Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Lord of War ❯ Favors ( Chapter 10 )

Yay! Okay, here’s the new chapter! And guess what--drum roll please--1&2 lime warning!! *smirk*

Enjoy!


Chapter 10: Favors

Duo collapsed face first onto his bed and shut out the world, content on dwelling in his own mind for as long as he could manage. When he had come back without Heero, Sally came running up, worry evident on her face. Duo just pushed past her so Quatre could fill her in. He didn’t feel like talking much and he knew Sally would have nagged him until he spilled the whole story, his thoughts and feelings included of course. It was that part that he didn’t want to explain, since he himself had no idea what the hell he was thinking, or feeling for that matter.

Sighing, Duo put a pillow over is head and moaned out of confusion into the mattress. Why had Heero done that? Why was the man so nice? And why did Duo even care? He thought back to earlier times which felt like decades ago, though it had only been a week at most, when he refused to like Heero, deciding to hate the man who had bought him into slavery. Now, he found himself not only liking him and his quiet nature, but craving it as well. That one night the he and Heero had not slept in the same bed, Duo had felt a pang of loss, to the point that he was actually excited that he got to spend the day with the man.

Shifting to lay on his back, Duo stared at the ceiling. Why did that guy Maxus have to ruin it? He had been having a good time: learning things about Lorlia, seeing new techniques, hearing friends joke as they waited for their turn, and being next to Heero.

//Heero…//

Seeing the Lord with his hand around Maxus’s neck, defending his honor, and the look of pure surprise in everyone’s eyes, really did something to Duo. Something he couldn’t explain. A feeling he had never felt before. A heaviness of the heart that made him want to cry, but in a good way.

Even before that, when Duo was ready to end the man’s life with the flick of his wrist, the way Heero had managed to calm him down…why had Duo acted like that? Now that he wasn’t as outraged about the slight Maxus had thrown at him, he finally noticed what had happened between them for that small amount of time Duo had held Maxus’s life in his hands. Still staring at the ceiling, the braided man lightly touched the spot behind his ear where Heero had kissed him earlier. The kiss had been light, chaste and somehow calming enough that Quatre and the others could drag him away with minimal effort. In his head, he knew it should have had the opposite effect, angering him more since the man touched him so intimately without his permission. But his heart disagreed. For some reason, the feel of those quiet lips on his skin calmed his inner soul in a way nothing ever had before.

“What the hell is wrong with me?” Duo asked himself out loud. Sighing, he flipped off the bed and was about to make his way to the kitchen when his door was suddenly thrown open. Sally stood in the doorway and looked Duo up and down.

“Well, no wonder you look a mess.” Sally grabbed his arm and started to drag him to the bathing room. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

“Sally?” Duo’s voice was a little off. Honestly, he didn’t know how the woman would react to what had happened. Was she angry at him? Or maybe pissed off at that bastard Maxus like he was? Duo found himself hoping it was the latter, knowing how it could be if she was mad at him. //She isn’t going to try and drown me again, is she?//

Whatever the woman was feeling, Duo couldn’t tell as she was leading him to the bathing room, her faced turned away from him. Once they got there, Sally helped him into the bath in silence and began to wash his back.

“Sally, umm…?” Duo spoke up again.

“It was uncalled for,” she announced. Duo turned around and blinked at her. Her face was scrunched up like she had just seen something disgusting. “To think that a commander in our army used such language in the presence of Lord Yuy…utterly despicable.”

Duo turned around and felt like drowning himself. What did he expect, for the woman to cradle him and say otherwise? To say things and make him feel better? This was Sally he was talking about. The woman has a one track mind: Heero.

Sally undid his braid and began to lather it up. “Personally, I’m amazed they were able to get you away from him.”

“They barely did,” Duo grumbled. “I wanted to finish him.”
He felt tense again. Like he should run out into the streets and take that asshole Maxus down, what Heero did no withstanding. He should have kicked his ass, not Heero. Granted seeing the Lord do that made him feel almost bubbly inside for some odd reason, but it was still his reputation and honor, not Heero’s. Sally must have read his mind, because he soon felt slim fingers massaging his scalp, lulling him into a more relaxed state. “If it makes you feel any better, I would have been rooting you on.”

Duo smiled. Somehow, that did make him feel better. “Thanks, Sally.”

Once Duo was finished bathing, he followed Sally to the kitchen for a bite to eat. It was there that he ran into Wufei, who was sitting cross-legged on one of the kitchen stools sipping an odd smelling tea. The monk looked up, but didn’t say anything as Duo walked in.

Not feeling up to conversation, Duo ignored him and grabbed some lunch. He was about to go to his room with his meal when Wufei spoke up. “They’ve never seen that.”

