Author notes: Heyla! This is my first posting on Fanfiction.net. ^^; In case anyone's wondering, I first posted this a _LONG_ time ago on the GWML, and I just decided to leave it with the original in-between-chapter comments intact. ^^;; Hopefully it's not too bad. . .
(*Coughs* And extreme apologies for the coding error. _ Teach me to check all of my stuff before posting it. . .)
Before reading, please go here first! http://www.angelfire.com/mo/CelebritySkin/painting.html
If you don't, you'll lose the freaky effect. ^^;;;; (Trust me: it is freaky indeed.)
Disclaimer: Not mine. . . yadda yadda yadda. . . making no money. . . yadda yadda yadda. . . no tengo dinero, so don't sue me!/P
*stares at what she's written and shudders* Okay... I have no idea why I'm
writing this... and I'm just scaring myself here... *turns wide pleading eyes
to the ML* Please tell me if this scares you as much as it scares me... I'm
not even looking at the pictures again! Not until daylight, atleast.
*shudders* Too weird. _Way_ too weird. And I just have this image of a little
girl crying out for that doll-thing... reaching for it... like those hands
behind them in the pictures. *shudders* I'm not going to sleep well
tonight....
Oh. Warnings: Weird architectural babbling, the beginnings of my first attempt
at horror, sorta-shounen-ai w/ 3 and 4, implied 2x1 relationship...
All right, I have no idea why I'm doing this, especially after one a.m. when
I'm *sniffs dramatically* all alone!
Ah well.... I think this'll actually be a mix of humor with the horror... Like
I could write a pure horror fic, anyways! *snorts derisively*
Broken Dolls
Part 1
"Ooo, isn't this place great?!" Duo gushed as he bounced down the
hallway-balcony.
The tower-turned-house was very very old, but it was large. The way it was
decorated was quite clearly remniscent of times before the colonies were even
a dream. The round tower was constructed so that the rooms were all shaped
like the outer portions of a wedge, all in a circle. The rooms all exited
onto a balcony that, in front of Duo's room, had stairs curling along the
walls down to the rather large foyer/ballroom. [1] Wufei's room was an
L-shape, allowing the attic stairs to end in a door onto the same balcony.
Next to the attic-stairs door was the all-important bathroom. [Gundam pilots
or no, whenever you take five people anywhere, the bathroom becomes an
important thing. And I speak from experience. -_-] On the groundfloor (since
there was a rather impressive set of steps leading to the door on the second
level of the house) was the kitchen, living room, and den.
"I mean, we all get our own rooms and everything!" He eyed Quatre, his most
recent ex-roommate. "Not that sharing rooms was really bad or anything. . ."
but he's a neat freak! At least Heero doesn't actually clean up my stuff. . .
He beamed. "Anyways, I get the room across from the stairs!"
Wufei smirked as he walked down the hall. "I'll take the room behind the attic
stairs. Then I won't be bothered by your noise when you roam at night,
Maxwell." [2]
Trowa shrugged and walked into the room next to Wufei's. Heero snorted and
took the room next to Duo's. No one paid the balcony or rooms a second look.
There was nothing more for them to see, and that, they thought, was that.
Later that night, however...
Quatre bolted straight upright, heart pounding. He was a Gundam pilot, so it
wasn't that easy to frighten him. Yet... he was scared beyond belief. He
gazed out his window. Moonlight shone through, and illuminated the cold
waters calmly meeting the rocky beach below. His room, however, remained too
dark for his taste. And far, far too cold.
He scrambled out of the unfamiliar bed and crept across the chill stone floor
to the door. He was halfway around the balcony to the bathroom when he
stopped in front of Trowa's door. Trowa. . . Without knowing precisely why,
he gently knocked on the door.
Trowa opened the door a moment later. He'd been unable to sleep, so, when the
knock came, he'd been quite ready for a distraction from staring at the
cieling. Not that he was likely to admit it. . . He opened the door, then
stared. His midnight visitor was deathly pale, eyes wide; the pale hand that
had just knocked on his door shook.
"Quatre. . . what happened?" He fought down a protective urge that took him by
surprise. This was Quatre- no, he was a Gundam pilot. Whatever was wrong, it
had to be substantial. But he was _Quatre_. . . He shook his head slightly as
Quatre answered slowly.
Quatre murmured, "There was a horrible feeling. . . anger. . . and I had a
terrible dream." He shook his head, as if to free the words. "I, Trowa, I know
it must sound ridiculous but I felt something terrible, terribly cold. When I
woke, I could hardly breathe, and the room was freezing. . ."
