After a bit of a break I'm back with the next bit of Reptiles ^_^. This is all for a bit. I've hit a mental block and final term of Uni for the year so that's going to take up a bit of my time (^(&)(*^*&%#$Z%#$%#@ assignments ^%$#$#@#$%#%#$@ exams.
Anyway on with the fic!!!!!
"Talking"
**Thoughts**
---------------character change----------------------
(I think that's it)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Duo was _not_ a very happy Gundam pilot.
He was currently holding the head of a Tyrannosaurus-Rex. A _live_ Tyrannosaurus-Rex.....Okay so it was a baby but the point of the matter was he was holding the head of one of _the_ most dangerous predators alive. It was injured. It was in pain......and it was currently trying to bite his hand off! **I so do _not_ want to be here!**
Wufei had it slightly better than him. He had the legs, which may have been a curse in itself. He was alternately trying not to get kicked by powerful legs, or hit by the tail. He looked pissed, then again he wouldn't be happy either if he had a tail constantly hitting him upside the head.
Duo winced as Wufei caught another one-two combination of foot and tail. "Heero, how much longer? This thing is seriously _not_ happy!"
In the distance two dinosaur roared.
**Oh, _shit_!. Ohshitohshitohshitohshit! Please don't let that be the parents. _Please_ _don't_ let that be the parents**. Duo was scared. He'd laughed in the face of death countless times without the slightest hint of fear. Hell, he was a Gundam pilot, he was _supposed_ to risk his life, but the thought of being eaten alive by an angry T-Rex was not something that made him feel all gooey inside.......quite the opposite actually. "Heero, hurry up, I've got a _really_ bad feeling about this!".
The baby started squirming even more in answer to the roars. Heero glanced out the window and started wrapping a bandage on the baby's leg. "I'm almost finished."
When Duo thought things couldn't get any worse they did. It started to rain. Not a gentle summer rain mind you, it started to piss down in buckets.
**Great. So now, not only do we have two possible adult T-Rex's on the way, it's pissin' down and visibility is low. We won't see them 'till they're right on top of us!**
The dinosaurs roared again, this time _much_ closer.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Quatre glared at his captors, and in the distance two dinosaurs roared again. His chest was aching like crazy. Duo, Heero, and Wufei were in serious trouble, he was certain of it. His Uchuu no Kokoro had started up almost the minute Zechs and his goon squad had captured Trowa and himself. He didn't know what was worse, knowing his friends were in serious danger, or knowing his friends were in serious danger and not being able to _do_ anything!
Currently they were being marched back towards their camp. Zechs obviously wanted o capture the other pilots as well. Quatre looked around at his captors. There were six in total, seven if you counted ol' Tin Can. Quatre smirked slightly, he paid more attention to Duo's babblings than the boy thought. He had a way with insults that was unequaled. All of them were heavily armed, and one of them carried a large amount of rope looped around him and over one shoulder. It was probably meant to tie them up with, though if they thought a mere rope was going to hold Heero they had another thing coming.
Zechs stopped the group and motioned for quiet. **What's he doing? If I yell I _think_ the guys will hear me**. He opened his mouth to let out a scream and found himself face to face with the barrel of Merquise's gun.
"I think not Gundam pilot".
**Damn. That won't work.** "You don't want to shoot me."**Don't mention the others, he has no evidence that there are any others here apart from Trowa and I.**
"Perhaps."
The group lapsed into silence again. Zechs and his troops appeared to be waiting for something, but he wasn't sure what.
Finally, after what seemed hours of standing in silence, a faint booming could be heard, and it was getting progressively louder. Then a deafening roar, and a T-Rex crashed past them, heading straight for the trailer.
**Oh no! I have to warn Duo......** Mindless of the OZ soldiers around him Quatre reached into his pocket and pulled out the communicator. "Duo, DUO ANSWER ME!!" **C'mon, pick up. Pickuppickuppickuppickup, why won't he answer......** Surprisingly, Merquise and his men didn't try and stop him.
Then the rain started.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
They didn't see the T-Rex's until they were looking through the windows. All Wufei could see was a _large_ eye and a small amount of face.
**Those things are _huge_. If that's the eye I _really_ don't want to see the rest of it!**. Duo hadn't spotted it yet, but all he had to do was turn around and he would be face to eyeball with it. **Do I tell him or not? I don't want him to panic, he already looks scared, but if I don't tell him and he sees it he might do something drastic.** Mind made up, Wufei made to
warn the long haired boy. "Duo...."
