If You Watch
By Mirror and Image

Duo looked out at the dark clouds rolling in and felt the strong breeze that had helped the sails of the rocking ship as it made it's way to the west. The presence of such dangerous clouds posed an aumonous threat to him and his ship. Not a good sign, considering this was his first time out of his country, aside from the visits to his cousin Quatre.

His father, King Maxwell had brought him on this trip to a far western country in hopes that it might be beneficial for him. Prince Duo just shrugged it off and decided to have some fun. So he was supposed to go to a country he could barely speak the language of. Nothing would happen to him there, as prince to the mountain king, so he made light of everything along the way.

But those storm clouds took the fun out of everything. The captain of the ship was already barking orders. It wasn't long before the storm hit, tossing the large ship through the seas like a child would play with a toy in the bath.

Never being one to sit on the safe sidelines, Duo tucked his braid under his shirt, (a trick he learned long ago to keep it from slapping him in the wind) and started to help the sailors. Though they were obviously grateful for the help, several shipmates told Duo to get back to the cabin for his safety.

"I will be king one day," his shout replied over the wind, "and I will not let people do something I wouldn't do myself!" He didn't give them a chance to answer as he dashed over the sip to the stern and helped the captain with the wheel.

"Thank you," the captain gasped, struggling to hold the ship on course. "I've got it from here."

"Right," Duo replied, looking over the ship. Though his kingdom was mostly that of a mountain, he was very familiar with the ships that inhabited their large and prosperous harbor. Being a good sailor himself, he noticed that the sails that had been pulled in at the mast were coming loose, and that could be disastrous.

Making sure the captain had another strong body to help him steer, Duo scrambled up the rigging, starting to retie the mainsail and keep it from tearing. He was only halfway done when a shout came from down below.

"TIDAL WAVE!!"

Damn it, Duo thought angrily. He peered through the inky blackness, straining to see the menace that could derstroy them. He didn't have much chance as the towering black wave went right by them, sending the ship heaving to port. Duo completely lost his balance as his stomach dove to his feet and then up to his brain. Suddenly aware that he was in open air with nothing around him, Duo flailed wildly, trying to figure out which was was up. He soon found out as he fell face first into the sea, eyes wide open and stinging from the salt water. No, not stinging, more like burning… inferno… stabbing… OUCH!!! That pain came from his leg which was being pulled in the opposite direction of wherever he was going. He tried to open his eyes under the water, to see what was wrong with his foot, but even opening them a crack sent waves of pain through his head as the underwater current pulled him along.

Suddenly, he wasn't underwater any longer. "What the hell?" he whispered. Arms were suddenly around him, something was being pulled off his leg. Of course, I got tangled in the lines! That was about ther last thought the mountain prince fell unconcious, slipping into a fevered dream.

When they had finally reached the shore of the western country they were seeking, Duo was very close to death. His fever had steadily risen, often times sending him into convulsions, thrashing about and knocking things over. He had been sealed in his room, but his germs just seemed to fester in a warm cramped environment. The top physician of the country was sent for, aiding Duo in whatever way he could.

One morning, after a week of medical treatments, Prince Duo finally regained conciousness. As his eyes fluttered open, his father shouted out, "DUO!! YOU'RE ALIVE!! YOU'LL BE ALRIGHT!!"

"Hey pops," Duo muttered, still very weak. "Hey, could you light a candle or something, its waaaaay too dark in here." There was a long awkward silence. "Father Maxwell?"

"Doctor," the king said, "why can't my boy see anything?" Duo almost sat up in surprise, if it weren't for the fact that he hadn't the strength. He listened to some sort of translater speak, and then, presumably the doctor. He picked out a few words, but everything was just going way to fast, and he was for too tired to concentrate.

"Father Maxwell, what's wrong?"

"The doctor says," the interpretor answered to the king, his accent slightly on the thick side, "that because your son hit salt water with open eyes, he has lost his sight.

"WHAT??" came from the king and prince.

"It may be temporary, but you'd best prepare for it to be permanent. He must rest for a while, but your visit here was planned to take a while, and he will get the very best care."

