What's Not to Use?

Chapter 5: Used Compassion
Pairings: 6+4
~*~

It was after noon, and the four pilots only had one thing on their minds......

Where the hell is Quatre?

Out of the four thoughts, though, only one was genuine concern. While the others were out doing who knows what, Duo was pacing back and forth in the library, worrying himself to the brink.

\"Where is he? What\'s he doing? Is he alright? Is he hurt? When will he be back? What\'s keeping him? What if he needs my help? Why hasn\'t he informed us yet?\" Duo carried on hysterically. \"What if he got captured? What if they torture him? What if they kill him? Oh, God, what if he dies before I get a chance to tell him how I feel? I couldn\'t go on if that happened!\" Duo cried out. He nearly shook with his stress.

Just then a loud beeping went off on one of the computers, which almost caused the braided boy jump in surprise. When Duo perked his ears, he immediately pounced on the chair. He quickly accessed the incoming message before anyone else could hear the beeping. When he saw what was coming in, he nearly fainted when he saw that it was a live transmission. He accessed it and almost cried out in joy and relief when he saw a familiar pale, delicately featured face on the screen.

\"Quatre! How are you?\" Duo asked, but tried not to sound worried.

<\"I\'m fine, Duo. How are things over there?\"> the blonde\'s voice rang out over the speakers.

Duo laughed. \"Boring as hell. How was your mission, and when can you come home?\" he asked, in hopes that the answers were okay and soon.

<\"Well I\'m half way through with it, but this next part is going to take some time. It could be anywhere from a few days to a few weeks. Don\'t worry, though, I\'ll be fine.\"> The image smiled at Duo.

Mentally, Duo sighed. \"I know you will.... Quatre, I need to ask you something real quick before you continue.\" Duo added, sounding unsure.

<\"What, Duo?\"> the blonde image asked curiously.

\"How.... How do you......\" Duo paused. \"Oh, it can wait till you get back.\" he said dismissively.

<\"If you say so, Duo. I have to go now, but before I do I need to give you some of the information that I found.\"> Quatre said, unsure about his friend\'s behavior.

Duo smiled, and, as usual, it was fake. \"Sure, what?\"

<\"Alright, Oz is planning to just sit back and let the White Fang make the first move. And if the White Fang attacks first, Oz is going to space to challenge them. Got that?\"> Quatre asked after he finished.

\"Yep. Now what are you going to do?\" Duo asked, hoping it was nothing too dangerous.

<\"I wish I could tell you, but I don\'t have enough time. Now I got to go, before someone catches me here.\"> Quatre\'s image looked behind his shoulder.

\"I understand. You be careful, Q.\" Duo smiled for real.

<\"I will. And you try not to get the others mad at you again. I don\'t want to come back to another war in my reception hall.\"> he smiled back.

\"I\'ll try.\" Duo laughed.

<\"That\'s all I ask. Bye for now.\"> Quatre winked at him.

\"Yeah, bye for now.\" Duo smiled again. Then the connection was cut, and Duo was staring at a blank, blue screen. \"I love you, Quatre Reberba Winner.\"

~*~

Quatre was just now getting to rest after a very long, eventful night, and after jumping on the first express shuttle to space. He was tired and hungry, but what kept him going was that smile that he saw on Duo\'s face earlier.

\"I\'ll keep going...... I have to do this. It\'s my duty as a Gundam pilot to follow all orders, and complete any and every mission.....\" His thoughts go back to the smile. \"And now I know someone cares for me. I\'ll do anything and everything to get this mission over with as quickly as possible, so I can get back to him. I don\'t care if he\'s just my friend, I\'ll do anything to see him again...... I pray that he will be alight when I return..... And I pray that he doesn\'t find out about my past...... He will surely leave if he does...... I couldn\'t bear that.......\" Quatre said to himself softly. He huddled down next to the wall in the cargo room of the shuttle, and fell asleep.

~*~

A day later, Quatre, once again, found himself being led by two soldiers with wrists chained together. But this time, he was not being led down the halls of an elegant mansion. Instead he was being led down the plain grey halls of the battle ship Libra, and the two soldiers were from the White Fang.

