Hullo! Tadaima! Here, this is chapter four, just for you. Thanks for all
who reviewed! I didn't have to be a martyr after all! Sorry if it took me a
long while to update. There weren't enough reviews! *pouts*. To all who
doesn't know, this is YAOI, 1x2, 3x4, 5xM yada yada yada.. Enjoy.
~~~ The Glass Angel.
~~~~~@@@~~~~~
Chapter Four
The Voice
// Please.... help me.... it hurts!! It's so...... painful..... HELP!!.... can't take t-this anymore..... I know.... I know that..... someone..... can hear me....please help me.....//
The pain was consumingly.... excruciating.
He felt fire suffuse his left arm, the flames shooting down to his bone. His response was just as instantaneous. His head spun, he felt dizzy and his vision blurred.
He felt the sharp knife make another deep cut, then the voice in his mind screamed.
// AAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!!! //
And another ugly cut appeared on his left arm, adding to his agony.
Quatre woke up with a hoarse cry tearing from his throat. His heart thundered and he gasped for air, his lungs suddenly incapable of breathing.
His left arm was throbbing with intense pain, and when he looked at it, it was bleeding like crazy due to several deep cuts from the sharp knife. It made his head spin yet again...
...then suddenly, the one cut started to heal itself. Then the other open cuts closed slowly and the bleeding stooped.
In a blink of an eye, all his knife cuts were healed, only a streak of redness from the deep cuts lingered on his pale skin.
Nothing more.
No scars.
The only indication that his 'dream' wasn't just a dream is the bloodstains on his blankets and pillows.
Quatre folded his legs upward and rested his forehead on his knees. He looked sideward to his left and he lifted his left arm. He wiggled it, then closed and opened it, then he shook it. Quatre sighed.
It had happened again.
A sudden knock on his door interrupted his thoughts.
"Quatre, I know you're awake...."
The door opened, revealing a small woman who looks like the female version of Quatre. She has the same azure eyes, the same shade of blond hair, and the same features, just that hers was just more feminine than Quatre, and her hair is just longer.
Quatre smiled slightly. "Mother..."
Quatrine Winner also smiled, but hers was strained. Then she walked towards him and sat at the foot of his four poster bed.
"How are you?" Quatrine asked gently, caressing his right cheek.
Quatre shook his head. "I'm okey..."
But Quatrine also shook her head. "Quatre, I felt it, I felt your pain."
Quatre bowed his head and shifted, trying to hide the bloodstains.
But his mother was quick, and she gasped when she saw the bloodstains on his blankets and pillows. "Oh, Quatre!!" she cried, then she embraced her son.
"It happened again? But why?"
Quatre rested his head on his mother's shoulder. "Don't worry, mother, it healed immediately, and I only lost a few blood." Quatrine caressed her son's temple.
He yawned. He didn't know why but whenever his mother hold him like this, he always feel safe and... drowsy. "Mother, I had the most peculiar 'dream'... about someone... a girl... I don't know who..." he yawned again. "Her voice kinda reminded me of Dorothy... but that can't be... how can I feel her pain? Pity I didn't get to see her face.. My power doesn't work like that ..."
His mother stared at him in shock. Quatre yawned for the third time.
Quatrine looked at her son for quite a while, then sighed. "Go to sleep, my son."
Quatrine didn't have to say it anymore since Quatre's already asleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
On the other side of town, at this time of the night, a tall girl with long, blond hair and Nordic blue eyes looked at the bloody knife on her hand. Then she looked at the deep but closing wounds on her left arm.
She smiled.
Emphathy is such a wonderful power.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day, Trowa was just preparing to leave his home when his sister, Catherine, called from the den.
"Trowa! You have a phone call from Quatre's mother!"
Trowa inclined his head thoughtfully, then he proceeded to the den. He lifted the phone to his ear. "Hello?"
"Trowa," Quatrine said from the other line, "Good morning."
"Good morning, Mrs. Winner."
"I was wondering... if... could you accompany Quatre to school this morning? He refused to ride in the car," a small, but strained laugh, "and I was just wondering if... well, he told me that recently, you all had a stalker... " she left her request hanging in the air.
Trowa smiled. He felt worry even from across the line.
"Don't worry, Mrs. Winner, I'll accompany him to Sthrathmore, I'll be there shortly."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Mother shouldn't have bothered..." Quatre murmured quietly from beside Trowa. The brown-haired, unibanged youth smiled slightly, then he looked ahead.
"She's just worried." he said.
"Trowa, sorry for the bother..."
Trowa shook his head. "Aren't you the one who said we should help each other out? All for one and one for all?"
"Yeah, " he admitted, "But..."
"Then don't argue anymore and walk."
They were near their school when Trowa, out of the blue, asked, "You're bothered... What happened? I can feel your worry..."
Quatre stopped walking, staring with wide eyes at Trowa. Then he sighed. "No... it's nothing...maybe it's just the strain of the stalker..."
Trowa inclined his head in his usual way, then he nodded, accepting his explanation
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Yo! Quat! Trowa! G'morning!" Duo greeted from his desk. The grinning braided youth was sitting on his desk instead of the chair. In front of him, leaning on his back against the window, in his no doubt favorite position, was Heero. His greeting was a single nod in their direction.
In the past week when Heero first arrived in Section Psyche, the two had become the best of friends, with Duo always in the company of the brown- haired young man. Especially now, when five days ago, Heero saved his life.
"'Morning." Zechs said. Then he raised his right brow. "You're almost late. Why is that? Usually, you two are the first ones to get here."
