Heero's Life: As Told by Fellow Pilots

Chapter 1: Duo's First Meet with Heero

I cannot imagine it, though it's an everyday fact for Heero, not seeing, or hearing, and unable to respond with speech. However, these thoughts had never crossed my mind until that first day I saw him in school, being led by Relina Dorland down the hall, at first I thought nothing of it. My mind was on my mission that night.

That's when it showed up, the other mobile suite, zero-one, as OZ called it. After defeating the enemy without much effort, the pilot opened the cockpit, and got out. He was the boy from school, and I watched, unaware as he stumbled, and felt his way among the trees to where I stood. He was dressed in a green tank- top and black spandex shorts. His messy, brown hair suggested how much he cared about self-appearance. He finally found me, and I, Duo Maxwell, still did not understand he lived in a world of darkness, and silence. So when he started feeling my face, I just sat there looking at him, as though he was crazed. Then I saw those Prussian blue eyes, staring not at me, not at anything, at darkness. He had started to make symbols with his hands. "I don't understand you.", I said, no response, "I said I don't understand you.", still nothing, and now I yelled, "CAN YOU HEAR ME OR NOT?!!!!", no response. He turned obviously mad at having nothing come of me, and went back to the gundam.

The next day in school, another new student arrived, Quatre Winner. Rich, polite, and talented, perfectly talented. I was not interested with him, I was more interested in finding that kid. Found him too, being guided by Relina, as usual. "Hello.", I greeted.

"Hi, and you are?", she replied, still holding Heero with one hand.

"Duo, Duo Maxwell.", to my surprise, the kid held his hand out, palm up.

Relina made some odd symbols with her hand allowing him to feel each one. "He wants to memorize your structure.", She said.

I willingly obliged to being felt again, and he responded, using the same type of communication. Relina giggled, "He asks if you're a pretty girl."

"No, not a girl, a boy, Heero.", she said, using her hands to talk.

Heero stood his expression, one of deep thought. "Why doesn't he talk?", I asked Relina.

"He's blind, and deaf, that's why. He's lucky he found someone who taught him to be living on his own.", was her answer.

That sent me into thought, how could a crippled person, pilot a mobile suite? Especially among a forested area? I would find out tonight, all I needed was a way to communicate.

The second battle was harsh, and long, this time two mobile suites came into the battle field, one was of middle eastern design, zero four was my guess, and Heero's. Finally we managed to defeat the troops again, and all met up in a field not to far from here. Heero once again stumbled out, and found us. Quatre, of the most unlikely jumped out of the new gundam. Of course, being talented, he too spoke sign language, so I found out. "Ask him some questions for me. "What would you want to ask him?", Quatre asked.

"How does he pilot that suite?", I asked, Quatre translated.

However, instead of responding, he went to feel my face for the third time, and I slapped him. He stood there for a minute, then did the same to me, I was about to give him a good hit, when Quatre stopped me. "He doesn't understand what it means. Quit doing that.", promptly he took Heero's hand and placed it on his cheek, and gave a firm shake, "No."

Heero shook his head. Then nodded with understanding. He returned to his cockpit. Quatre had come back from following him, "He says he only sees what his computer does, not with sight, the information is sent to his brain, and then he can react on it."

"Could you teach me how to do it?", I asked, "The sign language?"

"Yes, I could, but it's tougher than you might think.", Quatre promised this.

So he started to teach me. Soon I could make a sketchy understanding of Heero's language. I did not talk with him at all, in either language, just learned how he knew everything.

He could dance, and I asked how? The vibrations in the floors, that's how. Why did Relina lead him like this? She was the only one that understood sign language, and was in all his classes.

The reason us, the other gundam pilots are writing this, this journal of our lives with Heero is this. In two months Heero will be able to see, for the first time in his entire life. In five, Heero will hear sound for the first time in his life. This is merely how we each met this odd boy.

He sits now, chatting with hands to Quatre over how excited, anxious, and afraid he is of going though this. Quatre calms Heero by describing our beautiful world to him.

I know a little of his past now, thanks to Dr. J. Heero was just a baby when his parents found out their son was crippled. They immediately placed him into a clinic, and J found him. Over the years, Dr. J taught Heero everything about life, and warfare, and how to pilot the Wing gundam. Heero was bright, and learned quickly, his only downfall was no sight, or sound. He was soon able to live on his own. So his life continued from there. Now, though with the war over, and Heero, no longer needing to be alone, will go into surgery. He has saved up his whole existence just for sight. He would have a time with this, this thing called sight. I believe if I were him, I would be jumping with joy.

He strokes the velvet pillow in his lap I remember what he said long time ago to me, that he liked soft things. Like fur, or velvet, or a stuffed animal, and his favorite was a bear, he had had that thing as long as he had known. A worn old bear, with one eye falling out, dirt and grime covered the fur. It didn't matter what anything looked like to him, and now, I guess, I wonder what he'd think of us. Four men he's know for three years now, and yet, never seen.

I want to be there for support, he'll have questions, lots of questions. I want to answer all of them for him, for Heero Yuy.

End Duo's Entry: It, it was interesting, no?