The dinosaur let loose with a massive roar. Duo screamed and loosened his hold on the baby, who let out a quieter version of the roar. The parent nudged the trailer with it's nose, rocking them. Wufei watched as Duo staggered into a wall, the boy was trying his hardest not to hyperventilate. His face had drained of all colour and his expression had gone blank. The
worst part was his eyes. If eyes were the window to the soul, then his soul was screaming out in terror.
Heero lunged around the motionless Duo and grabbed the baby's head, shooting the boy a concerned look as he went. "Wufei, help me carry this. We're going to let the baby out to its' parents."
With a little bit of effort the two pilots were able to get the baby out to its' parents. Wufei watched as they wandered back into the forest.
"Duo...." Heero's tone was softer than he'd ever heard. Turning around he noticed that Duo was still frozen in place, wide eyed.
Heero glared at him, it was a look that seemed to say '_you_ do something about this'. Wufei glared back at the boy and walked to Duo, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Duo, are you alright?"
He stood for a moment and then snapped back to himself. "Wu, we've _got_ to get out of here _now_. That wasn't hunting behaviour. Since we moved the baby they may think that this is now part of their nesting area. We have to _move_!!"
Duo turned to Heero and latched onto his arm. "Heero....." He trailed off as he looked up. If it was at all possible he got paler. "To late. HANG ON!!!"
It was the only warning they got before the trailer lurched.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
They were close enough to the camp now that the sounds of protesting metal could be heard. **That doesn't sound good. What the hell is going on out there?** Trowa looked over to Quatre. The boy had given up trying to contact the other three and was currently worrying his lip and rubbing at his chest.
There was a faint screeching sound, then a booming as the two T-Rex left, and then an almost unearthly silence. Merquise motioned for the group to move forward towards the camp again.
"There may be survivors. I'll take our two 'friends' here to check it out. Costas, RJay, Dieter, you're with me. The rest of you head back to camp and prepare to move out.
**You damn well better bet there's survivors. We're a lot harder to kill than that!** Trowa glowered at the blonde mans back as they continued towards camp.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Heero was worried.
No scratch that, Heero was beyond worried. The direction those two dinosaurs appeared to be pushing them......Realization struck about the same time that the back part of the trailer began to slope downwards. "Hang on to something, they're going to push us off the cliff!"
The next instant proved his prediction correct as the back end drastically tipped. Anything that wasn't bolted down fell onto the large window at the back of the trailer.
Then they were vertical. Heero watched as Duo and Wufei made last minute grabs at anything that was bolted down for a handhold. Wufei caught the edge of the dining table and swung himself onto the seats. Duo caught a cupboard handle and found himself hanging in mid-air.
**That cupboard is not going to hold for very long.** "Duo, Try and swing yourself over towards Wufei."
"Right." As the American reached out towards Wufei and the cupboard door finally gave, swinging open, spilling it's meagre contents causing Duo to loose his already precarious grip.
Heero could only watch horrified as Duo plummeted towards the glass window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
"DUO!" Wufei tried to grab the long haired teen as he fell past him but to no avail. **I never told him how I felt**. He winced as Duo slammed into the glass window and held his breath.
The window held.
"Duo, are you all right? Speak to me. DUO!". Wufei began to _carefully_ make his way down to the teen. Already he could see a network of cracks beginning to form around his body.
He sighed in relief as he heard the boy groan. "Oowwww. Ow. owowowowowowowow _OW_!"
**If he can complain he can't be that bad.**
"Wu?"
The Chinese boy froze."Yes Duo?" The voice had been so faint he almost didn't hear it.
"Please tell me I'm not where I think I am.....oh shit........" Duo began to slowly move, making the cracks grow larger. "Get me off of here, oh God...Somebody _please_ get me off of here...."
Wufei's heart was in his mouth. If Duo kept moving like that, and if nobody got to him in time it was very likely that the glass would break. **He's going to die.....NO! Not again! I'll not let him. I refuse to loose somebody else! He can't go until I tell him how I feel......If you don't get a move on Chang you won't get that chance, now _move_**. Throwing caution to the wind, Wufei made his way down the trailer. Within moments he was almost within touching distance of the boy.
"Duo," He reached out a hand to the long haired boy, making sure his other was firmly anchored on a piece of bolted down furniture. "Give me your hand."
"Wu," Duo's voice was trembling. "I don't think I can. If I move too much this glass will break".
"Yes, you can Duo. Just slowly reach out and give me your hand." Wufei watched as Duo did what he was told. "That's it. You can do it. Just give me your hand."
