Warnings: A touch of yaoi, much angst, strange other-character insertion, language and torture.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Gundam Wing characters, nor do I own a certain elf who makes a guest appearance in this chapter. I do, however, own Shiakara, Nihrana and Arikendl. Steal them, and I shall sic the evil Relena on you. Really. *nods*
Author's notes: Ugh… This chapter was a pain in the butt. It wouldn't behave and it took too long and I still don't like it. However, it's started to scramble my brain, so I'm done. Perhaps this final chapter brings the standard of the rest of the fic down, I don't know, but I'm done. It's twice as long as normal, at any rate. ^^' It's prolly not as bad as I think it is. See what you think, ne?
~ ~ ~
Milliardo was readying a party of elite warrior mages to go after Heero when said mage clattered into the courtyard of the University bearing a rather unsavoury burden. He pulled his horse to a halt by Milliardo and looked down at the blonde, lips twitching with a little dark amusement.
"I see you actually managed to prepare something of an attack. Here. I did your dirty work for you."
Heero untied the bindings holding Treize with a mere thought and the aristocrat slithered from the back of the horse to fall with a thud to the stones, where his eyes fluttered open and he gave a groan.
"Heero I'm s-" Milliardo started, but Heero cut him off.
"No, you're not. No one is really, but things are going to change around here. This isn't going be an entirely human establishment anymore. We're looking everywhere, and I mean everywhere for our apprentices from here on in. Where…" Here, Heero's voice finally faltered. "Where's Duo?"
Milliardo glanced away, then lifted a hand to rest on Heero's thigh before meeting his eyes again.
"They took him home," Milliardo murmured and the inflection was unmistakeable.
"Shiakara-"
"Didn't realise what they were doing until they were gone. They moved too fast for her. She… she wanted us to go with her to get him back, but we said no. She went alone."
"Alone?! Into the middle of a clan of elves?" Heero snarled, then whirled his horse and clattered out of the university. He paused only long enough to change horses at the first town he passed through, then galloped on, the horse beneath him enchanted to the best of his abilities. He would arrive as soon as possible, but he still wouldn't reach Quatre and the others before they hit the clan.
* * *
Shiakara wasn't even close to catching up with the little group baring Duo's body back to the forest. She wasn't going to make it within the next month, even if she travelled non-stop without eating or resting. And she needed both right now. Her stomach was making a cacophony and she could barely keep herself airborne anymore.
"Damn it…" Shiakara muttered in a choked voice. She still hadn't let herself cry for Duo. There was too much for her to do and she didn't think she could afford to cry. And yet the tears wanted to come.
She dropped through the trees and landed with a gentle thud, too tired to keep herself on her feet. She lay on a patch of soft grass and yawned tiredly, the back of her mind clamouring for food. She finally forced herself to her feet and trotted as quietly as she could through the underbrush, off to hunt.
It wasn't long, however, before her ability to hunt was severely impeded by the tears that finally fought their way to the surface. She sat in a shaft of sunlight, blue head lowered almost to the ground, and wept bitterly. She wept more so for Heero than she did for Duo. Duo knew no more and he was in a better place, but Heero must be hurting so badly. Hurting more, even, than she was at Duo's loss and she was hurting a fair bit over it.
~There's no time for sorrow, Shiakara. Come.~
It was Heero's voice that echoed through her mind and she was flooded with energy, hunger forgotten and tiredness evaporated. She lifted her head to find herself looking at the mage on his horse, and he was… not himself. Her jaws parted a little and she ran her tongue over her teeth in a nervous gesture. There was an aura about him that frightened her and for the first time since she met Heero Yuy, Shiakara didn't trust him.
"Heero…?" Shiakara murmured and her voice trembled.
"There's little time for talk, Shiakara. We have to hurry."
"Did you… I-is he…?"
"No, he isn't dead. He's back at the University…" Heero's eyes dropped to the side and went distant, filled with leashed fury and a need she'd never seen in him before, the need to hurt. "He'll die sure enough… when I tire of him."
Shiakara's eyes darted from side, instinctively searching for an escape route before she forcibly stopped it and berated herself for fearing her oldest friend. She met Heero's eyes, but couldn't hold his fiery gaze for long, and hers slipped away.
"When you… tire… of him?" Shiakara echoed, afraid of the answer she was certain she was going to get.
"Yes, when I tire of him. He deserves to suffer for what he did to us, and I mean to make him suffer…"
"But-"
"But what? Am I wrong to want this? To want him to feel pain in return for the pain he's given us? It that so wrong, Shiakara?"
"No, but-"
"There aren't any buts here. He'll pay. Tenfold."
