I do not own these puppets.
It was a hot, sweaty night. He closed his eyes against the heat, tossed the damp sheet from across his hips. *God,* why had Duo turned the heat on? It was the middle of God forsaken summer, and the heat was on... Dimly, he reminded himself that the soft hum in the background meant the air conditioner was on, but that didn't make sense so he discarded the thought as one would a pair of socks with holes in the toes.
He stumbled out of bed; Duo slept on, oblivious to his lover's frantic breathing and fingers that were curling into claws. "Aah, GOD!" he whimpered, gasping as a searing heat, worse than the time he'd started the grill and forgot to turn the gas down. Burned; it burned! Water, that was all his mind could come up with, a single focus to keep his thoughts from the pain that crackled low in his belly and was fast spreading throughout his body.
His vision was rapidly blinking between the darkness of space and the room they shared. The ocean crashed outside, oblivious to his pain. If only he could have flown from their room, just broken through the glass and plunged deep into the sea, into the cold depths! He grunted again, his eyes watering. Steam, there was steam rising from somewhere...
He made it to the bathroom, gripping the door handle with a strength that belied his mental weakness. He was screaming inside, but his lips were clenched tightly. He would *not* bother Duo with his insane imaginings! He was having hot flashes, that was it, though he didn't think that men had estrogen deficiency problems...
"Water," he rasped again, his throat on fire, the bathroom flaring orange in his vision. "Water..." Heero choked as a ball of fire worked its way up from his stomach; what the...? Unable to help himself, knowing that it was insane, that people didn't vomit fire, he leaned over into the sink and heaved until he felt spent. Blue flames danced, oblivious to his denial, along the porcelain.
One hand reached out and twisted the metal knob that started the cold water. It melted in his hands, but the water began to pour out. Not caring how strange it looked, he craned his neck until he could drink from the faucet, his body demanding water even as some part of him screamed, wanting to retreat from the onslaught of cold.
Sobbing and shaking, he flicked on the light. The plastic melted onto his fingers, curling into a black flake. He looked in the mirror, managing to get a moment's glimpse before it shattered under the intense heat. The lightbulb also broke, glass raining down on his head.
Tears...his tears evaporated as soon as they touched his skin.
Gods...
Heero collapsed against the tile, exhausted, hyperventilating, and fell into a dreamless sleep.
"Mmmm...Heero, I'm feeling horny," Duo sighed, throwing an arm over his lover's...body... Cool sheets greeted wandering fingers. His violet eyes snapped open. "Heero?" No response. If he'd been making breakfast, he would surely have smelled it. No sign of Heero in their bedroom. Panic and fear began to rise in his stomach; not another go round, not another arcane and mystical experience. They'd suffered enough. It was someone else's turn.
"HEERO!" he screamed, jumping out of bed and running around the two-story beach home they were renting. "HEER--" He stopped as he saw a handprint on the carpet. Kneeling beside it, he sniffed the smell of burnt synthetic... It was a burn! What the fuck?
Then he looked towards the bathroom, and his heart skipped a beat.
The doorknob had been neatly burned off. There was a handprint on the door, where someone had pushed it open. Gingerly, he rested his own hand against the burn mark. Heero's fingers were just shorter than his... It was a perfect match.
"Shit! Heero, are you in here?" He went to flick on the light, but there was no light switch. His foot nudged against something soft and heavy. "Heero?"
Two burning orange orbs greeted him. "Duo? Is that you?"
The American fainted.
End Epilogue Four
Ariana
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