Previously, in Tapestry, Book 2, Chapter 9...
"Destinations?" Wufei frowned. "We're going to more than one place?"
"Yes," Treize responded with a grin. "In fact, we'll be away for quite some time. I've already made all our arrangements. The government will run itself in my absence. I've seen to that."
Both Wufei and I stared at him, taken aback. "You've ... what?"
"Of course." Now he grinned broadly, enjoying our discomfiture. "Did you think that we were taking a short day trip into the country? Dear me, no." He leaned forward, gave a signal and the door to the limousine closed. Immediately, the vehicle's engine started and we moved away from the curb, then headed smoothly into traffic.
"We'll be gone quite a long time, my friends. We have a number of worlds to explore before we come home!"
Twisting about, I caught a last glimpse of the mansion as it receded into the distance through the small windows of the limo. I felt vulnerable, exposed, like something dragged out of its den into sunlight for the first time. Leaving Luxembourg was dreadfully upsetting, and I didn't know why. Before, I used to pack up and go at a moment's notice with no qualms or regrets, but now there was a hole in my stomach the size of my two fists. I was quietly freaking out.
"We're leaving today? But why? For how long?"
Treize angled his body toward Wufei and slid his hand over the back of Wufei's seat, his long fingers idly flicking the baby dragon's spines back and forth. The dragon shook its tiny head and yawned, closed its eyes then undulated its body, settling itself about Wufei's shoulders. Wufei, for his part, stifled a yawn, shook his head, and rubbed behind his ears. Treize's smile was indulgent; his gaze was focused and predatory.
"Exactly how long, I couldn't say." Treize's purred in contentment, his eyes half-lidded. "Our travels will take us to many different places around the world. How long we will be gone is anyone's guess. Eventually, though, we will come back."
"But where will we stay?" I persisted, trying to sound oh-so-reasonable. "And what about Jack? I know he's with us now, but will he be able to come with us all the time? Plus, he's just going to get bigger and bigger, because he's a puppy, and soon he'll be a full grown dog ..."
"Jack will be fine with us, Sally. Believe me, we will never be turned away from anywhere we choose to stay because of Jack. In fact, we will not be turned away from any establishment, period." Treize hummed a little and petted Wufei's head. Wufei responded by muttering a little at Treize.
Frustration and fear warred for dominance in my brain, both trying to gain the upper hand. We aren't toys to be thrown in the back of the car and dragged along for the ride, you know. We had a home; was it too much for us to ask to be able to STAY there?
Frustration won. Angry and put out, I decided to pounce on the small uncertainty I had heard rather than attack the larger issue, finding a little pleasure in fighting about something tangible.
"So, you said we would be returning eventually? When, eventually? What does that mean? Next week, next year ... or maybe the next time you think about it?"
His gaze swept over me; within nanoseconds my bravado evaporated and I froze, his palpable irritation overwhelming each and every nerve and synapse of mine.. Treize's presence - typically warm, sensual and all-enveloping - now felt dangerous and suffocating in its intensity.
"It means, Sally Po, that when I decide it is time to return, we will. Do you understand?"
Wufei glared, annoyed, unaffected by Treize's little huffing display. "Well, I understand. We're leaving Luxembourg because you're bored. You wish to show us off to your so-called 'friends,' and that means we have to travel to them. They would never travel to us, because you live in a human city . Non-humans staying in a human city? That's completely beneath them, and you know it."
Treize considered Wufei for a moment, his expression unreadable, then laughed and relaxed. Like water, that ominous presence surrounding me suddenly drained away, leaving me weak with relief.
"Dragon, you are perceptive. I'm not a recluse. And since there have been so many rumors circulating about the two of you," and he raised his eyebrow, including both of us in his glance, "I've decided it's time for us to see more of this world than just our own doorstep. And there is so much more of this world to see - and so much more I want to show you." The last part of that sentence was delivered to Wufei alone. Treize's hand was still on the back of Wufei's seat, but now he moved it to the back of the boy's neck, rubbing and kneading, an intimate gesture.
"Um," Wufei muttered, moving his head down.
