The Demon Gundam
by Quicksylver

Standard Disclaimers Apply. Warnings: Yaoi, Angst

Unauthorised posting prohibited

Chapter Three

Heero typed furiously at his laptop, his face tight with concentration. Though it may have seemed to anyone else that his expression was the same as it always was, Duo knew better. To him the reading of Heero's expression had become something of a hobby. He knew that the current situation was affecting the stoic pilot more than he wanted to show. He leaned against the doorway and looked on as his fellow pilot stared at the screen.

For the few days that Heero had been unconscious Duo had been keeping a constant vigil at his bedside; stopping only to sleep and eat or when Skye dragged him out of the old resort, ranting and raving that he needed to get some fresh air at least once in a blue moon.  Of course Heero did not know all this, Duo hadn't told him and the others left it alone. They all saw the devotion that he had for the psychotic pilot and understood his need to do without interference. Everyone in the universeknows...exceptfor Heero, Duo thought sarcastically. He pushed off from against the door and sauntered over to peer over Heero's shoulder.

"Wha'cha doin' Heero?" he asked casually, looking at the screen.

Heero ignored him and continued to type.

"Same ol' same ol' eh buddy!" Duo tried again but it proved in vain.

He heaved a heavy sigh of exasperation and plopped down on Heero's bed, staring at the back of the wing pilot's head. Why do I love him when he keeps ignoring me? He knew very well why. It was Heero's coldness that attracted him. The way he treated him like shit and hit him when he was annoyed. It was that psychotic wildness that drew Duo...no... Shinigami to it like a powerful magnet. It was the love/hate relationship that they shared and the pain that Duo felt he deserved.

Everyone who Duo loved died because he loved them, they were all innocents and he had killed them with his love...the love of the god of death. Heero was different to the others; Heero knew death all to well as he had tried to embrace it so many times. Death and the soldier, that's what they were. Joined in an endless waltz, they needed each other in pain filled ecstasy that swept them along like the tide. Heero dealt the punishment and Duo took it in, serving an endless penance for his sins, so many sins. Suddenly movement brought him out of his morbid and painfully true meanderings. Heero had risen from his chair and was walking out of the room. Duo shot after him.

"Yo Heero, gotta mission?" he asked his smiling mask firmly back in place.

No reply came. Duo panicked, if Heero left now who knew when he would return if ever. He had to do something quick. He did.

"Chotto matte Heero...Ai shiteru!" he blurted out, clamping his hand over his mouth too late.

Heero froze and slowly turned toward him. He could see a mixture of shock, anger and a few other emotions that he could not describe. Smooth move Maxwell! he chastised himself. He immediately began to stammer apologies.

"G...g...gomen H...Heero...I didn't mean..." he couldn't finish.

*CRACK*

Duo looked up at Heero incredulously, his hand touching gingerly at the cheek that Heero had struck.. Heero's hand was still in a fist and for a moment he thought that angry boy was going to beat him senseless. He scooted back  until his back touched the opposite wall. Heero towered over him, angrier that he had ever seen him and Duo's heart sank lower with every passing second. He hates me...he hates me was all that echoed through his head.

Heero was shaking with barely suppressed rage as he turned on his heels and stormed down the hallway and out of sight. Duo crumpled to the floor pleading frantically:

"Heero wait please Heero...I love you Heero, don't leave me please! I love you...forgive me ...Heero I love you."

Duo felt as if his heart had been dug out with a dull spoon and laid in front of him. Heero hated him; he was disgusted by the very thought of him. He had opened his big mouth and now all was lost, Heero would never want to see him or be his friend ever again. At this Duo was filled with an immense sense of loss. Great sobs racked his small frame and echoed down the empty hall as he curled on the floor into a fetal position, heartbroken.

                                                                                 **********

Skye stretched his whole body languorously on the pink divan like a large cat, purring deeply as he tried to get comfortable. To tell you the truth, he was bored out of his mind. The last few days had been restful but one can only take so much peace and tranquillity before one went stark raving mad. The only fun he really had was when he was with Duo but Duo was so caught up with that Heero character that he didn?t have time for anything else. He wondered how Duo could even like the boy when it was clear that he was such a tight ass S O B.

Oh please... he chastised himself, ...this coming from the monarch of hopeless relationships. Anyyywaaaay!, Duo deserved someone better than that, someone who could love as he loved, someone who could truly appreciate his beauty and vitality, someone like me...WHAT? Me? What am I saying? Dammit! Just my style to fall for someone like Duo. Skye... why do you torture yourself like this? Skye got up and walked into the kitchen, grumbling to himself dejectedly.

There he met Quatre and Trowa eating. They greeted him and he mumbled a reply. Quatre, the blonde, friendly one asked him what was wrong. I like Quatre; he's nice, he reflected before answering:

"Just miffed 'cause everyone's on mission 'cept me." He huffed, giving the lesser reason for his mood.

