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"Regained "Written By: Artemis Disclaimer: Gundam Wing and its characters are
copyright to Sunrise, Bandai, Sotsu Agency, and associated parties.
I make no money with this fic. Rating: NC 17 Warnings: yaoi lemon, masturbation, angst, violence,
language Pairings: 6x2, 3x4, mention of 13+11, R+1 Summary: Sequel to Interfacing: Lost. GAIA, the
new alliance, fights its first battle in Antarctica; Duo and Zechs
begin to rebuild their relationship "Regained" Chapter 2
//Meiser, probably, or else Sangers or even little Beston,// Zechs thought of his most ardent underlings who had likely done this. He'd had a very brief but very intense affair with Bronn Sangers a couple years ago, though he knew the man was still attracted to him despite the fact that Zechs was carefully chilly with him now. Luke Beston he'd had but once, and both had agreed the chemistry wasn't really there; still, Beston seemed to have a distant fondness for him. Meiser... Zechs knew Eric Meiser had a healthy case of the hots for him, though he was careful - triply so now - not to give him a whit of encouragement. He'd never been intimate with Meiser... and never would, now. Nor with any others. Zechs Merquise was taken. Stripping methodically, the tall, blond ex-Colonel laid his clothes neatly on a chair... then paused to look at what he'd done. Duo... had taught him to discard clothes artlessly on the floor. //How quickly I've reverted,// Zechs thought with a twinge, feeling again the ache for his Duo. Snorting, he threw the pile on the floor, then went to the closet to select something to put on when he came out of the shower. The first thing to come to his attention, naturally, was his uniform. Nothing else he possessed was quite as bold and splashy as that red jacket with its shiny gold buttons and lavish epaulettes. Zechs sighed; the uniform appealed very highly to the aristocrat and prince in him. The rest of his dismal wardrobe with very few exceptions reflected the professional soldier in him. //He hasn't seen me in this for real,// Zechs considered, removing the uniform jacket and white pants from the closet and laying them out on the chair. //And it will help settle the men - they've already got to get used to not seeing the mask. As will I.// In the shower, Zechs adjusted the water, then stood under it, wetting his long, thick hair. He reached automatically for his shampoo... and there it was, exactly where it was supposed to be. //Damn thorough, whoever did this. Sangers, I think.// Then he had a thought - //What if he's hoping to take up with me again? Never mind, old man, you can handle him easily.// He let his mind go blank for a minute while he worked on his hair which he thought still felt a bit gritty from the dust of the desert. Then Zechs, after rinsing, drew a long thick length of hair across his cheek... remembering someone else's long hair, imagining that it was. //Duo... this is Duo's chestnut silk, the braid undone, all those silken tresses drawn over my face and body...// Zechs drew the hair over his neck, tilting his head to the side to absorb the sensations better. //Not just your hair, Duo, I need to feel your lips on my throat...// Fingers now began to follow thought. He traced the line of his jaw, then drew the long, elegant fingers down the path of his throat and neck to his collarbone. //And your hands, your slender, strong fingers...// With a rude shock, he saw those fingers clasping a gun, squeezing the trigger. "No!" Zechs exclaimed, turning and falling forward against the wall, palms down as if he'd tried to move away. Then he blinked, feeling the warm, soothing spray on his back. Breathing deeply, he rested his forehead against the wall for a moment, pulling himself together. //That will never happen again,// he told himself firmly. Resolutely, he resumed his shower, settling back into his safe military efficiency for a few minutes. Then, lulled by the warm water, his mind again wandered back, remembering as his hand drifted lower along his body... He recalled a time they'd decided to shower together, but neither had expected to merely get clean. Zechs had had Duo in his arms, the boy's legs around his waist, and Zechs had lowered him onto his cock. Then, once joined, somehow the heat between them had leaped hotter as Zechs had leaned Duo's back against the side wall and began to pound into him. They had kissed with a feverish intensity, deep sucking kisses in-between moans of passion. Stroking himself now, Zechs moaned softly, remembering how Duo had writhed so sensuously against his body, wriggling with wanton abandon as if to milk every drop out of his body. Trying to manage to hold onto the little beast in his arms had fueled the Wolf's ardor in him even hotter, and when he had come, nearly screaming into his lover's mouth, he'd come harder than he'd thought possible, feeling like his body was being split apart into pieces. Duo had even bit Zechs's tongue when he came, shuddering and convulsing wildly as he pulled off his lover's mouth roughly and threw the long, heavy hair back, making it slap against the wall above. Gasping, Zechs fisted himself faster, then grunted deep in his throat as he shot long, white streams against the shower wall, the memory so fresh in his mind of the madly passionate sex he'd had with his Dancer. He convulsed a few times, then leaned his forehead heavily against the wall as he panted, still stroking the last of his passion out. Then a fist pounded heavily on the wall as reality came crashing back in. //He accused me... he accused me of *raping* him!