Perfect Prey.

Natea <natea2x1@btinternet.com>
Title: Perfect Prey
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: AU, sap, angst, squick, shounen-ai, possible yaoi and citrus content.
Pairings: Focusing mainly on 1+2+1 leading to 1x2x1, other pairings 3x4, 5xS.
Summary: After being washed up on an island following a crash, Heero and Duo find themselves in the company of a woman who is not all she claims to be.
Disclaimer: None of the boys belong to me and I\'m not making a single penny from the writing of this fic (shame)...the idea for the story is inspired in part by a published work by Richard Connell called \"The Most Dangerous Game.\" Excellent story!

Perfect Prey.
Chapter 2.
Rescue and Recovery.
 
The sound of voices was the first thing he noticed, as he became aware of his surroundings once more. Muffled voices, talking quickly and in a language he didn\'t understand. He opened his eyes a fraction, only to close them again immediately as a bright light hit his retinas with an almost painful force. For a second panic hit him. Had he been captured?
&nb Sur Surreptitious flexing of his limbs announced the absence of any restraints and he noted the softness of the surface he was laying on. The texture of the material underneath him, cool and rough against his skin, spoke of linen. The coverings over him, on the other hand, were definitely silk.
 
It took him a few seconds to realize he was in a bed, albeit an unfamiliar bed, and the light shining on his face wasn\'t coming from an Oz interrogation lamp but was cast from the sun through the open window to his left. He wasn\'t being held in an enemy base, he wasn\'t a prisoner. Relief flooded over him at the revelation and he cast his mind to other things, such as the dryness of his throat and the pounding migraine he had. Unbidden he groaned quietly.
 
The affect on the voices was immediate, the foreign conversation stopped and suddenly a quiet, soothing voice was directed towards him, speaking to him in English. A cool cloth was placed on his forehead, easing his headache.
 
\"Shh,\" the voice murmured, a slight accent noticeable. \"Take it easy, calm down. You\'re safe now.\"
 
Safe? His thoughts were disjointed, vague half-memories jostling with each other for his attention. Where were they? What had happened? Who was talking?
 
\"Where?\" He forced the one word question out through parched lips. His tongue felt heavy and swollen; too big for his mouth.
 
\"Here,\" the voice spoke up once more, \"drink this.\" The cloth was removed from his forehead suddenly and the hard edge of a cup prodded his lips. He opened his mouth obediently and swallowed the cool liquid gratefully, washing the briny taste from his mouth and moistening his dry lips. Feeling a little better he opened his eyes and met the gaze of his saviour.
 
A woman in her mid to late forties stared back at him steadily, her large, grey eyes crinkling at the corners as she smiled at the awareness in his stare. Her shoulder length brown hair framed an oval face, which was void of make up and naturally tanned. Nimble, callused fingers moved across his forehead, feeling for fever and finding none. \"You need to rest,\" she said. \"Do you remember what happened?\"
 
He shook his head slowly, wincing at the spike of pain that the movement caused. The cloth was back on his forehead within seconds. \"You were caught in the storm,\" she explained. \"You must have drifted for hours before you were washed up. My housekeeper discovered you lying on the beach while she was out surveying the damage and notified me, we brought you back to my home. You were incredibly lucky.\" The last words were spoken so emphatically he could do nothing else but believe them.
 
Storm? He frowned as he tried to remember. Visions of heavy, grey clouds came to him. Hail battering the small shuttle without mercy, the struggle to keep their craft airborne in the vicious gale. The horror he had felt when he had realized they weren\'t going to make it. The radio sparking to life mere seconds before they had hit the ocean, Heero had yelled at him to take cover--
 
His eyes widened in sudden horror. Heero!
 
\"My friend--\" He pushed himself up on elbows shaky with weakness and stared around the room with a wild look in his eyes. The brown haired woman placed a hand on his chest and pushed him gently back to the bed.
 
\"Your friend is fine.\" She moved aside, revealing another bed to Duo\'s line of sight. Duo breathed out in relief when he caught sight of the familiar brown mop of hair nestled amongst the covers. A gauze bandage had been secured firmly around Heero\'s head, holding a cotton patch to a cut over his left eye. His eyes were closed and his expression serene. Duo smiled.
 
