Duo hadn't spent much time there. It wasn't the sort of thing they could afford to have overheard, and when it came right down to it, there wasn't much to say. "I just came to say good-bye."

If he'd known at the time that it really was good-bye, he might have spent a little more time talking to Heero. That's what he told himself later. Just a little more time. It seemed that everything in his life came down to being too late to do anything. If he'd only gotten back sooner with the mobile suit. If they'd only known in time that this route was the decoy. Duo had no idea who the old guy with the coke bottle lenses was, but it was clear Quatre was right about one thing -- he was one of G's counterparts. Duo watched in horrified disbelief as Heero stepped out onto the hatch of his Gundam.

The word "no" stuck in his throat, bitter and cloying, but it resounded in his head over and over, echoing against the emptiness that had made up most of his life.

Cloaked in darkness, Deathscythe took off, leaving Sandrock and the Maganac troop behind. There was nothing he could do; too late, always too late, and he hadn't really known where he was going until his Gundam set foot on the ground between the shattered remains of Heero's Wing Gundam and Trowa's useless Heavyarms.

He hated Trowa in that moment.

Deathscythe took a step forward, cutting off Heavyarms, and Duo was tempted to forget why he was here and tear Trowa's Gundam apart. His hands tightened on the controls and he raised Deathscythe's right arm.

Instead of striking out at Trowa, he took off, fleeing the scene of death and destruction as if doing so might mean it never happened. Heero went with him, Deathscythe's large fingers cradling his lifeless body gently but firmly.

"Here."

Duo hadn't heard Howard come up behind him, which only underscored how tired he was. He reached up for the cup of coffee only to snatch his fingers back quickly as he noted how hot it was. He used only his fingertips to cautiously lift the cup and he blew across its surface before setting it down between his feet to cool.

"Thanks."

Howard sat down next to him. "No change, huh."

Duo rubbed at his eyes. "No."

Howard looked over at the body lying in Duo's bunk, bandaged but not as bloody as when Duo had first brought him here. Duo hadn't said a word to him the entire time he'd bathed the boy, and Howard had left Duo alone with him. If Duo had needed any help, he knew where to find it, and there were some things that a man had to do on his own.

Hearing Duo's voice call out to him before he'd gone halfway down the hall hadn't surprised Howard, but returning to the room to see Duo kneeling there, his fingers against the kid's neck and a look of cautious optimism on his face, had. "A pulse," Duo had choked out. "There's a pulse. Heero's not dead."

With Duo's omission of the word "yet", Howard hadn't had the heart to tell him that didn't necessarily increase the kid's chances, but then he'd seen Heero walking around after a nasty spill. He had a sudden sneaking suspicion that particular incident had been far worse than he'd been led to believe. Duo hadn't given him any details then, but this time he'd seen it himself, televised far and wide, over and over. The boy should have been killed instantly, standing there right in the thick of it, so maybe the fact that his heart was still beating was cause for cautious optimism. Howard wasn't too old to recognize something close to a miracle when he saw it.

The kid hadn't stirred since, and the only times Duo had left his side was when he'd gone to round up medical supplies. Where he managed to get his hands on them, Howard didn't know, but Duo had always had a knack for beating the odds when it was a matter of life and death.

Seemed he and the kid on the bed had that in common.

He'd had to threaten Duo the first day, telling him if he didn't eat he'd be the next one on an IV to keep from starving to death, and it had been enough to shake Duo from his stupor. He still had to be reminded at times, but he ate without argument. He'd started taking his meals here after the second week, insisting that he had a feeling today was the day.

Howard kept hoping that Duo was right, for Duo's sake more than the kid's. If Heero was going to die, it was unfair to linger this long, and if he were going to live like this, he might as well be dead.

Someone who sacrificed his life the way Heero had would want a hero's death, not an empty shell of existence. The way he'd been thrown from his Gundam, he could have irreversible brain damage, but then Duo probably knew that as well as he did.

He'd come in to summon Duo to supper, but Duo didn't seem inclined to budge unless he had to. He stood up. "There's beans and a couple slices of bread left," he told Duo. "I'll bring you some."

Duo picked up his coffee and took a sip. "Thanks," he said again, sounding more tired than a boy his age should.

"Get up and stretch your legs," Howard told him. "If I don't see that you've moved from this spot when I get back, I'm fetching you a portable urinal."

Duo's laughter was thin, but it was there. Howard looked over at their "patient" and shook his head. It was a good thing Duo hadn't lost his sense of humor, because he had a feeling if Heero recovered, Duo was going to need it more than ever.

Duo put his dirty dishes back on the tray and pushed it away from the door so that anyone walking into the room wouldn't trip over them. Howard had been right about getting up to stretch, and it had reminded him that he'd not exercised Heero's limbs yet today.

He dampened a clean cloth and wiped at Heero's forehead. He was beginning to know the contours of Heero's face better than he knew his own, and when he slept and the familiar dreams of the Maxwell Church visited him at night, Sister Helen had Heero's eyes and hair as she died in his arms.

He was the god of death, damn it all, and this time he'd use everything in his power to defeat the grim reaper instead of acting as an emissary.

His hands stilled and he leaned closer until he could feel the faint exhalation of breath, reassuring him that he hadn't lost Heero yet. It was a fear he had every day, that Heero would be alive before he went to bed and a cold corpse in the morning. It should have made sleeping difficult, but Duo was so fucking tired lately that he dropped off each night, but only after taking Heero's hand in his to be sure it was still warm.

Duo set aside the cloth and brushed Heero's damp bangs from his forehead, staring intently at his eyes. As much as he willed them to move underneath closed lids, they remained just as still as they had for the past month, and Duo pinched a stray bit of lint that clung to Heero's lashes and flicked it away.

No man should have lashes that long, and Duo resented them half the time even as he knew he was being irrational, as if the lashes were the only reason Heero's eyes hadn't opened yet. It was easier than reliving that day again in his mind, listening to the threat leveled against the colonies, watching in open-mouthed horror as Heero came out to stand proudly on his hatch, determined to sacrifice himself for the greater good.

Heero had a vendetta against living that pissed Duo off, but he couldn't help admiring the guy. His eyes flicked toward the door and he sat back in his chair, clearing his throat and crossing his arms across his chest.

"Still quiet out there," he said quietly, just like he did everyday. "Everyone seems to have vanished and if anyone's looking for us, I haven't heard anything, but I guess that would be pretty sloppy of them, huh?"

Duo knew he could barely see the rise and fall of Heero's chest, but he stared at it anyway, the skin looking paler than he'd ever seen it. Until it matched the color of his bandages Duo was not going to assume the worst, even though the reasonable part of his brain didn't disregard the possibility that this was the best Heero would ever get.

Heero would hate existing like this. Eventually Duo knew he had to decide if it was worth it, keeping Heero alive but just barely. If their roles were reversed he knew he'd hate it. Assuming, of course, that he'd even be capable of thought or emotion. He wasn't sure if Heero resented the hell out of him for keeping the shell of his body alive, but until Duo was convinced otherwise, he could only remain determined that this was in Heero's best interests.

"Howard, that's the guy who was in here a minute ago, you remember him. Loud shirt, future's so bright he's gotta wear shades, but magic with a mobile suit. Well, he says that everyone assumes you're dead, but we know better.

"Don't we, Heero."

Heero's name came out as a question, and Duo swallowed. "Fuck," he said, scrubbing his eye with his knuckles. "Eyelash."

Blaming his own lashes for the sudden sting in his eyes made him glance down at Heero's face again, and Duo leaned forward, digging his elbows into his thighs. He covered his face with his hands and sighed heavily. It had been four weeks since Heero had blown up his Gundam, but Duo felt like he'd aged at least that many decades.

The sun was shining brightly, but Duo didn't notice. His skin was taking on a pallor to match Heero's and the only time he'd gone outside had been the first night of the full moon. It had felt good to escape the confines of his room and, although he'd never admit Howard was right, to breathe in some fresh air.

There had been downsides, one of which was that the smell in his room seemed worse than it had before he left. The other was the fear that kept gnawing at his heart, like an insistent badger, that Heero would never again enjoy the view of the stars or wrinkle his nose in disgust at his own stench. That was assuming Heero ever took time out for anything other than the war, and that bothered Duo more than it should have. He hooked the bottom rung of the chair next to the bed with his foot and pulled it closer so he could sit down.

"So, Heero," he said, setting down a bowl of soapy water and dipping a sponge into it. "Seems like you're a hard act to follow." His throat hurt and he squeezed out the excess water before wiping the sponge across Heero's collarbone.

"I guess you get that a lot, though." He lifted one of Heero's arms and washed underneath. Even under the bandages, his ribs were a little more noticeable after a month of intravenous nourishment. He was too thin, and it was hauntingly familiar to Duo. He kept quiet until he'd moved from Heero's torso to his arm, bending it at the elbow to wash his biceps. He could feel the faint flex of the muscle beneath soapy fingertips and he worried at his lip as he worked his way down Heero's forearm to his knuckles. The scabs that had been there a month ago had long since faded into a smattering of faint pink scars. Duo turned Heero's hand over and worked the sponge over his palm, trying not to think about things like lifelines: where Heero's was and how long or short it might be.

Heero's knuckles might be smoother now, but the calluses on his hands from piloting a Gundam were still there. Duo massaged Heero's palm, working up a weak lather as he did so. They were strong hands; Duo knew that even without feeling them grip his own. After that woman from the Alliance building had urged him to, Heero had gone back to turn off the detonation sequence, and although Duo hadn't known it at the time, the route Heero had taken to get there was blocked by steel bars.

How Heero had gotten through them Duo had no idea, unless his shorts concealed far more than they appeared to -- and Duo now knew exactly what Heero had been hiding under shiny black spandex.

Duo brought the bowl over into his lap and gently lowered Heero's hand into it. He'd touched more of Heero's body than he'd ever touched anyone's -- even his own.

He dunked the sponge again and squeezed it out, watching the tiny suds trail over Heero's knuckles and into the water where his fingers lay motionless. He grabbed the towel that he'd draped over his shoulder earlier and shook it out with one hand, spreading it on the table before picking Heero's hand back up and resting it gently on the clean terrycloth. He leaned forward to sweep the sponge across the exposed part of Heero's chest, over dusky nipples and a jagged scar. The only reason Duo had found the piece of gundanium embedded in Heero's flesh was because he'd cut himself while washing Heero that first day. He lifted his hand now and looked at his fingers, rubbing them together and feeling the small scar on his own thumb, a small reminder of how sharp it had been.

Duo got to his feet and walked over to the other side of the bed to wash and exercise Heero's other arm. By now it was an automatic thing and Duo didn't have to think about what he was doing. His favorite part was pressing his thumbs into Heero's palm, kneading firmly, and watching his fingers twitch in response, as if they'd curl into a fist at any moment. By the time he'd finished, including a quick run to the bathroom to rinse and refill the bowl before using the sponge on Heero's legs and groin, Duo felt in need of a bath himself. He flicked his bangs out of his face and realized he hadn't washed his hair in over a week.

"Good thing you're unconscious, Heero, because I'm sure you wouldn't waste any time telling me I stink."

He got up to gather the towels and sponges, and looked down at Heero's face again. He looked so peaceful, as if he was asleep, and Duo didn't think he'd ever seen Heero's face without those thick brows being drawn together in annoyance. He leaned forward to brush Heero's hair away from his eyes -- eyes that Duo was beginning to think might never open again.

Heero looked so very young, and it struck Duo more now than it had when they'd attended school together that they were the same age. Duo wondered what Heero's story was and how he'd ended up a soldier for the colonies. He realized his fingers were still toying with Heero's hair and he let go with a light tug. "Be right back," he whispered, as if Heero were merely sleeping, and he left the room quietly.

He headed toward the showers, but he was going to postpone taking his for just a little longer. It took no time at all to find it; he might not have used it in a while but it was always in the same place. With the bottle under his arm and a clean bowl of water, he returned to his room. Heero hadn't moved at all in the short time he'd been gone, and although Duo had grown used to not expecting anything different, the pangs of disappointment were just as sharp as ever.

"Heero my man," he said, his voice forcefully chipper, "let me introduce you to a guilty pleasure of mine."

This time the bowl was placed on the bed near Heero's head, and Duo finger-combed Heero's hair away from his face, trying his best to work through the tangles. "Sorry," he said. "Necessary evil. You know what women say, beauty is pain and all that."

Duo popped open the top of the bottle with his thumb, squeezed some into the palm of his hand, and tipped Heero's head back. By the time he'd finished working the lemon-scented shampoo through Heero's hair, the fragrant creamy lather bringing back memories that made the back of his eyelids prick, he realized something.

He still enjoyed massaging Heero's hands, but now that he had every one of his fingers buried to the knuckle in Heero's hair, he had to change his mind. This was his favorite part.

