**Author's Note: Hey everyone, it's me again :). I'm back with another lengthy chapter lol. I hope you enjoy this one as much as you did the last. I'm trying to unfold part of the plot now, and hope I am doing an ok job of it. To everyone who's been reviewing me constantly thank you very much. I enjoy recognizing your names and seeing what you have to say. To new reviewers, thank you as well. I love comments whether they be good or bad ;)**



Disclaimer: I wish!







Chapter 6

"Come on or I'll leave the lot of you!" Quatre bellowed swinging his car keys, and glowering at Trowa doubled over laughing at the scene, and Heero and Duo on the floor wrestling for scattered packages of Little Debbie cakes.

Once again Wufei groaned, then snapped, "EVERYBODY STOP!" He walked to Quatre, holding out his hands for his keys. When Quatre inserted the keys in his grasp, Wufei then instructed them to stop behaving like children, to line up single file and head to the car, slowly. Trowa wiped the tears from his eyes, recovering from his fit of nearly hysterical laughter. Heero was scowling at Duo, who had managed to cram all of the Little Debbie cakes into his mouth when Heero had straightened to look at Wufei. Duo gave a grin that would make the Cheshire Cat jealous, and glomped onto Heero's back as he walked toward where Wufei was standing.

The drive this time was noisy, Duo was singing and Quatre was arguing with Heero about how they should go about telling the story this time, while Trowa laughed. Wufei was glad when they finally pulled into the hospital parking lot. He was the first one out of the car and practically ran to the doors to get away from the chaos of his roommates.

"I should be the one to tell the story this time!" Duo was complaining.

"You'll make it too complicated!" Quatre argued.

"I will not! And I won't make them cry either!"

"Hey, that was low!" Quatre snapped, elbowing Duo in the ribs.

"Well you did make Cye cry," Duo jeered. He quickened his pace to catch up to Wufei and glomp onto his back. Wufei grunted at the unexpected weight.

"Hurry Wuffie, run! If we get there first I can tell the story!" Wufei was tempted to do just as the long haired boy asked, he would run with him anywhere. He frowned as he felt the shorter boy being pulled from his back, "Duo stop jumping on people. One of these days somebody's going to throw you off," Heero scolded.

Duo pouted, "I'm too cute to be thrown off." He then wrapped his arms around Heero's neck and jumped into his arms, as Heero gasped in surprise. "Carry me Love."

"I hate Duo on Little Debbie Snack Cakes."

"You love me."

"No I don't."

*But I do,* Wufei thought sadly, watching Heero drop Duo flat on his behind impulsively playful. The reaction of laughter and maybe a little cursing from Duo was delayed, as Duo gasped in pain and surprise first before forcing a slight laugh.

Heero's face went as ashen as his partner's as he dropped to one knee beside Duo, "I forgot... I'm so stupid! How could I forget?" Quatre and Trowa approached frowning down at the two, "What happened?"

"Are you ok?" Wufei pushed through Quatre and Trowa to kneel beside Heero. Duo nodded palely looking sheepish, "I'm fine...I just, wasn't expecting that. Heero, can you help me up?"

Heero nodded, he stood then pulled Duo up and towards him, "Is your back ok? Are you sure?" Wufei could hear Heero asking Duo, his voice heavy with concern and self-blame. "It's fine. I'm sure."

"You feel shaky, and you're too pale."

"It hurts Heero, but it's nothing I can't deal with!" Duo snapped, "Leave at that!"

"Fine," Heero murmured sounding annoyed. Wufei noticed how Quatre and Trowa passed knowing looks between one another, and said nothing to stop the couple before them from arguing.

*Good. The less they help the better for me,* he thought rather gleefully. "Yuy, Maxwell says he's fine. Leave it at that."

Heero glared at Wufei, while Duo looked grateful. He moved closer to Wufei, "Come on, we've got people waiting on us."

Wufei walked beside Duo, and couldn't help shooting a look at Heero over his shoulder. The Japanese teen looked dejected, he sighed silently falling into step behind Quatre and Trowa. As they moved Wufei felt Duo moving closer to him, "Wuffie?"

"Yes, Maxwell?" Wufei felt his heart fluttering like it always did when Duo called him pet names in a soft tone.

"Can I get on your back again?"

Wufei felt one of his eyebrows raise, Duo never asked before he used a living body as a jungle gym. He must have really hurt something in the spill. Wufei paused a bit in his walking quickly assisting the long haired boy onto his back. Duo whooped as he wrapped his arms around Wufei's neck once again, "Mush, Wu-bear, mush!"

