Essaria Jul and Irene Canaver did not bother to lower their voices.
Though neither woman spoke loudly, the banquet hall was not large. Combined with their special status and their position at the center of the crowd, their voices quickly reached Athrun and the others.
"Ah, they're arguing again."
Yzak turned his head and saw his mother arguing with Kanaba. For a moment, he did not know what to say.
Athrun's father was the leader of the Pro-War Faction.
Yzak's mother belonged to the Pro-War Faction.
Lacus's father was the leader of the Moderate Faction.
Diakka's father belonged to the Moderate Faction.
Nicol's father was part of the Neutral Faction, though he leaned toward the Moderate Faction.
Latis...
In truth, the members of the PLANT Council had once all been good friends, bound to one another by deep ties.
If not for the ties between their parents, Yzak, Athrun, and the others would not have gotten along so well despite holding completely opposing political views. Lacus would not have become engaged to Athrun either.
Yet those bonds had gradually worn away beneath their differing ideals.
"Does PLANT really have to settle things with the Naturals? We're all the same kind of human, after all."
Lacus looked at the Council members, who had somehow become so clearly divided, and felt a complicated swirl of emotions.
Since the war began, the Council members had never again shared the harmony they once had.
"The same kind of humans? When they destroyed Junius 7, they—"
"Cough, cough!"
Just as Yzak was about to say something, Diakka hurriedly coughed to interrupt him.
"Athrun... sorry."
Yzak came to his senses and realized he had gone too far.
It had to be said that although Yzak often mocked Athrun and threw harsh words at him—
—and possessed both a sharp tongue and a tsundere disposition—that did not mean he lacked manners or brains. He still knew right from wrong and understood the gravity of things.
Seeing Athrun unconsciously clench his fist, a flash of pain crossed Lacus's eyes. She could not help wrapping both arms around his arm.
"It's fine. I think you should apologize to Noer instead."
Athrun patted Lacus's arm and forced a smile.
Lenoya Sala's death was a sorrow Athrun could never erase from his heart.
"Heh... it's fine."
Noer smiled and waved a hand, indicating that he was all right.
It was already in the past, wasn't it?
"You—"
Diakka had just been about to say something when Athrun suddenly interrupted him. "Some things aren't meant to be discussed."
The tragedy of Junius 7 was an indelible grief for all of PLANT.
Athrun and the others looked at Noer and could not help falling silent.
Even Athrun and Lacus did not know what to say. They could only look at Noer in wordless silence.
Sometimes, words possessed the power to change heaven and earth. But at other times, they seemed pale and powerless.
Yzak silently reached out and patted Noer on the shoulder. Even someone as sharp-tongued as him could not bring himself to say anything cutting at that moment.
"Noer."
Just as everyone fell silent, Cruze's voice suddenly came from nearby.
The group turned toward the sound and saw that Cruze had somehow come to a spot not far from them.
"What you asked for."
Standing some distance away, Cruze took out a small bottle and gave it a shake.
"Sorry, I need to head over there for a moment."
After excusing himself to Athrun and the others, Noer quickly walked over.
"That thing..."
Yzak stood where he was, frowning as he recalled the bottle in Cruze's hand. It looked somewhat familiar.
"Yzak, do you know what medicine Noer takes?" Diakka asked curiously.
In fact, they had long known that Noer carried a medicine bottle with him. Though Noer always took it in secret, they had spent so much time together that they were neither blind nor stupid. Naturally, they had noticed some clues.
However, Noer's medicine was too unusual. They could not tell what kind it was at all.
Athrun and the others could not help looking over as well.
"I think I've seen it before, but I can't remember right now... Diakka, what the hell is with that look?"
Yzak frowned in thought, just about to say something else.
Then he suddenly noticed something off about Diakka's gaze. There was a hint of doubt in it.
"You either know or you don't. What do you mean, you can't remember right now?"
Diakka curled his lip, his expression full of disdain.
"I said I can't remember, so I can't remember! And what the hell does whether I remember or not have to do with you?" Yzak instantly bristled.
"Yzak, are you sure you've seen that medicine bottle before?"
Athrun stood nearby, frowning as he asked.
He did not know what medicine it was, but the symbol he had glimpsed did not seem like something found in an ordinary place.
"Believe it or not!"
After saying that, Yzak turned his head and ignored them. Yet his gaze toward Noer flickered uncertainly, clearly still trying hard to remember.
Meanwhile, Noer reluctantly made his way over to Cruze.
"This is your supply for the week."
Cruze ignored Noer's expression and simply took a bottle of medicine from his pocket.
"A week? Wasn't it a month last time?" Noer stared in astonishment. That was one hell of a reduction.
"Where exactly on my body do you think I could carry a month's supply?" Cruze countered.
"Forget I said anything."
Noer looked Cruze up and down. It did seem like he could not bring that much with him.
"Oh, right. I'm leaving for the front lines tomorrow," Cruze continued.
"What are you telling me that for?"
Noer looked stunned. What did Cruze going to the front lines have to do with him?
"We're friends now, aren't we? Aren't you worried I might never return?" Cruze asked with a smile.
"Is that even possible?"
Noer rolled his eyes. If Cruze could die at this point in time, then hell truly would have frozen over.
"So you have that much faith in me." Cruze was not surprised by Noer's reaction.
"You—"
"Athrun! Are you fucking looking for a fight?!"
"Can't you use your brain for once, Yzak?!"
Bang—
Crash—
Athrun's answer came in the form of shattering glass and the voices of Diakka and the others trying to stop them.
"Athrun!"
"Yzak, calm down!"
"Athrun, are you okay? Yzak, have you lost your mind?!"
"Yzak, Yzak! Calm down, calm down!"
"Athrun..."
The sounds of fighting drew everyone's attention, and Noer also looked in the direction they came from.
Somehow, Yzak and Athrun had started fighting again.
Though rather than calling it a fight, it would be more accurate to say that Nicol and the others had pinned Yzak to the floor with practiced ease.
As for Athrun, he stood off to the side while Lacus helped clean the spilled wine from him.
I've written enough of the early everyday scenes. Time to start tying into the main plot.
But seriously, where the hell should I start?
I could start with Z.A.F.T, or I could start with the Earth Alliance...
Should I just keep jumping back and forth?
This is so annoying...
Before you continue