Phantom
By Wolf Girl
Disclaimer: I do not have any sort of ownership over the characters or the premise of Gundam Wing. I do not make any sort of profit off of this story.
Warnings: AU, Sci-fi, Yaoi, minor Relena bastardization, slightly OOC Heero (as per series, but since this is AU I can do what I want with him.) 40's slang usage
AN Warning: Unfortunately, my grammar and punctuation usage is a weird mix of American and British styles... Enough said.
Pairings: 1+2, 1x2x1, 3x4, others...
Italics thought (unless obviously otherwise).
Author Notes: Sorry, it took longer than I thought! I'm going to go see a musical this Saturday, and I will probably be inspired… I usually am…
--+--
Seven
"This is the last mission before we can intercept." Quatre said softly, handing Heero the paper file. Heero opened it and glanced at each page briefly. "Duo would be aptly suited for this mission," Quatre suggested.
"He can't go."
"Duo is a specialist in stealing things, infiltration and retrieval is just a game to him!" Quatre insisted.
"I don't want him to go." Heero said.
"Either he goes and you don't or you both go together. We're too close to lose this one. You had better get past your personal problems with Duo or so help me, I'll remove you from the team on a vacation leave." Quatre's face darkened. "And you know I can do it."
Heero stood perfectly still for a moment. "What's to stop him from leaving when he sees fit?" Heero looked over at Quatre. "Do you know that he broke into the safe—our safe and took back the time machine? That's where he's been disappearing to. I don't trust him!"
"You wouldn't be talking about me, now would you?" Duo came into the room. Quatre blushed.
"We were discussing your current possession of the time machine."
"Of course I stole it back, I'm a thief! What did you expect me to do?" Duo asked. "You keep me from leaving, I'll retaliate. Be glad I didn't do anything to you. Shinigami has all means of revenge up his sleeve." Duo locked eyes with Heero.
"Quatre, get the others," Heero barked, sending Quatre hurrying out of the room. There was a tense minute while Heero and Duo stared at each other heatedly. Then the sound of footsteps in the hallway made Duo jerk away from the eye contact. Wufei's eyes narrowed as he looked at the scene.
"Heero, you have a mission?" He asked cautiously. If you asked Wufei, Heero was a bit unbalanced and best approached cautiously.
"This mission requires four. One for surveillance, one for infiltration, one for data retrieval, and one to cover the retriever. The beginning of the mission will be undercover, and everyone will need to play a part."
"I'll cover surveillance." Relena suggested.
"Relena, I would appreciate it if you would stay behind." Heero didn't look up as he said this, tapping his pencil on the table as he glanced at the mission reports again.
"Quatre will do surveillance, Duo will retrieve. Trowa will cover Duo, and I will be back-up." Heero stated finally, scrawling some notes in shorthand on the paper.
"I'll do retrieval. I'm sure I'm better at it than he is." Relena tossed her hair in Maxwell's direction. She fluttered her eyelashes at Heero, who was still not paying any attention to her.
"Relena, I would like you to stay behind. You don't fit into the mission specs." Heero said in a monotone voice.
Relena grit her teeth. This wasn't an obsession, simply devotion. Complete devotion to him. I would do anything for him, she thought. Even if it meant getting hurt myself. "Alright, Heero. Whatever you say."
"Mission specs will be figured by tonight, we will leave at 19:00 tomorrow evening. This will give everyone," Heero's eyes lingered on Duo. "adequate time to prepare."
--+--
Chamber music floated gently through the air. Waiters walked around offering champagne from silver platters. Heero took a fluted glass and looked back at his companion.
"Come, Dolan was only fifteen the first time." Heero said haughtily. "He was as wonderful then as he is now."
"We must trade sometime then." Trowa confided. "Quade is very submissive and will do anything." He stroked Quatre's hair.
The man that was not but five paces from them took a few steps over, listening intently. Trowa and Heero continued talking, occasionally caressing Duo and Quatre. Duo could see his eyes roaming their bare chests and their sheer harem pants. It was hard not to cover himself up to protect himself from the slimy gaze.
"Bardia and Yue, who would have thought? I told you the younger men would grow on you. Have you met Chay? He is my newest love. Only just turned fourteen. Lovely boy. Quite enthusiastic." The man had walked over to them. He dismissed his boy with the wave of a hand. The boy walked over to where other young men sat on cushions at the edges of the room.
"Would you care to give him a try, Yue? I have had my eyes on your Dolan this evening. It would be hard to keep them off him as he eclipses everything else in the room." The man's voice was silky sweet but Duo could see the lust in his eyes.
"Perhaps next time. Dolan has only just begun to be confident. He needs just a bit more encouragement before his is up to your level." Heero gave Duo's ass a squeeze through the sheer cloth covering it, his fingers digging into Duo's skin. "Dolan, why don't you and Quade go get us some grapes."
