Tie up and fix
"Leon, isn't that Gavin McGallen over there?" D inquired, shielding his eyes against the sun and glancing over to the big casino on the other side of the street. Leon straightened, too, and looked over. Dana tugged at his trousers, but he just took her hand and told her to wait a moment. Indeed, the young man standing over there glaring at them was without any doubt his major suspect in Laura's murder case.
"Yeah, he is," he said surprised. "But what's he doing here at this time of the day? The casino's not yet open, he can't play." Dana started to complain and Leon placed her on his shoulders absent-mindedly. The girl happily tousled his hair and stayed quiet. Gavin turned abruptly and walked away. D nudged Leon and made a faint gesture with his head. Following it, Leon caught another man looking out of the window in the first floor of the casino. He distinctly recalled seeing him somewhere. D enlightened him.
"Kevin Carter, the second son of the owner. His first son Devon works with the FBI, or so I heard," he whispered, his lips brushing Leon's ear and making the human shudder. The young man wasn't aware that he was being watched, he was staring at someone walking away with a quite sad expression. Leon would bet anything that he was watching Gavin.
"He doesn't happen to be gay, does he?" he murmured back and heard D's silver laughter.
"Well, actually, yes. Some time ago, he was known for breaking quite some hearts, but it seems that off lately, he's become calmer."
The young man left the window and Leon saw him hurrying to the stairs and the entrance. Quickly he took Dana down from his shoulders, handing the protesting girl to D. "Sorry, D. But I think I've got to talk to Mr Carter." He quickly kissed D on the cheek, causing an elderly couple to look quite offended and then strode over the street, hearing D's cheery voice behind him.
"Until later, darling! Now, Dana, what shall we do while we wait for daddy? Do you want to go shopping with mommy?"
He didn't have time to think about it anymore. Kevin had left the casino and was striding into the direction Gavin had taken. He looked nervous and his eyes were red-rimmed, as if he'd cried. Leon sidled up to him. "Kevin Carter?" he asked. The man stopped and glanced at him from brown eyes. Leon raised an eyebrow. Wow. Kevin Carter was using make-up.
"Yes?"
The blonde showed his badge. "LAPD, Detective Orcot. Do you happen to have some time for me?"
"Uh, I –" Kevin sent a helpless glance, but Gavin was already gone. So he caved in, sighing. "Yes, of course. But how should I be able to help you?"
"Thank you very much." Leon put his badge away. "You are Kevin Carter, right? Your father owns this casino?"
"Yes, I am. Is something wrong with my father? Or – is this about the casino? I don't know anything about those matters, I'm just sometimes helping out…"
"No, it's not about your father or the casino, it's about one of your customers. I believe he just walked away. Mr Gavin McGallen. You probably heard that his girlfriend was murdered?"
Suddenly Kevin's eyes were alert. "Yes, I heard about it. But, Detective, we should probably not talk about this here. Would you come inside?" He led Leon into the bar of the casino and got himself a drink, offering Leon one, too, but he declined.
"So you know Mr McGallen?" he inquired. Kevin played with his straw.
"Yes, I do. He visits quite often."
"He said he did so on the evening Laura Miller was shot, too. Were you here?"
Kevin nodded, glancing at Leon nervously."Yes, I was helping out at the roulette. Why are you asking? Gavin – Mr McGallen, I mean, was here the whole evening. Everybody can tell you that."
"We have several statements saying that Mr McGallen was indeed here the whole evening. Do you by any chance happen to know more about his relationship to Laura Miller?" Leon stayed cool and distant, sensing that Kevin was one of those who were intimidated by contacts with the police. He was more likely to spill something if he managed to keep him nervous.
"I – yes, I talked about it with Gavin once…" the young man stammered and Leon inquired further.
"You were on friendly terms with Mr McGallen?"
Blood rushed up in Kevin's cheeks. "We are of the same age, Detective, and know each other from some of the clubs we go to…"
"You are homosexual?"
The blush increased. "That's none of your business!" Kevin protested and half rose from his seat. Leon made a soothing gesture and he sank back.
"Sorry. But we have been told that Mr McGallen is homosexual. So you as another would perhaps know about that?"
"I – we're not on that close terms," Kevin tried to placate, but Leon wouldn't let go.