// Suddenly Zechs found it hard to breathe and he sagged against the wall as he fought for breath and fought back a rising nausea. For several long minutes, the panic attack gripped him until he could muster enough of his vaunted self-discipline which seemed to have run away at the first sign of trouble this time. //Duo, I need you so much,// Zechs thought, working to calm his racing heart, taking deep, gasping breaths. //But how can I touch you like that ever again? If... if you ever look at me with accusation again for any reason... I may have to kill myself. I can't bear it... don't you know the possibility of me hurting you willfully ended the moment I laid my eyes on you? I'd cut my throat sooner...// Finally he felt himself calming. Awareness of the here and now returned, and Zechs hastily finished his shower. Now desperately clinging to his military habits as a safe outlet, he toweled off, towel-drying his hair, then brushing it out carefully before dressing completely. The boots, he discovered, had been polished. They were immaculate. //Sangers, definitely,// he thought, sighing. Lieutenant Sangers had a worse fetish for neatness and perfection than he had. Once he managed to get the boots on, Zechs stood and reached for the second to last item to complete his appearance. For a long moment he merely looked at the gun in its holster on his desk. Then he methodically attached the holster to his belt. Last - the mask. Zechs held it up, looking at it with a new disgust. //This has allowed me to hide from so much...// He laid it back down as if it was poisonous. Activating the computer station, Zechs fitted his communication device to it, then put a call through, inputting the special security code Treize had given him. "Good day, Treize," he murmured when the familiar face came onto the screen. "Milliardo!" Treize again was surprised, but more so because it was Zechs's face he was looking at this time. "Your mask..." "It was time," Zechs replied calmly. "And... things have happened since I spoke to you last." Treize Khushrenada was studying his friend's face. "Don't tell me - you've found the pilot of that Gundam?" Zechs smiled. "Noin apparently has... but I've found something else. It's a very long story, but I've allied with the pilot of Gundam 04, and possibly 02 will be joining us. I'm expecting that one here any moment." //And I can't wait to see him, but for reasons I'm not about to tell *you* right now...// "Really!" Treize was pleasantly surprised to hear that his former protege had managed what all of OZ had not. Romefeller had been recruiting former Alliance personnel, damn them, to curry favor with Romefeller by rounding up rebels, most notably Gundam pilots... and soon Zechs Merquise. "And Noin is bringing the other one to you?" "Two others, actually," Zechs replied. Treize was impressed. "Damn, Milliardo, but I knew you were good. So, where is 'here', if I may ask? That old base on the South Pole?" "Yes," Zechs answered solemnly. "Treize, I've told the 04 pilot about you. Not your name or rank." The commander-in-chief of OZ froze for a moment, then smiled. "Yes, I suppose you had to. Well, that's it then, I'm in on your little scheme, no turning back now. Not an ally in name only anymore, am I?" He raised one forked eyebrow, challenging his friend. Zechs snorted. "Treize, you know I cannot keep this from my new allies. Not having second thoughts, are we?" "No, of course not," Treize replied hastily. "This is too serious for even me to play games with, Milliardo. I'm doomed with Romefeller anyway; I might as well play them for a grand fall, eh, old friend? By the way, Acht's party is heading your way, I believe. I'm afraid I can't stop them." Zechs nodded, grimacing. "It can't be helped and I knew he would catch up with me," he responded soberly. "I'm expecting a battle as soon as two days from now. Hopefully he'll have the Tallgeese and four Gundams facing him. We'll be able to handle that fleet easily. My only worry is that they'll surely radio us in." "Leave that to me," Treize said, surprising him. "Treize?" Zechs inquired hopefully. Treize chuckled. "Oh, Milliardo, you have no idea how much fun this is going to be for me. I'll make sure the reports come first to me. I'll handle things from there. Running circles around Duke Dermail and his fencing buddies will be a pleasure in which I think I will indulge." "Be careful, Treize," Zechs said with no little concern. "Oh, you can be assured that I will," Treize replied smoothly. "Besides, I have a few plans of my own to attend to here that I'm not going to tell you about. But if you should hear of them... think of me." Zechs frowned. "You and I still have to talk about New Edwards someday, Treize. Your *plans* concern me greatly." The