by Anne
Author's notes: This fic is part of an out of order chapter from the fic 'Time and Tide'. It was written for SDQB 444 prompt # 15: alone. It's also for prompt #35: sixth sense, for crossovers100.
Disclaimer: Gundam Wing belongs to Bandai, Sunrise and Sotsu Agency.The Tomorrow People belong to Roger Damon Price, Thames/Tetra and ITV television. Highlander is the property of Panzer/Davis, Rysher/Gaumount Television. Stargate SG1 are owned by Stargate (ll) Productions, Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Products. Alex belongs to Kevin and he's very possessive and overprotective so don't touch or even think about it. I promise to return the characters in one piece, more or less, when I'm finished, but hold no liability for any physical injury or psychological trauma sustained by them in my fiction.
Thanks to: Linda and Misanagi for beta reading.
Quatre shifted in bed, trying to convince himself that sleep was a good thing, but in the end he settled for staring at the ceiling. The adrenalin rush of the last few hours meant he was still very hyped up; he often felt like this after a battle, and that was what this, to all intents and purposes, had been.
Thoughts chased each other through his mind as he tried to make sense of the situation he and Trowa had found themselves in. Their new friends were connected to the reason the ship had sent them back in time; that possibility was becoming more difficult to ignore, especially since Galt had attempted to murder Kevin and Alex.
The man was a sick sadist. Quatre felt his stomach heave at the remembered emotions he had felt. He was not naïve to think that people such as Galt did not exist elsewhere; his experiences as a Gundam pilot had made him all too aware of how those who were deemed to be different were treated.
Trowa mumbled something in his sleep, and Quatre caressed his lover's cheek, feeling responsible for his restlessness. They had been in complete agreement over Galt's fate, turning as one to fire a shot each into his heart. Correction, Quatre grimaced, where his heart should have been, as it was doubtful the bastard had one.
Sighing, Quatre extracted himself from Trowa's embrace, reluctant to leave him, but even more so to risk waking him. It had been a very long day for both of them and Trowa needed his sleep. Quatre glanced down at his borrowed sweatpants and t-shirt, grinning. Trowa had stripped down to his boxers to sleep, not used to having to pull up clothes that were too long and big on him. They had both been glad of the opportunity to launder their sand ridden clothing. Trowa's reaction after he had dressed had been amusing, as Alex was a good few inches taller. Quatre had not been able to resist a smirk, and Trowa had snorted and muttered something about revenge under his breath.
When he reached the kitchen, the light was already on and kettle close to boiling. Entering, Quatre gave Kevin apologetic smile. "Sorry, did I wake you?"
"No," Kevin shook his head. "I couldn't sleep and thought some tea might help. Would you like some?" He was still pale, but his complexion was beginning to show some colour again. As soon as Galt had opened the box he carried to reveal a small smooth stone, Alex had gone white, his hands going to his head, and he had collapsed into unconsciousness almost instantaneously. Screaming Alex's name, Kevin had dived for his lover, protecting him with his body as he fell to join him. Galt had looked smug, until he realised that Quatre and Trowa were still upright and not happy.
"Yes, please. I came out here with the intention of making some myself for the same reason." Quatre paused, very much aware that they were guests and not wanting to overstep any social boundaries. "I hope that’s okay."
"It's fine," Kevin reassured him, taking another mug off the hanger on the counter. "What would you like?" He handed Quatre a container full of an assortment of teas. "There are several to choose from. Alex likes a stronger blend than I do." He paused, his lips curving into a slight smile. "His mum also believes that the right kind of tea can cure anything."
Quatre chuckled. "I usually drink coffee, resorting to tea when I can't sleep." He looked through the container, saw some Earl Grey and handed Kevin the tea bag. Obviously some things had remained constant over the past few hundred years. "Milk and two sugars, please." Quatre watched Kevin for a moment, noticing that his hand was shaking although he tried to hide it. "Is Alex all right? He was very upset."
