Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Chimaera ❯ Chapter 91 ( Chapter 91 )

 

Please see previous chapters for notes, disclaimers etc.

 

"Chimaera"

 

By ShenLong.

 

 

Chapter 91

 

Duo didn't get much opportunity to dwell on the things that could go wrong in the pregnancy as the next two days were spent preparing for the arrival of their guests. Heero had arranged to take two weeks holiday from Preventer and those holidays would begin today. Hilde was due to arrive at the shuttle port that afternoon and Heero was going to pick her up on his way home from work. Trowa and Quatre would be flying in tomorrow and Howard had e-mailed to say he was in Earth's orbit and hoped to join them also on the 'morrow.

 

Humming softly to himself, Duo checked over the final preparations, only daring to venture out into the gardens after the groundsmen had left. Everything was in place, the gardens immaculately manicured in preparation for the wedding. All that remained now was the setting out of the chairs, the decorations to the gazebo and the small table that Howard would use for their marriage certificate signing. The groundsmen would be back on the Friday to give the gardens the final touches so Duo had five days in which to enjoy the gardens before having to retreat to the safety of the house again. He'd hated not being able to go outside but he couldn't afford for anyone to see him. His pregnancy was obvious now, despite the loose clothing he wore, and could no longer be passed off as mere obesity.

 

When Duo had complained to Heero about missing his walks and sitting in the gardens, Heero had teased him by saying if he was that desperate to be outside he should let his hair loose and put on a maternity dress then the workers wouldn't take any notice of him.

 

Heero had slept on the couch that night.

 

A smile found its way to his lips as Duo observed the transformation. All the garden beds were freshly weeded and a thick layer of sweet smelling mulch covered them. The lawns were neatly mowed and the edges trimmed, the roses had been pruned a little to tidy them up but were still flowering abundantly; the scent of them heavy on the air. Duo inhaled deeply, savoring the rich perfume for a few minutes before wandering back to the house. Hilde would be here in half an hour with Heero and he wanted to shower and change before she arrived.

 

***

 

Heero spotted the dark mop of hair first and then the rest of the body came into view as Hilde walked through the customs gate at the shuttle port, pushing a trolley with a solitary suitcase on it. Seeing Heero she gave a broad grin. "Heero!" Leaving the trolley to its own devices for a moment she wrapped her arms around the man and hugged him close. "It's so good to see you again. You're looking well. Tell me, how is Duo? Is he getting big yet?"

 

Heero returned the hug. "It's good to see you again too, Hilde. Thanks for coming. I'll tell you all about Duo in the car on the way home."

 

"Okay," Hilde smiled. "I wouldn't have missed this for the world, Heero. My Duo finally getting hitched." The dark haired woman shook her head in amusement. "I'm so happy for you both."

 

Returning Hilde's smile, Heero picked up her suitcase and taking the woman's arm, he led her from the shuttle port and out to the car.

 

During the drive back to the mansion Heero brought Hilde up to speed with Duo's pregnancy and state of health. Whilst Duo and Hilde e-mailed each other on a regular basis, Heero knew Duo didn't always give Hilde the complete facts in regards to his pregnant state, obviously not wanting to worry his long time friend. Heero explained all that had been going on, even going so far as to admit that four ex Gundam pilots had been defeated by a baby seat.

 

Hilde had laughed at the story Heero told, she could clearly picture the guys doing battle with a baby seat and the seat winning. "I'm not surprised you couldn't get it installed," she said. "You practically need a degree in astro physics to figure those things out and that's even when you have the instructions! You're not alone, Heero, many of my friends have also had fun and games with those damn things, they really are a torture device in disguise."

 

"You're not wrong," replied Heero grimly as memories of the abuse to his groin flooded his mind.

 

"Tell me, are all the preparations finished? Is there anything left to do? Anything I can give you a hand with?"

 

"I'm pretty sure that everything is organized. Quatre had the groundsmen in for the past week doing the grounds up, Siska and Trowa have the buffet all planned out between them and won't let anyone know what they have decided on. Trowa and Quatre will be arriving tomorrow, as will Howard."

