27-Apr-2000
Looks like a lot of people don't want Trowa to die. Okay, the popular vote wins and here's the sequel to keep things going. This is just a filler post to prep things for the rest of the story - this chapter has... sap and not much else. :)
The soft sound of rustling pages drew Trowa from a drugged sleep into an aching semi-awareness that it was morning. Light streamed in through the walls, and he flinched from the intensity of it, squeezing his eyes shut. 'Turn it off,' he wanted to say, but his voice emerged as a dry, rasping croak.
Scarcely a moment later, the vivid green eyes reopened as he tried to reassess his surroundings... Light could travel through walls... ? What the hell...
"Morning!" a familiar voice greeted.
He turned his head slowly, shafts of pain pulsing through his skull. Incredible how such a simple action required a deliberate act of the will and so much effort. A familiar pair of eyes... a familiar crooked grin greeted his return to the waking world, and another harsh croak emerged from his pale lips as he tried to whisper the name.
"It's DU-O. Not 'Duh'," the braided wonder corrected, waving the manga he was reading in a cheery gesture.
Trowa swallowed, a few precious drops of saliva tricking down his parched throat, the little moisture enabling him to finally force a word out: "Where... "
Violet eyes gazed unblinkingly at Trowa, there was not even the faintest trace of a smile on the perfect mouth.
Then... "Hell," Duo said simply. "Welcome to hell."
Peals of silver, utterly infectious laughter rang through the tents.
Wufei glanced up in annoyance, distracted from his repairs of Shenlong. What the hell is wrong with that baka now?
Heero looked up from the computer, a faint smile on his lips. Trust Duo to find something to laugh about... Baka, he thought, but the thought was accompanied by gentle warmth and sweet affection.
Quatre paused in his preparations of lunch, his blond head cocked quizzically to the side as he wondered what could have made Duo, who had offered to watch over Trowa, laugh...
"Man! You should've seen your face!" Duo wiped tears of merriment from his eyes as he picked himself up off the floor. He had laughed so hard that he'd lost his balance, and the chair had tipped over, dumping its obviously insane load on the unforgivingly hard ground. "You looked like you expected me to sprout curved horns and a forked tail!"
Green eyes met violet... the expression in them askance... reproachful... and just ever so slightly amused.
"Um. Sorry. Not that funny to you, huh? It might as well be hell, though," Duo continued, his tone slightly grumbling now as he headed towards the tent flap that passed for a door. "After enduring the heat of the L4 desert, hell will probably seem like a winter wonderland. I'll go get Quatre, you just wait for a little bit...
"Quatre!" Duo's voice carried through the tents, and probably through a larger portion of the arid desert too. "Tall, dark and one-eyed is awake!"
Wufei grimaced in growing aggravation and wondered if Heero would be terribly upset if he hit Duo over the head with a steel wrench.
Hn. It certainly sounded like Duo had some excess energy to work off. And now that he didn't have to watch Trowa... Heero smirked. He could probably keep the braided baka - *his* braided baka - quiet for a couple of hours.
Awake! Quatre's blue eyes widened. Preparations for lunch forgotten, he quietly stepped out of the tent that served as their kitchen and into the maze of tents that eventually led him to the bright and airy tent they had set aside for the infirmary.
He met Duo at least half-way, but the American pilot only waved before heading off towards one of the connecting tents that he shared with Heero.
Leaving him to face Trowa on his own.
Anxiety swirled within him, an unsettling feeling in the pit of his stomach. So much to say... things that words would scarcely express. So much needed to be explained. He had spent hours trying to think up what to say and how to approach Trowa. Finally, he'd decided on an impersonal stance - be friendly but distant... we still don't know what happened out there. We still need explanations...