Shiakara said nothing more. In the back of her mind, she knew it was because she was afraid of this new Heero. Her conscious mind denied that fervently, saying it was because he was her Master and, as such, knew best. That it was ingrained to do as he said, no matter what it was. Yes, that was the reason. She wasn't afraid of him… no…
"Let's just go and get Duo, okay?" the OtherKin suggested with a tentative grin and Heero gave a curt nod, feeding her a little more energy before pulling his horse around and kicking it into a gallop while Shiakara lifted into the air and was easily able to keep up.
They travelled so far, and yet only for just over a day before they were forced to slow and be wary. Heero slipped from the saddle and tethered his horse, leaving it to graze happily. Elvish scouts were about in groups of two or three, every so often a lone archer by himself. Some were hunting parties, but most patrolled for just such an event as Heero and Shiakara sneaking into their home.
They avoided most patrols easily and had a couple of close shaves, but there was much time between the instances of near-discovery and the two of them relaxed minutely, enough that they were caught off guard by a silent elf sneaking up behind them. They weren't aware of him until Heero felt the arrow at the base of his skull and the elf spoke.
"I would wonder to myself what it is a human and an OtherKin are doing in our forest together. Why do you accompany this one, OtherKin?"
The voice was soft and melodious, but held no doubt that he would let the arrow free if the need arose. Shiakara turned slowly to face the elf.
He was rather handsome she had to admit. He had blonde hair that fell just past his shoulders, free save for the slender braids at his temples. His eyes were dark, dark blue and his skin fair and smooth. He was the perfect elf personified (or, Shiakara corrected herself with no small wry amusement, elfified). She knew him, or, to be more precise, had heard of him.
"Legolas, youngest prince of Mirkwood, I've a question for you, too. What on earth are you doing in this forest?"
"It is not yours to ask questions, OtherKin, when I hold your human companion captive. I asked first. What do you here and what do you with a human?"
"We've come for our friend," Shiakara answered the first half of his question. "And Heero is a good friend of mine. I've known him since we were both young."
"He is young yet. You come for your friend?"
"More than friend…" Heero murmured.
"I spoke not to you, human. Silence."
"Duo. Duo Maxwell."
"Duo? You come searching for the dead? It is a great loss to our kind, this one, and if my musings are correct then it was you killed him, human."
"Heero didn't kill him!" Shiakara cried with a vehement shake of her head.
"Perhaps not in so many words but his death was caused by your human, OtherKin. Had he not stolen one of ours away and corrupted his innocence, then Duo would walk among us even now."
"It wasn't his fault!" Shiakara insisted.
"Bah. Humans have no right in this forest and I should put my arrow through his skull this very moment. He deserves no better for the death of one our sweetest. But… I found out from the faery that there was more to this than simple kidnap. It took much questioning, but Quatre is not the strongest of faeries and I know what it was you felt for Duo and what it was he felt in return. I would not deny you the right to say goodbye to him one more time. Speak not of your meeting with me. You are on your own, human and OtherKin. Thank your gods I saw fit not to kill you."
And with that, he was gone, as only one of his kind could be gone.
Heero breathed a sigh of relief and his hand went to the base of his skull to rub at the small spot of blood there, glad the elf had shown mercy.
"We're lucky, Heero. Anyone but Legolas wouldn't have hesitated," Shiakara murmured, looking at the place where Legolas had disappeared. "We'd better hurry."
They didn't even come close to anymore patrols after that and Shiakara hypothesized that it was in fact Legolas' doing. Heero said nothing until they broke through the trees into a clearing and then he gave a strangled cry and leapt forward, only to be halted by two pair of strong elvish arms.
Duo lay on a pallet of soft grass, threaded with bright flowers. His hands were folded over his chest and he was dressed in fine elvish robes. His hair was immaculate, though devoid of the chain Heero had given him. He looked so peaceful, and Heero could almost believe he'd wake up in a moment and smile at him, but he knew it wasn't true. There was no breath, no life, no Duo there. Nonetheless, he wanted to go over and kiss those sweet lips and he struggled against the arms for all he was worth, sobbing and crying out as he'd never done before in his life. Control was fast slipping from him, but he didn't care.
"Let me go!" he begged.
"No. This is your fault," replied one of the elves holding him. "We know who you are. You forced him to slavery under your command."
"No, he wasn't a slave. I did it to save him. Please, let me go to him."
"You said your goodbyes," came a familiar voice from off to his left and Heero turned his head to meet Wu Fei's obsidian eyes.
"You! You lied to them!" Heero growled at the centaur.
"I said nothing," Wu Fei replied.
"Quatre did! Where is he?"
"I'm here. Heero, you're not wanted at this place. Go back to where you came from and don't bother us again," Quatre said as he appeared from out of a cluster of elves, voice more vindictive and cruel than Heero had ever thought possible from him.
