Zodiac, Full Circle
Aquarius, part two
AN: For all relevant information about this fanfic, read the first bit of the prologue.
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Heero set a brisk pace for their walk to Colony Hall, as if determined to make up for lost time. Duo kept up, occasionally pointing out one of the few sights of the run-down colony, such as the headless statue of the founder of the L2 cluster, Samson White, undeterred by Heero's unresponsiveness. Duo didn't care Heero didn't appear even remotely interested; he'd acted as a tour guide for visitors to L2 when he was a kid, too - one of the few possible incomes for a street urchin, as long as he stayed away from the bad sort of tourists. The story of White was not all that well known on the other colonies. Unlike the other clusters, the L2 project had had a really hard time getting cash for construction, unfavorable location and all. Samson White had been a charismatic man, however, and had somehow scraped together enough money to put L2 together. It didn't matter that this statue of him - the largest one - didn't have a head. White's head decorated most of the money of L2, anyway. All L2 residents knew what he looked like. All of this, and much, much more he told Heero, who in return did nothing. Indeed, Heero was, as so many times in the past, attempting to ignore him, lacking reasonable alternatives. However, at one sentence, he stopped walking.
"You know, you ought to visit Hilde and me some time when there's not a crisis going on. We could show you all the sights the colony has to offer, and then some."
Duo continued a few steps, not immediately noticing Heero had stopped while he was blabbering away. As he turned to find out what the holdup was, he could see Heero appeared to be studying the pavement thoroughly.
"Heero? Is there a problem?"
Returning from his thoughts, Heero looked up, eyes weary. "No. Nothing's wrong." Hardly noticeable, he bit his lower lip, and resumed walking. "Let's go."
Duo shrugged, following.
A few moments later, Duo thought he heard Heero mumble something, though he couldn't make it out. "What did you say?"
"I said 'nice'," Heero said, nodding backwards.
Duo grinned. "Oh, you mean the house? Gee, thanks. Can't take all credit, Hilde helped with the decorating job, and-"
Heero smirked, interrupting him. "I didn't mean just the house."
"Oh..." This time, Duo stopped walking, not to ponder, but to laugh.
"What's so funny? I just complemented you on your-"
"On my best friend, yeah. Not girlfriend."
"Hilde isn't your-"
"No."
This time, Heero was perplexed. "But... I mean, you work together, you live together, you-"
Duo shook his head, one hand dispatched to scratch the sudden itch he felt at the back of his neck. "Yeah - but that doesn't mean anything, I mean - She's my best friend though, that's for sure. Not sure if I could call her anything more than that..."
"Then find out," came the matter-of-fact reply.
Waving his flat palm side-to-side in a forbidding fashion, Duo made his thoughts on the subject clear. "Oh, no I won't. No way I'm giving that woman an inch; she'd grab a mile before I knew what was happening. I mean, I like her, but I'm young and absolutely not ready for the whole 'settle down' thing." He grinned, relaxing both arms again, folding them before his chest. "Frankly, I don't think she is, either. Not that I know if she'd want to-" He stopped, realizing who he was talking to. "Oh, just forget it. What happens, happens."
"I'm merely wondering if-"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Nosy. What about your love life, hotstuff? Why aren't you with Relena?"
Heero raised an eyebrow. "Relena? What do you know about-"
Duo snickered. "Well, I'm not blind, Heero. At least, I don't think so. That girl was head over heels in it for you. Are you saying you didn't even give the poor thing a single date?"
Suddenly taking a profound interest in his white, yellow-streaked sneakers, Heero tried to look not as guilty as he was charged. Of course, it wasn't the whole truth - in the end, it was not he who had resisted the idea; Relena outgrew him without him noticing, and by the time he realized he felt like having more than an assorted group of loose friendships, it was too late. However, he was not about to admit that phenomenal failure, not to anyone - including himself, and it was slowly eating away on his insides.
It was easy enough to sense the discomfort both felt at discussing the topic of love - or lack thereof, and Duo decided to change the topic. There was another question he wanted answered. "Say, where have you been for the last few months? I tried to get the whole gang together a while ago, but I couldn't find any way at all to reach you. Not like the rest of the gang was easy to get a hold of, but Wufei you can get to through the Preventers, and Quatre can be reached by vid-phone, if you get through his maze of secretaries first. Even Trowa is traceable, even with the circus on the road. Now, you, on the other hand... That's how I guessed about Relena - I called her, but she said she hadn't really seen you since you left the hospital five months ago - whatever that meant. None of the guys had seen you since then. Where have you been, Heero?"
Slowly shifting his weight from one leg to the other, Heero thought of ways to avoid the question, as he had ever since he had gotten the pager message from Lady Une. "Away. Had to think."
"About what?"
Heero looked at him, opened his mouth to say, but closed it just the same, resigning to a sense of futility. "Never mind. Not important."
Duo put his hands on his hips. "Look, if it was important enough to spend five months thinking about, it should be something important."
An answer was not forthcoming, that much Duo understood - and in the end, accepted, reasoning Heero would tell in due time. Still, it didn't feel good not to be trusted enough to be told.
"Okay, you don't have to tell me. Just - Just remember that if you ever want to talk, we're all here for you, okay?"
Heero nodded, and resumed walking towards Colony Hall.
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Colony Hall was a four-story building, white coat of paint shedding great flakes, littered with dark streaks. Still, it was standing, and that was apparently the most essential feature. For how long it'd remain so, was anybody's guess - A red tube scaffolding was erected at one side of the entrance to the lobby, and two workmen were busy replacing an ornamental lion figure that appeared ripe to fall to the ground from old age, wear and tear.
They stepped through the dark wooden doors, and Heero went right for the information booth, asking for where he could register a claim in the Peacemillion/Libra item recovery program. The young redhead behind the counter first gave him an odd look, but checked her files for the right address.
"The program has been moved to 12 Franklin Street - that's out the door, to your left, two blocks down, then-"
"I know where that is," Duo interrupted, grabbing Heero's arm. "Let's go, pal." And with that, he half-dragged his friend out the door, by which time Heero tore himself from Duo's grasp. They walked quickly, not exchanging a single world until they reached the address. It was a run-down warehouse, two guards standing outside the only massive sliding doors not welded and nailed shut. As they approached, the two guards scowled at them, obviously trying to determine if they posed a threat or not. One of them had a torn OZ armband around his right arm, perhaps under the delusion any past associations with such organizations was of value to him, a warning to any challengers. Some people simply can't abandon their pasts, no matter how futile it was to clutch to old ideals when they had long since been replaced by better ones. This guard was one of them.
Within the warehouse, a middle-aged man with an ever-growing bald spot amidst the black turning gray sat with his feet up at an old wooden desk, reading a newspaper, cigarette dangling from the right side of his mouth, smoke trailing lazy circles up towards the ceiling high above them. The entire front section of the warehouse appeared empty, but another guard - far more clearly armed than the two at the door - stood vigil by a hallway down to the right. Heero stopped, grabbing a hold of Duo.
"They moved since I picked up the-" He paused. "Since I retrieved my belongings. Last time, they were situated much closer to Colony Hall."
Duo nodded in acknowledgement, knowing this wasn't what Heero really wanted to say. Heero continued.
"They probably felt they needed to add more secrecy and security. Or both. They must have found something valuable in the wreckage."
"Well, probably something they had aboard Libra, then. Not really anything of value aboard the Peacemillion - nothing these guys would treasure, at least."
Heero nodded, agreeing.
At the desk, the man had finally noticed their presence, put down his newspaper and feet and stomped his cigarette in the square brown ashtray at the side of the desk. He waved them forward. "Okay, boys - what can I help you with?"
"We're here to retrieve something from the Peacemillion wreckage," Heero began. "We were told the item recovery program had moved to this address."
The man nodded and opened up a drawer, pulling out a piece of paper. "Alright. You'll need to fill out one of these forms, attach a clearance slip 32-A and some ID, and we'll be ready to go down to the storage area."
Heero took the form and looked it over, not quite sure what to do with it. This was not how the procedure went last time he went through it.
The old man searched his pockets for a pen, eventually finding one on his desk, handing it to Heero. Accepting it, Heero put the paper down on the desk, and quickly began filling the form out. The requisition form wasn't that unusual - it specified which person's items were being retrieved, what items were to be picked up, and other things related to the artifacts in question. Duo kept looking over his shoulder, as if ready to pounce on him should he fill in something incorrectly. He did not, however, and soon pushed the paper back across the desk to the middle-aged clerk. The man looked it over quickly, a new cigarette in his mouth. After securing it in his stained right-hand fingers, he gave the paper back to Heero. "Okay, this one looks to be in order. Now, for the 32-A slip... Do you have one?"
Heero was slightly taken aback. "No - I thought you'd give it to me when this one was filled out."
The clerk shook his head. "Okay, you'll have to go back to Colony Hall, get a 32-A form from the Office of Industrial Growth and Development, and double back here. You'll also have to have some form of ID papers - passports, driver's license, that sort of thing. Do you have that?"
