Disclaimers: Don't own any part of Gundam Wing nor it's characters. Merely borrowing them for a little torture.
Warnings: Shounen-ai (because I suck at yaoi) , major A.U, some OOC I think, deathfic
Finding Heaven
Part Thirteen: Let's meet the snobs
"So?" Duo followed Heero around the house. The Japanese man was doing his best to annoy the crap out of him. The phone call had been short with Heero grunting ever so often before hanging up. Then he got up and moved into the kitchen, and began preparing their dinner. "So?" He repeated, plopping himself onto the tall chairs behind the kitchen counter.
Still silence.
"SO?" He yelled, garnering him a shocked look from Heero.
The man turned to him and sighed. "She wanted to meet me. Talk to me. I agreed. You heard me," Heero pulled open the fridge door and rummaged through it, trying to decide what to make for Duo tonight. The braided man ate practically anything, with more relish if there was sugar involved, which Heero had learned never to feed him if the Japanese wanted a peaceful night. The only thing Duo didn't eat was Quatre's cooking; then again, anyone with some grey matter wouldn't as well.
"All I heard were a couple of 'hns' and 'hmms" and I am supposed to translate that to 'I see, I will meet you and tell you why I was so insensitive to break an engagement with you through cyber means and not call you like a sane man would? Oh by the way, I'm gay as hell, meet my boyfriend, you introduced him to me. Yeah, that's right, our wedding photographer, Duo Maxwell.'" By the time Duo finished his exasperated tirade, his chest was heaving heavily and his boyfriend had an amused look all over his handsome face.
"Wow," Heero said, impressed. "All that from a few 'hns' and 'hmms'?" He smiled teasingly but Duo continued to frown at him.
"You are so not funny," Duo grouched, hopping off the chair, wincing at the lingering ache in his back. He made a mental note to go see a chiropractor one of these days. He felt himself being snagged at the collar by his boyfriend.
Heero sighed, putting down the bread, keeping one firm hand around Duo's collar. "She sounded calm." He sounded really confused. "No shrill squealing, nothing," he shook his head as if to clear it.
Half off the chair, Duo felt himself being pulled back on it. Still a little miffed by Heero's teasing, he sulked a little, while his mind ran over what Heero had just said. "Maybe she likes the whole Lowe name idea and not you? Oh, God, which would make it even worse…" He ran his fingers through his messy bangs. "She is going to hunt me down and shoot me."
"She wants to meet me tomorrow morning," Heero told him, expression caught between dread and nervousness.
"And?" Duo asked, feeling his own nervous excitement as well. He knew what that meant. Clean slate, Heero's clean slate. Finally!
Heero quirked a grin. "I'm going; of course I have to go."
Duo rolled his eyes dramatically. "I meant what kind of weapons are you going to bring with you?" And that won him a laugh that worked to ease both of their tension.
"I was…" Heero started, hesitating a little. "Never mind…."
Duo reached out and touched Heero's hand, lacing their fingers tightly together. "What?" He prompted. "You are seriously considering weapons?" He teased lightly.
Heero looked up at him and the braided photographer's breath caught at the uncertainty he saw there. At some level, he knew the uncertainty was not about meeting Relena. That he knew Heero could handle alone, this was something more.
"I was considering bringing you," Heero blurted, unable to meet Duo's intense gaze.
Duo hopped of the chair and walked around the counter, hands still tightly held and stood in front of Heero, trying to peak at him around the down casted eyes. It wasn't very difficult when the Japanese topped him in height by about five inches. "I'll just have to wear my good Keflar jacket then."
Heero's neck snapped up, searching Duo's face with startling intensity. "You… you… mean it?"
"Well," Duo tried to be flippant, but his voice came out thick. Heero was doing this for them, for him. "I'm sure as hell not going to send you to the executioners alone." Then he was caught in a hug that forced the air out of him.
Duo saw tonight to be a sleepless one for them both.
~*~
Duo now knew how sacrifice victims felt as he walked side by side with Heero towards the Peacecrafts' looming mansion. It rivalled the Winners' but there was something distinctively sinister about the house. He wondered why they made sacrifice victims walk all the way up to temple, knowing what was waiting for them there.
A murderous priest and a really large knife.
Also known as Relena Peacecraft and her tongue.
Now that was one parallel I didn't see, Brian came bouncing from the back of Duo's head.
He almost groaned in pain. His irritatingly disembodied best friend was back with a vengeance. He hadn't heard from Brian in a long time and honestly, it had been a blessing. Hearing voices in his head made a schizophrenic and his mind was crowded enough as it is, with a repressed past identity lingering within.
"Gods, this place is freaking huge," Duo said, trying to cover up his anxiousness more than any real desire to make conversation. He wondered how Heero would feel if he accidentally peed in his car.
"I think Quatre's bigger," Heero answered, trying to make Duo feel more at ease.
"Yeah," Duo agreed. "But it didn't have the wicked witch of the east in it."
