Yes, another AU Gundam Wing fic by yours truly. This one's fairly dark,
but I don't intend to put any suicide in it. Yet. I might later. You
know how my stories are. They have friggin minds of their own...
Also, I HAVE NOTHING AGAINST DUO. If I make him the victim all the time, it's because he makes a good fucking victim! If you flame me because of what happens to Duo, I'll put you in the story and let you get beat up instead!
Okay, no I won't. In fact, flame me all you want. Because as the saying goes, 'That which does not kill me will be the basis for my revenge.'
I also have nothing against Wufei, but... okay, I do have something against Wufei. A lot of somethings. Wufei fans have been warned.
Also, I wrote the narrative Duo reads in the beginning of this chapter. Any and all poetry in this story is mine, unless otherwise stated. Please don't steal any of it.
Last note, I swear. I have some characters from my friend Neil's comic, Niemagina. Their names are Seth, Chad, Lien, and Beck. Seth's the only one in this chapter. I have a picture of them, if you're one of those who need to be able to put a face to a character. Just say you'd like to see it in your review, and I'll send it to you.
And that's everything. Let's get on with the story, shall we?
"'Voices. I... hear voices. It's been so long since the last ones. So very, very long...their mere existence is balm to my aching soul...
These voices are louder than the others... they are nearer, more sharply defined. There is a man... two women... and one so young that the voice could be male or female. It is difficult to tell from where I am buried, far beneath this dead planet's surface.
'I think there's something here, Dad.' One of the female voices says, tinged with the gold of triumph and satisfaction.
There is! I want to scream. I want to tell them I am here, that I am alive. But I cannot. The shields and spells... they are too strong for me. I cannot break them. I can only wait helplessly for them to find me.
'Let me see.' The male voice says doubtfully. It's probably just a rock or something.
'I'm bored.' The youngest voice complains. 'There ain't nuthin here. Let's just go already.'
I become desperate at the thought of being left alone again. I do not want them to leave before they find me. I fight against my psychic prison, though I know it to be useless.
Then, for the first time in eons, I hear the crumble of rock and feel the hot, blazing suns touch my flesh. I want to cry with relief. They have found me. They have found me at last...'"
The tall, lanky boy sat down almost before he'd finished speaking, his face deep red at the attention of his classmates. As soon as he was seated, he grabbed the end of his long brown braid, fingering the rubber band nervously.
"That was lovely, Mr. Maxwell." The teacher, a tall man with short ginger hair, said, nodding his approval. "That, my friends, was creative writing. Who else wants to read theirs?"
Most of the students groaned and slouched in their seats; they knew that, like the boy, they had no say in whether they read theirs or not.
"How about... Miss Noin? Yours was very nice."
"Do I have to, Mr. Kushranada?" The dark haired girl near the back whined, slouching even further.
"Come now, my dear! If Mr. Maxwell can stand up and read something for the class, so can you!"
And it was true. Everyone agreed that Duo Maxwell was by far the shiest student in the school. He never did anything to attract attention unless a teacher made him, and even then it took some coaxing.
"Oh, Fine." The girl sighed, pushing herself to her feet. "If I must." She cleared her throat self-consciously and began to read her own creative writing assignment. "'Not many people noticed Ann when she was there...'"
"Bet you really enjoyed that, Maxwell." A voice behind the boy with the braid said, sounding mean and ruthless. A tanned hand slammed his locker closed, almost catching his fingers. "You must of really loved showing us lesser beings up with your superior skills, huh?" The voice's owner, a dark Chinese boy with slick black hair pulled into a short tail, sneered at the brunette, his slanted eyes narrowed dangerously.
"N-no..." The boy stammered, looking down at the stack of books in his hands. "I...I wasn't try to... I mean...I..."
"You tick me off, you know that?" The Chinese boy said, knocking the books to the ground. "You're a fucking wimp, Maxwell. The sight of you makes me retch."
