Tapestry - Chapter 22
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My cabin was pretty typical, as far as guest cabins on large ships like this go. It was medium sized, with a bathroom attached - large enough for a single bed, a dresser, a nightstand and a chair. There was a small assortment of clothing in the dresser, too; nothing fancy, just unisex clothes set aside for the random guest.
I pulled out a pair of too-large, light cotton navy drawstring pants, a short matching tee shirt and a hooded zip sweat shirt. Relief flooded through me when I saw the assortment of tennis shoes that were neatly stacked next to the dresser. I didn't even care how large or small they were - at least they weren't heels.
As I sifted through the mound of sneakers to find a pair close to my size, a voice drifted from the top of the room. "Sally...?"
"Wufei?" My head jerked up and I looked around, trying to pinpoint his location. "Wufei, where are you? Are you all right?"
I heard him snort. "I'm fine. Stand on your bed so I don't have to shout. I'm simply on the other side of the wall. I counted the doors."
Immediately, I jumped up on the bed, looked up, and stood on tiptoe next to the air vent. "Here I am, Wufei. I'm - I'm getting changed. Look - I want to see you - but I'm not - I'm not feeling quite myself."
There was a short silence. "....yeah. I noticed. Fine. I'll come and get you."
"Okay. I'll be ready."
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I sat down on the bed. Carefully, I stripped off all the jewelry I wore and put it on the nightstand; then I stood, unfastened my dress and stepped out of it. Placing the gown and my slip on the bed, I pulled on the pants and tee shirt in about thirty seconds and heaved a great sigh of relief. I felt more like myself in that moment than I had the entire day.
Something still didn't feel quite right, though. Frowning, I reached up to smooth my hair back out of habit, and found that I hadn't taken it down yet. It took a few moments to pluck all the pins from my hair and shake it out; as it tumbled around my shoulders, the tightness and pain around my head immediately lessened. And what was odd was that up until that point, I wasn't even aware that I had been in pain.
Surprising the things we live with that we don't even realize, isn't it?
I ran a brush through my hair, yanked socks over my feet and was just lacing up a pair of shoes when I heard a quiet knock on my door.
"I'm ready, Wufei." I opened the door and grabbed the sweat shirt off the back of the chair at the same time, tossing it over my shoulder. He stood in the doorway, eyeing me as if he was trying to see into my head.
I blinked at him. "What's - what's wrong?"
"I'm not sure. Are YOU?"
"Am I ..." I shook my head, tired. "No. I'm not sure what's wrong - but something's wrong." I sighed, looking past him into the corridor. "Listen. Could we continue this conversation somewhere else? Somewhere other than my room, or your room, or the hallway?"
He thought for a moment. "If you want a good place, we should go to the stern of the ship. The air is strong; the sound will flow behind us."
I nodded, feeling some relief, then pushed out of my room and closed the door. "Excellent. Let's go. No one will be able to hear us out there."
And we hurried, because I didn't want Une or her rabid watchdogs noticing we weren't where they put us. Those thugs, besides being annoying, would have no compunction about tying us - well, let's be honest, tying me - to my bed and leaving me there until we docked at the island, hours from now. Personally, that wasn't the way I wanted to travel.
No one was in the corridor; in fact, the entire deck was deserted. It was obvious there was a storm brewing, as whitecaps rode on the top of the sea and the wind had definitely picked up. I was glad I brought that sweatshirt; it kept the spray off my arms. Wufei was dressed in his normal white, long-sleeved gi, now flapping around his legs and arms in the wind. He didn't seem to mind the chill in the air, or if he did, he didn't say anything about it.
I leaned on the railing and looked out at the sea. "Is this all right? Private enough?"
Wufei leaned on the railing as well, and nodded at me. His face was pale in the moonlight; only his dark, gleaming eyes seemed satisfied; and he appeared to be waiting for me to speak first.
I sighed. This wasn't going to be easy. "Wufei. I don't know what's wrong with me." Careful, careful. Start with something he WILL believe. "You know, I saw Duo tonight, when we were at dinner." Said casually enough, just looking at him, so it would pique his interest; at least I thought it would. "I tried to tell him that same thing, and it was just as hard to explain."
"You saw DUO?" Wufei's eyes because huge and his jaw almost dropped to the deck, he was so surprised. "Where? What did he SAY?"
Striving to be nonchalant, I continued. "It was at the restaurant - and he didn't have time to say much at all. He had to dress as a French maid to get in there unnoticed, and I only saw him for about five minutes in the ladies' room. He said ... he said no one wants to do much of anything since the colonies capitulated. And he said that they had no idea OZ was having a high level meeting in Naples tonight. They have informants, but their informants never told them about the meeting." I sighed heavily and looked out at the sea. "I told him to be careful - that my information could have been planted, just to see if I passed it along. And he said -"
I tightened my lips and stopped, because, quite frankly, the next thing I needed to say sounded too weird for words.
"Yes?"
Sighing, I continued. "This part - is hard for me to say, or believe. He said that Trowa was going to find some way to talk to me. Something about my lineage -" I broke off and looked directly at him.
Wufei frowned at me. "...your lineage? What does that have to do with anything?"
I rubbed wearily at my forehead. "I'll be damned if I know. Wufei ... you're going to think I'm crazy ... but I heard something tell me that Duo was in the bathroom when we were in the restaurant. That's why I got up and left the table. And there he was ... in the bathroom."
The wind felt like it was blowing just a little bit harder now, right into our faces.
Wufei looked puzzled. "... a voice? Probably someone whispered to you ...?"
"Not possible. No one was sitting around us - you saw that. I thought that someone had left a transmitter in one of the plants around our table, but I checked. No transmitter."
Wufei snorted. "He always eats at the same table."
"What are you saying?" It was getting colder. I zipped up the sweatshirt and leaned on the railing, peering at him through the gloom. He looked like a white blur standing next to me.
"A transmitter could have been placed by anyone, especially if Duo was working there."
"No." I shook my head, vehement. "It wasn't Duo. He was supposed to be in the San Carlo; it was only at the last minute that he came over to the restaurant. He didn't know anything about someone telling me to go into the ladies' room, either. I thought it was Trowa - but it couldn't have been Trowa, because Duo told me Trowa was in France."
Wufei gave me an odd look in the darkness. "Quatre?"
"No. He wasn't there, either. Duo told me his sisters took him away - 'for his own good,' he said." I shrugged and sighed, looking at the sea. "I don't know where he is. Duo also told me that he and Heero do have Sandrock somewhere. They just don't have Quatre."
"Mmmm." Wufei tilted his head, puzzled. "Perhaps it was the wine."
I laughed, a very short, mirthless, laugh. "It was an excellent wine, Wufei, but that quantity doesn't normally make me hallucinate. It just makes me sleepy after a while."
He opened his mouth to say something, and quickly closed it. Even in the semidarkness, I could see color rise from his neck through his cheeks.
I blinked. Gods, he was blushing. What on earth ...?
"I ... don't want to ... discuss it," he muttered. "Made no sense, anyway."
Now I felt cold, and it wasn't from the wind cutting across the stern. I had to ask this carefully, and I made sure my tone was calm and neutral. "Wufei. Did you have a - dream - while we were at the opera?"
That cold feeling permeated my chest while I waited for his answer.
