Category: Angst, AU
Pairings: 1x2, 3x4
Rating: R (?)
Disclaimer: Standard. You know them all by now so I won't bore you with a repeat.
Notes: This takes place in a world of my own making, where things can and are twisted into strange things. So what doesn't seem possible is. There are M/M relationships in this fic (I'm very much a 1x2/3x4 fan.) so if boys being together (and I do mean together) bothers you don't read.
Twisted Fates Part SixBy SilverLady
Duo bit back the moan of pain as he leaned back against the rocks. He had heard Heero had been furious and had practically torn the city apart looking for him. But when Duo didn't want to be found, not even Heero couldn't find him.
He'd left the day of Heero's wedding, unable to bear the thought of his love marrying someone else. He had decided to find somewhere far away from Shadar to live, someplace where he could start over. He had retrieved the small box of jewels that had been his mother's from their hiding place and had brought them with him. Hopefully it would be enough to give him a new start.
Now it looked as if it wouldn't make any difference. He was going to die out here in this storm, alone and forgotten. Maybe someday someone would find his body and wonder what had happened.
With a sigh Duo closed his eyes and waited for the end.
"Hey. Wake up."
Duo groaned at the insistent shaking. If freezing to death wasn't enough, someone was going to shake him as well.
"Come on. You can't stay here. You've got to get up."
Slowly Duo opened his eyes. To his surprise he found himself staring into a pair of green eyes. That was all he could see of the person standing over him. The rest of the figure was bundled up against the cold. "Who?" he croaked, his throat raw.
"Can you stand? My wagon's just outside. It's a good thing my dog found you. You would have been dead otherwise."
With the stranger's help, Duo managed to get to his feet. "Who are you?" he whispered.
"My name is Adrianna. I'm the healer for the town of Hamar."
Duo whimpered slightly as the girl helped him to the wagon.
"It will be all right. I'll get you back to my place in a jiff."
Duo sighed as he let Adrianna help him into the wagon. Maybe things would turn out all right after all.
Adrianna frowned as she helped the man she'd found into the house. He was very lucky that she had found him. She had wondered what had possessed her to take that route home. This was obviously the answer.
"Here, sit by the fire. And take that cloak off, it's soaked."
Turning she bustled over the large cabinet where she stored her herbs and medicines. Gathering what she needed she returned to where she'd left Duo.
She frowned when she found him still sitting where she'd left him. "I told you to take off that cloak." She knelt down beside him, noting the odd way he was sitting. He had his arms wrapped tightly around himself. "What's wrong?"
Duo looked at her with pain filled eyes. "Hurts," he whispered.
With quick efficiency, Adrianna removed the soaked cloak from Duo's body.
The sight that met her eyes made her pause, if only for a moment. The shirt he wore did little to conceal the swollen state of his abdomen. "A Sucar," she whispered.
Duo looked at the healer and nodded. "I'm…" He stopped as yet another pain ripped through him.
Adrianna was suddenly briskly efficient. "You're in labor, aren't you?"
Duo managed a nod.
"How long?"
"I don't know."
Adrianna helped him to his feet. "Let's get you more comfortable and get these clothes off of you. Are you early?"
Duo was surprised at how easily the woman had handled the news. "I wasn't figuring on this happening for another two weeks."
"Not too early then. Good." She smiled reassuringly. "It will be just fine."
Duo groaned as another contraction tightened the muscles of his swollen abdomen. "I hope so."
Duo sighed and leaned back against the pillows. He was exhausted and his entire body hurt. He said nothing as he watched Adrianna on the other side of the room. "My…"
Adrianna smiled as she turned to look at Duo. In her arms was a bundle of wrapped blankets that effectively cover the tiny wailing form within. "Your son is fine." She moved across the room to place the baby in Duo's arms.
Duo smiled down at his crying son. "You made it after all." Carefully he brushed a shaking finger across the soft cheek.
Adrianna sat down on the edge of the bed. "A good healthy little boy. You should be proud."
Duo looked at her. "I am."
"What are you going to call him?"
Duo looked back at his son. "James. James Kentaro Maxwell."
"That's a good name." Adrianna frowned. "What about the
father?"
Duo looked sad. "He doesn't know. I left before I found out."
"Why?"
"He's married." Duo saw the shock in Adrianna's eyes. "He wasn't married when…. I left him before he got married."
"Oh. I didn't mean to pry."
"It's all right." Duo shifted the tiny baby in his arms. "I think he's hungry."
Adrianna nodded. "I'll see what I can find."
Duo watched her leave, and then shifted his son in his arms again, carefully freeing one tiny arm from its confines. The baby turned his head towards Duo's chest, instinctively searching for a source of food.
Duo chuckled softly. "Sorry you won't…." He gasped as the baby found and latched onto his nipple. "What?"
The baby began making contented sounds as he continued to suckle. Duo could only stare down at his son in shock. He was… Carefully he pulled the baby away and looked at himself. Ken, for that was how he already thought of his son, began crying and waving his little arm around. To Duo's amazement, a single bead of white colored liquid oozed from his swollen nipple. With a happy sigh, he let Ken return to his nursing. "I didn't know he was that thorough," he whispered.
Adrianna paused as she walked back into the room. She's found what she was looking for. But it was apparent that Duo had already made the discovery on his own. That Sucarian males were capable of nursing their own children.
She smiled at the picture the two made. She had no doubt that Duo was going to make an excellent parent for the tiny baby he held in his arms.
