The empty corridors echoed the former gundam pilot’s quiet footsteps as he walked through the Preventers’ base. Proud and tall (okay, not tall--but taller than his days as a pilot); head erect, back straight, dark black ebony eyes facing forward, a well disciplined scholar-turned-fighter. An accomplished young man who had completed many missions for the Preventers, watched everything with a critical eye, seldom spoke (he preferred yelling), and knew the names of many of the other Preventers but never joined in the camaraderie.

Wufei Chang arrived early for the meeting with Lady Une; he waited impatiently and wondered where Sally was. He looked at the clock hanging on the wall, only a few minutes remained; his long-term partner should have been there by now.

“How like a woman to be late,” he grumbled, blaming what he thought of as a weakness on her womanhood.

“Right on time, please come in.” Lady Une said in her flat monotone voice, waving her hand toward the door signaling him to go in first.

Wufei gave no answer, looked down the long hall, grumbled something under his breath, and entered her office.

“Thank you for being so prompt in coming.” She spoke in her always-formal manner, as if trained to always be polite.

Lady Une offered him a seat; Wufei refused and remained standing, staring at a fixed point behind her. She promptly began to explain the details of his latest assignment.

Duo Maxwell came down the hall whistling to himself, his customary lopsided grin adorning his face, he saw Wufei coming out of Lady Une’s office looking grim as usual.

“Hey, buddy.” The flaxen haired god of death called out a hearty greeting.

Wufei ignored him.

“Wait up, Wu-man.” He accented the last word, knowing his companion hated being called that; Duo caught up and continued chatting. “I guess you got a new mission. So where you going?”

The black-eyed Preventer balled up his fist and tried his hardest to pretend Duo wasn’t there.

“Aw, come on Wuffie aren’t ya gonna answer me?” the former pilot of Deathscythe asked in his American slang, putting an extra emphasis on ‘Wuffie.’

Wufei cringed. He hated the name Sally had made up and wondered how Duo knew about it. He turned to look at the grinning fool who would dare call him BOTH absurd nicknames in such a short amount of time!

“No.” Came the short reply.

They walked on in silence for a moment; then Duo, who never remained silent for long, bombarded his companion with question after question, pleading for the tiniest hint about the new assignment.

Exasperated with the lack of response, Duo was ready to end the volley by asking, “Are you going to tell Sally or make her figure it out?”

“I’m not working with Sally on this mission.”

Duo brightened, a new piece of information; this tidbit made it more fun, more interesting. Wufei never worked with anyone but Sally Po and it was policy to always work with a partner. Maxwell wondered how Lady Une talked him into working with someone else and felt a little sorry for whoever that person might be.

“Oh, so you do know how to answer a question. Who are you partnered with?”

“Ives.” Wufei quickly answered, hoping that giving Duo the gratification of an answer would make him go away, since ignoring him didn’t work.

Duo stopped in his tracks, “Chrys Ives?”

“Yes, Chris Ives, and I hope he is more competent than you.” Wufei stopped to glare at the other man, who was starting to act strange, even for Duo. “I don’t have time for this,” he said, shaking his head and continuing to walk.

“Um, Wufei.”

“What?” Wufei roared, turning to face Duo again.

He rapidly changed what he had intended to say and answered “You’ll love working with Ives. Later.”

With a sly smile Duo dashed off in another direction, no longer feeling sorry for the new partner; he knew Ives could handle anything. Wufei didn’t see the smile and thought nothing of Duo’s quick retreat. He paid no attention to the accent on the word ‘love’, or just didn’t hear it; either way he never wondered about the meaning of this last statement. Wufei set about the task of preparing for the new mission.

Five hours, one long and disagreeable flight, a wrong turn, and a bumpy bus ride later Wufei arrived at his final destination in a highly agitated state. He eyed the Bed and Breakfast with distaste, grumbling about the injustice of it all. Wufei entered the small lobby; no one was behind the reception desk and the only other person there was a woman reading. She looked up, finished the page she was on, marked it, unfolded her legs, and stood up to greet the newcomer.

“Hi. Can I help you?” she asked in a sweet alto voice.

Wufei curtly answered, “I’m looking for Ives.”

She smiled and looked curiously at his ridged posture and the small faded pack hanging over his shoulder. He made no move, still standing just inside the door.

