Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Time, Fault and Out ❯ Chapter 17 ( Chapter 17 )

Disclaimer: I don't own the G'boys, I just borrow them from time to time to play with and return them a whole lot happier, ne?

 

Rating: NC 17

 

 

Pairings: 1x2x1, 3x4

 

Warnings: AU, OOC, Lemon, Yaoi, Angst, Fluff, Sap, Vet themes.

 

Summary: Set 2 years after Equinity. Heero is now riding for the Kushrenada stable as well as attempting to qualify Zero for the Nations Cup team and ultimately his dream of riding at the Olympic games. But life is never an easy ride.

 

Notes: All the information on showjumping, horses, etc is taken from my own knowledge of the sport having been a competitor and now judge for many years and is written from an Australian perspective. The rules and regulations are courtesy of the E.F.A Handbook. (Equestrian Federation of Australia) Should you have any questions just e-mail me.

 

Fic 2 in the "Equine Intervention" Arc.

 

Dedication: To Klingonpoodle who gave me the plot bunny for the first fic and has since supplied my muse with its own plot bunny farm, and to 'Teddy Bear' my own courageous little showjumper whom Zero is based upon.

 

 

"Time, Fault and Out"

 

November. 2005 ShenLong

 

Chapter 17

 

"Are you riding today?" Relena asked Heero as she tried to edge a little closer.

 

"Yes."

 

"Where's your horse? I haven't seen him yet," Relena purred.

 

Heero managed to move away a little, not as much as he would have liked though. Out the corner of his eye he could see Duo, the vet's face was impassive but Heero could see the anger in the tensing of Duo's jaw and the way his violet eyes were sparking. "Zero is down here," Heero ground out and spun around.

 

Relena was quick off the mark and grabbed Heero's arm, latching on as the dark haired rider strode towards Zero's stable. Duo managed to suppress the urge to pick Relena up and dump her in the manure heap, but he wasn't happy at all.

 

"Don't let her get to you."

 

Duo spun around to see Treize standing beside him, a frown on his handsome features. "I've never met such a low down, conniving, condescending cow in all my life," Duo growled as his eyes blazed. "How dare she put her paws on my boyfriend!" he hissed.

 

Treize began to chuckle and Duo gave him a low look. "Sorry. I'm not laughing at you or the situation." He took a breath and composed himself. "I'm merely finding your choice of words - interesting."

 

Duo thought quickly about what he'd said and then gave a chuckle of his own. "I guess they were a bit weird and come to think of it, and I really shouldn't be insulting cows. Most of the cows I've dealt with are soft creatures."

 

At that, Treize let out a hearty laugh. "Want a bit of advice from an old timer?"

 

"You're not that old, Treize!"

 

"Thank you."

 

"Welcome."

 

"As I was saying, would you like a little advice?"

 

"Don't mind if I do. It seems the Maxwell charm isn't working."

 

"Relena has always pretty much gotten what she wants. She can be a persistent person and continuously pushing to the point of obsession," began Treize.

 

"Like the tape worms we get in dogs and cats?"

 

"I'd never thought of Relena as a parasite."

 

"If you ask me she's the perfect example. She's stuck to Heero like a leech. God, what I wouldn't give for a bag of salt."

 

Trying hard not to let his laughter escape, Treize continued. "As I was saying, Duo. Relena is pretty much your average spoiled rich kid. Her parents doted on her and she learnt quickly how to manipulate them to get what she wanted. She's pretty shrewd and will use all her powers to have what she thinks she should. In this case, Heero. My advice to you is to ignore her antics, treat her the same way she treats you. Heero isn't interested in her at all. Trust him, Duo, he won't betray you."

 

Duo chewed over Treize's words for a moment. "But what about you, Treize? If I go out of my way to upset the parasite, won't she stop sending you horses or something?"

 

"Don't worry about me, Duo. Relena knows she can't do without me. If I don't break the horses in, school them and show them then her stud isn't going to be half as successful as it currently is. She needs me just as much as I need her horses. We came to an understanding ages ago."

 

With those words, Duo's face lit up. "Then it's open season on parasites?" he asked with a cheeky grin.

