|
|
Disclaimers: Not my Duo. Not my song either. Gundam Wing belongs to Sunrise, Bandai and associated parties. Walking Man's Road belongs to America (the singing group, baka!)
Horizon rising
Up to meet the purple dawn
A teenage boy walks down the crowded street. His head is bowed, hands thrust deep into his pockets. A black cap covers his eyes. He doesn't look at anyone, nor does anyone look at him. He is just another random body, meandering slowly towards nowhere.
Dust demon screaming
Bring an eagle to lead me on
A long brown braid brushes against his back as he walks. He is dressed in all black, with a white collar like that of a priest. His wide violet eyes are looking down at the ground. He walks slowly and heavily, his manner dark. His mind is filled with memories no one his age should have.
For in my heart I carry
Such a heavy load
Here I am, on man's road
Walking man's road
"Hey, hey!" The restaurant owner shouted at the children running away from him. "That's my stuff, you little shits!" He cursed at the rapidly vanishing shadows. Realizing he wasn't going to be able to catch them, he shook his head and turned away. "I'll never be able to make a living if those scrawny orphans keep stealing from me."
The little band made it safely to the alley they were calling home, for the moment. One child, no more than six years old, kept looking over his shoulder, expecting their victim to catch up to them. "Do you think we lost him?" he asked, nervously brushing matted brown hair out of his eyes.
"Don't sweat it, kid!" The leader of their group laughed. "That fart couldn't keep up with us if he had a airplane. I'd like to see the day anyone could outrun Solo!" he exclaimed, jerking a thumb at himself. "Now, let's see what we got." He crossed his arms and looked at the other child expectantly.
He nodded and undid the bundle of stolen goods he was carrying. Inside were several loaves of bread. "Oh no!" he said. He looked up at Solo. "I didn't get enough for everybody." He hung his head in shame.
"It's all right, kid." The older boy laid his hand on the child's head. "I wasn't hungry. You can have it." He rubbed the brown hair fiercely. "But remember next time, okay?"
"Okay!" The violet-eyed boy replied, a smile slowly growing on his face. He tossed a loaf of bread to another child in the alley.
*******
"Solo! Solo! Wake up!" the boy shouted frantically. With tears in his eyes, he looked at his best friend. Solo and he had been talking alone when suddenly he had just collapsed. He shook the unconscious youth, trying to stop whatever was happening to him. His skin was hot to the touch.
Solo's eyes cracked open, and he groaned. "Kid, that you?" he asked. His eyes slid shut again.
"Yeah, it's me!" He shook him again. "Solo, what's wrong? Wake up!"
He stirred. "It's not going to happen this time, kid. Shinigami's standing right behind you, and I don't think I'm going to escape him anymore."
"Shinigami?" The younger child looked over his shoulder, confused. Then comprehension dawned on his face. "No! You can't die! I need you! Please, don't die!" He started crying and hugged Solo close.
"It's okay, kid," he said gently. He reached up and brushed away his tears. "Tell you what. You can live for me. Do you think you can live for both of us?" His eyes turned serious.
The brown-haired boy nodded. "Yes, Solo, I can."
"Then your name's not 'kid' anymore," Solo whispered, growing weaker by the second. "Your name is Duo, now. You know what that means?"
Duo smiled faintly through his tears. "It means two."
Solo smiled. "Because now you have two lives inside you. Yours and mine. Make them good, Duo." His voice faded out as his eyelids dropped for the last time.
"Solo? Solo! No!" Duo held his friend's body and howled his misery to the stars.
I'm hungry, weary
But I cannot lay me down
He closes his eyes against the thought of his first friend's death and keeps walking. He can't remember the last time he slept or ate. But he doesn't have time for either right now. He has to keep walking, because if he stops, then everything will catch up to him.
The rain comes, dreary
But there's no shelter I have found
He winces as thunder cracks overhead, and the skies open. He is soaked in seconds. He shivers slightly, then continues. He pulls his cap down lower to keep the rain out of his eyes. The crowd in the streets starts to clear as people leave to get out of the storm. He shakes his head and moves on.
It will be a long time 'til
I find my abode
Here I am, on man's road
Walking man's road
"Duo?" A woman's voice floated slowly up the stairs of Maxwell Church.
He was kneeling on his bed in the room where the children slept, looking out the window. Sister Helen knocked softly on the door before coming in, letting Duo know she was there.
If she had to pick a favorite of all the children at the church's orphanage, her answer would be Duo. They had brought the starving child in off the streets only a year ago, but the changes in him since then were amazing. While still slender, he had lost the gauntness that he had from starvation. His hair had grown, but was now held back in a neat braid. He was cheerful to a fault, except when he thought he was alone. Then his eyes grew heavy and distant. Sister Helen shuddered to think what the child had seen before he came to the orphanage.
"Duo?" she asked again.
He turned around to face her. "Yes, Sister Helen?" he replied in a clear, young voice.
"Why aren't you downstairs, Duo? It's dinnertime." She sat beside him on the bed.
