Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing.
I wrote this a long time ago, and haven't have the time to look over it. If this is a really trashy fic, I apologize ahead of time. I'm going to revamp it sometime, maybe in the summer. Welcome to the wonderful world of laptops, right?
The night at Titien's was nerve wracking. Wufei sat in a corner away from Heero, Duo, and their guardian feeling knots form in his stomach. He yearned for someone to cradle him in their arms and tell him that everything was going to be all right, but he could feel it. The storm was about to break wide open. And it would rain hell fury all over his mind.
He looked nervously about Titien's dwelling that looked by far more extravagant than that of his guardian. Yellow, silken scarves hung from almost everywhere creating a golden canopy above his head, little red, glass angels sat neatly in rows on the coffee table, CDs littered almost every available surface space, and everything was incredibly rich to Wufei's eye.
But, now, after a long time of concentrating on Artax's home, Wufei could now remember how lavishly he had decorated his home. The light gleaming wood that comprised his house and dojo, the white paneling, his weaponry room filled with a diverse assortment of deathly instruments, all his traditional paintings and triptychs, every centimeter of his house designed to his liking. He remembered taking months to select the perfect futon, little things like that. When it came down to himself, his appearance was inconsequential in comparison to his house. The lack of a permanent home during the wars made the need for a perfect home prominent in his mind. He'd take his time in finding the best things to fill his house, right down to the correct spouse.
So, what did it mean, now that he felt so comfortable living at Artax's home where he'd had no control over anything? Did it mean anything at all?
Wufei curled up further into his corner and rested his forehead upon his knees. "…stop," he whispered to the emptiness.
--
Early in the morning, Wufei awoke realizing that he'd fallen asleep in the corner. He looked about finding no one else in the room and then stood shakily, stretching his numbed limbs. A dozen pinpricks bloomed in his chest when he realized that Artax hadn't come for him the night before. After looking the room once, Wufei resigned himself to find his way back to Artax's house. He remembered the general direction it was in. The trail they'd rode on was recognizable enough that he'd know it if he were to see it again.
Experimentally, he tapped the handle to the front door before opening it. He felt a little guilty leaving without telling anyone, but, then again, he wasn't obligated to.
--
Halfway up the familiar trail to the senior complex, Wufei was walking slowly, the once comfortable green t-shirt now clung to his back like second skin, the loose denim pants seemed to way a ton and he began to wonder how Artax ever managed in his. A little shyly, Wufei peeled off his t-shirt and straightened out his hair with sweat slicked fingers before continuing onward. The faint breeze against his skin felt good.
--
"Heart massage in ten…nine…"
"Sir."
Artax nodded but didn't turn to acknowledge the messenger, his eyes riveted to the quarantine room.
"Sir, the order went out five minutes past. Your schedule is officially folded. KaMaahr in one week, and then, you ship out the day after."
Artax held up his hand to silence him.
"One."
A wondrous thing happened. The mass of flesh that was Amrita swelled and contracted becoming a thousand different colors at once. Yellow to orange to red to purple to blue to green, every color imaginable. But, Artax only paid half attention to it while he waited for his queue to begin programming. After a few seconds with his hands hovering over the keyboard, he wasn't feeling anything, "…Again."
"Again," Heliclos echoed gliding around on his wheeled, tripod chair in his little cubicle like working space.
Another shock ran through Amrita blowing her up to unparalleled proportions. The switch in the back of Artax's mind clicked, and he set to the keyboard like a madman.
"Stabilizing…data being locked and processed," Hannah said. "Doing good…"
"…sir, something is happening…sir…sir!"
"…I know," Artax replied projecting himself over to a separate set of keyboards. He could feel the clock ticking down. And his mind was pounding out the message: send! send! send! against the quieter: click. click. click. click
"She's still receiving information," Hannah said.
Totoya was a little more frantic, "She's become unstable. Sir, you should stop."
Hannah gripped the sides of her desk and hunched over, "Keep going, sir. You're almost done!"
Artax stood up hammering his fingers on the keyboard and then returning to his original workstation. "Five seconds," he said.
