Gundam Wing is copyright...Sotsu, I think it is, and a few other important companies and people. I OWN SHINOBU'S SOUL! Uh, how'd that get there? -_-;;

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FRIDAY:

Shi-chan: Well, yesterday's chapter seemed to come off pretty well! I'm trying my best to please everybody here...

Duo: .....

Shi-chan: Anyway, though I got great reviews for both the lemon and non-lemon parts, I'm going to handle the rest of this on my own. Besides, I don't need any citrus for what I'm doing next; the fic is bringing itself to a close. But I think I've pretty much guaranteed that this fic is a combination of just about every GW genre out there...onward!

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Death Becomes Him

~By Shimegami-chan

Part 26

SHOUNEN-AI...

Duo bounded into the little cafe with a tired Heero in tow. "C'mon Hee-chan!"

"Is this the place?" Heero asked, looking around curiously.

"Hai!" Duo led Heero to the counter and bought drinks for them both, and then they sat down on the stools facing the street.

"It's nice," Heero observed, sipping black coffee and nodding with approval.

Duo was nursing the cream from a huge mug of cappuccino. "Isn't it great? I wanted to bring you here as soon as I saw it!"

"Yeah, it is." Heero listened carefully to the upbeat music playing on the stereo. "it seems like the kind of place you would like, Duo-chan."

"Ooh! I love it when you call me that!" Duo threw his arms around his lover, and Heero smiled faintly. "Nee, Hee-chan!?"

"Hn." Heero stirred his coffee thoughtfully.

Duo winked at the Japanese boy. "Still tired?"

"Hn." Heero allowed Duo to sit in his lap while he finished the drink. Duo had whipped cream all over his face; Heero kissed it away. "Sweet."

"You should have gotten something more interesting." Duo sniffed disinterestedly at his partner's choice of beverage.

"Makes no difference to me." Heero gazed into Duo's indigo eyes. "Being with you does."

"Awww, cute!" Duo cried, glomping Heero from his position on his lap.

"Really, though, Duo...I'm so glad I found you again..." Heero leaned his head against Duo's chest.

"Me too, Heero," Duo said quietly, stroking Heero's brown hair. "Me too."

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"Dear Quat-chan. (And Trowa and Wu-man!) Went out with Hee-chan, back soon. We're fine, don't worry. Hope we didn't keep you up last night. Muahahahaha. Yours truly, Shinigami. DM." Quatre refolded the note and threw it on the table. "Well then..."

"That went well." Trowa commented.

"They seem to have made up!" said Quatre brightly.

Wufei snorted.

"Beats having Heero wanting to kill Duo, don't you think?" Trowa crossed his arms over his chest.

"It's much better," agreed Quatre. "Do you think we still need to send Heero to see Sally?"

"He's probably fine now," Wufei argued. "He's got Maxwell."

"I'm still worried," Quatre said nervously. "Duo's not in the best of condition."

"They can take care of themselves...but still, I've got a bad feeling..." Trowa shook his head in resigningly.

"Yeah..." Even Wufei looked sombre.

Quatre glanced at the clock and then down at the folded note. /Why I am I so worried?/

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///Time's up.///

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Duo hadn't even noticed anything was wrong until Heero realized Duo's reflection wasn't showing up in the windows anymore. The two of them were walking down a fairly busy downtown street at the time.

"Duo, I think something's wrong."

"Hm?" Duo gave him a quizzical look. "What's up?"

Heero pointed wordlessly at the window, where his mirror image stood alone.

"That's odd," Duo said doubtfully. "Mirrors were working fine before--eep!"

The Japanese boy took one of Duo's hands in his own--it was giving off a soft blue glow that was fairly quickly becoming noticeable.

"Shit!" Duo grabbed Heero by the wrist and took off down the street at top speed. They ran away from the busiest areas and were nearly to the park when Duo lost his grip on Heero and tumbled forward, rolling and landing in a warrior's crouch.

Heero stood worriedly beside him, offering him a hand. Duo reached gratefully for it, but passed right through. It was all Duo could do to work up enough concentration to make his hand solid for Heero to grab.

They ran.

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"Something's wrong. Something's happened to Duo."

"What? How do you know?"

"I don't know...but we've got find them. And fast."

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At the park, Duo was getting extremely worried. This is worse than it was before.

Even Heero was out of breath. "Duo! Are you okay?"

"I--I don't know." Duo cast a confused glance down at his body. He wasn't transparent--yet--but he was glowing softly and was beginning to be able to see through his foot.

The Japanese boy stumbled to his koi's side. "What's happening to you?"

Duo clung tightly to Heero. "I--I...can't...concentrate..."

Heero wasn't sure what to say. "Duo...you're not leaving me, are you?"

"Not if I can help it!" Duo cried. "I'm not going anywhere!"

Heero held the panicked boy in his slender arms, offering comfort regardless of the pain and terror he himself was experiencing. Duo accepted the gesture and wept silently into Heero's shirt.

To both their alarm, Duo's hands and arms had begun to flash a brilliant white-and-blue. "Shit! What's happening!?"

Heero sank to the ground, clutching Duo as tightly as he could. "Oh God, Duo...no..." A pair of leathery wings erupted from Duo's back, tearing his shirt and causing Heero to gasp in surprise. "What the hell?!"

"Masaka..." Duo's face was tear-streaked as he looked down at himself. He was barely holding on enough to still be solid, but most of his body was a transparent blue-white anyway. Duo's wings and slender legs were already passing through Heero's arms as if they were air. "Heero...they're taking me..."

"NO!" Heero screamed. "There's got to be something I can do!"

Duo looked up drowsily. "Heero...I'm..."

"Don't fall asleep, Duo! Don't leave me!" Heero looked into the deep violet eyes.

The dazed American stared back. "Heero...if this is good-bye for good, I'm glad your face is the last thing I see..."

"Don't talk like that, Duo!" Heero's pleading colbalt eyes seemed to read everything in Duo's face. "You're strong! You know that!"

"Aa, Hee-chan." Duo agreed. "I think so. And so are you...right? I think maybe we both need to be strong for each other and ourselves now..."

"Duo!" Heero's salty tears fell onto Duo's cheeks. "I need you! Please!"

"I can't control this, Hee-chan." Duo had gone completely slack in Heero's arms. "I'm so sorry. Please...don't do...anything you might regret...like the cliché said, I'm right here..." He put a shaking hand against Heero's chest.

Heero couldn't do anything but gaze into his lover's indigo eyes as tears spilled down his face.

Duo's hand dropped back down. "I'm awfully cold..."

"No..." Heero held the chestnut-haired beauty closer. "No..."

Duo leaned his head against Heero's chest and closed his eyes. "Mmmm...that's better...love you, Hee-chan..."

"Don't! Duo? Duo!" The limp form in Heero's arms faded away to almost nothing, an armful of sparkles and the silent whisper of the wind. 'Love you...'

Heero let out an anguished scream and pounded his fists on the cold ground. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

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Shi-chan: God....cliff-hanger...

Duo: No kidding!

Shi-chan: I'll try my best to get up another chapter tonight, but I'm not sure if I can. I'll do my best. ^_^