Hey guys, bluebolt here! Hehe. I'm bringing this to you straight from my
dad's laptop, all the way from my hotel room. I'm amazed at how many
reviews I got, but regret that I cannot reply directly to each one right
now. Well, I'm sure you didn't come here to listen to me prattle on about
nothing in particular. On with the fanfiction!
The pack had been wandering through the forest for weeks, searching hopelessly for food. Mice were turned out of their burrows, squirrels were chased from their trees, but it was never enough. The wolves were slowly starving. Once theirs had been a great pack of almost ten members, but it had dwindled to six. The old and the young were the first to die, and their deaths prolonged the lives of the other members. They were eaten, not a scrap left on their bones, every inch of skeleton gleaned of its meat. Still it was not enough. They were hungry, oh so hungry; and the wolves had become desperate. They began to wander nearer and nearer the giant castle in the middle of the forest, searching for food. It could only be luck that a human stumbled into their midst in the middle of the day, one august afternoon. He was delivered unto their jaws, weary, emotional, and oblivious to the dangers of the forest. The wolves would have laughed if they weren't so desolately ravenous.
Duo had been walking for almost three hours straight; he was cold, miserable, and incredibly lost. He didn't understand why the Beast had been so horrible to him over some wild flowers. It made no sense, no matter how much he hated flowers, it seemed like he'd totally overreacted. The boy was so wrapped up in his thoughts, he didn't see the wolves until he was completely surrounded. There was no growl of warning, not vicious howl; only the snap of a twig. Duo whirled around, his eyes wide, and there they were. He shouted out when he saw them and broke into a run, pushing his way through the ragged forest shrubbery with panic slowly overtaking his senses. A wolf leapt out and snapped at his heels, snagging the hem of his trousers in its fanged jaws. He toppled over with a yelp, cracking his head on a rock and slipping into unconsciousness.
When Duo awoke, his head throbbed with a vengeance and there was a sharp, stabbing pain in his leg. When he opened his eyes to take in his surroundings, he found himself back in his room in the castle. The boy sat up, wondering if the entire event with the flowers and the wolves had just been a horrible, confused dream. Then he glanced down and saw his shin, the leg of the trousers torn and ripped and a nasty scab forming over what he guessed to be the wounds of a wolf attack. He frowned, sitting up and feeling a fresh stab of agony in his temple. Trying to focus his blurry gaze, he squinted at the brown and green blob by his window.
"How... how did I get back here?" The blob turned to look at him, and as Duo's sight sharpened, he realized it was the Beast.
"You're awake." It stated, not registering the question that the bright- eyed boy had asked. "I thought you might have..." The creature's voice trailed off, and Duo raised an eyebrow.
"Thought I might have what?" He prodded, leaning forward on his knees and feeling a sudden swarm of dizziness erupt from inside his head. Duo leaned a bit to the side and began to slip off the bed in his disoriented state. There was a rustle of fabric, and he felt a pair of strong, furry arms wrap around his waist and haul him back onto the bed.
"You should stay still. You hit your head quite hard." The Beast pulled away again, but didn't return to his seat beside the windows.
"Thought I might have what?" Duo persisted, struggling to sit up again. His host sighed, running a paw through its bangs.
"If I tell you, will you stop trying to fall out of bed?" Duo started to laugh, but a ringing set up in his head when he did so and cut short his chuckling.
"I guess so."
"I thought you might have died. I thought..." The Beast trailed off again, and only continued when Duo sent an exasperated glare his way. "I thought I was too late to save you. Your head was bleeding... it was... down your neck... I thought... thought you might have broken your neck... thought I was too late... too late..." The beast's speech tumbled off into incoherent mumbling, and Duo reached out and touched his shoulder to let him know that it was okay. The Beast winced and pulled back, and it was only then that Duo noticed the deep wounds and slashes that adorned the creature's torso and arms.
"You're hurt!" The boy exclaimed, his dizziness forgotten as he leaned forward to inspect the gashes more closely. The Beast pulled away, both from pain and from his introverted tendencies. "Stay still- let me see!" Duo insisted, grabbing a hold of the Beast's thick, hirsute arm and pulling it towards his face for a better look. The Beast winced and growled.
