Crimson Ties Part 18
This. Was. Not. Happening.
Her hand tightening on the doorknob that it continued to hold onto, Meiran's widened eyes stared at the visitor in the doorstep before her. He was supposed to be the last person to every set foot here again. She'd rid her existence of him successfully for months now.
And yet, here Duo Maxwell stood in flesh and bone.
Meiran wanted to scream, to force the living away by her own power as an anger like she'd never felt bubbled in every dead cell of her body. But she could not let any of it show and plastered on a wide smile that she hated having to put on.
For his part, Duo stood equally stunned as he took in the raven-haired beauty. Wearing a tight green dress that left little of her perfect and ample body to the imagination, the Infected was not one that he'd expected to have answering Midi and Trowa's door when he arrived.
This new Vampire to Maxwell was different from the other females that he'd come to know in how she was not afraid to blatantly boast her striking form the best way she could. From the high heeled shoes to the curls that her hair had been manipulated into, everything was tucked and neat, as if from head to toe was careful placed to make sure that eyes would go exactly where she wanted them to.
Unable to help himself, the living's gaze followed that direction and he swallowed roughly. He didn't miss how her smile grew at how he eyed her up. Nothing about his lingering stare was at all born out of lust or longing, but an odd, subconscious sizing himself up compared to her without his understanding why he was doing so in the first place. He had to admit that he fell short by miles in every way...
...And that almost smug grin on her face when their eyes met agreed with him.
Shaking his head to break himself from how inadequate he suddenly felt, Maxwell stammered, "I-I'm sorry. I just came to look for-"
"Duo?" a familiar voice breathed in disbelief from deeper inside the house. More than happy for its sound, the boy stood on his toes to peer behind the Infected that continued to stand in the way of his entering and had turned only enough to look back at a stricken Midi.
Quickly coming out of her own shocked state, Meiran forced another wide grin at her unwanted company as politely as she could manage, "My apologies. Please come in." Bowing her head, she stepped aside so that the living could step inside as the brunette hurried close, her brown eyes wide and never breaking from Duo while he entered.
Not wanting to stay around and be sickened by any sweet reunions, the raven-haired Vampire closed the front door and slipped away. On her way back into the living room, Wufei and Anna hurried out into the hallway in hearing their cousin's greeting just in time to catch her aiding a certain braided youth to shed his coat. At the sight of him, they froze with soft gasps.
His violet eyes locking onto the redhead's Duo relaxed instantly and a wide smile tugged his lips. Without a word, he closed the distance between them to pull her into a tight embrace. Stunned for only a moment, Anna blinked her dampening eyes and laughed quietly as she closed her eyes.
The moment that Anna returned the hug, the young scholar closed his own eyes with a sigh to soak in just how natural it was to embrace her. It had been missed over the many months that he had barely existed through. A lump forming in his throat, the emotions of the reunion following their difficult night that had just passed quickly caught up with him.
Wufei looked on with a proud grin while Midi continued to reel in confusion and shock... though seeing how Maxwell went right for her cousin to hold her so silently answered a lot of the questions that she had.
Pulling back, the living smiled at the brave Infected that had chanced visiting him and whispered, "Thank you." There was no need for him to explain his sentiment and it was readily accepted with a watery smile as Anna nodded.
Slowly turning to face the scaly Vampire in the living room doorway, Duo smirked and greeted, "Chang." He raised his hand in offering, silently hoping that he hadn't worn out the family's welcome with how he'd treated Heero.
His own grin spreading further across his face, Wufei took the hand in a firm shake and lightly patted the living's back as he replied in kind, "Duo. This is a pleasant surprise."
Relief washed over Maxwell at how easily he'd been accepted back when only days ago he thought he never wanted to see them again. Now being back in their presence, he knew just how much he'd denied his real feelings towards them... how badly he wanted to have them in his life.
Turning back to the brunette by the door, Duo chuckled and gave her a hug as well with a quiet, "Sorry to come unannounced like this, Midi."
More than happy to return the embrace, the brunette giggled, "We told you that you're always welcome here. I am just so thrilled to see you again." When she pulled away, she winced, "Though I do hope that you'll forgive the state of my home as I have not had the proper time to clean it in preparation of your arrival."
