The Day You Went Away
Hikari's POV
A/N- this is a depressing thing I wrote. It makes no sense. Kari is Mat's cousin, Tai's cousin, TK's cousin, Washu's neice, glows randomly....guess I better say that it's a Daikari.
Anywhoo, it's about every anime you can think of crossed- I'll see if you can figure it out. I own Vero, Iris, and Thorne. Enjoy, R&R!
Kari-
Hey, can you come with me to the concert Friday night? Mat and Tai are going, and they invited me and you to go. So what do you think? Give me a holler. Love ya, Daisuke
II sigh happily and flip over the scrap of paper. It's Monday and I need something to look foreword to. Pulling out my ballpoint pen, I scrawl a hasty reply.
Dai-chan-
Yeah, I'd love to go! I'll catch a ride with the guys and I'll meet you there! Love, Kari.
Finally something to look foreword to! Everything has been so boring lately- the only fun stuff at my house is when Trowa decides to have a naked day. And for whatever reason, Takeru has gotten it into his head that not wearing pants is a good thing. I think it's because Daddy keeps forgetting where he puts his pants. But Mom always knows where they are.
I can't understand how this teacher can be so boring and yet keep me so awake at the same time. It has got to be the most confusing thing I've ever tried to understand, and whatever Tai and Mat do up in their room that I can hear a floor down and around the corner is pretty hard to guess too. I sigh and flop back in the chair. These damn chairs are so hard! I look around our class, but I'm thinking about the people who live at home with me and how weird they are. But I guess I love them for that.
There's my mom, who all the guys have a crush on, and she is pretty I guess. But she's still my mom. Daddy is a "trigger-happy, spandex-wearing humanoid", to quote my aunt Thorne, who has a thing for gay guys and Chinese and roses. This is why my cousin Mat is gay; at least that's what I think. And Tai's parents, Quatre and Trowa, are both gay so I mean, come on! Why am I related to all these gay people? And TK's little girlfriend, Pan, isn't really anyone's kid, Duo just found her one day with his girlfriend Iris. And then there's this naked guy everyone calls Treize who will like hang from the rafters, popping down randomly, and squealing, "Dragon!" and then Wufei runs around in terror. I have one weird family. And my aunt Thorne and Daddy are out to get Daisuke. They think he steals Tai's panties. Which would seriously frighten me, but considering my family that isn't really as twisted as it seems.
At last the bell rings, and I run outside and link up with Davis and Miyako. Miyako and I are really good friends and actually, it was her who set Daisuke and I up. She has a crush on this guy who is really, really scary, his name is Ken and he thinks he's Doctor Evil, I swear to god! But hey, if Miyako likes him, who am I to judge? Well, turns out that Miyako and Ken are going out to the concert too! I am so glad! If Daisuke starts being idiotic, I can hang out with a girl. But I bet Daisuke will be wonderful, just like always. But really, I'm glad that more people are going to be with me. Especially guys because they're stronger then us girls, and these days we need to be strong.
See, there's this woman named Relena and she stalks my dad. She wants him to be in love with her, but as he's not, seeing as he's got two kids and a girlfriend that he's been going steady with for longer then my little brother's been alive, she's really jealous. So she and this cyberdoll named Mimi have plans to kill off my mother and family, and then like steal Daddy for her little sex-toy or something. But the scary thing is, Mimi's really smart. She's developed this toxin that kills a person's cells, and eventually they cease to function. The last muscle it affects is the heart. It is a slow, humiliating death, and her first victim, a poor little girl, died just two days ago. It only takes five days in most cases to kill a person. It took four for the little girl. There is only one known antidote, and currently it isn't in this county. I shudder to think about what would happen if anyone I love gets infected. It's a really frightening thought, it really is, and I can't bear it.
We walk home, talking happily like we always do, but I know it's empty chatter, because by the looks Miyako is giving me, I know she really wants to be alone with Ken. I totally understand and soon I steer Daisuke down a different street, one we don't usually walk down, so she can talk to Ken without an audience. Soon, I see houses I start to recognize, and Daisuke and I talk about stuff that doesn't matter; mostly about the concert and how cool M2M is. I really am glad that we get to go to this, I say, because M2M is my favourite band ever. Daisuke nods and wraps an arm around my waist. He is glad I'm happy and I know it. We keep walking until we hear a voice behind us. It is threatening and Daisuke instinctively pushes me a ways behind him. "What do you want?" I hear him, and his voice is angry. I look over his shoulder and I see who it is he's talking so harshly to. I take a sharp breath as I see her. It's her, it's Relena, and I go cold.
She laughs at Daisuke, and her laugh is cold. "Give me the girl," she says, gesturing to me. Daisuke is shaking with rage. "Never," he spits at her, and she just laughs again. That same chilling laugh. I make up my mind right there- if a snake could laugh, it'd sound like Relena. I know it. Then Relena reaches into her pocket and pulls out a bright, glittering something. I realize it's a hypodermic needle. I gasp, and I grip Daisuke's shoulders until my knuckles go white. "Oh, God, Daisuke, be careful," I hiss.
Relena wiggles the needle again. "Give me Heero's daughter, or I'll make sure you die a slow, painful death just like Sachi did." Sachi. That little girl. Shit. I shake Daisuke's shoulders. "Please, Dai-chan, c'mon, let's get out of here, c'mon," I mutter over and over, and I know I need to. It's a mantra, just like Uncle Wufei taught me. I need to get away, need to get Daisuke away, need to run. Run Kari just run! But I stand frozen to the spot. Then Relena steps towards Daisuke.