"It's nothing. Stop touching it, it hurts!" He snarled, trying to pull away but unable to do so without consequently wrenching Duo off the bed. The boy glanced at the cuts and his frown deepened.
"If it hurts, it's not nothing. Let me help!" The Beast growled and pulled away successfully, moving from the bed and making for the door. Duo sat up quickly, his lightheadedness returning in a sudden bout that kept his feet off the floor. Before the Beast could leave, he made one last appeal. "Please! I... I owe you one for saving me." The Beast turned around and gave Duo a firm, solid stare, meeting his eyes again for the first time since the tower incident. There was a pause, and then,
"Okay." The Beast stuck his head out into the hallway and called out someone's name, then returned to the room and sat down on the bed with an almost weary sigh. The two of them sat in silence for a long time, and then Duo daringly asked something that had been bothering him since the morning.
"Why are you... so against flowers?" The Beast was caught off guard by the question, and almost answered him. Then he clamped his mouth shut, considering his situation. Heero desperately wanted to spill his guts to his captive, tell him everything, and tell him the truth. The truth about the servants, the truth about the castle, and... the truth about the Beast. He longed to tell him that long ago he had been a rich prince, a prince with everything anyone could ever want, and a cruelty and greed born of contempt. He took everything for granted- including his good looks. When an old woman showed up on his doorstep those years ago, offering a single rose in return for shelter for the night, Prince Heero had been revolted by her appearance and had turned her away. Who was he to know that she was in reality a beautiful sorceress? No, not a sorceress, he thought bitterly, a witch. He had put this curse on him, and placed his beautiful self in this ugly, wretched body. When Duo had made the simple offering of flowers, he was reminded far too much of that rose that was slowly wilting up in the west wing, the rose that signified how long he had to fall in love. Love. That was the answer to this problem, the cure to this disease. But who could love an ugly, atrocious thing like a Beast? Even if someone could see past the exterior, he knew he was only a cold dark monster on the inside.
"Yes, master?" A feminine voice said, interrupting his deep thoughts. He looked up to see a teapot edging her way around the door, almost apprehensively.
"Sally," The Beast said, trying to put her at ease, and almost apologising for how he'd been especially cold to his servants the past week. He then turned to Duo, gesturing to the teapot, "Tell her what you need, and she'll get it." Duo paused, confused, and then remembered the wounds.
"Oh, yeah, that's right. Could you uh, get some bandages... and warm water?" As the servant named Sally ducked out of the room with a nod, Duo added, "Thanks!" She smiled a bit to herself as she rounded the corner, hopping down the stairs to the kitchen. When she arrived, a quick glance around told her that the majority of the servants were still hiding away in the kitchen, wary of their master's wrath. He'd been totally unapproachable for the past few hours, snarling at anyone that stuck their head into Duo's room. Trowa, Quatre and Wufei all sighed collectively when the teapot announced that the boy had woken up and the Beast's temper had been quelled. They then set to work to gather the bandages, while Sally Potts set about to boil the water. The troupe of servants spoke lightly among themselves as they worked, pondering the boy who'd arrived at the castle a week ago.
"He's certainly a nice change from the Master," Sally admit quietly, filling herself with water and hopping over to the stove, "The boy is certainly polite and cheerful, even if he's a bit strange."
"Listen to the pot call the kettle black," Quatre piped, earning a chiding from a cauldron a few shelves away, "I mean to say, we're not exactly normal ourselves, are we?" He explained quickly, not wanted to offend anyone.
"True." Trowa put in, trying to pick up bandages without setting fire to them, and failing somewhat.
"It's unfair that we were punished for his mistakes. I can understand him being cursed, but why us too? It's unjust!" Wufei declared, but nobody replied to that; they'd heard the same speech made dozens of times before.