Heero nodded. Granted, he had both genuine and fakes of either, and more. One of them should certainly suffice.
"Okay, then. Now, we close shop in two hours, so you'll have to be back before then, or come back tomorrow."
Again, Heero nodded, and set a brisk pace back to Colony Hall, Duo trotting as best he could to keep up.
"Heero, what just happened back there?"
Heero shrugged his shoulders. "Bureaucracy happened. I guess they've made the process a bit more uncomfortable since the last time I was here."
"What happened last time?"
"Nothing. I just filled in a form, gave them some identity paperwork, and that was it."
Duo was again tempted to try to pry out of the reclusive ex-pilot what had been recovered, but wisely decided against it. Soon, they were back at the run-down facade of Colony Hall, and again talking to the redhead behind the information counter.
"We need to see someone at the Office for Industrial Growth and Development. We need a form 32-A."
The redhead eyed him suspiciously, but decided to do her job, anyway - provide information. "The IGD offices are not here - they are at 47 Willow Road, fourth floor - that's-"
Again, Duo cut in, informing them both he knew where that was too, and they were on their way. This time, they left Colony Hall down a completely different direction from the warehouses, at last ending up in a shopping district, local enterprises far better maintained than the governmental facilities. Perhaps these shops actually had money.
Above a bakery, an accounting company and a dentist's office was the IGD offices, tucked away in a corner of the fourth floor. Two light knocks and an 'enter' later, Heero and Duo were faced with a chubby dark-haired man hiding behind the high stacks of paper on either side of his desk. From his appearances, the man had evidently been to the first floor of the building often, though his mood signaled he hadn't stopped unnecessarily at the second or third floors for some time. He smiled at their arrival, relieved to be torn away from his daily dealings with official inkworks, if for but a few minutes. "Hello, gentlemen," he began, eagerly shaking Heero's hand - and, as a consequence, the rest of the poor boy. "Now, what can I help you two with?"
"Uhm - We're need to get a form 32-A..."
The clerk pondered this for a few seconds, round fingers rubbing his neatly trimmed beard, eyeballs turning towards the ceiling, as if the answer was written up there. Then, epiphany hit. "Ah, yes - 32-A... That's one of the retrieval papers for government-expropriated belongings, if I recall correctly. Yes, I think I have some of those forms in here... somewhere..." He threw some bewildered glances throughout the messy office, finally zooming in on a big metallic file cabinet in the corner by the single tiny window of the room. After successfully playing the gopher, he returned with two pieces of paper stapled together in the corner. "Ah, yes. This is it," he informed, handing the paper to Duo, who was determined not to let Heero run everything, and had stepped closer just to get the paper first.
"Thanks." He turned to go, but was stopped by the clerk.
"Wait, that's not all of it."
The two young men looked at the clerk.
"Yes, after you fill it in, you also need a stamp from the Department of Acquisitions," he pointed to a big, white square at the top paper in Duo's hand. "Right there, see? Only when you have that, the document turns valid. You have to go down to Colony Hall to get that, I think." He put his big hands on his equally proportioned hips. "Anything else I can help you with? Anything at all?"
"No, this will do just fine," Duo smiled back at him. "Thanks."
And with that, the two ex-pilots headed back towards Colony Hall, leaving the big man with his work, though both felt a slight pity for him as they stepped out, hearing the deep sigh of returning boredom and the creaking of the old desk chair.
Upon their return to the Information booth, the young redhead was busy chewing gum, occasionally forming bubbles to fight her own boredom. She was none too pleased to be interrupted from her procrastination by the two boys, and thus quickly gave them directions to the Department of Acquisitions; to the left, down the corridor to the first intersection, then first hallway on the right, fourth door on the left. They didn't stop until they stood outside said door, upon which Duo searched his pockets for a pen to fill out the form with. Before he could find one, Heero gave him one, having 'borrowed' it from the counter of the Information booth while Duo talked to the sour redhead. Duo happily accepted, held the paper up against the white brick wall and filled it out, under the constant supervision of Heero. Soon thereafter, they entered through the door, bickered with a bitter elderly lady with a severe selective hearing disability to get the right stamp, and were fast on their way back towards the warehouses, armed with all the right documents, but fast running out of allotted daytime - the artificial day/night cycle of the colony was rapidly going towards evening, and in less than an hour the warehouse would close for the day. The lights were already dimming slightly. They would not turn completely off, for safety reasons, but they would dim enough to create a dark twilight, making sleep come easier to people still very much tied to habits of life on Earth.
At the warehouse, the balding clerk had finished his newspaper, and was on yet another cigarette, working with a comb, attempting to make his few surplus strands cover his obvious deficit. He put the comb down, took the papers the boys handed him, and looked through them carefully, now and then puffing on his cigarette.
"Hmm... Well, this looks good enough. We just need to amend it with one more form, and-"
Duo groaned, thumb and forefinger grabbing the bridge of his nose to fight the oncoming headache. Heero simply blinked. Twice. "What form?" he asked as calmly as he could, trying not to let his irritation surface.
"Just another standard identity form. Got one right here." With that, he opened another drawer and took out the document. "See? Now, which one of you is," he glanced at the filled-out documents, "Howard?"
The two boys exchanged puzzled looks. "Neither of us," Duo began. "We're just picking up his stuff, that's all."
The smoking man gave them both a stern look, and put all the documents down on his desk. "In that case, I'm very sorry, boys. You can't retrieve something for others than yourself without a waiver from whom you are 'picking up stuff' from. You'll need Howard's signature on that, as well as the signature of a district stipendiary magistrate approved by the L2 authorities. In other words, you cannot fax the paper to this Howard person to sign - you need to bring both the document and Howard to one of the approved magistrates."
Again, Duo felt as if his legs were ripped away from under him, slouching his shoulders and hanging his head, taking in a deep breath to refrain from attacking the middle-aged man. Heero acted the statue again, though his fists were rapidly clenching and loosening again, and his right brow momentarily gained the oddest twitch. "May we have a list of these approved magistrates?"
Taking another puff of his cigarette, sending lazy circles towards the ceiling, the man shook his head. "Sorry, we don't have it here. You have to go back to Colony Hall and ask there."
Duo had calmed down, and started talking, showing but a trace of annoyance in his voice. "Wait, the two of us were aboard the Peacemillion too - can't we at least get our own stuff back? I mean, you said-"
"If either of you had been Howard, you could have. However, these forms have already been filled out, so if you want to retrieve your own belongings, you'd need to-"
Duo waved off the rest. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. I get it." Taking another deep sigh, he picked up the filled-out forms from the desk, and grabbed Heero's wrist. "We'll be back as soon as we have the paperwork ready."
The man nodded. "Also, would you please let this 'Howard' person know that sending more people won't help him retrieve his possessions. We have a firm policy that-"
Heero immediately flagged an eyebrow. "More people?"
"Yes - there was an elderly gentleman here while you were gone, claiming he was a friend of Howard's, here to pick up a few choice trinkets. He didn't have his papers in order, of course, and I instructed him on the same things you have just been."
With computer-like speed, Heero tried to determine the possibilities - it could be a legit friend sent by Howard to help, but that was very unlikely. An opportunist, someone who knew Howard's name and rank aboard the ship, hoping to find something of value? This was the solution he hoped for, as the third option was someone after the key piece in specific - someone who also wanted to enter the vault. That would mean there was a leak within the Preventers, at the very least. "Can you give a description of this person?"
The man shrugged, another puff of smoke. "Not much to say. Caucasian, looked like he was in his late fifties or early sixties. White hair, trimmed moustache, round glasses, brown hat and gray coat, and some kind of fancy walking-cane. He was very polite, right up until he offered what I took for a bribe. That's when I told him to leave, and come back when he had the right papers. Which I will now ask you to, as well. You might still make it today, but..."
He tapped his right forefinger on the wristwatch on his left hand. Duo nodded, and dragged Heero out the big door, back towards Colony Hall. They were halfway there before Heero got out of Duo's firm wrist-lock.
"Duo, stop."
Adherence. "It sounds like we're not the only ones looking for the amulets."
Heero nodded. "It could be nothing. I hope it is - still, I want to let Lady Une know as soon as we return."
"Shouldn't we call, if this was-"
"No. If something is wrong, we risk letting 'someone' know we know 'someone' knows. It's best to let the Lady know directly." He sighed. "This could be just coincidences, but it's better to be cautious."
Duo grinned. "I'd say the word is 'paranoid', but 'cautious' works. Okay, so we let her know some delirious old-timer tried to steal Howard's stuff."
"You don't think there's something wrong with this picture."
Duo shrugged. "Not really. I mean, there's plenty of con men on L2, in all ages - I'd be surprised if they don't get a dozen or so fortune hunters down at that warehouse daily. Let's just get the last papers, and be done with this mess, okay?"
Heero nodded, and they continued their walk. They reached Colony Hall in no time, courtesy of Heero's brisk pace.
