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Chapter 12

For a man to truly understand rejection, he must first be ignored by a cat. –unknown.

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Wufei woke up to the sound of purring. He breathed out a sigh in relief that Duo's ass wasn't in the air, for once. Everything was calm and Duo didn't stir when he absently started stroking a hand over his head. The sun was shining in over the bed, making it just a bit too warm. Especially if you had someone sleeping on your back.

He tried to push Duo off but only managed to roll over on his back while Duo clung like a letch. He decided not to bother trying again, he would survive the heat.

He glanced towards the window. It was a nice day and he figured that he should take his friend out to play, maybe he could get the worst of the energy out of his system.

With a yawn he stretched out as much as he could under the weight on top of him before tugging gently at one of the big ears. "Time to wake up kitten."

Blurry eyes opened just enough to glare at him.

Wufei snickered, running a finger up and down the edge of the ear, making it twitch. "Come on now, no missions or rain today. Let's go."

Duo mewled pathetically as he halfheartedly tried to get up on his knees, a move that Wufei had seen far too many times lately. Maybe it had been too many times for Duo too because the move felt more like a reflex then one made out of passion.

Not really in the mood to have sex Wufei pulled Duo's boxers down, tipped him over and wrapped his lips around his cock. You really could have too much sex, to a point where just thinking about it made you want to hide. He hadn't believed it was possible but it was. Wufei had been having so much sex the last two weeks that he was more than a little feed up with the whole thing.

For once Duo seemed to be satisfied with just a blowjob and stayed where he was as Wufei worked him over. When he was done, Wufei dived out of the way to avoid Duo's claws as his friend did his usual 'after orgasm wiggle'. He didn't stay around to wait for the cuddle part to begin, choosing instead to go downstairs to find them something to eat. A few minutes later he snickered evilly as he heard Quatre's slightly panicking protests and desperate begging to 'get off me!' Wufei could only assume that Duo had taken his need to cuddle out on the first available person, without putting some clothes on first.

After breakfast Wufei got Duo dressed and took the remote controlled ball with him outside. As usual it took a while to get Duo to focus on something other than his cock but soon enough he was racing across the un-kept lawn like everything was as it was supposed to be.

Wufei sat on top of the slightly unsteady roof of the gazebo, watching Duo run effortlessly after the ball. He was catching it a lot more often than before and Wufei decided that he should try to figure out how to make it faster so that it would be more of a challenge. A bored Duo was a dangerous Duo.

They played for about two hours before Wufei forced his friend to take a break. It was hot in the sunshine so they took a rest on the floor of the gazebo, cooling off in the shade.

Wufei laid on his back, with his legs crossed and fingers lazed together on his stomach. Duo was curled up next to him with his head on his shoulder. Everything was calm and pleasant; the distant sound of crickets was all that could be heard.

Wufei glanced over at his friend. Duo's pants had started to slide down, courtesy of the moving tail, showing off the top of a pair of full buttocks. Soft white hair peeked out and Wufei lazily reached out to pet it. The tail curled under the attention, sweeping over the back of his hand as he stroke that lovely ass.

With a chirping sound, Duo widened his legs as he raised his ass up into the air in invitation, clearly wanting nothing more than to be mounted and penetrated.

There was a reason why Wufei had started carrying lube with him everywhere he went.

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They spent the rest of the day playing, resting and eating until the sun started to go down over the trees.

Sitting on the couch with Duo curled up next to him with his head in his lap; Wufei relaxed and read his book. It had been a good day, one that he hoped that they would see more off. It was easy to forget that there was a war out there. That people were dying and being suppressed right this second when the world felt like a perfect place to him.

It was getting late and with a yawn Wufei put his book away. "Come on now, let's go to bed." Wufei said giving Duo a playful push towards the rumbled mess that was his bed.

"Wuuuuu." Duo protested, backing away from him.

Wufei blinked in surprise, this was the first thing Duo had said since he had gone into heat. "Yes?" He asked faintly, hand reaching out to close around Duo's forearm as if afraid that he would disappear.

"No." Duo grumbled, pulling against his hold.

Horror raced through Wufei. Oh shit.

Duo was coming back and he obviously was becoming aware of just what had been going on while he was gone.

Wufei closed his eyes as a storm of emotions rushed over him, leaving him cold and breathless. Maybe he should just get out of here before Duo killed him. He knew firsthand what Duo could do with those claws, he could only imagine what kind of damage he could do if he really wanted to hurt someone.

But he was not raised to be a coward

"We are just going to get some sleep, nothing else." Wufei's chest hurt and he wondered if he was too young to have a heart attack. "Please?"

