Be My Friend?

Chapter 8: Maze of Despair (Unbetaed)

Kattie

Note: I'm working on this late at night while I'm sleepy, but I promised to update quicker, so here I go! (fwoosh!) If it's bad, I'll rewrite it ^^*

Disclaimer: ::singing in front of law firm:: Deck the halls with boughs of holly! Fa la la la la ::pause:: la la la laaaa! 'Tis the season to be jolly!

Lawyer: ::walking out of building:: *$^# Carolers.

Kattie: O.O Scrooge! Scrooge!

Lawyer: I'm no Scrooge!

Kattie: ::holds out hand:: Gundam Wing?

Lawyer: Bah, humbug!

Kattie: T_T It's just not fair!

Warning: Future chapters will contain extreme angst, violence, and thematic elements. Profanity may go beyond a minimum amount. Possible dark scenes of great depression that are not appropriate for children. Rating will change to R when appropriate time comes. Edited versions rated PG-13 will be available at that time upon request. Parental screening suggested for children under the age of 13.

Dedication: Dedicated to my mommy ::glomps:: who has been working ultra hard lately at work. And has to work Christmas Eve .. (she won't see this, but it's the thought right?) I love you, mommy! ::Glomps::

"Mr. Maxwell, is that you?" A meek voice asked from behind the two pilots.

Duo quickly spun around on his heels, finding himself only two inches away from Wesley. Immediately taking a step back, tripping but grabbing on to Hiiro's arm for support, Duo gave Wesley a surprised look.

"I'm sorry if I startled you," Wesley said in a rushed voice, "I didn't mean to.. I'm sorry.." Putting a hand over his face, he took in a deep breath, "I'm really sorry.. So sorry.."

"It's not your fault," Duo replied as he tried to regain his footing, "Don't apologize for what happened-"

"Quiet, Maxwell." Hiiro interrupted. He took a step towards Wesley and picked him up by the collar of his shirt. "Why the Hell did you let him leave?"

"Hiiro-"

"Are you in on this?" Hiiro questioned, "Were you giving them his location? Telling them when he'd be alone?"

"Mr. Yui, I-I would nev-never-" Wesley's eyes opened wide and tears began to sprout from them.

"Like Hell," Hiiro spat, slamming Wesley's body against the wall, "Tell me the truth now or I swear I'll break every bone in your worthless body."

"Somebody call security!" A nurse screamed.

"It's all right, ma'am," Duo said quickly to the woman, giving her a half- hearted smile in an attempt to prove his words true, "Hiiro, put Wesley down."

"You bastard!" Hiiro yelled, grabbing Wesley again, "He might die! You son of a bitch, you might have killed him with your selfishness! You-" As Hiiro grew angrier his word choice became more and more vulgar, becoming nearly all profanity.

And then he was silent. The only sound that followed was that of Wesley's wracking sobs and his coughing as he began to choke on them.

"I'm s-sorry," He said between sobs, "I'm.. sorry.. I-I'm sorry.."

"Damn it, Hiiro! Let him go!" Grabbing Hiiro's arm away, Duo allowed Wesley to fall to the ground in a sobbing heap.

Hiiro's breathing was quick and staggered. His eyes were red and something that resembled a tear slid down his cheek. With a wave of his hand, the glint of emotion disappeared, making its existence altogether debatable. "H-he.." Hiiro didn't finish the thought but rather clenched his fist instead.

"You don't know that, Hiiro," Duo said sharply, "You can't blame Wesley. You need to calm down."

"I deserve it," Wesley whispered through his crying, "I shouldn't have let him walk alone. I should never have.. I didn't think of it. Goddamn it, I might as well have been the one hurting him!"

Duo looked to Wufei and Trowa for help but saw that they were busy explaining the situation to the security guards and sending them on their way. It was up to him. 'Damn,' He thought, 'I wish Quatre were here.' A pain in his chest followed the idea.

"Wesley, it isn't your fault," Duo tried, putting a hand on his shoulder, "He probably would've gone out anyway."

"I could have stopped him!" Wesley cried.

Hiiro glared at him. "Then why didn't you?"

"Hiiro!" Duo scolded, "Leave him alone!"

"I have no reason to."

"I don't know why I didn't!" Wesley sobbed, "I'm such a fool! Such a Goddamned fool!"

"Wesley, it was an accident. Anyone could have made the same mistake."

