Of Amethysts and Sapphires

Pairing : 1x2, 3x4
Rating : Ranging from PG to R
Warnings : Yaoi, angst, citrus, fluff, humour, sap
Summary : Follows Heero and Duo's progress from friends, to lovers, the ups and downs, ins and outs...and everything in between. Essentially 1x2. Reviews are most appreciated.

Disclaimer : I do not own Gundam Wing. It belongs to Sunrise, Sotsu and Bandai. Don't sue!

***** : Scene change
// // : Thoughts

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Episode 1 - Reach

"Hee-chan!"

Heero froze, one hand still on the door. His eyes took in the sight of a whirl of brown, black and violet as Duo appeared quite suddenly in front of him.

"Ohayo!" A bright greeting, followed by an equally bright laugh, reached his ears.

Duo looked like he had just tumbled out of bed. Loose chestnut locks had escaped from his braid and his bangs hung in a rakish fall over his sparkling eyes. He wore only a thin, black undershirt that outlined his lean, lithe form like a second skin. And right now, he was leaning jauntily against the wall, head tilted almost curiously, heart-shaped face lit up with a half-drowsy, half-amused grin.

Duo looked...almost...boyish.

Gritting his teeth, Heero tried to slip past the other youth. He might have succeeded, had not Duo suddenly moved and blocked his way with one leg.

"Going somewhere, Heero?"

"Hn," Heero shot his infamous death glare at the slender, black-clad leg, then at its owner.

"What's *that* supposed to mean?" Duo persisted. He knew he was being an irritant, and he knew at this rate he's pushing at Heero the consequences would be dire, but somehow he couldn't bring himself not to care.

"Get out of my way," Heero said quietly, menacingly.

For a moment, it looked as though Duo would protest, but finally, he relented and shifted aside grudgingly. Biting his lip in an effort to rein in his words, Duo watched worriedly as Heero trudged past him. The Japanese youth moved slower than usual, his normally restrained, graceful gait hampered by little hitches in his breathing and the awkward angle his arm was hanging at. No doubt, Heero had been hurt during his mission.

Unsure of how to break the suffocating silence hanging over them, Duo hung back uncertainly. He couldn't tear his eyes away from Heero's figure even as the cobalt-eyed youth sat down stiffly before his laptop and rebooted it. There was a bitter taste in Duo's mouth. It was always about the mission. Always!

Completely fed up, he turned on his heels and stomped off to his room. So, Heero thought he was so capable, huh? Fine! He could go take care of himself, then. Frazzled, Duo sank onto the hard, cement ground. He crossed his legs, lotus-style, and glared into the mirror. Oh yes, this safehouse had a mirror, even if it was more accurately a shard of glass with mouldy edges and a surface that was so grimy Duo could barely make out his own damned face in it.

Still...

Duo stared hard into the glass, seeing his own reflection broken up into irregular pieces. In a way, he was glad he couldn't really see himself. He always hated his own appearance. His eyes were violet. Freaky. The only thing he could like about himself was his hair. He slipped off the tie and watched as thick waves cascaded around him like a chestnut waterfall. He didn't care if people thought he looked like a girl. He loved it. He liked to think Father Maxwell loved it too. Even if the world around him changed and deserted him, he could still feel that his hair was a blanket of warmth, cocooning him inside.

He smiled ruefully at his reflection. His ears picked up sounds of Heero's rapid typing on the laptop. His smile grew a little wider, and maybe a little sadder. Well, that was Heero's problem! Forcefully shutting out those sounds, Duo began gathering his hair to the back of his head. With practised ease, he began weaving the locks into a tight braid, securing the end, and finally pulling it over one shoulder. //Ready to face the world again, Maxwell.// he winked at his reflection.

A reverberating crash jolted Duo out of his reverie. He jumped, startled. That noise came from outside.

Heero!

Leaping to his feet, he was out of his room and into the hallway in an instant. He halted in his tracks, letting his vision take over.

