Golden Lights Part Fifty One

By SilverLady

Quatre was still mentally preparing lists of what he would need in his head, his fingers twitching unconsciously with the need to write things down, when the door to the room opened.

He noted the way Heero immediately looked towards the figure lying on the bed and braced himself to argue with Heero about allowing him to try and make Duo better.

Taking a deep breath he rose to his feet and bowed to the two men. "Master. Lord Heero. I hope everything is all right."

Trowa looked at his blonde slave. "The knife wasn't Duo's. It was similar but not the same."

"She lied, Master?"

"Yes."

"I am glad of that. I had feared that she had found a way to steal it, even though she did not get the chance to use it as she claimed."

Heero barely glanced at the blonde as he brushed past him and settled on the bed next to Duo. Reaching out he began stroking the long braid that lay on the bed beside the sleeping form. "When are you leaving?" he asked, his tone indicating that he didn't particularly care when that was.

Trowa frowned. He knew that Heero was very concerned about Duo, but he had hoped that his friend would not mind if they remained here to help.

Quatre turned. "He was awake for a few moments, Lord Heero."

Heero looked up in surprise. "He was?"

"Yes. He… he made me promise that I would stay here until he was well. He thinks you should not be alone." He looked at the man asleep in the bed. "I do not know what you have done for him, but…" Quatre paused for a moment. "I do not mean to intrude, but I want to help. My people had several cures for ills of the lungs, which were a common occurrence. I can tell that he is having a great difficulty in breathing because of fluid in the lungs. I know of several treatments that will ease his breathing and help to get rid of the fluid. I also know of ways to introduce medicines and fluids into the body when the person cannot keep them down normally."

Heero glared at the blonde. "What makes you think that you can do any better than the doctors that have already been here? They said they could help but they've only made things worse."

"I feared as much. They do not know with what they deal with. My mother and eldest sister were healers for my clan and taught me much of what they knew. As I said, aliments of the lungs were common among my people. During the Delmin there were many days were it would rain without end. Plus we would seek shelter in the caves up in the mountains that were often cold and damp, making colds even worse. So over many years the healers developed ways to treat these ailments. They have become very fine tuned and work quite well. I would like to try them on Duo. I think they will help where other treatments have failed."

He looked Heero straight in the eye as he talked; trying to convey all the confidence he could into the look. He knew that Heero would reject his plea if he showed any sign of doubt or weakness.

Heero glared at Quatre as he gathered Duo's sleeping form to him. Could he trust the blonde to know what he was doing? If well trained doctors seemed unable to help his ailing lover, what made one mere slip of a boy think he could do anything? But as he listened to Duo's labored breathing he knew that he would do anything to save him, even trust a foreign slave's word. "You think your potions can work?"

"I have seen them work in the past. Yes, I think they can help. If you trust me to do what I need to do."

Heero looked over at Trowa. "If you fail, I will make you regret ever laying eyes upon me."

Trowa nodded ever so slightly at the statement. If something were to happen to Duo he would not try to stop Heero from meting out whatever punishment he demanded, no matter what he felt about the blonde personally. This was between them.

"I understand."

"I'll give you five days."

Quatre nodded. Hopefully he wouldn't need that many days to bring about an improvement. "Only if it is understood that you do not expect him to be fully recovered in that amount of time. He has been sick for a while. Even the Great One would be hard pressed to make him completely well in that time."

"As long as I see signs of improvement."

"And you will not interfere with what I do. Some of the treatments can be a bit rough for those who are not familiar with them."

Heero glared. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"One thing that must be down is that we have to get him to expel the fluid in his lungs. There is a treatment for that but it will seem…. Painful. He will have to breathe in a mist of special herbs that with loosen the mucus in his lungs and cause him to cough. The coughing will help expel the mucus but it can be a rough, painful process."

Heero looked down at Duo. He'd done enough coughing already, in his opinion.

"I would not do it if it was not necessary."

"What else are you going to do?"

"My sister taught me a poultice that can be spread on the chest. It will help ease the irritation and also help to loosen the mucus. Plus I know of a way to get medicine and fluid into his body without him having to swallow it. I would say by the look of him he's not been eating properly."

"He started throwing everything up after the last doctor gave him some medicine."

Quatre nodded. "There is a danger of him becoming too dehydrated if the nausea continues. A body needs water as well as food in order to continue functioning. I can insert a hollow needle into the vein in his arm that is attached to a tube. The other end of the tube is attached to a bag of water and medicine. As long as it is carefully watched there is no danger."

Heero closed his eyes. Could he really do this? Put the life of his soul mate in this boy's hands?

Quatre stepped forward and placed his hand lightly on Duo's head. "He is my friend and I will do everything I can to make him well. I do not wish to loose him, either."

Heero looked up and saw the conviction in those blue-green eyes. "Do it. Make him well," he whispered.

"I promise."