Trowa's voice was quiet, but filled with concern. "Nightmares? Are you all
right?"
Quatre whispered hesitatantly. "Yes. . . but. . ." His eyes were filled with
fear and an unmistakable need.
Trowa gave up on fighting down the protectiveness- Quatre needed him, needed
safety, needed to know he was safe. "You can stay with me, tonight."
He pushed his door completely open and stood back, letting the other boy step
into the room in front of him, then pushed the door shut. Somewhat awkwardly,
they both sat on the bed. After a moment, by silent agreement, they both moved
to opposite sides of the bed and slid under the covers, in an attempt to
sleep. Trowa stared across the room, Quatre in front of him. He never
noticed when his eyes drifted shut, when his hand drifted forward to rest on
Quatre's shoulder. Quatre did, though, for that was the only moment when he
actually felt safe and began to drowse.
That is, before the room darkened. With the loss of illuminating moonlight in
the room, the heat seemed to disappear as well. He shivered suddenly,
scooting back up against Trowa unconsciously, eyes wide. "Trowa!" he
whispered urgently. "Something. . ."
He felt the strong hand at his shoulder grip his arm protectively, almost
possessively. Trowa sat up, eyes wide and searching the pitch black room.
"Something," he echoed. He could feel it, like a tangible prescence. Without
thinking, he held Quatre closer to him.
The chill deepened.
In the dark, a face appeared- a strange mockery of a girl child's face. It
scowled at them, eyes empty holes, then it's mouth seemed to move. "I want my
dolly!" The voice was strange, echoing, high pitched, childish, a whine, a
plea, an order, who knew.
[1] This is all confusing and seemingly pointless, I know, but it's called a
very boring show of exposition. *Sweatdrops* I can't wind architectural design
notes into the G-boys' casual conversation. It's just not happening. -_-;;;
And, btw, I'm half-imagining the house from Casper here.... *sweatdrops* why
are you all looking at me like I'm a lil kid? I saw it when my sister rented
it. ;P (never mind that she's older than me. -_- Now I _really_ feel young...)
*coughs* Anyways, I think their rooms are about three stories or so above the
ground... and if the house is on a hill with the entry on the high-side of it,
then this isn't as crazy as it sounds.
[2] *smirks* I think the hentais can guess what he means. But this refers to
how poor Wufei, in fics, always seems to end up rooming besides where Heero
and Duo keep each other 'company' at night. *snorts* And do so quite noisely,
too... So he gets about as much sleep as they do. *shakes her head in
bemusement*
Methinks I'm not going to sleep tonight. *eyes wide* I need caffiene... and a
blanket... *sniffs and looks piteous*
*blushes and shakes her head* All right, enough of that, I'll keep writing....
*sweatdrops and makes sure her light's on before wandering off* Sorry this was
so short!
~Windwolf
Part 2
(Warning: some swearing. shounen-ai. my attempt at ghost-horror. Please don't
hurt me!)
One wide green eye met two wide blue-green eyes. They agreed. As one, they
hurried out of the bed, and, skirting the far wall, slid out into the hallway.
Without thinking, they both hurried towards the stairway, pulling to a stop
when Duo's door opened.
The sleepy-looking pilot blinked blearily at them, "Eh? Trowa, Quatre? Wha's
going on?"
Three frightened wide eyes stared at the sleepy pilot. After a moment, Trowa
spoke. "Quatre had nightmares and came to me. Then we saw... something."
"Something?" the pilot of Deathscythe was skeptical.
Quatre got a hold of himself and took his turn. "We saw something... a face."
"Of a girl-doll."
"And it glared at us and spoke. . ."
Duo eyed them like they should be wearing straightjackets- if not just because
the two were speaking in turns. "Riiiiight. And what were you two doing
before this?"
"Attempting to sleep." Trowa shot Duo a quick, cold, protective look.
Duo winced. He looks like a lioness protecting her cubs. Hit him in a weak
spot, I guess. . . "Yeah, yeah. I don't get it, though. . . Probably just a
dream."
"But we both saw it," Quatre spoke up again, apparently counting the glare as
a turn. "And the room was so cold. . ."
"Maybe your heater died. I know mine's coughed and sputtered and threatened
to," Duo laughed and gestured at his room. "Geez, guys, just go downstairs if
you're cold." He rubbed his eyes, "_I_ am going to sleep." With that, he
turned and walked into his room, shutting the door behind him.
Trowa and Quatre looked at each other for a moment, then back at their doors.
In consent, they went to spend the rest of the night downstairs, preferably
awake until the safety of morning light.
