Author: Fugu

Archive: WD ML Archive

Warning: after Endless Waltz, major OOC, major sap, angst and oh yes, pretty plot less

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: purely for entertainment purposes; own some creative copyright on the plot.

Title: In the Depth of Winter

Pairing: obviously most incredibly sappy 2x5(x2). Also 3x4, 1xSally, etc.

Notes: Second arc of PlumWars.

In the Depth of Winter

Chapter 1

Wufei sat in a comfortable love seat in Quatre's luscious library, reading an interesting science fiction book from the late 20th century titled "Dune". He could relate pretty much to Paul, the main hero, where he had lost his family and had to strive and survive for the cost of a greater quest. More so, the imagined techniques of space trivial were quite interesting. Quite a good read really, entertaining and challenging.

Slowly, he put his book down and taking off his reading glasses, rubbed his tired eyes a bit. He stretched taking in a deep breath and coughed a little. Clearing his throat he stood and walked to one of the huge windows and looked out at the snowy Austrian mountain tops. The sky was a beautiful clear blue but snow would fall soon as patches of heavy clouds were coming their way from the mountain. He closed his eyes and let himself merge with the silence until it became noise...and relaxed further.

True this vacation was great idea. He hadn't realized how driven he had been until his 'hubby' had forced him into accepting Quatre's invitation to the estate for the Christmas holidays. Furthermore, Duo had insisted he not think about work and relax totally the minute they were in the car towards the airport. After their arrival at the mansion Duo's obvious 'mission' was to turn his workaholic husband into the best couch potato for the length of the vacation. He formally achieved this by watching Wufei like a hawk and reprimanding him if he did as much as wake up before 10am. He also dotted extensively on Wufei. Although he grumbled about this it was just a facade, he had to admit he quite liked the attention. This quiet pace was a welcome change to the frantic Preventer's Special Ops life he had been leading for what 3 years now?

His eyes opened wide as he just realized he hadn't taken any vacation time in three years! How had he not neglected Duo at the same time he couldn't know. But Duo was his life, second to everything even duty, so he knew ,and Duo reminded him every time he could, that within that hectic life of missions to missions Duo was always loved and cherished when a downtime could permit it and then some.

Noise was coming from outside, below from the snowy grounds surrounding the estate. He smiled as the familiar voices filed in the house now after the sound of the front door slamming close. Duo's doing for sure. And true to his thoughts, a couple minutes later Duo came bouncing in the library flinging his strong arms around his husbands waist and planting a chill kiss on his forehead. For somebody incredibly loud Duo could be incredibly silent too. Except for the door he hadn't heard Duo coming up the stairs to this room.

He sighed and melted contentedly in his husband's taller frame.

Yes taller, to his secret despair the 16/17 year old growth spurt hadn't been to generous with him rendering him the smallest of the pilots. Infuriating really, since at 15 they had all been the same height. Infuriating further, now that Duo was the second tallest of them after Trowa and he liked taking advantage of it too. Oh well...

"Hey babe, we missed you outside." Duo kissed his ear "How was your afternoon?"

Wufei briefly squeezed Duo tighter and went to sit in the love seat again, "I just stayed in the library reading."

Duo followed him, sitting close and gathering and tucking him under his chin. Wufei patiently accepted it. Duo was a tactile kind of person, always cuddling, kissing and all. Wufei had been really uncomfortable at the beginning of their relationship but had just eventually resigned to the inevitable.

"That's good really. You've been really exhausting yourself lately."

"Duo" Wufei admonished "We're Preventers! I'm a Special Op! Of course its hard work!"

"Well yeah, but you don't see me pulling three 72 hours in a row." Duo could just 'feel' Wufei rolling his eyes. " Hey, I'm serious Fei. You really looked like death warmed over the day before yesterday. I mean you were asking for drastic measures here."

As usual a 'simple' reconnaissance mission had turned to hell. After three dreadful weeks of "plotting and spying" as Duo would say, it turned out that they had to put to practice what they had learned instead of handing it to the relief team that would have executed the mission. It had been a tempered fiasco thanks to the levelheadedness of his men. They were prepared after all, just exhausted and hard press to finding the appropriate resources to save their tails, nothing much really. The relief team had come as back-up and everything eventually calmed down. Three injured, no deaths, among a total of twelve, not bad really. However that little adventure had delayed him two weeks into his month vacation and Duo had been beside himself when he'd came home bloody, disheveled and dragging.

" No really man, you were zombified. I really wish I had the time to give Une a piece o' my mind. She shoulda let me join the relief team." He said vehemently.

"Duo, it isn't standard procedure..."

"Fuck standard procedure! 'They're handling it' she said 'They've got back up' 'Wufei says everything's under control' Hohoho! Well we all know what that means!..." Duo ranted venomously.

"Hey!"

