Cherry Blossom: ::cries:: Look at this! I'm ruined!! Just look at what I did. I took a beautifully original fic and I made it into a…into a…BLANKET FIC!! CLICHÉEEEE!!! Waaaaaaaaaaaaah ;_;
Matteo: It's not that bad. At least you still have the weird pairing.
Cherry Blossom: ::sniffle:: Yeah. Well here ya go peeps. The next part to my WufeiXHilde romance. This is just weird. I mean it's weird. Science fictiony. Ghosts and junk. But anyway, this fic contains YAOI and YURI pairings, just not in this chapter, and an important STRAIGHT pairing of HILDE and WUFEI. I suggest you read the other 6 parts before you read this of you'll be totally confused. I got a song for this one. Yay! It's called Frozen Charlotte by Natalie Merchant. I tried to put a bunch of stuff in this chapter. Like ANGST and MUSH and JUNK. Hilde is on the threshold of death…
Matteo: You didn't kill her did you? ::gestures to the mob outside with pitchforks:: 'Cause that might be really hazardous to our health here.
Cherry Blossom: Ahehehe….RUN!
Disclaimer: I don't own them!! Trust me!!
Someone Else's Star – Part 7
Wufei carried Hilde into the hunting lodge and placed her down on the floor in front of the fireplace. After examining the mantel above the fireplace, Wufei determined that it was actually gas powered and flicked it on. Instantly, orange and yellow flames licked the edges of some fake looking logs and filled the room with a flickering light, and much more importantly, warmth. Wufei knelt down beside Hilde and checked her over carefully. Her breathing was shallow and her cheeks and hands were chalky white. She did not stir when he shook her or called her name. He lifted her hand to check for a pulse…and didn't find one.
::Blue like the winter snow in the full moon
Black like the silhouettes of the trees
Late blooming flowers lie frozen underneath the stars
I want you to remember me that way::
Shit!
Wufei's eyes filled with tears and he began to sob brokenly.
No no no no…how could this happen? This can't happen. I can't let this happen.
Wufei buried his head in Hilde's chest and clutched at her wildly, as if to keep her spirit from departing.
Don't leave me! You can't leave me now, I just found you. Oh God I can't be too late. Not again…
::Far away... I'll be gone, will you wait for me here
How long... I don't know, will you wait for me here::
Wufei went still as he felt the slow rise and fall of Hilde's chest. She was still breathing. How could she still be breathing without a pulse? Wufei pressed two shaky fingers to her neck and felt for the carotid artery. A weak pulse throbbed slowly under his fingers. It wasn't much, but it was there. Wufei checked her wrist again. Still no pulse.
Of course…
Working with a professional doctor like Sally Po over the last few years Wufei had picked up a few things about medicine.
Severe Hypothermia occurs when the core temperature of the body is between 92 and 86 degrees. Skin colour is pale, pupils dilate…
Wufei opened one of Hilde's eyes and saw how it reacted to the light.
Yep. Dilated. At 90 degrees the body tries to move into hibernation, shutting down all peripheral blood flow and reducing breathing rate and heart rate. If you can't get a radial pulse at the wrist it indicates a core temp below 90 - 86 degrees. At 86 degrees the body is in a state of "metabolic icebox." The person looks dead but is still alive.
Wufei observed the bluish tinge around Hilde's fingernails and lips and nodded to himself.
She at 86 degrees at least, but how can I tell if she's still alive?
Wufei tried to remember what Sally had told him. Panic was flooding his mind and making it difficult for him to think rationally. He had never felt so helpless.
That's not true. I felt this way when Meir—Nataku died. No! I'm not going to lose Hilde like that! I can do this, I just have to think. Come _on_ think!
Then, as if Sally was right there beside him, telling him what to do, Wufei knew how he could tell if Hilde were alive or not.
If the person is curled in the fetal position try to open their arms up from it. If they curl back up, the person is alive. Dead muscles won't contract only live muscles.