"But that boy, Duo," Quatre said quickly, trying to avoid the subject of their uncomfortable situation, "he does seem nice. He's a bit... confused though, I think." They all gave him odd stares, as if asking what made him say such a thing, and the little teacup fell silent, suddenly finding the tiles on the floor very interesting. Sally declared that the water was warm enough and Trowa enlisted the help of a living coat rack to help carry the articles up to the room. The trip was made in silence, and Wufei and Quatre chose to stay behind, unable to find a way to help, or (in a certain timepiece's opinion) a reason to bother doing so. When they came to the door, remnants of a conversation floated out from inside the chamber.
"It wouldn't hurt to be a little nicer, you know." A pause.
"I know."
"Then why are you still so mean?"
"I have my reasons."
"Oh, come off it." The candlestick had expected such a phrase coming from Duo would be angry, or annoyed, but there was a certain lightness to his voice that suggested he was trying to hide a smile. It was then that Sally decided to knock on the door ad nudge it open as far as a teapot could, making room for the coat rack to come into the room and set down the tray of bandages and the empty bowl. Sally emptied the contents of herself into said bowl, still unused to pouring hot liquids out through her nose, but having resigned herself to this duty long ago. Duo smiled and thanked them yet again, while the Beast merely grunted and ignored the servants. The boy shot him a look, but he was ignored just as condescendingly. Sally and Trowa left the room and left the two to their devices, trying very hard not to listen in as the conversation sprung up again on a different note.
"Now, sit still while I clean those cuts."
"But it hurts!"
"Don't be a baby. Of course it's going to sting a bit..." Back in Duo's room, the tray had been set on the side of the bed, and Duo had set about soaking the bandages in the water and wrapping them around the long scratches and bite marks that adorned the Beast's arms and shoulders. "What would you servants think if they knew their big bad boss fussed and fret this much over something so small, hmm?" The Beast merely grunted in reply, staring moodily out the window, avoiding Duo's gaze. He'd been trying to do so ever since he'd run into the fact that Duo was a boy, because despite that revelation, the Beast was sickened to discover he still found those bright violet eyes very attractive. The fact had added to the bruising his ego took, adding an extra insult to remind him how he'd been deceived by those wide eyes and that long hair. He hissed suddenly when Duo's careful binding reached a particularly deep gash in his left arm, pulling away and growling. Duo met his gaze apologetically, but finding himself entranced by the eyes of a male only aggravated the Beast more. He rose and stormed off without a word of warning, leaving the boy sitting on the edge of his bed and looking out down a hallway after the Beast for the second time that week.
'I must have hurt him a lot for him to storm off like that...' Duo thought nervously, hoping he hadn't angered the temperamental Beast too much. He picked up the tray and set it beside the window before retreating to his bed again, just in time for his pounding headache to return. He lay down and closed his eyes, trying to get to sleep despite the screaming pain in his temple and legs, but found one phrase running through his mind over and over.
"...I thought you might have died..." The way he had said it, his monotone slightly cracked to reveal an ounce of concern...
"...I thought you might have died..." Duo rolled over, frowning. He couldn't have been concerned about Duo. He'd only wanted to keep him in the castle because he thought he was a girl... he didn't want a companion, he wanted a lover...
"...I thought you might have died..." Still... even if the Beast didn't want a friend, he definitely needed one. Locked up in a castle day after day with nobody to talk to, it must get awfully lonely.
"...I thought you might have died..." Duo slowly slipped into a light slumber, lost in his mental ramblings and falling asleep to the sound of what he thought, in his dream-like state, could only be the voice of a concerned friend.
Duo ran through a pile of leaves, laughing happily and grinning up at the baffled face of the Beast. His lithe arm shot up and grabbed the hairy one of his reluctant comrade, pulling him down among the reds and golds of autumn.
"Come on, it's fun! Playing in leaves is what fall is all about!"
"What are you, three?" The Beast grumbled after spitting out a mouthful of leaves, getting up slowly and glancing down at Duo, who seemed to enjoy the simple things in life more than anyone else he knew. In reply, the braided boy grabbed a handful of leaves and threw it up in the air, watching as they fell down and entangled themselves in the shaggy hair of the Beast.
