05-Nov-2004
Title: Tetractys: Binah, II
Author: Sol 1056
Rating: R for violence and language, some adult situations
Pairings (currently): 1+R, 1+2+3, 2x3x2, 4x5xM
Disclaimer: no, don't own 'em... duh.
Archived: sweetlysour and gwaddiction
Critiques: always welcome, natch!
Notes: With many thanks to Saro and Mal for letting me bounce, and everyone else for sticking with this story despite its length & complexity. I really appreciate the reviews - they make it worth it, knowing folks are reading & enjoying!
Heero stood by the door, and Duo sighed, picking up the apprehension; Heero was holding his shoulders stiffly, as if ready to drop into a crouch and defend. Duo pushed away from the wall and grabbed the chair from the desk, flipping it around.
"Have a seat," he said, pointing to the bed.
Heero glanced at both of them, wary, and walked between them to sit on the edge of the bed. He still didn't relax; his hands clung to the blanket, twisting them a little under his palms.
"We, uh, have something to tell you," Duo began, not sure how to put it.
Trowa looked like he was considering the question carefully, but Duo knew he didn't want to hear Trowa's version. Better to forestall by dealing with Heero's ignorance, than let Trowa open his mouth and tell Duo it really was just a one-time thing.
"Okay." Heero frowned, a little, but waited.
Duo ran a hand through his bangs, and let his hand drop with a sigh. "See, Trowa and I, we... "
"You're... together," Heero finished. His voice was soft, and hoarse. The accompanying shrug seemed forced, to Duo's eyes.
Trowa looked surprised, and folded his arms tightly across his chest. "Just once," Trowa said, a bit gruffly.
"I know," Heero whispered. He turned his head, and Duo could see a slight flush across Heero's cheeks. "I... saw."
"You... " Duo glanced at Trowa, then back at Heero, bewildered. He swallowed hard, and thought back. "Oh! In the hospital... that was... " He could feel his face getting hot, and his words trailed to a halt.
Heero caught the hesitation instantly. It didn't surprise Duo, though he'd been hoping Heero would let it pass.
"You didn't mean then." Heero narrowed his eyes.
"Okay, so not just once," Duo mumbled. He shifted in the chair, unable to meet Heero's gaze. "Just... twice." He ignored the pang in his chest, and kept his gaze fixed on the floor. "That's all, but that's cool," he added, about to laugh; he remembered in time that Trowa hadn't taken his jokes too well, and instead choked back the sound.
"Oh." Heero gave Duo an expectant look, one eyebrow arching momentarily. The meaning was clear: what does this have to do with me?
"We learned a few things," Trowa said. "First, if one of us has sex with someone other than us... well, you've seen the result of that. However, if we have sex with each other, it shuts down our abilities. For anywhere from three to five hours."
"Shuts down... " Heero's eyes narrowed, and he seemed to be calculating something quickly. He nodded, sharply, and his shoulders tensed further. "When Sanq was attacked, Duo couldn't--"
"Fine! Three times," Duo burst out, slamming his fist down on the chair. He knew his face had to be completely red. "Messed around twice, but sex only once. Happy now?"
Heero blinked, and settled back down on the bed.
"Look," Duo said, exasperated. "The point is that we've, uh, we've got a theory. We were going to tell you, but then the world blew up in our faces and we got sort of distracted. Okay. We know you like Lena, and she likes you, but obviously you can't have sex with her unless one of two things happens. Either we find a doctor who can undo Khushrenada's bastard science, or we... " Duo chewed his lower lip for a minute, and pulled his braid around, holding onto it tightly. "Or we help you blow out the buffer, and then then you can... "
He shrugged, unable to voice the rest; he felt embarrassed, and wasn't sure why. These were two of the only four men to whom he could tell anything, yet he couldn't find the words to be blunt.
"I don't understand why our skills would do that," Heero replied, leaving the rest of the question unspoken. "I've only seen mine turn... " His voice dropped with the confession. " ...Uncontrollable."
