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"Ugly Sweater Party"Written By: Kaeru Shisho Disclaimer: I don't own any part of Gundam Wing
or its characters, nor do I make any monetary profit off this story. Rating: R Warnings: Yaoi, AU Pairings: Summary: New Year's party mayhem brings young couples together. Lighthearted romp with a touch of romantic entanglements A/N: A big thank you to Waterlily for her fine
editing, wry humor, and excellent suggestions. And the zombie flamingos
are all Shadowdragon's.
"Ugly Sweater Party"
"Just shut him off-whoever it is," came the recommendation from his bedmate. Heero answered to no one-but Duo. Together, they both ran their own shuttle maintenance business, and it was closed for the holiday weekend. Heero had his own apartment, but seemed to prefer spending time at Duo's, more and more. When the disorder started to overwhelm him, he knew he had his own stark walls to call home. It's just that home was feeling like Duo's place and his apartment was feeling like an empty hotel room. He had no idea how to broach the subject of their relationship with the other man, his best friend and lover. They could talk about a lot, but not that touchy topic. Someday the boat would have to be rocked. "'Kay." Duo grappled for his cell amongst the detritus on the low stand. His side of the room was the chaotic foil to Heero's soldier-orderly side of the room. "Quat's called three times." Heero let out a long-held breath. "Go ahead and see what's got him nagging you." "We'll see him tonight at the party." "It had better not be clothes indecision," Heero said. "Yeah like last year. Was it a tie color he and Tro' were arguing over?" "Hell if I know. Something ridiculous." He turned over, signaling the end of his contribution to the conversation. It had been a fight over ties which had threatened to make them late to Wufei's first-time house party. Quatre bought them matching bow ties in silk plaid. Trowa refused to remove his green turtleneck. In the end, Trowa used the bow to tie back his bangs and looked ridiculous-his point exactly. Quatre punished him by not speaking to him for a week. Neither had backed down, given in, or really won much worth winning-both Duo and Heero had agreed over that. Duo returned the call of his long-time friend. "Yo, bro. Happy New Year's eve to you too. What'sup?" "At last! Oh Duo! They escaped!" In the background Duo could hear Trowa's grumbling. "-took their devil-spawn offspring with them... at least." Duo took from that comment that it was Quatre's herd of llamas that bolted from their pen-again. "Need help rounding up the fugitives, I take it?" Duo asked. His fingers roamed over the bed, tickling Heero's back. "Oh, yes! Please!" "Got any idea where-?" Heero was already reaching for his carefully folded jeans and scanning his mobile device for news. "Rashid's in the SUV combing the neighborhood. Wufei's got air patrol searching the hills." "Preventers is hunting for llamas?" Duo couldn't believe that. Heero rolled his eyes and brought up a map of the city. "No, just Wufei. He volunteered for fire surveillance this morning and is working us in. I just can't believe they broke out of the pen!" One Trowa had just upgraded. Curiouser and curiouser. "We'll find them." Duo reassured his friend for a few more minutes giving Heero time to lay out a grid of Sanc and start assigning search duties to everyone. "Okay, looks like if you begin at the north quadrant..." "Yes, we'll take north east. Rashid's covering the west." "-.'Ro and I will hunt the southern end." "You're wearing that... now?" Heero hesitated over his words, as he should when picking at Duo's taste. Shouldn't the ugly sweater be worse- no, more garish- than his normal getup? "What? You don't like my shirt?" "I do." "I made this, ya know." "I remember." Heero remembered the mess of dripping color on the kitchen floor. "Fun and creative," Duo smiled and twirled about. "It was the vest over it-" Duo was on a rant. "-I love to use tie dye as an active neutral. Something that goes with everything. Other active neutrals include black and white stripes, layers of silver sequins, Scotch tartan-like this vest- and my personal favorite: leopard. That was in the wash." "Where it will stay." Heero preferred animal prints on non-human animals. "I think of all those as colors and patterns you can add to bring all the other elements together. A common thread. Tie dye is an excellent active neutral." "Better on you than the table, I guess," Heero murmured then added a quick smile to meet Duo's expectations. "No, especially on a dining table set with jumbled components," Duo corrected him. "See, I have a lot of nice things in my house, but a big matching formal dining set just isn't one of them. Do I care? No. Why? Because I know I can always pull things together with an active neutral. Like tie dye!" They were out the door ten minutes later, enroute to the coffee shop in their south-town neighborhood. Heero sighed. He wondered if he and Duo were as compatible as he had always hoped. He thought of himself as an active "grey" sort of guy. Could Duo really ever fall in love with him? They'd started sharing a bed, but could they ever live together? How soon was too soon to bring that up? Not now, he decided. No llamas