The Perfect Soldier
Chapter 2: Taki's Mistake
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Duo Maxwell slid open the sauna door and blinked at the sight of Heero Yuy lounging in the deep, steaming water. Beside Duo, Quatre paused and strained to glance over his shoulder.
"Hey, Heero. I didn't think we'd find you here. Aren't you supposed to be at your laptop by now?"
"Hn," Heero replied, casually reaching over and flipping on the switch that powered the massive tub's jets. As the array of bubbles began softly pounding against tight muscles aching from lack of sleep, Heero slipped a little further beneath the surface of the water.
The Deathscythe pilot strutted into the room and tossed the towel he had loosely knotted around his waist to the tiled floor. He half splashed-half slid into the fizzing water.
"Watch it," Heero growled, face as impassive as ever. "You'll get my robe wet."
"Huh?" Duo glanced over Heero's shoulder at the pile of soft, fluffy green fabric meticulously folded on the navy tiles. He laughed so hard that he nearly smacked his head into the rim of the tub. "Mr. Perfect Soldier needs a bathrobe to get in and out of the tub?"
Quatre was trying very hard not to laugh as well. He tried to keep a smile from breaking across his lips as he shed his towel and slippers and sank into the water. "Ahhh," he said, an angelic smile animating his face.
Failing to get more than a mild glare out of the other pilot, Duo persisted, "So . . . where'd you get the robe?"
"... it's Relena's..."
Duo gaped. Quatre's eyes snapped open a moment before his cheeks began to perform a slow burn. With an appraising glance, Duo re-examined his friend. A huge grin split his face as he punched Heero lightly in the shoulder. "You dirty dog!" he exclaimed.
Heero glowered but said nothing.
The door slid open again.
"Merry Christmas, Trowa!"
"Aa," the Heavyarms pilot said before letting his own towel flutter to the floor. Heero's gaze flicked in the direction of the abandoned towel and then he leaned his head back and closed his eyes.
"Hey, Trowa, you'll never guess who Heero's started borrowing clothes from."
The green-eyed pilot's face displayed a total lack of interest in Duo's dare.
Duo ignored that and grinned. "This morning he's got Relena's fuzzy bathrobe! Methinks someone got an early Christmas present last night?"
Quatre turned an even deeper shade of pink.
"Shut up, Duo," Heero growled, not even cracking an eye.
Duo stepped away from the fine line he was treading and tried another route. "And what's the deal with a fuzzy bathrobe? Heero Yuy and fuzzy anything just don't go together."
Heero ignored Duo.
"Are you keeping a horde of stuffed animals from us somewhere?" Duo demanded, and this time, Quatre couldn't stop a chuckle from squeaking out. The image of Heero Yuy sleeping on or playing Russian Roulette with fluffy teddy bears was too much.
"Omae o—"
"Excuse me, gentlemen," Pargan said, sticking his head into the steam-filled room, "but Christmas brunch will be served in one hour."
"Brunch!?" Duo exclaimed. "How long do we have to wait before we can open our presents, man?"
Pargan blinked. "It's a Peacecraft family tradition that the family and guests have a lengthy brunch before actually opening the gifts, sir."
"Well that's just great," Duo grouched.
"You've waited an entire year; you can wait two more hours," Heero observed dryly.
"Hey, who's side are you on, anyway?"
"Hn."
"We'll be there shortly, Pargan," Quatre said to the waiting manservant. The sauna door slid closed.
"Well," Duo sighed, folding his lanky arms behind his head. "I guess it's not going to kill me if I have to wait just a little longer. But I'm dying to see what's in the blue and gold present that has Heero's name on it." The boy with the braided chestnut hair grinned. "Maybe it's a teddy bear."
"Rrrr."
Quatre snorted and sank lower in the water to cover his grin.
Trowa took in the entire scene with his usual, unconcerned expression. "Heero, we'll have to finish the chess game soon."
"Aa."