Duo's hand was almost within reach as the glass began cracking ominously. Wufei lunged the last couple of centimetres as the glass shattered beneath the boys body.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The first thing that greeted Zechs Merquise when he entered the cliff clearing of the Gundam Pilots camp was the trailer hanging halfway off the edge of the cliff. He heard the blonde pilot utter an exclamation as he came within view. The taller pilot with the strange hair was unnervingly silent. He wondered, not for the first time, what went into choosing a Gundam pilot.
"Costas, search the area. The adult Rex's may still be around. Dieter, go and tie that rope around a tree close enough to the trailer to reach the end hanging off the cliff." He turned towards the two Gundam pilots. The tall pilot had a protective hand on the shoulder of the blonde.**Interesting** "I trust you two won't go running off on me."
Dieter had finished tying the rope to a tree. "Dieter, take the rope through the front window. Walk through the trailer until you reach the edge and throw the excess down to anyone in the lower section. I imagine they may want to climb up."
The man nodded and climbed his way through the shattered front window, disappearing into the darkness. The rain, which had begun to ease up, became heavy again.
Close by a Tyrannosaurus-Rex roared. The two pilots exchanged glances and began backing away into the forest. RJay raised his gun.
"It's safer. T-Rex can only see you if you move," The tall one murmured, "and the forest provides cover".
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Duo could feel the glass breaking underneath him, he felt it when it shattered. His only coherent thought was something along the lines of 'oh _fuuuuuuuuck_' before he was falling. **This might hurt a little**.
Then his right shoulder was nearly ripped out of its' socket. "OW!". He looked down and fought a wave of panic, it was a looooooooong way to the bottom and he was dangling in mid-air. He let out a whimper.
"DUO! Are you alright?". He looked up into the concerned eyes of Wufei. The Chinese boy was hanging half in, half out of the trailer. One arm was attached onto something inside, the other had a death grip on his right wrist.
Heero appeared on the other side of Wufei. "Duo, throw up your other arm, we'll pull you up."
"Right, you don't have to tell me twice". He swung his left arm and found himself hauled up in record time. "Anybody know how we're goin' to get outta here? Exit A isn't one I'd suggest".
"Hey you!" A voice from up above caused all three to look up. An OZ officer was standing there with an end of rope in his hands.
**If he's here, where are Quatre and Trowa? Quatre'd better be prepared to run. I warned 'im that bringin' a T-Rex to camp was a _really_ bad idea, but noooooo.** "You gunna throw that rope down or are ya just gonna taunt us with it?" He heard the trailer groan and it shifted a little "Hurry up an' make up your mind or you'll go down with us on this thing."
"Orders." He threw the rope.
Heero grabbed it first and began to climb.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
**I'm climbing up next. If something happens I can protect Duo. I don't think he's in any shape for surprises at the moment.** Wufei looked over at Duo. The plait was coming undone again. He must have cut his forehead at some time, as blood was dribbling down the side of his face. Closer inspection revealed a small cut on his left temple. Another cut graced his right arm and Wufei couldn't be sure that there weren't any other injuries on him.
Once Heero had reached a reasonable distance Wufei reached for the rope. Outside a dinosaur roared very close to the trailer. It sounded like one of the T-Rex's. the OZ officer glanced behind him, drew his gun and disappeared, presumably outside.
Wufei began to climb, beneath him he felt Duo reach for the rope.The trailer shifted again. "Heero climb faster".
"Hn." He didn't appear to move any faster.
Then the trailer began to fall. Wufei closed his eyes. **This is it. Wo ai ni Duo. My only regret is I never told you how I felt. May I have that chance in the next life.** He felt the wind as the inside of the trailer rushed past. He opened his eyes as the front window fell past him.
"Oh SHIT! shitshitshitshitshitshitshit _shit_!. that was too close, everybody still alive? hey what happened to that OZ officer? Did he get off or what? Oh, I can't _believe_ we survived that! You can start climbing any time now Yui. I mean I enjoy hanging around as much as the next person but the rope is getting wet from this rain."
Wufei was beginning to notice a pattern to Duo's babbling rants. He only began to babble like he was currently when he was emotional about something. If his voice was anything to go by, he was fighting down panic. "Yui, climb."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
The adult T-Rex came through the underbrush with almost no warning bar an ear shattering roar. Quatre nearly bolted, but Trowa placed a restraining hand on his shoulder. "Remember Duo's warning."
With great difficulty Quatre froze. **This is my fault, if I hadn't bought that baby here this wouldn't have happened. Duo tried to warn me.**
The man Zechs had named Dieter dived out of the trailer, gun drawn. His eyes widened when he saw the Tyrannosaur and he shot off a couple of rounds at it. the dinosaur roared and swung its' head in his direction. He began backing up.
