Trowa came back into the living room and found Wufei lying on his back, with Duo sitting next to him, looking a little wet. They were talking softly and seemed to have not noticed Trowa. Trowa smiled to himself, he hated to interrupt such a sweet scene, and Wufei seemed to have relaxed being back in a clean environment again. But he couldn�t resist the opportunity to tease Duo. �Decided the trees needed watering eh, Duo?� he asked.

Duo turned in surprise to see Trowa making his way back into the living room and sitting down opposite Duo. Duo took a deep breath before happily replying �Yep! They looked a little dry, plus I figured braving the rain was better than anything I�d find in here.�

Trowa nodded in agreement. �Let me assure you. You are correct in that assumption.� Wufei visibly shuddered. �I think I�ll be using the outdoors for the rest of the trip. Quatre has assigned me to the plumbing task.� Duo sneaked a glance at the door, then turning back to his friends, wondering what _shudder_ task Quatre would assign _him_.

�Where are Heero and Quatre anyway?� Wufei asked from the floor.

�Still upstairs. I got grossed out and came down here, but Heero seems intrigued by this place. He�s still following Quatre around, I assume.� Wufei just nodded, he studied his friends from his position on the floor, he was feeling a bit small. He knew it could be remedied if he sat up, but only marginally. In the years since the war, Wufei had only grown four inches, while Trowa and Duo had both nearly grown a foot, Quatre just shy of a foot, and Heero was now a few inches taller than he was.

Duo was lazily studying the ceiling leaning back with his arms supporting his weight behind him, with his legs laid out straight, crossed at the ankles. Trowa was sitting cross legged on the floor, his left elbow resting on his knee and his chin resting on his hand. He too, was staring idly into space, his gaze focused on the opposite wall, where the door to the foyer was located. Just to the right of the door was the fireplace and a very large closet. Wufei�s gaze followed Duo�s and stared up at the ceiling. It, too, had been refurbished and was a nice, _Clean_ plain ceiling. The only renovated room in the house wasn�t very luxurious like Quatre�s other vacation homes, it was just plain. The bed and the chair in the other room was the only furniture in the house, and Wufei noted that it was starting to get dark. He didn�t think this house had electricity.

�Whatcha thinking about, Fei?� Duo asked.

Wufei shrugged idly. �I was just noticing that it was getting dark and I don�t think this house has any electricity.�

�Yes, this room does.� Quatre spoke up, Heero and he returned to the room and shut the door behind them. �I don�t know enough about re-wiring a house, so I only did this room. Heero, that�s your job. Will you look at this room tomorrow and make sure it won�t catch fire?� Heero nodded softly.

Duo snorted. �Guess we better not turn on the lights until after that, ne?� He nodded at Trowa and Wufei. Trowa nodded, amused at the dig at Quatre�s skills.

Quatre only scowled at Duo�s back. �Why don�t you guys get out the futons and blankets, it�ll probably be cold out tonight. I�ll whip up some dinner.� Quatre nodded towards the closet indicating where the futons were.

�Can�t we just call for pizza?� Duo asked, nearly whining.

�Who�s going to deliver all the way out here?� Trowa countered.

�I know. You call it in, and I�ll go get it. In the car, back in town.� Wufei jumped to his feet.

Quatre scowled at him. �No. I will make dinner. Come, I will show you how to use the stove.�

Wufei shook his head and wrinkled his nose. �No thanks.�

�Yeah, Fei and I will set up the futons, okay?� Quatre nodded as he walked into the dining room, Trowa and Heero followed.

Wufei sighed and flopped back to the floor, sitting crossed legged. �How mad do you think Quatre would be if I just snuck out right now and ran back to the car and got the hell out of here?� He asked.

�I wouldn�t know. I wouldn�t stick around to find out. I�d follow you out.� Duo replied.

Wufei chuckled. �And not look back?� Wufei asked with a smile on his face.

�And not look back.� Duo replied an even bigger smile on his face. �Guess we should get out those futons huh?� Duo interrupted, ruining the moment. "That way we can pick the best ones!� He yelled excitedly as he threw open the closet doors.

Wufei rolled his eyes, but snickered anyway. Thank Nataku there aren�t bunk beds!

