chance."

"Why?"

"What," Miriallia asked, not understanding the question.

"Why should I give her a chance, why does she deserve it?"

"Just drop it Milly," Tolle advised.

They arrived at the house of Cagalli's stepmother and stood before the ominous behemoth.

"So, are we going in," Miriallia asked.

"Ah, yeah," Cagalli replied, her voice seeming very quiet for once, as though the confidence were draining from her like the blood from her face as she grew visibly paler before the malevolent beast.

"Well, let's get this over with," Tolle said, loudly knocking on the door with his knuckles.

"No wait," Cagalli objected, to the surprise of both brunettes.

"What is it," Miriallia asked in concern, "what's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing," Cagalli responded with a slight blush permeating her cheeks.

When no one came to answer the door, Tolle checked it, to find it was locked.

"Here, I've got a key," Cagalli offered, producing it and jamming it in the door.

They entered the house to find it empty, much to Cagalli's relief. She was seriously dreading running into her stepmother again, what would she say? What would her stepmother say to her?

She didn't know any more than she cared to find out, which wasn't a lot.

Another run in with that woman was seriously the last thing Cagalli wanted.

"We should head up to my room," the blonde said, "I want to get my clothes." The two brunettes agreed and they ascended the stairway at the end of the hall.

The bluenette gave a weary sigh as he crossed the threshold of his new home. His father had been fortunate enough to own a property in the city, prior to the tragedy. More fortunate, was the fact that the house therein was currently between tenants, meaning the two surviving Zalas were able to live in the city without being so much of a burden.

The Zalas were probably the only Yasurians who didn't technically fit the bill of refugee.

Even so, Athrun couldn't help but miss the life he had in his old home. He'd lost his Mother. He'd lost his best friend. He'd lost his home. He'd lost a caring parent to see him in the house after school. His father was now a widower who worked during the day and wouldn't be back until late at night. Athrun knew that he had no right to complain but even so, the house was so empty, so quiet, so dead. It was so depressing.

Athrun quietly closed the door behind him, a force of habit his parents had drilled into him from a young age. He guessed that now, there was no need to be so careful. He could slam the door and play loud music on the stereo and no one would care. Nobody was currently left in the house to reprimand him.

Athrun shook the thought train from his mind and went into the kitchen to prepare dinner. His father would undoubtedly be hungry when he arrived home. The boy set to work, unaware that he had unknowingly taken to filling the roles of both mother and son. Athrun was Patrick Zala's son, but since their arrival at Yasura, he had taken on many duties of the wife.

The blonde set down her bag of clothes next to the couch and took a well-earned seat.

"Are you sure you want to do this," Miriallia asked the blonde, evident concern for her friend showing through in her voice.

"Of course I do. I'm here, aren't I?"

"But you can't just leave your home."

"Why not? I prefer it here anyway," Cagalli argued.

"But you don't live here."

"I stayed here last night and there was no problem. What's the big deal?"

"That was just one night. I'm sure your mother is getting worried about you by now. Shouldn't you return?"

"Of course not! That woman is not my mother. Besides, I'm welcome to stay here whenever I want to, right Ahmed?"

"Well," the summoned brunette replied thoughtfully, "it's not as though we don't have room, so I can't see it being a problem."

"Then it's settled. Four friends are better than three." That was the moment the homeowner, Ahmed's mother, decided to enter. She took a look at the girl on the couch and then to the suitcase beside her. The second she drew her conclusion, she didn't like it and her eyes narrowed.

"Cagalli, don't you think you should go home? I'm sure your mother is worried sick." Now it was Cagalli's turn to narrow her eyes.

"You're kidding, right? I never want to see that wretched woman again for as long as I live!"

"Very well, you're welcome to stay, as always, but I think you should at least tell her where you are." Cagalli sighed.

"Fine, you win."

"If the fight you two had was really so bad, I could make the call for you."

"I think that would be best," Cagalli concluded. "I really do."

The brunet lay on his bed staring up at the ceiling, bored out of his god-damned-mind. He wasn't thinking. He wasn't musing. He wasn't counting. He wasn't concentrating on the orange-peel of the ceiling. That had grown tiresome days ago.

He wasn't doing anything, really. He was just laying there, merely laying and staring. But while his eyes were indeed open, he couldn't actually see. Boredom had blinded him. He hadn't even a watch to check on the time. That man had taken the clock, as well as his cell phone.

There was nothing to be considered entertaining within the confines of his room. There were no books, no posters; the contents of his desk had been removed. Even the bag containing his school books and supplies had been confiscated.

For all intents and purposes, he was a prisoner in solitary confinement. The windows were mostly bordered up, gaps being left to let in light enough to see, but not enough so that he may look out the window.

