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"Friends "Written By: Karina
Series: Friends Pairings: 2+6 Ratings: M 15+ [In Australia] Rated in the event of bad language and violence. Disclaimer: I don’t own Gundam Wing or the characters. That’s the way it is. Warnings: Not a death fic despite how it starts.
Aussie spelling and unbetaed. Summary: When Milliardo Peacecraft is abducted
and left to die a solitary death Duo Maxwell decides to take a hand
in the proceedings.
Chapter 7 Duo had raised a sweat by the time he cleared the door from the wall. The pantry was larger than he had anticipated and he suspected he had an answer to his musings on where Spiders disappeared to in foul weather. He needed to clear out cobwebs before he could arrange a space within the cave large enough for his survival gear. By the time he finished he was certain he would not be sorry if he never saw a spider again. The pantry had surprised him, being larger than he had expected. The walls had been worked, squared off by hand to shape the natural cave to meet the needs of the users. Rotting storage shelves and broken barrels lined up the walls and there were some mummified and frozen items he suspected might once have been vegetables. The ferocity of the storm had continued to increase and he was driven by a rising sense of urgency. His something is wrong feeling was beginning to pound in his awareness and he pushed himself harder. Given the real danger he might hurt himself and jeopardize both himself and his patient, he forced himself to a slower and more cautious pace. He needed to remember there was another person relying on him and temper his haste with caution. His cleaning efforts would never pass an inspection, but he was not fussed with gaining Brownie points for cleanliness. What he needed was to secure a sheltered position where the ceiling would not fall on them. He just needed to get the worst of the debris out of the way and send as many spiders into the next life as possible. He was almost ready to bring Marquise and with the man secured he could move the bulk of the equipment. He was not inclined to leave moving Marquise to last in the event the ceiling did give out under the weight of snow and battering of the wind. The sleeping bag would have to be sufficient to keep him warm until Duo could get the tent erected, then he would need to get them both something hot to eat to help warm them up after the transfer. “I could set a fire burning though. That will help keep Marquise warm while I fetch the gear.” There was sufficient debris about the pantry cave and the hut itself and he was quick to collect a healthy pile to one side of the door. The wood gathered from rotting shelves and broken barrels and furniture caught quickly and he wondered how long it would last. It would at least raise the temperature to something approaching a tolerable level of cold for a time. ————————- He could feel Duo was disturbed. Some days his empathy was patchy at best but when it came to Duo he had a better sense of perception. Quatre was uncertain what it was that bound them, but it existed. He knew the gamut of Duo’s emotions, first worry growing to concern and touching on fear. These had passed and a sense of triumph followed by almost contentment had been shared. The comfortable feeling had spiked into something approximating surprise and just recently the familiar sense of unease which was Duo’s special talent had returned. Only he knew Duo lay claim to an extra sensory ability. His friend called it an instinct and perhaps it was as simple as that. Quatre did not know quite how to define what it was Duo did, but he had learned to trust his friend when he made what seemed to be irrational decisions. Heading out into the teeth of a Sancian blizzard could certainly be described as irrational. “Quatre.” Trowa settled on the couch beside his lover and rested his head against the backrest, green eyes closed. “Finished for the night?” “Yuy called. He can not find Duo.” “Ah.” He had wondered how long it would be before anyone noticed. “Do you know where he is?” Hard blue eyes rose to meet green and Trowa wondered how anyone could call Quatre sweet. He was deceptive, his lover, a chameleon. He was what he needed to be, strong when required, hard nosed at the negotiating table, generous to a fault and he felt the pain of the world itself. Quatre was many things, but weak was not one of them. “Of course I know. If you care to think about it, so do you.” “He didn't wait, did he?” Rolling his eyes Quatre rose and moved to the window, drawing aside the curtain. Normally from this window you could admire a spectacular view of the night lights of New Port City. Tonight there was only wind driven snow. Not a single light peeked through the blizzard to be a beacon in the darkness. “Did you honestly expect him to?” “Christ.” Trowa scrubbed at his face. “Une has agents due at Marquise’s place within the hour. If the bloody man did not live in the middle of nowhere it would be easier to check on him.” “He is with Duo.” “You can’t know that, Quatre.” Full lips turned up into a gentle smile. “I do.” The one time mercenary scowled and suppressed a shiver. When Quatre used that tone of voice it brought to mind the weird things known to happen about him. They were veterans of the war, soldiers who had survived hell and found in each other a reason to continue living. They were like chalk and cheese and he did not understand what Quatre saw in him. “I love you.” “Don’t do that.” He whispered, knowing Quatre thought he needed reassurance. “I’m just saying I love you. I know you don’t need me to say it, but I like to tell you. We survived the war, Trowa. We are supposed to enjoy the peace we fought to achieve and all around us I see the signs nothing has really changed. It’s disheartening and I need to know something good came out of the chaos. The war brought me to you and that is very good.” “You are the best thing that happened to me.” He could admit that. Once the smallest of the five Quatre was now not so much shorter that Trowa, only a few inches separating them, and he was sleek and muscled like a dancer. With regret Trowa discarded the idea of embracing his lover and dragging him off to their bed to do a fair imitation of bunnies. With Duo out in the storm there would be no lovers tryst. “I’ll start collecting the equipment.” “It is already assembled.” Quatre murmured. “I think you will find I have forgotten nothing.” Sometimes Quatre could be positively eerie. “Then I will call the others and we will go after that lunatic.” “No.” Trowa paused for a moment, uncertain he had heard right. “No?” “We are not going after Duo tonight. It would be foolhardy. When he departed there was still the chance he could make it into the highlands. He is a veteran pilot, one of the best in the Earth Sphere. He had the skill to go then but not even Duo could fly in this.” “He’ll die out there.” “He is very good at surviving. He has a good feel for time; for knowing the right time to act. That time was this afternoon, not now. None of you trusted his instinct and now it is too late. We will need to wait out the storm before we consider rescue.” Trowa moved to the window and stared into the darkness. There were lights somewhere down there, an entire city full of lights and yet the night was pitch black. “He will die out in this.” “He’s not out in this.” Quatre smiled and turned to face Trowa. “Duo is making himself comfortable with the survival gear I installed on the chopper he took. I tried to think of everything he might feasibly need and he has sufficient food to last him for days.” “He should have waited for confirmation Marquise is at his residence. It was a needless risk to take.” “I doubt Zechs would agree with you. He’s not at his residence, Trowa; he’s out there, with Duo in the mountains.” “He has enemies enough to want him dead, though it is not generally known he is alive. Wanting and acting are two different things.” “He was willing to pay the price.” Quatre whispered. “I don’t think if it was me I would have had the strength to do what he did.” “He threatened to destroy a planet.” “He achieved exactly what he intended to. I would hate to face that man across the negotiating table if he dabbled in business the way he dabbled in world politics. He can be utterly ruthless to achieve his goals and that is a frightening thing. Like us, he survived the war, a hardened veteran who looked into hell and walked out alive. The war changed us all in different ways, but that man would do exactly what he did again if there was a need.” “You sound like you admire him. He was the enemy. He was the crazy son of a bitch who wanted to destroy everything.” Quatre sighed softly. “Did he, Trowa? Did he really? You should talk to Heero some time, about what happened on Libra during that last day. Sometimes things are not as clear as we think.” For a long time they stood at the window and stared into the darkness, each lost in their own thoughts. Finally Quate stepped away, dropping the curtain and turning to his lover. “Let’s go to bed and bop like bunnies. Duo is settling down to sleep and I need warming.” End
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