It didn't seem to happen when it did. All screens went green, then Artax's monitor exploded. He raised his arms right before that glass hit, some pieces caught his cheeks and the sides of his forehead. Small red streaks crisscrossed his pale skin. A white hot but freezing at the same time cloud blossomed in his chest and seemed to flow into his blood, spreading to all of his being. Then, all at once, the feeling vanished and Artax felt oddly calm and aware. He folded his hands in his lap and swept the broken glass shards from his workspace, not caring or noticing the new wounds he was making.
"Sir, are you alright?" Heliclos asked worriedly.
"I'm fine," Artax replied distantly shaking some debris from his shirtfront. "Amrita is ready to be inserted now. But, we need to watch her for a little while, first. Three days under the microscope. Everyone, go home. I'll finish up here."
Ofcourse, Hannah and Totoya left, however, a little more reluctantly than the countless times before when they had practically leaped out the door. Heliclos stayed behind.
"You are sure that you're alright?"
Artax nodded sweeping the glass into his hands and emptying them into the waste chute under his desk. "What do you want?"
"What happened last night with the pilots?"
Artax shrugged, "Nothing. Nothing important has changed."
"But, you're going out to the front lines soon. That is a change. It's important to me, and that meeting had something to do with it."
Both youths regarded each other a moment before Artax with a half-annoyed tone replied, "Amrita was built for the battle ground, so was I."
Heliclos narrowed his eyes.
"…Go home, Heliclos."
--
His guardian wasn't home, which made Wufei want to just throw a fit if he hadn't been so tired. He fell back into the welcome comfort of his bed. He kicked off his shoes and slid out of the pants that currently felt like deadweight hanging from his waist. Then, he crawled under the comforter and stared out at the interior of the house for a little while. He didn't come home…was his last thought before he drifted off to sleep.
--
"What's that?" Duo asked wrapping his arms around Heero's shoulders and resting his chin on the tousled brown hair he liked so much.
"That messenger dropped off a smart chip. I can get this battle plane finished in a few days, now," Heero replied, reaching up and patting Duo's forearms.
"Why didn't they do that before?"
"I think that we're rushing now. There is something here like 'honor bound.' I think that this colony is planning to send Artax into space, but he has to finish all his business here first."
Duo frowned and buried his face in Heero's hair. "Wufei won't like that. I guess…It must have been that thing last night. I wonder what all that was about."
"It doesn't really concern us yet," Heero replied biting back a yawn.
"I guess not," Duo agreed breathing in deeply. "I can't wait to get out of here. I don't really understand how everyone else can be so content to be prisoners."
"They've all found their new, respective passions," Heero replied while leafing through a platform manual.
"Oh, I think I know what you're getting at…Quatre wants to fight for what he believes is right. Trowa wants to learn from Quatre. Wufei…It's so obvious. He's got the hots for his guardian, even though he vehemently denies it. I don't blame him for liking Artax. He's pretty and quiet. But, is one person worth your freedom?"
"He just follows his heart, all the while, trying to rationalize it. I'm sure, if you asked him, he'd come up with something."
"You're right…want me to fix us some oolong?"
--
The bike back home seemed to take forever but then again, all of it compressed into seconds. There was an indescribable euphoria in just breathing that would have struck Artax as odd if he could come down off his high.
The colors of the trees, the blue sky, and the wildlife all seemed to sharpen like computer images and flush with color. Even shadows seemed to move and change hues as if someone were painting everything. A quiet encompassing voice seemed to call from infinity: "come to me."
--
He couldn't remember opening the door, shedding his clothes, or turning on the faucet, but he was standing under a steady stream of water. It felt strange, like every tear like droplet was a metal bead, but it felt so good. Artax closed his eyes and kneeled under the flow. His head felt strangely heavy and he cradled it in his arms. Out of the corners of his eyes, he saw phantom feet touch the ground. Translucent white, perfect feet, leading up to perfect; thin ankles, to perfect legs, perfect hips, flat stomach, small; perfect hands, arms, and Artax's eyes skipped up to the face. It looked so familiar. She was Asian, her imperial nose with that wonderful arch, her defined cheekbones, and reverent gaze.