"One last time, child. I will not ask again." At that moment, several things happen at once. First, Daisuke shook his head and planted his feet. I yelled, "DAISUKE!". Relena stabbed at him with her needle. I pushed him aside. The needle hit right below his knee. He winced, his knee buckled, and he collapsed onto the pavement. He stared, open-mouth in horror, as Relena pushed the plunger and the green-yellow fluid entered his bloodstream. I just stood there, tears running down my face. Relena laughed again and turned to me. "Come with me, little one," she said in a smooth, pleasant voice. I growl at her and slap away her hand that she offers me. Her eyes widen a little, but she manages to gloss it over.
"You bitch," I hiss. Despite my gentle, violence-free nature, this bitch had hurt Daisuke. She would die. He would die, and it was her fault. "You ruined it! You ruined his life! He'll never be able to be normal now! Why? Why did you? I thought you wanted me! I'M HEERO YUY'S DAUGHTER, NOT HIM! WHAT DID HE DO, DAMN YOU?!" and now I snap. I can't stand it, I can't look at her without wanting to drag my nails over her cheek, and see her bleed, and I want her to feel so much pain. My hoarse yells have roused a neighbor; he comes out and it's my gym teacher. He sees Relena and I locked in a combat; he sees Daisuke on the ground, cradling his knee. He sucks in breath and draws a pistol.
"Get away from the girl, you," he waves it at Relena and she takes off, then he runs over to us. He looks at Daisuke, and now looks at me. "Did she-"
"Uh-huh," and now I start crying. I'm crying and I can't stop; Daisuke's going to die. Maybe not right away, maybe not for a very long while, but I'm looking at him, and I love him, and he's dying, or he will be soon. I'm getting dizzy from the crying and I have to sit down.
"Just stay there, Yuy-san, Motomiya-san, I'll be right back, I'll call your mother, Kari, she'll take you both home won't she?" I nod. He runs back into his house and grabs a phone. I can see him through the window. His mouth is moving very fast, and I'm sure that he's talking in rapid Japanese, because he can convey the message faster that way. I hope my mother can get here soon. Daisuke moans in pain and I sink down next to him. "Are you ok, Daisuke?"
He grins, though it looks more like a grimace, and says lightly, "Sure Kari, right as rain. We're still on for the concert, aren't we?"
"Davis…" depending on how fast this will poison him, he might not be here by Friday. He knows it too, but he's strong, and I'm so glad he's strong, even if it's only a front. Suddenly I think of something that brightens my face. He notices, because he says, "Is that a yes?" I just look at him, my excitement mounting.
"Washu," I say, "Washu! My auntie Washu!"
"Whoa, Auntie Washu?" he looks skeptical. "You mean that pink-haired scientist girl?"
I nod. "Yes! She can make anything, I bet I could ask her about the antidote, and I think she'll be able to! And Jun! She's studying to be a pharmacist, isn't she? We could ask her I'm sure she'd help," my words are a blur, and before I know it I'm talking to him about remedies in Spanish. Then I remember he doesn't speak Spanish, and I downshift back into English. "I'm sorry, but I want you to get better," I break down and start crying, and he wraps his arms around me, and he's crying too. And then tires squeal and I look up and Mom and Iris are jumping down from Mom's yellow Wrangler. They're running to us, and Mom lands on her knees on the pavement and hauls me to my feet.
"Hurry," she pants, and she helps me stand up. "We want to get out of here before Mimi comes. She's left your father's laptop," and her eyes flash. Iris is heaving Daisuke to his feet, and then Mom goes to help put him in the back. I scramble up next to him and I put his head in my lap, and steady it with my hands. I notice that I'm bleeding heavily from a cut on my arm but I don't care. I don't get any blood on Daisuke, and Mom floors it out and we're going home again.
It's Tuesday now, and he's still lying on my bed right now, but I'm calling Auntie Washu and she's telling me about it. She says she'll be right over, and I hang up, and go back to pacing my room. Jun is there, and so is his mother, but no one is speaking. TK is hugging his knees in the corner, and Pan is sleeping, all cried out. I wish I didn't have to cry. Why the hell did she go after Daisuke? Does she think she can make me all inferior if she takes away the boy I love? Well, she's right. I would gladly go to Relena and Mimi right now and surrender myself, if only they'd give Dai-chan the antidote and make him live. I don't want to sit here and watch him die, and then Washu comes in. She puts her hands on Dai's chest and sucks in her breath in the usual, "This is bad" kind of manner. I am at her side.
"What's wrong? Can you fix it! Auntie Washu!" I cling to her arm, and she pries me off gently.
"Hush, Hikari, I'm trying," she says gently, and I stare at Daisuke. He looks so pale, and so washed out, and Washu says that he's already lost ten pounds. Ten pounds, in not even a full day. I'm so upset I can't bear it, but I can't tear my gaze away from him. It's so sad. He's really skinny, and I can't help but see a picture in my mind of his heart stopping. I bury my face in my hands, and Jun puts an arm around my shoulders. She leads me out into the hallway and shows me a vial of reddish liquid. I am ecstatic. "Is that the antidote?"
"Sadly, no, and it gets worse," she says, looking truly miserable. "When my mother saw it, she injected Daisuke with it. But all this does," her voice breaks, "it speeds up the process. She probably shortened his life by two days." She starts crying and I am shocked. Two days. Two days earlier then he should have died. It's too much and I slam the bathroom door open. I find a bottle of sleeping pills. I swallow a mouthful without water and I pass out.
