Upper Class 12/?

[Gundam Girl]

Totally didn't forget to post here this time!

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing?or any pirates.

Upper Class ? Chapter 12

By Gundam Girl

Treize was positively beside himself. However, as he sat on the loveseat in the Peacecraft?s parlor next to Anne, not a soul would ever know about it. He calmly sipped his tea, like everyone else, playing the good guest with heavy participation in the current conversation, but his eyes ? subtly, he was certain ? kept drifting back to Relena.

She looked weary, he noted, exhausted. He couldn?t blame her, of course, she had been kidnapped, then kidnapped again, and then rescued. And traveling made anyone tired. Of course, when Treize traveled, it was usually more for pleasure than business.

Like the trip from Dover to England. Most, including Anne, Luchrezia, even Milliardo, saw the long carriage ride as necessary business. Yes, he did hold a businesslike concern for Quatre. But his reason for coming to London and seeing Relena was completely for pleasure in his mind.

Pleasure that he would, when the time came, get.

The irritable part was that Milliardo seemingly had no intention of leaving his sister?s side.

?Are you sure you are comfortable?? Milliardo queried fervently. ?Would you like to go upstairs and change? I?m sure there are still a few things of yours here in the house.?

The thought of putting on the large and constricting British gown made Relena clutch her teacup tighter. ?I?m fine for now, Milliardo, thank you.?

Luchrezia oddly wished that Relena would change her clothes as well. Although she also preferred loose-fitting garb to the constantly formal wear of the wealthy, what Relena was wearing was far less concealing. And it wasn?t Milliardo Treize was watching with eager interest. ?Darling, you look absolutely beaten. Why don?t you come with me and I?ll see you to bed in your old room??

Relena cast her eyes about the parlor, remembering the countless hours she had spent in this room, in the very chair she currently sat it, whilst reading or stitching or doing some other such project. She suddenly wanted very much to be in that room again; especially if it meant being away from people and their sympathetic smiles, their pitying eyes.

?Thank you, Lu.? She rose from her chair. ?That would be lovely.?
Relena could have bitten her tongue with how easily the practiced manners came back to her. Having neglected them for as long as she had, she thought they might be in need of some polishing, but that didn?t appear to be the case.

?Shall I escort you?? Treize asked, practically jumping from the loveseat.

Luchrezia had to force her smile over the suspicion in her head. ?What, up a flight of stairs, Treize? Don?t be silly. Enjoy your tea, I shall return soon.?

Treize suddenly wished he had accepted Lu?s earlier offer to stay in the mansion rather than in the inn. He couldn?t very well break into the house and invade Relena?s quarters at night. But if he had been in the very house to begin with?

It couldn?t be helped. He would have to wait for another opportunity to present itself. He nearly sighed as he resumed his seat.

Leaving the parlor, Relena stared at her sandaled feet as Luchrezia lead her to the stairs. She looked up when she heard movement on the wooden steps.

?Are you well, Quatre?? Noin asked as the young governor rose from his sitting position and pressing to the banister to allow them through. He looked ashen, his sandy hair clung to his brow with damp, but his eyes were startlingly focused.

?Quite,? he replied tersely. His gaze shifted to Relena and lowered to the floor. ?Are you??

?I?m tired,? said Relena honestly. ?But I?m fine as well.?

?Good. I was thinking?? He abruptly shook his head, cutting himself off. ?I?m sorry. We won?t discuss this now.?

Relena?s heart constricted. ?You mean the wedding.?

?I? Yes, the wedding.?

Noin?s eyes darted between the two, but neither of the blonds seemed to take special note of her presence.

Relena twisted her fingers together and felt the cold, reminding emerald on her left hand. ?Quatre, I think I?? Trailing, she forced herself to smile. ?You?re right. We?ll save this for later.? How could she tell him right now that she had no desire any longer to marry him?

She couldn?t, not now. But hopefully?soon. Before she completely hurt his heart.

?Come, darling,? murmured Noin, starting both of them from their respective dazes of doubt. ?You can rest now.?

?I?m sorry for interrupting,? Quatre said. ?Good evening, Relena.?

?Good evening, Quatre.? She hurried up the stairs, Noin following.

Quatre watched the two women disappear onto the second floor, heard them go on to the third floor, and then sighed.

