The crushing burden of constant fear and endless pain had been with him so long that he had become accustomed to it. Free; the chains binding him had cut so deeply that his flesh had healed over them, rendering them invisible. Free, a word whose meaning had become so alien to him that he did not even recognize his salvation when it came.
Safe. Not a reprieve of a few minutes, or an hour, or even the precious gift of one night. Safe; from here on endlessly into the future, no-one would hurt him. Safe, because Heero loved him, and Heero would protect him for as long as he lived.
Not a prisoner any more, not a slave or a toy. He was guarded, he was saved, and he was loved. And that was the most important thing of all.
All too soon, though, the morning followed the night. And it was time to go.
The little valley was filled to the brim with noise and movement and men; all the lassitude that had set in over the long weeks of waiting was replaced, finally, with the buzzing energy of anticipation. Even the tense excitement of the week before, the hectic week of preparation, could not compare to this one moment -- the beginning of a journey that would end, for too many of them, in death. Some of the men -- officers, or messengers -- rode horses through the melee, and a few necessary wagons would follow the army right up to the scene of battle. Most of the men, however, were on foot, and the marching crowd seemed to go on endlessly.
General Chang and the other senior officers were already lost to sight; Heero Yuy lingered for just a few minutes more, on the edge of the crowd. His horse was edgy, affected by the clamor and the chaos, but it was a trained war steed and Heero easily held it in check, using the body of the horse to block the view of the passing crowd. Duo was just as glad; even if the crowd of men no longer paralyzed him with helpless panic, this was a private moment that he wanted to share with no-one.
Re: Spoil of War, book 2
Date: 2006-02-28 01:36 am (UTC)Free.
The crushing burden of constant fear and endless pain had been with him so long that he had become accustomed to it. Free; the chains binding him had cut so deeply that his flesh had healed over them, rendering them invisible. Free, a word whose meaning had become so alien to him that he did not even recognize his salvation when it came.
Safe. Not a reprieve of a few minutes, or an hour, or even the precious gift of one night. Safe; from here on endlessly into the future, no-one would hurt him. Safe, because Heero loved him, and Heero would protect him for as long as he lived.
Not a prisoner any more, not a slave or a toy. He was guarded, he was saved, and he was loved. And that was the most important thing of all.
All too soon, though, the morning followed the night. And it was time to go.
The little valley was filled to the brim with noise and movement and men; all the lassitude that had set in over the long weeks of waiting was replaced, finally, with the buzzing energy of anticipation. Even the tense excitement of the week before, the hectic week of preparation, could not compare to this one moment -- the beginning of a journey that would end, for too many of them, in death. Some of the men -- officers, or messengers -- rode horses through the melee, and a few necessary wagons would follow the army right up to the scene of battle. Most of the men, however, were on foot, and the marching crowd seemed to go on endlessly.
General Chang and the other senior officers were already lost to sight; Heero Yuy lingered for just a few minutes more, on the edge of the crowd. His horse was edgy, affected by the clamor and the chaos, but it was a trained war steed and Heero easily held it in check, using the body of the horse to block the view of the passing crowd. Duo was just as glad; even if the crowd of men no longer paralyzed him with helpless panic, this was a private moment that he wanted to share with no-one.