a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x

Blue Forest Banshee Part 101
Blood Ties

Duo moved toward the French doors, shivering in his sweater. "Damn, Heero; it's freaking pouring out there! You can't fly in that, can you?"

Heero joined him, wrapping his arms around his Chosen's waist as they watched the deluge. Good thing the balcony was of the open-work variety; they'd be standing in rising water if it wasn't. Might be good to leave a reminder to Maintenance to inspect the roofs. "I could... in a dire, life-threatening emergency, but it would be neither pretty nor graceful and I would not be a happy Dragon on the other end," he smiled. "We're not designed for wet weather flying. Our wings can shed an enormous amount of water, but they do absorb some and that leads to stalling. We'll catch a port home tonight." He turned the Banshee around to kiss the end of his nose. "Besides, if we flew, you'd be soaked and then some."

Duo grinned and wrinkled his nose. "There is that. I'd be all night getting my hair dry."

Heero's phone rang and he let go of Duo to rumble a "moshi-moshi".

Duo drifted back to his own desk to finish clearing it off for the weekend, not intending to eavesdrop on Heero's call. That intention blew up when he heard Heero say sharply, "Raia, why are you whispering? I cannot understand you."

"Problem?" he mouthed, rejoining the Wyvern. Heero shrugged, intent on the phone.

"Raia, just speak up," he growled.

"I can't!" Duo heard her say faintly. "He's sitting right here!"

"Who is?"

"The vampire!"

Heero held the phone away from his ear, glaring at it, then glanced at the French doors where, in spite of the torrential rain, it was clearly still daylight.

"There is a vampire in Q's anteroom, during daylight hours?"

"Yes!" she hissed.

Heero gave a great sigh. "Well, fuck," he muttered. "All right; I'll come down."

"Hurry up," Raia demanded. "I don't like the way he's staring at my neck."

Heero closed his phone. "I'm afraid we're going to be a bit later; do you mind?"

"Are you kidding?! A vampire in Q's office?! This I have to see!" He grabbed his jacket, bouncing to the doorway in anticipation.

"If it's who I think it is, he's not that impressive..." Heero warned sourly.

"Don't care. I've never met a vampire before," Duo grinned. "Hey, is he going to tell me he 'vants to suck my bluud'?"

"Not if he knows what's good for him," Heero grumbled. "I'll prune his fangs if he even looks like he wants a taste of you."

~*~

In Q's outer office, Raia sat behind her desk, staring at a man sitting primly, eyes downcast, on the brocade sofa. He didn't look very impressive or even dangerous, but with vampires, who knew? Her wand lay neatly on the desk, only a hairsbreadth from her fingers.

And who knew that a spiritual descendant of Count Dracula would show up wearing scuffed work boots, old jeans, a plaid shirt and a leather jacket that looked fresh off the cow. Dark hair, non-piercing hazel eyes and a somewhat perplexed expression completed the unprepossessing picture. She still wasn't taking her eyes from the vampire; they weren't known to be trustworthy.

Heero paused in the doorway to sigh. "Damn it, Ctik; I thought you had things under control."

The vampire shot to his feet looking so relieved it was almost comical.

"Heero! My friend! Thank you so much for agreeing to see me!" he babbled. He grabbed the Wyvern's hand, pumping it furiously.

"Yes, yes; not a problem. Raia, why don't you go ahead and take off? Duo and I will handle this."

"Sure thing, Heero! Y'all have a wonderful weekend! Um... Nice to have met you, Mr...Ctik." And she was gone; teleporting out of there as if chased by hounds.

Heero peeled the vampire's fingers off his hand. "Ctik, I don't shake hands, remember?"

The vampire looked distressed and immediately babbled out an apology. "So sorry, Heero! I am so upset and confused - it's a wonder I even remembered to dress myself!"

Heero rolled his eyes. "Never mind. Sit and you can tell me what earth-shattering mess you've managed this time."

He flung himself back onto the sofa, throwing up his hands in exasperation. "I should never have listened to that descendant of mine! The boy is an unprincipled scoundrel!"

"True enough," agreed Heero, remembering his lone meeting with the multi-great grand-something of the creature before him. Not particularly comfortable for either of them, given the circumstances, but that was years ago. "What's he done?"

"Oh, my fangs! What hasn't he done?! He sold the property! Sold it! To a developer!" He covered his eyes. "He's going to build a theme park."

Heero blinked. He looked at Duo, who had stayed in the background, being oddly disappointed with his first view of a vampire. (He had really expected something more dramatic, more theatrical, more...Dracula-ish; not this musty-looking laborer.)

"A theme park? Around a gothic mansion?"

"Yes... I told him I wouldn't stand for it, and he... laughed at me." He looked up at the Wyvern. "And before you ask, yes, I consulted a solicitor. I am, apparently, screwed. I never should have pretended to die in the 19th century; he said it left me with no legal standing whatsoever."

"I believe that's true," Heero said slowly. "At least with Human laws." He shook his head. "So, what do you want me to do? A chikan Miles may be, but he is the legal owner of the property. I don't think there's anything I can do about the theme park." He frowned to himself again. A theme park?! Great Dragons; the man was an idiot.

Ctik sighed heavily, and waved one hand vaguely. "I wish there had been a guidebook when I was young, with warnings about this sort of thing; perhaps I would not be in this pickle." He sat up a bit straighter, looking more determined. "Never mind; perhaps I should write one for those who come after." He glanced past Heero then, spying Duo.

"Oh! I am so sorry! I didn't even notice you! Heero, why did you let me babble on without introducing your companion?" He scrambled to his feet and bowed deeply in the European fashion. "Ctik Vrostek, at your service."

Heero made a face, but stood and drew Duo to his feet also.

"Ctik, this is my Chosen, Duo of the Clan Blue Forest. You will not even think about the taste of him or I will remove all your troubles."

The vampire looked affronted. "Heero! You know I gave up all that! All those cameras and nosy investigations! No, thank you; I actually prefer the packaged stuff." He smiled brightly, returning his attention to Duo. "You must be very special to have caught Heero's eye; he has a reputation as being impossible to please."

Duo blinked. "Um... Thank you... I've never thought of him as... impossible." A vampire who didn't drink blood? How the hell did that work?

Heero snorted. "And you are a flatterer. Let's get back to what you want and why you're here." He glanced out the window. "In daylight. How did you manage that?"

The vampire sat down again and reached into his shirt, pulling out a small clay disc on a thong. "Protective charm. It's like an umbrella against the sun."

Heero raised one eyebrow. "An anti-sunlight charm? Where did you get that?"

Ctik pinkened slightly. "Um... There was a Wizard... a long time ago... he was very fond of me..." He rubbed the clay talisman between his fingers affectionately. "He made a bunch of them, for emergencies. This seemed like a sensible time to use them."

Duo couldn't contain his curiosity any longer. "Don't you have to sleep during the day?"

"Normally," Ctik sighed, drooping a bit. "I would only use the charms when traveling or in an emergency, but I am at my wits' end. I have nowhere to sleep; not safely, anyway."

"You had a whole box of your earth; what happened?"

"You know how I feel about family... I don't want to believe it of my own blood..."

"Ctik..."

"I think Miles moved it. Or maybe destroyed it. I just know it's gone." He pulled a small pouch from his pocket. "This is all I have left."

Heero sighed, a hand to his eyes. "I knew I should have made sushi out of that fuckwit," he muttered under his breath.

Duo stared, appalled. "Your...grandson destroyed your earth?! Fuck! How could he?!"

Heero cast the Banshee a sidelong look. Great; there was that irrational sympathy again. He sighed again, mentally throwing up his hands in surrender. The Banshee was a sweet little thing - never mind that he would be furious if Heero dared to call him 'sweet' (or 'little') to his face - and he supposed it was all part of the charm. They would just have to solve Ctik's problem and get him out of here before he became Duo's new best friend.

"I always thought we were on good terms," said the vampire rather thoughtfully. "His father was the problem, I thought. Clearly, the apple did not fall as far from the tree as I had hoped. Theodore was a... well, a prick, but he wasn't blood, so I didn't really expect anything else. But Miles is blood!"

Duo blinked and sat down on the sofa next to Ctik. "What happened with him? Theodore, I mean?"

True to his nature, Ctik couldn't resist a chance to pour out his life story, or a part of it, at least.

He began with a brief account of his change and skimmed the high points of his un-life after that up until having the ancestral house moved, stone by stone, to the new world in the mid 18th century. It was some time after that point that problems began to appear.

"I left my affairs in the charge of my descendants from about 1870; it just seemed easier than doing the whole 'going away and dying and returning as my own heir' that I had been doing. Less paperwork, I thought. And clearly, the Human world was moving toward more paperwork. I hate all that," he sighed. "In any case, it worked well enough. My descendants have been fairly astute in business and finance; between us we managed to amass a comfortable fortune." He looked at Heero. "You know, I do not understand these silly Humans who claim money cannot buy happiness! It will buy comfort and health and freedom from worry; happiness can follow naturally."

Heero smiled thinly. "I believe some express it as 'anyone who says money can't buy happiness doesn't know where to shop'."

Ctik blinked as Duo snickered. "Oh, that's perfect!" crowed the vampire. "How perfectly true!" Heero made a 'continue' gesture and Ctik did so. "Ah, yes. Well, Vivian, Miles' mother, was a lovely girl; quite bright, really, but her choice of husband left a great deal to be desired. It wouldn't have mattered much, but her brother, Jeremy, was killed in the war. Not far, in fact, from where I grew up... I didn't want him to go, you know, but he was adamant... She married Theodore and in the way of those madly in love, she allowed him to handle the finances after Richard and Pamela passed over."