Instead of answering immediately, Kevin busied himself making the tea. He leaned back against the counter and crossed his arms after handing Quatre his cup. "He's sleeping." Kevin's eyes glazed over momentarily. "At least for the moment."
"This wasn't a random attack," Quatre said slowly, still trying to fit the pieces together. He and Trowa had become a part of a very large puzzle, a roller coaster which had already began its journey before their arrival. "Galt knew you. I could feel his…" He paused, shivering, not wanting to put his thoughts into words. Hatred was not strong enough; what he had felt from Galt had made Quatre sick to his stomach. "My empathic shielding is often not as strong as it could be when I'm emotional." It was time to offer Kevin an olive branch, and Quatre was curious as hell. He had never met another empath before and he needed to know just how similar his and Kevin's abilities were.
"We have…" Kevin examined his cup, "had a history with Galt. Not one that was particularly pleasant either." He was silent for a moment. "Shielding does that unfortunately. Being emotional takes away the ability to focus and concentrate."
Quatre reached out for Trowa, needing the reassurance of his presence. "I've never met anyone else with my ability." Yet Kevin had other abilities Quatre did not possess, even discounting the teleportation. What were he and the other Tomorrow People exactly? "Whatever affected you did not affect us." Sometimes stating the obvious could put people at ease rather than asking a question directly.
"No, thankfully." Kevin shivered. "I suspect it is because you are not Tomorrow People although you do seem to possess some psi powers. There is still a lot that we don't know about being a Tomorrow Person or the powers." He took a sip of tea and gestured towards the dining room table. "Would you like to sit?
"Yes, please. It has been a very long day." Quatre frowned. Kevin was still not exactly forthcoming although this was more information that he had given since they had met.
"Extremely long," Kevin agreed, sitting down.
"Psi powers? I suppose you could call it that. I'd never thought of it before." Quatre decided to counter with some information of his own. "Where we come from I would be referred to as a newtype." He wasn't about to tell Kevin just yet that with Trowa their empathic connection was two way.
"I'm sorry, my manners are a bit scattered right now. Would you like something to eat?" Kevin apologised, frowning. "Newtype? Is that because of your abilities?"
"Just the tea will be fine, thank you." Quatre tried to read Kevin empathically, but with no success. As before, it was like there was a brick wall between them. Kevin's shielding, when working, was far stronger than any Quatre had ever come across. "Yes, the term refers to my abilities although not all newtypes possess what you might call psi powers." He shook his head. "I have never met anyone else who can do what you can. The teleporting in particular is the stuff of fairy tales and legends." His tutor, Adam Pierson, had mentioned it once, almost to himself, but then just shrugged when Quatre had tried to press him for more information. Meeting him here in this time had been yet another piece of the puzzle falling into place.
"Our powers define who is a Tomorrow Person," Kevin said slowly. "What makes a newtype then?"
"It's always been vague," Quatre replied, shrugging. "Someone who exhibits abilities that are not considered normal." He smiled, thinking of himself, Trowa and their friends. "But it could be argued that normal is a very subjective term."
"There isn't a baseline definition for newtype?" Kevin snorted, and then sighed. "How is Trowa? I presume he is sleeping?"
"Yes, he is, and no, there isn't." Quatre wondered, not for the first time if The Doctors knew more than they let on about such things. He took another sip of tea while he collected his thoughts. "This is very good, thank you." Quatre smiled. "I suspect that once Trowa wakes and discovers me gone, he will be here. He can be a bit overprotective at times, even though I am quite capable of looking after myself." In truth, Quatre rather liked that about Trowa, although it was something Trowa did not need to know.
"Just a bit." Kevin sighed and smiled. "Loving someone and worrying about losing them tends to bring that out regardless of what you think of their capabilities. The need to protect is a very basic one."
"Yes, it is." Quatre shivered and wrapped his fingers around his cup. "I've already come close to losing him. The thought of doing so again is terrifying." It was more than that. Trowa was his life, being alone again was something Quatre never wanted to contemplate. They completed each other; even before they had become intimate there had been a connection between them.
