Step Inside the Circle Part 8
Heero Yuy was wearing spandex, despite the cold breeze that was kicking up over the hillside.
Trowa valiantly kept himself from laughing as he strode up to the practice grounds. The half Tuatha De Danaan was wearing a green tank top over a pair of spandex biker shorts, neither of which garments did much to hide his rather impressive physique.
The druid was taken and happy to admit it if one asked, but that didn't mean he was blind. And anyone who didn't notice how good-looking Heero was in an outfit that showed his body off to such perfection was DEFINITELY blind.
Trowa lifted an eyebrow as Heero turned to face him. "Nice outfit."
It would have taken a braver man than Trowa to make any jokes about the light blush that touched his friend's face. Heero replied gruffly, "It will allow me complete freedom of movement."
"Sure it will." At that remark, Trowa couldn't help himself - he threw caution to the wind. "And hopefully Duo will appreciate the scenery, of course."
The blush darkened as Heero turned away, lifting a bundle of weaponry (with an impressive, visible bunching of muscles) as though he were lifting bags of cotton balls. "He should not be distracted. He has much to learn."
Trowa rolled his eyes. "Greine, everyone but Duo knows you like him by now and nobody cares, okay? Except maybe Wufei. But you're going to freeze to death, dressed like that, especially as it gets later. I'm sure Duo appreciates looking at you no matter what you're wearing."
The half-breed glared at his friend. "You're mad. Did you come here early just to annoy me?" He shivered slightly in the wind.
Shaking his head, Trowa stepped closer and gave Heero a small push. "Trust me on this, Heero. Duo is smart, funny, and bloody cute himself, and it's understandable that you're interested in him - no, don't interrupt! He's had way too much to think about in the past few days, though. He seems to feel some kind of pull towards you, too, but he will have to come to it in his own time, when he can handle it."
"He does?" Heero asked, trying to sound nonchalant and failing miserably.
"From the very moment he saw you, unless both Quatre and I were much mistaken," the druid replied smugly. "You were too busy being off at us to notice, though, at the time."
"Has anyone ever told you that druids are damned annoying?"
The green-eyed man smirked. "You're probably right, but I'm right, as well. Go put something warmer on, Heero. Duo and Wufei will be out here any minute now."
"Hn. Wufei doesn't mind, by the way. He told me so." Shivering slightly, the half-breed turned towards the house and jogged inside.
Trowa allowed himself a small chuckle as he watched him go. "Nice scenery, indeed."
~*~
Wearing a set of Wufei's workout sweats, Duo strode up the hill towards the two waiting men, not noticing either the beauty of the gardens around him or indeed Wufei, walking at his left elbow. His hands were cold. There was no way he could possibly learn to use a sword in only a few days! Regardless of every other nonsensical, impossible thing that had indeed happened in the past few days - this was so far beyond the possible... He'd end up either killing himself or someone else...
As he approached, though, the strange things waiting for him distracted him from his panic.
Heero and Trowa were sitting in the grass to the side next to an impressive array of weapons. In the centre of the field, a set of stones marked a circle of grass no more than 15 feet in diameter. To the far right, something that looked like a gigantic wooden drying rack was set up, the beams about two feet off the ground, all made of rough-hewn logs. On the left, two targets stood a respectable distance away, but a set of gymnastics mats lined the ground closer in. Duo stared at it all in shock. "Oh Jesus..."
At his side, Wufei smirked. "Somehow, I don't think He's the one you should be petitioning for mercy right now, Duo," he remarked dryly, eliciting a glare from his friend.
Trowa stood as they got closer. "Ready?"
Duo struggled to hide his growing apprehension. "Nervous is more like it. What am I supposed to do?"
Trowa looked him in the eyes - with a sinking feeling, Duo once again felt himself being drawn into that calm green, his fear and apprehension slipping away...
Only this time, he shook his head and managed to tear his eyes away. Pale but determined, he stared the druid down. "Not this time, Gwydion. I have to know I can do this on my own, without your help. D'you know what I mean?"
Surprisingly, Trowa looked pleased. "As you wish, Duo."
Heero stood as well and moved closer. "We need to begin training you in a few different disciplines. Swordplay, obviously, but also proficiency with ranged weapons, unarmed combat, and magical combat. Agility and balance will be key to all of those."
They were approaching the wooden beams as Heero spoke. As they got closer, Trowa pulled off his sweatshirt to reveal a t-shirt underneath. He grabbed two staffs off the ground and nimbly hopped up onto the closest beam. "Heero and I will demonstrate this exercise first, so you'll know what you're supposed to do," he said, twirling one of the staves experimentally.
