Observing Virgins 

-----part 1-----

The OZ general smiled at the slender blond prisoner who sat in the corner of the penthouse suite. The room was lavishly decorated with a warm, soft bed, beautiful curtains which hid the barred windows behind them effectively enough to make one forget they were in a prison, a television, and a VCR along with a stack of movies. In short, it was a prison designed to make the prisoner want to stay.

//Very ingenious,// the blond pilot thought to himself. //Make the prison so comfortable that no one wants to break out. Almost perfect.//

He sighed aloud and the general raised an eyebrow. "You do that a lot." he noticed. "It gets on my nerves. We've tried to accommodate you and that braided brat as much as possible, but you keep whining. What the hell for? Isn't this enough?" he swept a hand around, gesturing at the room around him."

"No." Quatre replied. "It's not." 

"What is it going to take to stop you from whining?"

"Duo." Quatre replied.

"What the hell do you need him for?" The guard demanded. "If you're thinking of trying to escape..."

"I'm not." It was true. Not because he'd grown to like his prison, but because Quatre knew there was no way he and Duo could break out without help from outside. "I just need him. I want to hold him, to be held by him. I love him, sir. I want to make love with him."

"Love?" the guard was intrigued. He'd grown up in a very conservative area. The idea of two people of the same sex being in love didn't repulse him, it had just never occurred to him since no one had ever spoken of the idea around him until then. "But how can you make love with another boy?"

"I don't care if he's a boy, damn you." Quatre snapped. "I just care that I love him and I want to have him with me."

"I don't..." The guard blinked at the usually docile boy's vehemence. "I mean, how ..."

Quatre understood. "I'm sorry. I thought you were being prejudiced. Allah knows I get enough of that garbage. Let me spend the night with Duo and, if he doesn't mind, we'll let you watch."

The idea intrigued the guard and he went to retrieve the braided pilot.

*****

"Oh no!" Duo groaned. "You're not gonna send me back to that boring place I was at before." He liked this place and if he did get rescued he intended to come back, liberate it from OZ, and make it the team's new safehouse. He doubted anyone would object.

"No." The guard replied. "You're getting a... shall we say... conjugal visit."

Duo glared at the man and threw a punch at him. "If you think you can just barge in here and take my virginity..." Duo began.

"Not with me!" the guard rolled his eyes and Duo blushed. "Your little friend in the other cell says he's attracted to you."

//Oh God,// Duo thought, //he means Quatre. Quatre wants me. He wants to...// he was still feeling lightheaded when he walked into Quatre's cell.

"Okay," the guard shoved Duo toward Quatre, "show me."

"I said I'd have to get his permission first." Quatre said, firmly. He turned to Duo and took his hand. "He wants to know how two boys can make love." he said. "I don't mind letting him see how much I love you, but if you'd rather not..."

Duo shook his head. "I don't mind either." he whispered, unbraiding his hair.

Quatre's expression softened even more than usual as he drew Duo into his arms and placed a long, tender kiss on the other pilot's lips. He felt Duo return the kiss as he unbuttoned Duo's shirt and slid it off him. Taking a cue from Quatre, Duo removed the billionaire's shirt and tossed it over onto his own. They moved closer together and kissed a little more, but went no further.

"I can't..." Quatre whispered. "Duo, I can't touch you like that. Not this way. This shouldn't happen this way."

"Is that it?" the guard asked. "You just take your shirts off and kiss?"

"No, there's more." Quatre admitted. "But I can't do that until we do something else first."

"So do it then." The guard was getting impatient.

"It's not that simple." Quatre sighed. "I... I have to court him." he explained.

"Court?" the guard was interested.

"Yes." Quatre explained. "It takes a while, too."

"How long?"

"At least a week." Quatre explained. "What happens from there depends upon how courtship turns out."

"And how do you court?" the guard asked.

"Just leave us together and let things evolve from there." Quatre suggested. He wasn't sure, being a virgin himself, how to describe mankind's intricate courting rituals.