Again confronting the temperamental redhead, there was first an exchange of heated words, before Duo handed her a bill asking her to at least tell 'Uncle Samson' about what they needed. The feisty girl grinned, grabbed the bill and handed them a document listing all the district stipendiary magistrates that were approved by the L2 local government. The list was quite short, but a dozen or so names. Not surprising, each and every one of them had offices located at one colony or another in the L2 cluster - but only on the most distant ones from the one they were currently in. Furthermore, some of the addresses were incomplete, one of the names appeared to be outright fake, and there was little doubt in either boy's mind there was a good chance some were long-since dead. Heero pushed the paper back to the redhead, grabbed Duo's upper arm and thus signaled in no unclear manner they were leaving.
Back out on the street, Heero led his friend to the narrow passage between Colony Hall and the neighboring building, resting against one wall. Duo copied his actions on the other wall. "Okay, so now what? I mean, it'd be easier to get Howard up here to fetch the thing for himself than to get all the legit paperwork so we can get it."
Heero shook his head. "I wouldn't be surprised if there would be even more papers to fill out if Howard came up here." He forcefully slammed his right heel against the wall, venting some frustration. "I have fought hopeless odds, and survived. I've been shot, stabbed, cut, chained, blown up, raised by assassins and madmen and generally been treated like shit, and survived. I will not be defeated by governmental red tape!" With that, he hurled an iron fist at the opposite walls, sending plaster and bits of concrete flying, creating a lovely pattern of cracks in the substandard building material.
Duo cowered slightly, taking one step sideways away from his friend. When Heero was mad, there was only one place to be - not there.
The lights high above them lowered another notch, turning the cityscape slightly gray. For a while, neither of them said anything, nor moved.
Then, Heero mumbled something.
"What was that, Heero?"
"We're going back. Tonight."
"What, you mean we're going to break into the building? Look, we're here representing the Preventers - don't you think-" Heero's intense glare immediately silenced him. Heero took all the filled-out documents and tore them to tiny shreds, letting the pieces of paper go everywhere in the narrow alley.
"There. Littering. What's one more violation on our records?"
Duo was barely able to stifle a laugh at the absurdity of it all, but didn't have any better idea. "Okay, Heero. We'll attempt to break in. We were good at it during the war - and I'm sure they haven't put more defenses around those pieces of scrap than OZ put around their bases."
"Don't count on it. They've cared enough to establish one hell of a paper trail around it - what makes you think the real defenses would be any less? Especially on this colony?"
Duo chuckled. "Yeah, you might be right. Look, at least let us go get something to eat first - the lights won't reach their darkest setting for another couple of hours, and I know this really good burger place not far from here. My treat, what do you say?"
Thinking it over, Heero nodded, and they were on their way.
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Hours later, as the more infamous side of L2 business ventures and establishments truly came to life, the warehouse district around Franklin Street became void of people - save some of the storehouses on the fringe to the commercial areas, who were, along with the more shady bars and nightclubs, just opening for business - and not just of the legit variety.
Fortunately, there were no guards patrolling Franklin Street. Oddly enough, it made sense. On L2, guards meant something of value - especially night-time guards. And if there was one thing you wouldn't want to do, it was to alert the presence of a potential treasure amidst a den of thieves and con men, and L2 was - not entirely inappropriately - reputed to be just that.
The massive doors of 12 Franklin Street were closed, and would clearly be difficult to move without explosives. A small door built within the massive portals showed greater promise. Duo reached inside his braid to pull out a thin strand of metal, quickly bending into a proper lockpick and got to work on the lock while Heero was watchman, just in case some inconvenient passer-by was to show. Three minutes later, they were inside, closing the door behind them.
The room was dark, letting none of the dim light outside come in. They had prepared for this, and had, following the quick visit to the fast-food joint, bought two flashlights at a hardware store open beyond normal hours. The two thin beams of light swept across the contours of the big room, which was as empty as previously that day; the clerk's desk at the center the only thing there. To their right was the hallway through which the personal belongings recovered from Peacemillion and Libra were allegedly kept. They made their way down there, and found themselves in a new store room, much smaller than the first, and with what had once been a side door large enough to fit a car walled up with bricks. Every side of the storage room was filled up with all kinds of junk; rags, pieces of metal, oil drums, various tools, some tanks of compressed gas, two bags of cement and other assorted building materials. This was, of course, of no importance. Their objective was the steel door on the far side, which was thoroughly locked. Again, Duo brought out his lockpick tools. With the small flashlight pinned between his teeth to provide light, he did his best to get through the lock. Five minutes passed. Then ten. At fifteen minutes, Heero got slightly impatient.
"What's the problem?"
Duo took the lockpicks in one hand and the flashlight in the other, turning the light to the roof where the white plates reflected the light enough to slightly brighten the dark room. "This one's a good lock. I know the type, it's virtually impossible to get through from this side - the lock mechanism is blocked out by three separate plates, and you need one damn special key to turn the right cogs within it to open it. Plus, this type of door," he tapped the steel, producing a deep, quiet clang, "Is really thick, and has at least ten deadbolts lodged into the door frame - two at the top and bottom, three at the sides. Even if I got all the right cogs hooked up, the lockpicks would break before I could force the door open." He paused, seeing Heero's mind already at work behind the calm face. "No, we can't use explosives - the amulet might be in a storage booth right on the other side of the door. And no, you can't kick it in with pure strength either. It's solid steel, Heero - I know you're strong, but I doubt even you can punch through what must be at least a foot of steel." Duo shrugged. "For all we know, they could have gundanium at the core of the door, too."
"We still have to get in, Duo."
The flat tone annoyed Duo to no end. "I know that. If we were to use explosives, we'd have better luck at one of the walls - but we'd risk destroying what we came for, and we'd call attention to ourselves. Plus, the walls are probably really thick, too - I think this place was an ammo storage before, heavily armored to prevent explosions or fires that breaks out in there from destroying the entire colony in the process." He turned his flashlight beam to survey the room, stopping at the welding equipment and the acetylene tanks. Duo never even got to suggest his idea, though.
"That won't work. Like you said, the door is too thick. We wouldn't be able to cut an opening big enough - there might not be enough gas in those tanks for it, anyway."
Duo sighed, continuing scanning the room, this time along the roof. When he passed an air duct above the walled-up side door he stopped, suddenly getting an idea. He quickly turned the light to move across the top of the wall with the steel door, at last resting on a rusty grate covering a ventilation shaft. "Yes!"
"What?"
"Heero, see up there," he pointed. "See that? I bet that leads right through the wall and into the room on the other side of the door."
With that, Duo was pushing one of the empty oil drums over to the wall, directly beneath the grate. He climbed up, shone his flashlight through the reddened metal, trying to make out what was behind it. "Okay, it looks like it leads straight ahead... But it's much deeper than just a single foot. Gotta be at least six feet long, and there's another grate at the other side." He put the flashlight in his mouth again, and applied both hands to the rusty metal, trying to yank it off the wall. Unsuccessful, he put one foot against the wall, and tried again, aided by the leg. Still no luck. At that point, he felt Heero tapping the foot he was balancing on.
"Step aside."
As told, Duo did, jumping off the oil drum to let Heero face the grate, taking Heero's flashlight and using it along with his own to provide light. With gritted teeth, Heero pulled as hard as he could, metal of both grate and its screws in the wall at last giving in, causing Heero to lose his balance, falling backwards only to crash-land on Duo while they were covered in dust and plaster following the grate off the wall.
Heero rolled off, none the worse from the fall, and offered Duo a hand to get up. "Are you okay?"
Accepting the handout, Duo got to his feet, brushing himself off. "Yeah, I think so." He winced. "My back will probably be sore for a while, though."
Heero smirked. "At least I got the grate down."
Duo's wince turned into a slightly pained grin. "Yeah, sure you did - after I weakened it for you."
Heero didn't counter, thinking it only fair to let Duo have a small victory in return for softening his own fall. Soon, Duo was back on the oil drum, using both flashlights to scan the sides of the ventilation shaft and the other end of it.
"Okay, the grate at the other end looks even more wrecked than this one." He tossed one of the flashlights to Heero. "See if you can find something long that we can use for a battering ram. I want that other grate down before I go through."
Heero looked at him in disbelief. "You have got to be kidding. How are you supposed to go through that? And why?"
Indeed, his concern was well justified. The air duct was far from big, and would be a challenge even to the greatest - or more precisely, thinnest - of contortionists. "Look, Heero - I've been getting into places I weren't supposed to enter by crawling through shafts, ducts and tunnels for as long as I can remember - I think I'll be able to squeeze through this one. And it's the only way to get that door open."
"You said you couldn't pick the lock on that door."
"Not from this side, I can't. I think I can from the other side - without the plates protecting the lock mechanism, I could probably use something more sturdy than my standard lockpicks. That would probably work."