Heero stripped off his sweatshirt as well - he was still wearing the tank top underneath. Stretching his shoulders slightly, he hopped up opposite the druid and held out his hand. Trowa tossed a staff over to him, and he caught it easily. Without another word, the combat session began.
Even Wufei felt his jaw drop open in surprised shock as he watched the two opponents - moving, striking, blocking, jumping - all with perfect ease and grace. At his side, Duo was watching each move carefully, brow furrowed as he tried to figure out exactly what he was supposed to get from this demonstration, apart from the obvious.
Relena had said that she could give him no better instructors; just watching them, Duo knew she was right. Both Heero and Trowa were obviously masters of this exercise. But there was something else... He watched them carefully, noting how they both moved, how they seemed to know what the other would do even before he did it...
That was it! They were reading each other's movements at a level that was more than just familiarity with the other man's combat style. They were looking into each other's minds...
Duo shivered. How on Earth did he just know these things?!
Wufei leaned closer. "We have done a similar exercise before, Duo. Just focus on maintaining your balance."
"Yeah." Duo's eyes narrowed. He vaguely wondered if Wufei could see everything he was seeing.
His eyebrows shot into the air, though, as Heero made a vicious sweep at Trowa's knees - the druid leapt into the air and somersaulted right over the other man's head, landing lightly and confidently behind him and striking out. Without even looking, Heero caught Trowa's staff and yanked it from his grip. Spinning flawlessly, Heero brought both staves up as though to catch Trowa's neck between them-
But Trowa was no longer there - the green-eyed man had flipped backwards, his heel catching Heero in the chest as he moved. The half-breed merely grunted, though, and smirked as he crossed his arms over his chest, a staff still held firmly in either hand.
Breathing slightly harder, Trowa gave him a nod and looked down at the amazed faces of Duo and Wufei. "He's won this round. Had I been an enemy and made the mistake of touching him - coming within his reach - he would have killed me very quickly."
"With a staff?" Duo asked. "Like how I got Treize?"
Trowa grinned dangerously. "He could, but he wouldn't need that. Greine, the original one, was a warrior king of the Tuatha De Danaan, and possessed inhuman strength, agility and speed. Our Greine certainly seems to have inherited those characteristics."
Heero snorted. "He makes it sounds like it would be easy to take down a druid - don't be fooled. Especially as the High Druid - it would take much more than a staff to take down Gwydion, no matter what he says."
"I'll believe that," Wufei commented, watching the taller man critically, as though sizing him up.
Trowa jumped down nimbly. "Now who's next? Are you ready to try, Duo?"
The braided man smiled hesitantly. "I suppose so... I have to go against him?" he asked, shooting Heero a glance.
In return, Heero chuckled. "Gwydion and I made a deal - the winner would get to give you your first test. Let that be a lesson - he didn't plan on losing any more than I did. Combat is like that - you can't always tell what you will have to do."
"Sure." Rubbing sweaty palms on his pants, Duo stepped up onto the nearest beam and took a moment to find his centre of gravity. Looking down at Wufei, he tried to remember everything the Chinese man had ever taught him - don't lock his knees, keep his centre of balance low, keep his head up-
Heero tossed him a staff and he caught it awkwardly, momentarily losing his balance as he was forced to reach further out to grab it than he'd intended.
Warily, Duo watched every move Heero made as the other man began to approach him, staff held lightly but firmly in both hands. Everything about the man spoke of power - the way he moved with sure, balanced strides, every muscle seeming to flow into one another-
Duo gulped and looked back into blue eyes-
He was falling into blue, mesmerizing, all-encompassing blue, and he felt his body going loose and unaware as he stared...
NO!
Duo almost hissed as he forced his mind to re-focus, eyes narrowing as he stepped back and away onto a nearby beam. If Heero wanted into his head, he would have to try harder than that! He felt adrenaline surging through his body as he took two steps forward and jumped across to Heero's beam, staff swirling.
The fight was on.
Heero was damned fast, and Duo found himself flat on his back on the ground faster than he could blink. He groaned as he sat up and glared up at the dark-haired man, still standing on a beam with perfect balance. "That fucking hurt."
"Then don't let it happen again," Heero said glibly, twirling his staff in his hands absently while he waited for Duo to join him again. Everything about him radiated confidence, the most incredibly smug look on that face, a roguish smile...
Duo hopped up again, his fighting instincts beginning to come out. He would see that damned smile gone before he was done...
