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"Cowboy"Written By: ShenLong Disclaimer: I don't own the Gundam Boys, they belong to Bandai, Sotsu and associated parties. I just borrow them from time to time and return them a whole lot happier. I don't own the song 'Rodeo' either. It belongs to Garth Brooks and as such all rights remain his. This fic is based loosely on the lyrics. Written for pleasure not profit. Pairing: Pairing: 2x1x2, past 1xR (sorry!), 3x4 Rating: NC 17 Warnings: Angst, fluff, sap, yaoi, Lemons, Lime, AU Summary: Heero is a rodeo rider, the best on the circuit and looks set to remain there until an up and coming young cowboy appears on the scene. AN: This fic is based loosely on the lyrics of 'Rodeo' by Garth Brooks - although it is not a song fic. Dedication: To my lovely beta; Sakura for giving me the plot bunny and for all her hard work in editing my stuff. (No easy feat!) Thanks hun! You're the best! Archive: www.gundam-wing-diaries.150m.com Anyone else please ask. Betaed by Sakura *snugs*
"Cowboy" October. 2010 ShenLong
[It’s the broncs and the blood Duo froze as the malicious words hit his ears and he turned slowly to see who had spoken such vile things, at the same time, Heero had also turned and spoken the word Duo hoped he would never hear again; ‘Relena’. Seeing the woman standing there with Dorothy beside her and a few other people he didn’t recognize, Heero was instantly on alert. This wasn’t looking good. He should have known better than to relax his guard, he should have known Relena wouldn’t give up that easily, and now he was confronted with the one thing he’d hoped to avoid. Having gained the attention of both men, Relena gave a cruel smirk. Finally getting over his shock, Duo’s eyes narrowed as he found his voice. “Excuse me?” he growled.”Just what is it you are insinuating?” Relena huffed. “You know very well what I’m talking about so don’t try to play innocent with me.” “Relena,” Heero interjected. “Now isn’t the time or the place-” “Heero,” Relena interrupted, her voice taking on a soft, sympathetic tone. “I can quite understand you being bewitched by this, this excuse for a cowboy, after all, since that fall you took a while ago you haven’t been in your right mind. I thought if you had a little space it would give you a chance to get over the bump to your head that you must have gotten.” “There is nothing wrong with my head,” Heero snapped. “I disagree. Heero, you’re not gay, your mind isn’t thinking properly and this,” Relena waved a hand in Duo’s direction, “this vile creature has taken advantage of you when you’re sick. I know the sort, hanging around mens’ lavatories, taking advantage of them when they are vulnerable, forcing themselves onto innocents. It’s abhorrent.” “I beg your pardon!” Duo snarled. “I’ve not taken advantage of anyone; and as for hanging around the gents, it’s called answering the call of nature, or would you rather I take a piss out here in full view of everyone?” “I’d expect such crude words from someone like you,” Relena sniffed. A couple of the people that had been standing behind Relena and Dorothy stepped forward. Each held a small recording device in their hands and they thrust those devices in Heero and Duo’s faces. “Is it true, Mr. Maxwell?” “Mr. Yuy, did you leave your fiancee because of this other cowboy?” Both Heero and Duo felt their hearts plummet to their boots. “No, it’s not true,” Heero managed to get out around his building anger. “She’s not my fiancee.” “Who the hell are you?!” Duo snapped and shoved the recorder away from his face. “Sorry, Jim Watson, Texas Herald newspaper.” “Tom Martin, The Texas Times.” Fuck! Heero thought, Duo’s mind also on the same wavelength. “Is it true, Mr. Maxwell?” Jim pressed. “Is what true?” snarled Duo. “That you’re gay and you stole Miss. Peacecraft’s fiance from her.” “No, it’s not fucking true,” Duo returned, his rage slowly increasing. “Liar,” Relena accused. “You’re nothing but a no good fairy, a faggot. You’re not a man, you’re an abomination, people like you shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near other men. You should be locked up, away from real men so you can’t taint them with your filthy, vile ways.” Duo was about to explode. His eyes burned a deep purple, his fists were clenched hard at his sides as he fought with his desire to simply knock the woman out cold. Wouldn’t the papers have a field day with that? As it now was he was ruined with her accusations regardless of any truth to them or not. Once this went to press he wouldn’t be able to clear his name, achieve his dream; no one would want to know him. He should have listened to Trowa’s warning more closely. “Duo.” A hand resting on his arm