In Medvias Res 4: From my Heart to my Head
Posted: Sun Feb 09, 2003 1:23 pm
From My Head To My Heart
Once again I just can't get it straight
Wondering if wandering is my fate
But don't lose hope in me quite yet
'cause help must be on the way, any day
From my head to my heart
can't seem to find a way they're so far apart
It's not you, it's not your fault
You've got everything I could ever want
And you've always understood my intentions are good
and we've been so close from the start
but the furthest distance I've ever known is
From my head to my heart
I feel the distance standing here next to you
I don't want to keep you waiting, but I've been waiting too
Some day if I get there and you still want me too
we can see it through
From my head to my heart
can't seem to find a way they're so far apart
it's not you, you've got everything I could ever want
The sun was settling slowly into its nightly grave behind the lands rime. Deep, magnificent purples, pinks, and oranges shrouded the western sky like the veils of many harem women. The heat was less oppressive at this time of the day, when all the vibrant colors started to bleed out toward the wound in the skies horizon.
Major Heero Yuy stood in the shade of a tent onning waiting for his appointment with Major General Crawford. He watched with mild curiosity as a few of the common enlisted men wander past him. All their expressions showed various degrees of misery. Their uniforms were frayed at the hem and sleeve, drawn tight across the shoulders. The common soldier had many problems being in the lower ranks of the British arm forces, one of them being his uniform. It was made to fit a wide range of body types, which meant that the heavy woolen uniform never fit any one right.
Heero, as an officer, fared much better since he could spend his own money to have his uniforms made. He liked for them to be ordinary looking so he could blend in easily but he insisted that they be made of the best materials instead of the thick wool that aloud no air to breath through to his skin. He also preferred soft leather boots instead of the wrap around woolen puttees regular soldier uniforms sported. There were desided advantages to being an officer.
Footsteps in the sand behind him alerted Heero that someone was coming out of the tent. He turned to greet the person with a carefully blank face. Before him stood an aide-de-camp with the dourest expression he had ever seen.
?The General will see you now Major.? He said in a snide voice. Heero ignored him entirely and reached for his cap and sat it smartly over his unruly brown hair.
?Ah, he must have read my report. Maybe he has a wire from General Paxton to pull back to Abadan.?
Heero walked into the room to see Crawford with his map out. He was murmuring to himself and didn?t notice Heero at first. The Major stood silently for a moment and observed his movements.
?Plotting to carve up the Turks at Baghdad?? Heero asked the man before him.
Crawford had served in British held India for many years before Paxton had asked him to take over for the ailing lieutenant general. Heero was concerned that Crawford might live up to his reputation of authorizing too many risks with the Sixth Division.
From what Heero had heard through Major General Crawford?s personal friends and enemies, he was out to make a name for the Sixth Division. In Heero?s judgment, the general?s determination, though honorable, bordered on the recklessness obsession of a mad chess master sacrificing rook and pawn for a brief victory. Perhaps that was the real reason he?d decided to stay longer than the planed night to speak with Relena. She was serving in the worst possible field hospital?the one place where there would be more danger than any other war front, except for the trenches in France or Antwerp! That she was here frustrated him but Heero couldn?t deny a grudging respect for her was forming in his heart that he couldn?t explain.
Heero had come to the camp with a simple purpose: Bring information from the intelligence office in Cairo on the recent buildup of Turkish troops in the region. He was to inform Crawford of the foolishness of a new thrust to capture Baghdad, then grab Duo out of whatever trouble he had managed to get himself into and leave the next day. This new situation with Relena complicated that once a clean-cut mission. Now he had to worry about whether Crawford would pay heed to his words or not. Heero knew that the general wanted this victory badly enough to drool over it. What would that mean for Relena?
?Speak your mind Yuy then get out of my tent.? The General never looked up from his battle map of Baghdad. Heero didn?t give any indication that the lack of attention bothered him. He just came farther into the canvas tent and watched the general work.
?Have your read my report, General?? He asked in a careful monotone. He watched as the general moved some of the oddly shaped wooden blocks over toward a dried out riverbed.
?Yes, and it?s just what I expected from those nervous hens at Cairo Intelligence.? Crawford tossed his strategy pieces down onto the map and faced Heero with he full attention. Heero for his part showed none of his inner anger at the general?s cavalier attitude. He would have like to tell the arrogant Crawford that those involved in gathering intelligence faced death and much worse more often than the general ever had.
?I?ve never had the privilege to meet any of these nervous hens you speak so highly of, General. I only know the men doing their jobs at considerable risk from German Lugers and Turkish scimitars.?
