Shinigami's Gem
Prelude (AN)
First the corny, cheesy dedication:
This story is dedicated to…um, what was that girl's name again? D... De… Death's … Death's Apprentice? No… Death's Daughter that was it!
This story is Dedicated to Death's Daughter my wonderful beta, and Willow8, my, sometimes highly annoying, head muse, who introduced me to the wonderful world of Gundam Wing and got me hooked without even watching an episode. Wonderful people! They truly deserve the titles of Shinigami and Q-ball I have placed upon them… ALL HAIL!!!
DD: Yeah! Booyah! HAIL ME!!! Heh. Wait 'til I get her hooked on Outlaw Star!
Ok, so I got a leeeeetle bit carried away, ne? Gomen. Oh Shinigami! I've even started to use Japanese when I'm not writing animé ficlets!
DD: _And_ when she's not writing at all…Usually to the dinner ladies at school…
Now for the most important things:
The
D I S C L A I M E R!!!! (insert evil laughter and noises here)
Dontcha just love these things? They all know you don't own Gundam Wing or whatever the hell you're writing about and yet they still make you write these stupid things! If I owned them feel very safe in the knowledge that Relena (aka sadistic-stalker-biatch) would have been killed by Heero the first time they met and would, under no circumstances, be allowed to rule the world at any point and contaminate it with her pink stalker ways! (Anyone who knows how she can bear to drive in that monstrosity she calls a car please tell me) If by any miracle she did manage to survive she would be routinely and brutally tortured by being made to watch Duo and Heero have hgms on her own Queen of the World desk… repeatedly!
DD: Ooh! Can I be routinely and brutally tortured too? ;)
Also in my perfect G-wing universe, Heero and Duo would have confessed their undying love for one another and be for too busy… ok, so you get the picture. Kitty-Quat and Twowa would be very much together and extremely kawaii! While Wufei would be teaching me how to fight properly and getting thwapped on the nose any time he made a sexist comment. Or maybe I'd be kind and give him Treize, Zechs or Sally… or all three! ;)
DD: Or me!! I want Wuffles!!
The Gundams would be revered as Gods as would I and my amazing writing talents (NOT! Lol). They would all be very happy and … um… lets not go into what exactly they'd be doing. But for those of you who know my sick mind, yes, it would definitely involve glass elevators!
DD: w00t!!
So, as you can see, I, Mariana, do NOT OWN GUNDAM-WING, ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS, PLOT DEVICES, OBJECTS, NAMES, etc. etc. (Although if anyone feels like giving them to me I'd be more than happy about it!)
DD: I BAGS DUO AND WUFFLES!!
For Shinigami's sake! I barely even own the plot line. I'm not entirely sure who does but this fic is basically a fusion with… I'll take guesses and for every correct guess I'll add a little 1x2 or 3x4 onto the ending… (or maybe just in the blooper reel)
DD: **grins evilly**
I am also, regretfully, getting NO MONEY for this fic. NONE WHATSOEVER. I only do this because I have a sad life and often feel the need to take other people's characters and mess around with them to make me feel better.
DD: Trust me, if she was getting paid, I'd be trying to scav it off her.
And now a W A R N I N G for those of you out there who haven't got the not so subtle hints I've been giving out just yet:
THIS IS A SLASH FIC. IT CONTAINS SHOUNEN AI, ie. a GAY RELATIONSHIP
Or two, or three… maybe even more, I dunno, I don't count. So please don't flame me about this. I really don't want to have to rant about another slash hater… actually, on second thoughts, I like denouncing homophobes, although I do believe you are entitled to your own POV (I love that style of fic :D) however, rest assured, should you flame me I will not be happy and will set all five of the G-boys on you **evil laughter**
DD: W00t! Slash!! **waves pom-poms**
Now that I've warned you all about that. Here is a list of the pairings you can expect to find. Blame my muses for them.
MAIN: 1x2/2x1
SLIGHTLY LESS MAIN BUT STILL IN THERE DAMMIT: 3x4/4x3
NOT REALLY THAT MAIN: Past 13x6
NOT MAIN AT ALL, HARDLY EVEN THERE IN FACT:
11x13 (I think O.o)
5x1/1x5 (past)
2x4/4x2 (for Willow, I told you to blame my muses)
5x2 (for Death's Daughter- damn you)
DD: **mutters** I'd be happier if it was 1x2x5…
Solox2/2xSolo (more friendship, but could be read as more)
Shinigami x 4
CREEPY SCARY PAIRINGS THAT I SWEAR I DIDN'T INTEND TO PUT IN:
Shinigami x 2 (Kinda main ^^;;)
Shinigami x 1
Maybe even some Shinigami x 5?
