Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Immunity ❯ Vaccine ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Immunity, part 3
Immunity (cont.)
By Cassima




"It's about time."

Duo blinked sleepily, looking to the side of his bed
where the grumpy voice had originated from. "Heero?"

Heero was calm as ever, his eyes the same distant cool that Duo remembered, his expression hard and
unforgiving.

"How are you feeling, Heero?" Duo asked quickly,
struggling to sit up and wipe the sleep from his eyes.
"How's the wound? Is it bad? When will you be able to
leave? When can I leave? Where're Quatre and Trowa and Wufei? What day is it?"

Heero's head spun for a moment with the barrage of
questions, but he nailed the ones he remembered first.
"Thursday, a mission--" loosly speaking, Heero had sent Wufei on a mission to destroy the remains of the robot--"--we're leaving soon as they clear us, I'm fine, and stop asking so many questions, baka."

Duo rolled his eyes. "You were stabbed two days ago, but you're fine?! Why did I bother to bring you here? I should have just given you some dental floss and a rusty needle. 'Here, stitch yourself up! Sorry, no bones for you to set this time.'" He looked a little annoyed and actually a little depressed, too.

"What's wrong?"

Duo looked surprised. "Wrong? ... Nothing. I'm
just..." he plastered on a cheery smile.

Heero didn't buy it for a moment. "Duo..." It was a
warning.

The other boy's face fell, and the Shinigami pilot
twisted the sheets in his hands for a moment. "I don't
want to talk about it." He stared down, not wanting to
meet his friend's eyes.

"I think you should." He put all of his patience into play, trying to remind himself that this was important, that Duo was important.

Duo's fists tightened, and his voice was ragged and
thick. "What do you want to know, Heero? You want to
know how they had someone who sounds just like Hilde
lure me out of my gundam like the idiot I am and how
they captured me with some stupid gas? You want to know
how they kept me in cold, dark cell and played with me
whenever they wanted--" he broke off, taking a deep
breath. His eyes closed as he struggled with himself for control. When he spoke again, his voice was pinched, as if he were fighting off tears. "You want to know how I crushed his neck while he was on top of me, and escaped just to find nobody had even realized I was gone? 'Cause that's a long story." The pain in his voice was thick and barely restrained. "It's not a very nice one, either."

Heero felt himself quiver on the inside, and struggled to keep the block out of his stomach. Reaching out, he gently grabbed Duo's wrist. "We should have noticed, but Romafeller has gotten clever." When he knew he had Duo's attention, he began to speak, always quietly.



"Treize, I'm sorry to interrupt, but this report has
just come in." The idealistic young man saluted smartly, placed the bulletin on his leader's desk,
saluted again, and disappeared.

Treize frowned before picking up the report and scanning it.

"What is it?" his visitor asked curiously.

"One of our research facilities has just been
destroyed." Treize calmly replaced the report on his
desk.

"A gundam?"

He nodded.

The visitor frowned. "What was it this time? Are we
being asked to retaliate?"

Treize shook his head. "It was the only site of the
project 'Operation Braid'. I never liked that project
to begin with; personally, I'm glad it's gone."

"Operation Braid?"

"A project dreamed up by those with no honor, Millardo. It disguised itself as a friend and killed from the inside by manipulating hopes and dreams." He swished his wine around in the glass absently. "To tell you the truth, I'm glad it's gone."

"A robot?" The blond's delicate eyebrows shot up. "I didn't know our artificial intelligence had gotten so
complex." He took a deep drink from his wine glass
before pausing to assimilate the information. "Did any
part of the project survive?"

Treize glanced over the report and shook his head in a self-satisfied way. "No. The scientists, the
prototypes, the research, even the raw materials were
destroyed by the gundam."

Zechs refilled his and Trieze's glasses. "Hopefully,
that will put an end to further experiments of this
type. Oz was lucky the research didn't fall into enemy hands."

