Extra Warning: Almost graphic death scene.

Notes: Many, MANY, thanks to all of you who reviewed the last chapter! And again to my beta for dealing with my impatience *looks sheepish*. Enjoy! ^^

 

 

 

Chapter Six:

 

Cromwall 1815

Spring

 

Another explosion heard from the small window of the attic heralded a new day for many of the servants in the Dunhill Mansion. Several shook their heads softly, as if already used to the loud noises. They went back to their duties with weary steps – many still feeling the effects of lack of sleep from the night before. Their voices seemed hushed and wary in the early morning fog. Everyone was quite aware of the fighting that had broken out in the town of Marsden, a few miles south, and it was only a matter of time before it reached the sheltered walls of Cromwall. Husbands, brothers, sons, fathers, and grandfathers had begun to arm themselves with weapons for a possible invasion from the enemy. Wives, sisters, daughters, mothers and grandmothers were left to worry and dread the day that the call would come for their loved ones to leave their homestead. All in all, it was a very troubling time for the townsfolk and everyone seemed to walk on eggshells. One never knew who to trust these days.

 

Trowa Barton slipped into his flat-soled shoes quietly. As he began to shrug into his jacket, he idly noticed that Duo’s bed was empty again. It was no longer strange to see the small bed barely slept in, as the longhaired servant was now prone to spending a lot of time with his master in the attic. They had barely spent two months together and neither had disclosed their pasts to the other. But from Duo’s behavior, Trowa could tell that the boy was a natural scientist for his curiosity of how things worked seemed limitless. If anything, Duo had been the one to ask more questions about the inner workings of the mansion than either he or Wufei. At first, Quatre had been put off by the brunette’s enthusiasm, but he had slowly warmed up to Duo and the rest as they say is history.

 

At the moment, Wufei was the only one asleep – although Trowa doubted that. The Chinese boy was very prone to waking up at the slightest movement and today would probably be no different. He, Wufei and Duo had met on the final stop at Dinkers, where they had met Jergens. Even during the trip to the mansion, neither boy had talked much to the other but they had all known that there was something they shared and they had noticed it on the spot. Surprisingly though, Wufei had been more ‘responsive’ to Duo, if that were at all possible. The raven-haired boy had refused to speak to Trowa and it was only when Duo made a direct comment to him, was Trowa able to tell that Wufei wasn’t actually deaf or dumb.

 

Quatre was already gone for the day, as was his habit every morning. Trowa’s fascination with their leader had not waned in the slightest but he had been unable to get Quatre to really speak to him since his arrival. He wasn’t sure if the blond was deliberately avoiding any situation in which they would be left alone, but Trowa’s curiosity continued to grow with each passing day. He wanted to know more about Quatre and he wouldn’t rest until he got the head servant to indulge him in conversation.

 

“You were shot,” came the sudden statement that had Trowa spinning around quickly. He stared a bit moronically at the young man still lying on the bed as if wondering if Wufei had spoken in his sleep.

 

But seeing the deep-set black eyes staring right back at him convinced Trowa that Wufei was indeed awake and this wasn’t some strange or surreal moment. He smiled softly and nodded slowly.

 

“Yes, yes, I was. How could you tell?” He knew for a fact that his wounds hadn’t reopened from any signs of aggravation.

 

Wufei shrugged and gave a small yawn before sitting up quickly. The plain white sheet fell off his body revealing smooth skin, a well-toned torso and slight tufts of dark hair that no doubt lead to the obvious bulge beneath the sheet. Trowa tried to tear his gaze away from the sight but seemed hypnotized and unable to do so.

 

“And you?” he asked again, quite surprised at how steady his voice sounded. “How did you pass away?”

 

Wufei swung his legs off the bed, not really caring that the sheet had now completely fallen off his body to reveal the very thing Trowa had tried not to notice. To his relief, however, Wufei reached for his pants and began to dress into them quickly. And just as Trowa felt his question would never be answered, the dark-haired boy began to speak quietly but firmly.

 

“I was born in the city of Chang’an,” he began. “And I had a very happy life with my family. We were almost considered royalty, but I assume being that popular and wealthy doesn’t account for much…”

 

 

~*~

 

 

The Province of Shangxi

China, 1806

 

The boy held the parchments tighter against his body as he listened to the raised voices behind the door. He pressed his ear even closer as if wishing he could melt through the heavy object to gain access to what was truly going on in there. He had noticed his uncles Meng Zi and Han Fei arriving earlier in the afternoon, but they had been in the room with his father for over an hour now. Wufei had tried to concentrate on his studies but even his teacher had left to find out what the ruckus was all about.

