Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ For Myself ❯ Ten ( Chapter 10 )

Ten

Matty was having a strange dream—and he couldn't decide if it was strange by itself, or if it was because he hadn't had a dream in a long time.

He moved through the apartment, frowning at the sound of the traffic, then stopped at the edge and looked down to the ground. The bricks had been cleared and the room was set up like it had been...it just didn't have any walls or a ceiling. He knew that wasn't possible—the dividing screen had been secured against the outer-wall...and snapped into bits by the attack, but that didn't make the room even out.

He leaned against the screen, looking down at the city, a hand in his pocket.

Quatre was waiting for him.

He pushed away from the view, turning and heading to the entrance to the sleeping area. He took a moment to slide his shoes off, wondering why he bothered. He'd seen the area destroyed, but the carpet was still nice. A chill breeze brushed by him, and he turned to look at the city—it wasn't right. That looked awfully golden-brown for a city.

It didn't matter. He needed to find Quatre really quick, this would only take a minute.

He slid into the second apartment, looking around a moment, then turned into the room Duo and Quatre shared.

Well, if he wasn't there, where was he?

Matty shook his head, turning and heading into the main room...and blinking at the new screen. There was something on it, but he couldn't make heads or tails of it.

"Hey," he muttered, blinking down at the blond—his hair was very blond, despite the fact Matty knew that wasn't true anymore. "You wanted me?"

Quatre raised his head and looked at him, and a wicked grin crossed his face.

"The wind is kind of cold," he noted, rubbing at his arms.

Quatre grinned larger.

"What's going on?" Matty muttered, looking to the screen.

The smile turned feral, and Quatre jumped up, pulling him into a hug. "I found you," he noted quietly. "I want you to wake up now."

"What?" Matty asked blankly.

"I found you," Quatre repeated—his eyes weren't quite focused on Matty though. He almost seemed to be looking through him. "I want you to wake up."

Matty started to demand what the hell that was supposed to mean, but before he could, he was blinking at the back of a seat.

The window was open—it was dark and the air was cold, but the window was open.

He pushed up, looking out the windows. He couldn't see much, just a grimy city...and a sign written in a language he couldn't read. He focused on that, then turned to look out the other window.

"Oh, hey," Qingfu muttered, glancing back at him. "You need to puke?"

"I don't think so," Matty muttered, staring around in confusion. "Where are we?"

"Well...it's not the United States," the man noted. "And it's not Asia."

"You're helpful," Matty retorted, focusing on the next sign that went by. "Can you roll up that window? It's cold."

"Poor baby," Jaden retorted, but he did hit the button. "You sure you don't have to puke?"

"I don't think so," Matty returned, considering his stomach a moment, then looked out the windshield. The city they were in didn't seem all that large, and the plant life he could make out in the darkness was more scrubby looking that bushy. He looked at the next sign, then back to the city.

That had been a really weird dream.

"I seriously have to go to the bathroom," he informed the men, rubbing at his eyes. "And something to drink might be nice."

"You're an asshole," Jaden retorted, but did pass him a water bottle.

"Suck my dick," Matty retorted, agreeing to the maturity.

"At least I'm not a whiney bitch," Jaden retorted.

"Just a begging one," Matty agreed.

Qingfu started snickering.

"At least I don't hit like a bitch."

"Just beg like one?"

Qingfu guffawed.

"You're not arguing right," Jaden protested. "Argue right."

"Oh fine," Matty retorted, shifting back where he sat. "I didn't hit you, dumbass."

"I saw your swing..."

"You can't tell me that shit wasn't cool," Qingfu cut in, amused. "He broke the bed-frame and knocked you on your ass, and if he'd swung for me first I wouldn't have seen it coming."

"I couldn't have swung for you first," Matty retorted. "Jaden was in the way."

"It was like a movie," the man noted, looking back to him in amusement—Matty could tell if the guy was making fun of him, but he didn't really care. "You had like...killer lines and everything."