Heero rushed him, though, practically as soon as he stepped back up again, and he was forced to block furiously, grunting with the effort as each of the other man's blows spread an ache through his arms. Duo grimaced as a hit connected with his shoulder and knocked him off balance-
But somehow managed to jump across to the other beam, hoping for a breather.
No, Heero was there again, blue eyes practically glowing as he struck out. Duo ducked and struck out, desperately trying to recall everything he knew about this sort of combat. Wufei had taught him many things...
And then there was the fight outside of the Chinese man's home, when Trowa had thrown the staff and he caught it and simply reacted. He ducked again and spun under Heero's guard.
And somehow, the man was out of range again before he could begin his attack.
Damn smug bastard was reading him like a book!
As Duo took another hit, he felt his anger boiling over. This had gone from 'training session' to something disturbingly close to 'humiliate Duo,' and he didn't like it. He'd yet to score one hit, for heaven's sake! He was knocked off the beam again, and landed awkwardly on his left leg.
Trowa was there to help him up. "You're doing just fine, Duo."
"Bullshit!" the long-haired man replied, eyes sparkling. "I'm getting my freakin' ass kicked! He's just..."
"Heero is extremely good at what he does, true," Trowa said, running his hand over Duo's leg to ensure it was okay. "But he is completely at peace with who and what he is. You are still learning. You have to give over your conscious control to learn what your subconscious already knows, my Lord."
Duo glared up at the taller man as he accepted his staff back. "What does that mean in plain English?"
"He means - stop thinking so hard and just do what feels right," Wufei said, stepping closer, "And he's right. You can do this, Duo, we all know you can."
"Awww... thanks so much," Duo replied sarcastically, but gamely climbed back up again.
This time, though, he was ready for Heero's immediate lunge. He blocked and quickly moved a few steps away, trying very hard to remain calm. If there was one thing he remembered about the fight against Treize, it was that he wasn't panicking...
That was it. He needed to maintain the same level of calm and control as he opponent; he needed...
He looked up and straight into Heero's eyes.
It was a battle of wills from the onset, and Duo nearly fell off his beam again, just from the sheer mental pressure. Heero's mind was a powerful thing - that calm, beautiful curtain of cool blue threatened to take him over again, and part of his mind simply wanted to melt away and give control to the half-breed Tuatha De across from him. Duo doggedly refused to listen, though - he had to do this! He had to learn how to protect himself and the people he cared for... Wufei... All of them, really.
Including Heero.
Something in his head seemed to click quite suddenly, and Duo sprang into motion, jumping across two beams to strike out at his opponent. Heero's eyes widened as Duo managed to throw enough force into the blow without knocking himself off balance - instead of giving ground, though, he blocked and counter-attacked, a glimmer of a smile forming on his lips.
"Whoa!" A hit to his shoulder knocked him backwards, but instead of allowing himself to fall, Duo slammed his staff down to the ground and used his momentum to swing himself around on it, aiming a kick at Heero's mid-section-
It connected.
Heero stumbled, clearly not having expected that, and Duo took the moment to collect himself. He remembered what Trowa said after the first match - coming within Heero's reach was an automatic loss... or was it? Heero obviously expected it to be - never expected that someone would be able to get within his personal space and back out again before he could defeat them...
And Duo knew he was fast. Very fast, even. For the first time, a glimmer of a smile formed on his lips as he rushed forward again, staring into those blue eyes and, for the first time, not falling into them head-first. Heero attacked, but he jumped over a strike to the legs and ducked another blow even before he could see it coming, then struck on his own.
CRACK!
All Duo could do was stare in disbelief.
Both staves were broken - Heero's looked slightly burned, in fact - and Heero, himself, was on the ground.
About Duo's wrists, silver fire danced brightly.
He looked over at the others, and the only thing he could think of to say was, "Holy shit."
~*~
A tall woman with hard brown eyes glared out at the sunlight. "I won't ask again, Leia. Where is Eithlinn?"
Behind her, a blonde woman with wide green eyes wore a small, arch smile. "You think I can control her? Mariemeia will do as she pleases, when she pleases. And if that means running to her uncle..."
The brown-haired woman turned. "Lord Treize has no time to deal with this or you. He will not care if I kill you, woman. This is your last chance."
The blond woman arched an eyebrow. "Truly? Then why am I still alive, after all this time? I know why you truly want to kill me, Une..."
The brunette grimaced and shoved the other woman hard. "You know nothing. If you will not tell me where Treize's daughter is, then you will be silent."
