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The Case of the Missing Exchange Student
Part 7
Wufei parked his car in front of the large two-story townhouse, and pulled a small business card from his pocket just to make sure that he was at the right address.
The street and house number matched. Satisfied the young man climbed out of the vehicle and walked up to the house. He rang the doorbell once, then a second time, but everything was quiet inside. Just when Wufei was about to turn away and leave, he could hear footsteps. A few moments later the door was opened.
Treize Khushrenada was dressed in a white cotton robe, even though it was nearly two o'clock in the afternoon.
"Mister Chang…!" the older man raised his hand to push back a few rebellious tendrils of hair that had fallen into his face. "What a surprise."
"I'm sorry," Wufei suddenly felt hesitant. "I didn't mean to wake you."
"Don't worry about it." Treize made a dismissive gesture as he stepped aside to allow the young man to pass. "Please come in."
Wufei followed the detective into the house and a large living room.
"Have a seat." Treize gestured at a black leather couch. "And please excuse me while I go and make myself a little more…presentable."
"Treize…," somebody called from upstairs.
Wufei recognized the voice of the blond detective; Milliardo was his name if he remembered right.
"Whoever it is, tell him to go to hell, and come back to bed."
The young Chinese could feel himself blush. "Perhaps…" he stammered. "I should leave. This seems to be a bad time."
"Not at all, not at all," Treize assured him. "There is no reason to leave, now that you made it all the way here. And as for my partner, don't take what he said personally. He is…shall I say not much of a morning person. So, if you would excuse me, I'll be right back."
As he waited for the other man to return, Wufei let his gaze wander. The living room, if it could be called that, was huge. In fact, the entire downstairs area seemed to be one single room. A chest- high, bar like counter separated the kitchen area from the rest of the room. Everything looked very stylish, very modern and very expensive.
But it wasn't the expensive furniture that grabbed Wufei's interest, but a collection of weapons -swords, daggers, blades of all kind – displayed all through the room. He rose to take a better look at the pieces. What the young man noticed right away was the obvious lack of décor and ornamentation on the weapons. These were clearly not the decorative showpieces one could find in most collections. Instead the swords looked…for lack of a better word… worn.
Wufei's attention was drawn to a Chinese Scimitar. Its blade was shiny as thought the owner had just hand polished it, the leather of the hilt smooth and darkened from thorough use.
"I see you discovered my collection."
Treize's voice reached him from the top of the stairs, and Wufei turned his head. "An interesting assortment," he remarked. "I take it those are no replicas."
"No replicas," the tawny-haired man confirmed as he walked down the stairs. "I went through great lengths to buy those weapons from all over the world, and each of them has its own history." He gestured at the scimitar Wufei was standing in front. "Feel free to take it out, I've turned off the alarm system."
"Thanks." Wufei picked the weapon up. It was relatively large, but not too heavy. The hilt felt smooth and cool against the palm of his hand and he grabbed it tightly. Somehow it felt …just right. "A wonderful weapon."
"One of my favorite pieces," Treize nodded in agreement. "Can I get you something to drink; coffee or tea perhaps?"
"Coffee sounds great, thanks."
The tawny haired man gave another nod then headed for the kitchen. Wufei put the scimitar back into its case before following him. As Treize gestured for him to take a seat he slipped into one of the high chairs at the counter, and watched the detective fill the coffeemaker.
"So, Mr. Chang what brings you here?"
"Well, I never got a chance to thank you and your partner last night. I don't know what else might have happened to me if you hadn't helped me escape."
Treize made a dismissive gesture. "Think nothing of it. We were just doing out job. And you surely didn't have to come all the way out here. We could have easily met later this afternoon at our office."
The aromatic scent of freshly brewed coffee started to spread through the room, and the tawny-haired man set a cup and some dishes with sugar and cream in front of his guest.
Wufei shrugged. "I'm not sure if I have time later. I talked to my father after I got home last night and he insists that I return to Hong Kong right away. My plane leaves this evening."
"Oh, I see," Treize replied. "I can't say I blame your father for being worried about you, but what about your education? I've heard you have been working hard on your studies, and it is almost time for finals, isn't it?"
"Yes," Wufei nodded. "And I haven't given up on that quite yet. But I figure it will be easier to convince my father in person than over the phone."
"Well, good luck with that." The older man poured coffee for Wufei before filling his own cup. For a few moments they sipped their drinks silently, then Treize looked up at his guest. "I could not help but notice, earlier when you were holding the scimitar; it looked like you knew what you were doing. Do you fence?"
