Duo POV
I wasn't surprised to wake up with Heero curled in my arms, asleep. I was, however, a bit surprised that we were not in our own bed, but instead in a small bed behind a curtain in the medical wing.
In a second, the night before flashed before my eyes and I remembered everything that happened like it was some kind of nightmare. It was odd, then, that the thing I was worried most about wasn't the fact that I was supposed to be dead, but how Heero was. I tossed the blanket off us both, startling the heck out of Heero, who jumped and blinked sleepily at me. I ran my hands over every part of his body... okay, almost every part of his body, to assure myself that he was mainly unharmed. I ran my hand over that last part because I felt like it, and because I hadn't gotten any since the battle started and being in bed with him made me damned horny. Too bad Heero wasn't having any of it, pushing my hand away with a cheeky grin. I probably would have pushed a bit more, but my formerly forgotten wound was starting to protest.
"Are you finished?" Heero asked as I dropped back against the bed with a relieved sigh.
"Well, I wouldn't be, but this wound is making it a bit hard to grope you."
"You're not worried at all about how you survived an otherwise fatal situation, are you?"
"Eh, sure, whatever," I said, stretching until movement made the wound in my chest protest loudly. I laid back and pulled Heero back into my arms, where he belonged, ready for some sleep and snuggle time. Heero laughed, curling back into my embrace.
"Wufei managed to kill Noventa. Apparently, the soldiers we were fighting were not alive, they were corpses that Noventa had enchanted to fight for him. When Noventa died, his spells began to wear off, from the soonest one done to the last one done. Luckily for you, the soldier that stabbed you was one of the last batch Noventa created," Heero said, his voice becoming thick with emotion as his arms tightened around me, "I almost lost you..." he whispered harshly.
There was nothing I could do but hold him, rock him a bit, as he clutched me and started to cry. Pretty soon, I was crying to, remembering how close I had come to losing him. So we both just sat there and bawled like babies until we fell asleep in each others arms.
We awoke hours later, though I'm not sure how long after the actual battle it was. For a long time, we just lay there together, basking in each other's warmth.
"So," I asked quietly, "what's the damage?"
"For you or me?" he asked, smiling softly.
"You, silly. It's not like I got hurt at all," I teased sarcastically.
"I received bruises, cuts, and contusions on forty-six percent of my body, along with a sprained wrist from dragging your lifeless carcass over half a mile of warzone."
"Ah. You poor baby."
"And you managed to get a sword thrust into your chest, half an inch away from both your heart and your lung, almost bled to death in the middle of a battle, and gave me a heart attack."
"So I should be out of bed and running laps by this afternoon, eh?"
"You, love of my life, are going to endure the same amount of pampering and coddling that I was forced to endure when I was sick."
"...You're trying to kill me!" I shouted, in a mixture of both teasing and real fear. I remembered how much I had babied Heero when I first found him. Perhaps I had been... a little over zealous. Heero smiled evilly at me.
"Oh no, you're not getting out of it that easily."
"Well," I said with a lecherous grin, "I should at least get a last meal before I face my fate. And I think I want to eat... you!" I said, grabbing Heero. "Aw fuck!" I yelled as my chest decided to scream in agony. Heero waited until I had calmed before laughing at me.
"I suppose that was a good enough warning not to try anything too... physically demanding for a while," Heero said, smirking at me. Bastard. My life was going to be hell until I was healed, I could tell already.
"So," I asked, "How's everyone doing?"
"Wufei's exhausted, but Treize is working on that. Chase was scared out of his mind, but Treize and Wufei are both having some family time together to get him over that. Quatre and Trowa seemed to be having some sort of fight, but, by the sounds coming from their room last night, they seem to have made up. Dorothy and Relena are leaving sometime after next week. Relena wants Dorothy to get used to her country before getting Zechs to up their links. Une and Sally have both been pretty busy with cleaning up the war, but they've moved into the same room so they see more of each other than before anyway. Une's been sending scouts out to look for more of Noventa's troops, but none of them have found anything so we think his corpses were all he had. The construction crews around here have been working like mad. Treize wants to have Chase's coronation next week, so guests will start arriving soon. He also wanted to name you and Quatre godparents, leaving Trowa and I godparents by linkage. He'll be glad you're awake, everyone was getting worried."
"How long was I out?"
"Almost a week."
"Really? Wow, I must have really got knocked one."
"Yes, you did. And don't you ever do that to me again. You almost gave me a heart attack."