"Right. When you have sex, you're wide open to the other person," Trowa told him, gently. "Maybe, somewhere on some level, when I had sex with... her, I was opening myself up and she didn't have the corresponding abilities, so mine went off the charts. But it seems if our partners have the abilities, then we cancel each other out." He dropped his head, and his hair fell into his face. "That's my theory."
Heero pondered that, and his fingers twitched against the blanket. "That means that... every time I wanted to be with Lena, I would need to--"
"Yeah." Duo shifted, nervous. "That's kind of a drawback, I guess."
"Not exactly practical, long-term," Heero observed. His tone was flat, perfectly neutral, but his shoulders remained tense. "I... you are both more important to me than anything else in my life. Lena told me that love means being separated is almost a physical pain. If I knew what love is, then I would say that it's what I feel for you. And then when I heard you, in the hospital room--"
Duo made a sound in his throat, but couldn't articulate the protest further, or perhaps it was an apology. He wasn't sure.
"--I wanted that, too. But I'm not sure I want it... like that... with you."
"Do you feel... anything?" Trowa's voice was hesitant. "It would help. Look... we don't know what other options we could offer you. But we're... I'm willing to do whatever, if... "
"I think I love her. I want to be with her, and when I touch her... " Heero frowned, looking as though he were tasting a new fruit and not sure how to define it. "But it's not the same as what I feel for you. I don't want knowing her to make our partnership less, but I don't want this to be it for me." He broke off, dropping his head.
"We're willing to help," Duo said, standing up from the chair. He glanced at Trowa, but saw no protest there, and moved to join Heero on the bed. "If there were something else we could suggest, we would. I swear it."
"Is it hard to... " Heero stared down at Duo's hand, lying next to his on the blanket. "It would feel weird to kiss you. I don't think of you and think of kissing. It's not like that."
"I know," Duo said. "Look, the choice we made might not be the one we'll stick with. And maybe we'll find other options in the future, but I'm not taking back anything I've done. It was good, and it'll always... " He stopped, uncertain. He'd already said so much; his throat felt tight, as though forcing the uncharacteristically blunt words past his lips required physical effort.
Heero just nodded, seeming to understand. "What do I have to do?"
"Do?" Trowa moved to sit on Heero's other side.
"Yeah." Heero took a deep breath, and stood up. Without warning, he stripped off his shirt, toed off his boots, and shucked off his jeans. He turned around, his body powerful and strong, his hands clenched into fists. The stiffness in his muscles belied the anxious vulnerability on his face.
Duo's jaw dropped, and he blinked a few times. Heero was completely nude and apparently uncaring. He frowned at Duo's expression, and shifted from foot to foot, looking as though he were suddenly doubting the wisdom of his actions.
"I want to be with Lena," Heero whispered. "And you said--"
"Yeah," Duo replied. He reached out and caught Heero's hand, guiding Heero back onto the edge of the bed. "We'll help."
Mariemaia wandered the dark halls of the asteroid's imperial resort, pausing at the observatory windows along the uppermost hallways. She could see the earth, its leading edge lit by the sun. The world was a beautiful, distant object, and she placed her hand to the seven-inch thick stellar-glass. The earth's dark shape hung between her fingers, encased in black velvet and rimmed by fire.
Please, choose peace, she thought, and considered the playfulness - a sort of freedom - she'd found in knowing Zhiyi. She'd spent her life listening to people telling her what to say, what to do, coaxing her in one direction or another, and always letting her think she'd made that decision herself. Their disapproval was always a threat, despite the titles in front of her name; if they turned away, what else would she have?
I'd still have the world, she whispered to herself, and finally understood what Zhiyi had been telling her all along. It wasn't that she'd have the world, but that she could free the world, and in doing that, be part of it.
It didn't make the most sense, some logical part of her brain protested. Mariemaia laughed at that part and let herself feel the joy.
She'd always thought peace was so boring: quarterly meetings, military reviews, tutors, fancy balls. She used to lie in bed at night and dream of war, of that moment in which a single decision could change a life. She had craved the unpredictable, but found it nowhere. Now, she stared down at a world that teetered on the edge of chaos, held back by its willingness to try for peace. She found she longed for the possibilities in that, and in her own freedom.
