Faded Colours

Title: Faded Colours
Author: Zimmerie Kanoah
Rating: Pg-13
Pairings: 1x2past
Warnings: Death. Language. Yep that’s right one of our beloved Gundam Wing boys is going to die. And this is unbeta-ed. Oh… it post war. Haven’t decided how many years, not sure if it’s really relevant for the plot line.
Genre:Angst
Disclaimer: I own nothing and I am not receiving in profit from the creation of this story. This is purely for entertainment purposes only.

Chapter Two: Winds Howl and Die Down

Take me down to the bridge~
Where you know that I’ve always loved you~
And we’ll go without stopping~
Oh you are my scar~
And that’s not really far~
By: Eisley ~ Golly Sandra


Heero found himself staring across the snowy and ice packed road to the average sized house found there for the nineteenth time sense he had arrived to this area. He knew Wufei was just through that low iron gate fencing, right beyond that door in the comfort of his home, but Heero just couldn’t bring himself to walk that small last distance. He couldn’t move past the curb of the side walk he couldn’t even go any closer than the inside of this small coffee and cake shop.

He sighs for what seems to be the umpteenth time and directs his gaze to the hot brown liquid, in the red mug, placed before him. Heero wonders why he can’t go the rest of the way, it’s not like he’s going into the battlefield, into an OZ base, or even on a top secret mission where one false move could be life or death. What was his problem really? Wufei wouldn’t kick him out or aside for coming to see him. Maybe it was the fact that he hadn’t see him for two years now and he felt uncomfortable just dropping in.

“Hee-chan stop making excuses, walk on over there and say hi!” Duo cheered.

“It’s not that easy, it’s been two years.” He replied taking a sip and grimacing. The coffe was cold now, much more time must have passed than he had realized.

“Pfft, that has never stopped you before.”

Duo had a point, but this was different.

“Not really Hee-babe.”

“Yes it is. I have no idea what he thinks of me right now.”

“And that bothers you why? Sense when does anybody’s opinion but mine mattered to you?”

“Sense I find myself here and you’re dead.” Heero replied.

“How long are you going to sit in here, drink that sorry excuse for what seems to be coffee, and stare at my house?” Came a deep baritone voice.

Heero nearly choked on said sorry excuse, and slowly raised his eyes to the man just on the outside of his vision. Wufei wasn’t alone either. On each hip he had a small child, probably no more than four, a girl and a boy. Their eyes were almond shaped but their skin was much to dark to be Asian solely.

“Well?” He questioned again with a raised eyebrow.

“I…” Heero started to say but wasn’t sure what he was supposed to be saying. “How did you know I was here?”

“I’ve been watching you for the last two days. Either you’re here to see me or you’re a child predator. Doesn’t matter which you’ll have to deal with me eventually.”

“I-I-I’m…”

“Come on I can’t hold these two forever, I have a nice warm fireplace and real coffee.” With that he turned away and walked out of the shop without a backward glance.

Heero didn’t have much more choice than to follow really, so he left a twenty on the table and swiftly left as well.

***

Heero looked around the inside of the house as he slipped off his boots and hung his coat at the door entrance. It was a rather elegant neatly furnished home. Decorative but comfortable furniture placed around a floor rug in a sitting area, the fireplace the focal point of the room. Green plants placed in niches and on small corner tables to bring in some life, and the lighting was sparse but gave the room a comfy lived in feel. Glancing over at the closed curtains he imagined if it ever got the feeling of to tight or stuffy, that plenty of natural lighting could be introduced easily from there.

“I hope you will be staying here from now on. I have a spare room upstairs that you could use.” Wufei said drawing his attention back to the other man.

He was currently undressing the twins, and Heero grimaced again at the thought that Wufei had gone through all that trouble to go get him from the coffee shop. Dropping down to eye level with the little boy he took off the mittens and wool cap, from there unbuttoning the snaps and unzipping the green puffy winter coat pushing it back and off his shoulders. The young boy was definitely African as well, his black short curly hair was starting to grow out and become something of an afro. Heero smiled he was a cute kid, and he wondered who he belonged and why Wufei had them.

“They’re mine Yuy.” Wufei said patting the girl on her toosh giving her the go ahead to go off and play.

“What?”

“I adopted them. The mother died last year, her boyfriend shot her dead for some money so he could pay some people off. Quatre called me and told me he had African-Asian twins that needed a good home and nobody wanted them. They’re from the L2 colony and he figured I would be willing to take them.”

“Well why didn’t he just take them?”

“I run a space sphere adoption agency remember? He called simply to tell me about them because I would have better luck finding them a home with my resources than the orphanages found in that cluster. I went to pick them up, saw them, and decided suddenly that I wanted to adopt them. We are now a family.” Wufei calmly answered why removing the boy’s boots and patting him off to go play.

“How do you have any money then?” Heero asked looking around the place.

“Well I survive off the war funds, the foundation runs on donations from all over Earth and space. It helps that I’m backed by the two most powerful people known to people. It makes all the other rich people donate to keep up good appearances with the people that vote them into office and such.”
“Well that money might not always be clean, why take money like that.”

“I don’t, because I’m friends with Une and Sally Po they keep me posted on who’s dealing dirty and who’s not. I just postpone the interview and press conferences with those people until they give up and put their money elsewhere.”

“Hn.” Was Heero’s response, is was good that Wufei was keeping tabs, and working in such a good cause, but now he wasn’t so sure why he had come here in the first place. This wasn’t making him feel any better.

“Maxwell, do you visit him?” Wufei asked quietly looking into the fireplace while he seated himself on the camel colored sofa.

“Not very often.” Was all Heero could say.

“I miss him a lot more than I thought I would.”

