The Mission
These city lights don’t do anything for her complexion. Nor does that streetlight she’s under. I can’t figure out what exactly she’s doing out here, though. It’s not like her, and she’s not this way.
She’s wearing uncharacteristic white. But the flames on her outfit are fitting. She seems to be gathering a lot of attention, too. I watch men approach her and strike up conversations. She talks to them and laughs with them for a moment or two, her laughter tinkling in the air and reaching my ears. Then she usually quips something and the men depart, looking as though they have been broken.
I know her tongue is sharp, but I have never seen it break so many people. Or seen her act so careless. I’m not sure what she would do if she knew I was watching her from the shadows. I do know how Duo and Heero would react to her being out here. I also know what they would do to me if I let her get hurt, let alone for knowing and not letting them know.
How did I find out, anyhow? Oh, yes, that’s right. I watched her sneak out of the house, dressed like she is now. Her hair is down. No braid. So unusual. But then, this entire situation is unusual.
She’s moving again. I keep to the shadows as I follow her, constantly watching out for her.
“”*~‘’~*“”
Why do I feel like I’m being watched and scrutinized? The shadows across the street seem to move, seem to breathe. I can’t stand it. I resolve to move again as another man approaches me.
“Hey, babe. Wanna go somewhere more private?” He says to me. I shudder inwardly, but put forth a smile on my face. Anyone who knew me well would know it fake, but I’ve gotten so good with the fake smiles that they almost seem genuine. And no one who knows me well will be seeing me tonight. I turn to face him and respond.
“Depends on how private you want.” I smile winningly. Had it been another time, another place, I could have won one of those awards for acting. What were they called again? Oh, yeah. Macadamia Awards, or something like that. I study the new ‘customer’. He’s a grizzled older guy. The thought of his body near mine appalls me. But I don’t let it show.
“I want real private. I want you to myself.” He makes a small grab for me, which I avoid with ease. Out of the corner of my eye, I think I see the shadows across the street move. It creeps me out more than this guy does. I decide it’s time to give this guy the brush off. I laugh.
“Hon, you don’t have enough on you to have me at all, let alone privately. Now be a good boy and push off. You’re scaring the other fish away.” He glares at me, and I ready myself for flight. Which would not be fun in these shoes. But it’s unnecessary. He turns and leaves, grumbling.
I let out a small sigh of relief. I didn’t want to hurt anyone tonight. Just wanted to complete this damn mission and get back home. I still was amazed that I was chosen for it. The only thing I could think to explain it was my past. Hell, I was getting propositioned like no one’s business when I was 15. That was just before I met my sister for the first time.
I look around and my eyes fall to the shadows across the street. I think I see a flash of something emerald, or at least green. But it’s gone so quickly that I can’t verify it. And I sure as hell am not going over there to investigate. So I start walking.
My shoes make it difficult to walk, but I’m graceful enough to handle it. I'm very glad for my training as I make a mental note never to wear stiletto heels again if I can at all avoid it. I keep getting looks from various males, but none of them are the ones I’m s’posed to retrieve the information from at any cost, not that I know what he looks like. I turn down an alley by force of habit, looking to get to the next street quickly. It’s the only mistake I have a chance to make.
“”*~‘’~*“”
She turns down an alleyway and I realize she’s instantly in danger. I look around for some way to follow and keep an eye on her, but find no ways here on the ground. I glance up and see the perfect way. Clothes lines. I jump lithely onto one and start walking nonchalantly, following the various lines in an effort to follow her.
Suddenly, out of nowhere—
“”*~‘’~*“”
Feral and dirty hands grab my arm in an effort to exert brute force over me. I flip the owner of the hands over my head with ease. The man lands on his back as another pair of hands, just as dirty and fearsome, grab both my wrists. I flip him over my head as well. The first guy is getting up as a third set of arms wrap around me from behind.
Futile as it is, I struggle against the strong arms that hold me, unable to throw my current attacker off me. He leans in to whisper harsh words into my ear and I’m filled with a sense of dread.
“I told you I wanted a real private show, but you wouldn't give. So, whore, I’m going to make you give. And then, I’m going to turn you over to my two buddies here to do with you as they see fit. Understand?” My amethyst eyes go wide in sudden fear. I know what they want, what they think I am. But I wasn’t s’posed to get hurt on this mission. Hell, I wasn’t s’posed to walk down a dark alleyway, either.
Somewhere above us, something growls and a figure drops into the alleyway with us. The form’s movements are fluid as it gracefully dispatches the two men who were approaching. When I catch a profile glimpse of the form, I notice the litheness of the figure. And gravity defying bangs.
