Author's Notes: First, I want to thank Calamithy, Kaeru Shiso, snowdragonct, and Sadie Woods for their reviews.
Duo and Quatre took this chapter and ran like the wind. Next chapter features Heero and Trowa, and then you'll see everyone again. Music is, as always, at mediafire.
Chapter 6 - The Animal Song (The month-long gap between episodes 11 & 12)
Quatre was certain that he had never laughed harder in his entire life.
"Oo, I have another one! What kinds of songs do planets like to sing?"
"Umm… I don't know!" Quatre could hardly contain a giggle as he tried in vain to focus on flying the carrier.
"Nep-tunes!" Duo practically sang into Quatre's ear, leaning so far out of his chair that it was amazing he didn't fall out of it. "Wait-wait! Another! Why did people not like the restaurant on the moon?" By this point, Quatre could hardly breathe from laughing at the last joke and so Duo answered the new one without waiting for his reply. "Because there was no atmosphere!"
"Oh, Duo," Quatre groaned, reaching with one hand to brush a tear from the corner of his eye. "Those are awful! Spare me!"
"Okay, okay!" Duo snickered, sitting back in his chair again. He folded his arms behind his head as he grinned and then propped his feet up on the controls again. "I'll give it a rest. Are you sure you don't want me to fly for awhile?"
"No, I'm perfectly fine," Quatre glanced over at him with a smile. "And I don't mind your jokes at all, honestly. I just need a moment to catch my breath! Where did you learn all of those jokes? You've been non-stop for over an hour!"
Duo shrugged a little, glad he could entertain Quatre while they flew. He still felt badly about what had happened at the desert base, even though he knew logically that it wasn't either of their faults. "You grow up on the streets and you find weird ways of entertaining yourself."
Quatre paused for just a moment as he digested the information, but having been raised himself with the most impeccable of manners, he didn't show any outward surprise. "Well, I think you're a very funny person, Duo, no matter where you come from. I've never thought that I had much of a sense of comedic timing. I appreciate your company a great deal right now. Even though I'm alone inside my Gundam, I've gotten used to traveling with the Maguanacs. I think I would feel very isolated right now if it were otherwise. If you weren't here." Quatre realized he was rambling and his eyes flickered over to Duo again.
The braided pilot's eyes were closed and his body had gone limp, so that he looked like a tangle of arms and legs and braid all jumbled up and nearly sliding out of the chair. He had fallen asleep. With those vibrant violet eyes closed, Quatre could now see more clearly the dark circles underneath them as well as how pale he was in general. He looks so small asleep in that chair… but maybe that's because when he's awake, his personality is so much larger than he is.
Duo had offered at least five times to fly the shuttle, but Quatre had politely refused each time. Mostly, he tried to convince himself, it was because he already knew the flight route. Deep down, he knew it was because, through his empathy, he could almost hear Duo's exhaustion screaming at him. He hadn't tried to press the other pilot for any details regarding the mission or Heero Yuy since their talk back at the base. It just didn't feel like the right time. Really, he'd been waiting for the other boy to finally crash.
Now alone with his thoughts, Quatre watched as the sky began to lighten and eventually the ashy blue-gray began to pink around the edge to the east. He felt like he had hardly had time to process what had happened in the last 48 hours, but thankfully, they would probably be stuck in Africa for at least a little while. It was highly unlikely after Heero's self-detonation that they would be receiving any news from home, especially considering the so-called surrender of that unknown man from the colonies.
Quatre let his mind drift over lists of supplies to buy, things to do, sources to check with and before he knew it, he could see the curl of the Congo River below him. Wanting to let Duo rest as long as possible, he carefully guided the shuttle down into a very small clearing that was excellently camouflaged on the side opposite the river by a cliff. He spent a few minutes setting up some networking between Sandrock, Deathscythe and his laptop and then gathered a few things to take with them to the retreat. Finally, he knelt beside Duo's chair and, placing one hand gently on his shoulder, shook him lightly. "Duo? We've arrived. We should--"
Duo's eyes snapped open and his hand was around Quatre's throat before the blond could even finish the question. Turquoise eyes widened in front of Duo's suddenly alert face and a heartbeat later, his mind caught up. "Fuck, I'm sorry!" He dropped the hand immediately and blinked at Quatre a few times. "I'm so sorry – I didn't mean--" Hope I didn't totally freak him out… Duo's reflexes were near instantaneous, despite his exhaustion, and they showed how on edge he was.
"No, it's okay!" Quatre flailed both hands in front of his face. "I know you didn't mean--"
Impulsively, Duo reached out to wrap arms around Quatre's shoulders, hugging him very tightly, very quickly, before jumping to his feet. "Why didn't you wake me?! I woulda loved to see the view."
"Oh! Sorry!" Quatre had jumped to his feet now too and followed Duo as he walked out of the cockpit to nearly trip over their bags, ready to go. "I guess I should have considered that, but I just thought--"
Duo turned back so suddenly that Quatre bumped right into him and he grabbed the blond's shoulders, looking him in the eye with a mock serious look. "Quatre. Relax. I'm fine."
o/ I've been having difficulties keeping to myself
Feelings and emotions better left up on the shelf /o
Quatre froze when Duo grabbed him, but his expression softened at the other pilot's words and he nodded. "Yes. Okay. Well, let's grab our bags and go. To my retreat."
"Retreat?" Duo followed Quatre back to the rear of the carrier where the two Gundams were.
"The place we're going. It's about a mile from here, but the terrain is rough. I've set up a network between the two Gundams and my laptop. The program will notify us immediately if any message comes in."
"Oh, wow," Duo replied, glancing over his shoulder at Quatre in surprise. "So we won't need to come out here several times a day to check?"
"Not at all."
Duo turned away from Quatre to touch the foot of his Gundam briefly. "Well, buddy… see you a little later then, I guess."
"Don't worry - Sandrock will be keeping Deathscythe company," Quatre added kindly and seriously, and was surprised when Duo burst into laughter. "Wait! What did I say?"
