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first of all, i'm hoping that i put this in the right format for this guild whee the chapters that are up are the ones that are completed. when i update, i'll put a notice into the subject. and as always, crits and comments are appreciated. ^_^


Title: Partners
Summary: AU. While working as a preventer, Heero is given a partner for the first time. The catch? He has to raise him first.

Disclaimer: I'm poor and unemployed; I own no bish crying

Warning type stuff: 1x2, past Rx1, some 3x4 and 6x5. Maybe some 6-OOCness. Shounen-ai, fluff, cute nekos (yes, that’s a warning). Some angst and blood.

Chapter 1

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Flick. Flick. Flick. Flick. Flick. He watched the sandy-colored tail in front of him swat the air in deep concentration.

“Quatre” he intoned, earning a questioning glance over the shoulder from the blond standing in front of him. They locked eyes, and the tail immediately dropped to a less-restless position.

“Sorry, Trowa; I was thinking.” The blond’s feline ears and mouth twitched sheepishly before he turned back to the file on the desk in front of him.

Although the Preventers’ Headquarters was buzzing with life, their small and sunny office was quiet as they skimmed reports and filed them away.

“Did you hear they’re giving Sanderson, Merquise, Jones, Caldwell, and Yuy partners?” he asked over his shoulder. The tall brunette stood and stretched.

“Yuy?” he asked, coming around to see what Quatre was looking at.

“Yeah,” he replied to the human with a twitch of his tail. “Do you think he’ll be able to handle the partner bonding—I mean, he isn’t the most social…or the friendliest…” Quatre cringed.

“I can’s speak for kaloctis, but I know young myniokas aren’t the most patient or reserved,” the tall human stated, taking a file from his partner and placing it on a pile behind him. Quatre grinned playfully in agreement.

“I wasn’t so bad, was I, partner?” he asked grinningly while opening another file. He received only a grunt as Trowa took a new file to his desk.

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“It’s not that bad, Yuy,” an amused voice said, breaking through his rational thinking. “You can stop glaring at the paper; it’s not likely to combust.”

Heero flicked his glare to the speaker’s dually amused face.

“You’re not even getting a mynioka, Merquise,” he said with a grating edge to his voice. “You’re getting a kalocti as a partner, not a cat.” Heero pursed his lips and glared at the announcement again.

“Well, you’d better stop scowling at everything you see.” Zechs turned away to staple a report. “Your partner will be afraid of you, and that’s the last thing you want to impress into its first memory.”

“I thought the scientis—caretakers awoke them at the lab?” Heero asked, turning his glare to a nearby potted plant and half-expecting it to wither.

“They do. But honestly, Heero, how would you take it if your new caretaker and partner glared holes through you when you were less than a day old?” he asked with a smirk. Heero only grunted in reply.

How was he supposed to care for a baby mynioka, or a baby anything, for that matter? He knew nothing about children or how to handle them. If someone didn’t act professionally, in his view, then he didn’t need to be around them…but that wouldn’t apply to a child.

“How long will they remain…young?” he asked after a moment of thought.
Zechs didn’t look up from his paperwork.

“Their body will match your age and grow—you’ve already heard this in the training, why are you asking?” he asked with a slight edge of annoyance. Yuy was never one to need to hear instructions twice.

“Yes, but how long will it take the thing to grow up, to be my age?” the dark-haired Preventer asked, earning a glance from Zechs.

“Oh, I don’t know… A week or two, depending on its personality,” he said in a matter-of-fact tone. “Or how much time you spend with it,” he added snidely.

“I will spend the required amount of time with it,” Heero shot back coolly. “We all have to take off work in order to ‘bond’ until our partners are roughly our ages and can be admitted into the field; a few weeks... I don’t see why they can’t hire more Preventers,” he crossly remarked.

“They don’t have to pay or train these kind of partners, they learn on their own and give their partners raises to take care of them.” Zechs replied, earning another glare from Heero.

“They’re ‘the perfect partner,’” the blond man continued, unscathed. “They learn to walk, talk, and read within a week; they’ll even understand you the first time you say something. It’s amazing, really—they won’t know anyone but you until they are an adult, forming flawless trust—”

“You sound like the training manual,” Heero growled.

“You should be the one to talk,” Zechs shot back from his desk. “Anyway, isn’t it time for you to pick up your partner?” he asked smilingly, earning another growl from the dark-headed Preventer, who then restacked his paperwork and left.


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Heero stared at the dark-gray animal carrier, hefting his bag higher on his shoulder and shifting to his other foot. Two old men in ugly jumpsuit-type clothes had been passing out the small myniokas to their new partners for the last ten minutes, and now he was the only one left standing. One of the men peered at him through thick, green goggle-like glasses, then bent down to the last animal carrier that appeared to be empty.

The residents of the other carriers had all been eager to get out and meet their new owners, batting their tiny paw-like hands through the wires of the carrier doors and mewling their first sounds in hopes of gaining attention, but this carrier appeared to be empty.

While the caretaker with the green glasses unlocked the carrier, the other one spoke to Heero.

“I’m afraid this one had a bit of a scare while being loaded into the van,” he explained in a nasally voice that seemed to come directly out of his long nose instead of his mouth. “This old fool here,” he indicated the other caretaker, “nearly forgot him on the sidewalk and tried to drive away until another vehicle behind him laid on the horn and stopped him.”

“You were in that van, too, you old bat. It’s not like you weren’t helping load—,”
he snapped, and promptly drew back his hand as the shadows in the carrier emitted a warning hiss.

“Ah, yes, best taking this one home before you let him out.” The green-glasses shut the carrier door quickly. “Needs some time to calm down.”

“Is it male or female?” Heero asked, hoping to get a name for the creature.

“We don’t know, we just feed and clean up after the things. Don’t worry; it’ll most likely name itself after something it hears you say. And about the carrier, you can keep it. It belongs to the Preventers, anyway,” the long-nosed caretaker remarked quickly, handing him the now-silent carrier.

The two old men promptly gathered the remaining carriers and pushed their way out the side door, still bickering at each other. Heero shook his head and headed for the backdoor to clock out. “What an odd duo they make,” he murmured, pulling his coat tighter against the chill he knew would come.

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The car ride home was a quiet one. Afterwards, Heero hefted his bag and the carrier up the stairs into his lofty home with ease. Being a Preventer had more than one perk.

It was built on the side of the mountain, overlooking the lower half of the city. His walls were all white, the floor wooden with thick rugs, and most of the furniture black. The house’s ceiling was high, with large windows on one side only, looking out into the city, while the back wall curved with the mountain rock. The main room made up most of the house, as the kitchen was part of the left wall, and his ‘bedroom’ was a bed and table to the right, separated from the rest with decorative rice-paper screens. The only other actual room in the house was the bathroom.

He glared at the offending mynioka supplies that had arrived by delivery the day before and now cluttered up his front entryway.

After dumping his bag of paperwork onto one of the coat hooks by the door he flicked on the main room lighting switch and climbed down the front stairs to set the carrier beside him on the couch.