Duo turned around, confused. “What?”

“Lord Yuy,” Wufei took a sip of his tea, “they’ve never seen him fight before today.”

Blinking a few times in surprise, Duo decided to sit at the bar as Wufei continued. “Yuy, though he near the top in the political hierarchy, rarely ever experts his authority onto people…let alone physically.” The monk smiled as he stared at his tea, “though he is more than capable, as you saw today.” Placing the tea on the bar, Wufei looked up and met Duo’s questioning gaze. “Yuy is a quiet man usually. It takes a lot to anger him and even then it is rarely aimed at a person.”

Duo thought back to when Sally was caught at the Royal Court. Heero had been pissed, but not actually at her. From what Duo saw, the man was angrier at Primitivus for catching her than her actually being there.

“Though the people of Lorlia have never seen Yuy’s strength, they have never doubted it,” Wufei continued.

“Why are you telling me this?” Duo cut in.

“Simple,” he said flatly. “Rumors of this event will spread like wild fire. Because of your station, you will be able to clear them up easily with the other Aiko and, in turn, the commoners.”

“Clear them up how?” Honestly, what was so bad about Heero scaring the shit out of that asshole anyway? The people should be happy that they have a guy that is not only smart in the head, but strong in body as well. Back in Belvomania, everyone would have been impressed with the show of strength.

“By telling the truth.” Wufei went back to his tea.

“The truth?” He echoed.

“Make sure that it is known that the man insulted him by insulting you. That it wasn’t just Yuy losing his temper.”

Ah. Nothing like a Lord with a short fuse. And the way rumors seemed to fly around here…“Wait, I thought that the whole kingdom didn’t like hearing bad rumors about Yuy?”

“Usually,” Wufei grumbled over his tea. “But there has never been reason for negative rumors to circulate…until you were introduced in his life, that is.”

Duo’s eyes narrowed. “You sayin’ that whole scene was my fault?”

Wufei placed the now empty teacup on the bar and stood up. “Whether it was your fault is not the issue, Aiko. Yuy exercised his authority to protect your reputation. All I am asking, is that you do the same.”

Duo was speechless as the monk passed him and left the kitchen. He had a point. Heero did do that for the soul purpose of protecting his honor. The least he could do was protect Yuy’s reputation. Sighing, Duo snagged himself some lunch and made his way back to his room to change into some workout clothes. The last battle had left as sour taste in his mouth that he needed to erase.

# # # #

Heero finished the military review as the sun began to set in the horizon. Through the whole review however, Heero caught whispers of the earlier confrontation from many of the soldiers’ mouths. Though they were too quiet to hear exactly, he knew they were about him, making him wonder what sort of rumors were going to make their way out of the grounds. Heero sighed in annoyance despite himself. Boy was he going to have a fun day at the Royal Court tomorrow. He could just hear Primitivus now.

Groaning, he turned his attentions back to the review. Overall, the squads had shown a lot of improvement, regardless of Maxus’s squad, who, he could happily now say, had been the exception, not the rule.

The army had all but left the stadium when Kushrenada jogged up to Heero. “My Lord, I just wanted to thank you for the opportunity and…well…” The new commander looked a little nervous.

“Just say it, man.” Heero said shortly, already knowing it was going to be about the Maxus issue.

“…well, that…what happened with Maxus was amazing, my Lord.”

Heero looked at the man as if he had grown an extra head, making Treize smirk at his expression. The young Lord gathered himself after a few seconds. “What do you mean?”

“We’ve never see my Lord fight before. It was…amazing. And you weren’t even fighting, really.” Treize gave him a soft smile, the kind you would give a friend for reassurance.

Heero cleared his throat and nodded to Treize. “Thank you. But I would rather have not have had to do so.”

The new commander closed his eyes and shook his head. “I would have been more surprised if you hadn’t, my Lord.”

“Oh?” Heero raised an eyebrow.

“If you don’t mind me saying, my Lord,” Treize paused for his approval. Heero nodded for him to continue in curiosity. “You have never struck me as a man who takes shit from anyone, even if it isn’t completely directed towards you.”

Heero blinked at him for a moment, then looked away with a slanted smirk on his face. “You think so?”

Treize nodded once as if what he stated was a known fact.

The Lord smiled inwardly //obviously he hasn’t seen me at home with Duo//. Why did he let the braided menace get away with it? For some odd reason, it didn’t bother him in the least, they way Duo acted towards him. But if someone else tried the same thing…

“Thank you for the complement,” Heero said lightly. Treize smiled, bowed, then walked back to his new platoon who were waiting anxiously for their new commander. Heero eyed the young men and wasn’t surprised when they all looked away. Shaking his head, Heero turned to leave, then looked over his shoulder to see all the men huddle around Treize, most likely wanting to know what they had talked about.

