Author's Note: Dammit! I didn't want to have this many

chapters. This one and Chapter 5 were supposed to be

the same one, but it was too long. Hn! ::pouts, then

gets dirty looks from G-boys, muses, and readers:: But

enough rambling... On with the fic!

Disclaimer: I don't own the G-boys, this version of

the Greek Gods is really messed up, shounen ai,

switching of POV, OOCness most likely, and general

weirdness. Squiggly lines ~ ~ are for emphasis.

"Meiran?" Wufei breathed in shock. It couldn't be...

She was dead... He belated remembered that he was in

the Land of the Dead. Oh, yeah... Still, she was

Buddhist. What was she doing here?

"Of course. What are ~you~ doing here? Are you dead?

And why have you got wings on your back?" she

demanded, brisk and borderline rude as ever.

"~I'm~ here to rescue my - er - friend, and I'm far

from being dead. I've been made the Avatar of

Justice," he said with pardonable pride. Then he

waited for the inevitable jibe about how unworthy he

was for such a task. He was taken aback when Meiran

chuckled.

"Always knew you had it in you. Was wondering what it

would take to get you to believe it, too," she said

smugly, as if ~she~ had personally been responsible

for this turn of events.

"What?"

"Really, Wufei, for a scholar you're being

particularly dense. Do you honestly think I would

waste my time on a ~male~ such as yourself if I hadn't

thought you had potential?" she asked in exasperation.

Wufei was about to retort when he paused to think

whether he was being insulted or complemented. "Who's

this - ahem - ~friend~ of yours?"

"His name is Duo. He was kidnaped by Hades and

Thanatos told me he'd be here," Wufei replied then

grimaced. He'd disobeyed his orders, he'd stopped.

Would he be able to Duo now? A gasp from Meiran

distracted him. "What is it?"

"You mean - Shinigami is a mortal? Dammit!" she

cursed. "Injustice! I was wondering what was going

wrong. The stars have been coming out. Well, I suppose

I'll take you to him. The sooner you get him out of

here, the better off we'll all be. Come on, Dragon."

She began to walk through the trees. Wufei stared

after her, then gave a snort of irritation. He'd

almost forgotten what she was like. He hurried to

follow, not wanting to get lost in the Underworld.

"Onna, don't you dare get us lost!"

"Don't 'dear' me, Hades!" Persephone said sternly,

putting her hands on her hips. "Just what do you think

you're doing? Killing all my beautiful flowers,

ruining Mother's crops, driving Pan and the satyrs mad

with all this death and other nonsense! I leave for

one hundred years and ~look~ what happens! And what

about Shinigami? What have you done to that poor boy

to keep him here, hmmm? Given him a tour? Introduced

him to Sysiphus and Tantalus? Have him trying to train

Cerberus to roll over?"

"Of course not, honey - " Hades began, but Demeter

advanced on him, shaking a finger.

"How ~dare~ you, young man? Trying to destroy all my

hard work before those poor mortals can harvest. I

~knew~ you were a rotten egg to start with, I said so

right from the beginning. My daughter could've had

Apollo or Hermes, and I daresay she'd have been better

off for it. Don't say I didn't warn you, Persephone, I

said he was no good, and if Zeus hadn't stepped in

I'd've tanned your hide for even considering him," she

ranted, glaring daggers at Hades.

"Demeter, what a - pleasant - surprise," Hades said

with a watery smile. Thanatos grinned. His father had

never been a match for either woman, and now was

practical cowering before the wrath of them both.

"Don't you talk to me, little mister! I don't need any

of your lippiness. Now, you just scoot and put my

great-grandson back on Earth, get all your bloody

stupid sand back down here, and close the Gates. Have

you ~any~ idea of the worry you've caused? Poor Zeus

is frantic trying to figure out how you got up there

in the first place. This is just perfect, my daughter

is in love with an escaped convict!" Demeter then

burst into dramatic tears.

"Now look what you've done!" Persephone cried, rushing

to comfort her mother. She glared at Hades from over

her mother's shoulder. She transferred her gaze to

Thanatos and her expression softened. "Honey, why

don't you go get Shinigami out of here? Your father

and I need some time to talk this over."

"But sweetie - " objected Hades, but was silenced by a

look from his wife.

Thanatos gave his mother a smile and snapped his

fingers, vanishing without the slightest puff of

smoke. Demeter detached herself from her daughter, and

likewise left, not without a considerable amount of

venomous looks at Hades. Finally they were alone

together. Hades gave his bride a nervous smile. She

merely narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms over her

chest.

