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"The Road to Hell is Paved With Second Chances "Written By: Jewel of Hell Disclaimer: Don't own nothin' but these words Rating: NC 17 Warnings: Yaoi, lemon, angst (sort of), abuse, torture, memory loss, mental instability, character death, violence, dark Pairings: 1x2 Summary: The war ended, and Duo disappeared. Heero
never stopped searching. When he found his love, locked in a research
facility with devestated memories, he swore he would destroy the one
responsible. "The Road to Hell is Paved With Second Chances "
Chapter Six Raking fingers through severely disheveled hair, Trowa shook his head. The action strongly reminded Heero of a wet dog. When he looked at his friend and fellow (ex) pilot, Heero was momentarily distracted by the sight. He'd never seen Trowa with both halves of his face visible. The rainwater quickly weighed the errant locks down, however, and they flopped to their former position. Trowa's remaining visible eye was full of . . . too many things to count. Concern. Worry. Anxiety. A willingness to do whatever it took. "Why did you do that?" Heero didn't insult Trowa by pretending. Nor by acting contrite. He shrugged. "I wanted to leave a trail." "But why?" Why, indeed. Heero let his eyes slide shut for a moment. In those moments before Duo had unexpectedly found him, he'd been downloading a very (as Duo would put it) shitty virus into the compound's computer. It would be one very easy to trace, and it would delete everything Isenger had saved there. The entire system would crash and crash hard. All the information would be irretrievable. Shitty, but it would accomplish its goal. Making Heero easy to trace, because that is what Heero wanted. He wanted to kill the man in front of Duo's eyes. First, it would be a huge step toward recovering for Duo. Second, it would satisfy Heero's need for vengeance. And third, it would send a loud and clear message to Relena. Because as much as he hated Isenger, Heero loathed and despised Relena. Nothing on this planet or in this galaxy would save her. But first things first. "I need your help." Trowa gave a slight nod. "Anything." "I'm going to kill Relena." It wasn't exactly surprise that crossed Trowa's face. "When?" For the first time in a long time, Heero smiled. It was a cold, awful smile. "A long, long time from now." Wakefulness was a long time coming. He could not remember the last time he didn't bolt out of sleep, instantly worked up into a frenzy of fear. Now he woke up slowly, calmly, quietly, and blessedly warm. He was on a very soft surface, and he was only a little too cold instead of freezing to the core. His eyes lazily blinked open, and for a moment he blearily took in his surroundings. Walls painted a soothing blue. Furniture of darker shades in blue and black. He noted an IV taped to the back of his hand. That was a first. Finally the urgency caught up with him. Where was he? And how had he wound up here? Like so many times before he could not remember the events leading up to this- Blink. Slow down. That wasn't true. He did remember . . . something. Closing his eyes, refusing to panic, he tried to focus. Rain. Wind. Lightning. Thunder. Those he remembered. And darkness. The power had gone out. Blink. I . . . I got out. The door unlocked and I . . . I LEFT! For a moment he was shocked into stillness. He could vividly remember his fear (it was fast returning), and yet, he'd had the courage to step outside that cell. The next moment, a sense of urgency filled him. The person he had to find. Yes, that was right. He bolted upright, frantically looking around the room, lethargy forgotten. Where was he? He had to know. How had he gotten here? His heart started to pound as his bare feet hit the floor. Soft carpet met his toes, momentarily surprising him. Who . . . who is he . . . The door only a handful of steps away from him abruptly opened, and in he stepped. Oh, yes. That was right. Heero. And I'm Duo. That's my name. Feeling a strange surge of . . . something . . . at his fractured memory, Duo let himself fall back onto the bed. Heero's face was full of concern and that gentle emotion-caring? "You're finally awake," he said in that voice Duo was starting to associate with comfort and safety. "How do you feel?" Duo felt no alarm as Heero closed the space between them and lightly gripped his hand. He pulled the IV free with almost no pain. Duo idly watched him press a band-aid to the small wound. Then he looked up into those deep, endless cobalt eyes. And for several long moments, was lost. Like being pulled down into a spiraling whirlpool, emotions and fragments of impressions and feelings overwhelmed him. That face was so familiar. And more than the face itself, this feeling of safety was, too. A distinct impression that he'd known Heero for a long time. That Heero had been important to him for that entire time. On some level, on some intrinsic level he knew he hadn't met Heero at that building where his memories had been erased. "I know you," he whispered. Heero looked taken aback. "Of course you do," he agreed. "Did you forget-" Duo shook his head fiercely. "No, I mean, I know you." He stared at that face. Like something hanging just out of reach, it eluded him. The harder he tried, the dimmer it became. Frustrated, he shook his head again and closed his eyes. "I can't remember." Abruptly, strong arms were around him, effectively hemming him in. "Don't worry about it, Duo. You will." In an eyeblink, the feelings of comfort and safety were gone. Replaced by near-panic, feeling like he would hyperventilate, Duo shoved at the arms caging him. Now his mind spiraled down into something else, something he could remember. Being dragged, shoved, forced. Bruising hands, smug faces, cold touches, darkness and pain and fear and I can't stand it anymore! "Duo!" Blink. Duo realized he'd curled up in the corner between the bed and the wall, making himself as small as possible, face buried in his hands. Heero hovered a few feet away, not reaching out or touching, kneeling on the floor. Probably to make himself smaller and less threatening. Duo stared at him, mind sluggishly catching up. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. He tried several times until he finally croaked, "I'm sorry." Heero visibly wilted. "It's all right, Duo," he murmured. He held out his arms. "Come away from there, you'll freeze." The promise of warmth was enough to tempt Duo away from the wall. He slowly crawled across the floor into Heero's arms, entire body trembling wildly. This time when he was enfolded in the other's embrace, it soothed him. Heat seeped into his frozen core, unexpectedly relaxing him until he was limp and exhausted. He realized Heero was gently rocking him, humming something he didn't recognize. He allowed his eyes to slip shut, drained and once more feeling safe. Heero would protect him. Heero felt some of his tension bleed away when Duo dropped into a doze. He could tell his partner wasn't quite asleep, but he wasn't really awake anymore, either. Duo had been unconscious for almost three days, such a lengthy period Heero had finally attached an IV drip. He'd spent most of those three days going over Isenger's so-called research. He was already quite hopeful, because according to Isenger, Duo should have absolutely no memories at all. The wipe was so complete, there should be nothing left of the former self. No feelings, no emotions, no urges, no impressions, not even any unconscious gestures. Duo still had all of these. He still trusted Heero, that much was plain. Part of him remembered Heero from before. He remembered that he had not always been at that damn lab. And he still leaned into Heero's touch to nuzzle his hand. Fuck you, Isenger. He smiled grimly. It's only a matter of time before you track me to here. Hurry on over. I'm going to show you what it's like to fuck with the Gundam pilots. Because once he was taken care of, he could go after Relena. Rising to his feet, he gently deposited Duo back onto the bed and drew the blankets close. Deciding he would make a meal and then wake him, he left for now. Trowa was pretty much exactly where Heero had left him. In the living room on Heero's laptop. He looked up at his fellow (ex) pilot. "How is he?" Heero shrugged one shoulder. "Better than I expected, worse than I hoped," he replied. And didn't that sum it up nicely. Trowa looked back at the laptop. "I've been talking with Quatre," he said presently. "He has suggested we take Duo to a doctor specializing in mental trauma and memory loss. He's willing to find one and pay for it." Heero discarded the idea out of hand. "No. I think that would be more traumatic. He's barely fine with me being near him." Nodding, Trowa's fingers flew over the keyboard. "I've told him. What about later, when Duo has adjusted?" Now Heero hesitated. What to say? I don't want some other doctor messing with Duo. I want him to be strong enough on his own to regain his memories. Because it will mean more if he can. To both of them. He turned away, heading toward the kitchen. "Maybe." Relena nearly jumped out of her skin when her personal computer bleeped an incoming message requesting a video conference. She slapped the key, and Isenger's face fuzzed to life. She glared at him. "What the hell's going on, Doctor?" she snapped. "It was a virus," the man said in that infuriatingly smooth voice of his. Ever in control. "Fortunately, that fool Shiro doesn't know how to construct an untraceable virus. I've located his server. Every time he uses the net, it's going to ping my system. Using this, I will be able to pinpoint his location in a few days." "You had better, Doctor, because I'm not taking any fall for you. I can make any connections between us disappear with a snap of my fingers." "Don't worry, Miss Relena. I won't lose all my research because of one man's moral dilemma. My life's work is in the data he stole from me. Perhaps I will recruit him as my next subject." His cold chuckle made Relena's skin crawl. "I don't care what you do. Just make sure you get Maxwell locked up where he belongs. The kid is a menace to society, and more worthless than the rats infesting the colony he came from." She sniffed. Isenger chuckled. "Never fear, Princess. I'll send you a discreet message when things are as they should be once more." "Good. And stop sending me messages this way." She closed her laptop, running her hands over its flat top. Smiling, she rose and straightened her pink dress. Hurry home, Heero. I'm sure you've either caught
the criminal who dared threaten me, or have almost done so. And when
you come back, I'm sure it will be with vows of love and devotion.
I know this chase for my benefit will have allowed you to forget about
that L2 whore. Humming a merry little tune, she called her chauffer.
She felt like spoiling herself tonight.
tbc |