Heero hadn’t even taken four steps out of the arena and towards the stables when a portly man came running up to him. “My Lord and Commander!”

“Yes, Heradis?” He answered back, knowing the man to be the leader of the small investigations group he had sent out to inquire about the random attacks that had been happened outside of the kingdom lately. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but he didn’t like the latest development, even if it hadn’t affected Lorlia yet.

“I have the report about the people you ordered us to investigate.”

# # # #

Duo had finished his training a while ago and was lost for what to do next. His bath done with and dinner already in his stomach, he was ready to kiss the pillow for the night…but Heero still wasn’t home //honestly, how long does it take to walk through an arena?//.

Bored out of his mind, Duo had decided to investigate the mansion he now called home. He did a quick run through the first morning he was here, but suffice to say, he had missed a lot. Heero’s chambers were in the west wing of the house and the kitchen and servant quarters were in the south, which left the east and north to explore. At first, Duo had thought twice about touring the mansion, what with Wufei lurking around every corner. But, he hadn’t seen nor felt the monk since he got back from his workout session. Apparently, he wasn’t as worried about him since Heero wasn’t around to be in any danger.

So, he began to explore, and found many interesting things in the process. First of all, the library he had was enormous. Books in all types of languages littered the walls of the large, circular room. Duo browsed through them in half interest when an idea struck him. Perhaps he could find the translation of the muttering Heero did in his sleep, then he could get some insight about the man. His hopes were dashed when he remembered that he didn’t know how to read their writing. Grumbling, he moved on to the next interesting room.

Duo walked through the hallway briskly until he smelled something coming from behind a large closed door. The door was easily ten feet tall and was gilded with silver designs. There was also some writing at the top of the door in a scripture that even Duo knew no normal person could read. The mysterious door was practically beckoning him. Curiosity finally winning him over, the Aiko pushed the heavy wooden door open and slipped in. The strange-smelling room was completely decorated, from the tops of the tables, to the bookshelves, to hanging shelves on the wall, with glass bottles, each holding different color liquids in them //most likely potions//. The few dusty bookcases that were against the wall held texts that looked ready to fall apart if touched. Used candles littered the table tops, all of various sizes and colors, and even smells. Large urns filled with powders of various textures lined the floor under the tables and a few cauldrons ready for brewing stood randomly in the middle of the room. Though it seemed like the room should be dark and dank because of its contents, it was actually bathed in moonlight from the large windows on the far side of the room.

Duo walked in cautiously at first, just waiting for something to blow up because of his proximity to it. He had never been any good at magic…well, if people considered the ability to kill things with a simple light spell as good, then he was a prodigy. He will never forgive himself for that poor squirrel’s impeccable bad timing during his magic lessons. After that incident, the elder gave up on him and told him to stick with the sword. A lot of the kids said that maybe it was an indication of who he really was and began to ask the elders if there was a clan who were extremely bad at magic, then insisted that Duo was one of them. Sadly enough, Solo was the most persistent of all the kids, //damn him, just because a guy doesn’t know his parents…//

Sighing at the memory, Duo began to investigate the many substances in the jars and bottles cautiously. It was then he noticed sounds coming from one of the adjoining rooms. Remembering that there wasn’t a door to that room from the hallway, only from the room he was standing in now, he poked his head around the archway connecting the rooms. There he saw the source of all the commotion. Animals in cages were lined up against the walls, animals that Duo had never seen before in all his wildest daydreams.

He was mesmerized.

Duo had a certain affinity for animals, constantly bringing home injured ones since he was old enough to carry them. But these were…Small furry creatures of all kinds were peering out at him though their cage, some whimpering quietly while others hissed at his presence. Enthralled, Duo walked forward into the room, scanning the various critters that lined the walls. A smile graced his face when he spotted a small black fuzz ball curled up in the corner of its cage. At first, Duo thought it was a kitten, since it was so small and because of the way it curled up. But, when the small critter unfolded itself, Duo’s eyes widened in stunned awe. The small thing yawned, showing needle-like teeth as it stretched, making its pitch-black coat of fur shimmer in the moonlight from the window. On closer inspection, the animal seemed to have pieces of cat, rabbit, squirrel, and even snake, the way those sharp teeth retracted once he was done yawning. Long flopping ears were the first things to be cleaned as the creature sat up on its hind legs that resembled a rabbit’s yet with cat-like retractable claws. Yawning yet again as it cleaned itself, it moved on to its face then blinked its golden eyes at Duo who was watching him. It walked to the front of the cage and made a high pitched meow, causing Duo to smile. “Hey little guy.”