Trowa appeared then, his adoptive sister at his side and Hilde on the other. Neither of the women said anything, but Trowa lay a hand on Quatre's shoulder and spoke very softly to him.
"Quatre, it isn't fair to do this to him."
"It's his fault, Trowa," Quatre whispered, a single silver tear sliding down his cheek.
"No, it's not. Duo chose to leave on his own. He chose to face what he faced. Heero would have stopped him, given the chance, which is exactly why Duo didn't say anything. You know that. You know that."
"No, Trowa. Duo wouldn't have died if Heero hadn't have taken him from the forest."
"Yes, he would have," Shiakara said softly, stepping forward unobstructed by the elves. The OtherKin, while not frequent visitors of the elves, were still well known enough that she wasn't stopped. They trusted her. "Had Heero not taken Duo from here, his Talent would have eventually eaten him from the inside out. He may even have killed a few others in the meantime. It was wrong of Heero to do it how he did it, but he couldn't see another way and haste was paramount. You know how much Heero cared for Duo and, Quatre, you know he would have given his own life to save Duo's."
Quatre shook his head and turned his back, leaving in silence save to give a soft order to the elves holding Heero.
"Duo's mother asked that he not be allowed here. Don't let him be here."
"No! Quatre! At least let me stay! Let me see this done. I… I promise I won't take him."
Quatre stopped.
"That was why you came, wasn't it? I knew you'd try to take him back. This is his home."
"You're right, Quatre, I understand at least that much now. Just… please, let me be a part of this."
"No. You're not to come any closer. It'll only make things harder on Duo's mother."
"Quatre!" Heero cried, going limp in the elves arms and sobbing as the faery walked away.
Wu Fei said nothing, but only followed his blonde friend, Hilde and Catherine doing the same. Trowa paused long enough to look sadly at Heero.
"I'm sorry, Heero. I know how hard this must be for you, but even I can't sway him now. He… He doesn't trust me as much as he used to anymore and… I think even if he did, he'd still do the same. I'm sorry…"
With that, even the pantherin turned on his heel and walked off, tail swishing gently behind him.
Heero fell to his knees when the elves released him, one keeping an arrow trained on him. He knew, if he wanted to, he could vanish the arrow and the bow and even the elf himself, but he didn't want to dishonour Duo's final farewell like that. He only wished they would let him get closer as a soft singing began and the elvish ceremonies commenced.
He managed to get himself to his feet and leant against a tall oak for support, tears flowing unhindered in silver paths down his cheeks. He wanted to touch Duo one last time, to say a proper goodbye, but he wasn't being allowed it. He also had no doubt that he wouldn't be allowed back here to visit, either.
Shiakara came to his side and touched her nose to his hand in silent support.
"You go, Shiakara. They won't stop you," Heero murmured, looking down into her white eyes.
She shook her head vehemently, ears flapping with the motion.
"I won't leave you alone now."
"I want to be alone…"
"No."
"Don't make me order you."
"I won't listen."
"Shiakara, at least if you're there, then something of me will be near him. I… I love him so much, I want you to go closer. Please…"
Shiakara looked up at Heero, conflict evident in her eyes along with a painful sorrow. She didn't want to leave Heero alone, but she knew he meant it when he said he wanted to be alone, and when he said he wanted her near Duo. But something broken was in the mage's eyes and Shiakara wanted to heal it again, no matter that she didn't know how to do it. She loved her Master and best friend and she was worried for him, because he'd never loved like he loved Duo Maxwell and he'd lost him so soon.
"I… alright…" Shiakara nodded and slipped out from under Heero's hand, padding over to stand by two tall elvish females.
Heero watched from farther away, feeling what was left of his shattered heart disintegrate inside his chest. His soul was long dead, flown to be with Duo's, and for a long, long moment, he fully considered taking the rest of himself to join his lover… but he had promised. He had promised his sweet elf that he would live…
Yet…
The pain was all encompassing and he didn't think he could live out the rest of his life feeling like this. Duo had told him to find another, to love again, but Heero didn't know that there would ever be another. The love he'd felt for Duo had been something special, something that could surely only happen once a lifetime, and he didn't think he could ever find it again with someone else. No one else was like his Duo.
Heero couldn't watch any longer as the prayers and laments were done and they began to light the pallet on fire. He didn't want to think of Duo like that. Instead, he wanted to remember Duo with his face full of concentration as he learned a new spell, or smiling, even laughing at something he, Heero had said. His sleeping form, warm beside that of the mage, satiated, a tiny smile still touching full lips even in sleep.
The mage turned and kicked his way through the underbrush, not caring anymore if he did run into a patrol. He couldn't seem to bring himself to care about anything anymore, and that frightened him, but only the barest little, because he couldn't even bring himself to be properly afraid of what all this might mean, the numbness inside. He was only ice…
Shiakara caught up with him in a short time, fur damp around her eyes where she'd been crying.
