Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Battle of the Heart (formerly untitled) ❯ Bleak Twilight, Bleak Hopes ( Chapter 8 )

A/N: Summer is finally here, and I've been writing so much more than I did during the school year. I started working on this immediately after I finished Chapter 11 for Song of the Phoenix. I finally found a title for this fic: Battle of the Heart.

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing or any of its characters.

"Bleak Twilight, Bleak Hopes"

The landscape was bleak. The oncoming twilight came slowly, the sun fading into a grayish sky. The trio of traveling companions each silently wished for night to just seep in. Even the blackness would be better than this neutral, desolate atmosphere. It put a damper on their all ready low spirits.

Wufei led the small company, astride a roan horse. His head stared straight ahead, and he looked for any signs of the village he knew was somewhere nearby. It wouldn't be wise to lead two women through the countryside in the depths of the night. Even if they made it past the thieves, there was no telling what wild animals they would encounter. To top it all off, the fatigue from his lengthy battle left him weary, and sorrow at having lost his best friend pained him deeply. He silently wished that there had been enough time to sift through the dead and locate Duo. Then again, some things are best left unknown.

Sally rode behind the Chinese squire, stroking her horse's dappled coat absently. She tried to take comfort from the animal, but she could not repress the tightening in her throat or the stinging in the back of her eyes. The enormity of the situation was enough to drive anyone to tears. Her father was dead…Duo was dead, too. The salty tears dried in the rapidly cooling air. She wrapped her cloak tighter around her body, but it did not help the chill in her bones.

Hilde brought up the rear, and looked the worst of the lot. She wore only black clothes, and had packed for herself only black clothes. It was her way of mourning, and she just didn't think the pain would ever go away. It was more than an ache; it was a sharp pang in her chest, and her attention was constantly drawn to that pain. It was such agony that she wanted to do nothing more than curl up in a fetal position and die. Instead, she just let her tears fall unbidden, fighting against the pain, and trying not to let it consume her. It seemed a losing battle, though.

The women's horses slowed their pace to match the speed of the horse ahead of them. Soon, Wufei halted his horse, and Sally and Hilde followed suit. His gaze was concentrated up ahead, where a town lay resting in quiet slumber. Golden lights from a few of the houses lit up the area, giving it an inviting, welcoming look. They had a panoramic view of the city, which rested beneath a large hill they stood atop of.

"We'll stop at the inn tonight," Wufei told them, his voice sounding oddly hoarse and out of place among the still night air. The gray in the sky was finally dwindling, bringing on the dark of night. A crescent moon cut across the sky, shining down upon them with a waning, silvery light.

"What if I'm recognized?" the tawny-haired woman questioned, shooting the man a glance. The faint moonlight reflected off the dry, salty paths her tears had taken. Seeing the streaks brought a sudden pang to Wufei's chest, but he immediately dispelled it. Instead, he brought out a small knapsack, tossing it towards Sally, who caught it effortlessly. Upon opening it she discovered a pair of breeches and a hat.

"Since you like traipsing around as a boy so much, you can disguise yourself as one," he informed her. Ignoring the biting remark, she dismounted her horse, handing the reins to Wufei before walking behind a tree and putting the clothes on quickly. She frowned when she realized she had nothing to bind her breasts with. She couldn't ask Wufei…and Hilde looked so forlorn…she didn't want to bother her. So, Sally opted for just wearing the loose cloak, wrapping it around her torso. She tucked her hair underneath the cap, emerging from behind the tree and re-mounting her horse. She shot a glance at Hilde, who was refusing to meet anyone's gaze.

The trio soon came in front of a building that doubled as both an inn and a tavern. Hopping off his horse, Wufei reached up and rang the bell on the door.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The cloaked man took a long sip of his ale, his eyes alert over the rim of his cup. He sat, occupying a corner table and watching the group of drunks around him with distaste. He swallowed quickly as the burning liquid traveled down his throat. His hood was drawn over his head, casting his face in shadows. A fire flared up in the center of the room, and lanterns were hung around the room-in safe placed where some klutz wouldn't knock one over and light up the whole town. The lights gave the room a soft, golden glow. But the lights didn't take away the smell of alcohol, or the noises of rowdy customers.

The man looked towards the door as he heard the bell ring. He scoffed.

'Great, another group of drunks,' he thought to himself, watching as the burly innkeeper bustled over to open the door and welcome the new guests. The innkeeper was a man that smelled like garlic, and didn't smile too much. But this was a reliable inn, and it was the only one in town.

