Disclaimer: Same as before.
@~>~>~ @~>~>~ @~>~>~ @~>~>~ @~>~>~ @~>~>~ @~>~>~
Off to Join the Circus!
Chapter 13 ~ Epilogue
By West Wind

Duo mopped around the trailer wrapped in the blanket Lisa (for he had trouble calling her anything else) had sent him for Christmas. He plopped in a chair, pulled the blanket closer to him, and stared out the window at the rain falling and lightning cross the night sky. He missed her more than he could put into words, yet he could not bring himself to tell her. The number of times he had written e-mails pouring out his feelings for her and then deleted it without sending had long been lost with the vast quantity of them.

After they rescued Hilde and aided in the bringing down of OZ and Romefeller, Lisa stayed with them for a few months. Her friend Hilde wanted to travel a bit before thinking about college so she tagged along once school was out. She fit right in. Having taken gymnastic lessons for most of her life, she adapted quickly to most routines. Since Lisa left, she had been his partner in many of the acts. He was still amazed at how fast sparks began to fly between Hilde and Trowa. Seemed like there was a mutual attraction since day one. They had been dating for seven or eight months now and were virtually inseparable. Duo was happy for his tall friend and Hilde.

In the fall, Lisa went off to college. She e-mailed often and called occasionally. She was doing well and flourishing at college. She would tell him of all the new friends she was making and all the cute boys and which one she had a crush on this week. He loved to hear from her, but his heart cracked a little more with each new passing love interest she had. It hurt so bad, and if he was talking to her, he would try to not let the pain show. He wanted her to be happy. She deserved that for once in her life. The fact that it caused him such pain, he tried to push away for her.

He wanted to see her so badly. He had hopped that she would come back during her Christmas break, but she spent it with her flesh and blood brother, Milliardo, and his fiancée, Noin. Duo did not blame her for that. She had not seen much of him since they were adopted, but she did send her friends at the circus gifts. She sent him the lovely quilt with blocks depicting circus scenes interspersed among the quilt blocks. He found himself admiring its beauty and thinking of her on several occasions.

The door opened and a drenched Trowa entered with a hint of a smile on his face. One look at Duo wiped it away. Duo looked up at the newcomer to the room.

"Been with Hilde?" he asked while trying to hide his gloominess from Trowa.

Trowa nodded his head.

"Why don't you just tell her?" sighed Trowa cutting to the cause of Duo's despair.

"Trust me, I have tried hundreds of times, but I just can't. I don't know why, I just can't," Duo lamented and dropped his head into his hand and shook it gently back and forth.

Trowa eyed his close friend and pondered if there was anything he could do. Duo had been slowly growing un-Duo-like since Lisa was free to go back to being Relena. He was becoming melancholy and gloomy more often even though he tried to hide it from everyone. He decided it would probably be best if he left him alone for a now.

~@~

Duo had his upper body under the hood of the truck working on the engine muttering to himself as he worked. Grease smudged his hands and arms, and oily spots scattered on his dark shirt testified to his afternoon activity. He had been working on it for a while now and was just about done when someone stealthily slipped in behind him.

"Hello, Duo," chirped a happy female voice startling Duo.

Duo raised his head to quickly and hit it on the propped up hood with an grunt of pain as he turned to see his visitor.

"Lisa! I mean Relena," he exclaimed with a genuine smile filling his face.

She had changed since he last saw her. She had stopped dying her hair, it was now mostly back to its original color and about half the length. It was odd having blue eyes twinkle mischievously at him from her face. Before he could say any more a pair of hands were behind his neck and his lips were caught up in a kiss. Lisa did not pull away immediately, but gave Duo a chance to register what was going on as she assaulted his mouth. As what was happening penetrated his mind, his eyes widened in shock and disbelief before he responded in like manner. He allowed his eyes to droop, slipped his dirt stained arms around her, and participated in the kiss. Duo lost himself in the moment while every nerve in his body tingled at their touch. He wanted it to go on forever, but like all things it came to an end. Lisa pulled back and pulled air into her lungs as she smiled up at him. She left her arms draped around his neck, to Duo's relief, so he did not release her from his embrace.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked grinning up at him.

He blinked a few times at her as comprehension came.

"Why didn't you want to tell Trowa?" he answered her question with a question. "Wait a minute! How did you find out?" he questioned her with a sneaking suspicion of who. "Was it Trowa?"

Laughter tumbled out of her like the sound of bells.

"In a way," she dangled the truth before him, "but I did not hear it from his mouth."

"Hilde!" surmised Duo.

Lisa nodded that his assessment was correct.

"What about Terry?" Duo asked about her latest crush.

"Terry is not you," she stated as she slid her fingers up his neck and into his hair where his braid began.

Duo was speechless and confused. Here his dream girl was in his arms looking lovingly up at him, and it all felt surreal. The one thing he did know was that he did not want her to let go. He leaned back against the front of the truck taking her with him. She released her arms from around his neck and settled in closely beside him. Duo tried to find words to voice what he wanted to say and ask. He let out a large sigh.

"I love you," he whispered as he stared at nothing in particular before him, "and more than just a sister. I have for quite a while," he finally admitted to her.

"That wasn't so hard was it?" inquired Lisa.

Duo looked over at her and smiled.

"Not after the kiss you gave me," he stated with a wink. "But, what do you feel for me?"

He needed to hear it in her own words, from her lips.

She made sure she had his attention and looked him in they eye before replying.

"I love you more than a brother," she whispered. "Ever since you took my under you wing, you have been special to me, but I never identified my growing affection for you as love until after I went to college. When you weren't around, I was reminded of how big a part of my life you had become and how much I missed you. I tried to ignore it. I didn't think you felt the same, and I tried to find someone else."

"You mean all those guys you dated were just an attempt to forget me?" Duo asked.

She nodded.

"Every time you told me you were seeing someone my heart felt like it was breaking!" he revealed.

Lisa let out a mournful laugh before caressing his cheek.

"What a pair we are!" she observed. "Both in misery because we could not admit our feelings to ourselves or each other."

The irony hit them both and they chuckled at their blindness.

"When Hilde told me of your mopping and your feelings, I danced around my room," she continued, "and cursed both myself and you for our stubbornness.

"Duo, when I think about life without you in it, it is so pale and bleak. I love you," she concluded and rested her head on his chest.

Duo gently stroked her hair and held her tightly to him.

~@~

Relena stood by the east gate of campus a few days before school began. She admired the open quad and the surrounding old buildings. She took a deep breath and let it out as she prepared herself for a new year. An arm snaked around her waist and pulled her close to a strong familiar body. She looked over at Duo and smiled warmly at him before he leaned down and gave her a kiss.

"Are you ready for school to begin?" she asked.

"As ready as I will ever be," he admitted. "How did I let you talk me into this again?" he asked.

"I think it has something to do with getting a degree and being close to me," she playfully pointed out as she rolled his braid across her fingers.

"Oh, yeah!," he murmured before kissing her again.

After the kiss, Relena took a step away and caught his hand in hers.

"Let's get our books and finish getting you settled in," she said as she pulled him in the direction of the college bookstores.

~@~ THE END ~@~

I finally found the end to this story!!! Thank you for reading this saga and for the comments and reviews I have received on it. Hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!