A Matter of Heart: Heirs to the Legacy By: Andrea Readwolf
Email: andrea_readwolf@hotmail.com
Rating: YA/fluff
Pairings: YMC Fam (Yuy-Maxwell-Chang Family: Trinity, Mara Jade, and Dylan);
Winner Fam (Quatre + Trowa, Triton&Tristan, and little sis Calista);
Peacecraft Family (Zechs Marquise/Milliard + Lucrezia/Noin Peacecraft, Kit/Katarynna, Adrian, and Nicolette/Nicole); Mazzolla Family (Mariemeia + Jake Mazzolla {OC}, Julien); Catalonia-Dorian Family (Dorothy Catalonia + Relena Dorian, Regina); Une-Po Family (Lady Une + Sally Po, Marie Une*, Michael Braddocks, Mark Braddocks, Matthew Braddocks)
Archive: Yes- www.gwaddiction.com
Warnings: The following story contains scenes that are humorous, sappy, fluff, with Incoherence, random PoV switching, and Sexual innuendos abound. Original Characters are presented; all characters are IC according to the author's interpretation of them. Mainly heterosexual situations, with hints of YAOI and YURI.
Spoilers: Previous Matter of Heart Series Arc stories: "Dance of the Heart" Arc and "Oh Baby, Baby" Arc. Built off of "Traditions".
Feedback: C&C is always welcomed and adored.
Acknowledgements: There have been some wonderful people who have made my sojourn in GW-fanfiction more than just enjoyable and have inspired me to write, write, and write some more. Thank you.
Disclaimer: Gundam Wing and its characters belong to Bandai, Sunrise and Sotsu Agency and are only being used for non-profit entertainment purposes. References to printed texts, films, sitcoms, musical pieces, and/or other fanfictions don't belong to the author either. Original Characters, including but not limited too, the Berh Siblings, Jake Mazzolla and "the chibis", are original and hence, the author's own creation.
Notes: This is the story of the children, the nine children of the 6 gundam pilots (Heero-Zechs) plus the grandchild of Treize Khushrenada. This story will not focus primarily on the characters from the series, but rather, the generation after them. This story is not for all die-hard fans, but runs along the lines of a more original piece.
***These stories and the ideas contained within are copyright of the author. No reprinting or posting without permission of said author. ***
Trinity ran home—her long dark hair flapping in her wake like a banner—and didn’t stop until she found her room and bed, where she flung herself upon it, her body wracked with heavy sobs.
Wufei and Duo, who were the only ones home that afternoon to witness their elder daughter’s arrival, looked up from their individual entertainments to look questioningly at the other. In the family room, where both men were relaxing and enjoying a peaceful afternoon, Duo flipped off the wide screen vid, while Wufei slipped his place marker back into the journal he was writing. Both men stood to go to their daughter’s side.
"Trini?" Duo called out, gently rapping on the thick bedroom door.
"Go Away!"
Duo frowned over to his husband. Wufei humphfed and pushed open the door. "Trinity Maxwell-Yuy-Chang," he began, striding purposefully into the bedroom—only to have that purpose swiftly die upon the sight of his daughter. Duo rushed past where Wufei stood rooted to the rug, and pulled the sobbing young woman into his arms, cooing and rocking her softly.
Trinity wrapped her arms around Duo’s waist, crying her eyes out into her father’s lap as he tried to pull her up and cradle her.
"Trini, Trini. Baby, what’s the matter, honey?" he cajoled, wipping the wet, dark strands of hair plastered against her cheeks and forehead back away from her tear-soaked, red face.
"He’s leaving, Daddy," was the only audible cry he could decode as the 20 year old fell into a fresh round of body-wracking sobs.
In was five good minutes of crying before she was finally calmed down enough—In that time period, Wufei managed to unroot himself and find a cool glass of water for her to drink past her dry throat and two washcloths to wet and dry her salty face.
"Thank you, Dad," their oldest baby said weakly, taking the washcloths from him and washing her face of tears as she sniffled.