And Wufei, with a hidden smile broke into a jog, delighted with Duo's manic laughter at his actions.



Heero frowned after Wufei as he ran off with his Duo, it was probably his imagination, or maybe a trick of the lights.... But had Wufei smirked at him?


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"You're not kidding..." Ryo uttered shakily staring up at Cye. Cye sat on the bed beside him stroking Ryo's hair as he lie back on his pillows. "I'm afraid I'm not. If you don't feel up to it, I won't tell you anymore tonight."

The door to the room opened and Sally Po stuck her head in, smiling at Cye and gesturing that there was someone outside for him. "I'll be right back in. There are some people as I said before, you have to meet. I'm going to take them to Rowen first, and then I'll be right back to sit with you until you're ready to meet them."

Ryo nodded numbly, his tiger blue eyes large and dazed. He followed Cye's form as he left the room.

Cye stepped into the hallway just as Wufei was approaching with Duo on his back. Cye frowned at the emotion emitting from Wufei... Though no one said anything, Cye had the distinct feeling that Duo and Heero were an item. When they were in each others' presence they glowed, and it made Cye feel warm.

Wufei it seemed, glowed in Duo's presence quite like Heero did. He thought about the first time he'd met them all, and recalled how Duo had sat between the two silent Asian teens bringing out the best in their personalities. Cye shook his head slightly gazing at the brunette pixie before smiling, was he even aware of the spell he cast on people? He couldn't see how anyone could dislike the beautiful sprite, and could see how easy it would be to fall in love with him. "Hey Cye!" He hailed him, not getting down from Wufei's back, "Well?"

"We need to give Ryo a little time to get himself together, but Rowen's expecting us," Cye said. "Where are the others?"

"They're coming," Duo grinned deviously, "Wu and I were too fast for them to keep up with."

"Hello Cye, how are you?" Wufei greeted.

"I'm doing well, and yourself?" This was only his second time seeing Wufei, so he didn't feel right to judge him...but he felt sure the boy knew of Duo and Heero's relationship. Did Heero know just how much Wufei liked his partner?

"Cye!" Cye's head turned to look at Quatre, Trowa, and Heero jogging toward him. Duo slid off of Wufei's back with a small wince.

"Hey guys," Cye greeted them all, noting Quatre's hand linked with Trowa's. Dammit, he should have realized it before. He coughed slightly, masking the temporary flash of hurt and jealousy with eagerness. Quatre had chosen well for himself, and who was Cye to interrupt? He had, after all, been born more than a century too early for the boy. "Rowen's waiting for us."

"I'm so excited," Cye heard Quatre telling Trowa, who smiled patiently, "Calm down Angelface, we'll see him soon enough."

He felt Duo's arm go around his shoulders, "Lead the way Cye." He frowned at how shaky the smaller boy felt, "Are you alright?"

Duo nodded reassuringly, but Cye could feel the torture of physical discomfort radiating from his tiny frame. Did the others know about this? He probed Heero first, knowing that he' be the first to know if Duo was hurting, next to Quatre. Heero was definitely agitated about something, and after just touching upon Quatre he could feel his poorly concealed concern, along with his excitement. They reached the door to Rowen's room, and Cye entered first, "Rowen, I'm back, and I've brought... Rowen?" The room was empty!

He shut the door slowly leaning against it with his eyes closed, "What is it Cye? Is something wrong?" Quatre was on him in an instant squeezing one of his hands.

"He's gone."

"Gone?" Heero questioned gruffly. He gazed back toward the nurse's station, and Cye knew he aimed to tell them they had a missing patient. Cye stopped him before he could begin his stride to have the nurses issue a "Code Casper."

"He's very nearby," Cye said, opening his sky blue eyes. He'd been reaching for Rowen in the web. He hadn't gone far at all...in fact. "Come on, I bet I know where he's gone to." Cye began to walk and knew the others would follow him. He heard them whispering amongst themselves.

"How did he leave the room without anyone noticing?"

"Where would he go?"

"I wonder if he yanked out his IV?"

Cye stopped at Sage's door, pushing it open without knocking and stepping inside. Sure enough, there he was, curled up on the bed beside Sage's resting body. "Well aren't they cute?" Duo mused entering the room and standing next to Cye. He gazed up at him questioningly, "Are they...?"

Cye nodded, "Yes, though they hadn't been together long before...well you know. But they've always had this connection that none of us have ever experiences with one another. As warriors we all have a bond that allows us to sense one another's presence, but their bond goes much deeper than that."