 

“Father…” he muttered softly in worry, only to give a yelp of fright as a strong hand was placed upon his shoulder. He spun around quickly; ready to give whomever it was a piece of his mind, when his scowl turned to a small smile as he noticed who it was. “Sister…what are you doing here?”

 

The tall, black-haired girl smiled warmly only to tap her younger sibling’s nose gently. “Shouldn’t you be studying, Wu Fei? You know what will happen if your teacher comes out to find you here.”

 

He pouted and shook his head gently to get rid of her finger. “They’ve been in there for hours now, sister,” he replied quietly. “What do you think is going on?”

 

The girl frowned lightly and folded her arms in contemplation. It was times like this that the youngest heir to the Chang family found himself ‘falling in love’ with his older sister all over again. As always, she was dressed in a simple flower print silk jacket and matching pants that gave her an air of dignity and strength. There was no doubt that Xiu Juan was the epitome of all that was good about the Chang family. Like her name, she was elegant, beautiful and graceful but was also considered one of the best fighters amongst their father’s small army of warriors. Wufei cherished the moments she spent time to teach him new techniques with the katana. And it was through her discipline and patience had he been able to achieve any respectable fighting skills.

 

“I do not know, Wu Fei,” she finished with a light shrug. She smiled but the young boy could see the line of strain around her pink-tinted lips. There was clearly something not right. “Why don’t you run along and study now. I’ll come by to check up on you.”

 

He opened up his mouth to protest again, but was silenced as she placed a finger upon his lips.

 

“Go,” she said firmly.

 

And he did. But as he took one last look at her shrinking figure as he walked away, little did he know that it would be the last time he would ever see her alive.

 

 

__

 

 

It was the loud unearthly scream that had the boy sitting up quickly from his bed. His young body was drenched in sweat as trembling hands clutched the silk sheets tightly. It hadn’t been a dream. He had clearly heard someone screaming from outside his window. With his heart thumping loudly in his chest, he reached beneath his bed to pick up the light but very well made katana that had been given to him by his father on his eighth birthday a few months ago. Unsheathing it slowly, he rose to his feet, his simple white sleeping gown hugging his skinny frame as he stood upon his bed to peer carefully out of the high windows.

 

Beneath the watchful eyes of the bright moon, nothing seemed to stir in the exquisite gardens below him. He held his breath and tightened his hand around the hilt of the sword, his breath becoming harsher and shallower as he tried to will his heart and mind to cooperate with him. He needed to have a clear head if he had any hopes of catching or finding out who their attackers were – if they were being attacked that is.

 

Deciding that staring out of the window wasn’t going to help much, Wufei jumped lithely off the bed and began to move as silently as he could across his room and towards the door. He pushed it open carefully, dark eyes peering out to the corridor only to shrink back in fear as he noticed a shadow seem to leap from one rooftop to the other. He gasped and stepped out a bit more, his sword now held out before him in both hands as he tried to catch his breath. They were being attacked! There was no denying it now.

 

Another loud shriek filled his young ears and he felt his heart fall heavily into the pit of his stomach as he realized that the sound had come from his parents’ quarters. Hardly thinking through his actions, he began to run towards their direction, his bare feet flying across the cold marble floor. His eyes were already filling with tears and yet anger and revenge for the traitors who would dare to do such a thing to his family. Sure enough, his parents’ bedroom door was open and running through it quickly, he came to a screeching halt as his gaze fell upon the scene before him.

 

He felt his stomach give a sickening churn and before he could control himself, his evening meal escaped its prison as he fell to his knees. The katana slipped from boneless fingers, his eyes brimming and spilling with hot tears as he stared at the severed heads of his mother and father. They had been placed upon two of his father’s prized spears, their glazed and horrified depths forever frozen in that state as if in disbelief at what had happened to them.

 

“Mother…Father…” he croaked out weakly as he crawled slowly towards them. “I couldn’t stop them…I’m so sorry…”

 

Xiu Juan!

 

Where was his sister?! If they had gotten his parents, what would have happened to his sister?! But it seemed as if he didn’t need to go far for two burly figures leapt into the room to stand before him. He staggered backwards weakly only to give a breathless shriek as something heavy and quite bloody was thrown upon his lap.

 

He stared into the defiant black eyes – even in death his sister had been brave to the very end. He could almost see her struggling with her attackers and he hadn’t been able to do anything. What had he been doing? All this time, his family had been slaughtered and all he could do was sleep through it all.

 

He cradled the head against his body, the tears falling faster as he closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable.