"Come to me," she beckoned without sound. Her arms opened, and automatically, Artax stood and leaned into her protective embrace. "My child," she cooed silently. For such an odd moment, Artax felt curiously sobered and tired. He breathed in the faint perfume of the woman's skin, an oddly familiar scent.
"…mother," he mouthed.
A small pool of steaming water began to collect on the floor of the shower.
--
The very uncomfortable sticky sensation of moisture roused Wufei. A steady hum invaded his drowsy senses. "…the hell?" he asked blinking the sleep from his eyes. "Artax?" As much as he hated to move when he felt so uncomfortable, he got out of bed and looked around as he stretched. A trail of clothing beginning at the door stuck out leading to the shower.
Wufei yawned and took another look at the line of clothing, then at the shower. There was no fog on it, no indication that it was running. "He wouldn't leave it on…" he mumbled, walking tiredly over towards the shower. Something pale flashed in the glass of the shower. "..was that…shit!" Wufei exclaimed, suddenly awake and frightened out of his mind. He didn't think, he just followed his impulse to kick the damned door in. He socked it a powerful dive kick, and was blasted backwards by the sudden outflow of water. It looked dyed a little pinkish as it flowed out.
Quickly, Wufei scrambled to his feet and opened the door the traditional way. His breath caught in his throat when he saw Artax collapsed in the corner of the tiled walls. He had bruises and the like all trailing from his neck to his stomach. Wufei wasted no time in gathering Artax up in his arms. Carefully, he carried him out to the living room lucky to miss all the scattered shards of glass littering the front walkway. He laid Artax out, not even taking the time to admire the view and began to perform CPR.
After a while, he began to feel desperate, refusing to submit to death's calling. He rained fists on Artax's chest to try to start a pulse, but there was nothing. I'm not losing! His mind cried.
Wufei closed his eyes racking his mind for something to do, for someway to magically make Artax wake up. He jumped, startled, when he heard some gurgling like breathing. Shakily, he rolled Artax over onto his side and patted his back. A small stream of water flowed out from the corner of his mouth. His eyes were still closed as he commenced with uneven breathing, shallow and barely audible.
Carefully, Wufei gathered him up into his arms and cradled him to his chest. Unconsciously, he ran his hands over Artax's smooth, soft skin, not even giving any real thought to anything in particular. He stared blankly ahead with unconnected thoughts running through his mind that seemed a mere background murmur to the ache he began to feel in his chest.
It started as a strong feeling, so strong as to constrict his chest. Then it all just seemed to flow out while the feeling in his chest swelled and intensified. Tears fell upon Artax's bare shoulder, while Wufei struggled to see him through misted eyes. All his creamy white skin, his face, his hair, indistinguishable through the thin curtain of water.
And, even more curious than the impassioned crying was that Wufei soon found himself mumbling almost incoherently to Artax's still unconscious body. "Please, never leave me. I was scared out of my mind. Why did you do that? I can't live without you. You're the most important person to me. Don't do this ever again." And all other sorts of what he might very well have regarded as "nonsense" earlier on in the year.
Some time later, Wufei finally relinquished his hold on Artax's slumbering body and laid him down on his bed. As tempting as it was at the moment, he dared not steal a kiss or cast a lingering glance at all the skin before him. Instead, he took the immaculately white sheets and covered his companion with them, tucking them just below his chin. He took a minute to admire the sleeping figure before thinking of things to do before the other awoke.
--
He didn't really remember returning home, but, somehow he found himself staring up at the all too familiar image of the ceiling of his dwelling. And, there was the faint smell of curry invading his senses. Stealthily, Artax crept out of bed feeling a little sore, which was only a little out of the ordinary aside from his failing memory.
"Chang?" he said aloud hoarsely. Then, he cleared his throat, which helped very little in improving his voice. "Chang…" He peered into the kitchen area and saw Wufei hunched over the floor table, his eyes closed, and his brows knit as if in deep concentration. But, it wouldn't have taken a genius to figure out he was asleep.