called Duo from his thoughts and he turned his head to see Heero looking at him intently. “Don’t listen to her, Duo. She can’t prove anything, this is all a fabrication of her own mind.” Duo knew Heero was lying through his teeth, but what else could they do? Turning to the reporters, Heero did his best to keep his voice calm. “This is all utter bullshit, made up by her to try and get some form of revenge on me because I broke up with her,” he growled. “Now who’s lying?” Relena snapped and stamped her foot. “You don’t know what you’re saying, Heero. We haven’t broken up, you’re not in your right mind and you need help. You don’t need it from the likes of him, though!” She stared hatefully at Duo. “Heero is mine, my fiance and you’d better keep your filthy, faggoty hands off him. He’s not like you, he doesn’t chase other men.” “Neither do I,” Duo retaliated. “And he’s not your fiance. He broke up with you because you won’t let him live. You don’t want him to have his dream, you smother him all the time, bitch.” Relena’s mouth opened wide at the insult, the reporters continued to record. This was going to make interesting news! When Relena had contacted the newspaper offices, the editors had been reluctant at first to send out a reporter to cover the story, but in the end they’d had no choice, especially when Relena’s father owned a large stake in both papers. Dorothy had stood to the side and watched everything taking place with a small smile on her face. It was going quite well so far. But Dorothy didn’t think it would have the impact Relena was hoping for. She could see that this Maxwell character wasn’t one to back down from a fight and would be giving Relena as good as he got. With the verbal sparring continuing, Dorothy slipped away. She headed for the chutes where the rodeo hands were getting the broncs ready for the riders. She walked quickly along the line of chutes until she found the one she was looking for. “Charlie?” she called. “Yeah?” Charlie surfaced from the other side of the chute where he’d just finished putting Duo’s rig onto Reaper. The black mustang gave a loud snort and bared his teeth. “I think you and a couple of other hands should head over to the toilet block, there’s a bit of an altercation going on over there and it’s starting to turn ugly. I think maybe you should go break it up before someone gets hurt.” Charlie scratched his head. “What’s happening?” Charlie was familiar with Dorothy, having seen her at a few of the rodeos with Heero and Relena, so he had no reason to doubt her words. “A couple of cowboys are having a bit of a slanging match and there’s a crowd gathering. It could get nasty.” Charlie glanced across the grounds and could see a bit of a crowd gathering over by the toilets. He nodded. “Thanks, I’ll go see if we can break it up.” Calling over his shoulder to a few of the other hands, Charlie and his group set off. Dorothy gave an evil smirk. “Perfect,” she whispered and stepped up to the outside of the chute that Reaper waited in. “Now be a nice horsey and stay still,” she muttered and pulling something from her purse she reached between the spars to the ropes of the rig that Charlie had just finished securing. Charlie and the other hands could hear the ruckus before they got to the crowd. “Perverted bastard!” “Homophobic cow!” “You’re nothing but a low down, sleazy fag.” “Guess you would know, but it’s better than being a narrow minded bigot.” “Heero! You’re not going to stand there and let him hurl insults at me, are you? I’m your fiancee, dammit, you belong with me, not with some creepy whore!” “Relena, how many times do I have to remind you you’re not my fiancee? I don’t love you anymore,” Heero replied harshly. “You can’t tell me you love this, this excuse for a male? It’s not right, two men are not supposed to be together, it’s the laws of nature,” Relena thundered. It was as if all the air around him had been sucked out, the silence oppressive. Heero knew he was in a very sticky situation and needed to be very careful what he said. His relationship with Duo was still in its fledgling stages and whilst he was hesitant to say he loved Duo, he knew he did feel something for the other cowboy. If he said he wasn’t in love with Duo then he could seriously hurt the other cowboy and their relationship; if he did say he was in love with Duo, then... Heero was caught between a rock and a hard place; and being crushed fast. Both pale blue and violet eyes turned to look at him and Heero swallowed. Shit! How to answer this without destroying Duo or himself? “Come on, people, break it up,” came a familiar voice from the side and the air once again returned to Heero’s personal space. “You haven’t answered my