Author's Note: Sorry for the long wait, y'all. Been having a horrible week. Here's the next part.
Psyche: It gets even weirder!
And I pick on Duo a lot in this chapter. Sorry, don't hit me. He's not meant to come off as a little sissy wimpy-man, but... tell me if he does, okay? -_-;;
Disclaimer: Don't own Gundam Wing and such. * These are thoughts. * ~These are emphasized.~
PART TWO
Duo came pelting around the corner of the landing, running headlong into Trowa. The two startled boys fell in a heap on the floor. Quatre, who'd been walking beside the taller pilot, gave a startled exclamation.
"Are you all right?" he asked, offering a hand to Trowa while Duo sprang to his feet.
"I'm fine," Trowa replied tonelessly.
"Sorry, Trowa. Didn't see you there," said Duo abashedly, shifting from one foot to the other.
"It's okay. Just watch it next time."
Heero and Wufei joined them on the landing.
"I thought you were going to wait for us at the bottom," Wufei stated blandly.
"Well, I ~was~ waiting, but you guys were taking ~forever~!" Duo whined, trying to hide his agitation. His heart was pounding in his chest, and he knew he was in too good of shape for his rapid flight to be the cause. "I was waiting for like ten minutes!"
"You've only been gone about a minute," Quatre said, tilting his head quizzically at Duo.
"Never mind. It's not important. Let's just go," he placated, cracking a well-practiced grin. He mock bowed and stepped aside, gesturing the others to go ahead of him.
The others passed by with a few odd glances, but Heero stopped in front of him. He raised his eyes to meet the Japanese boy's, hoping they wouldn't give him away. Heero studied him for a moment.
"Something wrong, Heero?" Duo asked in what he meant to be a jovial tone, but it fell rather flat.
"You tell me."
* Damn. Shoulda known better. He can always see right through me. * Duo thought, but was determined not to admit weakness.
"Of course not," Duo said. "Why would there be?"
He continued grinning innocently at Heero until he moved on. He hesitated in following. He had a very bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.
* This is stupid. * he thought, giving himself a mental slap upside the head. * I'm just spazzing out, for sure. Not enough sleep, too much stress, blah blah blah. Just calm down and go with them. *
He took a few deep breaths, and tried very hard to squelch the creeping tendrils of dread as he started back down the steps. His nerves rattled as he took another step down the stairs, and then another and another. He was in the middle of the flight now; Heero and Wufei were only a few steps ahead. His brain itched. It was getting hard to breathe. He tried to take a calm breath, but he seemed to hyperventilating. Pain shot through his head like a metal splinter.
Heero and Wufei both turned to look as he stopped and buried his face in his hands, his fingers twining in his bangs.
"Duo?"
Wufei was suddenly by his side. Duo jumped when he placed a hand on his shoulder and forced him to sit on the steps. The pressure around his mind eased, the nagging buzz between his ears faded as Wufei told him to put his head between his knees and breathe deeply. Slowly, he got himself under control, but it took all of his concentration.
When he looked up, the others were clustered about him, peering at him, Trowa blankly, Quatre anxious and confusedly, Wufei speculatively, and Heero intensely. An absurdly unfocused part of his mind snorted - Heero did ~everything~ intensely - but he felt so drained that he didn't even try to smile.
"Duo, what's wrong?" Quatre asked, worry showing plainly on his fair features.
"I - I dunno," he said.
"Fresh air will help you get your equilibrium back," Wufei pronounced after a pause. "Come on."
He stood from where he'd been sitting beside Duo on the step, and offered Duo a hand. Duo frowned at him, but took the hand and levered himself upright.
"Are you sure that's a good idea? Maybe you should lie down instead," Quatre suggested, frowning slightly.
"No, it's all right. I think some fresh air would be good right about now," Duo said.
"I'll come with you," Heero spoke up, unbending from his crouch.
"Don't bother," Wufei said blandly. "It's not necessary."
Heero looked sharply at Wufei, who returned the gaze with an appraising look of his own. Tension that Duo didn't quite understand passed between the two. He transferred his gaze from one to the other, and then turned to Quatre and Trowa. The blonde shrugged and Trowa was about as unresponsive as ever.
"Let's go," Wufei said to Duo, breaking the frozen tableau and turning to go up the stairs.
Casting once last glance over his shoulder, Duo followed. Heero didn't move, just glowered at Wufei's back.