"Have you ever heard such rumours, too, in the clubs you go to?"
Now the young man looked pained. "Well… there're a lot of rumours about Gavin. But that's because everyone's jealous of him. His dad's all catholic, but Gavin's got a lot of money, and they think if they keep spreading that he's gay, he will be disowned…" His voice took on a nearly pleading note. Leon raised an eyebrow. Someone was being protective.
"So you can't confirm those rumours."
"No!"
It came too fast, to hasty, as if Kevin wanted to convince himself of it. "So Mr McGallen would have no reason to kill Laura Miller because she'd perhaps found out that he was gay?" Leon was playing here. There was no proof whatsoever that Laura had found out anything incriminating about Gavin other than her mother's dream. And he couldn't prove either that Gavin was gay, since all he ever heard were rumours. But none of his witnesses could name even one guy Gavin had had a relationship with. So either he was very clever about hiding his homosexuality, or he just wasn't gay, which would undermine Leon's suspicion that he'd killed Laura for finding out and wanting to tell his father.
So he changed tactics. "Do you happen to know when Mr McGallen left that evening?"
Kevin calmed down visibly. "No, I was quite tired and went to my apartment when the real croupier finally arrived. He'd got stuck in traffic."
"When did he arrive?" Leon asked and made a silent note to find out who'd seen Kevin on that evening. It was far-fetched, but if Kevin and Gavin were really having an affair, and Laura had found out, Gavin might have persuaded his boyfriend to help him. And while he was securing an alibi in the casino, Kevin might have climbed into Laura's apartment and shot the girl.
He sighed inwardly. A theory, nothing more. Nothing real he could show the chief to convince him to search Gavin's or Kevin's apartment. Perhaps then they would find the gun that had not only killed Laura, but also shot Gavin.
"Around twelve," Kevin answered and Leon almost cursed. Laura had already been dead at twelve o'clock. So Kevin couldn't have killed her either. But he might have the connections necessary to get a good professional killer for Gavin.
"Can you tell me more about what he said about his relationship to Laura Miller? Did they have plans for the future? Did they perhaps want to marry?"
For a split second something like hatred blazed up in Kevin's eyes. "Not that I knew. Gavin was not the marrying type."
"You know that actually that phrase meant someone was gay some years back?" Leon leaned back comfortably while Kevin again blushed and sputtered.
"What is it with you that you're always getting on about him being gay? I'm going to complain about your prejudiced attitude in the precinct!"
Leon held up his hands. "Sorry, don't think you'd have much success with that. As it happens, my partner is a cross-dressing woman."
"Oh." Kevin was stunned for a moment. Then realisation dawned on his face. "You're the detective who's together with that Chinese Count!" he exclaimed. The blonde raised an eyebrow.
"And just how do you know that?" he inquired.
"Gavin told me he'd seen you two with a child," Kevin answered unconsciously. He for sure talked a lot with Gavin if they weren't close.
"He said it's a shame you can raise a kid together even though it's forbidden," the young man continued and Leon growled.
"Since Count D is not a man, but a woman and the child actually ours, I don't think that falls under forbidden partnerships," he replied icily.
Kevin blushed. "Yes, of course not, then," he murmured, unsure again. "But I mean, he dresses like a guy, and he always says he's a guy… how should anyone know that?"
Leon remembered the look the elderly coupled had just given him, Dana and D on the street and realised that D was right. They really had to be very careful. They couldn't risk anyone spreading the rumour that they were raising a child as a gay couple.
He got up from his chair and turned back to Kevin. "Thank you for your help, Mr Carter. I hope I did not keep you from something. You seemed to be in a hurry when I stopped you."
Kevin's eyes darkened. "Oh, that. No, Detective, you didn't keep from anything. It was useless anyway," he replied and took a deep gulp from his drink. Leon left, thinking fast. So if Kevin and Gavin were having an affair, they were obviously having trouble. If he could just find out how either of them might have killed Laura while being in the casino at the same time, perhaps he could make one of them crack.
"Dana is already asleep. She missed you telling her a story."
D's voice didn't let on what he was thinking, but Leon could quite imagine it. He sighed deeply and embraced the kami, resting his head on his shoulder. Surprised, D uncrossed his arms and hugged him back. "Leon?" he asked carefully.