"Were you stalked again?!" Hilde asked from her desk, disturbed.
Quatre smiled. "No... it's because of a... dream."
Duo's grinning face became serious. "Does it include me, Heero and the stalker?"
"Nah... it's about a girl...."
"Then you didn't get another ability.... Wait a sec," Duo blinked as Quatre's answer sank in. "D'you say a girl!!!???"
All looked at Quatre in surprise, even Trowa. Heero raised his left brow.
All of them knew that Quatre avoided girls like plague, for some reason they don't know, even though they swarm around him like bees around honey.
Quatre smiled again. "Knew I'd get reactions like that...I know I'm a bit strained around girls, having bad experience with them and all, except Hilde, but it's true...I dreamt about a girl, who reminded me of another girl from my past."
"How come we'd never heard of a girl from your past before?!" Duo demanded. "C'mon, Quat! Tell us!"
"What bad experience???!!!!" Hilde also demanded right after Duo.
Quatre just smiled, saying nothing.
Hilde pouted and looked at Zechs. "Is he telling the truth, that he dreamt of a girl?"
Zechs narrowed his eyes, a gleam of interest evident. "I think so. I tried to read him and I heard a woman's voice, but he closed his mind immediately, so I didn't get to hear more."
Quatre was saved from further inquisition with the arrival of Miss Une.
"Good morning, class." Then classes started.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"UNFAIR!!!!!" Duo cried, lifting his arms upwards. "How come we'd never heard of this fiancee of yours before???!!!!!" Then he shook his head, his long braid swishing from left to right. "It should've made the news! 'The Engagement of the Winner Heir and the only daughter of James Catalonia, Count of Maine', sheeeeshh! How come you didn't tell us?!!?"
"The engagement wasn't finalized. Besides, Dorothy's father didn't want the news to leak out just yet." Quatre answered, his eyes lowered. He was sitting on his chair, arranging the things inside his bag.
They were preparing to go home since they just finished their training. Duo and Hilde, both consumed by curiosity, singled Quatre out to continue their inquisition.
"Man, but what happened? You told us it was arranged two years ago!"
"AAAHHHH!!!! Don't tell us your keeping a wife behind our backs!!!!" Hilde shrieked. Then she shook her head. "No, no, no, no, no, there should have been a wedding... Could it be... you murdered her!!??? Or maybe she eloped with someone else just before your wedding, leaving you behind grieving for your lost love???!!!!"
Duo hit Hilde's head a little hard.
"OOOUUUCCCHHH!!" she held her head. "DDUUUUOOOO!!!!!"
"You've been reading too much novels, Hilde, it's bad for your health." Zechs said quietly, smirking.
"Not you too, Zechs!!!"
"Maybe she downloaded some stories from the net."
"DDDUUUUU -----"
"You're right, Hilde." Came a quiet response from Quatre.
Duo and Hilde stopped bickering.
"You're hiding a wife?" she asked excitedly.
Quatre shook his head. "No, I killed her."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After the 'revelation' about Quatre's fiancee, they all went home. As usual, Duo went with Heero, with Hilde tagging along them, and Trowa went with Quatre.
After Quatre dropped the 'bomb', everyone felt awkward to talk. Until now, silence remained between Quatre and Trowa. Trowa, concerned about his best friend, kept looking at the quiet boy beside him. "Quatre..."
"You shouldn't be worried, Trowa."
"What really happened?"
Quatre stopped walking. Trowa also stopped and faced him.
"She died in an airplane accident, it went down... crashed..." he bowed his head, "I killed her... It was all my fault..." Then he sighed. "Her body was never found."
"Let it go, Quatre. You shouldn't keep it inside..." Trowa turned about and started walking again. "It isn't like you."
Quatre blinked, then looked at his retreating friend.
"But..." Quatre started to argue.
"Let it go." Trowa was walking further and further away from him.
"Trowa..." then he frowned, confused. "Trowa! Wait!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
That night, he 'dreamt' about the 'girl' again. He woke up with a healing wound on his face.
"Who are you...?" he asked silently, touching the healed wound on his cheek.
The next day, Trowa went with him to school, again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
//Please... anyone... help me... it's so painful... I-I know... Someone can hear me... help...//
This time, it was his right arm that bled.
Quatre was writing what was being written in the white board by Miss Une when he heard the same female voice and saw a trickle of blood dropped on his notebook. His eyes dilated, as several cuts appeared on his arm yet again, now blood is soaking the black sleeve of his uniform.
He can feel the knife trailing over his excruciatingly painful arm...
...then it stabbed his right shoulder.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Josephine de Beauharnais was the first wife of Napoleon Bonaparte, they met at a party on one of the mansions of Josephine's friend. It was said that Napoleon loved her dearly, but they never had a child of their own. So Napoleon had to marry another woma- " Miss Une looked at Quatre, who was swaying slightly.
"Quatre?"
Duo looked at Quatre, and for some reason, Miss Une's power went down a little bit. That's when he smelled the scent of blood. Duo stood up abruptly.
"Quatre!!!"
All of them gasped when he fell down from his chair into the cold floor.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
She smiled, totally enjoying herself. Like what happened last night, her knife wounds started to disappear.
"That's very unhealthy, you know." said someone from behind her.
"Dorothy, are you really enjoying yourself?" said a female voice, also from behind her. "You're losing too much blood."
Dorothy smiled.
"Of course, I am. Why else would I do this?"
"Revenge?"
She laughed. "I have nothing against Quatre... it's just that... his power... it's so beautiful..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Quatre woke up to find all his classmates there, looking at him.
