27-July-2000
Title: Mission Arcadia
bonnejean & vonceia *present*Category: yaoi, AU
RavynFyre & Kateri Marie
in The B&V Guest Authors Series!
Duo - words, thoughts, actions - RavynFyre
Heero - words, thoughts actions - Kateri Marie
Rip & Jack, Their World and General Production - bonnejeanne & vonceia
In the other room, Duan looked Heero in the eye, very, very seriously. He didn't dare look anywhere else because if he did, he would crack and he had to try and keep everything together even though the bottom had dropped out of his world.
Heero saw the look in the boy's eyes and it lanced through his vaunted control. It was a look that had always torn at a heart he hadn't known he had, the one that said "I'm trying to be brave" all the while having tears lurking behind it.
Thanking whatever God had led him to Duo so he could learn how to reach, Heero felt his arms lift to encircle the small boy. "It was not your fault." He repeated, before drawing the boy in tightly.
Duan stiffened, his body still shaking. The contact proved too much for his senses to handle and he drew in a sharp breath and let the dammed tears behind his eyes fall where they would. "Yes..." he contradicted Heero. "It's all my fault. Kenny... hates me!"
"No." Heero pulled the little boy in as close as he could, trying to absorb the tears, take the weight away from the child. "He doesn't hate you. He doesn't."
Duan took small panting breaths. "Heero," he managed, finding what strength he had left inside. "Y.. you gotta do something for me, ok?"
"Hai." Heero said, his voice thick.
Duan squirmed back a little. He needed to see Heero, needed to look in his eyes. "You... take good care of Kenny. He..he's good. He's hurt bad. He's not like me... You promise?"
Heero had to take a few breaths but he never dropped his eyes from the boy's as he spoke. "We'll take good care of both of you. I give you my word. You're good too, Duan. A wish..." He paused for a moment, gathering his thoughts, wishing briefly that he had Duo's skill with this. "A wish doesn't make you bad... It makes you human." He swallowed hard, remembering just how long it had taken him to lean to be human himself. Then his eyes were looking deeply into Duan's. "You're hurt too. But we're going to take care of both of you. I promise you that. We're not letting you go." His hands tightened as he finished one of his longest speeches in a lifetime, as if to emphasize the very words he'd spoken and he hoped fervently that they'd been understood.
Duan blinked, feeling Heero's words more than understanding all of them. Fresh tears spilled over his eyes. "I'm... not bad?" he said, trying to work that one out. "But I talk a lot and get into trouble, too."
"So does Duo." Heero grated out. "And I love him too." Duan would never know how long and hard he had to work to say those words to anyone, but that was just as well.
Duan looked back at Heero and finally, allowed himself to relax a bit. Then, he smiled and hugged Heero around the neck. "Nobody ever wanted me," he said against Heero's neck.
"We do." Heero managed to get out before running out of air. But, he figured, breathing could be overrated anyway.
Duan nodded a lot. "Want you too," Duan managed. "We gotta take care of Kenny... all of us."
At that moment Duan and Heero heard the cry from the bedroom.
In one smooth movement, Heero moved to his feet, taking Duan securely with him. "Let's go check on them." And moving a hand ever so slightly, he gave a gentle tug on Duan's braid.
Duan giggled.
They came in and saw Kenny curled in a ball and Duo attempting to comfort him. The little boy seemed to be slowly loosing the battle to stay in touch with the world around him.
Duo glanced up at the pair in the doorway, his eyes blurry with tears, and a concerned expression on his face.
"Duan... who was the Professor?" he asked softly.
Duan looked at Duo, managing to tear his eyes away from his friend for a moment. "The Professor was a scientist. They were on the lower level. The Professor..." he began then closed his eyes a moment. "The Professor invented the control system for the mobile suits. He also was instrumental in founding the Alpha-2 Project," he said, almost mechanically.
Blinking, Duan opened his eyes looking back at Duo.
"Alpha-2 project?" Heero asked, dread forming in the pit of his stomach. His whole system seemed to be frozen, waiting for the boy's answer, hoping violently that it wasn't what he dreaded it would be.
Kenny shuddered, without looking up. "Secret," he whispered.
"Yeah," Duan said. "The Professor was testing all the kids, me too. Said he wanted the best ones for this project. Helen said ... she told me not to tell him I..." he began, then looked down. "I can remember things... like books, stuff that's written down. She said I have a photographic memory. I didn't tell the Professor and he told me I was too dumb for the project."