"Heero…"
"It doesn't matter," he murmured.
"But… you don't even know what I was going to say."
"It still doesn't matter."
"Does Treize matter…?"
Heero's eyes sparked and they were filled with fury now, instead of being empty and devoid of life. However, Shiakara wasn't sure if this was better or not. When he spoke, his voice, too, finally held some life, but it was all anger.
"Treize is going to suffer. Come, there is much to be done, Shiakara."
Heero didn't give her the chance to protest, because he was off through the forest to his horse and on its back in no time flat. She was pulled along in his wake as he sped off at break neck speed, the horse under him enchanted once again. Shiakara didn't like to remind him that doing this too often to a horse could kill it.
Yet again they clattered into the University without so much as a by-your-leave and Heero hopped from the saddle as quickly as he could, throwing the reigns of the shaking horse to a stable boy. He stormed into the University proper, not caring who he shoved out of the way, and demanded to know where Milliardo was.
A young, very new apprentice pointed with a shaking finger down the corridor and when Heero reached the end of it, he demanded from the nearest servant where to go next. Again he was shakily pointed and so it went until he found himself down in the deepest, darkest parts of University where he finally found Milliardo in the middle of extensive… "questioning" of Treize Khushrenada.
"You made me feel like nothing more than an object, or an animal to be hunted! I didn't mean anything to you, and you know it!"
This was what Heero heard as he came upon the two, followed by the sound of flesh on flesh, the back of Milliardo's hand across Treize's cheek.
"I… I-I…"
Again, that distinctive crack.
"Don't speak unless I tell you to, Khushrenada."
Milliardo's voice had lost its usual calm and surety and was fast slipping over the edge into hysteria. Heero thought he should probably stop the mage, but only because he might get carried away and kill Treize before he, Heero, had his turn.
"Milliardo…" Heero said softly, coming up behind the mage, and Milliardo visibly started.
"Heero," Milliardo replied with a nod, stepping aside to let him see Treize.
The aristocrat had already been rather badly used. One eye was swollen shut, his clothing in tatters. A thin, sluggish trail of blood wound its way down from the corner of his mouth to drip from his chin every so often. His hair was a mess, matted and scruffy and he hung rather limply from a set of shackles on the wall.
"It's done," Heero said softly, eyes never leaving Treize. "The goodbyes are said and the pain… it's completed. I…" The mage's voice faltered and he turned to Milliardo, his broken heart suddenly clear in his eyes.
"Heero…?"
"He's gone… Did he ever even really know how I felt…?"
Milliardo blinked, the strange sensation of having been here before, and remembered his open Seeing, automatically making the reply he'd made in that very Seeing.
"Yes…"
"But how can you know?"
The dejavu sense that wasn't quite the same left Milliardo in a rush and he blinked a few times at Heero, having to think hard before he actually registered what the mage had said. He put a hand on Heero's shoulder and was surprised when the younger man moved closer, into his arms, wanting to be held.
"I know. It was there always that he loved you and knew the feeling was returned. I knew it even though I barely saw the two of you together. Don't worry, Heero. He knew."
Heero shook his head against Milliardo's shoulder, biting back the tears that threatened to pull him under, drown him and never let him up for air ever again. The pain was horrible, he couldn't live like this and someone had to pay.
Treize Khushrenada…
Heero pulled away from the older mage and turned to Treize, fury snapping in his darkened blue eyes. Treize had the decency and the sense to look very, very afraid.
"You took everything from me, aristocrat. Tell me now, who made this for you?"
Heero pulled the glowing sphere from its resting place and waved it in front of Treize's nose, taunting him with it. Treize licked dry lips with a dry tongue and tried to talk, but he had no voice left and he hadn't been fed or given anything to drink since he arrived, two days ago. He mouthed the word "water" and Heero spat at his feet, but turned and hollered for the requested water.
"He hasn't answered any of my questions," Milliardo said.
"From what I heard, it didn't sound as though you'd actually asked many, Milliardo."
"You didn't hear it all, but it matters not. I deserve just as much revenge for what he did to me as what he did to you."
"Bullshit."
Milliardo shook his head and turned away, stewing silently to himself.
~This isn't right, Heero… You know it.~
Heero whirled and glared at Milliardo's back.
"Don't. That's cruel," he growled, for the voice had been that of his Duo.
"Don't what? What's cruel?" Milliardo asked in confusion, turning to face him.
"Don't play me for a fool, Peacecraft!" Heero snarled warningly.
"I don't know what you're talking about! Heero, you're not making sense. I-"
"Don't tease me like this, dammit! I can't… I just… Don't, alright?"
