****
****

Those bags look heavy was Duo's first thought. He's cute was his second. And his third actually made it out of his mouth when the guy hit the down arrow for the elevators. "Man, aren't you going to head to your room to drop those off before going anywhere else?"

Heero turned to give the man an incredulous look, and thought, immediately, 'newbie'. The second thought was something along the lines of 'funny t-shirt, nice arms', and the third went back to, 'where are this guy's friends?' Newbies shouldn't be left on their own the first day of Dragon*Con, even if it was before the con officially started. It was just asking for trouble.

It looked like it was left to Heero to educate him so he said patiently, "If you want an elevator, you take any one you can get, going up or down. There's not enough room on them to get picky."

"Makes sense," Duo shrugged, "If elevators are that scarce I guess that means I shouldn't play around like I normally do. If I want to stay alive anyway."

"I don't know what you normally do, but it's a good idea to leave the elevators alone, yes. You don't want to upset the 501st." Heero eyed the guy again and said, rather than asked, "This is your first year. Have you been to any other cons before?"

"Small ones - more specialized than this. Friends dragged me along this year, telling me I *had* to come at least once - I'm hoping it lives up to all their hype but I'm skeptical at this point. The 501st? You mean all the Storm Troopers wandering around?"

"You really -are- new." Heero said, shaking his head, "Yes they're the storm troopers. And the con is one of the best I've been to. Dealing with the crowds sucks, but the rest of it is worth it."

"It'll have to be pretty darn good to warrant putting up with Hilde in the car for 10 hours; I swear on the way home I'm riding with Wufei," Duo muttered darkly before turning his attention back to Heero, "You here by yourself?"

"No, a couple of friends of mine are here too. Trowa's parking the car and Sally's getting the room keys. Where are your friends?" If they were experienced Dragon*Conners he guessed they were doing the same things his companions were. Division of labor was vital to getting things done.

"In our room. They sent me on a wild goose chase for ice," Duo held up his bucket upside down in illustration. "You want some help with those bags?"

"You help with the bags and I'll get you ice," Heero offered.

"Sweet!" Duo agreed enthusiastically. "I think I've been to every floor of this hotel and couldn't find any. Which bags do you want me to take? I'm kinda scared of just grabbing 'cause it looks like it's somewhat precarious."

"If you get the top two I can handle the rest." Heero answered, and then looked up at the elevator bank, hurriedly grabbing the bags and loading himself up before heading over to one just as the doors opened. Sidling into the already crammed space he held a foot in the door so the newbie didn't get shut out but didn't have to hold it long - the newb might have been a bit clueless but he was quick on his feet.

"Which floor?" someone called from by the controls.

"24," Heero called, after the chorus of other requests sounded from around him. It was really quite amazing how many people and bags could be crammed into an elevator when people were determined and not too worried about personal space.

Duo stood quietly for the duration of the ride up, only speaking again once they were clear of the elevator, "How many years have you been coming to this thing?"

"Six. It's gotten a lot bigger in the past few years." Heero didn't even hesitate, heading right for the room he and his friends were staying in; he'd stayed in the Marriott so many times he knew exactly where he was going at all times, "How often have your friends come?"

"No clue - at least as long as I've known them and we met 2 years ago when I started college at USF," Duo followed easily, staying a step or two behind and watching with a touch of awe as Heero handled all those bags with ease.

Glancing over his shoulder at Duo, Heero frowned a little, he'd thought the newbie was older than that, "What took them so long to get you to come?"

"Barely knew them the first year, we'd just met the week before and then last year I didn't have the cash to come - my books cost me a bit more than I was expecting," Duo explained with a roll of his eyes.

Heero nodded grimly in complete understanding, he'd spent an inordinate amount of money on books himself in the past few years. "What are you studying?"

He felt a little like an interrogator but he wasn't very good at talking to people he didn't know well and Sally was always telling him that the best thing to do was just ask the other person questions about themselves. Her reasoning was that people always liked to talk about themselves, and he'd 'learn something about normal people' while he was at it. Personally Heero thought being normal was overrated and ridiculous, but he knew better than to tell -her- that.

"Currently?" Duo asked, answering the question himself before Heero could reply. "Programming. You?"

Answering absently as he maneuvered around a pair of klingons arguing about who had their room keys, Heero said over his shoulder, "Theoretical physics with an emphasis on nanoscience and space travel. What kind of programming are you focusing on?"

"Graphical," Duo informed him, relaxing a bit once he heard Heero rattle off his programs - he'd learned the hard way not to give his full information because it tended to put people off. "I got my bachelors degrees in 3D art, graphic art, and computer animation so now I'm getting my Masters in Graphical Programming... and goofing off, really."

Heero paused and looked back at Duo, a new respect in his eyes, "That's a lot of work."

"Not as much as you'd think since so much of it overlaps," Duo shrugged modestly. "Also helps that I went to an arts college so I didn't have most of the Gen Ed BS to go through. Where you going to school?"

"Massachusetts Institute of Technology." Heero shrugged a little, he didn't know why people tended to make a fuss when he told them that, but at least at Dragon*Con most of the other con-goers just nodded. It wasn't rare to find at least a dozen other people who had attended MIT too, which made for some interesting discussions.

"What's it like?" Duo inquired, "I couldn't get the funds together for there."

"Interesting. The professors are all experts in their fields and they offer a lot of opportunities to get involved with on-going research." Finally stopping in front of a door he knocked and a pretty woman with long blonde hair stuck her head out then opened the door all the way.

"Hey genius, I thought you would be here..." She paused, giving Duo a surprised look, "Oh. Um. Hi."

"Hi," Duo greeted her brightly, "He promised me ice in exchange for help with the bags."

"Well.... " She gave Heero a queer look, which he ignored in favor of taking the bags into the room. Turning back to Duo she smiled, "Then we'd better get you ice. Come on in, we've got a cooler full of the stuff."

"Thank God. I've been to every floor of the hotel and couldn't find any. And I was very adamantly told by a very evil brunette that if I came back without ice I could kiss my balls goodbye," Duo shuddered in dramatic fear, eyes twinkling in amusement as he edged passed her.

"I wish that threat worked on my boys." Sally lamented, following him in and closing the door behind her, "Of course giving this one a job is a sure way to get it done, and twice as fast as expected." She waved a hand at Heero, who gave her a small frown.

"There's nothing wrong with being efficient."

"Nope, extraneous work just muddles things," Duo put forth, "And the threat only works because Hilde would actually do it... and use a rusty knife from her grandfather's junk yard."

Sally grinned, "Okay, she's got me there. I'd just use a scalpel."

