WARNINGWARNING: very slightly shounen ai
        This is a spin off of the episode when Hilde breaks into the Libra 
battleship. One of my favorite ones. 
                                                                          Angel 
of Death
Angel of Death
Part 1 
  
     As he had been trained to do, stealthily, slowly, cautiously, Heero slipped 
into Duo's darkened room.  The infinate quietness of space relaxed his 
tenseness.  As his eyes immediately adjusted to the dimness, he simply stood by 
his entrance and quickly observed his comrade's fate, making sure the medics has 
done what he asked, or more so, demanded.  Duo lay motionless on a portable 
hospital bed, much unlike his usual layed-back, easy-going stature.  Curious, 
Heero floated across the small room, coming to an abrupt halt at the end of 
Duo's bed.  "I shouldn't be here", he thought, "the medics were right...I should 
be resting and making plans with the others...Making plans?" Suddenly, his stone 
hard face mysteriously relaxed, "When did I start making plans?"  Tossing the 
thought aside, Heero stared at Duo's body, his heart pounding so hard in his 
ears, he thought the  unceasing rhythm would echo off the walls and wake Duo, 
shattering the quietness of space...
 
     *Duo surrendered himself to the nightmare creeping into his mind, almost 
welcoming it.  Anything seemed better than having to think for himself, lying 
awake.  After all, why would the God of Death dream sweetly? He almost smiled at 
that.  But as the previous battle, moments before, spread across his blank mind, 
the overwhelming pain throbbing throughout his body increased its intensity. The 
nightmare was so vivid he could smell and taste the iron of blood. He 
remembered...remembered Hilde...saving Hilde..."You're such a fool, Hilde, 
sneaking into the Libra Battleship to get that data! Dammit, your so stupid!" He 
remembered saying. Then she said, "I thought you'd say... something like that". 
The picture swirled black, something new forming. Hilde drowning in a deep pool 
of blood?...* 
  
     ...Wounds were a normal part of battles and war, but Heero couldn't help 
grieving for Duo.  Fresh red blood soaked through the various bandages on his 
arms and hands.  Also, under the thin, white sheet covering his body his right 
leg was bandaged, too, Heero knew.  "Damn, Duo, we need you!" Heero clenched his 
teeth and ran a hand through his thick chocolate brown hair, raking long bangs 
through the mess.  "You gave all you had left for Hilde, but if she hadn't been 
so thoughtless, you'd be laughing and cracking jokes right now, provoking me."  
Starlight shining through a huge window on the farthest wall of the room dazzled 
Duo's child-like face, his extremely long, damp chestnut brown hair flowing all 
around. "They had to wash your hair Duo, It was soaked with too much blood from 
when you carried Hilde on your back...and then you collapsed. Quatre, Trowa, and 
Wu Fei think it would have been better if you waited for Noin to help you 
fight...especially Quatre. He's really worried about you. He wouldn't even look 
at the data Hilde downloaded for you. He handed the disk to me. So I kept it. 
Naturally, there were no objections."  The eerie illumination drew Heero to the 
bedside, like a moth drawn to light.  "You look more like an Angel of Death, 
than Shingami", he whispered, the warm breath of his words cascading from his 
mouth before he could think. He wanted to run...to stop himself from opening up 
the sincere, loving  feelings locked inside his cold heart.  Perspiration beads 
threatened to pop out on his forehead, arms, everywhere.  Nervously, Heero 
smoothed out the dark green tank top he was wearing, making sure it was securely 
tucked into his black spandex shorts.  "What's happening to me?" Heero thought, 
irritated, "The only other person I've ever  felt concern for was Relena."  He 
crossed  his arms in disgust, determined to look away, but something held him to 
the spot.  "Dammit! What the hell is wr....this feeling? Duo got banged up bad, 
but he'll be fine! Why am I here? Why did I have him moved here? But he looks 
so...so...so helpless.  He needs someone who knows him well to comfort him". 
  