But when the lovely pair of green eyes raised to his, guarded yet hopeful, Quatre's carefully prepared stance went out the window. Moving swiftly across the room, he sat down by Trowa's bed, his hands gentle in their caress of Trowa's face. "I'm not an angel, Trowa," he smiled, his blue eyes luminous with love. Trowa seemed so uncertain and dubious still, as if he expected Quatre to vanish at any moment. "Duo stopped me from making a terrible mistake. But we need to talk, Trowa."
"How... "
"We called the doctor when you lost consciousness. You were dying, Trowa, and he barely managed to pull you through. When your condition stabilized, we brought you back here - we're about two hundred miles from that outpost - and you've been sleeping since. You've still got a fever; you need to take it easy for awhile, but as soon as you're feeling better, we need to talk about what happened."
"Talk now."
Quatre shook his head. "We don't have to do this now. It can wait till you're better."
"Now." Trowa insisted stubbornly - managing to look determined despite his weakened condition. "You must know, or I won't live with what I did... "
Oh Trowa... Quatre bit down on his lower lip, shifting from the chair to the bed and drew his lover into his arms. "Tell me," he whispered a kiss into Trowa's still burning skin, then held him as the story came spilling out, slowly at first, then quickly... words almost tumbling over each other as Trowa rasped out the truth as he knew it... his scarcely choked back sobs tasted of despair and confusion... hopelessness...
And Quatre - his heart and mind open to Trowa's; receptive to even the most minute flicker of emotion - felt every bit of his lover's emotional turmoil. No... he did not know what happened... but he saw it all later... The memories had come back - the mercenaries, they... the things they did to him... He did not know what had triggered those memories... God, he was sorry... was Heero alright... He tried to fight the panic... wasn't sure what happened after that. Was Heero really alright... ? He'd seen Wing Zero take the full impact of the blast... He didn't mean to hurt anyone... he didn't know what he was doing...
Yes, Heero was alright, Quatre soothed his hurting lover. What could hurt him? No, Duo and Heero weren't angry with him. Wufei wasn't angry either. They just wanted to know what happened. No! I'm not angry! I... I was, but I'm not anymore. It's not your fault, Trowa... None of it was your fault...
No! Don't say that. You can't hold it all in forever. You lost control back there, but it's going to be okay eventually. We'll help you... I'll be here to help you.
Yes, of course. I'll be here for you.
Always.
Quatre paid no heed to time - he would be here for as long as Trowa needed him. How long was it before the hitching, suspiciously sobbing breaths in Trowa's chest eased into a steadier, even rhythm? Minutes... perhaps hours... he wasn't sure. And it did not matter.
Emotionally wrung out through the sharing of Trowa's pain, but relieved at the truth - it had to be the truth; he had felt it with every fiber of his being - Quatre finally pulled away from Trowa then gently lowered his friend back down to the bed. "Rest for a bit. Heero's working on piecing the audio and visual recordings of the last battle together. We can trace it back - find out what triggered those memories."
"But what if... "
"We'll be here for you," Quatre said firmly. "And we would not hold it against you. But you *must* rest now." He tenderly brushed sweat-soaked locks from Trowa's fevered brow. "It will be difficult for you to watch the recording again, and we won't put you through it until you're sure you're well enough to handle it."
"Now," Trowa insisted weakly.
"No, I don't think... "
"Heero!!!!" Duo's scream of raw, blinding, mind-blasting pleasure reverberated through the cluster of tents, leaving very little doubt as to what he was doing and with whom he was doing it. The American pilot had always been rather... uninhibited...
" ...Heero is free right now," Quatre continued blandly, without missing a beat. The blue eyes glowed in easy, patient amusement.
Trowa smiled wanly in agreement, then the green eyes fluttered close, his breathing relaxing as he drifted back to sleep. A smile, so very sad, curved Quatre's lips as he sat by the bed and watched his beloved sleep. How could I ever have doubted you, my love? You don't need to ask forgiveness, Trowa. It is I who should ask if you can ever forgive me for doubting you...
End Part 7
(:./danyale/true7)