"What? Where am I?" Quatre murmured, slowly sitting up.
"You shouldn't!" Sally Po, their class doctor, who is also a psychic-her ability was to heal-told him.
Quatre looked around at his surroundings. "What the...? What happened?!"
"Quatre! You didn't tell us you were being attacked! 'Dream', my ass!! We were worried!!" Duo reprimanded him, shaking his index finger in front of Quatre.
"Attacked?"
Hilde nodded vigorously. "Yeah! You were bleeding! Although... why are there no knife cuts on your uniform?"
Duo smacked his hand on his forehead. "Hilde!!! Quatre wasn't directly attacked! He felt it! The pain of a person! Because of his emphatic ability, it was transferred to him!"
"Oh! Like psychosomatic?" She asked, now understanding what happened. Duo nodded sagely.
"You didn't tell me that you are a Sharing emphath." Heero said quietly from Quatre's side.
"Guess I forgot it..." Quatre murmured quietly with his head bowed.
"But how could it happen?" Zechs pondered. "How could it affect Quatre? Beside the mental wall of Miss Une, either the person was in a really excruciating pain or, it had to be someone very close to Quatre -to have a strong connection."
Trowa was looking at Quatre quietly. Quatre noticed this.
"Don't worry, Trowa, I'm alright." Quatre smiled placatingly.
Trowa stared at him for a long time, then he nodded. He looked at the others, saying, "Guys, we should leave Quatre to rest. We'll just disturb him." Then he went out of the clinic. The others shrugged.
"Hey Quat! Sleep tight!" Duo said, then he went out, too, with Heero who only nodded to him. Zechs and Hilde followed behind.
"Rest!" Sally ordered.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Soooo...What d'you guys think really happened to Quatre?" Duo asked no one in particular.
"I think it's someone close to him." Zechs answered. Hilde nodded.
"Yeah, it is someone close. I think...the person is a masochist." Trowa said. Heero agreed with him with a nod.
"Either someone is torturing a person close to Quatre, or a person close to Quatre is torturing himself, or herself." Heero said, his arms crossed.
"All for the sake of hurting Quatre..." Hilde murmured.
Trowa heard this and his face hardened.
"Can't be. If someone in the Winner family was kidnapped, I'm sure Quatre would tell us. Or it would be featured in the news." Zechs said.
"But who...?" Duo sighed. "Haahhh... I think my heart stopped for a while when I saw him lying there as if he died... I keep remembering the vision of my death..." he shuddered unconsciously.
Heero snorted. "Baka o iuna."
Duo scowled and pouted. "Hey! Ever since that incident, you have been calling me 'stupid' in Japanese!" He also snorted. "Hah! Don't you think I won't discover what 'baka' means?"
"Hn."
"There he goes again! Sheeesh!"
Then Duo became serious. "What's on your mind, Heero?" he asked, noticing the fierce expression on Heero's face.
Heero scowled, then he shook his head, as if negating something in his mind. "Can't be... his fiancee... but she's dead..."
Duo frowned. "You must be kidding. She's dead."
"There is a possibility." Trowa said suddenly from behind them. "Quatre told me her body wasn't found until now."
"WHAT???!!!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~
// help... help me... somebody... Quatre!!!!!! You can hear me... I know you can... Please... help...//
Then a cut appeared in the middle of his palm.
Quatre bolted from his lying position. The cut was slowly disappearing already, but the feeling of pain lingered.
He can't take this anymore.
Quatre stood up and went out to search for the place where the feeling of pain is coming from.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
He's trying to hold all the pain inside... Trowa realized.
"Guys.." he murmured suddenly, "I think I'll go and check on Quatre again."
Then he proceeded to the clinic.
"Hmmm. I think Trowa's a bit too worried 'bout Quatre.." Duo noted.
Zechs shrugged. "I think it's because he feels a little responsible. He was asked by Quatre's mother to look out for her son. And he also thinks Quatre's 'trying to hold all the pain inside', quote and unquote."
"You read all that in his mind?!" Duo asked, both brows rising.
Zechs snorted. "Hm. He's so worried his mind became an open book."
"Heeehhhh??!!" Duo looked up the ceiling, placing his hands on his nape and leaning on the back of his chair.
Heero was contemplating about what he just learned. He shook his head again and looked at his classmates. Hilde was worried; it shows in her face. Zechs was still thinking. And Duo... He blinked when Duo's face contorted, then he yelped.
"Damn you, Quatre!! I didn't sensed it!! Something's about to happen to him!!"
The door opened all of a sudden, then a very worried Trowa said, "Quatre's gone!!!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Quatre continued to walk. He knows where the place is.
He looked at the abandoned factory in front of him. Then he went in.
Inside, it was dim. There was nothing there, just some crates and useless machine. Light shone from some broken windows, but it was generally dark. When he got inside, the door closed suddenly behind him.
Then a figure emerged from the shadows. Quatre's eyes widened when he realized who it was.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The five students were running as fast as they can. Since they don't know where Quatre went, they relied on Trowa's and Duo's spider senses.
"Duo!! What did you see in your vision??!!" Demanded the frantic Trowa.
"Quatre's gonna be stabbed! AGAIN!!!!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Dorothy!" Quatre can't believe this. It was his dead fiancee. The girl with long, blond hair and Nordic blue eyes smiled. "It's been a long time, Quatre."
"But... This can't be! You're..."
"Dead?" Dorothy laughed. "Obviously, I'm not."
"But...how?"
Dorothy inclined her head to one side. "During that fateful flight in papa's airplane-it really went down, you saw what happened to it-but that day, I discovered something about myself. I can astral project." She lifted her hand and it shimmered, then a small dagger appeared suddenly.