Duo sighed. "I'm not hungry."
Sister Helen wasn't convinced. "What's wrong, little one?"
He refused to look at her. "Nothing."
She gently took his chin in her hand and turned him around to face her. "Talk to me, Duo. I care too much about you to see you so down like this."
"You... care about me?" His violet eyes looked surprised. Then he jerked out of her hand and gazed out the window again.
Sister Helen was puzzled. "Of course I care about you, little one. I care about all of you," she said, meaning the other children at the orphanage.
Duo ducked his head, his bangs falling forward to cover his eyes. But she had already caught the faint sheen of tears. "Everyone who cares about me dies." He shook his head. "You shouldn't care!" The tears finally started to fall.
"Oh, Duo,” Sister Helen breathed, reaching out to the crying child and hugging him. Duo buried his face in her shoulder and wept. “I will always care for you. And I will always be here for you.” She rocked him, slowly.
He looked up into her eyes. “You promise?” he asked, choking back another sob.
“Of course I promise.” Sister Helen held Duo until he drifted off to sleep.
********
"How do you know that God exists?" Duo asked Sister Helen one day.
She looked taken aback for a moment. "I see Him everywhere. He talks to us through our hearts. And I know he exists because you're here." She gave him a hug.
The braided child looked down at his hands. "If he does exist, why did he leave me and the other orphans alone?"
"Duo," Sister Helen hesitated, trying to figure out how to answer the question. "It wasn't God's decision that you be left alone."
"So it doesn't matter if there's a God or not." He turned to look at the gold crucifix hanging over the altar.
Sister Helen paused a moment to get her temper under control. "That's not true."
"I think the only God that exists is Shinigami," Duo said.
"Duo," She was confused. "You don't believe in God, but you believe in Shinigami?"
He nodded. "Yeah. I've never seen a miracle, but I've seen lots and lots of dead people."
Sister Helen just looked at him, a strange look on her face.
********
"No," Duo whispered brokenly as he viewed the wreckage around him. "How? I wasn't gone for that long. How did this happen?"
Maxwell Church and Orphanage lay in complete ruin around him. Smoke still rose from the blackened piles of wood. The gold crucifix they had all been so proud of was lying twisted on the ground. He looked down at his feet and saw a small hand lying palm-up, completely still.
"Bastards." he cursed softly. "Those Alliance bastards. They did this. But why would they want a church?"
"Duo..." A quiet cry reached his ears. Somebody was still alive. He ran as quickly as he could over the debris until he found her. Sister Helen was crushed under a piece of ceiling. Her eyes struggled to remain open.
"Sister!" Duo raced to her side. "Hang on, I'll get you out of here."
"They surprised us, Duo." Sister Helen's face was bathed with sweat from the effort of speaking. "We tried to talk to them, to tell them there was another way, a way of peace. But they wouldn't listen. We wouldn't let them take you... They wanted you, for them." Her eyes glazed over.
"Take me? What are you talking about?" He shook her frantically. His long braid slid over his shoulder. "Sister?"
The nun brought herself back, shuddering. Her hand reached up and brushed Duo's cheek. "May God bless you... and keep you..." Her hand dropped and her eyes closed.
"Sister!" For the second time in his life, Duo hugged the body of the person he cared most about to his chest and cried. "You promised."
Moon rising, disguising
Lonely streets in gay displays
The rain has stopped. He looks to the sky briefly, watching the clouds disperse. As the night falls, the underworld of the city comes to life. He makes his way slowly through prostitutes, thieves, and all the sins in abundance around him. He shakes his head at the sight of it and concentrates on putting one foot in front of the other.
The stars fade, the nightshade
Falls and makes the world afraid
Finally, up ahead he can see the dilapidated shack he is to stay in until his next assignment. He almost trembles with relief. For a little while, he can stop his pointless journey. But again tomorrow, and the day after that, he has to continue walking. He knows no other life to live.
It waits in silence for
The sky to explode
Here I am, on man’s road
Walking man’s road
The old scientist looked down his long nose at the boy sitting handcuffed in front of him. Two other men stood behind him, guns trained on the still figure.
"Hmph," he snorted. He grabbed the boy's head and yanked him around. "Why did you stow away onto our ship?"
Violet eyes looked at him with disdain. "Because I could," he replied. "But if it makes you feel any better, I had to work at it."
The scientist quirked his eyebrow. "What's your name, boy?"
The stowaway straightened. "I'm Duo. Duo Maxwell. I run, I hide, but I never lie. I'm Duo Maxwell!"
"Maxwell's little demon, huh?" The old man had obviously heard of him. "So you were the only one to survive the Maxwell Church massacre. Are you a demon, boy?"
Duo shook his head. "I'm no demon." He hunched forward, and an evil grin slowly stretched his lips. "I'm Shinigami!"
The doctor looked thoughtful. "We could use a boy like you," he mused. "How would you like to work for us?"
Duo considered it for a whole five seconds.
"Sure."
Back to Imagination
Back to The Insane Asylum