The brunette squatted to retrieve his things without a word, and the Chinese boy turned to go, kicking the brunette in the chest as he left. The brunette still said nothing, picking up his things and hurrying to his next class.
A young girl with long blond pigtails watched the exchange from her locker down the hall. She sighed to herself, her eyes downcast, as she closed her locker, wondering why the other students had to be so mean to the quiet brunette.
"Hey, Usagi." A kind voice near her said, and a hand landed on her shoulder. "You okay? You look down."
"I'm fine, Quatre-chan." Usagi said, smiling reassuringly at the blond boy next to her. "I was just... thinking."
"About?" Quatre pressed gently, his hand falling from her shoulder to her lower back.
"People." She said simply, pausing before elaborating. "Do you know Duo Maxwell? The freshman boy with the really long braid?"
"Who doesn't?" Quatre countered jokingly, smiling briefly before becoming serious again. "What about him?"
"Why is everyone so mean to him, Quatre-chan?" She asked plaintively, resting her head on the taller boy's shoulder as they walked through the halls. "He's never done anything to anyone, but they all make fun of him and bully him. It makes no sense."
"Maybe they're jealous." Quatre suggested, rubbing her back comfortingly.
"Jealous?" She repeated, sounding puzzled.
"Of his looks. His talent. His grades. There's a lot to be jealous of, if you're petty. All the single girls keep throwing themselves at him, he can get into any college he wants on scholarship without even trying, and he's a lyrical genius. You should have heard what he wrote for our creative writing class."
"What was the assignment?" She asked, diverted from her train of thought.
"Short narrative in the first person." He replied, smiling at her. "You of all people should know mine sucked, but his was literally a masterpiece..."
Duo trudged down the nearly empty street in the waning light of dusk. He shifted his backpack to a more comfortable position as he reviewed the day in his head. The streetlights flickered on, and he quickened his pace, hoping to be home before full dark. He'd had a rough day, and he didn't want to add being jumped to his list of misfortunes. He'd much rather get home, do his homework, and take a long, hot bath before going to bed.
Unfortunately, Fate seemed to have it in for him that day.
Three shadows separated themselves from a nearby building and positioned themselves in front of him, behind him, and to the left. He stopped under a streetlight and the shadows stopped as well.
"Well, well, well." The shadow in front of him said, stepping closer and becoming the Chinese boy from earlier. "If it isn't Mr. Maxwell, the world's biggest wimp. Where's your mommy? Shouldn't she be walking you home?"
Duo winced at the mention of a mother. He didn't have parents; he couldn't even remember his parents, beyond a warm feeling of comfort, love, and belonging.
The boy behind him pushed Duo hard, shoving him into the Chinese boy, who shoved him back with a look of mock-disgust.
"Eww!" He said, faking wiping something off his shirt. "It touched me!"
"Please..." Duo said quietly. "Please just leave me alone, okay?"
"Aww, he even said please." The third shadow said mockingly. "Should we honor that request, Wufei?"
The Chinese boy looked thoughtful for a moment, then shook his head. "No, we can't do that, I'm afraid." He said, smiling. "We owe Maxwell the beating he's had coming since day one."
"True." A fist connected hard with the back of Duo's neck, knocking him to his knees and graying his vision.
Wufei studied Duo for a moment, then kicked him in the chin, sending him flying into the second boy's legs.
From there, things didn't get much better.
A tall boy with medium brown hair swept over one eye hurried down the deserted sidewalk, his sneakers slapping the pavement with each step. His visible eye was closed, but he somehow dodged every obstacle in his path, including a downed garbage can and a low wall. He seemed to be heading somewhere specific, but didn't know the way. He slowed at every corner before turning and running down the next street.
Another boy joined him, this one with spiky black hair and dark red eyes that seemed to glow from within.
"Open your eyes before I push you into something." The dark-haired boy snapped, and the brunette obediently opened his emerald eyes.
"Are you feeling this, Seth?" He asked.
