Disclaimer: This story was written by a fan only for the enjoyment of other fans, without any monetary compensation. Gundam Wing and its characters are registered trademarks of Bandai Entertainment Inc.™ and Sotsu Agency. All rights reserved.

A big Thank You to KT who is taking time out of her busy schedule to help me proofread this story.

The Dragon King

Book 1- Of New Kings and New Friends

Chapter 9

Triton was lying on his back in a patch of soft grass watching the clouds in the sky above him pass by. Just within his view, perched on a tree branch, Bubo was feasting on a mouse she had caught only moments ago, and down by the lake the six shaggy horses the troupe owned were filling their stomachs with water and tender grass. It was the boy's job to take care of the animals while the rest of the group set up camp and put up the tent in which they performed.

When the owl had finished her meal she took off into the sky again. Watching the large bird soar so effortlessly above the tree tops Triton couldn't help but wonder what it must feel like to fly like a bird...or maybe ride on the back of a dragon.

For as long as he could remember people, even his mother and the king himself, had told him that his ability to connect with animals was a true gift and that he was probably destined to become a dragon knight. But dragon knights had to go through years of training at a place like the Royal Academy in Lhankor or the Dragon Shrine: or so he had thought until he met Wufei. Watching the lad who was even younger than him summon his dragon made him wonder if that was truly something he would be able to do as well.

A shriek from his 'sentinel' high above the tree tops alerted him that someone or something was approaching. Triton rose to his feet, checking his surroundings as he did so, but all he could see was a cloud of dust moving slowly down the main road. Within that cloud he could make out men on horseback and least one large carriage; a caravan of merchants perhaps on their way to Thiria to trade their goods.

The boy stifled a yawn and stretched as he looked one more time up into the sky. The sun was almost over the mountains, time for him to head back. Katherine was going to let him have it if he was late for his performance.

Triton headed down to the late, grabbing the leads of five of the horses before mounting the sixth, a dappled gray gelding with strong, feathered legs. He had learned to ride bareback long before he ever knew how to use a saddle.

"Come on Gypsy, let's go." With a click of his tongue the boy got the horse moving. He threw one last look over his shoulder to make sure that Bubo was following as he headed down the winding narrow path that let him eventually back onto the main road.

###

Pushing aside the heavy velvet curtains, Wufei peeked out of the window as the carriage stopped at the side of the road near a small, blue lake.

"Go!" the king encouraged him. "Move your legs while you have a chance."

The boy turned his head to look at Treize. "Is it alright?"

The tawny-haired man nodded with a soft smile. "Of course. Your body must be stiff from sitting all day. Just don't run too far; you wouldn't want us to leave without you, now would you?" he added teasingly.

"I won't!" Wufei had already pushed open the door and jumped out of the carriage. He couldn't see Zechs as he looked around, but two men in royal guard's uniform were unhitching the horses to take them down to the water.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

One of the men crooked his head and looked him over. "I don't know, Half-pint. If that horse takes off with you we might never see either of you again."

The boy's brows narrowed. "The name is Wufei, not Half-pint," he declared firmly, but the guard only laughed as he led away the first pair of horses.

Wufei was still glaring after him; his fists clenched tightly when a large hand touched his shoulder. He turned his head. The man behind him Wufei recognized as the coach's driver, was huge; easily a head taller than Zechs and with shoulders almost twice as wide.

"Don't let it bother you," he told the boy as he picked him up and lifted him onto the back of one of the remaining mounts. "He was just having some fun with you."

Still, I don't like it! Wufei buried his hands in the soft, silvery mane to steady himself.

"Do you know why they call me Runt?"

"Um…" The boy frowned slightly. "Because it is your name?"

"Not even close," the large man laughed. "You see, as a child I was quite small for my age and often sickly. When I entered the Dragon Shrine I was the smallest of all my classmates. My given name is Tyrsis, not exactly easy to remember. So soon everyone, including the instructors, started to call me Runt, like runt of the litter, you know."

"That's not a very nice thing to call someone." Wufei's frown deepened, but Runt or Tyrsis just smiled.

"Maybe, but I knew they weren't trying to be malicious or cruel. Besides," he laughed, "look at me now. I showed them, didn't I?"

