Jewel Hunters Part 4
Duo traipsed out of his house, then began his routine trip to Quatre's house. He had been going there everyday since that particular day, to sit quietly with Treize and Quatre, to talk, to listen. Besides, he didn't want Heero to find him. He would be safer at Quatre's.
It seemed that Quatre's party had been dubbed the 'most successful in breaking up couples' party of the decade. Not a very flattering name, he decided. Amazingly enough, out of the so many couples that night, at least 5 couples had already broke up, and that included Treize and Dorothy, Quatre and Zechs. Duo was sure that poor Quatre would never host another party again. And he himself was getting party-phobia. Not a good thing.
Suddenly, he felt a tug on his arm and was pulled away forcefully. Before he knew it, he was in a dark, isolated alley. Alone with one Heero Yuy.
"Heero?" He gasped, bringing a hand over his mouth.
Heero stared at him adamantly, hands gripping him. "We need to talk."
Duo looked away. "What is there to talk about?"
"Why did you run away that day?"
The braided boy fumed inwardly. He snapped his head up and returned the gaze helplessly. "What do you mean why? That was what I should do! Shouldn't the question be why did we do that?"
"I don't understand."
Duo struggled out of his grasp. Adjusting his collar, he hissed. "What is there not to understand? That was lust and you know it! I'm not a slut that you can take to the bed whenever you're feeling frisky!"
Heero gently took a hand in his again, but Duo shook it off in a huff. "Right, you're not a slut. I can't take you to bed when I'm feeling frisky, and I don't. That day when we kissed, what I felt wasn't lust. It's the longing to be with you. Duo, I need you. You are who I want to be with. Not just for a night, but I want to be with you for the rest of my life. Ai shiteru." He replied sincerely.
Duo spun around, head shaking in denial. His lips curled up in a wry, disbelieving smile. "You're lying. You don't know me. How can you love a stranger?" He spat saturinely.
The cobalt-eyed boy blinked. "...It's true that I haven't known you for long, but I feel the attraction. It's not our destiny to fall in love, but I believe that we should be. I feel the need to be near you, to be with you." He took a step forward, eyes pleading. "You feel the same way for me, don't you? Tell me! Do you love me?"
Duo was taken aback, and he took a sharp intake of breath. Tears sprung out in his eyes. Duo bit his lips; Heero's words repeating itself over and over again in his mind. He knew his answer. At the next prodding, he felt the titanic urge to throw himself into Heero's arms. His instincts relented. "I do love you... Can't I fall in love? Can't I...?"
Heero felt a little surprise by Duo's sudden response and passion, but he brushed it off, instead reveling in the warmth of their embrace. "Love you too..."
After what seemed like an eternity, Duo pushed himself gently away from his new found love. "But we're both attached! We can't be together!"
"I've broken up with Relena. It doesn't matter."
"But what about Fei! I can't just leave him like that." Duo frowned.
Heero gave him a gentle peck on his perky nose. "Talk to him, Duo. Tell him."
"I... I understand." He nodded uncertainly.
*****
Duo stood in front of Wufei's house hesitatingly. He didn't want to hurt his lover, but he didn't want to hurt Heero either. Resolutely, he marched right up to the door.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
The wooden barrier opened, revealing the pale face of Wufei. "Duo?" Standing aside, he let Duo stroll in. "What do you want to see me for?"
The braided boy squirmed. "Well, it's about...us." He turned away, unable to look at Wufei in his eyes. He started again. "Fei... I'm here because I... because we..." Words struggled up his throat and clamored to get out, but sentences flew away from his mind. Eventually, he got fed up and spoke his mind straight. "We can't be together anymore!"
Wufei stared at him aghast. "Duo, do you mean a break up?"
Silence. Fidget. Silence. Fidget.
"I understand, Duo."
Duo snapped his head up. "What!?"
"We'll break up." Wufei nodded firmly.
"Why are you... so calm about it?"
"I was about to go look for you when you came." Wufei explained. "I was still very hesitant and unsure of how I was going to tackle this problem, but looks like it's all solved."
"What do you mean?" Duo eyed him skeptically.