Duo looked around in the darkness. Was this really to be his world for the rest of his life? There was so much in the world he wanted to see!! He wanted to see his people if they needed his help, he wanted to see his cousin's corination, he wanted to see this country in the west that was so different, he wanted to see his father, for he could hear him crying, he wanted to see the doctor, prove him wrong! Show him he could see! But ther darkness merely surrounded him, as he fell into an exhausted sleep.

Duo slid into his kimono with practiced blind ease. He had been getting stronger ever since he had finally woken up a month before. However, both kings and the doctors insisted he stay in his room, not knowing his way around the palace, and no good interpretor was available to guide him. The mountain prince, however, did not listen to them. He had already learned his way around his room, memorizing it, though he longed to see some of the items he held in his hands. His father had described the beautiful gold carvings, or colorful paintings that were in his room, but it just wasn't the same as seeing it first hand.

Sliding his braid behind his kimono, Duo picked the lock on his door and slid out. The king of this country had seen him at one point in his exploring, and ordered the door locked for the mountain prince's safety. Duo didn't mind. That merely meant he had a chance to get out without someone knowing, letting him walk around without someone trying to "guide" him.

I don't need a guide if I can sense the openess around me, he thought, counting his steps. He could always find his way back, and he had an instinct for when there was a new doorway or hall around him. He kept those numbers in his head as well, letting him know how to get back to his room. Besides, he always kept within the guest section of the castle. Going beyond would be an invasion of privacy, and he knew that in this country, insults weren't taken lightly.

What the mountain prince did not know this time, was that he missed one of the turns he usually made, and instead, went into the opposite direction.

Duo was beginning to wonder where he was. Once, when he was sure no one was around, he put his hand to the wall. It was a rice paper wall, which meant he wasn't where he thought he would be. He tried retracing his steps, but he just didn't know where he had taken that wrong turn. Sighing, he continued to manuver through the halls, trying to remember how to ask for directions and how to understand what was said to him.

With his mind so deep in thought, he didn't hear the footsteps coming around the corner. The crash was inevitable.

The voice below the mountain prince shouted all sorts of things in his foreign language that Duo recognized. Whenever learing a language, he learned all cuss words first. Whoever he ran into certainly had a mouth. Probably a servant for a guest to speak so colorfully.

"Aw…shit how do you apologize politely in this language??" Duo mumbled. "Suma… um.. sami… argh…Ah! Suminasen!" he apologized, finally getting it right.

"Hn," was his reply. Standing, the mountian prince dusted himself off. "Doko… um, koko…. sore wa… How do I ask who you work for here in the guest section of the palace?" He reached back to rub his head and made sure his braid was still hidden under his kimono. He didn't want to be recognized, for that meant being sent back to his room until his eyes healed. And they would heal.

"You are not in the guest quarters," the same swearing voice said before with a slight accent. Translator? No, this guy was way to formal. A nobleman. It had to be a nobleman to speak so well with such a small accent. And a well off nobleman. "And I work for no one."

"I apologize, my lord," Duo replied, bowing in the direction of the voice, who was standing now. "I shall be on my way now."

Turning, Duo started to leave, praying that the nobleman he just met hadn't recognized him. If the boy had such a good understanding of his language, then chances were good that he'd recognize a visiting prince, and that was the last thing Duo wanted.

"Matte!" the voice said. [Wait!]

Duo stopped, but did not turn. He heard footsteps come closer approach him, so the mountain prince turned toward the nobleman.

"How did you know I was a nobleman when you called me a servant before?" came the accented voice.

"You cuss like a servant, but only a nobleman would know my language and so well. Translators tend to lay the accent on thick. You speak it well, meaning you've been learning since you were a child."

"Hn. I'll guide you back to your room, Prince Duo."

Damn it. Duo scoffed, saying, "I don't need you're help, my lord. I can find my way back myself."