"Very well." the guard agreed. After all, it would free up a cell for another prisoner. "Begin courting, whatever that is." he walked out and slammed the door shut.

"Are you really going to go through with this?" Duo asked. 

Quatre nodded. "We can't get out until we can get help from outside." he explained. "And I don't want to be alone in here."

"So, you chose me because I just happened to be here?!" Duo was horribly offended. "I'm not just some cheap...!"

Quatre kissed him, silencing the braided boy's tirade. "You misunderstand," he whispered, "I don't think you're a cheap anything. I love you, Duo Maxwell. What I meant was that I'd rather spend my time in here with you than alone without you."

"Forgive me for assuming..." Duo began.

Quatre silenced him with a kiss. "There's nothing to forgive, my love." he whispered. He went over and turned on the TV. He slipped one of the video tapes into the VCR and turned it on. He sat on the sofa motioning for Duo to join him, which the braided pilot did, very shyly. Quatre marveled at the timidity of the usually gregarious pilot. The movie began, an old classic called "Death Takes A Holiday". They watched it for a bit, then Quatre pulled Duo close, smiling as the braided pilot rested his head upon his shoulder and smiled, shyly.

-----part 2-----

The guard watched from the monitoring room as Duo and Quatre just sat there, watching the movie together. It was a good movie, he had to admit. But he didn't say what any of this had to do with how two boys had sex together. And he wanted to see these two boys have sex with each other. They were beautiful. There was no other word to describe them. The Arabian pilot reminded him, appropriately enough, of a desert rose, beautiful and fragile, yet with a strength to match the harsh climate in which it grew. The American pilot, though more aggressive in all other aspects, was timid when it came to sex. He wondered why. 

*****

Quatre turned off the movie. "Why don't you take the bed?" he offered, "I'll sleep on the sofa."

'I can't ask you to do that." Duo shook his head. "You're rich. You're not used to sofas."

"Just because I'm a billionaire, doesn't mean I don't fall asleep watching TV like everyone else." Quatre laughed, despite their imprisonment. "Okay?"

Duo stood up and kissed Quatre. "Okay. Good night." he went into the bathroom, showered and washed his clothes, then hung them to dry during the night while he slept. Then he slipped, naked, into the bed, and drifted off to sleep.

Quatre just stared at sleeping Shinigami Pilot, so innocently seductive there in his bed. He wanted to take Duo right there and then, but his own unreadiness and his promise to himself and to Duo to wait kept him from acting on his desire.

"You're the most beautiful thing Allah ever made." Quatre whispered to the sleeping pilot as he washed himself and washed and hung his clothes, then returned to the couch wearing a towel.

Quatre woke first and went to the bathroom to bathe and take care of the usual morning stuff. It bothered him a bit how used to this prison he was becoming. He put on his clothes, which had dried stiffly during the night, and complained about the lack of fabric softener.

"My shirt is as stiff as my..." 

"Quatre!" 

Quatre turned and saw Duo standing their, blushing from head to toe. He blushed, himself, and didn't finish the sentence.

-----part 3-----

"Duo," Quatre said, taking the braided boy's hand, "tell me, how do you feel about Heero? I need to know if we're going to continue our courtship."

"I thought I loved him. He was strong, determined, and I don't deny he's very handsome. But..." Duo faltered and turned away, uncertainty creeping into his mind.

"You don't love him."

Duo looked around. It had been a guess, not an accusation. And Quatre had been right. "No," he finally admitted, "I didn't. I guess he was just a substitute for Solo. Someone I could look up to, a support pillar, a role model. But nothing more. I don't think he ever could be. I'm glad he never asked me to his bed. I would've been too docile to refuse and I would've hated him for my defilement the next morning. I guess I'm old-fashioned when it comes to sex... oh, I don't mean I think boys have to be with girls and stuff. I just mean well... that I want to wait, Quatre."

"I know, Duo." Quatre lifted Duo's chin and kissed him, softly. "So do I."

"So, how do you feel about Trowa?"

