Hehe…ok, I'm leaving for Europe next week! Yay! It's going to be soo much
fun, but unfortunately, poor little me doesn't have a laptop, and if I did
I wouldn't have time to use it…soooo…I won't be updating for a while. I'm
sooo sorry that this chapter is taking so long to get out! I was busy with
fifth sense and trip to the French zoo, and so many new plots have been
occupying my thoughts. *sniff* can you forgive me? I'll try to get two
chapters out within the week before I leave, k? sound good? Leave a review
to let me know what you think! Please!
Ok, some reviewers have mentioned 1x2. unfortunately, I don't write any nc- 17 stuff, so there won't be any lemony content in this fic. I think it should do ok without it tho. There's going to be some mushy parts tho. Hopefully you'll keep reading this anyways…
Disclaimer-I don't own it so don't sue.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter 17
Duo nodded. "Then we have just enough time to prepare ourselves. I've got some research to do on what spells this castle has. Um, Wufei?"
The Asian boy looked at Duo.
"How much do you know about fire mages?"
"I'll teach him." Heero interrupted. "I'm sure Wufei has his own training to worry about."
Duo nodded. "Ok, I'll leave him with you. I'm off." And with that, the braided boy had drifted back off into the library.
Heero stood. "It will be easier to do this outside, I think." He said. Quatre got up and followed him out with a nod.
Trowa stood as well, and left along with Wufei and his dragon. The each headed their separate ways.
Out in the courtyard, Heero was pacing circles around a certain blond who had his fists clenched in concentration, and his brow furrowed.
"You need to feel the power of the earth beneath you." Heero was instructing. "and draw it out for your use."
Quatre nodded slightly, and reached out to the raw power that surrounded him. "What do I do once I've grasped it?" he asked. "It keeps slipping away…"
Heero stopped pacing and felt Quatre's attempts to hold the power. He placed a hand on the boy's shoulder and was within him in an instant.
Quatre's eyes widened as he felt Heero inside of him. "Um…Heero?"
"it's my mental power." The animal mage said.
"What exactly is your mental power?" The blond asked hesitantly.
"I can enter people's bodies, sometimes relieve their pain, other times read their thoughts. Right now I need to show you how this is done properly."
Heero then, from within Quatre's body, reached out to the power in the earth. Using Quatre's power, he drew in the magic, and held it within his grasp easily, before muttering something. When he'd let go of the power, Quatre realized there was now a small ball of fire in his hands.
Heero backed a step away from the blond. "Did you understand how I did that?"
Quatre thought for a minute. He recalled how the animal mage had drawn the power. With his eyes closed, he had seen it as a red light. Heero had then reached out for two more strands, braiding them to hold them together. Then, he'd muttered something that Quatre hadn't been able to catch…
"What spell did you use?" the blond asked.
"It's a simple spell that helps to give light in a dark place." Heero pointed at the fireball in Quatre's hands. "That thing will shine brightly in any dark room, or at night. When combined with another spell, it can be put into a small leather bag, and it will shine whenever you take it out.
Quatre closed his fingers around the ball, then opened them again as Heero repeated the spell.
Flames of the night
Draw from within your light
Use my power, and yourselves
Ignite.
"Now you try it." Heero mentally ordered his previous spell to finish and the fireball disappeared in a wisp of smoke.
The blond closed his eyes, and reached out to the power, determined to learn all he could.
*~*
Meanwhile, Wufei had his own studying to do. He was in the highest tower of the castle, climbing out onto the roof. The winds didn't usually blow this high, so it made his job easier. He could pick and choose which ones he wanted to listen to, and creating weather was much easier without winds whispering at you.
The Chinese boy looked out over the castle walls. There was a small village to the right, just outside the main gate, and a cliff behind the castle, leading to an ocean. There were forests on either side of the ancient building, and directly in front of him, Wufei could see mountains in the distance.
Sighing, the weather mage fingered the silver whistle that hung around his neck. He brought it to his lips and blew gently through the piece of metal.
The beautiful sound went unheard by most people, as the magical sound could only be heard by trained ears, and the winds.