Wufei took one of Hilde's frozen arms from it's position against her chest and held his breath as he pulled it away…and let go.
It curled back.
Wufei could have wept for joy. Hilde was still alive. She was alive!
But she won't stay that way if you don't get her warmed up, Chang.
Wufei turned the gas fireplace up as far as it would go and then proceeded to strip Hilde of her wet clothing. He stopped when she was down to her bra and panties, hesitating to go any further. But when he felt how cold her bare flesh was, he decided that these sopping articles of clothing could not be allowed to stay on either. He removed these and set them by the fireplace to dry.
It's only the female body. You've seen it hundreds of times before. You were _married_ for heaven's sake! This isn't any different.
Still, Wufei couldn't help the blush that spread across his cheeks at the sight of Hilde's vulnerable nakedness and he tried to avert his eyes as much as he could.
Dry clothes. She needs dry clothes.
Wufei searched through the lodge but whoever used it last had taken everything with them when they left. There wasn't even a sheet or blanket on the bed. Wufei was about to cry out in frustration before he thought of an idea.
I can use my own clothes. It's warm in here. I can get by in just my pants.
Wufei quickly stripped off his heavy parka and considered draping it over Hilde. But it was wet from the snow outside and he didn't want to risk it. He took off his long white overcoat and slipped it underneath Hilde's shoulders, wrapping her up in it. Hilde was so small that the coat almost reached her ankles. Wufei rolled up the sleeves and took her slim, pale hands in his own. Her skin felt slightly hard and rubbery, a waxy kind of feeling. When Wufei placed a hand against her cheek he found that the skin was the same way.
Frostnip.At least, Wufei hoped it was only frostnip. If it were frostbite than it was unlikely that the condition could be reversed.
At least the skin's not blistered.Wufei remembered the treatment for frostnip clearly. He bent his head down to Hilde's face and blew softly on her cheek, letting the heat of his breath thaw the chilled skin. While he was doing this, he brought Hilde's hands up to rest against his bare stomach, hoping the warmth from his own body would transfer into hers. Her hands were unbelievably cold and Wufei shivered at the contact…and something more. Wufei tried to distract himself from the contact by repeating textbook treatments for frostnip.
Rewarm the area gently, generally blowing warm air on it or placing the area against a warm body part. Do not, under any circumstances, rub the affected area. This can damage the effected tissue by having ice crystals tear the cell.
Wufei concentrated on the soft fluttering of breath between Hilde's slightly parted lips and lay down beside her, pulling her into a close embrace.
Please be all right. Hilde…wake up. I need you. Please, don't leave me now.
::Still as the river grows in December
Silent and perfect blinding ice
Spring keeps her promises
No cold can keep her back
I want you to remember me that way::
Hilde walked through a heady green mist, trying to see where she was. She didn't recognize anything around her. There were trees, as tall as a skyscraper, and a crystal blue river that skipped merrily over the gray rock and stones, pooling into a small lake where the sun set in the distance. A bridge spanned across the river, beyond which Hilde could see a brilliant golden light, although whether that was due to the sun, or something else, she could not tell. Standing on the bridge was a girl, not much younger than Hilde. She was Chinese in decent and her almond shaped black eyes sparkled with spirit and more than a little mischief. Her body was small but graceful and full of hidden power. She wore a traditional costume, pure white and her hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail. She reminded Hilde of someone. If only she could remember who…
"Welcome to my place, Hilde," the girl called when she was in hearing distance.
How does she know my name?"You're place?"
"That's right."
"Could you tell me where I am? I can't seem to remember…"
The girl regarded Hilde sadly for a moment, both of them remaining in an uneasy silence. Hilde was getting nervous from all the scrutiny and was about to break it when the girl put out a hand to beckon her closer. Hilde hesitated and then shrugged.
She's only a child. I have nothing to be afraid of.Hilde walked out to the middle of the bridge where the girl was standing. She could see the evident sorrow in the girl's eyes, a pain so deep that Hilde almost asked what the matter was. But she changed her question to,
"Where are we?"