“Well you found her.”

“Chris Ives.” He emphasized his request.

“Yes.”

He stared at her, growing impatient because she hadn’t promptly fulfilled his request. She could see he didn’t believe she was the person he wanted. She picked up a picture ID from the pile of her things on the table and showed it to him. Wufei looked at it, quickly seeing that the name said in bold black letters ‘Chrys Ives.’

“You must be Wufei Chang.” Her round plastic bracelets clanked together with the swift movement of her arm as she extended her hand to shake.

Wufei looked at her hand then back at her face; she was still smiling in spite of his rude welcome. Chrys put her hand down and the bracelets clanked again.

“You’re late,” she said, hoping for an explanation or at least an apology.

He glared at her; he was cross enough and didn’t need his faults brought to his attention.

Chrys avoided his gaze and said, “Let me guess--you took a wrong turn when leaving the airport and arrived at the bus terminal just in time to see your bus leave?”

“Hn.”

She grinned wider, knowing she was right; then she rebuked herself, it might seem like she was picking on him.

“I grew up here. I’ve seen people do it all the time.”

The comment was meant to make him feel better; it failed miserably, only vexing him further. He found the ‘I grew up’ part ludicrous; she still looked like a child, the remnants of childhood freckles dotted across her sun-kissed face.

He studied her attire, a long plain lavender dress, a sheer unbuttoned blouse over it, the shirt tails tied together around her waist, and two purple bracelets. The young Chinese man made a quick assessment of her abilities as a Preventer and then remembered his conversation with Duo.

“I’m going to kill Maxwell,” he simply stated under his breath, teeth clenched.

“Duo?” Chrys questioned, raising her eyebrows and looking at the man this statement had come from and then it hit her like a pound of wet liver. “You thought I was a man. You told Duo and he didn’t tell you I wasn’t.”

He gave her no indication that what she said was true, but she had done it again; guessed what made him upset, and this made him even more furious.

“I bet he’s really going to be mad when he finds out it’s a baby sitting assignment.” She added in a low voice hoping he wouldn’t hear, but he did.

“Chrys, who is it?” A woman’s voice came from upstairs.

Chrys walked to the stairs and yelled “Its Mr. Chang.”

“Good. Could you be a doll and give him the key to his room? And before I forget, a letter came for you today--it’s from that boy you like.”

“Sure thing, Mrs. Caskilia. No Problem.”

Chrys laughed at her old friend, who still called her long-term boyfriend “that boy you like” even after they had been introduced. She leaned over the front desk and pulled out two boxes, taking the only key in the one box, she put it back; then she sorted through the mail in the other and returned it.

Chrys held the key at arm’s length from her body. “Here’s your key.”

He gave her a ‘well, duh, I-know-it’s-a-key’ look and asked without taking it, “How do you know it’s the right one?”

“It’s the only one. The other rooms are being repainted.” With that simply stated she asked, “Have you eaten?”

Wufei looked at her curiously; the remark caught him off-guard. Why would she care, at that moment most people would have left him alone?

“I’m fine.”

She looked at him and wondered if he would ever give her a straight answer.

“Come on, the kitchen’s this way.”

He followed her down the hall and through the kitchen door. She served him the leftovers from dinner; thoughtful old Mrs. Caskilia had kept them warm for the expected guest. Carefully she scooped a little from each of the different dishes, all but one. Wufei watched with interest, this girl seemed so at ease in someone else’s kitchen. He wondered how many times she had been there; then he stared at the pan she didn’t serve him from wondering what could possibly be in it. She finished, got silverware and turned to give him the plate.

As if she had read his mind she said, “You don’t want what’s in there, trust me.”

“Chrys,” again the voice of Mrs. Caskilia was heard form upstairs, “While you’re in the kitchen can you feed the cats?”

“Okay.” She turned to Wufei, “Drinks are in the refrigerator, cups are in that cupboard. Help yourself.”

She pointed to the cupboard and Wufei poured himself a drink. Chrys filled the cat dish with the concoction from the untouched pan and placed it outside the back door. Wufei saw the slop as she served it and mentally agreed he would not like to try it.

“I’ll show you to your room.”