"Yes, master," Duo whispered in a very bedroom-like tone, his left buttock now slightly aching. He saw the man's jaw drop at hearing his voice. Hook, line and sinker. Duo failed to notice the flash in Heero's eyes before he was hauled up tight to Heero and his lips were being claimed roughly.
He heard Quatre gasp softly before all he could focus on was the sweet sensation of Heero's mouth on his and Heero's hand roaming his body. Heero's tongue demanded entrance and Duo wasn't about to deny it. He raised his arms and wrapped them around Heero's neck. Heero's tongue fought for domination, stroking every inch of Duo's mouth and tangling with Duo's tongue.
Heero finally pulled away and they clung together for a few more moments, then Heero released him. "Come back quickly with those grapes." Heero growled.
Duo didn't dare look into his eyes. "Yes, Master." He hurried out of the room, Heero's answer to the man wafting after him. Once the party was out of sight, he hurried to the coat closet and got his dark clothing.
He snuck past the door guards to the stairwell and quietly slunk up it. He reached the door he recognized from the plans. Pulling a hairpin from his hair, he stuck it in the lock. It was thick enough to block the electronic devices. Then he pulled a paper-thin lock pick from his hair and put it in as well. He twisted them in combination and grinned in satisfaction as the tumbler fell.
He stuck the picks back in his hair and entered the room, making sure the door shut and the handle snicked locked before he went about his business. "I'm not the best in the business for no reason," he muttered to himself, eyeing the monstrous desk before him.
"My god," he whispered, "This is worse than I thought."
Downstairs, Heero glanced at his watch uneasily. "I'll just go see what happened to Dolan. He's taking a long time." He looked at Trowa piercingly and made his exit.
--+--
"Quatre! Over here!" Duo called.
"Duo!" Quatre cried. Duo stared at Quatre as the blonde tried valiently not to sob. Quatre's eyes were riveted on the burning building. Duo felt a twinge and reached out to Quatre to comfort him.
Suddenly, there was a stumbling form coming out of the building. Quatre inhaled sharply and ran to meet it. Duo started, then followed. Trowa swayed, setting his burden down on the ground.
"Trowa!" Quatre cried, throwing himself at the older man and clinging to him. "Trowa…"
"Little one, it's fine." Trowa stroked Quatre's hair and rubbed his back gently. Trowa leaned down and gently kissed Quatre, who feverously kissed him back, little kisses all over his face. Quatre threw his arms around Trowa's neck as they became more arduous.
Duo looked away from the scene, then noticed that the thing Trowa had been carrying had stirred. Duo blinked. It was sitting up and looking his way, hopelessly blackened with soot. But then two unmistakable blue eyes stared back at him. Heero shook out his limbs and stood.
Trowa broke away from Quatre and went over to Heero, speaking rapidly in low tones. He seemed perturbed about something. Heero just glared at him and started to walk further away from the flaming ruins. Quatre went over to where Trowa was and they conversed for a moment. Quatre gestured to Duo and he came over. "Why don't you walk with him? He seems to tolerate you."
Duo was unsure what to make of this, but went near to Heero. Heero ignored him completely. Duo sighed. Heero glanced over. Duo looked at him as they walked.
A drip of blood trickled from Heero's hairline down onto his forehead. "You're bleeding," Duo commented, looking at him sideways.
"Hn." Heero grunted, doing nothing at all about the blood matting his hair.
It was at that moment Duo realised that he admired Heero despite all his misgivings. He was a bastard, but a tough one, and brave to boot.
"You have dirt above your eye," a low gravelly voice intoned. Duo wiped his forehead unconsciously before he realised that it was Heero who had said it.
"Thanks." He looked back at Quatre and Trowa for a moment. Quatre raised an eyebrow. Duo shrugged, then turned back. "When we get back, I'll patch up your head for you. Status?"
"Head, bleeding from explosion left leg slight fracture, requires setting; bullet, left buttock." Heero said, completely serious. "Mission completed successfully. My work was shoddy. I should have not allowed myself to be shot. I will perform first aid on myself once we reach the safehouse."
"You sure as hell are not going to perform first aid on yourself! What kind of Jackson sets his own leg!" Duo's voice rose slightly. "I will set your leg, fix your head and I will dig the bullet out of your ass myself!"
"You are not my senior. You will not order me." Heero's eyes flashed and his nostrils flared. "I am trained in performing first aid upon myself."
"I do not work for you or your organization. I am your equal. You will let me fix you up or I will leave!"
Heero's left eye twitched and he huffed, but nothing else came out of his mouth in argument. Duo could swear he heard Quatre giggle.
--+--
When they reached the safehouse, Heero insisted on checking the house for himself. Trowa had an almost amused gleam in his eye when Heero came back slightly limping and leaned on the couch for support. "The house is clear. Barton, you and I will share the upstairs room. Winner and Maxwell will share the downstairs one.