 

"I'd like to think it was war against parasites."

 

"Treize, if I wasn't already involved I'd kiss you."

 

"No offense, Doctor Maxwell, but I don't think I fancy being trampled into the ground by a jealous Heero."

 

Duo laughed. "No offense taken. Now, I'm off to annoy the hell out of a parasite." Duo turned and began to make his way down to Zero's stable where he could clearly see Heero getting desperate. Walking right up to the pair, Duo pushed his way in and stated in a clear tone that brooked no argument. "Heero, you haven't got time to waste showing Miss Peecraft your horse, you need to get saddled up and warm Zero up."

 

"It's Peacecraft," Relena snapped haughtily.

 

Heero did his best not to snicker. "Ah, yeah. You're right, Duo. I should go get his gear and start warming up."

 

"I can give you a hand," Relena said quickly, batting her eyelashes at Heero.

 

Before Heero had a chance to answer, Duo got in first. "That's very kind of you, Miss Piecrust. Zero's water bucket needs refilling if you don't mind. Tap is down that way." Duo presented the woman with an almost empty water bucket.

 

Relena eyed the bucket and wrinkled her nose in disgust. "I do not fill and cart water buckets. And my name is Peacecraft!"

 

"You offered to help though, did you not, Miss Pizzacroft?" Duo was in his element. He wasn't normally a vindictive person but this woman had instantly raised his hackles with her insults to his standing as a vet and now his claws were out and all bets were off.

 

"I was letting Heero know I would help him, not you," the woman hissed, the venom was clear in her voice. "And for the last time my name is Peacecraft; P. e. a. c. e. c. r. a. f. t.!"

 

"Yeah, fine, sure, whatever. Look, if you're not gonna help by filling up Zero's water bucket would you mind getting the hell out of the way so I can get the horse ready, Miss Peaceofcrap?"

 

Heero took one look at Relena's red face and took off as fast as he could down the stable block. He knew if he lost it there he would surely never ride again. Once clear of the stables he managed to find a spot and give in to his laughter. He had to hand it to his partner, Duo could certainly be a snarky bugger when he wanted to. It didn't pay to piss him off. Relena did deserve all she got from Duo though. The woman had no right to speak to the vet in such a manner, belittling him when she didn't even know him.

 

Having recovered enough to return, Heero did a detour via the lockers to collect Zero's gear. He was surprised to see Zero's saddle, bridle and jumping boots gone. Duo must have already fetched them, he figured. Grabbing his helmet and whip, Heero locked the small padlock and headed back to the stable, wondering what was going to greet him. Hopefully Duo had left the sharp and pointy tools of his trade back at the surgery. When Heero approached the stable, he couldn't see Relena and gave a sigh of relief. He walked up and stuck his head over the door. Inside, Duo was fastening the last buckle on Zero's jumping boots.

 

"Coast clear?" he asked.

 

Duo straightened up and gave his lover a grin. "For the moment. I was wondering where you'd shot off too and if you were going to return."

 

"Sorry about deserting you like that, but I had to get away before I did something I would regret."

 

"Heero? I'm sorry if I went a little overboard."

 

"Don't worry about it, Duo. I think she deserved everything she got. Where the hell did you manage to come up with all those distortions of her name?"

 

Leading Zero out of the stable, Duo gave a soft laugh. "You're talking to the master of names here, Heero."

 

Heero had to agree. Duo did have an uncanny knack of finding names for things, didn't Nrobbuts, Fido, Gertrude, Harriet, Daisy, Jaws and Martha stand in testimony to that? With a shake of his head, Heero took the reins from Duo and led the stallion out of the stable block to the warm up area, hoping that he could avoid Relena for a while longer.

 

"Where is she anyway?" Heero asked as he tightened his girth and prepared to mount.

 

"She disappeared a second or two after you did, muttering something about getting a drink and seeking advice on slander. I don't think she likes me much."

 

"I wonder why," laughed Heero as he settled into his saddle. "Thanks, Duo. She does get annoying after a while."

 

"No one stalks my boyfriend and gets away with it," growled Duo. "Now, go get Zero warmed up, they will be calling you soon to walk the course."