The small creature meowed once again in response. The Aiko’s smile widened as he placed his hand near the cage enough for the animal to smell him without endangering himself. It came closer to the bars and inspected the offered hand the licked it with a surprisingly long tongue //definitely like a snake//. Pleased, Duo reached a finger through the bars of the cage and scratched the critters head, causing the said creature to purr unabashedly.

On instinct, Duo reached up to open the cage next, but was forted by the lock on the door. If it had been a normal lock, he could have picked it easily. However, luck was not on his side as the lock had a magical barrier on it as well. Duo cursed under his breath as he tried to think of another way to free the little fur ball…and he meant little. It could ride on his head if the muse descended, and if it wasn’t locked in a magically sealed iron cage.

So enthralled he was with the animal, he didn’t even notice the pair of Prussian blue eyes watching him intently from the doorway.

“Why is a little thing like you in such a high security cage?” Duo cooed as he scratched the animal behind the ears. The fuzz ball licked him back in gratitude. “Seems like you’re all fed, but…you’re all so isolated and so…well…odd.”

The creature meowed in response, pranced around in a circle, the returned to the front of the cage for more attention, earning him a smile from the braided Aiko. “Well, well, aren’t you attention hungry little…boy or girl I wonder.”
Large gold jewels stared back at him, as if willing him to figure it out.

“You’re really cute…a girl?”

The animal batted his hand away and hissed at him.

“Whoa, okay, not a girl!” Duo chuckled. “A boy then?”

The little guy did a back flip then meowed happily at him.

“Okay, boy it is.” Duo continued to stroke his ears through the cage. “You’re pretty smart, huh little guy?”

“Very smart, and more dangerous that you think.”

Duo whirled around and was met with a smirking lord leaning up against the doorway.

“I uh…” Duo stammered.

Heero walked forward and stood by him, keeping his eyes on the animal as it meowed for Duo to return to his attention giving. “I’m surprised…he likes you.”

Duo turned to the said creature and was greeted with big golden eyes peering at him intently as if to say, ‘why did you stop?’. Grinning, Duo slipped a few of his finger through the bars and continued to stroke the animal behind the ears. “I like him. Why is he locked up anyway? It’s just a baby.”

Heero snorted. “It’s not a baby, believe me. Barely any of these creatures are.”
Duo looked at him incredulously. “Ya mean this is as big as he gets?”

“No, not technically.”

Duo blinked at Heero, waiting for him to explain.

“This little thing is about 300 years old, Duo.”

Eyes widened, Duo looked down at the fur ball that was nudging his fingers to continue their ministrations. “A demon?”

“Most likely, though I’m not sure. The old texts about him are very hard to understand.”

“Texts?”

“Yes. He was wreaking havoc in the countryside hundreds of years ago when my ancestors captured him. The texts say that he can grow to an amazing size when smoke surrounds him…” Heero shook his head, “whatever that means.”

“Are all these animals…?”

“Most are considered ‘demons’ while others are just ‘weird’, for lack of a better word.”

Duo’s eyes scanned the room, taking in how odd all the animals looked in their cages. Some looked pretty dangerous, the way they hissed and growled at them, while others sat contently in their captivity. “I never thought true demons existed.”

Heero took out some food from one of the large urns under the table and fed the small animal, which took it from his hand appreciatively. “They’re as real as Celestial Gifts.”

“He doesn’t look dangerous.” Duo pointed out as the said creature burped and meowed for more.

“I have to admit I find it hard to believe, but according to the texts about him, he was even known as ‘Shinigami’.”

Duo blinked up at him. “‘Shinigami’?”

Heero shrugged. “Roughly translated it means ‘God of Death’.”

Duo snorted at the name. “Sure, he looks like a real killer.”

Shinigami chose that time to take a drink and hiccup from it, causing Duo to snort again and shake his head.

“Looks can be deceiving, though.” Heero reached his finger through the cage and scratched the demon under its chin, them moved along to feed the other creatures in the room. Duo stayed at Shinigami’s cage, petting him as long as he could until Heero ushered him out of the room.

“So you just leave them in there?” Duo chided. He didn’t like it. Such a sweet little animal locked up in a cage day in, day out…Duo looked back at the door, which lead to the room where he had left Shinigami in and frowned. “It’s not right, you know.”

“Perhaps, but those creature are there for a reason.”

Duo and Heero made their way to Heero’s bedchamber, arguing back and forth about the captivity of the little animal, but mostly about Shinigami. He couldn’t help it; he liked the little cat-rabbit-squirrel thing.

It wasn’t until they sat down on the bed that Heero changed the subject. “I received a report today about the attacks that have been made outside of Lorlia.”