They made many twist and turns, all which Quatre memorized easily, and soon stopped at a door. The door quickly hissed open and Quatre was, once again, shoved in side, but luckily the lack of gravity stopped him from hitting the floor hard. When his aqua eyes looked up, instead of the prison cells like he expected, he was in another office. It was rather plain compared to Treize\'s, but this one, like Treize\'s, had a huge window for the back wall, it also had the large desk, and high backed chair.

Quatre was still on the ground, and he slowly picked himself up. When he looked up he was greeted by a familiar face.

\"Why hello. We meet again, Quatre Reberba Winner.\" a soft voice stated.

Quatre grinned. \"Hey, Dorothy. What\'s new?\" he cheerfully greeted the girl, who was sitting on the large desk.

But the chair, like last time, was facing the window.

Dorothy raised one grey forked brow. \"You\'re being awfully cheerful for someone who has just been captured.\" she pointed out, noting a difference in the way he was carrying himself.

Quatre shrugged. \"I was just trying to make polite conversation. It wouldn\'t be wise to upset my captors. That would be very foolish.\" he retorted calmly.

Dorothy looked at him, waiting for him to do something. \"Hmmm..... You\'re much different than I thought you were. Aren\'t you going to put up a fight?\" she asked expectantly.

The blonde boy snorted lightly. \"What\'s the point? You\'ve got me captured in a high security battle ship. And either way you\'re going to kill me after you\'re through interrogating me. Why fight when anything I do will get me killed?\" Quatre stated emotionlessly. \"Not that I care though. Go ahead and kill me now if you want.\"

Dorothy\'s eyes became wide. \"You\'re not going to fight? You\'re just giving up?\"

\"Sure. Why not? I no longer have anything to fight for.\" he said plainly.

\"What about the colonies?\" she pointed out with a smile.

\"Why should I even care about them? They rejected me, and plus I destroyed two of them myself.\" Quatre said, showing no emotion. \"Besides, you\'re fighting for the colonies now.\" he reminded her.

The blonde girl\'s eyes became wide. \"You destroyed two of them?! What side are you on then?\" she blinked, very confused.

\"Oh, I\'m still with the gundam pilots....\" he mused slightly. \"But anyway, how much longer is this going to take?\" he asked as he casually looked around the office.

Dorothy folded her arms and glared at the pilot. \"Hn, that\'s for Mr. Milliardo to decide.\" the girl huffed.

Quatre raised a pale brow. \"Mr. Milliardo, huh? Well tell him that it doesn\'t matter what he does, just as long as he doesn\'t keep me waiting for very long. I don\'t like the thought of waiting to die.\" Quatre stated flatly.

\"You don\'t? Well I think I can arrange something.\" a deep, velvet voice replied.

\"Oh my. Who was that, I wonder.\" Quatre said sarcastically.

\"Hm, you sound different than the last time I saw you.\" he noted lightly. \"What happened to the brave young pilot who heroically fought for the colonies, and was full of compassion?\" the voice asked.

The Arabian let out a short laugh. \"He got a rude wake up call from his little dream. What happened to the brave colonel who fought heroically for Oz, and was full of loyalty?\" Quatre retorted.

The chair turned around to reveal the owner of the voice. \"I guess you could say he too got a rude wake up call. So, now what do you plan to do?\" Milliardo asked him curiously.

Quatre smirked. \"A lot of screaming if you plan to torture me.\" he quipped

Milliardo raised a brow. \"And why would I want to torture you?\"

Quatre shrugged. \"I don\'t know. For information, for the hell of it, cause you feel like letting go of some suppressed anger, for entertainment, or just to have something to do. Makes no difference to me.\" he said uninterestedly.

Milliardo and Dorothy looked at him in slight surprise.

The White Fang leader, curious of his answer, decided to test him. \"Which one are you more accustomed to?\" Milliardo asked calmly.

Quatre thought for a moment. \"Well I\'ve had people torture me because of all of them, but I\'d say mostly the suppressed anger one.\" he said, still thinking about it.

\"I see......\" Dorothy smirked. \"I\'m guessing the war has been rough on you.\" she stated, trying to get a reaction from him.

He gave her an amused look. \"Who said anything about the war? That stuff\'s been happening since I was four.\" Quatre snorted.

This time, after hearing that, Dorothy had nothing to say.

Milliardo looked at him carefully to see if the boy was stalling for time......

So far nothing.

\"Now, what do you want to do?\" Quatre asked plainly.