"How beautiful," Quatre cooed, he had pushed into the room and moved between Duo and Cye to stare at the couple on the bed. Trowa, Heero, and Wufei were the last and most hesitant to enter. Cye moved toward the bed touching Rowen on the shoulder lightly, chuckling at the protective way he spooned Sage's back with his arms around the blond's waist. Light from the half open bathroom door poured onto the bed like a night light. Rowen had probably done it when he first came in, Cye noted. Sage was sensitive about dark places, and there were times when Cye would openly want to propose that Sage Date was afraid of the dark. The Warrior of Light worshiped daylight, rising early with it, and going to bed soon after it dimmed and faded into night.

"Rowen?" One dark blue eye opened to peer at Cye, "Knew you'd find me."

"Of course, where else would you go?" Cye said softly. Rowen sat up slowly disentangling himself from Sage. His eyes passed over Cye, to the 5 boys standing just behind him. "Are these the people I have to meet?"

"Yes," Cye said. "I'm afraid we've got quite a story to tell you. You're not going to believe most of it, but I know you'll be open minded about it."

Rowen's brows arched and he smirked, "What are you gonna tell me Cye, that I wouldn't believe?"

"Well..." how to begin without panicking the boy as he'd done Ryo, but then again...Rowen was not Ryo. In fact, he studied Rowen's amused expression with a frown, he could feel his smugness, "You already know something."

"Hard to miss a calendar," Rowen shrugged. "So what I'm wondering is if this is magic, or science? I'm Rowen Hashiba, by the way, if you didn't already know, which I doubt that you didn't. Your names are...?"

Duo was chuckling, while Quatre looked bewildered. They were the unofficial spokesmen for their quintet, and since Quatre was too stunned to say anything, "Duo Maxwell, and your assumptions are astute." He moved past Cye to squeeze onto the foot of the bed to sit in front of Rowen. Rowen blinked at the boy, "Your hair..."

"Three feet," Duo said proudly pulling his long braid over his shoulder. Rowen eyed it with some intrigue, then he looked up to the remaining 4.

"I'm Quatre Raberba Winner, and this is Trowa Barton, Heero Yuy, and Chang Wufei," Quatre finally found his voice. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel fine, not like I've been asleep for more than a century at all. I suppose there's a reason for all of that, and what we're doing here, and why you all are so anxious to be introduced to me. So, I guess we'll go back to my first question, science or magic?"

"Both," Duo answered spreading out on the bed, pulling himself between Rowen who was sitting with his knees to his chest, and Sage who was still lying on his side as he had been earlier. Duo now lie flat on his stomach with a hand resting under his chin staring up at Rowen cheekily.

Quatre surged forward undoubtably to yank at Duo's braid and get him off the bed, but Cye stopped him. Rowen didn't mind, if anything he was more amused by Duo's antics. "Both...really?"

"Rowen, you remember our last battle...the one where we..."

"Died?" Rowen questioned, his tone even, his eyes revealing nothing but pure curiosity.

"Yes..." Cye said looking disturbed by Rowen's calmness over something that had nearly sent him into hysterics. He reflected on the Rowen he had grown to know and love back in his first life...he had always been the calm one, he and Sage. Rowen had woken up with all of his memory intact, like Cye and Ryo had not. "You're not... you're ok with knowing that? With remembering that?"

Rowen gazed at Cye and spoke smoothly, "I'm alive now, and so are you, Ryo, Kento, and my Daydreamer. Why should I be disturbed?"

Rowen had no real family to miss. His parents were divorced, his mother always traveling, his father always working. He hardly ever saw either one of them, as they seldom remembered they had ever come together and conceived a child.

Cye rubbed his hands together, "Well... I'll let someone else tell the story then. I'm supposed to be moral support, but it's obvious you don't need me."

Rowen blinked, confused suddenly, "Cye... did I hurt your feelings? I appreciate your being here. If you hadn't of come into my room when you did when I first woke up, I would have gone mad. If you hadn't of told me everyone was ok..." his eyes fell upon Sage who slumbered on oblivious to the long brown braid sprawled across his torso, and over the side of the bed.

Cye smiled palely, he knew. He'd felt Rowen's panic earlier. It just unnerved him sometimes at just how quickly Rowen could adjust to new situations.

"Quat...you wanna tell it, or are you gonna let me?" Duo asked.

"Go on Duo," Quatre said rolling his eyes.

"Ok..." Duo looked back up at Rowen, "Well... as you say you remember the last battle you fought I won't have to start there. After your deaths, your guardian Mia Koji became determined that your deaths were wrongful, and that she had to make amends. She went back to school and earned her doctorates in Science, specializing in Biology and Genetics. She became obsessed with the theory of genetic clones..."

