Chapter 2

//"Checkmate. It seems I win again, dragon."

The Chinese boy glared balefully at the man across from him, trying to ignore just how wonderfully handsome he looked with the lights from the fire reflecting off his smooth, strong cheekbones. He tried to ignore just how much the man across from him made him feel. But it was so hard, especially when he wanted and desired the man so much it hurt sometimes to think about it.

"That's the fourth game. I don't think I'll ever be able to get the hang of this." He sighed and tipped over a few pieces while mourning his loss.

"I think you deliberately lose," the Russian man said, regarding the boy with some amusement in his cornflower blue eyes.

"Why do you say that?"

The other man smiled sensually, a smile he knew would quickly stir the blood of his young companion. "I say that because I believe you really do want to be submit to me."

The boy laughed haughtily. "I submit to no one, Khushrenada!" But even as he said those words he could feel his break quicken and his pulse pound at the suggestion in the older man's voice.

"You always say that..." The man stood up and walked around the table to the boy. He stood behind him, placing his warm hands on the boy's smooth, golden shoulders. He leaned over and whispered in his ear. "Yet every time I have you, when you surrender to me in my bed, I know you're lying."

The boy turned his head and looked up at the man, their lips so close they could have easily kissed with only moving their heads a fraction of a centimeter. "I never said I had anything against lying," he whispered, his lips brushing gently against the man's.

The man chuckled, a deep rich sound that pleased the boy deeply. Then he was suddenly lifted out of his seat. He gasped in shock but recovered and wrapped his legs around the taller man's waist. He slid his arms around the Russian general's neck and smiled at him, a beautiful, loving smile.

"I do surrender to you...I surrender everything. Do you love me, Treize?" the boy asked softly, looking deeply into the man's eyes. "Do you?"

The general brought the boy close and kissed him deeply. "You already know that I do." He kissed the boy on the cheek, chin, nose, eyes, and lips. "I love you, Chang Wufei. I love you with all my soul."

"You know, I never expected this. I came to kill you, yet I stumbled and fell into your bed...Then I fell again and now my heart's lost forever."

"You think you're the only surprised one? I never expected to fall in love with anyone, much less a Gundam pilot."

The boy suddenly tightened his hug around the man's neck and buried his face in ginger locks of hair. "No. Don't think, talk, or whisper anything about the war. Once we're together, everything else stays outside the doors." He lifted his head. "You know it's the only way..."

"I know."

"Promise me you'll never leave me?"

The man paused for a moment, drowning in begging, pleading velvet eyes. And he knew he couldn't deny the boy anything...Yet, who was to know what the future was? He didn't.

"I promise."

"I love you, Treize."

"I love you too, dragon heart."

Then the scene changed and the boy, seemingly older and much sadder, was kneeling in front of a white headstone over a grave. The name Treize Khushrenada was etched into the stone, along with the birth and death of the great man.

"You said you'd never leave me!" the boy shouted at the headstone as tears streamed down his face. "You promised...you promised and you broke it! You let me kill you! Damn you, Khushrenada!"

The boy crumpled and sobbed into his hands. "You promised..."

"Wufei?"

The boy looked up and met intense cobalt blue eyes.//

Wufei started awake when he sensed a presence in the office. He was sleeping on the plush couch with Treize's jacket draped over his body. He leaned up on his elbows and ran his fingers through his hair.

"Treize?"

There was a pause. Then, "Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you. I only came into get some art books."

Wufei rubbed his eyes and sat up. He reached over and turned on the light beside the couch. A tall, Asian--Japanese?--young man was standing over at the bookcase of the large office. He already had the said art books in his arms. His messy hair fell into his eyes but Wufei could still make out the piercing blue eyes that regarded him calmly from across the room.

Wufei thought numbly as he tried to gather his wits. He cleared his throat and shook his head. "No. It's okay. What time is it?"

"About three."

