Author: Sorceress Fantasia
Warnings: AU, part fusion with Chobits
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: 1+2, implied 5+S and 5+M, implied 6+9
Archives: Lev's Lair, Fanfiction.net, MediaMiner, Ao Murasaki Ai.
Disclaimer: I woke up one morning to the GW boys serving me breakfast in bed, and I was so elated because I owned them. Then I woke up, for real this time, and found out that I had only been dreaming. So no, unless you live in dreamland, I do not own the GW boys. I own this fic though, because I wrote it, not dreamt it.
Note: This fic is inspired by Chobits, a manga by CLAMP, although there are some changes to the appearance of Person-coms. Unlike the manga, there are no physical characteristic to differentiate between a Person-com and a real human. And this piece of fiction is dedicated to Aomurasaki ai (Helen) for her new website. Congrats, gal! ^^
Obsession Two in One
"Heero, you shouldn't get so upset."
The Japanese man snorted, and slumped further into the couch that seemed to almost swallow him up. It was indeed a big piece of furniture, but its degree of lavishness paled in comparison to the rest of the room's furnishing. After all, this was Quatre's house and he was easily the richest person in their school, being the heir to a large technological company that created electronic gadgets highly sought after.
"So what if Relena's dead?" His friend tried again, but he sighed and rolled his eyes when he failed to get a response. "You are impossible, Heero Yuy. I just don't understand what's so special about Relena that you'd be so miserable without her!"
Heero glared at him hard. "Wufei, you were nearly inconsolable when Meiran died on you!"
That comment got Wufei flushing hard, and he sputtered indignantly, "Well, with Meiran gone, I've found a better one! See?" he paused, pointing to the blonde woman sitting quietly beside him. "Sally's working fine, and she's just as good as Meiran, or even better!"
Sally nodded happily, if not a little mechanically. But it was almost possible to tell; they were manufactured that way.
"Heero, I know that you depend on Relena to tell you the date and a lot of other things you do... god knows how bad you are with remembering dates..." he muttered softly to himself, remembering the last time Heero had forgot Quatre's party just because Relena was at a repair shop. "It'd be the same for you when you find a better palmtop!"
"A better palmtop?" Heero echoed knowingly, emphasizing his words with gesticulations. "Has it occurred to you that I haven't got the money? I've got to pay my bills, my rent, and my tuition fees at the university!"
Wufei cringed. He hadn't thought of that. All of them knew that Heero's parents could barely afford to support him through university; in fact, Heero had to take on odd jobs to help supplement the family income. And a new palmtop would be very, very expensive, especially the humanoid type like Relena (and even Relena was a second-hand good, which was probably why it had broken down completely so soon). The normal type was barely workable too, nowadays. Ever since scientists had created the new line of palmtops, laptops and personal computers that was named 'Person-com', very few people used the old, normal computers anymore. After all, Person-coms were a lot more interesting and attractive, with all of them having human forms and being able to function almost like a human being. They walked, talked, and generally did everything that was possible to program into their operating systems. It was even possible to program a personality into them.
Within a short time, the number of Person-coms demanded exploded and the old types of computer had almost become obsolete. Now, new Person-coms were getting more and more beautiful and even more human-like than their predecessors. Also, they came all shapes and sizes. The bigger ones were life-size, just like a human, and they usually accompanied their owners around. The smaller ones, like Relena the palmtop, were small enough to pass off as dolls. Still, no matter what size they came in, they acted very much like humans do.
And perhaps, they resembled humans a little too much.
It was too easy to build up a relationship with Person-coms. And so very difficult to let them go, even when they were unable to operate any longer. At least, Meiran had stayed in his house for a very long time after her systems were completely wiped out by a computer virus and rendered her unusable. Sally seemed to understand that, and took time off almost everyday to help clean her up before the truck finally took her away.
Wufei shook his head to clear himself of those morose thoughts, and also to remind him that Meiran and Sally were just Person-coms. They weren't his girlfriends. And it was silly to care so much for a computer.
Still, even his worst couldn't beat Heero's obsession with his palmtop. When he had gotten it, Relena seldom left his side and did everything Heero asked her to do, including waking him up in the morning, picking up his phone calls and retrieving his emails. The situation was aggravated when Heero installed a navigation program into her, and he took her along whenever he went so he would know exactly how to get around the city. Wufei was almost certain that Heero was going to marry a Person-com one day.
"Heero, I'm sure I can give you a loan..." he started, but stopped when Heero held up a hand.