He hesitated, frowning a little. " ... It ... in ... part," he murmured, shifting.
"Ah," I nodded, prodding gently. "Did it start at the restaurant ..." and I thought for a moment, "...after you had some wine?" And wouldn't that just explain his preoccupation during dinner, and walking to the opera house, and before we were seated, and ... oh gods, everything ...
He shifted position again, looking really, REALLY guilty. "Yeah," he sighed, peering at his shoes.
This was important. I was not about to scare him off, so I knew I had to continue with extreme caution. "Have you ever had wine in the past, Wufei? I noticed when we were on the ship today, you didn't have any alcohol in your drinks -"
"No -"
I blinked. "Never? You've never had alcohol? Not even with Duo?"
He shook his head, frowning a little. "Why would I have it when I was with Duo?"
"Ah ... well ... because ... " I looked at him a little helplessly. "I'd expect that ... eh ... Duo might have 'introduced' you to things like that-"
A lofty look crossed his face. "Never," he said, raising his eyebrows.
"Oh, I see." I bit my lip to keep from laughing, as the image of Duo seeing Wufei like that ... well. But a thought did cross my mind, though, that was a bit more sobering. "Wufei ... that - dream. Did it involve Treize?"
The lofty expression ran off his face; now he looked as though he wanted to crawl under the deck and hide. "Yes," he murmured, his voice soft and low.
I rubbed my head, which started to hurt again. At least he's answering questions, even though it's plain he'd rather not. And it felt as if this has something to do with something ... that I could just about remember. It was right at the edge of my memory, but it refused to come forward. Gads, it was SO frustrating ...
I looked at him. "Wufei. I want to help you. This is just too - odd - to be a coincidence -"
"...coincidence?"
"Yes. Think about it. I said I wasn't feeling like myself lately. In fact, ever since a few nights ago - " I broke off, shuddering, rubbing my arms, not looking at him.
We stood in silence for several minutes, both wrapped in our own thoughts. I took a deep breath. "And now, you have this ... hallucination, or dream, or whatever it was, that happened at the same time I had ... something else happen. It's just too strange." I looked at his face, into his eyes which looked like large, dark bruises. "What was your dream about?"
He shifted again, looking like a thin, lost little boy, draped in white, projecting enormous guilt.
"It ... it was ..."
"Wufei. It's all right. Was it sexual?"
Now he looked as though he wanted to run and hide. He nodded, not looking at me.
"... it ... I don't ..."
I made a conscious effort to project calm, nothing but calm for him. "That's okay. That's fine. That's what I thought. Can you tell me about it?"
He stared at me, horrified, as if I had accused him of wanting it. "I don't ... WANT it ..."
"I understand that, Wufei. But if you could tell me something about what happened ..."
His eyes flicked back and forth as he shifted his weight again, looking like a cornered animal. "... I ... "
I reached around and hugged him gently. "Wufei ... it's okay ..." He jumped almost straight up, he was so nervous and spooked. My arms dropped away but my gaze never wavered. His eyes were midnight black, fathomless, like the sky behind him. Pitching my voice low to project calm, I said, "Really. You can tell me. I'm not going to laugh, or gasp, or judge you. I'm your friend."
He looked a little freaked that I hugged him, but his eyes looked less panicky. "But - but it's not ME, Sally -"
"I believe you - I believe it isn't you -"
"I'm not LIKE that -"
"I know you're not," I soothed. "Just tell me what happened."
"I don't WANT it from him! Why doesn't anyone GET that? I don't WANT that!" He was breathing faster, right in my face.
My eyes widened a bit. "In your dream - was Treize trying to force you to do something you didn't want to do?"
Wufei's face crumpled. "No. He - he didn't - have - to force anything ..." He stopped, his voice cracking a little, utter confusion and guilt plain in his eyes.
"Was he doing something to you - something that you couldn't stop?"
He shifted again, his gaze skittering away from mine. "It ... was ... kind of ... shared. It wasn't ME!" he snapped with heated intensity.
"All right," I said, thinking out loud. "So - he was doing things - touching your arm, your face - and that gradually led into something else. Was he kissing you at the end?"
"No..." His voice cracked again. "There was nothing gradual ABOUT it, Sally." Wufei slumped against the railing, looking defeated. "And no, he wasn't 'kissing' me at the end, either. What do you think happened? We're both adults here."
He refused to look at me. I closed my eyes briefly.
"Wufei. I wasn't trying to insult you. I - I had a dream at the opera, too. And at the end - right before Giovanni was dragged off to Hell - I saw Treize kissing you. Deeply - passionately - and right next to me." I shook my head, giving a helpless shrug. "Look. I told you it was too strange to be a coincidence ..."
Wufei twitched a little. "I'd trade your daydreams anytime for mine," he said evenly. "I never - never - would enjoy - something like that. No matter what seemed to be presented in my mind." He took a shaky breath, leaning farther toward the sea, now all foaming whitecaps.
"I am not homosexual!" he shouted to the angry water and sky.
I stared at him. "I know that. You know that. So -"
"I'm NOT! So explain -" And he stopped, flushed and angry, and stared at me.
" - explain why you felt the way you did?" I finished for him.
The sound of the sea filled the next few minutes as his expression collapsed in defeat and he stared at me, mute and completely miserable. "I'm - not - feeling that way now," he finally admitted, slumping against the rail, his head against his hands. "Just - in that - obscene - THING!"
Something stirred in my memory, awakening from a long sleep. I heard a vaguely familiar voice: 'I have never failed to arouse the desire of someone I wanted.'
I blinked, breathing faster. Gods, that was Treize's voice - and he had been speaking to me - but where, and when? I didn't remember that conversation, not completely. It felt as if my mind was plowing through molasses, pushing against invisible doors.
"This ... isn't right, Wufei." I blinked, started slowly. "I think - I think you're more than a prisoner here ... and much more than just a pet." I turned my head, hoping he was listening to me. It was hard to tell; he was scowling bitterly at a mound of fake fishing nets and tackle, artfully stacked on one side of the deck.
Staring at that heap of nautical junk for a moment, I realized it was just put there as decoration. Why? Because all that rubbish was cemented in place so it wouldn't roll; it was even coated with some kind of plastic glaze. That bastard probably thought it was funny, too.
"I don't know what the hell I am. I - I have been horrified today. Disgusted at the obscenities my own mind can concoct." Wufei's shoulders shook. Visibly, he straightened his back and folded his arms, his chest heaving, looking at the sea.
I sighed. He was blaming himself again.
"No, Wufei, you don't understand. You - you are - a project." And where that word came from, I had no idea - but I knew I had heard it before, and I knew it was right. "These are - these are suggestions being given to you - and I don't know why it's happening, but it is. Wufei - Wufei! Why would I have the same type of dream that you did at the same time? Why? It's the only thing that makes sense!"
"We didn't have the same dream." Weariness threaded through his voice and sagged into his back. I knew he wasn't paying attention to what I said. "Yours ended with him kissing me. Mine ended with him ... well." He still faced the sea, and his words were almost swept away from me by the wind. "'Sodding,' is what I think Duo would have said. He does have a way with words."
I walked over and stood in front of him, dragging his arms away from his chest and yanked his head over to my level so he had to look at me. "Wufei. It was the SAME dream, with the SAME subject matter, and the SAME people in it. We had the SAME dream. Period."
