Star's Gaze
Chapter 14: The End of the Battle
Kattie
Disclaimer: Kattie: puts on dark dark sunglasses and drives by Gundam pilots in a shiny black limo (limousine rentals are the best!) Hello!
Pilots: are too enthralled in their conversation to hear her
Kattie: I'll give anyone who'll come into my limo.. pulls out a paper bag Candy!
Duo: *o* Okay! is pulled back by other pilots
Kattie: (oh hoh, like you thought that was ALL that's in my bag) pulls out shiny new gun and guns!
Hiiro: .. is pulled by a magnetic force to the limo but is somehow restrained by the three pilots who are still sane
Kattie: continues with her little magic show pulls out a humongo book called "Law and Punishments: The 13th century to the year 2000" And.. JUSTICE!
Wufei: runs to limo
Trowa and Quatre: are unable to hold back the three other pilots
Kattie: opens door wide Come on in!
Hiiro, Wufei, and Duo: come on in
Trowa and Quatre: figure there isn't much else they can do, and enter as well
Kattie: BWAHAHHAHAHAHA! I HAVE GUNDAM WING! I HAVE GUNDAM WING! BWAHAHHAHAHA!
Lawyer:.. Yes.. But you still don't OWN Gundam Wing.
Kattie: ;_; Curses, foiled again!
Duo: looks in bag HEY! It's EMPTY!
Kattie: uh oh
Notes: This is the last chapter! There will be NO MORE Star's Gaze after this. There will be an end notes chapter (entitled "End Notes")added to the end, but it will have no plot whatsoever. (Maybe a tiny story to make sure it fits ff dot net guidelines). It will also have a preview for the third installment, which should be labeled thinks really hard "Friendless".. Maybe. It's hard trying to come up with a title based on "I'm Your Friend". sighs Anyone have any ideas?
Another Note: There is no romance between Duo and Iria. Duo's about Quatre's age, so she thinks of him more as a little brother. A romance would be a little.. Not right.. Just thought you ought to know that ^^*.
Warning: Major angst! This is not for the weak willed! I cried writing it so you might possibly cry reading it!
For a moment, Duo was sure he was going to die. He could hear the shot ringing in his ears and then felt he'd gone deaf. He whispered one last prayer and cringed as he waited for the bullet to dig into his skin.
Then he saw the soldier next to him fall and could once again hear. Quatre's screams echoed through his ears and the gunfire continued.
"Tom!" An Oz soldier yelled, staring in horror at the dying man by Duo's side. Tears wavered in his eyes, refusing to be shed. He was a proud sergeant in the Oz military forces. Crying was not an option. Instead, he converted his sadness to anger (1) and took up his gun. Carefully, he aimed it at Duo. "Die, Gundam scum!"
Everything seemed to go in slow motion after this. He watched as Quatre shot the soldier, screaming inaudible words, only a moment after the man had fired. As the bullet glided towards him, Duo thought he saw his life flash before his eyes.
It took him a second to realize that a beautiful blonde doctor had never taken a bullet for him before.
Suddenly he was on the ground, clutching the wounded Iria in his arms.
She was smiling up at him, looking as if she were in no pain whatsoever, although she was holding a hand to the blood seeping from her chest. "A- are you all. all right?" She asked.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
When Quatre saw his sister fall to the ground with a bullet implanted in her chest, he lost whatever self-restraint he had. The sweet and kind person of Quatre Raberba Winner was lost and in its place there was a merciless killing machine.
With one hand he grasped his chest as if he were trying to reach inside and pull his heart out. With the other, he shot any Oz soldier who came within 20 feet of him. (2)
It led to a great number of corpses.
There was a slight, almost invisible smile on his lips. It was the smile of a madman.
Or a man who didn't know how to handle a recent happening.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Captain Send heard the gunshots, but knew his duty. If this was a test, it was his job to continue piloting and not worry about anything beyond the cockpit. If this wasn't, he could do nothing to stop the gunfire, so why bother trying? What would be the point of another corpse?
His copilot was fidgeting nervously. "D'ya think," He asked, "D'ya think I should go back there? Jus' ta check it out?"
