The Forgotten Duo
by Sony Mouse

Part 3

It had been a week since Duo had returned to "home". Quatre was just staring out the window, worried about Duo and the events that had taken place since his return. Trowa always said the Quatre worried too much. Maybe he was right? Duo STILL hadn’t returned to normal. He was just as silent and emotionless as …Heero. But Quarter had caught the two of them alone once. Heero and Duo had been talking. BOTH of them had actually TALKED to each other. Heero was talking about his past and Duo was doing the same. Quatre left immediately, he had no right to know those things, but it still surprised him that the two who fought the most were becoming best friends. But then again weren’t they before. They just hid it a lot better.

The two of them spent all of their time together. Heero was teaching Duo more about explosives and Gundams, and Duo was teaching Heero his stealth secrets. And they didn’t fight. Although it seemed to Quatre that something was still missing. Everyone knew it, but no one wanted to say that They missed that loud mouth of Duo’s, he kept them all in reality, and now with him gone, no he was still here but a part missing. Quatre had tried talking to Heero about it, since Heero spent the most time around him. He asked whether or not this new Duo showed signs of his old self. Heero replied that he did every day, in fact this WAS his old self, the hidden Duo that we didn’t know. Quatre only wished that Duo would smile once in awhile. Or laugh, they all missed that sound. Perhaps it was just best to leave it up to Heero; he seemed to know what he was doing.

* * * * * *

Heero was walking towards the house thinking along the same lines as Quatre. He hated to admit it, but even though he finally got to know that real Duo, he stilled missed that smile, that laugh. He missed Duo. The more Duo spent time with him now the more he was becoming like Heero. He wanted to do things that Heero liked. He would sit at HIS computer (yes he bought one) and wait for a mission. He would even talk like Heero. Heero wasn’t helping Duo as much as he had thought Duo was just putting on a different mask. His mask that he himself had used all these years. He had to stop it, before Duo became any more like him, or he would never forgive himself.

Heero walked into a scene he had never even dreamt possible. It was a nightmare. There sat Duo looking in the mirror with a pair of SCISSORS in his hand, his other hand was just bringing his hair up to unbraid it. Before he could, Heero lunged towards Duo and grabbed the scissors from his hand.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?"

"Ah Heero I just thought that the hair was unnecessary now that I am a Gundam Pilot. I mean no one else has long hair like mine…not even you."

"You baka, why would you want to be like me?"

"I like the way you don’t have any pain in you. No matter the things that have happened to you, you are not sad just void of emotion. I don’t want to have any emotion, not anymore. Could you cut my hair? I would like you to do it. Please."

Heero didn’t know what to say. Even after all the time they had spent together, Duo still didn’t understand. Heero was not void of emotion; he just hid it better. No not better, before the accident Heero thought that Duo was all happiness, now he knew the truth. It was just hidden. Without a word Heero started to unbraid Duo’s hair…it was beautiful. His hands ran though it’s layers, enjoying its warmth. Heero then realised that though out it all, Duo’s hair had remained the same. Still bright and shiny and full of life. Duo’s long hair was the core of Duo’s essence, the last remaining reminder of who Duo was, and there was no way in hell he was going to cut it off.

"Heero what is the problem?"

"I just realised what this hair meant…means to you. Why you were so protective of it. Again I am sorry, I just didn’t know." Heero refused to let go of the hair. Instead he took more of it into his hands. Duo just sat there silently at first but then looked up at Heero with bright eyes, shinning eyes Heero had not seen in a long time.

"So you do know me after all." His now bright eyes suddenly filled with tears. Heero immediately brought Duo into his arms. While stocking his long hair he whispered "It’s going to be ok, it’s all going to be ok". They stayed that way for a long time. After awhile Duo for the first time in his life started talking about the Maxwell Church, Solo, Father Maxwell, and Sister Helene. He had talked about his past before but always left this out. The tears poured even more as he told the story of how they died. Heero just clung onto him even more. Trying to protect him from the pain. But there was only so much the perfect soldier could take, while holding the only person in the world that he now really cared about, he started talking about Odin. What else could he do? Both of them just held onto each other the entire night, drawing strength from each other’s presence. And for the first time in their lives they both truly started to heal…together.

On to Part 4

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