Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Time, Fault and Out ❯ Chapter 50 ( Chapter 50 )

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? Written for pleasure not profit.

 

Rating: NC 17

 

Pairings: 2x1x2, 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 50

 

Heero returned from making his 'phone call, Duo met him with a coffee and question in his eyes. Heero took the coffee and sipped at it before speaking. "Treize got his paperwork today too. We can call around later tonight after consults and he'll go through it all with us."

 

"Great. I don't know about you, Heero, but it's rather confusing to me."

 

"I'm finding it all a little confusing too, and I'm supposed to be able to understand all this!"

 

Duo couldn't help but laugh. "Look at us, Heero. A degree in accounting and a degree in vet science and between us we can't even figure out the paperwork for an International event."

 

"You got that right," Heero chuckled. "Maybe if we had a physics degree we would be able to make head or tail of it."

 

"Nah, you need one of those to conquer Nrobbuts."

 

Heero snickered.

 

* * *

 

Evening consults passed quickly and when Duo returned to the house, Heero had done the horses and cooked dinner. A plate of apricot chicken and rice awaited the vet, the aroma tickling Duo's taste buds and he was quick to devour the food, praising Heero's culinary skills. With dinner out of the way, Heero collected all the paperwork together and washed up while Duo took a quick shower. It wasn't long before they were on their way to Treize's.

 

"Good evening, Heero, Duo," Treize greeted the pair. "Please, come in." Treize opened the door wide to admit the two men. "Follow me through to the lounge, I think it would be best to discuss this in there, it's warmer."

 

Duo and Heero followed the taller man along the hall and into the lounge. A blonde figure rose from the couch to meet them.

 

"Hey, Zechs!" Duo said as soon as he spotted the other vet.

 

"Duo, Heero," Zechs responded and shook both mens' hands. "Congratulations, Heero. Treize tells me you also made the team."

 

"Thank you, Zechs. Yes, I made the team."

 

"All I can say is watch out the rest of the nations, with both you and Treize in the team it will be a formidable one to beat."

 

Heero blushed at the compliment.

 

Treize felt the awkwardness and smoothly changed the subject. "Did you bring the paperwork with you?"

 

"Hai, I did," returned Heero and produced the envelope.

 

"Good. I'll grab mine and we can go through it all together, that way we can cover all bases and explain whatever you're not sure of. Please, take a seat. Zechs? Would you mind getting our guests something to drink, please?" Treize disappeared into his office to fetch his own paperwork. Leaving Heero and Duo in the capable hands of Zechs.

 

"What would you like to drink?" Zechs asked as Heero and Duo sat on the two seater couch.

 

"Soda would be nice, if you have it," replied Heero.

 

"Same for me, thanks," Duo said.

 

Zechs fetched the requested sodas and handed them over. Duo was amused by the easy way Zechs moved around Treize's home; it would appear the blonde vet had been spending a great deal of his free time at Treize's.

 

Treize returned with his own paperwork in hand and sat on the couch opposite, Zechs sliding beside him. "Let's take a look shall we?" Treize sifted through the papers, discarding the ones they didn't need for the moment. "What exactly is it you're not sure of?"

 

"I get the information sheet, the one that gives us directions, stable allocation and accommodation. It's the program and entry forms that I'm not sure of."

 

Flipping through the papers again, Treize located the ones Heero was talking about. "Okay. Putting aside the entry form for the moment, let's start with the program. The program itself covers all the events that will be taking place over the four days. The opening is scheduled for the Thursday morning with a grand parade and introduction of the teams competing in the Nations cup. That afternoon there are to be displays by the local pony clubs of quadrille dressage. There's also a Grand Prix and Freestyle dressage competition that afternoon. Friday has the C grade and A grade showjumping championships, as well as the pony club mounted games. There's also the State A and B grade speed jumping championships in the afternoon. Saturday signals the start of the Nations cup and we will jump our first round that afternoon. There's the Puissance jumping that night and a few other events happening. Sunday will see the finals of the pony club mounted games and the final round of the Nations cup. Once that's over it will be the grand parade and presentations." Treize paused and flipped over a couple of sheets of paper.

 

"The entry form for the Nations cup is more a formality thing. Noin will have already entered the team, the purpose of the form is for the official program and the commentator. You will need to fill it out with yours and your horse's details along with a bit of background information. They like to give a spiel on each rider, something along the lines of when you first started, where you got your horse, what you have achieved so far in competition."

 

"In other words, they want a condensed version of your life," muttered Heero.