"Hn. I doubt that." Duo said nothing and started to retrace his steps, keeping count of each and making sure he felt the his surroundings. Unfortunately, with this nobleman following him, he couldn't concentrate, and tripped over a low table. "It looks like I'm correct."

"Back off," the mountain prince muttered angrily. Standing he looked over to the voice that was so irritating. "You don't know a thing about me, so don't go belittleing me."

"Prince Duo, son of King Maxwell, here visiting our king. Loves to play pranks and has a famous scense of humor, though strongly curbed since coming to this island nation, due to his accident at sea that almost killed him. You hit the water face first with your eyes wide open, causing permanent blindness."

Without really thinking of protocol, Duo punched through the darkness to the boy, and heard a satisfying thump as his insulter hit the floor.

"I will see again. This is not permanent, I just need time to heal." Forcing his anger down, Duo calmly walked over to the nobleman, helped him up and drapped his arm around the thin shoulders. He had done this so often, he didn't need to see what he was doing. "You know, you obviously understand how to get on people's nerves, buddy," he said cheerfully. "But you know what? I do too." The boy squirmed under his grip. "For example, I know that in this country, physical contact can be a breech of etiquitte. And you're proving my point right now."

The nobleman finally broke away, and Duo could almost hear the glare he was receiving. "You've made your point. But can you get back to your room before being noticed your gone?"

Sighing, the mountain prince replied, "Nope. I am utterly lost for a change. Normally, I know where I am, but this just sucks."

"Hn," the nobleman replied. Duo heard him walk towards him, and he felt the nobleman's cool hand grab his wrist and start pulling.

Duo, not liking the idea of being lead, pulled away. "I can follow you."

"Really?" the other young man replied. "After falling earlier?"

"Just watch me," the mountain prince replied cheerily. Starting slowly, the nobleman started to walk down one of the halls. Duo easily kept pace with him. "You can walk at a normal pace, ya know," Duo said mockingly. The nobleman made no reply, but walked at a normal pace. Duo kept up with him, no problem.

"So what's your name, my lord," Duo asked, deciding that all the fun had better be put aside. After all, he had seriously infringed on the etiquette of this country that he still wasn't completely sure of. It was probably best not to push any more of his luck since this nobleman had not said anything about it.

"Heero. Don't call me -sama either."

"Okay Hee-kun."

"Don't call me that either."

"Right."

"You are a fool, you realize."

"And how do you figure that, Heero-san?"

"No need for the -san either. Just Heero will do," the nobleman growled. "You tried to tie every piece of rigging. You should have focused on the ends and the middle parts of the mainsail. You only gave yourself more work to do, wich gave you more time to get caught in that tidal wave."

Duo smiled brightly, and the two entered into a long conversation about the sea and sailing. The mountain prince found this, sea prince to be very knowledgable, surpassing his own expirience at times, and that gave Duo a new friend. Wether the nobleman saw him as a friend or an annoyance, however, was yet to be determained. The conversation veered away from sailing, but remained light and cordial.

"You're door's locked," Heero stated when they reached Duo's room.

"Of course!" Duo winked. "Can't let anyone think I actually am exploring, now can I?"

"You are a very odd person."

"Domo arigatoo gozaimashita."[A very polite "Thank you"]

"You don't have to be so formal to me."

"Well," Duo smiled, "Thank you for guiding me back to my room. You had probably better get back to whatever you were doing before we ran into each other."

"Hn."

Duo and Heero became close friends over the months that Duo spent in the strange country in the west. The mountain prince was just happy to have a compainion who was similar to him, for most nobleman were too stuck up for his taste. Heero was actually quite gruff and rough around the edges, which Duo prefered to a false pompus attidude. The sea prince found Duo fascinating in the scense that this mountain prince from the far east simply did not understand when to concede defeat. Everything was a challenge to him to overcome, and in as a tightly controlled society as Heero lived in, to see someone so energetic, boistrus and challenging was quite new and captivationg.