Casting a quick glance in Wufei's direction, I saw his head droop toward his chest before Treize's broad shoulders blocked his slight figure from view. It didn't stop me from hearing his stifled groans of pleasure, though.
"Ah, Wufei, I had no idea your neck and shoulder muscles were so tight. You should have told me," Treize gently scolded, massaging with renewed vigor. "We'll have to do something about this ..."
Scowling, first at Treize's back, then out the window, I shook my head and forced myself to think rationally.
Examine your options, Po. Calm down. What are your options? Either you react, tell him to stop doing this in front of you and get your butt reamed again, or keep your mouth shut and don't react. If Wufei has a problem, he'll speak up. He's a big boy now. He's not without resources.
Sighing, I shifted my weight and turned toward the side windows, leaning on my arm. Outside, the world rushed by in a colorful blur. We had been on the road for thirty minutes, more or less. Now the car was quiet, except for the soft whoosh of air through the vents, the muted hum from the tires, and the background noise of Treize and Wufei.
As I peered through the window, parts of the landscape started to look vaguely familiar; a dull feeling of déjà vu throbbed in the back of my head, mocking me. When would I have been out here, especially since I had been under lock and key from my last escape attempt ...?
...OH. Right, that explains it. This is the same road I took when I drove to Paris.
I leaned back against the seat, feeling my face slowly flush and closed my eyes. Enough of that. I hated my life. Mystery solved. Case closed.
It was the smell, the thick, awful smell, that made me stir. Whatever it was, the stink was abominable.
"Jack?" I groped for him with one hand with my eyes closed and tried not to gag. "Jack, was that you? Did you get sick? You poor pupp-"
I stopped, shocked. My hand hadn't touched Jack or the seat or even the floor of the car; I was holding long grass between my fingers, grass that felt at least as long as my arm. Shifting my body surreptitiously, I realized I wasn't in the car with Treize and Wufei either; I was planted firmly on the ground, laying on my stomach with my knees scraping dirt. Outside. Alone.
What the hell -- ?This was weird and getting weirder. The air wasn't recycled and thin; each lungful felt thick and slightly humid, with the grasses sweating sweet oxygen as they did in the forests of Yuunan. When I opened my eyes, warily lifted my head and looked around, all I could see was tall, swaying grass surrounding me on all sides. The sun felt especially pleasant, my aching shoulder and back muscles soaking up its healing warmth. And the air was still, delightfully so. After the constant roar of the road and even stranger noises from my mind, here, in the middle of nowhere, there was stillness. Serenity.
This is paradise, my mind whispered. Why not stay here? You could. It's your choice, your valley.
Something about that felt right, about it being 'my' valley. There was a memory tickling the back of my mind, just beyond my recall. I remembered the smell of water; great, endless caverns; a cold kiss -
But I couldn't stay in the valley with that overwhelmingly putrid stench so close. Breathing through my mouth, I blinked and pushed myself up slowly from the ground, looking for whatever was causing it.
Controlling the urge to retch, I scrambled to my feet, squinting, until my gaze fell to my left, seeing something a little darker staining the grasses to my left. The air was permeated with that rank, foul odor. Blinking, I put my hand over my mouth, steeled myself to see something awful, and pushed on.
I found the cause of the smell, and it was just as bad as I thought.
Not two meters away from me lie the rotting, half-eaten carcass of something surrounded by a cloud of wasps and blowflies. It was impossible to identify whether the corpse had been male or female, save that it probably had been human. Remnants of a rib cage, along with what looked like outstretched arms above mangled vertebrae were several meters away from what used to be its pelvis and legs. There was no head; it appeared as if a giant had rent the body in two in a fit of anger, hurled the lower torso aside in disgust, then ripped the head off and tossed it away as well.
What was left of the corpse was distended and in the middle stages of decomposition. Scavengers had picked apart the bones and some of the soft tissue. Parts of the remains that were still on the body were bloated, blotchy, and teeming with maggots and larvae, moving and pulsing grotesquely.
" ... uuugghh..."