were seen along the way. No promenading or window shopping llamas. None drawing the attention of other strollers. And when Heero and Duo stepped into the neighborhood coffee shop, no llamas were observed enjoying llattes. "Someone let them out," Heero concluded. He dipped the second biscotti in his espresso and looked up at Duo sporting a barely accusatory expression. "Not me. Do I look like I'd rather be out of bed, freezing my balls off, looking for llamas? That's right. So don't go giving me the evil eye." Heero stared glumly out the window. "Didn't mean to." "Yeah...." Duo chuckled to show he'd forgiven his boyfriend. "Llamas on the llam, huh?" "They aren't people-loving or traffic-dodging animals. They aren't exceptionally intelligent nor do they have hands." "Good points all around." Duo closed his eyes and munched on his cake, savoring the buttery richness and warm spices. "Man this is the best. I have had this three times here. I'm not going to tell you this cake is Sell Your Grandma To The Gypsies Good, because that would be politically incorrect, and I don't think the gypsies want your grandma anyway-." Heero chuckled at his amusing friend and bit back any remark about not having grandmothers. He knew Duo knew that and he was just making a joke. He had learned from experience. He adored Duo. Yes, he did. "-Buuuuuut, they are damn good. The base is peanut butter, but the accents are crushed bits of pretzels and toffee. Each bite hits the salty-sweet-crunchy-chewy combo in just such a way that no cake ever has before." "My biscotti are good, too." Simple, plain, perfect. "Good," Duo declared and dug into his cake. "You know, I get annoyed when someone tries to pawn off one of their recipes on me, you know, one they copied off the back of a box and changed out the white sugar for brown and call it theirs." "Do people often bother you with recipes?" Heero asked. He hadn't known. "Well, they do when I accidentally let out how I wanted a great desert idea for... um... Something (like a seduce-Heero-into-proposing cake). Not the point. I'm all ears for originals, assuming there's no mention of raisins. Let there be no talk of raisins. I'll have no talk of devil trash raisins." Heero's biscotti had raisins. He relished each and every one of them. He had no problem expressing his opinion, about some things, as long as they avoided "feeling" talks. He liked that Duo felt the same way, sort of. That's why they got along so well, he thought. Except... he wouldn't mind if Duo would tell him in his no-nonsense way just exactly how he felt about him. "I like raisins." Heero felt Duo's eyes rove over him and his biscotti with curious look. "If I was a llama, where would I go?" Duo asked, changing the subject. "Where ever you were led." Heero frowned at Duo's cross-eyed expression. "Think about it. Find the person who opened their gate and you'll find them." "Who would steal llamas? Oh... I get it. You don't think they were stolen." "Borrowed." "And you know the likely suspect? Spill, 'Ro. What's up?" Heero drew a deep, time-wasting breath. Downed his coffee in one scorching gulp. "Finish up." "Tell me 'who'? And then I'll figure the 'where' on my own." Duo leaned closer. "I didn't get that. Louder." "Relena." Duo laughed. "No way." "She commented more than once on how some deer would be 'cute' on the palace grounds for the party." "Yeah, well llamas ain't deer." "She may not know the difference- or care." "Dangerous woman." Duo shook his head. "It's not far, the palace. We can check it out. But I swear if it's her doing... " "We'll get even." Heero let a glint of playful malevolence play over his face. "Yeah." Duo's wide smile didn't hide his own variety of wicked intention. (o) "Look at'em, gorging on-" "Sanc Red Oak!" Heero finished for him. "The preserve's most treasured plant. God. If Zechs could see this!" "He'd have them shot as invasive species destroying the protected trees," Heero finished again. "Call Winner and let him know we found them. I'll get Barton to help us move them." While they waited, a fine dusting of snow coated the stone pathway. "I thought it wasn't gonna snow until next week?" Duo complained. It was nothing new. He made no secret of hating the cold and the frozen precipitation in equal balance since having moved to earth's northern kingdom of Sanc. Preventers had kept him on the colonies in space, but he'd quit and settled in with Heero near the capital. Trowa had gravitated toward Quatre and his Sanc estate the year before. Llamas followed shortly thereafter. "This is nothing." Heero kissed away a few stray flakes sticking to Duo's hair. "No kidding. Come're and lay on a real kiss." "I meant the snow. It falls by the foot-" "These lips won't wait forever." "Impatient Duo." Trowa found them under a lamplight in a passionate embrace. "Don't bother moving. I see the culprits." The pair broke apart and straightened their clothes. The friends exchanged greetings. "Quatre is on the way with the car and trailer. Rashid's got the truck. So. How do you suppose his llamas got out of the compound?" Trowa's question seemed innocent, but he suspected he already knew the answer to it and stared at Heero. "Relena wanted deer for her woodland scenery. For the party tonight." "Those aren't deer." Heero nodded. "I