Disclaimer: I don't own the G boys, I just borrow them from time to time and return them a whole lot happier, ne? Written for pleasure not profit.
Warnings: Yaoi, sap, angst, fluff, perverseness, humor attempts, Lemon, Heero POV.
Pairing: eventual 2x1
Rating: NC 17
Summary: Heero and Duo have worked as partners for Preventer for several years, completing many successful missions. What happens on this latest mission though will change them both forever.
Thanks to my two wonderful betas, Artemis and Yami Tai for putting up with me.
Notes: Written for Sharon's Moment's of Rapture 2005/2006 fic comp.
Dec 2005 ShenLong

Mission Impossible
by ShenLong

Hitting the print button, I sit back in my chair and rotate my head, trying to ease some of the stiffness from my neck. I could feel a headache tugging at the fringes of my mind and mentally glared at it. I didn't have time for headaches. The printer beeped, announcing the completion of the task and I sighed as I got up and walked over to retrieve the report, it had been a long day and I was tired. I scanned the pages and gave a small smile of satisfaction at a job well done. The report, along with the collected evidence, would see the criminals from our latest assignment put behind bars for quite a number of years.

It was ten minutes to five. Good. It was enough time to lodge the report with the prosecuting section and then sign out for the day. I took a look at my partner's desk and shook my head. Duo, it seemed, had disappeared. Idly, I wondered if he'd finished his report. Dismissing it from my mind, I was about to head out of the small office when my phone rang.

"Yuy," I said, punching the receive button.

The sound of Commander Une's voice came down the line, her tone clipped. That could only mean one thing; Une wasn't happy about something.

"Hai, Commander. We will be right up." I disconnected the call and dropped the report to my desk. It would have to wait for a few more minutes while I went in search of my colleague.

I found him in the lunch room, mug of coffee in one hand, braid over his shoulder as he talked animatedly to Gail from records. Noticing my arrival he paused. "Hey, Heero. Knock off time already?"

"Une wants to see us in her office right away," I replied, ignoring his question.

"Okay. Be right with you, buddy."

I waited patiently while he drained his mug, rinsed it and bid Gail farewell. "Any idea what's going down?"

I shook my head. "No. She didn't say."

Duo grunted.

I wasn't overly happy myself. We had completed our last mission just two days ago and with only Thursday and Friday remaining of the week, I was seriously looking forward to some relaxation this weekend.

"Got any plans for Saturday, Heero?"

The question drew me from my thoughts and I turned to Duo. "No, why?"

"Wanna catch a movie and maybe shoot some pool afterwards?"

The proposition was tempting. "Sure, why not?"

"Great."

"What's on?"

"Dunno. Come over about one and we can check the movie guide."

I nodded and stepped into the elevator. Duo and I often hung out together on the weekends, shooting a few games of pool, taking in a movie or just sharing a few drinks. He was an interesting companion and had taken it upon himself to 'humanize' me after the wars. I didn't think I needed humanizing, I knew how the world, colonies and people worked; or so I thought. But Duo showed me another side to life -- one with laughter, warmth and friendship. As I began to discover this new side to life and the peace we'd fought so hard to achieve, I also discovered that Duo had been right; there was something left to live for.

"Ah, here we are. Eighth floor, strategy offices, planning center, ladies underwear and home of the industrious head of Preventer. Going down..." Duo's voice cut through the air as the elevator 'dinged' its arrival.

That was Duo, always the joker. I resisted the urge to throttle him with his braid.

As we stepped out of the elevator and proceeded along the corridor to Une's office, Duo once again contemplated what our Commander could want. "I hope it isn't another mission, I really could do with some down time after that last one."

"Hn," I grunted by way of reply. "I'm getting a bit fed up of mud, rain and flying bullets myself."

Duo passed a hand over his forehead and made to swoon. "I don't believe it; Heero Yuy, agent extrodinaire, the only man within the Earth Sphere United Nation to have a season ticket to 'Suicide Incorporated' is complaining about having to go on a mission."

"Baka!" I hit him upside the head.

"Ow! Sheesh, a little lighter on the strength next time, buddy if you don't mind. I'm rather fond of keeping my eyeballs in my head."

I gave him one of my better glares. I shouldn't have wasted my time. He was impervious to them anyway.

I opened the door and stepped into the small reception area, the large, double doors to Une's office loomed on the other side of the secretary's desk. I sensed Duo shudder behind me and a small wave of sympathy ran through my own body. To get to Une you had to go through her secretary, no mean feat in itself. Martha, the secretary, had strategically positioned her desk facing the entry door and with Une's office directly behind, you couldn't avoid the confrontation. Normally Duo would have charmed the pants off the secretary, he had every other female in the Preventer building wrapped around his little finger, so why not Martha?

I can still remember the day that Une employed her new secretary. No one had seen her and the only information we had was that she was efficient and as cold as the Arctic. Even my skills at digging up information through my computer had failed to yield anything on the woman. Either she was very good at hiding her personal files, had a squeaky clean reputation, or simply didn't exist. Needless to say, Duo had immediately made it his goal to win the woman over and departed from our shared office with a cheeky grin and unlimited sex appeal on the day Martha joined the Preventer payroll. I was therefore surprised when he returned not fifteen minutes later, tail firmly between his legs and licking his wounds.

It took me a while to get the story out of him; and then it was only by sheer bribery. It was the best dozen beers I'd ever bought. Turns out the woman was about fifty five not out, [1] with graying hair which she kept pulled back into a severe bun. Thin, black rimmed glasses sat perched on the end of her nose, and she had a pair of eyes that rivaled the mythological Medusa for rendering a person to stone. Duo had done a double take when arriving at Une's office. Not one to be deterred easily, he'd applied the Maxwell charm.

Only this time it didn't work.

The woman had simply given Duo a withering glance and asked what his reason for being there was. When she found out he didn't have an appointment she was quick to put two and two together; combine that with a sharp tongue that told Duo she wasn't about to be influenced by a mere 'boy' (I'm certain there was a whole lot more in that conversation but Duo clammed up when questioned on it and I wasn't about to push it given the fragile state of his ego at the time.) and the 'Duo Casanova' of Preventer had promptly done what he did best -- run and hid.

It wasn't just Duo though who came in for the steely glares and cold treatment, it was everyone at Preventer. I never thought I would see the day when Wufei would bow to an 'onna'. I think Sally Po was the only person, besides Une herself, that Martha didn't intimidate. Although, come to think of it, no one intimidates Sally. I guess it has something to do with her doctor status and the fact that she's the one who does all our medical checks, shots and patch ups. Most of us have learnt over time that it does not pay to piss off the medic.

But I digress.

Here we were, two ex-Gundam pilots, top Preventer agents (young, muscular and strong), having survived torture both physical and mental that would have broken men twice our age and size in mere minutes, cowering like two naughty schoolboys facing the principal. I scowled as I felt Duo poke me from behind, causing me to stumble forward. Martha's eyes had fixed us both when we stepped inside and had narrowed even further.

" Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: For thou art with me. I hope you are anyway, Heero." [2]

I turned my head slightly and caught Duo's muttering as he moved forward and closer to my side.

"Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. At least I can use them to beat the shit outta anyone that attacks me."

I was seriously beginning to wonder about my partner's sanity as his little ramble continued. "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies; only I don't want to be the sacrificial virgin..."

Now I was certain he'd lost his marbles. I turned to glare at him and received a lopsided grin in return; along with his last few pearls of wisdom. "Thou annointest my head with oil; My cup runneth over. I just wish the oil would fry the enemy and my feet would runneth me out of here."

I elbowed him sharply to shut him up as we finally reached Martha's desk. The last thing I needed was for the secretary to hear him.

"Something you want, boys?"

Martha's sharp tone brought us both back to our current situation. Seeing as how Duo's vocabulary skills had deserted him, not surprising after that little monologue, it was left to me to state the purpose for our visit to the lion's den. Where the hell was Trowa when you needed him?

"Commander Une requested our attendance for a mission briefing," I managed to get out past a dry throat and tongue that wanted to stick to the roof of my mouth. Thank heavens my voice remained calm with only a slight rise in pitch.

"Does she now?" Martha fixed us with a steely eye and punched a button on the intercom unit. "Commander Une, I have two agents out here who claim you sent for them. I have nothing in the book to verify that."

"That's okay, Martha, you can send them in. I did page Agents Yuy and Maxwell."

"As you wish." Martha disconnected the intercom. "You may go in."

Carefully inching past her desk, I made my way to those double doors, feeling the woman's eyes boring into my back and Duo pressed close behind me. I swear if he was any closer he'd be inside my uniform with me. I opened the doors and slipped inside, the relief washing over and through me as I shut them again behind us.

"Ah, Yuy and Maxwell."

I felt the tension beginning to build again.

"Commander," Duo's cheerful voice rang out. Looked like he'd found his vocal chords again.

"Please, sit for a moment."

We did as requested, Duo giving me a questioning look which I returned with a shrug of my shoulders. I had no idea how long this was going to take and why we should be asked to sit for the briefing.

"I know you have both just completed a mission and a successful one at that. Congratulations again."

"Arigato," I murmured.

"I really don't want to do this seeing as how you've just finished one mission, but I don't have much of a choice. Although this shouldn't be too hard."

Now my curiosity was aroused. Normally, Duo and I got the tough missions, the ones that demanded we use the skills we'd fine tuned during the wars. But then again, Une's version of a hard mission and ours were usually totally different.

"As you are aware, Relena has been through many meetings, talks and conferences recently. She has decided to take a couple of days off for some relaxation."

"Good for her," muttered Duo. "Wish I could do the same." Une's sharp hearing caught the words and she turned to face Duo. "I'm glad you feel the same way, Agent Maxwell as both yourself and Agent Yuy will be accompanying Relena as her security detail."

"Huh?"

I guess my face must have had the same blank expression as Duo's 'huh?' did.

"Relena hasn't divulged much in the way of details to me, just enough to satisfy the basic requirements set down by Preventer for any delegate it's required to protect." Une passed over two manila envelopes. "All the details we have are in there, including shuttle details and accommodation vouchers. All I can brief you on is that Relena will be going overseas, leaving tonight and returning on Monday afternoon."

I stared at the envelope. All the plans for the lazy weekend, movie, pool, take out for tea gone south with the ducks. A weekend away would be nice. A weekend away with Relena as her security detail was going to be another kettle of fish. There wouldn't be much time for relaxation given the woman's well known status. I could think of nothing worse than trailing around after the girl as she busied herself sightseeing and doing all the touristy things.

"Any questions?"

Duo cleared his throat. "Ah, where exactly are we going?"

"San Francisco."

"Right. Um, where are we staying?"

"The Clariton hotel."

"When do we leave?" I heard myself ask, wondering if I could get Wufei to feed my cat while I was gone again.

"I believe the shuttle is scheduled for departure at 23.30 hours."

I looked at the clock. It was five thirty.

"Any other questions?"

I shook my head, Duo imitating my action.

"Then I suggest you both get moving. Enjoy the trip and look after Relena." Une turned her focus back to the paperwork on her desk indicating we were dismissed.

I stood and with Duo following me, prepared for the sprint across the reception area and back to the corridor and freedom. We were lucky though. Martha wasn't sitting behind her desk; in fact she wasn't in the reception area at all.

"Looks like even the iron maiden has a home to go to, although I think a fortress is probably more her style," growled Duo as we walked across the thick carpet to the door.

I declined to answer. The envelope in my hand burned against my palm. I really didn't want to be spending the weekend playing bodyguard to Relena. As much as I admired the woman, and had even become friends with her, I'd much rather be spending my time at home. Many people had speculated on our relationship but there was no truth in the rumors that seemed to rise whenever I was assigned to protect her.

She had gotten over her crush on me; I never had one on her to start with, and we were now simply good friends. The tabloids continued to speculate on our relationship and I had learned long ago that no matter how much I protested and denied the allegations about us the press would report what they wanted. Now I just said nothing.

The truth of the matter was, Relena didn't do anything for me. Yes, she was a fine woman with ideals and a silver tongue, but I couldn't think of her in a romantic way. I wasn't sure what I desired in a companion, I hadn't really given it much thought. My life was too busy with my job. Besides, all the missions I was required to carry out, life threatening and otherwise, were not conducive to having a relationship.

It wouldn't be fair to have a girlfriend and expect her to understand the risks of my job, the possibility that I may not make it home one day. Hell, it wasn't even fair on my cat! No, it was far better to remain single and avoid all that crap.

"Wanna come back to my place first? I'll grab my stuff and then we can go to your place and finalize this mission before heading to the shuttle port." Duo's words brought me back to the present and I was surprised to find we were back in our office.

"Sure," I replied. "I'll drop this report off on the way out. Meet you in the parking lot in five?"

"Be waiting for ya, buddy."

I watched as Duo left, braid swinging behind him, and then picked up my report. I stuffed the manila envelope in my briefcase, shut off the lights and departed the office.

So much for a weekend of relaxation.

