Each morning I get up, I die a little Can't barely stand on my feet
Lord what you're doing to me I have spent all my years in believing you
But I just can't get no relief, Lord!
Somebody, ooh somebody Can anybody find me - Somebody to love?
-Lyrics to 'Somebody To Love' performed by Queen
Crimson Ties Part 50
(Flashback)
Shannon, Ireland. September, 1920.
Light music was floating on the light breeze that drifted from the white tent draped with colorful streamers and large white globed lights as he walked through the tall grass of the green field towards the river's edge. The cloudless sky was a multitude of breathtaking colors as the sun began its descent. In the darker reaches of the heavens, the first stars twinkled.
It was the perfect day. Great weather this late summer day, the beautiful landscape of a pristine and natural land of trees and hills... it was what anyone could have hoped for on the day of their wedding. And the festivities could not have been better.
Undoing his tie when he stopped beside a tall tree on the beach of the river, Heero let it hang loosely to be buffeted by the light wind. Though everything had gone as smoothly and wonderfully as he had prayed that it would for the newlyweds, the darker feelings that he'd managed to push back up until that moment came creeping into the forefront of his mind.
This was wrong. He should be happy. Everyone in his family was happy and with their soul mates. There shouldn't be any room for feeling anything but joy that night... and yet there was. And it was selfish of him to allow the jealousy and loneliness in his own life to have a moment at this time.
How many more years would go on before Yuy, the only Vampire in his clan that was still on his own, finally met his perfect match? How many nights would his heart wish for the same love that his siblings and cousins were so fortunate to have every day?
Running a hand through his unruly hair, the Infected stared out to the running water to watch the white caps at the crests of the waves as he recalled the beautiful wedding earlier.
Since there was nothing officially traditional about a pair of Vampires marrying, there were a few liberties that were taken, namely Anna having Heero as her Best Man and Wufei stand up with Midi as his Matron of Honor. Really, they were the best representatives for the pair. Trowa gave the bride away before the audience of all of their regal friends that included the whole of the Vampire Council.
Gladly taking up all of the expenses, Treize and Lady Une looked every bit the proud parents they could be when they saw the redhead enter in her white dress and veil. And the moment that Anna and Wufei's eyes met under the gazebo wrapped in flower vines, they began to cry.
Everything about it was right out of a fairytale... one of which Heero now began to truly doubt that he would ever experience himself.
Now that there was a better understanding between Vampires and their unique connection with the person that was now considered their Other, the Companion Act was added to the treaty between the Infected and the mortals. Whilst there was still a mystery around that profound link between two creatures who were meant to be together, the Japanese immortal could only wish for the chance to feel it for himself.
So lost in his thoughts was the Infected that he never heard her approach until her arms wrapped around his waist from behind and the side of her head rested against his shoulder blades. A thick lump of guilt formed in the back of Yuy's throat that he had to swallow away as he leaned back against her with a soft, "Hey, brat."
Giggling at the endearment, Anna pressed a kiss on the back of his neck and replied in kind, "Hey, yourself." Her arms unhooking from the other Infected's waist, she stepped around him so that they could face each other.
A warm smile tugging his lips in seeing her in the simple, white flowing wedding dress with a band of multi-colored flowers crowning her head in place of the veil from the service, Heero's chest swelled with pride once again. For a girl who hated wearing dresses, the redheaded tomboy was quite comfortable in the lovely ensemble.
"You should be back with your new husband and the others, sister," he said. "You didn't have to follow me out here."
Anna brushed away a few of her loose, drifting locks from her face as she grinned, "I know. But I wanted to check on you." The smile shifted into a concerned frown when she asked, "Are you okay? You've seemed... distant these last couple of days... even for you."
Wincing, her brother lowered his head. The last thing he wanted was to dampen her spirit on the happiest day of her existence. Frowning when he met her blue-and-gold eyes again, he shrugged, "I'm sorry... I've just had a lot on my mind." Even that much was enough for the Irish Vampire to piece together what he wasn't letting on, as he feared she would.
