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" Listen To Your Heart"Written By: Karen The Huntress Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing or its characters. "Listen To Your Heart" belongs to Roxette. Rating: PG13 Warning: Language Pairing: 1+2 Feedback: Always appreciated and answered
" Listen To Your Heart "
Listen to your heart when it's calling to you.
Chang Wufei, recruited by Sally Po, joined Preventers to enforce fragile postwar reconciliations. Trowa Barton returned to his circus roots. Quatre Winner, choosing love over conditional inheritance, followed Trowa. Heero Yuy accepted an interim assignment with an elite unit safeguarding Relena Peacecraft. Always a maverick, Duo Maxwell rejected all notions of mandatory duty. No more taking orders or kissing bureaucratic ass. Truth be told work and wages were not imperative. War afforded infinite opportunities to hack corporate financial assets and deposit sizeable ill-gotten gains into untraceable accounts. Specific targets of cyber larceny, Romefeller Foundation and United Earth Sphere Alliance were unwitting contributors to the Gundam warriors' monetary wellbeing.
Six months later. Heero was assigned a room in the Security Agents Quarters on the five hundred acre Peacecraft estate. Daily routine scheduling suited his need for normalcy. However, the subliminal Perfect Soldier still craved warfare chaos. Although nomadic performers Trowa and Quatre had weekly vid-chats with Heero and Duo. Wufei tended to be less interested in socializing. In the neighboring township Duo rented a studio apartment above the Fox & Swan Pub. Accommodations were basic but comfortable. Less square footage than a regular house, much more than Deathscythe's cockpit. Duo also settled into a tentative repetition of morning, noon and night. Seldom awake before 10:00 A.M. Never asleep until well after midnight. Mealtime was whenever he got hungry except on weekends when he and Heero met in the downstairs tavern for pints of Guinness and simple Irish fare. ****** Six foot five. Mid-fifties. Gray speckled auburn hair. Shawn O'Brien was proprietor of the Fox & Swan and opinionated commentator on most aspects of life. 7:15 P.M.
Ryan Gallagher took a sip. "Wouldn't be waterin'
down the ale?" At a corner table, flanking the bar and bickering mates, Duo savored a spoonful a hardy lamb, potato, carrot and mushroom stew. "Been contemplating what I wanna to do." Heero scrutinized his plate of bangers and mash. "You're equally proficient in cyber and mechanical technology." was stated while slicing a pork sausage with Beam Saber precision. "Ain't worried about gettin' a job." Duo affirmed, "This is the first time I've been free to make my own decisions. When I was a L2 street kid life wasn't a choice, just daily survival. Then there was Professor G. Then the war. Now I got nothing to focus on." Heero offered logical advice. "It's not imperative to set future objectives tonight." Duo finish his pint of Guinness Draught." Yeah, you gotta a purpose. Babysitting hoity-toity Princess Prececraft." he retorted. "Why should I stick around here? Earth is a big ball of dirt. Hell, I outta go back to L2 and stir up a shit storm." ****** 9:35 P.M. Duo and Heero had parted company without resolving the stay or go debate. In his apartment Duo changed into gray sweat pants and black tee shirt. Sock clad feet traversed a short distance from the galley kitchen to a burgundy recliner. He flopped down, balanced a bowl of Movie Time Extra Butter Microwave Popcorn on his lap and placed a 20oz bottle of Dr. Pepper on the side table. Television remote selected a previously recorded Manchester United vs Arsenal F.C. soccer game on BBC Sports. Two hours plus stoppage time. No commercials. Ultimate gratification. ****** 9:35 P.M. Heero stepped out of the shower, dried off and tugged on green boxer briefs. Steamy mist on the mirror distorted his reflection. Damp towel erased bothersome condensation. Hands braced on the sink. The jagged landscape of battle scars, mottled over chest, shoulders and arms, was appraised impassively. Index finger traced around the oldest bullet wound, a roughly healed souvenir from his initial altercation with a braided stranger named Duo Maxwell. Figments of memories flickered like antiquated Celluloid film. Zero System mirages. Remnants of actuality mingled among fractured images. Helpless to intervene, Heero stood in Wing's open hatch, extended his hand to touch Deathscythe. Out of reach. The black demon-winged Gundam hovered—silence—then vanished into a vortex of energy beams, smoke and fire. "NO!" Heero screamed inside his mind, barely above a whisper. Eyes closed. He depressed the self-destruct button. ****** 11:50 P.M. Manchester United edged out Arsenal 3 to 2. Duo switched off the TV. Empty Dr. Pepper bottle was tossed in the recycling bin. Popcorn bowl joined an assortment of dishes to be washed in the morning. Not sleepy, he decided to lounge in bed with Vampire Hunter D Graphic Novel, Volume 11: "Pale Fallen Angel", Parts One and Two. A knock on the front door triggered alert reflexes. Defensive position against the wall. "Who is it?" "Heero." Open door revealed Heero Yuy cocooned in a black leather jacket. Backwashed by halogen streetlamps, his haloed silhouette appeared ghostly on the upstairs landing. Midnight chill prompted an invitation to come inside. Puzzled by the unexpected late night visit Duo questioned, "Everything all right?" Silence. Duo wasn't born into high society but he was sure when you asked a question it was polite to reply. "Gotta give me a clue 'cause I ain't a mind reader." Heero reached out tentatively. Stroked Duo's cheek. Leaned down for a chaste kiss. Surprise dissolved into realization. Duo urged, "Tell me what you want." "Stay."
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