Duo went on with his story weaving in scientific data, mathematical equations, and Punnet squares, that were thankfully left out of Quatre's telling of the story to Cye. Rowen nodded along, his eyes going as starry as Duo's as he listened with great interest.

"It failed every time in replication?" Rowen looked a trifle disappointed at the end of Duo's tale, as if he'd wanted to be told that he was nothing more than a clone of his original body.

"Miserably," Duo muttered, also looking disappointed. "I tried everything. After I'd given up, I even tried adjusting the equations...it just doesn't work."

"Perhaps it only works with our blood," Rowen suggested. "But then again, if it's magic, then it would only be likely to work once to create us. The warrior's link we feel, is perfectly in tact, meaning the armors are still connected to us. If we're still connected to the armor, we still have a destiny. It's like the Dark Warlords, Cye. They've lived for ages and ages just to be able to fight us in our lifetime. I wonder what's happened to them all now. Probably somewhere in the Netherrealm. Think they'll come down to see us?"

Cye blinked, he hadn't thought about the Dark Warlords, or Lady Kayura. They were probably still around, after all. They shouldn't be anything to worry about though, they had all joined the forces of good after their final defeat of Tulpa. "I don't know Rowen," he tried to meet Rowen's eyes but saw his attention back on Duo, the two had their heads together deep in a complicated conversation, he caught various words like hereditary traits, and genetic dispositions, and decided to leave them alone.

"That...was easy," Trowa said simply, watching Rowen and Duo. "Will the next one go as smoothly?"

Cye slapped a hand to his forehead, "Ryo! I told him I'd be right back!" He felt for his raven-haired leader. The moment he touched at the threads in the web that was Ryo, he felt the dark haired boy pull at him. *Cye! Is Rowen alright?*

*He's fine Ryo. We've just told him what happened. I'll be back with you in a short while.*

"We'd better go see about Ryo now, and, no Trowa, he won't be anywhere near this easy," Cye moved close to Rowen and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Ro, we're going to go see Ryo. Would you like to come along?"

Rowen lifted his head from his dialogue with Duo, "Ryo?" he asked. He glanced over Duo to Sage. "No one will be able to get at him in here," Cye assured him, and Rowen grinned sheepishly.

"Next one?" Duo chirped perkily. He sat up on his knees. "Do I get to tell the story again?"

"Not if you're going to tell it like that," Cye snorted. "Ryo will understand every 1stand 4th word...until you get to the middle of the story where he'll understand nothing but our names."

Duo's mouth dropped open in astonishment as Quatre, Trowa, Wufei, and even Heero began to chuckle. "Cye...you....you... jested...with me!" He beamed widely, "I'd glomp you, but I am in some serious pain here."

All eyes in the room were on the long haired boy, Cye frowning at how much paler he'd looked now than what he first turned up. "Duo, you may have upset something when you hit the ground," Quatre said. "We should get Sally..."

"No," Duo began, but before anyone could protest, he finished, "you guys should go on and talk to Ryo. I'll go scrounge up Sally on my own."

Heero looked glum, Cye frowned feeling sorry for the boy. He could sense some tension clouding him. He and Duo must have had an argument. Something made him look to Wufei...his expression was unreadable, but he felt strangely gratified. He shook his head, not wishing to read into the messy situation any further. He liked Heero and he liked Duo. Wufei, he didn't know as well, and from what he had witnessed he wasn't sure if he liked him at all. "Duo, why don't you let Heero go with you?" Cye said swiftly to the lavender-eyed pixie. "You don't look very steady, and I'm sure we'd all feel better if someone accompanied you."

Duo scowled at Cye, then looked to Heero, eyes suddenly apologetic as they took in his demeanor. Heero gazed at Cye, then at Duo fleetingly, then at the floor. Duo sighed deeply, and carefully crawled to the end of the bed to put his feet on the floor, "If Heero doesn't mind, he's as excited as I am about meeting Ryo. I don't want to inconvenience him."

"Never," Heero was shaking his head, coming forward to offer Duo a hand in standing up. "You want to walk..or...?"

"Ah turn your sexy ass around Yuy, I'm riding you tonight," Duo said raunchily, cackling at Heero's flush. "You'd think he'd be desensitized by now."

Quatre and Cye were blushing as well, while Trowa smirked, Rowen watched looking left out, and Wufei...looked detached. No one spoke again until Duo was safely on Heero's back with his legs wrapped around his waist, and arms around his neck.

"We'll all be in Ryo's room. If something's wrong have someone come and get us," Quatre instructed getting over his embarrassment. Heero nodded seriously like he'd been given a mission assignment, "Mission accepted."