 

Heero rode off and began to warm Zero up. Treize and Otto joined him a few minutes later on Peacemillion and Goose respectively. Relena also returned but she stood on the opposite side of the warm up arena to where Duo was standing. Duo couldn't care less, the further the pink parasite stayed away from him and his Heero, the better. Idly Duo wondered what Heero would think of the name he'd given Relena. She did stand out from the crowd in her bright pink sundress. It made Duo nauseous and hurt his eyes to look at her. He returned his attention to Zero and the way the horse was traveling today. Zero seemed fresh and eager, that was a good thing. Duo hoped that the gray would do them proud today, especially with the selectors in attendance. He continued to watch as Heero put the stallion over a few practice jumps and then walked him around to cool off.

 

***

 

The course had been open for walking, Treize and Heero walking it together and agreeing that it wasn't too difficult. The arena space wasn't that big and the course designer had built the course utilizing every inch of the available space. It was a rider's course, one that would require utmost obedience from the horse and steady riding by the rider. There wouldn't be much in the way of speed, there wasn't enough room. Heero held no illusions that the jump off would come down to a test of skill from the rider and education of the horse.

 

Relena was still there, avoiding Duo as much as possible but sticking as close to Heero as she could. Duo was tempted several times to tell her to 'fuck off' Heero was his, but knowing the woman's influence and social standing, he knew she would waste no time in seeing that their relationship was made public, something that would severely damage the both of them and Duo wanted to avoid that at all costs. All he could do was try to put himself between Heero and Relena as much as possible without revealing the true nature of their relationship, but it wasn't easy.

 

Treize sympathized with the young vet and also tried to keep Relena away from Heero, getting her a little more involved with Peacemillion. The open jumping class started and the group managed to watch a few riders go through before rewarming their horses. Goose was the first of their horses to jump, Zero fourth after Goose and Peacemillion was second last. As Treize prepared to enter the ring on Goose, everyone wished him good luck and then got themselves into position to watch.

 

It was a pleasure to watch Treize and his horse as they negotiated the course. The sheer skill of the man showed through as he rode carefully around the jumps. Goose was calm and collected, shortening and lengthening his stride as his rider asked. Approaching the final fence, a spread triple, it seemed as if everyone was holding their breath. Goose came at the first element, cleared it, landed and took two strides before propelling himself into the air over the second element. He cleared that as well, took another two strides and launched into the air for the final element. The sound of hooves biting into the turf signaled that Goose had cleared the jump, the announcer confirming that Tall Geese and Treize Kushrenada had gone clear.

 

They all gathered around Treize to congratulate him as he came out of the ring. So far his was the only clear round, something Heero was determined to rectify. The next competitor went and came out with four faults, the following one went clear and then the next was eliminated when the horse decided it didn't like the look of the gate and dumped his rider into it. Then it was Heero's turn.

 

Duo fiddled with the end of his braid as he watched his boyfriend enter the arena, salute the judge and then begin his course. He had no doubt that Zero could and would clear everything, but there was always that unknown element when dealing with a living, breathing creature.

 

It was the first time that Relena had watched Heero in competition. She'd seen him ride in the paddock at Treize's but to actually witness him in action at a show was something else entirely.

 

"He's improving all the time," Duo remarked to Treize who was standing beside him.

 

"He's a remarkable young man with a lot of potential," replied Treize.

 

"He does know how to sit a horse," Relena said from her position a few feet away on Treize's other side.

 

Duo scowled but kept his mouth shut. He had to be careful, he didn't want to give Relena any hint as to his and Heero's true relationship, but he wasn't going to let her fawn all over Heero either.

 

In the ring, Heero was concentrating hard. Keeping his horse together, adjusting the stride as the course warranted and doing his best to give Zero every opportunity to clear the fences.

 

Zero was enjoying himself. The jumps weren't all that high or difficult, he just had to listen to his master and react according to his requests. Fence after fence appeared and was cleared, all in Zero's effortless style. Zero cleared the wall with a whisk of his tail and bore down on the final element, the spread triple.

