1-Oct-2000
Title: Mission Arcadia
bonnejean & vonceia *present* RavynFyre & Kateri MarieCategory: yaoi, AU
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
Duan looked up at Duo and thought for a moment. "So, what's on my mind is.. I mean, they don't have to like us, right? You and Heero still want us...all of us?"
"Why does that sound like a question, kiddo?" Duo asked, giving the boy a quick hug.
Duan hugged back. "Cause.. you said they were your family... We supposed to like 'em?" he asked.
Kenny nodded, coming closer to support Duan. "You thought they would like us more?"
"I..." Duo broke off, shrugging a little, before tightening his hold against Duan.
"I really don't care what they think, actually," he said with his normal cheer.
"There is no need to pay attention to whether anyone likes you," a voice said, as Wufei walked over to the group.
"Hai." Heero agreed. "We like you."
Wufei looked at Duo and then Heero. "I don't know what has been happening, I don't know what you have done, but I am... I'm in."
Duo blinked in surprise. In retrospect, he really shouldn't have been surprised, but Wufei's acceptance threw him for a little bit of a loop.
"Get your eyes back in your head, Maxwell," Wufei answered the look with his traditional sardonic expression.
Duo had the grace to look sheepish as he murmured a quick apology.
Wufei raised an eyebrow, surprised he'd gotten an apology from Duo. He hadn't been expecting one.
Heero looked at the Chinese boy for a long moment with placid blue eyes and then bowed. "Arigato."
Wufei looked a tiny bit uncomfortable at that. "Unnecessary, Yuy," he said a bit gruffly.
"Do you have a plan... or is this one of the usual improvisational hit and runs?" he added.
Heero snorted.
"I always preferred the term, 'exploits', myself," Duo observed dryly, "But yeah. That's about the long and the short of it."
"You want to take the children to... um, our dimension, right?" Wufei pursued.
Duo suddenly sat up a little straighter and slapped his forehead with the palm of his hand.
"Crap! Guess what, Heero?" he exclaimed.
Heero raised an eloquent eyebrow.
"We're gonna hafta get a bigger place now! I completely forgot!"
Heero sighed. "Baka. We'll be fine."
Duan looked up at Wufei. "Yes," he replied.
Wufei inclined his head to Duan. "Thank you," he said.
"There's something else, as well, isn't there? Some kind of... mission," Wufei continued, looking from Heero to Duo.
"Yeah. Unfinished business. One last thing that needs to be taken care of, then we can be more sure that the peace will last. Wanna help?" Duo asked cheerfully.
Wufei crossed his arms. "Apparently, I've been drafted," he said. "It has something to do with... Epyon."
"No one's in who doesn't want to be," Duo replied, "But, yeah. That's what Rip and Jack thought."
Wufei nodded shortly. "I've been trying to find it for three months," he said.
Duan looked up at Wufei and then down to Kenny with a frown.
Kenny looked up and shrugged.
"Trying?" Duo asked warily.
"Yes, Maxwell. Trying."
"No success?" Heero asked concisely.
"It's not where Zechs left it." Wufei said.
Duo frowned, his gaze instinctively darting around the group to bounce off of each of the kids. The hunt would be more of a challenge than he'd anticipated. Not exactly the most... auspicious beginning to their new family.
Carter said softly, "Sometimes... I can find lost things..."
A frown crept onto Heero's face. "Last resort." He said curtly. He didn't want to inflict that on anyone. He looked up to Wufei, "Find anything?"
"Lots of things," Wufei said. "Useful? Not much. But I *will* find it."
"We will, Wu. We'll work together, ne?" Duo said, almost gently.
Wufei looked at Duo as if he had an impulse to refuse, then he nodded. "Very well. I'm not having the greatest success, I suppose... what are your plans when you find it?"
Duo blinked, slightly surprised at Wufei's capitulation. He covered the reaction quickly, but if Wufei was agreeing to help without a fight... The search must be frustrating him more than he was letting on. Duo affected a cheerful grin.
"Let Rip play, I would guess. And Jack. It's all their idea anyway."
"Is your Epyon like a moblie suit?" Duan asked.
Wufei looked down, surprised. "Yes," he answered. "....Treize's mobile suit."
"If it's a mobile suit and it's big, then there can't be that many places to hide it," Duan reasoned.
"Thanks for pointing that out," Wufei said dryly.
Duo chuckled softly, hugging Duan again.
"Just wait till you see our world, kiddo. Just you wait. It's huge. You'll go nuts."
Duan's eyes got real big. "Sorry," he said softly, then squirmed down off of Duo to stand next to Kenny, volunteering his braid.
