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"Five Boy Curry "Written By: Asymphototropic
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam wing. Author: Asymphototropic (attracted toward the
light, but never quite arrives there) Email: asymphototropic@aol.com Rating: NC 17 Warnings: language, yaoi, het Summary: sharing a blanket leads to storytime Pairings: 1x2, 11x2, others tba? Note: "Five Boy Curry" is an actual recipe I got from an in-law who grew up on a Philippine island. I was cooking some curry the other day and the name reminded me of the five gundam boys
" Five Boy Curry "
Part 12. How many times had he died so young? He stared in dismay at an infinity of wrecked timelines, stretched to blurred horizons, directionless in every direction. Stared at the multitude of visible lines that ended in horrible demise. There, cruelly, still in his infancy, wailing alone, abandoned in some slimy L2 alley. In another line, he had succumbed to the plague. Neglected, finally a blackened, maggot ridden corpse. Here again, shot by a gang member who wasn't even aiming at him, taken by a ricochet. Dozens of different times during various wars. Spear, knife, arrow, sword, canon blast, machine gun fire. Crashed, crushed, burned, plummeted into the ocean and drowned. Captured and tortured to death. Even his dangerous peacetime existence was pockmarked here and there with early destruction. Duo cried out in despair. In multiple timelines, he remained unanswered, wretchedly alone in the unending darkness. But in other lives he received soothing replies. "Shhh. Its all right. You're going to be okay." He hearkened to the whispered words, yearned toward them eagerly. Some lines, some times, someone here and there, individuals in various timeplaces cared enough to answer his miserable moan. Did he have a choice now? Could he select a life, a timeline that looked long and promising, and settle his perceived sentience into it? That one there, for instance? Where he became the physician at an elegant palace. A respected man who lived a long peaceful life, in the company of many friends, a family? "No," came the answer. Not this one. Elsewhere. Destined, for elsetime Another line clawed at him, wrapped strangling him, drew him, sucked at his guts like sudden exposure to the vacuum of space. A tumultuous timeline, full of difficulty and violence, striving, success mingled with failures. A chaos where he belonged. He sighed, resigned to inevitability. Allowed himself to be suctioned back in, tumbled amidst the painful cold heat of distant stars. He rolled bleeding upon events, irregularly sharp as glass shards from an explosion. This life, this timeline. To try, to fail. Strive and fall. Pick himself up, one more time and yet again. Make another attempt. To live. And then to die. Which version of death would he achieve here? How long was the ultimate event to be delayed this elsetime? "Can you hear me?" "Yeah," he muttered hoarsely. "Do you know who I am?" "The Grand Vizier." "Ahem. Well, thank you for the promotion. Could we settle simply for 'Commander'?" "Rats. Too bad for you too. That other timeline. You got the girl." "You certainly take delirium to new, creative heights." "Thanks. Erm. Am I delirious?" "That's what the doctors tell me." "Could we get a second opinion?" "All in good time. Do you know where you are?" He cracked one eye open. Took in a fuzzy view. Closed his eyes and sniffed. His nose had arrived at its destination ahead of the rest of him. "Smells like Preventers' Infirmary," he assessed. "Very good. Do you remember how you came here?" "Nurp." "Do you remember anything?" "I got the girl before you did." "Ah. Well, then. Ahem. Preventers' uniform. Crisply proper. Aristocratically settled on that tall muscular frame. Lounging comfortably in a chair at bedside. Not Zechs Merquise. Milliardo Peacecraft. Commander Peacecraft. Ever handsomely patrician, Peacecraft. Suddenly, a burning question crackled on smoke to the top. "Une? Did she make it?" "Commander Une is doing well. Do you remember the explosion then? Escape in that malfunctional mech?" "Sorta." "Anything about your rescue? Hospitalization? You've been in and out of consciousness, a long while now." "Nurp. Think I thought we were goners for sure. Should be dead by now. And like that?" "You certainly were well on your way. But Yuy got to you two. Arrived in time to attempt resuscitation." "Yuy? Heero Yuy?" "No, George Yuy." George? Had he somehow shaken loose into some new and