Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing or Sailor Moon.
An: I'm not very sure of myself when it comes to writing, but if one person likes it, it makes me happy. Thank you everyone for your encouragements and support. The secret of the handcuffs will be explained in a side story. There's also an epilogue. Please look forward.
Warning: English is not my first language, so please forgive me if they're any mistakes grammar or spelling wise. I'll try to catch as many as I can.
Summary: Usagi turns into a cat and get adopted by the gundam boys.
Cat for a Week
Day 7
Duo had abandonment issues. He admitted it. The people in his life just seem to leave him... Father Maxwell, Sister Helen, Solo... when his hand reached out for that little bundle of fur, he might have panicked a little when he couldn't feel her presence.
He had just gotten use to having someone constant in his life. He couldn't go back and lived the way he did before.
Always alone.
His entire body went rigid when he felt a soft hand touched his forehead. A voice hummed in worry.
"You should sleep."
Duo kept still. He never opened his eyes. He was half afraid he would wake and find out that he was dreaming the entire encounter. The kindness from that single touch made him feel warm and safe, something he hadn't felt in a long time.
"Sleep."
Against his will, he did.
...
A girl was there when he opened his eyes. A pretty blond who had her eyes closed with her hands clasp to her chest.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
Bright, familiar blue eyes seem to smile at him.
"I'm praying for everyone to be well."
"Huh."
It's been a while since anyone has prayed for him.
He cursed when he felt himself drift off again.
...
Silver was sitting on his chest when he woke. She nuzzled his face, lapping it with a rough tongue. When her little head nudged at his chin, Duo managed to reach up and hold her tight. She squeaked. Duo loosen his grasp, but he didn't let go.
She settled down a moment later and laid comfortably.
'Are you ok?' her eyes seem to ask.
Duo felt the concern radiate from her tiny body and he felt moved. She continued to lick at his face, grooming him like a mother hen, showering him with affection.
Duo hadn't felt this loved since the church.
She turned her head to someplace he couldn't see and whined.
Almost on cue a girl appeared, a real beauty in a yellow dress with curly black hair and large blue eyes. She automatically began checking his wounds.
"You're very lucky," she admonished him. "Going up against a youma! It's a miracle you're alive."
Her prim and proper tone reminded him of Sister Helen.
Duo turned his head.
He was in the safehouse, sprawled out on the living room floor. He was lying next to an unconscious Quatre. When he lifted his head he could see the rest of the guys sleeping nearby. There was a cot underneath each of them and blankets kept them warm as Florence (the name he gave to the girl) reset their bones, salved their bruises with healing cream, and securely wrapped their sprains.
Duo was the only one awake. He drowsily watched as the mysterious girl cared for them. She was tending to Quatre now, redressing the bandage around the blond's head.
"Where's the other girl?" he asked.
"Other girl?"
"The blond girl."
Florence's hand stilled for a moment.
"There's no other girl, but me," she finally said.
Silver patted his cheek with a paw.
'Let it go,' her eyes said.
When the girl walked by, she leaned down and rubbed the back of Silver's perky ears. Silver nip at Florence's finger happily like they were old acquaintances.
"A friend of a friend then," he said after she left the room. If she had been the enemy she would have gotten rid of them already.
'Friend.' Silver licked his cheek in agreement.
...
Duo kept track of time by the position of the sunlight that streamed through the living room curtain. Drifting in and out of consciousness, it was disconcerting to see the light of dawn one moment and to feel the warmth of the afternoon sun the next.
By the time his brain was fully awake and functional, the sun was beginning to set. His entire body was still one big mass of ache and he had trouble moving. He couldn't even work up the energy to protest when Florence spoon-fed him something foul-tasting that was probably medicine.
The only highlight of his day was Silver, who slept on his chest. Her furry head was nuzzled into her paws and damn, if it wasn't the cutest thing he ever saw, he noticed drool coming from her mouth as she snored.
He had just enough strength to reached out and stroked her head.
She opened her eyes lazily and mewed. She noticed that the bandage on his shoulder was bleeding and gave a loud cry.
Florence was immediately by his side.