"Astral projection?!"
Dorothy smiled and nodded.
Quatre shook his head. "But why didn't you tell us?! Or tell your family?! They were worried! They mourned you for a long time. I mourned you for a long time!" Quatre bowed his head. "You were my best friend! My fiancee!"
Dorothy inclined her head. Then she closed her eyes. "Yes, I regretted that, not telling you or my family about me being alive...But something had happened." She smiled. "You'll know it soon."
"What?! And why did you come back!? Where is that bastard who tortured you?"
"Tortured me? Quatre, nobody tortured me. I tortured myself! I wanted to feel your power! It was...wonderful!" then she turned serious. "As to my reason why I came back...I came to warn you...The attacks will continue...you and your friends might want to prepare for us...we do not want to attack you, being defenseless..."
"We?!"
"Hm-hmm!"
"Who are 'we'?"
Before Dorothy could answer, someone appeared behind her. The person-whom he can't see-whispered something to her, then Dorothy smiled again. "It seems you're friends are coming. Guess I have to do this now."
She raised her dagger, when a sudden blast opened the large door of the factory, jerking her backwards. It was his classmates. Heero's hand was raised-obviously he just blasted the door open with his Telekinesis-with Trowa beside him and the others behind them.
"Hmmmm... Oh well, reinforcements are here." She bowed, "Greetings, Section Psyche, I'm Dorothy Catalonia, Quatre's quite alive fiancee." She flashed another smile before stabbing herself, this time in the stomach.
Quatre jerked in pain just as Dorothy did. But Dorothy had the gall to retain her smile. "Till we meet again, Quatre." The black-haired young man appeared from behind her and caught her just as she became unconscious. The youth looked at them, still hidden behind the shadows.
Duo felt a pricking sensation at the back of his neck, then realization bloomed.
"You!" Duo snarled. Heero scowled at the person. Duo, anger consuming him, charged forward, intent on attacking the person.
But Dorothy and her 'friend' disappeared. Trowa moved towards Quatre, whose stomach was bleeding profusely.
"Heero! It was the stalker!!!" Duo snarled yet again, irrational even though his enemy had gone already. He was only retrained by Heero's steel- like grip on his arm.
"Calm down."
"BUT...!"
"Calm down, Duo, first things first, and that is Quatre." Heero said, his face a cold mask. Duo jaw ticked, indicating his anger, but logic told him it would be useless. He slowly opened his tightly clenched fists, and sighed. Then he spun towards their bleeding comrade. "Hey! You okey, Quat?!"
Heero smiled briefly at his best friend, then he went to help his classmate.
"How is he?" Hilde asked Trowa, looking worriedly at the blond Arabian.
"The wound is healing." Trowa confirmed. "But he loss too much blood..."
He looked at his unconscious friend, his own heart twisting with worry. "Quatre....hang on."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Training that day was cancelled. They were all watching over Quatre, but the blond boy, embarrassed by their attention and fussing, told them to go home since it's already dismissal, and said he can manage on his own. He almost succeeded in convincing all of them, except for one person.
Trowa.
He sighed as the taller boy settled on the chair beside him. "Must you be persistent? I am alright..."
"Are you? Maybe physically you've survived but emotionally..." He dipped his head, his long bangs hiding his face, " You just saw your fiancee hours ago. Do you still feel guilty?" Do you still love her? He wanted to know.
Quatre looked at him in reluctantly. "Yeah, in a way, I felt guilty, because she was supposed to meet me in London that day when the plane crashed." He admitted to his best friend.
"You shouldn't. It isn't your fault the plane went down." came the quiet reply.
Quatre looked at him for a long time, and oddly, felt comforted by the Trowa's expressionless face. Then he started to laugh. Trowa blinked, confused. Then his eyes widened in surprise when Quatre leaned his head on Trowa's shoulder.
"Yeah, you're right! I've been blaming myself for two years, and it had been a burden..." He sighed. "My connection to her is broken now. I don't feel guilty anymore." Then he looked up and smiled at Trowa, a full, beautiful smile.
Like that of an angel.
"Thanks, Trowa!!"
Trowa stared, he can't help it, but other urges seized him.
Quatre was still smiling when Trowa's lips went down and covered his own. Quatre blinked, stunned, opening his mouth unconsciously, but latter just deepened the kiss.
When the kiss ended-with Quatre blinking again-Trowa smiled and brushed the back of his hand on Quatre's cheek.
"I've always wanted to do that." he said gently. "What did you want to say?"
Quatre blinked yet again, as if he just awakened from a long sleep. Then he realized what just happened, and that Trowa just asked a question.
"D-Dorothy... s-she's not my fiancee... n-not anymore..." Quatre stuttered, blushing intensely.
Trowa nodded, the lips hidden on one side of his face curling into a small smile.
~~~~~@@@~~~~~
Glass Angel: Awwww... ain't that sweet? (shakes her head) Opps... that was my other, more cynical self typing. Hehe...
Also, Gomen to all Quatre's fans!!! I didn't mean to hurt Quatre... Would it be placating to tell you that I was wincing when I typed this story? And another FYI, there are two types of emphath, Sharing and Healing. Both can feel the pain of a person, sometimes even that of dead person, (creepy?) but the Sharing emphath absorbs the wound of the person, or the corpse, and heals himself. The Healing emphath just heals the person. ( Like Sally. )
Are you all enjoying it so far? Or is it getting creepier and creepier? Please tell me all your suggestions and opinions, I really need them!
