Part 13
"What happened?" Duo asked, cradling the cup.
"You had a death vision," Minako explained quietly, "you passed out, you've been out for about an hour."
Duo frowned and took a mouthful of the liquor and then burst out coughing. "What's this stuff made of?"
"Apples," Minako answered, "mostly."
"You could run a vernier off that stuff." Duo said, taking another mouthful.
"How do you feel?" Heero asked from behind him.
"Rotten, and this stuff tastes like something died in it," he held out the cup for Minako to refill.
"The doctor says that it's shock and you're to stay in bed for a few days." Minako said, replacing the cup with a bowl of soup.
"Don't think so." Duo answered, "I'm a gundam pilot and I'm a soldier, I'm fed up of this being weak malarkey, I have fought with broken limbs and head traumas and I won't let the memories of one massacre prevent me from doing it again." He scratched his head, "Heero, you're actually comfortable, can you believe it?" He moved the spoon around in the soup obviously with little appetite, which disturbed Heero more than he wanted to let on. "I've seen massacres before, I was even there for one, I'm not gonna let a little death vision of children stop me."
"There were children?" Heero asked.
Duo nodded and pushed aside the soup, "I'm not hungry." He said, "I could really do with a bath though, I kinda feel dirty."
Minako smiled, "I'll get Dieina to send up a bath and someone to help you with it, and I'll see if I can find Terenz on my travels." She reached over and kissed Duo on the forehead, "get some rest, my little senshi." Then with a smile at Heero she left the room.
Duo wriggled himself free of Heero's embrace and poured himself more of the liquor. "What really happened?" He asked Heero.
"You collapsed." Heero answered, "I was with Mamoru at the time, the opera singer Josian came running looking for the both of us, he had already fetched the Lady Minako and Lord Terenz, master Tobin was looking over you." Duo looked at him with huge purple eyes. "To make sure nothing else happened, he is the one that put you to bed, Lady Minako suggested that I join you so you would not be alone when you woke, she said that my skin touching yours would give comfort." Duo nodded, draining the cup with a cough. "Is that stuff really that strong?"
With an impish smile Duo handed him the cup and refilled it, Heero drained it in a gulp then pulled a face. "Space," he said his eyes watering. "Apples," he said, "mostly." He handed Duo back the cup, "Lady Minako had an argument with Mamoru." He said, "I was caught up in it through no fault of my own, he believes that she is tryign to throw us together, and I must admit that I share the idea."
Duo shrugged, "She must have a reason, Mina's not the kinda person to do it just for kicks."
"Their argument was strange, they spoke softly, they did not want me to hear."
Duo grinned, "but super perfect soldier ears heard anyway."
Heero nodded, "she asked him to kill her, I think it is the nature of the pairing between Tennosha and Senshisha that they end in this manner, it seems that Lady Minako's mother was killed by her father, and that the Senshisha oath is simply, no sword shall kill you unless it be mine." He frowned. "I would not kill you, Duo, so I wonder if I would be the best choice to be your Senshisha."
Duo looked at him for a moment in bemused wonder, then burst out laughing. "I know you won't kill me," he said, standing up and rolling his shoulders, "and you can be my Senshisha if I want you to be, even if you don't kill me. Couple more of those visions though and I might want antidepressants." He gave Heero his best and most winning smile. "But, I mean how many people live through massacres like that, I can't imagine it happening again, and as long as I'm careful, I mean I thought about this last night when I went for a walk, but didn't pay too much attention to myself and took Tobin's hand anyway, how was I to know that was lurking under his skin, I mean I got nothing when he slapped me."
"Duo," Heero said, "shut up."
"Are you jealous?" He asked.
"No," Heero answered stiffly.
"Really?" Heero was saved from having to answer by the entrance of a maid in a shimmering brown tunic.
"Milords," she said with a bow, "I am Otonna, I was led to understand that you had requested a bath."
Duo blushed to the roots of his fair hair, "umm, it's all right, I can bathe myself."
Otonna laughed, "I am here to draw the bath, this is not Dramathen, our guests are often capable of managing their own toilet."
"Are you related to Primaverra?" Heero asked, "because you look like her."
"I am her sister." Otonna said, opening one of the doors, she was smiling, "she has told me all about the both of you. I am one of the maids that serves Lady Minako." She lowered her head but her grin was wicked, "and what Prima hasn't told me you can guarantee Lady Minako has."
