Disclaimer: I don't own GW or any of its characters. (mutters) Though I wish I did. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this story, minna-san!!!!
Kaitou Shinigami (Thief Shinigami) Chapter 2
by elana-chan
"Hey, Q-man! Will ya just slow down?!"
Duo Maxwell, magician extraordinaire and also to no one's knowledge but a selected few, the famed Shinigami, hollered at his friend as Quatre continued to drag him towards their lockers.
"We're going to be late, Duo! You still don't have your book! I hate being late in our Chemistry class and you know that. Snape-sensei's gonna kill us this time" Quatre Raberba Winner answered his friend but his pace didn't slow down.
Duo Maxwell and Quatre Winner were also students in St. Paulia Academy. Both were juniors and classmates of Heero and the others. Duo Maxwell is a seemingly ordinary student in the academy. Only a few people knew that he's the famous thief Shinigami and Quatre was among the selected few who knew this information.
Duo came from a family of magicians and escape artists. The people of L1 knew his father, the great Duane Maxwell, to be an exceptional magician but what they didn't know was that his mother was a famous thief that retired when his father married her despite her background. Now, Duo inherited both traits of a magician and a thief from his parents and became Shinigami. He also works in the Maxwell church where his uncle, the saintly Father Maxwell, was the parish priest.
Quatre, like his friend, came from an eccentric family. He had 29 sisters and he was the only son and the youngest, making him the youngest heir in their clan. His family was one of the wealthiest families in Japan and the wealthiest in L1. He was Duo's confidante, strategist and financier. Whatever Duo needed, whether it be information or equipment, Quatre can readily provided them. He's also the one making Duo's costumes, a hobby he had come to love. Quatre also knew the real reason why his best friend had resulted into stealing.
"So Duo, any target yet?" Quatre whispered when they were alone in the corridor.
"Nope! Not yet. Maybe later when I go to the church." Duo said nonchalantly.
They got their book and headed towards their class when the bell decided to ring. Both dashed towards their class and sighed in relief when the teacher came a few seconds after them. Duo winked with an air of conspiracy at Quatre before focusing on the lesson.
"Hey, Yuy-kun! Whazzup? Still trying to catch Shinigami?"
At the mention of his name, Heero looked up from the files he was reading and encountered those haunting cobalt-blue eyes. Classes have already ended but he chose to stay behind. He'd been trying to look for some clues from his recent cases to see where Shinigami might strike next. He was in the middle of his reading when a certain alto interrupted him from his musings.
"What do you want, Maxwell?" Anyone who would be sane enough would back away at the tone of Heero's voice. But Duo Maxwell was not a sane person. Being a thief was not a sane job anyway.
Duo grinned at him, amaryllis eyes twinkling with mischief and other things. Heero knew that Duo liked to tease him about his failure of capturing Shinigami. Their rounds usually led to a battle of words and wits. And weird as it may seem, Heero liked debating with the braided boy.
"Oh, nothing. Just checking up on your case. Didn't capture him yet, eh? I told ya, my Hee-chan." Duo teased the other boy. "Just give up your case on that thief. You'll never catch him. Let the big guys do that."
"Iie. Don't call me 'Hee-chan', either." Heero gave Duo his Death Glare™ but the other boy seemed immune to his glare. Duo just grinned at him more.
"But why not? Relena-chan already calling you that? It's cute, ya know. Well, gotta go! Father's waiting for me. Ja, Hee-chan!" Duo laughed as Heero scowled then glared at him. Waving goodbye to the other boy, Duo disappeared down the hall.
"Hn. Baka."
"Maxwell, catch!"
Duo jumped for the ball that headed his way and caught it expertly in one hand. Dribbling across the court, Duo made a beeline for their basket. Executing a perfect three-point shot, his full concentration was on the ball that he didn't notice either sounds of camera clicks or the camera flashes that were really meant for him. Finally, the bell sounded and their PE was over. Duo's team won by 3 points. The gathered crowd cheered and the girls squealed the braided boy's name.
"You did great out there again, Duo." Quatre approached as the blond handed an exhausted Duo a towel. Duo just smirked at him tiredly before his teammates swarmed over him to comment on his play.
"Will you cut that out, Merquise! You're wasting film on that braided baka." Wufei snapped at his photographer as the other obviously ignored him and continued on his way.
"But you have to admit Chang. He's a great subject. Even Khushrenada-sensei agreed with me. He allowed me to take shots of Duo-kun. And don't worry about the film. I'm paying for it." Zechs said absent-mindedly as he focused his camera on the braided boy who was now chatting with his teammates.
