|
"SHADOWS AND LIGHT: AN UNBREAKABLE BOND" Written By: Stone Angel
Please see Prologue for disclaimer, ratings and explanations. ^_^ AN: YAY! HUMOR! AT LAST! Okay, this chap is long. Not ridiculously long but long still. And I finally got to write some scenes that are not dire. YAY! Strange humor ensues. INSANITY REIGNS!
SHADOWS AND LIGHT: AN UNBREAKABLE BOND:
Heero rode up to Duo's house at Four and quickly got off his bike and ran to the door, eager to see his lover. He knocked once and the door swung open to reveal Duo grinning widely at him and looking like he wanted to throw himself into Heero's arms. Heero saved him the trouble by doing it himself, kissing Duo passionately and picking him up, carrying him into the bedroom. Duo made a funny surprised noise in the back of his throat as he was lifted but it was soon forgotten as the two continued to kiss. '"Hee-kun. We can't go much farther than this. We both need our energy tonight."' Heero broke away and fixed him with a confused look. "Nani?" Duo grinned and lightly hit the back of his head. "The party, Baka." Heero grinned as well. "I forgot." Duo chuckled and kissed him lightly, holding back the passion that Heero knew was there. "I washed the clothes we wore on Saturday. I think we should wear them again. We were amazing." Heero laughed. "I agree. Yosha. I like that outfit." He kissed Duo again. "Duo... I can't.... Duo..." He pressed against him. Duo smirked. "Baka. You are such a teenage boy." "Guilty as charged." Heero kissed him again and ground his erection into Duo's hips. Duo smiled. "Ok, I'll help you out. But just this once." Heero moaned and nodded. "Fine... Just..." Grinning, Duo kneeled and slid Heero's shorts down his hips. * * * "So what did you do after I left?" Asked Heero over his sandwich as he looked to Duo across the table. Duo looked down. "Martha and Elmer came over." Heero leaned forward with wide eyes. "What happened?" Duo sighed. "They pulled another question marathon. Even worse than when you did it. And then offered me a job in the vineyard. It took some doing, but I got them to see me as a person again. I'm still pretty uncomfortable about the whole thing, but it'll pass." Heero nodded. "So am I." Duo smiled. "Oh, you're worried about me?" Heero blushed and smiled. "I know you can handle yourself, but still..." Duo grinned and poked him. "My protector." He teased. Heero laughed. "Whatever." Duo leaned back and let Heero finish his meal, not realizing that his leg was shaking as he tapped his foot against the floor excitedly. 'I can't wait to leave. I wanna see everybody so badly. I hope Heero likes them. I know they're gonna like him. Though Wu-man will give him a hard time, no doubt.' "Duo." 'I'm amazed that Q found Wufei. I thought that was the impossible. Then again, this is Quatre we're talking about. He's wonder boy. He can do anything.' "Duo." "Huh?" Duo blinked up at his lover. "You're causing a localized earthquake." Heero said with a smirk. Duo was confused for a moment before realizing what he meant and stopping his leg. "Gomen. I'm excited." Heero continued to smirk. "I can see that. You really like those guys, huh?" Duo nodded emphatically. "I freakin' love 'em. I can't wait to see them all again. Oh, I asked them to keep their senses to themselves so when you talk to me with your mind, they won't listen in. They can't hear me unless I allow them to. You on the other hand, merely broadcast your thoughts, shouting them so I can pick up on them easier. That also means that they can as well but I asked them to give you some privacy." "Ah. Arigato." He shrugged. "No big." He tried to keep his leg from shaking again. "Aw man, I wanna leave now." He whined. Heero grinned and checked his watch. "Just another half an hour. Then the sun will be down." Duo groaned. "That's too far away." He looked into the living room. "I wonder if anything is on TV?" Heero laughed before becoming serious. "Um... Are you gonna..." Duo looked at him seriously. "Uh, no. I don't have time." 'Please don't mention the fridge.' Heero nodded, understanding and refraining from making him uncomfortable. "Ok. How long is the party going to go on?" Duo shrugged. "I dunno. A few hours? I'll have you back at your place by midnight so you can catch a few Z's before school." Heero groaned. "You wouldn't let me skip school tomorrow would you?" Duo shook his head with a smirk. "It's school. You have to go." Heero seemed to think about that for a moment. "All I have tomorrow is English and Math. Both of them are just labs. I can do all the stuff on my computer." He offered. Duo sighed. "Heero, I can't force you to go. But I do wish that you would. School is a blessing. Just don't fall behind because of me and I'll be happy." Heero smiled. "Arigato. I won't do this too many more times. And besides, I don't miss classes often. I have three more periods that I can miss from each class and I only have two months left before the semester's up. I'll be fine." Duo smiled. "Ok." He began to squirm in his seat again. "I HAVE TO DO SOMETHING! I'm gonna go watch TV." Heero grinned. "I'll join you." He picked up what was left of his sandwich and headed for the living room with Duo. Duo heard him laughing behind him when he all but skipped into the living room. "Nani?" He plopped unceremoniously onto the couch. Heero laughed again. "Did anyone ever tell you that you act like a five-year-old sometimes?" Duo grinned. "Ah. Quatre and Wufei and even Trowa. Many, many times. They had a hard time putting up with me some nights." * Heero saw the grin and believed that Duo meant it, but he knew why Duo was so immature at times. 'He never had a childhood. But he's stuck in a boy's body. He never got the chance to grow up so every now and then the childishness that he never was allowed as a youth surfaces. He was younger than me when he was made. He didn't have a chance at a normal youth. The behavior is cute. But it's also sad. Duo-kun. I know how you feel. I never had much of a childhood either. But you had it worse than me.' Duo was looking up at him confusedly as he click on the TV. "Nani?" He asked cheerfully. Heero smiled and sat by him on the couch. "Nothing. So what's on?" Duo looked back to the TV as he channel surfed. "Infomercials, infomercials, infomercials, Animal Planet, infomercials, ACK! GOLF! Infomercials, 'Buffy', ooh, 'Die Hard'!" Heero smiled. "I didn't know you liked this movie." Duo nodded. "I think by now I know it word for word. I never get sick of it. Bruce Willis is as cool as bald guys get." Heero laughed. "Yeah, he is pretty hard core. Did you see 'Sixth Sense'?" Duo shook his head. "No, I haven't yet. But I hear it's good." "It was." Heero nodded. "I'll have to sit you down and make you watch it." Duo grinned. "That won't be so hard to do. If Bruce is in it, I'm game." Heero smiled and finished his sandwich, watching as Duo silently lip sinked with the movie as he squirmed in his seat. 