peace knights chap 4

“What? You mean the princes have slaves?” Lady Une could not believe her ears, “Since when the two stoic princes allowed anyone to be close to them? I mean other than the general and sorcerer.”

“It’s true,” Hilde replied as she walked with a tray of food towards Heero’s room, “I am told to prepare a bath and food for both the prince and his slave.”

“It’s so hard to believe that our two princes would actually want slaves! I mean they don’t seem to care for anyone, much less a slave…” Lady Une trailed off as she realized where her thoughts were heading.

“You don’t mean they would beat them? The princes are not cruel!” Hilde argued. She refused to believe that the princes would abuse slaves.

“Of course they won’t,”Lady Une agreed quickly, “Prince Heero has a famous temper, but he is fair.”

“I think we are both overreacting. The princes won’t harm their slaves,” Hilde said firmly.

“Well I’m sure,” Lady Une said as the two of them reached Heero’s room, “well, I’m on my way to meet the new recruits. Sometimes I am so tempted to strangle every one of them.”

“Good luck with the recruits!” Hilde called out cheerfully, “well, let’s see how the slave looks like.”

Unknown to the two of them, what they were saying were heard by some of the newly arrived maids who were passing by. Well, they took what they said in a wrong way and started to pity so poor slave, while making a mental note to self not to cross the crown prince and avoided him as much as possible.

Hilde knocked on the door, “prince Heero, I am here with food.”

“Enter!” came the reply.

Hilde entered. She set her tray on the table as she watched prince Heero pulling a tunic over his body. He then turned to help his slave with his slave’s tunic. Apparently, they had just finished their bath. Hilde stood waiting for Heero to give her new orders or to motion her to go.

“Baka!” Heero scolded as he realized that the clean tunic was wet already, “your hair has wet the tunic! Didn’t you wrap the towel around your hair?”

The slave only blinked at Heero, looking at the towel wrapped around his lower body. Hilde could not help giggling at the sight but she stopped giggling the moment Heero’s glare at her.

Heero turned his attention back to his slave, “I know it’s my fault that I only give you one towel but you can remind me, don’t you think baka?”

His slave only blinked and gave him a small nod. Well, it was better than nothing. At least he responded. Heero growled as he turned to his cupboard to find another clean tunic.

“Hilde? Do you think you can help braid his hair first? He’s weak and I don’t want his hair to be floating like that. I am almost sure that Zechs is the only one who can stand the heat,” Heero said as he pulled out another tunic.

Hilde smiled as she approached the slave. However, her smile froze when she met the haunted violet eyes.

What happened to him? Hilde felt a sharp pain in her heart , there is so much pain in those eyes… wait a minute, those eyes… the color… they looked familiar…

Her thoughts froze when her eyes rested on the cross in front of the wet tunic. However, the cross looked burnt and dirty, she recognized it. It was…

It can’t be… Hilde thought, how could it be him? Even if he wasn’t killed when the rest of them at the church, he should not be looking so… so haunted…

Shocked, Hilde stumbled a few steps back, knocking into the table. She could not believe it! However, it looked like him. An old memory flashed through her mind.

“Hilde, Hilde, Hilde,
She is scary and nasty
Be careful not to cross her
Or she gives you a piece of her mind
And you run for your life
Hilde, Hilde, Hilde!”

“Stop that, Duo! You are so dead when I catch you!”

“Catch me if you can!”

“Stop running and sticking your tongue at me, Duo Maxwell! Solo! Look at your brother!”

“What? You don’t like the song I teach him? I am so hurt, Hilde!”

“What? You teach him that irritating song? You two are so dead when I reach you guys! Stop running and laughing!”

“Duo? Duo? Is it really you?” Hilde asked as she stepped towards her, “are you really the little boy who always teased me and ran off before I can get to you? What happened to you?”

Hilde hugged the slave looking at her as she cried. She could not believe that Duo was actually alive after she heard about what happened to the church after she left. Everyone died, she was told. Yet, Duo was standing right in front of her.

But his eyes… they look so … dead… what happened to him? What happened to little boy who was so cheerful and carefree? Hilde thought as she continued to weep, arms wrapped around the boy to tell herself that he was real, if he is real and alive, then maybe…

“Duo? Where’s Solo? Is he…?” Hilde could not continue.

She did not want to know that the boy who she always has a crush on was really dead. She just needs an answer. She just wants to know what happened to Solo. She was not prepared for the body she was hugging went limp.

“What?” Hilde screamed, distressed, “Duo?”

She let him down onto the floor as she tried desperately to wake him up. Heero who had been watching Hilde and his slave quietly was there immediately, trying to help his slave. He shook him hard and tried to get a pulse desperately.

“He’s not breathing! Get Sally! Quick!” Heero yelled as Hilde dashed to the door, screaming for the healer.

“Please breathe!” Heero yelled at his slave, “baka! Breathe! You have to do it!”

Heero could not do anything but kept shaking the light body. Somehow, he felt frustrated and helpless along with a great sense of trepidation, knowing that his slave might leave him. It was strange that he would feel so much for someone he knew only for a day. Yet, he knew that he had to help the limp form in his arms.

“Just breathe, please, baka!” Heero called out desperately.

