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Equus	By : Deb Category: Gundam Wing/AC > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 2855 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing, it belongs to Bandai, Sotsu and associated parties. I do own the equines though, please do not take them without permission. Written for pleasure not profit.

Chapter List
- 12
- 13
- 14
“Equus”

Chapter 13

Heero continued to work Orion along with Shini and Wing, pleased with all three of the horses' progress. Shini didn't need much in the way of schooling, he was educated as much as Heero could teach him; with Shini it was more keeping the gray fit, revising and refining his skills. Orion was coming along well, eager to learn and Heero happy to teach him. Young Wing was also progressing well and Heero decided to start looking for a couple of shows reasonably close to home that he could enter both Orion and Wing in.

Wing would start out in the Novice class, as would Orion seeing how the horse needed a couple more placings before he could be upgraded into D grade. Wing had also been registered with the E.F.A. and like Orion, would start out in the Novice classes until he'd accrued enough points to really begin his career in D grade and work up from there.

Heero hoped there would also be an A grade event or at the least, an Open event which he could enter Shini in. The gray had been given a long break since returning from the Olympics and whilst Heero would dearly love to qualify the stallion for the next Olympics, it would be another two years before the selectors would start looking at potential candidates. In the meantime there was the Nations Cup again and as a bonus, the World Cup was also being held in Australia which meant Heero could try for that too.

Frank had brought Jester over on the Saturday as arranged, Heero meeting him in the yard and showing the man which stable and paddock had been allocated for the horse. Jester was a bay stallion and as his full name suggested, he had a royal air about him. If Heero and Duo had thought Orion was tall at his sixteen hands of height, Jester towered over him. A full seventeen hands of bone and muscle, reminding Heero of Romeo in a lot of ways. He was also what Heero termed a little on the 'hot' side, but nothing vicious about him.

The usual exchange of neighs, grunts and snorts had taken place, Zero puffing himself up even more as he scented the other stallion. Angel had watched with curiosity, the new arrival had piqued her interest. He certainly was a handsome fellow with clear lines, but she much preferred the gentle nature of her gray companion.

Zero had let the new horse know in no uncertain terms that this was his herd, his territory and he wouldn't stand for another stallion trying to muscle in on his mare! Angel had been quite impressed with the squeals, grunts and roars that had been exchanged between the two, her gray partner standing his ground and winning the first round.

Duo had also been impressed, as was Heero. Zero hadn't tried anything physical at all towards the other stallion, the closest he'd come to that was stamping his hoof and shaking his head. The exchange and warnings had all been verbal.

Jester soon settled into the stable routine and despite exchanging squeals and grunts with Zero every morning and evening when they were put out or brought in, nothing further happened between the pair.

The other call Heero received in relation to his advert in the paper fell through, the person unwilling to pay the price Heero was asking for educating his horse. Heero didn't worry over it though, he had enough to cope with at the moment and his advert in Hoofbeats was due out that week too.

The breeding season was in full swing and two of the mares Zero had booked to him had come into season and paid their respective visits to the stallion. Zechs had kindly given both Heero and Duo a hand with serving the mares and both had been served three times by the gray. Now all that was left was to wait a couple of months for a pregnancy test to be done.

The remaining mares booked to Zero were expected any time, Heero knowing that a phone call could come any day to signal another mare would be arriving. Angel had come back into season and Heero, along with Duo's assistance covered the mare, Heero marking down the dates on his calendar along with the date for Duo to do a pregnancy test.

Life was starting to get quite busy for Heero.

The meeting Heero had arranged with Wufei and Meiran rolled around, Heero taking his folder with all the information he was able to gather with him to discuss what Wufei was interested in. Duo had wanted to accompany his lover but hadn't been able to as he was working the evening consults with Zechs. Once the consults were over though, Duo had made a beeline for the house to see if his lover was back and what had transpired.

Unfortunately for Duo, Heero was still out and didn't return until just after eight-thirty in the evening. As soon as he saw the headlights sweeping down the driveway, Duo had the kettle on and cup of coffee in hand by the time Heero stepped into the kitchen.

“How did it go?” Duo asked, unable to contain his curiosity any longer.