LOVE YAOI!!! Trowa and Quatre are so cute together!!! *yawns* I'm sleepy, Oyasumi, minna. Ja ne.
~~~ The Glass Angel.
~~~~~@@@~~~~~
Chapter Four
The Voice
// Please.... help me.... it hurts!! It's so...... painful..... HELP!!.... can't take t-this anymore..... I know.... I know that..... someone..... can hear me....please help me.....//
The pain was consumingly.... excruciating.
He felt fire suffuse his left arm, the flames shooting down to his bone. His response was just as instantaneous. His head spun, he felt dizzy and his vision blurred.
He felt the sharp knife make another deep cut, then the voice in his mind screamed.
// AAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!!! //
And another ugly cut appeared on his left arm, adding to his agony.
Quatre woke up with a hoarse cry tearing from his throat. His heart thundered and he gasped for air, his lungs suddenly incapable of breathing.
His left arm was throbbing with intense pain, and when he looked at it, it was bleeding like crazy due to several deep cuts from the sharp knife. It made his head spin yet again...
...then suddenly, the one cut started to heal itself. Then the other open cuts closed slowly and the bleeding stooped.
In a blink of an eye, all his knife cuts were healed, only a streak of redness from the deep cuts lingered on his pale skin.
Nothing more.
No scars.
The only indication that his 'dream' wasn't just a dream is the bloodstains on his blankets and pillows.
Quatre folded his legs upward and rested his forehead on his knees. He looked sideward to his left and he lifted his left arm. He wiggled it, then closed and opened it, then he shook it. Quatre sighed.
It had happened again.
A sudden knock on his door interrupted his thoughts.
"Quatre, I know you're awake...."
The door opened, revealing a small woman who looks like the female version of Quatre. She has the same azure eyes, the same shade of blond hair, and the same features, just that hers was just more feminine than Quatre, and her hair is just longer.
Quatre smiled slightly. "Mother..."
Quatrine Winner also smiled, but hers was strained. Then she walked towards him and sat at the foot of his four poster bed.
"How are you?" Quatrine asked gently, caressing his right cheek.
Quatre shook his head. "I'm okey..."
But Quatrine also shook her head. "Quatre, I felt it, I felt your pain."
Quatre bowed his head and shifted, trying to hide the bloodstains.
But his mother was quick, and she gasped when she saw the bloodstains on his blankets and pillows. "Oh, Quatre!!" she cried, then she embraced her son.
"It happened again? But why?"
Quatre rested his head on his mother's shoulder. "Don't worry, mother, it healed immediately, and I only lost a few blood." Quatrine caressed her son's temple.
He yawned. He didn't know why but whenever his mother hold him like this, he always feel safe and... drowsy. "Mother, I had the most peculiar 'dream'... about someone... a girl... I don't know who..." he yawned again. "Her voice kinda reminded me of Dorothy... but that can't be... how can I feel her pain? Pity I didn't get to see her face.. My power doesn't work like that ..."
His mother stared at him in shock. Quatre yawned for the third time.
Quatrine looked at her son for quite a while, then sighed. "Go to sleep, my son."
Quatrine didn't have to say it anymore since Quatre's already asleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
On the other side of town, at this time of the night, a tall girl with long, blond hair and Nordic blue eyes looked at the bloody knife on her hand. Then she looked at the deep but closing wounds on her left arm.
She smiled.
Emphathy is such a wonderful power.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day, Trowa was just preparing to leave his home when his sister, Catherine, called from the den.
"Trowa! You have a phone call from Quatre's mother!"
Trowa inclined his head thoughtfully, then he proceeded to the den. He lifted the phone to his ear. "Hello?"
"Trowa," Quatrine said from the other line, "Good morning."
"Good morning, Mrs. Winner."
"I was wondering... if... could you accompany Quatre to school this morning? He refused to ride in the car," a small, but strained laugh, "and I was just wondering if... well, he told me that recently, you all had a stalker... " she left her request hanging in the air.
Trowa smiled. He felt worry even from across the line.
"Don't worry, Mrs. Winner, I'll accompany him to Sthrathmore, I'll be there shortly."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Mother shouldn't have bothered..." Quatre murmured quietly from beside Trowa. The brown-haired, unibanged youth smiled slightly, then he looked ahead.
"She's just worried." he said.
"Trowa, sorry for the bother..."
Trowa shook his head. "Aren't you the one who said we should help each other out? All for one and one for all?"
"Yeah, " he admitted, "But..."
"Then don't argue anymore and walk."
They were near their school when Trowa, out of the blue, asked, "You're bothered... What happened? I can feel your worry..."
Quatre stopped walking, staring with wide eyes at Trowa. Then he sighed. "No... it's nothing...maybe it's just the strain of the stalker..."
Trowa inclined his head in his usual way, then he nodded, accepting his explanation
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Yo! Quat! Trowa! G'morning!" Duo greeted from his desk. The grinning braided youth was sitting on his desk instead of the chair. In front of him, leaning on his back against the window, in his no doubt favorite position, was Heero. His greeting was a single nod in their direction.
In the past week when Heero first arrived in Section Psyche, the two had become the best of friends, with Duo always in the company of the brown- haired young man. Especially now, when five days ago, Heero saved his life.
"'Morning." Zechs said. Then he raised his right brow. "You're almost late. Why is that? Usually, you two are the first ones to get here."
"Were you stalked again?!" Hilde asked from her desk, disturbed.
Quatre smiled. "No... it's because of a... dream."
Duo's grinning face became serious. "Does it include me, Heero and the stalker?"
