Disclaimer: This story is not for profit, just fun. My fun, mostly, but I am so glad others are enjoying it too. Thank you for the characters, Square Soft.
Hero
Chapter Six
By Race Ulfson
I had been dozing but I woke up instantly when the Sleepe spell hit me. I pretended to be asleep as I was carried off, mainly to avoid having to answer the questions I knew would be coming. With Shiva's help I had pieced together a better idea of what was going on. I assumed I was going back to a Garden.
I knew it wasn't a Garden or a Hospital when I was placed on a waterbed.
I waited a few after the door closed and then decided Shiva and I needed to get out of there.
Only, I couldn't.
I couldn't get purchase. I couldn't traction. I couldn't figure out how to get my cast entrapped legs over the high wooden sides. Everytime I rolled close enough to the edge, I sank too low into the bed.
It felt like I was in a crib. Or a coffin. I had gotten myeself wedged in a ridiculous position and I thrashed uselessly until I was exhausted.
Shiva shifted in my mind, reminding me that she was there. I calmed myself down enough to partially sit up. I leaned back on both my arms, which changed the pain from ignorable to distracting. I looked up.
There he was, standing in the doorway, big and tawny and arrogant as any lion.
Laughing at me.
I decided, at first, to play dumb. "Who are you? Where am I?"
I could see on his face he was thinking about lying to me. That would have been surreal, he lying to me while I lied to him and both of us pretending to believe it.
Then his eyes narrowed. "Don't dick with me, Squall. I know you have Shiva. I can take her out and get the truth from her."
I didn't want to lose Shiva. "Fuck you, Seifer," I said. "She won't talk to you; she doesn't like you."
He laughed again, an easy sound. I never laugh out loud, I can't. Doesn't sound right, doesn't feel right. "It would be a sin to break you two up now." Seifer pushed away from where he'd been lounging against the door jamb and padded over to me.
I shrank back into the bed. I'm not afraid of Seifer, never was, but there's a certain awful anticipation that comes when you suddenly notice the predator has noticed you. It came to me then exactly how helpless and dependant on him I was. I wasn't going to eat unless he brought me food and I wasn't going to sleep unless he brought me pain killers.
The thought was ... erotic.
Seifer spoiled the mood by fluffing the pillows and rearranging me on the bed as if I were a child. He started doing hospital type things to me with a surprisingly competent air. I found myself relaxing somewhat. I was so used to Seifer doing humiliating things to me that it was almost reassuring. And the warmth from the waterbed was nice.
I slept a lot, ate what Seifer gave me, improved slowly. I wondered why he didn't cast Curaga on me... but if I were healed, I wouldn't be his captive anymore.
I could have cast Cure on myself. Did he wonder why I didn't? Or did he figure, as I did, that even healed it was the heavy casts that kept me in the bed, helpless?
Eventually I was feeling well enough to be bored. I watched Seifer for a while. He sat at his desk, reading, making notes, checking things on the computer. Ordinarily I would have had no problem with Seifer ignoring me. I would have done whatever I had to do and ignored him right back.
But I didn't have anything to do. I wanted a drink. Instead I actually initiated a conversation.
"What are you doing?"
The Almasy smirk. "Reading about human parasites."
Keeping my voice neutral, I asked, "Any particular reason?" I closed my eyes and waited for the punchline.
"Know thy enemy. Makes you itchy after a while, though. It's for my Microbiology class."
"You're studying microbiology?" I don't know why I was shocked. I was always the better student but if something caught Seifer's attention, there was no stopping him.
"Trying to get into Med School, " he said, sounding shy.
I felt even more adrift, even more of a loser. It occured to me that Seifer had always been the one with the dreams, the plans. He had always set the goals. He was still moving forward. I was trying to get off the path.
More snidely than I meant to, I said, "Is that why you are practicing without a license?"
He came and lightly ran his hands over me. "Just playing doctor."
Now that I had his attention, I didn't want it. I closed my eyes and turned my face away.
Seifer stroked my hair. "You cut it." It was an accusation.
"It's been 4 years. I needed a more professional look." I'd been hoping for a more adult, more masculine look, too, but having seen my father I knew that was hopeless.
"Squall."
I opened my eyes. Something in his voice warned me. I thought it had come time for the inevitable interrogation. I sighed.
"I have to go back to work tomorrow."
Fear smothered me. He was going to leave me. "No," I whispered.
I don't think he heard me, because he kept talking. "I was putting off using the Curagas because you lost so much blood..."
"No," I said, shaking my head. I was going to be alone again.
"And the spells don't really knit your bones properly, they just sort of hold you together."
Shiva stirred. I held my breath, trying to stay focused on the goal. The goal was to stay calm. I kept thinking, he's leaving me again. He's leaving me all alone and helpless and I can't do anything about it.
The true goal was not to be alone anymore.
"What you need to do is disjunction Shiva so-"
"No!" I hauled myself up into a mostly sitting position, back against the headboard. "No, no!"
"Squall..." Seifer reached for me and I slapped his hand away.
"You're not taking her," I hissed. "You are not leaving me all alone!"
Reasonably, he said, "Squall, Shiva blocks magic effects. That's why-"
"No!!" I reached for the bedside table and threw the first thing my hand closed on at Seifer. The water carafe hit him in the chest. I followed that with everything else I could find.
He stood, unmoving, blinking slowly at me. The part of my mind that was still rational knew Seifer was fighting for control of his temper. I took advantage of the situation to try to get away from him before he took Shiva, before he left me again. I went wild and some how I managed to partially fall out of the bed.
When he caught me I hit him as hard as I could.
Sorry, the scene is long and I felt it best to break it up somewhere. More soon! Yaoi alert!