"Don't tease," Jaden muttered.

Qingfu laughed, the amusement sounding genuine. "Okay...but I'm still impressed."

"Thanks," Matty muttered, sipping from the bottle—if he took a large drink, he was going to puke.

"So," Jaden muttered. "You're an asshole."

Matty grinned slightly, leaning against the window and taking another drink. "You're a dirty old man."

"Are you serious?" Qingfu protested at Jaden. "You're really going to do this stupid shit?"

"At least I don't entice pedophilia," Jaden retorted, ignoring the other.

Matty guffawed. "If you call me a piece of ass, I'm going to kick you in the head."

- -

Quatre smirked as he looked over the original apartment. He was leaning against the edge of the doorway that had once led to their sleeping area. It had taken him a long time, but he'd found Matty—or maybe Matty had found him. It didn't matter, though, because he would be able to find their friend without the migraines now.

So...where he was, it was dark out. That both narrowed and widened the scale, because it was seven in the evening in L.A.

"What are you doing?" Duo muttered, moving down the stairs from the gym.

The company that had been hired had rebuilt the stairs to put up the temporary wall, and they'd also cleaned up the floor. The bricks from the wall were gone, and there were piles of new placed around the room. The lip had been built up around the edge of the apartment, too. Duo'd noted that the owner of the building had promised the men a huge bonus if they could get the work done within one month...and they were making a good start of it.

"Well, I just had a lovely little realization," Quatre explained, looking around to his boyfriend. He kissed him when he came near, then again.

Duo laughed a little. "What are you doing?"

"I found him," Quatre returned, raising himself up to kiss Duo even though he was standing straight. "I found him."

"What?" Duo demanded, pulling back to stare at him. "Where?"

"Africa," Quatre returned, grinning. "They're driving, and I can't tell exactly where...but give me some time, and I should be able to point it out."

Duo's phone was to his ear in an instant, and Quatre leaned in to rest against Duo's chest. He could still feel Matty, and that was a damn relief after a week of not being able to sense him.

It always interested him when someone else attached to him...or when he attached to someone else. He hadn't realized he had become attached to Matty until he couldn't feel him anymore, and that had felt as empty to him as when one of the others was far away and he hadn't expected it.

"He says Africa," Duo said quietly. "Not sure where yet, but Africa."

"We were just in Africa," Heero noted.

"Yes," Duo agreed, "but he said he found Matty."

Heero went silent for a long moment, then, "Tell me."

Quatre took the phone from Duo, turning to lean his back against him. "What I do know is that he can't read the signs," Quatre noted. "And he was cold. I think he was dreaming, because it seemed like he was talking to me, or trying to. I couldn't make sense of it, but it seemed like he was talking to me."

"Okay," Heero muttered quietly. "What else?"

"He was cold," Quatre noted. "He was cold, but it was like wind. When I got him to wake up, he was in a car. From that I was paying attention to him, but he couldn't understand what he was seeing."

"Driving?" Heero asked blankly. "But...where?"

Quatre closed his eyes, reaching for the boy again. He could sense something else, something he hadn't noticed before...the smell of salt water...and he could see the moon.

Quatre smirked.

"What?" Duo muttered. "He's smirking," he added for Heero's benefit.

"From what I can tell," Quatre noted, focusing on the phone again, "they're driving along the ocean, heading southwest."

"In Africa?" Heero repeated. "Southwest in Africa...along the...well, that gives us five or six countries," the man muttered dryly. "Anything else?"

"No," Quatre admitted, frowning. "Not yet. I'll either call or text you when I figure something else out."

"Thank you," Heero sighed. "I'm glad you found him, really."

"You and me both," Quatre reassured him, looking across their apartment again. "I suppose you should just pick one of those five or six countries."

"I wish you could zero in on Jaden," Heero noted tiredly.

"Don't say zero," Quatre shuddered. "Not with Wing Gundam running around."