 

Closing his fingers on the reins, Heero shortened Zero's stride a fraction, bringing the energy back to concentrate in Zero's hindquarters. Three strides away, Heero gave Zero his head and applied his leg, the gray responding by bounding forward and clearing the first element. As they landed, Heero took up the contact, rode his horse together and had him beautifully positioned for the second element. That was also cleared with minimal effort and now only the third of the fences remained.

 

Zero gathered himself together, hindquarters coming underneath his body and propelling him into the air. His little ears were pricked and the love of jumping shone in his eyes. Poles passed beneath Zero's belly and then the forelegs came out, reaching for the ground and cutting deep into the turf as they bore the brunt of the horse's weight.

 

The finish flags flashed past and Heero allowed himself a grin. He patted the sweaty neck as he brought Zero back to a trot and looked for the exit.

 

"Clear round," blared the loudspeaker.

 

"Good boy," Heero enthused as he stroked a hand along the muscular neck.

 

Zero tossed his head as if to say 'I know I'm good, now where's the carrots?'

 

"Great round, Heero!" Duo grinned and congratulated as Zero came out the ring.

 

"Well ridden," praised Treize.

 

"That was marvelous," came Relena's voice as she pushed her way forth and rested a hand on Heero's knee.

 

"Thank you, but it isn't over yet," replied Heero as he tried to shift his knee. Somehow he managed to nudge Zero in the ribs and the horse gave a soft snort before moving forwards, almost knocking Duo over but removing Relena's hand from Heero's knee.

 

"Geeze, take it easy, buddy," Duo scolded as he dodged out the way.

 

Zero turned his gray face to the nice human and wuffled in apology.

 

"Sorry, Duo," Heero muttered and then went to dismount. Swinging his leg over Zero's back, Heero didn't realize how close Relena was standing and he almost knocked the woman's hat off her head with his foot. "Ah, sorry, Relena."

 

"It's quite all right," Relena replied as she straightened her hat and seeing her chance, moved to stand beside Heero as he loosened the horses girth and ran his stirrups up.

 

Duo was busy feeding Zero carrots and petting the stallion, the horse wolfing down his favorite treat. He didn't miss Relena's movement though. Duo felt his hackles rise again, but there wasn't anything he could do about the situation as they were in the collecting ring and surrounded by a lot of horses and riders. Reaching into his pocket for another carrot, Duo consoled himself by stroking Zero's ears and muttering his woes to the horse.

 

"How long before Peacemillion jumps?" Heero asked in an attempt to take the attention away from himself.

 

"I'd say about half an hour," replied Treize.

 

Turning back, Heero looked at Duo. "I need to take a short walk."

 

"I'll come with you," Duo replied, getting a drift of what Heero wasn't saying. "Otto, would you mind hanging onto Zero for a few minutes?"

 

"No problem." Otto stepped over and took the gray's reins.

 

"Thanks. Won't be long," smiled Duo and went to walk beside Heero. Unfortunately, Relena decided she wanted to stretch her legs as well and joined them. Duo did his best to keep the scowl from his face.

 

"How do you think you will go in the jump off, Heero?" Relena asked as she tried to make polite conversation.

 

Heero shrugged his shoulders. "Hard to say. Nothing's a certainty."

 

"But you rode so well. Surely you will place in the top three?"

 

"It depends on a lot of things," Heero said and continued to walk, a little faster though.

 

"Well, I think you will win." The woman gave a beaming smile, ran her hand down Heero's arm and then hooked her hand around Heero's elbow.

 

Heero did his best not to flinch. Duo growled but managed to turn it into a cough. He was not happy. They walked for a few more moments, came to a small building and Heero stepped up the small concrete step, Relena still hanging onto his arm.

 

"Um," Heero began but was saved when Duo interrupted him.

 

"I think you should let go now," he said coolly.

 

Relena turned her scornful gaze to Duo, looking him up and down as if he had crawled out from underneath a rock.

 

"I don't think you want to go in there, Miss Peachydraft."