Duo shook his head. “And?”

Heero sighed then looked up at Duo. “Do you know Eagle Cove?”

Duo froze. Eagle Cove…that was the rendezvous point for his tribe. If anything ever happened, they were supposed to regroup there. Duo felt his heart grow heavy in his chest…what did they find? “Yeah…”

Heero hung his head as if to inspect the bed linens. “I was afraid so.”

The Aiko held back tears at the tone of Heero’s voice //no, no, no! Oh gods please no!//. “Why?” He asked weakly.

“I sent a platoon out to gather information about the random attacks that your tribe fell victim to. Trowa supplied them the location of where your tribe used to reside so they could question them about it.” Heero paused and looked into Duo’s eyes. “They were not there. So, my soldiers set out to search for them and made their way to Eagle Cove.”

Heero paused again, most likely giving Duo time to absorb this. So, his people hadn’t returned home yet…Duo felt panic rising in him. The day had already been a shitty one because of that asshole Maxus. He didn’t know if he could handle any more bad news today.

“And?” he said quietly, wanting Heero to finish yet afraid of him doing so at the same time. “What did they…?”

“When they arrived, there were five people there,” Heero paused for a second, “bodies, I mean.”

Duo closed his eyes in pain. “Bodies?”

“The count was three men, one young woman. The men had long hair and piercings much like yours.” Heero said it in a soothing tone, trying to lessen the blow most likely.

“What did…do you know…what they looked like?” He knew he was grasping at straws, but even a little hint of who the soldiers found would be helpful //Think realistically, Duo. There is no way a bunch of soldiers were going to worry about that type of information unless they were--//

“The young woman had short blonde hair and many strings of beads around her neck. The men had long brown hair; two of them had green eyes and the other had blue. The two green-eyed men had matching bucklers and hair decorations while the other male had a ring on.”

Duo’s eyes widened in shock and in misery. He knew who the two men were and the woman. The two men were Nillus and Millus, brothers, who were always together. The woman was Rei…the woman Solo was most likely to marry. That fact scared him, since the description of the other man could be Solo himself. Pushing that dark though aside, Duo noticed that Heero’s count was off. “Wait, you said there were five people.”

“They also found a small grave of fresh turned earth and that had fresh flowers on top of it…a child size grave…” Heero trailed off. Duo felt his heart constrict. A child. Those bastards killed a child. Duo wrapped his arms around his legs and buried his face into his knees //Oh by the Gods who?...Kaia, maybe Delian, Jien…?//. Names and faces kept running through his mind, causing Duo the pain of holding back tears he refused to shed without the facts. There was no way to know who was in that grave save for getting back to his clan and asking. He couldn’t imagine how that conversation would go.

Duo felt Heero place a hand on his clenched fists. “I’m sorry.”

“Why? S’not your fault,” He mumbled, trying to bring himself back together. Lifting his head up, he managed a crooked smile. “Thank you, for finding all that out for me.”

Heero shook his head and handed Duo a piece of cloth just in case the tears burning his eyes decided to flow over. “I do not know your ways of burial, so I am sorry if I did you a disrespect, but my men put them to rest in our way.”

Duo shook his own head. “No, you didn’t. My people would be grateful, as am I.”

Oddly enough, Duo felt a bit better knowing who most of the people were, but that was about it. //Five…five more of my people have been killed…and one was a child…//.

Then the thought struck him. Heero’s soldiers had gathered enough information to help Duo decipher who the victims were. All except for the one his people buried //his men even buried my people…//. The only reason a soldier would do such a thing was…if they had been ordered to. And, Heero had sent them to look for his tribe and not any of the eight or so others who had been attacked. Could it be that Heero sent his men…specifically for Duo’s sake?

Duo looked into Heero’s eyes in wonder. “Heero?”

“Yes?”

“Did you send the platoon out…just for me?”

Heero colored noticeably. “I uh…” The Lord cleared his throat. “No. I needed to know what was going on around Lorlia just in case these attackers try anything against us.”

The explanation sounded rehearsed, making Duo’s mood lighten a bit. “Oh really?”

“Of course.”

The Aiko grinned, the pain of losing some of his tribe lessened for the time being. “Then why did you send your men to look specifically for my tribe and not any of the others who were attacked as well?”

Heero’s color deepened. “I…I have you, and you know this specific tribe so they would be easier to talk with.”

“Then why did you order your soldiers to be so through in their intelligence gathering?” Duo heart lightened considerably. Heero had really gone through all of this trouble just for him. There was no other explanation. No matter what the stuttering Lord thought of to say, Duo knew it wasn’t the real truth. Not with the way Heero was blushing.

