Merrillian Part 15

"A little help here?"

Quatre blinked and looked up from his pile of boxes to see Heero standing in the doorway, a stack of more boxes in his arms. The blond smiled and quickly rushed over to the door, holding it open for Heero and his companion behind him. Duo grinned at Quatre from behind the pile of boxes in his lap and wheeled into the room.

"It figures my own cousin would use me to haul his stuff into his room," Duo joked, working his way over to the bed so he could unload the boxes.

Quatre put on a mock pout. "If you guys didn't want to help all you had to do was say so."

Duo grinned. "Naw, I was just joking. Besides, I'm stuck in this wheel chair for a while; I might as well make use of it. I'm gonna go get more boxes and see where Catherine disappeared to." Duo tossed a wink in Heero's direction then wheeled himself out the door and down the hall toward the elevator.

Heero set his boxes down in a corner and glanced around the dorm room with a frown. "They fit two people in here?"

"Two, sometimes three. I know it's small, but I don't mind." Quatre smiled. "I've been all alone in my parent's huge house for so long, this will be a welcome change. Plus I'm sure I'll be out studying for my classes a lot. My dorm's just a place to sleep right? I have lots of other places to hang out."

Heero nodded. "And you know you're welcome to come visit Catherine and I at our houses."

"He had better. I'm gonna need help tearing you away from your boyfriend and paintings now. And I thought I had it bad before..." Catherine stepped into the room with another box and set it on top of the others. The pile leaned a bit and she gave a small cry of surprise, quickly moving it so it would stay standing.

"That should be everything... where's Duo?"

Heero glanced at the door and raced over to it as Duo wheeled himself into view, taking something from his hands and bringing it into the room. Quatre abandoned the box he was in the mist of unpacking and stood up, walking over with a skeptical look.

"I don't remember packing anything in that shape."

Heero glanced to Duo, who smirked back at him and Catherine. "You didn't."

"Oh? So then what is it?" Quatre moved over and took the large, thin, paper wrapped object from them. Upon taking it into his hands he realized that it was semi soft under the paper. And judging by the size... a painting? His eyes widened and he looked back at the others.

"You guys didn't have to..."

"Oh nonsense! This is your new dorm room and your first year of college that isn't home taught. You need something in here... it's like a dorm-warming gift." Catherine chuckled softly. "Heero painted it himself, so you have to take it."

"Go on," Duo urged quietly.

Quatre nodded and slipped the paper off, ripping it carefully to make sure he didn't damage what was inside. Slowly a painted was revealed before his eyes, one that made his breath catch in his throat and his eyes slightly water.

Watching him back from the painting was a pair of green eyes, a pair of eyes he hadn't seen in over a year now. The picture before him was so perfect it could have been a photo. Trowa sat on his favorite rock near the river, the image of Quatre wrapped in his arms as they both looked out over the peaceful water. Quatre bit his lower lip as he looked down at the painting, smiling happily.

"Thank you," he managed to murmur softly.

Heero smiled back at him and walked over, taking the painting and hanging it on a hook on the wall, right over where Quatre had started to set up his computer on the desk. "I know it's a poor substitute for him, since he's gone, but I thought it would help you remember him."

Quatre nodded happily, wiping the small tears from his eyes. "It's perfect."

"He would have loved it," Catherine agreed quietly.

The group stood there for a moment looking at the painting, before splitting up again and helping Quatre to unpack the rest of his belongings. Idle conversation passed between them as Heero worked to set up the computer, Duo handing him pieces and cords from different boxes. Meanwhile Quatre put away his books on the small shelf provided and Catherine rearranged things so that there was a 'woman's touch' to the room.

Not surprisingly, with everything that had happened that summer, the four had become nearly inseparable after Duo had woken up. Due to being in the hospital for so long and not using his muscles, Duo was confined to a wheel chair with daily sessions of therapy to get all his limbs working correctly again. With only a few months of work he'd managed to get strong enough to move the chair on his own for a little while, not needing someone to push him save for when he worked for too long. Despite the constant need of a wheel chair, and how much his father hovered around him protectively, Duo never seemed to stop grinning and laughing. Especially when he was around Heero.

For Heero's part, the young painter had regained a smile that hadn't been present on his face since forever. He laughed easily now and Duo always took advantage of this, making them all laugh with his jokes and witty comments. Heero had even started joking back, losing his usual somber and loner mood to reveal a side that most of his friends hadn't seen before.

Out of all of them, it could be argued that Quatre had changed the most. Once Duo had woken up Quatre had started to let himself take more of a part in the world, which he'd stopped doing when Trowa died. He ended the home schooling he'd requested, and instead moved to be accepted into Heero and Catherine's college. Due to excellent school records it was merely a wink and Quatre was accepted into the college, only a mere year behind others his age. For the first time in a long while, he wasn't afraid of being around people despite his small abilities and fear of getting close to people. And Duo was doing his best to chip away at that fear nearly tirelessly.