The scientist-caretaker, whoever he was, had been nervous to grab ahold of the angry mynioka…how was he supposed to get the thing out if its creators hadn’t even wanted to? The things were supposed to instinctively need their owners and want their attention; what was the matter with this one? Was it defective or damaged; or was it still agitated just because it had been honked at by the labs?

A movement from the inside of the carrier caught his attention. Heero bent so he could see inside the darkness of the carrier and spotted a darker lump near the back. There seemed to be small, dark scratches along the bottom of the carrier…how strange.
He slowly unfastened the carrier door then looked in again. Twin shining orbs peered out at him from the shadowed recess.

“Don’t you want to come out?” he asked the small form, slightly irritated but curious, unsure if it, in fact, was angry. Its only response was a small whimper followed by a sniff.

“Come out of there,” Heero ordered, hoping that a command would get a better response; he was, after all, his partner. The small shadow whimpered again, curling into a smaller lump. Heero sighed. This wasn’t very easy. Maybe he should start over and just try to be rational.

“I’m sorry; I don’t know how to act in situations like this,” he said softly, more to himself than the little creature, who let out another whimper. He peered back into the dark carrier. “Come out, there’s really nothing to be afraid of.”

He sighed. “I’m your partner; I’m supposed to take care of you.”

The small shadow in the carrier sniffled again before it slowly crept to the front and into the light. The first feature Heero saw of the animal was its wavy hair that dragged along the bottom of the carrier as it crawled. The hair was the color of chestnuts with dashes of cinnamon; two fragile ears poked through the thick strands on its crown. It was dressed in a rumpled hospital-like white gown with darker smudges of something else. Heero realized with concern that its tiny paw-like hands had dried blood on them and were reddened around the fingertips. If it stood, it would be tall enough to be nose-to-knee with him, but looked like a five year old child despite its height.

As it sat in front of him, he noticed the little creature’s cinnamon-colored tail was firmly planted between his knees while tremors ran through its small body. Its ears were snugly pressed against its head, and it was fisting its gown only to whimper in pain.

“Stop that,” he said quietly, eyeing the darkened blood smears on his gown. “Here, let me see your hand.”

The mynioka hesitated, then held out one of its abused paws for inspection. One of the nails was caught by the crusted blood in its extended position, but the rest looked exactly as a human child’s would if they had sharp fingernails. Heero released the hand and reached under the creature’s chin to gently pull its face up, into the light.

The small heart-shaped face held a troubled expression as it bit its lower lip with tiny, sharp teeth. Large, violet eyes blinked up at him, ready to spill their watery contents onto already tearstained cheeks.

The small creature stared at him for a moment before tugging the hand out from under his chin and pressing the palm to his cheek. Heero watched as the mynioka held onto his thumb and palm while it rubbed its soft cheek against his skin. He could easily wrap his hand entirely around its small head.

Curling his fingers slightly, he softly rubbed the small creature’s face and ran his fingers through its hair. Its eyes closed briefly before it released Heero’s hand and climbed into his lap, fisting his shirt and burying its face in it with a small whimper.
Heero sighed, pulling the small form into his arms and running his hand over the back of its head. This might be a long night.

“Let’s get you cleaned up,” he said quietly, standing.

He gathered the soaps for the mynioka, along with a towel, and ran some warm water in his kitchen sink. The small form lay still, curled in his arm with its head butted against his chest.

“Don’t fall asleep,” Heero told the creature and was awarded with a blinking amethyst eye. “You’re going to have to sit up on your own,” he said, pulling the mynioka away from him and setting it on the counter.

Heero pulled the dirty gown off the little creature and heaved a sigh of relief when he discovered it was male. He really didn’t know how to deal with grown females, let alone adolescent ones. At least having a growing male would be semi-familiar for him.
The boy crawled to the edge of the sink and looked at the churning water dubiously before crawling back to explore the soft towel. When Heero picked him up and went to put him in the water, the young thing yelped a high-pitched meow and held onto his hands, unwilling to let go.

After a few more tries and a few more frightened squeaks, Heero cradled the shaken creature in an arm and poured some soap into the water with the other. Bubbles immediately formed, and although he didn’t relinquish his clawed hold on Heero’s shirt, the small boy leaned forward with curiosity. His interest, as well as ears, was piqued forward as he reached out to claw at an offending bubble as it passed upwards.

Carefully taking ahold of the squirming boy, he lowered him slowly into the bubbling water. He whimpered when his small hands met the soap and pulled them up for a few soothing licks. Heero took his small paws, and with the soft washcloth, he carefully cleaned off the dried mess.

“You shouldn’t have been trying to claw your way out, you know. Those carriers are nearly indestructible.” Heero softly chided, locating a plastic cup. The young mynioka ducked his head; whether from shame or fear, Heero couldn’t tell.

“You’ve got to keep your chin up if you don’t want water in your eyes,” he said, dipping the cup into the suds. “Close your eyes, too; you don’t want soap to get in them either.”

After watching the boy stick his tiny nose in the air and tightly close his eyes, Heero poured the warm water onto his long hair. When he began to gently work in the shampoo, he could swear the young thing started purring.

“Do you have a name?” Heero asked suddenly while washing the boy’s back. The young mynioka turned his face up to him.

“Du. o,” he said, swinging his wet tail back and forth happily.

“Duo?” Heero questioned, working the cloth over his shoulders. The small creature nodded with glee before turning back around to avoid getting soap on his face.

“Du-oo ‘a-ve…mame?” Duo asked a moment later, his pink tongue darting out to lick at his uncooperative lips irritably. A small smile found its way onto Heero’s face.

“Heero,” he responded while washing at his ears, earning a titter from the boy.
“’Ro,” he giggled, swinging his tail back and forth amiably again.


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After he’d finished washing and drying Duo, he sat him on the towel with his specially-made ‘Preventers Growing Mynioka Drink’ while he went and pulled the packages that currently cluttered his front entryway into the bedroom. Heero pulled out a stretchy, white set of shirt and shorts and went to go dress the boy.

When Heero arrived, the bottle of drink was lying on the floor, and Duo sat glaring on the counter with his ears pulled back and a big wet splotch on his face. Heero couldn’t help but smile.

“Didn’t like your ‘specially-processed protein…juice, Duo?” he asked, amused, as he picked up the drink.

“Blick,” Duo replied, crossing his arms over his little chest and wrinkling his nose at the offending bottle. Heero only smiled and returned it to its proper place in the fridge, grabbing the carton of milk instead.

“You’re going to have to get used to it until you’re grown, but tonight I’ll let you drink some milk,” he said to the curious boy. “The protein drink is what will make you grow, but I can’t imagine it would taste very well,” he commented.

After pouring some milk into an empty water bottle, he helped the mynioka drink its contents. Duo’s eyes started to droop as soon as he finished, and Heero hurried him through getting dressed and a quick lesson on how to use his miniature toilet before putting him to bed on the couch.

The boy was small enough to fit on the pillow Heero had given him, and he curled into a ball with his tail covering his nose, asleep, before he could even pull the blanket up. With a final, small smile, Heero retired for a quick shower and then bed.