I wake up with Auntie Washu over me. She puts a case of grit back and she helps me up off the floor. "Nice try, but I wouldn't suggest suicide. Really, it's not worth it." She taps my nose with her pointer finger. "I think I've gotten this little problem figured out. What you need to get this one is a Aloe Plant. When you get one of those, then I can make the antidote.
"An aloe plant? In Maine?! Are you insane?"
"You most likely won't find it in time," she shakes her head. "He's down to sixty-five pounds. What did he weight before, a hundred round? I thought so. He's got six days, minus two because that silly cow gave him that speed-up," she huffs. "That makes four days. He won't be able to move his legs tomorrow. He probably can't feel them right now. He most likely won't wake up from his torpid state again, the chance he does is one in twenty-four million, two. I'm sorry, he's very cute, and he's got a good soul. I really think you two were meant to be."
"You can see that?"
"I can. And Hikari, I can also see this." She taps a finger on my chest. "Huh?" She smiles and pulls out a deep pink, tear-shaped amulet tied on a leather strap. She hands it to me.
"It's called the Evol," she explains. "It will help you during your darkest hour. Keep it safe, and wear it always," she drifted off. As she walks out the door, I ask her why she gave it to me. She smiles gently.
"You know, this isn't a new toxin. It's just been modified. It's the same one that killed my little boy, that's how I know what the antidote is. I didn't find it in time. He looked just like this young man," her voice quiets more, "and his name was Daisuke, too."
I stare after her and I wonder if all Daisuke's are cursed.
I've been quiet all day and TK hasn't left my lap. It seems he's almost as upset as I am, but Takeru always gets upset when something like this happens. I am looking at Tai and Mat; they decided that they were going to stay with me, but they were absorbed in their own little world. Right now Mat keeps running his hand through Tai's hair and murmuring nothings over and over again to his sleeping boyfriend. Quatre comes in, picks up Tai, and left again. I guess that he wants Tai to stay away from Daisuke. Mom takes TK from me and then when she leaves I can't help myself I start crying. You take my boyfriend, and now you take my brother? Where will it stop? I think that I'm being a little over-dramatic, but there's nothing I can do. I feel so violated right now.
Mat looks at my sorrowfully, then he says, "Oh, Hikari, come here," and I drag myself over to the sofa and he puts me in his lap and tucks my head under his chin, and strokes my hair. I never knew Mat was so good at comforting people, but I haven't really spent much time with him. "Shh, shh," he says gently, and then he's bringing my face to his, and he's kissing me, and I am liking it. Liking it?! How can I be doing this?! Here I am, Hikari Yagami Yuy-Ioshi, eleven years old, madly in love with Daisuke Motomiya who happens to be lying on my bed, losing weight at a dramatic rate and will die soon, and I'm here kissing a gay guy, who is my best friend, and my little friend has been taken away from me; and then it hits me that Mat is feeling just as alone as I am. I hold on him as tight as I can, and now he's kissing me again, and I don't want him to I want Daisuke to, but Daisuke's not going to wake up ever! Never again, and I sob and kiss him back. And then Mat's mother comes in.
"Oh my god," she says, staring at us. Mat looks at his mom. "Wait, Mom, I can explain," but she interrupts him, holding up her hand. "I know that you guys are all really stressed out right now. Trust me, we all are. You are trying to be comforted, Kari, but because the guy you love can't, you turned to your cousin. And when Tai left, Mat, you felt void of something and so you tried to make yourself, as well as Kari, feel better by letting off some tension by kissing, and it probably feels good for both of you. But you're best friends, not lovers. And really, Mat, you're gay, and Kari is spoken for. Now, both of you, get off your asses and go get that thing to help Daisuke, because I wouldn't want to be in your shoes for the world if Tai were to come in here." We know she's right and untangle ourselves from each other. When she leaves, Mat turns to me. "I'm sorry," he's red, but I stop him. "It's ok. It wasn't anything real. Just a kiss between friends." He nods, and is going to say something, when someone bursts in the room. A tall, blond boy I have never seen before in standing in the doorway, eyes wild with fright. He is wearing a kimono that could fit an eight-year-old, but it certainly didn't fit him. His eyes slid until they found me. He throws himself on me, and he was taller then me, and I collapse.
"Kari!" he cried, "Look what Auntie Washu did to me!" and I look at his crying face, and I recognize him. "Takeru..?!"
Auntie Washu comes in through the door. "TK! Get back here!" I look at my aunt. "What are you doing, Washu? Why is TK…old as me?!"
TK latched himself onto me. "Make her go away!" he hugs me and buries his face in my chest. And I don't know what comes over me but….I'm attracted to TK…
"Kari?" he asks, and I smooth his hair. I lean down to kiss him on the lips, and Mom walks in.
"Washu, I heard screaming, and-" she stares at us. "Who? Takeru? Kari?! Oh my god…" she just walks out of the room, and I push Takeru off of me and run after her. "Mom, wait! It's nothing, he was upset, I was trying to comfort him," the words are blurred as I am talking so fast and I switch into Spanish. We babble back in forth for a few minutes, and there is a flash, and TK in his now-baggy robe, now four, runs out and crotches me. "Kari!!! Daisuke woke up and ohhh he looks so awful!" TK is crying and I run back to the room.
Daisuke's eyes are open but they are flat and dull. His mouth is open and his breath comes harshly. Occasionally he coughs. I take his hand and I'm struck with how much he's changed. It's not even Wednesday, and he's down to sixty pounds, his skin is sallow and pale, drawn over her face, and he can no longer moved his feet or his left hand. He gently squeezes my hand with his right hand. He knows it's me, but he can hardly talk.