Wufei helped Duo pull out the futons and arranged the five of them in a line facing the fireplace. Duo pulled out five sleeping bags from the closet and tossed one to Wufei who laid it out over a futon. �I think we�ll only need sleeping bags, what do you think?� Wufei just shrugged and sat down on the far left futon, claiming it as his own. �I mean we are tough Gundam pilots, right?� Duo flexed the muscles in his left arm. Wufei chuckled softly. �I think we can handle a little cold weather. How cold could it really be? I mean this is a _temperate_ zone.� Duo set out the four remaining sleeping bags on top of the futons.

�You should pull out the rest of the blankets just in case.� Wufei said.

�_I_ should?� Duo raised his eyebrows at Wufei, teasing lightly. Wufei just snorted. Duo laughed and hauled out the rest of the blankets and threw them on the floor, near the fireplace.

He plopped down on the futon next to Wufei�s, facing him. Duo sighed. �I don�t know if I want to eat anything that Quatre cooked in that kitchen.� He said.

Wufei nodded. He didn�t really want to eat Quatre�s cooking _period_ regardless of where it was cooked. Wufei stuck out his tongue, �Blech!� and shivered.

Duo looked at him strangely. What the�Was that what I think it was�. �Wufei�do you have your tongue pierced?�

Wufei glanced up at Duo who was staring him, a look of shock on his face. �Yes. I do.�

Duo blinked. �When did that happen?� he asked, almost more to himself.

�A while ago.� Wufei replied.

�How come you never told me?� Duo asked, almost hurt.

Wufei shrugged. �It never came up I guess. I didn�t think it was that big of deal.�

Duo shrugged in return. �I knew you had you ears pierced�but I didn�t think you�d ever get your tongue. Can I see it again?� he asked. Wufei smiled and stuck his tongue out.

Duo hovered closer to get a closer look, placing his arms on either side of Wufei�s legs and leaning over, their faces inches apart. �Cool. Did it hurt?� Duo asked.

Wufei shook his head. �No, but it was sore for a few days, and I could only drink smoothies.� Duo chuckled and just stared at Wufei not moving from their close position.

Wufei didn�t seem to mind, he hadn�t backed away yet. �Do you have any other piercings?� Duo asked, and licked his lips, unconsciously.

�Maybe.� Wufei smirked and half closed his eyes. �You�ll have to find out for yourself.� He said and leered at Duo.

�Find out for myself huh?� Duo asked, his face now mere centimeters from Wufei�s. Wufei nodded. �Are you flirting with me?� Duo asked, his voice dropping in timbre to low husky echo.

Wufei grinned, and licked his lips, his tongue piercing clacking against his teeth. �Maybe. What do you think?� he asked.

�I think you are.� Duo replied. �Are you gonna tell me if you have any other piercings now? I�m asking nice.� He finished with a wink.

�I told you. You have to find out for yourself.�

Duo grinned lecherously, �Now I know you�re flirting with me.�

Wufei shrugged. �Yeah, probably. What are you gonna do about it?� he challenged.

Duo shrugged, a wicked grin on his face. �Nothing.�

�Nothing, huh? Guess you won�t find out about my naughty little piercings now.� Wufei said in reply.

Duo shrugged again, the grin never leaving his face. �So you admit you have naughty piercings?� He asked.

Wufei shrugged and leaned away from Duo now. �Maybe I do.� He smirked and leaned all the way back on the floor. Duo followed, straddling Wufei�s hips and leaning over him, propping his hands on either side of Wufei�s face now.

�Bastard.� Duo said.

�Jerk.� Wufei replied.

�Dirty son-of-bitch.�

�Moron.�

�Cum Flicker.�

�Cock sucker.�

�I won�t deny it�� Duo just smiled and closed the distance between Wufei�s lips and his own. Wufei didn�t pull away and smiled as he felt Duo�s lips on his.

Trowa chose that moment to come back into the living room, giving Duo only a moment to roll off Wufei and to the side. Trowa stopping his fuming and looked at his two friends, both of them lying on the floor face up, looking very angry at him. �What were you guys doing?� He asked, his eyes narrowing.

�We were wrestling.� Duo replied and pushed himself up from the floor. Somehow Duo couldn�t bring himself to tell Trowa what they had _really_ been doing. �I tackled Fei when he wasn�t looking and we were just playing around. What�s wrong with you?� Duo asked, noticing the angry look on Trowa�s face.

Trowa sighed. �Quatre�s stove. Do you know how to work that thing? You�re not going to believe this.� Trowa sat himself down on the Futon next to Wufei�s.