"I told you. This is my place."
"But where exactly is your place," Hilde asked, getting frustrated.
The girl shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly and replied, "That's up to you."
"What do you mean?"
"Do you believe in heaven?"
Hilde blinked and tried to sort out her confused feelings. This conversation was getting more than a little strange. She began to wonder if she might be dreaming or hallucinating or something.
"I suppose so," she looked around her, puzzled. "Is this heaven? 'Cause I thought that it would be bigger. Or at least have…I dunno…angels? Singing choirs? Fluffy white clouds?"
The corners of the girl's mouth curved upwards and her eyes lost some of their sadness.
"No. This is my place. I suppose you could call it limbo. It's like…a waiting juncture. A crossroad to the place beyond."
Hilde nodded, wondering what she could have possibly eaten before bed to prompt such a strange and elaborate dream.
"You don't believe me," the girl stated. "That's okay. I didn't expect you too. But I brought you here to show you something."
"You brought me here?" Hilde asked, startled.
The girl nodded solemnly. "That's right. I wanted to show you something, Hilde Schbieker."
"How do you know my name?"
The girl's lips twisted into a wry smile and she said, "I have been watching you for a while now. But that doesn't matter. Hilde do you remember what happened to you, before you came here?"
Hilde tried to recall the moments before she woke up in this strange place but it was hard. Everything was blurry in her mind. She shook her head.
"Look," the girl gestured to the side of the bridge, to the river. Hilde leaned over and looked at the running water. At first, all she saw was her own reflection. Then, slowly, another image appeared. A dark wood, filled with snow-capped pine trees. A blistering storm and a feeling of extreme cold. Hilde shivered in response to the scene.
"There," the girl pointed. "Do you see?"
And Hilde did see. She saw herself, walking in the snow, crying. She saw herself building a trench and making a fire. She saw herself throwing her boot into the darkness, a look of total terror on her face.
"I don't understand. Why am I out there in the storm?"
The surface of the water changed to show another face. This one had smooth olive-coloured skin, flashing obsidian eyes, and curved peach hued lips. His hair was black as night and it hung freely across his face, clinging to his high cheekbones. And Hilde remembered.
"Wufei!"
"Yes," the girl replied, her voice sounding wistful. "I watch him often."
Hilde knew who the girl reminded her of. She had the same eyes, the same hair. Even the way her body moved reminded her of him. Hilde looked into the water with longing. She missed those eyes, that face. She wondered how could have ever forgotten…
"You remember now? Why you are here?"
"Yes, "Hilde whispered. "I found Wufei and Relena together. I was upset. I ran outside and got lost in the storm…" A realization hit Hilde. "Am I dead?"
The girl shook her head. "No. Not yet, anyway. But you are pretty close. You've got to decide what your destiny will be."
"What do you mean?"
"This bridge is a pathway between life and death. You have the power to choose which way you will go. This way," the girl gestured towards the misty woods where Hilde had come from, "leads back to life. While this way," she gestured towards the golden light, "leads to the great beyond. Heaven or whatever you believe happens to you after death. There is much warmth there, and happiness. But you have to choose for yourself."
Hilde bit down hard on her lip and considered what she was just told.
Do I really want to go back? Wufei doesn't love me. He's already shown that. And I don't want to be lonely again. Maybe I should just choose death. It would be easier. No more pain…"You're wrong," the girl said, snapping Hilde out of her thoughts. "There is pain. The pain of not being with the one you love is deeper than any physical pain you could imagine."
::Far away... I'll be gone, will you wait for me here
How long... I don't know, but wait for me here::
The girl wiped a tear from the corner of her eye and stared longingly down into the river, watching the image of Wufei waver in the water.
"Are you…?"
"Yes. My name is…was Meiran. I was Wufei's wife."
Hilde suddenly felt ashamed and embarrassed of her feelings for Wufei, and even a tiny bit jealous of this woman who had owned Wufei's heart in a way she never could.