"Nope! I'm three and a half, thank you very much!" Duo giggled, waggling his tongue to go along with the statement and darting between the trees that littered the Beast's large estate. He'd been putting on a brave face and acting the fool ever since the night after he tried to run away, hoping to crack the shell the Beast put up around himself and give him something he subconsciously cried out for every time he looked at Duo- a friend. As he poked his head out from behind a large oak, Duo saw that maybe he'd begun to chip away at it already; he was met with a flurry of leaves that the Beast dumped on his head, grinning ever so softly but still proving that he'd begun to lighten up a little. Duo laughed loudly, shaking the pile off his shoulders and head and then running off. The Beast raised an eyebrow at him, walking after him.
"We should get back inside. It's getting late."
"Can't catch meeee!" Duo called out, his long braid whipping around behind him as he wove his way between great oaks and tall elms as he tried to prolong his game. The Beast sighed, daring to smile when nobody could see and then breaking into a determined run, catching up to his prey in a matter of seconds and picking him up, hoisting him right off the ground and slinging him over his shoulder. Duo chortled, and let himself be carried back to the castle for dinner. "I guess you can catch me then," he said breathlessly, worn out between racing and laughing. As usual, the Beast only grunted. He made his way to the door and wrenched it open, dumping Duo on the floor with just enough pity to let him land on his feet. They wandered inside and sat down at the oversized table, quickly met by Trowa who scuttled off to announce their arrival to the rest of the kitchen. Soon they were served with warm soup and fresh, piping hot bread to chase away any chills they might have brought in with them from the outside. Winter was fast approaching, and it could be seen in the manners of the meals that were being served. Duo watched the Beast eating, curiosity overwhelming him; the Beast had never actually stayed at the table to eat before.
Sensing that a certain pair of amethyst eyes were riveted to his every move, the Beast looked up and shot an icy glare at the mouse sitting across from him, twiddling its long tail of hair innocently. When it squeaked softly and focused on its own bowl of soup, the Beast set about the task of eating. Normally, he could consume his meals in any manner he wanted without having to think about how his boorish table etiquette looked to others, but now he had an audience, and he wasn't about to make a fool of himself. Picking up the spoon that lay innocently beside his bowl, he formed a fist around it and found the article of silverware completely covered by his thick fingers, hidden from view. He grit his teeth and shuffled the spoon around in his grip so that the useful end stuck out of his fist, then stared at the bowl. It had been so long since he'd bothered about appearances, he'd practically forgotten how to eat with anything other than his paws and mouth. He lowered the spoon into the scalding soup, biting his lip and drawing his hand back when the side of his thumb was dipped in as well. Duo watched from the other side of the table and stiffled a giggle, returning his gaze to his bowl just in time to avoid another nasty glare from the Beast. There was an irritated grumble from the opposite end, and the frustrated Heero rose from his chair, ready to retreat to the shadows to eat his meal like he normally did.
"No, wait," Duo said quickly, feeling bad for laughing at him, "don't leave. It doesn't matter to me how you..." he paused, trying to decide how to phrase the sentence, "whether you use a spoon or not. I'm not here to judge you." The Beast was surprised by this, to say the least, and sat back down, replacing his bowl.
"You sure you don't mind? I don't really... well I'm not..."
"Just eat the damn soup!" Duo cried laughingly, grinning and popping another spoonful into his mouth. The Beast nodded, although it was more to himself than to the noisy little mouse. He ineffectively brushed his unruly bangs out of his face and then lowered his mouth to the bowl, lapping up the soup like a dog and keeping his eyes on Duo the whole time. Not once did he stare, or laugh, or send him a look of disgust. He'd told the truth; Duo wasn't there to judge him. The moment he thought it, the Beast told himself that of course it had been true. Duo never lied.
-End Chapter-
Yay! There you go, guys. This chapter is dedicated to Mitsugi and her (?) incredible story Bridlewood Manor. I just finished reading it today, and it is absolutely amazing! Not to mention very extensive, cultured, and long! Any of you that have read it will have probably noticed my little tribute to the story near the end of the chappie; any of you that haven't read it should go read it now. XD Keep readin' and reviewin', and I'll keep writin'! Hooray for 1 x 2 x 1!!!!
