Mel: No babble in the beginning. Wait till the end.

Legal crap: Don't own it.

Warnings: Implied shounen ai, and some gore… shouldn't be too bad….

Heero woke up to a gentle shaking. He slowly uncurled his stiff body and became aware of the cold, damp cell he was in. A pale hand slid under his chin, lifting his head slightly.

"Heero? Genki desu ka?" Heero put a hand up to his throbbing head and closed his eyes.

'He's not here, he can't be.' Heero slid his knees back up to his chest and let his head rest between them.

"It's okay. I'm gonna get you out of here." He wished that the words he heard were true, but the only way he was getting out of this cell was when he would be publicly executed, tomorrow morning.

He felt an arm slip behind his back, urging him to get up. 'No, I won't go yet…' Violet eyes stared deep into his cobalt blue, now tinted red with blood.

"My god! What did they do to you?" Duo slid his other arm under Heero's knees, and gently lifted him up. "We gotta get you out of here before someone comes to check out the mess I made back there."

Heero didn't want to think about what was going on. He was thankful for the intense pain in his head that worsened as Duo began to run. It helped him to forget. He closed his eyes, and let darkness overtake him.

Duo shifted Heero into one arm, and gently slung the limp boy over his shoulder to allow himself to move more quickly, cringing slightly as he thought about what damage he must be doing to the boy's body.

A soft click sent a wave of fear through the braided pilot. His first thought was to get Heero into a position where he wouldn't be open to the expected shot. Duo quickly pulled Heero in front of himself, then bent forward as he ran for the car.

He staggered slightly as he felt hot lead rip though his left thigh. He bit back the pain, and kept his pace up as best he could.

He pulled Heero's body closer to him, tucking the dark brown matted hair under his chin. Another bullet whizzed past him, tearing the back of his black jacket.

"Hang on Hee-chan, just a little further…" Duo grabbed onto the door to the topless jeep and leaped in. He prayed that no one had rigged it, because he didn't have the time or patience to check.

After lying Heero down on the back seat, he popped open the glove compartment to retrieve his gun. He had been too worried about Heero to get it earlier.

Another bullet cut open his cheek. He quickly returned the fire and killed the offending soldier. Remembering the unconscious youth, he turned the jeep on and stepped on the gas. Almost instantly, the glass shattered, showering the poor boy with the shards. He hissed as the splinters flew into the gash on his face, and shielded his eyes.

Duo heard a soft moan behind him, and turned to face Heero. His right arm was soaked with blood, a large wedge of glass embedded in the skin. Duo pulled it out, then fired at the soldiers behind him. There was no time to properly dress the wound, so Duo pushed his ride to the limit in order to get away before any more damage could be done.

He didn't expect his fire to be returned again….

~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~

"Oi, Hee-chan. Wake up. You're safe now." Heero smiled as the smooth voice echoed through his mind. Even after months of torture, he could remember everything about his braided love. "Come on Heero, I need you to get some help for me." Hero opened his eyes to find a dark comfort, when he had expected to see harsh white lights; one more torture session before he was killed. "Oh Heero…"

Warm arms wrapped around the thin boy, a feeling that was all too familiar. Heero concentrated hard to focus his eyes. Through his mental haze, he could just make out a set of violet eyes, glistening with unshed tears.

"Duo?" Heero lifted a weak arm up to the heart-shaped face, curiously touching the dried blood. Duo winced in pain, but made no other move. Heero dropped his hand and let his vision blur again. "Tired…."

"God. Hang on Heero!" Duo lifted his head and looked around. "I can't reach the com button…. kuso!" Heero closed his eyes and pulled himself closer to the warm body holding him. "Come on, don't konk out on me again." But Heero was already slipping back into the depths of his mind.

~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~

Wufei returned to base—his mission just completed—when he suddenly hissed in agitation. That fool Maxwell had done absolutely nothing to conceal his mobile suit. How pathetic! Did he just want to hang a sign up on his neck 'Gundam pilot here, come and shoot me!' Well, if the American pilot wanted death, that was fine—but he wasn't going to pull the rest of them into the grave! His anger fueling his strength, Wufei quickly scaled Deathscythe—ready to give Duo the longest lecture he had ever been given! He didn't expect to see what was really there….

