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"I mean Zechs' idea is good and all…" Duo winced as he tried to work his arm out of his shirt, humming a thank you as Heero appeared at his side to help him out. He pressed a quick peck to the man's cheek as he reached for his belt. "… and frankly I agree that we all need a nice quiet vacation from all the bullshit that's been rocking up to our door lately. But the Summer Palace? …. Man, that place is gonna be a bitch to make secure."
You know me and casting art…. Mwahahahahahaha!!!!
Le Palais de l’Aube Nouvelle
“The Palace of the New Dawn”
Sanq Kingdom
United Earth Sphere
“I mean Zechs’ idea is good and all…” Duo winced as he tried to work his arm out of his shirt, humming a thank you as Heero appeared at his side to help him out. He pressed a quick peck to the man’s cheek as he reached for his belt. “… and frankly I agree that we all need a nice quiet vacation from all the bullshit that’s been rocking up to our door lately. But the Summer Palace? …. Man, that place is gonna be a bitch to make secure.”
“We’d need a month … at least.” Heero grunted in agreement, peeling off his own shoulder holster and rolling his broad shoulders as he hung it on the bed stand. “And a team of fifty that we trust.”
“And add to that a team of twenty or so for the Princess.” Duo nodded sagely as he shucked his pants and sat on the bed to get to his socks. “… and a metric fuck ton of unmanned drones for the perimeter.” He lay back on the bed heavily as he narrowed his eyes in contemplation. “… maybe some dogs as well. We should definitely get dogs.”
“Let’s not get carried away now…” The wing pilot chuckled tiredly, having already stripped down to his boxers as he padded around their shared bedroom, picking up their discarded clothing. “Wufei would never approve the budget for all that.”
He came over and squatted at the braided man’s feet, made quick work of his socks and started massaging the arches of Duo’s feet, much to the braided man’s appreciation, they were surely aching from the long hours they’d both spent at Zech’s side over the last few days. Thank Kami the international Trade discussions Sanq had been invited to host were winding down and his love would be able to get the time he needed to heal completely.
He worked his way up Duo’s calves, slowly and steadily rubbing and pressing as he felt the muscles under his touch loosen. His lover’s breath hitched as he hissed and whimpered under the wing pilot’s ministrations, soon deepening and smoothing out as he all but melted against the bedding. Heero grinned under his fringe, running his hands up and down Duo’s lean legs as he bent over to kiss his bare knee.
Both Sally Po and Iria Winner had been able to get the 02 pilot mostly healed from his time under Rabi’a Winner’s ‘tender care’ but with the traces of toxin still to be naturally cycled out of Duo’s system and the delicate bone work they’d had to do to get his clavicle and ribs back in working order; the braided pilot could still be classified as walking wounded.
Thankfully, he wasn’t in a coma anymore… with the experimental drug ravaging his mind and body as it tore their bond to fucking shreds. Heero pushed down the familiar ball of rage and fear he felt every time he thought back to those awful days of all but squatting by Duo’s hospital bed, oblivious to anything but the deep loss he felt when he tried to reach for his lover and met with cold emptiness. It had brought back his nightmares of the palace with Relena and Quatre and it was only the presence of Shakur and Beck that he’d been able to keep it together until they could get back to Sanq and their Alphas.
“Maybe if we let Lori bring up the dog thing with Fei Fei… we might even be able to swing a couple of K9 teams from Une. You know that she has both of them wrapped around her little finger.” Duo barked a laugh even as he winced and brought a hand up to his tender collar bone. “Though I’m not sure that would even work as Une is already gunning for our asses because we’ve all but commandeered Beck and Shakur right out from under her.”
Heero chuckled, his hands coming to rest on Duo’s thighs as he rolled forward into a full kneel between his lover’s legs. “Well, she can take it up for Zechs and Wufei if she wants to gun for anyone. Ever since some of the survivors from Catalonia’s Chateau chose to settle close and become tribe, our instincts have driven us to start ‘nesting’ in order to firm up the bonds and bring the tribe closer together.”
“God, that makes us all sound like birds every time I hear it.” Duo huffed, his violet eyes half lidded from exhaustion but still bright with humour. “But at least that’s better than what some of the old Romerfeller records called it. It’s like they had some kind of thesuarus diaboli for all the fucked up names they gave shit. Thank god Fei had it scanned then burned. We don’t need that crap floating around in the world.”
