As requested.... *grin* This is what happens when I see the Plotbunny Generator.... and she wants to see Ifrits and Angels Chang meet a certain Egyptian God. *evil grin*

Ifrits & Angels Sidefic 1

Heero frowned over the stack of exams on his desk. Finals were finished, but not graded and grades needed to be posted soon. He armed himself with a red pen and rubbed the bridge of his nose, wishing he'd thought to get himself some coffee on his way back to the office. There was a knock at his door and he called out an invitation, even as he started scanning the first exam on the stack. What had this student been thinking on the first question-?

"Dr. Yuy?" Ah, as expected. Without looking up, Heero waved at the chair by his desk. Soft footfalls made their way across his office and a cup of coffee was deposited on the desk beside his right hand.

How the hell did he always know?

"I don't really have anything today- did you finish your finals?"

"Of course I did. Have you slept at all, sir? I know you had that deadline for the periodical." Heero glanced up to find Duo studying him with a frown.

"I sent the article in this morning. I'll catch up on sleep once I finish with these. You're the one that should go home and rest- you had a lot of finals this week."

Another sigh, so soft he nearly missed it. "I don't need to rest like you, and you know it. Let me help you grade those, please?"

It was tempting to hand some of them over, but Duo already did so much. He focused back on the paper in front of him. "I can do it, there aren't that many."

"Did you even stop to eat today, sir?"

Before he could think of a response that wouldn't upset Duo, his phone rang. Duo reached out and picked up the receiver with the ease of long practice. "Dr. Yuy's office. How may I help you?"

There was a long pause and Heero suddenly shivered. Why was it so cold in here? He looked up and caught sight of Duo's expression. Leaning over, he blinked in dismay at the number on the display and quickly snatched the phone away from Duo.

"Yuy here," he snapped into the receiver.

"It's Chang," the mage's voice was surlier than usual. "You have him answering your phone for you?"

"I think you forgot that the church enrolled Maxwell here so that he could officially become my assistant? Which means that yes; he does answer my phone- especially when I am rather swamped with work, as I am right now. What do you want?" He reached out and tapped his fingers against Duo's shoulder, gesturing towards the door. Damn it, why was it Chang? Usually Trowa called with the jobs.

Duo didn't look pleased but he left obediently, leaving Heero to deal with Chang.

"We have a situation that needs your assistance immediately."

"How immediately? It's the end of the term- I'm rather busy."

"Your plane leaves tonight for Cairo."

"Tonight? But..."

"It's critical that you and Maxwell get here as soon as possible. Barton and Winner have already tried to deal with the situation and failed. You are to extract them and deal with the problem."

What? What the hell could take out Quatre? "What sort of problem is it?"

"I am not authorized to brief you over the phone. The information you need will be sent under the usual security to your email. Check that."

"Wait a minute-"

"The plane leaves at eight, don't miss it." There was a click as the connection was cut off and Heero forced himself to take a deep breath. Well, that explained why it was Chang that had called with the job and not Trowa. Damn it all. He hadn't seen the mage since Duo and he had been forced- or rather forcefully recruited- to join the Church's team last summer.

Heero rubbed his forehead and grimaced. He'd been looking forward to a few days of rest after the end of the term, but it didn't look like the fates were inclined to agree. He'd have to hurry to finish grading-

The finals were missing. His coffee cup was still there, steaming gently. His red pen was beside it, still uncapped and ready to go. But the stack of finals were gone.

For a moment, he blinked at the desk, uncomprehending. He had given finals right? It hadn't been a dream or some sort of hallucination brought on by lack of sleep?

Wait a minute...

"Duo?"

"Sir?" His door swung open and his assistant stepped in, his hands full. "I stepped out and bought you lunch, the finals are complete and the grade sheets just need your signature..."

Heero blinked at the brown paper bag, the neatly corrected finals and the completely filled in grade sheets. Oh hell. Not that he should complain, especially with a job on the horizon, but- "Duo..."

His assistant moved to Heero's side of the desk and placed his fingers gently on the nape of Heero's neck. "Master," he said as that other stirred behind his eyes. "I insist that you eat and get some rest."

"We have a job," Heero gave in and picked up the sandwich. "The plane leaves tonight at eight. We're headed off to Cairo."

"Did he tell you any details?"

"Only that Trowa and Quatre failed- and need to be extracted."

"What?" Duo looked startled.

"That was my response. Whatever it is, it's not going to be easy."

~*~

They were almost there. Looking over at the man beside him, practically passed out in his seat, Duo decided to wait to wake him until they were told to get ready to land. At least the dark circles under his master's eyes had faded, and Duo had made sure he'd eaten as well.

So fragile.

If only his master would've agreed to accept Quatre's gift of longevity- well, Duo would've still worried, but not as much. He hadn't realized that Heero's job was so demanding- or that he seemed determined to work himself into an early grave. He'd been happy when the Church had gotten him enrolled and in place as Heero's official assistant, but Heero had insisted on Duo taking a full schedule of classes. It wasn't a bad idea, he had learned a lot about this time, but they had kept him away from Heero for several hours a day. Hours that could be better spent with Heero...

Entwining his fingers with his master's, he raised Heero's hand to his mouth, inhaling the scent of his master's skin, feeling his warmth. Heero had even insisted that Duo sleep apart from him, pleading for time to get used to things.

"You need time too. How do you know that I'm the best one for you? You've been locked away for so long- you need to get acquainted with this world. With me."

Stubborn and infuriating! As if he was going to find someone else?

The other stirred inside him, and Duo could feel his frustration as well. And now we face a situation that did something to the ifrit and his mage...