Wufei picked up the plate and cup and followed her up the stairs. As Chrys walked her leather sandals snapped back to the bottom of her feet with every step and the charms on her anklet jingled every time her foot hit the floor.

Chang thought ‘Even with her mouth shut this girl can’t keep quiet.’

“Here’s your room.”

She unlocked the door, opened it, turned on the light and placed the key on the dresser under the switch.

“Enjoy.” She turned to leave, then remembering something added, “When you’re done with your dinner you can leave the dishes outside the door. See ya tomorrow.”

Wufei shut the door and Chrys went back downstairs. He looked around the room; it was a nice little room with well-polished oak furniture. After he finished his meal Wufei left the dishes in the hall and noticed a note on the door; in a curved feminine hand it read:

“This is a cruel joke--how did she ever become a Preventer?” He closed the door and prepared to have a good night’s sleep, hoping that when he woke up it would all be over.

The next morning he awoke just as the sun began to rise. Wufei went through his usual morning rituals, dressed, and went downstairs to find Chrys, but he found no traces of the girl.

“Good morning Mr. Chang. Breakfast is ready.” The gray-haired Mrs. Caskilia directed him to the dining room and served him a hot meal.

During the feast Chrys remained absent; Wufei figured she was still in bed. It didn’t bother him though; the later she came down the less time he would be forced to spend with her. He returned to his room and gathered his belongings; it was a quarter to seven and he hadn’t seen or heard any signs of Ives.

“Where is she?” he mumbled while waiting in the lobby; he was more than a little perturbed that the time was nearly spent and she was still missing.

“Good morning, glad to see you’re on time.” She smiled and spoke to Wufei as she walked through the front door with a small bunch of flowers in her hand.

No response but an evil look; she shrugged it off.

“The car’s in front, the trunk’s unlocked--you can put your things in there. I’ll be out in a minute.”

She went into the next room. Wufei stood there thinking she was nuts, he looked through the open door Chrys had disappeared through.

“Good-bye, Mrs. Caskilia.” She hugged the old woman as she said these words then handed her the bouquet of wild flowers.

Mrs. Caskilia said, “I’ll miss you, my dear.” with one arm still wrapped around the younger woman’s slender waist.

“I’ll be back again next year, same time as usual.”

“You’d better,” she chuckled, “and tell your mother I said hi, and give the boys my love.”

“Don’t I always?” She gave the woman another hug and promised to fulfill the usual request.

Mrs. Caskilia saw Wufei over the shoulder of the young woman; he noticed and quickly moved out of view, but he still heard what she said next.

“Mr. Chang is a much cuter man than that boy you like, don’t you agree?”

“What is that supposed to mean? And no, I don’t agree.”

“Did you sleep well? Have you had a good breakfast? How old are you again and are you sure you have to leave?”

“What’s with the interrogation?”

“Just making sure you’re taking care of yourself.”

“Okay. Yes I slept fine. I ate an okay breakfast. You know the answer to the next question and you’re not fooling me one bit, but I’ll tell you any way, I’m nineteen. Yes I have to leave today. And how old are you?”

“I don’t know what you mean by I’m not fooling you and you know you never ask a woman that question.”

“Sorry, must have slipped my mind.” Chrys kissed the rosy wrinkled check of dear Mrs. Caskilia and left.

“She’s nineteen, that’s only two years younger than I am.” Wufei thought in surprise then added out loud, “She’s still just a child.”

Chrys met him in the lobby, knowing that he had listened to the women talking.

“Don’t forget to wear a jacket,” the elderly woman yelled when she heard the front door open, “that goes for both of you.”

Chrys laughed at her friend; Mrs. Caskilia still played mother hen to everyone.

“Ready?” She asked Wufei after he placed his pack in the trunk.

He wanted to say no, but snapped, “Are you?”

“Let’s go.”

She walked around to the driver’s side, got in and started the car before Wufei even had time to open his door. It crossed her mind that she could leave him there; this mission was easy and she didn’t need to drag along a grouch.

“Here,” she said handing him an envelope after they had driven a little, “that’s the building; the office is on the third floor. The security is minimal; no cameras, only guards.”

