To Patricia16- That doesn't count, dammit! If you don't leave an individual review next time, I won't respond!
To Mystery-child-001- I know. I just wanted to make you feel bad. big goofy smile It's okay! I'm working on it as much as I can, but my muse ran away so I can't tell how much or little I'll work on any of my stories until he is returned to me... Hey, why don't you head up a hunt for Chibi Hiroyuki so my writing will go faster! I'll give Tasuki and Beck plushies to whoever finds him for me! Speaking of those two, there's no way in hell I'll let them ruin Trowa's nice apartment, but other assorted freestanding structures may fall victim to the destructive duo. evil grin
To- ZmajGoddess- I'm glad he's gonna get better, too. I hate writing shy people. OOC sucks sometimes. Do you think Seth should kill Relena and not get in trouble? I'd really like for him to kill her...
To Concrete Tenshi- As of right now, Duo is... nothing. Asexual. Not interested. Later... Your guess is as good as mine. Usagi will play a very important role later on, so she's gonna meet everyone. Yes, she and Quatre are a couple. And a very cute one at that! glomps Usa and Q-chan No, you're not being nosy. I'm writing as fast as I can, but my muse ran away, so... sniffsniff What's to say something horrible isn't going to happen anyway? Tasuki is from Fushigi Yuugi, and Seth and Beck are from a comic by a friend of mine. My reply is now easily as long as your review, so I'm going to actually work on the story now. Ja ne!
Trowa sighed to himself, once again questioning the merits of going to school. He already knew everything he needed to know, the students were annoying, the teachers tried his patience on an hourly basis, and there were girls. Lots and lots of girls, a good deal of whom were going after him like he was the last man on earth. Some boys did that, too, come to think of it. He just did not understand humans.
Take right now, for example; gym class. Once a day, the whole class dressed out, ran in circles, and tried their damnedest to kill each other without seeming to. Football, baseball, basketball, even track were simply legalized ways to hurt other people.
"Yo, Barton! Heads up, dude!" His tennis partner shouted, driving the ball straight at him. Trowa batted it back across the net without even looking at it, which stopped the games on either side long enough for both to loose their balls and the teacher to ask what the hell they were all staring at. Trowa smiled to himself, wondering what their reactions would be if they ever saw him and Beck going at it seriously.
"I. Give. Up!" Beck said with a firm note of finality in her voice, slamming the large book in front of her shut.
"Give up on what?" Duo asked curiously, peeking around the kitchen doorway before slipping all the way in.
"This stupid book!" She exclaimed with an extravagant gesture at aforementioned leatherbound volume as if that simple sentence was explanation enough.
"What book is that?" He asked, taking advantage of her distraction to swipe a warm cookie off the plate next to the book.
"Oh, that's right, you don't know about the prophecy!" [1] Her eyes seemed to light up, as if he'd opened the door to a potentially mind-bending subject. "It's real complicated and very vague, but that's okay because Trowa and I are real good at figuring this stuff out, even if a few of the titles are a little beyond us right now, like the Dark One, the Vessel, and the Bride. We can't for the life of us figure out who they are. We're pretty sure that Trowa's the Mentor, although a few things don't really fit, because the Mentor is supposed to teach the Shining One, whoever that is, and be the Shining One's lover, but I doubt Trowa will ever be anyone's lover. It's like he's made of ice or something, I swear! But anyway, I give up on this stupid thing because it keeps referring to the Fanged God and the Mystic, neither of whom are supposed to exist at the time they're mentioned, by which I mean that it comes right out and says, and I quote, 'and the Fanged God, who will come to be in sevenweek's time, shall go e'en to the Tower of Angels, and there shall he encounter the Sprite and the Learned One that he has known before, who shall be of utmost importance to the Shining One's quest' and end quote! Does that make any sense? How can someone who doesn't exist go find an old friend at this Tower of Angels place? And what the hell is a Tower of Angels? It makes absolutely no sense! And did the Fanged God know both the Sprite and the Learned One already, or just the Learned One? I give up, already! Someone else can figure it out! Take that!" Beck then proceeded to punch the cover of the book with all her considerable strength.
"Wha's wit th' yellin'?" Tasuki asked around a yawn, wandering into the kitchen. "'Ey, Shrimpy." He said in greeting to Duo, who was used enough to the redhead's odd fondness for nicknames not to even blush very much.
"It's the stupid prophecy again!" Beck pouted, crossing her arms and glaring at the book. "I can't make any sense of it! It keeps talking about the Fanged God and the Mystic and things they're supposed to do before they're even born!"
"Eh... tha's kinda c'nfusin." Tasuki agreed, picking the book up and opening it to a large silver bookmark. He ran his finger down the page, muttering to himself. "Ye're right." He finally agreed, closing it again. "'S all gibb'rish." He absently handed the heavy book to Duo, who took it and slipped out into the living room. This prophecy thing intrigued the brunette.
