A/N: Inspired by just about every supernatural sci-fi/fantasy thing I've ever read. In particular, a shout out to Jim Butcher's Dresden Files… 1x2X3, 5x?, 4x? Expect multiple pairings, some het and some not, and also some breakups and…changes.
Warnings: Language, violence, sex, language. Angst. AU. Gore.
A/N #2: So sorry about the long time in between updates. I was sick, and then it was winter time and it was cold… but I'm over it now. Thanks for hanging in there!
A/N #3: Thanks to my awesome beta, Cuzosu, who will – after this chapter – keep me on track for an awesome finale!
Umbra
Chapter Seventeen
When Duo woke the next morning it was just after dawn, and the weak, grayish light that streamed in under the blinds barely illuminated the bedroom. He could see well enough to notice that he was alone, however, and the spots on either side of him were cool, indicating that both Heero and Trowa had been up for a while.
He lay there for a few more minutes, staring up at the ceiling and trying to banish the memories and nightmares that had plagued his sleep. Images of Solo being tortured refused to go away, and Duo's last sight of him – his golden, tanned skin and hair spattered with his own blood and his vivid blue eyes narrowed in hatred – was seared into his own eyes. Even blinking didn't seem to clear it.
Duo forced himself to get up and looked around for clothing. Finding none he decided to venture downstairs.
Heero and Trowa were in the kitchen, both dressed and nursing cups of coffee, and they looked up with neutral, slightly guilty expressions when he entered.
Duo arched an eyebrow.
"Talking about me?" He asked.
"Discussing possible strategies for dealing with Treize and Solo," Heero said, completely unapologetic.
"Any extra clothes?" Duo asked, feeling a little ridiculous standing naked in front of both of them.
Heero moved to the pile of Walmart bags on the floor and after a moment pulled out a pair of boxers, jeans, and a black, long sleeved t-shirt that he passed to Duo.
"Thanks," Duo said. He started to put the clothes on.
"There's also tea – it's not loose, but it is Earl Grey," Heero added.
"That would be nice," Duo said.
Heero nodded and filled a mug with water before sticking it in the microwave. Duo winced at the thought of microwaved water, but he decided that of all the things he had to deal with right now, drinking poorly prepared tea was the least of his issues.
He took the box of tea and honey that Heero handed him and prepared the tea as best he could after the water was hot.
The other two men were still silent, and Duo could feel the tension between them. He sighed.
"Okay, just tell me."
He brought his cup of tea over to the kitchen table, sitting down across from Trowa and beside Heero.
"Solo is a murderer," Heero started. "He's clearly lost any attachment to reality – and morality – and we have to kill him before he endangers anyone else. Including you."
Duo sighed. "Solo is the most powerful Ephemeral I, and anyone else on the Council, have ever seen. He can control shape shifters – he can control me– I don't see how we can stop him. Much less kill him. And I – hell, Heero, I cannot kill him. I can't. He's my master and he –" Duo stopped and shook his head. He couldn't put into words just how wrong the thought of killing Solo was.
"I can kill him," Heero assured Duo, completely missing the point. "He has no control over me. I can see how there's a possibility he could control you or Trowa, but magic doesn't –"
"Damnit Heero! I can't let you kill him! He is my soul mate!" Duo slammed his cup down on the table, ignoring the splash of hot water that briefly burned the back of his hand. "This bullshit Gypsy curse, this magic or whatever – it's not real. This whole thing with Trowa and I – what I feel for him, what happens when we fuck – that's not real . Solo is literally my other half. My whole life has been wrapped around his existence. Even when I thought he was dead – everything I've done has been because of him. He's like the fucking sun for me. Now that he's alive –"
"You want to go back to him," Trowa finished quietly. His expression had slipped into that same neutral, guarded look that masked his real emotions. The facial expression did nothing to hide the swirl of anger and betrayal that Duo felt Trowa experience, however, and he had to swallow hard.
"No, I don't." Duo sighed. "It has nothing to do with what I want. Because what I want is just to get the fuck away from all of this shit and just… exist. But what I have to do is go back to him. He's my master, but more than that, he's the reason I'm alive at all. If he wants to kill me , that's his right – but I cannot be responsible for his death – and if I let you kill him, Heero, I will be responsible for that."