know." "They seem happy here. We could just leave them," Trowa suggested. "Oh, Quat would love that," Duo said, laughing at the fleeting look of fear in Trowa's eyes. "Well, might as well get started." Trowa held up the sack he'd carried. "They love apples, hopefully more than those tree leaves." "I would," said Duo. "How good can leaves be that have been on a tree all year getting tough?" "Not very, I'd agree, but they're something different to the animals." Trowa handed out ropes he'd been wearing draped over his shoulders. "I'll lure them out with the apples. Rope the adults and the young will follow." At this point Heero offered up his plan. "The stable is on the other side of the fence in that direction." He pointed left. "There's a gate and a decent path. What? I've been riding here before." Duo huffed. "Good thing I didn't put off moving here any longer." "What are you grumbling about?" Heero nudged him. "I was waiting. I was doing things as well, but I was waiting for you to decide." Heero was still waiting for Duo to give him some sign that he wanted more than a bedmate and business partner. Or maybe that was all the sign he was going to get? Heero wasn't at all sure where to go next, how to get their relationship to progress. Or was it progressing just fine? How fast was too fast? Too slow? "We should get on with this," Trowa interrupted their sensitive conversation while he could. "You want to put the llamas in the stable?" "Yes. There are empty stalls. They will be safe there, until tonight." Heero gave him a quick smile. "We want the llamas for the party?" Trowa ventured. "I don't see the point." "Heero knows Zechs won't like them crashing the party and Relena will be the one to blame." Duo smiled proudly, having guessed Heero's plan on his own. "Hopefully she will learn that stealing is wrong," Heero concluded. He'd told her "no" in understandable, firm terms. He'd wanted no part in her schemes, and he didn't want Duo involved either. Especially, he wished to avoid doing anything that might get Duo thinking- with that wild, creative imagination of his- that he and Relena had anything going on. Old friends who met once a month for coffee. That was it. "I see." Trowa called Quatre, explaining what they were going to do, and received his approval. "All clear. Round up time." As much as the llamas loved apples and were attracted to them, playing "run away from the mad men" turned out to be far more fun. Duo tore his new winter jacket (the one with the faux fur lining and camouflage-print exterior) on a branch when he tripped over Quatre's rope and took a header into the shrubbery. Quatre suffered rope burns on his hands as a result, so he got his just deserts, or so Duo thought. Their antics distracted Heero and Trowa from their appointed tasks. Instead of keeping their eyes on their target llamas, they watched Duo and Quatre, so that while leaping for the same llama, they bumped heads and ended the afternoon sporting matching bruises. Fun was had by all. It wasn't until Rashid and three of his corps showed up that they were able to corral the adult llamas, secure halters onto them, and rope the little ones. "That was the stupidest thing I've done in... ever," Duo announced. "If I can see llamas crashing the party, it might be worth it," Trowa said, adding, "especially considering the funky outerwear required." "At least there's a costume theme!" Duo chortled. "It's partly why I love Halloween." "That explains the zombie lawn flamingoes," Trowa commented. "Does it?" Quatre asked in a disturbed tone of voice. "Does it?" "ZOMBIE LAWN FLAMINGOES! C'mon!" Duo crowed with excitement. "I couldn't resist the ridiculously overpriced black, fanged-" "- They are still out on the lawn," Quatre continued his objection. "-with Santa hats," Trowa added helpfully, earning him a grateful smile from his lover. "At least they dressed for the holidays!" Duo cried out. He was going to defend his point of view to the bitter end. "I went to a couple of Halloween parties this year, neither one of which even called for a costume." "You are getting old," Trowa said. "You are never too old to dress up for Halloween, I say. Maybe, I need more festive friends." "I liked your costume," Heero told him, his tone attempting to bring calm and closure to the group discussion. "Yeah, well, next year I need a way to infuse some Halloween fun without being the only one in the room drinking wine in a Teenage Mutant Ninja turtle costume." "I hate when that happens," Trowa drawled. He smiled at Duo and stepped out of his way. The ugly sweater theme had been his boyfriend's idea, which Trowa had yet to forgive him for. It had begun as a way to promote llama wool for yarn and spun out of control into a downtown craft market booth. After catching Relena's attention, yarn grew to sweaters and into an ever-popular Ugly Sweater Party themed evening at the Sanc Palace. Of course, Quatre's sweater would be one hundred percent llama wool and rather nice. The rest of them would be sporting terrible finds from the re-sale bargain bin. "Thank you for helping me find my pets." Quatre expressed his relief, again. "Although... I'm not sure about-" But all those troubling thoughts concerning the agreeability of the stable accommodations would have to