Leia Barton glared at her captor, a woman only known as Une. The bitch was... damn freaky, she didn't mind admitting. Harsh and unpredictable with her, and yet when Mariemeia was around... It was as though Une was a different person, all smiles and cheer, laughter, warmth...
Thankfully, Mariemeia had never been deceived - she'd seen the ruthless cold of the woman when she spoke to her mother.
It was Leia who had sent the girl to find Trowa. She hadn't seen or heard from her brother in a very long time, but she knew that if anyone could help them, it would be him. He'd always been a smart boy, a resourceful boy...
She wondered, in fact, why she'd been surprised to find out that not only was he a druid, but a High Druid, taking the name Gwydion.
Her whole body ached as she tried to move again. Treize knew she was the one who was sneaking the girl out, and he made no pretences of nicety where she was concerned.
It was worth it, though. If her Little Red could get away, it was all worth it.
She glared back up at Une. "Go away and come back when you can do more than make empty threats, Une. Mariemeia is gone, and you will not find her. Go tell your Master that."
Une's eyes glazed over as she stalked closer. "One day, Treize will no longer feel the need to protect you, Leia..."
"And he will never love you," Leia replied, "nor will you ever be my child's mother. Now get the hell out of here!"
Une turned white, but spun on her heel and left.
Leia took a deep breath of relief. So they knew Red was gone - she had enough of a lead on them now - and in daylight - that she would be able to get away.
"Trowa, look after her." She sighed and rested her aching head against the cool glass of the window.
~*~
Duo's whole body ached.
If he'd ever thought he knew the meaning of pain before, it all paled in comparison to the way he felt after four hours of combat practice with the Sadistic Twins. He'd thought Heero was bad enough, but when Trowa stepped onto the beams and began using his mind tricks...
He'd thought he was ready to face the druid, only to find out that Heero had been taking it easy on him, all appearances to the contrary. Damn him! And he barely seemed to feel anything, even as both Duo and Wufei improved and began scoring hits of their own.
Trowa had moved to the centre of the circle, a long sword unsheathed in his left hand. "After this, we will call it a day. Duo, this represents a duelling circle, much like the one you will be tested in when we see Scathach. In order for you to win, you have to either disarm her, kill her, or force her out of her circle. She will be trying to do the same to you."
"Yippy skippy. Doesn't that sound like fun."
Wufei quirked a smile.
Trowa snorted. "It can be. You've been doing very well, Duo. Now step into the circle and show me what you've learned."
The braided man shook his head. Hadn't he heard something like that before? Gamely, though, he drew the longsword sheathed on his back and stepped past the marker stones.
~*~
As Wufei and Heero faced off in the Circle, Duo's frown grew.
It wasn't about the training - once he'd gotten over his initial nerves, it was actually proving to be a lot of fun. He knew he'd wake up the next morning unable to move and bruised from crown to toes, but Duo was excited, nonetheless.
A sense of unease had been growing, though, throughout the afternoon, and now that the sun was getting low in the sky, it had him slightly twitchy.
He glanced over - Trowa was no longer watching the combat practice; his eyes were glazed over slightly as he, too, indulged in a deep frown. Duo stepped closer and nudged the druid. "You feel it, too?"
The green-eyed man glanced over and raised an eyebrow. "It? I feel something -- not sure what. Something odd, though. Dischord."
"What?"
Trowa sighed and explained, "To a druid's mind, what you're feeling is like an off-note in a symphony, as though one player is either out of tune or playing something completely different from the main body. It started as just one player - it now feels more like an entire orchestra section."
Duo made a small sound of understanding. While that was definitely not what he was experiencing, it made sense.
No, he just felt as though air pressure was increasing, or maybe it was a stiff wind headed in their direction. Maybe air being pushed in front of something else, something big-
There was an explosion of movement to the left, and Duo didn't stop to think. He took two steps and reached for Trowa to drag him away, not even noticing that the druid's arms were wrapped around something else that had bolted in their direction. "Look out!"
Heero had been turned in their direction already, feeling whatever 'it' was as well, and was nearly stabbed as Duo yelled and Wufei's concentration broke. He side-stepped easily, though, and cursed as his eyes registered.
A beast-like creature stood before them, its chest heaving as it glared from blood-red eyes. Hound-like in appearance, and yet far too large to be any sort of breed Duo recognised, steam rose from its jaws as it breathed, spittle hissing and sizzling as it fell to the grass or became lodged in the beast's matted, soot black coat. Duo backed away slowly, absently wishing he'd held onto his practice sword, as Trowa had. The taller man had gone rigid, staring at the creature. "Trowa? Gwydion?"
