Revenge

by Geri (geri-chan@excite.com)

Rating: PG-13

Pairing: D/Leon

Disclaimer: Characters belong to Matsuri Akino; no money is being made off this story; consider it a little wish fulfillment on my part.

Summary: When D's life is threatened, it forces Leon to make a choice he has been avoiding.

Author's note: In the anime, Liu Tai Wei is killed before Leon meets D; in the manga, it takes place much later, after Leon and D have known each other for awhile. This story assumes that Leon and D already know each other, and have formed a tentative friendship. "Keiji-san" means "detective" (literally, "Mr. Detective") in Japanese; this is how D usually addresses Leon in the original version of the manga. This was written after I had seen the anime but before I had read much of the manga, so it contains some details that do not fit the "canon" version of the story: for example, Chris does not live at the petshop. I considered rewriting the story, but it's my first attempt at fan fiction and has a certain sentimental value for me, so I left it as is.
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Count D reclined on his couch, sipping tea from a delicate porcelain cup. He wore a black silk cheongsam embroidered with a gold dragon that seemed almost alive, its regal head resting on D's shoulder, its body winding sinuously across his torso, and its tail curling along the hem of the robe, just above D's feet, which were clad in black slippers embroidered with tiny gold dragons. A puppy with fuzzy gray fur and a bushy tail frolicked about the room, yipping at the red rubber ball he was chasing. An orange tabby cat eyed the pup with disdain as it languorously washed its sleek coat. Q-chan sat on the coffee table, happily stuffing himself with candied fruit that had been a gift from a grateful client. He must remember to tell Leon about that, to prove to the detective that not ALL of his customers met an unpleasant end. Really, thought D, I don't know why I bother with him! The young detective was loud and rude, and had the most appalling taste in home decor! Still, he had a good heart, and always brought D such delicious pastries...

Suddenly Q-chan dropped his snack and fluttered up into the air, squeaking, "Q,Q!"

D set down his cup and rose to his feet.
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Leon scowled at the stack of paperwork on his desk. "It's not fair!" he grumbled to himself. "How do they expect me to catch any criminals when I've got to file reports in triplicate over every little thing?! It's all the Count's fault, anyway, getting me mixed up in all these weird cases!" As always, the thought of Count D made Leon uneasy. D should look ridiculous in those Chinese dresses he wore, but instead he looked graceful, elegant...almost beautiful. That smooth, white skin and raven-black hair...no guy should look that pretty!

Suddenly the door burst open with a crash, and Jill rushed in, out of breath. "Leon! Word on the street...Liu Tai Wei's men...headed for D's..."

"Goddammit!" shouted Leon as he ran out the door. "I told him selling those weird pets would get him into trouble! What does he expect, dealing with crooks like Liu?! Damn you, D, if you get yourself killed, I'll break every bone in your body!"
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The door to the pet shop swung open as the man behind it kicked it in. The Count sighed. Didn't anyone knock these days? Three men dressed in expensive suits walked in. They could have been businessmen, but few businessmen looked as dangerous or menacing as these men.

"I am sorry, gentlemen, but we are closed for the evening. Please come back tomorrow."

The man who had kicked in the door sneered. "We're not interested in your little pets. You killed our boss--"

"He did sign a contract stating that--"

"Shut up! We're not the police--we don't need a warrant or evidence! Tell me, who put you up to it? The Black Dragon gang? Or are you and your cop boyfriend playing vigilante? It doesn't matter, Count. You've sold your last pet!"

"Oh my!" exclaimed the Count, feigning a look of fear. "Are you going to hurt me?" he asked, sounding more hopeful than frightened.

"I said, shut up!" Liu's henchman reached into his jacket and pulled out a gun.

The gray puppy stopped playing with his ball, and stalked towards the intruders, growling.

"Shut up, mutt!" snarled the man with gun, aiming a kick at the dog. But suddenly, it was not a puppy, but a full-grown wolf, leaping up and clamping its jaws around his wrist. He dropped the weapon, screaming as he fell to the floor under the wolf's weight.

"What the hell--" shouted the second henchman. Suddenly he heard a purring noise behind him. He turned to see a huge tiger, purring and lashing its tail back and forth.

The third man frantically grabbed for his gun as his partner fell screaming under the tiger's claws.

