Tinfoil

WARNINGS: 5x2, angst-of course, humil., OOC, Darkfic, See Warnings…, sorry if I missed anything.

Disclaimer: I do not own GW or any other product listed here in, own only the story line. I make no $, £, or ¥ off this. I merely chew tinfoil for fun.

Summary: The rest of the pilots ignore Duo, until Wufei realizes that there may be more to his friend than any of them know. His hidden past may soon come back to haunt them all...


“Speaking”, *Thinking*, ~also thinking, implies arguing with ones’ self~, //Flashback//

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Birds and Bees…I give you…
TINFOIL

Wufei was glad that was over. His mission had finally ended and he was at the safe house he and the other five pilots were sharing. He plodded through the door noisily, not caring if Heero pulled a gun on him when he entered or not, or that it was like 4am. He’d pull the gun even if Wufei made no noise at all; he always seemed to know when someone was coming or going. The Perfect Soldier was just creepy at times, but Chang Wufei would never admit it to anyone.
He heard the sound of what sounded like a video game as he entered the living area to get to his room.

“Hey Wuffers everything go okay?” Duo asked from what sounded like the couch.

“Maxwell don’t call me that, call me by my name!” Wufei growled and looked over to the couch. “Yes it went fine.” He stated crossly.

“You want to play Guilty GearX2 with me Wu-man?” He asked. Wufei scowled and leaned forward to see the T.V. A longhaired, pale cartoon figure dressed in all black carrying a blue scythe was kicking his opponent’s ass.

“Sure, why not. Don’t call me that.” He stated and looked down at Duo. The American was sitting upside-down on the furniture, his long legs draped over the back of the couch, his head hanging off the front.

“Why are you sitting upside down?” he asked.

“Seemed like a good idea at the time.” Duo stated cheerfully as he exited the game and flipped upright. He reached for a bowl on the end table filled with…What the hell was that!!!

“DUO!” Wufei barked sharply as Duo raised a spoonful of the…stuff to his mouth. “What in the hell are you eating?!” he exclaimed. Duo chewed with relish before answering.

“It’s my midnight snack.” He explained.

“But what IS it?!” He repeated appalled.

“Chocolate chips, hot-n-spicy salsa, tiny marshmallows, baby dill pickles with garlic, sour cream, peanut butter, jelly beans, mashed potatoes, and orange slices for vitamins. You microwave it and then add the marshmallows, otherwise they explode. That’s the secret.” He stated and took another bite ‘mmming’ in appreciation. “Ooo ant E ake hum fo ooo?” He asked with his mouth full.

“Sweet Nataku no!!” Wufei almost squeaked and leapt back as if Duo would force-feed him. “What are you a pregnant onna!” Duo giggled wildly. “Maxwell are you on drugs?” Wufei asked seriously as his eyes narrowed. Duo became serious as well.

“No, I just have strange tastes.” He defended himself.

“How can you eat that?” Wufei asked disgusted. “Why would you eat that?!”

“It seemed like a good idea at the time. And it’s good.” Duo said poutily [1] as he defended his culinary masterpiece. “You haven’t even tried it, so don’t knock it! Now lets play Guilty Gear!” He said enthusiastically.

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The played for almost an hour before Wufei called it quits.

“You did better than I thought you would. Thanks, no one else will ever play with me.” Duo said sadly.

“Why not? It was kinda fun.” He said standing and stretching leisurely.

“Well Quatre doesn’t like the violence and blood spray, he says he already has enough. Trowa is horrible. And I mean really, really horrible. He always loses and he’d know if I let him win ‘cause I did once and he wasn’t very happy about it. And Heero’s…well…Heero.” Duo explained still sounding down.

“But you do other things together.” Wufei stated. Duo was silent. “Right?” he asked.

“It doesn’t matter ‘cause now I got you to bug. At least for awhile.” Duo stated trying to sound happy once more, but his smile was a little tight and he seemed uptight and…nervous?

“I’m going to take a shower now, but I’d be happy to play another game with you after I’m done.” Wufei stated and Duo beamed at him wiggling like a happy puppy.

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Wufei pondered the look on Duo’s face when he’d said that the longhaired boy did things with the other pilots for fun. He’d looked uncomfortable, hurt and sad as he ignored the statement. And the more Wufei thought about it the more he realized that none of them, including himself, ever did anything with Duo. He was so hyperactive all the time, so annoying at times that they mostly ignored him hoping he’d get bored and go away. All the rest of them, even Heero, did things together, but not Duo. Wufei flushed in shame. *How could I have ignored someone I consider to be my friend all this time!* he thought angry at himself. ~Because he’s always so upbeat, no one would ever think that he needs anything.~ With that silently thought Wufei realized that there might be more to the laughing boy with smiling eyes than he ever thought. After all eyes that can laugh can also cry.