"Heero," the newly wedded bride whispered sadly. Biting her lip, she held his hands in hers and squeezed them. With a deep breath, she sighed, "I knew that this was going to be a lot for you... seeing the rest of us being paired up while you're still alone in a lot of ways."
Quickly opening his mouth to protest and spare her any further pain, Yuy was cut off when she raised her hand. "Please don't deny your feelings," she requested. "I know you better than you think, considering how close we are." Swallowing roughly, the other Infected ducked his head again.
The redhead stepped up to rest their foreheads together so their golden eyes could lock. "You're going to find him, brother," she breathed, "I know you will. Someone is going to come into this world and you are going to be everything to them."
Pulling back when her gaze began to shimmer, Anna smiled, "And I'm convinced that he's going to be something special, too. No one tied to you could ever be anything short of amazing. And he'll be welcomed with open arms by all of us, because you're not losing me even if I am married now."
Against his defenses, Heero's own eyes filled with tears at that. Clearing his throat, he chuckled huskily, "You always did know how to cheer me up." Pulling his sister close, he kissed her cheek and said by her ear, "Thank you. And I'm sorry if I ruined the mood-"
His counterpart waved her hand in the air, shaking her head as she insisted, "You haven't ruined anything. I would have been worse on us both if you didn't allow yourself to feel whatever you needed to feel today." Cupping the side of his face, she brushed a stray tear away with the pad of her thumb. "But like I said, there will be a soul mate out there for you. It's just taking a little more time because he can't be just anyone."
Yuy smiled widely at that. And really taking a moment to take his sister in, he thought of their long history together.
From the night of her turning, there were countless days when they would share the same bed as they simply talked for hours on end to the decade at the Vampire prison in Antarctica and a world war soon after. Now more memories were being added with their training for the new Preventers' organization that Treize and Lady Une were forming.
There were centuries of laughter and tears and they came through it all with their relationship all the stronger.
Squeezing her hands, he all but whispered sincerely, "I love you. You really look beautiful tonight, Anna Yuy-Chang. And I couldn't be happier for you."
As her tears welled up anew, the Irish Vampire turned her head away. "Not fair," she snickered. "I'm supposed to be done crying today." Facing her creator, she kissed the tip of his nose and said in kind, "Love you, too." She freed one of her hands to lift the hems of her dress up and turned towards the tent, smirking, "Now, the night is still young and I'd like to have a couple dances with my brother."
Bringing their linked hands up, Heero kissed the back of hers. "I would be honored," he winked, leading them back towards the festivities. Along their walk, he glanced up to the stars that continued to fill the darkening skies and smiled to himself as he silently wondered over his future bonded.
Maybe his sister was right... maybe his long wait for his soul mate would bring him someone remarkable.
(End Flashback)
* * * * * *
"D-Duo," Heero breathed as he stared wide-eyed into the violet-and-silver eyes blinking up at him. Fighting his rising panic as to not alarm his already worried lover, he brushed back his Companion's long bangs and whispered, "Your eyes."
Were Maxwell's heart able to, it would have been pounding a lot harder as his chest rose and fell with his panting breath. "What about them?" he pressed, the fear evident in his voice. Lightly pushing his partner off of him, he hurried for the wall mirror at the other half of the room.
Gasping at the sight of the silver rings around his violet irises, he leaned close to the reflection in disbelief. "W-what the hell!?" he cried, falling back a few steps from the mirror.
As Heero rushed to his side, Duo trembled in the arms wrapping tightly around him. "What's wrong with me?" he asked brokenly in his fight. "Companion's eyes aren't supposed to change like this. What does it mean?"
"I don't know," the Infected admitted, face buried in his lover's long, loose hair at the nape of the former living's neck. Swallowing roughly, he closed his eyes, adding, "But... I wonder if it's not tied to what is so unique to your blood when I drink it."
Duo shifted, silvered eyes growing to meet his Other's gaze. "What are you talking about?" he frowned deeply. "What's wrong with my blood?"
Shaking his head, Yuy reassured, "There's nothing wrong with it." He paused to chewed on the inside of his cheek in thought of how to properly word the situation without worrying his Companion more. "It's just... unique," he settled.