 

"Great! I'm so looking forward to catching up with everyone."

 

"How are the plans for your wedding coming along?" Heero asked politely as he drove.

 

"Oh, you know. The usual. Most is finalized, my dress is ordered and being made, the bridesmaids' dresses have been selected and the reception place booked. There's not much left to do other than settle on the flowers and send out the invitations. I'm hoping to do that in about a month or so. You and Duo will be able to come, won't you?"

 

"Hopefully. That is providing all is well with Duo and the baby. If his pregnancy runs according to plan, the baby is due mid January and your wedding isn't for a few weeks after that so they should both be well enough to travel," replied Heero.

 

"I hope you both can come, it means a lot to me, Heero. I really wanted Duo to give me away if that's possible," said Hilde in a soft voice.

 

Heero reached across and placed his hand over Hilde's. "Don't worry, Hilde. I'm certain we will both be there, Duo wouldn't miss something so important to you."

 

"Thanks." Hilde gave Heero's hand a squeeze and looked out the window at the passing landscape. Soon enough they were pulling up at the mansion, Heero punching his security code into the panel and waiting for the gates to open and admit them to the grounds. He drove carefully along the driveway and drew the car to a stop outside the front doors; doors that opened wide as soon as he'd cut the engine. Duo appeared on the front porch, smiling from ear to ear and as soon as Hilde spotted him she was out of the car and racing up the steps.

 

"Duo!" she called as she bounded up to meet him and wrap her arms around his neck.

 

"Hilde!" Duo returned and scooped the woman into his arms, planting a warm kiss to her cheek.

 

Hilde released Duo and took both his hands in hers, stepping back to fully appraise the American. "You look so..."

 

"Fat?" Duo offered, grinning.

 

"Actually I was going to say, radiant; but fat will do."

 

"Hey!" Duo spluttered.

 

"What? You were the one to say it first," Hilde teased. Behind them Heero snickered.

 

"Don't you start," scowled Duo. "Remember the couch?"

 

Heero's face abruptly changed. "Take Hilde inside, Duo, I'm sure you two have a lot to catch up on. I'll take Hilde's things up to her room and then check on dinner before joining you."

 

"Thanks, Heero." Duo turned and offered his arm which Hilde took and together they went into the house. Heero picked up Hilde's suitcase and headed for the stairs and the room they'd allocated for her to use whilst she was staying.

 

***

 

The Tuesday morning dawned with dark clouds on the horizon. Duo watched them approach, sensing there was going to be a storm of sorts. He hoped that the weather would return to its fine state by Saturday otherwise the wedding would be a wash out. They hadn't given a thought to an alternative venue should the weather be bad.

 

Breakfast was a happy affair with Heero and Hilde joining forces in the kitchen to come up with Duo's favorites, pancakes and waffles. The American tucked in with relish, polishing off more than his fair share of the food, but Heero didn't comment, he was happy to see his lover eating so well. Maybe pancakes and waffles weren't all that healthy but it didn't do any harm for Duo to have a sweet treat every now and then. Which reminded Heero that he needed to pick up some more Crunchie bars.

 

Hilde was introduced to Nurse Brown and the two hit it off straight away, spending hours together walking Miracle and generally chatting. Hilde found herself in a similar situation to Duo, never having had the opportunity to know her own mother and therefore have someone to discuss her wedding plans and fears of marriage with. Nurse Brown began to fill that role and gave the young woman some good advice.

 

Sitting in the lounge room watching a movie whilst waiting for Trowa, Quatre and Howard to arrive, the storm broke. Flashes of lightning lit the sky, deep rolls of thunder followed and minutes later the rain began.

 

"I hope it doesn't do too much damage to the gardens," stated Duo as he looked at the rain pouring down outside the window.

 

"I'm sure that the groundsmen will be able to fix anything that's necessary, Duo," said Heero as he wandered up behind his lover and placed his arms around Duo's waist, resting his hands on the swollen abdomen.

 

Another flash of lightning pierced the sky followed almost immediately by a loud crash of thunder. Underneath Heero's hands, Duo's belly gave a sharp jerk. "Shit! Did you feel that, Heero?"

