Tripartite
by ReySolo

Prologue

The quiet strains of a flute and violin singing together resolved into one pure, elegant note, then dwindled into silence.

Green and blue eyes met, sharing a peaceful, loving gaze, when one pair of eyes noticed a sudden glint of something out the window...

"GET DOWN!"

The peace was shattered—followed shortly by the window.

Both figures hit the ground, one with a bit more force than the other.

"QUATRE!"

Ignoring the shards of broken glass slicing up his hands, Trowa crawled toward his husband, his eyes glued to the splotch of blood growing on the other's shoulder.

Quatre groaned and sat up, careful to remain below the window ledge to avoid giving the shooter another shot. "I'm okay," he assured his anxious partner. "It's just a graze."

Disbelieving green eyes assessed the wound, but after a moment, Trowa accepted the diagnosis. Turning to the now more urgent issue, Trowa pulled a walkie-talkie from his belt. "Barton to all units: sniper somewhere in the southeast gardens, shots have been fired into the music room. Find and restrain shooter, NOW."

She locked the door to her office, walked to the elevator, and hit the button for the parking garage. When the doors opened on the nearly empty garage, she started toward her car, then froze.

"Who's there?"

A figure emerged, and she couldn't hold back a gasp.

"Y—"

"I have information on a threat to peace. I need the G5 team."

She quickly recovered from her shock. "Okay, come in tomorrow, and we'll arrange—"

"No. They'll find out. I need to do this, but I need help from the best—from those I trust."

"And how do I know I can still trust you?" she asked coldly.

"You don't, but you'll have to."

There was a silent exchange of glares for a moment, before she sighed and broke eye contact. "What do you need me to do?"

If he was surprised or relieved by her capitulation, he didn't show it. "I'll contact them myself; I just need you to agree to some 'vacation time' when they request it."

"How long?"

"Unknown. Should be less than a month." A pause. "And for now, you know nothing about this. As far as you know, they are doing nothing more than taking a break from work."

"Understood."

He gave a curt nod, and was gone before Une could say another word.

Chapter 1

Duo

"Man, that was great. I just love old movies. They're so corny. Like that part in the second one, where the guy jumped from one shuttle to another, in space without a suit, following a 'path of air'? I mean, come on..." I know I'm rambling more than usual—Fei's amused smirk would have told me if I hadn't already known—but I just can't help it. Fun movies always do this to me, and we're currently walking back from a marathon of three AC20's in a row. It was great, and I think Fei had even enjoyed it, though he showed it a bit differently.

These Friday nights out had started as grudging turn-taking, as we wanted to spend time together, but there were a lot of activities we really couldn't agree on. Sure, we both enjoyed working out and sparring down the street at Mrs. Tran's. Other one-on-one sports were fun, too, except that I didn't play basketball anymore, since... We also loved Sunday nights at home, playing chess or Go, cuddling on the couch, or engaging in more… active… bedroom activities (or bathroom, or living room, or kitchen, or… you know what I mean). However, whereas I loved cheesy action movies, Fei preferred more formal—aka stuffy—outings such as classical music concerts and ballets. To compromise, we had alternated between things we both enjoyed and activities one of us loved and the other tolerated. Eventually, though, I started to see the draw of some of Fei's favorite performances (I still hated wearing a tux, even if Fei somehow managed to look damn sexy in his own penguin suit), and I think he's started to enjoy some of my taste in movies, as well.

I must have stopped rambling and instead been lost in thought, as we now appear to be standing in front of our townhouse. I've apparently also been ignoring Fei, since I first come to when his tongue is down my throat, in the process of giving me a very pleasurable tonsillectomy. My body responds before my mind does, but eventually my brain once again kicks in, unfortunately just as he pulls away.

"I thought that would get your attention," he smirks.

My eyelids lower seductively. "That it did. Now, care to take me inside and make sure you keep hold of my... attention?"

He leans forward to give me a quick, teasing peck before pulling the keys out of his pocket.

As he pushes open the door, I'm about to grab him for another, lengthier kiss, when I freeze. I notice his shoulders tense as, in less than a second, I'm on the other side of him with my gun out and pointed at—

"Heero???"

The first man I loved.

A man for whom I had yearned for far too long.

A man who died over two years ago.

It was supposed to be a simple mission—get in, find proof that the insurance agency was actually a cover for an organization in the process of creating mobile suits, get out. We weren't planning on the building blowing up.

There was a daycare center on the second floor. Naturally, that was the priority of the rescue workers. Not the insurance company on the fourth floor—even if there had been a Preventers agent in there at the time, even a Preventers agent who had once been a Gundam pilot, who had saved the world multiple times over.

