Setting: Just after the AC-195 war. Possibly AU, but it’s worked in so it doesn’t warp the TV storyline.

Pairings: 3x4, 1+2, Kreigan+5, 13x6

Rating: NC-17 eventually, but this is a softer chapter.

Warnings: Violence, possible OOC? lemon, angst. No NCS - you’ll see why I had to point that out. Several OCs but they don’t necessarily play a big part.

Disclaimers: The only characters here that I own are any alter egos, Kazimiriel, Machiavel, Sarrow and Malvad and a few other characters that’ll pop up. Characters I don’t own include: Heero, Duo, Trowa, Quatre, Wufei, Zechs, Treize and any other good ones in fact.

Also, I would like to note that I am not Christian - anybody that wants to know why can pick one of two courses of action, either accept the fact that I’m a Mahayanist or email me and prepare for a very complex credo - and I’d like to add that this is just a story. If anything in it offends anyone, I apologize very sincerely.

Rough Peace - Part 6

Trowa lay for a while, about an hour, watching his sweet love sleep peacefully before reluctantly getting out of bed and heading downstairs. ‘I know he’s usually awake by now but he needs some rest,’ he thought as he stepped into the kitchen.

The sight before him, albeit a good sight, wasn’t the most ordinary thing in the world. The view consisted of Heero sat at the breakfast table very visibly playing footsie with Duo and enjoying it immensely. The braided boy flinched and bit back ticklish giggles every time Heero brushed the bottom of his foot in between bites of his toast.

Duo caught sight of Trowa and saluted him with his glass of juice, “Hey there Tro-man, how’s Quatre?”

Trowa took up a seat and some toast next to Heero and shrugged. “He was fine last night but he’s completely exhausted. I thought I should let him sleep in today, he’s covered in bruises from yesterday.”

Heero shook his head, “Poor guy,” he remarked, slipping his shoe back on. “From what he’s told us, it doesn’t sound like angels have things very easy.”

“Tell me about it,” Duo said, taking a swig of his juice. “That Niravaana place sounds nothing like I thought I would be. It’s not so much a heaven as a military institute! With all the rules and that Sanhedrin thingy, you’d think it was some kinda dictatorship. Quatre’s probably afraid to breathe in case he puts a foot out of line.”

“All the same,” Trowa began gravely, “Quatre seems to like it. He said himself, he loves it as his home. I can’t understand why he does but… I won’t knock it. If it makes him happy to know and care for that place, I’m not one to say anything against it.”

About then, Wufei walked into the room and pushed a bouquet of flowers in Duo’s face. “Maxwell, what is the meaning of this?” he snapped, holding his hands on his hips and quirking an eyebrow.

Duo frowned at the flowers in his hands and held them back out to Wufei. “What are you goin’ on about?” he asked hesitantly, “I’ve never seen these before in my life.”

“Oh please, Maxwell. Black roses? You’re the only person I know who’d like that kind of stuff,” he replied bitterly. Duo’s confused expression didn’t change. “Well let’s be logical, it wasn’t me, it wasn’t Winner - he’s still in bed - and I can say pretty confidently that it was either of them,” he added, pointing to Heero and Trowa.

“All the same, it wasn’t me,” Duo said quite honestly. “Nice flowers though. Looks like you got a secret admirer, buddy,” he said with a smirk.

Wufei shook his head and snatched the flowers back. “What kind of secret admirer leaves *black* roses in somebody’s bedroom in the dead of night…” he trailed off as he unexpectedly had a memory flash across his mind. The image of Kreigan’s clothing… and the dark gray collar with the rose attached.

He gulped and looked down at the flowers in his hand and felt his heart pound in his chest. “Excuse me,” he stammered and quickly headed up to his room followed by some very bewildered looks from his fellow pilots.

The Altron pilot sat down at his desk and dropped the bouquet onto the table. He stared at the roses and suddenly felt very ill. ‘So that rules out the idea that he was just trying to scare me,’ he thought forlornly as he ran his hands across the velvety petals and the smooth, thorn-free stems.

Wufei knew he had to see him again for his own peace of mind. He needed to know what Kreigan was up to, whether it was just harmless flirting or if he wanted something more than just that… and he needed to figure out if he could see the demon again without feeling that same pull in his gut.

