Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Forever Hidden ❯ THE KING ( Chapter 2 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Note: this part contains mentioned yaoi (3+4+3) and implied future het (5+Meiran)...



Part 2: The King


It was raining, he noticed glumy, flicking his dark eyes briefly upwards at the tall stained glass windows in a futile wish that he could see out them. Sometimes he hated the ornate things that hid the outside world from view...Tightly clenching his jaw, he once again lowered his eyes and forced himself to concentrate on the task at hand.

Before him, the small of the Songuus Palace reception rooms was spread out like a kingdom in it's own rights. The many lords and ladys of Songuus that he'd invited-most out of courtesy and nothing more-filled the right half of the room with their jewelled splendor and mask like faces while seperated from them by a thin walkway of blood red carpet, the exotically clad Rosian dignities stared at him with calculating eyes.

He ignored them all, focusing his attention on the delicate looking figure that grew ever closer to him. She was small, clad entirely in red without a centimeter of skin showing...her feet were silent on the dark carpet and the curtsy she made when she reached the foot of the so-called stage was that of a pampered princess.

Fighting to keep a scowl from his face, Wufei extended one hand to his intended bride, drawing his gently up onto the raised area beside him.

He should have been glad to turn his back to the gathered nobels, but the young King felt only a sick sort of anxiety in his stomach as he lifted his black eyes to meet the brighter ones of the royal mage. He hoped to find some sympathy burried in those eyes...but, as expected, the green eyes were cold and without emotion. Why would the mage show sympathy for his king? After all, Wufei was not being forced into the marrige, no matter how it felt...it was his own choice, and it was a choice that he himself made.

He kneeled, bringing his lady to her knees beside him. Beneath him, the deep carpet was surprisingly soft and comfrotable, but it was impossible to feel any thanks for that miniscule fact.

His friend and mage opened his mouth and started speaking in a low, almost inaudible tone...Though Wufei could understand none of the words that passed through the tall man's lips, he knew exactly what they meant.

"Two people bound together through necessity, for a year and a day before life...accepted by all who lay eyes upon them; embraced by all who ever embraced them, marked for each other until the time that they will be not two but one..."

Slender fingers, warm and dry, wrapped themselves around the upper part of Wufei's right arm so lightly that the dark haired monarch could barely feel them brush his dark skin. He clenched his teeth expecting, and hoping for, in some odd way, a stinging pain or a cold burning sensation...but the hand pulled away without the young man feeling anything.

"For a year and a day."

Wufei took a deep breath and forced his eyes to slide over to where he betrothed knelt, the olive colored skin-much like Wufei's own-of her arm still exposed, her veiled head towards her new husband to be. Wufei swallowed, bit his lip and reached forward. With trembling hands, the young man lifted the princesses veil, seeing, for the first time ever, the face of the woman he was to spend the rest of his life with.

She was very pretty, he had to admit that...very pretty dispite the unhappy expression she wore on her gentle face. Her skin was very near the same exotic hue of Wufei's, her hair, blacker than any night Wufei had ever seen, framed her round face, bangs falling gently into her ebony eyes.

Wufei forced a small smile, and reclined his head gently to the princess. "In a year and a day," he said the ritual words in a voice so soft that he was certain none of his invited guests could hear it. "I would be proud to become your husband." The young woman smiled softly, but the said smile was obviously hollow-which, ofr some reason, heartened Wufei more than anything else that day had. "Until then," Wufei continued, drawing himself to his feet and watching the girl do the same. "You and yours are welcome in my palace." He bowed stiffly to his fiance. "I hope to see you at dinner, Lady, but if you'll excuse me, my kingdom has not decided to put it's problems on hold for this occasion."

He was aware of the small smile that spread on his fiance's lips as he whirled, ignoring the upset looks that masked everyone-or nearly everyone-else's features. He didn't care for diplomacy, and he didn't care for marrige. Without making eye contact with a single guest-foriegn or otherwise-Songuus's young monarch strode with arrogant grace from his betrothing ceremony.

~*~

Wufei allowed himself a little grown as his head slipped silently onto the paper-covered deasktop before him. While work had been a good excuse to escape the uncomfortable ceremony several hours earlier, it was also an unfortunate truth that the dark haired man had to deal with. Only that morning, a fued between the artisan's guild and the worker's guild had broken out...a fued that was truly nothing complicated, but tiring and tedious none the less. And then there was the continued stream of Glangu refugees to deal with...finding them all food; homes and jobs was no easy task to undertake. He could delegate some responsibilty, Wufei thought ruefully...many rulers did. But then, many rulers were puppets or so out of touch with their subjects that they were little more than distant and uncaring Gods...he would rather work himself to exhaustion then to let Songuus have a king like that.