Walking over to take the ice bucket from the newbie Heero shook his head, "But she would swab with alcohol afterward."

Duo cringed theatrically, much to Sally's amusement. "You'd get along real well with Hilde. What is it with women and sadistic tendencies towards the male of the species? Now there's an idea for a video game; I could make a killing on a game that lets you design a man and then torture him in exceptionally bizarre and horrific ways."

Sally laughed and then teased, "Why bother with a video game when there are so many real men just begging for it?"

Sighing Heero handed Duo the bucket he'd filled with ice while they were talking and shook his head, "Sally it's the guy's first year, don't scare him already. The Klingons haven't even had their bash yet."

A loud snort escaped Duo, "I went to *art school*. You honestly think anything this weekend will shock me?"

Frowning a little Heero shrugged, not understanding what the newbie's school had to do with anything, "I don't know, I don't go to an art school."

Sally rolled her eyes, "Forgive him, guy's a genius but he doesn't know the first thing about people. It was nice to meet you, but you'd better go or that ice is going to melt before you get to your room and it would be a shame for such a good looking guy to lose his balls."

Duo laughed goodnaturedly and headed for the door, calling over his shoulder, "See ya ‘round."

****

They'd often passed each other in the halls throughout the day and waved genially but Duo was quite surprised to see MIT Iceman - as he'd come to think of him - when he walked into the Stargate Slash panel late that night. Not one to pass up an opportunity, he bounded over and slid into the seat next to the guy, pleading, "Save me."

Heero blinked at the newb in surprise, "Save you? From what?"

"That!" Duo waved his hand behind him, indicating a short-haired brunette that had followed him in. "The rusty knife-wielding harridan."

He got smacked for his description but the woman was smiling, "Shut up moron or I won't pay you back."

"I don't see a knife," Heero pointed out logically, and nodded to Hilde.

Huffing and rolling his eyes Duo shook his head as he sat back in resignation, "Why am I here again?"

"So you can meet some of the people in the fandom and have a better idea of who'll be playing the game," Hilde explained, sounding as if she'd said the exact same thing multiple times. Speaking over him to Heero, she asked, "So how'd you meet my favorite idiot?"

Assuming that she was talking about the newbie, who wasn't exactly Heero's definition of an idiot, Heero answered succinctly, "Elevators."

One word, but it said everything a Dragon*Con veteran needed to know.

Sliding down in his seat a bit, Duo hoped Hilde wouldn't connect Heero's answer with his gushing over the 'hot guy' who'd helped him get ice.

Hilde nodded sagely at Heero and continued her game of 20 Personal Questions. "What interests bring you to the con?"

Heero gave Duo a look for bringing her over to him and then patiently answered Hilde's question, "I'm interested in many of the science fiction shows and movies, as wall as the science track and some of the computer games. Yourself?"

"A little of everything really," Hilde shrugged aside the question. "Not much of a fan of Star Wars or Star Trek but pretty much everything else here is an interest of mine. Makes for a busy couple of days."

"And she doesn't think I'm capable of looking after myself so I get dragged to everything along with her," Duo muttered. "I don't see what the problem is - I have a program, I have a map, and I know big cities better than she does. But she refuses to let me wander off by myself."

"She's right, your first Dragon*Con is dangerous." Heero said this perfectly straight faced, and added, "I had two people with me the entire weekend my first time." And he'd still managed to get into trouble... though it wasn't his fault.

"I'll go nuts if I have to put up with her all weekend," Duo whined, only to get smacked in the head for his trouble.

"Why don't you hang out with your other friend then?" Heero asked curiously.

Duo and Hilde both turned horrified eyes on Heero but before either could answer, the three women at the front of the room began the panel.

It became obvious very quickly what they'd meant by 'slash' and Heero was rather surprised. He'd never even thought about O'Neill and Jackson being a couple, but apparently it was blatantly obvious to all of the other people in the room. The more they discussed it the more sense it made to him, though he wasn't sure how he felt about it; O'Neill was in the military after all, it wasn't quite legal. Curious he glanced over at the newbie, expecting to see the uncomfortable, and somewhat horrified, expression of a straight man who was dragged along by his girlfriend. Instead he found a man who was very seriously listening to everything that was being said, and even taking notes. He wasn't quite sure what to make of that, but at least the guy hadn't been ready to bolt from the room screaming.

The panel ended with an invitation to hang around and talk with the panel members, but Heero didn't really have any intention of staying. Already some of the women were giving him skeptical looks and he really didn't want to be interrogated about his sex life by a bunch of slash fangirls – especially if they were anything like the yaoi fangirls he knew. Standing he shouldered his bag of stuff, which everyone acquired at one point or another during the Con, and nodded at Hilde and the newbie, "It was nice seeing you again."

Duo didn't even look up, too engrossed with his notes but Hilde smiled up at him, waving her hand at Duo, "Ignore his rudeness; he always gets like this when it comes to research. Especially when he gets hit by ideas."

"Research?" Heero asked curiously, risking an attack from fangirls by staying a little longer. He glanced at the table in the front, it looked like most of them were occupied with a story one of the panel members was telling, so he had a little bit longer.

"Duo's wanting to design his own games and he thinks there's a market that hasn't been tapped yet. Right now the only slash games are actually yaoi games from Japan and most are simple sim games. What he's wanting to do is create RPGs along the lines of Final Fantasy or Neverwinter Nights only with a slash angle. Or create games for popular yaoi series. His real dream though is to get permission from Flewelling to make a game out of her Nightrunner series," Hilde explained easily. "The gaming industry is still primarily male though and the slash community is primarily female so he's run across a few problems."

So that was his name, Duo, at least Heero could stop calling him 'that attractive newbie' in his head. Heero nodded thoughtfully, "I can see how that would be a problem, but if he appealed to the gay community he would have a ready made market. Just because a man is gay doesn't mean he doesn't like video games like any other guy."

"True, but the market will be larger if I can come up with something that will appeal not only to guys but to the fangirls of slash too," Duo interjected, "I'm not sure if either group is big enough on its own but I'm hoping that combined I'll have a viable market."

"This would be the place to find out how to do that," Heero agreed and then took an involuntary step back, having caught sight of several women who were 'drifting' over in their direction. "We should go. Quickly."

Duo had noticed the same thing and quickly made his way towards the door, pushing Hilde towards the women edging towards them, "Talk to your fellow crazy women; I'll see you back in the room."

"I can't let you wander off by yourself," Hilde protested a touch too late since Duo had already made good his escape and was out of her reach to grab.