[1] This is a bit of Aussie humor. It's something we tend to say in reference to a person's age. In this case 55 not out meaning the woman could be anywhere from 55 upwards and still going. It comes from the game of cricket when a batsman at the end of a match is referred to as having x number of runs -- not out, meaning the number he could have made is anyone's guess.

[2] Psalm 23 -- second stanza. My apologies to anyone who may be offended by my butchering of this part of the Psalm. It was not intended to offend.

Chapter 2

It didn't take Duo long to throw together his gear for our latest mission. Duffle in hand, he emerged from his bedroom ten minutes after entering, changed out of his uniform into a pair of black jeans that rode low on his hips, a dark blue button down shirt, leather jacket slung over one arm and ready to go. We paused at his neighbor's apartment, Duo giving the elderly woman his spare key so she could water his plants and keep an eye on the place while he was gone. Then we were once more on the road, this time heading for my apartment.

Entering my apartment, Duo made a beeline for my kitchen and helped himself to a beer from the 'fridge and brought one back for me. With the mission not starting until we arrived at the shuttle port, Duo figured we had time to knock back one beer each . I'd booted up my lap top and while it was loading, fetched the manila envelope from inside my briefcase and opened it. Duo sprawled out on my couch and I took a seat next to him, spilling the contents of the envelope onto the coffee table. Duo rifled through the papers, picking one up.

"Your mission, should you choose to accept it..." he began with a grin.

I rolled my eyes. Would he never be serious and simply read what was written? Obviously not as he continued on.

"Is to play bodyguard to one Relena Peacecraft, to protect her and keep her safe from harm. Hey, Heero?"

"Hai?" I replied as I fished through the paperwork.

"Define harm, as in how it relates to her Highness."

"Are you sure you weren't blond before?" I replied in a scathing tone. I really didn't need his jokes. It was bad enough that our weekend plans had changed.

Taking the hint, Duo dropped the joking. "I wish there was a little more information here. All it says is the name of the hotel and that we are to be present and accompany Relena, discreetly of course, for the duration of her weekend away."

Knowing exactly what Duo meant, I looked to my desk, and the lap top humming away. I went and typed in a few commands, waiting for the results to appear. I felt Duo move up behind me and peer over my shoulder.

"Ah, the Clariton Hotel," he murmured as the information came up on the screen.

We spent the next half hour scanning the hotel's web site to determine the layout for possible threat points and emergency escape routes. I tried the online booking form and found, to my surprise, that the hotel was completely booked out for the weekend. My unease was growing by the minute.

"Fuck!" Duo stated as he also observed the fully booked status.

"Ditto to that. We're going to have to be extra vigilant given the hotel's status."

"Why couldn't she just take a holiday here, camping or something simple and easy? Why does she have to go to San Francisco?" Duo grumbled.

"Because she's a woman?" I offered as I scanned around the Internet but couldn't find out anything more on this particular hotel or a reason for Relena wanting to visit San Francisco.

"Figures," Duo sighed.

I tried in vain to find out more details and would have managed to hack my way into the hotel's list of guests if time hadn't been against me.

"I hate to interrupt your fun there, partner, but I think we need to be making a move."

Duo's voice cut into my thoughts and I looked at the clock on the computer. "Shit!"

"There's a toilet for that," came the chuckled response.

Ignoring the comedian, I shut down the lap top and deposited it into its carry bag. I shot through to the bedroom, yanked my duffle from inside the closet and proceeded to toss in a few clothes. The sane part of my brain told me I needed to pack clothes suitable for the mission, however, not my usual uniform or Preventer body suit worn on field missions. Just what the hell did one wear in San Francisco anyway? Duo must have sensed my dilemma as his head poked around the doorway.

"Need some help?"

"Yeah," I sighed. "What should I pack?"

"Underwear and socks would be a start."

"I know that," I growled back at him.

In a flash, Duo was in my closet and passing out clothes. "Here, these slacks, this shirt, ummm..."

Within ten minutes he had me organized with what he termed suitable attire. I didn't bother to argue.

"You going to change?"

His voice cut into my thoughts again and I looked down at my green Preventer Jacket, khaki shirt and pants. "Might be an idea," I replied.

"You change, I'll go call Wuffers and organize your cat for you."

I nodded my thanks and looked at what remained in my closet for something suitable to wear.

We arrived at the shuttle port with a good hour and a half before departure, mainly due to Duo's driving skills. He liked to call them skills, I likened it more to grand prix racing. I swear he missed his calling in that department. So, here we were, car parked in the long term parking area facing a good long walk to the terminal.

"Why the fuck do they have the car parks so far away from the terminal?" grumbled Duo, echoing my thoughts.

"Probably to deter you from taking a lot of luggage?" I offered as I shouldered my duffle and picked up the lap top case.

Duo ignored me, but continued to grumble about the unfairness of it all as we walked towards the terminal. Once inside it was a simple case of finding the check-in counter and passing our luggage through. At least we had one consolation, Relena traveled first class which meant we would, and that held its own perks. Once our luggage was taken care of we were escorted through to the customs section, had our passports stamped and then shown through to the first class lounge to await the shuttle departure. Relena hadn't arrived yet, as a safety measure. She was allowed very little sitting around time, to minimize becoming a target for some idiot who fancied himself as the one to take out the former queen of the Earth and colonies.

I walked over to the window and gazed down at the tarmac. I could see the shuttle, cargo doors open as various items were loaded inside. I also spotted the discreet presence of Preventer agents as they went over the transport with a fine-toothed comb. I sensed Duo's presence behind me moments before he spoke.

"She's here." I turned and looked around. Relena was just entering the lounge, accompanied by a couple of her security detail that I recognized. She smiled when she saw Duo and myself and then turned to speak with the larger of the two men that accompanied her. I began to walk towards her, Duo at my side.

"Relena," I said in greeting and offered my hand.

"Heero. Good to see you again. You too, Duo," she replied as she shook my hand.

Duo took her hand, raised it to his lips and pressed a kiss to the back of it. "Princess," he murmured.

"Oh, Duo," she giggled. "No need to stand on ceremony here, we're all friends so quit with the princess stuff. I'm on vacation."

Duo gave her a charming smile. I just shook my head.

"I'm sorry you two had to give up your weekend to accompany me. I was planning on going by myself, but..." she gave a small sigh of resignation. "The powers that be wouldn't allow it."

"No biggie," replied Duo. "At least we will get some sort of vacation as well. Could be worse."

"I don't know about that," muttered Relena with a mysterious air. "Depends which side of the fence you're on and how you interpret worse."

I caught the cryptic words and quirked an eyebrow in question. Unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to ask what she meant as the public address system crackled into life and announced the boarding of our shuttle. I exchanged a few quick words with Relena's security before taking over the detail and heading towards the boarding gate with Relena between Duo and myself. We handed over our boarding passes and were escorted to our seats. Relena took the window seat, myself beside her. Duo sat just across the aisle. I patted my shoulder holster, more out of habit than anything else. It was a comfort to feel the hard press of metal against my palm.

As I sat down and buckled my seat belt I noted Duo also checking his firearm and various other weapons concealed on his person. I couldn't help the smile as I recalled our trip through the metal detectors and x-ray apparatus. We had shown the security our Preventer badges which allowed us clearance to carry weapons on board before we passed through the metal detector. The damn thing had gone off as expected but the guards didn't worry seeing as how we'd already provided our clearance. They did, however, have to put us through the x-ray machine, simply to determine that we carried what we'd stated. It was state of the art -- you simply walked into it and it showed anything and everything metal on your person.

When Duo stepped inside, I was standing with the guards and had to stifle the snicker as his 'picture' was displayed. Aside from the shoulder holster, Duo's body was a pattern of metal. A second gun could be seen inside his boot, a scattering of knives showed up in various places over his slender frame.

"Shit!" The guard exclaimed. "Who does this guy think he is? Rambo?"

"No. Just prepared," I said in Duo's defense.

I glanced around at the other passengers, making mental notes on each one. I also cataloged the possible threat risk and safe places within the shuttle should we need them. A poke from Relena drew me from my observations and I looked at her.

"Most people just check out where the toilets are," she snickered.

I blushed slightly. I didn't realize I'd been so obvious in my perusal. I'd need to be a bit more discreet in future.

The pilot's voice came over the address system, welcoming us aboard and explaining the route we would be taking as well as pointing out a few other minor details. The stewards took over next, going through the safety drill, one I knew like the back of my hand and still found amusing.

"In case of an emergency landing, please fold your arms, rest your head on them and brace them against the seat in front of you. If you can't reach the seat in front then bend forwards, rest your head on your knees and hold tightly to your legs."

"In other words, put your head between your legs and kiss your ass goodbye," Duo muttered from across the aisle. I snickered and turned to see my partner gazing back at me with a grin.

His sense of humor helped to ease a little of my fears. I wasn't afraid of flying, hell no! I'd been a Gundam Pilot, goddammit! No, what made me nervous was someone else at the controls. I was so used to having either myself or Duo pilot that it wasn't easy to put my trust in a complete stranger to get me safely to my destination. I knew Duo felt the same.

The shuttle taxied out and moments later we were pushed back in our seats as the forward thrust took us up and into the atmosphere. The flight was scheduled to take eight hours, arriving in San Francisco at eleven am, local time. Once we were airborne and the shuttle leveled out at its cruising height, the stewards came around with the usual offerings of food and drinks. I accepted the food, not having had the time to eat after leaving headquarters, but declined the alcoholic beverages. I was, after all, on duty so I settled for a green tea. Relena seemed comfortable enough, eating most of her food and enjoying a glass of Riesling with it. Duo also declined the alcohol, asking for a coffee to accompany his meal. Once the food containers were removed, the captain dimmed the lights on the shuttle and most people, including Relena, opted to try and grab a few hours sleep. I took a look at Duo and noticed the tiredness in his eyes.

"I'll take first watch," I offered.

"Thanks," he murmured and proceeded to recline his seat back, tuck the small pillow under his head and drift off to sleep.

A few minutes later, I could hear him snoring. Unfortunately, so could a few of the other passengers. It wasn't a good idea to spring wakefulness onto a sleeping Shinigami. That resulted in blood being spilled, and I was damn sure I needed all of mine. There was also the fact that shuttles didn't fly too well with a bullet hole in their fuselage. So, trying to be as careful as I could, I reached across and nudged him, calling his name at the same time.

"Duo? Duo? Hey, buddy. Close your mouth, you're snoring."

He grunted, snuffled a couple of times and then settled again.

Peace returned for all of five minutes.

Relena giggled beside me and I shot her a glare. I don't think she realized the seriousness of the situation. Or maybe she did. Judging by the disgruntled noises coming from the other passengers I needed to do something about Duo's snoring. Otherwise, he would find himself in the cargo hold for the rest of the trip. Relena passed me a pillow.

"Here, put that over his face, it should drown out a little of the noise," she said with a smirk.

I gave her another of my patented glares. "He'll suffocate," I snapped quietly.

"At least he won't be snoring anymore," Relena quipped with a grin.

Just what I needed on this trip, two comedians. I chose to ignore her as another thought hit my tired brain. I eased out of my chair and crouched beside Duo's form. The snoring was getting louder, so I needed to do this quick, before he reached freight train volume.

"Zero Two, silent mode. Non friendlies around; copy?"

Even in his sleep he couldn't deny his former training and the words had the effect I'd hoped for. He grunted and murmured, "Copy." The snoring ceased.

I sat back in my seat, a smirk on my face as I looked at Relena's shock.

"How did you do that?" Her eyes darted from the now quiet Duo, to me, and back again.

"Ah. Trade secret," I replied and then shifted in my seat to get comfortable. "You should rest," I told her, unable to hide the smugness from my voice.

Though obviously not satisfied with my answer, Relena decided not to push the issue. She settled into her seat, pulling the small blanket over her shoulder and resting her head on the pillow. Moments later, she too was asleep.

The flight passed pleasantly enough. I woke Duo after a couple of hours and he took over the watch so I could snatch some sleep. We were used to grabbing a few hours here and there, although we both preferred an uninterrupted sleeping pattern, sometimes it just wasn't possible. Duo woke me half an hour before landing time. I'd missed breakfast but it didn't bother me, I'd grab something later. Relena was awake and in need of the bathroom, my bladder informed me it also needed to relieve itself so I followed her to the toilets.

The shuttle captain announced our pending descent into San Francisco and there was the usual flurry of activity by the stewards as they secured the cabin for landing. Seat belts were buckled, tray tables returned to their positions and all seats put back into their upright positions. I could feel the mild tremors passing through the craft as we gradually descended, breaking through the clouds and closing in on the city. Beside me, Relena craned her neck to see out of the window at the approaching landscape. Within minutes we were on the ground and taxiing towards the terminal. Once the shuttle was stationary, the captain gave the all clear and it was the normal scramble to retrieve items from the overhead lockers and beat everyone else to the exit.

We decided to wait and let the rest of the first class passengers leave ahead of us. Once the way was clear, we proceeded along the aisle and out into the terminal. Immigration was next, then we had to wait for our luggage at the carousel. My eyes widened when I saw what Relena had brought. While Duo and I had opted for our duffles, Relena had two suitcases -- and neither was light.