�Hey, that�s my futon, don�t go kaiboshing it!� Duo mock yelled. Trowa laughed. Wufei just gave him a strange look and Duo winked at him. Wufei just rolled his eyes. �Anyway�� Trowa continued. �In order to use that �stove� you have to turn on the gas and light it with a match!�

Duo balked, �Are you serious??� Trowa nodded. �That�s�so�soo�primitive! If there�s a gas leak the whole house will go up in flames!� Duo shouted.

�Yep.� Trowa nodded and moved a futon over and sat down. �Guess I�ll take this one then.� Duo just nodded. The light was getting dimmer in the living room now.

Quatre came back into the room with three plates, Heero followed carrying two. �I made us some hash browns with vegetables and some eggs.� Quatre handed a plate to Trowa and Duo, while Heero handed one of his plates to Wufei.

�Thanks.� Wufei nodded to Heero. Heero nodded in reply. The two of them only had hash browns on their plates, both of them being vegetarians. Quatre lit a small lamp and they ate by candle light in silence. After Dinner Trowa and Heero brought in some firewood and lit a fire. Quatre pulled out a mahjong set from the closet and they proceeded to play a few rounds, Wufei coached Duo since he couldn�t play very well. Nevertheless Duo won all four rounds, through Wufei�s coaching or because Duo kept peeking at everybody�s tiles, it was hard to say. Soon Quatre said they should get some sleep, tomorrow was going to be a big day. Duo groaned loudly. He wanted to relax, not earn his keep! But nevertheless, all five ex-pilots slowly drifted off on their own separate futons.

Duo�s own shivering was loud enough that it woke him up. �Brrr..� He whispered out loud. He stole a quick glance outside, but it was still dark. Nowhere near dawn. Probably still the middle of the night� Duo shivered again and unzipped his sleeping bag halfway and sat up. He shivered again, more pronounced as the cold air hit him more forcefully, now that he was uncovered. Duo spotted the stack of spare blankets that thankfully Wufei had suggested leaving in a pile. He silently thanked Wufei for being so anal as he climbed out of his sleeping bag and started piling the blankets over his futon. Then Duo got an idea. He pulled his futon as close as he could to Wufei�s until they were touching. Then he threw the blankets over both Wufei�s bed and his own.

On his way back to his bed he tripped over Wufei, causing the Chinese man to stir, but not awake. Duo climbed back and scooted as close as he could to Wufei. �Wufei�� he whispered. He reached out and shook Wufei�s shoulder.

Wufei groggily awoke. �Wha�� he mumbled.

�Fei. I�m cold.� Duo wrapped his arm around Wufei�s waist, still in the sleeping bag and spooned Wufei. �Make your sleeping bag a double with mine?� Duo whispered.

�No.� Wufei grumbled. ��mm tired��

Duo squeezed Wufei closer to him. �Please Fei. I need body heat. I�m freezing.� Duo punctuated his words with a shiver.

�Lemmee lone�Masswell..�

Duo reached around until he found the zipper and began to unzip Wufei�s sleeping bag slowly. �So I�m back to being Maxwell again?� he smirked.

�You�re going to be a dead Maxwell in a minute if you don�t shut up and go back to sleep.�

Duo finally unzipped Wufei�s sleeping bag all the way. �Keep me warm and you won�t hear another word.� With a frustrated sigh Wufei sat up and let Duo zip their sleeping bags up into a double. �Thanks Fei.� Duo whispered as Wufei lay back down on his side.

Duo must�ve gotten up and moved those extra blankets on top too. I am kind of cold now that I think about it. Why is it so cold in here? Duo immediately snuggled back up behind Wufei again and draped his arm around Wufei�s stomach. His nose nuzzled Wufei�s nape. Wufei sighed softly, patted Duo�s hand around his waist and went back to sleep. Duo followed not long after as close to Wufei as he could get.

Heero awoke a moment later, hearing voices. He was only met with the soft sounds of breathing. Maybe it was Wufei walking around. He�s not deeply asleep or he�d be snoring, which means he must have just gone back to sleep. Fuck! It�s cold in here!

Heero too, unzipped his bag, and climbed out, grabbing some more blankets and laying four over his own bed. He laid five more over Quatre�s bed, and the remaining three, he lay over Trowa. Heero also threw another log on the fire, noting that there were still hot coals, and the fire had gone out. He laid back down on his stomach and looked out the windows. It was still really dark. Probably around 3am or so� Heero eyed his duffle bag where his watch was. He decided to stay where he was. He would fall back asleep faster if he warmed up and remained in his bed. As it was, it would be a while for him to fall back asleep. Heero frequently awoke in the early morning and had a hard time getting back to sleep.