"Why don't you want to go back to him?" Heero asked, and Duo could sense the test in the question. He realized that both Heero and Trowa were a heartbeat away from tying him up, throwing him in a closet, and leaving to take care of Solo themselves.
"Because I'm not who I was four hundred years ago, and neither is he. The Solo I knew… yes, he killed prostitutes and vagrants every once in a while – but not like this. Not to take from them. Before it was always to cleanse their souls, to send them to God."
"What right did he have to do that?" Trowa asked.
"None, obviously. Except that he could, and he was a priest. Solo always served God. Everything he did he believed was to protect the faithful and to carry out God's work."
"He sounds like a lunatic," Heero commented.
Duo glared at him.
"You wouldn't understand. You are a product of the twentieth century and you are a poster-boy for the post-modern existentialist crisis. But back then, all anyone had was their faith. Life was complete shit for humans – the entire world was essentially a third-world country, with dictators and bandits and no real law or order. Except for the Church. And humans weren't the only ones who needed something to believe in – most of the Old Ones I used to know went to mass as often as they could. Half of them thought they had done something to anger God and spent their lives trying to make up for it and the other half were like Solo – they saw their existence, their magic as a gift from God. Not all of them used it for good."
"Neither did he," Trowa muttered. "I've never lived in Europe, and things were very different in my part of the world, but surely you see that he was abusing his power. Even back then Christians believed that you had to ask for forgiveness of your sins and God would grant that. Solo killing those people… it wasn't necessary and it wasn't right."
"I know that. I knew it then. I always knew it wasn't right, but back then it wasn't as wrong. He wasn't – isn't perfect. But you can't sit here and tell me that he's more wrong that I am. That he has done worse than me. You can't tell me that," Duo said, directing his words and gaze to Trowa.
The shape shifter met his gaze steadily.
"Do you seek out innocent people and kill them because you think they did something wrong? Or do you follow the laws of the Council?" Trowa's voice was mild.
"So now you think that makes everything okay," Duo grumbled.
Trowa arched an eyebrow.
"No, I don't. And neither do you. Has Solo ever questioned the legitimacy of his actions?"
Duo shook his head. "No. His faith was always… incredibly solid. Even at the end." Duo sighed. "Not like mine." Duo took a sip of the cooling tea in front of him. "But none of this fucking matters – according to Council law I have to go back to my master. It's his right to do what he wants with me."
Heero frowned.
"You would actually deny your commitment to protect humans from evil and from magic users and go back to him? What if he doesn't want to kill you – what if he just wants to get the gang back together and use you to help him with his dirty work? How unstoppable would the two of you be? How many people would be hurt and killed by the two of you?"
Duo shivered at the thought. Together he and Solo would be a terrifying combination. Both men had gotten more powerful, and Solo had obviously gotten crazier… and this was the new world. The Old Ones weren't as powerful as those that had captured the two of them in the first place.
"Eventually I'm sure we'd be stopped… but, yeah…" Duo shook his head. "Doesn't matter either. He wants to kill me – and he has that right."
"Because he is your Soul Mate," Trowa growled.
Duo met his gaze. "Yeah. I said that part already."
Trowa glared back at him.
"You think this isn't real?" Trowa reached out and grasped his forearm and then ran his fingertips over the sensitive skin on the underside. Duo swallowed hard, trying to fight back the sudden golden glow of magic and desire that washed through him.
"It's not. It's just the curse."
"The curse? Do you know what the curse is? It isn't that we're Soul Mates. It isn't that it will force us to complete our bond together. That's what Soul Mates areand what they do. The curse is that I have lived for six thousand years and never known the love of anyone that I loved. That is the curse – that until I find my Soul Mate and bond with him I will never be loved by those that I love. So this – this is real. What you feel for me is real and the magic we create together – that's real." Trowa jerked his head in Heero's direction but kept his gaze focused on Duo. "What you and Heero have together, that is real. The two of you exist for each other. That is what a Soul Mate is."
Duo opened his mouth to interrupt.
"A Soul Mate is not a master," Trowa continued, ignoring Duo. "A Soul Mate doesn't fucking kill his other half. And you know that. You know that this is real. You know that you're better than Solo and you know that he has to die." Trowa paused and continued in a softer voice. "And you know that the Council will execute you – if they can find you before Solo does. You've given up on your survival and instead you're trying to distance yourself to protect us."
