Silhouetted by the Sea

Disclaimer: Grumble, grumble, grumble. They're not mine, okay?

Author's Notes: This chapter is lime fresh. Because everyone needs vitamin C.

****

Silhouetted by the Sea
by Kristen Elizabeth

****

Quatre entered Duo's cabin early the next morning to inquire about his plan for the day's sailing. A minute later, he left the room, closing the door swiftly behind him. He ran a hand through his blond hair, unsure of what he should be feeling after seeing Duo in a sleepy, naked embrace with the little pirate. It was a toss up between embarrassment and amusement.

A hour later, as he was sipping a cup of tea on the deck, Duo came above, pulling his ubiquitous black shirt over his head. "Good morning," Quatre greeted him. "I trust you slept *very* well."

The braided man sighed. "Look, I didn't do anything to her."

"Did I say something to suggest that I thought you...?"

"You didn't have to." Duo leaned against the rail. "But I didn't. I could have; I didn't."

Quatre set his cup back into its saucer. "End of subject?" The other man nodded curtly. "All right. So, are we starting for Barbados, then?"

Duo straightened up. "No."

"There's nothing to be accomplished by staying here," Quatre pointed out. There was a pause. "You are going to have to turn her over to Treize eventually."

"Kushrenada sent us to find his ship *and* his bride." Duo spread his hands. "So far, we've only sent him the ship. We haven't finished our job yet."

Quatre spoke quietly. "Duo, it's highly unlikely that anyone survived, especially the Baron's sister."

"But..." Duo grinned. "Not impossible." He pointed at the horizon. "There are islands, not too far from here. I want to check them out."

"I think we'll be wasting our time."

"Do you have somewhere important to be?" When Quatre couldn't answer, he gave the blond man a hearty slap on the back. "It's an adventure, pal. Now, if you'll excuse me..."

Quatre smiled. "She should be waking up soon." He took hold of Duo's arm before the other man could walk off. "Don't get too attached, Duo. You know what you'll have to do eventually."

After a second, Duo nodded. "Yeah. I do."

The blond man released his arm. "We'll start for those islands immediately."

Still nodding, Duo headed back below deck. He entered his cabin quietly; Hilde was still asleep, curled up in his berth. In the sunlight, she looked even younger. Reaching down, he traced her lips with the tip of his little finger. "When the time comes, I hope you'll forgive me."

****

"I think you're doing that wrong."

"When have you ever fisfor for your supper, woman?"

Sally readjusted her grip on her skirts to keep them out of the calf-deep water. "It doesn't make any sense to simply throw the spear out there. Rather unlikely to think you'll hit a fish that way. You've got to target one first and you won't do that by running around in the water like a buffalo!"

"Do you want to do this?" Wufei thrust the spear Heero had carved into Sally's hand. "If you catch anything besides a cold, I'll..."

"You'll what?" she challenged him.

Wufei frowned and crossed his arms. "Just fish, woman, if you're so sure you can do it better."

Not too much later, as Trowa tended to the fire roasting three of the fish Sally had speared, she gave the Chinese pirate a satisfactory smile. "Perhaps tomorrow I can show you how to catch some of those crabs we saw." Wufei ignored her and bit into a plantain.

Heero glanced up from driving his knife into a coconut to watch Relena. She was sitting near the fire, staring at the fish as they cooked in their blankets of banana leaves. Since he and Wufei had returned from burying the washed-up body, she had not said a single word. She had helped gather firewood when he asked her to, but had gone about the chore in disturbing silence.

He cleared his throat and handed her the coconut he had just opened. "Drink this."

Relena lifted her eyes from the fire to look at him. "No, thank you."

"You need liquids, Relena. So just drink, all right?"

"I said 'no'."

Heero dropped the coconut. "Fine, get sick. Why shoulcarecare?"

"I have no idea," she replied, her voice rising. Trowa stopped poking at the fire to watch their confrontation. Even Sally and Wufei laid aside their bickering for a moment. All eyes were on Relena as she continued. "You keep helping me, over and over again. But just when I'm starting to feel comfortable around you, you draw back and you act as though you can't stand me." She stood up. "I suppose the answer to your question is that you shouldn't care. But then...why do you seem to care one minute and then not the next? I can't keep up! I'm tired of trying to keep up!"

He looked up at her. "It's very simple. If something happened to you, I wouldn't get to collect a thousand gold pieces from that fiancee of yours."

