Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Of Courtesans and Corsairs ❯ Chapter 7

"If my brother knew what we were up to…" Duo muttered to himself as he hunched down into a tighter ball in the abandoned fishing boat they'd procured.

The older pirate he was with, a man with gray hair and a wicked grin on his face, winked behind the two eye patches we wore and laughed. "I won't tell if you won't, little man," he said, steering the craft safely into the LaGrange port. "You're a dem fine captain, and I'd be sore displeased to see you go down under a lash. Even if it's a tongue-lashin'!"

Pirate King Duo snickered half-heartedly. "Thanks, Howard. We'll worry about that later, though. Here comes the Admiral now." Sure enough, a tall young woman clad in the full regalia of a Navy Admiral was fast approaching their boat, looking cross and walking so swiftly her two flunkies were trotting to catch up.

Howard drew his cape's hood so far over his face that only anything from his nose down was visible. He busied himself with tying the boat and carefully counted the seconds before he heard a commanding "You! Fisherman! Explain your docking in broad daylight!"

Howard grinned and looked up slightly, giving the Admiral a view of his chin and lips. "Beggin' your pardon, Madam," he said, and extended a hand. It was covered in boils and rotting skin, and his thumb was missing. Admiral Noin recoiled in disgust, as did her two flunkies. Lepers were exempt from the laws, since no one would dare get close enough to prosecute them and thus risk catching their debilitating disease. "My son and I…"

"Don't you mean your daughter, old man?" Noin inquired, pointing to the braid that was sticking out from the blankets Duo had wrapped himself in. Duo's heart plummeted in his chest, but he didn't move. If he tried to cover his blunder now, then they would be exposed!

"You didn' let me finish!" Howard pouted, and then pointed to the Pirate King. "My son and I had come to this port many a month ago, and now he has died. His good wife here, my sweet daughter-in-law, has been grievin' ever since! I brought her here in hopes that the nuns would take her, before the leprosy does!"

Noin considered his proposal carefully. The girl could potentially be a carrier for the disease, and if she went to a monastery, then the disease would spread there! There was no risking it! "I cannot grant her passage. Not to a monastery. Your trip has been in vain, old man."

"Then can't she at least see her mother one last time?! She lives in a secluded cave in the mountains, far from anyone and anything! Could I not take her there, to live out her life in peace?" Howard had doubted the monastery idea would work, but this story about a mother came right out of the blue! Would this one do the trick?

Apparently so. "You have until sundown tonight to take her there and return to your boat, old man. You'll not be welcome here, I warn. Go about your business." With that proclamation, Noin turned on her heel and left, her flunkies hurrying after her.

Duo looked up from his disguise and grinned to his accomplice. "Next stop?"

"The LaGrange palace, my King."

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A/N: This is more of a side story, but I guess we can count it as a chapter since my intended chapter is so stinkin' short! ^-^

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Heero let his tears fall, soaking into the pillow he's buried his face in. It was a terrible thing to have your son and his father at odds with one another, but what made it worse was the fact that their argument was over him!

The heartbreak was so terrible, Heero could not even tend to Wu-Long properly. The instant they'd returned to the palace, the crowned prince was given to a trusted nursemaid to be bathed and sent to bed. Wu-Long cried and screamed for his mother, but Heero did not answer him. The forlorn concubine had retreated here, and promptly threw himself into his bed to silently cry out his sorrows.

The King would return soon, his bride in tow, and poor Heero shuddered at the thought of that…that…woman roaming the halls, sniffing him out only to verbalize her distaste with him. To complain to Wufei would do no good, either. Heero was certain Wufei would think their son's outburst had been some fault of his mother's, and no doubt he would be whipped for disrespect. Thankfully, Wu-Long would receive a harsh rebuke or a swat at the worst. Heero had no such immunity. He was common-born, and would no doubt bear the stripes of a traitor to the Crown.

He could handle the fiery sting of a lash easily; it was the agony of a broken heart that drove the concubine near to madness. To be torn between your love for your king, and love for your son, no mortal should ever have to bear such a thing! As if Queen Relena didn't weigh heavily enough on his conscience!

Silent tears were soon growing into muffled sobs, allowing Heero the release he needed so desperately. No one would disturb him for now, not for another hour or two at best. That would be plenty of time to weep out his discontent, wash his face, and put up a passable false act of being content. But that could wait for now. Heero was in no condition to try and be an actor.

The concubine wept his desolation dry, though no such thing could be said for his pillow, or the sleeves of his robe. In time, fatigue overtook him, and the serene darkness of sleep swept low and filled his vision. Heero didn't fight it; only in his dreams could he possibly be happy now.

This dream took him back his days of pregnancy, and more specifically to the gardens he'd fled to when the healers and royal physicians were being `mean'. Heero could feel the cool marble of the fountain under his cheek as he cried, and hear the water's dainty trickle just behind his ear. His sobs were squeaky in his ears, and his tears tickled as they dripped down his cheeks.

He looked up at the sound of a chuckle just above his head, and discovered Wufei to be kneeling beside him, reaching out to stroke his hair and comfort him. "Heero," his voice was feather-light, yet clear as day. "My pet, why do you cry?"

Heero felt himself bristle in indignation, and he promptly turned away and scrubbed at his cheeks. "Why are you laughing at me?!" he demanded, although his voice still sounded blubbery to him.

"I'm not laughing at you," Wufei had promised, turning Heero back gently and kissing his feverish cheeks. "I'm laughing at my physicians. Those buzzards are all in a rut because you're out here instead of in bed where you were supposed to be."

"I'm not a child! They aren't putting me to bed early! And they aren't going to give me any stupid fish oil! Or another potion that that reeks of dead things! I'm a grown man! Their fussing is driving me crazy, and all you can do is laugh!"

Wufei nodded sympathetically and picked Heero up into his arms to carry him inside. "I agree. You are full grown, and you should be treated so. But you must remember that you have another life inside you, one that isn't full-grown yet. The things the physicians do aren't to undermine you, my sweet. They are all for the safety of our baby. Wouldn't you like to have a son or a daughter to fuss over?"

Heero, who by now had stopped crying, nodded decisively. "I'd like that. But I don't want to be fussed over now! Not by the physicians!"

"Then would you permit me to fuss over you?" the King asked, capturing Heero's lips in a chaste kiss. "I haven't had any proper time to pamper you up until now, and I was looking forward to it. But if you're tired of being fussed over and all…"

"Please! Please hold me at least! I'll tolerate a little more if only you stay with me!" Heero's eyes welled with tears again, prompting Wufei to hush him gently and nuzzle him. The brunette mewled at the touch and shut his eyes, giving in to the caress.

Wufei laid him in their bed again, and kissed Heero's swollen belly as well as his lips. "Ah, that's better, Heero…Heero…Heero…"

Heero… Heero…Heero…

KNOCK KNOCK! "Heero! Heero, are you in there! Open your door, Heero!"