Hey thanks for the reviews guys. I'm really really sorry for not having this chap up sooner.

Disclaimer: Sorry I don't any of the characters or whatnot, maybe someday...

Hilde blinked, once and then once again before it finally registered that the bright light she was seeing was the sun coming in through the window. She shifted and for a moment laid there her arm flung over her eyes. It was quiet. Instantly she bolted straight up and looked around her. The expanse next to her was empty, no sign that anyone had been there, no sign of that horrible---

Where was Duo? Had she dreamt it? No it was real, the pain, the lost... that had been real. She kicked the covers away and jumped out of bed. Yes, sure enough the pile of bloody clothes still lay in the corner near the hamper. It made her stomach sick; she wanted to burn it, burn every last image, recollection of what had transpired during that night. But where was Duo?

Hilde checked the bathroom, a logical place, but it was empty so she made her way toward the steps. No sign at all, nothing up-turned to prove he had been there. She stopped though as she heard voices coming from down the stairs. She pasted herself against the stairwell and tried to hone in on each word.

"Bull shit! You are the only one who wasn't there last night, what are you hiding from us?" Hilde searched her mind to try and put a face to the voice, Wufei, it was Wufei speaking but who to?

"I was with Alexandra, she needed me, she cannot run a business by herself, not with a new son and a husband still unaccounted for because of war." The reply was spoken softly yet firm. That was Quatre's voice, what was going on here?

"Look, pointing fingers is not gonna help anything, what's done is done. It was a trap; the person we should be out for is our so called source." Heero was saying and she could hear the rythmatic pounding of footsteps, some one was pacing.

"Hey you think we can wind this up a little faster, I am in pain here, not to mention hungrier than hell. Will some one fix me a sandwich or something? I would but I was kinda almost killed last night---and I just figured-- out of the goodness of your hearts..." He trailed off and Hilde couldn't control a smile that lit her face, even now he was rude as ever, she would have to teach him better manners.

You won't be teaching him anything, remember you're here for a limited time only, don't plan anything, you'll only end up hurt. Something she didn't need anymore of, no she wouldn't think of doing anything to change him, to better the infamous Shinagami.

"Well if you would watch what the hell you do every now and then you wouldn't be in that mess." Hilde heard the condescending tone in Trowa's voice." Did no one learn anything last night?" it was silent for a while, the pacing stopped and for a wild reason Hilde stopped breathing.

"Did you find out anything form Ms. Scheibiker?" Quatre asked and immediately Hilde was all ears. Why would he ask about her? Really what the hell was going on here? She felt like storming down there and shaking it out of someone, anyone.

"Well, I know who to run to when I have another boo-boo." Duo chuckled and then it slid off, no one else did. "She's not comfortable talking with me, she hates me, I told you this wouldn't work."

"It's not working cause all you're doing is trying to get in her pants." Trowa quipped anger lacing his so far monolycic tone.

"No." Duo said, his voice a pitch deeper, darker than his usual insouciant tone, something in that one word belied the true animosity that was building in him. "She's not ready to trust anyone, me wanting her has nothing to do with our mission. I know what my part is, and I will fulfill my duty."

"Hostility is not the answer. We still have some time, Duo just try to get something out of her. She should know about the bases, how they are run, simple things such as that. We need that information, understand?" Heero asked glancing between the two of them.

Duo nodded, but didn't say anything. For the moment he was fighting the anger that was in him. For all the hell of him he couldn't figure out why he was so angry. True Trowa's accusation was out of bounds but what did he care?

You care cause he's insinuating that you can't do a simple task set to you. Simple? Nothing about this whole damn thing was simple. He was married to an ex-Oz soldier, a pretty one at that, and only after a few days of knowing her he was supposed to ask her to bare the secrets of an organization that lived on a death count? Bull.

Well whatever the reason, he wasn't incompetent. He didn't get to where he was, hadn't been through all that crap just to---"...In two days time." Duo just caught the end of what Heero had been saying. Shit there went another piece of important info that he let slip cause he was off in another world.

He glanced around at the rest of his friends who nodded, then began to leave. It was only Quatre who stayed after. "I hope you get well soon, Duo. We need you for this mission; you're part of this team too." He patted him on the shoulder then walked away.