I'd already told Duo I would carry Relena's suitcases while he took both our duffles; I was beginning to regret the decision. The snicker he gave me told me he knew he'd gotten the better end of the deal. I made myself a silent promise that Duo would be the one to carry Relena's suitcases on the return journey. That thought cheered me up a little, knowing Relena's penchant for shopping, those bags would be even heavier.

We breezed through customs, partially due to our Preventer status and partially due to Relena's presence. I swear that woman could have been carrying all sorts of illegal contraband and the authorities would still let her though. I put it down to her innocent smile. Now cleared to leave the shuttle port, our next stop was transport to the hotel.

The information I'd dug up on the Internet told me that the Clariton was only about five minutes away from the shuttle port. Normally, I would have walked, but given the fact that Relena was our purpose for being here, as well as her baggage was getting heavier by the minute, I didn't fancy demonstrating my enhanced stamina. Knowing my luck I'd fall flat on my face.

Relena was muttering something about shuttle buses that ran from the hotel and headed in that direction. Duo though, was one step ahead of her and next minute had her highness by the elbow and discreetly directing her towards a car rental booth. Seems he'd anticipated our transport problem and while I'd been sleeping, he'd made a call to the rental company and booked a vehicle.

It didn't take long for Duo to fill out the paperwork and obtain the keys. With a grin that promised something I wasn't sure I was going to like, he led us out of the shuttle port and into the rental car park. When my eyes alighted on the vehicle, I knew I'd been right. I didn't like it.

Let me rephrase that. I liked the car; it was the thought of Duo behind the wheel I didn't like. Not that Duo was a bad driver, no, he was usually quite good. Somehow though, when he got behind the wheel of a flashy car it was as if he took on yet another personality. Like I said before, he missed his calling as a grand prix driver.

The car was a jet black, top of the range, Mercedes Benz.

Putting the luggage in the trunk, I tried not to drool over the paint work. Relena wasn't as affected, since she'd spent most of her life being carted around in a pink limo. At least with her maturity she'd gotten rid of the pink for a new, silver colored model. Even Pargan seemed to gain a new lease on life with the change of décor.

I could tell I wasn't going to be lucky enough to score the keys, the fact confirmed when Duo slipped behind the wheel. Relena slid into the front seat and I was left with no choice but to get in the rear. I buckled up, relieved when I saw Relena doing the same. I wondered if I should say a couple of prayers, even if I wasn't religious, but didn't get a chance to think anymore on that as Duo shot out of the parking space and headed for the car park exit. When he left the car park and filtered into the other traffic, I knew no amount of praying to any god that might care to listen would do any good. What I really needed was a change of underwear.

We sped down the road, making the appropriate turns, mostly on four wheels and it wasn't long before we could see the rising brickwork of the Clariton Hotel. Making the turn into the sweeping drive that led us to the front doors of the hotel I stared around, consciously cataloging everything. Duo brought the car to a halt and the bell hop came over with his little trolley for our luggage. I climbed out, noting that Relena, like myself, was resisting the urge to kiss the ground.

Duo was busy looking around, so I helped the bell hop with the bags. Poor guy nearly fell over when he lifted one of Relena's cases and then wisely left the second one to me. Once all the luggage was on the trolley, the bell hop began to push it towards the sliding, glass doors that led into the foyer. I was about to follow with Relena when Duo nudged me.

I scowled at him. It didn't have any effect. "What?" I asked, annoyed.

"Look."

I turned my gaze to look where Duo was pointing. There stood the main sign advertising the Clariton Hotel. I scratched my head in puzzlement as I read the two foot high letters.

"The Clariton Hotel Welcomes Yaoi-Con AC 200."

"Relena?" I asked, turning my sight towards the woman who was now trying to become invisible.

"I'll explain once we get inside," she replied rapidly and then took off at a very brisk walk into the hotel foyer.

"What the hell is a Yaoi-Con?" asked Duo beside me as we moved to catch up to our 'mission'.

"I have no idea," I growled. "But you can bet I'm going to find out."

Chapter 3

We caught up to Relena at the reception desk, but I didn't get a chance to question her. The receptionist was waiting for us so we had to go through the rituals of filling out forms and offering up the credit card. When I inquired about computer ports I was given a sheet of paper with the hotel's charges for the service. Peering over my shoulder, Duo gave a low whistle as he read the charges.

"Looks like you're gonna be using a few of those skills of yours," he said in a quiet voice that only I could hear.

I gave a grunt in reply. Duo was almost as good as me when it came to computers. He could create programs, foul up security systems and plant lethal viruses without a second thought. He wasn't as good on the hacking front though. I knew that between the two of us we would be able to log onto the hotel's service, use it as much as we liked and not pay a cent. Sometimes it's good to be me.

"The bell hop will show you to your rooms," I heard the receptionist say as she handed over the electronic key cards to the rooms. Duo took the two for our room and passed me one, Relena took her own. I took the spare to Relena's room and avoided looking at either Relena or Duo, I already knew what they were probably thinking, but I had no intentions of using the key card to Relena's room unless it was necessary. We followed the bell hop to the elevator and rode it to the fifth floor. Stepping out, we turned to the left and walked along the corridor, stopping outside rooms 563 and 564. A swipe of the electronic card and the door opened to 563, Relena stepped inside.

I left Duo to investigate our room and followed Relena inside to check out her room. It was nice with all the usual features: television, 'phone, queen bed, air conditioning. But there was one important feature missing.

"This room won't do," I said.

"Pardon?" Relena turned to look at me, along with the bell hop who obviously thought I'd lost part of my mind.

"That room won't do," Duo said as he joined us. Seeing the looks on the bell hop's and Relena's faces he went on the defensive. "What?"

"You sure you two aren't telepathic or psychic?" Relena folded her arms across her chest.

"I've been called psychotic on occasion but never psychic," Duo snickered.

The bell hop leaned against his trolley; he was beginning to enjoy himself. Obviously, he didn't get much in the way of entertainment in his job.

Relena shook her head. "There is nothing wrong with the room."

"Yes, there is." Duo raised an eyebrow and I nodded, letting him know I agreed.

"There is no connecting door," I stated flatly.

The bell hop slipped a piece of chewing gum into his mouth and chewed away. Things were getting interesting for him and he wasn't about to miss any of it.

"No connecting door? I don't need a connecting door, unless you're thinking of sneaking in here during the night for a little on the side, in which case you're going to be sorely disappointed."

"Breathe, Heero, breathe."

Duo's words came through the haze as he thumped me on the back. I sucked in a deep lung full of oxygen, much to my body's relief.

"No!" I managed to get out, although it sounded a little strangled. Fortunately, Duo came to my rescue and explained as I continued to try and stabilize my oxygen levels.

"Connecting doors will ensure we can get to you within seconds should you need us. Without the door, Heero or I will have to go out into the hall then come through the main door and thus waste precious time, time that could mean the difference between success or failure."

I was glad that Duo hadn't gone into too much detail with the bell hop still there. You never knew who was the enemy, although I didn't think the bell hop posed much of a threat. He appeared to be more intent on getting the juicier details, no doubt to share with his mates later. But I'd been trained to observe everything and even I wasn't about to start underestimating anyone or anything.

Relena rolled her eyes. "I don't think for one minute that I am going to be the one in need of any help, but I do see your point. Maybe connecting doors would be an advantage." Relena turned away. "I think you two are the ones that are going to need protection though, not me."

Her last words were so quiet that I barely heard them. Obviously, I wasn't meant to, but I did, and I couldn't help but wonder what the hell she meant with her cryptic clues. I had an uneasy feeling in my gut that everything was tied in together, and once I discovered what a Yaoi con was, all would become clear.

"I'll go back down to reception and get us different rooms okay?" Duo asked. "It would be easier than blasting a hole between these two, not that I'm adverse to a little blowing things up."

I gave him a look, one he ignored, and insisted we all go back down to the reception area.

Once more we were in the elevator, this time riding it up to the second floor. The receptionist had been a little disgruntled at first, calmly explaining that the hotel was fully booked and she couldn't possibly change our rooms for us. I was beginning to get more frustrated, unable to reveal the real reason for wanting connecting doors as it would endanger Relena unnecessarily. I'd just about had enough of the woman's obvious misinterpretation for wanting connecting doors. My trigger finger itched, waiting for her to say one word that would insinuate I planned on sneaking into Relena's room for anything other than to check her safety. Thankfully, Duo once again came to my rescue. He plastered a broad grin to his face and applied the Maxwell charm.

I let him go for it, opting to stand back and watch the woman deteriorate into a simpering pile of hormones under his assault.

Five minutes later, we had new key cards.

"Piece of cake," he stated smugly as he waved the new key cards under my nose.

With a long suffering sigh, I followed behind the bell hop, Relena and Duo to the elevators again.

The second floor was the same layout as the fifth. We exited the elevator and turned left. This time we stopped at rooms 211 and 212. The key cards were taken and swiped, Duo going into our room while I followed Relena into hers. The room was the same as the previous one with the addition of the connecting door.

"Everything okay with this one, sir?"

I turned to the bell hop. "This should be fine." I cocked my head and raised an eyebrow in question as Duo entered.

"These rooms are perfect," Duo said as he grabbed our duffles from the trolley and slipped the bell hop a fiver before disappearing back out the door.

Part of my mind wondered why he'd left so abruptly, but I didn't dwell on it.

The bell hop eyed the two remaining suitcases and with a grunt, bent to lift them off the trolley.

I let him struggle by himself, my dignity was a little bruised at the moment and I wasn't feeling charitable. I did pass him five dollars though, I figured he'd earned the extra tip given the workout the suitcases had given him. Once the bell hop had left, I proceeded to go over the room, sweeping it for bugs of any shape, size, form or description.

"Find anything?" Relena asked as she began to unpack her suitcases.

"All clear," I replied as I pulled my head out from the closet.

"Good. I've unlocked the connecting door on my side. Now, I'd appreciate a little time to myself to unpack." Relena waved a pair of frilly knickers at me. "Unless you want to stay and help?"

"Ah, no. I'll go unpack myself and check out our room. I'll call back for you shortly." I turned and fled.

Entering room 212, I closed the door behind me and froze. My eyes widened as I gazed around. No wonder Duo had swiped the duffles and taken off. Besides the usual furniture -- two queen beds, television, chairs and such, there was also a range of exercise equipment. Duo waved to me from the 'walking' machine.

"What the?"

"Don't ask me, Heero. I only asked the receptionist for adjoining rooms with the connecting door. I didn't say anything about a private gym, although you gotta admit, could be fun."

I ran a hand through my hair as I watched my partner on the treadmill and shook my head. I didn't particularly fancy another trip down to reception. "Got weights?"

"Yup."

That was good enough for me. "Fine. We'll keep the room but you sleep in the bed closest to the equipment."

"Eh?"

"I don't feel like falling over any of it in the middle of the night."

"Ah." A wicked grin lit up his face. "If I hurt myself would you kiss it better for me?"

I spun around so fast I was surprised I didn't give myself whiplash.

"Just joking."

"I have to unpack and check on Relena. I want some answers." I chose to ignore his antics and opened my duffle, pulling out my clothes and putting them away. A soft grunt from the side a minute later, told me Duo was doing the same. I set my surveillance equipment to one side. I'd set that up in Relena's room shortly.

"I'm done." Duo was lounging on his bed.

"Unlock the connecting door and see if Relena is nearly finished. I think we need to get some answers from her and do a quick recon on the hotel."

"Will do, Cap'n Yuy."

Could this mission get any worse? I asked myself. If only I'd known just how much worse it could get I think I would have jumped on the first shuttle back home and begged Une to send me on a suicide mission. At least I managed to survive those.

"Okay, Relena. Spill." I fixed the woman with a glare. "If Duo and I are to protect you we need to know what we are dealing with, what your plans are and no bullshitting." We had finished our unpacking and now sat in a corner booth of the hotel's coffee shop.

Relena averted her gaze, staring at her latte as she dumped a sachet of sugar in it and watched it sink to the bottom. Duo reached for a sugar sachet and sprinkled the contents over the top of his cappuccino, picking up his teaspoon and proceeding to scoop the foam off the top and eat it.

I took a sip from my double shot espresso and waited. After a couple of minutes, Relena began to speak.

"First of all, I want to get something straight here. I didn't ask for you two to be my security detail. Actually, I didn't want security at all, but the powers that be insisted so you can blame them."

Duo's eyebrow twitched.

"All I wanted was to have a weekend away, by myself, doing something I want to do."

The woman was clearly having problems with explaining herself. Why? I didn't know, but I was determined to find out.

"Surely you would realize that popping off by yourself for a couple of days isn't a smart thing to do, Relena. You're a high profile person, your face is well known all over the Earth and Colonies and believe it or not, there are people out there who would like nothing more than to see you removed." It was cold and cruel to speak like this, but I had to get it into Relena's head. The woman really should know better. "Walking around the city, playing tourist by yourself is simply inviting someone to take a shot at you."