Voices echoed down the dark corridor, and instinctively she drew back, into the shadows. She'd grown up on this asteroid, ushered there whenever her grandfather felt it unsafe on Earth, those first precarious years. She knew every step, every inch, and she waited, holding her breath while the late night speakers passed her by.
"Professor," and she realized it was Alexander, that odd tone of aggravation and affection coloring his baritone. "Without the gateway, my grandfather's plan is our only option."
"I'm getting closer," Darrow replied, in his quavering old-man voice. "I've come up with a few modifications that will allow a massive distortion, but I have to--"
"What's the hold-up? The situation on Earth... "
Their voices faded; they were moving fast. Around a corner, and the thick carpet and plastered walls muffled their words. Mariemaia stared in the direction they'd headed, halfway tempted to follow. She'd heard one or two mentions of this project Darrow was studying, but Alexander had never seemed willing to discuss it.
She sighed, shrugging, and turned back to her contemplation of the earth. If Zhiyi was right, and freedom would bring a true peace... then she wouldn't be an Empress any more. She'd just be Mariemaia Khushrenada, a high school student with no more or less say in the world's destiny than any other eleventh-grader. Mariemaia wiggled her fingers against the glass.
"Hello, world," she said, breathlessly. "Next time I see you... "
Mariemaia dropped her hand, and wandered down the hallway, away from where Alexander had headed with the doctor. Perhaps she'd stop by the library and search for a book to read. Zhiyi didn't seem to mind her midnight visits, and sometimes she'd read out loud to Zhiyi from whatever book had caught her fancy.
"Good night, world," Mariemaia whispered, and left the observatory hall behind.
Surreal, Trowa decided, was the only word for the entire situation. Somehow Heero had ended up between his legs, guided there by Duo, who shushed Heero and smoothed down his thighs with gentle fingers. Trowa hesitated, then wrapped his arms around Heero, pulling him backwards to lie against Trowa's chest. Heero's skin was scarred, a tanned chest with dark nipples, flat and rippled down to curly black hair against pale hips.
Duo knelt between Heero's legs, his hands running up and down Heero's thighs. Heero flinched at the touch, jerking backwards to press up against Trowa.
"Shh," Trowa whispered, and ran his hands down Heero's ribs. "Just relax. This isn't supposed to hurt."
Heero made an odd sound in the back of his throat; he leaned his head back against Trowa's shoulder, a sign of acceptance. Trowa glanced down at Duo, startled to see Duo wasn't laughing, in sarcasm or joy, or even self-effacing humor. Duo was solemn, eyes large, almost frightened. His hands were trembling as he took Heero in his grasp. Heero's entire frame shuddered at the touch.
Trowa nodded to Duo, who took a deep breath and lowered his head. Heero was lax in his hand, but began to respond, slowly; Heero's fingers were clutching the bedspread.
Duo's head lowered further, followed by licking sounds, soft kissing sounds, and Heero whimpered slightly. Trowa turned his head to see Heero's face creased in effort, or pain; Heero's eyes were wide-open, unfocused, and starkly vulnerable. Trowa considered what he might do, then realized Heero's gaze was fixed on his lips, before Heero looked away, a flush suffusing his cheeks. His hips were beginning to rock with Duo's movements, small animal-like whimpers caught in his throat.
Trowa ran his hands across Heero's chest, cradling him. When Trowa's fingers brushed over Heero's nipples, his body arched suddenly and he gasped. Duo made a choking sound, but didn't stop, his hand picking up speed. Trowa ran his fingers over Heero's nipples again, and Heero turned his head, burying his face in Trowa's neck.
"Go with it," Trowa coaxed. "Let it happen... "
Heero made a sobbing sound, pulling away. Trowa turned to see Heero's eyes, shocked, scared, mouth open. Heero licked his lips convulsively, eyes rolling away, caught between open ecstasy and apprehension. Trowa continued to make soothing tones, coaxing, husky. He realized the lower he pitched his voice, throaty, the faster Heero panted. He continued to whisper, meaningless sounds, an undercurrent to Heero's soft cries.
