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"Recast"Written By: Kaeru Shisho Disclaimer: I don't own any part of Gundam Wing
or its characters, nor do I make any monetary profit off this story. Rating: NC 17 Warnings: Yaoi, AU, and an unlikeable Heero, Trowa,
and Quatre, but very nice Wufei and Duo Pairings: 1+2, 2x5x2 Summary: Wufei pursues Duo, who has been forsaken at the altar and is now trying to sort out his life, aiming to turn lost hopes into paradise found. A/N: Thanks to Waterlily for generous feedback
and improvements to the story throughout. "Recast "
Chapter Six - Epilogue "Okay. So, don't tell me that I'm rushing into anything. I know that. I'm perfectly aware of that. It's a shortcoming of mine, but believe me I've been thinking, thinking hard and for most of the time you've been here, Okay?" Wufei set down the bowl of food in order to hold Duo's hand, a gesture both reassuring and intimate. There were moments he couldn't believe his luck. Here he was with Duo. In paradise. He could touch him and shower him with affection as much and as often as he wanted, and Duo soaked it up and gave back with exceptional enthusiasm. Now, it appeared, Duo was just nervously excited about something, something he was having difficulty spitting out. "Judiciousness is admirable, Duo. It's good to think things through to avoid reckless actions. Acting without forethought-" "Not good, you are so right. Still, it might seem that I'm going a bit half-cocked, based on my past actions, I'm warning you. But I call it more spontaneous, and if I don't come out and just say it, then it'll be spontaneous combustion. You see, don't cha?" "Of course. By all means go on and just tell me what's on your mind." Wufei smiled to encourage him again. There wasn't anything Duo could say that could shock him. Having Duo in his life-and to be honest the regular sex that came with it- had brought him a welcome calm to his outlook and a refreshing, carefree attitude. "I'd like a do-over." All right, that brought back a dark cloud of doubt. What was he talking about? Could it be that Duo didn't want him anymore? But... How was that a "do over"? No, Duo was not casting him off. He knew the look, feel, and sound of a rejection, and this was not one. Duo had showered him with too much love for that to happen. He shook off that disturbing thought and moved right on to the next one. Did Duo want to repeat the wedding and this time be the one to tell Heero to go to hell? He might want to do something like that. Unlikely, but possible. When he looked up, Duo was watching his face. "The wedding?" He'd start with that, the most likely "do over" event and narrow down the possibilities. "Yeah." Wufei started the lecture he had prepared to give Duo at some point, and was glad he'd saved it for now. "You know your triumph comes from overcoming your defeats, not by getting even." "I didn't mean I wanted to Do. It. Over. God, no. I meant I'd like to do it again differently. A wedding, but re-casting you in the role of my husband-to-be." Me? He means me? Me! This time when his dark eyes looked up at Duo, they were wide open from the shock of what Duo had suggested, but also with a look of anticipation in there. "Do you mean-?" "Yeah, I'm asking you to marry me. Whattya say?" Wufei said "yes" absolutely, without question or room for misinterpretation. A waffler, Wufei was not. "I promise to me worthy of-" "Eh, no need, Wu, you are worthier of better than what I got, but if you don't know that then I'm not gonna educate you on how I'm the lucky one here. You just... promise to show up." "Dear God, Duo... nothing short of a direct hit by a Leo would keep me away, and even that... No, I'd find a way." "Aw..." Duo grinned and kissed his nose. "Proof positive that dreams can come true, right, babe?" "Every one of them." (o) Wufei and Duo put off the wedding ceremony for nine months. Wufei claimed he wanted a suitable time frame to plan a memorable event and allow Duo to complete the hotel's internet security upgrade he'd committed to. Secretly, and most importantly, he meant to give Duo time to re-consider. Not only did Duo never have second thoughts, he contributed many ideas of his own to the wedding. It ignited an energetic and illuminating give and take of creative thought processes. The suggestions included: Riding up the aisle on elephants; Wufei denied him little, but that was one of the lined-out items. Wearing see-through wedding clothing; Wufei encouraged Duo's inventiveness, but put his foot down over that as well. "We can all form a kind of... conga line." "We? Who