Wufei thumbed through the pictures as she explained the details. Chrys kept her eyes on the road, never glancing his way, yet she was able to describe each photo and its purpose as he looked at them. Wufei looked at the girl sitting next to him; she had to be a different person than the Chrys Ives he met last night. He noticed her hair was different, the blonde locks that hung loose over her shoulder yesterday were now braided and pinned up; he could trace the faded strands weaving through the braid.

“Any questions?” Chrys asked turning to Wufei, her queer gray eyes reading his countenance.

There went the theory that she might be a different person. Wufei doubted anyone else could have those eyes, the gray color was so light her irises almost blended with the whites. The blonde driver pulled the car off the road, turned off the engine and got out. She walked without saying a word, expecting Wufei to follow.

“There’s the room.” She pointed to a third story window.

A six-foot brick wall surrounded the outer courtyard of the stately office building; two guards were posted at the only gate, and two more at the front door. Wufei came to the sudden realization why she called it a baby sitting assignment. Wufei went to climb the wall but Chrys stopped him by placing her hand on his shoulder.

“Wait.” she said, ignoring the murderous look Wufei gave her.

The armed guard at the front door walked to the corner of the building and looked around. The two Preventers heard him shout back that nobody was there.

Chrys told Wufei “Now it’s safe to go. He does that every five minutes.”

Wufei was about to climb the wall, but in a rare moment of chivalrous thinking he silently offered Chrys a boost. She smiled at him, quietly resenting the fact he thought she was incapable of doing her job. Chrys took a few steps back, started running and took a leap. Grabbing the top of the wall and using her momentum to pull the rest of her body over she jumped the fence with a cat like agility landing on the other side noiselessly.

Wufei was impressed, but wouldn’t let her know; he jumped the wall, landed next to her, and in a gruff voice asked, “Is that how you got the calluses on your hands?”

Chrys looked at the palms of her hands and shrugged. “I got them when I climbed the tree to take the pictures.” She pointed over her shoulder to the tall pine tree.

He was shocked again; he looked from the huge pine to the office window, and pointed out a flaw in her judgment “He could have seen you.”

“Big office, large window, great view. But no one looks; people like that rarely do.”

The view was lovely, the pristine lake, the towering pines and the majestic mountains in the horizon; even Wufei couldn’t deny the beauty. Wufei looked at her as if to say ‘He still might have seen you.’

“Besides the blinds are always drawn and he’s been out of town.” She continued with her explanation, then added, “I bet he can’t remember the last time he woke up early just to see the sun rise, IF he’s ever seen it.”

He watched her pick the lock of the fire escape door, trying to remember the last time he watched the sun rise. Wufei found himself wondering if she remembered, doubting that she did. Chrys finished, stepped into the stair well and started climbing.

She called back to him, “Aren’t you coming?” Chrys looked to see him only a few steps from her, she smiled a mischievous grin and added, “Yes I do. And if you really want to know, yesterday, this morning was just an added bonus. I had to get up early anyway.”

He picked up his pace to catch up with her.

“What are you talking about?” he asked, pretending he hadn’t a clue and keeping in step with Chrys as they ascended.

“You wanted to know if I remembered the last time I woke up early just to see the sunrise.”

“Why would I care?” Wufei asked indignantly, trying to cover the fact that he did want to know.

“I didn’t say you did, and I don’t think you do care, but you still wanted to know.” She quickened her steps, leaving him behind, convinced she was absolutely nuts. He kept his steady pace and arrived at the office just as she finished picking the lock.

“So, you want the computer or the filling cabinet?”

Wufei answered the question by sitting at the computer and turning it on. He quickly typed at the computer, hacking into private files, while Chrys dug through the files and folders in the cabinet. With great speed she flipped through the papers, taking out the ones that contained the necessary information and putting them into her bag. When Chrys finished with one drawer she pushed it shut with her hip and moved on to the next. Wufei copied the information onto disk and watched his companion sift through the papers, tapping his finger impatiently on his folded arms.

“I’m almost finished--be patient.” She said, her back still facing him.

“How did she know I was finished?” Wufei wondered quietly and waited for her to answer.

She shut the last drawer with her foot, left Wufei to figure out the answer on his own, and placed the disk Wufei handed her in the bag as they both left. When they made it to the ground floor Chrys looked at her watch and looked out the door.

“Should be safe--guard duty’s shifted. The new guy never checks the side.”