"I am sure that the Lady Minako is prone to exaggeration of our virtues." Heero said, standing up.
"I don't know," Otonna said with a distinct leer, "I've always had a thing for young Senshi." She laughed at Heero's look of panic.
"You're more of a tease than Prima." Duo said with a smile as she went into the other room to draw the bath, "you won't put shiny things in my hair, will you?"
"Certainly not," Otonna said, "Lady Minako said that Lord Terenz said that you were to stay abed, and it's hard to do that with "shiny things" sticking you in the scalp." From a shelf she lifted a large bottle and unstopped it, taking a deep breath. "Rose oil?" She asked. Heero growled. She lifted a second bottle, "Frankincense." Seeing as Heero didn't seem to care for that one, she put it back, the third was treated in the same manner, "roasted almond?" She asked, "no, that's a little sickly." The last bottle was a misty blue, "when in doubt there's always old faithful," without even smelling it.
"What is it?" Duo asked hanging over her shoulder. "Oh, that smells lovely." He took a deep breath.
"Camomile and rosehip," she answered, "it's made specifically for the queen but Dieina always sticks a few bottles of it away."
"Won't she mind?" Heero asked.
"Of course not, if she had have minded she would have taken it out. Now, strip, lad, into the bath with you and I'll wash your hair for you." For a whole second Duo looked worried. "Come now, I have bathed Lord Mamoru, Lord Tobin and even Lord Alister, do you really think that you have something I haven't seen before," she stopped, "unless Lord Terenz has told you that you do." Her look was so impish and naughty that Duo burst out laughing and then peeled off his trousers before climbing into the warm bath.
There were two small pumps in the room, one for hot water and one for cold and she filled a brass ewer and before she poured it over his head she undid the braid in quick deft movements, humming. Heero recognised the tune but he could not have said from where. "Are you going to come in and sit on that stool?" Otonna asked him with a grin, "or perch in the doorway and left the draught in, come in, lad, come in." Heero did as he was bid as she held out a bar of soap for Duo, "it's made of orange and cinnamon so it smells kind of sweet," she said, "I'll use it on your hair." She lifted a second bar.
"Heero, I think I've died and gone to bath heaven." Duo said under her deft fingers.
"Will you be wanting a bath as well?" Otonna asked with a smile. Heero was dumbfounded. "I have sons older than both of you," she said, although she looked no older than Une, "and part of me wants to just hug you both until you cry out mercy, but I won't." She went back to humming as Duo almost melted into the water.
"What is that song?" Heero asked suddenly.
"It's a lullaby." She answered, then sang a few bars, Angels live, they never die, Apart from us, behind the sky, They're fading souls who've turned to ice, So ashen white in paradise." She gave him a winning grin, "I sang it to my boys when they were babies, it's just natural I suppose." She filled the ewer again to wash out the soap, her tunic was almost soaked through. "You're so going to enjoy yourselves at the day of the dead, I was with Lady Avili last year in Dramathen, everyone dresses up and there's a huge party in the Dairai, and you can dance with the empress and Lady Minako hosts it, and the children go veiled and knock on doors and ask for sweets. It is a wonderful festival, I wish they had it in Dathyl."
"Sounds like Halloween." Duo murmured.
"Its the day the doors are opened to the dead." Otonna answered, "everyone enjoys themselves and gets very drunk, and well, as family of Meirin you'll be right in the thick of it, the both of you, and maybe if he can be persuaded Tobin will sing there, because he's only allowed into Dramathen on Day of the Dead, and the Jesuel do the sacred dance of the nine veils."
"The who?" Duo asked, barely catching the word.
"Jeseul," Otonna answered, "they're the emperor's concubines." Duo nodded as if that made sense, "they're the nine loveliest women in the empire, intelligent, educated women, but then again all Hentai are."
"Pardon." Duo asked.
"Hentai." Otonna repeated the word, "It means artisans, they're courtesans."
Duo was laughing as he stepped into the sheet that Otonna held out for him, "in our world, that's not what it means."
"Baka," Heero murmured under his breath, glad that Duo was finally acting like himself again.
Author's Note:
Otonna is Primaverra's oldest sister, the baby of the family is Hivara, not that it really matters, but I'm starting to set up the day of the dead and all three maids go too.