Heero snorted.

"I'll go see what else I can figure out," he added quietly. "I think it's time for us to start or preemptive measures. I'm going to flush the LA base. Wish me luck?"

"Shit, good luck," Heero agreed. "You're going to need it."

- -

Ranger glared up at the reader board that listed Bangkok flights, feeling his stomach roiling again.

He'd called Rab and demanded if Qingfu was still alive, but Rab had sounded depressed.

That was why Wing had been brought out of storage. They'd intended to hold that machine back, but Rab was alone, and since he was alone, he'd had to figure something out on his own.

So not only had Jaden deserted him, but he'd taken Qingfu along for the ride.

That made an unfortunate amount of sense in retrospect, but it didn't explain why he'd felt so badly that he needed to go to Russia.

So, now he had to start again and hope that the assholes hadn't gotten too far away.

He glared at the listings, noticing something—one of the cities that kept jumping out at him.

Freetown?

Where the hell even was that? Sierra Leone?

Ranger stared at the listing, noting something else. It was the same sort of focus that had taken him to Russia. That place in Russia had been the first place he'd noticed, so what did he want to try instead? Morocco caught his attention, but he was drawn back to that place in Sierra Leone.

No. He wasn't doing that. He wasn't going with his first instinct ever again. He'd spent a week wandering Russia until he came to understand he'd been wrong. So no...the first wasn't the one to follow.

"Marrakech, please," he muttered to the woman with a smile, setting his cards down in front of him. "Next flight out."

- -

Matty yawned as he watched signs passing, not sure what he really thought about the long driving they'd been doing. They hadn't sedated him for any of it, and he was starting to get a clearer notion of where they might be—if only because there'd been a sign they'd passed that said something about Morocco. He'd been thinking really hard of the geography class he'd ignored—he hadn't had much else to do—and from what he could remember, they were either in north Africa...or South France. What was that city? Monte Carlo? That wasn't in Morocco, was it?

He didn't dare ask, though he doubted Jaden would let him call Heero again. Actually, they were both pressing him on what things he did say, and that was really his own fault. He had let them know he'd been lying. It was a stupid thing to do, especially since he hadn't been free.

He watched another sign in the opposite direction, then blinked and looked around in front of them.

A border? Was that a border crossing.

"I will let you call that man of yours if you cooperate with us," Jaden noted, turning to look at him as they slowed. "And if you make a scene people will die."

"That's a wicked thing to say," Matty protested.

"Yes, but I trusted you and you probably fractured my rib, tried to knock Qingfu out with a rail, and you've been lying to us. So, if you don't cooperate with us, people will die."

Matty looked away, feeling his stomach clench.

"That's the only problem with Timorre," Qingfu noted casually, shifting down where he sat. "He's a really big asshole."

"Why did I bring you?" Jaden demanded of the man. "If it was just me and the boy..."

"You'd have lost him when he freaked out, and I'm not going to suggest when he gets your temper riled."

Jaden snorted at him.

"How do you know I wouldn't have been sweetness?" Matty retorted.

"You've been sweetness," Qingfu retorted. "You've been sweetness and fucking light most of the trip. You get little snarls in your frickin' glory now and again...but you had an all out fit, and now you're all put-out because we don't trust you. You lied to us."

"No shit?" Matty snapped. "You are aware that I'm here against my will aren't you?"

"Are you really?" Qingfu gave him an amazed look.

"Shut-up," Jaden snapped to both of them. "Just stop."

"You're expecting me to be a fucking saint," Matty added irritably, "but you keep forgetting the situation. Yeah, on 27 I was different. On 27 I was in fucking danger by a psycho..."

"You still are," Jaden snapped glaring back at him.

An officer moved up to the car, tapping the window.

Jaden gave Matty a severe look, then rolled down the window.

"Is...there a problem?" the man asked, looking between the three of them.

"I have to pee," Matty retorted. He knew there was no chance of them lying about arguing.