"There have been too many close calls," Kevin said very quietly, almost to himself. "There is no life without him."
Impulsively, Quatre reached over the table and placed a hand on Kevin's shoulder. "I'm sorry. I once thought I had lost Trowa, that he was…" He bit his lip, not able to bring himself to say the word 'dead'. "I couldn't feel him." Quatre wasn't even sure why he was telling Kevin this; there were very few people he had ever trusted enough to reveal that he had lost his sense of Trowa following Zero, but he had a feeling that Kevin would understand.
Kevin watched him carefully for a moment. "That is what happens with Barlium. We're unable to use any of our powers or…" His voice trailed off and he cleared his throat, moving away from Quatre's touch. "I should thank you. I promised to protect him, but you did."
"There's no need to thank us." Quatre shook his head. "There's no way in hell either of us would stand by and do nothing. I've never been able to do that." He swallowed, seeing the pain on Kevin's face. "You know what I mean about not being able to feel Trowa, don't you? You and Alex can feel each other like we can."
"Alex is not empathic." Kevin hesitated before continuing. "We have a connection because of our relationship."
"Oh, I see." Quatre was thoughtful, another piece of the puzzle locking into place. He spoke slowly, deciding to share a little more himself. "Trowa is not empathic either but he's always been able to feel me."
"Always?" Kevin seemed surprised, and more than a little curious. "Even before you were…" Again, he hesitated. "Involved?"
Quatre smiled, remembering how he and Trowa had first met. "Yes, although it has grown since we became intimate." Involved didn't seem the right word; they always had been on some level.
"Alex and I were drawn to each other from when we met, but the connection did not occur until later when we got together."
"This connection is empathic?" There were still too many gaps in Quatre's knowledge. He had seen the way Kevin and Alex looked at each other, almost as though they were holding a conversation without words. Trowa and he did that too on occasion but this was different. What the hell was he missing? "I'm sorry, but I'm really not sure what your abilities are exactly."
Nodding, Kevin sighed. "Unfortunately we've learned that it is much safer that way." He stared into his tea cup. "However, I think after tonight you have proven yourselves to be trustworthy."
"It's okay," Quatre reassured him. "I can understand. Very few people know of my ability and even fewer of our connection." Kevin's fears were very much based in reality, and human nature had not changed over time. "People fear what is different and what they do not understand."
Kevin stood and walked into the kitchen. When he returned he was holding two bottles, one of which he handed to Quatre. "I think we might need something stronger than tea." Quatre took the bottle and examined it. What was Tui? He sniffed; it was beer but not a brand he was familiar with but then that wasn't surprising. Kevin smirked. "It's Kiwi so it might be stronger than you're used to."
"Kiwi?"
"New Zealand," Kevin explained. "It's where Alex is from. American beer is 'thin as' according to him." He laughed softly and took a swig. "Our connection is not empathic per se. He can feel what I do and vice versa but it's more than that."
"Oh, okay." Quatre sipped his beer cautiously. "It's not bad." He grinned. "It's almost on a par with what they serve in this little bar in New York Duo is very fond of." After taking another drink, he placed the bottle on the table. "More than that?"
"It's empathic and telepathic. We're connected. No shielding though we can increase or decrease how much."
Quatre nodded slowly. Telepathy was something he had wondered about. With the other abilities they possessed it wasn't much of a reach to wonder if that might be amongst them. It explained a lot. "No shielding? You mean between you?" His voice dropped to a whisper as he thought out loud. "My shielding doesn't work very well with Trowa either. It never has."
"Yes, between us. Our shielding for others works as well as it always has."
"I see." This was beginning to echo Quatre and Trowa's connection a little too disturbingly. "So can Alex feel you emotionally even though he's not empathic?"
"Yes, he can." Kevin smiled. "But only me. He can feel me and if he chooses to look at my thoughts he has that ability too." He took a sip of beer. "It is rather like an airlock with two irises neither of which closes all the way. His mind and mine are connected."