"Bad day, D. Bad day, that's all," the blonde murmured. D wrinkled his brow in confusion.
"But you were quite happy when you left us this morning," he said and guided him to the sofa, where he sat down and let Leon rest his head in his lap.
"That was this morning. More'n eight hours ago. Have been around the whole time. And I still can't tie up all those damn loose threads in the Miller-case!"
Leon's fist hit the back of the sofa. D caught it gently and kissed it. "What is it that you can't tie up?" he inquired, massaging Leon's scalp. He sighed and put one arm over his eyes.
"I know that Gavin and that casino guy, Kevin, are a couple. Or at least, have been, since they seem to have quarrelled this morning. I know that Gavin needed to kill Laura because she threatened to tell his father that he's gay. I know that Kevin is somehow involved in this. But I can't proof any of it."
"What are the facts?" D asked and continued caressing his lover. Leon held up his hand and counted on his fingers.
"Laura and Gavin were a couple, both raised very religious. Laura left her family for Gavin. She turned into a completely other person to please him. Then she got shot. Her mother insists that she got shot because she knew something about Gavin, something dangerous for him, supposedly that he's gay. Her neighbour, whom I'm going to kill for not telling me in the first place, told me today that Gavin was in Laura's apartment the afternoon before she was shot, but she thought he was waiting for her. He was there alone for hours. Then he went into the casino where his boyfriend works. Both were there at least until twelve o'clock, and we have witnesses to proof that. Still, when Laura entered her flat at ten o'clock that evening, someone was waiting in her closet and shot her when she opened it. Then he took some of her jewellery and fled. But, and that's the next thing the neighbour only told me today, he or she came back at around two, climbed in over the balcony and then left again. Sometime later, Gavin gets shot at with the same gun that killed Laura, but the attacker only hits him once although he was perfectly able to kill him."
He sighed and threw his hands up in exasperation. "You can make anything out of that?" he asked helplessly. "Preferably something that proofs Gavin's behind Laura's death?"
D was silent for some moments. "Are you sure that Laura was actually shot by a human?" he asked then. Leon rose and stared at him.
"What else should've shot her? I mean, what? One of her shoes?"
The young kami giggled and shoved his lover playfully. "Be serious, Leon. Isn't it possible that Gavin installed some kind of trap in the closet while he was "waiting" for his girlfriend?" he suggested then. "Perhaps he knew that she would not be there, because of work, or something like that. You told me she was crazy for clothes, so he could be sure she would enter her closet sooner or later, but surely when she wanted to dress for bed. She opens the door…"
"… and her Manolo Blahniks' were waiting there with the shotgun," Leon added and nearly fell off the sofa and D's lap when the kami shoved him again.
"Be serious!" he chided and then continued as if nothing had happened.
"…sets some mechanism into motion and gets killed while Gavin and his boyfriend are at the casino, cultivating their alibi. Then Kevin leaves the casino, drives to Laura's apartment and gets rid of the trap while Gavin is still at the casino. Since no one knows about their affair, it can't be proven that they killed the girl. If we wouldn't have been in front of the casino this morning by chance, you never would've thought about Kevin Carter being related to Gavin, would you?"
"No, I wouldn't," Leon said slowly and rubbed his ribcage. "I mean, even though Gavin has a lot of money, he's still not the kind of guy Kevin Carter would usually pick. And then, when Kevin realised that Gavin was still not acknowledging their relationship, he went and shot him to give him a warning. But Gavin could not tell on him, since then Kevin would tell the police about Laura's death."
D nodded and smiled softly. "Yes, that's what I mean."
"Oh god." The blonde sighed depressed and let his head fall back into D's lap. "So much terror just because some idiot decided that men shouldn't love other men," he murmured. The kami's face darkened.
"Yes," he said quietly. "So much pain and tragedy because of a rule that doesn't even have any use."
Leon looked up at him. "Hey," he said and nudged D. "You're not going to start killing humans again because Gavin and Kevin are bastards, are you?"
The young kami smiled sadly. "This is not something that falls into my jurisdiction anyway, Leon. My task is to protect nature and her children. What humans do to each other is not my concern."
"But you still care about it."
