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"A Time for Us"Written By: Jewel of Hell Disclaimer: Don't own nothin' but these words Rating: NC 17 Warnings: Romance/Tragedy, Angst, yaoi, lemon, language, violence, blood feud, forbidden love Pairings: 1x2, others Summary: The Maxwells and Yuys are two powerful
noble families that have been fighting for generations. Heero and
Duo are no exception. However, one fateful night changes everything
for the young heirs-a Romeo and Juliet tale with a twist. " A Time for Us"
I was waiting for you to log in, WingZero typed. How is your morning going, Shinigami? Duo smiled, the butterflies in his stomach going crazy. Better now, he replied. It started kinda rough. But hey, we all have bad days I guess. I suppose so, came the reply. Tell me, dark one, after I turned you loose and you left me, did you harvest any hapless souls? Biting back his giggle, Duo made sure Noin wasn't paying attention to anything but her lecture. There is one in particular that I thought I should, he said. A soul so tarnished the only place for it is retired in hell. I'm sure it's only a matter of time before it's yours, WingZero assured him. I was listening to a net station last night, and a song came on that reminded me of you. Oh? Duo typed, his heart speeding up a little. He didn't know anything about this boy. Why, oh why, was he getting so excited? Which song? I'm sure you know it, since it's pretty popular right now, WingZero replied. Not usually my thing, but my little cousins were over last night, and they're all girls so they adore it. It's the one called 'Wanting.' Do you know it? Duo smiled. He knew the song. The main boy singer—who had a decent voice—sang about a person who enchanted him that he wanted to get to know, to learn about and understand. It wasn't quite a love song, but it couldn't get much closer without crossing that line. Yes, I've heard it. My sister loves that group, though I'm with you. Not usually my thing. The words made me think of you, WingZero typed. I want to get to know you. So write me a novel, entitled "All About Shinigami." Don't forget anything, don't leave anything out. Duo knew he must be grinning like an idiot. He hid it behind one hand, pausing to make sure his laptop was recording Noin's lecture. Tonight he would listen and go over things she said. Take notes and pay attention. Right now, he began his reply. For starters, my two favorite colors are black and red. I like purple, too, and blue. Sometimes green, if it's the right shade. I prefer gold to silver, and I don't usually wear jewelry. I do have one piece that is mostly sentimental, though. My sister gave it to me some years ago. She took a jewelry-making class and made a gold cross. She gave it to me, so naturally I love it. Sounds nice. I'm not a huge reader, but I love a good fantasy adventure. I do well enough in school, but I still don't know what kind of career I want to pursue. Do you? No, came the prompt reply. I think my family would be happiest if I went into the family business, but . . . I don't know. I'm not one to do something just because it's what's expected, know what I mean? Do I ever, Duo typed, suppressing a sigh. That seems to be the curse of the wealthy, though. Laugh Too true. So you love to dance. Why, yes. However did you guess, gallant sir? I'm good at this game. I can't believe I actually found someone I enjoyed dancing with, tell you the truth. I'm not shy, but I don't get along well with others. I don't like not being me, but most people aren't comfortable with that level of . . . realness. Does that make sense? Perfect sense. It's the same for me, just the exact opposite. I put on this mask, and I kind of act how I think people would be comfortable with me acting. Maybe I care too much what others think. But when you're put on spectacle daily, it's hard not to. It's certainly exhausting, Wing sympathized. Tell me more about the REAL you. Smiling, Duo found he was only too happy to. It was wonderful chatting with WingZero over the net, but Duo found reality to be a bitch. The next time he had science, Noin told them to partner up and start brainstorming ideas for the Greater Youth Science Show. Duo was not ready for that, not by a long shot. He was fairly certain he would never be ready for it. He wasn't sure why he hadn't told his mother and father about it. Not even Damia knew what Noin had required of him. Part of him wanted to do just that. End this farce. But part of him didn't want to be the one to break. Pure, unadulterated stubbornness. Noin beckoned to them both and led them into the lab next to her classroom. "You two can work in here. That way you won't disturb the others so much if it comes to a shouting match. I expect minimal bloodshed, too, because you're the ones who will clean it up if it comes to that." The gleam in her eye was only partially joking, evidenced by the dark cast. She closed the door. Duo stared