Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ The Missing Piece ❯ Chapter 26

Title: The Missing Piece

Author: Skeren Dreamera, with Bagelbunion co-writing

Archive: http://www.gundam-wing-fanfiction.net/ (under Skeren Dreamera)

Category: Sci Fi additions, Yaoi/Shounen Ai

Pairings: 5x2, 4+3, 3x1, 2+6, 4+6

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing, so please, don't sue me.

Rating: NC-17

Spoilers: None yet

Warnings: None this chapter, except maybe OOC to a degree, but that will apply through the entire story line.

Contact: Mickeofas@yahoo.com

Notes: *thoughts* Enter cool freaky overtones.

Begin part twenty-six

Duo heaved a relieved breath, moving from the bed. He left the door open as he left the room, ears remaining tuned to hear if Wufei moved around while he returned to Quatre's room, spying the blonde still laying on the floor and the one on the bed. Quatre was still passed out still breathing a tad heavily from the earlier show.

Zechs turned his head cautiously, looking over at Duo. "No shadow?"

Duo looked mildly resigned but shook his head no, grinning again a moment later. "Afraid to get up?" He then crawled onto the bed, poking at Quatre.

Quatre sat up suddenly with a loud yell, "No cucumbers!"

"Cucumbers?" Duo leaned away, his eyebrows raised at Quatre while Zechs pushed himself to a sitting position on the floor to study Quatre.

"No!" Shouted Quatre and shrunk away, not quite realizing that he was awake until a moment later. "Huh?" His aquamarine eyes blinked at Duo.

"What's wrong with cucumbers?" Duo looked back at Quatre, a small, amused smile on his face.

"Nothing." Quatre looked around, his eyes darting about the room quickly. "Hey, where's Wufei?" He tried to hold in a shiver; it didn't work very well.

"Asleep." Duo listened briefly to make sure this was true, then nodded to himself. "He needs it."

Zechs was blinking, his gaze looking around the room in puzzlement. "Why are you guys talking so loud?"

"I'm not speaking loud." Quatre lowered his voice a tad anyway and looked at Duo for confirmation.

Duo looked over at Zechs with a smile. "Well, for me you are... But my hearing is greatly improved..." Duo then looked back to Quatre.

"Right." Quatre shrugged. "I want to be alone." He said softly and looked down at his lap, embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Duo."

Duo reached out, resting his hand on Quatre's arm before leaning forward and kissing his cheek. "Please just don't do it again, alright?"

"I'll try not to. I've just been... Upset over... Things..." Quatre looked away again.

"I missed you Q, you just... Weren't being you." Duo gave Quatre a hug before scooting back off the bed beside Zechs, helping the longhaired blonde from the floor. "Just... Talk to Heero, you might have assumed a few things." Duo gave Quatre a small parting smile before pulling Zechs from the room, heading for Heero and Trowa's room and moving in, though Duo was clearly amused to see Heero sitting in bed, fully dressed as he gazed at Trowa with the strangest expression.

Trowa grabbed the closest thing to him, which happened to be Heero to cover his naked body. "What do you want?" He almost nearly squeaked out.

Heero turned his head, looking at Trowa to whom he was plastered. "I'm not a blanket."

"Then get me one! This is your fault!" The hissed words were Trowa's only reply.Duo started sniggering, leaning back against the wall by the door, just watching the pair argue.

Zechs ignored Duo, grabbing the blanket off the floor and tossing it over the pair as he blushed brightly. "There." Trowa turned to glare at him whilst still clinging to Heero. He didn't care if Duo saw him naked, but he didn't want Zechs to see him. Trowa caught the blanket and wrapped himself up in a makeshift toga. Zechs backed away from the pair, blushing brighter. He was starting to despise his new weakness; it was making him into a coward.

Duo moved up to the bed bouncing onto it and landing between the two. "Be nice to me Birdie, he was only being helpful." Duo grinned, leaning back on Heero who had decidedly amused expression.

"What do you want?" Trowa asked again.

"Yes, was there something you needed?" Heero none to gently shoved Duo off, making the braided pilot land fully on Trowa.

"Oh yeah! Tro Tro, did you hear about what I did yet?" Duo bounced on his new perch a little, causing Zechs to smirk. He'd been there.

"Hmm... What did you do?" Trowa asked. He eyed Zechs' smirk nervously. He looked at Heero questioningly, as if he knew, then placed his hands on Duo's shoulders, trying to hold him still.