It felt surprisingly good, taking a hot shower, and Duo wrapped the towel around his hair like a turban before wandering out into the hallway where he found Howard lounging against the wall outside his room.

Duo's heart was in his throat until Howard straightened and tossed him an apple. "Whatever was left of his Gundam, it's gone now."

Duo's ears perked up, but he couldn't resist the allure of the shiny red fruit and bit into it. "You're kidding."

Of course Howard wasn't, and he wouldn't about something like that, but Duo got the impression that there was more to the story than scavengers looking to make a fast profit.

"Also looks like the Gundam I worked on has disappeared, too," Howard added. "I hear talk of it needing new parts." He looked at Duo, and beneath his shades Duo could picture his eyebrows raised. "But I've also heard rumors that it had plenty available already."

"You think they've got Heero's Gundam and are rebuilding?"

Howard pulled a second apple out of his pocket and tossed it in the air. "I think a lot of things," he said as he caught the apple on its downward journey. "But I've got more than a hunch on this one."

"So what do you think? We just wait for Heero's Gundam to reappear?" The bit of apple he'd swallowed was lodged uncomfortably in his throat. He didn't like the idea of anyone else piloting Heero's Gundam, and definitely not anyone from OZ.

Howard didn't look any happier than Duo did. "Until we hear anything else, that's all we can do."

As Howard walked away, Duo pulled the towel off his head, and he tossed it over his shoulder before sitting down in the chair at Heero's bedside. He set the apple down and wiped his hand off on the towel, causing it to fall into his lap where his fingers began to worry at it. Heero was, just like always, completely oblivious. His hair had grown a little over the past month, but now that it was clean, it was much springier and from this angle it looked a little like a small dog had taken residence on Heero's head. Duo might have laughed, but the lump in his throat was making it difficult.

"I don't know, Heero," he said, brushing back a lock of Heero's hair. He tweaked it with his fingers and decided it resembled a lazy cat more than a dog. He could picture a tiny claw coming out to take a swipe at his hand. If it meant Heero would open his eyes, Duo would be willing to shed a few drops of blood.

He released Heero's hair and sat back. "I'd be willing to do a lot of things." He covered his eyes with his hand, slouching a little in his chair. "Shit, Heero, nothing makes sense."

It probably did to someone, somewhere, but that wasn't helping Duo right now. It wasn't doing much for any of them, at least none of the others who were also fighting for the colonies. A month ago Duo hadn't cared if he lived or died, as long as his death accomplished something, and Heero obviously felt the same way. If his Gundam was being resurrected by OZ right now, though, what had Heero really accomplished other than buying them some time?

"Relena?"

"Who?"

Duo's eyes snapped open and he leaned forward to stare open-mouthed into the bluest eyes he'd ever seen. His vision blurred a little but he refused to blink. "Heero?"

Heero's eyes flicked down to where Duo's fingers were digging into the sheets, his knuckles brushing lightly against Heero's pinky. His arm was killing him, but if he could feel pain then his nerves weren't damaged. Heero slowly curled his fingers into a fist, flexing them a few times and feeling an incredible sense of relief that he could do such a simple thing. He repeated the same with the other hand and began to sit up, only to clutch at his side in pain.

"You all right?" Duo could have kicked himself, because that had to be the dumbest question ever asked in the history of mankind. The look Heero gave him supported that particular assessment, but the crease in his forehead drove home the fact that Heero was back. Not at one hundred percent and not likely able to do much more than glower for a while, but he was back. The furrow between Heero's brows deepened as a grin spread across Duo's face.

"How long have I been out?"

Heero's voice was hoarse from disuse, but if he could speak and ask questions then that had to mean he wasn't brain damaged, either. Duo's concerns about the fate of Heero's Gundam took a backseat to the overwhelming feeling of giddy relief that filled him now.

"A month," Duo replied, his voice warbling.

Heero's gaze wandered about the room and stopped, of all places, on the apple. If he ate that now, it was going to come up as fast as it went down, and they both knew it. Duo looked at Heero, studying his face to convince himself that this was not a hallucination born of exhaustion, and he decided that if Heero didn't care, neither did he. He grasped Heero's wrist to press the apple firmly into his hand. He wanted to dance for joy when Heero's fingers curled around the smooth skin, the edge of one of them skimming the toothmarks Duo had left in it.

There was still a war going on, they had no idea where the other pilots were, and Heero's Gundam was who-knew-where being used for who-knew-what. There was a lot they both had to talk about, but right now Duo was more than content to simply watch Heero's teeth sink into the apple, right next to where Duo had taken his own bite.

"You're insane."

Heero didn't answer him; he just picked up the floppy disk on the table next to him. Before he could get it in the drive it slipped through his fingers and clattered on the floor. He bent to retrieve it, but Duo beat him to it. With the way Duo had been pacing the room and arguing with him about his plans, Heero had fully expected Duo to keep it, but he didn't. Duo did, however, hover over Heero's shoulder until Heero pushed the disk through the slot and then his agitated hand gestures began again.

"You are impossible. Unbelievably stubborn. I can't believe you, Heero. It was a mistake, one that any one of us could have made. You were set up and --" Duo realized that the typing had stopped and he turned to see Heero clutching at his arm and gritting his teeth. "Shit."

He crouched down next to Heero and held his arm near the elbow while he tried to see if there was any sign of bleeding through the bandages. Heero's knuckles were white and Duo looked up quickly to see the same lack of color in his face. He hated that Heero could make him forget how angry he was and he gave the table a shove, pushing Heero's chair away from the computer.

Heero glared at him and Duo forced a grin on his face.

"What's the matter, Heero?" he asked, his voice soft and deadly. "Did you think you were the only one allowed to get his way today?" He sighed and urged gently, "Let me see your arm."

After Heero's fingers slid slowly away, Duo studied the bandaging carefully. There was no sign of it unraveling and the gauze was just as white as it had been when he'd removed the roll from its cellophane wrapper. An hour earlier, after Heero had finished the apple and yanked the IV out of his arm, Duo had had just enough time to fetch a pail for Heero before he was doubled over and heaving. He'd looked completely miserable and yet not at all repentant, and Duo hadn't said a word; he'd just handed him a clean wet washcloth to wipe off his face. He'd given Heero a glass of lukewarm water to sip at while he changed the dressing, and since it had been the first time Duo had taken them off since he'd brought Heero here, he'd been nervous about what was underneath. Although he'd been surprised at how quickly the wounds had healed, there were still a few places where the skin was abraded and raw -- and now that Heero was awake and determined to act like he hadn't just cheated death, Duo worried that he was tearing at his stitches.

It was probably a good thing Heero had been unconscious as long as he had. Knowing Heero, he'd probably have wrapped some duct tape around his arm and tried to walk it off, claiming it was only a flesh wound.

Duo rubbed his thumb over the edge of the gauze and stood up. Instead of pacing, he leaned his butt against the table and let Heero roll the chair back on his own. "I know I can't stop you," he said resignedly, "but I am going with you."

Heero looked like he was going to protest, but he only had to take one look at Duo's face to realize he really had no choice. He gave a curt nod and went back to work.

Duo focused on Heero's fingers as they flew across the keyboard, because he was finding it far too difficult to concentrate on the task he'd set for himself when Heero pursed his lips in concentration. It was up to him to save Heero from himself and his warped sense of penance.

He knew he'd have better luck breaking through a brick wall with his head, but damn it, he was going to try.

"You boys be careful now," Howard said, slugging Duo on the shoulder lightly and then turning to Heero and doing the same. "They think this one's dead and that's in your favor right now."

"You just don't want me coming back here with Deathscythe in pieces," Duo said, jerking his thumb toward the back of the truck. "Don't worry, old man, I need this baby for a little longer. I'm more worried about Superstar over here." His head nodded in Heero's direction.

Heero rolled his eyes. He'd told Duo he was quite capable of handling this mission on his own, but Duo had insisted. Despite the fact that he knew Duo was not going to sit by quietly and let Heero take care of something that was important to him, he also had to admit he might need the help. If he couldn't even handle a simple task of information retrieval without difficulty, he wasn't sure how long he'd be able to keep going as he traipsed around the globe. That was assuming that the first person they visited didn't take him up on his offer, because if that was the case then it was a moot point.

He knew Duo didn't understand. Duo was right about one thing -- it could have been any one of them. What Duo failed to understand was that it hadn't been. He'd been the one to take off after the shuttle and it was because of him that innocent men devoted to bringing about peace, men just like Relena, were dead. Heero hadn't thrown up since the day he'd woken from his coma, but the sour taste in his mouth at the memory was a bitter reminder of his mistakes, one that only strengthened his resolve.

Duo climbed in the driver's side but he waited until Heero managed to pull himself up and into the seat next to him before swinging his door shut. He put both hands on the wheel and looked over at Heero.

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

Heero turned to glare at him, but the look of genuine concern on his face and the faint glimmer of Duo's teeth where he was worrying at his lip had him turning away. Looking out the windshield, he saw green grass, blue skies, and stalks of wheat bobbing as the wind blew. Off in the distance a few cows roamed and overhead the clouds were white and fluffy, without a trace of grey.

"Yeah," he said, balling his hands into fists in his lap. "I am."

Duo started the truck and headed out onto the road without another word.

"Duo."

Duo parked the truck and let it idle. Resting his elbow on the steering wheel, he turned toward Heero and pushed the brim of his hat up to see Heero better.

"Something on your mind, Heero?"

Heero was glad that Duo was wearing the cap. With his hair tied back behind him, he'd looked different than he had the day Heero had opened his eyes. His vision had been blurry and his eyes had felt crusty and dry, so all he'd seen at first was the hair.

His first thought was it was Relena sitting at his bedside, and he wasn't sure which of the two of them that was more insulting to. Sure, Duo's face had been hidden at the time, but his posture and the size of the hand that had been covering his eyes should have registered. It didn't matter to Heero that he'd just woken up and could be excused for the confusion; paying attention to details was something that Odin had trained in him at an early age and the middle of a war was no time to regress.

At least he'd realized his mistake immediately, and Duo hadn't exactly acknowledged it, so either he'd not heard what Heero's first word was or he'd chosen to ignore it in favor of something else.

Heero had stared down enemies in mobile suits that dwarfed housing complexes, and yet he'd never felt vulnerable the way he did right now. He was glad they'd rolled the windows down earlier because it was beginning to feel rather stuffy in the cab of the truck.

"If anything happens, don't worry about me."

Duo frowned, and it was obvious he didn't like the sound of that. "What do you mean, if anything happens? You mean if someone says, 'Sure, Heero, I'd love to put a bullet right between your eyes, because it will bring back the loved one I lost and I'll never have to think, for the rest of my life, just how it felt, killing an unarmed man who made a mistake.' That what you're talking about, Heero?"

It wasn't what Heero meant, but that didn't mean that scenario wasn't a possibility. Duo knew that and he'd still insisted on coming with him. Heero supposed someone would be needed to take care of the cleaning up, and he felt a small twinge of guilt that the responsibility would probably fall to Duo. This was exactly why he hadn't wanted Duo's company. He was doing what he felt was right and having his decision challenged at every turn was not making it any easier.

That was probably why Duo had insisted on coming, but if Duo thought his arguments, no matter how impassioned, were going to change Heero's mind, he was going to have to get used to accepting defeat.

The twinge of guilt was a little sharper now, but Heero ignored it in favor of concern for someone besides the family members he was seeking out.

"If something unexpected happens. If we're found." He narrowed his eyes. "I'll only slow you down with this arm."

"Last I checked, Heero, running for cover relied on your legs. As much as I'd love to see you prancing around on your hands to get away from the big bad Ozzies, I'm afraid you're stuck with me."

Heero wasn't about to waste any more time arguing. It was clear that he and Duo did not agree on this course of action but as long as Duo stayed out of his way, he could play devil's advocate until he was blue in the face. Heero had made up his mind and no one, not Duo Maxwell, not Relena Darlian, and maybe not even Dr. J, was going to stop him until this mission was complete.

Duo was still staring at him, but Heero noticed someone out of the corner of his eye turned his head, breaking their eye contact.

"It's Sylvia Noventa."

Duo turned off the engine and took the keys from the ignition. "Well, then," he said, pulling his hat back down over his eyes. "Looks like it's show time."

Duo had agreed to wait in the truck, and technically he was following the spirit of that promise if not the letter. If Heero didn't agree that was just too bad, because they had a lot more ground to cover and he didn't only mean the names on Heero's list.

He could hear the two of them just fine from where he was standing but he knew that anyone as close to her grandfather as Sylvia Noventa had been would decline Heero's offer. Heero knew that just as well as he did, but he was going to plow his way through the offer anyway.

If he didn't want to deck Heero so badly for this he'd probably laugh in his face. At least he might if Heero didn't look simultaneously determined and defeated as he extended his gun toward Noventa's granddaughter.