Relena was quiet for a minute before she began to laugh. "Take a good look around, Heero! You're not getting any money for me; we're going to die here! You can stop prdingding to care, because you're not going to get anything for your efforts to protect me!" He had no reply. She backed up a few steps. "I bet you're sorry you didn't just let me drown. Aren't you?"

When he still said nothing, Relena turned and started away. Heero looked down at the coconut he had dropped. It was a few seconds before he felt the other's eyes on him. He looked up. "What?"

Trowa lifted an eyebrow. "Is it really still just about the money to you?"

"Of course," Heero lied.

Sally jumped to her feet and glared at the pirate leader. "What kind of cold, unfeeling man are you? How dare you play with the emotions of a young..."

"Woman, sit down," Wufei ordered.

Enraged, Sally turned on him. "And how dare *you* order me to..." The Chinese man grabbed her wrist and pulled her down into the sand. He reached for a piece of the cooked fish and stuffed it in her mouth.

Trowa took his own portion of their lunch. "You should go after her," he told Heero.

His friend turned a cold Prussian blue glare onto him. "Did you ever go after Catherine?"

There was a pause before Trowa took a calm bite of his fish. "If I could have, I would have. But that's in the past and hardly needs to be brought up here. We all have things we regret not pursuing." He swallowed. "Don't let her be yours."

Heero tucked his knife back into his breeches. "I don't need any help with this," he snapped. Getting to his feet, he startff iff in the opposite direction from Relena.

Sally narrowed her eyes at Wufei. "Your leader is a bastard," she announced.

Wufei shrugged. "It's the woman's fault."

She pushed him, knocking the fish out of his hand. "And you're an even bigger bastard!" With that, she swept off after Relena.

Trowa ate another piece of fish as Wufei attempted to recover from the shock of being pushed over by a woman. "You want her, don't you?"

The Chinese man threw the sand-coated piece of his lunch into the fire. "More and more every god damn day."

*** The The second morning that Duo woke up with Hilde in his arms after another night of celibate sleeping was the first time in his entire life that he fell in love. He had always assumed that if it ever happened to him, it would be slow and steady and that he would see it coming in time to prepare. It wasn't to be that way. Rather, it hit him like a horse-drawn cart. And all she did was sigh.

he he opened his eyes, he was staring at her jet-black curls, so short, but so soft. Duo buried his face in them, inhaling the sweet smell of roses. How did she manage to smell like roses in the middle of the ocean?

She drew in a breath and turned around in her sleep to face him. When she had her head tucked against his collarbone, she let out a little content sigh.

Duo Maxwell fell in love.

As soon as the realization made impact, he carefully extracted himself from Hilde and scooted to the edge of the berth. For the sake of his sanity, and the sanctity of her virginity, ad kad kept his breeches on during the night and insisted she wear at least a chemise. He sat for a long minute with his head in his hands.

The next thing he was aware of was her hands, small and warm, sliding around his stomach. Hilde laid her head on his back and squeezed him with all her tiny might. "I had a dream about you."

Duo dragged his fingers down his face. "Oh. Really."

She nodded, rubbing the tip of her nose against his flesh. "I dreamed that you were touching me again. Like you did before I made you stop. And I liked it..." She took a breath. "I liked it very much. Duo..." Hilde sat up. "Look at me."

When he turned his head, he let out a silent groan. Her chemise was gone and she sat on her knees on the bed, one hand resting on her bare thigh and the other covering one pert breast. "I don't want to be a little girl anymore, Duo."

He stood up and walked across the room. "Please put your clothes back on."

Hilde blinked. After a moment, her lower lip began to tremble. "Duo..."

"Please. Before I grab you and take you so hard that I hurt you." His voice was muffled and strangled. "Just...do it."

Her hands shook as she pulled one of Relena's chemises back over her head. "I don't believe...that you'd ever hurt me."

Duo shook his head. "You don't know me very well," he whispered. Across the room, she sniffed as she dressed, fighting back her tears with great bravada. He turned around to see her head bent as she tied the cotton ribbons over her breasts. "Hilde..." She looked up at hearing her name. Her eyes brimmed over, blue and wet.

Something compelled him to go to her. With awkward strides, Duo crossed back to her and dropped to his knees next to the bed. He reached for her, pulling her over to the edge until he could bury his face in her lap. "No ma wha what happens tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow...or the day we reach Barbados..." His hand slid between her silky thighs. "I want to be the first man to make you cry out in pleasure." He gently tugged her legs apart. "I want to be the first man to taste you."

