12-Feb-2001
revised: 11-Sep-2002
Title: Need Some Distraction 3/?
Author: Dan
Title: Need Some Distraction
Genre: Epic ;p
Timeline: After EW by a little. All our G-boys and G-girls are all grown up. <snorts> Kinda
Note: Sequel to 'Prices Paid'
Disclaimers: Not mine. Don't sue
<scurries in and drops off fic piece before running away>
I was up and in the office before six o'clock, like I was everyday. Anytime I came into the office later than six in the morning things went very wrong, very fast. I wasn't the only one awake and working already. Wufei came into my office with a stack of files and a scowl on his face, just the thing that I want to see at the break of day.
"That bad already?" I asked. I meant it to be a gentle teasing comment. It came out closer to a quiet wail.
He snorted at me and dropped a load of files onto my desk before settling himself elegantly into one of the thick leather chairs I'd 'borrowed' from the Preventer's lounge area. I flicked my eyes over him before I could stop myself. Dorothy's teasing innuendo conveniently replayed itself in my head. I quickly shifted my gaze to the files Wufei had dropped on my desk.
I flipped through the tan files and frowned. They were all on the delegates that were coming to review our joint funding request. I hate having to deal with politicians and money; they got decidedly unpleasant. For some reason they thought that simply because I was part of some project it wouldn't need anything practical, like, oh say, people, time, equipment, or money. I started doing multiplication tables in my head as I read one of the files on a delegate from L4. She was going to be difficult.
"You're doing it again, woman." Wufei sounded amused rather than annoyed.
"Doing what?" I blinked up at him. Somehow I found it possible to tear my eyes away from the utterly fascinating details of the L4 delegate's fiscal theory to look at that aristocratic face.
"Saying multiplication tables under your breath." Now he was definitely amused.
I blushed a little. I was glad that he couldn't see what went through my head as I said these multiplication tables to keep my calm. Little chibis multiplied themselves as I went through the charts. Generally I chibi-fied whatever person I was thinking about the most. Once I had over a thousand little chibi-Heero's in my head. I had even chibi-fied Duke Dermail because I was so nervous about speaking before the Romerfeller cooperation. Lately little chibi-Wufei's had been multiplying themselves. I'm not sure how I felt about that.
"Sorry. I'll try not to do that." I went back to studying the files with renewed vigor, using the files to shield me.
"Not many people would notice it. You are very quiet." I wondered if Heero had heard me doing multiplication tables under my breath. Probably, it just wasn't like him to mention it. Wufei seemed to like to say things that would unsettle me. The man is perverse like that.
"I have to be. I can show no signs that I am not always serene, calm, and in control. People panic if I don't." I continued to go over the files, making notes occasionally, and very determinedly not looking up. Wufei said nothing, but I could almost feel him thinking. It was unnerving, how much these gundam pilots thought about what I said. As if ever word of mine might break them into a million shining pieces. Perhaps that's just my over-grown sense of importance talking.
"You let them use you like a crutch." There was an accusation in his voice, but I wasn't sure who it was directed at, me or everyone else. I assumed he was directing the criticism at me.
"I do my job, Wufei." I replied with a glare, and he arched one eyebrow in reply. "And I do not need you to tell me how I should go about doing it. Thank you."
He was going to reply when the quiet, almost dignified beep, of an incoming call cut us both off from our little glaring match. I sighed. It wasn't even seven in the morning and already the calls were coming. I closed my eyes and composed myself. But nothing could have prepared me for the sight on the vid screen.
Duo. And he was a complete and utter mess.
His eyes had bruises from lack of sleep so deep that it looked like someone had punched him. His hair was partially dragged back from his sweet, heart-shaped face in a messy braid. His collar was open, his sleeves pushed up and his knuckles were white as he clenched his hands together.
"Oh, Duo." I reached out to touch the screen as if I would touch him. So much pain, and all I wanted to do was take it away, sooth it away.
"One question, 'Lena, where is Hilde?" His voice was raw with a need that I had only heard once. When we had talked about Heero. That was a conversation I never want to relive.
"Hilde? She's staying at my apartment for the time being. Ah... I can give you the phone number... but," I was stumbling over myself. I pushed some papers around on my desk and looked up helplessly at Wufei. He arched an eyebrow at me and then calmly turned the screen around to frown at Duo.
"Maxwell, what are you doing?" His voice held the tone of voice that I had only heard my old battle-axe of a sixth grade teacher get.
"Wufei. I just want to talk to Hilde." Duo's voice held a note of desperation. "This has nothing to do with you."
"Maxwell," Wufei sounded exasperated, but I though I could here the sympathy sneaking into his voice. "Since I have offered the position of Chief of Special Investigations, and she has accepted, what happens to her is very much my business."
"Chief of what?! What the hell! Look, Chang, what the hell have you gotten my Hilde into?" I listened to Duo's voice take a sudden protective turn while my eyebrow arched of its own volition. That tone was interesting. Hilde had made it sound like her leaving was a mutual decision. Maybe, it wasn't. Hm.
"According to her file, she was the best candidate for this position," Wufei snarled. I blinked at Wufei's tone. This conversation was about to turn nasty. I snuck a look at Wufei's face and mentally slapped my forehead. Ughn! He had that 'I'm-may-be-wrong-but-I-am-not-uncertain' look on his face. "She acted as a Military Police officer for the Federation, if only for a short time, while undergoing special training for advanced mobile suit piloting and combat situations. She accustomed to handling criminal cases. And she would be an eight-generation law enforcement officer. Do not question my or her judgment in this matter! "
My other eyebrow made an attempt to join my hairline. I hadn't been aware that Hilde had other law enforcement agents in her family. I was going to have to ask her about that.
