Kokoro Mitsukeru Heiwa - Chapter 5
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It was amazing what could happen in dreams. Anything you wanted, to be exact. Unfortunately, the one thing that Nuriko wanted above all else wasn't to be granted, even in this halfway realm. He didn't know how long he had stayed there, huddled in misery after his friends had disappeared right before his eyes. Alright, so maybe they weren't actually THERE... this could all have been a figment of his rather dazed mind, but it was more than what he'd had before. Even in his dream, however, he sensed that he was being watched. Lifting his gaze, he half expected to see another hazy view of the other seishi... maybe Miaka this time. His tear-filled gaze met eyes of soft aqua, and he found himself scooting back slightly as the blonde pilot knelt down in front of him.
"I'm doing what I can, Nuriko. I promise I'll get you home." One gentle hand reached out, clasping his own and Nuriko felt a soft warmth invade every part of his being. Looking up in confusion, he shook his head softly.
"I can't even talk to you out there... I don't know why I'm here, or what purpose I can serve. I'm needed by my friends, I can't stay here!" Without even realizing it, he'd brought himself up onto his knees and his grip had tightened around the other boy's hand. His eyes were nearly wild with panic as he fought to cling to the one semblance of hope he had. Here, they could speak. They could understand each other and try to figure out what needed to be done. The boy who had been able to talk to him before was gone, and the only contact he had now was Quatre.
A soft smile spread across the Arab's face as he moved to sit next to the rattled seishi. He didn't wince at the iron grip around his hand, he merely let it remain as it seemed to calm the other slightly. "You'll have to wake up soon, you know. We're safe now, and you won't have to see the gundams again if you don't want to. Hopefully we'll have you home before I get called to a mission again."
"Gundam? What's tha--..." His mind drifted back to the last moments before he was knocked unconscious. That must have been what those large beasts had been. "What kind of creatures are those? They must be massive to be able to carry that much armour!"
Quatre chuckled softly, his eyes gleaming as he thought of a way to try and explain. "They're not living creatures. They're very complex machines. Kind of like the boat that your friends are on, only a lot more mobile and a lot more dangerous."
Nuriko seemed to think about that for a few minutes, letting the information sink in. The explanation seemed to be good enough for now, because he looked back to his companion with questioning eyes once again. "How... are you here?" He whispered, as if the though had just struck him.
"Remember back at the house... when you could 'feel' me waking up?" Quatre paused, giving the seishi enough time to remember and nod before he continued. "I can feel things from people... emotion mostly, but I can also pick up thoughts if I try hard enough and am close enough to the person. Currently, you're out cold on a bed in the safehouse I brought us to, and I'm probably slumped at the side of the bed with my hand holding onto yours. It was the only way I could think of to increase the contact enough to try and find you in here."
Nuriko's eyes grew wider with each moment as he listened to the other boy. This sounded a lot like when Chichiri could sense enemies nearby, only more refined. "So.. I AM dreaming... you just managed to get into my dreams?"
Quatre nodded, smiling faintly. "Yes. I was hoping that we'd be able to talk here, since most language barriers are at the conscious level, not the subconscious." At the raised eyebrow, he stopped, thinking of how to explain THIS little theory. For what seemed like hours, they continued to talk and share what information they had. Slowly however, the dreamscape seemed to drift apart and fade. It was then that Quatre rose to his feet, helping Nuriko up as well. "One of us is waking up, and I'm gathering it's you. If I don't wake up right away, there's food down in the kitchen, and the Shi Jin Ten Chi Sho is on the table next to the bed. Whatever you do though, don't go far from the house. There's no telling how many of our safehouses were compromised."
Nodding softly, Nuriko stepped back, half closing his eyes as he felt himself pulled into wakefulness. It was a few minutes before he was even able to open his eyes physically and he saw the tousled blond hair of the pilot leaning against the bed. *He wasn't kidding... he really DID manage to get into my dreams.* He thought, slipping from the boy's grasp and getting out of bed. Without a second thought, he picked up Quatre and laid him on the bed so that he could at least get some real rest. He must have been exhausted, if the dark circles under his eyes were any indication. He brushed one hand across the pale forehead, pushing back the shock of blonde bangs that had fallen across the other's eyes. Smiling softly, he turned and left the room, pausing only long enough to grab the precious book from the nightstand. Closing the door behind him, he made his way downstairs to quell his growling stomach.