As their friendship grew, Heero taught Duo his native language, giving Duo a better understanding of being formal or not. So Duo learned more about the country he stayed in and their difficult system of honor. Duo, meanwhile, infuriated Heero with is ability, despite being blind, of spotting him wherever he was. So Heero learned how to be more light on his feet, slowly learning the tricks that Duo used when sneeking around. But what they enjoyed most about each other was their mutual love of the sea. Though Duo loved the mountains more, the sea prince and mountain prince would often go sailing together with other nobleman.

One day, the mountain prince was being examined by the doctor. An interpretor was no longer needed, for Duo had learned the language well. As the doctor apologized for being so close and studied his eyes, Duo pointed to the rice paper door.

"Hee-kun! Doko doko!" Duo still teased Heero with that name. [Where are you!]

"Baka!" Heero muttered, opening the door and coming in. "I thought you didn't here me," he grumbled. [Idiot!]

"I didn't," Duo said, his smile radiating. "I could see you're outline in the door." The doctor and Heero facefautled.

"NANI???" they both demanded. [WHAT???]

"This morning, when I woke up, I could see vague lines and shapes. It's hardly clear vision, but its on its way back!!" Duo stood up and whooped. Not caring about protocol, he started dancing around the room. "I CAN SEE AGAIN!! I CAN SEE!!!!"

The friendship of the mountain and sea prince continued to grow, but soon, it was time for the Maxwells to return home once again. The week before they were to leave, Duo and Heero were out in the garden of the castle, laying down on the grass and looking up at the clouds.

"You know, Heero," Duo said. "I still can't see everything clearly."

"But you are almost there."

"I know, but I'll be gone before I can. I know here in you're contry, you don't like people getting very close. That's reserved for intimate relations and stuff like that. I've been obeying that custom ever since I got here."

"Not entirely. When we first met you certainly didn't."

"That's not the point. The point is, because I've kept my distance, I still don't know what you look like. I could never see you're face clearly. Would you mind if I were to get close enough so that I could? I'd like to know the face of the friend I left behind when I go home and I'd like to be able to reocognize you whenever I come back."

There was a long silence.

"Yes, you may."

"Domo arigatou gozaimashita." Sitting up, the mountain prince leaned over, almost touching his nose to see the sea prince's to see clearly the cobalt blue eyes of his best friend.[An extremely polite "Thank you".]

"NANI O??? DARE WA??? HEERO-SAMA!!!!" [WHAT??? WHO ARE??? LORD HEERO!!!!]

The mountain prince was forcably pulled away from the sea prince. Realizing what it must have looked like, both Heero and Duo tried to explain to the solider who was dragging Duo away.

"Otou-sama wa Makusuwelu-sama desu!" Duo cried out. [I have no idea if that's grammatically right, but I mean to say "My father is King Maxell!"]

The guard replied in the foreign tounge, "I don't care who you're daddy is! No one kisses Prince Heero!"

"Prince??" Duo exclaimed in he native tounge. He always thought that Heero was just a rich nobleman! He acted like nobility, and everyone treated him like nobility, but no one had ever caled him prince before!

Aw damn, the mountain prince thought. I'm in some deep shit now. Kissing a prince must be the most extreme breech of protocol, even if I wasn't kissing him. Well pops, let's see how you get me out of this jam.

Duo found that King Maxwell wasn't very pleased with his son. In fact, infuriated would be a better word for it. Duo never thought that so many cuss words could come from his father of all places.

"Look, Otou-san," the mountain prince interjected into King Maxwell's tirade. "I didn't kiss Heero, nor did he kiss me. As I've told everyone, I just wanted to see his face before I left. I even asked him to get that close. There was no breech of protocol." [Father]

"You fool! Don't you understand??" King Maxwell raved. "That doesn't matter! A member of the royal guard misinterpreted what he saw, yes, but he claims you were kissing the very prince he's supossed to protect! These are superstitious people, you idiot! They had a hard time believing that you were suddenly getting back your sight, and no one even knows how you met Prince Heero! The people of this country think you're some sort of demon! Especially since you dress in black and look different with your long braid and violet eyes!"