* * *
Duo sighed as he climbed back into his bed. What had gotten into those two? He
curled up into a happy, warm ball as he attempted to fall back asleep. Weird.
They'd figure everything out in the morning. . .
A moment later, his head jerked up and he was completely awake. Someone was in
his room. The room was lightless, but. . . wait, there was a faint glow.
The glow seemed to grow, coming out of one of his walls, solidifying into a
figure. The figure was that of a young boy with a squarish face, wearing
_very_ old-fashioned clothes.
Duo stared. All of the heat in the room seemed to vanish with that presence,
and, never looking up, the figure made it's way through the room, closer and
closer to Duo.
Without realizing it, Duo scooted back and flattened against the head of the
bed.
"Oh my God!"
When it reached the foot of the bed, the glowing figure of the boy seemed to
look at the bed, rather than at Duo, then turned away. The boy continued
walking, going _through_ the bed, then disappearing out the wall besides the
bed. Duo stared, body tensed, shocked. "What the _Hell_ was that?!"
He didn't know when the vague glimmering of an idea turned into action, but
the next thing he knew, he was knocking on Heero's bedroom door and bouncing
from foot to foot with anxiety. "Heero!"
A moment later, he found himself face to face with the Perfect Soldier. "Hn.
Duo..."
"Heero! You won't believe what happened!"
"Hn. Go back to sleep."
"Uh-uh, no way I'm going back in there! Man, I saw a ghost! A boy! He walked
through the room, through the _bed_! I am _NOT_ going back in there!"
"There's no such thing as ghosts."
"Ooh yes there is! How much do you wanna bet?! Pleaaaaaaaaase, just let me
stay with you!" His violet eyes took on a pleading look as they stared deep
into Prussian blue.
Heero looked at the wide-eyed and anxious Duo. For all he was babbling like
normal, there was a deep thread of fear visible there. He sighed mentally,
but snorted outloud. "Baka." He held open the door.
"Really, Heero? Arigato~!"
Heero just snorted. I already regret this. . .
Ten minutes later, he was still thinking the same thing. Duo snored away on
his bed while he lay, hair-triggered, on the opposite edge. It was because of
this that he felt the temperature difference as soon as it happened. "Duo.
Wake up. Something's wrong..."
"Eh, wah?"
A quick hand grabbed a chestnut braid and dragged the half-asleep pilot
forward. Just in time for him to open his eyes to witness the gathering of
light again.
"Oh, shit, Heero, that's what happened when-"
The other hand clamped over his mouth. The figure coalesced- but this time, it
wasn't a boy.
It was a mockery of a human being, it's eyes empty, it's mouth scowling, it's
surface 'skin' discolored and disfigured with age. The. . . doll skipped
across the floor, sending Duo's skin crawling. He pulled away from Heero and
back. "It-"
He didn't say another word, before the 'girl' doll kept on her skipping path.
Right through Heero and a dresser. And out the other wall.
Duo was shocked. Slowly, he turned his gaze from where the 'girl' doll
disappeared to Heero.
Heero's eyes were wide, mouth open in shock, and Duo would swear there was a
bead of sweat on his forehead. In short, he showed a great deal more emotion
than Duo would normally have thought possible.
He winced and put a hand on his shoulder. "Uhm, Heero, why don't we just...
spend the night with Quatre and Trowa? Downstairs!"
Heero nodded stiffly, regaining some composure and shutting his mouth with a
snap before leading the way. Duo noticed that, composure or no, he carefully
avoided stepping where the ghost had been.
* * *
In the morning...
Duo felt like cheering as the first rays of the sun peaked over the horizon
and hit the stone tower. "Finally... it's over, guys!"
The other three looked up from their card game. Quatre's voice was weary, but
held a note of hope as he asked, "Really, finally?"
Duo nodded. "Yeah. We can sleep, guys..."
Trowa and Heero nodded silent agreement.
An all-too-awake voice broke through their dreary movements of getting
comfortable on the combined heap of blankets in the middle of the foyer. "And
what did you four do all last night?"
There was a vague note of amusement in that voice. And, right then, Duo could
have killed him for it. He bit out the words, "Wufei. We spent last night,
huddled, awake, terrified, down here, in the warmth, in the light, in each
other's presence, until that damned night was _over_!"
Wufei blinked and raised an elegant eyebrow in question.
Quatre was the only one to respond wearily. "It's a long story. . . we saw two
ghosts. One looked at, then walked past Duo. The other one talked to us and
walked through Heero."
The elegant eyebrow rose _much_ higher. "I see."
Heero just snorted and turned over next to Duo, who had already fallen into
peaceful oblivion.
