After un-countless minutes like this, another voice interrupted, �Your lucky we caught up to you; you were awfully close to getting out of our range.� Straitening up, but not pulling from the younger angel�s hug, the golden arch faced the speaker with quavering words, �Why stop me?� The grip around his waist tightened and a face pressed gratefully into the patch of flesh between his wings, Poseidon could feel Apollo�s tears soaking into the cloth there. The arch before him was the silver, Helios. His answer came smoothly, though his platinum eyes reminded the fallen of the stars, �You are to aid me in the search for the fabled Midian. The being that will give favor to one side and lead to its success. It is said to be born in this time and age that passes on the Earth. We must get to it before the minions of Hell do.� Confusion took over his already overwhelmed mind, �Why stop me for that? Aren�t there enough angels in Heaven to send another? I thought I�d been banished.� Apollo�s muffled opinion floated over his shoulder gently, �They were wrong, you weren�t meant to fall. They were afraid of you; afraid you were growing to strong for them to handle, that you would begin to test the Great Archs. They blamed you for the death of those angels, the ones that had been killed in Heaven, not for disobeying. They just had to have a reason to give the younger angels. Shortly after you fell, they found a demon in Heaven.� His last few words fell to a whisper as if just uttering them was a crime. This statement drug an indescribable rage from Poseidon�s depths, curling his lip with its heat, �I was shoved from my place, my life, because someone was afraid of me?!� He took breath to go further, but was cut off by Helios, �You were fallen because you were a threat and it cannot be fixed. Now, will you help me with my job on Earth, or am I going to let the beckoning of Hell have you back?�
Emerald eyes shot open as Trowa jolted himself awake, he turned his gaze around the room in an attempt to regain his bearings. He was sitting at his desk, his laptop open on the table in front of him. Wisps of the night before slithered stealthily back into his thoughts; it had been a long night. It had been some time since he�d ever lost the battle to his exhaustion; he couldn�t recall another instance in which he�d fallen asleep at his desk. Rubbing grit from his eyes, the tall boy rose and shut his computer. The steady breathing of his comrade in arms still came from the demon�s place on the floor; the pillow that was tucked beneath his head faintly muffled it. With a sigh, Triton shook Duo�s shoulder, �Wake up, it�s morning.� The death of darkness moaned faintly and pilot three glanced over at the clock, it was nearly five hours before the time Duo usually got up. Six o�clock still seemed reasonable in Poseidon�s mind, if he doesn�t like it; he can go to bed in his own room. It took quite some time to rouse the sleep-ridden demon and convince him to travel the distance to his own bed.
Once this was done, Trowa trotted downstairs for breakfast to find Amber already awake. She seemed troubled by something that was turning over in her mind. This was what Trowa first questioned her over, �What�s the matter?� Pilot six grinned at him, the problem seemingly gone from her face, �Nothing, just saw a guy yesterday that reminded me of some one, but I can�t place him.� Unable to control several stray snickers, Trowa slicked his hair back into the ponytail he�d had the day before, �Did he look anything like this?� Amber�s face lit up with recognition and changed to curiosity, �How do you know my boyfriend, and what�s with the name he called you?� The youth shrugged, a smile playing at his lips, �Just a nickname of mine, and to be honest with you, he�s my drinking partner.� The girl that sat across from him arched her thin eyebrow; �You drink? Trowa, you�re only like what, eighteen?� �Nineteen, actually, but that doesn�t really matter�look, I don�t trust him. He may be around me a lot and all that, but I�ve heard the stories he tells about great lays and hard to get women, you�re on the second list. To him, all you are is a game, I would know.� The young woman�s sense of humor faded slightly at his comment, �Well, that�s sweet, are you jealous or something Trowa? Is that why you�re bashing him, caused you seemed like a friend of his when I saw you two together the other day.� Trowa turned his face from judgement; her words struck some kind of chord. He was telling the truth, but there was something else too, a precision to her statement. I couldn�t possibly be jealous of him, unless it was over Amber�but I don�t like her that much, do I? Trowa wrestled with this thought for a moment as pilot six stared at him, anticipating his response. He found that it was true, despite his denial. No response came from him. Amber sucked in her breath with a well-controlled grin, �You are, aren�t you?! You�re envious of my boyfriend!� Triton opened his mouth to protest, but closed it and got up, �Never mind.�
To the extreme shock of both, Jess came barreling down the stairs with a wide grin, already showered and dressed despite the early hour, �Good morning!� Amber nearly kicked herself for forgetting the reason, �Good morning to you, what�s the occasion?� Jess stuck out her bottom lip in a hardly deniable pout, though she recognized the game, �You don�t remember? Today�s a special day!� Trowa cocked an eyebrow at them both as Amber made an over exaggerated expression of deep thought, �No, I don�t think so, I don�t remember anything important today.� As she spoke, she pulled a well-wrapped gift form the hiding place it had occupied for the past month, �I don�t even know why I bought this, it isn�t Christmas or anything.� The redhead snatched the present from her hands with a delighted squeal, �What�d you get me?!� Pilot six stole it quickly back, �You aren�t allowed to have it until later, you know that.�
After being shooed several times, Jess regrettably wandered back upstairs and into Duo�s room. Her boyfriend was snoring softly, splayed sporadically across unturned bed sheets. He was still clad in his clothes from the night before and they sported many holes. Jess frowned slightly, but upon inspection, found no wounds beneath. The only clue to their origins were several large gouges in the wall by his television, the hint not enough to tell her the night�s past event. As she peered closer, something rust colored and dried caught her eyes. It splattered the wall like paint that had gone bad; Red shrugged it off and flopped comfortably onto Duo�s bed. To her disappointment, it didn�t disturb him enough into waking. With a sigh, she began tugging lightly on his waist length braid, �Duo�wake up!� His light snoring faltered and the youth rolled to look at his other half with sleep deprived eyes, �Jess? What are you doing up early, what time is it?� A gentle hand brushed stray bangs from his face and the even kinder feel of lips touched his own, �About seven o�clock, you look tired. Did you stay up late?� With an undetectable grimace, he glanced fleetingly at the bloody wall with flickering thoughts of the pain that accompanied it, �A little, why are we getting up at seven?� That cupid�s bow curled into a sweet smile, �Because I wanted to start the day early, it�s my birthday Duo.� This struck a proper piece of memory, he�d wrung it from Amber not but two weeks ago. One of the presents he�d got was resting safely in one of his desk drawers, the other residing in the foremost of his mind. He grinned sleepily, �So, how old does that make you? Seventeen, eighteen?� The young girl gained a tint to her checks, �Fifteen.� His sleepy look faded, �So you�re turning sixteen, right?� Jess shook her head, the flame of her bangs flashing as they moved, �Nope, turning fifteen. I was fourteen yesterday.� Duo sat up slowly, understanding now why Amber didn�t want him near Jess, �So, that makes me quite a bit older than you, in teenager terms. I�ll be nineteen pretty soon here, though I don�t know what day. I could get in a whole lot of trouble over this with the authorities.� With a smirk, she crawled into his lap, �Who says you�ve ever worried about authorities, after all, you are a rebel. In more ways than one, or, does it bother you that I�m younger?� She slightly poked out her bottom lip in a soft eyed pout, �I hope it doesn�t.� Her bright green gaze came up at him through her lashes, flaking his self-control. He was determined to wait, for after her birthday celebration, to let that control go. After eight millennia in searching, he could wait another day or so. He shook his head slowly, allowing his mind to return to this conversation, �No, I don�t�So what�s the plan for you�re birthday.� The look that spread next was one that spoke entirely of sly thoughts, �Well, if Amber is convinced properly, I hope to take everybody to the karaoke bar. I think it would be fun.�
A faintly overweight gentleman cleaned a martini glass behind a counter in a small, out of the way bar. He held it up to the light before sliding it onto a neatly organized rack with several others. There were only two other people in the quiet, smoky room; neither seemed interested in making discussion. As one, an auburn-haired young man with soft azure eyes, rose to leave, seven newcomers piled in through the door. They were chatting amongst themselves even as one of their number separated from the group to speak quietly to the bartender. The remaining inhabitant raised a faintly glazed look to them over the lip of his beer, wondering why children who looked so young could even enter a place of adults.