Kenny accepted the appendage and held it loosely.
Heero chuckled at the boys and then shuddered slightly as the idea of the two boys running amuck on their world...
Then he shrugged philosophically to himself. It would be interesting.
Tryan looked up at Heero and tapped his hip.
Heero glanced down at the boy, eyebrows raised in question.
"I was thinking..." he began.
"THERE you are young man..." a voice from the front entrance of the hotel said.
Tryan took a deep breath and set his shoulders. He glanced up at Heero one last time. "You're really sure, right?" he said.
"Hai," Heero said with a nod, ruffling the boy's bangs just slightly.
"You think we'd hang you out to dry now?" Duo asked, sotto voce.
Katrina crossed the lobby to the group quickly. She looked... somewhat displeased. Also like she'd been mucking out animal cages.
Tryan walked up to meet Katrina. "Katrina, we gotta talk," he said.
Almost instinctively, Heero moved behind the boy, almost in a "flanking" position.
Katrina reached out as if to grab Tryan's ear, then saw Heero and thought better of it. "It seems your word doesn't count for anything these days. I'm disappointed in you, Tryan."
Heero's eyes narrowed. "We were interrupted."
Tryan dropped his head, then raised it back up.
Katrina looked at Heero and frowned. "Excuse me... you may be a local hero or something but you've no business interfering here."
"Yes, he does," Tryan said, "Katrina, I quit."
"That's about all from you, young ma..... What?!" Katrina stopped, her mouth dropping open. "You... you can't do that! We adopted you! The Carnivale is the only family you've ever known!"
"Not anymore," Tryan said. "I've got a new family now. I quit the Carnivale. I'm... I'm a part of something else now. I'm in training."
Katrina widened her eyes, then scowled. "That is unacceptable, Tryan. You owe the Carnivale for taking care of you! You can't just... run away from the circus you know!"
Tyan looked up and folded his arms across his chest. "I have done my share of stuff. I do more than some of the others. You can't keep me in the Carnivale forever. That's not right. And I'm not running away... I told you. I Quit!" he said.
"We'll see about that, young man!" Katrina said. "I'll just go get the Ringmaster and..." she suddenly blinked. Once, twice... again. "And.... tell... him that... you're leaving.... have fun, dear! Be careful!!" she finished, smiling at Tryan, and then turning to flounce off.
Heero watched her go, slowly un-tensing his muscles before turning to look unerringly at a small blond boy with eyebrow raised.
Carter looked up and blushed, dropping his head and looking very ashamed.
"Sorry..." he whispered to the floor.
Tryan stood there for a moment, his eyes filling with tears. Quickly, he wiped his eyes, then turned with resolve and saw Duo and Heero and all of his new family. He then walked back and stood next to Carter, taking the little blond boys hand. "Ok," he said, "I'm ready."
Heero joined the two and crouched just slightly, looking Carter in the eye. "Good job." He said softly. Then he turned to Tryan and nodded with a smile.
Carter looked up, his eyes shining with tears, and stared at Heero as if not believing his ears.
"But... it was wrong... wasn't it?" he said softly.
Heero inclined his head towards the boy, "I wouldn't do it on a regular basis... But there wasn't much choice..." He spoke softly, knowing full well that had Carter not intervened... Katrina would likely have been damaged.
Tryan blinked, looking from Carter to Heero and back. Suddenly, he hugged Carter real good and laughed.
Carter blinked, looking at Tryan as he got hugged. "Tryan... I'm sorry," he said, trying to put it together.
"I'm not," Tryan said, enthusiastically. "I'm glad. That could have been real bad. I was gonna hit her."
Carter's eyes widened. "Oh!"
Duo glanced up and met Wufei's gaze.
"Hm. Anger management courses, all around," Duo said with a sardonic grin.
Heero looked up at his lover with a half grin and laid his hand on the butt of the gun, grinning wider.
"Behave. You know that thing responds to thoughts," Duo replied with a leer.
Sallah approached the group slowly. She waited for a moment and then said quietly, "Can I talk to you?"
Duo nodded and waved her closer.
"Of course. What can we do ya for?"
"Please... I know something is gong on and that... it has to do with Wufan," she said. Her eyes pleaded with Duo to be straightforward with her.
Duo seemed to think for a few moments before he nodded to himself.
"We'll be going back to our own world soon. Taking Duan, Kenny, Tryan, and Carter with us," he said, and then paused, looking for the right words.
"Come with us. You'd like our world, and Wufan... we'd miss him, all of us, and I think... I think he'd miss these guys a lot. Come with us," Duo said.
