Braids of a Feather
By AlantisB
Chapter 14
Disclaimer: Standard Disclaimer Applies.
A/N: Wow! I have a great chapter for you guys tonight! Please enjoy it okay? I had to think of how to end this chapter, sorry it took so long. Remember: This is the second-to-last chapter! Hope you like it!
"..talking.."
'..thinking..'
OoOo Scene change
OoOoOoOoOo
Duo watched as the rain continued to pour down. He looked over at Cologne. "Look, lady. I'm flattered you called me ancient but I'm not one of those old guys. I'm just a kid, and since it's raining, do you think you can bother me sometime else?"
Cologne appeared to be thinking it over. She folded her arms behind her back. "Alright, sonny. We'll talk about this later. Goodbye, Son-in-law!" She cackled as she left onto the rooftops again.
He just stood there, looking in her direction before taking one look at the female, big busted, Ranma and bursted out laughing. He snickered and said between breaths. "S-she called you S-S-son-in-law!" He laughed louder while poking at Ranma's breast.
Ranma gave him the super cute pout and struck a pose. Her one arm was behind her head and the other was on her hip. "What? Am I not man enough?" She replied as she wigged her body, making her breasts move with her motions. Duo cracked up again and bent down and picked up poor little Ryoga. "Come on, porky. Let's head to the dojo to get out the rain."
"Bwee! Bwee, bwee! Bweeeee!" Squealed the black piglet.
"Shove it, bacon bits or I'll give ya to a restaurant." Replied Ranma as she glared at the pig. 'Being a half-woman was hard enough, he didn't have to rub it in with insults.' He thought.
They arrived at the dojo and all three headed to the bathhouse for a nice, warm, pleasant bath. Ranma took of her clothes while Ryoga headed over to the bathtub to turn on the hot water with his hooves. Duo blinked at them, 'This must happen a lot.' He chuckled at the thought and stripped. He took off his stomach and wrist bandages, noting how Ranma glanced at his wrists before she ducked her head under the blast of cold water from the small shower. He took off his boots and the knives from his ankles. He glanced at his two friends before slipping off the hidden gun and hid it under his clothes. No need to scare them with its presence, or so he felt anyway.
He grabbed the end of his braid and smiled at it lovingly before taking off the tie and unraveling the braid. When the hair was fully unbraided, it reached down to his knees. He grinned and stepped under the blast of cold water to get rid of all the rain water. He shivered, 'Too cold! Brr!'. He turned it off and walked over to the hot tub and slipped in. He tried not to stare at Ranma or Ryoga who were both very naked in a hot tub that wasn't really meant for three people.
"What did that old ghoul mean by ancient?" Ranma looked at him and he gave him a half-hearted grin.
"I umm, well I'm part demon." He noticed their shocked faces. "Hey, hey! I only found this out today! It seems that in a past life or something, I was a demon. Anyway, when I had uh, passed out today, I had a dream that involved my old self. And to make the story short, I joined myself with him." Duo shrugged. "I'm not much different then before. All the blood I've lost over the last few days is making me too weak to even think of using my powers. I wouldn't anyway, my powers aren't in my control now and I could hurt someone."
"Well," Ryoga glanced at Ranma. "It isn't all that shocking. I mean you do act a little demonish at times. Especially when we pull pranks like the Cherry Bomb prank."
Duo smiled at them innocently. "It wasn't my fault. It was Ranma who dropped it down the toliets."
"You didn't tell me it'll blow all the pipes in a one mile radius!"
"You didn't ask."
OoOoOoOoOo
"Are we all ready?" Lady Une looked at her men. They were all set at their stations and all they had to do now was to wait for Maxwell to come out. Capturing the elite Shinigami is turning out to be too easy. 'Oh well,' she thought wickedly. 'Toturing him will be so much more fun.'
"We're ready, ma'am! It's all set."
"Good. I'm going to enjoy capturing Maxwell."