"Yeah, well, it's the least I can fucking do," Duo breathed. He shook his head. "My life is just one streak of bad luck followed by another. The two of you – hell, at least you'll have each other. So it's not going to be that bad."
"Do not talk like that," Heero warned. "Do not turn your back on me now."
Duo looked over at him and for once, Heero's face was filled with expression. Anger was etched into his jaw and mouth, but it was the despair in his eyes that took Duo aback.
"I told you before that I would decide when to talk away from this," Trowa added. "You have to let us fight to keep you alive. You have to fight."
Duo ran a hand through his hair.
"There's just – there is no fucking point to any of it anymore. If Solo doesn't kill me – if we somehow manage to kill Treize, the Old Council will have to allow them to execute me. That's two Council chairs I will have assassinated. My days will still be numbered."
"Fine. We'll deal with numbered days." Heero stated. "Humans do it all of the time."
Dou couldn't see his chances of survival extending beyond today – because Solo would kill him – but in the face of Heero and Trowa's combined efforts there seemed to be little point in fighting against them. And Duo was selfish enough to want this last day with them at his side.
Trowa got up and walked towards the sink with his empty cup. Duo caught his sleeve as he passed and pulled him to a stop.
"You never told me about the rest of the curse."
"Not until now, no," Trowa agreed. His face was still slightly guarded. "It wasn't really important to anything. It is my curse, after all."
"Soul Mates tell each other shit like that, though," Duo argued.
"What, you want to hear about all the men I've loved and who never cared for me in return? Do you want the list of my lovers who died before they could become more than a regular fuck?"
"Yes, I do." Trowa was easily as emotionally scarred as Duo, and it made him incredibly sad that Trowa had experienced so much pain.
Trowa sighed. "Not today." He pulled away and moved over to the sink and started to wash his mug.
"You have to fight for him. For us." Heero said softly.
"You really think that the two of you wouldn't just be better off without me anyway?" Duo demanded.
Heero scowled. "Are you suggesting that Trowa would be better off living his entire existence having never felt the love of another person? That I would be better off having only really experienced it for a few days? Duo, the three of us work together, and we need each other. Do you really think that if you died the two of us would be able to function at all? That the sight of the other wouldn't just remind us of you every second of our lives? I told you before, I don't see myself living for long after you die. So we'd be leaving him alone. And no, I don't think that would make anyone better off."
Duo sighed. "Why are you so stubborn? I attract trouble like it's my job and there will never be a time when someone doesn't want me dead."
"Good thing I like trouble, then," Heero said. He stood up and joined Trowa at the sink.
Duo watched the two of them, side by side, as they washed their coffee mugs. He was struck by just how comfortable they looked together, and his mind was quickly backtracking to his initial idea that they would be better off without him.
And then Trowa leaned down and kissed Heero.
The sight of the two men in profile, mouths caressing each other, made Duo's mouth go dry.
One of them turned off the water and they turned towards each other, hips and chests pressed together and Duo was frozen in place, unable to tear his gaze away from the incredibly erotic sight to the two men kissing, their hands running over each other's bodies.
Trowa pulled back from Heero, his hands cupping the other man's jaw.
The look they shared filled Duo with a sense of desperation.
"Fine," he ground out. "Fine. You win." He stood up and advanced on the two of them. "We'll go up against the Council, we'll go up against Solo. People are going to die – me, mostly – and we're going to be in a shit load of trouble. But fine."
Heero stepped back and smirked at Duo.
"I told you before, you're outnumbered."
"Yeah, well –" before he could continue his thought, Heero was kissing him, and Duo decided to stop fighting them.
It was only a moment later when he felt the press of Trowa's firm body against his back and the other man's mouth on his neck, pressing warm, open kissing from his collarbone up to his jaw.
The dual sensations, combined with the shared arousal between him and Trowa, was enough to make him groan. The heat and magic he felt was enough to push the darkness of the future to the back of his mind.
He buried one hand in Heero's hair, pulling him closer and inhaling the warm scent of him. His other hand he ran along the waistband of Heero's jeans and then up, under the hem of his shirt and over the smooth, taunt skin of his back.
"You know," Duo said, pulling away from the kiss, "that bed is massive… "
Heero smirked at him. "That's why I got it."
"We should probably test the strength of the frame," Trowa suggested before nipping at Duo's ear.