# # # #

“I prefer to know all the details.” Heero announced, not even convincing himself. Damn him. How did the man turn such a sad moment for him in to an embarrassing one for Heero?

True this had been embarrassing from the beginning when he announced the order, Trowa had made sure of that. Giving him side glances and smirking while he was detailing the mission for the commander. Once the commander left with his orders, Trowa walked up to Heero, smiling incredulously. “I thought you liked him, but this was unexpected.”

“What? I just want to know what is going on out there. It’s my duty.” Heero defended himself.

Trowa raised an eyebrow. “Uh huh, sure.”

Glaring at the man, Heero made his way from the conference room to the banquet hall for a light lunch. There were already some men there taking time off from their courtly duties as Heero made himself a plate and slipped onto the balcony. He had a few moments peace looking out over the city until Trowa returned with reinforcements.

“You’re sending out a platoon to look for his tribe?”

“For information, Quatre,” Heero growled. “These attacks are becoming bolder as time goes on.”

The blonde just smiled at him. “Finding information about his beloved people…a romantic gesture from you if I’ve ever seen one.”

“R-romantic?” Heero sputtered, choking on his strawberry. “I am *not* being romantic!”

Trowa arched both eyebrows this time while Quatre giggled. Red faced, Heero moved to escape the two, all the while trying to convincing himself that it wasn’t for Duo’s sake that he had set the orders. It didn’t work. No matter where his mind took him for a good justification, it always lead back to Duo. Dammit, what is he thinking now days?

Du had only been with him for about four or five days when he had ordered the platoon out. Now, looking back on it, perhaps it was just his feelings trying to escape since he refused to admit them.

Duo’s smiled widened noticeably in front of him. “You did, didn’t you?”

“Did what?” Heero asked, refusing to show his true purpose. He may have to admit it to himself now, but he be damned if he had to admit it to the braided Aiko.

“You sent out a platoon just to look for my people, for my sake.”

Heero gritted his teeth and looked away. Was it that obvious? Was he really that translucent? He had done so on a whim, that part was true. But the whim was Duo. A true military purpose wasn’t even thought of when he had dismissed his men in search of the Belvomanians. Though he told himself there had been, he had been lying to himself. Trowa and Quatre made sure he noticed that.

Mulling over his defeat, Heero felt a hand touch the side of his cheek and turn him to face Duo once again. The Aiko’s eyes were sparkling from the moonlight playing off the tears he had refused to shed earlier. Not knowing what to feel, Heero tried to look away from those eyes, but Duo’s hand kept him from turning away.

“Didn’t you?” Duo whispered.

“No,” Heero said weakly. “It is my duty to investigate possible threats. That is all.”

“You know what I think?” Duo smiled, inching closer to Heero.

“What?” Duo’s proximity was wreaking havoc on him as his breath quickened.

“You’re just sweeter than you want to admit.” The Aiko leaned in and whispered his words mere centimeters from Heero’s lips then leaned in and kissed him softly. He pulled back a little after a while, scanning Heero’s eyes for a reaction. All Heero could do was stare back. Smiling, Duo leaned in and kissed him again, apparently happy with what he saw. Heero’s mind went blank as the man kissed him, of his own accord even, content in tasting the man for as long as he was allowed to. A tongue danced on his bottom lip, sending a jolt throughout his body as he welcomed it by opening his mouth. Once the slick muscle slid into his mouth, he couldn’t stop the moan that escaped from his throat. Entranced by the play of Duo’s tongue, Heero brought his hands up to bury them in the man’s hair at the nape of his neck.

# # # #

Duo wrapped his arms around Heero, pulling the man closer as their kiss deepened. His body had wanted this for a while now, but his mind and heart had been reluctant, for different reasons. His mind had stayed with the idea that he should never bow down to this man, the man who had bought him into slavery. However, though his station was that of a slave, Heero had never really treated him as such. The Lord treated him like a companion; someone to talk to in the dead of night instead of something to fulfill you pent up needs like he was bought for.

Duo’s heart, over the time he had spent in Lorlia, had been slowly warming to the quiet Lord, though weary while doing so. Now, his heart felt full in a way he had never felt before. Heero had been kind enough to investigate his clan for him, for no other real reason than that of just being nice.

Heero had no reason to be nice, none at all. Duo had been nothing but a pain in the ass in hopes of either escaping or being killed before the rich Lord had his way with him. There were many instances when any other Lord would have tortured him, killed him, or sold him off to the highest bidder. But Yuy was different. Yuy, he could see now, was a man with a heart so big, he has to pretend he doesn’t have one so people won’t take advantage of it.

