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Bound, Bonded and Betrayed	By : Deb Category: Gundam Wing/AC > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 13362 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing/AC, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 45
- 46
"Bound, Bonded and Betrayed"
Chapter 45

Having gotten Sally's report on both the princess and the slave, Wufei added them to his own notes and sent a slave to the king to request an audience. The slave returned quickly, letting Wufei know that the king would have audience with him immediately. Collecting all his notes, Wufei set out with a purpose.
“Enter.”
Wufei opened the door to the king's study area, closed it and moved across the room to where the king sat. He bowed low in respect. “Your Majesty, I need to speak with you on a matter of grave concern.”
“Of course, Wufei. Please, be seated.” The king waved to a vacant seat opposite his desk. “Now, what is it that has you so upset?” King Treize gave his undivided attention to the Captain of the guard, knowing that if Wufei said the issue was grave, then it was.
Setting his notes upon the desk, Wufei took a brief moment to compose himself and his thoughts. One deep breath later and he began to inform the king of the princess' claims and the current charges against Duo.
King Treize listened carefully as Wufei spoke. He didn't interrupt, simply sat there as the entire story unfolded and did his best to take in all that Wufei said. Once the Captain had finished, King Treize rubbed his chin thoughtfully as his mind began to process the facts. “Those are pretty serious charges, Captain.”
“Yes, your Highness, they are,” Wufei replied.
“When are my sons due to return?”
“They are currently in the Eastern sector, Sire and are expected back the day after tomorrow,” Wufei said.
The king looked thoughtful for a moment before speaking again. “I would prefer to wait until my sons are home to hold the trial, but that may not be possible. Captain, please have the princess and the accused slave brought to the throne room, I will address them both there. This will without doubt need to go to trial and I will set the trial day once I have spoken to both of them.”
“As you wish, your Highness. I will send for them now.” Wufei stood and with a bow to the king, turned to leave the study.
Frowning to himself, the king stood and left his study, heading for his own chambers to change before holding court with the princess and accused slave. This was something he was not looking forward to.
Leaving the study, Wufei traversed the castle halls to carry out his orders. He sent a couple of guards to inform the princess that her presence was required in the Throne room and to escort her there. Another guard was dispatched to the healer's quarters, also requesting her presence in the Throne room. As for Duo, Wufei went directly to the dungeons to escort the slave himself.
* * *
“Everyone is present, Your Highness,” Wufei informed the king.
“Thank you, Captain.” King Treize checked his clothing was straight, took a deep breath and pulling his cloak to cover his shoulders, he strode towards the door that would lead him into the Throne room and the waiting people. Wufei opened the door for him and the King walked in, long strides covering the distance from the door to the throne quickly. Standing in front of the throne, he cast his eyes over the room.
The princess was to his right and curtsied as best she could in her pregnant state when he entered. Beside the princess her maid knelt, head bowed and just behind the princess remained the two guards. On his left Duo was kneeling, head bowed and hands shackled together. Two guards watched over him from either side of his shaking form. To the rear of the room stood the healer who also curtsied when the king appeared.
Satisfied that everything was in order, the king took his seat on the throne and got himself comfortable.
With the king seated, Relena took her own seat, her maid moving to assist her and get her as comfortable as possible. The two guards remained flanking the princess. Sally also took a seat whilst Duo remained kneeling on the floor.
“The purpose of this meeting is to hear the charges and make a decision in relation to a trial date,” King Treize announced. “Captain, if you would read out the charges, please?”
Wufei stepped forward from where he stood just to the side and back of the king's throne. “Her royal Highness, Princess Relena has accused Prince Heero's slave, Duo, of indecently trying to touch her and attempting to rape her,” Wufei said in a clear, quiet voice.
“Those are serious charges,” King Treize said softly and looked from the princess to the slave. Focusing on Duo, the king spoke again. “Slave, do you understand the charges you are accused of?”
Still kneeling on the floor with his head bowed, Duo did his best to try and stop the shaking of his body and summon his voice.
“Duo? Please answer the king,” Wufei stated, his voice remaining soft and gentle.
“Y- Y- Yes, sire,” Duo managed to whisper out.
“How do you plead to the charges?” King Treize asked.
“N- Not guilty, sire.” This time Duo's voice came out a little stronger than a whisper, but it was still hoarse.
Relena looked furious before quickly schooling her features back to those of a wronged princess.
“The accused has declared he is not guilty of the charges. I thereby decree that this case shall go to trial and that the trial will be held in three days.”
Duo sagged a little in relief. His master was due back in just two days and if Duo was lucky, he would get to see his master one last time before he was put to the sword. Even though he knew he wasn't guilty of the crimes he'd been accused of, no one ever believed a slave over royalty.
