Disclaimer: I in no way own Gundam W or AD&D. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.
A/N: More kudos to those who can identify all the Gundam W character cameos in this one as well! I was loopy and having fun when I wrote this all those years ago. (sheepish little laugh)
A/N 2: Yep, you guessed it. /magical spell/
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Quatre sighed softly as he slid out of the warmth of the bed. Casting a quick glance around the room, he scowled, noting the lack of clothing that was readily available.
"Just rode into town without thinking of stopping in the bazaar, neh? Fabulous."
Sighing softly, he walked over to the small cluster of clothing that laid beside the occupied cot and lifted the tattered mystical forest green cloak from its depths. Tossing the soft fabric article around his shoulders, clutching it and cuddling himself in its warmth, he nodded as he sat heavily down on the edge of the bed. Reaching out with a slender, steady hand, he lightly brushed the heavy waterfall of brown bangs away from Trowa's sleeping face, smiling lightly as the acrobat snorted and muttered in his sleep.
"Neh, wake up."
Trowa responded by grabbing his pillow and rolling over.
One eye twitching in annoyance, Quatre clenched his fist. A few tense moments past before he sighed again and simply crawled fully onto the bed, grabbing the other pillow as he crawled towards the long, lank naked figure that occupied it as well. Taking that pillow, he lifted it over his head, dire intent flashing in his aquamarine eyes.
Then he put it down beside his companion, shaking his head. "Hmph. Probably still tired from last night, aren't you? Very well then. I'll let you sleep."
Another small smile captured his lips as he leaned down and placed a tender kiss upon the sleeping man's cheek.
"Wake up soon, dearest acrobat. I'll be waiting for you downstairs."
Clad only in his cloak, the diminutive blond snuck as silently from the room as he could, his pale feet padding quietly along the dark wooden floor panels.
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Quatre slid onto the bench beside Wufei without a word to acknowledge his presence, carefully holding his cloak closed to preserve his questionable dignity in the public common room of the small Inn in which they were staying. Waving at a passing barmaid, he smiled brightly before ordering his breakfast.
"I'll have whatever's available," he said brightly, sending the young lady on her way to check the kitchens.
"That's odd, VonWinner. Usually you order a medium rare steak, their finest mead, and two chicken eggs cooked in pork fat over easy."
Glancing sidelong at the Easterner, the blond shrugged. "I feel like doing something different today. Something simple."
"I see."
Leaning back on his bench, Quatre closed his large blue eyes. "I... haven't really gotten the opportunity yet to thank you."
Nodding, Wufei crossed his arms on the table, similarly waiting for his meal to arrive, relaxing in the warmth and the soft swirl of gentle auras that were present in the common area. "It was nothing that we wouldn't expect from you. Consider it to be nothing of concern."
"Oh really?" Arching a brow, the blond frowned slightly, opening one eye.
"Really. After all, you are dear to Trowa. As what may be considered to be significantly more than a friend to one of my dearest companions, I was obligated to assist you in this matter."
"But it wasn't for any reason other than the fact that Trowa's fond of me."
A smirk taking his lips, the warrior shook his head. "You're quite mistaken. It was for many reasons, though the fact that Trowa loves you was the foremost that drove us to accomplish what we have done."
"Really? What other reasons do you have for rescuing your tormenter from his fate?"
"Simple. To apologize."
Quatre stared at his companion, eyes large with surprise.
"For not attempting to understand your situation. For refusing to open my eyes and see you for what you are, but rather focusing on how you were behaving and judging you entirely off of your bitterness towards the world. For not thinking critically enough concerning your mannerisms and figuring out that you're no Noble's son earlier. For that, I apologize, Quatre."
"Hmph. Did I ever tell you my name? Or give you permission to use it?"
"Does it matter?"
The smaller man scratched his chin before smiling shyly. "I suppose it doesn't."
Wufei nodded. "If nothing else, I'd like to begin anew. Perhaps, may I dare suggest it, as friends."
Quatre stared at his companion for a few moments. "Why?"
"Because it's driving me crazy that our first opinions of one another were developed under the cloud of hatred and bitterness. Leaving that cloud behind as one leaves the area in which the storm is most powerful and vicious would be beneficial to us, especially as a team."
"Team?"
"You intend on staying with the acrobat, do you not?"
As two plates were set before them, Quatre simply stared at his food as Wufei lifted his knife and stabbed at the pork cutlets that laid upon his wooden platter. "Stay with him..."