Duo had to agree with a lot of what Sylvia was saying to Heero with the exception of one thing. Heero was the last person that Duo would say was looking to take the easy way out. For all that he disagreed with Heero's determination to seek out every last member of the surviving family members until one of them accepted that offer, he knew that Heero meant it when he told Sylvia it was all he could offer her.

That didn't mean he was right, but that was the way Heero thought.

Duo wasn't sure which of them he felt worse for, and finally Heero lowered his arm and bowed his head as he walked away from her. His steps were slow and Duo could tell he was in physical pain, but then he'd been watching Heero closely ever since he'd opened his eyes.

It made him forget everything he'd just decided during Heero's exchange with Sylvia and the moment Heero returned to the truck he opened his mouth and let Heero know.

"She's right."

Heero ignored him, but Duo expected that. When he reached for the door handle, Duo clamped his hand on Heero's shoulder. "Heero," he said, "I know you." At least he did more than anyone else probably did, so that was saying something. "This is an easy way out, and that's not like you. You're letting your guilt drive you. It's coloring everything you look at and if you'd just take the time to think this through --"

"Why did you save me?"

Duo lifted his hand from Heero's shoulder. "What?"

"Why did you save me? I was supposed to die that day, with honor."

If he'd been feeling angry before, it was nothing compared to how much Heero made him want to tear his hair out in frustration right now. "Honor, Heero? You did a great thing. You stopped the attacks against the colonies. You achieved what you wanted -- what does it matter if you're alive now? Maybe someone else will be saved because you're still around. If you pressed that button because you didn't think you deserved to live," Duo's voice was becoming raspy and he had to stop to swallow. "If you did it because you were feeling sorry for yourself, like she said, then maybe I wasted my time."

"Maybe you did," Heero said, and he pulled the door open to climb in.

Duo sighed as the door swung shut with a loud bang. Heero was definitely hurting. His movements were stiff and clumsy and he'd fumbled for the door before slamming it shut. He raked his fingers through his hair and let out a breath in a sound like an idling motorcycle.

This was going to be a lot harder than he'd thought.

Duo was used to the silent treatment from Heero, but this was different. It wasn't Heero ignoring him in favor of working on his Gundam or thinking ahead a mile a minute. This was Heero hell-bent on a personal mission that couldn't possibly end well.

Duo knew about survivor's guilt. He lived with it everyday, and sometimes there were moments when, out of the blue, he could remember just what ice cold milk had tasted like, or the way the church had smelled on days when Sister Helen made fresh bread. It was never the same from week to week and sometimes, usually around holidays and special occasions, the aroma would have a hint of cinnamon, but Duo found that he still couldn't pass by a bakery without wandering by as close as he could just to capture the scent.

He did it even though he knew it would leave him feeling more hollow inside than hunger ever did.

He had no idea what Heero's childhood had been like and he tried to picture him at the church. Would he have argued with Father Maxwell over the existence of God? Would he have let Sister Helen trim his bangs to keep them out of his face? And would he have had just as hard a time finding a permanent family, with his cold-as-ice posture and don't-come-near-me glare? He almost wished he'd known Heero back then. He'd be willing to bet that if Heero had been there that day, he'd have done the same thing Duo did. Maybe if he'd been there...

Duo's fingers tightened on the steering wheel. There was no point following that train of thought. He'd spent many nights playing the "if only this had been different" game and it was frankly quite tiring.

"Hey, Heero," he said, glancing over at his silent companion. "I don't know about you, but I'm getting kinda hungry. Mind if we stop for a bite?"

He didn't expect much of a reaction. Maybe a grunt that said "do whatever you want; it's not like I can stop you anyway" or maybe just a glare that said "do I look like I'm hungry?" The last thing he expected was for Heero to stop staring out the window and actually look at him.

Heero was feeling sick to his stomach. The pain in his arm he could handle but the headache that had come on since they'd left Sylvia Noventa had not only made him nauseous, it made it hard for him to think. If he couldn't think then he couldn't plan out how he'd approach the next family member, and without a plan he was only wasting his time as well as Duo's.

At the first sign that anyone was trying to contact one of the pilots regarding a mission, Heero was going to send Duo back to pick up his mobile suit where they'd hidden it. He was next to useless with this arm and he refused to let Duo babysit him if he was needed for Operation Meteor.

He tried not to think about what Duo had said to him and how offering his life up on a plate would only take him out of the war at a time when he was needed the most. By all rights he should already be dead anyway and this was the only way he knew how to make it up to the ones he'd hurt.

If Sylvia had taken that gun and used it, he wouldn't even be here thinking about it.

Duo had made no secret that he disapproved, but he hadn't interfered, at least not directly. Heero knew that this would soon become a pattern, where he'd attempt to offer his life in exchange for the one he'd taken away, and if the offer was refused, Duo would repeat the same arguments he'd covered ever since he'd found out what Heero's plan was. With the time it would take for them to reach their next destination, Duo certainly had plenty of opportunity to formulate new arguments, and Heero could only be grateful that if he'd already come up with one, he was keeping it to himself for now.

The throbbing behind his eyes was getting worse and he knew that listening to Duo would be like having nails driven into his skull.

He slitted his eyes to shut out some of the light coming through the windshield. Duo hadn't said anything more so it was obvious he was waiting for a response. Heero would have flicked his eyes down to Duo's hands if he thought he could do it without making his head feel ready to explode, so he kept his gaze on Duo's profile instead.

Duo's expression was surprisingly neutral, neither frustrated nor grinning with disarming charm. With his eyes half-shut, Heero's vision was a little sharper, and he realized that a tiny frown was on Duo's lips, but not one of annoyance. The two of them had been driving all day and they'd had little sleep the night before. Aside from the apple, which hardly counted, he couldn't even remember the last time he'd eaten more than a few spoonfuls of soup.

His stomach growled as if just realizing this, and he saw the faint crinkles in the corner of Duo's eye as he laughed quietly.

"I could go for a sandwich," he admitted, and in the brief second that Duo turned his head to look at him in surprise, Heero stopped breathing.

"You got it, Heero," Duo replied, the familiar grin teasing his lips. "Just leave everything to me."

Heero wasn't sure how long he'd been waiting for Duo to come back, but he'd dozed off, much to his surprise, waking only when he heard the faint rustle of paper. He blinked open his eyes and closed them rapidly as the headache and the accompanying nausea returned with a vengeance. The sun seemed overly bright and he was regretting his decision to stop and eat, although the constant rumbling of the truck over asphalt hadn't exactly been helping either.

He heard the paper crinkle again and he could feel Duo sitting down next to him. A cold plastic bottle was nudged against the fingers he had curled in the blades of grass and he picked it up, fumbling with the cap for an embarrassingly long time before he managed to twist it off.

Heero drank it greedily, leaning his head back and dribbling water down his chin. It felt good, and when he was finished he let the empty bottle fall from his fingers. He slit open his eyes just enough to see Duo sitting next to him with a loaf of bread across his lap. A wedge of cheese was in one hand and a knife in the other.

"Thanks," he croaked, and he let his eyes drift shut again. There was some movement at his side and then Duo's fingers were on his wrist, lifting his hand and turning it palm up. Heero cracked open one eye but it was Duo and not the aspirin now sitting in his hand that held his attention.

"Here," Duo said, handing him a second bottle with the cap already removed. He shrugged and looked away. "Thought you could use 'em."

Heero popped the pills into his mouth and crunched on them out of habit. He drained half the bottle before he had to turn away, coughing uncontrollably and thinking he was going to vomit up all the water he'd just ingested. He'd almost welcome that if it meant his stomach would stop protesting every move he made, and he felt ashamed that right now all he wanted to do was lie down, close his eyes, and never open them again.

It was a fleeting wish and when it seemed that the nausea had passed, he sat back against the tree and placed the bottle between his legs. He hadn't realized that his hair had caught in the bark on the tree until he turned to look at Duo again and it pulled painfully at his scalp, blurring his vision and making everything look as if it were illuminated with a row of stage lights.

He'd wanted to die, but not like this.

Duo was straddling his thighs and before Heero could protest, his arm was brushing against Heero's ear. "Hang on," he said. "I'm a regular pro at this. Happens to me more than I'd like to admit."

He picked away some of the bark, sending a shower of chips down the back of Heero's shirt, and then his hair was free. Duo sat back, his weight both heavy and warm on Heero's legs, and gave him a sheepish grin as he held up a few strands of hair pinched between his fingers.

"Sorry," he said. "It's a lot easier when you can move your head out of the way." He picked up the end of his braid and wagged it, but when he looked at Heero's head leaning against the tree he seemed to realize only now that he was still sitting on Heero. The faint flush of color on his cheeks was enough to give Heero a sense of satisfaction and he waited until Duo was sitting next to him, cross-legged, before expressing his thanks.

Duo hacked off a piece of bread that was thicker on one side than the other and he handed it to Heero before carving a slice of cheese. "Yeah, well," he shrugged, cutting some for himself before jabbing the knife into the block of cheese and setting it down on the paper bag next to the bread. "It was a lot worse before I started braiding it."

Heero took a small bite and chewed slowly, his eyes traveling over the length of Duo's hair. He couldn't imagine how long it must have taken to grow down to his ass and yet it wasn't as though Duo had never cut his hair, because otherwise it would most certainly be one length and his bangs wouldn't exist.

He was one to talk, he supposed, rubbing the back of his neck. He kept it short in the back but the front seemed to grow like weeds. It had always done that and now he couldn't picture himself with his hair any other way.

"Why didn't you braid it earlier then?" Heero asked as he picked up his bottle and took a sip. "If it got stuck that often."

Duo shrugged. "Never thought about it, really. It was long and sometimes it got caught, but it never stopped me from doing what I needed to do, ya know?"

It was a reasonable answer, but Heero suspected he'd touched a sore spot. He rubbed his finger against his lips, brushing away a few crumbs, and took a bite of the cheese.

It was surprisingly good.

"Where did you get all this, anyway?" he asked sharply.

Duo had been hoping that Heero wouldn't pursue his line of questioning about his hair, but that didn't mean he welcomed the sudden change in tone, from amiable to accusing. He narrowed his eyes.

"Don't you worry, Heero, I had this," he pulled his cap out of his pocket and tossed it on the grass next to Heero, "and I wore my hair tucked under my jacket. I've been stealing food long before I met you and just because I've had to put up with your suicide solution doesn't mean I've lost my touch, so do me a favor. Eat your fucking cheese and say thank you or don't say any-fucking-thing at all."

He'd actually been enjoying himself, too, and then Heero had to go and remind him that he was as insane as Heero for ever thinking that this was a good idea. It was tempting just to let the self-destructive asshole go off and let himself get killed or captured, which was nearly the same thing in Duo's book after he'd watched Heero throw himself out a window and ignore the parachute that he'd so painstakingly got for him, but Duo was not going to let Heero win this one.

No, Heero could push all the buttons he wanted, but he would not be on this crack-headed mission alone.

He refused to meet Heero's gaze even though he knew Heero was staring at him. It seemed that was where he fell in Heero's universe, either as an annoyance, like a mosquito that had to be swatted away, or ignored. Or maybe Heero thought of him as some sort of lackey who was to say "yes, sir, whatever you wish, sir," and keep his opinions to himself.

Bullshit.

He could hear Heero sigh and it took all his willpower not to turn his own glare on him and ask "What?" with every ounce of the pissed-off, pent-up anger he'd been carrying around with him since long before he'd ever met Heero or G or set foot in a Gundam.

And then, just like a punch in the gut, Heero took all the wind out of his sails.

"This reminds me of the times I've been out camping."

"Yeah?" Duo grunted. He was insanely curious, but the last thing he was going to do was give Heero the satisfaction of knowing that.

"A long time ago. We were on the move a lot, and there were times when we'd go out and practice shooting, and catching fish, and I learned how to start a fire without using any matches." He'd also learned how to cover his tracks, which included a lot more than making it look like there had never been anyone at the campsite, along with a few other things that he wasn't ready to share with Duo, but it was true. For all that his time with Odin had been very much a never-ending training session, he'd enjoyed those times in between jobs when it was just the two of them.

"A regular Davy Crockett, you were," Duo said, peering at Heero through his bangs. He had a lump in his throat, thinking of Solo and the others, and how even though those had been hard times, they'd had some good times, too.

He should be pissed that Heero was making him think of things that he tried to not exactly forget but to put aside for a while. He wrapped his fingers around the handle of the knife and scratched at it with his thumb until he found the crudely engraved initials. He pulled it free, wiped it on his pants, and hit the switch to retract the blade before slipping it back into his boot.

"I've got to warn you, Heero. I'm going to make sure you get through this war alive."

Heero was in the process of bringing the bread to his mouth and he stopped. This time their eyes did meet, over the brown flaky crust, and Heero acknowledged the challenge with a quirk of his eyebrow.

