DISCLAIMER:
However much I want to, I do not own the G-boys. Bandai does. And they aren't letting be buy them. However, Jeffery is ALL mine :
Duo's been acting odd recently. Well, odder than usual, which, until now, I thought was near impossible. He's been stealing food scraps when he thinks we're not looking, and is spending way too much time in his room, which he won't let the rest of us anywhere near. I don't think we'd want to go in, but that's beside the point. Duo acting like this- I just know something will go wrong, it al-
"HEEEEEEERO!" Came the annoyingly impatient screech of one youngster from upstairs suddenly, causing Heero to cringe. The steady tap of keys on the laptop stopped, and Heero sighed. He shut the lid down on the laptop, and made his way to Duo's room, to find the hyperactive youth with his head stuck out the narrow crack in his door.
"What is it, Duo?" He asked, but he had a feeling somehow, this was the 'something' that was going to go wrong.
"Can you fetch me a towel from the bathroom please?" Duo asked, grinning wildly at Heero. Heero opened his mouth to ask 'Why not go yourself', but a muffled crash cut him off, as Duo's grin faded, and his head popped back into the door. Heero sighed again, confused. Duo's head re-emerged after a second.
"Er, make that two towels. And the broom." He grinned again and gave a half-hearted laugh that Heero didn't join in with.
"Why can't you just go yourself?" Heero asked, folding his arms and raising his brow inquisitively. Duo just pouted.
"Pleeeease Heero…" He begged softly, like a lover asking their other half to come back to bed. Heero stood there for a moment, then turned and walked towards the bathroom.
"Thanks!" Duo shouted, before his head popped back into his room and the door shut quickly.
"Note to self: Don't do anything for Duo again." Heero muttered as he entered the bathroom, and went to get some of the towels from under the sink. Just as he was about to reach in and grab them, he thought, and popped his head back up so he could see into the sink. And, low and behold, he wasn't imagining it. There was a big tube of Scholl foot cream, lying in the sink, with the word 'DUO' in big, black permanent marker. His brow rose as he picked it up, frowning.
"What on earth are you up to, Duo?" He asked himself, before reaching to grab the towels, and the dustpan and brush. He carried the foot cream with him, too, as he left the bathroom, back to Duo's room. Duo's head was already watching for Heero out of the door. The youth looked crazy, like a floating head, his braid hanging down, nearly touching the floor. When Duo saw Heero, he smiled and said another thanks, then spotted the foot cream and went pale. Heero stopped outside Duo's door; both of them silent for a moment as Heero put the towels and dustpan on the floor, and waved the foot cream in Duo's face.
"it's not mine!" Duo said, before Heero turned it around, so Duo could see his name printed on it. "Errm…I…Use it for… Lube?" He said, and grinned innocently. Unfortunately for him, Heero wasn't returning the grin.
"Duo, you don't use foot cream for Lube." Heero commented bluntly, and Duo looked hurt. Heero hated seeing the boy like that, but didn't apologize. And, just as Heero thought, Duo was easy to break with the right words, and he caved.
"Fine fine, I don't. But if I tell you, you have to SWEAR not to tell the others. I'm sorta glad you found out, I need some help with him anyway." Duo spurted in a single breath. Heero's brow raised again. He should have not asked, he could have just left it-
"Help with who?" Heero asked.
Well, I guess if I'm going into this, I might as well dive in head first. He thought. Duo grinned sheepishly in return.
"Well, you could call him an 'it', but that's just mean." He said, and suddenly, Duo's door flew open enough for the enthusiastic boy to fly out, grab Heero's arm and pull him into the bedroom. Heero stuttered in disagreement, but by the time he spoke, he was in Duo's room, and the door was shut.
"Duo, I thought we said-" he began, but Duo cut him off.
"No! I know, I know. It's not that. It's him." Duo said, and signalled to his bed. Duo's room had never been tidy, and the rest of the guys never expected him to tidy it. It was more or less the total opposite of Heero's own. The window was open, as were the old, dark curtains that were falling off the rails. The sunlight lit Duo's room perfectly. The dark carpet was covered in clothes, books, screwdrivers and some other stuff Heero dared not even guess about. His bed was shoved in the far left corner, the bed sheets in a bundle on top. His closet was on the right, and there was hole in it. Heero guessed it was from when the boy lost his temper a few weeks ago. His computer was on the far right, and it was flashing with new emails and such. But what Heero's eyes flicked onto was the pile of white feathers sat behind Duo's bed sheets. He stepped a bit closer to try and get a better look, then the feathers moved, making him jump.
"Heero- meet Jeffery. The chicken. I named him." Duo said, grinning like a 6 year old, as he moved around and sat on the bed, and picked up the bundle of feathers. And, low and behold, it was a chicken. Not a very big one, mind you, he didn't look old, or very healthy, for that matter. Heero shook himself out of the thoughts and spoke again.
"Duo. Why do you have a chicken in your bedroom!?" was all he could ask. Duo frowned and carefully moved the sleepy looking chicken from his arms and put it back on the bed, before standing up and 'Shh'ing the very confused Pilot.
"Keep your voice down, the others might hear." Duo said, and Heero just frowned at him.
"Just shows how much attention you paid at dinner. They've gone out. Won't be back for about 3 hours. Now answer my question." Heero retorted. He was confused, and he didn't like being confused. He was also a little hurt that Duo hadn't told him, but he understood why. Both Heero and Trowa had made a 'no Pets' rule a few months ago. Even Quatre had agreed.
"Well, I was out the other week, and there was just this chicken beside the road. So I go have a look, and his foot looks really bad. I was gonna take him to a vets, but Trowa showed up. I never had time. So I brought him back here, hoping that I could take him, but he screeches like a pig if he leaves my room." Duo said, somehow without breaking to breathe. Heero looked at the chicken, who was curling up where Duo had sat.
"And why did you need my help?" Heero asked, eventually. Duo bit his lip.
"Errm. Wufei e-mailed me earlier. He needs my help with something. So I need to go see him and, er- I need someone to look after Jeffery."