My family owns what you westerners call a Kung Fu school in Hong Kong. So, I was trained in martial arts by my grandfather and father since I was very young, which includes the use of all kinds of weapons."
"I see," Treize nodded. "That explains also the power behind your punch." The older man rubbed his chin, where Wufei had hit him, with a somewhat sheepish grin.
Wufei flushed slightly. "I'm sorry about that."
"No need to apologize." The tawny haired detective flashed him a brilliant smile. "I deserve that one for being so careless. More coffee?"
No, thanks. I'm fine." Wufei shook his head. "I probably should leave soon anyway."
There was another moment of silence as Treize refilled his own cup and put the pot back onto the heating plate.
"Uhm… what exactly did you mean, earlier when you said that all of your weapons come with their own history?" Wufei asked finally.
"Well… Let's just say that I'm more interested in a weapon's past than its rarity or price. The stories behind those swords are what intrigues me; tales of bravery and deception, pain and sacrifice, victory and defeat…" Treize laughed. "I hope I'm not sounding too obsessed ..."
"Face it, Treize; you ARE obsessed." Milliardo came walking down the stairs dressed only in a pair of low-cut blue jeans. Directed at Wufei the blond continued. "I have been trying to tell him that for a long time."
Treize gave his partner an almost offended look. "Alright, so maybe I get a little excited when it comes to my collection, but you are clearly exaggerating."
"Collection?" Milliardo echoed. "This is not a collection, it's an arsenal. "If this country should ever go to war you could single handedly equip a small army. That's of course unless they lock you up before that on suspicion of conspiracy to overthrow the government."
Milliardo was of course just teasing; Treize had permits for each and every weapon he owned.
The older man snorted. He rose to fill another coffee cup and handed it off to his partner. "Here, have some coffee." Then he turned toward Wufei, who had been following the little verbal duel with quiet amusement. "See what I mean about him being grumpy in the morning. But don't worry; a little caffeine will turn him right back into his usual charming self."
"I'm not grumpy," Milliardo insisted, but the tone in which those words were delivered made them less than convincing.
Wufei couldn't help but smile. There was something about those two men that intrigued him. It was clear that in spit of their grumbling and teasing, they obviously cared a great deal for each other. He felt almost sorry that he didn't get a chance to get to know them better. The young man gazed at his wrist watch and realized that he had already spent more time than he had planned. "I'm afraid I have to go. Thanks for the coffee."
"Already?" Milliardo asked. "I hope it wasn't something I said."
"No, no," Wufei assured him. "It's just that I still have a lot to do today."
"Mr. Chang is flying back to Hong Kong tonight," Treize explained.
"He is?" the blond turned to their guest, a surprised expression on his face. "The police is letting you go just like that?"
Wufei nodded as he rose. "They said my statement combined with the evidence should be enough, but there is a slim chance that I might have to come back to testify at the trial."
"That makes sense, I guess."
"Thanks again for your help. As for the bill, just send it to my host family. My father will get in touch with them and take care of it."
Treize nodded in acknowledgement. He walked the young man to the door, exchanging handshakes before they parted. "I hope you have a save trip, and if you are ever back in town, feel free to come by and visit."
"Thank you, I'll do that."
The tawny haired detective watched as Wufei got into his car and drove off. Milliardo was sitting at the table grinning at him from over his coffee cup as he walked back into the kitchen. Treize gave his partner a questioning look.
"He is cute, isn't he?"
The older man rolled his eyes. "Now, if I would have said that I would be sleeping on the couch for at least a week."
Milliardo's grin widened as he put down his cup. "You don't have to say it. I know you are thinking it. I know that look on your face and I can read you like a book."
"Oh really?" Treize asked. "Then tell me what am I thinking now?"
"Hmmm…" the blond gazed at his lover, stroking his chin in feign thoughtfulness. "You are thinking…that we should go back upstairs and pick up where we left off when the doorbell rang."
Treize laughed. "Good try, but unfortunately wrong. I was actually thinking that you should be making breakfast for a change."
"Breakfast," Milliardo echoed. "You want breakfast if you could have something much better?"
"Yeah well, call me a fool, but occasionally I do like to eat."
"Alright then; breakfast it is," Milliardo sighed theatrically as he rose.
Treize embraced his lover with a warm smile. "Why don't we make it together," he suggested before capturing the younger man's mouth in a tender kiss.
Case closed
Author's Note: This concludes the first Case of the "I'm Falle eines Falles" arc. In the next case our two favorite detectives are being hired to protect the heir to the Winner fortune. The only problem…Quatre doesn't want to be protected.
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