Trowa looked piercingly at Wufei, gauging the other boy. "It's a long story."
"One that can wait until you've slept. Understood."
"One that can wait until we've slept _peacefully_," Trowa returned. He
watched the Chinese pilot, waiting to see if he'd catch his meaning.
He was rewarded with the slightest of nods and a slight, softening look in the
ebony eyes as they gazed at the drowsy Quatre next to him, and at the unlikely
pair past them. "Very well. When you've all slept in peace." [3]
* * *
Wufei snorted in amusement to see that Duo was the first to wake up.
"It's about time."
"Eh?" Duo rubbed his eyes and looked around the now-sunfilled room where he
and the three other pilots had crashed. "What time is it?"
"Three, in the afternoon." The Chinese pilot looked amused from where he sat
at the foot of the stairs, about ten feet away from the still-sleeping pile of
pilots. [4] By the look of things, he was just sitting there, reading his
book, but, by the sword sitting on the stair next to him, Duo could tell
otherwise.
"What were you doing?" he, still sleepily, asked.
Wufei just raised an elegant eyebrow as the other boys slowly started sitting
up. "I suggest asking Trowa that."
Duo blinked, still not quite wide-awake as he looked at his fellow pilot.
"Eh?"
Trowa shrugged and continued to help Quatre extract himself from the tangle of
sheets he created tossing and turning. "I asked Wufei to keep watch."
Wufei looked at them, a slightly irked expression on his face. "And now that
you're awake, I would like to know _what_ I was keeping watch for."
Duo winced, "Pleaaaa~se not until I have coffee! And a shower!"
The boy, who had just sat on watch for a good ten hours, was impassive.
"Why?"
"Why not? Wu-man, pleaaaa~se?" Wide violet eyes pleaded.
The Chinese pilot wasn't immune to violet puppy eyes. He sighed. "I will wait
until you have prepared, Maxwell."
Quatre watched the scene and shared a small smile with Trowa. It wasn't often
someone got Wufei to back down, and he doubted that anyone other than Duo
would have been able to puppy-eye the stern boy. [5]
Heero's expression, now that he had his composure again, was flat. "Hn. We
meet back here in twenty minutes."
Twenty minutes later, as promised, the four-much-more-awake pilots met with
the one slightly annoyed pilot. After a lot of explaining and
tale-telling...
Wufei sat silently for a minute. "So you're saying this tower is haunted."
"Yes!" Duo shouted. His eyes were a bit wide from having to retell his
experiences. He looked at the Chinese boy. "You're taking this pretty well."
He smiled slightly, still calm. "I was raised around many superstitions. The
question to ask now is, what are we going to do about it?"
* * *
That night... Quatre's room.
Duo muttered, "I still don't see why we have to stay upstairs. . . These beds
are a whole lot bigger when you don't stick five people in them!"
There was a muffled growl from Wufei, at the end of the bed. "Be quiet,
Maxwell. There's no where else to sit in these rooms, and the floor is ice
cold. I'd just as rather not wait standing on it."
Quatre, sitting at the head of the bed, looked at the group in dismay. The
way the twin-sized bed was set against the wall didn't allow them much room at
all; they sat in a line, Quatre at one end next to Trowa, who was in turn next
to Heero, who was next to Duo, who was next to Wufei at the foot of the bed.
[6] "Please, be quiet, you two. We have to listen. . ."
There was some shifting and grumbling from the end of the bed, then it was
silent again.
Trowa ignored the scuffling and stared into the darkness. There was something
about the way the shadows pooled around the furniture in the room that was
bothering him. As the moonlight brightened while the clouds shifted, he
noticed something. "Look. By the closet door."
Four pairs of eyes snapped to the location, but Quatre was the first to speak.
"A shadow. . . where there shouldn't be one. . ."
"No." Heero's voice was harsh, but quiet. "It's a pool of something. Wufei,
give me the flashlight."
The flashlight was duly passed down the line to Heero, the other's waiting
nervously as he turned it on. Carefully avoiding looking around the room in
depths, he aimed the beam of light at the unnatural puddle. It glistened red.
He carefully stepped off the bed and walked forward to the puddle. The others
clustered closely together and followed in his wake, none eager to be
separated. Safety in numbers, and all. Heero tilted his head and looked at
the puddle carefully, taking a Kleenex from the nearby dresser and dipping it
in it, just in case the liquid was poisonous or acidic. After a moment of
looking at it, even going so far as sniffing it, he nodded. "It's blood. It
seems to be coming from under the closet door. . ."
The group eyed the closet warily. "Should we open the door?" Duo asked
hesitantly.