Heero was climbing to his feet, one hand using the table as support. The chair he had been sitting on lay toppled on its side. His face was so grim it looked cast in stone. His lips were pressed in a tight, stern line. Whatever that happened, it didn't look pretty.

Duo had barely taken another few steps forward when Heero's voice sliced through the air like a blade.

"Don't!" cobalt eyes blazed as they bore into Duo. "I'm fine."

Duo shrugged - a casual gesture he had to literally *force* himself to make. It was so painfully clear that Heero was in agony as he bent down and righted the chair.

"Duo."

"Huh?" Duo blinked stupidly.

The Japanese youth shot him an annoyed glance. "Listen, Duo. I've made contact with the rest."

"The rest?"

"The other pilots."

"Oh, right," Duo cringed inwardly. He was starting to sound like a baka.

Heero turned back to his monitor, gaze flicking from screen to Duo and back to the screen again as he read and spoke at the same time. "They have yet to complete their missions, and therefore, are unable to meet up with us just yet. They'd take at least four days, maybe more, but no more than six days."

"Uh-huh," Duo nodded, trying to get used to the sudden display of verbalism by the normally reticent Heero Yuy.

"In the meantime, we will still continue to stay here. But I will have to confer with Doctor J first. And you..." Heero paused suddenly, almost hesitantly. "You..."

"I'll check with Prof G."

"Do that," Heero nodded, his brow clearing as if suddenly glad he had found something for Duo to do.

Duo grinned to himself. Heero seemed to have relaxed a little. A rumble in his belly reminded him of more pressing matters at hand. He had yet to eat - he was sure Heero hadn't either - and his tummy was protesting. But there was practically nothing in the safehouse that he could fix for some breakfast! Sighing, Duo made his way to the section of the safehouse that he assumed where supplies were kept. He really was getting hungry!

Not surprisingly, he found no sign of food at all. But he did manage to get his hands on a first-aid kit of sorts. Blowing the dust off the cover, he snapped it open and peered at its contents. Okay...most would do under such circumstances. Pouncing on a roll of bandages, he sat back on his haunches and cocked his head so he could see out of the room. Heero was still typing away like a man possessed, pausing now and then to lay a hand on his chest. Duo frowned to himself. From the looks and sounds of it, Heero must have injured his ribs - and that *would* hurt like hell. Duo tightened his hand around the bandages. Knowing Heero, the Japanese youth would have already done something to fix his own injuries...but again, knowing Heero, that *something* was never enough.

Making up his mind quickly, Duo stood up and headed towards Heero. His heart was beating triple-time. He didn't want to anger Heero again so soon, especially since earlier Heero had seemed to reconcile with him. But...he couldn't stand by and do nothing if his friend was suffering, right? And...even if Heero didn't see him as a friend, they were still comrades stuck under the same roof.

He was now just several feet away from Heero. Even with his back to Duo, Heero still cut an imposing figure. Duo took in a deep breath, and reached out a hand towards a bared, muscled shoulder.

"Hee - "

Heero's name hadn't even formed on his lips, where there was a blur of movement and Duo heard a loud crack. The bandages thudded to the floor, rolling randomly until it came to a dismal stop.

Duo stared blankly at his hand, where the skin was turning an angry red. But he didn't have too much time to have any more reaction to it, when his shirt was fisted by two clenched hands.

"Maxwell."

Duo felt himself hauled inwards, and cobalt fire lancing into him.

"Do not sneak up on me again," Heero hissed. "*Ever*."

"I - "

"Do. You. Hear. Me?"

"Yes," Duo said softly, and he was released so abruptly he stumbled backwards.

Heero was still glaring balefully at him, one hand fisted at his side, the other pressed to his chest. His breathing was coming in ragged gasps, his face almost ashen.

Moving mechanically, almost in a daze, Duo stooped and picked up the bandages. His chest swelled with an undecipherable emotion which had no name, and he didn't want to find out. Turning towards Heero again, he went up and laid the bandages on the table.

