Notes: This is short, yes, but it's also important. Also, updates from me will probably become slower because I'm currently working on a HUGE fic for Lethanon's Fangue contest. The winner gets a soundtrack by her! Anyway, enjoy and review!
To my surprise, Wufei just smiled and leaned forward to brush his lips against mine in a soft, tender kiss. My hand reached out to tangle in his hair, holding him to me, drawing him into a deeper, longer kiss. I felt his fingertips brush against my jaw before travelling down to trail along my throat, moving to cup the back of my neck.
The kiss was different to our first, less violent and more loving, and I began to see that compassion that he hid so well. Until now, I think he hadn't trusted me enough to let down all his defences, but with my... confession, I had shown that I wouldn't hurt him.
We drew away slowly, and he smiled at me, flicking my bangs out of my eyes in an oddly intimate gesture.
"I think I love you too," he murmured, and I smiled back at him, my hand still buried in his unbound hair.
"D'ya reckon Duo knows?" he asked, and I thought about it before realising that he probably did.
"I think so." I suddenly remembered the reason Wufei was here and said, "Duo said you were in here twenty minutes after he left."
Wufei blushed and looked away from my eyes. "I was... watching you sleep," he mumbled, and I raised an eyebrow. He blushed harder and began picking at a loose thread on his jeans. "You looked so... innocent, kind of. You weren't scowling or frowning or anything, you were all relaxed and... well, not defenceless, but... more vulnerable than when you're awake. You looked... handsome, and... and lonely, and I just... I couldn't look away."
"Oh."
"Does that... bother you?"
I thought about that, and realised that far from bothering me, it actually pleased me. "No, it doesn't bother me," I said softly.
He sighed in relief and smiled at me again, the blush fading. "How's your arm?"
I winced, glancing at the bandage on my arm and was forced to admit, "It stings a little. I had to comfort Duo and pulled on it a little."
He frowned and inspected the bandage for any signs of bleeding. He apparently found none because he left it alone. He didn't bother to offer anything for the pain as it wasn't serious enough and I wouldn't take anything even if it was. I could ignore virtually any pain, and medication messed with my head too much for me to like it. I'm something of a control freak if you didn't know.
"What time is it?" I asked, glancing out the window and realising it was darker than I thought.
"Nearly eleven. You slept so long, Duo was starting to get worried. He also started to get pissed-you shouldn't have pushed yourself so much. You may be the Perfect Soldier, but even you need to sleep."
It was a lecture, a mild one but still a lecture, and only force of will kept me from blushing. "I know, I was just worried. I wanted to see Duo again. And you."
He didn't comment on the last little bit of my explanation, but he did flash me a shy little smile.
"Come on, Quatre saved some dinner for you," he said, his tone almost emotionless but not quite, it held a hint of warmth to it, the faintest edge of tenderness.
My stomach growled, reminding me that I hadn't eaten, and I quirked a wry grin at Wufei, who frowned back. He refrained from comment, for which I was thankful, and we walked downstairs in silence.
Duo was in the kitchen, staring intently at the microwave as if his gaze could make it heat whatever was in it faster. Quatre was sipping a tea and reading at the kitchen table, and Trowa was working at something on his laptop, frowning at the screen.
"You got a mission?" I asked, and he glanced at me before shaking his head.
"Reviewing old data."
"Ah."
"You and Fei have a nice talk?" Duo asked, not taking his eyes off the microwave. I smiled and walked over to him to hug him from behind.
"Yes, we had a nice talk. Thanks for giving us a little push."
"Ah, you gave him and me a little push, I was just returning the favour. You like chicken Kievs, right?"
"Right."
Trowa made a soft, shocked noise and we all turned to look at him. He was staring at his screen with raised eyebrows, and I could see enough of the screen to tell that he was looking at an email.
"Something wrong?" Quatre asked, frowning slightly.
"Uh... Heero, could I talk to you for a minute?"
I frowned, not liking the tense set to his shoulders and the soft undercurrent of fear to his voice. Duo twisted his head to frown at me and I brushed my lips against his cheek before following Trowa into the living room.
"What's wrong?" I asked, and he sighed, looking at me with a very odd expression.
"I just got an email from Sally," he said, speaking as quietly as possible. "She says that... Duo's about to receive a mission."
I blinked, unable to process those few simple words. I couldn't, wouldn't, believe it. It didn't make sense. It was impossible. Duo wasn't on active duty, he couldn't receive missions, it would break him. If he went on a mission now... physically, he'd probably survive, but mentally....
There are hundreds of ways to die, and few of them actually involve death. This mission, if he took it, might be the one thing that finally destroys Shinigami. Sure, he'd eat and breathe and maybe talk, but he wouldn't be alive. He would be a shell of a person, an empty body with no mind, no spirit, no personality inside. Duo would die, and only his body would remain.