"Hikari," he says softly. "I'm so-sorry that I have to go," and his tears spill over. I gently wipe them away, amazed my hands aren't shaking. "Daisuke," I say, and my voice gives me away. This boy- this once healthy, exuberant, boy whom I love with all my heart!- is dying here. And there isn't a thing I can do about it. "I just want you to know, Ka-Kari," he is having trouble breathing, but he won't be silent. "That I love you s-so much. I must look gross," he takes a deep breath, "but could you…please…kiss me 'fore I'm gone, Kari?"
I look at him, and though his eyes are flat and losing their life, I am struck by how much he loves me, and how much I love him. And I lean down and kiss him, and then I know.
He's never going to get better. There is no antidote.
It's Wednesday now. Daisuke is no longer able to feel his torso. Someone can shoot him in the heart and he won't feel it. It is severely depressing to watch him deteriorate like this. Dai-chan was so strong, and now…now he's a shell of what he used to be. And every time I see him, I want to cry. I don't think I can take this anymore. I would give my life to Daisuke, and here he is, dying on my bed. I've slept with Mom for the last few days. But I leave at night, and I sit up in my room, and I watch him. Why, God? Why are you taking him away? We never got to have our kids. We were going to have two, a boy and a girl. We were going to have a dog, a beagle. He's going to miss so much! He'll never get to see Jun graduate from college. He'll never get to home base with me. We'll never get to go to the prom, he'll never get his license, never go on a bar crawl!
How the fuck can he die?
HE NEVER HAD A CHANCE TO LIVE!
I snap. I rip apart my room- I pop the curtains off the windows, I shatter my pictures, I punch my wall repeatedly. I kick my computer to pieces, and I drag my fingernails along my wall until I've scraped most of the paint off. Exhausted, I slump onto the ground, hurting inside and out. Suddenly, I pull Daisuke onto the floor with me, and I hold him there, and I realize again how fragile life is; Daisuke is dying…. he's dying in my arms. I cry onto him, and I know that there's nothing I can do. No one really understands this, not even Auntie Washu, no one. I know that this is the end. There's nothing anyone can do. Daisuke seemed so strong before, but now…. he's fading. I can see it here as I hold him, and I wish that the toxin was something tangible, something I could kill with my bare hands so it couldn't hurt him anymore. I'd give anything for him to live. I'd give my own life, but it's too late now. I never really appreciated him. It's true, the saying, then. We really don't know what we've got until it's gone.
It's Thursday, and everyone is feeling down, myself especially, because this is Daisuke's last day on this earth. My face is smooth because I've cried all I can. Dais looks peaceful, and I know that he no longer can move his body. He only breathes once every five minutes, and I can see his heart slowing. His eyes are open and vacant. I want to cry every time I look at him, but I can't. I won't cry anymore. He looks peaceful, and I stroke his forehead. He makes pitiful little whimpers whenever he breathes, and I know that he's trying to say something to me, and then Washu nods at us all. His mother buries her face in her hands and his father pats her inanely on her head. Jun has left; she said she suddenly remembered something and that she would be back soon. I look at Washu.
"So soon, Auntie?" and she nods again. I take Dai-chan's hand for the last time. He's lost so much more weight- Auntie Washu says he's probably only forty to fifty pounds. He can't even cry. She says, it's time, and I press my head against his chest. I hear his heart throb more slowly, and even more slowly. I hear it thump one last time, and then time passes and it doesn't pulse again. Washu checks his pulse; his breathing. All gone. He's all gone.
And now my tears fall. Everyone in the room is crying, but I'm the only one I can hear. The others have ceased to exist. Suddenly, the tear-shaped pendent around my neck starts to glow. I look at it, and suddenly I know what Auntie meant when she told me that it would help me in my darkest hour.
"Evol…Love…." I whisper and she smiles through her tears.
"I always knew you were smart, Hikari Yagami Yuy-Ioshi," and I smile in turn and I lean down and kiss Daisuke's corpse. The door flies open and Jun is there, a breathed prayer, and she runs to Dais and lays her head on his chest. I keep kissing him, half out of hope, half out of sadness, but it's all love, whatever it is. Jun is crying on his chest, moaning, "Daisuke…oh god....baby brother…uhuhh!?" she sits up suddenly. Everyone stares at her. She's shaking badly.
"Dais, Dais," she chants like a mantra, pointing at Daisuke, her hand shaking.
And I look, and from the corner of Daisuke's eyes spill glittering tears, and to me each one is more precious then a diamond.
*owari*
A/N: OK, this is a version of my Duo/Heero/Vero/Iris fiction, and personally I like this one better. It is also a crossover between Digimon/Escaflowne/Tenchi Muyo/Gundam Wing/and my own characters. "The Day You Went Away" is a song by M2M, and I love it. The "Evol" is based on Hitomi's "Mystic Pendent", from The Vision Of Escaflowne. Washu, Kari's "aunt" is from the trilogy series "Tenchi Muyo". I don't own anyone in this fic, except Vero. Thorne owns herself, god help up ^.^. If Iris was mentioned, note that Iris owns herself. If anyone can guess why Kari was so happy to see Daisuke start crying, well, then you're smarter then my little brother and sister. But who said that they were smart? I've been in a depressing mood lately. And I had to make Kari make out with people. Sorry. I hope you liked! Thorne this is for you because you've been bugging me for a while about this! Talk to you guys later!