"Care to tell us what happened?" Duo asked, brushing her hair with his fingers. For a moment, it looked like she would cry again—but she stiffly bit her lip and swallowed back the tears.
"He’s leaving," she managed to answer without choking.
"Leaving? Who?"
"Adrian," the young woman cried, clutching onto her father. "He just told me—An envoy—from Sank, they… they want him to… to go back to Sank with them. To stay. To… rule. He’s—He’s a Prince! He’s gundam royalty!"
"Trinity!" Wufei snapped. "What have we told you about cursing like that!"
The dark haired girl scrubbed fresh tears from her watery blue eyes and glared at her fathers. "Stars! Dad! I’m losing my best friend and all you can think about is how the entire Earth Sphere Alliance thinks the gundams were a curse?!" A pathetic laugh tore from her with another sob.
Duo rubbed her back in tiny circles, looking for the right words to tell her.
"There’s a pretty good university in Sank," a voice interjected. "You could try to transfer over there…"
Three faces looking up at the man leaning against the doorframe with crossed arms. At forty-three years, Heero Yuy was still as good looking as he had been at twenty-three. His lean, muscular physique had not diminished; his mocha-colored dark bangs, still unruly, fell into his intense blue eyes. The only real difference was the lines starting to show on his face and the gray hairs that had begun to sprinkle across his head. These added features only seemed to enhance the man’s virtual attractiveness.
Trinity catapulted herself into Heero’s arms, crying all over again.
"Daddy, what am I going to do? Adrian said he wasn’t sure if he was going to go, but… how could he *possibly* say no? They’re offering him the crown—the whole blazing country! And—" her voice hitched. "I don’t want him to go. I know it’s selfish of me, but… I don’t want him to leave…"
Heero’s hands moved around her, and gently they rocked together. "His father declined the offer."
"What?" Trinity pulled back, wiping at her face.
"Twenty years ago, when Zechs returned to Earth, right after Adrian was born," Heero told her. "They asked Milliardo Peacecraft to return to Sank as King. He refused. Why do you think they want Adrian now?"
Trinity sniffed, swiping at her running nose. "I don’t know," she answered sullenly.
"Hn. He’s a Peacecraft," Wufei snorted, crossing his arms as he stood near where Duo sat still on the bed, both men frowning.
Trinity looked from one father to the other, shaking her head with confusion. "I—I don’t understand."
"Adrian is the last male Peacecraft," Duo answered, practically growling. "Sank probably wants its ruling family back."
"Ruling… family…?"
Heero nodded.
"You mean…. Uncle Zechs… and Auntie ‘Lena are—really *are* royalty?"
Heero frowned. "What are they teaching you in history?" he asked before launching into a synopsis of events forty years old. "Milliard Peacecraft and his wife were assassinated when your Aunt Relena and Uncle Zechs were very young. To protect them both, they were separated and raised apart. Relena Peacecraft was adopted and raised by the Dorlians—they did not tell her of her Peacecraft heritage until she was fifteen. Milliard Peacecraft was shifted through the current government’s military factions and rose steadily through the ranks as ‘Zechs Marquise’. It was the time of the first Eve Wars before they even met again. Another three-four years before they were really reunited.. Relena returned to Sank and, for a short time, ruled the country as rightful princess of Sank."
"Was this before or after she ruled the world?" Trinity asked, clearly into the story.
Heero frowned at his daughter’s lack of knowledge and answered shortly, "Before. After the Eve Wars, Relena had a chance to return to Sank and rule. She decided to help the greater masses instead and chose to become a representative. Zechs also declined returning to Sank, and now that Adrian’s an age to reclaim his full inheritance, they are obviously eager for him to do so."
"But…" Trinity swallowed. "I don’t want him to leave."
"He hasn’t decided yet, has he?"
"No, he hasn’t given them an answer yet, but I know he wants to go!" she cried, hugging her father tight.
Duo stood up and joined his husband and daughter near the door. "Trini, baby, I know you two are good friends and all, but that doesn’t have to end just because Adrian moves away."