 

"Just be sure to leave out the juicy bits, Heero," Duo snickered.

 

Treize laughed. "Somehow I don't think they would appreciate it if you were to put in all your secrets."

 

"No, I don't think they would," replied Heero dryly. "Why the other forms though?"

 

"Heero? Have you thought about entering Zero in the A grade championships? Or one of the speed events?"

 

Heero shook his head. "No, I hadn't."

 

"You have qualified to compete if you wish to."

 

"Are you?"

 

"Yes. I'm planning on entering Goose in the A grade championship, I'll give the speed ones a miss. I figured if I'm there, I may as well have a go."

 

Heero chewed over that in his mind for a moment, the temptation to enter Zero in the championships was strong, but then Heero thought about the traveling, the stress of settling into a temporary stable, not to mention the pressure of the Nations cup and all the jumping Zero had done lately.

 

"What do you think, Heero?" Duo asked. Duo had his own ideas, but kept them to himself, this was Heero's decision and no concern of his.

 

"I don't know," replied Heero slowly. "It's tempting, there's going to be a lot of good horses out there competing, but..."

 

Duo had a pretty good idea where Heero's thoughts were heading and he smiled in encouragement.

 

"I really don't want to over stress Zero. I think there will be enough pressure on us both to perform well in the cup competition and I'd rather have Zero fresh and jumping his best for that. Besides, it might give the other Nations an edge, if they see us jumping prior to the event, they will get a pretty good idea of our horses jumping styles and capabilities. No, I think I'll stick with just the cup event."

 

Secretly, Duo was pleased. He thought there would be enough pressure on the pair as it was, without the A grade competition as well. There was also less risk of Zero or Heero being hurt before the main event. Given that Heero had jarred his still healing arm on the last day of the camp, Duo didn't want to tempt fate and have his partner out of the team for something that could have been avoided. There would be other A grade championships, but there may never be another chance to ride for your country.

 

"That's fine, Heero. You don't have to enter anything else, it's not compulsory, just an option if you wish to take it. A lot of people are traveling long distances so they try to give you as many events to enter as possible and make the trip worthwhile." Treize shuffled the papers again. "If you're not intending to compete in anything else, all you need to do is fill out the form for the commentators and program, post it off to the address given and that's all."

 

"Thanks." Heero shuffled his papers around and brought the one he would need to the fore to be filled out at home.

 

The four sat in silence for a couple of minutes, each one turning over different things in their respective minds. Zechs broke the silence.

 

"Forgive me if I sound completely ignorant here, but this Nations cup, how exactly is it run? What happens? How do they score it and know who the winner is?"

 

Duo gave a silent sigh of relief. He'd been wondering the same thing. Heero had given him a brief outline of what the event entailed, but he'd forgotten most of it and it had only been a simple and short explanation anyway.

 

Treize smiled and took his lover's hand in his own. "It can be quite complicated when you look at it from the E.F.A. Regulations book, but I'll see if I can't put it into easy terms for you."

 

"That would be appreciated," replied Zechs with a raised eyebrow.

 

Duo snickered. It appeared he wasn't the only one who had trouble understanding the technical terms associated with showjumping.

 

"The Nations Cup is an official team competition. Its object is to compare the merit of competitors and horses from different nations. The cup team consists of four riders each riding the same horse throughout the competition. Quite often, teams coming from countries far away are allocated horses from the host nation to ride to save on the expense of transporting horses internationally. It isn't cheap and then there are the quarantine laws as well."

 

"That makes sense," Zechs muttered.

 

"All team members compete in the first round where the scores are added together to give a team score. After the first round, the best six teams go through to the second round. Once the second round is completed, the scores for the best three are added to the scores of the best three in the first round to give an overall team score for the two rounds."

 

"So you're saying that even though there are four members per team, the worst score can be dropped?" Zechs asked.

 

"Yes. Hypothetically speaking here; imagine I score four faults, Heero eight, Zoe, none and Alex fifteen. Alex's score would be dropped and the remaining three added together to give a team score of twelve penalties."

 

"Ah, I get it."

 

"If there is a tie for first place, two teams being equal on penalties, then there will be a jump off between one rider from each team. The coach selects which of their team will be the one to compete in the jump off. If the jump off results in equal penalties again, then it comes down to the time taken to complete the jump off course."

 

"Makes more sense when you explain it that way," Zechs said and smiled.

 

"How do you know what order the teams are jumping in and in each team, who's jumping first etc?" Duo asked.