Three days... Three days! Relena's mind worked frantically. Heero would be back by then and knowing how her husband felt about that piece of filth, he would be sure to try and stop anything from happening to him. This was not good. Relena needed to have that slave gone before Heero returned. She ran a hand over her swelling abdomen and a thought popped into her head.
Inwardly smiling to herself, Relena drew on all her acting skills. She sniffled loudly, the tears falling from her eyes on cue as she raised her forlorn looking face to the king. “King Treize,” she began, voice hitching as she tried to compose herself. “I- I would prefer it if this wasn't to go to trial as such.”
The king frowned, but Wufei was the one that spoke. “Your Highness, forgive me for speaking out of turn, but you have accused someone of a serious crime and under the crown law, a trial must be held to decide if the accused is guilty or not.”
understand that,” Relena said, doing her best to keep her temper in check. She didn't like the guard questioning her like some commoner. “Yes, this needs to be dealt with, but please, can't we deal with it here and now? Given my condition and the nature of the charges I am not at all comfortable with more people knowing what has occurred than are already aware.” Relena added a few more sniffles and delicately dabbed at her eyes. “It is already difficult enough trying to come to terms with what has happened, but to have it aired out in public...”
Oh mistress, how clever you are, Dorothy thought to herself.
“Ahh.” King Treize paused and thought on the princess' words. He could understand her reluctance to have this trial as it would be conducted with many more people present and that would cause her a lot of distress, humiliation and embarrassment. It could also damage her standing within the kingdom. It was a delicate situation and one that needed careful handling. “One moment, my dear.” Treize turned to Wufei. “I wish you to accompany me into the outer chamber for a moment to discuss this.”
Wufei nodded. “As you wish, sire.”
The king stood. “I will return in a moment with my decision regarding the trial.” Words said, he left the throne room, Wufei right behind him.
* * *
“Just two more holdings to cover and we can rest for the evening,” Trowa informed his brother as they rode along yet another track.
“Good. I'm tired, hungry and in need of a bath,” Heero grumbled. He also wanted Duo beside him, but unfortunately, that wasn't about to happen any time soon.
The two holdings were close together and it didn't take long for the princes' to discuss their business with the farmers. The village they were staying in that eve was a short ride along the road and soon enough the inn came into sight and Heero breathed a sigh of relief.
The horses were handed over to the stable lads, the innkeeper and his wife fussing over the royals as they entered the inn. Heero let Trowa deal with the inn keeper, he was too tired and irritated to be bothered and knew if he were to speak with the man he would end up saying something he'd regret.
A slave boy took them to the rooms they had been allocated and Heero was more than happy to see the steaming bath awaiting him. Another slave brought his belongings to the room and once he was gone, Heero set about stripping himself off and reclining in the warm water. These were the times he missed Duo the most.
He'd grown so accustomed to having Duo with him - the slave anticipating what he needed or wanted before he even asked - that when Duo wasn't there it felt as if a part of him were missing. He really hadn't wanted to leave Duo behind, but his wife had made such a good argument for Duo remaining at the castle that he'd reluctantly given in.
He would have to make it up to Duo when he returned. Thinking of his sweet slave brought a smile to Heero's face and he was thankful that they only had a few holdings left to cover and would be able to return to the castle the day after tomorrow.
Feeling the aches easing as the warmth of the water soaked into his tired body, Heero thought deeper about his slave and his wife. He was well aware that Relena didn't care for Duo at all, more so since she'd caught him enjoying his slave and that led him to deeper thoughts. He'd noticed a subtle change in Duo over the past months. Duo had lost some weight, he also appeared to be tired a lot of the time and then there were times when Duo had made simple mistakes – mistakes that he'd expect a slave in training to make, not one as trained as Duo was.
Sitting up, Heero began to task of washing himself off and as he did his mind continued to wander. Some of the things he'd witnessed slowly began to slot into place, small things such as his wife changing what she'd been about to say when he'd walked into the room. Then there were other things such as the state of the marital chambers at times and that thought led him to another. The marital chambers were always neat and tidy when Duo had been absent from his side. Some of the times when Duo had been with him and they'd returned to the marital chambers he'd found them to be quite untidy.
The more he thought about it, the more his mind supplied him with a thought, one he wasn't sure he really liked. He knew he'd told Duo that he was expected to serve the princess the same as he served his master... But the princess had her own maid... Surely she wouldn't...
Heero growled in frustration and rinsed himself off. He grabbed the drying cloth and stepped out of the tub to dry himself. The only explanation he could think of for Duo's loss of weight, tiredness, mistakes and decline in his general, happy demeanor was that Duo was serving the princess whenever he wasn't with Heero.