Heero shook his head. "Assuming you could get the door open from the other side, how the heck are you to fit through that air duct? How would you get your shoulders through - much less your hips?"
Duo put his hands to his sides, frowning slightly. "Are you insinuating something, Heero?"
Opening his mouth to speak, Heero wisely decided not to anyway, and began searching for something to use as an extended battering ram. Meanwhile, Duo used his hands to measure the dimensions of the vent, his shoulders and hips, concluding it'd be an extremely narrow fit. A painfully narrow fit. He reached into the duct, dust, dirt and cobwebs clinging to his arms. Trailing his fingers along the edges, especially the joints of the plates. Fortunately, they were pretty smooth, not jagged enough to cut him or his clothing - he hoped. Still, he couldn't reach that far inside, and there would be virtually no space to wiggle through on - which meant he'd probably get some lovely scratches trying to inch his way through, unless...
He jumped down from the oil drum, and began passing his flashlight across the assorted items stacked in the room yet again. In one corner, Heero stood triumphant from his search, an old pipe in each hand, but both were too short, some four feet long each. Duo was about to ask, but Heero simply nodded in the direction of the welding equipment, showing his intent. Duo grinned, and continued searching for something of his own purposes.
-------
There had barely been enough gas left in the tanks to weld the two pipes together. Duo had found an old water cooler still half-filled with water, and they used that to cool down the weld with. Pushing another empty oil drum up along the first to give both enough room, both boys got up close to the air duct, pushed the makeshift battering ram in as far as it would go, pulled it back slightly, and threw as much force as they could into the thrust. The metal of the other grate creaked loudly and buckled, but didn't break. targeting the pipe towards the lower left corner, they battered the grate again. The screw in that corner was dislodged from the wall. They repeated against the lower right corner, same success. Repeating the process on the upper corners took more effort, as they had to tilt the makeshift battering ram at an odd angle, weld grinding against the duct metal. They were both very pleased when the grate on the other side fell to the floor with a loud clang.
Duo jumped down from his oil drum, leaving Heero to extract the welded pipes.
"Okay, now that that's done - how are you going to get through?"
A wide grin was all he got as a reply, as Duo rummaged through some of the junk, searching for something he'd spotted earlier, hidden behind the water cooler. Triumphantly, he dragged the sizable container out from under a pile of useless stuff.
Heero gave him an odd look when he realized what it was. "This is-"
"Motor oil. Yeah. If I cover myself in that stuff, the friction should be minimal. I'd be through that duct in no time, and avoid scratching myself. Sure, I'd have to shower afterwards and get some new clothes, but I'll get through. Haven't met a door that's truly defeated me yet, and I sure won't let this metal monster be the one." He shrugged. "The one we're to get all the amulets for might be the one, but this one sure won't be it."
Heero shook his head, sighing at the whole idea. "So, you're saying you're going to cover your clothes with that stuff, and-"
Duo bit his lip before interrupting. "Err... No. I'm not sure there'd be enough room for me with my clothes on, and I need every millimeter of space I can get to wiggle through there." With that, he sat down on an oil drum, taking off his boots and socks.
Heero was at a total loss of what to say. Or do. Or think. One of Duo's harebrained schemes had sneaked up on him once again. Still, he had no better idea to offer, and could do nothing but to go along.
Duo was down to his pants. "Uhm... Heero, could you turn around for a minute?"
It took half a second before Heero realized he was being spoken to. "Huh?"
"Turn around? Please?"
"Why? It's not like you have something I haven't seen before, Duo."
"Well, I'm shy, damn it!"
"You didn't have a problem with the dressing- or shower-rooms at Howard's barge or at the dorms we hid out in during the war, nor-"
"Newsflash, Heero - this place isn't any of those, and I'm the only one losing clothing, so-"
"Are you saying it'd help if I took of my clothes, too?"
Duo gaped, for just a second, then let loose a frustrated growl, before turning his back. "Aw, just forget it."
Heero smirked, done teasing. He turned around, and shrugged at the absurdity of it all.
Duo decided not to go completely commando, despite the assignment, leaving his underwear on. He took one of the rags and soaked it with engine grease, applying the slippery stuff to his skin. The room had been cold enough without this in addition, and he couldn't help but shiver and frown as he covered himself in the messy stuff, smearing some on his underwear too, and after significant hesitation he put both hands in the grease container and slid them over his braid, giving his hair a sheen in a highly unusual matter. Duo took his lockpicks and whatever else he assumed he could use on the other end, and threw it through the air duct. He balanced himself, put the flashlight between his teeth, and twisted his arms trying to shrink the breadth his shoulders, hearing his joints pop as he did so. Slowly, he inched into the air duct, using his belly and fingers to crawl forward. He felt his hips reach the edge, and turned just enough to fit through.
Heero heard him struggle, and decided enough was enough, shy or not. He turned around to see Duo's knees disappear into the air duct. "Is it working? Need me to push or something?"
Within the duct, Duo inched forward, catching his breath to answer, rolling the flashlight over to the side of his mouth and placing the tip to the bottom side of the duct so he could talk without dropping it. "I'm fine, don't worry. Just give me a sec, and I'll be through." He rolled the flashlight back into place with his tongue, and continued on.
The metal walls closed in all around him, but the motor oil had made his skin slick enough to slide rather than scrape through on. He felt his toes touch metal, and his fingers reaching out to the other side. Despite all the cobwebs and dust clinging to him because of sweat and grease, Duo couldn't help but grin - it had actually worked! Another inch, and his head would be on the other side!
Of course, one should never tempt fate by taking victory for granted before the fact.
One of the joints of the air duct components had evidently not been smoothened out in the edges as much as the rest. The elastic band on left side of his underwear had been caught on something. He wiggled a little backwards, trying to get it off the hook. Instead, he succeeded getting his one remaining article of clothing stuck on the right side as well. After muttering a few silent curses, he wormed forward again, feeling the underwear slide off him. Great. Just great. They say stripping is supposed to be sexy. Here I am, all slicked up in engine grease, covered in dust, dirt and cobwebs, being undressed by a metal corridor...
Finally poking his head through to the other side, he spat out his flashlight, sending it crashing to the floor below, making one little flaw of their plan apparent.
"How's it going?"
"Well... I'm through - but I kinda didn't think of how I'd get down from this height."
"Simple. Fall."
"Excuse me?!"
"Fall. Just slide out, try to soften the fall with your hands, and pray none of those sharper tools of yours landed right below you."
Duo groaned. Still, there wasn't much of an option. He couldn't find anything to grab on to near the air duct. Looking down, the flashlight illuminated a small section towards the wall - an empty section. Nodding to himself, Duo determined that to be the best spot to aim for. He pushed on the wall with his arms, belly through, and artificial gravity did the rest, sending the unfortunate, naked and dirty boy straight for a hard encounter with the floor, and he was not shy of being vocal about it.
On the other side, Heero couldn't help but smirk at the many swear-words flowing through the air duct.
Rubbing some of the sore spots that'd undoubtedly turn into bruise marks soon enough, Duo got to his feet, and gathered up the flashlight and his equipment to start working on the door. He'd barely gotten started before remembering his predicament.
"Uhm, Heero? Could you do something for me?"
"What?"
"Could you fetch my undies?"
"Say again?"
"My underwear - it got caught up on something in the air duct. Think you could get it out of there?"
Heero rolled his eyes, but stepped up on the oil drums nevertheless. Sure enough, about halfway inside the slightly greasy corridor there was a small curled-up piece of oily cloth. Briefly considering his options, he took a hold of the makeshift battering ram and used that to get the item of clothing off the jagged edges, and into his hands - where they did not stay for long, freighted over to the pile of Duo's other clothes at arm's length, pinned between thumb and forefinger as if it were toxic.
At discarding the cloth, his attention turned to the door when something within it clicked.
"Did you get it open?"
"No, not yet," Duo's voice sounded through the thick door. "Got one of the cogs to turn, so I'm getting there. Will take a little while longer, but I'll get it done."
Heero smirked yet again, closed his eyes momentarily, and shook his head, and muttered "You really are Maxwell's little demon, aren't you?"
"What did you say?"
"I said, you really are Maxwell's little demon."
Duo stopped fidgeting the lockpicks. "Max- Oh, damn it. Not you too."
"Not me too what?"
"Professor G used to call me that. Could never figure out what the heck he meant by it."
"Didn't you study physics?"
"Gee... You know, I think old man pestilence skimped on all the theory stuff in favor of more practical things - you know, like operating a gundam, close combat, explosives and such? Not that I'm not a quick learner, but-"
"No, then."
"Well... He taught me what I needed. So, what did I miss?"
"In this case, the Maxwell Paradox."
Duo grinned. "What, a new nickname for me?"
Heero sighed. "Do you know what entropy is?"
Duo momentarily scratched his head, as if it would help his memory, and returned to struggle with the lock, albeit quietly. "Uhm... Didn't that have to do with energy loss, or something?"