He wasn't going to give Duo anymore than that, because to do so would be the same as hoping that Duo succeeded.

Duo could see what this mission of Heero's was doing to him and he was helpless to do anything about it. As much as he'd told Heero before they'd even started that this was a bad idea, he hated the slump in Heero's shoulders each time he finished giving his spiel to the surviving family member. When Heero returned to where Duo was waiting, he never met his eyes, and that was even more telling because Heero had a tendency to stare at him intently, as if he were on the verge of saying something. He never did, but there was always a moment, or more a Moment with a capital M, when Heero looked at him that way, and Duo missed it when Heero came back looking like a scolded schoolboy.

Duo was glad that he'd been right, probably far more than he should be, but Heero had to have known just as well as Duo did that pulling the trigger would do nothing to hasten anyone's recovery from grief. No one really wanted to be responsible for the deaths of others, at least not anyone with a shred of humanity. If that was true for the family members who turned Heero away with looks that ranged from impotent rage to sadness, and sometimes even a bit of sympathy, then it was certainly true of the soldier who'd been given a second chance.

So Duo knew he should keep his mouth shut because the last thing Heero needed was an "I told you so". On the other hand they didn't have time to indulge in self-recrimination. They'd spent the last couple of weeks doing nothing but that and it was time to move on.

The moment the gates closed behind them, Duo wiggled his pen in the air and made a great show of crossing the last name off the list. "Feel better now?"

Heero shook his head as they walked away from the estate. "It's not that simple."

"And yet that's exactly what you tried to make it." When Heero turned to glower at him, Duo raised his hands up, the list wrinkling in his grasp. "Don't look at me, Heero. You're the one who thought you could trade an eye for an eye and find redemption. It's not there. It's never going to be there and you know it."

Despite Heero's injuries, his pace had matched Duo's easily and they quickly reached a cobblestone path lined with trees. Heero's shoes, sharp black and squeaky clean, made a faint clopping sound, like a shod horse, as they walked, marking another difference between now and the day of their first meeting, when Heero's boots hadn't made a sound on the dock, not even when he dove for his gun.

"No," Heero said, shaking his head. Duo waited for him to continue, to elaborate or explain, but it looked like that was all he was going to get from Heero.

It didn't matter. Heero was feeling down and out right now, but he'd get over it. Duo meant what he'd told Heero about making sure he got through this war alive, and that promise didn't end just because Heero's self-imposed mission did.

"Hey," he said to Heero once they reached the truck. He tossed the key over to Heero, who caught it without blinking.

It had probably only been a figment of his imagination that the corners of Heero's mouth had twitched, just for a second, but Duo couldn't help grinning at him as he pulled the passenger door open and climbed in.

They hadn't driven very far when Heero glanced in the rear view mirror and informed him, "They've found us."

Duo turned around and saw the military jeeps drive past the intersecting road they'd just passed. "Well, what can I say, Heero. It's not everyday a man returns from the dead. Maybe they want to find out what makes you tick."

He couldn't blame them. He was becoming borderline obsessed himself with figuring out what drove Heero to make the decisions he did. Duo looked over at Heero again and recognized the stubborn set to his jaw.

"Take the next corner, slow down as you make the turn, and I'll hop out and get them off your back."

"I'll take care of it."

"You'll take care of getting your ass hidden," Duo barked. "We did it your way; I was a good boy and let you play Russian roulette. Now you're going to ditch this truck after you let me out and get somewhere safe. I'll find you when I'm done."

He saw the skeptical lift of Heero's eyebrow and he winked as he touched his fingers to the door handle.

"I'll know where you are," he said, "because it'll be as far away from where I am as possible. And trust me, Heero, you'll know where I am."

He tumbled out of the truck as Heero rounded the corner and darted down an alley. It felt good to be in action again, and he rubbed his fingers over the scar in his thumb before reaching into his braid and pulling out a long thin rod.

He pressed his back against the brick wall and breathed deeply. It was time to show Heero that he wasn't the only one who could get things done.

Heero should have known, he really should have. The first time he'd met Duo he'd been shot -- twice -- and the second time involved an awful lot of excessive effort from someone who'd damn near tried to kill him.

However, it had worked then, and it worked now. Heero had no doubt about that because the moment the air resonated with the first boom, olive green trucks turned and headed toward the billowing black smoke and bright red flame. The second one went off a scant fifteen seconds later, in the building right next to it, and once it was clear that the military was moving north, Heero headed south.

So much attention was on the explosions and the response to them that no one noticed Heero slip inside the back of the fruit truck, and once there he leaned against the wall and slid down gratefully. He'd taken care not to limp or otherwise demonstrate that he was injured, lest someone assume he'd been involved in the fracas, but now his arm was throbbing again.

He touched his hand to his chest. In all the time he'd spent with Duo, he'd never asked the extent of his injuries, but he was pretty sure he'd broken a couple of ribs when Wing blew up. He was lucky that one hadn't pierced his lungs.

The truck's suspension system was doing little to damp the vehicle's motion, and Heero bit the side of his tongue as he was bounced around the back. He splayed his fingers against one of the crates next to him for support, ignoring the tiny pricks of pain from the splinters embedding themselves beneath his skin. He gritted his teeth as the truck hit another bump and sent a cascade of apples down on his head.

He was worried about Duo. The explosions had done the trick, but how Duo could have possibly set them up and rigged them to go off in sequence concerned him. Did Duo have a remote detonator, and did he have the sense to not hang around and admire his handiwork afterwards?

Heero barely knew Duo. They'd shared a few classes and traveled across two continents together, but aside from their missions and their mobile suits, what did they really have in common? Heero appreciated everything Duo had done, but as soon as J contacted him again, this partnership could very well come to an abrupt end, and if Duo did anything to jeopardize his success, Heero would have no choice but to take care of him.

He didn't think it would come to that, but someone like Duo seemed to fly by the seat of his pants, and Heero knew from personal experience how dangerous that could be.

He held his breath as the vehicle came to a stop, and just as he was getting to his feet, the truck lurched forward again, sending Heero to his knees. He bit his lips to keep from groaning. Every bone in his body felt like it was vibrating at a high frequency and he buried both hands in his hair, breathing deeply to control the sudden wave of nausea.

It was taking too long to recover. It had never taken this much time before, but then the extent of Heero's past injuries had been broken bones, burns, lacerations and puncture wounds. He didn't think he had any internal injuries, but it had been nearly two months now and he shouldn't still be struggling to get dressed, and he certainly shouldn't be feeling motion sickness on a land bound vehicle. If he felt this awful now, there was no way he'd be able to pilot a mobile suit, and if that were the case, what use was he to anyone?

He heard a loud clanging ahead, and at first he thought it was only in his head. Heero curled his fingers around the wood of the crate and pulled himself to his feet, keeping his back against the wall and counting to ten.

He was feeling almost back to normal by the time he'd reached nine, and he opened his eyes and peered out of the truck. There was a railroad crossing up ahead and it was just the opportunity Heero needed to ditch his ride and find a place where Duo could meet up with him.

Duo had better be right about knowing where he was, Heero thought as he bent over and vomited in the bushes, because he was no longer quite sure of it himself.

Heero looked like shit.

Duo found him in the barn, sitting with his back against a bale of hay and looking closer to death than he had the day Duo had picked up his lifeless body. He dropped to one knee next to Heero and slapped at his cheeks lightly.

"Heero?"

A loud groan broke the silence and Duo clapped a hand over Heero's mouth, smiling weakly in relief. He leaned toward Heero, his lips lightly brushing the hair that curled behind Heero's ear, and whispered, "It's me."

"Shit." Heero licked his lips and cracked open one eye. "I'm in hell."

Duo sat back on his heels and shook his head, biting his lip to contain the nervous laughter that threatened to bubble out of him. "Tell me about it," he said. Heero's arm was outstretched and Duo noticed the apple held loosely in his grasp.

"Aw, Heero, you shouldn't have," he said, picking it up and taking a bite.

"Fucking things," Heero said, a faint smile on his lips. "They were out to get me."

Duo dropped the apple and leaned forward again, pressing his knee between Heero's legs and prying open one of Heero's eyes. "Looks OK," he muttered, then repeated the action with Heero's right eye.

"Shit."

"Duo?"

"Yeah, Heero?"

"They were out to get me."

Duo patted Heero on the leg. "I know, Heero, I know."

"Fucking things."

Duo felt like he wanted to cry. "I know."

He found Heero's hand with his and twisted his fingers around Heero's. "Here," he said, handing the apple over. "Eat it. Show it who's boss."

Heero opened his eyes and looked at the apple as if he'd never seen one before, then accepted it with a nod. When he looked at Duo to say thank you, Duo squeezed Heero's hand, biting his lip to keep from losing it.

With both eyes open, it was even more noticeable how much larger one of Heero's pupils was than the other.

After the sun had set, they moved outside, where the air was cooler and the grass much softer than inside the barn. Heero had stumbled a few times and finally Duo grabbed one of his arms and pulled it over his shoulders, supporting Heero's weight as they walked.

Heero was tired, and it killed Duo to force him to keep putting one foot in front of the other, but every time they stopped to sit down, Heero's eyes would close, and Duo would have to shake him awake, which was probably worse than Heero falling asleep. They were both exhausted but Duo hadn't come this far to lose Heero to brain swelling now.

After two hours of walking around, Heero was struggling to stay awake even when he was walking, or leaning against Duo and letting himself be dragged around, and Duo had to keep lightly pinching him on the arm. It unnerved him the way Heero would smile at him goofily each time and when it seemed like Heero really was going to remain sleeping while standing with one arm slung over his shoulder, a chill ran down Duo's spine.

"Talk to me, Heero," he said, gripping Heero's cheeks between his fingers and shaking his head from side to side. "Come on, Heero. Tell me about the times you used to go camping."

"Camping?"

Heero's words were slurred but Duo was so relieved to hear them that he tightened the arm around Heero's torso. "Yeah. Camping, fishing, the whole great outdoors adventure."

Heero was blinking at him owlishly and that's when Duo realized just how close they were. Heero's lashes tickled his cheek and he sucked in a breath, relieved that Heero didn't seem to notice how much their proximity affected him. Heero's lopsided smile was back and Duo lifted his arm and slipped out from under it. He felt like the entire side of his body was going to sleep and he switched to Heero's right. It surprised him when Heero slung his arm obligingly around Duo's shoulder without any prompting.

They began walking, their steps slow and out of sync but steady nonetheless.

"It was fun. It was supposed to be work, but it was like a vacation, too. No target, no deadline. Fun."

"Sounds it," Duo said encouragingly. "You said you went fishing?"

"Mmm hmm. The first couple I caught weren't big enough to eat."

"What did you use as bait?" Duo had finally managed to match his pace to Heero's and he bit his lip as Heero's hip pressed against his own with every other step.

"Worms, usually. Fat wriggly ones. One time we used one of the fish I caught. It...wasn't doing too good." Heero sounded almost sad.

"It wasn't?"

"Uh uh." He was silent long enough that Duo thought he'd fallen asleep again, and he was ready to stop and check when Heero turned his head so his face was close to Duo's again. "I had to kill it."

Duo's stomach twisted a little. He'd foraged for food himself -- mostly fruit and vegetables, with a number of five-finger discounts for breads. Meat had been a rare treat, because the risks of starting a fire were many and it had to be eaten immediately lest it spoil. Fortunately there was nothing appealing about food that required much preparation when fresh bread and apples would do.

He thought he should change the subject and turned to look at Heero, swallowing when his nose brushed against the side of Heero's head. "Heero," he breathed, so quietly that Heero didn't hear him. He cleared his throat and said, a little louder, "Tell me how you started a fire without any matches. What'd you do, rub two sticks together?"

"No. Takes too long." Heero was listing to the left, his body pressing intimately against Duo's long enough to send a shudder throughout Duo's body.

"So then what did you do? Gather kindling and use a magnifying glass?"

"Uh uh." Heero shook his head. "Shot at the tinder."

Duo could not have heard him correctly. "You...started a fire with a gun."

"Mmm hmm. First have to open up the bullet to get the powder. You pour that on the tinder." His tone, although groggy, implied that step should have been obvious. "Stick some cloth in the cartridge case," he pointed his finger and cocked his thumb, "and bang."

Duo stopped, therefore making Heero stop as well, and stared at him. "How old were you when you learned this?"

Heero shrugged. "Dunno."

Duo swallowed and licked his lips. Heero had bent his head and although Duo tried to convince himself he only wanted to see Heero's eyes to make sure he hadn't fallen asleep, there was another reason, too -- one that he had no business entertaining right now.

He put his fingers under Heero's chin and tipped his head up. "Heero," he said, and in those two syllables was all the sorrow he felt, for Heero's childhood and his own, for their current circumstances, and for the fact that there was still a war going on and he might never get a chance to make a difference, not even to one person.