"I-I'm sorry," she stammered.
"Don't be," Meiran said. "I'm not sorry that I died. I was able to protect the weak. That's all that matters to me."
Hilde was confused.
"Then why—"
"Why am I here in limbo?"
Hilde nodded.
Meiran sighed and said, "He keeps me here. His pain and guilt. His loneliness…I don't want him to be alone anymore. I thought that you might be the one to take my place, to help him cope."
"No," Hilde shook her head. "Wufei doesn't love me. I can't be the one you speak of."
Meiran glanced sharply into Hilde's face and saw the pain in her eyes.
"This wasn't what I wanted to show you."
"Then what?"
The image in the water changed once again, to a small dark room where two figures lay, huddled together in front of a fire. Hilde gasped when she recognized the figures as her and Wufei.
"W-what?"
"Watch," ordered Meiran. And Hilde obeyed.
::Follow... don't follow me
To where
To where I go::
Wufei held Hilde close, praying to all the Ancestors he could remember that she would be all right, that she would wake up and forgive him and that everything would be all right.
What could be taking Heero and the others so long? Hilde needs medical attention. If she doesn't warm up soon she might…no don't think of that. Just hold on, please Hilde. I couldn't stand to lose you. I love you."I love you," Wufei whispered, touching his warm lips to Hilde's frozen ones in a tender kiss before collapsing in tears on her chest.
Please don't leave me again…::Far away... I'll be gone, will you wait for me here
How long... I don't know, will you wait for me here::
"He…he loves me?" Hilde's eyes filled with tears and she pressed a shaky hand to her throat in disbelief.
"Of course," Meiran retorted, a little bit of arrogance that made her seem even more like Wufei showing through. "You're really very silly. Do you honestly think he'd fall for Relena? After he kissed you and everything?"
Hilde blushed and said, "Well…I…"
"Stupid. He does love you. And I know that if you die his heart will be destroyed. I think you should consider your choice a bit more carefully before you decide."
If Wufei truly loves me then there is no reason for me to die. I want to be with him. This I know for sure."Why are you showing me this? Don't you want Wufei to stay faithful to you?"
Meiran's face lit up in a beautiful smile.
"He will always carry a piece of me with him. But I want him to move on and be happy. His loneliness keeps me close, keeps me from crossing. I am the only thing that fills the empty void in his heart. But if you were to love him then I would no longer be needed, and I could finally rest. I just want to be sure that you'll take care of him. He can be quite a handful."
::Follow... don't follow me, to where I have gone
Follow... don't follow me, to where I have gone::
Hilde smiled back at this remarkable woman.
"I'll do my best. I'll love him with all my heart."
Meiran nodded.
"That's all I ask. You'd better go. He's waiting for you."
"What will you do?"
Meiran looked back at the light across the bridge.
"Once you go back there will no longer be any need for me to stay here. I can go beyond and be with my clan once again. Do not worry about me. Now go, and give him a kiss from me. And if you have a baby girl, maybe you'd consider the name Meiran?"
Hilde blushed at the thought of actually having children with Chang Wufei, but she replied, "It's either that or Nataku."
Meiran laughed and hugged Hilde close, kissing her on the cheek.
"Go," she whispered in her ear. "Be happy together. He deserves to love again."
::Someday you'll take my place
And I'll wait
For you there::
And with that, Hilde wandered back across the bridge into the hazy green mist. The air seemed to get colder and colder the further she went until she was shivering all over. The haze got so thick that she couldn't see and the air pressed out of her lungs, making her collapse on the ground, hugging her arms and shaking all over. It was so cold, so unbelievably cold. She didn't know if she could stand it. The darkness took over her mind until…warmth. There was warmth. It was still freezing but not as cold as before and her lungs felt like they were working once again. Hilde felt numb all over. Her cheeks, hands, and feet hurt and she was terribly thirsty. But there were warm arms around her. Warm, strong arms. Wufei's arms.
