This is Part 3 of this fic. I just got my second issue of The Magdalena. It is a kick butt comic book dealing with vampires. It rocks. Anyway... This is my first GW fic, there is some violence, strong language and it has the usual yaoi pairings of HeeroxDuo (I know I've said DuoxHeero before, but things change, and besides, I didn't really know it made a difference until now ^^), and QuatrexTrowa. So if you don't like male/male pairings, then don't read this, or pretend that Quatre and Duo are chicks. Okay?
We came back home. "Hey, we're home!" Quatre welcomed us back with open arms and a smile. That kid recovers quickly. He's stronger, probably stronger than the rest of us. He's always keeping us together, kinda like a big brother. I smiled. Quatre, the big bro. I could get used to that. Trowa walked up behind him and put an arm over his shoulder. Quatre responded by putting an arm possessively around his thin waist. "Took you guys long enough," Trowa said. "Wufei, where were you?"
Wufei just said, "Ask Duo. I was with them most of the time." Sure, thanks Wufei. Leave me with all the talking. But then again, that's what I do best, ne?
We went inside and I explained what had happened. Seems like I'd been doing a lot of that lately. After I had finished talking, Quatre said, "Duo... We... Trowa and I have decided to help you guys." I shook my head. There was no way that they could possibly go through what Heero and I have gone through. I wouldn't let them. They're only human. Even gundam pilots have their limits. Well, except for Heero, that is.
"No freakin' way," I stated. There was no arguing with me. "You are NOT going to help. I say this for your own safety. Me and Heero have powers that you guys don't. You have to trust us and leave this matter to us." Wufei nodded his heads. "Yes, I don't think either of you should help us." I turned to Wufei in surprise. "Excuse me? What did I just say? No one, and I mean no one is going to get their asses kicked because of Heero and me." Wufei shook his head. "You don't have much of a choice. I'm helping." He got up and left the room. That guy can be so damn frickin' stubborn sometimes... I just prayed to God that he wouldn't be hurt.
A couple of days passed. The cold March air gave way to April, and that meant daylight savings time for us on the American west coast. Now, the sun wouldn't set until 7 or 8 at night.
Lately, the vamps had been pretty quiet. Heero and I started vampire hunting, so we could flush out some information. Every other night or so we would find a newbie vamp. Of course, sensing Heero's power, they ran away. I wondered why Heero couldn't sense power like other vamps could. I could sense power too. Heero wasn't like the others. Maybe it was just me.
It was almost time for the test results to come in. Only one more week. I was anxious. Was Shinigami really my dad? I shook my head. We'll see. Heero was standing in the open doorway, waiting for me as I put on a coat. The coat hid my gun and my two silver knives. I looked out the door. The sun was almost gone, leaving just a trace of light that left a dim silhouette of Heero. I tied my shoelaces, then I said, "Okay, let's go get some vampires."
"Wait."
I turned around. Wufei was standing in the corridor, dressed in a grey trench coat, navy blue tank top and those white pants that he always wears. I wonder if he has a whole closet of those... "I'm coming too." I shook my head. "No." It was strange that Wufei just now chose to come with us. Before he would just go out on his own.
He just smirked. "Trust me, you'll need my help." I raised an eyebrow in suspicion, but I let it go. I didn't have time to play 20 questions. "Fine. Let's go." All three of us stepped out into the night.
"Heero. Heero! Oi!" He slowly turned to me. "What?" "Watch where you're going, you almost ran into a parked car." Heero turned to the car that he had almost run into. There was a dent where he had grazed against the car. I had no idea he was this powerful. "You're so strong now, you gotta control your power." He just nodded. We continued walking down the dimly lit street. Only a car or two passed by us on our way down to the downtown area. San Francisco is a big city, but this part of town is pretty dead at night. I didn't mean to make a pun. Really.
Wufei and Heero were walking ahead of me. I trusted Heero, but Wufei... I've known the guy for years, but for some reason I feel so out of place when I'm with him. I don't want to be suspicious of him, but the things he does sometimes... He'll disappear for days at time. Sally would call every once in a while to see if he's with us, but he wouldn't be with us and Sally would just hang up, knowing that we would keep an eye out for him. But he would always return, usually unharmed, maybe the occasional scratch or scrape. The guy is so mysterious...