Duo continued like he hadn't heard, "That means you're taking the most risks and every aspect of that godforsaken mission that's blown to hell, upon yourself to execute! And don't deny it, I always ask the 'real' version to your men and it makes my blood run cold. "

Wufei grumbled. /Got to remember to tell them to Shuddup!/

" I mean, even if I'm a mechanic, I'm still Preventer and I was a gundam pilot for Chrissaske!" Duo took in a shaky breath and expelled it trying to calm himself down. "Goddammit!"

"Better, now?"

Duo kissed the top of his head and let him go from the suffocating embrace. Wufei coughed a bit.

" Hey sorry, didn't mean to squeeze so hard, hehe"

"No problem , Duo." Wufei smiled that smile that always gave his husband flutters. He straitened himself and taking of his elastic combed his hair out of the ponytail. "But seriously, are you better now?"

"Yeah, yeah, just needed to vent. You just really scared me." Unconsciously, Duo took over the finger-combing. "You were really pale and looked all deflated. I thought you would pass out at the doorstep...Ok, you know we've been together for too long when I start ranting like that!"

Wufei chuckled and Duo was pleased. Wufei had really lightened up, consequence of yours truly and it was for the better. He finally could laugh at himslef and well, laugh simply and but damn did he look good when the laughter reached his eyes, like right now; and Duo just had to kiss him. He did so, a warm peck on the cheek. Wufei looked at him warmly and than closed his eyes as he borrowed further into the cushions enjoying his impromptu scalp massage.

Although his hair wasn't as long as Duo's it had reached below his shoulders and it allowed them to share the hair fetish and weakness in scalp massages.

"You know, I'm not an invalid and if you remember well, I was a gundam pilot too, yes?" Wufei added sarcastically.

Duo laughed. "I know, I know, just let me have my rants ,will you!" Wufei laughed at that and had to clear his throat.

" But seriously, you haven't been sleeping to well for the past two nights and," Duo peered closer " you still look kinda pale to me."

" Worrywart." Wufei patted Duo's tight reassuringly. " I've just been tired. To tired to sleep probably, that's all." He opened his eyes and looking at Duo " This vacation was really a good idea even thought a bit at the last minute."

"Good. But you know,maybe you should take some sleeping pills tonight. I could ask Sally."

Wufei frowned.

"Heyhey! I hear ya! I totally understand the 'no drugs' rule. I hate being artificially down under also but just take the minimum dose okay. You really need it, seriously. And everybody's here, no danger, ey."

True, he had felt somewhat uncomfortable lately, maybe he was coming down with something and sleep would prevent that.

" Okay, I'll ask Sally..." He looked at his watch "...after diner." And on cue Duo's stomach growled loudly.

"Oops!" Duo laughed sheepishly.

" I see you forgot to eat. Again."

"He, well we were having a lot of fun outside, you really missed something and I kinda forgot. But I wasn't the only one!"

"Right. " Wufei indulged. " Well let's remedy to that immediately."

And Wufei purposefully strode out to get his husband fed as Duo scrambled blabbering after him.

Diner was a happy thing.

They hadn't seen each other all at once, in a long time. There was Quatre with of course his shadow Trowa. They'd both changed and stayed the same. They had grown into their own; they were men now. although they had been old before their years with the wars they had lived through, it still took some maturity to internalize and understand what had happened. Quatre's body was now solid and thick to reflect the strength of his spirit and Trowa had cut his bang. He'd accepted that it was okay to have a mysterious past as long as he seized the present to build a good future. It took some time but he quite understood now that he was in charge of his happiness.

Their romance wasn't really a surprise, actually it was quite encouraged as they formed the stable pillar of the impromptu 'gundam family' but the fact that they had married the year before the Mariemaia events had raised a couple of eyebrows.

Seated beside them were Duo and Wufei. Their relationship had been a surprise to all. Really Duo was adaptable, so no big deal, but Wufei didn't seem the type of man that had the patience or more precisely his smiling muscles had been paralyzed since birth.

But really the couple that had made Trowa see white dots, was Heero and Sally. Heero and Sally married two years ago. Heero and Sally that were going to be parents in seven months. Trowa feeling faint had been excusable.

So all the immediate gang was there, only missing were the extended ex-Oz and what not family that would be filing gradually, when their vacation times came, until Christmas Eve.

" So Q, know when the others are coming by?" Duo asked with a piece of ham half in his mouth while brandishing his fork high.

"Duo . Fork."

"Oops, sorry."

Quatre smiled at that. They were so synchronized Wufei had automatically called upon Duo when he was in deep conversation with Sally, back facing his energetic husband. Quatre caught Heero's eyes and they both smirked.

"Hmmm, I'm not really sure. Noin said on the 22nd probably, Relena said 21st..."

"That's tomorrow!"

"Yes she freed herself earlier than thought. Cathy is coming with her," put in Trowa.

"How about Une. We called but could never catch her," asked Quatre.

"She said maybe the 24th but she doubts it."

"Well" said Quatre "The Preventers are pretty busy I see. We were surprised you actually came."

Wufei opened his mouth to reply but Sally beat him at it.