\"How is he?\"
 
\"He has a mild concussion.\" She informed him, \"but it\'s nothing a good sleep won\'t cure. In fact out of all the injuries you both managed to accrue I would say that his cut is the worst. That, and the gash on your,\" ,\" she glanced down at Duo\'s left arm. Following her gaze Duo noticed the presence of a bandage running from wrist to elbow. Strange, he hadn\'t even felt any pain. He examined it curiously, twisting his arm slightly from side to side in order to get a better view.
 
\"What happened to it?\"
 
\"You had a piece of glass embedded in there. We got it out but you needed five stitches. Don\'t worry,\" she held up a hand to forestall Duo\'s response, \"one of my staff is trained in first aid, he did a good job. We\'re pretty far from civilization here so we have to be self-sufficient.\" She smiled at Duo once more and repeated her words of earlier, \"You\'ve been amazingly lucky.\"
 
Duo frowned down at the gauze wrapped arm; it was beginning to sting now. Ironic how that always seemed to happen, he thought. Wounds never hurt until someone brings your attention to them. He glanced back over at Heero, trying to divert his thoughts by gauging for himself just how seriously the Japanese youth was injured. Apart from the obvious wound on his head though it was hard to tell. \"Has he woken at all yet?\"
 
\"Yes.\" She nodded, \"He woke properly about an hour ago and asked after you. We had you in separate rooms at first,\" she explained, noticing his faint look of puzzlement. \"He refused to go back to sleep until he knew you were all right so we moved him in here.\"
 
Duo smiled at that and settled back on the pillows, watching Heero\'s face, peaceful in repose. Their brown haired nurse was still looking at him and he wrenched his gaze away from Heero to look at her once more. Sleep was pulling at the edges of his consciousness but he wanted to say one thing before he let it claim him. \"Thank you.\"
 
She looked confused, \"For what?\"
 
\"For helping us.\" Duo murmured, his eyelids beginning to droop once more as his exhaustion overtook him.
 
\"Rest now.\" She smiled; \"there is no need for thanks. We will talk later.\"
 
Duo slept.
 
***
 
The sun had set when Duo woke next and the room was dark. Taking in a deep breath he sighed in bliss, his headache and the grogginess he had felt earlier had both gone. He felt refreshed, the cool breeze coming from the open window was revitalizing, despite the faint tang of sea air it contained. If he never smelled the ocean again he would be happy, he decided.
 
The room was warm, he noted idly, that meant that the sun hadn\'t set too long ago; it was still early. He turned over in his bed to check on Heero, reaching out to locate a light switch in the unfamiliar surroundings blindly; he ran his hand over the small bedside cabinet and cursed when no lamp was discovered.
 
\"I wouldn\'t bother if I were you.\"
 
Duo jumped at the voice. \"Heero!\" He sat up in the bed, his quest momentarily forgotten. \"You\'re awake. How\'re you feeling buddy?\"
 
\"I\'m fine.\" came the answer, there was a pause and then a faint, \"Arigatou.\"
 
Duo squinted in the dark, his eyes roaming over the dimly lit surface of the other bed, searching for Heero. It was empty, the covers thrown back carelessly, exposing the whiteness of the linen undercover, which glowed faintly in the darkness. \"Where are you?\"
 
\"I\'m by the window.\"
 
Narrowing his eyes a little Duo could just pick out the dark silhouette of his partner framed by the lighter backdrop of the outside sky. Heero was kneeling up on the window seat, his forearms resting on the window\'s sill. He was staring out at the ground below intently.
 
\"What\'re you doing sitting in the dark, you baka? Switch on the light. Where is the damn switch anyway?\" Duo ran his hands over the wall, searching blindly.
 
Heero snorted and reached over to his side. A second later the room was filled by a dull, ginger glow from a small, oil lamp. \"The building has no electricity.\" He explained to Duo in a tone, which clearly stated his disbelief of the statement. \"Ivana-sama came in earlier to check on us and left this.\" He nodded towards the lamp.
 
\"Ivana?\" Duo queried.
 
\"The woman who owns this house...and this island.\" Heero said.
 
Duo snickered, \"well, well. First name terms already, Yuy. I just can\'t leave you alone for a second, can I?\"
 
Heero levelled a glare at Duo before replying, \"She insisted.\" He smirked slightly, \"If you can pronounce her surname you can call her by it.\"
 
\"That bad huh?\"
 
\"She\'s of Russian descent.\" Heero explained.
 