      Breaking Heero's thoughts, Duo turned on his side, but winced in pain and 
lay flat again.  Heero watched intensely, waiting.  His arms fell to his sides 
as he knelt beside the bed.  Cobalt blue pools of warmth stared at Duo, watching 
his chest rise and fall, unlike the usual glass hard, arctic appearance Heero's 
eyes always had.  Perspiration droplets started sliding down Duo's forehead, 
making his already wet, long bangs stick.  His sweet, peaceful face transformed 
distraught and tight.   Heero stood up and hesitantly reached out a hand for 
Duo's forehead.  His hand hovered just above there, shaking.  He  ached so much 
to brush aside those sticky, salty bangs.  For quiet some time, Heero remained 
frozen that way, his heart still beating rapidly faster. Soon, he felt his hand 
getting warmer, but he never touched Duo's pale skin. "Does he have a fever?" he 
thought, alarmed. 
  
     "Hilde...Hilde...HILDE! HILDE!" Duo screamed.  Heero sprang back as Duo's 
yells pierced the silence of the room and he snapped into a sitting position 
despite his injuries.   Heero had no time to regain his all too familiar gruff, 
rock-like stance or escape.  Duo's dark violet eyes fluttered open, wild with 
rage,and he was gasping for breath.  Heero stood solid two feet from the revived 
Shingami. 
  
Angel of Death Part 2 
  
     Once he realized it was only one of his sadistic nightmares, Duo 
systematically regained his regular heart rate by taking in deep breaths, 
letting to cool air coat and soothe his burning throat and insides, then finally 
exhaling.  "Geez, I feel like I got smashed", he dazily thought, "but if I 
really was, I would remember a party." Of course he knew what had really 
happened, but the black humor kept him from thinking about his horrible pain.  
  
     Throwing the sheet off, Duo examined his considerably damaged body. "A gash 
here, a bruise there..." he assured himself, "looks like I can still fight, 
better get going."  Unfortunately, his short attention failed to notice the 
bandaged knee.  As if nothing had happened, Duo jumped joyously out of the bed, 
promptly unmistakingly hearing a loud "CRRRACK" shoot up his right leg.
     Heero, meanwhile, stood paralyzed watching, not sure how to present 
himself, or if he should bother aiding Duo. 
  
     Duo regrettably sucked in a deep breath through his grinding teeth, 
flopping horizontally across the bed.  "Awww, shit, now I gotta pop it back into 
place like Heero always does." At the sound of his name, Heero didn't even 
flinch.  Duo remorsefully closed his eyes, letting his head and upper body sink 
into the soft bed, while he stretched his left foot out to floor, keeping his 
right leg still.  Folding his hands on his stomach, sighing, the increasing 
sharp pain in his knee signaled his brain about the rest of his injuries he was 
trying to hide.  This time, Duo reluctantly let himself feel the aching and 
bleeding.  Everything hurt, especially his heart.  Deep inside, he remembered 
why he really woke up; the approaching Final Battle...intoxicating his mind like 
a sea of blackness and despair.  "Hilde," he sadly murmured, "Hilde, where are 
you, are you okay, baby?" Recollecting his mission, realizing the crucial battle 
was awaiting the God of Death, glittering tears filled his eyes, spilling over, 
soaking his cheeks. 
  
     Heero softly took a small step toward Duo.  Watching Duo's tears fall, he 
understood perfectly, each tear hitting him like a bullet to the chest.  Now he 
understood what he had felt before when he came into the room, or when Duo 
carried Hilde into Peacemillion's docking area.  Although everyone knew 
him-feared him-for his monotonous, determined hardness, hidden within his icy 
heart, love, sincerity, and warmth faintly existed, burning stronger every time 
he saw Relena.  He remembered a brief moment long ago when he actually had the 
chance to dance with her. He had to kill her...the gun was there...and she 
wasn't afraid at all.  So strong were his thoughts about her at that moment, her 
sheer strength somehow awakening anew whenever he saw her, he almost forgot 
about his first objective and gave in.  Swiftly spinning together, her soft 
light brown hair brushing against his cheek, he still wanted to kill her, but he 
couldn't, with her compassionate smile, and sweet blue eyes, determination set 
on her face..it was  something he admired.  
  