Hilde drew in a sharp breath when he pressed a hot kiss to her inner thigh. She felt very exposed, open to his eyes and his touch, but made no motion to stop him. Duo hooked his arms around her legs, holding her in place. Everything about her was pink and moist; the musky-clean scent of her arousal intoxicated him beyond the point of even thinking of pulling back.

He wasted little time, as though he were afraid that Quatre might burst in at any moment. After dropping tiny kisses along the spot where her legs ended and her sex began, gave her a long, soft lick. Hilde threw her head back and cried out.

Duo used every bit of his expertise in the area to bring her the most pleasure pole. le. When her fingers wound into his hair, he suckled her harder, knowing she was close. Her chest rose and fell with each moan. When he would occasionally glance up, he would see her eyes closed, her mouth shapedo a o a perfect "O". But he loved it the most when she would whisper his name.

Her thighs clenched; he licked her faster, driving her closer to the edge. Finally, she screamed his name. Her back arched for a long moment before she collapsed onto the bed, utterly spent. She released his hair and brought her hand up to her flushed cheek. Duo gave her sex one final kiss before he stood up. The sounds of her pleasure had triggered his own passion, but he ignored it. He blotted his mouth on his shirt and leaned over her sated body.

"Duo," she murmured.

He nuzzled her neck. "I know. You'elcoelcome." He reached for the rumpled quilt and drew it over her lush body. "Just sleep, Hilde. I'll be on deck."

As he was walking out the door, he heard her say, very drowsily, but very assuredly, "I love you." He paused before continuing on his way.

****

"I have never felt more dirty in my entire life."

There was no one nearby to hear Relena's admission. She spoke only to the tiny stream of freshwater from which she was supposed to be drawing the day's supply in a pouch Heero had made from Trowa's leather vest.

In the water, Relena could just barely make out her reflection and what she saw of it shocked her. Her hair was matted with sand, her face was streaked with dirt. Worse than that, she was most assuredly freckled from near constant exposure to the sun. No one in London would even recognize her. It was almost an amusing thought. Her half-formed smile fell. It was also little wonder why Heero still hadn't spoken to her since the outburst at lunch two days earlier. He probably couldn't bear to look at her.

She dipped her fingers into the cooler, er, dreaming of the last bath she had taken, the night before she set sail for America. Buckets of hot water full of fragrant bubbles from French bath oils, scented soaps and hair rinses. Things she had taken for granted. What she wouldn't give now for even a harsh bar of lye.

As she continued to stare at the stream, a sudden thought came to her. Where was tlittlittle stream originating from, anyway? She followed the water with her eyes until it disappeared into the thick vegetation. Curiosity nipped at her and before she knew it, she was on her feet heading into the jungle.

****

"What on earth is taking Relena so long?" Sally tapped her foot impatiently. "I need that water to clean your wound."

Wufei rolled his eyes skyward. "If you want something to do, go fishing again. You don't need to fuss over me anymore, woman."

She ignored him and looked at Heero. "You don't suppose something happened to her, do you?"

Heero placed another palm frond on the huge fire pit he and Trowa had begun to construct for a warning signal to any ship that might pass by. "Knowing the duchess....anything is possible."

"So..." Sally folded her arms. "Go find her and bring her back."

"If you're worried about her, go find her yourself."

Sally approached him, her eyes glinting dangerously. "You're not fooling anyone, you know. You can pretend to be in it for the money, but we all know better. Now, swallow your pride, get off your lazy ass, and go find her before something happens to her."

Heero threw down his last palm frond. "No one ever taught you to mind your own affairs, did they?"

"They tried. And failed." Sally smiled and sauntered back to her reluctant patient. "Get moving."

His eyes narrowed into thin slits, but without another word, he started for the stream, Relena's last known location. When he reached it, all he found was the leather pouch, full of water. "Relena," he called out. He received no reply, which didn't surprise him. Sighing, he started into the vegetation. When he found her, he was going to give her a few harsh words on the dangers of the tropical forest. She could encounter a snake or a wild pig. There was even a very remote chance she might come across a native. Or a tribe of natives. He He tripled his speed, throwing aside branches and stepping over rocks. "Relena!" He ducked under a low hanging tangle of vines. The ground ath ath him, he noticed, had become much more rocky. After another few minutes, the vegetation cleared and he found himself at the edge of a fresh water lagoon.

The sound of a rushing waterfall drew his eyes across the pool. Standing under the powerful falls in waist-deep water was Relena. Her head was tilted back, her eyes closed as the water cascaded down her nude body.