His violet eyes blinking, the teenager looked around to find everything spotless and in place. Rolling his eyes, Wufei snickered, "Oh, come off it, cousin. What are you so worried about when your home is always perfect? Are the books in the shelves not in alphabetical order?"
The protest that Midi was about to make when the scaly Infected spoke up was silenced with an unintelligible sound at the mention of the bookshelves. With a sheepish smile, she shrugged, "Well... I was going to work on that as soon as our other guests had left."
Anna's head fell back with a loud round of laughter. "We do know you all too well," she snickered as she wiped away the joyful tears from her eyes.
"Other guests," Duo repeated quietly. Yes, that beautiful Vampire that had answered the door when he arrived. Wincing, he told his hostess, "I could come back if this is a bad time for you. I just came to talk to Heero." He frowned at the flashes of disappointment that crossed the faces of the Infected.
Before the boy could get the wrong idea behind their reactions, Midi rested a hand on his shoulder and informed, "Actually, Heero is away for the time being... on business along with Trowa. They left this morning, but he should be back in a little over a week's time."
"Oh," was all that Maxwell could manage as a response, shoulders slumping in his own disappointment. 'Damn, but this bond between us has to be strong,' he thought to himself.
At about this time last night, he was cursing the Infected's existence and now he wanted to see him more than anything he'd wanted before, now that he allowed most of his guard down.
Returning to Duo's side, Anna nudged his shoulder and smirked, "Well, I do hope that you'll stay with us for a while even if my brother is away. As for our other visitors, they've actually been very anxious to meet you, so you are not imposing on anyone."
Other Vampires knew about him? Never one to really like drawing a lot of attention to himself, Duo wasn't entirely sure how much he liked the idea, though he admitted to being curious to knowing more of the creatures in Heero's world.
Anna smiled as she walked up to her 'little brother' and took his hand. Gently pulling him behind her, she led him towards the living room. Inside, he was taken aback to find four new faces in the addition to the striking, raven-haired Infected that he had already seen. And as the only one in a dress as opposed to sweaters and jeans, she continued to be a standout amongst the rest...
...that was until Duo recognized the other three from having seen their faces on television several times over. "O-oh my God," he breathed as the Council of Vampire Representatives rose to their feet with warm smiles for him as they stepped towards him.
"You're Treize Khushrenada," Maxwell all but whispered as the head Chairman stepped up first. Looking to the three female Vampires directly behind him, he stammered, "A-and you're Lady Une, Lucrezia Noin Merquise and Relena Merquise-Peacecraft." The said lovely immortals exchanged pleased grins before they looked back to the braided youth.
Chuckling, the Council head bowed at the waist and smirked, "I see that you must follow the news reports involving our roles in government." He reached out with a hand and nodded firmly, "Our reputations are not the only ones that precede us, Duo Maxwell. It is an honor to meet you."
Dumbstruck that such a creature of prestige and power would be honored to meet him, the living numbly took the cold hand. Rounding her husband, the ever elegant Lady Une chuckled, "Considering this is not the first time we have met, you are more a friend than a stranger, so there are no need for formalities."
That was all the warning that she gave before she wrapped her arms around the stunned teenager. Violet eyes growing, Duo loosely returned the hug. Pulling back, the Secretary of the Council cupped his hands in her chilled hands. "I knew that you would make a handsome young man the moment I first saw you," she complimented softly, her smile still kind and sincere as she looked on him.
Blushing, Maxwell couldn't help but glance at the dark-haired Vampire at the back of the pack and laughed, "Well, I don't know if I'd say that about me."
"I would," Relena grinned widely when she made her way to him. She was a bit bolder by kissing his cheek as well as embracing him. "It is so good to see that you're well. Not one of us has spent a day without thinking of you since that first night we laid eyes on you at the Harvest."
Noin continued, "We worried about you almost as much as Heero has over the years." Hugging the boy, she smirked, "And you may want to blink before your eyes dry out." Laughing at that, Duo hugged the delegate back and forced himself to relax enough to blink as suggested.