Milliardo\'s eyes narrowed. \"What I want to do? Shouldn\'t you be more concerned about your life?\" he asked, not liking his behavior at all.

The blonde grunted in annoyance. \"Listen, I don\'t care. Now either keep me alive or kill me.\" Quatre said impatiently.

\"What is your problem?\" Dorothy asked, staring at the boy with a disgusted expression.

\"It would take too long to tell you.\" he chuckled. \"Here, let me make your choice easier.\" Quatre bent down and lifted his pant leg. Under the brown fabric there was a gun holster with gun still in it. Quatre took out the gun and stood back up.

Dorothy gasped, and Milliardo narrowed his eyes more.

\"I could shoot you now....\" Quatre lifted his bound arms up and pointed the gun at Milliardo. \"But either Dorothy will do the heroic thing and block the shot with her body, or something makes me miss and I\'m in deeper shit, cause there\'s only one bullet left in this gun. But seeing how there is no way out if I did succeed....\" Quatre tossed the gun on the desk and it slid right in front of Milliardo. \"Might as well quit while I\'m ahead.\"

Milliardo\'s eyes widened as he stared at the gun in front of him, then at the boy. Before he could say anything, Dorothy grabbed the gun and jumped off the desk. She pointed the gun straight at Quatre. \"How dare you threaten and mock Mr. Milliardo! I should kill you!\" she exclaimed furiously.

\"Hn, go ahead. Here, I\'ll close my eyes.....\" Quatre grinned with his eyes closed. \"Go on, shoot me. You can\'t miss from there.\" he mocked, tempting her to lose her composure.

\"You bastard!!\" she cried out. She started to squeeze the trigger, but a voice broke out.

\"Dorothy, no!\" Milliardo yelled out.

But Dorothy didn\'t listen. She pulled the trigger, but nothing happened.

Quatre cracked an eye open when he heard the click of an empty chamber and smirked. \"Hmmmmm.... Guess I was out of ammo. Oh well, tough luck, Dorothy.\" he teased.

Dorothy screeched and threw the gun at him.

Quatre caught it with his chained hands easily and cocked it again. \"Then again, maybe you just had it half cocked.\" He threw the gun back to her. \"Here, now try it.\"

Dorothy was blinded by her anger and pointed it at him again. But before she could pull the trigger, a hand snatched the gun away.

\"Mr. Milliardo!\" Dorothy pleaded.

The man glared down at her. \"No, Dorothy. You\'re making the mistake of letting the enemy get to you.\" he stated.

Dorothy was boiling mad, but knew he was right. \"Yes, sir.\" she mumbled and bowed her head.

\"Now go to the bridge. I will deal with him.\" Milliardo ordered.

\"Yes, sir.\" Dorothy floated to the door and exited.

When she was gone Milliardo sighed. \"You did that on purpose\" he said as he looked at the blonde in a slight wonder.

Aqua eyes blinked harmlessly. \"Why whatever do you mean? All I did was give her the gun.\" Quatre said innocently.

That made the man irritated. \"You know damn well what I mean! That innocent act won\'t work with me.\" Milliardo growled.

\"Oh? Alright, then I can stop acting.\" Quatre said flatly.

Seeing his manner change, he could only think that it was all an act. \"Hn, then that whole torture thing was for sympathy.\" the man concluded.

He shook his head calmly. \"No. I was telling the truth with that one.\" Quatre stated.

Milliardo glared at him. \"How do I know that?\"

The blonde boy thought for a moment. \"You could check all my scars. I\'m sure you could tell the difference between one from battle and one from torture.\" Quatre smirked.

\"Hm.....\" Milliardo considered it, knowing that both marks would leave a sign of what they were from. \"You\'re right. Take off your shirt.\" he ordered.

He held up his restraint clad wrists. \"I can\'t, my wrists.\" he reminded.

\"Fine, I\'ll do it.\" Milliardo walked to the boy and pulled a knife out of his coat pocket. He stepped behind Quatre and began to cut the shirt off the blonde boy. When the shirt was completely removed, Milliardo\'s eyes widened at what he saw. The boy\'s entire back was nothing but web works of scars. Scars that, he knew, could only be made by whips and knives, and the boy\'s chest looked no better.

\"Well? Still think I\'m lying?\" the boy asked calmly.