* * *
When Quatre finally emerged and staggered down the stairs, he was greeted by the sight of a soft light coming from the living room of the small house. It wasn't designed for all of the pilots to stay in, but it had two bedrooms, a decent bath, kitchen and a small room off to the side that had been set up with a few chairs and a radio. Duo hated this one, since there wasn't a television, but at least they didn't have to worry about dealing with the manic pilot this time around. As he stepped into the small room, he saw Nuriko curled into a comfortable chair with several candles flickering on the table next to him. He was engrossed in the Shi Jin Ten Chi Sho, and never noticed Quatre's arrival.
"There's lights in here, you realize."
Looking up, Nuriko blinked owlishly then looked to the candles. "I know. I found them."
Chuckling faintly, Quatre decided to let it drop. "I need food and a bath. Not necessarily in that order." He saw Nuriko absorbed in the book once more, but he had pointed one slender hand towards the kitchen.
"Food's in there, and there's a strange room upstairs that looks like it has a tub in it, so I'm assuming that's the bathing room." With that, he curled up once more and lost himself in his reading.
Quatre just nodded and moved off into the kitchen. He'd helped himself to a bowl of vegetables and rice, and it seemed that Nuriko had eventually figured out how to use the stove. He was halfway through with the second bite when the nagging feeling at the back of his mind made itself known in a most spectacular fashion. Nearly dropping the bowl, he bolted towards the living room, crashing into Nuriko halfway there. The seishi had apparently had the same revelation and both of them just stared at each other from the tangled heap they'd landed in.
"You..."
"I understand you..."
Nuriko seemed to grin from ear to ear and hugged onto Quatre tightly. "You have NO idea how good it is to be able to talk to someone again!!" A muffled 'eep' was his only response and he looked down at Quatre's widened eyes before letting the smaller boy go sheepishly. "Sorry."
Quatre just gasped for air, waving away the apology with a smile. "S'okay... I just didn't realize how much I take breathing for granted." Smiling, he got to his feet and helped Nuriko up as well. "Any idea how we can talk to each other now when we couldn't before?"
The violet-haired seishi just shrugged faintly. "Maybe you triggered something when we were talking in my dreams. You said that language barriers were subconscious... maybe us talking that long got my conscious to realize how much of a jerk it was being?"
He couldn't help but giggle at the way Nuriko had explained that one. "Alright, I'll buy that. I'm going to go take a shower now, I think I just shocked my appetite out of me."
"Oh good, you found the food."
"Yeah, but there's only two of us, you didn't have to make so much." Quatre walked back into the kitchen, follwed by the seishi, and began to clean up his bowl and put away the leftovers.
"Sorry. I'm used to cooking for six other people when we travel, and one of them has the appetite of all the others combined." The sweet smile Nuriko put on was enough to make Quatre crack up all over again as he remembered reading of Miaka's eating habits. "Okay, you've got me there. Just remember, I don't eat THAT much."
Once the meal had been put away, Quatre headed upstairs towards the long-awaited shower while Nuriko went back to the book. He was curious as to what was happening with his friends, and found himself literally on the edge of his chair as things progressed. He wasn't aware of how much time passed, only that he nearly jumped out of his skin when a hand came to rest on his shoulder. Looking up with frightened eyes, he caught Quatre's concerned stare.
"Nuriko, what is it?" He'd felt something wrench at him while he was in the shower and knew instinctively where it had come from.
He just pointed one shaky hand towards the book as Quatre curled up to sit in the chair beside him. "They're in trouble... Seiryuu seishi." At Quatre's insistance, he cleared his throat, reading aloud from the book. Apparently while the language barrier had been broken, the blonde still couldn't read Chinese without difficulty.
-- As the skies opened and the rain pounded against the ship's decks, the Miko and her remaining seishi saw the lightning crash down and ignite the sails. The waves rattled the vessel with each motion they made, and the travellers found themselves hard pressed to keep their feet on the violently lurching deck. --
Quatre looked up as the words paused and saw Nuriko turning a shade or two paler than he had been a moment before. "Nuriko..."
"I'm needed there." He looked to the Arab with tears in his eyes, shaking his head in disbelief. "They're in trouble and I'm useless here!" He stood up suddenly, knocking the book to the floor in his urgency. Quatre could feel the panic and guilt that hovered around the older boy, and was about to rise to his feet to try and calm him when a flash of crimson light made them both stagger back.
He couldn't see, but could hear Nuriko shout somewhere on the other side of the light. One arm was brought up to shield his eyes, but as suddenly as it had begun, the light faded and he blinked several times to try and get his vision back.
He was alone... Quatre looked down at the book, faint traces of crimson still flickering around the edges. As he picked it up, his eyes widened, the kanji making sense easily.
