Title: The Ancient

Author: Shinigami's Minion

Pairing: 2x1 maybe 3x4 (not sure yet)

Warnings: AU, angst, vampires, blood, OOC

Disclaimer: As much as I love Gundam Wing its characters do not belong to me. However, the other characters that I have mentioned do.

Feedback: Yes please review. I'll be very grateful

I'd like to thank Nat for reading through this for me and correcting all my little mistakes!!

Tyleet88 – I know you wanted me to update soon and I am so sorry I didn't. I hope you are still following this.

J3551 – Thanks so much. I really do appreciate your review and I'm glad it was able to touch you!!

Andrea Trout – Gomen for the long wait. Hope you like this chapter

Duenna – I do love a vampire Duo hehe. Sorry for the long wait. Hope you enjoy.

Yume2x1 – Thank you so much for your continuing support!! It has really motivated me to keep on going. I'm glad you've come back to reading my fic and I hope the long wait hasn't deterred you any!!

Demonskid – I know I deserve all I get!! I need to learn to be stricter when it comes to my writing!!

Ozzypoos – Thank you for all your support over what has been a long period of time. I have promised myself I will not leave this story unfinished and it is people like you who really help me to get through my moments of writers block. I'm sorry again for the really long wait but hopefully I will finish this within the next two months.

Solemn Flight-Tormented Fae – Dr J and Yama aren't related but I have to agree that they have their similarities!

CircleKV12 – Thanks for your support. Heero being the key in the prophecy had been decided ever since I stated writing this. I thought it was a nice little twist to add.

DemonicKat – To find out what happens you'll have to keep reading. Who knows what kind of ending there will be. Maybe it will only be the beginning.

Ashly – I'm sorry the prophecy was confusing. I hope it becomes clearer. If not let me know and I'll explain it to you. Sorry for the long wait.

/thoughts/

"Speech"

//telepathy//

change in scene/passed time

Chapter 27

Duo paced back and forth in front of his father, thinking through all he had heard and trying to find any contradictions in what he was just told. All his life, he had been brought up with the highest expectations because of this prophecy and now he finds out that all he had been through was for nothing. To make it worse, the prophecy is about his lover and not only risks Heero's life but those of his entire race. It just couldn't be true.

"Father, there must be some kind of mistake. Surely if the prophecy spoke of Heero, we would have known sooner?"

Arlos could understand what his son was going through and he wished he could reassure his son, but he knew that what he found was true and no amount of wishing would change their fates.

"I'm sorry, son. I have read through everything over and over, and I can still only draw that one conclusion."

"Well, what is it talking about when it says two great beings of light? I have never heard of such things."

"From what I have read, it can only be talking about God's holy creations: His angels."

"But I've met Heero's parents when I was younger and they were both very much human. (1)"

"In order for the angels to have their children, they would have had to take the forms of humans. They would only return to their angelic form once they die. That would explain why to you they would seem human. I am truly sorry, son. I know you wish it to be different, but there is no denying what is said. This just makes our need to find Heero even more urgent."

"What are we going to do?"

Duo sighed and sat down on his bed. He just couldn't believe it. There had to be some mistake. There just had to be. If not, it meant Heero was in a lot of danger and he was no closer to finding the location of the hidden Shadow City. Covering his face with his hands, Duo was fighting the rising panic and despair. He felt the bed shift and an arm being placed around his shoulders.

"Do not fear, my son; we are all working as hard as we can. Now that we know Heero is the child of prophecy, it should make it easier for the seekers to locate him. If my guesses are correct, we will find him by tomorrow and we can set out after the sun has set."

Duo turned hopeful eyes to his father, wanting to believe what he was saying but it was difficult. How could one change in prophecy suddenly make it easier to find a person who seemed to have disappeared from the world? The reassurance his father was showing, however, was hard to let go. If his father said they would be leaving after the sun sets tomorrow, he knew that is exactly what would happen. Turning to his father, he gave a small smile.

"If that is the case we had better give the seekers this new information and prepare for our departure tomorrow."

Both father and son stood and made their way out of the room to make all the necessary preparations, both praying that their predictions would hold true.

