//words// - lyrics

Tonight and the Rest of My Life

//Down to earth I fell
With dripping wings
Heavy things won't fly//

The gundam known as Wing Zero glowed as it fell from space, its path random and unguided. The pilot of the mobile suit sat quietly in the dark 
cockpit. Heero was slumped in his chair, his hands barely on the joystick controls, his chin resting on his chest. "It's over."

The only illumination and sound in the cockpit came from the small viewscreens bordering the main screen, each showing the image of one of 
the other gundam pilots.

Quatre, looking frantic, shouted, "Heero! Pull up!"

"Heero!!" Duo screamed.

Heero ignored the cries and allowed Wing Zero to continue its fall to earth. Looking up, the young man stared at the image of Deathscythe's 
pilot, knowing the other pilots couldn't see or hear him. One hand reached up and he brushed his fingers over Duo's image before returning the 
hand to curl softly around the joystick.

//And the sky may catch on fire
And burn the axis of the world
That's why//

Quatre's image looked to one side, and gave a sharp intake of breath. 
"A piece of Libra is still falling!"

Heero's fingers flew across the controls of his mobile suit, as the relaxed, half-dazed look left his face, leaving only the soldier again. 
Wing Zero's cannon aimed, locked on the target, and the pilot fired the weapon in one swift move. The piece of the former space fortress split 
in two, one small portion which started to disintegrate as the rest  continued    to plummet towards destroying life on Earth.

"Another blast, combined with the stress of re-entry, could destroy  Wing," Trowa calmly stated.

"You're about to get below escape velocity," Wufei added, voice also    calm, but his expression strained.

Heero snorted, even though no one could hear him. He aimed the cannon again and fired. This  time, the falling debris shattered and burnt up in the 
upper atmosphere.

"Damn it," Quatre exclaimed. "Now I've lost Deathscythe's on my radar! Why did he turn his cloak on? Duo!"

"He didn't turn his cloak on. He entered the atmosphere when Wing wouldn't respond to hails," Trowa replied.

Quatre began to look more frantic. "Duo, Duo, answer me!" The blonde pilot's arms flew across controls and keyboards out of Wing Zero's 
view. "There's too much atmospheric interference to get a lock on him."

//I prefer a sunless sky
To the glittering and stinging in my eyes//

Heero, still allowing Wing Zero to plummet, stared at the black square Duo's face had been in and whispered. "Duo."

"Heero! Pull up!" Quatre commanded.

Heero ignored the order as he stared ahead sightlessly, blinking his eyes rapidly to stop the wetness that had gathered under his eyelids.

A tear escaped his attempt to control himself, and he removed his hands off the joystick controls, placing them in his lap.

After a few moments of free fall, Wing Zero suddenly jolted, causing Heero to be jerked forward, as the mobile suit's descent slowed.

Duo's face appeared back in the video screen he had turned off. "Heero, if you're awake, hit the damn boosters. Either we both land, or we both 
crash."

The Japanese pilot's fingers flew forward as he retook control of Wing and turned the boosters on.

//I feel so light
This is all I want to feel tonight
I feel so light
Tonight and the rest of my life//

The two pilots were silent for the rest of the descent, which was now controlled and aimed for a deserted mountain valley. Deathscythe's's 
arms stayed wrapped around Zero's torso for the trip and Heero allowed Duo to control their landing location and speed.

After landing, Deathscythe's stepped back from Zero and walked around to stand next to the other mobile suit. The hatch of the black gundam 
opened and Duo stood on the opening, arms on hips.

For a moment, Heero sat unmoving in Zero's cockpit, just staring at the pilot on his screen. Finally, he pressed his hatch button and stepped 
out. Both pilots descended to the ground and stared at each other.

Duo looked Heero up and down, his arms crossed over his chest. "You're not injured."

"No," the Japanese pilot replied in his usual monotone.

The braided man's arms shot out and he grabbed Heero's upper arms in a tight hold. "Then what the hell were you thinking?"

"The war's over. Weapons aren't needed."

