CHAPTER 9- MISSION SET

"Well, here we are," Elizabeth said with a small yawn. "Still tired?" Duo said, also yawning. Heero and Ann climbed up into a huge tree next to them, "Elizabeth," Ann motioned for the two on the ground to follow. "Hmm?" Duo looked up, "Already have to climb?" Both him and Elizabeth climbed up after their comrades just as the sound of soldiers could be heard. "Sir, what are the orders if we do find the enemy?" a soldier asked over a radio. He was standing right under the tree; the stowaways listened. "If you find them, destroy the men, but bring 0101 and 0202 to me, they will be punished," a voice answered back. "Sir, over and out," the soldier replied, and then headed toward the campground with many more men. "Great, they're out to get us again, Heero," Duo smirked. "Punishment?" Elizabeth looked over to Ann, "like last time we escaped?" Ann nodded her head, "probably a lot worse, we are perceived as traitors now." "R-right," Elizabeth said, looking back towards the ground. "Well, shouldn't we get going?" Duo asked Heero. Heero shook his head, "No, under night fall we'll invade. Now we just plant some bombs around the perimeter," he answered. The three others nodded and tossed their packs back on their backs, "We'll split up, Duo, Elizabeth, head over to the north quadrant, we'll finish here by the main entrance and south quadrant," Ann ordered. Duo and Elizabeth nodded and jumped out of the tree, setting out to their duties. "Hope your doing the right thing," Heero thought allowed. Ann turned towards him, "We've got work to do ourselves. This stretches out to the end of that cliff," she pointed about a mile and a half away. Heero nodded and jumped down from the tree. Ann followed, and they set out to their work.

Duo and Elizabeth worked as fast as they could; they also had a lot of ground to cover. "Geesh, all this, this…. God damn war," Duo mumbled, wiping his forehead onto his sleeve. Still more sweat dripped down from his pores, shining in the hot sun. It was very humid, which made it even hotter, unusual for this type of climate. Elizabeth put her hand on his shoulder and shoved him a little, "Oh, c'mon, you keep complaining! Being a Gundam pilot and all, you should be accustomed to this, shouldn't you?" she commented with a slight laugh. They were about finished by this time; it was 5:00 in the afternoon. Duo held a hand to his stomach and looked at Elizabeth with an awkward face. "Yeah, my stomach's growling too," Elizabeth answered to him. They both sat down onto the grass under the shade of an elm tree. A slight breeze flowed by, weaving both of the teen's hair into it. Duo watched Elizabeth as she got out some snacks. *She looks so peace all the time, smiling and laughing* he thought, a small, warm smile crossing his face. "Here, I also brought this," Elizabeth said as she reached into her backpack and pulled out a small portable CD player. "Hey, what kind of music do you have?" Duo asked, moving over closer to her, trying to see. "Well, a mixture of songs, back from, well, lets just say about, 2002," she said, placing a CD into the player. "Do you have two head phone connectors?" Duo asked, pulling out a set of his own. "Sure," Elizabeth responded, "but…. What about listening for soldiers?" "We'll sit up in this tree," he pointed to the tree limbs that were hovering above him. Elizabeth rolled her eyes, which Duo responded to, "Oh come on, we'll be fine." "Sure Duo, whatever you say," she commented back, putting her stuff together. They climbed up the tall tree and found a comfortable place up in the limbs. "Oh, one more thing," Elizabeth commented as she reached into her backpack and pulled out a small camera. "Uh…. Pictures?" Duo questioned uneasily. "Oh c'mon, just a couple," Elizabeth laughed as she snapped a shot of Duo. He smiled a little sheepishly, "Well what about you?" Duo asked as another snapshot was taken. "What? Me?" Elizabeth asked as the camera was taken quickly from her. "Yep," Duo smiled widely and "The sunsets nice, huh?" Elizabeth asked as she looked across the barrier of trees out to some mountains in the distance. The sky was a fading orange and pink, sinking in with a dark blue as the moon started to show, and the sun retreated to the west. "Yeah, kind of nice here on Earth seeing it, even though it's not one of the best times," Duo responded, looking towards the girls face. He put his arm around her, looking at her face as she looked out across the land. "I wonder how Heero and Ann are doing," Elizabeth thought out loud. Duo didn't really pay attention to the question, he was looking at her soft skin that seemed to almost radiate with the glow of the fading sun and incoming moonlight. He sighed, brushing a strand of brown hair that had trailed into her eyes, it shined in the little light. She turned to look at him, her dark, gleaming eyes locking with the inspiring cobalt blue ones. They both leaned closer, until their lips were only an inch away. Duo smiled, "You know you're very pretty." Elizabeth blushed, "And you know you're the first one to tell me that." "No way," Duo said in the same soft tone they were both using. Elizabeth smiled back at him, it seemed to emit from her face, lighting up the now growing darkness. Then she quickly pulled away and grabbed the hat Duo was wearing and put it backward on her head, giggling at his surprised face. "Hey! That's my hat, and I thought that I would get to steal a kiss," he smirked, climbing closer to the girl who was now sitting and leaning against the middle of the tree. "Oh did you?" she teased, pulling the hat over her eyes. Duo still approached, knowing this was all a game. Suddenly, Elizabeth flipped the hat back and jumped up, "Here's your kiss." She leaped onto him, almost causing them to fall from the 30ft branch. They both kissed, a deep kiss, showing both of their emotions. Elizabeth let his tongue slip into her mouth, and equally returned the kiss. Duo felt his loves soft cheek rub up against him, while her warm lips occupied his. "I think I heard something over here," came a man's voice. The couple broke apart for a breath and to get in their ready positions. The plan was also to take out two of the guards and sneak in unnoticed. It was almost time to begin the second part of the plan. About a mile away, on the other side of the fortress, Ann and Heero where preparing for the same oncoming task.

A/N: Well, it has been a while since I last wrote; at least I got it. Getting kind of mushy, huh? Well, I can only tell through reviews, so please tell me! Thanx- Darken Angel