"It makes me sad," D replied silently. "To see how narrow-minded they can be, even when they should respect each other…"
"Well, I'm going to make sure Gavin and Kevin are never going to do that to anyone else again," Leon said resolutely and D smiled and bent to kiss him.
"My dear Leon," he murmured against his lips. "My dear idealist… How could I exist without you?"
Leon grinned. "Well I don't know. But you don't have to anymore. Besides, I'm all tense. What about taking a hot bath together?"
D laughed, his sadness dissolving into happy expectation, stood and led the way, holding the human's hand tight. Leon's presence made it so easy to escape the complicated world. He was such a simple mind sometimes.
But I love you nonetheless, my darling Detective.
Leon didn't even object this time when D rounded the corner to his cubicle and sat Dana down in his lap, closely followed by her toys. Instead he hugged the girl tightly, getting a delighted "Daddy!" as a reward, and looked up at D.
"When will you be back?" he asked.
The kami sent a quick glance around, bent down and kissed Leon deeply. He wrestled one arm loose from his daughter's grip and pulled D closer, tasting the cake he'd had earlier, and the tea and the sugar. Oh god, kissing D was just – just – amazing.
Dana, though, wasn't too happy with being crushed between her fathers and made her protests loudly known. "Hurting me!" she cried and pushed against the chests surrounding her with both small hands. "Get off!"
Sighing in synchrony, the broke apart and looked down on the pouting child. "Dana, be a good girl and behave, I will pick you up again in three hours," D said to his daughter and smiled at Leon. "I am sorry, Leon, but I have a very difficult customer coming today. I scheduled her for the weekend, but she is so impatient…"
The blonde waved it away. "I'm going to question that Gavin guy again, only that you know. She's going to come along," he made clear. D smiled.
"Do so. I will be on my way." He bent, kissed first Dana and then again Leon and left, waving to them.
The blonde checked the clock and found he could spare some minutes for his kid. So he went to get himself some coffee. The coffee machine in the corridor was broken again, but someone had been kind enough to get the machine in the kitchen working again. Not surprisingly, he met some other colleagues there. Jessica squealed at their sight and immediately got some chocolate from her handbag to give it to Dana.
"Jess, her teeth!" Leon protested, but the woman was unstoppable.
"Don't fuss, she's the Count's daughter. I bet she's as crazy for the sweet stuff as he is," she said, and Leon noticed with some satisfaction that she was still using the male pronoun for D.
"Yeah, she is, which is exactly why she shouldn't get too much of it. He's at the dentist's often enough," he protested all the same. The other occupants of the kitchen came to take a closer look at the infamous Orcot child as well.
"Oh, she's so cute!" Eliza sighed. "I'm so jealous, Leon, really! It's a shame the Count's a woman. I would've gotten a baby with him as well, provided it'd turn out the way Dana does."
The blonde bit back a comment about Dana's stubbornness and special features, like inhuman strength and the ability to fly and instead brought another bar of chocolate out of his daughter's reach. It was strange to see his colleagues fuss over his own child now, as they'd done so many times over the children of others. It was even stranger to notice they were acting as if nothing was wrong with the kid, as if it hadn't been a complete and utter surprise, something that had busied the plaza's grapevine for weeks.
But who was he to complain if everything went so well now? Better this way than reverse.
Before they could start to really spoil the child, though, he took her up again. "Say goodbye, Dana, we're leaving," he announced, getting disappointed "But why?" from his colleagues. Leon smiled down and wiped away chocolate smears around his daughter's mouth. "We're going to question Gavin McGallen," he replied.
"You're gonna take her with you? Are you sure?" Jessica inquired and liquefied at Dana's smile.
"Yeah, I'm sure. I'm not going to loose her a fourth time in the precinct." Leon grinned and went away, Dana waving gleefully over his shoulder. Strange. The whole situation. Just strange.
He put Dana into her children's seat and drove to Gavin's flat, turning up the music and enjoying the fact that D wasn't here to scold him about it. Dana was happy, too, and kept singing along, making Leon feel slightly uncomfortable with that. Human two-year-olds didn't listen to the radio and repeat what they were hearing.