"Persephone, darling, let me explain - "

"No! I don't want to here it, Hades! This stupid

grudge you've held against Zeus has gone on long

enough. What were you ~thinking~?"

"Dear, I -"

"You ~weren't~ thinking at all! And you'd better clean

up this mess you've made or - or you won't get ~any~

nookie for the next few millennia!" Persephone

declared, stamping her foot in the sand to make her

point. Hades locked gazes with her. Eventually he

looked rather like sulky puppy as lowered his

pitch-black eyes and nodded. She smiled then, and

kissed him. "Though you're sooo sexy when you're all

maniacal and evil, I want my sweet little Hades back,

mmkay? And I promise to reward you later... I'm not

going to be leaving for a few hundred years..."

Hades looked reluctant as he pulled away, but the

thought of having Persephone to - er - keep him

company in - uh - creative ways was enough motivation

for him. He could wait to avenge himself as long as he

had ~her~ with him... She was the reason he was

imprisoned in the first place anyway. Plus he was just

relieved that her harpy of a mother had left, and that

she herself had stopped nagging and threatening.{1}

And - he justified to himself - if the gods really

were in a tizzy about this little attempt at

overthrowing Zeus, then they must not be as distant as

he thought. He snapped his fingers, and the winds

stopped, then reversed, pulling the sand back into the

Underworld. Then he eagerly embraced Persephone.

"I did my part... now, what's my reward?" he murmured.

He was pleasantly surprised.

Meiran led him around so many bushes and streams that

Wufei was sure she had no idea where she was going. He

let her know this, too, and this made for some

interesting conversation as they walked, usually

involving their doubts about the other's ancestry

and/or intelligence. Finally Meiran stopped and

pointed at a clearing. Wufei's heart soared. There sat

Duo, looking perfectly content on the soft ground as a

woman who bore a slight resemblance to him brushed his

incredibly long unbound hair. She was talking in a

steady flow, not unlike Duo often did, and

surprisingly Duo was silent except for an occasional

laugh.

"There he is. Go get him, Dragon," Meiran said,

mock-punching Wufei on the arm. "It was... good to see

you again..."

"Yes... Thank you for your help..." Wufei responded

awkwardly.

"And... Wufei..." she paused, fidgeting, not meeting

his eyes.

"What?" he asked, puzzled. He'd never seen Meiran

nervous before.

"I - I'm... sorry. For being a weakling and dying like

that," she said in a rush, a pale blush coloring her

features. "Don't... hesitate to tell him how you feel.

Because you never know when you might not be able to

anymore..."

The import of what she was saying hit him, and he

looked at her in shock. "Meiran...?"

"Don't make the mistake I did. Good-bye, Wufei. Never

loose sight of Justice," she said, and before he could

respond, she'd kissed him on the cheek and run out of

sight. He just stood there, blinking repeatedly as he

touched his cheek. Then he shook himself. He could

puzzle out her actions later, when he'd delivered Duo

from here. He entered the clearing.

"- and then your father said, 'Well, at least the

shoes go with it!'" Kayla declared, and both she and

Duo went off into fits of laughter. A sudden polite

cough sounded from beside them. Duo looked up and his

eyes widened as Wufei stepped into the clearing. Or at

least, it looked like Wufei... except, when did Wufei

get large green dragon-wings?

"Wu-bear? Is it really you?" he asked, his eyes

narrowing as he recalled the pseudo-Wufei from he

vision Hades had created.

"Of course I am, Maxwell," the Wufei-dragon-boy said,

annoyance, tension, and something incomprehensible

thick in his tone. "And don't call me Wu-bear!"

"Wufei! It ~is~ you!" Duo stood and bounded over to

him, glomping a very startled Wufei. Then he felt

something moist on his chest as Wufei struggled weakly

in his arms. He pulled away, looking down. Something

red was smeared on his chest, and there were dark

stains on Wufei's ragged-looking tank top. "Fei, what

happened?"

Wufei looked embarrassed. "We haven't got time for

this. The Underworld is merging with the real one, and

we've got to get out of here before it's too late."

"What?" Kayla cried, jumping up. "What was I thinking?

Of course you need to get out of here, dear. The Gates

of Hades won't close if there's a living mortal in

here!"

"What?" Duo shouted, feeling a wave of understanding

wash through him. He'd been neatly tricked into

staying here, unwittingly doing exactly what Hades

wanted. "Dammit! We've got to get out of here!"

"No, really?" Wufei asked sarcastically. Then he

turned away. "Unfortunately, I seem to have gotten

lost... I don't know the way back to the Gate."

"Well, you could follow me," a soft reedy voice said

before anyone's hopes could sufficiently be crushed.

