Ch 7: "The Truth Comes Out"


"DUO, NO!!"
The voice rang out from the top of the hill just as Duo's thumb began to squeeze on the trigger. Everyone whirled in surprise at the figure on the hilltop who was gazing down at the scene below with horror stamped on his face, chest heaving from his race to get there in time.
Wufei.
Duo hesitated, his mouth opening dumbly. "Wufei..?"
"Get 'im!" One of the soldiers shouted.
Then Wufei was acting, racing down the hill almost fast enough to lose balance, his sword appearing in his hand as if by magic. He screamed a furious challenge as he leapt at the first soldier, his blade flashing in the sunlight, cutting him down. He dodged and ran among them like a blur of white death, sword flickering and swiping, blood from his victims flying into the air, accompanied by their screams.
Duo snapped out of his trance and leapt for cover behind one of Deathscythe's massive arms as someone fired at him. He jerked his gun from his waist and began firing at the oncoming soldiers, taking them out from the front as Wufei wreaked havoc from their rear. The men fought back in desperation, but Wufei was moving like lightening, his blade everywhere at once, and Duo's aim was proving fatal.
The man with the walky talky looked around frantically at his destroyed troops and opened his mouth to scream for backup. Wufei's sword came down in a blurring blow, decapitating him before he could utter a sound. The body toppled over heavily, and just like that, it was over.
Duo rose slowly to his feet, glancing down at his gun. Empty. If Wufei hadn't shown up...
Wufei leaned over to wipe his blade on the body of the beheaded soldier before straightening and sheathing it in his belt. He gazed at Duo, still breathing hard from his race with death. Duo stared numbly back at him, for once unable to find his voice. Wufei reached up to wipe sweat from his brow and took a deep breath, his eyes narrowing.
Uh oh.
He approached, muted fury in his eyes, strands of loose ebony hair sticking damply to his face. He raised a palm sharply, and Duo flinched in preparation for the blow he knew was coming.
Wufei's hand cracked against Duo's balled fist violently, and Duo gasped in surprise as the self destruct button flew from his numb fingers to clatter in the dirt several feet away.
"BAKA!" Wufei shouted at him, face livid. "Don't you ever do that! Don't you EVER try to self destruct again! Are you crazy?!"
Duo stared up at him, stunned, and listened as the Chinese warrior continued to rant.
"What on earth convinced you to take on a whole platoon of dolls and soldiers- with tanks!! -all by yourself?" he demanded furiously. "Were you TRYING to get killed?? And you are not Heero Yuy, so don't stand there laughing at death ready to kill yourself for this fucking mission, god damn it!"
Duo blinked slowly, looking towards the self destruction device and then back towards Wufei.
"Well??" Wufei snapped.
"Wufei.." Duo mumured. "Were you... worried about me?"
Wufei's face flushed. "What a stupid quest--"
Duo dove forward, his arms encircling the startled boy's neck, and crushed his mouth against Wufei's.
Wufei stumbled, stunned, and for a moment was unresponsive, completely caught off guard. Then he raised trembling hands and buried them in chestnut locks, opening his mouth to allow Duo to invade his mouth with his tongue.
They kissed until they were out of air, as if it was the last thing they would ever do in their lives, as if something between them had finally clicked into place. And for a moment they forgot that they were surrounded by corpses, that they were in the middle of a mission and in the middle of a war. They weren't soldiers- for an instant, they were just two boys, standing at the bottom of a hill exploring each other's mouths until they thought their lungs would burst.
Behind them, there was a monstrous explosion as the bombs Wufei had set went off, demolishing the base. They pulled away, turning to watch as flames licked at the sky and dark smoke rose in an angry cloud, practically covering the afternoon sun.
Wufei looked down at Duo, fingers still interlaced in thick hair, and wondered if he was dreaming. Duo caught him looking at him and smiled up at him- a small, secret smile, one that Wufei had never seen the other boy use. "You're pretty good at this kissing thing," Duo purred.
Wufei's face turned beet red, and he started to stammer. Duo laughed and effectively cut him off, sliding his hands down the pilot's strong back and recapturing his mouth.
"Mm.. you taste like wine, 'Fei," Duo murmured against his mouth.
Wufei's fingers tightened their grip, his eyes sliding closed as he leaned his forehead against the other boy's. "You taste like.." he trailed off, too embarrassed to say the words.
But Duo, after all his conversations with his reflection, caught the silent words on his partner's lips.
'You taste like heaven.'