"I thought it was love, romantic love I mean." Quatre sighed. "But I realize, now, that I was just letting myself experience maternal love in some way by offering it to a troubled soul who needed it. By doing that, I was able to help heal him and also to allow myself to imagine how my mother might have done the same for me if she had lived." 

Duo leaned forward and kissed the tears from Quatre's face until Quatre pulled back.

"No..." he said, softly. "If you keep kissing me, I'll want to touch you and I'll do something we'll both regret later." He stood up. "What movie do you want to see?"

"Death Takes A Holiday." Duo grinned.

"*Again*?!" Quatre groaned. 

Duo gave him the most kawaii puppy-dog eyes expression in the universe.

"Okay... okay..." Quatre gave in and put the movie in for the nth time, then sat on the sofa with Duo snuggled up beside him.

"I am... a vagabond of space..." Duo recited in unison with Frederick March as the spectre of Death spoke to his would-be host upon the TV screen.

-----part 4-----

The guard watched them go through the same routine day after day and night after night: a little idle chatter, a shared meal, and 'Death Takes A Holiday'. And each night, both young pilots would strip off their clothes, wash them out and then fall asleep with one on the sofa and the other in the bed.

Then, one night, the routine changed, just a little. The boy who brought the food to the prisoners had also, with the guard's permission, brought a little box with a simple diamond ring in it to Quatre and Duo's cell. Duo was in the shower, since Quatre had told him that night was going to be special. This was perfect since it meant Quatre was able to put away their groceries and hide the box.

The rest of the evening went pretty much as all the others, until the scene when Sirki lowered Grazia onto the lounge in the garden and kissed her tenderly. Then, Quatre took Duo's hand and knelt before him.

Duo's eyes widened as Quatre held the box out and opened it, showing him the ring inside. 

"Duo," Quatre asked, gazing into the Shinigami Pilot's eyes, " will you marry me?"

Duo nodded. "Yes, Quatre." he replied. "Yes, I will marry you."

That night, neither of them left the sofa, both of them drifting off to sleep, fully dressed, in each other's arms.

-----part 5-----

Duo woke the next morning to find Quatre absently playing with his braid.

"I hope you don't mind." Quatre said, still stroking the long rope of chestnut hair. "I can't help myself. I had to touch some part of you. Forgive me if I..."

Duo sighed. "Nothing to forgive, my love." he whispered. "I just don't like most people touching my braid because I think they're gonna cut it off. It took me years to grow it and..."

"I understand." Quatre kissed Duo. "I'd never cut your braid off. It's a part of you, Duo. And I love every single part of you."

"I love every part of you, too." Duo replied.

The guard walked in and closed the door.

"What was that thing with the ring about last night?" he asked.

"We're getting married." Quatre explained. "That means we'll need a Justice of the Peace or a priest or chaplain to perform the wedding."

"I see." The guard said, stiffly. "I'll be back with the prison chaplain in ten minutes. I suggest you get ready. We'll have your little wedding and then you can show me how you make love." He turned and walked back out of the cell.

-----part 6-----

"Okay," the guard told the chaplain. "Now, make it fast."

The chaplain looked them over carefully. "You two... ?" he asked, seeming to stall.

"Is there a problem?" Quatre asked.

"No. Just wondering which of you is the bride. For the ceremony... you know ..to be your lawfully wedded wife, that sort of thing. I mean I can husband both times if you prefer, but ..."

"You needn't worry about that," Quatre said. "Duo and I are going to say our own vows."

"Okay, then. That makes it a lot simpler for me. So, which of you is going to start off?"

"I'd better start." Quatre replied. "If we start with him, I'll never get to say my part."

The chaplain nodded.

"Duo," Quatre looked fondly into the other boy's eyes, "from the very beginning you've touched my heart as no other could. You've endeavored to stay cheerful even during this imprisonment and lightened my heart with every smile. I've loved you from the moment I first saw you and will love you forever after."

The chaplain waited for a moment then nodded to Duo.