Quatre turned to look at Trowa, who had remained near the door during the exchange. "Master, I must return to the city to get the things I need. Would you please come with me?"

Trowa saw Heero start a little at the announcement, though he had been expecting it. He doubt if Heero would have the things the blonde would need here. "Of course. The sooner we go the sooner we can get back."

Heero nodded slightly. "Take two of my horses. They'll be fresh."

"Thank you." Quatre bowed to Heero before heading for the door.

Trowa was about to follow when Heero called his name. Turning, he looked at the two figures in the bed. He hoped that Quatre knew what the hell he was doing. "Yes?"

Heero reached over and pulled a bag from the bedside dresser. "Take this and use it to buy the things he needs." He tossed the bag at Trowa, who caught it deftly. "And…"

"We'll be back as quickly as we can," Trowa promised. Turning he followed the blond from the room.

Heero sighed as he held Duo tighter. "Please don't let me have just made the biggest mistake of my life."

Trowa watched in amazement as the blonde slave blew through the bazaar, gathering the things he wanted and haggling fiercely over the price. He had thought the boy had been quick and efficient when preparing for the trip they had made, but it was nothing compared to the whirlwind that he had apparently brought back to the city with him. Even though Trowa thought some of the shops they had stopped at had seemed like strange places to get medicines; Quatre seemed to know exactly what he wanted and wasted no time in procuring those things.

What had surprised him was that Quatre had asked to stop to the office of the doctor that had treated Duo while in the city. He had not explained his reasons, but he had come out of there with a large bag of things.

In a short amount of time they were back at the estate. Trowa was surprised that Quatre didn't head straight for the master bedroom, but for the kitchen instead.

Rummaging through the packages of purchase Quatre pulled out a small bag. Turning he handed it to Trowa. "Go upstairs and see that there is a fire going in the room. Place this bag in fire and don't mind if it starts to smoke. I'll be up soon."

Trowa blinked but nodded. Heero had agreed to let Quatre do what he wanted and Trowa wasn't about to argue.

"And don't open the windows," Quatre called after him.

Remembering the glare and lecture he had gotten for bursting into the room before, Trowa knocked and waited for Heero to tell him to enter.

He was surprised to find the two, not in the large bed, but sitting in a chair near the fire. With a slight sigh he moved across the room and tossed the small bag in the fire as he had been told.

"What the hell was that?" Heero demanded.

"Don't have any idea. He told me to put it on the fire and not to mind if it smoked a bit." Almost as if on cue the bag began to smoke, sending an interesting smell into the room.

"You didn't take very long."

"Well, the blonde whirlwind is a sight to behold. Those vendors never knew what hit them. He blew through there so damn fast I swear he didn't even leave tracks."

"Where is he?"

"He headed for the kitchen. He didn't say why, so don't ask."

"Do you think…?"

Trowa heard the unasked question. "He certainly seems to know what he's doing. I do know that sometimes the simple remedies are the best. And if they've been dealing with this for as long as he implied then hopefully they've gotten it right." Trowa looked at the sleeping figure in Heero's lap. "Has he been awake?"

"Not really. He does seem to breathe a little better like this but…. I don't know. He barely even knows I'm here anymore."

Before Trowa could say anything Quatre came into the room, carrying several bags and a large bowl. The bowl he sat on the hearth next to the fire and the bags he brought with him.

Heero watched silently as he pulled several lengths of metal pole from one of the bags and began to set it up.

Quatre had decided to stop to the doctor in the city and see if had heard of the method of helping get fluids into the body. To his great relief, the man knew exactly what Quatre was talking about and had all the equipment he would need. He'd even given Quatre a quick lesson on how to do it right, something Quatre was grateful for even as he assured himself that he had remembered everything correctly.

Working quickly he set up the stand next to the chair. For now, Duo would be fine where he was. It only took him a moment to get the bag of fluid set up and ready, something else the doctor had given him. These bags of ready made fluid were much better than the ones his sister had used.

Giving Heero a small, confident smile, Quatre carefully pushed back the sleeve on Duo's night shirt, exposing the arm. After determining where the vein was, he carefully slid the hollow needle into it. After taping it down to insure that it didn't move, he carefully attached the piece of tubing to it and prepared the drip, being careful to see that there were no air bubbles in the tube.

After he was certain he had done everything correctly he stepped away. "Don't let him move that arm around too much or he'll pull the needle out."

Heero eyed the strange contraption with trepidation, but nodded slightly. He had agreed to this.

Quatre smiled to himself as he turned to the bowl he'd left by the fire. Please Great One, beloved sister, ancestors, guide my hands. Lend me your knowledge, so that I may make my friend well again. Give these simple herbs the power to rid him of his sickness and let him heal. It is not his time to take the Great Journey, for I know there is still much for him to do. Bless me and answer my humble pleadings. Grant me the strength to prevail.