Duo grumbled but let himself be led over to the bed where he curled up next to Wufei, instead of on top of him like he had done for the last couple of weeks.

The pain spread to his stomach. Maybe he wasn't having a heart attack, maybe he was having a panic attack. Wufei took a gulp of air. Yeah, that made sense because he sure as hell had a few reasons to panic; their sleeping arrangement just being one of them.

He wondered if he should go sleep in Duo's room instead, that would be the intelligent thing to do. That way he could just say that everything he had done was to help Duo and when he didn't need him anymore, he stopped.

But he didn't want to lose what might be the last chance he had to be this close to Duo.

At least Duo started purring as Wufei reached out over the empty space between them to rub him behind his ears. That was always something.

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The next morning, Wufei didn't wake up to the sound of purring, because Duo was gone.

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Wufei was insanely happy to see Duo sitting up at the kitchen table, calmly eating cereals like he would never even think about lapping tuna from a plate.

It was time for damage control.

"Good morning." He said carefully, keeping an eye on Duo for his reaction. There was none.

Instead it was Heero who answered his greeting

There were several newspapers on the table and Duo appeared to be reading up on what he had missed during his absence.

Wufei pulled the chair out next to his friend and served himself some of the sugary cereals. He felt like he was going to need something uplifting.

The mood was thick in the kitchen and the only sound was from Duo flipping the pages of his newspaper.

Wufei didn't really know what to say but he assumed that they were going to save the actual confrontation until they were alone. He stayed quiet and waited.

"How did it go for Relena at the L4 meeting?" Duo asked, tapping his finger against a photo of the pacifist.

Wufei smiled slightly at the picture of a determined Relena who was standing in the middle of a crowed of L4's most powerful men. Maybe there was hope for a peaceful solution after all. "She managed pretty good, there are still people who don't believe that-"

"Heero, you were there right?"Duo carelessly cut him off like he hadn't heard a word he said.

Heero glanced over at Wufei's now slumping shape. "Yes, she made a successful speech but there are still people who believe that it can't be done."

Duo snorted as he flipped the paper closed with a slap. "Yeah, people believe the strangest things, even when they should know better."

Wufei flinched like he had been slapped.

Heero was looking from Duo to Wufei and back again. "Yes… but she should be able to convince them that a pacifistic solution is possible."

Duo sneered. "Don't hold your breath, some people are just so convinced that they are right that they don't care who they hurt in the process." With that he left the table and went down the stairs. The silence was deafening.

Heero stared after him for moment before turning back to Wufei. "Was he trying to imply something?"

Wufei sighed shakily, "Yes Heero, he was."

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If Wufei had thought that he had been ignored the last time Duo had been angry with him, he quickly found out that it was nothing compared to now. Wufei might as well have been a ghost.

Duo wouldn't talk to him, wouldn't as much as look at him no matter how much he tried. As soon as he entered a room, Duo casually, seemingly innocently left it without even glancing his way. He would talk and laugh to the rest of the pilots while treating Wufei like air.

Wufei tried to explain his reasoning, tried to tone down his own enjoyment, tried to beg for forgiveness. He tried excuses, accepting full responsibility and everything in between.

Duo looked straight through him and walked away.

Wufei wished that Duo would scratch him, glare at him, trash his room, steal his socks, anything! The cold treatment was slowly killing him.

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Duo found it easier to accept everything that had happened if he separated himself from the cat part. The cat part was the part of him that didn't belong there. It was the infection, the parasite that was trying to take over his body.

The cat part was all the instincts, the unexplainable urges and almost everything that had to do with Wufei.

Duo had been playing along with the parasite for too long but this time it had gone too far.

He could accept all the small quirks like mouse hunting, claws, tree climbing and even the hairy back but he was not getting fucked up the ass by his best friend.

Cat logic and human logic just could not agree on this point.

The cat didn't see the problem, it just saw the petting, the sex and the food and thought 'nice' while the human saw a whole lot more.

Duo remembered everything that had happened. Everything.

Duo remembered begging for it, demanding it, taking it. He couldn't believe that he had sunken that low. He was unbelievably ashamed over what had happened at the same time as he was beyond angry at Wufei for giving in. Wufei had known that he was being influenced by the parasite and he had still done it.

He remembered Wufei pushing him down, trapping him, taking him hard as he tried to… fight him off? Urge him on? He wasn't sure anymore, he just remembered the confusion and the need. The pain, the helplessness and the way Wufei would fight him ruthlessly until he submitted.

