Fey Part 7
After leaving the mercenaries, Duo wandered from place to place... never staying in one place for too long until he was grabbed by the sweepers and trained to be a pilot.
AC 195 - Earth
Duo glanced up at the hospital. 'Well... I got him into this mess, I better get him out of it! That's the only reason I'm doing this! It has nothing to do with those eyes of his! Nothing to do with the fact that he looks so much like...' He shook his head and waited patiently for the right time.
*****
"What the hell were you THINKING?" Duo grabbed the backpack from his silent companion. "I don't BELIEVE you! Look... I have nothing against you trying to commit suicide. The LEAST you could do is not be near me when you do it! I have enough nightmares, thank you very much!"
"Duo... you ready for us to get the suits up?" Howard's voice echoed through the hangar.
"Yeah... might as well. Hey... you got a name, or am I gonna hafta make one up for you? I can make up some pretty stupid names."
Heero glared at the other boy. "Hn! I don't need to answer you. You could have left me in the hospital. I would have gotten out eventually."
"Well you're welcome! ARGH! Let's get my buddy up, Howard." He walked over to the crane controls and started the pulley system that got Deathscythe up. He smiled brightly. "Looks none the worse for wear! Now for Mr. I'm-too-cool-to-speak's suit!"
Heero ignored Duo as he settled himself on the floor. 'Idiot! He put himself in danger for someone who could potentially be an enemy. He'll get in my way. He called me a friend... hah! Friends are not for people like me!' He dimly heard Duo talking as he wrenched his leg into alignment. 'SHIT! That hurt worse than any of the beatings Odin ever gave me!' He placed a wrench against his leg and wrapped a bandage around to create a makeshift splint before limping over to where Wing was sitting. He glared at Duo as the boy put a hand on his shoulder.
Duo frowned. "Listen... let's get something better than a wrench to splint that leg up in."
Heero snorted. "Hn! Baka!" He turned... but not before he could see the stricken look on Duo's face. "It only means idiot."
Duo shook his head. "No... I know that... it's just only one other person has ever called me an idiot in Japanese." He forced a shaky smile. "Let's get that leg tended to, okay?"
*****
In the infirmary Duo mumbled. "Geez! What the hell did they put you through for you to be able to set your own broken bones without making a sound? That HAD ta hurt, ya know?"
"I couldn't very well leave it be. It would have healed improperly. I can't afford that." Heero watched as Duo carefully wrapped his leg. "Why did you do it?"
"Why'd I do what? Get you out of the hospital, you mean?" Duo shrugged. "Two reasons. First one was the fact that it was my fault you got stuck in there in the first place. Second reason is personal." He glanced up into the neutral face and looked back down at his work. "You look like someone I used to know." He swallowed and mentally cheered that his voice only trembled a little. "Damn! You'd think that it would stop hurting after so long."
"What would?" Heero had to admit that Duo had piqued his interest.
"The person you remind me of died a long time ago. He was my best friend in the universe. I guess I couldn't just let them do all those tests on you because I felt I owed it to HIM." Duo shook his head.
"I understand your pain. I've lost people, too." Heero scowled as Duo looked up at him in amazement. "I'm not as cold as they tried to make me. I just seem that way. I felt caring for someone once... never again!"
Duo smiled sadly. "Well... you might not get hurt if you cut yourself off, but you won't get loved either. I take my chances and make friends where I can in hopes that one of them won't die and leave me. I learned that cutting myself off made for a very lonely and boring existence." His mask fell into place and he grinned impishly. "So I guess you're stuck with me calling you 'pal' for now."
"Do as you please." Heero tested the splint and nodded in satisfaction. "Good."
Duo followed his companion. "You really oughta keep your weight off that leg. Howard and his crew can make the repairs on your suit!"
"No. End of discussion."
Over the next few days, Duo tried to get some sort of reaction out of Mr. Strong and Silent. Most of the time, he had no luck. He was thrilled whenever he got a reply even if it was being told to shut up.
*****
"Hey..." Duo sat down next to Heero in the lunchroom. "Can I copy your notes from Math? I think I missed some of the points the teacher was trying to get across."
"If I say yes, will you leave me alone?" Heero sighed and handed his notebook over. "I don't know why you bother. It's not like you do the assignments anyway."
Duo made a face. "You said yourself that we gotta keep up appearances. Besides... I DO do the assignments. See?" He handed over his homework book and grinned. "It would just look really suspicious if I had all the assignments and none of the notes."
Heero frowned as he looked through the problems. "You did these? Without a calculator?"
Duo sipped his milk. "Got the best calculator in the world, my man!" He tapped his head. "I play the idiot so my enemies underestimate me. You can't be a dunce and..." He waved his hand to indicate he wasn't about to finish the sentence.
"Math class was only a half an hour ago. You already did these in that time?" Heero frowned as he leafed through the book. Duo had done the entire workbook.
"I get bored very easily. I did all the homework on the first night so I didn't have to take time out later." He grinned impishly and ducked his head. "Since we're sharing a dorm room, I spend most of my time trying to prove to you that you ARE capable of feeling." He sank his teeth into an apple and chewed thoughtfully. "By the way... what is the deal with that blonde chick, anyway? First time I see you, you're getting ready to shoot her. Next time I see you, you jump out of a building and she calls out to you. By the way... thank you OH-so-much for that set of nightmares. Makes a real change from explosions and blood." He shook his head. "And that leg thing... UGH! Anyway... now we're here in this school, and she suddenly appears out of no where saying she's wanted to see you. Is she crazy or just incredibly stupid. She draws more attention to us than I ever will."
