Soon, the inexplicable family gathering concluded with Caridad Yamato's invitation to "come again next time."
Flay, being still a child, went to bed immediately after bathing following a day of exhaustion.
Soon, the bright living room was left with only Fred, who was still reading, and Heather, who was also reviewing a report bearing the Actaeon Company logo.
"Fred, what do you think of Kira?"
His mother's voice broke the silence in the living room.
"Mom?"
"You've noticed that boy seems to like Flay, haven't you?"
Heather spoke with a smile at the corner of her mouth.
"...They're still just kids."
Fred shook his head.
"That's true, and that boy doesn't look like he can protect anyone."
Hearing his mother's words, Fred gave an awkward laugh but didn't refute her.
From the current perspective, Kira was indeed just an ordinary first-generation Coordinator.
"And there's the issue of Blue Cosmos too."
Following his mother's sudden shift in tone, Fred also became serious.
Putting aside his personal biases, his mother—who looked like an older version of Flay—was actually much more astute than his sister.
To be honest, if his father had managed to reach his position while remaining relatively clean, his mother was definitely the hidden strategist behind it.
Moreover, after her recent transfer, she had become the deputy manager of Actaeon's lunar branch—truly a high-level white-collar professional.
"What do you think?"
Heather asked, her expression growing increasingly serious.
"We can't gamble with Blue Cosmos."
Fred stated firmly.
"But if things continue like this, your father will likely be sidelined soon. Moreover, they probably won't let you off either."
"I made it very clear to you before. You're smarter than me—do you have any ideas now?"
When Fred was preparing to go to the moon, the two had indeed had a night conversation similar to tonight's.
Back then, he had said the answer wasn't clear yet. But as for now...
"I'll fake my death. Father and you can use the grief of losing a child as an excuse to retreat behind the scenes. That's the safest method."
Fred looked directly at Heather without any avoidance.
If he didn't die, Blue Cosmos would continuously try to co-opt him with benefits. If he refused their recruitment, then threats would follow.
Right now, they were merely treating him as a pawn placed in the Agricultural Research Center because he was still young.
Otherwise, he wouldn't need to follow Lenore to PLANT.
He still temporarily lacked the ability to challenge the entire Blue Cosmos or the Zala Faction, along with various other major villains.
He had initially considered lying low, but that would mean remaining dormant on Earth, making it even harder to protect his family while being constantly constrained by Blue Cosmos—how could he ever retire?
After maintaining silence in the living room for quite some time, Heather finally showed a faint smile again.
"I believe in you, Fred. Go ahead with confidence."
"Your mother will still be here backing you up."
"I don't expect great wealth or prestige—I just want all of us to be safe."
As she spoke, Heather stood up and placed her hand on the young man's head.
"It's just... I'm sorry you have to go through this..."
The woman's sighing words echoed in the dim living room, filled with helplessness and heartache.
There were many things Fred hadn't fully explained, but Heather didn't plan to press for details.
She understood her son well enough.
He was far more capable than she was.
"She's quite strong-willed herself, but even if she said anything, Fred would probably still persuade her in the end."
"Mom..."
"Alright, go take a bath now. You went to that gym again today, didn't you? You smell awful."
Heather waved her hand, interrupting the quiet moment between mother and son and shifting the atmosphere back to normal.
"Okay..."
Fred didn't continue what he was going to say, a faint smile appearing in his eyes.
...
"So this is his plan after all."
The next day, inside the Mistral docked at the specialized maintenance port, Fred quickly identified the issue after running a system check.
The remote control background switch had been secretly activated, and the visual operation interface had been tampered with to make it appear as if the remote control switch was still turned off.
In simple terms, a malicious script had been implanted into his Mistral's system.
Although his current programming skills were inferior to those of a Coordinator, they far surpassed those of an ordinary Natural.
He could see through the other party's clumsy trick at a glance.
Fortunately, he was shrewd enough to conceal any skills that weren't absolutely necessary.
"Captain, what's wrong?"
Miha, who was the same age as Fred and also part of the support maintenance team, asked over the comms as he noticed Fred's delayed departure.
Though his tone sounded perfectly normal, Miha's gaze from his cockpit toward Fred's mobile suit ahead held a hint of scrutiny.
Of course, he wasn't the one who implanted the virus, but as a ZAFT spy, he knew the whole story and was even more curious whether Fred could see through this rather crude trap.
He probably could, right?
But he never expected that, despite being a Natural himself, Fred would be targeted by his own people. It didn't seem like a ruse involving self-inflicted injury.
The more Miha thought about it, the more complicated his feelings became.
After six months of working together, Miha believed he understood Fred quite well.
He genuinely made no distinction between Coordinators and Naturals.
He held no malice toward Miha for being a Coordinator, nor did he look down on others for being weaker Naturals.
If everyone could be like Fred, he might still be at home with his parents...
At this thought, Miha's expression darkened, while his gaze toward Fred grew more resolute.
If Fred really couldn't figure it out, he would defy orders to save him.
It would be repayment for speaking up for him half a year ago.
"Everything's fine. Let's move out."
Just as the young man reached this decision, Fred's voice came through the comms.
As calm as ever, giving no indication of the situation.
The support maintenance team was small, operating in two-person squads, and Miha was Fred's only subordinate.
Though "subordinate" wasn't quite accurate—Fred was merely the leader of a hobby group, and Miha was just a member.
As he spoke, Fred signaled to the old man in the control tower and slowly led Miha out of the narrow maintenance exit of the port.
"There you are."
Watching Fred appear on the screen, the young man in the observation room grinned viciously, his eyes filled with undisguised malice and ruthless determination.
He had already set the trap in advance. This time, he wouldn't go so far as to kill him—he didn't dare.
But causing Fred's Mistral to go out of control and inflict casualties among the team members would be enough to make Fred lose face completely, likely forcing him to leave Copernicus.
Moreover, this would align with the interests of Blue Cosmos.
He would probably not be held accountable.
As for his target, it was the Coordinator named Miha standing behind Fred.
"You claim to like Coordinators, don't you? Then kill them with your own hands."
The psychologically twisted young man's face contorted along with his thoughts, his fingertips gripping the control stick turning pale.
It was as if he could already envision the despair and helplessness on the other's face when the time came.
He would definitely show up then to mock Fred to his face.
Of course, Fred's younger sister was quite attractive—he wouldn't mind giving her a chance.
Growing more and more excited, the young man watched as the two figures on the screen reached Copernicus's maintenance node. Unable to contain himself, he grinned widely and pressed the takeover button.
A deathly silence fell over the room, but the two Mobile Suits on the screen continued their maintenance preparations as if nothing had happened.
"How is this possible!?"
Disbelieving, the young man slammed the button several times more forcefully and fiddled repeatedly with the remote control stick in front of him.
Yet, like stones sinking into the sea, there was no response at all.