"Right. The theory is that everything loses usable energy over time as it is transformed. Maxwell's little demon was a challenge to that theory. Say you have a container split by a barrier with only one tiny opening - so small it can only let one molecule pass at a time from one side to the other. On one side you have hot gas. Now, the energy of the molecules is higher on the hot gas side. According to thermodynamics, the hotter molecules would eventually go to the colder side, losing energy as they bumped into the colder molecules until both sides were equally cold. In other words, entropy increases, since energy is lost, and is irrecoverable. And here comes Maxwell's bright idea - what if there's a little imp guarding the molecular gate at the barrier, one that doesn't add energy to the system, but only lets the occasional slow-moving cold molecule to go from the hot side to the colder side? Then the hot side would get hotter, the cold colder and entropy would decrease rather than increase - even without any energy added to the system. That was Maxwell's Paradox - how could this happen? Did the system gain energy from nothing? Was the laws of thermodynamics wrong?"
Heero's monologue was interrupted as thin metal snapped on the other side. "Damn!"
"What?"
"Broke a lockpick. Don't worry, I got extras. Just have to fish out this - Ah, continue, would you? I still don't see what this has to do with me - though I'm sure Wufei would agree with the demon picture."
Heero gave a slight half-smirk to himself. "Anyway, some years later, a physicist named Szilard figured out that the little demon does add energy to the system - but not through the most visible activity - moving the gate. It adds energy in what it knows about the system. In knowing how the system of the container, the barrier, the hot and cold molecules work, and in turn knowing when to open and close the gate, the imp adds more entropy to the system than it subtracts."
Another click sounded from the door. "One cog to go. Okay, so you're saying I'm good at breaking the rules 'cause I know how the system works? That I can sneak into places I shouldn't 'cause I know my way around security systems, locks and such?"
"Yeah, something like that."
Duo shrugged. "Well, that fits. Certainly adds up to G's weird ways of talking. First time he called me that, was when I got through the patrols and security systems of his shuttle - that's how I met the old guy."
The last cog creaked loudly, not willing to give in easily. Duo put as much force as he dared against the metal rod he'd jammed into the lock mechanism to push the cog around. With a loud snap, the spoke gave in. The metal bars lodged from the door into the door frame on all sides slammed loudly back into the door, one side at a time. Lastly, the door slid slightly ajar. Heero grabbed the door handle, but didn't have time to open it before Duo poked an arm followed by a shoulder and head out through the opening. Engine grease and sweat had made dust, muck and cobwebs stick to Duo's face and messed-up hair, giving him a trollish appearance, image not diminished the slightest by his unusual eye color.
"Uhm... Heero, could you turn around again? I'd like to dry off and get my clothes, and..."
Again, Heero rolled his eyes, but turned around nevertheless, hearing the faint footsteps pass behind him. He couldn't quite see where Duo had picked up this sudden streak of shyness - the demeanor of the braided menace tended more toward being the exact opposite. Then again, being shy in behavior and shy of body are two different things. Dropping the matter, he instead began considering how Duo's incredibly unlikely plans always seemed to work, no matter their level of insanity. One side of his mouth faintly curled up. "I just don't understand how you managed to do that."
"Hmm?" came the reply, muffled within a shirt.
Heero turned around, just in time to see Duo's shirt slip back on, to be quickly tucked inside black pants. Heero crossed his arms. "I said, I'm surprised how you manage to follow those insane ideas through - you should not have been able to get through that tiny shaft."
Duo grinned back at him, balancing on one foot while sliding a sock over the other. "Well, I've always had a knack of getting into places I shouldn't - Maxwell's little demon, right?"
Heero gave a mild snort. "Right..."
Soon enough, Duo had gotten his entire attire in their proper places again, and the two ex-pilots walked through the now opened door, carefully avoiding the moist spots of Duo's oily footprints dotting the initial corridor. One or two bore evidence there had been some balance issues, smeared out as they were. Duo let his flashlight skim the vicinity. The entire store room was filled with cubicles, a passage made for every two cubicles, each compartment with an identification number. "Ooookay... This might take a while. Heero, why don't you start down to the right, and I start over to the left. I guess we'll just have to look for anything that screams 'Howard' - you know, colorful ugly clothes, slippers, sunglasses, leftover parts from whatever, anything from his seashell collection, other Pacific rim artifacts or odd-looking gadgets."
"I disagree," Heero stated, letting the flashlight illuminate the closest cubicle. Within, there was a desk with two big binders on top. Heero immediately went there, and opened one of the binders, which listed the identification numbers of each cubicle, along with contents and, occasionally, the presumed owner.
Duo looked over Heero's shoulder as he sifted through the pages. "So, they left an inventory?"
"Looks like it..." Heero grabbed the other one, shoving it at Duo. "You read through this one."
Duo nodded, and took the binder with him over to the closest wall, where he sat down leaning against the concrete, unfolding the binder to read under the beam of the flashlight. Virtually none of the entries had names attached, and they were most likely organized on a room-for-room basis. He sighed. Peacemillion hadn't exactly had few rooms. At least he could skip all entries marked Libra.
They had been skimming the books nearly half an hour when Duo found at least something familiar, and made a quick mental note of the number. Another five minutes, and Heero slammed his binder together.
"Found it. Howard's stuff is in compartment #14-205C."
"And that is... where?"
Heero shrugged. He put the flashlight on the closest cubicle opening. "Okay, this one is #08-220A..." He then let the beam search out the cubicle sign on the other side - and nearly growled. "And that is #03-041B."
Duo grinned. "Time to go back to my idea?"
Heero nodded in defeat, and extended a hand to help Duo up. "You go left, I go right."
Accepting the hand, Duo got to his feet, and put his binder back with the other before rushing along down the left side aisle to commence his search. He reasoned quickly enough the numbers of the cubicles were indeed completely random. They didn't match in any way the grid layout of the cubicles. He finished the far left side of the storage room without finding either of the numbers he sought. Two rapid turns to the right put him back in the next long corridor - this time with cubicles on both sides. Duo quickened his pace. He was intent on finding one other number before either of them found Howard's, and he knew Heero wouldn't lazy about on his end.
Soon enough, he was back up along the side of the entrance, and took two swift turns to the left to rush through the next aisle. Nearly halfway down, he found the spare number.
The cubicle was nearly empty. One small plastic bag was all there was - and within was nothing but what at first glance could be dismissed as junk; some pieces of glass, splintered wood, bits of paper and cardboard, some thin bent metal spokes - nothing of any value, much less any whole object. Duo was just about to pour out the bag's content to see if there was anything else at the bottom when Heero's voice came across the cubicles.
"Duo! Get over here!"
Duo put the plastic bag down, but only after quickly running his fingers over the bottom of the bag, though he couldn't sense anything other than the previously mentioned artifacts. "Where?"
A halo of light appeared a few aisles down as Heero put his flashlight to the roof. Duo ran to the nearest wall, and made his way over to his partner as fast as he could. By then, Heero had already begun sorting through Howard's messy inventory - shirts and other vibrant clothes at one side of the cubicle's table, seashells and rocks in another corner, engine parts and metallic artifacts forming a small pile at the floor.
"Found anything?"
Heero shook his head. "Howard said he'd kept it in his nightstand, right?"
Duo nodded. "Yeah, along with his old pocket watch and his spare sunglasses."
Heero took the last plastic bag so far left unturned and spread the contents of it at the table. Most appeared to be junk - more seashells or wave-polished rocks, yet another screaming reddish-pink shirt with yellow and green spots, a dried-up flower wreath rapidly breaking apart from the rough treatment, some pyramid-shaped piece of what could only be gundanium judging by the dent it made when it impacted the table, and plenty of other assorted items. Duo tossed the ghastly shirt aside, and rummaged through the stuff. Beneath some crushed flower leaves, he dug out a broken pair of black sunglasses. He held them up, looking through the one fractured and one missing glass within the bent frame.
"Well, at least we know what to buy the guy for his next birthday..."
With a soft huff, Heero resumed the search, Duo still playing a bit with the broken sunglasses. Separating seashells, rocks and metal he found an old watch with half a chain still intact, surface scratched and mechanism most likely beyond repair. He handed the pocket watch to Duo.
"Thanks, man. I'm sure Howard will like having that one back." Duo stared at the pile of clothing, the seashells and the engine parts while putting the shattered sunglasses and dented watch in his pocket. "If he wants those, he'll have to get them himself, though."
Heero smirked.
It faded not long after.
"Duo, it's not here."
"Huh?"
"The amulet. It's not here."
"Are you sure?"
In mild frustration, Heero threw his arms up. "Of course I'm sure - We've gone through everything here, and haven't found it. It's not here!"
Duo let his left-hand fingers temporarily support his forehead, trying to concentrate. "Okay, okay... Back up. Howard said he last saw the thing in his nightstand aboard Peacemillion. We found all the other stuff that were in the same drawer - why wouldn't that little golden-"
A thought hit him, and he began searching through the pile of seashells and smooth rocks.