"No," he whispered. "I refuse to give up."

Heero's hand was on his shoulder, patting him awkwardly, and Duo squeezed his eyes shut.

"It's OK, Duo," Heero reassured him.

Duo placed his hand over Heero's, holding it still and giving it a light squeeze.

He really wanted to believe that, but right now he was gripped by cold fear, and when Heero put his arm around Duo's shoulder again and began rubbing his back, the feeling of dread grew worse.

"I'm not going to lose you, not now," he promised Heero under his breath, but the shiver that ran down his back made him feel like he wasn't fooling anyone, least of all himself.

Once, just once, don't punish him for my mistake.

Duo put his head on Heero's shoulder and tried not to think of how much it would hurt when -- if -- Heero didn't make it.

"Duo?"

Through crusted eyelashes Duo could see Heero leaning over him. He sat up groggily and smacked his lips a few times, wincing at the taste in his mouth and longing for a glass of water.

It took a moment for the events of the previous day to come rushing back at him and his eyes snapped open the rest of the way. Sunlight was coming through the slats in the barn and he grabbed Heero's arm. "You OK?"

"I'm fine," Heero reassured him. "Here."

Cupped in both of Heero's hands was a large green leaf holding a fair amount of water. Rather than attempting to take it from Heero and probably end up spilling most of it down his shirt and on the floor, he put his hands under Heero's and brought the makeshift cup to his mouth and drank.

"Where'd you get this?" he asked, his voice hoarse and scratchy.

"There's a pump outside," Heero replied. "And some carrots."

Duo's stomach growled in response and he and Heero exchanged smiles. "Sounds like a plan."

They'd been here for nearly twenty-four hours, but walking outside with Heero appearing alert and unconfused was like seeing the place for the first time. It appeared abandoned, but probably hadn't been for long because the crops had been harvested and the vegetables not yet completely eaten by rabbits and field mice.

Heero got down on his knees to pull up some carrots and Duo walked around looking for signs of anything else that might be edible.

There was an eerie calm about the place, as if they'd fallen through a portal and wound up in another dimension or at least in a world separated from the one he'd known all his life by a glass wall.

Duo had no luck finding anything that hadn't already been destroyed by bugs or that looked even remotely like something a human should put in his mouth, and he wondered if Heero had already made a complete search of the area.

He frowned. He didn't like the idea of Heero wandering around in his condition, even if he had to admit Heero was thankfully no longer repeating himself or walking with an unsteady gait. Heero was still digging through the dirt, salvaging carrots, and Duo felt a sense of pride, as if he were a mother bird watching his young learn to fly for the first time.

Assuming, that was, that birds actually felt things like pride or love. Duo dropped to his knees beside Heero and dug his fingers into the ground to assist Heero in harvesting the little bit of food there was.

They were both filthy when they'd finished, but there was the pump ready and waiting and Duo held up his findings, considerably less than Heero's since he'd started much later. He shook them, sending a shower of soil to the ground, and grinned.

Heero rolled his eyes at him and the two of them went to wash up, Heero taking the pump handle with a look that told Duo there was no arguing with him.

Heero could feel his muscles strain as he worked the pump, but he welcomed the pain. It helped break through the muzzy feeling he'd had since yesterday and it gave him a sense of purpose, however small. He hated being an invalid. It was bad enough waking up knowing someone else had been responsible for feeding him, even if it had been intravenously, bathing him, and taking care of his bodily functions -- but to rely on someone else now that he'd recovered was a severe blow to his pride.

He couldn't recall a lot of what had happened yesterday, and he'd felt a lump on his head the size of a small egg when he'd woken up slumped next to Duo, just before sunrise. It had taken him a while to realize they weren't in a prison cell and that neither of them were shackled. He'd breathed a sigh of relief when he'd felt for his gun and found it still in his pocket.

It would explain the numbness in the side of his leg, where he'd probably lain on it all night.

Walking around the farm had been more than a search for food. He'd needed to reassure himself that no one had discovered them yet, and there was a feeling in the back of his mind that someone should have, that they'd done something to attract attention to them and that it was only a matter of time before he really did wake up in a cold dark cell waiting for execution or a chance to escape. Either way he had to be ready to take his very short future into his own hands, much as he had the day he'd blown up Wing.

He'd been surprised at how quiet it was here, and despite the fact that all appearances suggested that there was no one here but the two of them, he couldn't shake the feeling that someone was out there watching them. Not even the sun cresting over the horizon could chase away the chill that ran down his spine and he'd gone to wake Duo.

"I assume if you'd seen anything this morning you would have told me."

Heero stopped pumping and looked at Duo, who had taken off his jacket and was holding two sorry looking bunches of carrots. Both Duo and the carrots were dripping wet and Heero's eyes slid away from the sight of Duo's white shirt clinging to his chest when he realized he could see Duo's nipples through the sheer layer of cloth.

"Want me to take over?" Duo's voice rumbled, more than it had when he first woke up, and Heero nodded distractedly as he traded places with Duo and washed his hands under the cold stream of water.

He flicked his fingers, wiped his hands on the cleanest part of his pants -- the rear -- and he and Duo sat down next to the pump and ate their carrots.

"I didn't see anyone," Heero told him, "but I don't like it. It's too quiet."

Duo knew what he meant. While there was a sense of tranquility, he knew all too well how easily a peaceful setting could be razed to the ground without mercy. He swallowed too soon, a piece of carrot lodging uncomfortably in his throat, and he got up to work the pump again, attempting to catch some water in his hand that way.

He'd like to think it almost worked, but his arms simply weren't quite long enough. He was saved having to ask for help when Heero got back up and took over the task of pumping until Duo could fill both hands and drink. It took several swallows before he felt the carrot go down the rest of the way.

"Thanks."

Heero watched Duo slump miserably to the ground and it made him only more aware of how much he hurt. If he had to do it again, he didn't think he'd make it a second time, and he had no business believing otherwise.

When he sat back down next to Duo, he watched Duo's mouth as he chomped on his carrots, but that was only because he was unable to meet Duo's eyes.

By evening, Heero was looking a lot better and he didn't seem to be suffering any long-lasting effects, much to Duo's relief. They'd decided that they couldn't stay at the barn any longer and headed west, avoiding main roads and keeping a low profile. They hadn't eaten a thing since the carrots at breakfast, so when they discovered a patch of wild daisies, they looked at each other cautiously, disputing what type of flower they were and whether they were even edible. They turned out to be bitter and disgusting -- they'd at least agreed on that -- but they ate them anyway.

In a lot of ways this reminded Duo of the time he'd spent with Solo. He'd looked up to Solo, but with Heero he argued about almost everything. Solo had been amiable and charming and Duo had followed his guidance and advice nearly to the letter. Heero had a far more commanding presence, acted like he was born with a gun in his hand, and could walk around on a broken leg he set himself looking more pissed off than hurt -- and yet Heero seemed far more innocent than Solo ever had.

Then there was the fact that Duo had tried to save Solo and failed but had managed to pull off the impossible with Heero.

The sun hadn't set yet but the moon was already visible, and Duo rubbed his fingers over his thumb as he watched Heero aim his gun at a pile of kindling and fire. He'd always thought he should have died when Solo did, but now it seemed like he was getting a second chance.

While Heero used Duo's knife to skin a rabbit he'd caught, Duo excused himself to go look for something, anything, else that they could eat. Carnage he was used to, but he'd never caught and cooked his own game and he wasn't sure he'd be able to muster up an appetite for it now. He was happy enough to pump water for Heero so he could wash the blood off his hands and then the two of them sat down in front of the fire and watched the spitted rabbit turn dark brown on the edges before Heero turned it over.

It had been a small rabbit so it didn't take long to cook, and the moment of truth came when Heero lifted the spit and offered it to Duo. He'd gone longer without food and he'd eaten the daisies earlier, so he shook his head. His stomach turned slightly at the thought of eating something that he'd watched Heero kill with his bare hands.

"No thanks."

Heero pulled a piece of meat off and shoved the entire thing in his mouth, going so far as to lick his fingers afterwards, and Duo watched in horrified fascination as Heero chewed, swallowed, and went for a second piece.

He hadn't even thought of his mouth being open until Heero's fingers were pushing a stringy piece of rabbit into his mouth. He tried to protest but Heero's fingers were like a vice against his cheeks and he couldn't spit it out. The look in Heero's eyes warned him not to before he loosened his grip, and Duo managed to swallow without having to bite into it first.

"Don't try that again," he managed to gasp, and he clamped his lips together firmly the moment Heero's fingers returned to the speared meat.

Duo had no way of knowing what was coming next. Even later that night, when he went over it in his head, he couldn't see that he'd missed anything. If Heero had telegraphed it, it wasn't in any way that Duo could have possibly interpreted until it was too late.

Duo sat there rigidly, lips pressed together in a thin line, until the last of the rabbit was gone, but he never had a chance to sigh in relief because Heero's hands, fingers greasy and blackened, were in his hair and his mouth was on Duo's. When he felt something wet and warm slid across his lips, they parted in surprise, just enough for Heero's tongue to push a piece of rabbit meat into his mouth.

He could have gagged on it, and nearly did, because Heero didn't stop there. He massaged the roof of Duo's mouth, sending a shiver down his spine that had nothing to do with the fact that this time he could actually taste the rabbit. When he choked it down, Heero's tongue was there again, sliding against his own and making sure there wasn't a trace of it hiding in Duo's cheek.

And then it was gone. Heero was on his feet and heading toward the pump like nothing had happened.

Duo stared after him, open-mouthed. He wanted to leap to his feet, run after Heero and belt him across the face for what he'd done. He wanted to rail at Heero for playing such a dirty trick, and he wanted to kick him square in the ass just for being the most difficult person he'd ever spent a significant amount of time with.

He did none of those things because, as he realized with a sinking feeling in his stomach, he didn't want Heero to get the wrong idea, that Duo had been repulsed or intimidated.

Most of all he didn't want Heero to get the idea that he'd felt faint stirrings of arousal from his first kiss.

Heero wasn't sure why he'd done it. He could have easily pried Duo's mouth open if he had to, and in fact he'd already force-fed Duo that first bite. He wasn't completely back to the way he'd been before he'd self-detonated but he had no doubt that he could have held Duo down and persuaded him to eat.

The thing was that he hadn't actually thought about it, he'd just done it. He supposed he was lucky that Duo hadn't decided to bite down as hard as he could. He dried his hands off on his pants, leaned his forearm against the pump, and looked over to where Duo was sitting. He'd turned his back on Heero but his head was tipped back, and he was looking up at the sky as if he didn't have a care in the world.

The setting was idyllic and they both knew that the facade of peace could be shattered at any moment. Duo had been right about one thing; there was no room for self-recrimination, and Heero didn't plan to beat himself up over it -- not about something he wasn't particularly sorry for. He walked back toward Duo, hands in his pockets, and sat on the ground next to him with his legs stretched straight out in front of him. He waited for Duo to say something, to demand an apology or to get up and start telling him off, but Duo acted as if Heero wasn't even there.

Heero looked up at the sky where Duo's gaze seemed to be fixed, and he leaned back until he was on his elbows.

"This was my favorite part of camping," he said softly. "Just before the sunset, when you could see the sun and the moon in the same sky." Back then, once it was dark out, it was time to practice night maneuvers. He'd actually enjoyed those times, too, on the occasions when he could show Odin how much better he'd gotten since the last time. The parts he'd liked the best, though, were the ones when he didn't have to do anything other than enjoy his surroundings and pretend for a little while that he and Odin didn't have another job just a phone call away.

Duo hadn't meant to acknowledge Heero, not right away at least, but he found himself unable to keep from asking, "You lived here? I thought you were a colony brat."

"We did sometimes, and I don't know, maybe."

"That you're from the colonies or that you're a brat? Because I can answer one of those for you right now."

It was a perfect time for Heero to apologize, but it was apparent that wasn't going to happen, and Duo supposed that if Heero wasn't really sorry, they'd be empty words anyway.

"So what did you after dark? Start fires with one hand tied behind your back while hanging upside down from a tree and singing Kumbaya?"

"No. It was business."

Heero's voice had grown cold and Duo stared at him incredulously. There was no way he'd ever be able to figure Heero out. The guy went from hot to cold to lukewarm to Mr. Freeze and around again within minutes. He wasn't sure why he was bothering and he certainly didn't know why he even cared.

"It's pretty."

Heero had spoken so quietly that Duo thought it was a whisper on the wind, an echo of his own thoughts, and he realized that with the position of the sun, Heero's profile was in silhouette, the slight curl to his lashes visible even now.