"I think it's about time I get up," Wufei said, nodding. He stood up and folded Treize's jacket neatly before placing it back down on the couch. He then figure combed his hair and stretched, working the kinks out of his body. He didn't notice as dark blue eyes watched him almost intensely from across the room.

"You're Shen Wufei?" the man asked.

Wufei nodded and smiled. "Yes. Who are you?"

"Hiro Yui."

"You're the model designer or engineer or whatever you're called, correct?" Wufei asked, smiling even more. "Have you gotten started yet?"

"Yes. They're looking over the sketches I made and making the adjustments to the measurements."

Wufei nodded and turned on the main lights, flooding the dim room with light. He looked over at the Japanese man and felt a warmth of familiarity fill his chest. He almost frowned in confusion and wonder. He had just met this man.

"That's wonderful. I'm guessing you already met Treize?" Wufei asked.

"Yes, I have. He's nice."

Wufei smiled and nodded in agreement. "He's the best."

"You're lovers?"

"We're engaged."

"Congratulations."

"Thank you." Wufei paused, suddenly uncertain about what to say. "Well, I better get to work. I'll see you around the place, no doubt." He waved and left the room. The minute he closed the door behind him he almost breathed a sigh of relief. There was something about that man that unnerved him and he wasn't very comfortable about staying in the same room with him for very long.

Finally composing himself, Wufei headed back to work.

~*~

Treize was helping some men move in a few display cases when Wufei appeared. The Chinese man looked a little rumpled and carried the air of someone who had just woken up. In short, he looked absolutely adorable.

With a low grunt, they finally lowered the heavy display case and sighed in relief. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and nodded in satisfaction.

"What's this gonna hold?" one of the young men who helped asked.

"Just some letters and journals that belonged to the Gundam pilots," Treize said, shrugging. "They're very fragile and important things. We need to keep them in good condition and out of harm's way."

"Did we really need such a heavy case? Damn," another young man huffed.

"The whole idea is to try and capture the feeling of how it was in the past, two-hundred years ago. That's why we're not using laser glass display cases," Treize explained. Wufei and him had decided it would be best if they could capture the feeling of living in the past and that meant using stuff that resembled a museum display show from waay back then.

"It's still such a chore..."

"Bitch, bitch, bitch. That's all you men do," Wufei tsked, shaking his head. He smiled and ran his fingers over the fine oak. "Perfect. Not a single scratch." He smiled winningly and suddenly many of the young men didn't feel so bad about lugging the thing up a flight of stairs from the basement and down two hall ways to the large museum auditorium.

Treize tried not to roll his eyes.

"Wow...Look at this place! Amazing!"

Both Treize and Wufei turned around and smiled when they saw their two new guests.

Zachery Merquise and his husband Adrian Maxwell were walking towards them, taking in their wonderful surroundings as projects for the show were being put together.

"What are you two doing here?" Treize asked in delight, happy to see his best friend again after so long.

"Quatre and Trowa suggested that we came down to Earth to see how the show for the museum is going," Zach said, smiling as he shook hands and hugged Treize. "It's good to see you again. When was the last time we met?"

"I believe it was right after you and Duo headed off to check out the new colony, L8, I believe," Treize said, grinning. "You haven't changed much, Zach. Still got that impossibly long hair."

"You know it's always been my vanity," Zach said cheerfully.

Wufei looked over at Adrian and smiled, noting something *very* familiar about the other man. "Looks like Zach isn't the only one. How long did it take you to grow that braid, Adrian?" Wufei had never met the young man before. He had met Treize *after* Zach got married and went off colony hopping with his new husband. This was the first time he had ever met Adrian Maxwell.

Adrian grinned, a cheeky grin that hit a chord in Wufei, and answered, "Years! Trust me. You don't want to try. It falls down to my thighs and it takes forever to braid!" He then smiled affectionately at Zach. "Thank goodness I have someone to help me."

"Mine's only falls to my waist," Wufei said, shaking his head. "And I don't think I want to try. Long hair is so hard to handle sometimes."

"Damn straight," Adrian agreed. "That's why I keep it in a braid. I would cut it but my hair means a lot to me."

