The Knights' Chronicles Part 2
Gently bouncing his laughing son on his knee, Wufei looked over to Duo at the end of the reading from Odin's journal and smirked, "I can see where Commander Lowe had an interest in watching the three of us given the first impressions that we all gave him and the other officers."
Heero shifted closer to his husband to peer down at the opened book in his lap and chuckled, "Well, it was pretty hard to not stand out when you had the mix of our backgrounds. Between my being raised by the knights, Wufei's arrival from another land just to enlist and Anna being the daughter of a highly-ranked Captain, I am sure that Odin was not the only one keeping an eye on us."
Wing snorted from his resting place beside Scythe, his scaly lips curled back in an amused smile. Her head resting comfortably on her bed of hay, the black steed's frustration seemed to have been forgotten with the help of the story being told. Beside her, Wing kept his silent vigil over her to offer every measure of comfort he had as his tail squeezed his mate's in the midst of their twine.
Across from them, Anna was on all fours as she played with Ingier and Nataku's hatchlings. The baby dragons were rolling on their backs, emitting gurgling laughs as the archer tickled and lightly tugged on their tails that came in reach.
Completely oblivious to the fact that Spot was behind her and chewing on the end of her long hair, the Captain peered up from her game and asked her High King, "Is there anything in there about your parents' first visit after the enrollment? That was a pretty exciting day for all of us to have the royal couple in the encampment."
Nodding, Duo turned a couple of pages and answered, "I know exactly where that entry is." Any of the passages that mentioned his parents had been committed to his memory, but he still ran his violet eyes over the words to share with his friends their Commander's accountings.
* * * * * *
(Flashback)
The first few days following their open enrollment for training as Sanq knights flashed by in a blur of introductions, tours of the encampment, basic structure meetings and arranging their living quarters. There had hardly been time for the members of each team to have a moment to really introduce themselves to each other. From sun up to sunset, it had been one session after another.
Finally, a break had been called by the officers so that the lot could collect themselves and take in everything that they had come to learn up to that moment. A clear vision of what their lives would be like with their near week-long induction, the young prospects broke off as they pleased to enjoy what was left of their mid-afternoon before the eating hall would be opened for dinner.
While most of the trainees went off to their private quarters or the bathing stalls, Heero went off to the one place that had always been a place of interest to him... the dragon stables. Entering the facility with its high ceilings and floors covered with hay, the boy grinned to the steeds of the officers peering over the closed doors of their stalls. Instantly recognizing the small charge, their scaly faces lit up with smiles.
Chuckling, Yuy greeted them with a quiet, "Hello, everyone." Lightly patting the ends of the snouts that came within reach as he walked past, his smile grew. Over the course of his stay in the knight encampment following his 'adoption,' there was always an ease that settled over him whenever he was with the great beasts. So he had spent much of his time with them, talking more to them than with most people.
In spotting the orange and red-painted faced steed belonging to the Commander, Heero smirked, "Hey, Peacemillion." The massive 'quills' that framed the dragon's head fluttered as the female steed rumbled a purr in greeting while nuzzling the lad that she had watched grow alongside her rider. Laughing, he wrapped his arms as far as he could manage to reach around her muzzle in an embrace.
The sound of hay crunching beneath feet had Yuy pulling back from the beast to spot the only other trainee in the camp who was as silent as he was. Onyx eyes took in the gentle giants that had turned to watch the new arrival. Slowly approaching to run a hand over the closest snout of a blue-and-white checkered mix, Wufei smirked, "You all really are amazing creatures." Beaming, those steeds around flopped their tails and nuzzled him in appreciation.
Smirking as though he had expected that wordless response, Wufei stated, "I have already heard from the rumblings around the camp of how you were taken in by the knights. That would have prepared you well for the training we will endure. Everyone expects you to be the best of us already." Raising a dark eyebrow, he said, "I look forward to being as much a challenge to that as well as your teammate."
And just like that, Heero was instantly certain he was going to like the other young man. The corner of his mouth curling up, he stared back at Chang and gave him a firm nod. "I have a feeling that you and I are going to get along fine, then," he declared. Chuckling deeply, the raven-haired youth nodded back.
"Careful, Heero," a voice from above threw in. Nearly jumping at the unexpected sound, both Heero and Wufei looked up to the rafters to find Anna sitting there. Her bow lying across her lap as her back leaned against a wooden beam in the ceiling, the redhead was tying a fresh arrow tip to the end of an arrow shaft. Keeping her focus on her task, she giggled, "You've almost used up your word quota for the day."