Duo whirled, reaching for a gun that wasn't there.

Behind him stood a short lithe man with a cloud of

white hair and glowing purple eyes. "I know the way."

"Thanatos?" Kayla whispered as if not believing her

eyes. She ran over to him, much as Duo had done to

Wufei, only this pair shared a passionate kiss.

"Hello, Kayla. No time to chat really," Duo's father

said. "I don't know if Mother succeeded in convincing

Hades to let Duo go, and I'd rather not stay to find

out. I'll come back for you, love."

"You'd damn well better," she whispered back

throatily. She relinquished her hold on the God, and

turned to Duo. "It was good to see you, son. I hope we

can again, some day. But it had better not be soon."

Duo blinked back a sudden stinging in his eyes as his

mother hugged him fiercely.

"It won't be. I love you, Mom," he whispered into her

ear so no one else could hear.

"I love you, too. And honey, you should tell him how

you feel. You'll feel better, trust me," she said back

in similar fashion. Duo started and pulled back. His

mother was grinning widely, and she gave him a large

wink. Then she suddenly ran off into the dense forest

around them. Duo stared after her. Had he been so

obvious...?

"We'd better hurry," Thanatos reminded him, putting an

arm on his shoulder. He nodded absently. "Then come

closer around me. I shall attempt to take us to the

Gate."

As they came closer to Thanatos, Wufei spoke.

"Attempt? You mean it might not work?"

"Due to the nature of the Gate, it is constantly

moving within the Underworld. Only Hades himself knows

exactly where it is all the time, and I don't think

he'll be willing to help with this."

"So it's basically hit-or-miss," Duo said, rolling his

eyes. "Perfect."

"Brace yourself, this may feel a little weird,"

Thanatos said then snapped his fingers.

Quatre bit his lip worriedly. Wufei had been done

there an awful long time. And the change of the

direction of the sand was startling. The sand was

retreating much more rapidly than it had appeared, and

the rift in the earth was closing just as quickly. At

this rate, even if they managed to get out of the

Underworld, they'd be crushed before they could reach

the top of the chasm.

"Come on, you guys," he whispered. "Hurry."

Wufei would have given a sarcastic laugh at Thanatos's

words. 'A little weird' didn't even begin to describe

the strange, stomach-lurching, mind-bending,

limb-rending feeling that came after the snap. He was

thankful that it lasted only a fraction of a second,

but his head continued to pound afterwards. Duo moaned

and stumbled. Wufei caught him before he'd hit the

ground.

"Are you all right?" he asked, gritting his teeth

against the pain in his head.

Duo grinned weakly at him. "Yeah, just a little

whoosy. Are we there yet?"

"Nearly. The Gate is over there," Thanatos said,

gesturing. "I'm afraid I can't follow you into the

mortal world. But I shall distract Cerberus for you."

"Thank you," Wufei said formally, nodding slightly.

Duo straightened, letting go of Wufei slowly, and

smiled widely at his father.

"Yeah, thanks Dad. And do me a favor, would you? Don't

invite me to any of the family reunions," Duo joked

with a big wink. Thanatos smiled more widely this

time.

"I don't think you'll have to worry about that. Good

bye, Shinigami and Avatar of Justice. Fare you well,"

Thanatos said.

Without further hesitation, Wufei tugged Duo away,

breaking into a run for the strange Gate. They had

reached the Gate when a resounding growl rang out.

Wufei threw Duo forward, putting himself between the

monstrous dog and his friend, ready to battle. Then he

himself was pushed out of the way.

"Didn't I say I'd distract him? Go!" Thanatos yelled

over a roar, hurling a large white wedding cake at the

Wufei took the hint scrambled out after Duo. They

stood at the bottom of the pit and sand blew into

their eyes and faces. The wind was howling, picking up

speed, and the walls were closing much to fast for

their comfort. Wufei grabbed the coughing form of Duo

and lifted him up.

"HOLD ON!" he shouted over the wind.

"GOOD ADVICE, FEI-BABE!" was the mildly sarcastic

response in his ear as Duo wrapped arms around his

neck. Wufei readjusted his grip, trying not to get

tangled in Duo's mass of hair, then sprang into the

air.

Wind buffeted him, making it incredibly hard to gain

altitude and even harder to stay in control. Grimly he

struggled, ever mindful of the cliff walls closing

around him. The fact that Duo's hair only whipped him

in the face as much as the sand did only made it

worse. A sudden strong gust forced him off course,

smashing him against the side. He heard a sickening

crack as his wing broke. He spread his unwounded wing

wide, trying desperately to stay aloft.