"Getty-up, Hee-chan!" Duo reached down and smacked Heero's backside causing the boy to jump, and, much to everyone's delight, start moving toward the door.

"Is he...always like that?" Rowen asked after the door had closed behind the two boys.

All heads nodded affirmatively, "That's our Duo," Trowa said plainly.

Rowen stood stretching, then after straightening Sage's blankets and running a hand through his golden hair again, he turned, "Alright, lets go see Ryo now."

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Ryo Sanada's eyes snapped to the door as it opened, and he almost screamed with relief as he saw Cye and Rowen enter. Rowen dressed in an odd ensemble of dark gray jeans, with a hospital gown put on backwards and tied in front. "Hey Ryo," the blue haired boy said easily. Ryo stared at him and the leisurely smile on his lips, his blue hair, like Cye's, was long, just touching below his shoulder blades. "R..Rowen... Cye, did you tell him what you told me? Did you tell him?"

"I figured most of it out on my own," Rowen shrugged.

"And you don't...care?" Ryo blinked. Rowen had come to sit at the edge of his bed, still as lazily graceful as a cat, and the annoying composure of his Ryo had always envied was firmly in place.

"We're all here, Ryo. I'm here, you're here, Cye's here, Sage and Kento are fine... What's to care about?"

Ryo held his tongue, "Sage and Kento are fine. Have you been to see them?"

"I've been to see Sage," Rowen said flatly, suddenly his eyes were not so friendly, and Ryo frowned. "He's alright?"

"He's fine, sleeping peacefully might I add."

"Are you sure? He has..."

"You leave all that has to do with him, to me," Rowen said, his voice thick with warning. Cye wanted to scream, he couldn't believe after all that had been revealed that eve, Ryo and Rowen were still insisting on carrying out their stupid war of jealousy. "Will you two just stop it! You've just woken up, and Ryo still doesn't know a damn thing about what's going on!"

Ryo and Rowen stopped glaring at one another to stare at Cye with their mouths agape. Cye had cursed...and raised his voice...in anger...at them.

"You have guests Ryo," Cye said cooly, "Meet Quatre Winner, Trowa Barton, and Chang Wufei." Ryo batted his eyes over to his 3 visitors who stood just before the doorway staring at him. "Hi."

"Hello."

"Quatre has a story he would like to tell you, and we would all thoroughly appreciate it if you remain calm and quiet for the entire telling," Cye said crisply, pulling Rowen from the end of Ryo's bed, and replacing him with a small angelic looking blond boy with aqua colored irises. "Go on Quatre, he's listening."

Quatre was perplexed and rather uncomfortable, but at Cye's insistence he began to tell the story as to how Ryo and his friends came to be there. Cye pulled Rowen to a chair and sat beside him, next to Trowa and Wufei. Trowa was giving him the most amused expression he'd ever seen grace the stoic boy's handsome features. "Children," Cye grumbled, getting a small chortle from Trowa.

Cye monitored Ryo closely, carefully paying attention to every leap in emotion flooding throughout his system, ready to jump in and slow Quatre...but realized, as he observed Quatre slowing his telling, and pausing to reassure Ryo, that Quatre was monitoring the same thing. He relaxed a bit, supposing now that Quatre wasn't so excited about awakenings his better sense had kicked in and improved his deliverance of the news. By the time he was through, Ryo was clutching his bed sheets pale as milk, and breathing heavily. "I'm nothing but a clone...is that what you're telling me? I'm nothing but a freak science experiment?"

"Ryo, it wasn't just a cloning project," Quatre tried to object.

"Dammit Mia, you could never let things go. I made a stupid mistake. I got my warriors killed. Only SHE would assume it was her fault, and do something as horrible as this! My gods..."

"Ryo, her experiment didn't work, at least not as it seemed to," Rowen interrupted. "After they found us... the experiment was tried again and again. It doesn't work Ryo. It was not science that brought us back, science only allowed us to survive into this century unaged. Magic, is what brought us back. You can feel me, can't you Ryo? You can talk to me through telepathy, you can talk to Cye? That connection only comes through our armors, meaning we are still linked to them. We never fought our last battle Ryo, and apparently whatever it was we were supposed to fight, has been waiting for us to come back."

Ryo was thunderously silent, and Rowen groaned, "You know, when you were remade I was hoping the crafter forgot to add in your sulkier qualities. I'm in no mood to deal with you in pout mode. We've got business to attend to. First, we've got to get out of this hospital, then we've got to find our armors...again, and figure just what it is we're up against."