"I'll stay with him." Heero assured her, hot on Duo's heels. He didn't slow down until they were crammed on the escalators with a bunch of other people, when he sighed with relief.

"Thanks man; fangirls are scary and I know she would have made me stay," Duo came exceedingly close to whimpering at the thought, having been exposed to a few of Hilde's friends early on in his research.

"I've been caught by them a couple of times without back up, I wouldn't leave anyone to that." Heero sounded as grim as if he'd been talking about a war, not a convention.

"How'd they catch you?" Duo asked curiously as they got off at the main level and made their way through the hotel.

Heero actually blushed a little, "It was my first year at the con; I didn't know what I was getting into when my friends took me to a yaoi music video competition. I left to get some water and I got ambushed on my way back in. After that every time one of them saw me they tried to chase me down. One of them caught me again the next year when I was in the dealers room and backed me into a corner to interrogate me." He frowned darkly at the memory, and actually looked around to see if the woman was still stalking him four years later.

Shuddering in commiseration, Duo told him, "I was able to fend them off for a while with the whole research thing. But then Hilde let slip to a few of them that I'm bi... I've never known women could be so vulgar or graphic before."

"It was a tactical error to go back in after leaving the video competition; apparently no straight man would do that after escaping the first time. I've tried to avoid that mistake since then." Heero blamed it on being young and relatively naive, if he made the same mistake now he would be utterly ashamed of himself. He was also busy reminding himself that there was no point in getting any more interested in Duo than he already was, because they probably didn't live anywhere near one another, and Duo probably wasn't interested anyway.

"So... are you? Straight, I mean," Duo asked, boldly looking Heero in the eye as they paused for traffic to clear enough for them to cross the street to the Marriott.

Heero nearly got a fairy wing to the eye when he stopped paying attention to their surroundings to stare at Duo in surprise. Lifting an arm to fend off the errant wing, he ignored the fairy's apology to answer Duo, "Um... No. I'm not."

"Almost wish you were," Duo muttered ruefully, "You're enough to tempt me as is... and I don't do casual."

Again Duo had left him at a loss for words, and Heero started moving automatically when the street cleared and the crowd of superheroes, storm troopers and elves started across the road. When they got to the other side he finally managed, with real regret, "I don't either."

****

"Oops, sorr... oh! Hey!" Duo greeted him, automatically moving to the side and out of the heavy flow of dealers room traffic in a blatant invitation to chat for a minute. "What're you up to?"

Juggling a long box that was more awkward than heavy Heero squeezed into the space between two dealers’ tables with Duo and put the box down, hitched his overstuffed bag a little higher on his shoulder, and answered sourly, "Sally sent me to pick up her purchases from the day."

"Ouch. Need a hand?" Duo offered. "I was just wandering through since I had a few minutes but I've already been through so it’s not like I'd miss anything by helping you carry."

He didn't need help really, it was more that he was irritated with battling the crowds on an empty stomach than that the task was difficult, but Heero found himself nodding anyway. He enjoyed Duo's company and welcomed something to lighten his mood, "I've got three more stops before I can take this stuff up to the room and go get something to eat."

At his words Duo reached into his bag and pulled out a small pack of trail mix, exchanging it for enough of the bags that Heero could eat it. "Should tide you over. When's your next panel? You have enough time for real food?"

"Real food? At the con?" Heero gave Duo a dubious look, and took advantage of the fact that they were standing still to scarf down the trail mix quickly.

"We brought a cooler with us - fruit and sandwich stuff. Or if you're willing there's a couple of restaurants within walking distance. I'm always sick of fast food by the end of a con so I convinced them to bring some stuff with us. Dragon*Con's a first for me but I know cons - they're just smaller ones." Duo took the packet back from Heero to stuff in his bag until they found a trash can and handed over a bottle of water.

There was a panel Heero had wanted to go to, but he decided that he could skip it and took the water with a small smile, "There's a Steak and Ale on the corner, would that work for you?"

"Steak's always good," Duo agreed readily, hoisting the bags higher with a huge grin, "So let's make those last few stops and drop this junk off."

****

Once they were seated in a back corner Duo fiddled with his glass of water, his eyes flickering between it and Heero as he asked, “So what got you to come to Dragon*Con that first year?”

Looking up from the menu he wasn’t really reading anyway Heero shrugged, “Trowa. We were friends in high school and he’d heard about it from one of the clowns and wanted to go. His sister wouldn’t let him go alone so he asked me to come along.”

“Clowns?” Duo asked curiously, with a quirked eyebrow.

Heero found himself forgetting, on occasion, that he hadn’t really known Duo that long until he asked a question that made it obvious again. Feeling a little stupid for forgetting that, Heero explained, “Trowa and his sister grew up in the circus; they’re acrobats.”

“Cool.” Duo commented calmly, a very different reaction than Heero was used to, but was explained when Duo continued, “I have a friend who graduated from the clown college and is now studying trapeze in Orlando.”

Leaning forward to rest his elbows on the table Heero clasped his hands together to set his chin on them, “That’s something Tro has always wanted to do, but his sister made him promise to graduate college. She doesn’t want him going back to the circus life.”

It didn’t really surprise Heero that Duo had a penchant for odd friends, he -was- at Dragon*Con after all and he struck Heero as the sort of person who would attract the unique and brilliant.

Duo nodded in agreement, “Paul’s parents said the same thing, so he got his degree in Recreation Science. Basically he studies sports, games, and all kinds of recreation and figures out ways to make them better, although the lucky SOB doesn’t need a job. He and his brother could live very cushy lives on what his brother has raked in.”

“Doing what?” Heero asked curiously, then paused to give their waitress his drink and dinner orders.

"Wakeboarding," Duo answered after the interruption, "World Champion a few times along with a number of other titles. The guy's really cool but I've only met him once. He and Paul are really close."

Heero nodded, quiet for a moment as he tried to imagine, again, what it would be like to have siblings. Covering the moment by neatly stacking the menus in their little stand Heero commented, "You seem to have very interesting friends."

"Yeah," Duo agreed, "I've never been one to hang around normal people without growing bored very quickly."

"I don't bore you?" Heero asked it without thinking, surprised at the implied meaning behind Duo's words. He'd been told multiple times by various acquaintances that he was not the most stimulating company to be found... well more appropriately he'd heard them saying it to other people, or inferred it from the way they avoided him like the plague after talking to him the first time.

"No," Duo drawled, "You at least have a brain in your head and can converse intelligently... unlike most of the women Hilde has a habit of setting me up with. What is it with girls and thinking everyone has to be dating to be happy anyway?"

