Gundam Wing
Cygnet Wings
Disclaimer: Don't own 'em. Ain't gettin' paid.
Sequel to Emergence
Parts 1-10
Author's note: Since some lists did not get all
of this fic, I am doing a repost of what I've written so far.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-PART 1-
Trowa had always believed that life was easier for the rich.
In my youth, filled with hardships, he had gazed at the
stars in the rare moments when he could. Each one was a
diamond to him, representing some child of wealth whose
life was filled with easy days and golden dreams.
"But it wasn't easier for you," he whispered at the sleeping
angel who lie upon his bed. "It must be so difficult being the
only one of your kind. What did they do that to you for? Did
they believe you needed to have wings to be an angel of
hope? My precious Quatre. You were always an angel. Even
when you had no wings."
*****
"Who was that on the phone?" Duo asked as he brought
Heero a soda and opened his own.
"Trowa," Heero replied. "Something has happened to Quatre.
Its nothing bad, but Quatre's a little upset about it. From what
I gather, someone did an experiment on him when he was a
child and now its reached fruition."
"What kind of experiment?" Duo asked.
Heero hesitated for a moment. Should he tell Duo or not?
~He'll find out eventually,~ his mind reasoned.
"Quatre has wings." he explained.
Duo's eyes lit up. "Really?"
Heero blinked. "Duo, you seem happy that someone's
turned Quatre into a frea-" he was cut off abruptly when
Duo slapped him. "What the hell?!"
"Never use that word about Quatre, Heero," Duo
glared, "Never! He's our friend and I will *not* have you
or anyone badmouthing him. Is that clear?"
Heero nodded. "I'm sorry. Duo, what's wrong? You
seem a bit moodier than always."
"Quatre's doctors weren't the only ones who liked to
experiment," Duo remarked cryptically as he left the
room.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-PART 2-
Heero turned back to his laptop, searching for anything he
could find about the experiments Duo had alluded to. What
had Duo gone through as a child? What torments had some
twisted mind subjected him to? Finally, after much searching,
he found what he had been searching for:
"Project number 897-6A4," he read to himself, "May 4th. All
is going well. Host subject is healthy. No signs of rejection at
this time. Host is male. Approximately 9 years of age.. Sole
survivor of recent local tragedy. June 8th. Still no signs of
rejection. Host complaining of fatigue, discomfort. Prelim
shows no reason to discontinue experiment at this time.
July 5th. Project self-terminated. Host remains in critical
condition. LIkelihood of survival is at 20 percent at this
time. Reason for miscarriage unknown at this time."
Heero stared at the screen in disbelief. "*unknown*?! He
was a nine year old kid!" he couldn't believe it. Duo had been
pregnant in childhood. They had made him carry a baby when
he had been little more than a baby himself. The idea shocked
and sickened Heero. He wondered what it had been like for
the nine-yaer-old to deal with a miscarriage. Especially after
the Maxwell Church Tragedy.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-PART 3-
Duo was looking at a scar that ran across his abdomen when
Heero located him. Concerned, Heero stared at Duo. "I... I
thought you had a miscarriage."
"I did," Duo nodded. "But they weren't about to give up on their
little experiment so easily. Less than a year after I lost the first
child
they implanted into me, they succeeded in their goal. I was barely
more than ten years old when my child was born. I don't know if it
was a boy or a girl. All I know is that they were supposed to be the
ultimate warrior, the product of combining my DNA with that of ..."
Heero waited for Duo to finish. "Duo?"
"Oh, Heero..." Duo shook his head. "Heero, the baby I had... I
think you're the father."
Heero glared. "That's imp.... never mind. Look, any idea where
they may have taken the baby?"
"No," Duo shook his head. "All I remember was a name...
Dr. Takahashi."
Heero ran a scan on his laptop. "Found him," he said, after several
minutes. "He's in town, not far. Working at a local hospital. Why
don't we pay him a little visit?"
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-PART 4-
Quatre picked himself up and brushed the dirt
from his wings. From nearby, he could hear the
affectionate chuckle that came from Trowa. "I
guess these wings just aren't meant for flight.".
"Don't give up, Quatre," Trowa encouraged.
"You can do it. I know you can!"
Quatre nodded. His eyes were filled with
determination as he gazed at the far off horizon.
Trowa's words of encouragement filled his
heart as he spread his wings. Quatre pushed
upward with his feet, moving as gracefully as a
dancer. After a couple slow flaps of his wings,
he found himself airborne.