Crawford waved an unconcerned hand. ?Nothing personal, old boy! I?ve heard good things about you through the military grape vine, not to mention the war office in London, but the conclusions in this report?? he slammed his hands down on the papers haphazardly scattered around his map??Are a bunch of bloody rot!? He sent the report flying out into the room with a sweep of his hand. Heero?s gaze flickered to the papers as the fluttered to the floor. He?d written the whole thing himself from firsthand knowledge. There wasn?t a bloody word in it that could be classified as ?rot?
A tense silence filled the room so thickly that lesser men might have felt like they were drowning in it. The General carefully cleared his throat when he saw that the younger man would say nothing and continued to speak.
?With all due respect to your agency, Major, I must reject this information as groundless. My decision to move toward Baghdad must, and will, proceed.?
?Do you reject it, sir, because you think my findings are unfound, or is the sight of your men dying by the hundreds appealing to you??
?No, I believe that the Turkish 37th have gotten reinforcements. You are to be commended for bringing me information my spies had three weeks ago. I suggest that Cairo Intelligence keep it?s nose out of my business. If they need something to do so badly they can focus on trying to keep the Turks and the Germans out of the Suez Canal.
?General Nur-ud-Din has thirty-five thousand rested troops from Constantinople. That?s listed in my report, but what?s not mentioned is what I?ve seen with my own eyes since arriving today. Your hospital is full of soldiers that are sick with things like dysentery, malaria, and exhaustion. They can?t make the march on a newly refortified Baghdad!? Heero tired to keep his voice quiet and calm but he was finding that to be a hard thing in the face of the General?s blind confidence.
?And you?ll have to admit that you have logistical problems with supplies and water, sir. That?s also in my report??
?I?ve read the bloody report, Major. And I think you are underestimating the fighting power of the 6th. My men can defeat them here---and here.? Taking a thin pointer from the cluttered table behind him he pointed out two regions on his map between the camp and Baghdad: Amara and Kut-al-Amara.
?Sir, that is an unwise move?? The general made a sharp gesture with his hand to cut Heero off.
?I don?t tell you how to spy on the Germans, boy, and I won?t stand and let you tell me how to run my army. This meeting is over.? He roared out. Heero soon found himself out side the tent with that snide aid-de-camp at his elbow. He was so angry that his very blood felt like it would turn to steam and puff out his ears any minute. It took him a moment to realize he hadn?t gotten the opportunity to speak to Crawford about sending Relena home.
@>-;---
It was sunset again. Relena trudged out of the Medical tent with yet another handful of dog tags to send off to worried and waiting family. She lethargically swatted at a mosquito that buzzed around her face trying to find a clear place to get dinner. Her eyes drifted on their on accord toward the mess hall were Heero waited for her. She hesitated for a moment before continuing towards the small corner of tent she called her own.
?If he wanted to talk to me so badly he could have contacted me before now. He?s had a whole year plus some after all. And I know what he?s going to try to do?He?ll want me to leave. I just can?t face that right now. And I can?t leave with out Quatre, Hilde, and Cathy.'
Can?t or won?t?? A small voice asked in her head
?I will not leave without them; it?s just not honorable to leave your comrades right in the middle of their hour of need. So yes, Can?t and won?t.? That little internal argument over, Relena stumbled over to her small chest at the foot of her cot and pulled out writing supplies. Then she sat to her work as the messenger of the God of Death.
@>-;---
The mess hall was strangely quiet that evening. Only a few soldiers sat around half a dozen tables swapping stories from their childhoods. Heero sat in the farthest corner of the tent were he had a good view of the entrance. He pulled out his pocket watch and snapped it open with a flick of his wrist. Relena was two hours late. Heero let a small sigh escape his lips as he contemplated the gold design of the watch face. She had gotten it for him on one of their many outing to the market place. After leaving Relena that infamous night for the last time, Heero had tried to erase all sign of her out of his life, but he couldn?t bear to part with the watch. He told himself that he?s reluctance had nothing to do with the picture of herself she had so painstakingly pressed onto the inside of the cover, and everything to do with the fact that throwing away a perfectly good watch was out of his character. The fact that he had never even tried to remove the picture and protected the watch as one would protect a child was not to be mentioned.
For a moment Heero let his eyes linger on her smiling mouth. The mouth he had so loved to trace with his own. A surge of strange feelings bubbled up in his chest but he squelched them down.
?I do not love her.?
