Trial By Fire

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Variables

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Duo quickly took a deep breath, trying to control the flood of anger that coursed through him. Sara and Nora had been teaching him control. He couldn't very well loose said control... and certainly not on their brother, at that.

"Quatre! Wufei! Trowa!"

Duo looked over as someone called his companions from some distance away from the trio of sorcerers. A woman, at least a decade older than him, with a short fall of bluish-black hair waved to them. "It's so great to have you all here, but I wish it could have been under better circumstances. Heero tells me that Kushrenada's niece has disappeared- seemingly off of the face of the planet. And with a magick-using body-guard at that! Our plan to take out all three at once is out of the question now. It'll have to be individual assassination, if we can pull it off. Failing that... it's all out war."

Duo stepped forward, a retort on his lips about his feelings on the matter, but Quatre held up a hand to her. "Did you say she had a magick-using body-guard? What mage would protect a Kushrenada?"

"We don't know. They have a fairly strong talent for reflection, and she was able, according to Heero, use her powers even in the very reflections of her eyes. Such talent hasn't been seen in a scryer since, well, since the fall of Persephone and the loss of Grandam Edara. The fact that any magick user is protecting a Kushrenada is enough to worry about, much less a talented one with an offensive talent for scrying. It's hard enough fighting normals, but to have to fight our own kind?"

"Has anyone stopped to think about this?" Duo demanded. "Has anyone considered that there has to be a reason a mage is protecting her? What if you are all wrong? Has this girl, this princess, ever done anything? Has she ordered the deaths of innocent people? Waged wars and destroyed countries? Taxed her own people into poverty? WHY does she need to die? And don't give me the whole 'because Kushrenada's are evil' spiel. I've heard it, and I think it's a load of horse shit. Because if you really believe that, then you're no better than Treize Kushrenada himself. Arrogant, self-righteous hypocrites!"

Trowa and Wufei looked at him in something akin to mild amusement. Quatre looked slightly peeved, and people all around them were staring in shock. The woman he'd ranted at blinked at him in confusion for a few moments.

"He's right," a man said, walking up beside the woman and putting a hand on her shoulder. He was a match for her in height, perhaps even taller, and he had a waterfall of pure white-silver hair, the bangs obscuring two bright ice-blue eyes. "Have you considered perhaps she's not been as affected by her familiarity with Treize as you think?"

The woman turned confused blue eyes to him. "That's a variable. A risk that can't help but be taken. We can't be sure that..."

"If you truly wanted her out of the way, surely there's some nice, out-of-the-way place where you can place her, keep an eye on her while she lives a free, normal life," Duo said, drawing her attention back to him. "There's always a way. There's never a risk that can't help but be taken. I'm telling you. She's nothing like the others. That girl has a kind soul, and I think she'd adapt just fine to a normal, regular life."

"If she resists, then we can always fall back on one of the old plans," the man reassured, rubbing the woman's shoulder. "But the boy does have some merit to what he says." He looked at Quatre. "Wherever did you find such an outspoken youngling anyway?"

Quatre held up his hands in annoyance, then glared at Wufei. "He's not my charge. I did nothing but heal his wounds. Wufei's the one who likes to drag home every stray kitten he sees."

Wufei sent a sickeningly sweet smile to the blond. "But dear-heart," he simpered, "You're the one who let me keep him."

Duo growled. "HEY! I'm right here, you know? So stop talking as if I'm some animal or that I'm not here." Looking at the couple in front of him, he nodded his head. "Duo of the Maxwell Monastery," he said.

The man smiled at him. "My name's Milliardo of the PeaceCraft family. This is Lucrezia, clan Noin." He jerked his head at the woman with a chuckle. "And she just happens to be the Queen of this forest."

Duo's stomach plummeted even as his eyes widened and his mouth gaped open.

"Q-queen? Oh... I...I-i-i..."

The woman laughed lightly. "Don't worry about that, young one. The others can tell you I've never been much for formality." She turned to Milliardo. "I want him to be the one to talk to the Kushrenada girl."

"He's a mage," Quatre warned. "An un-trained one. Sara and Nora have been teaching him control, and basic history. Perhaps some training with Sally wouldn't go astray before you send him on any ambassador-missions, Ma'am."