"Ha ha," he laughed, "this is great! Oh, Trowa,
I wish you could see how pretty this all is."
An idea sprang to mind and he swooped down,
intending to scoop up Trowa and give him a
nice little aerial tour.
"Quatre! Don't!" Trowa protested, though his
voice was filled with laughter. He let out a yelp as
Quatre gripped him and lifted him up. "Hey! Put me
down! Hey! Help! I'm being kidnapped by a cute
Arabian Gundam Pilot."
Quatre smiled at this. He looked down, trying to find
the nicest place they could to land. It was getting
close to sunset and he wanted to share it with Trowa.
On the ground. he spotted a young boy camping out
all by himself. He landed and stepped up to the boy.
"Hey," he said, "are you lost, little boy?"
"My name is Shiko Maxwell Yuy." the boy said in a
belligerent tone, "and I'm training to be a good soldier,
just like mommy and daddy."
Quatre blinked. "Really. What happened to your
mommy and daddy?"
"They died around the time I was born," Shiko
replied. "That's why I gotta train and get really good.
I want them to be proud of me."
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-PART 5-
"Your parents are not dead," Quatre told the small boy.
"They're not?!"
Trowa began to open his mouth in protest, but Quatre silenced
him.
"No." Quatre smiled. "Why don't you come with us? We can take
you to them."
Shiko lunged forward and grabbed Quatre's gun before either pilot
could stop him.
"Not bad," Quatre smiled. "you got Duo's speed, that's for certain."
Shiko blinked. "Duo? As in the Gundam Pilot? He's my dad?"
"He;'s actually your mom. Your dad is named Heero Yuy,"
Quatre extended hand and gave the boy a goofy, disarming grin.
As if to add weight to the latter adjective, the boy handed the gun
back to the Winner Heir, then took his hand.
"Quatre, are you sure we should do this?" Trowa asked as they
began to lead the boy to where Duo and Heero were staying.
"He has every right to meet his parents," Quatre nodded.
*****
"What if they don't want to see him?" Trowa inquired that night
when they arrived back home. The boy was in bed, trying to
sleep. It was a feat he was finding difficult to accomplish. Trowa
looked in on him for a moment, then returned to Quatre's side.
"Quatre, I know you mean well. But remember, Heero probably
doesn't know about him and if he did, it would have been a
recent discovery. And Duo was experimented on, forced to carry
a baby when he was a child. This might..."
Trowa was cut off when the phone rang. He raced to get it, but
Quatre made it to the phone first. However, before he could pick
it up, Shiko intercepted it.
"If it's them..." Trowa began.
"Shh..." Quatre placed a kiss upon Trowa's lips.
*****
"Quatre," Heero began, "Heero. We need your help. We need
to use your family's computers to..."
A voice that was neither Quatre's nor Trowa's cut him off. "Hi,
daddy. It's Shiko."
Heero bit his lip, his voice full of unexpected emotion as he
looked over at Duo. "Pick up the other line, koi," he told
the braided pilot, "our son is on the phone."
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-PART 8-
Duo's hand was trembling as it picked up the phone. "Hello?"
"Hi, mommy."
Duo's knees buckled and tears came to his eyes. "Hi, um..."
"Shiko," the boy replied. "My name's Shiko.
"Hi, Shiko," Duo could barely speak. Memories flooded
back. Painful memories of the pregnancy that had almost
killed him. Of seeing his son very briefly before the doctors
had given the little boy to a group of men who had taken
him away.
"Mommy," Shiko asked, bringing Duo back into the
present, "Are you gonna come see me?"
"Yeah," Duo replied. "Your daddy and I are going to come
see you. You be nice for Quatre and Trowa until we get
there. We'll be there shortly, okay?"
"Okay, mommy. I'll see you and daddy when you get here."
Shiko hung up the phone and ran to tell Quatre and
Trowa that Duo and Heero were coming over.
Back at their location, Duo and Heero were locked in a
tight embrace. Duo was trembling and sobbing with joy.
He couldn't wait to see the boy he'd carried.
"Let's go," Heero suggested after several moments. He
lifted Duo's chin and kissed the braided pilot. "Our son
is waiting."
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-PART 7-
"Come on, Trowa, hurry up," Quatre said as
Catherine fixed Shiko's hair and tidied up his
clothes. She'd just arrived on Quatre's invitation
to help out with the impromptu reunion supper.