"Who said I was going sightseeing?"

"Isn't that what you're here for?"

"No."

Duo scratched the back of his neck before adding his two cents to our conversation. "Let me get this straight. You're taking a couple of days off from your diplomatic duties, you travel to a well known tourist destination, but claim you're not here to go sightseeing; correct?"

Relena nodded.

"Then if you're not planning on seeing the sights, what the hell are you planning on doing? I can't see you sitting in this hotel all weekend!" Duo's look of frustration and confusion matched my own.

"Ah, well..."

"This wouldn't have anything to do with the big sign out front, would it?" I asked. "You know, the one that says Welcome to Yaoi Con AC 200?"

"Ummm..."

"Relena, what exactly is a Yaoi Con?" I carefully studied Relena's face as she fought with her mind, obviously trying to come up with the words she needed to explain. I had a sudden feeling that I wasn't going to like her explanation very much. A glance at Duo found his face impassive.

Reaching for her spoon, Relena stirred her coffee and kept her eyes averted as she came to a decision and spoke. "Yaoi Con. How best to put this? Oh, stuff it. You two have heard of Anime, right?"

Duo nodded. I had to think for a moment before also nodding in the affirmative.

"This convention is a gathering of Anime fans..."

"Cool," Duo interrupted. "There's a lot of good anime shows out there."

"Mostly female fans..."

"Really?" Duo's face took on a look of enthusiasm.

"To be more specific, female fans that watch, read and write Yaoi Anime. Yaoi means boy-boy relationships."

"Ah, I think I follow," Duo said.

"Well I don't," I stated.

"You've heard of hentai? Well, this is the male equivalent. Put simply, Heero, Yaoi is males loving males, homosexuals, gays, bishounen boinking other bishounen, that's what Yaoi is." Relena's eyes hadn't moved from her coffee during the time she'd been speaking, now though, she raised them just a touch to calculate our reactions.

Duo's enthusiasm had waned a little with Relena's blunt words, but I could clearly see the wheels turning inside his head as he processed the information. I must have had an expression on my own face akin to horror, wide eyed and slack jawed as the full impact of what Relena had just said began to sink in. Not that I was adverse to male relationships, personally I didn't give a damn if a couple were same sex or opposite. I wasn't one to pass judgment, especially considering I really hadn't had much personal experience in the field.

"Now you see why I don't think it will be me that needs protecting and why I didn't want a security detail."

"Shit!" I turned to face Relena. "How long have you been into this sort of thing?" I was finding it hard to put Relena, innocent ambassador for peace, and gay cartoon characters into the same picture.

"Oh, about three years."

"Three years?!" Seemed I didn't know Relena as well as I'd thought I did.

"Give or take a few months."

"Well fuck me," Duo stated.

"No thanks, but I think there's going to be a lot of girls here at the Con that, to put it mildly, will be taking a strong interest in you two."

Now that was something new. I turned my gaze to Duo and found him staring back, wide eyed at me as the implications began to register. "And why exactly would these women want to show an interest in Duo and myself? We are only here to protect you."

"Think about it, Heero," Duo said. "A hotel full of females who enjoy the thought of two male anime characters in a relationship together."

"So?" I couldn't help it if I didn't fully understand. I dealt with facts, needed to have things put into black and white, not all the unerring shades of gray.

"You know what a bishounen is, right?"

"Yes. I have watched some anime, I'm not stupid." If I was totally honest here the only anime I'd really watched was a little on the cable network when suffering from nightmares and not able to return to sleep, but the word bishounen was familiar to me. "Bishounen is the term given to male anime characters that are drawn to appear pretty."

"We still need to work on your personal skills, Heero," Duo muttered. "Okay, you know what a bishounen is, now take it a step further."

"How?" I knew he wasn't trying to confuse me on purpose, but I didn't know the next step in his line of thinking.

"I'll lay it on the line for you, Heero." Duo said, obviously starting to get a little frustrated with my lack of understanding. "Yaoi, two males together. I wouldn't exactly say we are in the class of these bishounen the women go nuts over, but I wouldn't say we are bad looking either. Actually with your dark hair, blue eyes and smoldering expression I'd say you're exactly what some of these females would classify as a 'pretty boy'. Given that and the fact we are working together then I'd say it's a safe bet that these women are going to be putting two and two together and coming up with us."

"Us?" My brain was still stuck on what Duo had said about my looks. An unfamiliar warmth stole over me. Duo had said I was good looking.

"They are going to think that we are partners in every sense of the word, and I don't mean in the way that we just work together." Duo clarified. "They are going to think we are a couple, boyfriend and boyfriend, lovers, you know the deal? Sharing a bed and bodies, doing the horizontal tango?"

Well, fuck me six ways to Sunday, I thought as my brain finally caught up. "I get it, Duo," I growled. "Please remember there are ladies present and refrain from being so crude."

Relena snorted. "You think I'm going to be embarrassed or upset? Shit, Heero. Get your head out of your ass and take note here. I've been enjoying Yaoi for some time, very explicit Yaoi, too. If you think Duo is being crude then are you in for a shock."

It would appear I needed to do a lot of research on this Yaoi business to completely understand.

"Actually, I think this could be a bit of fun," Duo remarked.

I looked up sharply and noticed the familiar glint in his eyes. It was one I'd come to know over the years that spelled mischief -- usually involving me and a lot of red faces.

"Fun?" I questioned. "Duo, need I remind you that we are here on a mission? The mission is to protect Relena and keep her safe."

"Yeah, I know that, Heero. Lighten up a little though."

"Lighten up?! Relena could be in serious danger. Just because there are mostly going to be women here for this convention doesn't mean that one of them isn't a killer, hired to take out Relena." I know I sounded pissy, but I figured I had every right to be.

"Let me make one thing perfectly clear. This is my vacation, I wanted to come to this convention and share in the wonderful world of Yaoi, bishounen and all things gay anime brings. I honestly do not believe for one moment that I am going to be in any danger. I wish I could say the same for you two though."

"I am quite capable of looking after myself," I huffed.

"I know you are, Heero," Relena soothed. "But we're talking about homosexual-loving women here. One look at you two and they are going to mob you, want you to pose in obscene ways and want to know all the intimate details of yours and Duo's sex life."

I felt the spray of coffee hit my chest seconds before the sound of Duo choking caught my ears. "Sex life?" Duo squeaked out. "We don't have a sex life! Well, not together that is."

I quickly got up and thumped him on the back.

"They don't know that and despite any protests you guys put up they won't believe you. If you two are at a Yaoi con then that can only mean you're gay and a couple."

Suddenly, I had a feeling I stood more chance of surviving a full on confrontation with a complete battalion of OZ mobile dolls, Taurus' and Leos, minus my Gundam, than I would of surviving a weekend of rabid, yaoi fan girls. "There seems to be only one solution to this mess," I stated as I sat down again.

"No way!" Relena said. "I know what you're thinking, Heero and I am not going back or anywhere else for that matter. I have been looking forward to this convention for ages. I am not leaving!" Relena stubbornly stuck out her chin and folded her arms across her chest.

"But..."

"No! Like I said before, I didn't ask for you two to come. Hell, I didn't want anyone, but Une assigned you to protect me and I'm staying, so I suggest you find a way to deal with it, or piss off."

"Relena!" I was shocked to hear such language coming from her mouth. A glance at Duo and it would appear he wasn't shocked.

"No. I am staying. Duo?" Relena turned to my partner and raised an eyebrow.

I could see him weighing up the facts. Then blowing his bangs out of his eyes, he fixed me with a stare and defied me to challenge him. "I'll stay."

"Good," Relena said. Then she looked to me. "Heero?"

What choice did I have? I couldn't leave Relena here by herself, Une would skin me alive. I couldn't leave Duo here by himself either. Oh, he was more than capable of protecting Relena, but if what Relena said about these crazed women was true, Duo would be eaten alive. I felt a twinge inside me, something completely foreign when I thought about Duo being left to fend for himself amid all those females. "I suppose I'd better stay then." I tried to tell myself I was staying simply to make sure Relena was fine, when I knew I was just as concerned for my partner.

"I'm glad that's settled. I'd like another coffee." Relena leaned back in her chair and motioned for the waitress. She ordered her coffee and excused herself to go the bathroom.

"I think I'm going to go back to our room and do a little more research on this. The more I know the better prepared we will be. You okay to keep an eye on Relena, Duo?"

"Sure. You go see what you can find out and I'll quiz the princess here a little more and then come back up."

"Okay. I'll set up surveillance as well." I stood up to leave, but Duo placed his hand on my arm stopping me. I looked down into his eyes.

"Heero, for what it's worth I'm just as stunned by all this as you are. But I want you to know that it doesn't bother me if they think we are a couple. In fact, it will probably help in protecting Relena if they think we are. Besides, if I have to play the role, I'd rather it be you cast as my partner."

I blinked a couple of times and then nodded. "Thanks, I think." I left to go set up the equipment and scan the Internet for more information on this entire Yaoi business. Deep in the recesses of my mind my brain was processing Duo's words. I wouldn't have wanted any other partner for this either.

Chapter 4

Returning to the hotel room, I swiped the key card and entered. My surveillance equipment remained on the bed where I'd left it and I quickly picked it up, passing through the connecting door into Relena's room. It would be better if I got this set up now, before Relena returned. It didn't take long to place the equipment in various, strategic places and once it was done I felt a little more comfortable. Now I would be able to monitor Relena's room and be alerted to any threat to her instantly.

Returning to mine and Duo's room, I booted up the laptop and set the surveillance program running. Everything checked out and I smirked, rather pleased with myself. Next I hooked up to the hotel's network and took a look at their system, noting their server name and other relevant details. Within two minutes I had hacked into their database and was logged onto their system. As I brought up my browsing program I began my search to uncover the full meaning behind yaoi.

My eyes went wide as my brain went into overdrive absorbing all that I found. Even knowing what Relena had told me about the meaning of yaoi could not fully prepare me to face it in black and white. With the number of websites out there, obviously it was very popular. I was stunned.

Remembering that Relena had mentioned something about fan fiction, I typed in 'Anime-Yaoi-Fan fiction' and waited while the page loaded up with the search results.

"Fuck!"

I ran my fingers through my bangs and scanned the first page of results -- over six hundred thousand pages remained.

This would take a while.

I wasn't aware of how much time had passed until I heard the beep of my surveillance program alerting me that someone was entering Relena's room. I minimized the window I was currently perusing and checked the surveillance screen. I relaxed when I saw it was just Relena and Duo. Their mouths were moving and it was a little hard to lip read given the size of the screen I was working with so I toggled the volume button and caught the last few words; something about a shower, nap and dinner.

The tiny cameras picked up Duo's movement towards the closed connecting door and I could see that my partner was about to step inside the room.

"Hey, Heero. Having much luck?"

I gave him a look that clearly said 'don't doubt my skills' and returned to my laptop screen. I felt his presence behind me and a moment later was surprised to feel his chin resting on my shoulder. A low hiss caressed my ear.

"I see you've set up the surveillance equipment."

I focused back onto the small window that showed Relena's room. "Of course."

I hit a couple of buttons on the laptop and instantly there were four windows on screen, three showing different takes on the main room and the fourth the bathroom.

Relena showed up from three different angles on the tiny windows, rummaging through her drawers and selecting items of clothing. With the garments decided upon, she went towards the bathroom and deposited her clothing on the vanity. She stepped back out and fetched a small bag, returning and closing the door.

The two of us continued to watch, oblivious to the fact that this was technically an invasion of privacy. Relena rummaged in her bag and fetched out several small jars and bottles, standing them on the vanity top.

"Skin creams," Duo stated.

"Since when are you an expert on what women use?"

"Ah."

Out the corner of my eye I could see Duo begin to turn a healthy shade of red. I sensed an opportunity to get in a little teasing. "Duo? How come you know they are women's skin creams?"

"Ummm. Well... I use them, okay? It's no big deal."

I raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

With defeat in his eyes, Duo turned slightly to face me. "You know what it's like living on the colonies, the climate is completely controlled. When I came dirt side my skin began to dry out and I was getting these rashes. I wasn't sure what to do about it and then when I was assigned to play bodyguard to a visiting colony representative, she noticed and recommended I try a cleanser and moisturizer. I did and my skin cleared up. Now I use them regularly." He shrugged his shoulders, his body language daring me to make something of it.

I decided to let it go, but stole a glance at Duo's cheek which wasn't all that far from my own and had to admit his skin did look soft and clear with a healthy glow. I wondered idly if it would feel as soft to the touch as it looked. I stiffened slightly, wondering where the hell that thought had come from and promptly changed my line of thinking back to Relena and the laptop screen.

Relena was brushing her teeth, rinsing and spitting out the toothpaste. She began to pin up her hair and then removed her watch and necklace.

"Errr... Heero?"

"Yes?"

"Don't you think we should turn this off now?"

"If we are to protect Relena then surveillance is necessary."