"Don't try to force it, Duo." Trowa said softly, his words barely touching the edges of Duo's light trance. "Just let the energy flow through you; you're the vessel right now, not the controller. Let it use you as a bridge between the ley line and me."
Duo did his best to obey, but as soon as the warm tingling that meant he was open to the wild energy started along his arms and back, he involuntarily slammed down on the flow, cutting it off. The sudden shock of doing so shook him back to awareness, and he opened his eyes to find himself still standing in the middle of Trowa's bedroom, touching palms with the taller boy, who looked slightly disappointed.
"Sorry." Duo said with a defeated sigh. "I did it again."
"Don't worry." Trowa said, smiling. "It's perfectly normal for someone with your mistrust in outside forces to lock up as soon as you feel what your subconscious sees as an invasion. You're not choosing to do it; it's just happening."
"You know, I find that strangely comforting." Duo commented, plopping down on the edge of the bed. "Considering you just told me I can't control these stupid powers because I can't control my own reactions."
"If you choose to see it that way." Trowa agreed, seating his cute little rear on his desk. "Then again, that kind of thinking is exactly what's blocking you."
"If you say so..." Duo said, not really sure of what his friend had just said. "You're the magic expert."
"Hey, Tasuki?" Trowa called, knocking on the redhead's bedroom door. "Have you seen Beck?"
"No!" Tasuki replied, and something crashed to the floor. "Th' wench prob'ly went ta th' pool or somethin!"
"With who?" Trowa demanded.
"Seth? I dunno!"
Trowa shook his head and wandered off in search of a certain hyperactive blond otaku.
"YOU CAN'T KILL HIM, YOU LOVE HIM!!" Shook the foundations of the apartment building, and the tenants winced as one. Tasuki burrowed further under his comforter, and Trowa decided he'd better see what the hell was going on before Beck really lost it.
He peeked into the living room and saw Beck in the middle of the floor on her stomach, her eyes riveted to the flickering TV screen. Her cheeks streamed tears, and her hands were clamped around her upper arms so tight that Trowa was sure he saw blood leaking down her fingers. [2]
On second thought, Trowa decided he would be much better off if he remained oblivious to whatever had happened in whatever anime Beck had picked up that afternoon and slipped back down the hall to his room.
"Goddammit, Tasuki, get out of my kitchen!" Beck yelled.
"I'm getting a sense of déjà vu here." Trowa muttered, not looking up from his copy of the prophecy. "I could swear I've heard this before."
"I guess the truce is over." Duo said, shrugging. "It lasted a lot longer than I expected it to, that's for sure."
"Tell me about." Trowa snorted, closing the heavy book. "What say we spend the night at your place again? I kind of don't want to be around when they really start fighting."
"I give up!" Duo said, throwing his hands up in defeat. "I can't do this, Trowa. We might as well not waste any more of your time."
"Ah, you'll get it eventually." Trowa reassured him, smiling. "It took me a while to nail down the basics, too."
"Forget it." Duo moaned, sprawling backwards over Trowa's bed. "I am and always will be magically inept, no matter what you guys think."
"You were socially inept not that long ago, too." Trowa reminded him, sitting on the bed and toying with the end of Duo's braid. "Now you can actually speak to other people without turning into a tomato."
"Shush, you." Duo commanded sourly, sitting up and scowling for all he was worth.
"You're cute when you do that." Trowa commented, still smiling.
"Oh, so I'm only cute when I scowl?" Duo countered, striving to look injured.
"No." Trowa said, gently placing the tail of Duo's braid on the blanket before smiling impishly at his friend. "You're cute when you do that, too."
The next thing either boy knew, they were kissing, Trowa pressing the smaller brunette against the wall. Something unspoken but mutually understood passed between them as Trowa slowly drew back, something too important for mere words.
"Are you sure about this?" Trowa asked breathlessly, staring deep into Duo's huge violet eyes.
"Positive." Duo replied, kissing Trowa again.
"Only fools are positive." Trowa reminded him when they reluctantly broke apart after what could have been an hour for all they knew.
"Then I guess I'm a fool." Duo said with a wicked smile of his own, falling back onto the blankets and bringing Trowa with him. The two kissed again, and the world ceased to exist in their minds.
But the two had forgotten someone in their newfound passion; a someone who didn't mind being forgotten in the least. She sat on the couch painting her nails with even, precise strokes, headphones firmly over her ears. She hummed quietly to herself, a soft smile touching her lips at the stream of strong and very positive emotions pouring out of Trowa's bedroom.
-It's about time, you two.- Beck thought happily, nodding her head in time to Slither. [3]
[1] Blame David Eddings. Him and his damned prophecies...
[2] I drew blood this way while watching Evangelion earlier today. Virtual peanuts to whoever guesses what part it was.
[3] Guess what I was listening to when I wrote this.