I felt ill. Breathing hard, I leaned down with my hands on top of my thighs, looking at the ground, to steady myself. And then again, without warning the scene in front of my eyes changed and I found myself in the middle of a waking nightmare filled with paralyzing fear, a recollection with such gut wrenching panic I could hardly breathe: -holy shit where was this coming from - ?
- running – running hard, running fast, running as if life depended upon it, legs kicking through waist high grass, breath catching painfully in my lungs, sprinting towards something at the edge of the meadow where the edge of the forest's barrier of leaves met the meadow's tawny wall of grass.
Had to protect the Child, had to deliver my charge into safe hands. Solemn, dark Asian eyes under wispy black hair looked up, one small fist waving gently outside the swaddling clothes, a vague image of translucent black and red colors swirling around that tiny fist. Shifted his weight, snuggled him against my chest, next to my pounding heart, dug deep to find more energy, muscles burning, burning, must run even harder, faster -
He was out there, after me. He was chasing me - ancient and deadly, huge, winged, he wanted the child as fiercely as I wanted to protect him. He reached out with lazy grace, warm strong fingers ready to tear the child away, fingers that were merciless in their assault on my person and dignity, my mind and body, fingers that poked and pried and pressed their way into parts of my body and soul, and I couldn't stop him. He reached out to grab and trip and rend and sunder and to force me to give up the child to him -
- NO!
Screaming, I fell as fingers forced their way around my body and then into my mind and soul. As I fell, I flung the child as far away from me as I could, hoping against hope that someone else saw me fall, someone else would find that child and would protect him before –
- PAINOHGODSPAIN - such ripping, horrible pain - starbursts flaring and bursting in front of my eyes - then darkness, gasping for air, spiraling down and down, farther and farther -
It's a death spiral Po grab control and GET OUT NOW -I forced myself to disassociate, yanking my consciousness out and away. Miraculously, milliseconds later I found myself back in front of the corpse, with that horrible stench making my eyes water.
"Gods. What the fuck is going on?" I gasped, shuddering. "Where am I?"
Sympathetic chuckling murmured from somewhere nearby.
Ah, poor little Guardian. Your Master really has been much too protective for your own good, especially since he's seen fit to neglect you so soon.
...whaaaat...who?...
There was yet another voice in my head. I was alone in a gorgeous karst valley, the same kind of valley I remembered from Yuunan, where the the mountains dipped down and then up, where small, quiet farms lay in the folds of the land, and where the limestone cliffs were blanketed with trees. Squinting against the sun, I peered at the tallest mountain, hoping to see something at the top, thinking I should see something ... someone ... there ... it feels as if I should ...
"Who - who are you? And what do you mean, he's too protective? Where am I? What happened?"
I wasn't ready to play 'poor little Guardian,' as the mystery voice called me. Maybe I couldn't match these creatures strength for strength, but I could start using my brain. At the very least, I knew it wasn't Trowa. Whoever it was seemed to know a great deal about me and Treize and was able to just drop into my mind at will.
Listen carefully. Your innate talent brings you here, Guardian, but once here, you will need to learn to control what happens. What you experienced is called a 'race memory' - a particularly nasty one, at that.
I stared at the sky, listening intently. "A race memory?"
Yes. Typically, race memories are triggered by familiar surroundings. In your case, I think your proximity to your charge and your race's supposed arch nemesis.
" ... my charge? my race's arch nemesis? -"
- that was my ancestor's body. How could I have missed something so obvious?
The voice started speaking again, gentler now. Calm, little Guardian. It is to your credit that you have survived to this point. Many of your kind did not. Those who did were better prepared than you. They knew what was expected, and what, in turn, they should expect.
I felt sick, so sick ... I couldn't stay there one more second. "No, no - I have to get out of here!"
Turning, I fled the scene as fast as I could. Adrenaline flooded my body. I took off, muscles churning, arms working like scythes in the long grass, legs pumping as if demons were after me. Eventually, though, my adrenaline burst was gone, and with it my extra energy. Exhausted, I slowed to a trot, and finally to a walk, then stopped to catch my breath and look around. I spied a path barely scraped out of the undergrowth; while neglected and overgrown, parts of it were still visible to those who could track. It disappeared between the dip of the mountains.