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Heero awoke to a cry not long after he fell asleep. Sitting up, he gathered his wits for a second before he heard it again, a loud, high-pitched mewl of distress.

He shot out of his bed and went to the main room, where the cries were indubitably coming from. Stopping when he was behind the couch, he started searching for the young mynioka immediately.

“Duo?” he called, worriedly pulling up the empty blanket.

“’Ro?” The little head poked up from under the pillow and crawled to the safety of his owner’s arms.

“What happened?” Heero asked, cradling the boy.

“’Ro,” the little mynioka replied, choked with relief. He climbed up his owner’s shirt and wrapped his arms around the warm neck at the top, pressing his face into it.

Heero held him for a few minutes, running his fingers through the soft hair and rubbing his back until he seemed to fall back to sleep. That was, until he tried to put him down.

“’Ro!” the boy cried loudly, holding onto Heero’s sleeves as soon as his back touched the pillow. Sighing, Heero pulled the frightened boy back up and held him for another few minutes.

“You don’t want to be left alone, do you?” he asked him as the tiny hands fisted his shirt again.

“’Ro,” Duo murmured in agreement, his sound muffled against the cotton of the nightshirt.

Heero sighed again and took his bundle into his bedroom. Once again he found Duo asleep by the time he touched the bed, and after listening to the boy’s murmurs and snuffles for a few minutes, he drowsed off as well.

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When Heero opened his eyes in the morning, sunlight was filtering through the light curtains and onto his bed. The small bundle of warmth had taken up residence on his stomach, using a fistful of Heero’s nightshirt as a pillow. The tip of his tail twitched as he slept; his ears looked alert even as he apparently dreamt.

The mynioka didn’t look any bigger than it had the night before, which wasn’t good; he needed to start drinking those protein drinks today—Heero had to start him on the growth program if he wanted Duo to grow and develop correctly.

Sighing, the human twisted a strand of the boy’s soft hair around his finger. Two sleepy eyes blinked open and focused on his hand. Heero let his finger wander to the back of the mynioka’s ear to scratch its base.

Duo’s eyes slid shut, and a smile curved his mouth; a moment later he started to purr. It was barely audible, but Heero could feel the mynioka’s whole body hum with it before it emitted a different small growl. Duo’s eyes opened and he stopped purring; something wasn’t right.

“Hungry?” Heero amusedly asked, sitting up. The boy licked his lower lip, thinking, before he nodded slowly.

After another lesson on proper potty procedure, Heero took the boy into the kitchen and gave him some protein drink. Duo’s ears were immediately swept back as he glared at the offending bottle.

“Duo, you have to drink it,” Heero said firmly, pressing the bottle into his small hands. Duo glared at the bottle for another moment before staring up at his human with a pleading look in his eyes.

“No milk,” Heero said flatly. “I let you off last night, but now you have to drink it.” The boy glared at the bottle defiantly.

“Nuh,” he replied, pushing the bottle away. Heero placed his hands on the counter, leaning forward on them.

“Duo—”
“Nuh!”
“Drink it!”
“Nuh!”
“Stop it!”
“NUH!”
“DUO—”
“NUH!”

“You are not moving from that spot,” Heero seethed, gritting his teeth, “until you’ve drunk every drop. I don’t care how long it takes.”

The boy looked up at him, his lower lip quivering as he tried to keep his glare. Heero looked so mad. Duo leaned to rub his head placatingly against the human’s clenched fist, but Heero drew back and folded his arms across his chest.

“I’m not touching you. You don’t deserve any reward for the way you’ve been acting,” he said angrily, his frozen blue eyes glaring. “Drink.”

With that comment he took the bottle and slammed it down in front of the mynioka, who feebly took ahold of it a moment later. Heero let out an irritated sigh and left to take care of his morning routine.

Duo blinked back tears and lowered his head, dejected, but obediently started to drink the horrible-tasting liquid.

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When Heero came back, the mynioka’s head was hung with his hair covering his face, but the bottle in his hands was empty. Standing in front of the counter, Heero studied the boy.

Duo was silent with his head bowed, and although his ears and tail seemed to droop, his tiny hands hugged the bottle tightly.

Heero took the drink and made sure it was empty before putting it in the trash. He gazed at the boy again. Duo’s hands were now fisted in his long shirt.
“Duo?” he asked, bending to see his face.

The mynioka’s features were scrunched, with tears coursing down his pale cheeks as he bit his lip. Heero’s own brow furrowed with guilt as he stood back up.

“Duo.” He gathered the unresponsive boy in his arms and went to sit on the couch. A few moments of silence passed while he rocked the mynioka and rubbed his small back as he cried into Heero’s shirt.

“I’m sorry, Duo, I didn’t mean to yell,” he said quietly, pulling the fussed hair away from the boy’s face. “I was frustrated.” The bundle in his lap just sniffed and clutched at his shirt. Heero sat for a few more minutes, gathering his thoughts.

“I don’t know what to do, Duo,” he whispered wistfully. The boy looked up at him; his tears had stopped, but his eyes were still red.

“When I was young, my father always yelled at me,” he said absentmindedly while running a fingertip over one of the mynioka’s tearstained cheeks. “After mom died, he hated me,” Heero whispered, his eyes staring at the creature in his lap while memories played in his mind.

“He never let me have fun with friends; it distracted me from my studies.” Duo shifted in his lap.

“If I did something wrong, he’d hit me… It was the easiest of life’s rules for me to learn, I guess, a constant rule in my life. ‘Be perfect, never mess up’...” Heero sighed, his eyes closed in memory.

“He’s the reason I learned how to fight. He’s why I joined the police…they promoted me to the Preventers because of my devotion to my work… He pushed me—made me everything I am, and I don’t know anything else—”

“Nuh,” Duo interrupted, pulling Heero out of his reverie.

“Nuh,” he said again, stilling the human’s hand and shaking his head. “’Ro not him. ‘Ro yell, not hit. Good is ‘Ro.”

Heero’s eyes focused on the smiling face in his lap. Duo’s tail was rubbing a soothing pattern against his arm, and his face shone with glee as he got his partner’s attention.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

Heero silently stared at the boy. He could pronounce words much better than the day before; he was most likely getting smarter by the minute. Going over his mental schedule for Duo’s growth, he recalled that they were to ‘bond’ for a few more days before he was to give Duo the mynioka books to study. During those days he was to leave the boy alone until he needed something. He grew and developed so fast—it made Heero feel guilty for not making him drink the growth protein he should have the night before.

“’Ro?” Duo asked, breaking through his thoughts again as he climbed up his shirt to settle his head against the human’s shoulder, watching him. Heero’s mouth quirked into a small smile.

“I’ve got an idea,” he said with as much uncharacteristic enthusiasm as he could muster. Duo’s eyes brightened with curiosity.

“I know that drink must not taste very good,”—the boy’s nose wrinkled—“but I’ll give you something that tastes really good if you drink it when I tell you to,” Heero said, remembering some chocolates he’d gotten as a gift from his ex, Relena.

