Disclaimer - the boys belong to various wealthy corporations, not me.

Note - I'm blaming this one partly on the fact that it actually did rain here this morning, and partly on the fact that cjmarie has corrupted me to threesomes with a couple of her latest stories…

Warning - little bit of angst, little bit of sap. Shameless plug for Dublin as a holiday destination. (Well, our economy needs tourism…) 1x2x5

Rainy Day in Dublin:

'It's still raining.' It was too; I'd thought seeing the Indian monsoon while I was there on a Preventers' assignment had been bad, but even that didn't compare to the sheer sheets of grey rain pouring down the window of our hotel room in Dublin.

'As opposed to your last weather update five minutes ago?' Wufei sounded a bit tetchy; I think he might have been suffering from jet lag. He and Heero were in the process of unpacking their neatly folded clothes and putting them tidily away. Wufie seemed to be sorting his by colour, while Heero was going by fabric.

By contrast, my bulging rucksack was leaning against the bed, and my favourite pair of black jeans had somehow escaped and were already slithering down on to the floor. Do I need to say that many of our the rows we'd had in the four months we'd been together had centred on them being obsessive-compulsive neat freaks and me being…not.

'I can't believe you guys are unpacking when we're only going to be here for three nights.' That was our programme; a long weekend in Dublin and then on to France and Italy for three weeks.

'We're almost finished,' Heero shook out a dress shirt before placing it carefully on a hanger. 'Why don't you look at the guide book, Duo, and decide what you'd like to do first.'

'Mmm.' That bloody guide book was already the bane of my life. I think the two of them knew the contents off by heart; for weeks, I'd only had to mention anything that had a vague Irish connection and they'd bash my ear for hours with all sorts of 'interesting' facts. Instead I picked up a the hotel magazine which listed recommend places to eat and drink.

'Can you believe they only have fifteen Starbucks in this whole country? Fifteen! I mean, we pass twice that many just driving to work. And there's no Wendy's, no Taco Bell, no IHOP, no…'

'Ireland has its own very unique culture,' Wufei chipped in. 'You can't expect everything to be exactly like home.'

'Yeah, I know that,' I muttered, staring out at the rain again, wishing I was back home. 'I can't believe this weather. The on line weather forecast said today was going to be fine.'

'It'll probably clear up later,' Heero slid his empty suitcase under the bed and came to join me on the window seat. 'Apparently the Irish weather tends to be variable. If it doesn't we can always go to the National Museum. They have an exhibition on this month about Viking longships.'

'I want to see the Chester Beatty Library,' Wufei stated. 'It has a wonderful collection of oriental manuscripts and prints. Even some Japanese ones, Heero.'

'We definitely have to go to Trinity College to see the Book of Kells. It's the oldest manuscript in the world. And they run historical walking tours.'

'If the rain does stop, there's the open top bus tour. That might be a nice way to get an overview of the whole city.'

'Sally said she did a tour of the Guinness Brewery when she was here last year. And it's right beside Kilmainham Jail which is a vitally important part of Irish history…'

I think they both realised at the same time that, while they were blathering on, I hadn't said one word, just sat with my face pressed against the window, watching the raindrops.

'What would you like to do, love?' Heero asked quietly.

I just shrugged; there was no room for Wufei to sit beside us, but he knelt in front of me and took my hands in his.

'Are you not feeling well, Duo? Do you want to lie down for a bit?'

'I'm OK. I just - I'm not sure how to do this whole vacation thing.' They both just stared at me, like I'd said something ridiculous. 'Look, I've never really had a proper holiday before, that's all. I'm not sure what to do. All this sightseeing stuff, I've never done anything like that.'

'But - you've been taking annual leave from work,' Wufei said uncertainly. 'You haven't just been staying at home, have you?'

'No.' They were both looking at me expectantly, and I couldn't help blushing. 'I went to L2 a couple times, that's all. To help out with an orphanage.'

They both got - that look then; the look they get when I say something about the way I grew up, like they just want to tuck me up in warmed cashmere blankets and spend the rest of their lives caring for me.

'Oh, Duo. Love.' Wufei positively tugged me onto the floor beside me, wrapping me in a giant hug; Heero slid down behind me and then I had two sets of arms holding me tight.

It's - still something of a novelty, that we do this at all. Still not so many months since I progressed from being the third wheel in their relationship to being - I don't know - the axel maybe; holding them both together.

'We'll do anything you want. You know that. Whatever you like.' Wufei kissed me gently; I think he sometimes sees my childhood as a personal affront, and then blames himself for not second - guessing things I don't know anything about. Hero's a little more laid back, but then he didn't have the easiest time either, growing up.

'Maybe you guys could just, you know, chill a bit? It feels like we're on a mission sometimes and you want to plan every second of every day. I keep thinking you've got a spreadsheet hidden somewhere and everything's already mapped out.

Heero laughed softly behind me, his breath tickling the back of my neck, and Wufei blushed.

'It was only the one time! And we hadn't even two full days in Florence and we wanted to make the most of it!'

'What would you like to do, sweetheart?' Heero asked.

'I don't know. Maybe just wander 'round a bit and get a feel of the place. Hilde asked me to get her one of those Irish knitted sweaters - what are they called again?'

'Aran jumpers,' Wufei supplied. A few minutes earlier, he would have given me chapter and verse on where these sweaters came from, the exact history of the different patterns, and the best locations in the city to buy them. Now, he heroically refrained.

'And we could maybe get a drink and look for a nice place to have dinner tonight?'

'The guide book recommends a list of restaurants where they serve traditional foods and have live music,' Heero started to reach for the damn book and then stopped. 'Or, as Duo said, we could just wander around and see what we find…'

'Let's go.' Wufei got to his feet and pulled me up. 'I think you're getting good at this vacation thing, you know that?'

'You know something else?' I looked out the window, still holding his hand. 'It's stopped raining.'