"Heero, did you see a greenish rock when you sorted those out?"
"No. Should I?"
Duo pushed aside those of the shells and rocks that did not interest him, some landing on the floor trying to escape the cubicle - unsuccessfully, as each one was intercepted by Heero. They'd have to pack everything up again afterwards to make it harder to see what had been stolen - if anything.
"Didn't Howard ever show you his collections?"
Heero shook his head.
Duo rolled his eyes. "In other words, he wanted to, and you refused, right?"
No reply came, though from the corner of his eye, Duo saw Heero suddenly taking an interest in the concrete floor.
He continued searching through the rock pile. "Figures."
"Look, Howard asked me if I wanted to look at rocks - how was I supposed to know it was something important to him? I thought he was showcasing the first signs of dementia."
Duo laughed. "That's okay, Heero. It's just that few people manage to say no to Howard when he wants something - I swear, when that guy looks at you with that really odd begging stare-" He shuddered slightly, but still smiled. "Anyway, Howard had one really shiny green piece of rock he found on one of his quick anchorings at one pacific island or another. He thought it was really pretty - and the reason I'm searching for it-" Duo turned the last seashell over, not finding it. "Not here. Okay, the reason I searched for it, was that it kinda resembles an emerald."
"Emerald?"
"Yeah. No, it isn't the real deal - it just looks a bit like it. A good thief would know it wasn't valuable. A bad thief would pocket it, 'just in case'."
Heero began packing some of the clothes away again, pausing for one quick gesture urging Duo to do the same. "So, someone might have taken the rock. Why-"
"The amulet is golden, isn't it?"
Heero nodded. "So, you're thinking someone took both the green rock and the amulet because they thought they were valuable?"
Duo put one arm to the table, used his free hand to open a plastic bag and shoved an armful of rocks and seashells into the back, dumb luck and concrete floor preventing the plastic from tearing. "Yeah - Probably some poor, stupid wretch of a scrap peddler or demolition welder that got greedy beyond the meager paycheck."
Heero packed away some of the engine parts scattered about the floor. "Okay, given that you are right, we'll have to search out every firm that ever worked on the demolition of the Peacemillion and investigate every single employee."
Duo stuffed the dried-up flower wreath in a new bag along with two shirts still lying at the table, and shrugged. "Well... It's still better than assuming the little thing is destroyed or lost - after all, we found the other stuff from the same drawer here, and I don't think any of the other rocks are missing, so..."
Heero sighed. "Yeah, you're right. It's the most logical course of action - but it's even more of a needle in the haystack to find now."
He turned around only to face a grin. "What, giving up on the mission, Heero? Oh, I can't wait to tell the other guys that the great Heero Yuy actually gave up on-"
At that point, a strange reddish-pink green- and yellow-dotted creature attacked him, wrapping itself loosely around his head. Duo struggled to break free from the offending shirt, now smeared slightly with engine grease. Deciding not to leave the job half-done, Duo used the shirt to clean off as much of his still mucky face and hands as he could. He looked up to see Heero smirking back at him. "You can be a real annoyance sometimes."
Far from dispirited, Duo just smiled back at him, stuffing the dirty shirt away with the engine parts. "Yeah, and everybody loves me for it!"
Heero huffed again, but let the issue drop. They were done packing all of Howard's belongings away, and it was time to leave before the guards returned - for all they knew, the guards could actually bother to check in early in the morning.
-------
Half an hour later, they had left behind Franklin Street, and were rapidly approaching Duo's salvage yard. It was still very early in the colony morning, and the lights high above had only barely begun to increase in intensity. Some of the shadier alleys were still winding down from a wild night, the wider streets slowly awakening. The two boys got a few odd stares from passers-by - more correctly, they stared at Duo, whose shabby appearance was still noticeable, despite having gotten at least some of the grease and dirt off his face and hands.
As they walked by a bakery - one of the few shops along the street bustling with activity at the early hour - Heero stopped, and extended an arm to halt Duo as well. Duo first looked down at the hand on his chest, then at Heero.
"Why the holdup?"
"Remember when we left your house yesterday?"
"Well, yeah - My memory isn't that bad, Heero."
"Do you remember making a promise?"
"A promise? What pr-" He stopped, suddenly recollecting what Hilde had said about dinner. "Damn... I completely forgot about that. Hilde must be steaming by now. That, or she ordered pizza or something last night."
Heero turned him to face the facade of the bakery. "At least you can try to make up for it with a proper breakfast, right?"
With a grin, Duo put his hand to his shoulder, where Heero's hands were currently resting, and with a quick "Thanks, man," Duo ran into the bakery. Heero did his best to hide a smirk, but was not too surprised when Duo came running back out asking for more money - which he gladly contributed. After all, he wanted breakfast, too.
-------
As they walked up the gravel path to the door, both carrying assorted bakery goods, most of it things you'd never find on a dieter's list, Heero couldn't help but look at the windows for a fleeting shape. Detecting none, he offered to unlock and open the door. To his fortune, Hilde was asleep on the couch along the wall completely covered in knick-knacks - the other three living room walls still had about a total of a square foot of space left, remarkably enough.
Duo poked his head in to see what caused the silence - after all, he had expected an immediate ruckus. Seeing Hilde asleep on the couch, he grinned impishly, put down the bags he was carrying by the door, and placed his forefinger across his lips, hushing Heero. Duo quietly took off his boots, and tip-toed over to Hilde, and was just about to assault her with tickles when the would-be victim awoke with a start, not hesitating to send one couch cushion directly in Duo's face.
"Who- what-" It took her a moment to recognize the smudged boy. "Duo? What happened to you? What in space have you been up to, getting yourself covered in-" She ran a finger along his cheek, looked at the digit, tentatively taking a whiff of it. "Motor oil?!"
Duo just snickered, rubbing his nose that had gone a little sore from the cushion attack, making a mental note to buy a sofa either with softer cushions, or cushions that couldn't be removed. "It's a long story, Hilde. I'll tell you all about it when I get time. Look, Heero and I stopped by a bakery on the way here - figured we might as well have a decent breakfast. I'm sorry I missed dinner yesterday. It's just that-"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah... You had fun and got carried away. I know."
The scratching hand moved from nose to neck. "Well, I wouldn't exactly call it fun, but-"
"Oh, you had fun alright. Otherwise you wouldn't have skipped a meal. I ordered takeout as soon as I realized you two weren't coming back soon."
Duo looked over to Heero, who was removing his sneakers. "See, Heero? I told you she'd order food when we weren't back by dinner time."
Hilde smirked. "I ordered two minutes after you left. It was easy enough to see you guys wouldn't be back until whatever you were doing was over."
With a shrug, Duo went back to the bakery bags, carrying some of them over to the kitchen nook. "Well... We're not exactly done."
"You're not?"
Heero took his share of the bags and dropped them off next to the rest. "Hilde, do you keep track of all the other salvage yards?"
"Yeah, sure. Never hurts to know the opposition, you know."
"Could you compile a list of all the yards that have or have had contracts on the Peacemillion wreckage?"
She shrugged, walking over to an leaning over the kitchen bench. "I guess... What for?"
Heero took three glasses out of a cupboard, filling one with water. "Unfinished business." He took a sip. "We didn't find what we were looking for. Have to widen the search area."
All the while, Duo was busy cramming a piece of pastry down his throat, accepted when Heero filled another glass with water and offered it to him, coughed a bit after swallowing too quickly, and accepted the napkin Hilde handed him to wipe away some stray crumbs and water splashes. "Look, I think I'll go get a shower and some new clothes - you two set the table or something. I'll be back right away, so don't even think of eating everything before I return."
And with that, the dark whirlwind was out the side door, Hilde's voice following him. "Duo, don't mix those clothes with the rest of the laundry, okay?" No acknowledgement came. Hilde smiled, sighed. "Heero, thanks."
Heero handed her the third glass of water. "What for?"
She took a sip. "For letting him have fun."
"I didn't do anything. If that little outing made him happy, it was all because of his own doing."
She smiled, making her way around the counter and into the kitchen nook. "I think you tend to underestimate things, Heero."
He rid another paper bag of its contents. "I don't like exaggerations."
"Except when dealing damage, self-destructing or self-deprecating?"
He froze.
Hilde stepped over to the end of the counter, and began fighting the quarrelsome coffee-maker. "No insult intended to your offer, Heero, but I need something stronger than water to really wake up in the morning. Duo tends to be the same way."
Heero sat down on one of the wooden chairs by the small kitchen table next to the wall. After finally winning her fight with the coffee-maker, Hilde took three plates from a cupboard and put them on the table, along with a few knives from a drawer. From the back hallway, the sound of running water mixed with the huffs and puffs of the coffee-maker. She picked up her glass of water, held it up to the light in the ceiling, looking through it.
"I think this is the single biggest expense of this household."
"Water?"