"I want a break up too, Duo."
Duo's eyes widened. "Huh?"
Wufei faltered. "...Have you ever wondered why we refused to get married after being together all these years? I believe that both of us feel the same way, that we aren't really the correct couple. We were only meant to be together for a little while whilst our true love came along. I want to be with Sally. She's the one I want for life."
Duo couldn't help it. He laughed. "I kinda like the way you describe our reason for being together all these time. I think you're right about it. The one I want to marry is Heero, never you." Then his laughing got out of hand. "This is one big sickening joke that Destiny played on us, eh? Fei?"
He nodded.
*****
Quatre slumped into his quill bed, briefly wondering why wasn't Duo there yet. "Treize, do you think something happened to Duo? I know he's usually late, but not this late! And to miss lunch?"
Treize ruminated the situation. "That is true. If there is something Duo never misses, it's food. Why not we go look for him?"
The blonde nodded. Just as they were about to get up and leave, the door to Quatre's room opened. "Trowa?" Quatre exclaimed.
"Hello, Quatre." He answered.
Treize saw the silent exchange. No matter what it was, something was definitely amiss. And the two needed to sort it out alone. "Well, I guess I'll go look for Duo myself." He raised his voice a little louder than usual, to make sure the two could hear him in their trance. Then he slipped off.
Quatre tried to give a polite smile. "Is there anything I can do for you, Trowa?"
"I've heard about you and Zechs." He started, eliciting a gasp from the blonde.
Quatre narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing the brown haired boy. "If you're here to sympathize with me, to offer your apologies, save them. I don't need pity."
Trowa was silent momentarily. "...I'm not here to offer pity. To tell the truth, I'm actually happy that you broke up with him."
"What!?" Quatre snapped irately. How dare this jerk come and gloat at him!
"He doesn't need you. At least not anymore. But I do. I love you, Quatre Raberba Winner." Trowa paused, waiting for his words to sink into Quatre's mind. Seeing the shock and disbelief tainting those delicate features, he added, "I won't force you. I can wait. As long as you're willing to try, then I'm willing to wait."
"But why?" The blonde asked softly.
"...I don't know. But my instincts tell me to protect you, to love you. And I've depended on them since I was a child. They have never cheated me." Trowa admitted. "When you feel that you can finally accept me into your life, come look for me. I'll be waiting." Then he turned away and proceeded to walk out of the room.
"Matte!"
Trowa looked behind his shoulder.
Quatre smiled with tears in his eyes. "I'm still feeling kind of down. Can you accompany me to the park for a stroll?"
The emerald-eyed boy grinned as he realized what Quatre meant. "My pleasure."
*****
Treize sauntered out of Quatre's mansion casually. After having so time to calm down and actually think, he had gotten over the fact that he was no longer an item with Dorothy. Mountain had convinced him that he was crazy about her, and he believed it too. Maybe they were both wrong. Maybe it was even better this way.
He shrugged it off, then kept his mind on his current task. To find the braided one named Duo Maxwell. Now, where could he be? He didn't have to search long before he saw Duo walking out of Wufei's abode. "Duo!"
The said boy spun around, braid defying gravity for a moment. "Treize?" His eyes widened considerably, then he jogged up to his friend after regaining his composure. "Why are you here?"
Treize sweatdropped. "Shouldn't I be the one asking that? Quatre and I got so worried over you when you didn't come!"
Duo blenched sheepishly. "I... anou... I forgot."
"Forgot?"
The braided lad nodded. "Suminasen. I just split up with Fei. I was at his place moments ago, talking about that."
"What?" Treize doubled over. "You too?"
"It's ok. This is what both of us wanted. We both have our hearts set on someone else now. It's for the best." Duo lamented ruefully, but also with a hint of happiness for a burden jettisoned from his shoulders.
Treize nodded mutely. "If that's what you want, then I wish you happiness. Wufei too."
Duo smiled. "Yes, and I hope that you too will find your happiness." Then he excused himself.
