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"Puppy Love"Written By: Waterliliylf Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing. All rights
remain with Bandai, Sotsu and associated parties. No profit being
made here. Rating: NC 17 Warnings: sap, angst, fluff, Alternating Trowa/Quatre
POV, AU Pairings: 3x4 get together, Background 1x2, 5x6
Summary: quatre gets a new puppy and has ot take
it to the vet. "Puppy Love" Quatre's POV: Chapter 42: Charity Begins at Home. Gosh, this is boring. I detest these high society charity events. Admittedly it's for an excellent cause, but I'm sure that at least of the people here are only present because it gives them a chance to meet Princess Relena, and name drop about it for the next month. Still, the tickets cost a fortune, so they must have raised plenty of money. After dinner, Relena makes a little speech, thanking everyone for coming and for their generosity, and talks about how the money will be used. What happens next is the high point for most of the guests; a chance to meet the Princess personally and have a little chat with her. I think we should be able to leave after that. Hopefully. As Relena's escort, I'm expected to stand beside her, and we occasionally get to whisper to each other if there's a lull. Otherwise, it's all rather monotonous, but I can zone out and wonder what Trowa's doing right now. He was planning to spend the evening with Wufei, and help him with Nataku. And hopefully get him to talk a little about Zechs. I haven't been spending as much time as I should have trying to sort those two out. It's difficult when everything in the universe is conspiring to be remind of Trowa. The music during dinner was the same piece that I played for Trowa the night we broke my piano stool. I still can't believe we did that! The main course was gingered beef, and he loves ginger. For desert, there was tiramisu, and that conjures up memories of our little expedition to the hot springs. I have officially become obsessed with sex, I'm afraid. Or maybe it's just sex with Trowa. Anyway. I'm definitely obsessed somehow. 'Your highness. It's a true pleasure to meet you.' The voice that breaks into my thoughts is vaguely familiar, as is the man who is bowing politely over Relena's hand. 'Thank you so much for coming, Mr. Khushrenada,' Relena replies. 'And for your extremely generous donation.' 'Not at all, Princess. It is we who should be grateful to you, for all the exemplary work you've done to promote this worthy cause. I wonder now, do you have some literature about the charity's works?' 'Of course.' Relena looks at me. 'There's an information stand in the foyer. Quatre, would you mind?' Urrgh. I can't exactly refuse point-blank, even if I want to. Instead I lead Mr. Slimeball Khushrenada outside, and hand him a selection of brochures. 'I hope this will be helpful to you. As I'm sure you know, the Sunshine Trust provides holidays for underprivileged children. Last year, they ran a number of summer camps on the coast and ….' 'Shall we stop pretending that I'm remotely interested in those little brats? I'm interested in you. You know, you really should have told me that you were Quatre Winner when we first met. I know your parents slightly; delightful people.' Quite. When they're not disinheriting their children for being less than perfect. I can't help wondering if my parents would be so opposed to me being gay if I had a partner like Treize. Maybe a wealthy boyfriend might make my sexuality more socially acceptable to them? 'I rather thought we might have dinner some evening. I'd like to get to know you better.' 'Will your wife be joining us?' He just quirks me a nasty, predatory smile. 'Leia and I have a business arrangement. We try not to interfere with each other's small pleasures. It works quite nicely.' He takes the little roll of brochures from me, dropping them on the carpet, and takes my hand instead. 'I must say, you do look better when you're dressed up. How about Wednesday evening? I know a lovely little bistro on the coast. Very discreet.' 'I'm not interested.' I force myself to say it calmly; there are just too many other people around to cause a scene. I do wrench my hand free, though, and from the look on his face he didn't expect I'd be able to do that. 'I happen to have a boyfriend and, apparently unlike you, I take my relationships seriously.' Not remotely discomfited, his smile broadens, eyes drifting over me in a way that makes my skin prickle. 'Excellent. I always relish a challenge. I do look forward to our next meeting, Quatre. Enjoy the rest of your evening.' I can't, not after that. It's stupid to be rattled by something so small; after all, it's not the first time I've ever been hit on. And it's not like he could have done anything. I just do not like that man. By Saturday morning I've almost managed to forget the whole incident. After all, I do have Trowa to think about. Still, I can't help asking Dorothy as we're having breakfast if she knows anything about Treize; she knows everything about the Sanque aristocracy. She's up early for once, as she's planning to spend the weekend at her uncle's estate. I, of course, am spending the weekend with Trowa. Three whole days in his company. 