 

"There's a ballot done before the competition starts. The ground Jury and each Nation's coach attend and all the names of the nations are put into a hat. One by one they are pulled out and that's the order for jumping," answered Heero. "It's the team coach that selects the jumping order for the members."

 

"Noin will allocate us each a number; one, two, three and four. All the teams' number ones jump first, then all the number twos and so on. If you make it through to the second round, the order is reversed. The fours go first followed by the threes and so on." Heero looked to Treize for confirmation, the other man nodding.

 

"Anybody know what nations are competing?" Zechs said.

 

"Should be in the paperwork," replied Treize.

 

Heero and Duo began to sift through Heero's paperwork, as Treize did the same.

 

"Found it," said Duo and held up a piece of paper. "According to this the teams entered are from Australia, New Zealand, Japan, England, Germany, Sweden, Italy, France and South Africa."

 

"Hmmm." Treize's brow furrowed as he studied the list of countries entered.

 

"Why the frown?" Heero questioned.

 

"This is going to be a really tough competition. I remember several of these riders from the Olympics."

 

"It is supposed to be an International event, and you would expect the nations to be putting forward their best riders," stated Duo.

 

"That's correct. I'd say the Germans and Kiwis are going to be really hard to beat."

"Why those two countries?" Heero's interest was piqued.

 

"Germany spends a lot of time and money on its equestrian teams. They have the best instructors, as well as access to International courses and jumping competitions. Being in Europe, they also have access to some of the finest horseflesh ever bred."

 

"Isn't that why Relena imported Peacemillion and those mares? To improve the blood lines here in Aussie and give potential International riders good horses to choose from as competition prospects?" Heero said.

 

"Yes. Although it will take a while for Peacemillion's influence to be seen on the equestrian front. Meanwhile we still have to choose between what's available here, breed something yourself or foot the bill to purchase a top animal from overseas. All of which are equal in the success ratings."

 

"Wouldn't the Kiwis have the same problems though as the Aussies. New Zealand is just as isolated as Australia," Duo said.

 

"Yes, they do. But recently they've had a lot of success with crossing thoroughbreds with warm bloods. Don't underestimate the New Zealand team, they have a lot of talent in their riders."

 

"Sounds like it's going to be quite the 'affair' with all these International competitors here," Zechs mused.

 

"It is a big affair," replied Treize. "After the Olympics, the Nations Cup event is the next largest and hardest competition in the equine world."

 

Heero sat back on the couch and let the conversation continue around him. He was honored to have been chosen to represent his country at this level and determined to do his best. The size of the whole affair was just beginning to sink home and Heero felt the first of the butterflies begin to gnaw at his insides.

 

After another hour or so of conversation and having a much clearer understanding of the forms, competition and all the paperwork, Duo and Heero had bade their friends goodnight and returned to the practice.

 

* * *

 

Over the course of the next few days, Duo helped Heero with Shini again, the colt being much more relaxed with each 'lesson' and Heero was now able to walk him around the small paddock without Duo leading him. Taking his time and teaching the colt all the basics had paid off and all Heero had to do was combine the voice command with the corresponding hand and leg aids, Shini slowly picking up on what was required of him.

 

When Heero wasn't busy with the horses, and Duo free from the practice, they spent their time sorting out what they would need to take with them to Sydney. Not only did they have Zero to pack for, but themselves as well. Duo put his foot down at the amount of gear Heero had suggested they take for Zero. With the experience of the camp still fresh in his mind, Duo took it upon himself to draw up a rough list of the things Zero would need. He gave the list to Heero and they went through it together, trimming down or adding in where necessary. Despite Treize's offer for Zero to travel down in the gooseneck with Duck and Goose, Heero was adamant about towing his horse himself. Treize could understand and didn't push the issue. Knowing how Heero did tend to over pack a little though, Treize offered to take the bulk of the feed stuffs in the gooseneck and give Heero more room in his car for other gear. Heero had agreed, seeing the logic in that. Duo had managed to sneak behind his lover's back and organized with Treize to take a bit more than just feed, some of Zero's gear would be traveling with Treize and free up more space in Henrietta.

 

Once the gear was settled, next came the mapping out of the route they would take to get to the show. Heero wanted Zero to arrive as fresh as possible and thus give the stallion the best chance of performing at is top. They could have made the trip to Sydney in one day, Duo calculated it would mean driving for roughly twelve hours with another four hours added on for fuel stops, rest breaks and the opportunity to take Zero off the float and let him stretch his legs. Heero didn't want to stress the horse out any more than necessary and had opted to do the trip in two days instead.

