20-Feb-2006
Disclaimer: I don't own nor do I make any sort of profit from Gundam Wing or its characters. It is the property of Bandai, Sunrise and Sotsu Agency. I also apologize profusely to the Greeks for butchering their mythology.
Title: Cupid's Breath, part 6
Author: KwyckSylver
Pairing: 1 x 2 eventually
Rating: Everyone, this chapter
Spoilers: None
Warning: Past-life deaths of Heero and Duo
I want to thank Caroline *snuggles* for suggestions and helping with the description of the arrows. And I want to thank Fierydragonsky *huggles* for beta-ing. She's awesome.
Heero unlocked the front door, walked to his bedroom, and stopped in the doorway. He wasn't sure whether he was still asleep and dreaming or whether he was awake and hallucinating.
His neighbor's cat was curled up and purring in the lap of the winged man from his dream. And the man was sitting on his bed.
"What are you doing in my house?" Heero asked, his voice was low and threatening.
Duo turned his head and looked up. He hadn't even heard Heero return; he'd been too wrapped up in his close call with the cat. He leapt to his feet when he saw Heero standing in the doorway. The cat landed on the floor with a thump and ran under the bed.
Duo toed his bow and quiver underneath the bed, to hide them from Heero's sight. He had removed them and set them on the floor, when he was petting the cat.
"I asked you what you're doing in my house." Heero said again. His tone evolved from threatening to deadly serious.
"I-uh, I-um, ah . . ." Duo tried to think of what to say while his brain and his tongue took turns tripping over each other. Duo then disappeared, leaving behind a scent of roses in the air.
Stunned, Heero stood motionless, staring at the empty space the man had occupied a second before. People didn't just disappear in front of you.
Emerging from under the bed, the cat pawed at feathers floating down to the floor. Its meows brought Heero out of his shock. Heero snatched one of the feathers from the air. It was like the two feathers he had found a few days before. He turned to pluck another one from the air and his foot struck against something, pushing it farther underneath his bed. Heero got down on his hands and knees, searching for what his foot had hit. He was very surprised when he pulled out a bow and quiver.
Heero sat on the bed and examined the bow. It was about three feet long and heavier than he'd expected. It appeared to be wooden; its color was a rich, warm brown that almost glowed. But its heft made it feel as though it were made of stone. The bowstring was like spun gold and it hummed when Heero plucked it.
He set the bow on the bed and then picked up the pouch-like quiver. Although it was simply designed, the buff-colored leather was the softest he'd ever touched. Heero opened the quiver and gently emptied its contents on the bed, discovering a small round bottle and three arrows. Considering the workmanship of the bow, he'd expected the arrows to be similar. Instead, what he saw made him gasp in amazement.
The points looked like garnets, and the shafts seemed to be made of something akin to moonstone. They were iridescent in the light. The fletching, made of fine strands of woven silver, was soft and feathery to the touch.
He reached for one of the delicate-looking arrows and gingerly picked it up, not wanting to break it. He gasped in surprise when, at his touch, the arrow turned into a long-stemmed, deep red rose, complete with thorns. He hissed and dropped it when one of the thorns stuck him, and blinked in surprise when the rose turned back into an arrow.
He shakily picked up the arrows and watched as each one turned into a rose and then turned back into an arrow after he slid it back into the quiver. He stood and heard a thunk against the floor. He looked down and saw the small, round bottle that had been in the quiver with the arrows. He'd almost forgotten about it.
He pulled the stopper off and hesitantly sniffed at its contents. He jerked it away from his nose, spilling some of it on his hand. Whatever it was, it had a sharp, pungent smell that almost burned his nostrils. He re-corked the bottle and replaced it inside the quiver, alongside the arrows.
Heero went to the bathroom to wash the foul smelling liquid from his hands. After he rinsed off the soap, the cut on his finger from the rose or arrow, whatever it was, had healed.
Heero's legs felt rubbery and he sat down on the toilet. He leaned back, resting his head against the towels hanging on the rack. He ignored the discomfort he felt from the tank pressing against his back.
It was bad enough to have your own world turned upside down by unexplainable events. But it was almost catastrophic to find the natural world itself had been turned on its ear and no one knew it but you.
"I'm sorry," Duo said to Eros, "I didn't hear Heero return; I was - distracted."
"It doesn't matter what your excuse is. Accidental or not, you were seen by a human," Eros answered. "The Council is waiting for you."
They walked in silence to the council hall. Duo hardened his resolve to accept his punishment with grace. He was guilty, after all. He just wished he'd had more time with Heero.
The massive oak doors opened upon their approach and they walked inside the great hall. Eros took his place at the long table where the other gods of Olympus sat.
Duo stood before them and bowed in respect.
"Everyone knows why we're here." Zeus's deep voice resonated through the hall, "So let us dispense with the formalities and get down to business. Duo, you will hand over your bow and quiver."
"I can't. They're under Heero's bed." Duo hung his head. "They were poking me when I was holding the cat and teaching it my scent so it would stop stalking me."
Duo spread his wing for all to see his half-healed wounds.
"Sympathetic as we all might feel about your recent injuries, Duo, I am afraid leaving your equipment where a human can find it is a far more serious offense." Zeus said.
"Duo shall retrieve his quiver and bow from the human's abode," Aphrodite said, and all eyes turned to her. "He will do it without any of his cupid's abilities, which will be suspended during that time. It will be as if he were human, depending only on his intelligence and wiles. His punishment will be determined by his success or failure."
There was a murmur of voices up and down the table as the gods considered the idea.
"I like it," Athena was the first to speak, "It is fair and it gives Duo a chance to redeem himself so his punishment can be just."
"I agree with Athena," Apollo said. "Besides, because Duo is a cupid, it is Aphrodite's decision as to what should be done."
"I disagree," Hermes replied, "Duo has shown he's irresponsible when it comes to this particular human. Perhaps one of us should get them back. My own stealth and - Ouch! Who just kicked me?"
Apollo's mouth curled up in a smirk while Hermes (1) rubbed his shin.
The rest of the gods voted in support of Aphrodite's plan.
"It is decided then," Zeus said. "Duo, you are dismissed. Go to your quarters."
Eros gave Duo words of encouragement while he escorted the cupid back to his room, and then Eros returned to the hall for more discussion of the situation with the other gods.
"You almost blew it, Hermes," Eros said as he re-entered the hall. "I'd ask if you didn't get the memo, but since you are the messenger . . ."
"I apologize," Hermes said. "But I believe Duo will fail and get caught again."
"That's what we want him to do," Hera reminded him.
"But the Fates said we were not to help. Would this not be considered helping? " Hermes asked.
"I conferred with them about this before I approached the Council," Aphrodite answered. "We are not helping them fall in love; we are making Duo correct a mistake he made. What happens while he's correcting that mistake is up to him and to Heero Yuy."
(1) http://www.godchecker.com/pantheon/greek-mythology.php?deity=HERMES
~ TBC ~
End Part 5
KwyckSylver
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