She emptied the glass in the sink, and put the glass down on the bench. "Yeah. The recycling systems do their best to reclaim water from the waste, but the system still needs to get added water - and you know how expensive cargo transports from Earth to the colonies can be - especially when 'local taxes' are applied." She sighed, and sat down opposite of Heero, leaving the only free end of the table for Duo. "At least the water reclamation systems work all the time - it's one of the few things the L2 government can't cut back maintenance on without a massive uproar. The weather system or artificial lighting can always be skimped on for a while."
Heero took another gulp of his glass. "I take it you don't like living here?"
"No, no - it's not that. This is home, for better or worse. I don't think I could get used to living anywhere else easily. It's just that when you see something that doesn't work in your home, you wish you could fix it - and until it is fixed, you at least have the right to complain about it."
"The government?"
She nodded. "The next election will hopefully clear things up a bit. As it is now, nearly all of the people in power are corrupt, to some extent. I don't blame them - they're just following an old L2 trait - do the best with what you have; take advantage of what you can. Hopefully, that'll be outgrown in the next generation of politicians - but I'm not counting on it. Anyway, like I said... This is home. I'm happy here. So is Duo, and you know how infectious his happiness can be."
Heero didn't answer, but fought back a minute smirk as his eyes closed momentarily. The puffs of the coffee-maker turned into wheezes as the water tank ran dry. Hilde got up to remove the can, poured up a cup for herself, offered one to Heero - who politely refused, fingers clutched around his glass of water - and put the can back on the heating element.
Heero took a knife and cut a piece of pastry in two, placing the slightly smaller half on his plate. "Hilde, would you consider Duo a shy person?" Waiting for an answer, he took a bite.
Taken a bit by surprised, Hilde was at a loss for words. "Duo? Shy? Are we talking about the same person here?"
Swallow. "I know it sounds like a stupid question - it's just that he became oddly... self-aware... during our little trip."
She smiled. "I take it this has something to do with the fact the poor boy got soaked with motor oil... Well, you know Duo as well as I do - he's about as extrovert as they come, at least about most things. What happened?"
Another sip of water. "He decided to crawl through an air duct - a very small air duct. To help him get through, he took off all but his underwear and covered himself with engine grease to just slide through."
Laughter. "Yeah, that sounds like one of Duo's plans, all right."
"Then his unmentionables got caught up on something, and he had to leave them behind in the duct."
More laughter. "Oh, I wish I had joined you guys."
Still using his best stone face, Heero struggled with his next few words, not sure if he was betraying his friend by inquiring, or trying to help. "Anyway... He was very aware of his body - which I can't recall he has been in the past. Not to this level, anyway."
Composing herself down to a friendly smile, Hilde put her hands on Heero's free hand, the other still clutching the glass. "Well, Duo isn't shy in the way he acts - he has no problem acting the fool in public - something I've suffered from more than I care to remember."
Heero smirked.
"And judging by your face, you have too." She snickered briefly. "He is a bit shy about nakedness, though. Once, he forgot to lock the bathroom door. I went in to get the hamper, and was faced with his bare rear, for the half second it lasted - Duo jumped behind the shower curtains and shouted at me to get out. Frankly, he sounded nearly hysteric." She sighed. "I tried to apologize later that day, and he shrugged it off, stating he was caught by surprise and didn't like to be walked in on like that. I believed him, but I always found it hard to think of him as modest..." Her eyes hardened, and the smile faded. "Do you think anything is wrong?"
"No, not really. Maybe his reaction had more to do with who saw him."
Hilde was taken aback, retreating her hands and sitting up straight in her chair. "You're suggesting he only reacted like that because I got to catch a glimpse of him?"
Another sip of water. "It's possible."
Silence.
"Hilde, if you don't mind me asking - what's your relationship to Duo?"
A bit baffled by Heero's question, Hilde took a second to think of an answer. "We're friends - really good friends."
"You don't love him?"
Now Hilde was definitely wanting to evade the conversation, glaring at the far side corner of the table as she was. "That's a very direct and personal question, Heero."
"You do, don't you?"
She sighed, shrugged, slowly daring to resume eye contact. "He's my best friend, Heero. Do I care deeply for him? Of course I do. I - I just don't want to do anything, say anything that could jeopardize that friendship. He's all I got, and I don't want to risk losing that for anything."
"Even if it could be something better?"
"I don't know that - and like I said, I don't want to turn a good thing awkward. Duo's companionship means a lot to me. Being alone isn't fun at all - I know that from experience. One thing is that I don't know how he'd react, another is the fear he'd get scared. No offense, Heero - but guys your age aren't exactly renowned for their desire to make permanent commitments."
He chuckled. "Point taken."
She frowned. "I'm not sure you quite understand the value some people - like me - set on friendships, Heero. I don't think you know the fear that comes with risking a good friendship, much less your best one."
His turn to sigh, for but a second closing his eyes. "No. I know exactly how you feel, Hilde. Knowing what I feel, but not being able to express it, out of fear? Knowing how empty it feels to be all alone? Oh, I know that situation a bit too well."
She appeared puzzled. "Relena?"
Heero didn't answer, merely took another sip of his water.
"By what Duo told me, she sounded like she was head over heels for you."
The glass impacted the wooden table just a tad harder than Heero intended. "We've drifted apart, I guess. She has a world or three to manage now. Balancing the colonies up against Earth, the Luna settlement and the fledgling Mars colony and keep it all fair and out in the open is no easy task."
"No time left for you, then?"
He smirked, just slightly. "I guess..."
Hilde folded her hands. "Coming from me, this might sound hypocritical - but I think you should tell her exactly how you feel. That is, after you admit it to yourself."
Heero's turn to frown. "What do you mean?"
"I don't think you've been able to convince yourself how you feel, Heero - or how much you're really worth, to yourself and others. If you had, would you still be sitting here talking to me?"
He didn't answer, taking another bite of the pastry.
She reached for a Danish. "Well, I'm only suggesting, Heero." She smiled. "Perhaps I'll take my own advice some day."
For a few minutes, they ate in silence. Then, accompanied by a slight curse from stubbing his bare toe against the threshold, Duo appeared in the doorway to the back hallway, for the occasion dressed in blue rather than black. After rubbing his sore toe, he staggered to the free seat, reaching for a sizable portion of the baked goods. Hilde got up to get him a cup of coffee, which he gladly accepted, frown turning into a grin.
"Thanks, Hilde."
She leaned against the counter, folding her arms, smirking. "Feeling blue rather than dark today?"
He shrugged. "Had only one black outfit left out of the laundry cycle. I'm keeping that in reserve - I'm sure Heero and I will have more adventures that are hazardous for my clothes."
Heero huffed. "You put yourself in that mess - don't try to pin any of the blame on me."
Duo stuffed his grin with a cinnamon roll.
Emptying his glass of water and putting it back to the table, Heero turned to Hilde. "Where did you keep those records of the competition?"
"They're in the little office down the hall. I'll go get them - you only wanted the companies involved with the salvage operation of Peacemillion, right?"
Heero nodded.
"It's still a big list."
Heero sighed. "Can't be helped. We have to go through each company, get all personnel records and review each employee. It's the only hope we have of finding what we're looking for."
With a curt nod, Hilde was out the opening to the rear hallway, leaving the two boys - or rather, Duo - to finish the impromptu breakfast. Said lad nearly choked on a Danish when Hilde's voice, in a rather shrill tone, came from the hallway.
"Duo! Feed the fish, would you?"
"Why? Didn't you do it last night?" he shouted back.
"Your fish, your responsibility! Don't make me come out there and make you do it - again."
Duo growled, rolled his eyes, but nevertheless put down his coffee cup and got up. Past the counter and over by the fish tank he sought out the can of fish fodder amidst the little jungle of plants, and sprinkled the tiny colorful bits at the water. Something wasn't quite right, though. First suspecting he'd poured too much of the food in the water - which had led to tragic circumstances in times past - he determined there had to be some other reason for why the fish tank seemed more colorful than it had the day before. A closer study revealed what looked like a disco inferno pinned between the treasure chest and the castle. Small rays of blue, red and green blinked out from the little, slowly rotating top on the black casing housing the engine mechanism and, most likely, a tiny light source.
"Hilde?" he yelled, only to look up and find her standing by the kitchen table, having handed Heero a small stack of papers.
"Don't shout, Duo. I'm right here."
He grinned. "Sorry, didn't hear you come back - anyway, what's this new thingummyjig - that little disco light thingy?"
She smiled. "Oh, that. Well, you brought back those old movie posters for the single open section of wall left, so it was my turn to get something. I bought that from a peddler when I was down at the market yesterday."
Duo returned to study the addition. "I thought you said you ordered takeout."
"I was at the market in the morning, Duo - had to do something after I read that note of yours. Figured a walk would help me vent some of my anger."
He grinned. "Hey, I told you I was sorry. I-"
The little trinket had slowly spun yet again, and the triangular golden shape now showed a carving - a jar spilling water. Duo hesitated for but a moment, then rolled up his right sleeve and sent his arm down into the aquarium, scaring the fish inside the castle and treasure chest. He grabbed the rotating little object, and pulled it out of the water. Along the bottom, he found an off-switch, which he flipped, killing the spin and the light.