"Excuse me?" Rowen and Ryo looked to Quatre, "What are you talking about? Finding armors and fighting? After the hospital, you all are supposed to come back with us."

"I still don't understand why you're being so nice," Ryo was shaking his head. "There has to be something you want from us?"

"Ryo!" Cye snapped, as Quatre jerked back, looking hurt. "No, there's nothing we want, but to help. We found you, and... you have no where else to go, and..."

"So it's pity then, a hand out, huh?" Ryo was ranting. "I don't accept charity!"

"Ryo!" Cye was roaring, Rowen sat back looking stunned at Ryo's uncharacteristic nastiness.

"Now look here!" Suddenly Wufei was standing before Ryo with his hands on his hips glaring at him angrily, "My friends here, are very giving people, and for some odd reason they can find it in their hearts to care for strangers. They found you, and want you to have a fair shot at a second chance. You leave here, and where will you go, who will you know? The fact remains that you are 16 years old, currently homeless, with no family to vouch for you. My friends are all you have right now, and frankly if I were them I would leave you to your own devices as you have so rudely requested. But I know they will feel quite badly if you did so, so on their behalf I'm scolding you. You be courteous and take advantage of the lucrative offer my friends are giving you. Our organization has provided some funds for you, so if you choose not to stay with us, you can go elsewhere...but even then, who will you know?"

Ryo stared at the stern looking dark haired boy, his blue eyes glittering indignantly, "I don't need to know anyone."

"Fine then," Wufei snorted.

"No," Quatre was trying to interject, "it's not supposed to be happening this way."

"Ryo, you can't be serious. Think about what you're doing here.."

"What I'm doing? So what are you saying Cye? That if I decide to decline their offer, you would stay?"

Cye narrowed his eyes, "Yes Ryo, I'm grateful for all they have done for me and my friends. I've looked into each of their hearts, and know that they will never willingly hurt me, and only wish to help. This is a new world for us Ryo, and I for one don't know the first thing about it. I'm glad someone has offered to be our guides, and I'm glad those someone's ended up being such wonderful people. You can go off and sulk and be stubborn on your own Ryo, I'm staying where I'm wanted."

"Can't argue with that," Rowen shrugged. "I want to learn all I can about our situation, and leaving isn't gonna help me do that."

"Get out," Ryo said softly.

"What was that?" Rowen asked.

"I said, get out," Ryo huffed. "I don't want to see or talk to you. Leave now!"

"Fine," Rowen got up, brushing an imaginary fleck of dust from his gown, "I was getting tired of sitting there anyway."

"Ryo..." Cye tried, but the bearer of Wildfire turned his head from him. "Fine, be a baka then, see if I care." He laid a hand on gentle Quatre's shoulder, knowing the blond would stay to try and talk to Ryo, but there was no talking to him when he got like that. "Come on Quatre, there's nothing more we can do in here."

He guided the small blond to his tall lover, and slowly they all left the room, Cye shooting one last glance back at Ryo who was reclining in his bed and staring obstinately up at the ceiling. "Goodnight Ryo."


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"...no more snack cakes, no more cookies," Sally was saying firmly as Duo lie on his stomach on an examining table lined with white paper. "But Sally, what will I eat? I'll starve!"

"Ever hear of vegetables, Duo?"

"Unfortunately, yes," Duo grumbled, then brightened.

"No pizza."

"Sally you're killing me here!" Duo wailed.

Heero sat in a chair watching Duo and Sally's banter back and forth with a look of amusement. Who would have thought Duo being a pain in the ass would be as enjoyable as this? Perhaps it was because he was being a pain in someone else's ass... Yes, that could be it, or maybe it was because he was cute when he whined.

"...you've simply been trying to do too much, in too short of a period of time. You're putting too much stress on it. Have you been using your little pillow to support your back?"

"When I remember to bring it places," Duo scratched his head.

"Not good enough Poppet, and when you've been standing for long periods of time, or sitting, do you remember to stretch?"

"Eh..."

"That's it Duo, no more work. I can't trust you to take care of yourself properly when you're working."

"But Sally I'll go stir crazy."

"You'll do your homework then. I've heard there's been a lack of it from your department."

"You mean, you'll still make me go to school?" Duo asked looking severely wronged.

"Yes," Sally chimed, batting her blue eyes at him, and he groaned.

"You're an evil, evil woman," he growled letting his head fall onto the table face down.

"Now, would you like to wheeled out, or do you want Heero to carry you?"

"Huh?"

"You're going home Duo, I'm having Heero put you bed with a nice heating pad."

"But my babies..."

