24-Jan-2001
This is the very belated Christmas present for Akuma! She rants, I rant, we keep each other writing... It's all good!
Actually, this ended up way too similar to the untitled thing... Oops.
I put everything on hold for this, which is partly why it took so long for me to post anything. However, everything is still being thought about...
Suggested listening: 'Au Revoir' by Malice Mizer. (It's gorgeous! As an incentive to write this, I wouldn't let myself listen to it unless I was writing this fic...) *sings* Anata wo dakishime! Nemuritai! Yasashii kioku ni! *will shut up now* Oh, I apologize if those are incorrect lyrics... That's my own romanization. On a random note, it has a great video, as well! Actually, I did part of it listening to the Gladiator soundtrack. Great music, even if it almost made me start crying again...
I know Heero's OOC in the first scenes... He's supposed to be. All in all, the entire thing takes the story of Wing and turns it all over and upside down... The characters are basically the same, that's about it. In fact, this is basically a crossover... *sweatdrop*
Warnings: Total AU, yaoi, SAAAAAAP that just kind of exploded in my face
Pairings: 1x2/2x1 (I use the 'x' to signify more than casual touching, not necessarily sex)
Archive: GW Addiction
Anyway...
"Heero, I don't think it goes that way," Duo inserted as he tilted his head to see his companion's face through the object of his scrutiny. Heero's lips were pursed in concentration, his eyes slightly squinted as he ignored Duo's normal comments, some needed, some not, and tried to focus on the object in his hands. Deftly turning it a few times, he finally set it back on the engraved metal edge of the mahogany table, sitting back on the blue carpet of Duo's room. He sighed, finally directing his attentions at Duo.
"What?" His face was more open than customary, even when just in the company of each other, when Heero could stop acting for others. The two had spent the past few hours trying to figure out one of the many artifacts they'd brought up from the bowels of the old Maxwell castle, a cubical box with a hollowed out center, almost like a square donut. Made of strangely colored metal, it didn't appear to have any apparent purpose.
In general, they were able to decipher an object's purpose by now, but this strange square continued to baffle them. They didn't know anything more about it than they had when they'd first brought it, coughing from dust and smeared with dirt and grime, up from the catacombs deep underground the castle. The two did this often, both free from duties other royalty may have had, but due to different circumstances. Duo was the seventh of eight sons to the King and Queen, and it was not unknown, except to him, that he'd been what was politely referred to as an 'accident.' Most couldn't have been happier with the results, though, a shining, happy boy with round violet eyes and a cheery face that could beg the candy from a baby. Heero, on the other hand, was the only son of a distant relative to the king, father unknown and mother dead in childbirth. He had largely been ignored, pushed aside as 'that one' or a faceless burden, until he had come to live with the King a few years ago! . That apathy was probably what had formed him, a sullen, cold boy who appeared to care for little, but was graced with the face of an angel. Not far, in fact, from what his mother, supposedly incoherent and dying, claimed his father to be. Though the two boys appeared polar opposites, they had found constant companions in each other, seeming to meet each other half way to create a solid bond. Maybe it was because Duo could understand feeling discarded, the second youngest in a huge household. Maybe it was because they had something of similar interests, a strange coincidence they'd discovered fairly quickly. Or maybe it was because Heero had finally relented to Duo's insistent pressure to be somewhat social, stemming from an initial rejection taken as nothing but a joke. Most likely, though, it was a combination of those and other factors not so easy to analyze.
Regardless, they had found constant companionship in each other over the past two years, supporting each other when no one else had the time to, making sure neither was always overlooked. Often the two simply retreated to Duo's room for hours, or even days, working almost nonstop on some strange contraption they'd found in the cellars. As they were now.
"Nevermind!" Exasperation showed clearly on Duo's face, but both knew it was largely just for show, an exaggerated display. "Ne... Do you think there were more of those?"
"More? I don't know. We should check next time we're down there. Maybe they do something together." He picked it up again, twirling it in his fingers as he searched for any sort of markings on the surface. It wasn't big, only about three square inches, smooth silver with rounded edges. After scowling at it, he handed it to his companion, who deposited the object back on the table with no further ado.
"You know it's been hours since we ate, Heero." The hint was obvious, and the fine lines of Heero's lips stretched slightly, offering something too rare to his best friend.