"Hey!" Duo intereupted. "Our entire country usually dresses in black! My mother had violet eyes, and I haven't cut my hair once since she died! As a prince, my private life should be common knowledge. People would know that!"

"You really are a stupid idiot aren't you," the king shouted. "The people think it's all lies, that you're a demon, and that you're forcing Prince Heero to say nothing happened! Your sentence will be death!!"

The mountain prince fell back from his cot, coughing at the dust he dislodged and staring blurrily at his father. Death?? Surely his father could get him out of this! He couldn't die yet! There was still so much he wanted to do for his kingdom, and he wasn't even king yet! There was still a world to see!

"Suminasen," Duo apologized. "I didn't mean to disgrace you."[Polite "I'm sorry."]

"Get up," King Maxwell said, his voice loosing patience. "You're not dead yet. You're actually quite lucky. Prince Heero's father isn't as superstitious as his people, and he believes that nothing happened between you two. But, he does have to answer to his people."

"So what am I going to do?" Duo asked quietly.

"Prince Heero has challenged you to ritual combat. Mainly because, as you say, your private life is public knowledge. The people of this country know that when you were a child, you used to call yourself the God of Death."

"Even that's been counted against me," the braided prince moaned. "So I fight Heero. When I win-"

"You won't win," King Maxwell said firmly. "Heero-sama has been training with a sword a lot longer than you've been training. He'll win. When he does, when he's defeated the might Shinegami, you will be his slave. His first and only order to you will be that, because of different cultures, and because you're a demon, you'll be banished from this country, never to return. You'll be able to come home with no major damage to either side."

"Arigatoo, pops," Duo said smiling a feral smile. "You've planned this all out rather well. But there's one thing you fogot."[Thanks.]

"Oh?"

"No body can be me and my scythe Deathscythe. Not even Heero if he's had that much training."

Raising his hands in disgust, King Maxwell turned, groaning loudly. "What a son you boar me," he said to his dead wife. "Our son's going to kill himself."

"I love you too, dad," the mountain prince muttered. "I'll defeat, Hee-kun, no doubt about that."

Shackled, the mountain prince was led to the arena where ritual combat was fought. The braided youth found it very similair to a circus with all the people cheering for his death. Aren't I Mr. Popular…. Looking around, Duo saw the two kings not far from the arena, quietly talking.

No doubt pops is assuring King Yuy that I can't win. The mountain prince smiled. But he's thinking wrong. Shoved onto the fighting platform, Duo's hands were unbound. At the other side of the ring, Heero was in fighting gi and selecting a no-datchi. Duo didn't bother perusing the weapons before him, he just grabbed a tall scythe attached to a long pole. Deathscythe, it's good to have you in my grip again.

The crowd continued to yell and scream, so Duo took the opportunity to glare at Heero.

"Thanks for mentioning you were a prince, Hee-kun," Duo teased in his native language.

"As a prince," Heero replied smugly, "you should have known the names of my father's children."

"Well excuse me for being to busy trying to heal my eyes," the violet eyed youth smiled. Squinting, he could see that the sea princes blade was no kendo stick. It was glinting under the lights. Duo shrugged and turned to the kings, bowing.

Heero did likewise and they both bowed to each other. The crowd went silent, waiting for their beloved prince to kill the demon. They circled each other, Duo squinting to make out Heero's form. The fight commenced with Heero running forward and the crowd roared.

To be blunt, Duo was not doing well. Barely keeping pace, Duo found that everything was too blurred for him to get a good scence of whether that was the sea prince he was seeing, or just someone in the crowd. Blocking Heero again, the mountain prince rolled away and the two started circling again. The crowd was in an uproar, cheering their prince on. Duo blocked all the noise out and tried to find a way to win. K'so!! Everything's so blurred, I can't even see where I'm going! I should be winning! No one can beat Deathscythe and me. An idea occurred to him and he straightened. [Depending on intensity, k'so can mean damn/shit/---k. You decide which Duo meant.]

"Do you conceed the fight?" Heero demanded, his normally slight accent becoming gruffer.

