--------------------
Kyuuketsuki Duo
Episode 6 : Flipside
Memories
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	::Hey, Heero.::  Duo's mindvoice floated leisurely towards him 
through the ether.

	:: ? ::

	::Come here for a sec, would you?:: Duo requested, a cheerful 
eagerness in his thought that hinted of a surprise in the offing.

	Heero sent his acknowledgement out to his partner and followed 
his thought soon enough, emerging through the back door of their home 
and out to the cozy backyard they had deliberately left looking very 
wild and unkempt on the outside.  The inside, however, was kept 
meticulously swept and trimmed.  The high bushes along the perimeter 
masked most of the activity within.

	Heero stopped, blinked twice at the sight of his lover, and 
couldn't help himself.  He laughed, and Duo's soul glowed at the rare 
delight of such a sound.  He let Heero feel the joy on the inside, but 
on his face he painted a disappointed pout.  "You mean you don't like 
them?"

	Heero opened his mouth to comment, then shut it with an 
indulgent smile and crossed over to stand in front of his barechested 
lifemate.  Duo enfolded him in an embrace the moment he was close enough 
and pulled him closer.  The action involved two welcoming arms, and two 
black, graceful wings.

	Heero brushed the silky smooth wings springing from Duo's 
shoulderblades fleetingly, before latching his own arms under the wings 
and around the waist of the slightly shorter boy.  "This... This must be 
one of the most...."  He paused, searching for the appropriate word.  
"The most flagrant, frivolous use of the shadows I've ever seen," he 
reprimanded lightly.

	Duo grinned winningly up at his partner.  "So you *do* like 
them?"

	He rolled his eyes.  "...What will you do with them?"

	"Do?" he asked incredulously, loosing the wings and spreading 
them to their full, impressive span.  "They don't have to *do* anything!  
Look at them.  They're *coooool*."

	Heero sighed at the irrepressible nature of the boy.  "Duo," he 
started.

	"What?"  Duo blinked wide, open eyes at him.  "It's not like 
they're permanent.  It's not like they're even really attached to me or 
anything.  Although I guess if I really want them to move naturally 
without me having to think it, I'll have to spend some more time 
watching the birds.... But I digress.  Aren't they just impressive?"

	Heero eyed them speculatively.  "Perhaps," he conceded.  "But 
tell me they were just a random idea you had.  Just a thought that 
struck you for no particular reason, and now that you've explored it, 
you'll put them away again."

	"Oh, no, they were just a random idea I had to get you to ravish 
me.  Aren't they sexy?"  He waggled his eyebrows exaggeratedly, and 
twitched his wings, surrounding them both again in that cool, velveteen 
warmth.

	"Duo," his partner warned, amusedly unamused.

	"Oh, fine.  They were just a random idea I wanted to play with.  
One time deal."  He paused, and his wings seemed to droop 
disappointedly.  "But will you ravish me anyway?"

	Heero shook his head helplessly and planted a small kiss on the 
guardian's forehead.

                              ************

	Duo's eyes snapped wide open, and he sat up in a panic, Heero's 
arms sliding out of their loose embrace.  As he tried to slow his rapid 
breathing and pounding heart, however, the arms slid around him once 
more, and coaxed him back down until his cheek rested on Heero's firm 
chest.  One hand wrapped around him, the other moved over his hair 
soothingly in long, gentle strokes, stroking the tremors away.  He felt 
Heero's mind nudging his lightly, and he gladly let it in, and let the 
steady light of Heero's soul banish the dreamshadows.

	Finally, he spoke, in a subdued, muted voice.  "It was so 
frightening.  I was so lost.  I didn't know who I was, or what I was... 
and I didn't know who you were, but I just knew that I had to find you, 
and it seemed so much more important than the rest of it....  But I 
couldn't.  I couldn't find you," he finished in a choked whisper.

	Heero's mindvoice murmured soft nothings to him.  "Even if you 
can't find me," he was reassured.  "Know that I will find you."  Lips 
pressed upon the crown of his head.

	"I know," he murmured in response.  "I know.  But... I haven't 
felt so lost since I was trapped in Hakuchuumu's neverending dream and I 
couldn't find my way out...."

	The fingers untangled themselves from his hair and slid down his 
cheek and under his chin, requesting that he look up.  He met two deep 
blue eyes that flared with an intensity that matched the forcefully 
spoken message.  "I will always find you."

	Duo nodded, and he slid gladly into the burning oceans of blue, 
drowning blissfully in the truth of that statement.

                              ************

	The next morning, Duo woke early, but stayed in bed with his 
taciturn guardian for as long as he could, and not have to hurry to get 
to school.  On his way out the door, however, Heero snagged his hand 
with his own, and Duo turned back to look at him questioningly.