"You are a fool."

"Hiiro!"

"I should be hung."

"No you shouldn't, Wesley."

"I could shoot you."

"DAMN IT! I CAN'T HANDLE THIS!" Standing up quickly, Duo sped out of the room, ignoring the blood rush to his head that made everything momentarily black (1).

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Hm.." They blew a smoke ring and watched it float up to the ceiling, "Perhaps I could use a valuable asset such as him.. To succeed in a mission such as this, I will need to know as much as possible. Perhaps I should have Mr. Maxwell pay me a little visit."

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"It's everywhere! Everyone knows what we've done! They're going to find us!"

"Don't be such a worry-wart. They won't find us. They don't even know who we are. They have nothing on us."

"Damn it, there's a reward! They'll find us! And what if he dies? Shit, that'd make us at the top of every assassin's hit list!"

"You think too much. Leave that to me. And try to remember, I'm not going to die. I will never die. You'll have to die for me if it comes to it."

".. It's going to be both of us, you know. It doesn't matter who did what. We're going in together."

"Of course not. Worst comes to worst, I'll make a deal with the cops and turn you in for my freedom."

".. You Hell-sent ass."

"Watch your words. You know perfectly well how easily I could kill you."

"If I'm going to die anyway, what difference does it make?"

"We're not going to get caught. Stop your complaining and help me work on the next part of the plan."

"I hate you."

"I love you too."

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Bouken!" Nitki called, letting her voice echo through the house so that he might hear her in even the most farthest-away corners. "Come here, please!"

"Yes, dear?" He asked, poking his head in the door.

Nitki grinned and walked up to him, giving him a peck on the cheek, "I didn't realize you were so close by. I'm sorry for yelling."

"It is not a problem." Bouken replied charmingly, brushing a hand through her hair.

Letting her smile fade as she remembered what she had to tell him, Nitki clasped Bouken's hands within her own. "I have some bad news, darling. My brother Quatre, I think you've met him.. Yes, of course you have. Sorry, I'm having some trouble thinking. ..What was I talking about?"

"Quatre, love," Bouken answered, "Something about Quatre."

Nitki flushed with embarrassment, "That's right. I'm sorry. He's in the hospital. Some thug attacked him. This colony really is going to the dumps. Why, just the other day.." She paused for a moment. "What was I saying?"

"Nothing, dear," Bouken replied, taking her into his arms, "We'd already discussed it.. Would you like a cup of tea?"

Looking puzzled, Nitki nodded, "I could have sworn it was important.."

"Perhaps you need some more of your medication?" Bouken suggested.

With a slight grin, Nitki kissed her husband on the cheek, "That would be wonderful. Thank you."

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Nn.. Uniform don't fit Mizz Naihu too well," Naihu grumbled, trying to stretch her nurse's skirt down over her knees, "'m a proper lady. Ought have proper length skirt." With a sigh, she gave up and began reading her medical charts, "Hello, Mr. Rich 'un. Did you think Mizz Naihu gone and forget about you?"

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Their callused fingers dialed the correct numbers on the phone in a seemingly angry, violent manner. With their other hand, they stirred a cup of tea, swishing the liquid around and around as it turned darker with every rotation.

"Yeah?" A voice on the other end questioned.

"It's me," They replied, "I have revised the plan."

"Oh?"

"We'll be taking a guest."

"Good."

"Mr. Maxwell will be in our custody within the hour. Do you understand?"

"Of course."

"Don't get caught."

"No one will even notice him missing."

"They'd better not."

"An hour."

"See you then."

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Duo rested his head against the wall, letting the stress of the day wash over him. Everything had just fallen apart.. So quickly. It had started out as a normal day, nothing to be worried about.. And then..

It was as if someone had decided it had been calm for far too long. While they were away from missions, they needed some kind of vice to keep them occupied.

Sitting outside of the ER, Duo could just barely hear what the staff inside was saying. Although he liked knowing what was going on, he knew that he would soon be removed from this location, most likely by a security guard.

"Heavy blood loss.. Do we have any more Type O?(2)"

"Yes, sir, but we're running short.. I'm not sure if we have enough. No one likes to give blood this time of year."

"Damn.."

"I'm type O," A male nurse said, speaking up for the first time, "I can go right now and give a donation for him.."

"Hurry son, we don't have much time!"