Send shook his head. "This isn't our problem."
"B-but maybe we could.. I dunno.. Help end it?"
"No," Send explained, "We'd only make it worse."
The thing about Send was that he was such a great coward, he'd convinced himself that this was true.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
With blood-drenched hands, Quatre looked around angrily for another victim. He needed to kill all Oz personnel. It was his mission, his reason for living. They weren't going to get away with hurting Iria. With trying to kill Duo.
Detecting a soldier, Quatre made his way over the corpses to his side and raised his gun to the side of the man's head.
"W-wait!" The man yelled, putting a hand to the barrel of Quatre's gun. "I- I just work on computers! I haven't killed anyone! Please don't shoot me!"
"What's your name?" Quatre asked.
"Agent Alpha," he said automatically, ".. Joe."
Taking a deep breath, Quatre allowed a single tear to slip down his cheek. "Iria didn't kill anyone either, Joe. She's a doctor! Why should I spare you when you didn't spare her?"
Quatre felt a hand on his shoulder and tensed.
"Quatre," his father's voice said, "You need to calm down."
"No," Quatre snapped, shrugging his father's hand off, "Not until they're all gone." He glared at the man cowering in front of him. "Are you armed?"
"Yes, sir." He replied, with practiced familiarity. It wasn't until a few seconds after he said it that he realized it was the wrong answer.
"If you weren't planning on shooting anyone, why would you have a gun?" Quatre asked.
Joe paused as he thought of an answer. "For self-defense? Sir."
"Quatre," Mr. Winner said again, "Give me your gun."
Quatre didn't seem to hear him. "Is that a question?"
Mr. Winner grabbed for the gun and actually managed to get a hold of Quatre's wrist before he spun around and turned his gun on his own father.
"What are you doing here?" Quatre asked. "Come to take me back as your prisoner? Fine. Just let me finish this."
There was a loud smack as Mr. Winner punched Quatre across the face. The gun flew out of Quatre's hand and across the shuttle, where Hiiro caught it. Quatre was sprawled across the floor. He glared up at his father with a look of bitter hatred.
Ignoring his son's anger, Mr. Winner picked Quatre up off the ground and placed him in a seat. "Look around. You've already done enough killing!"
"You wouldn't know anything about it," Quatre spat, "This has nothing to do with you."
"Damn it, Quatre!" Mr. Winner yelled. "Get a hold of yourself! This isn't like you!"
"You've never seen me in battle before." Quatre replied.
"Look at your hands!" Mr. Winner continued. "They're covered with blood. Killing more people isn't going to help Iria!"
Quatre stared down at his hands. "B-but the first shot didn't help either. It was too late."
"That's right," Mr. Winner explained, "None of the bullets are going to make any difference because you can't end fighting with fighting. All war is pointless! Do you understand now? The only thing your part in this war is going to do is cause you to lose your innocence and possibly your life."
With the anger gone, all Quatre had left was his sadness. "N-no.. if I'd been a second earlier, it would have made a difference." Tears welled up in his eyes and he buried his face in his hands, causing the blood to drip from them to the ground.
Seeing that Quatre was in no position to shoot him, Agent Alpha discreetly pulled out his gun. 'For my fallen comrades.' he said silently.
Noticing him doing this, Mr. Winner scooped a gun from a corpse, aimed it at him, and fired.
Hearing the gunshot, Quatre looked up and fixed his teary eyes on his father. "S-see?" He said. "If you hadn't killed him, he would have killed me. That's why we fight this war."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"What?" Duo asked, not sure he'd heard Iria's question. Both of them were oblivious to their surroundings as neither of them was feeling their best. "Shouldn't I be asking you that?"
Iria smiled all-knowingly. "You're just a child. It's more important that you live. You still have a debt to pay to the world."
"You're no old lady yourself." Duo replied. "Which is why you'll be fine."
With a sigh, Iria took Duo's hand. "I'm a doctor, Duo. A gunshot wound to the chest from such close range is almost always fatal."
Tears stung in Duo's eyes and he squeezed her hand reassuringly. "We'll take that 'almost'. You're going to be fine."