Heero shook his head. "No. If there's something in there, it will still be
there in the morning." Or so he rationalized. . .
Quatre shivered. He had a very, very bad feeling about this. . . The closer he
got to the closet and the pool of blood, the worse he felt. There was a
feeling of anger, hate, pain, and fear there. All feelings that woke a deep
terror in him. Unconsciously, his hand reached out and found anothers. Trowa
cast him a questioning look, but didn't say a word as his own hand clasped
Quatre's trembling one.
As one, the five pilots backed their way up to the bed. Duo was the first to
speak, though he was inconspicously leaning against Heero and his voice shook
slightly. "So. . . I think that would count as a visitation."
"It would." Wufei responded, somewhat shaken. "We should move to Trowa's
room, in case the visitations follow a path."
There were no arguements. Carefully, they stood and began to negotiate the
route across the room and along the balcony. Moments later, they were sitting
on Trowa's bed, much the same as they were before.
Quatre stared into the darkness, thinking. The level of fear had backed down
a bit, but was still present. He could feel it. . . But he couldn't let it
affect his judgement. He closed his eyes for a moment when a thought came to
him. What if they'd missed a visitation the other night? None of them had
been awake at the same moment. Just because some of them had been awake for
particular ones was no reason to believe they hadn't missed any.
After a few moments, Quatre quietly said, "We're being foolish. We ought to
split up to monitor the rooms that have been visited. Wufei, your room has
been ignored so far, and I think it'll stay that way. It seems your room and
the foyer are relatively safe. I-I don't trust the groundfloor or attic,
though." No. He got the feeling that those would be unpleasant places to be. .
. if not because of the boy and girl ghosts, then for other reasons. He
couldn't stop a shiver. He blinked as he felt his hand gripped reassuringly.
He flashed a quick smile at Trowa in the dark before continuing. "Wufei, you
should go to Heero's room, and Duo and Heero, you should go to Duo's room.
Trowa and I'll keep watch here."
Four terse nods answered his orders; not quite pleased to be split up, but
understanding what he meant.
Duo gave him a nervous grin in parting. "Oi, good luck! Anyone see anything,
just scream..."
Heero stood silently. Wufei just gave them a grave nod before standing and
leading the trio out into the hallway, then to their respective rooms.
* * *
Wufei sighed as he shifted uneasily in the dark, hand gripping his sword hilt
tightly. As much as he hated to admit it, he was somewhat jealous of the
others... They had each found someone else to love. Someone within their
reach, if they could bring themselves to do so. . . Duo and Heero were a
fledgling couple, that was obvious. He, in particular, clearly knew that
they'd slept with each other more than once, but the trust and bond between
them was only now developing. Atleast Heero hadn't pushed Duo away. . . He
shook his head and continued with his thoughts. Then there was Quatre and
Trowa. They may not even know it yet themselves, but they were a strong
couple. Quatre clearly cared for and loved Trowa, and Trowa cared for Quatre right back.
He let a small smile cross his face. Those two had a sweet bond already, and
merely had to let themselves realize it.
However. . . that, like now, left the other pilots paired off and quite
happily so. Leaving him sitting alone in the dark. . . Wufei shook his head.
He was perfectly fine here; he was strong enough to be the one alone.
Then why did his heart keep crying out for the comfort of his enemy?
He stared into the darkness. He couldn't understand it. The need for
comfort, the need for a comforting pair of arms, the need for _him_!
Anguished ebony eyes stared into the darkness. Only to find, after a moment,
empty ebony staring right back. He froze, eyes riveted to a pair of points in
the dark space of the room. . .
A white glow slowly spread from those points. It showed. . . a girl? No, a
doll. But as it stepped forward, it moved like a girl. . . The empty black
sockets of the face gazed deep intos his own. There was a similar feeling. .
. a strangely parallel feeling of loss and a desperate need for something out
of reach.
The girl-doll smiled. And reached out an arm towards him. "I want my dolly.
Get me my dolly?"
The voice was odd, childish, echoing, yet it spoke in a strangely normal,
lively, pleading tone. But the words, there was a question.
Slowly, he stood. "I will, if I can. Where is your dolly?"
The feeling of pleading and desperate need came again. "My brother took my
dolly. I don't want him to break my dolly. Can you get me my dolly?" The
voice almost seemed on the verge of tears.
Not knowing precisely why, Wufei nodded. And desperately hoped he was doing
the right thing.