They went out, let their eyes adjust to the light, and made sure it was clear. As Wufei climbed over he spotted the “new guy” carefully aiming his gun.

The guard yelled, “Stop or I’ll shoot.”

Wufei rolled his eyes; he heard that line all the time. Perched halfway on the wall the young Chinese man knew he couldn’t move far enough out of the way before the guard could pull the trigger. The armed man didn’t notice Chrys, his attention solely on the white form climbing the brick wall; she quickly realized this and made her move. Before the guard had time to act on his threat a pine cone came sailing through the air and hit him squarely in the head. The guard reeled backward, but recovered rapidly; he took aim and fired as his assailant jumped the wall. The guard rubbed the red lump forming on his forehead, cursed under his breath and vowed he’d never go to relieve himself behind the building again.

The two Preventers landed silently on the other side and without saying a word or signaling to each other, they ran to the parked car. Wufei arrived first, opened the passenger door and was about to get in.

“Wufei, you’re driving.” Chrys said and tossed him the keys.

‘How dare she address me so informally and order me about, I out rank her,’ he thought as he walked around to the driver’s side.

She limped to the open door and got in the car; Wufei started the engine and pulled onto the road. Outraged, Wufei wanted to give her a piece of his mind; he faced the passenger’s seat and opened his mouth to start his lecture. Chrys didn’t see him fuming, smoke practically coming from his ears, with her head inches from the floor she couldn’t see anything Wufei did. She rummaged under the seat for a second and popped back up with a small blue box in her hands. Wufei saw her come up and prepared one more time to make his argument. He turned to face her again, he saw the leg of her blue jeans steadily turning red, and he stopped the words from coming.

“Take a left at the next road.” Chrys verbally gave him directions and opened the box filled with first aid supplies.

“What the hell were you thinking? What possessed you to do that?” Wufei screamed at her, “The guard didn’t see you, I could have handled it on my own, I didn’t need your help.”

Chrys cut the leg of her jeans and started to clean the wound. Wufei thought she wasn’t listening and continued yelling and asking questions, while driving and watching Chrys. She dressed the wound while giving him directions, without looking up or making any comments as Wufei continued his rant.

He finished by saying, “And where did you learn to jump like that?”

Chrys finished and faced her partner, instantly seeing that he wasn’t as mad as he sounded. She figured for a person like Wufei that last question was as close to a compliment as you can get.

“Why thank you, I thought you didn’t care. Don’t worry--my leg’s fine, it’s only a scratch.” She said this with only a slight hint of sarcasm in her voice. “I don’t know what I was thinking; I guess I thought a bullet wouldn’t make your day. The pin cone was the best I could do--I didn’t expect him to recover so fast.”

Wufei felt ashamed, after every rude thing he had said to her or thought about her this was the first time she showed any signs of anger, and he did have concerns about her leg. She watched as the comment hit home, the look on his face changed and she thought that maybe she saw a tiny hint of regret. The look in her eyes softened and she answered his questions in the order given; she answered everything from how she knew Duo to why her old partner wasn’t there. Once again she amazed her Chinese companion; Chrys responded to every question without missing one, made a comment about all the other statements and gave road directions without looking at the streets.

She answered his last question by saying, “I have four brothers.”

Wufei thought that was a strange answer, but having no siblings himself he couldn’t understand.

“You call yourself Chrys because you have so many brothers.” He said, finally getting to the one thing about her that had bothered him since they met.

“No, I use it because that is my name.” Her voice changed; she spoke more softly and faced the opposite direction.

A challenge, she answered every other question but wouldn’t give her name.

“Chrys is the name your parents gave you?” Wufei questioned, being adamant about finding out what this name was.

“Well part of it.” She looked to see how he reacted.

She pleaded with her eyes hoping to persuade him to give up, but he looked steadily at her. He wasn’t going to give on the name question.

“Chrysanthemum.” One word, that’s all she said. The young lady told him the detested name; why her parents chose that name was beyond her comprehension.

“Your name is Chrysanthemum.” Wufei checked to see if he heard correctly and if he wasn’t such a well disciplined man he might have laughed.

“Yes. I’m named after a flower.” Chrys paused then explained why she detested that name. “A flower is something admired for its beauty, plucked by the first person that wishes to keep it for themselves, placed on display and forgotten when it’s withered.”

