Sorcerer Stabber Shinigami Part 7
Treize's eyes widened slightly as he realized who was standing in front of him and who had interrupted his attack. Trowa, his student. Growling he jerked his hand from Trowa's grip, then turned to glare at the younger boy.
"How dare you!" He hissed angrily
Trowa's eyes narrowed. "How dare you. You would kill innocents just because they are of no use to you? How far will you descend?" Trowa's voice was low and flat, but it wasn't hard to hear the dark hatred and revulsion behind his words. He'd lost all respect for Treize now, Master or not. Trowa had seen far too many innocents die in the world period, and he had vowed long ago to never let another be hurt, he wasn't about to let Treize get away with it just because there was a difference in rank!
"You are my student, you will not oppose me." Treize bit out angrily.
"I am not your student. Not anymore. There is nothing else I wish to learn from you." Clutching the amulet at his neck Trowa pulled it hard, causing the chain to snap. In a simple movement he let the amulet fall to the ground, where it clattered against the stone floor and then lay still at their feet. All the while he left his blazing emerald eyes on Treize's face.
"You will regret that," Treize muttered harshly.
The tall man before him wasn't moving but Trowa could feel the power rising up around him, being gathered by Treize for an attack. For a moment, though his face didn't show it, his mind panicked. He was powerful, yes, but none of his attacks could stand up to Treize. Treize was the Master of the Tower of Fang for a reason; no one could beat him, least of all Trowa. Trowa took a step back as his mind whirled, trying to come up with some spell or magic that would protect him or at least save the lives of the other two in the room. Judging from the power Treize was gathering whatever attack he was about to try was going to be a big one, and it was likely none of them would survive.
Yet Trowa's worries disappeared as the room around them began to shake. It was very subtle at first, barely even noticeable, then it stopped. All eyes turned to the door and spotted a small whisp of gray smoke drifting around the corner and into the room, then it snapped out of existence. A second later Duo stepped into sight and leaned against the doorframe, a mischievous grin on his face.
"Duo!" Quatre cried happily.
Treize frowned. "So you were merely a distraction then," Treize said to Trowa. Turning he completely faced the smirking violet-eyed sorcerer before him. "It's good to see you back where you belong, Duo."
Duo slid off the wall, his movements slow, cool and calculated. It was almost eerie the way he moved, sliding into the room in a movement that would have taken years of practice for any human, yet he moved as if it were natural. Trowa backed away toward Quatre and Hilde who stood in the back of the room. He decided, just in case, that he better stay near those two, be ready to protect them if the inevitable battle between Treize and Duo got too out of hand.
"I don't appreciate you threatening my friends," Duo spoke in his normal cheerful tone, yet there was something strange and sinister behind it. He took slow, careful, flowing steps toward Treize. "First Heero, blaming him for my mistake. Then you turn Trowa against me, warping his mind with lies. Then you threaten my apprentice and his friend?"
Treize shrugged slightly, as if this were just a normal conversation. "You do not yet realize how important you are to the Tower, I would gladly accept any price to get you back."
Duo chuckled softly. "Any price eh? How about this one, Treize?"
Another shape stepped into the light behind Duo, but this one actually caused Hilde and Quatre to gasp, while Trowa's eyes widened. Treize visibly stumbled backward landing on the floor.
Heero stepped into the room, his new form forcing him to duck. In the last few minutes he'd grown almost two heads taller then Duo and his scales shimmered with their own magical light. He hissed angrily as he approached Treize, a serpentine tongue flickering between his lips. Reptilian slitted eyes narrowed angrily at Treize.
While Treize was distracted Duo rushed over to Trowa, Quatre and Hilde, a look of worry on his face. He glanced back to Heero, as if giving him a signal, then looked at the others. "Trowa, you need to get us all out of here, now!"
Trowa's eyes widened just slightly as it all became clear to him, exactly what Heero had planned. Nodding quickly he grabbed their hands and concentrated on raising his powers to transport them out of the room. And as they faded away, Heero grasped onto the amulet around his neck.