"And you think you have no comedic timing!" Slinging an arm around Quatre's neck, he led him out of the carrier, stopping to grab their bags on the way.
"I wasn't trying to be funny!"
"Sure, you weren't," Duo agreed, still chuckling as they started the hike to the "retreat." Duo hadn't the slightest clue what a retreat was, but he was sure he was about to find out.
"Hell of a place you've got here!" Hell of a place doesn't exactly cut it… Duo hadn't known what to expect as they climbed the cliff and clawed their way through the heavy jungle brush. When they finally came to a high fence with an electronic keypad on the gate, he had a feeling that it was just getting good. And he was right.
The retreat was like one of those postcards… Greetings from Paradise… in the middle of Nowheresville, Jungle, Africa! Duo's eyes drank in the rippling pools and sparkling fountains set between lush gardens of bright orange and purple flowers as he followed Quatre across the complex. The buildings were all a pristine white, with large windows and high arches. He had to shake himself out of a near stupor in order to focus on what the other pilot was saying.
"…is the largest river in Western Central Africa. Its overall length of 4,700 km makes it the second longest in Africa, after the Nile. The river and its tributaries flow through the second largest rain forest area in the world, which is second only to the Amazon Rainforest in South America."
Duo wondered quietly if Quatre secretly had a computer stored in his brain – or at least an encyclopedia – but he didn't interrupt as he followed the other pilot into the largest building in the group.
"The river also has the second-largest flow in the world, behind the Amazon, and the second-largest watershed of any river, again trailing the Amazon. Because large sections of the river basin lie above and below the equator, its flow is stable, as there is always at least one river experiencing a rainy season."
"That's… really interesting," Duo responded, when it seemed like Quatre had paused for his reaction. "I know Earth's geography pretty well from studying it before the mission began, but not to the level of detail that you do."
Quatre smiled, trying not to look too pleased at the compliment and then gestured behind him. "There's a full kitchen back there and a cupboard of non-perishables, but we ought to go down to the village to get some fresh things too."
"Village?" Duo turned in slow circles around the room they were standing in. He thought the floors were probably polished marble, because they reminded him of a palace, and all of the furniture had a strange look to it. He guessed that it was probably something native to the area. "There's a village nearby?"
"Duo!" Quatre swatted him on the shoulder. "Were you listening to anything I was saying? I'm going to go through the stores in the basement to see what we can use for trading. Why don't you go pick a room to leave your bag in." And with those directions, Quatre promptly disappeared through the door to the kitchen, leaving Duo alone.
To the west of the main door they'd entered from originally was a hallway, hung with exotic looking paintings on the walls between evenly spaced, identical doors. Opening the second one he came to, Duo stepped inside a bright and airy room. He was at an interesting corner of the building, so that there were windows on two sides of the room, one looking out over a pool and another facing the interior gardens of the entire complex. There was a large wrought iron bed in the middle of the room, perfectly laid out with a pale yellow blanket and several fluffy pillows. Duo set his bag down on a chair beside the door and walked into the room, just standing quietly.
Perfectly still was exactly the way Quatre found him a few minutes later. He was used to people being intimidated by the extravagance his family lived in, and sometimes it annoyed him, but Duo's sense of wonder was so oddly endearing that he couldn't hold it against him. "Ready?"
"Sure!" As if the momentary trance had never happened, Duo followed Quatre out of the building and to the front gate of the retreat. A dirt road led away from the gate and down a hill, but Duo could see nothing ahead as they started walking.
At the base of the hill, the dirt road broke into several paths and they took the center one. After coming over a small rise, Duo could finally see the village at the very banks of the large river. It was made up mostly of shacks and lean-tos and he realized as they drew closer that none of the people milling about were dressed in anything close to normal, modern clothing. The next shock came when one of them looked up and pointed at them and Quatre called out in a language he had never heard before. "What?"
"I'm just greeting them," Quatre murmured softly to Duo as people, male and female, old and young, moved closer to see who had come to the village. "I'm sure they know my father, so don't worry. I can speak a rudimentary amount of the language."
Duo had no idea what to say to that, so he just jammed his hands in his pockets and tried to look as friendly as he could while Quatre conversed with some of the older men. For all the awkwardness he sometimes displayed, when it was necessary, Quatre seemed to be really good at communicating with people. He moved effortlessly from reciting facts about the area they were in to speaking the language of the people and Duo had to admit that he was both intrigued and impressed. When, after a few minutes of conversation, it appeared that they had been welcomed into the village, he left Quatre to do the trading and wandered down to the water's edge.
The river was nothing like the ocean he'd taken a swim in when he'd first arrived on Earth. The color was darker and murkier and the current was far more swift. In contrast, though, only small ripples and waves washed up on the banks and a group of small children were playing in a decent-sized natural wading pool sectioned off by a fallen tree. He couldn't understand what they were saying, but he watched as they chased each other around a large rock in the knee deep water, the tallest holding something high above his head. It looked like the carved out half of some sort of hard-shelled fruit. The chase and argument ended quickly and soon the smaller children were crowded around the tallest as he stuck a stick poked through a leaf into the shell. Setting the boat down in the water, all of the children made sounds of disgust or disappointment when the little boat just whirled around in a circle, unable to catch the current or the breeze running across the pool.
"Hey!" Duo called out and they all looked up in alarm, the smallest girl running to hide behind the legs of one of the older children. "I can fix it!" They all looked at him curiously and he realized they had no idea what he was talking about. Holding up one hand palm out in what he hoped was a universal "wait" sign, he climbed over part of the thick grass at the edge of the pool. He held out a hand towards the boat, catching the eyes of the eldest boy for permission. When the child nodded, Duo plucked up the little boat and pulled the leaf off of the stick. Handing the boat to the boy, he took the leaf and carefully rolled it between his palms until the very edges of it started to curl inward. Satisfied, he plucked the boat out of the boy's hands and carefully slid the leaf back on through the same hole. With a bit of a flourish, he handed the boat back. "Go ahead, try it."