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Wufei exited the bathroom expecting to see the chestnut haired boy upside down on the couch again. But he wasn’t. Wufei quietly wandered through the house searching for the other boy. He found him in the kitchen of all places. Well not that finding Duo in a kitchen was all that strange, but he was normally digging in the fridge, not…

“Maxwell? Are you alright?” Wufei asked concerned.

“Yeah, fine. Why?” Duo asked.

“Well you’re laying on the floor in the kitchen.” Wufei said.

“I’m coloring.” Duo told him as if that simple fact should explain all.

“Why are you coloring? And come to think of it, why are you still awake? It must be 5:30 in the morning.” Wufei stated.

“Seemed like a good idea at the time and I’m coloring because its fun silly Fei-Fei. And I have insomnia like you would not believe. I normally only sleep like 4 hours a night, if that and normally not straight through. It’s like a couple hours here, a few there. I also get bored easily.” Duo told him lying on his stomach with his feet kicking back and forth in the air.

“Don’t call me that. Why don’t you take something.” Wufei said without hesitation and Duo frowned at him.

“Drugs are bad for you.” Duo scolded him. “ That shit’ll kill you.” he waggled a finger at Wufei like he was a naughty child. “Next thing you know I’ll get a headache at a punk frat party after beating up some jocks and some chick’ll give me a couple pain relief tabs and I’ll die and then you’ll have to cut off your foot tall electric blue Mohawk and get a real job. Or you could think your mom was the devil and try to kill her and then sit in your front yard in the snow and ask people if they’re Jesus because they’re walking on water while you cower on the only piece of solid land because you can’t swim and think you’re going to drown.” [2] Duo said happily. Wufei simply blinked at him. He wasn’t really sure what he was feeling right then, but at the forefront of it all came the realization that Duo Maxwell was completely insane.
“You’ve never seen that movie have you?” Duo asked. Wufei shook his head slightly in relief. He wasn’t completely insane after all. “Color with me.” Duo prompted. Wufei cocked an eyebrow that said ‘definitely, under no circumstance will I Chang Wufei ever ‘color’ on a kitchen floor. It isn’t manly’
So he was still trying figure out how he ended up drawing a rather bad…okay really horrible brown and black blob.

“I like your cow.” Duo said looking over at Wufei’s picture.

“It is not a cow Maxwell.” Wufei said slowly and with a lot of patience. “It is a Rottweiler.”

“It looks like a big milk cow Wu-wu.” Duo stated again.

“It’s not a cow!! Call me by my name.” Wufei said vehemently. Duo snickered a little. “Fine let me see what you drew.” Wufei demanded and reached to snatch the stack of papers that the other boy had done.

“NO!” Duo exclaimed and reached for them, but too late. Wufei stared at the paper in momentary disbelief and shock. He was silent as he flipped to the next picture, and then the next. He felt Duo fidget nervously next to him.

“Duo…” he whispered a bit breathless.

“Alright, alright fine give um here Wufei!” He growled and pulled the papers back. He stood to his feet in a huff and tossed them into the trashcan.

“I’m going to bed. Later.” He stated and left.

Wufei continued to lay on the floor for a few long moments. He climbed up and went to the trashcan, pulling out the leafs of paper. They were a little crinkled, but otherwise unharmed. He flipped through the pages again slower this time, lingering over each one. A butterfly on a flower, its delicate wings folded back, proboscis uncoiled to drink nectar. A soda can dripping with condensation. An Oz mech so detailed that it could have been a photograph, it was the wrong color, but still. An empty playground complete with little sneaker prints in the sand.

“Oh Duo these are really good.” Wufei said softly to the empty kitchen. He looked down at the floor. *All this with a pen, a pencil, fourteen crayons, a Sharpie marker and six colored pencils.* He thought almost in disbelief. He felt sadden that his friend would think he’d make fun of him for such a wonderful talent. *And why wouldn’t he. That’s all you ever do. This is the first time you’ve done anything besides belittle him.* he bereted himself. With a deep sigh Wufei also went to his room to sleep, carrying the pictures with him.

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“I’m going to the store!” Wufei shouted as he grabbed his coat.

“Hey, can I go too?” Duo yelled as he ran up to the door hope shining in his eyes.

Wufei hesitated. “Maybe later, now’s not good.” He said and cringed inside as the light dimmed in his violet eyes.

“Okay sure.” He said still upbeat but Wufei caught the falseness in his voice, the mask that covered his face because he was looking for it. He was certain no one else would see it.

