CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE: Safety

Heero was running forward as soon as the boy's foot slipped.

Duo was half a heartbeat behind him.

The man in green and gold, who had been standing on the safety platform, ran forward too.

Only to have his desperate hands close on empty air as the boy fell seconds before he would have caught him.

The audience surged to its collective feet, women screaming, men running forward, children just staring.

Heero and Duo acted with a speed they hoped they never had to copy.

Because they weren't sure how they did it.

In a split second, every drop of water in the tent, outside the tent - from the very air itself - had been pulled together into the biggest 'bubble' Duo had ever attempted. The white glow of Heero's Spirit Talent wrapped around both it and the boy, slowing his fall marginally and lending strength to Duo's plan.

The boy was slamming against the bubble almost as soon as it had formed, but there was no splash. He sank, but the flexible shield Heero's Talent had formed only allowed him to stay down for a second, then it bounced him back up into the air. He went about six feet and then back down, to bounce, again, against what was effectively a huge, yielding cushion.

Then Duo reached his limits, and the bubble popped, drenching everyone and leaving the boy sitting on his bum in the middle of a huge circle of mud.

The audience stared.

Then they started cheering.

That was the best act they'd ever seen!

Heero and his Second ignored them, rushing to the boy and dropping down next to him in the mud. He stared at them, the one visible green eye wide with shock.

Then two very muddy hands reached out and grabbed them. "A-are you them?"

"Yes," Heero nodded, knowing what the boy meant.

"Mine?" the word was laced with strong disbelief.

"Yes," Duo answered this time.

"Then we need to go. We need to go now."

They didn't hesitate - they didn't ask a single question. They just hauled their weak Third to his feet and ran out of the tent, practically carrying him along.

The desperation in his voice wouldn't allow them to do anything else.

The Ringmaster shouted angrily behind them, making them realize part of why their acrobatic Earth Talent was so eager to get away.

"Bring him back! Damn kids! Bring him back, he's mine! He's under contract! Come back here now!"

The boy they were helping shuddered, and Duo gave him a quick reassuring. "S'okay, man, you're Chosen now. He can't do anything to you. Choosing cancels all that kinda crap out. Don't worry."

"You don't know him..." the boy whispered, "he won't give up."

"He won't have much choice," Heero growled.

"He'll bribe the officials..."

"Won't matter," Duo cut in, "we're WarCraft. He could only bribe our Commander, and Zechs would never let him take you away."

The boy's pale, tense face relaxed a little. "Is he - your Commander - is he here?"

"He's at the Military Training Grounds."

"Where's that?"

"About two days ride from here, why?"

"That's bad," the boy whispered, "he'll try... before you can... he'll..."

He didn't finish. It was hard to talk after fainting.

*

"I still think Lady Elaira would help us."

Those were the odd words Trowa heard when he finally woke up.

"We can't risk being seen - those circus people are everywhere."

There were arms wrapped around him.

"So, what? You wanna hide out for a few days?"

Very comfortable arms.

"Zechs will be here fast if we don't show up back at the Training Grounds tomorrow."

"That's true. Prolly... hmm... three days, tops, hiding out, then?"

"I would think so. Do you know someplace safe?"

"Think we should keep him out of town - there's a little hideout we used ta use in the summer, hidden back in the scrub. I'll take you there and then go snatch us some supplies, yeah?"

"Yeah." Normally, Heero didn't approve of Duo's light-fingered ways, but desperate times called for desperate measures. And he'd allow a lot to keep the precious boy in his arms safe.

The boy who was stirring, blinking both of those emerald eyes at them, since they'd brushed the auburn bangs out of his face. "Hello," he said softly, then went silent, just watching them.

"Hey. How ya feelin'?" Duo asked.

The boy shrugged and nodded. "Who...?"

"I'm Heero," The Spirit Talent answered without hearing the rest of the question. "He's Duo."

"Trowa," was the quiet, solemn reply.

"Are you strong enough for First Calling?" Heero asked, his voice unusually soft. He waited, wondering if the boy knew what that meant. Duo hadn't.

"Yes." Trowa shifted slightly, waiting.

"Duo..." Heero urged his Second to start. Their Earth was shaken enough by the fall and finding his Others so abruptly; he didn't need to deal with feeling Heero's Spirit Talent 'cold'. Zechs and his Trainers had both explained that could be a shock. It would be better if Duo's cool, soothing Water Talent went first.