It was true, the other demonhunters all had missions while he didn't. It wasn't fair...he wanted to kick some demon ass too. Lately they had been treating him as if a hard breeze would blow him away. He hated it when they did that, mothering him, assuming that he couldn?t handle himself. Well how do you think was a hunter before any of you? Huh? ME! Yeah that's right! ME! One of the original hunters! I wrote the fucking book!...oh please Skye, he sulked...it's no use. You?re still depressed...and in love with Duo ...and bored out of your gourd! He rummaged through the fridge for some milk and when he closed the door Wufei was coming in.

They both sat across the table from the other pilots in silence. He poured milk for Wufei, who grunted in acceptance, then sat nursing his drink sulkingly as the others talked among themselves. He had learned a long time ago that one can't ever fight love and hope to win. That it's easier to just accept and go with the flow. He also learned that love was universal and didn't have to be uncomfortable, those had been some hard lessons to learn. Of course none of this helped him now!What he thought was kinship would turn out to be much more and hurt...like hell.

What hurt was the fact that he had done exactly what he had always done, fallen onto an impossible relationship. Duo was just like all the others; he was so close yet so unavailable. Dammit! He thought, bringing the glass hard against the table, spilling some of the milk. The others looked up in surprise and he murmured an apology, wiping up the milk with a napkin. He sighed and thought about the old saying that talked about spilt milk, chuckling at the irony. He felt like crying now, to go sulk in the pervebial corner but he was way, way too old for that sort of thing.

Suddenly Heero burst through the kitchen and raced down the walkway toward the cavern that held their newly repaired gundams. They all looked at his retreating form and Skye quickly skimmed his thoughts, trying to find out why he was so angry. In his angry state Heero's mind sent strong images which Skye picked up with distinct clarity. What he saw alarmed him.

"DUO!" he cried out, startling the other pilots.

To their doubled amazement he bolted out of the kitchen and up towards Heero?s room. There he found Duo sobbing in the hallway and felt his heart twist.

"Oh Duo" he said softly, walking toward the tightly curled boy.

He kneeled next to the shaking boy and gently gathered him up into his arms, rocking him gently. Softly he whispered soothing words to the braided pilot, trying to calm him. Duo tensed then collapsed bonelessly in his arms, sobbing. Skye heard footsteps and looked up to see three concerned pairs of eyes. Gently, he lifted Duo and nodded to the other pilots. Trowa returned the nod, understanding, and herded the other two pilots away, leaving him to take care of Duo.He carried Duo to his room and lay him on the bed.

By this time Duo had grabbed hold of his shirt and wasn't letting go. Since he could not pry his fingers open short of breaking them, he sighed and lay on the bed beside him, using both arms to bring the chestnut haired pilot into a close embrace. Duo snuggled against him, crying into his neck and clutching his shirt tightly. As they settled together Skye used his telepathy to send waves of concern and empathy over to the boy. Duo tucked in closer and began a fresh bout of sobbing.

' I know how you feel' he told Duo telepathically 'believe me. Go ahead and cry...let all the hurt out, let the tears wash away the pain. I'm right here and I won't leave you alone ... I promise.'

When Duo heard this the floodgates broke open. He was not only crying for his broken heart but for all the pains that he had never truly mourned. His parents' death, Solo's death, the massacre at Maxwell Church, the loss of Father Maxwell and Sister Helen ... they all died and left him alone. God was punishing him for their deaths, for being so weak. Skye interrupted:

'Oh no Duo; those people didn't die because you loved them, they died because it was their destiny, because of the war... not because of you. God didn't take their life because He wanted to punish you but because it was their time to go to Him. Hey, if God really wanted to punish you He wouldn't do it in earth; there's enough fire and brimstone in hell for that. No! He keeps you alive because you protect His people and fight for peace.

You're not weak Duo, never believe that. If you were weak you would not even be here right now; you would have died along time ago. I know how hard war can be and how hard it is to find reasons to go on, I've been there many times myself, and it takes a truly strong person to keep fighting as you do. You claim to be the God of Death but in fact you are so alive; and to survive in war with your vitality is often so very difficult. Your emotions often confuse you but they are what keep you alive, not just physically. In fact you're even stronger than Heero ...no Duo please listen to me.'

Duo cringed away from the mention of Heero's name but Skye held him in place. Eventually Duo stopped struggling. He continued:

'Heero does not deal with his emotions but buries them deep down. That is how he was trained to be but what he doesn't realize is that when you fight your emotions, the battle never ends. You waste precious energy grappling with an immovable force and it is only when you accept them as fact can you deal with them and become their master.People who run from emotions are cowards. I should know, I was one of them. Yes, for a long time I fought with myself, only to lose again and again. And it wasn't just me who lost but the people I cared about, who cared about me.