“Ya?” Duo’s eyes sparkled up at him.

“Yeah,” Heero affirmed, feeling his smile widen at the look on Duo’s face as he giggled.

“’Kay.” The mynioka snuggled into his shirt, content to listen to his partner’s heartbeat. Heero’s thoughts drifted from Duo, to Relena and how he’d felt about her as opposed to what he felt for the small mynioka. He’d been friends with Relena, then when she wanted more, he’d played her game…but her friendship was nothing like what he felt towards Duo. Heero felt a tug on his shirt and looked down to see that Duo had gone rigid, staring towards the window.

“What is it?” he asked, gently stroking the boy’s hair.

“It move,” Duo murmured, still staring at the fabric blinds.

“What moves?” Heero asked him, perplexed.

“Out.” The boy pulled himself safely back to the human’s chest, but his eyes never strayed from the brightness coming from the other side of the blinds as his partner walked to the window.

“We’re too high up for anything to be out—” Heero pulled up the blind. “Oh.” He blinked at the bright, white sky, noting the flurries that fell from it into the city below.
“It’s snowing.”

“’No-ing?” Duo asked, looking up at him. Heero shook his head.

“S-no-wing.”

“So-ing.” The boy grinned, leaning forward to press his small hands and nose against the glass.

“’s cold,” he commented, rubbing at his nose and sitting back. Heero was about to respond when there was a knock at the door. Duo froze.

“Whas ‘at?” he asked in a whisper.

“It’s just someone at the door.” While Duo clawed his way up onto his shoulder and around to hide in the back of his shirt, Heero went to the door and unlocked it.

Someone tall with white-blond hair filled his viewing hole; there was only one person who would match that description. He opened the door.

“’Good morning, Z—” He blinked at his comrade’s slightly singed, maroon coat, as a lump moved from his side to his shoulder underneath.

“’Morning, Heero. Don’t mind him, he’s just shy.” Zechs smirked, stepping inside as his coat squawked indignantly.

“Is that…your—”

“Yes, this is Wufei, my kalocti.” Zechs nudged at the lump sitting on his shoulder. “Where’s your mynioka?” the blond man asked, looking around.

Heero sighed, tugging at his collar.

“Come out, Duo.”

“Nuh.”

“Now, Duo,” Heero intoned.

The mynioka wiggled his way to the front of Heero’s tucked shirt, earning an uncomfortable grimace from his partner, and stuck his head out of the collar. Heero cradled the boy with a sigh; there were plenty of puncture holes in his shirt by now, but he didn’t want more.

“Huh.” Zechs leaned forward slightly and blinked, studying the mynioka. “Isn’t he still a little small? Wufei was that small when I first got him, but he grew last night.”

Duo let out a whimper and scurried to hide in the vicinity of his partner’s armpit, lying on the supporting forearm.

“I let him drink milk instead of the growing drink last night, hopefully he’ll catch up. I didn’t realize how fast he was supposed to grow.” Heero sighed, laying his other hand on the sniffling, fabric-covered bundle.

“He’s rather sensitive, isn’t he?” Zechs asked, trying to fish Wufei out of his coat. “Yes, I suppose he is.” Heero frowned, thinking over the last twenty-four hours.

“Huh,” Zechs murmured, getting agitated at his kalocti.

“Wufei, if you do not come out of there this instant,” he threatened menacingly, “I’m dumping this coat in Heero’s washing machine, and you’re getting the bath of your life.”

The lump stopped moving for a moment, which was just long enough for Zechs to get ahold of his partner and pull him out by the tail.

“Injuddice!” the kalocti squealed, flailing around as he hung by his black scaled tail.

“Stop screaming like a child and behave like a man!” Zechs growled.

After a minute of struggling, Wufei crossed his arms and pouted, content on glaring darkly at the strange upside-down human in front of him with the weird bump in his shirt.

Heero stared at the display. Wufei was dressed in clothes similar to Duo’s, but they were slightly singed in places. He looked like a small, oriental child, except for the fact that shiny, black scales started to form at his temples and continued down the back of his head and neck to most likely become his alligator-like black tail.

“Are you finished?” Zechs asked, irritated.

“Hum.” Wufei moved his glare to the opened blind behind the weird man. Taking that as a valid answer, the blond sat his partner on his shoulder.

“Duo.” Heero looked down, inside his collar. “Are you finished?”

The mynioka turned onto his side to look up at his partner. After a final sniff and eye rub, he climbed back up to poke his nose out of Heero’s collar cautiously. His ears flicked forward at the sight of the new creature he’d caught the scent of minutes ago.
“I figured it might be good to let our partners get to know each other,” Zechs said, ignoring Wufei’s tight grip on his hair. Heero nodded.

“If we are grouped together again it would be mandatory for them to get along,” he agreed. “How about we take them to Crystal Street Park? I think Duo’s eager to explore the snow.” He could feel the mynioka’s soft tail excitedly swish over his stomach, tickling it.

“I think that would be fine,” Zechs replied, watching Heero promptly extract his partner from his shirt and scratch at his middle. “What do you think, Wufei?”

“Hum.”

Zechs sighed.

“I’ll get Duo dressed for the weather and be back in a moment; make yourself at home,” Heero mumbled, trying to calm the eagerly squirming boy in his arms. He sat Duo on the bed and fished out the smallest coat in the mynioka’s clothing box. Duo’s tail swished enthusiastically behind him as Heero pulled up his arms to put on a sweater. That was, until his head was trapped in the wool.

“Nya!” Duo flailed while Heero lightly tugged at the shirt. His head popped through the neck hole; one of his ears was crinkled backwards. Heero couldn’t help but smile as the boy swiped at his fuzzed hair.

“Why don’t I do something with your hair?” he asked, amused. Duo stared at him, horrified, and grasped his locks tight. Heero just chuckled. “No, I don’t mean cutting it. Why don’t I braid it for you? It would be out of your way and wouldn’t get tangled either.” After a moment of careful deliberation, Duo nodded.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo*

Ten minutes later saw the four leaving the house. As they walked, Duo chattered his nonsense amiably, pointing at this and that, entertaining the others. Every few minutes or so Wufei would suddenly interject the mynioka, and the two would gibber at each other until someone won.

When they got to the park, Heero tugged the fuzzy cap down farther onto Duo’s head to keep his delicate ears warm before letting him roam towards a snowdrift. Wufei wasn’t far behind. Luckily, they were both easy to watch, on account of their walking skills being somewhat inadequate for the current weather. Zechs and Heero uncovered a bench to chat and for further surveillance.

As soon as the two boys reached the snow drift, Wufei jumped, trying to bound to the top. Unfortunately, he merely sank into the small mountain. Duo balanced for a moment, then pounced into Wufei’s snow-hole, presumably upon its maker. Only his swishing tail could be seen for a few minutes.

A bump tunneled its way toward the bench for a few feet, slightly melting the snow above it until Duo climbed out of the snow and pounced, crashing just behind the creator of the tunnel.

“Saa!”