Heero sighed softly and Duo noted that he had been doing that a lot these days. That made him a little guilty. Was he the reason for Heero's problems? "She's really not so bad, Duo. She can be reasoned with…" He added at length. "…Sometimes."
Duo barked a short laugh. "This is the same woman you tracked me down like a dog with a freaking bone, the woman I had been working with for week," he stopped. "Wait, let me amend that, 'working for' is more like it. She seemed like a person who get what she wants and face it, man, she wants you." He swallowed the lump in his throat as they stopped in front of the house. "I think I'll wait for you here," he hedged, knowing full well he wasn't going to let Heero face the bitch alone.
Heero threw him a smile and they both got out of the car. "Come on, the faster we get this out of the way, the faster we can get on with the rest of our lives."
Rest of our lives.
That phrase brought a rush of warmth to Duo. He wasn't sure what that meant but if he could spend the rest of it with Heero, it would be enough.
"Courage," Duo smiled at Heero, snagging his hand. It was the same thing Heero told him when he first met Wufei.
They were shown into Ms Peacecraft's private study by the family's butler, a distinguished man by the name of Pargan. They sat opposite each other. It was Duo's decision. After all, he didn't want Relena to die of a massive coronary the moment she walked into the room and see them cuddling. Not that Duo didn't want to wrap his arms around Heero and try to make this whole mess go away.
Relena breezed into the room and his blue eyed gazed settled on his ex-fiancé with a pleased smile. "Heero, it's been so long." She gave Heero a hug before stepping back, her eyes roaming all over the Japanese.
Duo felt like punching her in the face.
"Had a nice trip?" Heero asked with seeming nonchalance and Duo wanted to knock their heads together.
"It was good. I missed Sanq," Relena replied, as if nothing had happened and she was just getting reacquainted with a long lost friend. "The weather was fine. Hardly rained."
Duo rolled his eyes, clearing his throat. This garnered him two things, a nod from Heero and Relena's icy glare. The blue eyes pinned him to his seat and it spoke of all the horrible things she wanted to do to him. It was not just intense dislike written in those eyes, but something more. Distaste, like she had eaten something that didn't agree with her. Revulsion, like Duo was a bug that just crawled in from the muddy garden.
"Relena, about…" Heero began.
"The engagement, I know." Relena brushed him off. "It's alright, these things happen." She gifted Heero with a sweet smile, one that made Duo gag. "But, let's hold off the news to the newspapers for a while?"
"Why?" Heero asked.
Relena had on the expression of flustered indecision. "Well, I want to be the one to issue it and I haven't exactly decided what to say."
Heero seemed to ponder over this and nodded. Duo guessed this was the least they could do for her. "Of course."
"Mind telling me, why you made this decision?" She flicked a cold glared over to Duo and the other man knew she had all her facts straight. What was her game?
Be careful of her, Duo. She's likely to eat her own young. Brian warned.
Don't have to remind me. I recognise this look anyway. Shido had it before he killed someone.
Heero walked over to where Duo was sitting and slid into the seat next to him. He draped an arm across Duo's shoulders and his free hand claimed Duo's. He raised a guilty look to Relena.
She nodded regally. "So that's why you seemed so out of our relationship sometimes. Wouldn't it have been better if you find out about it before?" The last had a little hint of accusation in it.
"I'm sorry," Heero said softly.
"Well, I'll just have to be a big girl about it," Relena was all smiles again and for some reason, it made Duo's skin crawl. "Say, there's this welcome party for me tonight, why don't you come along? You both," she added as an after thought.
Duo could feel his temper rising. As usual, Relena knew exactly what buttons to push to get to him.
Heero looked at him for confirmation and the longing in his boyfriend's eyes, the one that told him to just try it out, try making friends with Relena made him nod at Heero, who turned back to Relena with a smile. "Sure, we'll be there."
There was a sudden gleam of triumph in Relena's eyes that unsettled Duo. She was up to something and it meant no good.
~*~
Duo stepped out of the shower, his hair dripping and wearing nothing but a towel around his slender waist. A huge cloud of steam followed him as he walked into his, no, their bedroom. That thought ran through him, making him smile but the sense of unease refuse to leave him as he thought about tonight. There was something up with Relena if the look of pure hatred that was directed at him was any indication. Lost in thought, he walked towards the mirror and picked up his brush.
From the reflection in the mirror Duo saw Heero walking up behind him and hugging him from behind. The Japanese nuzzled Duo's neck with a smile. He noticed Heero had been walking on cloud nine ever since they came back from Relena's. He could understand why. After all, he was brimming over with anticipation as well. When he thought of what he was going to do to Heero tonight…
As Shido would say, 'Hentaiyarou', Brian seemed unconcerned as well about Relena as Heero was.
Am I the only one who thinks Ms Ice Queen has something up her Prada sleeve?
"What are you thinking?" Heero asked, resting his head on Duo's shoulder.