It was beyond his comprehension to be in the presence of these regal beings, creatures influential in the relationship between humans and Vampires. And they not only knew him by name but had been truly concerned with his well-being. Such a thing was almost unfathomable.
Finally, the first Infected that had opened the door to him approached. "Meiran, cousin to these delegates," she introduced with a small grin. She leaned forward to give the teenager an embrace that she commanded her body to make look as natural as possible.
Once again, Maxwell noticed that he was comparing himself to the alluring Vampire without having a reason as to why. Just happy that she was showing every kindness to him that the others were, he returned the gesture by folding his arms around her gracefully curved frame.
Stepping back, Meiran tilted her head and continued to feign innocence by asking, "Now I recognize you from when you were just a child. I must say that I am surprised to see you here. Do you know the Yuys and Changs that you would come out on a cold night like this to see them?"
"Duo is Heero's chosen. That makes him our family," Anna answered for the braided living, her tone short and not without the hint of a warning in it that no one in the room could mistake. Caught off guard by the near growl, the teenager turned back to catch the redhead's narrowed eyes on the dark-haired Infected.
And that was when Meiran felt it... the gazes of her family watching her closely. It took effort on her part to not give away her shock and anger.
Regretfully, it seemed that she did not play her hand as free of suspicion as she'd thought she had all this time. She was going to have to step even more carefully, reel her desired strike back for the time being until the guards around her were lowered now knowing that her relatives were keeping their eyes on her.
The beauty smiled and laughed, "Heero's chosen? I had no idea that he'd taken one on."
"Heero is a private creature," Wufei shrugged. A smirk curling his lips, he added, "The nature of his choice was a sensitive one that he kept to few beyond those of us in his family. As you well know, my brother-in-law is very protective of those he holds the most dear to him. And who could be more important to him than the one with whom he wishes to be tied with for the rest of his existence?"
Fighting a blush at that sentiment, Duo swallowed roughly. Meanwhile, Meiran silently fumed.
Lucrezia glanced at her cousin before she turned to the rest of her family and suggested, "We should give our friends their privacy. I'm sure that our living acquaintance has much that he would like to discuss with them to have traveled out here."
His head nodding, Treize replied, "Good idea." Bowing at the waist again to the braided teenager, he smiled, "I do hope that we shall meet again soon, Duo. I very much look forward to knowing you better, as any member of our friends' family is as good as family to us."
That said, the Chairman held his arm out to his wife. Linking onto him, Lady Une winked at Maxwell as they passed by. Relena waved and Noin smirked to the boy when they followed their cousins out. Meiran remained emotionless, her gold-flecked, penetrating eyes lingering on Heero's Other until she was beyond the room.
In hearing the front door close, Duo's shoulders slumped with a deep sigh at being released from the unexplainable discomfort he felt in the presence of that particular Infected. She was haunting... but not in a good way as far as he was concerned.
"Are you okay?" Anna frowned in concern as she appeared at the braided youth's side, rubbing his arm soothingly. Even through the long sleeves of his tight, gray sweater, the coldness of her hand seeped through.
But the shiver that ran through Maxwell wasn't due to that.
Meeting the gold-and-blue eyes on him, he grinned and sighed, "Yea, thanks. I just felt like a little exposed... like I was being dissected."
The redheaded Infected's concern melted away to frustration. She took a deep breath and nodded with a growled, "Meiran has that effect. Before she was turned, she was purchased from her homeland to be a lady in waiting to British royalty when she was one of the first people turned by a Vampire; in her case Treize."
Folding her arms, Anna shook her head, "Treize and Lady Une met her when they'd gone into hiding and adopted her as their cousin when they found that she was without a family. Because they're Originals and due to her prestigious upbringing based off of her looks, she thinks of herself as pretty hot shit... which is putting it nicely."
Duo snorted. Well, he certainly did get how Meiran thought highly of herself, even though he'd only just met her. But there was also something else in those dark, gold-flecked eyes of hers that made him leery of her.
"Well, no need to worry about her, anyway," the Irish Vampire giggled. Leaning in, she kissed his cheek and vowed, "She'll be of no bother since you have us around." She threw her arms around his neck, laughing, "And it is so good to have you back!"