Zechs was on his feet immediately, thrusting his gloved hand into the lump of snow and pulling Wufei out by the back of his coat. A tendril of smoke stirred from the kalocti’s nose. When the boy was put back down, he sneezed a brilliant shower of sparks, melting small dents into the snow in front of him. Duo was too busy making his own footprints appear to notice.

After another twenty minutes of play, the mynioka crawled to his partner, whimpering.

“What’s wrong, Duo?” Heero asked, picking the boy up. Duo lifted his wet tail and whined again before tunneling under the bottom of his partner’s coat.

“Ch! Duo, that’s cold!” he all but yelled, feeling the wetness of his tail seep into his own shirt.

“Perhaps we should head back,” Zechs suggested amusedly.

“Yah!” Heero agreed rather loudly, feeling the snow-covered, wet bundle take residence in his shirt and find its way to the small of his back. A cold nose pressed against his side with a giggle.

Zechs left the two with a chuckle, intent on digging his own partner out of the cave of snow he’d made himself. When he found Wufei, he held a twig with its end lit with a tiny flame. He pushed the lit end into the snow and created a small hole, then flamed on the stick again to repeat the process.

“Come on, it’s time to go, Wufei,” Zechs told him, pulling the protesting boy into the crook of his arm. Wufei squirmed and climbed up into Zech’s unused hood, poking his head out to watch the world behind them as they walked.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

By the time the four of them reached Heero’s house, the snow had begun to fall in earnest and was making it difficult to see. Wufei had long abandoned his post in Zech’s hood for a warmer area. Heero was almost certain his partner had fallen asleep in the back of his shirt, as he could feel the breathing steady out against his spine.

“I don’t think it would be wise to drive home in this weather, Zechs,” Heero yelled over the wind.

“I agree,” was the reply over the blustery wind.

It was after lunch by the time Heero had lent Zechs and Wufei clothing and had gotten himself and Duo changed into drier attire. Heero set about making some warm soup for himself and his coworker while Zechs made sure the two boys drank their protein ‘juice’. Afterwards, Heero gave both a chocolate each for their nasty-tasting struggles, and both men watched as their partners ate their confections.

Duo held his in both of his tiny hands, nibbling and licking at it until it was smeared across half of his face. Wufei, on the other hand, melted his with a few flaming breaths then had to lick the thick drops as they ran down his arms. By the time both were finished, it was decidedly bath time.

Heero volunteered to bathe the boys while his coworker found some clean clothes for them, but Zechs wouldn’t have it.

“You don’t want to attempt to give Wufei a B-A-T-H. It didn’t go over so well last time. Why don’t you take care of Duo in the restroom, and I’ll use the kitchen sink for Wufei,” Zechs schemed, eyeing the chocolated pair as they smeared their fingers over each other’s face.

“I’ll get some of Duo’s, er, hygienic supplies for you to use.” Heero carefully picked up the mynioka, careful to not smear more of the mess onto his clothes. Duo’s eyes gleamed happily, and his tail swished, ready for whatever adventure came next. Heero sat him in the sink.

“Can you undress yourself while I take some soap to Zechs?” he asked.

“Ja!” Duo nodded enthusiastically and started to pull at his pants. When Heero returned, the boy had removed everything but his shirt, which was bunched up over his head with his arms caught.

“Would you like some help, Duo?” Heero asked, fighting back the urge to snicker. A muffled “ja” was emitted somewhere in the messy cloth. Once removed, Heero set the clothing aside to soak later, then turned on the water.

“Soa. puh?” the boy asked, eyeing the churning water from his vantage point on the edge of the sink, his tail making swipes across the porcelain. Heero’s lips curled into a smile as he let a stream of soap drip into the bath. Duo promptly fell in while swiping madly at passing bubbles.

He came back up with a small sneeze. Smiling, Heero proceeded to unbraid and wash the sputtering mynioka’s wavy hair.

Duo splashed at the soapy water throughout the duration of his bath, managing to get suds in his partner’s hair upon many occasions. Once washed and dressed, Duo was placed on the rug while Heero cleaned the sink and put away the soaps.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo


Noise.

Ah, silence.

Noise again. A low growl rumbling throughout his body.

Silence…

Noise. Make it stop!

Duo blinked awake, his claws and hair standing on end as he tumbled over onto a less-soft and much cooler surface. He vaguely noted the heating and lights were back on.

The couch?

He grumbled, rubbing his sleepy eyes. Heero was standing, growling at something. Looking up, he realized his partner was glaring in the direction of the kitchen and grunting at something he had pressed up against his ear.

The mynioka pushed himself up, into a sitting position and watched his human get more and more angry at the tiny object that he was pressing against the side of his face. Lines marred his sleepy features as he gave an affirmative grunt before he snapped the small thing shut.

Duo’s curiosity was piqued as he wondered what was going on. Heero just stood there for another moment with his eyes closed, rubbing his forehead. He sighed, sinking down onto the couch and letting his head fall back.

The boy frowned. Although his body appeared relaxed, the human still had those lines on his face. He slowly crept up and set one of his hands on one of his partner’s much-bigger knuckles.

“What happen?” he asked, taking his gaze from the difference in their hands to the dark-headed man’s face. Duo blinked as he sighed again and opened his eyes. Heero sighed when he was stressed and needed to relieve tension…was that why he did it all the time?

“I have a meeting,” Heero stated, looking frustratedly down onto his small partner. Duo blinked; a meeting?

“We’re going to have to take the tram.” He sighed again, looking at his watch and jumping up with a muttered curse. “It’s a few hours away, and we don’t have much time.”

Duo watched as his partner scrambled to a closet. He pulled out a large bag and hurried to the bedroom. Perplexed, Duo swung a leg off the couch, toes searching for the rug below. After a few locating swishes of his tail, he plopped onto the carpet and scrambled around the decorative screens.

Heero was pulling clothes out of his wardrobe and folding them neatly into the bag with quick precision. Duo watched as he dug through the top drawer and glared at a small hole in the seat of a pair of slacks. With a grunt, he shoved them back in and dug out an identical pair, sans the imperfection. But what was the bag for?

Duo leapt onto the side of the bed then climbed his way to the top for a better look. He stood on tiptoe, trying to see into the unzipped bag, but the sides were stiff and he could barely get his nose to the upper ridge, let alone see the interior.

Bouncing up, he balanced on the edge of the bag only to have it shift under his weight and pitch him forward, onto the neatly folded shirts within. A moment later his partner’s frowning face glowered down at him, just before he was roughly pulled out and set onto the bedspread.

“Duo, I don’t have time to play,” he growled, checking his watch again. “I need to leave within the hour.” Heero stepped towards the wardrobe again before he froze, looking back at the still slightly confused boy.

“You can’t…” Heero rubbed his eyes, swearing. “You’re going to have to come with me.” With a forced sigh he went to Duo’s clothing and started to fold it into the bag as well. Duo sat still and watched the nearly frantic scene. Suddenly, fabric landed on his head, obscuring his vision.

“Put those on,” he vaguely heard his partner growl from across the room. He pulled the offending pants away from his somewhat crumpled ears only to have a sweater land in their place.