question,” Relena spat, determined to get a result. “Relena, I don’t love you as a girlfriend, of that I’m certain. Duo is a very good friend and if that turns into something more, then so be it,” he whispered. Immediately, the crowd around went wild. Never before had they witnessed such a scandal, and human nature being what it was, they lapped it all up, be it truth or lies, they didn’t care. “Heero, you can’t possibly mean that. You need to come home with me, I’ll get you the help you need,” Relena pleaded. “Didn’t you hear the man, bitch. He doesn’t want you so why don’t you fuck off back to your pretty little world and leave us the hell alone,” Duo growled. “Relena, I think we should go,” came Dorothy’s voice from the side. “It’s obvious Heero has made his mind up and wants to be with this homosexual.” “But...” “No, let them be. I’m sure society will let them know exactly what they think of them.” Dorothy’s eyes held a hard edge to them as she gave the pair a scornful look. “You’re an asshole, Heero, although I’m sure this fag has already had that from you,” she sneered and before Heero could reply, she turned and led Relena away. “I said, break it up, “ came Charlie’s voice again and the crowd began to disperse. The reporters had managed to get a few photos of the three and before anyone could question them they melted into the disappearing crowd. “Okay, what was all that about?” asked Charlie when he was left with just Heero and Duo. “Nothing,” both men replied. Charlie raised an eyebrow. “Ah, fuck it, you’ll read about it in the papers anyway,” Duo complained and gave Charlie a short version of what had happened. “She seems like one vindictive lady,” Charlie said once Duo had finished explaining how Relena had accused him of stealing Heero from her – all of which he’d denied doing. “You got that right,” Duo sniffed. “I’ve a good mind to take her to court for slander.” “Look, I don’t give a flying fuck about any of this shit, you can do what you want once the competition is over or in your own time, but right now the bareback bronc rides are about to start and you’re both needed at the chutes,” stated Charlie. “Fuck! I’d forgotten about the broncs,” Duo muttered. “Better shift I guess.” Still angry over the confrontation, both men began to walk, Charlie moved off ahead of them and left them to talk in peace. Finding themselves alone, Heero turned to Duo and gazed sadly into violet eyes as they walked. “Duo, I’m so sorry about Relena. I honestly thought after all this time she’d given up trying to get me back. I should have known she’d do something like this. Now she’s gone and ruined everything.” “Don’t worry about it, Heero,” Duo sighed. “It was only a matter of time before my sexuality caught up with me anyway. I suppose I’ll be an outcast again from here on.” His shoulders slumped a little. “Should be used to it by now though.” “Duo,” Heero’s voice held a painful edge to it, his heart breaking as he witnessed the other cowboy’s hurt. “I don’t care what she does, what the papers write about us, or you. I care a lot about you, Duo and I won’t let you go through this alone. I’m still not sure if I’m gay, heterosexual or bisexual, but I do know that I want to be with you and to hell with the consequences.” A soft smile curled the edges of Duo’s lips. “Once this goes to print we’ll be ostracized, I won’t be able to buy any decent mares for my stud and you’ll find your cattle worth shit all.” “Then we will just have to move, get away from all this crap and set up somewhere else,” Heero replied. “We?” “Ah, yeah. I was kinda hoping we would be spending a lot more time together.” Heero blushed. “That’s really sweet, Heero.” Duo gave a chuckle. “You know what? Stuff it all, let’s go ride these damn broncs and finish the rodeo, we can discuss our futures and what we plan to do later on tonight.” “Good idea.” Heero’s heart warmed a little when he saw the spark return to Duo’s eyes. “Be prepared for the scornful looks and the scathing comments,” Duo stated as he squared his shoulders, held his head high and prepared to walk back to the chute area for his ride. “As long as I have you there with me I can face anything,” Heero replied shyly. A squeeze to his shoulder told him Duo appreciated the words. * * * As Duo had predicted, there were scornful looks tossed in their direction and a few unsavory snide remarks whispered around as the gossip mongers got to work, but there weren’t as many as Duo had thought there would be. In fact, he was quite stunned by the majority of the support that was shown to him and Heero. It seemed not as many of the other cowboys, rodeo staff and others involved in the rodeo itself were as small minded or bigoted as Relena