Dragon Lady: Okay, I've been lazy and haven't gotten around to getting part two out, even though I had it done earlier. ^^;;;
Ken: *rolls eyes* How typically dl.
Dragon Lady: ^^;; *coughs* Yes, well…
Ken: But, its out now. And fast enough, I suppose.
Dragon Lady: I thought you didn't want to have anything to do with this story, Ken?
Ken: …
Dragon Lady: You were the one who was vehemently opposed to my taking time away from other stories to write this, remember?
Ken: *reluctantly admits* Yeah, well, it kind of grows on you…
Dragon Lady: ^_^
Ken: I just wish you'd learn to finish one story before moving on to another one.
Dragon Lady: ^^;; I'm working on that.
Ken: Anyway, the next part of the story awaits you.
Dragon Lady: Oooh! *looks excited* A story! Funness! I wonder what's gonna happen! ^_^
Ken: …Dl…it's your story. You wrote it. You already know what's going to happen in it.
Dragon Lady: Oh, yeah. I knew that. ^_^;; Enjoy.
Ken: If you've gotten this far, you should know that its 1x2 and 3x4, but just in case you haven't realized yet, there's the warning.
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Sinister Shadows
By: DigimonDragonLady
Quatre frowned when they entered the dining room. Heero and Duo were already seated at a large table with four other people, who were obviously teachers and not students, and a lot of empty seats. Duo gestured for Quatre to come and sit next to him, and Quatre did so, Trowa sitting on his other side.
The teachers were all involved in their own conversations, and didn't even appear to have noticed the students. Quatre could see it was making Duo uncomfortable, to be ignored this way.
"What's going on?" he asked, leaning over to whisper to Duo.
"I don't know," Duo answered, just as quietly. "They don't even seem to care that we're sitting here…"
"Where is everyone else?" Quatre asked.
Duo gave him a strange look. "We're only missing the headmaster, aren't we? And I think Doctor J said that he took most of his meals alone…"
"I was talking about the other students…"
"Q-man, what other students?"
Quatre stared at him. "Duo… Are you trying to tell me that we are the only students at this school?"
"Didn't you know, Quatre?"
"This institute has four students?!"
"Sshh. Keep your voice down, Quatre," he shot a worried look at the teachers. Then he seemed to relax a little. "Sorry," he apologized, "but all this quiet makes me really jumpy. I'd fill up this choking silence with any kind of pointless chatter if these teachers weren't making me so uneasy."
"Don't worry about it," Quatre said. "I know how you feel."
Duo gave him a grateful look. "I want to be able to really talk to you guys later, because I'm not sure how often we'll get a chance to in this place; something about it just seems to scream "you'll be studying with all your free time", ya know? Anyway, do you mind if we all meet up in your room the first chance we get?"
"Not at all," Quatre assured him.
"Thanks," Duo smiled. "I'll talk to Heero if you tell Trowa."
Quatre nodded. He glanced meaningfully at Trowa and the brunette leaned closer to listen to him. "Duo wants us to meet back in my room some time after dinner," he said.
"All right," Trowa agreed.
"This is all making Duo nervous too, though Heero doesn't seem all that bothered by it, but the atmosphere is making me feel like a rabbit surrounded by a bunch of foxes," he glanced at the teachers for emphasis.
But Quatre didn't get a chance to say anything more to Trowa, because at that moment he was interrupted by someone entering the dining room from a side door. Quatre silently observed this new face.
It was a young girl, who couldn't have been more than his own seventeen years of age. She was pushing a cart that rattled along on squeaky wheels. A sound that seemed to completely fill the room to the point where Quatre was sure his eardrums would burst from it. Somehow the teachers managed to ignore this as well.
She moved her cart along from person to person, placing bowls in front of everyone at the table and filling them with some kind of steaming soup. Quatre decided that even if no one else did, he would speak up when this girl got to him.
"Thank you," he told her.
She avoided meeting Quatre's gaze and he frowned after her when she moved on to Duo without so much as a nod at him for his acknowledgement. Quatre continued to watch her until she left the room with her cart.
"Well now, doesn't this look wonderful."
Quatre jumped slightly in his seat when he heard the voice. He stared at the teacher who had finally broken the unbearable silence with something more than the sound of a squeaky cart. It was the female teacher with the short blue hair.
"I think this looks like a very promising group of youngsters." This came from the man with the cinnamon colored hair.
"What classes will you all be taking?" asked the woman with the glasses.