Sighing a little, the blonde concentrated on the traffic again. Yes, he liked Dana and D being here. He loved it, and he loved the fact that they were now a real family even more. But on some occasions, like now, he still felt strangely engrossed. As if he somehow wasn't able to keep step with the changes in his life, even though he liked them.
Well, he still had his whole life to get used to the new situation.
Determinedly Leon pushed the dark thoughts away and parked the car in front of the apartment complex Gavin was living in. He rummaged around in the glove box until he found his old, battered walkman, and made sure it was working before he took Dana out.
The girl looked around curiously while they went inside. In the elevator, her father put the earphones over her ears. "What's this?" she asked and turned her blue-golden eyes up to Leon. He shuddered for a moment.
"Those are earphones, darling," he then said carefully. "I'm going to question someone, and you are going to listen to music with those. Okay?"
The smile spreading over her small face made the human forget about her otherness. "Yes Daddy!"
He returned the smile affectionately."Fine. Then let's get to work, okay?"
He made sure the volume was not too loud for her sensitive ears, but loud enough so that she'd not hear what he and Gavin were saying. Then he rang.
It took a few moments until Gavin opened the door, grabbing the doorframe at the same time. "Whaddya want here again?" he blurted. "I din't call you."
Quickly Leon put a hand over his daughter's nose and mouth while he suppressed a disgusted shudder at the stink of alcohol coming from the man. Ugh, should've known no one like Gavin is sober at this time of the day.
"Yeah, I know that, funny," he snapped. "But I'm still investigating Laura's death, and I do have some questions for you. So let me in now."
The man's eyes wandered to Dana on Leon's hip. "Whosshe? You cops godda small kid workin' or what?"
"My daughter," the detective replied curtly and stepped inside. Gavin gaped at him for a moment, then he tried to push him back.
"Din't say you could come in," he complained. Leon stopped his weak attempts by grabbing both of his wrists with one hand, thus forcing Gavin further into the apartment.
"I'm inside. You wanna talk in the corridor or you prefer your living room? Or whatever you live in."
Gavin was a braggart and a coward. Leon knew the type. He'd dealt with so many Gavins, he knew how to handle them. The chief had forbidden him to employ the best methods to make them talk, but he couldn't care for that right now. It was time to drag the truth about Laura's death out of the guy.
Pushing Gavin onto one of the chairs in the sitting room, he seated himself and Dana on the sofa. The girl was listening to the music, but her eyes were taking in the scene curiously. Leon turned her around so that she faced him. "Darling, that's nothing for small kids," he said softly. "Close your eyes, please."
She hesitated for a moment, but then did as her father told her. Gavin had watched him and managed both to sit straight in the chair and drag some of his wit together again. "She's the fucking Count's kid or what?" he snarled.
Leon glared at him. "Yes, she is Count D's daughter," he replied icily.
Then he startled. Gavin had started to laugh, a sound so bitter and hateful the blonde shuddered at it. "The Count's fucking kid. The cop's kid. Yeah, why not, huh? Why not have a kid with a cop when you're a sneaky illegal bastard yourself?"
Leon frowned. "D's business is not yours," he admonished sharply. "And your business right now is telling me the truth about Laura's death."
Again Gavin barked with bitter laughter. "Laura? That little slut? She got exactly what she deserved, cop. She got exactly what she deserved for not following god's rules." His eyes were gleaming with something reminding Leon of madness, and he tucked Dana closer. The man watched his movements and hissed. "You don't know anything about anything, cop! You don't know what it's like to live in such a family, where everyone's always anxious to follow the whims of some fucking supernatural creature that doesn't give a fuck about anything."
He glared at the child. "You don't know what it's like living in a family where they think you're possessed because you like men. Men like your fucking Count. I'd love to fuck him, too. I bet he'd be all nice after I did him. I'm good at doing someone. I'm even good at doing girls, though they just suck in bed. He'd be great to fuck, and I'd do him so hard, until he'd scream and beg for more." His eyes were gleaming through the felted dreadlocks and he took a deep gulp from one of the whiskey bottles on the table for support.
This was not going like Leon had imagined it. Everything in him screamed at the insult, at the thread in Gavin's words, but he forced himself to be silent. He'd had been in this kind of situation before, with the criminal insulting Jill or another of his female colleagues. He couldn't care for the fact that now someone was threatening his lover.