A soft knock on the massive doors to the study drew the dark skinned man from his thoughts, and he swiftly sat up. "Come in," he said in a loud voice, twisting in his seat to face the visitor...he was rather glad for the interuption, even though it was almost certainly one of the lords come to chastise their young king for abandoning his bride so shortly after the betrothal ceremony. He was plesantly surprised when the slim body clad in a pale blue, floor length robe slid silently between the doors.

A genuine smile spread on the king's face as he stood and smiled at his friend. "Dreamweaver," he said, his voice warm dispite the formality of the greeting.

The blond dreamweaver smiled at him and kicked the massive doors closed behind him with a slippered foot. "Your majesty," he bowed slightly over the sliver tray he held in his arms. "I have come to inform you that a diplomatic envoy from Glangu has arrived..." His slippered feet made no sound as he walked with light steps further into the king's sanctuary to gently diposit the tray on a low reading table. "I also brought tea,"

"Invite the envoy to dinner this evening, and make sure they have comfortable quaters to rest and clean up," the monarch dismissed the report with a slight wave of his thin hand. "Delivering such messages-and tea-" he gave a rueful smile. "is a little below your station...dreammaster."

The blond dreamreader smiled, his shoulder relaxing visably as his uncomfortable mask of formality slipped away. "Thats not the main reason I came, Wufei..."

Wufei nodded curtly. "I thought not," he said, walking over to where his friend stood beside the table. "Is anything wrong? Between you and the Mage perhaps...?"

Clear aqua eyes blinked in surprise only a second before a water-like laugh fell cheerfully from the magic-doers full lips. "Oh no," Quatre brubled, his good cheer transmitting itself in the form of a smile to the young king. "Trowa and I are fine...I was worried, rather, about you...Your discomfort was fairly obvious during the ceremony earlier..."

Wufei sighed, turning away slightly, and fixing his dark eyes rather pointedly at the deeply colored knotted carpet the two stood on. "It was that glaring, was it?" his scholar's voice was soft as he chided himself silently for being so open with the way he felt.

"To me it was." Quatre responded, leaning over the tray he'd carried in to poor some steaming tea into two ornately decorated mugs. "The others, I believe, saw only their stoic leader...but I know better." He glanced up at his friend and ruler with concern shining in his vibrant eyes. "I was wondering if you'd like to talk..."

Wufei waved the offer away, but accepted the plain tea his friend handed him. "You already knew that I was not looking forward to being shackled to a woman..." he hissed, sipping at the hot tea cautiously. "It is a necessity for Songuus, otherwise I'd not touch the subject..."

"There are other ways to form treaties..." Quatre offered in a rather uncertain voice.

"Yes, but marrige is one of the easiest..." Wufei murmured through his scowl. "Besides, the Lord and Lady Ron were rather set on their daughter's marrige to me..."

Quatre sighed, lowering his clear eyes. "You always do what is right for Songuus," he said in a voice so soft that the words slurred. "And what is right for Songuus is right for you..."

"Exactly." The young lord said, nodding curtly. "So I have a year and a day to live free of true woman domanation and then..." he gave a dramatic smile, trying-and failing-to bring some humor into the situation.

"I doubt it will be that horrible," Quatre's tone was wry though his words were completely serious. Gaining his feet, the blond set his tea cup down. "I will leave you now, your majesty," formality creeping into his voice and mannerisms once again. "You haven't long before dinner..." Wufei nodded abselty, sipping at his tea and staring off into the book filled recesses of his study. "But before I go..." Dark eyes focused on Quatre once again, whose voice faultered with uncertainty. "May I see...?"

The corners of Wufei's lips turned upwards in a small smile as he set his tea cup down on a near by table. Without speaking a word, the onyx haired man rolled his white sleeve up to reveal his tan and muscular arm. Along the upper part of his arm, where the mage had laid his warm hands only hours earlier, was a thin dark line that seemed to pulse with Wufei's heartbeat.

Quatre took a small step forward, his pale hand lifting of it's own accord to brush the darker skin of the betrathed band ever so slighty...Almost immediatly after his skin brushed the band, his pulled his fingertips back with an inaudible gasp. Eyes wide, the dreamweaver bowed hastily and let himself out of the room.

Wufei sighed remorsely and slowly rolled the white sleeve down to conceal the mark once again.



note: what do you think? No slaveness in this part...setting the scene, man! ;) I hope this makes sense...