"Dieter, don't move!" Trowa tried to warn the officer.
He didn't pay any attention and shot more rounds at it. Out of the corner of Quatre's eye he saw the trailer begin to move. **What's taking them so long? Why don't they climb up? They're going to be _killed_!**
The T-Rex appeared to be unsure of what to chase, the annoying OZ officer shooting at it, or the trailer falling off the cliff. Its' mind was made up for it as the trailer disappeared off the edge with a shriek of metal.
**Duo..Wufei...Heero! Please, let them have survived that.**Quatre turned to watch in horrified fascination as Dieter continued to fire at the T-Rex. It roared angrily and stomped towards him, head down near the grounds level.
Dieter turned and ran but it was no use, the dinosaur caught up within a couple of strides. I picked him up by an arm and flung him into the air, paying no heed to the blood curdling screams Dieter was letting loose. when his head was facing the ground it caught him in its' mouth and bit down. the sickening sound of bones cracking and Dieter screaming churned Quatre's stomach.
The mans legs were still kicking.
Quatre shut his eyes and and fought back the urge to vomit as the other adult appeared, ripping the other half of Dieters still kicking body away from the other adult.
Moments later they were gone, and Heero's head appeared at the top of the cliff. Trowa, Zechs, and the remaining OZ officers moved to help him up.Quatre swallowed. **May you rest in peace.** He moved to help the others on shaky legs.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The first thing Wufei noticed when he was pulled up was the presence of Zechs Merquise. He looked towards Heero who gave a nod of what, for him, passed as reassurance.
Duo was pulled up last. The combination of the pouring rain, and his unplanned trip over the cliff care of pissed-off-daddy-dino air, added up to give him the appearance of a semi-drowned rat. [1]
Wufei thought he'd never looked more beautiful. His feet without the permission of his brain, but the definite permission of his heart, moved towards Duo. The next thing either of them knew, Wufei was dragging Duo into a bone-crushing hug.
"Wu, _air_"
"Duo....." He loosened his hold slightly and looked down at the youth in his arms, loosing himself in those large violet eyes.
"Yeah Wu?"
"I......I thought I'd lost you, when you hit that glass.....I......I don't know what I'd do if I lost you before I......" He clamped up, realizing what he was about to say. **Wufei, you _idiot_! First you nearly choke the boy, _then_ you go and start babbling. how do you know if he even feels that way? You don't! So sit down and shut up while you still can!**
"Before you _what_ Wu?" Was that hope he saw in Duo's eyes? He could _feel_ the combined looks of Heero, Trowa and Quatre.
**Oh _hell_. To late to back out now, those three will kill me. The very worst he can do is totally reject me.**
He pulled Duo fully onto his feet and bought him closer. "Wo ai ni."
Duo blinked. "Um, Wu...I don't speak that much Chinese. What does 'Wo ai ni' mean?"
"It _means_" Quatre sounded like he was about ready to bounce off figurative walls. "I....Love....You!"
"Oh," Duo looked shell shocked. "Really?"
"Yes. I love you Duo. I have for some time now." He lent in and brushed his lips against his in a feather light kiss before pulling away and looking at him. He still hadn't moved, he stood there with a shocked expression on his face. **I knew it! Now I've probably gone and ruined _everything_** He let go of Duo and turned to walk away.
A hand snaked out and caught his wrist before he could get too far. "Wufei?"
"Yes Duo?" **Don't get your hopes up. He could just be trying to let you down easy. _Why_ did I tell him?!**
"Whoa eye knee" The pronunciation was a little off, but Wufei had no time to contemplate it...Duo glomped him.
Hard.
It sent him flying into the mud. The next thing he knew Duo was kissing him and all rational thought flew out the window.
A loud whoop split the air, causing both boys to break off the kiss startled. Quatre was.....Quatre looked absolutely ridiculous, bouncing around and punching his fists into the air. Trowa caught him by the back of his shirt as he bounced by, preventing him from getting any closer to the cliff.....it didn't stop him from continuing to bounce though. Heero just stood there with a smug smirk.
Wufei turned back to Duo with a bemused grin. He was still looking at Quatre, who now had a huge grin on his face and was talking a mile a minute while still bouncing. He reached out and took Duo's plait in his hand, wrapping it around his wrist, and pulled the boy in for another kiss. **Heh, I Knew there was another reason for this plait.....leverage**. Duo eagerly responded, and the new couple were soon completely oblivious to Quatre, who was _still_ doing that......thing, Trowa, Heero and a rather bemused Zechs Merquise.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] He looked kinda like a rat does just after you've washed 'em. They're wet, but they've shaken themselves off so that their fur sticks out in clumps. They always have this pissed off air about them **snicker**.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-tbc-
Anyway on with the fic!!!!!