"Nah... it's about a girl...."
"Then you didn't get another ability.... Wait a sec," Duo blinked as Quatre's answer sank in. "D'you say a girl!!!???"
All looked at Quatre in surprise, even Trowa. Heero raised his left brow.
All of them knew that Quatre avoided girls like plague, for some reason they don't know, even though they swarm around him like bees around honey.
Quatre smiled again. "Knew I'd get reactions like that...I know I'm a bit strained around girls, having bad experience with them and all, except Hilde, but it's true...I dreamt about a girl, who reminded me of another girl from my past."
"How come we'd never heard of a girl from your past before?!" Duo demanded. "C'mon, Quat! Tell us!"
"What bad experience???!!!!" Hilde also demanded right after Duo.
Quatre just smiled, saying nothing.
Hilde pouted and looked at Zechs. "Is he telling the truth, that he dreamt of a girl?"
Zechs narrowed his eyes, a gleam of interest evident. "I think so. I tried to read him and I heard a woman's voice, but he closed his mind immediately, so I didn't get to hear more."
Quatre was saved from further inquisition with the arrival of Miss Une.
"Good morning, class." Then classes started.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"UNFAIR!!!!!" Duo cried, lifting his arms upwards. "How come we'd never heard of this fiancee of yours before???!!!!!" Then he shook his head, his long braid swishing from left to right. "It should've made the news! 'The Engagement of the Winner Heir and the only daughter of James Catalonia, Count of Maine', sheeeeshh! How come you didn't tell us?!!?"
"The engagement wasn't finalized. Besides, Dorothy's father didn't want the news to leak out just yet." Quatre answered, his eyes lowered. He was sitting on his chair, arranging the things inside his bag.
They were preparing to go home since they just finished their training. Duo and Hilde, both consumed by curiosity, singled Quatre out to continue their inquisition.
"Man, but what happened? You told us it was arranged two years ago!"
"AAAHHHH!!!! Don't tell us your keeping a wife behind our backs!!!!" Hilde shrieked. Then she shook her head. "No, no, no, no, no, there should have been a wedding... Could it be... you murdered her!!??? Or maybe she eloped with someone else just before your wedding, leaving you behind grieving for your lost love???!!!!"
Duo hit Hilde's head a little hard.
"OOOUUUCCCHHH!!" she held her head. "DDUUUUOOOO!!!!!"
"You've been reading too much novels, Hilde, it's bad for your health." Zechs said quietly, smirking.
"Not you too, Zechs!!!"
"Maybe she downloaded some stories from the net."
"DDDUUUUU -----"
"You're right, Hilde." Came a quiet response from Quatre.
Duo and Hilde stopped bickering.
"You're hiding a wife?" she asked excitedly.
Quatre shook his head. "No, I killed her."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After the 'revelation' about Quatre's fiancee, they all went home. As usual, Duo went with Heero, with Hilde tagging along them, and Trowa went with Quatre.
After Quatre dropped the 'bomb', everyone felt awkward to talk. Until now, silence remained between Quatre and Trowa. Trowa, concerned about his best friend, kept looking at the quiet boy beside him. "Quatre..."
"You shouldn't be worried, Trowa."
"What really happened?"
Quatre stopped walking. Trowa also stopped and faced him.
"She died in an airplane accident, it went down... crashed..." he bowed his head, "I killed her... It was all my fault..." Then he sighed. "Her body was never found."
"Let it go, Quatre. You shouldn't keep it inside..." Trowa turned about and started walking again. "It isn't like you."
Quatre blinked, then looked at his retreating friend.
"But..." Quatre started to argue.
"Let it go." Trowa was walking further and further away from him.
"Trowa..." then he frowned, confused. "Trowa! Wait!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
That night, he 'dreamt' about the 'girl' again. He woke up with a healing wound on his face.
"Who are you...?" he asked silently, touching the healed wound on his cheek.
The next day, Trowa went with him to school, again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
//Please... anyone... help me... it's so painful... I-I know... Someone can hear me... help...//
This time, it was his right arm that bled.
Quatre was writing what was being written in the white board by Miss Une when he heard the same female voice and saw a trickle of blood dropped on his notebook. His eyes dilated, as several cuts appeared on his arm yet again, now blood is soaking the black sleeve of his uniform.
He can feel the knife trailing over his excruciatingly painful arm...
...then it stabbed his right shoulder.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Josephine de Beauharnais was the first wife of Napoleon Bonaparte, they met at a party on one of the mansions of Josephine's friend. It was said that Napoleon loved her dearly, but they never had a child of their own. So Napoleon had to marry another woma- " Miss Une looked at Quatre, who was swaying slightly.
"Quatre?"
Duo looked at Quatre, and for some reason, Miss Une's power went down a little bit. That's when he smelled the scent of blood. Duo stood up abruptly.
"Quatre!!!"
All of them gasped when he fell down from his chair into the cold floor.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
She smiled, totally enjoying herself. Like what happened last night, her knife wounds started to disappear.
"That's very unhealthy, you know." said someone from behind her.
"Dorothy, are you really enjoying yourself?" said a female voice, also from behind her. "You're losing too much blood."
Dorothy smiled.
"Of course, I am. Why else would I do this?"
"Revenge?"
She laughed. "I have nothing against Quatre... it's just that... his power... it's so beautiful..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Quatre woke up to find all his classmates there, looking at him.
"What? Where am I?" Quatre murmured, slowly sitting up.
"You shouldn't!" Sally Po, their class doctor, who is also a psychic-her ability was to heal-told him.