'Baka. Kawai no baka, demo, baka.' After a half an hour, Duo clicked off the TV and ran into the other room, hollering with joy. "WOOHOO! Let's get dressed!" Heero laughed and looked to the place Duo had just been sitting. "Oh man." He stood and walked into the other room where Duo was hopping around, pulling on his pants as fast as he could. He couldn't help but laugh hysterically as Duo fell over with a thud but continued to pull on his pants as though he had been lying on the floor in the first place. "Duo, I need to get you a leash. Slow down. We'll get there fast enough." Duo whined as he jumped straight up off the floor and began to pull on his shirt, buttoning it with inconceivable speed that made Heero's head spin. "But I wanna be there NOW." Heero chuckled and went about dressing himself as quickly as he could. It, apparently, wasn't fast enough for Duo as he stepped forward after pulling on his shoes and buttoned Heero's shirt nearly as fast as he had his and then pulled him towards the door. "COME ON COME ON COME ON!" Heero grinned as Duo all but threw him out the door and locked it behind himself and jogged to his car, unlocking it, getting in and starting it all in one fluid motion. Heero quickly got in the other side, afraid that in Duo's excited state he might leave without him. "So where do they live, anyway?" Duo replied as he drove like a demon down the driveway. "He said on the East side of North Paso. He gave me directions but I don't remember the street names. Just the turns and the numbers." Heero nodded. "Um, Duo-kun?" "Ah?" "Can you slow down a bit? I'd like to get there in one piece." Heero clung to the door handle tightly. "Oh, calm down and let go of the 'Oh shit!' bar before you break it. I've had this car since Ninety-Four. I know all its limits intimately. I promise not to kill you." He said with a manic grin as he flew around a corner at break-neck speed. Heero whimpered and held on tightly to the bar. "I'm gonna need a clean pair of shorts." Duo laughed manicly and Heero smiled, despite himself. Though the laugh was slightly insane sounding, it was happy and pleasant. "Don't worry, Hee-kun. The drive isn't more than twenty minutes. 'How am I gonna live that long?' Heero wondered as the car came to a sudden halt in front of the gate. Duo bounced out and threw it open to run back and pull through and then run out and close it again before jumping into the driver's seat yet again to hit the gas pedal and make the car burn out on the gravel, kicking up dust and rocks behind it as they sped away and onto the road. "Duo, you're going to hit a deer. Or a tree. Slow down." Heero begged. Duo grinned. "The deer can feel me coming when I want them to and move the hell out of the way. And I know this road like the back of my hand." Heero prayed for them to run out of gas before he looked to see the meter that measured the fuel level of the car read that it was full. He groaned and gave up. 'Oh well. I'll just have to trust him about this, too, just like everything else.' * After nearly twenty minutes of driving, Duo pulled up in front of a large house on a large plot of land. The landscaping was immaculate, well maintained and well planned. The house was two stories high and was close to being a mansion. He sensed vamps in the near vicinity and grinned. "This is it. If I know Quatre, this is his place." He felt inside the house and touched on his friends' Ki's. "THAT'S THEM!" He bounded from the car and ran to the other side, grabbing Heero's hand as he closed the door and dragging him up the stairs to the large patio by the pool and to the door where he used the large, brass knocker repeatedly. The door opened after a moment and Quatre smiled at him. "Duo. Heero." He bowed slightly and stepped to the side to let them in. Duo pounced him and released him after Quatre started complaining about lack of air to target the next unfortunate soul. "TROWA!!!" * Trowa's eyes widened and Heero laughed at the 'deer in headlights' look he got when he saw Duo bouncing towards him. Duo hugged him in a deathgrip and Trowa looked down at him in shock before looking amused and annoyed at the same time. "Duo. I am happy to see you as well. But I only saw you a week ago." Duo looked up at him with a wide grin. "So?" Trowa rolled his eyes and looked to Heero, giving him a greeting nod. Heero smiled and waved slightly. Duo released his victim and sniffed the air. "Is that champagne?" Quatre grinned warmly. "Hai. I got myself the non-alcoholic. The rest of you can have the other stuff. Unless, of course, Heero, would you prefer the non-alcoholic?" Heero smiled and shook his head. "No, thank you. I'll be fine. You don't drink alcohol?" "He's Arabian. They don't believe in drinking it." Came a cold voice from the corner of the room. A Chinese 'boy' with a tight, slim ponytail and deep black eyes looked to them from his place leaned against the wall. Duo grinned. "WU-MAN!!!" He bounded towards him. Faster than Heero could see, Wufei had a heavy looking chair held over his head and a threatening look in his eyes. "Maxwell, if you take one step closer, I'm going to take pleasure in crushing you with this and then driving the legs slowly into your heart." Duo's grin widened and he took a step further to goad on the angry, Chinese vampire. Wufei began to bring the chair down, but Duo, as fast as Heero knew he was, grabbed it and pried it from his fingers, tossing it to Trowa who caught it and balanced it in one hand for a moment before setting it down on the floor carefully. This was done with an expressionless mask on his face the entire time, his eyes never leaving the action between Wufei and Duo. Heero turned his attention back to Duo who was strangling Wufei, hugging him with Wufei pinned beneath him to the floor. "You bastard! Do you have any idea how much I missed your tight-assed mannerisms?" Wufei turned red with rage and Heero suddenly felt afraid for his lover but Duo grinned down at him. "I got a whole new line of jokes. Wanna hear 'em?" Heero laughed as Duo ran away into the other room with Wufei chasing him and holding a gun that came from Heero knew not where. "That's not gonna kill me, ya know?!" Duo called over his shoulder. Wufei smirked, his voice low and threatening. "I know." Duo shrieked and ran faster. Heero blinked and began to walk into the other room to attempt to be at his lover's aid, but Quatre stopped him. "Don't mind them." He said with a smile. "They're always like this. He won't kill him. I promise." Heero smiled and nodded. "Ok. That was Wufei, right?" Trowa nodded with a small smile. "Yes. You met him. I'm so sorry." Heero laughed. "Aw, I feel like killing Duo sometimes, too. If I can refrain, so can he." Quatre laughed pleasantly. "Oh, I like you. I think you'll fit in well." Duo ran into the room at that moment and hid behind Heero. Heero looked up to see Wufei running into the room, this time holding a katana. He sneered but came to a halt. "Maxwell. Taking a ningen as a shield is as dishonorable as you are." He let the sword fall to his side. "Hn. I'll let you live. ...For now." Duo grinned and flashed him a victory sign. "Yosha. Let me know when you want your ass kicked and I'll be happy to oblige you." Wufei glowered at him before moving close to Heero and looking to him from the corners of his deep black eyes. "Ore da, Chang Wufei." Heero smiled nervously and held out a hand. "Heero Yuy." Wufei looked down to the hand for a second before firmly grasping