Duo glanced at Heero questioningly; Heero nodded with a roll of his eyes.

"Not a good thing, then...?" he suggested hesitantly.

Ctik hung his head. "Not at all. I'd gotten... complacent, I suppose. Secure in my little world of letting others support me. Very bad behavior for a vampire, you see."

"For anyone," Heero murmured.

"Yes... As it turned out, Theodore was a speculator. By the time the accountants were called, we were nearly penniless. There was barely enough money to support the household. Theodore refused to relinquish control of the finances and that is when I called the Bureau of Sorcery. I wasn't terribly hopeful that they would agree to assist me - being a vampire and all - but the Lord Wizard Q was kind enough to send Heero to assess my complaint."

"Really?! So that's how you met?"

"Yes, indeed. He was very clear what the consequences would be if Theodore did not relinquish his hold on my family's finances." He grinned broadly and Duo caught a glimpse of fangs. "And then he... he... changed! I'm sure we were all dumbfounded. Miles fainted. And I believe Theodore..." He looked at Heero for confirmation.

Heero snorted. "Theodore pissed himself; right in the lawyers' office."

Ctik sighed. "It was... delightful."

Duo burst out laughing. "Damn! I'll bet it was!"

Heero looked rather pleased with the memory. "He couldn't sign the papers fast enough. I think he almost fell down the stairs getting out of there."

"Vivian renewed my faith in her intelligence by divorcing that horrible man and I thought everything would be fine after that. Miles was just a teenager then, and continued to live with his mother. I had assumed..." He frowned. "Unfortunately, Miles seems to have taken after his father."

"Did you not have your earth secured?" Heero asked.

"I thought it was, but times change, and people grow smarter and more cunning. And it never occurred to me to defend against blood. Miles grew up there; he still lives in the house with his family. I'm sure he knows all the secrets of the place; it is, after all, a very old house, from a time when builders were expected to allow for servant passages and bolt holes. The children always had free run of the place, except for my tomb. It never occurred to me to make those things a secret. I always thought we were... well, friendly."

"I don't think 'friendly' matters when money is involved," said Heero dryly.

"Foolish complacency," Ctik agreed sadly.

"Heero, what can we do to help him?" Duo asked. Heero stifled a sigh.

"A safe place to sleep first. Can you rest with that amount of earth?" he asked the vampire.

"In a secure place, yes; I think so."

Heero nodded and opened his phone. "Kai Lin, this is Heero Yuy. I need access to the sub-dungeon tonight; one of the storage rooms. Ah, thank you; that will be excellent. I am in Q's office at the moment. Thank you; good night." He closed the phone just as a tinkling chime sounded and small cylinder with a metal tag attached appeared in the center of Raia's desk.

Ctik blinked. "Amazing. Your people are very good."

"The Castle prides itself on the quality of service. We beat out Euro three years in a row." He pocketed the cylindrical key. "Do you need to feed or stay up tonight?"

Ctik looked relieved. "I've fed, thank you. It is either way too late or much too early, but I really think I would like to sleep. I've been moving almost nonstop for three days."

"All right; we'll go down then and you can get settled."

~*~

They had to cross the commons in the rain, but a door Gnome caught them at the portico and offered umbrellas, for which they were all grateful. Duo made a mental note to stick an umbrella into his other space.

At the entrance to the dungeons, they were met by another Gnome who escorted them through the maze of passages and stairways to the deep storage level.

The Gnome (males and females looked identical and most people weren't rude enough - or foolish enough - to ask) unlocked the door for Heero and returned the cylinder with a flourish.

"Will the Lord Dragon require an escort for the return?" it asked politely.

"No, thank you; I have it memorized," Heero replied.

"Excellent! Good evening to you then, gentlemen." The Gnome bowed and scurried away, back to its post.

The room was not large, being only about 2x3 meters, but Ctik gave a relieved sigh. "Perfect, Heero! You have the key?"

"Yes. There is only one, so you will not be unduly disturbed. I will be back at sunset tomorrow, hopefully with some good news."

"Thank you, Heero; thank you from the bottom of my withered heart!" He threw his arms around Heero in a brief bear hug, before offering the same to Duo. "Thank you also, Duo of Blue Forest!"

Heero was glaring, so Duo stepped up to reply. "You're welcome, Ctik. I've never met a vampire before, so this is really interesting for me."

Ctik drew back with a slight smirk. "And you've been wondering all this time if I 'vould like to drink your bluuuuud'."

Duo burst out laughing as Heero growled. "Oh Sap! I was!"

Ctik grinned at him. "Well, of course I would like to, but I don't do that anymore. Thank you both and I am truly sorry to be such a bother. It really is my own fault."

"That it is," grumbled Heero, "but we can't have you withering away, regardless of the circumstances. Sleep well." He caught Duo's hand and pulled him back to close the iron door and lock it.

Mindful of the supposed enhanced senses of vampires, Duo held his questions until they had reached the portico.

"He's funny," he began. "I like him."

Heero snorted. "You like everyone, Banshee. You even like Zephyrus."

"Well... He's on my shit list right now, but yeah, I suppose I do like him at least a little. But Ctik is different. He's not being crappy to anyone, he's a victim here. I'd like to get my hands on that grandson of his," he frowned.

"Grand-nephew. Or possibly cousin. Ctik has no direct descendants; he was fairly young when he turned. No wife or children."

"But his relatives knew about him?"

"He had a younger brother and sister, I believe. He raised them after the parents died and they were properly grateful to him."

"He didn't mention them..."

"I believe that part of his life is very personal to him."

"And yet, you know about them..."

"Well..."

"You like him too, don't you?" Duo nudged him playfully.

"Hn. I suppose I do... somewhat. He's mostly harmless, if a bit... well... clueless. And certainly more trusting of family than any vampire ought to be," he said sourly.

"Just shows that he's really a nice guy."

"I suppose so... We're going to get wet," he grumbled, glaring at the rain. "It's too late to call for a routine port and this does not constitute an emergency."

"We have umbrellas."

"Duo. It's raining sideways."

"Ah. So it is. You'll just have to help me with my hair then, won't you?" purred the Banshee.

"This is true. Shall we then?"

~*~

As expected, they were drenched by the time they reached the residence tower. They separated to their own rooms first, to get out of their soaked clothing, and Duo was trying to unbraid his sodden hair when Heero called him into the bathroom.

"Here; I said I would help you," he growled, taking the recalcitrant hair from the Banshee. "Start the water?"

Duo leaned into the shower and twisted the water on. "Mmmm... Hot shower," he purred. "Heero, you get your hair cut regularly, don't you?"

"Yes. A Wizard in town has a small shop. Why?"

"I think I need a trim..."

Heero paused with the mass of wet hair tangled in his hands. "Trim...? How much of a trim?"

Duo shrugged, not looking at him. "Above my knees..."

"Oh. How far above your knees?" he asked in trepidation.

"About to here." Duo indicated a spot just below the small of his back.

Just about at that deliciously furry spot just above his tailbone... That was... very short, for the Banshee. Heero blinked. Almost half the length... He swallowed. It was quite impractical as long as it was...

"You..." He cleared his throat and finished untangling the hair. "You are tired of the length...?"

"I just thought it might be easier this summer. It gets kind of hot... I'd probably let it grow again in the fall." He turned to slide his arms around Heero's waist and kiss his mouth lightly. "And it wouldn't take all night and half the next day to dry anymore. I wouldn't ever cut it really short; I know how much you like it."

The relief was ridiculous. "It's your hair; if you are tired of it..."

"Nah... I just never knew before that I could cut it, so I practically melted during the summers."

"Ah. In that case, we can stop at Stanislaw's this weekend." He maneuvered Duo into the shower and commenced the task of shampooing the Banshee's mane. And he would make damn sure he collected the trimmings.

"Are we going to be able to help Ctik this weekend?"

Oh. Right. The vampire. Damn it.

"I don't know yet. I think it's fairly certain that he cannot go back to the house. I doubt if I can do anything about the sale. Legally, it's Miles' property to do with as he likes. That doesn't mean he's going to walk away gloating over the income. We can see to it that Ctik gets a good part of the money." He grinned, showing his teeth. "I think Miles has forgotten about me."

Duo snickered. "Well, we'll just have to remind him. That fuckwit." He ducked his head under the spray at Heero's command. "How do we find a place for Ctik, though? Can he stay here?"

"No. Vampires are a problematic group; Ctik may be mostly harmless, but he could attract others who aren't."

"Oh." The disappointment was obvious in his voice.

"Did you want a vampire in residence? I'm sure Raia would not agree and the School would probably be inundated with parental complaints. We really do have to think of something else. Or Ctik should." He rumbled softly. "This is really his problem; he should have made bolt-holes for just such an occurrence."

Duo slicked his hair back for the conditioner, working on the top of his hair while Heero worked on the long, soon-to-be-but-a-memory bottom.

"C'mon, Heero; can you really imagine Ctik expecting something like this? Turning his home into a theme park?"

"Not this, specifically, but it is supposed to be a survival instinct for vampires to not put all their earth in one box. I know," he sighed as Duo opened his mouth to argue. "It isn't fair. Nothing in this world is expected to be, my angel."