"I wonder what my dad would say if I came home with that fucking Count." Gavin spat the last words out as if it tasted bad. "My mom was all crazy for him. Everybody's crazy for him, even you, cop, even though you know what he's doing isn't legal. You're such a hypocrite, that's what you are. Getting a kid with him!"
"So you are homosexual?" Leon cut in, voice hard and cold. He was trembling with fury and pressing his hands over Dana's ears. The girl's eyes were still closed, fortunately.
Gavin coughed before he laughed. "Yeah, I am. So what? It's not as if you were any better, cop. Fucking that cross-dresser in Chinatown –"
"And why did you sleep with Laura then?" the detective intervened again. Gavin seemed to fall down with laughter.
"Are you dumb or what? Laura was my cover, you idiot! I just needed some hot babe so that my family wouldn't disown me! I'm not like you or that Chinese. I need the money they give me. If I'd told everybody I'm gay, they would've thrown me out. You, you don't have to worry about such things. You and that little Chinese slut. You can even get a kid together and no one says anything about it being unnatural and all, 'cause he just smiles and everything's okay."
The whiskey bottle was nearly empty, but Gavin sucked at it as if the last drop would save his life. "I'm so sick of it, you damned cop. Of watching you and all the other unnatural guys fucking each other as if it's okay. Because it's not okay. It's against the rules. God's rules, cop. And you're all gonna burn in hell for what you're doing."
"I guess then I'm going to meet you down there," Leon replied coolly. Gavin half laughed, half sobbed.
"I'm doomed since I took my first breath, fucking cop. I don't care what happens to me. I don't care what punishment I get. And first chance I get, I'm gonna fuck your little Chinese slut. You still want him after I had him? You still want him when he's all stained and disgraced?"
This was enough. Leon growled. "You aren't going to do anything to D. You'll gonna end up in prison where you belong. You murdered Laura, you bastard. She found out about you and that boy from the Casino and you murdered her."
Gavin sagged down as if Leon had pinched him with a sharp needle. "She said I'm the devil's prey," he whispered. "She said I was unnatural and depraved and would burn in hell for all eternity."
The eyes he turned up at Leon were gleaming with madness, yet strangely pleading. "What was I supposed to do? I love Kevin, I really do. I couldn't let her ruin his life. My life. I made a trap, and she went right in. Stupid bitch, she was always crazy for clothes, 'cause she thought I'd like her more if she dressed up pretty. But she just looked like the slut she was."
Leon heaved a deep sigh. "Gavin McGallen, I arrest you for the murder of Laura Miller. You have the right to be silent," he said formally. The handcuffs slid around Gavin's unmoving wrists. He stared at them as if not able to believe this was really happening. Leon left him in the sitting room and called Jill from the corridor. "He confessed," he simply said. "He killed Laura. Send someone over to pick him up. I've got to return Dana to the shop."
He couldn't go to sleep. He simply couldn't.
Sighing, Leon rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling of D's bed above him. D liked playing princess, and his bed was a princess's bed, too.
Gavin's face hovered in the darkness. Leon closed his eyes, but it was still there. The young man had been quiet when Jill arrived and took him to the precinct. He'd confessed everything, telling them about the trap he'd set up, just like D had suggested. If he'd known the Chinese he hated so much had been his nemesis, would he have been so proud of his trick, too?
The young kami moved besides Leon in his sleep, one hand slipping over the blonde's chest, tugging him closer. Leon complied. His thoughts kept wandering. He wondered why so many men seemed to be obsessed with raping D. He really would have to ask his lover one day. And tell him to be careful. There were a lot of guys like Taizu and Gavin around.
Or was it just because D was such a pure, beautiful being? Was it just that they couldn't stand the thought of something so beautiful not in their possession, but someone else's, that they'd rather ruin it for the simple triumph of owning it at least for some time? Ruin something perfect because their own lives were so fucked up?
Leon turned over in bed and embraced D from behind. The kami stirred and mumbled sleepily. He hurried to soothe him, rubbing small circles on his belly. D smiled, he could feel it, and turned over to return the embrace. His cock brushed Leon's leg, but by now he was used to the feeling and didn't give it much thought anymore. Instead he leaned forward and kissed his lover.