"WUFEI!" Duo shouted.

"Duo..." he said, his words getting lost in the sound

of rushing wind. They were tossed about, striking the

side again. He did his best to shield Duo with his

body. Stars of pain clouded his vision and they began

to fall. "I've failed you..."

"WUFEI, DON'T YOU DIE ON ME NOW, DAMMIT!!" Duo

screamed into his ear. "COME ON! WE'RE ALMOST TO THE

TOP!"

"Sorry," Wufei said, futilely trying to pump his wings

as wind wrenched the dragonic appendages around. In a

haze of pain, he found his gaze locked with Duo's. He

recalled Meiran's advice, and, certain he was about to

die, took it to heart. "I love you."

He was aware of the violet eyes widening in shock. He

himself was surprised Duo had heard him at all... Or

maybe he'd read his lips... Wufei disorganized

thoughts fled as there was a horrible twisting of the

world as he hit the ground.

The Gods and pilots watched with sinking hearts as the

chasm closed completely. Neither pilot had emerged.

Quatre let tears flow unashamedly, and was surprised

when Trowa wrapped him in a comforting hug, which he

returned gratefully, weeping into the taller boy's

shoulder. Thalia was likewise teary-eyed, but

Aphrodite and Eros looked philosophical.

"Their efforts weren't in vain," Aphrodite comforted.

"They obviously escaped, else the Gates wouldn't have

been able to close. They saved your world."

"Ninmu kanryou," Heero said reverently.

"So... this... is heaven," Duo said aloud. He couldn't

help but feel extremely disappointed.

White. It was really really white. He looked around.

Yep. ~Everything~ was white. And misty. He was alone.

Where was Wufei? A stab of hyper-intense worry shot

through him.

"No, not really," a deep, resonating masculine voice

said from behind him. Duo whirled to see a tall man

with curly dark brown hair and golden olive branches

tucked behind his ears. And his toga was white too.

"Then where am I? Where's Wufei? How did I get here?"

he demanded. He was too worried about his Fei-chan and

too sick of gods dragging him off on whims to be

polite. The chestnut-haired god merely smiled

soothingly.

"Calm down, Shinigami, or Duo, whichever you call

yourself. This is Mount Olympus, home of he Gods. When

you escaped the Underworld, we transported you here.

Your beloved is safe, and his wounds are being tended

to by Athena as we speak. But while he is being

healed, I have to talk with you about certain things,"

he said, giving Duo a stern look. "One of which is

your apparent godliness."

Duo, adrift in warm relief upon hearing Wufei's

safety, nodded. "Let me guess, you don't want me to be

a god?"

"Something like that. You see, here on Olympus, we all

have remained static for the past few millennia. There

aren't any real job openings, especially in your end

of the field. It would be imprudent," the god said,

looking quite practical. "And do you really want to be

a god anyway? Think carefully. I won't force you to

deny your godhood. If you wish it, you may become a

full god and live here among us."

"What exactly does that entail? I assume there are

catches to being a supreme being," Duo said with a

mocking grin.

"Well for one you will have to give up your mortality,

and your mortal friends. You'd have to find a

theological niche to fill, and then you'd have to do

that for the rest of eternity. It gets boring. And

your contact with the mortal world would be severely

limited. While there are some rule breakers up here,

myself, your father, and Eros included, generally we

are forbidden to fall in love with mortals. I think

this would be the most helpful factor in deciding,"

the god added after a meaningful pause.

It would've been tempting. All that power, no more

war, and all the ambrosia he could eat! But the

thought of living for eternity without his Fei-chan

decided him against it. Even if he did break the

rules, Wufei would still be mortal and would

eventually die. From his mother's reaction to Thanatos

showing up, he guessed that it didn't happen very

often, if ever. And Duo wasn't willing to risk it.

Especially since he had an inkling of what Wufei was

trying to tell him before they'd been puffed here.

"It's a good offer, but I think I'll pass. Being a

demi-god is enough for me," Duo said.

The god sighed with relief.

"Good. Now that ~that's~ settled, would you like to go

back to your world?"

"I want Wufei, ~then~ I'd be glad to take him and get

out of your hair," Duo replied. The god smacked

himself on the forehead.

"How forgetful of me. Of course," he said and snapped

his fingers. Wufei and a tall woman in silver armor

appeared in a puff of white smoke. The woman stood

from her crouching position next to the prone body of

Wufei.

"Father, I wish you wouldn't do that. Mortals aren't

made to handle our method of transportation," Athena

said with a professional frown.

"What's wrong with him?" Duo asked, worry coming back

full force as Wufei didn't stir.