The moon wasn't pretty, Heero was, far more than any man had a right to be, and it made Duo think of the parody of a kiss that they'd shared just minutes ago. It annoyed him because he was pissed at Heero right now and he didn't want to start trying to figure out what the hell was happening between them. The pink of the sky had lent its hue to the moon, and the craters were more visible now, making it look like nothing more than a papier-mache model hanging from an invisible wire.

In a way, that's how it seemed OZ viewed the colonies, like pinatas that had been pretty to look at but were now just something to be destroyed for the bits of treasure that might come from them.

"Do you miss them?" Heero asked.

"Who?"

"Your family, loved ones, people from your colony."

"I don't have any family." None that were related to him, and none that had survived. He managed to make his reply just as cold as Heero's had been, but this time Heero didn't take it as a sign to let it drop.

"But you did."

"Technically, we all did, Heero. Or maybe you were one of those test tube experiments. You know, a DNA milkshake, whipped to perfection and grown into a blue-eyed baby boy."

It was mean of him to imply that Heero's existence was the product of a mad scientist in a lab somewhere, creating super soldiers impervious to pain. There had been rumors of such things when he was a kid, the modern day bogeyman, as well as gossip that there were mobile suits designed to be practically indestructible. Duo hadn't thought that there was enough gundanium in the entire universe to build one, let alone five, but he'd had a hard time grasping the extent of things beyond his immediate needs back then.

It was funny how much could change in such a short period of time.

"Your eyes are blue, too."

Duo swallowed. He'd never really noticed Heero's eyes until they'd fluttered open in his room, and now he didn't think he'd ever forget their exact shade of blue. "Yeah," he said, getting to his feet. "Makes us practically brothers, doesn't it?"

Duo found the idea a little upsetting. "I'm going to go wash up."

He could feel Heero's eyes on him all the way to the pump. The water was blessedly cold and Duo managed to wet his hands and wipe his face before giving into the temptation of looking back over at Heero. Their eyes met, causing Duo to shiver in a way the water hadn't -- and then he jumped as a loud clap of thunder was heard.

The look they exchanged just before the skies opened up was one that said, "oh shit."

They were out in the open. Duo's teeth were chattering, his hair was in his eyes, and he wished that he'd remembered earlier the hat he had in his pocket. There was little point in putting it on now, with his hair wringing wet. He glared at Heero who was walking next to him with his arms crossed over his chest, just like Duo. Heero's hair was lying flat against his head, giving him a drowned rat appearance.

Duo could only imagine what he looked like. He might have remembered to put the hat on if it hadn't been for Heero's actions earlier.

He'd been in favor of finding shelter, but Heero had been adamant about staying in the open -- the safest place during a lightning storm -- and although Duo knew that he was right about that in theory, it didn't make him any happier to be standing in the middle of a downpour, soaked through to the skin. He certainly wasn't any more at ease standing this close to Heero, reluctantly sharing a bit of body heat, where he could see the water streaming over Heero's lips and remember how they'd looked after their not-really-a-kiss.

Only it had been a kiss. Heero hadn't needed to thrust his tongue inside Duo's mouth after he'd already swallowed the rabbit, and that was the part that had Duo questioning just what the hell had happened.

Heero sneezed and Duo wanted to tell him it would serve him right if he caught a cold, but truthfully he was worried that was exactly what would happen. What if Heero's immune system had become compromised? What if he developed a lung infection when they weren't anywhere near a source of antibiotics? Even if nothing serious happened, he didn't think Heero's ribs could withstand a violent bout of coughing.

He couldn't help looking at Heero's lips again, and the idea of seeing them blue with cold -- or worse -- made him wish Heero hadn't forced him to eat Peter Cottontail. If he hadn't been knocked so off balance he'd have argued more strongly against standing out in the middle of nowhere.

"You realize we're a couple of sitting ducks out here, don't you?" he snapped.

Heero swept his arm around the field. "We'll see them coming."

"They could surround us."

"They could do the same if we were inside."

He hated when Heero was right. If they'd stayed at the barn, they'd be dry, but the storm might conceal the sound of an enemy approach, and if their exit was blocked, they'd be trapped unless he and Heero were miraculously able to kick down the back wall. Always identify your exits; that was something he'd learned a long time ago. It didn't make him any drier or less hungry, however, and his fingers were beginning to ache from the cold.

Heero could not seriously still think that this was better than taking their chances getting struck by lightning.

Of course he supposed that argument would make a lot more sense if they'd actually found anything resembling a roof and four walls rather than a few trees whipping about in the wind.

They were moving along slower than he'd have liked, but without any sign of shelter there was no point in running. They were already drenched and he wasn't sure it would be healthy to do anything that might make them have to breathe harder.

It was becoming a tempting idea, however, just to get the circulation pumping and warm them up.

He grabbed Heero's shoulder and pointed when he saw it. "Look!" he shouted above the roaring of the wind. His wet bangs were whipping against his face and he was sorry he'd turned to look at Heero, but it was worth it to see him mouth the words "Run for it."

By the time they reached the shed Duo had a stitch in his side and was panting heavily. The interior smelled of burnt oil and mildew, but it had a door and a roof and that was all that mattered, even if it meant taking shelter where it was standing room only.

There were parts littered everywhere making up every conceivable piece of landscaping equipment that had ever been invented, and every one of them was disassembled or rusty. Duo peeled off his jacket and threw it over a snowplow, then undid the top button of his shirt and rolled up his cuffs.

Heero went one further, undoing all his buttons and removing the shirt altogether. The angry red scar that had torn across Heero's chest was already faded to pink but his nipples were as dark as Duo remembered, and Duo was afraid to even lift a hand to scratch his nose lest he accidentally brush against one of the hardened nubs. Although he'd washed Heero dozens of times, he wasn't ready to find out what it would be like to pinch his nipple and roll it between his fingers. It was easier to avoid thinking about doing it anyway if he pretended that the most fascinating thing he'd ever seen was the rusted tractor next to them.

He hoped neither of them cut themselves while they were in there, because on top of the risk of catching pneumonia, they didn't need to add tetanus or infection to their growing list of obstacles. Especially Heero who seemed completely at ease standing around half-naked in an abandoned shed with someone he'd just sort-of-kissed a couple of hours ago.

Duo had to stop thinking about that, but the more he tried to focus on heading back to where he'd hidden Deathscythe and how the others were faring, the more he became aware of how close Heero was standing.

He backed up when Heero reached for the buttons on his shirt but something sharp jabbed him in the rear and he jerked forward, his groin coming to rest directly against Heero's.

If there was a hell, it had to be something like this.

Heero's body was warm but his fingers were cold, and Duo tried to slap his fingers away, only to receive the patented death glare that only Heero could deliver.

"You'll be warmer if you take this off."

"Not sure what good it's going to do," Duo groused. "It's not like I'm not still going to be wet from the waist down."

Heero looked down to where his body and Duo's were pressed together, and Duo knew he was actually considering it.

"No. Abso-fucking-lutely not."

Heero didn't argue the point, but he did continue unbuttoning Duo's shirt until Duo yanked it away from him. He wasn't exactly happy about it, but Heero was right about this, too, and Duo felt more comfortable taking care of it himself. Having Heero undress him was an intimacy that made him uneasy, and he was glad he had to step back to pull the shirt over his arms because it left a couple inches of space between him and Heero.

After he'd tossed his shirt next to Heero's, he pushed his bangs out of his face and without thinking reached over to do the same for Heero. He felt a little stab of disappointment when Heero turned away right afterwards, but then he realized Heero's intent as he leaned back against Duo's chest.

It took Duo several aborted attempts to finally give in and wrap his arms around Heero's torso, and if it warmed his nose to press it against Heero's neck, making Heero jerk in response, it was all about survival at this point.

He had made a promise to Heero, after all, and Duo had never broken a promise.

They'd spent the night on their feet but leaning against each other, and Duo had been convinced that meant neither of them would be able to sleep. When he blinked open his eyes only to close them again the moment he felt Heero's hair poking at his face, he realized he'd done exactly that -- and it was obvious he wasn't the only one.

Heero was still asleep, and although he wasn't exactly snoring, each breath he took sounded a little wheezy. Duo hoped that didn't mean anything more than Heero wasn't as quiet a sleeper standing up as he was lying down and not a sign that anything was wrong.

Duo had a crick in his neck from sleeping with his chin on Heero's shoulder and he was uncomfortably sweaty where his bare chest was pressed against Heero. His pants were still wet, as were his socks, and he had itches in places he couldn't reach, not comfortably and not in this position.

His skin made a sucking sound as he dropped his arms and peeled himself away from Heero's sweaty back, and it was enough to make Heero jerk his head up, indicating he was awake now too.

"This is going to sound really stupid, after that shower and all," Duo said, pulling at his black pants, "but I swear I could use a bath."

Heero turned around slowly, blinking his eyes and looking sleepy. His hair had dried sticking up in twenty different directions, reminding Duo of a hedgehog, and the sight made him put a hand tentatively to his own bangs. They were crunchy and standing straight on end, in contrast to the heavy wet braid down his back that added one more to the list of places on his body that itched. He reached behind him to scratch himself at the base of his spine.

"Any more bright ideas?" he asked in a voice that told Heero that he'd not considered the last few ideas Heero had had bright in the least.

Heero moved cautiously toward the door and slowly slid it open, squinting as the rays of sun hit him full in the face. He grabbed the shirt nearest to him and stepped over the raised doorframe, waiting for Duo to join him outside.

Much to Duo's consternation, Heero had already unbuttoned his pants and was pushing them down over his hips. After toeing his shoes off, he pulled the pants off the rest of the way, and finished by yanking off his socks. He combed his fingers through his hair and stood there before Duo in all his naked glory.

Duo didn't mean to stare, but Heero was standing right there.

If Heero noticed the unnecessary length of time that Duo was spending checking him out, and he'd have to be blind not to, he kept it to himself. "We need to hang up our clothes to dry," he said, shaking out the sock in his hand. It smacked against his abdomen and left a faint red mark that faded almost immediately, and Duo finally averted his gaze.

It was the socks that convinced him more than anything because the skin between his toes itched, and since his balls didn't feel much better, he shrugged and sat down to pull off his boots.

Heero was standing with his arms folded, and he wasn't even trying to hide the fact that he was very interested in watching Duo disrobe. What Duo found more disconcerting was the not-so-subtle evidence that Heero appeared a little more than just "interested", and he was once again staring at Heero.

Heero knew it, too, because this time when Duo tore his eyes away from Heero's crotch and looked him in the eye, Heero smirked.

"Well, Heero?" Duo said, waving his underwear around like a flag. "I suppose you had a plan for where exactly we're hanging these, because I don't see any trees out here."

Heero nodded toward the shed they'd just emerged from. "There's a couple of rakes and hoes in there."

"And this is where you tell me that another of your hidden talents is that you can make things levitate."

Heero shot him a withering glance. "We stretch them across the sawhorses."

"There were sawhorses in there?"

"Behind the tractor."

"Behind the -- no, Heero. No. I'm not... No. Just no." He seemed to be saying that a lot around Heero.

Heero shrugged. "I'll get them myself."

Duo watched him walk back to the shed dumbfounded. That was it; Heero was certifiably insane. Crawling over rusted out equipment with his pride and joy dangling made Heero's headfirst dive from the Alliance medical building seem rational.

He looked up at the sky and wondered what he'd done to deserve this, then yanked his pants back on. If his hands weren't so stained with blood, he'd have earned sainthood by now. He started to follow Heero and then sat right back down. Fuck it. Heero knew exactly how Duo was going to react and was most likely going to wait for him, so first things first.

Duo pulled his foot into his lap and rubbed his fingers between his two smallest toes. Damn, that felt good.

Heero was leaning against the shed, arms folded and eyes watching Duo's approach. Without looking away, he reached behind him, around the door, to grab a rake and a wooden handle that was missing its functional end. He threw them javelin like onto the grass and crooked a finger so that Duo would follow him around the back.

There, in the shade, was a coiled length of rope. Heero jerked a thumb toward the front of the shed. "We can use those as stakes and tie this between them."

"Asshole," Duo muttered. "You knew about this the entire time." He could be wrong, but Heero seemed rather pleased to hear that.

Duo wasn't sure if the stakes would hold once their wet clothes were draped over the rope, but he was willing to give it a shot. It seemed that the two of them were pretty good at defying odds lately, and it wasn't as if he'd woken to a day that could be considered normal in years.

Heero seemed to be feeling just fine, because he raised the first handle high over his head and drove it into the ground with unexpected force, sinking it a good foot and a half. Duo used the blade of his knife to unscrew the rake from its handle and handed it to Heero wordlessly. It was just as impressive watching it the second time, and the two of them uncoiled the rope and made their clothesline.

With the sun shining brightly overhead, Duo was tentatively optimistic that even his boots might be dry by the time they got dressed again. It really was a shame that there was no place to take a bath, because after last night he felt disgusting. He rubbed briskly at one arm, making a face as tiny black particles appeared on his skin. He almost wished it would rain, just a little and only long enough to scrub his skin clean. His hair was another story.