"I don't think you wrapped your chest tight enough. Your ribs still hurt, don't they?" Duo heard himself speaking. //Don't think. Just talk.// "I figured these could help you. I...I'll be going out to get some supplies. Do what you want with the bandages."

Then there was silence once more.


********************


"This...this...and this!"

The kindly old woman smiled indulgently. "One huge appetite we have here, don't we, young man?"

"You bet!"

"You're getting enough to feed two persons!"

"That's..." Duo managed a laugh. "That's true, huh?"

Luckily, the grandmotherly shopkeeper didn't seem to notice any change in his mood. She bent down, appearing to be searching for something. When she straightened herself, her warm grey eyes were twinkling.

"Here, little one. From my own recipe, of course! Just heat it up, and it's ready. It's best for people on the go."

Duo stared at the cans of stew, then at the lovely old lady. "How...how much..."

"Not a cent!" she waved a hand, chuckling. "Just take it as an old woman's appreciation of some nice manners and a clever mouth."

Duo found himself laughing along. It felt good like this - to laugh because he wanted to and not because he needed to. "Thanks Ma'am!" he touched his fingers to his cap in a gesture of gratitude.

Once out of the shop, he hoisted the bundle of supplies more securely around his shoulders. He had bought enough to last them at least for the several days before the rest of the pilots caught up with them. He had also spent almost the entire day in this little town, doing nothing but taking his time picking out the things they would need. It was admittedly, foolish on his part. OZ soldiers were most likely still on the lookout for he and Heero, and here he was idling away when he should be in the safehouse.

The safehouse. He felt his heart lurch.

Blinking tiredly, he looked up, mildly surprised his legs had been obediant enough to take him where he need to reach, but not where he actually would rather be. He was on the little clandestine, winding path which would take several turns before stopping at the safehouse. Oh well...he would need to get back sooner or later. And better sooner.

He raised his hand and stared at it. There was an ugly bruise on the skin of the back of his hand, and a dull ache reminded him how much force Heero had used when he hit out. Duo winced. His hand ached. Even his *jaw* ached from all that smiling and laughing he had done when he was bantering with the townsfolk. He had had no problem getting what he needed, even though there were one or two suspicious glances when he had asked for medical supplements.

For the second time, Duo looked up, now quite disturbed to find he could already see the safehouse from his position. The whole day he had valiantly tried not to think about what had happened in the safehouse in the morning and he had succeeded. Now however, inside him, he was battling with a whole storm of tumultuous emotions.

Why was Heero always so...so...shuttered?! And so angry at everything he did? No matter how much Duo seemed to try, and how much Duo tried to reach him, his efforts always came rebounding back to him. What was Heero made of? Steel?

And like the fool he was, Duo just kept hammering away anyway. He closed his eyes and shook his head with a bitter laugh. Maybe he should just give it up.

He reached the entrance to the safehouse, both physically and mentally worn out. What he needed right now was sleep. Yes, sleep. He was so weary even a most possible tongue-lashing from Heero didn't seem all that daunting.

He slipped the key into the lock and turned it, letting the door slide inwards, before slipping inside himself. He shut and locked the door behind him. The interior was dim, lit up only by a lone electric lamp. Heero was nowhere in sight.

Of course he wouldn't be in sight. He probably had no wish to even set eyes on Duo after what happened -

Duo's thoughts were brought to a crashing stop as his eyes focused. His mind went blank for a moment, in utter disbelief. That was how he was for the next minute - just staring stupidly ahead of him, trying to digest what his eyes were telling him.

His legs moved, slowly, lumbering as if there were iron shackles attached to them, as he stumbled towards the table.

The bandages were no longer there.

There was a sharp sting behind his eyes.

He reached out a hand and picked up the small tube.

It was ointment.

Duo smiled.

//Baka Heero..//

~~~ end Episode 1 ~~~

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A/N : I know, I know. What a bastard Heero is, right? But at least the angst isn't so bad, no? ^_^ Again, feedback will be most welcomed!