wait. "Home. Shower. Change. " Heero wasn't sure if "partying" would follow the first steps in his action plan, but he didn't want to give Quatre the opportunity to once again question the suitability of the stables and possibly re-introduce the idea of transporting them back to his estate. He led the way off the palace grounds to the street where Duo had parked his car. Trowa steered Quatre in the direction of the street. "Where did you park?" "Oh! At the main gates! There was space there." Quatre seemed unaware of parking regulations, as if they didn't apply to him. "I'm sure there was plenty of space (in the cross-hatched, emergency-vehicle-only, no-parking zone)." Trowa didn't say that last part aloud. He just hoped they wouldn't be ticketed for illegally blocking the main entrance. "I'll drive us home." "But what about your car?" Quatre asked. It was a nice after thought. "I'll ask Rashid to drive me back for it." "Oh, your time is far more important. I have thousands of things for you to do at home! I'll call Rashid now. He can have Amid bring your car around. You know he loves driving flashy sport cars." "I know." There was no use arguing with Quatre. The rewards would be well worth it later in bed. (o) "There was a time when I made a gazillion holiday cards each year," Duo was jabbering on as he drove back to his apartment. Heero would change there, they'd decided, to save on gasoline. Or something. "I remember." Heero saved each and every one of those cards glittered and glued, lovingly sealed in construction paper envelopes. "Well, that's all a thing of the past. No more. Next year, I've decided, I am setting the bar low. Low, reasonable, and early. No elaborate cards, just something handwritten and on time. Maybe I'll fancify the envelopes. We'll see." "Wasabi tape?" Heero ventured. "That's washi tape and... maybe." Duo smiled indulgently and parked. "Here we be. I gotta wash my hair so I'll-" "Go on. Unless you need a hand?" Heero smiled. It would take them hours to get ready if he helped. Duo pretended to consider it, though. "Um... no." Duo slapped him on the back. "But come on in and keep me company." "That's fine then." Heero was happy to be invited in. "I just have to change. I can put on some music and wait." "Great!" Duo cheered. "Soda in the frig!" Heero knew. He switched out of his jacket and into his ugly sweater. He liked it because Duo had chosen it for him. And hour later, Duo flew out from the bedroom. "I really shouldn't have picked the red one," Duo complained. "But you did. You liked the running reindeer on the front." "I still do, but-" "You aren't getting mine." "I don't want your patchwork of ugliness. Is that supposed to be a cat in the middle?" Heero hopped about, sending the bells dangling from the ribbons at the sweater's appliqued cat's neck jingling. Duo laughed loudly. Heero settled down with a smile. "That's why I chose that one." Duo seemed pleased with himself. "It works on so many different levels!" Duo chuckled a little more and finished tying off his damp braid with a sprig of silver tinsel. Heero made a grab for the sparkly hair band just as Duo's phone buzzed. He checked the ID over Duo's shoulder as he whipped his braid out of Heero's clutches. "Trowa." "Yeah. They're on their way." "No fun here," Heero murmured joking as he tried again to nab the hair tie. With a huff and a laugh Duo danced out of his reach. "If I agree to get a cat, will you cut that out?" "Yes." "Fine. You should get the cat though." "It would have more fun at our place... I mean your place," Heero said quickly. A close call that was! "The cat adoption shelter is open tomorrow at nine AM," Heero informed him. "I'll bet. They'd probably open at midnight if you called and promised to take one off their hands. No! Don't! I was joking!" Heero smiled. "I was calling Chang." Duo grabbed the keys off the counter, and they were out the door. "I wish I'd eaten." "Why? The party will have a buffet overflowing with food." Duo shrugged. "I'm feeling grilled cheese. It's grilled cheese weather." "I like those." "Yeah? Not just any grilled cheese though. Fancy grilled cheese. To be specific, goat cheese and cucumbers with arugula on rye grilled cheese. You make it the same as a regular grilled cheese and tomato - just swap the orange stuff for goat cheese, and the tomato for cucumbers. Trust me, it ain't hard to be fancy." "I didn't know you liked to cook. You usually go out." There was a lot they didn't know about one another, but they could have a life time to learn. IF- "Not gonna lie. I am not much of a cook, but I'm learning. And that's one of my specialties. It's tasty. It hits the comfort food spot while sneaking in some veggies. Breakfast lunch or dinner." "Fancy pants grilled cheese," Heero smiled. "You can make me one of those tomorrow." "Maybe," Duo said. He seemed intent on watching the traffic before turning into the flow. "Are we picking up 'Fei?" "I'll check. He never got back to me." "Chang. You don't need a ride over?" Heero was speaking to Wufei while Duo drove. "You're already there?" He put him on speaker phone and suddenly their friend's voice boomed out. "-and Zechs invited me over to see his sword collection." Duo roared in laughter. "Do you know he means to add yours to it, right?" There was a pause, and then