The children's gazes moved from Duo to the little boat as the eldest boy carefully placed it back in the water. This time, the leaf caught the wind and in combination with the current, it started to race across the pool towards where the water was trickling out around the tree. Laughing and splashing, the children dove after it, leaving Duo standing alone beside the boy. Duo gave the boy a thumbs up, which he seemed to understand, because he grinned and returned it before gesturing to himself with both hands. "Bem!"
Duo pointed at the boy and carefully repeated the word. "Bem." The boy nodded excitedly and then pointed at Duo, so Duo pointed at himself and said. "Duo."
The boy tried to repeat the name and laughed at how weird it sounded on his tongue. "D'wo," he tried.
"Close enough!" Duo grinned and when the boy held out his hand, he tried to shake it. Laughing, the boy whistled to one of his friends and the two demonstrated the fastest, flashiest handshake Duo had ever seen. He was just in the process of trying to learn it from them when Quatre appeared at the edge of the pool.
"Are you ready to go, Duo? I've got everything we need." He'd been watching the braided pilot and the children since right about the time the little boat had sent everyone running. Quatre wasn't sure exactly what Duo had said or done, but he'd apparently endeared himself to the entire group of children in a matter of minutes, so much so that he looked completely comfortable and totally regretful that it was time to go. Quatre was amazed that without a single word of language, Duo had managed to befriend all of them so quickly.
"Next time!" he tried to tell the children and Quatre translated for him. "What are they saying?"
"They're thanking you," Quatre started. "And saying that they hope you come back to play again."
Carefully mimicking them, Duo said goodbye as well and then helped Quatre carry the fresh meat and fruit he'd traded for back up to the retreat. They had both started to drag by the time they'd put everything away, and Duo was so tired that he didn't even bother with a shower before falling into the soft bed to dream a blissfully dreamless sleep.
o/ Animals and children tell the truth, they never lie
Which one is more human
There's a thought, now you decide /o
Duo wasn't sure if it was the daylight-bright flash of lightning or the earth-shaking boom following it that woke him from a dead sleep, but the rain was pouring down so hard on the roof that he barely even heard Quatre's voice.
"Duo!"
"I'm awake, I'm awake," he stumbled a little as he rolled out of the bed. "What's going on?!" The flash came again and he could see in the brief light that Quatre was already soaking wet.
"I need your help! This storm is awful and some of the villagers have started to come and beg refuge for the night, knowing we're here!"
"And you need…" He pulled on his boots and started to follow Quatre down the hallway and back to the main room, where a large group of wet and distressed people were waiting.
"Someone to take charge while I--" Quatre never got to finish his sentence as another figure burst through the door, sobbing loudly. Duo couldn't understand anything she was saying as Quatre and one of the other villagers tried to calm her down until Duo caught one word.
"Bem? Did you say Bem?" He turned to Quatre and shook him by the shoulder, his eyes wide. "Did she say Bem?!"
"Yes, she did," Quatre responded. He was already moving across the room to a closet, from which he started to pull rope, tarps and flashlights. "One of the children is trapped. I've got to go and help."
"I'm coming too," Duo demanded and there was a hardness to his expression that clearly said that there was no arguing with him. Quatre nodded again, and with one of the villagers leading the way, they stepped out into the storm.
The street orphan from L2 had never known the fury of a real storm – colony climate controls didn't provide for such extremes. The rain pounded down so hard that the flashlights were nearly useless, but Duo soon found his eyes adjusting to the darkness. The dirt road leading to the village had become a slippery muddy mess, so most of the time, they were picking their way down the hill through the dense vegetation.
Quatre, desert child, was also distinctly out of his element in the rainforest, but after the kindness with which they'd been welcomed, he was determined to help. When they reached the village, he found that those villagers remaining were near the engorged edge of the river. The pool from earlier that afternoon was now fully engulfed and lost in the torrent of water, and standing precariously on a large rock was Duo's little friend, Bem.
As soon as Duo saw where Bem was, he ran as fast as he could to the edge of the water, calling his name, and Bem seemed immediately renewed with hope at the sight of the pilot. "Bem! I'm here! I'm gonna help you! Be brave, Bem!" Duo's eyes were scanning the area at the edge of the river, looking for a possible escape route, because it was obvious that crossing the water on foot was not a viable option without being swept away immediately. Turning back to Quatre, he grabbed a length of rope and ran to the one of the nearby trees. "Quatre! I'm going to climb out over that branch! If I inch out along it and drop the rope down…""
"Duo, that's dangerous!"
"I don't care!" Duo was already tying the rope around the base of the tree, running it around, up and over the branch before making another loop at the end. He wrapped that loop around his hand twice and proceeded to climb the tree, more grateful than ever for the grip on his favorite boots. The rain made the surface of the tree slippery and Duo wrapped his legs around it, using his arms to slide himself along in a sitting position. He didn't look down at the rushing river beneath him until he could see Bem standing on the rock out of the corner of his eye. This was the difficult part. If I can just get him to catch the rope…
Duo started to unwind the rope from around his hand right at the moment that the branch cracked underneath him. He didn't even have time to yell, scrambling towards the rock as he fell. Luckily, the drop wasn't far at all and he managed to get his feet under him, but he nearly knocked Bem off in the process. "Sorry!" Duo yelled, as the water was now loud enough around him that he could barely hear himself. The branch had broken, but Duo still had the rope – a lifeline to the shore. Duo thought hard for a moment and then waved at Quatre, making a large motion with arms to signify pulling before pointing at where he'd tied the rope to the tree. Understanding him, Quatre started to gather the remaining villagers around the rope, each of them grabbing hold.
Duo unwound the rope from his hand and put the entire loop around Bem, tightening it to an almost painful point. Gripping the boy's face between his hands, he stared him hard in the eyes, trying to communicate to him that it would be okay. Abruptly, he waved at Quatre again and then, without warning, pushed Bem off the rock and into the river.