I propped my chin on my palm as I settled back to let Wufei anger Duo enough to get him out of whatever depression he had worked himself into. I listened to the two men as they exchanged increasingly heated words about Hilde and the job she had decided to take. When Wufei stood up to yell at the screen I calmly reached out and turned it back to me.
Only to watch Duo get jerked off the screen by his braid, which was both amusing and disturbing. Then Heero appeared on the screen. My heart stopped for a moment.
"Heero." I looked at Heero and saw only him. I no longer saw my knight in shining armor; I saw a man, tired, frustrated, confused, and worried. I was worried about how pale he looked and the pain in his eyes, but the need that I used to feel... It just wasn't there. I had let go of that irrational need. I could see him, not my idealizations.
"Relena." We stared at each for a long time. The emotions, or lack of the old ones and a surge of new ones, took some time to for us to work through. We had been so used to seeing each other through the lens of our need that we never really saw each other at all before. I was dimly aware that Wufei was looking at me with an odd expression of concern mingled with something else. I wondered briefly if Duo was looking at Heero the same way. I shook myself out of it and smiled at him.
"Hilde is staying at my apartment. I don't know what happened, but I know she's hurting, and angry. Very angry." I watched as guilt, consternation, and something deeper went through those blue eyes. I thought I saw regret cloud his eyes for moment. It gave me hope.
"We were stupid."
I smiled out right at that. Heero was always so blunt.
"You're male, so that's to be expected." The jab was aimed more for Wufei than Heero. Wufei snorted and scowled. I gave him my best angelic smile. Heero looked mildly confused. I set my elbows on the table, and steepled my fingers, pressing them against my lips. Now Heero looked downright suspicious. I resisted the urge to snicker.
"I'm not going to ask you what happened. If Hilde wants to tell me she will. BUT," I held up a finger. "If you want to make things right, you come down here and do it face to face."
Duo appeared on the screen again. "Lena..."
I smiled and knew all the quiet frustration, affection, and amusement was showing in my expression. I never could keep my face from showing everything I was thinking. "Duo, for such a chatterbox, why couldn't you tell her you loved her? Heero, I expect this from," The Wing pilot glared at me, and I winked at him, which made him frown in confusion again. "But you, Duo?"
He looked startled. "How the hell did you--?! Did Hilde?"
"No," I watched the emotions war in his eyes. I sighed. I wanted to yell at him for being such a flaming idiot. Him and Heero, but that wasn't what they needed right now. If anything, it would be the absolute worst thing to do. Heero would become all noble and self-sacrificing, and Duo.... Well. I loved Duo, but I knew he'd sulk if I yelled at him now. Which was not what I wanted him to do.
"But I could tell. She doesn't have much faith in herself right now. You hurt her, Duo. And you had better fix it," I told him flatly.
"I will, Lena." The sincerity in his voice, in his face, gave me hope.
Heero covered Duo's hand with his, "We both will."
I gave them my best I'm-pleased-you-decided-to-see-it-my-way smile. Heero gave me a suspicious look and Duo gave me a look that said he knew the score, but was willing to go with me this once. "Good," I said as I continued to snowball them. "I'll arrange for you to be here, say, next week?"
They were both stuttering when I hung up on them. I hummed to myself in pleasure. Not only did I prove to myself that I was truly able to see Heero as himself, and was finally able to help him, I had also found away to help Hilde. I was definitely pleased with myself.
"Relena."
I gave Wufei my best I'm-just-a-harmless-blond look. He wasn't buying it. Darn.
"What are you doing?"
I sighed and gestured for him to sit. Staring up at him was making my neck hurt. "I'm doing what has been the right of all women since the beginning of time. I'm matchmaking. Or in this case, fixing a match already made. They just don't know it. Yet."
He narrowed his black eyes. An emotion I didn't quite understand shone in them. "I thought you had gotten over Heero."
I blinked at that. "I have. What are you talking about?"
"Then what are you doing with Hilde and Duo?" I wasn't sure I liked the tone of his voice. But I didn't really know how to identify it. Jealousy? Suspicion? What was that?
I held up a finger for each name. "Hilde and Duo AND Heero." I smiled up at him. "I'm going for a ménage a trois." I steepled my fingers and pressed them against my lips. I could feel the smug smile tugging at the corners of my mouth. "They belong together, Wufei, even if they don't realize it yet."
"And you are going to show them." He dropped into the chair across from me. He seemed much more relaxed now.
"I think the boys know they need her, love her. But Hilde, for reasons I don't know, left before they could figure it out. I think if we put them together in the same area for a long enough period of time, they'll figure it out on their own." I smiled down at the files. I hadn't realized it, but I really liked match-making. I had had a lot of fun with Lady Une when we managed to get both Noin and my brother together. It helped when the people involved were people you loved. That thought made me giddy with realization. I did love the boys. And Hilde, well, I was definitely starting to. It was a warm, affectionate love--nice and comfortable and friendly.
"Relena, you are being devious." Wufei, if he weren't so damned serious, would have been grinning, but he did smirk.
"I know. You want in on it?" He blinked at me. "Come on, it'll be fun, watching Duo and Heero grovel."
"If it insures that my Chief of Special Investigations will be that much more efficient at her duties, then I will assist you."
"You just want to see Duo beg."
"That is an added benefit of this plan."
I grinned, he smirked, and we got back to the business of hustling the delegates for money.
End Part 3
<grins> 'Fei and 'Lena are so cute. So cute. ^____^
(:./dan/distraction3)
