Story Title: Contemplation: Innocence Forgotten
Rating: I guess PG, nothing really happens, but there IS cussing....about 5 words altogether (oh, that's just so bad, I know ~_~)
Pairing: HyxRP (well, not really, but kind of, if you read "War Ends..." afterwards)

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

For the wonderful Aaliyah, who left us too soon; one of the few entertainers who was worthy of highest respect.

First, and foremost, (and trying not to sound _too_ much like an actress receiving an award) I would like to give a really big "THANK YOU!" to everyone who sent me comments on my last story, "War Ends, Life Begins." It was the highlight of my day; believe me. All the nice stuff I received motivated me to write again, which was really not my intention (it was gonna be a one-shot deal, as you can tell from the half of a year between fic releases). I'm really glad you liked my work, and I thank you for reading for this one! Thank you again to all those who have been nice enough to email:

Cass - (the very first response I ever got!), Boredom's Child, Lady Saffir, Albee, Seda1418, B-Sama/Meroe, Sakura Scout, Lady Pyro, Rebecca W, Miss Warabi and Crystal Tear, (who both asked for a sequel to War Ends, Life Begins. I hope a prequel is ok! This one's for you, girls), Carebear and Gaurdian Kysra (who both also formally reviewed my story for their review group. Thanks! Also another thanks to Kysra who is also hosting my fic on her site! Go visit!

HUGE "THANKS!" to Zoe, who first posted my story on her site at Blissful Ignorance (and might I say a "great job" to the new management of the Blissful Ignorance Team). To Kristine, at Shades of Grey, who runs an awesome site, and is one of the few webmasters/webmistresses I know of who handles flames quite the way she does. (You go girl.) To Sherry at the famous Aishiteru, who runs such a big operation and still manages to keep ahead of the game. Every single one of you is an angel, and I know that you must be extremely busy, but if you happen to be reading this, I hope it was worth your while.

Comments/Constructive criticism/requests to post received at: angel_baybee@bolt.com

I'm really sorry if this one really sucks. It takes a lot to make a really good story. The downfall of creating something that people tell you is good, is that you become extremely scared to write again. I guess I had been avoiding writing under pretense of being "too busy". I dunno, that excuse doesn't really hold for 6 months, 3 of which are during summer vacation. I was pretty worried about not being able to "hit it on the mark," if you will. When I did "War Ends, Life Begins" I didn't really believe that anyone, not even one person, would like it. When I realized that it wasn't as bad as I thought, it was hard for me to move past the fear that I wouldn't be able to top myself; therefore, I didn't try. Everything I started ended up sounding either extremely shallow or so analytical that I felt it would be really boring. Rather than try too hard to do what I did last time, and thereby demoralize my writing with unoriginality, I have chosen to move past my previous work and try to create something that can stand alone as itself; something that doesn't have to live with the shadow of a previous work's name. I hope that this doesn't spoil the story, although I believe that trying to reproduce myself would ruin the image of the first story that people not only liked, but that I was proud of. In short (a little late for that, huh), I made this story for everyone that asked for it, even though I feel that it's below the standards I set for myself...so, if anyone flames me, you're wasting your time because it won't get to me at all.

Some might say that this story was not as eloquent as the first, but you have to remember: the first dealt with Relena delivering a speech. Most of the ten-dollar words were used there. I just don't think that the characters always talk that way, especially under normal circumstances. Flame me if you think I'm wrong, but I personally like where I stand on that.

The inspiration for part where Relena finds her old uniform was taken from the end of this summer when I had to put my old Middle School uniform away. I shoved it wayyy to the back of the closet...I made up a lot of stuff about the school in general, (I'm pretty sure there's no gold embroidery, but oh well) but I don't think anyone minds...I hope...

I don't know where Vista Verde is, I guess you can make it up yourself. I just needed a name for a place in the country, and that sounded pretty good.

I know, I know, I didn't like the title either, but hey, I was rushed.

(Geez, this is getting long; I think the notes are longer than the actual story!) Don't forget: Please tell me if my story is not original! (and I don't mean, just basic-plot-wise, I mean, like, _too_ much like another person's story)

Thanks!
Jayms