Wufei led Duo up the stairs and through the hallways. Duo was glad of the guide, he didn't think he could remember all the different passages yet, especially when he was feeling so... disoriented. His companion didn't speak, and the itching, buzzing feeling was fading more rapidly as they walked. Finally, they made it to a small balcony with French windows opening onto it. Wufei sat on the cushioned white bench and gestured Duo to do so as well.
The climate hit like a ton of bricks after being in the cool, air-conditioned house. Hot and dusty wind sucked the moisture from his forehead as soon as his pores could release it. He breathed the dry air in without much hope, but to his surprise, the last vestiges of the fear he'd felt drained away. This, unfortunately, left him feeling unnaturally tired and embarrassed.
* Oh God. * he thought, following this with several imaginative curses. * I can't believe I overreacted like that. That's like a full-blown panic attack. The guys must really think I'm some pathetic weakling. *
That alarmed him. What if they took this incident not as the first - and ~only~ - one of its kind, but as a common occurrence? They might, no, they ~would~ deem him a liability. He wouldn't be able to pilot Deathscythe if he had seizures like this every time he got scared. Heero might even kill him for knowing too much. Or Trowa would. Duo didn't trust that cold, aloof exterior. And Wufei probably thought him too weak to fend for himself, which was why he'd taken it upon himself to guide Duo out here. The American braced himself for the tirade he knew was coming. Wufei was probably formulating something really scathing and long-winded at that very moment.
He heard Wufei draw in a breath over the howl of the wind. * Here it comes... *
"It's because you're blocked," Wufei said in a low voice.
Duo paused in mid-sigh and turned to look at him. That was not what Duo was expecting. Wufei was watching the desert, but darted a sidelong glance at Duo.
"Huh?" Duo asked, feeling ~so~ very intelligent at the moment.
It was Wufei's turn to sigh. Then he turned to face him.
"Listen, Duo, I know this is going to sound strange... But please, hear me out."
"Shoot," Duo replied warily.
"I am a psychic."
Duo blinked.
"What?"
Wufei frowned.
"I know you can't be as stupid as you pretend to be, so listen up and try to understand."
The insult hit its mark. Duo straightened his back and glared at Wufei, who smirked.
"That's more like it. Now, do you know what I mean when I say psychic?" Wufei asked.
* He was right, it ~does~ sound strange. Especially coming from ~him.~ *
"You mean someone who can predict the future and talk to - er - spirits and stuff," Duo answered skeptically.
"Somewhat. There are many different kinds of psychic, and even more misconceptions about them. But we'll get into that later. What you need to know at the moment is that you have the ability to be psychic naturally. But you are blocked. Do you know what that means?"
"What are you talking about? Have you been sitting in the sun for too long?" Duo asked. The situation was getting more strange by the second.
Wufei frowned. "Look, will you cut the skepticism and just listen to me? Psychics are... more connected to the energy of the universe than so-called "normal" people. This allows them to sense more varied forms of energy and different levels of reality. All people have the ability to become connected, but a few are born with more innate ability than others. I am such a person," he stated, not boasting.
"You're a psychic," Duo repeated flatly, raising an eyebrow. "Riiiiiiight. And what does this have to do with anything?"
"Well, if you'd stop interrupting and let me explain, you'd find out." He locked his eyes on Duo's. "I can tell that you are as well. But - " here he held up a warning finger, " - you are blocked. This means that there is a mental barrier between you and your talent, thus disconnecting you from most forms of energy. It is such an old block that I couldn't immediately tell it was there."
"Okay, if you say so," Duo said, only half understanding and not believing at all. "What's your point?"
"I was getting to that. This place... There's something here. An old energy exists in this mansion, I could sense it from the moment I saw it."
At these words, a shiver sought to trace it's way down his spine, despite the sweltering heat, but he suppressed it. He found this whole thing more than a bit surreal. The fact that it was ~Wufei~ telling him this... Well, that just added to his disbelief. He never figured Wufei to be the kind who enjoyed practical jokes like this, but he was pretty sure that the other teen was just seeing how much of this stuff he'd buy. Well, he wouldn't play along.
"You know, I never figured ~you~ for the new-age flaky type," Duo observed absently, standing up and walking towards the French windows. "And as interesting as this has been, I think it's time we go back to the others. I feel much better now."
