Title: Past and Future
Author: Karina
Rating: PG
Pairing: Wu Fei
Notes: Challenge 209. Baby Series 4 #84. Takes place at approximately the same time as Political Relations.
Spoilers: None
Warnings:
Many thanks to ShenLong Deb for her work betaing this set of fics.
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing or the Characters from the series but the baby is mine.
Title: Past and Future
"You will be unavailable at this delicate juncture?"
Wu Fei inclined his head slightly, face carefully blank. Honestly! Had no one been listening to him? From the day of their arrival he had spoken of returning to his employment as King's Liaison to Parliament. He had told them in no uncertain terms that he was employed by the King and would be available exclusively to them only for the first week of their arrival. He had explained his outlook for their integration into Sancian society, and the necessity of having the clan members pick a representative council.
He had expected them to understand why he needed them to pick carefully amidst their number. They needed representatives who talked to the people, determined what was required, could formulate suggestions and scenarios and then come to him. In a formal sitting of Council they could then determine the direction they should take as a whole from the offered perspectives given. It made perfect sense to him, but it appeared he would have a fight on his hands to get them to understand there really would be no return to the old ways.
"I am Chang of Chang. I am an official in the court of the King of Sanc. Within a year I will be elevated to the rank of Duke, for services rendered to the Crown and in recognition of the oath of fealty I personally took before the King. I informed you on your arrival that there would be no return to the traditional clan structure. I will not become some secluded figurehead who has no concept of my people's lives, segregated by pomp and ceremony and closed walls. Understand me. We will have an open outlook on the future. We will NOT be segregating ourselves from others. We will not be closing ourselves away, but opening ourselves up to share with this community who have opened their borders to us, offering us a home."
He felt Duo shift behind him, the barest movement of weight from one foot to the other, a redistribution of weight, nothing alarming. His Council of Representatives were arrayed around the table, eyes locked on him, showing various emotions ranging from fear to an open expression of confusion, loss and in some cases, anger.
"We lost everything with the destruction of the colony. We have the opportunity to build something for ourselves, be it on our own personal level or as a group; as a clan. We can keep the old traditions alive without living them to the exclusion of everything else. This is a very different world to an enclosed colony. The Earth is a big place with a vast variety of peoples, traditions and cultures. We have much to offer and the world has much to offer us. Sanc has become my home. It will be yours, if you will allow yourselves to accept what it has to offer."
They hardly looked pleased, looked... lost, abandoned.
End
Karina Robertson 2013