"Heero? You're babbling. I'm not dong anything!"
~This isn't you.~
"Stop it!" Heero lost his grip on control and sent a bolt of pure energy streaking for the centre of Milliardo's psyche. Milliardo was just barely accomplished enough to throw up a shield of adequate strength in time. He shook his head furiously.
"Heero! I didn't do anything!"
"You're talking… in my head… in his voice!"
"No, Heero, you of all people know my strong suit isn't telepathy. I'm not strong enough to be able to make my telepathic voice sound like someone else's! I'm lucky if I don't fade out mid-sentence!"
"But it can't… It can't be… I… I-I…"
Heero shook his head and ran blindly from the room, speeding to the questionable sanctuary of his own quarters. He curled up in a ball on his bed and trembled with grief and no small touch of fear. Was he going insane?
The mage flinched at a gentle touch on his chocolate hair, barely more than a light breeze fluttering over them, but there was no draft in his room and there never had been. The touch travelled down his neck to rub lightly at his shoulder, soothing, and he began to relax.
"Duo…?" he whimpered, and lips that weren't there touched his for the briefest of moments before they were gone again, along with the touch at his shoulder.
~Treize was long since driven mad by the loss of his own lover, Heero. He barely knows what he's doing. You know his pain; you feel it now. Don't retaliate like he did. Don't blame someone else for my folly.~
"It wasn't your fault," Heero choked, opening his eyes in the hopes that he'd see Duo, but he didn't and he wondered again if he was going over the edge. He wondered what insanity felt like, if he would still be aware of the terrible pain.
~You're not going nuts, you idiot. I just… I couldn't watch you fall apart like this and not do anything. Don't prolong this. Free Treize from his pain and be done with it.~
"But I… I c-can't… I… need… I need to see him hurt!"
Again that touch on his hair, stroking gently over the rakish mess with absolute tenderness. Heero fancied he could see Duo smiling a little sadly down at him, shaking his head.
~No, you need to let this go. You need to let me go. And let Treize go. He'll thank you for it and somewhere inside, he hates what he's become, he hates himself for what he did to me, what he did to you, what he was going to do to all of us mages. Please… Heero-dai, if you won't do it for yourself, then do it for me…~
"Dai…?"
~Trust you to focus on trivialities. It's a term I picked up from Nihrana at some stage. A new addition to the language of his Iana'alee. Means love. Heero-love.~
"Oh…"
Heero heard Duo's soft laugh and felt the impression of lips just below his ear.
~Ai, if I could only be more damn solid…Bloody rules… Heero, promise me! Move on.~
"I can't!"
~You damn well can! You promised me. You made a promise to a dying man. Don't you dare dishonour it, Master-mine.~
"I… Duo, I…"
~You are stronger than you think, Heero-dai. Live on. For me.~
"I can't."
~Yeah, you can. Don't be a wimp! And… help Treize.~
"Don't go, Duo."
~Have to. Rules and all that. I'll wait for you.~
"No… no, Duo!"
Heero didn't get a reply and he curled up in a ball again, sobbing for all he was worth. It didn't matter, here, on his own, that he let his emotions get the better of him. There was no one to see and no one to care that he wasn't as strong as he made out to be. He was alone, truly and painfully alone. How could Duo say that he could go on like this? That he was strong enough?
Heero didn't believe it, but there was one thing, at least, that he could do and he meant to do it now, before Treize suffered anymore under Milliardo's hand. Now that he knew the truth of the man he had captured. It was likely the maker of the sphere had played Treize's madness and pain like a harp, but the question still remained of who it was who'd made it…
Heero shrugged a little, putting the ball aside on the small table by his bed. He'd find out who it was, sure enough. It shouldn't take too much effort. For the moment, he'd other things to worry about, and he slipped off of his bed and away from the silence of his own rooms.
* * *
Trowa stood, in Pantherin form, Tia'ara and another to either side of him, as was the law. He couldn't be without two others of his kind at any time he was outside the Pride. He fixed his emerald eyes on Quatre, not even trying to hide the disappointment there.
~What you did today was wrong, Quatre,~ he sent quietly, and faery shifted his weight a little, looking away.
All four of them were tense and uneasy, knowing, somehow, that it was unlikely anything good could come of this confrontation. The whole area seemed to crackle with their tense feelings.
"It… No, it wasn't…" Quatre replied, refusing to be drawn into mental conversation. It was a conscious slight to his long-time friend and it hurt Trowa, but he had to do this now.
~Yes, it was. There was no need for it. He loved Duo. More than he loved his own life and you deprived him of the right to see this done.~
"He saw it."