"Talking"
**Thoughts**
---------------character change----------------------
(I think that's it)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Duo was _not_ a very happy Gundam pilot.
He was currently holding the head of a Tyrannosaurus-Rex. A _live_ Tyrannosaurus-Rex.....Okay so it was a baby but the point of the matter was he was holding the head of one of _the_ most dangerous predators alive. It was injured. It was in pain......and it was currently trying to bite his hand off! **I so do _not_ want to be here!**
Wufei had it slightly better than him. He had the legs, which may have been a curse in itself. He was alternately trying not to get kicked by powerful legs, or hit by the tail. He looked pissed, then again he wouldn't be happy either if he had a tail constantly hitting him upside the head.
Duo winced as Wufei caught another one-two combination of foot and tail. "Heero, how much longer? This thing is seriously _not_ happy!"
In the distance two dinosaur roared.
**Oh, _shit_!. Ohshitohshitohshitohshit! Please don't let that be the parents. _Please_ _don't_ let that be the parents**. Duo was scared. He'd laughed in the face of death countless times without the slightest hint of fear. Hell, he was a Gundam pilot, he was _supposed_ to risk his life, but the thought of being eaten alive by an angry T-Rex was not something that made him feel all gooey inside.......quite the opposite actually. "Heero, hurry up, I've got a _really_ bad feeling about this!".
The baby started squirming even more in answer to the roars. Heero glanced out the window and started wrapping a bandage on the baby's leg. "I'm almost finished."
When Duo thought things couldn't get any worse they did. It started to rain. Not a gentle summer rain mind you, it started to piss down in buckets.
**Great. So now, not only do we have two possible adult T-Rex's on the way, it's pissin' down and visibility is low. We won't see them 'till they're right on top of us!**
The dinosaurs roared again, this time _much_ closer.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Quatre glared at his captors, and in the distance two dinosaurs roared again. His chest was aching like crazy. Duo, Heero, and Wufei were in serious trouble, he was certain of it. His Uchuu no Kokoro had started up almost the minute Zechs and his goon squad had captured Trowa and himself. He didn't know what was worse, knowing his friends were in serious danger, or knowing his friends were in serious danger and not being able to _do_ anything!
Currently they were being marched back towards their camp. Zechs obviously wanted o capture the other pilots as well. Quatre looked around at his captors. There were six in total, seven if you counted ol' Tin Can. Quatre smirked slightly, he paid more attention to Duo's babblings than the boy thought. He had a way with insults that was unequaled. All of them were heavily armed, and one of them carried a large amount of rope looped around him and over one shoulder. It was probably meant to tie them up with, though if they thought a mere rope was going to hold Heero they had another thing coming.
Zechs stopped the group and motioned for quiet. **What's he doing? If I yell I _think_ the guys will hear me**. He opened his mouth to let out a scream and found himself face to face with the barrel of Merquise's gun.
"I think not Gundam pilot".
**Damn. That won't work.** "You don't want to shoot me."**Don't mention the others, he has no evidence that there are any others here apart from Trowa and I.**
"Perhaps."
The group lapsed into silence again. Zechs and his troops appeared to be waiting for something, but he wasn't sure what.
Finally, after what seemed hours of standing in silence, a faint booming could be heard, and it was getting progressively louder. Then a deafening roar, and a T-Rex crashed past them, heading straight for the trailer.
**Oh no! I have to warn Duo......** Mindless of the OZ soldiers around him Quatre reached into his pocket and pulled out the communicator. "Duo, DUO ANSWER ME!!" **C'mon, pick up. Pickuppickuppickuppickup, why won't he answer......** Surprisingly, Merquise and his men didn't try and stop him.
Then the rain started.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
They didn't see the T-Rex's until they were looking through the windows. All Wufei could see was a _large_ eye and a small amount of face.
**Those things are _huge_. If that's the eye I _really_ don't want to see the rest of it!**. Duo hadn't spotted it yet, but all he had to do was turn around and he would be face to eyeball with it. **Do I tell him or not? I don't want him to panic, he already looks scared, but if I don't tell him and he sees it he might do something drastic.** Mind made up, Wufei made to
warn the long haired boy. "Duo...."
The dinosaur let loose with a massive roar. Duo screamed and loosened his hold on the baby, who let out a quieter version of the roar. The parent nudged the trailer with it's nose, rocking them. Wufei watched as Duo staggered into a wall, the boy was trying his hardest not to hyperventilate. His face had drained of all colour and his expression had gone blank. The
worst part was his eyes. If eyes were the window to the soul, then his soul was screaming out in terror.