"Quatre," the tall woman smiled at him. "It's been too long since we've been graced with your presence. I sometimes forget how... detail-oriented... you can be."

The healer nodded his head to the Queen of Ellesmera. He held no allegiance to her country; he would not bow to her.

But... several among her subjects did to him. Some of the people around them, knelt to the ground when she mentioned his name.

"Stand up, silly girls," he sighed. He hated this. Anywhere he went where there were a gathering of magick-weilders... invariably someone would bow. Clan Raberba had been one of the strongest in Ellesmera, before their only daughter had married an outside lord. And though none of the Raberba lineage were alive, save him, several Ellesmerans still held that clan in high regard. Before Katrina's abdication, of sorts, Clan Raberba had been the ruling family, instead of the Noins. Just as Peacecrafts had once been rulers in Sanq, long ago.

"What will it take to convince your subjects that I have no wish to be involved with Ellesmeran affairs?" Quatre asked the dark haired woman. She just smiled. She knew that if Quatre tried to take control of Ellesmera, he stood a good chance at winning, simply for his namesake. Luckily for her, though, Quatre held no fancy to rule Ellesmera. He'd loved his mother, and he held affection for her homeland, but he had no desire to rule it. As long as he was not ignored or cast out... they would have a mutually beneficial relationship.

Lucrezia of Noin shrugged. "Humor them, child. You give them hope; Hope that Ellesmera will not fail, no matter the onslaught. Just yesterday, a party of our women and children were attacked by OZ. We managed to take one alive, though..." she smirked. "Never underestimate an Ellesmeran child." She chuckled. "Or two certain Ki-Lin twins in the attack."

Quatre nodded. Ellesmera was a family of cats; OZ were naught but wolves and dogs. Under Quatre's grandfather's rule, and now under that of the Noins, Ellesmera had grown larger than ever before. Cats were by nature solitary creatures. They formed small family groups, but seldom gathered in larger groups. Except in the forest of Ellesmera. In Ellesmera, they gathered by the hundreds. And that wasn't counting members of the resistance that resided there, the hundreds of magick weilding people. What had seemed like a moderate sized town that they'd walked through earlier was just one of many, many towns that made up the actual country.

"Training Duo is easy," Sara said, appearing from almost nowhere beside them. Duo jumped a bit, never having seen or heard her and her siblings come towards them. "He's eager and willing to learn, and he's actually very bright. We've covered most basic history, and basic control- which seemed to be his biggest fault. Sally should be able to have him up to speed in a matter of days."

Noin nodded. "Sara, I'll leave you and Nora in charge of him while you're here. When you leave, he'll answer to Wufei." She turned to Duo and Wufei. "No offense, Duo, but Wufei... he's your stray."

Wufei's eyes narrowed, but he didn't say anything.

"Now that that's settled, Wufei, Quatre. Come with me, I'd like to discuss a few matters with you. Trowa, I think your sister's looking for you. Sara, take your charge and find Sally. She's at the infirmary still."

With that, she practically dragged Wufei and Quatre behind her, abandoning Duo with the siblings.

Sara smiled at him. "It's all a bit much to take in, I know. Ellesmera is... like a different world. People here are different, politics are different. It'll take you a bit, but you'll get used to the pace of things around here quick enough."

"Miss Nora! Miss Sara!"

Duo looked as two children ran into their party, tugging at the priestesses' robes.

"K'mi said he's here! He's here now," one of them exclaimed.

"Where is he? He's here, right?"

"Yue, Yang," Heero said. Duo blinked at his voice. Not quite what he was expecting. "He's speaking with the Queen at the moment. Why don't we go get his things from the caravan, hm?"

"Okay," the two chorused, but not as cheerful as before.

"Heero," Nora said warningly.

"Easy," he replied. "I won't touch anything." He waved at the children. "I'll let them do it."

"I'm coming," Nora said, ignoring him, and taking one child's hand as Heero took the other.

From looks alone, Duo knew the children were siblings. A boy, hair short and pulled into a tiny top-knot, and a girl, her hair long and in two low pig-tails. Their clothes even looked similarly made- both clean, fine but not overly fancy. Clearly the children of someone who prided in well-made, but simple things.

And something about them looked hauntingly familiar. The black hair, the black eyes. But Duo couldn't quite place it. So he shrugged it off.