The boy couldn't help but chuckle as well. "You sure did."

Once they reached the water's edge Wufei slipped off the mount's broad back. He had picked up a handful of flat rocks at the shore and started skipping them into the lake when he suddenly noticed something small and shiny beneath the surface. For a moment the boy thought he had come across a coin that someone had lost. Looking around for something he could use to retrieve it, he finally found a stick that was long and sturdy enough. When he started to free the sparkly object from the sand at the bottom of the lake he realized that it wasn't a coin after all but a rock or crystal of some sort. It took some patience and a bit of prodding and digging to move the object close enough to the shore for him to reach it.

It looked like a very smooth and shiny pebble, but not like any pebble Wufei had ever seen before. As he held it in his hand, studying the semi-translucent yellowish-brown stone curiously he could hear someone walk up to him from behind.

"Look at you, Half-pint, you found yourself a Dragon tear, aren't you the lucky one."

Wufei's head snapped around. "A Dragon tear?" he echoed in bewilderment.

The guard nodded. "Legend has it that when a dragon's tears fall into water they crystallize like that. They are said to bring good luck to the person who finds them?"

"Truly?" the boy asked skeptically.

"Cross my heart." The dark-haired man assured him. "You'd better take good care of it."

#

First there was the sound of familiar footsteps then a rap at the door. Treize, who had been relaxing with his eyes closed, suppressed a yawn. "Come in! What is it, Zechs?"

"I am sorry to disturb you, You Highness." The tall, blond dragon knight greeted him with a crisp nod. "I just received word that the main bridge over the Ya'duhl River has been damaged during a storm a few days ago. We will have to change our travel route, I am afraid. If You Highness would take a look..."

Zechs flipped down the small folding table and spread out a map between them.

The king sighed inwardly as he sat up and leaned forward to get a better look. "I wish you would call me by my given name, at least while we are in private."

"I would not necessarily call this private, your Highness. Besides, it just does not feel right."

"You never seemed to have problems with it the past, while we were growing up. Have I really changed that much?"

"It is not that. But you are the king now, and there are proprieties that need to be kept. Many things that might have been acceptable when we were children are not considered appropriate anymore." Zechs replied as he finally leaned over the map and pointed at a mark along the river west of where the main road and bridge was located. "Instead of heading east and travel around the mountains, I thought we could take this smaller and less traveled road and cross the river here. We would only loose about half a day. With your permission, Your Highness, I would like to send out two men to check out the bridge there and make sure that the road is safe."

When he didn't receive an answer Zechs raised his head and almost gasped, completely unprepared for the stunning blue eyes that stared back into his. The younger man swallowed as he remembered the last time... the only time he was this close to Treize.

::: Begin Flashback :::

It was a hot summer's day; he still remembered it as though it had been only yesterday. Zechs was just about to turn thirteen that year, and both he and Treize were home from the Dragon Shrine for a visit.

The two boys, had been hunting when they got caught in a thunderstorm. Luckily they found shelter from the downpour in an old, abandoned barn. While their mounts were nibbling on a bale of old hay, Zechs dried himself off the best he could, then settled down near the half-broken door to watch the rain. Moments later his friend joined him.

"You do realize, we will be laughed at when we return home empty handed." Treize teased. "How are you going to explain that you scared off that deer we had been tracking all morning? Such a pity, really," he added with a theatrical sigh. "Roasted deer in cranberry sauce, I almost could taste it."

"Then you should have aimed better," the younger boy shot back. "That arrow of yours easily missed by a whole two yards."

"Why you..." Playfully Treize smacked him in the back of the head with one of his riding gloves. "I wouldn't have missed if you hadn't sneezed at the wrong moment."

He tried to slap Zechs again, but the younger boy was too fast, dodging the glove with ease, then grabbing it and snatching it away from Treize. Soon the two friends were rolling around on the floor, laughing and fighting over the glove in a playful brawl. Suddenly Treize was on top of him, pinning him down with his superior weight. His face was directly above the younger boy and there was something in his eyes that Zechs had never seen before.

For a long moment the two boys stared into each other's eyes. Treize reached out; one of his fingertips ghosted over Zechs' heated lips. Then he slowly closed the distance between them and kissed him on the lips, very slow and gentle.