'Of course. I'm surprised you don't know him; you really should read more society papers. He's a partner in the Romefeller Law Firm. A very old family of course, but his father lost most of their money. A little gambling problem. I hear Treize recently got married.' She purses her lips. 'That was rather odd, actually. I always thought he was like you.' 'Like me, how?' 'Well, gay.' 'Oh. I hadn't realised that was my defining characteristic. Why did you think he was gay?' 'I've met him a few times, at my uncle's, and he was never remotely interested in me.' 'That's hardly a sign that a person is gay.' 'But of course it is, silly.' She laughs merrily, shaking back her long shimmering hair. Wonderful; I'll be picking hairs out of my muesli now. I'd love to have even a tiny fraction of her confidence though. 'Why are you asking about Treize?' 'He was at the party on Thursday night. And I met him last week. Remember I helped Duo with a painting job last Saturday? He actually owns the house.' Dorothy sighs. 'I do wish you wouldn't do things like that. like that. It's so embarrassing me that my roommate does that sort of manual labour. And it must have been terribly difficult for Treize to meet his housepainter socially.' 'Oh, I don't think he minded.' I break off a crust of toast and divide it between the two slavering dogs at my feet, making sure Maggie gets the slightly bigger piece. It's not really unfair; Dorothy is always giving Taco treats. 'How was the party anyway?' 'Not very exciting.' Dorothy nods. 'How typical of Relena to support such a boring charity. No one cares about street children; nasty, scruffy little things. Saving the environment is so much more fashionable these days.' 'I hadn't realised that charities have to be fashionable.' 'Well, of course. That's the whole point. No one would be interested otherwise. Sylvia Noventa is holding a ball in aid of Polar Bears next month, if you'd be interested in buying a ticket? It's going to be so much fun; all the girls are going to wear white.' She slathers butter on another piece of toast; for such a slim girl, she tends to eat her bodyweight at most meals. 'Such a shame she didn't organise to have it a couple of months ago. Then I could have worn my white mink coat. It's so tacky to wear furs in May.' 'You don't think it's tacky to wear fur to an event in favour of animal charities?' Honestly, she's unbelievable sometimes. She laughs happily. 'Oh, mink aren't animals. They're just furry rats. Vermin. It's good for them to have some sort of purpose. I'll put you down for a ticket then. It's for such a good cause. Poor darling bears.' 'Well, at least you're trying to help,' I console her, noticing that her eyes are looking a little moist. This is why Dorothy and I are friends, really. Every so often, she lets her hard façade slip, and shows how vulnerable she is underneath. 'I suppose.' She takes another massive bite out of her toast. 'It's so sad, though, seeing the poor things dying because their ice is melting. And such a waste. All that beautiful fur could make the most wonderful coats. And accessories.' 'Dorothy! That's a terrible thing to say! I suppose you'd make Taco into a coat if you could.' 'Oh, don't be so ridiculous. The poor little thing would hardly even make one glove. Although there might be enough to cover a hair-band.' Fortunately, the doorbell rings at this point. 'How beautiful!' Dorothy pushes past me to take the huge bouquet of red roses. 'I wonder who sent them to me?' 'No one, unless you're Mr. Quatre Winner,' the delivery man winks at her. 'Looks like you need to keep an eye on your boyfriend, miss.' 'Oh, he's not my boyfriend. He's gay,' she says dismissively, happily announcing my sexuality to the world, scrawling a signature on the man's delivery book and then slamming the door on him. 'Are they really for you? What does the card say?' 'There isn't one.' I slide my hand into the flowers, in case the card has fallen down, and prick my finger on a thorn. Whoever sent them obviously didn't bother to ask for the thorns to be removed. 'How romantic! You've got an admirer! Who do you think it can be?' 'Trowa, of course. My boyfriend. Who else would be sending me flowers?' Dorothy sniffs eloquently. 'Well, his taste seems to have improved since the last bouquet he sent you. That was so scrappy; all those different varieties. These are much more elegant. And expensive. Red roses always cost a fortune.' 'The other flowers all happened to be my favourites! I don't even like red roses. Anyway, I'd better find a vase for them, and then I'd better move. I have to drop Maggie over to Duo's before I collect Trowa.' I suppose the flowers are beautiful, and as Dorothy pointed out, they must have cost a fortune. Of course, it's lovely of Trowa to send flowers, and it's highly ungrateful of me not to like them. I just preferred the other bouquet, which I know he picked out himself. 