Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ The Maids of Silva ❯ Chapter Five ( Chapter 5 )

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Maids of Silva

By Happily Ever After

Chapter 5

by kmf

Rating: PG13

Warnings: AU

Standard Disclaimer applies.

King Treize Kushrinada sat on his throne and listened to the somber tones of his Chancellor of the Exchequer. Treize lounged in his chair, his elegant manicured hand loosely holding a golden jewel encrusted goblet filled with fine red wine. A casual observer could be mistaken in thinking that he was a man used to leisure and fine possessions; but this would be wrong.

Treize was a fighter used to hardship and poverty; his grandfather had lost all his wealth and possessions when Treize's father had just been a small lad. It had taken two generations to slowly claw back what was rightfully, in Treize's opinion, his. It was unfortunate that Treize's father had not lived to enjoy his family's success, but then perhaps this was for the best. If his father had been alive there would have been much dissent between them as to who should sit upon the throne. Treize would not be second to anyone, not even his father.

However, the joy of winning was quickly fading. He was uncomfortable with this life; he would far prefer his hand to be grasping his sword rather than a wine goblet. He absently flicked some lint from his black britches and observed that his knee high black leather boots were so highly polished that he could see his reflection in them. Looking into them he frowned; he looked bored.

The finances of the Kingdom were good, no very good judging from the face of J who stood to the King's left rubbing his hands together. Treize had never had much interest in the gold associated with the kingdom but he knew that if J was looking happy then the coffers must indeed be full. J was a small man whose stature was so slight that he could easily be mistaken for a dwarf. His eyesight was bad, corrected by strange glass spheres which covered his eyes enlarging them to the point that he looked deformed and his hands were crooked with age; although he never would admit just how old he was. Whilst to the onlookers J could be regarded as little more than a joker for the king, Treize knew that he was much more important. Indeed J and his four old and gnarled brothers were fundamental in the takeover of the Kingdom.

It was they who had trapped and transformed the two young princes into animals allowing Treize to seize control and take his revenge against their family; it had been the princes' grandfather who had killed his own. Where these five tiny men had originally come from Treize did not know, nor did he question. He was only glad that they were aiding him with their magic rather than anyone else and he was keen to retain their loyalty. Treize knew what motivated the little men…money. So long as Treize had it, they were his to instruct.

The Chancellor finished reading from his rolled parchment and looked up at the new King his eyes momentarily challenging before he bowed his head and gave his leader his due respect. Treize could not help but smile a little; he enjoyed that his new staff were resentful of his presence. It was good that they had spunk; a Kingdom of spineless followers was not a Kingdom worth having. A Kingdom with men of backbone was one worth winning, so long as he was able to control the population. And he was, thus far, backed by the infamous reputation of putting both young princes to the sword.

He had, of course, done no such thing. The torture he had devised for the brothers was, in his opinion, far worse than the easy release of death. Treize had conceived an idea that was guaranteed to push the lads to the limits of their sanity, a punishment that they would have to endure for the rest of their natural lives: transformation into beasts. J had made the idea a reality.

Treize frowned a little thinking of the bird and cat that Heero and Duo had become. It was most irritating that they had escaped the confines of the castle and he was still not entirely sure how that had occurred. Security had been increased and no other acts of sabotage had occurred since then, but still Treize would not allow his guard to be down. To rectify the situation he had quickly dispatched a hunter to secure the princes and bring them back to captivity or, if that proved impossible, to kill them. Treize had every faith in his hunter; she was sure to be successful.

Dorothy Catalonia was his cousin, and a more skilled huntress would never be found. She delighted in both the hunt and the kill and had never failed to bring a hunt to a successful conclusion. She had agreed to the hunt willingly, her passion was to pursue magical creatures, a trait that she had inherited from her father, his Uncle. At still such a tender age she already had a very large collection of creatures both alive and stuffed in her nearby estate.

A hand on Treize's own bought him back to the present. Beside him was Une, his most loyal lady fiercely protective of and devoted to him. She was looking at him in concern, a frown marring the perfection of her face. She was dressed as any other lady of the court did; the tight boned bodice of blue silk pushing up her breasts so they balanced precipitously at the top of her gown. Her over skirt matched her bodice and was pulled up to show a highly embroidered white underskirt. Both skirts were full, pushed out with layers of petticoats giving her the appearance of a full-blown rose. The necklace she wore, diamonds and sapphires formed in the shape of flowers, completed the effect. It was a gift from Treize to Une, a spoil of war which once belonged to the long dead Queen of this Kingdom. Une's brown hair was pulled up into a loose bun so that tendrils fell around her face. She looked gentle and innocent, but Treize knew that looks could be deceiving.

If Treize were ever threatened, his life put at risk, he knew that this seemingly gentle creature would be the first to leap to his defense willing to kill or die for him. He had seen this before and been amazed and invigorated by it; it was as if she were two separate people sharing the same body.

Treize could see that she was concerned by his lack of response to her questioning grip and that her eyes were beginning to grow hard as she went from Lady to soldier. He smiled at her and patted he hand. The transformation halted then reversed and again Une was back to her gentle Lady self.