Zechs blushed deeply and a feeling of utter amazement washed over him. Never before had anyone, male or female, kissed him like that. At that moment he almost wished that the rain would never stop and they could stay like that forever.

:::End Flashback :::

Zechs' mouth was completely dry. Why…Why am I thinking about this now? And why is my heart pounding at the mere memory?

"Your Highness…Your Highness…" The door to the carriage suddenly flew open and both men jerked backwards with a start. "You Highness, look what I have fou…" Wufei swallowed the rest of the sentence and stopped dead in his tracks when he realized that the king wasn't alone. "I'm sorry," he quickly apologized and dipped his head. "I didn't realize you were busy."

"Um…" Treize cleared his throat. "Don't worry about it. Zechs and I were just talking about the route we are going to take tomorrow, and we were just about done." He picked up the map, folded it up and handed it to his bodyguard. "Permission granted to send out those scouts. I'll leave the rest to you, Zechs."

"As you wish, Your Highness!" The blond gave the king a crisp nod as he rose from his seat. He flicked his finger against the boy's forehead as he passed him on the way out. "Learn to knock, lad." …or you might walk in on something you are not prepared to see.

#

Ouch! Rubbing the red mark Wufei glared after the tall dragon knight. "I said I was sorry!"

"So, what was it you wanted to show me, Wufei?"

"Oh, right." The boys' eyes sparkled with excitement as he revealed the small semi-transparent rock he had been hiding in his closed fist "Look what I found at the lake, Your Highness."

"Oh my, a dragon tear. You are quite lucky." Treize gave him an impressed nod.

"That is what the other guards said too, but..."

"But?" The king raised one eyebrow questioningly.

"I have never before seen a dragon cry." Wufei admitted. "Is it really true that this stone was formed from a tear?"

"Hmm... I have never seen it either, so I think that a dragon cries only on very rare occasions; like when its master dies perhaps. That might also be the reason why dragon tears are so scarce and hard to find"

"I see." Wufei looked down at the small, smooth pebble. It seemed to make sense.

"May I take a closer look?" Treize asked.

"Yes, of course."

The boy dropped the stone into the palm of his hand and he held it up against the sun. "Look how beautiful it sparkles. Did you know that no two dragon tears ever look the same? This one is definitely one of the prettiest I have ever seen."

"Then you have seen others before? How many?"

"Hmm... Half a dozen perhaps, but most of them were much smaller. You really ought to take good care of it," the tawny-haired dragon knight told Wufei as he handed the stone back to him.

"I will," the boy promised with an enthusiastic nod. "I would like to show it to Nataku, if I may."

"Very well," the king agreed. "But make sure not to startle the horses when you summon her."

#

The sun was already sitting low at the horizon when the king's convoy approached Thiria. Treize had changed from his normal travel clothing into some more formal and regal robes before they left the lake area.

Suddenly the carriage slowed down. Wufei pulled away the curtains and opened the window. The wind tousled his raven hair as he curiously stuck his head out of the window, eager to see the large town Treize had spoken about. First he could only see tall walls, stretching to the left and right for what seemed like miles. The first riders had almost reached the heavy gate when it slowly started to open.

The boy almost gasped when he realized that the main street was lined with hundreds of people, men women and children of all ages. As the carriage rolled through the gate the crowd began cheering, and Wufei quickly pulled back his head. "So many people!" he whispered in awe. "They all came to see you."

"That is normal. People are curious to see their king," Treize explained with a soft smile.

As they rolled in a steady pace along the wide cobblestone road he raised his hand to wave at the onlookers. His smile never faded and he even managed to catch a few flowers here and there that were thrown in his direction.

Zechs meanwhile had pulled back and was riding directly next to the carriage. His face was a mask of perfect calm, but his watchful, constantly moving eyes didn't miss anything going on around them.

#

The king gave a silent sigh of relief when the carriage finally came to a hold in front of a beautiful, two-story brick building. On a sign over the front entrance, beneath a red and white marquees, the name of the Inn was painted in bold golden letters.

"Is this the place where we will be spending the night?" Wufei asked as they waited for Zechs and the other guards to dismount.