“Thanks.” Heero took the offered coffee and dropped the folder with all the paperwork in it to the kitchen table. “It went very well,” he answered and took a sip of the beverage.

“Well?” Duo demanded.

Heero chuckled, leaned forward and stole a kiss. “If you want to sit down I'll give you the brief run down.”

Obediently, Duo sat, eyes fixed firmly on his boyfriend.

“We had a good talk about everything,” Heero began and proceeded to tell Duo all about the discussion he'd had. He'd pointed out all the details involved in having a horse of the level Wufei was thinking about; the costs of training, agistment, registration, entry fees and so on. He'd gone through exactly what Wufei could and couldn't claim back on his tax, listed all the facts and figures and presented them to Wufei along with the bottom line figures of what he would stand to gain or lose from it all.

Wufei had been impressed with the result, the professional way in which Heero had set it all out. It was easy to follow and understand, leaving Wufei with just a couple of questions.

“What were the questions?” Duo asked.

“The first was would I be willing to take the animal on and train it, ride and jump it for him. Naturally I said I would,” Heero replied with a grin.

“And?” Duo prompted.

“The other question was where would he be able to purchase a quality animal from?”

Duo snickered. “That's what I like about Wufei, he has to have all the facts first before he makes a decision. Did you have any suggestions?”

“I did. The first was does he want something that's already out there and competing at A grade level? Or would he prefer to purchase a horse that's already started on the basics and if so Treize might have something suitable in his stable? The other would be to look at purchasing something that's either unbroken or has just been broken.”

“What did he decide to do?”

“He's thinking about getting something that already started off, already graded around the C or B grade.”

“Does Treize have anything in his stable right now that would be suitable?”

“No, most of Treize's are either just starting out or already at A grade level. that's the problem. He's asked me to keep my eyes and ears open, if I hear of anything or see anything that I think would suit, to let him know and we can go from there.”

Duo got up and moved around the table to sit in his partner's lap. Winding his arms around Heero's neck he brought their faces close together and whispered. “He's made a wise decision in asking you to look out for something for him. I know you will come up with a good horse.” Closing the distance, Duo pressed their lips together in a passionate kiss.

“Mmm, I hope so,” Heero murmured. “I plan on letting Treize know what Wufei is looking for and put the word out there; you never know, we might get lucky and find something suitable.”

“Why don't you give Michael and Zoe a call too, they may know of something going,” Duo suggested.

“That's not a bad idea. I'll do that tomorrow.” Heero shifted slightly underneath his partner, letting his awakening interest push against Duo's rear end.

“Got a bit of a problem there, lover?” Duo teased and swooped in for another kiss.

“Maybe,” Heero huffed out, his eyes slightly glazed as Duo squirmed in his lap.

“I suggest you come with me and let the doctor examine this problem a little better. I just might be able to find a cure for it.”

Heero moaned and stood up when Duo got off his lap. “I hope you can cure me,” he groaned and followed his teasing lover to the bedroom.

* * *

Heero's advert appeared in the Hoofbeats magazine and it wasn't long before he'd had several more inquiries; some were for agistment, others in relation to him taking on horses to educate and jump. Rather than be wasting time with those that weren't genuine, Heero explained a little of his terms and conditions, including costs involved when a person first made their inquiry. If the person was still interested after that, he arranged to speak personally with them and show them around the facilities on the coming weekend.

Having agreed to take on a horse for Wufei when the man found one suitable, Heero only had room left for one more horse to take in and educate. Keeping Michael's advice in his head, he also decided that one more agister would be enough. That way he'd have three horses to educate, two agisting that would require looking after daily and one definite lesson each week with Frank, possibly a second if whomever else agisted with him was interested. He also had Shini and Wing to work, plus Zero and Angel to look after. Not to mention the last couple of mares that were yet to arrive to be served by Zero.

The Sunday rolled around, Heero's day off from Treize's and he'd arranged to see four people that day in regards to his advert. Three were looking for agistment, the fourth wanted a horse educating. It was Duo's turn to be on call and he hoped he wouldn't get much in the way of work that day as he also wanted to be present when Heero spoke with the prospective clients.

“Are you coming, Duo?” Heero called out from the back door.

“Yeah, just trying to find my pager,” came the reply.