[3] If you're wondering what the meaning of this is, it's basically Trowa
asking Wufei to make sure that they sleep peacefully and safely. Wufei
doesn't need to know what's going on to understand that request... Eh, just
wait a few lines, and you'll see. ^_^
[4] I know, you've got to be going "How's Heero still sleeping?!" It's OOC for
him, but I'll just blame that on the fact a ghost walked through him. ^_^
Wouldn't that make _you_ act OOC?
[5] *innocent eyes* Don't ask me if that means anything... Wu's just loosening
up a bit. ^_~
[6] *tries to imagine all of the pilots sitting on such a small bed, lined up,
in the dark, all nervous and staring into the night...* *imagines the stray
elbows, muttered comments, people jumping off the bed in jitters when poked,
only to hit ice cold floor and jump back again...*
*cracks up*
(Just in case anyone's freaked, here's an omake to diffuse the tension... and especially for
those hentais out there. *looks pointedly at certain readers* ^_~ :
*Wufei, sitting alone, stares into the dark and angsts*
*suddenly, disrupting his perfectly angsty silent mood, the sound of creaky
bedsprings can be heard through the wall*
*Wufei stubbornly tries to ignore the noise and keeps angsting. A few minutes
later, that becomes impossible as different, more- *cough* lively noises
start*
*Wufei glares at the wall but remains rooted in place, in case there's another
stray pool of red liquid (not necessarily blood, any red liquid tends to stain
white outfits beyond repair)*
*He snarls as the moans and such escalate into screams and shrieks*
*patience long gone, Wufie stalks out of the room and to the door of Duo's
room* You two _DO_ realize we're supposed to be having a serious horror fic
going on?! Do you understand how deep an angst scene your noises ruined?!?!
*Duo pops open the door, fully dressed and unrumpled.* Oh, sorry, Wu-man, we
were just watching TV... *pops back into his room and shuts the door, leaving
Wufei standing gaping in the hallway*
*muttering, Wufei makes his way back to his room... distinctly clear in his
grumbling is a comment about how that would never happen at an Oz base... or
one of Treize's mansions...*)
Sorry, sorry... *grins* Don't know what came over me. *looks at Trekai
curiously*
*Trekai waves back and smiles with an innocent "who, me?" look*
~Windwolf
Yaaaaay! *cheers* I said I'd do it, and I've done it! *grins* Three a.m. on
Thursday may still be considered Wednesday night. And I've finished it!
Three parts, and epi, not bad. ^_^ *sweatdrops* It ends up about 12 pages,
though- not too impressive.
Anyways... *beams* this is the end of it, and it's not as scary as the other
parts. Sorry if anyone thinks I had too little of someone... *sweatdrops*
Surprisingly, this ended up centering on Quatre and Trowa's end of things.
Wufei gets his bit in there, too... Duo and Heero have a moment, but I'm
afraid I don't think of either of 'em as being material for a medium, so...
*shrugs* It stands as is. ^_^ Enjoy!
Part 3
Quatre was nervous- Trowa could tell. No matter how Quatre tried to mask the
worry with a calm face in the dark, he could feel the tenseness in the warm
hand he still held. That, more than anything they'd seen, frightened him the
most. Quatre knew something they didn't. . . "Quatre. . . what's wrong?"
Trowa kept his voice low as he asked.
The other boy started, then flashed a smile. "Nothing, I'm just a little
nervous." And. . . I get the feeling that, whatever we saw last night, it's
going to be worse tonight.
Trowa nodded, seconding the opinion, then they went back to waiting in nervous
silence, each glad that they were not alone.
* * *
Duo was _not_ afraid. Or so he kept telling himself. The God of Death
couldn't be afraid of someone he had already met! Duo shifted in place
restlessly. He was just- anxious. Yeah, that was the word to describe it.
And, of course, he was worried for Heero. That was all. . .
Heero looked at the fidgeting boy and snorted. "Hn. Can't you stay still?"
"Not right now!" Duo glared at him. "Do you have any idea what's going to
happen tonight?"
"No. Neither do you."
"Damn right! I mean, who knows? One of us could be hurt. . ."
Heero simply snorted again and resettled on the bed, making sure he had the
best view of the room possible from where they were. Duo was nervous. Still,
he had good reason. . . After a moment, he rested a hand on the braided boy's
shoulder. He wasn't going to let anything happen to them.
Suddenly, he tensed. He heard footsteps. Above them. But the footsteps
sounded light, close together, and almost scuffing. Like a reluctant child's.
. .
Duo looked over his shoulder at Heero. "Don't tell me you don't hear that."
The footsteps paced for a time, back and forth over their heads, then, seemed
to walk away from them. Duo looked uneasy as he shrank back towards Heero.