The gusts of air responded to the call, flying up and encircling Wufei. The boy's loose hair flew around his face as he listened to the winds with eyes closed.
"Aria…missing…shadows…drawing near….warn the angel…fire is the key…
The winds hissed their messages into the weather mage's ear. Wufei listened, and didn't stop listening as he began his training.
He herded the winds, a slight smile on his face as he set them on an intricate dance through the air. He glimpsed some red in the courtyard below.
Quatre's bright shirt had caught his attention.
Wufei's smile evolved into a small, though evil, grin. Winds were very naughty at times.
The raven-haired boy drew a particularly cold gust and a warm one together. They collided with a small flash of light. Wufei led them around to hit each other again before he turned his attention to the small pond in the middle of the courtyard.
Gathering up the moisture in the air, he guided it to where Quatre and Heero were training. He could see a light source coming from the two on the ground. Chuckling slightly, the weather mage gathered up the cold gust of air again and brought it down on the moisture. The invisible humidity connected with the cold wind. Wufei hurriedly gathered some more.
*~*
A second drop of water landed on Heero's arm. And then a third. The animal mage started to get suspicious at the fourth.
"Quatre…" He said, glancing around.
The blond stopped concentrating on his light spell and opened his eyes. Then he too noticed the droplets of clear liquid that were falling from the sky.
Heero's eyes landed on a certain weather mage who was standing on the roof.
A small growl emerged from Heero's throat as sheets of rain drenched the two mages.
"I'll be right back." Heero mumbled, bowing his head.
Quatre watched as Heero started to glow. He was emitting a chocolaty brown aura, and his hair was floating from the waves of energy he was producing.
Within moments, a falcon had replaced Heero Yuy's human form. The predatory bird let out a screech that pierced through the curtains of rain that were falling solely on the two mages. The winged creature took to the skies, heading straight for a weather mage that should have been paying more attention.
However, he was concentrating on the weather systems he was creating, and the falcon's screech reached his ears, but only clicked in his brain a moment too late. The bird swooped, inches away from Wufei's nose, breaking his concentration. The winds flew free, and the rain slowed, and then stopped.
Wufei blinked a couple of times, and then tried to sort out in his head what had just happened. He remembered the screech from the falcon, then he'd noticed Heero hadn't been beneath the clouds anymore, then the falcon had broken his concentration.
"Croi oi oi oi oi oik!" Nataku was laughing at him, and Heero was smirking on the other side of the roof.
Wait a minute.
Heero, on the roof? How'd he get up here…unless…the falcon…
Wufei groaned as realization dawned on him. Heero's smirk then turned into a glare.
"you disrupted our studies." He growled.
Wufei fingered the katana that was sheathed at his side. "Maybe I can make it up to you by helping to train him in battle techniques."
Heero's lips turned upwards in a slight smile. "Perhaps that will be sufficient."
Wufei's eyes narrowed. "You do realize I was the best of the dragon clan." He said.
"Hn. We'll see." Heero replied, heading towards the entrance of the castle.
It was Wufei's turn to smirk. "That we will."
When the two had collected Quatre, and made it to the training area, they turned right and entered a door just inside the empty room.
The door led to the weapons room. Shields and swords decorated the walls, each of them bearing the King's County Barton coat of arms.
Heero and Quatre each chose a sword. The three then headed back into the training area.
Wufei unsheathed his katana with a proud-filled 'swish', and took up the fighting stance.
"What say we show the beginner how this is done properly." Wufei said, his voice low and calm, yet harsh and challenging at the same time.
Heero nodded. "What say we."
The two circled a few times, then Wufei pounced. The animal mage blocked the attack easily, and the Chinese boy backed off, then lunged again. Heero dodged it this time, then fit in an offensive move of his own.
Quatre watched as the two faught on, smiling to himself that they were probably not going to get around to teaching him today.
Suddenly, he sensed someone else in the room, however, with a glance, he could easily see that they were alone. The feeling, or sensation, was familiar, as if he had felt this person before.
Quatre focused on the feeling, willing Heero and Wufei to keep fighting so that he could figure out what was going on…if only he could let them know somehow…
"Wait a minute, I'm telepathic." Quatre kicked himself mentally for forgetting this 'small' detail. But he didn't know if he could do this without messing up. He'd only sensed people's thoughts before, he'd never spoken to anyone.
