July 23, 2000
Rating: Adult...ish.
Pairings: 3+4 and now a 5+2
Warnings: I have lost complete control over this fic. I have absolutely *no* clue as to what's going to happen next. You've been warned.
Disclaimer: Gundam Wing and its characters belong to Bandai, Sunrise and Sotsu Agency and are only being used for non-profit entertainment purposes.
Acknowledgements: I think it is only fair to give credit where credit is due. And it's definitely due. So to all the fic-authors on this list, thank you. Special thanks to Bonne, Von, RavynFyre, and Kitsune who are doing a wonderful job proofing each part. You girls are too good to me--keep it up! ^_~
Notes: The guy who can't die despite numerous attempts (yeah, that would be Perfect Soldier-boy) is being held captive by some people-- Valdeon and Jacqueline -- somewhere in the West Caribbean. Meanwhile, Duo and Wufei have been...err, busy... yeah, that's it. Busy. #^_^#
It was the smell that woke him... Delicious. Savory. 'Trowa must be cooking,' he thought, semi-conscious. He moved to stretch--and froze... or, rather, was restrained. Pain shot up and down his left arm from the healing bullet wound. His wrist and ankles pinched against the leather bindings.
"Oh, good. You're awake. Come now, open your eyes. I already know you're awake, and I brought you some breakfast."
He debated feigning sleep but the rumble originating from his stomach betrayed him. 'Note to self: fast for three days.' One eye cracked open, testing the light around him. Finding it not to blaring, the other blinked open. He found himself looking upon a girl, no older than himself.
"Good morning! Oh, no, wait... ummm... Ohio!" The girl beamed. "Yes, that's it. Ohio! Jack told me that's how you say 'good morning' in Japanese. Jack real smart about those things. Actually, Jack's just real smart. She's smarter than Doc, but she didn't go to school. Jack said school was just a waste of time for her and that anything she needed to know, Life would teach her. Jack's really great like that. I guess Life had a lot to teach her 'cause Jack knows a heck of a lot. Oh, hey, I hope you're hungry! I made blueberry pancakes this morning. Val said you wouldn't wake up until mid-morning, but Jack said you'd be up by now. Jack was right. See! I told you she was smart!"
It was the first time the girl had paused long enough for Heero to get a word in edgewise--had he taken the opportunity to do so. He didn't...but the girl didn't seem to notice.
"I hope you like orange juice. Dev went to the market yesterday and brought home a whole bushel-full of oranges and I've been squeezing 'em up since six, but if you don't, that's okay. Kat said you'd probably like tea, but Dev forgot to buy the tea. Kat was real upset about that 'cause she's the only one who drinks tea. Dev told her that if her tea was so damn important to her that she could go out and get it herself. I'm sorry we don't have any tea to give you, but we have plenty of coffee? Would you like some coffee instead? We have sugar straight from the cane and fresh cream, too, to put in it, and if you want I--"
"Coffee. Black," he said shortly, cutting into her long tirade.
"Cool! Oh, hey, can you hold this?" she asked holding out the coffee mug. "Doc said you shouldn't move your arm if it's to heal properly, and Val said you wouldn't be able to, but Jack said you could and you would 'cause you're stubborn, and I trust Jack's know-all." She stood there, holding out the cup, actually *quiet* until his fingers wrapped around the mug. "See! Yet again Jack's right!"
"Hn." He wasn´t about to admit how much the simple act of holding a cup actually *hurt*.
"I guess I'm going to have to feed you, huh? Val said he wasn't going to set you free until he had a more secure place to put you. Jack said there *was* no such thing as a "secure place" to put you, and like I said, Jack's--"
"Smart," he finished for her, his lips twitching. "Do you ever shut up?" he asked casually.
The girl's smile grew larger and her brown eyes sparkled. "Nope!" she said proudly, flipping her chestnut hair over one shoulder. "Nita says I could drive a priest to hell with my talking, though I've never actually tried. But Nita's smart too, so I guess I probably could. Do you have a headache? Is all my talking bothering you? I can try to stop if you want me to, though Dev said I couldn't stop talking to save my soul. Kat told her I don't have a soul, but Jack says I do, so...."
"Hn."
"I'll take that as an 'it's alright for me to talk'!" the girl said, winking. She pushed a fork towards his mouth.
"And you are....?" The fork slid between his lips before he could stop it. He tasted it... wondering if it had been poisoned.
"Oh, how rude of me! I´m Carina, my mother's youngest. Well, the *natural* youngest, anyway. And I--"
"And the others? The ones that you mentioned? Kat? And Nita? And Dev? And Jack?" She shoved another forkful into his mouth.
"My sisters. My *natural* sisters, that is. Same with Blaire and Doc. Val's our brother. There used to be more of us...but.. they, uh, died, fighting." Carina fell silent then--a rare moment indeed. "Nita says that there were too many of us anyway...and that Daddy had no business trying to go and out-sire the Winners... Jack told her to shut up, though, 'cause she didn't know what she was talking about."
The door open and the girl shot a quick look over her shoulder. Immediately, the frown on her face dissolved into a cheerful smile. "Speak of the devil!"
"And in the door she comes," the woman he remembered from yesterday's visit said closing the door behind her. "I see our guest is awake."
"Yeah! I've just been feeding him some breakfast," Carina said, scooting off the bed where she's been sitting.
"And feeding his ear as well, I'm sure," the tall woman said, coming up beside the bed and looking down at him. "I'm almost afraid to ask how much you know about us now."
Heero remained silent. The woman smiled, pleased.
"My name is Jacqueline. Everyone calls me 'Jack'. You will too," she told him.
"Hn."
"It would do you wise not to fight us," 'Jack' said, sitting on the bed where Carina had vacated. "My brother is a stubborn, pig-headed, testosterone-filled man who will not stop until he feels his wounds have been revenged."
"Tell him to go to a hospital," Heero replied, looking away.
She laughed, throaty, sultry. "Oh, that's rich. But you see..." A hand reached out, pinching his chin, pulling his face back to hers. "His wound doesn't exist. And he's too big a fool to realize it. Therefore, you, and your friends, will pay the consequences."
End of Part Seventeen
Andrea Readwolf
Please send comments to: andrea_readwolf@hotmail.com