As they waited, they could hear a low voice in the next room. It was
impossible to tell what the voice said, but, soon after, a rythmic small
clacking noise, like wood on wood, seemed to move out of the room and away.
[7] The pilots traded introspective looks. That could mean anything. . .
-but it was a good bet that Wufei had just been "visited".
Who knew who was next?
* * *
Trowa and Quatre both started as they heard footsteps approach. They seemed
to come from above- then moved down. Down the stairs in front of the room
next door. . . And from the room next door. . . A glow entered the room as
the glowing figure of a young boy scuffed angrily into the room. His face
seemed twisted with anger, and he stamped his foot as he came to a stop by the
bed.
Quatre's eyes widened at the sheer amount of anger pouring off the child.
They widened more as the boy began to mutter. . .
"Stupid sister, stupid doll. She always cries, always gets what she wants,
always gets the stupid things that she wants for her doll . . ." the young
voice was sullen as he turned on his heel to glare belligerently at the pair
sitting frozen in place on the bed. "It's not my fault she went after it!
Why should I get punished 'cause she'd do something stupid? _She_ never gets
punished. . ."
The eyes glared at Quatre with a child's rage, daring him to answer. "Why'd I
get punished? Why do I always get punished 'stead of her?!"
For a moment, he had no idea what to say, do. But. . . he had to do
something.
Slowly, he stood up, Trowa moving behind him, and moved to kneel in front of
the figure of the boy. "I don't know why. What did you do?"
There was a moment of surprise in the child's eyes, quickly replaced by
sullenness. "I didn't do anything! I just held up the doll, and she went
running. . . ain't my fault she didn't stop before the window!"
Quatre's eyes widened as he pictured the scenario, could see it in his mind.
He felt a touch of horror, then, in the form of the reassuring hand on his
shoulder, realized he had to help the boy. [8] "Who didn't stop?"
"M' little sis. She's such a spoiled brat!"
Cautiously, Quatre spoke, "I see. What were you doing with her doll?"
"I's just teasin' her. [9] Really! I always tease her 'bout her stuff. She's
so spoiled!" His face screwed up in a grimace, then he eyed Quatre again. "'s
not like I ever did 'nythin'. Papa'd kill me fer sure if I did. . ." The eyes
were hard, daring Quatre to suggest that he _had_ done something.
Quatre kept his face patiently calm. "I never said you did. . . Ah, what's
your name?"
"Dunno." The boy shrugged ambigously. "Forgot. They always jus' called me
'boy'."
Quatre winced inwardly. It was sad, that a little boy would be treated like
that. "All right. . . Do you mind if I call you Sam?" For some reason, he
could feel that the name fit.
"Yeah. Yah can call me Sam, or whatever." The boy shrugged uneasily. "I mean,
you're older, yah gotta do what the older people tell you to."
Quatre responded, "But it depends on what they ask you to do, doesn't it?"
_That_ got Sam's attention. "Whadja mean?"
Carefully, Quatre held out a hand. "Sometimes older people ask you to do
things for your own good, to help you, to discipline you, to teach you. But
there's boundaries. . . If someone loves you, you can trust that if you do the
things they ask of you, it'll be for the better. If someone loves you, they
won't hurt you." Trowa. . . please listen. . . More than one person in this
room, dead or living, has been hurt.
The boy blinked. "They won't?"
"Never." The golden haired boy's voice was firm with conviction,
understanding, and hidden emotion.
"Then. . . papa. . . why'd he. . .?"
Quatre sighed in sadness. "I'm sure your papa loved you. But if he hurt you,
then the things he did weren't out of love. I bet he regretted everything he
did to hurt you."
"He-he did?"
The elder boy nodded. "If something is an accident, you should not be blamed
for it."
"It- it _was_ an accident. . . sis. . . I didn' mean any of it. . ." The boy's
face turned sad and he sniffled. He was losing his grip on the anger.
"You know, you _can_ apologize to her."
The boy's eyes lit up, dead, yet alive. "Really?"
Quatre smiled. "Of course. Tell her what you told me. . . That you didn't
mean to hurt her, her doll, or anything."
The boy nodded, then, slowly, turned and walked through the wall holding the
closet.
Quatre turned and looked at Trowa. "What-?"
A voice came from the now-open doorway. Their heads jerked up to look at the
source. "Your room and Trowa's room. . . they used to be one large nursery
room. This. . ." the gesture took in room, "was the boy's room. Trowa's was
the girl's, Heero's the mother's, Duo's the nanny's, and mine the servant's."
Trowa looked hard at the Chinese pilot. His voice was weary, but his eyes
were full of something. . . then, as he stepped into the room, Trowa stared.