He didn't say anything, but he didn't look away from me, either. The poor boy was flushed with embarrassment.
I plunged on. "And I have been feeling exactly - that - weird, I suppose - ever since I've been with Treize ..." I stopped and swallowed, looking at him. Now I was the one who was breathing faster, feeling strange.
"You almost act like you sold out."
"When did I act that way? Was it today?"
Wufei frowned, then nodded. "Yes. Most of the day."
I sighed. "Please - please listen to me, Wufei. I haven't really been right - not since that night you found me in the library."
He frowned again, looking at me closely. "Why not?"
"I - something happened to me that night that I can't explain." It was definitely cold; wind swirled and blew around the deck, whipping my pants around my ankles. "You said that you had been looking for me for hours, remember?"
"Yes." Wufei nodded, his expression serious. Apparently, that really shook him up.
"But I was there, in the library, that entire time. When I walked into the room, the door was unlocked. Unlocked, Wufei; I did not break into that room, nor did I lock myself in it."
"Of course not. It's always unlocked. But you had to lock it - no one else was there."
"I did NOT, Wufei. I did not lock that door-"
"Then who did?"
I took a deep breath, and then plunged. "I was talking to Treize most of the time I was there. Sitting in the library. I was sitting in the chair next to the windows." I felt the blood rush away from my face as I continued. "He told me - he started the conversation by telling me that you had asked him to preserve my life. I thought for sure he was going to kill me ..."
Wufei was staring at me. Something about his look made me think he was considering whether or not I had gone completely insane.
Tightening my lips, I looked right at him. "Wufei. I wasn't sure if I should tell you or not. I didn't think you would believe me - but he told me this BEFORE you found me. Do you remember, I kept asking you what you had asked him for? Do you remember that?"
"Yes, I remember," he acknowledged, nodding slowly. At least it put some doubt on the insane theory. "But Sally, Treize wasn't there. I saw him off."
My voice dropped to a whisper. "He told me that he had agreed to - to keep me safe. To do this for you. And when he came back ... and I was in the bath ... what did he tell you?"
" ... that ... he ... had decided I was right, and that it was necessary ... but he ... didn't say he was doing it for ME ..." Doubt crept into his tone; the way he said it let me know that while it wasn't explicitly said, Treize certainly hinted at it.
"Oh, he's doing it for you, Wufei. For YOU. That's why he agreed to let me come here. For you." I swallowed as more of the conversation in the library came back to me. What library? Why, his library - remember, in his private library ... during a storm not unlike this ... "He said ... he said a great many things to me ..."
Wufei frowned; his brow knit, his eyebrows drew together and he looked at me. Folding his arms across his chest he really looked at me, giving me a level stare as he analyzed every word I said.
My mouth was dry as I continued to talk. "He basically said - he wants you, Wufei. And not just as a plaything. He wants to be the one to take - whatever innocence you have - and mold you into what he believes you should become. He ... he has this whole idea of who you are, and who you should be. Oh, and he has this - this PLAN -"
I glanced at him. His expression was now a mixture of horror and disbelief; his eyes were wide and his mouth slightly open.
"- that's supposed to help bring all this out of you."
He was shaking his head from side to side as he took a step back. "Sally ... "
I reached out and barely touched his arm. "No, Wufei, please - please, believe me. Didn't you tell me on more than one occasion that you felt as if you were being molded? Manipulated? Pushed, in some way, into something? Tweaked a little here, shoved a little there?"
"I ... Sally, that ..." He pulled his arm back, looking like he believed me more than he wanted to believe me. "Sally ... that's INSANE. Completely INSANE."
Helplessly, I shrugged and stared back at him. "I know," I said quietly. "But it's true. He told me he has a talent -"
"NO one would think like that. It's just ludicrous. I'm ... gods. Why in the world would he even WANT to -"
"LISTEN to me, Wufei," I said, fiercer than I intended. "You have to listen to me."
He stopped speaking and looked right at me. Finally, I had his attention. Now I had to hope that I could do something with it.
"Treize told me, Wufei, that he could override the natural tendencies of anyone, no matter who they were. That means that even if you don't want to do something, he can MAKE you want to do it." I looked right at Wufei. "Do you understand what that means?" Gods, I barely understood what that meant.
He just stared with that face that kids at campfires get during ghost stories. I barely nodded at him. That was about my level of understanding, too. You really don't believe, not really; but you do enough to be spooked.
"And he - he did something to me." My voice dropped until I felt like I was whispering again. I forced myself to look at Wufei. He was silent, waiting for me to continue.
"He - he was speaking to me ... and suddenly, I realized that I couldn't look away from his eyes and that I couldn't move a single muscle. The only thing I could hear was the sound of his voice, and that was ... hypnotic. It was - awful - and exciting - at the same time." I took a shuddering breath, trying to gather my wits, to explain. "He ... touched me. And then he kissed me - and when that happened -" My face was burning and I couldn't look at Wufei any longer, but I forced myself to continue, "- it was like the world exploded. I - I had the most intense orgasm in my entire life."
After I said that, I did glance over at Wufei. Even though he appeared stoic enough to stand there and endure even this embarrassment, I knew he would prefer to jump into the sea and swim back to the island. It was obvious that he didn't want to know intimate details like that about me. At all. It was written all over his face. I sighed. Well ... live and learn.
"Um ... well. Right after that, I woke up, cold, wet and shivering on the floor of the library. I looked - I thought Treize was there, but ..." I shrugged, shaking my head. "The windows had blown open and it was raining ... and you were pounding on the library door, because it was locked. I - I was really stiff. I didn't know what happened, Wufei, I didn't. That door was locked, but I swear, I didn't lock it."
Wufei looked shaken, and his face was flushed. "It ... it's ... just ... It wasn't REAL. It couldn't have been REAL."
Exhausted, I rolled my head from side to side, loosening my neck muscles. "Look, Wufei, I know. I know. I've been over all this in my mind, too. But my entire body was shaking, and - and - I have no other explanation, other than what I remember. How else would I have known that you had asked to preserve my life? He was very specific about that, too -"
"I don't KNOW!"
" - he said, 'He has been with me long enough now to know better than to use sloppy semantics. This was carefully worded.'"
"Even assuming this was even CLOSE to being real -"
" ... yes? ..."
" - that doesn't explain anything. He let the others go, and he kept me. ME! The one he knew was worthless!"
I sighed. "No. We've been over this before. He found the others boring. He craves your mind, Wufei. You need to accept this, and accept it quickly. Simply because you find no worth in yourself doesn't mean HE doesn't find worth in you."
Wufei's face twisted for a moment. "Then he's an idiot."
I shrugged. "So, he's an idiot. So what? The fact remains that he wants you. Duo has an interesting take on this. He could tell right away that Treize wanted you just by the way he spoke to you."
"Wha - what?" Wufei stammered, blinking.
"Wufei, you can feel it. There's something around here that's not quite right. I'm not sure what it is, but it doesn't feel all the way right. I don't know how else to describe it. Maybe ... evil? I don't know.
"I wasn't myself today; you said so yourself. The longer I'm here, the less I feel like myself. I know, it, too, but I can't seem to do anything about it." I shook my head, frustrated. "I felt more like myself when I was with that horrid Duke Dermail and the rest of those nasty, twisted people from OZ. But I'll tell you, Wufei, I was angry at Treize. I was furious - he just dumped me in the middle of those people."