"Isn't she smart?" Duo croaked with pride.
"She has her moments," Florence answered. She ignored the raspberry the kitten blew.
A knock came at the door.
When Florence answered it, a group of girls walked in, and Duo's jaw slacked. It was as if someone had reached into his mind and pulled out one of his wildest fantasy. He had a harem of girls, each one more beautiful than the next, looking at him with curiosity.
A slender girl with short hair began checking on his injuries while the one blond girl pranced off to the kitchen to make them broth.
Duo was still in stun mode when the short-haired beauty lifted his shirt and began examining him. Her fingers were deft and experience as she changed the dressing. When she leaned close, he could smell the faint scent of fresh rain and hospital antiseptic.
Nurse? She looked too young.
"Your pulse and heart-rate are steady. You've broken some ribs and your left ankle is sprained, but with rest you should be up and about in no time." She touched his sore shoulder and noticed when he flinched. "I really would like for you to go to a doctor..."
Duo grabbed her arm tightly.
"No hospital," he whispered urgently.
"I'm not sure I understand," she said with a frown. "You should get checked out professionally."
"You're just as good, Ami," the raven haired girl leaned against the doorway interrupted. "No hospital."
"I don't think-"
"No hospital," she said firmly. When she came closer Duo smelled the heavy temple incense that clung to her body. He mentally dubbed her as the 'Priestess.'
'Priestess' shrewdly studied Duo with a calculating look. She gave off a vibe that made the hairs on the back of his neck raise.
They obviously weren't ordinary.
The way they positioned and angled their bodies was eerily familiar. It was the way he held his own body after years of training in combat. Duo watched with wide eyes as the tall brunette picked Wufei up bridal style with ease so that they could change the cot underneath. The show of inhuman strength left him speechless.
The jaunty blond that was sent to the kitchen danced back into the living room. She practically threw herself next to him and he dubbed her 'Sunny'.
"Oh," Sunny knelt at his cot. "You're Duo, right? Thanks for taking care of Usagi all this time. That idiot. She doesn't know how much we were worried about her." She turned and pouted at Florence. "You should have called us earlier when you found her!"
Florence looked guilty.
"Usagi?" Duo asked. He struggled trying to sit upright. 'Nurse' had to helped him.
"Our cat," Priestess said.
"Your cat?" Duo choked.
"Yes, our cat," she crossed her arms. "Thank you for taking care of her, but now we're here to take her back home."
Duo pulled out of Nurse's grasp.
"You can't just take her back," Duo snarled at Priestess. "How do I even know she's your cat?"
What kind of name was Usagi anyway?
"Usagi, lift a hand up," she ordered.
Silver looked reluctant before one paw raised up in the air. Monsters, girls with super strength... at this point, Duo wouldn't be surprise if Silver could talk. Her blue eyes looked apologetic at him.
'I'm sorry she's so rude,' her eyes said.
"Fine, her name is Usagi," Duo felt the frustration course through his body. "Where were you all this time, huh?"
Silver was special. Duo couldn't imagine anyone losing her for any reason.
"I didn't lose her on purpose!" Her eyes shot daggers at him. She turned to Silver who seem to cower.
"There's no way I'm giving Silver back to you!" Duo tried to rise. He made it only so far before Nurse and Sunny tried to hold him down. "She's ours!"
Silver belonged with him. She belong to all of them, Quatre, Wufei, Trowa, and even Heero. Duo turned his head and yelled for Quatre. His screeching voice made the rest of the pilots jolt awake, half-dazed and confused.
"Say something!" he begged Quatre. "They're going to take Silver!"
In the shape he was in, Duo didn't think he could win in a fight.
"Why don't we let her decide?" Priestess said. Duo wasn't sure he liked the look in her eyes.
"Silver!" he opened his arms and gestured for her to come.
Silver made a move towards him.
"Hold it, Odango," the raven haired girl said.
Silver froze in mid-step.
"You need to make a choice. Either you stay with them or you come with us."
Silver wailed.
"I'm not being mean," Priestess snapped. "I know they mean a lot to you, Odango, but the more you stay, the harder it's going to be to leave. Now is the time to say goodbye. You promised only a week."
