Disclaimer: Mobile Suit Gundam Wing is property of Bandai, Sunrise and Sotsu. Peter Pan is property of J.M. Barrie, Disney & Universal.
Wufei stood over him with his infuriatingly non-committal expression. Duo managed a smile for his somewhat unwelcome guest. "Morning, sunshine! What the hell are you doing in my house at...," he checked the clock, "...six thirty-one in the morning?"
In response, Wufei merely stepped aside revealing a young girl with long blond hair. She wore a tattered orange dress that was several sizes too small and she could definitely use a bath.
Duo jumped up and pulled on a shirt all in the same motion. "Who is this?" The question was directed at his friend but his eyes stayed locked on the figure of the girl.
"Her name is Angelina," said Wufei.
"Well, nice to meet ya, Angelina! I'm Duo Maxwell." He held out a hand. The girl flinched, stepping in closer to Wufei as if she could hide behind him. Interesting.
Wufei took her hand and spoke softly. "Angelina, this is my good friend Duo. We are in his home and we are welcome."
Welcome, eh? And "my good friend Duo?" Ri-ight. Duo pasted a smile on his already happy face. "Absolutely! Mi casa es su casa, right? Make yourselves at home. I'll meet you in the kitchen."
Wufei took the hint and lead the still frightened Angelina out of Duo's bedroom.
"Damn," Duo muttered as he finished getting dressed for the day. "What have you brought into my house, Wufei?"
When Duo made his official appearance, Wufei had already helped himself to the contents of the refrigerator and was making a breakfast of hashed potatoes and steak. Angelina was sitting stiffly at the table, an untouched glass of milk in front of her. Duo finished braiding his hair, tossed the braid over his shoulder and plopped down on the opposite side of the table.
"I hope you're making enough for me. I'm starving!"
"Of course. It is your food." Typical Wufei answer.
Duo was dying to ask about Angelina again, but he knew that Wufei would only speak when he was ready and no amount of badgering would change that fact. His second choice would be to ask Angelina but he couldn't do that either. She was much too introverted. So, Duo got to wait. Quietly. He hated waiting quietly.
"I was talking to Quatre the other day and you won't believe what's going on over in the desert." Silence. "This is where you say, 'Oh, what's going on in the desert, Maxwell? Was it a sandstorm?' And then I say, 'Yeah, very funny, china-boy.' And then you draw your sword and then I cower. It's all good fun." Angelina giggled almost silently. Her laugh chimed like tiny silver bells.
"If I were to draw my sword, Maxwell, you wouldn't live long enough to cower and it certainly wouldn't be 'good fun'." Wufei slapped a steak on each of the three plates and then gave each a heaping spoonful of potatoes.
"Maybe not to you, but your little girlfriend thought it was funny." Angelina blushed and Wufei scowled and for Wufei that scowl was the equivalent of a blush.
Very interesting. "Let's eat, then you can tell me all about where you've been for the past couple of weeks." He clasped his hands together. "Thank you for the food. Dig in!"
After the meal was finished a calm settled over Duo. He allowed Wufei to clear the dishes before bringing up the subject of his curiosity.
Wufei was running water to wash the dishes when Duo reached over and turned the faucet off. "Leave 'em. I'll take care of them later. Have a seat." Wufei dried his hands and took the chair next to his girl.
"Okay, spill it. I need to know what's going on. Why are you here, Wufei?"
Wufei nodded and began. "Two weeks ago, I received a mission to investigate Colony P-275. According to the missions details, there were reports of an unusually large amount of ships, potentially OZ ships, travelling to and from the colony. I was to survey the area to determine if there was an OZ secret base."
"On New Britain? The junkyard of the system? That place can't even hold orbit without help."
"My thoughts exactly, so I traced the origin of the order. It had been rerouted through every colony and several cities on Earth before the trace went dead in London, England." Angelina stiffened and snatched Wufei's arm.
"Something the matter, Angelina?" Duo asked as gently as he could manage.
She shook her head, releasing Wufei's arm. "I'm sorry. Go ahead."
Wufei watched her for a moment before continuing. "I knew the order hadn't come form my usual source, but it was still too dangerous to ignore. A surprise attack from a base on New Britain would devistate the resistance before anyone could determine what was happening."
"So, you went." It wasn't a question. Duo would have done the same thing, had their roles been reversed.
"So, I went. It shouldn't have been a difficult assignment. Go in. Gather recon. Get out. Easy."
Duo grinned. "Not so easy, I'm guessing."
"I ran headlong into a three-foot tall problem," he gritted through his teeth as Angelina glowed scarlet. Wufei then relayed the rest of his story, omitting nothing. He even included Angelina's growth spurt and mysterious powers.
Duo sat in silence for a full minute. He looked to Angelina. "Do you have anything to add? Like, maybe, who you really are?"