Courage, man. He could tell himself that all he wanted, but Quatre figured that following the advice would be far more difficult.

o0o

London was expectedly dreary today, Gaulron thought the following morning when the Navy ship returned to its place on the docks. It had begun drizzling half-an-hour ago. The Russian man had been forced to stay at the docks for the past four hours since their arrival at five o? clock. Since Treize Khushrenada was not a London resident, intelligence was trying to find the documents stating that the duke had most certainly hired this Russian for rescue mission purposes or, betting yet, the duke himself. Because nothing was yet proven, Gaulron hadn?t been allowed to leave the dock offices.

Staring down the scrawny desk boys, Gaulron was certain he could take all of them out in mere seconds and dash, but then he risked losing his money. So he sat in a hard wooden chair and kept his arms folded. It was intimidating enough to the workers, anyway.

His ears immediately when a eager young officer came in and hurriedly began speaking in hushed tones to the dock worker at the main desk.

?A ship?s arrived that hasn?t any proper identification.?

?Bring the captain to me,? the dock worker said, ?so he can fill out the forms.?

?I don?t think it?ll be that simple,? the officer replied. ?I recognize the ship from Naval descriptions. It?s the Golden Wave; that crew that kidnapped the Baron Peacecraft?s sister.?

Gaulron nearly leapt from the chair to go to the window. Almost pressing to the glass, he narrowed his eyes at the familiar ship docked in the harbor. In the next instant, his lips curled upward in a pleasant, yet menacing smirk that made the junior workers quake in their polished boots.

?So you?re here for the girl, eh? Or is it Catalonia?? Gaulron thought that finding out would be worth the long hours waiting around here. ?I?m going outside!? he called to the desk men.

?But, sir,? the main worker protested, ?it?s protocol that you??

?When I care about your protocol,? said Gaulron, opening the door and stepping out, ?I?ll be sure to shout it at you.? He slammed the panel shut behind him.

o0o

?Back in England so soon,? Hilde commented. ?How long d?you think it?s to be before we?re recognized??

They?d disguised themselves as best they could in the clothes they?d stolen from some well-to-dos along the way of their career. Though the women wore no makeup and the men wore their hair in their usual untidy habits, they passed well enough with Catherine?s long-unused expertise.

Now they just had to find Relena.

That was, for the most part, Heero?s only thought as they reached the end of the dock and tried getting past the documentation workers. Heero wasn?t precisely certain what to do. Catherine was attempting to get by them by talking like a noble, but it wasn?t working as well as hoped.

Out of the corner of his eye, Duo spotted a gruesomely-familiar figure. ?Heero,? he whispered, ?it seems fate has led us again to our Russian buddy.?

?Not my favorite kind of destiny,? Wufei added.

Heero heard the booming voice before he turned to look at the man in question.

?Let it never be said that Yuy, captain of the Ivory Damsel, is a man who easily surrenders.? Gaulron?s eyes glowed with dark amusement as he studied the Japanese seafarer. ?At least this time you seem not quite so full of drink.?

Heero?s eyes narrowed. ?I won?t make the mistake of saying that this time you look less hostile.?

?Be at ease, Yuy. You?ve nothing I want. I could use the money from bringing all of you in, but I?ve really no interest in such petty gaining.? He smiled widely. ?What business could you possibly be doing in London, I wonder??

?Probably something not quite separate from your own business,? replied Heero evenly.

?Ah, so it?s still the young Miss Peacecraft, is it?? Gaulron smirked, knowing that the captain glaring at him wasn?t used to being so easily read. ?Well, maybe I can help you there.?

?We don?t need your help,? Trowa said with a withering look, touching his sister?s arm as though to remind the Russian of the damage already done.

?On the contrary,? said Gaulron, ?I believe you could use any help you might manage to get.?

But Heero wasn?t about to openly admit that. ?What can you do but lead us into traps??

?I?ve a special respect for fellow seafarers. So I?ll do everything I can.? Without warning, Gaulron called out to one of the officers nearby. ?Sir! I suggest you hurry and assist these charming folk. They have urgent business with Duke Treize Khushrenada.?

Though the officer looked doubtful, he also lost several shades of color in his face. ?And how would you know that, Russian??