"Turn right." Seth said before the other boy could slow at the corner. "And if by 'this' you mean the demon somewhere in this city that's about to go killing-crazy, hell yeah, I'm feelin it. Why the hell else would I be runnin all over with your sorry Unabang ass?"
"I'm hurt, Seth." The other boy said in a soft monotone. "Really hurt. Which way."
"Left."
"What d'ya think, Trowa?" Seth asked, staring down at the bloody mess of a body lying facedown near the entrance of the alley. "Should we kill him now and put him out of his misery? Or take him to a hospital? I vote we kill him."
"We aren't going to kill him." Trowa said calmly, used to Seth's morbid brand of humor and way of thinking. "I'm going to take him to the hospital. You gonna come, or go home and kill Lien again?"
"As much as I'd love to kill that annoying chatterbox, he and that girl went to some sort of convention for the week. Something about anime or something, I think."
"Does that mean you're coming with?" Trowa asked, gently lifting the unconscious boy off the ground, trailing a long brown braid.
"Why not? Let's go."
The pretty young nurse at the reception desk in the emergency room simply stared at the trio walking into the room. That is, two of them were walking. The third one was being carried, and with good reason; he was out cold and covered in blood.
"My goodness!" She exclaimed, standing and hurrying around the large desk. "What happened to him?"
"He got his ass kicked, lady." The boy with dark, spiky hair dressed entirely in black snorted rudely. "Are you blind or something?"
"Seth..." The other boy said warningly, glaring at his friend. "We don't know what happened to him. We found him like this."
"Are you friends of his?" The nurse asked, waving them over to the desk and sitting behind it again.
"We don't even know him." The polite boy with the brown unabang said quietly. "Well, I do." A doctor said, seemingly appearing behind the boys. "His name's Duo Maxwell. He's in here at least once a week with some new injury. But no one's ever brought him in before. He usually just crawls in the door under his own power. C'mon. Let's go patch him up."
Duo woke slowly, aware that he was nestled in something soft and warm, kind of like a bed. Only he remembered Wufei and his buddies beating him up on the way home, and they certainly wouldn't have put him in a bed. So either he was hallucinating, or someone had found him. He really hoped it was the latter.
"Oh, good, you're awake." A familiar voice said cheerfully. "You really got it this time, didn't you?"
"Please not now, April." He begged, turning his huge violet eyes on the nurse. "I've got a really bad headache."
"Oh, all right." April said, still smiling wickedly. "I've got something for that with me, and then you have a visitor."
"A visitor?" Duo repeated, sitting himself up. Who would be visiting him?
"Yes. One of the boys that brought you in last night. He hasn't left yet, and said he wouldn't until he was sure you were all right." April sighed wistfully and blushed, staring into space. "Oh, I wish I could meet a man like him! He's such a little cutie..."
"April!" Duo moaned, burying his face in his hands. "Can you just send him in so I can thank him already?"
"Oh! Of course, Duo dear." The nurse turned on her toes and skipped happily out of the room to fetch her 'little cutie.'
"That woman..." Duo groaned, silently cursing whoever had let the girl through med school. She was entirely too braindead to be in a position to save someone's life.
The door to his room opened, and Duo looked up to find himself staring at a young teen with a very unusual hairstyle. His bangs all fell over one eye in a clean, smooth, sweep, hiding half of his face. He was dressed in a dark green turtleneck, white jeans, and brown boots.
"Good to see you're finally awake." The boy said quietly, closing the door. "I was worried."
"Yeah... I'm glad I'm awake, too." Duo said, smiling nervously. Strangers frightened him; he was extremely uncomfortable being alone with this boy. "Umm... my name's Duo."
"Trowa." Trowa said, still speaking just barely above a whisper. "What's your real name?"
"R-real name?" Duo repeated, getting a very bad feeling about where this was going. "I... I guess I d-don't have one if... if it's n-not Duo."
"Oh, yes you do." Trowa countered. "I'm not talking about your human name; I want to know what your demon name is."
"M-my d-d-demon name?"