"You have a point. Good thing you stopped me that one time. I don't think I can kill her now. She's the daughter of the late Vice Foreign Minister. Thanks to Oz, I killed enough pacifists." Heero frowned at his lunch tray.
"Oi! Quit blaming yourself, man! Oz screwed us over big time!" He punctuated the statement by spearing his french fries. "Oz needed a buncha scapegoats and they got 'em. Baaaa!" He snickered. "Sorry... really sick mental picture I just gave myself of Treize screwin' a goat."
"How do we know he doesn't? He might be into that sort of thing."
Duo paused and let his eyes widen. "That's actually funny, Heero!" He grinned and gently slapped Heero on the back. "Better watch it, Yuy, or you'll develop a sense of humor!"
Heero smirked at Duo. "Baka!"
"YUP! And damn proud of it! You gonna finish that?" He grabbed a few of Heero's fries... seeming to be totally unaware of the signal it sent.
Heero debated on informing his fellow pilot of the faux pas, then shook his head and swiped one of Duo's cookies.
"Mmmph!" Duo swallowed the mouthful of potato and grinned. "If I had known that you were a sucker for double chocolate chip, I'da bought a ton of them for ya!" Then he let the smile vanish. "Don't flirt with Death." Apparently, he hadn't been unaware of the signal he had sent by swiping some of Heero's fries.
Heero met Duo's eyes. "Why should I make an exception in your case? I've eaten Fugu, taken a plunge off of a tall building and I risk my life on every mission. A little flirting is not uncalled for." He tugged Duo's braid. "Our room... later! I'm making a date with Death."
Duo blinked as Heero walked out of the cafeteria. 'What have I gotten myself into?'
*****
'This is the best way to dispose of the distraction. Get it out of my system.' Heero finished writing his report of the day's activities and looked up when he heard the sound of someone knocking. He opened the door and let Duo in. "Why did you knock? This is your room too."
Duo shrugged. "Just seemed the right thing ta do, ya know?"
Heero nodded, satisfied with that answer. "What happens in here does not leave this room."
"Gotcha! So... is this a one-time only deal? Despite whatever the order givers say, I am not a whore. I'll admit that I'm attracted to you. Hell... who WOULDN'T be?" He took a deep breath. "But I don't go for quickies. I don't care if we have to keep it to ourselves! I've been gang-raped once, and I have no intention of doing this unless the feelings are there. Comprende?" He let the pain of the memory show before shoving it aside. "Now... answer me honestly. Do you feel ANYTHING for me? Take as much time as you need to."
Heero frowned as he thought. "I can't promise love. I don't even know if I'm capable of it anymore." Heero sighed. "I feel comfortable with you, though. You talk enough for the both of us. Words are not my strong suit." He shrugged. "I've locked emotions away. I can't promise forever, either. We're both soldiers and one or BOTH of us could die during our next mission. Is a maybe enough for you?"
Duo nodded. "Better than a 'no' and a lot more honest than a 'yes'." He shuddered when Heero closed the gap. "Just... not too rough, okay? I'm pretty sure I still have a lot of scars." He brought his hands up and started to unbutton his shirt. He walked over to the closet and finished unbuttoning his shirt. He took the shirt off and was just hanging it up when he was caught in a vice-like embrace. "WHA?!?!?" He blinked at the trembling coming off of Heero. "What's wrong?" He suddenly found himself staring into Heero's intense eyes. Eyes that were searching for something.
Heero stared intently at Duo. 'Impossible! He died! He was killed in an explosion!' But it was all there. He let out a happy sob and pulled the boy into his arms. When the other started struggling, Heero eased his hold. "Shhh! I promised, remember? I promised to never hurt you, Fey." He chuckled as Duo froze a moment before returning the embrace ten-fold. He gladly tightened his arms and sank to the floor, holding his long-lost friend to him like the treasure Duo was.
"Oh God! Oh God, tell me this is real!" Duo tightened his arms around Heero and sobbed... more out of pain than joy. "What the HELL happened?"
Heero put all his other ideas on the back burner. "Odin Lowe died in AC 188. In a way... that's when Odin Lowe Jr. died, too." He gave Duo the brief synopsis about his training. All the while just cradling his friend. He tightened his arms when he was done. "Your turn."
Duo took a deep breath and spoke very softly... pausing every so often at particularly painful parts. He was trembling when he was finished. He felt very vulnerable and he gazed at Heero. "Is it really you?"
Heero stood stripped his shirt off. Then he turned around to show Duo the tattoo. Then he turned back to face his friend and bent down to pick him up. "Maybe we should get some rest." Duo nodded against him. "I hope the bastards who hurt you died painfully." He pulled Duo onto his bunk... not only for convenience, but he guessed Duo's psyche would be easily injured if he made the wrong move. Besides... it wasn't as if the long-haired pilot was complaining. He smiled softly as Duo cuddled close to him. He lowered his voice to a whisper. "I'll survive this war, Fey. As long as you're alive, I'll stay alive. I promise."
Duo murmured softly and smiled in his sleep.
TBC...
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