Duo's jaw clenched, rage trembling along every nerve in his body. It wasn't finished. He'd have to go back to that base now. It wouldn't be finished until he could find the charred remains of this "professor's" corpse and piss on it. Then it would be done.
Heero held onto Duan a little tighter but couldn't manage a word. He'd used up his quota and whatever words were left abandoned him in the face of this.
Duo's hold on Kenny tightened a little more, his hands still slowly smoothing down the boy's hair and massaging along his back.
"Kenny... tell me about the project... We're here to keep you safe... please?"
Kenny shuddered again.
"Please, kiddo? I just need to know where to go to blow it all up... I promise."
Kenny struggled, breathing short, panting breaths. He lifted his head, and then suddenly seemed to grow calm. He turned his head, his eyes finding Heero's, with no expression in them. One of his hands fumbled with Duo's arms, then stilled.
"Ma agreed," Kenny said in a soft voice devoid of any expression at all. "He taught me things. It was a secret. He said even Ma wasn't important. There were lights and stuff. Not supposed to cry or want things. Do what I'm told. I tried to tell Ma. She talked to him. He lied. Said I made it up. One time... she believed me."
Duan squirmed in Heero's arms.
Heero loosened his grip slightly without really being aware of it.
"Let.. let me down, ok?" Duan said, now understanding his friend in a new way.
Heero set Duan down gently and his eyes drifted from the two boys to Duo and back again.
Duan moved quickly to Duo and Kenny. He took Kenny's hand in his and squeezed it. "Kenny!" he said, shaking Kenny's hand a little. "Come on, Kenny. Don't go away.. ok?"
Kenny looked at Duan, blankly, then slowly his eyes filled with water. "Secret," he whispered. His hand tried to curl around Duan's. He closed his eyes. Then suddenly he said fiercely, "Ma died... so I could get away. Not... letting him... no." He swallowed over and over, fighting.
"It's ok," Duan said, "She did a good thing. She was a good person. Now, she's an angel. So, you gotta come back and be here. Heero and Duo want us! So, you gotta be here too! Please, Kenny!"
"Please." Heero mustered his own voice, forcing the unfamiliar word off his lips. He knew how hard it was to come back. He didn't want to lose Kenny.
"We need you, Kenny. *I* need you..." Duo whispered, his arms squeezing against the boy comfortingly.
Kenny closed his eyes again and the tension returned. Then he nodded his head violently. He reached out and tried to hug Duan and Duo at the same time, shaking. After a moment he squirmed out of Duo's arms and ran to Heero, kneeling at his feet, touching his leg tentatively. Looking at the ground, he said softly, "Sorry... I... couldn't tell."
"It's all right." Heero said. "I understand."
Duan looked up at Duo, then to Heero. Knowing that he would get flattened later, Duan spoke up anyway, "He needs a hug, Heero," he said, then backed up against Duo for protection.
"Hn." Heero responded with the slightest of glares before looking down at Kenny once more. He'd thought it but he remembered how strange it was.
Kenny shook his head, his mind swirling with too many thoughts and emotions. He wasn't supposed to need comfort. Swallowing, he stood up, wiping his face absently. "M'okay," he said, still looking at the ground.
"Kenny," Heero said softly, waiting for the boy to look up.
Kenny didn't want to look up this time. But after a moment he did, trying to keep his face controlled. It was so hard.
Heero nodded ever so slightly as the boy finally met his eyes. His arms came up slowly, carefully, he didn't want to scare the boy or make him think that he was doing it because Duan suggested it.
Kenny stood very still as he felt the embrace. "Why?" he whispered.
"Because I need you too." Heero said, not letting go, just holding the small boy. "And I remember."
The last two words were the ones that made the least sense... and the ones that Kenny felt in his heart, as he had felt from the moment he had first seen this person. Somehow... he knew. Even though there was no way it could be true.
"You... too?" he whispered, and his arms moved slowly up, circling Heero's neck with the lightest of touches, as if only a thought rested there.
Heero's eyes closed of their own accord, trying to fight off memories that he wanted nothing more than to forget. And when he spoke, his voice was more air than anything else, "Hai."
Kenny accepted the impossible. The tension in his body drained out slowly and he leaned his head on Heero's shoulder. He nodded. "I'm sorry," he whispered. He stopped struggling and let go of everything, with no idea what it would mean.