He could feel his body screaming in pain and his eyelids seemed to grow heavier and heavier. It seemed like the most difficult task in the world just to stay conscious. It felt like he had taken that bullet. However, he couldn't be sure if this was from the disease or if it was from the sadness at the possibility of losing Iria.
It was then that he became conscious of Quatre sobbing across the shuttle. He was embracing his father, who seemed to be telling him something.
"Hey Duo," Iria said so quietly, Duo could barely hear, "Y-you have to pro- promise me something.."
"No promises," Duo explained, "You'll be fine."
"Pr-promise me anyway," she answered, "Just in c-case."
"Okay."
"Take care of Quatre," Iria said, somehow managing to keep from stuttering, though blood was seeping out from the corner of her mouth, "He won't be able to deal with this. You have to take care of him for me."
Duo wiped a tear away. "You'll take care of him yourself."
Iria let out a small, half-hearted giggle. "You just make sure you stay alive. Don't let this disease beat you."
"Of course I won't," Duo replied, "Because I have the best doctor in the universe."
Attempting to grin again, Iria let out a small cough and blood splattered onto her hand. "You're a good kid, but you shouldn't believe in the impossible. I am going to die, Duo."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Mr. Winner held Quatre as if he'd fall into some deep pit if he ever let go. "I'm sorry, Quatre."
Quatre was unable to speak, he was sobbing too hard.
"We should go see Iria." Mr. Winner said gently.
Nodding, Quatre took a deep breath and began walking towards his sister. He forced the sobs to die down and held onto his father's arm for support.
"Hi Quatre." Iria said, holding a hand up for him to take.
Dropping to his knees, Quatre took her cold hand with two of his own warm ones. "H-h-hello Ir-iria."
Iria pulled his hands to her face and kissed them softly. "You've been crying."
"Y-yes." Quatre replied, trying to hold back another sob.
"Don't cry," Iria whispered, "When I'm gone-"
"You're not going to die." Duo interrupted.
"Make sure you get Duo to the hospital right away," Iria explained, "Don't waste any time mourning when you reach the shuttle station."
"There won't be any reason to mourn." Duo pointed out.
"I'm sorry," Iria said, tears clouding her eyes, "I never meant to make you cry."
And then, she went limp and the tears slid from her dead eyes and down her pale cheek.
With no tears left to cry, Quatre just stared at Iria, not blinking or breathing. The pain in his chest was gone. (3)
Duo covered his face with his hands and breathed deeply. Each breath came harder and harder. All the pain grew greater with the sadness. Greater until he couldn't take it. And then, it was gone.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Everything fuzzed into view as Duo opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was Quatre kneeling beside his bed with his head burrowed in the covers. He looked like he was sleeping.
"How are you feeling?" The doctor asked, handing him a cup of water.
"I'm not," Duo replied, "Everything's numb." He drank the water in one gulp and started coughing.
"Would you like some more water?" She questioned.
"No," Duo looked at Quatre, "How long has he been here?"
The doctor sighed. "All night. This hospital doesn't have visiting hours and we couldn't force him to go home."
Stirring in his sleep, Quatre's eyes fluttered open and fixed on Duo. Suddenly he was wide-awake.
"DUO!" He cried. "Are you all right?"
Duo blinked. "I think so. I don't really know what was wrong."
Glancing at her clipboard, the doctor answered, "Encephalomyelitis. You must have spent some time near a forest on Earth recently. It's transmitted by mosquitoes. You might have heard of it referred to as 'sleeping sickness'. You went into a coma last night, but you should be fine now."
Nodding, Duo began crumbling his cup in his hands. "Where are Hiiro, Wufei, and Trowa?"
"They had to work," Quatre explained, "We're both on.. Sick leave for another week."
Duo took a deep breath and said the question that he knew he had to ask. "Is Iria..?"
"The memorial service will be held next Friday." Quatre answered quickly.
"Are you all right?"
Quatre smiled slightly. "I'm fine. I had a talk with my father."
"And?"
"I think he understands why I'm doing this," Quatre explained, "But he still doesn't agree with it. Anyway, we're okay now."
