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"Convincing Heero"Written By: Hemlock Inyx Disclaimer: This chick does not own any of the
Gundam Wing characters because they belong to Bandai and Sunrise.
I am borrowing them for this fict and will return them
in good (if somewhat sticky) condition. I also don't own Nora Robert's
Convincing Alex, on which this fict is heavily based (well more like
a fusion/translation). This fict is written out of love and not for
profit, don't sue. Thanks and enjoy! Rating: NC 17 Warnings: AU Romance/Cop Drama, Cross-dressing/drag,
humor, romance, some OOC-ness, language, and murder- not main characters.
Pairings: 1x2, 4xC for added interest. More pairings
to come. Summary: Heero is a cop, Duo is a cross-dressing man who writes for a daytime soap opera. The pair meet when Duo is arrested doing 'research' for the soapie.
" Convincing Heero" Chapter 5 "When it comes to murder, " Duo mused, "I like a nice, quick-acting poison. Something exotic, I think." Hilde pursed her lips. "If we're going to do it, I really think he should be shot. Through the heart." Shifting in his seat at the cluttered table, Duo scooped up a handful of sugared almonds. "Too ordinary. Reed's a sophisticated, sensuous cad. I think he should go out with more than just a bang." Duo munched and considered. "In fact, we could make it a slow, insidious poison-milk a few weeks of him wasting away." "Nagging headaches, dizzy spells, loss of appetite," Hilde put in. "And chills. He really should have chills." Duo steepled his hands and imagined. "He gives this big cocktail party, see. You know how he likes to flaunt his power and money in the faces of all the people he's dumped on over the years." Hilde sighed. "That's why I love him." "And why millions of viewers love to hate him. If we're going to take him out, let's do it big. They're all there at Reed's mansion….Jade, who's never forgiven him for using her sister for his own evil ends. Elana, who's agonizing over the fact that Reed will use his secret file, distorting the information to discredit Max." "Mmm…" Getting into the spirit, Hilde gestured with her watered-down soft drink. "Brock, who's furious that with one phone call Reed can upset the delicate balance of the Tryson deal and cost Brock a fortune. And Miriam, of course." "Of course. We haven't seen nearly enough of her lately. Reed's self-destructive ex-wife, who blames him for all her problems." "Justifiably," Hilde pointed out. "Then there is Vicki, the woman scorned. Jeffery, the cuckolded husband." Duo grinned. "And the rest of the usual suspects." "Okay. What kind of poison?" "Something rare, " Duo mused. "Maybe Oriental. I'll work on it." He scribbled a reminder on a notepad. "So they all have a motive for killing him. Even the housekeeper, because he seduced her naïve, innocent daughter, then cast her aside. Sometime during the party, we see a glass of champagne. The room's in shadows. Close-up on a small black vial. A hand pours a few drops into the glass." "We'll see if it's a man or a woman." "The hand's gloved," Duo decided, then realized how ridiculous it would be to wear gloves at a cocktail party. "Okay, okay, we don't see it at the party. Before. There's this box, see? This ornately carved wooden box." "And the gloved hand opens it. Candlelight flickers off the glass vial as the hand removes it from the bed of velvet." "That's the ticket. We'll cut to that kind of thing three or four times during the week of the party. Let the audience know it's bad business for somebody." "Meanwhile, Reed's playing everyone like puppets. Handing out his personal brand of misery, building the pressure to the boiling point, until it explodes on the night of the party." "It'll be great," Duo assured her. "Throughout the evening, Reed's enjoying himself, stirring up old fires, poking at sores. Miriam has too much to drink and gets sloppy and shrill. This provides the perfect distraction for our killer to doctor Reed's champagne. Because it's slow-acting, the symptoms don't begin to show right away. We have some fatigue, a little dizziness, some minor pain. Maybe a rash." "I like a good rash," Hilde agreed. "By the time he kicks off, it'll be difficult for the cops to pinpoint the time and place when the poison was administered. We just might have the perfect crime." "There is no perfect crime." Both Duo and Hilde glanced towards the doorway. Heero stood there, hands tucked in his pockets. There was a half smile on his face, the result of his enjoyment at listening to them plotting a murder. "Besides, if your TV cop didn't figure it out, your viewers