OoOoOoOoOo
Quatre sighed as looked at Sally. "I called him. He said he'll be here in two days." He was upset, although this was important, he wanted Duo to be happy. He sometimes saw his friend become depressed and thought maybe seeing old friends would be good for him.
Sally Po nodded. "Good. Wufei and Heero have arrived. All we need to do now is to wait for Duo." She looked out the window at the bright full moon. The braided pilot was the most needed out of the five gundam pilots. He was more sneaky and smarter then a lot of people give him credit for. He had once gotten into a base by himself, with out the other pilot's help and caused havoc in side by calling twenty pizza boys, sending out for thirty orders of Chinese takeout and a dozen roses to Lady Une in the base. While the base was a mess, he sneaked out and then blew up the mobile dolls factory on the other side of the building. It was amazing what that boy could do if he got into it.
But she couldn't shake off the feeling that something was wrong.
OoOoOoOoOo
Duo grinned as he hugged Ranma and Ryoga goodbye. He thought about telling Ranma how he felt, but he didn't want to ruin the friendship so he pushed it aside. He smiled at the black Chinese shirt Ranma had given him to wear.
"Bye guys! I'll visit when I can again!"
Ranma and Ryoga grinned. "You better!" Ranma winked and watched as Duo opened the door.
Nabiki grinned evilly and looked down at her watch. It was time for her to pull out that ace from her sleeve. Ranma and Ryoga's eyes widened as a bright light flared in the doorway and Duo cried out in shock. Soldiers knocked out a surprised Duo before they grabbed him and handcuffed them. Lady Une stepped through the doorway. "Don't worry." She said calmly. "We'll put this young man in jail where he belongs."
"What!" Cried out Ranma. "What the hell are you talking about?"
Lady Une glanced at him. "Didn't you know? Duo Maxwell is one of the five most wanted terrorists. He is charged with arson, murder of thousands of soldiers, and assassinations."
Ranma stared at the unconscious Duo in shock. Duo was a murder? He had blood on his hands? He had killed people? But he was so young, she had said thousands had died. No wonder Duo couldn't talk to them for two years. He wanted to keep them safe.
While Ranma was preoccupied with his thoughts, the soldiers moved out and left the dojo. Nabiki headed upstairs, grinning like a cat who had just caught the mouse. 'Ranma will be so devastated.' She licked her finger and made a slash in the air downwards. 'Score one hundred for Nabiki, Ranma with a score of one. Beat that, Saotome!'
OoOoOoOoOo
Hours Later
Duo slowly lifted his head up. 'God, what hit me?' He thought. His head pounded badly and his stomach wound was bleeding slowly again. He felt like shit, to sum it up simply. He was tied to a chair and his neck hurt from having it leaned over like that while he slept.
"Oh, the gundam pilot is awake!" Someone said to his left.
"Heh, what a dumb kid. Did he think he could stand up to Oz?" Said another.
"I got a good idea! Let's kick his ass. Then we can tell all our girlfriends we took down one of the five most wanted terrorists in the world!"
The others agreed and before Duo knew what was happening, he was being beaten. A guy to his left gave him a sharp kick to his ribs and he forced himself not to cry out. Another guy started punching him. Little by little blood started leaking out of his mouth and his body hurt all over. It was wave after wave of pain. He couldn't even tell where one kick ended and one punch began. It was just one big blur of pain. He shut his eyes tight and refused to cry out no matter how much he hurt.
"Not so tough now, are you? You little shit!" Yelled one of the soldiers.
This went on for hours before he was too weak to even think correctly anymore. He just knew pain, his world revolved around pain. His poor body was too badly hurt for him to even think of escaping now. None of his ribs were broken, but he knew he had a few cracked and brused ones. His wrists were bleeding again and his stomach wound too. He was tired but he knew he had a concussion so sleeping was out of the question.
"That's enough."
The soldiers stopped beating him when the voice spoke. They moved out the way as Duo blinked back his blurred vision to see Lady Une standing in front of him. "Well Mr. Maxwell," she said. "If you tell me what I want to know, I'll let you go. If you don't tell me, I'll do something so bad to you, you'll regret not talking."
