Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ A World in a Grain of Sand ❯ Helping ( Chapter 10 )

Author: Keiran

Title: A World in a Grain of Sand 10/?

Pairings: 1+2, mentioned past 1x2

Rating: R overall, although it probably doesn't deserve that much.

Genre: Romance, mild angst, historical sort of fantasy.

Warnings: Shounen-ai, fluff. WAFF

Archive: my site: the URL is on my profile page. If you want it, drop me a line. ^_^
Notes: Even more progress!

Big thanks to Sundaire, for betaing this fic. <bows>

***

The winter was finally giving up, albeit slowly, allowing the small creatures to worm their way out from their nests and enjoy the world again. Leafs started to shyly appear on the trees and in some places the green grass started to take place of the snow. There wasn't much of it yet, the ground that lost the snow already was mostly brown, but it was enough to give a person a feeling of change. Early flowers started to blossom, carefully making their way through snow and dead leaves from the previous year.

The temple was in a hustle - every man, woman and child were helping with the preparations for the annual leaving of the lumbermen - every spring, early in the year they would go into the woods to cut down the old and partially dead trees to bring a years worth supply of firewood for the healers. Heero was watching the preparations curiously as Duo explained what the purpose of the trip was.

"I went too, the first spring I was here. They always take a novice healer with them, just in case anything happens. I was a kid then, so you can imagine I was thrilled - I got to sleep in the woods and all. The trip lasted two weeks, and when we came back, everything was so different," Duo said, smiling at the sky. "When we went it was still winter, technically speaking, but when we came back it was already spring. Almost as if it happened in one night - all the things you do not notice in a forest suddenly strike you as you go out."

He and the general were sitting on a low stone bench, with enough space between them to accommodate another person, drinking in the freshening landscape. Or at least Duo was, since Heero was too busy taking in the smiles and sparkles in his companion's eyes. Heero winced a little when he heard the healer refer to himself as a 'kid.'

"You weren't that young…," he tried to object softly.

"I was almost seventeen. That made me not perhaps a child, but definitely not an adult yet," Duo said, shaking his head. "In Albion, at least," he added as an afterthought. The general wondered briefly what that made him. He opened his mouth to speak but he was interrupted swiftly.

"Healer!"

Both man turned their heads to see a small girl dressed in white healer's garb run over to them.

"Sally," Duo said pleasantly. "Did something happen?"

The girl stopped right before him and curtsied in the general's direction. Then she latched her small hands onto Duo's.

"Mr. Dermail is sick. His son just came to inform us; he will not be able to join the leaving!" she exclaimed. The healer's brows furrowed.

"He's just one man. Surely there would not be much of a difference?" Heero said, seeing the expression.

Duo glanced at him sideways. He was starting to enjoy the company of the man, even if he was still nervous at times. "Normally there wouldn't, but this year a lot of men are sick. There are not too many of them as it is."

"No worries Duo."

Both the healer and the general turned around and bowed respectfully to the elderly man that approached. Sally curtsied shyly, making the master healer smile warmly in return, and stepped closer to Duo. She was still a little intimidated by the old man. "I'm sure you'll be glad to hear that the general volunteered to fill out for the missing people a few days ago," the man continued.

"Excuse me?" The long-haired man suddenly found himself speechless. Heero smirked. "B…but he cannot go! He is unprepared, he doesn't know how to chop down trees, he is a soldier, not a lumberjack! No one will have time to teach him what to do!"

"Yes, that's true," the elderly man said solemnly. Duo calmed down. "Which is why I volunteered you to accompany the men as a healer. As usual, just as a precaution. I thought that since you wouldn't have that much to do you'd be able to instruct the general."

The violet eyes of the healer grew huge. And then they grew some more. "Wha…?" he asked weakly. "But it's a job for a novice!"

"Yes it is."

"I am not a novice!"

"No, you aren't," the master healer agreed. He continued nevertheless. "However, I was thinking that since so few men are going, it wouldn't hurt if you went; after all, you have some experience. I told Hilde to pack some things for you. Go and see if she packed everything you would need."

Sally was looking at the expression on Duo's face, not understanding why he was so shocked. The man glared at the master healer some more, then suddenly whirled around and left scowling. The little girl ran after him immediately.

"Is something wrong, healer?" the girl asked cutely. "Are you upset?"

Duo looked at her trying to find the correct words. "No… not really. I just didn't expect…," he made vague gestures, trying to describe his feelings. "I'm not sure if I'm completely comfortable with him." He briefly questioned the wisdom of relaying problems of that nature to a seven-year old. "Sweetheart, it is very hard to explain. I'm not sure if I understand it completely myself."

"You didn't like him when he came here," the child observed.

Duo sighed. "No, not really," he answered.

"But you do now."

"Well, not really." The man scratched his head. "I learned to tolerate him, long ago. I guess I just continue to, for the time being. I might have stopped perceiving him as a threat." It was rather obvious from Sally's expression that she did not understand. "Never mind. He is not as bad as I thought initially." Duo sighed, defeated, entering his chamber.

"Hello Duo," Hilde said, waving cheerfully at him. "I take it you've come to check if everything is packed correctly?"

***

Heero was staring after the pair. Of course to an intent observer it would be rather obvious that his eyes were glued to the taller of the two figures. The master healer prided himself on an intent observer. He coughed pointedly.