"Yes. And don't try to tell me you're not a demon. You woke myself and a friend of mine up last night by coming to the brink of a killing frenzy." Trowa said calmly. "We would never have found you if you weren't a demon."
"But..." Duo hesitated a moment, not sure of what to say. "a-are you a...a demon, too?"
"Of course. That's the only way I would have been able to sense you. The name's Kerai. Now you gonna tell me yours, or am I gonna have to take it out of you?"
"Sh-Shinagami..." He finally stammered.
"You know, Shinagami, you came damned close to killing whoever kicked your ass last night. Why didn't you fight back?"
"I... I might h-hurt them, though." He protested, wincing under the hard stare the other demon bent on him.
"Looks like I'm gonna have to keep tabs on you, now that I've found you." Kerai sighed. "I'll see you later, Duo. Rest up."
Duo trudged up the steps of the school building, feeling self- conscious in the bandages still adorning his wrist, arm, and neck. He could feel the eyes of his fellow students on his back as he made his way to his locker. He hated the way everyone was looking at him, like they'd like to either tear him to pieces slowly or just outright kill him. It made him nervous when conversations stopped until he'd walked past the speakers. He regretted his decision to attend school, but it was too late to back out now. He was no coward. He wouldn't run away at the first little snag. He got his books and went to his homeroom, ignoring the looks people were throwing him, his mind on what Trowa had told him yesterday. Had he really almost killed Wufei? Was he really that dangerous? Could he really do that much damage, even trapped in the form of a human? "Hey, did you hear we're getting a new student?" Someone behind him demanded of a friend.
"It was pathetic, man." Wufei said. "The bitch didn't squeal once."
"Yeah." One of his buddies said. "Think he was too scared? Or just trying to be tough?"
"Maybe his voice box is defective." A third suggested. "Maxwell sure can whimper, though."
That was enough. Trowa now knew who was responsible for Duo's condition. If he was going to protect the gentle demon, he had to establish his place in this school. Now was as good a time as any, he decided, standing. He walked over to the little group and tapped the infamous Wufei on the shoulder.
"What?" Wufei snapped, whipping around to glare at Trowa. "In case you couldn't tell, newbie, I'm talking here. Go away."
"Not until you answer a question of mine." Trowa said quietly, clenching his fists against the urge to incinerate the arrogant Chinese boy.
"And what might that be?"
"This Maxwell I overheard you talking about. Would he happen to be Duo Maxwell?"
"How'd you guess?" Wufei asked, smiling viciously. The smile disappeared when Trowa grabbed him by the neck and slammed him into the wall with enough force to crack it.
"Making you the reason he almost died night before last." Trowa said, his voice still deathly calm. "Am I right?"
"S-so what if I am?" Wufei asked, keeping up his tough act as long as his feet were on the ground. When they left it, however, he started to panic just a little.
"I don't appreciate people attacking other people just because they're weaker, bastard." Trowa said, still calm as when he'd walked into the room. "I also don't appreciate being talked down to. Am I understood?"
Due to a severe lack of air, all Wufei could do was nod.
"Mr. Barton!" The teacher exclaimed, entering the classroom then. "Put Mr. Chang down this instant!"
Trowa let Wufei go, and he fell to the floor, gasping for air. "Keep this little talk in mind next time you want to use Duo for a punching bag." He warned before turning and walking calmly back to his seat.
"Are you serious?!" A girl squealed from below Duo's perch hidden in a large oak tree.
"Dead serious!" Her friend said as the two stopped in the shade to gossip. "He picked him up with one hand like it was nothing!"
"And this is because Wufei put Maxwell in the hospital two days ago?" The first girl pressed.
"Yes! They could be related! Or..." She paused dramatically until the suspense was too much for the other girl.
"Or what?" She demanded.
"Or maybe he's Maxwell's boyfriend who transferred here to protect him!"
Duo almost fell out of the tree. Him? With a boyfriend? And only one person had transferred to the school recently... Him with Trowa for a boyfriend? Oh, gods was that a scary thought.