"That is something I can visualize, thank you." Quatre thought through possible implications, not liking the conclusions he was drawing. "If you are connected, what happens if that connection is severed?"
Kevin froze, the colour draining from his face.
Fear. Guilt. Pain.
"I'm sorry," Quatre whispered, knowing he should never have asked. He gripped the edge of the table, his knuckles white, and slammed up his empathic shielding.
Kevin shook his head and swallowed. When he spoke his voice was flat, devoid of all emotion. "Agitation, paranoia, intense physical desire, loss of motor control, coma, death."
"I'm sorry, Kevin." Quatre bit his lip; even through his shields he could still feel Kevin's distress. "I shouldn't have asked. It was insensitive." Another piece of puzzle locked into place. "You were speaking from experience, weren't you?"
"Partially." Kevin's voice was still calm, too calm. He drained his beer. "As I said, Alex and I had a history with Galt."
"We can change the subject if you'd like." Quatre felt a sudden rush of panic and concern. It wasn't Kevin or Trowa. "We woke Alex, didn't we?"
Kevin shook his head. "No, I woke him."
"It was my fault." Quatre took several deep breaths trying to calm himself before his own shielding slipped. How could he have been so bloody stupid? "I should have known better. I have my own memories I don't deal with very well."
"I think we all do unfortunately." Kevin sighed. He sounded distracted. "Life is not always kind."
"No, it's not and often what happens is out of our control." Quatre frowned. If he and Trowa had not been here, Kevin and Alex would be dead. Were they the only ones at risk? There were no Tomorrow People in Quatre's time. Surely, knowing Quatre was empathic, Pierson would have said something apart from a comment almost to himself that he had known another empath. Once. Had he been referring to Kevin? "This Galt. He's part of something bigger, isn't he?"
Quatre reached out empathically for Trowa. He was restless, and close to waking. Caressing him through their bond, Quatre felt his lover settle again. It was only a matter of time before that wouldn't work. As he had told Kevin, shielding empathically had never worked very well where Trowa was concerned.
"I suspect so. He doesn't have the resources and frankly the intelligence to pull something off like this on his own." Kevin still sounded distracted, almost as though his attention was in two places at once.
"The operation appeared to be organised." Quatre couldn't help but try to connect the dots. Even though it was three years since he had fought in the war, his brain still kicked into strategy mode whenever it was presented with a puzzle that needed solving. It was too much a part of who he was. "The men with him were not military though, I don't think." It occurred to him that three hundred years was a long time and there were too many variables to factor into the equation. He was out of his depth.
"Alex is on his way out," Kevin said. That explained the distraction. They must have been talking telepathically. "No, not military, more like mercenaries or hired talent."
Colonel O'Neill and his team had arrived just after he and Trowa had dealt with Galt. From what Quatre had been able to ascertain, Kevin worked with them in some capacity, so it would make sense that he would be knowledgeable about the military of his time. It didn't make sense though, that a Tomorrow Person, who didn't even carry a weapon, would be attached to such an organisation. But then, this whole 'mission' hadn't made much in the way of sense since the discovery of the ship.
Kevin looked up and smiled as Alex entered the room. The smile turned to concern. Alex was still shaky although better than he had been. For some reason the Barlium had hit him a lot harder. "Would you like me to get you some tea, love?" Kevin asked.
"Thanks, Kevin. That sounds wonderful." Alex sat down at the table, next to Kevin. "Could you make milo instead? I'd like something sweet. Sorry for disturbing your conversation, Quatre, but I couldn't sleep."
"It's okay," Quatre said sheepishly. "I think that was probably my fault anyway." His brain caught up with the rest of what Alex had said. "What's milo?"
"I'll let Alex explain, while I make it." Kevin grinned, before getting up and going into the kitchen, but his eyes reflected what he was really feeling. His shielding was still in shreds, and Quatre knew that he was to blame.
