Alone

24 - 'Fei's Answer


"A job well done." Une purred at them when
they got back to the shuttle. She had told
them, allowing no arguments, that they were
going back to earth as soon as this mission
was over - she was only waiting now because
Wufei asked to retrieve something from his
office. She and Sally had thought they had
gotten everything personal, be he'd looked
at the small box of items they had and shook
his head. So Heero went with him, since they
still didn't want to leave him alone, and the
others sat and grinned while Lady Une praised
them for what had actually been an easy
mission.

Wufei went into his office and straight to his
small filing cabinet. Heero watched, bemused,
as he took the bottom drawers out and slid his
arm inside the back of the cabinet. He was
even more surprised when he came back out with
his katana.

"Why were you hiding it?" He asked, as they
started down the hall.

"It kept vanishing." Wufei replied. "I had to
hunt it down several times when it just disappeared
from my office, and it was stolen from my apartment
once. I had to redeem it at a pawn shop. I never
found out who stole it - too many missions. I
didn't have the research time."

Heero grimaced. "Wufei - don't do this again."
He didn't have to say what.

Wufei had the grace to blush. "I won't." He said
softly, and Heero knew it was as good as a promise.

"Where are the rest of your things?" Heero asked
a question Quatre and the others had been meaning
to ask.

"On the shuttle." Wufei replied, blinking at him.

"No - where are your other swords, and all your
books? You didn't keep your apartment on Earth,
did you?"

"No. They're..." He stopped. They were going
past Hernbeck's office, where the man was packing
his personal belongings under the gimlet eye of
the Internal Affairs man. Wufei stared at a
large picture Hernbeck was taking off the wall
- it was of his entire family, taken at a reunion
a year or so before. Hernbeck was very proud of
his lineage, and often gave his Agents lectures
on the people in the picture, explaining their
lives and history and why they were superior to
everyone there. Even Wufei had been subjected
to several. Now he stepped into the room,
willingly looking at the ‘Portrait of Doom' as
the Agents called it, for the first time.

"Well," he said softly, "that's a bit anti-climatic."

"What?" Heero asked, while Hernbeck jerked
around to stare at them.

Wufei gestured to the picture, waiting to see
if Heero saw what he saw. His partner gazed at
the large photo for a long moment while Hernbeck
blustered, the presence of the other Agents
keeping him from saying too much.

"Ah." Heero said suddenly, his eyes settling on
the tall man standing next to the Major in the
picture. "I see. Boss Man." He had only seen
Wufei's sketch once, but easily recognized the
man from it.

"Mmm," Wufei agreed, "your brother, wasn't it,
Major? I mean, Mr. Hernbeck?"

The Major only snarled at him, turning away and
starting to put the picture into a large box.
The IA man stepped forward and stopped him.

"Now, now. No removing evidence, remember?" He
took the picture and handed it to one of his
own men. "You'll inform Lady Une, I suppose?" He
asked the two pilots. They nodded, and he
gave them a half-smile in return.

Hernbeck watched as the Internal Affairs men
studied the picture, his hands twitching with
the need to snatch it back. How dare they...
the peasants! How *dare* they even consider
themselves good enough to *look* at his family?!
He turned feverish eyes on the two boys standing
by the door, saw the tall one's blue eyes turn to
look down at Agent Chang. Some unknown force made
the smaller Agent's head lift to gaze back up at
him - then he saw something he'd never seen in
all the months he'd kept the damn boy here.

Chang smiled.

Hernbeck snapped.

He roared out an inarticulate curse and jumped
for Wufei. Heero's eyes snapped to him and he
started to move to guard his lover. Before he
could even shift his weight, Wufei had moved away
from him, standing easily, waiting for Hernbeck
to reach him.

He would never attack the man on his own, but
no one would blame him for defending himself.

He smiled again, an arrogant smirk that made
Heero grin like Duo and made Hernbeck even angrier.
The big man launched himself at the boy, fists
swinging.