And thus ends chapter one of Voices. It's called Voices for a reason. You'll find it out later. Review, people, or I shall never finish this story!
Also, I HAVE NOTHING AGAINST DUO. If I make him the victim all the time, it's because he makes a good fucking victim! If you flame me because of what happens to Duo, I'll put you in the story and let you get beat up instead!
Okay, no I won't. In fact, flame me all you want. Because as the saying goes, 'That which does not kill me will be the basis for my revenge.'
I also have nothing against Wufei, but... okay, I do have something against Wufei. A lot of somethings. Wufei fans have been warned.
Also, I wrote the narrative Duo reads in the beginning of this chapter. Any and all poetry in this story is mine, unless otherwise stated. Please don't steal any of it.
Last note, I swear. I have some characters from my friend Neil's comic, Niemagina. Their names are Seth, Chad, Lien, and Beck. Seth's the only one in this chapter. I have a picture of them, if you're one of those who need to be able to put a face to a character. Just say you'd like to see it in your review, and I'll send it to you.
And that's everything. Let's get on with the story, shall we?
"'Voices. I... hear voices. It's been so long since the last ones. So very, very long...their mere existence is balm to my aching soul...
These voices are louder than the others... they are nearer, more sharply defined. There is a man... two women... and one so young that the voice could be male or female. It is difficult to tell from where I am buried, far beneath this dead planet's surface.
'I think there's something here, Dad.' One of the female voices says, tinged with the gold of triumph and satisfaction.
There is! I want to scream. I want to tell them I am here, that I am alive. But I cannot. The shields and spells... they are too strong for me. I cannot break them. I can only wait helplessly for them to find me.
'Let me see.' The male voice says doubtfully. It's probably just a rock or something.
'I'm bored.' The youngest voice complains. 'There ain't nuthin here. Let's just go already.'
I become desperate at the thought of being left alone again. I do not want them to leave before they find me. I fight against my psychic prison, though I know it to be useless.
Then, for the first time in eons, I hear the crumble of rock and feel the hot, blazing suns touch my flesh. I want to cry with relief. They have found me. They have found me at last...'"
The tall, lanky boy sat down almost before he'd finished speaking, his face deep red at the attention of his classmates. As soon as he was seated, he grabbed the end of his long brown braid, fingering the rubber band nervously.
"That was lovely, Mr. Maxwell." The teacher, a tall man with short ginger hair, said, nodding his approval. "That, my friends, was creative writing. Who else wants to read theirs?"
Most of the students groaned and slouched in their seats; they knew that, like the boy, they had no say in whether they read theirs or not.
"How about... Miss Noin? Yours was very nice."
"Do I have to, Mr. Kushranada?" The dark haired girl near the back whined, slouching even further.
"Come now, my dear! If Mr. Maxwell can stand up and read something for the class, so can you!"
And it was true. Everyone agreed that Duo Maxwell was by far the shiest student in the school. He never did anything to attract attention unless a teacher made him, and even then it took some coaxing.
"Oh, Fine." The girl sighed, pushing herself to her feet. "If I must." She cleared her throat self-consciously and began to read her own creative writing assignment. "'Not many people noticed Ann when she was there...'"
"Bet you really enjoyed that, Maxwell." A voice behind the boy with the braid said, sounding mean and ruthless. A tanned hand slammed his locker closed, almost catching his fingers. "You must of really loved showing us lesser beings up with your superior skills, huh?" The voice's owner, a dark Chinese boy with slick black hair pulled into a short tail, sneered at the brunette, his slanted eyes narrowed dangerously.
"N-no..." The boy stammered, looking down at the stack of books in his hands. "I...I wasn't try to... I mean...I..."
"You tick me off, you know that?" The Chinese boy said, knocking the books to the ground. "You're a fucking wimp, Maxwell. The sight of you makes me retch."
The brunette squatted to retrieve his things without a word, and the Chinese boy turned to go, kicking the brunette in the chest as he left. The brunette still said nothing, picking up his things and hurrying to his next class.