?If you people had been listening,? Gaulron huffed impatiently, ?you?d know that I am an employee of the Duke. I took have business with him, but these gentlemen and ladies are far more important than I. You wouldn?t want the Duke bringing up the inadequacy of how this dock is run to the English Court, would you??

Mentioning the word ?court? and ?Duke? in the same sentence made the officers spring into action. Not only did they hurriedly let Heero and his group pass, they also called for a carriage to take them to where the Duke was.

?Where precisely are you sending us?? Catherine asked the closest officer.

The officer tipped his hat in deep respect. ?Madam, Duke Khushrenada has been in London for many days to see to the return of Baron Peacecraft?s kidnapped sister on behalf of Governor Quatre Winner.?

Heero immediately stiffened beside Catherine.

?I would imagine that, with Miss Peacecraft having been restored to the Baron just yesterday morning, the Duke would still be present at the Peacecraft estate.?

?Thank you,? said Catherine politely. ?Proceed.?

As the cab was pulled away from the dock, Heero caught a glance of Gaulron?s smirking face. He looked away when Catherine set a hand on his shoulder.

?Smile,? she commanded. ?As a noble, you?ve not a care in the world.?

Heero could only manage a slight upturn of lips, but Catherine accepted it. Soon, he thought. Soon they would be where Relena was.

o0o

Quatre was currently uncomfortable. And the reason for that was because he was eating a late breakfast with Dorothy Catalonia, whom he couldn?t figure out. She was a pirate, wasn?t she? Because she had been taken from her ship without a stitch of clothing besides those previously on her back, she had borrowed a dress of her cousin?s. It was a simple gown ? or at least, it was as simple a gown as the Baroness Peacecraft wore.

It was a satin of periwinkle blue that made her eyes stand out in ways unimaginable. To get it out of her way, Dorothy had gathered her hair into a borrowed black chiffon. She had washed that morning, out of Luchrezia?s insistence. And her table manners were shockingly perfect.

Dorothy Catalonia seemed nothing like a pirate, or any other scoundrel, at this moment. Once Quatre reminded himself that the young Italian woman had been born into European nobility, as he had, it made sense. However?

The rather alarming feeling of attraction that had leapt into him when he?d first spotted her, looking as she did with her water goblet raised delicately to her lips, remained unexplained.

?You?re very quiet this morning, Governor.?

At least, Quatre thought with some relief, her voice still held a slight edge of contempt that gave him a fighting spirit. Not as much contempt as yesterday, he noted, but contempt nonetheless.

?Do you always begin your days in silence?? A smirk livened Dorothy?s face. ?Or are you just negative to the idea of conversation with me??

He felt the need to reply, but he could hardly tell her that he was struck by her appearance. ?I am used to spending my mornings alone,? he told her in a brisk tone.

Dorothy didn?t seem so eager to let the subject be dismissed. ?Well, you?ll have to release that attitude for when you marry your charming Relena, won?t you??

?Do you enjoy interrogating me??

?It isn?t so much an interrogation as opening your eyes to what your life will be like when you are wed,? informed the female pirate with a logical way of speech. ?Granted, it was your decision, so I?m sure you know what you?re getting into.?

?Just why are you so keen on seeing me sure of how my married life will be?? he demanded impatiently. ?I?ve known you no more than two days.?

?But we know the same lifestyles. I was once a prisoner of duty myself. As I?m certain you?re aware, I broke my chains.? She smiled and took another drink of water. ?Do you lack the strength to do the same??

Quatre felt enraged. Being emotionally dissected by this?this woman made him feel like a mere creature instead of an important man. He?d never been made to feel that way before. ?I don?t feel as thought I?m chained, Dorothy.? He rose forcefully from his chair, ready to leave the room and her. The chair staggered off balance but swayed on the hardwood floor into straightness again rather than falling over.

Dorothy lifted one uniquely-shaped eyebrow questioningly. ?How interesting,? she murmured.

Unable to resist the genuine interest in her voice, he cast her an annoyed look. ?What is??

She shook her head slightly. A few strands of hair fell from the chiffon?s hold and dangled in front of her eyes. Quatre had to stick his hands in his pockets in order to not reach out and push them from her face. ?When you let yourself speak for you rather than your manners,? she told him, her tone oddly gentle, ?you?re honestly quite appealing.? Saying so, she turned back to her plate and ate the last of her omelet.