A decent wad of cash was laid on the counter by a heavily callused hand; the darkly clad youth it belonged to flashed a sly smile as the barkeeper picked it up with a curt nod. The faintly balding man squeezed out from behind the counter and spoke softly the remaining customer as several of the newcomers piled onto barstools. The drunk bar junkie stumbled to his feet and out the door.
Seemingly the youngest of the group leapt onto the unused stage and picked up one of the microphones that, until recently, lay gathering dust. She pulled a heavily crumpled bill from her pocket and smoothed it carefully before inserting it into the machine. The darkly clad youth who�d paid the bartender looked up at her fondly while sipping slowly on a shot full of golden liquid that burned his throat.
An id was never produced as alcohol was passed all about the young group. Two of them, supposedly the designated drivers, didn�t order drinks; only sat and watched the others. An oriental fighter sat in a corner downing shots and the huntress took a table to herself. A song emitted from the speakers on either side of the small stage as the redhead chose what she wanted to sing. The music drifted between listeners before her voice joined it in perfect harmony. It was a slow, haunting melody, a great contrast to the bubbling form of a girl that prepared to sing it. As the lines appeared on the screen, she allowed her smile to fade as the song came to her lips. Emerald eyes closed, she let the silver bells of her words ring through the amplifier to stop conversations across the bar.
�Let me be your shining star, let me be your strength, let me love you from afar and become your one and only. �
Duo was the only one paying true attention to her words, he could tell she�d listened to this song many times before this as she never looked at the screen.
�Oh, winged angel enfold me in your arms. Oh, winged creature let me love you. Fly me on your wings to destinations unknown to the mortal world.�
Several gazes turned upward to her, wings were something they were almost all familiar with. Heero wondered if he�d missed something else when he�d wiped her memory the second time.
�Let me love you, hold you, touch you. Let me spread my own wings so I might soar by your side.�
Amber shook her head slowly and turned back to her nonalcoholic drink, she�d heard this tune come from Jess�s CD player to often to count. She knew it was the slender pilot�s favorite song. Her attention wandered to the boys at the bar, several empty bottles already littered the glossed wood before Trowa. Wondering if he�d really drank them all, she peered down the line to Quatre, who seemed almost ridiculously out of place with his feet dangling like a child from the stool; though, the Arabian had ordered no beverage. Further down was Duo, who was listening to Jess with a faintly furrowed brow. Not giving a shit about what was bothering him, Amber looked last at Heero and his half-empty beer bottle.
None of them belonged there; they were all underage. Amber wondered how they ended up acting as though they needed such escapes. The war ate steadily at even a solid mind, especially those who fought in them. The bartender took two empty bottles from Trowa and slid another to him.