"That is correct," Treize confirmed. "Now Wufei, from here on stay at my side and do not run off unless you have my permission."

"Yes, Sir." The boy nodded in acknowledgement.

Only after Zechs opened the door for them, did the king exit his coach and quickly walked into the building, shielded to the right and the left by his royal guard. A short, corpulent man with graying hair weaseled toward them the moment they entered the door. He bowed as deep as his round belly allowed.

"Your Highness I feel greatly privileged to welcome you again to my humble Inn. I will do whatever I can to make your stay here as enjoyable and peaceful as possible."

"Thank you, we feel honored." The king nodded politely.

"You and your men must be hungry and tired after your long journey. Please allow me to serve you some of my best wine. I also had my cook prepare a roast that's so tender; it will literally melt in your mouth."

"We are sure our men will appreciate your hospitality. As for ourselves, we might have a light meal later. It has been a long, exhausting day and we would prefer to retire to our room to rest for now." Treize replied before he turned toward his bodyguard and handed him the flowers he was still carrying.

Zechs looked somewhat lost and surprised as he gazed down at the colorful bouquet. "What am I supposed to do with those, if I may ask?"

"Well, put them in some water of course. Flowers need water, we could bet even Wufei knows that. And when you are done with that, there is something else we need you to take care of," he continued "We want you to have a blacksmith look at Embar, especially his right hind leg. Yesterday while we were riding him it felt like his horseshoe might be loose."

The blond dragon knight nodded in acknowledgement. "There is a smithy just down the road if I am not mistaken. I will send one of my men there right away."

"No! We want you personally to take care of it." Treize's voice left no room for argument. "You do know how we feel about that stallion; we would not let just anybody handle him. And do not be cheap; take him to the best smithy in town. He deserves nothing less."

Zechs, nodded again. "As you wish, Your Highness."

"Oh, and see to it right away, we will rest easier knowing Embar is taken care of."

"Yes, Your Highness."

"Thank you. Wufei…" The king looked down at the boy at his site. "You look tired. You should rest as well," he decided.

"But I am not tired!"

"Oh yes, you are." Treize told him firmly. "Let us go!"

Wufei blinked, then frowned but didn't argue.

#

His room was large; bigger than any room Wufei had ever slept in, and expensively furnished. The bed was larger than anything he had ever set eyes on. Left and right of it were two nightstands made of ornately carved wood. Along the wall to the right stood a tall chest with matching patterns and a small table with two overstuffed velvet chairs. On the left he noticed, very much to his delight, a bookshelf and there was even a writing desk beneath the window. The massive and lavishly decorated fireplace seemed big enough to keep the large room comfortably warm during the winter months.

The boy couldn't help but wonder who, aside from the king, could afford to travel in such style. But then he remembered what his Highness had said about Thiria being a mecca for traveling merchants. Merchants, he knew, were often wealthy. So this was probably the kind of place they stayed at when they were in town.

Even though there were no other guests at the Inn, Zechs had insisted on posting two soldiers in the hallway outside their quarters before he had left to take the king's stallion to the blacksmith. Wufei could hear them talk quietly to each other as they stood guard.

The boy sighed as he looked around the room. He really had wanted to go with Zechs, in hopes to see at least a little bit of the town. He had all but begged, even promised to go to bed as soon as they returned but his Highness remained firm, insisting that he stay in his room and rest.

But I'm really not tired, he thought. Perhaps I should use the time to write down some of the things that have happened on our journey, while they were still fresh in my mind. Wufei was just about to sit down at the writing desk when the door that connected his room to the king's slowly and quietly opened.

He turned his head and blinked in surprise. "Your…Highness…?"

Treize put one finger over his lips, indicating for the boy to be quiet. "What are you waiting for," he whispered. "Grab your cloak. You wanted to explore the town, did you not?"

T.B.C.

Author's Note: In addition to writing I have been playing around with my legos lately. In fact I'm creating some MOCs (MyOwnCreations) based on Dragon King. It will probably take as long to complete as the story will take to write. For the moment I have about half of the Capital of Galados build along with several of the characters.

Unfortunately doesn't allow me to post links inside the story, but you can find a link in my bios page if you would like to check out my creations. Let me know what you think.