Duo leaned in to rest his forehead against Heero's shoulder. "I know... And I'm an idiot for wishing it was... It's only... maybe life isn't fair, but people should be. And it just... ticks me off when they aren't." Heero turned them to begin rinsing Duo's hair.

"And that's why you want to be so fair to everyone?"

"I dunno... maybe. Just seems like somebody should."

Heero combed his fingers through the long strands thoughtfully. The Banshee had a point. He could argue, but it wouldn't do anything to sway his Banshee's opinion and it would most likely get him relegated to his own bed, alone, for the night. Fairness was not such a grand thing, in the long run, but maybe it wasn't entirely useless. A lot of Humans never even noticed the fairness of others, but for the ones who did and were grateful and responded in kind... It was probably a net good.

"You know that I sometimes disagree with you over these social concepts..." he said slowly.

"Only because you have not yet been assimilated," Duo grinned. "Are you arguing now?"

"Not at all," Heero reassured him, squeezing the excess water out of his hair and coiling it carefully in a towel. "I would not dream of arguing with you when such a suave and urbane vampire is sleeping not that far away. I wouldn't want to look uncouth in comparison."

Duo snickered and poked his sternum lightly. "You just don't want to sleep alone tonight."

"That too. Seriously, fairness is not necessarily a dragonish concept, but I do understand your point. Tomorrow, you will have a haircut - I do get to collect the hair that is cut off, yes? - and we will try to find some fairness for Ctik the Clueless."

"You can claim to be so terrible all you like, Heero Yuy, but I know all about that gooey cream center." He hooked an arm around the Wyvern's neck and kissed him deeply. "Meet you in bed when you're done, okay?"

"Yours or mine?"

"Yours. I feel like being pampered." He slipped out of the shower to dry off and begin taming his unruly hair.

Heero smirked to himself and reached for the shampoo. It seemed he was finally getting the hang of this whole Banshee thing. About damn time.

~*~

Something fluttered against his nose. He swatted at it. It came back. This time he grabbed for it. Damned insects; time he renewed the window barrier.

"Ouch!"

Huh? What the...?

He blinked his eyes open to find Duo sprawled on the bed beside him and a good-sized hank of that beautiful hair clutched in his fist.

"Now that you're awake," said Duo dryly, "can I have my hair back? I'd like to get out of bed."

"Sorry," he muttered, releasing the hair. "Isn't it rather early?" he asked, noting that it was barely dawn.

"We have a vampire to place; time's a-wasting," laughed the Banshee, disappearing into the bath.

"Don't I even get some morning sex?" Heero said plaintively.

"You got it last night!" Duo stuck his head back into the room, his braid half-done. "And you didn't even feed me! I am ravenous!"

Heero chuckled in remembrance. They had played enthusiastically and rather late... Still... "I could give you something to chew on..." he teased.

Duo planted himself, naked, in the doorway, hands on his hips and a smirk on his lips. "Do you really want to chance just how hungry I am?"

Heero considered briefly, one hand straying to protect delicate body parts. "Ah, no. Better I buy you breakfast."

"Good Wyvern! What can we do first? I don't imagine the salon opens before 0900. We have a couple of hours."

The shower came on then, suggesting that Duo was cleaning up after their randy night. Almost, Heero joined him, but he hadn't been specifically invited and he didn't presume without that invitation, even now. He collected some clothing and stationed himself in the doorway. Surprisingly, Duo was done in only a few minutes.

He popped his head out of the shower to grab his towel. "Your turn!" Heero blinked at the twist of braid precariously wound around the Banshee's head and pinned in place with a pair of hair sticks.

"How do you get it to stay?" he muttered, switching places under the water.

"Magic, of course!" Duo laughed.

"Ah. Right." He gave the water control a slight tweak to the cold side.

~*~

"So," began Duo when the last of his bacon had been run to earth and consumed. "Where is the theme-park-to-be?"

Heero rested his chin on his hand watching the Banshee make short work of the buffet breakfast. Utterly amazing how much the lean creature could eat and still maintain that svelte form. Most Magical Creatures had self-regulating systems and were unlikely to ever get "fat" as some Humans did, but it was still... remarkable. And it reminded him of their first meeting, not that long ago. Great Dragons... He had to be the luckiest Wyvern in history, to have found such a mate. Well... potential mate, he reminded himself with a mental poke. Duo hadn't said "yes" yet; not freely. And he wasn't going to chance screwing up something this important just because he wanted so much.

Duo's question shook him out of his dreamy reverie. Ctik. Right. Rescue the idiot vampire.

"The house is in upstate New York." He produced a map from his other space and laid it out on the table to show the Banshee. "It's located in this area," he said pointing to a spot just west of the Vermont line and barely south of Canada. Duo shivered.

"Wow. Cold country."

"Not at the moment," Heero muttered. "I hate mosquitoes." He pulled out his cellphone to call the port room while Duo expanded the relevant portion of the map.

"This looks really... rural. Lots of woods... fields... Wonder what they grow way up there?"

Heero finished his phone call first, then shrugged. "I am not sure. I know the property was originally very large. The family farmed in the early days, but that was almost 300 years ago. I believe there may have been orchards until recently. Miles is some sort of consultant, I think. He works down in the city." He cocked his head questioningly at Duo's grin. "What?"

"Oh, nothing. Just... you seem to know an awful lot about someone you profess to not be crazy about."

Heero raised one eyebrow. "'Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.'"

"Riiiight," snickered the Banshee. "When do we leave?"

"Ten minutes. Our port will meet us outside." He stood up and tucked the map away. "Shall we?"

~*~

It was still officially 'morning' when they appeared on the front terrace of the sprawling stone mansion. Duo blinked up at the forbidding façade and let out a low whistle.

"You weren't kidding when you called it 'gothic'. Damn. Where are the gargoyles?"

Heero turned from dismissing the porter and snorted. "Right here, Banshee; remember?"

It took a few seconds, then Duo blushed lightly. "Ah. Right. I forgot. Ooops...?"

Heero mock-glared at him. "Actually, there were gargoyles on the original building in Europe. Ctik chose not to have them installed when the place was reconstructed. He wasn't sure how the local Protestants would take them. The carvings are stored in the cellar. Or they were." He frowned. "Assuming Miles or Theodore didn't sell them off under Ctik's nose."

Duo reached past Heero and thumped the enormous brass doorknocker. "Well, if they did, I'm going to do some ass-kicking," he growled.

The door was opened a few minutes later by a middle-aged woman in jeans and a smock, with her hair tucked under a bandana and a wire running from her ear to a pocket.

"Good morning," she said rather loudly. "What can I do for you?"

Heero produced a business card. "We are here to see Miles Grinsted."

The woman gave a faint snort. "You and everybody else," she muttered. "Come on in and have a seat. I'll let Mr. Grinsted know you're here." She escorted them to a tastefully-decorated parlor, not bothering to close the double doors when she went out.

They both listened intently. Footsteps, some murmured words, an exclamation. A female voice slightly louder, sounding both derisive and indignant. The slam of a door. Murmurs. Water running somewhere. Another door; opened, not closed. A male voice. A female voice. A second female voice. An indeterminate voice.

"Hn. Miles, two women and possibly a child, in addition to the woman who answered the door. She is probably the cleaner. Too matronly to be Miles' spouse."

"He runs to trophy wives, does he?" Duo said softly.

"He runs to anything out of his reach, if he is anything like Theodore."

More voices; it sounded like an argument. A female voice overwhelmed the others.

"They asked for you! Now, get in there and act like a man!"

Heero smiled, showing his teeth. "That would be the trophy wife, I expect."

Heavy footsteps rang on the hardwood floor and they rose to meet their reluctant host.

The man who edged nervously into the room looked nothing like Ctik. This descendant was taller and heavier without being fat; dressed rather fussily for a Saturday morning in creased khaki trousers, a white button-down shirt and a navy sweater vest. Dark hair and eyes behind expensive frames; regular features and a strong chin. Duo supposed him to be a fairly attractive specimen of middle-aged male humanity. In other circumstances, Duo could imagine him being described as dynamic or even commanding, but facing the deceptively smaller Wyvern, Miles just looked scared.

"Miles," growled Heero. "We have spoken with Ctik." No pleasantries for the earth-mover and house-seller.

"Uh... Oh. Um..."

"What was the price for your heritage?"

"Huh?"

"How much money did you get for this house?" Heero snarled. Miles leaned back slightly, as if he wanted to run.

"My-my name is on the papers, not his," he managed.

Heero drew himself up, flexing his hands dangerously. Miles stared at his hands. "How MUCH?"

"Miles," said Duo conversationally from slightly behind Heero. He could play good cop/bad cop. "You know you'd really better answer him, because you don't want to see him get angry."

Miles glanced at him and Duo could see the ring of white around his irises. Apparently, Miles did remember his last meeting with Heero; good. He decided to insert himself a bit further into the proceedings, before Heero totally lost his temper. Not that Duo wasn't just as pissed off, but he could think of more subtle punishments than a quick death.

"So what'd you make on the deal for Ctik's home, Miles? Ten million? Twenty?"

Heero snorted. "This whole county isn't worth twenty million dollars."

"Nine..."

"What was that, Miles?" said Duo, stepping closer.

"Nine million," he muttered.

"Just for the house? Wow!"

"The land too..."

"Ah. You sold Ctik's house... and his land... for... nine million dollars?"

"It's my property..." Miles whined. "I'm the one who takes care of it."