"*You* are needed." Duo paused, then whispered, "I need you."

//Gleaming in the dark sea
I'm as light as air
Floating there breathlessly//

Heero jerked in Duo's grasp, and stared, a shocked expression on his normally stoic face.

"I need you," Duo repeated in a louder tone, his arms moving to pull the other man into a hug.

After standing stiffly for a moment, Heero returned the hug and gave a barely audible sigh as Duo placed his head on the Japanese pilot's 
shoulder.

Holding each other for many blissful minutes, Duo raised his head. "The others have probably
pinpointed our location and will be down soon."

Nodding, Heero tightened his hold. He closed his eyes, certain this was a daydream and when he opened his eyes again, he'd still be plummeting to his death in Wing Zero.

//When the dream dissolves
I open up my eyes
I realize that
Everything is shoreless sea
A weightlessness is passing over me//

Forcing himself to open his eyes, Heero was pleasantly shocked to still be in Duo's embrace and smiled softly. "I need you too."

Duo, who was in the process of imprinting Heero's face on his memory, smiled widely and gave a squeeze.

At the sound of approaching vehicles, both pilots looked up to see the other gundams and a shuttle approaching.

Heero released Duo from their hug, but kept an arm around Duo's waist as the mobile suit pilots and shuttle passengers came close. Trowa, 
Quatre, and Wufei's happy expressions were reflected in Noin, Howard, and Relena's 
wide grins.

"Heero! Duo! We did it!" Quatre exclaimed, bouncing in place.

Waving frantically with his free arm, Duo smiled widely. "Of course! I had no doubt!"

Trowa gave Heero and Duo a long look then nodded as Relena ran up to the group of pilots.

"Heero!" Stopping a few paces from the group, she cocked her head to one side and placed her hands behind her back, a thoughtful look on her 
face.

Duo tried to pull away from Heero, but the Japanese pilot tightened the hold around the other man's waist and gave him a stern look out of the corner of his eye.

Relena nodded to herself then turned so she was facing all the pilots.She bowed low, her hands still behind her back. "Thank you." Facing Heero, 
she added "Be happy." Then, the young politician turned and went back to the shuttle, and Noin followed after giving the pilots a bow of thanks of her own.

//I feel so light
This is all I want to feel tonight
I feel so light
Tonight and the rest of my life//

"It's over. Now what?" Wufei asked.

Howard grinned. "You party, of course!"

Heero, still smiling softly, pulled Duo closer to him.

"Well, I am dragging our carcasses," Duo nodded to Heero, "to bed. I'm exhausted, so is Heero."

Heero's smile turned into a scowl as he glared at the American next to him.

"Uh huh... you are," Duo replied, as if Heero had made an objection aloud.

Quatre smiled widely and offered, "Well, then, go back to our last safe house. I'll radio ahead."

Duo nodded in thanks then turned to Heero. "Follow me."

Heero nodded and the two were soon in the air to the last safe house the pilots had used before leaving Earth. After leaving their gundams in 
the hanger, the two dragged their tired bodies down the hall and toward Heero's room.

//Everything is waves and stars
The universe is resting in my arms//

By silent agreement, the two kicked off their shoes and crawled into Heero's bed. Heero pulled the blanket up to cover them both as Duo 
wrapped his arms around the Japanese pilot's waist and rubbed his cheek against 
Heero's chest a few times to get comfortable.

Staring down at the brown hair gracing the head of the man he loved, Heero took a contented breath, wrapped his arms around Duo's body, and 
followed him into sleep.

//I feel so light
This is all I want to feel tonight
I feel so light
Tonight and the rest of my life//

=====
The End

Hmmm... I don't think I did the song justice... 

If you want to see the uninterrupted lyrics, they're on my website at: 
http://www.millenicom.com/nagisa/lyrics/tonitlife.html. If you want to hear the song (go, it's a *wonderful* song!), Nina Gordon's official site 
has the music  video in RealAudio and Windows media format: 
http://www.ninagordon.com/