 

A friend of Trowa's lived on the way and had a small farm holding. Trowa had contacted his friend, Albert, and the man had offered to have Zero stay overnight in the barn, Duo and Heero being welcome to stay overnight in the house with the rest of the family. Heero had thanked Trowa and now the traveling was finalized.

 

They would leave on the Tuesday morning and take their time driving, breaking every two hours to take Zero off the float for a bit of a rest, stretch of his legs and check all was well. They planned to arrive at Albert's farm around four in the afternoon, giving Zero a couple of hours in the paddock to relax before stabling him for the night. They would set off early Wednesday morning and reach the equestrian center around two in the afternoon.

 

By arriving early, they would be able to find Zero's stable, familiarize themselves with the layout of the center and get everything unpacked and stowed. The hotel they had been booked into was only a block away from the facility so they would still have plenty of time after settling Zero to find their hotel and settle themselves.

 

Treize was planning on driving down on the Tuesday and should be there when Heero and Duo arrived. Joe was traveling with him and would be in charge of Duck and Goose. Zechs was only able to get four days off and would be arriving on the Friday to watch his lover compete. Joe intended to sleep at the stables with the horses, he didn't want any escapades from Short Duck, day or night and had arranged to stay in the grooms' quarters on the grounds. That left the room booked for Treize free for Zechs to be able to stay.

 

With all the travel plans sorted out, all that remained was for Duo to finalize the care of his practice and for Heero to get someone to take care of Scythe and Shini during their absence. Hilde had already offered to run things practice-wise so Duo would be free to go with Heero and as much as Duo didn't want to impose on the female vet again, he really didn't have much choice.

 

"Are you sure you don't mind, Hilde?"

 

"For heaven's sake, Duo, how many times do I have to tell you I'll be fine, I don't mind doing it in the least. If I didn't think I could run things and take care of the clients then I wouldn't have offered," Hilde snapped. "Catherine will be in reception and it's only an extra five shifts so quit worrying."

 

"Hilde and I are more than capable of running things in your absence, Doctor Maxwell," Catherine chipped into the conversation. "It's not that hard to do."

 

"I know that, but I still feel as if I'm imposing on you both."

 

"It's no imposition, Duo." Hilde shook her head. "It's coming into the quiet time anyway, there won't be a lot of patients. We're coming into winter, not spring, so there won't be the stress of having to attend animals in trouble giving birth."

 

Hilde did have a point. With the arrival of spring the practice found itself swamped with calls from farmers to small animal breeders, all having the same problem; an animal having difficulty giving birth. Winter usually heralded the start of things slowing down as many people didn't venture out doors and thus their animals avoided a lot of the possible ailments.

 

"You'll only be gone eight days, I'm sure we can run things for that long and not sink your practice for you," Hilde chuckled.

 

Duo gave her a 'look'. "Are you sure?"

 

"Sure about what? Sinking the practice or being able to keep it afloat without the captain at the helm?" Hilde teased.

 

Shaking his head, Duo knew he was defeated. Hilde crowed over the victory, Catherine smiled.

 

"Don't worry, I'll make sure to keep her in line, Doctor Maxwell," said Catherine and gave the female vet a fond look.

 

Duo noticed the look and immediately his mind was ticking over. He opted to stay silent though - for now. He'd observe a little more before drawing any conclusions, but if what his mind was processing combined with what his eyes were seeing, it could be possible that there was a budding romance there. He made a mental note to ask Trowa a few subtle questions when he got the time.

 

"All right, ladies, you win. I trust you both to keep the practice running in a professional manner while I'm gone, but..." Duo looked from one to the other. "When we return I want you both to take a couple of weeks holiday."

 

"Deal," replied Hilde.

 

"Fine with me," came Catherine's response.

 

"Right, now, back to work."

 

* * *

 

Heero was staring at the 'phone, debating with himself whether to make the call or not, and if he did, what he was going to say? He knew Trowa and Quatre would most likely look after the horses for him while he was gone, but he hated to be a burden on anyone. Heero's philosophy was that he wanted the horses and therefore it was up to him to look after them.

 

He jumped suddenly as the 'phone rang. Picking the receiver up, he answered. "Maxwell Veterinary Practice. Yuy speaking."

 

"Heero!"

 

"Quatre?"

 

There was a soft laugh down the line. "Yes, it's me, Heero. How are you?"

 

"I'm fine, Quatre. And you?"

 

"Doing great."

 

"Did you want Duo? He's up at the surgery right now, I can transfer you through to him if you like?"