The pack had been wandering through the forest for weeks, searching hopelessly for food. Mice were turned out of their burrows, squirrels were chased from their trees, but it was never enough. The wolves were slowly starving. Once theirs had been a great pack of almost ten members, but it had dwindled to six. The old and the young were the first to die, and their deaths prolonged the lives of the other members. They were eaten, not a scrap left on their bones, every inch of skeleton gleaned of its meat. Still it was not enough. They were hungry, oh so hungry; and the wolves had become desperate. They began to wander nearer and nearer the giant castle in the middle of the forest, searching for food. It could only be luck that a human stumbled into their midst in the middle of the day, one august afternoon. He was delivered unto their jaws, weary, emotional, and oblivious to the dangers of the forest. The wolves would have laughed if they weren't so desolately ravenous.
Duo had been walking for almost three hours straight; he was cold, miserable, and incredibly lost. He didn't understand why the Beast had been so horrible to him over some wild flowers. It made no sense, no matter how much he hated flowers, it seemed like he'd totally overreacted. The boy was so wrapped up in his thoughts, he didn't see the wolves until he was completely surrounded. There was no growl of warning, not vicious howl; only the snap of a twig. Duo whirled around, his eyes wide, and there they were. He shouted out when he saw them and broke into a run, pushing his way through the ragged forest shrubbery with panic slowly overtaking his senses. A wolf leapt out and snapped at his heels, snagging the hem of his trousers in its fanged jaws. He toppled over with a yelp, cracking his head on a rock and slipping into unconsciousness.
When Duo awoke, his head throbbed with a vengeance and there was a sharp, stabbing pain in his leg. When he opened his eyes to take in his surroundings, he found himself back in his room in the castle. The boy sat up, wondering if the entire event with the flowers and the wolves had just been a horrible, confused dream. Then he glanced down and saw his shin, the leg of the trousers torn and ripped and a nasty scab forming over what he guessed to be the wounds of a wolf attack. He frowned, sitting up and feeling a fresh stab of agony in his temple. Trying to focus his blurry gaze, he squinted at the brown and green blob by his window.
"How... how did I get back here?" The blob turned to look at him, and as Duo's sight sharpened, he realized it was the Beast.
"You're awake." It stated, not registering the question that the bright- eyed boy had asked. "I thought you might have..." The creature's voice trailed off, and Duo raised an eyebrow.
"Thought I might have what?" He prodded, leaning forward on his knees and feeling a sudden swarm of dizziness erupt from inside his head. Duo leaned a bit to the side and began to slip off the bed in his disoriented state. There was a rustle of fabric, and he felt a pair of strong, furry arms wrap around his waist and haul him back onto the bed.
"You should stay still. You hit your head quite hard." The Beast pulled away again, but didn't return to his seat beside the windows.
"Thought I might have what?" Duo persisted, struggling to sit up again. His host sighed, running a paw through its bangs.
"If I tell you, will you stop trying to fall out of bed?" Duo started to laugh, but a ringing set up in his head when he did so and cut short his chuckling.
"I guess so."
"I thought you might have died. I thought..." The Beast trailed off again, and only continued when Duo sent an exasperated glare his way. "I thought I was too late to save you. Your head was bleeding... it was... down your neck... I thought... thought you might have broken your neck... thought I was too late... too late..." The beast's speech tumbled off into incoherent mumbling, and Duo reached out and touched his shoulder to let him know that it was okay. The Beast winced and pulled back, and it was only then that Duo noticed the deep wounds and slashes that adorned the creature's torso and arms.
"You're hurt!" The boy exclaimed, his dizziness forgotten as he leaned forward to inspect the gashes more closely. The Beast pulled away, both from pain and from his introverted tendencies. "Stay still- let me see!" Duo insisted, grabbing a hold of the Beast's thick, hirsute arm and pulling it towards his face for a better look. The Beast winced and growled.