Heero snapped the watch shut, but gently, and placed it back in its hiding spot. He reached for the weak tea some young soldier had brought him with a grimace. It was the worst tea he had ever put to his lips, bar none. Not even Duo?s came close to it and Duo?s tea had almost killed a man once. The same soldier that had made him the tea came by again to see if he wanted anything else. Heero leaned back in his chair and looked thoughtfully up at the much younger man.
?You know, my old uncle used to make the best tea in all of London. He used to say that even the dumbest of God?s creatures could brew a pot of tea, and I always believed him until now.? The soldier shifted from one foot to another nervously when Heero poured the pale orange liquid out onto the sad.
?You, soldier, have single handedly proven my old uncle wrong. This is the most horrible poison I?m ever let slip between my lips. Did you even bring the water to a boil?? His glare was enough to send the soldier backing up a feel paces.
?Yes, Major s-sir! I let the water get hot, I did!?
?Well, did you let the leaves seep for any length of time, private?? Heero raised an eyebrow and continued to watch the soldier back up.
?Well, S-sir?I-I? The young private took a deep breath to calm himself before continuing, ?I don?t believe I let them seep long enough Major, nor did I-I let the water get hot enough. I?ll?make you some more if you?re still of a mind for tea.? Heero nodded up at him and just handed his tin cup over. He felt a touch of pleasure when the soldier scurried off to fulfill his instructions.
Duo, who had entered the tent just in time to watch what had just taken place, pouted a little when he got to Heero?s table.
?I thought I made the worst tea you?ve ever tasted, buddy.? He pulled on his best hurt expression and looked over at his partner. Heero shrugged.
?It was much worse that yours ever has been.? Duo laughed out loud to hear Heero say that. Of course he had heard the story of Heero?s uncle?s tea many times in the last two years. They both fell quiet for a moment. Heero returned to scowling at the door and Duo was just content to listen to the harmonica a soldier had started to play a few tables over. The Tommie was playing an old gospel hymn that Duo remembered from his childhood in India. Somehow, even though Duo didn?t believe in the Savior the song talked about, it soothed his nerves. He was listening so intently to the song that he almost missed the words he?s been waiting on.
?She didn?t come.? Heero stared down into the murky depths his tea. Duo hadn?t even noticed when the young soldier had brought it back.
?I know.? He told his friend quietly.
?I have to talk to her before we leave. I can?t put off leaving another day, and God help me, I must speak with her.? His hand gripped the cup so hard that some of the hot liquid spilt out and covered his hand. He dropped the cup with a hiss and a curse. Duo looked sadly over at his older partner.
?I told you she?d never come. Relena?s too stubborn for that. If I?ve learned anything in the 15 years I?ve known her it?s that you?ve got to be sneaky.? Heero just glared at him from under his unruly mop of brown bangs as he tried to clean the tea off his hand with a handkerchief.
?If you don?t have anything intelligent to input Maxwell I suggest you keep your mouth shut.? Duo smirked confidently over that the major.
?Oh, I have a plan, Yuy. Don?t you worry, this one will work better than anything you could have come up with??
@>-;---
Relena was on her fifth letter when Catherine tiredly walked into the tent. She collapsed into her cot and rolled over to look at Relena. She could see the exhausted slump in the other girl?s shoulders and hated herself for what she was about to do.
?Relena, there?s a soldier at the hospital asking for an off duty nurse to go out to the officers tents close to the front lines. It seems one of the officers has contacted malaria and is too sick to come in. Dr. Po wants you to go.? Relena?s pen stopped moving for a minute and if possible her shoulders dropped even more. She sighed and looked over at her fellow nurse.
?Would you finish writing these for me? I only have two left.? She pointed to the papers and dog tags scattered over her bed. Cathy nodded her consent and pulled herself up to a sitting position on her cot. Relena went to her trunk and started to rummage around for the medical bag that she kept in there. The bag had been a gift from her brother when she became a nurse.
?Do you know where he?s waiting at?? She asked the red headed nurse who was now looking over the dog tags on her bed. Cathy looked up sheepishly and cringed slightly to her friend.
?No, I didn?t wait around long enough to hear that, dear. Sorry.? Relena just smiled crookedly and reached up to push any hairpins that had worked lose from a long day of work back into her makeshift bun.
?Don?t worry with it Cathy, I have to go to the hospital for a prescription of quinine anyway. I suppose I won?t be getting any sleep tonight.? She looked longingly at the little sagging cot in the corner then straightened up her spine with determination.