 

Father…Mother…Xiu Juan…forgive me…

 

And as the sword swung through the air to take away his life, Wufei muttered a quick chant that would guarantee him a safe return in his next life.

 

 

 

~*~

 

 
Cromwall, 1815

 

Trowa stood dumbfounded at the story as he watched the Chinese boy button up his shirt carefully. All throughout the tale, Wufei had been surprisingly calm through it all. Trowa could only imagine the mental anguish the other man had been going through all these years.

 

Finally, he asked quietly. “Did you find out who was responsible for the deaths?”

 

Wufei nodded with a small but cold smile coming to his lips. “They were caught by the Imperial army and given the punishment they deserved…”

 

“And what about you?”

 

“What about me?” the dark-haired boy asked in bemusement.

 

“You said…you chanted…?” Trowa asked carefully while eyeing Wufei with renewed interest.

 

The servant nodded curtly, reaching for a small black ribbon to tie his hair in a ponytail. “Didn’t you?” Wufei asked with a raised brow. “How else were you able to return?”

 

Trowa blinked and shook his head slowly as it dawned on him that that part of his life was a blank slate. He willed his mind to conjure up images of a childhood. But to his chagrin, nothing came. Where were his images of youthful vigor and innocence? Where were familiar images of a family he should have known?

 

“I…I don’t remember…” he said weakly. “I don’t…know…”

 

Wufei stopped long enough to stare at his companion in disbelief. “Do you not remember anything about your past life?”

 

“I know I was shot,” the brown haired boy said a bit defensively. His hand automatically went to his left side. “I was shot and that was it…”

 

“You had to be shot for some reason…”

 

“I don’t…I don’t remember…” Trowa’s brow furrowed in thought. “All I know is that I woke up in the middle of a corn field and the family took me in and made me work for them.”

 

Wufei stared at him a bit longer, his expression clearly stating that he did not believe a word that Trowa was saying.

 

“You’ll remember in due time,” he finally said enigmatically. “We’ve got a lifetime to do so.”

 

And with those last words, Wufei excused himself and left the other servant with his confused thoughts.

 

 

~*~

 

 

Cromwall

Present Day

 

Dr. J eyed the dying embers in the fireplace with a slight curl of his lips. “Tragic way for the Chang family to die, eh?”

Relena nodded slowly. “It was believed that Meng Zi and Han Fei were the ones responsible for the deaths…”

 

“Li Chang’s comrades?” The doctor asked incredulously although he knew he really shouldn’t have been surprised to hear such a thing.

 

“There was a dispute over land and who got the most share from their father’s last will,” Relena explained quickly as her hands flew across the pages of the leather bound book. “Meng and Han believed that Li had been given way too much and wanted an expansion of the territory for their political gains. However, Li did not want that and had tried to make them see reason.”

 

“So much for that,” J replied flatly as he sucked hard on his pipe. He glanced towards the mansion again, noticing that a few stars had broken through the fairly darkened evening sky.

 

“You keep staring at the mansion, sir,” Relena observed with a small smile. “Perhaps you would like to go there?”

 

“Have you been there before?” the doctor asked with a raised brow.

 

Relena shook her head softly. “I haven’t gone inside the house per se…I’ve just stood outside the gates and looked in. But I was sure…” She stopped and lowered her lashes as if embarrassed by what she was about to say. “You are going to laugh and think I am crazy as well.”

 

“Oh, don’t be ridiculous,” the doctor said with a wave of his hand. “If I can listen to all of this without batting an eyelash, what would make me disbelieve you, hmm?”

The girl looked at the doctor, who did look a bit batty, with a wary smile before continuing shyly. “Well…it was after school one day and I just decided to take a walk down that road since it’s a bit closer to my house and all of that. But then I looked into the house grounds and I could have sworn I had seen little kids running around in there…sir…” She finished lamely again.

 

“Little kids?” the doctor asked with a raised brow. “But I’m sure children in the neighborhood…”

 

“They didn’t look like children from the neighborhood, doctor,” she said quickly with a firm shake of her head. “They were dressed in nineteenth century clothes and they were darting in and out of the trees pretty fast but one of them did stop and seemed to look at me.”

 

The doctor leaned closer, his eyes now bright with interest. “Did he say anything to you, Miss. Peacecraft?”

 

She pursed her lips and then shivered slightly. “He had shocking blond hair, sir and he smiled at me and said… ‘Do you want to play with us?’ I couldn’t believe it, but I think I said ‘No’. He then shrugged and said ‘Your loss…’ and then he ran away. Pretty crazy, huh?”

 

The doctor said nothing for a few minutes as he blew another cloud of smoke into the air. Finally, he asked. “Do you think it’s who I think it is?”