***

"How was the mission?" Quatre asked as the two pilots walked into the kitchen an hour later. "Any injuries?"
"Nahh," Duo drawled, tossing his gun on the table and opening a drawer to root for some more ammo. "It was a cinch."
"Liar," Wufei muttered as he opened the cooler for some bottled water.
Duo stuck his tongue out at him.
"Duo," Quatre said firmly, "were you hurt?"
"Just a few bruises, nothing serious- oop!"
Quatre had seized him by the elbow and was marching him to the table. "Sit down," he ordered. Duo sat.
Quatre gave a sigh of long suffering. "What is with you people, always acting like nothing's happened? Mou..." He brought out the first aid kit and pointed commandingly at the other boy. "Take off your shirt."
"Maa maa, Quatre," Duo protested, "I'm fine.."
Quatre levelled him with a glare that would have made Heero proud.
Duo meekly peeled off his priest shirt and sat sulking as Quatre carefully began prodding his chest, searching for broken ribs. "You're bruised all over the place, Duo," Quatre tutted, as behind him Wufei headed stealthily for the door. "Where are YOU going?" he demanded without turning around.
Wufei froze, glancing over his shoulder at the other boy. "Uh.."
"Sit down, I'm going to check you, too. You could have half a mobile doll's arm stuck in your leg and wouldn't say anything about it."
Wufei scowled, and Duo smirked at him. "You heard mother. Have a seat."
Quatre made a face at him. "Hidoi, Duo."
Heero entered the room, then, face set in its stern lines as he shot a look from Duo to Wufei. "Was the mission a success?"
Duo rolled his eyes. Always about the mission. Geez. "Yeah, yeah, it went fine.. Ouch! Watch it, Quatre, will ya?"
"Quit wriggling," Quatre protested. "Does this hurt?"
"Duh!!"
Wufei quirked an eyebrow at him from across the table. "Duh?" he repeated with a faint air of incredulity.
Duo made a face at him. "Nyaaaa~"
Heero looked dangerously close to rolling his eyes. Trowa appeared in the doorway behind him, watching the scene with a calm eye. "Injuries?" he inquired softly.
"Doesn't look like anything serious," Quatre proclaimed, straightening. "Don't go anywhere, Duo, I want to put something on those cuts to prevent infection." He moved on to his next patient.
"This idiot tried to pull a Heero Yuy," Wufei grunted as he obediently peeled off his shirt for Quatre, trying hard to ignore the way Duo was watching with an impish grin on his face. Damn braided twit. He turned his head to hide his blush.
Heero looked faintly perplexed.
"He tried to self destruct?" Trowa guessed.
"Yeah, but Wufei ran in like a knight on a white horse," Duo said, leaning his elbows on the table. "Didn't ya, Wu-man?"
Wufei glared at him.
Duo wiggled his eyebrows at him tauntingly. "You should've seen it. He came running down the hillside, yelling heroically... until he tripped. Went rolling down the hill, looking like a little Chinese bowling ball..."
"I did not!!" Wufei exploded.
Duo began laughing hysterically.
Heero made a 'ch' noise and turned to go. Out of the corner of his eye, Duo saw the way his hand brushed just barely across Trowa's abdomen, a silent invitation to follow. Trowa turned and walked after him, face as unreadable as ever. Duo smirked. Looked like someone was gonna get some tonight.
Funny how all the sudden it didn't bother him anymore.
"Quatre~" he whined. "Hurry up, I wanna take a shower. I feel like I've been run over by a truck."
"Oh, but a minute ago you were just fine," Quatre said with an arched eyebrow. Then he sighed hopelessly. "All right, go ahead. The cuts will be easier to take care of once you're all cleaned up."
"Ja~" Duo chirpped, bouncing up from his seat and snatching up his shirt. He bounded from the room like a braided bundle of energy, and Quatre couldn't help but notice the strange look on Wufei's face as he watched the other boy leave.
Quatre suppressed a smile as he set the first aid kit aside, speaking as innocently as he could. "Why don't you go shower, too, Wufei? You don't exactly smell like a bed of roses yourself."
Wufei flicked him a suspicious glance, which Quatre returned blankly. Muttering something under his breath about conspiracy, he plucked up his shirt and strode from the room with as much dignity as he could muster.
As soon as he was gone, Quatre burst out laughing.

***

Wufei rubbed a dry towel vigorously over his head as he padded into his room, giving a gusty sigh. What a day. He was exhausted- more from the whirlwind of emotions he'd experienced than from the mission. Tossing the towel onto his chair, he started to unravel the second towel from around his waist.
"Whoohoo, free show," a soft voice caroled in amusement.
Wufei grabbed frantically for the towel, sputtering as he whirled to face the bed.
Duo was lounging on top of the bed as if he owned it, lying on his stomach with his chin propped in his hands, a devilish grin on his face. His hair, still damp from his shower, cascaded down his back and over his shoulders in thick, shining waves. He was wearing nothing but black boxers. Wufei's mouth went dry.
"Duo!" he exclaimed, his face burning. "What are you doing in my room??"
"Enjoying the show," Duo chuckled, glancing towards the door. "You going to close that?"
Wufei hesitated before turning to shut the door quietly. He turned back to face the boy sprawled on his bed, swallowing hard. "Duo.." he started.
"Hush." Duo sat up, pushing his hair out of the way as he stared across the room at the other boy with luminous eyes. "Hmm.." He smiled. "You look good with your hair down." He crooked a finger. "C'mere. I want to tell you something."
Wufei hestiated, torn. Part of him was telling him to get the hell out of the room, and FAST. But the other part of him was urging him to jump the siren on the bed and get it over with. He walked slowly towards the grinning Deathscythe pilot and came to a halt before him.
Duo reached up, cupping Wufei's bronze cheeks in his palms, gazing up at him with a gentle expression. "Closer," he murmured.
Wufei bent his head slowly. Duo leaned forward, lips brushing against the shell of the dragon warrior's ear, sending a shiver up his spine.
"I love.. Chang Wufei," he whispered.
Wufei could feel a fine tremor going through his body, and he reached out instinctively to wrap the other boy in his arms. Duo's fingers slid up to tangle in his wet hair, tugging him insistantly downwards, and Wufei tilted his head, capturing Duo's mouth in a lingering kiss.
Duo's hands freed themselves from his hair and began a slow exploration, trailing down his neck, down his firm chest, and circling lazily across a tightened abdomen. Wufei leaned forward, and Duo let himself fall backwards, pulling the other boy on top of him. Wufei began to acquaint his hands with a body he had never before had the courage or permission to touch, running strong hands down the pilot's lean form as he deepened the kiss, fighting for dominance. Duo arched into his touch with a quiet moan that made Wufei shiver.
Then nimble fingers were plucking at the front of his towel, unwinding it, and Wufei quickly lost all sense of coherent thought.