"He can't be what you say he is." Wufei was using his Rationalizing Voice if I'd ever heard it.
"Why not?" I hadn't really proclaimed Treize was anything, mind, but I was anxious to hear why he couldn't be what I hadn't said he couldn't be.
"Because his blood relatives are human. Therefore, he is human, too."
"Ah ... Wufei ..." I started, incredulous
"He IS human," Wufei interrupted, "he bleeds like one. I've cut him. Other 'things' don't bleed."
What on earth did he mean, 'other things don't bleed?' That was one of the most ridiculous things I'd ever heard. There are no ghosts, or supernatural things - but if he needs to believe that - hm ...
"Well, he could be possessed," I pointed out, a bit caustic.
Wufei snorted, but couldn't answer me.
"Plus, how many 'other things' have you seen?" I asked, looking at him with a skeptical eye.
"...... none." He looked positively pouty when he had to admit that. "But I'm sure you haven't seen them, either. You're the one who told me my wife wasn't in my gundam, remember?"
Feh. "Yes, I know that. And I'm certainly the first person to look for the rational explanation. But in the absence of any other type of explanation, I have to go with the one that presents itself."
Wufei snorted again. "I'd believe brain washing before this. It cannot be. It's impossible."
I didn't blame him for not believing me, but it didn't make things any easier for either one of us. "Wufei. I can't argue with you anymore. I can only tell you what happened to me, and what I've seen happen to you."
"And all of it has a rational explanation," Wufei said, looking stoic and grim. "I will ask him. Tonight."
We stared at each other as the wind howled around us.
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I spoke first. My mouth was completely dry. "Wufei. If you do that ... I don't know what will happen. Do you believe he will tell you the truth?"
Wufei thought for a moment, gazing down at the deck. He glanced up at me, his look serious and intense. "Yes. If I phrase it correctly. Of course, he'll probably be disappointed I didn't figure it out, assuming ANY of this is real at all."
"Oh," I said weakly. Disappointed? What? I could NOT believe he was actually considering asking Treize whether or not he was human. "What if - what if - you find out that he IS some type of possessed demon, or something? Can you fight that?"
Gleaming ebony eyes met mine in a gaze that was knowing and aware. "I can't fight him anyway - it's moot. And if he IS, and would rather kill me if I knew, then he won't get to use me. Confronting him is the best method."
"Wonderful," I groaned. "What if he decides that he doesn't care if you know or not, and refuses to kill you? He'll have no compunction about killing ME, I can tell you that. I'm not the person he's interested in. In fact -" I stopped speaking and looked right at him. "Wufei. If he does try to do something to me, just to get you to agree to something else, you must promise me NOT to listen to him. Don't do it - don't listen to him."
I waited for Wufei to give me some kind of response, but he said nothing at all. Complete silence fell between us; the only sounds were the creaks and groans from the timbers of the ship, the moans from the wind, and the sighs and splashes from the sea.
" ... Wufei...?"
He refused to look at me; instead, shaking his head slowly from side to side, he finally rested his forehead in his hands. "What have I done?"
"What are you talking about? You've done nothing wrong. We're just in a situation with someone that we haven't seen how to deal with yet, that's all ..." Now I was baffled by his behavior.
"Indeed," he said, heavy and tired. "And if he is any of the things you say, then I have delivered you to a demon." He rubbed his forehead again, groaning. "What have I DONE ... "
"No, Wufei," I insisted. "It's better to know your enemy than to labor in ignorance - at least, that's what I think. I'd rather know my enemy, because then I'll know his weaknesses. Besides, I would have been dead if not for you. I was perfectly serious today. All those people on the ship wanted to see me dead, and told me so, to my face -"
"You would have been safe," Wufei broke in, laughing bitterly. "Women die around me, especially strong ones. Didn't you KNOW that?"
"I am NOT dead, nor do I intend on becoming dead anytime soon." I looked straight at him, trying to convince him. I had NO plans for that happening in the near or distant future.
"You would have been better off if you were, if you're right," he said, bluntly honest as always.
"Well, I don't think so."
He looked at me closely. "Sally. If all this that you've said is correct, then you HAVE no purpose here except to manipulate me. You are in a dire position, and you would BE better off dead ... if you're right."
"I ... know," I said, unhappy but unable to shake that odd, deja-vu feeling. "I feel that, sometimes ... but other times I feel ... odd. There's still something that I'm not ... quite ... remembering ..."
"What?" Wufei asked, a bitter laugh escaping his lips. "Something else? Yet another tidbit? Wait, let me guess. He's not a demon. He's the Devil himself?"
"Gods, Wufei, I don't know," I snapped, now out of sorts. "I'd tell you if I could remember, but ... I can't! And that's the point - I can't remember, and I don't have memory problems, don't you get it? Everything starts to go - well - fuzzy, for the lack of a better word ..."
And now he isn't even looking at me - he's looking at the deck, deep in thought. I sighed, exasperated, and looked over his shoulder, hoping to find SOME inspiration somewhere, at least to help clarify this explanation a little more. Instead, I saw huge, ominous black thunderclouds standing out against an already dark sky, dropping to the horizon. Those whitecaps had turned to waves, surging against the ship, and that small storm had turned into a black squall.
There was one hell of a storm bearing down on this ship.
Had I been a superstitious person, I would think it had something to do with future events - things that were going to happen later tonight, given what Wufei and I were discussing. Oh, but I was scientific and rational, and to my mind there was no such thing as predestination or the supernatural or ...
... or what was happening now. Gods.
"I will go and see him now." Wufei nodded decisively. "There is no use in putting it off." He turned to go back to the ship and would have immediately walked to Treize's cabin, except that I pulled on his arm.
"What - now? Wufei, please - we're out in the middle of the Mediterranean, and we have no idea how to defend ourselves against him - or -"
Lightning split the sky above our heads; for a few seconds, eerie, bluish white light burned everything on deck. Half of Wufei's face was thrown into shadow, while the other half looked sunken and resolute; thunder rumbled, threatening, several seconds behind the lightning.
"Defend? There is no defense, Sally. If anything you say is true, then we are caught in his game. Period. IF."
I felt stubborn, and tired, and scowled at him. "Wufei, you can't deny it. Something is happening, that's for sure. But I still don't know if -"
"No more of this. I will confront him." He cut me off, shaking his head and stared fixedly at me. "You will stay OUT of the way. I have endangered you enough."
"What are you talking about? I'm going to help you -"
"No - you STAY. OUT. OF. THE. WAY. " His gaze bore right into mine; he was uncompromising. "And get a gun, if you can. If you have to, you can use that as your way out."
To say I was shocked would be an understatement. But then, I should have expected that from him; really, it was completely in character. I blinked once and looked at him. "Ah ... okay, Wufei. I will."
"Good luck, Sally," he said, oddly formal, nodding to me. As I watched him walk toward the outer cabins, the ones with the doors that opened toward the sea, I found myself following several paces behind, trailing out of habit.
I started to say, "I can -"
He whirled around and hissed at me, genuinely angry. "No. Get inside!"
I backed off, raising my hands, and went directly to the main cabin. Wufei watched me the entire way, and didn't move until he saw me go inside and close the door. Then he took off and walked down the corridor with the doors of the outer cabins.
