Disclosure: I don't own them; I'll put them back just like I found them! Some of the terminology used in this fic is from the anime series Outlaw Star; unfortunately for me I don't own that either!
Warnings: PG-13, 3x4, 1+2+5, AU, Angst, Adventure, Some Sap, Lime.
A/N: Thanks again for all the nice feedback everyone! I really appreciate it! I hope you enjoy the next chapter.
Die Spitze: Trowa's power doesn't so much come for his social standing, but from influences he will gain as the story progresses. I can't be more specific without giving away some of the storyline…sorry! Hopefully things will become clearer as the story progresses.
As always a great big thank you to Anne for beta reading this for me!!!
HOSHI KAWAKIRI
Part Five
'…We could try outrunning them.' Duo said dubiously. 'Or just take them on in direct combat…I'm sure Sandrock would cope.' Trowa followed the pirate's gaze as it flicked towards Quatre.
'Then again perhaps we should have Wufei and Heero dress in bikinis and do the hula on the ship's hull? Would that be a good idea, Quatre?' Duo asked, once again receiving no response. He sighed and raised his voice, 'Oi, Quatre!'
The blond jumped slightly and turned to face the braided pirate. 'Sorry Duo, what?'
'I said, do you think that would be a good idea?' Duo repeated.
'Hmmm, yes. I think so…' Quatre said, his expression once again distant.
Duo smirked. 'Well you heard him boys! Hop to it.'
Wufei muttered something unsavoury under his breath and moved to stand next to the blond captain. He passed his hand in front of Quatre's face and his eyes narrowed as the blond gave no reaction to the movement. 'Quatre?' he questioned softly, his expression becoming more concerned as once again there was no answer.
'What's going on?' Trowa asked as he moved towards where Quatre and Wufei stood.
'He's going into a trance,' Wufei responded as he took hold of Quatre's arm. 'Trowa, would you please assist me?' the pirate asked motioning for Trowa to take Quatre's other arm.
Nodding, the brunet moved next to Quatre and caught his arm, sliding his own arm around the blond's waist as Quatre leant against him. Something felt very right with Quatre leaning against him like that Trowa thought, and he had to forcefully shove aside the confusing emotions he felt rising as he held the pirate captain against him.
'Somehow I always miss the signs,' Duo said uneasily as he watched Trowa and Wufei help Quatre across the room.
Heero moved over to the other pirate and placed an arm around his shoulders. 'It's not your fault,' he said quietly. 'I don't think even Quatre knows when it's going to happen.'
Duo sighed. 'Well, we'll hold the fort here while you get Quatre comfortable,' he said to Wufei and Trowa.
Wufei nodded in agreement as he and Trowa led Quatre through the door from the bridge. 'I need to get back to the bridge as soon as possible,' Wufei said as they walked down the dimly lit corridor. 'I am going to leave Quatre in your care; I believe I can trust you to do this.'
Trowa inclined his head. 'I'll do what I can. I know that he isn't my enemy, I won't do anything to hurt him.'
'You won't need to do anything except stay calm and let him feel that you are there,' Wufei said. Catching the confused look that crossed the Sasuine prince's face he continued. 'Quatre does not yet have full control of his powers. Sometimes he has difficulty breaking the visions; having someone there he can anchor himself to makes this easier for him.'
Trowa didn't really understand but he nodded anyway as they passed through another door into what he guessed must be Quatre's quarters. He helped Wufei to get the blond onto the bed and then hovered beside it, completely at a loss as to what he should do.
'Sit next to him,' Wufei instructed and Trowa complied, sitting down on the edge of the bed. 'Good, now just keep your thoughts calm and grounded. Sometimes it helps to just catalogue what you see around you.'
Trowa frowned. 'I don't understand.'
'It helps to keep your mind clear and gives Quatre a sense of where he should be returning to. Just try and build up a picture of the room in your mind. Also, a physical connection helps, so try to keep skin to skin contact with him.' Wufei said.
Nodding, Trowa slipped his hand into Quatre's. 'Ok. What if something happens?' he asked.
'Don't worry, Sandrock will be monitoring him. If there is anything to worry about we'll know about it.' Wufei replied.