Duo smiled back at Quatre. "How long do I have to stay in this bed?"
"Until tomorrow night." The doctor explained, though she was a bit concerned by the conversation.
Sighing, Duo looked up at Quatre. "You should go to a hotel or something."
Quatre shook his head. "I can't."
"I'll be fine." Duo stated.
"..Actually," Quatre blushed, "Those girls from the shuttle followed me here. I can't get out."
"What happened to Suki?"
".. She's with Lenore at the police station. They're being questioned."
Duo nodded. "Which means.. You're stuck with me?"
"I'd want to stay here anyway." Quatre explained.
"Let's play cards."
"You promise you won't cheat?"
"I would NEVER cheat."
".. What game?"
"Poker."
".. You ALWAYS cheat at poker."
"Quatre, don't you trust me?"
".. Fine."
"Yay! I'm gonna win me some money!"
".....Duo!"
"Because I'm so good at poker, of course. I would NEVER cheat."
"...."
End of Chapter
Star's Gaze- End.
(1) Converting sadness into anger can be a very good technique if you're trying not to cry. Instead of thinking, 'They were so mean to me sob' you should try to think, 'Those #*%&$!#s! I can't BELIEVE they're that cruel.' .. Then again.. Anger isn't so good either ^^*
(2) Yes, I know I told you that holding the gun with one hand would lead to less accuracy, but Quatre's SUPER GOOD so he can do that ANYWAY (and he's kinda pissed understatement and that adds strength!)!
(3) Remember, Q-chan's an empath ^_^. When Iria died, everything went away, INCLUDING all the pain. Which is why Quatre no longer hurts ^.^.
This chapter is a tribute to Iria. I've always thought of her as an underappreciated, but wonderful character. She was kind, beautiful, and likable. I wish she'd lasted longer than one (maybe two) episode.
If you haven't reviewed at all during this fanfiction, please review now. I hope you enjoyed Star's Gaze ^_^.
In case you hadn't noticed, I didn't mention what happened to Naihu. This was on purpose. Gotta leave something for the sequel ^.~
PLEAAAAASE REVIEW!
Chapter 14: The End of the Battle
Kattie
Disclaimer: Kattie: puts on dark dark sunglasses and drives by Gundam pilots in a shiny black limo (limousine rentals are the best!) Hello!
Pilots: are too enthralled in their conversation to hear her
Kattie: I'll give anyone who'll come into my limo.. pulls out a paper bag Candy!
Duo: *o* Okay! is pulled back by other pilots
Kattie: (oh hoh, like you thought that was ALL that's in my bag) pulls out shiny new gun and guns!
Hiiro: .. is pulled by a magnetic force to the limo but is somehow restrained by the three pilots who are still sane
Kattie: continues with her little magic show pulls out a humongo book called "Law and Punishments: The 13th century to the year 2000" And.. JUSTICE!
Wufei: runs to limo
Trowa and Quatre: are unable to hold back the three other pilots
Kattie: opens door wide Come on in!
Hiiro, Wufei, and Duo: come on in
Trowa and Quatre: figure there isn't much else they can do, and enter as well
Kattie: BWAHAHHAHAHAHA! I HAVE GUNDAM WING! I HAVE GUNDAM WING! BWAHAHHAHAHA!
Lawyer:.. Yes.. But you still don't OWN Gundam Wing.
Kattie: ;_; Curses, foiled again!
Duo: looks in bag HEY! It's EMPTY!
Kattie: uh oh
Notes: This is the last chapter! There will be NO MORE Star's Gaze after this. There will be an end notes chapter (entitled "End Notes")added to the end, but it will have no plot whatsoever. (Maybe a tiny story to make sure it fits ff dot net guidelines). It will also have a preview for the third installment, which should be labeled thinks really hard "Friendless".. Maybe. It's hard trying to come up with a title based on "I'm Your Friend". sighs Anyone have any ideas?
Another Note: There is no romance between Duo and Iria. Duo's about Quatre's age, so she thinks of him more as a little brother. A romance would be a little.. Not right.. Just thought you ought to know that ^^*.
Warning: Major angst! This is not for the weak willed! I cried writing it so you might possibly cry reading it!
