Things are gonna heat up a little bit, very soon... =^_~=

Disclaimer #1: I don't own GW...*cries*...but if I DID own it, things would be SO different, but then again if "ifs and buts" were candy and nuts, we'd all weigh 300 pounds, so there. =P

Disclaimer #2: I was an English major, so when I write, I write wordy. You have been warned. =P

Disclaimer #3 (last one, I promise): This is a very confusing story. Gomen nasai. Don't get lost. =^_~=

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Duo spent the next few days in bed; he probably only really needed half a day's rest, but self-pity won out over reason. Heero sat up with him all night, after removing the shrapnel from his arm and bandaging it expertly. Quatre brought him trays full of cafeteria goodies every meal, and Trowa brought pictures of the damage done to Deathscythe, along with reports on how well the repairs were going. The hole those dolls blew in the side of his Gundam was impressive. He could see now why Heero looked so worried when he pried open the hatch; Duo had come within a few inches of death, if it was possible for him to die.

They were all pillars of strength in his time of need, as always, but the best part...the very best part was that Heero had taken Duo back to their old dorm room. They had all offered to look after him for a day or two, since he really had no use of his right arm, but Heero had insisted. That felt nice. For awhile it was like things were back to normal.

Then things started to make less and less sense, once Duo had time to think. It bothered him that Heero hadn't seen four energy rifles being aimed at him. How in the hell could Duo see something when he was at his absolute slowest, and Mr. Perfect Soldier miss it completely? He must've been distracted by something...Me. He warned me off a collision, but...he had plenty of time to look around him after that. A few seconds at most, but for him, it should have been plenty of time.

Heero also hadn't touched him in any way since bandaging his arm. That bothered him too; it didn't surprise him, but it bothered him. After the close encounter in Relena's body, he half-hoped he could carry on where he left off without switching again, but the way Heero looked at him...there was something really wrong. Like a blue-eyed brick wall.

**********

On the morning of the third day, Duo stubbornly refused to get up. He had gotten WAY too comfortable living the easy life, having his meals brought to him, and so forth, so he ignored Heero's repeated shouts to rise and shine or face a painful death. He gave up after awhile, and Duo snuggled back under the covers content with his victory.

A knock came at the door, and then a familiar voice. "Heero? I'm sorry I didn't meet you all after the mission, I just couldn't make it. May I come in?" Relena... Duo shrank further under the covers and pretended to be asleep.

Heero stood aside and let her pass. No doubt she hadn't visited any of them yet because she'd been too sore to move.

"I brought you some brownies," she chirped, "just to say sorry for not being there for you, that's all." She handed him a plate stacked high with chocolate delights.

"Uh...thank you." Heero sounded bewildered. Damn, I wish I could see that, Duo thought. Teased by thoughts of Heero looking dazed and confused, he peeked out from under the blanket.

"I'm glad everyone made it out alright," she said, taking the tiniest of steps forward. She looked down at her feet. "You know...every time you go out there...I worry. I think, maybe this is the time you won't come back..." Duo was nauseated. This was worse than having his arm shredded.

Heero didn't say anything, but had just started to half-look over his shoulder to the bed when Relena crossed that fine line. She took a much larger step forward, ran her hands up Heero's chest and laced her fingers behind his neck. "But I didn't want you to think I didn't care...because I DO care...very, very much..." She was leaning in so close they were about to bump noses.

Duo was an inch away from leaping out of bed and tearing her hands off his man when Heero saved him the trouble. When her lips were a scant inch away from his, he reached behind his neck and roughly peeled her hands off. Relena's sweet smile turned to a painful look of shock and disappointment. Heero said nothing, dropped her hands back at her sides, and glared at her. Cruel as it was to enjoy seeing her hurt expression, Duo's heart leapt for joy. He didn't want her!