	"That dream," Heero started, pausing a bit as he felt Duo flinch 
minutely through a twitch in his grip.  "Was it just a dream, or was 
your power trying to tell you something?"

	Duo's expression darkened as he considered the question, trying 
to think about his experience last night without really thinking about 
it.  "I don't know," he replied hesitantly.  "Maybe both.  It was me, 
very definitely, unfortunately, me, but... there was, at the same time, 
a sense of not-me.  A detachment of sorts."  He took a breath, then met 
Heero's eyes squarely.  "But that may have just been a feeling of 
helplessness on my part, that feeling of not being able to do anything."

	Heero nodded his understanding.  "I'll keep an eye out," he said 
simply, tacitly implying with the rest of his demeanour that he would 
allow no unnoticed threat to come to his partner past his vigilance.

	Duo smiled weakly, and returned a small nod of his own.  Heero 
relaxed his hold on his partner's hand, but still his hand followed 
Duo's as the boy turned to go.  Before Duo's hand slipped entirely out 
of his grasp, though, the guardian spun suddenly and launched himself at 
his partner, wrapping his arms around the startled hunter's neck and 
burying his face in the warm, shadowsilk-covered chest.

	Heero stumbled back a step, snaking his arms around the boy's 
waist reflexively before catching his balance.  ::Just one for the 
road,:: Duo mindsent up to him, his thoughts colored with a slight 
unease and anxiety.  ::Just to get me through the day.::

	As abruptly as it happened, Duo released his lover, and headed 
out the door without a backwards glance.

                              ************

	Duo walked out of a shadow and into their backyard.  For some 
reason, he didn't really like materializing directly inside the house 
unless he was already in the house.  Even though he had the house warded 
against practically everyone and everything other than he and his 
partner, it just made him feel a little insecure and vulnerable to pop 
up suddenly on the inside, and right now, he really didn't want to feel 
vulnerable.

	By the time he made his way to the back door, Heero was there to 
slide the glass open for him.  Duo dropped his bookbag unceremoniously 
just inside the threshold and marched straight up against Heero's wiry 
frame, leaning into him and merely soaking in the calm strength he 
sensed there.

	"Okaeri," Heero murmured into the space above his head, a warm 
sort of amusement being hinted at through the sound.

	Duo backed off, took a deep breath, smiled, and cheerfully 
belted out, "Tadaima~!"

	"Hn."  Heero closed the door and followed his love into the 
interior of their home.  "I did some poking around today."

	Duo performed a graceful spin and collapsed carelessly into the 
oversized beanbag on the floor of the living room.  "And you found...?"

	Heero seated himself on the floor next to him, leaning against 
his partner's outstretched knee.  "A man, found on a road in the next 
county.  He was left at a shelter by the police.  No memories of his 
self-identity at all."

	"Drained dry, huh?"  Duo let his head fall back over the top of 
the carefully sculpted beanbag, and spent some time staring at the 
ceiling.  "Shinma," he mused.  "One who feeds on memories.  On a bad 
day, maybe."

	"He was a normal sort of fellow," Heero confirmed.  The Shinma 
would probably not have drained its victims completely as a regular 
habit.  Either it hadn't fed for a while, or it was getting bored.  
"There was no further sign of Shinma habitation.  He must have been its 
last victim."

	"And I've found its next."

	Heero blinked.  "One of your school mates?"

	"One with a lot of stuff to forget."

	Heero blinked again, this time in comprehension.  Something 
about his partner's tone clued him in.  "Wufei?" he guessed.  Duo almost 
always spoke about Wufei with that same quiet sadness and sympathy, when 
it came to the boy's encounters with the supernatural.

	"Yeah."  He sighed.  "I swear, I don't know how the kid gets 
himself into these messes."

	"As you said.  A lot of stuff to forget."

	"Yeah, well, it looked like it was in deep and quiet.  Maybe 
wouldn't even have noticed it if Meiran and Quatre hadn't mentioned 
Wufei's distraction in passing.  Maybe if I hadn't been as edgy as I was 
today.  Don't think we can do anything about it until it manifests 
itself, though."  He trailed off into a little moody silence before 
making a random proposal.  "What do you say to a little creative 
forgetting of our own?"  He tilted his head enough so he could see 
Heero's head.

	"Did you have something in mind?"

	"Hmmm... how about we go find ourselves a little corner of 
nowhere?  Get out of this town for a bit.  Get back to nature."

	"Humanity getting on your nerves?"