"Thanks, but no. I won't be able to pay you back."
"Well, that problem has been solved." A voice rang out, and the door to Quatre's bedroom opened. The blonde man stood at the threshold, and he had the widest grin on his face. Behind him was Trowa, Quatre's Person-com, still sporting that infamous turtleneck. Sometimes, Wufei wondered what was Trowa hiding under that thing.
"For a while, at least," Quatre added, on second thoughts.
"What do you mean?" Wufei asked suspiciously, narrowing his eyes. Though Quatre was easily one of the most innocent looking person he had ever met, it was well known that he was also, at the same time, conniving and sly. Conniving and sly in a good way, however. "Does this have to do with why you asked us to come over to your place today?"
The blonde man just shrugged carelessly, and gave Trowa a sharp nod before walking towards his friends on the couch. The Person-com nodded in return, as though he had been given a command, and he left the room only to return a minute later. And when he did, someone else was with him.
"Who's that?" Wufei asked.
"I was just going to introduce you guys. Come over here," Quatre said, gesturing to the two figures standing at the threshold. Trowa slowly guided the newcomer towards his owner, seemingly whispering something into his ears to make him feel more at ease. It worked, and the newcomer's expression had relaxed somewhat by the time Quatre presented him.
"Heero, this is Duo," the blonde man said. "And Duo, this is Heero."
Duo held out a hand, and waited patiently for Heero to extend his. But the Japanese man just kept staring at him, looking as though he wanted to bore a hole through him with his eyes. He blushed when he noticed the intense gaze did not waver for a moment.
Wufei frowned, and waved a hand in front of his friend's eyes. "Hey, Heero!"
It was as though that was a cue, and Heero gasped, jumping slightly. Then he finally noticed Duo's extended hand and he quickly took it for a firm but gentle shake.
"Hello." His voice was soft, and even hinted of a little amazement.
"Hi," Duo returned just as softly, and Heero's face started to burn.
Quatre hid a snicker behind his hand (it was a little surreal to see Heero acting that way), and chose that moment to intervene. "I bought Duo as a present for Iris, actually. You know, Iria's daughter? But Iria asked me to send it later because apparently, Iris had misbehaved quite a bit a while ago. Since I already have Trowa, I don't actually need Duo around here. And now that Relena's dead, maybe you'd like to have Duo first? I can program him to replace Relena's job."
Heero's jaws dropped, his brows knitting deeply. "Present? Program?" he repeated, seeming more despaired with each word. "He's... a Person-com?"
"What else?" Quatre asked with a shrug. "So, do you want him? I can let you have Duo for about two weeks. You can go look for a new one to replace Relena for real in the meantime. I'm sure there're a few Person-coms going on sale."
"...Ok, thanks Quatre."
*****
Duo followed behind Heero quietly, as per Quatre's programming. Heero's apartment was small, but there was definitely more than enough space to accommodate him. The few pieces of furniture Heero owned littered the apartment sparsely, giving it a slightly distant feeling. It was quite different from Quatre's house, where he kept walking into the couches, tables, chairs and other furniture that almost filled the rooms.
"Duo, you can have this room. It's my study room, but I can just clean it up a bit and you can move in. Is that okay with you?"
He nodded obediently. "Thank you, Heero."
Heero shrugged. "You're welcome. Erm, I think it's quite late already..."
"It's 8.09 now."
"Huh?"
"The time."
"Oh." Heero blinked, looking at Duo in surprise. "How did you know? I mean, you didn't even look at your watch," he asked, pointing to the gadget on Duo's wrist.
"The watch is a present from Quatre. I have an internal clock," Duo replied coolly, as though that were a given.
"Aa..." Heero looked away, feeling somewhat embarrassed. He had forgotten that Duo was a Person-com... again. Throughout the journey back to his apartment, he had taken Duo to be human and had treated him as such. It was so difficult to think of Duo as a machine.
"I was just thinking... would you like to have to dinner now?"
"I will have dinner when you want to eat, Heero," Duo answered dutifully, his tone gentle and demure. "What would you like for dinner? I can cook Japanese, Chinese and Western cuisine."
"...Japanese will be fine."
Duo nodded. "I understand. Now, I just need to take a look at what you have in your kitchen and I can start preparing dinner. Perhaps you'd like to take a shower before eating?" he suggested meekly before heading for the kitchen, leaving Heero leaning against the doorframe alone.