"It's nothing. Stop touching it, it hurts!" He snarled, trying to pull away but unable to do so without consequently wrenching Duo off the bed. The boy glanced at the cuts and his frown deepened.
"If it hurts, it's not nothing. Let me help!" The Beast growled and pulled away successfully, moving from the bed and making for the door. Duo sat up quickly, his lightheadedness returning in a sudden bout that kept his feet off the floor. Before the Beast could leave, he made one last appeal. "Please! I... I owe you one for saving me." The Beast turned around and gave Duo a firm, solid stare, meeting his eyes again for the first time since the tower incident. There was a pause, and then,
"Okay." The Beast stuck his head out into the hallway and called out someone's name, then returned to the room and sat down on the bed with an almost weary sigh. The two of them sat in silence for a long time, and then Duo daringly asked something that had been bothering him since the morning.
"Why are you... so against flowers?" The Beast was caught off guard by the question, and almost answered him. Then he clamped his mouth shut, considering his situation. Heero desperately wanted to spill his guts to his captive, tell him everything, and tell him the truth. The truth about the servants, the truth about the castle, and... the truth about the Beast. He longed to tell him that long ago he had been a rich prince, a prince with everything anyone could ever want, and a cruelty and greed born of contempt. He took everything for granted- including his good looks. When an old woman showed up on his doorstep those years ago, offering a single rose in return for shelter for the night, Prince Heero had been revolted by her appearance and had turned her away. Who was he to know that she was in reality a beautiful sorceress? No, not a sorceress, he thought bitterly, a witch. He had put this curse on him, and placed his beautiful self in this ugly, wretched body. When Duo had made the simple offering of flowers, he was reminded far too much of that rose that was slowly wilting up in the west wing, the rose that signified how long he had to fall in love. Love. That was the answer to this problem, the cure to this disease. But who could love an ugly, atrocious thing like a Beast? Even if someone could see past the exterior, he knew he was only a cold dark monster on the inside.
"Yes, master?" A feminine voice said, interrupting his deep thoughts. He looked up to see a teapot edging her way around the door, almost apprehensively.
"Sally," The Beast said, trying to put her at ease, and almost apologising for how he'd been especially cold to his servants the past week. He then turned to Duo, gesturing to the teapot, "Tell her what you need, and she'll get it." Duo paused, confused, and then remembered the wounds.
"Oh, yeah, that's right. Could you uh, get some bandages... and warm water?" As the servant named Sally ducked out of the room with a nod, Duo added, "Thanks!" She smiled a bit to herself as she rounded the corner, hopping down the stairs to the kitchen. When she arrived, a quick glance around told her that the majority of the servants were still hiding away in the kitchen, wary of their master's wrath. He'd been totally unapproachable for the past few hours, snarling at anyone that stuck their head into Duo's room. Trowa, Quatre and Wufei all sighed collectively when the teapot announced that the boy had woken up and the Beast's temper had been quelled. They then set to work to gather the bandages, while Sally Potts set about to boil the water. The troupe of servants spoke lightly among themselves as they worked, pondering the boy who'd arrived at the castle a week ago.
"He's certainly a nice change from the Master," Sally admit quietly, filling herself with water and hopping over to the stove, "The boy is certainly polite and cheerful, even if he's a bit strange."
"Listen to the pot call the kettle black," Quatre piped, earning a chiding from a cauldron a few shelves away, "I mean to say, we're not exactly normal ourselves, are we?" He explained quickly, not wanted to offend anyone.
"True." Trowa put in, trying to pick up bandages without setting fire to them, and failing somewhat.
"It's unfair that we were punished for his mistakes. I can understand him being cursed, but why us too? It's unjust!" Wufei declared, but nobody replied to that; they'd heard the same speech made dozens of times before.
"But that boy, Duo," Quatre said quickly, trying to avoid the subject of their uncomfortable situation, "he does seem nice. He's a bit... confused though, I think." They all gave him odd stares, as if asking what made him say such a thing, and the little teacup fell silent, suddenly finding the tiles on the floor very interesting. Sally declared that the water was warm enough and Trowa enlisted the help of a living coat rack to help carry the articles up to the room. The trip was made in silence, and Wufei and Quatre chose to stay behind, unable to find a way to help, or (in a certain timepiece's opinion) a reason to bother doing so. When they came to the door, remnants of a conversation floated out from inside the chamber.