"Because you've finally learned to love him."
"Where did you ever come up with that?"
Chewing, Wufei nodded before swallowing and washing his mouthful of meat down with a gulp of mead. "It's visible throughout the makeup of your aura, Quatre. A strain of coloration that doesn't belong in the cloud that is a Solar. The tinge of gray touching the feathers that craft your psionic signature."
Quatre stared.
"You're delving into the realm of mortal emotion, Angel. You've fallen in love."
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Duo shook his fist at the door before yelling, "And if you fail, I'll have every one of your damned heads on a pole arm! A pole arm stuck up in the middle of town and set aflame to deliver your accursed souls to Cyric, where they belong!"
Clearing his throat, Wufei smirked. "Duo, I hardly think that's appropriate."
"Fuck appropriate," the mage huffed, turning on his heel and plopping down with a thud onto the steps of the temple he'd just been thrown out of. Hugging his knees, he sank his face into the basin his arms formed and sulked. "They better bring my Hee-chan back."
Trowa arched a brow, standing silently behind Quatre, hands resting easily at his sides, thumbs looped into the rope that held his breeches upon his slender hips. Green eyes blinking, he set his gaze onto the closed temple doors and nodded. "I see."
The blond sat himself next to Duo, easing down to rest right beside the braided mage. "It'll be alright, Duo. I'm certain that Heero will be more than willing to come back, knowing the anguish he's causing you."
"That is if that fucker's paying attention and not just tra-la-laing around in happy land with Tempos smashin' shit till kingdom come."
A lighthearted laugh met Duo's ears. "He wouldn't be with Tempos yet. The judges that sit before the gates of Mechanus and those portals that lead petitioners to their eternal dwellings are so backlogged in souls that it takes mortal months for anyone to pass on to their resting grounds."
"You're kidding."
"Nuh uh. I've seen it."
Duo smirked, shaking his head. "Sure you have."
"You all have admitted it yourself. About what I am, I mean."
Sticking his tongue out at his blonde companion, the mage chuckled. "I'll believe it best when I see it. Till then, it's simple speculation."
Both Quatre and Wufei huffed before turning their gaze as one to the temple doors.
"Neh, neh! What is it? Do you sense something?" Duo chirped immediately.
Wufei nodded.
"They've begun."
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Heero sighed quietly, moving forward yet another step in line. "How long is this going to take, you suppose?"
The man standing before him shrugged. "Some say weeks, some say months. Some say that to us it doesn't matter, as time has no meaning after death. Such is the way of the afterlife it would seem; no such thing as a straight answer exists any longer."
Nodding, the warrior frowned. "So, what happened to you?"
"I was murdered quite some time ago by a young warrior, much like yourself. I'd been part of a team of mercenaries that had assisted the Red Robed wizards of Thay in destroying a few small villages in the territories that surrounded their country."
"An evil act," Heero muttered, his eyes narrowing.
"I suppose so, but the cause that they'd presented to me seemed just. I was simply hoping to manipulate their forces and turn them to fight for my own causes."
"Really."
"Freedom for the populous under a strong, just ruler who would see to their needs rather than enslavement to a tyrant or life without the steadying force of a stable governmental system. Such is the way it should be. I thought that the Red Wizards had a decent plan, but simply needed some guidance in winning the approval of the people."
"So you sided yourself with demons?"
Chuckling, the man shook his head. "No, no. The demons were quite the surprise. I had expected them to utilize mercenaries such as myself, but not the darker forces from the Lower Planes. But they did what they did, they hurt who they hurt, and we all paid the price with our blood."
"How long have you been here?" Heero asked quietly, arching one brow.
"A couple years, I suppose."
"Why so very long?"
Shrugging, the older man sighed. "They can't decide where to place me. In life, I followed the teachings of Tymora, our lady of luck. However, both Tempos and Cyric are fighting over me - Tempos for the simple fact that I followed his teachings in the last years of my life, and Cyric for the evil path I followed with the mercenaries I fell in with." A soft laugh flowed from his throat, as he shook his head. "You shouldn't experience this problem, I do hope."
"No. I followed Tempos to the death. I died in combat with a Death Knight in a psionisist's dreamscape."
"A fascinating way to die."
"Indeed."
As the two conversed, a heavy hand landed upon Heero's shoulder. Turning, the young man stared, his blue eyes huge upon his tanned face.
"You are being called."
"You're..."