A young girl with long blond pigtails watched the exchange from her locker down the hall. She sighed to herself, her eyes downcast, as she closed her locker, wondering why the other students had to be so mean to the quiet brunette.
"Hey, Usagi." A kind voice near her said, and a hand landed on her shoulder. "You okay? You look down."
"I'm fine, Quatre-chan." Usagi said, smiling reassuringly at the blond boy next to her. "I was just... thinking."
"About?" Quatre pressed gently, his hand falling from her shoulder to her lower back.
"People." She said simply, pausing before elaborating. "Do you know Duo Maxwell? The freshman boy with the really long braid?"
"Who doesn't?" Quatre countered jokingly, smiling briefly before becoming serious again. "What about him?"
"Why is everyone so mean to him, Quatre-chan?" She asked plaintively, resting her head on the taller boy's shoulder as they walked through the halls. "He's never done anything to anyone, but they all make fun of him and bully him. It makes no sense."
"Maybe they're jealous." Quatre suggested, rubbing her back comfortingly.
"Jealous?" She repeated, sounding puzzled.
"Of his looks. His talent. His grades. There's a lot to be jealous of, if you're petty. All the single girls keep throwing themselves at him, he can get into any college he wants on scholarship without even trying, and he's a lyrical genius. You should have heard what he wrote for our creative writing class."
"What was the assignment?" She asked, diverted from her train of thought.
"Short narrative in the first person." He replied, smiling at her. "You of all people should know mine sucked, but his was literally a masterpiece..."
Duo trudged down the nearly empty street in the waning light of dusk. He shifted his backpack to a more comfortable position as he reviewed the day in his head. The streetlights flickered on, and he quickened his pace, hoping to be home before full dark. He'd had a rough day, and he didn't want to add being jumped to his list of misfortunes. He'd much rather get home, do his homework, and take a long, hot bath before going to bed.
Unfortunately, Fate seemed to have it in for him that day.
Three shadows separated themselves from a nearby building and positioned themselves in front of him, behind him, and to the left. He stopped under a streetlight and the shadows stopped as well.
"Well, well, well." The shadow in front of him said, stepping closer and becoming the Chinese boy from earlier. "If it isn't Mr. Maxwell, the world's biggest wimp. Where's your mommy? Shouldn't she be walking you home?"
Duo winced at the mention of a mother. He didn't have parents; he couldn't even remember his parents, beyond a warm feeling of comfort, love, and belonging.
The boy behind him pushed Duo hard, shoving him into the Chinese boy, who shoved him back with a look of mock-disgust.
"Eww!" He said, faking wiping something off his shirt. "It touched me!"
"Please..." Duo said quietly. "Please just leave me alone, okay?"
"Aww, he even said please." The third shadow said mockingly. "Should we honor that request, Wufei?"
The Chinese boy looked thoughtful for a moment, then shook his head. "No, we can't do that, I'm afraid." He said, smiling. "We owe Maxwell the beating he's had coming since day one."
"True." A fist connected hard with the back of Duo's neck, knocking him to his knees and graying his vision.
Wufei studied Duo for a moment, then kicked him in the chin, sending him flying into the second boy's legs.
From there, things didn't get much better.
A tall boy with medium brown hair swept over one eye hurried down the deserted sidewalk, his sneakers slapping the pavement with each step. His visible eye was closed, but he somehow dodged every obstacle in his path, including a downed garbage can and a low wall. He seemed to be heading somewhere specific, but didn't know the way. He slowed at every corner before turning and running down the next street.
Another boy joined him, this one with spiky black hair and dark red eyes that seemed to glow from within.
"Open your eyes before I push you into something." The dark-haired boy snapped, and the brunette obediently opened his emerald eyes.
"Are you feeling this, Seth?" He asked.
"Turn right." Seth said before the other boy could slow at the corner. "And if by 'this' you mean the demon somewhere in this city that's about to go killing-crazy, hell yeah, I'm feelin it. Why the hell else would I be runnin all over with your sorry Unabang ass?"