//The darkness is setting in.

It’s so cold… can’t you do something?

They’ve been planning this for too long. It’s not going to be easy to override a rift like this.

A rift? You’re not serious?

Very. It’s extremely deep, the barrier between our atmospheres is ripping apart.

So, you’re saying we need someone from the outside?

That’s the only way. We’re trapped here but an outsider could still move between the realms.

But the only outsider we’ve got is-

I know, I know. As much as he’s never been very obedient, the boy’s got talent.

You’re right. Especially when it comes to metaphysics, and he’s only young.

He’ll need help… maybe those humans.

Yes. But do you think he’s got the guts to do it?

Maybe not, but he’s got no choice in the matter.

We’ll send someone…//

“Trowa, it’s three o’clock,” Duo shouted down the stairs as he walked past their bedroom. “Should I wake Quatre?” He got a positive response from his friend and he swung the door open.

He smiled at the angel lying on the bed, “C’mon buddy, get up,” Duo said lightheartedly. ‘Wow, he really is tired.’ He walked over to his bed and ran his hand gently through Quatre’s hair. “Hey, Quatre wake up. It’s really late.”

Quatre didn’t even flinch.

“Geez, that’s weird. Hey Quat!” he said louder, shaking him by the shoulders. “You’re a deep sleeper aren’t cha?” He nudged him on the cheek and frowned slightly. When the little blond pilot showed no sign of coming round he got up and shouted Trowa.

The Heavyarms pilot sat beside his lover and kissed on the forehead, “Quatre, wake up sweetheart. Can you hear me?”

Duo shook his head, “D’ya think we oughta call a doctor?”

“I don’t think so. I’m not sure they’d react too well to this kind of body,” Trowa said wisely. “Maybe there’s something like a very deep REM sleep in angels. We have to wake him up somehow.”

“This’ll sound really cruel but… maybe pain would bring him round,” the braided boy said hesitantly, pointing to the injury on Quatre’s wing.

Trowa sighed, “It looks like the only option we’ve got.” He turned to the Sandrock pilot and bit his lip, “I’m so sorry, baby,” he whispered kindly, before taking hold of his wing. He wrapped his hand around the wound and wrung it like a sponge.

Quatre’s eyes fluttered open and he gasped. “Trowa? …I have to go home.”

“Home?” Trowa said confusedly before realizing where Quatre meant. “But… why do you need to go there?” he asked desperately, knowing full well that if Quatre went ‘home’, Trowa wasn’t likely to be able to go with him.

The little blond held his head with vertigo. “There’s something wrong… something about space between realms and fabric being worn out… I don’t know, I… I don’t know.” Quatre felt tears well in his eyes, the pain in his limbs was aching so intensely it made him completely disorientated, a strange kind of early morning dizziness had set in and he could barely sit upright let alone figure out what the hell was going on in another dimension.

‘I’m not going to cry, I can’t. I’m a Gundam Pilot for Christ’s sake! I shouldn’t be this weak… but Trowa and Duo would understand. No, it’s not worth it, no matter how painful this is.’

Trowa put his arms gently around his lover and kissed him kindly as Duo sat down next to the both of them. “Still feeling rough, huh?” Duo asked lightly, holding the angel’s hand, “Anythin’ we can do?”

Quatre shook his head, “Thanks, but no. This is something I need to figure out on my own,” he replied, resting his head on Trowa’s shoulder as the gymnast held him closer.

“Well okay then,” the braided boy said reluctantly, getting to his feet. “Oh yeah, you didn’t leave any black roses in Wufei’s room by any chance, did ya?” Duo asked, “It’s a long shot, but someone did last night.”

The angel frowned, “Black roses!? I… where is Wufei?”

“He went out,” Duo remarked with a shrug. “He seemed pretty freaked out by the flowers too. Seems like he’s not used to someone having a crush on him. I wonder if it’s a boy or a girl? It’d be a shame if he had to turn her down.”

Quatre bit down on his knuckles nervously as Duo left the room and turned to Trowa. The Heavyarms pilot raised an eyebrow at his boyfriend’s reaction, “What’s wrong? You look horrified.”

