Version II, Chapter One

much ado about trouble
chapter one
version II

It was another usual day for Daniella Thomas and Jennifer Dunne. As always, Gracia Row was teeming with all kinds of people, ranging from businessmen to your mother’s worse nightmare, and they blended in as if nothing was going on. However, that feeling of “nothing was going on” suddenly went away once they had passed the artsy Pendleton Auditorium. There was a poster hanging on the door, and suddenly the duo stopped to take a look at it.

“You know, I hate when they do plays like this,” Jennifer commented.

Danie raised an eyebrow. She was almost afraid to ask. After all, directing a question toward Jennifer Dunne was like asking for a McDonalds milkshake. Dubiously, she asked, “Why do you hate them?”

“Because they remind me of that dumb show on PBS we watched when were little.” She shuddered, thinking about that weird looking lady with the pink hair that had given her nightmares for weeks…

Danie had to laugh at older cousin. “You silly-”

The two stood there for a while. After a while, Danie began to walk off, ready and waiting for a good frolic in the swimming pool at home. Jennifer shuffled behind. But then she paused. Danie heard this, and she turned, keys in hand.

“What’s the matter?” Danie asked.

Jennifer didn’t have to answer because the answer-or answers-was coming up the street. There were five of them. They were dressed in variations of summer weather wear and each wearing variations of that calm, cool, we’re-not-like-you look. Danie groaned inwardly at the sight of four of them. The fifth one–or the fourth one really–wasn’t all that bad. But the rest of them…

“What the hell are we doing here?” barked the first one, Heero Yuy.

Danie rolled her eyes at the statement. She couldn’t believe the nerve of this guy… “Who asked you, jackass?” she snapped.

Heero caught her eye and they glared at each other, wishing instant death upon each other. Danie clenched her fists, wishing she could do more. If it had been a boxing ring, she would have given him a TKO like Mike Tyson.

Crys Yuy-Winner stepped in between them, and not a moment too soon. If Danie had her way, the glaring contest would have broken out into something else. Quite strange, Danie mused, that a woman so peaceful and nice could have a brother like that…

“Cut it out you two!” she admonished.

Jennifer, from the other side of Danie, began to laugh. “You know you want to get together!” she teased.

Danie glowered. Oh no. That couldn’t be any further than the truth. Like she’d ever get with Attila the Gundam Pilot. Jennifer deserved to be roughed up for that one.

Quatre Winner, Danie’s favorite–Danie’s only favorite–broke in before she could kill Jennifer. “We’ve been asked to do a play,” he explained patiently.

“Cool,” Jennifer said. “I just hope we don’t have to do this one.”

Danie did another roll of her eyes. “I like this play, thank you,” she said snootily.

Jennifer shrugged. “Well, the movie sucked major ass.”

“I’d have to agree,” added the voice of the quiet Trowa Barton. “The movie did nothing for the play.”

Jennifer’s blue eyes seemed to take on an unearthly glow and everyone seemed to know why. Danie rolled her eyes for the third time since the scene began (and it probably wasn’t going to be the last either). “I’m glad someone agrees.” Jennifer paused suddenly. “Hey Trowa…you wanna…”

Trowa raised an eyebrow. ” Wanna what?”

It was enough to almost send Danie into a fit of hysterical laughter. It seemed that little Jennifer had learned nothing from her flirting escapades from guys prior to this. It was a definite blow to her poor little crush. Jennifer blushed, feeling usually stupid. “Never mind.”

There was a long pause after that. Jennifer went looking at the poster again, as if the still figures had taken up tap dancing. Danie turned to Crys. “Does it seem like she likes him?” she whispered as if she were sharing nuclear war secrets.

Crys’s eyes seemed to light up with recognition. “You noticed that too? I think Cupid hit the target dead on ’cause Trowa’s blushing.”

Danie smirked. She peered at Trowa for a moment, noticing a telltale blush creeping up on his cheeks. “Cupid’s arrow makes good aim…”

“Ladies, are you talking about me?”

It was the voice Danie had been dreading all day long. She turned slightly and saw Duo Maxwell staring expectantly at her and Crys with dancing violet eyes.

Crys rolled her blue eyes. “Get a life, Maxwell.”

Duo cried defensively, “Hey! No sense in being mean to me.” He wrapped an arm around the Hun and grinned. “Besides your brother likes me fine.”

Heero grunted. “Yeah right. I’d rather blow you up.”

Danie laughed. One point for the abrasive one.

Duo took his arm away and pouted. “You’re being quite mean, Heero,” he told his friend (so-called if you wanna take into account that Heero threatened to kill him). Duo then turned to Danie. “And for you know, Danie, he might blow you up, too.”

Danie pressed the urge to flick him off. It wasn’t ladylike. “Screw you, Maxwell,” she snapped. Gee, that was ladylike.

And so began another argument:

“Screw you, Thomas.”

“Get a life, Maxwell.”

“Yo’ mama.”

“Yo’ greasy, greasy granny!”

Jennifer spun around, confused. “But Danie, he doesn’t–”

Danie and Duo glared at her in unison. “Shut up, Jennifer!” they exclaimed.

Crys sighed heavily as Jennifer shrunk back, a little hurt. “Something tells me this is going to be a LONG day.”

Danie followed suit and sighed also. “You’re telling me….”