Title: The Devil Has Blue Eyes
By: Aina Song
Fandom(s): Gundam Wing
Genre: Yaoi (with some Het thrown in)
Rating: PG-15
Warning(s): Contraband; Fusion; Language; Death; Murder.
Pairing(s): Heero/Quatre (constant mentionings of Het pairings)
Reviews: Yes, please.
Author's Note: (I'm afraid my usual Disclaimer will not be enough this time, so bear with me.) I, Aina Song, hereby acknowledge the illegality of the following fusion fiction, which is based very thickly upon Clara Wimberly's The Jeweled Heart of Rosemont Castle. I do not claim any rights or privileges her book may have earned her, nor do I claim credit for the book itself. This fanfiction follows her plot almost to the letter, with few changes tossed in here and there, but I must again press that it does so without the explicit permission of Ms. Wimberly, her editor(s), or her publisher(s). This fiction was not written for money; I do not profit from this in any way, shape, or form. Please excuse the illegality of it all, and I do hope my own readers will try to look past my unlawfulness and enjoy the fiction nonetheless. Thank you.
Teaser: He did not care that he was the lost heir to a winery fortune - especially since he couldn't remember that earliest piece of his childhood. He only wanted to reclaim the family that had been kept from him. But there was another who was determined to unmask him as an imposter. And, at the same time, a strange cold presence stirred again at his return, anxious to finish what it had started so long ago…
Chapter Thirteen
He ran quickly to the main part of the castle and stopped in the entry hall. Relena and her mother were there, along with Heero and Wufei. "Have you found her?" Quatre asked, knowing by the looks on their faces that they hadn't.
"No," Relena said sadly. "She's quiet now. Heero is afraid she's hidden somewhere without much space or air." There was an agonizing little sob in her voice as she expressed everyone's fears.
Quatre shook his head, hopelessly. "This is my fault. I should never have urged her to play the game, or tried to make her feel better by telling her what a good place she would find to hide in." He sank down on the bottom step of the staircase.
Missus Darlian stepped toward him. "That is not true," she said softly. "You were only being kind. Besides, I told her the same thing, so you can't accept all the responsibility."
He looked up at her in surprise, but she had moved away. Missus Darlian was always moving, and seemed always to have an efficient air about her.
"Blaming ourselves won't help," Heero spoke up. He was spreading large sheets of paper on an empty hall table.
As his fingers moved over the paper, Quatre felt an eerie sensation of having been in this particular spot before, even of having seen the papers that Heero perused.
"A-are those… the plans for the castle?"
"Yes," Heero answered, still studying the papers and not looking at him.
As if in a daze Quatre stood and stepped to the table, looking over Heero's shoulder. His eyes fell immediately to a rounded portion of the castle, and the blond knew it was the tower. Visions of a round room seemed to swim before his eyes. He could see it as clearly as the plans on the table.
"What room is this?" Quatre asked, pointing to it.
"The library," the darker man said thoughtfully. "Above it is the tower; there's nothing there anymore. It's kept locked."
For a moment Quatre remembered seeing the light and the outline of someone in the tower. But he said nothing. This was neither the time nor place to go into that mystery. They had to concentrate on finding Mariemeia before it was too late.
"Heero," the blond spoke again, placing a hand to the other's arm as the vision became clearer. "In the library… is there a trapdoor, or something similar?"
The darker man turned, focusing those disquieting blue eyes fully on Quatre. He frowned and looked at the blond warily. "No, not that I know of."
Quatre tried desperately to remember. He shook his head with an almost inaudible frustrated groan, lifting his other hand to grip his forehead. "A-are you sure? I know there's something there… but I can't remember…"
They were all looking at him oddly, as though he'd lost his mind. But he saw a glimmer of something in Heero's eyes, a spark deep within as the other man recognized what he was saying. "Wait… there was something… a revolving panel, behind one of the bookshelves. I remember Treize showing it to me when I was still a boy. Wufei, you remember it, don't you?"
"Yes, sir."
"Well? Is it still there? Could the little girl have found her way behind it somehow?" Heero's impatience spilled over into his speech, making his strange accent more pronounced.
Wufei's obsidian eyes gleamed as he caught on. "She could have, sir, yes."
Without another word, Heero ran out of the hall with everyone trailing behind, trying to keep up. He led the way through various rooms and hallways. In each were servants or matrons from the orphanage who were still searching for the girl. They seemed to sense what was happening, and some of them came along.
