And another chapter. Wow, I hate this story. It's consuming the better part of my life over here. I just can't stop writing, though. Being shanghaied by inspiration can be damned inconvenient at times.

This is a double update, so no review replies today!

"Excuse me." The voice stopped Duo in his tracks, for he could feel the speaker's attention directed solely at him. "I need some help."

His eyes traveled up two black leather boots, a long black skirt, black tanktop, and a black shoulderbag, out of which poked a very familiar pink plastic wand. They stopped a familiar smiling face surmounted by a windblown mop of long blond hair falling into mischievous aqua eyes.

"If it isn't Duo-chan!" Beck exclaimed, throwing her arms around his neck, much to the dismay of what was probably the entire male student body and giving him a hard squeeze that robbed him of breath for a moment.

"H-hello, Beck." Duo said nervously, squirming uncomfortably under the scrutiny of the crowd around them.

"Oh, that's right!" She exclaimed, letting him go. "You don't like being hugged! I totally forgot! Do you know where Trowa is? I would have gotten here a lot sooner and been able to find him on my own, but baka Tasuki wouldn't let me leave until I'd made him breakfast. Can you believe that lazy ecchi? And then he kissed me twice, so I had to go wash my face, and then I couldn't find my Moon Scepter, and I refuse to go anywhere without it, because it's really very effective against anyone who's mean to me, if you can believe that, and I really need to talk to Trowa before I go to school, and this place is really big! Maybe I wouldn't have been able to find him on my own after all. Are you gonna spend the night tonight? I'm making chicken Alfredo! You'll love it, trust me! You know I'm a good cook, and I'll work really hard if you're gonna be there, because you actually appreciate the effort I put into my meals, unlike Tasuki, who just eats and says it's 'okay.'"

Throughout the entire monologue, Beck was following a very embarrassed Duo through the crowded hall full of gawkers to Trowa's homeroom class, not noticing the brunette's deep red blush as she rambled on and on.

"I work my fingers to cramping to make him a decent meal, and all he can say is 'okay!' Can you believe him? Why the nerve of that punk! I should forbid him to eat anything I make, but I just can't bring myself to for some reason. Do you think maybe I'm in love with that hentai? I certainly hope I'm not. He's a mean bishonen, that his is. Dammit, I'm talking like Kenshin again! I'm never going near that annoying baka ever again! Kenshin, I mean. I kind of have to go near Tasuki, since I live with him, no da? You know, Seth might be right. Maybe I do watch too much anime. Kenshin's not really all that bad, he just gets on my nerves sometimes. Oh, is this is room?" Duo nodded, earning another hug and a peck on the nose before Beck flung the door open and ran inside, screaming 'Tro-chan!' at the top of her lungs.

"Maxwell." A familiar tanned hand slammed down on Duo's desk, making him wince. "I'm not going to attack you, Maxwell." Wufei said, glaring down at the brunette. "I don't have a death wish, and your puppy's watching."

"Can I help you?" Duo asked, giving himself a mental pat on the back for not stammering.

"Who was that blond who was following you around this morning?" Wufei asked, sounding sincerely interested in the answer.

"A friend." Duo said, deciding that maybe talking to Beck and Trowa so much had cured his stammers forever. "Her name's Beck."

"Is she your steady?" Wufei pressed. Duo was positive the Chinese boy was very interested in the answer to this question.

"No!" He said, more forcefully than he'd intended, his eyes widening involuntarily. "No. She's just a friend."

"That's nice to know." Wufei said, leaving without another word.

"What was that all about?" Trowa asked, sitting heavily on Duo's desk. "What did that asshole want?"

"He wanted to know if Beck and I were an item." Duo said, smiling at the very idea of himself with someone as hyperactive and social as the crazy blond otaku.

"He's welcome to try for her hand." Trowa snorted. "If she doesn't tear him to pieces, Tasuki will."

"And the only ones who don't realize that are Beck and Tasuki." Duo added. The two shared a private smile at the expense of their absent friends before the teacher came in and class started.

"But I wanna go to the pool!" Was the first thing Trowa heard upon entering his apartment.

"Well, I'm not fucking taking you!" Seth shouted from somewhere near the kitchen. "Why don't you get Fang Boy to take you?"

"Tasuki's asleep, though!" Beck countered with a wail. "Trowa says I can't wake Tasuki up when he's asleep anymore unless it's an emergency! Like when you set the kitchen stove on fire!"