We had reached the underground of San Francisco. This was the inner city. We were in deep. We passed by a building with a neon sign, and a crowd of people forming outside. Wufei stopped us. "Wait. Look at the sign." I looked up. The sign, to my surprise, said, "Bloody Delights." It was either a sadist/masochist cult or an English strip club. Either way, it sounded like a place where vampires would hang out. I nodded to Heero and Wufei. "Let's go."
We entered the club. Immediately, loud and odious music assaulted our ears, and then a faint scent of smoke and blood wafted through the air. Women and men alike were clad in leather and spikes, having mad orgies and licking fests. Wow, I thought. There's some weird stuff going on in here. A nudge from Wufei broke my thoughts. "What?" I screamed over the music. He leaned in and whispered, "Look over there." He gestured towards the back of the club. A dimly lit stairway. We exchanged a look, a mutual understanding beyond words. "C'mon Heero," I said. But he had disappeared somewhere. Heero! I sent my thoughts into the dinning crowd. In an instant, he appeared near me. I gestured with a nod towards the stairway. He nodded and we went.
The three of us walked upstairs. The stairs led to a single door. A bulky looking man stood in front. "Only members enter." I looked at Wufei. He flashed a card. "Go right in," the man said. I glanced at Heero. He got the idea. Keep an eye on Wufei. Why he has a membership to this place, I'll never know.
I walked in, following Wufei. Heero followed behind me. A three man walking band. As I walked in, I heard moaning and the sound of a whip. I didn't want to see what was in there. Me, afraid?
The sight was ghastly to behold. In the room were various couples or threesomes (I think there was even a foursome; I wasn't sure) necking and doing wicked things with leather, chains and whips. I definitely didn't want to be here. But a look from Wufei pulled me on. Two women walked towards us. They flashed us a smile. The glint of fangs showed clearly on their pale skin. This was a vampire junkie's heaven.
"Wufei, what the hell have you gotten us into?" I asked, rather touchily I might add. He smiled. "We're investigating." I grabbed onto Heero's jacket. "Heero, keep an eye on—" Heero put a hand over my mouth. "I know," he whispered, his warm breath flowing over my skin. His touch electrified me. I guess vamps can smell lust, because three vamps suddenly looked at me. Oh crap.
I looked for Wufei. But he was in the middle of chatting with someone. I couldn't see the face from where I was standing, but it was obviously a female, from the getup that she was wearing. A tight halter top with a black skirt that shimmered in the night. She looked kinda familiar too, but I couldn't place her. She was definitely a vampire though, I could feel it.
"So gorgeous, what are you doing here?" A young female had snuggled up to me when I wasn't looking. She nearly put a hand in my shirt. Heero grabbed her wrist. "He's mine," he growled. I couldn't help but smile. I kinda liked it when Heero was possessive of me. I thought it was cute. The woman pulled her hand out of Heero's grasp. "You're hot too. You can share, you know. Everyone here likes to share." She smiled. No fangs. I looked at her a little more intently. No magic. She was 100% human. "What are you doing in a place like this?" I asked. She replied, "Same reason you are." I raised an eyebrow. "Uh, well, besides that. Like, why do vamps turn you on?" She smiled, a bewitching grin. "Why do you think?" I was getting tired of being answered by a question. "Just tell me." She giggled a bit. "Ooh, wanna get straight to the point, hm? Well, it's just the way they are. I mean, look around ya. Vampires are dead sexy." I chuckled a bit at her pun, if it was meant to be pun. It probably wasn't.
I looked back up to Wufei, who was being surrounded by two other vamps. Wufei tried to walk past them to get back to us, but then one of the vamps took him by the arm. "Hey...," the larger of the two vamps said menacingly. Wufei looked at Heero, then glanced at me. The other vampire put a hand in Wufei's jacket and pulled out a gun. Wufei made a grab for the gun. I didn't even see him pull out a knife and slash the vamp's wrist. Blood spilled and the other vampires who were busy drinking the blood of the junkies looked up. However, instead of them charging up to help, they just continued on with their activities. The woman who Wufei had been talking to had disappeared. Wufei managed to grab his gun from the surprised vamp who was now trying to heal his wound. Silver will slow a vamp's healing process. He tried to run for the door, but the other vampire blocked his path. Wufei versus two vampires. I didn't think he could handle it. So I did what any good friend would do. I charged forward.