Jess finished her song, �I am your shining star, your one and only.�
Quatre jumped from his seat and made his way around the labyrinth of chairs to Amber�s table, �Why don�t you come sit with us, you look so lonely over here by yourself.� He pulled out a chair next to her and fell into it; �Jess has a beautiful voice, how long has she been singing?� Amber leaned back into the uncomfortable seat and stirred her slightly frozen drink, �She�s never truly sung, she just plays around. Sings with her radio and stuff like that.� When she said nothing more for several moments, the blonde boy cleared his throat, �What are you drinking?� �A Pina Colada.� She gave no second thought to the fact that she�d ordered it as a virgin drink. He nodded and got up, �I think I�ll have one.�
Pilot seven still gripped the microphone in her hand and glanced at Duo, �Come sing with me!� He chuckled quietly and shook his head, �I�m not drunk enough yet!� She hopped out of the spotlight and grabbed the beer he was nursing, �Mine now, come on!� When he ordered some vodka instead, Jess sighed and chugged his previous beverage. She made a face as she set the empty glass on the counter, �That stuff tastes so bad, I don�t know how you can drink it!� He let a tiny smile slip onto his face as she returned to her karaoke. After a second mouthful of overpowering fire, the death of darkness got up to waver slightly on his feet, �Okedokey! I�m ready to sing some songs.� A hiccup gently shook his finely tuned body, �I wanna sing�something�romantic!�
Desperately drunk, Duo was utterly tone deaf. Trowa groaned and yelled with a wavering voice for him to get off the stage. Pilot three turned back to his wide-eyed companion who was uncharacteristically grinning like a fool. Alcohol went to the young blonde�s head quicker than thought and he pushed the empty glass away from him, �Give me another!� Trowa chuckled at him, �Sure, you�ll never drink ever again! That was a joke.� The small Arabian turned to quickly for his spinning head, �I�m not drinking! It�s nonalcoholic! Amber�s having one too!� He put both of his slender hands on the fake marble of the bar to keep himself in his seat. Triton tapped his shoulder with a playful punch. His strength was harder to control than his fuzzy mind thought it was and Quatre flew off his stool to slide several feet across the polished wood floor. He got up unsteadily, a deep frown creasing his face, �What�d ya� do that for?!� Trowa furrowed his brow even as he�d begun to laugh, �It was an accident!�
Outside of the strangely popular bar, two jeeps and one truck parked and released their occupants. Twelve men total started towards the entrance, chatting amongst themselves. The men only had one thing in common, they all bore a pin made up of the letters O and Z. They entered unknowingly, drawing the startled gaze of a young German woman sitting at one of the tables. A man with an auburn shock of hair elbowed another in the group as he noticed who sat at the bar, �Look at what we�ve got here, a pilot, drowning his sorrows. How quaint.� This drew chuckles from several of his companions as he stepped towards Heero. The tower of a man took the back of the stool in one hand and jerked violently, spilling its inhabitant onto the slightly sticky floor. The perfect soldier rolled with the grace of a drunkard and was on his feet with gun in hand. His aim wavered unsteadily, wringing more laughter from the crowd of twins he aimed at.
At the first sighting of the enemy, Jess snatched the microphone from Duo and yanked him from the stage. He complained briefly about not being able to finish his song before snuggling against her in their hiding place, �You changed your mind about singing awfully quick.� She could smell the alcohol on his breath, thick and sour, �Hush Duo, soldiers.� The cobalt eyed pilot grinned foolishly at her, �I�m a demon, I can take care of them myself!� Jess yanked him off his unsteadily gained feet and hissed into his ear, �Stay down! You keep down and stay back here, I�ll be back.� He furrowed his brow with a low groan that ended in a hiccup, �But I�m really a demon Jess, I can fight! I�m a demon!� Slender fingers made their way beneath his clothes to find the compact scythe he carried with him at all times. The search wrung several embarrassed snickers from Duo that continued after Jess pulled away and skulked off between the empty tables.
One of the smaller Oz activists noticed Quatre staring blankly down the counter at their taunt of Heero and the green gaze that peered around him. He grinned, �There�s more than just that one. Looks like we�ll get three of them for our troubles.� As Trowa leaned around the noble of the desert to get a better view, gravity snatched his seat and he slid with a heavy thud to the floor. Laughter floated about him shortly after and he struggled to get back on his growing stool. It escaped his grasping hand and he quickly gave up on it.