The trek upstairs was a little painful, as each of them tried to remove both their own clothes and keep contact with one another. Yet, somehow they made it back up to the master bedroom, all naked, and fell back into the massive bed in a pile of tangled limbs.
Heero pulled away from both Trowa and Duo almost instantly, however, and rose from the bed and walked out of the room. Duo frowned as he listened to Heero race back down the stairs.
Trowa took the other man's absence as an opportunity to move over Duo and kissed him. The now familiar taste of cinnamon filled his mouth and Duo had to smile.
Trowa pulled away, the hint of a smile playing on his own lips.
"What?"
"I love the way you taste. It's like… cinnamon, but so much sharper and better than anything I've ever tasted before."
Trowa smirked.
"You taste like this spring near Kailasa Parvata – completely fresh and pure. It reminds me of…before." Trowa finished the thought with a shrug, and Duo was saved from pursuing what was sure to be a painful conversation by Heero returning. He held a tube of lubricant in one hand, brandishing it like a prize.
Duo chuckled.
"Such a Boy Scout," he muttered.
Heero smirked and put the tube on the nightstand before joining them back in the bed.
"Someone needs to be prepared," he pointed out.
"Speaking of," Duo said and moved positioned himself between Heero's legs and grasped his half-hard erection. He stroked it firmly, enjoying the hot, rigid flesh in his hand and the way that Heero's face flushed in arousal.
He leaned down and licked his way down the length of Heero's penis before taking it into his mouth and throat. Heero groaned in pleasure, but it was cut short when Trowa kissed him and swallowed the sound.
Once again, Duo was struck by just how erotic it was to watch the two of them kiss. He sucked on Heero's erection, alternating pressure, and watched as Trowa and Heero continued to kiss.
Heero reached out to stroke Trowa's erection and Duo almost choked as he felt Trowa's pleasure at the contact.
He pulled away from Heero and sat back on his heels, watching the two of them while still working Heero's erection with his hand.
Individually, Duo found both men to be incredibly attractive, and the thought of either of them naked was enough to speed up his pulse – but the sight of both of them, together, clearly enjoying each other so much, was enough to distract him from breathing.
Trowa finally pulled away from Heero's mouth, and his eyes were dark and half-lidded when he looked over at Duo.
"I want to be inside you," he said, the words almost a plea.
"Yes," Duo agreed immediately. He reached across Heero for the lube on the nightstand, kissing Heero as he did so.
"Where do you want to be?" Duo asked him.
"I like where I am," Heero said and kissed Duo again.
Duo smirked.
"Me too."
Duo spread some of the lube onto his fingers before handing the tube to Trowa.
Even as he started to prepare Heero, Duo could feel the brush of Trowa's slick firm fingers at his own entrance.
When Duo finally eased into Heero he held himself still and waited for Trowa.
The sensation of being buried deep inside of Heero and filled by Trowa at the same time was overwhelming, and Duo honestly wasn't sure how long he would last.
Trowa started to move, thrusting forward and forcing Duo to move as well. Heero groaned from their combined efforts.
"Jesus Christ this is intense," Duo gritted out. Every sensation was being magnified by his and Trowa's magic, and as the three men moved in unison Duo was assaulted with waves of pleasure.
He reached out and took hold of Heero's erection again, stroking it in rhythm to the movement of their bodies.
Heero's eyes were dark and seemed bottomless as they looked back at Duo and he felt amazingly content. The feeling of Trowa inside of him, and him inside of Heero – of Trowa's hands and Heero's hands both wrapped around his hips and Trowa's breath hot against the back of his neck – it was perhaps the most whole Duo had ever felt.
Any thoughts of Solo, of death, were banished by the incredible rightness of the physical sensations he was experiencing. Sex before, with either man, had been amazing – but this was entire new level, more intense than the last time they had shared a bed because all of them were equal participants.
As they continued to move in each other, Duo was amazingly aware of the sensations he was experiencing – the friction of his skin against Heero's and Trowa's, the heat of Heero's thighs, the strength in Trowa's grip.
Heero was the first to come, and his tensing muscles triggered both Duo and Trowa's orgasms. Golden magic enveloped Duo and he felt warmer and more alive than he ever had before. Perhaps it was just a contrast to how depressed he had been before – but the magic felt stronger than it had before and Duo basked in the heat and light of it.
Slowly they pulled away from each other, and Duo turned around to kiss Trowa.
"Thank you," he told the other man.