~Barely. He should have been there. He should have been a part of it. I didn't think I'd ever see you do something so callous and unfeeling. I didn't think you had it in you, but I guess I was wrong. No matter your pain, Heero was likely feeling it ten-fold, a hundred-fold! You did something very wrong today, Quatre. Very wrong.~
"No I didn't! He killed Duo!"
~He didn't kill Duo! You know better than that, Quatre. And it was wrong. You're walking a thin line and… and I don't want to be there when you fall off it. I… I'm going now and I… I won't be back. If you… stop and think about this, then you'll realise what a big mistake you've mad and… when you do, then come and find me and we'll see what happens with you and I. We'll see if I'm ready yet to forgive this. I… I love you, Quatre, but what you did… I… you need to think about it. You need to understand. You'll realise you've done something very wrong. I…~ Trowa shook his head and didn't finish, only turned and vanished into the bushes, silent as the cat he was, the others with him.
"Trowa…" Quatre whispered, tears coming to his eyes. "Trowa!"
Trowa either didn't hear him, or didn't want to respond, for the faery got no answer. He closed his eyes and turned, clutching tight at his willow wand with both hands.
He still thought he was right, but had it been worth losing his best friend over…? Quatre couldn't bare that thought yet, and he pushed it away before lifting off the ground and flying back to the small group of faeries that lived within the elvish Clan, assisting where they could in return for the solidarity and protection the elves offered.
He went to his own little bed and curled up, fighting back the tears, but unable to keep his circling thoughts at bay.
"What have I done…? What have I done?!"
* * *
Trowa was silent all the way back home, and silent still as he lay down and closed his eyes, trying to sleep. Duo was dead, Quatre and Wu Fei he was severed from. All the family had ever known was lost to him, but he was the type to see the silver lining.
He was back with his own kin, knew his past. He didn't feel out of place anymore and he knew where home was.
He'd said his goodbyes to Catherine and promised to visit her and Hilde too.
Hilde was very upset over the loss of Duo, and it was evident she'd been harbouring strong feelings for him for a long while. Trowa thought it better not to tell her why it was the human had followed.
None of the elves knew why it was Heero had followed and many had voiced the idea that he should be killed. However, one very influential voice spoke out against that and all knew it was far from wise to get on Legolas Greenleaf's bad side. There was some argument, but he silenced it with ridiculous ease.
"Trowa…?"
Trowa jumped, surprised beyond belief at the soft voice at the mouth of the cave he now called his own. It was as if his thoughts had conjured said elf out of nowhere.
"Legolas? What are you doing here…?" he murmured, rising to his feet with feline grace even beyond that of the Prince of Mirkwood. Of course, Trowa was graced with being a cat and no amount of elvishness could better that.
"I came to have words with you. I-"
"How did you get past the guards?" came a familiar voice and Tia'ara appeared, head tilted to one side as she stood with her arms folded, one ear flicking back and forth as she listened to something neither of the others could hear, both being already within the cave.
"I have much practice," Legolas said with a slow smile.
"You cannot simply waltz in and accost our Pride Leader, elf."
"I am doing no such thing… Was I accosting you, Trowa?"
Trowa chuckled despite himself and shook his head.
"Not accosting, no. Tia'ara, it's all right. Leave us be," he said softly and she did so, with one last dubious look at the blonde elf.
"She finds you attractive, Trowa…" Legolas purred with a smirk and Trowa shook his head again with a wry smile.
"It doesn't matter what she thinks about how I look. It doesn't matter what any woman thinks of how I look."
Legolas smirked again and spoke very softly.
"Does it matter what I think about how you look, Pride Leader…?"
* * *
Heero gently pulled Milliardo aside, out of the room in which they were holding Treize, and explained to the mage that what had happened wasn't Treize's fault. Milliardo was sceptical at best, shaking his head and saying nothing until Heero proposed they finish Treize's pathetic existence.
"No! No, he… he can't get out that easily! Heero, you can't do this!"
"Yes, I can, and I will, even if I have to fight my way past you to do it."
"You'd… You'd kill me?"
"No, I wouldn't have to. Just get you out of my way."
He flicked his hand minutely, binding Milliardo tight with energy and carefully disconnecting him with the means to undo the spell before the other mage even had a chance to retaliate.
"Heero!"
"I'm sorry, Milliardo, but Treize has suffered enough. Forgive me."
"Heero! Don't do this!"
Heero ignored Milliardo, slipping into the chamber where he was held.
Sapphire eyes lifted slowly to meet prussian, and Heero visibly flinched at the damage Milliardo had already inflicted upon the aristocrat. There was fear in those eyes, and Heero felt suddenly disgusted at himself for what he'd been going to do to Treize. Indeed, he could see the spark of the man Treize had once been, deep within those eyes, screaming for there to be some end to this madness, which was more a torture than anything he or Milliardo could do to the man.
A single tear slipped down Treize's cheek.