different timeline? Where there was a George Yuy? Peacecraft chuckled wryly. "Sorry. Misplaced attempt at humor. I think your prolonged company may be wearing off on me." "I do that sometimes. Yuy rescued us? Can't quite get a hold of that notion. So, um. Where is he now?" "House arrest." "Yuy's under arrest? You sure?" "Most certainly. I was the one to arrest him." "Damn." He attempted to push up off the bed. Then he discovered his hands. And groaned out loud. Peacecraft was on him in an instant, restraining him, pinning him to the mattress. "Lie still." "Shit." His intellect groped in the abysmal darkness. Wrecked. Adrift. Floating in space. Freeze dried. "How bad?" "Function should be restored fully. With some further medical intervention. You have undergone some graft reconstruction. That which needed to be done early or not at all. They were waiting to perform the more elective procedures. Until. Well, ahem." "Until they found out if I was fully brain-gourded. Permanent vegetable matter. Snuffed untimely in my pathetic youth. Whether it would be a waste of money. And time. Dun wanna waste time, do they? Infinite though it is. An infinite number of infinities." "I'm certain the physicians and specialists will be pleased to further discuss your full recovery. Whatever measures are necessary will be undertaken." Firm voice, in command. Commander Peacecraft. He tried again to sit up. "Yuy. Gotta see him. Need to talk to him." Again he was firmly restrained. "Maxwell. Lie still. I've already called for him. He's coming. He'll be here shortly." "Yeah. All right. Sorry. Thanks." "So. Ya went and got yourself arrested, huh? Wha' for?" "Grand theft of a rescue spacecraft from Winner Enterprises. Failure to log a flight plan. Numerous intercolonial traffic violations. Illegal flight path. Violation of internationally recognized space boundaries. Failure to retrieve intercepted organic remains. Illegal use of..." "Yurp. Gotcha. You got caught being naughty." "I did not get caught. I willingly surrendered to authorities. And confessed." "Sounds like the George Yuy I know, all right. So you went flying out and rescued me, huh? Just couldn't resist." "Perhaps it was Commander Une I went flying out to rescue." That tiny lift of his lips into a subtly teasing smile. "Yurp. That would explain everything. You have no idea how rare an event rescuing me is. I've seen them. Studied the timelines. Over and over again. Infinite death. Death in every direction. As far as the eye can see. Tiny little Duo Deaths, littered about the eternal landscape. Like periods punctuating a perpetual paragraph." "You are depressed at your prolonged hospitalization. Your mood will improve as your recovery progresses." "Yurp. You mean I should stop my bitch, piss 'n moaning. Yer absolutely-frickin' right. I'm damn sorry I gotcha into hot water. Honest to gods. And I'm really truly grateful you came after us." "Success is sufficient vindication. I'm very glad I came after you. Since you have survived." "Erm. About Une." "I already know." "You talked to her? About me?" "There was physical evidence, readily apparent. So I spoke to her, yes." "Ho, damn." He felt his face burning hot. "This is the first chance I've had to picture that. Imagine what we musta looked like when you got there." "The fly of your trousers was open and your member was in an awkward position. Other than that, you looked merely deceased." "Merely that, huh? Shit." He tried to swipe his unruly hair out of his eyes, and got a face full of bandaged hand. Suddenly his eyelashes felt wet. He couldn't think why. Yuy wiped his cheeks with a white towel. Crisp, clean. Smelling of detergent. Eau de infirmary. "Strange. Here'm crying like a baby. I never cry. Feeling sorry for myself I guess. Dunno why. You're the one who should feel sorry fer yerself. Rushing out to rescue us. Coming upon a flagrant corpus delicti. AKA yours truly, Duo Maxwell. Caught in the act. Quiescently frozen as such." "My tone of inquiry with Commander Une was neither accusatory nor confrontational." "Well, she's your superior officer. And you're still a soldier boy at heart. No great surprise there." "I only sought information. I hadn't realized there was anything between you two." "Look, Yuy, there isn't. Well. Erm. I mean, there wasn't." "Commander Une seems different. Changed by her experience. Subtly, but thoroughly." "Coming back from certain death will do that to you, I guess." "She has fully recovered and returned to work. And this was not her first brush with death, by any means. No. It isn't that which has changed her. I'm fairly certain she is altered as a result of her encounter with you." "Kissing Death's son? Nah. It didn't mean anything. Just a foolish last fling. A quick roll in the hay under desperate circumstances. 