-- A rope was thrown overboard to try and haul the fallen ones back onto the ship. In the midst of the storm's assault, Nuriko had returned. --
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TBC
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It was amazing what could happen in dreams. Anything you wanted, to be exact. Unfortunately, the one thing that Nuriko wanted above all else wasn't to be granted, even in this halfway realm. He didn't know how long he had stayed there, huddled in misery after his friends had disappeared right before his eyes. Alright, so maybe they weren't actually THERE... this could all have been a figment of his rather dazed mind, but it was more than what he'd had before. Even in his dream, however, he sensed that he was being watched. Lifting his gaze, he half expected to see another hazy view of the other seishi... maybe Miaka this time. His tear-filled gaze met eyes of soft aqua, and he found himself scooting back slightly as the blonde pilot knelt down in front of him.
"I'm doing what I can, Nuriko. I promise I'll get you home." One gentle hand reached out, clasping his own and Nuriko felt a soft warmth invade every part of his being. Looking up in confusion, he shook his head softly.
"I can't even talk to you out there... I don't know why I'm here, or what purpose I can serve. I'm needed by my friends, I can't stay here!" Without even realizing it, he'd brought himself up onto his knees and his grip had tightened around the other boy's hand. His eyes were nearly wild with panic as he fought to cling to the one semblance of hope he had. Here, they could speak. They could understand each other and try to figure out what needed to be done. The boy who had been able to talk to him before was gone, and the only contact he had now was Quatre.
A soft smile spread across the Arab's face as he moved to sit next to the rattled seishi. He didn't wince at the iron grip around his hand, he merely let it remain as it seemed to calm the other slightly. "You'll have to wake up soon, you know. We're safe now, and you won't have to see the gundams again if you don't want to. Hopefully we'll have you home before I get called to a mission again."
"Gundam? What's tha--..." His mind drifted back to the last moments before he was knocked unconscious. That must have been what those large beasts had been. "What kind of creatures are those? They must be massive to be able to carry that much armour!"
Quatre chuckled softly, his eyes gleaming as he thought of a way to try and explain. "They're not living creatures. They're very complex machines. Kind of like the boat that your friends are on, only a lot more mobile and a lot more dangerous."
Nuriko seemed to think about that for a few minutes, letting the information sink in. The explanation seemed to be good enough for now, because he looked back to his companion with questioning eyes once again. "How... are you here?" He whispered, as if the though had just struck him.
"Remember back at the house... when you could 'feel' me waking up?" Quatre paused, giving the seishi enough time to remember and nod before he continued. "I can feel things from people... emotion mostly, but I can also pick up thoughts if I try hard enough and am close enough to the person. Currently, you're out cold on a bed in the safehouse I brought us to, and I'm probably slumped at the side of the bed with my hand holding onto yours. It was the only way I could think of to increase the contact enough to try and find you in here."
Nuriko's eyes grew wider with each moment as he listened to the other boy. This sounded a lot like when Chichiri could sense enemies nearby, only more refined. "So.. I AM dreaming... you just managed to get into my dreams?"
Quatre nodded, smiling faintly. "Yes. I was hoping that we'd be able to talk here, since most language barriers are at the conscious level, not the subconscious." At the raised eyebrow, he stopped, thinking of how to explain THIS little theory. For what seemed like hours, they continued to talk and share what information they had. Slowly however, the dreamscape seemed to drift apart and fade. It was then that Quatre rose to his feet, helping Nuriko up as well. "One of us is waking up, and I'm gathering it's you. If I don't wake up right away, there's food down in the kitchen, and the Shi Jin Ten Chi Sho is on the table next to the bed. Whatever you do though, don't go far from the house. There's no telling how many of our safehouses were compromised."
Nodding softly, Nuriko stepped back, half closing his eyes as he felt himself pulled into wakefulness. It was a few minutes before he was even able to open his eyes physically and he saw the tousled blond hair of the pilot leaning against the bed. *He wasn't kidding... he really DID manage to get into my dreams.* He thought, slipping from the boy's grasp and getting out of bed. Without a second thought, he picked up Quatre and laid him on the bed so that he could at least get some real rest. He must have been exhausted, if the dark circles under his eyes were any indication. He brushed one hand across the pale forehead, pushing back the shock of blonde bangs that had fallen across the other's eyes. Smiling softly, he turned and left the room, pausing only long enough to grab the precious book from the nightstand. Closing the door behind him, he made his way downstairs to quell his growling stomach.