He quickly redressed, knowing the human was merely stressed and would hopefully get over it soon. Heero surely wasn’t frowning and sighing because of him, was he? As a pair of socks whizzed past his arm and skidded to a stop on the blanket behind him; he really wondered if that was the big problem.

He looked over to the human, who had flung his hoodie to the side and was quickly pulling on an undershirt and dress shirt as his unbuttoned slacks slowly slid back down his legs. After a moment he jerked them back up and stuffed his shirt into them, then turned and dug around for some socks with one hand while buttoning with the other. Duo stifled a giggle as he tried to pull a sock onto one foot while nearly falling over, making him hop around, one side of his hair still mussed from sleeping on the couch. Red-faced, Heero scowled over at him, pulling on the other sock.

“Hurry up!” he growled angrily, rushing to the bathroom for more supplies. Duo realized he’d been idle and quickly fumbled with his socks, hoping if he was ready real fast, Heero would be happy again.

No such luck. After a few more packing blunders, a hurried routine in the bathroom, and a quick meal, a cap was jammed over his ears, and his arms and tail stuffed into his coat. Heero slung the bag over his shoulder, grabbed the boy, and quickly shuffled out the door.

Within minutes, Heero had shuffled down the snowy sidewalk and arrived at the tram station. Few people were braving the snow-covered streets and chilly station, so it took little time for them to get onto the tram.

Duo’s nose and eyes were in overdrive, discovering what was around him. He squirmed, trying to get from his partner’s lap to the floor to explore, but Heero grunted and gave him a warning glare which somewhat stifled the urge. He started as he felt the tram jerk forward and build speed as it rumbled along the dark tubes.

For a moment Duo wondered why it was suddenly so black outside the windows before he realized they were underground. With a small whimper, he looked up to his partner with wide eyes. They were…underground. What if the ground fell in? Grabbing a hold of Heero’s coat, he buried his face in it, trying to find some comfort from his anxiety. What if something else was following them down the tunnel…like a big snake! What if the tunnel ended…or if there was a snake in front of them? They’d never be able to stop in time! What if—

“Duo,” Heero said tiredly in a quiet tone. “What are you doing?”

He paused with one of Heero’s black gloves halfway on his head, the fingers dangling limply onto his shoulder.

“Uh.” He bit his lip nervously, looking up at the stern, yet tired, face above him sheepishly. “Hiding?”

With another sigh, Duo found himself being scooped up and pushed into the warmth of his partner’s half-unzipped coat. He immediately clung to the soft inner sweater, feeling the heat coming from the skin beneath and calming instantly. A soothing hand was tucking his stray hair down.

“What are you hiding from?” Heero asked him quietly, his eyes flicking to the only other passenger, an elderly lady, who had her face stuck nearly against the page of the morning paper, silently mouthing the words of the article as she read it through the thick glasses perched at the end of her nose.

“Snakes.” Duo shuddered, burying his face against his partner’s sweater again, relishing the familiar scent after being exposed to so many new ones. Heero just sighed again.

“What’s matter?” Duo asked, looking into his face and forgetting his previous fear. Heero frowned at the ad he had been reading above the seat across from them.

“Nothing.”

“’Ro?” The mynioka patted his partner, knowing it was a lie.

“I said nothing!” he hissed, scowling down at the boy for a moment before glancing toward the elderly lady, who was evidently oblivious to anything else the tram car. Duo stared up at him a moment before snuggling down into the human’s warm coat to contemplate his actions.

Why wouldn’t Heero say what was bothering him? They were partners, and partners shouldn’t keep secrets. Partners have to work as a team. Then why was Heero not telling him anything? Unless…

Duo stiffened, his eyes blinking. What if Heero was stressed because he was there? Maybe he didn’t really want him; he did say that he didn’t know how to be around kits. Perhaps he…really didn’t want him at all.

With a sniff, the boy frowned at that thought. Heero wouldn’t take him to a meeting if he didn’t care about him. Unless…he was going to get rid of him! No, that surely wasn’t right!

The mynioka felt tears prickle his eyes. Heero wouldn’t just give him away or leave him somewhere, would he? He wasn’t going to get left, Heero wouldn’t do that.

He swiped his sleeve across his wet cheeks and buried his face into the side of his warm partner, who grunted irritably. Duo shook his head, wiping his tears into the fabric. No, Heero couldn’t leave him; he’d never, never do that.

“Stop that, Duo!” Heero whispered in a warning hiss.

The boy stilled and muffled a small sob. Maybe it was true.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Duo blinked awake as his surroundings shifted. He was still inside Heero’s coat, pressed against his ribs, but they were walking. The boy lay still, listening to their surroundings and trying to memorize the last few moments he would be with his partner.

When Heero stopped, he could hear the lock of a door click open. Duo feigned sleep when he felt his partner slowly pull him out of his coat. He was placed on a cool, but still soft surface before Heero stepped away, moved about the room for a moment, then opened the door and stepped out.

The mynioka couldn’t hold his tears in any longer when he heard the finality of the lock clicking into place. He’d really left, after all. Duo sobbed, pushing his face down into the fabric beneath him.

The room around him was small; a lamp sat on the table next to the bed he was on, with curtains and a window past that. A small vid station sat in the corner. He didn’t know where he was, but this was definitely not home.

What was going to happen now? He had no other purpose than to be with Heero. He vaguely hoped that unwanted partners simply ceased to exist; at least it would be an easy end. Maybe…

He sniffled again, pulling his legs close and curling his tail around him. Hopefully it didn’t take him too long to disappear; he’d hate to stop his disappearing process just so he could eat dinner.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

It seemed like forever, the time it was taking to finally drift into oblivion. But his process was suddenly halted with the sound of the door behind him being opened. Maybe someone had to make him disappear, and they were finally here. His eyes overflowed again as he paid a sniffling farewell to the world.

He started when something warm touched his back. “Duo?” a familiar voice asked softly. The boy felt himself being picked up and cradled in an arm.

“’Ro?” he asked, not believing his senses. What if it was all a dream and he’d wake up alone? A grunt stilled his thoughts.

“Are you ill?” he asked. Duo shook his head.

“Look at me then.”

Cracking open his eyes, he blinked up at his partner, who was staring back at him with a concerned frown. Duo gaped into the deep blue eyes for a moment before turning and latching onto the fabric of the sweater next to him, crying desperately.

He could feel comforting fingers twine themselves in the hair on the back of his head, gently soothing him. Heero was moving, sitting down.

“Did you have a bad dream?” he asked softly. Duo shook his head, giving a muffled reply against his partner’s chest.

After a few minutes the boy calmed, then pushed himself up higher to press against the human’s neck before he mumbled a question against the skin there. Heero pulled him away, holding him out.

“What?” he quietly asked the squirming boy, who was trying to latch back onto his shirt.

“Don’t leave!” he cried, still making futile swipes toward his partner’s chest in hopes of catching the warm sweater there.