'If you can't love the one you love, love the one yer with.' Like the old song says. Don't forget, she's my CO too. I'm her subordinate. In every possible way." "She does not seem to feel any self-recrimination. Nor does she blame you. She seems pleased. She seems happy. And just hopeful for your full recovery. Nothing more." "That is just plain weird." "I believe she and Commander Peacecraft are developing 'a thing' for each other. Would that distress you?" "The Empress and the Grand Vizier, huh?" "What do you mean by that?" Duo sighed. "Maybe I'll tell you in a while. But no, it doesn't bother me. Is my face a mess? It doesn't feel too bad. Damaged. Frost bitten, I mean?" "You have had many days for treatment and recovery. Your face is not a mess. See?" Yuy rummaged through the shaving kit he had brought and held a mirror up for Duo's edification. "Gack. My hair. Its grue-gusting. How did my hands get so bad? So much worse than the rest of me?" "The resuscitation tank." Heero shuddered at the sudden recollection. Duo, fighting desperately to free himself. Yuy standing by, helplessly watching, useless. "Gave you a hard time, didn't I? Hell, I'm sorry. But hey, we got the bad guys. You got the info on Haerisen's crime network I sent you, right? Didja wreak righteous havoc there, at least?" "Yes. The information has been very useful. I'll brief you on that when you're up and about again." "Yeah. Speaking of which, when can I get up?" "I'll ask the doctors." "Huh? Since when do you care what they think? You sure you're George Yuy and not some weird clone?" "George?" Puzzlement was a sweet expression when it overtook Heero's solemn face. "Gods, I so totally want to molest you," Duo grinned suddenly. "Perhaps that can be arranged." A delectable, evil smirk in return. "Well, you're under house arrest. Guess that means you gotcha a private room in the building. One with a locking door, eh?" Duo's eyes sparkled mischief. "Ah, yes. All the benefits of detention," Yuy agreed, leaning over him, face close to face. "Detain this," Maxwell suggested, arching his back to thrust upward at the other's proximate body parts. The sound of gurgling gastric juices ruined the lewdness of the gesture. "You're hungry. That would seem to be an indication of advancing recovery." "I think I'm craving something spicy. Like, erm, curry maybe." "I doubt the cafeteria will be able to cater to that whim." "Take out restaurant. Order in. Like, 'Hello? Thai Foods Emporium? This is Preventers Agent Heero Yuy. I'd like to order a large serving of curried mixed veggies and rice to go. Just bring it to my prison cell.' Like that, huh?" Duo suggested, laughing. "Maybe when you are mobile, it would be simpler to take you out to lunch." "Looking forward to it. But you'll have to bust out of jail first." "I believe Commander Une is taking steps to resolve my legal situation." "She'd damn well better. Since you saved her life." "She does not seem to be lacking in gratitude." "That's more like it then. Meantime, what say you show me the amenities of your prison cell?" "Its just an ordinary room in the Bachelors Officers' Quarters." "How boring. Couldn't the Grand Vizier come up with anything more original than that?" Yuy's face got closer to Maxwell's, studying his expression intently. "The doctors think you are delirious when you say things like that." "Erm. I can explain. You see..." He was interrupted abruptly when his lips were drawn forcibly into Heero's mouth. "Hotter than curry," Duo muttered when he could next get oxygen. "You seem to approve of the entree." "Its the way you serve it up. Seconds?" Heero worked his hands behind Duo's head, and held him snugly in place for a thorough frontal assault. "Once upon a different timeline," Duo muttered, when he was finally allowed to draw a gasping breath. "Are you going to tell me a story?" "And then you'll be a good boy and go quietly to bed?" "That depends. Will you be in the bed too?" "Sure." "In that case, being either good or quiet will be out of the question." "I was just thinking." "Yes?" Heero clutched him close and held on tightly. "As timelines go, maybe this one's not so bad after all." ~ * ~
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