Heero lunged around the motionless Duo and grabbed the baby's head, shooting the boy a concerned look as he went. "Wufei, help me carry this. We're going to let the baby out to its' parents."
With a little bit of effort the two pilots were able to get the baby out to its' parents. Wufei watched as they wandered back into the forest.
"Duo...." Heero's tone was softer than he'd ever heard. Turning around he noticed that Duo was still frozen in place, wide eyed.
Heero glared at him, it was a look that seemed to say '_you_ do something about this'. Wufei glared back at the boy and walked to Duo, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Duo, are you alright?"
He stood for a moment and then snapped back to himself. "Wu, we've _got_ to get out of here _now_. That wasn't hunting behaviour. Since we moved the baby they may think that this is now part of their nesting area. We have to _move_!!"
Duo turned to Heero and latched onto his arm. "Heero....." He trailed off as he looked up. If it was at all possible he got paler. "To late. HANG ON!!!"
It was the only warning they got before the trailer lurched.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
They were close enough to the camp now that the sounds of protesting metal could be heard. **That doesn't sound good. What the hell is going on out there?** Trowa looked over to Quatre. The boy had given up trying to contact the other three and was currently worrying his lip and rubbing at his chest.
There was a faint screeching sound, then a booming as the two T-Rex left, and then an almost unearthly silence. Merquise motioned for the group to move forward towards the camp again.
"There may be survivors. I'll take our two 'friends' here to check it out. Costas, RJay, Dieter, you're with me. The rest of you head back to camp and prepare to move out.
**You damn well better bet there's survivors. We're a lot harder to kill than that!** Trowa glowered at the blonde mans back as they continued towards camp.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Heero was worried.
No scratch that, Heero was beyond worried. The direction those two dinosaurs appeared to be pushing them......Realization struck about the same time that the back part of the trailer began to slope downwards. "Hang on to something, they're going to push us off the cliff!"
The next instant proved his prediction correct as the back end drastically tipped. Anything that wasn't bolted down fell onto the large window at the back of the trailer.
Then they were vertical. Heero watched as Duo and Wufei made last minute grabs at anything that was bolted down for a handhold. Wufei caught the edge of the dining table and swung himself onto the seats. Duo caught a cupboard handle and found himself hanging in mid-air.
**That cupboard is not going to hold for very long.** "Duo, Try and swing yourself over towards Wufei."
"Right." As the American reached out towards Wufei and the cupboard door finally gave, swinging open, spilling it's meagre contents causing Duo to loose his already precarious grip.
Heero could only watch horrified as Duo plummeted towards the glass window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
"DUO!" Wufei tried to grab the long haired teen as he fell past him but to no avail. **I never told him how I felt**. He winced as Duo slammed into the glass window and held his breath.
The window held.
"Duo, are you all right? Speak to me. DUO!". Wufei began to _carefully_ make his way down to the teen. Already he could see a network of cracks beginning to form around his body.
He sighed in relief as he heard the boy groan. "Oowwww. Ow. owowowowowowowow _OW_!"
**If he can complain he can't be that bad.**
"Wu?"
The Chinese boy froze."Yes Duo?" The voice had been so faint he almost didn't hear it.
"Please tell me I'm not where I think I am.....oh shit........" Duo began to slowly move, making the cracks grow larger. "Get me off of here, oh God...Somebody _please_ get me off of here...."
Wufei's heart was in his mouth. If Duo kept moving like that, and if nobody got to him in time it was very likely that the glass would break. **He's going to die.....NO! Not again! I'll not let him. I refuse to loose somebody else! He can't go until I tell him how I feel......If you don't get a move on Chang you won't get that chance, now _move_**. Throwing caution to the wind, Wufei made his way down the trailer. Within moments he was almost within touching distance of the boy.
"Duo," He reached out a hand to the long haired boy, making sure his other was firmly anchored on a piece of bolted down furniture. "Give me your hand."
"Wu," Duo's voice was trembling. "I don't think I can. If I move too much this glass will break".
"Yes, you can Duo. Just slowly reach out and give me your hand." Wufei watched as Duo did what he was told. "That's it. You can do it. Just give me your hand."
Duo's hand was almost within reach as the glass began cracking ominously. Wufei lunged the last couple of centimetres as the glass shattered beneath the boys body.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The first thing that greeted Zechs Merquise when he entered the cliff clearing of the Gundam Pilots camp was the trailer hanging halfway off the edge of the cliff. He heard the blonde pilot utter an exclamation as he came within view. The taller pilot with the strange hair was unnervingly silent. He wondered, not for the first time, what went into choosing a Gundam pilot.