and he felt himself relax a little. Heero’s ride was up first and both men approached the chute that Flash was standing in ready for Heero. “Be careful,” Duo said softly, resisting the urge to hug his boyfriend. “I’ll be as careful as I can,” replied Heero and gave a small smile. Grabbing the spars, he pulled himself up and climbed into the chute, settling himself on the bronc’s back and working his hand into the webbing hold. Once he was happy with the grip he had, he nodded to Hank and the chute gate sprang open. Flash burst forth in a flurry of head, legs and tail. Immediately he was clear of the chute he began to buck. Grunting with the effort, the paint pushed his hind legs high into the air and twisted his body. Forelegs bounced in the dirt as each buck propelled the animal further from the chutes and into the center of the arena. Teeth gritted together as Heero fought against the laws of gravity and hung on. His body was jarred and jolted, a couple of nasty bucks causing daylight to appear between his rear and the bronc’s back. The return to the bronc’s back wasn’t comfortable either and Heero winced as his nether regions absorbed part of the shock of a particularly hard landing back on the paint’s back. Luckily he didn’t connect with the withers. Flash crow hopped and tossed in a few spins, Heero felt his grip loosening and prayed the bell would ring. A large buck followed by a sudden spin to the right and another buck saw Heero’s balance falter and he began to slip to the side. Sensing his rider was becoming unstuck, Flash jammed his head between his knees and bucked rapidly. Those last three bucks in quick succession saw Heero’s fall from grace. He managed to yank his hand free of the webbing as his body departed into air. He landed heavily on his left shoulder and rolled. Not knowing where the bronc’s hooves were, he did his best to cover his head whilst trying to locate those hooves and roll himself away from them. He was lucky; once the weight was gone from his back, Flash stopped bucking with such intensity and cantered away to the open gate that would take him back to the corral and his mates. Spitting out a few mouthfuls of dirt, Heero pushed himself to his feet and winced slightly as his shoulder throbbed. He gave his arm an experimental swing, relieved to find that it still worked okay so that meant nothing was broken. “Unfortunately that’s a no score for Heero Yuy,” came the commentator’s voice. Taking his hat back from Trowa, he muttered his thanks. “You okay? That was a pretty heavy fall,” Trowa said as he handed the hat over. “I’m fine, just bruised,” Heero replied and put the hat back on his head. “Please watch out for Duo,” he added as he waved to the crowd. “Don’t worry, we all will,” Trowa stated. “Thanks.” Heero found the rails and passed through an open chute, climbing up and over the other side where he was greeted with worried violet. “Bad luck, Heero. You only had another couple of seconds to go and you’d have made it. Is your arm okay? You landed pretty heavily on it,” Duo said, trying not to fuss too much. “I’m fine, just a bit bruised. Guess I should have had my mind more on the job at hand,” he sighed. “It was a tough ride though.” “Yeah, it was,” Heero replied. “How long until you’re on?” “There’s another five to go and then me,” Duo replied quietly. “Promise me you’ll be careful? I don’t like the idea of that bronc in the first place, but riding him after all Relena’s said, well...” “I know and I’ll be putting Relena and all that other shit out of my mind. I’ll need all my concentration to remain on that black beast if I’m to succeed and stay the full count.” The unease still wouldn’t leave Heero alone, but he didn’t say any more. Duo knew the risks, hell they both did, they were rodeo cowboys for heavens sakes and this was all part and parcel of it! Standing outside the chute, Duo stared at the black horse, brown eyes with a touch of white around them glinted back at him. “Guess asking you to go easy on me is out of the question, huh?” Duo muttered to the horse. Reaper bared his teeth and gave an angry snort. “Thought so.” Duo closed his eyes for a moment and drew on all his inner strength. This was going to be one of the toughest rides of his career. “Good luck.” Duo’s eyes flew open and he turned to see Heero standing behind him. “Thanks. I’m going to need every scrap of luck I think.” “If you do happen to hit the dirt, try to do it on your feet and run like hell,” came Heero’s advice. “If I come off I think I’ll be running on air,” Duo quipped. Heero chuckled. “Seriously, be careful, he’s one mean horse. I know first hand.” “Yeah, so do I, although not as bad as you. Last time he nearly took a chunk outta