"Run! Get Duo out of here!" Wufei yelled as he was being taken by the vamps. I rushed forward to help him, but the other vampires stepped in my way. I pushed forward, but then someone grabbed onto my arm. I pulled it out of their grasp when my other arm was grabbed, no, bit. Someone bit me! I looked to see a vampire's fangs in my arm. In my panicked state, I ripped my arm out, leaving a long cut down the length of my arm. It started bleeding, and that attracted the other vampires, who were now advancing towards me. I wanted to pull out my gun and start taking them out, but an arm wrapped around my waist. "Heero, let go!" He picked my up and hauled ass. I kept hitting him, telling him to let me go. As we left, another vampire managed to bite into my leg, leaving a rather large gash. He just kept going, down the stairs, out the door and into the night. I could hear Wufei's screams the entire way, even if they were just in my mind.
"Lemme go Heero! I command you, stop and let me go!" I poured all the power that I could into my words. He finally stopped and put me down. "You coward! How could you leave him like that! I know that he seems suspicious and everything but he is still our friend! How could you!" I was screaming my heart out at Heero, who looked like for all the world as unemotional as a doll. "You have no heart! I can't believe you did that! Christ!" I started to run back to save Wufei, but a hand on my shoulder stopped me. "Master, please," Heero pleaded. But I shrugged off his hand. "Don't you 'Master, please' me! If you had half the courage that you had when you were alive..." I stopped my ranting there. I didn't want to give in completely to my anger. I took a deep breath and said, "Go away. Just go away and leave me alone for awhile." For once, he did as I asked. He floated away. I didn't even see him go, it was just one moment he's there, the next moment poof! He was out of sight.
"Arrrrrrrrrgh!" I stomped into Quatre's house, treading mud and what not onto his carpet. I didn't care this time. Screw his damn carpet. He's got enough servants to clean up after him. I didn't mean to be this moody. But times being what they are, I had to vent. I took out enough of my anger on Heero to last three lifetimes. I felt guilty and angry all at once. Let's just say my temper was not at its best.
I plodded up to my room. After what had happened, I needed a nice hot bath and a long nap. I walked into my bathroom and turned on the tap. I threw off my clothes and looked myself in the mirror. The amount of scars and wounds I was getting had increased significantly. The scratches on my face were healing. Those wouldn't leave a scar. However, my arm was a different story. I'd be seeing those marks for awhile.
I slowly slipped into the hot, steaming water. The water turned into a diminutive tint of brownish-red. The blood was leaking from one of my wounds. I looked on my leg where I had gotten cut. The blood was slowly streaming from it. Crud. I lifted the leg out of the water, and rested it on the edge of the tub. I slowly relaxed my body and leaned back. The back of the tub felt warm...
I craned my neck around to make sure it was who I thought it was. It was Heero. "Heero, don't scare me like that." "Sorry Duo." I smiled. It had been a while since he had called me that. I leaned eagerly into his warmth. I didn't want to admit, but I needed him. Being near him fulfilled some deep part of my heart. I was surprised that he hadn't gone off somewhere and sulked, especially after the scolding I had given him.
"Heero?"
"Hm?"
"I'm glad you didn't run away after I yelled at you. And I'm sorry about what I said, I didn't mean to—"
He put a finger on my lips to shut me up. "You're my master, I can never leave you." Somehow, those words didn't give me any consolation. None whatsoever.