Relaxing a little, relieved that that particular social pressure was off of him, Heero shrugged, "I don't know, but Sally tries to do the same thing. It's been a while since she made me go out with someone though. She said that my reputation has gotten around and none of her gay friends will return her calls after she starts talking about me."

Frankly Heero didn't understand the whole process and it made him fairly uncomfortable. He'd done his best on every date, knowing that he'd never hear the end of it from Sally if he didn't, but most of them hadn't even lasted an hour before coming to an awkward, but relieved, end.

"Hilde's quit setting me up too... but it's because she's tired of getting harassed by all her friends when I don't return their calls. For some reason they think I'm sensitive and wonderful because I let them drone on and on for hours when I'm really just running through code in my head, I'm so bored. The one and only date Hilde ever set me up on that could have gone somewhere didn't go anywhere because Hilde started dating the guy," Duo grumped goodnaturedly.

"Trowa tried to get Sally to stop when she first started, he knows me well enough to know it wouldn't work, but she's very... stubborn." Heero frowned darkly, remembering one of the more spectacular failures. It had ended up with his overly 'friendly' date in the hospital and him sitting in the police station trying to explain how the man had gotten tossed through a restaurant window.

"There have been times recently though that I've wished some of them had worked out because I'm sick of sitting around my apartment on Saturday nights with no one to talk to. Ever since my friends all hooked up I feel like I rarely see them. And if I stare at code too long I start dreaming the damn stuff," Duo muttered with a roll of his eyes.

"I'm too busy to go out." Heero shrugged, looking up when the waitress came by with their food and added when she was gone, "Being alone doesn't bother me."

"Doesn't bother me either... usually," Duo corrected himself, "The last few months I've had a hard time distracting myself though and I've actually gotten tired of living and breathing code."

"So why don't you call some of them back? I'm sure they would be happy to hear from you." Heero was jealous, and was surprised about it. If they lived closer together there might be a reason for it, but there was no way there would be anything between them so it was foolish to be jealous over the people Duo did get to go out with.

"Because putting up with them would be worse," Duo stated adamantly. "I want someone interesting to talk to... You don't happen to be online a lot, are you?"

Pausing in the middle of a bite of steak Heero blinked at Duo a couple of times, then nodded slowly as he swallowed, "I usually have a few programs up and running while I study."

"You chat with people at all?" Duo inquired with a smile tugging at the corners of his lips as he took a bite of his steak.

"I... I do. Well... Trowa and Sally anyway." Heero shrugged, then took out a piece of paper to write down his screen names and their associated IM systems.

Duo did the same and pushed the paper across the table for Heero, "Here's mine. I'm on pretty much all the time that I'm not working or in class. 'Course, that's not all that often in the scheme of things."

"Not with all of the things you're doing." Heero agreed, tucking the paper into a pocket, "I'm on most of the time so..."

"I'll make sure to ping you," Duo told him with a wide grin, eyes lit with delighted pleasure.

Returning the smile Heero asked, "Do you think you'll be coming back next year?"

"If I have the money," Duo grinned. "I'll try not to spend it all at the smaller cons I'll go to over the next year."

Tilting his head in interest Heero asked, "Which ones are those?"

"Well there's MegaCon and MetroCon that I hit every year and maybe one or two others in Florida if they fit into my schedule. And I try to hit A-kon every other year or so. I'd go to some farther away but I'm too tied down with school to make the trip since most of them are scheduled for school months instead of mid-summer."

Nodding Heero admitted regretfully, "I rarely get to get to more than one con a year so I always come to Dragon*Con."

"It's big enough that you're most likely to find all you want in one weekend if you can't go to multiples," Duo agreed sagely.

Nodding, Heero took another bite of his dinner and changed the subject slightly to ask about one of the panels he'd seen Duo going into earlier in the day. He didn't really say much, preferring to listen to Duo's enthusiastic rambles.

They ended up spending the whole of dinner talking, only splitting up when they both had to meet friends in different places, though both were reluctant to part company.

****

From: d.maxwell@usf.edu
To: h.yuy@mit.edu

Subject: Sorry...

I really didn't mean to skip out on you last night. I fell asleep at my computer *sheepish* Finals are in 2 weeks so I should be around more afterwards. Can't wait for this to be over.

~ Exhausted

****

Duo waited for the phone to pick up only to sigh in disappointment when he realized it was voicemail.

“You’ve reached Heero Yuy. Leave a message after the beep.”

Suddenly grinning, Duo chuckled as he left a message, “I just realized we’ve been chatting for four months and I still hadn’t known what your name was. At least now I can call you Heero instead of Zero. Call me back; I want to compare class schedules so I know when I can get daily doses of sanity.”

Still chuckling softly, Duo hung up and made his way to his first class of the new semester.

****

"Hey," Duo greeted when the phone was answered, "I'm on break at work and it's a really slow night... keep me entertained for a few minutes?"

Heero didn't bother to hide a smile, there was no one in his room to see it after all, and he leaned back in his computer chair, stretching as he asked, "Of course. Which job is it tonight?"

"Bar," Duo answered succinctly, propping his feet up on the boxes piled in the storeroom, "I was supposed to have tonight off but Chad called in. As slow as it is, Michelle will probably only keep me for another hour and then close up by herself."

"Tuesdays don't seem to be big drinking nights," Heero conceded and got up to pull on a jacket and some boots as he talked. Unlike when he talked to most people, Heero couldn't read or work while he was talking to Duo on the phone, the man just took up too much of his attention.

Stepping out of his tiny apartment he locked the door and started walking, not going anywhere particular, "Are you going to work on that project for Professor Walsh when you get off or are you done?"

A groan came over the line, "Don't remind me; I still have about five hours of work to do."

Heero didn't quite smile, because he was paranoid about his neighbors ever since the old lady across the hall had seen him talking to Duo and spent the next day interrogating him on who it was that made him so happy. Still his amusement was in his voice when he said, "Which is probably five more hours than anyone else in your class is putting in."

Taking pity on Duo he added, "If it makes you feel any better I've got another report due in a couple of weeks for Dr Rivers."

"Oh, so you'll be spending even more hours working than I will be," Duo remarked knowledgably, knowing from past conversations how difficult Dr Rivers could be. "I really don't understand why these people have even bothered to come back to school for a Masters degree when they're not willing to put forth the effort."

Turning to stroll through the little park that was next to his apartment building Heero said, "It won't be too bad this time, I've been doing a lot of research on the effects of solar flares on nebulas for the space weather project I'm helping Professor Olenski with. And you're just more motivated than the majority of your classmates. If they're anything like some of mine they're just more interested in the degree than information. That's what will get them hired."