Duo was sitting in the pilot's seat with Heero lying in his lap, the perfect soldiers head resting on Duo's chest, with shinigami's swollen arms loosely wrapped around the unconscious boy.

"Maxwell! What happened here?" Duo opened his slightly at the sharp voice.

"Oi, Wu-wu… You wanna give me a hand?" Wufei ignored the smart remark on his name, and knelt down in front of Duo to inspect his wounds. His whole body was swollen and he was terribly pale, and to make matters worse, he had two large gashes which should have been cleansed and stitched, but now they were infected.

'What in the world happened?' Wufei carefully lifted Heero's head and opened his eyes. They were completely red from broken blood vessels.

"Those bastards probably slammed his head into something…" Duo slightly lifted his head off of Heero's, and let it rest on one shoulder, squinting his eyes against the pain. "Could you take him inside? I can't move."

Heero's eyes rolled carelessly to one side as Wufei slid his arms underneath him. As the boy realized he was being moved, he wrapped his arms behind Duo's neck and pulled himself closer to the warmth.

"Not yet… not now…" As Heero pressed himself against Duo, the braided boy choked back a scream. Warm blood seeped through a freshly opened wound near his collar bone, but Heero seemed oblivious to the pain he was causing the boy.

"Hee-chan, calm down. You're safe now. I'm not gonna let anyone hurt you…" Duo closed his eyes and let out a long, shaky breath. "Wu-man? Help him… please…"

Wufei nodded slightly, and lifted Heero off Duo's lap. Heero's body was so light and boney, Wufei could feel the boy's heart pounding against his chest in fear.

'What did they do to you two?'

~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~

"You're going to send that onna!?!?"

"Wufei, Dr. Poe is the best person we have, and she happens to be in your area. I would not risk sending anyone of lesser talent." The man on the other end of the line kept himself calm and collected, despite Wufei's harsh tone.

"But she's—"

"The best. If you care about your friends, you should be grateful. She should be there shortly." Before Wufei could respond, the man hung up, spurring Wufei's pent up anger to grow as he slammed the phone down on the receiver.

The Chinese boy let out a low growl before turning to face the two boys in the living room. It had taken some work, but Wufei had finally gotten both boys into the house. However, Duo had fallen asleep in the time it took Wufei to put Heero in the house and come back. Since then, he had only been partially responsive.

Heero was stretched out on the couch next to Duo. Although he was fully awake, he didn't seem to know exactly where he was. He constantly looked down at Duo, running his hand through the chestnut bangs, then he would mutter something about not being ready.

"Duo? A doctor should be here in a few minutes." No response. "She'll probably want to look you over first…"

"No." Duo shook his head slightly to emphasize his quiet statement. "Heero first."

"But—"

"Heero first." Wufei shook his head, then sat down on the floor next to Duo. The boy's breathing seemed painful, comming in slow, uneven gasps. The infected wounds had given Duo a high fever, and the horrible heat radiating from his body made Wufei cringe. "Fei-chan?"

"What is it, Maxwell?" Wufei immediately regretted his harsh tone. But it was already said, and too late to take it back.

"Could you get me something to drink?" Wufei silently slipped out of the room, grateful for the chance to clear his thoughts.

'Duo left less than a week ago….' Wufei let his mind tick on the current situation as he pulled out two glasses. 'He and Heero could have been sitting there anywhere from a few hours to three days…' The ice clinked melodically as he tossed it into the cups. 'The trip was about a day long in each direction, so Duo's wounds have been there for at least a day, most likely longer. He probably hasn't eaten since then…' Wufei stuck the two glasses into the sink and let them fill with water. 'There's no telling how long it's been for Heero. He was missing for two months before we heard about his execution…' Wufei shuddered as he remembered the haunted look in Duo's eyes that quickly shifted to rage as he watched the announcement on the outdoor screen, and listened to a crowd cheer at the pilot's broadcasted torture session.

Wufei cursed under his breath as he realized that the cups were overflowing, which brought his train of thought to an end. "Can you sit up?" Duo's body twitched slightly before he twisted his mouth into a weary smile.

"Nope. Can't move." Wufei slipped his hand carefully behind the boy's back, then lifted him upright.

"Here." Wufei held out one of the glasses to Duo, but the boy only laughed.