“”*~‘’~*“”
I sense the meaning of the man’s words without hearing them. And the look in those beautiful amethyst eyes betray fear. A fear no one should have.
I drop down into the alleyway, quickly dispatching the two other men. I hear a grating chuckle from where the man holds her, and I turn. He has her by the chin now, pulling her head back, a gleam of metal too close to that pale and slender neck for his own good. Her amethyst eyes flash recognition, and then her practiced mask falls back into place.
I know, without knowing, what she is about to do and what she expects me to do, as well. I don’t approve, but I have no choice. Her white flame shirt is going to get red.
Without hesitation, she flips the man over her back, using his knife arm as leverage. He cuts her throat as he rolls forward off her back and onto the ground. I dispatch him with ease, using his own knife.
Satisfied that he’s no longer amongst the living, I rush to where she fell. I turn her onto her back, resting her beautiful head in my lap. I inspect the cut on her neck. It’s not too bad, but with the knife and the alley, it’s bound to get infected if not treated soon. She coughs, grimacing in pain.
She points to the man who cut her, motioning for me to check his pockets. I obey and find quite a number of information disks. I move back to her side and show her, questions I don’t attempt to hide showing in my eyes. She nods and mouths the words ‘Take me home’.
I lift her slight frame after pocketing the disks and leap gracefully onto the clotheslines. She is so light and I have to keep looking down at her to make sure she’s still alive. Her breathing is becoming more ragged, so I take the quickest route back to the house instead of the safest.
“”*~‘’~*“”
I mouth ‘Take me home’. He nods slightly, his emerald eyes not hiding his worry. I’m sure I look a mess, and I want to tell him I’ll be alright, but I’m not sure if I’ll even make it home. The cut isn’t that bad, but I feel the infection, the disease, growing rapidly. And it’s too close to my heart and mind.
As he lifts me into his strong arms, I close my eyes. His graceful movements lull me into a kind of sleep. I can hear my own breathing, so I am assured I’m still alive, though that same breathing is becoming more ragged. I feel his arms tighten their hold on my body, as if in doing that, he could keep my spirit there as well. His pace quickens and I know he’s throwing caution into the wind.
I hear him mumble at me. His words are muffled, but I hear them plainly, nonetheless. And he doesn’t hide the fear in his voice.
“Don’t leave me. Please, Fallyn. Don’t leave me. Do you know what Duo or Heero would do if you died now? I don’t want to find out. Please, Fallyn, stay with me.” His arms pull me closer to his body, trying to keep heat in mine. I feel weaker than I ever have in my life.
My mind screams. ‘No! Don’t let me go, please! I don’t want to die!’ I barely breathe one word before darkness claims me. “Trowa…”
“”*~‘’~*“”
I look down at the fragile creature in my arms as she breathes my name. She’s limp, and I fear that she’s slipped from my grasp. Tears begin to fall unhindered from my eyes as I gently press a kiss to her forehead. Her temperature is very high.
She’s not dead, just unconscious. I breathe a slight sigh of relief and quicken my pace. I have to get her back to the house and cleaned up before the infection spreads too much farther.
Within moments, I’m sprinting up the stairs in the house, rushing her to the room I share with my love. I bolt, nearly out of breath, into the room. Quatre, who had been asleep in our bed, wakes up with a start, sitting bolt upright. At a glance I know that he was having a nightmare from the fear I was radiating. He watches me rush to our bathroom with the fallen girl in my arms, his eyes wide.
I nearly trip over her unbound hair in my rush to get to the medical supplies, and it calms be down for a moment. Quatre has bounded out of the bed and into the bathroom, holding the emergency kit in his hands. Once it registered who it was I was carrying, he was right there beside me, helping me revive and save our friend.
“”*~‘’~*“”
Someone is caressing my face. Gentle hands. Soft hands. I feel very warm, not overly warm, but comfortable. The slender fingers brush some of my bangs out of my eyes as I begin to open them.
Things are fuzzy to my sight, but as least I’m not blind. My head is resting on something both firm and soft. I look upwards into an emerald orb. My breath catches. I’m seeing my guardian angel.
Trowa smiles a small smile down at me. “Welcome back.” he mouths. I blink at him as a small, timid giggle echoes beside me. I turn to look at the creature who was caressing my face, lifting my cheek from Trowa's shoulder briefly. Quatre’s eyes are full of worry. I smile weakly at him, trying to reassure him I’ll be alright. And when his face breaks out into a huge grin, I know I will be.