Dizzy from the newly acquired information, Duo leaned into Heero as the man gently pushed him down on the bed, never breaking their kiss. Normally this would have been his warning sign to push the man off, but he found his body wanting. Wanting to be touched, caressed, loved. //Love…//. Did Duo love him? Love him enough to the point that he craved Heero to love him in return? //Does he love me...or…?//

Heero let him up for air as his thoughts escalated. Did he love Heero or did he just lust after the man? And was either feeling mutual? All of the questions in his mind made his heart beat faster than it already was. But all his inner turmoil was silenced by Heero uttering three very simple words.

“Are you sure?”

The Aiko smiled and pulled Heero down, answering him with a kiss. //He’s keeping his promise, and he cares. And by the Gods does he taste good!//

Heero found Duo’s wrists and pinned them against the bed as he moved his lips from Duo’s mouth to his neck, licking and sucking a path down to the collar. The Aiko gasped at the feeling, craving more. He felt Heero smile against his skin as he planted more lingering kisses along the nape of his neck. Those searing lips left his skin, making Duo uncharacteristically whine in protest only to let out an airy yell as Heero slipped down to take one of Duo’s bare nipples in his mouth. “Oh Gods, Heero!”

The feel of the Lords tongue playing with his hardening nipple made him shiver in pleasure. One thing was for sure: the real Heero was much better than the dream Heero. Just a few minutes and he was already losing control.

Heero’s knee slipped its way between Duo’s legs as the Lord switched his ministrations to the other nipple, distracting the Aiko. He didn’t notice the situation until he felt Heero’s erection rub up against his own, send a jolt of pure bliss. A small voice in the back of his mind warned him to stop this before it got out of hand, that he would regret it in the morning. But right now, he didn’t give a fuck. Fuck being the operative word there.

Heero began to rock against him, enticing sounds out of him that not even Duo knew he could make. The Lord skillfully undressed Duo and himself, barely breaking the rhythm their bodies were moving in. Duo was lost in a sea of pleasure, each wave making him light in the head. He was contempt to stay lost forever until he felt Heero’s fingers ghost along his bare buttocks. The feeling of those suggestive fingers sobered his pleasure-addled mind. No, that would be too much. Duo likes him but…but… //I’m not ready for this!//.

“No, don’t!” Duo broke Heero’s hold and pushed the suggestive hand away. “I can’t, I’m not…” Duo could see confusion in those Prussian blue eyes. Sighing, Duo closed his eyes, “I’m sorry I…I know I was…”

“Duo,” Heero’s voice was soft, coaxing Duo to open his eyes and look into Heero’s. The Lord was looking down at him calmly. “Do you trust me?”

Taken aback, Duo stared into his eyes for a while. Trust? That was a very strong word; a word that gave someone else power over him…//You’ve trusted him before. Remember?//. Still a little weary, Duo gazed into Heero’s eyes, searching them for a reason to say either yes or no. What he found caused his lips to move of their own volition. “Yes.”

Heero leaned down and kissed Duo under the ear. “Then relax.”

Those hands began questing downward again along his side and Duo tensed //Not that…please…//. He knew instinctually that Heero wouldn’t hurt him; quite the contrary really. But he didn’t feel ready for that, even if his body did want it. Plus he still had the fear of being exiled from his clan lingering in his mind.

Heero must have felt him stiffen. “I’m not going to do that.” Feather-like kisses trailed down is neck, calming his nerves. “Trust me Duo.”

Reassuring himself that Heero wouldn’t lie, Duo relaxed onto the bed and allowed himself to feel. Those hands continued their quest as Heero lifted himself from Duo to straddle one of his legs, instead of lying in the middle. Duo groaned from the loss of touch but soon found himself shooting off the bed as he shouted out in pure bliss. Heero’s warm hand had found his straining erection and was pumping it slowly. “Oh fuck!”

Heero smiled then claimed his lips. Duo tasted him with a new hunger as he drove his tongue into the other mans hot cavern. Fruit…He always tasted like fruit and Duo was getting addicted to the flavor. Their tongues danced for dominance while Heero made used of the pre-cum on the tip of Duo’s cock and lubricated the organ, causing the sensation to skyrocket. The Lord moved his lips to his nipples again, which were already hard from the earlier abuse. The Lord was about to move away when Duo laced his fingers though Heero’s hair and held the man’s head over his chest, begging for more. Heero complied and began to lick, nip and suck at Duo’s chest, causing the Aiko to moan deeply. “Gods yes...Heero!”

Blushing from the attention, Duo barely noticed Heero slipping his hands out of the Lord’s hair and placing them on the bed above his head. “Keep them there.”

Heero’s tone was deep and seductive, making Duo comply without even thinking about it. The Lord’s hands continued to work their magic on Duo’s member, which was very hard and pulsing for release. Then, the braided man clutched at the bed sheets as Heero traced his navel with his tongue, enticing a hiss of pleasure out of him. “Shit, Heero…Aaaahhh, more!”