"Not anymore, though, right? Damn, Heero, maybe Ctik won't mind so much for nine million. That'll buy a lot of nice boxes."

"It's my money!" Miles snapped. "I worked for it! I made the deal! I got them up to nine million!"

There was a crash out in the hallway and a moment later a red-faced and furious woman stalked in.

"You sonuvabitch! You said they only offered four million! And you said Ctik knew about it and approved!" she yelled. She swung a wild roundhouse at Miles, spinning as he ducked the blow. Duo caught her before she could fall.

"Mrs. Grinsted, I presume?"

"Not for much longer!" she snarled.

Heero snickered; it sounded... well, scary. "I see which side of the family you take after, Miles. Now, I want a cashier's check for 90% of the proceeds, made out to Ctik."

"What?! I'm not-"

Heero changed, wings lifting threateningly. "Or I will rip off your head and shove it up your ass," he snarled, glaring down at the stunned man.

"Oh my god!" shrieked his wife. "Miles, you asshole! WHAT DID YOU DO?!"

The next few minutes were confused. Or chaotic. Duo leaned toward chaotic confusion. Mrs. Grinsted screamed angrily; Miles bellowed defensively and then the two other voices - belonging to Miles' children - joined the melee.

Both he and Heero stepped back a pace as the family members yelled and screamed at each other until Miles suddenly began flailing his arms wildly.

"I had to! I had to replace the college funds!"

Dead silence. Stunned dead silence.

Heero lowered his head slowly to look Miles in the eyes.

"I'm sorry, Miles; would you repeat that last statement?" Heero rumbled calmly.

"I-I-I..." Miles stammered.

Heero laid one taloned hand on the man's shoulder. "Miles..." He smiled, showing most of his razor-sharp teeth. His frills were rising and his tail had begun to twitch ominously. "I heard 'college funds', did I not."

"I was going to put it back..." Miles whispered.

"Dad! What did you do?!" That was the female child; she looked about sixteen.

Neither of the children, Duo noted, seemed the slightest bit startled at having a scaly blue Wyvern Dragon standing in the parlor. Must be a side-effect of having a vampire in the family.

"You raided the kids' college accounts?!" gasped his wife. "Miles! What's wrong with you?!"

"I had to! Gisela, I lost almost two million in the stock market! We're worse than broke!"

"Ah," said Heero softly. "So that's why you removed Ctik's earth. Remove the earth, remove the vampire. Remove the pointing finger... In that case, the amount of the check will be 99% of the proceeds. You may keep the rest as a finder's fee."

"What?! I will not!"

Heero's talons tightened on Miles' shoulder; the man winced. "Yes, you will, Miles." He shifted his hand to the back of Miles' neck and took hold of his shirt and sweater. "What bank?" he asked Gisela.

She swallowed. "Farmer's Trust; in the city."

"Do they know Ctik?"

"Yes. Allan Horstang is the account manager. Are you going to... to... bring Miles back?" she asked hesitantly.

Heero cocked his head at her. "Do you want him back?"

She opened her mouth, and then closed it thoughtfully. "I guess so... I still need to know what the hell he did with the college money." She glared at her petrified husband. "What's Matthew supposed to do in August, you fuckwit?! Come home and work at McDonald's?" She collapsed into a chair, head in her hands. "You are so stupid..."

The two children aligned themselves with their mother and glared at their father. Clearly, he would not be inspiring any "Why I Love My Dad" essays for Father's day.

"As you wish, Mrs. Grinsted," Heero murmured. "Duo, would you take the information while Miles and I deal with the business side? Thank you."

He stalked out of the room, hauling Miles with him. Miles appeared to be praying; at least, his lips were moving quite rapidly and his eyes were screwed tightly shut. Good; after what he'd done to Ctik, Duo didn't have any sympathy for the idiot.

~*~

Once the front door closed and he heard the faint sounds of Heero's launch, coupled with the not-so-faint sounds of Miles' shrieking, Duo smiled disarmingly at the remaining Grinsteds and seated himself on the delicate loveseat across from Mrs. Grinsted. He produced a notebook and a pen and murmured the spell that would enable the auto writing. Usually, he took his own notes, but he had a feeling that with three voices likely to be coming at him, the auto writer would be more efficient.

"Don't worry, Mrs. Grinsted; Heero acts much fiercer than he actually is. Although... if you had said you didn't want Miles back, I have no doubt Heero would have seen to that." He grinned and the woman brightened somewhat.

She pressed her hand to her forehead and sighed. "God, what a jerk..." she muttered. Then she straightened suddenly. "Oh, crap! Where's Ctik?!" she cried. "Did Miles do something to-"

"No, no!" Duo assured her. "Ctik is fine! Or he will be after he gets some sleep and a refill of his earth. Heero arranged temporary lodgings at the Castle."

"Thank you... He's such a nice man; not at all what you'd expect a vampire to be like," she explained.

"Mom?" It was the daughter. "What does this mean; the college fund is gone? How could Dad...? I thought Gramma Vee had it all tied up somehow..."

"Maybe Dad hired a ninja hacker to suck the money out by computer..." From the son.

Daughter rolled her eyes. Duo was going to have to get names in a minute; the auto write spell liked names. "You are such a loser! You don't hire hackers!"

"Breeze; Michael, stop it," said Mrs. Grinsted wearily. "This is serious."

"Indeed it is," interjected Duo in an effort to get back to business. "Even though legally, in the Human world at least, Ctik has no control of his assets, the Magical World requires that Human surrogates behave in an honest and honorable way. Miles is way past that now." The kids settled on either side of their mother, looking suitably grim.

"May I have your names for my report?" he asked, gesturing to the pen and paper on the table next to him.

"Gisela Grinsted. This is my daughter Breeze and my younger son Michael. My older son, Matthew, is away at college."

"When did you first hear about this deal that Miles cooked up?"

"Maybe... three months ago," she said slowly. "He said Ctik was concerned about the expense of keeping the house and grounds up these days. Ctik has always been a sweetie to me and the kids, so it never occurred to me that Miles was going behind his back. I don't see Ctik that often; I work a second shift. It's not unusual for us to miss each other for a month or more." She sighed painfully. "I should have made more of an effort, but... He's a vampire; what could happen?"

This time Michael rolled his eyes. "Mom! Sunlight, stakes, fire, crosses, holy water..."

"Actually, according to Heero the only thing that will really destroy a vampire is sunlight or being thoroughly disemboweled. The religious junk is just fiction."

"Really?" Michael looked put-out. "I wonder why he never told us that."

"Maybe because it's none of our business?" jeered Breeze. "And I already knew that crosses don't do anything. Remember Mom; Greta brought me that rosary thing from her trip to Italy. She said it was blessed or whatever, and Ctik handled it and just said that it was very pretty. He sure didn't shrivel up."

Gisela shrugged. "I'm sorry, Mr...?"

"Ah; my fault." Duo produced a trio of cards and handed one to each of them. "Duo of Blue Forest; MIO Investigator."

"I'm sorry, Duo; as you can see, the children like to pretend they were raised by wolves." She glared at her offspring, who quickly subsided.

"Not a problem at all, Gisela," he grinned. "If they annoy me, I'll just turn them into hedgehogs until we're finished." Transmutation spells were out of his league, but the Humans didn't need to know that. It served to make both kids shrink back in their seats, wide-eyed.

"Now, how about you tell me everything you can remember since you first heard about the deal?"

~*~

Gisela was very thorough; she had a good memory for detail. Duo couldn't help wondering if that was natural for her or if she had had to develop the skill in order to deal with Miles. Ctik's descendant seemed to have sailed pretty close to the edge for most of his adult life.

"So, I didn't think anything of it when I didn't run into Ctik for a few weeks," she concluded with a sigh. "There is an entrance to his personal... crypt, I guess he calls it, but I don't know where it is." She looked to her children. "Either of you ever come across it?"

Breeze shook her head. "I never looked. I mean, why would anyone want to? Except to try to hurt him or just be nosy." She glared at her brother.

Michael slouched in his seat, looking as guilty as possible. "I... might know where it is," he muttered. "Not everyone spends all their time on the phone drooling over Robert and Justin," he sneered.

Breeze reached behind her mother to smack him in the back of the head. "You are so juvenile!"

Gisela covered her eyes and sighed. Obviously an oft-repeated exchange between the siblings.

Duo fixed Michael with a stare. "You might know? Show me, then," he ordered.

Michael blinked in surprise. "You want to see...?" He brightened considerably.

"I do. Now."

"All right!" He bounced to his feet and headed for the door. "C'mon!"

Duo excused himself to the females and followed closely.

~*~

"This is so fuckin' cool!" Michael exclaimed as they went out the front doors and across the terrace. "Nobody ever wants to hear anything I have to say. It's always 'now Michael' or 'later Michael' or 'we don't discuss those things at the table Michael'. That is soooo fucked!"

"How old are you?" Duo asked curiously, making a note to himself that perhaps it wasn't a good idea to leave this kid to his own devices. That could be how Miles came to be such a shit.

"Thirteen last month, but they all act like I'm five." He slowed slightly, allowing Duo to come abreast of him. "Well, except for Ctik. He's really cool, but I don't see him very often. Like Mom said, he mostly comes and goes without us knowing."

"You like Ctik?"

The kid glanced at him, startled. "Oh yeah. We used to do Legos when I was little. We'd build castles and he'd show me how to make stairs and secret passages and he told me a lot of family history from back in the beginning." He shrugged, a bit embarrassed. "Dad really sold the house out from under him?"