Duo sighed and let his eyes flit close. He had woken up sometime after 9 that morning, his vid phone ringing on the table next to their bed. The ringing alone made him groan, but then the pain, from every where at once hit him and he laid there for a moment tempted to not move another inch. But physical pain was something you could over come, and he did. He dragged himself up and answered it. It was Heero, they were coming over to discuss last night.

It was only then that he had glanced down at Hilde, her eyes were shut tightly and she clutched the sheet as tightly. He remembered for a brief moment waking up to see her, she look frenetic and distraught, her eyes red, her cheeks blotchy, and in that instant he felt like he could die and be happy.

Yeah, it had been a trap alright, one they had walked right into. No delegates, no higher-ups, no just an arsenal of waiting dolls and their pilots. Waiting to take them out, but they hadn't survived this long without caution, and fore sight. No always must you be prepared--"Duo? Duo are you down here?"

It was Hilde, finally she was awake. "I'm in here Babe." He said and didn't even try to move, his limps were already tingling from sitting to long and he didn't want to upset them anymore.

"Are you hungry?" Yes he is, you know he is.

"Yeah sure, thanks."

Hilde nodded although she knew he couldn't see it. She made him a sandwich and one also for herself and took a deep breath. Were they just gonna pretend that last night hadn't happened? Something like that she couldn't just shrug off. And this thing about her and Oz, he was gonna explain that to her now too. If nothing, she would try to keep her emotions in check, she wouldn't let him know she knew he was using her.

"Here you go Duo." she handed him the sandwich and sat opposite him. Tentatively she took a bite of hers her eyes not on him.

"Thanks babe." he took a large bite and grinned." this is good." he finished it in a few more bites then sat and watched her every movement. "Thanks for ... you know last night."

Hilde nodded but didn't say anything, instead she just kept chewing her mouthful of ham and cheese.

Duo chuckled and tried another approach," You put me back together pretty well. Where'd you learn to stitch wounds so efficiently?"

Mentally Hilde let herself smile, gloat more like it. She could take care of any injury, not only could she pilot mobile dolls, use any weapon adroitly, she was trained to be able to save someone's life in battle and she had done so for so long. Wait what was he doing?

"My mother taught me." she lied easily and shrugged her slim shoulders.

"Yeah, that and the hot sex we'll be having tonight." Duo replied watching her as her head snapped up and her eyes met his. "You told me you were and orphan."

"I am" she replied, defeated.

"So where did you really learn how to stitch wounds? And don't tell me you just picked it up." Duo sighed and let his head hang over the end of the couch he was lounged on. "You know this relationship isn't going to go anywhere, if you don't at least try."

The gall of him! Hilde stood and walked over to him, her hands on her hips and stood over him. "There is no relationship. I don't like you, and whatever feelings you think you have for me, forget them." She paused as he opened his eyes and looked up at her. For a moment they were both silent.

"You worked for Oz didn't you?" He asked. Then the silence was more than unbearable. She stopped breathing, twice that morning, and stared down at him. Dumb shocked. "Did your job, killed for no reason but to please his 'Highness'. And then you ran away, story of your life right?"

Hilde still could not believe her ears, not because what he said was true, right to the tip of it, but because he had refused to skit around it any longer. The bluntness of his statement unsettled her to the very core of herself. All of it true, and painfully real. "Shut up!" she said softly her hands at her sides, "just don't say anything else…"

"It's long over, I'm not interested in that, not now at least I just want---"

Hilde cut him off by turning away from him, "I said shut up! I've changed, I'm not like that anymore." She turned furious with him, her eyes bearing deep into his, "I don't have to explain this to you, or anyone else!" In an instant she was crying, tears welled her deep blue eyes, then spilled over down her pale cheeks.

Duo rose, ignoring the pain that was still playing games with his body and wrapped his arms around her. She was rigid, but she shook and tears soaked his shirt as he held her. "I don't care about that, Hilde. I've killed, I've sinned, worse than you…. Now is the time to change that, we can together. I want this to end. Just fuck it all, but---" he paused to lift her face from his shoulder so that now she was staring into his eyes, "I need you Hillde. I need you to help me, or we'll be fighting, forever."

Hilde couldn't do anything but sob in his arms, why was it coming now? Why did she feel this pain now, why could he do this to her? She had buried it, buried that horrible part in the deepest recesses of her mind, why now, why him?

Ok what do you guys think? Please review.