Heero made a face at the more memorable records Zechs had gotten from his sister and then from both Dorothy and Une. Duo was right. Romerfeller seemed to derive some kind of perverse pleasure in how they described the methods of research they’d done. It had reminded him too much of his time with Doctor J and the thought never failed to send a chill down his spine.
“Agreed. But that’s a topic for tomorrow, I think.” Heero rolled to his feet, holding out a hand to pull Duo upright. “Join me for a bath, love? I’ll use that bubbly stuff you like.”
“That sounds so fucking good right now Hee-chan…” Duo leaned heavily against his lover, his head dropping unto Heero’s shoulder with a groan as his arms wrapped around his slim waist. “It’s been a helluva week… fuck…. It’s been a helluva goddamned year.”
He smushed his face into Heero’s shoulder as the man’s chest rumbled with laughter, steady hands guiding them both as they stumbled towards the bathroom. Duo sat on the closed toilet lid, humming absently as he watched Heero putter around the ensuite bath. The hot tub was huge, big enough for half a dozen to sit comfortably. Then again, the palace was a tribute to old world luxury anyway so he was no longer surprised at the size and grandeur of the place.
Warm water gushed from the heavenly jets, swirling with salts and scented oils that soothed aching muscles. Thick aroma therapy candles with scents mild enough for his sentinel’s nose but effective enough for Duo’s mood. Thankfully, Heero didn’t zone on the flickering light of the flames anymore but Duo still kept an eye out for the warning signs.
Especially since the trauma to their bond still hadn’t completely healed. It had been three months since L4. Three months of healing as their bond slowly stitched itself back together. Three months of waking up gasping from nightmares and struggling to find balance in group meditations. Three months of their tribe bolstering them unfailingly as they lanced long festering emotional wounds, long suppressed traumas bubbling out like rancid pus.
The water was just hot enough to make Duo moan as he slid into the tub, Heero slipping in to sit behind him. They’d put his braid up in a sloppy bun, neither of them having any energy to deal with his long locks before bed. Heero’s breath was hot and sweet against the shell of his ear, his back firm and steady amidst the bubbling of the jacuzzi. Duo leaned his head back on his lover’s shoulder, pressing a soft kiss against the man’s sharp jaw as his mind drifted; easily falling into a meditative state. Their silence was comfortable, cozy even, the honey glow of the candles seeming to cocoon them in their own little world of two.
Duo let his guide aspect drift, bobbing lightly along the bonds of their tribe as Heero’s steady heartbeat centred his focus. Their Alphas were together in the war room, burning the midnight oil as the last days of the conference seemed to stretch out longer than the rest of the conference combined. Both men were tired, yes, but still spirited as they enjoyed some quiet time together. Duo hummed happily as Zechs brushed over his senses like a warm caress against his cheek, affection thrumming long the bond.
Ilora was in deep sleep, her mind a vast ocean that spoke to the leaps and bounds that her power had grown over the last year. It had been surprising, and frankly alarming, to both her fathers and the tribe; as much of the progress had come as a response to the trauma she’d suffered during her kidnapping. Thankfully, she’d been responding well to therapy and was back to her usual happy, bouncy self.
Shakur and Beck were farther away, back at their apartment resting up for the next day as they had duty at the palace with the other Preventors assigned to Une’s escort. Both men were beacons of calm in the noise of the city, shielding and supporting each other like true partners. Considering they’d been together almost as long as Zechs and Wufei had been, even though they hadn’t known what to even call the weird connection they shared; it was no surprise that their bond was so vibrant, strong and settled.
Piotr and Michelle were bright and pulsing points along the tribal net, as energetic and active as they were in real life. The cheery guide was most likely up and awake and on the neural web, doing whatever he got up to when his mind was too riled up to sleep. Michelle was close, mostly likely lounging in his bed listening to the old time pre-colony records she liked digging through vintage thrift shops for. She even liked to wear the bulky head phones with a wire that plugged into the restored record player, her feet swinging to the beat as she read whatever book she could dig out from the bargain bin.
Both teens were already a few months deep into the customized home schooling programmes the pilots had set up, seeing as their education had been stunted at different ages due to being kidnapped and held at the chateau. Piotr had bloomed under the regimen, his brilliant mind absorbing knowledge at an amazing pace. They’d even brought in thoroughly vetted tutors to deal with the areas not suitably covered by the specialized curriculum. Michelle on the other hand, had a more laid back mindset when it came to schooling. She enjoyed learning but didn’t yearn for it, she just did it to keep up with Piotr’s zeal.