With a quick jerk he broke the chain.
The amulet crumbled in his hands.
~*~
The group of four appeared outside the Tower on the rocky ground surrounding it. Almost immediately Duo stood up and whirled around to face the Tower. Above them the sky was an ominous black, lightning shattering silently from one black cloud to another. A strong wind whipped at their clothing and faces. Quatre stood up and walked to Duo's side.
"What's going on?"
Duo opened his mouth to answer but didn't get a chance. Before them the Tower exploded, pieces of rocks and debree flying everywhere. With quick thinking a green shield grew up around them, from Quatre, reinforced with veins of purple from Duo's power. Large pieces of stone bounced off the shield to land safely on the ground.
They let the shield disappear and watched with wide eyes as the smoke cleared. Grey and black dust dissipated to reveal the large ice dragon from the other night, standing on the ruins of the Tower of Fang. Angrily he flapped his wings and reared up on his hind legs, ice crystals flying into the air from his breath. Floating in the air before him, encased in an orangish glob of light, was Treize.
"Damn! He was able to shield himself!" Duo swore.
The group watched, unsure of what to do, as the large dragon attacked the floating sorcerer. Treize flitted around in his orb of power, avoiding the attacks as his hand reached for his side. Hilde's eyes narrowed as Treize pulled the sword from his belt.
"How dare he touch my father's sword!"
Duo's eyes widened and he whirled around to face Hilde. He gasped as he saw she was speaking the truth, her sword was gone. Whirling back around he saw that Treize did indeed hold it in his hands. No! Treize wasn't supposed to have that sword! Duo panicked as the pictures from the book in the Tower rushed into his mind. The dragon with the sword being plunged into his chest and the transformed boy, lying dead in a pool of his own blood. No! Treize was going to kill Heero!
Before Duo had time to explain to them what was going on he was running. He moved as fast as he could, racing over the uneven ground and jumping over the debree from the exploded tower. But he knew no matter how fast he ran he wasn't going to make it in time, they were still too far away! He couldn't run that fast!
As Duo ran he watched the entire scene before him unfold in what seemed like slow motion. He stumbled to the ground as Treize dove forward, holding out the long ancient blade. Duo crashed to the ground as the blade struck Heero in the chest and the dragon let out a loud cry. At that same moment Duo screamed, staring in horror as the crystalline blood flowed from the dragon's chest.
"NO!"
Power burst from Duo's hands, lighting up the ground around him like a flash fire. Purple light combined with red light shone down from the moon, crashing together and aiming for a single target, a very unlucky sorcerer.
Treize was still floating in the air, surrounded by his orb of power, when the energy hit him. Immediately his small shield crumbled and shattered, sending him flying to the ground. But the energy followed him, pelting him like a physical force until his body was simply a smoking mass of ashes pressed deeply into the ground. Only then did the power die out.
Duo slumped forward, everything haven't been drained from him in that one moment of anger. Yet still, somehow, he found the energy to slowly pull himself over the rubble toward Heero's body. The boy was no longer in dragon form, now he lay thrown across the rubble, the large sword protruding from his bloodied chest. As Duo pulled close to him Heero turned his head and smiled softly.
"Heero, don't you dare die on me." Duo rasped out.
But the boy didn't answer, he couldn't. As the last of his blood dripped away between the rubble the smile faded from Heero's face and the light disappeared from his eyes. His body went limp, one arm falling to the ground. He was dead.
Duo shook his head and pulled himself closer to the boy's body. "No, you can't die like that. I didn't even get to say anything to you." Duo bit his lip as the tears streamed down his face. "I'm supposed to be able to hold you before you die, or something... anything... you can't die like this Heero. You just can't..." Leaning forward he pulled the boy's head into his arms and bent his head down, letting the tears flow hard. His entire body shook with the sobs, completely overcome. Weariness and exhaustion flowed over his body and he slumped forward to lie beside Heero, still cradling the boy's head and still crying softly as the rest of his body seemed to shut down.