The boy's eyes opened wide, and Heero felt the echo of Duo's Calling. He waited a moment, then felt the faint echo of Earth being sent in return. Duo's eyes dropped half closed and he grinned lazily at Heero.

"Have at it, Hee-chan."

Heero obeyed, sending his strong Spirit Talent as gently as he could manage. He sometimes had trouble reigning his power in - so did Duo - and he knew as soon as he felt the enormous strength of Trowa's Earth Talent brushing against his soul that his new Third was going to have the same 'problem.'

But who cared - at least they had him.

"I'm your Third?" Trowa asked vaguely, visibly fighting off unconsciousness. His strong, slim hand had gone to his chest and was pushing at his heart, like he was trying to stave off an ache.

His Others understood. Their own longing for Earth, Air and Fire had only doubled at finding one - it felt rather like there were two sore, aching holes in their chest where the rest of their Others should be.

"Yeah, man - it's just the three of us, so far. Don't worry - we'll find them. Hee-chan's stubborn, he'll never give up."

"Never." Heero echoed, holding his Third a little closer. "Rest now. We'll keep you safe."

********(( On Horseback, Traveling to Haven Village ))********

"What do you mean, it was like having an aching hole in your chest?" Wufei interrupted the story rather reluctantly, but he wanted to know.

"Missing your Others is no fun at all, 'Fei. You felt a little lonely, didn't you? When we weren't there?"

Wufei nodded.

"Well, after you've found some of your Others, that loneliness - for the rest, you know - is like there's something eating your heart out of your chest from the inside." Duo shuddered at the memory. "It's enough to drive you insane - I'm glad you'll never have to feel it."

Wufei gazed at him for a long moment. "I'm sorry you had to."

"Well," Duo grinned, good humor instantly restored, "not like it was your fault, right? Or Quatre's. Sometimes it just takes a while. We've got you now, so life is good." He stretched, sighing happily as the rising sun warmed the muscles of his back. "So - more story?"

"Please."

********((Hiding outside Helia))********

"Not bad," Heero remarked, glancing around the tiny space.

"I know. Came in handy a lot of times, trust me."

Duo's 'hideout' was a ring of bramble bushes - they grew thickly together and close to the ground, and it would take a sharp eye to see that one of the stubby brown bushes didn't actually have roots. It was dead, woven carefully into a bush on one side and fastened by a twist of vine on the other. It opened like a tiny door.

"'Course, can't use it in the spring and summer," Duo was still talking, "'cause you can tell the bush is dead, then. But the branches are thick enough to hide us without the leaves."

Heero nodded, and carefully lay his still-sleeping Third down on the hard-packed ground. "It'll be cold tonight."

"I know. I'll get us some food and a blanket. You stay here with him, and pick the thorns out of your legs."

Heero scowled at him. Duo just grinned. He'd found it rather amusing that Heero had never learned how to avoid brambles before. Poor lil' city kid - well, technically, he was one, too, but he'd left the walls of Helia for the surrounding countryside anytime he'd pleased. Heero had never been allowed to do so.

The Spirit Talent settled down beside his Earth and pulled up a loose-fitting pants leg to scowl at some scratches. Some were shallow, one or two were bleeding a bit. "Damn."

"What?" Duo stared, knowing Heero would normally just ignore those as unimportant.

"Sally," was the unhappy reply.

Duo grinned. Their Healing had only recently joined them at the Training Grounds, and she was already driving them both crazy as she chased them down to heal everything from bruises and nicks to a sneeze. He was just waiting for her to get upset over their hair being mussed.

That wouldn't surprise him at all.

"Your problem," he teased, grinning wider at the glare he got in return. "I'll go get the stuff. See ya in a few."

"Be careful."

"Yes, mother."

"Duo..."

"I will." Duo paused for a moment, gazing at the sleeping boy and then at his best friend. "You be careful, too - right?"

Heero nodded, his gaze firm.

That was good enough for Duo - he slid out the makeshift 'door' and vanished into the growing darkness.

********((On Horseback))********

"Took me about two hours to get the stuff we needed - had to be careful, there were circus people everywhere, and the Ringmaster really did get the Guards to look for us, too. 'Course, they didn't know Trowa'd been Chosen - thought he'd been abducted." Duo grinned at Wufei, who was apparently mesmerized. "Hey, it's getting close to noon. Want lunch?"