Shadow castle

Heero's eyes snapped open. He could feel another presence within the room, moving closer and closer to his bed. Try as he might he could barely move, his muscles stiff and remaining uncooperative with his mind. He could feel the panic beginning to rise and all he could think about was what had happened earlier that day. He turned his head slightly and was able to glance at the bed next to him, but was disappointed to see that it was empty. He was alone with no hope of someone stopping the approaching figure. Perhaps Yama was so mad that he had sent someone to punish him for his insolence. To add to his worries, he couldn't understand why these feelings felt so familiar, as if he had faced countless punishments before. But surely if that were the case, he would be used to this feeling? Perhaps it was due to the fact he couldn't move that his panic kept increasing as the mysterious figure now stood over him, reaching out towards him. Heero shut his eyes tightly as he felt a hand placed on his shoulder, expecting the worst.

"Hush Heero, it is only me. There's no need to panic."

Heero blinked opened his eyes and stared into familiar, kind blue eyes.

"Zechs?"

"Yes, sorry I startled you."

Heero continued to look up at Zechs, his confusion clearly displayed, and his eyes asking why Zechs had been sneaking around their room.

"I know you're confused but I'll explain myself in a moment. Firstly, I need you to trust me and drink this."

Zechs slightly lifted Heero's head and placed a cup to his lips, urging Heero to drink. Though Heero was unsure, he knew he could trust Zechs. Slowly he opened his lips and began to drink whatever Zechs had offered him. He could feel the thick, warm liquid flowing down his throat. The more he drank, the more of himself started to feel alive. His muscles weren't as tense and he found he could move by himself. Moving his arm, he grabbed Zechs' hand and pushed it away.

"Wha…what did you give me?"

Heero wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and he could guess from the slightly coppery taste left in his mouth what he had been given. He could feel tears building in his eyes; he couldn't believe Zechs would betray him like that. Zechs sat on the bed, pulling Heero into a hug and rubbing circles on his back, trying to calm him.

"Shh Heero, its okay. It's not what you think."

Heero jerked out of Zechs' arms and glared at him. "How can it not be what I think? I may not have drunk blood before, but I'm not stupid either. I know what it would feel like to drink it! How could you give me blood!? I thought you were my friend and that I could trust you."

"Heero, you need to quiet down. Let me explain, please."

Unsure of what to believe anymore, Heero moved to sit more comfortably. "Fine, explain." His tone of voice told Zechs that his explanation had better be good.

Zechs sighed. "I had no other choice. I had to give you blood or you would have done exactly as Yama had said. A vampire who does not drink blood to keep him going will eventually go into a blood lust, which would lead to even more people dying than necessary. I know you won't be able to live with yourself if you caused the death of one person, let alone the death of a few dozen. On top of that, your strength would slowly seep away and, like tonight, you will barely be able to move."

"But that still doesn't give you the right to go against my wishes and give me human blood!"

"It wasn't human blood." Heero looked at him confused, so he continued, "Vampires do not need to drink human blood. Yes, it is better for us as it makes us stronger, but we can sustain ourselves on animal blood and that is what I gave you. I know you wouldn't want to hurt another so that was my only option. I didn't want to see you suffer, especially since I have to train you more vigorously. I truly am sorry, Heero, but I really had no other choice."

Heero thought about all he was told. /Is it okay for me to be drinking animal blood? I guess it's better than the alternative/ He shuddered at that thought. He couldn't imagine what he would feel after killing many innocent people, taking away their lives without a thought just because he couldn't control his lust for blood.

"I guess its okay since it wasn't human blood. I'm sorry for doubting you, Zechs."

"It's alright. Sometimes I find I doubt myself."

Heero lifted his eyebrow at the softly spoken words. "How can you doubt yourself?"

Zechs laughed softly. "It is quite simple really. I have made many mistakes in my life that I am constantly questioning if what I do is right. The one thing I am glad I was able to do was to help you. If not for you, I don't know if I'd still be here."

Heero was shocked to hear this. He didn't think he could play such a role in the older man's life. "Why wouldn't you be here, Zechs? Please tell me why I'm so important? I can barely remember anything and what I do remember is blurred, with hardly any similarities to what I've experienced since I woke up."

"You are very important. Why do you think Yama is training you so hard? If not for him I would have taken you away from here so you wouldn't have had to see what you did. Damn that man!"

"If you hate him so much then why are you here? Why haven't you left already?"

"That's a long story, but in the end it was all because I had no choice but to stay."

"Please tell me, Zechs. I want to know why you make yourself suffer. I can feel that you are like me in many ways, trapped and leading a life you wish you weren't. I want to understand."