“Later.” Wufei said and headed out the door. He hunched his shoulders against the drizzling rain as he head to the car parked in the front yard. He climbed into the rusted old Buick and headed out.

~~~~~~~~He came back about an hour later, quietly slinking into the house. Quatre sat on the couch looking very angry.

*Quatre? Angry?* Wufei thought silently. “Quatre are you okay?” he asked the blond boy.

“Fine!!” He yelled then looked sorry. “I’m sorry Wufei but that…that…Aaahh! He just gets under my skin sometimes!” he shouted.

“Are you fighting with Trowa?” Wufei asked trying and failing to recall any time the two of them had fought. Just then Trowa came into the room.

“Quatre?” Trowa said softly.

“I’m fine!!” the blond yelled again.

“I think I’ve calmed him down a little now.” The tall boy stated.

“Why does he have to bug us all the time!!” Quatre said angrily.

“I don’t know little one but I think that he’s gotten it out of his system now.” Trowa said sitting next to his lover.
At the same end of the house that Trowa had just left, a door closed loudly and Heero entered the living room in a huff on the way to the kitchen where he set up his laptop. He muttered ‘baka’ under his breath before sitting and getting back to work.

“So I assume this is Duo we’re talking about.” Wufei stated. And Quatre glared at him. “I’ll take that as a yes.” Wufei carried his bag toward the room that Duo and Heero were sharing. Trowa and Quatre shared one and he had the third to himself. He was aware of all eyes following him as he walked to the room.
Without knocking he pushed the door open and entered the room silently. Duo lay on his stomach on one of the bed with a pillow over his head over. Wufei leaned against the doorframe for a moment watching the boy. Noting the way his shoulders shook, hearing his gasping breath through the layers of cloth. He stepped forward lightly and placed the brightly colored package on the end of the bed and back away. Smiling at himself for not being found out as he closed the door back.

Wufei went back into the kitchen/living area and sat on a love seat facing the kitchen so he could see all the others in the room.

“Quatre what do you and Trowa do for fun?” He asked suddenly interrupting their conversation. Quatre turned pink. Wufei tried not to snicker. *Someone’s mind is in the gutter.*
“You watch movies right?” Both of them nodded. “Heero what do you and Quatre do for fun?” he asked.

“We talk about politics…and gardening.” Heero said evenly.

“What do you and Trowa do for fun?” he continued.

“History.” He said his voice never changing, never stopping typing.

“Quatre and I meditate, Trowa and I talk about weapons, and Heero and I spar with each other.” Wufei said pausing as he looked at each of them. “What does Duo like to do?” he asked them expectantly. No answer. “What do you do with Duo for fun?” He asked again. They remained silent and Heero stopped typing. “Nothing.” He answered the question himself. “Have any of you thought that Duo is so annoying because he feels left out, none of us, including me, usually do anything with him. We brush him aside like he’s nothing. We hurt his feelings every time we see him, but he keeps trying to be our friend.” Wufei said and looked at all of them again, meeting their eyes. Then he left. He had katas to practice still. [3]

~~~~~~~~Wufei was dressed in a pair of thin black cotton pants. His hair still pulled back in a tight ponytail. The cool rain ran in rivulets over the hot skin of his chest as he moved fluidly through the forms of his exercise. Knees bent, eyes forward, horse stance, front kick, plant foot, shift weight, round house, plant foot, shift, horse stance, high block, high block, back elbow strike, plant foot, side kick, plant foot, shift, punch, KI!

“What are you doing?” Quatre asked timidly as he looked out the window at Wufei in the muddy yard.

“Drawing.” Duo said quietly not looking at the blond boy. “I’m sorry,” he stated regretfully. “I didn’t mean to bother you.”

“Don’t be you didn’t do anything wrong, I over reacted. I’m sorry I shouldn’t have yelled at you.” Quatre said. Duo turned to look at him slowly.

“No problem Q-man.” Duo said as a ghost of a smile flitted across his face. It was almost hesitant, as if Duo didn’t really believe he could do it. Quatre left wishing he knew what to do to make the other boy feel better, wishing he hadn’t yelled in the first place.

~~~~~~~~“Thanks.” Duo said handing the shorter boy a towel as he walked into the house. “No ones ever…I don’t really…ya know…so thanks.”

“Not a problem Duo. I can’t wait to see what you can pull off with something other than crayons.” Wufei said laughingly. Duo turned pink and handed the new spiral bound sketchpad to the dark-haired boy. It was a picture of…him. Not just a picture, a collage of pictures drawn in charcoal pencil and ink from the drawing kit he’d bought for Duo. He’d drawn Wufei practicing his katas. A high kick, a punch, a block, cat stance, and he’d drawn them well.

“Duo…I…wow!” Was all he could muster at the moment. “That’s me!” He declared beside himself. “Wow! You drew me! Really, really well!” He exclaimed and beamed up at Duo brightly. The braided boy was a bright shade of red as he found something very interesting to look at on the ceiling. “Thank you for honoring me.” Wufei said seriously and Duo’s face practically burned as Wufei handed the notebook back.

“Um…thanks…you’re welcome.” Duo stammered, for once at a loss for words. He turned away quickly and left the room. Wufei smiled after him brightly.
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More to come.
Read, Enjoy, Review. In that order.