Embracing her back, the braided living chuckled. There was no sense in denying how much he'd missed the presence of the Infected around him. Even after being away from them for so long, he never forgot how at peace he felt in their midst.
When they broke apart, Midi cupped her guest's face and smiled, "Seeing the time, you must have come straight here after your last class without eating supper so you must be famished," Lowering her hands, she ordered light-heartedly, "You make yourself comfortable. I'll see what I can make up for you that won't take me long."
Just the thought of the brunette's cooking had Duo's stomach rumbling. The corner of his mouth curling up, he replied quietly, "You're the best, Midi."
* * * * * *
"I wish that we'd had a more conclusive reaction from her when Duo arrived," Relena sighed quietly. Shaking her head, she folded her arms to stare out to the darkening world through her cousins' living room window as she stated, "Nothing of her actions either proved or disproved her innocence."
Lady Une reclined back heavily in the recliner that she occupied, frowning, "No, they have not. But I wouldn't want our guards to be lowered just because she handled herself well tonight."
Standing beside her, Treize nodded firmly, "Even if she truly didn't know that Heero made Duo his chosen, as she should not have been aware of before tonight, she's not likely to be happy. However you look at it, she won't be willing to show our braided friend any kindness if we're not around."
His eyes narrowing, he warned, "As much as I love my cousin, I also know how set in her ways she is. Remember that she did poison one of her fellow ladies in waiting out of envy when she was still a human. Such a nature is not easily undone, no matter how she has come around with our help through our wishes and examples." Biting her lip, his wife rested her hand atop of his on the arm of the recliner between them.
Noin peered away from her watch in checking the hallway beyond the door frame that she was leaning against. "All the more reason to be certain that Duo is never left alone with her until we believe that she can be trusted... especially now that Heero is away on the hunt."
Perched at the top of the stairs beyond the living room, Meiran's fine-tuned ears only just managed to pick up the hushed voices on the first floor. Gripping the railing that the top half of her body was hanging over, her hands clenched so tightly that the wooden beam creaked in protest.
Not only was her family suspicious of her, but they were conspiring against her. Treize was right in suggesting that she'd not lost her ruthless nature when she was turned. And now that she knew how her own relatives didn't trust her, she was only all the more scorned and ready to act out.
She tried to go about this nicely. Now, there would be blood. And Duo Maxwell would be the one to shed it.
But not right away, Meiran resigned. Not when there were so many eyes on her. If she wanted to win Heero over, she needed to be free of any possible blame for his Other's demise.
Until then, no one would smile more or show more kindness to the braided living than she would when they were together. Even if it killed her, she would be the very picture of respect towards him.
It would all be worth it in the end to Meiran when she could finally strike. Already imagining all kinds of delicious ways she would destroy Duo, she pushed herself upright and walked back to her room with a dark smirk on her lips.
Oh, this was not over. Not by a long shot.
* * * * * *
Stepping from the kitchen as Anna aided Midi in preparing dinner for their guest, Wufei made his way into the dining room where Duo sat at the head of the table that had been set for him.
"You look like you could use this," the scaly Vampire smirked as he handed a bottle of cold beer to his friend. "I know you're not of age, but you don't seem like the kind of guy to have let that stop you before."
Maxwell snickered, "Am I really that easy to read?" Accepting the drink, he nodded firmly, "Thanks, 'Fei." He took a long swig from the bottle, silently relishing in the taste and chill of it. Already, his frayed nerves were beginning to feel better.
Wufei took the seat to the teenager's right, carefully setting the glass of his wife's blood that had been colored before him.
Swallowing roughly, curiosity finally got the better of Duo as he stared at the strange texture of the Infected's skin. He gestured to Chang's hands on the table and asked softly, "Did your scales... hurt when they came in?" Automatically, his braided head ducked in case he'd stepped over a line with his question.
A smirk spread across the dark-haired Vampire's face and he shook his head, "If they did, I don't remember it. That's one of the blessings that comes with being turned, the pain is instantly forgotten by those who endure it while those caring for them are the ones who suffer in watching their agony. I pretty much felt as though I was waking from a long sleep when my transformation was complete."