Zechs closed his eyes and took a deep breath, memories of long ago resurfacing. "It started a long time ago, before my sister and I were turned. We lived with our parents in a small house near the beach. It was so peaceful and when I think back on it all I have are happy memories of that place. But then one fateful day I came home to find that my parents had been bitten by vampires and left to suffer in their final breaths of life."

Zechs had to pause here as tears began to from in his eyes. He could still see it in his mind, as if it had only happened a few days ago. He could still picture his father clutching onto his mother's hand as they both lay in a small pool of blood, leaking from the many bite marks found on their body. They were barely alive as he knelt beside them to find out what had happened.

"They had been ambushed. There were so many of them that there was no way they could have escaped and as they took their last breath, I promised I would protect Relena. It was their dying wish for me to keep her safe and for her to never know how they had truly died. I kept the details from Relena and thinking back on it, maybe I shouldn't have, but I couldn't betray my parents' trust in such a way. She was away with a friend at that time so I told her our parents had fallen ill and passed on. We both grieved, but after a time I thought we had moved past it. How wrong I was."

Thinking back on those moments, Zechs remembered all the subtle changes that began to appear in his sister. He should have paid more attention to them and maybe he could have avoided what happened. However, there was no changing the past.

"At first Relena seemed to be her happy self, but as time went on I started to realise how different she had become. She started looking into dark magic and became so consumed with it that she isolated herself from all others. She became so consumed that she made herself ill, but she still refused to give up. I was so worried she would die and that I was failing to keep my promise to my parents. Then he came and everything went from bad to worse. He had heard of what Relena had been doing and was impressed by her knowledge. He had offered her the gift of immortality so that she could pursue her passion without the worry of death."

When he had learnt what Yama had offered to Relena, so much anger had begun to build within him. He never understood how his sister could talk to such a vile creature, let alone consider becoming one. "I tried to talk her out of it. I came so close to telling her what had really happened to our parents, but I just couldn't break my promise. So that eve he came back and that began my sister's life as an immortal. When I realised that he would be taking her away with him I tried to stop him, but a mere mortal is nothing compared to a demon like him."

The pain he had felt on that day tormented him still today, yet that was not the worst he had to suffer. "As I lay close to death he could feel my hatred for him and his kind, so to make me suffer he turned me too. I never wanted this curse and each day I damn Yama for giving it to me. I stayed here with him in order to protect my sister, but there really was nothing left of her to protect. To me, my sister had died the day she accepted this vile curse and the monster that she became was something I could ever love. I wouldn't have survived if I had stayed by myself and besides, Yama had other plans for me. I lived each day following the orders of my Master, not because I respect him, but because I am chained to him through this curse. The only gift he has ever given me is the pleasure of getting to know you. When we are together I feel as if we are kindred spirits. As you have said, we are connected in many ways. To me you are the only thing left for me to live for."

Zechs felt relieved as he ended his long speech. Having spoken about his past after such a long time really was affecting him, but he wouldn't dwell on it for long. He had spent a lot of time getting past what had occurred and learning to live his life as best he could. His heart did feel lighter, however, after letting go some of his burden and being able to share it with someone he knew truly cared for him regardless of what he was. Heero was finding it a little hard to digest all that he heard. He had felt despair within Zechs but he hadn't realised how deep it had been. To be forced to endure being the one thing you despised for all eternity, he didn't think he would be able to survive that.

Smiling softly, Heero hugged Zechs. "I'm glad I gave you a reason to live. I don't think I would have survived staying here if I didn't have you with me."

Zechs returned the smile and placed a soft kiss on Heero's forehead. "You had better get some rest. You have a tough day tomorrow and remember, none of this happened."

Stifling his laugh, Heero watched as Zechs moved towards his own bed before he lay back down. Closing his eyes, Heero was able to sleep peacefully, the images of earlier that day no longer plaguing him.

TBC

(1) Since it's been so long I wonder if anyone can remember who Heero's parents really were. A cookie if any one can guess. Although there was a huge hint!!

SM: Well as promised the long, long, long awaited next chapter!!! From this I can say they will only be another 2/3 chapters and then it will finally be finished. Hopefully the next chapter will be up within the next two weeks.

Duo: It had better be!!!

SM: Of cause it will be Duo-sama. If it is not there will be hell to pay.

Duo: Damn right!!

SM: I hope all my readers are still reading!! And feel free to comment!! They make me smile -