The speaker had finished his speech and yet another stood to take his place. Treize was beginning to wonder whether this could be an ingenious way of trying to assassinate him…death by boredom. However, he was soon to be saved. A murmur at the back of the hall made a gratifying distraction and Treize smiled to see that Dorothy had entered looking resplendent in her hunting gear.

Her long blond hair was caught back in a black band, her distinctive eyebrows were frowning, her face dirty from the hardships of a hunt. She was well armed--a bow slung over a shoulder and at her waist a sheath that held her sword, the same blade that her father had carried. She ignored the people who had begun to mutter about her unkempt appearance, instead looked direct to Treize nodding at him signaling her desire to talk.

This suited Treize just fine; any excuse to be rid of the mindless bureaucracy that went with power. He stood up from his throne pushing back his velvet fur trimmed cloak so that he could hold his hand up. Instantly, all speech stopped and the crowd regarded him silently. He looked over them catching glances of appreciation, admiration, hate and loathing from the various factions that populated the hall.

"You may go," he said and watched as they as one bowed and curtsied before backing towards the door to take their leave. He smiled as they filtered awkwardly out knowing that for the most part they backed not out of respect, but rather out of fear of leaving their backs exposed to him. He sat again, this time gesturing for Une to sit at his feet and began to absently caress her soft hair. All the while his eyes were on Dorothy. Finally the hall was emptied and the doors closed, the guards dispatched to stand watch on the outside.

Dorothy walked forward, her boots clicking on the marble floor, her face arrogant and smug. Treize knew that he would have to watch this young woman closely; she was the same blood as he therefore the probability was that she was as ambitious as he was. She might be family, but that did not mean that she would not stab him in the back. He watched with interest as she paused at the foot of the steps that led to his throne and inclined her head. She then reached into the sash that bound her jerkin closed and pulled forth two flowers; one red rose and one white rose. She offered the slightly bruised blooms to Treize who took them. The fragrance of summer was upon them even though outside it was mid winter. Magic had bought forth these blooms, perhaps a magic that could rival that of J.

"Report," Treize demanded.

* * *

Relena carefully checked the splint on the falcon's wing, her fingers gentle, her movements slow and caring. The falcon regarded her through its odd blue eyes and said nothing, not that Relena expected it to. Whilst it was almost impossible to get the cat to stop issuing forth its nonsense, it was also equally impossible to get the falcon to talk.

A loud bang came from outside and Relena turned her head to see that Hilde was once again chasing the cat across the snowy yard, holding the broomstick firmly in her hand trying hard to whack the animal. Relena grinned knowing that the cat must have said something rude again. She bit her lip to stop laughing as it climbed up a tree and sat on a branch just out of the reach of Hilde and her broom. Every time Hilde jumped to try and knock him from his perch he would lazily extend a paw and swipe back at the broom, his tale twitching slightly showing his pleasure at the game.

Even though Hilde was acting as if she were cross, Relena knew that it was not so. She could tell that her sister was enjoying the game as much as the cat was. Relena wrinkled her nose; she could not use the name Pooh-oh even though the animal repeatedly referred to itself as such. It simply could not be the animal's name given the drooping of his ears every time Hilde called out the word. Instead, Relena simply called him Cat.

The bird, Zero, was still wary of the cat and refused to talk to it. Instead it would sit on Relena's shoulder and stare at the feline until it gave up and moved away. Zero was always gentle with Relena and not once had it pecked at her or allowed its talons to puncture her skin. Even though he appeared to trust her, he did not speak much. Instead he would listen to her chat about her life in the cottage with her guardian and sister.

Relena worried that the bird had no recollection of its past life and that the cat could only spout nonsense about their history. She dearly hoped that eventually their memories would return. But even that bought worries of its own. She had become extraordinarily fond of the bird in the few short days that it had been with her and she felt herself grow melancholy with the thought that it might leave once spring was in the air.

"What is wrong?" the bird questioned.

Relena jumped a little then smiled as she smoothed the soft feathers on its head. "Nothing, dear Zero. I was just wondering what spring will hold for you and for me," her eyes grew distant for a moment. "I have the weirdest feeling that all will change soon and it frightens me a little."

Zero blinked. "I will protect you," he said, his voice firm and determined, but his features took on a look of surprise, or as much surprise as a falcon could display. It seemed to Relena that he wondered why he was saying such a thing.

She again stroked his feathery head. "Thank you Zero," she said "I know that I can trust you. But in the meantime, I want to see if we can find out more about you and that friendly cat's past. If Uncle can do without us for a day, then I think that Hilde and I should venture into the woods where Quatre lives and see if we can seek him out. He may be able to help you."

Zeros's head tilted to regard the weather outside the cottage "Snow is on its way again," he commented reluctantly "You cannot go tomorrow."

Again Relena considered the bird wondering why he was so reluctant. Perhaps he was afraid of learning the truth. She lowered her lips and gently kissed the bird's feathery head, not missing the fact that the bird stilled at her touch and stared at her. She laughed a little breaking the spell that held the bird so still and he ruffled his feathers in agitation.