and shaking it. "I have to shake your hand." He explained. "Anyone who can put up with THAT_" He gestured with his sword over Heero's shoulder at Duo "_is someone I am honored to meet." Duo grabbed the sword point and moved it away from his face, blowing a raspberry at the Chinese 'boy'. "Yamero, Wu-man. Play nice." Wufei growled low in his throat and turned to Quatre. "Well. Let me at the alcohol. If you want him to stay in one piece, I'm gonna have to be drunk off my ass." He grumbled, walking past Quatre and Trowa into the kitchen to pour himself a generous amount of the champagne. Heero turned to Duo. "I thought you can't get drunk." Duo grinned. "Champagne is different. It's not the alcohol. It's the bubbles and the alcohol combined. It has a big effect on us." A soft voice. "The bubbles alone can, too." Heero looked to Quatre who was looking down and smiling even as he blushed deeply. He felt Duo take his hand and lead him into the kitchen, the two passing Wufei on his way out and giving them a wide birth. "So what do you think so far?" He asked with a grin as he poured two glasses full of expensive champagne. "Aside from the fact that you're insane?" Heero smiled as he took a glass from Duo. Duo laughed. "Ah. Aside from that." Heero sipped his drink. "I like them. They're good people." Duo grinned. "Only the best." Heero chuckled. "How come you didn't need to be invited in?" Duo smirked. "That's only for ningens, Hee-kun. I can enter a vampire's dwelling at will." Heero nodded as Duo took his hand and led him back into the other room where Quatre and Trowa were sitting on a chair together and Wufei was standing against a wall, sipping his drink. Duo sat down on the couch and pulled Heero down closely beside himself. "So, Mina, how have the last few decades been?" Quatre smiled brightly. "Rather good. The magazine is in the top ten now." Heero was confused so Duo explained. "Q works for a fashion magazine. He's its everything. Producer, writer, etceteras." He turned to Quatre. "Is that how you could afford this?" He gestured about the house filled with expensive furniture and paintings. Quatre nodded. "Ah. I bought this and added in a shelter underground for emergencies. Just to be safe." Duo nodded. "And 'Fei-man?" Wufei glared at the name but responded. "I do paper work for the U.N. And at night I am a security guard." Duo grinned. "Somehow, I'm not surprised, Justice-man. Over paid?" Wufei glared again but sipped his drink. "What about you, Trowa?" Trowa spoke in a soothing and quiet voice that Heero found to be almost as lovely as Duo's. "I help Quatre-kun with the magazine. But I also train animals by night." Quatre nodded. "Yes. Trowa-kun has set up a shelter for homeless dogs and cats and a part of it is used for a shelter for injured wild animals. You should see him work with the cougars. It's a thing of beauty." Trowa blushed and gracefully rose from his seat to walk into the kitchen, returning a few seconds later with two glasses of champagne, handing the paler looking one to his lover and regaining his seat. Heero marveled at how much like Duo they all moved; with the grace and the strength behind the movements of tigers. 'Segoi.' "So." Said Quatre, breaking the short silence. "What do you all want to do?" Duo grinned. "You got any tunes?" * * * Heero laughed as Duo danced solo to the music he had put on the large stereo. Wufei groaned. "Maxwell. Stop. It's embarrassing to watch." Duo grinned and continued. "Why? Afraid you might join in?" Quatre giggled and Trowa smiled as Wufei growled and swallowed the rest of his drink quickly, beginning to walk into the kitchen to refresh his glass. Duo approached him when he came back to the living room and draped an arm around his shoulders, smiling wisely. "Unhand me, Maxwell." Warned the Chinese vampire. "Wu-man. Lighten up a bit. This is a reunion among old friends. It's supposed to be fun." Wufei growled and swallowed half his drink, looking as if he were ready to kill something. "I didn't want to be here in the first place. But, for some reason I have yet to comprehend, Quatre has taken a liking to you, and he made me. I have things to do." "All work and no play, ya know?" Chided Duo cheerfully. Wufei growled. "I wasn't going to work. I had things that I wanted to do." "Like what?" Duo grinned. "Try to decide what color to whitewash your walls? Wu-man, I've seen you in action and dare I say that I have seen snails with more active personal lives." He laughed as Wufei growled at him. "Maxwell..." Wufei growled again. Duo ignored him. "All I'm asking is that you try to have fun. That's all. Stop acting like the aliens forgot to remove your anal probe or something." Wufei struck him across the cheek faster than Heero could see and Duo grinned. Heero stood up and glared at him, ready to defend his lover even though he knew he could do next to nothing. Duo smiled sweetly at the Chinese 'boy'. "Aw, I'm flattered you care, Wu-man." Wufei glared at him. "Di unea la, Lou You." Duo laughed. "Wufei, take some advice from a friend? Get laid or something, will ya?" Wufei turned red with rage and Duo ran into the other room again, laughing hysterically. "Duo." Quatre chided, even though he was suppressing giggles. "That wasn't very nice." Trowa merely blushed, a small smile on his lips. At that moment the doorbell rang and Wufei walked to answer it. Duo walked into the room and stood by Heero protectively, between him and the door and facing the later, making him nervous. 'Should I be scared?' "Duo-kun?" Heero stood behind Duo. "What is it?" '"A vampire I have never met."' Heero edged closer to him, knowing that Duo would protect him with his very life. Wufei opened the door and a woman with dark purple hair, blue eyes and fair skin stood in the doorway. He groaned. "What do you want?" "Hello." She said cheerfully to everyone. Quatre stood. "May I help you?" He asked somewhat nervously. Trowa stepped forward and put an arm about his shorter lover. Wufei sighed and took the woman by the hand, pulling her inside the house and closing the door. "Mina, listen up. This is Lucrezia Noin. She is my mate." Heero faltered. 'NANI?! I thought all vampires were gay!' He stored the question away for later. Quatre smiled. "Pleased to meet you, Noin-san." He held out a hand. "My name is Quatre. This is Trowa. That's Duo with the long hair and next to him is Heero." Noin shook his hand and smiled sweetly before turning to her lover. "Chang!" Wufei, to his credit, did not so much as flinch or change his facial expression. He did however, become several shades paler, betraying his terror. "Nanda, Onna?!" The purple-haired vampire held up a small piece of paper. "This is how you tell me that you're gone? A NOTE?!" "And what the hell is wrong with that?!" "I was worried sick about you! Can't you tell me where you're going from time to time?" "I told you that I was going to be gone as soon as the sun set! What the hell's the problem?!" She glared at him. "The problem is that I feel like I need to keep you on a leash. You're there one minute, gone the next! At first I thought you were hunting but then I found this_kudos by the way, for putting it in the bathroom where I would never be thus never see it_ and that's all I have to let me know you're safe!" Wufei glared at her. Quatre interrupted politely. "Noin-san. I am sorry for Wufei's behavior. I invited him to a party here_which you are free to join, if you like_and he must have been too preoccupied to think of much else. Won't you join us? I have Chateau Blue and Champagne if you like." Noin softened after a moment and smiled. "Thank you. But I'm on my way to work. I am sorry. Perhaps another time?" Quatre smiled brightly. "Certainly. Any friend of Wufei's is a friend of mine." Noin smiled and bowed, Quatre doing the same, before standing straight and bidding them all good night with a last death-glare aimed at her lover before she walked indignantly down the stairs. * "Well." Said Duo, surprising everyone. "Wu-man, I'll never tease you about your taste in women again." 