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"Baby Series 3"Written By: Karina Rating: PG Spoilers: None Disclaimer: I don’t own Gundam Wing or the Characters from the series but the baby is mine. Pairing: Milliardo + Pagan Notes: Challenge 107. Baby Series 3 #90. Takes
place a few minutes following The Party Line. Many thanks to ShenLong for her work betaing
this fic.
Russian Roulette "Playing the game of politics with Relena's future as the prize is not a gamble I particularly enjoy taking." Pagan leaned back in his seat and inclined his head. "It is a game one must approach with the greatest care. Many implications may be read into each and every action taken, and misunderstandings are a constant danger." Zechs narrowed his eyes as he watched the old man. "And you love the game, don't you? You thrive on it." "Not as once I did, sir. Now that I have the wisdom to understand the many facets, and the skill to play those facets to best advantage, I find myself too old to enjoy it as I should." "I always thought of politics as Russian Roulette. The Khushrenada' s played for high stakes and when they did not succeed the repercussions could be… tragic." "You were reared in a household where awareness of power games was high and the family had freedom to back opposing sides without repercussions within the family group. I always considered the Khushrenada' s and Catalonia's, the old Romefeller families, to be inordinately understanding and tolerant of the many factions within their embrace." "It was common for there to be three or more sides seated around the dinner table of a Sunday evening, discussing the repercussions of events on the world scene." "It would have made for interesting listening, though I suppose not for young boys." "Treize thrived on it. In the Khushrenada household one was to learn early the implications of every act played out in the arena of world politics. It was standard dinner conversation when the family gathered, which happened often. Even boys as young as eight were expected to express their opinion that they might demonstrate the level of understanding they had achieved." "Not a common childhood," Pagan murmured, watching the young man nurse his rapidly cooling hot chocolate. He looked like a waif, cast adrift from a secure family environment; a child left to survive as best he could. Milliardo had been, Pagan supposed, and he had survived. Pagan knew Milliardo had spent time on the streets, not a great deal of time, but they were days torn by war, when the worst side of humanity was shown to the world and no one cared for the young, the old or the infirm. "But one that allowed us to survive and it did exactly what it was intended to do, which is to say it grounded us in the reality of life and the repercussions to be found if you played the game poorly. Treize was brilliant at the game, even so young. He taught me how to survive at the dinner table, and if you can survive a Khushrenada family gathering, then you were assured you could survive whatever life threw at you." "Much of life is like that loaded gun. You never know if the chamber is empty or if the report is the last thing you will hear." ~ * ~ |