"Shh…" Heero murmured gently, dropping to his knees by Treize and gently touching his cheek.
"P-please… d-don't… no more… I-I… I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I've said! I told him, but he… he…"
It made Heero cringe again to hear the broken whisper which once had been proud. He'd heard it, when he faced Treize and, thinking about it, he was certain now that Treize was no longer himself, that in the challenging, madness driven cries, there had been had been echo of something more, something else the man had been.
"I won't hurt you, Treize," Heero promised, and he could see Treize didn't believe him at all. He thought it was merely a ploy to get him to let his guard down, relax before another blow was released.
"I…"
"Shh…"
Heero put a hand below Treize's ear, the thumb resting against his cheek. The other hand, he brought to rest over the aristocrat's heart. He murmured softly in a tongue few knew and Treize slipped off into gentle slumber. Satisfied he would not wake, Heero reached deep within the man, searching for the bright spark that was life, the innate magic in all things, which gave breath, pulse and soul. He reached out to it, calling it close, and simply snuffed it out.
Treize took a last shuddering breath, and drew no more as Heero opened his eyes, swaying slightly where he knelt. It took a lot out of any mage to do that and he needed rest.
He freed Milliardo with a quick thought, ignoring his cries, and staggered away down the corridor in search of food. He just about fell into the dining room and came upon Shiakara and Relena glaring at each other across the table, words as sharp as daggers cutting between them.
"If you don't shut the fuck up, Relena, I'll tear your throat out with my teeth, Peacecraft or not!" Shiakara growled, baring those teeth menacingly.
"I'm only telling the truth, which is more than can be said for anyone else around here lately! All that happened was the elf's fault!"
"Duo didn't do anything wrong! He saved your sorry ass, Relena… Why is anyone's guess. He saved the life of every mage here. There would have been no stopping Treize if Duo hadn't gotten in his way and held him up until Heero got there! Duo gave his life for you! A pack of dickheads who couldn't care less for him just because he was different!"
"That's changing, Shiakara…" Heero said softly from the door and she whipped around to face him, hearing how weak he was in his voice.
"Heero…?" she asked fearfully. "What… what's…?"
Heero waved a hand and stumbled over to fall into a seat by Shiakara, reaching out to pile his plate with food and then setting to. Shiakara watched him for a few moments and quickly came to the conclusion that he'd just done a rather large spell.
"I was talking to you, wolfthing!" Relena snarled.
"I don't care, humanthing!" Shiakara snarled right back.
"Shut up, the both of you. Please. Relena, none of what happened was Duo's fault and Shiakara, you don't have to insult every mage in the room! I just… I just killed Treize Khushrenada and I would rather not have to deal with your argument as well," Heero said in a low growl, before going back to his meal.
The entire room drew a collective breath, certain they'd heard wrong, but Heero didn't correct it and he kept eating, a sure fire sign he had indeed performed a huge spell.
"Heero…?" Shiakara whispered.
"It's over. Treize is dead, Duo is buried, Trowa is with his pack, Quatre is with his kind, Wu Fei is with his. I'm tired and I'm going to bed and I don't want to hear anything more. Relena, if you persist with insulting everyone and everything you will be denied the full completion of your apprenticeship. I suggest you watch yourself. And now, I'm going to bed."
Heero finished his meal and did just that, content to let the rest of the world sort itself out while he rested. He knew things would be uneasy with Milliardo for a time, after what he did, but it mattered not anymore.
He was done.
It was finished.
And he would think no more until he woke again.
* * *
~Some years later~
"Milliardo…?"
The mage yawned, cracking open one eye to see Heero leaning over him, smiling a little.
"Mmn?"
"You haven't forgotten, have you?"
Belatedly, Milliardo realised his lover was fully clothed already, an unusual thing, for him to wake to a clothed Heero.
There were no illusions in their relationship. Both knew it was nothing more than deep friendship and the need to be close to someone. Both knew the other's heart resided elsewhere, but they kept each other company and it was enough for them.
"Forgotten what…?"
"You have. Idiot." Heero pulled the covers off of Milliardo and threw clean robes at him, fine ones at that.
Milliardo stared at the clothing laying all over him, then up at Heero, who was fishing about for the sash that denoted Milliardo's leadership of the University.
"What…?"
"It's the first day of spring. It was your stupid idea to have everyone come here this year. Remember? Nihrana and Arikendl are coming, so are Trowa and Legolas. Wu Fei said he wasn't, but I think Quatre and Catherine and Hilde will drag him and Noin and that other centaur leader whose name I always forget. Some sprites are coming too, and Shiakara's friends. Remember?!"
"Oh… oh! Yes, I remember."
"You gave it a stupid name too."
"I did?"