"Oh, can you wait?" the man gave him a concerned look.

"I've been waiting forever," Matty retorted irritably.

"You can hold it," Qingfu snapped back at him. "You know you can."

"We've been in the car for hours," Matty retorted, then glared at the officer. "Isn't that child abuse?"

A sort of tension left Jaden's shoulders, and he gave the officer a tight smile.

"I suppose in certain circumstances," the man noted. "But either way, if you get out of your car, we'll have to search you before and after...on this and the other side of the border."

Matty pouted at him, looking away irritably.

"Please, have patience," the man added, specifically to him. "We're actually running very smoothly right now, so you should be on the other side in no time at all. Just have your papers ready."

Qingfu displayed three cards at the man with a tight grin.

The man grinned at him. "You regretting the trip yet?"

"Yes," Qingfu agreed, casting an irritated look at Matty.

The guard laughed. "Maybe next time, you fly, huh?"

"How about Nyquil," Qingfu noted. "You have some of that here?"

The man laughed again.

Matty looked away darkly. As if they'd pick up something like that to sedate him.

"All right," the man added, patting the car and starting away. "Patience is a virtue, huh, young man?"

"Try being patient when you have to pee," Matty retorted.

"You make a good point," the guy agreed, backing off even more.

"That was a novel approach," Qingfu muttered as the window closed again.

"It'd take an idiot not to notice we were fighting," Matty retorted.

"You could have told him we kidnapped you," Jaden noted quietly. He had his head turned, but he hadn't moved his body.

"And get him killed?" Matty snapped. "The only thing he did wrong was go to fucking work today...shit," he looked away again. "Don't talk to me."

Jaden glanced sidelong to Qingfu, then focused back on the road.

The silence continued as they went through the process of passing. They'd only be pulled aside if there were suspicions about them, and Matty had no doubts that he could tell these people he'd been abducted, but Qingfu had been in Oz...and he knew first-hand that the people who'd run Oz hadn't given a flying fuck about civilians or other military bureaus. On top of that, he hadn't realized that Jaden had a snap-temper.

He could say he was abducted and start an investigation—maybe even let the others know where he was...but how many of these people would die?

"Welcome to Western Sahara," the man muttered, passing the cards back to Jaden. "We hope you enjoy your stay."

Western Sahara? Was that a country?

Matty grinned tightly at the man, then threw himself against the wall of the car again.

"The bathrooms are right here, right?" Jaden muttered, indicating a small building.

"Yes, and a store," the man agreed, giving them an interested look. "Lots of stuff to buy."

"Thanks," Jaden muttered, pulling off the road.

"Come on," Qingfu muttered, sliding from the car. "You have to at least pretend to go to the bathroom after that fit."

"Don't talk to me," Matty retorted, storming away from the man. He knew he wouldn't get far, but he wasn't trying to escape.

By the time they'd returned to the car, Jaden had disappeared. He sighed heavily, leaning against it.

"Get in," Qingfu said quietly.

"Make me," Matty retorted, glowering at the man.

"Don't throw another fit..."

"I just want to stand up for a minute," Matty retorted, glowering at him with crossed arms. "I didn't think that was asking a miracle after hours in the car."

"You really are a pain in the ass—sometimes I think we should just leave you."

"I like that idea," Matty muttered, perking up.

"Deroy would be overjoyed," the man agreed.

"I'd hope so," Matty retorted. "Max would be amused to see that."

Qingfu glowered at him.

"What are you doing?" Jaden demanded in exasperation as he moved from the store, looking between the pair of them.

"I'm going to run off," Matty explained, not moving. "Ready? Better catch me."

Jaden snorted, pulling a phone from the bag and showing it to him.

"I don't suppose there's a chance of you getting snacks at some point, is there?" Matty demanded, moving forward to grab the package from him. "Like...something little and sweet?"

Qingfu snickered.

"You are Asian," Jaden noted, looking around to him.