The only human contact the boy had was that man bringing him a meal each evening, if watered down soup from a can and a stale bread roll could be considered a meal. Despite that, he was grateful, if not for the food, than for the regularity. Without some measure to mark off the days, he probably would have gone mad.

Kira wondered if Cagalli was mad at him for missing their arrangement. They had agreed to meet… how long ago was that? How many days had it been? She probably hated him for standing her up like that.

He couldn't blame her for that. It wasn't her fault anymore than it was his own.

He'd have to try and explain that it was beyond his control when he got out of here, when Kerry let him out. He hoped the blonde would believe him, but what if she didn't? Perhaps he should just leave her alone. He didn't want to make things worse between he and Cagalli. She always seemed quick to anger, except when Kira was involved.

Why was that? Why did Cagalli seem to sympathize with him so much? Fllay never did, that was for sure; but on some level, he kind of wished that she would. He didn't know why. She was shallow, discriminative, and cruel; but Kira had often caught himself staring in her direction, watching as she drank from a water bottle; caught his eyes transfixed on her hair, her earlobe, that black strap on her back that teasingly bled through the white of her uniform blouse.

What was it, why did he so consistently find that vain girl in possession of his eyes?

Even now, she wasn't even here and he couldn't help but think of her. Why was he thinking of the red headed girl? He should have been thinking of Cagalli. She was his friend, wasn't she? Did she still consider the Coordinator as a friend? Did she ever? Did she feel insulted that Kira didn't show up, or had she expected it all along? Would talking to her about it help him patch things up, or would it make things worse?

"Maybe it wouldn't do any good, but he had to at least try. If a person were to do nothing, fearing that no good would come, said person would achieve nothing. In fact, they would achieve less than nothing, for their fear would have kept them back, preventing them from committing potential good, for fear of the possible bad.

He had to try, just as soon as Kerry let him out of his house arrest.

Why were things always so difficult? He was a Coordinator living in a Natural's world. Why did he have to be born to this place and this time?

He shook the thoughts from his head. He didn't know why, but he could feel words bubbling up within him, longing to be freed. His mouth opened and they came out as little more than a whisper, foreign as they were.

"Life… has betrayed me once again…
I accept some things will never change…"

He didn't know what the words were, they seemingly poured of him and he felt compelled to speak them. Kira wondered if this was how artists felt when they were overcome with inspiration.

"I've let your tiny minds… magnify my agony,
And it's left me… with a chemical dependency… for sanity."

Kira swung his legs over the side of the mattress and stood to his feet. He began pacing along the perimeter of his room, his cell. He had no thoughts. His mind flowed only with an electric current that pushed him on. He felt sorrow, but also anger. Why the hell was all this happening to him? What gave Kerry the right to treat him the way he did. His lips began to move, began to form words once again.

"Yes, I am falling,
How much longer 'till I hit the ground?
I can't tell you why I'm breaking down,
Do you wonder why I prefer to be alone?
Have I really lost control?"

Just then, Kira heard a sound that stopped the inner workings of his mind. Everything he had just felt instantly faded. All his anger, all his pain, everything that had caused him to question his existence. It all disappeared as his door began to open and in stepped a large man with a plastic serving tray.

Kerry, the owner of the house, and Kira's legal guardian. A man who had recently shaved all of the hair off not only his head, but also the rest of his body. He no longer had even eyebrows.

"What are you doing," he questioned the boy.

"Nothing," Kira replied as respectfully as he could.

"I thought I heard you saying something."

"No, I was just talking to myself."

"So you did say something."

"I was just wondering when you were coming. I was getting hungry," Kira lied, not even trying to sound convincing. Someone in his position who sounded too eager was bound to be found suspicious.

"Is that so… I guess a scrawny piece of shit like you would begin to fade without nourishment. You're weak, boy. Your body has nothing to keep it going. You've got no fat, but you've got no muscle." The bald man placed down the tray and backed away. "You're going back to school tomorrow. If you're away for much longer than a week, the school'll be asking for doctors notes, and I am not paying off a GP for your scrawny ass." Kira nodded. "Don't get me wrong, I know that no one gives a shit about you, but they've gotta keep things professional, even when a Coordinator is involved."

Kira nodded once more and Kerry closed the door. The brunet heard the lock click shut and the man's footsteps growing distant, signifying that he was indeed alone again.

Kira smiled.

Despite everything, the boys face twisted into the perverted shadow of a grin. A bitter smile, a scornful smile. A grin full of loathing. His lips began moving once more and he forced his voice through his throat.

"I hate this place," he uttered.

Amethyst eyes drew closed and the young Coordinator's grin turned into a bitter laugh that started silently but soon grew in volume. What a gift, he was being given freedom.

Kira cursed his life and all the people he knew, then his laugh turned to a haunted song, his voice a rasped whisper.

"Happy birthday… to me."