Treize nodded and smiled at the other man. "Agreed."



Duo stood stiffly infront of Quatre's house, staring at the door. "So, what happens now?"

Quatre gave him a strange look. "We go inside and have dinner."

"And after that?"

"We go to bed." Maybe Duo should go back to the
hospital for more tests, Quatre wondered to himself.

"And after that?" Duo whispered, suddenly looking
forlorn and strange in his own body. "What happens when
the missions start coming again?"

"We fight, for the colonies," Quatre answered, also
quiet in his confusion.

"But... how can I fight?" Duo stared at his friend.
"What is Shinigami without Deathscythe?"

Quatre paused to sort this out. "I don't understand."

Duo sighed. "Nevermind. Just..." The pain in his eyes was replaced with good cheer. "Let's go eat! Wufei was going to cook some noodley thing with a recipe that had been passed down from generation to generation type-thing, and Trowa threw a fit 'cause it had peprika in it--and we all know how Trowa reacts to peprika--so
Wufei went all Justice-Boy and..."

Quatre smile slightly and followed Duo into the house, feeling in a slightly unnerved manner that nothing had really been resolved.



Well, his decision had been made. Duo set his mouth as he lay on his bed and stared at the ceiling. He'd break the news really gently to Dr. G and head back to L-2 with his braid between his legs.

If he couldn't pilot Shinigami, then he didn't want to be taunted by the other gundams. Not even if it meant being by Heero.

God, but he'd miss the others. They were the only
family he had--lousy, disfunctional family at that,
but, after all, family was family--and he'd miss their
companionship. Ruefully, he looked back on all the
times he'd wished for anyone else to be the other pilots. Foolish. "Baka," he said outloud, ruining the comfortable silence in the room. If Trowa knew what he was thinking, he'd scowl. Quatre'd probably give him that sticken look--the one that none of them could fight. Wufei'd really kick his ass--give him some kind of speech that would turn into one of his un-ending justice rants. And Heero...

Well, who knew what Heero'd do? Heero probably wouldn't even react at all. Heero would sit there at his damn computer and not hear a word Duo said. It was
maddening, being ignored so fervently. Well, no more of
that. Duo chuckled bitterly. Nope, the days of being
ignored were over now. "Lucky me."

"Don't you ever stop talking?"

Duo's eyes moved over to the doorway where Heero leaned against the frame. "Nope," he declared with something slightly resembling cheer.

Heero's customary scowl deepened, and Duo got the
impression he'd done something unforgivably wrong.

The Japanese boy's gaze fell upon Duo's packed bag next to his bed. "You going somewhere?"

Duo looked back at the ceiling. "Thought I might."

"Where?"

"Does it matter?" Good, good, slightly bored was good. Strong.

"Why?" The word seemed to almost rip out of Heero's
throat, and Duo, confused, turned back to his friend.

"Why?" he echoed dumbly.

With a couple strides, Heero was at the side of the bed, grabbing Duo's arm. "You can't go yet. Not after..."

"But, that's why I have to go," Duo told him, puzzled. "I'm no good anymore. I'll just be redundant."

"But we need you!"

"You don't need me! You need--"

"Don't tell me what I need!" Heero snapped.

"But I can't do anything!" Duo cried, bewildered.

Heero paused. "Nothing?"

Duo looked down at his hands. "Not enough."

Heero swallowed. "Where will you go? In case we need Shinigami?"

"I'm not Shinigami!" Duo yelled, drawing away. "Not
anymore! How can I be Death when--"

"Duo..." Heero grabbed the trailing braid and gave it a good hard yank to keep him in place.

"Stop it!" Duo raised his hands to Heero's shoulders, angrily trying to push him away.

He pulled the braid towards him until he and Duo were
nose to nose. "Don't be an idiot," Heero said coldly.
"What happened... that doesn't change who you are. You're the same person as before. You're stronger than
that. Don't let those bastards break you." He shook
the handful of hair, realized what he was doing, and
stroked it absently in apology. "Don't run away, Duo.
Not from us. We're your friends. We'll help."