"Duo Maxwell! Have you heard nothing of what I just said?" Wufei demanded, upset.
Duo turned to look at him, suddenly very angry that his fellow pilot would think he was that easy to fool.
"Look, Wufei, I don't know what kind of moron you take me for, but I can tell when someone is telling me major B.S. It's not bad enough that I made ~myself~ look incompetent; you have to go and as insult to injury. I'm not as weak as you apparently think I am," Duo spat out, feeling unusually venomous. "So if you'll excuse me, I'm going to talk to Quatre."
Wufei looked like he wanted to retort, but he clamped his mouth tightly shut. He walked stiffly toward Duo, pausing only a few feet away. After a moment, he said in a tightly controlled voice, "I can't make you believe me. You have to realize this on your own, I see. But the shields I placed on you on the stairs and on our way out here will only hold so long against the pressure that will be put on them by this... presence in this house. When you have gotten it through your stubborn head that you need help, I'll be waiting."
"Riiiiight. Now, shall we?" Duo asked, gesturing mockingly for him to lead the way. Once again he saw Wufei stop himself from saying something, and the Chinese boy began marching precisely back through the halls.
Duo followed, snorting softly.
* Just how stupid does he think I am? I know that psychics aren't real. *
He dismissed the notion that it wasn't like Wufei to resort to trickery in anything, much less for the sole purpose of humiliating a comrade. After all, he didn't really know him all that well in the first place, and that meant that he really couldn't judge the guy's character. And if what he was saying was the truth, why hadn't he let Heero come with? Probably because he knew Heero would be able to see through his little charade. Duo could, too. No, what Wufei was talking about was just a load of crap.
* But all this still leaves the question of what the hell happened to me down there... *
END PART TWO
Sooooo, whatdja thiiiiiiink???
Thalia: That didn't really explain anything.
Psyche: No, it didn't, did it?
Eros: Think it's time for us to jump in?
NOOOOOOOOO!!!! I really WILL explain everything. You guys are just impatient.
Thalia: Fine, we'll wait a few more parts. If this hasn't gotten any better by then....
Yeah, yeah, I know. Now, Erry-chan?
Eros: RRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEVVVVVVVVIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWW!!!!!
Psyche: It gets even weirder!
And I pick on Duo a lot in this chapter. Sorry, don't hit me. He's not meant to come off as a little sissy wimpy-man, but... tell me if he does, okay? -_-;;
Disclaimer: Don't own Gundam Wing and such. * These are thoughts. * ~These are emphasized.~
PART TWO
Duo came pelting around the corner of the landing, running headlong into Trowa. The two startled boys fell in a heap on the floor. Quatre, who'd been walking beside the taller pilot, gave a startled exclamation.
"Are you all right?" he asked, offering a hand to Trowa while Duo sprang to his feet.
"I'm fine," Trowa replied tonelessly.
"Sorry, Trowa. Didn't see you there," said Duo abashedly, shifting from one foot to the other.
"It's okay. Just watch it next time."
Heero and Wufei joined them on the landing.
"I thought you were going to wait for us at the bottom," Wufei stated blandly.
"Well, I ~was~ waiting, but you guys were taking ~forever~!" Duo whined, trying to hide his agitation. His heart was pounding in his chest, and he knew he was in too good of shape for his rapid flight to be the cause. "I was waiting for like ten minutes!"
"You've only been gone about a minute," Quatre said, tilting his head quizzically at Duo.
"Never mind. It's not important. Let's just go," he placated, cracking a well-practiced grin. He mock bowed and stepped aside, gesturing the others to go ahead of him.
The others passed by with a few odd glances, but Heero stopped in front of him. He raised his eyes to meet the Japanese boy's, hoping they wouldn't give him away. Heero studied him for a moment.
"Something wrong, Heero?" Duo asked in what he meant to be a jovial tone, but it fell rather flat.
"You tell me."
* Damn. Shoulda known better. He can always see right through me. * Duo thought, but was determined not to admit weakness.
"Of course not," Duo said. "Why would there be?"
He continued grinning innocently at Heero until he moved on. He hesitated in following. He had a very bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.