Behind him there was the sound of soft footsteps, but Duo didn't move. He simply lay there, crying for Heero. It wasn't fair. People weren't supposed to die like this.
"Duo?" Quatre stopped just behind his friend and knelt down next to him, unsure of what to do.
Silence flowed in the air around them, broken only for moments by Duo's soft sobs, but other wise the boy didn't answer.
"Is there anything I can do?" Quatre asked softly, placing a comforting hand on Duo's shaking shoulder.
The sobs stopped and Duo remained still. Then, after a moment, he nodded slowly. Rolling onto his back he faced Quatre, unashamed of his tear and dust streaked face. "Yeah," he said in a surprisingly calm voice. "I need you to heal me, like you did before."
Quatre blinked in confusion.
"I need to bury him." Duo wiped away his tears and swallowed, trying to calm himself down.
The blond boy nodded in understanding and rested both his hands on Duo's shoulders, nothing else needed to be said. It wasn't a moment for talking, and as Quatre's powers healed the violet-eyed sorcerer he couldn't help but close his eyes to avoid staring at Heero's still body. Quatre's power flowed through Duo, until the boy was healed enough to stand and be able to walk, then he shrugged away from Quatre's touch, breaking contact.
"Don't wear yourself down," Duo murmured softly as he sat up straight.
Quatre nodded and stood up, backing away. It didn't have to be said, he could tell that this was something Duo wanted to do, alone. Turning away he walked back over to where Trowa and Hilde stood, waiting in silence.
The trio turned away from Duo, giving him the privacy he needed to bury Heero's body and mourn his friend. Meanwhile Quatre took a deep breath and turned to Trowa.
"Umm... I still don't understand why you helped, but thanks anyway."
"Yeah," added in Hilde. "If you hadn't of showed up we would have been fried."
Trowa nodded. "Despite the fact that he was my master I refuse to tolerate those who involve innocents. And I will not become that which I despise. Treize's time as ruler of the Tower was over when he cursed Heero."
Hilde fidgeted slightly and glanced back over her shoulder. "Shouldn't we... you know, help him?"
Both boys shook their heads.
"He just met up with Heero after a year, only to lose him again. No, those two need their privacy. Duo will be fine, he needs this time alone with Heero."
Hilde nodded slowly.
"Heero!?"
All three turned their heads as Duo's strangled cry echoed toward them. Going completely against his last comment Trowa raced toward his friend in worry, Hilde and Quatre followed at his heels.
The three stopped just behind Duo to find him shaking as he stared down at the body of Heero. Trowa knelt beside him and glanced from Duo's face to the still body.
"Duo?"
"He... he was breathing." Duo whispered.
Trowa's eyebrows knit together and he reached toward Heero's neck, feeling for a pulse. After a moment he shook his head, there wasn't any movement at all, Heero was dead. It was simply wishful thinking on Duo's part.
"Duo," Trowa spoke softly, reaching toward his friend. "He's gone. He couldn't be breathing."
Duo shook his head. "Yes he was! Just watch!" Reaching forward he wrapped his hands around the hilt of Hilde's sword, which still protruded from Heero's chest. As he touched the sword his hands pulsated with a strange red light and Heero's body gave a quick jerk. His stomach began to rise and fall as his face contorted in pain.
Trowa's eyes widened and he timidly reached for Heero's neck, checking the boy's pulse. And there was one!
"Don't let go of that sword," he breathed.
Duo nodded and held on, not sure of what else he should do. Then it occurred to him. "Quatre, can you heal him? I mean he'll stay breathing as long as the sword is pulling at my power, and you can heal him right?"
"I can try." Quatre leaned forward and placed his hands on Heero's chest, above and below the wound. Taking a deep breath he closed his eyes and focused all his concentration on the body before him.