Heero entered the library with Wufei close on his heels. He turned and motioned Quatre inside, along with Relena and Missus Darlian. The rest stayed in the hallway, their looks curious as they watched.
Quatre knew this room, was certain he had been there before. The warm glow of the rich dark paneling curved around the room and accentuated the shelves of beautifully bound books. There was a small arched fireplace, and a nearby table held a brass lamp with a white fringed shade. Wufei lit the lamp and turned around the room as though he was not sure exactly what they were looking for.
"Where was it, Wufei? Do you recall?" Heero also looked about slowly.
"Mariemeia?" Quatre called, hoping if the girl was close she would hear him. "Pretty Mariemeia, are you here?"
Then heard her quite clearly then, a low, sobbing cry. But as Sally had said earlier, the sound came from everywhere; they were surrounded by it. It sent a cold chill up Quatre's spine.
"Here, sir." Wufei stepped to the right of the fireplace and pointed to a large carved section of bookshelves that reached to the ceiling. "Forgive me, sir, but I can't for the life of me remember how to open it."
Heero went forward swiftly, his hands running smoothly over every inch of the wall. "Keep talking to her, Quatre," he instructed. Even in the urgency of the moment, the blond realized Heero had addressed him by name, and not by that foreign nickname he so enjoyed teasing Quatre with.
"Mariemeia… Call out to us, beautiful. If you call out to us, it'll help us find you."
He could hear her; she was crying now, and he heard distinctly her faint, echoing words. "Help me."
"The fireplace," Quatre suddenly remembered. "One of the bricks on the fireplace unlocks the door."
"Yes, of course," Heero gasped. He stepped to the fireplace and pressed a hand against one of the bricks beneath the mantelpiece.
Slowly and with loud creaks and moans, one large section of the bookshelves swung open, revealing a small room with brick walls. And there, in the corner of the cold, damp enclosure, lay the little girl.
Quatre ran to her, picking her up in his arms and carrying her into the warmer atmosphere of the library. Her face was very pale and her eyes fluttered shut, as though she could not hold them open even one second longer. She was trembling within the cradle of his arms, and her small hands were like ice.
"Wufei," he asked, "can you find some blankets? We must get her warm."
Heero pressed the hidden brick, and the panel swung closed again. Any other time they might have all wanted to know what was inside. But now their concern for the child overrode any curiosity about the novelty of such a unique secret passage.
When Wufei returned, Relena and her mother drew closer to help Quatre cocoon the little girl in the blanket's soft warmth. Quatre was grateful - the older woman brought a sense of knowledge and stability just by being there. Missus Darlian's hands ran lightly over the child as they blanketed her, determining that there were no broken bones. Mariemeia seemed only to be very cold and frightened.
"She's all right," Missus Darlian said, with a little nod of reassurance as she gave over the child to Quatre once more.
His arms tightened just a fraction around the girl; "Thank God…"
Heero stepped to the door and spoke to the gathered servants. "It's all right, we've found her. You can all go back to whatever you were doing."
Two matrons from the orphanage came into the room. One seemed very agitated, even angry, with Mariemeia. "This child has always been troublesome," she said. "What she needs is a good thrashing. That will teach her to run away and hide in such a dangerous place."
"What?" Quatre hissed, holding the girl closer as he drew a step backward.
"Sorry for the inconvenience, sir," the woman said. "But don't worry, we'll take care of her once she's back at the orphanage."
"You will not," he disagreed, lowly enough that it came out like a growl of warning. "You won't touch her." He was grateful his arms were occupied; he wanted very much to wring the woman's neck.
The very devil must have been in his eyes, for the woman stepped away from him as though he might go through with his dark impulse. "W-well, really…"
"It's all right, Missus Saunders." It was Heero whose deep voice rumbled in the small room. "We'll keep the child here tonight. I'll bring her home myself tomorrow when she's feeling better."
With a mutter and a look back at Quatre, the woman left. Quatre looked with surprise and gratitude at Heero, but he seemed not at all interested in what the blond thought. But for a moment it felt to Quatre that Heero Yuy had spoken out as much for him as for Mariemeia.
"Is it all right if I take Mariemeia to my room?" Quatre hesitantly wondered aloud, to no one in particular. "I-I know it isn't proper, but I don't want her waking up to an unfamiliar face…"
"I'm sure it is, lad," Missus Darlian murmured. "Isn't it, Heero?" Her attitude toward the blond had changed during the crisis, and Quatre saw Relena's wide grin of approval.