Duo pretended to think about it. He then spat out blood on her shirt and gave her a pained grin. "Do what you want bitch, I'm telling you nothing. I won't betray my friends." She frowned and looked at him levely.
She could do nothing to him; he knew that. He would never talk. Never would he betray his friends, the other pilots. It was unthinkable! He was expendable, if she killed him well so be it. Another pilot will take his place.
She smirked evilly and took out a case from her jacket. "I've read many reports on you, Maxwell. I've heard many things about your personality. I know you better then you know yourself." She walked behind him and grabbed his braid to make his neck snap back to look up at the ceiling. He growled. "I know your weakness."
His violet eyes glared at her with hate. "I have no weakness."
Lady Une opened the case to reveal a pair of scissors that gleamed in the light of the room. His eyes widened. 'She wouldn't! She can't!' He cried out in his mind in horror. She moved the scissors down towards his braid.
"Tell me what I want to know, or the braid gets cut off."
He growled louder and shut his eyes tight. No matter what happened, he would never betray his friends. Even if it meant losing his identity. "Never." He whispered as he opened his eyes and glared at her in hatred.
She laughed coldy, sending shivers down his spine. "Then it goes off!" She opened the blades and with three snips, the braid came off in her hands. She forced his chin to her eye level. She held up the braid in front of his face mockingly as she smirked.
Silently in his mind, he cried. His braid was gone; the only thing that had been with him since his childhood was forever lost to him. The reminder of what he fought for, to protect. Images flashed into his mind of when Sister Helen threatened to cut it off before she put it into a braid. A pain grew in his chest as he stared at his once beautiful long braid.
A part of him died that night in that cell.
OoOoOoOoOo
Wow! ^.^ Huge cliffhanger huh? One last chapter to go! Just one! Please review and tell me what you think of this chapter. Sorry it took so long to get out. Ja! ^.~
-AlantisB
By AlantisB
Chapter 14
Disclaimer: Standard Disclaimer Applies.
A/N: Wow! I have a great chapter for you guys tonight! Please enjoy it okay? I had to think of how to end this chapter, sorry it took so long. Remember: This is the second-to-last chapter! Hope you like it!
"..talking.."
'..thinking..'
OoOo Scene change
OoOoOoOoOo
Duo watched as the rain continued to pour down. He looked over at Cologne. "Look, lady. I'm flattered you called me ancient but I'm not one of those old guys. I'm just a kid, and since it's raining, do you think you can bother me sometime else?"
Cologne appeared to be thinking it over. She folded her arms behind her back. "Alright, sonny. We'll talk about this later. Goodbye, Son-in-law!" She cackled as she left onto the rooftops again.
He just stood there, looking in her direction before taking one look at the female, big busted, Ranma and bursted out laughing. He snickered and said between breaths. "S-she called you S-S-son-in-law!" He laughed louder while poking at Ranma's breast.
Ranma gave him the super cute pout and struck a pose. Her one arm was behind her head and the other was on her hip. "What? Am I not man enough?" She replied as she wigged her body, making her breasts move with her motions. Duo cracked up again and bent down and picked up poor little Ryoga. "Come on, porky. Let's head to the dojo to get out the rain."
"Bwee! Bwee, bwee! Bweeeee!" Squealed the black piglet.
"Shove it, bacon bits or I'll give ya to a restaurant." Replied Ranma as she glared at the pig. 'Being a half-woman was hard enough, he didn't have to rub it in with insults.' He thought.
They arrived at the dojo and all three headed to the bathhouse for a nice, warm, pleasant bath. Ranma took of her clothes while Ryoga headed over to the bathtub to turn on the hot water with his hooves. Duo blinked at them, 'This must happen a lot.' He chuckled at the thought and stripped. He took off his stomach and wrist bandages, noting how Ranma glanced at his wrists before she ducked her head under the blast of cold water from the small shower. He took off his boots and the knives from his ankles. He glanced at his two friends before slipping off the hidden gun and hid it under his clothes. No need to scare them with its presence, or so he felt anyway.