----Miika Saa-Saa
Hikari's POV
A/N- this is a depressing thing I wrote. It makes no sense. Kari is Mat's cousin, Tai's cousin, TK's cousin, Washu's neice, glows randomly....guess I better say that it's a Daikari.
Anywhoo, it's about every anime you can think of crossed- I'll see if you can figure it out. I own Vero, Iris, and Thorne. Enjoy, R&R!
Kari-
Hey, can you come with me to the concert Friday night? Mat and Tai are going, and they invited me and you to go. So what do you think? Give me a holler. Love ya, Daisuke
II sigh happily and flip over the scrap of paper. It's Monday and I need something to look foreword to. Pulling out my ballpoint pen, I scrawl a hasty reply.
Dai-chan-
Yeah, I'd love to go! I'll catch a ride with the guys and I'll meet you there! Love, Kari.
Finally something to look foreword to! Everything has been so boring lately- the only fun stuff at my house is when Trowa decides to have a naked day. And for whatever reason, Takeru has gotten it into his head that not wearing pants is a good thing. I think it's because Daddy keeps forgetting where he puts his pants. But Mom always knows where they are.
I can't understand how this teacher can be so boring and yet keep me so awake at the same time. It has got to be the most confusing thing I've ever tried to understand, and whatever Tai and Mat do up in their room that I can hear a floor down and around the corner is pretty hard to guess too. I sigh and flop back in the chair. These damn chairs are so hard! I look around our class, but I'm thinking about the people who live at home with me and how weird they are. But I guess I love them for that.
There's my mom, who all the guys have a crush on, and she is pretty I guess. But she's still my mom. Daddy is a "trigger-happy, spandex-wearing humanoid", to quote my aunt Thorne, who has a thing for gay guys and Chinese and roses. This is why my cousin Mat is gay; at least that's what I think. And Tai's parents, Quatre and Trowa, are both gay so I mean, come on! Why am I related to all these gay people? And TK's little girlfriend, Pan, isn't really anyone's kid, Duo just found her one day with his girlfriend Iris. And then there's this naked guy everyone calls Treize who will like hang from the rafters, popping down randomly, and squealing, "Dragon!" and then Wufei runs around in terror. I have one weird family. And my aunt Thorne and Daddy are out to get Daisuke. They think he steals Tai's panties. Which would seriously frighten me, but considering my family that isn't really as twisted as it seems.
At last the bell rings, and I run outside and link up with Davis and Miyako. Miyako and I are really good friends and actually, it was her who set Daisuke and I up. She has a crush on this guy who is really, really scary, his name is Ken and he thinks he's Doctor Evil, I swear to god! But hey, if Miyako likes him, who am I to judge? Well, turns out that Miyako and Ken are going out to the concert too! I am so glad! If Daisuke starts being idiotic, I can hang out with a girl. But I bet Daisuke will be wonderful, just like always. But really, I'm glad that more people are going to be with me. Especially guys because they're stronger then us girls, and these days we need to be strong.
See, there's this woman named Relena and she stalks my dad. She wants him to be in love with her, but as he's not, seeing as he's got two kids and a girlfriend that he's been going steady with for longer then my little brother's been alive, she's really jealous. So she and this cyberdoll named Mimi have plans to kill off my mother and family, and then like steal Daddy for her little sex-toy or something. But the scary thing is, Mimi's really smart. She's developed this toxin that kills a person's cells, and eventually they cease to function. The last muscle it affects is the heart. It is a slow, humiliating death, and her first victim, a poor little girl, died just two days ago. It only takes five days in most cases to kill a person. It took four for the little girl. There is only one known antidote, and currently it isn't in this county. I shudder to think about what would happen if anyone I love gets infected. It's a really frightening thought, it really is, and I can't bear it.
We walk home, talking happily like we always do, but I know it's empty chatter, because by the looks Miyako is giving me, I know she really wants to be alone with Ken. I totally understand and soon I steer Daisuke down a different street, one we don't usually walk down, so she can talk to Ken without an audience. Soon, I see houses I start to recognize, and Daisuke and I talk about stuff that doesn't matter; mostly about the concert and how cool M2M is. I really am glad that we get to go to this, I say, because M2M is my favourite band ever. Daisuke nods and wraps an arm around my waist. He is glad I'm happy and I know it. We keep walking until we hear a voice behind us. It is threatening and Daisuke instinctively pushes me a ways behind him. "What do you want?" I hear him, and his voice is angry. I look over his shoulder and I see who it is he's talking so harshly to. I take a sharp breath as I see her. It's her, it's Relena, and I go cold.
She laughs at Daisuke, and her laugh is cold. "Give me the girl," she says, gesturing to me. Daisuke is shaking with rage. "Never," he spits at her, and she just laughs again. That same chilling laugh. I make up my mind right there- if a snake could laugh, it'd sound like Relena. I know it. Then Relena reaches into her pocket and pulls out a bright, glittering something. I realize it's a hypodermic needle. I gasp, and I grip Daisuke's shoulders until my knuckles go white. "Oh, God, Daisuke, be careful," I hiss.
Relena wiggles the needle again. "Give me Heero's daughter, or I'll make sure you die a slow, painful death just like Sachi did." Sachi. That little girl. Shit. I shake Daisuke's shoulders. "Please, Dai-chan, c'mon, let's get out of here, c'mon," I mutter over and over, and I know I need to. It's a mantra, just like Uncle Wufei taught me. I need to get away, need to get Daisuke away, need to run. Run Kari just run! But I stand frozen to the spot. Then Relena steps towards Daisuke.