'And yet, it made no difference in his manner. Amazing.' Wufei glared at him before closing the door and going to get more champagne. "Whatever, Maxwell." Duo smiled sweetly and sat down on the couch again. Heero did the same. "Um.... Ok." Duo looked to him. "You Ok?" Heero nodded and smiled. "I just... That woman seems like Wufei's type. She looks like she can take a punch as well as she can give one." Duo laughed and draped an arm about his shoulders. "Sao ka." * * * Heero smiled to himself as he watch Quatre and Duo talk excitedly on the other side of the room about the last few years. He sipped his drink. 'It's good to know he has good friends.' Trowa sat next to him on the couch. "They go way back." He said as though he had read his mind, and Heero knew he most likely had. "No." Said Trowa. "I didn't." Now Heero was genuinely confused. "You have very expressive eyes." Trowa said with a warm smile. "I can tell what you're thinking just by watching you." Heero smiled. "You were right. It is what I was thinking. I'm glad he has friends." Trowa nodded. "Ah. Quatre has been with Duo since the beginning. Or very close to it, at least. Longer than I have known him." "Yeah, he told me." Heero nodded. "I'm glad to see I'm not the only part of his life he likes." Trowa leaned back against the couch and took a sip from his glass. "Wacataio. Duo has been through a lot. More than most of us. He hides it well with that insane personality of his, but I could always tell he was bleeding." Heero nodded. "Me, too." "He's a good man, though. You are lucky." Heero blushed. "I think Quatre is nice, too." He looked up to Trowa's near glare, and saw that, if he thought he could get away with it, Trowa would have jumped up and slapped a sticker that said "Property of Trowa Barton" in bright red marker on Quatre's forehead. He waved his hands in front of himself. "I meant that you are lucky as well. We both are." Trowa nodded lightly. "Ah. I've known Quatre for eighty-five years. He has a good heart. Like Duo." Heero nodded. "So." Said Trowa. "What do you do?" Heero looked down. "I'm a college student. And I work at Record Warehouse." Trowa nodded and smiled. "I've been there. They have a good selection." Heero smiled. "Yeah." Trowa sipped his drink. "So what kind of music do you like?" Heero grinned. * "Well, it's good to know that you and Trowa are so happy." Said Duo with a smile. Quatre grinned. "Ah. You and Heero, too." Duo nodded and sipped his drink. "Duo." Quatre said softly. Duo shook his head but didn't look up. "Don't say it. I won't do it." Quatre looked sad. "Duo. You may think that now. But in a few years, you may change your mind." "Iye. I can't do that to him." Quatre merely looked into his eyes for a moment before speaking. "Tomodachi. I know that it's been difficult for you. But we don't all feel the same way. Look at me. I harbor very little guilt for what I do every night. Am I soulless?" Duo shook his head."He may not feel the same way about this as you do. You two, though you are alike in many ways, are very different people. He most likely won't be so... Haunted." Duo looked up with a twinge of anger. "And what if he can't deal with it at all?" Quatre sighed. "What if it is so horrible to him that he can't stand it and I have to kill him to put him out of his misery?" "Duo. You're the only one I know of that feels this bad about anything. I hate that you have so much sorrow for this. We all have some in the beginning but we get over it. I think that may have something to do with you not wanting this when you were made. We were all given a choice. You didn't even know what you were for years. You just stumbled across this. I honestly wonder, if you had been given a choice, what would you have done?" Duo looked down. "I never thought about it. I just figured that things are how they are and wondering on what may have been wouldn't help anything. I don't know what I would have done." Quatre nodded. "Has he said anything about it?" Duo nodded and suppressed a sob. "Hai." "What did he say?" "He... He wants me to do it." "Then shouldn't you consider that if he wants it, even though he knows what it entails, maybe he's wise enough to make his own decisions?" Duo thought about that for a moment before shaking his head. "He has no idea. He really doesn't. None of us did. Even you guys who were warned. I can't condemn him to a long life of watching his back and killing to survive." Quatre smiled wryly. "Ningens already kill to survive, Duo. The only difference is that the cattle they slaughter have committed no heinous crimes." "Yes, but it is so much more direct than just buying meat at the super market." Quatre nodded. "Duo? Do you love him? I mean, really, really love him? As in, when he's gone, you feel incomplete. You never want to leave his side. You smile when he smiles. You laugh when he laughs. You're sad when he's sad." Duo nodded reluctantly. Quatre smiled sadly. "You know why that is. I told you. You are soul mates. I can't imagine what would have become of me if I hadn't changed Trowa. If I had to watch him die. See his light flicker out like a candle. I would have gone mad." Duo felt the tears begin to come and he dropped his head, looking back to Quatre from beneath his bangs. His voice was quiet, nearly a whisper. "I've been mad. Remember?" Quatre was silent. "And I've already seen him die once." "Hn. Wasn't once enough?" Duo looked up but said nothing. Smiling gently, Quatre placed a light hand on his shoulder. "Duo. I can't tell you what to do. I think you know that you want him with you forever. And he wants to be with you forever. I think you have all the answers you need between the two of you. And you can always put him out of his misery and then wait for him to be reborn again in a few centuries if it comes to that." He said with a twisted humor. Duo's eyes widened, his lips moving but unable to say anything. Quatre stopped him before he could. "Tomodachi, how do you feel about your life now that Heero is in it?" "Like I have everything I need. It's not as bad as it was before I met him. I feel...like I can live again. Like he makes it worth it, just to be with him." Quatre smiled sweetly. "Don't you think he would feel the same way? That it would be worth it just to be with his beloved?" Duo's eyes widened more and he felt himself pale. "...........Ah................." Quatre smiled and tousled Duo's hair. "Good. I've said all I will. The rest is resting upon your shoulders and his." Duo looked to Heero who was talking excitedly with Trowa about music. He smiled. 