A/N: Hello hello! This is an...interesting endeavor. I decided that I wanted to write a story from the point of view of a character that doesn't speak. It is first person present tense, so for those of you that hate that, I'm sorry. Well, not really. I am planning on doing a companion fic to this one that will be third person and show what the other characters were doing/thinking during this story.
A note about the chapters: They will be divided up as the story dictates. Some chapters will be nice and long while others are much shorter.
Warnings: Mild swearing, some violence, abuse, non-graphic mention of attempted NCS.
Disclaimer: This story has been written for entertainment purposes only and is not to be used as a substitute for medical help or...wait...what was I doing? Oh yeah: I DON'T OWN GUNDAM WING.
Warnings and Disclaimer apply to all chapters. As always, reviews are welcome! Enjoy.
"I dunno…it seems to me that we should just leave her. She isn't coming willingly."
"Duo, we can't leave her. We don't know what could happen to her if we do."
"So what, we just grab her and see how well that goes over?"
"If we have to. Let me see if I can get her to come with us. If not, I'll let you grab her and we'll deal with it, okay?"
"Whatever, Quatre. But make it quick, Heero won't appreciate it if we make him wait all day."
My world is dark right now. I have my eyes shut. If I keep them shut, maybe they'll go away. I hear someone coming closer and flinch reflexively. I can't help it. No one's even touched me, but I flinch.
"We won't hurt you." The voice is quiet. I can almost feel a hand reaching towards me. I curl myself up tighter. I don't want to be touched. "Please come with us. It isn't safe here. I promise no one will hurt you."
The voice seems sincere. But I've heard sincerity before. I've learned not to trust anyone.
"Come on, Quat, this isn't working. She's obviously got a serious case of Stockholm's. Either I grab her or we leave her. I don't care which anymore."
"Shut up Duo." The voice is annoyed. I curl tighter. "Please come with us. It really isn't safe." I feel a hand touch my shoulder and bite back a gasp. My shoulder has been sore for a few days now, but he has no way of knowing that. I'm sure he can see the bruises on my arms and face even in the poor light, though. His hand suddenly jerks back, as if I've burned him. "I'm sorry," the voice whispers. "I didn't mean to hurt you."
I carefully open one eye, the one that isn't swollen. No one has apologized to me before. Who would bother now? I see a couple of men, early twenties if I had to guess. The one closest to me is blonde and kneeling down next to me. His eyes are full of concern. But I still don't trust it. Concern, like sincerity, can be faked. The other one is standing, his body language betraying his annoyance. A long, dark braid snakes down his back. It's a little dark in this forgotten corridor, most of the lights haven't worked for as long as I can remember, and he's too far away so I can't discern much else.
"Can you stand up?" The blonde's question pulls my attention back to him. I don't know. I don't know if I want to answer him.
"Quatre, come on! We don't have time for this." The braided man is annoyed and impatient to leave. I don't know why they don't just leave me behind. Everyone else has.
The blonde looks me square in the eye and says, "I'm going to pick you up. I will do my best not to hurt you, okay?"
No. It's not okay. I don't want to be touched. But I cannot answer him. I can't tell him not to touch me. I can't tell him that I cannot stand up because of my leg. I can't tell him that I would rather the building collapse on me than have any chance that he will come back for me. He is convinced that he owns me. He told me that he will break me and I will be grateful for it someday. He is an ass. I hate him. I will never let him break me, even though he almost did.
I flinch as the blonde reaches out and lifts me off the ground. His touch is gentle, even though it still hurts me. He doesn't know how badly he beat me yesterday. Or was it this morning? I don't know anymore. I've lost track. I repress another gasp of pain. I cannot fight against his touch even though I want to. I just don't have the energy or the strength for it today. I feel myself being raised up as I shut my eyes again. I feel him moving through the building and can hear his companion grumbling ahead of us.
My body is jarred as they run up the stairs and outside. I am terrified. I haven't been outside for three years at least. I suspect longer. I was told by him that if I ever went outside without his permission, I would die. He would make sure that I did, and I have no reason to doubt him, even if he is an ass. In fact, the only time he told the truth was when he was threatening me.
I open my eyes as we go outside. It's dusk, so at least the sun isn't too bright, but the fear that somehow his threat will be made good takes over my senses. As much as I want to die so he can't get me anymore, I still don't want to die at all. I'm only 19. At least I'm pretty sure I'm 19. He took me hostage when I was 14 and if I haven't gotten too far off on keeping track, I've been captive for five years. I've seen others come and go as their families paid for their release from his clutches, but I still don't really understand why he took me in the first place. I mean, I know what he wanted from me, but I never cooperated with him. I never tried to escape, either, partly because I have no idea where I am, mostly because he threatened to kill my family if I did.