"Yes. Unity of the Races or… Lets All Get Along… or Big Fuzzy Hugs… or something."
Heero smirked and Milliardo shook his head. Honestly he sometimes thought the mage channelled Duo.
"I called it that?"
"You were drunk."
"I was?"
"Very."
"I don't remember."
"That's because you were drunk."
"I was?"
"Yes! Now get dressed! They'll be here soon."
Milliardo slipped out of bed muttering to himself and obediently got into his clothing, then spent a meticulous ten minutes brushing his hair. He was pleased Heero seemed in such high spirits today. Two days ago had been the anniversary of Duo's death and it was customary for Heero to be silent and withdrawn for several days afterwards. This time it seemed things were different.
The mage let his thoughts wander back to the time following Duo's death. Heero had been hell-bent on finding the maker of that sphere and, when he had, killing him dead. Milliardo himself had refused to talk to the younger mage because of Treize's death for the longest time, but he'd come out of it and the end of that long story was the arrangement they had now.
When Milliardo was ready, the two of them went to the main hall to find most of the expected guests were there. Trowa, Legolas, Quatre, Hilde and Catherine conversed animatedly amongst themselves, save Trowa who was never really very animated at the best of times. It had taken some time, but Quatre had eventually accepted that he'd been wrong and he'd spoken with Trowa about it. It had taken still longer for them to rebuild their friendship, but it had been done, as evidenced by their conversations.
Legolas murmured something into Trowa's ear, making the pantherin roll his eyes and give the elf a gentle smack. Quatre smiled, happy Trowa was happy. There were rumours of Quatre courting a pretty faery maiden, but he hadn't confirmed them and she wasn't here now. Neither Heero nor Milliardo knew what the love lives of Catherine and Hilde were.
Wu Fei, Noin and that other centaur Heero could never put a name to stood with the small group of OtherKin and a couple of nymphs, talking among themselves.
Nihrana and his Iana'alee, Arikendl, stood with two human warriors who looked a little nervous as Nihrana suggested an activity the four of them could all participate in to the benefit of all with little cost. Arikendl rolled his eyes and tried his best to placate the warriors whilst discouraging Nihrana from the line of conversation.
The sprites flitted about all over the place, listening to snatches of conversation here and there, dancing in hair, tying it in knots, tripping the unwary walker, playing with everything in site.
The mages, too, of all races and walks of life now, meandered about the crowd and Heero smiled with just a touch of sadness.
"He would have loved this," he murmured and Milliardo didn't need to ask who he was.
"He knows, Heero," the taller mage said simply, laying a hand briefly on his friend's shoulder.
Heero glanced at Milliardo and unexpectedly pulled him close, kissing him lightly.
"Thank you for…" Heero hesitated, always bad with words. "Well… just for keeping me from getting lonely. I… I do love you."
"I know. I love you too, but there's differences." Milliardo's eyes slipped to Nihrana, then back to Heero again. "I understand completely."
Heero fancied he could hear a familiar laugh on the air and a murmur of approval.
They smiled at one another and parted, off to mingle with the many people. The day was to be filled with fun and feasting, a tribute to what had been achieved over time.
And it was all thanks to the elven mage.
~ ~ ~
Author's notes: I'm just… not going to try and explain it. I don't know what went on here, but I don't want to re-write this a third time. *sighs* I am a perfectionist, and this isn't perfect, hence me whining about it for the next few days. I don't know where Legolas came from, either, and I half think I should have taken him out, but the fic said "This is the only way you will be able to write me. Legolas must be here." Ner…
And as for the ghost scene… -_- I apologise profusely for that little delight… It wasn't in the plans, honest…
Apologies for the lack of actual Treize torture. He deserved it, I know, but he was insane and he'd lost the real him. It wasn't really him who did all that bad stuff… (Plus my sister is taller and stronger than me and she's a Treize otaku… she threatened much bad stuff if I hurt him too much.) ~_^
Oh, and :P to anyone who doesn't like 1x6x1. No offence *grins* but I've been poo-poo'd for that pairing before and I rather like it, so leave me alone to have my little bishie dreams.
There will be a happy ending, but I don't know how long it will take. If this chapter was any indication, then it'll be a while. -_- Plus I'm working on another fic for a competition as well as my first Legolas/Aragorn fic. ^_^ LotR forever!
Um… BIG hugs to everyone who beared with me for this and especially those who reviewed. My next major fic is going to be something very different so keep an eye out for it, ne? And thanks again for the reviews! Happy bishie dreams to you all!
Oh yeah! Mum still won't let me have a snake and, a funny thought to leave you with; I did the spell check and when it came upon "elfified", it offered me "jellified" as a correction. I can just see it; "Legolas was the perfect elf jellified". *giggles* Tickled me pink indeed!