?Well, I must be off.? Relena tried to sound as cheerful as she could about missing sleep and having to trudge about in the desert in the middle of the night. Catherine watched her leave with a touch of concern. Both she and Hilde had noticed that Relena hadn?t been sleeping lately. Quatre had also mentioned that she wasn?t eating much either. Cathy hoped that Relena wasn?t getting sick with something deadly like malaria or some other thing. Out here in the heat disease killed just as sure as enemy bullets.
?I?ll have to speak with her about this when she gets back tonight.? Cathy told the canvas ceiling, but she couldn?t shake the ominous feeling of foreboding that settled in the pit of her stomach like a coiled viper.
@>-;---
The moon shone brightly off the sand, surrounding Relena in an otherworldly glow as she tried to keep up with the older soldier who had been sent to bring her to the sick officer aid. He didn?t seem to notice how she had begun to lag behind. Her legs felt like lead and she was sure her small boots were filled with more than a ton of sand.
?How much further will it be, sir?? she asked to bulldog faced Sergeant. He just pointed somewhere up ahead of them and spat tobacco juice from out onto the desert floor. Relena sighed and continued to struggle through the sand.
?I wonder if Heero is still waiting for me?No he probably only waited 10 minutes if he even came at all. If I didn?t love that man so much I?d?.Wait, I don?t love him. I refuse to love him after he left me like that.?
Up ahead she caught sight of a flickering light that she took to be the officers? fire. Relief filled her and she cracked a small smile. The walk hadn?t been that bad, she might have even enjoyed it had she not been taken from her much needed rest.
?Which tent is it, sir?? He only grunted and pointed to a canvas structure that was sat a little away from the others. Relena asked the soldier another question, this time hoping for more than a grunt as an answer.
?You never told me his name, soldier.? She stepped toward the tent but kept her face turned toward the soldier for his answer.
?My name is Major Heero Yuy.? The voice spoke from behind Relena so suddenly that she gave a little yelp. Her breath caught in her lungs. Lack of sleep, coupled with sudden shock sent her body into over load and black spots began to dance across her vision.
?He-Heero?? The Major had to move quickly to catch the girl as she slumped towards the ground. He felt panic spiral up in his chest at how light she felt in his arms. Relena had never been heavy to lift, but now she felt like less than a feather. He quickly carried her inside a placed her on his cot.
?You know, I didn?t go through all this just for you to faint on me Relena. Come on, baby wake up!? Heero lightly slapped her cheeks and drew back in surprise at how hot to the touch she felt. The situation was much worse than he had originally thought it was, and it kept getting worse. For the first time he took note of her medicine bag and reached for it. Surely she had to have smelling salts at lest.
It didn?t take him long to find the small vial of putrid salts and he put them to good use by waving them under her nose. Relena jerked her head away from the vial and coughed roughly. Heero felt instant relief flow through him as she sat up weakly. Relena took a moment to remember where she was before fixing a glare on the now smugly smiling major.
?You cad! Your not even sick.? She ground out between clenched teeth. Undaunted Heero returned her glare for glare.
?Knowing your noble spirit, I knew you could never resist a dying soldier in need. Of course if you had met me at sunset like I oh so politely asked you to I wouldn?t have had to resort to such imaginative ways to get you here. Now relax, you look like a prisoner of war in need of kindness.? Relena didn?t sit back, instead she looked toward the exit of the tent with determination to get out with what little dignity she had left.
?I shall not waste another moment of my time here Major. I have to get back to the hospital, unlike some, I don?t have time to sit and chat over tea.? She told him in her best rendition of royalty she could muster. She didn?t notice the dangerous look flash in the eyes of the man standing between her and the freedom she so longer for.
?You won?t be going any where tonight, Nurse Peacecraft.?
@>-;---
AN: I regret to inform all of you man-eating lawyers out there that I don?t own Gundam Wing. I do own some posters and a model or two. Oh and yesterday I bought my own chunk of gundaniam off of e-bay!!
The song used up top came for Evan and Jaron so I?m not claiming that either.
Rice Ball and I would like to thank the many people who review last chapter!! You are all sooooooo wonderful! We love you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Also, special thanks are to be given to War Dove who helped me out with a crisis I thought I?d never have to face. Thanks Dove, you?re the bestest!!!
Ummm?.Also thanks for all the replies on chapter length! I though long chapters = Author not being shot but rice ball wasn?t sure.
Rice Ball: Why do you blame me for EVERY thing? I?m going to hide under the bed!! You?ll never get me out alive!!! *scurries under the bed*
Hitomi: I guess I have to go get him out?*sigh* Until next time!!! *waves* Bye Bye!!
