Silence Part 13
Collateral Damage
Solo
I think something awful happened a few days ago. Daddy was hurt somehow; Wufei brought him home while I was at school. Wufei said a bad person did something to hurt him, but Wufei came and called Dr. Michael and he fixed it, but Daddy is so sad now. It's not like last time. I can't explain it, but it just isn't. He doesn't hear me when I talk to him. He doesn't want to eat and I know he isn't asleep when his eyes are closed. I know he isn't just tired. If he were tired, he would sleep. So I asked Wufei what was wrong. We went outside in the garden and sat in the shade. He told me I have to be brave right now. Something is going on that could turn out really bad. Wufei says Daddy is very upset and he's trying to work it all out, that's why he's so sad. I asked if Papa is going to die, but he only said he didn't know. I'm really scared now, but Wufei says he'll do everything he can to make it better. I know he will, but I don't think even Wufei can stop Papa from dying, if that's what's meant to be.
~*~
Wufei
I just did the most difficult thing that's ever been asked of me. I had to explain to Solo why Duo is nearly catatonic. He's just a little boy, for all of his maturity; how can he possibly understand the vile, subversive actions of powerful people? He's almost seven years old; is he never going to see his father again? Is Duo going to continue to retreat into the safety of the silent darkness he's creating for himself? God, I wish I had answers!
I did the best I could, though. Solo crawled onto my lap and hugged me silently and I hugged him back and in spite of my resolve, we both cried.
And I made a promise then, to Solo and Duo and even to myself, that if the barbarians succeeded in their evil mission, it would be a brief and hollow victory. I am Chang Wufei; I was a Gundam pilot; don't fuck with me.
~*~
Heero
I WANT MY DUO!!!
You insignificant sewer-crawling, dirt sucking MOTHERFUCKERS!!!
You are ALL DEAD!!!
If I have to CLAW MY WAY out of HELL and rip your perfidious SOULS FROM YOUR BODIES, I WILL DO IT!!!
CONFRONT ME, YOU COWARDS!!!
FACE ME, you BASTARDS!!!
SHIIIINIIIIGAAAAMIIIII!!!!
~*~
Duo
He's calling me; I can hear him, feel him... I want out of this prison. This isn't my Hell; this isn't Shinigami's place... This is a false darkness, a lie. There's no comfort here. There's no warmth, no fire. Where are the wings that should surround me... Where is the hand that should be in mine... Where is the body that warms and comforts me... What is left for me to live for...
Solo... My son... Our son...
Lady God, please help me; give me strength to win this fight... They need me... I cannot hide behind Wufei forever... I need him... He... he needs me...
Wufei was sitting beside me. His eyes were red and swollen. Wufei... crying..? I touched his cheek and he closed his hand over mine and kissed my fingers.
"Duo, don't give up. Gather strength and make your plans, but do not give up!" He seems so stern... So emphatic... Maybe he sees more clearly than I can right now...
I don't lie...
"It's so hard," I whispered. "I don't know which way to turn... I'm so confused now... My friends, my enemies... I just don't know anymore..."
"I am your friend; do you believe that?" he demanded softly.
"Yes..."
"Then don't give up, Shinigami."
Shinigami... Yes... Death may be thwarted, avoided, mocked or toyed with, but He always triumphs in the end... Shinigami will not give up. I will triumph in the end...
Heero...
~*~
Wufei
Duo is trying to pull himself together. It's painful to watch him trying to push his grief away and begin thinking coherently again. He said he could hear Heero screaming his name. It's tearing his mind apart; I'm afraid there may be nothing left by the time we go into court.
A foreign thought entered my mind. I climbed the stairs to Duo's workroom. I don't know what I hoped to accomplish; I don't believe in the God Duo bows to. At least, I don't think I do... To him She is the Mother of all things, the symbol of all growth and fecundity. She is Hope. And we all must have hope, else why bother to strive? Every dawn is Her gift of a new chance; every spring brings rebirth.
But She is also Death, the ending of cycles, the dormancy of life.
I think... I think I do believe in some fashion; I just cannot bring myself to bestow Her name to all these things. I wanted to stand in Duo's room and try to feel what he felt there, and maybe offer some feeble plea that would somehow make a difference. He's told me that his God doesn't require belief, only sincerity.
I opened the door to the bright airy room and found Solo, sitting in a full lotus, in the center of a chalk-drawn pentacle. His sharp eyes gazed upwards as if watching someone and his voice was quiet, but respectful.
The scene shocked me; my first impulse was to snatch him up and carry him out of the room. I was stopped by the knowledge that Duo never left that figure on the floor. He always brushed away the chalk markings when he was finished. Even the day he'd resorted to blood magic, the pentacle was gone when he left the room.
This... This perfectly done and carefully executed pentacle and power circle... This was Solo's doing... I stood in the doorway as if paralyzed and watched as Duo and Heero's son pleaded his own case, in all seriousness, to the God Duo worshipped.
~*~
Solo
Daddy is so unhappy, because Papa is in a coma. Bad people are trying to take Papa even farther away from us. Wufei loves us, but he's not a doctor or a lawyer; he can't make the bad people go away and leave us alone. I know he killed people during the war, but there's no war now, so he can't kill them. And I know that the laws don't always do the right thing. Wufei says that the law has nothing to do with justice, except by accident. That means that laws don't have to be fair. I don't understand what the bad people want to do, but I know it's wrong. They can't just take Papa away from us. It's not fair and it's not right. It's... it's an injustice! Please, Ma'am, don't let the bad people hurt Daddy anymore. Don't let them take Papa away from us. If you're too busy to do it yourself, I know Wufei would be happy to help. He loves us a lot and he'd do anything for Daddy. And he and Papa are best friends. They were all soldiers during the war and Wufei always fought for fairness and justice. Please, can you do this for us? I don't know how to ask the way Daddy does. I promise to be as good as I can and take good care of Sweetums and Daddy and to listen hard to Papa and Wufei and to practice my katas twice a day. I'll try really hard not to forget. Um... I know! I'll make a calendar so I can mark off every day! Is that okay? I really miss Papa, and Daddy is so miserable without him; I'm afraid something might happen to him, too. Thank you, Ma'am, for listening. I really hope you'll help us.
~*~
Heero
My SON?!?!?!
It isn't enough to take my HUSBAND!!!
They plan to TAKE MY SON!!!
ANSWER ME!!!
Don't stand at my bedside and TALK AS IF I'M NOT HERE, YOU BASTARDS!!!
I HEAR YOU!!!
So help me MOTHERFUCKING GODS, OMAE O KOROSU!!!
You sick demented HENTAI CHIKUSHO BASTARDS!!!
I WILL SURVIVE, YOU FUCKERS!!!
I WILL SURVIVE AND KILL YOU ALL!!!
Oh, gods... Duo, my darling angel... My sweetheart, my love, my reason for living... Hold on, baby... I love you so much... Somehow, please hold on!
TBC...
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