Milliardo knew his answer. \"No..... This is unbelievable...... How could you get this many scars when you\'re so young?\" the man asked, appalled.

\"I told you it started when I was four.\" Quatre sighed. \"This what accumulated over the past eleven years.\" he told honestly.

He lightly touched the larger scars on the boy\'s back. \"But I thought you were the heir to the Winner family.\" Milliardo said in confusion.

\"I am.... Well, was would be more appropriate. But my being the heir is the main reason for them. Unlike most wealthy people, my life wasn\'t all tea parties and elegant balls.\" he pointed out. \"Then again, neither was yours.... But at least your family loved you.\" Quatre snorted.

\"What are you babbling about?!\" Milliardo snapped, angered at the way the boy talk about his family.

Quatre glanced at him then looked at the large window in the back. He saw that the earth was shining brightly in the black void of space. \"Nothing. Don\'t pay any attention to me. Go ahead and do what you want. I won\'t stop you.\" Quatre closed his eyes and waited.

Milliardo watched the boy give up, and was very disturbed. \"Why are you giving up?\" he asked, dishearten to see him place so little value on himself.

\"Because I no longer have will to fight. There\'s nothing left for me to fight for.\" the boy stated calmly. \"You of all people should understand that.\" he shot back, knowing well about him.

\"Should I?\" the man raised a brow.

Quatre smirked. \"Or am I thinking of the great Zechs Merquise?\" he mused.

Milliardo growled. \"Zechs isn\'t real. He\'s just a fictitious character that I created to get closer to the Alliance.\" he stated, still ashamed of those day.

\"Oh, that\'s too bad. I liked him.......\" he gave a faint smile. \"I thought he was someone who I could relate to. That\'s a real shame.\" Quatre sighed again.

Ice blue eyes became curious. \"Relate to? What makes you think that you have any clue to what I\'ve been through?\" Milliardo asked with a strange tone.

\"I would think that the answer to that question is written all over my back. That\'s basically how my entire body looks.....\" He paused. \"Well, except for my face. People like my face.\" Quatre smiled.

\"I can see that......\" He was still astounded by it. \"But why would someone want to do this to you?\" the man asked, just now looking the boy over.

\"I would tell you, but you wouldn\'t believe me.\" Quatre said honestly.

\"Try me.\" Milliardo challenged.

Quatre opened his eyes and looked at the man. \"Alright, what if I told you that I can take away all of your past pains and worries?\" he asked curiously.

\"I would say that you\'re lying.\" Milliardo grunted.

Quatre grinned. \"I told you that you wouldn\'t believe me.\" he said in a musical tone.

\"Well how could you prove it?\" Milliardo asked, very interested.

\"That\'s kind of hard to explain....\" He wondered how he could put it. \"We would have to do something together.\" Quatre said, trying not to be vulgar.

\"What would we have to do?\" he asked, getting even more interested.

Quatre took a deep breath then let it out. He turned toward the man, and stepped to him. When he was close enough he reached up and looped his bound wrists around the man\'s neck. \"Take a wild guess.\" Quatre purred in his ear.

Narrowing his eyes, he glared at the boy. \"I see......\" Suddenly Milliardo quickly grabbed Quatre\'s arms, jerked them off of him, and threw the boy back roughly. \"What kind of game are you playing?! Are you trying to seduce me, and when my guard\'s down kill me!?\" the man growled angrily.

Because of the lesser gravity, Quatre quickly floated backwards and slammed against the large metal desk. The blonde boy cried out in pain when the sharp corner of the desk tore the skin on his stomach. Quatre slid down to the ground, his stomach now bleeding, and gasped for air. Milliardo watched the boy on the ground, feeling somehow ashamed of himself.

~It serves him right for trying to destroy Libra\'s systems control room...... But why do I feel bad for doing that to him? He was trying to manipulate me like he did Dorothy.... But something tells me he wasn\'t though...... What does he want?~

\"Why are you here?\" Milliardo demanded.

Aqua eyes looked up weakly. \"I was sent here to..... To....\" Quatre started coughing violently.

\"To what?!\" the man shouted.

