Last revised: 12/02/99

A THIN LINE BETWEEN - Part 2 (revised)

*** WARNING - SPOILERS
*** FOR THE FUSHIGI YUUGI 
*** manga, TV, and OVA series

This is a substantial revision of my GW/FY xover fic.  A couple of the
characters were rather OOC and I had managed to paint myself into a
corner plot-wise, so I decided to rework the story.  ^_^  Hope you
guys like this version better.

The major changes:
  (1) opened up the plot a bit and gave it some room to breath
  (2) tweaked Hotohori's lines to make him more IC
  (3) rewrote Relena so she's not a TOTAL ditz <sweatdrop>

Well, this part focuses only on the Seiryuu side of things, so it's a
bit on the dark side.  The next part will probably focus on the Suzaku
side and most likely will be a bit more light-hearted.

For general info on the FY characters and story:
    http://members.tripod.com/~JayLiz/index1.html

======================================================================
    A THIN LINE BETWEEN
        A Gundam Wing/Fushigi Yuugi crossover fanfic by Madamhydra
======================================================================
    Part 2 (v2)
======================================================================

WARNING:  shonen-ai, mild yaoi

Short Disclaimer: (Full Disclaimers at the end) Gundam Wing and
Fushigi Yuugi copyrighted by their respective creators and all
distributors of their work. Used without permission.

--------------------------------------------

    In Lady Soi's suite in the Imperial Palace of Kutou, Duo held
Relena by the throat and pinned her firmly against the wall.  In a
menacingly cheerful voice, he said, "Well, imagine meeting you here,
Relena."
 
    In Soi's body, Relena blinked as she recognized the annoyingly
familiar grin on Nakago's face. 

    "Maxwell!" she choked out. 

    "You're one for one.  Wanna go two for two?" Duo asked her with a
wicked little smirk that rather suited the Shogun's face.

    "Get your hands off of me, you jerk!"

    "No way, Relena.  Not until I'm sure you're not going to throw
another shit-fit."

    "A shit-fit!?  That would be something a crass idiot like yourself
WOULD say!  As if I don't have every reason to be upset!  Just look at
me!  I'm trapped in the body...."

    Her voice trailed off -- and not in an entirely voluntary fashion
-- as Relena felt the steely grip on her throat tighten ever so
slightly.  Duo narrowed Nakago's piercing blue eyes and said in an
almost conversational voice, "Where you planning to say 'the body of a
whore'?  Personally, I tend to think of a whore more as a state of
mind, not an occupation.  In which case, Soi definitely does not
qualify as a whore."  He shrugged carelessly.  "Then again, maybe I'm
just weird that way."

    Relena pursed her lips angrily.  "Of course you couldn't possibly
understand how someone like me would feel about it!"

    Duo glared back at her.  "Why?  Because I'm just a common, low
class street brat born and raised in the gutter?"

    "I didn't say that!" her cheeks flushing bright red.

    "No, but you didn't have to.  I know what you're thinking --
you've made it abundantly clear whenever we meet.  You think I haven't
noticed how you harp on how well educated you are, how sophisticated
you are, how well-connected you are... and how fucking dedicated to
world peace you are every time you talk to Heero!"

    "Don't blame me if you're the one feeling inadequate, Maxwell! 
I'm trying my best to do something worthwhile, while you...."

    "While I what?  Just what do you think I've been risking my neck
for?  And not just me, but Heero and the others, too!"

    "It's obvious that you just don't get it, Maxwell!  I've been
raised and trained all my life for this type of work, to work for the
greater good, but you....  All you probably know how to do is fight
and cause trouble, Maxwell.  That's all you're good for!  You're so
used to living day by day, hand to mouth, that it's no wonder that you
can't comprehend the big picture!  But Heero's different!  Heero
understands what I'm trying to accomplish.  Working together, I know
we can make my vision of world peace come true!"

    Duo's temper finally snapped.  Feelings of resentment, irritation,
and anger at either being totally ignored or being addressed in an
infuriatingly condescending manner by Relena finally came to a boil.  