"One last time, child. I will not ask again." At that moment, several things happen at once. First, Daisuke shook his head and planted his feet. I yelled, "DAISUKE!". Relena stabbed at him with her needle. I pushed him aside. The needle hit right below his knee. He winced, his knee buckled, and he collapsed onto the pavement. He stared, open-mouth in horror, as Relena pushed the plunger and the green-yellow fluid entered his bloodstream. I just stood there, tears running down my face. Relena laughed again and turned to me. "Come with me, little one," she said in a smooth, pleasant voice. I growl at her and slap away her hand that she offers me. Her eyes widen a little, but she manages to gloss it over.
"You bitch," I hiss. Despite my gentle, violence-free nature, this bitch had hurt Daisuke. She would die. He would die, and it was her fault. "You ruined it! You ruined his life! He'll never be able to be normal now! Why? Why did you? I thought you wanted me! I'M HEERO YUY'S DAUGHTER, NOT HIM! WHAT DID HE DO, DAMN YOU?!" and now I snap. I can't stand it, I can't look at her without wanting to drag my nails over her cheek, and see her bleed, and I want her to feel so much pain. My hoarse yells have roused a neighbor; he comes out and it's my gym teacher. He sees Relena and I locked in a combat; he sees Daisuke on the ground, cradling his knee. He sucks in breath and draws a pistol.
"Get away from the girl, you," he waves it at Relena and she takes off, then he runs over to us. He looks at Daisuke, and now looks at me. "Did she-"
"Uh-huh," and now I start crying. I'm crying and I can't stop; Daisuke's going to die. Maybe not right away, maybe not for a very long while, but I'm looking at him, and I love him, and he's dying, or he will be soon. I'm getting dizzy from the crying and I have to sit down.
"Just stay there, Yuy-san, Motomiya-san, I'll be right back, I'll call your mother, Kari, she'll take you both home won't she?" I nod. He runs back into his house and grabs a phone. I can see him through the window. His mouth is moving very fast, and I'm sure that he's talking in rapid Japanese, because he can convey the message faster that way. I hope my mother can get here soon. Daisuke moans in pain and I sink down next to him. "Are you ok, Daisuke?"
He grins, though it looks more like a grimace, and says lightly, "Sure Kari, right as rain. We're still on for the concert, aren't we?"
"Davis…" depending on how fast this will poison him, he might not be here by Friday. He knows it too, but he's strong, and I'm so glad he's strong, even if it's only a front. Suddenly I think of something that brightens my face. He notices, because he says, "Is that a yes?" I just look at him, my excitement mounting.
"Washu," I say, "Washu! My auntie Washu!"
"Whoa, Auntie Washu?" he looks skeptical. "You mean that pink-haired scientist girl?"
I nod. "Yes! She can make anything, I bet I could ask her about the antidote, and I think she'll be able to! And Jun! She's studying to be a pharmacist, isn't she? We could ask her I'm sure she'd help," my words are a blur, and before I know it I'm talking to him about remedies in Spanish. Then I remember he doesn't speak Spanish, and I downshift back into English. "I'm sorry, but I want you to get better," I break down and start crying, and he wraps his arms around me, and he's crying too. And then tires squeal and I look up and Mom and Iris are jumping down from Mom's yellow Wrangler. They're running to us, and Mom lands on her knees on the pavement and hauls me to my feet.
"Hurry," she pants, and she helps me stand up. "We want to get out of here before Mimi comes. She's left your father's laptop," and her eyes flash. Iris is heaving Daisuke to his feet, and then Mom goes to help put him in the back. I scramble up next to him and I put his head in my lap, and steady it with my hands. I notice that I'm bleeding heavily from a cut on my arm but I don't care. I don't get any blood on Daisuke, and Mom floors it out and we're going home again.
It's Tuesday now, and he's still lying on my bed right now, but I'm calling Auntie Washu and she's telling me about it. She says she'll be right over, and I hang up, and go back to pacing my room. Jun is there, and so is his mother, but no one is speaking. TK is hugging his knees in the corner, and Pan is sleeping, all cried out. I wish I didn't have to cry. Why the hell did she go after Daisuke? Does she think she can make me all inferior if she takes away the boy I love? Well, she's right. I would gladly go to Relena and Mimi right now and surrender myself, if only they'd give Dai-chan the antidote and make him live. I don't want to sit here and watch him die, and then Washu comes in. She puts her hands on Dai's chest and sucks in her breath in the usual, "This is bad" kind of manner. I am at her side.
"What's wrong? Can you fix it! Auntie Washu!" I cling to her arm, and she pries me off gently.
"Hush, Hikari, I'm trying," she says gently, and I stare at Daisuke. He looks so pale, and so washed out, and Washu says that he's already lost ten pounds. Ten pounds, in not even a full day. I'm so upset I can't bear it, but I can't tear my gaze away from him. It's so sad. He's really skinny, and I can't help but see a picture in my mind of his heart stopping. I bury my face in my hands, and Jun puts an arm around my shoulders. She leads me out into the hallway and shows me a vial of reddish liquid. I am ecstatic. "Is that the antidote?"
"Sadly, no, and it gets worse," she says, looking truly miserable. "When my mother saw it, she injected Daisuke with it. But all this does," her voice breaks, "it speeds up the process. She probably shortened his life by two days." She starts crying and I am shocked. Two days. Two days earlier then he should have died. It's too much and I slam the bathroom door open. I find a bottle of sleeping pills. I swallow a mouthful without water and I pass out.