* This is stupid. * he thought, giving himself a mental slap upside the head. * I'm just spazzing out, for sure. Not enough sleep, too much stress, blah blah blah. Just calm down and go with them. *
He took a few deep breaths, and tried very hard to squelch the creeping tendrils of dread as he started back down the steps. His nerves rattled as he took another step down the stairs, and then another and another. He was in the middle of the flight now; Heero and Wufei were only a few steps ahead. His brain itched. It was getting hard to breathe. He tried to take a calm breath, but he seemed to hyperventilating. Pain shot through his head like a metal splinter.
Heero and Wufei both turned to look as he stopped and buried his face in his hands, his fingers twining in his bangs.
"Duo?"
Wufei was suddenly by his side. Duo jumped when he placed a hand on his shoulder and forced him to sit on the steps. The pressure around his mind eased, the nagging buzz between his ears faded as Wufei told him to put his head between his knees and breathe deeply. Slowly, he got himself under control, but it took all of his concentration.
When he looked up, the others were clustered about him, peering at him, Trowa blankly, Quatre anxious and confusedly, Wufei speculatively, and Heero intensely. An absurdly unfocused part of his mind snorted - Heero did ~everything~ intensely - but he felt so drained that he didn't even try to smile.
"Duo, what's wrong?" Quatre asked, worry showing plainly on his fair features.
"I - I dunno," he said.
"Fresh air will help you get your equilibrium back," Wufei pronounced after a pause. "Come on."
He stood from where he'd been sitting beside Duo on the step, and offered Duo a hand. Duo frowned at him, but took the hand and levered himself upright.
"Are you sure that's a good idea? Maybe you should lie down instead," Quatre suggested, frowning slightly.
"No, it's all right. I think some fresh air would be good right about now," Duo said.
"I'll come with you," Heero spoke up, unbending from his crouch.
"Don't bother," Wufei said blandly. "It's not necessary."
Heero looked sharply at Wufei, who returned the gaze with an appraising look of his own. Tension that Duo didn't quite understand passed between the two. He transferred his gaze from one to the other, and then turned to Quatre and Trowa. The blonde shrugged and Trowa was about as unresponsive as ever.
"Let's go," Wufei said to Duo, breaking the frozen tableau and turning to go up the stairs.
Casting once last glance over his shoulder, Duo followed. Heero didn't move, just glowered at Wufei's back.
Wufei led Duo up the stairs and through the hallways. Duo was glad of the guide, he didn't think he could remember all the different passages yet, especially when he was feeling so... disoriented. His companion didn't speak, and the itching, buzzing feeling was fading more rapidly as they walked. Finally, they made it to a small balcony with French windows opening onto it. Wufei sat on the cushioned white bench and gestured Duo to do so as well.
The climate hit like a ton of bricks after being in the cool, air-conditioned house. Hot and dusty wind sucked the moisture from his forehead as soon as his pores could release it. He breathed the dry air in without much hope, but to his surprise, the last vestiges of the fear he'd felt drained away. This, unfortunately, left him feeling unnaturally tired and embarrassed.
* Oh God. * he thought, following this with several imaginative curses. * I can't believe I overreacted like that. That's like a full-blown panic attack. The guys must really think I'm some pathetic weakling. *
That alarmed him. What if they took this incident not as the first - and ~only~ - one of its kind, but as a common occurrence? They might, no, they ~would~ deem him a liability. He wouldn't be able to pilot Deathscythe if he had seizures like this every time he got scared. Heero might even kill him for knowing too much. Or Trowa would. Duo didn't trust that cold, aloof exterior. And Wufei probably thought him too weak to fend for himself, which was why he'd taken it upon himself to guide Duo out here. The American braced himself for the tirade he knew was coming. Wufei was probably formulating something really scathing and long-winded at that very moment.
He heard Wufei draw in a breath over the howl of the wind. * Here it comes... *
"It's because you're blocked," Wufei said in a low voice.
Duo paused in mid-sigh and turned to look at him. That was not what Duo was expecting. Wufei was watching the desert, but darted a sidelong glance at Duo.
"Huh?" Duo asked, feeling ~so~ very intelligent at the moment.
It was Wufei's turn to sigh. Then he turned to face him.
"Listen, Duo, I know this is going to sound strange... But please, hear me out."
"Shoot," Duo replied warily.
"I am a psychic."
Duo blinked.
"What?"
Wufei frowned.
"I know you can't be as stupid as you pretend to be, so listen up and try to understand."
The insult hit its mark. Duo straightened his back and glared at Wufei, who smirked.
