Disclaimer: As always I make no claim to Gundam Wing or any of its
characters.
Warnings: NC-17 3x4, 1+R, 2+H, 5+S, 13+11, 6+9 – Sap, Angst, Lime, Lemon
(parts will be marked separately), AU
Thanks to Katie for beta-reading this for me...you've been such a huge
help...thank you very much!
Part
One - The Hunt
‘My Lord!’
The servant ran frantically up the steps towards the battlements hoping
above all hope that the Duke’s son would be there. Trust the boy to disappear
right when the Duke wanted to see him. The servant cursed under his breath as
he continued to climb the stone stairs.
Throwing the door open as he reached the top he stepped out into the
sunlight sighing in relief as he caught a glimpse of blue behind one of the
walls.
‘My Lord Quatre!’
The servant called out again this time gaining the attention of the young
man at the end of the battlements. He sat in one of the depressions of the
parapet, one leg tucked in close to his body while the other dangled idly over
the side of the wall.
The clothing he wore was simple yet elegant betraying a young man who felt
little need to flaunt his wealth in front of others. The servant smiled to
himself, the young lord was well liked in the keep; always ready with praise
and generous with his coin, the young man was always polite and warm even
though he tended to spend much time alone with his thoughts.
A serious man with little love for the frippery and pomp that so many of
similar station seemed to revel in, the lord preferred his own company to those
of his own age and rank.
Leaping down effortlessly from the parapet the young lord possessed the
inborn grace of a cat, quick and agile. He was well renown for being one of the
finest swordsmen in the kingdom of Levas despite his youth.
At approaching eighteen years of age the youth was tall and rangy, close on
six-foot. Years spent on horseback hunting and patrolling the duchy had left
him lean with none of the powerful shoulders and muscular arms usually
associated with proficient swordsmen. Quatre relied on speed and skill rather
than brawn while fighting and was the champion of many tournaments proving his
methods were more than effective.
Short blonde hair the colour of the sun’s first rays as it broke above the
horizon was worn to eye length at the front, perfectly complimenting the large
ocean blue eyes that had brought many noble ladies courting the young man.
Soft almost girlish features and a ready smile had helped the Duke’s son
gain the title of one of the most eligible bachelors in the Kingdom, through
try as he might the Duke could not seem to find a suitable match for his son.
‘What is it Ricyn?’ the lord asked, his manner and speech betraying slight
irritation at his thoughts being interrupted.
‘Please forgive my intrusion my lord, but your father wishes to see you in
his chambers, I was sent to bring you to him.’ The young man nodded his tone
softening as he spoke again, ‘Very well…my thanks, you may return to your duties,
I will report to my father momentarily.’ Ricyn bowed murmuring ‘your will, my
lord’ before vanishing back through the solid oak door closing it quietly
behind him.
Quatre stood silently for a moment gazing out across the ocean before
sighing and making his way across the battlements to the door the servant had
disappeared though moments before. Brushing stray locks from before his eyes
and straightening his tunic and hose he quickly made his way down the stone
stairs and out into the courtyard.
Crossing the yard Quatre nodded politely, calling out the occasional
greeting to the many servants and men at arms that greeted him as he walked.
Slipping though another door Quatre silently followed the corridor that led to
his father’s rooms stopping briefly outside the door to gather his thoughts
before knocking and waiting for his father to admit him.
Duke Winner sat in a plush cowhide chair behind a large polished mahogany
table, piled high with different papers and scrolls. He smiled as his son
entered motioning for the youth to take a seat at the other side of the desk.
‘How are things with you today father?’ Quatre enquired politely.
‘Busy as always at this time of year, Quatre, the peasants have just
finished bringing in their harvests and keeping up with who has and has not
paid their yearly tax is a time consuming job. We have had a good harvest this
year though, there will be no shortage of food this winter.’
Quatre nodded relieved, the previous year almost half of the autumn harvest
had been wiped out by disease, the Duke had delved deeply into the Winner
family’s treasury to import food from Silden to ensure the population had
enough food to last them the winter.