Wufei's irate voice. "Nonsense! As much as my sword means to me, it's no prize to anyone else. Certainly it has no place in an esteemed-what are you carrying on about?! Give me back to Heero! Now!" Heero did his best to control his own laughter while explaining the sexual implications embedded in Zechs' invitation to his very shy friend. "Just be prepared to get propositioned." "And more!" Duo shouted. Wufei sputtered in indignation. Duo had to pull over and stop he was laughing so hard. "Oh! I love you like seriously bigtime, 'Ro." You could hear the proverbial pin drop. Duo had never used the "l" word to describe his feelings. Duo's eyes widened as the realization seeped in of having revealed his innermost emotional state. Heero wondered if this was the right time to tell him he loved him too? But his lips felt glued together and his tongue numb. He couldn't formulate words. The silence wore on. "I will see you at the party," Wufei signed off. Duo started chattering with excitement. "I was thinking of bringing them a new wreath today, like a holiday gift... all New Year's Day festive and all, but as you can see, that didn't happen. What did happening was a whole lot of paper cuts and some pretty business in a garbage bin last night. Did you ever have that when the mess in the garbage looks better than the mess on your desk? Yesterday the glitter mixed in all over the bitsy fabric scraps and then some fruity chunks were dropped on top and it all looked like one big sparkly New Year's pasta salad. Did you ever have that problem?" Heero blinked. Baffled by the babbling, surprised by the question directed at him, and still basking in the glow of Duo's unintentional slip-words of love-left him stunned stupid. "Okay." Duo studied the road ahead. "Um," Duo scratched his head nervously. "Guess we better get going then. Get to town on this roundup." He wiggled his braid away from his back to lay across his chest and onto his lap. He turned the corner and changed lanes with Heero's eyes on him the entire time. Watching in silence. Neither said anything for the short drive to the palace. Duo drove around to the closest entry to the stables and parked, leaving the engine running. "'Kay. Looks like Trowa's a few steps ahead of me." His eyes met Heero's fleetingly. "I'll, ah, see you at the party." Heero broke through his fog and agreed with a clipped nod. "Soon." He slid into the driver's seat and sat watching as Duo trudged through the accumulating snow. "And then we'll talk," he said. But Duo couldn't hear his portentous-sounding words. Probably a good thing. He didn't need more doubts bumping up his anxiety level. (o) Duo regretted having made that "love" admission slip, especially considering the mute reaction from Heero. He'd wanted a grand setup with a romantic setting and a little more preparation. But it had just come out. It hadn't impressed Heero very much either. Or it had shocked him into a stupor. Well, Duo decided with a kick of a pebble in his path, he'd have to deal with it "soon" though. He spied Trowa walking back toward him. "Hey! You're going the wrong way." "They're gone!" Trowa sounded fractured. Normally cool, calm, and collected Trowa had raked back his long bangs, revealing two striking, green eyes. "Who's gone?" "The llamas!" Trowa waved both arms in alarm. "Whoa, man!" Duo couldn't remember having seen his friend so flustered. "They couldn't have gone far. There hasn't been time." "Yeah... yeah! Maybe in the woods?" Trowa sounded hopeful. They decided to search the woods where the llamas might have returned to nibble on the endangered Sanc Red Oak. "I see their footprints," Trowa shouted. But the prints turned out to have been made from their previous visit, under trees where the new snow hadn't reached. "They haven't been here since it started snowing," Duo observed. "Quatre will be..." Trowa's voice trailed off. "He won't be devastated because the llamas haven't disappeared. We'll find them." "He'll blame me." "Why?" Duo wondered what was at the root of Trowa's problem. "We know Relena's got motive-" "He knows I don't like them and wanted him to sell them. He'll think I ... did this." "Not if we find them," Duo was adamant that they would. "Let's go back to the stable and look again. Someone works there and might have seen what happened. A herd of strange llamas must be on someone's radar." Aside from the horses and pony supposed to be there, the stable was empty of llamas and humans. Disappointing. And Trowa's panic-stricken state escalated. "I'm calling Heero to let him know why we're taking so long," Duo told him, trying to sound confident that everything was under control. (o) Heero had evaded Quatre's questioning looks, but only managed to avoid running into Relena by ducking into the guest bathroom. He couldn't hang out there all evening and felt annoyed that he felt the need to. Easy words of reassurance or cheer or deception didn't come to him. He left the bathroom and skirted the hallway to the ballroom. Music, lights, bustle. "What's keeping Duo?" His phone buzzed on cue. "What's wrong?" he asked, assuming that Duo was having troubles with the llamas. With animals there were always glitches. He had to be having complications. He wasn't here! "Well, for one thing, the llamas aren't in the