'He really is so full of life. Would that change if I made him a....?' He wiped the tears away with the heel of his hands and plastered a grin on his face, heading towards where Heero sat and plopping down next to him, putting an arm around him. Heero smiled up at him. "So what'cha talking about? No horrible stories of the good old days, I hope." He grinned at Trowa. Trowa chuckled. "We were discussing music. He has good taste." Duo grinned wider and rested his head against Heero's. "That's why I love 'im." Trowa snickered slightly. "Really." Duo shot him a look and hugged Heero closer to himself. Heero looked at him after a moment of Duo resting his head on his shoulder. 'You Ok?' '"Hai. Ai shite ieru."' Heero smiled. 'Wacataio.' Trowa stood and walked to where Quatre was standing by the wall, placing an arm around him. Duo smiled at the two. '"They are cute, ne?"' Heero nodded. "Ah. They are a good pairing. But not as good as us." Duo chuckled and held him tighter. "Duo. Seriously. What's wrong?" "Nothing, Koi." "Bull shit. Your feelings of nervousness are so strong I can hardly tell if they're yours or mine. Now what is wrong?" "I just... Quatre and I were talking...about stuff. I just forgot some things is all. I'll be fine." * Heero concentrated to try to find Duo's thoughts but when he tried to get into the mind so close to his own he encountered a wall of steel. 'I guess he's guarded here. Oh, well. I'll find out later.' Quatre stepped forward and smiled at his guests. "Would anyone care to go swimming? Duo yelped with glee. "HELL YEAH!" * * * "CANNON BALL!" Duo shouted as he jumped off the diving board, clad only in his typical black boxers, his braid flying in the air behind him as he curled into a ball, hugging his knees to his chest. Heero watched the pitifully small splash created as his lover fell into the water. "Baka." Duo's head came out of the water and he began to laugh manicly, splashing Wufei and Trowa as they wrestled in the pool. Heero smiled. 'They're all like a bunch of kids. Once the ice is broken, they're all so free. Even Wufei.' "You're not going in?" Heero looked up to his side from where he sat at the edge of the pool to see Quatre wearing just a pair of swimming trunks the exact color of his eyes, sitting next to him and placing a hand in the water. "Uh... Iye." "It's warm." He offered. "And they actually can be careful when they so choose." Quatre said with a smile as he looked to the three in the water, each dunking the other and keeping track as if the final score meant anything more than something in which to rub the other's nose. Heero smiled. "It's not that. I just don't really swim all that much." His attention was brought back to the water when he heard shouting. "Oi, Maxwell! No fair! HANASE!" Wufei shouted as he was pushed under water by a grinning Duo. Duo yelped as his braid was grabbed by a hand that shot out of the water and dragged him down as well. Heero chuckled. "Yeah. They're like that ALL the time." Said Quatre with a grin. "It's funny but after a while it gets old." Heero grinned as well. "I never imagined Duo like this. He's so..." "Uninhibited?" Heero nodded. "He's beautiful like this. He was so timid and scared of everything when I first met him after the blood high wore off. He's comfortable around me now but he doesn't act like this." Quatre nodded. "He told me that he had killed three that night. He allows the blood to intoxicate him. It helps him deal with the guilt he feels afterwards. Then, he returns to his usual state of mind. ...Duo's had it rough. Worse than any of us. But we all click in a weird way and he feels completely at ease. I missed him these last few years. I was really surprised when I saw him with you. He had once told me he was never going to get involved with anyone. He shies away from people. As long as I've known him, we, Solo, and you of course, are the only people he ever was secure enough around to let touch him." Heero nodded again and watched as Duo exacted revenge on Wufei for pulling his hair. "Oi! Maxwell! Nani?!" "Don't 'nani' me, Justice-boy. This is a taste of your own medicine." He grinned and held Wufei under the water by his hair, dodging as Wufei made attempt after attempt to pull him down with him. Heero laughed and Duo looked up, smiling to him. That was all the distraction Wufei needed as he took a hold of Duo's leg and bent the knee while pulling, causing Duo to fall over into the water. "Oi!" Wufei cackled in victory as he held Duo under the water. "Wufei, don't make him swallow too much water." Said Trowa with a smile. "That would be mean." Wufei didn't let up, merely smiled at Trowa with a playful fire in his eyes. Trowa began to back away from him to leave the pool while he still had the chance. "Oh no you don't!" Wufei tackled him and the two went under. Duo surfaced and gasped for air, swimming gracefully to the side of the pool where Heero sat and pulling himself up to sit next to him, on the other side from Quatre. He panted as he wrung the water from his braid. "Man. Wufei's gotten stronger." Heero laughed and put an arm around his wet lover. "You guys are so weird." Duo nodded. "Ah. We have a classic love-hate relationship. We love to hate each other." Heero laughed again at the bad joke. "I can see that." Duo grinned. "So you coming in?" "Please excuse me." Quatre said politely as he jumped into the water to swim to his lover's side to help in the battle soon to turn war against the Chinese vampire. "Why don't you come in? The water is incredible." Duo grinned. Heero shook his head. "Uh. Iye." Duo looked deeply into his eyes for a moment. "Naze da?" Heero looked down. "Is this because of...? Heero, we all have scars. They fade for us when we are made but they are still there. I have many that you can see if you know where to look. So do they. We don't care. But if you like, keep your shirt on." Heero shook his head. "Anou... It's not just that. I...." Duo leaned forward, waiting for him to speak. "I can't swim." Duo looked shocked. "That's all?" He laughed. "Heero, remember when we met? The way we danced at the club? I can do the same thing here." Heero looked up, surprised. "Hounto?" Duo grinned and nodded. "Hai. Chigiru." Heero considered for a moment before smiling. "Yosha." Duo smiled gently and looked to the water, sliding in after a moment. He stood in the somewhat shallow water and held a hand out to Heero. Heero smiled nervously and took it, sliding less gracefully into the warm water and standing close to Duo, holding his hand so tightly that his knuckles were white. Duo simply smiled, ignoring his lover's deathgrip on his hand and walked slowly backwards into the deeper water. "Duo-kun?" Heero asked nervously as he was led to deeper water. Duo smiled brightly as his eyes began to glow a deep amethyst. "Trust me, Hee-kun." Heero nodded if a bit hesitantly and allowed Duo to pull him to a place in the pool far from where the trio of vampires were playing. Soon the water reached his shoulders. "Duo?" Duo