Heero shook his head. Duo seemed to be always misplacing his pager lately. Idly he glanced around the kitchen, moved across to the dresser and shifted a few papers. He spotted Duo's pager sitting to the side. “It's out here,” he called to his partner.

Moments later Duo appeared in the kitchen. “Thanks. Maybe I should chain the damn thing to my wrist.”

“Knowing you, you'd probably still lose it,” Heero chuckled.

Duo huffed and gave Heero's backside a swat. “Not my fault if I put it down and someone else moves it.”

“I didn't move it,” Heero retaliated.

“I suppose it grew legs and walked then? I know I put it on the table Friday night after consults,” Duo retorted.

“Ah.” Heero turned a little red. He remembered moving the pager from the table to the dresser when he'd set the table for their dinner Friday evening. “You wouldn't have this problem if you put it in the same place every night, preferably your bedside drawer.”

“But then I'd have no one to blame for moving it,” Duo replied with a grin and kissed Heero.

“Baka,” Heero muttered. “Come on, we'd better shift, the first client is due any minute.”

Still grinning, Duo followed Heero out the back door and along the raceway to the stables.

Within five minutes of the pair arriving at the stables, the first client pulled in. Heero showed the woman around, explaining about his routine with the horses and what service she would be getting for her money. After looking around thoroughly and talking a little more with Heero, the woman decided not to go ahead with agisting her horse with Heero. She thanked him for his time and complimented him on his business skills, but at the end of the day where Heero's stables were situated was a little too far for her to commute each day and she as she was a keen rider and wished to ride every day, it would end up costing more than she could afford.

Heero accepted the woman's explanation, quite understanding what she was saying and wished her all the best. Rather than head back to the house, the pair waited around the stables as the second potential client would be arriving somewhere in the next half an hour. They busied themselves by putting in the night feeds and sweeping the floor.

A brown sedan pulled into the yard and a tall, pale faced man got out. Heero propped the broom by the door and went out to greet the man.

“Carl Emery, Mr Yuy. Please to meet you,” said Carl as he shook hands with Heero.

“Please, call me Heero, Carl. This is my partner, Doctor Duo Maxwell,” Heero said as he introduced Duo. He didn't bother to elaborate on the use of the word 'partner', he figured Carl could take it any way he wanted to.

“Pleased to meet you, Doctor Maxwell.”

“Likewise, Carl, and call me Duo,” Duo returned as he shook hands.

“I must say this is quite an impressive set up you have here, Heero,” Carl remarked as he looked around the yard.

“Thank you. I'll give you a tour of the facilities. You have a mare you want educating and jumping, correct?” Heero led the way into the stable block to show Carl around.

“Yes, that's right. She's a nice natured mare, fifteen-three, chestnut thoroughbred. I've had her for three years now. I got her from a trainer who was going to send her to the knackers as she wasn't fast enough on the track,” Carl informed them as he inspected the stables.

“It's awful how some trainers and owners just cast a horse aside if it isn't fast enough,” Duo stated. He really hated that. A lot of cast off racehorses were fortunate enough to find a second chance in the equine competition world, being bought by people who wanted them for hacks, dressage or jumping; but there were an awful lot that weren't that lucky and did end up at the knackery.

“I understand exactly where you're coming from,” replied Carl. “Unfortunately though, it's a part of life and there isn't anything we can do about it.”

“As much as I hate it too, you do have to remember that it costs the same to feed a horse that's hopeless as it does to feed one that's winning. Fortunately there are some people out there that do buy ex-racehorses and a lot of them have gone on to be top animals in the show ring.”

“That they do. Lunar is a lot like that. I think she has potential, and even if it turns out that she's not a top animal, I can always breed something from her,” Carl said.

Duo felt himself beginning to warm to this Carl fellow.

Heero showed Carl the schooling paddock, the jumping course, paddocks and his own horses. They finished up by visiting Orion and Jester, Heero explaining about the pair and what they were there for.

Carl seemed very impressed with Heero's professionalism and liked the way the horses on the property looked. You could soon tell if the horses were being well treated simply by observing them. Carl could tell that Heero was a serious man when it came to his horses.