stable. But worse, Trowa's about to go bonkers over it." "The llamas are missing?" Heero shouted. He lowered his voice after noting how loud he'd been. "Have you looked-?" "No, Heero. Trowa and I have been sitting out here freezing our butts off for the sheer fun of it. Yes, I'm sure. We've searched the woods everywhere around the stable. No one's here to ask about them and snows falling faster and faster covering up any foot prints that might have been left!" "All right, all right! Calm down. Let me think." "Don't tell me to calm down. I'm calm. It's Trowa who's about to blow a gasket." "Is there a display-? Hold on. I'll call you back." Heero shut off his call and turned to face Relena. "Don't cut me off-!" Duo shouted into his dead phone. Heero stared at the young woman he'd known for several years and admired. He waited to find out what she had to say before revealing his own thoughts. "How nice to see you again, Heero." "Hello, Relena." "I, ah, couldn't help but overhear..." she paused in a way that made Heero think she was uncertain what to say or how he might react to it. He wasn't sure. "If you are worried about the llamas, I can put your mind at ease." His mind was anything but "at ease"-full attention. "The stableman, Joachim, discovered them in the stable. When I told him I hadn't put them there but left them out on the grounds, he was so mad. He told me how dangerous that was for them, the babies especially might eat something poisonous or get caught in the electric fence or fall in a hole. I felt terrible." So did Heero, for a different set of reasons. He had cut off Duo, who'd been with Trowa in a panic outside in the elements. "-and it's snowing so hard now. We could have lost them-" His mood plummeted at this news, remembering how much Duo hated snow, being cold particularly, and how he was still out there. "-you did, didn't you?" "Did what?" "Put the llamas in the stable, of course. It was your idea, wasn't it?" "Yes." He had no reason to hide his role. Now, he had to go find Duo. "Oh, Heero!" (o) "He just left me with something about the 'display' and then chop! He cut me off like a jaundiced limb!" Duo sliced the air in a dramatic demonstration of a beheading. "That would be amputation due to gangrene?" "Whatever. No longer connected that's all." "I don't know what to tell Quatre," Trowa opined. He and Duo were tramping through the accumulating snow toward the main building. The palace was alight with holiday lights and chandeliers glowed warmly through the ballroom windows. The revelers inside were ready to celebrate the new year in style. "Looks like the party's hopping." Trowa sighed. "We'll tell him the truth." "His precious babies are gone? We lost them? His first offspring? Probably his only?" Duo looked into Trowa's haunted eyes. There was a lot of hurt in there. He knew his friend hated to disappoint his lover, and he knew Quatre had a lot of expectations. Yes, his smart, rich friend was a bit of a spoiled brat, but he adored Trowa. Couples! Ugh! "Um, we'll come up with something-Ho!" There at the base of the giant evergreen tree festooned with lights and red plastic bows, were the animals, tearing the wrapping paper off the fake packages piled about the base of the tree. "What?" Trowa processed the scene, turned and ran, jumping the decorative fence into the display. "That is one damned unimaginative tree." "It has the llamas under it!" Trowa exclaimed with relief and rare, uninhibited elation. "This tree has a lot of crap on it. The bows are extra crappy. What it needs is stripes. And that's just a beginning. Black and white stripes have way of tying together color chaos. Thing is, this one needs a heftier version to stand up to a tree of this... girth. Something that wouldn't get lost in the ornaments." "Four...five... they're all here. All the llamas look fine." "Fine, yeah. But that tree! Just some black and white buffalo check cotton torn into pieces. You hear that? Torn." Trowa wasn't paying him close enough attention. Not like Heero did. "All burly and stuff. It's like a lumberjack tree. Here you are in like a mighty, masculine forest, harboring a super manly, totally-non-foofy, lumberjack tree. So what if I made bows? You are virile. You can handle bows, you big sweaty hunk of utility, you!" Trowa was staring at him. "Me?" Duo shook his head. Heero would have understood. "No, no." He returned to Trowa's current favorite subject, the llamas. "Forget it. How do you suppose they got here?" Duo mused. He took a rope end that Trowa pushed in his face and tugged at the halter on the other end. "I don't care, but I'm not letting them out of my sight again," Trowa grumbled. Duo could tell he was actually delighted under his grumpiness. This was the Trowa he knew and loved, the one that hid his emotions. He was practically dancing down the lane with every lurch and stomp. A good outcome. "So we are taking them inside? To the party?" "As promised." "O-kay." "Quatre has a metal tree made out of tinsel," Trowa divulged, happy at last with the foibles of fate. "A fake tree? Not me. It's gotta be real, dripping sap. So what if it drops needles like a heroin addict? So what if it hurts to touch? I'm not going to make out with it. It just needs to sit there and be cute. The one I've got, well, it's