smiled and gently took Heero in his hold, turning away from him and pressing his back against Heero's chest. The action would have been terribly erotic if Heero hadn't been so scared. "Put your arms around my neck, Hee-kun." Heero wrapped his arms about Duo's slender but strong neck and held tightly to him, trying his best not to strangle his lover, but feeling his fear get the better of him. "Ok. I'm going to move forward now. Your feet won't touch the bottom. Just hold tightly to me and everything will be fine. Ok?" Heero nodded and felt Duo caress his mind, an act to comfort and put him at ease, to reassure him that he was there. It worked. Heero relaxed slightly as Duo began to move forward into the deep water. "Ok. I'm gonna drop down. Ready?" Heero nodded again. "Ah." Duo bent his knees and allowed them to sink into the water, their heads alone above the surface. He giggled. "Is this so bad?" Heero shook his head. Though he was faced the other way, Duo seemed to know that Heero had done so for he nodded and after moving forward a few more strides, began to turn himself in Heero's grip. He faced him and looked deeply into his eyes. "Hee-kun." Heero looked down into his glowing eyes and bent down to kiss him, the fear banished to the back of his mind as he knew Duo would not let anything happen to him. Duo grinned when they broke apart and circled his arms around Heero's waist. "Ok. Let go of my neck. I've got you. I won't let go." Heero nodded and forced his arms from their place, allowing himself to be held up by Duo's strong arms. Duo smiled. "Ok. Now listen." After a moment of silence, Heero was confused. "What?" "Listen." "But you're not saying anything." Duo grinned. "To the water, Baka. Listen to the water." Heero listened as the water made pleasant, almost musical sounds. "Do you hear it?" Heero nodded. "Listen to what is has to say. But listen with your whole body." At Heero's confused look, he smiled and explained. "You know how when you drive, you look at the road with your whole eye, taking in the center as well as the edges of the asphalt and the land around it? You don't just focus on one thing like when you read. Listen like that, with your entire being. Your heart, mind and body." Heero wanted to call the idea insane, but he listened to the sounds, trusting his lover as he was never wrong. After a few seconds, he felt as if the water was calling to him, much the way a good song calls people to dance or sing along. "...Segoi..." Duo smiled genuinely. "Ah. This is how I hear water. Does it feel like it's calling to you?" Heero nodded, amazed at the fact that he had never heard water in such a way. Duo nodded and spoke, having read his facial expression. "Ah. Ningens hear water. But they never really listen to it. It's that way with animals as well. Such things always have so much to say, yet are never truly allowed to speak." 'This is amazing. Are all vampires so passionate about the little things? Segoi.' Heero thought to himself as Duo smiled. Duo continued. "Now, listen to what it has to say. Hold your arms out, relax, and let it tell you how to move." Heero held his arms to the side and waited for a moment. Soon his arms, guided by instinct and almost of their own accord, began to push his flattened palms downward, forcing the water beneath them towards the bottom of the pool. He began to kick his legs lightly, feeling himself propelled slightly upwards with the motion. He closed his eyes and continued the motions, allowing the feel and sound of the water to guide him. The feeling in his heart, though he was unsure of its origin, was nothing short of unadulterated joy. He opened his eyes to smile at Duo but found that he was no longer holding him, smiling to him from a few feet away, far enough that Heero had to move on his own, yet close enough to spring into action should Heero need help. Heero yelped and looked down, realizing that he and he alone was keeping him above the water's surface. He grinned to Duo. "Segoi!" Duo grinned back. "Congrats. You're treading water." Heero smiled and laughed. "This is great! How did you do this?" "You're doing it, Hee-kun. It's all you. I have no part in it." Heero smiled. "How did you know that water could speak? Er, call to people?" Duo grinned. "You see things much differently when you become... Everything is beautiful in its own way and has a voice. You learn to listen to what it has to say. Everything has a kind of serene song to it and it calls to us on an instinctual level. We find it almost irresistible not to jump into water when we see it. Swimming is a joyful thing. That's one of the reasons Wu-boy is less of a tightass right now." Duo grinned manicly. "I HEARD that, Maxwell!" Wufei shouted from the other side of the pool as he wrestled with Quatre and Trowa. The two took advantage of the situation and tackled him at the same time, pushing him under the water. Duo grinned back to Heero. "Featured word in that last sentence: 'LESS'." Heero laughed. "Duo-kun. This... Thank you. This is amazing. Will I be able to do this without you around?" Duo smiled. "Of course. As I said; I'm not doing this. You are." Heero smiled. "How do I move forward?" "Tilt your body forward. What you're doing will only keep you at the surface of the water, as you can't rise out of it. But if you do it in another direction than up, it will take you that way." Heero tilted his body forward and began to inch slowly towards Duo, picking up speed as he became used to the action. Duo grinned widely as Heero swam to him and circled his arms around him. "This concludes Swimming for Bakas 101." He looked almost sad for a moment, and Heero saw his eyes look inward to his memories. 'He's remembering Solo. He said that Solo taught him how to swim. And now, in a weird way, he's returning the favor. The irony isn't lost on him. Duo-kun.' Heero grinned and kissed him. Duo responded and then pulled back and sank under the water with a smirk. '"Follow me."' Heero let Duo pull him down under the water's surface after taking a deep breath and holding it, his head dipping beneath the small waves caused by the others. He opened his eyes despite the slight sting of the water and watched Duo grin at him before swimming away, his feet kicking in unison like a fish as his arms helped to pull him forward at a fast speed. His braid waved in the water with his motions as if in wind. Heero tried to catch up to him but found that he was neither skilled nor strong enough for the task. 'No fair. You have an advantage.' '"Hn. I know."' Duo said with a mental laugh. He surfaced with a gentle arch of his back and a push against the bottom the pool with his hands, letting the physics of the shape his body was in and the weight of the water above him to propel him forward and to the surface. Heero kicked his way upwards and gasped for air. He opened his eyes and Duo was right before him. He immediately lurched forward and kissed him passionately. The two kissed for a moment before hearing woops, hollers and other well intended, but no less embarrassing sounds from the shallow end of the pool. Duo smiled anoyedly to the hecklers as he held up his middle finger and Heero laughed. "Let's get out, ne? You look like you're getting tired." Heero smiled. "Yosha." Duo grinned and took his hand, pulling him towards the side and jumping out before pulling Heero out as well. Heero smiled at him as he was lifted from the water with ease. He shivered at the cold night air. Duo smiled. "You can have my clothes. They might be a little small but they're dry." "What about you?" Duo grinned. "I don't get cold, remember? I may feel cold to you, but I don't mind. You need the dry clothes more than I do." Heero smiled, though he felt guilty about taking his lover's clothing. 