Quatre continued coughing, but when he took his hands away there was blood on his pale skin, and a small trickle running out of his mouth. Milliardo was shocked at this, and tried to figure out what was happening. ~What the hell?! I didn\'t throw him back that hard...... Wait a minute.... What if he was injured internally before, but when I threw him back it made it worse?~ Not wanting that on his conscience, he made up his mind. ~I better get him to the med lab.~

Quickly, Milliardo went to the boy\'s side and kneeled down. He looked Quatre over to see what all was injured. The spot where his stomach was cut was bleeding rapidly, meaning that something vital had probably been injured. The man cursed himself for causing that, and picked the boy up gently.

Quatre looked at him curiously. \"What are you doing?\" he asked, sounding exhausted.

And Milliardo could also hear the pain within that soft voice. \"I\'m taking you to the med lab.\" he stated softly.

Quatre looked at him warily, not understanding. \"Why? Wouldn\'t it be better if you just threw me out of the nearest air lock?\" he asked, very confused.

\"Probably.....\" Milliardo said as he thought about it.

\"Then just do it. Don\'t waste your time.\" Quatre looked away, thinking that this would really be the end. ~God, I feel weak...... I\'m helpless here, he isn\'t falling for my tricks...... If I don\'t think of something fast I\'m dead..... Allah, I wish Duo was here.~

\"No, I\'m getting you to the med lab.\" Milliardo stated firmly, carrying his load to the door.

\"Why are you.....\" Quatre passed out, unable to finish his question.

The man looked down at the unconscious boy and sighed. \"Because maybe I can relate to you.\" Milliardo said softly as he floated out the door with his prisoner.

~*~

\"Mr. Milliardo, why did you save him? Wasn\'t he begging for his own death anyway?\" Dorothy whined as she and Milliardo were floating down the corridor to the med lab.

He didn\'t look at her as he answered. \"Dorothy, the ones who beg for death are usually the ones who truly want to live. Besides, I have my reasons for keeping him alive. We still need to know why he was sent here and by whom.\" Milliardo stated calmly.

\"I understand....\" she mumbled, still mad at the boy. \"May I please be excused?\" Dorothy asked with her head bowed.

\"Alright. Go get some rest.\" Milliardo said plainly.

\"Yes, sir.\" Dorothy turned and went back the way they came.

Milliardo reached the med lab and went in. He found the doctor looking over a chart, standing in front of the bed the blonde boy was in. The blonde man went to the doctor, and stood beside him, looking at the boy the whole time.

\"How is he?\" Milliardo asked, still looking at the sleeping boy.

The doctor looked at him for a moment before looking at the boy. \"He resting now..... But I can\'t pinpoint what\'s wrong with him. There were no internal injuries..... The only thing I saw wrong with him was the wound on his stomach, and I can\'t even explain why that looked as bad as it did. It didn\'t hit anything vital...\" he trailed off, still wondering. \"I am completely stumped.... The way he was coughing up blood a minute ago you would think he punctured a lung or something...... But now he seems to be normal again.\" the doctor said completely baffled.

\"That is strange.....\" the blonde man mumbled. \"So you have no idea what could be wrong with him?\" Milliardo asked.

The doctor shook his head. \"I haven\'t got a clue.\"

\"This is very strange..... Will he be well enough for questioning when he wakes up?\" the blonde man asked calmly.

He nodded. \"He should be. Do you want him to stay here, or put him in the brig?\" the doctor asked, hoping he would say the sick bay.

\"No.....\" he stated. \"I want him to be brought to my quarters. The last thing he needs is to be panicked by a surrounding that usually means death.\" Milliardo said with a final tone.

Nodding his approval, the doctor looked back to the boy. \"Yes, that would be wise. Oh, and ask him how he got all of those scars. His body is covered with them.\" the doctor added.

\"Yes, he mentioned them earlier.\" Milliardo said, feeling even more sympathetic with the boy.

\"Hmmm.... It\'s a real shame. Such a beautiful and innocent looking boy....... Hard to believe that he\'s our worst enemy......\" he mused slightly. \"What\'s even harder to believe is that someone would beat him so many times.\" the doctor shook his head again and sighed.

\"Can you tell how many times he has been beaten?\" Milliardo asked, curious to know.

\"Well, I looked at most of the larger scars, but I\'d have to say that this poor boy has been beaten well over a hundred times.\" the doctor stated sadly.

\"Over a hundred?!\" Milliardo exclaimed, hardly believing it himself.

\"Actually.... eight hundred... and thirty-two....\" a tired voice mumbled.

\"What?\" Milliardo asked, looking at the bed where the voice had came from.