Quatre blinked once, twice, then turned on his heel and walked stiffly out of the dining room.

The morning had been full of oddities indeed.

o0o

In the parlor, Luchrezia was trying to get Relena to eat a few more biscuits or drink more tea. The younger woman had consumed hardly anything since returning to the estate. Treize and Milliardo were discussing the morning?s London newspaper. Anne had stayed at the inn for the morning; a headache had apparently claimed her.

When Quatre joined them, he sat on the loveseat next to Relena, and poured a cup of tea for himself. He?d barely taken the first warm sip when the Peacecrafts? youngest housemaid, Sylvia, entered with a nervous curtsy.

?My lord,? she addressed Milliardo, ?there are people here to see Miss Relena.?

?I wondered when the guests would start arriving to welcome her back.? Milliardo shot Relena a sympathetic smile. ?It can?t be helped, sister. Show them in, Sylvia. But let them know that their time is limited.?

A few seconds later, there was a collective tapping of feet as the small group shuffled into the doorway of the parlor. Everyone looked up to see who the visitors were.

There was an instant reaction from everyone but the Baron and Baroness, but none?s was so great as Relena?s. The blond girl burst from the loveseat in surprise.

Eyes she had wanted to see for nearly four days looked into hers with something Relena couldn?t begin to define. Her breath heaved from her chest carrying one name:

?Heero??

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Review please! (Hope the progression was worth the wait. I?ll try not to take so long with chapter 13. ? GG)

[kawaiiemogirl]

I like it keep writing...hehe I don't remember reading the first 11 chapters of your fanfic..but it's interesting though.

[teardropdangel]

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. Trieze is just completely freaking me out, but I loved the addition. But that cliff-hanger!!!! :evil: Evil, girl, evil.

[Morrighan]

YES!!!!!! *dances around*

I love the Dorothy-Quatre interaction at breakfast - flawlessly done.

Can't wait to see more!!

[Gundam Girl]

Thanks, everybody. kawaiiemogirl, if you want to find the first 11 chapters quickly, they're all at http://www.fanfiction.net/~GundamGirl1

Thanks, teardropangel. Treize, honestly, is freaking me out too. He's pretty much writing for himself as this point. And may I say your avatar is amazing? (I heart Kenshin.)

And Morri! *glomps* I'm always so excited to read your reviews! You liked the breakfast scene? Teehee, I actually just added that in there for extra length. It was kind of like, "Oops, I almost forgot Quatre and Dorothy! Yikes!"

And by the way. "What good is sitting alone in your room? Come here the music play. Life is a cabaret, old chum! Come to the cabaret!"

You gals rock!

[Morrighan]

And by the way. "What good is sitting alone in your room? Come here the music play. Life is a cabaret, old chum! Come to the cabaret!"

<i>Cabaret</i>!!! I heart that musical. Why else would it go in my sig?

[lilac310]

Finally!!!...some prelude to a really climatic event has already taken place....great job!...I wonder if Relena's gonna jump off her seat and onto Heero and kiss him senselessly....WAHAHAHA....oh well, on with chapter 13....~tee-hee~

[Gundam Girl]

Okay, Lilac, I'll be straight with you.

I wonder if Relena's gonna jump off her seat and onto Heero and kiss him senselessly

I totally THOUGHT about it. But then I was like, "Whoa, that might be a bit of a kick to the system in a bad way."

But what DOES happen, you'll probably enjoy. ^^

Thanks for reading!

[takisha16]

Ok...I've beee gone for a week in mexico to see my moms parents, im currently in el salvador airport stealing their internet to read this!!!
jajajja hopefully i wont get caught!
Anyway awesome chp! I loved how you included a bit of dorothy and quatre and how she makes him loose his control and the way she responded to his actions! It was really great how Dorothy has such control.
I almost jumped out of my seat when I read you had updated!!!
AWEOME KEEP IT UP!

[Gundam Girl]

I almost jumped out of my seat when I read you had updated!!!

I know, Takisha, and that simply means how much I suck at being a fast writer. I can only hope it was well-worth the wait. Frankly, I'm flattered that you took the time to read this even though you're in an airport with all the busy-ness that happens there. You rock!