If that was the case, no wonder Duo was looking so exhausted at times.
Unfortunately, there wasn't anything he could do about it at the moment though.
Heero promised himself that once he returned to the castle he would speak with both Duo and his wife. He had no problem with Duo serving the princess, but not at the expense of his slave's health and well being.
Having dressed himself, Heero decided to put all thoughts along those lines out of his mind for now and concentrate on getting through these last few holdings so he could return to the castle as quickly as possible. Satisfied with his appearance, Heero left his room in search of his brother and dinner.
* * *
With the departure of Wufei and the King to the anti chamber that left the princess, Dorothy, Duo, the healer and four guards alone in the Throne room.
Relena was fairly confident that the king would heed her wishes and hold the trial immediately to save her from any embarrassment, but she couldn't be completely sure. Beside her, Dorothy had picked up on her mistress' intentions and was playing her part to perfection. She rose from her kneeling position and made a show of comforting her mistress.
At the rear of the Throne room, Sally watched quietly. Her mind was torn in two. On one side she could understand and appreciate where the princess was coming from in wanting this matter dealt with quickly, efficiently and discreetly, but on the other hand it didn't leave any time at all to prepare a defense for Duo – not to mention that the prince should by rights be present as it was his slave that was accused of a crime. Her eyes softened when they fell on Duo. The slave was shackled, kneeling and shaking, obviously going into shock. Her heart went out to the poor creature and she stood slowly.
Approaching the kneeling slave she made eye contact with the two guards. “I wish to check him over,” she said quietly.
The guards nodded their assent but kept their posture rigid and ready to intervene should the need arise.
As Sally knelt, she couldn't help but see the look of disdain and hatred on the princess' face from the corner of her eye. She ignored that though, Duo was her priority at the moment. “Duo?” she called softly.
When the princess had all but demanded that the trial take place immediately, Duo's mind began to shut down on him. The shock settled in, his emotions dulled and all he felt was an overwhelming sense of hopelessness. Hearing his name being called, he focused his eyes and looked to see the healer kneeling next to him. “Mistress, healer,” he whispered, his eyes returning to staring at the floor.
Raising a hand, Sally gently placed it on the young slave's shoulder, unable to ignore the involuntary flinch from him. “I won't harm you,” Sally said, “I wanted to make sure that you are okay.”
“I am fine, no need for you to trouble yourself on my account,” Duo replied.
Sally sighed. “You're not fine, you're trembling and in shock. I can give you something to calm you if you wish?”
Duo shook his head. “Thank you, but I will be okay.”
“You're not alone in this, Duo,” Sally stated, but before she could say anything more, the door to the anti chamber opened and the king along with Wufei stepped back in.
Resuming his throne once more, Treize looked at the group and cleared his throat. “We will hold the trial now.”
Sally frowned and glanced around the room. Relena looked pleased with the King's announcement, her maid also wore a smirk of satisfaction. Wufei didn't look too happy and Duo's body began to shake even more as the realization that he was about to go on trial hit home – and hard.
As much as she wished there was something she could do to delay the trial until Prince Heero returned, Sally knew better than to interfere. The King's word was final and no one questioned the King.
“We will begin with the statement and evidence from Princess Relena. After that we will hear the statement and evidence from the slave.” King Treize made his announcement and looked to the people gathered. With there being no objections, he turned to Wufei. “The Captain will read out the statement collected from the Princess. Captain?”
Clearing his throat, Wufei moved to stand just in front of the King with the princess to one side and Duo, the other. “Your Highness...”
It took a little while for Wufei to read through the statement he'd taken from the princess, but once he'd finished even Sally had to admit, it sounded very convincing.
“Was the princess checked by the royal healer?” the King asked.
“Yes, Sire. I have the findings of the healer right here.” Wufei shuffled his papers and finding the one he wanted, he began to read.
Once Wufei had finished reading the statements in regards to Relena's side of the story, the King was given a copy of both reports.
“And what of the slave?” Treize looked to where Duo was still kneeling, shaking on the floor.
“I have the statement from the slave and also the healer,” Wufei replied.
“Please proceed.”
Wufei repeated his actions from earlier, reading out the statement Duo had given followed by Sally's report on her findings. Kneeling on the floor, Duo was quite surprised to find that Wufei had spoken the truth when he said the court would hear his version of events. Although he still didn't believe for one minute that the court would believe a slave over a royal, at least his side had been heard so he held a small measure of comfort in that knowledge.
Having passed over the statements to the King, Wufei stepped back to allow the King a few moments to scan over the pages. Once done with his perusal, King Treize looked to the gathered group.