Trowa's eyes were wide and filled with the same kind of wonder that Duo knew his own reflected. He too, had been overwhelmed by the magic.
Duo hopped up from the bed and went in search of a towel, finding one of the ones he or Trowa had used the previous night hanging in the bathroom. He cleaned himself off and then returned to the bedroom and offered the towel to the other two men.
"Damn, I feel like I could take on the entire world right now," Duo mused. He could feel magic singing through his veins and he was filled with energy.
"Good, because that's next on my to-do list," Heero said.
Duo smirked.
"I was on your to-do list?"
"You're always on my to-do list," Heero pointed out.
"So what's your master plan for taking on the world?" Duo asked. He sat down on the edge of the bed. He took advantage of Trowa's proximity to lean his back against the other man's shoulder.
Heero looked past Duo to Trowa.
He could feel the other man tense, and Duo sat back up and turned to face him.
"What?" He asked.
"I need to go back to Treize."
"Why?" Duo ground out. "Relena –"
"Requesting my company, yes, but Treize didn't give me to her. In the past, when this has happened, I've been expected to return within a few days. If I don't come back today – especially after all of this – I will be punished for it."
Duo scowled.
"Plus, it would be helpful for us if one of us knows what the Council is planning."
"I think it would be more helpful for us if one of us wasn't enslaved to a psychopath," Duo muttered.
Trowa arched an eyebrow.
"Well, hello there, pot," he responded. "And as happy as I am that you've come around to my side of things regarding the enslavement of shape shifters, now is not the best time to campaign for our freedom."
"Okay, smart ass, you go back to Treize and what – he's going to be pissed as hell that I escaped and I think we've established that he doesn't mind taking out his anger on you. So either way, you're going to get punished."
"Yes," Trowa agreed. "But this way we won't be ignorant."
Duo sighed and looked over at Heero.
"You agree with this?"
"Yes and no," Heero said after a moment. "I agree with the plan, but I think that the two of you should complete your bond before he goes."
"No," Duo immediately argued.
"I told you," Trowa said with a sigh.
Duo frowned.
"A few days ago both of you also thought it would be a shit idea to complete our bond. Why –"
"A few days ago I didn't trust him, and we didn't realize that your master – a psychopath that you are enslaved to – was still alive," Heero pointed out.
"And you?" Duo demanded of Trowa. "What happened to being convinced you would be executed as soon as Treize realized we were Soul Mates?"
Trowa shrugged.
"It's not really my death that I'm concerned about anymore. You're the one who everyone wants to kill. And if bonding fully gives either of us any advantage over our enemies then we should do it."
"Or it's the easiest way to sign your own death certificate," Duo argued. "If we do this, and I die then so will you. It's as simple as that."
"No, it isn't," Trowa quietly insisted. "I've lived six thousand years without love. If you think I'm not willing to do whatever I can to give this," he gestured between the three of them, "a chance to work then you're crazy."
Duo sighed. "Solo can control shape shifters and he can control me. You're damn powerful, so maybe you'll stand a chance of resisting him – but not if we're bonded. He'll use me to control you."
"If he could control you, why hasn't he?" Heero asked, a slight scowl on his face. "All this time – why did he never summon you to his side to free him? Being in a coffin doesn't eliminate your powers, it just makes it damn hard to focus. I'd think that someone as powerful as him could focus enough to call you."
Duo frowned, he had not considered that.
"I don't know, Heero. But I don't see why we should risk this. The odds –"
"I don't care about the odds," Trowa argued. "I've been fighting against the odds my whole life. All of us have. You said you felt like taking on the world, so here's our chance."
Trowa's green gaze was unyielding and Duo finally admitted defeat.
"Okay. We'll complete our bond – but this is, you know, kind of it. We're stuck together for the rest of eternity."
Trowa continued to look serious.
"I'd like that," he said.
Duo swallowed hard but nodded in agreement.
"Me too."
He looked over at Heero, who rolled his eyes.
"Yes. I think it's a good idea."
"We need a knife," Duo pointed out.
Heero reached over to the nightstand and opened the drawer in it. He pulled out a wicked looking silver knife the length of Duo's forearm.
"Sometimes you're a little too prepared, Heero buddy," Duo muttered, but he accepted the silver blade from him. He looked back over at Trowa. "I actually don't know how this works. With a servant I just take their blood – but…"
Trowa nodded. "It should work the same. You take my blood and I take yours."