The idea of it just disgusted Heero, who couldn't imagine dedicating any significant amount of time doing anything that he didn't feel passionate about.

"There's something screwed up about a society that will hire someone because of a sheet of paper that really doesn't prove anything except that they did just enough to pass some classes," Duo grumbled around a theme he'd repeated numerous times over the course of their association. "Oh, hey, been meaning to ask you - any plans for spring break or summer? When is your spring break anyway?"

"The second week of March. I don't have plans for spring break, but it's unlikely I'll have the time off from school anyway. Prof. Olenshi is planning on getting as much of his research done over the week as he can so unless the grant money doesn't come through in time I'll be in the lab all week." Normally Heero would be perfectly happy about that, he hated spring break, the campus was too empty for him to feel surrounded by humanity the way he usually did, but now he found himself wishing he could spend it with Duo.

It was probably just as well, as much as Duo worked he probably wouldn't have gotten to do anything with Heero anyway, if he'd even wanted to.

"Our schedules don't match up anyway," Duo shrugged, the movement going unseen, "Spring break here is actually the week before that. Maybe we can get together this summer though? Or at least show up to Dragon*Con a few days early and wander Atlanta together..."

Safe from prying neighbors in the shadowed depths of the park, Heero smiled, "I'd like that. I'm trying to get picked up for an internship program at Lockheed Martin for a couple of months this summer, but they always have thousands of applicants so I probably won't get in. Either way I can probably make it to Dragon*Con early, Trowa and Sally always want to get there a few days ahead of time anyway."

"Cool," Duo looked up at the sound of the storeroom door and nodded to Michelle, "We'll talk more when I get home and start working on that project again; I'm being summoned back to work."

"Alright. Have a good night." Heero hated saying goodbye, it always felt so awkward. It was worse with Duo, because on top of it being awkward, he didn't *want* to hang up, which was never really a problem with anyone else.

"I'll try, talk to you later," Duo responded, cell phone clicking shut as he exited the room and made his way back to the bar and a smug coworker. His growled, "Don't start," brought a grin to her face but the warning at least kept Michelle thankfully silent.

****

From: H.Yuy@MIT.edu
To: D.Maxwell@USF.edu

Subject: That movie...

Duo, what was the name of that movie you told me about yesterday? It sounded interesting and I have tomorrow night off so I thought I would go see it. You were planning to go tomorrow too weren't you? Maybe we can compare notes when we get home.

BTW, how are things going with that girl at work? Is she still bothering you?

- H.

****

Heero thought he just might loose it if his phone didn't ring soon, he'd been giving it impatient glances for two hours and finally just picked it up and hit speed dial. The moment it picked up he demanded, "Well? How did you do?"

"gmmmhhh'rrro?" The answer was completely unintelligible - obviously, Heero had woken him up.

Glancing at his clock again, though he knew very well that it was eleven in the morning, Heero said more quietly, "Yes it's me. Are you alright?"

After a few more minutes of mumbling, Heero could hear the sound of running water and Duo's more recognizable words, "Give me a minute to grab some toast and aspirin."

"Of course," Heero responded, he didn't drink himself, but he knew enough people who did to recognize the signs of a hangover.

"I really shouldn't have done that," Duo grumbled tiredly, "But everyone wanted to go drink to the fact finals were over... and when all the regulars at the bar found out I'd passed they kept buying me drinks to celebrate."

Pushing away the jealousy that everyone else had found out before him, Heero focused on the good news. "Congratulations. I knew you would do well."

"Wanna hear what I got on my finals?" Duo asked, a trace of smugness to his voice. "I haven't told anyone else - they would have killed me instead of congratulating me."

"Of course I want to know." Just like that Heero's jealousy disappeared and he sat back in his cheap plastic chair, ignoring his laptop as it blinked onto the screen saver in front of him.

"I outscored all of them," the trace of smugness had graduated to fullblown pretentiousness. "I scored over 90 on every final. Even Walsh gave me an A on my final project."

"You worked hard enough on it." Heero noted, smiling. Duo had been studying constantly, when he wasn't working, and Heero had known it would pay off.

"Course, I was so busy studying I kinda forgot that I have to figure out what to do after school was over," Duo finished off his toast and went to sprawl across his bed again, happily burrowing his way back under the covers.

"Have you thought about those job offers you've been getting?" Heero knew that he'd gotten quite a few, but Duo hadn't really seemed inclined to any of them over the others and hadn't mentioned taking any of them.

"Yeah..." Duo trailed off uncertainly as his mind went to the job offers he'd been getting in the last semester. "So many of them are for advertising agencies though."

"You haven't gotten any from one of the gaming companies? With your qualifications I would think they would be calling constantly."

"I've gotten an offer from Sony to work on their mmorpg's and a few other offers. Those are the ones I've been mulling over. Well... except the Sony one. I honestly don't have much interest in working on an mmo, no matter how popular they've become." Duo sighed in contentment, his stomach settled and the headache eased now that he'd eaten and swallowed a few painkillers.

"I don't blame you, I wouldn't either." Of course Heero wasn't in the least bit artistic so he couldn't anyway. "When do you have to decide?"

Shifting back in his seat Heero leaned away from his tiny, ugly kitchen table and all the research stacked neatly on it, and looked out the window toward the park while Duo spoke.

"Never?" Duo muttered uncertainly. "In all honesty, I could make a decent living tending bar full time so it's not as if I *have* to take any of these offers. But I do need to respond to them all in the next week - before graduation."

"Do you want to keep tending bar?" Honestly Heero thought it was a huge waste of talent and intelligence if that's all Duo did with his life, but he supposed that if it made the man happy he didn't have a right to say

"No," Duo admitted softly, "I *want* to develop video games. Just not for any of the companies that have sent me offers. I'm not sure though if rejecting all of them and approaching any of the smaller companies would be wise. Or if I should take one of the offers and try to find something different while working there."

"You could always keep tending bar and put in applications to the companies you really want to work for. Or call and ask them if the best way to get hired is to work with one of the bigger companies first. I'm sure they wouldn't mind telling you, and the companies that have already made offers don't have any right to object to you exploring your options anyway. They'd be lucky to have you," Heero gave his advice matter-of-factly, not really intending to, but wanting to help.

"Good idea... Thanks. How're things going for you? You have your last final tomorrow, right?"

"Yes, but it's for my best class so I'm not worried about it. The rest of my exams have gone well." Which, of course, was to be expected. Heero applied himself to his schoolwork with the single-minded intensity of a man who had no other purpose in life but to graduate with honors.