 

At Relena’s soft nod, the doctor turned his gaze towards the house again. “They are still in there, hmm? Just as I had always thought.”

 

The librarian’s head shot up in surprise and her eyes narrowed in wariness. “Just what were you planning to do, sir? Just why do you really need all this information?”

 

The scientist chuckled and waved a hand in dismissal. “Oh, let’s just call it an experiment in human psychology and just how well one can manage to survive within his limit of what is reality and just plain…paranoia. But don’t worry,” he added quickly to Relena’s puzzled frown. “My young ward should be able to take care of himself.”

 

I hope…

 

 

~*~

 

 

Overheard from a neighbor’s TV set, in which Alex Trebec was looking exceptionally dapper this evening…

 

“A German word for ‘noisy ghost. As such it is an apparition that is known for causing a great deal of trouble in a house or making a great nuisance of itself. They do not harm people but tend to occur in the company of young children or adolescents.”

 

And the answer for two hundred dollars…

 

“What is a poltergeist?”

 

 

 

~*~

 

 

 

They appeared before Duo and Wufei, who were now sitting beside each other on a garden bench with smug looks on their faces. But unfortunately both were now children and fully dressed again. Heero felt incredibly embarrassed standing before them still as naked as the day he was born. He almost wished that Trowa wouldn’t release him as the other servant quickly stepped away to watch the proceedings from the side.

 

Duo pretended to be repulsed at the sight of Heero’s naked body as he closed his eyes with his hands to shriek in feigned terror. “Oh the sight! Wear some clothes! What a terrible sight to see!”

 

Wufei smirked. Trowa broke into a small smile and even Quatre who was leaning out of the window to stare at the happenings below had to snicker at the taunt. It was as if they were all waiting for Heero to do something – testing him – needing to see some kind of emotion besides his constant state of surprise or shock.

 

Heero clenched his hands into fists by his side; his dark blue eyes pinned on the teasing violet ones before him.

 

“What’s the matter, master?” Duo snickered as he blew a raspberry and then rolled his eyes. “He can’t do anything, Quatre.” He pouted and lifted his gaze to the silent blond above. “Why didn’t you get us someone more interesting. He’s just…boring.

 

“He wanted to play with you and Wufei, Duo,” Quatre replied with a light shrug. “Why did you revert back to your child-like form? I’m sure he would have made a perfect playmate then.”

 

“No way,” Duo huffed and eyed Heero with a snicker before rising to his feet. “Wufei would eat him for lunch. Wouldn’t you, Wufei?” He turned to the Chinese boy for confirmation and giggled as his hand was lifted gently. Heero watched as Wufei placed a tender kiss upon his partner’s palm.

 

“With pleasure,” came the soft reply, which sent something hot searing down Heero’s spine. Someone growled and judging from the mild surprising looks that came upon the boys’ faces, Heero knew that he had been the one to make the sound.

 

Quatre’s lips quirked into a rather cruel smirk that would have surprised any of the servants under his care as he watched Heero’s reaction. It was about time someone put Duo in his place and if anyone could do it, it would be this Japanese boy...but then again, he had thought the local teen he had brought in a few months ago had been the one as well. Things had definitely not gone very well in the end.

 

Duo looked startled for just a moment before he replaced it with another smug look. “What’s this? It looks like the master is about to put up a fight. What are we going to do, Wufei?”

 

Heero stepped closer, his lips curling into a rather cold smile as he noticed Duo step back a little. “Enough with that,” he said curtly as he held out his hand. “You know what I’ve come here for, Duo Maxwell and as much as I would like to stand here and chit chat with you over bull shit, I’m afraid the party’s over.”

 

He barely acknowledged Wufei growing to his full height or the cold glare that was now pinned on him as he kept his gaze stubbornly fixed on Duo’s wary depths.

 

“Get away from him,” the Chinese boy growled menacingly. “Haven’t you humans used him enough already?!”

 

“Back off, Wufei,” Heero replied calmly although he could feel a sudden chill crawl up his spine. “I won’t hurt him. I only want him to give me what I want.”

 

“I will do no such thing!” Duo bellowed out in fury as he too ‘grew’ to his full height. He matched Heero’s glare, his neat braid unraveling by itself as an indescribable surge of energy seemed to swell around them. Heero had to brace himself so as not to fall, while trying to will his mind not to dwell too much on how excruciatingly beautiful Duo looked when angry – extremely angry.