"Silver, don't listen to that nutcase. Come here," he cooed.
Silver looked unsure.
"Usagi," Florence dropped to her knees and held out her hand.
Silver looked at him with sorrowful eyes. She turned and trounced away into Florence's arms. It hurt watching as Silver snuggled in another person's embrace.
Once again, he was being left behind.
"It's settled," Priestess said. "Let's go."
The girls began to leave.
"Bye, Duo," Sunny said brightly. "Broth is ready on the stove!"
They went one by one until only Priestess was left.
Duo couldn't take his eyes off where Silver had vanished. Her regretful, but resolved eyes still haunted him. His shoulders hunched.
"Get out," he told Priestess. "Go away."
He wanted to crawl back into his cot and sleep. He wanted to be left alone to wallow in the misery he felt. Duo angrily brush aside the hand that Quatre reached out.
"He's trying to be a friend," she said with a biting tone. "There's no need to get testy."
Duo's head shot up in ire. When he tried to rise to his feet, his head spun, and he fell backwards onto Wufei.
"Damn it, Maxwell," Wufei moaned. He shoved Duo away in irritation. In retaliation, Duo knocked his elbow into Wufei's tender side.
"Bastard," Wufei glared.
One punch turned into another and another. Duo felt the rush of battle as he landed a blow on Wufei's jaw. In the background, he heard Quatre's voice trying to stop them. They continued to whale on each other, working out the pent-up aggression, until they exhausted themselves.
Priestess loomed over them with a disbelieving shake of the head. "I can't tell if you're close friends or if you're enemies."
"Not friends," Duo said through his spit lips.
She rubbed her temple as if warding away a headache. "Then you've got a problem. Haven't you learned anything in the week you've been with her? If you want to survive this war you can't do it alone."
They looked at her blankly.
"Fine. You don't need a friend to watch your back. At least, get your act together and find a reason to live. Think about the future. You're not going to remain gundam pilots for the rest of your lives. "
"You know that we're gundam pilots?" Quatre's eyes widen.
She knows...Duo turned white.
Heero leapt up, intent on restraining her.
Duo watched in awe as Priestess did a roundhouse kick and knocked him across the room.
"Tch," she sounded a lot like Heero in that moment that Duo felt his lips twitch. Heero lunged again and she used his momentum to throw him. She sent him flying into the end table with a loud crash.
"You won't win," she warned cautiously.
Heero got up from the rubble with a growl.
Duo inwardly cringed.
Some people just don't learn.
"You know what true strength is? It's believing in people. I have friends who I trust to watch my back in battle," she kneed Heero in the stomach and he fell to his knees, coughing. "and I have dreams."
She twisted Heero's arm around his back and held him down.
"It's just some advice," she said frankly. "You might live a little longer if you take it."
"Why do you care?" Duo asked. This stranger seemed completely determined to save them.
"Because if you don't make it, she's going to be hurt. She's going to blame herself because she didn't do enough to prepare you for battle. That's the kind of pers- animal- she is."
Duo managed to get to his feet. He was wobbly, but hell, it meant something that he could stand and meet her face to face.
Dreams, huh...
"I want Silver back," he said defiantly.
"If you're still alive after the war is over," she offered him a challenging look. "we'll see."
She released Heero and walked out.
The door closed with a final click.
"You bitch!" Duo screamed. He hoped the girl could hear him. "I'm going to make it! And I'm coming back for her!"
His entire body ached, his head hurt, and he was dizzy and tired, but Duo had never felt more alive as he did then.
Is this what it means to live with purpose?
Something shiny caught his eye. He reached into his cot and pulled out Silver's collar. He held it in his hand almost reverently.
It was probably a dumb reason. He was living so that he could get his cat back.
"It's better than no reason," Quatre said.
Duo grinned. It was weird at first, but now he had completely gotten use to how Quatre instinctively knew what he was feeling.
He tiredly slumped back down to the ground.
"Mom, Dad," he threw an arm around Quatre and Trowa. "Let's look towards the future."
While they licked their wounds, Duo made plans as the sunlight streamed through the curtains.