The villagers responded immediately, pulling the rope away from the shore with all their might. Duo counted 1…2…3…4…5… and Bem popped out of the water on the other side of the river. The villagers crowded around him and Quatre stood alone at the edge of the river, staring at Duo with the most distraught look Duo had seen on his face so far in the short time of their friendship. With the branch broken, there seemed to be no way to get the rope back to him, but Duo had been more worried about making sure Bem got back safely – and less weight was a faster pull.
It wouldn't be so bad if I died here, would it? Better than at OZ's hands…
Quatre was stunned. He hadn't expected Duo to send the child alone and leave himself out there alone on the rock in the midst of the rushing water, but it had happened so quickly that it had already been too late by the time he realized. I can't just leave him out there… The end of the rope was still in Quatre's hands and without even signaling to Duo what he was about to do, he curled it into a ball and heaved it with all his might. It missed, falling far short. Determined, Quatre pulled the rope back in and wound it up more carefully, taking care to make it easy to unravel as it flew across the water. By now, the villagers had recovered from their joy at Bem's safety and were watching what he was doing. Duo had caught on as well and stood poised with arms outstretched.
Lightning flashed again, making Duo look, for a moment, like a wraith out upon the rock, black and white with his braid flying out behind him in the wind. Quatre took a deep breath and heaved the rope again, stumbling a little. He looked up and his breath caught in his throat – Duo seemed about to reach out and grab it – and the fallen tree that had been the source of the earlier pool finally dislodged and clipped him right in the back of the knees as it sailed down the river. A look of utter surprise on his face, Duo toppled into the water.
"DUO!!" Quatre bellowed. If he didn't grab the rope, he's already gone. "PULL!" he commanded and everyone jumped forward to grab the rope, dragging it backwards with everything they had. It felt like there was weight on the end, but it was hard to tell with the current. Is he…?
Duo barely knew how to swim beyond the doggie paddle and a basic float, but he didn't think it could have possibly mattered anyway. He felt himself falling and aligned his eye with the end of the rope as if he were viewing a target through the scope on a gun. As the icy water engulfed him, he reached, connected and held on for dear life.
Quatre nearly collapsed over Duo's body as he dragged the other pilot onto shore. Duo was coughing and spluttering and Quatre kind of wanted to kill him, but he was safe. "You scared me nearly to death!" Quatre yelled at him and amazingly, Duo laughed.
"That was one of the wildest rides of my life!"
o/ Compassion in the jungle
Compassion in your hands /o
It was nearly dawn by the time everyone was safely at the retreat, but the rain hadn't let up yet. Duo left Quatre handing out the last of the food they had and went to take a shower. He was a little bit shaken after the events of the evening and realized, as he brushed out his wet, muddy, tangled hair, that it had been several days since he'd had even half a night's proper rest.
He was surprised to find Quatre waiting in his room for him when he was finished, already showered and changed himself and looking deeply pensive. "Are you okay?" His tone was serious and much heavier than usual, but Duo smiled as he crossed the room.
"I'm just fine, thanks to your excellent life-saving skills!"
Quatre stepped closer and let his eyes roam slowly from head to toe, checking him over to make sure he was really okay. "Don't make jokes about almost getting yourself killed!"
Duo laughed softly and elbowed Quatre. "S'alright. You owed me one for the train stoppage the other day!" Without really thinking about, he leaned forward and planted a light peck on Quatre's cheek. "If you wake up before me and the rain's done, come and get me. I want to see how the village fared."
He hopped up into the bed and pulled the covers up to his chin, leaving Quatre to stand dazedly in the doorway for a moment. When he realized that Duo wasn't going to say anything else, he turned to go, touching his hand to his cheek distractedly as he walked back to his own room.
Duo had no idea how long he'd been asleep, but the sun shining in the windows woke him. The rain had finally passed. He was surprised to find all of his clothing cleaned and laid out on the chair beside the door and he dressed before making his way down the hall. The building was quiet and virtually empty, but Quatre appeared through the kitchen door almost immediately.
"Good morning, Duo! I was just about to wake you. I haven't been down to the village yet, but I hear it's not looking good."
When the two pilots made their way down to the village, they were stunned by the complete and utter destruction. The thunderstorm had caused a small mudslide, which, along with the engorged river, had washed away most of the buildings. The river hadn't quite returned to its usual size, but the current had already slowed down a great deal. Duo listened as Quatre talked quietly with a few of the villagers and then he came back to Duo with a troubled look on his face.
"I know this village isn't our responsibility, but--"
"Quatre, if there's anything we can do to help them, we should." Duo's words were firm and implied that although he hadn't forgotten their mission, he saw no problem with trying to offer assistance.
With a grateful smile, Quatre continued with his latest plan. "There's a larger town about half a day's boat ride up the river. I've already assured the villagers that you and I will go to buy supplies for rebuilding the village – wood, rope, nails, cooking items – and the village elder promised he would keep order back at the retreat."
"You have a boat?"
"Of course I do."
Of course he does… Duo was definitely still not used to Quatre's ability to pull things from out of thin air.
Seeing that it was an easily navigable route sailing up the river, Duo and Quatre went alone. The boat was a decent size for transporting stuff, but not the type of boat that would accommodate overnight passengers. Quatre had his laptop, complete with detailed maps of the area, as their navigation tool, so for awhile Duo simply enjoyed hanging over the edge of the railing and watching the scenery fly by them.
"So you've really never been here before?"
"No, I haven't," Quatre watched Duo holding his hand over the side of the boat to catch the spray of water.
"Everywhere on Earth is new to me. I was born on L2 and this is the first time in my life that I've ever left the colonies."
"I was born on L4, so I understand how you feel. I've had years and years of memorizing history books and studying the arts, but it's nothing compared to seeing all of the places I've read about. I do hope that when the war is over, I'll be able to travel to all of the most famous cities on Earth."