***

Quatre reached out, jerking on the string above his head, blinking in the dim light that flooded the disused basement.
Across the room, his reflection stared soberly back at him.
Quatre set his flashlight aside and strolled over to the aged mirror, looking it up and down as he reached out to touch its cool surface. He cracked a wry grin at his counterpart. "Saa... It's about time," he murmured. "You cost a fortune, but you were worth it. It's hard to play matchmaker with four of the most thick-headed boys on the planet without a little help." He smiled. "Now it's time for you to have a new owner. There's someone else that needs a little wake-up call." He chuckled, reaching for some brown packing paper he had stashed on a shelf earlier. "I'm sure if you can get Heero to notice Trowa's feelings and Duo to notice Wufei's feelings, you'll be able to help an old friend realize the 'love of their life' isn't for them."

***

Dorothy popped her head inside the luxurious study, arching her spider eyebrows at the girl working behind the desk. "Relena-sama, there's a package for you."
"For me?" Relena Peacecraft looked up, blinking curiously as she lowered her pen. "Who's it from?"
Dorothy moved aside as two men carried in a long, flat package. "Who knows? It just says 'From a friend'. It isn't a bomb, they already checked at the gate. Would you like us to open it?"
"Yes, please," Relena said, her curiosity piqued as she stepped out from around the desk to watch.
The men quickly began tearing the paper from the mysterious package as Relena walked over to stand before the tall object.
"It's a mirror," Dorothy said with faint surprise as the last of the tape and paper was pulled away. She wrinkled her nose. "An old mirror," she noted with faint disgust. "It looks positively ancient."
"Yes, it does," Relena said, looking at the worn frame and the slightly stained surface, puzzled. "How strange. Who would send me an old mirror?"
Dorothy huffed, tossing her golden hair over her shoulder. "Would you like me to dispose of it for you?"
"No, that's all right," Relena said, reaching out to touch the glass, frowning slightly in bewilderment. She pointed. "Put it over there."
The men obediently carried it to the far wall.
Dorothy shrugged, offering a small scrap of paper. "Suit yourself. Here's the note that came with it."
"Thank you," Relena said absently, eyes on the mirror as she accepted the paper. "That will be all."
The men bowed and left. Dorothy, after a sidelong glance at the princess, gave a silent sigh and followed them.
Relena walked over and stood before the mirror, gazing at her reflection before looking down at the scrap of paper in her hand.
"From a friend," she read aloud. "May it help you to see the truth." She frowned. "Hm. How strange." She looked back up at her identically puzzled reflection. "Maybe Heero sent it," she mused, eyes lighting up. She beamed at her reflection. "This must be his way of showing how he loves me-"
She stopped and stared incredulously.

Dorothy heard Relena's shriek from all the way downstairs.
"IT ISN'T TRUE!!"
The blond girl hesitated, glancing upstairs. "What's gotten into her?" she wondered. Then, shrugging, she turned and walked outside to enjoy the morning sunlight.




THE END






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Author's Notes:
*imitates evil female laugh* Ohohohoho.. You didn't really think I'd let Duo DIE, did you? Pfft.. *huggles Duo-chan* Iyaaa
Whee I had fun with this chapter. ^_^ hehehe Hope it gave you a few laughs.
This chapter is dedicated to Mami-san, for her support for this fic and her bizarre obsession with this couple. lol ^_^;
OK, enough fooling around w/ misc. GW characters. x_x I think the only pairing I haven't tried yet is 3x2. It makes me miss 1x2 even more, so now I'm off to work on a heero/duo ficcie~ XD Any ideas?
Arigato ne, minna, for the reviews and the support. ^__^ It's always fun to try out a new pairing, and I'm glad I managed to pull this one off semi-decent, even if it was rushed.. lol



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