Amber squirmed uncomfortably away from a lanky soldier that couldn�t take a hint, �Look pal, I have a boyfriend.� Her hand slowly made it�s way beneath the table to a holster and her gun as he leaned forward to practically fill her vision, �He doesn�t seem to be here, you shouldn�t be either; there�s going to be a bit of bloodshed.� She smirked as her fingers wrapped around the slightly grooved handle of her weapon, �Yeah, I bet there will be.� The sharp explosion tossed the soldier back in a shower of crimson and drew startled eyes from all corners of the small bar. The table upended with a shove and quickly became riddled with bullets. Trowa dove behind the shield and pat Amber�s shoulder, �Hello, pleasant seeing you here.� She cocked a thin eyebrow at him and put her head above the table only long enough to pop a bullet between the eyes of two enemies. �You seem a little drunk Trowa, maybe you should stay out of this one!� She found herself shouting to be heard over the gunfire. His gaze widened innocently as he peered over the edge into the battlefield. A shot grazed his ear in a streak of fire causing him to pull back sharply, �Ow! He hit me!� Leaning back against the gum-incrusted table, Amber shoved another clip into her gun, �If you hadn�t stuck your head into the line of fire, it wouldn�t have happened.� In saying this, she fell three more men like flies.
Jess readied Duo�s scythe in her hands and took a gulp of blood heavy air into her lungs to steady herself. There were nearly half a dozen soldiers left and with a judging eye, she determined she could get two of them with a single swipe. The tiny Irish youth lunged at the closer of the two and easily took of his head with a bite of sharpened steel. Manipulating Death�s weapon with unusual grace, another fell before her as well. A gun wielding hand flopped to the scarlet slicked wooden floor without a body attached.
The crowd behind the table had grown a substantial amount, as it would barely conceal those behind it. Quatre and Trowa were chatting absently, a slight distraction for Amber. She at last turned to shut them up and a rather violent chair connected with the back of her skull. The soldier responsible turned his aim to pilot four and received a well-enforced punch that sunk into his gut. He didn�t see the second strike that broke his neck and sent him spiraling into darkness. Trowa glared down at the dead body with a growl and scooped the unconscious girl into his arms. Blood ran from a deep gash across her head that he quickly stopped. Quatre pouted at Trowa�s sudden lack of attention, �She�s fine, leave her alone.� The blonde youth stumbled over his words as though they were un-passable hurdles. The older of the two only glanced at him while he cradled Amber to him, �He hurt her.� His protest seemed childish but Quatre raised no words against it.
The movement in the bar calmed as the last of the soldiers fell. The first to examine the damage was Jess, she did so with a grimace. The bartender slowly exposed his balding head from behind the counter as Jess put several wadded up hundred-dollar bills on the marble counter, �That�s for the damage.� Another set joined the first, �And that�s for your silence.�
With that, the freckled youth went to round up her drunken companions. Wufei was found chopping at a dead corpse and missing it by nearly a foot. His face was dominated by look of determination and he was muttering quietly under his breath, �Stop moving you stupid soldier!� Jess somehow managed to successfully wrestle the sword away from him and steer him in the general direction of the car. Heero was next, then Trowa with an unconscious burden on each arm. Duo she led out last and buckled him into the front seat while he whined that he really was a demon and that Jess wasn�t listening to him. After the first two minutes on the road home, Heero snapped at him, �You�re just a low level you bum! Stop pestering the lady while she�s drivin�.� The darkly clad youth stuck his tongue out at the angel behind him, �Shut up you lowly arch! I�m better than you! I went up against Rafael and lived, so yeah!�
Trowa sat comfortably between Amber�s inert body and Quatre�s softly squirming one. He turned his gaze from one to the other and back again, �I love this one!� His emerald eyes came to rest on the huntress�s slightly heart shaped face. A gentle kiss brushed her forehead and he looked back to the blonde boy at his other side, �But I love this one!� Snuggling his face lightly in the young boy�s fair locks, Trowa paused to think. A conclusion to his enigma struck him after only a moment pondering, �I love them both!� He pulled both the smaller bodies into a tight hug and grinned erratically, �Yes, they�re both mine!� The noble of the desert stirred under his left arm, �Where are we?� His words were heavily slurred with sleep and alcohol; Trowa answered him with a light touch of his lips.