Duo blinked. "You mean you two still aren't done? Heero, what's wrong with you? Whenever I've played Trowa, the game only took two and a half hours at most."
"That's because you'd loose," Heero grumbled.
Duo sighed. "At least it ended! You two could sit there for days and never get any closer to a resolution."
"What's the matter? You didn't make any bets over the game, did you?"
"Humph! I don't see how that's any of your business."
"Hn." There was a beat of silence. "I'm going into Salzburg today after brunch."
"Whaat!?" Duo glared at Yuy. "We'll have to wait for you to get back before we can open the presents!"
"..." And then: "I'll tell Relena to start with out me."
"Yeah, like that's gonna happen. Besides, who's open on Christmas Morning?"
"None of your business."
Trowa's eyes narrowed. Something was still wrong about this situation... but what?
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Heero Yuy knelt under the massive Christmas tree, careful to make as little noise as possible; anyone could walk by the open door an hear what was happening inside the library. With careful hands, the kneeling pilot arranged the meticulously wrapped box so that several other presents obscured it from immediate discovery. Yuy leaned back and wiped a hand across an overheated brow. It was time to get out of here.
I still don't like it. The mission's incomplete. I'm forcing the issue.
But the important thing was that everybody was getting what they deserved, whether they wanted it or not.
What more can I do? I haven't been able to uncover any other helpful information.
Yuy sighed and turned toward the door.
This is all I can do. I hope it's successful.
"Hey, Heero!" Duo was calling from the dining room. "You hungry or what? We're eating without you, man!"
Heero pulled the jean jacket more securely over his green shirt and started toward the dining room.
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A dark-haired girl in a form-fitting, black leather duster slipped easily onto the crowded, Christmas Day streets of Salzburg. After the presents were opened in this town, everybody headed for the main square and the various winter sports and performers that awaited an audience. She sighed as she surveyed the cityscape through a pair of slim-framed glasses.
"Damn you, Heero. You're always running off on your missions and leaving me to sit back at the safe house, twiddling my thumbs, waiting for you to get back. Well, this ends here and now. I'm not going to take this abuse anymore." Determined to locate her wayward friend, the young woman plunged into the streets and began to search.
It was nearly noon when she sat down to rest, having been scouring the streets for the past three hours. "I know you're here," she grumbled, her eyes still moving over the crowds. "I just have to find you. And trust me, I will. I haven't spent the last four years in total haze. I did learn a thing or two from you, Yuy."
She leaned back on the bench and smothered a frustrated moan. "Ugh. Who am I kidding? There's no way I can find The Perfect Soldier. And it's not as if Heero'll just drop out of the sky and sit on me..."
"Excuse me."
"Sure," she replied when a pedestrian bumped her leg. And then the hairs on the back of her neck rose. She looked up and was just in time to see the back of a familiar head disappear into a crowd.
"Heero?"
She jumped to her feet and nimbly sprinted through the crowds, her gaze darting everywhere, searching for the froth of dark brown hair. She was so busy searching that she didn't see the sudden shift in the people directly in front of her. She tripped over someone and felt herself plummeting toward the pavement. She had no time to think before someone grabbed her arm and roughly pulled her back onto her feet.
"Thanks..." she said, turning and staring at her rescuer. A pair of disinterested cobalt eyes stared back. For a moment they simply exchanged looks and then the object of the young woman's search turned to walk away.
Taki continued staring, not believing her luck. But when she realized that Heero had every intention of ignoring her, her ire rose.
"Hey!" she practically shouted in affront. "I've been looking all over for you and when I find you, what do I get? No 'Hey, Taki.' No 'What's shakin,' Taki?' No 'Gee I'm sorry for LEAVING you back at the house and running off on another mission to have LOADS of fun WITHOUT you!'"
Heero glanced blankly at the woman who was determined to keep stride with him.