For a moment, Duo was sure he was going to die. He could hear the shot ringing in his ears and then felt he'd gone deaf. He whispered one last prayer and cringed as he waited for the bullet to dig into his skin.
Then he saw the soldier next to him fall and could once again hear. Quatre's screams echoed through his ears and the gunfire continued.
"Tom!" An Oz soldier yelled, staring in horror at the dying man by Duo's side. Tears wavered in his eyes, refusing to be shed. He was a proud sergeant in the Oz military forces. Crying was not an option. Instead, he converted his sadness to anger (1) and took up his gun. Carefully, he aimed it at Duo. "Die, Gundam scum!"
Everything seemed to go in slow motion after this. He watched as Quatre shot the soldier, screaming inaudible words, only a moment after the man had fired. As the bullet glided towards him, Duo thought he saw his life flash before his eyes.
It took him a second to realize that a beautiful blonde doctor had never taken a bullet for him before.
Suddenly he was on the ground, clutching the wounded Iria in his arms.
She was smiling up at him, looking as if she were in no pain whatsoever, although she was holding a hand to the blood seeping from her chest. "A- are you all. all right?" She asked.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
When Quatre saw his sister fall to the ground with a bullet implanted in her chest, he lost whatever self-restraint he had. The sweet and kind person of Quatre Raberba Winner was lost and in its place there was a merciless killing machine.
With one hand he grasped his chest as if he were trying to reach inside and pull his heart out. With the other, he shot any Oz soldier who came within 20 feet of him. (2)
It led to a great number of corpses.
There was a slight, almost invisible smile on his lips. It was the smile of a madman.
Or a man who didn't know how to handle a recent happening.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Captain Send heard the gunshots, but knew his duty. If this was a test, it was his job to continue piloting and not worry about anything beyond the cockpit. If this wasn't, he could do nothing to stop the gunfire, so why bother trying? What would be the point of another corpse?
His copilot was fidgeting nervously. "D'ya think," He asked, "D'ya think I should go back there? Jus' ta check it out?"
Send shook his head. "This isn't our problem."
"B-but maybe we could.. I dunno.. Help end it?"
"No," Send explained, "We'd only make it worse."
The thing about Send was that he was such a great coward, he'd convinced himself that this was true.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
With blood-drenched hands, Quatre looked around angrily for another victim. He needed to kill all Oz personnel. It was his mission, his reason for living. They weren't going to get away with hurting Iria. With trying to kill Duo.
Detecting a soldier, Quatre made his way over the corpses to his side and raised his gun to the side of the man's head.
"W-wait!" The man yelled, putting a hand to the barrel of Quatre's gun. "I- I just work on computers! I haven't killed anyone! Please don't shoot me!"
"What's your name?" Quatre asked.
"Agent Alpha," he said automatically, ".. Joe."
Taking a deep breath, Quatre allowed a single tear to slip down his cheek. "Iria didn't kill anyone either, Joe. She's a doctor! Why should I spare you when you didn't spare her?"
Quatre felt a hand on his shoulder and tensed.
"Quatre," his father's voice said, "You need to calm down."
"No," Quatre snapped, shrugging his father's hand off, "Not until they're all gone." He glared at the man cowering in front of him. "Are you armed?"
"Yes, sir." He replied, with practiced familiarity. It wasn't until a few seconds after he said it that he realized it was the wrong answer.
"If you weren't planning on shooting anyone, why would you have a gun?" Quatre asked.
Joe paused as he thought of an answer. "For self-defense? Sir."
"Quatre," Mr. Winner said again, "Give me your gun."
Quatre didn't seem to hear him. "Is that a question?"
Mr. Winner grabbed for the gun and actually managed to get a hold of Quatre's wrist before he spun around and turned his gun on his own father.
"What are you doing here?" Quatre asked. "Come to take me back as your prisoner? Fine. Just let me finish this."
There was a loud smack as Mr. Winner punched Quatre across the face. The gun flew out of Quatre's hand and across the shuttle, where Hiiro caught it. Quatre was sprawled across the floor. He glared up at his father with a look of bitter hatred.