Duo was happy either way. He just wanted to give them a good foundation for whatever they chose to be in life. They were so amazing and wonderful and had dug so deep in his heart so quickly that he’d almost gotten whiplash. Thank God Heero had stayed by his side the entire way, quietly supporting him in his instinctual need to take these kids under Shinigami’s wings.
He was all floaty and loose by the time they get out and ready for bed, almost dozing as he leaned against the Japanese man. Heero wrestled them both into huge fluffy robes, forgoing anything more as they got settled into bed. Duo was quick to tuck himself into Heero’s side, snuggling in close with a soft exhale as he pressed his nose into his lover’s neck and flung a leg over the other man’s. The wing pilot just chuckled, long accustomed to Duo’s octopus tendencies and all too happy to have his guide safe in his arms.
He did his usual sensory round of the palace and the grounds, all the exercises he’d been doing with Wufei and Shakur paying off with an increase in his range. He also didn’t suffer from snap back’s as much anymore, his mind capable of handling the input from spreading his senses over larger and larger areas. With Duo at his side supporting him with powerful empathic shields of his own, Heero had come well beyond the Sentinel that even Doctor J had ever envisioned him to be.
“Go to sleep, ‘Ro.” Duo mumbled against his skin, one hand slipping under Heero’s robe to rest against his heart. “Big day tomorrow.”
“Hn.” Heero just smiled and pressed a kiss to his lover’s head, closing his eyes and falling asleep to Duo’s soft breathing.
**************************
Palais du Chèvrefeuillle
Honeysuckle Palace
Sanq Kingdom
United Earth Sphere
Duo had called it. The Deathscythe pilot’s instinct were right as usual.
The Sanq Summer Palace had been a cast iron bitch to secure. In fact, it had taken more than the projected month to get the staff and premises cleared and the gaping holes in security fixed. Relena had hardly spent time there in her reign, preferring to stay in the capital to be near her beloved Heero; so the place had been slowly mothballed over the years. The staff had been whittled down to a skeleton crew, more interested in preserving the palace as a historical site than running it as a functioning household.
The look on the steward’s face at Wufei’s first visit had been so comical that Heero had wished Duo had been there to witness it. Thankfully, his phone had already been out so he’d snapped a pic to share with his lover. It wasn’t usual for them to spilt duties like this but they hadn’t wanted to leave Zechs alone. Quatre’s ominous threat at having a mole in the palace was still strong in their minds. So far they hadn’t been able to root out anyone with malice in mind amongst the staff, even with Duo’s psychic B&E; so they’d decided that one of the Gundam pilots would be with Zechs at all times.
Duo had already put the Princess’ staff through their paces, upping their training and tightening the schedules to leave no gaps around the young girl. They were still as unobtrusive as always as the last thing they wanted was for Ilora to feel stifled or alarmed by her team’s new intensity. Hero still chuckled at the awed whispers among his men and Preventers alike when the braided pilot’s staff slipped around like ninjas.
Palais du Chèvrefeuillle was called the heart of Honeysuckle County. A gorgeous country manse surrounded by sprawling gardens and fields of the namesake plant beyond. Heero had been surprised that the plant had such a large impact on the local economy, being grown, harvested and processed for export in various ways. Thankfully, the smell of the lovely blooms were mild enough that both Heero and Wufei had not been unduly effected.
Still, the situation had been little more than abysmal as both sentinels toured the house and grounds. Wufei’s permanent scowl had terrified the poor steward, the man stumbling over his words and steps as he tried to explain away the white dust cloths and closed off rooms. He could practically hear the abacus clacking in the man’s head as he calculated how much it would cost to get the place back to its former glory.
Heero, on the other hand, was making a mental list of what he would need to do to make the home ready for the Crown Regent’s visit. The last time the summer palace had been the seat of the crown was when the Peacecrafts were still in their heyday, more than twenty years in the past. Zechs had told them tales of his summers as a child, running along the fields and sucking dew straight from the blossoms themselves. Eating berries, making jam with the royal cook and picnicking out in the gardens with his mother.
There had been such a tender and wistful look on his face that Wufei had sworn then and there that he would find a way to recapture that happiness for his husband and their daughter. Ilora deserved a chance to know the same joy generations of her family had before things were ruined by war.