"This can't be happening," someone whispered, and I was surprised to realise that it was me.
"It's happening. I'm sorry."
I shook my head, still trying to comprehend the fact that I might be mere moments away from seeing the death of my beautiful angel. It just wasn't possible...
"Heero, he's going to get the message in about two minutes," Trowa murmured, and it was enough to snap me out of my dazed state.
"Keep Quatre down here, he won't want an audience," I muttered, and we walked back into the kitchen.
Duo looked at me, a frown creasing his brow, and I sighed, holding out my hand to him.
"We need to go upstairs, love," I said quietly, and fear seeped into his violet eyes.
"What's happened?" he asked, his voice trembling slightly.
"I'll explain upstairs."
His frown deepened, but he took my hand and let me lead him up to our bedroom, Wufei following behind us. He closed the door without being asked, and I pulled out Duo's laptop from underneath the bed, setting it on the desk.
Duo stared at the laptop, his eyes wide and filled with fear. "Heero?"
"I'm sorry, love," I whispered, and pulled him into my arms. Wufei was frowning at me, and I gestured for him to come hold Duo with me. He hesitated slightly before obeying, wrapping his arms around both Duo and me.
"What's going on?" Duo whispered, but I didn't answer him. I didn't know how. How could I possibly explain that he was about to find out if he could get on the horse and ride, or if it would kick the shit out of him? How could I hope to make him understand that he might be on the verge of losing another piece of his sanity?
Then came the sound that I had been dreading, a high-pitched series of beeps that sounded oddly like of Mozart's Rondo.
All three of us froze. I had known it was coming, had thought I'd been prepared, but the sound of that cheerful tune chilled my blood, stopped my heart. I couldn't let this happen, I wouldn't let this happen. Duo couldn't take the mission, it would destroy him. I wouldn't let that happen. I loved him too much to let him die. He was mine, dammit!
"Oh, God," someone whispered, and Duo was suddenly a dead weight in our arms. Caught by surprise, we couldn't hold him and he crumpled to the floor, staring blankly at the wall.
I distantly heard a crash and a thump from downstairs, and I knew that it was Quatre. But for once, I didn't need the empath to enlighten me, I could see everything in Duo's eyes. Or rather, nothing. Because that's what it was, absolute nothingness, drowning violet pools as empty as a black hole. I knew something had broken within him at the sound of that merry chime, knew that something had been shattered and destroyed, and I knew that Duo would never be the same again.
To my surprise, Wufei just smiled and leaned forward to brush his lips against mine in a soft, tender kiss. My hand reached out to tangle in his hair, holding him to me, drawing him into a deeper, longer kiss. I felt his fingertips brush against my jaw before travelling down to trail along my throat, moving to cup the back of my neck.
The kiss was different to our first, less violent and more loving, and I began to see that compassion that he hid so well. Until now, I think he hadn't trusted me enough to let down all his defences, but with my... confession, I had shown that I wouldn't hurt him.
We drew away slowly, and he smiled at me, flicking my bangs out of my eyes in an oddly intimate gesture.
"I think I love you too," he murmured, and I smiled back at him, my hand still buried in his unbound hair.
"D'ya reckon Duo knows?" he asked, and I thought about it before realising that he probably did.
"I think so." I suddenly remembered the reason Wufei was here and said, "Duo said you were in here twenty minutes after he left."
Wufei blushed and looked away from my eyes. "I was... watching you sleep," he mumbled, and I raised an eyebrow. He blushed harder and began picking at a loose thread on his jeans. "You looked so... innocent, kind of. You weren't scowling or frowning or anything, you were all relaxed and... well, not defenceless, but... more vulnerable than when you're awake. You looked... handsome, and... and lonely, and I just... I couldn't look away."
"Oh."
"Does that... bother you?"
I thought about that, and realised that far from bothering me, it actually pleased me. "No, it doesn't bother me," I said softly.
He sighed in relief and smiled at me again, the blush fading. "How's your arm?"
I winced, glancing at the bandage on my arm and was forced to admit, "It stings a little. I had to comfort Duo and pulled on it a little."
He frowned and inspected the bandage for any signs of bleeding. He apparently found none because he left it alone. He didn't bother to offer anything for the pain as it wasn't serious enough and I wouldn't take anything even if it was. I could ignore virtually any pain, and medication messed with my head too much for me to like it. I'm something of a control freak if you didn't know.
"What time is it?" I asked, glancing out the window and realising it was darker than I thought.
"Nearly eleven. You slept so long, Duo was starting to get worried. He also started to get pissed-you shouldn't have pushed yourself so much. You may be the Perfect Soldier, but even you need to sleep."