Ignoring his son's anger, Mr. Winner picked Quatre up off the ground and placed him in a seat. "Look around. You've already done enough killing!"
"You wouldn't know anything about it," Quatre spat, "This has nothing to do with you."
"Damn it, Quatre!" Mr. Winner yelled. "Get a hold of yourself! This isn't like you!"
"You've never seen me in battle before." Quatre replied.
"Look at your hands!" Mr. Winner continued. "They're covered with blood. Killing more people isn't going to help Iria!"
Quatre stared down at his hands. "B-but the first shot didn't help either. It was too late."
"That's right," Mr. Winner explained, "None of the bullets are going to make any difference because you can't end fighting with fighting. All war is pointless! Do you understand now? The only thing your part in this war is going to do is cause you to lose your innocence and possibly your life."
With the anger gone, all Quatre had left was his sadness. "N-no.. if I'd been a second earlier, it would have made a difference." Tears welled up in his eyes and he buried his face in his hands, causing the blood to drip from them to the ground.
Seeing that Quatre was in no position to shoot him, Agent Alpha discreetly pulled out his gun. 'For my fallen comrades.' he said silently.
Noticing him doing this, Mr. Winner scooped a gun from a corpse, aimed it at him, and fired.
Hearing the gunshot, Quatre looked up and fixed his teary eyes on his father. "S-see?" He said. "If you hadn't killed him, he would have killed me. That's why we fight this war."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"What?" Duo asked, not sure he'd heard Iria's question. Both of them were oblivious to their surroundings as neither of them was feeling their best. "Shouldn't I be asking you that?"
Iria smiled all-knowingly. "You're just a child. It's more important that you live. You still have a debt to pay to the world."
"You're no old lady yourself." Duo replied. "Which is why you'll be fine."
With a sigh, Iria took Duo's hand. "I'm a doctor, Duo. A gunshot wound to the chest from such close range is almost always fatal."
Tears stung in Duo's eyes and he squeezed her hand reassuringly. "We'll take that 'almost'. You're going to be fine."
He could feel his body screaming in pain and his eyelids seemed to grow heavier and heavier. It seemed like the most difficult task in the world just to stay conscious. It felt like he had taken that bullet. However, he couldn't be sure if this was from the disease or if it was from the sadness at the possibility of losing Iria.
It was then that he became conscious of Quatre sobbing across the shuttle. He was embracing his father, who seemed to be telling him something.
"Hey Duo," Iria said so quietly, Duo could barely hear, "Y-you have to pro- promise me something.."
"No promises," Duo explained, "You'll be fine."
"Pr-promise me anyway," she answered, "Just in c-case."
"Okay."
"Take care of Quatre," Iria said, somehow managing to keep from stuttering, though blood was seeping out from the corner of her mouth, "He won't be able to deal with this. You have to take care of him for me."
Duo wiped a tear away. "You'll take care of him yourself."
Iria let out a small, half-hearted giggle. "You just make sure you stay alive. Don't let this disease beat you."
"Of course I won't," Duo replied, "Because I have the best doctor in the universe."
Attempting to grin again, Iria let out a small cough and blood splattered onto her hand. "You're a good kid, but you shouldn't believe in the impossible. I am going to die, Duo."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Mr. Winner held Quatre as if he'd fall into some deep pit if he ever let go. "I'm sorry, Quatre."
Quatre was unable to speak, he was sobbing too hard.
"We should go see Iria." Mr. Winner said gently.
Nodding, Quatre took a deep breath and began walking towards his sister. He forced the sobs to die down and held onto his father's arm for support.
"Hi Quatre." Iria said, holding a hand up for him to take.
Dropping to his knees, Quatre took her cold hand with two of his own warm ones. "H-h-hello Ir-iria."
Iria pulled his hands to her face and kissed them softly. "You've been crying."
"Y-yes." Quatre replied, trying to hold back another sob.
"Don't cry," Iria whispered, "When I'm gone-"
"You're not going to die." Duo interrupted.
"Make sure you get Duo to the hospital right away," Iria explained, "Don't waste any time mourning when you reach the shuttle station."