Taki saw this and grouched, "What do I have to do get a stinking reaction out of you? I'm an artist, I LIVE for reactions, and yet you never smile, never laugh. Well, I'm tired of it, Heero, do you hear me? I'm almost as tired of it as I am of you having your fun-loving, groovin' missions without me. Would it kill you to invite me along once in a while? Hm. Well, I guess it would, considering you're The Perfect Soldier."
Still, no response as they moved through the street.
Taki sighed and tried another track, "Hey, you're not still mad about the Van de Meere house, are you? I mean, sure it was mean of me to get you to plan the heist when all I really wanted was to see those medieval suits of armor. Don't be mad about it. I got some great inspiration out of that, and I'm gonna make so much money off of these sketches that you'll get a nose bleed just looking at the bank balance."
No reply.
"Okay, so you're not mad about that one. Hm. Okay, I know what it is. It was the Andrew thing, wasn't it? I wish I could say I'm sorry over that one, but you've really gotta get laid. I mean, just look at you, all tense and squinty-eyed. And Andrew was hot, and he was willing to go all out. He even told me you were good-lookin' and he hadn't seen anything! That man was a sweetheart and you just brushed him aside, said 'Omae o korosu' and slammed out the door. Geez, Heero! I'm your friend here, just trying to help out another friend, and what kind of thanks do I get?" Taki scrunched up her face and hissed, "'Omae o korosu.'" She glared at Heero again.
No reply.
"Dammit. Just tell me why you're pretending to ignore me! I am not going to leave you alone until you tell me why you're being such a—"
Knock. Knock.
Taki glanced up, startled. She hadn't even noticed that they'd walked onto a private residence. Taking a gander at it, she was suitably impressed. "Wow, nice digs. Why didn't you tell me you were staying here? I can't believe you left me in that hole in Paris. What the hell is the deal, leaving me out of the loop, here? That's it. Either I get an explanation right now or I'm going... to..."
Taki stared up as the great door opened, revealing one of the most gorgeous specimens of manhood she'd ever seen. His violet eyes glittered as he grinned and exclaimed, "Heero! It's about time!"
From behind him, a droll voice said, "Great timing, Yuy. I was just getting ready to kill Maxwell for driving us nuts with his pacing."
Maxwell reached across the threshold and yanked Heero into the house. He held the door open for Taki who immediately followed, not about to be left out.
"We were about ready to send out a search party, man!"
The droll voice came again and Taki identified the source: a young Asian man with his arms crossed over his chest who could give Maxwell a run for his money as far as Male Specimen of the Year went. "You were about to call the search party."
"Yeahyeahyeah. Com'on! Let's open presents!" The violet-eyed youth turned away. "Oh, Rele-ena! Heero's back."
Heero's eyes narrowed. "Back?" he muttered.
Taki turned on her companion as two other striking young men stood up from where they sat on the steps and approached. "Geez," she grouched somewhat loudly, "no wonder you didn't want me to come with you. You knew I'd kill you when I found out that you had this many hot guys up you sleeve!" Taki chuckled and made a motion of rolling up her sleeves. Matchmaker, matchmaker, make Heero a match... "Hmm. Where to start..." She blinked innocently at Heero. "I shouldn't bother asking you this since you're being such an ass, but... do you have any requests?"
"Go away."
"That's not a valid response."
"Com'on, Heero! Presents are getting cold, man!" Duo practically shouted, bouncing into the library.
Heero glowered. It was obvious that this misunderstanding wasn't going to get resolved until after Duo'd had his way. Already, Quatre—the ever-polite Quatre—was stepping forward and introducing himself to the girl called Taki. With a disgusted sound, Heero ignored them both and swept into the library.
"Shesh, what's her problem?" Taki grouched.
Quatre almost choked on his own breathing.
The taller brunette behind him suggested in a smooth, mellow voice, "Perhaps the fact that you've mistaken him for a girl?"