"Supper's almost ready and Duo and Heero
will be here, soon. Relena, how's the
hamburgers coming along?"
"Almost done," Relena coughed through the thick
smoke that billowed around her from the barbecue.
On the grill four hamburger patties were far beyond
the well-done point and heading off into oblivion.
Trowa saw the smoke and ran out to the grill.
"I think they're done, Relena," he said, rescuing the
burgers.
"I'm sorry, I'm not used to cooking," Relena looked
very embarrassed.
"Don't worry about it," Trowa smiled, "that's how
Quatre makes 'em, too.."
"HEY!" Quatre protested.
*****
"Duo, you okay?" Heero asked for the nth time.
"Yeah," Duo fidgeted about with the radio knobs,
tapped the dashboard, and went through several
text books.
"Duo, for someone who's okay, you're doing a pretty
good job of imitating a long-haired cat in a rocking chair
store."
"Heero, how can you be so relaxed? Don't you get it?"
Duo's eyes were filled with excitement, "we're going to
see our son."
The ambulance came to a stop and Heero turned
off the engine.
"Why are you stopping the ambulance, Hee-chan?"
Heero turned to Duo with a very serious expression in his eyes.
"We're here."
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-PART 8-
Duo sat there in the ambulance, his hand hovering
over the doorhandle. His heart was pounding in his
chest as if it were trying to get out. Some part of his
mind wanted to remind him that Shiko was just a
child. Only a little boy.
But Shiko *wasn't* just a little boy. Shiko was *his*
little boy. His and Heero's.The idea boggled his mind.
He loved Heero, but that love, even their first encounter,
had come years after their child's birth.
"Duo," Heero put his hand on Duo's shoulder and lifted
the other boy's chin. "It's okay. You're going to be fine.
I'll be right beside you."
"How can you be so calm, Heero?" Duo asked. "He's
your son, too, you know."
Heero nodded. "I know," inside he was as anxiety-ridden
as Duo. He kept that hidden, however, for Duo's sake.
"Let's go."
Duo nodded, then climbed out of the ambulance.
Heero got out on the other side, then went around
and joined Duo, taking the braided boy's hand.
The walk down the pathway between the ambulance
and the front door was the longest Duo had ever taken.
He paused at the front door, pondering what he would
say. How would he explain things to his son? The boy
had seemed pleasant on the phone. But...
"Here goes nothing," he sighed as he opened the
door.
"Hey, Duo," Quatre said, "c-"
At the mention of Duo's name, Shiko was suddenly
wrapped tightly around Duo's right leg and holding
on for dear life.
"Mommy!" the boy squealed with delight, looking
up at the Shinigami pilot with a smile on his face.
Duo dropped to his knees and held the boy close.
Heero joined in.
"Daddy," Shiko looked up at Heero with big
hopeful eyes, "are you gonna marry Mommy?"
"Yeah," Heero nodded. "If he'll have me."
Duo looked up at Heero with eyes full of wonder
and delight. He had always dreamed of being
Heero's spouse. He'd never imagined that Heero
might feel the same.
"Of course I'll have you." he told Heero. "I can't
believe you finally asked me."
"Yeah, it's about time," Relena laughed.
"The injustice! Making us wait like that," Wufei
joined in.
Duo turned as pink as one of Quatre's shirts as
everyone laughed and smiled. He looked into
Heero's eyes, his own eyes were misty with
tears of happiness as they joined the rest of the
group for dinner.
"To the couple-to-be!"
Cups were raised in honor of Duo and Heero,
but there was no clinking. Even billionaires can't
get plastic to clink, And while Quatre could afford,
and did have expensive crystal, he felt that plastic
cups were more appropriate for a picnic. Crystal
ruined the setting somehow.
"Hey, why not have the wedding here," Trowa
suggested, "We can have the double wedding
out in the gardens and then have the reception in
the ballroom. How does that sound?"
"Double wedding," Quatre turned to Trowa,
"Trowa, who else is getting married?"
Trowa reached into his pocket and pulled out
a diamond ring. "Quatre, will you marry me?"
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-PART 9-
A sudden sense of joy, love, and well being filled
the room, emanating from one single source.
Unconsciously, Relena leaned on Catherine
and sighed barely noticing the arm the other
girl wrapped around her waist, also unaware of
her actions.
