Author's Note: By reading the title of this chapter alone, I think you might get the idea as to where I got the title for the fic. This is the chapter where both of my plots intersect and play off each other, though it may not seem that way for a while. It's all downhill from here. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing

Warning: strong language, shounen ai, tiny bit of fluff

Criss Cross

He couldn't do it.

He just couldn't bring himself to do it.

Ever since he had stood up to Heero, things seemed to have gotten tense, especially between Solo and Quatre. The blonds had redoubled their efforts to make him comfortable, and to flirt, can't forget about that, with him in attempts to attract him. None of it was going without notice. And damn it, he was getting hornier than hell after an encounter of teasing, and not the innocent kind mind you.

Take both of them. They were making it harder on him everyday that when the call of emergency came, he had thought it was divine intervention.

Once he found out what the emergency was, he began to wonder if it wasn't satanic intervention instead.

Katsaris was still alive, he was on Earth, and he was holding the government hostage, demanding a shit load of money in exchange for not killing millions of people.

Shit, this wasn't good. Okay, time to take charge Duo. Get serious because anything you do could either save or cost the lives of countless people.

He much preferred the flirting over this. At least that he had a simple solution to, which required him in a locked bathroom and privacy. This, however, couldn't be so simply solved. Katsaris had them by the balls and knew it. He expected some sort of attempt to diffuse the lethal rockets and their deadly cargo.

And that was the only solution they could come up with, outside of bombing the north sector of the Sanc port back to the Stone Age at the risk of setting loose the VX. Difficult choice to make. Disaster at the minimum should they fuck up, worldwide massacre at worst if Katsaris got pissed off enough. And yet, there was that small, tiny, little sliver of a chance that they manage to disable and neutralize all the rockets and VX, saving the day and all that good stuff.

Une was divided completely on what to do. On one hand, she didn't want to chance having an entire city wiped out. On the other, she did want to prevent any money reaching Katsaris' hands. Duo began to worry that she might get her personality to split, again, over this.

Well, he would have to convince her to send a team in to disable the rockets, just like last time, only this time making sure that every single person on that team was skilled in the art of stealth. He was one of the best, if not the best, in that field. It would be a worthy challenge of his skills only with real-life consequences should he or anybody on the team be spotted.

"Une, we have what, sixty-five hours to take care of the rockets," Duo stated, hoping to win her agreement. "We just have to take our time and not be caught. It can be done. Let me lead it, I know what I'm doing."

Une gave him a look that he was sure pierced his very soul but he refused to back down. He would not back down.

"And why should we let you be leader?" a contemptuous monotone voice asked. "Last time you led, you let a rebellion happen under your nose, then got the team you were apart of the first time caught and split apart."

Duo glared at the owner of the voice, none other than Heero Yuy himself. "Oh, and you should be in charge then? This isn't a gung-ho mission Heero. Letting them know you're there will just cause them to fire the rockets and we can't have that."

"They'll be expecting somebody to sneak in. Katsaris is counting on that."

"Enough," Une interrupted, her voice loud and stern. "We don't have the time or the luxury to fight at this moment. We need to do something and we need to do it now, whether it be to decide a course of action or to decide to do nothing but wait. We know for sure we can't risk a full frontal assault, be it by land, sea, or air. Our best choice, besides doing nothing, is to send someone in to disable the rockets or neutralize the VX."

"So what do we do?" Wufei asked, hoping to move things along.

Sighing, Une rubbed her forehead before giving her decision. "We'll send someone in. It's the best course of action but we need it to be absolutely secret and undetected."

At last, someone saw his reasoning, Duo thought to himself.

"But I would like you, Wufei, to lead the team we send." Okay, that crushed Duo's plans. Damn, he needed to go; he was the best stealth expert they had. However, he started to see Une's wisdom in her selection. No one was objecting to Wufei's nomination, not even Heero. Damn it, when did things get so political?

"I take it I can choose who's part of my team?" Wufei asked dryly, receiving a nod from Une. "Then I would like to tell you my choices in private. I do not want any more division to result from my choices. Also, I need any sort of image or blueprints on the port."

"We'll discuss what you'll need momentarily," Une cut in. "For now, I want to dismiss everyone else so we can confer. The sooner we can agree on what you're going to do, the sooner we'll end this."

Grudgingly, Duo left with the rest, but not before shooting Heero a death glare. Unfortunately, soldier boy wasn't looking.

Returning to his office, he was immensely relieved to find it empty without any gifts waiting for him. Sitting behind his desk, something he hadn't done in so long that it seemed almost foreign, he propped his head on hands, elbows resting on the wooden surface.

Man, he hadn't been involved in this very long and already he was stressed out. Why hadn't he made sure that Katsaris was dead back on L2? Oh right, the concussion. But still, how had the man managed to sneak out eighteen canisters of VX off of L2 and hide them on Earth until this very moment? Also, how had Katsaris managed to get himself off L2 anyway? This was making no sense. But did it really matter? The fact remained that Katsaris was still here and he still had everybody by the balls.