handsome, aristocratic face of the OZ commander froze, abashed. "Milliardo. You presume a great deal on our friendship, bringing up... that." Folding his arms over his chest, Zechs nodded at the screen. "Yes, I do. And I think I'm overdue at that." "Perhaps you are..." Treize glanced away, then looked back. "Milliardo, I do believe the purity of those Gundam pilots has begun to infect you. Not that this is a bad thing, mind you, but just unexpected. Or perhaps I need to see how the world needs that purity all the more. I myself am too close to tradition and the hide-bound ways of Romefeller to change." He took a deep breath, "Regarding New Edwards, I confess to you, my very good friend, that I voluntarily took the role of devil that day. Yes, I lured those pilots into that, thinking them only foolish, desperate rebels, and thinking the Alliance leadership a pack of sheep spouting pacifist nonsense that they had no intention of carrying out." Treize bowed his head. "I was wrong about all of them, I know that now. I ask for your forgiveness, Milliardo." Zechs stared hard at his friend. //Infected with their purity? I take that as a compliment... but he seems sincere...// "I am not the one you should ask it of, Treize," he replied smoothly. "It is those young pilots you should be pleading your case to. And the survivors of the Alliance leadership." Treize did not look up. "One day, perhaps... so, Milliardo, do you trust me now? Though I have done this?" //I need him,// Zechs mused, still scowling at the screen. //*We* need someone inside Romefeller if our little band is to have the impact we need to have. Now ask yourself, old man, are you involving Treize because you cannot let go of the past? Because you need that link to your heritage? Or do you really believe Treize Khushrenada is going to leave Romefeller one day soon? *Do* you trust him?// Treize waved a hand in apology. "That wasn't a fair question, Milliardo, forgive me. You have a great deal on your plate down there and I'm wondering about our friendship. The burden is on me to prove my worth to you, I realize that. To prove that I am not the soulless monster who ordered that deception, please allow me to provide you with proof that I can be a valuable ally to you and your Gundam pilot acquaintances." Zechs narrowed his eyes at his oldest friend, then made a decision. "Treize, we will need to go into outer space soon. We must oppose OZ's actions in the colonies." "How long until you're ready? How much time will you need?" //What's he getting at?// "About one month. Some of the Gundams will need to be retrofitted for space." Treize nodded curtly. "I'll give you that month, Milliardo. Despite the battle that cannot be avoided, I will give you that month to prepare." Zechs's eyes widened. //He's serious... and he can do it.// "Treize... that would be marvelous." "Tell your pilot friends that what I do now is in partial atonement for New Edwards. I know you will have to tell them about me." "Yes, and with your permission, your identity as well. Only to them, no others. If I am to get them to trust me, I cannot hold something like this back from them. It's why I've already told 04, though not your name." Treize sighed. "It must be, then. Please, Zechs, do use the term 'atonement'. And if you would, do share with them my vision for the future, though I doubt they... or you... can accept it at this time." "Treize..." "No, no, I fully understand, Milliardo, and it's all right." Treize smiled indulgently. "I have met one of the Gundam pilots you know. I know what manner of magical creatures they are. Obviously the grace of God is with them and not me, though I manage to assist that grace from time to time." Zechs realized belatedly that Treize had already inferred this once, but he hadn't picked up on it at the time. "You've met one?" //If it was Duo...// "Yes, a lad of snapping black eyes, all fire, a veritable little dragon," Treize chuckled. "Chang Wufei is his name." "The Chinese boy!" //Another piece to the Gundam puzzle.// "Yes, the lad jumped from his Gundam to challenge me to a swordfight. A duel, Milliardo! Oh, he was priceless. I defeated him handily, but I'm not likely to a second time. It was quite an experience, old friend." A blinking message appeared across the bottom of Zechs's screen. "Treize, I'm afraid I've got to go. The carrier with Gundam 02 is arriving, I'm told." Treize smiled warmly. "Someday you must tell me about each one of them, Milliardo. It's not likely I'll meet them for a very long time." Zechs sighed deeply. "No, I suppose not. Certainly, Treize, I would be happy to share what I know of them. Thank you for being honest with me... and thanks for your help. I know that if we all work together, your world of peace will come to be someday." "Thank you, old friend. Do not worry about a thing here. I am well-practiced at maneuvering around the old buzzards." "Good-bye, Treize," Zechs murmured. "Yes. Good-bye, Milliardo." Zechs shut down the computer, went to brush out his now-dry hair again, then straightened his uniform and left to go meet the man with whom he was so deeply in love.
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