Quatre, Duo, Heero, and Trowa looked at one another in confusion. Quatre took it upon himself to speak for the four, when it was obvious that the woman was expecting an answer to her question. "We…we're not exactly sure…"
"No, of course they aren't, Une. They haven't had enough time to discover themselves." Quatre looked curiously at the man with the long platinum blond hair.
"We try and do things differently, here at the Institute, you see," the teacher who had spoken first said. "Something will strike you eventually, and you'll let us know. Though I did hear from Doctor J that I already have a student set up for my particular skills."
"Really?" The woman with the glasses and chestnut brown hair raised an eyebrow and looked them all over. "And which one of you four would be Noin's aspiring little musician?"
"Oh," Quatre blinked. "I guess that would be me. I did tell the headmaster that I played the violin…"
"The violin? How long have you played?" the teacher, whom Quatre was now assuming was Ms. Noin, asked.
"Since I was very young," Quatre replied. "I'm not really sure when I started."
"You're not a beginner then. I'll be working with an advanced student. I hope you aren't too much better than me," she smiled to show she was teasing.
Quatre relaxed a little and gave her a small smile in return.
"What's your name?" she asked.
"I'm Quatre. Quatre Winner."
"Well, I look forward to having you as my student, Quatre Winner. My name is Lucretzia Noin. This lady beside me is Lady Une, Trieze Kushranada, and beside him…well, everyone calls Millardo, Zechs."
"Like Ms. Noin, we are all looking forward to working with you young men," Zechs said.
Having become a little more comfortable, Duo joined in the conversation as well, taking it upon himself to once again introduce Heero and Trowa; not that they seemed to mind in the least.
* * *
Once the dinner was over, and having gone through all the delicious courses, they made their ways back up the stair case to the second story where their rooms were located. Mr. Trieze informed them that usually this time was spent in a small parlor off of the main entry, where the students could work on their school work once formal classes had begun, or socialize with one another if they had none. But should they wish they could return to their rooms to do unpacking or write personal letters.
So they said their goodnights and made their way to the wing where the student dormitories were. Quatre ushered them all into his room and shut the door.
"So…" he said, once they had all made themselves comfortable in various spots in the room. "What do we think?"
"I liked the teachers," Duo commented. "Once they stopped ignoring us anyway."
"This place makes me nervous," Quatre admitted, sinking down onto his bed and drawing his knees up to his chest. "Its like…I feel that I'm being watched."
"I get the same feeling," Heero said gruffly.
"Something here just seems wrong," Trowa said.
"Aren't we all being…a little dismal?" Duo asked. "I mean, for people unused to it, I'm sure this house would make anyone a little nervous. We shouldn't condemn it yet, should we? Once we get to know the schedule…we'll probably be just fine."
They looked at one another uncomfortably.
"I didn't know that it would only be the four of us when I got here, did any of you?" Quatre asked, to cover the awkwardness. "I assumed that there would be many more students…"
"I knew," Duo said. "Father Maxwell and Sister Helen told me before they brought me. St. Gabrielle's is supposed to be a kind of…experimental school…"
"Experimental?" Trowa asked. "I'm not sure I like the sound of that."
"Well, its supposed to be for special "gifted" individuals, so I really don't understand how I got in, because I'm only an average student when all is said and done. But Sister Helen was real happy about it and said that it would give me a chance to be someone important in life," he shrugged.
"The same with me," Quatre agreed. "One of my close friends, Wufei, and I applied together when our school passed out the brochures for St. Gabrielle's. He's really good in all of the subjects he takes, and I couldn't believe they turned down his application."
"Apparently the headmaster knows exactly what he's looking for, and your friend isn't it," Trowa said.
"But the question is, who is?" Heero pointed out.
"And why," Duo added.
"How does something about us four stand out from all the other hundreds of applicants they must have gotten? Could it have just been a random draw?" Quatre asked. "I wish I knew."
"And I doubt Doctor J's gonna tell us anything," Duo scowled. "He just doesn't seem like the type that's into explaining his reasoning for something. Now maybe your teacher Ms. Noin could tell us something, Quatre…"
"I could ask," Quatre nodded.
"I don't trust Doctor J," Heero informed them. "He's too secretive. He looks like he's definitely got his own agenda, and doesn't like it when other people get in his way."
"Too secretive? You're one to talk, Heero," Duo laughed, but stopped when the cheerful sound seemed to be swallowed up by the room. "But I think you're right about him."
"We'll find out what's going on soon enough," Heero promised darkly.
"Don't forget how curiosity killed the cat," Trowa reminded him. "For some reason it seems to me that that's something to keep in mind while dealing with this place."
