A Matter of Heart: Heirs to the Legacy
By: Andrea Readwolf
Email: andrea_readwolf @hotmail.com
Rating: YA/Mature
Families: 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}, Julian)
Catalonia-Dorian Family (Dorothy Catalonia + Relena Dorian,
Regina)
Une-Po Family (Lady Une + Sally Po, Marie Une*, Michael Braddocks,
Mark Braddocks, Matthew Braddocks)
Pairings: Trinity + Adrian, Mara Jade + Tristan, Kit + Triton (hoped
for), Calista + Dylan (hinted at)
plus: 1+2+3+4+5
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.
Additional Note: 1, 2, 3, 4, & 5 often times refer to each other as
"husband"; please refer back to "Promise of the Rings" Part 15 if this
causes confusion.
Additional Note 2: The chibis often times refer to their parents'
friends and partners as "Uncle" or "Aunt"--in this case, the
term is used simply as one of respect since, with the exception
of Kit & Adrian's relation to Relena and all of Quatre's sisters,
none of the parents have siblings.
***These stories and the ideas contained within are copyright of the author. No reprinting or posting without permission of said author. ***
~April 228 AC~
The music blasted out of the small boom box, beating out the pace of her workout. Thrust, pull, kick, block. Kick, block, punch, energy ball, strike. Each move flowed smoothly into the next, rhythmically with the music. Her face was flushed and sweaty strands of dark silk clung to her forehead, cheeks, and throat where her hair had escaped its tightly fastened braided-bun. She was glowing in the early morning light, and he was hesitant to interrupt her, but he knew it was important.
"Your Majesty?" the young page called, breaking his queen's early morning routine.
Trinity Peacecraft froze mid-block, blue eyes fastening on the boy who had called to her.
"A phone call, Your Highness, from your father. Your sister has been taken to the hospital."
Mara Jade gasped, eyes widening in fear and surprise. "Is it *supposed* to hurt this much?" she tried to ask teasingly, but more fear than teasing leaked into her voice.
"Just hold on, baby," her father said, patting her hand reassuringly; but Wufei couldn't prevent the concern from showing on his face.
"Tristan is definitely going to be the one carrying any more babies from now on," Mara Jade whimpered. "I'm not good for pain... I hate pain... I--where's Tristan?"
"He's coming. Don't worry, Trowa called him before we left."
Even as Wufei spoke, his husband walked in with a cup of chipped ice for the laboring girl. "Here, suck on these," Trowa instructed calmly, brushing her sweaty bangs back from her face and smiling gently.
"It hurts," she whimpered accepting the ice.
"I know. I'm sorry," Trowa replied, squeezing her hand sympathetically. "I wish there was more we could do for you. If Quatre or Tristan were here--"
"Please. Please just... don't leave me? I'm... afraid."
The two fathers looked at one another over the girl, hurting for their daughter. "We won't," Wufei promised. "Just breathe. Try to relax and focus on breathing in and out."
Wufei tried to lead Mara Jade into a meditation, but the contractions came again and again, interrupting the dark-haired girl's focus with searing pain.
It was like that for endless hours, the nurses coming and going to check on Mara Jade's stats, offering only a small encouraging smile as they left again.
"I am never... doing this... again," she cried in the grips of another contraction when the door burst in.
"Go Away!" she screamed. "I hate you!"
"Don't say things you'll regret," a smirking but gentle voice replied as Tristan replaced his father at Mara Jade's side.
"You did this to me!"
"Mother Nature did this to you," the blond young man retorted, but couldn't resist adding, "Besides, I don't remember you complaining any at the time."
Mara Jade groaned as the last of the contraction faded away. "What took you so long?" she asked sounding extremely tired.
"Your father wanted to drive," Tristan answered, practically crawling up onto the bed next to her. One arm wrapped up around her head like a halo while the other swept down, his hand resting over her swollen abdomen. "How we doin' here?"
"You didn't let him, did you?"
"It's *my* shuttle--I let him co-pilot."
"I don't know what you're all worried about," Duo complained. "It's not like *I'm* button-happy or suicidal like *some* people. Hey baby, how ya holding up?"
"Someone forgot to tell me how much this hurts."
"Hey, trust me, it can't be any worse than someone slicing your stomach muscles open."
"Duo!"
"Don't yell at me, Q-man. Just ask Tro and Wu-babe. They'll back me up on this one, right guys?"
A soft singing cut into the ensuring argument and the others looked to see Tristan lulling mother and unborn baby to ease. Heero, who was last to arrive after parking the car, came in to witness his daughter sleeping in Tristan's arms while the others looked on. He caught first Wufei's then Trowa's attention and motioned them out of the room. Both curious and wanting to give the young couple some bit of privacy, Quatre and Duo followed the trio out into the hallway.