"Yes, sir!"

The young man, 18 at most, sprinted out of the door and tripped over Duo. "Sorry!" He said quickly, not thinking about the fact that no one was allowed there.

Duo watched him leave with a smile coming to his lips. "Thank you." He whispered.

"Mr. Maxwell?" A voice asked.

"Hn?" Duo questioned, turning his head toward the voice.

Nothing followed. Suddenly everything was gone and all that remained was a heavy blackness.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Do you have him?" They asked.

"Affirmative. I'll be there shortly."

"Be careful. I need him to be cooperative. Try to be.. Gentle."

"Gentleness isn't my forte."

"..Try."

"Yes, sir."

End of Chapter

^^* I'm not very nice, am I? Well. ah.. Merry Christmas. ^^* ::wraps up cliffhanger and puts a bow on it:: My gift to you ^^****

1) I do this all the time ^^* You stand up to quickly and everything goes black. Then you have to wait a minute and hold on to something until it clears up. Makes you dizzy for a bit too.

2) After checking internet sources, I've had them say both type B and O. ^^* There seemed to be more O's than B's though (after extensive searching ^^* I had to know!) so I went with O.

Funeral People-

Bouken- Quatre's brother-in-law who got the pilots out of trouble but smiled far too much than is natural at the funeral. Has something unnatural on his desk. Hm.. Wouldn't it be nice to know what it is? Also has said he "loves" Quatre. Is this brotherly love, or is a dark plot being conjured? And how did he know that Quatre was injured?

Jiei- The bodyguard who almost threw the pilots out. Doesn't seem to be in the story right now, but will he become important? Bwo hohohoho! (I'm still figuring this out myself ^^*)

Nitki- Quatre's sister and Bouken's wife. Seems to have figured something out about Bouken, but can't remember. Is she being poisoned by Bouken?

Work Associate (will be associates soon)-

Wesley- A young, unsure secretary at Winner Corporation. He once worked under Mr. Winner and attempted to quit 25 times in two years. Seems to have actually liked the man, but can we be sure? Has formed a small friendship with Quatre, but that may have been ruined by him admitting he knew that Quatre was a pilot. Hm. but did he really find out by "cleaning"? Could he possibly be "Mysterious Voice #1"'s minion? Is Hiiro correct in his accusations?

Mysterious People-

Cigar Person- Although the gender is uncertain, this figure hated Quatre's father and hopes to kill someone else close to him (or Quatre himself). Seems to be either in love or lusting after Quatre. Also appears to be a chain smoker, smoking cigars because.. ^^* Kattie thinks all super evil baddies should smoke cigars ^^*. Seems to already have put his/her plan in action. But when? I didn't catch it, did you? (Maybe I forgot ^^*) Has just had Duo kidnapped. Apparently, he likes tea.

Mysterious Voice One- The leader of the voices gang who claims that Quatre is "Perfect" for their plan. Has a sadistic sense of humor and is violent in language. Wrote some of the many letters, which were sent to Quatre. Has recently attacked Quatre and sent him to the hospital, where he is now in critical condition. Also has a contact somewhere in Quatre's midst. But where?

Mysterious Voice Two- The follower in the voices gang who is unsure about what they are doing and dislikes the idea of using Quatre for their plan. A very uncertain person who spends the majority of his/her time being pushed around by MV1. Sent the death threat to Quatre. Has become quite the pushover. Does not wish to continue their "tests" on Quatre. Will he be able to rebel against MV1? Is he strong enough?

Other-

Nice Male Nurse- Is giving blood for Quatre. Isn't that nice? ^.^ Or maybe he has some kind of blood-transferred disease and is intent upon getting Quatre sick ^^* Then again, without the blood transfusion he'd die anyway. So maybe, Kattie has nothing on this guy and is just trying very hard to make you paranoid ^^* (which she is. but maybe for a reason?)

Naihu- Ah yes, Kattie's favorite poor-speaking baddie. (actually, I kinda hate her ^^*) She is evil and is doing something evil in the hospital. But what?

Tracks:

Say Anything- X-Japan

Forever Love- X-Japan

Crucify My Love- X-Japan

Tears- X-Japan

Endless Rain- X-Japan

See ya next chapter! Please review as a Christmas present ^^* (okay, so maybe I'm a bit pathetic.) See ya soon! ::glomps:: and thanks for reading!