Taki's brows drew forward. She opened her mouth to say something but Quatre's good-natured laughter disrupted her thoughts. "Well, he hasn't killed you yet, so I wouldn't worry about it," the blonde advised. "I'm sure he'll get over it."
"He…?"
Trowa's green eyes narrowed ever so slightly.
"Hey! Are you guys coming or what? I'm dying in here!"
With a sigh, Quatre called back, "We're coming, Duo."
Taki's frown didn't lift as she approached the library door. He...? she mused, her eyes sweeping over Heero, examining her for the tiniest detail that would be out of place. What if she had mistaken this person for her friend, maybe she had looked at someone resembling Heero and had automatically assumed that it was the girl, herself. No... everything about her appearance is as it should be... although she is a little flat-chested, but if she'd wanted to be a boy, that's easily fixed with a special bra or something...
Taki plopped down next to Heero and leaned close to whisper. "I think I almost blew you cover."
The cobalt eyes finally looked at her.
Taki grinned, "Although I've got to admit it, you make a pretty convincing boy. Andrew would shit a brick if he could see you right now."
"Heero? Who's this?"
Taki glanced up at the young woman with honey-brown hair. She smiled and introduced herself as "just a friend."
Duo was half-buried under the massive tree. "Comin' at ya, Quat!" A red and silver wrapped box flew through the air and was easily caught by the Sandrock pilot.
The blonde grinned and Taki was immediately impressed with the young man's incredible cuteness. It was enough to make your eyes water.
"And here's one for Trowa..."
Relena grinned as Duo squirmed farther under the tree. He was obviously a firm believer in the old wives' tale that said all the really great presents were always hidden at the back of the pile. Tinsel and bulbs threatened to crash to the floor as the wriggling teenager maneuvered under the tree with all the grace of a frantic water buffalo.
Taki watched as the individual piles of presents gained in mass. She kept a careful eye on Heero, who didn't seem to be acknowledging her at all. Taki sighed. "Are you really that mad because I insisted on making you share all the fun with me? Is it so hard to believe that I won't get in the way of your mission? I just want to have some fun—"
"Mission?" She had Heero's full attention now.
"Well, yeah," she said, rolling her eyes. "You're getting as bad as me. Pretty soon, you won't be able to remember your name, either."
Heero just stared at her.
"Oh, yes, be afraid. Be very afraid."
"What kind of mission do you think I'm on?" he asked.
Taki shrugged. "Hell if I know. You never tell me anything. But I'm getting better at figuring you out. It only took me five days to figure out you were in Salzburg, and then this morning I found your place on Centre Street, but I still had to pull ever damn string I could get my hands on. Geez, Yuy, what kind of training have you had anyway? Someday, I'm gonna get you to spill it. Nobody can avoid me as easily as you seem to and break into the finest of security systems.
"Oh, by the way, those sketches I did in Paris are turning out really well. I think I'm almost finished with the preliminary design." She grinned. "After I get this puppy built and wrap it around an engine, the Louvre will have to offer to show my work.
"Yeah, I can see the formations now. Performance art at its best. Post-modernism, eat your heart out... What?"
Heero was looking at her as if she'd just lost her mind. Well, no, that wasn't possible; she'd lost her mind a long time ago.
"Why are you looking at me like that? Don't tell me you've forgotten that, too? Man! Don't do this to me, Heero! Don't pick this time, of all times, to pull one of your twisted practical jokes on me!"
"Heero?"
The Wing pilot looked up at Trowa's softly spoken request. The Heavyarms pilot was holding out a white envelope to him, green eyes wary. "Did you write this?"
Heero took the note in his hand and looked at the penned inscription of Trowa's name on the front. His brow creased slightly as he turned the envelope over and saw the Peacecraft insignia on the stationary. He glanced up at Trowa.
"Why are you asking me? I couldn't have written you a note on Relena's stationary."
Quatre blinked. "Why not?"
Cobalt eyes narrowed. Something's going on. "Because I just got here."
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~End of Chapter 2~