Yuy snorted and rolled his eyes. "Hello, Fraise," he greeted with a good-natured smirk for his friend.
Quickly finished up her chore, the girl placed the new arrow along with the others in her quiver. Slipping the casing and her bow over her shoulder, she made a couple of downward hops onto the beams below her to gracefully descend to the ground without so much as a sound when her feet touched the hay. Dark eyes widening, Wufei blinked as she approached, waist-length hair of a fiery red flowing behind her.
Lightly nudging Heero's shoulder with her own when she neared him, Anna smiled, "You know you've always been like family to me, so who better to give you a hard time every now and then?"
Her deemed 'brother' snorted again, but there was a warmth in his gaze when he looked on her as he made no move in arguing the matter. He had, after all grown more than accustomed to her over the years since she was the daughter of the First Captain. So, he simply nudged her shoulder back in what was as good as an embrace between them.
Clearing his throat, their companion stepped forward and smiled to the archer, "We still have not had the chance to actually meet." He held out a hand and introduced in a voice that he was surprised to find steady, "Wufei Chang of Capricorn."
The girl's blue eyes fell on the offered hand for a moment before a wide grin spread across her face in her acceptance of the shake. "Anna Fraise," she returned with a firm nod. Sighing when their hands fell away, she frowned, "Of First Captain Justin Fraise, as the whole camp knows by now."
Fists clenching at her sides, the archer turned to meet the cobalt eyes of her older 'brother' and hissed, "If I hear one more whisper through the ranks of how I'm going to be favored because of my father..." Shaking her head, she shouted, "Did they not hear the speech that he gave me at the enrollment?!"
Snickering, Heero patted her back and replied, "Don't let it get to you. I've heard more than enough of the same in reference to me with being raised here. You'll get used to it, in time their tunes will change when they see that we'll be worked as hard, if not harder than any one of them."
Anna muttered under her breath, "True." She peered back to the Capricornian and said sincerely, "I am sorry about your losing your parents. I know how hard it was for me when my mother passed a couple of years ago, but to lose both this early in life..." Her voice trailed off as she shook her head and swallowed roughly.
Unsure of how to respond when he was still not quite over the passing of his only real family, Wufei bit his lip. challenging as the last months had been, he had found a way to survive... found something that gave him purpose and a means of distraction. But eventually, the pain of his loss always came back to haunt him since the wound was still fresh.
With the shift in the mood hanging in the air, Yuy surprised both of his teammates by saying, "I know what it is like to have to go on without a parental figure. So, if anything, we have that as a means of relating... someone you could talk to if you need that."
Nodding, Fraise smiled to the raven-haired boy, "And I'm here, too. We misfits need to stick together, after all." With her shoulders rolling back, she beamed, "So, see, you have family right here already." Beside her, Heero smirked and nodded in agreement to the sentiment.
Taken aback by that, Chang nearly physically reeled as he stared at his teammates. They may not have been blood, but they were certainly bound in their devotion to become knights as well as overcome any obstacles in their young lives.
But could they really be family? Could he trust them enough to say that they might heal the void that had been left in him?
Swallowing past the lump that had formed in this throat, Wufei stammered, "I... I..."
Whatever he was struggling to say was cut off by the sound of hooves pattering hard and fast in their approach for the stable. Instantly at an alert, the three knights-in-training turned to watch as Captain Fraise rushed inside atop a silver horse.
Bringing his steed to a stop, the tall and muscular man told his charges, "King Solo and Queen Sophia are coming to the encampment. Get to the gathering space to fall into formation with the others." Backs straight at the announcement of the Sanq royal couple's visit, the surprised lot quickly recovered and ran from the stable.
* * * * * *
Word spread quickly through the forest of the knights' most honored guests and within minutes, every soldier and trainee was gathered and waiting in proper formation in the large honeycomb-shaped square at the center of the encampment. Flanking either end of every line was a finely dressed officer bearing the deep purple sashes and medals of their rank.
Despite the calm faces, there was a tension in the air like never before amidst the recruits like they had never experienced up to that moment. Then came the sound of horses cantering towards the opening. Stationed at the front of the formation and without looking over to actually see the white-domed carriage that was being led in, Odin turned sharply on his heels to face his troops and yelled, "Attention, soldiers!"
At the order, the slam of feet righting themselves echoed as the knights and knights-in-training raised their heads and straightened their backs with their arms right fists placed over their hearts. The hush quickly settled again just as the white carriage came to a halt at what was considered the raised 'stage' at the front of the arena.