THE ONE PAIRING THAT IS COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY ONE-SIDED AND I WOULD NEVER WRITE ANY OTHER WAY:
Rx1 (Aaaargh! **runs screaming**)
DD: **shoots Relena**
And that leads me to my next WARNING: RELENA BASHING. Intentional and rejoiced in. Y'know I have a 'Die Relena, DIE!!!' sign at home that I hold up whenever Ojousan comes onscreen? Well, I do. And it rocks! THANK YOU DEATH'S DAUGHTER! **would glomp but there are enough OOCs in this fic without turning myself into one as well**
DD: I'll draw you a better one at some point…Though I will admit being very pleased with the way you and the sniper rifle turned out. And the tank…
Also in this fic- bastardised Treize- again I didn't mean for it to happen, honest… but it did.
-long pointless chapters about nothing in particular (but don't let that put you off)
-A distinct lack of Fei-bashing. That's right. It's my first G-wing fic in which I've been able to not have Wufei too stereotypical- YAY ME!
DD: w00t!! **glomps 'Fei-fei** He's too lovely to be bashed!!
Okay, so that must seriously be enough from me. Oh Kamisama! No one's gonna read all this? 5 pages of AN? Oooh KUSO!
I'd better get on with the fic.
V^V^V~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ///_^ "^"'"^" ^_^~ V¬V¬V
DD: **eyes the G-boys** What're you looking so happy about? Are you _all_ masochists?
Oh yeah, before I forget. There'll be gender swap in here too, ok, so you HAVE been warned!
///.O "O"."o" O.o~ V¬V¬V VOVoV~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DD: **waves pom-poms and cheers**
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PrologueA small smirk crept onto the young Prince's face as he nudged his friend in the ribs, bringing the young boy's attention to him. Silently he nodded to their bodyguard, Miss Noin, and watched as a matching smirk graced the other boy's countenance. With a slight nod he accepted the plan.
At an unknown signal, they turned and melted into the crowd, not even a childish giggle escaping.
Prince Heero of Elleins had been brought up the perfect heir. He knew most languages fluently and everything about politics and economics. Such an upbringing had quickly put a stop to such things as giggling, or even smiling properly. And, unlike most boys his age, such actions just didn't suit the stoic Prince.
The same went for his lifetime companion and bodyguard, Chang Wufei. Wufei or 'the Dragon' as many called him, took his responsibility very seriously and, as far as the Prince's safety was concerned, there was no one more thorough.
However, just like any young children, they longed to see new things. Exploration was high on their list of favourite past times, and, having searched the palace high and low, and knowing the place inside out, they had decided to take the chance provided by a rare trip outside the walls.
Which was why Captain Noin was now frantically peering through the crowds of the market place,
trying desperately to find her errant charges and worrying about how firmly her head was attached.
Meanwhile, in a back alley, Heero and Wufei were hurrying away from the scene of the crime and heading toward adventure.
At the end of the back street they found themselves in one of the far less affluent areas of Elleins. The houses were ramshackle and falling down. Laundry hung from home-made washing lines, tattered, torn and still dirty. Rubbish and animal dung were everywhere and throughout the place hung a smell of filth and dirt. Behind closed and broken shutters a child could be heard bawling, but instead of comfort, a slap was heard.
The two stood, shocked at the squalor here, and even more shocked to discover people living in it. Having grown up inside the protective cocoon of the palace walls they had never witnessed such complete poverty and had never even though it existed. Neither of them had the slightest idea that to the people who lived there this was normal, or that, after a while, you didn't notice the stench. And they couldn't imagine that some of those who lived there didn't even live in the broken down old houses but rather on the street itself.
Taking in their surroundings blinded them to much else. Including the street gang steadily advancing in on them. The first thing they noticed was a leering face, grinning at them from beneath a shock of red hair.
"Now what've we got here?" the creature asked. Its clothes had once been rags and were a dusty brown colour, though the original colour could not be discerned by the naked eye. The boy, at least it looked male, had a skeletal figure, thin from lack f nutrition and years of living by its wits. The face was black with caked on dirt and the hair was matted and dull. But the eyes were clear, a pale ice blue, that both looked hungry and vicious. Wufei carefully positioned himself at his Prince's side.
Duo Maxwell tagged along with the rest of the gang, his stomach aching with hunger. They were on a scavenge to see what they could find, but so far nothing seemed to be their limit. Frustrated, he kicked a stone along creating a cloud of red dust, which went all over him.
Once it had cleared he found the rest of the gang gone and a small icicle of panic pierced his heart. It was not a good idea to wander the streets alone. You gained attention from unwanted quarters. He sped up his pace as he caught a fat drunkard leering lecherously at him.
That was one problem he had discovered about long hair- it attracted all the wrong attention. It wasn't wise to look effeminate on the streets, but, fuck the unwanted attention, it was his hair and he would keep it. He was good at looking after himself anyway. But that didn't mean he was going to slow his pace, after all, there's a difference between being able to look after yourself and looking for trouble!
Just before he rounded the bend Solo's voice alerted him to the gang's presence and that they had found something, so he turned the corner, prepared for something interesting.
The rest of the gang were surrounding two strangers. His friends' clothes and appearance looking even more impoverished next to the splendour of their visitors silk and velvet.