"Let's go, then." The ingratiating grin he got in reply was more than compensation for sacrificing his silence, but neither needed the idle pleasantries of speech as they made their way to the kitchens.
(One year later)
"What do you mean, Heero can't come?" The almost plea, bordering on hysteria, was accented by the flushing of normally pale skin, a widening of eyes darkened to deep blue. His cry echoed off the vaulted marble ceilings and high walls of the minor audience room, where the king chose to meet with his offspring.
The king sighed, knowing how hard it could be to placate his seventh son. Duo had been forced to be stubborn to get anything without it being pushed to the side by the many demands of his siblings. While that stubborn streak had helped the child, it appeared to be nothing but bullheadedness now. The boy was standing ramrod straight, chin up and those eyes glaring right into his. His fists were clenched and he seemed almost to tremble with the strain of restraining his anger, refraining from exploding in front of his family. He'd never been close with his parents, he knew they didn't understand and didn't want their attempted sympathy or pity, nor their anger. With their lack of familiarity with their son, any anger would become a pent-up, unfounded annoyance at anything he did that displeased them, leading to even worse relations.
"I didn't say he couldn't come, I said he couldn't stay. You can't develop your gifts when you're constantly being distracted by that boy and your strange games." Everyone present could tell the king was close to cracking - he'd never been able to stand insolence in any form from his sons, even the smiling cherub Duo could normally be.
"Kaile didn't have to go," Duo said in a forced whisper, the harsh tone grating unnaturally. The timbre was unfamiliar coming from the boy everyone was accustomed to greeting with a broad smile that would be echoed happily with a lilting greeting.
"Kaile had other options," his father replied in a tone whose equal he'd only heard once - from Heero. It was widely known that Kaile, the fifth son, had significant psychic gifts, but a prearranged marriage had been more profitable than Kaile staying in a tower to develop them. Of course, if one listened to gossip, it would he heard that he'd gotten the girl pregnant, but most tried to ignore it.
"In other words," Duo hissed, "you can't marry me off, so you're sending me away." The silence that replied was all he needed. His eyes snapped and he turned violently on one foot, braid swirling angrily behind him as he strode out of the room with his head up, waiting until the door slammed behind him to break into a run.
Heero had only idly wondered where Duo was that morning. While it was easy to pretend he had no family, sometimes his friend did have obligations to fill with them, and Heero had long ago learned not to disturb the family gatherings, unless invited. He'd taken advantage of solitude by resuming a book he'd forgotten about months ago. Now he could barely remember the plot, but he didn't want to read again the five hundred pages he'd already gone through.
His problem was solved as Duo caromed through the door, slamming it shut behind him and standing, fists clenched and trembling, before him. The formality of knocking had long ago been dropped, but still... What happened in there?
"Duo?" he asked evenly, hoping he could maybe calm the obviously distraught boy.
"Heero," Duo acknowledged through clenched teeth, refusing to follow his example.
His only reply was the raising of one fine brown eyebrow, prompting but not pushing for some explanation of Duo's current mood. Duo refused to be prompted, though, staring into the corner as his breath gradually slowed and his tensed muscles uncoiled themselves, fists relaxing and his posture slipped to something more familiar; Something not easily likened to a drawn boy, as would have been simply bare minutes before. Eventually, he calmed down, moving to Heero's bed and slumping down on it.
"I'm leaving," he muttered, fastidiously studying the pattern on Heero's sheets.
"You're what?" Indignation rose in him like bile, that he hadn't been informed, that Duo didn't seem to deem him important enough to tell.
"I wasn't told, either," came the whispered reply, Duo curling to hug his knees to his chest. He was biting his lip, forcing himself to look at nothing. Heero realized that Duo was miserable about his situation, too, and probably just as confused as Heero was. He realized he was only aggravating situation, forcing himself to calm down.
"What do you mean, you're leaving?" Hopefully getting Duo to explain the situation would calm him.
He put down his book and went to the bed, sitting cross-legged next to his friend, tentatively reaching out a hand and resting it on Duo's back. Having lived basically alone for most of his life, he normally shunned contact, the unfamiliar procedure of touching someone making him uncomfortable. But the same detached coldness that kept him alone enabled a cool analyzing of others, and of how they interacted. Not only did he understand what the situation - what Duo - warranted, he found that for one of the first times he could remember he actually wanted to touch him, try to comfort his best friend, the only one who seemed to truly understand, know, care about him.