Heero held on tightly, refusing to let the boy fall as he felt him go limp. He heard the whispered words and shook his head, unable to voice it. If nothing else, he could understand Kenny, if nothing else good came, there was that. But he wished that it hadn't happened to Kenny. That one of them had been spared.
Duan turned to Duo. "They need us bad, don't they?" he asked, softly.
"Yeah. Now more than ever," Duo replied with a nod.
Duan nodded in agreement. "Ok. So, we gotta give 'em both a lot of hugs, cause they don't think they need 'em. That's not right. People need hugs. It's a place to start." he said.
"Yer a pretty smart kid, Duan," Duo said, giving the boy's shoulders a quick squeeze as he scooted towards Heero and Kenny.
Duan grinned and followed Duo.
Duo held out his arm, inviting Duan into their circle, before he enfolded everyone into a tight hug.
"Now none of us have to be alone anymore."
Duan breathed a sigh of relief.
"Ya know what? Every one of you guys are terrific. Yer all good people. And I'm going to keep telling you guys that until one of these days, maybe you'll believe me," Duo said, burying his face into the nearest shoulder.
Kenny hiccupped.
Then he took a breath and said softly, all in a rush, "I had a dream about Ma... she was standing behind Heero and Duo. She was smiling." then he buried his head in Heero's neck.
Heero was still trying to remember how to breathe. His senses were threatening to betray him entirely and there was a wetness behind his eyelids that felt suspiciously like tears. "Family." He tested out the word on his tongue.
"Wow," Duan said softly, as the realization hit him hard. "I..we.. family," he managed.
Muffled, Kenny said, again in a rush, "Prof said family not important. He LIED."
Duo's arms tightened against everyone.
"Big time. There's nothing more important than family," he managed to get out before a soft sob shook him.
Still waters may run deep, but shallow waters ran harder. The emotional roller coaster was starting to wear on Duo.
"Sallah said the Prof was an old coot," Duan said.
Heero tightened his grip on Duo, and nodded to Duan, "Hai."
Duan waited a few moments, then said, "So, who is Quatre, Trowa and Wufei?"
Heero blinked once or twice and then decided to give his lover a few more minutes to recover, "They're more family." His voice was firm.
Duo had taught him well.
"Hope they like kids," Duan said softly.
Duo took a shuddering breath, which turned into a giggle.
"Wu... heh... I'm picturing Wu-man's reaction..." he said, voice trailing off into another, almost hysterical, but not quite, giggle.
"Perhaps..." Heero let the thought trail off. Engaging in useless speculation was pointless. He looked Duo over carefully, not wanting to move him too soon, wanting to make sure he was okay.
Duo caught the piercing look, and sighed.
"I'm stronger than that, Yuy," he said, pulling away a little bit.
Heero flinched slightly and pulled Duo back towards him. "I never doubted that." He said, not meeting Duo's eyes. "I know you're stronger than that. Than me."
"Says the man who bends steel with his bare hands," Duo quipped, reaching out to lift Heero's chin with one hand. Forcing the Japanese boy to meet his gaze.
"Aishiteru, Hee-chan."
Heero felt his heart trip hammer in his chest like it always did when Duo said that. "Aishiteru, Duo."
There was a knock on the outer door.
"Room service!" The voice sounded a bit odd though.
Duo jumped a little, startled. He blinked a couple of times, simply staring at everyone encircled in his arms.
Duan looked up at Duo, then squirmed out of the circle. He made a beeline for the door.
"Wait." Heero said quickly. That voice... The oddity of it put him on edge and he moved quickly to intercept the small boy.
At the sound of Heero's voice, Duan froze where he stood. He blinked, looking up towards the room, but didn't touch the door.
Heero came over and with a touch pointed the boy just slightly to the side of the door. "We have to be careful with you two."
One hand resting easily on his gun, Heero opened the door.
Red hair and a pair of merry brown eyes greeted him. "Still sleeping? Eating? Playing video games?" Rip asked merrily.
"They have videogames on this thing?" Duo chirped as he entered the main part of the suit with Kenny in tow.
"Kami." Heero sighed, his eyes rolling. He debated for a moment, but let go of the gun and stepped back, leaving the way clear for Rip to enter without actually inviting him in.
Rip grinned, sauntering in. He managed to tickle Duan as he went past. "You could *try* shooting me. It might be fun," he said over his shoulder to the Japanese young man.
"Hn." Heero grunted.
Duan giggled, then ran over to take Kenny's hand.
Kenny, who was about 200% quieter than his already normally quiet self, simply looked at Duan and sat on the nearest piece of furniture.