Duo sat up on Trowa's chest, his legs crossing. "Well, first part, Hee-chan over there was there to see. Quatre made me really mad an I bounced him right off the bed, and I slapped him. I really didn't hurt him any but I said some mean things. Then we all left the room you remember. Then, after that, Wufei had a really, really good idea, at least in my opinion. He even basically told Zechs to come watch, it was so cool. Poor Wufei didn't get into it like I did, but that's okay. See, we had sex in front of the two. Quatre finally got the point. He might actually talk to you now Trowa!" Duo gave another slight bounce, then grinned at Heero, who looked stunned.

Trowa just nodded non-chalantly. "So..." He really didn't know what to say after a story like that.

"Yeah! I never thought Wufei would be willing to have sex for an audience. Too bad you guys weren't in there." Duo fluttered his eyes at Trowa and leaned back a little, still sitting on his chest.

"Get off of me." Trowa finally shoved Duo off. His tone wasn't harsh. "Where's Wufei now?"

Zechs blinked at Duo. "Why do people keep asking you that? Are you attached?"

"Actually yes. Wufei is asleep." Duo allowed the push, settling against Heero who looked down at him with muted amusement.

"I am concerned for Wufei. He may panic." Trowa looked at Duo pointedly before looking away again. "Would you mind if I went to check on him?"

"If you wake him, you will regret it." Duo tilted his head slightly, listening for Wufei. He would hear it the moment the other moved.

"I'll try not to wake him up." Trowa promised and tied his "toga" tighter around himself and he got up.

Duo watched Trowa, moving from the bed. He was going to follow Trowa back. It wasn't really a conscious thought. When he realized what he was doing he looked at Zechs. "Please stay with Heero."

Trowa opened the door to Wufei and Duo's room and was instantly hit with a blast of icy cold air. "Fuck!" He cursed and wrapped his toga around himself as tight as possible. "What the fuck?" Trowa mumbled as he ran over to the bed. He could see his own breath in the room. Wufei's lips were blue as Trowa got close enough, while shivers kept breaking over his skin followed by moans. Duo was a step behind, and swept in between Wufei and Trowa instinctively, hissing at him before he could get close enough to touch him, even as he backed through the icy air to draw Wufei into his arms.

Trowa flinched away, nervous. He'd never had Duo actually hiss at him before. "We need to get him out of here." Trowa wrapped his arms around himself and shivered.

Duo drew Wufei close, gathering him into his arms, heedless of any cold that was in the room. He was constantly hot since the day before and this actually felt good.

"Duo. Hurry, we need to warm him up." Trowa turned and ran for the bathroom, immediately drawing a bath of warm water. Hot would be bad in case Wufei was hypothermic. *But how long had he been in there? And how did only that room get so cold so quickly?* "Heero! Quatre!"

Duo cuddled Wufei under his chin, holding him up against his chest with his eyes nearly closed, a soft purr in his throat as he held the curled form. Wufei whimpered in pain and his left arm twitched while he shivered still sleeping. Duo made a soothing sound, unsure what else to do for a second.

Heero came immediately, hearing the urgent note in Trowa's voice, Zechs just behind him as they got into the hall. Heero, of course, had his gun drawn, though the moment he saw the state Wufei was in he put it away. "What happened?"

Duo stepped back from the others as they moved too close, and he clutched Wufei tighter, his lips brushing across the cold forehead. "C'mon Fei, what's this you're doing?"

"I don't know. I walked into the room and it was freezing, Wufei is blue, he could be hypothermic, get a med kit and get Duo to bring him in here, now." Trowa answered Heero in a low tone, concerned gaze flitting towards the other two.

Heero stepped forward, reaching to try and steer the normally amicable Duo into the bathroom, and got some serious claw marks down his arm as Duo backed away with a low hiss. Duo had gone of the full protective offensive, unwilling to let anyone near Wufei that could possibly be a threat. "Damn it!" Heero backed away from Duo, nursing his effusively bleeding arm as Duo tucked his arm back around Wufei.

Quatre stepped near the cold room a moment later. "Duo. If you don't want Wufei to die, bring him here now." Quatre used his authoritative tone and set his jaw fiercely. He stared at Duo challenging him.

Duo growled low in his throat. "Get away!" Duo wasn't headed in any direction where his teammates were. Quatre took a few steps further towards Duo, slowly as one would take towards a threatened animal, which for all intents and purposes, Duo was. The hall was now starting to get colder as well.

Zechs inched forward, his voice quiet. He knew Duo didn't see him as a threat. "Duo?" He even let himself sink to the floor, relying on instinct. "Take him to get warm..." Zechs moved forward, shake his head at Quatre as Duo let him get closer than anyone else.

Quatre paused and let Zechs try his approach. He looked over at Heero and gave a faint nod, and doing quick and gestures 'if this doesn't work, we rush him.' He turned back to Zechs.

Duo's gaze flicked to Zechs, and then he looked to Quatre, stepping back from the smaller blonde with a low hiss. That brought him closer to Zechs, but it was like he didn't even see the taller one. "Get them away."