Heero settled against the doorframe, folding
his arms casually. ‘Hmm,' he thought to himself,
‘Wufei sure hasn't lost any skill since the
last time I saw him fight.' Indeed, if the
grinning IA men didn't move in soon, Hernbeck
was going to have to visit the hospital before
they'd be able to book him for his offenses.
The man didn't seem to know when to quit, howling
and throwing wild punches at Wufei. *He* blocked
them all with ease, moving like quicksilver, never
landing a punch or a kick until Hernbeck swung at
him, driving him back as he tried to use his
height and weight to overcome the slim boy.

The men watching winced through their smiles as
small hands and feet thumped solidly against
Hernbeck's torso. Wufei was holding back, just
hitting hard enough to leave the man with lovely
bruises instead of broken bones. Hernbeck was
going to be miserable if he didn't back off soon.

Heero shook his head sadly. What an idiot.

Hernbeck stopped for a second, panting heavily,
and stared at the little Agent he hated. How...
how was he doing this? Was this why he came back
from those missions with minor injuries or
without a scratch on him when other Agents were
hospitalized? Hernbeck had believed, and spread
the rumors, that Chang let the others do the dirty
work before he stepped in and took the glory.
They had all calmly ignored the fact that it didn't
explain how he also aced his solo missions.
The little bastard was *good*! How could he be...?
How *dare* he be better than his Commanding
Officer?! He couldn't be! This was a... a fluke!

He screamed out his fury one last time, snatching up
the long, round paperweight he'd kept on his desk.
Solid glass and shaped roughly like a snake, it had
cost a fortune but he was willing to sacrifice it for
a good cause. He lifted it over his head and brought
it slamming down toward Chang.

Wufei was fed up. He'd given the idiot every chance
he was willing to give. If he was going to be so
dishonorable as to bring a weapon into the fight,
he could just take the consequences. He easily dodged
the clumsy blow and spun around, putting all his weight
and force into a straight-leg kick to the center of
Hernbeck's chest.

"Oof!" one of the IA men gasped appreciatively as
Hernbeck went flying back, tumbling completely
over his desk to land on the floor on the other
side. Heero smirked at him and strolled forward
to stand beside Wufei, who wasn't even breathing
hard.

"Done?"

"I was done before I started." Wufei said calmly,
watching as the IA men pulled Hernbeck to his
feet - they weren't being very gentle with him.
Their superior grinned at the two young Agents.

"He'll certainly be easier to handle now. Such a
shame, trying to attack an Agent like that. I'll
definitely be adding this to the charges." His
grin was getting wider and wider, especially when
Hernbeck, swaying and moaning from his injuries,
groaned louder at his words.

There were times when he truly loved his job.

"We need to go." Wufei said softly. Heero nodded,
remembering the others were waiting, and they
started back down the hall. After a moment Heero
went back to his former question.

"Where are the rest of your things? They weren't
stolen, too, were they?"

If they had been, he wasn't leaving this colony
until he got them back for Wufei.

"No. They're in a storage facility on Earth. I
never expected..." he trailed off.

"To be here this long." Duo finished for him,
appearing from nowhere beside them as they walked.

Wufei nodded.

"Well, that just makes this easier."

"What do you mean?"

"Easier for you to move in with us. If your stuff's
in storage, it's already packed, right?"

Wufei stopped short. "M-move in with you?!" All
the doubt and uncertainty he'd struggled with
earlier came rushing back at those words. They
wanted him to live with them?!

"Aw, c'mon, ‘Fei." Duo stepped behind him, sliding
an arm around his waist and hugging him tight.
"You didn't really think we were going to let you
go, did you?"

"I..."

"We aren't." Heero replied, putting a hand on
his shoulder.

"So don't bother trying to get away." Duo teased.
"We'll just hunt you down again."

Wufei blinked at them, taken by surprise and
absolutely uncertain what he should say.