Toward Treize's cabin.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My cabin was pretty typical, as far as guest cabins on large ships like this go. It was medium sized, with a bathroom attached - large enough for a single bed, a dresser, a nightstand and a chair. There was a small assortment of clothing in the dresser, too; nothing fancy, just unisex clothes set aside for the random guest.
I pulled out a pair of too-large, light cotton navy drawstring pants, a short matching tee shirt and a hooded zip sweat shirt. Relief flooded through me when I saw the assortment of tennis shoes that were neatly stacked next to the dresser. I didn't even care how large or small they were - at least they weren't heels.
As I sifted through the mound of sneakers to find a pair close to my size, a voice drifted from the top of the room. "Sally...?"
"Wufei?" My head jerked up and I looked around, trying to pinpoint his location. "Wufei, where are you? Are you all right?"
I heard him snort. "I'm fine. Stand on your bed so I don't have to shout. I'm simply on the other side of the wall. I counted the doors."
Immediately, I jumped up on the bed, looked up, and stood on tiptoe next to the air vent. "Here I am, Wufei. I'm - I'm getting changed. Look - I want to see you - but I'm not - I'm not feeling quite myself."
There was a short silence. "....yeah. I noticed. Fine. I'll come and get you."
"Okay. I'll be ready."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I sat down on the bed. Carefully, I stripped off all the jewelry I wore and put it on the nightstand; then I stood, unfastened my dress and stepped out of it. Placing the gown and my slip on the bed, I pulled on the pants and tee shirt in about thirty seconds and heaved a great sigh of relief. I felt more like myself in that moment than I had the entire day.
Something still didn't feel quite right, though. Frowning, I reached up to smooth my hair back out of habit, and found that I hadn't taken it down yet. It took a few moments to pluck all the pins from my hair and shake it out; as it tumbled around my shoulders, the tightness and pain around my head immediately lessened. And what was odd was that up until that point, I wasn't even aware that I had been in pain.
Surprising the things we live with that we don't even realize, isn't it?
I ran a brush through my hair, yanked socks over my feet and was just lacing up a pair of shoes when I heard a quiet knock on my door.
"I'm ready, Wufei." I opened the door and grabbed the sweat shirt off the back of the chair at the same time, tossing it over my shoulder. He stood in the doorway, eyeing me as if he was trying to see into my head.
I blinked at him. "What's - what's wrong?"
"I'm not sure. Are YOU?"
"Am I ..." I shook my head, tired. "No. I'm not sure what's wrong - but something's wrong." I sighed, looking past him into the corridor. "Listen. Could we continue this conversation somewhere else? Somewhere other than my room, or your room, or the hallway?"
He thought for a moment. "If you want a good place, we should go to the stern of the ship. The air is strong; the sound will flow behind us."
I nodded, feeling some relief, then pushed out of my room and closed the door. "Excellent. Let's go. No one will be able to hear us out there."
And we hurried, because I didn't want Une or her rabid watchdogs noticing we weren't where they put us. Those thugs, besides being annoying, would have no compunction about tying us - well, let's be honest, tying me - to my bed and leaving me there until we docked at the island, hours from now. Personally, that wasn't the way I wanted to travel.
No one was in the corridor; in fact, the entire deck was deserted. It was obvious there was a storm brewing, as whitecaps rode on the top of the sea and the wind had definitely picked up. I was glad I brought that sweatshirt; it kept the spray off my arms. Wufei was dressed in his normal white, long-sleeved gi, now flapping around his legs and arms in the wind. He didn't seem to mind the chill in the air, or if he did, he didn't say anything about it.
I leaned on the railing and looked out at the sea. "Is this all right? Private enough?"
Wufei leaned on the railing as well, and nodded at me. His face was pale in the moonlight; only his dark, gleaming eyes seemed satisfied; and he appeared to be waiting for me to speak first.
I sighed. This wasn't going to be easy. "Wufei. I don't know what's wrong with me." Careful, careful. Start with something he WILL believe. "You know, I saw Duo tonight, when we were at dinner." Said casually enough, just looking at him, so it would pique his interest; at least I thought it would. "I tried to tell him that same thing, and it was just as hard to explain."
"You saw DUO?" Wufei's eyes because huge and his jaw almost dropped to the deck, he was so surprised. "Where? What did he SAY?"
Striving to be nonchalant, I continued. "It was at the restaurant - and he didn't have time to say much at all. He had to dress as a French maid to get in there unnoticed, and I only saw him for about five minutes in the ladies' room. He said ... he said no one wants to do much of anything since the colonies capitulated. And he said that they had no idea OZ was having a high level meeting in Naples tonight. They have informants, but their informants never told them about the meeting." I sighed heavily and looked out at the sea. "I told him to be careful - that my information could have been planted, just to see if I passed it along. And he said -"
I tightened my lips and stopped, because, quite frankly, the next thing I needed to say sounded too weird for words.
"Yes?"
Sighing, I continued. "This part - is hard for me to say, or believe. He said that Trowa was going to find some way to talk to me. Something about my lineage -" I broke off and looked directly at him.
Wufei frowned at me. "...your lineage? What does that have to do with anything?"
I rubbed wearily at my forehead. "I'll be damned if I know. Wufei ... you're going to think I'm crazy ... but I heard something tell me that Duo was in the bathroom when we were in the restaurant. That's why I got up and left the table. And there he was ... in the bathroom."
The wind felt like it was blowing just a little bit harder now, right into our faces.
Wufei looked puzzled. "... a voice? Probably someone whispered to you ...?"
"Not possible. No one was sitting around us - you saw that. I thought that someone had left a transmitter in one of the plants around our table, but I checked. No transmitter."
Wufei snorted. "He always eats at the same table."
"What are you saying?" It was getting colder. I zipped up the sweatshirt and leaned on the railing, peering at him through the gloom. He looked like a white blur standing next to me.
"A transmitter could have been placed by anyone, especially if Duo was working there."
"No." I shook my head, vehement. "It wasn't Duo. He was supposed to be in the San Carlo; it was only at the last minute that he came over to the restaurant. He didn't know anything about someone telling me to go into the ladies' room, either. I thought it was Trowa - but it couldn't have been Trowa, because Duo told me Trowa was in France."
Wufei gave me an odd look in the darkness. "Quatre?"
"No. He wasn't there, either. Duo told me his sisters took him away - 'for his own good,' he said." I shrugged and sighed, looking at the sea. "I don't know where he is. Duo also told me that he and Heero do have Sandrock somewhere. They just don't have Quatre."
"Mmmm." Wufei tilted his head, puzzled. "Perhaps it was the wine."
I laughed, a very short, mirthless, laugh. "It was an excellent wine, Wufei, but that quantity doesn't normally make me hallucinate. It just makes me sleepy after a while."
He opened his mouth to say something, and quickly closed it. Even in the semidarkness, I could see color rise from his neck through his cheeks.
I blinked. Gods, he was blushing. What on earth ...?
"I ... don't want to ... discuss it," he muttered. "Made no sense, anyway."
Now I felt cold, and it wasn't from the wind cutting across the stern. I had to ask this carefully, and I made sure my tone was calm and neutral. "Wufei. Did you have a - dream - while we were at the opera?"
That cold feeling permeated my chest while I waited for his answer.
He hesitated, frowning a little. " ... It ... in ... part," he murmured, shifting.