This time was no different.

With a soft sigh, Heero rolled over onto his back and stared at the ceiling. He looked at Quatre who was sleeping on his back. Heero smiled softly. Quatre looked adorable when he was sleeping. He looked over to where Trowa was, but couldn�t make out any features. It was still too dark. And there was no moon out tonight. Heero reached out and ran a hand over Quatre�s smooth face. Quatre didn�t stir or move at all. Heero smiled, and turned on his side facing Quatre, and just watched him breathe as he started to feel tired again.

Heero was almost asleep when he heard soft footsteps on the front porch. He sat up slowly and his eyes darted around the room. He heard nothing. He lay back down again and closed his eyes, ready to drift off when he heard it again. He eyed his duffle again, where he had brought a knife. Heero refused to go anywhere unarmed, but Quatre had protested that none of them were allowed to bring their guns. Heero smirked remembering that Wufei had brought his sword, and guessed that old habits died hard. He knew that all the ex-pilots had not arrived here without some form of weapon.

He continued to hear soft footsteps on the porch and in front of the windows. They stopped every time he moved and started up again when he stood still. Not a very talented burglar He thought to himself. He kept himself low as he crawled over to a window, noting that all five pilots were still sleeping. He thought Duo might be outside, not seeing a form immediately in his bed, but realized that Duo was snuggled up next to Wufei, the both of them looking like there was only one body under the covers. Duo probably got cold and moved towards the nearest heat source.

Heero approached the window and stood still listening for the sound of footsteps again, but heard none. He lay back down on the floor just beneath the window. He couldn�t spot anyone outside. He started to shiver as he realized he�d been lying beneath the window for a while, and his adrenaline rush had faded leaving him cold again. He shivered again. He sat up and peered out the window, but saw nothing. He was sure they knew he was there waiting for him though. He continued to keep vigilance beneath the window for another few minutes, until the cold encouraged him to go back to his bed. But he knew there was no way he was going to sleep now. He was up for the rest of the day.

Heero had just started to warm up when he heard footsteps again. This time they were coming from in front of the windows of the living room. He turned his gaze on the windows, but saw nothing. What the fuck? There is no one there. I�d be able to see them, they�re walking right in front of the windows. Heero threw back his covers again and slithered his way across the floor again until he was just below the windows again. He looked over back towards the men on the floor, noting that there were indeed four of them. No normal human would be able to sneak past Heero Yui except those four and they were all inside.

Heero began to feel a little nervous. Who ever was outside was very talented indeed. But Heero couldn�t figure out why they were just walking around softly and the porch wasn�t creaking at all. Are they trying to find a way in? Heero decided the time for games was over. He was extremely cold and shivering as he slithered the rest of the way to the door to the foyer and opened it slowly without making a sound. He stood up and placed his hand on the door knob and drew his knife. He opened the front door slowly and stepped out, the footsteps ceasing as soon as he stepped out. There was no one there.

�Show yourself. I�m armed.� Heero said into the darkness, looking over the front lawn. There was no way someone could have gotten off the porch and across the lawn to the cover of trees without him seeing. Yet, there was no one around for miles. It was Quiet. Completely Silent. Absolute Silence. There was no sound of crickets chirping or anything. Heero became very nervous all of a sudden. He realized that it was highly possible, there was a sniper in the woods and he had just come out and exposed himself. He tensed waiting for the shot to hit him. He waited in complete silence but the shot never came.

He would have had the perfect opportunity to shoot, why isn�t he doing so? Heero turned to go back in the house. As soon as he turned his back he heard loud footsteps on the porch running towards him from behind. He turned around, tensed and prepared for a fight. There was no one there. �What the fuck?� Heero questioned out loud. Now he was _really_ pissed. �Show yourself now. Or I will hunt you down and kill you.�

A loud wisp blew across the porch, more like a giant exhale rather than a breeze. Then as suddenly as it started, it stopped. Heero clutched his shoulders. He was feeling very cold. It was quiet again on the porch. Heero retreated back indoors and sat vigilance in front of the window again. He wasn�t quite sure what had happened, but he knew if somebody was fucking with him they were going to die a _very painful_ death, that was for sure.