     At that very moment, Heero felt a great rush flow through his body, another 
wave of emotion.  "Love...so this is love...just like how Duo went out of his 
way to save Hilde," he thought, "when he usually lets people die mercilessly, 
the God of Death... just like I do."  Heero finally realized he loved Relena.  
They both loved each other because of their strong determination and special 
power and skill to create peace between Earth and Space, a special bond.  
Countless numbers of times he could have destroyed her, and all of those times 
he just couldn't do it.  If he did, he would have annihilated his hopes of 
pacifism.  "I've never felt so confident about my mission before," he pondered, 
"In order to obtain peace, I've got to protect Relena."  Finally, the clarity of 
Heero's feelings surfaced through the artificial murkiness of his heart.  He had 
always protected these feelings by creating an ominous darkness when speaking to 
people, ally or enemy.  But Duo's rescue somehow melted the ice and darkness 
away...and Relena's light could now shine through.
   
     Heero finally decided it was time to talk to Duo.  Besides, he did need to 
show Duo the data Hilde had got. He wouldn't look at without Duo seeing it, too. 
 He moved up behind Duo's head, leaned over, and spoke with built-up confidence. 

  
     "Duo...tears will do nothing for you.  Hilde's down the hall being treated 
by the medics. She lost a lot of blood." 
  
     "Heero! What the...I mean...why....she is?"  Duo was at a complete loss. 
Obviously, Heero must have been the one to move him here, this conference room. 
His heart sank as what Heero said registered. He expected to see Quatre or 
Trowa, maybe Wu Fei even, let alone if anyone would come to see him. 
  
Angel of Death Part 3 
  
     "Don't be so surprised," Heero replied, "I had you moved to this room so 
that we could look at the data Hilde got you." 
  
     Duo was very careful about not showing shock, with Heero looming over him 
like that.  "This is definitely surreal," he thought, "Heero wanting to help me? 
Show me Hilde's data on the Libra Battleship, alone?  Figured he'd find it.. and 
keep it to himself.  But why  show me without the other pilots?" 
  
     "Well, uh...let's see it then," Duo coldly remarked.  Heero just stood 
there, staring at Duo's tear stained face.  Duo searched Heero's eyes for an 
explanation...there was something extremely different about them.  Rather than 
being ice cold cobalt blue, he could tell Heero was itching to say more, just by 
how his eyes shined. 
  
     Suddenly Duo squirmed; he felt very uncomfortable witnessing this new  
appearance of Heero.  "Heero," he choked, "that's not the only reason why you 
wanted me here, alone, is it?" 
  
     Heero slightly smiled.  "Yeah, your right.  I want to talk to you about 
something." 
  
     "A smile?  I haven't seen him smile before, ever!  He wants to...talk?  
He's almost acting human!" Duo thought. 
  
      "IEEEEE!" Duo screamed and hastily scrambled to a sitting position, almost 
falling off the bed right at Heero's feet.  He backed up against the headboard, 
groaning with pain, and looked down, letting his hair cover his face so that he 
couldn't see Heero.  
  
     "Duo, please don't be afraid.  I need your help." 
  
     "From me? Your asking me for help?? Why?" A muffled voice said from the 
curtain of hair. 
  
     "You're the only person who understands me." 
  
      The awkward softness in Heero's deep voice caught Duo's attention.  "He 
really is trying to talk to me," Duo thought, alarmed.  " Well, uh, sure, I 
guess I could help. What's wrong?" 
  
     "I think I love someone...Relena." 
  
     Duo pulled back his curtain of hair, brushing his long bangs out of his 
bright purple eyes, noting he had no clue why it wasn't braided.  Edging closer 
to Heero, he readjusted himself in the middle of the bed with his long legs 
outstretched. 
  
     "You mean that Queen of the World chic, huh?  I thought you had a sweet 
spot for her." Duo raised an eyebrow. "Hilde said she's on Libra." 
  
     Heero's eyes started to mysteriously glow, his facial expression once again 
shocking Duo.
   
     "She is...?" Heero let the question-like statement trail off. 
  
      For a moment, the two of them just stared at each other, awkward and 
unsure of what to say or do.  Amazingly, somehow a friendship...let alone a 
conversation...was finally building between them, and neither one wanted to ruin 
the precious scene. 
  
      Finally, Heero reached into his back pocket, cautiously revealing Hilde's 
disk.  "Here," Heero said thickly, shakily handing the disk out to Duo, "if you 
place it in the computer projector on the other side of you, we'll see it on the 
front wall." 
  
     Without saying a word, Duo grabbed the disk and lovingly rubbed at the 
dried blood stains smeared on the surface with his thumb.  He couldn't even 
glance at it without Hilde coming to mind. 
  