A hair's breadth from bursting into tears, Relena turned and ran out of the apartment. Heero walked briskly back to the bed, grabbed a corner of the blanket, and flung it off Duo, who was curled in a ball pretending to be asleep...he even let out a tiny snore for effect. Curiosity opened his eyes for him after a few moments; he looked up. Heero's eyes were on fire. They made Duo shrink away and curl up into a tighter ball. What's he angry at me for? Is he hurt? Is he frustrated? Jealous? Hungry? What!?

Ten minutes later, neither had moved; Heero was still staring him further into the corner between the mattress and the wall. Duo cracked under the weight of those ice blue eyes and lifted his head up. "WHAT!?!" he barked.

Heero blinked, returning to normal, except for being slightly flushed with a couple of veins standing out on his neck. He went back to his laptop and ignored Duo for the rest of the morning.

**********

Retreating to the gym, the injured pilot spent the evening testing the strength in his battered right arm. He ran the morning's events over and over in him mind, trying to figure out what he did to make Heero so angry. He'd never seen him like that before...it was partly anger, but there was something else in his face, something Duo didn't recognize. If he could just have some quiet time to think...

"YOU!"...or not. His head snapped around to see the other students in the gym backing away from a very angry Relena. She stomped over to his quiet corner; as she neared he could see her face was red and tear-stained. "What have you got to SAY for yourself, Maxwell!?" she howled.

"Keep your voice down!" he pleaded in a hushed whisper. "What's eating you?" As if he didn't know.

"What did you say to him about me? He used to be reasonably POLITE, at least, and now he can't stand to be around me!" She was in danger of bursting into tears again. "You were supposed to fix things between us!"

"I didn't have time!" Duo whined. "I couldn't find him anywhere, and then we had that mission...I just need more time!"

"Well, you can send me a message when you think you've got it right." she sniffed, turning to leave.

He grabbed her wrist. "Not so fast..." She flinched violently and looked at him, terrified. He pulled her close and whispered in her ear. "We gotta do that...switching...thing again."

Relena's eyes widened. "No!" He hushed her again and tilted his head towards the storage room. Grudgingly, she nodded, and they slipped inside. They were turning this closet thing into a bad habit.

As soon as they were safely out of view, she whirled around and bit his head off. "You've got no right to ask me to do that again! I don't see why you have to look like me anyway! Can't you talk to him yourself?" Sweet, innocent Relena...she had such a pious, incorruptible mind.

"Look, it would've worked the first time if I'd been able to FIND him, and I just need to look like you because..." he struggled. Maybe if he sprinkled in a little bit of the truth, it would sound convincing. "...because what I need to say to him, to make him understand who loves him...I can't do it in my body. It wouldn't sound right coming out of my mouth, and Heero wouldn't accept it." He sighed deeply. It was true. "Just trust me for a little while longer. Please."

She bit her lip, thinking. After a long pause, she met his eyes and breathed her answer. "Okay."

Brushing off the momentary shock at her acceptance, Duo wrapped his hands around her throat, gently but firmly, and tried to clear his mind. He locked eyes with her, breathing deeply, and the shadowy words came once again, amidst the sound of giant waves crashing against their ears. Pulling her forward, he kissed her hard, the vortex opening between them. A great current swept their souls past one another, and suddenly all was quiet. Opening their eyes with a start, they pulled away from each other, leaning against the walls to steady themselves. It had been easier that time.

Relena yelped and grabbed her upper arm. Tugging up the sleeve of Duo's shirt she saw it was wrapped up in gauze and tape, and there were spots of dried blood scattered on the dressing. "Wha...?"

Duo shrugged, combing his fingers through his borrowed hair. "We got into a bit of a scrape on that mission...nothing to worry about."

"Oh! I didn't realize! Was Heero hurt?" she whispered. Duo bit his tongue in anger; only the pleasant sound of his own voice breathing Heero's name kept him from tearing her off a strip for being so insensitive.

"No, he's fine." He straightened her purse strap on his shoulder. "And now if you'll excuse me, I've got work to do."

"Wait!" she begged. "What about me? What about this arm? It really hurts!"

Duo reached out and tugged the sleeve back over his own arm, rubbing it affectionately. "I'll help you back to your room, ok? Just rest up and let it heal on it's own. Think of it as a little vacation. It's not all bad!" He gave her a reassuring smile.