I wake up with Auntie Washu over me. She puts a case of grit back and she helps me up off the floor. "Nice try, but I wouldn't suggest suicide. Really, it's not worth it." She taps my nose with her pointer finger. "I think I've gotten this little problem figured out. What you need to get this one is a Aloe Plant. When you get one of those, then I can make the antidote.
"An aloe plant? In Maine?! Are you insane?"
"You most likely won't find it in time," she shakes her head. "He's down to sixty-five pounds. What did he weight before, a hundred round? I thought so. He's got six days, minus two because that silly cow gave him that speed-up," she huffs. "That makes four days. He won't be able to move his legs tomorrow. He probably can't feel them right now. He most likely won't wake up from his torpid state again, the chance he does is one in twenty-four million, two. I'm sorry, he's very cute, and he's got a good soul. I really think you two were meant to be."
"You can see that?"
"I can. And Hikari, I can also see this." She taps a finger on my chest. "Huh?" She smiles and pulls out a deep pink, tear-shaped amulet tied on a leather strap. She hands it to me.
"It's called the Evol," she explains. "It will help you during your darkest hour. Keep it safe, and wear it always," she drifted off. As she walks out the door, I ask her why she gave it to me. She smiles gently.
"You know, this isn't a new toxin. It's just been modified. It's the same one that killed my little boy, that's how I know what the antidote is. I didn't find it in time. He looked just like this young man," her voice quiets more, "and his name was Daisuke, too."
I stare after her and I wonder if all Daisuke's are cursed.
I've been quiet all day and TK hasn't left my lap. It seems he's almost as upset as I am, but Takeru always gets upset when something like this happens. I am looking at Tai and Mat; they decided that they were going to stay with me, but they were absorbed in their own little world. Right now Mat keeps running his hand through Tai's hair and murmuring nothings over and over again to his sleeping boyfriend. Quatre comes in, picks up Tai, and left again. I guess that he wants Tai to stay away from Daisuke. Mom takes TK from me and then when she leaves I can't help myself I start crying. You take my boyfriend, and now you take my brother? Where will it stop? I think that I'm being a little over-dramatic, but there's nothing I can do. I feel so violated right now.
Mat looks at my sorrowfully, then he says, "Oh, Hikari, come here," and I drag myself over to the sofa and he puts me in his lap and tucks my head under his chin, and strokes my hair. I never knew Mat was so good at comforting people, but I haven't really spent much time with him. "Shh, shh," he says gently, and then he's bringing my face to his, and he's kissing me, and I am liking it. Liking it?! How can I be doing this?! Here I am, Hikari Yagami Yuy-Ioshi, eleven years old, madly in love with Daisuke Motomiya who happens to be lying on my bed, losing weight at a dramatic rate and will die soon, and I'm here kissing a gay guy, who is my best friend, and my little friend has been taken away from me; and then it hits me that Mat is feeling just as alone as I am. I hold on him as tight as I can, and now he's kissing me again, and I don't want him to I want Daisuke to, but Daisuke's not going to wake up ever! Never again, and I sob and kiss him back. And then Mat's mother comes in.
"Oh my god," she says, staring at us. Mat looks at his mom. "Wait, Mom, I can explain," but she interrupts him, holding up her hand. "I know that you guys are all really stressed out right now. Trust me, we all are. You are trying to be comforted, Kari, but because the guy you love can't, you turned to your cousin. And when Tai left, Mat, you felt void of something and so you tried to make yourself, as well as Kari, feel better by letting off some tension by kissing, and it probably feels good for both of you. But you're best friends, not lovers. And really, Mat, you're gay, and Kari is spoken for. Now, both of you, get off your asses and go get that thing to help Daisuke, because I wouldn't want to be in your shoes for the world if Tai were to come in here." We know she's right and untangle ourselves from each other. When she leaves, Mat turns to me. "I'm sorry," he's red, but I stop him. "It's ok. It wasn't anything real. Just a kiss between friends." He nods, and is going to say something, when someone bursts in the room. A tall, blond boy I have never seen before in standing in the doorway, eyes wild with fright. He is wearing a kimono that could fit an eight-year-old, but it certainly didn't fit him. His eyes slid until they found me. He throws himself on me, and he was taller then me, and I collapse.
"Kari!" he cried, "Look what Auntie Washu did to me!" and I look at his crying face, and I recognize him. "Takeru..?!"
Auntie Washu comes in through the door. "TK! Get back here!" I look at my aunt. "What are you doing, Washu? Why is TK…old as me?!"
TK latched himself onto me. "Make her go away!" he hugs me and buries his face in my chest. And I don't know what comes over me but….I'm attracted to TK…
"Kari?" he asks, and I smooth his hair. I lean down to kiss him on the lips, and Mom walks in.
"Washu, I heard screaming, and-" she stares at us. "Who? Takeru? Kari?! Oh my god…" she just walks out of the room, and I push Takeru off of me and run after her. "Mom, wait! It's nothing, he was upset, I was trying to comfort him," the words are blurred as I am talking so fast and I switch into Spanish. We babble back in forth for a few minutes, and there is a flash, and TK in his now-baggy robe, now four, runs out and crotches me. "Kari!!! Daisuke woke up and ohhh he looks so awful!" TK is crying and I run back to the room.
Daisuke's eyes are open but they are flat and dull. His mouth is open and his breath comes harshly. Occasionally he coughs. I take his hand and I'm struck with how much he's changed. It's not even Wednesday, and he's down to sixty pounds, his skin is sallow and pale, drawn over her face, and he can no longer moved his feet or his left hand. He gently squeezes my hand with his right hand. He knows it's me, but he can hardly talk.