    "You think you're the only one with dreams?  The only one with
visions of a peaceful future!?  Do you think I've been fighting,
sweating, and bleeding just for the friggin' excitement!?"

    "How should I know!?  You certainly seem to treat this whole war
like it's some damn game!  While you stand around wasting energy
making stupid jokes, people are suffering and dying!"

    Duo hissed furiously, "Oh, believe me, I know that *all* too
well." 

    At her uncomprehending stare, he shook his head irritably.

    "Never mind all that, Relena.  If you haven't noticed, we aren't
in our familiar old universe anymore and you're no longer the guiding
light of peace *or* the fucking Queen of the World!  New place, new
game, new rules.  That means that at the moment, your precious ideas
of social superiority means diddly-squat, so cut the holier-than-thou
prima donna act.  It's only making me mad and at the moment, that's a
BAD thing."

    "You have the nerve to talk to me like that!?"

    "And if you don't get a grip on yourself and fast, you're going to
land both of us in a shitload of trouble!  I know it's hard for you to
see past the end of your snooty little nose, but we both happen to be
stuck in the bodies of two of the Seiryuu Seishi.  And, may I add, we
both happen to be in what I'd consider hostile territory because these
damn Kutou nobles and military goons are a pack of sneaky, conniving
slimeballs who'd be happy to stab each other in the back at the
slightest opportunity!"

    "So what are you getting at, Maxwell?" Relena bit out in a low,
furious voice.

    Duo rolled his eyes.  "All this means that we can't let anybody
know that anything weird is going on!  Which means that we have to do
our damnest to convince people that it's all business as usual with
Nakago and Soi until we figure out HOW the hell we got her and WHAT
the fuck is going on!"

    Relena gave Duo a narrow-eyed glare and said in a brittle voice,
"Let me guess.  You want me to play the dutiful servant, complete with
'LORD Nakago' and the appropriate *deference*?"  Her lips curled in a
contemptuous smile.  "You might make fun of me and my supposedly
stuck-up airs, but I can see you're going to just ADORE playing the
chance to play the high and mighty lord!  Does 'business as usual'
includes being your lover?" she added with an angry toss of her head.

    Duo stared at her blankly for a moment, then released his grip on
her throat.  As she slid gracelessly to the floor, he started with
smothered chuckles which soon escalated into outright guffaws of
laughter.

    "Hah!  I knew I was right!" Relena growled as she picked herself
off the ground.

    After a few minutes, Duo finally managed to get his laughter under
partial control.  

    "Sleep with you?  Yo!  Reality calling!"  He leaned against a
dresser and said mockingly, "You know, Relena, I always thought that
you were a self-centered, egotistical twit, but THAT really takes the
cake!"

    "What are you babbling about now?" she retorted furiously.

    Duo smirked.  "It means that you, Relena Peacecraft, are the
absolutely LAST person I would want to have sex with!"

    She somehow managed to look both relieved AND offended.  "The
last... what's wrong with you?  Don't you like women?  Are you gay or
something?" she asked with a slightly disgusted look.

    The Deathscythe pilot rolled his eyes in exasperation.  "Nothing's
wrong with me and I like females just fine.  I just don't like YOU!"

    As he watched Relena give him a slightly baffled frown, Duo sighed
and said, "Get this through that dense head of yours, Relena.  I did
NOT come up with this idea because I was dying to get under your
skirts, okay?  The fewer waves we make, the better.  Now I KNOW you've
got access to Soi's memories...."

    When Relena grimaced and looked away, Duo snapped, "You take what
Soi knows about the local politics and figure out for yourself what
will happen if the Emperor and his scumbag court find out that a bunch
of people from another world has taken over the bodies of some of the
Seiryuu Seishi!"

--------------------------------------------

    Treize waved away the female attendants and set off down the
hallway alone.  However, within a minute, someone stormed angrily out
of a side corridor and crashed into her, knocking her to the floor.