The druid's arms were wrapped around a smaller figure, who seemed to be huddling against him, a small child with red hair. His eyes were fixed on the creature, though, and burning with anger. "Stay back, my lord. This one is mine."
Before Duo could even begin to protest, the red-headed child was being pushed into his arms, and Heero was at his side, pulling him back with a set-stone face that brooked no argument. He looked down - the child, a little girl, was bleeding from several nasty-looking scratches and at least one bite, and her right hand looked to be badly burned. Duo's eyes went wide. "What..."
The beast screamed as it jumped at Trowa, fire pouring from its jaws. But the druid's eyes glowed an intense green, and he held out an empty hand, palm facing outwards.
A shield of blue materialised in Trowa-Gwydion's palm and fluoresced as the fire hit it. With a loud yell, he drew his sword with his other hand and attacked.
Wufei and Heero pulled the other two back, being as careful as possible not to hurt the child. Duo's eyes remained riveted, though, as Trowa seemed to dance around fire and razor-sharp claws, more like toying with the beast than actually fighting it. "What the hell is that thing?!"
Heero shot it a disgusted look. "It's called a Sluagh. Basically, a hell-hound."
Wufei was staring as well, eyes going wide as Trowa's sword shone blue for a moment as well-
The druid's attack was faster than the human eye could see, but the beast screamed as a blade stabbed deep, black blood gushing from the wound. As much as Trowa had not seemed serious in the fight only moments before, he was certainly deadly serious now as he attacked with a series of blows that left the Sluagh collapsed in its own blood, breathing fire back at him in a last attempt to hold him at bay.
Gwydion sneered as he stabbed his blade deep into the ground and raised both hands, lilting voice now stone deep and harsh as a gale force wind as he chanted. He brought his hands together in a loud clap that seemed to echo for miles and, taking a deep breath, shoved his hands away again, palms facing the injured creature.
It was like the full force of a day-long blizzard condensed into five furious seconds of destructive power. The Sluagh managed one last yelp before the cold forced its way into its lungs and its very heart, freezing him from the inside-out until he was nothing more than a block of ice, perpetually snarling.
"Uncle T-trowa..." the girl whispered.
The druid's face turned briefly in her direction, and then the sword was once again in his hand. Yelling a word of power as he ran towards the creature, he swung the sword once over his head before it came down in a deadly arch.
The Sluagh shattered and blew apart in frozen shards that covered the whole practice area. Eyes wide, Heero just managed to get up a shield around himself and his companions before the icy shards slammed into it, like tiny, lethal daggers.
The girl cried out in fear and collapsed-
Duo caught her and set her down gently, cradling her head in his lap. He mentally cursed himself for not having done something to help her sooner. "You poor little thing... What's your name, sweetie?" He brushed some of her hair back from her face. She'd called Trowa 'uncle'; this had to be Treize's daughter, then.
"M-m-mmariemeia." Staring down at her wounds, he felt anger igniting in his soul. That a father could send a creature like that after his own child... It was incomprehensible! It was the worst sort of sin imaginable, it was...
He blinked and ruthlessly forced his anger down, looking at the wounds again. He'd felt what Trowa did in the car to heal Quatre and understood it... "I can at least do something about this."
Trowa turned and met his gaze. He nodded his permission.
Gulping, Duo closed his eyes and concentrated.
Each and every hurt on her body shone out to him in vivid detail, and he shuddered as he allowed his mind to flow out over them, experiencing each and every one and willing them to heal. Poisonous venom from the Sluagh's bite that was spreading through her veins - he could dissolve it away, fear and depression...
His eyes opened, and he was surprised to find that a silver glow had enveloped him, now fading away. He frowned down at the girl. Her physical hurts he could handle, but the stains on her heart were another matter, altogether. He gave her a slight smile. "Did I do that right?"
She blinked large blue eyes up at him, amazed. "You... you don't even know me..."
"Oh, Goddess!" Trowa had made his way over and fallen to his knees next to them. He reached out, but pulled his hands back, uncertain. "Are you..."
"Uncle Trowa!" She sprang out of Duo's grasp so quickly, it left the long-haired man reeling, and jumped into the surprised druid's arms. "Mummy said you'd protect me, and you did..."
Green eyes went wide. "Leia sent you to me? Mariemeia - I swear, I didn't know who you were! I didn't mean to let that monster ever get his hands on you again! You have to believe me..."
She gave him a tiny smile. "You saved me - that was so cool," Mariemeia whispered, and fainted right out.
TBC...
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