"You heard anything about that internship yet?" Duo asked curiously, his voice taking on drowsy overtones as he lazed in his sun-drenched bed.

"No, I think they're waiting until all of the grades are back for the applicants so they can use them to help narrow down the field. There is some pretty strong competition out there."

"Let me know when you hear something; we still need to make plans," Duo reminded him needlessly.

"I'll call as soon as I find out." Heero assured him, pleased that Duo was so insistent, though Heero had no intention of keeping him in the dark.

"Plans for today?" Duo managed to ask around a yawn.

"Studying for my last final, and working on that research grant paperwork Dr Olenski asked me to put together." Heero eyed the paperwork in question with distaste. He understood the need for grants, but he hated begging for money.

"Then go get it done and call me back. I don't work this evening..." Duo trailed off, letting Heero make the decision about whether he wanted to spend his evening with Duo.

Smiling genuinely Heero promised, "Then I'll be sure to call. Get some more sleep Duo, and don't forget to eat lunch."

"Lunch, what's that?" Duo asked mock-innocently, chuckling as he hung up.

****

Fin: Hey, you there?

Ones&Zeros: Yes. I thought you were packing tonight?

Fin: I am... well... a bit. Shouldn't take me too long to pack so I was taking out some stress in Counter Strike.

Ones&Zeros: Are you still worried? You shouldn't be, the interview will go fine. They'd have to be stupid not to hire you.

Fin: Not worried. Not really, anyway. Annoyed with my supervisor again and getting excited about next week.

Ones&Zeros: What did he do this time?

Fin: Foisted his work off on us and told us it had to be done by the time we left today since it's being presented tomorrow.

Ones&Zeros: Well he won't be able to get away with that as much when you leave. They'll wonder why the quality of his work went down.

Fin: He won't be able to get away with it anyway. Since I have that interview tomorrow and... oh, I hadn't told you. I heard from another company interested in recruiting me. After the Moron left the office, I walked to the Project Supervisor and informed him of what was going on.

Ones&Zeros: Good, on both accounts. He should never have gotten away with it for as long as he has. The man is incompetent.

Fin: Only reason he has is because everyone's been scared of losing their jobs since he has connections to the owner. Taken care of now.

Ones&Zeros: About time... Has Wufei decided if he's going up early with you or not?

Fin: Yeah but he's continuing up to Anderson to visit a friend for a few days instead of staying in Atlanta with me.

Ones&Zeros: Alright. I was hoping he would stay so Trowa would have someone to hang out with when we go to dinner the night we get down there.

Fin: Wufei will be back Monday since the friend he's visiting has to work, so he'll be here for Trowa to hang out with. I'm just going to be alone for the weekend.

Ones&Zeros: I wish I could get down there earlier, but my replacement for the project is an idiot. It's taking me twice as long to train him as I expected.

Fin: You'll still make it down Monday though?

Ones&Zeros: If he's still not trained by then, I can't train him and I'd probably be thinking about murder. I think it's in everyone's best interests if I leave on time.

Fin: *snicker* probably
Fin: oh, Sally coming for con this year? Hilde's not gonna make it

Ones&Zeros: She'll be there, they know better than to try and keep her at the hospital Labor Day weekend, she gets... dangerous.

Fin: She's going to be the only female then... she comfortable with that?

Ones&Zeros: SALLY? I think she'll view it as a bit of a challenge to keep us all in line. Not much of one, but more so than if Hilde was going to be there to help.

Fin: had to ask *shrug*
Fin: *groan* I gotta start packing - call or goodnight?

Ones&Zeros: I'll call. Don't forget your phone charger btw, or I might never find you when I get down there.

Fin: Front desk will have your name so they should be able to tell you what room but yeah, the charger's on the list to bri--

"Hey," Duo greeted as he answered his phone and started deleting his last message. "The charger's on the list to bring; I'll put it in the bag now if it'll make you feel better."

Heero snorted softly, "You'll bring it. Have you decided if you're going to dress up or not this year?"

"I couldn't find the time to put a costume together," Duo informed him sadly, "I was having a hard time coming up with an idea anyway. Or at least, an idea that didn't require crossdressing or cutting my hair."

"I guess that would be a problem." Heero couldn't think of any male characters that had the sheer amount of hair Duo did, but there was -no- way he was going to advocate cutting it. "You could always go with a theme rather than a specific character next year. You would make an impressive elf."

Duo's chuckle reached over the phone line to bring a smile to Heero's own face, "I hadn't thought of that... I actually could throw a costume like that together from my closet."

"You could?" Heero didn't know why that surprised him, it really shouldn't after all the conversations he'd had with Duo over the year.

"Mmm," Duo hummed in acknowledgement, shuffling through his closet and tossing clothes on the bed. "We have any specific plans for next week?"

"I'd thought about going to Underground Atlanta, I've never gotten a chance to check it out, but I hadn't come up with any ideas other than that." Heero nodded politely to one of his neighbors who was strolling along with her baby in a sling across her chest, and took one of the paths in the park that were rarely used. He didn't like having an audience.

"Sounds good to me," Duo agreed distractedly, "I want to eat at the Varsity one night but other than that it's really all up to you. There's not much in Atlanta I haven't seen before. We really should hit the Olympic Park while we're there. And it's close enough to Hard Rock that we can eat there for lunch or something."

"You know the city better than I do." Heero agreed, after all, he'd been going to Dragon*Con for years longer than Duo had, but that didn't mean anything in the grand scheme of things. You didn't leave a two block radius from the hotels hosting the Con, there was just too much going on to get away.

"You interested in roller coasters at all?"

"Of course. I haven't been on many, but I enjoy them." Heero hadn't been on one since he was a child, his adoptive father had taken him to a theme park a few months before he'd died and they'd spent the entire time riding the coasters.

"We'll drive over to Six Flags for a day then," Duo mused aloud as he piled all his toiletries into a bag.

"We'll have to take Sally and Trowa along, they wouldn't let me sleep in peace if I went to a theme park without them." Heero sighed, wondering if he could bribe them into staying at the hotel so he could have the day alone with Duo. He couldn't of course, but it was a nice thought.

"Wufei too," Duo admitted with a bit of a groan. "But maybe they'll all keep each other occupied while we're there."

Pleased that Duo was thinking the same way he was Heero smiled, "I know Trowa will leave us alone, but Sally... It's hard to tell with her sometimes."

"Depends on whether she's feeling like a friend or a bratty sister," Duo put in, knowing how Hilde could be.

