Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Prisoner of War ❯ Conversations ( Chapter 15 )

Note: Hi! Anyone guess who the guy was? No matter, you'll find out right away anyway. I don't own Gundam Wing. The pairings are currently 1+2+1 3+4+3 and maybe - 5+S? Well I hope people like this one!

Chapter Fifteen

"Yuy?" a surprised voice harshly whispered, alarming both soldiers as they violently tore apart. "And . . . And . . . Ma - " the stranger's voice cut off as soon as he saw the pleading look in violet pools. `What the hell is going on?!'

The flustered, Japanese pilot instantly regained his control, Prussian blue pools dimmed to a neutral state, staring stonily at the man before them, "05," he acknowledged him.

The Chinese man's obsidian gaze averted it to the sight of the braided boy adorned in black clothes. `Maxwell?' The violet-eyed soldier immediately beamed, grinning at 05 brightly, extending a hand in welcome, "Hey, how ya doing?" he shook the surprised Asian's hand eagerly. "My name is Duo Maxwell! What's yours?"

`You know damn well who I am. What are you trying to pull here?' "Wufei . . . " he stared at him suspiciously, questions burning behind opaque pools. "What in the name of Nataku is going on here?!" he demanded. His stare turned from Heero's swollen, reddened lips to Duo's rumpled clothing and slightly messy hair and recalled the shocking scene he had witnessed only moments before. "Never mind," he flushed crimson. "I don't want to know."

Amethyst eyes grew in enormity, "No, no!" he protested laughing. "It's not what it looked like . . . "

"Well, it looked like you two were kissing," Wufei's eyes narrowed to black slits. "What other explanation is there?"

A thoughtful expression crossed elfin features, "Ok, we were-kissing . . ." he hesitated. "But it's not what you're thinking!" he pointed to the Japanese youth, "He said that I couldn't seduce him if I tried, and well . . . It's all his fault! If he hadn't been taunting me, I wouldn't have . . . "

"You both seemed to enjoy it a whole lot," the Chinese pilot muttered under his breath in a low tone.

As soft as the whisper was, Heero's finely tuned senses picked it up immediately after the breath of sound reached his ears. Midnight blue orbs narrowed dangerously, so lethal that even the Chinese man did not challenge its power. "What are you doing here, 05?" he asked, tone lacking any subtle change.

"I've been relocated," Wufei explained. "I have a mission tomorrow, so I won't be sticking around," he informed the pair. `You can do whatever the Hell you want, Maxwell, Yuy, as long as you don't involve me in it, and I don't have to see it . . . '

"When are you going to be back Wuffles?" the braided idiot grinned innocently at the scowling, Chinese man, resisting the familiar habit of leaning an elbow against the perfect soldier. `I pretty much blasted past the line on that one… At least I'm still alive.'

"It's Wufei," he grumbled between gritted teeth, yet the words were concise enough to be understood. "Maybe a couple of days."

"Oh well good luck on that!"

"Hn," Heero grunted, arms crossed. "We should all get some rest, especially you and Duo." `I can barely look at him right now. What the hell was he thinking? What the hell was I thinking? I'm a soldier, damn it, in a war no less.'

"What's wrong with Maxwell?" Wufei inquired with suspicion. `If you hurt him Heero, you're an idiot.'

"Captured him on a mission," the Japanese pilot stated vaguely. "He's been severely battered by enemies and needs rest to heal," he stared meaningfully into the soft, violet hue. `I can't let one damn kiss get to me. /Especially since you don't know how it affected him…/' The familiar voice taunted him quietly.

"Oh," Wufei nodded slightly in understanding. `At least he's smart enough to do that . . . But does he know that Maxwell is a gundam pilot?' "Hey, Maxwell," he addressed the American, "I want to discuss something private with Yuy here."

"Sure!" he shrugged, walking back into the mansion. Poking, jagged chestnut bangs out as he turned his head, he winked, "Don't cheat on me, lover," he fluttered dark lashes at Heero. `That kiss didn't mean anything, did it? Well either way, it probably was nothing to him, and I'm not gonna embarrass myself even more by acting like I felt something…'

"Hn," the Japanese soldier turned away.