We got out of the bath after I had thoroughly soaked myself. I was nearing that nasty prune stage. Good thing Heero woke me up. He dried my body and got me some pajamas. All he had done was dry himself and wrap the towel around his waist. It was kinda nice to have him as a servant. I was getting into some pants when Heero's towel dropped. I hadn't really noticed before, but he had been holding up the towel. He's a gundam pilot who learned calculus at age 13 and he still doesn't know how to wrap a towel around his waist securely. He suddenly fell to his knees. I kneeled down and reached out to him. His eyes had become blue orbs again. Oh no, not this shit again. Anita is wrong about that damn three week period. I backed away from him. I did not want to be fed on tonight. Two other vamps had already bitten me, I didn't need a third.
Heero looked at me with hunger in his eyes. He crawled towards me like a wolf stalking its prey. I scooted back until my back hit the bathroom door. Dammit. "Heero, control yourself." He stopped crawling. "Good..." He started crawling again. "Bad..."
He stopped again when the tips of our noses touched. His lips touched mine in a tender kiss. It wasn't strong or painful like any of the other kisses he had given me lately. It was soft and delicate like a butterfly landing on a flower. His tongue forced my lips open, and we caressed each other's tongues. It was like sucking on warm jello, sweet and smooth. God, he was so good. His mouth left mine, leaving me whimpering. He traced his tongue down the side of my face, placing a kiss on my cheek before going down to my neck.
I put a hand on his face. "Stop. You are NOT going to put your mouth anywhere near my neck." He backed away from my hand. I guess I ruined the mood. Oh well, so long as he doesn't bite me. I've had my fill of bites for one night. He got up and helped me up. I opened the bathroom door and walked out. He didn't follow me. "Heero?" I turned around to get him, but he was gone.
My shoulders sagged. Looks like I'll be sleeping alone tonight.
I woke up clutching my pillow, the blanket wrapped around my legs as if I had been running. Then I remembered. I had been running. Three, maybe four vampires had been chasing me. I remembered Wufei screaming in the background. Wufei... Damn, I had to find him.
I looked at my clock. It was three in the morning. I've only had about four hours of sleep. Oh well, I'll live. I changed into some black jeans and a dark green T-shirt. I grabbed my shoulder holster and stuck in the Browning. Then I slipped on a black jacket, perfect for hiding guns and what not. I was ready. I quietly snuck out of Quatre's house.
I walked out into the night, alone. I was heading back towards Bloody Delights. There was no way I was going to allow Wufei's death to be unavenged. I wish I had a shotgun.
I was halfway to the club when the street light above me went out. I looked around me, but the shadows were playing tricks on my eyes. I couldn't see as well as I usually do in the dark. Then they were upon me, three of them, their teeth gleaming in the darkness.
I whipped out my gun and pointed it at them. I also pulled out my cross. They seemed unaffected by the gun, but when they saw the cross they flinched a bit. Who says faith isn't power?
They didn't stay shocked for long. The one in the middle lunged for me. I shot straight at its heart at point blank. It fell like a fly. The other two jumped up, and I shot at them too. The one on the left dodged clear, while I nicked the other on the arm. I rolled out of the way, and tried to summon up the powers I used on Heero. I felt it bubbling in my body, but I couldn't get a good grasp on it just yet. Guess I'll have to use my own strength and weapons for now.
The one that I shot first got up. The other two backed off. Why is it that the one in the middle is always the dominant one? It came towards me, levitating. I took a few steps back. A woman's voice was heard. "Don't be afraid, animator. We just want talk."
"If you just wanted to talk, why did you attack me?"
"Because we wanted to make sure that you are the one."
"What if I wasn't?"
"Then someone would've died."
"Don't you feel bad about that?"
"Nope."
I already didn't like her. Not one bit. Her chest had nearly healed completely. We're dealing with a really old vampire. I took a deep breath and felt her power. She was at least a thousand years old. Shit.
"My name is Murdida, Morbius' servant. I am here to fetch you, Son of Shinigami." Fetch me? What am I, chopped liver? I shook my head. "I'm busy. Fight with me some other time." She smiled, showing her fangs completely. I've noticed that most vamps just show a little bit of fang to scare their victims before killing them. I've never seen a vamp show their fangs completely. Makes me wonder how they can close their mouths shut.
"You must come. Master Morbius calls for you. You must obey him."