Once again I just can't get it straight
Wondering if wandering is my fate
But don't lose hope in me quite yet
'cause help must be on the way, any day
From my head to my heart
can't seem to find a way they're so far apart
It's not you, it's not your fault
You've got everything I could ever want
And you've always understood my intentions are good
and we've been so close from the start
but the furthest distance I've ever known is
From my head to my heart
I feel the distance standing here next to you
I don't want to keep you waiting, but I've been waiting too
Some day if I get there and you still want me too
we can see it through
From my head to my heart
can't seem to find a way they're so far apart
it's not you, you've got everything I could ever want
The sun was settling slowly into its nightly grave behind the lands rime. Deep, magnificent purples, pinks, and oranges shrouded the western sky like the veils of many harem women. The heat was less oppressive at this time of the day, when all the vibrant colors started to bleed out toward the wound in the skies horizon.
Major Heero Yuy stood in the shade of a tent onning waiting for his appointment with Major General Crawford. He watched with mild curiosity as a few of the common enlisted men wander past him. All their expressions showed various degrees of misery. Their uniforms were frayed at the hem and sleeve, drawn tight across the shoulders. The common soldier had many problems being in the lower ranks of the British arm forces, one of them being his uniform. It was made to fit a wide range of body types, which meant that the heavy woolen uniform never fit any one right.
Heero, as an officer, fared much better since he could spend his own money to have his uniforms made. He liked for them to be ordinary looking so he could blend in easily but he insisted that they be made of the best materials instead of the thick wool that aloud no air to breath through to his skin. He also preferred soft leather boots instead of the wrap around woolen puttees regular soldier uniforms sported. There were desided advantages to being an officer.
Footsteps in the sand behind him alerted Heero that someone was coming out of the tent. He turned to greet the person with a carefully blank face. Before him stood an aide-de-camp with the dourest expression he had ever seen.
?The General will see you now Major.? He said in a snide voice. Heero ignored him entirely and reached for his cap and sat it smartly over his unruly brown hair.
?Ah, he must have read my report. Maybe he has a wire from General Paxton to pull back to Abadan.?
Heero walked into the room to see Crawford with his map out. He was murmuring to himself and didn?t notice Heero at first. The Major stood silently for a moment and observed his movements.
?Plotting to carve up the Turks at Baghdad?? Heero asked the man before him.
Crawford had served in British held India for many years before Paxton had asked him to take over for the ailing lieutenant general. Heero was concerned that Crawford might live up to his reputation of authorizing too many risks with the Sixth Division.
From what Heero had heard through Major General Crawford?s personal friends and enemies, he was out to make a name for the Sixth Division. In Heero?s judgment, the general?s determination, though honorable, bordered on the recklessness obsession of a mad chess master sacrificing rook and pawn for a brief victory. Perhaps that was the real reason he?d decided to stay longer than the planed night to speak with Relena. She was serving in the worst possible field hospital?the one place where there would be more danger than any other war front, except for the trenches in France or Antwerp! That she was here frustrated him but Heero couldn?t deny a grudging respect for her was forming in his heart that he couldn?t explain.
Heero had come to the camp with a simple purpose: Bring information from the intelligence office in Cairo on the recent buildup of Turkish troops in the region. He was to inform Crawford of the foolishness of a new thrust to capture Baghdad, then grab Duo out of whatever trouble he had managed to get himself into and leave the next day. This new situation with Relena complicated that once a clean-cut mission. Now he had to worry about whether Crawford would pay heed to his words or not. Heero knew that the general wanted this victory badly enough to drool over it. What would that mean for Relena?
?Speak your mind Yuy then get out of my tent.? The General never looked up from his battle map of Baghdad. Heero didn?t give any indication that the lack of attention bothered him. He just came farther into the canvas tent and watched the general work.
?Have your read my report, General?? He asked in a careful monotone. He watched as the general moved some of the oddly shaped wooden blocks over toward a dried out riverbed.
?Yes, and it?s just what I expected from those nervous hens at Cairo Intelligence.? Crawford tossed his strategy pieces down onto the map and faced Heero with he full attention. Heero for his part showed none of his inner anger at the general?s cavalier attitude. He would have like to tell the arrogant Crawford that those involved in gathering intelligence faced death and much worse more often than the general ever had.
?I?ve never had the privilege to meet any of these nervous hens you speak so highly of, General. I only know the men doing their jobs at considerable risk from German Lugers and Turkish scimitars.?