With a shrug, the Vampire went on, "It's making me stronger every time I drink from you, only in ways that I just found out during this last hunt that might be a bit different to other Vampires who drink from their Chosen. Trowa and Lady Une were pretty taken aback at the things that I could do... things that I thought were normal since I never had you in my life before to know how my body should be reacting."
Reluctantly, Maxwell swallowed roughly and requested, "Explain what you mean when you say you're growing stronger when you drink from me."
Drawing a deep breath, Heero cleared his throat. Gently leading his Companion to the edge of their bed so that they could sit facing each other, he lovingly draped the comforter around Duo's shaking shoulders and held him close against his chest.
Then, staring into the violet-and-silver eyes, he elaborated, "I was able to pull a pine tree from its roots, snap its trunk in half and shave off its branches with my bare hands. I can bend metal easily, too, I came to find out. None of those things are normal, apparently."
Frustrated, the Infected sighed, "I am as new and naive as you when it comes to what should and shouldn't happen between a Vampire and the Companion, so I never thought that there was anything out of the ordinary until it was recently brought up to me. And I swear that I was going to mention something sooner, but we've been a bit... preoccupied since I returned home."
Glancing down at their naked bodies, Duo blushed. There was no fault with his Vampire for what had transpired. And neither of them should feel any guilt for what happened, either.
Determined to make sure that Heero was aware of that, the newly turned immortal pressed their lips together in a soft and chaste kiss. "Well, that couldn't be helped," he smirked, the rouge in his cheeks deepening all the more. "And it was still the most amazing thing I've ever experienced."
Profound relief settled into the cobalt-and-gold eyes watching him as his Vampire sighed deeply with his whole body sagging at the release of his tension. Closing the distance between them, he poured all of his love and appreciation into a more scorching kiss.
When they finally broke away, Duo rested their foreheads together. "We may both be naive to this," he began with a worried frown, "but we both know that this isn't normal, either." He emphasized 'this' with a point to his own eyes, drawing a circle in the air before his iris. Swallowing, Heero nodded slowly.
Shuddering, he pulled the blanket around him tight. To think that there was more to him than he'd ever known was terrifying to say the least. While a large part of him wished to deny and ignore whatever it was, he knew that there was no way around that.
"Quatre. He might be able to figure all of this out," Maxwell thought aloud. "We should call him right away. Knowing him, he'll be here as soon as he can get here."
His Vampire cupped the sides of the Companion's face in his cool hands, offering, "If you want, I can get a hold of him now for you. But we only take that step when you're ready."
Tears welled up in Duo's silvered eyes at that. Was he ready? Would he ever be ready to find out what may or may not be terribly wrong? Far more than anything involving himself, the thought of anything coming between him and his lover was tearing him apart.
Mortified at the small whimper that escaped him at the nightmare that was already setting in, he whispered brokenly, "I want to know what's going on, but... I'm afraid you might not want me when we find out what it is."
"Duo," the Infected breathed, eyes wide and already pale skin lightening a couple more shades. Opening and closing his mouth, he couldn't find his voice.
Instead of using words after a few vain attempts, Yuy used his actions to all but crush his partner in his arms. Quivering violently, the long-haired immortal closed his eyes and clung onto him just as tightly as he began to sob through his fear and pain.
Taking a deep breath as his own tears fell, Heero finally gathered himself enough to whisper fiercely, "You listen to me. Nothing. And I mean nothing would ever keep me away from you, Duo. You're everything to me, no matter what you are! I could never love you any less than I do right now! I wouldn't care if you sprouted wings and a horn through your forehead." He was rewarded with a broken round of laughter that eased his lover at that mental image.
Maxwell bulled back, wiping at his eyes as he snickered, "Well, at least there's a good chance I'm not a unicorn." Chuckling with him, the Infected brushed away the last traces of the tears from his Companion's cheeks. "God, I love you," the silver-and-violet-eyed immortal breathed.
"Whatever we find out," the Vampire vowed as he cupped his lover's face again, "we'll get through it together, just like everything else. I've waited for you all my existence and I'm not about to lose you now."