Duo leaned into the brief caress, then surprised him by nearly lunging at him, his arms winding around Heero's neck, pulling the slender form to his own. Heero fought his natural compulsion to refuse contact as he realized Duo was crying, the boy's shoulders shaking silently against him.
"Duo?" he questioned, trying not to disturb the boy too much.
"They want to exploit some... Power," the violet-eyed boy said against his neck, voice muffled but audible.
"Psychic?" He felt the brush of hair against his neck in answer, the fleeting pressure of a nod against his collarbone.
"They just wanna get rid of me for a year or two... I think Father wishes they'd stopped at three -" He cut off whatever else he'd been about to say. Nothing was said for a few minutes as the two reveled in silence, not having to pay attention to anything but breathing, and the faraway echo of footsteps.
"You know, most people would be happy," he said quietly.
"I'm not most people," Duo retaliated sharply.
A short laugh forced its way through Heero's lips at the other's petulance. "No, you're not." He relaxed, let himself flow down to the bed, puling Duo with him.
"You still should be happy."
Duo gave a bitter chuckle. "You're just saying that." He sighed into Heero's neck.
Shaking his head as far as the restraint of Duo's would allow, Heero replied, "No, I'm not. There aren't a lot of people who have the chance to develop any talent they may have."
"You're not making it easy to be annoyed," he commented with a laugh.
"I apologize."
A short snort of laughter was his only reply, Duo's head burrowing further into the junction of shoulder and neck. Silence reigned once more, neither paying much attention as both drifted slowly to sleep. If their current situation strained, maybe even broke, normal bonds of friendship, neither paid it any mind.
(Two weeks later)
He hadn't realized how much Duo made him a part of the household until his friend was gone, abandoning Heero once again to the encompassing bustle of a constantly busy court and castle, one in which he had no part. Left to his own devices, he reverted once again to the cold and sullen wallflower, without of the benefit of Duo trying to help him anymore.
Duo had left ten days ago, had never stopped looking back through the too tearful farewell, making it harder on the both of them. Heero had resolved years ago to never cry, but he'd come too close that day...
Sitting against the stone wall of his room, he listlessly fell into his own thoughts, daydreaming or just pondering nothing for hours. He nearly fell asleep twice, then resolved to do something. After pacing for a few minutes, he absently picked up one of the cubes he and Duo had yet to figure out. They'd found several more, all of different hues, but still didn't know what the things were. Tossing it from hand to hand, he absently juggled it for a few minutes, then picked up its companion, bringing two into play. Twin boxes of green and blue whirled through the air, carving delicate circular patterns until he had contented himself. He snatched the two from midair, nearly smiling as he stared at the now empty air.
He collapsed onto the bed, flopping a way that he knew was decidedly uncharacteristic, but he also knew people did strange things when bored. Duo being a prime example. He couldn't help but laugh as he remembered some of the more strange things his friend had done while under the influence of ennui, ranging from convincing a servant to lend him some girl's gowns to running shrieking through the top halls, his voice resounding through the majority of the castle. Heero had only joined him on this endeavor once, but had been forced to admit it was entertaining.
But he'd never do it without his vivacious companion. That seemed to be the prime reason for his boredom, lack of Duo to share it with. Being solitary once again had caused an overwhelming languor to slowly stir in the boy, something he hadn't even noticed before he'd met Duo, but was all too apparent now.
He allowed a tiny sigh to pass his lips, bringing the colored boxes to his face for closer observation. His gaze passed over memorized angles and lines, coming to rest on something he knew hadn't been there before. A series of round bumps chased along two sides, opposite each other on the same plane.
Frowning in concentration, he counted the dots marring the normally smooth surface. Twenty four... Twelve on each side. Transferring his attention to the other box, he searched its sides for accompanying swelling. There were none, however, when he looked closer he realized that there were, in fact, contusions in the surface, that seemed to match the lumps. Counting quickly, he realized that the two did seem to be companions to each other.
Pursing his lips, he tried to guess the purpose of the disfigurements, coming to no conclusion except to see what happened when he put them together.