Rip did not attempted to tickle Kenny. He looked at the quiet boy and his smile changed to one with a tiny bit of irony. But he didn't comment. Turning, he looked at Duo. "Feeling rested?"
"Does it matter?" Duo replied, wandering over to where he'd left Rip's belt hanging and handing it back to the redhead.
"Thanks, by the way."
"Did you get to use them?" Rip asked, not taking them right away.
"Naw... We were too busy blowing stuff up."
Rip looked at Duo for a moment. "Maybe... I'll let you keep them for a while."
Duo's eyebrows shot up, and he blinked in disbelief a few times.
"I- uh... Thanks."
Rip grinned. "I have five others you know," he said.
Duo made a show of peering at the redhead. "Damn. You guys have GOT to teach me that whole hammerspace trick," he muttered.
Rip shook his head. He tapped his ankles - one and two - then lifted his hands, and Duo could just spot the hilts of two more in drop sheaths. The Rip tapped the back of his neck.
"Heh. So what do we owe the pleasure of your illustrious company?" Duo asked, slinging on the belt.
Rip's eyebrows went up. "Um... I'm nosy and pushy?" he suggested.
"Besides that." If Heero's voice got any drier it would rival a desert.
"He's lusting after us?" Duo asked innocently.
Rip said absolutely nothing but the quality of his look was quite simple. It said, 'this is news?'
Heero growled ever so slightly, moving forward just enough to latch tightly onto Duo's braid. "Better not." He advised as he pulled Duo over.
Rip smiled. "You'll protect him... who protects you?" he said to Heero.
"Spose that would be me," Duo said, grinning. "Small comfort, that, ne?"
Rip laughed. "I gave up rape about... twenty years ago," he said, "For Lent." Then he laughed as if he'd just told the funniest joke he'd ever heard.
Duo choked on a laugh.
"We have unfinished business," he said, glancing at Heero. "However there's no real hurry. You are welcome to stay, as the Mayor mentioned last night. In fact there's going to be a party tonight in your honor. Getting everything you need?"
Heero visage darkened at the mere mention of 'party' but he said nothing and braced himself for Duo's reaction.
"Party? Sugoi! Sounds like a blast!" Duo said, grinning as he glanced down at Duan.
Duan smiled, then looked over a Heero. His head tilted and then he looked down. "They wanna thank you," he said to Heero, with a shrug.
Heero nodded, lightening the look for Duan's sake. "Understood."
"Don't mind him. Just every time anyone says 'party', he gets traumatic flashbacks of this girl we used to know," Duo said with a snicker.
Rip tilted his head. "The vice minister?"
"That would be the one."
Heero suppressed a shudder. Barely.
Rip grinned. "Hmmm... should I go pay her a visit?"
"Not if you want a reason to live." Heero muttered darkly.
Duo snickered at the thought of Relena's voice crying out "Riiipppperrr!"
No doubt that female psychopath would probably be drawn to Rip's inherent danger just as badly as she'd been obsessed with Heero's.
Rip shrugged, still grinning. "Maybe another time," he said. "Not supposed to mess with people fundamental to the timeline... but rules are made to be broken, aren't they?"
Duo smiled, glancing at Rip with curiosity.
"Does that mean our roles are done in our own world then?"
"No," Rip said. "It does not."
"It means that messing with you doesn't necessarily take you out of the picture. From what you are intimating, messing with the lady in question... well I might be in a position to do something permanent," Rip explained casually.
Heero snorted when Rip used the word lady to describe Relena but did not deign to comment.
"There's a tragedy," Duo muttered darkly, thinking back on all the grief she'd caused his partner. Then he suddenly shook his head and glanced back up. "Stop it, Duo. You're supposed to be a good person, now."
Rip laughed. "Fashions change with every season," he said.
"You don't like this girl, right?" Duan asked.
"Pray you never have to meet her, kiddo. Pray hard."
"She bad?" Duan said.
"Bad is an understatement."
"Annoying," Duo agreed.
"But that makes her like me, and you said you liked me." Duan said.
Kenny reached over, took Duan's braid and jerked it.
"Ow," Duan said, then looked back at Kenny. "I know.. shut up."
End of Part 13
bonnejeanne & vonceia present
RavynFyre and Kateri Marie
Please feel free to direct feedback to any or all of the authors!
ravynfyre@hotmail.com,
nacl3salaris@hotmail.com,
vonceia@yahoo.com,
bonnejeanne@yahoo.com.