"Solo?" he said quietly, attracting the gang leader's attention… and everyone else's. He stopped in shock for a moment as the two guests turned their gazes on him. He squirmed slightly under the scrutiny under the intensity of the glares from both cobalt and black, before recovering and taking in their appearance properly. One wore white and black and stood with the ease of one bred for fighting. He stood slightly behind the other, as if deferring to his authority. The second was even more impressive. Deep blue eyes with a strong feeling of power to them stared out, as though through his very soul, from beneath had of dark brown hair that gave Duo the idea that no matter what you did to it, it would look just as messy. His clothes were not as simple as the others designed in a grander style, but he too had the poise of an expert fighter.
"Do you think this wise?" Duo asked, tearing his eyes away from the captives and onto his leader.
Heero started as another voice came from behind, and spun on the ball of his foot, followed shortly by Wufei, who took up position behind his right shoulder.
At first he thought the new arrival was female, the braid hanging down hinting at it. But as he looked he realised his first impressions had bee mistaken. It was male, a wiry, ill-fed young boy about the same age as he and Wufei, but shorter owing to malnutrition. He was dressed in dusty black that looked worse for wear. But then Heero caught sight of his eyes, a fierce violet, that seemed to be assessing Wufei and himself, calculating how much of a threat they were. As he spoke again he turned to hear the other boy's reply.
"They're in our territory…" Heero blinked, the only outward sign of his confusion. Their territory? What was that supposed to mean. Surely his father owned this place. He assessed the situation and decided what they must mean.
"You live here?" he thought he had managed to keep all the disbelief and shock from his voice, but a pair of violet eyes told him otherwise. But he couldn't see how anyone could live here, in this hellish world. Wufei sniffed, not being able to hide his disdain.
"You live here?" Duo stiffened at the tone the young snob used. Sure it wasn't much to look at, and it sure as shit wasn't what he was used to, but did he have to be so… so… obvious?
He heard the other guy sniff in disgust, and felt a grin grow on his face.
"Yeah," he said, "why? D'ya feel like buying it? Dirt cheap!" There was a snigger round the group at that, and he brought up his eyes to meet the rich boy's. They were unreadable, but there was the faintest flicker in them that confused him. Guilt?
Heero felt guilty as he looked into the young boy's eyes. Although he was smiling they showed he was upset and they were hard with dislike. But as they locked gazes again, something softened, as though the boy could see how sorry he was for the remark.
Solo, the leader, was creeping closer and Heero felt Wufei shift his weight once again seeing the red head as a greater threat, and Heero had to agree. He turned from the smaller boy.
"Let's see what you're worth…" Solo drawled, and the rest of the gang took the hint to come forward, but the violet eyed boy rushed in front of them.
"Solo…" he muttered and then continued, so low that Heero could no longer hear them. But the tones, the actions, and the facial expressions told him all he needed to know. The younger boy was arguing against attacking them. Probably quite successfully as well from Solo's resigned and slightly irritated expression.
He held out a hand to Wufei, and felt him relax. There was no longer any worry.
At long last the two gang members turned back to them. Solo took another step forward.
"You two are lucky," Heero felt tempted to say it was actually the other way round, but restrained himself. "Shinigami here," he gestured to his companion and Heero started in spite of himself. Shinigami? God of Death? Maybe they had been the lucky ones, "has pointed out that you two look like fairly high brow and fancy to-do kinda people whose disappearance, or mugging, would cause some major problems and have us hunted down like rats. So we'll let you go… this time. But put one foot on our turf again, snobs, and we'll have you." It wasn't the most threatening speech in the world and he was lucky the Wufei managed to contain his snort, but 'Shinigami' s eyes pleaded with him just to accept it and go. But he couldn't, not leaving them like this. He unfastened a purse from his belt and threw it at Solo's feet, where it clinked. He saw violet eyes widen and a true smile spread across the small face. A whispered 'thank you' was heard in the shocked silence as Heero and Wufei turned away.
"Hn," was his only response to this, and he didn't look back to see purple eyes follow him down the alley and into the market until the crowd concealed him.
Noin scolded then both soundly when they returned, but two secret smiles behind her back agreed: it was worth it.
A dark man sat in silence, gazing at the apparition before him, which smiled smugly. He was only allowed one more question. He had to pick wisely.
A minute or two to collect his thoughts, opening his mouth to ask every once in a while then closing his mouth as he decided against it, before he chose a course of action.
"Who can enter Shinigami's World?" he asked carefully. The apparition's smile grew.
"Only Shinigami can enter Shinigami's world…" it informed him, delighted at the chance to be unhelpful. It then disappeared, leaving the man behind, angry and frustrated. How was he supposed to get Shinigami to steal Shinigami's gem?
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So there's the Prologue, and the AN, which I wrote before FF.net banned A/Ns as separate chapters grrr, so this chapter is 2x as long as it should be… ah well..
R&R
DD: **waves pom-poms and cheers**