“Princess Relena, I understand that this must have been quite a shocking ordeal for you and I am grateful that you have not been more seriously hurt.”
Relena sniffled and dabbed at her eyes.
“Is there anything more you wish to add to your statement?”
“No, sire,” Relena said quietly. “It's all there in my statement and I have nothing more to add other than I sincerely hope that justice will be done.” She lowered her head and gave a few more sniffles for good measure.
Turning to the kneeling slave, King Treize spoke again. “Duo, this is a very serious charge that has been brought against you. Aside from the alleged attempted rape, there is also the matter of you touching a female royal without permission. Is there anything more you wish to add?”
Keeping his head bowed and eyes lowered, Duo cleared his throat and forced his voice to work. “Sire, I did not rape or attempt to rape the princess. I have done nothing but obey the requests made of me by the princess. My master has ordered me to serve her as I would him and if I am to be punished for obeying those orders, then so be it.”
Hearing the soft words, Sally felt her heart break for the young slave, knowing that there wasn't anything more she could do frustrated her to no end. She couldn't help the nagging feeling that Duo was innocent, but she couldn't prove it. Her hands were tied, Duo's fate now rested in the hands of the King.
“I will take a few moments to study the evidence. I will return with my decision in one candle mark.” King Treize stood and left the throne room, Wufei behind him. Those remaining in the throne room waited until the king had left before rising and making their own way out of the throne room. Duo was escorted back to the dungeon, the princess and her maid retired to the marital chambers whilst Sally returned to her own rooms.
*
Quatre was like a cat on a hot tin roof. He'd managed to keep himself quite busy all afternoon, but his mind was a mess. He wasn't allowed anywhere near the throne room and had already taken several risks in trying to find out what was going on. He knew the way the system worked in regards to how disagreements, accusations and crimes were dealt with, but this time it was a fellow slave that was accused.
Rearranging his master's books yet again, his mind wandered to the throne room. The king would call for a trial, that much he knew for certain, but when would the trial begin? How long would it take, and what would Prince Heero do when he got back to find his slave accused of raping the princess?
All this thinking was getting him nowhere. Quatre decided to risk it and see if he could pass by the throne room on the pretense of fetching something and learn what was happening.
*
The candle mark was almost up and the small group had returned to the throne room to await the King's decision. Within moments of them all returning the door opened and the king, with Wufei behind entered.
Eyes sweeping over the gathered people, King Treize nodded to them and took his seat. Once the king was seated the rest of the room also sat, or in Duo's case, knelt.
The king cleared his throat and spoke. “I have read the statements and reports from both sides in relation to this matter and after studying the evidence I have come to my decision. Duo...”
Duo drew himself to his feet and with his eyes still lowered, he raised his head a touch, awaiting the king's decision.
“In relation to the accusation brought against you in regards to touching a female royal without consent, I find you guilty and sentence you to ten lashes. In the case of attempted rape, I find you guilty and sentence you to be put to the sword at dusk tomorrow eve.”
The words cut deep into Duo's soul. Whilst he'd held no illusions that he'd be found guilty, he couldn't help the small sliver of hope that he'd somehow be believed. The small flame of trust that he'd allowed to build in his heart was completely snuffed out with the king's words.
The entire throne room was silent when the king delivered his decision. As much as it pained the king to find Duo guilty and sentence him to his fate, he had a duty to his kingdom and subjects to uphold the law. Similarly, Wufei was very upset by the outcome, but again, he was bound by protocol and duty. Sally was visibly upset and angry, but there wasn't anything more she could do.
The princess and her maid concealed their joy at the outcome very well.
King Treize stood. “Guards, take the prisoner to the dungeons. Captain Chang?”
Wufei stood to attention.
“You will accompany the prisoner and guards and see that the punishment of ten lashes is carried out. I will speak with you afterwards in my chambers in regards to the rest of the sentence.”
“Yes, sire.” Wufei looked anything but happy.
“This trial is complete.” King Treize left the throne room without further word, everyone standing as the king departed.
Outside in the castle hall, Quatre pulled away from the door he'd had his ear pressed against, a look of horror and shock on his face. Duo was to be flogged and put to the sword?! He couldn't let this happen; but what to do?
Suddenly Quatre had an idea. With grim determination on his face, he took off at a run for his quarters, grabbed a warm cloak and slipped on a pair of boots. Checking all was clear in the castle hall, he hurried from his quarters and slipped outside into the encroaching dusk where he made his way swiftly to the stables.
He had a fellow slave to try and save.
~ * ~
tbc...
- 45
- 46
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Bound, Bonded and Betrayed