Arriving back at the stables, Carl took one last look around before getting down to business. “Heero, I'm impressed with everything I've seen here and I must say the way you look after your horses is excellent. I think Lunar would be very happy here, I know I will be happy if you agree to take her on and see how far she can go through the grades.”

“What grade is she currently?” Heero asked.

“She's not long upgraded to C grade. I think she has another six points to get before she can go up to B grade.”

“If you don't mind me asking, why do you want me to take her on and jump her for you?” Heero was curious, as was Duo to know why the man didn't want to take the horse further himself. In June's case, she was pregnant; Wufei's reason for having a jumper was purely a tax saving, but Carl appeared to be a man who knew horses well and was completely at ease around them. They already knew he rode, having told them he'd gotten his horse as far as C grade.

“It's okay,” Carl lowered his head for a moment. “You'll probably think this is a weak excuse or something, but I've lost my nerve.”

“Ah,” Heero said softly. “Actually, no, it's not a weak excuse and in fact, it takes a lot of courage to admit to it.”

Carl looked relieved that Heero understood. “I had a bad fall during a practice session, took me several weeks to recover from it and although I'm fine again physically and I have been back on Lunar since, I just find myself breaking out in a cold sweat, shaking and all that when I try to jump anything over two foot. At first I thought it was just nerves after the fall, but it didn't get any better even when I did force myself to jump higher. Lunar started to pick up on my nerves and it was starting to affect her jumping and that's not fair to her. Rather than continue on and ruin any chances she has of making it through the grades, I thought it would be best to look for someone to take her on for me.”

“I can understand where you're coming from.” Heero gave Carl a brief outline of what happened to him and Zero several years ago at the Salsbury show. “In my case it was more having to overcome the fear of that jump as opposed to actually getting back on and jumping again. It's a similar thing I guess, so I have an idea of what you must go through each time.”

“Thanks,” Carl said softly. “I do think Lunar has the ability to be a good B grade horse, maybe even A grade and it would be a shame for her not to have that chance because I'm not comfortable with jumping the heights. I'm hoping that she does do well enough that once she retires, I can breed her to a top stallion and sell the resulting foals.”

Duo couldn't help the grin that lit up his face. “Well, we just might have the answer to that too. You see Zero over there in the paddock?”

Carl nodded.

“He was a Nations Cup team member and shortlisted for the Olympics. Unfortunately, he had an accident so he can't be ridden anymore, but he has sired several foals now and all are turning out to be something special. Shini over there was the first of his offspring and he's the one that Heero took two gold medals on at the London Olympics. Young Wing in the next paddock is Heero's future jumping prospect. Zero is still standing at stud and I'm sure if all works out with Heero training and riding your mare that later on when you do wish to put her in foal, Zero will still be available. It's just something you might want to think about for the future.” Duo closed his mouth, thinking he'd said more than enough. Heero was blushing red and Carl looked very impressed.

“It certainly bears thinking about,” Carl replied slowly, “But I think we should start with having Lunar further educated first. There will be loads of time for all that sort of thing later on.” With a smile, Carl turned to Heero. “If you're happy to have Lunar here and educate her, when would be the best time for me to bring her over?”

“Why don't you come back to the cottage and we can go over the paperwork and arrange things from there?” Heero said.

“No problem.”

The three headed back to the cottage to finalize the arrangements.

*

“Well, that's another one, Heero. Pretty soon you're going to be full up,” Duo said as they walked back inside the cottage after waving goodbye to Carl.

After going through the paperwork and answering any other questions Carl had, it was decided that Lunar would arrive the following weekend. The week would give Carl the opportunity to let the people know at the place he was currently agisting that he would be moving the horse and to get all his gear sorted out and packed away.

It suited Heero too as he would now be able to give Treize a full weeks notice and finish up working there on the following Friday. In one way he was still sad to leave Treize's, but if he wanted to move on with his life and succeed in something he'd always wanted to do, then he needed to break away now.

“What time is the next person coming?” Duo asked, breaking Heero from his somber thoughts.

Glancing at his watch, Heero was surprised at the amount of time that had passed. “Should be here in about fifteen minutes.”

“Not enough time for a coffee then.”

“I don't think so, but if you want one, by all means go ahead, I can wait down here and show the next person around.”