Duo held Heero in place to keep him from escaping.
"How? How can you possibly help?"

The other pilot looked down, studying the bedspread.
"I..." Taking a deep breath, he mumbled, "What I said
about the Duo-bot catching me in my sleep? It wasn't
true." Leaning in, he gently pressed his lips to Duo's.

Duo gasped into the awkward kiss, then sighed and
relaxed, deepening it a little. His hands relaxed on Heero's shoulders before sliding to his hair and back, pulling him closer as Heero's hands unconsciously pulled Duo closer. Duo suckled lightly on Heero's lower lip, and Heero opened his mouth. The braided pilot began to caress Heero's tongue with his own, and the two pulled closer together as Heero responded in kind and the kiss began to rise in intensity.

Finally, Heero pulled away to catch his breath. "I
can't do this if it'll just remind you of that."

Huh? "Why would this remind me of--?" Duo blinked,
breathing hard and mind spinning. "What are you
talking about?"

Heero blinked. "Your... time in Oz. What are you talking about?"

"Shinigami."

Heero sweatdropped. "What?"



Heero could see Duo look down, and even from his great distance he could see the smile in the boy's eyes.
"Shinigami lives!" he cackled from his perch on the
giant mecha's shoulder. "Watch out, world, 'cause here
we come!"

"Baka," Heero muttered, though fondly. Crossing his
arms, he leaned back on the wall to observe the braided
maniac scamper all over his precious Deathscythe, making sure all the little nuances hadn't been neglected in his absence. So much energy in one person! It was enough to drive a guy crazy...

"Crazy... I'm crazy for feelin', so lonely..." Duo
caroled merrily from inside the cockpit as he looked for
little Oz devices. "I'm crazy... Crazy for feelin' so
blue... I knew you'd love me as long as you wanted and
someday, you'd leave me for somebody new..." A small
tangle of wires and some plastic box-like object came
arching out of the hole, landing with a thump a couple
meters from Heero's foot. "Worry, why do I let myself
worry?" A similar set landed a couple feet away, as Duo
cheerfully did some "Spring cleaning" on his gundam.
"Wondering, 'What in the world did I do?'"

Heero felt a smile creep to his lips as he patiently
waited for the baka to finish. This was the Duo he knew and tolerated. This felt right.

Unconsciously, his fingers ghosted over his lips,
remembering how it felt to surprise Duo with that kiss.
How it felt for Duo to take control, as Heero always knew he would, and thread their shared passion through
the brief touch. How it felt to hold Duo's face, stroke
his hair--

Okay, this was getting rediculous. It was one thing to have hormones, but to think about the weight of a braid of hair? The sleekness? The gentle citrus of that vitamin-enhanced shampoo he used?

Fantasies of Duo in the shower danced lightly across his mind for a moment.

"Listen to your feelings," a monotone voice repeated.

He cast Trowa a curious glance, carefully guarding his secrets. "Excuse me?"

"Just trust me on this," Trowa told him, in his usual
quiet tone. "It's a lot simpler to just give in and let yourself love."

"Aa." Heero looked back the cockpit of Deathscythe as another set of wires came cascading out.

Quietly, Trowa followed his gaze.

"Crazy, for thinking that my love could hold you,"
Duo's voice echoed through the otherwise silent Gundam
Garage. "I'm crazy for tryin', and crazy for cryin',
and I'm crazy for lovin' you."

Heero couldn't quite chase the smile from his eyes.
"Baka," he murmured sternly, almost fondly.

Trowa's lips held traces of a smile.

"Trowa!" Quatre called from the doorway. "What are you doing in--oh, hello, Heero." He smiled. "What are you doing here so late?"

