Four

“First of all, Mr. Peacecraft survived the operation quite well.” Relief filled the room immediately. “However there were some complications. It was necessary for us to replace his entire torso along with his left arm. Implants went well and he should be able to adapt rather quickly to the new body.”

Silently Duo mouthed, `cyborg,' letting the information sink in. It took some time to click, to realize that Zechs was close to what Treize was; something of an imitation of a human. Duo wanted to argue against that; it wasn't the same. He fought against the idea that Zechs wasn't quite human anymore. That couldn't be right. What did it matter if some of his physical body had to be replaced? That didn't matter... did it? But he had argued differently when Treize had been found.

The doctor left, leaving the news to sink in. Duo felt numb, rolling the new information over in his mind as he tried to adjust to it. He wasn't sure what to think, didn't know what exactly it meant. Vaguely he noted when Noin opened her laptop and contacted Lady Une with the latest news. He didn't hear any of the exchange, however, and didn't snap back to reality until Wufei stood.

“Come on, we all need some rest. We'll come back tomorrow to check on everyone.” His voice was grim but his face remained in its regular serious expression.

Sighing, Une bowed her head. Treize motioned for Mareimeia to sit by him and she hurried over to pull herself onto his lap. With Treize's arms lightly wrapped about her, she sat at attention as Une explained about the wounded Preventers, and also about Zechs' new condition.

Une smiled at the image of father and daughter across from her. `Mareimeia has worked wonders with Treize-sama. She's such a wonderful child...' She wondered briefly about the conversation that Zechs and Treize had had before the mission began. She did know of Treize's love for the former ace pilot and in the past she had been sure of the returned feelings from Zechs. Something had changed, however, and she could only hope that it was for the best.

Une met his gaze yet again and smiled, a bit of sadness in the upturn of her lips. No matter how much she loved the man before her, she knew that she would never hold a place in his heart other than a close friend. And when she thought on that, perhaps that was best for both of them. Her smile increased a bit more. “I am always here, Treize,” she finally replied.

Duo was awake and dressed before any of the others, however he did not leave the hotel alone. That surprised Wufei, who was the next up, and his mind wandered over the possibilities as to why Duo would put off the hospital visit. But neither he, nor anyone else, questioned Duo.

When the group arrived at the hospital they split up. The hospital rooms accommodated two patients so Trowa headed to the room where Quatre and Heero had been put. Sally was in another room by herself while Zechs had ended up on another floor entirely. Noin headed immediately for the elevators to go up and see Zechs. Wufei had decided to keep an eye on Duo and trailed after him, surprised when the braided boy first went to see Heero and Quatre.

The two former pilots were sitting up on their hospital beds, Heero with a scowl on his face and Quatre looking delighted with some company. “Hi Wufei! Duo!” Quatre greeted, smiling brightly.

“Alright, I guess. The painkillers are helping.” He was, however, looking rather pale. An IV was connected to his right arm but he seemed to be managing to maneuver without getting the cord stuck.

The annoyed glare that was sent his way was answer enough but Duo poked him in the shoulder, telling him to speak up. Persian blue eyes seemed to soften just a bit as his gaze turned to Duo. “I'm fine. I don't see why they're making me stay here.”

Shaking his head in slight amusement, Duo pointed out, “You may be a tough more-than-human guy, but loosing the amount of blood you did is not good for you. Just do as the pretty nurses tell you and then you can get out.” He gave Heero a wink and a true smile. Wufei watched silently, wondering about the change in expression on Heero's face and the way that Duo was handling himself.

After a few more minutes of Duo teasing Heero, the brown-haired boy took a breath and looked towards the door. He set his expression, looking rather determined as he said, “Well, I need to go see Zechs.”

As Duo left the room, Wufei followed after, just barely catching and darkening expression on Heero's face. `What the hell's going on now?' the former pilot of Shenlong wondered.

They reached the elevators and Duo only gave Wufei one curious look before pressing the button. When the doors opened again, they exited together and headed down the hallway. “You don't need to come along, Wu.”

“It just appeared you needed some support,” Wufei replied in a calm tone. Duo eyed him momentarily and then came to a complete stop. Wondering what had gotten into the other, he also stopped, meeting the cobalt gaze resting on him. “What now?”

Biting the inside of his lip, Duo nodded, not able to bring himself to say anything at the moment. They finally reached the right room and Duo knocked; however his eyes were resting on Wufei. The Chinese man gave a nod before leaning back against the opposite wall. Duo touched the door control and entered.

