Thank yous – violet, CJ, Yume Maxwell-Yuy (Yeah! 2x1 rawks my socks!), RaritajiGolden (Thank you so much 4 the comment about my sentence structure! Wow!), Delamar's Mercy (*bows* Thank you).
Reviews? Yes please!
3.
"Help! Shit! Somebody help!" The four Gundam pilots heard the yell among several loud crashes which were cause for concern within the quiet zone of the hospital. Exchanging quick glances the four broke into a run, moving as one towards the source of the disturbance. They turned a corner and came to an abrupt halt as they took in the sight of five men lying crumpled in the hallway outside Heero's room. Scattered around their prone forms were shards of what had once been cameras. As the four young men looked on in mild shock, a body flew from the doorway to hit the wall with a sickening thud, before slumping to the floor. The startling event shook them from their stupor and they cautiously entered the room. Duo automatically took point and the others didn't question the action. It was obvious to them that these men had done something to spur Heero into action; all five of them were highly trained and as such they were able to control their more violent instincts, however there had been times when all of them had lost the tenuous hold on their dark sides.
Deep purple eyes were sharp and alert as Duo entered the room. The once immaculate area now resembled a war-zone. The sparse furnishings had been up-ended. Papers were scattered across the floor, some of them darkened by an all too familiar substance. Heero was on his feet. In spite of his malnutritioned state he looked every inch the Perfect Soldier reincarnated. His posture was guarded, no tremors racked his form, the Perfect Soldier knows no weakness. Focused prussian blue eyes glared at the man held between deceptively delicate hands. Although his gaze never wavered Duo knew Heero was aware of his presence. The man held captive, one Antony Lounds, was less composed. Tears ran down his cheeks and he trembled out of uncontrollable fear. Heero was grasping the mans chin in one hand and the back of his head in the other. Lounds clawed desperately at the hands binding him to no avail. The boy remained unperturbed as rivulets of blood ran down his hands to splash onto the now less than pristine white floor. A flash of panic flickered through Duo's mind as Heero's muscles bunched. He was going to snap the mans neck.
"Report 01!" Duo barked. His voice loud, coarse and demanding. The others had entered the room and were observing the situation tensely; ready to act if Duo couldn't implement some damage control. "I said, 'report 01'!" The braided boy repeated. His outburst had halted Heero's action but the boy had yet to snap out of his waking nightmare. Now that he had Heero's attention Duo switched tactics. "Hee-chan," he called softly.
Quatre watched in wonder at the immediate power the pet name wielded. The ice chips of prussian softened into confusion as they shifted from the man held in a vicious grip to the man their owner loved.
"Duo," He replied haltingly. The presence of the self-proclaimed God of Death had an immediate calming effect and the adrenaline, which had numbed the pain, retreated from his system. Heero breathed in sharply as his energy took a leave of absence and burning agony set up residency in its' stead. No longer able to support himself Heero released his grip on Lounds at the same moment as his knees buckled and the two of them collapsed to the floor. Duo moved immediately to his lovers' side, fretting over him, as Heero murmured both apologies and reassurance.
"Watch it!" Wufei growled as he found himself roughly pushed aside by a couple of orderlies who were clearing the way for a young man who seemed to be a doctor. A hypodermic needle glistened in his hand. One orderly pulled Duo back and out of the way. The volatile youth went to retaliate but caught Quatre's glare of warning and relented. The other orderly busied himself by restraining Heero as the man swiftly injected him with a clear fluid. The Japanese boy forced himself to remain still, all too aware of the fact that he had already caused too much damage. He turned his attention to Trowa who was standing closest to the door.
"Are they alright?" he rasped. Trowa turned to sharply observe the crumpled figures just outside.
"They all appear to be breathing," he remarked casually. He couldn't actually tell from his vantage point, but Heero seemed to need the reassurance and Trowa still had vivid memories of travelling from family to family with the determined young man seeking judgement. Heero didn't respond, his eyes already heavy and thoughts sluggish. The sedative was strong. They had increased the dosage. So tired.
His eyes flittered shut.
* * *
Half an hour later and the four conscious ex-pilots, Dr. Cantrell and the doctor who had administered the sedative to Heero were seated in a private office. The boys were following the conversation with concern as the doctors argued about the fate of their friend.
"That boy should be on the psychiatric ward! He is a danger to himself and others. I have two men who are in a critical condition because of him!"
"Look Dr. Tuner," Dr. Cantrell replied sharply. "Those men should not have been allowed onto the premises, never mind a high profile patients private room! It's a bad situation but they can't press charges because all of them were well aware of the hospitals policies regarding the press before they invaded Mr. Yuy's privacy." There was a moment of tense silence.
"Fine. But I am filing a report recommending that Heero Yuy remain either sedated or in restrains for the duration of his stay in this hospital!" That said the doctor stood and marched from the room.