Alex watched Kevin, frowning, finally turning his attention towards Quatre once Kevin had left the room. "When I moved here," Alex explained, blushing slightly, "there were a few things I couldn't live without. Milo's one of them. It's a chocolate drink. I like it with milk and sugar although you can drink it without as well."
"Hmm, chocolate," Quatre said appreciatively. "I'm afraid a sweet tooth is one of my failings." Kevin had trusted him, and Quatre had allowed his curiosity to take precedence over his common sense. Just the memory of the thought he had lost Trowa was upsetting; of course Kevin would react the same way, especially after the events of earlier that evening.
Kevin came out of the kitchen carrying two mugs. He handed one to Alex and the other to Quatre. "We would be remiss if you didn't at least experience milo once."
"Thanks, love." Alex leaned back against his chair, sipping his drink. "So," he continued brightly, "what have you been talking about?"
Taking the cup from Kevin, Quatre watched Alex drink before trying it himself. "Thank you." Like Alex had said it tasted like chocolate but not as a strong as the drinking chocolate Quatre was used to. "It's nice. I don't think we have this at home."
"Alex got me hooked on it years ago." Kevin smiled at his lover, but didn't sit. "Would you like to move to the living room? It's more comfortable."
"If it's not too much trouble." Quatre stretched; his body was beginning to protest at the lack of sleep. On the edge of his mind, he could feel Trowa reach out empathically in his sleep. He was restless. "Maybe we should make a cup for Trowa first. I don't think he will be sleeping much longer."
Nodding, Kevin turned and went back into the kitchen.
Anger. Fear.
Alex sighed. "Excuse me please." He stood and followed Kevin, his fear and pain echoing that of his partner's.
Watching them go, Quatre bit his lip. Kevin's distress levels were rising and what was left of his shielding was disintegrating with them. Struggling to stay calm and deal with the empathic bleed over from Kevin and Alex, Quatre reached out for Trowa through their connection. This was his fault. He had asked more than he should.
"There you are." Trowa projected love and calm while wrapping his arms around Quatre from behind.
"Sorry I woke you." Quatre tilted his head up to give Trowa a shaky smile. "Kevin and I were talking."
Trowa kissed the top of Quatre's head. "About what?"
"Empathy and what happened." Quatre leaned back into Trowa's embrace, letting his lover's calm wash over him. "I asked him something I shouldn't have. He's very upset."
"Oh?" Trowa raised an eyebrow.
"They came very close to losing each other, Trowa." Quatre spoke quietly. "He's scared. They both are."
"That's an understandable reaction." Trowa stroked Quatre's hair and kissed his forehead. "I would feel the same way if I had almost lost you."
"I should have been more sensitive." Quatre sighed. "He's like me. His shielding slips when he's upset."
"You are sensitive, Cat." Trowa smiled softly. "They've just been through a traumatic experience. Something was bound to set it off."
"I suppose." Quatre pulled Trowa closer and kissed him. "I woke you too, didn't I?"
"Possibly." Trowa leaned into the kiss, his lips wet against Quatre's. Threading his fingers through Trowa's hair, Quatre caressed Trowa's face and then broke the kiss reluctantly, wanting more but controlling his need at least for now.
"I did wake you." Quatre raised an eyebrow. "I think my stealth abilities are slipping."
"Or I'm losing my ability to sleep alone." Trowa smirked.
"I always sleep better when you're with me." Quatre shivered. "I don't want to lose you, Trowa."
Brushing Quatre's hair back, Trowa smiled gently. "You won't, Cat." He leaned forward and kissed Quatre's neck. "Whatever happens I'll find you. I promise. You are my life, my love."
"And you are mine." Quatre twisted in the chair so they were facing and wrapped his arms around his lover. "I love you. I don't want to be alone." He swallowed. "Even if something happens I will call you. Like I always have."
"I know. I don't want to be alone either." Trowa held him close. "And I will hear you and come." His voice dropped to a whisper, his lips brushing Quatre's but not quite touching. "Like I always have."
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