The feel of Heero’s tongue on skin that was so close to his cock caused the image of that devilish tongue teasing his erection to flash before his eyes //By the Gods I want that!//. Duo moaned deep in his chest as the fantasy continued in his head of Heero using his mouth on more sensitive areas when he felt heat swirling in his lower stomach and his cock twitch in anticipation. “Oh fuck! Heero…please!”

Heero moved up from his torture of Duo’s navel and whispered into his ear. “Come for me Duo.”

With that, Heero pumped his cock faster and sucked on his pulse point with abandon. Duo grabbed for Heero as he began his fall down into bliss, screaming in pure pleasure. Never. Never had it felt this good. Not by himself. Not in the dream. Never.

Duo rode the waves of bliss with a passion, rocking into Heero’s hand as he came. He felt a tear slip out of his tightly closed eyes //He kept his promise. I can trust him. I can be with him and not be disappointed at myself…I can love him//.

# # # #

Heero watched Duo as he slept, the Aiko’s arms wrapped around his waist and head burrowed into his chest. The man had been in a daze after he came and while Heero had cleaned him up. Once he was done, Duo latched onto him and fell asleep in seconds, relief and contentment evident on his face. Though it was true Heero didn’t come himself, the smile on Duo’s face as he slept was well worth it, even if he didn’t get as much pleasure as he could have. There are different types of pleasure, after all.

Content with having Duo wrapped around him, Heero was about to close his eyes when he felt Duo stir. “Hey, you awake?”

“Huh?” Duo mumbled up at him, blinking a few times. Once he figured out where he was, the Aiko smiled up at him. “Yeah. Did I…pass out?”

Heero shrugged. “In a way. You were mostly in a daze at first.”

Duo smiled at him once again and nuzzled back down to where he was, bumping Heero’s cock with his thigh, which was still hard. The Aiko gave him a quizzical look and Heero shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. Go back to--Ahhh, Duo!”

Duo had gripped Heero’s member and began to mimic what Heero had done to him. “Really, you don’t have to--Fuck!--to--aahhh!”

He couldn’t string a coherent sentence even if his life depended on it, though he kept trying. “Duo, you--humph!” The Aiko’s mouth claimed his own, effectively silencing him.

Once Duo had kissed his breath away, he pulled back. “Shut up, ‘ro, and come for me.”

# # # #

Heero was already so hard it didn’t take long for the Lord to come, throwing his head back and releasing a deep groan along with his essence. The scene was erotic. It gave Duo a rush of power; knowing that he was the one who brought the Lord of War to his knees in pleasure. The high blush and slight sheen of sweat on the man’s face just added to the sizzling sight of Heero lost in rapture. He could stare at that face for days.

When Duo had felt the man still hard, he had felt bad. Angry at himself for not seeing to Heero as the man had seen for him. And there was no way in hell he was going to be labeled as a bad lover.

Heero’s breathing began to slow to a normal pace while Duo placed small kisses along his neck, like the man had done to him, the salt of his sweat adding to the taste.

“Shit…” Heero muttered.

“You’re welcome,” Duo whispered into his ear, casing the man to shiver noticeably. Duo lifted his head and waited for Heero to open his eyes again. Prussian blues looked up at him after a while, still hazed over in orgasm afterglow. Duo smiled and Heero smiled back. A real smile. This was the first time Duo had ever seen the man really smile. It looked very, very good on him. “You should do that more often.”

Heero looked up at him in surprise as he blushed a dark red, causing Duo to grin. “Smile, I mean.”

“Oh,” Heero sighed in relief.

Duo leaned down so they touched noses. “Although, what you were thinking would be nice too.”

Heero moaned at the suggestion then slipped his hands over Duo’s bare ass. “Careful, you might give me ideas.”

The Lord began to knead his ass. Duo arched his back in response and blushed as he let out an airy moan. Heero smiled at him then placed his hands on Duo’s shoulder blades and pulled him down to lie on his chest. “Sleep.”

“Sounds good,” Duo mumbled, already half way there from the lulling of Heero’s heartbeat and comfort of his chest. He heard Heero sigh and smiled //all in all, not a bad day…huh, Yuy//.

Duo fell asleep with a warm smile on his face.

# # # #

“He’s in Lorlia.”

“Just as we thought. Thank you for the information.”

“Send for me if you need me again.”

“Of course.”

The man watched as the spy slipped back into darkness.

“So, the Celacent is in Lorlia…”


TBC…
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Whew. There you go. Sorry it took me a while. Tell me what you thought!