Ariana: Hi all! Look what the Easter Bunny brought me!

Duo: You kidnapped me!

Ariana: Quiet you!

Ti: Technically, I think that's stealing.

Ariana: Who cares? Anyway, I don't really know where this came from. It might have to do with the fact that last night I sat through a four hour long Easter Vigil and watched people get baptized and confirmed. :shrug: Who knows?

As a bit of a WARNING, this does contain religious, namely Roman Catholic, elements. So if this makes you uncomfortable, be warned.

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing or Duo, though I am :ahem: borrowing him for a bit. I also do not own the Catholic Church.

Ti: Thank God!

Easter Fountain

A pair of feet padded softly down the stairs, taking care to elicit no sound. Above, a hand gently swung a pair of shiny black shoes. The feet made it down the stairs without incident and quickly crept to the front door. Another hand unlocked the door and slowly opened it. Cobalt eyes scanned the front room before the feet carried their owner out the door. Once the door was shut and locked, long legs bounded across the front lawn and down the street. Stopping at the corner, hands bent down to cover the feet with black shoes. Once dressed, the feet continued walking in the direction of a nearby church.

Duo entered through an opened door to see the church was packed. He sighed in relief when he realized he wasn't late. He dipped his hand in water near the entrance and made the sign of the cross, just as he had been taught many years ago. He found an empty space in the very last pew and took a seat, placing his cap beside him. He noticed a disturbance to his left and realized the priest was ready to proceed down the aisle. Duo stood with the rest of the congregation as the choir began to sing.

Duo went through the motions of the Mass; surprised that he still knew all the procedures. He watched with curiosity as the baptisms took place after the homily. He had never witnessed a baptism and had never been through one himself. He flinched in sympathy as water was poured over the infants' heads.

As the priest prepared to leave the altar, Duo blinked in surprise. He remembered Mass being a lot longer. He checked his watch and realized it had been an hour and a half. He smiled softly. Perhaps he really had matured with age.

He joined in as the congregation clapped along to "Go Tell It On the Mountain". As the procession passed him, he could have sworn the priest was staring right at him. He shook it off as his imagination and smiled politely as people wished him a Happy Easter.

Fifteen minutes later the church was empty and Duo sat alone in the pew. He could hear parishioners chatting outside. He gazed at the altar as memories came flooding back to him. He hadn't stepped foot into a church since the Father Maxwell and Sister Helen died. He stood up and hesitantly approached the front of the church. He felt a chill as he stood before the altar. Suddenly a hand fell onto his shoulder. He looked up to see the priest.

"Something seems to be troubling you my son," he said kindly.

Duo almost rolled his eyes. How cliché, the priest finds a lost boy in his church and hopes to save his soul. Well, Duo's soul was beyond something. "It's nothing you should worry about, Father," he answered.

The priest smiled at him. "Perhaps. But if I don't, who will?"

Duo blinked. The question had caught him off guard. "You haven't been to Mass in a while, have you?"

Duo looked at him in suspicion. "What makes you say that?" The priest shrugged. Duo sighed. "I haven't been inside a church for a long time."

"I see. Is Mass too boring for you?"

Duo chuckled. "It was, when I was a kid. Sister Helen used to threaten to chain me to the pew."

"Sister Helen?"

Duo frowned. He hadn't realized he'd said that out loud. He glanced at the priest and decided no harm could come from talking to him. "She and Father Maxwell took care of me when I was younger."

The priest nodded. "Where are they now?"

Duo stared ahead, a mask of indifference on his face. "Dead."

The priest was silent. "Is that why you haven't been to Mass?"

Duo turned to the priest in hidden surprise. The priest had offered no false sympathy; no fake smile of understanding. He was simply blunt and to the point. Duo liked that. "To be honest with you I'm not Catholic."

The priest looked thoughtful. "What do you mean by that?" he asked, finally.

Duo shrugged. "I've never been baptized," he said simply.

The priest nodded. "What are you waiting for?" Duo looked at him in confusion. "You are never too old."

Duo smiled bitterly. "I have too many sins, Father."

"Ah, but that is what Baptism is all about, cleansing the soul."

Duo shook his head. "Not my kind of sins."

They stood in silence for a while. Finally the priest spoke up. "You are a soldier, aren't you?" Duo remained silent. "You feel as if your hands are too bloodstained to be forgiven." Duo still did not speak. The priest turned to him. "Bloodstained hands do not mean a bloodstained heart. We are all put here for a certain purpose. You cannot be blamed for yours anymore than I can be for mine."

Duo looked the priest in the eye. "And if there are too many?"

The priest smiled faintly. "Remember them, my son. Remember every single one of them, and that will be your penance." The priest's face suddenly turned very serious. "Do you believe in God the Father, creator of heaven and earth? In Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, who was crucified for our sins and rose again on the third day? In the Holy Spirit who has spoken through the prophets? In one holy, catholic church? The forgiveness of sins, resurrection of the dead, and everlasting life?"

"I suppose," answered Duo.

The priest shook his head. "These are things you must be sure of."

Duo looked back toward the altar deep in thought. He remembered the questions he would ask Sister Helen and Father Maxwell, and the answers they would give. Many times they honestly answered that they didn't know; that sometimes you had to rely on faith. "Yes," he said quietly.

The priest then took him by the shoulders and led him up the altar to the fountain the infants had been baptized in earlier. His eyes went wide as he turned to the priest. "Isn't this a bit unorthodox?"

The priest smiled. "Easter is a time of rebirth. God doesn't care about tradition, he cares about sincerity." He pushed Duo to his knees and leaned Duo's head over the fountain. He cupped his hand and dipped it in the water. He poured the water over Duo's head saying, "I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit." He lifted Duo to his feet and handed him a handkerchief. As Duo finished drying his face he was presented with a gift wrapped in plain brown paper. He looked at the priest in confusion. "Go ahead and open it."

Duo smirked. "Do this often, do you?" He carefully unwrapped the paper to reveal an old, worn Bible. He opened it up and inside the front flap was a message. His eyes widened when he realized his name was at the top. He continued reading in astonishment. As he neared the end he thought he might cry. The note was signed "Father Maxwell". Duo looked up, a question at the tip of his tongue, but the priest was gone.

Ariana: So…what'd you think? Like it? Hate it?

Ti: It was okay.

Ariana: Ignore the cat. Happy Easter everyone, and please review!