Sally rolled her eyes heavenward, asking the gods why. She laid a hand on Duo's silky head and lowered her face to rest upon it, then she whispered in his ear, "If you go see them, you will let Heero carry you. I hear about you walking around anytime tonight other than going to the bathroom next to your bedroom, I'll skin you alive."

Duo cringed, gritting his teeth as he imagined Sally skinning him with her scalpel. Measuring that scary vision against Heero playing horsey, he decided to put his chips down on Heero. "Fine."

"Heero," Sally called sweetly. "Duo would like to go and see his babies, and he's going to need your assistance."



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Heero and Duo met the others in the hallway just outside Kento's room. "How did he take it?" Duo was on them in an instant.

"Not so well," Quatre said looking melancholy. Trowa rubbed his shoulders, "Ryo is a little angry at his situation right now."

"And being just plain rude about it, if you ask me," Cye sputtered looking as angry as Duo and Heero had ever seen him. They cast each other a quick glance.

"How's your back?" Wufei asked.

Duo pouted, and Heero answered, "He's got to take it easy, he's been putting too much strain on it. He keeps forgetting he didn't simply sprain his back, he had a bullet lodged in it."

"I never forget that. I did die..twice...hello?" Duo rolled his eyes, not noticing how everyone paled at his words.

"Duo, that's not something to joke about," Quatre said, his voice a pitch higher than usual. Duo blinked down at them, "Hey, if I'm cool with it, I think it's high time you guys should be too."

"Well we're not Duo," Trowa said flatly. "What else did Sally say?"

"No more sweets or carbonated beverages, no more meals high in saturated fats," Heero began to regurgitate. "No lifting, no excessive bending until she says otherwise, no sprinting, no jumping..."

"Basically I can't do anything. I'm not even allowed down off of Heero's back for the rest of the night until I have to pee! So...we don't even get to see Ryo at all?"

"Not unless you want him to throw something at ya," Rowen retorted, and Duo smirked at him, "You have the best accent!"

"Thanks, the others make fun of me for it," Rowen scratched the back of his head, and fiddled with the long hair his fingers found. "What am I gonna do with this stuff?"

"I'm keeping mine," said Cye, "I like it."

Rowen scrutinized him a bit before giving his nod of approval, "Hmm...maybe I should keep mine too. It'd be a change, and hey! I could make a ponytail, get an earring, and of course I'll need a cool pair of sunglasses."

"I like your style," Duo said, then looked thoughtful. "I have a friend that does piercings in his garage."

"Seymour?" Heero questioned. "The one with twenty different piercings, and the tattoo of a woman's breasts on his back?"

"That's the guy! He's an expert! He did all of his own piercings, and he did Hilde's."

"I still can't believe she got her navel pierced," Quatre shuddered.

"Me either," Duo laughed, "I thought she'd faint at the size of the needle."

They were moving again toward Rowen's room. They entered and sat down, Heero carefully letting Duo back onto the floor. Cye frowned, they had briefly touched on a subject outside he wanted to question, "You know...like Duo had said before, you guys know a lot about us, but we know virtually nothing about you. Why would Duo have had a bullet lodged in his back? I know you said you all have fought in wars, and are now in an organization to help keep peace...but just what do you do? And aren't you all too young to be soldiers? Don't tell me the military is starting to recruit children now..."

Odd looks were passed around, and Cye and Rowen looked rather nervous.

"In what order do you want those questions answered?" Trowa asked, picking up the slack for his stunned companions.

"Any is fine," Cye said, taking a seat next to Rowen on his bed.

"We told you about the wars, and why they were fought, but we never told you our part in them., only that we were sent from the colonies. Well if you're familiar with old Earth history, you recall when England established colonies in the Americas, and overtaxed them and mined them for resources and goods. That is almost precisely what happened on the colonies. Only when they opposed the Earth, an organization known as the Earth Sphere Alliance sent up troops to outer space and began to tyrannize the colonies using martial law. The ultimate wrong was when the colonies and Earth were attempting to have peace conferences and the popular public official and icon Heero Yuy was murdered. Five scientist formulated a plan and from the 5 different colony clusters began building machines called Gundams. Gundams were the ultimate war machine, massive mechas with enough firepower to level a small city-state. Their original mission, Project Meteor, was to go down to Earth on a mass massacre. But instead, instead when these machines were ready to go in the year 195 AC, the scientist installed one of us in the piloting chair of each Gundam. We all came by our Gundams in different ways, but either way we ended up coming to Earth and abandoning Project Meteor. Instead we took out all of the Alliance bases housing mobile suits, and other war machines. We were pretty invincible, especially when we fought as a untied front...with Quatre as our leader," Trowa stopped to smile at Quatre who blushed. "In short, we ended up saving the world, the colonies, and Earth... though I should say Heero gets the trophy while the rest of us get the blue ribbons, when it comes to saving the Earth."