The flight back to the capital had been spent discussing their plans, Wufei tackling logistics while Heero broke down his assessment of the security needs of both the summer palace and the capital. Funds were the main concern. Sanq was still stabilizing under Zechs’ new reign, they couldn’t just spend much needed funds on what parliament had already called a ‘fancy vacation home’.
It was only after Duo suggested they phrase it as a restoration project with the goal of turning the property into a national historical site, adding to the dynamic tourist heavy industry the region had long cultivated; that a solution to the problem was found. They would make the renovation pay for itself as well as get public opinion in their favour. Then parliament would have no choice but to keep their traps shut about ‘misuse of public funds for trivial personal pursuits.’ Bureaucratic assholes.
Both Zechs and Wufei had agreed, immediately getting to work on the public relations while Duo and Hero were thrown at the task of getting the place up and running. With Shakur and Beck sticking like white on rice to Zechs’ side, much to Une’s chagrin, the other pilots spent their time flying to and from the capital, most times with Piotr and MJ in tow. Along with their schooling, the pair had taken to training the teens in the multitude of other skills they’d acquired during their hectic lives.
Having the run of the house and grounds had been a blessing to both teens, granting them a sense of freedom that they’d long been denied. Piotr had taken to dashing from place to place, building up his endurance as he ran around helter skelter like a kid. MJ, though more subdued, showed true joy in her dark eyes as she chased behind him, only stopping to investigate new smells, tastes and sounds. For the first time in a long while the Palace was filled with laughter.
Heero, along with three of his sub commanders, had stalked every step of the perimeter of the estate step by step, investigating every ditch, burrow and copse of trees. They’d studied maps, explored old tunnels and sewer accesses, spelunked through the dungeons with oxygens masks, kicking up old dust and rusted metal in the catacombs. By the time they were done, he was satisfied there wasn’t a secret room or narrow egress that he hadn’t seen, catalogued and secured. Even the old escape passages used by generations of Peacecrafts long gone were cleared, wired for lights and cameras and secured with gates and touchpads.
He also spent two weeks personally and meticulously wiring the house for cameras, working hard to hide the wiring and mini cams amidst the house antique décor. Thankfully, Duo was of great help in finding creative ways to disguise all the modern technology.
Duo’s job was the house and staff. He also had a team of three, including Zech’s butler Helmsworth. Between the younger pilot’s empathic gifts and the older man’s experience, they soon dealt with the staffing issues plaguing the summer palace. The current steward, a mousey looking man named Collins had been at the post too long, stubbornly clinging the laissez-faire ways they’d been accustomed too for too many years. The fact that the palace had been all but ignored since before the wars had made the man bold in his habits. By the time he’d butted heads with Helmsworth for the third time, leading his small group of compatriots in a sort of cold war of disrespect with the elder man, Duo’d had enough.
He’d dismissed them all coolly, getting to see in person the same hilarious face Heero had taken a picture of and sent to him from his first visit. Of course the newly sacked staff had tried to protest, some even bursting into tears at losing such a cushy job but Duo had been unmoved. He had no time for moochers. Not when the safety of his tribe was concerned. He’d already given them a chance by not firing them out right but if they couldn’t listen to Zech’s own man, he sure as hell wouldn’t be letting them around the crown family with that nonsense. In the interim, they decided to bring in staff from the capital for the visit and handle the rest after.
A week before the royal visit Wufei came once more to check things over, nodding in approval at the various measures the others had put in place. The state of the art security room with drone monitoring and camera surveillance, the sharply attentive guards patrolling in overlapping rounds, the staff bustling around the cleaned and renovated manse under Hemlsworth’s all-seeing eyes. He’d shaken his head ruefully at the K9 units that strolled the grounds, throwing a look at a grinning Duo.
He’d followed Heero through the escape passage on foot to get a feel of the distance and to get himself accustomed to the smell and feel of the place, and meditated in the garden as he listened to the sounds the house made. This was his territory now and he needed to know it inside an out before he could settle with his family there… his tribe. As the sun set on the palace, the fields of flowers glowing gold in the ebbing light, Wufei smiled and gave his approval. Duo had whooped for joy, hugging Heero around the shoulders as he laughed.
Mission: Summer Palace Vacation Time was a go! T minus one week.