I wrote this a long time ago, and haven't have the time to look over it. If this is a really trashy fic, I apologize ahead of time. I'm going to revamp it sometime, maybe in the summer. Welcome to the wonderful world of laptops, right?
The night at Titien's was nerve wracking. Wufei sat in a corner away from Heero, Duo, and their guardian feeling knots form in his stomach. He yearned for someone to cradle him in their arms and tell him that everything was going to be all right, but he could feel it. The storm was about to break wide open. And it would rain hell fury all over his mind.
He looked nervously about Titien's dwelling that looked by far more extravagant than that of his guardian. Yellow, silken scarves hung from almost everywhere creating a golden canopy above his head, little red, glass angels sat neatly in rows on the coffee table, CDs littered almost every available surface space, and everything was incredibly rich to Wufei's eye.
But, now, after a long time of concentrating on Artax's home, Wufei could now remember how lavishly he had decorated his home. The light gleaming wood that comprised his house and dojo, the white paneling, his weaponry room filled with a diverse assortment of deathly instruments, all his traditional paintings and triptychs, every centimeter of his house designed to his liking. He remembered taking months to select the perfect futon, little things like that. When it came down to himself, his appearance was inconsequential in comparison to his house. The lack of a permanent home during the wars made the need for a perfect home prominent in his mind. He'd take his time in finding the best things to fill his house, right down to the correct spouse.
So, what did it mean, now that he felt so comfortable living at Artax's home where he'd had no control over anything? Did it mean anything at all?
Wufei curled up further into his corner and rested his forehead upon his knees. "…stop," he whispered to the emptiness.
--
Early in the morning, Wufei awoke realizing that he'd fallen asleep in the corner. He looked about finding no one else in the room and then stood shakily, stretching his numbed limbs. A dozen pinpricks bloomed in his chest when he realized that Artax hadn't come for him the night before. After looking the room once, Wufei resigned himself to find his way back to Artax's house. He remembered the general direction it was in. The trail they'd rode on was recognizable enough that he'd know it if he were to see it again.
Experimentally, he tapped the handle to the front door before opening it. He felt a little guilty leaving without telling anyone, but, then again, he wasn't obligated to.
--
Halfway up the familiar trail to the senior complex, Wufei was walking slowly, the once comfortable green t-shirt now clung to his back like second skin, the loose denim pants seemed to way a ton and he began to wonder how Artax ever managed in his. A little shyly, Wufei peeled off his t-shirt and straightened out his hair with sweat slicked fingers before continuing onward. The faint breeze against his skin felt good.
--
"Heart massage in ten…nine…"
"Sir."
Artax nodded but didn't turn to acknowledge the messenger, his eyes riveted to the quarantine room.
"Sir, the order went out five minutes past. Your schedule is officially folded. KaMaahr in one week, and then, you ship out the day after."
Artax held up his hand to silence him.
"One."
A wondrous thing happened. The mass of flesh that was Amrita swelled and contracted becoming a thousand different colors at once. Yellow to orange to red to purple to blue to green, every color imaginable. But, Artax only paid half attention to it while he waited for his queue to begin programming. After a few seconds with his hands hovering over the keyboard, he wasn't feeling anything, "…Again."
"Again," Heliclos echoed gliding around on his wheeled, tripod chair in his little cubicle like working space.
Another shock ran through Amrita blowing her up to unparalleled proportions. The switch in the back of Artax's mind clicked, and he set to the keyboard like a madman.
"Stabilizing…data being locked and processed," Hannah said. "Doing good…"
"…sir, something is happening…sir…sir!"
"…I know," Artax replied projecting himself over to a separate set of keyboards. He could feel the clock ticking down. And his mind was pounding out the message: send! send! send! against the quieter: click. click. click. click
"She's still receiving information," Hannah said.
Totoya was a little more frantic, "She's become unstable. Sir, you should stop."
Hannah gripped the sides of her desk and hunched over, "Keep going, sir. You're almost done!"
Artax stood up hammering his fingers on the keyboard and then returning to his original workstation. "Five seconds," he said.