Duo drew in a deep breath.
"Okay, well…" he dragged the knife across the inside of his wrist, deep enough to draw blood and a hiss of pain at the feel of silver, but not deep enough to do any serious damage. He passed the knife to Trowa, who did the same.
Duo offered his wrist to Trowa and took the other man's hand in his palm. Duo lowered his lips to the thin line of bright red and gently kissed the skin. He could feel the press of Trowa's mouth on his own wrist, and the sensation made him shiver. Duo licked Trowa's blood and felt the shape shifter do the same. For a moment, nothing happened.
And then Duo felt as though a supernova exploded inside of him. For several moments it felt as though his heart stopped beating, and he struggled to draw in a breath. He felt Trowa's grip on his arm turn desperate, and knew that he was no doubt clinging painfully to the other man as well.
Just when Duo was convinced that he was dying he was able to breathe again, and his heart jumpstarted, pounding furiously in his chest. It felt as though he had just run a mile at top speed, and his lungs felt starved for air.
Not only that – but something was clearly wrong with his vision. Everything he saw sparkled, as though it had some sort of glitter on it. Even Trowa's skin, and Heero's hair.
"What the –" he shook his head, but the glittery overlay remained over everything.
"Duo."
He looked over at Trowa, who was frowning slightly. He could feel the other man's sudden rush of euphoria, and when Trowa reached out a ran his thumb over Duo's lips it felt as though an electric current passed between them.
Trowa directed his attention to Duo's wrist, and ran his thumb over the thin, red line from the cut. As he ran his thumb over the skin, Duo felt a jolt of magic travel through his body and the cut vanished. The magic had required absolutely no effort from Trowa at all, just the touch of his thumb.
"Damn," Duo muttered. He rubbed his healed wrist. The cut hadn't been very impressive, but the ease and speed with which Trowa had healed it had been.
Trowa smirked. He leaned forward and kissed Duo, and this time, Duo could taste cinnamon, but something else, something crisp and fresh – like an icy mountain spring. He could taste what Trowa tasted.
"This is going to take some getting used to," Duo decided.
He looked back at Heero, and thankfully, the glitter was starting to fade away.
"I wish you could feel this, Heero," he said. Over the years Duo had wished, on more than one occasion, that Heero could experience magic, but never as much as now. The connection he now felt with Trowa, with their magic, was impossibly elemental, and Duo was nearly high on the sensation.
"I don't need to," Heero said. He moved towards them and kissed first Duo and then Trowa. "I can taste you without magic." He ran his hand down the side of Duo's face. "I can feel you without magic." He kissed Duo again. "I can love you without magic."
Duo kissed him back and pulled Trowa against them so that the three men were once again wrapped together. In that moment, Duo really did feel like he could take on the world, and he was finally ready to.
It was another two hours before they were dressed again and piled into Trowa's car and on the way back to the Strip.
Heero had arranged a meeting with his 'guy' – he wasn't very clear about details, but he wanted to gather a few things from Duo's condo, stockpile a few essentials (which for Heero could mean anything from peanut butter to IEDs), and set up a surveillance perimeter at Mandalay Bay.
Duo had Trowa drop him off at the FBI headquarters – he wanted to give Hilde and Wufei updates on Solo – before the other man returned to Treize.
"I guess… I'll see you when I see you," Duo said when Trowa parked at the gas station.
Trowa looked back at him in the rear view mirror.
"I'm okay with it not being too soon," Trowa muttered. "There's no point in forcing a confrontation with the Council until we have to."
"Just… I guess I can't really tell you to be careful."
"Not unless you intend to be," Trowa pointed out.
Using their new connection, Duo reached out and brushed his magic against Trowa's. Both men shivered and Duo smirked.
"Just don't block me out, okay?" He asked.
"The same goes to you," Trowa said, and his voice was fierce.
Duo leaned forward and kissed Trowa firmly before getting out of the car.
He watched Trowa drive off and then turned towards the FBI's headquarters. He reached out, searching for Hilde.
She was inside and he could sense a level of tension in her that wasn't normally present.
Frowning, he walked inside. And instantly regretted it.
A dozen men trained guns on him, and since Duo had spent days yelling at Wufei to make sure that all of the agents had silver bullets in their weapons, he didn't bother to even THINK about fighting.