"Yeah, my Hee-chan was awesome," Duo said punching Heero's arm. "He stopped this big chunk of a space station from crashing into Earth's atmosphere and causing a nuclear winter. He literally placed himself between the thing and the Earth. I thought he was gonna bite the big one, but you know... Hee-chan ain't normal, he lived...again."

"And after that war, there was another war, known as the Eve Wars, which we fought in as well in our Gundams. Then after that we destroyed our Gundams, and then we all joined the Preventers, an organization started by people of various military alliances coming together to form a unit to help maintain the peace we've earned."

"There are still some out there who harvest weapons of mass destruction, engineer elements for biological and chemical warfare. There are still lunatics out there smuggling weapons, or just out with guns hurting people. As long as human nature exists, we exist."

Cye felt a chill go down his spine...for so did they. All of the battles they fought had to do with the nastiness inside the human spirit causing negative forces to grow and thrive until they could break free into the living realm. These boys were the same, and he believed then that it was no coincidence that they found each other. He gazed at Rowen to find that he was thinking the same thing, for he looked at Cye knowingly.

"Wuffie and I were on a mission. I can't really go into detail about it, being that it's Preventer business and all... but we ran into some trouble, and as a result I got pumped full of lead."

"He was shot twice, once in the shoulder, and once in the back. The bullet made a clean break through his shoulder missing the bone completely. It was just a nasty flesh wound, but the one in his back just missed his spinal cord, and the bullet had to be removed."

"I didn't even think he was going to make it to the hospital," Wufei said quietly, looking down at his feet. "He flatlined twice during transport, and he needed so much blood."

"And it doesn't help that he's so damned sensitive to just about every drug they could give him to try to keep his body from going into shock, and they had to be so careful about the anesthetic they used when they operated too."

"I really didn't think he'd make it," Wufei said again.

"But I did! I'm Duo, God of Death, I always pull through!" Duo objected puffing his chest out with pride, then lowering his head onto Heero's shoulder purring as his hair was played with.

"By the gods Duo, you could have died," Cye breathed. "How long ago did this happen?"

"A little more than 2 months ago...it's the reason we found you," Duo said. "Our dear Commander Une wouldn't give me any assignments that involved getting off base, and I was going stir crazy and annoying the hell out of her. So, she scrounged up a report about some minor energy disturbances in Toyama, Japan, and had us deployed. She didn't think we'd find anything at all, so it was something safe for me to do far away from her. Little did she know what we would discover," Duo gave an evil chuckle.

"Well I'm certainly not glad you had to get shot, but I am glad you were the ones to find us," Cye said biting his lip. "Though...from what you've said about yourselves, and what you do..." He trailed off looking troubled.

"We're willing to believe that maybe it was no accident you were the ones who found us," Rowen finished. A war that involved the entire was planet was fought over greed and a thirst for dominancy. Even after the wars' end people were still holding on to their old nasty ideals, and an organization had to be created to stop it.

There would be more war in the future, both Rowen and Cye were sure of it. A future of enlightenment it seemed, never happened. This was still a war where children would have to fight to end it. Was it their fault? If they hadn't been so dumb, and rushed off into a battle they knew was wrong for them to be involved with, and they had fought their last battle, would the future be different? Better?

Nothing in the past could be changed, but now they were getting the second chance to fight their battle to make the future better for more children that should never have to see the brutality of war. No, it was no accident at all that these 5 had been the ones to find them. Fate played them right into her hands, and led them to the doors to unlock the Ronins, their saviors. They were symbols, symbols of a time that shouldn't have been, a flag for the Ronins to fight under.

"You're willing to believe what? Why?" Quatre asked curiously.

"It's not unlikely for warriors' paths to cross," Rowen said absently. "Warriors of old, and warriors of new...coming together."

*There should be no warriors of new.*

"What a interesting way to think of it," Quatre mused with a little smile.

*We were so dense, then.*

"Yes it is," Cye agreed.

*We'll make it right this time.*

"Once and Future Warriors!" Duo snorted, "That's what this is! Like King Arthur is supposed to be reborn to reunite people... you guys were reborn to conquer...uh...evil floating heads?"

They all laughed heartily, Rowen and Cye still close together.

*We have to find our armors, before IT comes.*







**Author's Note: So what did you think? Tell me, tell me, tell me! Lol. Take care! **