He grabbed the end of his braid and smiled at it lovingly before taking off the tie and unraveling the braid. When the hair was fully unbraided, it reached down to his knees. He grinned and stepped under the blast of cold water to get rid of all the rain water. He shivered, 'Too cold! Brr!'. He turned it off and walked over to the hot tub and slipped in. He tried not to stare at Ranma or Ryoga who were both very naked in a hot tub that wasn't really meant for three people.
"What did that old ghoul mean by ancient?" Ranma looked at him and he gave him a half-hearted grin.
"I umm, well I'm part demon." He noticed their shocked faces. "Hey, hey! I only found this out today! It seems that in a past life or something, I was a demon. Anyway, when I had uh, passed out today, I had a dream that involved my old self. And to make the story short, I joined myself with him." Duo shrugged. "I'm not much different then before. All the blood I've lost over the last few days is making me too weak to even think of using my powers. I wouldn't anyway, my powers aren't in my control now and I could hurt someone."
"Well," Ryoga glanced at Ranma. "It isn't all that shocking. I mean you do act a little demonish at times. Especially when we pull pranks like the Cherry Bomb prank."
Duo smiled at them innocently. "It wasn't my fault. It was Ranma who dropped it down the toliets."
"You didn't tell me it'll blow all the pipes in a one mile radius!"
"You didn't ask."
OoOoOoOoOo
"Are we all ready?" Lady Une looked at her men. They were all set at their stations and all they had to do now was to wait for Maxwell to come out. Capturing the elite Shinigami is turning out to be too easy. 'Oh well,' she thought wickedly. 'Toturing him will be so much more fun.'
"We're ready, ma'am! It's all set."
"Good. I'm going to enjoy capturing Maxwell."
OoOoOoOoOo
Quatre sighed as looked at Sally. "I called him. He said he'll be here in two days." He was upset, although this was important, he wanted Duo to be happy. He sometimes saw his friend become depressed and thought maybe seeing old friends would be good for him.
Sally Po nodded. "Good. Wufei and Heero have arrived. All we need to do now is to wait for Duo." She looked out the window at the bright full moon. The braided pilot was the most needed out of the five gundam pilots. He was more sneaky and smarter then a lot of people give him credit for. He had once gotten into a base by himself, with out the other pilot's help and caused havoc in side by calling twenty pizza boys, sending out for thirty orders of Chinese takeout and a dozen roses to Lady Une in the base. While the base was a mess, he sneaked out and then blew up the mobile dolls factory on the other side of the building. It was amazing what that boy could do if he got into it.
But she couldn't shake off the feeling that something was wrong.
OoOoOoOoOo
Duo grinned as he hugged Ranma and Ryoga goodbye. He thought about telling Ranma how he felt, but he didn't want to ruin the friendship so he pushed it aside. He smiled at the black Chinese shirt Ranma had given him to wear.
"Bye guys! I'll visit when I can again!"
Ranma and Ryoga grinned. "You better!" Ranma winked and watched as Duo opened the door.
Nabiki grinned evilly and looked down at her watch. It was time for her to pull out that ace from her sleeve. Ranma and Ryoga's eyes widened as a bright light flared in the doorway and Duo cried out in shock. Soldiers knocked out a surprised Duo before they grabbed him and handcuffed them. Lady Une stepped through the doorway. "Don't worry." She said calmly. "We'll put this young man in jail where he belongs."
"What!" Cried out Ranma. "What the hell are you talking about?"
Lady Une glanced at him. "Didn't you know? Duo Maxwell is one of the five most wanted terrorists. He is charged with arson, murder of thousands of soldiers, and assassinations."
Ranma stared at the unconscious Duo in shock. Duo was a murder? He had blood on his hands? He had killed people? But he was so young, she had said thousands had died. No wonder Duo couldn't talk to them for two years. He wanted to keep them safe.