"Your friend's quite a handful," Dr. Cantrell commented dryly.
"Heero can be rather assertive when startled," Quatre put forward diplomatically. She smiled but somehow it didn't reach her eyes. It quickly faded from her lips as she slipped into business mode.
"Mr. Yuy wanted to tell you his prognosis himself but that sedative which my esteemed college administered," Wufei smirked at the sarcasm which flavoured her voice. "Means that he will be out of commission for the rest of the day and will most likely not be up to talking anyway after his little workout, so I think it's best if I tell you exactly what is going on, alright?"
"Spill it, lady," Duo ordered, his "street" accent strengthened to cover any apprehension he was feeling. Duo and Trowa listened intently as she explained exactly what cancer was. Wufei and Quatre listened impatiently as she went over details they were all too well aware of.
"Now Mr. Yuy and Mr. Peacecraft both seem to think that this disease is caused by something called the ZERO system – " All of them shifted uncomfortably as their experiences under ZERO were recalled. Quatre paled considerably, offering a weak smile when Trowa placed his hand on a slender shoulder to show support. "There is no need to panic; I've booked you all in for some preliminary tests and – "
"Yeah, okay, we get it!" Duo interrupted, frustrated. "I'm not getting what the big deal is, give us some pills, end of story!" Wufei and Quatre share a look full of anxiety.
"It's not that simple," Dr. Cantrell stated firmly, bracing herself to deliver the news. "A cure for cancer was never found – "
"Well find it now!" Duo ordered, cutting the woman off once more in his sudden fear for his life and those of his friends.
"Calm down! Let me explain," she ordered imperiously. "There was no cure found however it was treatable through several different methods. Some of the technology has been lost so the only way we can tackle it now is to use hormone therapy. Now it's going to take a month or so for the drugs to pass legislation but that shouldn't be a problem even if any of you do show indications of the disease, there's also a chance that we may be able to operate and remove the tissue," There was a pause as the four young men processed the information. Wufei's dark eyes narrowed as an alarming thought came to mind.
"What about Yuy?" The simple question caused the tension in the air to increase dramatically and Dr. Cantrell felt the temperature plunge as four pairs of eyes focused on her, demanding an answer.
"I'm going to be brutally honest because I get the feeling you won't except anything less," she had to make a conscious effort not to run a hand through her hair, a nervous habit of hers. "The prognosis for Mr. Yuy is not good. The tumours have spread to so many vital areas of is body that it is impossible to operate," She paused. "And there is a slim to none chance that the drugs will be cleared in time,"
Silence.
"Are you tellin' me he's going to die?" Duo's voice was quiet and deadly. While the others were still feeling the shock of the news they were aware of the threat of violence and kept a half eye on Duo as they attempted to sort out their muddled feelings.
"Yes,"
* * *
Relena Peacecraft sat on the floor outside Heero's room. Her knees were pulled up to her chest, her bowed head resting upon them as delicate shoulders shook with quiet sobs. She did not dare enter the room. It had been a shock to her system to view her brother in such a weak and feeble state. Heero had always been her inspiration, a pillar of strength, to see him reduced to a similar condition was more then she could stand. Running footsteps bought her head up to view Duo Maxwell rush into Heero's room. His unusual eyes were completely focused on his task, her existence never even registered with his determined mind. She allowed her head to drop once more. For once in her life Relena had no idea what to do.
* * *
Shinigami stormed into Heero's room. Duo's visage changed dramatically as any trace of humour vanished and laughing violet eyes took on a deadly tint. Heero was awake but his blue eyes were glazed and unfocused, the drug still having a strong hold on his system. Duo paced back and forth, a low growl escaping his throat, barley resisting the urge to 'rearrange' the furniture which had only just been righted.
This wasn't right. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. Heero was immortal. He had survived explosions, falls and wounds which would easily have killed any mere mortal. Duo had placed his faith in the fact that Heero was never going to die; he dared to open his heart again. Fate, however, had different plans and it seemed that Heero was to stand before the firing squad once more.
"This isn't right!" he yelled without looking at Heero. "You cannot die! You're not allowed to die! I won't let you! You aren't gonna die!"
The righteous fury of Shinigami faded as Heero called to him, leaving only Duo in his stead. "Please Hee-chan, don't leave me," Heero beckoned to his lover, to weak and disorientated to speak words of comfort.
The braided boy crawled onto Heero's bed as the Japanese man insisted in his drugged stupor. The bed was barely wide enough to hold them but they managed somehow.
It was unclear, to the honey haired woman who peered around the door, who was comforting who, as one gently caressed a mass of chestnut locks and the other softly whispered words of denial, hope and devotion. Feeling guilty for intruding on such a private and intimate moment she backed off, reassuming her position in the hallway. She shunned her self-pity in favour of guarding the moment from any who would be foolish enough to separate such tenderness.
To be Continued . . .