" Duo kidnapped him after Une refused to let him come to work under threat of being fired."

"Yeah, I mean you thought he was scary yesterday night. Shoulda seen him two days ago."

Wufei looked at him crossly.

Not phased at all Duo looked at him more closely, than his plate, than him again. He raised an eyebrow.

"You haven't eaten anything."

Wufei frowned ready to deny his fussy husband and looked at his plate, than deflated.

"Well, I guess I'm not hungry." he said deadpan.

Now Duo was concerned. "How can you not be hungry when you've gone five weeks on mission rations!"

Wufei again was cut in while his mouth was open.

"And I know for a fact that you've missed many meals. I asked some of your men that passed at the infirmary."

Wufei grumbled louder, clearing his throat. /I really have got to tell them to shut the fuck up!/

"You do look kind of beat Wufei." Heero put in.

Wufei just rolled his eyes.

"Really, I do appreciate the concern but don't you think you're pushing it a bit, Duo. Trying to make the others pressure me." He through a look at his sheepish husband.

"Well he didn't really, Wufei," said Quatre "You did look exhausted yesterday. You still do look kind of pale, now." He added concerned.

"Okay, okay I give up." Wufei through his hands up "The mission was hard. I got banged up more than usual. I look like shit and that's all. Now if anyone needs me I'll be in the library." Wufei got up stiffly and stamped out of the room.

"Oh Duo, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to anger him."

Duo sighed. "Hey don't worry Quatre. He's just annoyed." Duo said now truly worried. "He must be coming down with something or he woulda been at my throat already for pestering him like that. He usually has more ranting energy."

" I didn't see him too well yesterday being that you had just arrived and went straight to bed. But now under better light...Where did those dark rings come from?"

"Well he hasn't been sleeping too well lately. Yesterday morning I woke up to him nodding off in our living room sofa in front of the open T.V. and this morning he was asleep in the library's rocking chair."

Heero frowned a little. "We could account for the jet lag this morning. But it did happen at your place. " He looked at Duo who acquiesced. "And your flight arrived at night. You went to bed, Jet lag shouldn't be a problem."

Duo's face had darkened a little and a thoughtful look quickly passed before his customary cheer came back.

" Heh, I don't know but maybe I should go check on him now. " He stood up and started to leave than walked back a few steps and stole Wufei's plate striding out in search of his pissed of better half.

As Wufei neared the stairs he started regretting his outburst. Granted they were laying a bit heavily on him, he wasn't fifteen anymore. He sighed, he must be really tired to be that irritable.

He started climbing the stairs; strange but they seemed steeper than usual.

When he thought about it, he couldn't deny the truth in what his friends were saying. It's true that it wasn't the first time that he came out of a mission dead tired; it had happened more than he cared to count during the war. But he usually recuperated faster than this. And well it wasn't the war. There was no reason really to go at the same pace except for his stubbornness and his perfectionism. He couldn't quite deny the fact that he'd been finding the missions harder than usual. His insomnia and lack of appetite weren't helping. He hadn't told Duo but it had started a month, month and a half ago and the Preventer business hadn't helped at all.

Arriving at the top of the stairs he had to stop unless he fall flat on his face. He had to wait for the walls to stop dancing while he caught his breath.

/I really am tired./

He coughed weakly and after the walls stopped wobbling, made his way to the library.

Duo found Wufei on the same love seat, sitting sideways, one leg folded under him as he faced the window opposite the door. He looked asleep. He'd put his arms loosely around his waist and his hair, which he hadn't bound back, splayed over his left shoulder effectively shielding his face under a silky dark curtain.

Duo fell in love again. He couldn't help it even after two years of marriage, three years of love, six years of friendship; He was just as beautiful as ever.

"Fei baby?"

Wufei jumped and turned his head towards his approaching husband blinking owlishly and breathing hard.

" Ah, sorry, sorry!" Duo hastily said. "Didn't mean to surprise you, calm down."

Duo frowned as he sat down beside his calming luv. Why was Wufei so surprised in the first place? He should have heard him.

" Here," He extended the diner plate. "I brought it with me. Eat."

Wufei brushed his hair over his shoulder and out of his face, clearing his throat in the process.

" I'm not hungry Duo." And he put the offered plate down on the reading table, away from Duo.

Duo's face took a suspicious look. " Are you coming down with something?"

" I don't think so. I'm just tired that's all." Wufei swallowed, "...and I'm sorry for before. It was really immature of me. I understand and appreciate everyone's concern but I'm fine and you have to give me time. It's only been two days and it's not the first time you've seen me less than "peppy". "

Duo hugged his Asian lover and leaned his chin on the crown of ebony hair.

" I know, I know and I'm really sorry. I'll stop being annoying and lay off."

The smaller of the two wound his arms tightly around the waist of the other.

" And I'll be more patient. I understand really, I don't know why I'm so irritable."

He chuckled and coughed a bit.

A moment of silence.

" You know, you've been coughing a lot lately..."

Wufei just had to laugh.