"I think, personally, he has a hair fetish. It's the only reason why he'd still be married to me!" Zach declared dramatically.

Adrian smiled and nodded indulgently. "That and the great sex, Zachy dear."

Everyone burst out laughing and Wufei found he liked both Zach and Adrian *very* much. They were such relaxed, happy people. No wonder they fit together so perfectly. How long had they been married? Two years? Almost three?

"And I hear you and Wufei are already engaged? Isn't that a bit quick?" Zach asked, raising an eyebrow.

Treize threw Wufei a dry look. "This is coming from a man who met Adrian on the Net, passionately declared he had to meet him, left Earth *just* to do that, and then married him two months later."

"We were dating for several months before the engagement happened," Wufei said, chuckling. "And the wedding is still four months away."

Zach looked Wufei up and down before glancing around the place. "I don't know, Treize," he said dubiously. "I think you should haul Wufei over to the nearest chapel and marry him quick. From the looks he's getting, he might be seduced away from you!"

Wufei laughed and blushed a little. Adrian nudged him in the side and winked at him.

"How long will you be staying on Earth?" Treize asked Zach.

"Until the end of the Eve War show. Then me and Adrian are going to go and check out the orphanage on L2 to make sure all the children are fine before going to L6 and doing the same thing over again. You know we have to make sure those kids stay healthy and happy."

Then the two started chatting about everything that had been happening since they last saw each other. In short, they ended up--without meaning to--ignoring their counterparts.

"Well, those two certainly have a lot to talk about," Adrian remarked in amusement, his light violet eyes dancing. He turned to Wufei and smiled. "So, how did you meet Treize?"

"I'm an ambassador for L6. I came down to Earth about over a year ago to seal a rift between Earth and L6 over some petty disagreements. He was one of the men who had a seat on the World Peace Order," Wufei told him. "We met after the conference and talked but he didn't ask me out until all negotiations were done so nothing messy would happen. We dated for several months before he proposed and I accepted." He smiled cheekily. "Nothing exciting like your relationship with Zach."

Adrian laughed in agreement. "We're both very...I guess you can say, eccentric people. We do strange things and act on impulses."

"I can see how both of you work out so nicely."

"Yeah. I really love him. It was like, the minute I saw him I knew it was more than just an Internet crush. I swear we're soul mates or something," Adrian said passionately.

"Really?" Wufei asked, intrigued.

Adrian nodded. "After we met I kept on getting these...feelings that I've met him before. They got stronger and stronger until I was positive we had known each other in another lifetime and we were lovers even then. So you can pretty much guess we were made for each other. When he proposed, I couldn't say 'no'. I loved him too much. And now we take care of a few orphanages and act as an ambassador when we're needed."

"I think your reputation as colony hoppers and extensive knowledge in political situations backs that up."

"Yeah, well, it's nice. But it's not a permanent thing like it is for you. We rather continue colony hopping, taking care of the orphanages and Zach's other estates and businesses. Ack, who knew marrying a rich dude would have so much paper work involved? And he expects me to help!" Adrian grinned. "But I guess it's okay since I get to prove I'm smarter than him."

"Putting me down again, Adrian?" Zach asked mournfully when he caught the last sentence that his husband uttered.

"No, just stating a fact," Adrian said cheerfully. He kissed Zach on the cheek. "Don't pout. It's cute but it'll give you lines."

"God forbid I get lines," Zach drawled sarcastically.

"Damn straight!"

Treize chuckled, happy for his friend. There weren't that many people who could find someone they would be happy with. These days, most relationships ended up in divorce or an engagement ring sent back. It was nice to know things like a good relationship and love still existed.

He looked over at his own little love and felt his heart warm instantly. He loved Wufei so much, sometimes it didn't make sense yet it made too much sense. He reached out and pulled Wufei close, slipping his arm around his love's slim waist and kissing him on the cheek.

Wufei looked up in surprise. "What was that for?"

"Just because."