'Hey, Quat!' Duo is standing at the front door when I pull up outside, and Maggie squeaks with excitement as she hurls herself up the path to him. I can't help feeling a little bit rejected, to be honest. Does this mean she prefers Duo to me? What if she'd prefer to live here? She gets on well with Shinnie, and Heero works from home so there's usually somebody here. My dog gives Duo a quick lick and then races back down to me, begging to be picked up. Of course, I'm being silly. She's just being polite and sociable. 'I'm trying to keep the noise level down.' Duo explains, hushing Shinnie and opening the back door to let him outside. 'Heero's still asleep upstairs. I think I tired him out last night.' Duo takes Maggie's basket from me, leaving me to juggle her food, bowls, and a selection of her favourite toys. 'So, how're you feeling? All excited? This is like a honeymoon, isn't it?' 'Does everyone in Sanque know we're going to have sex this weekend?' I ask, wondering just when my personal life became such a spectator sport. 'Sure! It's on the internet and everything!' Duo grins and then looks at me. 'You look great! Are those new jeans?' 'Um, no,' I fidget, trying to hitch them up. 'Zechs made me buy them before Christmas. I've never worn them before; they're a bit too tight, really, and I don't like this very low cut. I'm going to be terrified to bend over. Do you think they look OK? Because I could get changed.' 'They look amazing!' Duo says firmly. 'And, trust me, the HVG is going to love it if you bend over in front of him. In fact, you've got to. It would be a nice treat for the guy.' Unable to think of a suitable retort, I hide my face in Maggie's fur. I have no intention of deliberately bending over in front of Trowa. Although he would probably quite like it. 'Listen, I know you said you were going to go shopping before you picked up Trowa. I've got a few things here for you.' He lugs a large cooler bag into the hall. 'It's just some stuff for dinner. You mightn't feel like going out tonight, and hopefully you'll have the HVG too worn out to cook.' 'Oh, Duo! You didn't need to go to all that trouble!' 'No trouble,' he says easily. 'And it's sort of an apology for Sunday. We didn't mean to get you all rattled about Trowa; just, Heero thought it was better for you to know that there seemed to be something weird going on, and I sort of got carried away.' He taps the carrier bag. 'It's nothing special; just a seafood pie that needs to be heated up. Trowa - Triton, I mean - will know what to do.' 'Don't call him that.' 'Why not? It's his real name, isn't it?' he shoots me a smile that manages to be innocent and mischievous at the same time. 'So what are you going to call him in bed then? Trowa's way better for screaming out…all those nice long syllables!' 'Oh, stop it. You know, he sent me flowers again this morning.' 'Wow! He really is pretty damn perfect isn't he. Blooms from Mr. Bloom, heh heh. Hilde must be thrilled to have such a great new customer.' 'They weren't from Hilde's shop, actually. It was a bit strange; he knows I'm not crazy on red roses but that's what he sent.' Duo shrugs. 'Maybe they were symbolic or something. Don't flowers have meanings? Like, you send red roses to your lover before you deflower them for the first time? Get it?' 'That,' I say severely, 'is really awful. Dire, in fact.' 'You laughed though.' 'I laughed at how pathetic you are. And he knows that I'm not exactly a virgin.' 'Well, it's been - what? A year? That's a pretty long time. You'll have to take it easy the first time or two, you know. Make sure you get plenty of prepping.' 'I do actually remember how to have sex,' I snap, flushed and flustered. Oh dear. I know, I know, it's ridiculous to feel nervous about this, but I can't help it. 'Just trying to help, Quat. Lighten up!' Duo's eyes narrow as he stares intently at me. 'You know, I get that you're a bit anxious about all this. That's totally normal. But you want to enjoy this, right? Make sure the HVG goes nice and slow; lots of lovely foreplay to start.' His grin broadens. 'Or maybe you can get him to let you go on top? See how you like that?' 'I don't think so,' I sigh. 'I'm sure Trowa would prefer to go on top. Anyway, it doesn't matter. I'm sure I'll like whatever we do.' I just hope Trowa thinks I'm good enough. That's the important thing. Who knows: perhaps I might even enjoy sex with him? 'Have you talked to Heero yet?' 'Yeah, Heero and I talk all the time. That's what couples do. And that was a lame attempt to change the subject.' 'Duo! You know perfectly well what I mean. Look, he's really worried about you. I told you, he thinks he's done something wrong.' My friend makes an exasperated little huff sound. 'You know what was going on with Treize. You know I can't tell him any of that without him totally freaking out. Anyway, it's OK. Howie and I finished up yesterday. I'm never going to see the guy again, so there's no point talking about it. And you don't need to worry about Heero. After I got home last night, I showed him damn well that he's done nothing wrong, and just how much I care for him. All right?' 