"Apparently so..."

"Fuck. That sucks. Well, so does the college fund thing, too, I guess, but the house... That's just... you know, mean."

"Yes."

"What did the Dragon guy mean about Ctik's earth?"

"His name is Heero. It looks like Miles disposed of Ctik's cache of native earth; whether to simply drive him away or to destroy him, I wouldn't know."

"'Destroy' like in 'kill'?"

"Yep."

He shook his head in disgust. "Fuckin' Christ on a damn cracker..." he muttered.

Duo found it interesting that the kid made no effort to defend his father or to disabuse him of the notion that Miles was capable of such perfidy. Very interesting.

They crossed a large swath of grass and angled around the side of the building toward a small outcropping of stone.

"You don't seem surprised that your father would do something like this."

Michael slowed, then stopped and turned to look at Duo. "First off, I know I'm 'just a kid' to adults, but I'm not an idiot. I can read, I can hear just fine, I can figure things out and Dad isn't the best at putting stuff away. And... you know... if it's lying around in plain sight, I'm gonna take a look. So, I know he's a lot like Grampa Ted. Especially with money. When I was little, we had a full-time housekeeper; now we have Ms Dotson in twice a week. And I know Mom makes more money now than when I was little. But Dad's kind of... careless... you know... And sometimes he does stuff that sounds crazy even to Breeze, and she's not what you'd call financially savvy."

"And you are?" Duo wondered with a smile.

"Yep." He made a head toss-shoulder shrug gesture that suggested it was self-evident but also no big deal. "Dad got into day trading." He rolled his eyes and sighed. "That's so last century, but that's Dad; always the last one to the party," he smirked.

"Does your mother know how much you know?"

Michael shrugged again. "Probably not. Her job is pretty high-pressure and anyway, I think maybe she already knows that Dad isn't really..."

"Honest?"

Another sigh, delivered this time while staring at his shoes. "Yeah." He looked up at Duo. "Not anything criminal; I checked up on that, but not so ethical, either."

"Does your dad know that you know this about him?"

He snorted. "Are you crazy?! He'd tan my hide! But he's not a computer guy and I am, so I can kind of... well, snoop... and he doesn't know."

Duo shook his head, grinning. "You'd make a good investigator."

Michael brightened. "You think? I was kind of thinking about forensics. I like to know stuff. Hey, are you a Wizard? Ctik mentioned once that he called the Wizards for help..."

"I am not a Wizard; no. I am a Magical Creature; specifically a Banshee. Heero is a Magical Creature; a Wyvern, but he is also a Wizard."

"Cool!" He turned toward the stone outcrop. "The entrance is down here." He pulled back some plantings and pointed to a large stone. "You only have to push on the stone and it drops down and away and then you can kind of slither into a passage." He demonstrated and the stone did indeed open for him.

~*~

"Nice work," Duo murmured. The passage was dark so he sent a fairy light down to illuminate the entrance. Steps began about four feet down and descended into the gloom. "Well, let's take a walk, shall we?"

Michael beamed and dropped easily down into the hole, Duo right behind.

Duo expanded the fairy light and sent it ahead of them. The passage was fairly regular, not nearly as rough as Duo expected. This was a classy reconstruction; the workers must have been the best available.

"About how far does it go?" Duo asked after a moment. There was a gentle downward slope to the passage and he wondered how deep underground Ctik's crypt was.

"It's about a half mile, as near as I can tell. I tried a pedometer, but it didn't seem to work too well, so I counted my steps and then measured some of them and took an average."

Oh, yeah; this kid definitely needed watching.

"You ever bring any friends down here?"

"Oh hell no! Ctik's still a vampire and my friends aren't mature enough to get past the whole blood thing," he exclaimed. "Besides... It's like Ctik's secret... Not my place to go outing him that way..." He looked up at Duo. "Know what I mean?"

"I do," he nodded. That offered some comfort; the kid still had his family loyalty toward his ancestor.

It wasn't a straight-line path, so Duo placed their destination as probably being under the center of the house until they came to a stone wall.

"This is as far as I've ever been," said Michael. "I never could find the trip to this. I know it has to open, but..." He shrugged apologetically.

Duo already knew why Michael couldn't open it. "It's spelled for extra protection," he said thoughtfully. "I'm not a Wizard, so I may not be able to get it to open, but I'll give it a try." He had the charms and spells that Heero had made for him; he was almost certain that some of them were magical lock picks.

He plucked the spell case from his other space, very conscious of Michael's eager eyes, and opened it to rummage through the categories. He drew out a small white pellet.

"This might work. It depends on how complicated Ctik's spell is."

"I thought all magic spells were complicated."

"Oh, no. Some are quite simple. Remember in The Lord of the Rings book, when the travelers were supposed to 'speak, friend, and enter' and it took forever for them to get that all they had to do was say the word 'friend' for the doors to open. That's a simple spell. So simple that it's easily overlooked by the more powerful wizards."

Michael looked suddenly nervous. "The Lord of the Rings is true?!" he blurted out.

Duo snickered. "Of course not. But it seems likely that the author may have encountered some Magical Creatures at some point." He held the pellet in his palm and touched a finger to it, crumbling it easily and blowing the powder at the wall. "Open please," he requested.

Nothing happened and Duo sighed. "Okay. Try something else," he muttered to himself. Back into the case he went.

~ Won't find one, ~ said someone in his head and he jumped. ~ Sorry. ~

Duo looked around, finally spotting the beady little eyes just above his eye level. A small, indeterminate species of rodent crouched in a small tunnel watching them.

"Oh, hello," said Duo politely. "I didn't realise anyone would be frequenting the passage." Michael blinked at him.

"Who're you talking to?"

The Banshee pointed and Michael took a step back. "A rat?!"

The rodent rolled its eyes. ~ Humans, ~ it snorted.

Duo grinned and shrugged agreeably. "We make allowances." He glanced at Michael. "Don't get crazy; she could have information. Now, hush." He turned back to the smirking creature. "Do you know Ctik, the vampire who uses this passage?"

~ Know him. No problem. Passes through, in and out. We nod. ~

"Have you ever seen anyone else come through? Besides this one, that is."

~ Recently. Maybe... five, six suns; more. Big. Smelled fermented. ~

"Drunk, or been drinking."

~ Yes. Stumbly. Opened the wall. Went in. Came out maybe. Didn't stay. ~

"You didn't see any reason to hang around?"

~ Yes. ~

"Did you happen to notice how he opened the wall? I can tell it's spelled, but I don't have the tools to open it."

~ Hand on keystone. Waited. Wall opened. ~

"Huh. No words?"

~ None heard. ~

"Interesting. Thank you very much; you've been very helpful. Oh, just so you know, the fermented one has sold the house and land to someone who will most likely be doing construction. I'm sorry to say that you and anyone else who has burrows in the immediate area should probably prepare to vacate."

The rodent blinked and twitched her whiskers.

~ Dung. Appreciated. ~

"You're welcome." The creature backed into the tunnel and disappeared.

Duo turned to Michael, and found the kid staring open-mouthed at the spot where the rodent had disappeared.

"Michael?"

"You talk to rats?!"

Duo sighed. "In the first place, she's not a rat, she's a gopher. In the second place, I talk to a lot of creatures."

Michael transferred the astonished look to Duo. "Like Dr Doolittle?"

"Kind of. Mammals mostly; some of the higher reptiles and birds, too. I can understand or translate and usually make myself understood to most of them. Fish don't really 'talk', they just give off images, but I can sometimes make out what they're sending."

"Wow...!"

Duo shook his head. "It's not that marvelous. You'd be surprised what a low opinion most creatures have of us 'higher' types." He turned back to the wall. "So, your dad opened the wall... No words, just a touch." He stretched up and laid his hand on the keystone and counted to twenty. Nothing happened.

"Maybe she just didn't... you know, hear him?" Michael said hesitantly. Again, Duo was impressed at the kid's ability to deal with magical things. He hadn't argued or told Duo he was crazy; he just accepted that the Banshee talked to gophers.

"No... I think it's a kind of blood spell. Not blood magic; that shit is dangerous," he reassured. "I think Ctik made an unwarranted assumption... Here; put your hand against the keystone and count to twenty." Duo rested his ear against the wall and sure enough, he heard a faint click and the stone wall began to move.

Michael jumped back. "No way! All I had to do was touch it?! Well, now I feel like a dumbass."

Duo snorted and sent another, larger, fairy light into the space beyond. "Not that there's any compelling reason for you - or your father, for that matter - to be weaseling around Ctik's space."

"Well... yeah... But that's so simple!" He tried to see over Duo's shoulder. "What's in there?"

Duo stepped to the side with a sigh. "Absolutely nothing."

The room, about four meters by four, with a height of perhaps two-and-a-half meters, was empty. No coffin, no earth; no sign of anything ever having been there. Even the dirt floor looked undisturbed.

"But..." began Michael in confusion. "Where did Ctik sleep? I thought he'd have a coffin..."

Duo expanded the light even further and found some small indentations on the floor. "Looks like he did, at some point. I'd say your dad was making sure that Ctik couldn't come back here."

Michael stared into the empty room. "He really wanted to kill Ctik..." he whispered. A faint gulp that Duo pretended not to hear. "Shit..."