do you mean, Duo? You and I? The wedding party? The guests?" "Yeah, us, all of them! Everybody! You and I lead the band, so to speak, and the most important participants follow and close ranks at the end." "Have we any guests? So far, you've designated everyone as 'participant'." "I guess we don't. We've only invited the important people anyway." "That's true. So, everyone lines up?" "After us and we dance along the beach until we get to where we're going and then we have the ceremony and... that's that!" Wufei didn't think he'd ever known a wedding like that, but he hadn't been to many and the ones on L5 would be far too complicated and meaningless to Duo, himself, also, without family to lend significance and drama. "All right. We dance to the... altar." "Made of palm tree leaves." "Fine, those are easy to come by." "At sunset." "As close as possible. I'm not promising we can make children stick to a timetable." "Fair enough. But there's gotta be food and lots of it." "Of course." There were other things to consider, like flowers and music, but their friends Joni and Jiko saw to a plentiful supply of both. The flowers, none the worse for wear, were collected after and re-used for their own wedding a couple days later. Wufei avoided the police force openings and found a job as a martial arts teacher about the same time Duo completed the job for the hotel. Duo was the most qualified IT person on the island, resulting in a great demand for his services. He decided to contract out his expertise and work freelance. They could live in comfort and not worry about having to leave in search of other opportunities in the near future. Three days after the engagement announcement, Quatre and Louisa came out for a visit; they loved the place so much they purchased the Hotel De Mark. "Everyone can stay here for the wedding," the wealthy Winner heir decided, and Wufei and Duo agreed. Their hut-land "wouldn't be the same if invaded by the Continental forces," Joni had complained. Winner's hotel would resolve that problem. Done. Duo's biggest fear was that no one would come. Wufei's biggest fear was that no one would leave and came closest to having it come true. As it turned out, Quatre and Louisa flew in everyone from Sanc, including Trowa and his wife Joanna and son, Fear, (Duo didn't know how it was spelled, but the name sounded like that to him, and Wufei told him it was the word for "four" in German and that Barton was losing his subtly with age); Zechs and Lucrezia Merquise, with twins Andre and Ada; Relena and her beau Prince Raul; and Heero had RSVP'd "yes" for him and his current girlfriend, a knockout named Samantha, so they were prepared to see him again. Howard, Sally, Hilde, and a few others came on their own with their respective mates. They all arrived bearing gifts, some more memorable than the others. Case in point: Trowa placed a ring in Duo's hand with the words, "You asked me to hold this for you. I thought it was part of a joke, but... yeah. Thought you'd be wanting it back." "Thanks." Duo hadn't much else to say. He and Wufei had decided against getting rings. They had no need for reminders of how they were binding their lives together, Wufei had told him. "I have only to look into your eyes." That had been so romantic that Duo had turned to mush and they'd tried "69-ing" for the first time. He turned the ring around in the palm of hand, remembering what feelings had driven him to buy it in the first place. A lot of wishful thinking, but shallow next to the real thing he was experiencing with Wufei. "What have you got there?" Wufei asked as he sidled up to him. "A ring? I thought we agreed not to wear them?" "I didn't get this for you." Duo met his eyes; the dark soulful expression nearly killed him. "Trowa returned it, just now. It was... but it's not... um... What should I do with it?" "I... don't know. I'll hold it for you." Anything else Wufei had to say about the disposal of Duo's wedding ring for Heero was lost in the flurry of greeting guests. "This is for you from Commander Une," Zechs said, and he handed over a sealed envelope. Wufei held it around the edges as if it were dusted in Anthrax. "Why?" "Er, I didn't invite her or anything," Duo told him. Zechs nearly rolled his eyes, probably having learned it from his children. "Open it. It's safe. I sealed it personally." Duo chuckled when Wufei nearly tore it in half. "Hey! I wanna see what she's got to say. It won't spoil our day, Wu. Promise." It might have cost Wufei a bit of pride, giving into Duo's will, but it was Duo asking him, so he ripped off the end and shook