saying 'Hey, look at me, I smell good. I'm pretty. Buy me things!'" "Are you talking about a tree or Heero?" Trowa asked. They exchanged "screw you" twisted smiles. "Okay!" Duo laughed. "I'm a decoration maniac!" "I'll bet." Trowa smiled. Maniac no one would argue with that. Heero's apartment, he knew, was devoid of trees, plants, dust. "Heero have a tree this year?" "Nah. He says mine are enough. I have one in each room, you know?" "I did not know that." "Great stuff. I mean, embellishments never killed anyone." "They might." "Aw, c'mon. Don't act like you don't need still some Christmas spirit. Do I need to break out the stereo and Mannheim Steamroller?" "Not again. Once was enough. Maybe next year you can bring it on." "Right. Don't make me go there. You know I'll go there." "I know, Duo." They hauled the three adults and five young llamas to the palace rear entrance. A few icy, crunching steps further: "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Duo asked. "Not likely." "I know this gal at work who makes the ornaments sculpted to look like your house. Talk about a great gift." "You want one of those? Of your apartment?" Trowa asked. "Nah, my Gundam. If she can make houses she can make Gundams, right? " "Maybe." Duo sighed. "Man, I miss Deathscythe." No, Trowa would not have guessed that had been on his friend's mind. (o) "Oh, Heero! Even though you made me a little mad not supporting my plans to use the llamas-" "-you stole them!" "-STILL... I forgive you, because I'm so grateful to you for making the llamas comfortable. I moved them to the enclosure with the Santa sleigh display for the party, but they'll go back in an hour or so." "They'll go back to Winner's-" Relena interrupted him when she threw her arms around his neck and gave him a big kiss. Just as Duo and Trowa entered the room, servants up in arms and llamas in tow. Zechs and Wufei drawn into the fracas somewhat reluctantly, wine glasses in hand, hair a little more disheveled than usual. "Maxwell! Take those filthy animals right back out the way you came in!" Zechs called out halfheartedly. "We don't want those here, am I right?" Wufei shook his head back and forth until the room started swirling. "We do not... care." He was coming to the conclusion that the wine he'd so quickly imbibed contained more alcohol than the beer he was used to. And Zechs had been so generous with it! "What the-?" Duo dropped the rope lead into the outstretched hand of the doorman, who'd been objecting to the animals. "I leave you alone in a room with... her and blamo! Jeeze Louise, 'Ro. Can't I trust you? I take back everything I said-!" Heero tore himself away from Relena's tight hold. "No! Don't take back anything! I love you, too! I love that you are creative and... and... have glitter in your hair from your last creation even after washing it for an hour." "A whole hour?" Duo whispered. "Um... You do?" "Yes!" Now that he'd said it, it was easy to say again. "I love you!" "Oh. It's a stress reliever, you know, the glitter art." "You don't turn to the average comforts when you need them," Heero said. "I guess not." "Exercise could work," Heero suggested. "I could help you with that." "As would meditation-" Wufei put in. "-Lots of sex," Zechs suggested nearly eye to eye with an adult llama. "As would crying into a package of doughnuts. Maybe Xanax and/or excessive drinking, or kicking over flaming garbage cans!" Duo shouted. "But! But... Instead of pulling my hair out about my recent $700 car repair bill or struggling to find my socks in my own apartment, I enjoy creating glitter art." "I know." Heero's voice had softened as had his expression. "That's why I love you." "Did you hear me?" Duo almost demanded Heero back away from his own admission and gesturing Heero to move away. "And I'm not going to lie: I'm already on to Glitter Box No. 2." "I did." Heero put a hand on his shoulder. "You have to work out some creative energy." "Yeah, sure, heh, heh. At least I have a place to keep my marbles, now, should I ever find them." "He can use box number one to save money to pay a therapist," Zechs pointed out. "Can we clear out the livestock now?" "Not yet!" Relena cried out. "I want a picture with everyone. And the llamas!" "Why are they here?" Zechs demanded. He pointed to a llama that blinked at him with its huge brown eyes. "You... why are you here?" "Relena brought them. She stole them from Quatre," Trowa said in his succinct style. "We'll take them with us." "You certainly will." Zechs turn to his sister and put on his most serious mask. "You stole these animals from the Winners?" "Yes," she said meekly. "I thought they'd be so sweet with the tree for the party. I only meant to borrow them." "You only had to ask," Quatre put in. "I would have made arrangements for their proper installation." "But I meant to!" Relena turned to Heero. "Heero? Tell them!" But Heero wasn't paying her any attention. He was warming up Duo. "It's snowing?" "Yeah. Lots, too. It's not so bad when it's dry and your dressed right." He'd left his torn camo jacket at the door with his wet shoes, leaving him in his ugly red reindeer sweater and stocking feet. "Nice socks," Heero told him. They were candy-striped red and white. "Thanks. I'd ask you to dance, but I don't want my toes stepped on." Heero