Wufei was carefully holding the hand of the glowing figure of a young girl. .
. a young girl who bore a certain resemblance to the doll they'd seen before.
Cautiously, he stepped forward and to the side, letting her step forward and
gaze at the pilots. The eyes, previously empty, were now bright. Just like
the boy's. . .
Wufei nodded to her, his eyes meeting her brown ones once more. Quatre,
somehow, heard the Chinese boy's voice, telling the girl. . .
"Your brother is waiting for you. You can go talk to him, if you wish." There
was a quiet smile to these words. "Or you may make him wait as long as you
want. No one will force you to do anything, act anyway. You no longer need
to be weak for your family-" there was a fierceness to his tone, now,- "be
strong for yourself. Don't remain tied to where you no longer belong. . . You
will have people who care for you." Very quietly, the voice finished. "You
don't need to be alone."
Finally, Wufei let go of her hand and stood back. He smiled slightly at the
girl, then gestured towards the wall with the closet. She nodded back, then,
with a smile, skipped forwards to disappear through the wall. Quatre stared
after her, then looked back at Wufei.
Trowa looked at the two of them, somewhat confused. What was going on? How
did Wufei talk to the girl. . .? [10]
Quatre smiled as he looked over his shoulder, seeing the confusion in Trowa's
eyes. "Don't worry about it, Trowa. It's done. . . We should find out how Duo
and Heero faired."
As they moved, the first light of dawn brightened the room.
* * *
Epilogue:
Quatre looked out the window, watching the light creep over the landscape,
casting shadows in places, brightly illuminating others. From the boy's
conviction about how his father would punish him for any transgression, he
could guess how the boy had died. And they knew how the girl had died. It
was terrible. . . But, now, things had been corrected. He turned to discover
Trowa waiting for him.
"We're ready to leave."
Quatre nodded, wordlessly. He walked forward, Trowa stepping aside to let him
go first. He stopped a moment on the balcony in between their rooms. They
had discovered the painting that morning, hanging on the wall in between their
rooms, in front of the place where the small section of room had been walled
off. The painting, they vaguely remembered as passing off as strange harmless
art, the day before. The picture had been of a girl-doll, and an angry boy.
Now, it showed a smiling young girl and her older brother. It was a fitting
memorial for them- remembering not their death, but the way they continued
their afterlife.
Trowa waited patiently for him to move on, also gazing at the painting in
acknowledgement. None of them were likely to forget what had happened, here.
The lessons learned. . .
A moment later, they continued, walking down the stairs to the foyer where
Wufei held the door open in wait for them. He was quiet as well, simply
waiting for them to take their time. Quatre whispered his thanks in passing
while Trowa merely nodded.
Wufei smiled slightly at their backs as he let the door close behind him.
They were no longer alone. . . And he finally wasn't, either. He had someone
waiting for him. . . someone whom he, despite the odds, loved.
As the rest got into the car, he took one last look at the tall stone tower.
This experience was not one he was likely to forget. For if it taught the
children love, it taught him how to finally let go.
Meiran. . . I will miss you. But I have no right to hold you here, to tie my
memories of your strength to my present. You are better moving on, to where
others will care for you. I can no longer ignore the memories I am making in
the present. . . My memories of your strength will inspire my own, but I can
no longer use your own. Farewell, my wife. . .
Finally, the car drove away. In their memories of the tower, words still
echoed. . .
"If someone loves you, they won't hurt you."
"You don't have to be alone."
~Owari~
[7] These would be the girl-doll's footsteps. I'm assuming Wufei's steps
would be silent. . . unless he was on a really, really, really creaky floor.
^_^;;;
[8] Just something I want to point out here.... notice that while Trowa's
hearing the conversation, he's always touching Quatre when he does. That's
important. ^_~
[9] No, I'm not typoing like mad here... I'm attempting to show his possible
speech pattern. -_-;;
[10] In case I'm too confusing, *sweatdrops* what I meant to be understood
here was that only Quatre and Wufei could "talk" to the ghosts.... and that
when they did, it wasn't necessarily outloud...
Oh, and that lil Meiran-bit, though it mighta been out of place, may be
considered in response to one of the comments on the earlier parts. ^_^
Big thanks to those who've commented on it!!! *Glomps*
Btw, to those who say the pictures of the painting aren't scary- the answer
is, they're not. It's what your imagination does to the pictures. . . As in,
mine quite easily saw that lil boy wandering into my room glowering at three
a.m... *sweatdrops* _That_ would give me a fright.
Not a pleasant way to wake up. ^_^;;
Please, tell me what you think! *waves*
~Windwolf