my ass.” “I’ll be waiting here for you.” “Thanks. Better move, I can see Charlie looking for me.” Taking a quick look around, Heero leaned in close as if to whisper in Duo’s ear, at the last second brushing his lips lightly over the long haired cowboy’s lips. “Don’t take any risks.” With a soft smile, Duo turned and stepped over to the spars. Hands reached up and grasped one as Duo began to climb up and straddle the top. Shoving all thoughts except the bronc from his mind, he kissed his cross and tucked it under his shirt. Braid followed down the back of his shirt and Duo pushed his hat firmer onto his head. Lowering himself gently, he tugged at the glove on his hand and then settled it into the webbing hold of his rig. His weight came down softly onto the bronc’s back, legs still to the side to prevent them from being crushed as the black devil let his displeasure be known by shifting violently in the chute. “Steady,” Charlie soothed, not that it did any good. Reaper’s teeth snapped shut a hairs breath away from Charlie’s arm and the rodeo hand was on the outside of the chute. “You set, Duo?” “Nearly.” Duo wriggled his hand around in the webbing, determined to get as good a hold as he could. He briefly closed his eyes and sent a silent prayer to any god that was listening. When his eyes opened again, the violet sparked with a determination. He dropped his legs and nodded. “Go.” * * * In the arena, Trowa stood behind his barrel to the right of the chute gate, underneath his clown makeup he was as white as a sheet. He knew Duo was next and he couldn’t shake the feeling of apprehension. He’d spoken to both Quatre and Wufei, the pick-up riders well aware of the horse and the damage it could do. “Best to stay close,” Quatre stated to Wufei as they sat, side by side on their horses in the arena. “I agree. Just remember to stay out of range of those hooves and teeth. I don’t trust that black demon,” Wufei returned. “Neither do I,” Quatre replied. Seeing Duo beginning to settle, both cowboys picked up their reins. Beneath them Nataku and Sandrock shifted, practically dancing on the spot as they waited for the signals from their respective riders. * * * Heero watched from outside the chute, his heart was in his mouth and he whispered; “Please be safe, please be safe...” The chute gate opened and Reaper stood still for a moment, taking both Duo and Charlie by surprise. They’d expected the bronc to come out with all hooves ‘blazing’. Then he moved. Like a black bullet he charged out of the chute and into the arena, his nostrils flared red as the whites of his eyes rolled. Head went between his knees and hind quarters shot into the air. Quatre and Wufei spurred their horses forward, determined to stay as close as possible. “Fuckin’ hell,” Duo groaned as his body was repeatedly jolted from side to side, up and down. Beneath him the black bronc bucked for all he was worth, spinning and crow hopping but never ceasing. His hand gripped tighter in the webbing hold as Duo fought to stay with the frenzied animal. Underneath the girth area of the bronc the strain on the rig was tremendous. Reaper jackknifed and then twisted his hing legs as he gave a particularly nasty buck. Duo felt the strain on his shoulders and arm beginning to take their toll. His muscles screamed in agony as they were pulled and jolted around. His teeth clicked shut as a nasty jar passed through the horse and into his body. Grimly, he hung on. The crowd was going wild, all cheering for the cowboy to stay the distance. With the amount of pressure being applied to the rig, a small cut in the rope began to pull apart. Another series of hard bucks had Duo groaning with the pain in his shoulder and hand from hanging on, but he was stuffed if he was about to bail. Reaper grunted with the effort of trying to dislodge the cowboy from his back. He drew in a deep breath and with a half rear, leapt forward, following it immediately with two huge bucks. The rig couldn’t take the strain any longer and where the cut had been made, the rope finally snapped. One minute Duo was astride the black devil, the next he felt himself flying through the air, hand still wedged in the webbing. He didn’t have time to comprehend what was happening as the dirt of the arena rushed up to meet him. He hit the ground with a sickening thud, head and shoulders taking the brunt of the fall and knocking Duo out cold. Feeling the weight fly from his back, Reaper brought all four feet to the ground and ceased his bucking. His head snapped around, nostrils flaring as he looked for the cowboy that had dared to sit on his back. With a scream of rage, Reaper bared his teeth and launched himself at the unconscious cowboy. ~ * ~ tbc... |