Crawford waved an unconcerned hand. ?Nothing personal, old boy! I?ve heard good things about you through the military grape vine, not to mention the war office in London, but the conclusions in this report?? he slammed his hands down on the papers haphazardly scattered around his map??Are a bunch of bloody rot!? He sent the report flying out into the room with a sweep of his hand. Heero?s gaze flickered to the papers as the fluttered to the floor. He?d written the whole thing himself from firsthand knowledge. There wasn?t a bloody word in it that could be classified as ?rot?
A tense silence filled the room so thickly that lesser men might have felt like they were drowning in it. The General carefully cleared his throat when he saw that the younger man would say nothing and continued to speak.
?With all due respect to your agency, Major, I must reject this information as groundless. My decision to move toward Baghdad must, and will, proceed.?
?Do you reject it, sir, because you think my findings are unfound, or is the sight of your men dying by the hundreds appealing to you??
?No, I believe that the Turkish 37th have gotten reinforcements. You are to be commended for bringing me information my spies had three weeks ago. I suggest that Cairo Intelligence keep it?s nose out of my business. If they need something to do so badly they can focus on trying to keep the Turks and the Germans out of the Suez Canal.
?General Nur-ud-Din has thirty-five thousand rested troops from Constantinople. That?s listed in my report, but what?s not mentioned is what I?ve seen with my own eyes since arriving today. Your hospital is full of soldiers that are sick with things like dysentery, malaria, and exhaustion. They can?t make the march on a newly refortified Baghdad!? Heero tired to keep his voice quiet and calm but he was finding that to be a hard thing in the face of the General?s blind confidence.
?And you?ll have to admit that you have logistical problems with supplies and water, sir. That?s also in my report??
?I?ve read the bloody report, Major. And I think you are underestimating the fighting power of the 6th. My men can defeat them here---and here.? Taking a thin pointer from the cluttered table behind him he pointed out two regions on his map between the camp and Baghdad: Amara and Kut-al-Amara.
?Sir, that is an unwise move?? The general made a sharp gesture with his hand to cut Heero off.
?I don?t tell you how to spy on the Germans, boy, and I won?t stand and let you tell me how to run my army. This meeting is over.? He roared out. Heero soon found himself out side the tent with that snide aid-de-camp at his elbow. He was so angry that his very blood felt like it would turn to steam and puff out his ears any minute. It took him a moment to realize he hadn?t gotten the opportunity to speak to Crawford about sending Relena home.
@>-;---
It was sunset again. Relena trudged out of the Medical tent with yet another handful of dog tags to send off to worried and waiting family. She lethargically swatted at a mosquito that buzzed around her face trying to find a clear place to get dinner. Her eyes drifted on their on accord toward the mess hall were Heero waited for her. She hesitated for a moment before continuing towards the small corner of tent she called her own.
?If he wanted to talk to me so badly he could have contacted me before now. He?s had a whole year plus some after all. And I know what he?s going to try to do?He?ll want me to leave. I just can?t face that right now. And I can?t leave with out Quatre, Hilde, and Cathy.'
Can?t or won?t?? A small voice asked in her head
?I will not leave without them; it?s just not honorable to leave your comrades right in the middle of their hour of need. So yes, Can?t and won?t.? That little internal argument over, Relena stumbled over to her small chest at the foot of her cot and pulled out writing supplies. Then she sat to her work as the messenger of the God of Death.
@>-;---
The mess hall was strangely quiet that evening. Only a few soldiers sat around half a dozen tables swapping stories from their childhoods. Heero sat in the farthest corner of the tent were he had a good view of the entrance. He pulled out his pocket watch and snapped it open with a flick of his wrist. Relena was two hours late. Heero let a small sigh escape his lips as he contemplated the gold design of the watch face. She had gotten it for him on one of their many outing to the market place. After leaving Relena that infamous night for the last time, Heero had tried to erase all sign of her out of his life, but he couldn?t bear to part with the watch. He told himself that he?s reluctance had nothing to do with the picture of herself she had so painstakingly pressed onto the inside of the cover, and everything to do with the fact that throwing away a perfectly good watch was out of his character. The fact that he had never even tried to remove the picture and protected the watch as one would protect a child was not to be mentioned.
For a moment Heero let his eyes linger on her smiling mouth. The mouth he had so loved to trace with his own. A surge of strange feelings bubbled up in his chest but he squelched them down.
?I do not love her.?