"C'mon, ‘Fei." Duo chided softly, tightening
the arm he had around him. "We told you we loved
you. Didn't we show you, too? We want you with us."

"For... for how long?" Wufei finally managed,
feeling like his world was spinning out of control.

"Forever." Heero replied, his voice low as he
stepped closer to his lovers.

"Forever." Duo echoed, dropping a kiss on Wufei's
slim bronze neck.

Wufei sighed and very nearly melted into a puddle
- Duo was taking blatant advantage of the sensitive
spot Heero had discovered the other night.

Duo pulled him back into an empty office, out of
sight of any curious Agents who might be wandering
the halls. Heero followed, easing the door shut
behind him. They didn't need an audience for this.
He moved to wrap his arms around both the smaller
boys, holding them close.

"Are... are you sure..." Wufei tried again, unable
to grasp the concept that they really wanted him.
*Why* would they want him? He wanted them, had for
years, but the idea that they might want him in return
had never occurred to him - well, until the other
night - and he still couldn't wrap his mind around the
thought that it was more than just a one-time thing,
based on physical attraction. It didn't help that he
had no idea what they found attractive about him.

"This is perfect." Heero said softly, tightening his
arms to explain what he meant. "This is the way I want
to stay."

"Me, too." Duo whispered, rubbing his cheek against
Wufei's while he wrapped his free arm around Heero
and pulled him even closer. "This is the way we were
meant to be, ‘Fei."

Wufei still wasn't sure - he had the horrible feeling
that this was a dream. Or a joke. No, not a joke, his
comrades wouldn't be that cruel to him - but a dream
was a very real possibility.

And if it wasn't a dream, and he said yes - what if
they changed their minds?

~ But I can't live my life like I used to - can't go
back to what I was before. ~

"I - don't know." He tried, searching for words to
explain his doubts to the two boys looking at him so
eagerly.

Duo and Heero didn't have any doubts. But they
understood what was going on - it had taken them
almost two years to struggle this out, to become
comfortable with the idea of two lovers before
they'd broached the subject to each other. Wufei
had two days. It was no wonder he was gazing
at them with such doubtful, wistful eyes.

It was the wistful bit that kept them going. Wufei
wanted them, whether he realized how much or not.

"‘Fei, don't you want to be with us?" Duo deliberately
played against the trace of longing he
saw on the smaller boy's face.

"I... yes... but..." A little embarrassing to admit
he was so weak, that he *wanted* what they were
offering so badly - but they didn't seem to think
so. They looked thrilled.

"But what?" Heero pressed him a little further.
Wufei wondered again when he had learned to
speak so easily. He'd always been so silent
and abrupt. Now he was asking questions about
emotions and relationships, for gods sake!

‘I guess Duo's been good for him.' he thought,
while trying to come up with a reasonable answer
to Heero's question.

"But nothing, ‘Fei." Duo broke in. "What are
you thinking, that we're going to get tired of
you in a few days and toss you out? Not going
to happen. This isn't just a fun little idea
that we had the other day. Years, ‘Fei, we've
been wanting you for *years*. We *are not* going
to let you go. We want you and you need us.
You can't live your life alone."

~ I can't live my life afraid, either - if they
change their minds later, they just do... I
guess... I'll take the chance... ~

"All right," he said, so softly they almost
couldn't hear him. "For... for a while."

"For always." Duo pushed, not happy with ‘a
while.'

"For as long as you want me." Wufei conceded,
but would go no further.

"Then we get our forever." Heero said softly.

"And it's about time." Duo whispered, kissing
‘Fei's neck again, enjoying the little sigh he
got in response. "It's about damn time. Let's
go home."

"Home," Heero agreed, "together."

‘Together.' Wufei thought as they loosened the
hold they had on each other and moved toward
the door, knowing Une and the others were waiting
for them in the shuttle. ‘Beautiful word.'

Together.

For as long as it lasted.

At least for now, he wouldn't be alone.


~owari~

A/N: Don't DIE, I'm writing a lemony Epilogue...