    "Lady Yui!  I'm so sorry!" the red-faced young man blurted as he
helped her off the floor.

    It took Treize a few seconds to identify the speaker as Suboshi.

    "No... I'm fine... really I am," Treize murmured as the young man
hovered anxiously over his Miko.  

    Suboshi glanced around and scowled.  "Lady Yui, where are your
guards?  Or your attendants?"

    Treize shrugged nonchalantly and replied with just a touch of
temper, "I wasn't in the mood for company."

    "But... it's really not safe for you to go roaming about by
yourself, my lady!  The Suzaku Seishi have already infiltrated the
palace on several occasions.  And of course, who knows what these
overdressed court fops might do."

    Treize allowed a startled look appear on Yui's face.  "You really
think that they would dare to accost the chosen priestess of Seiryuu?"

    "This palace is crawling with fools who would dare anything. 
Besides, it's better to be safe than sorry.  Please allow me to escort
you to Lord Nakago.  You were looking for him, weren't you?" the young
man said, nearly falling over himself to be helpful.

    Treize sighed inwardly.  (He's definitely developing a crush on
Yui.  Just what I need, a lovesick puppy trailing at my heels.)

    The OZ general smiled pleasantly and said, "And just where is Lord
Nakago?"

    Suboshi shrugged.  "From what I heard, he's in Soi's quarters."

    "Oh, then I wouldn't want to disturb him...."

    "It's not what you think.  For some reason Soi was throwing some
sort of fit or tantrum just now.  I'm not sure what's exactly going
on.  I was just on my way to find out."

    Treize gazed calculatingly at Suboshi, who apparently had not
noticed anything abnormal about Yui.  

    (Well, I managed to fool him, at least....)

    Unfortunately Suboshi was not the most observant of people,
especially in his current state of rage and grief from his twin
brother's death.  No, the true test would come when she faced Nakago. 


    (But I can hardly avoid the leader of Yui's Seishi forever.  I
might as well get this meeting over with and find out if Nakago
detects anything strange about his Miko....)

    Treize gave Suboshi a polite, but distant smile.  

    "Very well.  I accept your offer.  There are certain urgent
matters I want to discuss with Lord Nakago."

--------------------------------------------

    Relena found herself struggling with an unexpectedly sharp pang of
hurt when Nakago -- no, Maxwell -- bluntly told her that he didn't
like OR want her.  She told herself that she should feel relieved that
Maxwell wasn't interested in pestering or molesting her... but she
wasn't.  Instead, his rejection stung worse than a slap in the face. 

    (No, it's not me!  Those aren't my own feelings, but rather this
Soi woman's feelings!  She's the one who's hopelessly infatuated with
Nakago... not me.  I couldn't care the least about Nakago OR Maxwell,
but why am I feeling this pain... this sorrow?)

    She pushed away the disturbing thoughts and said irritably, "Why
should YOU be worried, anyway?  We both know how powerful Nakago is. 
What could these barbarians do to you even if they did know the truth?
 You can just...."  She made a careless, dismissive flick of her hand.
 "Goodness knows you've done something similar many times before with
that black Gundam of yours!"

    Duo spun around and stared at Relena in disbelief.  "What the hell
are you talking about, Relena?  Oh sure, if he really wanted to,
Nakago could probably take out a good chunk of this palace and
probably half the imperial court along with it without breaking a big
sweat.  And then I would have the thrill and joy of watching this
entire country go down the toilet as it disintegrates into civil war
between the surviving nobles.  Do you have ANY idea how many innocent
people will die if that happens, Relena?  If the fighting doesn't kill
them outright, disease and starvation probably will."

    She blinked in surprise, then looked away uncomfortably.  

    "I...."

    He stalked back toward her and said tightly, "I'd think that you,
of all people, would be interested in staying out of trouble and
keeping a low profile.  Or does your precious ideas of absolute
pacifism only apply to 'civilized' people and not to these barbarians,
as you call them?  You wanna risk getting a bunch of people killed
just because you're too damn proud to pretend you're Soi, whom I think
is a hell of a lot more likable than you are?" 