Quatre looked around at his surroundings. "What the...? What happened?!"
"Quatre! You didn't tell us you were being attacked! 'Dream', my ass!! We were worried!!" Duo reprimanded him, shaking his index finger in front of Quatre.
"Attacked?"
Hilde nodded vigorously. "Yeah! You were bleeding! Although... why are there no knife cuts on your uniform?"
Duo smacked his hand on his forehead. "Hilde!!! Quatre wasn't directly attacked! He felt it! The pain of a person! Because of his emphatic ability, it was transferred to him!"
"Oh! Like psychosomatic?" She asked, now understanding what happened. Duo nodded sagely.
"You didn't tell me that you are a Sharing emphath." Heero said quietly from Quatre's side.
"Guess I forgot it..." Quatre murmured quietly with his head bowed.
"But how could it happen?" Zechs pondered. "How could it affect Quatre? Beside the mental wall of Miss Une, either the person was in a really excruciating pain or, it had to be someone very close to Quatre -to have a strong connection."
Trowa was looking at Quatre quietly. Quatre noticed this.
"Don't worry, Trowa, I'm alright." Quatre smiled placatingly.
Trowa stared at him for a long time, then he nodded. He looked at the others, saying, "Guys, we should leave Quatre to rest. We'll just disturb him." Then he went out of the clinic. The others shrugged.
"Hey Quat! Sleep tight!" Duo said, then he went out, too, with Heero who only nodded to him. Zechs and Hilde followed behind.
"Rest!" Sally ordered.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Soooo...What d'you guys think really happened to Quatre?" Duo asked no one in particular.
"I think it's someone close to him." Zechs answered. Hilde nodded.
"Yeah, it is someone close. I think...the person is a masochist." Trowa said. Heero agreed with him with a nod.
"Either someone is torturing a person close to Quatre, or a person close to Quatre is torturing himself, or herself." Heero said, his arms crossed.
"All for the sake of hurting Quatre..." Hilde murmured.
Trowa heard this and his face hardened.
"Can't be. If someone in the Winner family was kidnapped, I'm sure Quatre would tell us. Or it would be featured in the news." Zechs said.
"But who...?" Duo sighed. "Haahhh... I think my heart stopped for a while when I saw him lying there as if he died... I keep remembering the vision of my death..." he shuddered unconsciously.
Heero snorted. "Baka o iuna."
Duo scowled and pouted. "Hey! Ever since that incident, you have been calling me 'stupid' in Japanese!" He also snorted. "Hah! Don't you think I won't discover what 'baka' means?"
"Hn."
"There he goes again! Sheeesh!"
Then Duo became serious. "What's on your mind, Heero?" he asked, noticing the fierce expression on Heero's face.
Heero scowled, then he shook his head, as if negating something in his mind. "Can't be... his fiancee... but she's dead..."
Duo frowned. "You must be kidding. She's dead."
"There is a possibility." Trowa said suddenly from behind them. "Quatre told me her body wasn't found until now."
"WHAT???!!!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~
// help... help me... somebody... Quatre!!!!!! You can hear me... I know you can... Please... help...//
Then a cut appeared in the middle of his palm.
Quatre bolted from his lying position. The cut was slowly disappearing already, but the feeling of pain lingered.
He can't take this anymore.
Quatre stood up and went out to search for the place where the feeling of pain is coming from.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
He's trying to hold all the pain inside... Trowa realized.
"Guys.." he murmured suddenly, "I think I'll go and check on Quatre again."
Then he proceeded to the clinic.
"Hmmm. I think Trowa's a bit too worried 'bout Quatre.." Duo noted.
Zechs shrugged. "I think it's because he feels a little responsible. He was asked by Quatre's mother to look out for her son. And he also thinks Quatre's 'trying to hold all the pain inside', quote and unquote."
"You read all that in his mind?!" Duo asked, both brows rising.
Zechs snorted. "Hm. He's so worried his mind became an open book."
"Heeehhhh??!!" Duo looked up the ceiling, placing his hands on his nape and leaning on the back of his chair.
Heero was contemplating about what he just learned. He shook his head again and looked at his classmates. Hilde was worried; it shows in her face. Zechs was still thinking. And Duo... He blinked when Duo's face contorted, then he yelped.
"Damn you, Quatre!! I didn't sensed it!! Something's about to happen to him!!"
The door opened all of a sudden, then a very worried Trowa said, "Quatre's gone!!!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Quatre continued to walk. He knows where the place is.
He looked at the abandoned factory in front of him. Then he went in.
Inside, it was dim. There was nothing there, just some crates and useless machine. Light shone from some broken windows, but it was generally dark. When he got inside, the door closed suddenly behind him.
Then a figure emerged from the shadows. Quatre's eyes widened when he realized who it was.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The five students were running as fast as they can. Since they don't know where Quatre went, they relied on Trowa's and Duo's spider senses.
"Duo!! What did you see in your vision??!!" Demanded the frantic Trowa.
"Quatre's gonna be stabbed! AGAIN!!!!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Dorothy!" Quatre can't believe this. It was his dead fiancee. The girl with long, blond hair and Nordic blue eyes smiled. "It's been a long time, Quatre."
"But... This can't be! You're..."
"Dead?" Dorothy laughed. "Obviously, I'm not."
"But...how?"
Dorothy inclined her head to one side. "During that fateful flight in papa's airplane-it really went down, you saw what happened to it-but that day, I discovered something about myself. I can astral project." She lifted her hand and it shimmered, then a small dagger appeared suddenly.
"Astral projection?!"
Dorothy smiled and nodded.