at it, feeling as though she'd locked him in a prison. With the worst possible warden. Heero stood still and cold at his side, a veritable statue of ice and marble. Finally he stirred and sat at one of the long tables. "Did you run home and tell your daddy about this?" he said in a voice dripping with scorn. Turning rather sedately, Duo just looked at him. "No. Did you?" For some reason, his blunt question made Heero's lips quirk the tiniest bit. "Hn. Did you at least think about what we could do?" Apparently, Heero didn't feel he needed a direct answer to his question. Irritated, wondering how Heero always managed to irritate him so quickly and easily, Duo sat across from him. "No. I figured you would shoot them down, accuse me of going off on my own." "Would I do that?" Heero said in a surprisingly mild voice. "I guess you don't know me at all." Duo raised an eyebrow. "What's there to know?" he retorted. "You're a Yuy, you live your life pretending you're a robot, and instead of blood there's ice-water in your veins. Sound about right?" Heero's eyes chilled over. "And all you need is makeup to be the perfect clown." Duo grabbed the thing nearest him—it happened to be a mug of data-recorders—and threw it. It was a bad throw, his mind too clouded and angry to focus on that. Heero sidestepped it with ease, and it hit the far wall to shatter, the slim instruments hitting the floor to skitter in every direction. And Heero, damn him, wore an even more insufferable expression, a barely-there grin full of smug amusement. "Consequently, I did come up with a few ideas. Think you can sit still and listen without throwing things at me?" he said calmly. Noin didn't come in and check to see what the noise was—and she had to have heard the mug hit. Duo was glad, because he probably would have thrown something at her, too. When Damia came to pick him up that night, Duo knew his face must look like a thundercloud. He couldn't smooth his expression, he was far, far too angry. He refused to talk to her even when she inquired, and as soon as they got home he stormed upstairs and locked himself in his room. Damn him. God damn him! Damn Heero for being so smug, damn him for being so smart, and double damn him for being so calm! It was the most hideously unfair situation of his life that he be forced to work with the one person he could not abide. And damn him some more, the ideas he'd run by Duo had all been good ones. Science Show winning ideas. And the worst part was, when he'd first been enrolled at M Y, before he'd known Heero's name, he'd thought Heero was the most attractive boy he'd ever seen. Duo was not ashamed of his orientation, and most people weren't in a position to care. After all, he was a Maxwell. Son of the Maxwell, the head of the entire impressive family and estate. It was much later when a soft knock sounded on his door. "What?" he snapped. "Duo?" came Damia's unmistakable voice. "Please let me in. I know you're upset about something, and I'd like to help. Please?" Damia, he thought objectively, was probably the only one in his family who would understand. For the last five years, since she'd graduated from M Y, actually, she'd been actively trying to end the feud between the Maxwells and Yuys. She thought it was absurd that they hated each other for reasons neither family could accurately remember. She had a seat on the king's parliamentarian staff of Counselors, and she often spoke out quite vocally about the ridiculousness of it all. So he rose off his bed and let her in. As soon as he closed it behind her he found himself enfolded in a hug, her soft body warm and comforting close to his. Sighing, he rested his head on her shoulder and tried to relax. She guided them to the bed and sat him down. "All right," she said in that soothing, lilting, barely-there accent of hers, "tell me what's wrong." "It's the Science Show," he said in a dull voice. "I was excited." "And that changed?" she encouraged, smoothing his hair back. "Yeah. Miss Noin . . . she paired me with Heero. A Yuy." There was a pregnant pause. "She did." Damia's voice was somewhat flat. "Yeah," Duo mumbled. "It sucks. I hate him. And the worst part is, I don't know if I hate him because of him, or because he's a Yuy and I'm supposed to hate him." He could feel himself getting close to tears. "It just sucks, Damia. It fucking sucks." For once, his sister didn't call him on his language. She held him closer, her hands gentle and soothing, stroking his hair and back. "Shh," she murmured, kissing his forehead. "I'm sorry, Duo. I'm so sorry that you have to deal with all this. It's not fair, and it's not right." Well, Duo certainly couldn't disagree with that. He buried his face in her neck and tried not to cry. And, analytically speaking, he had no idea what was causing his tears. Something as small as the Science Show, or something as huge as the bitter hatred between his family and theirs. It sucked.
tbc |