    Her growing sense of shame made her retort defensively, "You're...
you're just exaggerating....  That's never happened when you've blown
up things before!"

    "Back home there's exists a strong central government who usually
manages to keep things under control.  Things are totally different
back here!  The country of Kutou like a house of cards.  The wrong
sort of nudge can destroy the fragile balance of power keeps this
country in one piece and send everything straight to hell!  And if I
can figure that much from a bunch of junior high history courses, I'm
sure Miss Super-Hotshot Diplomat Peacecraft can, too... if she can
just get her damn butt down off her friggin' ivory tower and take a
good hard look around!"

    "That comment was entirely uncalled for, Maxwell!  I am very well
aware of what can happen in a civil war...!"

    "Oooohh, but you didn't expect me to think about things like that,
right?  Sorry to destroy your illusions about me, but I happen to be
capable of a hell of a lot more than gratuitous mayhem and
destruction!  And I'm the first one to admit that blowing things up
isn't always the best way to tackle a problem."

    Relena opened her mouth to say something, but Duo interrupted her
by saying, "As I see it, we have several options."  He lifted one
finger.  "First, we can tell the Emperor and everyone else who we
really are.  In which case, we'll be lucky if they don't immediately
lock us up in the local loony bin which I seriously doubt are up to
your standard of modern medical care.  Which leads us to two more
choices: (A) give up and rot in prison until they figure out what to
do with us; or (B) blow everything to hell as we fight our way free. 
I've already told you what could happen if I do that!"

    Relena scowled.  "You've made your point!"

    Duo held up another finger.  "Second, we can run, but where the
hell are we going to run to?  Konan?  After everything's Nakago and
the other Seiryuu Seishi have done to those guys, we'll be lucky if
they don't try to kill us on sight.  And with this weird divine
destiny stuff with summoning Seiryuu and all that, I've got a bad
feeling that we wouldn't be able to stay hidden for long, because if
the Suzaku Seishi don't come after us, the other Seiryuu Seishi
probably will."

    She sighed in frustration.  "Damn...."

    He held one more finger.  "Third, we can stay put and pretend
everything's cool.  Situation normal.  That will at least buy us some
time to figure out what the hell's going on before we do anything
irreversible."

    Relena flung up her hands and yelled, "All right, all right!  You
don't have to beat the point into the ground!  I'll play along... for
now."

    Duo propped his hands on Nakago's hips and said, "Whoa, you're
actually showing some common sense!  Listen, Relena, I want to make
something absolutely clear, all right?  I don't like you and you don't
like me.  However, we're in this mess together.  Which means that I
don't care what the hell the provocation is, but you'd damn well
better not blow your cover just because people aren't sucking up to
you."

    She gritted her teeth and retorted, "Don't worry about me!  I
should be the one worrying about you, you twit!  You're the one who's
always acting like a silly jackass!  You seem to have no concept of
self-control!"

    He grinned at her, but there was a dangerous edge to that smile.  

    "Ah, but that's fun.  THIS is business.  And the fact that Heero
is willing to put up with me and my little quirks should give you some
idea about just how good I am at this sort of shit."

    Relena blinked in surprise.  She was used to Maxwell laughing,
joking, and generally acting like a total idiot, but she had never
seen him so intensely focused like this.  She belatedly remembered
that Duo Maxwell was an expert Gundam pilot AND a trained terrorist
like Heero.  She looked away from that unnerving grin and muttered,
"Fine."

    "That's good, because I've got better things to do than to
baby-sit you."

    "I can take care of myself!" she snapped without thinking as her
temper flared. "No one would dare lay hands on a Seiryuu...."