Heero vaguely wondered why had he chosen to take Duo home. It was a torture living without Relena, but somehow, he felt that it would be worse to have Duo in his live. Especially when the fact that Duo was only a Person-com Quatre had programmed specifically for his taste and lifestyle kept staring at him in the face.
*****
He yawned. It was already morning, but he didn't feel like getting out of bed so early. After all, weekends were meant for relaxation. Turning to his side, he peered at the clock standing on his nightstand. 7am, it read. Which meant that Duo would be coming over to wake him up in approximately 15 minutes.
Duo... his Person-com.
He could barely resist the urge to scream again. Just what was fate playing at? Letting him meet the person he wanted in his life, only to let him know a minute later that he was just a computer?
Heero got out of bed and headed into the bathroom attached to his bedroom to wash up.
He wanted Duo, and he wanted him so badly. Wanted him in his life as his boyfriend, his lover and perhaps even husband. Not his computer. Not his alarm clock or map.
It was so difficult to convince himself that he should just give up the idea of loving Duo. Not when Duo was everything he ever wanted in a lover. Gentle, warm-hearted, accommodating, considerate, obliging in every way and conversational. Then again, he reminded himself, Duo was a Person-com and Quatre might have pre-programmed him to his liking. Quatre did know him since childhood and knew quite well his likes and dislikes. It wouldn't be surprising if he had made Duo to be what he was like now.
Still, it was hard to ignore Duo's obvious beauty. He was so beautiful he could not help but stare, which was what had happened when they first met at Quatre's place. Those violet eyes were so mesmerizing, and every stolen glance pulled him in deeper and deeper. They sparkled and twinkled, and Heero could almost swear they could talk. Duo's lips were full and cherry pink, and every word that flowed out of those lips felt like silk to his skin. And those chestnut tresses that tumbled over Duo's shoulders... they shined so vividly under the light, looking as though they were alive.
It had been already two weeks since Duo had entered his life, and still, Heero had to stop himself from giving into temptation and take Duo into his arms for a long, deep, sensual kiss. But he knew he could not and should not. After all, he was just a Person-com. And now that Duo was quite accessible, since they were living together, Heero had to remind himself of that constantly and stay away. The last time when he had brushed Duo's hair was already too much for his senses to bear, and he had snuck a kiss on Duo's nape.
But he wanted Duo so much...
He slumped into his bed again, even though he had already brushed his teeth and washed his face. It was already 7.15am, and Duo would be coming in soon. Heero liked to see Duo smile gently at him as he roused him from his sleep, as though hoping to make him get out of bed and not irk him. And gentle it was. Duo looked angelic with that smile, and Heero could barely stop himself from leaning in and kiss those lips.
Then he heard the door softly creak open, and he waited for the object of his affection to come in. He could not kiss Duo, but at least, he could look at him for all he wanted.
"Good morning, Heero. It's time to wake up," Duo chirped merrily as he entered the room. He was still wearing that beautiful smile that made Heero's resolve crumple. Almost.
"Morning, Duo," he replied, and climbed out of bed.
"Would you like pancakes for breakfast?"
"Pancakes would be fine."
Duo nodded, and turned to leave. "I'll be done in a while then."
"Wait."
Duo spun around to face his temporary owner again. "Yes, Heero? What can I do for you?"
There were a lot of things Heero wanted Duo to do for him, but he bit those thoughts down. It wasn't appropriate to think that way. Still, it was so hard to resist when Duo was looking at him with those limpid violet eyes.
He stood up, and walked towards Duo.
"I want to kiss you. Let me kiss you."
Heero didn't know what had possessed him to make such a request, but there was no way to take it back now. Not that he wanted to. He desperately wanted a taste of those lips, of that body, even if it were a mechanical one.
And today was his last chance. His two weeks with Duo were up, and Quatre was going to take him back later, when they went to his house.
The Person-com gasped softly, his eyes widening. He studied Heero's face for a moment, and finally nodded slowly while a light blush stole up his face.
Heero carefully lowered his lips to Duo's and brushed them together. A bolt of electrifying pleasure shot down his spine, and the kiss turned bolder. He gently meshed their lips together, and slid his tongue into Duo's mouth when the Person-com moaned his pleasure aloud. Their initially chaste kiss turned desperate in a matter of seconds.
When they finally broke off, Heero was panting and still wanting more. He had never kissed a Person-com before (in fact, he had never owned one before Duo since Relena was technically only a palmtop), and he was surprised when his tongue slid into Duo's mouth and felt the warm, moist cavern. Duo felt so human-like, even when they were kissing.