"I'm hurt, Seth." The other boy said in a soft monotone. "Really hurt. Which way."
"Left."
"What d'ya think, Trowa?" Seth asked, staring down at the bloody mess of a body lying facedown near the entrance of the alley. "Should we kill him now and put him out of his misery? Or take him to a hospital? I vote we kill him."
"We aren't going to kill him." Trowa said calmly, used to Seth's morbid brand of humor and way of thinking. "I'm going to take him to the hospital. You gonna come, or go home and kill Lien again?"
"As much as I'd love to kill that annoying chatterbox, he and that girl went to some sort of convention for the week. Something about anime or something, I think."
"Does that mean you're coming with?" Trowa asked, gently lifting the unconscious boy off the ground, trailing a long brown braid.
"Why not? Let's go."
The pretty young nurse at the reception desk in the emergency room simply stared at the trio walking into the room. That is, two of them were walking. The third one was being carried, and with good reason; he was out cold and covered in blood.
"My goodness!" She exclaimed, standing and hurrying around the large desk. "What happened to him?"
"He got his ass kicked, lady." The boy with dark, spiky hair dressed entirely in black snorted rudely. "Are you blind or something?"
"Seth..." The other boy said warningly, glaring at his friend. "We don't know what happened to him. We found him like this."
"Are you friends of his?" The nurse asked, waving them over to the desk and sitting behind it again.
"We don't even know him." The polite boy with the brown unabang said quietly. "Well, I do." A doctor said, seemingly appearing behind the boys. "His name's Duo Maxwell. He's in here at least once a week with some new injury. But no one's ever brought him in before. He usually just crawls in the door under his own power. C'mon. Let's go patch him up."
Duo woke slowly, aware that he was nestled in something soft and warm, kind of like a bed. Only he remembered Wufei and his buddies beating him up on the way home, and they certainly wouldn't have put him in a bed. So either he was hallucinating, or someone had found him. He really hoped it was the latter.
"Oh, good, you're awake." A familiar voice said cheerfully. "You really got it this time, didn't you?"
"Please not now, April." He begged, turning his huge violet eyes on the nurse. "I've got a really bad headache."
"Oh, all right." April said, still smiling wickedly. "I've got something for that with me, and then you have a visitor."
"A visitor?" Duo repeated, sitting himself up. Who would be visiting him?
"Yes. One of the boys that brought you in last night. He hasn't left yet, and said he wouldn't until he was sure you were all right." April sighed wistfully and blushed, staring into space. "Oh, I wish I could meet a man like him! He's such a little cutie..."
"April!" Duo moaned, burying his face in his hands. "Can you just send him in so I can thank him already?"
"Oh! Of course, Duo dear." The nurse turned on her toes and skipped happily out of the room to fetch her 'little cutie.'
"That woman..." Duo groaned, silently cursing whoever had let the girl through med school. She was entirely too braindead to be in a position to save someone's life.
The door to his room opened, and Duo looked up to find himself staring at a young teen with a very unusual hairstyle. His bangs all fell over one eye in a clean, smooth, sweep, hiding half of his face. He was dressed in a dark green turtleneck, white jeans, and brown boots.
"Good to see you're finally awake." The boy said quietly, closing the door. "I was worried."
"Yeah... I'm glad I'm awake, too." Duo said, smiling nervously. Strangers frightened him; he was extremely uncomfortable being alone with this boy. "Umm... my name's Duo."
"Trowa." Trowa said, still speaking just barely above a whisper. "What's your real name?"
"R-real name?" Duo repeated, getting a very bad feeling about where this was going. "I... I guess I d-don't have one if... if it's n-not Duo."
"Oh, yes you do." Trowa countered. "I'm not talking about your human name; I want to know what your demon name is."
"M-my d-d-demon name?"
"Yes. And don't try to tell me you're not a demon. You woke myself and a friend of mine up last night by coming to the brink of a killing frenzy." Trowa said calmly. "We would never have found you if you weren't a demon."