"I told you. I can't move. Period." Duo sighed as Heero's fingers wove their way through his chestnut bangs, then traced their way down the uninjured side of his face. The 02 pilot closed his eyes, and his breathing slowed to almost nothing.

"Samishii desu… samishii desu…" Heero chanted quietly. His voice was dry and weak, adding to his helpless demeanor.

"Duo?" The said boy seemed to be in a trance, his breathing remaining short and light. "Maxwell! Pay attention." Duo slowly opened his eyes and looked up at Wufei.

"Ne, Wu-bear. Why don't you give him some water?" Duo smiled as if nothing was wrong with him, and looked over at his distraught koi. Wufei handed the glass of water to Heero, who glared at it as if it were poison. "Daijobu, Hee-chan. Don't worry." Heero reluctantly took the glass in both hands, and drank the entire contents without pausing to breathe. "Feel better koi?" Heero looked down into the empty glass, then into Duo's eyes.

"Gone…"

"Daijobu. No worries. Wu-man has another cup. Do you want more?" Heero put the glass down on the couch next to him, and stared at Duo.

"Gone…" Wufei sighed and picked up the other glass, holding it up to Duo's lips.

"Huh?" Duo looked over the edge of the glass, and up at Wufei.

"Drink it." Duo had no choice but to take a small sip as Wufei slowly tipped the glass toward him. Although Wufei had been careful not to force Duo to take in more than he was able to, the braided boy choked and began to cough violently.

"I-I'm okay… just went down the wrong hole… that's all…" Wufei stared at Duo's shaking body a few minutes longer before responding.

"Do you want to try again?"

"Y-yeah. Thanks." Duo was more careful with what he was doing this time, and managed to swallow a mouthful.

"Do you want more?" Duo closed his eyes and smiled at Wufei, but didn't answer. "Duo?" The sick boy's smile faltered, and a combination of stomach acid and water slid down the sides of his mouth.

"G-gomen, Wu…" Wufei swiftly cleaned up the mess with his discarded jacket. "I guess I can't keep it down…" Duo's weak laughter scared the Chinese boy. Duo was not a weak person, and it shocked him to see the boy in this state. "Oi, Wu? Someone's at the door…"

Wufei hadn't noticed the urgent knocking on the wooden door until Duo pointed it out. He carefully lowered Duo back onto the floor and opened the door.

"What took you so long? I thought you'd never answer." Sally pressed into the room and kneeled down beside Duo. "My God! What happened?"

"Not sure… gimme a minute to think while you check Heero." Wufei chuckled to himself at Duo's stubbornness. That boy knew all too well that Sally wouldn't ignore him, especially since his injuries were much more severe.

"Don't start fighting with me. You tell me what you remember and I'll look you both over."

"I just got shot at a few times while trying to get Heero out of there. That's all." Sally grunted and pulled a flashlight out of her bag.

"Shot at and hit. Did you do anything to treat those?" Sally put her hand on Duo's good cheek and shined the light into Duo's eyes.

"Aiiie! That's bright!" Duo closed his eyes, and Sally sighed in exasperation.

"Why can't you just cooperate for once!"

"Only if you help my Hee-chan."

"Fine." Sally shifted her weight and turned to Heero. "But you'd better cooperate later."

To be continued…

Mel: Next time, exactly what's wrong with Heero? And is Duo's selflessness going to bring his end?

Tsuru: Of course.

Mel: *glares at Tsuru* I haven't decided that yet.

Tsuru: Knowing you, you will.

Mel: *sighs* Fine. Whatever. *calls out* Daichi!!!!!

Daichi: *poofs in* Hai!

Mel: *grins* Good muse. *ruffles his hair*

Daichi: O.o

Mel: Would you mind being my little jap-eng dictionary?

Daichi: Sure. 'Genki desu ka' means 'how are you' or more literally 'are you good?'… 'Daijobu' means 'Okay' but when used in a sentence, its subject is implied. So it could be 'I'm okay', 'You're okay', 'He/she is okay' or 'it's okay'… Finally, Samishii desu means 'I miss you' or 'I missed you'

Mel: ^___^ Arigato!

Daichi: Do itashimashite! *poofs out*

Tsuru: o.O

Mel: ^____^