Heero’s eyes went soft and he adverted his eyes, as well, to the fire place. There was not a moment that didn’t go buy that Heero didn’t ache for that man, that beautiful smile, and that great personality that was just Duo.

“Yeah.”

The two sat in silence as the twins played with some blocks that were scattered on the floor several feet away from the fire. The crackle of the fire and the clinking of wooden blocks the only sound in the room for several minuets the two men thinking about many things, most thoughts centered on the one who was now dead. Heero supposed it wouldn’t be to bad to stay here awhile and catch up with Wufei, maybe even get to know the twins.

“What are they’re names?”

“Jaynce, and Cambree.”

“Those are nice names,” Heero paused looking over at the two. “Good names for them.”

“Well I didn’t name them but I agree.” Wufei said looking at Heero before turning his gaze to the two playing with blocks.

“They’re more quite than I would think a child would be…” He commented.

“According to the therapist it’s because they witnessed the violence and their minds are still trying to understand what’s going on with everything.”

“I guess that would make sense.”

“Isn’t that what you did?” Wufei questioned looking at Heero who stared back.

Heero though about it for a long moment. He hadn’t talked to anybody sense Duo had died, in all honesty this was the first time first person he had talked to, well that wasn’t a figment, sense Duo had passed on. He was doing a lot of firsts as of late. Was he really comfortable doing all of this, or was he doing this because the Duo he had known would have wanted him to? Did it really matter one way or the other?

“I suppose that would be a good guess.”

“Hmm.” Was his only reply the Chinese man turning his gaze back to the fire once again.

This was not as easy as he had convinced himself, and there was so much he had missed. He hadn’t watched anything, read anything, or called anyone in two years. Now he had rather good reason not to want to talk to Qautre or Trowa but maybe he should have kept tabs on Wufei. Maybe then he would have had something to say to Duo when he went and…. No, one didn’t go to a grave and update people who had left them.

“Damn him.” Heero uttered without realizing.

“It’s not like he committed suicide Heero.” Wufei commented softly.

“No but he might as well have. And what did you do but encourage him to let go!”

Wufei paused a moment, thinking on what to say next.

“So you wanted him to suffer for you?”

“What?! No I didn’t say that, that’s not what I meant!”

“Really? That’s how it sounded to me. Yuy as hard as it was as long as he had fought, he had done that all for you. He wanted to live for you, but his body didn’t want to go on. His body couldn’t go on.”

“We have all these vaccinations that we get when we’re younger. We even, twelve years ago, found a cure and stopped the spread of AIDS but we couldn’t save him.”

“Yes fate is a cruel mistress.”

“That’s such bullshit. After everything he had done to survive before then. Even after the war and the Mariemaia incident he couldn’t just live through the cancer. I was going to marry him Wufei, MARRY him.”

Wufei just sat there calmly listening to Heero as he continued to swear and curse. There wasn’t much else he could do but wait until Heero ran out of steam. Was he always like this Maxwell? He wondered to himself.

“Pretty much Wu-man.” Duo said flopping down onto the other end of the couch unceremoniously.

“You are much stronger than I give you credit for then.”

“What?” Heero stopped short breathing hard.

Wufei snapped back to reality and stared at Heero, he hadn’t meant to say that out loud.

“You lost your life when you lost Maxwell. The fact that you are still breathing astounds me. If it were anyone else in that situation they would have taken their own life.” Wufei replied quickly covering up his mistake.

Heero stared at Wufei for a very long while saying nothing, he didn’t have anything to reply to that. It was true, why hadn’t he killed himself to end the pain. Why didn’t he just self-destruct it’s was he would have done during the war. No he would have kept going for the greater cause. The question now was what was the greater cause for him after Duo’s death. What was his reason to live?

A small hand tapped his knee and he looked down to see Jaynce holding a block up to him. Taking the block from him Heero stared down at the crudely carved heart shape. Heero couldn’t help but smile down at the child. Jaynce was cute. It was a little odd he had given him the heart block, if it was supposed to be some kind of sign from the heavens what did it mean?

“What am I to do then?” He asked the little boy.

All he got in response was a crooked smile and the little one wobbling off with a shy glance over his shoulder. Then it dawned on him that he had been yelling and cursing with two small impressionable ears in the room. Maybe he shouldn’t have exploded like he had. Yet the question still remained, what was he to do, and looking down at the block was this really a guiding sign?

“Wufei, I think I would like to stay here awhile and try to figure something out.”

“You can stay here as long as you need to. I did make a promise to Maxwell.”

“Right to hold me when I was ready.” Heero answered.

“Yes, well I’m sure he hadn’t meant it literally.” Wufei said turning away his cheeks burning slightly.

Maybe not Heero thought, but if Duo had trusted Wufei with such a task then Heero could, at the very least, trust him enough to be there to listen.

“Well do you need a ride to get you things?”

“No all I have is what I’m wearing.”

“Okay, let me show you where you’re room is then.”

With that Heero followed Wufei out of the room followed shortly after by the to kids. They had to crawl up the stairs and Heero had to chuckle at the effort they put into the task. After reaching the top they stood back up and their sock clad feet thumped as they ran down the hallway. With a loud squeal from one of them they busted into the room that Wufei pointed out and announced that it would be Heero’s until he left. Wufei also explained where the bathroom was from there and that the twins slept down on the other end near his own room.

“You two get out of Heero’s room.” Wufei called into the room after the two.

“It’s okay they can’t be any worse than living with Duo.” Heero commented.

“Well at least you have experience with children.”

“Yeah, I guess I do.”

The two shared a small smile before it was broken with the twins running out of the bedroom like a tornado making about as much noise as they could. Later that night, when all were in bed, would find Heero at the nursery door looking into the room at the sleeping children nestled in the bed with guard rails to keep them from falling out a smile on his face.