Duo hadn't stopped to think about "after the war" at all. He hadn't really had plans before getting caught up in Operation Meteor, nor did he have any plans for his life should it ever end. He glanced at Quatre over his shoulder before responding rather cheekily. "I suppose I'll just end up wherever the wind blows me!"
Quatre smiled and nodded, but he didn't miss the way Duo tended to avoid things he didn't want to talk about by changing the subject with a little dash of his odd humor. Despite the misadventures of the past few days, Quatre was still a little worried about saying the wrong thing to the other boy. He had to admit to himself that he'd already grown fond of having someone to talk to, someone who understood. I tried hard with Trowa to form a bond, but other than the music, he didn't seem to want to connect… Quatre wanted Duo to feel comfortable talking to him, so he let Duo change topics whenever he felt the need.
"Hey, is that the town up ahead?" Duo pointed into the distance and sure enough, the tops of buildings had started to rise up ahead of them on both sides of the river.
The two pilots were anchored and ashore again by midday and they spent the rest of the afternoon wandering the business district. Duo was happy to find that many people spoke the common language here, so he could communicate enough verbally to haggle over prices.
At first, Quatre was a little startled by Duo's banter with all of the different shopkeepers, but after awhile he realized it was just more of the braided pilot's intuitive ability to connect with people. He had that certain kind of charisma where with little more than a smile and a handshake, he managed to convey his sincerity. Quatre hadn't forgotten his initial introduction of "…but I never tell a lie" and yet he also caught Duo's slippery fingers pilfering a piece of fruit or a wedge of cheese here and there. Quatre made sure to accidentally leave an extra coin at those places. For all that I really do believe he says the truth when he speaks, Duo is quite the bundle of contradictions sometimes…
"I think that's the last thing on your list!" Duo leaned over Quatre's shoulder to point at the bottom of the lengthy list of crossed-off items.
"Yes, it is," Quatre crossed the last one off and then tucked the list into his pocket. "But it's far too late to head back to the retreat. Our boat isn't really safe for nighttime travel. We should have everything delivered to our boat and find somewhere to spend the night.
Duo nodded, making some arrangements with the last shopkeeper while Quatre inquired about the closest inn. There had been no discussion between them about paying to repair the village or to spend the night. Quatre seemed to take it upon himself to take care of things and Duo didn't question him. He had enough money stored away in various locations for use on this mission, but not the kind of money Quatre obviously had. Money was still a bit alien to Duo in some ways, as he'd grown up virtually without it. There are a lot of things about Quatre that are just so different from my own experiences… He wondered if those differences were the reasons why Quatre rarely tried to contradict or fight with him, quite aware that the longer they spent together, the more at ease he felt.
The sun was almost set by the time the pair had eaten a quick dinner and booked themselves a room at an inn near the harbor. It was overly warm even with the windows open, as the small place lacked the air conditioning of Quatre's retreat and mosquito netting hung thickly around the canopy bed to keep out the bugs. Restless, Duo stood at the window, looking out above the tree tops to the stars above. The town was small enough that the night sky was still bright and for just a moment, he felt a pang of homesickness and sighed.
"Duo?" Quatre's voice came immediately from where he was seated at a small table, clicking away on the laptop. "You okay?"
Duo didn't turn around to face Quatre, but he nodded. "Don't worry about me."
I already feel like I worry about you probably more than I should… "You really don't mind sharing the bed--"
"Nah. It's big enough for both of us and totally pointless to rent two rooms." Duo turned away from the window now, leaning against the wall beside it and crossing his arms over his chest. "But I want you to know… what you're doing for this village is really admirable. I really think you're a deeply compassionate and kind-hearted person." Duo enjoyed watching the blush that quickly crept up in the blond's face and being the tease that he was, couldn't resist provoking him just a little more. "Wake me when it's time to go, okay?" He strolled across the room to stand between the bed and the table where Quatre sat and leaned over to give him a peck on the cheek, just as he had the night before. "And don't stay up too late obsessing about the rebuilding. We'll make it work." He reached to flip off the light switch and then jumped into the bed, flopping on top of the blankets and yanking the mosquito netting around himself.
For the second night in a row, Duo left Quatre a bit stunned with his parting gesture – and not just the peck, which he'd almost been expecting, but his words. Am I that transparent or is he just perceptive? He sat for a long time staring blankly at the computer screen before he finally shut the laptop and moved to stand at the window where Duo had been standing earlier. All of us pilots… we all seem to be so different and yet we all came to share the same fate. Is it coincidence… or destiny?
o/ Would you like to make a run for it
Would you like to take my hand? /o
o/ Cause I want to live like animals
Careless and free like animals /o
Once the two boys returned from the trip, the rebuilding of the village began in earnest. Under Quatre's careful planning, the actual location was shifted slightly to sturdier ground, in hopes of preventing the same disaster from repeating. Although he still made a habit of checking his laptop twice a day for incoming messages – there were none – Quatre was all too happy to lose himself in the designing of the new village.
Duo actually found that a lot of the mechanical skills of building and repairing Gundams and other machinery also applied to being able to visualize, construct and reconstruct the structures that had been demolished. The braided pilot spent many hours sitting in high places, hammering nails or tying ropes, humming and singing cheerfully. By the third day, he was trekking from the retreat to the village and back completely barefoot and a week in, he lost the shirt, rolled up the pants and gained a necklace from which dangled a single bright blue feather. From dawn til dusk he worked alongside the men and boys to rebuild the village and after the sun set, he would play hand-slapping games or skim rocks along the river with Bem and the other children. He had never lived life like this before, carefree and in harmony with the forces of the universe, part of a community.
And to think… these people don't know anything about the war or the Gundams. They probably don't even know that the colonies exist.