"Gee, Heero, you really do love me, don't you?" I teased, trying to lighten the mood that had gone serious.
"Yes, I do," answered Heero seriously, ruining my joke. He pulled me in for a kiss, but I pulled away soon after.
"Oh hell no! We do not cruelly punish the ill! You know I can't do that right now but you tempt me anyway! You're bad, Heero!"
"I know," he said, smirking as he kissed me again. Why fight it?
We parted soon and Heero, thankfully, insisted I go back to sleep. Which was a plan I wasn't adverse to, since I was still exhausted for some reason. My next awakening was to the sound of Heero entering the room. His arms held a tray of food and my stomach growled at the sight of it. I ate voraciously, consuming almost everything Heero placed in front of me. I felt a bit weak and made a mental note to ask Heero just how bad a shape I was in after dinner. Unfortunately, I fell asleep immediately after eating and didn't have a chance to question Heero.
The next day also consisted mainly of me eating and sleeping. Sally came in and gave me a check-up, then declared me unlikely to die in the next twenty-four hours and allowed Heero to take me to our room instead of that cramped little hospital bed. I was grateful for that, because I was still a little shook up from the battle and needed the safe and familiar surroundings of our room. I think Heero needed that too, because he took me straight from the check-up back to our room and put me to bed, not letting me out of his sight for the rest of the day.
The day after that consisted of what seemed like and endless parade of visits and naps. It seemed that the only time I was able to sleep was when some guest was finally leaving; I only woke when one was entering. Quatre was the first to visit, Trowa in tow, both looking happier than I had seen them in a while. Quatre had told me of his inability to let his barriers down for Trowa, but by the way they interacted and the small, secretive smiles they shared I was pretty convinced that, if they hadn't already solved the problem, they were well on their way.
Wufei and Treize stopped in next, physically holding back the over-concerned Chase. Once Chase was able to see that I was alright, and all body parts were present and accounted for, he relaxed. Apparently he had overheard some soldiers saying that, "Duo would never stay down for more than a day unless someone had cut off some limbs." The look on Treize's face assured me that said soldiers would be getting a lecture on watching their mouths when around children.
Relena and Dorothy stopped by briefly to wish me good health and ask if there was anything they could do, but Heero herded them quickly away, seeing that I was still weak and tired from my wound.
Une stopped in after the three had left and Sally met her here not much later. Those two, thankfully, only stayed long enough for Sally to give me a check-up and Une to brief Heero and I on the military situation, then they left me the hell alone. I was glad, because I was feeling about ready to die from exhaustion. I think Heero realized, because he let me sleep through dinner, something he didn't often allow, and saved my food for when I was ready for it.
It wasn't until the next morning that it occurred to me that I hadn't seen Master O since before the battle with Noventa. When I asked him if Master O was alright, Heero was oddly reluctant to reply. He sighed and put down the report from Une that he had been reading, then came over and sat at the bottom of the bed, taking my hand in his. I was not getting good vibes from this move.
"Duo... I don't know how to say this. Master O... he didn't make it. Noventa stabbed him with a poisoned sword... There was nothing Wufei could do."
"Oh," I said, still not really feeling the affects of this knowledge but understanding that master O was gone none the less. "Is he... Where was he buried?"
"Wufei... Master O wanted to see his brother before he died, so Wufei orbed him back to China."
"So... he could still be alive?"
"Duo..."
"I know, I know, the chances are slim, but no one saw him die, so he might still be alive, right?"
"Don't get your hopes up. If Master O had survived, don't you think he would have sent us some kind of signal? Do you really think he'd let us grieve like this?"
"...Maybe he's hurt, like I was. Maybe he needs help. I'm just saying, if none of us saw it, maybe it didn't happen."
"...Perhaps we could take a trip to China, to say our final farewells."
"Really? You'd do that?"
"Yes. I think it would be good for everyone. Wufei, particularly, is having a hard time letting go. And it would be good for Chase to see some of his father's country before he takes over this one."
"Alrig- Ow! Ah hell, that hurt!"
"I think we'll have to wait until a week after the coronation at least for your wound to heal."
"Alright, I guess."
"And we're only going if Sally clears it. If you aren't healed by then we'll push the trip ack further."
"Alright, alright. Now be quiet and let me go to sleep so I can heal faster."