'He'd feel just as guilty if I didn't. I may as well.' "Yosha. Arigato." Duo waved it off and led him to the house to get his clothes as he wrung water from his long braid, obviously knowing that Heero wanted to avoid changing within eyeshot of the others. 'Arigato, Duo-kun.' Once within the walls of the large house, Duo picked up his quickly discarded clothing and held them out to Heero. As soon as Heero was behind the wall, he began to strip out of his clothes quickly, not wanting to risk the other vampires walking in and seeing his scars, though as to the why of it all, he was clueless. He handed his clothes to Duo who handed him a dry towel first and then his dry clothes. Heero used the towel to dry his skin and, to an extent, his hair before putting on the clothes. He smiled. "Duo, you really are smaller than me." Duo mocked an angered look. "Oi, no shit, Shirlock! Thanks for rubbing it in and reminding me as I haven't thought about that for a whole two hours now." Heero laughed. "Aw. I was just going to say it was cute is all." Duo shot him a snide look before smiling. "Well, Ok, if you put it THAT way, I suppose, for the time being, I will let you live." "Arigato." Heero began to button the shirt. It was a tight fit. He was much broader than his lover. 'That's cause he didn't live long enough as a human to fully mature and fill out. Oh, well, I find him cute like that, so why be sad about it?' He wondered absently. Duo smiled and ran a hand up Heero's chest. "These look even better on you." Smirking, Heero thought about why. "That's because they're tight." Duo smiled. "Perhaps. Or it could be the whole sexy appeal of you being forced to wear my clothes out of necessity." Heero chuckled. "Baka." Duo grinned and stepped forward holding Heero in a tight embrace and standing on his toes to reach up and kiss him. Heero smiled and bent his head to kiss his lover passionately. Someone coughed politely in the doorway and Duo looked to the source. "Do I have to give you two a room?" Asked Quatre with slightly flushed cheeks. Duo grinned and held Heero tightly to himself as he chuckled at the three vampires in the doorway. "What? Tired of that little manage a trios you had going?" Quatre and Trowa blushed while Wufei merely glared at him, promising a swift, yet painful death. "Wu-man, you can turn off the deathrays now. I suppose you COULD look threatening enough, but the glare is countered nicely by the fact that you're dripping water and wearing only a pair of boxers. YELLOW boxers." Duo laughed. Wufei stuck his nose in the air and stormed off indignantly to find his clothing. Heero laughed, looking to Duo and the other two in the doorway. "I love you guys." He said as he laughed heartily. Quatre smiled as Trowa's emerald green eyes twinkled. "Arigato. We like you, too." Heero smiled at him and Duo rolled his eyes. "Ok, Ok, enough of that. Hee-kun, I'm gonna get more champagne. Want some?" Heero nodded. "Sure." He took Duo's hand and allowed himself to be all but pulled into the kitchen. Duo grinned as he poured two glasses full of champagne. Heero chuckled and Duo turned smiling eyes to him. "Nani?" "You're just waltzing around the place in boxers. Kawai desu ka." Duo grinned again. "Yeah, well I AM cute." He handed Heero a glass. "Ah." Heero sipped the champagne and Duo walked into the other room again, picking up Heero's clothes and looking around for a place to put them that wouldn't get anything wet. As he walked forward, Quatre held out his hands. "Duo, I can put those in the dryer for you. It's fast and should only take ten minutes or so." Duo smiled and handed him the clothes. "That would be great, Q. Arigato." Heero nodded. "Hai. Arigato." Quatre smiled, dismissing it with the wave of a hand and carried the clothes into an unknown room. Duo turned to Heero. "When those are dry can we switch again? I'd look pretty ridiculous in your clothes." Heero laughed. "Ah. Sao ka." Duo hugged him and bounced into the other room where Trowa was sitting on the couch, drying his impossible hair and waiting for his lover's return while Wufei stood behind him, flipping through the channels on the large TV. "Does America just not believe in trying anymore?" He complained as he sipped from his glass. "What's the matter, Fei-man?" Duo approached him, looking to the screen. "Your stories not on?" He asked with a grin. Wufei shot him a glare. "Iye. There is nothing on. Nothing. Not even good movies. NOT EVEN BAD ONES!" Duo giggled and Trowa turned to the two. "We have an extensive collection of DVD's. Would you care to take your pick?" Wufei grumbled but nodded. "Sure." Trowa stood and languidly walked to the cabinet beside the TV. He opened it and stood back for the Chinese vampire to see the titles within. Wufei scanned the cases for a moment before his hand flew to one and took it from the shelf, holding it out to Trowa. "This one." Trowa smiled and put it in the player. Duo bounced with excitement brought on by the suspense. "Which one? Which one, which one, which one?" "MAXWELL, I SWEAR TO GOD! SHUT UP!" Wufei hollered as Duo bounced towards him threateningly. Duo grinned. "So tell me then." Trowa stood back and the movie menu appeared on the screen for Duo's questing eyes. "…`SUPER MAN'?!" Wufei glared at him. "Yes. What of it?" "Nothing. It's just so like you, justice boy." Duo giggled. Wufei smirked and looked as if he were about to say something particularly crushing to the American vampire when Quatre walked back into the room. "What's all the yelling?" "Maxwell's an idiot." Wufei shrugged. "Nothing new." Duo pouted. "I am not." Quatre smiled as he sat next to Trowa and cuddled up against him. "Wufei, be nice." Wufei grumbled under his breath and Heero saw Duo smile, apparently having heard some of the many colorful threats aimed at him. 'What a pair. It's amazing Wufei didn't kill him back when they were all living together. I'm glad he didn't, though.' Heero put an arm around Duo and leaned against him. Duo looked up and smiled, putting an arm about Heero's waist as well. '"Yes. We're always like this. Isn't it painful just to watch?"' Heero chuckled. 'Ah.' * * * The group watched as the old movie played on the screen. By the end, Duo was yawning for effect. "'Fei, it's been real, but don't ever pick out a movie the rest of us have to watch as well again." Wufei glared and Duo waved it off. "I'm gonna get more champagne." He waltzed into the kitchen fully clothed, having gotten his clothes back from Heero after his were dry. 'Good thing, too. I would have had the sleeves covering my hands. How can he be that much bigger than me and I not notice at all unless it's with things like this? Although I did notice that he was taller than me. Still. It's not fair.' He pouted to himself. 