"Costas, search the area. The adult Rex's may still be around. Dieter, go and tie that rope around a tree close enough to the trailer to reach the end hanging off the cliff." He turned towards the two Gundam pilots. The tall pilot had a protective hand on the shoulder of the blonde.**Interesting** "I trust you two won't go running off on me."
Dieter had finished tying the rope to a tree. "Dieter, take the rope through the front window. Walk through the trailer until you reach the edge and throw the excess down to anyone in the lower section. I imagine they may want to climb up."
The man nodded and climbed his way through the shattered front window, disappearing into the darkness. The rain, which had begun to ease up, became heavy again.
Close by a Tyrannosaurus-Rex roared. The two pilots exchanged glances and began backing away into the forest. RJay raised his gun.
"It's safer. T-Rex can only see you if you move," The tall one murmured, "and the forest provides cover".
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Duo could feel the glass breaking underneath him, he felt it when it shattered. His only coherent thought was something along the lines of 'oh _fuuuuuuuuck_' before he was falling. **This might hurt a little**.
Then his right shoulder was nearly ripped out of its' socket. "OW!". He looked down and fought a wave of panic, it was a looooooooong way to the bottom and he was dangling in mid-air. He let out a whimper.
"DUO! Are you alright?". He looked up into the concerned eyes of Wufei. The Chinese boy was hanging half in, half out of the trailer. One arm was attached onto something inside, the other had a death grip on his right wrist.
Heero appeared on the other side of Wufei. "Duo, throw up your other arm, we'll pull you up."
"Right, you don't have to tell me twice". He swung his left arm and found himself hauled up in record time. "Anybody know how we're goin' to get outta here? Exit A isn't one I'd suggest".
"Hey you!" A voice from up above caused all three to look up. An OZ officer was standing there with an end of rope in his hands.
**If he's here, where are Quatre and Trowa? Quatre'd better be prepared to run. I warned 'im that bringin' a T-Rex to camp was a _really_ bad idea, but noooooo.** "You gunna throw that rope down or are ya just gonna taunt us with it?" He heard the trailer groan and it shifted a little "Hurry up an' make up your mind or you'll go down with us on this thing."
"Orders." He threw the rope.
Heero grabbed it first and began to climb.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
**I'm climbing up next. If something happens I can protect Duo. I don't think he's in any shape for surprises at the moment.** Wufei looked over at Duo. The plait was coming undone again. He must have cut his forehead at some time, as blood was dribbling down the side of his face. Closer inspection revealed a small cut on his left temple. Another cut graced his right arm and Wufei couldn't be sure that there weren't any other injuries on him.
Once Heero had reached a reasonable distance Wufei reached for the rope. Outside a dinosaur roared very close to the trailer. It sounded like one of the T-Rex's. the OZ officer glanced behind him, drew his gun and disappeared, presumably outside.
Wufei began to climb, beneath him he felt Duo reach for the rope.The trailer shifted again. "Heero climb faster".
"Hn." He didn't appear to move any faster.
Then the trailer began to fall. Wufei closed his eyes. **This is it. Wo ai ni Duo. My only regret is I never told you how I felt. May I have that chance in the next life.** He felt the wind as the inside of the trailer rushed past. He opened his eyes as the front window fell past him.
"Oh SHIT! shitshitshitshitshitshitshit _shit_!. that was too close, everybody still alive? hey what happened to that OZ officer? Did he get off or what? Oh, I can't _believe_ we survived that! You can start climbing any time now Yui. I mean I enjoy hanging around as much as the next person but the rope is getting wet from this rain."
Wufei was beginning to notice a pattern to Duo's babbling rants. He only began to babble like he was currently when he was emotional about something. If his voice was anything to go by, he was fighting down panic. "Yui, climb."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
The adult T-Rex came through the underbrush with almost no warning bar an ear shattering roar. Quatre nearly bolted, but Trowa placed a restraining hand on his shoulder. "Remember Duo's warning."
With great difficulty Quatre froze. **This is my fault, if I hadn't bought that baby here this wouldn't have happened. Duo tried to warn me.**
The man Zechs had named Dieter dived out of the trailer, gun drawn. His eyes widened when he saw the Tyrannosaur and he shot off a couple of rounds at it. the dinosaur roared and swung its' head in his direction. He began backing up.
"Dieter, don't move!" Trowa tried to warn the officer.