“What?” Heero asked again, his brow furrowing in confusion. “The meeting’s ove—”

“You were mad!” Duo yelled, trying to twist out of the hands holding him up. “I’m trouble! Too much! You leave me—you don’t want me!” With that, he tumbled to the bed below.

He flung himself off the side and scurried under it, wanting to hide. Everything was so messed up! He was so confused. “You don’t want me. You don’t want me…” he continued to sob out, curling into a ball in the darkness under the bed.

A large hand closed around his middle, startling him. He automatically fought back, sinking his claws into the skin, but the hand didn’t release him. Instead, he found himself being pulled out into the dim light and pressed against the warm sweater he’d been close to, minutes before. He latched on, burying his face and clawing into it.

“I’m sorry,” his partner said quietly, smoothing down his hair. Duo slowly blinked up at him, leaving his anger for confusion and curiosity. “I’m not mad,” he stated simply, looking down at the boy’s tear-stained cheeks and red eyes.

“I hate going to these meetings,” he explained, his face nearly blank, but his eyes troubled as he looked away. “They’re annual inspections. They call in random Preventer officers and test them. They never give hardly any warning so that people don’t try to train in the last minute, but you’re in trouble if you’re late. They make me nervous,” he admitted.

Duo stared up at him, making connections in his head.

“I thought you were asleep.” His gaze turned back to the boy. “So I left you in here.”

Duo sniffed. It was going to be okay.

“Where is ‘here’?” he asked softly, looking around. There were a dresser and two doors behind them.

“We’re in a motel,” Heero answered, confused. “We’ll go home tomorrow.”

“Oh.” The mynioka stared at the wall, feeling stupid. “So you still want me?” he asked honestly, looking back at his partner.

“Of course,” Heero intoned. They locked eyes for a moment before Duo started at something wet seeping into his shirt. His partner’s bloodied hand was still around him. He felt a wave of guilt. Heero’s sleeve was somewhat shredded as well.

“It’s not bad,” the human said, as if reading the boy’s thoughts, taking them both through one of the doors and into a bathroom. Duo was placed on the counter as he washed his hand. After a minute it became apparent that the marks weren’t as deep as they seemed.

“Sorry,” Duo said dejectedly, his ears drooping almost to an uncomfortable level.

“It’s all right,” Heero countered. “I didn’t explain things to you. It’s not your fault.”

The mynioka continued to stare sadly at him as he dried his hand after it had stopped bleeding.

Heero picked him up, and after a few minutes of rummaging in the travel bag, helped him change into a pair of orange shorts and a t-shirt.

“No underwears?” Duo asked, pulling his tail through the hole provided for the purpose.

“No, not where we’re going,” his partner answered, pulling a gray pair on himself. Duo watched as he snagged one of the white robes hanging on the wall and put it on. After picking up his keys, he took the boy’s hand and led him out the door.

Duo soon found himself in a large, steamy room with huge bathtubs; or rather, huge squares of water in the floor. His shirt was taken off, as was his partner’s robe, and he was led to the side of the odd bath.

Two kit-age human girls were splashing each other at the other end, and to the side an elderly couple sat in a smaller tub. He watched as Heero slid into the water, coming back up with his hair matted to his head and a small smile on his face.

“It’s not cold, come in,” he said, while reaching for the boy. Duo protested as the wet hands lifted him and placed him in the water; then they suddenly left him. He immediately panicked, reaching out for the human as he sunk. His head dipped down into the water, but a second later he was being pulled back up, sputtering and scared.

“’Ro!” he coughed, vainly trying to cling to his partner’s wet chest.

“No claws,” Heero reminded, holding him halfway into the water. “Now kick your legs.” Duo did as he was told, building a small froth. “Easy, don’t kick so fast. Now use your arms to balance yourself.”

Duo concentrated, dipping low a few times, but always coming back up quickly. He laughed gleefully when he saw that he was no longer being held.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Bump. Bump. Thunk. Thunk. Crash!

Heero was instantly conscious, out of bed, and in a defensive stance before his fogged brain kicked into “awake” mode. His eyes were riveted on the center of the commotion, who was presently doing a bad job of untangling himself from the fallen phone’s cord.

The clothing from their bag was strewn across the floor along with a large amount of shaving cream. The can lie near the bed, along with a tube of toothpaste.

“’Ro,” the boy called, distressed as he flailed his arms in frustration. The curled cord was wrapped around him many times, inhibiting his movement.

Heero ignored him. Surely he could get himself out. He began scraping the foam off the shaving cream-strewn clothing with slight irritation. The mess had mostly gathered on top of the clothes, for which he was glad; shaving cream carpet stains would be difficult to explain to the management. Hopefully it would come out of clothes decently enough; he frowned.

He was almost finished when a frightened squeak brought him out of his silent debate of whether or not he had enough laundry soap to complete the washing job. His partner, who was still hopelessly tangled in the cord, had plopped backwards into a pile of cream.

“’Ro!” He coughed, staring up at the human and pushing a glob of foam away from his nose. The corners of Heero’s mouth quirked as he picked his sputtering partner up. Duo tugged at the sleeves of his shirt with intent to snuggle closer than from an arm’s length, but the human carried him into the bathroom and deposited him into the tub.

“Put your clothes over the side,” Heero instructed, turning on the water and adjusting the temperature. Duo pulled his sleeping outfit off and looked down the large expanse of white plastic with a worried expression.

“Bath is big,” he said quietly, nervous about his last encounter with a bathtub.

“You swam in the pool last night; that was much bigger,” Heero reminded him while snagging some shampoo off the counter behind him. Duo flicked ineffectually at the water pooling around his legs.

“I know,” the boy said in a small voice, still worried. The human watched his partner fidget for a moment before turning off the water.

“Come here,” he said quietly, holding a hand out to steady the mynioka as he stepped through the water. Duo sat near the faucet, somewhat calmed by the hand his partner held against his shoulder blades as his hair was washed.

By the time his hair was being rinsed, the boy was purring with contentment, all nervousness about the bath forgotten.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

“Heero!” a voice rang from the other end of the lobby. The dark-haired Preventer turned to the rapidly approaching person from his stance in the line.

“Quatre,” he greeted the enthusiastic blond as Trowa, his partner, stepped to his side.

“I was hoping you hadn’t left yet.” The cheery mynioka smiled, eyeing the long line of customers waiting to turn their room keys in. “I wanted to meet your new partner.”

Heero set his suitcase down and half-opened the zipper of his full coat without a comment, revealing the small person who was tucked inside.

“Oh, he’s so tiny!” Quatre exclaimed with glee as Duo eyed him carefully while maintaining a firm grip on his partner’s sweater. Heero winced, hoping the comment wouldn’t affect the sensitive boy.

“He is rather small,” Trowa quietly agreed.

Duo turned his face into the sweater, feeling self-conscious.

“Aw, I’m sorry, —” Quatre’s eyes flicked to Heero’s face.

“Duo,” he supplied.

“I’m sorry, Duo,” Quatre placated in a soothing tone. “I bet you’ll grow quickly in your later stages.”

The boy blinked at him warily, a frown secure on his face.