Sara frowned after them. "I guess it's like with Wufei and me and Nora. He won't hate us because we're related to Heero," she said softly. "Just like Heero won't hate them. Their hate is reserved solely for each other. It's... sad."

"Am I right in thinking they had a... thing... once?"

Sara nodded. "They were lovers, once upon a time. It's not any secret."

"What happened... if I may ask?" He wondered if it'd bring up bad memories for his friend.

"This and that," she said, leading him from the clearing. She easily navigated the winding paths. "Even I'm not completely sure. Not sure I even want to, really. They are, simply, two very different people. Their beliefs, their ways of thinking, their likes and dislikes. But... I don't think that was ever really their problem. Wufei is not completely blameless in their falling apart, but... even I will admit it was probably mostly my brother." She shook her head. "I still don't know why Heero broke it off. He cited so many things, but I never believed any of them. Said he didn't love Wufei. Said he was just using him. I can't be angry with him. He's my brother... and eventually, we just stopped talking about it. Wufei hates Heero for what he did, and Heero... Heero seems to loath Wufei. That's just the way it's been."

"So, Wufei was in love with him." Duo whispered, thinking of the chocolate-haired man with cold blue eyes. Somehow, a part of him couldn't picture Wufei as being 'in love' with anyone. And another part of him wanted to argue that Wufei would make a quite nice lover.

"We believe so. I wouldn't doubt a part of him still does. Probably the first- the only- person since Meiran died, so long ago."

"Meiran?" Duo looked at her. It was a new name, and he was curious. He wanted to know as much about his new-found friends as he could. That way he knew what subjects to avoid, and he knew how to help them- if they ever needed it.

Sara nodded. "He doesn't talk about it much, but he was deeply in love with his wife."

"Wife?" Duo nearly choked on the word. Sara stopped and looked at him as if he were crazy.

"You didn't know?" She questioned. "But... he still wears his... oh... oh..." she trailed off. "We didn't touch on Ki-Lin customs, did we," she asked sheepishly. "The warriors of Ki-Lin always wear a cuff on their left wrist, a bracelet that has their wife's clan's emblem on it." Duo remembered, once or twice, seeing a silver bracelet on Wufei's wrist, hidden under his shirt-sleeves. "He is Wufei Chang of the Long clan. Meiran Long died several years ago," Sara said sadly. "He still wears the cuff in memory of her. She was killed at the hands of Duke Dermail, the one we told you about when we mentioned people abusing their powers. He twisted her own mind around until she took her own life; she was but a pawn to him. Less than a pawn, merely an bug in his way." Sara's voice twisted. "More than even Treize Kushrenada, it is Dermail whom holds the title of the worst villain we can remember. Yang and Yue are the epitome of what Dermail has done to the world."

"The twins, right? The ones that just left?" Duo blinked. "Why them?"

Sara looked at him again. "You poor thing. You truly know nothing of your companions, do you? The twins, a fire mage and a wind mage... are Yang and Yue Long, the children of Wufei Chang and Meiran Long."

"You've gotta be kidding me..." Duo said, shocked, but was silenced when the twins ran from the closest path, Nora on their heels.

"Papa," they both called. Duo turned and looked to see Wufei, Quatre, Noin and Milliardo walking from what looked to be a hollow in a tree some fifty meters behind them.

Duo could only watch as Wufei turned towards them, and knelt down until they ran into his arms. He couldn't hear what was said, but Duo could easily picture them telling Wufei proudly about some accomplishment or about some event or other. The way he smiled left Duo thinking of that little girl in the orphan convoy. Perhaps it wasn't just some hidden part, like Duo thought. He was a father, so he knew how to deal with children.

He was a father to two seven year-old mages. He was a widower, his wife having taken her own life due to an evil mage. He was a fierce warrior, fighting, wielding his power naturally. He was a good friend, getting along with such different people as Sara and Nora, Trowa, and Quatre. Despite a facade of hate and anger, he was possibly still in love with his last lover, who'd admitted to using him. He was a brilliant tactician, a thoughtful scholar, a romantic. A complete enigma, still, constantly growing harder to understand the more Duo learned.

And in the end... it only left Duo yearning to learn more.

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To Be Continued...