"But..." Duo hesitated a moment, not sure of what to say. "a-are you a...a demon, too?"
"Of course. That's the only way I would have been able to sense you. The name's Kerai. Now you gonna tell me yours, or am I gonna have to take it out of you?"
"Sh-Shinagami..." He finally stammered.
"You know, Shinagami, you came damned close to killing whoever kicked your ass last night. Why didn't you fight back?"
"I... I might h-hurt them, though." He protested, wincing under the hard stare the other demon bent on him.
"Looks like I'm gonna have to keep tabs on you, now that I've found you." Kerai sighed. "I'll see you later, Duo. Rest up."
Duo trudged up the steps of the school building, feeling self- conscious in the bandages still adorning his wrist, arm, and neck. He could feel the eyes of his fellow students on his back as he made his way to his locker. He hated the way everyone was looking at him, like they'd like to either tear him to pieces slowly or just outright kill him. It made him nervous when conversations stopped until he'd walked past the speakers. He regretted his decision to attend school, but it was too late to back out now. He was no coward. He wouldn't run away at the first little snag. He got his books and went to his homeroom, ignoring the looks people were throwing him, his mind on what Trowa had told him yesterday. Had he really almost killed Wufei? Was he really that dangerous? Could he really do that much damage, even trapped in the form of a human? "Hey, did you hear we're getting a new student?" Someone behind him demanded of a friend.
"It was pathetic, man." Wufei said. "The bitch didn't squeal once."
"Yeah." One of his buddies said. "Think he was too scared? Or just trying to be tough?"
"Maybe his voice box is defective." A third suggested. "Maxwell sure can whimper, though."
That was enough. Trowa now knew who was responsible for Duo's condition. If he was going to protect the gentle demon, he had to establish his place in this school. Now was as good a time as any, he decided, standing. He walked over to the little group and tapped the infamous Wufei on the shoulder.
"What?" Wufei snapped, whipping around to glare at Trowa. "In case you couldn't tell, newbie, I'm talking here. Go away."
"Not until you answer a question of mine." Trowa said quietly, clenching his fists against the urge to incinerate the arrogant Chinese boy.
"And what might that be?"
"This Maxwell I overheard you talking about. Would he happen to be Duo Maxwell?"
"How'd you guess?" Wufei asked, smiling viciously. The smile disappeared when Trowa grabbed him by the neck and slammed him into the wall with enough force to crack it.
"Making you the reason he almost died night before last." Trowa said, his voice still deathly calm. "Am I right?"
"S-so what if I am?" Wufei asked, keeping up his tough act as long as his feet were on the ground. When they left it, however, he started to panic just a little.
"I don't appreciate people attacking other people just because they're weaker, bastard." Trowa said, still calm as when he'd walked into the room. "I also don't appreciate being talked down to. Am I understood?"
Due to a severe lack of air, all Wufei could do was nod.
"Mr. Barton!" The teacher exclaimed, entering the classroom then. "Put Mr. Chang down this instant!"
Trowa let Wufei go, and he fell to the floor, gasping for air. "Keep this little talk in mind next time you want to use Duo for a punching bag." He warned before turning and walking calmly back to his seat.
"Are you serious?!" A girl squealed from below Duo's perch hidden in a large oak tree.
"Dead serious!" Her friend said as the two stopped in the shade to gossip. "He picked him up with one hand like it was nothing!"
"And this is because Wufei put Maxwell in the hospital two days ago?" The first girl pressed.
"Yes! They could be related! Or..." She paused dramatically until the suspense was too much for the other girl.
"Or what?" She demanded.
"Or maybe he's Maxwell's boyfriend who transferred here to protect him!"
Duo almost fell out of the tree. Him? With a boyfriend? And only one person had transferred to the school recently... Him with Trowa for a boyfriend? Oh, gods was that a scary thought.
And thus ends chapter one of Voices. It's called Voices for a reason. You'll find it out later. Review, people, or I shall never finish this story!