“Duo,” Heero said softly. “Why don’t you get to know Quatre and Trowa while I check out of the room?”

The small mynioka blinked up at his partner, then shook his head and buried his face back into the sweater.

“It’s all right Heero, if he doesn’t want to—” Quatre interjected.

“Duo,” Heero whispered, undeterred. “You need to get to know both of them sooner or later. We are in the same department.” After another silent moment, Heero brought his unoccupied hand up and stroked the boy’s soft hair.

“Please?” he asked, his deep blue eyes connecting with bright violet. After a minute, Duo nodded and gazed back at Quatre’s barely-contained grin.

The boy’s tail curled self-consciously under him as he was held under his arms by the adult mynioka. He looked up at the man’s smiling face with wide, wary eyes.

Heero looked back to the front of the line, where a blonde woman chatted amiably with the irritated-looking desk clerk. He knew Duo would need to begin his studies after they got home. Myniokas were made to teach themselves from the materials provided, one fact which Heero was curious about. He looked over at Quatre, who was currently being climbed on by the giggling boy as if he were a piece of playground equipment. How would Duo focus enough; how would he teach himself? He barely could eat a meal without needing attention, let alone for him to sit, staring at a book, for hours? Some things about the boy just didn’t seem possible.

Heero stepped to the counter and quickly checked out. The clerk eyed him with slight interest, probably wondering if he was going to break into a fake grin and spout polite formalities about the room and service. Instead, Heero quickly gathered his things and walked to the corner of the lobby where Quatre and Trowa were seated.

Duo was sitting on Trowa’s knee with his tail brushing across Quatre’s leg. He was grinning up at the silent man as his hair was stroked. Upon seeing his partner, the boy bounced to the floor and skittered to the human’s booted feet then tugged hopefully at his pants, looking up with a wide grin.

Heero picked him up, cradling him in one arm as Duo tried to climb higher to touch his nose to his partner’s chin in greeting. They were both startled by Quatre’s jovial laugh.

“He’s very facially oriented. I wouldn’t have guessed your partner would be, Heero.” Quatre smiled at the boy, who had lost interest and was playfully batting at his partner’s ear. The dark-headed man’s confusion was evident as he ignored the small hand that was making swipes by his face.

“Facially-oriented?” he asked the blond. Quatre’s grin must have been infectious; a smaller version was now spread across Trowa’s face as well.

“Myniokas orient themselves with one trait of their human partner,” the tall brunette said quietly.

“I liked Trowa’s hair,” Quatre smiled fondly at his partner. “So, I was always wanting to play with it. Duo, though, seems to like your face and neck.”

Heero turned his head slightly towards his partner and blinked at him. The boy had been attempting to gain his attention by pressing his nose under the human’s jaw and giggling.

“Was this in the mynioka instruction booklet?” Heero asked, his eyes still on the boy who was smiling in contentment now that he was basking in his partner’s attention.

Surprisingly enough, it was Trowa who snorted at his comment. “Barely, Heero. They mention that myniokas often identify their partners by a distinguishing physical trait, but they never spoke of a life-long fixation.”

“That might just be too easy,” Quatre added slyly, his eyes fixed on his partner’s hair and his mouth curved slightly. Trowa seemed to be oblivious to the blond’s gaze; he stood and picked up his bag.

“There are many things that aren’t in the manual, Heero,” he intoned. “You have to figure them out for yourself.”

“We’ll see you in the office, Heero.” Quatre was to his feet and following his partner as he walked to the main lobby doors. “Bye-bye, Duo!” He waved enthusiastically at the blinking boy, who feebly waved back. He’d been preoccupied by rummaging in his partner’s coat pocket for valuables and was now confused at why they were standing there in the first place.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOo

The shuttle ride proved too long for the boy, as he was asleep and curled in his partner’s arm only a few minutes after they sat down. Heero watched over him silently.

He was growing so quickly now and was almost too big to fit comfortably inside even Heero’s big, puffy coat. One of his fragile ears twitched to the side as a person across the car shifted their bags, but the boy slept on. Evidently, he could detect the difference between a sound and a threat even when he was asleep.

Experimentally, Heero shuffled the morning newspaper on his lap. Strangely enough, the boy’s ears didn’t move. Did he not register his partner’s movements and sounds? It doesn’t make sense, Heero thought. How can he trust that implicitly?

A cough from the back of the car alerted the boy’s upper ear into movement again, yet the boy still slept. Heero tentatively touched the ear, lightly rubbing it under the fine hair, where it connected to his scalp.

The human watched as Duo’s body visibly relaxed and he nuzzled his face into the fabric of his partner’s coat. A minute later the boy sighed and began to emit a soft purr.

Heero could feel the corners of his mouth turning up and a warmth spreading throughout his body. It was a strange but comforting feeling, one that he wouldn’t mind getting used to. He vaguely wondered if Duo was feeling the same way…when the boy’s face split into a grin or as the mynioka giggled and pressed that small nose to his cheek.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

The walk back to his house was a cold one, but it helped having another source of heat snuggled inside his coat. Duo slept until the human roused him after the bag had been unpacked.

Sleepy violet eyes blinked up at him as the boy woke. Heero amusedly watched as he grunted and burrowed further into the blanket he was resting in.

“Duo,” Heero rubbed the mynioka’s small back. “I’ve got something new for you.”

That got a reaction. Duo wriggled out of the blanket immediately and grinned up at him excitedly with still-sleepy eyes.

“Ja?” he asked, his tail twitching with eagerness.

“But you have to eat dinner first.”

Duo’s face contorted into a look of disgust.

“Ick!” he exclaimed, shaking his head. “Fun now, food later?” he asked hopefully.

“No,” the human shook his head and handed him a bottle. “You’re going to be busy later, but I’m going to make sandwiches and you can have half of one when you’re done.”

“Oki-day.” Duo accepted the bottle. He liked sandwiches, or pretty much anything his partner made. Perhaps, he thought, it was because it was his partner who made them.

Duo drank the protein drink and ate the half-sandwich in quick succession, then looked up to the human expectantly.

“Do you want another?” Heero bemusedly asked with a large bite of sandwich in his mouth, making one of his cheeks bulge. The boy shook his head, the grin on his face reflected in his eager eyes. A small smile tugged at Heero’s face.

“Fine,” he smirked. “It’s in the bag on the table. Start at the top.” Heero watched the boy skitter across the room and bounce up to a chair, then onto the table and pull the top book out of the bag. The second he excitedly opened the cover, his whole body froze.

Alarmed, Heero got to his feet and crossed to him with quick strides. The boy’s eyes were moving rapidly across the page, reading its contents, but his body was completely still, even with one leg still hanging off the side of the table.

So this is what they meant by the mynioka’s strange learning habits, Heero mused as he pushed Duo’s leg up and settled him into a more comfortable position. The boy’s eyes were still locked on the page in front of him though, still combing through the text rapidly.

Heero picked up his work files and made himself comfortable on the couch, finishing his sandwich and contemplating how long his partner would be stuck in that silent, immobile state.

reserved domokun

reserved domokun

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