"Do not worry Zero. It is a magical wood, protected from the passing of the seasons," she whispered as she once again stroked the strange bird's head.

A cry of triumph caught her ears and she giggled as she saw that Hilde had finally dislodged the cat from its perch causing it to land feet first into a large drift of snow. Only the tips of its ears and its tail were visible and Hilde had collapsed in a heap of laughter beside him, her cheeks rosy with laugher.

"Snot bunny," came the muffled voice of the cat.

Relena laughed a little before her expression turned serious again. There was such a sense of wrong about these two creatures; she could only hope that Quatre would be able to help.

* * * *

Dorothy eased her boots off as she sat by the fire, comfortable to be back in her own home. She was very satisfied with the way the day had gone. Treize had been suitably surprised and alarmed by the flowers she had shown him. And so he should; it proved that there were other magics free in the land that were possibly stronger than those he commanded.

He had been less than pleased to find that she had not as yet secured the beasts and she had offered him no explanation for her reasons. Treize had not pushed her but had restated the need for the princes to be captured, and captured soon. He had then turned his mind from the missing men to the problem of the magical wood. J had perked his ears up when she described its location and the closeness of the cottage in which the beasts were kept. J had immediately offered to go to the wood and find the source of the magic, to which Treize had readily agreed. Dorothy had put her foot down though when J suggested that he should also recapture the princes.

They were her prey and no other man would take them from her. She had made it perfectly clear to J that if he attempted to hunt them she would immediately hunt him. J had paled at the cold gleam in the girl's eyes seeing his head stuffed and mounted on one of her walls. He nodded his agreement and backed down.

Dorothy smirked, it was not yet time to trap the beasts. Both had traveled long and hard and the falcon was damaged. She was too fine a huntress to trap them when they were not at their peak. The whole purpose of releasing them in the first place was to prove that she was better than they were. They would only be worthy opponents if they were rested and refreshed. Dorothy was not about to spoil the hunt by capturing them when they were at their weakest.

Besides, they had already done for her what no one else had been able to do. They had led her to the wood.

Sitting back in her chair, she raised her legs onto her footrest and sighed. It was very nice to sit and relax for a change, the hunt thus far had been a long and challenging one. J had assured her that the animals had no knowledge of their past, but Dorothy could see fault with that. They seemed to flee with definite purpose, travelling separately, doubling back at times to create dummy trails, all the time heading towards that wood. They knew that they were being pursued, of this Dorothy was sure, so headed towards the greatest place of magic that they could find.

That secret magical place where once her father had hunted. Where he had trapped and captured the most precious magical creature that was in the Catalonia's possession. The wood that had, in her father's words, reacted with such anger to the kidnapping of its daughter that it attacked and tried to kill him. The woods that had created such fear in the man that he had never hunted again and refused to give Dorothy the location of it even on his deathbed.

Dorothy leaned over and rang a bell that sat on the little polished table set up next to her chair. A few seconds later a figure entered or rather seemed to float into the room: Lucrezia. She was a delicate thing, eyes large, dark and haunting, her hair cut close to her head. At first glance, she looked like a woman. She was not, she was a fully grown creature of magic. An immortal fairy Dorothy liked to think. Around her neck and wrists were small collars of iron that prevented her from fleeing back to her fairy realm. The woman stood before her, eyes carefully averted from the severed head of the unicorn which hung above Dorothy's fireplace; one of Dorothy's more recent trophies.

Such a sensitive creature, Dorothy mused. When Dorothy had been a child she had looked at Lucrezia with awe, wonder and love. But as she had grown, her feelings for the fairy creature had changed. She now regarded Lucrezia as a prize; a beautiful ornament to be paraded out at parties, the perfect expression of her father's prowess at hunting. And Dorothy wanted to obtain another fairy. She wanted to hunt a mate for Lucrezia to demonstrate to the world that she was as skilled as her father once was.

Lucrezia waited patiently before her, her head bowed low her simple house robe looking coarse and rough on her delicate body. Dorothy raised an eyebrow as she watched the woman. "Wine," she demanded and Lucrezia floated away to do her bidding.

Dorothy was convinced that she had found the wood. As she had stood high on the branches of one of the trees on its outskirts she had felt power flow that she had never felt before; menacing yet enticing. The entire wood exuded the same aura of timelessness that Lucrezia did. It had to be the same place.

The bird and cat had been drawn there because of the magic, of this she was sure. Magic attracted magic. The cottage on the edge of the wood also seemed to have a weaker aura of magic around it, protection perhaps for the inhabitants, although Dorothy could see little of merit about the two girls and old man. Still, roses bloomed over the door of the little shack despite it being snowy and mid winter.

Dorothy could not stop her smile. Perhaps she would end up hunting the girls as well as the animals; that could prove interesting.

But for now she would rest and regain her strength and allow the animals to regain theirs. Once J had returned from assessing the magics that surrounded the area, there would be plenty of time to act once he had reported back on the situation.

After all, a good hunt was one to be savored.

Tbc.

(Next up is Iris Anthe)