"Then I'll wake him up! Just leave me the fuck alone!"

"You're never eating in this house again, you meanie!" She shouted, and the apartment was suddenly so quiet Trowa could hear Tasuki snoring in the back room and a soft noise that sounded suspiciously like sobbing coming from the kitchen.

"What is with you women and crying?" Trowa heard Seth growl, and he knew the Goth demon had been skillfully defeated. "All right, already! I'll take you to the goddamned pool! Just stop with the fucking tears!"

"Domo arigato, Seth-sama! I'll be ready in a minute!" She squealed, running past Trowa on her way to the bedroom to change. "Tro-chan! When did you get back?"

"Just now." Trowa said, patting her on the head. "Way to wear him down, Beck. Nice job."

"Why, thank you." She said, smiling cutely before skipping off into the back.

"I hate that woman." Seth said, cursing in his own language as Trowa walked into the kitchen. "I really, truly, fucking hate her."

"But not even the infamous Seth is immune to a woman's greatest weapon." Trowa said, smiling. "Waterworks."

"Don't tempt me, Barton. I'm in a killing mood right now, and this is all your fucking fault."

"But if you kill me, you'll have an unstable, untrained death demon who's easily five times as strong as you on the loose, burning down buildings and killing people before you can get to them." Trowa said calmly. "After he's killed you, of course. Don't worry; once you get there, she'll forget all about you and start playing with everyone and everything in sight. I just made it a rule that she can't go alone because she doesn't understand that there are people out there that will actually hurt her for no reason."

"Why not just assign her a permanent fucking bodyguard?" Seth demanded, still upset about having to tag along with a five-year-old in a fifteen-year-old body.

"I will, as soon as he realizes he wants to protect her from everyone and everything." Trowa said. "In the meantime, we'll just have to make do. Kill a criminal if it'll make you feel better."

"I hate you, Barton." Seth growled, stomping off to escort an impatient Beck to the pool.

"I know, Seth!" He called after his red-eyed friend. "I love you, too!" He chuckled quietly as the door slammed in response. "He's going to kill us all one of these days..."

"I'll admit the view is very nice." Trowa said, surveying the school from a new perspective. "But why in the world would you spend lunch in a tree?"

"Shh." Duo said, motioning for Trowa to keep his voice down. "The reason should be here any minute... ah, there they are!"

A group of four or five female students stopped directly underneath the two boys and sat down on the grass, talking animatedly.

"- I swear it!" One asserted, pausing to tear a bite of her soft taco. "If I'm lyin, I'm dyin!"

"No girl in her right mind would turn down Wufei!" Another protested, pulling out her own lunch -a salad- as she talked. "That's like telling God you'd really rather not go to Heaven when you die!"

"I'm telling you, though, she really did! She flat-out told him no!" The first girl exclaimed. "And that's not even the best part!"

Duo grinned at Trowa, settling into a more comfortable position on his chosen branch as the group under them leaned in, demanding the girl tell them what she knew.

"The best part was when this total hottie with red hair came out of nowhere and punched Wufei!" There was the usual squealing for a moment before the girl continued. "And he said to Wufei 'what the fuck are you doing to my koibito?' Only he had the cutest accent ever, like a mountain bandit or something, so it sounded like 'Wha th fuck're ya doin ta my koibito?' It was awesome!"

"What's a koibito?" The girl with the salad asked, shoving a forkful of lettuce and dressing into her mouth.

"It's Japanese for girlfriend." One of the other girls spoke up, sighing wistfully. "Oh, how I want a boyfriend like that!"

"You should have seen this guy! He looked so mature-" The two boys almost gave themselves away by laughing at the thought of Tasuki acting mature. "- and he was so cute! He threatened to kill Wufei if he ever so much as looked at her again! It's no wonder she turned him down!"

"Get a picture next time you see him!" One of the girls commanded, bouncing up and down. "I wanna see the guy that can punch Wufei and get away with it!"

The girls turned to other school gossip, and Trowa and Duo turned their attention to their own lunches, keeping one ear on the group until the girls packed up and headed to class.

"See why I like this tree?" Duo said, smiling as he clamored down the trunk. "We'd better hurry, or Mr. Kushranada'll skin us alive for being late."

Duo and Trowa sat impatiently through Creative writing, wanting to get back to the apartment and find out the truth behind the gossip. When the bell finally did ring, Mr. Kushranada asked them both to stay after so he could discuss something with them.

