The following series i did not make personally or have a hand in its development in anyway. This series was done by 2 of my friends reciently Princess Co., Unltd.

So sit back, read on and enjoy the Metal Gear Solid 2 series like never before. Staring Raiden, Otacon, and Solid Snake on their journy of love and passion on Big Shell.

Enjoy from you favorite writer,

Yusuke

TITLE: Open Arms and Open Eyes

PART: 1/1

SERIES: Philanthropy

PAIRING: Snake/Otacon

AUTHOR: Princess Co., Unltd.

RATING: PG (don't really know the citrus scale too well)

DISCLAIMERS: Metal Gear and all its characters belong to Konami. We're simply borrowing these characters for our own amusement. We're not making money or anything, so please, nobody sue. We don't have anything anyway.

NOTES: This story is the beginning of what will likely be a pretty long series. - Don't worry, the next fic will be much longer.

SUMMARY: The tanker has just sunk and Otacon is on his way to rescue Snake...and make a few confessions.

WARNINGS: This story depicts a male/male relationship (yaoi). It's pretty harmless in this case, but if it offends you, don't read it.

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Open Arms and Open Eyes

Otacon's small motorboat leapt across the waves at the highest speed he dared to go. He'd left the temporary headquarters, in an old warehouse near the Verizzano Bridge, as soon as he realized Snake was in trouble. He cut through the water in what he hoped was the right direction, remembering that Snake had mentioned a course change. Luckily, Mei Ling had arrived at the warehouse not long before everything started going wrong. He had left her there to help him locate Snake via radar.

"Damn this rain. I can't see a thing," he muttered, pulling the hood of his poncho lower over his face and swiping the rain and salt spray off his glasses. He grumbled for a moment longer, then activated his Codec. "How am I doing?"

'The tanker should be just a few yards directly in front of you,' Mei Ling's quietly accented voice said in his ear. 'Keep going straight ahead.'

"I can't see it!" he cried, getting panicky. He wiped at his glasses again and peered into the rain swept night. "Where the hell is it?"

He heard Mei Ling's sigh clearly over the Codec. 'Calm down,' she instructed gently. 'You're getting really close. It might be an idea to slow down. There is already a lot of debris in the water. You don't want to hit anything and damage your boat.' Her voice grew quieter. 'We need both of you back safe.'

"Snake!" Otacon yelled his friend's name until his voice cracked. "C'mon, Snake," he whispered, mostly to himself, "you can't be dead. I need to tell you something important..." He broke off, staring out over the water, trying to see Snake's familiar sneaking suit in the tossing gray waves.

'Slow down! You'll pass him!' Mei Ling's voice startled Otacon and he throttled back hard. 'He's just twenty feet away from you, a little to your right.'

Turning the bow slightly starboard, Otacon moved ahead slowly. "Am I going the right way?"

'A little further right,' Mei Ling directed and Otacon turned again. 'There, that's perfect. He should be just ahead of you.'

"Snake? Snake, are you there?" he called, jumping slightly when the tanker beside him groaned loudly. He scanned the wreckage, flinching and biting his lip as his boat drifted past a few mangled, uniformed bodies. Then, he spotted another floating figure, one not dressed in a uniform. "Snake!" He gunned the boat and pulled beside his friend. Snake's body floated limply in the water, being tossed roughly by the waves. "Oh, please don't be dead, please."

Reaching out, Otacon grasped Snake's arm, trying desperately to tug the heavy man into the boat without tipping over. Suddenly, Snake twitched and grabbed onto Otacon, instinctively dragging himself into the boat. Snake knelt on the floor, leaning across Otacon's lap and coughing up two lungfuls of seawater.

Otacon's relief at finding Snake diminished when he realized the tiny boat was being dragged inexorably closer to the sinking tanker. "Oh, no," he breathed. He reached back to gun the motor, trying to escape the tanker's pull.

'What's going on?' Mei Ling's voice was full of panic and worry.