Heero swallowed thickly. The arch in her graceful back pushed her breasts out and up. They were perfectly shaped, each tipped with a berry colored nipple, hard from the cool water. Her arms lifted to run through her clean hair; the smooth lines of her body were perfectly displayed. She seemed content, as though she had been made to stand under this waterfall. There was a smile on her lovely face; she was, to Heero, the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

A long forgotten ache below his waist tugged at him. But unlike his few times with several of Savannah's finest whores who were kind enough to not even charge him for an evening's pleasure, there was something more to his physical desire. He didn't want to have his way with Relena and leave after his hour was up. In those long moments he spent watching her bathe, completely mesmerized, he didn't give a damn about anything his common sense tried to tell him about their differences and all the reasons why he shouldn't go to her and take her into his arms....where she belonged. He just wanted her. For as long as the fates would let him have her.

He acted entirely on emotion for one of the rare instances in his life, the first being the day he found a small four year old with messy black curls huddled a few feet away from her mother's body and decided to take care of her. He took a breath and stepped out of the jungle.

Relena's tattered dress and corset lay on the lagoon's small shore. Heero's own shirt was long since gone; all he had on were his leather breeches. He quickly untied them and they joined the pile of Relena's clothes on the sand. The lagoon water was cool, but not cold. Heero walked into it quietly as not to alert her to his presence until he wanted her to know he was there.

But his effort went to waste. After sensing for awhile that she was being watched, Relena opened her eyes. Heero was heading towards her in waist deep water. Her mouth fell open and her arms instinctively crossed over her chest to cover her breasts.

"Heero! Just what in the God's name do you think you're..." She trailed off when she caught the look in his eyes. It was dangerous and predatory; she felt rather like a deer, stalked by a panther....i...it was not fear that silenced her protests. Only the strange warmth spreading through her body as he made his way through the water, coming ever closer to her. "Heero..." she managed to whisper again.

He didn't stop until he was inches away from her. They watched each other, suspended in a magical, forbidden moment. Relena wasn't aware of her hands lowering, but they did and she cared not that her breasts lay open to his eyes. In fact, it seemed only right that he be allowed to see her. The first to see her.

In the space of a second, their arms were entangled, bodies pressed together, lips joined in a smoldering kiss. Relena closed her eyes, reveling in the exquisite feeling of Heero's mouth loving hers. Her breasts were crushed against his hard, muscled chest as he lifted her up ever so slightly in the water. His hands ged ted the soft flesh of her hips; he kissed her like a starved man. She returned his kiss with an equal fury. It was beyond the realm of any dream. It was reality.

She was soft, so much softer than anything Heero had ever been allowed to touch. It was all he could do to keep himself from taking her in the water. The falls pounded on his back as he set her down and moved his hands up from her hips to tangle in the long, wet mass of her hair. Her mouth was sweet and warm. She had her arms wrapped around his neck and his soul wrapped around her finger and he found himself loving every second of it.

Reluctantly, he broke the kiss and gently cupped her face. "If you tell me to stop right now, I will," he said, his voice husky with pent-up passion.

Relena's breath was choppy; her lips tingled and her heart raced. Stop? Was he insane? She had no more desire to stop than she had to jump off a cliff. In response, she closed her eyes again and lifted her chin, giving him a soft kiss.

Her lips touched his and without any hesitation, he swept her up into his arms. Their kiss never broke as he carried her back to the shore and set her down onto the sand. He lay beside her, propped up on one elbow. Pulling back, Heero stroked her cheek.

"Do you know what it means to..."

She cut him off by pressing her fingers to his lips. "I have an older sister in law, Heero. She's explained everything to me." She swallowed. "Especially how good it will feel."

Heero gave her his rare smile and another sweet kiss. "You've been surprising me since the day we met, do you know that?"

"And you've been tormenting me." Relena ran her fingers through his wet hair. "I'd say we're even."

He settled his body over hers, carefully keeping his weight on his forearms. When she had adjusted to this new position, he lowered his head and kissed the hollow at the base of her throat. "Let me know..." he whispered between kisses. "...when you feel good."

Relena nodded and drew in a sharp breath when he began running his tongue along the nape of her neck. She slid her hands down his slick back. Nothing Lucrezia had told her about the relations between men and women could have possibly prepared for for the intensity of making love with Heero Yuy. As his hot mouth engulfed one nipple, she closed her eyes. *I love,* s,* she said. But no sound escaped her lips. She was quite sure that he did this not for love, but for pleasure.

But right then, she couldn't quite bring herself to care.

****

To Be Continued