Russian. That would definitely explain the accent. \"Damn.\" Duo laughed, \"you really have been getting better acquainted, haven\'t you.\"
 
\"Baka.\"
 
\"And proud of it.\" Duo grinned. \"So what\'s the verdict?\" He dropped his voice to a whisper and held Heero\'s gaze firmly. \"How long have we been here?\"
 
Heero held a finger to his lip and drew it across to his ear silently. Duo nodded, Not safe to talk, Possibility of being overheard. Heaving a sigh Heero glanced over at the window before replying in a neutral tone, \"I have no idea but it can\'t have been very long. Ivana said the storm we ditched in, passed over here over twenty-four hours ago. It\'s difficult to calculate without knowing how far we drifted but at the most I\'d say we were in the Ocean for just over eight hours.\" He stopped suddenly, glancing pointedly at Duo before continuing, \"Ivana would like us to join her for dinner in an hour and a half if we\'re feeling up to it; if we’re going we’ll need to shower first.\"
 
Duo nodded in agreement, catching Heero\'s hidden meaning easily; the shower would provide enough background noise for them to be able to talk properly without running the risk of being overheard. \"Sounds good to me, Man.\" He ran a hand over his hair and winced at the stiff, tangled mess. Grabbing hold of the end of his braid he pulled it around to his front and stared at it ruefully, \"I think I could supply the state of Texas with salt for a year right now. This is gonna take some serious work to put right.\"
 
Heero snorted and cast one last calcung gng glance out of the window before standing up slowly, revealing his attire to Duo properly for the first time. Rather than the clothes he had been wearing in the plane he was dressed in a long, sleeveless shirt that resembled his old tank top closely in style. The only difference being that this garment seemed to have been tailored for someone at least six times Heero\'s size, reaching down to his knees easily, one shoulder strap had slipped down Heero\'s arm. The overall effect was of a child playing dress up in his parent\'s clothes and Duo sniggered at the sight, earning himself a glare from Heero in the process.
 
\"Gomen Heero,\" he laughed, \"I just didn\'t realize how much a long soak in salt water could shrink a person.\" Looking down at himself, Duo noticed he was wearing a similar shirt. \"What happened to our clothes by the way?\" He asked, puzzled.
 
“They were covered in salt, they‘re being laundered now.\" Heero answered as he pulled a fine, gauzy curtain across the span of the window, being careful to ensure the entire opening was securely covered. Noticing Duo\'s inquisitive look he murmured, \"Mosquito net,\" punctuating his words with a slap to his arm where one of the banes of the tropical climates had currently landed. Making his way over to the other bed Heero set the lamp down on the bedside table and turned to Duo. \"If you\'re feeling well enough,\" he said, \"the shower is two rooms down.\"
 
\"What,\" Duo muttered with a grin as he threw back his coverlet and swung his legs over the side of the bed, \"no en-suite? I\'m shocked.\"
 
***
 
They walked in silence to the bathroom, Heero carrying a small, first-aid kit that had been left for them in his arms. Once inside the room they lit the small, wall mounted lamps and wasted a few seconds working out how to use the old fashioned brass shower system. All through this the silence continued until finally the door was locked and the shower had been turned on full blast. Then and only then did Duo turn his attention to his Japanese partner, keeping his voice low even with the protective background noise of the shower water.
 
\"So what\'s our status?\"
 
Heero leaned up against the tiled wall and shook his head slightly, \"Not good.\" He stated simply. \"The mission was completed successfully but we have lost the data. Nothing from the wreckage has been salvaged except for us, including the survival packs with the radio locator device. Unless we can get in contact with Singapore base they have no way of knowing where we are or even that we\'re still alive.\"
 
Duo shrugged, \"We can ask Ivana for use of her radio at supper. She\'s bound to have an emergency CB at the least, that should stop them worrying about us back at base,\" he said philosophically. \"At least we know Quat got our Mayday call before the crash. He and Trowa are bound to have a search and rescue team assembled and out by now.\"
 
\"Aa,\" Heero agreed. He looked Duo over before nodding his head in the direction of the shower. \"Get in.\"
 
\"Nani?\"
 
\"We only have an hour left before this supper.\" Heero explained, \"Your hair takes the longest to clean and dry so it\'s logical that you should take the first shower. It needs to be washed.\" He finished emphatically.
 