Treize stood there, watching the figure disappear into the crowd. There were no qualms about Duo's life now. He could almost see the happiness radiating from him as he ran to undoubtedly find his new love. He grinned at that thought. But his smile soon faded as he recalled the situations he and Quatre were in. That reminded him; he had better return to look after the young blonde.
However, when he reached the park, he found out that he didn't need to. Little Quatre was sitting on the bench with Trowa, happily gibbering away. He looked a lot better, less upset and more talkative.
Treize sighed. Both Duo and Quatre had found confides, and that left him nowhere. But he was happy for both of them. Maybe he would find his own someday. In the meantime, he would head for the bar and get a little drink to celebrate for his friends.
"Treize."
He twirled around. "Une?"
She smiled meekly. "Konnichiwa."
"Why are you here?" He asked, surprised by her sudden appearance.
Une tucked a lock of reddish-brown hair behind an ear. "Just passing by."
Treize grinned. "Well then, why not we go somewhere and enjoy a cup of coffee or two?" Maybe his happiness was arriving sooner than he thought.
*****
Wufei got up from his seat adamantly. He picked up his phone, and dialed the set of numbers. It got through. He waited with bated breath for someone to answer.
"Moshi moshi! This is Sally. Who's there?"
He let out a little sigh of relief. "Sally? This is Wufei. Just calling to see if you're free this Saturday."
*****
Dorothy sighed as she was dragged away again.
"Dorothy! Come quick! Just look at this! Isn't it beautiful?" Relena squealed.
She ambled over to the excited little female's side and observed the dress her companion was eyeing. "Yes, 'lena. It's beautiful. Why don't you take it to the changing room and change into it?" She suggested sanguinely.
"I think that's exactly what I'm going to do." Relena announced laconically, then she capered away.
Dorothy shook her head as smiled at her adorable ways. She was about to walk after Relena when she saw someone through the shop window. Treize was leading a woman into a coffeehouse. She felt a surge of jealousy spear through her, but she dismissed it. Instead, she smiled even wider than before. 'Treize, I'm glad that you've found someone else. Like I have.' She turned away, and walked to the changing room where Relena was.
*****
"Well, that was an excellent show, don't you think?"
Catherine nodded. "Right! I like the part where Vespera[1] told them the truth. It was so touching!"
"Me too. That was the saddest part in the movie." Hilde agreed, and she grabbed a slice of pizza. Quickly, she wolfed it down. "Hmm! Pepperoni and cheese taste wonderful together! Try one, Cat." She offered, nudging a slice over to her companion.
Catherine eyed the triangular piece cynically. After much prodding and cajoling, she nipped off a small portion.
"How is it?" Hilde asked hopefully.
The auburn haired belle swallowed the piece down forcefully. She winced inwardly. "Looks yucky, tastes yucky[2] ."
Hilde pouted. "Why is that every time I tell you to eat something, and you always criticize that it taste horrible?"
Catherine shrugged. Even though they were akin in many aspects, this was not one of them. Something she'll never agree with Hilde on was how her taste buds functioned.
*****
A golden-haired being collapsed at the road sign that pointed to his city and kissed the ground. "Finally! I thought we would never make it when we got hit by that tsunami at sea!" Sword exclaimed. "Worse still, I thought I would never see this place again! Ahh! I want to kiss Mother Nature!"
"What for?" Darkness chided. "Mother Nature created that tsunami anyway."
Sword ignored him, and was hugging Shield gleefully.
"Now that we're back, maybe we should check up on our masters." Ice suggested meekly.
"Agreed!"
*****
Shield and Thunder looked at the other, gave each other a pinch in the arm to make sure they weren't dreaming, but eventually, their jaws dropped when they realized what they were seeing was real.
Heero was kissing Duo passionately. In bed. Fully clothed, but in bed nevertheless.
They turned a bright shade of red as they dodged out of the room.
*****
Fire and Darkness peeked into Quatre's room, almost afraid of what they would find. They were inside a bedroom no matter what the circumstances. Two lonely souls together in a dark room never meant anything good.
"Fire!" Quatre smiled.
Darkness smacked him on his head. "See? It's your carelessness that they discovered us." He grumbled as they floated slowly over to their respective masters.