"Nothing. Healing takes a lot out of mortals; he'd

sleeping it off to regain his energy. He already used

up quite a bi of it with those ridiculous wings. Next

time, tell Eros not to give him the bow and arrows. I

think that's what triggered it," she said, still

calmly professional. "He'll be fine in a few hours.

Just don't transport them back to earth. Not in the

usual way, at least. That could make him slip into a

coma."

"You're the healer," Zeus agreed with a jaunty smile.

"Now, how to send you two home... I've got it!"

As he said this, he snapped his fingers. Duo found

himself next to Wufei, floating on a puff of white

cloud far above the earth, which looked as it did from

space. Only it couldn't have been space because there

was plenty of air to breathe and it wasn't cold. He

looked back, expecting to see clouds or any sign of

the place he'd just left, but there was none. So he

sighed and watched as they drifted lazily down toward

earth.

He was almost asleep from boredom when he heard Wufei

move next to him. He snapped to alertness and watched

anxiously as Wufei sat up, blinking slowly.

"D-Duo?" Wufei asked, clearly puzzled. "What

happened?"

"Well, we were falling and then I thought we died and

I'd gone to heaven, but it was only Mount Olympus and

Zeus talked to me about being a god, and I said I

didn't want to and then Athena came with you and Zeus

put us on this cloud thingy and now we're going back

down to earth, and gods 'Fei don't you ~ever~ do that

again!" Duo said in one breath. "I thought you were

~dead~!"

After a stunned pause as Wufei organized Duo's babble,

he said, "So did I. Did you - did you hear me say

something? Before we got puffed to Olympus?"

"Ah... maybe... wanna refresh my memory?" Duo asked

innocently as he could. Here it came...

Wufei looked embarrassed and his mouth worked but

couldn't seem to form words. Then he looked away from

Duo and mumbled something.

"What? I didn't catch that."

"I said 'I think I love you,' dammit!" Wufei shouted

suddenly, glaring up at Duo and turning red.

Duo, for all his hopes, was shocked into

speechlessness. He'd actually admitted it! Duo

resisted the urge to swoon, as he'd probably fall off

the cloud. Wufei looked away after the silence went on

for a few moments.

"I know you don't like me, but I thought I should tell

you," he said quietly, evenly. Had Duo not known him

as well as he did, he would've missed the slight tinge

of hurt underlying the words. He felt angry at himself

for not acting faster. But was the Chinese boy

~really~ that slow on the uptake? Without thinking, he

tackled Wufei.

"Baka! You are so dense! Not ~like~ you? Come on!

~Everyone~ else saw it, even my mom! And ~she'd~ only

just met the both of us!" he shouted into Wufei's face

as he pinned the unresisting boy to the soft

fluffiness of the cloud.

"What are you saying?" Wufei asked, confused. Duo

rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"I'll say this in words even you can understand. I

think I love you, too!" he said plainly, then kissed

Wufei.

After the initial shock, Wufei responded, wrapping

arms around Duo's neck. He was half-expecting to wake

up and find that this whole episode was a dream, but

the warm reality of Duo was too good to be false.

Tingles ran down his spine as the kiss went on... and

on... and on...

Finally they broke apart for breath. Duo grinned at

him from above, face flushed.

"Get it?" he asked, panting a little.

Wufei gave him a wry smirk.

"I think I'll be able to piece it together," he

assured him, then pulled him down for another kiss. He

was utterly dismayed, though, when a wave of dizziness

passed over him. He broke the kiss and squinched his

eyes closed.

"Fei-babe, are you all right?" Duo asked worriedly.

"I feel... dizzy," he answered. He opened his eyes as

Duo got off of him.

"Oh yeah, I shouldn't've done that. Athena, the chick

who healed you, said you're recovering your energy.

She said you'd have to sleep it off, and you kinda

woke up early or something," the American explained

sheepishly. "Sorry. I guess I took a lot out of you."

"So this means - "

"Right... But we can still cuddle..." Duo offered,

blushing cutely.

Wufei felt himself blush as well. "Er - Duo?"

"Yeah?"

"How do you cuddle?"

His flush deepened as Duo grinned at him.

"I'll show you."

{1}- Who'd have thought Hades would be so whipped? ^_^

whi-chishh!

One more part to go! Epilogue! Send C&C!

BWAHAHAHAHA!!!

Duo: Hey, look! Wufei and I actually got some! *V*

Wufei: ::blushing:: Hn... EEP! ::is glomped by Duo::

Eros: ::sighs and holds up a sign that reads: "Send

all Comments and Criticisms to [email protected]"