But he also remembered feeling happy and safe as Wufei spent hour after hour just petting him. Talking to him, teasing and taking care of him. All the things he had taken for granted before. Wufei had been his safe haven, his rock in the middle of the hurricane that was his fucked up life. No matter what happened and what strange new things were going on with his body, Wufei was always there to support him.

Now Wufei was the one who brought him the most pain.

Duo hissed sharply to himself, digging his claws into the wallpaper. How could he do this to him? Wufei knew better, or at least Duo though that he should have. Duo had a parasite in his head, what was Wufei's excuse? He didn't know how to handle it. Just looking at Wufei felt like he was being betrayed all over again. Wufei had raped him just as much as the parasite had.

He felt dirty, betrayed and cheep. Everything that he had done and had been done to him was rushing through his mind.

It only made things worse, that every time he came close to Wufei and caught his scent, something inside of him leaped in joy, wanting him to wrap himself around the other boy and never let go.

It made him angry, unbelievably so. He had not chosen for this to happen, Wufei had taken that decision out of his hands.

Wufei should have known better! He knew that Duo wasn't really interested, that he couldn't control what was going on. He had sided with the parasite, deciding that its whims were more important than Duo.

But a part of him didn't want to be angry, especially not with Wufei, while another part wanted to rage against the unfairness and the dignity-integrity-pride that Wufei had taken away from him.

But the torture didn't stop there. No.

The parasite made him wake up in the middle of the night with wrinkled sheets, his groin pulsing in time with his panting as he dreamed about all the things that Wufei had done to him. That he kept waking up, expecting not to be alone didn't help ether. His own body was betraying him, his own mind and senses were trying to trick him.

But Duo wasn't going to let himself be controlled.

He didn't know if he would ever be able to forgive Wufei for this.

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Steepling his fingers under his chin, Wufei sighed as he stared at the wall.

Wufei just wanted Duo to slice his face up and get it over with. This waiting game where Duo pretended that he wasn't there was quickly wearing him down.

Duo was happily chatting away with Quatre, ignoring Wufei's existence on the other side of the table.

Wufei was so tired. He had hardly been able to sleep a wink since Duo stopped sleeping in his bed. It felt like he had forgotten how to be alone. He felt truly pathetic because he was craving a warm body in his lap like the air he breathed.

Trowa was observing it all in obvious amusement from the head of the table. Wufei couldn't even collect enough energy to glare at him.

He didn't have much energy for anything.

If he thought it would work he would have asked Duo what kind of knife he preferred to castrate him with and just taken his punishment.

Thank god he had a mission today; he needed a break before he did the job for Duo

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Duo breathed out sigh in relief when he heard Wufei announce his departure on the floor bellow.

"So how long are you planning on ignoring Chang?" Heero asked as he leaned against the doorframe.

Duo turned away, absently plucking a few strands off his tail.

Heero observed him in silence for a moment. "The decision was one made by all of us, do not place all the blame on Chang simply for following orders."

Duo stiffened, feeling the hair on his back rise as he let out a low threatening hiss, warning his friend that he was stepping out of line.

Heero didn't appear to care as he kept staring at him. "You are not normally this unreasonable."

Duo glared, showing off his teeth with another hiss, a sharper more threatening one.

"Speak up!" Heero barked, startling him into full body twitch, "Chang might have the patience to put up with all your noises but I for one do not."

"This coming from a guy who thinks 'hn' is a word." Duo shot back angrily, curling up against the headboard, his ears sharply focused on the perfect soldier.

Heero smirked like he was pleased with himself, making Duo glare even harder.

"Grow up and act like the soldier you are. Some actions had to be made to secure the safety of the team, there is no room for personal feelings in a war." With that, the perfect soldier turned on his heel and left.

Duo waited until he could hear Heero enter his own bedroom, before getting to his feet. Without making a sound he crawled in under the bed, all the way into the corner. There he made himself comfortable on top of the lumpy pile of socks he had collected. Some of them hadn't been washed and smelled like it's owner. Duo closed his eyes and circled himself with his tail.

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Well back from his mission, Wufei had made clear that he needed someone to talk to and Quatre responded just as clearly that he needed to be drunk first or he would not survive. Wufei went and found him a large bottle of vodka and Quatre manage to locate a couple of bottles of vine.

"I thought Muslims didn't drink." Wufei said as he watched Quatre tip another shot down his throat. He was given the finger by a somewhat heavy hand.

"Muslims aren't supposed to give gay friends relationship advice so shut the fuck up."

Wufei noted that Quatre was a lot less charming and polite when drunk. The blond really should stay away from alcohol, the effect didn't become him. But Wufei needed someone to talk to who wouldn't smirk or look at him blankly so this appeared to be the only option.