The cost may have depleted the family resources slightly, but the gratitude
from the people had made the expense more than worthwhile. Quatre could not
help but smile in pride when he thought back to the parade the people of
Rebalion had put on to honour his father, for he was truly a hardworking and
dedicated ruler who cared deeply for his people, and Quatre had sworn to
himself he would do everything in his power to follow in his father’s
footsteps.
‘Quatre, the Lady Liese and her daughter Katrina are due to arrive in three
days.’
Quatre rolled his eyes slightly at the prospect at yet another noblewoman
and her daughter fawning over him in order to gain his father’s favour.
‘I know this is difficult for you son but time waits for no man. I had been
married a year by the time I was your age, I know you see no hurry in this
matter but the fact is I am not a young man anymore, and I can’t settle down
and enjoy my old age until I have you married off with your own heir to ensure
the safety of the duchy, surely you can see this!’
Quatre sighed and lowered his head, ‘Yes father I know…I’m sorry to be such
a bother.’
The duke chuckled under his breath. ‘We still have time, don’t fret, just
promise me you’ll give this girl more of a chance than the others, from what
I’ve heard she is a quite lass, you might find she more suited to you than the
last one…what was her name again?’
Quatre grimaced, ‘Rhiannon…’ The girl had been loud and buxom, thrusting her
assets into Quatre’s face at every opportunity.
He managed to take her constant hounding throughout dinner, even showing the
good grace to take her for a few spins round the ballroom. However as soon as
the girl pressed herself tightly against his body letting her hand slip down to
caress his inner thigh Quatre had bolted, claiming a headache and fleeing up to
his room, locking the door behind him in case the forward young woman decide to
follow him.
The duke caught the shudder that ran though his son and laughed heartily,
‘Rhiannon! That was it, my what a feisty one she was. Well Katrina’s mother has
assured me Katrina is rather less…forward, so you shouldn’t have as much
trouble with her. Just promise me you’ll give this girl a chance!’
Quatre nodded earnestly ‘Of course father…if I may I thought I would go
hunting this afternoon. It might be nice to serve some game while the lady and
her daughter are in attendance.’
The duke grinned ‘Any excuse, eh…I have no need for you for the rest of the
day so do with it what you will…if you go out to hunt though I want you to take
Heero with you, there have been rumours among the peasants of armed men to the
South over the past few days. I want you to take a quick sweep along to
Southern border just to make sure, you know what peasants are like but there’s
no point in getting careless.’
Quatre stood up bowing slightly in his father’s direction ‘Your will,
father,’ he said before turning and leaving the room.
Quatre found his father’s captain in the barracks, the man came to attention
banging his arm across his chest in salute as the young lord entered.
Captain Yuy was marginally taller than Quatre standing just over six foot,
he was of powerful build though still slim with short dark brown hair and
piercing cobalt eyes betraying his origins as somewhere in the Yumilindon
Arpeggio.
A hard man, Heero was harsh spoken and had very little time for etiquette and
manners, he spoke his mind with very little consideration of rank which was one
of the reasons Quatre’s father valued him so highly as an officer, the other
reason being Heero possessed a brilliant military mind and was proficient in
every variety of combat Quatre could think of…and probably a few he couldn’t.
A slight cough from the captain’s direction broke Quatre from his thoughts.
‘My lord…was there something you needed or are you merely here to gawk?’
Quatre chuckled lightly, if any one other than Heero had spoken to him like
that he would most likely be affronted, but he knew better than to take the
captain’s banter to heart.
‘I am heading out to hunt Heero, father has requested we run a patrol along
the Southern boarder, are you ready to leave in the next hour?’
The captain shrugged. ‘If that’s what you want…how many men do you want to
take?’
Quatre thought about it for a moment, in truth he would have rather gone
alone, Heero and his men were solders and knew little when it came to tracking
and hunting, they would make too much noise.
‘Five should be sufficient captain, please have someone ready my horse while
I change.’
The captain saluted again. ‘You will, my lord’ he said with a slightly
mocking smile on his face before turning and barking out orders to his men,
Quatre smiled and headed back across the courtyard towards his rooms to change
and collect his bow and hunting knife.
TBC…