"Uh… hi," he said. He spotted Wufei and Hilde behind the wall of agents. "New way of greeting friends?" He asked.
"You, Duo Maxwell, are a friend to no one."
Zechs stepped forward, and the smug look he wore made Duo want to risk getting shot by the FBI agents just to punch him.
"Well, I thought we were friends, Zechs," Duo argued. He crossed his arms, trying to look casual.
He reached out to Hilde again, and tension he had felt earlier had exploded into full-on panic. He tried to calm her down, and found that he could project Trowa's golden, coaxing magic at her. She scowled, but he could see her relax.
"You –" Zechs eyes narrowed. He had clearly felt Duo reach out to his servant. "What did you just do? That wasn't your magic."
Duo smirked at his look of anger.
"Borrowed it from a friend," he told him.
"Solo –"
"Ah, no, I said friend, remember, not 'psychotic master who wants to kill me.' There is a difference," Duo arched an eyebrow. "At least, I think there is."
He looked back at Wufei and Hilde.
"Mind telling me what's going on?"
Wufei scowled, but for once, Duo could tell that his simmering rage wasn't directed at him.
"The Council have issued a warrant for your arrest for breaking sacred laws. You are charged with murder and assault and corruption of law and dereliction of duty. They would like to execute you – and according to US law, they have every right to do so."
Duo swallowed and then nodded.
"Okay…"
"He," Wufei jerked his head in Zechs' direction, "wants to take you into Council custody and hold you there until you are to be executed. However, according to the Arbiter, and again, to US law, you are under the jurisdiction of the FBI until an official, legal ruling is made. Because of your past… endeavors with the government, the FBI is unwilling to surrender you until guarantees can be made that you won't be summarily executed without a trial."
Duo said a silent thank you to Heero for asking him along on all of those government jobs in the late 1940s and 1950s.
"Trial?" He echoed. "The Council don't have trials – well, not ones like humans do."
"They do now," Hilde snapped, her dark glare focused on Zechs. "Quatre is finalizing the paperwork now. But we aren't letting them take you until your safety can be guaranteed."
Zechs sneered.
"Hilde, they want to kill me, so I'm pretty sure they won't be offering ANY kind of guarantee except for promising to kill me really, really painfully."
"That is a guarantee," Zechs muttered in agreement.
"All the same, you aren't taking him off the premise. We have holding cells here and he will remain in one of those until the trial." Wufei insisted.
"And what assurances can you give that he won't escape – again?" Zechs glared at him and Duo grinned back.
"Our cells have silver bars, and he will be in silver cuffs," Wufei stated.
"Hell no," Duo argued. "I'll sit in your silver box but I will not wear silver cuffs."
Hilde sighed. "Duo, it's the only way."
He looked back at Zechs and the faerie look triumphant, as though expecting Duo to continue the fight and thus be allowed to take him back to the Council.
"Fine," he ground out.
"Stand down," Wufei ordered, and the FBI agents lowered their guns. None of them looked very comfortable, however, and Duo was gratified to notice that most of them were warily watching Zechs, and not him.
"Come with me," Wufei continued and gestured for Duo to follow him.
Wufei led him to the back of the building and to a row of three silver jail cells. Instead of being built into the wall, they were in the center of an anteroom, several feet from any wall, and were three isolated cells with sides, roof, and floor made of flat silver bars.
Duo reluctantly held out his wrists when Wufei withdrew a pair of silver handcuffs.
He grit his teeth against the sudden, burning pain of the cuffs against his skin. A heartbeat later he felt Trowa reaching out to him, angry and anxious at the sudden pain from Duo.
While part of him was happy to know that their bond worked over distance, another part wished it didn't. He had no idea how to comfort Trowa, or even to tell him not to worry. He tried to send back his feelings of confidence and frustration – it wouldn't help anyone for Trowa to rush back to the FBI headquarters.
After a moment he felt Trowa reach back to him, and the warm wash of golden magic did little to alleviate the pain from the handcuffs, but it at least put Duo at ease.
He stepped into the cell and sat down on the plastic stool in the middle of the cell.
"I'm sorry about this," Wufei said, his dark gaze briefly meeting Duo's.
"Thanks for not giving me up so easily," Duo responded.
Wufei sneered.
"That arrogant bastard is responsible for his servant's death. If he hadn't been so full of himself then she would still be alive. I cannot tolerate such mindless self-centered arrogance."