toed off his own shoes and took Duo's hand. "Dance with me?" While Duo swept Heero into the ballroom, Zechs was busy sweeping Wufei off his feet. "Let me freshen that drink." "The wine?" Wufei stared at the empty glass in his hand. "No, it's all gone. I have had enough." Zechs took the glass from his hand before he dropped it and set it on a tray. "For you, champagne in the future." Wufei's eyebrows drew down. "That has even higher alcohol content. Are you trying to get me drunk?" "-Or go straight to brandy... What did you say? Drunk? Oh, no. I wanted to loosen you up. See you smile. I'll bet you have a beautiful smile." "I couldn't possibly..." "Oh, there it is. Lovely. May I kiss you?" "Do wha-? Oh!" "Wufei looks happy," Trowa observed. "So do Heero and Duo. Why don't you?" Quatre asked. "Oh, I am." "Sweetheart! You're shaking! I can feel the anxiety rolling off you, Trowa. You were worried about my llama babies, weren't you?" In a way. You could spin it that way. He had been worried about Quatre's reaction if he hadn't found them. Close enough. "Yeah. It's a big bad world out there." "Duo told me you wouldn't let them out of your sight again. That's so sweet." "I know they mean a lot to you. I'd do anything to make you happy, you know that." "Oh, Trowa. You say the sappiest things sometimes. I love you, too. I want you to know how much I appreciate everything you've been doing for me to make the holidays special." "I try." "Yes, you do. So, I want you to know that the llamas are moving." Trowa nearly wrenched his neck, looking for llamas on the move. "Not tonight. Tomorrow. Our neighbor, Meg, is taking them all to build up her llama farm." "That's great! I mean, for her, of course. Won't you miss them?" "A little, but your happiness means more to me than anything else, and I know they weren't your favorite pets." "Thank you." Trowa whispered in his ear, adding a lick and nibble. "Maybe we should go home and show our mutual appreciation for each other?" "We have to wait until midnight, Trowa! That's the whole point of this party. To greet the New Year properly." "Okay." Trowa could wait a little while longer, now that he was out of the woods with the llamas-for good. Heero spun Duo to the edge of the ball room, sliding across the polished wood floor in their sock feet, laughing, until they collapsed into a couple chairs. "That was so chill," Duo declared. "I like how everyone's ditching their uncomfortable shoes now." "You started a movement." Heero's voice lowered, turning serious. "I meant what I said." "About what? Oh, yeah. That. I meant it too; every bit as much as you," Duo assured him. He could love Heero just as much, if not more, as Heero loved him. "Good. I want to live with you." "You practically have this last week. It's not driving you crazy? My place? Or do you mean at your apartment?" "Your place. It feels like home to me." "Well, I do work at giving it a personal-" "-because you are there. Not your things, which I am fine with, but you. I want to live... with you." "Oh. Okay. Better than okay. Great! We still have a few slow days to move you in...maybe clear out some of my stuff." "We can find a bigger place with plenty of space for everything." "Glitter gets everywhere, you know." "You said so. I can vacuum and keep it under control." Duo's smile lit up his face. "Want to go house hunting?" Heero nodded. "Not tomorrow, though. You promised fancy grilled cheese sandwiches." "Yeah, but that won't take all day." He fluttered his eyelashes. "I get it. You are thinking of moving into the bedroom. Hanging out there. Awesome." "I thought so." Heero leaned in and kissed Duo lightly. "Hey! It's almost midnight! We can leave pretty soon and get the move started early." "A good plan." Zechs wrapped a firm arm around his prize and led him to the staircase. Wufei tried to curb his embarrassment, fighting down his reddening cheeks. It was far too obvious where they were headed. "Stop!" Wufei felt his stomach lurch. They'd been discovered. "I knew we'd be seen!" "Don't you worry; it's just Relena. She doesn't rule me." His smile was a little lopsided. "I'll take care of everything." "Don't everybody leave! The photographer's ready. Gather around. Oooh, Quatre do the llamas have to be...? Oh, all right. A couple of the cute ones. Eeeuw! Get that one away from me!" "Don't annoy them," Trowa warned her. "They can spit." "Ahhh!" The camera snapped; the picture was perfect. "Ten...nine... five... four... one... Happy New Year !" Zechs tasted the wine on Wufei's lips. "I am reluctant to stop kissing you." Wufei ran his fingers through the long silky blond hair. "Why stop?" That was the sanction he'd been waiting for. "Let's take this someplace private then." This time when he climbed the first steps of the grand staircase, Wufei was smiling and his eyes shining. Trowa had the halters tied together and had concluded a conversation with Rashid to get his van in position to load the animals almost before the orchestra had finished the final refrain of Auld Land Syne. Quatre rushed his goodbyes and they walked with Heero and Duo to the exit doors. Heero with a hold on Duo's arm was out the door. Gone. Headed home, his home. The home he'd make with Duo. Glitter and all.
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