HAI! Check profile for fun story about why everything has been delayed, also to make up for it I'm releasing THIS CHAPTER!
And the Halloween special (ASAP)! And then Chapter 9 (ASAP) and probably going to hold off and release 10, 11 and 12 ALL together, because you really want that whole chunk together and hopefully will leave off for a nice cliff hanger before the chapter 13 turning point (It IS a Trieze fic)…
As aforementioned this fic is not really going to try to be staunch to cannon characterization as it does take place some time before ac195 and could be seen as more OOC – but the aim is to bring more life to them, not just bore people…. SOOOOO! To get OFF to a lively start… teehehehehe…
Early Fall of AC 188… (Trieze is approx.17; Milliardo is approx. 15 (age adjusted as per By The Roadway))
A young Milliardo was sitting straddling a stone bench hunched over his biology text book and notebook furiously scrawling away in his delicately looped and curved handwriting.
He had meant to get the assignment done the previous afternoon; however Trieze had left him stranded at the music conservatory without the heavy tome that Milliardo needed to complete it. It's weight wouldn't have seemed such an obstacle when he decided to leave it in his room if he'd considered for an instant that Trieze might loose track of a WHOLE THREE HOURS after his own practice session of the latest weapons style Sir Godrick had felt necessary for his son to master – Tai Chi.
Then again, who was he kidding? It was Trieze Khushrenada after all!
Milliardo felt like a fool for having not taken the possibility into account and couldn't wait till he completed his drivers certification. At least when the two finally had gotten home in time for dinner, Trieze's mother Alicia made sure he had the number for the family's personal driver. The man rarely had anything to do since Trieze's mother had become increasingly reclusive over the years and never had any reason to leave the expansive grounds of the Khushrenada's primary estate.
All of this was not helping him come up with a cohesive description of cellular mitosis as well as the functions of the various "organs" of a cell.
The Kessel twin's shadows falling over his work ALSO did not help.
"Now what are we up to here, Milliard?"
"It looks like someone has got a lot of catching up to do before next period…"
Milliardo stopped trying to write and looked up at the girls through his long blond bangs that filtered out some of the sunlight that was glaring behind their backs. His blank stare was the only reaction he gave them.
"See that's interesting…"
"…Yes quite interesting indeed!"
"As we heard your brother was quite busy yesterday afternoon…"
"…but not you…" The girls both gasped in unison and their eyes went wide with delight as they looked to each other with a fluttering of giggles, "OR were you?" the giggling continued on.
"What are you talking about?" Milliardo typically got headaches when ever the two were around; they consistently tried to dig into his past and their latest theories always became the focus of all gossip throughout the school.
"Well maybe if you don't know, you should ask your brother…"
Milliardo gave the other one a few moments but it seemed she was content this time to silently smile away,
"If you know, then why can't you two just tell me?"
"We could…"
"…We should!"
"Okay then we will," They paused for effect and were disappointed they couldn't get at least the slightest glimmer of apprehension from the stoic blond. "We were told…"
"…by a certain young Russian lady…" the girls almost danced along with the singsong pronunciation,
"…of whom your brother has been seen spending quite a great deal of time conversing with of late. That…"
"…just the other afternoon: they had relations." The girl's eyebrows climbed over the last word to settle into a look of pure mischievous joy.
Milliardo was completely at a loss; this only further disappointed the two.
"Didn't you just say they've been spending time talking? Isn't that a relationship? Why do you two always have to make everything seem like it's the end of the world?"
One of them picked up his notebook and put it on the textbook before sitting where they had been resting; casually putting them both on top of his book bag on the ground. Milliardo had retreated towards the other end of the bench and swung his far leg back over meaning to get up but the other girl was blocking him. He let out a frustrated sigh accepting his trapped fate.
"Are you really that naive?"
The one beside him put a hand on each of his shoulders, her left arm draped across his back as her right gently pulled him a little closer as she leaned in to whisper in his ear…
…After hearing her words Milliardo immediately turned crimson and lunged through the gap between the two, haphazardly scoping up his things and stuffing them together – he would sort his school work out later: THIS required IMMEDIATE attention. He pulled out his phone and called the driver to pick him up with all speed.