"Yeah." He moved further into the room and searched with his Banshee senses. A faint lingering odor of alcohol, old and sour. Something flowery; cologne, perhaps. A bit of a tang; probably blood. Wood. Fresh cut - or broken - wood. And a final scent that Duo was very familiar with - fresh-turned earth; green, sweet and smile-making. He squatted down to examine the floor more closely and found the signs of activity; some small scrapes and gouges, a couple of long drag marks and over that, the even strokes of a broom.

He had to give Miles credit; he'd done a helluva lot of work to clear the crypt of any sign of Ctik's presence in only the dusk to dawn hours that Ctik was away. No wonder he'd stoked up on liquid courage. Fuckwit.

Michael had also followed the dots and come up with the same picture. "I hate him," he whispered. "I fuckin' hate him!"

~*~

Heero stood, once more back in his less-remarkable form, next to the desk of the customer service manager of the Farmer's Trust bank. Miles huddled in one of the comfy chairs, looking wind-blown and still twitching. The customer service manager was trying to look like she wasn't dying of curiosity waiting for Allan Horstang to arrive. So far, there had been no arguments from the bank personnel. Then again, Heero did not expect any arguments. And he usually got what he expected. Except with the Banshee; the Banshee was deliciously contrary.

He cast a glance around the interior of the bank, pleased with the wary regard of the Humans. The customers paid him no attention, but the employees... They definitely knew something was up. Gossip would be flying come closing time, and he had no sympathy whatsoever for Miles.

He did feel a bit of regret for Gisela and her children, but this was Miles' doing and he doubted Gisela would forget that. Not for the first time he wondered what attracted Gisela to Miles. Humans seemed to have no sense in their choices.

"And you are so much better?" wondered the little voice in the back of his head, and he had to smile. No, he was every bit as besotted as the average Human. But his Banshee deserved that besottment; Miles most certainly did not.

A Human male rushed through the parking lot door, heading for them. Allan Horstang looked harried, hassled and faintly frightened.

"Mr Yuy...?" he inquired breathlessly.

Heero inclined his head in acknowledgement. "Mr Horstang. I regret the need for you to interrupt your weekend, but this matter will not wait."

"Oh, this is no trouble at all! Mr Vrostek has been a customer of this bank since - well, for a very long time! Please, come into my office."

Heero assisted Miles to his feet and they followed Horstang into the office. An instant after the door closed, every employee in the bank had their phone out and was dialing.

~*~

Duo led the way out of the crypt and parked Michael on the stone wall near the outside portal. The kid was angry, disappointed, frustrated and trying very hard and very obviously not to break down and cry. Duo understood that feeling pretty well by now. No sense in rubbing it in by forcing him to face the females before he'd gotten himself under control.

"I hate him! How could he do that to Ctik?! Ctik's cool! He never makes demands or tells us how to do things - why the fuck would Dad try to destroy him?!" he exploded thickly.

Duo sat next to him, hooking one heel on the edge of the wall and resting his arms on his knee. "I think... probably he wasn't really thinking at all, just reacting. Miles did something incredibly stupid and his first reaction was to cover it up. According to Heero, his father, Theodore, was the same way."

"I don't remember Grandpa Ted much," Michael muttered. "Just that Grandma Vee was upset with him about something and divorced him. He died when I was about four. Mom and Dad and Matthew went to the funeral, but Breeze and I got to stay home from school... Matthew told us that Dad cried..."

"Hm. Well, the problem was that Theodore did some fancy financial dancing with the family money and then refused to turn loose when Vivian and Ctik asked him to. Ctik called the Bureau of Sorcery and asked for help and my boss sent Heero." He smirked to himself at the thought of that meeting. "Heero convinced Theodore that relinquishing control was the right thing to do."

Michael snorted and Duo glanced at him. Nose red, eyes somewhat red and a little wet, but no visible leaking; good. He didn't really know what to do with leaking; he much preferred if other people would ignore it when it happened to him, but other people, Human people might expect some sort of... notice.

"Figures," Michael grumbled. "Must run in the family. Or at least on Dad's side." He sat up and looked over at Duo suddenly. "Did your father ever do anything so lame?"

Well. That was unexpected. Duo blinked. Blinked again.

"Um... I don't have the same references, I'm afraid. My father wasn't around when I was young, and my Clan isn't very... financial. We dealt more in barter."

"Oh." He subsided once again to hunch over his knees, head in his hands. "Fuck. I can't believe he did that... Fathers are supposed to be role models. I don't wanna be like him."

"There's no reason for you to be like your father; none at all."

"What; you've never heard of 'the apple doesn't fall far from the tree'?"

Duo rolled his eyes. "Depends on the tree you're talking about. Just because he contributed half your DNA doesn't mean that's all you are. I haven't heard anything squirrely about your mother. She seems to be pretty responsible and she's the other half of you."

"I guess..." He rubbed at his eyes.

Duo sat in silence for a few minutes, not sure whether to talk or just be a warm presence. Maybe he needed a class in crisis management. Or maybe he could call one of the Wizards for help. Humans were so hard sometimes... He knew that from his time wandering. Funny, though, he'd never really been bothered by the drama back then... Maybe he was different, or maybe he was growing up and growing away from his adolescent self.

Huh. That was both enlightening and mildly depressing.

"Look," he said finally in an effort to interest Michael in something positive, "You said you were interested in forensics; that's a good career. We have some forensics Wizards who handle the really tough things. You should start now, choosing classes to that end."

"Yeah..." He brightened a bit. "I wonder what would be good... Chemistry, probably..." He frowned. "But what do you take to become a... a gun expert? Or a document person?"

"No idea, but I'll bet your school counselor could help." This was good; get his attention on something else and leave the leakage behind... They tossed ideas and suggestions back and forth for a bit, ignoring the current drama, and Michael got more into the idea of forensics as a career.

There was a more immediate matter that Duo should point out... but that would be circling back to the leakage. He sighed and decided it should be tackled anyway.

"Michael, you know that since the house has been sold, you'll be moving..."

Michael blinked at him. "Oh. Oh, yeah... I almost forgot that part... I've always lived here... I was only two or three when Grandma Vee asked us to move here." He sat back thoughtfully. "I wonder if we'll have to live in an apartment... Damn. I'll have to pack... What are we gonna do with all the furniture? The house is ginormous! And every room is furnished! Shit!"

"Remember that Ctik will have to have a new home too. I imagine he'd like to have some of the furniture."

"But how will he get it? We don't even know where he is! And he needs more earth and a crypt to keep his coffin in... He can't live in an apartment! Can he?"

Duo laughed. "Heero and I will help him find a good place, and no, I doubt if he could live in an apartment. He's staying at the Castle right now, but as soon as this end is complete, we'll get busy on the other details. Don't worry; Ctik will be okay."

"Okay..." He shook his head. "I'm never going to see him again, am I?"

"Why wouldn't you?" Duo asked in surprise.

"Well... because of Dad... Ctik won't want anything to do with us."

Duo chuckled. "You'd be surprised, Michael. I think Ctik cares a lot about his family. He's not going to abandon you guys. Maybe just Miles."

~*~

Heero glanced at the cashier's check, double-checking the amount. Exactly as he'd requested. Good. He tucked it safely into his other space and bowed minutely to Allan Horstang.

"Thank you for your assistance in this matter. Mr Vrostek will be most appreciative."

"Um... You're welcome, Mr Yuy. I'm... uh... sorry that Mr Vrostek will be leaving the area; he's been an excellent customer and we will certainly miss him." He glanced apprehensively at Miles, who was sulking in a chair. "Um... Miles..? I'll call you later, okay?"

"Whatever."

Again, Heero assisted Miles out of the chair, out of the office and out of the building. With every employee staring avidly and a few customers wondering what was so interesting, Heero changed form, took a firm grip on Miles and launched.

Duo would have been delighted by the screams, gasps and exclamations from the viewers.

~*~

Miles didn't make a lot of noise this time, for which Heero was grateful. Hysterical shrieking did nothing for the ambience of his flight.

As they swept over the house and grounds, Heero noted that Duo was sitting outside on a wall with Michael. That was good; he didn't relish the idea of dropping Miles in front of the children. He suspected that Gisela would rather say what she had to in private.

They landed on the front terrace, Heero keeping hold of Miles until they had entered the parlor. As hoped, Gisela was alone in the room, a cellphone and a file of paperwork on the delicate writing desk in front of her. She rose as they entered.

"Is everything right now?" she asked. "Or as right as it can be for Ctik?"

"I have a check for Ctik," Heero confirmed. "And I have returned your husband, as requested. I know you have things to... discuss... I will collect Duo and we will be on our way. You have my card and Duo's; if you need anything, please feel free to call us. I am sure that Ctik will be contacting you once he is settled."

She hadn't once looked at Miles. "Thank you, Mr Yuy. Please tell Ctik that I am so sorry that I let him down. I really should have been keeping a better watch on... things."

"I am sure that Ctik does not blame you in any way." He flicked a baleful glance at Miles.

Gisela nodded automatically and extended a hand. "Thank you again, Mr Yuy, and please tell Duo 'thank you' also. He's outside with Michael..."

Heero took her hand briefly. "I saw them when I arrived. Take care, Mrs Grinsted. We will be in touch." He bowed gracefully and left the room, pausing in the hallway out of sight.

"Gisela..." said Miles when they were finally alone. "Baby... please..."

"No. This is the last straw, Miles. We are done. I've already called a lawyer. I want you out of the house by Monday."

"But Gi, I love you!"

A pause.