    Duo gave her a mocking smile.  "Sorry, wrong answer, Relena.  SOI
can take care of herself.  Oh, you may have her powers, but let me ask
you something.  Are YOU willing to use those powers, Ms. Absolute
Pacifism?  Do you have the guts to fry a person who's trying to hack
your head off with a sword, Relena?  Because you'd better believe me
when I tell you that these guys are not going to stop and patiently
stand around to listen to your little spiel about the glories of
pacifism and turning the other cheek.  That's not how things work
around here and you know it!"

    "Don't push your luck, Maxwell!  You might just be surprised at
what I'm willing to do!" Relena snarled as sparks started to dance
along Soi's hand.  However, Duo's calculating smirk stopped Relena
cold.

    (Why that little bastard... he was deliberately trying to provoke
me!) she thought furiously.

    "You... you...," she sputtered aloud.

    Duo chuckled.  "Wow, you're certainly willing to chuck the
pacifism shtick pretty damn quick when it suits your convenience,
Relena." 

    She glowered at him.  "Why on earth did I have to end up with YOU,
of all people!  I wish Heero was here!"

    "You and me both," muttered Duo.

    "Heero understands me!  He would treat me with the respect I
deserve!"

    "Oh, yeah.  Right... the respect you deserve.  Absolutely...," Duo
said with blatant insincerity.  "At least I'm trying to explain what
the hell I'm doing, which is more than he would.  Heero would simply
tell you to act like Soi or else." 

    Relena tossed her head.  "You're so blind, Maxwell, it's almost
funny.  You have no concept of how Heero feels about me!"

    "Oh, can it, Relena.  I don't want to get into that argument
again."  
    
    Duo brushed Nakago's long blond hair out of his eyes and added,
"Okay, now THAT's settled, why don't we take a walk and discretely
check this place out?"

    "Fine," she snapped, tapping her foot impatiently.

    Duo opened the door only to find Yui and Suboshi standing just
outside.  The young Seiryuu seishi had his hand raised as if he had
been just about to knock on the door.

    (Shit!  Did they hear anything?) Duo wondered anxiously, but his
worries were abruptly shoved aside when his eyes met Yui's.  There was
an instant flash of semi-recognition.  Perhaps he couldn't immediately
identify who was in control of Yui's body, but he was certain that
person or entity was from HIS world.

    A quick sideways glance at Suboshi told him that the young man was
as normal as any grief-stricken, revenge-obsessed teenager could be. 
Before the uneasy silence could drag out too long, both Duo and Yui
simultaneously spoke up.

    "Nakago."
    "Lady Yui."

    Duo smiled slightly and said smoothly, "I was hoping to talk to
you, Lady Yui, about some private matters."

    Her lips quirked upward and she replied just as smoothly, "How
fortunate.  I had some urgent matters to discuss with you, also."  Yui
turned to Suboshi and said, "Thanks for the escort, but I'm sure that
Lord Nakago can handle things from here."

    Suboshi couldn't quite hide his disappointment at being dismissed.

    "Yes... of course.  Then I'll see you later, Lady Yui."  The young
man took a few steps, then stopped.  "Lord Nakago, about Tamahome... I
would like permission to go after...."

    Duo barely managed to keep a poker face as he recalled what
Suboshi had done on his last 'little errand'.

    (You fucking bastard!  Tamahome's entire family... you brutally
murdered a bunch of innocent kids and a sick old man, just for some
perverted idea of revenge?)  

    With a vaguely threatening smile, Duo said firmly, "No.  I don't
want you taking any more action against Tamahome or any of the Suzaku
Seishi at the moment.  I have... other plans.  We'll discuss the
matter later." 

    Suboshi scowled, but nodded.  "All right, Lord Nakago.  Later,
then.  My lady."

    As they all watched the young man disappear down the hallway, Duo
spoke for the benefit of any observers.

    "Lady Yui, perhaps the garden balcony?"

    She nodded, "Yes, that will do nicely."

--------------------------------------------

    A cluster of exceedingly drunk young nobles, newly arrived from
the border regions of Kutou, loitered around the palace hallways and
generally made a nuisance of themselves.  In a slurred voice, one of
the better looking young men said loudly, "Finally some action!  I'll
be glad when we move against those damn Konan peasants and that
pathetic emperor of theirs!"