Trieze had been perplexed when he couldn't find Milliardo at the end of the school day. Hardly in a state to want to be bogged down with worry he simply figured his moody assumed-brother had taken the opportunity to rub in his displeasure at Trieze's "oversight" the previous day by arranging his own ride home.
For Trieze, it had been more then worth it even if he had wrongly assumed there would be little consequence to his 'detour' after his practice session. He had indeed lost track of time not having expected to get so caught up in his escapade and had to listen to Milliardo fret over his perfect class record the whole way home.
Turning into the long drive that lead through the woodlands and beyond to the castle; situated on a gently rising hill with it's back to a cliff over looking a lake; Trieze was sure the forlorn prince would get over it eventually.
He couldn't help reaching into the inside pocket of his school uniform's jacket to finger the souvenir from his "adventure" with a huge grin on his face – as much as he should hide it somewhere safe he just couldn't bare to let his prize out of reach!
Unfortunately, his relaxed state of mind meant he failed to notice that his father was sitting at the top of the front steps of the castle; his forehead against pommel of the ancient five foot great sword that had belonged to the original Godrick Khuβhrénir, as it rested sheathed in front of him. The appearance of the most prized possession of the extensive weapons collection that adorned the halls of the castle was not a good sign at all.
"Uh, father? What's the matter?" Sir Godrick did not look up from his bowed position and spoke in a measured tone of dead seriousness,
"Trieze Godrick. My son… my only son… I ask you to answer me plainly, and shortly: Did you, or did you not? Commit an act of penetration…on a young lady's…anus."
Trieze could almost feel the tempered steel whooshing through his neck and the extreme vertigo that would most likely follow as his decapitated head tumbled, still conscious, back down the stone steps to roll away under the HVG.
"I…" He tried not to swallow too hard, "did."
His father's eyes opened; their deep blue fire burned with rage. His son's misconduct always found a way to lead to his own punishment, usually simply in the form of his wife's denial of their otherwise nightly passions. No other torture could unsettle the retired soldier more; a tested fact as back in the day he had even spent a short time as a POW in the Congo during a failed strike against a local warlord as part of an international peace effort campaign launched by the Earth Sphere Alliance.
"In my office; RIGHT NOW."
Trieze knew better then to hesitate around his father's temper and broke into a full run up the last steps past the simmering warrior to go await his doom in the sound-proof study.
He heard stone pulverizing behind him and was sure either or both of the large stone hound statues that currently ornamented the sides of the doorway would be replaced in the next day or so – he wondered what his father would pick out this time…
It was an extremely long wait once he reached the office. Since 14, Trieze had been enrolled in the Specials Academy (a specialized officers program for the Aristocratic Elite); he knew better then to take a seat and stood at perfect attention in front of the desk patiently waiting for it to be occupied.
Sir Godrick might have decided that he'd rather his son a Mobile Suit 'Calvary' pilot then a ground infantry officer as he himself had been – but that didn't stop him from ensuring Trieze was signed up to take the Alliance's Mobile Suit Infantry field training course as well. Otherwise Trieze would have been exempt from the grueling month long military survival training that only took place during the winter session.
With the Alliance's expansion of the use of Mobile Suit units there was talk of re-naming and opening the exclusive Specials MS Calvary division up to non-Aristocrats provided they had the talent to show for it; the old soldier hardly wanted some young, no-title upstarts to ever have the edge on his son.
The door opened behind him and Trieze did his best not to flinch.
His father walked past him without a word and proceeded to review the files and papers that were covering his desk; slowly shifting them to their rightful homes and clearing his desk before he finally took a seat, straightened his jacket, cuffs and neck kerchief, settling back and looking at his son.
"Trieze, are you aware of the extremely precarious situation our family has been in for many years now?" Sir Godrick leaned forwards and folded his hands together lightly supporting his chin with his thumbs.
"Would you be referring to the fact that we've been known to support disarmament?"
"That is a very nice way to put it. Yes Trieze, that among other things. So I pray you then tell me why?" Godrick opened his hands wide and stared down at his desk as if the motion would summon a crystal ball to appear and reveal the answer. "Why would you EVER conduct yourself in such a way as to risk our expulsion from the foundation?" He regarded his son once more retracting his fingers into fists before settling into a resting position once more.