"It wouldn't hurt to be a little nicer, you know." A pause.
"I know."
"Then why are you still so mean?"
"I have my reasons."
"Oh, come off it." The candlestick had expected such a phrase coming from Duo would be angry, or annoyed, but there was a certain lightness to his voice that suggested he was trying to hide a smile. It was then that Sally decided to knock on the door ad nudge it open as far as a teapot could, making room for the coat rack to come into the room and set down the tray of bandages and the empty bowl. Sally emptied the contents of herself into said bowl, still unused to pouring hot liquids out through her nose, but having resigned herself to this duty long ago. Duo smiled and thanked them yet again, while the Beast merely grunted and ignored the servants. The boy shot him a look, but he was ignored just as condescendingly. Sally and Trowa left the room and left the two to their devices, trying very hard not to listen in as the conversation sprung up again on a different note.
"Now, sit still while I clean those cuts."
"But it hurts!"
"Don't be a baby. Of course it's going to sting a bit..." Back in Duo's room, the tray had been set on the side of the bed, and Duo had set about soaking the bandages in the water and wrapping them around the long scratches and bite marks that adorned the Beast's arms and shoulders. "What would you servants think if they knew their big bad boss fussed and fret this much over something so small, hmm?" The Beast merely grunted in reply, staring moodily out the window, avoiding Duo's gaze. He'd been trying to do so ever since he'd run into the fact that Duo was a boy, because despite that revelation, the Beast was sickened to discover he still found those bright violet eyes very attractive. The fact had added to the bruising his ego took, adding an extra insult to remind him how he'd been deceived by those wide eyes and that long hair. He hissed suddenly when Duo's careful binding reached a particularly deep gash in his left arm, pulling away and growling. Duo met his gaze apologetically, but finding himself entranced by the eyes of a male only aggravated the Beast more. He rose and stormed off without a word of warning, leaving the boy sitting on the edge of his bed and looking out down a hallway after the Beast for the second time that week.
'I must have hurt him a lot for him to storm off like that...' Duo thought nervously, hoping he hadn't angered the temperamental Beast too much. He picked up the tray and set it beside the window before retreating to his bed again, just in time for his pounding headache to return. He lay down and closed his eyes, trying to get to sleep despite the screaming pain in his temple and legs, but found one phrase running through his mind over and over.
"...I thought you might have died..." The way he had said it, his monotone slightly cracked to reveal an ounce of concern...
"...I thought you might have died..." Duo rolled over, frowning. He couldn't have been concerned about Duo. He'd only wanted to keep him in the castle because he thought he was a girl... he didn't want a companion, he wanted a lover...
"...I thought you might have died..." Still... even if the Beast didn't want a friend, he definitely needed one. Locked up in a castle day after day with nobody to talk to, it must get awfully lonely.
"...I thought you might have died..." Duo slowly slipped into a light slumber, lost in his mental ramblings and falling asleep to the sound of what he thought, in his dream-like state, could only be the voice of a concerned friend.
Duo ran through a pile of leaves, laughing happily and grinning up at the baffled face of the Beast. His lithe arm shot up and grabbed the hairy one of his reluctant comrade, pulling him down among the reds and golds of autumn.
"Come on, it's fun! Playing in leaves is what fall is all about!"
"What are you, three?" The Beast grumbled after spitting out a mouthful of leaves, getting up slowly and glancing down at Duo, who seemed to enjoy the simple things in life more than anyone else he knew. In reply, the braided boy grabbed a handful of leaves and threw it up in the air, watching as they fell down and entangled themselves in the shaggy hair of the Beast.