***********************
Le Palais de l’Aube Nouvelle
“The Palace of the New Dawn”
Sanq Kingdom
United Earth Sphere
“Yeah… Hee-chan… that’s it… fuck… right there…”
Duo’s voice hitched as his eyes fluttered shut, his spine arching slightly against the burn in his ass. He grabbed at the pillows he’d been propped up on, fighting the urge to reach for his lover as was his usual want during this kind of slow, hot sex. But his collar bone was still twinging and his lover had been adamant that there would be no hot sexy times if there was a chance he could aggravate his still healing injuries. So Duo had looked on obediently as Heero had all but built a fucking nest and tucked him in the center of it like a baby chick.
And yeah, the imagery was kind of fucked up as they were talking about sex but that had seriously been how it felt. Heero had been so careful, so tender with Duo that it had warmed his heart as much as it aggravated him at being treated like spun glass. But he remembered struggling with the same damn behaviour when Heero was hurt so he couldn’t begrudge the man his concern.
It also didn’t hurt that Heero had switched from his usual pace and ruthless precision to a sanity stealing slow intensity had often had left Duo begging for mercy. With the braided pilot secure against the pillows, his long legs either over Heero’s broad shoulders or around his slim waist, hands clenched into the bedding as he panted; Heero rocked into him, slow and steady. The wing pilot’s hands were hot against Duo’s waist as his hips rocked in slow circles, the soft breathy noises falling from his lover’s lips sweet like ambrosia.
“Fuck! Heero!” Duo cried out as he ground in deep, violet eyes rolling back in his head as Heero leaned in to change the angle. “Kami… fuck… ”
Calloused hands ran up and down the pale thighs wrapped around his waist, fingertips running along the scars the braided man had accumulated over his lifetime. They wandered up to Duo’s chest, teasing swollen nipples still sensitive from Heero’s tongue. Duo clenched around him in response, making Heero grunt as his cock throbbed in that tight, welcoming heat. He looked down, ever fascinated at the sight if his angry red cock, all slicked up and sliding in and out of the trembling pink hole. Watching his thick length pull out then sink into his lover’s ass over and over as the man panted and sighed, ass cheeks dusty pink from Heero’s hand.
He rocked in deep and gave a few sharp thrusts, working up a steady and relentless pace as Duo seemed to lose all words and could only gasp and moan. He gently lifted his lover’s long legs from around his waist up to his shoulders, bracing his thighs as he fucked him deep. Duo looked like a debauched angel, hair coming loose from it’s braid to splay against the soft white pillows, his face, neck and chest a pale pink as sweat curled his chestnut hair against his flushed skin. Violet eyes shone like jewels from under half lidded eyes as his kiss swollen mouth hung open; pink and lustrous like ripe fruit for the picking.
Gods, Heero wanted to bend down and claim that mouth, wanted to swallow the words that never seemed to stop flowing from the braided pilot, wanted to suck on that sharp tongue and nibble on those soft lips. He carefully settled Duo’s legs around his waist again, careful as he leaned forward so as not to jar his lover too much. The last thing he needed was for this incredible experience to be marred by pain for his own selfishness.
Resting his weight on his elbows, he felt Duo’s arms steal around his shoulders as they kissed, his fingers digging into Heero’s back and the thick hair at the back of his head. Duo moaned low against his lips, clenching around him in the way that usually indicated that he was close. Heero increased his pace, his hips snapping against Duo’s ass as he reached for the erection leaking and hot against his taut stomach.
“That’s it, baby, come for me…”
Duo’s sudden cry of ecstasy was high and prolonged, his fingers curling into claws against Heero’s shoulders as his heels dug into his ass. The brunette went taut, back arching as he shook and spilled hot against his lover and himself; violet eyes rolling back as he shuddered through orgasm. Heero steadily fucked him through it, whispering soothing words against the shell of his ear as Duo squirmed and gasped through the aftershocks, his face buried in Duo’s neck as he kissed and sucked as hot, salty skin.
As Heero sought his own release, Duo held him, petting him gently as he carded fingers through Heero’s sweat damp hair. He pressed soft kisses to the Japanese man’s hair line, murmuring soft words of encouragement as the steady rhythm of Heero’s hips went staccato, snapping forward helplessly before thrusting deep and stilling. The wing pilot shuddered, a deep stuttering moan coming from his chest as he spilled inside his lover’s heat; Duo taking everything he could give, all but milking his throbbing cock to the point that just edged on painful.