"Ah," I nodded, prodding gently. "Did it start at the restaurant ..." and I thought for a moment, "...after you had some wine?" And wouldn't that just explain his preoccupation during dinner, and walking to the opera house, and before we were seated, and ... oh gods, everything ...
He shifted position again, looking really, REALLY guilty. "Yeah," he sighed, peering at his shoes.
This was important. I was not about to scare him off, so I knew I had to continue with extreme caution. "Have you ever had wine in the past, Wufei? I noticed when we were on the ship today, you didn't have any alcohol in your drinks -"
"No -"
I blinked. "Never? You've never had alcohol? Not even with Duo?"
He shook his head, frowning a little. "Why would I have it when I was with Duo?"
"Ah ... well ... because ... " I looked at him a little helplessly. "I'd expect that ... eh ... Duo might have 'introduced' you to things like that-"
A lofty look crossed his face. "Never," he said, raising his eyebrows.
"Oh, I see." I bit my lip to keep from laughing, as the image of Duo seeing Wufei like that ... well. But a thought did cross my mind, though, that was a bit more sobering. "Wufei ... that - dream. Did it involve Treize?"
The lofty expression ran off his face; now he looked as though he wanted to crawl under the deck and hide. "Yes," he murmured, his voice soft and low.
I rubbed my head, which started to hurt again. At least he's answering questions, even though it's plain he'd rather not. And it felt as if this has something to do with something ... that I could just about remember. It was right at the edge of my memory, but it refused to come forward. Gads, it was SO frustrating ...
I looked at him. "Wufei. I want to help you. This is just too - odd - to be a coincidence -"
"...coincidence?"
"Yes. Think about it. I said I wasn't feeling like myself lately. In fact, ever since a few nights ago - " I broke off, shuddering, rubbing my arms, not looking at him.
We stood in silence for several minutes, both wrapped in our own thoughts. I took a deep breath. "And now, you have this ... hallucination, or dream, or whatever it was, that happened at the same time I had ... something else happen. It's just too strange." I looked at his face, into his eyes which looked like large, dark bruises. "What was your dream about?"
He shifted again, looking like a thin, lost little boy, draped in white, projecting enormous guilt.
"It ... it was ..."
"Wufei. It's all right. Was it sexual?"
Now he looked as though he wanted to run and hide. He nodded, not looking at me.
"... it ... I don't ..."
I made a conscious effort to project calm, nothing but calm for him. "That's okay. That's fine. That's what I thought. Can you tell me about it?"
He stared at me, horrified, as if I had accused him of wanting it. "I don't ... WANT it ..."
"I understand that, Wufei. But if you could tell me something about what happened ..."
His eyes flicked back and forth as he shifted his weight again, looking like a cornered animal. "... I ... "
I reached around and hugged him gently. "Wufei ... it's okay ..." He jumped almost straight up, he was so nervous and spooked. My arms dropped away but my gaze never wavered. His eyes were midnight black, fathomless, like the sky behind him. Pitching my voice low to project calm, I said, "Really. You can tell me. I'm not going to laugh, or gasp, or judge you. I'm your friend."
He looked a little freaked that I hugged him, but his eyes looked less panicky. "But - but it's not ME, Sally -"
"I believe you - I believe it isn't you -"
"I'm not LIKE that -"
"I know you're not," I soothed. "Just tell me what happened."
"I don't WANT it from him! Why doesn't anyone GET that? I don't WANT that!" He was breathing faster, right in my face.
My eyes widened a bit. "In your dream - was Treize trying to force you to do something you didn't want to do?"
Wufei's face crumpled. "No. He - he didn't - have - to force anything ..." He stopped, his voice cracking a little, utter confusion and guilt plain in his eyes.
"Was he doing something to you - something that you couldn't stop?"
He shifted again, his gaze skittering away from mine. "It ... was ... kind of ... shared. It wasn't ME!" he snapped with heated intensity.
"All right," I said, thinking out loud. "So - he was doing things - touching your arm, your face - and that gradually led into something else. Was he kissing you at the end?"
"No..." His voice cracked again. "There was nothing gradual ABOUT it, Sally." Wufei slumped against the railing, looking defeated. "And no, he wasn't 'kissing' me at the end, either. What do you think happened? We're both adults here."
He refused to look at me. I closed my eyes briefly.
"Wufei. I wasn't trying to insult you. I - I had a dream at the opera, too. And at the end - right before Giovanni was dragged off to Hell - I saw Treize kissing you. Deeply - passionately - and right next to me." I shook my head, giving a helpless shrug. "Look. I told you it was too strange to be a coincidence ..."
Wufei twitched a little. "I'd trade your daydreams anytime for mine," he said evenly. "I never - never - would enjoy - something like that. No matter what seemed to be presented in my mind." He took a shaky breath, leaning farther toward the sea, now all foaming whitecaps.
"I am not homosexual!" he shouted to the angry water and sky.
I stared at him. "I know that. You know that. So -"
"I'm NOT! So explain -" And he stopped, flushed and angry, and stared at me.
" - explain why you felt the way you did?" I finished for him.
The sound of the sea filled the next few minutes as his expression collapsed in defeat and he stared at me, mute and completely miserable. "I'm - not - feeling that way now," he finally admitted, slumping against the rail, his head against his hands. "Just - in that - obscene - THING!"
Something stirred in my memory, awakening from a long sleep. I heard a vaguely familiar voice: 'I have never failed to arouse the desire of someone I wanted.'
I blinked, breathing faster. Gods, that was Treize's voice - and he had been speaking to me - but where, and when? I didn't remember that conversation, not completely. It felt as if my mind was plowing through molasses, pushing against invisible doors.
"This ... isn't right, Wufei." I blinked, started slowly. "I think - I think you're more than a prisoner here ... and much more than just a pet." I turned my head, hoping he was listening to me. It was hard to tell; he was scowling bitterly at a mound of fake fishing nets and tackle, artfully stacked on one side of the deck.
Staring at that heap of nautical junk for a moment, I realized it was just put there as decoration. Why? Because all that rubbish was cemented in place so it wouldn't roll; it was even coated with some kind of plastic glaze. That bastard probably thought it was funny, too.
"I don't know what the hell I am. I - I have been horrified today. Disgusted at the obscenities my own mind can concoct." Wufei's shoulders shook. Visibly, he straightened his back and folded his arms, his chest heaving, looking at the sea.
I sighed. He was blaming himself again.
"No, Wufei, you don't understand. You - you are - a project." And where that word came from, I had no idea - but I knew I had heard it before, and I knew it was right. "These are - these are suggestions being given to you - and I don't know why it's happening, but it is. Wufei - Wufei! Why would I have the same type of dream that you did at the same time? Why? It's the only thing that makes sense!"
"We didn't have the same dream." Weariness threaded through his voice and sagged into his back. I knew he wasn't paying attention to what I said. "Yours ended with him kissing me. Mine ended with him ... well." He still faced the sea, and his words were almost swept away from me by the wind. "'Sodding,' is what I think Duo would have said. He does have a way with words."
I walked over and stood in front of him, dragging his arms away from his chest and yanked his head over to my level so he had to look at me. "Wufei. It was the SAME dream, with the SAME subject matter, and the SAME people in it. We had the SAME dream. Period."