 

"Hai, I did." Heero ran his hands soothingly over the bump. "It's okay, Sunshine, it's only thunder, nothing to be scared of."

 

"Who's scared of thunder?" asked Hilde as she walked into the lounge with Miracle at her heels.

 

"Sunshine is, I think," answered Duo.

 

"You mean that the baby can hear it?" Hilde asked in awe.

 

"Yup, at least that's what Sally said during my last check up. She said that at this stage of the development babies can hear through the womb."

 

"Cool! I never would have thought. Guess it goes to show I still have a lot to learn about babies."

 

There was another flash and roll of thunder, causing Duo's belly to jump again. "Poor thing, it's okay, I won't let it hurt you," soothed Duo as he added his own hands to Heero's in the gentle stroking of his belly.

 

"Awww... That's so sweet," murmured Hilde. "The baby isn't even born yet and already you're reassuring and looking out for it."

 

"Yeah, well," Duo looked sheepish. "I gotta admit it hurts like a bitch when Sunshine jumps and kicks like that. There isn't much room to move around in there as it is. Fucking weather."

 

Barney, who was sitting on Duo's shoulder, cocked his head and ruffled his feathers.

 

Another brilliant flash of lightning streaked across the sky and the crack of thunder that followed it was almost deafening. The house seemed to shake to its very foundations and the windows rattled. Miracle howled and tried to hide underneath the couch, only she was getting too big to squeeze under completely so her bottom and tail were stuck out. The fetus heard the loud rumble and even felt the vibrations of it through its mother's body and jumped in fright, thrashing its limbs in an attempt to fight away whatever it was that had scared it. Instinctively Duo's and Heero's hands stroked, soothed and caressed the unborn child through Duo's abdomen, knowing that the child couldn't feel their touches but unable to stand there and do nothing.

 

"Fucking weather, fucking weather," chirped Barney and bobbed his head.

 

"What the?" said Heero as his eyes opened in astonishment and he looked firstly at the bird and then at Duo.

 

Duo swallowed. "Ummm... Ooops?"

 

Hilde went into hysterics.

 

***

 

The storm had blown itself out after an hour of raging, now only rain remained and even that was slowing down. It was early afternoon and Trowa and Quatre had called to say they were on their way and should arrive within the next half an hour. Howard had also called and would be there a little later, he had some business to finish up before he could be on his way.

 

Siska had kindly offered to cook for them all, leaving Duo and Heero free to entertain their guests. Nurse Brown was getting ready to go to work and Barney was back in his cage. No one had said anything more about Barney's little outburst, hoping that if they ignored it the bird would forget the words.

 

"They're here!" shouted Duo from his place watching out the window as he spotted the sleek lines of the hire car Quatre was driving wending its way along the drive. Moments later it was pulling to a halt and Duo flung open the door. "Hey, guys. Welcome back."

 

"Duo!" called Quatre as he got out of the car and immediately headed for the pregnant man. "It's so good to see you again. You're looking wonderful," the blonde said as he hugged his friend. "You get much bigger and I won't be able to hug you any more," he teased.

 

Trowa was a little slower to exit the vehicle, taking a wary look around, making certain that there was nothing remotely baby connected in the immediate vicinity that could possibly attack him, other than the pregnant man. Satisfied, he walked over to his husband and Duo. "Good to see you again, Duo," he said as he shook hands and then gave in and hugged the other man.

 

"Good to see you too, Tro, and you, Quat. I've missed you guys. Thanks so much for agreeing to everything we've asked of you for this wedding, it really means a lot to us both," said Duo with a genuine smile. He felt fingers entwine with his own and looked up as Heero stepped beside him.

 

"Thanks for coming," Heero said simply.

 

"Thanks for inviting us," replied Trowa and shook hands with his friend.

 

"Heero!"

 

Heero suddenly found himself with an armful of blonde Arabian. "Nice to see you too, Quatre."

 

"How about we all go inside and catch up?" suggested Duo.