     "Duo," Heero whispered, "Duo, let's see it."  Duo just gazed blankly at the 
disk, continuing his rhythmic rubbing.  Heero sat down on the bed, placing a 
strong hand on Duo's shoulder, squeezing it hard.  " I know it's hard, but 
you've got got be strong.  After all, I didn't think a Shinigami could cry." 
Heero released his tight grip. 
  
      Zoning back into reality, only hearing part of Heero's words, Duo leaned 
over the bed, opposite Heero, and popped the disk into a slot on the projector.  
Then he pressed a button that would show the data like a slide show.  A beam of 
light hit the wall, displaying pictures of Libra.  As he tried to move back to 
his sitting position, he accidentally twisted his right knee slightly.  His eyes 
squeezed shut, and he moaned, keeping his lips tight. 
  
     "Don't move!" Heero jumped off the bed, and put himself in just the right 
position, placing his hands firmly around Duo's knee, feeling for the bone.  
"Just don't move!" 
  
     Duo's muscles all throughout his body tensed up, his mouth ready to spring 
open.  With one swift, skillful twist, Heero reset Duo's misplaced knee.  Duo's 
mouth opened to scream, but nothing came out.  Instead, he relaxed and slowly 
sat cross-legged, watching the informative data flash on the far wall.  "Thanks 
Heero," he said, "now, tell me about Relena." 
  
     Heero sat on the bed again, heaving a sigh as he plopped on the pillows 
behind Duo.  "Well, it started when..." he began. 
  
     While Heero explained the burning inferno of love warming his heart, he 
soon found himself raking his fingers through Duo's long, tangled hair, and then 
braiding it, too.  Of course, he knew Duo was listening, but toying with those 
silky, chestnut strands calmed his nerves.  At this, Duo felt a tingling wave of 
apprehension, but decided not to question Heero.  He didn't want Heero to snap 
at him, like he usually did.  This was comforting, and nice.  Heero's feelings 
spilled out, and Duo couldn't help paying more attention to him than the screen. 
 Somehow Heero was madly in love with Relena, infatuated with everything about 
her, and it interested Duo very much. He never considered Heero had love.  
Heero's gentle strokes, massaging, helped ease and soothe the pressure and 
aching built up inside  his head, and then he started talking about Hilde, not 
ever meaning to, he didn't want to make Heero feel even worse, nor did he want 
pity.   This new sharing of feelings-knowing they had feelings-relaxed his body, 
killing the pain.  And Heero actually wanted to know more about Hilde; Duo eased 
Heero's burning heart. He never knew Duo could love, what with killing so many 
people all the time.  
  
     For a long time, Heero and Duo remained that way, conversing their 
feelings.  The Final Battle was never mentioned, nothing at all having to do 
with war.  Now their voices were lowered. 
  
     "Wars really are heartless, you know." Heero said, tying the end of Duo's 
braid  with a ponytail holder Duo handed to him.
 
     "Yeah," Duo said, turning around to face Heero, " but the people involved 
in  the war aren't heartless, otherwise, the war would never end." 
  
     Duo handed Heero the disk, neither of them recalling what was on it.  "Use 
it with care," Duo said. 
  
     "Don't worry, I will." 
  
     " Now, go find Relena.  You have one of the purest hearts I know." 
  
     "And I feel the same about you. Don't forget to check on Hilde before 
seeing Trowa, Quatre, and Wu Fei." 
  
     "I won't." 
  
     "Duo...," Heero's voice was even softer now, "I'm glad we had this talk.  I 
really think you're more of an Angel of Death than a God of Death...you've given 
me hope, just like Relena." 
  
      "Heero...thank you. You've given me hope, too.  Let's end this suffering, 
okay? I'll still need to be Shinigami, in this terrible war, but I'll be you're 
angel if you ever need help again,"  Duo replied, slightly blushed. 
  
      Heero hugged Duo good-bye, the gesture new to him and comforting.  "I'll 
always need your help, Duo, no matter how independent I am." 
  
      "And I'll always need yours, too...friend," Duo whispered into Heero's 
ear.  Heero released Duo, and quietly walked out the door. 
  
*I hope you enjoyed the Angel of Death trilogy!!! :) Feel free to email me, I 
hope you don't have any flames.