Releasing a deep sigh, Duo nodded firmly. "Alright," he replied, "Call Quatre."
* * * * * *
A light, cold drizzle was falling late that evening when the car rolled into the Yuy-Maxwell estate's driveway. Moments after the sound of driver and passenger doors closing filled the air, the front door to the mansion flew open just as the residents stepped out into the entryway.
Throwing back the wet hood of his orange raincoat, Winner revealed his wide eyes as he cried, "We got here as soon as we could!" Not even bothering with proper greetings, he tossed his jacket aside to reveal the black bag of equipment that was strapped over his shoulder to hang at his side.
Relena closed the front door behind her when she entered, at the same time the scientist froze along with her at the sight of the Companion band around their braided friend's arm. Her gold-and-blue eyes growing, the Councilwoman gasped, "Oh, Heero and Duo!" Biting her lip, she shot past Quatre to throw her arms around the new lovers, cheering, "Congratulations! I'm so incredibly happy for the two of you!"
Having his friends back and safe where he and the rest of his family could keep an eye of them, the Companion sighed deeply and gladly returned Peacecraft's hug. It was a warm and welcoming thing after his intense few hours of pacing as his thoughts ran wild. "Thanks, Lena. Good to see the two of you again," he grinned.
The Infected Representative leaned back to really look onto her recently turned friend. If there was worry or fear in her at the sight of his eyes, she never let onto it. Her smile only growing, she cupped the sides of Duo's face in her hands as she giggled, "You're practically glowing. I am thrilled to see you this happy, dear." Biting his lip, the new immortal pulled her back into another fierce embrace to express his gratitude.
Quatre put on a wide smile, but his staring at the silver rings around his roommate's eyes spoke of his interest and concern to what was going on. When the blonde Vampire stepped away, he patted Maxwell's arm and winked, "Come on. We'll use one of the side rooms so that I can set up my gear. Tell me everything along the way so that it might help narrow down what I need to be looking for."
Stepping close to his lover's side, Heero met his gaze with a silent offer. A small, appreciative grin tugged Duo's lips before he kissed his partner's cheek. "I can handle this part on my own," he stated softly. He shrugged, "It's just a needle jab for some blood and a telling of a history that I don't know."
At the steadiness in the gaze that was staring at him, Yuy nodded. Pressing and holding a kiss against his Companion's forehead, he pulled back and mouthed, 'Love you.' That said, he stepped back and watched his braided lover follow Winner down the hallway, their steps rushed and purposeful.
Once they disappeared around the far corner, the Japanese Infected ran a hand through his hair. Lightly rubbing his back, Relena gestured towards the living room, urging in a soft whisper, "Come on, Heero. Try and settle down a bit." Nodding shallowly, the Original followed her through the doorway.
In the living room, the rest of his family as well as the Khushrenada's and Merquise's were present and on their feet to welcome back the Councilwoman. A wide smile spreading across her face at the reception, she made her way through the whole lot to have a moment of embraces and kisses with each of them.
Saving her brother for last, Relena smiled against his shoulder when he enveloped her in his arms. "Meiran is still on her vacation, I take it?" she asked quietly, unable to hide the hope in her tone.
Zechs hummed an affirmative and replied under his breath, "With any luck, it'll be quite a while before we have to worry about her." Releasing his sister, he commented, "Our dear friends have enough to worry about at the moment."
Not about to argue with that, the Councilwoman nodded as they glanced over to Heero as he was surrounded by Trowa, Wufei, Anna and Midi in the other half of the room. Their voices hushed, they spoke amongst themselves while the redhead stayed particularly close to her brother with their hands joined between them.
Biting her lip, Peacecraft sighed sadly, "How much more are those poor souls going to have to endure? I do hope that Quatre can give them some answers tonight."
Treize stepped up to wrap an arm around his cousin's shoulders, reassuring her, "That family of theirs is made up of the strongest creatures I have ever known in my existence. Whatever they come to learn, I'm sure that they'll be able to take it on in stride." Both Lady Une and Noin nodded vehemently at that sentiment.