"I love you, too, Miles, but love doesn't pay the bills. Love doesn't put my children through college. Love doesn't try to murder a family member and sell his home out from under him!"

"Gi -!"

"No. Get away from me or I will punch you."

"I could have you arrested for domestic violence!"

"And that's your idea of love? Go pack. I'm sure you can find someone to put you up for a while."

Miles whined some more, but Heero had heard enough. Gisela seemed to be holding her own and hopefully she would not cave in to her husband's blandishments. She seemed stronger than that. He left the house and went in search of his Banshee. He had a haircut to supervise.

~*~

Duo looked up at Heero's approach and grinned. "How'd it go?"

"I have a check for Ctik. I've already contacted Gringott's and one of their senior representatives will meet with us tonight to handle the accounts." He looked the pair over. Duo looked... tired, perhaps. Michael looked glum. "And what have you discovered?"

Duo glanced at Michael, but the boy ducked his head with an embarrassed shrug. "I asked about Ctik's crypt and Michael was able to show me where it is. Or was."

Heero lifted one eyebrow. "You know where Ctik's crypt is?" Dammit, he was going to have a very long talk with that idiot vamp once they got him awake and his finances sorted out.

"Um..."

"Go ahead, Michael," said Duo gently. "Heero won't bite you."

"Well... I've known about it for a while... where it is, I mean. But I've never been in it!" he cried at Heero's sharp look. "Not until today. There's a passage, but it ends in a door and I could never figure out how to open the door..." He looked at Duo. "He figured it out, though. He talked to a... a gopher, and she... told him how it opened. How my dad opened it..."

Heero threw Duo a narrow look. "May I see this, please?" he said carefully to Michael.

The kid shrugged again. "Sure. C'mon." He hopped off the stone and led the way to the keystone.

"I am going to ream Ctik for this," Heero muttered under his breath to Duo.

"Not too much; he just trusted the wrong person," Duo whispered back. "And don't glare at me. Miles is the one who did the damage."

"Sorry. It is a strain not to just break Miles' lying, thieving neck."

"I know. I kinda want to punch him a few times myself."

"This is the entrance stone," said Michael, demonstrating how the stone opened. They followed him down into the passage and along its meandering length to the door. Michael stretched up and touched the keystone of the arch and the door began to move.

"It's a blood spell," Duo explained. "It allows access to anyone - I'm guessing - who is blood-kin to Ctik."

Heero glared into the empty space. "Miles did this?" he growled.

"I'd say so, yeah. Probably while pretty damn drunk, too."

"I see." He turned away from the room in disgust. "Thank you, Michael, for showing us this place."

"Um... Are you going to see Ctik?"

"Tonight; yes."

"Could you tell him I'm really sorry... and I'll miss him a lot?"

Heero cocked his head, seeing Michael as Duo had seen him; a too-bright child with more curiosity than understanding.

"We will tell him. I don't believe Ctik will be angry with you, your siblings or your mother. He knows where the blame lies."

Michael nodded slowly. "Yeah... Thanks." He scuffed his shoe in the hard dirt and Duo sighed.

"Well, come on; let's get out of here. We have things to do for Ctik at home and you -" he pointed at Michael. "Have packing to get started on. And I'd say you might want to use the back stairs for a while. I imagine your parents are making some pretty difficult decisions right now, and they really don't need any interruptions. Okay?"

Michael snorted. "If you mean Mom is probably dismantling Dad, cell by cell, yeah, I don't want anything to do with that!"

"Good kid," Duo smirked.

After they had climbed out of the passageway and closed the entrance, Heero sketched some figures over it with an index finger. "I've sealed the passage," he told Michael. "No need to chance anyone else finding it. You have our cards?" Michael nodded and produced them from his pocket. "Good. You may contact either of us if you have questions or concerns." He glanced at Duo. "Or if you just need to talk..."

Michael shoved his hands into his pockets and shrugged. "Thanks... Can I ask about Ctik, too?"

"Of course," Duo replied with a smile. "And I'll make sure he contacts you after he's settled somewhere."

"Great." He looked over at the massive stone mansion. "I really like this place... It's gonna feel weird not living here anymore..." He shrugged yet again. "Hey, I'm young; I'll adapt." He grinned at Duo.

The Banshee reached out and ruffled the kid's hair. "You'll do great, Michael. Have patience with your Mom and sister, though; they're gonna be kind of tense for a while."

"Gotcha."

"Then we will be leaving." Heero morphed and scooped Duo up in his arms as Michael's eyes widened and his jaw dropped. "Good day, Michael Grinsted." Duo just waggled his fingers and clung to Heero's neck as his wings snapped open and he leaped into the air.

Michael stood waving until they lost sight of him.

~*~

"Are we flying all the way home?" Duo asked after making himself comfortable in Heero's arms.

"No. Only as far as the city. I want a coffee and I'd rather not have the porter popping into the middle of nowhere again. Draws attention."

"Ah. Gotcha." He reached up and kissed the side of Heero's snout. "Thanks for being low-key to Michael."

"Hn. His world is turning itself inside out; I have no desire to add to the confusion, angst and dramatics." He nuzzled Duo's ear and slurped his tongue over the side of his face - Dragon kisses, Duo called it.

"How was Miles at the bank?"

"Shitty. Pouty. Whiny. Expected behavior. I was sorely tempted to just drop him in the river."

"At least he hasn't gotten away totally. I'll bet Gisela is going to rip him a new one."

"She was telling him to pack and get out when I left," Heero smirked.

"Really?! Wow! I knew she was mad, but I didn't think she'd actually throw him out... Still... He stole from Ctik and from the kids, and that's not exactly forgivable. You think she'll stick to that? Or change her mind later?"

"Somehow, I do not believe she is going to change her mind. I think this is just the most recent of many incidents."

"Miles is a damn jerk. Michael told me he was afraid of becoming like Miles when he's grown."

"What?! Why?"

"Because 'the apple doesn't fall far from the tree'."

"Nonsense," Heero snorted.

"That's what I told him. I reminded him that he's an apple off his mother's tree, too, and she's not wormy. Michael needs some kind of structure, I think... He's interested in forensics as a career, and he needs a little guidance."

"Forensics, hmm... Duo, do you think he would like to visit a real crime lab? Might that help to... solidify his dreams?"

"It might; what did you have in mind?"

"The New York City police department owes us a favor..."

"Oh... What a great idea! I'll call Ryo after we sort out Ctik; he'll know who I can talk to about arranging it." He wrapped himself even tighter around Heero's neck. "I'll bet Michael will love it! And Ctik too."

Heero dropped toward the ground then, swooping into a fast landing next to a large building. Once on the ground, he changed back and set Duo on his feet, giving him a hard kiss. "I've wanted to do that ever since Miles started shrieking in my ears."

"Fine by me," Duo murmured happily.

Heero pulled out his phone and called the port room, requesting a porter to their location in about fifteen minutes. Arrangements made, he closed the phone and vanished it to his other-space and took Duo's hand.

"Shopping center? I don't see a coffee place..."

"Inside. They've planted Starbucks inside Target stores."

"Really? Huh. They really are every-damn-where. I'll have a mocha frap; want me to grab a table?"

"Please. Our port will be LaVonda; she's usually prompt."

~*~

Duo trailed Heero into the salon, feeling a lot less confident in his decision to cut his hair. Maybe he should think about it some more. Maybe he was being hasty. Maybe he should talk to Teal first.

He shook himself in annoyance. How ridiculous! Teal got his hair cut every few months. He'd even taken Dael for her first haircut last month! A simple haircut wouldn't make him dry up and blow away.

Maybe he should get a damn grip...

He tightened his hold on Heero's hand all the same.

"Heero!" cried the salon owner. "Precisely on time!" The man bowed theatrically and Heero inclined his head in return.

"Stani; thank you for making time for us on such short notice."

The man - Wizard, Duo reminded himself - waved away the apology.

"Nonsense! For you, I will make the time stretch! And is this to be my new pleasure?" he tilted his head to Duo archly.

Heero drew him forward. "Not too much of a pleasure, if you please. This is my Chosen, Duo of Blue Forest. Duo, this is Stani McConnell, the most excellent stylist in the country."

Stani clutched at his chest. "Flattery! You know it will get you anything!" He grinned at Duo. "Well! How may I make you even more beautiful today?"

Duo glanced at Heero. "Um... I want my hair short for summer." He drew his braid over his shoulder so that Stani could see how long it was. The Wizard's jaw dropped.

"You want to cut it off?!" he gasped.

"Not all of it," Heero said quickly. "Just... half?" He looked to Duo for agreement.

"Yeah. It's just gotten to be more than I want to deal with in hot weather."

Stani breathed a sigh of relief. "What a fright you gave me! You have beautiful hair. May I?" He reached toward Duo.

"Sure. Should I take it down?"

"If you would, please." He combed his fingers through the heavy mane, shaking out the braid. "Are you sure you want it cut?"

Duo hesitated, then said firmly, "Yes. I've thought about it for a few months and I decided to cut it. I'm not backing out now. But Heero wants what you cut off."

Stani raised an eyebrow at the Wyvern, who actually blushed. "He is my Chosen," he muttered.

Stani gave him a benevolent smirk. "Of course he is. Shall we, then?"

In short order, Duo found himself swathed in a protective cape and seated in a chair, staring apprehensively at his reflection in the large mirror while Heero and Stani discussed the logistics of cutting and capturing his hair. Unbound, the ends of his hair pooled on the floor behind the chair. In a few minutes, it'd be gone. Almost ten years of history. His history.