"What a horrible thought," Quatre shuddered, drawing his knees closer to his chest. Trowa shot him an apologetic look.
"Yeah, we are being awfully morbid. And on our first day here, too. You know, I bet a good nights sleep is all we'll need to alleviate all this stress we're feeling," Duo proposed. "The best thing about arriving at St. Gabrielle's on a Friday is that it gives us the weekend to relax and prepare for our Monday classes."
"Which we don't know what they are," Heero muttered.
"Still, it sounds like a plan to me," Trowa agreed with Duo.
"Such as shame we don't have roommates here, it would make things so much more interesting, ne, Heero?" Duo winked at the Japanese boy. "But I suppose it's kinda pointless considering that there are only four of us in this enormous old place," he shrugged. "Anyway, I'm sacking out. 'Night everyone, come on Heero."
Quatre resisted the urge to burst out laughing as Duo jumped up and dragged a silent Heero out of the room. Poor Heero. "You know," he said. "I always manage to get lost in his words every time Duo starts to ramble on like that."
"I suggest getting used to it, little one, something tells me it's Duo's natural state of character," Trowa replied.
Quatre laughed. "Oh, it doesn't bother me," he said quickly. "Not at all. It makes Duo more interesting. Colorful, don't you think? Its nice, because he reminds me that I'm not alone. I haven't always had a lot of people to call my friends, not real friends who weren't more interested in the family name than me, just Wufei and Rashid, so it's a nice new feeling to be having."
Trowa nodded in agreement and gave him a small smile.
Quatre found that he loved Trowa's smile. It was very different from Duo's open ones, and suggested to Quatre that Trowa could probably understand his feelings of loneliness. The way the corner of his lips just barely moved, as if he were afraid of opening himself to someone, because it would make him vulnerable. But Quatre could see the difference in Trowa's expression. It lightened considerably, and this wonderful kind of warmth seemed to fill his eyes. But it was hesitant, as if he wasn't sure that he was doing it properly.
Gorgeous.
"I should go," Trowa rose from his seat.
Quatre smiled and nodded, swallowing down a sudden lump of nervousness in his throat and standing to move toward the door with him.
"Goodnight, Quatre," Trowa hesitated halfway out the door.
"Goodnight, Trowa," Quatre murmured. It was somewhat of an awkward parting, that was to be sure. Quatre got a fluttering feeling in his stomach when he gazed into Trowa's deep emerald green eyes; like a thousand butterflies were flapping their tiny wings around inside of him.
Why do I feel like I'm on a date, he wondered.
They stared at each other for a while longer, before Trowa nodded once and slipped out the door to enter a room a little farther down the hallway. Quatre felt happier knowing that Trowa's room was close to his own, but he closed the door and leaned back against it in confusion.
That night sleep was a long time in coming to Quatre, as he simply lay on his bed with his eyes wide open, mulling things over in his head. He felt so strange when he was near Trowa. Why was that?
"I…I like Trowa?" he whispered aloud to himself in the pitch black darkness. "As someone more than a friend?"
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Dragon Lady: Hm. This chapter was shorter than the last one.
Ken: I hate it when you do chapter stories. It makes it easier for you to get bored with them and not finish them. You've got like…four or five Digimon ones lying around, and now it looks like you're determined to add a Gundam Wing story to your collection of unfinished fics.
Dragon Lady: I'll finish it! I promise! ^^;;;
Ken: *growls* You'd better.
Dragon Lady: ^_^;; I will.
Ken: And you're already throwing out the 3x4? What's happened to the 1x2?
Dragon Lady: It's there. Don't you see 1x2? I see 1x2...
Ken: Barely.
Dragon Lady: Well I'm not finished yet. =P But if you hadn't noticed yet, I'm more of a 3x4 fan than anything else. Notice, Quatre as focus character.
Ken: *shrugs* Whatever. Its all the same to me, because it has nothing to do with me.
Dragon Lady: ^^;;; Yes, you want me to write another Digimon fic. I get the picture, Ken-chan. Patience is a virtue.
Ken: Not with you its not. When someone tries to have patience with you its infuriating, because you take too damn long.
Dragon Lady: See, he's not patient. You've probably got awfully high blood pressure, Ken.
Ken: *sighs in exasperation because dl is missing the point* -_-;; Read and Review please.
Dragon Lady: Yes! Reviews! I live for them! Well…that, Gundam Wing, Digimon, weekends, chocolate and various other pathetic things. I do have a life, dammit! I just choose not exercise it. ^^;;