“It's okay, I'll wait with you.” Duo wound his arms around Heero's waist and pressed several kisses to his lover's neck.

“Mmm, that's nice,” Heero replied as he closed his eyes and savored the contact. The sounds of an approaching car had them pulling apart rather quickly.

“He's early,” muttered Duo, not very happy with having his snuggle time interrupted. Sadly it was going to be a part of their life now though. Duo knew he shouldn't risk a kiss or cuddle with Heero around the stables any more, just in case a client was around. One never knew just how another person would react to their being a couple.

“I'll make it up to you later,” Heero promised with a soft smile.

Duo melted.

The car came to a stop and the man got out, walking over to meet Heero and shake hands. He introduced himself as Kevin Shaw, reiterating that he was here to look at possible agistment for his horse.

Once more Heero went through the motions of showing the man around, talking to him about his fees and charges, what services he could expect for those fees and finished up by taking him through to see the other horses on the property, his own and those belonging to his current clients.

Kevin asked several questions which Heero answered to the best of his ability. Kevin seemed impressed with the set up, but was a little wary of Heero's fees. Heero also mentioned that it was a condition of the stables that the Maxwell Veterinary Practice be the treating vets should a horse require treatment. Kevin didn't seem to be too happy with that clause and questioned Heero why it was part of the contract.

Heero explained about the vet practice being right there on the property with three, skilled vets employed, two of those vets living on the property as well. Kevin still baulked though; he had his own vet and wasn't keen to change. Heero couldn't see what the problem was; Duo, Hilde and Zechs were all excellent vets in his opinion, but Duo could understand where the man was coming from. It wasn't easy to change your vet if you'd had that vet treating your animal for several years.

After bringing the tour to an end, Kevin thanked Heero for his time and let him know he would like to think it over. Heero agreed that would be fine and if he could let him know either way as soon as possible, Heero would appreciate it, especially as he still had another prospective client coming in half an hour to see the facilities.

With business concluded, Kevin got in his car and drove off, Heero and Duo made a beeline for the cottage and a much needed refreshment break.

The kettle had just boiled when Duo's pager went off. Groaning, he checked it and went through to the 'phone to call the number displayed on the unit. Heero finished making their drinks, wondering if Duo would have time to drink his or not before he had to attend whatever the 'emergency' was.

“What is it?” Heero asked when Duo walked back into the kitchen.

“A horse that's had a bit of an altercation with a gate post. Sounds like it will be a big stitching job,” Duo sighed.

“Do you need a hand?”

“It's okay, I can manage by myself; thanks for the offer though. You have your last prospective client coming shortly and you can't let them down by not being there.”

“I'm sure they would understand.”

“I'll be fine, Heero. Owner is bringing the animal in now, should be here in about another ten minutes or so. I'll put the horse in the crush and stitch it up there. Depending on the damage, I may keep the horse in for a few days, or if it's okay it can go home.”

“As long as you're sure you will be okay?”

“Heero, not that I don't appreciate your help, I do, but you have a business of your own to run now and a prospective client arriving in another twenty minutes. If I'm finished before you I'll come down and see how things are going. If you've finished before me then feel free to join me in the surgery stables.”

“Okay, but if you do need help, just call me and I can be there in a couple of minutes.”

Duo couldn't help the chuckle. “Alright, I promise to call you if I need help. Now, I'd better move it and get things opened up and ready for the patient.”

Duo set off for the surgery stables to prepare for his emergency, Heero went in the opposite direction to the other stables to await his next, prospective client.

*

The horse arrived for Duo to stitch up – and it was quite a large stitching job. Duo whistled through his teeth when he saw the damage. “Wow, what did she do?” he asked the client as the woman put the mare into the crush.

The woman filled Duo in whilst he checked the wound and flushed it out with saline. The woman had been putting the mare back out in her paddock when another horse had reached across the fence and tried to take a chunk out of the mare's backside. As a result, the mare had jumped forward and caught her shoulder on the edge of the gatepost, tearing the skin open across the shoulder blade.

“She's very lucky,” Duo muttered as he probed the wound. “There's no muscle damage, just this flap of skin. It actually looks a lot worse than it is.”