* * *
When Quatre finally emerged and staggered down the stairs, he was greeted by the sight of a soft light coming from the living room of the small house. It wasn't designed for all of the pilots to stay in, but it had two bedrooms, a decent bath, kitchen and a small room off to the side that had been set up with a few chairs and a radio. Duo hated this one, since there wasn't a television, but at least they didn't have to worry about dealing with the manic pilot this time around. As he stepped into the small room, he saw Nuriko curled into a comfortable chair with several candles flickering on the table next to him. He was engrossed in the Shi Jin Ten Chi Sho, and never noticed Quatre's arrival.
"There's lights in here, you realize."
Looking up, Nuriko blinked owlishly then looked to the candles. "I know. I found them."
Chuckling faintly, Quatre decided to let it drop. "I need food and a bath. Not necessarily in that order." He saw Nuriko absorbed in the book once more, but he had pointed one slender hand towards the kitchen.
"Food's in there, and there's a strange room upstairs that looks like it has a tub in it, so I'm assuming that's the bathing room." With that, he curled up once more and lost himself in his reading.
Quatre just nodded and moved off into the kitchen. He'd helped himself to a bowl of vegetables and rice, and it seemed that Nuriko had eventually figured out how to use the stove. He was halfway through with the second bite when the nagging feeling at the back of his mind made itself known in a most spectacular fashion. Nearly dropping the bowl, he bolted towards the living room, crashing into Nuriko halfway there. The seishi had apparently had the same revelation and both of them just stared at each other from the tangled heap they'd landed in.
"You..."
"I understand you..."
Nuriko seemed to grin from ear to ear and hugged onto Quatre tightly. "You have NO idea how good it is to be able to talk to someone again!!" A muffled 'eep' was his only response and he looked down at Quatre's widened eyes before letting the smaller boy go sheepishly. "Sorry."
Quatre just gasped for air, waving away the apology with a smile. "S'okay... I just didn't realize how much I take breathing for granted." Smiling, he got to his feet and helped Nuriko up as well. "Any idea how we can talk to each other now when we couldn't before?"
The violet-haired seishi just shrugged faintly. "Maybe you triggered something when we were talking in my dreams. You said that language barriers were subconscious... maybe us talking that long got my conscious to realize how much of a jerk it was being?"
He couldn't help but giggle at the way Nuriko had explained that one. "Alright, I'll buy that. I'm going to go take a shower now, I think I just shocked my appetite out of me."
"Oh good, you found the food."
"Yeah, but there's only two of us, you didn't have to make so much." Quatre walked back into the kitchen, follwed by the seishi, and began to clean up his bowl and put away the leftovers.
"Sorry. I'm used to cooking for six other people when we travel, and one of them has the appetite of all the others combined." The sweet smile Nuriko put on was enough to make Quatre crack up all over again as he remembered reading of Miaka's eating habits. "Okay, you've got me there. Just remember, I don't eat THAT much."
Once the meal had been put away, Quatre headed upstairs towards the long-awaited shower while Nuriko went back to the book. He was curious as to what was happening with his friends, and found himself literally on the edge of his chair as things progressed. He wasn't aware of how much time passed, only that he nearly jumped out of his skin when a hand came to rest on his shoulder. Looking up with frightened eyes, he caught Quatre's concerned stare.
"Nuriko, what is it?" He'd felt something wrench at him while he was in the shower and knew instinctively where it had come from.
He just pointed one shaky hand towards the book as Quatre curled up to sit in the chair beside him. "They're in trouble... Seiryuu seishi." At Quatre's insistance, he cleared his throat, reading aloud from the book. Apparently while the language barrier had been broken, the blonde still couldn't read Chinese without difficulty.
-- As the skies opened and the rain pounded against the ship's decks, the Miko and her remaining seishi saw the lightning crash down and ignite the sails. The waves rattled the vessel with each motion they made, and the travellers found themselves hard pressed to keep their feet on the violently lurching deck. --
Quatre looked up as the words paused and saw Nuriko turning a shade or two paler than he had been a moment before. "Nuriko..."
"I'm needed there." He looked to the Arab with tears in his eyes, shaking his head in disbelief. "They're in trouble and I'm useless here!" He stood up suddenly, knocking the book to the floor in his urgency. Quatre could feel the panic and guilt that hovered around the older boy, and was about to rise to his feet to try and calm him when a flash of crimson light made them both stagger back.
He couldn't see, but could hear Nuriko shout somewhere on the other side of the light. One arm was brought up to shield his eyes, but as suddenly as it had begun, the light faded and he blinked several times to try and get his vision back.
He was alone... Quatre looked down at the book, faint traces of crimson still flickering around the edges. As he picked it up, his eyes widened, the kanji making sense easily.
-- A rope was thrown overboard to try and haul the fallen ones back onto the ship. In the midst of the storm's assault, Nuriko had returned. --
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TBC