 

He was sure just one blow from the furious entity would send him to an early grave but it would be worth the risk. He couldn’t forget what he had come here for. Yes, he would have loved to have a rendezvous with Duo and Wufei when the time was right, but he had been sent here by the doctor to pick up something that would be beneficial to mankind - at least he hoped it would be. He really had no idea what Doctor J’s plans were if he did get the elixir. However, the sooner he got it, the better. Heero wasn’t sure he could take any more of Duo and Wufei’s teasing or taunts or he was bound to lose his mind.

 

“Come with me, Duo,” he cajoled again, only to find himself suddenly flying across the lawn. He felt the pain seconds after as he fell hard against a low brick wall. He raised a hand to his throbbing jaw, feeling his mouth fill with blood before spitting it out quickly. Apparently, it looked as if he would have to get a beating first before convincing the stubborn ghost of his good intentions.

 

Rising shakily to his feet, he smiled coldly and cocked his head to the side trying hard to ignore the pain that wracked his injured back. “What?” he asked in derision. “Is that all you’ve got, Duo Maxwell? You’ve got to do better than that if you want me to leave you alon….aaaargh!!”

 

He had barely seen the boy lunge for him but Heero again found himself flying so quickly that falling onto the hard earth sent his vision non-existent for a moment. He groaned and this time found it extremely hard to get to his knees. Damn, but Duo’s blows were crushing and deadly. Just how could he hit a ghost that was incredibly fast and could disappear if he even made an attempt to do so?

 

He staggered to his feet again, barely able to stand as he managed yet another taunting smile. His face felt like hell and he was aching all over, but seeing the slightly bemused _expression on the other boy’s face was all he needed to know that his plan was working.

 

“Come on, Duo,” he goaded with a snicker. “Give me all you’ve got. I’m right here…waiting for you…”

 

The servant seemed to waver as he stared at the bleeding and naked boy before him. A small part of him questioned Heero’s sanity and fiddled with the thought of stopping, but Heero’s smirk was the final straw.

 

“You’ve got a death wish, boy,” he growled softly as he began to stomp towards Heero while cracking his knuckles. And raising his fist, he finished coldly. “And I’ll be more than glad to grant it to you.”

 

Wufei watched rather dispassionately at the fight while Trowa glanced upwards to meet Quatre’s amused aquamarine depths. It really was hard to read the blond’s thoughts and this moment was no exception. Trowa had been sure that Quatre would have been upset at the way Duo was making mince meat of the boy he had admired but instead the blond seemed to be enjoying it in some perverse way. Was his jealousy unfounded then? Was there really no reason to think of Heero as a threat in his quest to please Quatre? Just where did he stand in all of this? Rubbing a hand wearily across his forehead, he sighed at the dull glow of pleasure in those beautiful eyes before calling out quietly.

 

“Make him stop, Quatre. He’ll kill Heero…”

 

“Really?” came the amused reply.

 

“Yes, really.”

 

“He knows he can’t, Trowa,” said Quatre smugly. “He needs Heero and he knows it.” He turned towards the silent Chinese boy. “Hey, Wufei…why don’t you go and remind Duo about something, hmm?”

 

Wufei seemed reluctant to do that, but with a resigned sigh, he walked towards the couple and tapped his partner’s shoulder gently. Duo, who was still in the process of giving Heero yet another blow to his face, glared angrily at his partner for the intrusion. It wasn’t until he listened to Wufei’s whispered words, did he release Heero with a light snort. He stepped away from the bleeding boy, violet eyes, which had almost gotten black with rage, now contemplative as they eyed the semi-conscious figure on the ground.

 

“Why didn’t you tell me this ahead of time?” he grumbled while raking slightly trembling fingers through his bangs. He glanced at Quatre, who waved from his perch with a knowledgeable wink. And swearing revenge on the blond terror, Duo fell to his knees and cradled Heero’s cheeks. He began to caress them almost lovingly.

 

“Look at me, oh fearless master,” he teased lightly as his fingers slid lower to trace the outline of Heero’s cracked and broken lips. “I want you to do something for me. Can you hear me? I said I want you to do something for me.”

 

Heero opened up his lashes…well as far as they could go. He was an aching mass of bruises and for a moment back there he was sure that Duo had been more than ready to send him to the afterlife. He wondered what had made the angry ghost stop. Whatever it was, he definitely hadn’t expected to be face-to-face with Duo – at least not this intimately.

 

Duo smiled softly as he noticed he had gotten Heero’s attention and as he wrapped his arms around the Japanese boy’s neck, he whispered thickly into Heero’s ear.

 

“I want your body, Heero. For one day…give me reign to become you and to enjoy your freedom. If you do that for me…then…I just might give you what you truly really seek.”

 

 

TBC…