Duo was pushing Heero's legs farther apart, settling himself down, his right hand working furiously while his left hand moved across Heero's stomach, and down between his legs. Heero shuddered abruptly, moaning between gritted teeth. Trowa raised his eyebrows at Duo's quick glance upwards. Duo winked, Trowa was certain, and then redoubled his efforts.
Heero's hands were clenching and unclenching on the bedspread, his hips jerking widely, and his moans were getting louder. His eyes were glazed, fixed on some distant spot. When Trowa breathed into his ear, Heero groaned loudly, his stomach caved in, hips heaving upwards towards Duo. Heero's eyes were squeezed shut, tears leaking from the corners, and he gave a loud cry.
Trowa held on tightly; Heero's cry faded into a sob, every muscle tensed. His hips rocked convulsively, shivers running across his skin. The muscles in his stomach rippled and flexed. His hands twitched, then relaxed, and he sighed deeply, although his hips continued to rock slowly.
Duo gradually came to a stop, but didn't let go immediately, nuzzling Heero's groin. Heero whimpered, turning to bury his face against Trowa's neck. Trowa ran his palms across Heero's sides and stomach, soothing him. Duo sat up, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand; his left hand was palming the bulge in his jeans with unabashed pleasure.
Trowa narrowed his eyes at Duo, who didn't grin or joke, but he did drop his hand, settling back. Heero's shaking gradually subsided into shivers at Trowa's touch. Trowa leaned away to look down at Heero.
"Move something," Trowa murmured. "Try it."
Heero swallowed, frowned, and then closed his eyes, concentrating. After a heartbeat, those huge blue eyes opened, fixing Trowa with an incredulous expression.
"I can't," Heero said. A line appeared and disappeared between his brow momentarily. His eyes opened even wider, his gaze darting around the room. "I... "
His breathing grew fast, almost panicked, and Trowa immediately hugged him close again. Duo leaned forward, hands on Heero's hips, sliding up to meet Trowa's hands around Heero's waist.
"Relax," Duo murmured. "Shh, Heero, it's okay. It will come back, but enjoy it while it's gone, right?"
"But... " Heero's expression was quicksilver, from worry, to outright fear, calming into confusion. His mouth opened and closed, and he looked back and forth between Trowa and Duo, a quiet sound trapped at the back of his throat. He blinked a few times, clearly concentrating once again, but then relaxed with a sigh. The edges of his open mouth curled up, into a shy, boyish smile.
Duo chuckled, and leaned forward to rub his nose against Heero's bare chest. He sat back on his heels, his hands sliding down to rest upon Heero's knees, and Duo gave them both a smug look.
"See? Good, hunh," Duo said.
"All good," Heero replied, blushing lightly. He smiled again, but this time it grew into a magnificently sated expression, as he repeated, "all good."
"That's how it works," Duo agreed, quiet.
He sighed, relaxing onto Trowa, who grunted a little at having Heero's full weight across him. It didn't help that Heero seemed remarkably unaware of Trowa's own hardness pressing into the base of his spine, through Trowa's jeans.
"But you... " Heero glanced at Duo, then up at Trowa, and then stared pointedly at Duo's crotch. "I didn't do the same for you."
Duo's eyes went wide; even Trowa felt a frisson of utter shock at Heero's calm statement. He coughed to cover his surprise.
"You don't have to," Trowa assured him. "This was for you... " He took a breath, and managed a smile for Duo. "We can take care of ourselves."
Duo's smile turned predatory, and he leaned back on his haunches, his knees spread. It was enough to make perfectly clear that Duo was willing and ready. Even Heero grinned, lazily, moving one foot to mock-kick Duo in the ribs.
"Hey, don't knock it 'til you've tried it," Duo protested. "Trowa's more than worth trying, too."
Heero snorted.
"I'll take that as a compliment, this time," Trowa said, but without rancor.
"Hunh." Heero turned lazy eyes on Trowa, and relaxed further into Trowa's arms. He breathed softly; his entire body was completely relaxed and open.