The doctor stared at the boy. \"It\'s the boy, he\'s waking up..... I think he said eight hundred and thirty-two times.\" he whispered, eyes wide.

\"Good, God... How could he have survived that?\" Milliardo asked agaped.

The doctor shook his head. \"I don\'t know.... But he has. It looks like he\'s out again. I\'ll have him taken to your quarters.\" He then walked away to have it arranged.

After watching the doctor go, Milliardo looked at the boy softly and sighed. \"Looks like you have had worse than I have. I was wrong to do that to you.\" He stepped over to the boy\'s side and placed a hand on the boy\'s cheek. \"I think we are the same....\" he whispered.

\"Mr. Milliardo, the boy will be taken to your room shortly.\" the doctor said as he returned.

\"Good. Make sure he is handled with care.\" Milliardo stated, then he left.

The doctor watched him leave, then took a glance at the blonde boy. \"Hmmm.... I think he has taken a liking to this poor boy.\" the doctor smirked, then continued with his work.

~*~

Alone in the room, Quatre was tossing and turning on the large bed as he slept. He was covered in a cold sweat, and was moaning and mumbling in his sleep as he dreamt of a memory from a past he had been trying to escape.

~*flash*~

A little boy in a small dark room was huddled in the corner trying not to cry. He was hurting deeply inside his chest, and was terrified because he didn\'t know why.

Then the door burst open, and behind it was a tall man whose expression was dark and furious.

\"Quatre, get over here, now!\" the man yelled.

The little boy walked shakingly forward. \"Y.... y-yes, sir?\"

The man said nothing as he picked up the boy and slammed him on the little bed in the room. The boy swollowed a scream and froze. Roughly, the man ripped the boy\'s clothes off, and took his own off as well. The man grabbed the little boy\'s hips and.....

~*flash*~

\"FATHER!!!!\" Quatre screamed as he shot out of bed.

Frightened aqua eyes looked around wildly, trying to see where he was. When he saw he was in a dark room he began to panic. ~No... No, he\'s dead.. That room is gone...~ After a few minutes of looking around, he remembered where he was, and what he was supposed to do.....

And that knowledge didn\'t help very much.

Looking down, he saw that he was only in boxers. \"Damn, did we do it and I passed out?..... No, I passed out earlier....\" He blinked at his own statement. \"Why did I pass out? It really didn\'t hurt when I hit that desk....\" His hand brushed against his stomach to find bandages there. \"I have a bad feeling about this.\" Quatre sighed to himself.

Just then, the door hisses open and a man steps in. Quatre quickly llaid back down so it looked like he was still asleep. The man floated to the side of the bed and sat down on it, and when Quatre felt a warm hand on his cheek he decided to do the sleeping beauty trick.

Milliardo brushed his hand lightly against the sweat dampened skin and was startled when the boy moved more into the touch. Slowly, it seemed that the boy was waking. Milliardo pushed the long, damp bangs out of the boy\'s face and held his breath as Quatre moaned softly and shifted. The blonde man looked at the boy in fascination at the way he was lying on his back with his legs apart with one arm was on his stomach while the other was over his head. But Milliardo mainly focused on the tender looking parted lips.

~He looks so beautiful and angellic like this... From what I\'ve seen, his personality is left to be desired. But that could be a result of his past. He looks gentle.... And those lips look so soft.. Maybe one kiss....~

Milliardo leaned over and gently pressed his lips against the boy\'s. He was surprised when Quatre seemed to respond by opening his mouth wider, and moaning a little louder. Milliardo became bolder and deepened the kiss, and soon he could tell that the boy was now awake. When they parted they both were short of breath.

Quatre slowly opened his eyes and smiled. \"Hmmm.... I think I liked that wake up call better than the last one.\"

Milliardo smirked. \"Really?\" He looked down at the boy\'s stomach and frowned. \"I\'m sorry I did that to you.\" he said, reaching down and lightly touching the bandages around Quatre\'s stomach.

The blonde boy shook his head gently. \"Don\'t be. I understand why you did. It doesn\'t hurt.\" Quatre said, still smiling. \"Milliardo, why did you take me to the med lab instead of the nearest air lock?\" he asked seriously.

He wasn\'t surprised by the question, and had an answer ready this time. \"Because, I thought about what you said about us being able to relate to one another. I think you were right... Were you serious about being able to take another\'s pain?\" the man asked softly.

