Hindsight is 20x20 Chapter 1: Clouded Vision, a gundam wing/ac fanfic

Gundam Wing(c) to Bandai, Toei, Sunrise, and whoever else. Definitely not mine, definitely not making any sort of profit.

Warnings: Language, angst, some violence, death, mature themes, possible sexual situations

Pairings: 1x2 off and on, 3x4, 6x9 ----Yes it contains shounen-ai/YAOI (if I get inspired enough)you have been warned!----

Summary: The pilots, along with finding new lifestyles, have continued their Preventers duties in various degrees since the Wars. Times have been peaceful until inexplicable attacks begin to sprout all over the ESUN. Meanwhile, Duo and Heero's once-budding relationship strangely and suddenly falls apart, and Duo runs. Heero believes he has lost Duo forever...

: Hindsight is 20/20 :
By StarLight Pixie

''''''''''''''''''''. . . . . . . CHAPTER I: Clouded Vision . . . . . . . ''''''''''''''''''''

The Preventers office was frenzied like never before. In addition to the regular workers, the emergency staffers and even agents from other international, federal, and ESUN organizations rushed around. Throughout the large office, various vidscreens on walls, in cubicles, and on computers projected news channels, or the reoccurring image of an aircraft bursting into flame against a star-speckled black background.

Lady Une appeared to preside over the scene, barking orders, signing papers, preparing with other officials for a press release.

"Une! What's the status?"

The ex-Oz colonel looked up from the chattering group swarmed around her desk and a ghost of relief momentarily appeared on her face. She excused herself and walked as quickly as possible without actually running over to the two who had called her.

"Noin, Zechs... I'm thankful you're here." She gave the fellow ex-officers warm handshakes. "Sorry that I can't give you a proper briefing, but I'm going to need the two of you to join Sally and help her on the immediate reconnaissance and analysis. She already took one group up to the sight, and she can give you any other details."

"And we just came from there," Zechs responded quickly. "That thing came damned near close to catching our own flight in from Mars in the blast."

She nodded. "I suppose we should be thankful that it was restricted to a single flight and did not catch any of the others in the immediate area."

"Do we have a responsibility claim?" Noin asked.

Lady Une shook her head. "Not officially, but some rumors have surfaced about the remnants of the P3 group (1). We're expecting an official announcement within a few hours."

Noin nodded, taking it all in. "We are ready for whenever you need us."

"Thanks." For the first time in that long night, Lady Une heard the suppressed exhaustion creep into her voice. "I'll come back to you two after I finish the meetings."

"Lady Une..." Zechs nodded towards the corner, raising an eyebrow at where Trowa and Quatre sat watching a computer screen and talking quietly. Wufei leaned up against the wall behind them, looking sullen. "Shouldn't they be coming to help us? I'm assuming that you need all your top fieldwork agents on this?"

The commander's eyes misted over in an unusual display of sympathy. "Let them alone for a little while, Zechs... Duo Maxwell was on that flight."

''''''''''''''''XxXxX''''''''''''''''

"...Our news shuttle is on the scene outside the L1 colony cluster, where an unconfirmed terrorist attack has blown up a passenger flight to L2... ESUN Aerospace and Security officials have not made any statements yet, but their mission status has changed from 'search-and-rescue' to 'search-and-recovery', and it is believed that there are no survivors..."

Trowa shook his head in a combination of awe and anger, swearing quietly under his breath after muting the broadcast. The explosion, as caught by L1 external surveillance cameras, replayed silently on the screen. Next to him, Quatre was frozen in anguish, gripping the armrests of his chair tightly and just barely holding tears back. He sniffed lightly.

"My God..." Wufei muttered from where he was standing somewhere behind them, and then added something in Chinese.

The trio was still, the air heavy around them as if it was buffering their corner from the rest of the bustling office. Even though they had watched the explosion several times over, the three former gundam pilots continued to stare, each trying to process the shock in their own way. After a few moments of numb silence amongst them, Trowa frowned as a thought occurred to him.

"Anyone seen Heero?"

Quatre sniffed again. "He's up on the roof."

"What? Are you sure he's..." the emerald-eyed Preventer turned and raised an eyebrow in question at his blonde partner, knowing he didn't need to finish the sentence.

Quatre just shrugged. " 's ok... I think he just wants to be alone."

"He doesn't need to be like that right now," replied Wufei, rare concern edging his voice, "and on a roof, at that. I'm going up there."