"Damn." Duo gave Heero an assessing look, then shot Trowa a quick smile. "It's like an off-switch."
Heero snorted into Trowa's neck.
"Okay, you've got four hours," Trowa said, figuring if he didn't get Heero off him, he was going to slowly die of oxygen deprivation. Heero being four inches shorter meant little, considering they were probably equal weight, given Heero's muscle mass. Trowa patted Heero on the arm, waited, and then shoved a little harder. "Get off. You need to get dressed, and then you can go seduce your lady love."
"In a minute," Heero replied, smiling sleepily.
"Nuh-unh," Duo said, pulling Heero upright while Trowa pushed. "You, put on those jeans, and I'll get your gifts."
"Gifts?" Heero yawned, and stretched, clumsily pulling on his jeans while Trowa turned his shirt right side out. He took it with a shy smile, and yanked it over his head. "What are gifts for?"
"You," Duo said, opening a brown paper bag onto the bed. "It's like a mission. You shouldn't go into it unprepared." Out fell a box of condoms, a white plastic tube, and a gold-foil box that rattled.
"What's this?" Heero picked up the tube, flipping it over, but Duo snatched it away, blushing furiously. Trowa rolled his eyes. Heero frowned, suspicious. "You're turning red! What is it?"
Duo muttered something and shoved the tube in his back pocket. Heero looked amazed, but amused at the same time.
"You just put your mouth on... me, and you're embarrassed about something from a drug store?" Heero made a grab for Duo's back pocket. "I want to see."
"It's lube, damn it," Duo snapped, twisting out of Heero's grasp. "It's for... " He scowled, and picked up the other two boxes. "Here. Condoms, and chocolates."
Heero blinked, temporarily distracted, and looked down at the packages. "Condoms? How do I--"
"Read the directions," Trowa said, then sighed at Heero's befuddled expression. He looked somewhere between adorable and helpless, if a man in his mid-twenties who'd been a walking weapon his entire life could be helpless in anything. Trowa opened the box, taking out one foil package. It took a bit of fumbling, but he got it open, and demonstrated unrolling the condom over two fingers of Heero's free hand. "Prevents pregnancy and diseases."
"Oh." Heero stared at the condom, making no move to get it off. He glanced at the chocolates. "And these?"
"Doro said Lena likes that kind," Duo replied. At Trowa's startled glance, Duo made a face. "What, you think I was hanging with Hil that whole time? Doro made a comment about the... " Duo's expression turned sly. " ...Welcome party in the corner of the room, and we ducked out before shit started hitting the fan - literally." He elbowed Heero. "We went shopping in the medical lab."
"Oh." Heero shook his hand until the condom fell off, and gave it a worried look.
"No, it won't fall off you," Trowa said, deadpan.
Heero glared, but Duo only chortled.
"Ah, he's coming back to life!" Duo clapped Heero on the shoulder and guided him to the door. "Keep your comm. on, buddy." In an instant, his joking demeanor was gone, and he was deadly serious. "Not saying we want to eavesdrop, but if anything happens, you let us know and we'll be there instantly. We... we really don't know if this will work."
Heero nodded, and shoved the boxes in his pockets. He stared down at his bare feet, then across the room to his boots and socks, left forgotten by the bed. In two steps he was across the room and in front of Trowa, but he didn't retrieve the last of his belongings. Instead, he leaned up and gave Trowa a chaste kiss on the lips. Turning without a word, he did the same to Duo, and then left on cat-soft steps, pulling the door shut behind him.
Duo turned, a hand coming up to his lips, his eyes wide. The question was there, in his eyes, plain as the braid draped across his shoulder and down his chest.
Trowa moved to stand in front of Duo, and bent down, crossing the two-inch difference without effort. Gently he pushed Duo's hand away, and placed his lips against Duo's, before pulling away.
"That's for what you did," he said, then narrowed his eyes. He added in a low growl, "you really annoyed the fuck out of me, these last few months."
"There's better ways to tell me than by giving me bruises," Duo retorted.
