"Oh, I see. Buying so many things means you're planning to host a party, huh."
As Kira, showing an "I want it all" attitude, squeezed both yogurt sauce and chili sauce onto his barbecue, the man in beachwear casually sat in an empty chair.
Obviously, Cagalli had a lot of objections to this.
"Yeah, I came over to meet a few old friends. They're planning a party tonight, and I just happened to drop by," Roz leaned against the chair back, smiling at the man in beachwear, but secretly readying himself for battle.
Roz could already clearly sense that the murderous intent aimed at this man in beachwear was spreading toward him.
Moreover, not only had several gazes been scrutinizing Roz and the others since this man appeared, but even the man's conversation seemed to occasionally try to extract information from them, as if to confirm some suspicions.
"I see… then have fun, I guess," the man in beachwear said with a smile, tilting the hat on his head toward Roz.
What a troublesome opponent. Andrew couldn't help but think this.
Andrew was on a rare day off, wearing his favorite outfit, and encountering Kira was a pure surprise, prompting him to confirm what he had in mind.
After all, the first time the command unit fought against the Strike Gundam, that strange feeling and its nimble movements had piqued Andrew's interest.
But along the way, Roz skillfully intercepted Andrew's side attacks, using vague information to interfere with Andrew's direct observation. Still, Andrew had managed to glean the information he wanted from watching Kira.
"How wonderful… encountering the pilot of the Strike Gundam, and such a peculiar person," Andrew thought, his smile widening. Not only Kira but even Roz had caught his attention.
Soon, except for the bewildered Cagalli, the three who had been chatting all turned to a rooftop simultaneously.
A young man in a vest stood on the roof, holding a rocket launcher, firing a rocket at Andrew.
"Duck!" Andrew smoothly leaned back, kicking the table in front of him into the air.
The table fell behind Andrew under gravity, forming a temporary cover.
Kira, closest to Cagalli, leapt toward her, shielding her.
Unfortunately, half of Cagalli's barbecue was flung, splattering chili sauce all over her.
Roz had already found another table to use as cover; one table for three people was already the limit.
The rocket exploded not far from Roz and the others. Then, several young men in vests ran out from a nearby alley, firing at Andrew and Roz's table as they moved.
Were these tables sturdy? After withstanding the rocket explosion and a hail of bullets, they were still intact, though perforated.
"Die! Damn monsters! All of you coordinators, die!" The youth running here shouted with a fanatical expression, as if he were a martyr. "For a blue and pure world of Blue Cosmos!"
"Blue Cosmos? How…?" Cagalli, hiding behind the table, was confused at the slogan.
At that moment, Roz's eyes seemed to flash red for an instant.
He grabbed a folding stool, quickly stood up, and swung it at the shouting Blue Cosmos member. The stool struck the man's abdomen with such force that it distorted his movements.
Andrew naturally took advantage of the opportunity, raising his pistol and precisely shooting the man in the head.
The youths who had been observing Roz and the others also drew pistols like Andrew's, joining the fight.
"Damn…" Seeing their companions fall one by one, the Blue Cosmos member hiding in the alley lost patience and stepped out, aiming his gun at Andrew, who was fully exposed.
As for the civilians caught in the middle? Who cared. As long as Andrew died, everything could be blamed on him!
Just as he was taking aim, a shadow appeared in his vision.
A folding stool slammed precisely into his side, knocking him back and causing him to drop his rifle.
"…You… betray Earth, betray humanity?" The Blue Cosmos member struggled on the ground, trying to clear his mind as he looked at the "civilian" wielding the stool.
Roz said nothing. Behind hair slightly obscuring his eyes, disgust and killing intent appeared. Under Kira and Andrew's stunned gazes, Roz dropped the blood-stained folding stool.
Then, a powerful kick struck the Blue Cosmos member's abdomen with precision, the pain nearly knocking him unconscious.
"Ugh… that football kick." Andrew grinned. Just watching the kick, he felt a phantom pain. "It must have hit."
Andrew guessed Roz's anger stemmed from the Blue Cosmos assassination attempt affecting him, Kira, and Cagalli.
"A responsible adult after all…" Andrew shook his head at the young man beside him.
The young man stepped forward, shooting the Blue Cosmos member curled on the ground, ending his suffering.
Roz breathed a small sigh of relief at the now quiet scene.
If they weren't in Desert Tiger territory and needing to hide their identities, Roz would have already shot every Blue Cosmos member in the head.
"Captain!" As Roz remarked, "This restaurant has a lot of folding stools," and sat on one to rest, a young man in ZAFT uniform ran over. "I'm glad you're okay."
"Yeah, thanks to them," Andrew relaxed, taking off his hat and sunglasses, looking at stunned Kira and chili-sauce-covered Cagalli.
And Roz, sitting on the folding stool, lost in thought.
"I'm Andrew Waltfeld. Thanks to your help earlier," Andrew said to Kira and Cagalli. "Your clothes got dirty. To show my gratitude, why not come to my house, change, and take a bath?"
