Aria's hand was icy cold as Heero held it gingerly, the cold biting into his own flesh. They walked through the park silently, being the only two people in sight as far as the winding path stretched between the woods and mounds in the chilly spring evening. A cool breeze windswept her long unbound locks as well as his messy hair, and ruffled both of their jackets. He watched her out of the corner of his eyes, as her own orbs wandered across the colorful sunset, face illuminated in the amber glow. She was so pretty, he didn't think he had noticed that enough. Despite her tough demeanor and training, she was never anything but gentle with him, and what did he have to give her in return? Nothing but pain. He had tried to love her, but it only brought them both more suffering. And yet, for some odd reason he could never understand, she had stayed with him.
His hand closed over hers tighter as he nudged her in the direction of a large pond, surrounded by the forest. She understood, and they both sat down on the grass near the water, facing the sunset.
He leaned his head into her shoulder and she lifted her hand to stroke his hair lightly.
"How was your day, Ari?" He asked quietly, attempting to make conversation on a neutral topic.
"Great." She mumbled sarcastically. "Kit and Duo were messing around, sending each other instant messages and ended up crashing half the network."
Heero smiled in mild amusement. "That takes talent."
"Yeah, no kidding. Eric and I spent most of the day just reconnecting the lines." She sighed. "Was it as bad in your sector?"
"I skipped work today." His voice fell once more, and she glanced down at him.
"Why?"
He didn't answer and she averted her gaze. "Oh."
Silence settled over them once more, yet Aria didn't take her hand away from his head, continuing to stroke his hair reassuringly.
He sighed, and scooped up a handful of pebbles, beginning to toss them into the water. Several of the birds that were taking a bath in the shallows flew off, frightened; another cocked its' head, as if giving him a questioning look.
Aria pressed a gentle kiss into his forehead.
"How's your head, baby?" she asked, remembering he had mentioned a headache earlier.
"It hurts." He mumbled, not taking his eyes away from the water.
The wind started picking up, becoming more biting with every blow. Aria put her arm around him, as if to keep him from freezing, and he leaned further into her.
"We should go soon." She said quietly, and he nodded as he continued to toss the pebbles.
His head ached painfully, and he grit his teeth against the pain. Her touch had been soothing, but it was gone now too, as she had moved her arm down to his waist. The agony was almost unbearable even for him, as the blindingly hot sensation split his skull.
Suddenly, in a fit of anger, he aimed the rock he had been holding directly at the bird that had been looking at him. A brief second after it left his fingers, the stone stroke the animal. It let out a high pitched cry of anguish.
Aria's dark orbs widened incredulously as she witnessed the scene. Heero Yuy may not have always been gentle with people, but she had never seen him be anything but kind to animals.
Heero's own expression immediately changed to a mix of guild, sorrow, and equal surprise at his actions. He blinked in confusion; he didn't know what had pushed him to act in such way towards a helpless animal. Prussian blue eyes softened in sorrow as the bird fell to the side, its' little legs kicked weakly as it attempted to stand.
Seeing his reaction, Aria stood, and firmly pulled him to his feet as well, guiding him away from the scene.
"Come on, let's go." She spoke softly as she continued to pull him away. He let her, yet he walked slowly, looking back after every few steps.
"Do you think it'll be okay, Ari? I mean, I didn't hurt it too bad, right?"
Inwardly, Aria wandered in confusion what had changed in him, but as she looked up, his blue eyes looked at her, pleading for reassurance.
"It'll be fine, Heero. Birds know how to nurse themselves back to health." Her grip on his arm loosened, as she attempted to soothe him into believing into something she didn't quite believe herself, but knew he desperately needed to hear.
They continued to walk; Heero's head hung low, staring at his feet miserably. Aria's heart ached at seeing him like this; animals were his soft spot for a reason she didn't know. Finally, she stopped and pulled him into a tender hug. He blinked in surprise, freezing for a moment, then hugged her back, his head laying onto her shoulder once more.
"It'll be okay, don't worry 'bout it." She whispered and kissed his cheek.
He nodded. "Okay, Ari."
It was late at night that Heero came back to the park, despite what he has said to Aria. His cold chest warmed at the thought of his girlfriend who was sound asleep back at his apartment where she'd insisted she was going to stay that night. He knew just as well as she did, that she simply didn't trust him to be alone - but he really did love her. He knew he did, and he hoped that she knew as well. A heavy sighed heaved his chest, him wishing he could just give his heart to her for a mere moment, for her to be able to see just what he felt for her. Despite everything, he was madly in love with her – she was his angel. The thought made him smile, wondering if anyone before has called Aria Svetlanovna an angel. No, trustily not; but to him, she was.
His thoughts interrupted as he crossed the small mound that led him to the lake where they had sat earlier that evening. The night was pitch black, the stars seeming to have dulled, and the moon only partially visible behind the dark clouds that the wind tossed angrily about the sky. The trees twisted and bent, their branches hitting and scraping together; the sounds of the forest suddenly seeming eerie against peaceful. Somewhere in the distance he heard wind chimes singing, where some teenager or tourist must've strung them up on a tree. He remembered Aria once referring to them as 'creepy lil' things'.
Stumbling in the dark over the grass and rocks, it only took him several moments to make it down to the lake and onto level ground once more. Hues of Prussian blue narrowed, as he surveyed the site. Seeing nothing, he was about to turn and leave, when a small black object near an area of low shrub, caught his eye.
In a few swift steps he kneeled next to it, eyes dying with sorrow as he realized it was the small pigeon – now cold and dead. It must've been trying to find some warmth in the leaves, he realized, as his hands gingerly picked up the corps. He had forgotten just how fragile living things were.
Rough fingers stroked the tousled feathers, on a body that nearly fit into a single palm of his hand. His eyes shut, as he remained kneeled in the dirt, as if expecting the bird to come back to life if only he held it long enough… only it didn't.
Then in a fit of anguish, he snapped the small body in half.