"I've got Snake," Otacon barked into the Codec. "We're heading back. I want you to clear out of that warehouse now, Mei Ling. Get Snake's pictures to safety fast. We'll see you back at Philanthropy."

'I'm backing up the photos as we speak. I'll be out of here in just a few minutes,' Mei Ling assured. 'Be careful.'

With an approving nod, Otacon turned off his Codec and turned his full attention to steering the boat to shore. But, even at its full power, the boat's small motor couldn't fight against the tanker's pull. Over and over, Otacon tried to steer away, but the bow kept getting pulled back. They were being dragged toward the wreck.

Suddenly, the massive ship groaned loudly and lurched beside them. Otacon yelped with fear as a huge wave rolled away from the ship and tipped them crazily. The tanker was sinking faster; already the bridge was at water level. With only one option left, Otacon turned the tiny boat and moved as close to the taker as he could, weaving among the debris and charging full speed along it's side. As soon as the tanker's bow was in sight, he veered hard away and the motorboat broke free of its hold.

Still running full speed, Otacon directed the boat to a safe point clear of the tanker, but far enough from shore not to be seen. Once he was sure it was safe, he cut the motor and threw his arms around Snake, who was still lying across his legs. "Thank God! Oh, thank God you're alive!"

"Yeah," Snake rasped, grinning faintly and sitting up to pat Otacon's shoulder. "I don't die that easy." He pulled away from Otacon, painfully dragging air into his burning lungs, and leaned against the seat opposite his partner.

Otacon slid to the floor, staring at Snake with tear-filled eyes. "Oh, Snake, I'm sorry. This is all my fault."

Shaking his head, Snake reached over and squeezed Otacon's shoulder. "Don't take all the blame yourself. We all fell for it. This was one big setup. I can feel it. Besides, you didn't make me go on this mission, I wanted to." With one last squeeze, he released Otacon and sat back. He began to shiver, trying hard not to let his teeth chatter.

"Oh geez," Otacon groaned when he realized, "I really am being an idiot tonight." He reached under the seat and tugged free a duffel bag, pulling from it a thick blanket and a poncho. He draped the blanket around Snake then threw the poncho over him to keep off the rain.

Snake gave him an appreciative smile and pulled the blanket close. "Thanks." He looked closer at his partner, who stared at him silently, the distressed look still plain on his face. "What's wrong with you? I told you it's not your fault."

"Oh...no, it's not that," Otacon said hurriedly, fighting more tears and beginning to stumble over his words. "I just...You don't know how glad I am that you're alive. I was so afraid it happened again. That's why I never said anything. I tried so hard to talk myself out of it, but I couldn't help it."

"What are you talking about?" Snake asked, eyeing Otacon in confusion.

Otacon's head dropped. "I'm cursed, Snake," he mumbled, tears starting to slip free. "Everyone I get close to dies."

"You're just superstitious," Snake dismissed. "I think your only problem was getting close to the wrong people."

"I hope you're right, and I hope I'm not gonna make the same mistake again."

Snake looked at him askance. "Are you trying to tell me something?"

"Yes," Otacon confirmed, nodding miserably, "but it's really hard for me to say. I've never been in this situation before, but I have to tell you. When I thought you might be dead...I...I just couldn't..."

"Just spit it out, Otacon. I'm listening."

The dam finally broke. With tears streaming down his cheeks, Otacon threw his arms around Snake's neck. "I love you, Snake!" he sobbed. "There, I said it! I love you. I thought you should know the truth, 'cause I couldn't keep working like this, pretending I didn't. All I need to know now is how you feel about me."

After a few seconds, he loosened his grip and sat back enough to look into Snake's surprised, blue-green eyes. With some hesitation, he leaned forward again to briefly touch his lips to Snake's before letting go and sitting back. Snake sat silently, staring at him in mute shock, and Otacon began to ramble nervously.