Zechs looked at the others. "He isn't going to get him in there if you don't move." He glanced over to Duo as the longhaired boy moved so the kneeling figure was blocked from the others as well.

Quatre looked at Heero silently asking 'should we?' Heero stepped back away from the door in response, his eyes trained on the tampered with trio before he looked to Quatre, gesturing to the deep scratches on his arm. Quatre smirked a tad, and reluctantly stepped out of the way in the hallway. As soon as he stepped back away, the temperature had almost returned to normal, save for small draft coming from the room.

Duo narrowed his eyes at the pair and stepped forward, but stopped as he saw Trowa was still inside, and his hair slashed from side to side in a show that defied his otherwise unnatural calm, amplifying his narrowed eyes. "Barton. Duo won't enter anywhere you pilots are at." Zechs had stood from his kneel, following closely behind Duo.

Trowa rolled his eyes, and backed out of the bathroom, at a normal pace, while giving Duo a look. He was not afraid of cats, and it showed on his face that he was seeing Duo in this same light. Duo lifted his chin in defiance. Trowa should know a feline would be hostile if they were protecting one of their own. Once Trowa was clear of the door, he swept into the bathroom, and he set Wufei gently next to the tub, his fingers moving quickly to undo his clothing. Trowa simply shrugged and let it pass. He watched Duo from the doorway, pausing just slightly when his eyes met Quatre's, he looked back at the ground quickly.

Zechs slid into the room after Duo, hovering just inside the door and he handed some antiseptic and a cloth to Trowa. "Duo scratched Heero pretty bad." The bathroom had suddenly dropped in temperature as well once Wufei and Duo were in it.

Duo finally got Wufei nude and tugged off his boxers before scooping him up and settling into the tub, curling the chilled form against him under the water.

Trowa took the cloth and dabbed at Heero's arm. "Threatened felines will do that, to anyone they perceive as a threat, especially over their mates or children." Trowa replied calmly. "Here. You hold this." He grabbed Heero's hand and made him hold the cloth. Trowa then retreated back to his room to get some more decent clothes. He knew if anything went seriously wrong someone would call for him.

Heero took the cloth, holding it in place against the gashes in his arm. "I didn't think he'd do that to me."

Zechs glanced at the others, then at the pair in the tub. "Then what the hell do I apply as? I'm not applicable as mate or child."

"Birdie." Quatre said, teasing a little, but mostly serious, since the situation was worrying him. He couldn't feel Wufei's emotions at all, and he was terrified of that.

Zechs shook his head, then turned and moved back into the bathroom to kneel by the tub, Duo's eye peeking open to see who it was, but he didn't contest Zechs' being there. "Is he getting warmer?"

Heero muttered to himself, moving to the doorway to peer into the bathroom, but not trying to enter. "He scratched me." Trowa came back a moment later, fully dressed and handed a sweater to Heero as well. Heero wrapped the cloth around his arm tightly and took the sweater, tossing it onto his arms but leaving it open.

Trowa looked nervously back into the room, watching. "You need to add more warm water. Bring his temperature up slowly."

Duo cuddled Wufei up against his front as tightly as he could, using the chill of his skin to compensate for the added warmth around him from the water as he added more hot, draining out the chilled water in the process. Wufei moaned and his head rolled back slightly while he shivered, but he didn't wake up. Duo nuzzled at Wufei. He'd finally brought the water up enough in temperature over the past minutes that it was steaming a little, but the heat was starting to get to him, even though it was needed for Wufei. He hadn't brought the temperature up immediately by any means, but it still bothered him.

Wufei groaned a little and he stirred, his eyelids fluttered in near wakefulness. "Don't..." The rest undecipherable. Duo turned off the water, plugging the tub, and still clutching Wufei against him, while Wufei was getting warmer, so was he, and it was seriously bothering him to be in the water with Wufei, but he wouldn't leave him in there. Duo was starting to feel like he had a severe temperature. Wufei groaned again, his eyelids trembling open as he awoke, immediately clinging to Duo. The temperature went back up to normal in an instant, along with Wufei's body temperature.

Duo shuddered slightly as the room spun with Wufei's quick movement. "Fei... Careful." Duo clenched his arms around Wufei, trying not to tip over as black came in on the edges of his vision.

"Duo..." Wufei choked out the word, taking big gulps of air, pulling Duo tighter to him.

Duo whimpered, closing his eyes as the room tilted again. "Too warm Fei..."

"They did something to you...I'll kill them!" Wufei yelled and pulled Duo flush against his own body, still shivering, this time with anger.

Duo gave a strangled sound. "Fei! Too loud!"

