Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Frozen Heart ❯ Chapter 10

Frozen Heart 10

"Ouch." Tentatively.

"…"

"Ouch!" A little more forcefully.

"Quiet." The tone was unusually stern.

"-hurts…" Plaintively.

Trowa drew back slightly to take in the pathetic expression on his lover's face. His own features hardened. Needless to say, Heero had walked away from the fight with nary a bruise. Quatre, on the other hand, had a spectacular black eye, a swollen cut lip, and yet another ugly bruise sitting on his cheekbone. Those were besides the numerous bruises marring his torso.

"You deserve it." He said severely. "I could have sworn I taught you how to duck. Why didn't you?"

Quatre grimaced, wincing as the movement stretched sore facial muscles.

"I had to make sure Heero didn't end up doing permanent damage." And he would have, he almost added, recalling the black rage in Heero's eyes.

Trowa stared at him, appalled.

"You thought you could stop him?"

The incredulity in his voice drew a grin from the Arabian pilot.

"Me? Heck, no, of course not." Quatre touched his cheekbone tenderly. "I figured the more of them I could keep down, the less amount of damage Heero could inflict."

It made sense, Trowa had to admit albeit grudgingly. If you can't stop the machine, then lessen the target area. He glanced again at his partner's face and sighed.

"Noble to the core." He tapped the end of Quatre's nose tellingly, torn between exasperation and affection. "I'm not quite certain they were worth the price." He added seriously.

Quatre beamed up at him, thrilled by the concern.

"And next time Heero goes to talk to Duo, I'm going with you." Trowa tagged on firmly. Now that Duo was aware of their presence, the need for secrecy was over. Besides, Heero getting into a compromising situation was a worrying indication of the other's mindset. He intended to be around the next time Heero decided to take his frustration out on ornery civilians and Quatre felt compelled to take on the role of human sacrifice.

Carefully lest he jarred his bruises, Quatre reached around to pull the taller pilot closer.

"I wish…" He sighed, his joy waning as his anxiety over his friends reared its head.

Trowa squeezed him back lightly. "You knew it wouldn't be easy." He reminded his sensitive partner gently. He hesitated, then went on quietly. "Quatre, tell me the truth. Would it really be so bad for Duo to stay where he is? It is his choice to make, after all."

It was Quatre's turn to breathe deeply. In truth, it was a question he had asked himself many times already. Jason and Derek Wallis were obviously more than capable of caring for Duo; and Jason was more than willing to take Heero's place in Duo's heart. And with Duo's blindness…

"But is it really his choice. Trowa?" He asked softly. "He's angry and hurt. He's blind. How much of this choice was borne out of spite? Or despair? I don't want to leave him without letting him know that his blindness doesn't make him less of a friend or a teammate. Duo's effectiveness as a pilot had always been more about his character than his physical attributes."

"And he's family." Trowa added.

"And he's family." Quatre seconded without hesitation. "I won't give up on him without a fight."

There was pain in the dulcet tones and Trowa tightened his arms around the slighter pilot. He knew how much Quatre missed the family he had left behind in order to fight for what he believed in. He rarely spoke of it, but Trowa knew there were times Quatre yearned for what he had willingly given up. No wonder he was taking Duo's leave taking so hard.

Trowa didn't share Quatre's sentimentality. He had seen too much ugliness in his short life to allow himself that luxury. But he did consider Duo his friend, and he was willing to do whatever was necessary to help him find his way again. Even if it meant letting him go.

On the other hand, he loved Quatre more than life, and if Quatre wanted Duo back, then he was ready to do anything to make that happen. Even if it meant dragging the former pilot, kicking and screaming, back into the fold.

In the end, it was really just that simple where he was concerned.

-o0o-

Wufei stared at the screen of his laptop, his brain momentarily refusing to assimilate the words on it. Finally, he typed in two words that pained him more than he had expected.

**Is this justice? After everything, is this the only kind of justice a gundam pilot can have?**

Mechanically, he shut the computer down, then rose to his feet. He needed to think. To plan. After all, his mouth twisted sardonically, it was going to be his first time to take out a former gundam pilot.

Moving to the window, he glanced out into the night, hoping for something to ease the sudden heaviness in his heart. He had had his share of difficult missions in the past, but none that troubled him so.

