Here Comes the Sun
Duo sat up and rubbed his eyes. The feeling of 1000 thread count, pure Egyptian cotton sheets against his skin was something that he could really get used to. The sound of blue jays squabbling in the trees outside his window brought home the fact that he no longer resided with O.J. and Owen; that being the best thing about this past winter. Now, in early March, the only thing he had to really worry about were his grades and whether he could pass gym class. He snuggled back under the soft sheets and softer blankets and drifted back off the sleep. Life was good.
A brisk tap on the door woke him an hour and a half later. "Come in," he murmured, sleepily. Rashid entered the room and opened the curtains, letting the early morning sunlight in. "Gah! Shut it! Shut it!" he groaned, pulling the covers back over his head.
"Master Duo," Rashid said, whipping back the covers and exposing him to the cooler air of the room. "It's time to get up. If you don't hurry you'll make Masters Quatre and Trowa late again."
"Yeah, yeah. I'm gettin' up." He glared at the older man from under the cover of his bangs. "Just when my dreams start gettin' good, ya hav'ta wake me up. Geez!"
"What you like for breakfast?" Rashid asked, ignoring Duo's bitching.
"I don' know. What sounds good to you?"
"I've already had my breakfast, sir. I need to know what to tell cook."
"Okay, okay," Duo sighed and rolled his eyes. "I'll have an omelet with mushrooms, cheddar cheese and sausage with hash browns, okay?" He didn't wait for the man to answer, but slid out of bed and sauntered to the bathroom. He stepped into a little haven just for him, his own bathroom. For the first time in his life he didn't have to share space with O.J. and all of his crap and he loved every minute of it. Gone were the bottles of hair gel, mousse and hairspray. No longer did he have to fight for room with the turd's dirty clothes and smelly socks, none of which ever made it to the hamper without Duo's help. The clean, austere room welcomed him and the only things that were sitting on the vanity were a dish of hand soap and his hairbrush.
He stripped, took the band out of his hair and stepped into the steaming water. Hair and body were quickly scrubbed, conditioned and rinsed; he shut the water off and stepped out of the tub, grabbing two towels. He started the long process of dealing with his hair. Mr. Winner asked him point-blank to get a haircut. Duo had gotten the scissors out of a drawer and snipped one hair to chin-length. He grinned at the stunned man, giving him his best impish smirk and the older man had dissolved into gales of helpless laughter. The subject was never brought up again.
The calm, relaxing routine left his mind free to wander. And it meandered its way to the hectic days after he shot both Owen and Roger. The detectives had rifled through Roger's belongings and found his secret stash of video tapes, including the ones that showed Owen agreeing to his demands. The topping on the cake was the single tape that proved what Duo's fate was supposed to be; it revealed that Owen had sold Duo to the sadistic man, knowing full well that he wouldn't be coming back alive. The demented man intended on killing him online and selling seats to the highest bidder. After seeing what had passed between the two men, the District Attorney had agreed that Duo was just fighting for his life and sanity. He was let off without any charges and given into the care of Mr. Winner and his family.
Duo tied off the braid with an elastic band and tore out of the bathroom. He opened the closet and grabbed the first set of tee-shirt and jeans that he could get his hands on. Pulled on the clothing and skipped out to the grand, sweeping staircase that rose from the main floor to the bedrooms on the second.
Rashid looked up at him and Duo threw the serious man an impish grin. He put his hands on the floor and kicked his legs up. He walked half way down the stairs on his hands. Reaching the landing mid-way up, he completed the walk-over and stood back up. The bearded man rolled his eyes and gave a huff of disapproval. With that, Duo climbed on the banister and slid the rest of the way down, landing on his rump with an undignified squeak.
"Master Duo," Rashid said, helping the boy to his feet. "That is not the proper way to descend a staircase."
"But Ra-a-shid," Duo chirped, "the banister needed dustin' and I'm not doin' anything right now." He batted his eyelashes at the larger man. "Besides, I haven't gotten use to being waited on. Remember, I'm Cinderella in this tale."
"Yes, Master Duo, we all know your part in this fairytale. Now please, cook gets very upset when her food isn't enjoyed while hot. Go and eat your breakfast so that we can leave at a descent time." The big man glared down at his charge. Somehow this one boy was full of more mischief than Quatre, Trowa and Heero combined. But he brought a sunniness that had been lacking from the family, at least until Master Zechs made an unscheduled appearance at the table and then Duo's personality became all pouts and gloom. Something had happened between the two young men and time would tell if it would be healed. But considering what the braided boy had been through in his life, it's no wonder that he had a few quirks that needed fixing.
Duo bounded into the dining room with a smile on his face and springs on his feet. His good mood lasted until he saw who was breaking bread with the family. The sight of Zechs' long blonde lock made the younger boy glare and a pout come across his lips. His sunny outlook dissipated like the sun being covered by clouds.
"Good morning, Duo," Quatre chirped when he saw his classmate. "Did you sleep well?"
"Yeah, well enough I guess," he responded, glaring at his unknown rival. "What's he doin' here?"