"Hmm?" Wufei had to shake off the effects of Duo's storytelling. "I'm not hungry, but you go ahead."

"'Fei, you gotta eat. You're way too skinny." Duo had lost his grin.

Wufei fought off a blush. He wasn't about to admit that he was beginning to get nauseous from the constant swaying motion of riding. He had been able to ignore it while Duo was telling the story, but it was rapidly catching up with him now. The thought of food just made it all worse. Still, it was better to give in to Duo and pretend to eat. Hopefully, he could avoid any fuss that way. "All right."

"Good," Duo beamed at him, humor instantly restored. "I'll get us something to eat." He urged his horse into a turn, and sent it trotting back toward the supply wagons.

Wufei had just enough time to take a deep breath before there was another horse beside him.

"Hello," a young soldier said, smiling at him. His insignia showed him to be WarCraft, too, and another Fire Talent.

Wufei, who had been laughed at and physically hurt by most of the Fire Talents he'd ever met, immediately scowled, not replying.

It didn't deter the young soldier. "My name's Kris. So, you're Heero's Fifth, huh? We wondered if he'd ever find you. Most of us expected them to Common-Join or go nuts." He chuckled.

Wufei's scowl became a glower. That was nothing to joke about!

Naztar apparently didn't think so, either - or he had picked up on his rider's distress. He turned his massive head and gave the young soldier's horse a definite 'get-away-from-me' nip. The other horse sidestepped, but Kris quickly brought it under control and back beside of Naztar, not paying attention to the reason behind the sudden movement.

"So, how do you like your Others?" he asked, leaning close to the little Fire Talent. The boy was pretty, and Kris had always admired Exotics. The glare just told him there was some spirit there - and he liked that, too!

Wufei very nearly growled. He forced down the desire to Call to Trowa - the other soldier wasn't doing anything but talking; he had no desire to look like a weak, intimidated idiot. "Fine," he forced, spitting the word out through clenched teeth.

"Hmm... really?" the other boy asked. "I mean, Lord Winner is such a nice person, but that Duo is very... well, loud... and Heero and Trowa just stare at you. It's disturbing."

Wufei's glare could have curdled milk. "Don't say things like that," he hissed, feeling his Fire Talent rolling angrily inside of him and forcibly beating it back down.

"Why not? The truth's the truth," Kris shrugged. Of course the boy would want to defend his Others, but he would have to face the facts. Heero's WarCraft was odd, and everyone talked about it!

Still, perhaps it would be best to change the subject. He didn't want to completely antagonize this little treasure. "So - who was your Trainer?"

Wufei didn't have a response to that question, but it didn't matter. Duo was back, his horse easily shoving its way between Naztar and Kris' horse.

"Beat it," was all Duo said, leveling a glare at the intruder. He knew the boy, though his name escaped him, and the guy should know better than to be hanging about a newly-Chosen Other. Everyone knew that you shouldn't do that - Talents were protective of the newly-Chosen for months after they found them, nursing the bond between them until it was strong and sure. It was all right to talk to them, just not without one of their Others present. You could get badly hurt if it was sensed that you might be the slightest threat to a Final Joining.

Anyway, he didn't like Kris. He tried to flirt with Quatre too much.

He handed Wufei an apple and bit into his own, glaring at Kris until he finally did move his horse away, back to his own Others.

"He bothering you?"

Wufei shrugged. "Just talking."

Duo gave him a doubtful look - his Fifth seemed unsettled. Those dark eyes were discontent and he hadn't missed the scowl. Damn Kris - he'd just gotten Wufei all calmed down with his story and now his hard work was ruined.

Well, the story wasn't quite done yet, was it? And Wufei was the most appreciative audience he had ever had. He was just opening his mouth to finish the story when Quatre's voice echoed in his head.

'Duo - bring Wufei up here. Something's going on.'

'What?' Duo asked, even as he urged his horse forward, gesturing for Wufei to follow.

Naztar also saw the gesture, and well-trained warhorse that he was, took his inexperienced rider where he was supposed to go.

'I'm not sure. The General just called for Zechs and Heero.'

'Maybe he just wants to meet Heero?'

'I don't know... Zechs didn't look too happy about it.'

"Great," Duo muttered, "what now?"