As they watched their Asian partner head for the elevators, Trowa murmured, "Wufei? Do you think that's a good idea? It would probably be better if you went..."

"No, no, it's actually a good thing, Trowa," answered Quatre. "They have both loved and lost."

Trowa blinked at him, but surprise couldn't really affect him any more. There was obviously something about Wufei that Quatre knew, but he turned back to the screen without asking. Now was not the time.

''''''''''''''''XxXxX''''''''''''''''

"You know, I like you, Yuy, but not enough to go after you if you take trip over that ledge."

Wufei honestly had no idea what he was going to do as he walked away from the other two and headed for the roof, but by the time he stepped out into the cool night air, he decided on attempting a little lightness. It had always worked on jolting Duo out of a particularly gloomy mood, perhaps the same would happen with Heero.

There was no response, but the dim outline of Heero didn't move from where it was leaning up against the railing.

Wufei slowly walked over and exhaled heavily, joining the Japanese man at the railing. For several moments, there was nothing to break the silence except for the whistle of the breeze toying with their hair.

"I'm not going anywhere," Heero spoke after a while. The Chinese Preventer turned to look at him, but Heero did not meet his gaze.

"That's good news. Some were worrying." It was quiet for another period before Wufei spoke again. "You should stop blaming yourself."

Heero looked sharply at him, his deep blue orbs revealing emotion and pain Wufei had never seen in them before. "What are you talking about?"

Wufei closed his eyes and turned toward the city that stretched out in front of them. He allowed his mind to wander back, back to the days after her death...

"Stop blaming yourself for every little thing that went wrong. For every word said that you now consider the wrong thing to say. For any actions you could possibly link to this that makes it your fault. For all the things you should have said but didn't." He shrugged, eyes still closed.

"Well, I suppose you could, if you really wanted. You could spend hours of your time thinking about the 'why's and 'why-didn't-I's and waste sleepless nights beating yourself up over what you could have done instead of what you did." Heero still stared at him, with eyes that hid self-loathing in their blue.

Wufei's voice fell softer. "Or, you could take the word of someone else who has spent enough time doing that, and try to preserve the best memories instead... before you lose them."

For a long time, the two remained in those same positions, with only the silence to hear.

''''''''''''''''XxXxX''''''''''''''''

"Tro," a young redheaded girl ran up to where he and Quatre were engrossed in the latest reports, "Here... the passenger list. I got a copy just as soon as they released it, as you requested."

"Thanks, Mariemaia."

Quatre had already snatched the thin stack of papers and let it flop into his lap. He simply stared at it, as if dreading the task. But the blonde began to run his finger carefully down the line of names.

A nagging thought tugged at the back of Trowa's mind until he considered it. "Mari... it's late. Shouldn't you be asleep?"

Normally, the feisty girl would smirk, tease, or protest her adopted 'relative', but she just smiled tiredly in response, confirming for Trowa that she really did need to be asleep. "Well, mom's very busy—I don't want to bother her," she answered with a sigh, glancing across the room to Lady Une, still surrounded by a large group. "I told her earlier that I could catch the metro home, but she doesn't want me going alone..."

"Oh, Trowa...!" Quatre's cry interrupted the other two as he bit his lip and his eyes watered. His partner leaned over to read Duo Maxwell, AC-17692-03GE, seat 23B right above his finger(2). He didn't notice when the young lady peered around him to look until she gasped and stepped back from them quickly.

"Duo? Duo was on it!" she exclaimed, her anguished face looking up to meet Trowa's as he turned. "Oh, no..."

Trowa met her gaze, pain and sympathy flickering in his own eyes. Whenever they were both in the office, Mariemaia and Duo enjoyed each other's company, both of them being mischievous and animated. "This is no place for you right now," he said quietly. "Come on, I'll take you home."

''''''''''''''''''''. . . . . . . end chapter I . . . . . . . ''''''''''''''''''''

(1) P3 a.k.a. the "Perfect Peace People", a militant group featured in the GW manga "Battlefield of Pacifists".

(2) Don't mind me, I just made up a random ID number… Heh heh…

Well, anyhoo, I had this great brainstorm in a dream one night (sometimes my best fic ideas come from really weird dreams) but I'm not sure if it will turn out the way I wanted it. The guys aren't really talking to me yet... --pokes G-boys with a spork--

This is the first story I've felt like posting in a looooonnngg time, but now I'm not confident it's going to work. ;-/ Continue? Suggestions?