 

"Good idea," replied Quatre. "Trowa? Would you mind taking our things up and putting them in the room Heero and Duo have for us to use? Thanks." The blonde disappeared inside with Duo leaving Heero and Trowa standing on the front steps, a look of total bewilderment on both their faces.

 

Heero looked at Trowa who in turn looked back at Heero. "See what marriage does to you?" the Latin stated and then turned to fetch their luggage. "First it's the 'put the cap back on the toothpaste', then it progresses to 'please remember to replace the toilet roll'; once you've reached that stage it advances to phase three; the battle of the blanket hogs, trust me, they never steal the blankets and leave you shivering, it's always the opposite. Once you hit the 'you get the luggage whilst I catch up with my friends part', you know you're well and truly hitched. Heero, my advice to you is run while you still can."

 

Shaking his head, Heero followed Trowa to the back of the car and gave him a hand with the luggage.

 

***

 

More greetings had followed along with happy tears and a lot of catching up. Quatre was amazed at the size of Miracle; the pup had grown a lot since he'd last seen her. Trowa suffered through another reminder of how the baby seat had humiliated him before the conversation moved onto more pressing issues; namely the wedding. Hilde left then, announcing she was going to take Miracle for a walk and get some fresh air now that the storm had passed.

 

Quatre fetched the list of music that he and Trowa had come up with for the wedding and handed it over to Duo and Heero to look through. Duo didn't have a clue as to what half the titles were and said as much. Heero wasn't much better off, he'd never really gone into music. He could play 'Chopsticks' on the piano but that was about the full extent of his musical talent. Duo was more familiar with rock bands, but most of those were pre colony.

 

"It's a very impressive list, Quatre," began Duo slowly.

 

"But?" Quatre stated, his sea green eyes sparkling.

 

"Errr..."

 

"Neither one of us is familiar with these titles or the pieces, is what Duo was going to say," said Heero.

 

"Actually, those weren't quite the words I was going to use but they will do."

 

"I think it would be best if Trowa and I played some of the tunes later for you to listen to, I'm sure that some of them will ring a few bells once you've heard them."

 

"That's a great idea, Quat," smiled Duo.

 

"You're not still discussing the wedding, are you?" asked Hilde as she entered the room, having returned from taking Miracle for a short walk. The dog flopped to the floor and gazed around.

 

"Just finishing up," replied Duo.

 

"Miracle, come here, girl," called Trowa softly.

 

The dog cocked her ears and looked at the man before getting up and wandering over.

 

"She's certainly grown, Duo," remarked Trowa as he fondled the dog's ears.

 

"Yeah, she's not as gangly as she used to be. She's beginning to mature at last."

 

"Shame she hasn't matured in the mind," teased Heero.

 

"Still in the puppyhood mode is she?" responded Trowa with a grin. He knew all too well what puppies could be like.

 

"You can say that again. Oh, she's toilet trained okay and Duo's done some basic obedience training with her but she still likes to pinch shoes and socks and hide them, and the occasional toilet roll," replied Heero with a smirk.

 

"She's not as bad as Heero makes out." Duo jumped in, in defense of his dog.

 

"Oh no? Then I suppose all the cursing I heard coming from you the other day when you discovered just how far a shredded toilet roll can go was my imagination?" teased Heero.

 

"I was not cursing," replied Duo with dignity. "I was merely reprimanding her for being naughty."

 

"Sounded more like cursing to me." Heero turned to face Trowa and Quatre. "You should have seen the mess, bits of toilet paper everywhere and Duo in the middle swearing like a trooper," he grinned.

 

Quatre and Trowa laughed, they could well picture the scene.

 

"I was only scolding her," huffed Duo. "Telling her she was a naughty dog, that she shouldn't touch the toilet rolls."

 

"Naughty dog, naughty dog," chirped Barney from his perch in his cage.

 

"See? Even Barney knows what I said," retorted Duo and folded his arms across his chest in defiance.

 

"Bloody mongrel," chirped Barney. "Bad dog, bad dog. Little shit of an animal."

 

"Hai, Barney certainly does know what you said," snickered Heero as the rest of the group all dissolved into fits of laughter.

 

"Traitor!" Duo glared at the bird.

