Warnings: AU, TWT, angst, shonen ai, some language, mentions of yaoi.
Author's Notes: My muses spent a LONG time vacationing with Shira's muses. Duo and Wufei finally decided to come back and they brought with them the inclination to write this little fic start to finish. Don't blame me!
Main Pairing: 2+5
Dedication: This fic is dedicated to Shira for sending my muses back to me and to Rhina for allowing me to care about her. The part of Vow is written in memory of Patches.
Dark Clouds and Silver
A Gundam Wing Fic
By: Yuuki Miyaka
Chapter Seven
The day after Duo left, Wufei enjoyed the peace and calm of his house. Duo's presence, while not loud or obnoxious, had nevertheless been disruptive to the rut he'd been in before the braided ex-pilot had shown up on his doorstep. The second day, Wufei decided to go out to the park. The house seemed just a touch confining, just a little dark. By the end of that week, Wufei realized that he was lonely again. Only this time it was worse. This time, he had his memories to point out precisely what was wrong. And he was beginning to think that amnesia would be a blessing.
In response to this latest bout of loneliness, Wufei headed to the Animal Control Centre. Perhaps a pet would help give him some companionship. It certainly couldn't be any worse than what he'd had to put up dealing with Duo or Quatre in safehouses. When he walked into the ACC initially, he'd been planning to look at the dogs, deciding that getting some sort of puppy and training it would give him a suitable guard-dog. But something pulled him to the right door instead of the left, until he was roaming through the small room that held far too many cats in cages. Some were older, gazing at him with eyes far too jaded for an animal to ever wear. He couldn't quite bring himself to reach out to them. They were too aggressive in their hatred of humans. But . . . there was one, one only, who came up and rubbed itself against the bars of the cage as though it wanted out. It looked too small to be here and he asked the caretaker if he might hold it.
The caretaker agreed readily, opening the cage and allowing Wufei to wait patiently, hands spread just under the cage door, as the kitten deigned to step down into his hands. She was tiny, delicate, her grey fur almost silver. Just as he was told that she still had her claws, she used them to climb up his shirt, finally coming to rest on his shoulder. He blinked, then smiled. Ten minutes later, the money had changed hands, the papers had been signed, and he'd adopted one tiny, grey kitten. And she rode all the way home on his shoulders.
On the way, he stopped, picking her up a scratching post that doubled as a secret hideout, a food dish and water dish, and a collar and leash. Impulse led him to getting some catgrass and a couple of fake mice for her to chase as well. And still he didn't have a name for her. He didn't settle on a name until much later that evening, when he sat in front of the window, curled up in a chair with the small kitten in his lap, one hand stroking slowly over her fur. "I'll call you Vow," he told her quietly, and she looked up at him, mewling once and bumping his hand with her head. Clearly, Vow was annoyed he'd stopped his petting.
He shifted in his sleep, coming slowly to wakefulness and immediately aware that if he moved his head, he ran the risk of dislodging his bed's latest inhabitant. Vow had taken to sleeping on his pillow, cuddled up against the top of his head. He didn't understand the attraction, but he also didn't mind. It felt good to have someone so nearby, even if that someone was tiny and had fur instead of larger with a single, long braid. "Evening, Vow," he said softly, dragging himself out of his bed to go in search of some tea and a saucer of tuna for his nighttime friend.
The saucer went on the kitchen table. He'd learned immediately that Vow would not be refused if she wanted to go somewhere, though he'd also figured out that a spray bottle of water was a handy thing to have nearby. Thankfully, she was an agreeable companion, not prone to hysterics or acts of vengeance. And something about her reminded him of Duo. It wasn't her eyes, for they were a clear, beautiful green color. Her fur wasn't the color of his hair. Wufei finally pinned it on her playful personality and lithe grace, then spent the next hour angry with himself for bothering to dwell on Duo. The man would return when he was ready, and all Wufei could do was wait and hope.
So he set up the chessboard, playing against himself as though he could bring Duo back so easily. The movements were mechanical. The discussion he had with Vow was not. And in the end, he realized that he'd finally accepted that Duo would remain gone for a long time.
Time, Wufei decided slowly, had a strange way of healing pains suffered. He'd kept up with Duo's travels through the sparse digital mails the cheerful man sent back to him. He'd answered the mail that came to him after Duo visited with Quatre and Trowa immediately. It was comfortable, friendly. The d-mail that came after Duo paid his respects to Heero and Relena was a trifle more distant, however, and Wufei had given it some thought before finally answering.
It was after Duo's confrontation with Hilde that he mentioned the thought of returning to seminary school in his d-mail. Wufei took his sweet time answering that one. He found it not only difficult to envision Duo as a priest but painful to think of Duo somewhere other than with him. He spent three midnight chess sessions agonizing over what he would finally say to Duo about it. But eventually, he sent his best wishes, knowing that Duo needed them more than he needed pleas to return. That d-mail marked a significant change in Wufei's demeanor. He returned to the cool, aristocratic man who'd flown a Gundam. Only Vow was proof against his rapier wit and aloof attitude, and only Vow received all of his love and attention. And the pain grew worse.
"Damn, 'Fei, you can really be a bastard when you want to, huh?" Duo's voice asked him from the doorway, and Wufei turned, raising one black-silk eyebrow. The mild glare did nothing to dissuade Duo from entering the room, the faint sounds of another gallery showing disappearing as he closed the door behind him. "What? You don't think I saw the way you treated that woman? All she was trying to do was praise your work and you cut her to shreds with your tongue. Guess she's lucky that you didn't have your sword here, or she really would be in ribbons."
"All she was trying to do, Duo, was get into my pants. I told you how I felt about sex with no love," he replied calmly, turning back to inspect the delicate waterlilies in the picture he'd been contemplating before Duo arrived. He heard the rustle of clothing as Duo approached, then felt an arm drape around his shoulders. Wufei stiffened, not wanting to pull away and desperate to get away from that dangerous touch.
"Yes," Duo said sadly, looking at the painting as well. "You did. I just think it'd be a good thing for you to find someone and settle down. That damned cat of yours isn't enough and we both know it." He turned Wufei to face him and the golden skin of Wufei's cheeks tinged pink with nervousness.
"I can't. Maybe when I can finally get past . . . everything, I can, but not now. I'm sorry, Duo." The words were contrite, apologetic, and Wufei felt precisely as he spoke. Duo smiled sadly, reaching up to stroke his cheek once. The quality of the gesture was tender, compassionate. It caught at Wufei's heartstrings, but he stood still, afraid to move.
"Wake up, Wufei. Quit beating yourself up. Enjoy life, and remember the good parts." And Duo vanished.