"Hikari," he says softly. "I'm so-sorry that I have to go," and his tears spill over. I gently wipe them away, amazed my hands aren't shaking. "Daisuke," I say, and my voice gives me away. This boy- this once healthy, exuberant, boy whom I love with all my heart!- is dying here. And there isn't a thing I can do about it. "I just want you to know, Ka-Kari," he is having trouble breathing, but he won't be silent. "That I love you s-so much. I must look gross," he takes a deep breath, "but could you…please…kiss me 'fore I'm gone, Kari?"
I look at him, and though his eyes are flat and losing their life, I am struck by how much he loves me, and how much I love him. And I lean down and kiss him, and then I know.
He's never going to get better. There is no antidote.
It's Wednesday now. Daisuke is no longer able to feel his torso. Someone can shoot him in the heart and he won't feel it. It is severely depressing to watch him deteriorate like this. Dai-chan was so strong, and now…now he's a shell of what he used to be. And every time I see him, I want to cry. I don't think I can take this anymore. I would give my life to Daisuke, and here he is, dying on my bed. I've slept with Mom for the last few days. But I leave at night, and I sit up in my room, and I watch him. Why, God? Why are you taking him away? We never got to have our kids. We were going to have two, a boy and a girl. We were going to have a dog, a beagle. He's going to miss so much! He'll never get to see Jun graduate from college. He'll never get to home base with me. We'll never get to go to the prom, he'll never get his license, never go on a bar crawl!
How the fuck can he die?
HE NEVER HAD A CHANCE TO LIVE!
I snap. I rip apart my room- I pop the curtains off the windows, I shatter my pictures, I punch my wall repeatedly. I kick my computer to pieces, and I drag my fingernails along my wall until I've scraped most of the paint off. Exhausted, I slump onto the ground, hurting inside and out. Suddenly, I pull Daisuke onto the floor with me, and I hold him there, and I realize again how fragile life is; Daisuke is dying…. he's dying in my arms. I cry onto him, and I know that there's nothing I can do. No one really understands this, not even Auntie Washu, no one. I know that this is the end. There's nothing anyone can do. Daisuke seemed so strong before, but now…. he's fading. I can see it here as I hold him, and I wish that the toxin was something tangible, something I could kill with my bare hands so it couldn't hurt him anymore. I'd give anything for him to live. I'd give my own life, but it's too late now. I never really appreciated him. It's true, the saying, then. We really don't know what we've got until it's gone.
It's Thursday, and everyone is feeling down, myself especially, because this is Daisuke's last day on this earth. My face is smooth because I've cried all I can. Dais looks peaceful, and I know that he no longer can move his body. He only breathes once every five minutes, and I can see his heart slowing. His eyes are open and vacant. I want to cry every time I look at him, but I can't. I won't cry anymore. He looks peaceful, and I stroke his forehead. He makes pitiful little whimpers whenever he breathes, and I know that he's trying to say something to me, and then Washu nods at us all. His mother buries her face in her hands and his father pats her inanely on her head. Jun has left; she said she suddenly remembered something and that she would be back soon. I look at Washu.
"So soon, Auntie?" and she nods again. I take Dai-chan's hand for the last time. He's lost so much more weight- Auntie Washu says he's probably only forty to fifty pounds. He can't even cry. She says, it's time, and I press my head against his chest. I hear his heart throb more slowly, and even more slowly. I hear it thump one last time, and then time passes and it doesn't pulse again. Washu checks his pulse; his breathing. All gone. He's all gone.
And now my tears fall. Everyone in the room is crying, but I'm the only one I can hear. The others have ceased to exist. Suddenly, the tear-shaped pendent around my neck starts to glow. I look at it, and suddenly I know what Auntie meant when she told me that it would help me in my darkest hour.
"Evol…Love…." I whisper and she smiles through her tears.
"I always knew you were smart, Hikari Yagami Yuy-Ioshi," and I smile in turn and I lean down and kiss Daisuke's corpse. The door flies open and Jun is there, a breathed prayer, and she runs to Dais and lays her head on his chest. I keep kissing him, half out of hope, half out of sadness, but it's all love, whatever it is. Jun is crying on his chest, moaning, "Daisuke…oh god....baby brother…uhuhh!?" she sits up suddenly. Everyone stares at her. She's shaking badly.
"Dais, Dais," she chants like a mantra, pointing at Daisuke, her hand shaking.
And I look, and from the corner of Daisuke's eyes spill glittering tears, and to me each one is more precious then a diamond.
*owari*
A/N: OK, this is a version of my Duo/Heero/Vero/Iris fiction, and personally I like this one better. It is also a crossover between Digimon/Escaflowne/Tenchi Muyo/Gundam Wing/and my own characters. "The Day You Went Away" is a song by M2M, and I love it. The "Evol" is based on Hitomi's "Mystic Pendent", from The Vision Of Escaflowne. Washu, Kari's "aunt" is from the trilogy series "Tenchi Muyo". I don't own anyone in this fic, except Vero. Thorne owns herself, god help up ^.^. If Iris was mentioned, note that Iris owns herself. If anyone can guess why Kari was so happy to see Daisuke start crying, well, then you're smarter then my little brother and sister. But who said that they were smart? I've been in a depressing mood lately. And I had to make Kari make out with people. Sorry. I hope you liked! Thorne this is for you because you've been bugging me for a while about this! Talk to you guys later!
----Miika Saa-Saa