out the papers. He read the first page and handed it over. "Formal apology to you. Read it and gloat." "I will," Duo said. "What's the other one for?" "Recompense. Winner did his job." Wufei showed Duo where his signature was required. "You qualified for a pension payout and to avoid taking the suit to court, there's a substantial sum of money, restitution, for you. All you do is sign here to agree to the terms, and I recommend it since Winner lawyers are responsible and trustworthy." "As a result of that ruling, the commander's big end-of-the-quarter bonus gets absorbed," Zechs added with a tense smile. "Take it for that reason alone." "Cool." Duo smiled and folded the papers to deal with later. "Thanks, Zechs." "Thank Winner. I was just the carrier pigeon." He smiled and congratulated them on their nuptials. None of their invited guests complained about free passage or free rooms, or having to take a vacation in the far, far South Pacific, or joining in the fun of a conga line, dancing their way through the foamy water to stand by the altar of palm fronds. Duo wore his hair down. This had been Wufei's wish, one he had circled twice on their list, and Duo had indulged him as long as Wufei wore his free as well. Joni made them both flower crowns from fragrant white flowers growing in the island interior. Jiko taught them how to wear the wrapped cloth sarongs, favored by the young island men. Duo added a light-weight, blue shirt with the sleeves partially rolled up for protection from the sun. Wufei wanted the same, for modesty. "I will not be half-naked for my wedding-or all naked!" he added before Duo could revisit that suggestion. "A-aaall naked. That's for me after, right?" "Yes. For you. After." And so the two young men dressed alike. Wufei got his wish to recite a poem, and here's how it went: I
want to be your love for ever and ever, The poem comes from Han Dynasty Yuefu folk poem collection. Tears were shed. When asked if they had rings to exchange, Wufei said they did and produced a ring he'd made from a twist of seaweed and a shell. Duo stared aghast at the ephemeral memento. For an instant, Wufei wondered if he'd made a terrible mistake, springing something new on Duo at this time. The instant passed with a warm breeze, and Duo chuckled and let him push it over his knuckles. Wufei withdrew the plain metal ring from his pocket, the one Trowa had returned to Duo, the one once intended to symbolize Duo's bond to Heero. It would be loose; Wufei knew his hands were smaller that Heero's, but that could be adjusted later, if he ever chose to wear it. It was all symbolic anyway. "With this ring, I thee wed." They each took turns reciting the familiar words, exchanging rings. Intended to be a solemn and meaningful part of the rite, Duo managed to grin through most of it. "Can't help it," he whispered into his new husband's ear. "I'm so damned happy." Wufei had no words, but he'd learned to kiss properly. The couple's embrace and extended kiss brought a whoop of cheers from the crowd and then Duo waggled his ring finger in the air, showing off "it's awesomeness". By the time the eating began, the reception had grown to several hundred, including the laundry room attendant, the kayak rental folks, and the entire police force. They felt that with Preventer agents putting in a show, they had to also, and so, all twelve arrived. Literally everyone Wufei and Duo had come into contact with showed up for the reception. Not one invitation had gone out. None had been required, thank you. Word of mouth was the island way. Wufei lured Duo away from the party with heated looks and suggestive hints. When at last he had Duo to himself and their hut in view, he was surprised when Duo asked, "So, what do you wanna do?" "What do you want to do?" Wufei returned in an attempt to gauge Duo's state of mind Was his kidding around? Tipsy? Serious-the least likely? "Talk." Duo smiled serenely. "You never told me what you studied in college." Oh, that couldn't interest him at all! Wufei now knew he was teasing him. Should he call his bluff or chart a new course? "Human sexual practices," he replied, looking as grave as possible. "What?!" "You know that was a joke." Pleased that he got the response he wanted, he laughed. "Duo, you don't want to listen to me elaborate upon the courses I took and material I mastered, I know." "Maybe later," Duo admitted. As they shed clothes and warm bodies touched, they both looked forward to charting new as yet undiscovered territory. And live happily ever after. The End
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