Chapter Five ( Is Agog!)

Passions

By

Uplifted

Hiro stirred from the deep, intoxicating slumber that the drugs had gifted him for at least a few hours. He simply lay on the bed, reveling in the clean, crisp sheets, and the plain, white ceiling. His brain slowly came back to full function, and he glanced around his room, the actions and memories of the past few days catching up with him. His fists clenched, remembering the climactic end, and of Treize's final words. But were they final? Hiro sincerely doubted that the madman had died. Crazzies had a habit of not dying when they were supposed to, especially when they had the mutant power to control anything metal. Including him. Openly grimacing, Hiro's claws were unsheathed, and he stared moodily at the metal. His body had betrayed him, lending Treize the power to capture, and hold him. And another. Glancing around the room, his head lurched to find a golden halo of hair plopped on the bed, next to his chest. And the head was attached to a body. Grunting with the effort of getting up, Hiro sat up, then gently rubbed his wrists. After the jet, and the people who had rescued them, had landed in Manhatten it had taken two full hours of sawing, hacking and cursing to get the metal cuffs off his battered hands. He had suffered from two fractures, one in his left arm, one hairline fracture in a leg, and the bullet had to be dislodged of course. The doctor, he vaguely remembered, wanted him to stay in the hospitalized version of the large house, or manor, at least for the night. But he had refused, and looked instead to the blonde female, to whom he felt at least a bit known, having been cell mates for God knew how long. But his arm was in a plaster cast, the same could be said for his leg, and his upper arm was bandaged to the extreme. He would live. The girl, asleep at the foot of his bed, with her head propped against the mattress, looked far from comfortable, but it had been her decision to fall asleep there. He gingerly stepped out of the bed, and managed to walk to the window, where he could at least view his surroundings. He sheathed his claws, and glared at the happy sun, the freshly mown lawn blaring green at him. The garden was a bit hectic, but there was a sparklingly clear pool, white lawn chairs, and a large patio for outside recreation. The one called 'Ice-man' he recalled, was outside, reclining in a chair, and reading a thick tome. Several teenagers were swimming and/or playing in the pool, but he didn't pay any attention to them. Hiro was feeling a bit anxious, truth be told. He let nothing show, of course, but it had been over twenty four hours since they had arrived, and no host had yet to be shown, no one identified themselves as being their rescuer. It was a bit disconcerting.

"So you're awake."

Hiro turned at the words, his acute hearing registering the voice as that of the mutant with the fangs, and the long braid. But the cocky teenager wasn't talking to him. He was talking to the girl, who had, obviously, woken up. His gaze met hers, unflinchingly, until she turned to the Shinigami with a sleepy question in her eyes.

"H-hello…" She said said softly, and rubbed her eyes blearily. If her Matron had seen her, she would have been smacked. She straightened at the thought, and stood. Both of the escapees were exhausted, fatigued with their onslaught throught Treize's fortress, but Hiro more so. Relena didn't even know if she was a mutant.

"So, you guys wanna meet up with the Prof? 'Cause he's a pretty buzy person, running this whole school, and the founder of our little study group." He wrapped his arms around the back of his head and winked at the girl. She was pretty, in a way, and appealed to Duo. But Hilde would be furious if she caught him with these thoughts. He liked his lonely time, and she appreciated that, but the lies between them could break them apart in the end. He was, after all, a member of one of the most well-known superhero teams since the Avengers, though not quite as popular. Mutants all over were regarded as trash, as useless rabble that were the mistakes of Mother Nature. But the Mutates were there to see things through for the future generation, and that was where the hopes were pinned. Pulling himself back to the present, Duo grinned cheerfully at the silently injured boy, and the curiously inquisitive girl.

They followed him out of the room, and they were off, walking down the plush carpeted floor. Hiro barely limped, though he received plenty of stares. He glared back at many of them, and neglected to notice the interested gazes of several girls, a blue eyed-blonde among them. Relena's meek gaze was on the floor, a rather uncommon event for her, but the entire situation had sudden been thrust upon her, and she was too tired to try and pretend. She was exhausted, and alone. Everything familiar was at least an ocean's length away, along with a few thousand miles. But she snuck a sidelong glance at Hiro. His family (did he have one?) and his memories were all millions of miles away, orbiting the Earth. The thought strengthened her weakening resolve, and she walked the rest of the way, head held high. Duo glanced back, to see how the two were hold up under such strange conditions, and was met with a happy surprise. His fellow students, who usually couldn't contain themselves, were all wary, staying away. Maybe it was the dangerous glare that Hiro was sending, but Duo also fancied it was the very poised and lethal walk of the rescued mutant.