Duo snorted. "You think he's bad? You should meet Treize."
"I plan to," Wufei said. With that cryptic promise he left Duo alone.
He wasn't sure how long he was in the cell before Hilde came back.
"Hey," she said, sounding incredibly depressed. He could feel her disappointment and anger.
"Hey yourself," he responded and tried to sound upbeat. A difficult task with the silver cuffs feeling like they were eating into his bones.
"I don't have a lot of time – we just got a call about a group of shape shifters who were attacked – but I wanted to see how you were doing."
"Attacked how?" Duo asked, standing up and reaching for the bars before he remembered what they were made of. He backed away.
"That's the weird part – it sounds like they were attacking each other. We got the 911 call patched through to us, and it sounds like a group of them were together and half of them suddenly transformed into animals and started to attack the others." She shook her head. "But they wouldn't be able to do that unless one of them was an alpha, right? Or –"
"Or if they were being magically controlled. Solo. Damnit, Hilde, you've got to let me out of here!"
"I can't, Duo. If I do the Council will execute you – they won't even need a trial. You have to stay here, it's safe."
"Safe – what about you! You can't just walk into some massacre that Solo –"
"Might be responsible for," Hilde interrupted. "We don't know anything yet." She sighed. "As soon as I get there I'll reach out to you, okay?"
Duo glared at her.
"It's the best I can do! This is my job, Duo."
He sighed. "Be careful."
"I will. I'm not you after all." She carefully reached through the bars and grasped his hand.
He squeezed it back, appreciating the human contact.
"I have to go," she said after a moment and pulled free.
He watched her leave and then sat back down on his stool, resigned to while away the hours by ignoring the burning of his wrists and instead counting the ceiling tiles.
Time passed – enough that Duo was sure it was at least late afternoon – and he had moved on from counting the ceiling tiles, 1, 267, to counting the divots in the concrete floor.
Quite suddenly the lights went out.
Duo stood up and reached out, but he could feel nothing.
A moment later, however, he was slammed back against the side of the jail cell by a wall of magic.
Stunned, he fell down and then gasped in pain when the back of his head came in contact with the silver bars. He scrambled to his feet.
The magic rushed at him again, knocking him back once again, but this time the entire cell fell over.
The tidal wave of magic slowly subsided. Dust filled the air, and Duo could see that his cell wasn't the only thing that had been affected. The other two cells were twisted lumps of silver bars that looked like strange imitations of post-modern art.
"Duo, it's been too long."
Solo strode through the cloud of dust and stopped in front of Duo's jail cell.
It was as if the last four hundred years had never passed. Solo's long, dark golden hair was loose about his shoulders. Solid black trousers and shirt were a stark contrast to his features. Solo's pale skin and dark blue eyes were mesmerizing even without the magic that made them glow an almost electric blue, and Duo found himself lost in that cold stare.
"Solo." Duo's voice broke, and the other man sneered.
"Just look at the mess you're in." Solo made a tsking sound and shook his head slowly. "You've been a very, very bad boy."
Duo swallowed hard. He remembered that tone of voice – remembered that phrase. Solo had always taunted the magic users they captured. Before, Duo had been mildly disturbed by the pleasure Solo seemed to take in making his victims squirm in fear. Now, on the receiving end of that magnetic glare and whispered words, he was damn near terrified.
"And you're going to punish me?" Duo sneered.
Solo looked amused.
"I thought we might grab a cup of coffee first."
Up Next: Duo and Solo have a nice chat and get reacquainted… sort of.
Definitions:
Council: the body that presides over magical creatures and users in the US. The Old Council refers to the European Council.
Dryad: A nature spirit, like a Sprite. Another Old One. Usually associated with a tree, and different 'families' of Dryads are associated with different trees.
Ephemeral: a human who can use magic. Used interchangeably with witch.
Jinn: alternately Djinn or Genie. They are spirits, supposedly created by God (if you're Muslim), and can be good or bad.
Old Ones: the powerful magical races. Vampires, Shape shifters, Faeries, and a few more to be named later!
Old Ways: reference to the way that the European Council ran things or the way things were before magic was legal. Sally Po refers to the old ways – a reference to the practices of Native American Shamans, and NOT the Council.
Null: a human without magical ability.
Shaman: A Native American mystic or holy person. Used in this context to mean an Ephemeral.