"You're both perverts," Matty snapped, starting to mess with the package.

"And you're whiney," Qingfu noted.

Matty tore the plastic apart to display his annoyance, fishing out the phone.

"You listen to him," Jaden ordered Qingfu, looking around briefly. "If he tells that psychotic lover of his where we are, brain him."

Qingfu gave the man a confused look.

"I'll be back," Jaden explained, turning toward the store again. "Want anything?"

"You're kidding," Qingfu protested. "You're really getting snacks because he's a cry baby?"

Jaden gestured that off, and disappeared into the building.

Qingfu snorted.

- -

"Matty?" Heero demanded, his heart flying into his throat. "Omigod...did you escape?"

"No," Matty returned dryly. "I was a good boy for the border crossing so I get a treat."

"Watch it, brat," a male voice noted darkly.

"What?" Heero asked blankly.

"We crossed a border...I'm not saying it," Matty snapped irritably. "And Jaden said if I was good I could call you. We're at the store."

Heero made a noise.

"We've been driving forever," Matty noted irritably.

"I will..." the second voice started.

"I'm not saying anything," Matty snapped again. "Geeze, you'd think I was telling you where we are," Matty grumbled. "Both of them are like old women. Reminds me of this old man my dad worked for once."

And that was a hint.

Heero made an amused noise, not sure what to make of it.

"Anyway," he went on. "Jaden is finally picking up some stupid snacks. I hope he gets me those creamy things. What are they? I get them at that frickin' shop by my work..."

And that was another one? That would be good...what shop by his work?

That one on Sahara...the bread store.

"Those cupcake things?" Heero muttered quietly.

"Yeah, those ones...I don't know what they have here, though. I just want some damn raspberry jelly, really."

"You are so whiney," the man snapped.

"You can get whatever you want whenever you want," Matty retorted. "I..."

"You're right," the man said quickly. "You're right."

Matty snorted almost derisively, then sighed. "What are you guys doing?"

"We're in Morocco," Heero explained. "Quatre said something to me about you and a dream he'd had."

Matty's heart stopped. "A dream?" he demanded. "Oh...but..." he hesitated again. "I haven't been dreaming much...just daydreams...I miss your..."

"Do not start that," Qingfu snapped.

Matty laughed wickedly. "When you run your hands down my body," his voice took on a quality that Heero most definitely considered sexy. "And your mouth is on my throat..." he started laughing hard as the other man started cursing at him.

Heero grinned as well, rubbing at his eyes.

"You take my shirt off real slow like..."

"I'm going to skin your boyfriend," the second voice informed him as Matty laughed hard.

"Those times do end up rather enjoyable," Heero noted, smiling very slightly. "You can't deny that."

"Listen...we mean it. If you get Deroy off the map, we'll get him back to you."

"How about you get him back to me and let me worry about Hanager?" Heero snapped.

"You think that's good enough?" the man asked in disbelief. "Look at what's happening, Yuy. You had him with your worry about Deroy...and what happened? You pretend to be hot shit, but he's still with us, isn't he? Where are you? The brat told us you were in Rangoon already—he's got some fucking balls. He totally tried to break one of Jaden's ribs and nearly brained me with a pole. I don't get how you deal with this shit..."

"He's feisty," Heero retorted, "but when I run my hands..."

"Oh, don't even start that shit," the guy retorted. "Answer me."

"I'm in Rangoon," Heero noted. "Where are you?"

The man started laughing...and ended the call.

"Well?" Trowa asked, looking around the hotel they'd gotten. "I assume he meant that bread store over on West Sahara."

"West Sahara?" Heero asked, looking around. "How quaint."

Trowa focused toward the southwest as well, smiling slightly. "Isn't it just?"

"They were still at the border," Heero noted, his head snapping around to Trowa and Jinli. "We need on a plane now. We can intercept them at La Ayoune."

"Or at least close the distance," Jinli agreed, turning and darting into the room he had his stuff piled. "Let's move."