"Of course," Heero nodded. "Here, let me walk with you. Relena, would you ask Cathy to bring something warm for the girl to eat right away?" In his usual, confident way, he took charge, motioning Quatre through the door.
The blond glanced over at Relena and her mother. "Good night. And thank you."
"Good night, Quatre Raberba," Relena smiled. "I'll see you soon, perhaps tomorrow."
"Yes," Missus Darlian agreed, stepping forward. "Why don't you come tomorrow for tea… Quatre Raberba." She smiled almost shyly at him as she hesitated over his name. "Have Heero drive you over and let us show you the estate at Darlian House."
"For tea?" He teased breathlessly, almost giddy with relief at the invitation. "Yes, absolutely."
When he and Heero reached his room, the darker man quickly lit a number of lamps. Quatre followed him into the room, carefully putting the girl in his bed and pulling the covers up over her. He sat in a chair beside the bed, carefully freeing her hand from the many blankets and cradling it in his own. She was still extremely cold. She seemed so tiny and helpless that the blond could not bring himself to leave her.
Heero had a thoughtful frown across his flawless face. He left without saying a word to Quatre, and the blond fought a sharp pang of disappointment. But soon Cathy came in, her usual talkative, exuberant self. She made him feel better almost immediately.
Gently she shook the child awake and managed to feed several spoonfuls of soup into her mouth. Mariemeia looked first at Quatre and then Cathy, and there was an instant look of relaxation on her face.
"How do you feel, beautiful?" Quatre asked.
"Fine," she said, closing her eyes. "Sleepy."
"Go to sleep, then," he whispered, pulling the quilt back over her bare arms.
As he stared to move away from the bed, the girl stirred again, her small hands reaching out to him. "You won't leave me, will you?" She asked in a tremulous little voice.
"No, Mariemeia. I promise I won't leave you, not for a moment."
With a sweet smile that nearly broke his heart, she closed her eyes and was soon fast asleep.
"Is there anything else you'll be needing?" Cathy asked as she gathered the dishes onto a tray.
"You might bring me a tray later, Cathy. I'll have my dinner here."
"I'll stay with her, Mister Quatre, if you want to have dinner with the family."
"No," he said quickly. "I don't."
The feisty red-haired maid clicked her tongue. "Can't say as I blame you for that. I guess some are making it hard for you here."
"You could say that," Quatre muttered, moving to the window to gaze out into the velvety darkness.
"If you mind my saying so, sir… Trowa was worried about you today."
"Yes, Cathy, I know he was. I suppose he told you about my going riding with no saddle, did he?"
"Yes, he did." Her eyes were bright with astonishment. "Aren't you afraid of anything?"
"Of course," he replied, turning to frown at her look of dismay. "Everyone is afraid of something."
"But you ride out into storms and shadows, and from what I hear you're not shy about speaking your mind, even to Heero Yuy. I never met anyone like you." She frowned at him for a moment. "And the wolf… didn't the wolf scare you at all?"
"It did," he admitted with a reluctant laugh. "But I'm not one to believe in superstition, and the so-called curse doesn't frighten me."
"Well, it should. What about what happened today; what else could that be but the curse?"
"It could be a coincidence," he said firmly. For now that he thought about it, how could he have believed even for a moment that it was anything else?
"I still wish you'd be more careful. And if you see the wolf again, I think you should warn Mister Yuy right away."
"I did see it again, Cathy. I saw it today when I went riding."
"Oh, my Lord," she breathed, her eyes wide and frightened.
"And I saw something else… the Demon, I suppose."
She let out a tiny shriek, quickly clamping her hand over mouth before the sound could wake the child sleeping soundly in the bed. "You see? I'm going to the mister, right now!"
"No, you're not!" Quatre moved forward to catch her arm. "I told you only because I'm curious about the Demon, and I hoped you might tell me something about it."
"I don't know anything about him, I-"
"Him?"
She clamped her full lips tightly together. "You didn't hear that from me. And if you know what's good for you, you won't ask anyone else about him, either." With a nervous flurry of hands and skirt, the red-haired maid left the room, glancing back at the blond with a look of warning.
Hadn't Zechs Merquise said the Demon was a man? How could Quatre have forgotten?
There was a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach as he wished he had not mentioned the Demon to Cathy. She obviously connected the sighting with what had just happened to Mariemeia. And now the entire household was sure to know.