"Mind telling me who he is?" Wufei glanced at him warily.

"He tells me his name is Duo Maxwell, but he won't reveal who he works for. It isn't Oz though," Dark Prussian eyes darkened slightly. "Actually, I was expecting you to know."

`Huh?' Raven orbs shined in surprise, "How would I know?"

"The way you looked at him," Midnight blue sapphires glittered. `Are he and Duo . . .?' "Seemed like you recognized him."

"Maybe on a mission I passed him by. It's hard not to remember a guy with a three feet long braid and violet eyes no less," he improvised quickly. It wasn't exactly a lie. `He and Yuy aren't . . . Are they?'

"Not for me," Heero shook his head.

"Did he tell you anything?" raising a dark eyebrow, Wufei looked at him.

"Yes," the baritone voice murmured, "he told me a lot of things. "Even had a dream on the way over here that we knew each other at six years old. The strangest thing was that he knew J's name. He knew were I was from and that I was training to be the perfect soldier."

"Think it could be true?" the Chinese pilot wondered.

"I can't remember. Nothing really sounds familiar," Heero stated blankly.

"If it were true, maybe they erased your memory," he suggested.

"Not too unlikely," Heero agreed hesitantly, mind exploring the possibility. "He told me we were best friends," he blurted out without really meaning to.

"How do you feel about him? Now I mean," Wufei asked him quietly. Gazing straight into empty, blue pools.

Immediately, a lost look surfaced just barely from the mask of neutrality before disappearing. "Nothing," he answered. "Nothing in particular," he echoed, looking away.

`Baka . . . You're lying, Yuy. At the very least there's camaraderie.' "I'll try to talk to him. To see if I can get him to tell you who he is," Wufei offered.

"I've tried," Heero responded.

"You don't exactly have the best social skills," he pointed out, smirking, knowing he had won.

"Aa," he agreed.

"I'll see you later, Yuy," he gave a slight wave of his hand, walking away. "Oh, one more thing . . . "

"Nani?"

"You and he aren't . . . " Wufei hesitated, embarrassed.

"Iie."

"Just checking," he resumed his stride. The mansion resting atop the grass hill was in full sight. `And now, to see what exactly it going on . . . '

* * *

"So you done, Wu-man?" arms crossed, the grinning American pilot slipped out from behind the shadows.

"What the hell is going on, Maxwell?" he hissed lowly.

"What do you mean?" he played dumb.

"Why doesn't Yuy know?!" exclaimed Wufei, puzzlement glittered in obsidian pools.

Duo released a frustrated sigh, "I had no proof when I first met the guy," he began. "And then you came, so now I have proof, but I don't want him to hear it from someone else. I wanted to tell him myself . . . " the last part streamed in the form of a sharp whisper. He lifted the amethyst back up to face the Chinese man.

"He suspects - "

"I know . . . Just - don't tell him anything until I do," he pleaded.

"Fine . . . One question . . . What does he mean to you, Maxwell?" he asked suddenly, gaze softening from its harsh glare.

"Why are you asking?"

"Cut the shit, Maxwell," he ordered. "Stop trying to avoid the question."

"It doesn't matter," he stared at his boots. "I don't mean shit to him."

"How sure are you?" the Chinese man patiently attempted to coax the response he needed to hear.

Abruptly, he was confronted with wide cobalt eyes, staring straight into his own. "Positive. Because I know him."

"Then you know he is blind. It takes a strong man to admit his weaknesses. I've known Yuy for longer than you have, unless that damn dream of yours was actually true. And I can see that I don't know him nearly as well as you do. I can see that he has changed, and he is affected by you somehow. You," he gaze harshly at him, "can get to him. I've never known him to be this way."

"Really?" lighting up with hope, surprised, purple orbs sought for any sign of lies.

Wufei nodded solemnly, "Now, answer the damn question."

"Look, right now, even I don't know. I'm not sure," he answered, frustrated, blowing a strand of brown hair away from his face.

"Start listening before it might be too late," he advised. `You don't want to find out like I did.' "You know the answer, so just let it come out."