    Another young man, just a bit more sober than his companion,
chuckled and said, "Betcha you can't wait for the chance to grab some
loot!  I've never seen anyone with worse luck at dice than you,
Enshin."

    "Did you have to bring THAT up, Kimako?  I'm starting to think
those damn dice were loaded... whoa!"

    "What?"  Kimako and the others peered around whoozily.

    "Will you look at that guy!"

    They all turned to glance in the direction of Enshin's pointing
finger and saw a slim, beautiful young man dressed in a high-collared
gold embroidered silk tunic and matching pants.  He looked gorgeous,
with his long, silky black hair tied back in a high ponytail, except
for two thin locks of hair which framed his elegantly boned face.

    "Oh, he's a beauty all right...."  Kimako could barely keep
himself from drooling at the sight.

    "Awww... he looks a bit lonely.  Maybe he's looking for some
company, eh?"

    Another member of Enshin's group laughed nastily.  "No way!"

    "Come on!  Just look at the guy!  He's just asking for it with the
way he moves."

    "He looks pretty damn cold to me."

    "That shows what little you know.  It's the cold ones that burn
the hottest on the inside," Enshin said with a knowing smirk.

    "You're full of shit, you know that?  Like you could convince
someone like that to take a quick tumble in the sheets with you!  Fat
chance!"

    "You wanna make a small wager on that?" said Enshin with a
lecherous grin.

    "Sure!  How about that chestnut horse of mine that you've always
been after, against that black gelding of yours?"

    "Done!"  And with those words, Enshin stalked toward the
strikingly attractive young man, his progress only occasionally marred
by an intoxicated wobble in his stride.

    His companions watched Enshin brazenly introduce himself to the
unknown young man.  When the stranger turned to give Enshin a startled
look, they could all see that he had strikingly colored amber eyes. 

    "What are you gentlemen doing now?" barked an annoyed, gravely
voice from behind the young border nobles.

    They all jumped and turned to see a stern, scar-faced captain of
the guard staring at them.

    Kimako laughed and said, "Oh nothing much.  We made a small bet on
whether Enshin could talk that black-haired guy into having a
little... fun, you know." 

    The guard captain uttered a snort of contempt.  With the
possibility of war against Konan, all the bored noble-born brats were
flocking to the capital in hopes of some excitement, glory, and easy
loot.  He glanced at the persistent Enshin, who was too drunk to
notice that his advances were not at all welcome, and frowned.  The
black-haired young man that Enshin was pestering seemed oddly
familiar, but who was he?

    The ponytailed stranger suddenly slapped aside one of Enshin's
overly familiar hands.  As soon as the guard captain caught a glimpse
of those long, lethally sharp fingernails, he instantly knew the
identity of that black-haired young man, even if he wasn't wearing his
usual costume, feathered headdress, and face paint.

    "Oh bloody hell...," the captain groaned.

    "Huh?  What's wrong?" Kimako demanded irritably.

    "Do you people have ANY idea who your drunken friend is pissing
off at the moment?"

    When all he got was a bunch of blank looks, the captain snapped,
"That's Lord Tomo, of the Seiryuu Seishi!"

    "Err... is that supposed to mean something to us?" one of Enshin's
companions muttered in a bored voice.

    Recalling Lord Tomo's particularly nasty ways of dealing with
annoyances, the guard captain rolled his eyes and muttered, "You have
NO idea how much trouble you and that fool Enshin are in...."

--------------------------------------------

    At that moment, Quatre was trying to restrain the almost
overwhelming urge to do something a lot more damaging to the drunken
nobleman, who was doing a pretty good imitation of an amorous octopus,
than merely knocking those groping hands away.

    Permanently trapping the disgusting drunkard in an agonizing
illusion of boiling lava sounded pretty good... on the other hand,
actually disemboweling the fool had its attractions....