He didn't pay any attention and shot more rounds at it. Out of the corner of Quatre's eye he saw the trailer begin to move. **What's taking them so long? Why don't they climb up? They're going to be _killed_!**
The T-Rex appeared to be unsure of what to chase, the annoying OZ officer shooting at it, or the trailer falling off the cliff. Its' mind was made up for it as the trailer disappeared off the edge with a shriek of metal.
**Duo..Wufei...Heero! Please, let them have survived that.**Quatre turned to watch in horrified fascination as Dieter continued to fire at the T-Rex. It roared angrily and stomped towards him, head down near the grounds level.
Dieter turned and ran but it was no use, the dinosaur caught up within a couple of strides. I picked him up by an arm and flung him into the air, paying no heed to the blood curdling screams Dieter was letting loose. when his head was facing the ground it caught him in its' mouth and bit down. the sickening sound of bones cracking and Dieter screaming churned Quatre's stomach.
The mans legs were still kicking.
Quatre shut his eyes and and fought back the urge to vomit as the other adult appeared, ripping the other half of Dieters still kicking body away from the other adult.
Moments later they were gone, and Heero's head appeared at the top of the cliff. Trowa, Zechs, and the remaining OZ officers moved to help him up.Quatre swallowed. **May you rest in peace.** He moved to help the others on shaky legs.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The first thing Wufei noticed when he was pulled up was the presence of Zechs Merquise. He looked towards Heero who gave a nod of what, for him, passed as reassurance.
Duo was pulled up last. The combination of the pouring rain, and his unplanned trip over the cliff care of pissed-off-daddy-dino air, added up to give him the appearance of a semi-drowned rat. [1]
Wufei thought he'd never looked more beautiful. His feet without the permission of his brain, but the definite permission of his heart, moved towards Duo. The next thing either of them knew, Wufei was dragging Duo into a bone-crushing hug.
"Wu, _air_"
"Duo....." He loosened his hold slightly and looked down at the youth in his arms, loosing himself in those large violet eyes.
"Yeah Wu?"
"I......I thought I'd lost you, when you hit that glass.....I......I don't know what I'd do if I lost you before I......" He clamped up, realizing what he was about to say. **Wufei, you _idiot_! First you nearly choke the boy, _then_ you go and start babbling. how do you know if he even feels that way? You don't! So sit down and shut up while you still can!**
"Before you _what_ Wu?" Was that hope he saw in Duo's eyes? He could _feel_ the combined looks of Heero, Trowa and Quatre.
**Oh _hell_. To late to back out now, those three will kill me. The very worst he can do is totally reject me.**
He pulled Duo fully onto his feet and bought him closer. "Wo ai ni."
Duo blinked. "Um, Wu...I don't speak that much Chinese. What does 'Wo ai ni' mean?"
"It _means_" Quatre sounded like he was about ready to bounce off figurative walls. "I....Love....You!"
"Oh," Duo looked shell shocked. "Really?"
"Yes. I love you Duo. I have for some time now." He lent in and brushed his lips against his in a feather light kiss before pulling away and looking at him. He still hadn't moved, he stood there with a shocked expression on his face. **I knew it! Now I've probably gone and ruined _everything_** He let go of Duo and turned to walk away.
A hand snaked out and caught his wrist before he could get too far. "Wufei?"
"Yes Duo?" **Don't get your hopes up. He could just be trying to let you down easy. _Why_ did I tell him?!**
"Whoa eye knee" The pronunciation was a little off, but Wufei had no time to contemplate it...Duo glomped him.
Hard.
It sent him flying into the mud. The next thing he knew Duo was kissing him and all rational thought flew out the window.
A loud whoop split the air, causing both boys to break off the kiss startled. Quatre was.....Quatre looked absolutely ridiculous, bouncing around and punching his fists into the air. Trowa caught him by the back of his shirt as he bounced by, preventing him from getting any closer to the cliff.....it didn't stop him from continuing to bounce though. Heero just stood there with a smug smirk.
Wufei turned back to Duo with a bemused grin. He was still looking at Quatre, who now had a huge grin on his face and was talking a mile a minute while still bouncing. He reached out and took Duo's plait in his hand, wrapping it around his wrist, and pulled the boy in for another kiss. **Heh, I Knew there was another reason for this plait.....leverage**. Duo eagerly responded, and the new couple were soon completely oblivious to Quatre, who was _still_ doing that......thing, Trowa, Heero and a rather bemused Zechs Merquise.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] He looked kinda like a rat does just after you've washed 'em. They're wet, but they've shaken themselves off so that their fur sticks out in clumps. They always have this pissed off air about them **snicker**.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-tbc-