The flush on Duo's face was still there when he left the room to make breakfast.
Once Duo was gone, Heero slumped back onto his bed, head buried in his hands. He had thought that one kiss would be able to satiate his hunger and would allow him to stop wanting Duo, but the plan had most definitely backfired. With the first taste of heaven, Heero knew he would never stop wanting more.
But Duo was out of his reach because he was a Person-com, and he... didn't belong to him.
*****
It was starting to become a pattern by now, the way Duo always followed quietly behind him. And it was a pattern that Heero did not want to change, because it meant that Duo was with him, even though he would much rather Duo walk beside him as his equal.
Still, he knew that he had to return Duo to Quatre and that was what he was going to do now. They were already at Quatre's place, and were waiting for a servant to inform him of their arrival. That was usually not the way things went, since he was a close friend of Quatre's. But somehow, the servants had insisted quite adamantly that he stay in the living room and wait.
Soon, Quatre entered the living room, Trowa falling into step beside him.
"Hi, Heero!" he greeted.
"Hi, Quatre. Hello, Trowa."
The Person-com nodded. "Hello, Heero."
Quatre nodded, smiling. Then he turned to Duo. "Hi, Duo. How have you been lately? Like it there with Heero?" he asked.
"It's been nice. I feel comfortable with him," Duo answered frankly.
Quatre's smile widened. "Come on to my room. There's something I want to show you, Heero."
"So this is why your servants insisted that I wait for you here. What is it?"
"You'll know when you get to my room."
It was a short distant to Quatre's room, and for once, Trowa led the way instead. Heero followed him, wondering what was his friend sharing with Duo in whispered tones. They were so engrossed in their conversation they were moving along rather slowly, and Trowa had to stop at the top of the stairs to wait for them. Heero tried to listen in, but he could hardly catch anything, especially after Quatre had given him a glare for attempting to eavesdrop.
When they were at the door, Trowa stepped aside and gestured for Heero to enter first. Heero raised an inquisitive eyebrow, but did so anyway. He was surprised to see Wufei and Sally already inside, apparently waiting for him, and the tables filled with gourmet food that was surely enough to feed him for days.
"Wufei? Sally? What's going on?" he asked confusedly.
"I can't believe you've forgotten this again. It's what... the third time already?" Wufei said with a grin tugging at his lips.
Quatre pushed Heero into his room, and Duo and Trowa followed, closing the door behind them. "No, it's the fourth."
"Third? Fourth? What did I forget?"
Wufei sighed louder, rolling his eyes. "Your birthday!"
"My birthday?" he parroted incredulously. "Today's my birthday? Already?"
"Yes, of course! Why else do you think we'd get all this food ready? It'd be just the six of us today, celebrating it with you, since we know you hate crowds," Quatre answered. "Happy birthday, Heero."
Wufei grinned, and took a box from Sally. "Happy birthday. This is from Sally and me."
"Thank you..." Heero took it, still unable to shake off his surprise. He knew he was bad with remembering dates, but to forget his birthday for four years was a little unsettling. Then again, he had seldom celebrated it. Even when he had Relena, he never bothered to ask her to remind him of his birthday, much less Duo.
"This is from me and Trowa. I'm sure you'll like it," Quatre said, handing him another box. "Duo? What about you?" he asked, giving him a knowing look as though he was plotting something.
Duo grinned back, and removed his watch from his wrist. Handing the watch over, he said, "Happy birthday, Heero."
"Duo?" Heero frowned. Something was definitely going on here, and he didn't know what. Duo's voice and actions had lost the mechanical touch to it all of a sudden, and why was he offering him his watch? Wasn't it a gift from Quatre?
Quatre stepped in and took the watch.
"This watch," he started, holding the gadget up, "is the latest product from the R&D section of Winner Inc. It functions as a mini computer that enables the wearer to tell the time, receive and send emails and basically many of the functions that Person-coms can perform.
"And it works by sending the information straight to your brain through some sort of waves, so you don't even have to look at the watch. It's too expensive to manufacture and still earn a profit currently, so now, this watch is one of the two only available in the world, apart from the proto-type."
"Why is Duo wearing it then? A Person-com doesn't need this." Wufei asked.
"You're right. A Person-com doesn't need it, but a real person needs it to resemble a Person-com, doesn't he? Duo's such a good actor he could win an Oscar, given the chance..." Quatre grinned.