Breaths were held in rapt anticipation for those new recruits. With the exception of Heero and Anna, this would be the closest to the royal couple that any of them would have been. Representing all that was true and good of their country, the king and queen were respected and loved by all in Sanq. For every knight hopeful, there was no higher honor than to defend them with their very lives if the need was ever called upon.
Finally, the gold-rimmed doors to the carriage opened and King Solo appeared to utilize the step in his descent to the wooden surface of the platform.
Wearing velvet of deep purple and white, the tall man looked out to the soldiers as the jewels of his gold crown atop his heart-shaped head sparkled in the light trickling through the trees. Brown eyes blinked once as they took in the large gathering of soldiers. Over his shoulder, the king's long blonde hair fell in a thick braid.
And a warm smile spread wide across his face before he turned back towards the carriage and held a hand out.
In the painting, his mother, was dressed in fine silks of lavender, red and gold with a crystalline crown on her head of long chestnut hair. And she was absolutely breathtaking. Violet eyes the same size and shape as Duo's own smiled out at him along with her lips as she held her only baby close against her chest.
And a warm smile spread wide across his face before he turned back towards the carriage and held a hand out.
The audience watched as Queen Sophia then appeared to smile and take her husband's offered assistance. A crown of crystal adorned her head of waist-length chestnut hair. But the most striking feature of the lovely royal was the violet shade of her eyes. Wearing silks of lilac and white with a gold tie that held them close around her slender waist, the young woman stepped onto the podium beside the king and took in the knights falling to their knees in deep bows before them.
"Rise and at ease, friends," King Solo urged with a friendly grin. As the mass returned to their feet, he wrapped an arm around his wife's waist when she leaned against his side and announced, "This is quite the impressive group that has come together to become the next generation of Sanq knights. I do apologize that we could not be here the day of your enrollment, as we normally would have been..." His voice trailed off at the end and his smile faltered in search of an explanation. And every eye caught his rough swallow.
Quickly coming to her husband's aid, Queen Sophia rested her head on his shoulder and gave a tired smile. "Unfortunately, I have been under the weather the last few days. But, I am better now and was not about to go another day without meeting all of you," she informed.
From the corner of his eye, Wufei observed the saddened, knowing glances between Heero and Anna beside him. Frowning, he made a note to ask the two what was wrong.
Giving his wife a squeeze from his arm that he kept slung behind her and a proud smile when their eyes met, King Solo cleared his throat and peered back to their audience.
With a firm nod, he announced, "The work, sacrifice and dedication that goes into becoming a knight is one that we both recognize and are thankful for when it comes to ones such as yourselves. That is why we make it a point to get to meet and know every one of you in what we consider to be the least that we can do in return for all that you are giving to not only us, but our beloved homeland as well."
Briefly pausing so that his words took hold, the man continued, "As one who had been in your shoes many years ago, I look forward to following your own journey and highly anticipate the day that I knight you." Wide grins spread across the faces of the recruits, their chests rising at the mention of their ultimate goal... the day that they joined the ranks of those esteemed guards that had escorted the royal couple into the encampment as well as their commanding officers.
Nodding to one of those armored escorts, King Solo held out his hand in a silent request. At that cue, the knight turned towards his white horse to reach for the pack hanging from its leather saddle. While the soldier worked at untying a shrouded bearings, the leader addressed the lot once again to announce, "Before we get to the meetings, there is one matter that must be seen to first."
Out of the whole crowd before him, Solo's brown eyes fell on the Capricornian at the middle of the pack. "Chang Wufei," he smirked. "Please join us up here, young man." Gasping sharply, the young knight-in-training froze stiff, eyes wide as all around turned to look on him.
When her shocked teammate refused to move, Anna giggled and lightly nudged his side. "Go on," she whispered. "They are not going to bite you." At the girl's other side, Heero could not contain his own grin of amusement.
Meeting the archer's blue eyes a moment, Wufei swallowed roughly gave her a shallow nod and turned forward as he urged himself to walk towards the stage. On his way to the podium, he did his best to not pay attention to the many that were watching him as his teammates stepped aside to make a clear path.
Once he stepped up to the king and queen, the Capricornian fell to a knee and lowered his head. Chuckling, Sophia stepped towards him and said gently, "No need for that, young man. This is your moment now." His head snapping up, Chang blinked in confusion and moved to stand back up.
King Solo smirked as he removed a book from his deep within his robes with its title in gold on the covering to read, 'The Laws of Sanq.' Standing before the stunned trainee, he held out the book and asked, "Please raise your right hand and place your left atop of this book."