It didn't seem to happen when it did. All screens went green, then Artax's monitor exploded. He raised his arms right before that glass hit, some pieces caught his cheeks and the sides of his forehead. Small red streaks crisscrossed his pale skin. A white hot but freezing at the same time cloud blossomed in his chest and seemed to flow into his blood, spreading to all of his being. Then, all at once, the feeling vanished and Artax felt oddly calm and aware. He folded his hands in his lap and swept the broken glass shards from his workspace, not caring or noticing the new wounds he was making.
"Sir, are you alright?" Heliclos asked worriedly.
"I'm fine," Artax replied distantly shaking some debris from his shirtfront. "Amrita is ready to be inserted now. But, we need to watch her for a little while, first. Three days under the microscope. Everyone, go home. I'll finish up here."
Ofcourse, Hannah and Totoya left, however, a little more reluctantly than the countless times before when they had practically leaped out the door. Heliclos stayed behind.
"You are sure that you're alright?"
Artax nodded sweeping the glass into his hands and emptying them into the waste chute under his desk. "What do you want?"
"What happened last night with the pilots?"
Artax shrugged, "Nothing. Nothing important has changed."
"But, you're going out to the front lines soon. That is a change. It's important to me, and that meeting had something to do with it."
Both youths regarded each other a moment before Artax with a half-annoyed tone replied, "Amrita was built for the battle ground, so was I."
Heliclos narrowed his eyes.
"…Go home, Heliclos."
--
His guardian wasn't home, which made Wufei want to just throw a fit if he hadn't been so tired. He fell back into the welcome comfort of his bed. He kicked off his shoes and slid out of the pants that currently felt like deadweight hanging from his waist. Then, he crawled under the comforter and stared out at the interior of the house for a little while. He didn't come home…was his last thought before he drifted off to sleep.
--
"What's that?" Duo asked wrapping his arms around Heero's shoulders and resting his chin on the tousled brown hair he liked so much.
"That messenger dropped off a smart chip. I can get this battle plane finished in a few days, now," Heero replied, reaching up and patting Duo's forearms.
"Why didn't they do that before?"
"I think that we're rushing now. There is something here like 'honor bound.' I think that this colony is planning to send Artax into space, but he has to finish all his business here first."
Duo frowned and buried his face in Heero's hair. "Wufei won't like that. I guess…It must have been that thing last night. I wonder what all that was about."
"It doesn't really concern us yet," Heero replied biting back a yawn.
"I guess not," Duo agreed breathing in deeply. "I can't wait to get out of here. I don't really understand how everyone else can be so content to be prisoners."
"They've all found their new, respective passions," Heero replied while leafing through a platform manual.
"Oh, I think I know what you're getting at…Quatre wants to fight for what he believes is right. Trowa wants to learn from Quatre. Wufei…It's so obvious. He's got the hots for his guardian, even though he vehemently denies it. I don't blame him for liking Artax. He's pretty and quiet. But, is one person worth your freedom?"
"He just follows his heart, all the while, trying to rationalize it. I'm sure, if you asked him, he'd come up with something."
"You're right…want me to fix us some oolong?"
--
The bike back home seemed to take forever but then again, all of it compressed into seconds. There was an indescribable euphoria in just breathing that would have struck Artax as odd if he could come down off his high.
The colors of the trees, the blue sky, and the wildlife all seemed to sharpen like computer images and flush with color. Even shadows seemed to move and change hues as if someone were painting everything. A quiet encompassing voice seemed to call from infinity: "come to me."
--
He couldn't remember opening the door, shedding his clothes, or turning on the faucet, but he was standing under a steady stream of water. It felt strange, like every tear like droplet was a metal bead, but it felt so good. Artax closed his eyes and kneeled under the flow. His head felt strangely heavy and he cradled it in his arms. Out of the corners of his eyes, he saw phantom feet touch the ground. Translucent white, perfect feet, leading up to perfect; thin ankles, to perfect legs, perfect hips, flat stomach, small; perfect hands, arms, and Artax's eyes skipped up to the face. It looked so familiar. She was Asian, her imperial nose with that wonderful arch, her defined cheekbones, and reverent gaze.