"Don't make me come back in there," Heero interrupted, over the 'comm. "Both of you, I recommend having an orgasm. It will really change your perspective on things. Get laid, and that's an order."
Duo made a choking sound.
Trowa smirked. "We've created a monster," he mouthed.
"Enough talking," Duo replied, and popped the top button on Trowa's jeans. "There're better things to do with that mouth."
Hil slipped into the dark room, coming up behind the small sofa and settling down on the arm. Doro looked up from her book, an eyebrow raised. Cat glanced over from her game of solitaire spread across the low table in front of the sofa.
"What's the news?" Cat set down another card, a quiet slap in the room's silence.
"Just got word," Hil said, sliding sideways to collapse onto the sofa. "Meiran and those two will be here tomorrow."
"Good." Doro turned the page and went back to reading. Hil made a disgusted sound, and angled a leg past Cat to kick Doro in the knee. Doro swatted without looking.
Cat looked across her cards, collecting several, rearranging them quickly and efficiently. "Did you tell Cecil we'll need another room for three?"
"Three?" Hil looked surprised. "I told him Meiran would be staying with you, as usual."
Cat shook her head. "No, they're a couple."
"A couple is two people," Doro pointed out.
"Great space," Cat muttered, rolling her eyes heavenward. "How did I end up with clueless teammates?"
"Wait, you mean... " Hil blinked a few times, and looked past Cat at Doro, then gave Cat a suspicious look. "How do you know?"
"It was obvious that's where they were heading," Cat replied, slapping down three more cards in rapid succession. "Plain as day. And it makes sense. Quatre and Wufei are together, and there's that whole mindfuck business, and Wufei and Meiran... well, we all know Meiran's been carrying a torch for her dead husband all this time."
"This Wufei isn't her dead husband," Hil pointed out, feeling a bit petty. She didn't care. Lena's chances - and the quick look she'd gotten at Heero when she'd passed him in the hall - were still grating on her.
"Still." Cat shrugged, and rather pointedly didn't look at Hil. "Sometimes... things just work out that way, I suppose."
Hil made a noncommittal sound and brought her knees up under her chin, watching Cat's game of solitaire. Her mind wandered, moving through the day's conversations and events, and the debates by Lena's council on whether the Gundams should attend the peace conference.
Mariemaia's announcement had struck the war-torn world like lightening on a dry field, and the feeling in Sanq was excited and hopeful for the first time in months. People on the street had been smiling, laughing, crying, and Hil had struggled with the distance she'd felt. She was too bloody, too weary, too jaded with the many times they'd seen victory so close only to have it ripped away. She sighed, and shifted on the sofa.
"Stop that," Doro ordered. "You're making the sofa creak."
Hil bounced twice, just to be obnoxious. "What, this?" She did it again. "That bother you?"
"Don't make me punch you," Doro replied, still not looking up from her book. She turned the page, obviously intending to ignore Hil.
Hil did it twice more, and settled down. Doro wasn't going to rise to the bait, and Hil's edginess was just going to aggravate both her teammates.
"I know you're jealous, and I understand." Cat gathered one pile of cards, setting it aside. "Maybe some space would do you some good."
"I'm fine." Hil shook her head. She'd run her own missions for years; she was a full member of the team. She didn't need a break to get her head screwed on straight. Hil knew her own mind; she wasn't just upset that Duo didn't see her with the same eyes as Heero and Wufei did for Lena and Meiran. It was simply that he wasn't the Duo she'd known. "I'm fine," she repeated, in an undertone.
"You're not acting like it," Doro observed.
Hil glowered, her mind churning from frustration and exhaustion. Her Duo could pilot, fight, and shoot circles around her. And this Duo was far better, and he'd not even been near a Gundam in nine years! It made her want to bash her head against something. I'm a member of this team, she reminded herself. I pull my own weight, and I'm as good a pilot and mechanic and soldier as the rest of them.
All that time on her own, and she was suddenly running to catch up all over again. Duo's skills were always ahead of her. Hil wrapped her arms tighter around her shins and glared at Doro over Cat's back.