would be pretty disappointed." "He'll figure it out." Duo reached for another almond as he watched Heero, his bare feet propped on the chair besides him. Heero discovered that the baggy slacks Duo wore effectively hid his legs but didn't stop him from thinking about them. "Did somebody call a cop?" Duo asked Hilde. "Not me." Well aware that three was most definitely a crowd, Hilde rose. "Listen, I've got to make a call, and then I think I'll run up and peek in on the taping. Nice to see you, Detective." "Yeah." Heero shifted so that Hilde could get though the door, but he didn't step inside. Instead, he glanced around, annoyed with himself for feeling so awkward. "Some place," Heero said at length. Duo's lips curved. The room was hardly bigger than a
closet and windowless. The table where he and Hilde worked was covered
with books, folders, and papers, and dominated by a computer that
was still humming. Besides the table, there was one overstuffed chair,
a small couch and two televisions. The description was fairly apt. They were in the production offices for 'Secret Sins' and its network. Heero shrugged off Duo's question with one of his own. "How long are you in for?" "The duration, I hope." Casually Duo rubbed
the ball of one foot over the instep of the other. "After the
last Emmy, they did offer us an upstairs office with a view, but Hilde
and I are creatures of habit. Besides, "I took a couple hours of personal time." "Oh." Duo drew the word out, thinking Heero looked very appealing when he was embarrassed. "Should I consider this a personal visit?" "Yeah." Heero stepped inside, then regretted it. There wasn't enough room to wander around. "Listen, I just wanted to apologize." It was probably very small of him, Duo thought, but, oh, he was enjoying this. "Generally or specifically?" "Specifically." Heero shook his head when Duo held up the bowl of almonds. "After the robbery attempt, when I took you home. I was out of line." "Okay." Duo set the bowl down and smiled at Heero. "We're dealing with your behavior during the last half hour of the evening." Heero's brows drew together. "Everything I said before that sticks. You had no business doing what you were doing, where you were doing it." "Get back to the apology. I like that better." "I took what I was feeling out on you, and I'm sorry." Figuring the worst was over, Heero sat on the edge of the table. "You didn't react the way I expected." "Which was?" "Scared, outraged, disgusted." Heero shrugged again. "I usually don't take women to armed robberies." Duo smiled again. "Well, since I'm not really a woman, I think it's ok." Heero ran his fingers distractedly though his hair, not quite able to meet Duo's eyes. "I know that…but I don't know what you prefer to be identified as." "Myself. I don't do full drag because I don't feel like a full woman. A lot of people think of me as a queen, and I let them because I still find it a bit confusing as to what gender I am myself." Duo rose, placed his hands on Heero's shoulders and kissed him lightly on the mouth. "But, no hard feelings." When Heero's hand came to his hips and held him in place, Duo lifted a brow. "Was there something else?"
"That could be good." Heero's lips twitched. "I haven't decided yet. Maybe we could start with dinner." "Start what?" "Working our way to bed. That's where I want you." "Oh." Duo's breath came out a little too quickly and not quite steady. It didn't help that Heero's eyes were calm, amused and suddenly very confident. How, Duo wondered, had their positions been so neatly reversed? "That's certainly cutting to the chase." "You said that people in our professions observe
people. What I've observed about you, Maxwell, is that you'd probably
see through any flowers and moonbeams I might toss at you." Heero grinned. "What I am sure about, is that something about you sets off sparks, and I want to explore that feeling." Duo had to laugh. "Meanwhile…" But Heero didn't let Duo scoot back. "Meanwhile," Heero echoed, keeping his hand firm. "Have dinner with me. Just dinner." Hadn't Duo told himself he wasn't going to get involved again, fall in love again? Oh, well. "I often enjoy just dinner." "Tomorrow. I'm on tonight." "Tomorrow's fine." Heero nudged Duo an inch closer. "I'm making you nervous." "No, you're not." Yes, he was. "You're wiggling." Heero grinned again, surprised at how satisfying it was to know he'd unsettled Duo. "I've got work, that's all." "Me too. Why don't I come by about seven-thirty? My brother-in-law's got this place. I think you'll get a kick out of it." "Lady clothes or real clothes?" "What are you wearing