"Hey now, that's my line," Heero retorted, looking around again. "I just had a novel concept."

"We don't have time to play," Trowa retorted.

"Well, Brigadier," Heero retorted, meeting his eyes, "we seem to be about fifteen minutes away from an ESA base with helicopters."

"Hm, interesting notion," Trowa purred, looking around. "I'll tell my pretties to meet us up—you help me pack?"

Heero smiled.

- -

"So where are they at?" Jaden demanded.

"He only said Morocco," Matty returned, resting back where he sat. Jaden had moved up to them right after Qingfu had hung up, and they'd started off again. They'd been driving for probably fifteen minutes, and he didn't feel like lying.

"Are you fucking serious?" Jaden spun around to stare at him.

"What?" Matty asked, moving his hands to blink at him. "What do you mean?"

"Where in Morocco?"

Matty stared at him blankly a moment, then shrugged. "I didn't ask...he just said Morocco."

Jaden spun to glower at Qingfu.

"Don't look at me like that," Qingfu snapped. "I couldn't hear him half the time...and he didn't say anything."

"We are so taking a fucking flight now," Jaden snapped, flooring the gas pedal. "He's way too close."

"He's not who you're trying to keep me from, remember?" Matty retorted.

"If he is that close, then Ranger's probably closer," Jaden snapped back. "And I don't think he can get to us before Ranger."

"Don't fucking sedate me again," Matty groaned, dropping back where he sat.

"Oi," Qingfu pointed at a sign indicating an airport. "Next question is where are we going? Rab doesn't have guys over here, but you know he does through Mali, Niger, and Chad...and Sudan."

"I know," Jaden snapped. "And shit all over Europe."

"We only went to Paris in Europe," Matty mused. "That's strange."

"I don't care if you give up Rab's fucking network, dumbass," Jaden snapped back. "Remember? We defected?"

"Sorry, can't help but dig for information," Matty retorted.

"How much shit did you give away on 27?" Qingfu snapped, turning to look at him.

Matty considered that a long moment, then shook his head. "Nothing that I'm aware of—just where I was—and that was my phone."

"You were mouthing shit," Jaden reminded him. "On that stupid video they made, you were mouthing shit."

"Yeah...the guy's name who was talking, that it was Rab in charge...that was all."

"You're a little fucker," Qingfu informed him. "How much shit did you give away with that phone call I heard?"

"Your pet-names for me are spoiling me," Matty retorted.

"What did you tell him?" Jaden demanded.

"Not much...just where we are," Matty chuckled slightly. "I hope he's close to the border."

"You know, I really hate you sometimes," Jaden noted as Qingfu studied his face.

"He's lying," Qingfu retorted. "He didn't say anything."

"Are you sure? Really sure?" Jaden snapped.

"The most was that he wanted cupcakes," Qingfu retorted, pulling the package out of the bag Jaden had brought. "Oh, and how sweet, it's raspberry," he gave Matty a dirty look.

"Really?" Matty demanded, darting forward and taking the box from him. He laughed happily, starting to rip into it.

Qingfu gave Jaden a level look.

"What?" Jaden asked, looking around to Matty with a frown. "What?"

"You know his favorite snack?" Qingfu snapped.

"What?" Jaden demanded in disbelief. "What are you talking about? They're just frickin' cupcakes."

"I love these things," Matty noted, happily tearing into the package.

It wasn't his fault Qingfu didn't know that the bakery he was talking about was on West Sahara. The man didn't know LA, and Matty didn't doubt Heero would figure it out—and if he was in Morocco...he'd known they were leaving it, but if he hadn't, Jaden's panic at hearing Heero that close would have clued him off.

"We're taking the first flight," Jaden noted suddenly. "The first one not going somewhere dangerous...we're taking it...and I am so shooting you up happily, you little shit."

Matty sighed, the cupcake no longer so appealing. "I'm so going to puke on you."