--------------------------------------------

    As Nakago -- or whoever he really was -- escorted Treize down the
hall, the Shogun casually called back to Soi and said, "Attend us."

    Treize noticed that Soi -- or whoever SHE happened to be -- barely
managed to suppress an angry snarl.

    "Of course, Lord Nakago," the female Seishi muttered between
gritted teeth. 

    The three of them walked in silence until they reached the small
platform that overlooked one of the many imperial gardens.  Treize
found that Yui remembered the location all too well.  It was from this
vantage point that she and Nakago had observed Tamahome, acting under
the mind-warping influence of the Kodoku, as he had nearly beaten the
red-haired Suzaku Seishi to death.

    Nakago stared at Treize, who calmly stared back.  Neither gave
anything away.  Finally, Soi muttered irritably, "This isn't getting
us anywhere.  Just WHO are you?"

    Treize sighed, then saw the impish grin on Nakago's face.

    (Where have I seen that smile before...?)  The OZ general suddenly
chuckled and said aloud, "Maxwell.  Duo Maxwell.  The pilot of Gundam
02, the infamous Deathscythe."

    "Well, you know who the hell I am.  Mind returning the favor?" Duo
said.

    Treize sighed and raked Yui's hand through her short hair. 
"Treize Khushrenada".

    Duo started to snicker.

    Glaring at Duo, Treize muttered, "I'm so glad you find this
amusing, Maxwell."  He glanced at Soi.  "And who are you?"

    "That's Relena Peacecraft," the Gundam pilot said with a chuckle.

    Treize blinked in surprise.  "Ms. Peacecraft?  What on earth are
you doing here?"

    Duo followed up by asking, "Hey, that's right!  How the hell did
you end up with us?  Now I know that the general here was at the
weapons lab when that wacko's experiment blew, but you were nowhere
near the place so how did you...."

    Relena shuffled Soi's feet as her cheeks turned bright red with
embarrassment.

    Duo suddenly dropped his now-blond head into his hands.  "Oh crap,
let me guess.  I bet you were following Heero.  But how did you find
out... no, I don't think I wanna know."

    The Gundam pilot turned back to Treize and said, "So now what?"

    Treize shrugged Yui's shoulders.  "I think you've come to the same
conclusion that I have.  Given the situation here in Kutou, it's best
if we all pretend nothing unusual is going on."

    Duo nodded slowly.

    "And since we're now stranded in this strange new world, it seems
rather pointless to continue to act as enemies."

    After a thoughtful moment, Duo grinned and said, "Okay.  Truce?"

    "Exactly."  

    "Fine by me.  Like I was just telling Relena, we're all in this
mess together."  Duo scowled at Treize and added in threatening tones,
"But if you try to double-cross me...."

    Treize gazed somberly at Duo.  "I could say that you'll just have
to trust me, and leave it at that.  However, I will be frank with you.
 I'm in a painfully vulnerable position right now.  Yui may be the
priestess of Seiryuu, but she doesn't have any of the special
offensive powers that her Seishi have.  And although Nakago had
convinced her otherwise, Yui doesn't have any real authority with
either the military or the imperial court, either.  In short, without
Nakago's backing and protection, there's not bloody much she or I can
do."

    Duo chuckled.  "I'm sure someone with your sneaky mind didn't have
any problems figuring out how Nakago's been 'handling' his Miko."

    Treize quirked an eyebrow and murmured, "I have a bit more
experience at this sort of game than a confused and traumatized
schoolgirl." 

    "Uh huh.  Well, don't worry.  You deal honestly and in good faith
with me and I'll do the same with you, okay?  At least until we figure
out a way out of this mess."  Under his breath, Duo muttered, "If we
can...."

    "My word on it," Treize responded solemnly.  

    Obviously annoyed at being ignored by both Treize and Duo, Relena
interrupted their conversation by saying, "If both you and Maxwell
here, that means whatever happened to us might have happened to other
people at the lab!"  When Duo failed to react, she snapped, "Don't you
understand?"  Heero might be here!"  She grabbed Duo's arm and said,
"We have to search for him!  Right now!"