"I've noticed something recently." Mr. Kushranada said, running one hand through his short ginger hair. "The two of you are my best students by far, but you seem... distracted lately. Your work isn't suffering any, but if something's going on, I'd appreciate you telling me about it, okay?"

"Yes, sir." Trowa said. He was about to say more when a blond whirlwind nearly knocked the door off its hinges getting it open.

"Tro-chan! Duo-chan! Guess what! Guess what, guess what, guess what?" Beck exclaimed, lunging at them and attaching herself to Mr. Kushranada's neck instead. "Konnichiwa." She said, blinking. "You must be Kushranada-sensei. Watashi wa Beck-chan desu! Hajimemashite!"

"Beck." Trowa said, calling the energetic blond's attention away from his teacher for a moment. "English, please. And stop glomping my teacher, will you?"

She immediately let go, landing on her rump and scrambling to her feet. "Gomen nasai! I mean, sorry! Hi. My name's Beck! It's very nice to meet you!"

"The pleasure is mine, I assure you." Mr. Kushranada said, taking Beck's hand and kissing the back of it.

"Aw, you smooth talker, you!" Beck said, giggling and flushing a little. "Oh, yeah! I came her for a reason! Guess what, Tro-chan! Do you know what Tasuki-san called me today? Do you? He called me his 'koibito!' Do you know what a koibito is? Do ya? Do ya? I'll tell you what a koibito is! It's girlfriend! Tasuki-san called me his girlfriend! And he punched this really mean Chinese boy who kept asking me out and wouldn't leave me alone! Can you believe it? Then he hugged me and took me home and he had a dozen chances to kiss me, but he didn't! Tasuki-san likes me, Tro-chan! Can you believe it? Can you?"

"Beck! Stop talking and take slow, deep breaths." Duo said, gently shaking the girl's shoulders. "We don't want you to pass out on us, okay? Calm down."

"Okay!" She said happily, doing as she was told. "But isn't this great, Duo-chan?"

"Yes, it is. But who's gonna cook us dinner when you guys go out? Seth?"

"Seth can't cook to save his non-existent soul." Beck laughed. "But speaking of dinner, I'm gonna make us a feast! Honey-glazed ham, buttermilk biscuits, mashed potatoes, vegetable soup, a fresh green salad, definitely sparkling cider since I'm too young to drink, and cake for dessert! It's gonna be the best meal I've ever cooked! Do you have any friends we can invite? I want people to come! You two, Tasuki, Seth, and me just aren't enough! Oh, Lien has to come, too!"

"I don't think that's a very good idea." Trowa said quietly.

"What's not a good idea?" Beck asked, pausing in her plans.

"Lien coming. I'm afraid he wouldn't enjoy it very much."

"Really?" Trowa nodded, and Beck frowned thoughtfully. "I wonder why? Okay, we won't invite Lien if he won't have fun. But there has to be someone else we can invite! And we can make it a joint party for you guys, too!"

"U-us?" Duo stammered in surprise.

"Yes, you. I was home that night, baka. I put my headphones on so I wouldn't hear anything, but you just can't mistake that kind of emotion! The fairies were overjoyed that you're finally happy, Duo, and they want me to do something special for you, too!"

"Fairies?" Mr. Kushranada repeated, raising one eyebrow.

Beck gasped, jumping a half a foot into the air. "Oh, Kushranada-sensei! Y-you're still here! Yeah, fairies... About that..."

"So are all three of you demons?"

"D-demons? Kushranada-sensei, you're so silly! There's no such thing as demons!"

"Call me Trieze. If it'll make you feel better, I'm part muse myself."

"You're part muse?!" Beck exclaimed in astonishment, her eyes widening. "I've never met anyone with muse blood before! I've got a smidgen of water demon blood in me, but I only have passive abilities, like I can sense demons and scry if I have my bowl, which I carry everywhere! Wow, this is so cool! I swear, Mako-san's gonna love this! It's always been her dream to meet a muse!"

"I'm a hybrid." Trowa said, ignoring Beck's rambling. "Part earth demon, part truth demon, and part human. Since my demon blood outweighs my human blood, I'm not considered a half-breed except by Purists."

"And you, Mr. Maxwell?" Trieze asked, turning to the skinny teen, who was laughing at Beck, who in turn was currently dancing around the room, babbling about finally finding a muse.

"Me? I-I'm a death demon."