"Sorry bud, but they're likely going to want to have some fun while we're here, and I'm not losing sleep because my roommate had a sleepover." Duo drawled, trying to piss Heero off. Quatre blushed brilliantly as Duo continued. "Looks like you and I are shacking up together…" Duo looked Heero over. Heero frowned. "In a platonic sense of course," Duo finished.
Heero stomped upstairs, his ears a bright shade of cherry red. Duo smirked at Trowa and Quatre, then grabbed the medkit and started to go upstairs.
"Duo… Be careful with him… I haven't seen him this bothered before. I don't know what he'll do if he gets too serious," Quatre said.
"Serious? About what?"
"I don't know… The situation… You giving him orders… You… I wouldn't bug him anymore today."
"Noted. I'll see you two glad lads(1) later. Have fun." Duo walked up the stairs and over to the bathroom. He grabbed some towels then went into the room he and Heero were to share. He opened the door and walked it. Heero turned and looked at him, wearing only a towel.
"So, someone told me you wanted to play doctor," Duo whispered in a playful voice. Heero turned just the slightest shade of pink. "Let's get that head of yours--Theone on top please, the other one comes later." Duo smiled evilly.
"Omae o korosu." Heero growled as he sat on the bed and Duo pulled the thick locks of hair away from his scalp. There was a small gash. Duo got out the rubbing alchohol and cotton swabs and gently cleaned it. He hummed softly as he ruffled Heero's hair, done with the first injury.
"If I wrap it, you'll lose too much hair. Now let's take a look at the leg, hmm?" Heero stretched his leg out on the bed and Duo leant over it. He carefully ran his hands up and down the leg, checking the status of the break. It looked like just a tiny fracture. Duo wrapped it tightly, placing the stiff piece of plastic he'd found in the medkit under the wrappings to keep the brace in place.
"And now, the last and final exam. Let's see that butt of yours, Yuy." Heero stood up, a faint tinge of rosiness colouring his body. He dropped the towel and lay face down on the bed. Duo tsked slightly and touched the spot where the bullet had gone in. He reached into the medkit and got out the things he needed. He took the sharp tool and gently prodded around the wound. He winced in sympathy before poking inside the hole to find the bullet. "This is going to hurt."
"Hn."
Duo stuck the impliment in, and sharply drug it up, pulling the bullet out of Heero's body. Heero tensed and clutched the blanket.
"All done." Duo swabbed the hole with alchohol and placed a pad over it. Then he took out the bandage and placed it over the spot. He taped the bandage into place. "Hmm… mmm…." He hummed, appreciatively staring at the sight before him.
"Are you finished?" Heero growled.
"I could keep going if you'd like." He laid a hand on the small of Heero's back and ran it down the bandage again, under the pretense of smoothing it out.
Heero jumped up suddenly, turning away from Duo and quickly wrapping the towel around his waist again, but not before Duo got a quick glimpse of Heero's frontside at full attention.
Duo smiled.
Heero was in the corner, getting dressed again. He put on the normal spandex and green tank top while Duo stripped out of his clothes down to his boxers. He smiled and lounged back on the bed, hands behind him and legs spread apart in front of him. Heero turned back from his bag and froze.
"You want the left side or the right side, Heero?" Duo purred. Heero looked at him for a moment more. "Or how about the middle?" Heero ignored him and climbed in on the left side. He shoved Duo to the right and pulled the covers up.
"Well, I never," Duo said mock-indignantly. "Not even going to say goodnight?" He ran a hand over Heero's shoulder.
"Good night." Heero said tersely, turning out the light.
"Good night Heero. Sweet dreams."
--+--
Relena took off her high heels and tiptoed up the stairs. She made her way to the room she knew Heero would choose for security reasons and slowly opened the door handle. Lucky for me, he always sleeps soundly after a mission where he's injured. She thought.
She walked closer to the bed and put her hand over her mouth to muffle the gasp. She swallowed heavily. Heero was lying draped over Duo's body. Duo's legs were inter-twined with his. She breathed in deeply and held her breath, counting to five.
One.
She took one more step toward the desk. She glanced at Heero and Duo. They were breathing evenly.
Two.
She reached toward the nightstand where the disc sat in the open.
Three.
She tucked the disk deep into the inside breast pocket of her jacket. She patted her coat, and each pat sounded like a landslide in the silence.
Four.
She turned and slowly walked to the door, inching it open again. Heero stirred slightly, and she held her breath again. Heero settled down.
Five.
"Hell hath no fury like a woman's scorn." Relena whispered softly as she eased the door shut.
--+--
End notes: That took a long time to put out, but it was fun. Some rotten things in the state of Denmark…
Definitions of words:
(1) Glad lads- A general slang term for a handsome boy. Similar to "Jackson".