"Report."
"Dammit, Heero! She's your daughter, not a mission!" Wufei snapped, only mildly calmed when Trowa gently touched his back. "Gomen. I'm tired. We've been up with her all night, with little chance to sleep."
"I'm sorry," Heero replied in turn, looking slightly embarrassed for realizing too late how cold his inquiry sounded. He didn't mean to--he knew Mara Jade wasn't a mission. He didn't mean to make it sound like he did--
A hand touched his arm, dragging Heero away from his self-incrimination. Quatre offered him a small smile and Heero tried again. "How is she?" he asked this time.
"Tired. In pain. Scared," Wufei answered, sounded every bit as tired.
"I think she's better now," Trowa offered. "She's at least sleeping. That's more than what we could get her to do."
"What about meds?" Duo asked.
Wufei shook his head. "She hasn't received any, though I had to threaten the nurses to make sure they didn't offer."
"Good. Maybe we should call Hiroshima..." Duo suggested, watching his Japanese husband closely for his reaction.
"I don't think there's a need," Heero started to say, and then he shrugged. "If you want to, go ahead. I suppose it can't hurt to have her here... if she even wants to, that is."
"Maybe you two should go get some sleep," Quatre suggested, critically eyeing the way Trowa and Wufei were basically supporting each other to keep from falling down where they were standing.
"I could use some of that," Trowa agreed.
"I'll go have the nurse prepare a spare room," Quatre replied, touching his husband's arm lovingly before heading off, glad to at least have something to do.
Duo and Heero used the time to fill Wufei and Trowa in on their trip to and from space. A nurse passed them to get into Mara Jade's room, and Duo trailed off mid-sentence. All four were noticeably trying to hear what was going on in the room when Quatre returned.
"Everything's all se--"
"Shh!"
The blond man blinked at his husbands' reactions--which were only made clear when the nurse re-emerged from the room. The middle-aged woman smiled at them before turning to Trowa and Wufei whom she recognized as the expectant grandfathers.
"She's dilated a full centimeter since last time," she reported happily. "If she keeps this up, we can expect this baby by afternoon!"
"A full centimeter in an hour?!" Wufei exclaimed.
"I've seen it happen before. A woman's stress level when high can prolong labor. They look like a real loving couple. I'd bet most of the dilation occurred right after he got here and she relaxed."
Trowa thanked the nurse and then Quatre was rather insistent about getting both him and Wufei into a bed.
Mara Jade looked pale and ill. Beads of sweat moistened her face as well as other parts of her body. She was weak, tired, incredibly tired, and she couldn't decide whether she was hungry or not. Their fathers took turns guarding her room--from what she wasn't sure. She tried to get up and walk around a little as the nurse had suggested, but she was barely able to sit up let alone stand up and move. She hated that; hated feeling helpless, weak, pathetic, useless--
Tristan kissed her temple, breaking through her self-depreciative thoughts. Tristan. Since he'd gotten here three hours earlier he'd barely left her side. She was glad; relieved, even, that he chose to stay with her.
"You still scared?" he asked gently, a thumb lovingly rubbing the back of her hand.
"A little," she admitted. "You?"
"A little," he agreed, smiling. "But I'm also excited. I'm excited to meet our daughter and be a dad."
"You'll be a good dad," Mara Jade murmured.
Tristan grinned bemusedly. "You think so?" he asked aloud even though he knew she was already asleep again. He leaned over her protruding belly and whispered, "It's going to get scary pretty soon, but don't worry, okay? Mommy and Daddy are out here and we can't wait to met you, so don't be afraid."
"Okay, let's do this," the midwife's nurse announced after nearly twenty hours of living hell.
"Now? Are you sure?" Mara Jade asked.
"No time like the present!"
The searing pain through her belly stabbed at her senses and she thought she was dying. Tristan's hand squeezed hers reassuringly as he kissed her fist, saying, "It'll be over soon, just hang in there, okay?"
Soon? She was the one who had been here since 2:30 AM, not him.... Though he didn't look much better. But....
It was as he said. Within minutes, the midwife was pulling their daughter clear from her body and a loud, healthy wail echoed through the room. Outside they could hear cheers, but an exhausted Mara Jade was too preoccupied at staring at the tiny baby in the nurse's hands. She smiled. "Meiran..."
An alarm went off, followed by several others. The nurse with the baby quickly left while others ran up to replace her, pushing Tristan out of the way without apology. He watched in a blur as his daughter was taken away before he could hold her and then as the men and women shouted back and forth at each other over Mara Jade's bed. One man started pumping on Mara Jade's chest, another woman was holding a mask over her face. Someone turned off the alarm.