Trieze struggled to maintain a blank face. He knew that it certainly wasn't appropriate what he'd done and considered that at worst he would be banned from attending all and any Romefeller functions – but it seemed unreasonable for it to escalate into effecting his whole family's reputation so severely. Other people had done far worse things without any repercussions!
"I thought I took adequate measures to insure it would not come to light…" Trieze suddenly wasn't sure why he was even having this conversation at all. Had something happened to Vita? There was nothing wrong with her that day at school; and he had made sure to check (very thoroughly).
"Obviously those measures were hardly adequate as Milliardo had to endure the embarrassment of being informed by two, apparently quite 'gossipy', young ladies this afternoon. Your confidant apparently did not, or could not, resist illuminating the matter in such a way that I do expect," His father's fist hit the desk before pointing accusingly at the elegant gold and lacquer rotary telephone sitting upon it, eyes never leaving his son's and his tone freezing over as he continued, "a call from said young lady's father! IF I AM THAT LUCKY to have chance to settle this matter discretely! Otherwise I'm sure that my dear brother would be delighted to inform me personally; should I be requested to liquidate my shareholdings and withdraw from the Foundation! IN THAT case we shall be LUCKY if he allows us to remain living in this estate– or even on The Earth itself!"
"Father…" Trieze was at a loss for what he could even do now, how could a small trespass lead to such catastrophe? "I didn't realize that the Foundation would take such insult to actions committed privately and with no proof…" He trailed off at the look of disbelief growing on his father's vestige.
"You sodomized a women of TITLE of whom you have yet made no intention to marry!"
Trieze tried to stand on some sort of ground that he hadn't acted completely irresponsibly; he had done quite a bit of research recently after all,
"By definition I hardly took any action that would spoil her virginity."
Strangely enough his father began to laugh; then smothered his face into his hands, elbows propped on the desk in front of him. It was a moment before Trieze realized that his father was in fact crying! – moisture still clung to the edges of his reddened eyes when he pulled his hands forwards to clasp them as if praying.
"We can not afford to give our enemies any excuses, do you understand that? It makes no difference how far over the line you have crossed; simply crossing it is enough to cause a great deal of trouble for all of us. What disturbs me personally is your complete and utter disregard to the duty we still owe to our King," the rare sight of tears suddenly made sense – nothing had broke his father's heart more then the Sank Kingdom's destruction, "It does not matter if he is younger then you, nor that we pretend he is someone else. Milliardo Peacecraft is your Prince. As my son you owe him your loyalty and have a responsibility to look out for his best interests. You not only betrayed that, but did so in order to seek your own pleasures at your families' disgrace."
Sir Godrick could only sigh heavily as his shaking head dropped once more to be supported by his hands. Not even 40 yet his still hansom face looked well over 50 at times.
"Obviously I wasn't thinking." Trieze's voice caught in his throat. He hated how slowly over the years it seemed his father lost that confident humor which he had once been so well known for. It had been replaced with sad, passive, silence – a memorial to everything that could have been.
"Obviously," Sir Godrick rose from his luxurious leather chair to cross to the liquor cabinet. He didn't bother with the open wine bottle and waiting glass beside it; instead opened the hand-carved wooden doors to produce a short glass and a bottle of cheap Russian vodka that was usually hidden behind the more respectable vintage aged scotch and whiskey bottles he kept in case of visiting business associates,
"Take a seat boy," he filled the glass half way and emptied most of it in a single swig before filling it completely and replacing the bottle. Trieze situated himself in one of the high back chairs that faced the desk, his father sitting in the other now content to slowly sip at the crude distillation. "Explain it to me son: what was it that drove you to do this? Do you think you love this girl?"
"Maybe I do..?"