Not so strangely, Catherine hadn't changed much. But she'd gained two more very close friends.

"So, I have a strange question for all of you." Catherine took a piece of the pizza they'd ordered as they finished up the rest of the unpacking, and took a seat on the floor, leaning against the closet door.

"Hm? What's that?" Duo asked as Heero handed him a piece.

"Well, what ever happened to that strange little boy? Or am I the only one who hallucinated it into existence?"

Quatre blinked as he took a bite of his own piece. "You know, you're right. I remember seeing a young boy in Duo's dream too. But he wasn't really a boy, more like a shadow. And I think I remember Heero hugging him." He glanced over at Heero. "Right?"

Heero nodded with a small frown. "I don't know what it was, but I think I have a small idea. It wasn't human. I think it was-"

"The Merrillian." Duo said softly, cutting off Heero's sentence.

All three turned to the wheel-chair bound boy in silence, waiting for more explanation. Duo ran a hand through his short hair, frowning as he always did when he was reminded it was cut, and leaned back in the chair.

"I don't know everything about it, in fact I'm willing to bet I know very little. But I do know that hanging in darkness for that long gives you plenty of time to think. My guess is that the stone was completely normal at first. But somewhere along the line it grew a being of its own and..." he frowned, trying to place the words correctly. "It was lonely."

"You're kidding right? How could a rock get lonely?" Catherine scoffed, in disbelief.

"I can see it happening. But then I'm biased, I've seen a lot of strange things in my family." Quatre commented.

Heero looked to Duo with a small frown and a worried look. "What happened to the stone?"

"I don't know. I never saw it after I woke up. And I asked the doctors but they said nothing like that was ever found in the room." Duo sighed softly. "I know I'm going to sound silly, but I swear all it seemed to want was to live... with others."

The four sat in silence, pondering those words for a while as they ate the pizza. No one knew what to say to Duo's voiced opinion because, to an extent, all of them had similar thoughts. If it hadn't sounded so improbable... if this whole thing hadn't seemed to unreal...

A knock sounded on the dorm room door and a smile broke across Quatre's face as he got to his feet. "That's probably my room mate." He stood up and crossed the room, managing to jump to the side so he didn't step on Catherine's hand at the last second, then straightened himself and went for the door, pulling it open with a smile.

Silence dropped in the room and Heero dropped the piece of pizza he had, while Catherine gave a small cry of surprise. Quatre stood frozen by the door, his eyes wide and unblinking... and Duo was the only one who seemed unfazed, just sitting there with a small smile on his face. As for the person at the door...

Quatre took a deep breath and stared back at a pair of emerald green eyes, one of which was covered by auburn hair. He barely managed to breathe as the other just blinked back at him.

"Trowa?" He choked out in disbelief.

The boy before him stood there silently, looking just as confused and shaken. He'd dropped his suitcase, and now his hands were trembling as the two looked at each other, each trying to breathe and speak.

"How?" Quatre whispered out in disbelief.

But he didn't get his answer. Instead the boy before him took one step forward and wrapped his arms tightly around Quatre, hugging him like there was no tomorrow. Quatre melted into the embrace, tears slipping from his eyes in amazement as he hugged him back, still dealing with his own shock.

From inside the room, Catherine managed to stumble to her feet and crossed the room, using the closet doors for support so she wouldn't fall over. She made it over to the couple, his own eyes wide, when the boy pulled away and looked at her.

"Cathy." He said softly, a sad smile crossing his lips.

That was all the proof that she needed. In a second the young woman was joining in the embrace, wrapping her arms around both of them and muttering incoherent phrases and questions like crazy.

Heero watched all of it with a surprised look of his own. But instead of stumbling to his feet and joining in, he turned and glanced at Duo, noticing the small smile on his face.

"How?" Heero asked softly.

Duo glanced down at him, that same knowing smile on his face. Lifting one hand, he tapped the side of his ear and then nodded to Trowa who stood in the doorway with Quatre and Catherine.

Heero's eyes wandered to Trowa's ears and he gave a soft gasp as he noticed what Duo was pointing out.

Each of Trowa's ear had a small red earring, made of a simple red stone that glimmered softly.

The painter's eyes widened in surprise and understanding, every piece finally falling into place as a smile crossed his own lips. Standing to his feet, he made his way over and joined the embrace as well, welcoming back his old friend.

Duo remained in the back of the room, smiling softly.

"It seems," he murmured softly. "That everyone got their wish, even you... Merrillian."

TBC...

There will be a lemony epilogue in the future.

 

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