SLF: Ah –cough-, well, I am alive believe it or not. This story has simply been on the backburner for about…two years. That's a really long time not to touch something and people really seemed to have liked it so I'm back again! I finally have some new ideas and a renewed interest in actually finishing this. I re-read it and my old attachment re-surfaced so woot! No more HIATUS! I'm hoping this will be finished in a couple of months (yeah, I know. I'm lazy and update in monthly intervals…). So read on faithful friends!

Having finished his book, Quatre set it on his small table and stretched. What with all the fighting and screaming he had needed a break. For the moment, however, he was starving and decided to venture into the perilous downstairs, dreading what might await him. Coming down the staircase his fears were quelled. Everything was calm for the most part except-

"Heero?" Quatre looked on in shock, "Is that a…Barbie shirt you're wearing?"

Heero turned around on the couch with his hot pink attire and shot Quatre a death glare none could match, "Well then," Quatre coughed, "I suppose we all have our enjoymen-"

"If you continue that sentence I will have to forcibly remove your vocal cords," Heero interrupted venomously.

"Right then," Quatre swallowed, "Moving on."

Drawing nearer to the Kitchen he heard the remnants of an argument,

"Why do we have to kill the mice?" Duo was grumbling, "What did they ever do to you?"

Trowa sighed,

"The mice are pests and the exterminator is already on his way."

"So you called the exterminator then?" Quatre asked entering the conversation.

"Yes," Trowa's gaze shifted to Quatre, "He should be here soon."

"Good," Quatre smiled.

"It's not good!" erupted Duo, "He'll kill them!"

Quatre sighed,

"If it really means that much to you Duo, then we can tell the exterminator to simply catch them and you may keep one as a pet."

"Really?" Duo's eyes grew to the size of dinner plates.

"I'm not sure if that's a very good idea," Trowa glanced firmly at Quatre.

"Why not?"

"It just isn't."

"Well I want one," Duo crossed his arms much like a pouting three year old.

"What if we have them all set lose out in the garden?" Trowa suggested.

Quatre cringed inwardly at the thought of multiplying mice eating all of his petunias but consented anyway,

"Is that a suitable alternative?"

"Yes," Duo skipped out of the kitchen.

"I'm glad we finally worked that out," Quatre exhaled.

As Trowa was about to agree Duo walked back into the kitchen and silently grabbed a plate of cookies before skipping back out.

Blinking, Trowa glanced at Quatre,

"Let me know when the exterminator arrives."

Quatre nodded as he left the room. Returning to his originally purpose, Quatre walked over and opened the refrigerator. Sifting through the meat draw, he pulled out some leftover ham and mayonnaise. Busily constructing his sandwich, he didn't notice Wufei's arrival until the fridge door slammed causing him to spread mayo on the counter. Spinning around, he noticed Wufei's still dismal mood.

"Damn Maxwell," he grumbled slumping into a table chair with an apple.

"Why are you mad at Duo this time?" Quatre inquired cleaning up his mess.

"Who else would braid my hair?!" Wufei shouted angrily.

"Why don't you just take it out?" Quatre sat down at the table with his sandwich.

Wufei was about to shout, but instead simply shook his head and turned bright red.

The two sat in a tense silence while finishing their food.

After finishing his midday meal, Quatre slowly headed back up the stairs, avoiding Heero's glare. There was something odd going on he just knew it. He shrugged the thoughts out of his mind, best to leave them to their own devices. Things were much less stressful for him when he chose that route. Although, Duo had been awfully quiet as of late and that was never good. As Quatre passed his silent room he couldn't help but feel as though the braided boy was up to something. Fighting his better instincts, he knocked on Duo's door,

"Hello, Duo? Are you in there?"

He received no reply but heard frantic noises from inside. It was an odd sound, as though someone was moving things around on the floor. After a moment, the noises stopped and Duo's head popped out of the door,

"Yes, what do you want?"

"What were you doing in there just now?" Quatre had a sneaking suspicion.

"Nothing at all," Duo mumbled, "Just some…stuff."

Quatre raised an eyebrow,

"Stuff, hm? What kind of stuff?"

"Well, I…um," Duo paused for a moment before smiling as innocently as he could muster, "Duo stuff."

"Well now I know you can't be up to anything good," Quatre tapped his foot like an impatient mother, "Open the door, Duo."

"How about…" Duo paused, "Not." And tried to slam his door shut as quickly as possible but Quatre already had one foot in the way.

"Nice try. Now let's see what you were up to."

To his surprise, the room was clean. Everything was stacked neatly on a shelf, the floor was bare; this worried him. Duo's room was never clean.

"You see!" Duo pouted acting the role of an injured party, "You made false accusations. I'm wounded you think so ill of me, Quatre. You should be ashamed!"

Quatre rolled his eyes; same old Duo. He simply ignored Duo's protests as he proceeded to check around the room. After a few minutes he began to think that perhaps he was wrong, and then he saw it. A brightly colored corner of something sticking out from under one of Duo's sheets. He made a grab for it and Duo's countenance immediately changed as he tried to snatch it away.

Quatre, however, was too quick for him. He was astonished that what he held was a book; a brightly colored hardback book. Still holding it just out of Duo's grasp he read the cover:

" 'The Cat in the Hat' by Dr. Seuss. Duo, what is this?"

A deep maroon shade, Duo finally managed to snag the book out of Quatre's hands,

"Nothing, it's just a, a.."

"A children's book?" Quatre couldn't suppress a smile. He turned back to the bed and lifted the sheets before Duo could stop him. Quatre found, to his amazement, a HUGE collection of brightly colored hardback books all written by this Dr. Seuss person, "How many do you have?"

"Thirty-one," Duo blushed quietly, "Please don't tell anyone! Wufei would have one over me for the rest of my life!"

"I won't," Quatre smiled kindly; before thinking of a better idea, "But you have to do something for me."

"What?" Duo was a little surprised; would Quatre really blackmail him?

"No mice in the house or garden. You let the exterminator do his job."

Duo gaped at him. Before he angrily retorted that he was being blackmailed with murder, Quatre silenced him,

"Wufei will be first to know."

"Okay," Duo grumbled, "Now leave me with my Seuss!"

"I'm glad we understand each other," Quatre smiled closing the door behind him.

With teary eyes at the thought of the poor dead mice, Duo hugged his Seuss books to his chest,

"Quatre's sneaky."

SLF: Alrightly, all done with that chapter finally! -hugs readers- I hope you liked that! It was hard finding Duo's secret and getting Quatre to blackmail someone in a Quatre-like way. Next is Trowa's dirty little secret, so you guys can look forward (or dread I suppose) to that soon! Love you guys! Review!