They returned to the flat and Mable stopped them by the window, Lea pushing her way in first, still holding Naboo against her back.
"Never thought I'd be back here" she muttered loudly, heard by Howard as he came in through the window behind her.
"Can I take him?" he offered, and she nodded, releasing her hands as he caught the shaman and lifted him easily, carrying him to his bedroom, followed by Lea as Vince rolled Mable up and closed the window. The gravity of the situation had left him without words, and he went into Naboo's bedroom to find Lea charming one of Naboo's cupboards open and taking out the crystal ball.
"Why aren't you helping him?" Vince demanded, putting a hand to the pale Naboo's forehead, the temperature was hot, then suddenly freezing, then hot again.
"Because I cant!" she hissed, and frowned as she concentrated on the swirling fog. A bald head appeared with tatoos and a peacock fan behind him.
"Buddleia?" Dennis said in his nasal voice "Didn't expect to hear from you." His tone was accusatory, and she let out a small growl.
"I didn't come for a lecture Dennis, I need your help-"
"Oh, you need our help now do you?" he snapped "After that little outburst and all your magic use I don't think we should." And his image began to vanish
"Wait! If you want this foetus to survive you help me now." She demanded. Dennis glared as his image reformed slowly.
"Why?" he asked suspiciously. Lea sighed.
"Naboo's been attacked."
Vince and Howard had watched in stunned silence as the board of shaman trouped through their flat and into Naboo's room, Saboo greeting Lea with;
"Well well well, look who cant handle it when it comes to the crunch!"
"Naboo is Xooberonian, I am not, I don't know what the floberdydinks could have done to him." She stated, arms folded over her chest
"So you need the help of us" Dennis said smugly. Lea glared at him.
"I doubt any of you know whats going on."
"I do!" Wheedled a voice. Lea raised an eyebrow an Tony Harrison "Your connected, when hes in pain your in pain. Its simple bonding."
"Bondage?" Kurt said excitedly, Lea shook her head.
"So your oh-so-powerful magic cant help you" Sabo said, clearly enjoying the feeling of power. She sighed irritably, and spoke through gritted teeth.
"Please. Help. Him. You owe it to him for doing this to him."
"We cant leave a Xooberonian in the care of an Eastern Shaman anyway!" Screeched Tony Harrison "Its an outrage!"
"Well I'll leave him in your capable hands then!" She snapped, and pushed past them through the doorway, not noticing Vince and Howard. They closed the door after her, seeing the board of shaman move closer round the bed, their coloured robes merging.
"She was crying Howard" Vince said quietly, as they headed to the kitchen
"I know" Said Howard
"But I thought she hated Naboo?"
"I have no idea little man" Howard said with a sigh, filling the kettle "She didn't hesitate to save him though, did she?"
"Or to get the board of shaman involved…"
"Even though she hates them too…." Leaving that thought in the air the kettle boiled and Howard poured it into three mugs. He handed two to Vince.
"Go and see how she's doing"
"Me?" Squeaked Vince
"Yeah, I'll keep an eye on these lot – I don't trust them"
"Alright. In a bit Howard" and Vince pressed a soft kiss to Howard's lips before leaving, his stomach flopping.
Vince found Lea sitting up on the roof, and after navigating his way carefully he sat next to her and handed her the tea
"Milk, no sugar. Didn't really know how you like it"
"Thank you" she said quietly, cradling it in her cold hands.
"Are you alright?"
"Fine. The vines didn't get me." This was a lie, Vince could clearly see cuts and slashes all across her body where the vines had struck her and ripped the thick material of her robe and black under-tunic. The cape that once looked like glorious wings was in long stragley tatters and still had Naboo's dried blood on it.
"No, I meant with Naboo-"
"Why should I care?" She bristled
"You did just save him from almost certain death, and you asked for help from people you hate, and even if it was hurting you your strong enough to deal with it." She shot him a surprised glance at his knowledge "Pretty noble actions for someone your not keen of." Vince stated innocently, his eyes sliding over her with a slight smile. He may not be the cleverest of all men, but he was intuitive.
"Yeah, I guess" Came her quiet response.
"Look, you like him, he clearly likes you, whats stopping you?"
"It isn't that simple!" she said defiantly "We're east and west, we wouldn't have even met if we weren't in this, this, predicament!"
"How do you know that?" Vince persisted. She didn't look at him.
"Don't."
"Well why don't east and west mix? The evidence says otherwise."
"What?" she said sharply, looking at him with her beady eyes
"Look. You and Naboo are having a baby, right?" She nodded, "Which is a bit of you and a bit of him innit. So even though it had, like, all the outside help in the world, it still shows you and him do work together" her gaze floated back to her tea.
"Come on" he tried again. Vince was determined to get these two stubborn shaman together "you said it cant be killed, and Naboo said that Dennis couldn't have put a spell on it before it was made, 'cos it isn't possible to protect something that isn't there yet…"
"What?"
"That's what Naboo said" she stared into her untouched tea
"I…. I know its not easy on him. I don't know what to do."
"Do what your heart feels." Vince said simply, and for the first time she smiled softly, and took a long slug of tea.
Howard had kept his word and stood outside Naboo's door, eavesdropping until the board had filed out. He caught Dennis's eye
"Is Naboo-"
"He needs to sleep. We've repaired what we can, give this to Buddleia." And from the depths of his robes Dennis produced a old book with calligraphic writing on it, and pressed it into Howard's hands. In a sweep of peacock feathers he left, navigating his way down the small stairs with difficulty. Vince and Lea came down from the roof and looked in on Naboo. The board has stripped him down to his cream under-tunic, turban still on his head, hair as neat as ever. He was grey, with some very clean looking bandages around his arms and over one knee. The scratch on his face had some sort of lotion on it, but apart from that he looked the same as ever - if a bit wane.
"How'd it go?" Howard asked Vince quietly
"It went ok, I think." Vince replied. Lea had stepped inside and stood beside the bed, staring at the other shaman. Howard and Vince moved silently out of the room, giving her some privacy. Lea looked at him, her eyes tracing the scratch across his face – he was lucky it hadn't caught his eye.
"Naboo, I-" she trailed off, dragging a hand over her face she sighed, then pulled up a chair and sat down heavily. Very hesitantly she raised her hand, then slid it slowly into his. This appeared to give her strength. "I'm sorry. I know this isn't your fault, it isn't mine either. I realise how much I've hurt you. I didn't know how to act, theres no protocol for this sort of situation…." She sighed again, and stared into her lap.
"Ever since Soma died I've been having trouble communicating to anyone. I'm not extrovert or friendly or anything, even my magic's guarded towards others. You're the first person I've met whose not forced me to do anything, or just ignored me. Your kind, and sweet, and wise. Why your alone at all is beyond me. But I like you. I may even love you, I don't know. What I do know is that I'm not going to leave anymore. My place" she said, looking at his face "is with you."
Outside the door Vince and Howard grinned, and gave a thumbs up to where Bollo sat on the sofa, then all three shuddered as a familiar comfortable feeling spread through the flat, and the edges of their vision were tinged with a pink fog.
Please read and review!