Feel better?
The voice sounded amused, but not mocking.
NO you asshole, of course not. I thought it, but didn't say it. I stood still, panting, until I caught my breath.
"Please ... answer a question? When you said other Guardians were 'better prepared' than I was - what did you mean? Could you be more specific?"
It felt like hours until my new 'friend' answered.
Hn. You need explanations. I will provide what I can.
My stomach unknotted. "Thank you. Thank you. And - um - one more thing? Who are you? Why help me?"
Another short silence. This time, when I heard him, he sounded wryly amused. I'm simply a friend helping a friend. From what I can see, you need all the help you can get.
It was true, but painfully blunt. Annoyance flared up at my so-called 'friend.' "Oh, I see."
Don't pout, little Guardian. Walk out of the valley. Take the path in front of you. We'll meet soon enough.
I waited several moments, peering around. Nothing stirred; there was nothing here but silence, and insects, and possibly the other things that gnawed at the corpse of the poor unfortunate Guardian back there.
Are you looking for 'free choice' again? Make the choice to stay here and get eaten, like your Ancestor, or make the choice to leave and see the rest of this world. Stop being stupid.
"Fine," I snapped, more to myself than anyone else, my steps making a brisk crunching sound. "I'm leaving."
Nothing appeared on either side of the road, nothing stirred in the grass, and nothing was in the clear blue sky overhead except the sun. I was alone, strolling out of a beautiful, verdant valley, into the unknown.
"Sally? Sally, wake up, we're here - "Gods no I'm not anywhere I'm still walking -
"Mmmmhmmm." My head was resting on something soft and hard at the same time, and I was confused. That pleasant, sonorous baritone wanted me to wake up. Or was that walk up? Wasn't I already walking?
"Ah, such a deep sleep. Wake up, Sally - "
"Nnn, go 'way, I am walking -"
"Walking?"
Shaking this time that refused to stop. Groggy, I opened my eyes and saw nothing but bronze light around me. Blinking, trying to bring the world into focus, I finally realized that Treize's incredibly bronze eyes were scant centimeters away and they were peering quizzically into mine.
"Ah, my little walker," he said softly. "Where are you off to this time?"
"Ou - out of the valley," I murmured, feeling dreamy, completely captivated. His eyes were so clear, so powerful ... "Um ... hi, Treize."
"Hello yourself, Sally Po." My cheekbones tingled where he touched them, long fingers stroking around my eyes, down the side of my face, tracing my chin ... I shivered, enthralled.
"Tell me more. How did you get into the valley?"
"I ... don't know. I was walking in a pretty green valley. It was hot. There were mountains ... all around me, mountains that were strange looking ... then someone said "walk up," but I was already walking, so - "
He chuckled, and the lines around and between his eyes disappered; those beautiful bronze hues around Treize's head and shoulders shimmered and vanished. Now he looked as handsome as usual, except his gaze was sharper and more focused.
"Ah, I see. That was me, my dear. I was telling you to wake up, not walk up."
I blinked. "Wake up? Oh ... you mean wake up - " Suddenly I was wide awake, staring straight into Treize's amused and twinkling blue gaze, feeling my wrists held lightly together in my lap.
"Hey - wha -?" I stammered, pulling my wrists out of his grasp.
"Sorry," he said, grinning, not looking sorry at all. "But you were sleeping so soundly and then started talking so much, I had to protect myself. There was no telling what you would have done, given half the chance."
"Excuse me - what?" I was stupefied, totally confused.
Forstalling any more conversation, the door opened and Wufei stuck his head inside.
"Are you ready yet?" he snapped, irritated. "The luggage is loaded, the pilot is waiting, Jack is with me - "
"Yes, Wufei, we're coming." Treize's smile was one of triumph as he ushered me out of the car. "Come along, Sally. We can't keep our public waiting, now can we?"
