Song Without Words. (1/1)

by Anne

Ratings/warnings: OK (Oz/Kiwi spelling/grammar etc) – PG13 – Sap, romance.

Author's notes: Written for the gw-500 LJ community. The theme was music. Word count: 688

Pairings: 3x4, 2x5.

Summary: Quatre and Duo talk about music and poetry.

Archive:

Disclaimer: Gundam Wing belongs to Bandai, Sunrise and Sotsu Agency. I promise to return the characters in one piece, more or less, when I'm finished, but hold no liability for any broken bones or psychological trauma sustained by them in my fiction.

Thanks to: haraamis for the quick beta, and to Shadow for looking it over and assuring me that the muses had known where they were going with it after I'd finished it.

Comments to: anneo

"There's something," Duo asked, tapping the side of his glass, "I've always wondered about."

"Hmm?" Quatre answered absently, taking another sip of beer.

"I know that shortly after you met Tro, the two of you played a duet." Duo's curiosity had finally decided to get the better of him.

"And?" Quatre put his glass on the table, his attention now focused on his friend. Both Trowa and Wufei were running late, and Duo was getting restless.''

"What makes you think there's an 'and'?" Duo teased, amused that Quatre was blushing.

"I know you." Quatre glared. "Alcohol makes me turn pink when I've had a few, okay? It's why I don't usually drink much in public."

"Did I say anything?" Duo raised his hands in mock surrender.

"What did you want to know about the duet?" Quatre studied his glass intently; his eyes were slightly out of focus, and there was a slight smile playing on his lips.

"Was that when you knew that he was the guy for you?"

"No." Quatre's smile faded. "That was when I knew there was some kind of connection between us. It was too early to know if, given the chance, it might develop further. We were very young, Duo, and something in his music spoke to me, touched me. He was another pilot, possibly a friend, but I didn't know whether I would ever see him again." His voice grew quiet, and when he spoke again, Duo could hear the ghost of the teenager Quatre had been when they'd first met, rather than the self-assured man he'd grown into over the past ten years. "That duet was the first time that we'd done something together, that we'd merged our separate talents into one to produce something beautiful. It gave me hope that if we could do that, then the mission I'd been given had a chance to truly succeed."

"It spoke to you?" The duet was something neither of his friends talked about, and up to now, Duo hadn't asked.

"In here." Quatre laid a hand on his heart. "We didn't say anything to each other while we played, the instruments did that." He paused. "When I play my violin, it's an extension of me, the music flows through me like poetry, the notes saying what I can't." The smile grew radiant again. "We all have poetry within us, Duo. It's just the way in which we express it that differs."

"I guess," Duo shrugged, not certain how to answer. Sure, that might be true for some people, but he didn't do poetry. It wasn't his thing, and as much as he did appreciate reading it, he'd never felt the urge to put pen to paper.

"Just how much have you drunk, Cat?" Trowa sounded amused as he slid into the seat next to Quatre and kissed him on the cheek. "Sorry we're late."

"It's okay," Quatre said. "You're not that late." He squeezed Trowa's hand and smiled. "Duo and I have been talking about music and poetry."

Trowa raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"I'll tell you about it later," Quatre promised. "Hello, Wufei."

"Quatre," Wufei gave him a nod and a smile, then sat down next to Duo. "I was held up at work," he explained. "Trowa was kind enough to wait." He shifted slightly, subtly moving closer to Duo, his hand slipping discretely around Duo's waist. Duo grinned; he always felt as though a part of him was missing when Wufei wasn't there.

Quatre leaned over the table, giving Duo a wink, his smile broadening as he glanced between his two friends. Duo frowned, wondering what he'd missed. He leaned into Wufei's touch, contentment washing over him.

A touch, a smile, a whispered word.

And Duo knew in that moment that Quatre was right. It was just the expression that differed, the timbre of their duet and the notes of their tune.

No. He shook his head and took another swig of beer, not sure why he'd bought into it, even for that short time. Wufei could be very eloquent, but not him. No, he wasn't a poetry kind of guy.

Fin