D went with him, but eventually he broke away and tried to look into his eyes through the darkness. "What's the matter, Leon? Aren't you happy? You finally managed to arrest Gavin McGallen, and you were right. He had killed his girlfriend. Why are you sad?"
His fingers brushed Leon's temples lightly as if wanting to shush the bad thoughts away. The blonde sighed and kissed the inside of D's slender hand. "I am, D. I am very, very glad I busted that ass. He makes me sick and angry, and I loved turning him in. But he said something, when I was questioning him… Three days ago… You know, while you had that customer and Dana was with me." The kami just kept on caressing him and waited for him to continue. Leon did.
"She didn't like him either. Anyway, she was sitting on my lap, and he was in front of us, and he was drunk, D, really drunk. Drunk enough to confess and also to spill some things. That he's gay, for example, and used Laura only as a cover because his family is strictly catholic and would disown him if they knew. And then he looked at me, and I swear, if there had been any way at all that he could've hurt us, he would have. There was so much hate in those eyes."
He shuddered and clutched closer to D, who wrapped one leg around him and placed his head on Leon's chest. The familiar scent of his hair calmed Leon down again. "And then he said something. About us, I mean. He said: Well, you of course don't have to worry about such things, you and your little Chinese slut. You can even get a kid together and no one says anything about it being unnatural and all, because he just smiles and the world's okay. First chance I get, I'm gonna fuck him myself, and then let's see if you still want him after someone else has had his way with him."
D's hands stopped and his body stiffened. Leon flinched and regretted he had told D this. But the kami was not concerned for himself.
"You let Dana hear this?" he inquired calmly, voice promising storm. The blonde quickly shook his head.
"God, D, no! Gave her my walkman and let her listen to music while I talked to Gavin. She didn't hear anything, I heard the music play the whole time, too."
D relaxed again and sighed softly. "Not that your music is so much better for a small child," he remarked dryly and kissed his lover before he could get angry. "No, Leon, it's alright. Your music is still better than what he said. But why is it troubling you? Surely you are not afraid he will do as he promised? I have to admit, I'd rather not be raped by him, but given the fact that he will be in prison for a long time, it's rather unlikely he will be able to act upon his words. And besides, I'd really like to see him try."
Leon fiddled with the covers. "Yeah, I know. I know you can protect yourself. It's just – I don't know. I think it's just that I didn't realise how lucky we are. I mean, even your grandfather hasn't made trouble, has he?"
"No," D answered softly. "He stopped by shortly after I'd returned here, but though he didn't approve of me moving back, he accepted it."
The blonde sighed deeply. "Yeah, that's exactly what I'm talking about. I mean, so far we've done quite well, haven't we?"
"Yes, we have. Why is that bothering you, Leon?" The kami searched his face in the darkness. "Has something happened? Is anybody suspicious?"
"No." The human sighed again. "It's just – I don't know. I guess it's – I mean, Gavin. I feel kind of sorry for him. I mean, he's crazy and all, but somehow… he reminds me of myself."
He could've cut the silence with a knife. "He reminds you of yourself?" D echoed, unbelieving. "Leon, Gavin McGallen is mad. His family has beaten their beliefs into him and when he found out he was a depraved creature in their eyes, he went mad. That's not abnormal. It happens a lot. Religious beliefs have been the cause of many a ruined life."
"You met others like him?"
Leon searched D's face in the darkness. "Yes, I did," the kami answered softly. "Gavin's mother came to me because she needed something to keep her sane. I sold her a pet back then, as I did with many others. Some of them are still alive. The pets helped them to overcome their fears. Some are not. They were too afraid to find their true selves with the help of the pet."
"So you didn't sell them the pets to kill them?"
D sighed softly. "I can never tell what will come out of the union of a pet and a human. Sometimes I have a suspicion. Quite often I am right. Sometimes I am not. I am not sure if you know that Gavin's mother actually left her family shortly after I sold her the pet for destinations unknown…"
"I read that she disappeared," Leon replied. "But her family said she'd gone to live with some really strict sect. Since there was no reason to suspect otherwise, no one ever did something about it. Police asked a few questions, then a letter arrived from her, telling her family goodbye, and that was that."
He stared into the darkness. "If she'd stayed, perhaps Gavin wouldn't have gone crazy…" he voiced quietly.