Trieze blinked at Duo for a moment, then shook his head. "Well, that's a surprise. To think I've had a death demon sitting right there in front of me the whole year and never even suspected..."

"His natural shields are too strong for passive detection!" Beck offered, dancing back to the three. "Since I can sense demons, I knew he was one, but it took some hardcore scrying to find out he was a death demon, and he almost cracked my bowl, his shields are so strong! If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was a demi-demon! I'm glad he didn't break my bowl, though, because I have to use onyx, and onyx bowls are so expensive! Mine was a gift from my sensei back home, and it must have cost him a fortune! At least a few hundred dollars! Flawless onyx big enough to make a proper scrying bowl is so rare! Purists have most of it too, and I hate Purists! Can you believe they won't sell me the herbs I need to purify my bowl just because I'm not a full demon? Some creatures can just be so stupid!"

"Does she always talk this much?" Trieze asked as Beck continued her anti-Purist rant in the background.

"Sometimes more." Trowa said, smiling. "If you think this is bad, you should hear her arguing with Tasuki. Not only are there two people talking this much, but they're also much louder."

"Anyway, we'll have the party this Saturday!" Beck interrupted, switching topics again. "Each of you has to invite at least one person to come, okay? It'll be really boring if I know everybody there! I've got to invite someone, too, and so does Tasuki! Do you think Seth-sama will come? Seth-sama's such a meanie, but I like him. I think it's kawaii the way he's always mad at something, but don't tell him I said that, or he'll be mad at me, and he's not so kawaii when he's mad at me. Does Seth-sama always act that way, or is he just mean to people? You don't think he's a Purist, do you? It would be really weird if he was, considering his best and only friend has human blood in him. And why is it you're his only friend anyway, Tro-chan? Why can't I be his friend, too? Let's get going, guys! I've got to make dinner, and we've got a party to plan!" She skipped happily out of the classroom, blowing a quick kiss in Trieze's direction, still planning the party out loud.

"See you two tomorrow." Trieze said, waving the boys after their friend.

"I was thinking." Duo said as he and Trowa walked down the dark street to his place. "I might have some people we could invite to the party."

"Really? Who?" Trowa asked, draping one arm casually over Duo's shoulders. Duo, in turn, leaned against the taller boy, smiling.

"There's this guy named Quatre Winner. He's in our PE class. You know, the really nice blond? He and his girlfriend Usagi are just about the only people in the school who were never once mean to me. They both helped me out a lot."

"And you want to invite them as a token of thanks?"

"That's about it."

The two rounded a corner and ran straight into someone else.

"Aw, shit!" The someone, who turned out to be Wufei, said, scrambling to his feet. "It's you two."

"What's wrong, Wufei?" Duo asked, seeing the slightly scared expression on the boy's face, as Seth rounded the next corner.

"Get back here, you Chinese monkey!" Seth yelled. "I'm gonna kill you this time!"

"What did you do?" Trowa asked evenly. "Bump into him?"

"Yeah, something like that." Wufei said, looking over his shoulder in time to see Seth lob a fireball at him.

Duo darted around Wufei and caught the fireball, absorbing it just like Trowa had been trying to teach him. "It worked!" He breathed, smiling. "Did you see that, Trowa? I did it! I absorbed it!"

"I saw, Duo." Trowa said, returning the smile.

"This shit's too weird, man." Wufei said, shaking his head. "I'm getting out of here. Later, freaks."

"You're not going anywhere." Trowa countered, grabbing the back of Wufei's jacket. "At least not until we've worked some things out."

"I'm killing that little punk." Seth growled, pulling one of his curved knives. "Get out of my way, Maxwell."

"No." Duo said. "I'm not going to let you hurt him, Seth."

"If I remember correctly, he's the shithead that almost killed you." Seth said, pausing less than a foot from Duo. "So why the hell are you protecting him, huh?"

"Because two wrongs don't make a right, Seth." Duo said. "We grew up differently. You never really learned the lessons I live by. I can't just let you hurt someone, not and live with myself."

"You are some kind of idiot, Maxwell. The bastard puts you in the hospital repeatedly, and you're saying I can't even nick him? There's something wrong with your head. Now get out of my way!"

"I really didn't want to do this..." Duo muttered, sighing. "I'm sorry, Seth." He began to glow faintly violet, and an invisible force knocked Seth back into a lamppost some ten or twelve feet away.