\"Yes. I can take your pain.....\" Quatre nodded. \"But you have to think about what you have to do. I can\'t say a few magic words and it be done.\" the boy smirked.

\"So, would I have to take you, or you me?\" the man asked, seriously thinking about it.

\"You have to take me. Do you want to?\" Quatre asked softly.

\"I\'m not sure..... What will happen to you? Will it hurt you?\" Milliardo asked, still uncertain about it all.

\"Yes.... But it must hurt me if it is to work right. It won\'t hurt you at all, I promise.\" Quatre said softly.

Milliardo blinked. \"You\'re willing to hurt yourself to help me?\"

\"Yes. That\'s what I do. I help others at my own expense... And.. I was lying before.....\" Sad aqua eyes looked up. \"I still care..... It just hurts to care.\" Quatre whispered then looked away.

Milliardo smiled. \"So you\'re still the brave young soldier, full of compassion. That\'s good to hear.\"

\"What about the brave colonel, full of loyalty?\" Quatre chuckled softly.

Milliardo chuckled. \"He\'s alive somewhere. His loyalty has just been misplaced.\" he mused.

\"I see. Well I\'m sure one person will be happy to hear that.\" Quatre smiled again.

\"Yeah....\" The man had a vision of blue hair and eyes of the same color. \"You think she\'ll even speak to me?\" Milliardo asked, thinking of someone.

\"I\'m positive.....\" He then felt something in his chest that wasn\'t painful, but a slight warmth. It was a feeling the boy thought had left him a long time ago, but being able to feel it again gave him an odd new strength. \"Listen, if you don\'t want to do this because you think you\'ll be betraying her even more, I\'ll understand. Don\'t do it unless you want to.\" Quatre said strongly.

~I don\'t care what my mission is, Zechs is being nice to me and is thinking of me.... I\'ll get the information a different way.~

\"You\'re right, I don\'t want to......\" the man stated, having a little renewed hope. \"But will you still just stay with me? I think I could use some compassion.\" Milliardo asked with a smile.

Quatre laughed softly. \"I would be honored to.\" he said as he scooted over to make room.

Milliardo laid down on his side next to Quatre, and the two just stared at each other for a minute.

Soon the silence was broken. \"You know, you\'re the first to ever decline when I offered to take your pain. I\'m kind of surprised.\" Quatre pointed out with a slight grin.

Milliardo thought for a moment. \"Quatre, how many have you been with?\" the blonde man asked seriously.

\"I really couldn\'t tell you.\" the boy answered with grim honesty. \"There has been so many, and it hurts to think of them.\" Quatre said sadly.

\"I understand... Why do you keep giving yourself up if it hurts you so badly?\" he asked softly.

\"Because, I\'m an empath and that\'s what I do. Besides, I can\'t stop anyone who wants me. Right now you could probably beat me half to death and I wouldn\'t make a sound.\" He shuddered at the thought, remembering how many times that was exactly what they did. \"That\'s the way it\'s always been. I can\'t do anything about it. I can\'t even say no.\" Quatre stated in a miserable tone.

\"Do the other pilots know about this?\" Milliardo asked, feeling sorry for the boy.

He nodded sadly. \"All of them but one. Take a guess what they did when they found out.\" Quatre sighed.

\"They all jumped you....\" he grunted, having hoped the other pilots would be better than that. \"What about the one that doesn\'t know?\" the man asked, hoping that the boy\'s life wasn\'t all bad.

\"I\'m hoping he doesn\'t find out. He\'s the only one who\'s really my friend....\" He then thought to correct himself. \"He\'s my only friend.\" Quatre sighed again.

\"Hmmm..... Is he just your friend?\" Milliardo asked.

The blonde boy nodded solemnly. \"Yes, I don\'t want to ruin it by chancing something further. I\'m fine with it though. What about you and Noin? Are you gonna risk it?\" Quatre asked with a knowing glare.

A little surprised at the redirection, he gave a soft smile. \"It depends if I make through this war. I might risk it.\" he said, having thought of it many times before. Then another thought crossed his ever working mind, and he turned serious again. \"Quatre, you were sent here to get information from me, weren\'t you?\" he asked, wanting an honest answer.

Quatre looked away. \"Yes.\" he mumbled out.