While Ranma was preoccupied with his thoughts, the soldiers moved out and left the dojo. Nabiki headed upstairs, grinning like a cat who had just caught the mouse. 'Ranma will be so devastated.' She licked her finger and made a slash in the air downwards. 'Score one hundred for Nabiki, Ranma with a score of one. Beat that, Saotome!'
OoOoOoOoOo
Hours Later
Duo slowly lifted his head up. 'God, what hit me?' He thought. His head pounded badly and his stomach wound was bleeding slowly again. He felt like shit, to sum it up simply. He was tied to a chair and his neck hurt from having it leaned over like that while he slept.
"Oh, the gundam pilot is awake!" Someone said to his left.
"Heh, what a dumb kid. Did he think he could stand up to Oz?" Said another.
"I got a good idea! Let's kick his ass. Then we can tell all our girlfriends we took down one of the five most wanted terrorists in the world!"
The others agreed and before Duo knew what was happening, he was being beaten. A guy to his left gave him a sharp kick to his ribs and he forced himself not to cry out. Another guy started punching him. Little by little blood started leaking out of his mouth and his body hurt all over. It was wave after wave of pain. He couldn't even tell where one kick ended and one punch began. It was just one big blur of pain. He shut his eyes tight and refused to cry out no matter how much he hurt.
"Not so tough now, are you? You little shit!" Yelled one of the soldiers.
This went on for hours before he was too weak to even think correctly anymore. He just knew pain, his world revolved around pain. His poor body was too badly hurt for him to even think of escaping now. None of his ribs were broken, but he knew he had a few cracked and brused ones. His wrists were bleeding again and his stomach wound too. He was tired but he knew he had a concussion so sleeping was out of the question.
"That's enough."
The soldiers stopped beating him when the voice spoke. They moved out the way as Duo blinked back his blurred vision to see Lady Une standing in front of him. "Well Mr. Maxwell," she said. "If you tell me what I want to know, I'll let you go. If you don't tell me, I'll do something so bad to you, you'll regret not talking."
Duo pretended to think about it. He then spat out blood on her shirt and gave her a pained grin. "Do what you want bitch, I'm telling you nothing. I won't betray my friends." She frowned and looked at him levely.
She could do nothing to him; he knew that. He would never talk. Never would he betray his friends, the other pilots. It was unthinkable! He was expendable, if she killed him well so be it. Another pilot will take his place.
She smirked evilly and took out a case from her jacket. "I've read many reports on you, Maxwell. I've heard many things about your personality. I know you better then you know yourself." She walked behind him and grabbed his braid to make his neck snap back to look up at the ceiling. He growled. "I know your weakness."
His violet eyes glared at her with hate. "I have no weakness."
Lady Une opened the case to reveal a pair of scissors that gleamed in the light of the room. His eyes widened. 'She wouldn't! She can't!' He cried out in his mind in horror. She moved the scissors down towards his braid.
"Tell me what I want to know, or the braid gets cut off."
He growled louder and shut his eyes tight. No matter what happened, he would never betray his friends. Even if it meant losing his identity. "Never." He whispered as he opened his eyes and glared at her in hatred.
She laughed coldy, sending shivers down his spine. "Then it goes off!" She opened the blades and with three snips, the braid came off in her hands. She forced his chin to her eye level. She held up the braid in front of his face mockingly as she smirked.
Silently in his mind, he cried. His braid was gone; the only thing that had been with him since his childhood was forever lost to him. The reminder of what he fought for, to protect. Images flashed into his mind of when Sister Helen threatened to cut it off before she put it into a braid. A pain grew in his chest as he stared at his once beautiful long braid.
A part of him died that night in that cell.
OoOoOoOoOo
Wow! ^.^ Huge cliffhanger huh? One last chapter to go! Just one! Please review and tell me what you think of this chapter. Sorry it took so long to get out. Ja! ^.~
-AlantisB