Folding his giant white wings back, the tall humanoid standing behind Heero nodded once before opening dark azure eyes that shone brightly from his pale face through the soft falls of platinum blonde hair that cascaded about his head. Turning, his soft white toga rustling in the ethereal breeze that flowed through the Plane, his straight-cut waist-long hair swaying slightly between his massive wings, he lifted a finger, pointing towards the huge whorl of dark black shadow that stained the otherwise pristine and bright environment. "You are being called to return, Heero Yuy."
Frowning, Heero shook his head, bowing apologetically. "Forgive me for being rude, especially before a Solar, but I've no longing to return."
Straightening his stance, the winged angel shook his head. "You do not have to go if you do not wish. However, do remember those who you will be affecting by disobeying the call of magic. Your mortal friends, your mortal lover..."
Blinking a couple times, hearing the cursing that seemed to be ringing not only across planes but was also muffled by passage through what was very likely a thick temple door, the warrior stared. "Duo..."
"We can make your afterlife miserable if you do not complete your task, warrior. You are not only abandoning that person who's very life depends on your love and acceptance, but also that person who has yet to be freed to return home."
Heero turned his attention to the Solar. "You mean Quatre."
"I mean our brother who is still in the bonds cast upon him by the archmagus who summoned him. If we had the ability to cross into the Prime Material at will, his captivity would be a moot point and his freedom would have already been achieved."
"You can not cross?"
"If he perishes, his spirit will rend the rift that holds us bound to the Astral, the Ethereal, the Inner and the Outer Planes. We will enter your Prime Material world and seek revenge. However, without that rift being breeched by the magical energies that will be released with his spirit, that barrier holds us at bay. Such is why you mortals are tasked with this."
Frowning, the warrior sighed. "I didn't realize we were tasked with sending him home."
"You have been since the moment you met him. Such is the desire of fate."
"And if I do not return? I grew to tire of life. I will miss Duo, surely, but... but he will join me."
Slowly spreading his giant wings, the corporeal angel turned, his brow furrowed with the beginnings of anger. "We can not cross into the Prime Material, but we can cross any extraplanar field you may believe yourself capable of escaping to. We will make your afterlife an eternity of pain. Especially considering the selfishness you are willing to commit your soul to."
Leaning over, the older man with whom Heero had spoken whispered, "I'd go back. If not for the task to which you've been appointed, at least return for the one you love. Such is heartless, to force your loved one to continue alone in the realms of the living when you've the opportunity to return."
Heero sighed softly, staring at the field of black.
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"It's been four hours," Duo groaned miserably, poking at the dirt at the base of the steps upon which he sat with the end of his staff, drawing aimless little pictures in the dust.
"Maybe there's problems," Trowa quietly suggested, calmly balancing three daggers upon his fingertips.
"Nope. Just waiting for him to make a decision, I'll bet." Quatre smiled as he lay beside Trowa, sprawled over the steps, staring as the acrobat added yet another sharp, pointed weapon to his already impressive display.
"He'll return, Duo. Have no worries. If I know that moron as well as I do, he'll not leave you behind," Wufei said, his voice soft and comforting.
"But he's a selfish prick at times," Duo whimpered.
"Most times, but not all. This probably won't be one of those instances," Trowa said with a careful shrug, placing his final dagger upon his thumb and offering a small, shy smile of satisfaction.
"If he does try and refuse, he's going to have his ass blasted to smithereens all over the Outers," Quatre commented after applauding Trowa's stunt merrily.
"Meaning that your brethren are going to be after him to answer the call of the /Ressurection/ spell?" Wufei asked.
"Why would Solars be after him?" Duo questioned, arching a brow.
"Why indeed," Trowa snorted, clenching his fist and quickly catching every falling dagger with his left hand before any blade could dare come close to striking the ground beside him.
"Because you all have been tasked," Quatre clarified.
"Tasked?" Wufei said, arching a brow.
Duo remained silent for once, simply shaking his head as he stared at the temple doors.
"Tasked how?" Trowa asked, resuming the circular conversation.
"To free me. My brethren are very likely pissed that one of their numbers is being held upon the Prime against his will," Quatre said with a merry little grin and a nod. "He'll return simply because he's going to be forced to, if he doesn't do so out of his mortal love for Mr. 'I am Shinigami, hear me roar' over there."
"Oh really," Wufei grunted.
"Really!" Quatre said.
"I was supposed to speak next," Trowa said with a chuckle.