"I don't think so lady. So you'd better just back away, save yourself a lot of grief." I remember saying that a long time ago to Relena-ojosan, but this time, I meant the grief part with all of my heart. She just snarled. "If you don't come of your own free will, we will drag you there!" She lifted a hand and the other two vampires jumped. One was knocked out of the air. The other pounced on me and knocked me to the ground. I was struggling with it, it's fangs coming closer to my neck...
"NOOOO!" I screamed as I felt power surge forth from within me. I could feel it welling up with no where to go. So I forced it through my hands, blasting out at my attacker. The vampire screeched, flying back. It righted itself in the air and looked at me. I didn't flinch. It started to fly back towards me, when I heard a shout. The vampire turned its head towards the sound. Must have been a newbie, old vamps don't do that.
Next thing I know, the blast of a shotgun resonated through the air and the vampire's head splattered all over. The body fell to the ground with a squishy thump. I turned towards the origin of the sound. Three figures in the shadows walked towards me. I raised my gun, but not at them, just at a ready position in case they tried to attack me. The sound of wind and a familiar energy alerted me to Heero's presence. He stood beside me. He didn't move, but he didn't relax either. I didn't know if they were enemies or friends. Or neither.
A voice cut through the silence. "Duo!" Anita. Thank God. The trio walked into the street light. Anita, Sally and...
"Wufei!" I shouted. I ran to them, and gave him a big hug. "Dammit man, I thought you were dead! I was going to go avenge ya!" He smiled and shrugged me off. "Get offa me, Maxwell. I'm alright. The women... helped me." Anita and Sally shared a glance. "Excuse me? I think the word 'saved' is more appropriate," Anita said in that tone of voice that lowered a man's self-esteem in point three seconds flat. Sally laughed. Wufei just glowered a bit. "Yeah yeah, whatever. Let's get outta here. Oh, and Maxwell?" I turned to look at him. He had scratches on his face. Blood was in generous amounts on his trench coat. "What is it?" "I saw your friend, Hilde. She's one of them." Oh crap. Hilde...
We all returned home. Wufei went with Sally back to their house. Anita went back to her apartment. Damn, that meant I couldn't get any answers. Unless...
"Heero?" He looked at me, his face bloody and arms scratched up, but healing. "First of all, wipe your face." He grabbed the lower part of his tank top and wiped his face. "Second, were you there when the girls busted out Wufei?" He shook his head. "Then where were you?" He shrugged. "I was... away."
"Where?"
"..."
"Tell me!"
"Relena's."
I froze. He stopped walking and looked behind me. "For some blood. She didn't mind. She doesn't even know." I didn't know how I felt at that point. Was I angry? Was I depressed? I don't know. I knew, that we loved each other deeply, and that he was hungry and needed some blood. I could understand that. But why her? Why did he travel that far to get some blood from her?
"Because she's nearby and she's the only person I could think of that wouldn't freak out if I suddenly showed up at her window." I wish he would stop reading my mind without my permission. "Oh." I continued walking. He followed. We walked back in an uncomfortable silence. Why was Relena nearby? She was supposed to be working in the colonies... wasn't she?
I walked into the house, Heero following me as usual. Trowa walked up to us. "Did you... find any vampires?" I nodded. "We found lots." If Trowa wasn't Trowa, I could've sworn he shivered. But then again... "You okay, Trowa?" He nodded. "I'm perfectly fine." He walked back into the house. I told Heero to wash up and go to bed. He did. I followed Trowa into the kitchen.
"Trowa." He turned around. "What?" He sounded hurt. "I know there's something wrong. Tell me." Trowa didn't even quiver. "Let's get something to eat first."
We had made a few sandwiches and I made some coffee. We took the food to the living room. I sat on the loveseat, while Trowa sat across from me on the sofa. The house had been fixed up, with new furniture. However, it didn't feel the same. Quatre didn't order the same furniture, or any of the same accessories. Call it a hunch, but I guess he didn't want to be reminded of what had happened.
"Well, what is it?" Trowa took a deep breath. "I... I don't like vampires." Was that it? Sheesh, I'm afraid of vampires as well. But there was some underlying fear in him, I could feel it. Against my better judgement, I pumped him for more information. "Tell me, Trowa." Trowa didn't say anything. He didn't even move. He just looked at me with those emerald eyes of his.