The curtains were opened to their fullest in the smaller, one-bed hospital room. On the bed in a reclining position was the pale-haired man. No IVs were attached, and only one machine seemed to be on. Where it was connected to could not be seen, however.

“Love...” Duo turned serious and his tone sounded as a warning. “Don't think about what I've said. I... I was with you guys long enough to see that... there's no difference. There really isn't any difference between a... a human and a cyborg.” He pasted on a smile. Zechs noted the faint sheen of tears waiting to fall and shook his head, sighing softly.

“You know it's different just as well as I do.” Zechs sat up and the sheet that had been covering his left arm fell into his lap. Duo's breath was caught in his throat as the light caught the metalwork of the arm. “I'm just a cheap imitation,” he said softly, voice a bit strained. His crystal eyes fell to his hands as he raised them up, looking at the two. Unlike Treize, there was no artificial skin covering his left hand.

Zechs looked to him, expression pained. “Duo...” The younger man bowed his head, a hand rising to cover his face. By his shaking shoulders, Zechs knew that the other was crying - although trying to hide it. “Come here, love...”

Duo obeyed, moving to the bed and sitting down. He rested his head against Zechs' shoulder, still fighting his tears. With eyes squeezed shut tightly he felt the metalwork hand running along his back in comfort.

“We'll figure something out, Duo... It's alright.” The words were as much for his lover as they were for himself. Zechs shut his eyes and rested his chin over the head of brown-hair. Duo seemed to have calmed, although he remained curled up next to him. “We'll get through this together, love.”

Two days after the mission failure, Treize and Mareimeia accompanied Lady Une to the runway where the Preventers shuttle would land. They were half an hour early so they had to wait patiently, eyeing the sky for some sign of the shuttle. Other Preventer-owned vehicles were waiting on the runway to transport the agents.

When the shuttle finally arrived and the door was opened, Une, Treize, and Mareimeia waited anxiously at the bottom of the steps. Sally was the first one to appear. One arm was almost entirely wrapped in a cast and on that same side her shoulder was bandaged well. She greeted them with a pleasant tone as Heero walked easily down the steps. Trowa was the next out of the shuttle, although he carried one end of a stretcher that Quatre was placed on. Noin held the other end. Wufei walked out with a wheelchair that was set up for Quatre at the bottom. The blond looked a bit pained but he was able to put on a cheerful face. Duo and Zechs were last. It was painfully apparent that Duo was forcing a simple smile on his face; Zechs had masked his own feelings with a countenance of indifference.

The blond man was wearing his Preventers jacket over his T-shirt, but the metal left hand gave away what was hidden. Treize kept a careful eye on Zechs while Une went around checking up on the agents. After a short speech from the chief Preventer, the group began parting ways and headed towards their transports.

“Treize, call me with any updates.” Une had stopped the tawny-haired man before he walked off. Her hand rested lightly on his shoulder, her expression tired and slightly worried.

She offered one last smile before heading towards the transport that would be heading back to Preventers headquarters. Treize slid into the passenger seat of the car since Duo had taken the wheel. Glancing in the rearview mirror Treize noted the distant look in Zechs' eyes and Mareimeia's careful study of the man beside her.

How would Zechs adjust, he wondered. Even this far into being a cyborg Treize couldn't get away from self-degrading thoughts and doubts. He wasn't sure how Zechs would handle having to adapt to the feeling himself. `It has been hard enough for him to accept me.' If he even had learned to accept Treize...

The small band entered the house, Duo and Zechs carrying their bags. Mareimeia lingered behind for a bit but the tense air made her excuse herself and she headed up the stairs. Duo left to unpack his bag. Zechs was about to follow but Treize rested a hand on his shoulder and motioned towards the library. The pale-haired cyborg eyed the other. He dropped his bag by the door and eventually followed.

Treize didn't reply right away, walking past Zechs and towards the windows at a steady pace. When he reached the opposite wall he turned, hands clasped behind his back. “I'm sure you've already realized that a good deal of adjustment is needed. It will take time... such a long time, but perhaps you'll adapt better than I have.”

Surprised, Treize stared openly at Zechs. The pale-haired man had a haunted look to his eyes. His lips were slightly parted, turned down. He looked halfway between screaming and crying. “Mirialdo?”

“All right, then...” Treize said softly. “Just know that you are more than welcome to talk with me. You ought to see to your lover now, he might be worried for you.”

Zechs cast him an empty, hopeless look before he turned and left the room. Treize watched after him silently, feeling a horrible ache enter him as Zechs disappeared. `This doesn't look too promising...' He could only hope that perhaps Duo could help calm him down. All he could do was offer was a bit of advice and the option of being a listener if Zechs had need of one.

