By KatiKat
Duo was sitting on the windowsill
in his room, braiding his long auburn hair. He was safe sitting here like that,
even though the times were dangerous. The Elven castle was safely hidden in the
woods. Nobody would be able to find it without knowing what to look for.
The young Elf was looking
thoughtfully out of the window at the green trees swaying slowly in the cool
breeze. He knew that outside of the boundaries of the Elven Kingdom, spring was
slowly approaching. But here there was eternal summer.
Another springtime. The twentieth
already since Heero had left. Heero - his lover, his husband, the toughest
Dragon he had ever met.
Duo sighed, tying the end of his
braid quickly and skilfully. He didn’t think the crusade against the Orcs would
take so long. He remembered Heero kissing him gently on the lips and promising
to come back as soon as possible before shifting into his Dragon form and
leaving with the rest of his clan. Duo still remembered that moment clearly
although twenty winters had passed since then. He knew that twenty winters were
nothing in the life of an Elf or a Dragon who lived for centuries. But still...
Twenty winters spent alone...
"Father?" a quiet
melodious voice behind him asked with concern.
Duo smiled without turning
around. Not alone. He had never been truly alone since his and Heero’s wedding
night. "Quatre. You are back early. Did the hunt go well?"
The young half-breed moved
further into his father’s room and sat down beside Duo on the windowsill. The
boy was beautiful, as was Duo. But his looks were typical for an Elf - tall,
lean, with blond hair and deep blue eyes. Duo always felt somehow out of place
when he compared himself to his son - he was beautiful too, but the odd thing
was, that instead of being tall he was short; his hair was auburn and not blond
and his violet eyes gave him an even more exotic look. Being a half-breed his son looked more like an Elf than he did. If it wasn´t
for the pointed ears...
The funny thing was that other
Elves who didn’t know them much were always confused about which of them was
actually the father. Even though Quatre was only 20 years old, because of his
mixed heritage he looked like any 20 year old human boy would - Duo was
grateful that his growth had stopped finally and he didn’t seem to get older
anymore. Duo - at his almost 70 years - looked exactly the same, maybe even
younger. The Clan considered them *both* children.
Quatre took his father’s hand in
his and smiled. "Yes, the hunt went well. How´Ard told me that I’m getting
better with the bow." He sounded genuinely pleased with himself.
Duo smiled and squeezed his son’s
hand. "Your Sire would be proud of you."
The smile disappeared from
Quatre’s face. "You were thinking about him again, weren’t you?" he
asked quietly. When Duo didn’t answer, Quatre continued. "Father, it’s not
healthy for you to keep yourself so depressed. You should go out more, meet
other Elves. Prince Zechs told me you used to be so cheerful and full of
energy. He said you are wasting away, thinking the whole day only about my
Sire."
Duo lowered his head. He knew his
son was right, but he couldn’t help it. He woke up and went to sleep thinking
about Heero. Every minute of his day was filled with memories of him. He knew
Heero wasn’t dead or gravely injured. He would’ve felt it in the depth of his
heart if it were so. He just had to wait little longer and Heero would come
back to him again.
Quatre sighed. "Father, I’m
just so worried about you. I love you."
"I know, son, I know...
But..." He looked back out of the window.
"Maybe it’s time for you to
put away the black," Quatre suggested carefully.
Duo’s head snapped around and he
looked his son straight in the eyes. "No way. The black of my clothes
states my commitment to my absent husband. It also tells everybody that I still
believe in his return. And if I have to I will wear this garment for the rest
of my life."
Quatre nodded. "I
understand. You must love him very much." It wasn´t
a question..
Duo smiled again. Yes, he loved
Heero with his whole being, with his soul, body and mind - in this lifetime and
beyond. There was only one thing he was really sad about - beside the fact that
his husband was missing - was that Heero never found out about his child before
he left. The Orcs attacked the South Lands just a couple of weeks after their
wedding and Heero had to leave immediately, leaving his husband in the care of
Duo’s clan. It was almost two months after his departure that Duo found out
that he was pregnant.Only few of the male Elves had been blessed with the gift
of bearing a child in the past.
The clan took this news with joy
and many nights were spent celebrating. Duo still hoped that Heero would be
back for the birth but unfortunately it wasn’t meant to be. The birth had been
long, painful and draining, leaving him in a comatose state for weeks. But in
the end the healers were able to restore his health piece by piece, using the
energy of nature. Duo remembered the moment he took his son in his arms for the
first time quite well. The happiness he felt in his heart could only be met by
the feelings he had for his husband.
"I wish I could find a love
like this one day," Quatre sighed wistfully.
"You will, my son. I’m sure
of it. Just like I’m sure that your Sire will come back to me one day. The only
thing you have to do is to have faith."
Quatre nodded hearing the
conviction in his father’s voice and Duo knew he believed him. He laughed and
flung his braid over his shoulder. Together they looked out of the window and
there was a newborn light in Duo’s eyes for his faith had been strengthened
once again.
Yes, Heero will return home one
day...
The End