Heero was already sprawled out on his back in the grass, looking like da Vinci's Vitruvian Man, and Duo wondered how he could just lie there without scratching at something.

The hell with it. Heero wasn't paying any attention to him and his balls itched.

And son of a bitch, he was wrong about that. Heero was watching him, and Duo knew this because there was no way it was just a coincidence that Heero was right then cupping his own balls and rubbing at them with his thumb. Duo's mouth grew dry as he realized that what Heero was actually massaging right now was the underside of his cock.

It wasn't as if Heero was erect -- not even a little like he'd been earlier -- and this was nothing that Duo hadn't done himself. Nonetheless he felt much hotter than he should have considering the rope of cold wet hair down his back, and Duo looked over at their clothes as if he might be able to get them to dry faster if he stared at them hard enough.

Out of the corner of his eye he could still see Heero lying there, and both arms were stretched out at his side again, fingers curled and eyes closed. Duo scratched the back of his neck, which was still stiff and sore from sleeping while standing up, and decided that while many of Heero's ideas were completely out there, this one actually had some practical merit.

He flopped down on the grass next to Heero, rubbed at his face a few times, and then stretched out next to Heero. Even with the cool wet grass beneath him, the sun felt warm and comforting. He reached out his fingers until they bumped against one of the guns lying on the ground between him and Heero.

There, out in the middle of the field, they slept.

It was the firm pressure of Heero's hand on his stomach that woke him, and through bleary eyes he saw that Heero was sitting up, alert and listening keenly for something. Duo tapped the back of Heero's hand to let him know he was awake and Heero's fingers slid off, triggering a sudden lurching in Duo's stomach.

Duo sat up and cocked his head, trying to determine if there was anything out there, even though the only place for anyone to hide was the shed. They were both very well acquainted with how difficult it was to just stand in there let alone conceal themselves; every move bore with it the risk of toppling something over.

Heero was moving now, gun in hand and wriggling through the grass on his stomach. Duo felt a sense of dread creeping up over him at the thought of buried land mines. He wasn't feeling too much better when Heero stood up, aimed his gun at the ground, and fired.

Duo had never lived anywhere where he'd encountered snakes and he didn't have a phobia about them or anything, but the thought of a set of fangs coming anywhere near him in his present state made him recoil. He cupped his balls protectively as if the dead snake might leap up and bite him where it would hurt the most.

Heero lowered his arm, gun at his side, and turned to look at Duo, who was already grabbing his pants and underwear off the line. They got dressed in silence, and Duo found it difficult to keep from dancing from one foot to the other, but he managed it. He was, however, unable to keep from looking around for any signs of something slithering in the grass.

He hoped his voice didn't quaver when he asked, "Poisonous?" He reached for the white shirt nearest him and pulled it on, curling his toes into the grass nervously as he watched Heero's face.

"Yes."

Duo really didn't want to sit on the ground to pull his socks back on, but his legs were too shaky to maintain the balance he needed in order to put them on while standing. It wasn't until his feet were safely ensconced in his boots and he was standing back up that the shivering stopped. He realized halfway through buttoning his shirt that he'd grabbed Heero's by mistake.

Heero must have noticed, because he was still shirtless and looked rather amused. Duo mumbled an apology as he hastily stripped off the shirt and handed it over.

The bandages winding around Heero's ribs had grass stains on them, and Duo realized that Heero seemed to be moving without the stiffness that had plagued him the past couple of days. He wondered what it looked like under those bandages now and his eyes flew toward the faint white scar near Heero's collarbone.

He didn't think he'd ever be able to get that image out of his head, or the sound the gundanium had made when he'd pulled it free. He'd known he'd need to stanch the flow of blood quickly but there had been so much of it. It was hard to believe all that was left now was a thin white line.

His eyes met Heero's and he swallowed, rubbing unconsciously at the scar on his thumb. He'd come very close to losing Heero.

"We need to go back."

Duo started, so intent on memorizing every detail of Heero's face that he'd been in a world of his own. "Back?"

"Your mobile suit. We're going to need it."

Duo picked up his black jacket, slung it over his shoulders, and pasted a grin on, just for Heero.

"Heero, my man, you don't know how glad I am to hear you say that."

Once he was back in Deathscythe, he might feel a little more in control of whatever was lying in wait for them.

Heero grabbed hold of the outcropping of rock and hauled himself up onto the small ledge, then waited for Duo to join him. Duo had insisted on taking the rear, watching Heero's back, and Heero had been in no mood to argue. Reaching his arms overhead and straining every muscle in his body was pushing him to the limit, and he mentally cursed once again the fact that while the pain was at least tolerable, it was obvious his injuries still had a way to go before he was completely healed.

He didn't regret what he'd done. J had refused to surrender the Gundams and Heero had been in complete agreement with that, but he'd also known that Une wouldn't hesitate to make good on her threats if she didn't get her way. The element of surprise and the shock value of his sacrifice hadn't been a guarantee of success but at least it would mean there would be one less Gundam for OZ to use for their own ends. His was just one life, and compared to the millions that lived on the colonies, there had been no question what he needed to do. J had convinced Heero not to throw his life away once. Ultimately it had been Heero's choice, but he was sure J would understand why he'd done the only thing that he could under the circumstances.

It had hurt. Heero had been in pain before but never like that, and then his vision had grown blessedly dark and he'd simply ceased to be -- or so he'd thought.

Heero had never expected to see another sunrise or moonlit night, or be caught in a rainstorm. He'd never dreamed that he'd sit around another campfire and he sure hadn't thought that he'd ever spend as much time with another person as he had with Odin let alone someone who made it seem perfectly natural to contemplate the meaning of life and his own purpose.

He never thought he'd find himself curious about another person in ways that had nothing to do with anticipating their next move.

Heero had been trained to observe. Know your target, he'd been told -- his habits, his likes and dislikes, his fears and his loves. Figure out where and when to strike, how to get in and out quickly, and if you had the luxury of time, cover your tracks when you were done. Since he'd woken, Heero had spent every waking moment with Duo -- and every sleeping one -- and he had no doubt that, despite not knowing very much about Duo at all, he knew enough to be able to kill him.

He hoped it would never come to that, and that hope had nothing to do with the fact that Duo had saved his life and therefore he owed him one.

"You OK, Heero?"

Duo touched his arm, right above the bandage, and Heero nodded curtly. If he didn't think about it too much, it was easier to deal with, and he'd have time to wallow in misery after they reached Duo's mobile suit.

It was a shame that he'd had to blow up Wing, because his fingers itched to be at the controls again.

Duo didn't have a chance to say anything more as they resumed their climb. It took enough energy to pull himself up, and he knew it had to be hell for Heero. Each time Heero faltered ahead of him, Duo's breath caught in his throat. They'd argued about this, too, but in the end both had resigned themselves to the fact that the best way to get to Deathscythe unnoticed was to avoid the most obvious places anyone would be looking.

That didn't mean that anyone in an aircraft overhead couldn't pick them off with a couple of well-placed shots, but so far it seemed that they'd managed to keep themselves under the radar.

He just hoped that nothing with teeth of any kind had managed to crawl inside his clothes, and the thought made his insides squirm. When they got to Deathscythe's hiding place, Duo was going to put his foot down with Heero. He was going to take a shower, even if he had to hold someone at gunpoint in order to do it.

A cascade of rocks showered down on his head, and he sputtered and blinked and looked up worriedly to see if Heero was still doing all right. He didn't think he'd ever miss a thing the way he missed Heero's boots, but that was because they'd have been far better suited for this than the shoes he was wearing now.

Just a couple more miles, he told himself, and then he and Heero had a few things to clear up between them.

But that, too, could wait until after he'd taken a shower, and although Duo had to bite back a curse, he was thankful for the sharp bite of stone in the palm of his hand. The pain went a long way toward wiping away the image of Heero standing under a shower spray as proudly as he had out in the field, only this time with glistening rivulets of water running down his skin.

The best-laid plans of mice and men often went astray, however, and as he and Heero definitely fell into the latter group, he wasn't surprised that they'd come across another obstacle. He wasn't happy about it, and he spent a few minutes cursing the boulder that blocked their path, but he wasn't surprised.

Heero had looked almost amused as Duo's swearing had turned into aspersions about the boulder's parentage with a side of creative threats involving nonexistent body parts.

Duo leaned back against the rock and held up his hands as if to ask what else could go wrong.

Heero stood next to him and placed a hand flat on the boulder. "It's not going anywhere."

"You think not? Now I know why I keep you around, Heero. The voice of reason, the pointer outer of the obvious. Don't forget to poke me if you notice I've forgotten to breathe, 'kay?"

Heero didn't reply, and Duo looked away in disgust. There was no point in being sarcastic if no one was going to appreciate it. He'd no sooner turned his head when he jumped away with a sharp yelp as something jabbed him in the ribs.

"What the fuck, Heero?"

Heero was still holding out his index finger and the expression on his face looked so innocent that Duo had to laugh. "You, Heero, are a first class asshole."

Heero leaned an elbow against the rock, shoving his fingers through his hair and looking rather smug. "No one wants to be second best."

Duo wiped at his eyes. "No," he acknowledged. "No one does." He mirrored Heero's position and met his gaze steadily. "So now what?"

"Now," Heero said, leaning forward until his breath ghosted across Duo's face, "we head into town."

"And what, pray tell, do you plan to do once we get there?"

"I don't know about you," Heero whispered, "but if I spend one more day in these clothes I might have to start walking around without them."

Heero was so close now he was out of focus, and Duo licked his lips. "That might draw some attention," he breathed.

His face might have been blurry, but not so much that Duo didn't notice the curve of his lips that suggested that Heero was rather hoping that might be the case.

Heero had decided to take his shower second, acknowledging that Duo's hair would take quite a bit more time than his own, and for that Duo was grateful.

He rolled the bar of soap between his hands and dug his fingernails into it. There wasn't a place on his body that didn't feel soiled and he lathered the washcloth again, rubbing it over his chest and neck. He was probably going to leave Heero with hardly any hot water, but he couldn't summon any real guilt over it.

It wasn't because he was thinking of Heero. It was simply a physical response to stimulation as he washed himself that had him growing hard, that was all. There was absolutely no connection between his soapy cock jumping in his hand and the fact that he'd not only seen Heero naked but had had Heero's tongue in his mouth.

Biting his lip to prevent himself from crying out, he shuddered under the shower as he came. It had nothing to do with the fact that he could remember all the times that he'd bathed Heero with lather that smelled very much like the hotel soap Duo was using right now.

"Duo?"

He'd been so intent on his not-fantasy that he was taken by surprise and he banged his elbow against the tile. "You OK, Heero?" he asked. The best defense was a good offense, and he wasn't about to let Heero think that there was anything wrong in here.

Not that there had been anything wrong at all.

"I thought you called me."

"Think you need to get your hearing checked, Heero." Duo's first reaction had been a quickening of his heart and a fluttering in his stomach, but he'd known that he'd been quiet. He'd shared a room with others before, and he was no stranger to circumspect masturbation. Even if Heero had some kind of super hearing, he couldn't hear a sound that didn't exist in the first place, and Duo knew without a shadow of a doubt that whatever had brought Heero to the bathroom right now, it wasn't because he thought Duo had called him.

In other words, Heero was lying, and Duo wasn't sure if he wanted to delve into the reason behind that right now. His only purpose in stroking himself now was to rinse off soap and semen and he watched it swirl around the drain to make sure the evidence was gone before he pulled open the curtain.

Since Heero was obviously going to take a shower next, Duo left the water running and he took his time reaching for a towel. All attempts at showing Heero that he was completely unaffected by Heero's presence and his own nudity were forgotten when he realized that Heero did have a very good reason for coming into the bathroom when he did.

"Shit."

Heero was hanging on the doorframe, the bandage around his arm unraveling and stained a bright red.

Duo snapped into action immediately, grabbing a hand towel and running it under the water. He guided Heero to the toilet to sit down while he crouched down next to him, wincing as he unwound the rest of the gauze.

The good news was it didn't smell bad, aside from the fact that Heero hadn't bathed in days and that the bandage had absorbed all of his sweat in addition to the blood. There were no visible signs of infection and it didn't appear that any of Duo's crudely placed stitches had torn, but it was clear that he should have removed them long before now because while the sutures had held, Heero's skin had not.

He swallowed. "Heero? I'm going to have to cut away those stitches." What he meant was, "and it's going to hurt like the devil" but he was sure Heero knew that. He put his hand on Heero's knee and squeezed.

"Do it," Heero said, and Duo got up to get his knife.

He hoped a good washing with soap and very hot water was enough to sterilize it, and he mentally repeated a little prayer that he'd been taught a long time ago before kneeling down on the tile floor. The sight of clotted blood and torn skin made him nauseous but not nearly as much as the thought of causing Heero any more pain.