“I think I know who Wufei’s secret admirer is,” Quatre sighed, as he was helped up out of bed by Trowa. “I think I need to go and talk to him.”

--

‘This is why I never bother with a love life of any kind’ Wufei thought to himself as he wandered down to the bay of the stream about half a mile from the house. ‘It’s not worth the hassle. The obscurities, the misinterpretation, the crossed wires and general ambiguity of the whole relationship really gets me. I don’t how Winner and Barton deal with it.’

He took a deep breath and sat down on the sand by the water’s edge. ‘But I suppose it could be worse. All he’s done so far is kiss me and leave me flowers, he hasn’t tried to hunt me down. Plus there’s the added bonus of now having proof that someone could be interested in me like that. Nothing like a crush for an ego boost.’

Wufei rubbed his head and lay back on the soft ground, closing his eyes and letting the sound of flowing water relax him. ‘Just don’t think. Empty your mind and then sift through the thoughts one at a time.’

He wasn’t sure how long he laid there or whether he’d dozed off but once he opened his eyes, he could sense he was being watched. “Oh please, not again,” he sighed, rubbing his face and then sitting up. “Look Kreigan, if you’re there will you come and talk to me?”

“It’s not Kreigan, it’s me,” Quatre said as he sat down beside Wufei.

“Oh,” Wufei mumbled, wondering just how much the angel was going to read into that. ‘Maybe I could talk to Quatre about this’ he mused slowly. “Winner… what’s it like to be in love with someone outside your own race? Is it difficult for you and Trowa?”

Quatre’s eyes widened and he hesitated for a little. It wasn’t often that Wufei ever wanted to discuss anybody’s love lives. “Well, not really,” he began slowly, “I mean, sure if he was an angel or if I was human, it’d be a lot easier on us. There’d be no hidden pasts or secrets or ridiculously huge age differences.”

Wufei looked inquisitively at the little blond, “Age differences? But there’s less than a year between you and Trowa.”

The angel laughed a little, “You’d think that, wouldn’t you? No, I’m talking about the fact that I’m actually three-hundred and seventy-seven years old. Surprised?”

The look on the Altron pilot’s face told him as much. Wufei slowly narrowed his eyes to a reasonable size again and then stared at Quatre. “Three-hundred? …I have to say, Winner, you look great for your age!”

“Thanks, I get that a lot,” Quatre grinned. “But, just about what you said, there are other problems. Problems that, I’ll admit, I don’t really want to tell Trowa about.”

“Like what?”

“The other angels’ reactions mostly,” he said sadly. “Emmanuel in particular was disgusted at me loving a human. I don’t know why he even cares, it’s not like I’m in a high enough rank for me to be important to *him* in any way.”

Wufei shook his head adamantly, “It shouldn’t matter to them, never mind your rank. You love Trowa with all your heart, I’ve seen it myself, and an emotion as wonderful as that should be appreciated just for being in existence, not scorned because of who it’s directed at.”

Quatre’s face fell as he felt the distress and confusion coming from Wufei. He hesitated before putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “I know Kreigan gave you those flowers,” he said softly, tucking his wings back as a quieted reflex. “I can imagine why, but I’ll keep quiet if you’d rather I didn’t-”

Their heads turned to the side as there was a flash and a huge bang as water shot up out of the stream and sent a spray across the two of them. Quatre leapt to his feet as the spray faded and left the image of a phantom from Lymbo across the stream.

The image flickered for a few seconds before the phantom spoke. “Renfredriel Gilchrist?”

Quatre nodded, “That’s me. What’s happening? Am I being asked to-”

“Please! You don’t have much time for talking like this,” the phantom pleaded desperately. “I’m a messenger from your seraphim throngs. You need to get to Niravaana because you can still travel for us. The others have to come with you.”

“What!” Quatre exclaimed reflexively, “But I can’t kill th-”

“I’m just a messenger, sir. We need you back in our realms as soon as possible, please hurry!” With those last words the two Gundam pilots were soaked again as the stream returned to it’s original condition and the messenger disappeared.

The angel sighed in immense frustration and turned to his friend. “Wufei… how much do you trust me?”

TBC…

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