A tense minute and a half later, Mara Jade's heart resumed beating on its own. She looked small and fragile after they hooked her up to all the machines necessary to keep her alive and then whisked her away to a different room. Tristan watched on, stunned. Someone came up and put a hand on his shoulder as the nurses filed out and their fathers filed in.
"Everything's going to be okay," Triton told his brother. "Mara Jade's too stubborn to die."
Tristan continued to stare at bed, not replying, not bothering to wonder when his brother showed up, knowing he'd been too focused on Mara Jade and the baby to bother keeping tabs on his family. The last person out was the midwife, who approached them, stopping and looking apologetic. "Mister Winner," she said gently. "We've done everything that we could do for her. It's up to her now."
"What happened?" Heero asked from behind. Tristan was glad--he didn't think he could bring himself to voice the question.
"It seems her body couldn't handle the stress of delivery," the midwife replied, frowning. "This happens sometimes, but so rarely these days... I wish there was more we could do. I'm sorry."
"What CAN you do?" Wufei asked, his fingers digging into Heero's arm.
"We've hooked her up to a life supporter..."
No one spoke right away and then Quatre thought to ask after the baby.
"A fine and healthy baby girl," the midwife replied, happy to have some good news. "I'll have the nurse come by with her and some papers for you to fill out."
"Can we... can I go in there?" Tristan asked, aching to be at Mar Jade's side, to shake her and shout at her, tell her this wasn't funny and she'd better wake up.
"Just as soon as they've finished and moved her to a new room, sure," the midwife replied, smiling kindly at him.
They were done, and Tristan didn't hesitate in taking Mara Jade's hand and bringing it to his lips as he stared at her still body through tear-glazed eyes.
"Tris," his brother said softly, squeezing his shoulder again for support.
"Try, promise me something?" his brother asked weakly, his voice foggy with emotion.
"Anything within my power," Triton responded readily. "Name it and it's yours."
The younger man turned slightly to look up at his mirror image. "If something... happens... to either Mara Jade or me... promise me you'll take care of Meiran for us."
"Wha--"
"Promise," Tristan insisted.
Dumbly, Triton Winner nodded before stumbling out, "Of course, yes, I promise."
The tension stemming through Tristan's body slowly relaxed. "Thank you," he breathed before turning back fully to Mara Jade.
At that moment, a nurse arrived with a pink swaddling in her arms and an anxious Quatre on her heels.
"Tristan Winner?" she asked, looking at the two identical young men before moving to the one closest to the poor mother's bed. She smiled gently, saying, "I think I have someone here who wants to meet you," as she placed the newborn carefully in his arms.
Tristan stared down at his infant daughter--in awe for a moment--and then a huge grin bloomed on his face and he let out a half laugh. "You're going to be a stubborn one, just like your mother, aren't you?" he asked, amused, pulling the blanket away from the round squished face. A finger brushed her nose... her cheek... her tiny head jerked and her miniature fists banged against his hand. Five fingers each, he noted. "Come meet your mother, Meiran," Tristan said softly, leaning over the hospital bed. "Don't worry. She'll be able to say 'hello' to you soon. She loves you every bit as much as I do." He brushed her cheek again, wonderingly.
"Let someone else hold her," Quatre practically pleaded, itching to see his granddaughter.
"What's her name?" the nurse asked, writing in a clipboard.
"Meiran," Tristan answered immediately, smiling as he passed the infant to his anxious father. "Meiran Raberba Winner. Here Dad. Don't complain, but it looks like Meiran escaped the Raberba's curse."
"Curse?" Trowa questioned, looking over Quatre's shoulder and smiling immediately when he spotted the dark nest of obsidian silk nestled over a very pink face. "She's beautiful."
"Like her mother," Tristan agreed.
"'Meiran?'" Wufei repeated with surprise and no little amount of shock.
Tristan offered the older man a weakened smile. "It was Mara's choice. The name seemed to mean something really special to her, but she wouldn't say what."
"It... was my wife's name," Wufei replied evenly. A hand touched his waist, quickly followed by an arm. He looked; Heero was holding him, offering him his support and love. Duo, Wufei noticed, was at Quatre's other side, cooing over his granddaughter and completely oblivious to their conversation. Just then Duo looked up, eyes shining and grinning wildly. The longhaired man blew a kiss to his other two husbands before returning his attention to his granddaughter and devising the best plan to get her free of Quatre's overly protective clutches.
End Part 42
Andrea Readwolf
Please send comments to: andrea_readwolf@hotmail.com