The jetliner was enormous. It could easily hold fifty people; in fact, as we hurried over to board the plane, it appeared as if that many Specials were making the trip with us. Luggage was loaded into the bottom hatch of the aircraft, and several guard dogs were brought on board. I was shocked to see the amount of people, guards and especially dogs coming with us. Wufei, though, seemed to take everything in stride.
"Um ... it's just the three of us traveling together ... isn't it?" I asked Treize as we walked toward the doorway of the aircraft.
"Yes, just the three of us. Why?"
"Because," I said, glancing at the knot of uniformed men on the tarmac, "if only the three of us are traveling together, why are those Specials and their dogs boarding the plane, too?"
"Oh. That." Treize chuckled. "We have several stops to make along the way, dear. This isn't just a vacation, it's a 'working' vacation. Don't worry." He gave me a teasing grin. "And you know, I'll need a few around to keep an eye on you."
"Ahaha. Aren't you funny."
"I try to keep my sense of humor," he said, ushering me into the plane, his eyes flashing. "You should do the same. Don't take things so seriously."
I glanced at him in disbelief, then rolled my eyes. "Okay. Whatever you say, Treize."
"...the natural habitat of the Inland Leviathan in the southern half of the continent should not be compared to the winter habitat of its cousin to the north, the Sloe Eyed Two-Faced Leviathan. This creature, as noble as its ancestor, kills without hesitation when provoked. The Inland Leviathan has a foul temper and poor eyesight, easily compensated for by its massive bulk, extraordinary auditory senses and – "
Even though his seat was next to mine, Wufei leaned over and poked me in the arm, hard enough to make me drop my book and interrupt my reading.
"OW! Wufei, what's wrong with yo-"
"Sorry, Sally, but I need your attention. Treize said we're going to land soon, and you must buckle your seat belt."
I blinked and frowned, looking at him. Was he joking? He stared back, his dark eyes giving nothing away.
"...what? Landing? Now?"
He nodded, solomn. "Yes, that's what Treize said. So buckle up. Now."
Wufei didn't realize it, but when he started any sentence with the phrase 'Treize said,' it was as if he took a claw hammer and scratched it, rusty side down, along a chalkboard. It grated on my last nerve that much. However, I kept a very tight rein on my temper and made a huge effort to give Wufei a reasonable, mild reply.
I bent forward and looked around to see if Treize was anywhere near us. He wasn't. They I looked at Wufei again, giving him my best gee-I'm-confused-help-me-out face. "But ... that's just weird. Didn't we take off - " I looked at my watch " - like, forty minutes ago?"
He shrugged. "Doesn't matter. Treize said we're going to land in about ten minutes. So let's go. Buckle up."
Gads, he did it again. I gritted my teeth and focused all my attention on fastening that idiot lapbelt. "There, Wufei. Satisfied? Now answer a question for me. Where do you think we are?"
He snorted. "I have no idea. You're the one sitting next to the window. Look outside." The dragon actually snorted at me too, bobbing its proud little head in concert with Wufei.
The urge to smack some sense back into his head surged down my arms and made my hands burn. "If it was that easy, I wouldn't need to ask you, now, would I? Look!" I tried not to shout as I pointed at the window. "The only thing that's out there is mist or fog or clouds. That's all I've seen since we took off - I haven't seen the ground at all. Don't you even care where we are ...?"
"Unnn," he replied absently, his attention buried inside an old, leatherbound book, the dragon wrapped securely around his shoulders.
And now I was completely ticked off. It was one thing for him to interrupt and badger me until I did what he wanted, but it was quite another when he blatantly ignored me as if I no longer existed. That was a bad habit for him to develop.
I sat up, reached across Wufei, grabbed his book and slammed it shut as hard as I could.
BAM!
Wufei barely had time to get his head, the dragon's head and his own fingers out of the way. "AAAKKK!" he squawked, eyes huge, as he jammed backwards as hard as he could into his seat, arms and legs splayed out on either side of his body like a turtle on its back. "WHAT THE HELL -"
The retort echoed in the cabin like the sound of a gunshot. Not a half second later, we heard all the Specials priming their weapons, and then -
THUDWHUMP
Every Special's boot hit the floor of the plane at the same time as they all jumped up, scanning for the intruder who dared fire a shot in Treize's plane.