The next week flew by. On the fifth day Sally cleared me for a flight attempt to see if I'd be able to fly for the trip. Sally and Heero stood on the ground as I took a ten minute lone flight before I got tired and had to come down. It didn't seem like much, but it was actually good progress, even though I had to take a nap afterwards.
The day after that was Chase's coronation. I'm not sure how other countries did coronations, but it was set up like this for Chase:
Treize and Wufei stood side by side at the front of a hall that greatly resembled some kind of chapel. Treize wore a decorative crown on his head and Wufei held a golden scepter that marked him as sorcerer though he occupied the Queen's chair. Both looked extremely regal in their decorative outfits, both made of a dark ruby material, though Treize's outfit had more gold and Wufei's included a cape. Treize was on the right and Wufei was on the left. Heero and I stood to the left of Wufei, both of us clad in our formal uniforms, and Quatre and Trowa were dressed likewise on the right of Treize. There was a deep red carpet leading to the door and royalty from almost every country stood on either side of the carpet. The crowd was squawking excitedly, like a flock of hens, but I didn't let it bother me. Not even the fact that Heero was standing an inch from my back, afraid I would fall from all the excitement, could keep me from beaming in happiness.
There was a small noise from the back of the room that silenced all the other noise instantly. The great doors swung open revealing a dwarfed-looking Chase, standing nervously outside the room. I felt kind of bad for the kid, standing there looking like he was about to faint dead away right there in front of us. I saw Tieze and Wufei share a worried look, but neither could get up to help him. He would look like an incredibly weak leader if he had to be helped through his coronation. The attending royal would give no leeway for the fact that he had never, until ver recently, been in a situation like this. They would see him as a weakling, easily frightened and overpowered, which would be a very bad impression for a leader to deal with.
A band started somewhere in the building, blasting loud trumpet music through the room. Chase jumped a bit at the loud music and stumbled as he tried not to miss his cue. The fancy clothes he was in must have made Chase feel even more out of place, but Treize couldn't allow his heir to show up in common rags. The small sword at his side kept getting caught in his feet, making Chase stumble even more, but he eventually found a rhythm to his walk and stopped looking clumsy. He seemed to have gained a bit of confidence as he came to the end of the rug and knelt, the trumpets dying away with his movement.
Treize rose regally, then took a small gold crown from a pillow mounted on a stone table next to his thrown. It was an impressive crown, small, but ancient, though I'm not really sure what family it originally belonged to or where Treize got it. Either way, it looked magnificent sitting upon Chase's dark blonde hair.
After that Treize and Wufei escorted Chase over to a large balcony, under which stood almost every peasant in the entire city, all come out to get a glimpse at their new prince. We four godparents followed behind the happy trio, acting as protective uncles to the new prince. A name which I had no doubt we would all live up to in the coming years.
From there we went to, of course, the celebration. It was a party that the palace had never seen the likes of before, so elaborate were the decorations, entertainment, and food. Which annoyed both Chase and I to no end when we had to leave early as the people who loved us didn't want us to stay up too late. Although, I must admit, it was a bit understandable for Heero to want me to go to bed, since I did fall asleep and almost drown in the punch bowl.
It was then that I realized that I probably hadn't been paying enough attention to Heero. I mean, with the planning for the coronation and everything I had managed to fill up most of the time that I wasn't sleeping for the past couple weeks. I mean, I hadn't even realized Heero had hurt his back when he was in the battle, which he revealed to me that night when helping me up the stairs. I felt really bad about not giving him the affection he deserved, especially after everything he was doing for me. I promised to correct that mistake when he went on the trip and spend as much quality time with him as I possibly could. Heero like to fly, maybe I could fly him over the ocean and show him the dolphins that always followed me when I stuck my tail in the water.
The next day Heero insisted I sleep in late because of all the ruckus the night before. That afternoon we called a meeting between us and our little group; Treize, Wufei, Chase, Quatre, Trowa, Une and Sally. We explained what we wanted to do and Treize agreed that it would be a good idea to let Chase travel and see a bit of his country and that we could end the trip with a visit to Master O's family. Quatre and Trowa both agreed to go though it was necessary for Une to stay behind and maintain control of the castle. Sally decided that she had far too many patients to leave now, but wished us all a safe journey.
And so Treize and Une began to make preparations. Wufei was left to create a route for us to go by, and Quatre was left to contact all dignitaries and alert them of our movements. I was given strict orders to rest and regain my strength, orders that Heero was determined to see that I carry out.