Wufei smiled shyly. "I hope there's more 'just becauses' later."

Treize leaned close and whispered in his lover's ear, "You can bet your pretty ass on it."

Wufei blushed slightly and leaned against him, silently telling the man how much he loved him.

"Mr. Khushrenada, where do you want this to be?" A man appeared, holding a replica of a space suit that had been worn in battle by the Gundam pilots.

"How many of those do you have?"

"All five of them. Do you want them in the dummies?" the man asked.

"Ah, excuse me gentlemen while I go take care of this." Treize smiled and nodded at the three men before walking off to sort out the new shipments that were coming in.

"You guys are putting a lot of work into this, aren't you?" Zach asked in appreciation.

"You know Treize. He never does anything half way. When Quatre gave us this job, he took it seriously. That's why there's so much to do, order and sort out. I've been trying to pick out some photos that would go nicely with everything but I can't seem to find the perfect ones. Of course I haven't gotten really far yet. Would you like to help me?" Wufei offered.

"Wow…We're going to be looking at a piece of history." Adrian smiled at his husband. "Come on!"

Zach shrugged and nodded.

Wufei smiled and lead them over to the table where he had last left the photos. He removed some stray papers that had been placed around them and gestured to the small piles that had been sorted out.

"See if there's anything that can be blown up and then displayed. Of course the originals will be displayed but there's going to be a few that will be placed along with some of the models and other replicas," Wufei said.

Adrian picked up a small pile and began to look through them.

"I think I'll leave you two to it. I'll be better off with Treize. Photos just aren't my thing." Then, with that said, Zach wandered off.

"Pah, he's just lazy." Adrian stuck his tongue out at Zach's back before looking back down at the photo he had in his hand. "Whoa!"

Wufei looked up from the picture of Dekim Barton he had in his hand and blinked. "What's wrong, Adrian?"

"Look!" Adrian held out a photo. It was the one of Duo Maxwell. "Dude looks just like me! How scary is that?"

"That's Duo Maxwell. He was..ah...the pilot of Gundam 02, I believe. I can't really remember. I've never been good at history," Wufei said, looking a bit guilty.

"Maxwell, huh? Just like my name...Hey, do you think he's, like, my ancestor or something?" Adrian laughed. "Wouldn't that be something? Me, having roots."

"You don't have roots?" Wufei asked, frowning.

"Naw. I was an orphan on L2."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I'm kinda happy how I turned out. If I had a family, I wouldn't be me."

Although Adrian's logic was a bit strange Wufei felt himself agreeing. He smiled at the cheerful man and nodded.

"I suppose you might be right. How was life on L2? Its improved, hasn't it?"

"Yeah, it actually has an economy that doesn't include prostitution, dealing drugs or stealing." Adrian laughed and shook his head wryly. "It's nice to see a place like L2 improve like this. Soon, I hope, it'll be as good as any other colony, not a joke." He looked at Wufei. "What colony did you come from?"

"I was born on L5 but I moved to L6 when I was five years old," Wufei told him. "I don't remember much of L5 though but I do remember it was pretty new compared to other colonies."

"Yeah, back in the war it was destroyed. If I remember correctly, it refused to be taken by the opposite forces and self-destructed. It was rebuilt about thirty years later."

"You sure know your history," Wufei complimented.

"Only the bare facts that really stand out in history. I don't know names or dates, really."

"I think it's the only things any normal person would remember. That war took place a *long* time ago. Only a history buff would be expected to remember stuff like dates and locations," Wufei said.

"Hey, look at this photo." Adrian held up another picture of Duo Maxwell. "Isn't the resemblance creepy? Honestly, I'm kinda weirded out."

"Me too," Wufei murmured in agreement as he compared the picture to Adrian. "I've never seen such a thing before. You guys always have the same eyes. Only your eyes are a shade lighter."

"Hey, ya gotta have your differences or we'll be twins or something." Adrian shook his head and shuffled to the next picture. "Hey, this'll be a nice one."