"Take that, Oz scum!" Duo yelled triumphantly,
disconnecting another piece of Oz circuitry and hurling
out the hatch. It landed and slid, finally coming to
rest by Quatre's feet.

The Arabian bent down to pick it up, turning it over in his graceful hands. "We really came close to blowing it this time." Lowering his gaze from Heero's, he bowed
his head. "Gomen, Heero. I should have realized... I should have known that Duo wasn't... Duo wouldn't..." He closed his eyes. "I shouldn't have dismissed your concerns like that. Gomen."

"Hn," Heero replied, a little scornfully. "It wasn't
your fault Oz's technology was so good. Don't be an
idiot."

Quatre smiled, eyes shining as he looked back up.
"Thank you, Heero."

"I'm crazy for tryin', an' I'm crazy for cryin', an'
I'm crazy for lovin' you," Duo warbled, and swung gracefully out of Deathscythe to look down at his surprise audience. "Uh... hi, guys," he said with a hint of red tinging his face.

"Goodnight, Duo!" Quatre called, taking Trowa's arm and waving at the American.

"Night, Quatre! Trowa! Have fun!" He waggled his
eyebrows at the couple before sliding down the leg of
his gundam.

Trowa, looking a little red himself, mumbled something to Heero before taking flight with his grinning boyfriend.

"Oi, Heero," Duo remarked cheerfully, "you didn't have to wait up for me!"

"Baka," Heero said, not sounding at all as menacing as he would have hoped. "Of course I did."

"Poor Heero, having to listen to my singing. Of course, gotta make sure I'm not a Duo-bot," the pilot conceded with a touch of a cocky grin.

"Well, that..." Heero said, "and I wanted a goodnight
kiss."

Duo smiled, a genuine no-shadows-attached smile that
poured from his eyes and lips. "You're serious? You
really like me?"

Heero smiled. "Baka," he said, and leaned in to take
his lips.

Duo met the challenge in the kiss gladly, nipping and
caressing the other's tongue with equal fervor. His
hands reached up, one to pull Heero's wonderful mouth
closer, the other to slide up the muscular back.

The other pilot moaned into Duo's mouth, one hand
massaging the precious braid. His other hand was indecisive, and Heero allowed it--without a great deal of reluctance--to rub up and down his lover's torso and neck, feeling the bone and muscle ripple under his fingers at their touch, the scabbing markings of his
escape pulsing lightly. "Duo," he tried to moan, but it came out as a garbled prayer.

Duo broke it off suddenly, panting heavily and resting his forehead on Heero's. "Oh, wow," he breathed, arms shifting to hold Heero tight, careful of the healing wound. "Oh, God."

Heero was out of breath also, but privately echoed those statements. This was the way it was supposed to be. This was how it was supposed to feel, tingly all over and suddenly alive.

It was the best experience he could remember, right up there with the first time he had piloted Wing and done five loop-to-loops in a row to test it out and the time he had eaten an entire carton of mint-chocolate chip ice cream. Duo's hair was addicting, and he suddenly found himself at the side of his head, nose right next to his ear. He gripped the other boy tightly, possessively, basking in Duo's perpetual heat.

"If you turn out to be a robot, omae o korosu," he whispered in his ear.

Duo chuckled. "Same here, buddy."

Heero, dispite the comfort of his position, was suddenly reminded that they both had only recently been
discharged from the hospital, and were under strict
orders to "get plenty of rest". Of course, a perfect
soldier didn't need rest, but holding Duo would be a lot more comfortable lying down in a bed, and Duo could sleep while he just rested his eyes... "Let's go to bed."

Duo happily agreed, sleep suddenly accosting him at its mere mention. "Can we share?" He nuzzled his nose into the other boy's shoulder.

Heero felt a true, genuine smile play on his lips, and he crushed it out of habit with sheer willpower before gently wrapping an arm around Duo's hips. "I'd like that."



So, did it suck, or did it just suck?

Duo: Suck...? ::suggestive leer::

Er... nevermind.