The feeling of a hand petting his hair immediately jolted him out of his thoughts. Glancing unobtrusively, he figured out that somehow, someway, Solo had managed to sneak into the building and was in his own way trying to comfort him when he had no idea about what the hell was going on.

If that didn't scream commitment (1), he didn't know what else did. But that unfortunately brought him back to his own personal dilemma. Solo and Quatre…how should he tell them? Well, he felt that he needed to do it now. This might be the only chance he had to. Well, he had one blond here already…wait, there was the other one in the doorway.

He could feel the unvoiced tension between the two. Okay, this had to stop. This wasn't the time for this.

"Close the door and sit down," he ordered, surprising the two. There must have been something in his voice because the blonds obeyed him without question. He immediately felt the absence of Solo's hand and couldn't help but want it back but this was important and needed to be taken care of.

Now he looked up at the two rivals and took a good look at each of them. Quatre, for some reason, seemed smaller than usual but he could tell that even though nothing had happened, the current situation was taking its toll on him. But otherwise, he mapped out the features of the blond Arabian, memorizing every detail of him from the short blond hair to the aquamarine eyes to definite handsome looks he sported. He noted the small detail in the Arabian's eyes that most people would miss; the look of a soldier haunted by war. His eyes then moved over to Solo. Once again, he scanned the L2 native, memorizing short blond hair, green eyes, and strong looks. Solo also had an easily missed detail in his eye; the look of a person who knew suffering and witnessed it countless times and again. Both more much more similar, even with their different backgrounds, than anyone could know.

But now it was the time for words, be they the last ones that ended a relationship or the first that started a new one.

"I know that you both like me," he began after allowing silence to reign for a few minutes. "I know you are both attracted to me and not just by how I look but by who I am. And to tell the truth, I am attracted to both of you as well.

"Quatre, you are a beautiful person with an even more beautiful soul. You are kind, compassionate, loyal, empathetic to everyone you meet. We didn't meet under the best circumstances but we managed to forge something in the midst of an ugly war that just never seemed to end. You've been a great friend to me over the past few years and I really appreciate that.

"Solo, you have been my role model every since I was young. You continued to be strong, continued to fight despite the misfortune we had to live as L2 orphans. I can never, nor will ever, forget about you and even when I thought you were dead, you still had an influence over me. I know I may have been a bit of a hassle when I was younger but you didn't tell me to buzz off. You let me stay with you, hell, even be with you, only being harsh when you needed to be.

"But now, I find myself in a fix. I like both of you. I can see myself with both of you. But I can't choose between you two. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I need both of you in my life, no matter what form it takes. I can't just love one of you without loving the other."

The two blonds were silent as they took in every word the braided one was saying. Quatre couldn't help but feel flattered by what Duo thought of him. Solo, despite denying it with all his heart and soul, felt warm and fuzzy inside, recounting everything that Duo had said about their time growing up. But both were caught off guard by what he said after. The two glanced at each other, catching the other glance before quickly snapping back to Duo.

"So…what are you going to do?" Quatre asked, fear clenching at his heart.

Solo swallowed noisily, fearing that Duo, his Kid, might just want to remain platonic. It wasn't that he didn't want to remain friends with Duo, it was just that he wanted to be more.

"I…asked a friend about this," Duo began, his nervousness creeping into his voice. He was at the point-of-no-return now and he could only hope that this didn't lead to disaster. "What he suggested was perhaps the only solution that would be best." Quatre and Solo held their breaths, waiting for the axe to fall. "Why have one of you when I can have both?"

The two blonds stared at Duo, flabbergasted, waiting for him to continue.

"However, if I were to do that, it would mean a compromise," Duo continued. "You two would have to share me but I would have to share both of you with each other. Now, I'm more than willing to do that. The question is are you two willing? It can only work with active cooperation not only on my parts but yours as well."

The two blonds stared at Duo before looking at each other, examining what the other had. Duo stayed where he was, anxiety building up within him. He didn't know how they were going to answer or react to this but he could only hope it wasn't negative. He wasn't going to try and force, coerce, or convince them to do something they didn't want to do.

Now Quatre was really thinking about what Duo had just said. Could he really be able to share Duo? Looking over at Solo and noticing that the other blond had turned to look at him as well. Could he really let himself allow this rival to have his hands over the one he had been crushing on for so long? Normally, that answer would be no but…ever since joining forces with him to identify and stop Heero from sending rose after rose to Duo, there had been those moments… Now that he thought about it, Solo and Duo acted really similar, from the way they talked to how they ate and from how they walked to how they swore…and did they ever have such a colorful vocabulary. But he had noticed that Solo cared for Duo just as much as he did. And he was possessive, definitely that. Yet it was a bit endearing if he thought about it.