Quatre shook his head. "But why didn't you tell us?! Or tell your family?! They were worried! They mourned you for a long time. I mourned you for a long time!" Quatre bowed his head. "You were my best friend! My fiancee!"
Dorothy inclined her head. Then she closed her eyes. "Yes, I regretted that, not telling you or my family about me being alive...But something had happened." She smiled. "You'll know it soon."
"What?! And why did you come back!? Where is that bastard who tortured you?"
"Tortured me? Quatre, nobody tortured me. I tortured myself! I wanted to feel your power! It was...wonderful!" then she turned serious. "As to my reason why I came back...I came to warn you...The attacks will continue...you and your friends might want to prepare for us...we do not want to attack you, being defenseless..."
"We?!"
"Hm-hmm!"
"Who are 'we'?"
Before Dorothy could answer, someone appeared behind her. The person-whom he can't see-whispered something to her, then Dorothy smiled again. "It seems you're friends are coming. Guess I have to do this now."
She raised her dagger, when a sudden blast opened the large door of the factory, jerking her backwards. It was his classmates. Heero's hand was raised-obviously he just blasted the door open with his Telekinesis-with Trowa beside him and the others behind them.
"Hmmmm... Oh well, reinforcements are here." She bowed, "Greetings, Section Psyche, I'm Dorothy Catalonia, Quatre's quite alive fiancee." She flashed another smile before stabbing herself, this time in the stomach.
Quatre jerked in pain just as Dorothy did. But Dorothy had the gall to retain her smile. "Till we meet again, Quatre." The black-haired young man appeared from behind her and caught her just as she became unconscious. The youth looked at them, still hidden behind the shadows.
Duo felt a pricking sensation at the back of his neck, then realization bloomed.
"You!" Duo snarled. Heero scowled at the person. Duo, anger consuming him, charged forward, intent on attacking the person.
But Dorothy and her 'friend' disappeared. Trowa moved towards Quatre, whose stomach was bleeding profusely.
"Heero! It was the stalker!!!" Duo snarled yet again, irrational even though his enemy had gone already. He was only retrained by Heero's steel- like grip on his arm.
"Calm down."
"BUT...!"
"Calm down, Duo, first things first, and that is Quatre." Heero said, his face a cold mask. Duo jaw ticked, indicating his anger, but logic told him it would be useless. He slowly opened his tightly clenched fists, and sighed. Then he spun towards their bleeding comrade. "Hey! You okey, Quat?!"
Heero smiled briefly at his best friend, then he went to help his classmate.
"How is he?" Hilde asked Trowa, looking worriedly at the blond Arabian.
"The wound is healing." Trowa confirmed. "But he loss too much blood..."
He looked at his unconscious friend, his own heart twisting with worry. "Quatre....hang on."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Training that day was cancelled. They were all watching over Quatre, but the blond boy, embarrassed by their attention and fussing, told them to go home since it's already dismissal, and said he can manage on his own. He almost succeeded in convincing all of them, except for one person.
Trowa.
He sighed as the taller boy settled on the chair beside him. "Must you be persistent? I am alright..."
"Are you? Maybe physically you've survived but emotionally..." He dipped his head, his long bangs hiding his face, " You just saw your fiancee hours ago. Do you still feel guilty?" Do you still love her? He wanted to know.
Quatre looked at him in reluctantly. "Yeah, in a way, I felt guilty, because she was supposed to meet me in London that day when the plane crashed." He admitted to his best friend.
"You shouldn't. It isn't your fault the plane went down." came the quiet reply.
Quatre looked at him for a long time, and oddly, felt comforted by the Trowa's expressionless face. Then he started to laugh. Trowa blinked, confused. Then his eyes widened in surprise when Quatre leaned his head on Trowa's shoulder.
"Yeah, you're right! I've been blaming myself for two years, and it had been a burden..." He sighed. "My connection to her is broken now. I don't feel guilty anymore." Then he looked up and smiled at Trowa, a full, beautiful smile.
Like that of an angel.
"Thanks, Trowa!!"
Trowa stared, he can't help it, but other urges seized him.
Quatre was still smiling when Trowa's lips went down and covered his own. Quatre blinked, stunned, opening his mouth unconsciously, but latter just deepened the kiss.
When the kiss ended-with Quatre blinking again-Trowa smiled and brushed the back of his hand on Quatre's cheek.
"I've always wanted to do that." he said gently. "What did you want to say?"
Quatre blinked yet again, as if he just awakened from a long sleep. Then he realized what just happened, and that Trowa just asked a question.
"D-Dorothy... s-she's not my fiancee... n-not anymore..." Quatre stuttered, blushing intensely.
Trowa nodded, the lips hidden on one side of his face curling into a small smile.
~~~~~@@@~~~~~
Glass Angel: Awwww... ain't that sweet? (shakes her head) Opps... that was my other, more cynical self typing. Hehe...
Also, Gomen to all Quatre's fans!!! I didn't mean to hurt Quatre... Would it be placating to tell you that I was wincing when I typed this story? And another FYI, there are two types of emphath, Sharing and Healing. Both can feel the pain of a person, sometimes even that of dead person, (creepy?) but the Sharing emphath absorbs the wound of the person, or the corpse, and heals himself. The Healing emphath just heals the person. ( Like Sally. )
Are you all enjoying it so far? Or is it getting creepier and creepier? Please tell me all your suggestions and opinions, I really need them!
LOVE YAOI!!! Trowa and Quatre are so cute together!!! *yawns* I'm sleepy, Oyasumi, minna. Ja ne.