Duo chuckled softly, "Seems like you know more about this than Heero and I do."

"I just know it's something," he answered. "And don't keep your little secret from him for too long," the black-haired soldier warned.

"Just wondering, but where are we?" he questioned.

"Not too far from where you were last before you got caught by Oz," Wufei informed him.

Violet eyes grew to the size of large saucers, glittering in the dimly lighted area. "Deathscythe," he whispered in realization. "It's here!"

Quiet baritone entered the conversation, "What is here?" he inquired curiously. He stepped into the foyer with arms crossed, looking at Duo expectantly.

"Heero," Duo breathed, dark lilac glancing to the Japanese youth in surprise. `Aww shit, that's not how he's suppose to find out!' "My MS, man!" he shouted with excitement. "My favorite MS in the whole fucking universe!" `It wasn't a lie . . . '

"I see."

"I'm gonna go check up on it tomorrow-if that's ok with you," he stared at Heero with large, puppy-like eyes. "Please?"

"Aa," he acquiesced absentmindedly. "I'm going with you," he decided.

`Damn, I have to tell him soon now . . . It's the only way I can go check up on Deathscythe.' "Cool," he smiled easily. "You can meet it!"

"Meet?" Heero repeated. `That's a strange choice of word for seeing a mobile suit.'

Wufei bit back the smirk threatening to curve on his lips. `That's Maxwell, alright.' "Yeah!" Duo grinned, eyes wide with innocence. "Do you not want to?" he asked, oblivious to the reason Heero had repeated his term.

"Never mind," the Japanese pilot spoke quietly, retreating to his bedroom.

The Chinese pilot watched from afar as Duo bounded up the steps of the staircase after him. Though he was only a few feet away, the odd pair unintentionally secluded him with their secret language. `There's definitely something going on between those two . . . If only they could see it as obviously as I can. No doubt what they will be discussing, knowing both of them.'

* * *

"Oi, Heero," the braided youth called up to him. "Matte!"

"Hn," stopping momentarily, the Prussian-eyed soldier glanced down at him in expectation.

Duo caught up with him easily, and the pair resumed their progress up to the bedrooms they no longer had to share. Silence stilled the air, ringing in their ears, and only the rustle of clothing could be heard. "So, um," the boy smiled, cocking his head once more in observation of the perfect soldier, knowing it would cause him to formulate words.

"Why are you looking at me?" Heero turned to face soft amethyst orbs. Something had changed between them since the kiss; they grew closer somehow yet at the same time drifted farther apart. Neither knew what it was or why it happened. Part of them feared what they would find if they took the time and effort to really look.

"Talk," he pronounced the singular term simply.

"Why?"

"Because there are things that need to be said," Duo explained vaguely, knowing the Japanese man would know what he meant.

"Then you say it," Heero suggested.

An exasperated sigh of defeat, "Fine," both boys entered Heero's room. "Look, about that kiss . . . "

"What about it?" Heero shifted open his laptop, speaking absentmindedly.

Violet eyes narrowed. `Don't you dare hide behind that thing.' "I-I . . . I'm sorry. I went way over the line, and there's no excuse for it." The soft mattress adjusted to the sudden added pressure as Duo situated himself on the corner of the blue comforter.

"Why?" Heero asked sudden, Prussian sapphires emerging, turning to face the braided American.

"Did I kiss you?" Duo finished with a lopsided smile. "You were taunting me I guess. I don't back away from challenges either, and well there was one right in front of me. I lost control, and . . . " He peeked up at Heero shyly, waiting for the blow as a result of asking his next question. "Are you - mad at me?" He winced in expectation.

`Should I tell him the truth? Should I just not saying anything at all, or do I lie?' He settled for partial truth, "Iie," `Not at you . . . ' he added silently as an afterthought. `I'm angry that I liked it, that I didn't push you away, that I didn't see it coming.' A sense of boldness crept up on the perfect soldier, and he asked, "Did you enjoy it?" simple, direct, and to the point.

`Agh! Nosy idiot.' "It was - " he began with hesitation, "something . . . I don't know . . . Did you?"