Hilde came over to the counter, looking none to happy. "Hey - what are you doing, Duo? We have a deal, remember?"
Noticing the bits of blue, green and red plastic taped to the golden triangle, Duo tried getting the bits off with his fingernails. "Where did you say you got this from?"
"I told you, I bought it down on the market. Was a guy selling all kinds of odd stuff. That one kinda caught my eye - hey, don't destroy it!"
Too late; Duo had already pealed off the red tape. Green and blue followed. His grin grew ever greater. "Heero, I think you have to come see this..."
Carefully, he tried bending the black plastic end aside, clutching the token as it was. With a snap, it gave in, releasing the amulet. Duo tossed the small black engine and light casing aside, mesmerized by his discovery and turn of fortune.
Hilde grew ever more upset, Heero now standing beside her behind the counter. "Duo! You broke it! That's it, I'm ripping your posters to shreds."
That, if nothing else, brought Duo back to the real world. Well, at least partly. Euphoria is not a state easily escaped. "Oh, sorry, Hilde - but I think this is the thing Heero and I was looking for! Heero, look!"
He held it up triumphantly, delighting in the slight widening of Heero's eyes. Heero reached out an open hand, obviously wanting to inspect it for himself. Duo placed it in his palm, still grinning.
Heero held it up, twisted and turned it to inspect it from every angle, carefully studying each of the transparent plastic cuts in the metallic construction, registering the symbol as a precise match to the photo of the Aquarius token. "I agree. I think this is it."
Duo threw both arms in the air in victory, ran across to get the bag he'd packed just minutes previous, fishing out a pair of socks which he tried to put on while strapping the bag over one shoulder and skipping over to the door to get his boots. "Come on, Heero - Let's get going! I'm sure Une wants this thing ASAP."
Trying not to show any signs of the same enthusiasm Duo did, Heero nodded while barely covering a smile, wiped the token dry on his pants and put it in his pocket.
Hilde walked alongside him as they headed for the door, anger faded to a gentle frown. "Duo, you broke one of my things for the house - I know it means something to find... whatever that is, but you could at least apologize for-"
She was cut short by an eager hug, not to mention the pair of lips that ever so briefly met hers a split second later. She was, putting it mildly, stunned.
By the looks of it, so was the other two - Heero with his jacket halfway on, Duo standing there with one boot and bag balancing off one shoulder, blank face at last showing signs that he had realized what he'd just done. "Oh, uhm..."
With a flash, he had put on the second boot, thrown his jacket over his shoulders and grabbed Heero's wrist, the other hand at the door knob. "Uhm, Hilde - we're just leaving - Have to get this thing to Lady Une ASAP, will be back soon, promise! I'll call you!"
And with that, he opened the door and ran out to the street hauling Heero after him. He had dragged his friend down half a block before Heero managed to stop him. Freeing himself from the wrist shackle, Heero placed one hand on Duo's right shoulder, gently trying to shake some sense into the boy. "Duo, next time you decide to panic - could you please wait until I get my shoes on?"
Duo's puzzled eyes looked down to find an answer. Heero did indeed wear just socks, the trademark yellow sneakers held in his left hand. Duo grinned. "Err... Sorry about that, Heero. I just - I just... Hey, you didn't drop the amulet, did you?"
Heero reached into his pocket, fishing out the token, flashing it for reassurance before putting it back.
Duo sighed, still smiling. "Oh, good."
The yellow sneakers met the pavement, and Heero bent down to put them on. "Breathe, Duo. Breathe."
Order acknowledged.
"Care to tell what just happened?"
"I kissed Hilde."
Heero smirked. "Yeah, I saw that much. From the reactions both of you had, I take it you haven't done that before?"
Duo shook his head. "Damn, how am I supposed to go back home after that - I mean, I like her, I really do - but I'm just seventeen - I'm not ready to commit to-"
"Something lasting?"
"No, it's not that, it's just-" Duo shrugged dejectedly. "Never mind."
Tying the second shoe, Heero stood up, placing one hand yet again on Duo's shoulder. "It helps to talk."
Duo chuckled. "Now, there's something I hadn't expected to hear from you, of all people."
A grunt, arm dropping, briefly evasive eyes.
"I agree, though. Just think it's Hilde I need to talk to." He sighed. "I'll do it when this thing is over with, I guess. Have to come home sometime - after all, all my things is still there, and there's no way I'm abandoning all that stuff." Duo grinned, folding his arms.
Heero's face remained deadpan.
"Heero, care to tell me what it was you retrieved from Peacemillion?"
No answer.
"I found the cubicle that had your stuff in it. Saw the wood and glass splinters." Duo swore he could see Heero's bottom lip move ever so slightly. "Those were picture frames once, weren't they?"
Heero's jaw momentarily drooped, and he looked away.
Duo's turn to offer a supporting hand on the shoulder. "Heero... If you don't want to talk about it, I'll respect that - but I warn you, I'll remain curious, and you know how I can be when-"
"Group shots."
"Huh?"
"They were group shots - pictures of all of us pilots. Like the ones back on your living room walls."
Duo just stared at him, slight surprise fading into a warm smile. Heero glared at him again, before the harsh eyes grew weary, dimmed, almost tired. It was clear the next few words didn't come all that easy.
"I went to get them after I was discharged from the hospital back in January. You guys were all gone, and... I felt lonely. Wanted something to remind me of... friends."
"So, you just went after the photos?"
Heero nodded.
"Why didn't you just visit one of us?"
Heero's gaze became evasive again, and he turned slightly sideways, folding his arms. "I just - I needed to be alone, okay? I missed you guys, but I didn't want to admit I needed anything. Least of all-"
"Friendship? Companionship? Other people?"
After looking intensely at the ground at his feet for a few seconds, Heero nodded. "I went away to think about what I wanted to do with my life. I've always been the soldier, but now, without any real wars, and with the pledge I made not to kill anymore, I felt lost. Was hoping to find some solution on my own." He looked directly at Duo, who was listening intently, reading the question off his face. "I didn't have time to come to any conclusion."
"Okay... So, basically, you don't know what you want to do, and you don't know if you want to be 'dependent' on having friends?"
Heero didn't reply.
"Okay, listen - when you're done thinking... Why don't you come live with Hilde and me for a while? We got a spare room, kinda... Just have to toss out some old junk first, but... Well, anyways, we could always use another hand on the yard, and if you've kept that sense of neatness you used to have, I'm sure you'd be plenty helpful. Hilde and I aren't as good at keeping things orderly - well, I'm not, anyway, and-"
Heero raised an eyebrow. "Are you serious?"
"Sure I am! Never hurts to have another to share the household budget with, right?"
Slight hesitation. "I'll think about it."
Duo slapped Heero's back. "That's all I'm asking, buddy. Now, let's get that trinket to Lady Une, shall we?"
Heero nodded.
They had only gotten half a block closer to the spaceport when Duo's beeper went off. He fished it out of his backpack and read the number. "Doesn't ring a bell. It isn't the number Lady Une used - looks more like a payphone number."
"Where's the closest vidphone?"
"Aren't that many public vidphones on L2 - there's one at the spaceport, I think."
And so, but a few minutes later, two panting boys tried to regain their breath from their quick run, while Heero checked his pockets for change for the phone. He handed his findings to Duo, who stepped into the little phone booth, grabbing Heero by the arm in the process, pulling him in. Quick fingers typed in the number, and for a few seconds, there was nothing but the hums of the phone dialing and the stressed breathing of the two ex-pilots. The screen flickered, before Quatre's distraught face appeared from the static. Duo just grinned in greeting.
"Hi, Quatre - we found the piece! What about you two?"
Quatre smiled, but it was all to clear it was a strained one. "Hello, Duo. I'm glad to hear that - we found ours too, but... There's been some events."
"What events?"
Quatre sighed, smile gone again. "Lady Une just called us, and told me to relay the messages to you. You're to go back to Earth as fast as possible." He looked past Duo, at Heero. "Heero, you're to meet me in Vienna. Duo, you're to follow him down to the spaceport, and get new directions from there. Call Lady Une and let her know which spaceport you'll land at - she'll probably send a courier for the amulet."
Duo wasn't too happy about working on this little info, though, and it came through in his stressful voice. "Quatre, what happened? Where's Trowa?"
"Trowa is to meet Lady Une for another operation - she found the location of another piece, and wanted Trowa's help in-"
"Fine, so he's okay - what events were you talking about, Quatre? It's not like you to be so upset for just a new set of orders, and-"
"Duo... Sally called Lady Une - Wufei has gone missing."
-------
-end Aquarius-
-TBC?-
AN: Thanks for reading this far; appreciate it. Would be even more thrilled if you told me what you thought of the story so far - critique gladly accepted; any and all feedback you can offer is deemed useful. :-)