He tentatively touched the two marked sides to each other, the reaction assuring him he didn't need to apply extra force. The contacting edges seemed almost to bubble in his hand, and then merged. Blue and green swirled and melded into a chaotic but beautiful array. he knew it wasn't just the colors, but the very metal of the two objects that was blended. He let the reaction happen, knowing if there was any danger, he'd been lost the moment the reaction started.
The eddying mixture slowed, then stopped, leaving him with a fascinatingly beautifully patterned metal... But he still didn't know what it was for. Turning it over, he realized the pigmentation was totally gone from most of one side, a clear rectangle with an even border of mixed blue and green. He couldn't see anything through the rectangle but something akin to mist, never changing in its thick consistency. As he stared, though, the mist moved, materialized and gained color, forming a face he knew like his own.
"Duo?!"
He knew he was staring open mouthed at Heero's stunned visage, but it was fully justified! Most people would be stunned if the featureless, alien boxes you'd brought along to get identified suddenly became one decidedly different rectangle. He'd been trying to relax in the room - God only knew where his roommate was half the time - when something bizarre had happened, and he was left with... this.
One of the other tower students had been able to identify the civilization the things came from, but didn't know what they were. However, their problem appeared to have been rectified, as he gaped at Heero's face. His friend appeared to have recovered the shreds of his composure, but from the initial shock Duo knew he had no idea what had just happened, either.
But, he resolved, he would take advantage of the situation!
"Heero!" he cried, before remembering the other denizens of the tower, spoiled rich children like himself who'd either been a burden or just wanted to get away. Some were all right, some he'd even consider friends, but he'd yet to find someone who trusted him so implicitly, or someone who would run down the halls screaming even once. Seeing Heero's face made him happier than he'd ever thought he'd be. He smiled broadly, violet eyes brighter than they'd been in weeks and face fairly glowing.
"Duo?" Heero repeated incredulously. He nodded ecstatically, reminding himself once again to be quieter.
"Of course! Looks like we finally figured these things out, ne?" Heero nodded, the ghost of a smile flitting across his lips.
"How're you doing? I'm all right, but I wish you were here, too. Some of the people are pretty nice, mostly the girls, though. The guys are polite, but that's about it, you know? I guess they're scared of me or something, cause of my dad. It's not like I'm gonna court-martial 'em or anything, but you'd think I would by the way they acted..." He trailed off as he realized he hadn't even given Heero a chance to answer his question. He couldn't help but laugh as he waited for Heero to digest what had suddenly been thrown at him, wondering if he had heard a word he'd said.
"Duo, did your boxes suddenly do something... strange?"
Duo laughed at how shell shocked Heero still appeared. Two weeks with his family, servants, and the constant callers must have really taken their toll, he mused.
"Sure did! Got all swirly, then this happened!" Heero nodded, his tense face slowly relaxing.
"What have you been doing, Heero?" Duo sunk further down into the chair, simply enjoying being with his friend in any way possible.
"Absolutely nothing, Duo," Heero growled, eliciting a small giggle from him. He proceeded to relate every doing of everyone he had observed, complete with comments on how useless everything was, and how futile most peoples' efforts turned out to be. Duo responded accordingly, regaling tales of his fellow students and their bored rich kid hijinks, the retaliation of enemies and follow ups in response. The time passed without either noticing it for the first time since Duo had left.
Days drifted past, lazily fluttering into weeks and even months. Though their nearly nightly conversations alleviated most of the empty loss they hadn't known would result from parting, both knew it wasn't quite enough. Neither had realized how much five years being constantly together had affected them, how much a part of each other they had become. All the while, Duo felt his smiles become more and more forced, and Heero slipped into the familiar routine of being no one, a sullen shadow noticeable only if you took the time to look, something no one did without Duo to point him out. For both, it became increasingly hard to say goodbye every night; the days seem to grow longer until they could shut themselves in a room somewhere and relate whatever they felt like, what they couldn't with anyone else. With each other, though, Heero's smile became more frequent than ever. He relaxed, let his personality flow fully through. Sometimes it even seemed Duo was the more calm of the two, letting down his manic facade. They found themselves longing even more constantly for the other's company... And time slipped by.
End Part 1
Well, I actually wrote it all in one chunk, but I'm sending out almost half of it while my beta reader finishes with the last scene or two....
C&C? I'm not too proud of this one, but I like parts of it. *shrugs*
Ryan Harbin
Please send comments to: rioroute_vilgyna@yahoo.com