"I know," Duo muttered and frowned at the laptop, now closed and powered down on the other side of Heero. The information that they had been sent wasn't very helpful. Trowa and Quatre had been onsite at a dig with an archeologist employed by the church. A tomb had been found-and whatever had been in this tomb was something nasty, judging from all the seals and warnings on the walls that had been copied into the files.

, Duo had been behind worse, but...

The central room in the tomb had a well- something that Duo had blinked over- and after apparently trying to scan it with remotes and failing- Trowa had gone down to take a look.

had Quatre let him go? Then again, humans were stubborn- and Duo could well imagine Trowa insisting. Quatre was a fire ifrit after all- a well, dry or not- wasn't the best place for him to explore. Quatre had gone down when Trowa hadn't returned- and then the archeologist called in to get help when he didn't come back either.

The ifrit could be in serious trouble.

"I think so too." He couldn't think of anything he'd ever heard of that lived in a well in a tomb, but he'd been out of the loop for a long time...

Whatever it is we cannot allow something to happen to our light....

Nothing is going to happen to him," Duo tightened his fingers around Heero's. "I won't allow it."

And there is no way we are going to let him get near that well.

That went without saying. Oh, his master would be upset, but Duo wasn't going to risk him, no matter what...

~*~

"What?" Heero blinked at Duo, perplexed. "What do you mean, stay here?"

"He's your handler, he's supposed to be with you," Chang snapped.

Oh no, not again. Heero needed to speak quickly before Duo could answer Chang. The two of them had been sniping at each other since Chang had picked them up at the airport. Once onsite, the archeologist had given them her story and then, obviously terrified of the cross mage and the equally cross angel, had made a hasty retreat back to her tent.

"Give us a minute, Chang, will you?"

Huffing out a breath, the mage went to stand by the entrance of the tomb, out of earshot, but still obviously chafing at the delay.

"You should've let me kill him," Duo muttered and Heero sighed.

"He's worried about the other two. I know it's making him crosser than usual, but Duo- why not let me go with you?"

"It's not safe."

"We haven't even looked at it yet."

"I don't care. It took a mage and an ifrit. I'm not letting you near it." Duo reached out and pulled Heero into a tight embrace. "Please, stay here. It's not good for my sanity when you're in danger."

"Let me wait at the entrance then? Please?"

"Will you two hurry it up?" Duo growled in Heero's ear at the sound of Chang's voice. Without another word, he released Heero and stalked across to the entrance. Heero followed him, coming to a halt at the entrance.

"Dr. Yuy is waiting here."

"You cannot be allowed to go down in there alone," Chang snarled and Duo smiled coldly.

"I don't object to your company, mage. You are welcome to come with me." His gaze snapped up and to the right, studying the faint line of hieroglyphs by the door. Heero looked at them too- it looked like a normal funerary scene- the judges in the underworld- what was it that had caught Duo's attention?

"Let's go then," Chang produced a flashlight and switched it on. "We'll be back soon, Dr. Yuy." He stalked off into the darkness. Duo darted back to Heero, for a moment, that smile still lingering on his lips.

"Stay here until I call for you."

"What if you get into trouble?"

"I won't- I think I know who is in here." Duo pressed his lips to the corner of Heero's mouth. "Back soon."

"Are you coming or what?" The cross demand made Duo's smile widen as he vanished into the dark after Chang.

Why did Heero suddenly have a bad feeling about all of this?

~*~

Duo would've been more than willing to help Quatre steady Trowa, but he recognized the gleam of possessiveness in the eyes of the ifrit. So instead, he hurried up the passage and sent Heero off for water and food.

By the time Trowa and Quatre had reached the entrance, Heero had returned with a canteen of water and the reassurance that the archeologist and her assistants were making a hasty lunch.

"I'm fine, really," Trowa protested hoarsely, after nearly draining the canteen. Duo privately disagreed with him. He didn't look fine.

"Four days without nourishment isn't fine," Quatre snapped as he helped Trowa sit down. "I didn't dare let him eat. The food of the underworld isn't for living humans."

"The underworld?" Heero echoed.

"It was a well of souls," Duo informed him. "Sort of like a quick gateway to the other side." Good thing he'd been tipped off by the writings on the tomb. It had made the job a lot easier.

"I'm still not sure how you got us out of there," Trowa put his head in his hands. "Whatever that thing was in there- it didn't want to let us go."

Can't blame him for that. We know what it's like to be alone for so long...

"I just made him a deal." Duo smiled and looked at Trowa. "You need rest and more nourishment."

"I agree." Quatre touched Trowa's hair gently. "I can heal some of it, but that world drained me- I need to rest first."

"Your tent is still set up- you two can go there and we'll bring you food when it's ready." Heero suggested and then frowned. "Wait a minute- where's Chang?"

"Chang's here?" Trowa looked up, confused. "I didn't see him- I thought they just sent you two."

"No. Chang was our contact. He brought us here and then went with Duo down into the tomb. Did something happen to him? Where is he?"

Duo refused to flinch under his master's glare. "He's fine. Relax."

"Duo-?"

He couldn't suppress his grin now. "I said I had to make a deal, right?"

"What?!" Trowa burst out. "You didn't-!!"

"Look, the Guardian of the Scales has been cut off for ages. He's lonely. That's why he took you two- except the two of you are already bound together. So.... I offered him Chang and he accepted."

"Oh no!" Quatre paled and gave Duo a glare of his own. "Living humans can't survive there! We have to get him back!"

"We can't renege on the deal. Besides, the mage will be fine. The Guardian of the Scales was more than willing to come here now that the tomb is open. He just- wanted a little time to get to know Chang."

Heero's lips were moving silently and Duo realized that he was looking at the line of hieroglyphs that had caught his own attention as he entered the tomb. "The Guardian of the Scales? Not... it's not who I think it is, right?"

Duo just grinned wider. "I hope Chang likes dogs."

OWARI

 

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