He picked up Heero's hand and placed it on his shoulder, then bowed his head. "I'm sorry," he whispered, and he brought the blade of the knife to the first bit of black thread.

Duo had heard people scream in pain before. Solo had experienced fevered delusions, one of the kids that had spent time with them had lost his finger when a steel door had shut on it, and he'd heard his own agonizing howls when Sister Helen had died in his arms. Pain was part of life and Duo was far more intimate with it than anyone should be, but never had he been in a position where he'd seen one human being suffer as much as Heero had.

If he'd been sick watching Heero set his own broken bone, at least he could look away. He didn't have that luxury this time. He'd just snapped the first thread and Heero's fingers were already clamping down painfully. Blood had oozed out anew and if it looked this bad, he didn't want to know what it felt like, even though Heero's grip on his shoulder was a pretty good indicator.

He hated himself for having to do this and it only got worse each time he had to make another incision. His knife wasn't made for precision work and he could feel the muscles in Heero's legs tense when he had to make a sawing motion against one of the stitches.

Duo was sure he was going to be sick before he finished, and it was only Heero's hoarse "Duo," that weak plea for him to keep going, that strengthened his resolve. His brows furrowed deeply and he focused on the fact that the sooner he finished, the sooner he'd be done inflicting any more pain on Heero and the sooner he could get him cleaned up.

When it was all done and the sink was littered with bits of Heero's flesh, Duo dropped the knife and let it clatter into the porcelain basin. Heero pitched forward, his good arm wrapped around Duo's back and his head pressed against his shoulder. He was sweating profusely and Duo's fingers found Heero's hair, stroking gently. When he felt a faint trickle of something warm run down his collarbone, he began rocking Heero back and forth, rubbing circles between Heero's shoulders and assuring him that it was going to be all right.

They ended up staying the entire night at the hotel, and when Duo managed to get Heero into the shower with him, it was a far cry from the way he'd imagined it earlier.

Heero thought he was going to die. The worst part was that this was nothing compared to how he'd felt after Wing's explosion had sent him hurtling across the ground, but he'd lost consciousness quickly. He'd also not had anyone around to watch him curl up into a fetal position and wallow in his own misery.

Actually, he had, in a way, but he'd been blissfully ignorant of it at the time. He'd been so relieved when he woke up that he could still move his hands and feet, but he'd felt immensely bitter that he'd been denied his chance to die with honor. Then Duo had become even more of a thorn in his side, insisting on going about with Heero as he sought redemption, and although he'd known all along Duo was right and that pacifist families didn't suddenly leap on the eye for an eye philosophy, he'd hoped for something.

Heero knew he didn't deserve forgiveness but at least if he'd died, it would have been a small step in restoring some sort of karmic balance. It didn't matter what his intentions had been; he'd still killed innocent people and it hadn't been the first time. Every morning when he woke up, he focused on what he needed to do and how he was going to carry out his mission. Not having one gave him far too much time to think about mistakes he'd made and people whose lives he'd irrevocably destroyed. He'd spent a very long time closing himself off from these feelings and he didn't need the wall to start crumbling now. An acrid taste filled his mouth and he just hoped he wasn't going to vomit again.

He felt a cool hand on his brow and looked up at Duo's worried face. Instinctively he clenched and unclenched his fist, relieved that his hand was still responding and although it felt like a fire was racing down his arm, the pain was a good sign that his nerves weren't damaged.

In a moment of self-pity, Heero realized how very much he disliked anyone seeing him in this condition and if Duo hadn't been an ally, Heero might very well have slit his throat.

"You had me worried there for a minute, Heero."

It was obvious that Duo hadn't slept. His eyes were red-rimmed and his voice was raspy, and Heero tamped down the flare of anger he felt, both at Duo for saving him in the first place and at himself for not keeping himself distant. He wanted to ignore Duo, to turn a cold shoulder and pretend he was in too much pain to stay awake, but that would only mean Duo would lose more sleep. He shouldn't even care.

Heero pushed himself up, bracing himself with his good arm, and watched the way Duo's eyes darted all over the room. He could do it now, stop either of them from getting in any deeper.

When he followed Odin's advice, however, things never went the way they should.

"Let me give you a word of advice," he said. "In case you ever try it yourself."

"Yeah?" Duo said, looking up at Heero from where he was kneeling on the floor beside the bed.

"Hurts like hell."

Duo looked dumbstruck, and then he began to laugh, and Heero would have joined him but he'd already found out how much doing things like coughing and breathing deeply hurt his ribs.

His fingers found Duo's hair and smoothed through the strands in a petting gesture, and as Duo rested his head on the mattress, his bangs tickling Heero's abdomen, Heero wasn't sure whom he was comforting more, Duo or himself.

If there was one thing Duo prided himself on, it was his ability to get past locked doors and alarm systems. The apothecary in town was hardly a challenge but Duo was grateful for that, because he hated leaving Heero alone even for the short time it took him to get his hands on the supplies he needed.

Back in the hotel room, he tossed his hat onto the chair and reached into his pocket, pulling out the rolls of tape and gauze and a tube of antibiotic cream and setting them on the bedside table. He dipped his hand into his pocket one more time and shrugged out of his jacket before sitting down on the bed next to Heero, who opened one eye as the mattress dipped.

"Hey," Duo whispered, brushing a lock of hair out of Heero's eyes. "You sleep at all while I was gone?"

Heero grunted. Duo had barely been gone fifteen minutes, but he had dozed off. Out of necessity, he'd learned to fall asleep at the drop of a hat if circumstances allowed, but he'd always been a light sleeper. It bothered him that the faint click of the key in the door hadn't woken him.

Duo waited for Heero to sit up and then held out his hand. "Got you something," he said, uncurling his fingers and revealing the candies in his palm.

Heero picked one up and stared at it, and Duo cleared his throat nervously. "Lemon drops," he said. "I didn't come across them often, but when I did, they were always a big treat for us."

Heero untwisted the cellophane on one end, brought it to his lips, and used his thumb to push the candy out of the wrapper and into his mouth. The moment the lemon drop touched his tongue, he sucked his lips between his teeth instinctively and glared at Duo, who wasn't trying to hide his smile at all.

"Sour, aren't they?"

Heero rolled the candy around his mouth, unsure whether he liked it or not. There had been times in his life when he'd eaten bread that he'd found in a garbage can. He'd foraged for fruit and berries with Odin when they went camping and when they were on a job, their room service menu had competed with five-star restaurants. During his training as a Gundam pilot, his meals had been chosen specifically for their nutritional benefit and not at all for their taste. Throughout his life, Heero had eaten a variety of foods, many of them bland, some of them surprisingly delicious, but not once had he ever eaten a piece of candy.

He sucked on the lemon drop, hard, and bit into it lightly to see if it had softened at all.

"Yes," he said, his words slurring as he attempted to keep his spit from dribbling out of his mouth.

"So," Duo asked, rubbing his thumbnail across his eyebrow. "What do you think?"

Heero clacked the candy against the back of his teeth, letting the lemon taste flood his mouth as the drop dissolved. These were candies for children. He'd always expected candy to taste sweet, like cane sugar or maple syrup, and he wondered how he could be surprised at the thought that someone was making money creating something that was deliberately sour.

He reached into Duo's hand and picked up another one, only this time, when he popped it into his mouth, he grabbed the back of Duo's head, slammed their lips together, and passed the lemon drop to Duo.

Duo's reaction was much quicker than it had been when Heero had caught him off guard with the rabbit meat, and he slid his fingers through the hair at Heero's nape as he accepted the candy into his mouth. The lemon was tart, more than he remembered, and he held it in his mouth, tucking it between his cheek and gum while Heero massaged the roof of his mouth before retrieving it with his tongue and passing it back.

This time there was no doubt about it; Heero was definitely kissing him, and when Heero slowly reclined on the bed, drawing Duo with him, Duo pressed his knee between Heero's legs to keep his weight from crushing his ribs.

He'd nearly forgotten why he'd had to leave Heero alone in the first place until he noticed the pink stain on the sheet out of the corner of his eye, and he pulled away reluctantly, breathing hard and trying very hard not to look at Heero's lips. Lemon drops had never been Duo's favorite candy before, but he was fast reconsidering that.

"I'm going to go wash my hands before we get started," he said, and when he reached the bathroom door, he couldn't resist one more peek at Heero, at his artfully mussed hair and parted lips.

He wished he had the time to take a cold shower before attempting to patch Heero back up, but he supposed he'd sober up quickly enough once he unwound the pillowcase from Heero's arm.

Despite his concerns about hurting Heero, it was a lot easier doing this when he was conscious. Heero held his arm straight out at his side so that Duo could wind the bandage around it, and when Duo finished with that he raised his hands overhead to facilitate the taping of his ribs.

His hands dropped to Duo's shoulders, and he could feel Duo stiffen. "Sorry."

"Yeah, well," Duo said, tearing off a piece of tape and pressing it firmly in place to keep the gauze from unraveling. "Don't be."

Heero watched him put everything away, tucking the supplies into the pockets of his jacket, and thought that as much as he wanted to take Duo's advice and not be sorry, he had a feeling that both of them would regret what had just happened, and very soon.

It was impossible not to be infected with the same enthusiasm Duo had when they finally reached the hanger where Deathscythe had been hidden. Fortunately this airstrip was privately owned and although warnings were posted against trespassing, there was no sign of any security prowling the grounds. It was unfortunate that coming back here put them much closer to the town where they'd been spotted a few days ago, but they were in a much better position to resist capture now that they had a Gundam.

There was only room for one of them in the cockpit, however, and that could be a problem. Heero would worry about that when the time came, if there was a chance of only one of them getting away.

Duo shoved his braid down the back of his jacket and reached into his pocket for his hat, which he pulled down low over his eyes.

"I'm going to get us something to eat, Heero. If anything happens before I get back," he gestured toward Deathscythe and swallowed hard, "try not to blow up my Gundam."

Heero nodded, and Duo gave him a light punch on his good arm before turning away. He'd taken three steps before whirling back around. He cupped Heero's cheek roughly, kissed him hard, and darted out the hanger doors without meeting Heero's eyes.

Heero touched his finger to his lips as the sliver of sunlight that had filtered in the hanger disappeared again when the door closed behind Duo. Heero had hidden in dark places before, and in worse conditions, but never had he been so aware of it. It was disconcerting, especially since he knew that Duo would be back soon.

Of all the pilots, he'd have expected this sort of benefaction to come from someone like Quatre. He'd pegged Duo as more pragmatic despite his chatty manner, the bravado he'd shown when he helped Heero escape from the Alliance, and his flirtatious behavior around Relena when she'd tracked him down.

She could be stubborn and Heero wouldn't be surprised if she'd found out by now that he was still alive. If that were the case, he could only hope she wouldn't put herself in harm's way just to plead with him to give up doing what he'd been trained to do since he was a boy.

After the lemon drop incident Heero wondered what Duo's childhood had been like and how he'd found himself recruited as a Gundam pilot, but his thoughts soon turned to his own life. If there had ever been a time when he'd not been part of Something Bigger Than All Of Us, he couldn't remember it.

It wasn't a depressing thought, it was just how it had always been, but the thought of apples and sour candies brought him dangerously close to wishing for things that could never be.

The sliver of light was back and Heero caught the orange Duo threw at him without looking up. He jabbed his thumb into it, tearing off a strip of peel savagely and sinking his teeth into the exposed fruit.

It wasn't enough to completely cover the lingering taste of lemon on his tongue, but it helped.

He and Heero drew their guns as the door pushed open, and a woman not much older than they were stepped into the hanger.

"So it's true," she said. "You're still alive."

"Thanks," Duo said, bowing his head slightly without lowering his gun. "I was surprised myself when I woke up this morning."

She looked from one to the other and then leaned casually against the edge of the door, her profile in shadows as she continued. "I'm impressed with you two. I didn't expect to have as much trouble finding you as I did."

She was completely unconcerned that she wasn't holding a weapon and was facing two armed hostiles, and Duo looked at Heero, raising an eyebrow in question. The sound of Heero clicking the safety off his gun was audible. "We aren't surrendering the Gundam."

"I wouldn't expect you to, either," she replied, and as if to point out how little they intimidated her, she crossed one ankle over the other. "You made it very clear how you felt about that two months ago."

She pushed away from the door and approached them slowly, her hands held up in a gesture of surrender. "Zechs knew that you were special."

"Zechs?"

Duo and Heero spoke in unison, but it was obvious Heero was just a little more interested than Duo.

"He's been hoping to find you and has asked you to return with me."

"You can forget it, lady," Duo said. "We weren't born yesterday."

She pursed her lips, as if being called "lady" was an insult, and stopped when she was close enough that they could make out some of her features. She really was young. Du