"That's more like it. Now, do you know what I mean when I say psychic?" Wufei asked.
* He was right, it ~does~ sound strange. Especially coming from ~him.~ *
"You mean someone who can predict the future and talk to - er - spirits and stuff," Duo answered skeptically.
"Somewhat. There are many different kinds of psychic, and even more misconceptions about them. But we'll get into that later. What you need to know at the moment is that you have the ability to be psychic naturally. But you are blocked. Do you know what that means?"
"What are you talking about? Have you been sitting in the sun for too long?" Duo asked. The situation was getting more strange by the second.
Wufei frowned. "Look, will you cut the skepticism and just listen to me? Psychics are... more connected to the energy of the universe than so-called "normal" people. This allows them to sense more varied forms of energy and different levels of reality. All people have the ability to become connected, but a few are born with more innate ability than others. I am such a person," he stated, not boasting.
"You're a psychic," Duo repeated flatly, raising an eyebrow. "Riiiiiiight. And what does this have to do with anything?"
"Well, if you'd stop interrupting and let me explain, you'd find out." He locked his eyes on Duo's. "I can tell that you are as well. But - " here he held up a warning finger, " - you are blocked. This means that there is a mental barrier between you and your talent, thus disconnecting you from most forms of energy. It is such an old block that I couldn't immediately tell it was there."
"Okay, if you say so," Duo said, only half understanding and not believing at all. "What's your point?"
"I was getting to that. This place... There's something here. An old energy exists in this mansion, I could sense it from the moment I saw it."
At these words, a shiver sought to trace it's way down his spine, despite the sweltering heat, but he suppressed it. He found this whole thing more than a bit surreal. The fact that it was ~Wufei~ telling him this... Well, that just added to his disbelief. He never figured Wufei to be the kind who enjoyed practical jokes like this, but he was pretty sure that the other teen was just seeing how much of this stuff he'd buy. Well, he wouldn't play along.
"You know, I never figured ~you~ for the new-age flaky type," Duo observed absently, standing up and walking towards the French windows. "And as interesting as this has been, I think it's time we go back to the others. I feel much better now."
"Duo Maxwell! Have you heard nothing of what I just said?" Wufei demanded, upset.
Duo turned to look at him, suddenly very angry that his fellow pilot would think he was that easy to fool.
"Look, Wufei, I don't know what kind of moron you take me for, but I can tell when someone is telling me major B.S. It's not bad enough that I made ~myself~ look incompetent; you have to go and as insult to injury. I'm not as weak as you apparently think I am," Duo spat out, feeling unusually venomous. "So if you'll excuse me, I'm going to talk to Quatre."
Wufei looked like he wanted to retort, but he clamped his mouth tightly shut. He walked stiffly toward Duo, pausing only a few feet away. After a moment, he said in a tightly controlled voice, "I can't make you believe me. You have to realize this on your own, I see. But the shields I placed on you on the stairs and on our way out here will only hold so long against the pressure that will be put on them by this... presence in this house. When you have gotten it through your stubborn head that you need help, I'll be waiting."
"Riiiiight. Now, shall we?" Duo asked, gesturing mockingly for him to lead the way. Once again he saw Wufei stop himself from saying something, and the Chinese boy began marching precisely back through the halls.
Duo followed, snorting softly.
* Just how stupid does he think I am? I know that psychics aren't real. *
He dismissed the notion that it wasn't like Wufei to resort to trickery in anything, much less for the sole purpose of humiliating a comrade. After all, he didn't really know him all that well in the first place, and that meant that he really couldn't judge the guy's character. And if what he was saying was the truth, why hadn't he let Heero come with? Probably because he knew Heero would be able to see through his little charade. Duo could, too. No, what Wufei was talking about was just a load of crap.
* But all this still leaves the question of what the hell happened to me down there... *
END PART TWO
Sooooo, whatdja thiiiiiiink???
Thalia: That didn't really explain anything.
Psyche: No, it didn't, did it?
Eros: Think it's time for us to jump in?
NOOOOOOOOO!!!! I really WILL explain everything. You guys are just impatient.
Thalia: Fine, we'll wait a few more parts. If this hasn't gotten any better by then....
Yeah, yeah, I know. Now, Erry-chan?
Eros: RRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEVVVVVVVVIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWW!!!!!
