By Rhyianna Isabella Merquise

AN: WOOHOO!!! I finished it! Italy was good on the creative cranium, apparently. Enjoy, minna!!

Warnings: Oh yeah. You guessed it. The Angst Queen strikes again! Death/Mucho Anguish/Suicide/Sad goo. The ‘usual’ for me. Oh yeah, and you *might* wanna read The Beaches of Cheyenne first. Otherwise this might not make too much sense…

Disclaimer: I don’t even own the computer I’m typing on, for Christ’s sake! GundamW belongs to Sotsu Agency/Sunrise. Don’t worry Mr. Big-Person-Who-Created-GundamW-and-is-very-rich-now, I’ll return your beebeeies unharmed when I’m through. Hehe.

**********

The crowd at the rodeo was unbelievable. Trowa didn’t think he’d ever seen so many people in one place. He wondered if this was the usual crowd.

Duo read his mind. "There’s more people here than usual because we have a special guest here tonight. It’s a bull that no man can ride. I sure hope I don’t have to ride it. That thing scares me."

Sensing that Duo wanted a reply, Trowa opened his mouth to speak, but he couldn’t find the words he wanted. His mind was still back in California with his wife. He wondered how she was doing, and if she could ever forgive him. He hoped so; otherwise life wouldn’t be worth living after he got back.

"Hey, Planet Earth to Player B. Wake up, man! We’re gonna draw for who’s riding what."

Trowa snapped out of his reverie. He couldn’t afford to be thinking about other stuff at the moment. His mind needed to be kept here and now, otherwise he might not make it back to Midii.

"Barton, Trowa." A monotone voice said. "You’re up."

Letting out a deep breath, Trowa moved to the front of the line. Reaching a hand into the battered old cowboy hat they were drawing from, his hand clasped over a small yellow piece of paper. Lifting his hand up, he unfolded and examined the name he had been given.

Midnight Sun, the crude handwriting said. He wondered what kind of reputation this bull had.

"Well, Tro-ster? Who’d ya pull?" It was Duo, acting as giddy and excited as a 7-year-old at a birthday party.

Trowa shrugged. "Midnight Sun," he said loud enough for everyone to hear. There was a collective gasp and then excited whispering from the group.

"What?" he asked, annoyed. "Does this bull have a reputation for something or other?"

It was Duo who answered him, in an uncharacteristically quiet voice. "Remember when I told you about the bull no man could ride? You picked him."

Trowa’s eyes widened, but only for a moment. "So what? Someone’s gotta ride him sooner or later. I’ve faced death before and come out of it alive."

"But I don’t think you understand, mister," a lanky cowboy for somewhere near the front said shakily. "This is Midnight Sun. No one rides him and comes out alive."

But Trowa just shook his head. He felt his silence, the silence that he had always hid behind during the war, returning to him. Nothing mattered to him anymore, except for getting back to Midii.

***************

Midii blinked once as she stared at the harsh flare of the fluorescent bathroom lights. She wasn’t dead. Closing her eyes against the glare, she sat up slowly. Opening her eyes again, she looked at her wrist. The only explanation she could think of as to how she was still alive was that she had somehow not cut right, or deep enough, or maybe a combination of the two. Oh well, she thought, it doesn’t really matter.

Fighting back a wave of nausea as she tried to stand up, Midii blanched when she saw the bloodstained mirror with her beloved’s name written on it. Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks as she thought about what had transpired earlier to wind up in this situation.

Feeling suddenly claustrophobic in the small, blood spattered bathroom, Midii hurried out. She wound up in the living room, looking out at the Pacific Ocean.

"Oh, Trowa," she whispered to no one. "How could you?"

******************

"And now, the event you’ve all been waiting for!" the announcer said in an excited voice. "One daring cowboy will try to tame the legendary Midnight Sun!"

The crowd roared.

Trowa was annoyed. Everyone here was too damn happy for his liking. He just wanted to get this stupid thing over with so he could go home and try to sort out the mess he had made.

The announcer was talking again, but Trowa wasn’t listening. He hated himself for doing this to Midii. He was a Gundam Pilot for God’s sake! He sacrificed everything for the success of the mission. His marriage to the girl from his past that had unexpectedly stumbled into his life again should have been the easiest mission of his life. But it was the only one he had failed. He. Had. Failed. The words rang over and over again in his head.

"Tro-ster! Hey, Trowa!" Duo’s voice broke into his head, sounding annoyed.