"Quatre," the braided pilot said, tears in his eyes, "you've been so kind to me since our first meeting. You've used your space-heart to see my pain and when that pain became unbearable you offered a shoulder to cry on. You listened when everyone else stopped listening. I love you, Quatre, now and for eternity."

The chaplain smiled. "You are now married." he told them. Then, smiling at Quatre he added, "You may now kiss the um... "

"Bride will do." Duo blushed.

"You may kiss the bride." the chaplain concluded.

Quatre leaned forward and kissed Duo, softly, upon the lips just as wall of the cell exploded inward. He pulled the Shinigami pilot closer, his mind not even registering the explosion, as Heero, Wufei, and Trowa forced their way in.

"Duo?" Trowa asked. "Quatre?"

"Let's go." Heero told them, firmly.

The two newlyweds just kept kissing.

"YOU'RE BEING RESCUED, YOU IDIOTS!" Wufei screamed at the couple.

Duo and Quatre both yelped and spun around.

"Took you long enough to find us." Duo remarked. "Well, at least now the taking of my virginity won't be viewed by others."

"Says who?" Heero asked, a gleam in his eyes. 

Duo and Quatre both sweatdropped.

-----part 7-----

"You couldn't wait could you?" Duo complained as the five pilots raced toward their Gundams. "I mean tomorrow would've been fine. You already took this long, one more day wouldn't have hurt you would it?"

"Duo, shut up." Wufei complained.

"Omae o korosu." Heero growled.

Wufei blinked.

"Not you. Him." Heero growled, glaring at Quatre.

"Can we argue *after* we get the hell out of here?" Duo asked. 

The five pilots raced back to their Gundams.

"Duo and Heero in Wing, Trowa and Quatre in HeavyArms." Wufei called to them as they got to the three Gundams that were present.

"No good that way." Quatre explained. "Duo and I just got married."

"What do you want us to do, tie shoes and cans to Wing and let you fly off in it together?"

Duo blinked at Heero.

"You and Quatre can get all kissy-kissy when we get home." Trowa told Duo. "Right now, let's get the hell away from here." He grabbed Duo's wrist and dragged the protesting pilot to Wing.

As they were flying back to the safehouse, Duo felt Heero's erection pressing against him through their clothes. He slapped Heero, not too hard, and reprimanded him for being 'fresh'.

Heero sat there with a stunned expression on his face for a moment, then they both began to laugh.

"Can't help nature." he shrugged. "But don't worry, I won't defile another man's 'wife'. So, why did you marry Quatre anyhow?"

"He asked me." Duo replied. "And I love him."

"I thought..." Heero began.

"So did I." Duo admitted. "But now I know it was just because you remind me of Solo. I'm sorry, Heero. I never meant to hurt you."

"How did this all come about anyhow?"

Duo explained about the events of the past several days.

Heero stared at him, awestruck. "You're a virgin?"

Duo nodded.

"But what about when you lived on the streets? Surely you must have..."

"Sold my body?" Duo asked. "Yes, but not sexually. Remember, I had a natural immunity to the L2 Plague? It turned out that I'm immune to most virulent diseases, so I sold my blood to various medical labs so they could make remedies for most of them. There was this one creep who tried to rape me when I was eleven. He had me pinned in this ugly, smelly room, and was starting to undress me when realized he'd left his condoms in the car."

"Condoms?" Heero was confused.

"He didn't want to leave sperm as evidence." Duo explained. "Anyhow, he went out to the car and that's when Shinigami saved me."

"He died?" Heero asked. "The man I mean?"

Duo nodded. "I swear to you, no lie, the son of a bitch was struck by lightning. Heaven protects its angels, I guess.." he yawned as he dozed off.

Heero shrugged. "... and bakas named Duo."

*****

Back at the safehouse, Trowa and Heero carried Duo and Quatre into one of the bedrooms. The two newlyweds were sound asleep. Trowa and Heero placed Quatre and Duo onto the bed, lying side by side, and covered them.

"Good night." Heero whispered, as he switched off the light.

-----TBC-----