Heero snapped the watch shut, but gently, and placed it back in its hiding spot. He reached for the weak tea some young soldier had brought him with a grimace. It was the worst tea he had ever put to his lips, bar none. Not even Duo?s came close to it and Duo?s tea had almost killed a man once. The same soldier that had made him the tea came by again to see if he wanted anything else. Heero leaned back in his chair and looked thoughtfully up at the much younger man.
?You know, my old uncle used to make the best tea in all of London. He used to say that even the dumbest of God?s creatures could brew a pot of tea, and I always believed him until now.? The soldier shifted from one foot to another nervously when Heero poured the pale orange liquid out onto the sad.
?You, soldier, have single handedly proven my old uncle wrong. This is the most horrible poison I?m ever let slip between my lips. Did you even bring the water to a boil?? His glare was enough to send the soldier backing up a feel paces.
?Yes, Major s-sir! I let the water get hot, I did!?
?Well, did you let the leaves seep for any length of time, private?? Heero raised an eyebrow and continued to watch the soldier back up.
?Well, S-sir?I-I? The young private took a deep breath to calm himself before continuing, ?I don?t believe I let them seep long enough Major, nor did I-I let the water get hot enough. I?ll?make you some more if you?re still of a mind for tea.? Heero nodded up at him and just handed his tin cup over. He felt a touch of pleasure when the soldier scurried off to fulfill his instructions.
Duo, who had entered the tent just in time to watch what had just taken place, pouted a little when he got to Heero?s table.
?I thought I made the worst tea you?ve ever tasted, buddy.? He pulled on his best hurt expression and looked over at his partner. Heero shrugged.
?It was much worse that yours ever has been.? Duo laughed out loud to hear Heero say that. Of course he had heard the story of Heero?s uncle?s tea many times in the last two years. They both fell quiet for a moment. Heero returned to scowling at the door and Duo was just content to listen to the harmonica a soldier had started to play a few tables over. The Tommie was playing an old gospel hymn that Duo remembered from his childhood in India. Somehow, even though Duo didn?t believe in the Savior the song talked about, it soothed his nerves. He was listening so intently to the song that he almost missed the words he?s been waiting on.
?She didn?t come.? Heero stared down into the murky depths his tea. Duo hadn?t even noticed when the young soldier had brought it back.
?I know.? He told his friend quietly.
?I have to talk to her before we leave. I can?t put off leaving another day, and God help me, I must speak with her.? His hand gripped the cup so hard that some of the hot liquid spilt out and covered his hand. He dropped the cup with a hiss and a curse. Duo looked sadly over at his older partner.
?I told you she?d never come. Relena?s too stubborn for that. If I?ve learned anything in the 15 years I?ve known her it?s that you?ve got to be sneaky.? Heero just glared at him from under his unruly mop of brown bangs as he tried to clean the tea off his hand with a handkerchief.
?If you don?t have anything intelligent to input Maxwell I suggest you keep your mouth shut.? Duo smirked confidently over that the major.
?Oh, I have a plan, Yuy. Don?t you worry, this one will work better than anything you could have come up with??
@>-;---
Relena was on her fifth letter when Catherine tiredly walked into the tent. She collapsed into her cot and rolled over to look at Relena. She could see the exhausted slump in the other girl?s shoulders and hated herself for what she was about to do.
?Relena, there?s a soldier at the hospital asking for an off duty nurse to go out to the officers tents close to the front lines. It seems one of the officers has contacted malaria and is too sick to come in. Dr. Po wants you to go.? Relena?s pen stopped moving for a minute and if possible her shoulders dropped even more. She sighed and looked over at her fellow nurse.
?Would you finish writing these for me? I only have two left.? She pointed to the papers and dog tags scattered over her bed. Cathy nodded her consent and pulled herself up to a sitting position on her cot. Relena went to her trunk and started to rummage around for the medical bag that she kept in there. The bag had been a gift from her brother when she became a nurse.
?Do you know where he?s waiting at?? She asked the red headed nurse who was now looking over the dog tags on her bed. Cathy looked up sheepishly and cringed slightly to her friend.
?No, I didn?t wait around long enough to hear that, dear. Sorry.? Relena just smiled crookedly and reached up to push any hairpins that had worked lose from a long day of work back into her makeshift bun.
?Don?t worry with it Cathy, I have to go to the hospital for a prescription of quinine anyway. I suppose I won?t be getting any sleep tonight.? She looked longingly at the little sagging cot in the corner then straightened up her spine with determination.