Reaching for the cutting knife from the silverwear setting beside him, Wufei held its handle out to the teenager. "Cut me," he requested.
"W-what?" Duo stammered, his eyes wide with panic. Shaking his head, he frowned deeply, "I couldn't-"
His smirk growing, Chang insisted, "It's alright. Take it."
Breath coming in near pants, Maxwell gripped the knife's handle and watched in fear as his friend rolled up the sleeve of his read sweater that covered the arm closest to him. In the light of the chandelier, the exposed scales shone as the arm was lowered before the living.
With a nod, Wufei said again, "Now, cut me."
It was almost laughable for Duo. There was a time when he would have gladly wielded a blade to strike down every Vampire he saw. Now his hand shook and every cell in his body seemed to scream in protest of hurting this one. 'My but how things have changed,' that little voice in his mind mused.
Taking a deep breath, the living's eyes closed as he forced his hand bearing the weapon to raise and come down on the arm with its sharpest end slicing down onto the scaly arm... only for the blade to bounce back the moment it made contact.
Duo gasped sharply as his eyes flew open, his gaze taking in the arm right away to examine it. There was not even so much as a nick in the scales as Wufei chuckled and turned it so that he could see no harm had been done. Raising the knife in his hand, the teenager's eyes widened again when they found the that the blade was bent.
"My skin is completely impenetrable," Chang grinned as he rolled his sleeve back down. "There is no bullet, blade, flame or anything the like that can harm it. Only Anna's fangs can break through the scales when she needs to feed from me."
Jaw dropping, Maxwell blinked in surprise. "That's amazing," he was finally able to breathe when he found his voice. Lowering the knife, he quickly reached for his beer for another long gulp as the Vampire snickered in amusement.
For a brief moment, the two had fallen into a companionable silence before Wufei tilted his head and commented, "I hope to not offend with this, but I can't help but wonder something. Based on your faith and upbringing, how do you feel about being tied to a male Vampire? Do you have any personal conflicts there in having been chosen by Heero?"
Heero. At the mention of the Infected's name, Duo's heart ached at his still being without his soothing presence.
As far as the question was concerned, he couldn't help but laugh as he shrugged, "Actually, I've known that I was attracted to other males for a long time now. I was also fortunate enough to have been raised by a progressive priest and few nuns who don't believe that God has an issue with same-sex relationships the way that most people do."
With one more swig from his drink, Maxwell admitted, "I had a bigger issue with being linked to a Vampire as opposed to the gender."
"I see," Chang smiled kindly. "All things considered, "I can understand that."
There was still the matter that that the scholar had on his mind that had been the reason why he'd ventured out to see Heero at all this night. At first, he had hoped to bring it up to only Yuy.
But seeing as how he was away, Duo wanted the answers to his questions badly enough that he decided not to have them wait. And in a way, this worked for his purposes as well, this talking to Wufei instead. There was definitely a solidifying trust between them, and the scaly Infected was easy to talk to.
Silently going through how to bring his matter up, the braided living informed, "I remembered something today. That was why I came here... to have the whole story." Lowing the glass that he'd taken a sip from, Chang gave his full attention and nodded for him to go on.
"I remember hearing your family names by the Vampires that had found me in the alley the night of the Harvest," Maxwell informed. He knew that his nightmare recalled the evening perfectly when Wufei's gold-flecked eyes grew.
Leaning towards the Infected, he said in little more than a whisper, "I never saw any of you before I blacked out. And I want to know everything that happened."
Chang blinked and let out a slow breath. "Very well," he agreed with a shallow nod after a moment's consideration. "Given the nature of what you'd been through that night, none of us would have brought it up without your asking it to prevent those bad memories."
Folding his hands in his lap, the Vampire declared, "Now that you seem ready, I will hear your side and fill in the gaps to tell you everything that had happened." His eyes shifted as he saw the events unfold before him again as he said, "You can trust my recantation as that was one night I'll never forget."
This was what Duo wanted... the whole picture. Sitting on the edge of his chair, he bit his lip in anticipation.
Drawing a deep breath, Wufei began, "None of us expected to hear a child crying for his parents in the middle of a Harvest..."
TBC...
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