"I don't think enjoy is the word for it." Truthfully, the perfect soldier did not enjoy the memory of how he lost control, of feeling something, or the shame afterwards.

"Oh," he murmured quietly glancing away. Only the sound of the television set in the bedroom uttered a sound as the two sat in an uncomfortable silence. `What did you expect, Maxwell? Just be glad he doesn't hate you for it . . . God, what was I thinking? Oh that's right, I wasn't thinking.' He never asked the stoic pilot what the word of describing it was.

`I have to know . . . I have to know or it'll kill me.' Taking an almost trembling breath, Heero looked upon the image of the boy with the long chestnut braid, cobalt eyes, and heart-shaped face, "Duo . . . " he spoke softly in his quiet tone. Prussian blue meeting with the brilliant violet, he blurted out, "Kiss me again?" uncertainly.

"Saa . . . What???" he gasped, stunned by the question. Amethyst pools widened impossibly as his jaw dropped, gaping at the Japanese youth.

"I need to know what I felt," Heero explained, leaning closer to the gundam pilot. "Onegai," he whispered, and Duo could only nod dumbly along.

With his padded digits, the soldier stared unblinkingly into the soft pools of dark lilac, grasping and lifting Duo's chin gently. He halted in hesitation before taking the plunge and touching the soft, petal lips to his own. No one was taken in surprised this time, and they kissed. It wasn't the lustful, possessing touch as their first time; no, this kiss was soft, tender, a hint of wist rasping against them. Fireworks were only in the background, and the main focus of each of their minds was solely fixated on each other. Foreign emotions fueled the caress.

It felt right, and it felt like ecstasy, comforting and warm, gentle and soft. Almost unwillingly, they spiraled back to Earth and reality. They pulled apart slowly, eyes gently fluttering open. Foreheads barely touching, they gazed into clouded eyes, nearly drowning in the pooling depths. It felt as if their souls had touched. And that was when both understood and crossed the edge with the final push. . .

"I," Duo began, tone still low and nearly breathless, "have to go. . . Um, good night, Heero."

"Oyasuminasai," the Japanese youth agreed. `I need to be alone right now.'

The door shut softly behind Duo's retreating figure, and Heero barely noticed the action had taken place. `Lust I can handle and understand, but what I just experienced seemed so much deeper so much more meaningful. I care about him. I care about him too much when I shouldn't care about anyone at all. What have you done to me, Duo? I've never felt this way before. I just want to be with you, be close to you, hold you and not let you slip away . . . This is too much to think about.' Of course he refused to listen, suppressing forbidden thoughts.

Suddenly, an obnoxiously loud beep sounded from his laptop. Narrowing, midnight blue eyes, Heero ventured closer to the computer carefully. 'Another mission. I can't bring Duo with me. I - trust him enough to leave him here by himself. It would be too dangerous and uncomfortable for him to be in Wing anyway.' "Ninmu ryoukai," he spoke in neutral monotone, accepting the mission.

"There was an explosion at an L2 spaceport today, no one in the shuttle survived. No one is sure what happened. We will update on this story as soon as possible - " for the first time since his arrival in the rather large bedroom, Heero's acute hearing picked up on the sounds of the nightly news broadcast.

The Japanese boy dismissed the report as he peeled off his forest green tank top and black, spandex shorts, preparing for a seven-hour slumber. Even with all the chaotic events that had occurred that night, the perfect soldier had managed to drift off to sleep easily though his dreams would not be as reposed as he acted, expressing what his conscious mind couldn't accept. His last stray thought was of a braided, loud mouthed, American with a bright smile and incredible blue-violet eyes.

* * *

In silence, the elderly scientist and the small, quiet boy by his side boarded the shuttle heading for the cluster of L1 colonies. Heero took the window seat, staring out the thick glass in wist and despondence. And beyond reason, he was looking for the sight of a braided child, grinning up at him, telling him it would be all right, that he wouldn't be alone… `Who am I kidding?' Sudden, Prussian, blue eyes widened into large, circular orbs, pressing small digits against the cool glass.