 

Relena was about to give the uncouth vet a piece of her mind when she noticed where they were standing. Above the door in front of her, the words 'Gents' stood out in bold letters. Her cheeks colored a little and she reluctantly let go of Heero's arm. "Ah. I'll wait out here then."

 

"You do that," muttered Duo and quickly entered the gents, Heero right behind him. Once inside and safe from prying eyes, Duo swept Heero into his arms and kissed him senseless. "I've been wanting to do that all morning," he whispered and nuzzled Heero's neck.

 

Heero hung on to Duo, feeling safe in his boyfriend's arms. "I'm sorry, Duo. I don't know why she doesn't get the message."

 

"Hush, Heero. It's not your fault. I trust you, I know you're not encouraging her. I wish there was more I could do to stop her hassling you."

 

"Personally I think you're doing quite well," Heero smirked. "Peachydraft?"

 

"I prefer Peaceofcrap myself," Duo sniggered.

 

It was all Heero could do not to laugh out loud.

 

"You know, I really don't like making fun of her name, I bet she's an okay person normally."

 

"Duo, I know it's not in your nature to be like this towards anyone, but after the way she's run you and your vet skills down, I really don't blame you. In fact I think you're showing remarkable restraint by keeping it at simply mangling her name."

 

"It's not easy, Heero. Dumping her in the shit heap is what I'd really like to do."

 

Heero chuckled softly. "Kiss me again before we have to head back. I've got a jump off to ride."

 

Duo willingly kissed his lover, a bruising kiss filled with desperation and longing. Slightly dazzled, Heero managed to regain some form of composure before exiting the toilets.

 

***

 

They made it back to the collecting ring with two horses to go before Treize would jump Peacemillion. So far there were a total of five clears, including Goose and Zero. Duo took Zero from Otto, thanking the groom and then getting himself and Zero into a position so that they could watch Treize. The former silver medalist rode the big gray around, loosening the muscles and getting a feel for how the horse was reacting to the crowds and the competition. Peacemillion felt calm and responsive, and Treize felt his confidence grow a touch.

 

A large bay left the arena with eight faults and then it was Treize's turn. He rode into the arena, saluted the judge and began to canter his circle, waiting for the bell to signal that he could start. The bell rang, Treize turned the horse and cantered through the start flags.

 

Relena moved a little closer to Heero, her hand resting on his forearm as she watched her horse compete. Relena had never been one to ride, her father having only bred racehorses which she wasn't allowed to ride because of their value. When she'd inherited the stud and gone into her own line of breeding she didn't have the time to learn how. It hadn't bothered her, she had Treize to do all the work from the animal's back. Unfortunately though, her lack of knowledge on the riding side of things meant she didn't fully appreciate the skills Treize and some of the other riders were showing. It also meant she was lost in some parts of the conversations that were going on around her; and that annoyed her.

 

Well, her lack of ridden knowledge didn't annoy her, it was more that the uncouth vet seemed to know exactly what was going on and he didn't compete either.

 

"Going well so far," Heero said as his eyes tracked the horse and rider in the ring.

 

"He will need to steady back a bit for the gate, if he doesn't the stride will be wrong," commented Duo.

 

"I'm sure that Treize knows what he's doing," Relena said in a cold tone.

 

Duo raised an eyebrow, Heero shrugged one shoulder. Duo mouthed 'touchy', Heero gave a small nod.

 

"He's over the gate," Otto said, breaking the silent communication between the guys.

 

Peacemillion was traveling well, his long stride was eating up the ground, but Treize had to concentrate and ride hard to keep the horse together. While the long stride was an advantage in some cases, on a course such as this it could be a hindrance. Treize had to use all his skills to keep the stallion focused, constantly shortening and lengthening the stride as the course dictated.

 

Parallel bars followed the gate, then it was a left turn for the run into the double followed by off set rails on the curve. Peacemillion cleared them all with ease. The wall appeared and was successfully negotiated. All that remained was the spread triple.

 

Sitting down deep into his saddle, Treize used his seat to collect the stallion together. Hands held the reins softly but firmly, keeping the horse in check while legs and seat drove the hindquarters under the body, effectively turning the stallion into a coiled spring. Three strides away, Treize let the horse go, driving him forwards whilst maintaining a steady contact with the animal's mouth.