'I suppose.' 'We're fine, really.' Duo gives me a quick hug. 'And he's booked a holiday for us in two weeks' time so we'll be needing a dog-sitter for while we're gone. Is that OK with you?' 'It's no problem. It'll be lovely having Shinnie back home again. Where did you decide to go?' 'I don't know.' Duo makes a face. 'We spent ages looking up places on line last week, and I couldn't decide, so Heero made the booking as a surprise. God knows where we're going. Probably a hike up Everest or something.' 'That would be wonderful,' I enthuse. 'A chance to do something really unique together. Oh, he was talking about treks to the North Pole last week; I know he'd love to do something like that!' 'The North Pole!' Duo echoes. 'I'd freeze! I hate the cold!' He eyes me narrowly. 'You're shitting me, right? He's told you. You know exactly where we're going!' I grin at him. 'Oh yes. And it's a surprise.' 'Is it Poland?' he demands. 'Korea? Vietnam? Tell me, you traitor.' 'Oh, no,' I say smugly. 'It's a secret. But I promise, you're going to love it. And, Duo, I think you should tell him about Treize. You don't have to make a big deal out of it, just let Heero know he wasn't at fault. You know how he feels about you; it's been killing him to think that he hurt you somehow.' 'I appreciate you wanting to help. I really do. But stop worrying. Heero and I are cool. I've forgotten about that slime ball already. Seriously, I think I just imagined some of it. It was kind of creepy, the two of us alone in that huge house. And he's married; so it's not like he'd have done anything.' 'He was at the party on Thursday,' I say slowly. 'Relena's charity bash? Did he recognise you?' 'Oh, yes.' I take a deep breath and exhale slowly. 'He said he knew my parents. And then he asked me to dinner next week.' 'What? Like on a date? No way! What did you say?' I shake my head firmly. 'I told him I was in a relationship. He basically said he and his wife had a marriage of convenience, and that he liked a challenge. That he'd see me again.' 'Ick.' Duo shudders. 'God, Quat, I'm sorry. This is all my fault. You only met him because you were doing me a favour.' 'Don't be silly! It's not your fault that he's a total sleaze. Like you said, we'll probably never see him again. It's not like we exactly mix in the same social circles, is it?' 'Yeah, that's true.' Duo brightens. 'And you've got the HVG.' 'Not yet,' I slant him a little smile. 'But almost. Oh, I nearly forgot. I was thinking of inviting some people to dinner some evening next week. Would you and Heero be free on Friday?' 'I think so. I'll just check with Heero and let you know for sure. D'you want us to help with the cooking?' 'That's really kind, but Dorothy's offered to help.' 'Shit! She'll probably try to poison me. I'd better get Heero to bring some antidotes with him, just in case. So who's coming to your party?' 'Just the usual crowd. And I thought I'd ask Trowa's friend Wufei.' 'Aha! Do I sense a little matchmaking? I think you're wasting your time, Quat. Zechs said that things didn't work go well on their date. He was pretty hurt about it. Seriously, I don't get what's wrong with that Wufei guy. He's got the prince of Sanque, who just happens to be blond and gorgeous and incredibly charming, literally drooling over him, and it's not good enough for him? It's not like he's going to do any better, not with that pissy attitude of his.' 'He's just rather confused, I think. He does like Zechs; I just gather he's had a bad experience with an ex-boyfriend.' Duo sniffs; he's incredibly protective of his friends, and I can tell that he hates the idea of Zechs being rejected so summarily. 'Well, he damn well needs to sort himself out then.' His expression has softened a bit though. 'I guess Trowa told you about his other guy, right?' 'A little bit, in confidence. I don't know the details. Really, I just know that Wufei was badly hurt.' 'Been there, done that, huh? I don't know, Quat. There's obviously some sort of chemistry between them, but maybe that's not enough. Zechsy thought it was all going well on Saturday night, and Wufei said out of the blue that he didn't think they should see each other again. Ever.' 'I know.' I sigh. 'I talked to him last night. He said he didn't want to press Wufei, not when he was about to leave the country, so he just let it go. And now Wufei thinks he isn't properly interested.' Duo rolls his eyes. 'Oh, boy. Like I said, that guy really needs to work out exactly what he does want. I guess the two of us are stuck with trying to hook them up, right? Maxwell and Winner - Matchmakers Incorporated!' I give him a grateful smile. 'Thanks. I'm afraid I'm going to have to go. I'm supposed to be collecting Trowa at eleven.' 'Sure.' He gives me a quick hug. 'You have a great time,
OK? And call me if you need anything. Now, you say goodbye to Maggie,
and I'll dump this stuff in your car.'
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