"Duo?" he whispered quietly, staring transfixed at the frail form pushing against the sea of the crowd, deep purple eyes searching for something or someone in a fruitless effort yet with admirable determination. "Duo!" he called out louder, thinking that the young boy would somehow hear the sound.

His efforts were not in vain; as soon as the single word rolled off his tongue, Duo's neck snapped in surprise, amethyst depths gazing straight into midnight blue. "Heero?" he smiled at the youthful child with a shock of unkempt, dark-brown spikes.

The sound was completely muffled, and Heero could only see his mouth forming the syllables. `How could he hear me?' He gave the six-year-old boy a sorrowful smile. Bittersweet stung the last goodbye.

J watched from afar. The two seemed to share an inner world with each other that everyone could see yet none could reach. From the right, front pocket of his crisp, white lab coat, he took out a detonation device. Without a moment's hesitation, the old man pressed the crimson button, and the in the clear windows, a fiery bursts of flame seemed to consume the entire port in an explosion of gigantic proportions while the shuttle evaded the same fate by mere seconds. The only people aboard the spacecraft were the two passengers and the pilot, an ally and trusted colleague of Dr. J's.

Stunned Prussian blue depths could stare into nothingness, shocked and angry, denying what he had witnessed. Remnants of debris and dust clouded the edge of the colony in coat of ash white, strewn about; bodies and scraps of human flesh had fallen onto the surface. The sight grew smaller by the second, and Heero couldn't look away from the horrific sight, disbelieving such a tragic accident had happened. `No. . . No-no, it can't be! No! Duo!' Though Heero had uttered no sound, no gasp of disbelief or surprise, his soul screamed out. `That couldn't have happened . . . No, Duo's my best friend, he's - he couldn't have died . . . I can't loose him. He promised he would find me. And he will. I know he will . . .'

* * *

Clear, dark blue sapphires snapped open as the first rays of sun spilled unevenly through the blinds, splaying themselves mockingly across his torso. "Duo . . ." he murmured, recollecting the dream. "You died . . . I saw the explosion. No survivors . . ." Dumbly, the soldier stumbled out of bed in an unusually clumsy manner, raking a hand through messy, brown hair. He felt the sudden urge to rush to the braided baka's room and rouse him awake, to make sure he was alive. `Yuy, you've gone insane. He's driven you off the edge.' He knew it was completely irrational, but still fear clutched painfully in his tight chest as he strode into Duo's room.

In light threads, Heero slipped silently through the white door leading into the well-furnished area, feeling afraid for the first time since Duo's near collapse from the massive loss of blood. Quickly scanning the area, his blue gaze locked onto the image of a fitfully slumbering angel. The boyish expression that claimed his features was now contorted in anguish. `What's wrong? Is he having another nightmare?'

"Duo," he murmured in a blank tone. A revelation of pure purple confronted Heero's whisper.

"Heero . . ." he rasped in response, staring straight into the dark blue color. "No . . ." he shook his head slowly. "You-you-you died," his brow creased in confusion and denial. "You're dead . . . My dream… And-it was all over the news . . . The huge explosion, and oh God . . ." He instantaneously shot up, embracing the confused soldier with fierce fervor and to insure his reality. "There were no survivors except for, for me - you died . . ." his voice cracked slightly at the last word, muffled through Heero's wife-beater. The astonished soldier hesitantly wrapped his arms loosely around the normally cheerful pilot, resting at his waist. Slowly comforted by each other touch, peace seemed to conquer the nightmares and calm the fears . . .

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Dewshine- Hey! Wow, that took a long while to go over briefly. Some of the grammar is weird. I think I over used ellipses. ^_^;; Anywayz, thanks so much for the review! And about the person, I think what gave it away was the usage of last names and all. I think I want to just get this done and uploaded, so I won't have to worry about it for a week or so. Cya!

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Done finally. As soon as I can finish chapter 4 of TLM, I'll be working on 20 of this. Well I hope you guyz liked it! Remember that all these chapters are kind of like rough drafts. Hopefully, I can go and make a final one when I finish. Of course not right away because I want to take on other projects. Not that I'm guessing anyone would care, but hey! Ciao!