It was a lecture, a mild one but still a lecture, and only force of will kept me from blushing. "I know, I was just worried. I wanted to see Duo again. And you."
He didn't comment on the last little bit of my explanation, but he did flash me a shy little smile.
"Come on, Quatre saved some dinner for you," he said, his tone almost emotionless but not quite, it held a hint of warmth to it, the faintest edge of tenderness.
My stomach growled, reminding me that I hadn't eaten, and I quirked a wry grin at Wufei, who frowned back. He refrained from comment, for which I was thankful, and we walked downstairs in silence.
Duo was in the kitchen, staring intently at the microwave as if his gaze could make it heat whatever was in it faster. Quatre was sipping a tea and reading at the kitchen table, and Trowa was working at something on his laptop, frowning at the screen.
"You got a mission?" I asked, and he glanced at me before shaking his head.
"Reviewing old data."
"Ah."
"You and Fei have a nice talk?" Duo asked, not taking his eyes off the microwave. I smiled and walked over to him to hug him from behind.
"Yes, we had a nice talk. Thanks for giving us a little push."
"Ah, you gave him and me a little push, I was just returning the favour. You like chicken Kievs, right?"
"Right."
Trowa made a soft, shocked noise and we all turned to look at him. He was staring at his screen with raised eyebrows, and I could see enough of the screen to tell that he was looking at an email.
"Something wrong?" Quatre asked, frowning slightly.
"Uh... Heero, could I talk to you for a minute?"
I frowned, not liking the tense set to his shoulders and the soft undercurrent of fear to his voice. Duo twisted his head to frown at me and I brushed my lips against his cheek before following Trowa into the living room.
"What's wrong?" I asked, and he sighed, looking at me with a very odd expression.
"I just got an email from Sally," he said, speaking as quietly as possible. "She says that... Duo's about to receive a mission."
I blinked, unable to process those few simple words. I couldn't, wouldn't, believe it. It didn't make sense. It was impossible. Duo wasn't on active duty, he couldn't receive missions, it would break him. If he went on a mission now... physically, he'd probably survive, but mentally....
There are hundreds of ways to die, and few of them actually involve death. This mission, if he took it, might be the one thing that finally destroys Shinigami. Sure, he'd eat and breathe and maybe talk, but he wouldn't be alive. He would be a shell of a person, an empty body with no mind, no spirit, no personality inside. Duo would die, and only his body would remain.
"This can't be happening," someone whispered, and I was surprised to realise that it was me.
"It's happening. I'm sorry."
I shook my head, still trying to comprehend the fact that I might be mere moments away from seeing the death of my beautiful angel. It just wasn't possible...
"Heero, he's going to get the message in about two minutes," Trowa murmured, and it was enough to snap me out of my dazed state.
"Keep Quatre down here, he won't want an audience," I muttered, and we walked back into the kitchen.
Duo looked at me, a frown creasing his brow, and I sighed, holding out my hand to him.
"We need to go upstairs, love," I said quietly, and fear seeped into his violet eyes.
"What's happened?" he asked, his voice trembling slightly.
"I'll explain upstairs."
His frown deepened, but he took my hand and let me lead him up to our bedroom, Wufei following behind us. He closed the door without being asked, and I pulled out Duo's laptop from underneath the bed, setting it on the desk.
Duo stared at the laptop, his eyes wide and filled with fear. "Heero?"
"I'm sorry, love," I whispered, and pulled him into my arms. Wufei was frowning at me, and I gestured for him to come hold Duo with me. He hesitated slightly before obeying, wrapping his arms around both Duo and me.
"What's going on?" Duo whispered, but I didn't answer him. I didn't know how. How could I possibly explain that he was about to find out if he could get on the horse and ride, or if it would kick the shit out of him? How could I hope to make him understand that he might be on the verge of losing another piece of his sanity?
Then came the sound that I had been dreading, a high-pitched series of beeps that sounded oddly like of Mozart's Rondo.
All three of us froze. I had known it was coming, had thought I'd been prepared, but the sound of that cheerful tune chilled my blood, stopped my heart. I couldn't let this happen, I wouldn't let this happen. Duo couldn't take the mission, it would destroy him. I wouldn't let that happen. I loved him too much to let him die. He was mine, dammit!
"Oh, God," someone whispered, and Duo was suddenly a dead weight in our arms. Caught by surprise, we couldn't hold him and he crumpled to the floor, staring blankly at the wall.
I distantly heard a crash and a thump from downstairs, and I knew that it was Quatre. But for once, I didn't need the empath to enlighten me, I could see everything in Duo's eyes. Or rather, nothing. Because that's what it was, absolute nothingness, drowning violet pools as empty as a black hole. I knew something had broken within him at the sound of that merry chime, knew that something had been shattered and destroyed, and I knew that Duo would never be the same again.