My family was never rich or powerful so there was no way they could pay for my release. For all I know, they assume I am dead.
"Wufei!" The blonde's voice rumbles in his chest as my head rests against it. I just don't have the energy right now to push away from him. I'd end up on my butt on the ground if I tried and I'm sure that my fresh bruises would not appreciate that. I close my eyes again. My eyelids are heavy, but I am still very much awake.
I hear another person approach. "Give her to me. Heero wants to see you."
"He can wait. She can't."
"Quatre," the new voice sounds tired.
"Wufei, you didn't see her in there. We almost didn't get her to come out at all."
"Actually, we didn't anyway." I recognize the braided man's voice. "Quatre had to grab her and haul her out. She just didn't fight him like we thought she would."
"Duo. Heero is waiting for you and Quatre to report." Another new voice. This one soft.
"Trowa, make Quatre hand her over so he can go give his report," the first new voice says peevishly.
There is a silence. I can only assume that the second new voice is trying to assess the situation. I am getting cold. I realize that I am wearing only jeans and a t-shirt. I have not been allowed socks or shoes since I wore out the pair I was wearing when he took me away. I have never been allowed a coat. It was a warm spring day when I was taken, so I was not wearing one. It has been an exceptionally cool spring and the night is starting to get chilly. I shiver. I hate it because it allows the blonde to know that I am cold, but also because it jars my sore body.
"Quatre," the second new voice says, "give her to me. There's a blanket in the tent and she's freezing."
I feel the hesitation, but the blonde hands me over. The new arms are warm and I cannot resist attempting to absorb more of it. I'm so cold. I can feel myself being carried away. I crack my eyes open ever so slightly and see a tent a short distance ahead. It is a medium sized tent, probably designed to sleep three or four comfortably. There is a sour looking Chinese man standing next to the flap. He is scowling. I am no longer sure if I am trembling because I am cold or because he is angry. I do not want any more anger directed at me.
He sets me down and I feel panicked as I realize that I am now alone in a tent with two men. Two men that I am completely powerless to fight off. I look up as I feel a blanket being wrapped around me. The man who carried me in doesn't look particularly cruel, but it's hard to tell as half of his face is obscured by a shock of hair. His face is impassive, but his green eyes belie his calm exterior. His eyes are angry. I curl up under the blanket, afraid of the two angry men. The blonde promised no one would hurt me, but he isn't here. It isn't like I could trust him anyway.
"Did we catch the bastard?" the first voice belongs to the Chinese man.
"Yeah. I'm glad I got to plug him now that I can see some of his work."
He is gone? Are they sure? Maybe it's all a trick. He is testing me, to see how I'll react. I can't let him know how glad I would be if he really was gone. I'll get a special beating for it. So I remain as neutral as I can, shutting my eyes and I focus on getting warm. The blanket is welcome even though I am sure it will be ripped away as soon as he thinks my guard is down.
"She's definitely the worst off of any I've seen, though. I can't believe the Preventers didn't pick up this case sooner."
"I know, Wufei, but human trafficking is not as pressing as some of the other cases they've had lately."
There is a grunt and then the sound of movement. I am trying to remain as still as possible because I don't want to draw their attention. I feel a hand gently touch my shoulder and I flinch. The hand is no longer touching me, but I remain tense. If I'm going to get a beating, at least I'm in a good curled up position. My back will bear the brunt of it.
"Quatre wasn't kidding about her needing to be seen immediately," the Chinese man says quietly. "Duo said they had to grab her because she wouldn't come willingly." I feel him lean over me and gently pull back the edge of the blanket. "I'm not going to hurt you. But I do need to see where you're hurt. We need to document your injuries and treat them."
I stay curled up as tightly as I can, eyes shut.
"Wufei, maybe we should give her a bit of time. Look at her, she's terrified. Maybe we can try again in an hour to let her adjust to this new situation?"
"Hmm. You may be right, Trowa." The blanket slides back over me, for which I am grateful. Although, the meager heat I'd managed to get into the blanket was released when he moved it in the first place. I'm tired and whatever they've put me on is soft and as I get warm, I feel myself relaxing. I drift into oblivion, unsure if I should be allowing myself the luxury of sleep.