"Well, It's now or never." He thought, feeling the unseen person move around the room.
Heero…
*an-… is telepathic conversation*
the animal mage didn't break his concentration on the fight as he listened carefully to what the blonde's quiet voice was telling him.
I can feel…another being in the room. Please keep fighting, and I'll figure out…who it is.
Heero glanced at the fire mage and gave a slight nod, then continued with his fight.
Quatre sighed. He'd gotten the message through. He then picked up the feeling coming from the other person.
He could feel it somewhere on the other side of the room. She was definitely a girl, but he couldn't pick out her name. IF he really concentrated, he could see a fuzzy outline of the figure flitting in and out of eyesight.
"Invisibility" Quatre mumbled. "a mental magic? Possibly. I'll have to ask Duo later…" Right now the blond had other things to think about. The girl was heading for the exit. Quatre moved to shut the door, but she saw the intent of his movement and made it out before he could execute his plan.
Quatre sighed. Heero and Wufei were both staring at him. "she was invisible." Quatre said.
"She?" Wufei asked.
The blond nodded. "I could sense it. Her name was lost to me though. And it was someone I've met before."
"Invisible?" Heero growled. "I should have been able to smell or hear her."
"Smell?" Quatre inquired, raising one eyebrow.
"Being part animal has its advantages. My five senses are higher than average." Heero explained. "How can you be sure she was invisible?"
"I couldn't see her unless I really concentrated. Even then I only saw a fuzzy outline. I am sure she was there. Her thoughts were filled with things about your fight. Your abilities, strengths, weaknesses, techniques, stuff like that. But she was also feeling worried, or kind of like she was doing something she shouldn't be doing." Quatre paused and took a breath. "Then she headed for the door. I tried to stop her, but she got away."
"If she was really invisible, we should find out who can cast the spell. That should narrow down the people it could be. Also, we should talk to Trowa. It sounds like this girl has been doing a bit of spying." Wufei suggested the idea with a hint of amusement in his voice. "We're going to catch this onna, and we're going to do it soon."
Heero nodded and headed out the door, fire and weather right behind him.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
ok, that's it for this chapter. Please let me know what you think! I'd appreciate it! Thank you!
Aria
Ok, some reviewers have mentioned 1x2. unfortunately, I don't write any nc- 17 stuff, so there won't be any lemony content in this fic. I think it should do ok without it tho. There's going to be some mushy parts tho. Hopefully you'll keep reading this anyways…
Disclaimer-I don't own it so don't sue.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter 17
Duo nodded. "Then we have just enough time to prepare ourselves. I've got some research to do on what spells this castle has. Um, Wufei?"
The Asian boy looked at Duo.
"How much do you know about fire mages?"
"I'll teach him." Heero interrupted. "I'm sure Wufei has his own training to worry about."
Duo nodded. "Ok, I'll leave him with you. I'm off." And with that, the braided boy had drifted back off into the library.
Heero stood. "It will be easier to do this outside, I think." He said. Quatre got up and followed him out with a nod.
Trowa stood as well, and left along with Wufei and his dragon. The each headed their separate ways.
Out in the courtyard, Heero was pacing circles around a certain blond who had his fists clenched in concentration, and his brow furrowed.
"You need to feel the power of the earth beneath you." Heero was instructing. "and draw it out for your use."
Quatre nodded slightly, and reached out to the raw power that surrounded him. "What do I do once I've grasped it?" he asked. "It keeps slipping away…"
Heero stopped pacing and felt Quatre's attempts to hold the power. He placed a hand on the boy's shoulder and was within him in an instant.
Quatre's eyes widened as he felt Heero inside of him. "Um…Heero?"
"it's my mental power." The animal mage said.
"What exactly is your mental power?" The blond asked hesitantly.
"I can enter people's bodies, sometimes relieve their pain, other times read their thoughts. Right now I need to show you how this is done properly."
Heero then, from within Quatre's body, reached out to the power in the earth. Using Quatre's power, he drew in the magic, and held it within his grasp easily, before muttering something. When he'd let go of the power, Quatre realized there was now a small ball of fire in his hands.