"Normally I can count on her to be a friend, but sometimes..." Especially if she figured out how much he liked Duo, and Heero had the unpleasant feeling that she’d already guessed at it and it worried him.

"So she's coming down with you and Trowa on Monday?"

"Yeah, she's taking extra shifts so she can get the time. She's going to be a little frightening when we first arrive; fortunately she usually loses consciousness pretty quickly after we get there." After all, as an intern Sally was already working almost constantly, adding more shifts on top of that? She really was working constantly.

"We'll leave her knocked out in the room for the first day or so then."

"If we can get her to stay that long," Heero murmured dryly, well aware of his friend's determination to do what she wanted to do, regardless of how exhausted she was.

Having heard multiple stories about Sally's stubbornness, Duo snort of agreement came out with more than a hint of amusement. A yawn cut through anything else he would have said and he admitted quietly, "I think I need to hit the sack. I'll call you tomorrow when I get to Atlanta."

"Alright. Have a good trip Duo." Heero shut his cell phone and looked at it a moment before turning to walk back to his apartment, struggling to restrain the smile of excitement that threatened to break out every time he thought about how close he was to seeing Duo again.

****

Heero called Duo while he was waiting on the elevator, which, this early in the week, was blissfully empty when he dragged their bags inside. Just because the Con hordes hadn't descended upon the Marriot yet didn't mean that division of labor was any less practical so once again Sally was getting the room and Trowa was parking the car. Frankly Heero was glad for a moment alone and couldn't quite disguise the relief in his voice when Duo answered his phone, "Hey. We're at the hotel."

"Okay, call Sally immediately, before she gets the room and make sure they gave you room 1214 like they're supposed to so we'll have adjoining rooms. Then call me back; I'm heading for the elevators," Duo told him swiftly, hanging up before Heero could answer.

Blinking a little, not quite used to Duo being so abrupt, Heero did as he was told and confirmed that they'd been given the wrong rooms, but Sally had already sorted it out and was in the room. He took a page from Duo's book and hung up on her before she could go into a rant about how she wouldn't dare separate Heero from his new love. She'd been teasing him for days.

Calling Duo back as he got out of the elevator, hauling the bags behind him and grateful for the lack of storm troopers in the corridors, Heero said, "We've got the right room, I'm almost there."

"So I see," Duo quipped as he rounded a corner and reached out a hand to help Heero with the bags while stuffing his phone in his pocket. "How was the trip?"

Pausing to put his own phone away Heero frowned darkly, his pleasure at seeing Duo again in person tempered by the reminder of the drive, "I came closer to murdering Sally and leaving her mangled corpse in a shallow grave than any man should... but the drive wasn't bad and the weather cooperated."

"She was that bad huh? Should we give her the second room to herself?" Duo pondered aloud as he led the way to the rooms.

"She'll be better after she gets some sleep, and anyway, there won't be any more rooms available for the entire time we're here." Heero didn't mention that Sally would have gotten less manic, not less likely to tease him, but Duo *really* didn't need to know about that.

"Let's get you guys settled, we'll all head out for dinner, and then relax for the night. Tomorrow's soon enough to wander the city," Duo suggested.

Giving Duo a grateful look Heero stopped in front of the room and knocked so Sally could let him in. "That sounds perfect."

They waited. And waited. Duo eventually huffed and walked over to the door to his room, "Come on, we'll go in through here. Hopefully, she at least opened the adjoining door."

Shifting Sally's, extremely heavy, bag up higher on his shoulder Heero hauled the bags after Duo and freed a hand to attempt the door leading to the room he'd be sharing with Sally and Trowa. Fortunately Sally had thought to open it, because when he went in he was greeted by the sight of her sprawled out on one of the beds, fully dressed and snoring softly.

Shaking his head Heero started to pile their bags out of the way and grabbed a key card from table where she had evidently dumped them before passing out, "She'll be out for the rest of the night at least."

He didn't bother speaking quietly, after he'd seen Sally sleep through a drunken brawl between the klingons and the 501st he'd stopped trying to be considerate.

"So that's why you asked if Wufei would be here to keep Trowa company tonight," Duo mused aloud as he headed back into his own room. "Speaking of, Wufei should be back any minute now. He said he'd be here by 4:00 and it's already ten after."

Heero followed him, nodding and glancing at his watch, "Trowa should be too, the parking garage isn't very busy yet so it shouldn't have taken him long to park."

"Okay." Duo didn't say anything else for a moment, instead eying Heero a bit shyly for the first minute they'd seen each other free of encumbrances until finally he smiled, the expression lighting his face. "It's good to see you."

Smiling back Heero nodded, and added with his usual honesty, "It is good... a little awkward though, after talking long distance so much."

"We can get over that though, right?" Duo asked, but without waiting for an answer he immediately launched into telling Heero what had happened to his ex-Project Supervisor. The two were relaxed and chatting within minutes.

****

"It looks like I'll have the lab to myself most afternoons after class, so my project should go much faster this year." Heero pulled his refrigerator door open and grabbed himself a bottle of water, tossing the one he'd already finished into the trash and propping a hip against the counter as he opened it, needing a bit of a break from the laundry he'd been folding.

A knock at the door made Heero frown and he added with a slightly puzzled tone, "Hang on Duo, someone's at the door."

No one ever came to his door, well... not without calling first. Looking out the window to check who it was Heero's jaw dropped and he left the phone on the couch in his haste to open the door, "What are you doing here?"

Duo grinned in answer, "I was in the neighborhood and decided to drop in."

"What? How...?" Heero shook his head and took a step back, "Come in and explain."

With a gleeful laugh, Duo practically bounced as he entered Heero's apartment, already babbling about the job he'd be starting the following week in the neighboring city.

****

With a sigh of contentment, Duo leaned back against the couch. "That was good; I've been too busy to eat a real meal all week."

Picking up the plates Heero headed into the kitchen to put them in the sink, saying over his shoulder, "Things should be calming down at the office soon though, shouldn't they?"

It bothered him that Duo wasn't eating right, but he could hardly say anything about it, he rarely ate anything resembling real food himself, unless he was eating with Duo.

"Should," Duo agreed, "This game was supposed to be released in a couple months anyway. It's just that since someone leaked that info, we've now got a ton of gamers breathing down our necks to *keep* that release date."

"Don't they do that anyway?" Heero asked, returning to the living room to sit down next to Duo, half twisted so he could look at his friend.

"Well... yeah," Duo admitted with a tired grin. "But now if we don't get it out on time we'll be lynched. Whereas, before they didn't have an exact date so we could have played them off."