"What would you prefer I do?" Hil was too tired to care if she was spitting out fighting words. "Go blow something up?"
"Considering how many times I've had to rein you in?" Doro shrugged. "This obsessive hanging around isn't like you."
"Fuck off," Hil muttered.
Cat slapped down another five cards, and shot Hil an angry look. "Go finish off the chocolate or something."
Hil got up. "Whatever!" She stalked from the room, their words replaying in her head. Space would do you good, she thought, wondering why that phrase was making her vibrate, as if she'd just found something she hadn't realized she'd lost. She thought back to Zhiyi's part in the announcement, rolling the words in her head.
"Illusions," Hil said, as she shut the lounge door behind her. She looked both ways down the hallway. The floor was dark but for a few lower lights, here and there, conserving energy. Hil scratched her head, and wondered why Zhiyi's words had popped into her head.
Illusions.
Something about that word, and the hesitation. Hil frowned. Zhiyi was incredibly articulate for someone only ten years old; she'd grown up surrounded by women who didn't have the time or energy to talk down to her, but expected her to talk on their level. Hil picked a direction at random, her head down as she strode down the hallway, her hands itching to punch someone or something. She felt edgy, trapped, and ready for a fight, but she couldn't stop thinking of what Cat and Doro had said, or replaying Zhiyi's speech in her head.
She nearly tripped over her own feet when it came to her, and for a heartbeat she considered waiting to ask the rest what they thought of her crazy theory. But then she shook her head, thinking of her teammates' impression that she was helplessly stuck on Duo. No. It wasn't just that he wasn't her Duo, and they just didn't seem to understand that.
This Duo wouldn't notice her; this Duo wouldn't even wait for her to catch up. She'd have to do it on her own, if she were to prove her worth.
She took off running, down the hallway.
Lena finished off the last of the chocolate, and set the wrapper on the small table by the bed. Heero was still staring down at his knees, perched on the edge of the bed. She'd done her best to get him into a conversation, but every topic - the food drops, the peace negotiations, the Long design modifications - had stuttered to a halt.
"Hey," she said, turning to kneel facing him. When she put a hand on his arm, he stiffened; she could feel the muscles as hard as iron under his skin. "That was some excellent chocolate. Thank you."
He nodded, not even trying to speak, at this point.
"You're nervous," she said, trying to think of a way to get him to relax. She thought of a few ways, and shoved them aside. Being too forward would probably just upset him more; he seemed on-edge enough as it was.
"Yes," he said, then shook his head. "No. Just... I can't move anything. It feels like I'm missing a body part. It feels... unnatural."
"Oh." Lena sank back down, noticing Heero's worried glance her way, and sighed. She ran a hand across her face, then through her hair before letting her hand casually drop onto Heero's thighs. Full-speed ahead, she decided; this Heero, like the one she'd known, seemed to be too blunt to understand or appreciate the diplomacy she'd attempted so far. "I'm aware of what your teammates had to do, before you could come here."
Heero's head came up. His eyes were wide, guileless and scared. His voice was small. "Does that bother you?"
"It's a little weird," Lena admitted, with a smile. "But it's not like I don't know what it's like to fight and live with people who are closer than siblings. Like I have four wives, sometimes. None of us have really ever managed relationships with anyone else, not for long. We're too... us. So I understand that part, at least."
"Too us." Heero frowned, considering that, and nodded. "Yes."
"And I know they love you, and wouldn't want you to hurt, so... I can't really begrudge the way they choose to show it." Lena mulled over her thoughts; she'd had a speech all planned, but tossing it out the window seemed the only way to go. "We've spent almost a half-hour just sitting here. You shouldn't let their gift go to waste."
To her utmost surprise, Heero turned beet-red.
"Uh... " Lena shook her head, trying not to laugh. "Okay, that wasn't the reaction I was expecting."
"Their gifts were... " Heero frowned, and pulled out a box from his back pocket, dropping it on the bed between them. "Duo said it's like a mission. I thought I was ready, but now I don't feel very well prepared."