Heero backed a step away from the blond. "Did you understand how I did that?"
Quatre thought for a minute. He recalled how the animal mage had drawn the power. With his eyes closed, he had seen it as a red light. Heero had then reached out for two more strands, braiding them to hold them together. Then, he'd muttered something that Quatre hadn't been able to catch…
"What spell did you use?" the blond asked.
"It's a simple spell that helps to give light in a dark place." Heero pointed at the fireball in Quatre's hands. "That thing will shine brightly in any dark room, or at night. When combined with another spell, it can be put into a small leather bag, and it will shine whenever you take it out.
Quatre closed his fingers around the ball, then opened them again as Heero repeated the spell.
Flames of the night
Draw from within your light
Use my power, and yourselves
Ignite.
"Now you try it." Heero mentally ordered his previous spell to finish and the fireball disappeared in a wisp of smoke.
The blond closed his eyes, and reached out to the power, determined to learn all he could.
*~*
Meanwhile, Wufei had his own studying to do. He was in the highest tower of the castle, climbing out onto the roof. The winds didn't usually blow this high, so it made his job easier. He could pick and choose which ones he wanted to listen to, and creating weather was much easier without winds whispering at you.
The Chinese boy looked out over the castle walls. There was a small village to the right, just outside the main gate, and a cliff behind the castle, leading to an ocean. There were forests on either side of the ancient building, and directly in front of him, Wufei could see mountains in the distance.
Sighing, the weather mage fingered the silver whistle that hung around his neck. He brought it to his lips and blew gently through the piece of metal.
The beautiful sound went unheard by most people, as the magical sound could only be heard by trained ears, and the winds.
The gusts of air responded to the call, flying up and encircling Wufei. The boy's loose hair flew around his face as he listened to the winds with eyes closed.
"Aria…missing…shadows…drawing near….warn the angel…fire is the key…
The winds hissed their messages into the weather mage's ear. Wufei listened, and didn't stop listening as he began his training.
He herded the winds, a slight smile on his face as he set them on an intricate dance through the air. He glimpsed some red in the courtyard below.
Quatre's bright shirt had caught his attention.
Wufei's smile evolved into a small, though evil, grin. Winds were very naughty at times.
The raven-haired boy drew a particularly cold gust and a warm one together. They collided with a small flash of light. Wufei led them around to hit each other again before he turned his attention to the small pond in the middle of the courtyard.
Gathering up the moisture in the air, he guided it to where Quatre and Heero were training. He could see a light source coming from the two on the ground. Chuckling slightly, the weather mage gathered up the cold gust of air again and brought it down on the moisture. The invisible humidity connected with the cold wind. Wufei hurriedly gathered some more.
*~*
A second drop of water landed on Heero's arm. And then a third. The animal mage started to get suspicious at the fourth.
"Quatre…" He said, glancing around.
The blond stopped concentrating on his light spell and opened his eyes. Then he too noticed the droplets of clear liquid that were falling from the sky.
Heero's eyes landed on a certain weather mage who was standing on the roof.
A small growl emerged from Heero's throat as sheets of rain drenched the two mages.
"I'll be right back." Heero mumbled, bowing his head.
Quatre watched as Heero started to glow. He was emitting a chocolaty brown aura, and his hair was floating from the waves of energy he was producing.
Within moments, a falcon had replaced Heero Yuy's human form. The predatory bird let out a screech that pierced through the curtains of rain that were falling solely on the two mages. The winged creature took to the skies, heading straight for a weather mage that should have been paying more attention.
However, he was concentrating on the weather systems he was creating, and the falcon's screech reached his ears, but only clicked in his brain a moment too late. The bird swooped, inches away from Wufei's nose, breaking his concentration. The winds flew free, and the rain slowed, and then stopped.
Wufei blinked a couple of times, and then tried to sort out in his head what had just happened. He remembered the screech from the falcon, then he'd noticed Heero hadn't been beneath the clouds anymore, then the falcon had broken his concentration.
"Croi oi oi oi oi oik!" Nataku was laughing at him, and Heero was smirking on the other side of the roof.