She shook her braided head. "Trowa told me you were staying in Heero's room. I should go there, or they might all get suspicious." Blabbermouth, Duo thought. He wondered if she was really as thick in the head as she acted sometimes.

"Alright," he said with a sigh. And with that they left the storage room, ignoring the stares and grins from the other students, and made their way to Heero's dorm.

He wasn't there when they arrived, thank goodness. Duo pointed her to his bed. "Well, tv's there, fridge over there, I think you know where the laptop is..." he smirked. "So I'll leave you to it. Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"As soon as you finish talking to him, send him straight home. I don't want him losing any sleep because of this."

I'll bet, he thought as he left.

**********

Before going out Heero-hunting, he returned to Relena's room and changed back into the short skirt and clingy top. They were corny, but he was kinda used to them, and they looked loads better than the frumpy jeans and beaded sweater she'd been wearing earlier. Looking in the mirror, he thought his...no, Relena's reflection, was a little off somehow. He checked the dimmer switch on the wall; the lights were on full. What was wrong? Her hair was different...it wasn't sandy blonde anymore, it seemed a shade or two darker. No, that was impossible, just a trick of the light combined with mental fatigue. He braided it deftly.

Searching the usual haunts turned up nothing, and the next most obvious place for Heero to be was in the launching bay, tending to Wing Zero. He made it there fairly easily, despite being stopped once along the way for a random I.D. check.

Shuffling through Relena's purse for her student card, he stumbled across the little package of white pills he'd bought a few days ago. Cripes, I forgot all about these! If she'd seen them in the days since, she didn't let on. He took one out and swallowed it quickly, as if they might be confiscated at any moment, while the imposing guard studied her portrait.

The guard squinted at him over and over, looking back and forth between his idiotically smiling face and the picture on the I.D. card. "This isn't you, is it?" he growled.

Duo put the smile away and tried not to look terrified. Fumbling through the purse again, he pulled out a mirrored compact and had a good look at himself. He had to admit, the guy had a point. It wasn't just the hair that was a bit darker, the eyes were off as well. The bright blue of her eyes had a purplish tinge now. "Oh, that?" he sang. "Contacts. Do you like them?" he said, batting his lashes as he put the mirror away.

Unflustered, the guard looked him over one last time, and finally waved him through. He tried not to run the rest of the way; it was already dark out, and soon he'd be drawing the wrong kind of attention in that skirt. Once he reached his destination, no one objected to his presence in the compound; in fact the workmen were all humbled by the presence of a Peacecraft. Slipping into the hangar that contained Deathscythe, he looked around carefully for signs of life. The place was empty of humans; a door in the far wall led to the hangar hiding Wing Zero. But first...I wonder if it knows me under all this fluff and goop.

Duo walked over to Deathscythe. He could see Relena reflected in the shiny metal of it's left foot, and as he drew closer, the changes looked even more drastic. He looked less like Relena, and more like himself in a skirt. Ignoring this disturbing vision, he laid a hand on the cold metal. It's me...

Perfectly on cue, Deathscythe's eyes began to glow. Duo's breath caught in his throat, but he didn't take his hand away. It recognized him. It knew him. The realization that his old friend could see it's master through any sort of disguise warmed him. He knew this magnificent creature had a soul too, though none of the other pilots were quick to believe it. Can't pull anything on you, can I? He grinned, stepping back. The glow faded.

Slowly he made his way to the back door, the door to the next hangar, the last place he could look for Heero. He had to be there, there was nowhere else he could be. Duo had actually skipped dinner to prowl all over the campus looking for him, without success. Clutching the handle, he held his breath as the lock clicked and the door swung open with a tired creak. This room was dark as well; he stepped inside and let the door close behind him.

Wing Zero loomed overhead like a giant, and sitting on it's shoulder was a Lilliputian in a tank top and spandex. He had found Heero.


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#^_^# Oh my...this is definitely going somewhere...