"C'mon guys, Prof never likes to wait, I should know." He called over his shoulder, and then the three had turned a corner, and disappeared around a corner.

Meanwhile, in the office the three were walking to, Milliardo was pacing. Just seeing her unconscious form was enough for him to stiffen in concern, it was almost a repeat of his loss of Lucreazia. A loss of one, a welcome of another. But could it really be…? His musings were stopped short by the click of a lock, and the opening of a door handle. Duo was cheerfully opening the door, and talking animatedly to the girl on the other side, when all three walked into the room. Hiro looked detached, almost bored by his surroundings, and Relena stared paitently at the blonde man. Duo lounged on one of the chairs that was situated next to a wall, evidently to watch the proceedings. Milliardo cleared his throat nervously, and sat down at his desk. The overall impression of the room helped his reputation as a stern task master, with the soft wooden chairs, comfortable yet simplistic, a few green, potted plants that needed to be watered, and bookshelves that were stuffed to the brim.

"Welcome to the Peacecrafts Institute of Encouraged Excellence. Of course, I realize that you've been through a lot in the last few days, but now, you can finally have a bit of peace." His raspy, warm voice was balm to Relena, sandpaper to Hiro, who recognized the military command beneath the teacher's voice. Yet, he stayed calm, and settled in to his standing position, waiting to hear the offer. But his attention was also caught by the birds, and the natural grass, the blue sky.

"My name to you is Professor Marquis, though some prefer to call me simply, the 'Prof'." He said with a sideglance to Maxwell, who grinned. "As you probably already know, this is an establishment for the freedom and prosperity of mutants. We help runaways, we train them to understand the power they've been gifted with, and sometimes, we invite them to join the task force that we - I – have assembled over the years. The Mutates help abroad, in outer space, and even on the earth. This is the home base, but we're not the only mutant organization, as I'm sure you already know. Treize, the self proclaimed master of magnetism, formed the Brotherhood, a collection of mutants with the intense hatred for humanity, those that scorned them. I'd like to say that it's completely different here but I'm not entirely naïve." After he said this, a rueful grin slipped off his lips, his icy eyes sorrowful. "I'd like to see us as the light, and he as the darkness, but even he has some point of truth on his side. Well, I'm getting off topic here. I know it's sudden, but we'd like to offer an invitation to join our Institute. Treize is after you. I know," he held up a commanding hand when Duo started to protest, "you believe he died. I know better. He's out there somewhere, and wherever he is, you are important to his plans."

"But why?" Relena cried out, interupting Milliardo's speech. "I'm not even a latent mutant, the X gene wasn't detected when they tested me at birth, and now you're telling me that some genious criminal mastermind is after us. But, there's no reason for him to be! Why does he want us?" In the silence after her sudden outburst, no one spoke. The emotion behind her words had gathered tears to her eyes. She was only sixteen, had only been that old for a few days at the very most. And…did her father know where she was? She couldn't speak, and just turned her head, allowing her fallen hair to hide her face.

"We don't know his plans yet, but we're working on that," Prof said, his icy eyes chipping at the tears in hers. How long had it been….? He mentally shook his thoughts away, as he focussed on the three that demanded his attention.

"But we extend an invitation to stay here, to let us guard you. We will ensure the propriety of this school to whatever parental figures, and at the same time, insure your safety, and education." The last bit was added wryly. He was sure school was the last thing on these young people's mind. Relena was still in her battered uniform, though Hiro had been given a tee shirt, and sweats.

"Why is Treize collecting mutants, unless to command an army of them?" Interupted Hiro, a shrewd look on his face as his gaze swept to Milliardo's. Relena stared at the two, and sank into one of the plush armchairs in front of the teacher's desk. No doubt there for troublesome students, like Duo. Hiro's intent gaze never left Milliardo's, but he knew the whereabouts of everyone in the room, especially the girl. Like it or not, he had formed some sort of connection with her. And he didn't like it. She was a complete stranger, even though there was a slight pull to her that he felt no obligation towards. Perhaps things would explain themselves in time.

TBC

Author's Note: I realize this is the shortest chapter, but not to fear, it's only the first part! It was a bit long, so I decided to split it up. I'm so sorry! . Part Two will be out fairly soon, and in the meantime, I need you, the reviewer's help.

What sort of romatical pairing are you interested in? I'm personally not a fan of 1x2. I don't write it, nor do I read it, but that's simply a matter of choice. I think it takes a brilliant author to pull such a relationship off, that's all. So… Should it be HiroxRelena? Or someone else with our mysterious maybe-mutant. And if you guess which mutant she is, you can have a plot cookie! (By which meaning, if you want a particular scene, you tell, and I'll write! ))