Trowa snickered at the senior's words. "So it's 'Duo-kun' now. It's obvious that you've really fallen for our braided classmate, Zechs-kun. Don't make any more excuses because it's so damn obvious." The tall blond just blushed at Trowa's words but gave no comment and busied himself with taking pictures of the braided boy.
Heero didn't know what to make out of Trowa's statement or Zech's blush. He didn't how to react to their actions. A part of him was telling him to be jealous of the senior. But why would he be jealous? Then again, another part of him told him sternly that feelings are only hindrances in accomplishing his goal. But what are those feelings in the first place? He was so confused with himself that he didn't notice a refreshed Duo, together with Quatre, had already come out of the locker rooms and was headed for them.
"Hi, minna-san! And you too, Merquise-sempai!" Quatre greeted cheerfully but it was noticeable that he had his eyes on Trowa. Trowa gave him his special smile, which the blond returned with his own.
"Hi ya, guys! Hello Merquise-sempai! Are you done yet with your project?" Duo asked innocently at the blond senior while the rest of the gang looked at him sheepishly.
"Not yet, Duo-kun. I'm just halfway through my work. I thank you again for agreeing to be my model." At this, Heero narrowed his eyes at Zechs then glared at him as Duo gave him a carefree smile.
"It was nothing! Anything to help." Then, he turned to the others. "I'll be seein' you guys! I have to go to the church. Sister Helen needs me. Ja!" With a wink at Quatre, a smile at Heero and a wave at the rest of them, Duo grabbed his backpack and speeded out of the gym.
"Guess that's my cue to get going as well. Bye, Bloom-kun. Bye minna-san! Ja!" Quatre then hurried to catch up with his friend.
"So your excuse to Maxwell was that you have a project, eh? Clever trick, Merquise." Wufei teased the senior. Zechs just shrugged.
"That was no excuse." At this, the others rolled their eyes while Zechs ignored them. "I need to be going. I have to develop this batch." Zechs said airily before leaving the other three. Wufei was fuming at his photographer's words while Trowa was deep in thought. Heero's hands were itching to wring Merquise's neck but decided against it.
"We'd better get going as well. You might receive another letter from Shinigami any mo—" Trowa hadn't yet finished his statement when a familiar black balloon descended before them with a note attached to its end, Shinigami's signature letter on the note.
Before anyone could react, Heero was already reading the letter with all seriousness. The letter was written on a black sheet of paper with the writer using silver ink for the words. Heero's eyes visibly widened as his eyes roamed on the paper.
Dearest Detective,
I know you can't catch me but still, I'm sending you this invitation to capture me. That is, if you can. To make matters more interesting, I'm giving you, yet again, a clue. I'm going to steal one of Renoir's paintings tonight. Which one, what time and where, I won't tell. I'll just leave you this phrase, Detective-san. The painting I'm going to steal shows that art is not only in the artist's mind, but also in his heart...See you there, Keiji-san!
Still smiling,
Shinigami
Heero gritted his teeth as he crumpled the letter in his hands. He looked at his friends with that usual determined gleam in his Prussian-blue eyes.
"Ninmu ryoukai."
To be continued...
Author's notes:
Hiya!!!!! Wow!!!! 6 reviews already?! I'm flattered that you people review this fic. I didn't think that this one would be that good. (embarrassed) Did you notice how OOC Zechs is in this fic? (snicker) Anyways, just ignore the typos, wrong grammar and, someone pointed this out, the somewhat wacky shifting of tenses that I tend to do in my fics. Gomen!!!!!! (wails) I suck at this. (weeps) Wah!!!!! I really need a beta and a muse!!!! I'm out of creative juices!!!!!! Argh!!!!! Die plot bunnies!!!! (whips a gun out of hammerspace and shoots the bouncing plot bunnies)
Btw, thanks to all those who review my fic!!!!! I'm glad you like the fic!!!!! I'll try to finish this fic as soon as this damn writer's block lifts off my head.
Thanks to the ff:
Yasei Raiden - Wai!!!! Thanks for the review!!!! Btw, Heero is just that dense. (snicker)
Aspiring author - Thanks for the critque and for pointing out my mistakes!!! Gomen!!!! I'm really a lazy writer who can't even beta her own works. (bonks herself on the head)
Kitty kat 0303
Windy River
ZmajGoddess
ahanchan