Trowa looked down at the blond pirate beside him. Quatre's eyes were open, but they were wide and unseeing. Occasionally he would mutter something under his breath, but it was in a language Trowa couldn't understand, so it gave the brunet no indication of what Quatre was seeing.
Moving back towards the exit, Wufei stopped in the doorway and looked back into the room. 'Do you think you can handle it?' he asked.
Trowa nodded. 'We'll be fine,' he said. 'You don't have to worry.'
Wufei sighed and Trowa saw a great weariness in his eyes that he hadn't noticed before. 'I always worry…' the pirate said softly, before glancing once more at Quatre and then exiting the room.
Touched by the pirate's obvious devotion to his captain, Trowa looked down at the blond on the bed beside him. Leaning over he gently brushed the stray hairs from Quatre's face. 'Do you know how much they care about you?' he wondered out loud. 'No less then you care about them I suppose,' he said, and he wondered at the flash of jealousy that surged through him.
It wasn't that surprising, he decided. He had very few real friends, and he had never felt the depth of camaraderie the pirate crew enjoyed. He saw very little of his own family. His mother was dead, and his father was always too busy to waste time in taking care of the younger of his two children.
Trowa's sister was being trained in the politics and responsibilities needed for ruling Sasuine after their father died so, although she saw as much of her brother as she could, it was never for very long. Used to living a privileged, but lonely existence, Trowa envied the deep connection that the pirates shared.
But this self-pitying wasn't helping, Trowa told himself angrily. Wufei had told him to keep his mind calm and focused, reminiscing on what he did or did not have was not going to be of any help to Quatre.
Taking a deep breath, Trowa began to look around at his surroundings. He felt a bit silly as he began to catalogue his way around the small room. 'OK,' he said softly to himself. 'There's a small table next to the bed, above it is an old star chart…'
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Trowa sighed as he began to run through the contents of the room for the fourth time. He must have been sitting next to the blond for nearly an hour and bar the occasional murmuring, Quatre had made no sound and had not moved an inch since they had entered the room. Trowa was now listing the objects in his head, pretty much from memory, but he was beginning to find it increasingly difficult to concentrate.
The silence that pervaded through the room was eerie, and Trowa discovered a newfound respect for Wufei. The pirate must have an extremely disciplined mind to be able to do this for any real length of time and Trowa regretted not asking him how long Quatre's trances usually lasted for.
He didn't have to wonder for long though. Trowa was just settling in to once again recounting the furniture in the room, when he felt Quatre tense beside him. Glancing down Trowa watched with growing concern as the blond began to shudder violently. 'Quatre?' he asked, barely managing to mask the panic he could feel building in him. The blond didn't answer. Sweat was forming across his forehead and his breathing was coming in quick, short gasps.
'Sandrock!' Trowa called out.
/Yes, Trowa?/ the ship replied in its cool, mechanical voice.
'What's happening to Quatre? Is he alright?' Trowa asked.
The ship was silent for a moment before replying. /Vital signs are stable. Pulse and respiration are slightly increased, but within acceptable parameters. Do you wish for a more detailed analysis?/
'No. Is this normal?' Trowa said.
/I do not understand your question, Trowa. Please clarify./
'Does this usually happen?' Trowa swept his hand over Quatre's shivering figure, his voice tight.
/Not always…/
Trowa sighed in exasperation. 'But this is nothing to worry about, right?'
/Correct. Breaking a vision can be difficult without proper training. Quatre sometimes has trouble with it. Would you like me to call one of the others?/ The ship asked.
'No,' Trowa said quickly. 'I can handle it.'
/Acknowledged./ The ship replied.
Trowa turned his attention back to Quatre and took hold of the blond's other hand, forcing himself to keep his thoughts on the room around him. But it was becoming increasingly demanding as he felt the other man trembling beneath him. Trowa could feel his concentration slipping, and he desperately tried to hang on to his calm demeanour.
He felt utterly powerless, lost in a world that he had no idea how to live in. Everything had happened so fast. He had been kidnapped from his people, had watched them die at the hands of men who were now trying to help him, yet they had also been captured.
Trowa had no idea where he was going, what the pirates wanted with him, who he could trust… He was lost and afraid and he could see no way he would come out of this situation alive.