**Who else, Chang Wufei? Who else could pull the trigger? Yuy? Probably. After all, he had proven before that the mission always came first. But that would be beyond cruel. Duo, as loud and annoying as he was, was nevertheless his partner. The bond between them transcended friendship. To have to be the one to execute the person who had watched your back numerous times, however justified the reasons, was a burden no one should have to carry on their soul.**

**Winner was not even in the realm of possibility. They were too alike. Killing Maxwell would be like killing a part of himself. Barton, ordinarily, had the capacity to finish the mission. But his growing attachment to Quatre would prevent him from doing so now.**

**There's no one else, Nataku. No one. Except me.**

Wufei's fingers clenched at his sides.

**I don't want to do this, Nataku. But neither can I allow Maxwell to die by the hands of strangers who won't even know the worth of the life they are about to take. That would be the worse dishonor.**

He blinked, catching sight of movement, and his eyes narrowed, picking up a lone figure by the trees.

Yuy.

He hesitated, then, squaring his shoulders, he turned and headed out of his room.

-o0o-

**How had things gone so wrong?**

Heero ran the conversation he had had with Quatre in the car on their way back.

--Flashback-

"He's changed."

Quatre stared at him with the air of someone whose patience was very nearly at its end.

"How do you mean?" He asked after it became apparent that Heero wasn't going to expound. He was aching from a dozen different bruises and he hadn't had the chance to speak with Duo at all. Besides, he was fairly sure Trowa was going to have something to say about his appearance. He was not in the mood for Twenty Questions.

Heero frowned. "He's- being difficult."

Quatre rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly. "Heero," He struggled to keep the impatience from showing. "Duo has been through a lot. He's bound to have changed in some way."

Silence.

Quatre waited, mustering the patience that he was legendary for.

"He expected me to kill him." The words were acid on his tongue.

Quatre closed his eyes briefly.

"Of course he does." He said matter-of-factly. "He deserted. He knew that would be a consequence."

Something in his tone made Heero stare at him.

"You believe that as well."

Quatre shrugged, avoiding his eyes.

Betrayal tore at Heero. Did everyone think him a cold-blooded killer?

"Heero-" Quatre searched for the words, aware that he had hurt the other boy. "-you're not the easiest person to read. In fact, I honestly believe Duo was the one who understood you best among us." He took a deep breath. "If it's any consolation, I don't believe you would hurt Duo. Not anymore." He grinned. "Certainly not after you decked the guy who was unfortunate enough to say the wrong thing at the wrong time."

Heero took comfort in the sincere words, though it did little to mitigate the real source of his pain.

"But he does."

If anything, Quatre's grin widened. "Then it's up to you to correct this misperception, right?"

"…"

Quatre courageously reached out to squeeze his arm. "Duo's doing his best to turn us into the past. Don't let him succeed."

-end flashback-

"Yuy."

Heero straightened away from the tree, turning to meet the Chinese pilot's stare.

"I'm leaving tomorrow on a mission." Wufei went on crisply. "Reconnaissance. Kindly take care of Shenlong until my return."

Heero nodded.

Wufei hesitated. "Regarding Maxwell-"

"We'll take care of it." Heero told him.

Wufei stared at him searchingly. "You're determined to get him back, then? In spite of his condition?"

Heero kept himself from reacting to that. "Quatre already has his top physicians on standby. Duo's eyes may not be beyond recovery."

Wufei absorbed that quietly. "And if they find no cure?"

Heero's eyes narrowed. "What are you asking, Wufei?"

Wufei refused to back down from the warning in the cobalt blue eyes. They both knew what he was talking about.

"Are you ready for the possibility that we may have to eliminate Pilot 02 as a threat to the Gundams and the colonies?"

"Duo is not a threat." Heero growled after a moment.

"He can't protect himself." Wufei pointed out calmly. "In case of capture-"

"He is not a threat." Heero's voice signaled danger. "Case closed, Wufei."

Blue eyes clashed with brown.

Finally, Wufei nodded.

"I leave in the morning." He turned and walked away.

**Forgive me, Yuy. Someone has to do it.**

-end Chapter 10