Zechs left the library in a rush. He grabbed his bag and then headed up the stairs towards his room. Duo was inside, bag sitting on the floor as he rested on the bed. He looked up as Zechs entered.

He wanted to reply “no,” that he was still too on edge to be that close to someone... But the empty look in the cobalt blue eyes stopped him from turning his lover down. “It's fine, you can unpack.”

“Only if you're sure...” Duo stood, then, and began to unpack his things. “I'm going to move my stuff in from my room,” he said without much emotion. Zechs stepped aside as he passed and then moved into the room.

Unpacking his bag, he pulled out his clothes. Something hard dropped on the ground and caught his attention. Setting the clothes aside, he frowned upon seeing the jewelry case. He picked it up and stood, ready to toss it away immediately. Something stopped him, however, and he remained standing there, staring at the cardboard cover that was over the casing.

Carefully he pushed the box from under its cover and opened it, staring inside it. When he had went shopping with Mareimeia those many weeks ago he had made a purchase based on a whim and a dream. Now he stared down at that dream... and a past promise.

Inside the box lay two sturdy necklace chains. Attached to each was a pendant. He reached to touch the pendant stone of sapphire. His artificial hand came into view, breaking the calming, quiet spell that the opening of the box had allowed. Zechs shut the jewelry box immediately and covered it again with the cardboard casing.

Afterwards the room remained silent, only the sound of his heavy breathing filling the air. Slowly he dropped to his hands and knees, staring blindly at the floor. `How are you able to handle it, Treize?' The other had offered help... perhaps he should take it... But no. He could handle this himself. He didn't need anyone else.

Zechs calmed again and finished his unpacking. Soon Duo entered the room with his things. Zechs nodded a greeting. Duo offered a smile before setting his things down. He went to the pale-haired man and embraced him tightly. “We'll adjust together, kay?”

“Right...” Zechs' arms were about the other but his gaze was elsewhere, as were his thoughts. Duo noticed, but he made no comment. He was content to be locked in the embrace for the time being.

Mareimeia was able to capture Duo for a playmate over the next few days and they would sometimes stay on estate grounds while on occasion they headed out for some fun in a nearby city. Treize spent his time reading and keeping an eye on the other members of the household. Zechs was still too silent and withdrawn, causing him some worry. Mareimeia was keeping spirits up a bit and had coaxed Duo back to his old self.

One day Duo and Mareimeia returned with a special purchase and it was unveiled that evening as a telescope. Cheerfully the girl explained that the night would bring a shower of shooting stars and insisted that they all went star gazing. Treize mused that it was a good idea.

After dinner, Mareimeia and Duo grabbed a large picnic cloth, the telescope, and a few other things. They headed outside to set up for later that night, leaving Zechs and Treize to their own agendas.

Treize found the pale-haired man staring out the window, watching the two play around outside. “They look quite happy,” he remarked, coming to stand at the window with the other.

Sapphire eyes rested on Zechs steadily. “Mirialdo, you're so withdrawn, I'm worried about you.” He sighed. “I suspect Duo and Marie are too, although they are not likely to point it out.”

“There's no need for you to worry,” Zechs assured him curtly. He turned to meet Treize's gaze full on with a determined look of his own. “I'll be just fine.”

Treize's expression fell, gaze filled with worry. `I can't help it, Zechs... How can I when my love won't fade for you?' Mareimeia's squeal of surprise made him look outside. A smile tugged at his lips as he saw that his daughter was being held upside down by Duo. The girl was laughing and wriggling, demanding to be put back on the ground.

When the sun had set, the group of four gathered outside. Duo and Mareimeia lay down on the blanket spread out and stared up at the sky. Treize noted that Zechs hesitantly followed, lying beside Duo. The former Gundam pilot scooted closer to his lover, head leaning against his chest. Although he fought the feeling, Treize couldn't help the flash of jealousy that passed through him.

The first shooting star appeared and Mareimeia gasped in joy. She tugged at Treize's arm, urging him to lie down. When he complied to her wishes, she snuggled up against him and continued staring up at the sky.

Her childish joy and surprise were heart-warming to see. When Treize was able to observe Mareimeia act like the child she truly was, this was the time that he could feel most human and most content. His child would always be the one that he would forever protect and would ensure her safety above all others. “Marie...” he murmured softly.

As she went back to staring up at the sky, he said softly, “And I, you.” He kissed the top of her head gently, turning his gaze to the heavens to observe the stunning show of stars.