"You don't need to decide right away," he assured hurriedly. "I know it takes some time to think things through. I don't want you to lie to me either. I'll understand if you can't love me back. Don't pretend for my sake, I just wanna know the truth. I know you like women. I like 'em too, but lately I've been kind of afraid of them. I mean, look what happened last time, but I finally know what it feels like to really love someone, and I just wan..." He was cut off when Snake grabbed a fistful of his poncho and yanked him forward into a slightly rough, but very loving kiss.

Quickly getting over his surprise, Otacon slid his arms around Snake and held him close. They kissed for a moment longer before separating to cling happily to each other. "You do love me!"

"What made you think I wouldn't?" Snake replied with a smile. He rested his cheek against Otacon's hair and sighed. "I think that, in the back of my mind, I've known it for awhile now. I was just waiting for you to say something. All I needed was a couple minutes to figure out that it all made sense."

"I love you." Otacon laughed a little against Snake's neck. "That gets easier to say every time."

"It's nice to hear too, believe me," Snake said, hugging him closer. "Nobody's ever really loved me before, not even Meryl. It took her some time to see past the hero she had worshipped and see me for who I really am. Once she did, it was over, like I knew it would be."

"Something else we have in common," Otacon sighed. "I've never really been loved before either. There were people who I thought loved me, but I was wrong. I've been alone for so long, I almost forgot how good it feels just to hug someone once in a while."

"Well, we're not alone anymore. Are we?"

Otacon shook his head and snuggled closer with a smile. "No, not anymore."

They held each other tightly until Snake sighed and shifted to look down at Otacon. "We'd better get back. We don't wanna get caught out here."

"You're right," Otacon agreed, reluctantly letting go of Snake and climbing back onto his seat. "We should take a long route away from here and dock at a nice, inconspicuous spot back down the coast."

As Otacon shifted around to start the motor, Snake studied him from the floor. "You really look tired," he commented, a bit worriedly. "When's the last time you slept?"

"I had to make sure everything was ready for this mission," Otacon replied with a shrug. "You were the one doing all the dangerous work, so you needed sleep. All I needed was coffee. I've done it before."

"You stayed up all last night?" Snake's eyebrows went up under his bandanna in surprise. "No sleep at all?"

"Right." Otacon got the motor running and plopped back down on the seat, starting off toward shore and carefully avoiding what remained of the sinking tanker.

"The sun's gonna be up in a couple hours," Snake pointed out. "That's almost two full days. Believe me, that's not good for you."

Otacon's eyes narrowed as he looked down at his partner. "Uh oh. Now listen, Snake, I love you, but I do not want a babysitter."

"Relax. If there's one thing I'm not, it's a babysitter," Snake promised with a chuckle. "I'm only suggesting you get a little sleep before we get to shore. I can drive the boat."

"Oh, I get it," Otacon laughed, grinning at Snake. "Yes, Snake, you can have the boat." Still chuckling, he switched places with Snake, leaning against his knee once they were both settled. "Ya know," he said eventually, "I almost feel strange calling you Snake now. It seems like I shouldn't."

Snake smirked down at him. "I'd feel strange if you stopped. I'm not sure I'd recognize my real name if somebody used it to get my attention. Calling me David would be like calling you Hal."

"You're right. Please don't," Otacon muttered, wincing. He looked up at Snake. "So it's just gonna be Snake and Otacon, huh?"

"Why not?" Snake shrugged. "It's worked so far."

Otacon smiled and nodded. "You're right." With a sigh, he rested his head in Snake's lap, shifting and pushing his hood back to look up at the sky. "Hey look, Snake. It's stopped raining."

Looking up, Snake saw stars peeking out from the breaking clouds for the first time that night. He looked back down at Otacon, who was already drifting off to sleep, and smiled warmly. "Yeah, it sure did," he whispered, gently working his gloved hand into Otacon's hair.

Slowly, Snake piloted them to safety. He knew they'd be busy again in the morning, but for right now, it didn't matter what the rest of the world was doing. That night had turned out to be the best either of them ever had.

END