"I would expect you not to treat this as an invitation," the old man said firmly. "It wasn't meant to be one."

Heero blinked, surprised. "I don't…"

"I understand that you don't understand. He is going with you because he is young, strong and quite skillful with an axe, for a healer. If Dermail was going I wouldn't have sent Duo."

Surprisingly enough for the elderly healer, Heero's mouth quirked. "By the way you were speaking with him, one would think you were encouraging him to be with me," the general said with a smirk.

The healer's friendly eyes narrowed dangerously. "That is exactly what I didn't want you to think." If Heero was ever disrespectful to people older then himself, he would have thought the man was scowling. "I understand that you youths would gladly take everything as a sign fitting for whatever you want to see signs for, but that's normal and should be discouraged." Heero smirked.

"I'm not a youth, by any standards, master," he remarked casually.

"Oh please. You can't be older than twenty-six or seven," the man said, waving his hand dismissively.

"I'm almost thirty-one," the general replied with a slight smile. He received a stunned blink in response.

"Thirty-one? Just how is that possible?" [1] But the older man composed himself, regaining the upper hand almost immediately. "Nevertheless, I'm still more than twice your age, which means you are still a child in my eyes. What's more, I am taking care of Duo, which means you have to listen to me when it comes to him."

Heero bristled. "I will not be listening to anyone," he growled. "It's up to Duo to decide whether he wants me or not!" All his life he got what he wanted, although not exactly the way people usually thought he did. He had to work for most of everything, his father didn't believe in silver platters. He didn't get the position of the great general of Sanq as a part of his inheritance, contrary to what most people said. He was prepared to stand his ground, no matter the circumstances, no matter the opponent.

"As long as we're clear on that," the master healer remarked, lightly turning around and walking to the temple, leaving Heero in a state of severe mental shock. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. It looked like someone was on his side after all.

***

Duo sighed, watching Hilde put some spare clothes into his bag. He checked the contents of the pack that was filled with all of his healing equipment and frowned.

"Sally!" he called softly, counting on the little girl to be standing just outside his door.

She poked her head through the door, smiling happily. "Can I help? Can I, can I, can I?" she bounced up and down, eager to be involved.

"I will need more linen," Duo said, indicating his bag. He unpacked most of his herb supply - he was going into the forest after all - but fresh cloth might prove useful and it couldn't be found in the forest. The blonde girl bounced once or twice more and virtually flew out of the door. The healer chuckled, but the chuckles were cut short by Hilde's coughs. "Hilde are you sure you are taking good care of yourself? No cold should last this long."

"I don't know what else I could do," the girl replied sadly. "I'm doing everything you told me to do, I'm drinking those herbs, I'm drinking honey, but nothing seems to help."

Duo frowned and pulled the girl closer for a rather awkward hug. "I'm worried about you," he said softly. "I don't want you to be sick."

The girl sighed. "I don't want to be sick either," she answered. But she smiled immediately. "Hey, don't worry! We need to hurry up; we can't allow the general to wait for you!" She smiled evilly when Duo blushed brightly.

"He is not waiting for me! I didn't even want to go!"

"Oh, stop it. Everyone knows he is here only for you," the girl giggled teasingly. "And from the looks of it he isn't going to leave anytime soon."

Duo looked at her, his eyes suddenly wide and vulnerable. "I know… and I'm afraid of that." He didn't say anything else and Hilde didn't ask. She learned that a long time ago - if Duo didn't want to say anything, he wouldn't.

Sally returned, her arms full of neatly folded white linens. However, as she was walking through the door she tripped and landed on the floor, messing the neat load slightly, but managing to keep it off the floor for the most part. She looked up at the two healers with tears swelling in her blue eyes.

"I'm sorry!" she cried.

Duo smiled slightly. "It's all right sweetheart, don't cry," he said soothingly, walking over and collecting the small mount. He spread it on his bed and started to fold it again. "It would need to be refolded anyway," he remarked to the little novice, "so that it could fit more easily into my pack."

"Really?" the girl asked tearfully.

"Really," Duo answered, stroking her head lightly. When everything was packed, the trio left the cozy room and went out. Or at least Duo and Sally did; Hilde was rather firmly told to stay inside and help in the kitchen, which was the warmest room in the whole temple. She beamed and turned around, bringing her hand to her mouth immediately, just in time to hide a few droplets of blood that the cough brought up.

The young healer, accompanied by the little girl, walked out into the bright sunlight, squinting as it enveloped him. Everything seemed to be ready, horses, men and packs. Even the great general was calmly leaning against a fence, a backpack at his feet.

Heero smiled inwardly seeing the healer. He had changed from his usual long, white robe - he opted for a knee-length, light brown one instead. The general shouldered his backpack sneaking glances at Duo. He volunteered for the trip mostly to have something to do, since the palace life he was forced to lead was tiring and boring him. He hated the feeling of being useless. But now, life definitely took a turn for the better.

**TBC**

[1] Just in case someone got confused: in the first chapter Heero, when reminiscing, mentions that 'Kirei' was about sixteen, while he was twenty five. Now >whips out her calculator< one year they were together, then five years before they met again. Unless I'm mistaken (which is possible, as much I like math, I tend to mess the counting) that would mean that Duo is now twenty-two and Heero thirty-one. Voila!