?Well, I must be off.? Relena tried to sound as cheerful as she could about missing sleep and having to trudge about in the desert in the middle of the night. Catherine watched her leave with a touch of concern. Both she and Hilde had noticed that Relena hadn?t been sleeping lately. Quatre had also mentioned that she wasn?t eating much either. Cathy hoped that Relena wasn?t getting sick with something deadly like malaria or some other thing. Out here in the heat disease killed just as sure as enemy bullets.
?I?ll have to speak with her about this when she gets back tonight.? Cathy told the canvas ceiling, but she couldn?t shake the ominous feeling of foreboding that settled in the pit of her stomach like a coiled viper.
@>-;---
The moon shone brightly off the sand, surrounding Relena in an otherworldly glow as she tried to keep up with the older soldier who had been sent to bring her to the sick officer aid. He didn?t seem to notice how she had begun to lag behind. Her legs felt like lead and she was sure her small boots were filled with more than a ton of sand.
?How much further will it be, sir?? she asked to bulldog faced Sergeant. He just pointed somewhere up ahead of them and spat tobacco juice from out onto the desert floor. Relena sighed and continued to struggle through the sand.
?I wonder if Heero is still waiting for me?No he probably only waited 10 minutes if he even came at all. If I didn?t love that man so much I?d?.Wait, I don?t love him. I refuse to love him after he left me like that.?
Up ahead she caught sight of a flickering light that she took to be the officers? fire. Relief filled her and she cracked a small smile. The walk hadn?t been that bad, she might have even enjoyed it had she not been taken from her much needed rest.
?Which tent is it, sir?? He only grunted and pointed to a canvas structure that was sat a little away from the others. Relena asked the soldier another question, this time hoping for more than a grunt as an answer.
?You never told me his name, soldier.? She stepped toward the tent but kept her face turned toward the soldier for his answer.
?My name is Major Heero Yuy.? The voice spoke from behind Relena so suddenly that she gave a little yelp. Her breath caught in her lungs. Lack of sleep, coupled with sudden shock sent her body into over load and black spots began to dance across her vision.
?He-Heero?? The Major had to move quickly to catch the girl as she slumped towards the ground. He felt panic spiral up in his chest at how light she felt in his arms. Relena had never been heavy to lift, but now she felt like less than a feather. He quickly carried her inside a placed her on his cot.
?You know, I didn?t go through all this just for you to faint on me Relena. Come on, baby wake up!? Heero lightly slapped her cheeks and drew back in surprise at how hot to the touch she felt. The situation was much worse than he had originally thought it was, and it kept getting worse. For the first time he took note of her medicine bag and reached for it. Surely she had to have smelling salts at lest.
It didn?t take him long to find the small vial of putrid salts and he put them to good use by waving them under her nose. Relena jerked her head away from the vial and coughed roughly. Heero felt instant relief flow through him as she sat up weakly. Relena took a moment to remember where she was before fixing a glare on the now smugly smiling major.
?You cad! Your not even sick.? She ground out between clenched teeth. Undaunted Heero returned her glare for glare.
?Knowing your noble spirit, I knew you could never resist a dying soldier in need. Of course if you had met me at sunset like I oh so politely asked you to I wouldn?t have had to resort to such imaginative ways to get you here. Now relax, you look like a prisoner of war in need of kindness.? Relena didn?t sit back, instead she looked toward the exit of the tent with determination to get out with what little dignity she had left.
?I shall not waste another moment of my time here Major. I have to get back to the hospital, unlike some, I don?t have time to sit and chat over tea.? She told him in her best rendition of royalty she could muster. She didn?t notice the dangerous look flash in the eyes of the man standing between her and the freedom she so longer for.
?You won?t be going any where tonight, Nurse Peacecraft.?
@>-;---
AN: I regret to inform all of you man-eating lawyers out there that I don?t own Gundam Wing. I do own some posters and a model or two. Oh and yesterday I bought my own chunk of gundaniam off of e-bay!!
The song used up top came for Evan and Jaron so I?m not claiming that either.
Rice Ball and I would like to thank the many people who review last chapter!! You are all sooooooo wonderful! We love you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Also, special thanks are to be given to War Dove who helped me out with a crisis I thought I?d never have to face. Thanks Dove, you?re the bestest!!!
Ummm?.Also thanks for all the replies on chapter length! I though long chapters = Author not being shot but rice ball wasn?t sure.
Rice Ball: Why do you blame me for EVERY thing? I?m going to hide under the bed!! You?ll never get me out alive!!! *scurries under the bed*
Hitomi: I guess I have to go get him out?*sigh* Until next time!!! *waves* Bye Bye!!
Personally, I think your chapters are about the right length. I would rather wait a little longer between updates than have shorter chapters.