 

Peacemillion grunted as he jumped the first element, he landed, gathered himself together and soared over the second. His striding was slightly out as he approached the third element and he took off awkwardly. Peacemillion gave a twist of his hindquarters, Treize following the movement and allowing the reins to slip through his fingers so as not to check the horse in the mouth. The hind legs just brushed the top pole as Peacemillion came back to earth. The pole wobbled, rolled in the cups for a moment before settling back into place.

 

"Shit, that was lucky!" stated Duo as he watched the pole return to its position and not hit the dirt.

 

"I'll say." Heero took a deep breath and let the air out in a long sigh.

 

Treize exited the ring and rode over, his face smiling broadly as he patted the horse. "He did well, didn't he?"

 

"Excellent round, boss," Otto said. He took the horse's reins from Treize as the man dismounted.

 

"That was lovely," Relena remarked and patted her horse's neck.

 

"He's certainly got a jump on him," Treize said and patted the horse's rump.

 

"You were lucky with that last jump," Duo said with a smile.

 

"Don't I know it! I'm not sure what happened there, he came in a half a stride out."

 

"It's not an easy course to ride on a horse that has such a long stride," Heero commented.

 

"By my calculations there are six of you in the jump off,'" said Duo. "The last rider is going now but I don't think they will go clear."

 

All eyes returned to the ring where a chestnut horse was having difficulty. The rider hadn't paid any attention to the striding when walking the course and was now attempting to ride the course at a fast pace, something that wasn't a good idea. Sure enough, they came to grief at the double, poles and jump wings going in all directions. The rider picked themselves up, obviously unhurt and looked around for their horse. The chestnut trotted around, head up, nostrils snorting as it looked for the exit, broken reins trailing behind. A steward tried to catch the horse but the chestnut wasn't having any of it. With a toss of its head, it broke into a gallop and charged around the arena.

 

The horse spotted the collecting ring where all the other horses were gathered and made a beeline for it. Horses, competitors and spectators alike all scattered as the chestnut came galloping through. Zero danced around, Duo doing his best to hang onto him. Otto had his hands full with Peacemillion while Treize was trying to calm Goose. Heero reacted out of instinct. Relena was right by his side and in the path of the oncoming horse, without thinking, Heero grabbed Relena by the arm and shoved her backwards out of harms way. The woman was caught off guard and stumbled with the sudden push. She lost her footing and fell.

 

The horse careered past, showering both Relena and Heero with dirt from its hooves as it shot through the collecting ring and disappeared in the direction of the stables. Once the dust settled, Heero turned to see if Zero and Duo were okay. Noting that his lover had a firm hold of the stallion and was soothing the excited horse, he turned to Relena.

 

"Shit!" Quickly, Heero moved forwards and extended a hand to pull Relena up from the ground. "Sorry about that. Are you okay?"

 

Relena accepted the help to lift herself up. She checked over her person, dusting herself off. "I think so."

 

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to push you over, I was just trying to get you out of the horse's way."

 

Duo, having managed to calm Zero down, checked that Otto, Treize and their horses were also okay before turning his attention to Heero. A smile tugged at his mouth as he observed his boyfriend hauling Relena to her feet.

 

"Are you all right, Relena?" Treize asked as he approached the woman who was still dusting her clothes.

 

"Yes. I'm... agghhhh!"

 

"What?!" Heero and Treize both exclaimed together.

 

"My dress, it's ruined!" Relena was twisting her head around to see the damage. In the process of dusting herself off, her hands had connected with something damp. Now she wanted to know what it was and her face reddened with annoyance as she noted the large, brown stain on the back of her dress. On the grass where she'd fallen sat an innocent, but now flattened pile of manure.

 

Not the normal, small balls of dung but a large, sloppy pile, reminiscent of a cow pat.

 

Duo couldn't help the snicker and sidled up to his boyfriend. Unable to keep the glee from his voice, he whispered into Heero's ear. "I thought I was the one that wanted to drop her in the shit heap, Heero."

 

~ * ~

 

tbc...