Over in the ring in the other half of the room, Trowa looped an arm around his anxious wife's waist to pull her against his side. Focused on his cousin across from him, he stated, "You know that no matter what happens, we would never accept or love Duo any less that we already do."
Her head nodding, Midi added, "And we're always going to be here for the both of you whenever you need us. Nothing is going to change that."
Flanked by his siblings, Heero's lips finally curled in a small smile as he replied sincerely, "I know... and that means the world to us, believe me." Peering over his shoulder to stare through the doorway, he frowned, "I'm just worried how this may or may not affect Duo."
In the enclosed back patio, Quatre was setting up his microscope and other expensive tools that he'd removed from his large bag. The moment he and his roommate stepped into the lit space, the scientist was speaking nonstop at his breakneck pace in his excitement of both being reunited with his friend and being able to use his new 'toys.'
Quickly inspecting all of his gear when it was set up on the main table, he continued on in a rush, "So, all of my hinting and suggesting over the years finally paid off since my parents gifted me with everything I could possibly need to run a blood sample like this. Funny how the timing works out. It's pretty cool that the first sample I get to use on these is yours. I can't-"
Seated in the chair across from the living, Duo interrupted gently, "Quatre. Look, I can't tell you how much I appreciate your getting here on such short notice like this."
Biting his lip, he went on, "And no offense meant, man, but it's kinda hard to keek up right now when there's a ton of shit running through my head as it is already. Much as I've missed you and your enthusiasm for all things brainy, I can't keep up at the moment." His braided head shaking, he pointed to his temple and snickered in amusement, "Everything's getting garbled in here."
Blushing, Winner paused in his work to meet the silver eyes watching him. "Sorry," he chuckled. "I should have been more sensitive to that."
"No need to be sorry," Maxwell replied. "I've missed you, too. And we'll have plenty of time to catch up later, once we get to the bottom of what's going on with me."
Relaxing, Quatre smirked, "That's more than fair." Quickly taking up a Petri dish and a needle pen, he rounded the table to approach his braided friend. "I'll only need a few fresh drops from you," he said.
Without hesitation or complaint, Duo held out his right hand so that the scientist could make a small cut at the tip of his pointer finger. Catching the crimson drops that fell onto the middle of the dish, the living waited for a good pool of a sample before he slipped the protective slide onto the blood.
Carefully sliding the sample under the lens of his microscope as he sat before the tool, Winner looked to the Companion as he said, "Okay. Now tell me everything that you've ever experienced that seemed a little... off. Don't leave anything out and try to go back as far as you can."
Nodding, Maxwell shifted in his chair and drew a deep breath. As requested, he began with the night of his parents' deaths... when his mother had told him to never forget that he was 'special' not long before he was able to kill a Vampire with his bare hands.
* * * * * *
Curled up with Heero on their main couch in their living room, Duo had his head pillowed on his lover's shoulder. With all of their family and friends sitting around in an anxious wait along with him, he glanced at the grandfather clock to check the time.
3:49 am.
Quatre had been going nonstop in his research for over five hours. Occasionally, Midi would retreat from the room to make sure that their living friend had all of the refreshments and coffee that he needed to see to his work.
There was little point in worrying over the scientist's state when he was set on a task like this. Whenever there was a question in need of an answer, Winner was not one to be deterred from it. The results of that study were what had the Companion the most worried.
Sensing the growing tension in his partner's shoulders, Yuy tightened his arm that was draped around them in a supportive squeeze. He turned his head to press a cool kiss against Duo's forehead and whispered against his skin, "Love you."
A warm smile tugging his lips, the braided immortal sighed as his silvered eyes met the cobalt-and-gold that were locked on him. Opening his mouth to reply, he stopped short when he spotted Quatre entering the room.
The first to spring to his feet, Duo all but ran towards his roommate, only then really noticing the stricken look etched in the living's face. "Q-Quatre?" he stammered nervously as Heero and the others fell in behind him. "What is it? What did you find out."
Swallowing roughly, Winner shook his head. In little more than a breath, he whispered, "Duo... part of your DNA make up is pure Vampire."
TBC...
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