Solo was also going over what Duo had said. Share? Share the Kid? And with…hey, he wasn't that too bad looking. He had to admit that the Kid had some good tastes but back to the matter at hand. Could he stand the thought that somebody else's hands would be all over his Kid as his was? That was definitely a toughy. Hmm, a threesome didn't sound too bad. And the Kid was willing to share him as well? Share him with Q too? Well, that wasn't too much of a big deal. Sure, why not? He had never had that much affection bestowed upon him.

Looking back at Duo, he gave his answer. "Sure? It's someding we can try out an' if we dun like it, well we can say we tried." As if he was going to say everything. Pfft. The Kid knew how to read between the lines and know what he really meant. It was all up to Q now. What will he do?

Quatre, to say the least, was surprised at Solo's answer. Perhaps they did think a lot a like. Could that be a reason why Duo seemed untouchable for so long? Because he was more like Solo than he thought? "Okay. Let's do it."

Duo could feel relief pass through him. So they were both willing. Well, now to make sure that the two were absolutely willing to go through it. "Alright, then pucker up guys," Duo said, grinning. As he saw the two beginning to move towards him, he had to rain on their parade. "You guys first. Prove to me you're both true to your words."

Green and aquamarine eyes widened comically before meeting one another. Somehow managing to keep his cool, Solo swallowed and said, "Guess we have no choice." Before he could change his mind, he reached over and pulled Quatre over to him and planted a good one on the surprised Arabian's lips. Hey, this wasn't too bad…with a little more practice, Q could be something else.

Quatre's surprise wasn't long-lasting as the facts of the situation were processed in his mind. Solo wasn't too bad but he would prove who was better. He took control, surprising the other blond, smirking as he began to show what he could do.

And Duo was enjoying the show very much. Very, very much. Now he wanted a piece of that. Patience, Duo, patience. Oh screw patience, he was getting some of that!

Leaving his seat behind his desk, he pried the two blonds apart and kissed the first set of lips that he could get a hold of, which happened to be Quatre's. But he couldn't remain in control for too long as Quatre was much more dominate than he appeared to be, only breaking away when the need for air was too great. That's when Solo took his opportunity to get his own mind-blower.

Duo didn't know what god was smiling down on him but he couldn't help but feel as if he made the right choice.

Breaking away reluctantly, he leaned back on his desk, breathing heavily. "That wasn't so bad now was it?" he asked.

Solo gave them both a predatory grin. "Can't wait to get ya both in bed. Gonna be a real wild night."

"It'll be interesting," Quatre agreed as he turned himself to Duo. "But why wait?"

A knock on the door put an end to whatever else could transpire. Grumbling to himself, Duo opened the door to an immaculate Wufei who coolly observed them. Smiling slightly, he said, "I hate to break this up but I have just finished up with Une. Duo. Quatre. Your services will be required for the mission. Meet in Conference Room G as soon as possible."

Getting back down to the matter that cast a shadow over everything, Duo nodded. "Who else is coming?"

"Not too many but Trowa will be coming with us," Wufei answered.

"What about Heero?" Quatre asked.

"This isn't a…how do you phrase it…a 'gung-ho' mission," Wufei replied. "He will be needed here much more with his computer skills."

"Why for?"

"One of the objectives we need to do is to find out if the rockets are on any sort of computer system and if so we can have Heero hack into the system from afar."

"Sounds like a plan," Duo stated.

"Can I come?"

Looking over at Solo who seemed ready to debate any negative response, Wufei had no choice but to refuse. "I'm sorry but I need highly skilled and experienced operatives that I can trust absolutely for this."

Solo was about to object but Duo beat him to the punch. "He's right Solo. Where we're going is going to be incredibly dangerous, more so than anything you've ever met on L2. The guys here are trained killers and aren't out to capture anybody to torture. A single mistake will result in the deaths of millions."

Solo looked helpless. Duo knew that he wanted to come because he didn't want to let him or Quatre out of his sights. He didn't want to leave but if he wanted there to be a place to live in peace, a temporary separation was required.

"Look, I don't like it anymore than you do," Duo said, closing the distance between him and the blond. "But these assholes started it first and we're going in to finish it along with shoving a foot up their asses. The sooner we go, the sooner we'll be back."

"He's right," Quatre spoke. "As soon as Katsaris is dealt with, we'll be back."

Looking at both of them, he relented. "Just promise me ya won't do anyding ta get yaselves killed."

"Can't promise but will certainly try," Duo answered, a manic grin forming on his face.

"Dat's what ya always say," Solo muttered but nonetheless wrapped both Duo and Quatre in his arms, kissing each on the forehead. "I'll be waiting."

"And not for long," Duo declared, embracing Solo before reluctantly parting. Turning, he followed after Wufei, Quatre on his heels. He would come back and he would make sure Quatre would also.

And while he was at it, he'd make sure he'd put a bullet or two in Katsaris' head but not before making sure he suffered long and hard.