"There won't be any reason to mourn." Duo pointed out.
"I'm sorry," Iria said, tears clouding her eyes, "I never meant to make you cry."
And then, she went limp and the tears slid from her dead eyes and down her pale cheek.
With no tears left to cry, Quatre just stared at Iria, not blinking or breathing. The pain in his chest was gone. (3)
Duo covered his face with his hands and breathed deeply. Each breath came harder and harder. All the pain grew greater with the sadness. Greater until he couldn't take it. And then, it was gone.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Everything fuzzed into view as Duo opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was Quatre kneeling beside his bed with his head burrowed in the covers. He looked like he was sleeping.
"How are you feeling?" The doctor asked, handing him a cup of water.
"I'm not," Duo replied, "Everything's numb." He drank the water in one gulp and started coughing.
"Would you like some more water?" She questioned.
"No," Duo looked at Quatre, "How long has he been here?"
The doctor sighed. "All night. This hospital doesn't have visiting hours and we couldn't force him to go home."
Stirring in his sleep, Quatre's eyes fluttered open and fixed on Duo. Suddenly he was wide-awake.
"DUO!" He cried. "Are you all right?"
Duo blinked. "I think so. I don't really know what was wrong."
Glancing at her clipboard, the doctor answered, "Encephalomyelitis. You must have spent some time near a forest on Earth recently. It's transmitted by mosquitoes. You might have heard of it referred to as 'sleeping sickness'. You went into a coma last night, but you should be fine now."
Nodding, Duo began crumbling his cup in his hands. "Where are Hiiro, Wufei, and Trowa?"
"They had to work," Quatre explained, "We're both on.. Sick leave for another week."
Duo took a deep breath and said the question that he knew he had to ask. "Is Iria..?"
"The memorial service will be held next Friday." Quatre answered quickly.
"Are you all right?"
Quatre smiled slightly. "I'm fine. I had a talk with my father."
"And?"
"I think he understands why I'm doing this," Quatre explained, "But he still doesn't agree with it. Anyway, we're okay now."
Duo smiled back at Quatre. "How long do I have to stay in this bed?"
"Until tomorrow night." The doctor explained, though she was a bit concerned by the conversation.
Sighing, Duo looked up at Quatre. "You should go to a hotel or something."
Quatre shook his head. "I can't."
"I'll be fine." Duo stated.
"..Actually," Quatre blushed, "Those girls from the shuttle followed me here. I can't get out."
"What happened to Suki?"
".. She's with Lenore at the police station. They're being questioned."
Duo nodded. "Which means.. You're stuck with me?"
"I'd want to stay here anyway." Quatre explained.
"Let's play cards."
"You promise you won't cheat?"
"I would NEVER cheat."
".. What game?"
"Poker."
".. You ALWAYS cheat at poker."
"Quatre, don't you trust me?"
".. Fine."
"Yay! I'm gonna win me some money!"
".....Duo!"
"Because I'm so good at poker, of course. I would NEVER cheat."
"...."
End of Chapter
Star's Gaze- End.
(1) Converting sadness into anger can be a very good technique if you're trying not to cry. Instead of thinking, 'They were so mean to me sob' you should try to think, 'Those #*%&$!#s! I can't BELIEVE they're that cruel.' .. Then again.. Anger isn't so good either ^^*
(2) Yes, I know I told you that holding the gun with one hand would lead to less accuracy, but Quatre's SUPER GOOD so he can do that ANYWAY (and he's kinda pissed understatement and that adds strength!)!
(3) Remember, Q-chan's an empath ^_^. When Iria died, everything went away, INCLUDING all the pain. Which is why Quatre no longer hurts ^.^.
This chapter is a tribute to Iria. I've always thought of her as an underappreciated, but wonderful character. She was kind, beautiful, and likable. I wish she'd lasted longer than one (maybe two) episode.
If you haven't reviewed at all during this fanfiction, please review now. I hope you enjoyed Star's Gaze ^_^.
In case you hadn't noticed, I didn't mention what happened to Naihu. This was on purpose. Gotta leave something for the sequel ^.~
PLEAAAAASE REVIEW!