\"Why did you discourage me from taking you then?\" Milliardo asked, curious as to why.

\"Because you seemed to be concerned for my well being. And I didn\'t want you to feel guilty about it afterwards.\" he stated honestly. \"I understand you and respect you.\" Quatre added with a small smile.

Milliardo couldn\'t help but smile back. \"I appreciate that. Quatre?\"

His aqua eyes looked up curiously. \"Yes.\"

\"I don\'t want to start anything serious, but I just need another person right now.\" he started, tired of being alone and guarded. \"Do you mind if I hold you? Just this one night?\" Milliardo asked softly.

\"I don\'t mind at all. I think I need someone too.\" Quatre whispered.

They move closer together, and got into a comfortable position for both of them on the bed. Milliardo now sitting up, back against the head board, while Quatre was sitting in his lap. The man wrapped his arms around the boy\'s shoulders, and the boy leaned back into the embrace, feeling safe for the first time that he could remember.

Milliardo buried his face in the boy\'s hair and breathed deeply. \"You know that tomorrow we have to go back to being enemies.\" he pointed out, wishing that he didn\'t have to.

\"Milliardo....\" Quatre started, but was interrupted.

\"Call me Zechs.\" the man whispered in his ear.

Quatre smiled at that. \"Zechs, I know... But let\'s not think of that now. Let\'s just think of this moment. You know that we\'ll never be able to do this again, so let\'s make it count.\" he said gently, relaxing completely on the warm body under him.

Those words hit something in the man\'s heart, it saddenedhim, but also made him happy and the same time. \"You\'re right, Quatre. This is our moment. I want to remember it.\" Zechs reached his hand over and turned the boy\'s head to the side, then softly he kissed Quatre on the lips. The simple kiss spoke enough for the both of them. When they parted Quatre looked up at the man and smiled brightly. Zechs smiled back down at the boy, then nothing more was said as the two just held each other for the rest of the night.

The lonely comforting the lonely.

~*~

It was early morning, and two figures could be seen at one of Libra\'s hangars. One of them was the leader of the White Fang, the other a gundam pilot dressed in a worker\'s uniform. Having taken all the necessary precautions, no one knew about their meeting except the doctor, but even he had sworn not to tell. A small shuttle was ready for departure, and the two of them were there to say good bye.

\"Take this shuttle. The course set on it will take you out of this area undetected.\" Zechs said plainly.

\"Thanks..... I guess this is good bye.\" Quatre said softly

\"Yeah...... Quatre, I really appreciated last night\" Zechs stated, not meaning to sound as gruff as he did.

It didn\'t bother the blonde boy. \"I liked it too.......\" Quatre smiled. \"Thank you, Zechs.\" The boy walked over to him and hugged him tightly. \"Even though the second I\'m gone we\'re enemies again, I\'ll always remember you in that moment you kissed me in your arms.\" Quatre whispered softly in his ear.

\"I\'ll always think of you in the same way, Quatre.\" Zechs said softly. Then slowly their lips met for the last time. It was a simple chaste kiss, but it still meant a great deal for the two.

It was like a glimpse of what might have been.

But, like all moments, it ended, and soon they parted.

Quatre looked up at the man and smiled brightly. \"Good bye, Zechs. I hope you\'re able to find what you\'re looking for.\" he said honestly.

\"And I hope you\'re able to find happiness.....\" he gave a small smile. \"Fare well, my compassionate angel.\" Zech whispered softly. He then pressed something in the boy\'s hand, turned away, and left quietly.

He never looked back, and Quatre didn\'t expect him to.

The boy watched him go, and then looked down in his hand. In it was a computer disk, and a folded piece of paper. Quatre looked at it curiously, then decided to look at it later. Quickly, taking advantage of the time that Zechs had given him, he boarded the shuttle, and left.

Unknown to him, Zechs was watching him leave. The man stood and watched the shuttle slip out of sight. Reaching in his pocket, he took out a piece of cloth that was a pale pink, looking as if it were cut by a knife. Zechs stared at the cloth, and if you looked close enough, you could see one single tear roll down the man\'s cheek.

\"Good bye, Quatre..\" His sad ice blue eyes looked up to see the shuttle gone, only a bright speck of light left behind. A smile then graced his lips. \"Good bye, my friend.\"

~*~

TBC