"The stable boy, 'ere will take care o' ye 'orses," the innkeeper told the group, and the cloaked man perked up slightly. Horses? These people must be traveling through...like he was. But he really sat up and took notice when he heard a familiar voice speak up.

"Do you have any vacancies?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Do you have any vacancies?" Wufei questioned, his obsidian eyes traveling lazily over the group of men in the tavern, which came right off of the lobby. He needed to be sure and quickly get the two women upstairs…there were too many drunken men here. 'It must be a town hot-spot,' he mused to himself.

"I got two rooms open," the innkeeper told him, placing his fists on his hips. "One for ya two gentlemen 'n one for the lady." Wufei tried not to wince at this. He forgot that Sally was garbed as a boy still, and sleeping in the same room as her was definitely not a good idea. He would have to sneak her into the room with Hilde later on.

Sally and Hilde watched as the two men discussed, but both turned their gazes towards the tavern section when they saw a man get up and walk towards them. They couldn't see his face, because he had a hooded cloak on, placing his features in shadow. But something about the slight smirk visible seemed familiar. Sally tapped Wufei on the shoulder, who turned in annoyance to see what was the matter. All three watched as the man pulled his hood back, drawing a startled cry from Sally, and a sharp gasp from Wufei. Hilde slammed her body against the man's in a fierce hug, bright cornflower blue eyes tearing up.

"Duo!" she cried joyfully.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Lucrezia curled her knees up to her chest from her seated position on a cushiony chair. She wrapped her arms around her legs, hugging them to her chest. Her chin rested atop her knees, beautiful violet eyes gazing emptily into space.

The room was one of the many at the Peacecraft castle. Its dim lighting and rich, warm colours made it one of the more inviting rooms, but the young Italian did not feel welcomed or comforted at all. Her gaze snapped up when she heard the door open, and a tiny smile flitted across her face when she saw it was Zechs, but the smile soon faded. He sat across from her, not bothering to hide his concern.

"I heard that Treize won the war," Noin whispered softly after a slight hesitation. What little hope she had died when Zechs nodded in confirmation. She took in a deep, shaky breath, hiding her face in her knees.

"I heard something else that-might be of interest to you," the man said after a pause, watching as Lucrezia lifted her head slowly and looked into his eyes. Despite his guesses, her cheeks were dry. Her head nodded slowly: a silent command to continue. Zechs licked his lips and said, "It turns out that Sally's gone missing."

Her jaw went slack, and she stared at the prince in surprise. "What? Gone missing?" she questioned with incredulity.

Zechs nodded. "Yes. She wasn't present at the manor when Treize took over. He issued a search to find her, and sent spies out covertly to try and locate her. He doesn't want the whole kingdom knowing, in hopes that he'll catch her off guard."

Noin smiled nervously, gripping the material of her dress tightly. "I don't know what to think about that. Should I be happy or sad?"

He simply shrugged. "I cannot tell you how to feel, but I think she's gone into hiding." He frowned slightly as he saw Lucrezia shake her head, and then smile at his confusion.

"I don't think she's gone into hiding," she told him, her expression enigmatic.

Zechs was tired of being in the dark. "Then what do you think she's doing?" On impulse, Lucrezia reached out and combed her fingers through Zechs's hair, twirling a few flaxen locks around her finger. She smiled, her dark violet eyes lighting up mischievously.

"I think she's going to be paying us a visit very soon."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Duo smiled down at the young woman in his arms, stroking her short hair softly. Sally and Wufei continued to stare at him in shock, while Hilde cried helplessly against his chest, clutching onto him as tightly as she could.

"I thought you were dead," she whispered. The braided man just "shushed" her, continuing to stroke her hair. He glanced up, smiling at the two just standing there.

"So, you made it out, too?" he asked rhetorically, directing the question at Wufei. The Chinese man nodded in affirmation, glancing over to the innkeeper, who was standing stock-still, dumbstruck. Wufei frowned slightly.

"It's good to see you again, Duo," Sally said, smiling brightly for the first time that day. The former squire nodded to her in return.

"Great to see you, too, Sa-"

"It's getting late," Wufei interjected, shooting Duo a stern glance, who seemed to realize his mistake. The violet-eyed man nodded, pulling Hilde from his embrace gently, only to grin as he caught her gaze.

"We can talk tomorrow on the road," Duo told the two girls. They both nodded, and the trio made their way upstairs to the rooms while Wufei paid for the boarding.

A/N: Ya'll didn't really think I would kill Duo, didja? Oh, and congrats to Winter's Roar and Callisto Nicol who easily guessed who the "cloaked man" was. Thank you so much everyone for the kind reviews so far. I hope you continue to review (hint, hint).

Luvvies, KaT