Sticking his tongue out at his thieving lover, the blonde sniggered. "I don't care."
Their discussion was ended with the creaking of the temple doors sounding behind them. Duo was already on his feet, staring expectantly with wide, frightened blue-violet eyes into the shadows that extended into the ancient building, even as his three companions stood beside him, brunette assisting the blonde to his feet and the raven-haired warrior making his own stance easily.
As the brown-haired warrior slowly and stiffly made his way from the temple, he was swiftly introduced to the hard resistance of the ground as he was buried underneath a black-robed, chestnut-haired, sobbing mage.
Lips parting in a vague smile, Heero gently entwined his fingers in the flowing mass that was his lover's hair, holding his head firmly to his chest. "I missed you to, dearest."
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The small company swiftly galloped down the road as evening descended, making quick time through the forests east of the Shining Plains.
The last of their money having gone for one more horse and Duo's magic having brought yet another riding steed into reality for a short time, they were attempting to make the best use of their time to continue their eastward journey towards Cromyr and the promises of riches that still laid in that vast kingdom.
"Tell me again why we didn't get me any clothing," Quatre snorted softly, clutching Heero's cloak still around his lithe, naked body as he sat cradled in Trowa's arms upon the horse's bare back, barely keeping his place with the rocking of the steed's gait by holding himself flush to the acrobat's body.
"Because we agreed that it was either another horse or clothing, and a horse was more important. You agreed to that as well."
Quatre grumbled quietly under his breath.
Immediately picking up the cue to clarify their earlier discussion, Trowa smirked. "Because Heero's still weak from the effects of dying, and you're still under the weather from being tortured by that lich."
"We could've bought clothing, conjured one steed, and left Wufei on his own. He can fend for himself."
"You're the one who said that his psionic strength was comparable to that of a newborn maggot."
"Oh yeah. I did say that, didn't I?"
Wufei simply snorted from his position on the company's newest horse and shook his head. "You made your own cot, Quatre. Sleep in it."
"Bah!" Snuggling against Trowa's chest, he sighed softly. "At least we could slow it down..."
"Are you uncomfortable?" Trowa asked, concern suddenly flooding his voice.
"A bit."
Pulling the reins of his horse, Trowa quickly shouted for his companions to slow.
Turning back, Duo whimpered, "But my spell won't last that long!"
Nodding, the acrobat sighed. "But Quatre is worn. And Heero doesn't look much better. If your spell times out, then we'll stop for half an hour to allow you to study your magical incantations and cast it again."
"We'll practically be defenseless," the mage sighed.
Snorting, Wufei shook his head. "Thank you ever so much for your vote of confidence in my abilities, Maxwell. I'll remember that next time we're in a Dead Magic Zone surrounded by Brain Moles and all that functions is my sword, alright?"
Ducking his head sheepishly, Duo giggled. "Sorry. Forgot about the fact that you can use that thing. Just getting pretty customary for you to blow shit up with your mind these days and for Hee-chan here to hack away like a gunther-esk warrior."
Duo wilted as two sets of eyes, one Prussian blue and the other Onyx, focused scathing glares upon him.
Their argument in full swing, they never saw the attack coming until it was too late.
As the air suddenly sang with arrows hurled from the bows of bandits, Trowa found himself thrown to the ground, having been viciously tossed from the back of his horse. Wufei's horse reared and whinnied in fear, even as its companion steed foamed and staggered, the poisons soaking the heads of the arrows that laced its hide seeping quickly through its body. Duo and Heero swiftly dropped from their conjured animal, leaving the magical horse to stand unattended as they dashed into the woods.
The woods suddenly burst into seering hot fire thanks to Duo's swiftly hurled Fireball spell and the screams of the dying filled the air, emerging both from flame and from the vicinity of the quickly wielded dagger of the warrior who hunted more out of rage than out of necessity.
Wufei quickly glanced about the area, searching and scanning with what little mental energy he had remaining. As Duo and Heero made surprisingly short work of their foes, he dismounted, leaving the skittish animal to dance in its place on the road as he rushed to Trowa's side to check upon his companion.
Finding him to be stunned from the fall but otherwise alright, he turned his head to face the fallen steed.
Immediately, Wufei was at the side of the small blonde rider of that downed animal, roughly pulling arrow after arrow from his thin, uncovered body, his blood-covered fingers shaking as they desperately sought the presence of a pulse.
tbc...