'Trowa?' The soft voice caused the brunet to jump and pull his hands free of Quatre's. The blond was studying him with an expression of sympathy and understanding. He reached up and placed a shaking hand on Trowa's shoulder. 'I know it's hard,' he whispered. 'Just try and hang on, I'll take care of things. I promise.'
Trowa nodded silently and resisted the urge to place his hand over Quatre's. To tell him how scared he was. To make him promise that he wouldn't leave him. 'Are you ok?' he said instead.
Quatre smiled at him and shifted to sit up. 'A little dizzy,' he said passing his hand across his face, 'but other than that yes, I'm ok.' The blond leant back against the wall and sighed, letting his hand fall from Trowa's shoulder. 'How long have I been out?' he asked.
'About an hour,' Trowa replied.
Quatre swore under his breath and ran his hands through his hair. 'We need to get back to the bridge,' he said shortly, motioning for Trowa to move so he could climb off the bed.
Swallowing his questions Trowa complied and trailed after the blond as Quatre strode purposefully towards the ship's bridge. Quatre's disposition gave nothing away as to what he might have seen in his vision, and Trowa was loath to ask the blond directly. He was still unsure as to how Quatre would react to such a personal question, so he decided to stay silent.
As they entered the bridge the other three pirates stood up and Duo strode over to place a hand on Quatre's shoulder. 'How are you feeling?' he asked softly.
A flicker of irritation passed across Quatre's expression, but he hid it quickly. 'Fine, Duo, thank you.' He turned his attention to Wufei. 'Status?'
'No change,' Wufei replied. 'Dorothy hasn't made any further attempts to communicate. Sandrock has scanned the other ships - they've had their weapons upgraded. Your father has thought this through thoroughly…it is unlikely that we will be able to best them in a fight. Even with Sandrock's superior intelligence, we are just too heavily overpowered.'
Quatre nodded and his brow knitted in concentration. 'We need to get a message to Rashid. Duo…'
'Yes, Quatre?' Duo replied.
'I need you to fix it so we can piggy-back a message to Rashid on the next transmission from Dorothy's ship. Is that possible?' Quatre asked.
'Sure thing, no problem,' Duo said and swung back into his seat, his fingers flying across the controls as he saw to Quatre's request.
Trowa sensed that the other men were as anxious to hear of Quatre's vision as he was, but it seemed that they were also afraid to ask the blond what he had seen. Trowa wondered why Quatre hadn't shared what he had seen with them. He wondered if it was normal for the blond to keep his visions to himself, or if there was some reason why Quatre was not telling them.
The blond was distracted, of that much Trowa was certain. Something that Quatre had seen had spooked the pirate captain and had once again brought his harsh and aloof attitude to the surface. The blond had not even thanked Trowa for looking after him, and although Quatre had proved to be a volatile and dangerous man, so far he had been courteous to a fault.
Duo's voice broke Trowa's thoughts. 'Ok, we're all set. I'm picking up numerous messages being sent from Dorothy's ship, if we're going to do this, we need to do it now.'
Quatre nodded and stepped up to the small view screen next to Duo's console. 'Ok, start transmitting.'
The pirate's face was calm and composed as he began to speak rapidly in what, Trowa thought, was the same language that Quatre had been speaking in earlier.
Trowa moved over to stand next to Wufei. 'What language is he speaking?' he asked softly.
'Lyvian,' the pirate answered shortly.
Falling silent, Trowa turned his attention to Quatre. The blond finished talking quickly and then made a curt gesture across his throat, indicating that Duo should terminate the transmission.
'What now?' Heero asked.
Quatre shrugged, and made his way across the bridge towards the exit. 'Get some sleep,' the blond replied tersely.
'Ah…Quatre?' Duo said uncertainly.
'Yes, Duo?'
'Umm…about your vision…' Duo sounded very nervous.
'It's of no importance,' Quatre snapped. 'If you need me I'll be in my quarters.' Then without any further comment he left the bridge.
Trowa didn't miss the apprehensive looks that shot between the other pirates but none of them made any move to follow Quatre. Deciding there was really very little that he could do, Trowa moved to the observation screen at the front of the bridge. Staring out into the cold void of space, Trowa suppressed a shudder as he thought of what was to come…
TBC…