"Count D!" shouted Leon as he ran into the room, gun drawn. Henchman #3 turned towards Leon, then jerked to a stop as the crack of a gunshot echoed through the room, and fell to the floor, a wound suddenly blossoming on his chest like a bloody rose.

Leon surveyed the room. Two other men lay still on the floor, covered with blood. An orange tabby cat sat in the corner washing its paws. A gray puppy bounced up to the detective, barking and wagging its tail. The Count smiled, looking as cool and poised as ever.

"Keiji-san," said D, walking over to Leon. "What fortunate timing."

"Count," said Leon, lowering his gun. "Are you alright?"

"Indeed, I am fine."

"What happened here?!"

"Well..."

A soft sound, an almost imperceptible groan, made Leon look up. One of the men he'd assumed were dead was sitting up, raising a gun in his trembling hands, despite the fact that his right arm was torn and bloody.

The gun was pointed right at D. There was no time for Leon to shoot. "Look out!" he shouted, throwing himself at D, knocking the Count to the floor as the gun went off.

The bullet struck Count D in the right arm. He started to cry out, more from surprise than pain, but the sudden weight of Leon's body falling on his knocked the breath out of him.

Leon would have felt embarrassed if he'd had time to think, which he didn't. He kept his body over D's, trying to shield him, and lifted his gun and fired.

The gunman dropped to the floor. This time, Leon jumped up and checked his pulse. The man was dead. The other two men were still alive, just barely, breathing but unconscious. Leon handcuffed them anyway, and took their weapons. Only then did he turn to D, who was rising to his feet.

"Are you alright?!" Leon demanded, a little wild-eyed. He still had the urge to shoot someone, anyone, who would harm the Count.

"I am fine, Keiji-san."

"Are you sure--" Leon began, but was interrupted as Jill and a squad of policemen rushed into the shop, weapons drawn.

"Great timing, guys!" shouted Leon. "We could've been dead by now!"

"Sorry, Leon," said Jill. "But it looks like you have everything under control. There was a big accident--a four car pileup that really tied up traffic! You must've just missed it--we had to call for backup to deal with the accident, then find another route down here."

Leon wanted to make sure the Count was really all right, but suddenly the place was swarming with police and technicians taking pictures and gathering evidence. A team of paramedics arrived to treat the wounded men, and an investigator was demanding Leon's statement.

"Standard procedure anytime there's a shooting. You know that, Orcot."

"But D--"

"I'll look after the Count and take his statement, Leon," said Jill. "Don't worry."

"But--" Leon protested, watching helplessly as Jill walked over to the Count. It wasn't that he didn't trust Jill, but he wanted to see to D himself. He felt an irrational stab of jealousy as the Count smiled at Jill and they moved off to one side to talk.

"Anytime this century, Orcot!" snapped the investigator. Leon turned back to the other policeman, sighed, and began to give his statement.

"Jesus, what happened to this guy?" asked a paramedic. "He's all torn up!"

"My cat attacked him," said D, cradling the tabby in his arms. "Pets can be quite fierce in defense of their masters."

"A cat?! Looks more like he was attacked by a tiger!"

"She is like a little tiger," smiled D. "Her name is Tora-chan."
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It seemed to Leon that the investigation took hours, although when he looked at his watch, he saw that little more than an hour had passed.

Finally, everyone left but Jill. "Well, that was wrapped up pretty quickly," she said. "Word came down from the Chief to speed things up. Gossip is D knows people in high places."

"I suppose we should get back to the station," said Leon reluctantly.

"I'll take care of things at the station tonight," said Jill. "You can write up your report tomorrow. Why don't you stay and look after the Count?" She smiled as Leon blushed. "By the way, make sure he gets his arm looked after."

"What?!"

"A bullet grazed his right arm. He kept saying he was OK and didn't want the paramedics to look at it. It's only a flesh wound, but--"

Leon was no longer listening. He turned away, shouting, "D!!!" Jill laughed to herself and left.

"D, damn you, you said you were alright! Jill says you're hurt!"

"Ah, your charming partner exaggerates. It is merely a scratch."

"Let me see!"

The Count held out his arm. There was a bloody tear in the silk sleeve of his robe, on his upper arm near the shoulder. Leon examined the wound. "It doesn't look too bad," he said grudgingly. Actually, judging from the amount of blood on the sleeve, he would've thought the wound would be worse. Strange... "You were damn lucky! Looks like it just grazed the skin. If you have a first aid kit, I'll clean it and put on a bandage."