	"A bit," Duo confessed.  "All those... people.  All that noise.  
All those buildings.  I'm just in the mood to sit down in a wood and 
listen to the birds.  Maybe the sweet gurgling of a small brook.  
Somewhere where there's no one around but you and me.  And maybe a 
squirrel or two."

	"Ducks just aren't cutting it anymore?"

	"Ducks are okay in a pinch.  But you can't play with them like 
you can the squirrels.  Besides, some of those ducks are just downright 
nasty when they think you're coming with food.  Vicious, they are."

	"Don't worry.  I'll protect you from killer ducks."

                              ************

	They were nearly home when Duo thought he sensed Shinma activity 
in the area.  Subtle, but there.  They stowed away the warm fuzziness 
and traced the signal carefully through the northern part of town.  At 
the end of the trail, they found Wufei, wandering through the streets, 
looking not entirely there.

	::Do you want to force a confrontation now?:: Heero asked the 
guardian silently, as they observed from the shadows.

	::No.  I'll give him a little poke, that's all.::

	As Duo began to detach himself from the shadows, Heero's voice 
followed him.  ::You can't delay the confrontation forever, Duo.  You 
can't get to the Shinma without going through its victim.::

	A slight tightening around his eyes was the only response Heero 
got from him as he stepped out into the middle of the road, luckily, 
still wearing his school uniform from earlier that day.  "Wufei," he 
spoke, his voice cutting through the interference in the boy's mind and 
startling him back into awareness.

	Wufei seemed dazed and uncomprehending.  Seeing little hint of 
recognition in those dark brown eyes, Duo carefully exerted just enough 
of his power to chase the Shinma back into the shadows, at least 
temporarily.  "You're out late tonight," he commented casually, 
providing words for the human to concentrate on, once he was able.

	"Duo."  Wufei's tongue tripped slightly over the name.  "What 
are you doing here?"

	"Who, me?"  Did he even know where 'here' was?  "This is the 
northern district, after all.  I live around here, remember?"

	It seemed clear that he didn't, until Duo mentioned it.  Duo 
discreetly probed the outside of Wufei's mind, trying to determine 
whether or not the Shinma had already begun to feed.  Luckily, it looked 
like it was just laying groundwork.

	"Do you usually take walks out at night?" Wufei asked, a valiant 
attempt to make normal conversation and perhaps draw the attention away 
from himself.

	Yes, he did, usually, only they weren't usually so leisurely.  
Many times, Duo's day didn't really begin until the sun set.  "I like 
the night," he declared, deciding that he could say that much to the boy 
and still not be suspect.  "It's very peaceful, when there's no one else 
out, walking the streets.  A person could almost forget he's in the 
middle of a sprawl of humanity."  Maybe he wouldn't have to go out to 
the woods next time, to find a bit of peace.  Perhaps a midnight stroll 
through the empty streets would suffice.  Maybe he could even get Heero 
to agree to stroll with him.

	"It's dangerous," Wufei stated, trying to regain some authority.  
"You don't know what or who might be lurking in the shadows."

	Me, for instance, Duo thought ironically.  Wufei was really only 
acquainted with a small subsection of those who walked in the night, 
anyway.  "Do you fear the shadows, Wufei?" he asked curiously.

	"Fear them?  No.  But I know their danger.  The night is when 
the shadows emerge, and hide their dark friends."

	Duo was unable to suppress a slight smile at his charming 
naivete.  Shadows were not inherently evil, nor those who lived in them.  
Some were even good.  "No," he contradicted.  "The night is just when 
all the shadows come out to play."  It was all a matter of perspective.

	He blinked suddenly, sensing the Shinma intruder beginning to 
regroup, and he decided to cut the encounter short before it could 
expose him.  "Did you take a wrong turn somewhere?  You look a little 
lost."

	Wufei glanced around himself.  "I must have," he confessed.

	"Oh, well if you're trying to get home, you'll want to walk back 
down this street two blocks, take that left, and then turn right at the 
Christmas tree," Duo instructed.  "Or at least, it looks an awful lot 
like a Christmas tree.  It's about four streets down.  That should bring 
you back out to familiar territory.  It's only a little bit from there 
back to your place."

	The Shinma was stirring, a bit of irritation and anger tinging 
its aura.  As soon as Wufei indicated his understanding of the 
directions, Duo beat a hasty retreat.  "Great.  I'll see you after the 
weekend, then."  He turned and walked down the street, waving over his 
shoulder.  He hoped Wufei wouldn't be upset with his being so abrupt, 
but he really didn't want to stick around with that Shinma wanting to 
get him for interrupting it.  He turned down the first small side street 
and quickly disappeared into a shadow, putting a safe distance between 
them.