"At least they're still giving you weekends off." Heero eyed Duo critically, taking in the weary posture and the faint lines around his eyes, "You need the rest."

"And you don't?" Duo scoffed fondly. "How's that paper going anyway?"

Frowning darkly in the direction of his desk, which was piled neatly with stacks of paper and books next to his laptop, Heero answered unhappily, "It could be going better. I can't find more than a few small references on my subject, and all of them are nearly science fiction rather than fact."

"Would be why I'm not in a true science... I *like* fiction," Duo chuckled as he reached over to pat Heero's shoulder in sympathy. "You'll do alright."

Suppressing a thrill at the casual contact Heero responded easily, "So will you. You've got a good team and a head start; you'll get the game out on time... Though if you *do* end up working weekends I'll miss you."

"I'll try my best not to have to then," Duo assured him with a soft look in his eyes.

A touch of a blush darkened Heero's cheeks, then he frowned thoughtfully, "How long *has* it been since we didn't see each other during the weekend?"

Duo had to seriously consider the question for a moment to remember the last weekend he'd been alone, "Three months?"

Heero nodded, having come to the same conclusion, and added thoughtfully, "And we talk at least twice a week..." His brows wrinkled and he asked suddenly, "Are we dating? I'm not seeing anyone else, and I don't want to, and I don't think you do either...?"

He paused to give Duo a questioning look, half afraid that he was wrong and Duo really was harboring affection for someone that he just hadn't told Heero about during any of their long conversations.

With a bright blush, Duo answered, "If you want to be..."

A warm smile spread over Heero's face slowly and he reached over to take Duo's hand in his, carefully threading their fingers together, "I'd really like that."

****

Catcalls followed him out of the room as Duo practically ran from the office, pulling his phone out of his pocket and hitting speed dial for Heero. "Hey, we're done. Marketing team's work now; you free tonight?"

Heero's answer was happy, relieved, "I will be by the time you get here. You're completely finished?"

"Yup, can't you tell from the noise?" Duo teased before he yelled back at his coworkers, "At least I've got someone!"

"They're teasing you again?" Heero asked, both glad that there was a relationship for them to make fun of Duo about, and sorry that Duo was getting made fun of at all.

"Of course," Duo huffed in good humor. "I'll be to your place in roughly 2 hours. That good?"

"That's great. Do you want dinner?"

"Food sounds wonderful. Can't wait to see you."

"Drive carefully," Heero answered, his agreement with Duo's sentiment clear in his voice.

"I will," Duo promised, "Wouldn't do to have something keep me away from you. It's already been 17 days since..." Heero couldn't see it but Duo blushed as he trailed off, embarrassed by the fact he'd counted the days.

"I know," Heero said, proving that Duo hadn't been the only one keeping track. "How about chicken yaki soba for dinner?"

Duo broke into a run when he reached the parking lot, "Perfect. See ya soon."

****

They both missed the last half of the movie. Duo because he had fallen asleep with his head in Heero's lap, and Heero because he'd been more entranced with watching Duo sleep than the sci fi action on screen.

Eventually he had to turn off the tv, and though he was beyond reluctant to do it, Heero carefully slid out from under Duo, tucking a pillow under his head instead. With gentle attention he straightened Duo's legs out and tucked a blanket around him, kneeling to kiss Duo's forehead and murmur softly, "Goodnight Duo."

As he expected he got no response and Heero shut off the lamp beside the couch before padding quietly out of the room. Getting ready for bed, he peeked in on Duo one more time before going to lie down in his room, content in the knowledge that Duo was nearby.

****

"Are you two wanting your own room for Dragon*Con this year?" Wufei asked Duo during a phone call.

"No, why would we?" Duo asked absently in return, most of his mind on the bit of code scrolling by on his screen.

"You've lived up there for almost eight months and you haven't slept with him?" Wufei's tone became incredulous.

"No I haven't; what's it to ya?" Duo snapped, finally focusing entirely on the conversation.

When Wufei replied, he sounded awed and slightly envious, "It's serious then?"

"Yeah," Duo admitted quietly. "I think it is."

****
****

Epilogue:

"What's going on?" Vader asked Obi-wan when he realized the elevators were blocked off.

Obi-wan could only shrug in answer but an elf in front of them said over her shoulder, "Two guys are getting married."

Catwoman jumped a little to see over the crowd of people and commented, "Promotional thing? 'Cause that's Scythe and Wing from that new game..."

"Gundam War Zero?" Vash asked from behind them. "I didn't think those characters were gay..."

"Not blatantly," a fairy put in, "but no, this isn't promotional. Although, I'm pretty sure the one guy is one of the developers for the game - or someone that looks a lot like him."

"Really? How'd you know?" Spiderman questioned her.

"Because he and his boyfriend have been at this con every year for about seven years now and they're always at the slash panels every year. I've talked to them a few times," she informed him.

"What's going..." the question from the newcomer was cut off by loud cheering from the front rows as the two men kissed.

****

"We really should have known it would be like this," Heero said against Duo's ear, eyeing the boisterous crowd that had packed themselves into the room. For once being the center of attention didn't bother him, not this time, and not when Duo was sharing the spotlight.

"Yeah, should have. Oh God," Duo groaned as Andrew began his new song again. "I swear I'll hurt him later."

"You'd have to fight through the crowd first. I think they like it." Heero’s sigh was long-suffering as he cursed whoever it was that had let the Nagian Bards know there had been a wedding, and cursing himself for extending an invitation to the reception to anyone who wanted to show up. Granted everyone was having a great time, and he and Duo were being congratulated by some of the most colorful people ever to attend a wedding; but Andrew and Marc had decided to write them a song and they hadn't stopped playing it for more than ten minutes at a time in the last two hours. The terrible thing was that the damn tune was so catchy that Heero found himself humming it even when the bards weren't playing.

Turning in his chair Heero leaned over to ask Duo, "Still glad we came up with this madness?"

"Glad we decided to have the ceremony here or glad to be married?" Duo asked impishly before leaning to rest his forehead against Heero's and answering simply, "Both. I'm glad we did both."

"Me too," Heero answered, and ignoring the crowd, along with the catcalls and wookie yells and shouts of encouragement in both Klingon and Elvish, he leaned in to kiss Duo again deeply. The kiss ended a little sooner than he'd planned when he had to lean back and laugh suddenly; struck by a thought that was so out of the blue, and yet so appropriate, he couldn't do anything but be amused.

"What?" Duo inquired curiously, cheeks a light pink from the kiss as he slipped his hand in Heero's.

"I never thought I would be so grateful for those God-forsaken elevators!"

****

Fin

****