Trowa’s eyes snapped up to him, and Duo was surprised to see tears in the other pilot’s eyes. What the hell was going on here?

"Trowa?"

"Yeah?" he said, listlessly.

"You ready, man? The crowd’s waiting," Duo said gently.

"Yeah," he replied, deadpan.

Duo looked up and nodded at the gatekeeper, who in turn nodded at the time keeper. "Good luck," he whispered softly.

The bell rang, and the gate opened.

Trowa’s neck snapped from side to side painfully. Steeling his nerves, he let go of the reins with one hand and pulled off his hat. Underneath him, Midnight Sun was bucking for all he was worth. Every kick the mighty bull gave was more intense. Finally, Trowa was forced to hold on for his life. Then he felt himself slipping off the saddle… he knew if he fell off now he was as good as dead. The bull seemed to somehow sense his fear, and kicked more fiercely than he ever had, throwing Trowa over the top of him.

Trowa landed painfully. He tried to get up and run, but discovered his foot was tangled in the reins. Looking up, he saw the fiery eyes of Midnight Sun looking at him. Trowa tried to close his eyes, but he couldn’t bring himself to look away from the beast in front of him.

Time seemed to slow down as Midnight Sun leaned his head down and caught Trowa in the chest with his horns, throwing him up into the air again, and then again. Trowa knew it was over. He, who had been through countless battles, was now going to die in front of the very people he had fought for during the war. He had fought for peace, so that things like rodeos could go on. How ironic, his mind whispered. A picture of Midii’s beautiful face conjured itself in his mind. Midii…

Trowa never even felt the final blow.

******************

The phone ringing brought Midii back to the present. Out of strictly habit, she picked it up. Maybe it would be the girl Trowa had chosen to make him happy. Then she could tell whoever it was that Trowa would treat her good, he would love her, and always be there, like he used to be with her.

"Yes?"

"Midii?" a voice, ringed with sorrow asked. Duo…? She wondered.

"Yes?" she said again.

"I, uh, have some bad news…" Duo’s voice wavered so bad he could hardly speak.

"What is it?" she replied, deadpan. She figured he was probably calling to tell her that Trowa hadn’t made the time limit on the bull, or something of that nature.

"I..uh…There was an accident… A horrible accident… Trowa was riding…everyone thought he was gonna finally beat this damn bull… but he got thrown off…and no one could get there… he’s dead, Midii."

She let the phone drop. This wasn’t happening.

"No," she whispered. "No… NO! NO!"

Midii lost it. She picked up a lamp and hurled it at the wall.

This couldn’t be happening. Trowa couldn’t be dead, he just couldn’t! Gundam pilots didn’t die! They just didn’t!

Sobbing uncontrollably, she yanked open the glass door leading to the beach. Not happening…not happening…this is not happening… kept repeating in her head, over and over, like a mantra.

Midii didn’t even feel the water as it sloshed around her ankles. She didn’t register the fact that she had even ran to the beach in her sorrow. Didn’t register the fact that the water was now around her waist… her chest…her neck… her face……

Didn’t register the fact she was dead.

**************

Present day

The young repairman was in a stunned silence. He had no idea…

"Oh, my God…" was all that he was capable of uttering.

"It was a tragedy, that’s for sure, son." The storyteller said softly. "Now let’s get this place cleaned up…"

**************

Cheyenne, Wyoming

Duo couldn’t bring himself to leave Cheyenne and the memory of Trowa Barton and Midii Une. Looking out the window of his water-side apartment, he let the memory of the two float over his mind.

Duo let his gaze wander up and down the shoreline. A lone figure was walking down the beach. There was something so familiar about her…

Then the figure turned, and Duo saw the face of Midii Une. Duo forgot to breathe. She wasn’t dead! Then his eyes caught sight of another figure along the shoreline. One that looked a hell of a lot like…

"TROWA!" Duo bellowed out his window. The figure turned. Trowa Barton stared back at him. Duo blinked. The figures were gone…

He rubbed his eyes furiously, trying unsuccessfully to keep his tears at bay. He had been so certain they were there…

Suddenly standing up, Duo bolted outside to the beach. The tide had just gone back, so all the footprints and sandcastles of the day had been erased. Which is why Duo felt a chill go down his spine when he saw two sets of footprints leading up and down the shoreline…

@)~~~~~~~)~~~ ~~~)~~~~~~~(@

The End