Duo snorted and glanced at Heero‘s hair pointedly. \"This from the man with the gravity defying bangs,\" he muttered just loud enough for Heero to hear, although if the Japanese boy noticed the slight he made no sign. Duo undid his hair tie, not without difficulty, and ran a hand experimentally through the mass. He winced, \"I hate to admit it Buddy but you\'re right. This definitely needs to be sorted out.\" Without another word Duo stripped off his white tank top in one easy motion, removed the old bandage from his arm, and stepped underneath the showerhead. He began the arduous task of soaking his hair thoroughly in preparation for the shampoo. They both knew that it was a good idea to keep stitches clear of water but there was little choice under the circumstances.
 
Heero remained in his position against the wall, although his eyes followed Duo\'s movements, checking the other boy for any injuries that may have gone un-noticed previously.
 
For the most part Duo seemed to have escaped serious injury, Heero noted; he looked tired, with dark circles underneath his eyes, but that was to be expected. His cut arm had been professionally dealt with and, apart from a view bumps and bruises, the braided youth appeared to be in good health. His braid on the other hand had seen better days. Heero suppressed a smirk at the sight of the frizzy matt of hair, which Duo was now rinsing clean of its second soapy lather.
 
\"Ne, Heero?\"
 
Heero tore his gaze away from the frizz to look Duo in the eyes, \"Hai?\"
 
\"Could you pass me the conditioner please?\"
 
\"Hn.\" Heero grabbed the large bottle from the shelf and handed it to Duo.
 
\"Thanks.\"
 
Turning his attention to himself, Heero unwound the bandage from his head and wiped the mirror clear of mist in order to better examine the cut just above his left eyebrow. The surrounding area was bruised but the cut itself was clean and appeared free of infection. Small, black threads announced the presence of four stitches holding the gash together. He nodded at the professionalism of the job.
 
He was so engrossed in examining his reflection that Duo\'s voice, low in his ear, startled him enough to catch his breath.\"Narcissism doesn‘t suit you Heero.\" Heero turned quickly, glaring at the soaking wet boy. His glare turned inquisitive when he noticed the presence of the conditioner still covering the boy\'s scalp and he raised an eyebrow in an unspoken question. Duo shrugged, \"I need to let it set for a while,\" he explained. \"That dip in the sea really did a number on it. You might as well use the shower now while I‘m waiting.\"
 
\"Hn.\" Heero muttered, pulling his tank top over his head. Making his way over to the shower he was stopped as Duo‘s hand closed over his wrist securely.
 
\"Let\'s have a look at your cut first, bud.\" He grasped Heero\'s face gently but firmly and bent his own head down a little so that the two boys were on the same eye level. Heero glared at the other boy but Duo took no notice as he examined the angry cut on Heero\'s forehead closely. \"Does it hurt?\" He murmured, turning Heero\'s head to the left slightly in order to get a better view. Heero shrugged.
 
\"No, not really.\"
 
Duo snickered, \"Yeah, you\'d probably say that if your leg was broken too wouldn\'t you? You forget, Yuy, I know you too well.\" He turned Heero\'s face back towards him again and stared hard into the Japanese boy\'s eyes. Heero tried not to squirm under the close scrutiny but it was difficult. Finally Duo nodded and, seemingly satisfied with the outcome of his examination, released Heero\'s face, stepping back quickly as though afraid of some sort of retaliation. \"Your pupils seem all right,\" he said, \"looks like your concussion is as good as gone.\"
 
\"Duo.\" Heero growled.
 
\"Go get your shower Heero.\" Duo said, wrapping a towel around his waist and leaning up against the wall in a pose not unlike Heero\'s earlier one. \"I need to rinse this goop out soon and you really need to wash your hair,\" he grinned, \"you look like you\'ve stuck your finger in an electrical outlet man. We can sort out any problems after we\'ve eaten something and asked about the radio.\"
 
Heero snorted but stepped into the shower.
 
TBC......
 
Author\'s Note.
I\'d just like to say thank you to everyone who\'s reviewed so far. I really appreciate the comments! Thank you!!!!!!!!!!! I know this chapter is a little lacking in action but I needed to set the scene a little, don\'t worry, the action is coming!