Duo exhaled softly. "Don't you think she gave in a little too easily?" He queried.
"Are you complaining?" Heero was doing his best to distract Duo, spreading small kisses along the smaller man's bare shoulder and neck.
"It just seemed so out of character," Duo gasped out, trying to keep his mind on the task at hand. "Don't you…. Heero, stop this. I'm trying to speak to you."
Heero stepped back with a disappointed sigh. "I was trying very hard to seduce you."
Duo turned around and placed the flat of his palms on Heero's chest, both to reassure and to keep his distracting boyfriend at arms length. "I'm just saying, she seems so different from the person I have been dealing in the past. I just think she has something planned for me."
Heero cupped his cheek gently. "I just think you are paranoid." He seemed to dismiss Duo's worry and took the brush from his hand. "Turn around, let me help you with your hair."
There was something intimate about the way Heero was brushing and subsequently braiding Duo's mass of hair. More than once, Duo had wanted to just forget about the damned party and get to the more important parts of the night. Heero had given him a long look of indecision before shaking his head ruefully and ordering Duo to put on some clothes. In a surprisingly short time, the two of them got dressed and was out the door. As they got closer to the club Relena's party was being held, the more uneasy Duo got. One thing he learned all those years on the street was never ignore your instincts. Right now, they were screaming at him to run for his life.
They entered the club with little problems. Apparently, Heero was easily recognised amongst the elite. The club was packed to the brim. Either Relena had a lot of friends or a lot of hanger ons.
I bet a lot of them just want to wipe her ass, Brian observed sending Duo off into a bout of uncontrolled giggles.
"What?" Heero asked, smiling in confusion but happy that Duo was in a good mood.
Duo shook his head, still laughing.
"Come; let me introduce you to some friends." Heero steered them towards a small group of people who were surrounding Relena.
Soon Duo found himself introduced to big names such as Dorothy Catalonia, a weird blond with forked eyebrows, Treize Khurenada and his girlfriend, known simply as Lady Une, Relena's brother Milliardo Peacecraft, and his girlfriend Lucretia Noin. They were as royal and as rich as they came. The only thing missing here was Quatre Winner. Heero introduced him as his date and boyfriend and took the ribbing about the engagement in good humour. Duo was shocked that there weren't more anger from them, especially from Milliardo. They all just seemed to take things so easily, accept the fact that Heero had switched his sexual orientation so simply.
The long haired man felt out of his depth amongst this crowd. Give him a bevy of models any day. The spoke about finances, and running countries, jet setting and country clubs and other issues that practically oozed money. He watched Heero so at ease in this setting, as he talked about things he was comfortable with, familiar with and then he thought of what he was doing to him.
Heero didn't fit in Duo's world. This was where Heero belonged, amongst the elite, not amongst the street rats. What the hell was his doing to Heero?
"You see now where he belongs?" Relena stared at him, eyes frosty and a definite sneer on her lips.
Duo looked up to see Heero missing, presumably to get them drinks or being led away by other acquaintances. Whatever it was, he was alone now, and facing six very irate, very scary individuals who were hell bent on taking their anger out on him.
"You are nothing," Relena continued, while the others gathered behind her, a united front. "Our families date back hundreds of years. I'm sure you don't even know you father's name."
Someone giggled. Duo thought it was that Catalonia woman.
Whoa, sucker punch. Very subtle insult, very good.
"He loves me," Duo said, with conviction.
Relena snorted. "You're a novelty. A bet we made," she stressed. "He has never had someone from the other side of Ivy League before. Bet it was fun for you to tell the boys you had a roll in between the sheets with a Lowe." Her features took on a distinctive evil twist.
Duo was dumbstruck. He didn't expect this sort of attack. Bet? What bet?
"Hey, how many of us can say we slept with a guy?" Treize chuckled softly. "I never thought he would go so far as to tell you he would break up with Relena all for a bet."
Milliardo joined in the laughter. "You must be completely hot under all that." He stepped closer to Duo, leering down at him.
"You understand now, Duo? You are nothing to him." Relena rammed the message home. "He will come back to me. Go away. You are no longer welcomed here." And as simple as that, the entire group summarily dismissed him and turned their backs on him.
Duo felt like he had been slapped, by all of them. A bet, was he really? That was all he was to Heero? He shook his head in denial, no, this was all a lie. Heero would never lie like that. He couldn't think, he needed to get out. It was too stifling here. He turned and ran, not seeing the gleam of triumph in Relena's eyes. Someone was calling him but he wasn't in any state of mind of answer.
He remembered running out of the club, remembered his feet hitting the road, remembered hearing the blaring horn of an oncoming car, and remembered the flashing headlights.
Remembered that he thought it would be the last thing he saw.
tbc….
Thanks guys for your support so far. I will start posting another fic soon, hope you like my first try an non-con pairing of 2x5x2.
Review review review!!!!