Heero can't handle it so he lashes out in confusion as any one in his condition would do. But he was wrong to hurt you, even though he's lost. You don't deserve that Duo, you deserve better.'Duo shut his eyes tight, he didn't want to hear any more but Skye persisted:'You believe that you deserve Heero's harshness and cruelty, that how he treats you is justified as some kind of punishment for your sins but that is so far from the truth. Duo, you deserve so much better, so much love. But you don't want to hope for it because it has always been just out of reach and now when it is in front of you, you don't recognize it because you've forgotten what it was. Can't you see that you're not alone, we're all here for you. The other gundam pilots, the guardians...me, especially me Duo.'

Duo looked up in surprise, Skye was now weeping too. He continued:

'Duo, over the years I've loved many times and, more often than not, my heart has been broken; sometimes to the extent that I vowed never to fall in love again. But I couldn't. I was only hurting myself even more as well as the people who cared about me. I would shut them out; building a wall I thought was high and thick enough to protect me from the pain. But my wall only served to trap me in my misery and kept my wounds open.It was only when I learned that love was the only thing that could heal me and that every time my heart was broken, love would make it even stronger that I began to love again.

Duo, all of my true power comes from love, pure and endless love. Love for my friends, family, even for people I don't even know. It is my love that keeps me fighting to protect people who have no idea who I am and will never thank me...my love for you Duo. Yes...I love you, so much that I don't know what to do with myself, I realize that now. Heh...there... I said it'

Duo was speechless. Skye loved him? Beautiful, funny Skye loved him? He looked into those seemingly endless blue eyes, searching for something that would stifle his now blossoming hope. There was nothing except the fearless and complete love that the blonde felt for him. His eyes began to water again as the blonde pilot reached down and kissed him softly on the lips. The kiss was sweet and deep and was Duo's first. Skye pulled away, searching his eyes for rejection. Duo had not responded to the kiss and he braced himself for the pain. He was alarmed to see Duo crying.

"Duo what's wrong? Why are you crying?" He asked, afraid of the answer.

"Y...you really love me?" Duo asked like a child.

He exhaled the breath he was holding, smiling down at his sweet angel.

"Yes, I love you. For as long as you live I'll love you and never leave you, come hell or high water...you have my word."

Duo didn't fully believe. Too many promises had been broken before.

"Duo, if there is one thing about me you'll learn, if you don't already know, is that I never ever ever break my promises. My word is my bond. Only the end of the world would make me leave you now."

Skye kissed him again and this time he responded, wrapping his arms around Skye's neck to draw him closer. Skye's hands massaged his back, making Duo melt against him as he hungrily explored the warm sweetness of Duo's mouth with his tongue. A deep moan rose from inside Duo and vibrated through both their bodies, thrilling them both. Duo could feel how much Skye wanted him through the material of his worn out jeans.

"Duo... I want you so badly" he whispered huskily, rolling so that he was over Duo, straddling him.

Duo stiffened and he stopped, quickly backing off. Duo looked at him; his eyes uncertain and Skye froze.

"What is it? Did I do something wrong?" he whispered, almost afraid to speak out loud.

All his insecurities he thought he had banished pushed forward from the back of his mind with a vengence. Oh no, I did it again. I ruined it and he really doesn't love me in return. He gripped the sheets as Duo stared at him, his heart racing, each moment of suspense chipping away at his confidence. Skye bowed his head, he didn't want Duo to see the hurt in his eyes; Duo was the one who needed comfort now and he was going to be strong for him no matter what.

"I'm sorry if I did anything wrong Duo" he apologized, moving off of the bed.

A hand grabbed him from behind and he turned. He could see Duo's confused face through the tears he was fighting back.

"Where are you going?" the Shinigami pilot asked.

"I was ... I mean...I know that I can't make you love me Duo but I'll always be your friend and I'll keep my promise. It's ok, it's not as if this hasn't happened before"

"What's happened before?" Duo asked, gripping his arm tighter.

"Y'know, loving someone who doesn't love you back...I've gotten used to it by now." He tried to laugh it off but failed miserably. He would never truly get used to it.

Duo chuckled softly and drew Skye to him for another breathless kiss. Skye's eyes opened wide in surprise.

"Baka" Duo said softly, "I was just thinking about how fast we were going. I've never done this before. I mean, just this morning I was all but devoted to Heero and now I'm experiencing all these new feelings. Just needed to take a little time to breathe."

Skye smiled...that sexy smile that made Duo warm all over. He tugged at Duo's shirt, winking suggestively and before Duo knew what happened, he was pinned to the bed and thoroughly kissed.

Notes: I know it's fast but that's how love is...
it runs you over like a mac truck.
And i wanted Duo to be happy in this fic.
Sorry Heero fans but your boy is a real creep in this one.

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