"Nope! I'm three and a half, thank you very much!" Duo giggled, waggling his tongue to go along with the statement and darting between the trees that littered the Beast's large estate. He'd been putting on a brave face and acting the fool ever since the night after he tried to run away, hoping to crack the shell the Beast put up around himself and give him something he subconsciously cried out for every time he looked at Duo- a friend. As he poked his head out from behind a large oak, Duo saw that maybe he'd begun to chip away at it already; he was met with a flurry of leaves that the Beast dumped on his head, grinning ever so softly but still proving that he'd begun to lighten up a little. Duo laughed loudly, shaking the pile off his shoulders and head and then running off. The Beast raised an eyebrow at him, walking after him.
"We should get back inside. It's getting late."
"Can't catch meeee!" Duo called out, his long braid whipping around behind him as he wove his way between great oaks and tall elms as he tried to prolong his game. The Beast sighed, daring to smile when nobody could see and then breaking into a determined run, catching up to his prey in a matter of seconds and picking him up, hoisting him right off the ground and slinging him over his shoulder. Duo chortled, and let himself be carried back to the castle for dinner. "I guess you can catch me then," he said breathlessly, worn out between racing and laughing. As usual, the Beast only grunted. He made his way to the door and wrenched it open, dumping Duo on the floor with just enough pity to let him land on his feet. They wandered inside and sat down at the oversized table, quickly met by Trowa who scuttled off to announce their arrival to the rest of the kitchen. Soon they were served with warm soup and fresh, piping hot bread to chase away any chills they might have brought in with them from the outside. Winter was fast approaching, and it could be seen in the manners of the meals that were being served. Duo watched the Beast eating, curiosity overwhelming him; the Beast had never actually stayed at the table to eat before.
Sensing that a certain pair of amethyst eyes were riveted to his every move, the Beast looked up and shot an icy glare at the mouse sitting across from him, twiddling its long tail of hair innocently. When it squeaked softly and focused on its own bowl of soup, the Beast set about the task of eating. Normally, he could consume his meals in any manner he wanted without having to think about how his boorish table etiquette looked to others, but now he had an audience, and he wasn't about to make a fool of himself. Picking up the spoon that lay innocently beside his bowl, he formed a fist around it and found the article of silverware completely covered by his thick fingers, hidden from view. He grit his teeth and shuffled the spoon around in his grip so that the useful end stuck out of his fist, then stared at the bowl. It had been so long since he'd bothered about appearances, he'd practically forgotten how to eat with anything other than his paws and mouth. He lowered the spoon into the scalding soup, biting his lip and drawing his hand back when the side of his thumb was dipped in as well. Duo watched from the other side of the table and stiffled a giggle, returning his gaze to his bowl just in time to avoid another nasty glare from the Beast. There was an irritated grumble from the opposite end, and the frustrated Heero rose from his chair, ready to retreat to the shadows to eat his meal like he normally did.
"No, wait," Duo said quickly, feeling bad for laughing at him, "don't leave. It doesn't matter to me how you..." he paused, trying to decide how to phrase the sentence, "whether you use a spoon or not. I'm not here to judge you." The Beast was surprised by this, to say the least, and sat back down, replacing his bowl.
"You sure you don't mind? I don't really... well I'm not..."
"Just eat the damn soup!" Duo cried laughingly, grinning and popping another spoonful into his mouth. The Beast nodded, although it was more to himself than to the noisy little mouse. He ineffectively brushed his unruly bangs out of his face and then lowered his mouth to the bowl, lapping up the soup like a dog and keeping his eyes on Duo the whole time. Not once did he stare, or laugh, or send him a look of disgust. He'd told the truth; Duo wasn't there to judge him. The moment he thought it, the Beast told himself that of course it had been true. Duo never lied.
-End Chapter-
Yay! There you go, guys. This chapter is dedicated to Mitsugi and her (?) incredible story Bridlewood Manor. I just finished reading it today, and it is absolutely amazing! Not to mention very extensive, cultured, and long! Any of you that have read it will have probably noticed my little tribute to the story near the end of the chappie; any of you that haven't read it should go read it now. XD Keep readin' and reviewin', and I'll keep writin'! Hooray for 1 x 2 x 1!!!!