    Duo said evenly, "Believe me, I'm very much aware that Heero could
be stuck somewhere in this world, too.  However, let's deal with our
own situation first before we go running off on some half-assed
search!"

    "But...."

    Treize said firmly, "Maxwell's quite right, especially since we
have absolutely no idea if Heero Yuy's on this world at all, much less
where he might be.  He's a resourceful young man.  I'm sure he can
take care of himself for the moment."

    "Ohhh!  Of course you men WOULD stick together!"

    "Men indeed."  The OZ general smiled sourly, then eyed Nakago's
tall, broad-shouldered and undeniably masculine body.  "I must say
that I think you got the better deal body-wise, Maxwell."
    
    The grin vanished from Nakago's face as Duo said somberly, "I...
wouldn't exactly say that."

    Treize asked sharply, "What do you mean by that?"

    Duo made a vague gesture. "Well, this Nakago guy isn't exactly
what you'd call 'normal', you know...."  His voice stopped short as he
stiffened, then turned around sharply.

    "Maxwell, what...."

    Duo made a sharp, silencing gesture.  "I felt a presence...
there's an intruder or intruders on the grounds.  Damn it, something's
here.  And it's hostile."

    "How on earth can you tell?" Relena said in a skeptical voice.

    "I can sense it... or rather, Nakago can.  You could probably feel
it yourself if you'd only pay attention to what Soi's power is trying
to tell you," Duo snapped.

    Relena scowled at him, then an uneasy look appeared on her face. 
But before she could say anything, a murderous hail of silvery darts
exploded from a thicket of trees below and hurtled straight for the
priestess of Seiryuu.

    There was a flare of blue as the projectiles slammed into the
protective barrier that Duo had reflexively cast with disturbingly
casual ease.  As the razor-edged shards clattered harmlessly onto the
roof tiles of the palace, Duo instantly counter-attacked with a series
of energy blasts.

    Without taking his eyes off the gardens below, Duo spoke in an
unmistakable tone of command.

    "Soi, gather the guards and locate the intruders."

    Relena blinked and sputtered, "You want me to WHAT!?"

    When Duo turned his head to glare at her, the glowing blue symbol
on his forehead -- or rather, on Nakago's forehead -- was plainly
visible.

    "Someone has dared to attack the priestess of Seiryuu.  I want the
intruders and I want them alive for questioning.  Now.  That's an
order, Soi," he said in an unnervingly calm voice. 

    The look in his blue eyes sent a chill down Relena's spine. 
Before she could stop herself, Relena found herself stammering, "A-At
once, Lord Nakago!"  And with those words, she allowed Soi's memories
and instincts to guide her as she ran back inside and started shouting
for the guards to accompany her.

    As the palace guards poured out into the garden in pursuit of the
mysterious assassins, Treize focused his attention on Duo.  The OZ
general had the unhappy feeling that he now understood what Duo had
been talking about just before the attack, because at that moment,
Treize had no idea just who was standing next to him on that balcony
and coolly observing the hectic activity on the ground with a
dangerous, almost sinister little smile on his face.  

    Who was in control?

    Was it Duo Maxwell, the pilot of Deathscythe?

    Or was it Lord Nakago of the Seiryuu Seishi?

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=====================================================================
The Full Disclaimer
    All rights and privileges to Shin Kidousenki Gundam Wing are
trademarks and property of Sunrise, Bandai, Sotsu Agency, and
associated parties. All rights and privileges to Fushigi Yuugi and all
characters are created by Watase Yuu and are property of and owned by
Flower Comics, Shogakukan, Studio Pierot, Bandai Visual, TV Tokyo, and
Movic. The characters of these works are used WITHOUT permission for
the purpose of entertainment only.  This work of fiction is not meant
for sale or profit.
    Original portion of the fiction included here is considered to be
the sole property and copyrighted to the author.
=====================================================================