Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Cult Characteristic ❯ Chapter 6

SIX

Quatre took the keys from Rashid carefully, as if taking a precious gem, or a family heirloom. To him the keys were just as important, as they went to the house Wufei was still standing there gaping at.

"I'll return in an hour."

Quatre nodded and watched as the large bodyguard drove off before finally turning to stand beside Wufei and stare at the monstrosity. Not even Quatre was surprised by the expression on the Chinaman's face for it matched his own. This was not a house. It didn't even classify as a mansion. It was something else entirely.

"What is this place?" Wufei sounded…awed. Quatre smiled.

"This is home," He replied, walking toward the large set of stairs that leveled out on the long porch. "Seven wings, each with no less than fifty rooms. It's a wreck in some places, but mostly it's in working condition. There are fifty acres out the back and a stable. Rashid is getting us some horses, I believe."

"Quatre…what are you saying?"

Quatre knew Wufei didn't really expect an answer. He had already put all the pieces together in his sharp little brain, but he wanted to hear it. Maybe even needed it.

"I mean this is our house; for the five of us and whoever else we wish. To do with what we want. Iria bought it for us."

And how he would ever repay his sister Quatre had no idea. This was a gift beyond words and Une had given them all the tie off to enjoy it, if they wanted it. Which they did, to a certain extent. They simply wanted free reign on the cult case to go with it. Une had been very…accommodating.

The key turned with a rusty, worn sound that grated on Quatre's ears. He decided the first thing he was going to fix was the front door. Duo would have wet himself laughing at the thought that someone had believed that stupid lock would keep people out.

The main entrance revealed a massive room of marble floors and vaulted ceilings. Seven winding stairs wound off in different directions, leading to each of the wings. They were in the centre of the storm, and Quatre felt strangely calm there. He couldn't almost hear the sounds of their own occupation in the house. He wanted it, now more than ever before, and this time he had the one thing he needed to draw them all in; to lure them into accepting his offer of creating a home for the Gundam Pilots, not just a place to live. He had the one thing they couldn't say no to. Duo.

"Duo won't be on his feet more than five minutes before he will have slid down every one of those banisters," Wufei pointed out, and Quatre made a mental note to ensure some kind of padding was put beneath each stair in case Duo, in the near future, decided to do just as Wufei suggested and fell in the process.

"So, who will be where?"

"I'm not sure," Quatre mumbled, looking in several directions. "How about we take a look at each one and see who we think will want what?"

Wufei nodded in agreement and they headed for the nearest stair. It led to a long hallway, red velvet carpet under their feet and ornate hangings on the walls. It was a rich area and along the east side of the house, the long windows letting in floods of morning light. It was beautiful.

"Wufei…"

"This is yours," Wufei agreed immediately. It practically screamed Quatre. They didn't even bother exploring the rest, moving back to the central space and heading down the second hallway presented.

Darker, but with colourful splashes throughout, there was nothing on the walls but the ceiling had been painted with odd fantasy creations and weird contorted figures. It sent shivers down Quatre's spine. He placed a gentle hand on Wufei's arm and he nodded.

"Trowa's," they said in Unison, heading back once more to the central space.

The third hall led to a fairly non-descript wing with massive rooms that were begging to become libraries and relaxation rooms, so it was put aside as a recreational wing.

The fourth stair led to the kitchens and the large patio out the back. From the verandahs they could see the stable and the low green meadows that were now theirs. It was stunning. Quatre wanted to cry. He wished they had been here all along; ever since the war ended. If they had been living together, Duo would have been with them, not…

Quatre shook his head as they entered the fifth wing. It was dark. Very dark. Little gargoyles lined the walls, but dark winged angels fought across the walls. It was all done in the gothique design period. Quatre wanted to run, but he also wanted to keep exploring, to delve deeper, to find the secrets of the fifth wing. But this was…

"Duo's." Again in unison as they hurried back to the central stair and headed into the sixth wing. This was light where the last was dark and easily as austere as the second wing. The walls were lined in gold and the few rooms the spotted were a soft, pale blue.

"Heero?"

Wufei nodded. It was not exactly Heero, but it was plain enough for Heero to do whatever he wanted with it. They went for the seventh wing.

It was red, like Quatre's, only lacking in the ornate material. The walls were bare, awaiting their own adornments and Quatre could already see Wufei planning what he would put where. He placed a hand on his friend's shoulder knowingly.

"Yours, Wufei."

There was something in the raven-haired man's expression that made Quatre smile.

"We're really all going to do it Quatre. We're going to live together, like we did back then.""

"All the right things," Quatre agreed quietly, looking up at a long dragon scroll on the wall at the end of the hall. "For all the wrong reasons."

*

"Heero?"

His eyes snapped open and he spun quickly on his seat to face Sally, recognizing her voice instantly. She didn't sit down, didn't try to explain anything. She just handed him the chart and led the way. Heero didn't watch where they went, one eye reading Duo's charts, the other focused just beyond the chart at Sally's feet. He trusted her to get them where they needed to go.

"You had to re-break all these bones?" Heero was almost afraid to ask, but he wanted to know everything. In helping Duo he knew knowledge would be power.

"I think most of the bones were broken when he was first thrown into the pit," Sally explained. "They have `hard impact' written all over them. Duo had re-broken several of them, while others had healed, but at the wrong angles. Several were pushing against this lungs, one was almost stabbing his heart. We had to straighten them."

Heero nodded to show he understood, skimming over the explanation on the chart to check it was the same, which it was, just with a lot more crap added to it. Heero decided he liked things plain and simple, and he liked that Sally understood that.

"He's clean?" He was slightly startled to see the myriad of negative test results. Duo had not caught a single disease in all the eleven months, despite the conditions he had lived in.

"He survived the plague, Heero. His immune system is…strong."

Strange, she had wanted to say. Abnormal. Heero didn't mind; it kept Duo alive. And clean. They hadn't got him back only to have to watch him waste away. He would recover. He would be fine.

Sally turned sharply and came to an abrupt halt. Heero did not stop, he flipped the chart back to its original position, passed it to Sally on his way through the door and strode to the bed.

Beep. Beep. Beep. The sound annoyed Heero, even as it reassured him the being on the bed was alive. So small, Duo looked like a child, frail and pale. Heero let his knees collapse as he sat on the edge of the bed, reaching out with hesitant fingers to caress the high cheekbone pressing against the gaunt flesh.

"I'm here."

He could think of nothing else to say. He only hoped Du could hear him, wherever he was.

"He won't wake for at least twenty four hours/ Even then I might keep him under a little longer."

Heero nodded to acknowledge he had heard, but he then let Sally slip from his mind. She had given him all she could. Now it was his turn to pass on the goodwill.

"Sleep, Shinigami," Heero whispered softly, fingers wrapping around one tiny wrist. His only reply was the soft buzz of machines and the distant sounds of everyday hospital life.

*

Wufei walked calmly to the small shrine in the corner of his living room. He opened the small cupboard and stared at the twin blades floating on the slim stands within. Reaching out, he took one in each hand, feeling the weight, recalling the balance. They were still perfect. A smile cracked his stoic façade. A dark, feral smile that promised a different kind of redemption.

"I'm learning, our Shinigami. Just give me the chance to prove it."