Realization dawned on Heero, and he quickly turned to look at the boy who had lived with him for the past two weeks. "Duo? You're... not a machine?"
"I'm sorry..." Duo apologized, offering a sheepish grin. "But I just..."
Quatre held out a hand. "Wait, it was my idea of a birthday gag. I talked Duo into it."
Heero shook his head. "I'm not angry." Of course he wasn't, his mind supplied. "I just want to know what's going on."
"Duo is my cousin, actually. We've only met a few times though we keep in constant contact via emails and phone calls. He's just been accepted into our university, so he came over earlier to get a feel of the environment. But he got a little... sidetracked when I showed him some photos..." Quatre smirked, and quickly dodged the nudge Duo tried to give him.
"Why you! You didn't even tell me of this gag, Quatre!" Wufei yelled, sounding more amused than anything else.
"I had to fool you first before I could fool Heero! But you gotta admit it's a really cool one, huh?"
Heero surprised everyone when he grinned. "Definitely."
*****
"You're really not angry with me?"
Heero shook his head. "I'm not. Never."
Duo smiled. "Thanks," he replied, leaning against the couch in one of Quatre's many guestrooms. The party, though a small one, had lasted well past midnight, and everyone had decided to just crash for the night.
"So... how did you get talked into the gag?"
"Quatre's very convincing, as you might already know by now," he said, smirking when he caught Heero's nod. "But he's right when he said about me being sidetracked by some photos... I saw a photo of you, Heero. And I... thought that you were... so attractive. So when Quatre asked me to pretend to be your Person-com, I agreed. I want to know you, Heero."
Heero was sure few could ever resist Duo Maxwell's charms, especially when he was speaking in such gentle tones and looking so... terribly cute. And he had long fell for those charms, back when they had first met.
"So... is the watch the only thing you're giving me for my birthday?"
"What?" Duo was obviously confused by the sudden change of topic, and even a little hurt as well. Was Heero reluctant to let him get closer?
"The watch isn't enough. What say you... make up for it by... continuing what we did this morning? This morning... in my bedroom?"
Duo thought for a while, then his lips broke into a grin. He smiled coyly, and leaned forward to plant a quick kiss to Heero's lips. It was a dry peck, but both could feel the electric bolt trailing down their bodies again.
Heero pulled him into his arms, cupping Duo's cheeks gently. "So what are you going to do now? Move into the dorms?"
"Quatre says that I can stay with him," Duo replied, pressing another short kiss to Heero's lips.
"Move in with me. And this time, live with me not as my Person-com. Live with me as my boyfriend."
Duo moved back to gauge Heero's sincerity, gazing at him intently. "Are you serious about this?"
"I've never been more serious about anything. I'm glad you're human, Duo. I almost killed myself when Quatre told me you were a Person-com. I mean... when I first saw you, I couldn't help but keep staring at you because you were so beautiful. Still are, actually, and I have to remind myself that staring is impolite to stop doing that."
The braided man chuckled, but stopped when Heero took his lips again, much like he had that morning. He had no protests, and allowed his new boyfriend to plunder his mouth.
*****
"What's in that box you gave Heero?"
Quatre grinned slyly. "The other watch. I did say there are two of them, apart from the proto-types. But I've got a feeling he won't need it anymore."
"Not with Duo around," Trowa added.
The others nodded.
"Duo is Heero's obsessions combined, I think," Sally noted, sounding almost surprised. "I mean... Duo has that watch so that sort of makes him his Person-com, and it's quite apparent that Heero has a big crush on him..."
"Definitely, which I think is the reason why Quatre played that birthday gag, isn't it?"
"Duo had a crush on Heero when he saw his photo, and I thought it'd be neat if the two of them actually hook up. With Heero always being so quiet, someone like Duo would be perfect for him. Man... I think I should register to be an official matchmaker. Didn't I help Zechs get Noin a while ago?"
"Maybe you should. Oh man... I think this is one of the best gags you've ever pulled." Wufei chuckled, recalling the look of amazement and shock on Heero's face earlier.
"Hey, what did you give Heero?"
The look of the Chinese man's face was evil, to say the least. He dug into his pocket, and fished out something. "I have a receiver here. What do you think it is?"
"You are positively evil, Wufei."
"Thank you. I've always wanted to play a prank better than yours on Heero."
All of them grinned, and switched the gadget on.
OWARI
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