Kids are more important. I accepted that. Hell, I found one of the two surviving children and returned her to her weeping mother. But the woman's hysterical thanks for returning her daughter didn't make me feel any better as I stared at the burnt-out remains of the building that had taken my Heero away from me.

Quatre and Trowa did their best to help me through my grief, but Wufei was the one who was really there for me. He held me when I cried, yelled at me when I tried to drown myself in my sorrows, listened to me as I learned to reminisce about my good times with Heero instead of dwelling on my loss, coaxed me back to work when I really needed to do something again.

Then, when Heero had been gone for over a year, I realized Fei was becoming more than just a friend to me. I worked hard to convince first myself, then Wufei, that beginning another relationship would not be a betrayal of Heero's memory. We took it slowly, and eventually became lovers. I still loved and missed Heero deeply, but I began to realize my love for Fei was just as strong as it had been for my first love.

Now, it appears the reports of Heero's death have been greatly exaggerated. I'm ecstatic about that, don't get me wrong, but—what the hell do I do now?

Heero

I thought I had prepared myself for this moment. I thought wrong.

When I arrived here and found no one home, I knew the more appropriate thing to do would be to wait outside until they returned. However, I wanted—needed—that time, somewhere safe and familiar—to ready myself. After I entered, using the lock picks that Duo still kept above the door frame, I found that I would not get exactly what I desired.

The living room was still essentially the same as I remembered, but there were little differences. Minor changes I should have expected, but I was surprised—and, though I was ashamed to admit it, disappointed—to see nonetheless. That old ugly yellow chair was finally gone, replaced by a leather recliner. The newest gaming system sat before the widescreen television. The bookshelves now contained many unfamiliar titles, including several in Chinese. The most painful, however, were the framed photos placed around the room. Yes, a few were the same—Duo's favorite of the five of us, taken right after the second war; the professional photograph of Quatre and Trowa from their joining ceremony; one of Duo and me together. One. Several more of Duo... with Wufei.

I decided not to check out any other rooms. One was more than enough. I sat on the ugly flowery sofa that Duo had declared the "comfiest couch ever," which apparently meant sinking down so far that it was necessary to push off the armrest to get up.

New recliner be damned.

Now, the moment I'd been awaiting is here, and I'm simply staring at him motionlessly. I think of all the things I want to say to him. I missed you. God, how I missed you. I love you. I need you back in my life. Aloud, I say, "Duo." My eyes drift to the other in the room, and I swallow. "Wufei." I turn my gaze to the wall before me—a photo-free portion of the wall. "We have a mission."

There's a moment of silence; then, suddenly, Duo's furious face is inches from mine, which is throbbing with sudden pain from the fist that just hit it. "A mission," he spat, once I had regained my bearings enough to stand up straight and meet his eyes as calmly as possible. "You're gone for fucking two years, we thought you were fucking dead, and the first fucking thing you say when you're back from the fucking grave is that we have a fucking MISSION??" His voice started cold and deadly, but quickly progressed to an almost-hysterical scream. His breath is fast and heavy and I can't tell if he's preparing for another punch or about to burst into tears or both.

Before he can do either, and before I can rethink my actions, I grab him tightly by the arms and stare deeply into the eyes I've missed so badly. My mouth works, but no words come out, so I simply lean forward and press my lips to his. He responds almost instantly, and, to employ an overused but currently appropriate cliché, it's like coming home. I close my eyes and nearly lose myself in the familiar warmth. Our tongues slide hungrily around each other, as my arms wrap possessively around his body. He gives a small whimper of pleasure, and I'm sure nothing can ever make me let go of this again, when I realize that something is not quite right. Duo tastes...

Eyes snapping open, I pull away abruptly. He moves forward a bit, lips still seeking mine, then his eyes open slowly. "Wha...?"

As gratifying as it is to know that I'm still capable of rendering him speechless with a kiss, I am unable to fully appreciate that fact. Staring at the empty entryway, I take a shaky breath. "And that's exactly why..."

He blinks, comprehension—and horror—slowly dawning. "Fei?" he asks the room. Pain flashes across his face, quickly replaced by fury. "Damn!" A second later, I'm once again alone in the familiar-but-different living room.

From the fireplace mantle, Wufei's image glares accusingly at me, his arms wrapped around a smiling—not grinning, but smiling, the smile that used to be for just me—Duo.

I close my eyes and turn away, resisting the urge to pull my gun and pump a full round of lead into the picture.

Duo...

To Be Continued