They stayed like that or a while, kissing lazily as Heero softened enough to slip out and with a sigh. He rolled on to his side, dismantling the wall of pillows as he flexed his burning arms. Duo lay splayed out and still trembling as he blinked stupidly at the ceiling.
“You know…” his voice was breathy and wrecked as he licked at his plump lips. “… I could get used to this nesting thing. Ten out of ten would definitely recommend. We may just become birds yet.”
Heero just laughed and slumped his fluffy head into the scattered pillows.
**********************
Piotr stared at his screen in a daze, cheeks and neck flushed pink as he ducked his curly head. The bond was humming along nicely, flooding him with second hand bliss. Though Duo and Heero had become adept at shielding the others from the brunt of their emotions during sex, there was still enough bleed through to up everyone’s happy. He glanced over at MJ who was lazily sprawled on his bed, eyes squinted in contentment as she flipped through one of her text books.
He could feel her calm merriment across their bond, so at odds with the bland expression she usually showed the outside world. Her brown curls were loose across the lovely warm brown of her bared shoulders, the ripped collar of the grey t-shirt she’d stolen from him slipping down to show the bright orange of her bra strap. Her leggings were covered in chibi winged Deathscythes and he boggled at where she and Duo had managed to dig those up.
She was beautiful and amazing and so wonderful and he thanks his lucky stars every day that he’d managed to find her in the middle of the hell they’d both been trapped in. Life until then had been a series of one tragic loss after the other and by the time he’d found himself under Dr. Zasca’s care at the chateau; he’d been just about ready to give up.
So many negative emotions battering him from the others kept in cells, so much pain from the ones held in the deeper levels, the ones whose minds had already been broken by their gifts. All the tests, the experiments, the long periods in the isolation tanks as faceless doctors and nurses fully covered in full white ISO Suits poked and prodded him and strapped electrodes to his head and body.
Then one day, as he’d been curled in the corner of the common room they sometimes let the healthier ones roam around in for social observation, a bright spark had appeared along his empathic plane. Two orderlies had burst through the doors, frog marching a slim teen between them. MJ’s hair had been dyed bright purple then, a snarl on her face as the two bulky men had all but tossed her into the centre of the room.
She’d given the smirking men the double bird from her sprawl on the rubber floor, baring her teeth in a death’s head grin as the smaller of the orderlies rubbed his aching thigh from when she’d landed a brutal kick. She was a spitfire from the start, wild and loud and oh so angry at everyone and everything. A whirlwind along his empathic plane, sucking him in before he even registered what was happening. She’d spun her head his way as his soft gasp of wonder, their eyes meeting and locking as a golden bond snapped between them.
He’d been so surprised, elated and terrified all at once. So happy to not be alone with all the emotions in his head anymore yet so scared of what the Doctor liked to do to the newly bonded. He’d seen what she’d done to the two other pairs that had met and matched at the Chateau. He’d felt their despair at being kept apart, isolated and experimented on. He’d felt the perverse delight that the doctors took in testing the bond to the extreme.
MJ became his anchor during that tumultuous time, buffering him from the rigors of the testing that began right after. The doctors had been scarily interested at how strong and developed their bond had become in such a short time and got off on sticking them both in isolation tanks until they screamed for mercy.
Then one day Zasca had been called away by their mysterious benefactor. Piotr had seen the platinum blonde woman only once, her forked brows and the intense look in her cold eyes had been enough to scare him for days on end, the emotions pouring off of her even through the thick glass of the observation room had been unnerving. It hadn’t been long after that when he’d looked up at the open doorway of his room and seen a grinning Duo. In that moment, he’d fully let himself hope… let himself believe. The braided man had felt like warm comfort and the Japanese man by his side had felt like safety. And with MJ trembling with excitement in his arms, her heart racing as fast as his as the Preventers poured into the corridors, he felt a bit like he’d finally found a way home.
“Hey.” her dulcet voice brought him out from his musings and he looked up to meet her curious gaze. “Where were you just now?”
“Hey.” He gave her a helpless grin in return, spinning his chair fully to face her. “Just thinking about the day we met Duo and Heero…” he pushed off the chair and climbed unto the bed, plopping down next to his sentinel. “… and what a roller coaster ride it’s been since then.”
“Yeah… we have come a long way since then, haven’t we?” The girl hummed in agreement, resting her head on her curled arm as she met his gaze. A wide grin spread across her beautiful face. “From the moment I heard Duo kick that asshole Rictor in the face and break his fucking nose, I knew things would never be the same.”
