Quatre's expression was wistful as he approached Duo. He sat down, smiled weakly, and greeted him.
"Hey," Duo replied quietly.
"I don't really have much to say," Quatre said almost sheepishly.
"That's okay. Less you say, quicker this whole escapade gets done and overwith," Duo murmured.
"Yeah," agreed Quatre. "Well then... ah, just thinking back to the first time we met properly. You seemed really surprised at my identity."
"Who wouldn't have been? The heir of one of, if not the most influential families in all of outer space, a Gundam pilot?" Duo laughed, remembering.
A slight flush ran to Quatre's face as he continued. "Yeah, speaking of which... I didn't know it at the time, but you and I..." He paused, almost nervously. "We were on pretty much opposite ends of the financial spectrum. Our lives were opposites of each other. What was it like, growing up on the streets?"
Duo laughed a little. "You've got that right... It was scary at first. I was three or four when my parents died, and there I was, with no other family, nowhere to turn to, on the streets. I suppose I was lucky to make friends with older kids who were willing to... well, not exactly take care of me. You don't get taken care of much, you gotta look out for yourself. But they helped me learn the ropes. Especially Solo. He was great. I'm alive today because of him." He took a deep breath before continuing.
"Solo taught me that you gotta steal to survive out there. I used to be scared shitless, but after I got over it I was the best thief in the city." A smirk crossed his face. "After about three weeks I lost count of how many times I'd stolen. I remember who I stole from though. Every face. I knew who was lazy and who was strict, who would be most likely to kill anyone he caught and who would take pity. It was the only life I knew for years."
Quatre nodded, a genuine look of interest on his face. "If, one day during your life, you were presented with the opportunity to leave the streets, to somehow go back to a normal life, parents and everything, would you take that chance?" Quatre asked.
Duo furrowed his brow thoughtfully. "I don't know. Do I have the benefit of hindsight here?" Quatre shook his head. "Hm... I really don't know. It would've been wonderful, to have a mother and father, clean clothes and food, school and a roof over my head permanently... but I would probably feel like I was abandoning the kids. I was one of the oldest, after Solo, and I looked out for a lot of them," he said. "Now, looking back, I wouldn't have, because I never would have become a Gundam pilot that way. I wouldn't be Shinigami." Duo felt a personal sense of pleasure at looking over Quatre's shoulder and seeing the irritated look on Saint Peter's face.
"On that note," Quatre said, "when do you think you became attached to death?"
"At the end of the epidemic," Duo answered definitely. "When I was about six, cholera killed almost everyone I knew and trusted, because we couldn't get the vaccine. I stole some from a hospital, and the ones who got it lived... including myself. I only took it because Solo made me. But there wasn't enough... and then he died... as soon as he got sick I just got so angry... everyone around me was dying. Nothing was staying the same. I couldn't stand it anymore. I hated the cholera for existing, I hated the doctors who wouldn't give the vaccine to street kids like us, and I came so close to hating God for letting this happen."
He glanced around nervously. "But I didn't. I felt something come over me... this deep, dark feeling that engulfed me completely and then slipped away. I saw the dead more clearly, although it was hard not to because they were everywhere. I realised that everyone I knew, everyone I was close to - my parents, my friends, Solo - was dying. I felt like it was me who caused it. I ran away so many times before remembering that the kids needed me. The dark feeling came back after the Maxwell Church was destroyed. I remember kneeling there next to Sister Helen, and the whole time I was talking to her there seemed to be a shadow next to me, and it swooped in again once she passed away... that was Death. And somehow it was telling me that I was supposed to be him. It scared me at first but I embraced it, and then... well, the rest is self-explanatory."
Some people in the audience looked disgusted. Heero looked supportive. He'd heard this story before. Quatre was a little shocked, but didn't hold it against Duo. "Wow," he murmured.
"Yeah... that's what a lot of people say," Duo replied, just as quiet.
"All right, last question," Quatre said. "Should you get into Heaven, what will you do first?"
Duo thought quietly about this for a long time, staring complacently at his hands. "I..." he said, barely audiable. "It sounds corny, but I think I'd like to meet my parents first. I mean, I'm sure there up here, they were wonderful people as far as I can remember... and I just... It's just something I feel I'd need to do."
Quatre nodded. "Thanks Duo." He smiled. "Good luck."
"Thanks," Duo mumbled, not really feeling it. He looked up at Saint Peter with an expression that read, "Who next?"
"Trowa Barton."