                              ************

	"It will be irritated," Heero judged.  "It was about to strike 
when you interrupted it.  It will no doubt strike again soon."

	Duo made no response as he pulled off his tie and school shirt, 
laying it down carefully to avoid wrinkles.

	Heero watched him carefully as he went about his task.  "You 
know it will," he continued softly.  "Why are you not watching it?"

	Duo fell still, and stood quietly, back turned to the inquiry.  
His shoulders were held rigid and tense, although his head hung loosely 
forward.

	"Duo?"  Heero rose from his seat on the bed and padded 
soundlessly over to his partner.  He laid a hand on the guardian's 
shoulder, concerned.  "This isn't about exposure," he guessed 
matter-of-factly.

	"This isn't about exposure," Duo confirmed with an echo.

	Heero's hand glided from one shoulder to the other, brushing 
lightly over the back of his neck to make room for his other hand, so 
that they both rested easily upon his shoulders.  "Then what are you 
doing?"  He gave the stiff muscles a small squeeze.

	"Nothing.  Absolutely nothing."  With a tinge of bitterness, Duo 
shrugged the hands off and turned away from him without meeting his 
eyes.  Passing his partner by, he headed for the bed, there curling up 
on his side and hugging his pillow snugly to his chest.  His eyes were 
shut, but Heero sensed he wouldn't be sleeping for a while.

	With an inaudible exhalation resembling a sigh, Heero damped the 
little witchlights with an errant thought and lay down beside the 
brooding boy, just close enough to feel the other's heat, but not 
touching.  A few minutes passed before Duo loosened his grip on the 
pillow, uncoiling from his tight position just enough to bring his back 
in contact with the warmth of Heero's arm.  "I wish I could do 
*something*," he spoke finally.  "It's hard just sitting here, waiting, 
unsure if he'll be okay."

	Heero let a few moments pass before he ventured, "You can do 
something about it."

	He felt Duo shake his head slightly, more than he saw it.  "It's 
not my fight."

	"You're the guardian."

	"He's a guardian, too," Duo returned, quietly forceful.  "I 
can't hold his hand, or protect him, forever.  He has to learn how to do 
this on his own."

	"... You're letting him follow this path he has chosen."  It 
wasn't a question.

	"How could I not?  It's who he is."

	"... You can do something about that."  He didn't suggest it 
seriously.  He just wanted to know what Duo was thinking.

	"It's who he is," Duo repeated.  "I couldn't take that away from 
him."

	"This confrontation might do that anyway."

	"Then maybe he'd be better off that way."  He admitted it the 
way one confesses a painful truth one didn't want to recognize.  "If he 
can't cut it, if he gives in, then maybe better that he forget what he 
thinks he must do."

	"But you won't test him."

	"No," he asserted, just a bit too quickly.  "No.  I wouldn't do 
that to him."  He scooted back a little bit, and Heero picked up on the 
hint and slid his arm under Duo's waist and pulled him close.  "We are 
*not* the same," Duo muttered, almost petulantly, almost defiantly, as 
he settled in.

	Heero's brow crinkled a bit.  Duo had observed that he and Wufei 
were very similar, on many occasions, so the only one left for 
comparison was the Shinma.  The statement made much more sense in that 
context.  Duo hated it when similarities came up between himself and his 
Shinma cousins.

	"But I'm not worried.  I know he'll say no."  His tone was 
confident, but it still sounded as if he was trying to reassure himself.

	"He'll refuse to give up his painful past?"

	"He will.  For the same reason I would never offer him in the 
first place.  Those memories... they're too personal.  Too close to 
home.  You couldn't give them up without giving up a very large part of 
yourself.  They may be painful, but you don't want to just forget the 
very reason you kept going in the first place.  If we don't remember 
them, who will?  Turning your back on them won't make things right 
again."  Heero noticed the slip from a rhetorical second person to first 
person, but did not comment.  He knew how closely Duo clung to his own 
painful memories, and how much he sympathized with Wufei's situation.  
He just pulled his loved one closer.

-------
yeah, that's the end of this one.  they find out the next morning that 
wufei won, and they rejoiced.

translation notes: okaeri -- welcome home; tadaima -- i'm back!

hey, this whole flipside thing is kinda like the active time events from 
ff9...

_________________________________________
This piece of fiction is the intellectual 
property of the little turnip that could.  
The basis for this fic, i.e. Gundam Wing, 
Kyuuketsuki Miyu, et al., is the property 
of someone else.  The author can be con-
tacted at jchew@myrealbox.com.  This has 
been an entirely automated message.
http://www.cs.hmc.edu/~jchew/misc/gw.html

last modified : 10/13/2001 13:16:34 PST