"Come to me," she beckoned without sound. Her arms opened, and automatically, Artax stood and leaned into her protective embrace. "My child," she cooed silently. For such an odd moment, Artax felt curiously sobered and tired. He breathed in the faint perfume of the woman's skin, an oddly familiar scent.
"…mother," he mouthed.
A small pool of steaming water began to collect on the floor of the shower.
--
The very uncomfortable sticky sensation of moisture roused Wufei. A steady hum invaded his drowsy senses. "…the hell?" he asked blinking the sleep from his eyes. "Artax?" As much as he hated to move when he felt so uncomfortable, he got out of bed and looked around as he stretched. A trail of clothing beginning at the door stuck out leading to the shower.
Wufei yawned and took another look at the line of clothing, then at the shower. There was no fog on it, no indication that it was running. "He wouldn't leave it on…" he mumbled, walking tiredly over towards the shower. Something pale flashed in the glass of the shower. "..was that…shit!" Wufei exclaimed, suddenly awake and frightened out of his mind. He didn't think, he just followed his impulse to kick the damned door in. He socked it a powerful dive kick, and was blasted backwards by the sudden outflow of water. It looked dyed a little pinkish as it flowed out.
Quickly, Wufei scrambled to his feet and opened the door the traditional way. His breath caught in his throat when he saw Artax collapsed in the corner of the tiled walls. He had bruises and the like all trailing from his neck to his stomach. Wufei wasted no time in gathering Artax up in his arms. Carefully, he carried him out to the living room lucky to miss all the scattered shards of glass littering the front walkway. He laid Artax out, not even taking the time to admire the view and began to perform CPR.
After a while, he began to feel desperate, refusing to submit to death's calling. He rained fists on Artax's chest to try to start a pulse, but there was nothing. I'm not losing! His mind cried.
Wufei closed his eyes racking his mind for something to do, for someway to magically make Artax wake up. He jumped, startled, when he heard some gurgling like breathing. Shakily, he rolled Artax over onto his side and patted his back. A small stream of water flowed out from the corner of his mouth. His eyes were still closed as he commenced with uneven breathing, shallow and barely audible.
Carefully, Wufei gathered him up into his arms and cradled him to his chest. Unconsciously, he ran his hands over Artax's smooth, soft skin, not even giving any real thought to anything in particular. He stared blankly ahead with unconnected thoughts running through his mind that seemed a mere background murmur to the ache he began to feel in his chest.
It started as a strong feeling, so strong as to constrict his chest. Then it all just seemed to flow out while the feeling in his chest swelled and intensified. Tears fell upon Artax's bare shoulder, while Wufei struggled to see him through misted eyes. All his creamy white skin, his face, his hair, indistinguishable through the thin curtain of water.
And, even more curious than the impassioned crying was that Wufei soon found himself mumbling almost incoherently to Artax's still unconscious body. "Please, never leave me. I was scared out of my mind. Why did you do that? I can't live without you. You're the most important person to me. Don't do this ever again." And all other sorts of what he might very well have regarded as "nonsense" earlier on in the year.
Some time later, Wufei finally relinquished his hold on Artax's slumbering body and laid him down on his bed. As tempting as it was at the moment, he dared not steal a kiss or cast a lingering glance at all the skin before him. Instead, he took the immaculately white sheets and covered his companion with them, tucking them just below his chin. He took a minute to admire the sleeping figure before thinking of things to do before the other awoke.
--
He didn't really remember returning home, but, somehow he found himself staring up at the all too familiar image of the ceiling of his dwelling. And, there was the faint smell of curry invading his senses. Stealthily, Artax crept out of bed feeling a little sore, which was only a little out of the ordinary aside from his failing memory.
"Chang?" he said aloud hoarsely. Then, he cleared his throat, which helped very little in improving his voice. "Chang…" He peered into the kitchen area and saw Wufei hunched over the floor table, his eyes closed, and his brows knit as if in deep concentration. But, it wouldn't have taken a genius to figure out he was asleep.