Alongside this rebuilding, many of the women of the village were beginning to prepare a feast. The retreat was turned into a noisy, bustling jumble of activity as preparations went on for days. Almost three weeks to the day of the terrible storm, the group gathered in the heart of the new village before a roaring fire to celebrate the new beginning.
o/ I want to live
I want to run through the jungle
The wind in my hair and the sand at my feet /o
Quatre sat at the center of the group of villagers, his heart swelling with the joy and gratitude the village elder expressed in his speech towards everyone that had worked in the rebuilding. There was a lot of cheering and singing and then the feast began. When the meal was nearly concluded, several of the men went to retrieve drums and set up in a semi-circle, playing a rhythmic beat.
This seemed to signal Bem and the other children in some way and they raced around behind one of the buildings excitedly. Bored with only half-understanding the conversations around him, Duo got up and followed them. Around the back of the building, he found the group of children with some of the younger women, all rushing around in a flurry of feathers and flowers.
"D'wo!" Bem cried excitedly as soon as he caught sight of the pilot. He ran over and started talking quickly, but Duo put up his hands to show "I don't understand". Bem paused for a moment in thought, then started to move gracefully, slow-motion miming some kind of dance before pointing at Duo.
"You want me to dance with you?" Duo pointed first at himself and then at Bem, who nodded swiftly. Catching onto what was going on, some of the other children began to tug on his hands and beg what he guessed was much the same thing. "Well, why not?"
Duo had no idea what would happen next as he followed the women and children back around the building. The drumming had paused momentarily as everyone in the village began clapping in anticipation. I have no idea what I'm doing… It didn't matter though, for the drumming began anew and with a whoop of glee, the group jostled him into the center. Standing still for a moment to listen to the music, Duo watched the movements of the other dancers. He closed his eyes and let the rhythm take him somewhere far away.
Quatre hadn't even realized Duo was gone until the drumming started and he looked around to find him missing. As the dancers came sweeping back into the feast, he found the other pilot's pale skin among the darker villagers and then felt his heart skip at the sight. Like the other dancers, Duo had woven garlands of bright jungle flowers around his wrists and ankles. His hair was unbraided and fell in waves to almost his knees, with one purple flower tucked behind his ear. The blue feather necklace was bright against his pale skin. As the dancers began to move, Quatre watched as Duo closed his eyes and joined them. He didn't exactly know the steps they were using, but he moved with the rhythm the drums were playing, the same as anyone else.
If it had been his choice, Duo might have chosen to freeze that moment for just awhile longer, because it was over far too soon. Bem and his friends were standing around him as the villagers applauded and they all started to yell the same thing at him over and over. Completely lost to the meaning, Duo sought out Quatre in the crowd and waved. As the group started to disperse for the night, the two pilots met up and started to walk up the road to the retreat. Duo repeated the phrase as best he could and asked Quatre to translate.
"Well, it doesn't translate quite literally," the blond mused as they walked along. "It's not quite 'I am you' or 'you are me'… but not quite 'we are all one' either…" He glanced at Duo and couldn't help but smile at the flowers he was still wearing. "Maybe the closest I can get is… 'one of us'?"
Duo gave a huge smile, but it faded rather quickly into a wistful sort of expression. "One of us…"
"Duo…?" They were just inside the main gate of the retreat now and Quatre paused mid-step, looking at Duo with a hint of concern.
"Wouldn't it be easy, Quatre…" he said in a voice that was low, soft and serious. "Just to forget it all?" Duo's eyes gazed up at the starry sky above them for a moment and he reached to touch the purple blossom in his hair with one gentle finger.
"I…" Is he asking what I think he's asking…?
"Nevermind, don't answer that!" The moment was gone almost as soon as it had come and Duo's usual cheerful expression had returned. "I'm just being silly, of course, silly like usual. G'night Quatre. Wake me in the morning and we'll go find the waterfall that Bem told me about tonight." He turned to plant a kiss on Quatre's cheek as he had the past two nights.
Without actually thinking about what he was doing, Quatre reached out to grab Duo's wrist at the same time as he turned his face towards Duo, purposefully letting those lips brush his own. Duo was obviously startled and Quatre met his wide eyes for a long, silent moment before he leaned forward and pressed his lips to Duo's again.
The kiss was almost transparent at first as Quatre caught Duo's bottom lip between his own two, and then it seemed to explode almost instantaneously. Quatre's hands went to tangle in Duo's hair as Duo wrapped one arm snug around his waist and their lips parted, tongues dancing around each other in a questioning game. They kissed until they could hardly breathe, both feeling the edge of desperation and confusion tugging at that growing intensity. When they finally broke, Duo took two quick steps back before meeting Quatre's eyes.
Neither of them knew what to say at the moment, each equally afraid of offending the other or starting something they might not be able to finish. "Quatre, I'm sor--"
"Don't…Duo." Quatre shook his head with a small smile and started again towards the main building. "Good night."
Duo watched him until he disappeared through the door and then sighed a little. I have no idea what the hell just happened.
After a restless night of unsettled dozing, Duo found that he was already awake when Quatre opened the door to his room the next morning and peeked in. For a moment, he was afraid that things would be really awkward, but Quatre had a smile on his face as he approached the bed. "Oh, I'm glad you're already awake! Bem and his friends are here asking about the waterfall. We're still going, right?"
Duo sat up and looked at Quatre for a moment, but could read nothing negative in his demeanor. I'm still not sure how he feels… or even how I feel about what happened last night, but… I can see now that Quatre is no more a grudge-holder than I am. "Life's too short!" Duo responded, hopping off the bed and reaching for his bag. Turning it upside down, he shook most of the rest of the contents onto the floor, looking for something better suited to swimming than his usual black pants. "Gotta seize the day!"
Quietly relieved that Duo seemed his usual chipper self, Quatre watched Duo make an even bigger mess out of his room. "Do you need something to swim in?"
Duo found what he was looking for and turned back to Quatre, wagging one finger in his face. "You really do love to take care of people, don't you?"
Quatre crossed his arms over his chest in a playful imitation of Duo. "And so what if I do? It seems like your mess could use some of my help!" Duo's eyes widened at the teasing and for a moment, it looked like he was going to pounce on Quatre for revenge, but the blond was too quick. Already out the door, he called over his shoulder. "Don't keep us waiting too long!"