In his mind the blond pictured Heero's body, the ragged and torn edges of flesh surrounding the old blade. He pictured the dried blood and the purple bruises, creating a perfect mental picture. Then, taking another deep breath, he forced the image to heal itself. Piece by piece he moved his mind's eye over Heero, concentrating on each wound until it was healed completely.
Outside of Quatre's mind, thin green strings flowed from his hands, waving like living creatures as they attacked each wound, knitting the cells and skin back together piece by piece. As said green strings of energy reached the main wound Quatre gave a shape hiss and bit his lip. Sweat beaded across his forehead and he shook his head, though he didn't let go. The other three watched as the strings began to fade from view.
"I can't," Quatre choked out as he forced himself to hold onto the power. "The wound... too big..."
Duo started to pull his hands from the hilt but Trowa shook his head. Reaching forward he placed his hands atop Quatre's, closing his eyes as well.
Quatre jumped and his eyes almost flew open as new power flowed through his body, bathing him in warmth and energy. Yet he grasped his concentration tightly, just before losing it, and forced himself to focus the new energy, pressing it to the task of repairing Heero's body. As he worked at the torn edges of the skin he knew Duo was pulling out the sword, allowing the skin to knit back together as the sword was pulled away. Finally the blade was gone and Duo was no longer touching Heero, but now the boy's wounds were mostly healed and he was still breathing.
After checking over everything to be sure the boy would be fine Quatre stopped working and allowed himself to rest. The hands lifted from his and he slumped backward, falling into Trowa's arms as he finally relaxed. He blinked open his eyes and offered Trowa a small smile of thanks for catching him and helping.
"Is he...?" Duo abandoned the sword on the ground and moved closer to Heero, who now lay across the rubble as if he were sleeping. His chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm, interrupted by nothing. Duo held his breath and slowly reached forward, timidly touching the area of smooth skin where the sword had been. He found the skin to be smooth to the touch, completely perfect, as if there had never been a cut.
Duo's fingers traveled up to Heero's face, softly moving over his cheek and reveling in the feel of the soft breaths across his fingers. As they watched Heero's eyelashes fluttered and his eyes slowly opened. He blinked a few times, just as a person waking from a long nap, then his eyes focused on Duo. Heero flashed a light smile and lifted his hand to rest it on the side of Duo's face. Duo touched the hand in wonder.
"You're crying again," Heero whispered softly.
"Of course I was! I thought you were dead!"
Heero shook his head as Duo helped him to sit up. The cobalt eyed boy glanced down at his own chest and tested the newly knitted skin, then nodded his head once. "It worked," he murmured.
Duo blinked in confusion but then his mouth dropped open in a small expression of understanding. His eyes narrowed as they met with Heero's. "You knew?! You knew Treize would hit you with the sword didn't you?!"
"I was counting on it."
Duo growled angrily. "Why didn't you tell me! I had a heart attack when I saw him stab you, I thought he killed you! I thought..." Duo shook his head and leaned forward into Heero's lap, wrapping his arms tightly around the boy. Heero embraced the boy tightly.
"I'm sorry," he murmured as he stroked his hand through Duo's hair. "I didn't tell you, because I didn't know if my hunch was right. I didn't want to get your hopes up."
"Don't you ever leave me like that again!"
"Hai. I promise. I never will."
~*~
~ One Year Later ~
Duo glanced up at the large building before him and couldn't help but smile. It had been such a long time since he'd seen this large stone building, he hadn't been expecting to return so soon, but when you end up wandering the world you go where your feet take you, through rain and snow. Luckily, though, this time there was no snow on the ground, spring was in the air and already the flowers were beginning to bloom in nicely tended clumps around the village.
Beside Duo another pushed away the hood of his travelling cloak. Heero glanced up at the Inn then over to Duo in question. After being healed he never turned back into a dragon, though he did retain a small amount of icy blue scales on various places of his body and his ears had gained distinct points. Still, neither boy minded, considering all they'd been through, they were lucky to still be alive and together. Besides, Duo had found that the newly pointed tips of Heero's ears were super sensitive, not to mention that the scales only added to Heero's beauty.