Realization flooding over him, Wufei's eyes widened anew and a brilliant smile lit his face. Quickly recovering from his surprise, he did as requested and grinned to the royal couple as he recited the words of citizenship that he had committed to memory, "I, Wufei Chang, hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely give all allegiance and fidelity to upholding and defending the laws of the Sanq kingdom; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion in the Creator's witness."
Both the king and queen shared an impressed look and smiled back on the boy before them. Lowering the book, the braided man extended his own right hand and said, "We celebrate your courage and dedication to serve others as a knight. Congratulations, Wufei. You are a most welcomed addition as a citizen of Sanq."
As the knight-in-training humbly accepted the handshake from the king and a following embrace from the queen, the crowd of soldiers and recruits broke out into cheers and applause. Bringing her hand to her mouth, Anna let out a loud whistle over the accolade and grinned over to Heero to rejoin him and the others in clapping. "I like him," she giggled quietly to her 'brother.'
"Me, too," Yuy nodded. "he'll definitely be good to have on our team."
King Solo spotted the knight that had been stationed at the side of the stage approaching with the large pack that he had removed from his saddle. "I hope that you do not mind," he began when the applause died back down, "but we took the liberty to see that the personal belongings you had to leave behind in Capricorn brought here for you."
Another sharp gasp broke from Wufei as the guard neared with his covered items. Carefully accepting the sack, the boy fell to his knees to frantically pull the burlap away. At the first sight of the wooden sheath of the sword that he had been loathe to leave behind for lighter travel, his trembling hand reached to grip it tightly.
Slowly removing the weapon, Chang revealed it to the curious gazes around. Unlike the straight blades of the Sanq army, the one of Capricorn had a graceful curve to it as one of its standout qualities. Gripping the black hilt, he freed the blade from its sheath as it sang with a bright ring. Unable to help the smile that spread across his face, he held the blade up before his face to stare at it a moment.
"Ah. So you are a swordsman in the making?" King Solo smirked. "That is quite the impressive weapon."
Nodding, Wufei slipped the sword back into its wooden sheath and met the man's brown eyes. "It has been in my family for many generations, Highness," he informed in a near whisper, the emotions over being reunited with a part of his lineage that was all but gone catching up with him. Swallowing past the lump that formed in his throat, he told the couple sincerely, "Thank you... for seeing that this was returned to me."
Queen Sophia nodded firmly and replied in kind, "You are most welcome. One should always be reminded of who they truly are and where they come from. Though this may be your new home and we your new leaders, it would be wrong for you to have to leave all of your past in Capricorn behind."
His trembling calming, Chang nodded and looked back to his family's sword. Once again smiling brilliantly, he quickly wrapped its belt around his slender waist. Having to tighten the buckle at the first notch, he found that it was even then a bit too wide around for him. And the sheathed blade clunked to the stage at the start of its curve.
Several chuckles from the audience, mostly coming from the officers, filled the air. That round of chortling was cut short and quick at a warning glare out to the crowd from the king as well as one from Odin when his head snapped back over his shoulder.
Blushing, Wufei gave a sheepish grin to the royals and shrugged, "I am hoping for a growth spurt soon."
"You will grow into it quite handsomely, I have no doubt," the queen giggled in reassurance before she bent at the waist to press a soft kiss against the boy's cheek. Pulling back, she smiled to the wide and blinking onyx eyes, "We are most happy to have you have come to join us." At that, the crown broke into another round of cheers and applause.
With a deep bow over the chorus from the audience, Chang mouthed another 'thank you' to his new king and queen. Gathering up the remainder of his belongings of clothes and what little else he had to call his own, he held onto the belt at his waist and hopped from the stage to rejoin his teammates in the middle of the pack gathered as the noise died back down.
The moment he returned to her side, the young swordsman received a tight embrace from Anna that prompted him to freeze. "Congratulations, Wufei," she whispered in his ear. When the archer pulled back, Heero made to step forward and grin as he offered a hand out. Stuffing his belongings under his arm, Chang smiled and they exchanged a firm handshake.
Appraising the two before him, the normally stoic Yuy and the fiery Anna, a feeling washed over Wufei... one that he had not had in a long time. In regards to the archer's comment before about them being his new family, there was no doubt in his mind now. These were people whom he already felt a connection to, ones that he knew he could count on.
He was home.
(End Flashback)
* * * * * *
Duo turned the last page of the entry as he chuckled to his friends, "And so the Terrible Trio was officially formed."
TBC...
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