January 26, 195 AC 1

LETTERS FROM DUO
(Sidefic series for the Death and the Dragon Arc)

By: Mel and Christy
Warnings: Angst? Humour? Ummm... dunno?

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Duo sighed and trudged into the shack, shaking snow and ice from his hair and coat. Settling on the floor in his nest of blankets, he poked the fire listlessly, added the last two pieces of wood and watched it grow to a decent sized blaze.

"Vacation," he muttered. "I need a vacation. Somewhere warm, safe and relaxing. Where I don't have to be on constant alert..."

Spying his laptop under a sweater, he booted it up and started typing.

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FROM: Frosty_Duo@snowman.org
TO: Beachboy@kokomo.com
SENT: 19:50 January 26, 196AC
SUBJECT: Heeeeeeat....

---message begins---

Howwwiiieee...

I'm freezing! You and G go back a long way... tell me. He did lots of bad drugs in his younger days, didn't he? Or he's been diagnosed as delusional, right? All I know is that I'm stuck in a shack in the middle of the tundra, spying on a women's lingerie factory. He's got a fetish, is that it? I don't see how he could honestly think this factory is producing new OZ weapons, unless they're going to start shooting at us with women's underwear and night things. Maybe they'll try to subvert the female colonial population with free teddies! Oh well, he's the boss, so I'll do as he says and stick it out another few days.

And that brings us to the meat of this email. You're currently floating around the South Pacific, right? How would you and the guys feel about some company of the Gundam pilot type? We all need a break, in a bad way, and I'll seriously need to warm up. You know cold and I do not get along. I was thinking about asking the other guys to join me on your ship for a few days, if that's all right with you. We won't bring the Gundams, so you won't have any repairs to do.

Aside from being turned into a popsicle, I'm doing okay, I guess. No major injuries, at least. I'm pretty worn out since G's been sending me missions right and left, though. Quatre's currently playing tactician, holed up somewhere and going over previous missions. Something's up with OZ, or at least the mad scientists think so, and they've got him trying to find out what. If you ask me, they're just more paranoid than Heero is. Speaking of Heero, he's changed a lot. He's still Mister Mission and paranoid as hell, but he's finally realising that we may be soldiers, but we're still 15 - 16 year old boys and friendship isn't a handicap, but a strength. He's got a lot of hidden depths, and it seems we've cured him of his suicidal tendencies. Yes, I am a god! Would you believe he makes a great teddy-bear? Who would have thought that Heero Yui was a cuddler?

Trowa is really interesting to try and figure out. He's still Mister Silent, for the most part, but he *does* talk, and it's usually something important or interesting. I think he and Q-bean may be getting *close*, if you know what I mean. I know Q is falling for Tro, in a big way. Hell, they may already be together, which would be great! I hope it works out for them, really. They're perfect for each other.

Wufei is still Wufei. I doubt he'll even show up on your ship. He's still Mister Stiff (and not in a fun way) and seems to try to avoid us as much as he can. I think it's too bad that he won't stick around and get to know us. I mean, we're stronger together, and as much as he won't admit it, he needs us. And yes, Howie, I know. Don't worry, as much as I could fall for Chang Wufei, head over heels, I won't do anything stupid. I won't get my heart (or anything else) broken over this. Things are good enough as they stand, I suppose.

Hokay... I'm starting to ramble, I'm tired, I think I'm getting depressed, and my fire is almost dead, so that means I need to find/chop more wood before I can eat, then try and get a catnap before my lAM to 4AM watch. Let me know if you can spare us the room and board for some downtime next week.

Thanks Howie. I miss you and the rest of the guys.

Duo

---message ends---

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* * * * *

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FROM: Beachboy@kokomo.com
TO: Frosty_Duo@snowman.org
SENT: 01:27 January 27, 196AC
SUBJECT: Re: Heeeeeeat....

---message begins---

Hey Kid!

You just caught me. I decided to check my email before hitting the sack. Yeah, I know it's late. We had a few things to get caught up on.

Geez Louise, you don't do things by halves, do you? First you latch onto the Tin Soldier and actually manage to turn him into a reasonable facsimile of a human being, and now you're trying to get Iceman Chang to admit he *needs* people? Yeah, I know you never said any such thing, but I know you, kid. I can read between the lines.

Ah, what the hell. You're a big boy now, Duo, and I never was the sort to tell anyone they couldn't or shouldn't do something they had their heart fixed on. Good luck. You might even succeed; God knows you're stubborn enough.

I like your choice of email addresses. Suitable for the subject matter, eh? Sure, come on over! We'll have a floating luau or something, go fishing... you can sunbake and try to soak up enough heat to keep you warm on your next visit to someplace cold and crappy. It'll be a ball. Hey, if you manage to get the Iceman to cometh (har har) and you don't think it would be counterproductive, we could slip him a few Mai Tais and see if *that* gets him to loosen up!

See you soon,

--Howard

P.S.
That factory making *good* lingerie, by any chance? A couple of the girls were griping about never getting to shop anywhere upmarket out here. Beats me what size frillies they wear, and you can bet your Gundam's black booties that I'm not gonna ask, but I guess you remember what size they *look*. Or you could just swipe a selection. Call it rent for your holiday home; it might just get them off my back for a week or two.

---message ends---

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Howard hesitated for a moment after sending his reply, then called up Duo's email again and reread the paragraph about Wufei, frowning slightly.

"Watch yourself, kid," he said softly, shaking his head. "I don't wanna see you get yourself hurt."
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January 26, 195 AC ( 1 )