Count D plucked at his torn sleeve. "This was one of my best robes," he sighed mournfully. "Hand-woven silk, imported from Hong Kong--"

"You stupid bastard!" shouted Leon. He grabbed D by the shoulders and shook him. "I don't care about your goddamn dress! I care about you! You could've been killed!"

"Keiji-san," began D. "I--mmph!" Whatever he intended to say was cut off as Leon suddenly kissed him. D's eyes widened in surprise, then slowly closed as he returned the kiss. Leon's hands still gripped D's shoulders, fingers digging into flesh almost painfully, as if he was afraid D might disappear if he let go.

After a long moment, Leon broke off the kiss, gasping for breath. He felt flushed and a little dizzy.

"Keiji-san," said D softly.

"I do have a name, you know," said Leon, a bit more sharply than he'd intended. He felt like his head was spinning; he seemed incapable of forming a coherent thought, other than, I can't believe I just did that!

"Leon," said D. "Thank you for saving my life." He reached out and brushed his hand against Leon's cheek in a gentle caress. Leon shivered at the combination of the cool smoothness of D's lacquered nails and the warmth of his fingers.

"D, I--" Suddenly Leon realized he was still holding on to the Count with a grip hard enough to leave bruises. He jerked his hands away, saying, "I'm sorry! Did I hurt you?"

The Count started to say no, then changed his mind and said with a mischievous smile, "Just a little. But you can make it up to me."

"How?"

"I would feel so much safer if you would stay with me tonight," purred D.

"Uh...I...uh...I..." stammered Leon.

"Who knows how many more of Liu Tai Wei's men are out there?" asked D with a look of wide-eyed innocence.

"You don't really need my protection! ...Do you?" Leon was never really sure whether D was mocking him or not.

"You're not afraid of me, are you?" asked the Count, the faintest hint of a taunt underlying the dulcet tone of his voice.

"Of course not!" blustered Leon. But he felt an overwhelming urge to run out of the shop as fast he could. And an equally strong desire to take D into his arms. Their relationship, if you could call it that, had reached a standstill. Occasionally Leon was frustrated, and more often relieved, that nothing ever happened between them, except for some sly innuendo on D's part. But deep down, he knew he'd have to make a choice someday. He wasn't sure if he was ready to make that choice yet... Dammit, thought Leon, how did I wind up kissing him anyway? His thoughts kept spinning round in his head in a panic. He didn't want to think about the kiss--but he couldn't stop thinking about how warm and soft D's lips had felt... No, no no! I will NOT think about that!

The amusement left D's eyes. Did those strangely colored eyes--one purple, one yellow--look a little sad? Or was it just Leon's imagination? "You may go, Keiji-san," he said quietly. "I will be fine on my own."

"Are...are your sure?"

"You are not a bird or a dog, to be locked in a cage or kept on a leash," said D coolly.

Leon knew he'd hurt the Count's feelings, but he just couldn't deal with it right now. He started to turn away, taking a step towards the door. Then he stopped. He wanted to move, but he couldn't seem to force his feet to take that next step. He thought about how scared and angry he had felt when Jill had told him that D was in danger, how he'd wanted to scream with frustration on the drive down--even with lights on and siren blaring, he'd still had to weave through traffic and slow down to avoid hitting cars that didn't get out of the way fast enough, certain that every little delay would cost D his life. He thought about the terror he'd felt when he saw the henchman's gun pointed at D, and the relief he'd felt when he saw the Count was still alive. D irritated the hell out of him sometimes, but the thought of losing him, of never seeing him again...that scared Leon most of all. He took a deep breath, then turned back to D.

"Hell," said Leon, "I'm not going to let anyone kill you after all the trouble I went through tonight saving your hide!"

"Keiji-san," said D, looking up in surprise.

"Let's get you patched up, OK?" Leon held out his hand. D smiled and placed his hand in Leon's. As the Count led Leon through the shop to his private quarters, the detective said uncertainly, "Look, D...I...well, I've never..."

D brushed his lips with a light kiss. "Don't worry, Keiji-san. We can take things slowly." Suddenly his eyes gleamed with mischief. "I promise to be gentle."

"D!!!!"

Q-chan fluttered down the corridor, following the sound of the Count's laughter. "Q, Q!" he squeaked.

THE END.

 

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