Although it was an invitation, the tone left little room for refusal.
Just as Cagalli was about to speak, Roz patted her shoulder.
"All right, I'll leave it to you," Roz told Andrew, accepting the offer.
While Cagalli was confused, Roz gave her a thumbs-up.
-----------------------------------
Andrew's living room — Kira stood there, at a loss.
Cagalli had been taken by Andrew's wife to wash up, while Roz was standing in front of a replica fossil statue, studying it with interest.
The replica fossil's skeleton looked a lot like a whale, except it had a pair of wings.
Andrew was busy brewing his favorite coffee.
"I'm pretty confident about making coffee," he said, carrying two cups toward Roz and Kira. "Have a taste — Andrew's special blend. You won't find this flavor on the market."
Kira took the coffee, a little awkward, and sipped. The unusual flavor made him squint slightly.
"Evidence 01 — I didn't expect you to be interested in this," Andrew said, handing his cup to Roz and watching his reaction. "Tell me, why would they call this a whale stone?"
"Probably because it looks like a whale?" Kira replied instinctively.
"But it also has wings on it, right?" Andrew turned toward the coffee pot to pour himself another cup. "So how's my coffee, boy?"
"Uh… very tasty." Kira's reply pleased Andrew.
Then Roz's words made Andrew recall the sweet-and-spicy sauce squabble on the street earlier.
"It's bitter. Is there sugar?" Roz took one sip, then looked at Andrew.
"Hey! Don't you have any appreciation for the coffee's flavor?" Andrew felt his blood pressure tick up. "This is a blend I carefully put together — how dare you ruin it with sugar?!"
"But I told you, I'm on the sweet side," Roz said, taking another sip. "Life's already bitter — why not treat yourself to something sweet?"
"Tch, I'm a coffee purist. There's no white sugar here; you should savor it properly!" Andrew refused Roz's request outright. "Besides, I tried this coffee and it smelled great — why would you call it bitter?"
Roz could only take another sip and think carefully before answering.
"Not bad. Not as bitter as my life."
"Sigh… fine, let's drop that topic. Change it." Andrew sighed, feeling worn out by this fierce quarrel between a coffee purist and a sugar advocate. "What do you two think about this whale stone?"
When Andrew asked, the living room fell silent.
He didn't pressure them — he was simply curious about Roz and Kira's answers.
"…Maybe it gives a feeling of loss." Just as Kira was about to recite some textbook passage to gloss over it, Roz spoke. "It revealed extraterrestrial life. You'd think the next step would be a great age of expansion, but instead a war broke out."
"Yeah… this thing is both hopeful and headache-inducing." Andrew sat on the sofa and sipped his coffee. "After it was discovered, all the hopes for the future and possibilities came out."
"Unfortunately, after the war, that great age of expansion you mentioned is out of reach."
Saying that, Andrew set down his cup and waved his hand.
"Earth's gravity is too strong." Roz sighed and turned to sit on the sofa. "Any lofty, otherworldly idea just gets dragged back to the surface by gravity and falls hard."
"This time we took a big step forward and got tripped up."
"Oh, interesting point — I've never heard that before." Andrew's eyes widened with surprise. "Talking with you brings unexpected pleasures."
"I'm merely standing on the shoulders of those before me." Roz shook his head.
At that moment, someone knocked on the living-room door.
"Andy?" a gentle female voice called from outside.
"Aisha, come in." Andrew stood and looked toward the door.
Roz and Kira turned their heads, waiting for Cagalli to enter.
Kira wanted to confirm Cagalli was safe — after all, the three of them there (some Earth Army, some Dawn Desert) were in the midst of ZAFT's main area, which was quite dangerous.
Roz, having perceived no killing intent aimed at the three of them, was simply curious to see Cagalli's new look.
The door opened and Cagalli appeared in a light-green dress, her blonde hair tied up.
"Ah?!" Kira stared, incredulous at the completely transformed Cagalli.
Previously, Cagalli and Kira had met several times wearing fairly androgynous clothes — this was the first time Kira had seen her display such feminine charm, so he was naturally stunned.
"Oh, I didn't expect a girl — that dress looks good on you," Andrew remarked after a quick look.
"A bit small, in many senses." That was Roz's take.
"You guys!" Cagalli, who had been in a "girlish" state and was slightly flushed, felt the veins on her forehead bulge and her fists harden. She immediately shifted into a tomboy mode. "Wasn't I a girl before?!"
"Uh… I've always thought of you as a boy." After much thought, Kira offered a possibly less-offensive description.
"Too young, hard to tell." Roz stayed on form and declared himself fully responsible for Cagalli's emotional collapse.
"You two… I'm going to beat you up right now!" Though she couldn't beat anyone from the Desert Tiger here, it was clear that giving Roz and Kira a good thrashing wouldn't be hard.
...................