"My parents live here, remember Duo?" Zechs said, looking up from the morning paper. "I think there are a few things that we need to talk about."
"Yeah? Like what?"
"Shall we do this here or would you rather we took it outside."
Duo looked at his foster family and nodded. "Let's take it outside."
Zechs stood up and led the braided boy out into the sunroom that bordered the breakfast nook. He took a chair and motioned for Duo to do the same. He steepled his fingers and looked at his rival over the top of them.
"I think we got off on the wrong foot," he quietly said, holding up a hand to stall the words that he knew would follow. "I don't blame you; you were an innocent lead astray by Treize and his perverted games. And if I had known about you, I would have put a stop to it before he managed to hurt you."
"Why?" Duo asked, sullenly. "Why worry about someone who's your opponent?"
"Because, you're only fifteen years old and you shouldn't be with people who are going to use you like he did." He gave Duo a soft smile. "I've already taken him to task. He should have gotten you out of that situation when he found out what kind of life you were leading, but he didn't. Treize likes to toy with people's lives and I told him that if I caught him doing anything like this again, I would chop his cock off and feed it to the dogs."
"I betcha he was really shocked, wasn't he?"
"You have no idea." Zechs stood up and offered Duo his hand. "Can we at least try to be civil to each other? I mean I have more of a reason to dislike you than the other way around…he's my boyfriend."
"Point taken," Duo answered, standing up. "I guess that I can try for Quatre's sake. It really distresses him when we don't get along."
Zechs wrapped an arm around Duo's shoulders. "My little brother has more than a touch of Empathy, I think. He can feel things that people think they have hidden. He's a lot like our mother."
Duo canted his head and looked at the tall blonde. "Whatever happened to your mother? Nobody will tell me and I get the idea that it upsets Kitty-Cat-Cat-Quatre when I ask."
"Our mother died giving birth to him," Zechs answered, his face grave. "And our father, instead of blaming him, loves him all the more for the fact that he's the last of her children."
Duo absorbed the information quietly, a question forming on him face. "How far apart are he and Relena?"
"About eleven months." Zechs laughed at the look of chagrin on the younger boy's face. "You're wondering why she's in your class and not in the one before, right?"
"Uh-hah. So how'd that happen?"
"She decided that she was going to marry Heero and flunked one grade, so that they could be together." The blonde looked down at his watch, "you'd better go get something to eat before you race out the door."
"Shit!" Duo swore. He raced back into the breakfast room and began scarfing down his food, barely tasting the wonderful omelet. The sound of a horn made him down the food even faster. When he had had his fill, he bounced up, grabbed his backpack and raced for the door. He reached the car and slid in next to Quatre. Trowa sat across from them and next to him was the ever silent Heero Yuy.
"Hey Heero-chan!" Duo chirped, flashing the messy-haired boy his best 'shit-eating' grin. "How ya doin' today? You gettin' any from Relena?"
"Shut up, Baka," Heero growled. He settled back into the soft leather of the seat and tried, once again, to sort through his feelings toward the braided nuisance. The chipper boy made his head spin and he'd been having the most disturbing dreams about him.
The one he'd had this morning still lingered. He'd been walking through a heavily wooded area and gotten lost. Off in the distance a beautiful voice and song led him on. He reached a crossroad on the path and stopped to listen for that musical voice. If he turned his head to the right the music was louder. He took that path and it lead deeper into the woods. The trees, branches and undergrowth wouldn't let him through until he drew his knife and began hacking his way through. At the touch of the cold steel, the flora had parted and he stumbled into a clearing. Sitting in the middle of the clear space was a huge boulder and perched on top of that, a very naked, feral looking Duo. The chestnut-haired beauty finished his song and then slid down the cold face of the stone. He sashayed toward the serious boy, hips swaying and his manhood gently bouncing with each step. They had come together and did things that scrambled Heero's brains, each touch, glide and slide felt like the real thing. When his alarm went off, he nearly destroyed it for ruining the wonderful illusion he'd built in his dream world. Stupid alarm clock!
After gym class, Duo waited until all the other boys were done taking their showers before he took his. He liked the fact that his P.E. class was his last period of the day and he could take his time in the shower. He really hated getting cleaned up where everyone could see him. When he lived with Owen, he couldn't change his classes around, but with Mr. Winner, he could do whatever he wanted, as long as it wasn't disruptive for the school. Both Quatre and Trowa had afterschool activities, so there wasn't any hurry to get out of the shower.
He slipped into the silent room, turned on the shower the furthest from the door and began washing his sweaty hair and body up. He felt a little nervous; it had seemed like someone was watching as he cleaned up over the past two or three days. It gave him the creeps. To have someone watching him as he bathed made gooseflesh crawl up his body and he tried to hurry his ablution.
The sound of bare feet on the tile floor was the only warning he received before being thrown to the floor with strong arms pinning him down and soft, firm lips plundering his.
"What the fuck!" he screamed, after biting the attacking organs. A strong hand reached up and covered his mouth, sending him into panic-mode. He struck out against his assailant with hands and feet, only to be pinned down under a strong, lithe body.
"Shut up, Baka!" growled a familiar voice.