A sense of justice filled Wufei's mind and he actually
smiled. A happy smile, not a sardonic one.
"Quatre's projecting," he remarked. "Go ahead, Quatre,
give Trowa your answer."
Quatre looked up into Trowa's eyes, his own eyes
filled with adoration.
"Yes," he told Trowa., "I will marry you."
That's when Quatre heard the click. He turned and
saw a servant standing there, pointing a gun at Trowa.
"Achmed..." he hedged carefully, "what do you think you're
doing?"
"I cannot permit you to marry him," Achmed told Quatre, "I
won't let you leave this all behind and make me and the
others lose their jobs. He must die!"
Achmed puled back on the trigger as Quatre rushed to
grab the gun away. There was a cry of pain as the gun
went off.
For a moment, pain radiated out to everyone, then
it vanished.
"Quatre! No!" Trowa grabbed the gun from Achmed.
Achmed just stood there, hands to his side, unblinking. He
felt worse than he ever had in his life. He hadn't really been
afraid of losing his job. He'd been afraid of losing Quatre. And
he'd shot him. Had killed little Quatre.
"Great Allah," he whispered in horror, "what have I done?"
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-PART 10-
Heero held Duo and Shiko close, drawing his gun and
aiming it at Achmed. The man had just taken a good
friend and Heero would be damned before he let the man
kill his son or the boy who had carried him.
"Omae o korosu," he warned.
"I"m afraid, I can't let you do that," Trowa said, quietly. "this
man's life is mine to take, not yours. Quatre was my fiance. I
am the one who should avenge his death."
"Could you guys wait until I'm dead to avenge me?"
Everyone turned and stared.
"Quatre?!" Trowa threw his arms around the blond pilot
and drew him close. "But... how? I felt you die."
Quatre shook his head. "You felt me sever my link with
you when the bullet hit my arm. I was in pain and I didn't
want you to suffer, too."
Achmed approached and Quatre drew his gun.
The man felt horrible. His mind had twisted Quatre's
kindness into a budding romantic love that had never
existed. He had nurtured that delusion until this moment,
when his jealousy had lost him not only Quatre's kindness
and friendship, but his trust, too.
"I only wish to apologize, Master Quatre," he grovelled,
"Please, I beg your forgiveness, though I do not deserve
it. I did not mean to hurt you."
"I know," Quatre glared. "You meant to hurt my fiancee.
That's why I cannot forgive you."
"Please," Achmed's voice held a tone of desperation.
"Master Quatre, I beg you. I cannot lose you! Not to
anyone! Please, forgive me? Forgive me," he kept
wailing it as he grabbed Quate and tried to drag him
toward the door. Trowa's eyes narrowed his the man
began groping around at Quatre until he found the boy's
gun. Drawing it, he put it to Quatre's head. "Don't make
me shoot him." he warned. "Everyone, stay where
you are." he backed toward the door, dragging Quatre
with him.
Reaching into the waistband of Heero's spandex shorts
Shiko fished out his father's gun. Using his parents'
protective embrace to conceal his movements, he
aimed the weapon and fired it, striking Achmed in the
center of the forehead.
"Not a bad shot, kiddo," Duo hugged his son.
"I agree," Heero adde, looking into his son's eyes. "But
in the future, always ask before you borrow Daddy's gun."
"Okay, daddy." Shiko smiled at his parents.
Trowa held Quatre close. "Are you all right?"
"Yeah, I'm fine now," Quatre caught his breath. "I should
have let him go months ago," he shook his head. "I could
sense that he was becoming unstable. But I felt sorry for
him. Maybe he'd be alive now if..."
"He made his own choice," Trowa said, reassuringly,
"You shoudn't blame yourself. Now, let's get that arm
of yours fixed up, shall we?"
Quatre nodded and followed Trowa out the door.
"I'm going with them," Wufei announced, "I don't trust
that man." he followed Trowa and Quatre without
bothering to wait for an answer.
"Relena," Catherine spoke up, "Why don't
you and I leave these three alone for a bit. I know of
a nice little restaurant not to far from here."
"I agree," Relena nodded. "Under the circumstances
I think we should postpone today's plans."
Catherine extended her hand and Relena took it
without hesitation. "We'll see you soon," she told
the remaining pilots and Shiko.
The door closed quietly behind Catherine and
Relena leaving Duo and Heero alone with their
son.
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