"It’s not just that, Daddy," Trinity sniffed, turning her face to look at him. "If Adrian leaves, he’s going to be become a King—he won’t be just Adrian anymore. He’s not just moving away to go live in Sank, he’s moving away from *me*."
"Don’t worry, Trinity," Heero told her, rubbing her back. "Things always work out for the best in the end."
Trinity was too sick to come down to dinner that night, or for breakfast the next day. It was early afternoon—bright sunshine pouring stubbornly through the curtained window—when Duo brought a tray of food up to his eldest daughter’s bedroom.
"Trini-baby?" he called, rapping and opening the door one-handedly. He peeked in and, seeing the young woman laying listlessly on the bed, walked in. "OH, baby," he sighed, setting the tray down on a chair and sitting on the bed next to her, touching her shoulder gently. "I know you feel bad right now, baby, but it’s all just a problem of growing up. You lose friends—sometimes they move away, sometimes it’s something more permanent. Change is never easy, but things will get better."
"Dad, I really don’t want to hear this now," Trinity said, staring out at some point beyond her bed.
Duo frowned, but said no more abut it. Instead, he changed the subject to the food he’d brought up. "Why don’t you try to eat a little something, hmm? You don’t want to go to the dance on an empty stomach, do you?"
"I’m not going to the dance."
"What? Don’t be ridiculous. Of course you’re going," Duo huffed. "Heero and Wufei went down purposefully into town to pick up your dress—"
"They needn’t have bothered. I wont be wearing it."
"But, Trini---you’ve been looking forward to this dance all semester! Why wouldn’t you want to go now?"
"I don’t feel like going to a dance alone, okay, Daddy?" the girl cried out, showing the first spark of emotion.
Duo touched her back, longing to comfort her, but feeling helpless to do so. "You’re not alone, Trinity. Weren’t you going with the boys and Adrian?"
Trinity snorted. "Adrian’s not going. Princes and Kings don’t go to silly things like tri-semester dances. It’s beneath them."
"Trinity, Adrian is still your best friend. It doesn’t matter if he’s in the next room or on the face of Mars. You’re acting foolishly and selfishly." Duo stood. "When you decide to be the mature young woman I know, things will be better—not okay, just better."
And then he left the room, his words playing over in Trinity’s mind a long while after that. It was several years’ worth of minutes before she decided what she was going to do.
She wasn’t sure why she went. Maybe it was the look on her father’s face when Heero presented her the dress she’d wanted and she told him she wasn’t going. Maybe it was because she was tired of being locked up in her room with her depression. Or maybe it was because Mara Jade had taken into another rant about who-knows-what this time.
In any case, Trinity Chang dressed and hopped a ride with Trinity and Tristan Winner—the twin sons of her Uncles Quatre and Trowa. The twin boys were like brothers to her—and in a sense, they were. Technically, their five fathers were married to each other, or, rather, the husbands of Quatre Winner. No blood was shared between the YMC children and the Winner children, however, and they even lived in different homes.
The six children of the five men chose to happily ignore the fact that their fathers were married to one another, and instead chose to be close friends. Tri and Trist were almost a year younger than Trinity and Adrian, although they were at the same school level, and so transportation to school events was almost always a carpool arrangement. The twins’ father being one of the richest men alive, and Trinity’s fathers in no hard spot, either, the children were oftentimes chauffeured to their desired destinations.
Tonight was not different. A sleek, shiny silver stretch pulled up into the YMC drive and waited patiently for its guest to arrive. Its occupants weren’t nearly so patient—much to a certain not-going-to-the-dance party little sister’s annoyance.
Trinity didn’t say much on the drive, despite Triton and Tristan’s best efforts. She wasn’t smiling like normal and didn’t have a friendly word for the young blushing man who took her cloak and muffs from her at the closet, nor when she entered the grand hallway. In face, her face and manner spoke of a bored dispassionment for most of the night.
It wasn’t until the dance’s near-ending when things changed.
End Part 1
Andrea Readwolf
Please send comments to: andrea_readwolf@hotmail.com