"So? Does it matter?" Fire hissed. Then he turned to the blonde boy. "So, Quatre, long time no see, eh? What's that ya doin' with Trowa?"
"Isn't it obvious? We're playing chess!" He answered.
"Oh..." Both jinn blushed.
*****
Sword and Storm found their masters together in the cinema. Usually, it wasn't a big problem. But well, they didn't seem to be really watching the movie. Rather Sally was resting her head on Wufei's shoulder, who had a really possessive arm wrapped around her.
The jinn smirked at each other. "Problem solved."
*****
"So, you guys..." Rain trailed off, gesturing for them to continue the sentence.
"...got together while you're away." Zechs answered dryly.
Ice cocked her head. "How? What about Quatre and Une?"
"We broke up." Noin sighed.
"Oh, I see. But what about your destinies?" Ice asked worriedly.
Zechs flicked the jinni in her head, eliciting an annoyed 'hey'. "You guys need to work on your magic. It didn't work. From what I heard, seven couples have broken up."
Rain gasped. "Seven? That many?"
"That many." Zechs sniped.
*****
Wind took a sip from his master's warm beverage. "It tastes wonderful." He licked his lips contentedly.
"I agree." Mountain replied, as also he took a sip. Then he remembered his task. "So, you two have been together everyday since we left?"
Une nodded. "Yes. And tell me, where did you go anyway?"
"Anou... we went for a little field trip. Can't let you know the exact place." Wind half-lied.
"Fine. But you can at least tell us what happened, right? It might be interesting." Treize said.
*****
Cyclone peeked into the room gingerly. Holy crawled on top of him, making them look like some kind of totem one would find outside a Red Indian's teepee. What they saw made them immediately sweatdrop.
"One, two, three... Oww! Stop stepping on my foot! Again! One, two, three..."
Catherine and Hilde were waltzing. Anou, scratch that. They were busily trying to dodge the other's foot stepping on them.
Cyclone and Holy sighed. Beginners.
*****
"What went wrong with you guys?" Lightning asked.
"Well... the fact is that I don't feel the attraction I had for Treize anymore. And neither does he. Plus, both of us have found someone else." Dorothy explained.
Ocean frowned. "But it's your destinies..."
"Not anymore." Dorothy chided. "Destiny did a very bad job this time round."
"Don't say that. It isn't very wise to talk bad about the goddesses. For all we know, this destiny gone wrong might have been because of something you said wrong in your previous life." Lightning warned.
Before the blonde girl could retort, the door to the changing room opened, and out stepped a Relena who wore a baby pink, frilly, lacy, full of ribbons and childish embroidery, and to be honest a downright ugly dress, complete with pink heels, pinkish makeup and various pink accessories TM.
Lightning gawked, her jaws dropping.
Ocean turned away, trying hard to not puke.
Dorothy just laughed.
*****
That night, the fourteen jinn gathered at the park.
"Quatre and Trowa were playing chess when Fire and I found them, but from the way they were looking at each other, I doubt that they're just friends." Darkness reported.
Wind nodded. "Une and Treize too. But they're more obvious. They admitted that they've been together everyday since we left." Then he turned to the others. "What about you guys?"
"Well, Hilde and Catherine seems to be an item too." Holy remarked.
"Heero and Duo sure are." Thunder blushed as he remembered the way they were kissing when he and Shield had found them.
Lightning saw him blushing, and floated over. "Relena and Dorothy are head over heels for the other. There's no doubt about them."
"Same here for Noin and Zechs." Rain sighed.
"Sally and Wufei too." Sword commented.
Mountain observed their various expressions. Some were blushing, others were just plain neutral. "So, all of them has broken up with their previous lover and is currently with someone else?"
Thirteen nods.
"Ok. Destiny is right. All things have resolved themselves. I think we just have to wait for her explanation." If she decides to give one, that is, his mind supplied.
TBC...
[1] This sentence is an obvious reference to my other fanfic 'Liberation'. Go read it if you wanna understand.
[2] Inside joke. You won't understand unless you actually know me. Just couldn't resist putting it in.
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