"Ah." Lena considered rolling her eyes, and suppressed the urge. She palmed the box and set it aside on the table. "That's one type of preparation, true." A look at Heero's worried expression, noting the hunched shoulders, the curled fingers, and she grinned outright as an idea occurred to her. "You sit there. I'll be right back."
"Lena?" He asked, twisting to watch her get up from the bed.
She headed into the bathroom for a towel. He remained where he was, and she dug through the gift basket of bathroom supplies she'd gotten when they'd arrived. Finding the bottle she wanted, she returned to the bedroom.
Lena unfurled the towel across the bed, and dropped the bottle next to it. She pointed at the towel, figuring the direct approach had worked so far, and there was no reason to quit yet.
"Strip, and lay down on your stomach," she commanded.
Heero's eyes went wide, then his brow furrowed, and his lip curled a little at the edges. Without taking his eyes off her, he pulled the shirt over his head, so slowly she would've sworn he was doing it on purpose. Standing, he undid his jeans, and pulled them down over slim hips, letting them fall to the floor. Apparently unbothered by his total nudity - or the growing erection between his legs - he crawled up onto the bed and lay down across the towel. He came up on his elbows, looking over her shoulder with an expression that he definitely couldn't have been aware was pretty damn seductive.
"You're still wearing clothes," he pointed out.
"Right." She said it firmly, but inside she felt a bit like a farm tractor caught in battle against a squadron of Long. Any minute she was going to get squashed.
She shoved that thought away and yanked off her shirt. She kicked off her jeans, her underwear along with them, and then unsnapped her bra. She tossed it to the side, only to look up to see Heero lying on his back, his arms behind his head. Lena narrowed her eyes at him. Heero had to know he looked like a frickin' Greek god, she decided; he looked too smug not to. She put her hands on her hips, mildly annoyed, and his eyes widened innocently.
"This can't be sex," he said, and smirked. "I thought there's more touching." Lena blinked, caught totally off-guard. He grinned at her before rolling over on his stomach again. "So what happens now?"
"I was going to relax you," she said, and climbed onto the bed, straddling his thighs. She put her hands on his shoulders, pressing into the muscle with her thumbs. "It's an old trick, but it usually works."
The next thing she knew, she was flat on her back with Heero lying across her. His erection was digging into her thigh, and his weight had her pinned. He grinned down at her, then ran his tongue across her bottom lip.
"I might not have gone all the way yet," he whispered, and nibbled on her jaw for a moment. "But I do know that relaxing comes afterwards, not before."
"Well, there is... " Lena squeaked at the sensation of Heero's leg pushing between hers. "You're, ah, moving a bit fas--"
"Right." Heero arched an eyebrow. "Moving is part of it. I'm naïve. Not stupid."
"Didn't say you--" Lena's breath caught at his thigh rubbing against her, and he took full advantage of her open mouth for a deep kiss. After a second he released her hands, and she wrapped her arms around him, holding him tightly.
He sighed into her mouth, and she placed a foot on the bed, flat. With one solid kick she flipped them both over, landing straddled on Heero's lap. He groaned, his hands automatically going to her hips, and she rubbed her hips back and forth across his stomach. His hands moved up to her breasts, and she leaned forward to kiss him deeply, her hands buried in his hair. Pulling away, she smiled down at his heavy-lidded expression, relishing the feel of his callused hands moving back and forth across her skin.
"Let me show you," she said, taking one of his hands and placing it on her breast. "It's not just sex. There's more to it than that."
"Good," Heero murmured, arching upwards to follow his fingers with his lips, suckling and kissing between his words. "I was hoping... " He bit down, then lightened his touch when Lena jerked at the sensation. " ...Sorry," he whispered. "But sex so far doesn't seem to... " His fingers ran down her spine, and she retaliated by rolling one of his nipples between the fingers of her free hand. His hips rocked up against her, and he moaned into her chest. " ...It doesn't take very long, and I want... "
"It can take the next three hours if we do it right," she promised him, and pushed him back down onto the bed.
End Part 34
(:./sol/tetra34)