The hike to the waterfall was not very far and as soon as they arrived, Bem and his friends climbed up to the top and started jumping off of it into the deep pool below. Duo sat down by the edge of the pool and stuck his feet in, content to watch them for awhile, but it wasn't long before the boys were begging him to join them.
"Umm, Quatre…" Duo called to where his friend was sitting under a shady tree, reading a book. "Can you tell them I'm not that strong of a swimmer? This water's pretty deep."
Closing the book, Quatre walked over to where Duo was and sat down on the rock beside him. "You're afraid of the water and yet you left yourself b stranded in the middle of a rushing river to rescue Bem?"
Duo chuckled a little and shrugged. "Hey, I never said I was afraid of the water. It' just that most of my experience with it has been in a human-sized fish tank for the purposes of doggie paddle survival skills."
Quatre laughed hard at that and then slid himself off the rock and into the water below. "Growing up in the desert colony, swimming isn't my strongest skill either."
"Memorizing history books, then?" Duo teased, not surprised when Quatre splashed him in response.
"Get in the water with me. I'm sure I could help you."
More to prove he wasn't afraid than any other reason, Duo slid off the rock and into the water as well. Treading water clumsily beside Quatre, he watched enviously as the blond floated effortlessly on his back. "You make it look easy."
"Mind over matter," Quatre responded, promptly righting himself. "Air is lighter than water. There's a lot more space inside you than you realize. The human body floats, especially when you take in extra air by breathing in." True to his words, Quatre took a deep breath and angled his body back into a float for a moment. Duo tried to mimic him, but only ended up choking on a mouthful of water as he sank crookedly.
"Epic fail," he spluttered.
Quatre laughed and then, treading water beside Duo, brought a hand to his back. "Try again. I'll keep my hand under your back so that you won't sink, so stop thinking you will. Take a really deep breath, relax your body and try and focus your eyes on the trees above us."
I'm lighter than the water… Duo closed his eyes, took a deep breath and re-angled his body, deeply aware of Quatre's hand firmly against the small of his back. I'm lighter than the water…
"That's it! Stay relaxed!" Quatre slowly slid his hand away, leaving Duo floating unaided in the water. "You've got it, Duo! I'm not even helping you!"
Of course, the moment he said that, Duo's eyes snapped open, his concentration broken, and he started to flail again. Latching onto Quatre, they fought playfully for a few minutes until Duo swam to the edge and climbed out. "And now, thanks to your tutoring of the back float, I am now prepared to make the flying leap!"
Quatre translated for Bem and the other children, and Bem ran to climb the waterfall with Duo. When they reached the top, Duo grabbed Bem's hand and looked out over the edge. The water seemed very far below, but when Duo met Quatre's eyes from his position at the bottom, he was suddenly quite sure that his friend wouldn't let anything happen to him if decided to have another "epic fail" moment.
"1…2…3…!" By the time Duo got to 3, Bem had figured out what he was saying and they ran the last four steps before jumping out into oblivion together. Breaking the surface of the water with an enormous splash, Duo was surprised at how far he went down without ever touching the bottom. When he came up coughing and spluttering, he was greeted with the sounds of cheers.
"Not the most graceful form," Quatre teased Duo as they swam to the edge of the pool. "But you receive top points for bravery!" The two boys climbed out of the pool and retreated under the leafy shade, where Bem and his friends had taken a break from swimming to climb some trees in search of fruit.
Stretched out under the tree, Duo was so relaxed and tired from not sleeping well that he feel asleep with a piece of half-eaten fruit still in his hand. It seemed like only a moment passed before Quatre shaking him gently woke him. He blinked sleepily at the other pilot, noticing immediately the troubled look on his face. "Mm, sorry, Quatre… did I doze off?"
"Yes, but we need to go. It looks like we might be getting some rain again soon." He turned away almost immediately, reaching to pick up his book and his shoulder bag. Bem and the other children had already headed back to the village, so the two pilots were alone.
"Quatre…?" Duo asked curiously as they started to walk back towards the retreat. The sun had already disappeared behind the quickly gathering clouds and the wind was starting to pick up. He could tell that something was bothering the other boy.
"You said his name in your sleep…" Quatre started quietly, trying to keep his expression neutral. "…and I wondered… just how close you two were…you and Heero Yuy."
Just hearing the name was enough to make Duo flinch and he tried to brush it off. "I don't remember what I was dreaming about at all."
Quatre had let a lot of Duo's brush-offs go in the time they'd known each other, but he could tell that the death of the other pilot was still weighing heavily on him. He also hadn't missed how much and how easily Duo had immersed himself in the lives of the villagers and it worried him. "You must have been close in some way," Quatre finally responded, tired of dancing around the topic. "You can try to hide it for whatever reason you want, but I can still tell."
Duo had to bite his tongue to keep from lashing out at Quatre. He deeply disliked anyone trying to tell him how he felt, even if it was true. As friendly a person as he was, Duo guarded his feelings fiercely and didn't discuss them easily. "We spent some time together," he finally offered, but the words were short and clipped.
By now, the two pilots had reached the main gate of the retreat and fat raindrops had started to fall. Quatre turned to Duo, his expression somewhere between sympathy and concern. "Duo, you haven't even asked me in days if we've gotten any messages."
"I figured if we had, you'd tell me," Duo snapped back. The two pilots stared at each other, their emotional natures colliding. The more upset one of them became, the more the other felt badly about it, which in turn, just made them feel even worse for being upset in the first place. Duo finally shook his head and reached to open the door. "I… I'm gonna go take a shower."
Leaving Quatre standing just outside the door, he walked swiftly to his room and closed the door behind him. Duo knew that Quatre was right – that he'd been playing a game with himself of trying not to think about the mission or what had happened before they arrived in Africa. For the moment, Heero Yuy had been filed right beside Father Maxwell in the box of things Duo didn't want to talk about.