Wait a minute.
Heero, on the roof? How'd he get up here…unless…the falcon…
Wufei groaned as realization dawned on him. Heero's smirk then turned into a glare.
"you disrupted our studies." He growled.
Wufei fingered the katana that was sheathed at his side. "Maybe I can make it up to you by helping to train him in battle techniques."
Heero's lips turned upwards in a slight smile. "Perhaps that will be sufficient."
Wufei's eyes narrowed. "You do realize I was the best of the dragon clan." He said.
"Hn. We'll see." Heero replied, heading towards the entrance of the castle.
It was Wufei's turn to smirk. "That we will."
When the two had collected Quatre, and made it to the training area, they turned right and entered a door just inside the empty room.
The door led to the weapons room. Shields and swords decorated the walls, each of them bearing the King's County Barton coat of arms.
Heero and Quatre each chose a sword. The three then headed back into the training area.
Wufei unsheathed his katana with a proud-filled 'swish', and took up the fighting stance.
"What say we show the beginner how this is done properly." Wufei said, his voice low and calm, yet harsh and challenging at the same time.
Heero nodded. "What say we."
The two circled a few times, then Wufei pounced. The animal mage blocked the attack easily, and the Chinese boy backed off, then lunged again. Heero dodged it this time, then fit in an offensive move of his own.
Quatre watched as the two faught on, smiling to himself that they were probably not going to get around to teaching him today.
Suddenly, he sensed someone else in the room, however, with a glance, he could easily see that they were alone. The feeling, or sensation, was familiar, as if he had felt this person before.
Quatre focused on the feeling, willing Heero and Wufei to keep fighting so that he could figure out what was going on…if only he could let them know somehow…
"Wait a minute, I'm telepathic." Quatre kicked himself mentally for forgetting this 'small' detail. But he didn't know if he could do this without messing up. He'd only sensed people's thoughts before, he'd never spoken to anyone.
"Well, It's now or never." He thought, feeling the unseen person move around the room.
Heero…
*an-… is telepathic conversation*
the animal mage didn't break his concentration on the fight as he listened carefully to what the blonde's quiet voice was telling him.
I can feel…another being in the room. Please keep fighting, and I'll figure out…who it is.
Heero glanced at the fire mage and gave a slight nod, then continued with his fight.
Quatre sighed. He'd gotten the message through. He then picked up the feeling coming from the other person.
He could feel it somewhere on the other side of the room. She was definitely a girl, but he couldn't pick out her name. IF he really concentrated, he could see a fuzzy outline of the figure flitting in and out of eyesight.
"Invisibility" Quatre mumbled. "a mental magic? Possibly. I'll have to ask Duo later…" Right now the blond had other things to think about. The girl was heading for the exit. Quatre moved to shut the door, but she saw the intent of his movement and made it out before he could execute his plan.
Quatre sighed. Heero and Wufei were both staring at him. "she was invisible." Quatre said.
"She?" Wufei asked.
The blond nodded. "I could sense it. Her name was lost to me though. And it was someone I've met before."
"Invisible?" Heero growled. "I should have been able to smell or hear her."
"Smell?" Quatre inquired, raising one eyebrow.
"Being part animal has its advantages. My five senses are higher than average." Heero explained. "How can you be sure she was invisible?"
"I couldn't see her unless I really concentrated. Even then I only saw a fuzzy outline. I am sure she was there. Her thoughts were filled with things about your fight. Your abilities, strengths, weaknesses, techniques, stuff like that. But she was also feeling worried, or kind of like she was doing something she shouldn't be doing." Quatre paused and took a breath. "Then she headed for the door. I tried to stop her, but she got away."
"If she was really invisible, we should find out who can cast the spell. That should narrow down the people it could be. Also, we should talk to Trowa. It sounds like this girl has been doing a bit of spying." Wufei suggested the idea with a hint of amusement in his voice. "We're going to catch this onna, and we're going to do it soon."
Heero nodded and headed out the door, fire and weather right behind him.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
ok, that's it for this chapter. Please let me know what you think! I'd appreciate it! Thank you!
Aria