now?" Duo glanced down at the sweater and slacks he was wearing. "Real ones." "That'll do." Heero stood, then tilted Duo's chin with a finger until they were eye to eye. "You have the oddest face," Heero said half to himself. "You should be ugly." Duo laughed, un-offended. "I was. I've burned all pictures of me before the age of eighteen." Duo's dimple winked out as he smiled at Heero. "I imagine you were always gorgeous." Heero winced, though he knew he should be used to having that term applied to him. "My sisters were gorgeous," he told Duo. "Are. My father and I are ruggedly attractive." "Ah, manly men." "You got it." "And you grew up surrounded by flocks of adoring females." "I started out with flocks and moved to hordes." Duo's eyes lit with amusement and curiosity. "What was it like to…" Heero cut Duo off the most sensible way. He liked that quick little jolt Duo's body gave before he settled into him. And the way his mouth softened, accepted. No pretenses here, Heero thought as Duo gave a quiet sigh and melted into the kiss. It was simple and easy, as basic as breathing. If Heero's system threatened to overcharge, he knew how to control it. Perhaps he drew the kiss out longer than planned. But Heero was still in control. Maybe, just for a moment, Heero imagined what it would be like to lock the door, sweep all those papers off the table and take Duo, fast and hot, on top of it. But he wasn't a maniac. Heero reminded himself of that, even as his blood began to swim. A slow and gentle touch brought pleasure to both, and let a person see that they were appreciated for everything they were. "Dangerous," Heero murmured in Japanese as he slid his mouth from Duo's. "Very dangerous." "What?" Duo blinked at him with eyes that were arousingly unfocused and heavy. "What does that mean?" Heero had to make a conscious effort to keep his hands gentle on Duo's shoulders. "I said I have to go. Keep off the streets, Maxwell." Duo called to him as he reached the doorway. "Detective." Duo's heart was thumping, his head was reeling, but he really hated not having the last word. For lack of anything better, Duo dredged up an old line from "Hill Street Blues." "Let's be careful out there." Alone, Duo lowered himself into a chair, as carefully as an elderly grandpa. Five minutes later, Hilde found him in the same spot, still staring into space. "Uh-oh." One look had Hilde dropping down beside him. With a shake of her head, she handed Duo a fresh soft drink. "I knew it. I knew this was going to happen the minute I saw that gorgeous cop at your party." "It hasn't happened yet." Duo took a long drink. Funny, he hadn't realized how dry his throat had become. "I'm afraid it's going to, but it hasn't happened yet." "You had that same look on your face when you fell for Trowa. And for Walker. And Otto. Not to mention…" "Then don't." Frowning, Duo focused on Hilde. "Otto? Are you certain? I was sure I had better taste." "Otto," Hilde said ruthlessly. "Granted, you came to your senses within forty-eight hours, but the day after he took you to the opera you had the same stupid look on your face." "We saw Carmen," Duo pointed out. "I don't think the look had anything to do with him. Besides, I'm not in love with Heero, I'm just having dinner with him tomorrow." "That's what you always say. Like with Abdul." Duo's shoulders straightened. "Abdul was the sweetest man I've ever known. Being engaged to him taught me a lot about understanding and compassion." "I know. You were understanding enough to be godmother to his firstborn." "Well, after all, I did introduce him to Nancy." "And he promptly dumped you and ran off with her." "He didn't dump me. I wish you wouldn't hold that against him, Hilde. Breaking our engagement was a mutual decision." "And the best thing to happen to you. Abdul was a wimp. A whiny wimp." Because it was precisely true, Duo sighed. "He just needed a lot of emotional support." "At least you never slept with him." "He was saving himself." They looked at each other and burst out laughing. Once he caught his breath, Duo shook his head. "I should never have told you that. It was indiscreet." "Observation," Hilde announced, and Duo gestured a go-ahead. "The cop isn't going to save himself." "I know." Duo felt the warning flutter in his stomach. Thoughtfully he drew his finger down through the moisture on the bottle. "I'll cross that bridge when I come to it." "Duo, you don't cross bridges, you burn them." Hilde gave his hand a quick squeeze. "Don't get hurt." There was a touch of regret in Duo's smile. "Do I ever?"
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