The older man sighed at that,
"No Trieze, you don't. Believe me, whatever your feelings; it is obvious this girl has no interest beyond the little world of social relations. Otherwise she would not have risked her own humiliation in the first or second place; such is the way of small time thrill seekers. It is true that whatever I assert publicly; your mother was not the first women I was ever with and she's always been aware of that. The life style of a soldier comes with its own set of traditions after all; I even had Russian lover myself once – still receive the occasional letter from time to time. None of that changed the way I felt about your mother. Not once did I let my lips so much as touch hers until I knew she would be mine and only mine, and ever since I have never found myself wanting for any other for it would not be the same at all. That is the way with Love, it inspires dedication in a way that simple lust or passion never can."
"I do care about her deeply though… I find myself constantly thinking of her and I don't think your right about her lacking interests. What I enjoy most is spending time just discussing ideas with her; she has an intriguing approach to analyzing the nature of human conflicts." Sir Godrick took a sip as he let his son speak his peace.
"Then why did it escalate beyond discussions? Or was this the product of some on going debate between you two?"
"I guess… you could say… that might have been it? We both just… wanted to be closer. I thought we could trust each other…"
"Ah I see, and that's how you ended up in her ass?" Sir Godrick did laugh this time.
Trieze couldn't help blushing hearing his father put it so casually,
"That… was not actually part of the original plan…"
"OH, really? Did she just happen to throw this idea out there at the last minute? For some reason that does not seem likely to me…" Sir Godrick seemed to have recovered some of his former self, as well as some color that flushed back into his ashen face. He was giving his son a sly look using his elegantly forked brows to their fullest potential.
"Well… it might have, in fact, been something like that…" Trieze nervously ran a hand through his short honey-ginger hair and shifted in his seat.
"Go on…?" He couldn't help but enjoy seeing his boy squirm with obvious embarrassment.
"You see, we might have been engaged in certain…ways and she became a little… overwhelmed? …and heh …demanded I do something…else about it."
"Wait," Sir Godrick took another sip of his glass before setting it down besides him and leaning forwards, "Do you mean to try and tell me that you gave a woman cause to demand her ass be occupied with your shaft?"
Trieze was already in the grips of the shock from his father's initial tirade and at a loss as to how he should react to the sudden turn around,
"She wasn't that specific, but in the end I …suppose I did." His father's eyes narrowed into suspicious slits,
"Exactly how many others have you sought to be 'closer' with?" Trieze looked taken aback,
"None! I swear by our name this is the first time!" For some reason this continued to displease his father,
"Then what precisely did you do to bring about this reaction?"
Trieze stopped before floundering out an answer, why was his father so fixated on this detail of the event anyways? He couldn't help the suspicions creeping across his own features,
"…Why does that matter?"
Sir Godrick, caught, set himself back in the chair once more and threw a dismissive hand to one side as he gazed out into the non-existent distance.
"Obviously it does not matter! You're mother may not have said it but I'm sure I'll find the bedroom door locked for the next week or more. You," he turned his attention back to his son, trying to keep him on his toes, "Are not to join us for dinner tonight – by her request. In fact you are to report to the kitchen as I've given the dinner staff a month long paid vacation starting today. I hope you don't disappoint us further with your new responsibilities."
Trieze's jaw dropped slack – dinner was no small preparation in the Khushrenada household.
"Furthermore, this girl has indeed proven herself to be someone you can NOT trust; you will NOT speak with her or even so much as look at her should your paths happen to cross from now on. Harsh as it may seem now, it truly would be best for you both to put this behind you as quickly as possible. Also, you will not be returning to that school I've already withdrawn your enrollment." He rose and took his glass with him as he walked back around the desk to look out the window and survey the gardens below. "I shall let you know when I decide how to deal with completing your general education."
Trieze took the cue to stand and gave a crisp salute; there was no arguing with orders once they were given.
"Yes Sir, Understood."
The phone on the desk rang, the force rattling the receiver on its cradle.
Sir Godrick turned to look at it sharply; the tension that had dissipated from the room returning as quickly as the color leaving his face at the disruptive alarm. He emptied his glass in a single gulp as he took a seat at the desk and steeled his nerves before reaching out and removing the receiver to bring it to his ear.
"Godrick here."
There was an outwardly obvious wash of relief as he heard the man's first angry words come back over the line heavily laden with a Russian accent – it was indeed Vita's father and not his brother, Duke Dermail.
It seemed there was still hope for them yet.