"I think I'm drunk enough now." Quatre announced a while later, putting his glass down. "Come on, give me your best shot." He made a motion with his hands like he was beckoning an opponent to come at him.

It was a bit disturbing that Quatre was treating this talk like a battle to death.

Wufei sighed, looking up at the water damaged ceiling. "I don't know what to do. I've tried to apologize but he won't listen, I've tried to explain and I've even tried to beg but he just doesn't care." Or at least Wufei thought he didn't since Duo showed no indication of even hearing him speak. "I've lost my best friend." He crossed his arms tightly over his chest. "It wasn't like it was my idea from the start, hell half the times I wasn't even given a choice, he'd just grab a hold of my cock and sit down." He grumbled, sounding like a whiny child even to himself.

Quatre blinked slowly. "I was wrong, I need another bottle." Luckily he didn't have to go far and were soon back at the table again.

Wufei didn't let the interruption bother him as he went on.

"If I could just get him to listen so I could try to explain. I never meant to hurt him, I have to try to tell him that… if he would just listen." He sighed shakily "I need help, I just don't know what to do."

Quatre emptied the glass.

"I'm out of ideas." Wufei sighed. "Everything I try just ends up being ignored. How am I supposed to get him to forgive me if he won't even acknowledge my existence?"

He turned to Quatre to hear what he had to say.

"I had a cat." Quatre announced airily, looking up at the dark mold on the ceiling, observing it like it was a priceless piece of art.

Wufei stared at his friend like he had finally lost his mind.

"She was named Isfahan, like the city and the rugsss." Quatre slurred as he raised a finger to follow the edge of the mold stain. "Mainly because she sure destroyed many of my mother's rugs."

Wufei wondered if he should leave and let Quatre enjoy his insanity in peace.

"I couldn't bring her along with me when I left for school but it was probably just as well. Boarding schools for boys are most likely not the friendliest places for a cat to be."

"Fascinating." Wufei muttered, wondering if he should go find Heero instead, at least he wouldn't share his childhood memories while doing absolutely nothing to help him.

"She was always so angry at me when I came back, like she couldn't believe I would be so cruel as to leave her behind." He tried to get a hold of his glass, only to miss with an embarrassing long distance. "She would refuse to play with the fluffy ball I had given her and she usually loved that toy, chased it around everywhere. She would ignore me and refuse to be anywhere near me."

Wufei lifted his head off the table where it had landed in despair. That last part had felt awfully familiar.

"She wouldn't even eat if I was the one who had filled her bowl."

"So what did you do?" Wufei asked, feeling something close to hope for the first time since the whole mess had started.

"Absolutely nothing." Quatre announced happily.

Wufei's head dropped down on the table again. That was not helpful.

"I walked around doing everything I felt like doing. I practiced on my violin, I took long refreshing walks, watched movies, read books, played video games and listened to loud music which she hated." Quatre snickered drunkenly, spilling wine over his shirtsleeve. "It drove her crazy and soon she was crawling all over me to get my attention."

Wufei gave Quatre a long look. "That's so stupid it just might work."

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A/N That was it for now, please tell me what you thought about it :)

Sorry for the long wait. I got stuck, then I went to England and then I lost my Internet connection. Yeah, I know, excuses, excuses. I'll try to be faster next time.

(Oh, and go to Gundam Wing universe if you want the porn. It's not very long but it's porn)

Bethany Shiver- There will be one more chapter after this and then the epilogue, hopefully I will be able to bring you all the answers :) oh and if you're wondering about Duo's bad day I'm most likely going to post it next week ^^ Cinnamon Selkie - I do believe you were right to worry because Duo is far from pleased. But don't worry, I don't do those icky unhappy endings. anf600 - Oh Duo remembers alright, a bit too well. And to answer your question, he went into heat because he's partly female by now. Kind of like when someone who takes hormones to change their sex can ether grow breast or a beard. animefangirl0219 - LOL! It took me like forever before I got the 4th July thing. I was like 'did I miss something? What's so special about today?' It wasn't until I checked your profile that it clicked. Right, american. They have something to do with fireworks today. Anyway, I've been very well, thank you for asking :)librarycat9 - The porn is half the fun so I'm glad you read the 'longer' version ;) Unfortunately, Duo doesn't feel very understanding at the moment. Cristalake - And the shit hit the fan. Was it as bad as you expected? I'm happy you enjoyed the sex because I did enjoy writing it :) kidishcaresh - Thank you, glad to hear you... liked it? LOL! There will be more soon enough :)