"I don't think she's going to come to much harm in the bathroom taking a shower, unless the hair dryer is hot wired to jump into the stall with her or the towels develop a penchant for strangling or smothering."

"It's for safety."

"You might want to watch her highness strip down to nothing and shower, but personally I can do without that image, thank you very much."

Duo shuddered and moved away from me and I felt the slight coldness as his body heat left. My eyes returned to the screen where Relena was still pinning up her hair and then proceeding to remove her clothes. Oh shit. Maybe Duo did have a point, setting up a camera in Relena's bathroom may not have been a good idea after all. I was about to minimize the bathroom screen when I heard an almighty shriek and the screen showing the bathroom went blank.

"Uh oh," remarked Duo and dived for his bed.

"HEERO!!"

I swallowed. I knew that tone. It wasn't the 'Heero... come and kill me' tone, nor was it the 'Heero... save me' tone. It was the 'Heero... I'm going to rip you apart' tone. Somehow I didn't think her highness appreciated the lengths I'd gone to in order to protect her. Barely a millisecond later, Relena burst through the connecting door, her face red with anger, eyes flashing and something clutched tightly in her hand.

"What the hell is the meaning of this?" she demanded, thrusting the tiny camera in my face.

I looked from the camera to Relena and back to the camera again. I could see Duo out the corner of my eye wearing a look that said something along the lines of 'Let's see you get out of this one, buddy'.

"It's a camera, part of my surveillance equipment. I set it up to be able to protect you." "I know what it is, I want to know what the hell it's doing in my bathroom!"

"Surveillance," I repeated.

"There is no need to have a camera in my bathroom. If I didn't know you any better I'd say you just wanted to ogle me."

"I DO NOT!"

"Oh?" Relena cocked her head to the side, a sly smile appearing. "Not into the female form?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" I growled.

"Here, take your camera and set it up in your own bathroom."

"Why would I want to do that? You're the one that needs to be kept safe."

"Figure it out yourself. But I'm telling you now, Heero, that camera stays out of my bathroom. I refuse to have you spying on me when I'm showering or attending to business." Relena dropped the camera in my lap and left.

I picked up the camera and studied it for a moment before turning to Duo. "Why would she suggest I set it up in our bathroom?"

"Ah, umm... "

Now that was strange. I didn't usually see Duo lost for words. Then it began to dawn on me exactly what Relena had just said and I felt the heat rising to my cheeks. "Forget it," I mumbled and dropped the camera to the desk top before resuming my perusal of the Internet. I could see Duo's reflection in the lap top screen and I couldn't help but notice his eyes sweep over me with a touch of something I didn't fully understand. I gave it no further thought and clicked on another link.

The next five minutes were spent in silence before Duo's curiosity got the better of him and he pulled over a chair to sit next to me. "Find out much?"

"Quite a bit. Did you talk with Relena?"

"Yeah." He scratched the back of his neck before continuing. "It seems this whole Yaoi thing is a lot bigger than I'd thought. I'd heard of it, but never investigated it much. To be honest when I first came across it I thought it was just a few women out there who had nothing better to do with their time than to imagine gay relationships between anime characters when there weren't any. From what Relena has told me it's quite a big thing."

"I've come to the same conclusion," I muttered and indicated the screen.

"Well fuck me," Duo hissed as he saw the number of results for my search.

"Relena mentioned something about fan fiction. Did she say anything more about that?"

"Yeah, she did. She's right into a couple of animes and apparently she also writes about this stuff."

"Didn't happen to say what animes, did she?"

"Actually, yes."

"And?"

"Full Metal Alchemist and Yami no Matsuei."

"I don't suppose you managed to find out what name she uses when she writes this stuff? Obviously she's not going to use her own name."

Duo fidgeted for a second. "Flutterby."

"Eh?"

"Flutterby. That's her pen name. You're not going to...?"

I smirked. "Yes." I typed in a new search.

"Relena's gonna kill you."

"That would make a change," I retorted.

"But isn't that invasion of privacy or something?"

"Not if she has them posted to a web site. Anyone can take a look." I scrolled down the results page and selected a likely site. A couple of clicks later and I found what I wanted.

"Okay!" Duo moved a little closer.

It would appear my partner's enthusiasm had returned. I glanced down the author page. "Shit, just how many fics has she written?"

"She told me she writes to alleviate the stress; looks like she has a lot of stress."

I had to agree.

"Click on that one, Heero." Duo's finger pointed to the screen.

I duly clicked and the page transferred, the fic displaying on the screen.

Cracking his knuckles, Duo scooted closer. "Right. Let's see just what our princess gets up to in her spare time."

"Duo, I don't think..."

"Backing out on me now, buddy? Heero, you're the one that said we needed to find out as much as we can about this whole Yaoi con thing and if what Relena has said so far is any indication, I think it's a pretty safe bet that most of these rabid fan girls either read or write the stuff. To me this is the perfect place to start for recon."

It would be hypocritical of me to disagree.

"Fine." I gave in and began to read. Beside me, Duo rested his chin in his hand and also began to read.

// Muraki withdrew causing a soft moan to fall from Tsuzuki's lips. Immediately Tsuzuki rolled over and snuggled deep into his lover's arms. They lay together in the afterglow, simply enjoying the moment of closeness that having great sex could bring. Eventually, Muraki began to pull away, the dried flakes of semen itching at his skin.

"I think we need a shower."

"Together?" Tsuzuki asked, hope in his voice. Although his ass burned from their rough coupling, he was eager for more.

"Of course." Muraki felt his desire for the other man beginning to stir again.

"Good." Tsuzuki scrambled from the bed and made a beeline for the shower. He paused in the doorway and fondled his half hard cock, turning to give his lover a coy look. "You coming?"

"I soon will be."

Tsuzuki gave a deep laugh which became a scream of pleasure as his lover pounced. //

"Well, that was..." Duo's face held a slight flush as he spoke.

"I agree."

"Not the sort of thing I'd expect from her highness."

"No."

"She seemed to be pretty accurate with her descriptions." Duo mused.

"Pardon?"

"Ah."

"How would you know, Duo?" I turned to face him and caught the frightened look in his eyes. Interesting.

"Before I answer that, let me ask you a question, Heero." He licked his lips nervously. "Are you opposed to same sex relationships?"

I chewed over that for a moment before replying. "No. I don't think so."

"You don't think so? What sort of an answer is that?"

"I don't really know. Look," I thought it would be best if I just came out and admitted my ignorance completely. "I can't really comment. I haven't had much experience in the world of relationships."

"That doesn't surprise me."

"Thanks a lot."

Duo sighed. "I didn't mean it that way."

I decided to cut him a little slack. "I know. I haven't really given a lot of thought to relationships in general. Given the type of job we do it doesn't seem fair to become involved with someone when you can't promise them you will be there tomorrow. That's why I've never really dated, besides, most of my time is taken up with work, missions and paperwork."

"Amen to that."

"You haven't answered my question yet," I prompted.

"I guess I should come clean." Duo chewed on his bottom lip for a moment, obviously struggling with himself internally. Finally he spoke. "Heero, I'm bisexual."

Okaaaay.

"You do know what that means, don't you? It means I like both..."

"I know what it means, Duo," I growled.

He cringed, raising his hands in defense. "I'm sorry if my sexuality offends you, but I am what I am."

Did it offend me? No. Shock me? Yes. And suddenly, I realized how my reaction must have come across. Shit, I could be so damn insensitive at times! The poor guy had just confessed something extremely personal and I'd given him the impression I was totally repulsed.

This was something I needed time to digest, analyze and come to terms with.

"Earth to Heero. You still with me here, Heero? Or do I need to find another room to stay in?"

I turned to look at my partner; no, Duo was more than that. He was my friend. So what if he liked men, it didn't change his personality, never affected his functioning as an agent. Why should his confession make any difference to our friendship? He was still the same person I'd come to rely upon, share a beer with. What he got up to in his own time was his business.

"Duo, it's okay. It doesn't bother me in the slightest and no, you're not staying in another room. You're staying right here with me. We're still partners, and I hope, friends."

Duo visibly relaxed and let go a deep breath he'd obviously been holding. "Thanks, Heero. That means a lot to me."

I smiled, a rare thing indeed, or so I'd been told.

"Um, Heero?"

"Yes?"

"Would you mind keeping this to yourself? I don't exactly go around advertising the fact."

I could see just how worried he was, his eyes gave him away. Feeling a sudden sense of protectiveness steal over me, I raised my hand and cupped his cheek. "I promise never to breathe a word about it."

"Thanks," he said softly and leaned into my touch for a moment before pulling away. "I'm going to take a shower. Relena wants to go for dinner around six and it's five now."

I watched him grab some clean clothes and disappear into the bathroom before turning back to the lap top once more. I stared at my hand, realizing that it tingled from the brief touch. And yes, his skin was as soft as it looked.

We met up with Relena and headed for the hotel's restaurant for dinner. None of us felt like leaving the hotel to find somewhere cheaper to eat and I figured that under the circumstances, Preventers could pay the bill.

During the course of the meal the three of us discussed the up coming convention a little more. Actually it was more along the lines of Duo and myself asking questions while Relena did her best to answer them. My questions were pretty straight forward.

"What sort of things can we expect to find going on at this convention?"

"There will be many things, Heero. I'm not exactly sure of the timetable, we won't find that out until tomorrow at registration."

"How many people are coming?"

"I really don't know, but it is popular so I think it would be a safe bet to guess there will be about five hundred all up."

I choked on a piece of fish I was trying to swallow. Duo thumped me on the back. "Thanks."

"Five hundred, hey? That's a lot of fan girls," Duo mused as he returned to eating his filet mignon.

"They won't all be fan girls, Duo. There are quite a few males who attend these conventions as well. Some of them are -- well let's say very nice."

"Really?" Duo asked.

I was so glad I didn't have another piece of food in my mouth at that point, I had the distinct feeling that Duo would have worn it. The interest Duo had shown in Relena's last statement told me he was certainly feeling a lot more comfortable all of a sudden.

"Don't forget the mission objective, Duo," I managed to hiss out as I kicked him under the table. While I knew Duo was an excellent agent I didn't like the idea that he might be checking out the males in attendance and possibly losing focus of protecting Relena.

Duo gave me a pained look and reached under the table to rub his shin. "Don't worry about me, Heero. I'll behave and keep focused on the mission."

"If you two are so intent on keeping me safe, I still think the best way to go about it and not attract undue attention to yourselves would be for you to act as if you're a couple," Relena said as she finished off the last of her chicken.

"I agree with Relena," Duo said. "We will be able to move around freely and yet stay close enough to protect should we need to." Then Duo turned to me. "What do you think, Heero? You okay with that or do you have a better idea?"

I had given it some thought since they had mentioned it earlier over coffee and it did seem to be the best approach. As the pair said, we wouldn't attract attention that way, well, not the sort of attention we wished to avoid. "I agree."

Relena smiled. "Good. Now, can we order dessert?"

Returning to our rooms after dinner we decided to call it a night and go to bed early. Relena wished us a good night and waited until I'd done a thorough sweep of her room before stepping inside and locking the door. Duo had gone ahead to our room. Once done with my sweep I followed in his footsteps, entering our room and locking the door behind me. I turned around, intending to give one last check of the surveillance equipment before retiring when Duo brought me up short. He was on the treadmill again, walking at a brisk pace. He'd removed his shirt and a light sheen of sweat was beginning to form.

"Are you really sure about this 'pretending to be boyfriends' bit, Heero? I'll understand completely if you want to change your mind."

"Why would I want to change my mind?"

He licked his lips, a habit I'd noticed he did whenever he was nervous.

"I just thought, given that you now know my deep, dark secret you might feel uncomfortable around me, especially in this sort of role."

I snorted. "Duo, I don't give a damn about your sexuality, that's your business. I know you will conduct yourself in a professional manner befitting a Preventers agent. Besides, I said it before and I'll say it again, there's no one else I would trust to watch my back and if I have to do this then you're the person I would have chosen to do this with me."

"Thanks, man."

I sat down at the desk, bringing up my browser window and resumed my investigations on Yaoi. I could see Duo's reflection in the screen and soon found myself watching him as he worked out on the treadmill. He was compact, lithe and wiry. He held a hidden strength inside that body, a strength many wouldn't have guessed at. His muscles rippled under the creamy skin and I found myself fascinated watching the sweat bead and then run over his chest.

What would his skin taste like?

Fuck! Where the hell did that thought come from?

Shocked at my mind's wandering, especially the direction it had wandered into, I abruptly drew my training around me and refocused on the laptop. I was straight, as straight as an arrow, wasn't I? I didn't know that even arrows could bend.

Chapter 5

The next morning we ventured down to the restaurant for breakfast. It was pretty full and my eyes swept over the assorted crowd within. None appeared to be a threat but I didn't relax my guard. Beside me I could feel Duo just as tense, but Relena seemed to be right at home. We were shown to a table and given menus. The harassed looking waitress appeared and took our order; Duo decided on the smoked salmon and bagel breakfast while Relena opted for toast. I decided to try the oatmeal.

