Disclaimer: I own... I own... Hmm... Okay, Bandai, Sunrise and Sotsu own Mobile Suit Gundam Wing. I own the story text. Huh? I think Bandai, Sunrise & Sotsu have the better end of the bargain. Oh, well! Story inspiration goes to Ladybug Oblivion. Thanks, babe. (to Lady O) And I'm still waiting for the companion story "Tenryu"! Hurry it up will ya!
There was just something about the way Duo said that he was the God of Death that just begged Heero's instincts to believe it. It had to be some form of manipulation of the facts at hand even though he couldn't decipher the angle.
"Okay, I guess, I'm more like an Angel of Death, but same difference, right?"
It was the same creative truth, but the different words gave no leads on the true meaning. Heero was getting annoyed. He had seen the genius at work enough times that he should have been able to locate the catch.
But he couldn't, so he used a tried and true method. He pulled a gun. "I thought I made it perfectly clear that you will die if you don't tell me what I want to know."
Very slowly, Duo positioned himself nearly prostrate, spreading both hands out and bending slightly over, so he was looking up at Heero. "Heero, I'm not a spy." His voice was the softest Heero had ever heard it. It was soothing. Heero didn't want to be soothed. He didn't want to be eased out of figuring out what was going on. He wanted to dissect every word for the key to unlocking the reason behind what he'd witnessed.
"I'm not a traitor." That was a simple sentence, definitely open to interpretation.
"I'm not anything you have any reason to fear or distrust." That was something that he'd decide. Thank you.
"I am an angel."
I. Am. An. Angel.
That was pretty damn straightforward, unless "angel" had some meaning Heero was unaware of.
"There's nothing else I can tell you."
But that was it, wasn't it? Duo didn't mean "angel" at all, he meant... He meant...
What the hell else could "angel" translate to?
Dammit! "Duo."
The boy adjusted his posture, raised his chin and then gave Heero a pleading look. "I don't know any other way of saying it."
Like an entire lake of icy water poured down his shorts, Heero was struck by the sincerity of the words. He couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was about the line that made him believe, but he suddenly knew that Duo had been telling him the unadorned truth.
Duo's an angel.
Once he had a moment to wrap his head around it, it didn't seem all that implausible.
On the other hand, yes. Yes, it did. "Duo, I know when someone is lying to me."
Duo didn't move. He was just suddenly on his feet in a whirlwind of rage. "Dammit, Heero! You know damn well, I'm not lying! I never lie." The rage receded a little as he paused to take a breath, but he then exploded into action again, wind milling his arms. "Do you think this is easy for me? I'm trying, alright?" That pleading was back in his gaze, pleading and... Were those tears?
Well, hell, if making Duo cry didn't just make him feel so much better. Suspicion, fear, aggravation... It all melted, washed away by those unshed tears.
"I'll answer your questions, just put that thing away. I'm not going anywhere."
There was defeat in the voice, but Heero almost missed it. He was still wrapped up in the fact that Duo's tears made him feel great.
He felt himself smile. He couldn't help it. What kind of bastard is happy to make someone cry? "So, you're an angel. What else?"
"Huh?" Duo snagged him with a stare, confusion nearly instantly morphing to anger.
The look was almost too humorous. It seemed Duo's anger also made him happy. "You heard me."
"What's so damn funny?" came the humorless reply.
"You." Upon reflection, that didn't seem the proper response. He didn't see the fist until it was too late.
To be continued...