Just Take Out the Bit About 'Til Death Do Us Part (formerly "untitled Battle Fic")

The five pilots made their way into enemy territory, their Gundams glistening in the pale light of the waxing moon. 

"Hey, Heero?" Duo asked, "You still taking me out after this?"

"Sure am." Heero grinned in reply. "I thought we'd take in a movie, go to this quaint little bistro, and then stop off at the Justice of the Peace on our way home."

Duo felt his heart skip a beat. Had Heero just actually... "Heero? That last bit? Are you serious?"

"You bet I am." Heero replied. "So, what's your answer?"

"I accept." Duo laughed.

"Hey, I hate to interrupt this happy moment," Wufei cut in, "but we got enemy fighters at two o'clock."

"Dibs!" Duo cheered as he rushed into the battle, making one blitz attack after another.

"Hey! Quit hoggin' all the fun!" Heero complained, happily, as he joined in the melee.

"Shall we?" Quatre suggested.

Trowa's Gundam made a polite bowing gesture. "After you." he offered, waiting for Quatre to pass, then following right behind.

Wufei wasn't far behind, taking out a few enemy fighters of his own.

"Hey, Duo, congrats by the way." he said, as he took out another fighter. "You, too, Heero."

"Thanks!" Duo sounded extremely happy, and why not, he had just gotten engaged to the boy he'd been in love with ever since he could remember. "You would not believe how long I've..."

Three high-intensity radiation beams from fighters hidden beyond the clouds struck Deathscythe simultaneously, hitting it with power equal to a small nuclear warhead. There was a sudden flash and noise, and when it was over, not a single sign of Deathscythe or Duo could be found.

"NO!!!" Heero screamed as his hopes and dreams were ripped away from him. His lip curled back in rage and he gripped the controls of his Gundam so tightly that his knuckles turned white. He turned Gundam Wing upward, concentrating his fire on the hidden foes that had just killed Duo and ruined his life.

Wufei and the others weren't far behind.

"Back off." Heero snarled. "These guys are mine."

"Don't be selfish." Quatre pouted. "Duo was our friend, too."

"Right." Heero agreed. "Quatre, you and Wufei take the ones on the left, Trowa, you and I will take the ones on the right."

The four pilots split off into two groups and began their attack.

Soon most of the fighters were down, which was fortunate as the four Gundam pilots were out of ammo at this point.

A new phalanx of fights came in from directly ahead. 

"Shit!" Heero snarled, as he clicked empty. "I'm out. How 'bout the rest of you."

"I'm out, too." Trowa confirmed.

"Ditto." From Wufei.

"Dry as a bone." Quatre agreed. "Looks like they got us."

//At least Duo won't be alone.// Heero thought to himself.

The enemy fighters drew into firing range as the sun rose off in the distance, ignored by both sides. The four Gundam pilots braced themselves for the inevitable. But the inevitable never came. Instead the entire phalanx of enemy fighter suddenly disintegrated as they were struck down by an energy wave more powerful than any of the pilots had ever seen.

The four pilots looked over from the direction it had come from and were startled to see what looked like a very advanced and incredibly expensive Gundam flying toward them from out of the sun. It was also very beautiful, almost ethereal.

"Who the hell?" Heero demanded.

Then Duo's face appeared on his monitor. "You guys didn't think I'd leave you in a lurch, did ya?" he asked.

"Duo!" Heero exclaimed. "We thought you were dead."

"I am." Duo replied.

Heero blinked, then noticed that Duo's uniform was all white. including his helmet. "You're going to leave me again, aren't you?" he asked.

"I'll always come back when you need me most." Duo promised. "Come, let's land these puppies and chat face-to-face."

Heero, Quatre, Wufei, and Trowa landed their Gundams and waited for Duo. When they saw him, transformed into an angel more beautiful than any painting could portray, they found themselves unable to remember how their jaws worked for a good number of minutes before Heero finally managed to speak.

"You're beautiful, Duo." he said. "You've always been beautiful."

Duo blushed, turning his face away, bashfully, and covering it with one of his newly acquired wings in a most endearing fashion.

Heero smiled. "Is it okay for me to hug you?" he asked.

"You bet it is." Duo smiled, as he snuggled up to Heero and smiled at him. "I'm sorry about dying on our wedding day and all that." he said.

"I still want to marry you." Heero told him.

"Heero, I'm dead." Duo reminded him.

"So it'll be a mixed marriage." Heero shrugged. "I can handle it if you can."

"We'll have to leave out that bit about 'til death do us part." Duo pointed out. 

"So we'll leave it out." Heero grinned. "Please, Duo?"

"Okay." Duo agreed.

-----Owari-----