I continued to sweep the room with my eyes, looking for potential assassins. I noticed Duo also kept his eyes in motion, only he seemed to be taking in the many varied people in the room in a slightly different manner. I wasn't sure if he was looking for the same thing I was.

Breakfast arrived and we ate in relative silence, each lost in our own thoughts. I broke the silence when we reached the coffee stage. "What do you have planned for today, Relena?"

She placed her coffee cup back on the table before replying. "I thought we could take a ride into town and pick up some groceries or something along the snack line."

"Ah."

"What time does this con thing start?" Duo asked as he poured himself another cup and added a liberal amount of cream to it.

"Registration begins this afternoon between three and nine. I'd suggest we get in fairly early otherwise we won't be able to attend the opening ceremony. I've pre registered, but you two will need to fill out the forms and register. I hope you have ID with you."

I gave a snort. "Of course we do."

"Good, because you will need to show it."

"How come? I mean, it's obvious we are registering because we intend to attend the convention." Duo stirred a spoonful of sugar into his coffee.

"Given the nature of the convention and the rules of the State, you must be over eighteen to attend, therefore everyone has to provide proof of age."

I had to admit if nothing else the people who organized this convention were certainly on the ball as far as the legalities went.

"Good to see the organizers are conscientious then," Duo muttered.

"Oh yes. They have to be, Duo. Once you have registered you will be given a name tag and a wrist band. You must keep your wrist band on at all times during the convention. That way the organizers will permit you to enter the different events being held. No band, no entry."

"Makes sense." I drained my cup and sat back. "Why the snacks and grocery shopping?"

"You know how it is, you get peckish and the restaurant is closed or they don't do snacks and the room service menu is way overpriced."

"Amen to that," Duo snickered beside me.

"Fine. Grocery shopping and a look around the town it is. We need to prepare though. I suggest we go back to our rooms and meet in ten minutes in your room, Relena." I gave her a look that clearly said we would accompany her and do what she wanted as long as she cooperated with our mission and didn't endanger herself.

Giving a resigned sigh, Relena agreed and we left the restaurant. I paid for the meal on the Preventers credit card I'd been given to use on missions and didn't let myself dwell on what Une's reaction would be to the exorbitant charges. Considering the circumstances I felt it was justified.

Outside the hotel I called for a cab, much to Relena's dismay. She'd been hoping to take the shuttle bus to the shuttle port and catch the subway into the city. I soon put paid to those plans, insisting we take a taxi as it would be much safer. Duo had suggested we take the car, but after his driving efforts the previous day I wasn't up to playing side kick for Evil Knievel. Duo might have a death wish but I didn't; I'd gotten over that a long time ago. Dying hurt, I had first hand experience at it and really didn't relish a second try. After knowing the alternative to the cab, Relena agreed with me and we soon bundled into the back seat of a taxi.

The drive into town passed quickly and the cab dropped us off in a side street just by Japan Town. Feeling the comforting press of my gun against my side where it sat in its shoulder holster, I followed Relena and Duo into one of the many malls.

Two hours later, I was beginning to regret my decision to let Relena go shopping. My feet ached and my eyes hurt. My brain wasn't doing much better either. Now I knew why men rarely accompanied their wives when they went shopping. Relena had been in no less than five supermarkets and we still didn't have much to show for it. I was, by now, much more conversant in comparing prices and ingredients of various food items. Top brand names versus lesser known alternatives, weight compared with price charged, sugar and fat content -- all became painfully aware to me as Relena studied the various packaging of the items she wanted.

What ever happened to just going in and getting what you wanted off the shelf, then paying for it?

When we exited the sixth supermarket I made my discomfort known. Relena agreed we needed a break so we found a Japanese restaurant and sat down to enjoy lunch. Once lunch was finished, Relena assured me that this next supermarket would be the last. It would need to be if we were to get back to the hotel in time for registration. I couldn't help but notice that Duo seemed to enjoy the shopping trip and had added a couple of bags of his own to the assorted items Relena had purchased. I didn't question him, I knew I would get to see what he'd bought later, and sample it if I was lucky. I hadn't purchased anything myself, I'd been too busy scanning for threats.

Back at the hotel, we piled out of the cab and grabbed the bags from the trunk. Duo paid the driver and then picked up the bags, carrying them inside the hotel foyer. I followed behind Relena and did a double take as I entered. The foyer was swarming with people. Looked like the rest of the convention attendees had arrived.

Duo gave a low whistle. "Well, shit!"

I echoed his sentiments. Looking at the milling crowd I began to have my doubts that this was a good idea. How the fuck were we supposed to keep Relena safe with this throng around? Not only were there a lot of people, but the majority of them were dressed weird as well. So many costumes, and most of them capable of concealing weapons of some sort.

As my eyes roved the foyer, the back of my neck began to prickle. There were so many unknowns here, including the young man in a samurai costume who was fast approaching. I reached for my gun, placing my hand on the cold metal, ready to withdraw it from its holster, but then Duo stepped to my side. He placed a hand on my forearm, pressing my arm down.

"Easy, cowboy."

I blinked, but eased my hand from the gun, the scowl on my face saying what I felt. "What the fuck?"

The warrior before me gave a smile and sheathed his 'sword'. A bow was granted, one I didn't return.

Duo's body pressed closer to mine, whether to shield me or the warrior I wasn't sure. His arm suddenly draped across my shoulder and he gave a grin. "Sorry, Kenshin. He's taken."

The warrior bowed a second time. "Some guys have all the luck," he muttered and then disappeared into the crowd.

"Kenshin?" I asked as I turned to face Duo.

"Yeah. From the anime Rurouni Kenshin."

"Ah." It appeared that I wasn't as familiar with all the anime out there as I'd thought.

"I hate to interrupt, but could we go back to our rooms now and get this stuff stashed? Registration started fifteen minutes ago and I'd like to get my tags and goodie bag."

Relena gazed at us with an amused smile on her face. My cheeks began to flush as I realized that Duo still had his arm around my shoulders. "Ah, I think we should," I mumbled and began to shift my body.

Duo turned with me, his arm still across my shoulders as we walked towards the elevators. I could feel my cheeks getting pink as the people around us gave knowing smiles, grins and even the odd whistle or cat call. Funny thing, Duo's arm felt reassuring -- nice even.

"My feet are killing me," Duo muttered as he shifted his weight for the umpteenth time.

Mine weren't much better. We seemed to have been standing in this line for hours. My watch told me it was only an hour and a half.

"My back aches. I think I'm getting corns on my toes and my arches are dropping." Duo's voice took on a slightly whining tone.

"It's not much further now," I replied by way of comfort. "See?" I nodded in the direction of the doorway we were waiting to pass through to register. I counted heads. "Ten people and then it's us."

"I'll be a cripple before I get there."

"I'll massage your feet later," I growled. "Shut up with the whining, anyone would think you were a girl."

"I do not whine."

"Could have fooled me. What would you call it?"

"Making observational statements."

I grunted and shook my head.

"Would you really do that?"

"Huh?"

"Massage my feet."

"If it will shut you up."

He gave me a smile and promptly ceased his whining. Just what the hell was I getting myself into here? I didn't have too much time to ponder the thought of Duo and his feet, the line began to move and the three of us were now at the door and my attention was taken up once again by scanning the room for potential threats.

Ten minutes more and we were standing before a desk. Behind the desk sat several people in assorted costumes. Most of the anime they represented I didn't recognize and after perusing them, I felt I really didn't want to know either. A friendly looking woman dressed in a black T-shirt, skirt, cowboy boots and cowboy hat approached us.

"Pre-registered?" she asked as she stopped in front of us.

"I am, but these two hunks aren't," Relena said before either Duo or I could open our mouths.

Her eyes gave us the once over and she licked her lips. A shiver of apprehension went down my spine as I watched her gaze linger appreciatively on Duo. Without even thinking, my hand snaked out and snatched Duo's possessively.

With a knowing smile, she averted her eyes and turned back to Relena to converse with her for a moment. I felt a squeeze to my hand and looked up into Duo's twinkling violet eyes.

"Thanks, buddy. I thought she was gonna eat me with her eyes." Duo shuddered.

I smiled. "All part of the service." I was about to say more when Relena interrupted and dragged us along the line.

Within five minutes, ID had been produced, cash handed over, I was wearing a bright orange wrist band, had a name tag pinned to my shirt and was clutching a bag of 'goodies'.

The speed at which we had been processed stunned even me and I was now back outside the registration room wondering what the hell had just happened.

"Relena?" Duo spoke.

"Yes?" Relena replied a little absently, she was busy going through her goodie bag.

"How come we only paid half price to register?"

I spun around, Duo's words jolted my memory and I recalled the woman behind the desk had only accepted half payment each for Duo and myself. Come to think of it, she also had a very funny look on her face.

"Ah." Relena seemed at a loss for words.

Immediately I was on alert. Relena's evasiveness stirred something inside me and I knew it wasn't going to be good. I didn't have a chance to say anything as Duo continued with his questioning.

"Relena, the woman behind the desk said something about being part of a Bishounen auction? Would that have anything to do with the reduced payment?"

"Umm. Actually, yes."

"Relena," I growled. "I think you need to do some explaining."

She leaned against the wall and looked from Duo to me before finding the carpet rather fascinating. "The organizers said they would only charge you half price if you would enter the Bishounen auction. I told them you would."

Okay. "Auction; A public sale in which property or items of merchandise are sold to the highest bidder," I reeled off from memory. "I can handle bidding." I looked at Duo who had turned an interesting shade of pink. "What?"

"Heero, this is a Bishounen auction," Duo stated.

"Yes, I heard."

"You remember what a Bishounen is?"

I snorted. "Of course I do!"

"Heero. Put that exceptional mind of yours to work and think about it."

"Eh?"

"It means they are going to be auctioning off Bishounen and the attendees, are to bid for them. You know, live pretty boys," Duo said, cocking his head.

Duo's words sank in slowly. "You mean we are going to be bidding for living men?"

"We won't be bidding. Relena entered you and me in the auction. We are the merchandise."

"What?!"

"More like, what the fuck!"

I spun around to find Relena who was slinking off down the hall. As soon as she saw my face she took off at a run. "Relena! You have some explaining to do!" Without waiting to see if Duo was following I took off after the woman.

Sitting in the hotel foyer twenty minutes later, I was still scowling. Relena looked a little upset and Duo couldn't keep the amused look off his face. I had collared Relena and demanded a full explanation, reluctantly, she'd given one. I was still seething over that and it would take a long time before I could forgive her. The thought of being up there on a stage with drooling fan girls all around bidding to have me for themselves for the night didn't sit well. Relena had promised me she wouldn't let me go cheap. That wasn't what concerned me though. I was here to protect her and I couldn't do that if I was auctioned off to some other female.

I'd argued that point and she'd eventually agreed I was right, but, there was one problem. I couldn't withdraw from the auction. I made Relena swear she would bid successfully on me. The alternative was to leave this hotel now and head back home.

Relena didn't want to leave and miss out on all her fun so she accepted my terms. I told her I would give her the Preventers credit card to use as well should she need the funds. She'd looked at me rather funny and asked just how much did I think I would go for and not to flatter myself.

Duo had howled with laughter. I didn't find it the least bit amusing.

"Lighten up a little, Heero," Duo said. "Relax a bit. You never know, you might start to enjoy yourself."

I turned my scowl to Duo. "Fuck off," I snapped. "It isn't you who's going up for auction."

"Errr. Correction, Heero. Relena put us both in, remember?"

The thought of Duo up there on stage with a bunch of women all lusting after him made my blood run cold. But, why should I care? I didn't have an answer to that one and filed it away for later analysis. I didn't get a chance to reply to him though as Relena sat forwards and taking a highlighter pen from her bag, spread out a sheet of paper on the small table.

"Here you go, guys. This is the event schedule for the weekend."

Both of us leaned forward and took in the information before us. There were several columns on the page listing session names, room numbers and times. Relena began to highlight several.

I fished in my own bag and drew out the same piece of paper. Duo got up from his chair and perched himself on the arm of my chair. He leaned in close, resting his side against my own to peer down at the paper.

"Looks like they have a lot planned," he said as he read down the chart.

I had to agree.

"Relena, what are you highlighting?" Duo asked.

"All the events I want to attend," she replied absently.

I scanned the page in front of me. 'Yaoi in Cannon and Fannon.' 'Alternate Pairings.' 'History of Slash in the West.' 'Bishounen Bingo.' 'Fan Market.' These were just some of the words that glared back at me from the page. Beside me, Duo gave a low whistle.

"They sure have a lot of diverse things planned," Duo muttered.

I didn't bother to reply, I was too busy trying to wrap my mind around half the things on the page. I would either be questioning Relena into the wee hours or spending some more research time on the laptop.

"What have you planned, princess?"

I raised my eyes from my own schedule to see Relena passing over hers to Duo for him to read. He took the page and held it so we could both see. My eyes scanned over and I felt the frown increase. Relena had highlighted quite a few items.