Sallah looked a little surprised. She looked at Duo doubtfully for a moment. Then she said, "What is it like there? Is it... did you... did you avoid the mistakes we made here? Almost killing our world off...."
Duo sighed softly as he looked at her.
"We made different ones... But Heero and Wufei and the others that were here... We... We did our best to fix them," Duo said, trying to find the right words to explain. And for once, being tongue-tied.
He held out his hands and smiled ruefully.
"I know I like it there... It's got a lot going for it."
"Are there... real schools? And... and... an economy... civilization...." Sallah tried to put into words what she wanted to know.
"Schools, kids of all ages... Economies, countries, civilizations... Of course, some are more civilized than others, but, one expects that with different cultures and stuff. Not to mention the colonies. Lots of different cultures and places to live just in the space colonies," Duo replied.
"Space.... you made it to space..." Sallah said softly, eyes wide.
Duo nodded enthusiastically.
She looked at Wufan. Then she held her hand out to him. "Wufan..."
Wufan went over and took Sallah's hand. He pushed his glasses up on his nose and looked up at her wide-eyed. "Just like in the books!" he said, excitedly.
Sallah smiled, but it was a restrained one. "Wufan... would you like to go live there?"
Wufan blinked, knowing his answer in his heart. He looked back at the small party, then up at Wufei. Turning back, he looked up at Sallah. "Yes, I would," he said, quietly.
Sallah nodded. She looked up at Duo. Then she looked back at her son. "Would you... like to go alone? Tell me what you really think, Wufan."
Wufan thought hard. He frowned understanding what potential his words had. Looking back at Sallah, he took a deep breath. "You'd be... sad," he said. "I don't want you to be sad." Reaching up, he walked closer and gave Sallah a hug. This was really hard, but he thought of all of the stuff all of them had had to do. "I heard them say that I would learn things and I would come back.. like the others... yes, I would like to go. If you could come too, that would be great, but I don't think it's going to be the same anymore."
Sallah hugged Wufan gently. "I know. And that's okay, Wufan, because the way things used to be... it wasn't very good, not for you, not for the other children... not for me either. But I don't know... if I can start over in a new world. I would have to learn everything again... I want you to have it... but I'm afraid..."
Wufei watched and listened closely to this exchange. Butting into a private conversation was intensely distasteful to him, but he took a breath and said clearly, "I... will help you, Miss Po."
Sallah turned and looked at Wufei, her eyes round. She blushed and looked down.
"I... I could not..."
"Don't be a coward, onna," Wufei said, gruffly, but not harshly. "For your son, you can do it."
Sallah's eyes filled for a moment and she hugged Wufan tightly. Then she looked into his face.
"You really want this? Yes... I can see you do," she took and deep breath and then said, "All right... if it is really possible." She stood up and looked at Duo. "We will come." Then she looked at Wufei. "And... I will appreciate your help."
Wufan's eyes grew big behind his glasses. It seemed like a miracle to him, but it felt right. He looked up at Wufei and bowed deeply. "Thank you, Wufei," he said.
Wufei returned the bow. "First lesson - you may call me Sifu. I will be your teacher... in some things."
"Xie,xie," Wufan said, bowing once more.
Duo eyed Wufei speculatively, a wicked twinkle in his eyes as he drawled, "Now... Would that make you shrimp? How about Eeel... No! I got it. Carp."
"Maxwell..." Wufei said warningly.
"Yes, Wu-chan?" Duo replied innocently as he batted his eyelashes at the Chinese youth.
"Shut... up," Wufei answered.
Duo clutched at his chest melodramatically, feigning intense pain.
"Struck to the quick, Wu! And here I thought you loved me!" he pouted.
"Very funny, Maxwell," Wufei said. "Frankly, any kind of comeback would be wasted on you. In a battle of wits... you would not only be unarmed, but... paraplegic."
Duan took the end of Duo's braid and handed it to him. "Hold this," he said.
Duo nodded as he complied, "No doubt. I feel a yank coming on..." he said, eyeing Wufei warily.
"By the way," Duan said, leaning over conspiratorially. "I think that Wufan said that was a name for teacher and not somethin' ya eat," he advised.
"You seem to have more intelligence than your... larger version," Wufei said with an approving look.
Heero glared at Wufei warningly for a moment before rolling his eyes and muttering, "Baka." Though who he was referring to was anyone's guess.
"You may need to find yourself a new mentor, kiddo. Looks like yer smarter than me already," Duo quipped, tossing Duan a quick wink.