Wandering around the square of his room, Duo started to collect the various pieces of clothing and trinkets scattered around. Traveling so often, he'd never gotten in the habit of owning much, but he'd hung onto a few things from the school. He picked up the turquoise necktie and shoved it into his duffle bag and then reached for the marine science textbook, the only one he'd decided to keep. Lifting the book by the cover, he was surprised when two photographs fluttered out and slipped to the floor. Kneeling down, he picked up one of the Polaroids, flipping it over between thumb and finger. His eyes focused on the image and it was like someone had knocked all of the wind out of him.
Staring back at him was a frozen moment from the day he and Heero had spent at the aquarium with the marine science class. In the picture, Heero had just grabbed his hand and plunged it into the pool of sharks and rays. It was so obvious that neither boy knew anyone was watching them, for they were obviously completely absorbed in each other. Duo couldn't help the silent tears that suddenly ran down his cheeks and he took a ragged breath, reaching to flip over the other photo, showing himself with a hand on Heero's arm, leaning close to him.
How? How did these end up inside my book?!
Duo knew it could only have been Heero himself. He had to have pilfered the photos when Melanie's folder went flying while getting off the bus – perhaps Heero had even been the cause of her tumble.
But why not just dispose of them? Why leave them with me?
Cradling the pictures to his chest, Duo didn't even hear when Quatre opened the door to his room. Finding the braided pilot on his knees in tears, Quatre had no idea what had happened, but he could do only one thing. Rushing over him, he knelt at Duo's side and pulled the other pilot into his arms. "Duo, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have pressed you like that or implied you weren't thinking about the mission. I really didn't mean--"
"No…" Duo choked out, shaking his head as he placed the pictures on the floor, face-down. "Don't apologize for being right. I have been ignoring the world beyond the village. But no matter how I do or don't feel about Heero Yuy, I can't stay here in Africa. I'm not going to abandon the mission."
"Don't you dare blame yourself any more than me for getting caught up," Quatre responded firmly. "You're not the only one who's been a little lost."
"You're forgiven if I'm forgiven," Duo said softly, turning to hug Quatre tightly. The two boys sat like that for awhile, arms around each other, until Duo's breathing had evened out again. Finally, he let go of Quatre and stood up, offering a hand up to the blond. "…thanks."
Quatre held onto Duo's hand for a moment longer than necessary, squeezing it once. "Anytime." He let go of Duo's hand and started towards the door. "If you want, I'll put together something for us to eat and then we can go through today's news reports."
"Yeah, that would be good," Duo attempted a smile. "What's done is done – it's more important we begin to figure out what to do next."
Once he was alone, Duo picked the photos up from where he'd left them overturned on the floor. He stared at them for a moment longer before reaching for his jacket, hung over the back of the chair. Carefully, he slipped the photos into an interior pocket with a sense of renewed dedication. There's no turning back – not now or ever.
o/ Sometimes this life can get you down
It's so confusing
There's so many rules to follow
And I feel it
'Cause I just run away in my mind /o
The end of the village's rebuilding and Duo's discovery of the pictures sparked a change in the two pilots. Although they still often went down to the village to eat and spend time, both Duo and Quatre started hunting every news source they could find, looking for mention of the Gundams day and night. A week went by with nothing more than some odd reports about an OZ raid that had gone badly in Italy, but there was no real sign of the other pilots. OZ had spent the last month fighting militaristic nations on Earth, but their overture towards the colonies had been one of peace.
Duo didn't buy it for a second.
Watching the latest reports drone on from the TV, Quatre frowned and started contemplating a new idea.
"…Forces of the former Alliance Military unjustly stationed in the colonies have been forced to surrender. With the new and powerful OZ mobile suits, operations have commenced for removal of space mines. This'll mean communication is re-established between the colonies."
Duo sighed in annoyance from where he was leaning against a column, arms crossed over his chest. "I don't get it. I thought OZ wanted to take over the colonies no matter what it took for them to do it."
Quatre scooted his chair back from the table with a thoughtful expression. "They do. And they're using the dirtiest method. If OZ used force, the colonies would prepare to retaliate. But they'd be accepted if they used the guise of assistance."
Duo turned his face aside and closed his eyes in disgust. "Most people in outer space are easy going. I doubt if anyone will question OZ's plans."
There was a moment of silence before Quatre decided that he couldn't hold back his thoughts any longer. "I think it's time for us to return to space. With our Gundams." With no word from the colonies and no way to contact the other pilots… OZ keeps us weak by keeping us separated. "The Gundams were built for the people of the colonies. Only we can save the people from OZ's evil plot."
"You're right," Duo conceded, moving away from the wall to come and stand beside Quatre. "But how do we get into space? It's important that we don't get noticed." I'm sure OZ's desire to blow us up hasn't changed in the month we've been hiding.
"No, we WANT to get noticed!" Quatre jumped up from the table and headed inside and Duo followed him to his room, somewhat puzzled. "If OZ is falsely promoting peace to get at the colonies then they can't threaten the colonies to get to us."
Duo was starting to see what the other pilot was getting at – they could use OZ's position against themselves as safe passage back home. "But what if OZ gives up their façade?"
Quatre grabbed his laptop, sitting down on the bed, and Duo came to sit beside him. "That'd mean revealing their identity to the colony people. The present OZ wouldn't see that as wise. They can attack us if they choose, but it would look really bad to the people of the colonies."
"And that's the last thing they want, because it would unite more people against them." Duo was quiet for a moment as Quatre pulled up some maps and schematics on the laptop, then continued his thought. "And the bigger splash we make, the more everyone, including the colonies and the other pilots, will notice."
"Exactly," Quatre said with a satisfied nod. "But we also don't want to get ourselves killed by being overwhelmed, numbers-wise." He pointed at the screen. "I think this is our closest best bet – somewhat remote, not a large number of troops kept on site, but big enough to be noticed immediately."
"Singapore?"
Quatre met Duo's gaze with a surprising fierceness. "Let's return to space."
Up Next: Chapter 7 - What Do You Do