He didn't say anything, but he didn't look away from me, either. The poor boy was flushed with embarrassment.
I plunged on. "And I have been feeling exactly - that - weird, I suppose - ever since I've been with Treize ..." I stopped and swallowed, looking at him. Now I was the one who was breathing faster, feeling strange.
"You almost act like you sold out."
"When did I act that way? Was it today?"
Wufei frowned, then nodded. "Yes. Most of the day."
I sighed. "Please - please listen to me, Wufei. I haven't really been right - not since that night you found me in the library."
He frowned again, looking at me closely. "Why not?"
"I - something happened to me that night that I can't explain." It was definitely cold; wind swirled and blew around the deck, whipping my pants around my ankles. "You said that you had been looking for me for hours, remember?"
"Yes." Wufei nodded, his expression serious. Apparently, that really shook him up.
"But I was there, in the library, that entire time. When I walked into the room, the door was unlocked. Unlocked, Wufei; I did not break into that room, nor did I lock myself in it."
"Of course not. It's always unlocked. But you had to lock it - no one else was there."
"I did NOT, Wufei. I did not lock that door-"
"Then who did?"
I took a deep breath, and then plunged. "I was talking to Treize most of the time I was there. Sitting in the library. I was sitting in the chair next to the windows." I felt the blood rush away from my face as I continued. "He told me - he started the conversation by telling me that you had asked him to preserve my life. I thought for sure he was going to kill me ..."
Wufei was staring at me. Something about his look made me think he was considering whether or not I had gone completely insane.
Tightening my lips, I looked right at him. "Wufei. I wasn't sure if I should tell you or not. I didn't think you would believe me - but he told me this BEFORE you found me. Do you remember, I kept asking you what you had asked him for? Do you remember that?"
"Yes, I remember," he acknowledged, nodding slowly. At least it put some doubt on the insane theory. "But Sally, Treize wasn't there. I saw him off."
My voice dropped to a whisper. "He told me that he had agreed to - to keep me safe. To do this for you. And when he came back ... and I was in the bath ... what did he tell you?"
" ... that ... he ... had decided I was right, and that it was necessary ... but he ... didn't say he was doing it for ME ..." Doubt crept into his tone; the way he said it let me know that while it wasn't explicitly said, Treize certainly hinted at it.
"Oh, he's doing it for you, Wufei. For YOU. That's why he agreed to let me come here. For you." I swallowed as more of the conversation in the library came back to me. What library? Why, his library - remember, in his private library ... during a storm not unlike this ... "He said ... he said a great many things to me ..."
Wufei frowned; his brow knit, his eyebrows drew together and he looked at me. Folding his arms across his chest he really looked at me, giving me a level stare as he analyzed every word I said.
My mouth was dry as I continued to talk. "He basically said - he wants you, Wufei. And not just as a plaything. He wants to be the one to take - whatever innocence you have - and mold you into what he believes you should become. He ... he has this whole idea of who you are, and who you should be. Oh, and he has this - this PLAN -"
I glanced at him. His expression was now a mixture of horror and disbelief; his eyes were wide and his mouth slightly open.
"- that's supposed to help bring all this out of you."
He was shaking his head from side to side as he took a step back. "Sally ... "
I reached out and barely touched his arm. "No, Wufei, please - please, believe me. Didn't you tell me on more than one occasion that you felt as if you were being molded? Manipulated? Pushed, in some way, into something? Tweaked a little here, shoved a little there?"
"I ... Sally, that ..." He pulled his arm back, looking like he believed me more than he wanted to believe me. "Sally ... that's INSANE. Completely INSANE."
Helplessly, I shrugged and stared back at him. "I know," I said quietly. "But it's true. He told me he has a talent -"
"NO one would think like that. It's just ludicrous. I'm ... gods. Why in the world would he even WANT to -"
"LISTEN to me, Wufei," I said, fiercer than I intended. "You have to listen to me."
He stopped speaking and looked right at me. Finally, I had his attention. Now I had to hope that I could do something with it.
"Treize told me, Wufei, that he could override the natural tendencies of anyone, no matter who they were. That means that even if you don't want to do something, he can MAKE you want to do it." I looked right at Wufei. "Do you understand what that means?" Gods, I barely understood what that meant.
He just stared with that face that kids at campfires get during ghost stories. I barely nodded at him. That was about my level of understanding, too. You really don't believe, not really; but you do enough to be spooked.
"And he - he did something to me." My voice dropped until I felt like I was whispering again. I forced myself to look at Wufei. He was silent, waiting for me to continue.
"He - he was speaking to me ... and suddenly, I realized that I couldn't look away from his eyes and that I couldn't move a single muscle. The only thing I could hear was the sound of his voice, and that was ... hypnotic. It was - awful - and exciting - at the same time." I took a shuddering breath, trying to gather my wits, to explain. "He ... touched me. And then he kissed me - and when that happened -" My face was burning and I couldn't look at Wufei any longer, but I forced myself to continue, "- it was like the world exploded. I - I had the most intense orgasm in my entire life."
After I said that, I did glance over at Wufei. Even though he appeared stoic enough to stand there and endure even this embarrassment, I knew he would prefer to jump into the sea and swim back to the island. It was obvious that he didn't want to know intimate details like that about me. At all. It was written all over his face. I sighed. Well ... live and learn.
"Um ... well. Right after that, I woke up, cold, wet and shivering on the floor of the library. I looked - I thought Treize was there, but ..." I shrugged, shaking my head. "The windows had blown open and it was raining ... and you were pounding on the library door, because it was locked. I - I was really stiff. I didn't know what happened, Wufei, I didn't. That door was locked, but I swear, I didn't lock it."
Wufei looked shaken, and his face was flushed. "It ... it's ... just ... It wasn't REAL. It couldn't have been REAL."
Exhausted, I rolled my head from side to side, loosening my neck muscles. "Look, Wufei, I know. I know. I've been over all this in my mind, too. But my entire body was shaking, and - and - I have no other explanation, other than what I remember. How else would I have known that you had asked to preserve my life? He was very specific about that, too -"
"I don't KNOW!"
" - he said, 'He has been with me long enough now to know better than to use sloppy semantics. This was carefully worded.'"
"Even assuming this was even CLOSE to being real -"
" ... yes? ..."
" - that doesn't explain anything. He let the others go, and he kept me. ME! The one he knew was worthless!"
I sighed. "No. We've been over this before. He found the others boring. He craves your mind, Wufei. You need to accept this, and accept it quickly. Simply because you find no worth in yourself doesn't mean HE doesn't find worth in you."
Wufei's face twisted for a moment. "Then he's an idiot."
I shrugged. "So, he's an idiot. So what? The fact remains that he wants you. Duo has an interesting take on this. He could tell right away that Treize wanted you just by the way he spoke to you."
"Wha - what?" Wufei stammered, blinking.
"Wufei, you can feel it. There's something around here that's not quite right. I'm not sure what it is, but it doesn't feel all the way right. I don't know how else to describe it. Maybe ... evil? I don't know.
"I wasn't myself today; you said so yourself. The longer I'm here, the less I feel like myself. I know, it, too, but I can't seem to do anything about it." I shook my head, frustrated. "I felt more like myself when I was with that horrid Duke Dermail and the rest of those nasty, twisted people from OZ. But I'll tell you, Wufei, I was angry at Treize. I was furious - he just dumped me in the middle of those people."