“Can you fix it?” asked Clare, the mare's owner. “She might be old, but she's part of the family.”

Duo gave a warm smile. “Yes, I can fix it, but there may be some scarring.”

“That's fine, I'm not worried about scarring.”

Duo fetched the equipment he would need and infiltrated the area with a local anesthetic. Once the area was numb, he began the arduous task of stitching the skin back into place. As he worked, Clare chattered away, telling Duo all about the mare's life, how they had started out together, Clare learning a lot from the mare over the years and sharing a special bond through to how Clare's children had learned to ride on her.

“She's retired now and has the run of the property,” Clare finished up.

“How old is she?” Duo asked, still stitching.

“She will be thirty on her next birthday.”

“I have to say, for her age she's in excellent condition and health.”

“Thank you. I do try to keep her happy and comfortable.”

A few minutes later and Duo was finished. “Just need to give her a shot of antibiotic. When did she have her last Tetanus booster?”

“She's due for her next one this month.”

“Okay, I'll give her that shot as well.”

The mare looked a lot more comfortable once Duo had finished and the wound was no longer a torn triangle of flesh, a neat row of stitches down both sides of the tear the only evidence of the once horrible looking wound.

“There, all done,” Duo said and patted the mare's neck. During the entire course of the treatment the mare hadn't moved other to rest a hind leg. She'd dozed pretty much all the way through it. Duo found a couple of carrots for her and she politely accepted the offering.

“She can go home but keep a close eye on her. Here's a course of antibiotic for her, administer ten ml twice daily, intramuscular for seven days. Give me a call towards the eighth day and I'll book her in to have the stitches removed.”

“Thank you, Doctor Maxwell.”

“My pleasure.” Duo gave Clare a hand to put the mare back onto the float and went back into the stables to write up the case notes and clean up. With everything done, he glanced at his watch noting the time. Heero hadn't fronted up at the stables so Duo guessed he must still be busy with the last prospective client. As he'd promised earlier, he went to catch up with his partner at the stables and meet the prospective client.

*

The last client on Heero's list had arrived ten minutes late and apologizing for his tardiness. A tall, sandy haired man of around Heero's age, slim build and tanned skin. He introduced himself as Stefan Graves, recapping that he was looking for agistment. Heero took him on what was now becoming a familiar tour of the property, showing him the other horses along with the facilities.

They were currently in the stable block discussing feeding when Duo walked in.

“Ah, Stefan, I'd like you to meet Doctor Duo Maxwell. He's my business partner and the owner of the vet practice here on the property.”

“Pleased to meet you, Doctor Maxwell,” Stefan greeted and held out his hand.

Duo took the hand and shook it. “Nice to meet you too, Stefan. Please, call me Duo.” Duo wasn't sure if it was his imagination or not, but those green eyes seemed to linger over his form a little longer than what seemed appropriate. The handshake was genuine though and the man released his hand a moment after the handshake was finished.

“Stefan is interested in agisting his horse here,” Heero said, bringing Duo up to speed. If Heero had noticed anything out of the ordinary, he didn't say or give any indication. Duo mentally shook himself and dismissed the thought from his mind, Stefan wasn't looking at him any longer, his attention back on Heero.

“What type of horse do you have, Stefan?” Duo asked, keeping the conversation flowing.

“A brown mare, thoroughbred, warm-blood cross. She's sixteen-one and just graduated to B grade. I'm hoping she will make A grade and be a possible contender for Olympic selection,” Stefan replied easily.

He had a relaxed manner about him, calm and peaceful, but Duo felt a touch uneasy in his presence. Although the man hadn’t given him any reason to think otherwise, Duo still couldn't shake that feeling.

“If you still have that vacancy, Heero, I'd very much like to take it and agist Comet here,” Stefan said, seemingly ignoring Duo.

“Hai, I still have the one vacancy and if you would like to come up to the cottage we can go over the paperwork and answer any questions you might have whilst we sign it all,” Heero replied.

“That would be fine.”

“This way.” Heero led Stefan out of the stables and towards the raceway, the pair still talking as they went. Duo followed on a touch behind Heero and to his left. He still couldn't shake the feeling of Stefan's eyes roaming his body.

~ * ~

tbc...
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Equus