Opening ceremony, Fan market, dealer's room, cosplay, bishounen auction, girls want to know, writing smut, use of foods in yaoi, bondage and submission, kink and fetish, closing ceremony. All of these were highlighted and stared back at me. I swallowed, feeling a trickle of sweat run down my back.

"You're planning on attending all of these?" I managed to ask.

"Yes." Relena gave me a look that clearly said she wasn't missing any of them so I'd better get used to it.

I gave a sigh of resignation. "Fine." At least I would have Duo with me so I wouldn't be suffering alone. I turned to gaze at my partner and saw his eyes still skimming over the page. His skin held a pink tinge to it and he shifted slightly.

"These panels are going to be interesting," he said softly.

"Hn." I didn't think they would be all that hard to sit through.

"Bondage and submission, hmmm. Kink and fetish. Writing smut." Duo shifted on the arm of the chair.

I was still watching him as he read over the list, when Duo moved a little his hips came into closer range and automatically my eyes lowered. I felt my heart almost stop and my eyes widened. There was a distinct bulge appearing in the front of Duo's pants. Not the normal, 'free hanging' bulge either. This was more of the 'I'm getting a bit excited' bulge. Either that or Duo was hiding something really impressive in those jeans.

I managed to tear my eyes away, feeling warmth spread in my own loins. Was Duo getting turned on by reading about this stuff? Exactly what did happen at these panels? I didn't know whether to be scared shitless or curious.

No doubt I would find out soon enough.

Chapter 6

"Much more of this line stuff and I'm gonna go nuts."

I turned to face Duo who was complaining loudly about having to stand in yet another line. We were waiting to go into the room allocated for the opening ceremony. I was just as tired, my own feet and legs aching from standing for so long.

"Why is it that I can be on my feet for over eight hours, moving around and my legs feel fine? But standing in a line for only an hour and my feet and legs are killing me, not to mention my back."

"It has something to do with motion and physics," I replied, unwilling to get into a full on discussion with him.

"Would you care for a mint?"

I turned around slowly to see where the voice had come from. Before me stood, what I presumed to be a female, wearing a purple coat. Her hair was gold and black, spiked upwards and she wore what looked like pyramid on a chain around her neck. A candy tin was waved under my face and the question repeated.

"Would you like a mint? They're only mild." The person offered again, taking one out for herself and popping it in her mouth.

Duo's hand snaked past me as did Relena's, each taking a mint and voicing their thanks. I raised my own hand and reached for one. Picking it up I paused, my eyes widening in shock.

Relena giggled. "It won't bite, Heero."

"Just suck it, Hee-chan," Duo added with a smirk as he proceeded to suck his own mint.

I raised the mint to my mouth and stared at it again. It was in the shape of a penis.

"Kinda fun and fitting, don't you think?" The girl said with a wink.

I opted to stay quiet and suck on the mint, leaving Duo and Relena to chat with the girl. The line started to move again and I found Duo beside me.

"Not a bad tasting cock to have in your mouth," Duo said quietly so only I could hear.

I turned my head slowly, pushed the mint to the front of my mouth and opened up just enough for Duo to see what I was about to do. The head of the penis mint rested against my lower teeth, the shaft of it against my tongue. I pushed it forwards just a little more and then bit down, severing the mint in two.

"Ouch!" Duo shuddered and moved a subtle hand over his groin.

I smirked.

Relena grabbed us both by the hands and dragged us to seats just slightly off center and about half way back. Around us people were scrambling madly for good seats, ones relatively close to the stage. Finally the stampede slowed and people found somewhere to sit or stand. The doors were closed and a cheer went up as the emcee took the stage.

I was too busy staying alert and focusing on the crowd around us for potential threats to be concerned with the opening ceremony. Despite Relena's confidence that no one would be trying to harm her at the convention, my training was something I couldn't just turn off. While Duo appeared to be paying attention to what was happening on the stage, I knew he was just as observant of his surroundings as I was. He had that knack of being able to blend in while I seemed to stick out like a sore thumb.

I envied him that.

I knew I had changed from how I'd been during the wars, but my soldier instincts hadn't dulled at all. Duo may have managed to smooth out a few of my sharp angles, but the soldier in me remained the same.

I finally managed to relax a little and catch some of the words that were spoken during the ceremony. The thanking of the sponsors and organizers along with the introduction of the special guests was followed by a video clip that had been put together by the organizers. The video comprised of clips taken from previous conventions, strung together and set to music to highlight the past and promote the future.

Needless to say, I didn't get a lot of it.

Once the opening ceremony was concluded and the applause died down, we were ushered out of the room and back into the hall way. I glanced at my watch, it was eight thirty. Relena stifled a yawn and turned to face us.

"I think I'll skip the Bishounen Bingo and head to bed early," she began. "I want to be up and awake early in the morning to get to the fan market and dealers room before all the good stuff goes."

"Fan market?" I inquired.

"It's where all the fans can congregate and sell stuff they don't want any longer or sell stuff they make. It's a lot of fun browsing around the stalls."

Great. Just what I needed, another morning shopping with Relena.

"What sort of stuff do they have in the dealers room?" Duo asked as we began to walk back to the hotel lobby.

Relena's eyes twinkled. "All sorts of merchandise. You'll find items ranging from clothing to posters, manga and doujinshi to models, videos and DVDs. There's quite an extensive collection on display and if you're looking for something specific and they haven't got it, chances are they can get it for you."

"Might be worth checking out," Duo replied with a smile and then pushed the button to the elevator.

Wonderful. Now I had to contend with two shopaholics.

Duo checked Relena's room while I went over the laptop's surveillance. Nothing had been detected in our absence so I relaxed a little. Duo joined me once he'd bid the princess good night and promptly collapsed on his bed. I decided to do a little weight training before taking a shower and calling it a night.

I moved over to the apparatus and selected some weights, setting up the bar and making the necessary adjustments. Before I attempted any lifting though, I did a few warm up exercises. Once my muscles had loosened up I lay down on the bench press and prepared to lift.

"You want a hand?" I heard Duo ask.

I raised my head a fraction. "If you don't mind that would be good."

"No problem, happy to be spotter for you." I grunted and settled into position. I could see Duo's shadow as he also settled into position and then I focused on the bar, weights and exercise at hand. After lifting several times, I decided to increase the weight. Duo assisted in guiding the bar back to the rest poles and then fetched more lead. I was starting to sweat so I removed my shirt and wiped it over my back and chest, then lay down again to continue lifting.

It didn't register until I was almost finished that Duo had been unusually quiet throughout the exercise session. Normally he would be chatting away about different things, encouraging me to lift higher or increase the weights. This time though, he was silent.

Continuing to lift the bar, I managed to take a look out the corner of my eye to try and see why he was so quiet. He had a funny look on his face and his eyes seemed to be very distant. They were also half lidded giving him an expression I didn't understand. As I began to take my eyes off him they drifted over his body causing me to lose concentration and I nearly dropped the bar.

"Shit! You okay? What happened?" Duo grabbed the bar and raised it back up to the stand.

"I-I-I got a cramp in my arm," I closed my eyes so Duo wouldn't be able to read the lie in them.

"You nearly had more than a cramp, buddy. You could have crushed your chest." Duo continued to chastise me as I lay on the bench. "Why didn't you say something? Surely you felt it coming on."

I sat up, still avoiding his eyes. "I didn't feel it, okay? It just happened." I couldn't tell him the real reason for my sudden loss of strength; I wasn't sure I understood it myself. "I'm going to take a shower." I didn't give him the chance to say anything more, I got up and marched off to the bathroom, grabbing a pair of boxers on the way.

With the shower on full blast, I let the water course over my body, washing away the sweat and trying to figure out why the glimpse of Duo's body had turned my arms to jelly. I'd seen him many times, hell; I worked out with him regularly. We'd shared a room together on numerous occasions before and I'd always been fine with it. So why the change? Duo's body was lean and wiry, the way his shirt clung to him showed his strength off and I'd never had a problem with that before.

His jeans were tight fitting, but then Duo always wore tight jeans. No, it wasn't anything along those lines that had caused me to almost drop the bar. I had to be honest here, I'd lied to Duo but I couldn't lie to myself. When my eyes had drifted over his body it had been the rather large bulge in the front of those tight jeans that had caused me to lose concentration.

I frowned and shook my head, scattering water everywhere. Duo was obviously aroused, but why? I couldn't think of anything remotely arousing about spotting for another person doing weights. Besides, he'd spotted for me before and nothing like this had ever happened. I turned the water off and stepped out of the shower. Grabbing a towel, I began to dry off. Maybe it was due to the goings on at this convention, or maybe it was just simple libido. I knew enough about that, I had discovered for myself that the human body had needs and wants besides the basic food, water, sleep and waste disposal.

I could feel a headache tugging at the fringes of my mind so I tried to shove the thoughts away. It would be perfectly natural for Duo to get aroused from time to time. It stood to reason that a young male would need release for sexual tension. I'd jerked off enough times to realize that the tension didn't go away, you needed to take care of it. Yes, that's what it had to be.

Feeling a little better now I'd logically explained Duo's excitement, I slipped my boxers on and hung up the towel. Stepping back out into the room, I found Duo at my laptop. He looked up as I approached.

"You sure you're okay, Heero?"

"I'm fine. Just a little over stress to the muscles I think. I haven't done weights in a while so I shouldn't have pushed it."

Duo looked as if he would like to take the conversation further, clearly my explanation didn't convince him, but he dropped it. "You don't mind if I do a little more scouting around the Internet, do you?"

"Be my guest." I stuffed my dirty clothes into my duffle and turned down the bed. I grabbed the goodie bag from registration and climbed into the bed. I thought I'd have a look through the bag's contents before going to sleep. Ten minutes later, reading so much about yaoi had my cheeks feeling hot and I wondered if I would ever sleep again. I'd certainly learned more about yaoi and the reason for the convention in the program guide than I had from researching on the Internet. I decided that now would probably be a good time to put the stuff away and try get some rest, preferably before Duo could see how red my cheeks were and start to ask questions.

"Good night," I called out as I burrowed into the mattress after turning the side lamp off.

"Night. I'll only be a few more minutes then I'll switch this back over to surveillance mode only."

"Thanks." I turned over and shot a quick glance at my partner. Duo's back was towards me, his attention caught by whatever it was on the screen. Idly he played with the end of his braid. As I drifted off to sleep I wondered what he would look like with his hair down.

The next morning saw us refreshed from a good night's sleep and enjoying breakfast in the hotel restaurant. I hadn't given any further thought to what had happened last night and Duo hadn't said anymore about it either. He was talking animatedly with Relena about the fan market and dealers room while I watched and listened, my eyes darting around the room from time to time and keeping a close eye on the other people there. I had to admit that whilst some of the costumes people dressed in appeared to be outlandish, I couldn't deny the time and effort that had obviously gone into making them.

"Come on, Heero. The market opens in five minutes and I want to get in before all the good stuff goes."

I returned my attention to Relena who was standing, obviously waiting for me. I stood up and followed Relena and Duo out of the restaurant and along another hall.

"Fan market is down here and should be opening any minute. You'll need to show your ID badge and wrist band to get in," Relena informed us.

We walked along the hall and came to a large group of people, all similarly waiting for the market to open.

"Hey cutie," one woman said.

I spun around to see a woman dressed in a blue and white track suit holding a tennis racquet and making funny looking eyes at me.

"You're a sweetie. Mmmm... I bet you'd be delicious. Just look at those muscles."

She reached a finger out to trace down my biceps but came up short. I blinked to see Duo standing right beside me, so close he was almost joined to me. His hand grasped the woman's by the wrist, effectively stopping her hand from coming any closer. I felt his other arm wrap around my waist.

"He's already taken," Duo growled.

The woman gave a lustful smile. "Shame. Although I bet you two look great together in bed."

Behind me I heard Relena snort; or was it choke? Either way I was too much in shock myself to really notice.

"That's something you're not going to find out," Duo said with an evil grin of his own. "Neither one of us will kiss and tell." Duo added a wink to his words and the woman blushed.

Further interaction was interrupted then as the doors to the fan market opened and people began to surge forwards. Duo kept his arm around my waist as he grabbed Relena's hand, keeping the three of us together and not swept away by the crowd. Moments later we were inside the fan market, Relena tugging Duo along who in turn pulled me with him.

I didn't pay a lot of attention to the fan market at first, I was too busy trying to keep an eye out for potential threats and wondering why Duo still had his arm around my waist. Not that I really minded, we were supposed to be acting like boyfriends and I supposed this was part of the act. It was only when we reached the third stall that I started to take notice of the items available for purchase. Duo's arm left my waist as he picked up an action figure and studied it. I missed the contact and subconsciously moved a little closer to him, peering over his shoulder to see what held his interest.

"Super Saiyajin Goku," Duo explained as he showed me the figurine of a man dressed in an orange outfit with yellow hair and a look of concentration on his face. "Ohhh... Super Saiyajin Vegeta too!"