 

Barney cocked his head and studied Duo with his beady eyes. "Fucking weather."

 

***

 

Howard arrived towards evening and was greeted with as much enthusiasm as the rest of the guests had been. Dinner was a loud affair with the conversation flowing easily back and forth. Old stories were dragged up and reminisced over; current events were given equally as much attention and Duo's pregnancy discussed in great detail. The topic of the wedding was on the tip of everyone's tongues but they waited until after dinner when they were all seated comfortably in the lounge room to discuss the final arrangements.

 

Heero and Duo went patiently through the plans for the day, where they proposed to have the seating and the guests, where Quatre would be with his violin and Howard in the gazebo. Questions were asked and answered, well, most of them anyway. When Trowa was approached in regards to the menu and wedding cake he clammed up tighter than a virgin's ass according to Duo. No one could get anything out of him other than it was going to be spectacular.

 

Duo tried talking to Quatre on the side to see if the Arab had a clue as to what Trowa was planning but he was as much in the dark as Duo. Eventually realizing that he wasn't going to get any information from Trowa, despite the puppy eyes, pleading, whining, threats, begging and bribery offers, Duo gave up and resigned himself to having to wait.

 

Howard joined the pair in the study before retiring to bed to go over the ceremony and vows. Howard hadn't seen what the pair had planned in regards to their vows and so when he read the 'speeches' he was extremely touched, so much so that Duo was afraid Howard's sunglasses were going to fog up from the moisture he could sense behind them.

 

"That's just beautiful," said Howard as he read the words.

 

"You think they will fit in with the ceremony okay?" asked Duo.

 

"Those vows will fit perfectly, Duo. You two couldn't have written anything more poetic or just."

 

"Yeah, well, they came from the heart, Howie, it's how we feel about each other," replied Duo, feeling a little uncomfortable.

 

"I can tell that," replied Howard. "If there's a dry eye in the house after those are read then I'll dance the hula in a grass skirt."

 

"Shall I book one now?" snickered Heero.

 

Howard's sunglasses flashed. "Don't get too cocky, son," he growled.

 

Duo thought it best to change the subject. "Did you bring your own outfit for the wedding, Howie, or would you like us to hire or buy something for you?"

 

"Nah, I brought my own gear, don't want none of that fancy stiff shit. I'll be more comfortable in my own stuff, thanks."

 

"You're not going to ..." Heero had visions of Howard standing in the gazebo wearing a bright Hawaiian print shirt like he usually wore and shuddered.

 

Howard turned to face Heero. "I'm not going to what, Heero?" he questioned, his voice dangerous but with an edge of amusement to it. He knew what Heero was going to say, he just wanted to hear it from the Japanese man.

 

"Ummm... You're not going to wear one of your errr... usual shirts are you?"

 

"And what if I am?"

 

"Uh…"

 

"Will it be a problem, Heero?" Howard couldn't resist stirring the pot.

 

"Uh, no. No problem at all," sighed Heero in defeat.

 

Duo snickered, he knew Howard was teasing Heero, stringing him along but he didn't do or say anything to the contrary. He let Howard stir his partner up a little, after all it was nice to see someone else squirming for a change under the teasing, he'd copped it before over Barney so pay back was sweet.

 

"Well, shit. Will you look at the time," exclaimed Duo. "I think we should be heading for bed. Lots to finish off over the next few days so we need our rest."

 

"Hai, you're right. It's getting late so we really should be retiring. Good night, Howard. Sleep well and we will see you in the morning." Heero was grateful to bring his embarrassment to an end and gave Duo a grateful look.

 

"Night, Howie. You can find your way back to your room okay?"

 

"Yeah, no problem, kid. I'll see you guys in the morning. Night."

 

Quiet descended on the house as the guests all made their way to their respective rooms and settled down for sleep. One by one, lights were extinguished until the entire mansion was in darkness. Down in the lounge room, Barney preened his feathers and prepared to tuck his head under a wing to sleep. There was a dim flash of lightning in the distance followed by a faint rolling of thunder.

 

"Fucking weather," chirped Barney and then tucked his head away to sleep.

 

~ * ~