He wondered if anyone else ever felt scared when they got their hair cut.

Soon he felt the touch of Stani's hands. "Duo, Heero says you want it just short enough that you will not sit on it; is that correct?" He nodded, unable to get the words out. "All right then! We begin!"

Duo squeezed his eyes shut as the scissors slid through his hair.

~*~

"Duo? Open your eyes," coaxed the familiar smooth voice of his Wyvern. "Take a look, my angel."

Oh. He must have been half asleep. He opened his eyes, blinking in the light, and peered at his reflection, noting vaguely the two males standing behind him with eager expressions. Nothing looked any different. How...? Oh, wait. His bangs were... shorter. Neater. Styled. Kinda... poufy. Wow. He could see his eyes beneath them without tossing them out of his way. Double-wow.

He stared at himself in amazement. The only change was to the length of his bangs. The only visible change. As if in response to his scattered thoughts, Stani spun the chair and put a small mirror into his hand.

"You see," he pronounced, more to Heero than to Duo. "It is a sleeker, more modern look. Better suited to this modern life."

~ Away with that old life... Welcome to your new one... ~

I really do have a new life... I have a new Clan... A real home... A... a future, not just a past.

The auburn fall of hair now ended at the bottom of the chair back. Trimmed straight across, looking fresh and crisp, the ends were already curving into a soft wave.

He looked up at Heero. "It feels... light," he breathed. "Like it could go floating up... Is it good?" he asked anxiously. "It's not too short?"

Heero leaned down to kiss his cheek. "It is not too short," he murmured. "It is just right. You will shock everyone on Monday morning. Wufei will have a fit," he smirked.

Looking into the mirrors once again, Duo smiled. "He sure will. Ten to one he blames you."

"Of course!"

"Does it meet with your approval?" asked Stani, not looking particularly worried.

"Yes..." said Duo slowly. "Yes, it does. It'll take me a while to get used to it, but it's great. I'm glad I did this..." And he truly was glad.

"Excellent!" Stani took the mirror and spun the chair again. "I'll just dust you off; nothing more annoying than those tiny little bits of hair." A wand appeared and Duo was engulfed in a brief whirlwind. "Would you like to braid it now? You'll find that you will not sit on it when it is braided, but you may when it is loose," explained the stylist.

"Perfect. I will braid it, I think. It's breezy out." He did so quickly, then shook his head experimentally. "It feels so light! Thank you!"

"Ah, no! Thank you for allowing me this honor." The hair Wizard swept a deep theatrical bow and then shooed them from the salon. "You must buy your beautiful Chosen lunch, Heero! Stani insists!"

The door closed behind them, finding them standing on the sidewalk. "Wow. He doesn't waste time, does he?" said Duo after a few seconds.

"Never has," Heero replied with a smile.

"Wait! Where's the hair? Didn't you get the hair?"

"Of course, I did." Heero produced a bundle of silk from his other space. "Here it is."

Duo gave a sigh of relief. He'd taken a huge step in getting so much hair cut off all at once, but he wasn't yet ready to let it go entirely. "Damn... That's a lot." He hefted the bundle. "I've been carrying this around on my head... No wonder I feel so light!" He grinned as he handed the bundle back to the Wyvern. "I want Chinese food for lunch!"

"You got it, baby," Heero purred, clasping his hand.

~*~

Duo cracked open his fortune cookie and read his 'fortune'. "You are the center of every gathering," he intoned aloud. "It doesn't say whether that's a good thing or a bad thing."

"It's supposed to be cryptic. It's the way of the cookie."

Duo snickered and stuck his tongue out at the Wyvern.

"Now that my hair is no longer an issue, what are we going to do about Ctik?" he asked.

Heero snorted. He knew what he'd like to do about Ctik, but unfortunately he had been raised as an honorable Wyvern, so drop-kicking the idiot vamp into a live volcano was not an option.

"We will be meeting with a Gringott's rep tonight after Ctik wakes. The first task is to establish accounts for him; short, mid and long-term, get him a bank card and a line of credit for living expenses. Once the financials are out of the way, we'll work on finding him a place to live and arranging for the removal of any furnishings from the house."

Duo nodded. He really wanted to find Ctik a place to live, but Heero was right; the foundations had to come first. "Does he really have enough money to live on?"

"Absolutely. Nine million, properly invested, will support a very nice household. And even Ctik is good at accruing wealth; it's a skill most vampires have."

"Can I mention his family? Or should I stay away from that topic for now?" he wondered. He really couldn't see Ctik cutting off Gisela and the children, but he might not want to deal with them so soon.

Heero gave him a toothy grin. "By all means, mention them. We are not going to let him avoid the hard parts."

"I just don't want to make it, like, a condition of us helping him, if he'd rather not deal with it for a while."

"Ctik is an idiot as a vamp, but as a human being he was a very responsible person; he will do what is right."

Duo nodded his agreement, happy that Heero was willing to give Ctik a chance, even if he was an "idiot vamp."

"Okay, that's tonight, after sunset. What do we do in the meantime?"

Heero raised one eyebrow and smiled. "Let's go test-drive your new haircut."

"Ooooh...! 'Test drive'; is that what we're calling it now?"

"For today. Acceptable?"

"Hm..." Duo considered thoughtfully. "I was actually thinking about doing some shopping..."

Heero blinked. "Shopping? You would rather shop than romp naked with me?" His tone was hurt, but his expression mischievous.

Duo licked his lips and leaned across the table. "We have plenty of time to do both. I need a new hairbrush and I want some more yarn. Please?"

Heero gave a great sigh. "All right, then. I will harness my wicked desires for a few more hours. Lead on, my angel, and I will follow."

"Of course you will! You love looking at my ass!" Duo laughed.

"And I can see more of it now."

~*~

"Duo? Wake up, angel."

"Hm...? Oh. Sorry. Didn't mean to fall asleep." He sat up; automatically reaching to gather his hair and coming up... short. He blinked at the way too short bundle. "What the fuck...?" he muttered.

"Haircut. Remember?"

Oh. Right. He'd gone to Heero's stylist and gotten his hair cut. And Heero had saved the cut-off hair...

"You've got it, right?" he asked trying not to sound anxious.

The Wyvern produced the silk bundle and opened one corner to show the coiled mass of hair. Duo breathed a sigh of relief.

"Sorry... Still waking up, I guess..."

Heero kissed his temple. "I know," he smirked. "I wore you out."

"Smartass," Duo snickered and rolled off the bed. "I'll get a shower; that'll wake me up for sure."

"And it won't take near as long now," Heero reminded him.

"Oh yeah... That'll be... different." He headed for the bathroom, only to be startled by Heero appearing suddenly in front of him.

The Wyvern wrapped his arms around Duo's waist, snugging him close. He dipped his head slightly - he was still a bit taller than the Banshee - to meet his eyes.

"I love you," he said firmly. "You are my Banshee."

Duo blinked; blinked again. Crap. Had he missed some new 'Dragon thing'?

Heero eyed him intently, taking in the faint blush, the hesitant expression and the budding anxiety. No; still not ready. He raised one eyebrow, letting a faint smirk show.

"Am I your Dragon?" he asked playfully.

Duo noted the eyebrow, the smirk and most of all, the sparkle behind those impossibly blue eyes, and relaxed.

"Oh, yes! You are so my Dragon!" he laughed and the blush hit him full force with the relief.

"Excellent," Heero purred and enveloped him in a full-body embrace with a kiss that possibly reached the Banshee's toes. He released him only when the Banshee's knees began to tremble.

Ctik. Right. Business first; ravishment second. Priorities, Yuy, he reminded himself.

Never mind that the current priority was a pain in the ass.

He broke the kiss and returned Duo to his full upright position, holding onto him until the wobbling subsided.

"Heero..." began the breathless Banshee. "Damn..."

"Run along," Heero commanded imperiously, nudging him towards the bath.

"Um... Right. You want to... join me?"

Heero smirked at him. "I showered an hour ago."

"Oh. Well... all right then..." He stumbled off to shower, still slightly intoxicated.

Heero grinned after him. Maybe there was something to these pheromones after all. He'd have to thank Tiffany for reminding him that he probably had some of the same Banshee-traits as Duo. When he chose. He set about selecting his wardrobe.

When Duo finished with his shower - fifteen minutes! Holy shit! - he rummaged out his Magical drag, since he would be meeting with Magical Creatures tonight.

The purple and green outfits were in the laundry, so he opted for the black leggings and the silvery blue tunic; the smooth-leather black boots were a better choice if it chose to rain again.

Heero purred at him when he returned to the room. "Mm... Perfect choice for meeting with the Gringott's Goblin; they have a great respect for formality."

Heero looked pretty formal himself; black trousers that bloused above his boots, a white shirt and a quilted black brocade jacket, wrapped and belted like a short kimono.

"You look very... warlord-ish," he smiled, looking the Wyvern up and down.

"The European version of Wyvern drag," he returned. "Shall we go fix the idiot vampire?" He offered his arm and Duo took it with a snicker.

"You really need to stop calling him the 'idiot vampire'. How is he going to get respect from the Goblin, if you show him none?"

Heero considered that for a long moment as they proceeded down the hallway. "You're right. I must control my natural inclination to cleanse the gene pool."

Duo rolled his eyes and laced his fingers with Heero's.

TBC...

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