The few remaining minutes of the drive were quiet, the silence broken only by a few short words to tell Wufei where to turn. When they arrived at the airport Wufei emptied the trunk while Chrys went to change her clothes and turn in the keys for the rented car. They checked in at the counter and went to their terminal to wait for their flight home.

“Your leg’s bleeding.”

“Oh,” she looked down and saw the red color filling up the gauze, “I’d better go take care of it.”

She got up to leave, but Wufei grabbed her hand and stopped her.

“Let me. The last time you didn’t do it right,” he looked at the crooked strips of tape that barely held the pad to her leg, “if you do it like that again it will never stay on.”

Chrys wanted to point out she was in a moving car being yelled at when she did it the first time; but she let it slide. She sighed and rolled her eyes; he couldn’t leave it at “let me”. The blonde woman sat down as she was told. Wufei found the blue box in her bag and sat down on the ground in front of her. Carefully he removed the old bandage and started to clean the wound. His touch was soft and he worked with surprising tenderness.

“You do this a lot?” she asked, curious to know how he could be so gentle in touch, though his words were harsh.

He looked up at her, “I said I knew Maxwell, didn’t I? Hold still.”

Chrys laughed, he still never gave her a straight answer. He finished cleaning the cut and started to wrap it. Chang only glanced at her once; he saw her eyes were shut and her lips pressed together so tightly that they were white. It was then that he changed his mind about her; she wasn’t nuts, and maybe, just maybe she knew what she was doing. Wufei put the box back where he found it and threw away the trash; he came back and sat next to Chrys.

“Thank you.” She said sincerely.

They boarded the plane; glad to go home. The flight was uneventful and quiet.

“Welcome back,” Sally said, giving Wufei a coy smile as soon as he came off the plane, “You could have told me you were going and getting a new partner.”

He gave her a patented Heero Yuy death glare.

Sally looked at Chrys, who was a few steps behind Wufei, and continued teasing him, “She’s cute, good choice.”

“What are you talking about Woman?”

Sally looked at Wufei; she knew that look, she decided to stop.

“How did you know I’d be here?”

“Aren’t you glad to see me?” she asked with a mock pout.

“I told her.” A tall sandy blonde man said from behind Sally; until then he had gone unnoticed.

“Bryan, I didn’t know you’d be here,” Chrys said, and she flung her arms around his neck.

He picked her up with one arm so she could give him a kiss.

Wufei looked at Bryan with disgust, something about him wasn’t right and Wufei could feel it, “She’s too good for him,” he shook his head but no one noticed, “What am I thinking?”

Bryan put Chrys down, pulled a small white flower from his coat pocket, tucked it behind her ear and kissed her again. He volunteered to get her bag and rushed off to baggage claim.

Sally turned to Chrys and said, “How nice, I wish I could get HIM to do that for me.”

Wufei growled and said, “I’ve done that for you.”

“Yeah, but I had to ask; you didn’t just do it, Wuffie.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Okay, Wuffie.” Sally grinned and walked ahead of the two younger Preventers.

Chrys looked at Wufei and raised one eyebrow, “Wuffie?”

Wuffie took the white flower from her hair, “Nice Chrysanthemum.”

She laughed--it was ironic that her boyfriend had given her a Chrysanthemum.

“So I won’t mention Wuffie and we’ll leave my name as Chrys.”

“Agreed.”

They went their separate ways, Wufei with Sally and Chrys with Bryan. On the way home Chrys and Bryan stopped at Preventers Headquarters and dropped off the papers and disk with Lady Une. Bryan walked Chrys to her door, kissed her good night and left.

“It couldn’t have been that bad, Wufei.”

Wufei kept glaring.

“What’s working with Chrys like?”

Silence.

“I hear it’s very pretty there this time of year.”

“I didn’t go to sight-see,” was all he said.

Sally shook her head and thought, “He is so impossible.”

A.N. Look here I am, see I promised you’d see me again, Finished with another little fic. How did you like it, is it good bad, tell me I need to know. Perrty Pu-leez I neeeeeed to know…silence….. Is there anybody there? *shrugs shoulders* I guess you need the address, it’s TimidTigress@hotmail.com. And remember, if you don’t email me I don’t know you exist. Toodles.

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