“Yeah” Piotr laughed, eyes squinting as he hugged his own waist. “Oh my god, I remember that. He was still moaning as they led him away in cuffs. Too bad we couldn’t see the same for the Doc. I would have loved to see them take her down too.”
MJ rolled closer and tucked herself against his side, her voice low against his ear. “I still haven’t convinced any of the guys to let me see the footage of the raid that took her down. It’s still classified by both Zechs and the Preventers for some reason but Heero gave me some of the details of what happened to her.”
“What? When?” Piotr hissed, twisting to face her as he blinked wide eyes. MJ just chuckled and pressed a quick kiss to his lips, giggling girlishly as his brown eyes crossed at the brief gesture.
“A couple days ago when we were doing the last walk of the perimeter at the summer palace. He knew that I’d been super focused on it recently, what with the therapy sessions we’ve been doing at the Lodge House so he spoke to Sally about it and agreed to tell me some of the details so that I wouldn’t hyper fixate and spiral out.”
Piotr nodded solemnly and gently cupped his beloved’s face. Their sessions at the new Lodge House Zechs had set up to support the people from the Chateau who’d decided to settle in Sanq were a recent development. Though Sally wasn’t a proper psychologist, she was a trusted and familiar medical professional and one of the only people the pair could talk to objectively. Of course they still went to Duo, Heero and their Alphas for guidance and advice but there were things that the tribe was too emotionally close to handle properly.
Zechs was still in talks with Iria Winner to source someone who could help them from among her numerous sisters but the couple of women they’d met so far hadn’t been a good fit for either sentinel or guide. Still, both Iria and Sally had been invaluable in helping Zechs get the Lodge up and running for the health and wellbeing of twenty or so of their fellow gifted.
“Can you tell me?” he asked softly, running his thumb along MJ’s cheek, his guide aspect already reaching out in comfort. He felt her relax against him, her cheek pressing into his hand as she sighed.
“They cut her neck. Like you would a fish you caught.” the words tumbled from her mouth like a dam breaking, both joy and anger bubbling under the surface as it always did when her mind ran on their time at the Chateau. “She drowned in her own blood.”
She blinked rapidly, her gaze going distant. “He wouldn’t tell me any more than that but I swear in that moment I could smell the blood, could hear the death rattle in her chest as she wheezed out her lasts breaths. And I… I felt… ” She bit her lip as she inhaled deeply. She looked up to meet his calm gaze. “I felt good that she’d died slowly. I hadn’t wanted her to get off easily. I don’t know what that makes me.”
“It makes you human, same as me.” he whispered fiercely against her lips. “She hurt us. So much and for so long. I know we’re supposed to want to see her pay for her crimes.. Go to jail forever or something. Or maybe have someone hurt her as much as we did. But for me… I just wanted her dead. As long as she was dead, she couldn’t hurt us. She would never be able to come back and hurt us ever again.”
MJ yanked him close, both of them seeking comfort in entwining their trembling limbs as much as they could. A comforting silence fell between them, most of their communication happening through the bond. On the outskirts he could feel Heero’s concern and Duo’s warm affection. Beyond that was Zechs’ and Wufei’s love and safety and even Beck and Shakur’s quiet support.
Piotr chuckled wetly, his tears mixing with MJ’s as they worked through the emotions brought up by bringing up the memories afresh. Fortunately, because it was surely luck and fate that had brought them out of that hell and into better lives, they had found people like them. People who had lived through pain and sorrow as they did, had come through the other side stronger and still believing in a better tomorrow. They had found people who understood them, people how loved them and kept them safe.
He smiled into the warmth MJ’s neck, inhaling deeply as he lost himself in the musk of her skin and the mild, sentinel friendly fragrance she liked to wear. She kissed him and hugged him tighter, huffing a laugh as he squeaked at her strength. As their kissed grew deeper, her hands slipping under his sweater to touch his skin, he pushed away all the negative thoughts that had been whirling around his mind. That part of his life was over, those cruel people carted off to jail and the rest of his fellow gifted cared for.
He knew that he couldn’t just forget it had ever happened, that it would probably take a long time and some serious counselling to work through what had happened to him there. But at least now he had his sentinel… he had his tribe… he had a family to help him, accept him and love him for everything he was.
At least now he had a future he could actually look forward too.
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