Duo just smiled as he ripped off his sleeve. "Wouldn't dream of it Hee-kun." Closing his eyes, Duo wrapped the cloth around his them. The crowd gasped. "This should even the odds."

With a yell, Duo charged, clashing perfectly with Heero, rather than the fumbling he had been doing up until now.

"Baka," Heero said quietly. "Do you wish seppuku?"[Idiot. Seppuku is a ritual suicide via disembowelment. aka cutting out your insides.]

"Iya, Hee-kun," Duo cheerfully replied. "I just needed to be rid of some distractions."[Nope.]

The sea prince found that he was suddenly hard pressed to keep up in skill with the mountain prince. He fought better blind than seeing, and the crowd was roaring in anger. To make matters worse, Duo was toying with him, not taking opportunities when he easily could have killed Heero.

Locking metal again, Heero demanded, "What are you doing??"

"Making sure that I look human to the crowd. I'll defeat you, but the people must understand that I'm human. Take a chance and cut me. Demons, after all, don't bleed do they?"

"Baka."[Idiot.]

"Arigatoo."[Thanks]

Pulling away, Duo swung Deathscythe high over his head and Heero took the opeing to slice open the blind youth's side. It wasn't a serious wound, but the crowd gasped as blood dripped down Duo's clothes.

"Hee-kun," Duo muttered. "Did ya have to do it so deep??" Hearing Heero stepping up behind him, the mountain prince swung his scythe around, knocking Heero's no datchi from his grasp. The sea prince dove for his sword, but Duo pitched Deathscythe forward. It landed between Heero and his sword.

Duo clutched his side. It wasn't a bad cut, but it was starting to sting. He heard Heero walking over to him. Don't tell me he wants to make this a fist fight. Instead, he listened to the sea prince bow.

"I coneed the fight." Silence hung in the arena as Duo ripped off his blindfold.

I don't think the crowd's going to like that. Quickly thinking what was going to happen to him, he decided to use the kings' plan, if in a slightly different sense. Speaking so the crowd could understand, he lifted his voice.

"Heero-sama," he started, making sure he remembered every drop of formality he learned. "You are by far my better in every way." Duo inwardly rolled his eyes, but remembered he had to keep various reputaions in one piece. "I have been informed that here, in you're wonderful country, he who conceeds the fight must become a slave." The crowd started shouthing profainities, but the mountain prince kept talking. "I believe it would be an honor to have such a friend as you by my side. However, I would have you by my side as my equal, or my better, but not my slave. Therefore, I shall only give you one order." Duo choked on how much formailty he was using. And he hadn't even sworn yet. What was he coming to? "I order you to do as you see fit for you country. I have no need of slaves, and I give you the freedome to do as you think is best." The crowd was silent.

Walking over to the discarded weapons, Duo picked them up and handed the sword back to Heero. Clutching his side, Duo walked out of the arena, not looking back.

The day had finally come for the Maxwells to return home The mountain prince, however, found that both kings were rather cold towards him and he didn't understand why.

"O-sama," Duo addressed King Yuy. "Where is your son? I would have liked to say good-bye."[King]

Both King Yuy and King Maxwell glared at him.

"Right. I guess I should board the ship."

Two weeks out at sea, Duo was partying. That morning was the first one when he woke up and he could see everything clearly, just as before he had visited the strange western country His father had been rather subdued about it, but still celebrated with the best of them. Come to think of it, the mountain prince had noticed that the mountain king had been subdued ever since they had left the island kingdom. Shrugging it off, Duo entered his room and yawned, flopping down onto his bed.

He was almost asleep when he bolted upward, glaring at a dark corner. "HEERO???"

"Hn." The sea prince emerged from the shadows

"What the hell are you doing here?? Arent' you supposed to be with your people, being a prince?"

Heero did not reply.

"But…I told you to do what you thought was best! Caring for your people is best, isnt' it?…..Oh, I get it….you left to preserve you family honor didn't you?"

"Hn."

"I messed up didn't I? Oh well. Glad to have you aboard Hee-kun. I gotta tell you about my country!" The End