"He can't be what you say he is." Wufei was using his Rationalizing Voice if I'd ever heard it.
"Why not?" I hadn't really proclaimed Treize was anything, mind, but I was anxious to hear why he couldn't be what I hadn't said he couldn't be.
"Because his blood relatives are human. Therefore, he is human, too."
"Ah ... Wufei ..." I started, incredulous
"He IS human," Wufei interrupted, "he bleeds like one. I've cut him. Other 'things' don't bleed."
What on earth did he mean, 'other things don't bleed?' That was one of the most ridiculous things I'd ever heard. There are no ghosts, or supernatural things - but if he needs to believe that - hm ...
"Well, he could be possessed," I pointed out, a bit caustic.
Wufei snorted, but couldn't answer me.
"Plus, how many 'other things' have you seen?" I asked, looking at him with a skeptical eye.
"...... none." He looked positively pouty when he had to admit that. "But I'm sure you haven't seen them, either. You're the one who told me my wife wasn't in my gundam, remember?"
Feh. "Yes, I know that. And I'm certainly the first person to look for the rational explanation. But in the absence of any other type of explanation, I have to go with the one that presents itself."
Wufei snorted again. "I'd believe brain washing before this. It cannot be. It's impossible."
I didn't blame him for not believing me, but it didn't make things any easier for either one of us. "Wufei. I can't argue with you anymore. I can only tell you what happened to me, and what I've seen happen to you."
"And all of it has a rational explanation," Wufei said, looking stoic and grim. "I will ask him. Tonight."
We stared at each other as the wind howled around us.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I spoke first. My mouth was completely dry. "Wufei. If you do that ... I don't know what will happen. Do you believe he will tell you the truth?"
Wufei thought for a moment, gazing down at the deck. He glanced up at me, his look serious and intense. "Yes. If I phrase it correctly. Of course, he'll probably be disappointed I didn't figure it out, assuming ANY of this is real at all."
"Oh," I said weakly. Disappointed? What? I could NOT believe he was actually considering asking Treize whether or not he was human. "What if - what if - you find out that he IS some type of possessed demon, or something? Can you fight that?"
Gleaming ebony eyes met mine in a gaze that was knowing and aware. "I can't fight him anyway - it's moot. And if he IS, and would rather kill me if I knew, then he won't get to use me. Confronting him is the best method."
"Wonderful," I groaned. "What if he decides that he doesn't care if you know or not, and refuses to kill you? He'll have no compunction about killing ME, I can tell you that. I'm not the person he's interested in. In fact -" I stopped speaking and looked right at him. "Wufei. If he does try to do something to me, just to get you to agree to something else, you must promise me NOT to listen to him. Don't do it - don't listen to him."
I waited for Wufei to give me some kind of response, but he said nothing at all. Complete silence fell between us; the only sounds were the creaks and groans from the timbers of the ship, the moans from the wind, and the sighs and splashes from the sea.
" ... Wufei...?"
He refused to look at me; instead, shaking his head slowly from side to side, he finally rested his forehead in his hands. "What have I done?"
"What are you talking about? You've done nothing wrong. We're just in a situation with someone that we haven't seen how to deal with yet, that's all ..." Now I was baffled by his behavior.
"Indeed," he said, heavy and tired. "And if he is any of the things you say, then I have delivered you to a demon." He rubbed his forehead again, groaning. "What have I DONE ... "
"No, Wufei," I insisted. "It's better to know your enemy than to labor in ignorance - at least, that's what I think. I'd rather know my enemy, because then I'll know his weaknesses. Besides, I would have been dead if not for you. I was perfectly serious today. All those people on the ship wanted to see me dead, and told me so, to my face -"
"You would have been safe," Wufei broke in, laughing bitterly. "Women die around me, especially strong ones. Didn't you KNOW that?"
"I am NOT dead, nor do I intend on becoming dead anytime soon." I looked straight at him, trying to convince him. I had NO plans for that happening in the near or distant future.
"You would have been better off if you were, if you're right," he said, bluntly honest as always.
"Well, I don't think so."
He looked at me closely. "Sally. If all this that you've said is correct, then you HAVE no purpose here except to manipulate me. You are in a dire position, and you would BE better off dead ... if you're right."
"I ... know," I said, unhappy but unable to shake that odd, deja-vu feeling. "I feel that, sometimes ... but other times I feel ... odd. There's still something that I'm not ... quite ... remembering ..."
"What?" Wufei asked, a bitter laugh escaping his lips. "Something else? Yet another tidbit? Wait, let me guess. He's not a demon. He's the Devil himself?"
"Gods, Wufei, I don't know," I snapped, now out of sorts. "I'd tell you if I could remember, but ... I can't! And that's the point - I can't remember, and I don't have memory problems, don't you get it? Everything starts to go - well - fuzzy, for the lack of a better word ..."
And now he isn't even looking at me - he's looking at the deck, deep in thought. I sighed, exasperated, and looked over his shoulder, hoping to find SOME inspiration somewhere, at least to help clarify this explanation a little more. Instead, I saw huge, ominous black thunderclouds standing out against an already dark sky, dropping to the horizon. Those whitecaps had turned to waves, surging against the ship, and that small storm had turned into a black squall.
There was one hell of a storm bearing down on this ship.
Had I been a superstitious person, I would think it had something to do with future events - things that were going to happen later tonight, given what Wufei and I were discussing. Oh, but I was scientific and rational, and to my mind there was no such thing as predestination or the supernatural or ...
... or what was happening now. Gods.
"I will go and see him now." Wufei nodded decisively. "There is no use in putting it off." He turned to go back to the ship and would have immediately walked to Treize's cabin, except that I pulled on his arm.
"What - now? Wufei, please - we're out in the middle of the Mediterranean, and we have no idea how to defend ourselves against him - or -"
Lightning split the sky above our heads; for a few seconds, eerie, bluish white light burned everything on deck. Half of Wufei's face was thrown into shadow, while the other half looked sunken and resolute; thunder rumbled, threatening, several seconds behind the lightning.
"Defend? There is no defense, Sally. If anything you say is true, then we are caught in his game. Period. IF."
I felt stubborn, and tired, and scowled at him. "Wufei, you can't deny it. Something is happening, that's for sure. But I still don't know if -"
"No more of this. I will confront him." He cut me off, shaking his head and stared fixedly at me. "You will stay OUT of the way. I have endangered you enough."
"What are you talking about? I'm going to help you -"
"No - you STAY. OUT. OF. THE. WAY. " His gaze bore right into mine; he was uncompromising. "And get a gun, if you can. If you have to, you can use that as your way out."
To say I was shocked would be an understatement. But then, I should have expected that from him; really, it was completely in character. I blinked once and looked at him. "Ah ... okay, Wufei. I will."
"Good luck, Sally," he said, oddly formal, nodding to me. As I watched him walk toward the outer cabins, the ones with the doors that opened toward the sea, I found myself following several paces behind, trailing out of habit.
I started to say, "I can -"
He whirled around and hissed at me, genuinely angry. "No. Get inside!"
I backed off, raising my hands, and went directly to the main cabin. Wufei watched me the entire way, and didn't move until he saw me go inside and close the door. Then he took off and walked down the corridor with the doors of the outer cabins.
Toward Treize's cabin.
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