 

"No, that's fine. It was you I wanted to speak to."

 

"Oh?" Heero couldn't think for the life of him what Quatre could want.

 

"Heero?"

 

"Hai?"

 

"With you having made the team and all, and Duo hopefully going with you to the competition, Trowa and I were doing some thinking." The blonde paused for a moment and Heero wondered what was coming. "We were wondering if you had organized for someone to take care of Scythe and Shini while you're away?"

 

"Actually, Quatre, I haven't organized anyone yet..."

 

"Good." The blonde interrupted. "Trowa and I would like to offer our services, if that's okay with you."

 

Heero chuckled.

 

"Is there something wrong, Heero?"

 

"No, nothing's wrong. To be honest, Quatre, I was sitting here wondering how to approach you and Trowa and ask if you would mind looking after the pair for me. Seems you've beaten me to it."

 

It was Quatre's turn to laugh. "We enjoyed doing it for you before and we don't mind doing it again. We wouldn't have offered otherwise."

 

"Thanks, Quatre. That means a lot to me. I know I can go and compete without having to worry about the other two. They will be in good hands."

 

"It's mine and Trowa's pleasure, Heero. It makes a change from the usual routine, it's also good for de-stressing."

 

Heero had no doubts about that. There was something about caring for a horse that calmed you, whether it was their patient attitude, the way they didn't demand anything from you or simply the company of a four legged friend, Heero didn't know, but it certainly helped to take the stress from your life, and Quatre had a lot of stress to deal with.

 

"Thank you, Quatre. I appreciate it. Tell Trowa thank you too."

 

The conversation continued on for a little longer, Quatre asking about feeding, the usual routine of the horses and a few other questions, all of which Heero was happy to answer. Eventually Quatre made his goodbyes and Heero hung up the 'phone. It seemed all was coming together nicely for his trip away. Now all he had to do was make sure that Zero and himself gave all they had for their country in the competition and bring home the cup for Australia.

 

* * *

 

"This is a pain in the ass!" growled Heero and tossed his pen to the table in frustration.

 

Duo suitably tisked and picked up the pen. "It's not that hard to write a bit about yourself, Heero."

 

"Yes, it is." Heero pouted. He didn't want to be writing up this summary on himself. Why did they have to have this information anyway? Surely it was an invasion of privacy or something like it.

 

As if sensing what was going through his partner's head, Duo snickered. "No, you can't write something like 'I bought my horse from a friend and decided I wanted to be a champion and here I am', they want to know a little of your background and before you think of pleading insanity to the courts or suing for invasion of privacy, think about your fans."

 

"Eh? I don't have any fans, Duo."

 

"Oh yes, you do, Heero." Duo moved in behind his lover and nibbled on Heero's earlobe. "You have Hilde, Catherine, Trowa, Quatre, half the practice clients and - me." The 'me' was accompanied by a lick to Heero's throat.

 

Heero moaned softly "Guess you're right."

 

"You wouldn't want to disappoint them, would you?" Another lick.

 

"Ah, no, I suppose not."

 

"Good. Now let's see if we can't come up with something interesting." Duo pulled away leaving Heero feeling cold from the loss of the warmth.

 

Between the two of them they eventually managed to come up with a short spiel. It took several screwed up pieces of paper, one broken pen and a few frayed nerves, but at last the thing was done. Duo looked at it with satisfaction and tucked the pen behind his ear.

 

"I'd say that's the best we're gonna get, Heero."

 

"I really don't care, I'm just glad it's finished," replied Heero.

 

Duo took a moment to scan over the page. "I'll copy this onto the form sent with the paperwork and post it off for you if you like."

 

"Thanks, Duo." Secretly, Heero was glad Duo was doing the writing, he was completely fed up with the entire issue; besides, his writing wasn't the best. Duo's writing though was neat, tidy and easily read.

 

It took Duo a few minutes to copy the 'spiel' onto the form and once done, he found an envelope, got Heero to sign in the right place and sealed it in the envelope before Heero could change his mind.

 

With the necessary paperwork now out of the way, Duo felt like relaxing. "Fancy going for a ride, Heero?"

 

Blue eyes found violet. "What sort of ride?" Heero questioned. With his long haired lover's enjoyment of playing with words, Heero never knew what to expect.

 

"A ride on the horses, Heero," Duo returned dryly. "Why? What sort of riding were you thinking of?" he added with a leer.

 

Heero blushed deep red.

 

Duo shook his head, an amused smile on his face. "We can do the other riding later."

 

~ * ~

 

tbc...