"This the place?"
"Yep, they should be inside."
Heero nodded and followed his lover into the Winner Inn. His eyes swept around the room and took in the occupants, noticing everything as they moved toward the main bar. A trio of normal people sat in the back corner, playing some gambling game while drinking, but other then them there really was no one. Well, no one save the boy behind the counter and the slightly taller man sitting at the corner of the bar. Both looked up as Heero and Duo headed their way.
It took a moment for Quatre to recognize his two friends. After all, it had been a year since he'd seen them last, and they'd changed, though not much. Duo still wore his long hair in a braid, which hung down his back like a tail. He no longer wore the amulet from the Tower, being that the place had been destroyed and never rebuilt. And there was also a bright and happy gleam in his violet eyes, one could truly tell that Heero had kept his promise to make Duo happy. The child of Shinigami was practically beaming.
Beside him Heero was dressed in a simple brown cloak, opting for clothing that didn't draw attention and didn't make him stand out. He normally floated beside Duo like a shadow on their travels, his hood always ready to hide the less human aspects he'd gained from his curse. But even he flashed a small smile as Quatre and Trowa greeted them.
"Duo!" The blond practically bolted over the counter and tackled his friend, hugging him in greeting happily. Trowa chuckled softly and nodded a greeting to Heero.
"Whoa, whoa, kid, you're gonna strangle me!" Duo wrestled out of Quatre's happy embrace and laughed. "Great to see you again too."
Quatre mock frowned and pocked Duo in the side. "You can't call me kid anymore. Especially since I'm not your apprentice anymore."
Duo laughed. "Yeah, ok. Someday I'll get used to calling you by your name, Quatre." Duo turned toward Trowa. "So, how goes it with your apprentice, Tro?"
Trowa smirked. "You picked quite a talented young man, Duo. If the Tower were still standing he'd certainly be in the higher levels by now."
Duo ruffled Quatre's hair. "Yep, that's him alright."
"And how have you two been doing?" Quatre asked, after ducking out from under Duo and straightening his hair.
"Oh, not too much. Just travelling here and there, wandering to our hearts content." Duo snagged a stool at the counter and Heero settled down behind him, resting his head comfortably on Duo's shoulder. Quatre giggled softly.
"Aww, don't you two make such a cute couple."
Heads turned to see Hilde standing in the doorway to the Inn, grinning from ear to ear. She laughed as Duo stuck his tongue out at her, and approached them, her father's sword clicking against her boots as she walked.
"You still lugging that huge piece around?" Duo asked with a chuckle.
"Course! After you guys nulled whatever magic was in it I took it back with me to the school. And they finally let me use it to learn. I just got back, graduated with honors. You are looking at a now fully trained and professional female warrior." Hilde dropped into a mock bow and grinned.
"So you guys staying for long?" Quatre asked as Hilde took a seat next to them.
Duo shook his head. "Not too long. Gotten used to the road. But we'll stay for a few days, ne He-ko?"
Heero nodded.
"You got a room open for the night?"
"Yep. Your old room is still up there."
Duo smiled. "Great. Been travelling a while, gonna go get some sleep. See you guys in the morning."
The three watched as the two boys climbed the stairs to Duo's old room, their hands intertwined as they disappeared around the corner.
"I bet they've been doing nothing but travelling and having sex."
Quatre's eyes widened and he took a playful swipe at her. "Hilde!"
Hilde giggled. "Oh, come on. You know I'm right! What would you do if your best friend, not to mention bed mate from school, came back to life and agreed to stay by your side until the end of time?"
Quatre's cheeks grew red, but he had to agree, Hilde was probably right. In any case it didn't really matter. It was just nice to see those two together again, not to mention it was great to see Duo smiling. After all that had happened he was finally allowed to be happy, and this time there wasn't any old teachers or old schools to chase after him. Duo was free to do as he pleased, Child of Shinigami or not. Duo and Heero were free and happy. And they finally had each other.
TBC...
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