Zechs had scooted back to lean against the wall and was watching them taking in Duo's reactions to Wufei sudden movements. "Wufei, he's getting too hot."

Wufei stood up suddenly, and picked Duo up out of the steaming bath water then carried Duo out of the room and back into the bedroom. Duo made a small sound before the movement overcame him, combined with the heat it drew him into unconsciousness, leaving him to slump into Wufei's arms. He needed to be cooled off as badly as Wufei had been in need heating up.

Zechs waited until they'd passed the pair in the hallway before draining the tub and looking around for anything resembling a bucket. He also got washcloths, tossing them over his arm as he filled what ended up being a small purple pail with cold water, then trailing after Wufei with Duo a couple minutes after the Wufei had retreated. He didn't say anything, wary of Wufei, and just set the items down within reach.

"Duo? Duo!? DUO!" Wufei yelled and shook him. "No... Duo... You have to wake up... Please. I'll kill them, I'll get them this time...I won't let them hurt you anymore." Wufei whispered softly and buried his face into Duo's chest, willing, pleading him to awake.

Zechs heard the pleadings and winced, readying himself for being mauled severely, and tried to make himself look as non-threatening as possible when he touched Wufei's arm lightly. "Wufei, I brought water and cloths, cool him off."

Wufei growled and hissed sounding even more like an enraged feline than Duo had before pushing Zechs back roughly. The temperature in the room raised a few degrees. Zechs went with the push, falling hard onto his backside, and then he pointed at the bowl. "He was warming you up, and it made him sick, he might have heatstroke."

Wufei growled again and reached for a cloth to put it on Duo's forehead, his features immediately softening as his attention focused back on Duo. Duo whimpered, showing that no, he wasn't dead, merely unconscious. His heat beat was up though, in an unhealthy way and he was sweating. He leaned into the cool cloth the second he felt it. Wufei stuck his hands in the bowl and cupped them together to he could splash Duo's chest with the cold water. He sat up astride Duo's hips and quickly fanned his whole body. Duo shivered a little with the chill, but his small whimpers slowly stopped, and it was only a minute or so after he started fanning him that Duo finally came around looking incredibly confused. Though the first words out of his mouth indicated he was far from feeling better. "Hot..."

Wufei leaned over and grabbed the bowl off the floor, never once leaving Duo's body, before holding it to Duo's lips. "Here. Drink." Duo sipped at the bowl, unleashing a small whimper as he did as bid. His head hurt. "Good." Wufei soothed. "Still hot?" He pet Duo's hair.

"My head hurts." Duo leaned into the petting of Wufei's hand. "And I'm Hungry." Duo's eyes closed partially as he sighed in relief.

Wufei stroked Duo's cheek with the back of his hand. "I'm glad you are alright. Let's get some food in you." Wufei fanned Duo's face with his other hand. He was relieved. *I swear I will kill them!*

Zechs finally moved, drawing his feet under himself and standing. "Would you like me to go get it?"

Wufei's eyes narrowed as he looked at the speaker. "No." He growled out. He looked back at Duo, conflicted; he wouldn't leave him, yet he did not trust Zechs. "Get Trowa." It was a snarl.

Zechs turned and left the room, going to knock on Trowa's door. "Wufei asked for you."

"Dun be so mean, he got the others to leave you alone." Duo nuzzled up into Wufei's hand, his eyes closing.

Trowa nodded and walked to Wufei's room. He knocked on the doorframe once before walking in to stand next to the bed. "You called?"

Wufei scowled and grumbled slightly, then just leaned back over and rested his face on Duo's chest, hoping that the action wouldn't heat him up too badly. "Bring some food for Duo."

Duo turned his gaze on Trowa, his violet stare fixing on him eerily as he brought an arm up around Wufei. Trowa stared back at Duo as he watched the action. He focused back on Wufei and nodded, then turned and left the room. Duo relaxed once Trowa left the room, dipping his head to nuzzle Wufei's hair. "I think I scratched Heero."

"I'm sure he deserved it." Wufei replied with a dry tone, continuing to stroke the braided boy.

"He got too close. They wouldn't get out of the way and I thought they were trying to take you away from me." Duo's voice was quiet and he tightened his arm around Wufei.

"Why would they do that?" Wufei's tone asking and slightly baffled at once. It had only now just occurred to him that he had awoken naked in a bathtub with a panicking Duo, when he had gone to sleep fully clothed in his bed.

Duo purred softly. "You got so cold... They were gonna take you away if I didn't move quick enough. Zechs made em stop though. Trowa didn't try, just the other two." He kissed the top of Wufei's head.

"I told you I was cold." Wufei spoke very softly, as he pulled a blanket over himself and Duo. He rolled off of Duo and settled next to him, still resting his head on Duo's chest. *How very strange.*

To be continued.