Duan looked up at Wufei. "Um.. I'm not smarter than him. We're like friends... And I don't need a new mentor. We need each other, remember." he said.
Wufei sat on his heels for a minute, looking at Duan, Wufan, Kenny, Tryan and Carter.
"I can see that," he said, to Duan's statement. "There's something you ought to know. We may not sound like it all the time, but we are friends too. Okay? So don't worry about what we say to each other."
"Ok," Duan replied, looking to the others.
"Deal," Tryan said.
Wufei nodded approvingly. Then he stood up, throwing a look at Duo to see if he was going to challenge the statement.
Duo simply smiled serenely. Too serenely for the normally manic youth's face. It was eerie.
Wufei shrugged one shoulder and sighed silently.
Duan turned to Duo and looked up at him. "So like if he got shot, you wouldn't be sad?" he said.
"Sure I'd be sad," Duo replied, a little surprised.
Duan sighed deeply. "Then maybe you should tell him you love him, just in case it happens and you're not around and he dies.. You'd be really sad then... It could happen too." he said, speaking from some experience.
Duo knelt suddenly, his hands on Duan's shoulders not forcing the boy to look at him, but rather asking him to.
"Duan, I promise. If it's within my power, I will never leave you, you got that?" he said earnestly.
Duan looked into Duo's eyes. "I know that Duo. I'm not talking about for me... I'm talking about for your friend," he said. Then he looked up at Duo again. "Is this how people are where you're from? We don't have to be like that or do we?"
"Like what?" Duo asked, cocking his head in confusion.
"We all like each other and we tell each other that flat out. Is that ok to do where we're going? Or do we have to pretend we don't like each other there?" he asked.
Wufei looked at the two for a moment, and then he caught Duo's eye. "May I..."
Duo gave Wufei a little bow and a flourish with his hands as he released Duan's shoulders.
Wufei took a breath and then said, "You should do what you feel in your heart is best, no matter where you are. But Maxw... Duo doesn't have to say it because we have been... friends for a long time. I know that if I... did die, he would make sure who ever caused it would have to face justice. As I would do in the same place."
"Oh," Duan said. "Ok."
"Ya know, it says something that we're discussing the terms of our relationships in concepts of vengeance, justice, and reactions to our deaths," Duo observed dryly.
Wufei shrugged. "We are what we are, Maxwell."
"Yeah, yeah," he replied, heaving a wistful sigh as he contemplated all of the children. "I know."
Wufei managed to avoid rolling his eyes at Duo's moodiness by sheer willpower.
Duo caught the look in Wufei's eyes and he stuck his tongue out at the Chinese youth childishly.
"You wouldn't have it any other way, Wu-chan, and you know it."
"Now that's attractive," Wufei said. "Wufan, observe - that is what is known as bad manners - in any universe."
Duo bowed, a performer taking applause, and winked at Wufei as he stood again.
The corner of Wufei's mouth twitched.
Carter suddenly laughed, then clapped his hands over his mouth.
Duo turned to the small blond and quirked up an eyebrow.
"Share with the rest of the class, little one?"
Carter blushed. "It... was funny... when you did that," he said, looking down, then back up. He smiled.
"That's my job, kiddo. Gotta take something seriously, after all," he replied with a chuckle.
Heero snorted and walked up to his lover to tug on the braid slightly. "Baka."
Faun walked over to the group and handed Heero a small slip of paper - a message slip.
Heero glanced down at the message and his eyes skimmed over it quickly.
It said, "Bus leaves at sunset, in the park. Kissie kissie.... R."
Heero groaned lightly under his breath at the closing then handed the note to Duo without letting go of his braid. "Not much time left."
Duo skimmed the note and grinned at his partner, his eyes gleaming speculatively.
"Time enough," he replied.
"Hentai," Heero commented, though a smile lurked around his lips. He turned his eyes to Wufei and Sallah, glancing over the kids, "We leave at sunset."
Wufei acknowledged the information with a nod.
"Look who's talking, Yuy. I was gonna suggest a round of celebratory hot fudge sundaes," Duo replied archly.
Sallah blinked and then said, "Wufan, stay with the other boys... I'm going to take care of some things. I'll be back in a couple of hours."
"All right," Wufan said, then looked at the other boys.
"Where do we get the hot fudge sundaes?" Tryan asked.
"What's a hot fudge sundae?" Carter asked.
"I don't know, that's what I wanna know too." Tryan said.
"Oh yeah. Mission accepted on that one!" Duo crowed cheerfully. He glanced around, spotting the restaurant and grinning fiendishly as he pointed.
"I say we try there!"
"Great!" Duan said.
End of Part 28
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.