Shocked, Wufei looked at me - really looked at me, as he did when we first met - and I smiled, just a little. Hah.
"Dammit, you did that on purpose!" he hissed, accusing. His eyebrows thundered together and he gave me a genuine Wufei death glare, something else I hadn't seen in weeks.
"Really?" I shrugged. "You mean the same way you did it to me? Or am just less important, so it doesn't matter?"
"What the hell are you talking -"
And then Treize was in front of us, very large, eyeing us both.
"Wufei. Sally."
"Hnn?" I turned from Wufei to Treize, pushing my smile back to its proper place.
"We're landing now, so stay seated, please. Also, we're going to allow the Specials to leave the aircraft first." Treize said. "They have so much gear and equipment to move that it's best to stay out of their way. And Sally, here's Jack's leash. He's been wonderful, but I'd prefer that you tend to him now."
"Yes, of course, I wondered where he was. Come here, Jack."
Jack yipped a little then jumped on the seat with me, put his paws on my shoulders and tried to wash my face with his tongue. I laughed; ducking, I buried my face in his fur and whuffed into his neck . He snuffed my hair, poked about with his nose a little and finally settled down in my arms.
Treize sat down across from us in the large leather chair, getting ready for landing. There was something undeniably different about Treize right now, a primal edge that wasn't there before. Energy poured from him - not just his usual, languid power, but also an earthy kind of energy. It drenched me in waves and washed over everything in its path. Now simply being close to Treize felt exciting and arousing but also like something reckless and dangerous to do as well.
Something reckless and dangerous ... that was familiar...
...you felt it when Treize called the Dragon ...
I exhaled slowly and looked at my hands. One scene flashed across my mind, clear and awful in blinding accuracy. The words reckless and dangerous called forth all types of images, but they paled in comparison to what happened that night, what was seared into my brain courtesy of Trowa.
DAMN, Po, focus! Think for once. This force must affect everyone surrounding him, too. Just ... think. Be cool.
"All right, Wufei. Sally. Time to go."
Picking up Jack's leash, I glanced down and felt a small swell of pride. My hands weren't shaking a bit.
After what seemed like hours, Treize chose our personal retinue from all the Specials traveling on the plane with us and finally got all the luggage sorted, too. The general kept Wufei as close to him as was practically possible so that he could learn everything about traveling - how luggage was sorted, how Specials were chosen to take on long assignments, and the gods knew what else Treize had a mind to teach him. Poor Wufei.
I, unfortunately, learned nothing except what it was like to wait on the sidelines with my dog, quite forgotten, until a stray patrol car drove by and radioed to central headquarters about a "lone female walking her dog," and what should he do. When I heard that he couldn't make the simplest decisions without consulting a superior officer, I knew there was no hope.
What was that all about? I mused. It was so, so weird ...
"Penny for your thoughts?"
I blinked. Treize was watching me quite closely.
Just asking, my dear. You're very quiet.
Uncontrollable blushing again, from my neck, through my cheeks that finally stopped at my hairline. At least, the part that anyone could see. I was sure my scalp had turned red, too.
"Um ... well ... I was thinking I was tired, and that's ... kinda silly. All we've been doing is getting in and out of things this morning ..."
"Nonsense," Treize said with a little chuckle. "Traveling is repetitive and boring, and it wears you down. I don't doubt you're tired, and probably hungry, to boot."
"I ... um ... am," I answered, surprised.
"Then you'll be happy to know we'll be stopping in about five minutes for brunch," Treize announced, poking Wufei gently.
"What? Leave me alone!" Wufei snapped, turning his back.
Treize gently turned him around again, rotating Wufei so he would at least look at the two of us when he was speaking.
"Our first stop!" Treize declared, ushering us out of the car with a flourish, a twinkle in his eye. "It involves diamonds, shopping, and getting ready for an enormously large and festive party. Who wouldn't love it?"