D's hand caressed his hair. "Perhaps not. Perhaps he still would have gone mad. But you didn't tell me why he reminded you of yourself, Leon. Have you been raised religious?"
The blonde chuckled. "No, no chance of that happening. My mom believed in god, but she never believed in making other people believe the same." He sighed. "I don't know. It's not something I can really say. It's just – the feeling that perhaps I'd have ended up one day like Gavin… too afraid to admit what I really…"
He stopped talking, felt D waiting for him to finish and sighed again. "It's nothing, D, don't worry. It's just busying me, that's all."
The kami didn't reply, but continued caressing his lover, massaging his tight muscles. Slowly Leon relaxed under those skilled hands. When D started pressing soft, fluttering kisses to his chest, his dark thoughts seemed to simply disappear with each kiss, one by one. Leon welcomed the heavy fatigue in his body.
"Does it not feel strange to you?" he murmured and stroked his hands along D's warm body. The kami stopped and looked up, mismatched eyes shining even in the darkness of the bedroom.
"What should feel strange? This here?" he answered and quickly bit down on Leon's shoulder only to kiss the spot again a second later.
"Yes, this here," the blonde sighed. "Three years ago, you'd have killed me for just entering your bedroom. And now I'm in your bed and you'd kill me if I left it."
The silver sound of D's laughter warmed his heart. "You are quite right, Leon, I would kill you if you left our bed now," the kami replied with mischievously sparkling eyes. "The situation has changed. I think we consented on that, did we not?"
"Yes, of course." Leon took a deep breath. "But still. What's going to happen to us in the future? Are we going to start quarrelling again in a few weeks? Will someone get suspicious? What will happen with Dana? She's changing, you know. She's growing quite quickly."
D chuckled and pulled him closer. "Children happen to do that."
Perhaps he felt that the human was still uneasy. So he kissed him again and added, "Leon, do not worry too much. For once, my kin is, as you know, blessed with some gifts humans do not have. Second, I for my share do think the last months have been everything but smooth. And third, I do not doubt that we will encounter enough problems in the future. But we will handle them as well, whatever it will be. There are still a lot of things we have to talk about, things you have got to learn about me, about my family. Time will show everything. For now, let us just be content with what we have."
Leon sighed again, releasing all the tension in his body. It was true, the last months had been a constant adventure. They had had to think up stories, prevent discovery, found each other, founded a family… perhaps D was right. Time would show. Whatever had caused this unexplainable fear in him, it was nothing he couldn't handle. Nothing they couldn't handle together.
He felt D besides him, his smooth skin, his incredibly perfect body, the trust and love the kami was offering him. He felt the pet shop around him, in a strange way he had never understood, felt every animal in here, Tetsu and Pon-chan in the room next door, his daughter asleep in her bed, the others in their rooms. Yes, D was right. There was still a lot to learn about the shop, a lot to find out. There would be other times to do all this, other times to quarrel and work things out.
But for now, everything was just right.
-End-
A/N: Ah yes, we're at the end of the second part... Any comments, threats of murder or something else you want to tell me? Come on, don't be shy, tell me. I know myself the story has some (more like, far too many -.-) weak spots, and I'd like to know what I can do better. My sincere apologies to those who expected more from me, especially for the last three or four chapters. They may seem pretty pointless at the moment, but I had a reason for putting them in here.
I thought a lot about how I'm going to announce it, but I think short is best. So: There will be a sequel to this. Or, more like it, I turned the story about Leon, D and Dana into a series which I named "Interspecies communication problems". It's an actual term from biology and defines the communication problems between different species, like, for example, cats and dogs. I rather thought it fitting... ^^
If you are interested in it, I would be honoured if you would have a look at it, and I promise to do my very best to keep out the fluff in the next part. As to airing date and more information, please have a look at my profile every now and then, put me on author alert or keep an eye on the archive for another story starting with an "Un-"
Anyway, thanks to everyone who wrote a review, and special thanks to those who wrote one for nearly every chapter. Since that's the only reward I get for writing, you make me unbelievably happy with them. Also thanks to my inevitable Nani - darling, if I wasn't already married to you... ;-P
Hope to meet you again, no matter in which story, and thank you all for reading,
Enaty