'Oh well. I'd better get back.' He walked back into the living room to see Heero and Trowa talking excitedly. He listened in on the conversation. The two were discussing hobbies. Trowa was stating how much he liked animals, while Heero was confirming that animals really didn't pay him much thought. Duo smiled and sat heavily by Heero's side, grinning up at him. Heero smiled at him and briefly toyed with his still somewhat damp braid. Duo grinned wider. "You're a sucker for this thing, ne?" Heero chuckled. "Ah. Sou deshou." "May I have everyone's attention, please?" Came Quatre's gentle voice from the center of the room. All heads turned to him as silence settled in on the small group of four vampires and one human. Quatre smiled. "May propose a toast?" Everyone raised their glasses. The gentle blonde smiled brightly at the circle of friends, both ancient and new. "To friendship. And rekindled bonds. Let's not lose touch again, ne?" Everyone smiled, even Wufei slightly, and took a sip of their champagne. Quatre smiled sweetly and spoke his next piece. "Now. I have a camera. I want to take some pictures. I'll make duplicates for you all, of course. But the price is that you have to be in them." Heero was mildly confused. "So you show up in pictures?" The others snickered and Duo nodded. "Ah. It's like the mirror thing. That whole line of legends is all the nonsensical ramblings of fools." Wufei scoffed. "Maxwell, didn't you explain anything to the poor mortal?" Duo glared at him. "You kidding? He sat me down and we had a regular 'Luis de Pointe Du Lac' conversation. This one just never came up." Heero smiled sheepishly. "Oh, well. It wasn't as bad as your land lo_" '"QUIET!"' Heero shut his mouth and looked down and Duo could almost hear him cursing the alcohol. Quatre scowled, the expression furrowing his brow, one blond eyebrow raised slightly. "Nani? What's he talking about, Duo?" Duo looked down and twirled his glass in his fingers, mindful not to spill any of the bubbly drink onto the expensive Persian rug that adorned the floor. His voice was soft and resigned. "Uh... My, uh, land lords kind of found out about me." Every one's jaw dropped before the torrent of shouts began. Wufei was standing before him and glaring down at him with all the fires of Hell in his black eyes. "MAXWELL!!!! WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!?!?!?! WHY THE HELL DID YOU TELL THEM?!?!?!?!?!" Duo glared back at him. "I DIDN'T. They KNEW." Quatre silenced Wufei with a hand upon his shoulder and he grumbled under his breath as he walked away. "Duo." Quatre said, the cheerful and warm smile gone from him, his manner all business. "How did they find out?" Duo looked down. "Not all ningens are completely oblivious. After a while, they became curious and then suspicious and then certain. They just kind of put two and two together." Quatre thought about that for a moment. "What are you going to do?" Duo sighed. "They said that they would keep it under wraps. I scanned them. They spoke the truth. They will not tell anyone. And then they came over and we talked about stuff and they realized that I am a man rather than a monster." "Hn. How did they know for sure?" Duo looked away, the nervousness he felt conveying itself in such an obvious way. "I killed a deer. They found it even though I had carried it far from their house. And then they invited me to dinner." Quatre paled, as did the others, all knowing how painful an experience eating food truly was. "Did you go?" Duo nodded. "I just figured that I could just go, eat, and then be gone before the sickness overcame me. But they made me stay. Heero tried really hard to change their mind, but there was no way. I should have scanned them before I entered the house, but I was too distracted. It's Ok, though." Wufei was in a rage by this point. "YOU KILL DEER?! Are you truly that cowardly that you would jeopardize your safety so some stupid evil doer wouldn't have to die to sate you?! And then you actually walked into their trap?! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU THINKING?!" Duo looked down, not defending himself. "Wufei. Shut up." Trowa's voice from the other side of couch. It was soft but it held steel within, daring anyone to go against it. Heero saw his eyes well up and silently placed an arm about his waist, simply trying to convey his support for him. Duo sent him a fleeting mental caress and felt him take comfort in it. "Duo." Quatre spoke again. "Why didn't you just make them forget?" Duo sighed. "Q, you KNOW I was never good at that. I thought about it, but the memories would surface again and then I would be royally screwed, not only having revealed myself, but broken their trust as well. It would have been a monumental mistake." Quatre looked down as he thought about that. Duo spoke again, attempting to comfort his friends. "Mina-san. Everything will be fine. Really. I trust them." There was a short silence before Wufei spoke coldly. "Ningens can't BE trusted, Maxwell." Duo felt a stab of pain in his heart and swiftly glanced to Heero who was pale. He circled an arm about his waist and glared at Wufei. "How dare you." Wufei snorted. "Maxwell. You are a fool. I have nothing against Heero. All I am saying is that it is a mistake to tell mortals." 'A mistake I'd make again without a second thought when it comes to Heero.' Duo simply glared at him for long moments, no one breaking the silence in the room. After a few minutes, Quatre spoke. "Duo. I will trust your judgment. However, if anything, and I mean ANYTHING happens to make you think otherwise of their knowing, you tell me and I will take care of it. Understood?" Duo nodded silently, gaze upon the floor. Quatre sighed. "Ok. Now that that's over with, let's put it behind us. As I said, I'm going to take group pictures, and I would appreciate it if you were all smiling." Duo forced a semi grin to his face for the sake of his friend's worries and Quatre began to speak with Trowa about which camera they would use and Wufei seemed riveted to the conversation, seemingly wanting to do anything but speak with Duo. Duo looked to Heero. "You gonna be in them?" Heero nodded and smiled lightly, obviously still wounded by Wufei's harsh words. Duo leaned his crown against his lover's. "Don't mind him. As I said, he is rude and gruff much of the time. He doesn't realize that it is cruel to say such things. Just think of him as a male Relena." Heero laughed. "That analogy works pretty well, actually." Duo smirked. "Sao ka." ************************ See? See? I told you. I had WAY too much coffee that day. Holy crap. Never drink those espresso double shots. Bad idea. Oh, you may or may not have noticed that Duo was the
only one without a job. Reasons for this? Wufei has a sense of justice
almost as strong as mine, Quatre just HAS to live in the lap of luxury,
and Trowa just helps Quatre with the magazine and does volunteer work
to feel fulfilled. They all have enough money from hunting or hocking
jewelry but they all want something more. Duo's excuse is depression.
Back to
Stone Angel Fics |