Wufei looked over at the picture Adrian was holding out and raised an eyebrow. There was a blonde boy on standing in the middle of what seemed like twenty or so men behind him. He was dressed in a space suit and holding up a glass of champagne, obviously celebrating.

"What does the back say?" he asked.

Adrian flipped it around and read it: "Quatre Raberba Winner and his men, December AC 195." Suddenly, the American's eyes widened. "No way...That's...Is that Quat's grandfather or whatever??"

"Quatre Raberba Winner is a family name," Wufei said, nodding. "It's been passed down generation after generation. Quatre never told us one of his ancestors was a Gundam pilot. It might explain why he's so devoted to that part of history, though."

"Weird...They look just alike." Adrian suddenly looked unnerved. "Don't you find it just a bit *weird* that we keep stumbling across pictures of people we know? I mean, come on! Quatre...*Me*...What about you? Seen anything yet?"

"No. But I did see one of Trowa and Treize."

"Whoa..."

"I know."

"Let's check these things out and see if we can find any other," Adrian suggested. He started flipping through the many photos, looking for anyone familiar. After a few photos, he stopped. "Hey, look. This dude looks just like Zach." He flipped it over onto the back. "'Zechs Merquise, Preventer Wind.'"

"Preventer Wind?" Wufei repeated, surprised to hear the word 'Preventer'. The Preventers had broken up about fifty years ago when they realized that the total peace of the world and universe didn't the assistance of the Preventers anymore. That and the government didn't want to fund them anymore. Wufei had found it pretty sad when he heard of them and how they came to an end. They had been around for so long; how could anyone want to get rid of them? They had been so useful in the past, when the times were still unsure after the end of the war and continued to be useful afterwards.

"Zach!" Adrian suddenly shouted. "Zach, get over here!"

Zach jogged over to them. "What's wrong?"

Adrian showed Zach the picture. "Doesn't this dude look familiar to you?"

Zach looked down at the photo. "Well, yeah, he looks like--Me!"

"Duh. And he has your last name. Did you have a granddaddy you never told me about?"

"I never knew...Aw, come on, there's gotta be plenty of people named Merquise out there!"

Adrian gave his husband a *looong* look.

Zach dropped his head. "Okay, so Merquise is an unusual name. But...There's so many people in this world..."

"Me and Wufei have finding a lot of strange things from these photos. See, this one looks a *lot* like Quatre." Adrian handed over the photo. "And here's Trowa...Treize...*Me*."

Zach flipped through the pictures, a look of amazement on his features. "This is...insane."

Wufei nodded in agreement. "I suppose we could say all of you are distantly related to these pilots."

"That could explain the resemblance." Zach shook his head. "But I would know if I was related to Zechs Merquise. You can't forget someone like him in your family. Especially if he's written into history books."

"I would say it's only looks, but it's kinda clear it's not. You're names are too much the same to ignore." Adrian sighed. "If only your parents are still alive. Maybe then we could ask some questions and get some answers."

"But they're not."

"Damn, that sucks."

"Well, the whole purpose of this show is to research and find out more about these pilots and the war. I suppose I can do some more background searching and find something for you, if you want," Wufei offered.

"That would be great! Would you? It would be so nice to find out that I had some kind of family out there," Adrian said enthusiastically.

Zach nodded in agreement. "It would be nice to find out as well."

"What are you three plotting?" Treize asked as he walked over to them, an eyebrow raised in question.

Adrian grinned and told him as well as showed him the photos.

"Amazing…I already know I'm related to the first Treize Khushrenada. But these others are something new." Treize picked up another stack of photos and flipped through them. He frowned slightly. "You know what I've noticed? There are plenty of pictures of four of the pilots, yet the fifth one has yet to show up. And we *know* there's a fifth pilot out since he played a very important fact at the end of the first war."

"Who was that?" Zach asked, looking very interested.

"His name was Chang Wufei, he piloted Gundam Shenlong. He was also the one who killed the first Treize Khushrenada and ended the war."

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*grin* Hey! Good? Bad? Comments!