"Please Trowa?" That wasn't me. I looked up to see Quatre walk into the room. He sat beside Trowa and took his hand. "Trowa, I know something's bugging you, ever since those... things attacked us. Please Trowa, let us know what's wrong." Trowa just sighed. "A long time ago, when I had no name and wandered, I hooked up with a group of mechanics. This was before I was allowed to work on Heavyarms. A group of us were on Earth, fixing a shuttle in a hangar when they attacked. They came without warning..."
I could see him seeing the scene again, behind his eyes. "There were ten of us when the carnage started. Only two of us got out. There was blood everywhere. I saw one of them attack the man next to me. He ripped out his throat, and lapped up all the blood, like a dog. He looked at me, green eyes that were almost glowing. He looked through me, and I almost felt like fainting. But then a siren sounded and they all escaped." He said this all without so much a change in pitch. All monotone, no feeling. That's Trowa for you.
Quatre was stunned. He pulled Trowa into his arms. Trowa said nothing, just leaned into his lover's embrace. I saw a tear flow down Trowa's cheek. But no sounds of grief came from him.
I got up to leave, but Trowa sat up and said, "Wait." I sat back down. "What is it?" Trowa looked at me funny. If he wasn't Trowa, I would say he looked scared. Trowa's never scared. Or at least, he never shows it.
Trowa stood up. "I accept you and Heero for who you are. I will try and get used to the idea of living with a... vampire. But I cannot guarantee that I will be fully up to the idea of taking on one of those things." He walked away, not letting me question him any further. Quatre looked at me. "You didn't have to do that, you know." I looked at the floor. "Yeah, I'm sorry. But he's been avoiding Heero and me for the longest time. Ever since..." I didn't have to say it. We both knew. Quatre stood up. "Well, I'll go see if I can comfort him. He'll probably say he doesn't need it, but—" "I know. Go to him." He smiled and left the room. Which left me and the food. I ate the sandwiches in silence.
After I had eaten, I walked up to my room. Heero was already in bed, sleeping. Once I closed the door shut, he opened his eyes. "Took you long enough." I stuck my tongue out at him. "I know where you can stick that," he said. I smiled. I pulled off my clothes and took a quick shower before climbing into bed with him. He was warm and inviting, and I linked my arms around him. He pulled me closer. I listened to his heart. It was still beating. I always thought that the undead had no heartbeat. I suppose real life is different.
"What are you going to do about Hilde?" I snapped back to attention when Heero asked me that question. Hilde and I had been friends in the war. I had opened her mind and she made a decision to get out of OZ. She gladly followed me and my friends to fight for freedom and peace. We were good friends and after the war we did date for awhile, but we both felt that we weren't right for each other. The caring was there, but the passion wasn't. We agreed to remain friends. The last time I heard from her, she had a boyfriend that cared for her and loved her. She said that he had proposed and she had said yes. They were to be married in June, and I was invited, along with all the people she knew from the war. I smiled at that thought. Heero nudged me out of my reverie. "Huh? Oh yeah, Hilde. We'll have to hope that she's on our side."
"Our side?"
"Yeah. We'll have to look for her, of course. But once we find her, maybe I can, you know, change her."
Heero shrugged. I knew what he was thinking. If she gets in the way, he'll kill her. I loved Hilde like a sister; I didn't want to lose her, even if she was a vamp. "Don't kill her if you don't have to, but if things do get out of hand, follow your emotions. That's what you told me." Of all the things in the world, it was this piece of advice that came from Heero that didn't make sense. I knew next to nothing about Heero's past. He told me that someone had told him to always follow his feelings. So far, that had kept him alive. I hoped it would keep me alive too.
Back to: Part 2
If you have read the Magdalena series of comics (there are only two right now but anyway...) then you can see I got a couple ideas from that. That is one disturbing comic, I tell you what.
Anyway, feel free to e-mail me your rants and raves, just don't cuss me out, okay?
Copyright reserved 2000 Top Ace