Hilde tried to open her eyes and found that they were as heavy as lead. On about the third try she managed to crack them open a minuscule amount. She saw Wufei's face pressed into the crook of her neck, his eyes tightly closed, his cheeks streaked with tears. Hilde smiled and tried to lift a hand up to brush the stray strands of hair out of his face but she found that she couldn't move. So she opened her mouth instead and emitted a small squeaking sound. Wufei's eyes snapped open and he lifted his head frantically. Hilde looked at his worried face and gave him a reassuring smile.
"Hilde! You are alive!"
"W-wu….f-fei?"
Hilde was shivering now. Her whole body shook with shock and cold and emotion and other things. Wufei held back his tears of joy and gathered her close to his chest, hoping to slow her shivering. Hilde listened to the steady beat of his heart and was comforted. He loved her. She was sure of it.
"W-wu…f-fei?"
"Shh, you need to save your strength. You gave me quite a scare. I thought," Wufei's voice caught in his throat and he had to wait a few seconds before he could go on. "I thought for a moment that I would lose you."
Hilde smiled and shook her head.
"Y-you can't get r-rid…of me that…easily, Wufei."
Wufei smiled back and hugged Hilde closer to him, tightening his arms in a near suffocating embrace. Hilde didn't mind though. She was alive. And Wufei loved her. That was all that mattered.
"I'm sorry," Wufei said.
"Sorry? For what?"
"I…the kiss…I didn't mean to—"
"Shh," Hilde lifted a finger to his lips. "Y-you don't have to explain. It d-doesn't…matter anymore."
Wufei was about to ask what she meant by that when a pair of soft lips met with his own, effectively stopping all thought. He returned the kiss eagerly, slipping his tongue in to mingle with Hilde's when she parted her lips, exploring the sweet crevess of her mouth. Her hands came up to twine in his hair and his arms rubbed in gentle circles on her back, both soothing and arousing her. When they came up for air Wufei whispered into her ear, "Wo ai ni."
"I know," Hilde sighed back and their mouths met again for another searing kiss. There was no telling just how far they might have gone if the door to the lodge hadn't swung open at that particular instant, letting in a blast of cold air, four very worried looking Gundam pilots and a whole barrage of EMTs. They all stood in the doorway, just staring at the couple. Hilde blushed a bright red. Wufei just looked irritated.
"Uh…are we interrupting something guys," Duo teased, breaking the embarrassed silence. "'Cause we can come back later."
"Shut up, Maxwell and get your butt over here," Wufei ordered. "Hilde needs medical assistance."
"Would that happen to be mouth-to-mouth that you were doing, Wu-man?" Duo continued with a large grin on his face. But he came to sit by Hilde's side and soon she was looked over by all the EMTs, covered in nice warm blankets and heating pads, fed a sugary-jello substance that was supposed to help with dehydration, and piled into an ambulance bound for Westside General.
"But I don't want to go to the hospital. I'm fine," Hilde protested as the EMTs closed the doors and started the ambulance.
"Tough luck, Babe," Duo said. "You're going whether you want to or not. You could have died out there ya know?" We're not taking any chances."
"For once Maxwell is right. You need to be checked out by a doctor," Wufei added.
Hilde pouted and pleaded to no avail.
"But I don't want to go!"
"Stop acting like such a child, onna."
"ONNA?"
"Yes, ONNA. And a STUBBORN ONNA at that."
"Look who's talking!"
"What do you mean by that?"
"Oh you know exactly what I mean."
Duo chuckled and leaned back in his seat, enjoying the fight.
"Ah…young love. It's such a beautiful thing."
"SHUT UP MAXWELL!"
Owari
Cherry Blossom: Well?
Matteo: Saaaaaaaaaaaaaaappy!
Cherry Blossom: I know, I know. But I can't help it. It's my nature ^__^ At least I didn't kill her.
Matteo: Yeah. Is that the end?
Cherry Blossom: Umm…I dunno. Should I do more parts and stuff? You guys'll have to tell me. Review!!