This figurine had similar yellow hair but wore a blue outfit and had a scowl on its face to rival one of mine. Personally, I couldn't see the attraction to the figurines, but Duo was pretty excited. Before I knew it, the two figurines were in a plastic bag and clutched in Duo's hand. He turned his lively eyes to me.

"I've been hunting everywhere for these figurines, they're out of production and quite hard to come by."

"I'm happy for you," I replied. He looked a little hurt at my obvious lack of enthusiasm and I felt a strange twist inside my chest. "What the hell is Relena buying now?" I tried to change the topic, confused at my reaction to Duo's look of hurt. It worked as my partner's attention was diverted to Relena and the deal she was negotiating with a vendor over a couple of dolls.

"Plushies!" Duo all but yelled in my ear.

"Plushies?"

"Yeah. Soft, doll like toys of anime characters. Ohh, she's got Roy and Edward." Duo fairly bounced as he grabbed my hand and hauled me over to Relena.

"Who are Roy and Edward?" I growled.

"Full Metal Alchemist," Duo replied in a tone that said 'everybody knows that!'

I had told him that I had watched some anime, I just hadn't said how much. It was now painfully obvious to me that what I had seen was only the tiniest tip of the anime ice berg.

"You got Roy and Edward!" Duo crowed to an obviously happy Relena.

She beamed back at him. "I've wanted a plushie pair of these for ages."

Personally, I couldn't see the attraction to these floppy dolls. Given the choice between Relena's purchase and Duo's I'd have to say I preferred Duo's, at least they were more solid. I stood in the background while the pair of them discussed their purchases, my eyes constantly on the move for threats. After a few minutes discussion, Relena decided she'd had enough of the fan market and wanted to visit the dealers room.

As they began to move off I quickly grabbed Duo's hand. He turned for a second and then relaxed, smiling as he gave my hand a squeeze. I gave a small smile in return. I didn't want to get lost in the crush of female bodies; at least I guessed they were female, with the costumes on it was a little hard to tell at times. Holding Duo's hand I felt warm and comfortable. I wasn't completely sure why, but I wasn't about to question it.

The dealers room was noisier than the fan market. People milled about everywhere, stopping to peruse various items displayed on stalls and then moving on again. I found myself once more being dragged along behind my partner and the person I was protecting. I lost count of how many stalls we passed, Relena and Duo seemed to know exactly where they wanted to go.

"Manga!" Relena said happily and stopped at a stall that had a large collection of the books. Immediately she began to look through them.

Duo moved to the other side where several open ended boxes stood and began to rifle through them. Relena joined him a moment later, the pair conversing from time to time with each other. I began to feel a little left out. My lack of anime knowledge appeared to isolate me, and while I knew it wasn't intentional, I couldn't help but feel a little hurt. Sensing no immediate danger to any of us, I let my curiosity get the better of me and moved closer. My height allowed me to peer over Relena's shoulder and see what had her so enraptured.

I nearly had a heart attack.

"Relena! Put that back now!" I demanded.

Relena whirled around to face me. "No!"

"Relena," I warned.

"No, Heero. I like doujinshi."

"That's not doujinshi, that's obscene!" I could feel the heat rising to my cheeks.

"Actually, I thought it was Naruto topping Sasuke," Duo offered with a grin.

Surely if I got any hotter I would self combust.

"It is Naruto topping Sasuke," Relena replied to Duo, completely ignoring me. "I think I'll buy this one."

"You can't!" I wasn't easily shocked as a rule but this...

"I can and I will," Relena snapped. "In fact there's a couple more I wouldn't mind buying too. Ohhh, Roy and Edward, I have to have that one to complete my collection." Relena pounced on another of the doujinshi.

"You mean you have more of these -- these disgusting things?" I stated in a voice slightly higher than normal. It seemed that shock didn't go too well with my vocal chords.

"They're not disgusting, Heero. Those Playboy type magazines that you read are by far more crude and disgusting than doujinshi. The artwork is breathtaking, the stories intriguing and they don't show the full on nudity that your 'girly' magazines do."

"I don't read Playboy!" It sounded like my voice had returned to normal.

"Really?" Relena cocked an eyebrow at me and gave a wicked smile. "What do you read, Heero? Hmmm? Maybe you're into something like 'Hee-Man'? Or maybe 'Just us Boys'?"

With those words, I did a pretty good impression of a stranded fish. It would appear my voice had deserted me for good this time.

"Do not tell me what I can and cannot buy, Heero. I'm not a girl any more, I'm over the age of eighteen, I'm a woman now and I'll damn well do as I please!" Putting her nose in the air, Relena turned away from me and resumed her searching through the doujinshi.

I turned to Duo, only to find him looking innocently away. I glared. He turned slowly and met my glare. His expression went from innocent to sheepish and he stepped a little closer.

"Why don't you go take a walk around by yourself for a bit, Heero? I'll keep an eye on Relena. I think you need to get away from her for a little while."

I gave a soft sigh. Duo was right. I was wound up, tense and it was showing in the way I was treating Relena. Duo was more than capable of protecting her so I decided to take him up on the offer. "Okay."

"See that stall over there?" Duo pointed to a stall that had a variety of T-shirts on display. "I'll meet you over there with Relena in say, half an hour?"

"Fine." I turned and left them, intending to head for the coffee shop and a bit of peace and quiet. As I made my way through the crowds I found my curiosity getting the better of me. Just what exactly was it about this doujinshi that had Relena so captivated? I glanced around. Duo and Relena had been swallowed up in the crowd. I spotted another stall to my left and made a beeline for it. With a self conscious glance around me, I reached out and with trembling fingers, picked up a doujinshi. I began to flip through it.

The art work was, as Relena had said, quite breathtaking. I picked up another and then another. I became intrigued as I read more. I reached for yet another doujinshi, completely missing the 'adult only' warning and proceeded to read. Three pages in and I could feel my cheeks reddening. Five pages in and I swear the blush was traveling the length of my body. Nervously, I stole a look at the people around me. No one was taking any notice of me, which was just as well, they were all similarly occupied. I returned to my perusal, flipping over the page and then turning it sideways for a better look.

The pair in the picture were obviously having sex and I wondered if such a position was even physically possible. I turned the page again and was confronted with the two characters obviously in the throes of orgasm. Would Duo's face look like that? I almost dropped the doujinshi.

Where the hell had that thought come from?

I swallowed nervously, took another quick look around me and opened the page again. This time I didn't see the characters on the page, but saw Duo's face and body. Shit! I quickly put the doujinshi back and stepped away from the stall. I made my way outside the dealers room and kept going to the hotel lobby and then outside into the gardens. The air was fresh and warm, helping to clear my head a little.

I found a bench to sit on and cradled my head in my hands. It was time to stop pushing thoughts away, time to look at all those things and find answers for them. Why did I picture Duo on the page of a doujinshi? Why had I felt an ache in my chest when his eyes looked hurt at my lack of enthusiasm? Why did having Duo's hand in mine, his arm around my shoulders or waist feel comforting and reassuring? We had been friends for so long that I was completely relaxed and secure in his presence. He was like a brother to me, a close friend and someone I enjoyed spending time with. I shouldn't be getting turned on, but that seemed to be exactly what was happening.

This was all so confusing.

Chapter 7

I sat for a while longer, thoughts tumbling through my head as I tried to make sense of them all.

Duo.

The one link in the chain of thoughts was Duo. I rubbed my temples. I needed to try and sort these thoughts out, look at them logically and try to determine exactly why I was thinking these things. I already knew why I felt comfortable in Duo's presence, he was my best friend. We had been through so much together, shared pain and triumph, despair and elation. I trusted him implicitly, he'd never let me down in all the missions and assignments we'd shared over the years.

Right, that was the comfort issue explained. It also made sense to tag the reassured issue with that one as well.

Next issue: Why had I felt that ache in my chest when he'd looked hurt at my words? I knew Duo enjoyed collecting various items, some of those items I found to be totally unexplainable and had commented to that effect in the past. He'd often argued with me in defense of his 'squirreling' habits, and I'd argued back, rather sarcastically at times I might add, but never had I felt an ache like this at his reaction to my words. I didn't like to think I'd hurt him, intentionally or not.

I shook my head. I wasn't getting anywhere on that issue. All I'd managed to come up with was I'd hurt him and that made me hurt. This pain I felt knowing I'd hurt Duo was an emotion that I wasn't familiar with, despite Duo's attempts to counter the effects of J's training all those years ago.

Shoving that issue aside for the moment I confronted the last and most disturbing of them. Why had I pictured Duo's face and body in the doujinshi?

I frowned. This was a real shock to me, and yet if I was totally honest with myself it gave me a warm feeling to imagine Duo in that doujinshi. Sighing loudly, I resisted the urge to tug on my hair in exasperation. Why was I having these thoughts? I'd always managed to find explanations for things that had happened to me in the past, every issue had a logical answer. So why the hell couldn't I find this answer?

I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts, but failing. I had to find the answer, it would eat away at me until I did and with my mind preoccupied in this way I wouldn't be able to give my full attention to the mission. Now that was a scary thought. I'd always given everything I had for missions and this time would be no exception.

I glanced at my watch. Shit! More time had elapsed than I'd thought and I will have to move fast to meet back up with Relena and Duo at the agreed time. I grunted as I stood up. Already this distraction was interfering with my mission of protecting Relena. I turned and headed back into the hotel to find my partner and the reason for being here -- Relena.

I found them in the place Duo had said they would be. Both were carrying plastic bags, Duo's looked heavier and I couldn't help my curiosity. Had he made some purchases of his own?

"Ah, Heero."

Relena's greeting tore me from my thoughts of what Duo could have bought and I turned to face her.

"I'm going to pop back up to my room and put this stuff away. We can grab some lunch in the restaurant or break out some of the snacks we bought while we're up in the rooms. There's a couple of panels I want to attend after lunch."

"Snacks sound fine to me," I replied.

"Good. Let's go then." Relena led the way out of the dealers room and back to the elevators.

We had a quick snack of sodas, health food bars and fruit before making our way back down to the floor of the hotel where the panels were being held in different rooms. People were milling around everywhere and it was becoming harder to stay right beside Relena. In the end, I grabbed her hand and Duo's so that none of us would be separated. While grabbing Relena's hand made sense to stop us from being separated, It felt natural to have Duo's hand in mine and I savored the feeling of his roughened palm against mine.

Soon we were seated in a smaller room along with a lot of other people, and the guest speaker arrived. The discussion got underway, but I didn't pay much attention to it. Relena seemed to be happy and focused on what was being said. I also noticed Duo concentrating, a small smile playing over his mouth, and that led me back to my thoughts from earlier.

Why was Duo suddenly having such a profound effect on me? I'd spent a lot of time with him, hanging out, sharing a drink or dinner and movies, yet he'd never been so constant in my thoughts. I didn't have a lot of time to ponder though as the panel drew to a close and we were once again outside in a hall way.

"That was interesting," Duo said as we made our way through the crowds. He took my hand in his, and Relena's in his other hand, and led us back to the larger foyer area where we weren't in such close proximity to everyone.

"I've got a few more ideas and things to work on now after that little lecture," Relena commented.

"I didn't realize there was so much involved in writing smut," Duo chuckled.

"There is if you want to do it properly. There's a difference between writing a good smutty piece and straight out porn."

"I'll agree with that," Duo returned.

I could feel the color rising to my cheeks again. I'm not a prude, but I don't exactly go around discussing things of such intimate standing in public. And it's hard to connect Relena the politician with this gay porn writer before me now.

We found a place to stand that was slightly away from the rest of the group, and Relena took her hand back to fish in her pocket and pull out her con guide. Duo continued to hold my hand and I saw no reason to break the contact, so I didn't. It felt reassuring in a way.

"What's next, princess?" Duo asked, seemingly at ease with us holding hands.

"There's one more panel I'd like to go to before going back to the room to get ready for the auction."

I shivered. I'd temporarily forgotten about the auction.

"It's a discussion on Bondage and submission play."

I felt Duo tense slightly beside me and glanced out the corner of my eye at my partner. He'd gone a little pale and there was a slight tinge of pink to his cheeks. Why would the words 'bondage and submission' cause this reaction to my partner? A thought hit me hard.

During the war, all of us had been captured by OZ at some stage and forced to endure torture to get us to 'talk'. I knew Duo had suffered at the hands of those sadistic bastards on a few occasions so it was logical that bondage would drag up unpleasant memories for him. I squeezed his hand in an attempt to reassure him that I wouldn't let anything happen to him.

His head tilted and he looked at me quizzically, returning the squeeze.

"If you don't want to go to the discussion, I'll go with Relena by myself," I told him quietly.

"Uh. It's okay, Heero. I'll go."

"Are you sure? If it's going to bring back unpleasant memories I understand and I won't think any less of you if you want to skip out on it." I did my best to try and let him know I was giving him a way out without him having to appear as if he couldn't cope. His cheeks tinged a little more, something I found confusing.

"Really, it's fine, Heero."

I didn't get a chance to pre