"Oh, so now you're gonna fight back?" Seth demanded, getting to his feet. "You do-gooders are completely nuts!"

"Maybe so, but that's just the way we are." Duo said. "I really don't want to hurt you, Seth. You're a nice guy sometimes. I sort of consider you a friend. Can we please just not do this?"

"Fine, you fucking Warrior of Light." Seth said with a disgusted snort, turning and walking back the way he'd come.

"What the fuck was that, Maxwell?" Wufei demanded, staring at what had once been his favorite punching bag. "What the hell are you?"

"I'm a demon." Duo said. "And I'd appreciate it if you'd call me Duo from now on, okay?"

"This is too fucking weird. There's no such thing as demons!"

"If demons didn't exist, you'd probably be dead by now." Trowa said, letting go of Wufei's jacket. "Seth's a natural-born killer. He's also a fire demon, but he prefers to use his hands in killing. If he says he's going to kill you, chances are you'll be dead inside an hour. You're very lucky you ran into Duo, because not even I can turn Seth once he's mad."

"Well...shit." Wufei said, turning and falling against the wall of a handy building. "What do you plan on doing to me now?"

"Nothing." Duo said, blinking. "Why would we do anything to you?"

"Man, you are some kind of airhead! I know what's gotta be the biggest secret in the history of secrets here! I know you're a demon! And you're just gonna let me walk away?"

"Well, I wouldn't have saved you from Seth just to kill you myself." Duo said, confused. "I think I can count on you not to tell anyone about this."

"And what makes you so sure?" Wufei asked, immediately glancing over at Trowa, who was scowling dangerously.

"You remember the redhead who punched you for hitting on the blond who was following me around the other day? If you tell anyone I'm a demon, I'll tell him you were bothering her again, and she'll back me up. Beck doesn't like you very much."

"You wouldn't!" Wufei exclaimed. "He'd kill me!"

"No, just hurt you really bad." Trowa said. "Tasuki can be very protective when he isn't snoring."

"That's not very nice, Trowa. But speaking of snoring, we need to get home before I collapse." Duo grabbed Trowa's hand and started down the road, waving over his shoulder. "We'll see you tomorrow, Wufei!"

Wufei lay in bed later that night, staring at the ceiling. He had too many things on his mind to sleep, all of them centered on Duo Maxwell.

-I'm pretty sure he wasn't lying about being a demon. Besides, how else can he do weird magic shit like that? But if he really is a demon, why'd he let us kick his ass so many times? Did he just find out himself or something? He acted all surprised when he caught that fireball and made it disappear. Maybe that Barton kid's teaching him how to control his demon powers? That makes sense. -

Wufei rolled out of bed and walked over to his window, leaning on the sill and staring at the patch of stars visible through the clouds.

-But then wouldn't Barton be a demon, too? He's not human, if he's teaching Maxwell magic. And what about that other dude? I think Maxwell called him 'Seth'... he's a demon, too? - He snorted to himself, switching his focus to the street below. "This is fucking ridiculous." He said out loud. "A few hours ago, I didn't even believe demons existed, and suddenly they're all over the place? Life's fucked up, man."

Duo closed his locker and swung his bag onto his shoulder, looking down the hall. Seeing his objective, he walked right past his homeroom class to the locker of a girl with very long blond pigtails who had patched him up a time or two and defended him from the student body at large.

"U-Usagi?" He said, calling her attention away from the tall brunette she'd been talking to.

"Oh, hi Duo." Usagi said, smiling brightly. "I'll see you later, Heero." She told the strange brunette, who nodded and left without a word. "To what do I owe the honor?" She asked Duo, giggling.

"Um... I was wondering... w-would you like to go to a party this Saturday?"

"Duo, you do know I have a boyfriend, right?" Usagi asked, suddenly fearing for the boy's mental health. You just did not cross Quatre like that.

"Y-yeah! Of course I know. In fact, I-I was wondering if you and Quatre could come."

"Maybe..." Usagi said thoughtfully, mentally reviewing her weekend calendar. "What time is it? What's the occasion?"

"You know, I-I'm really not sure..." Duo said, surprised. "It's around eight at night, but the occasion has kind of slipped my mind, if I ever knew it." He blushed a little, but managed not to get too red.

"Well, I'm free, but I'll have to ask Q-chan before I make it definite."

"O-okay. Thanks. See ya!" He added, ducking into his homeroom just ahead of the bell.

Take that!! I have mental problems! Yay!