Luckily, his slave started to breathe again. Heero nearly cried in relief. Half-opened violet eyes looked at him wearily before they closed. At this moment, Sally burst into the room with Hilde as well as Wufei, Trezie and Trowa.

“What happened?” Sally asked quickly, kneeling next to the pair on the floor.

“What took so long?” Heero demanded as he glared at the healer.

Sally ignored his glare and instructed him to put the unconscious boy on the bed. The others stood some distance away as Sally instructed to give the boy some air.

“What happened?” Sally asked again.

“He stopped breathing, that’s what happened! This baka did not try to breathe! What’s wrong with him? And what took you so long? He might die!” Heero snapped.

“Well, I am examining Quatre, giving him stitches and we ran here as soon as we heard Hilde screaming,” Sally snapped, irritated, “What happened to make him stop breathing? I think he has a panic attack.”

“I don’t know what happened…” Heero said as he looked at Hilde, “Hilde was hugging him and crying and the next moment he was on the ground.”

Everyone looked at Hilde in confusion. Questions were running rampant in all their minds.

“I just ask Duo about Solo… then he suddenly went limp…” Hilde said slowly as she tried to process what had happened.

“Duo? Who’s Duo?” Trezie asked, puzzled.

“Duo? Duo is Duo,” Hilde asked, confused.

“I think Hilde means Heero’s slave,” Trowa said calmly.

“I think Hilde, you have a story to tell us. Who is Heero’s slave? How do you know him? What happened to him?” Wufei asked.

“It’s quite a long story and Howard also knows Duo,” Hilde replied absentmindedly. She was still trying to piece the things she saw earlier.

“I think you guys should take that somewhere else. The slave needs to sleep in peace and I want him to sleep as much as possible. So go,” Sally instructed, “including you, prince Heero. I will look after him for the time being and I expect one of you to tell me the story later.”

“Let’s go to my room,” Trowa said simply as they moved out.

Heero looked back at his slave again before he followed the others somewhat unwillingly. Though he was very curious to know of his slave’s past, he wanted to be there to make sure he was all right.

“I will take care of him, prince Heero,” Sally said determinedly as she noticed Heero still glaring at the sleeping slave on the bed, “glaring will not help him recover faster, you know.”

“Hn,” Heero glared at Sally before he stepped out of his room.

All of them were lost in thoughts. Trowa was leading the way, looking at the floor, trying to think of what would make a young boy like Heero’s slave to have a panic attack. He knew that the slave probably suffered a lot. He heard from Quatre how the slave was like when they were with the slavers. The boy never talked or made any sound thus suffering a lot for that.

“Trent,” Trowa called out as he passed one of the guards at the hallway, “please get Howard, the blacksmith, and then stand guard outside my room and to stop anyone from interrupting. We have an important meeting.”

With that, he opened the door, gesturing to the others to follow him. However, he realized his mistake quickly.

“Stop! Out!” then he slammed his door, leaving the others outside.

“Quick! I forgot! You need to get dressed! I forgot to give you your clothes earlier!” Trowa’s frantic yell could be heard, followed by loud shuffling.

The others outside looked at each other before they realized what were happening in the room. Trezie chuckled. Heero smirked. Wufei snickered. Hilde giggled though her eyes were still red with tears.

After a few minutes of standing and laughing, Trowa opened the door with a glare. However, it only caused the rest to start another round of laughter.

“It’s not funny,” Trowa deadpanned as he allowed the others to enter his room.

“Of course not. Did you leave your slave standing in the middle of the room with nothing on?” Wufei asked with faked innocence as he looked at Heero.

Both Trowa and Heero glared at Wufei before Trowa spoke, “at least I am not so dense to tell him not to move. Quatre was sleeping in bed with blankets. After his bath.”

This time, Heero glared at Trowa and then at Sally and Wufei. Somehow, the joke of the day was Heero and his slave. Due to the healer’s and sorcerer’s gossiping, almost the whole palace knew about it. No, the sorcerer would not call it “gossiping,” that is onna to him. He would call it “sharing the joy around.”

Yeah at the cost of my expenses, Heero thought but he could not keep his smile from his face when he thought of that baka, well, we are all here to know about him.

All of them gathered around the table and sat in the chairs. There were not enough chairs so Trowa and his slave, Quatre settled in a couch not far from the table. Once everyone settled down, all the attention was on Hilde.

Hilde squirmed in her chair uncomfortably as she tried to think of where to start, well, start earlier and get over it earlier? Or should I wait for Howard? Where should I start? Who should I talk about? Duo? Solo? Can Solo be living? Or is he really dead? But if Duo is alive, he might be! Is he dead?

Just as Hilde’s mind was sidetracking to well, no one knows where, there was a knock and Howard entered the room. His entry brought Hilde back to reality.

“Well, what can I do for all of you?” Howard asked politely.

“Well, Hilde says that both you and she can supply information about my new slave. And we are all eager to know,” Heero replied simply but the others could sense an edge of impatience in his voice.

“Who is this slave, your highness?” Howard asked, confused.

“Howard, he is Duo,” Hilde answered him quietly.

“The kid? He’s a slave? How can that be?” the blacksmith asked, bewildered, “tell me it is a joke!”

“It’s true, Howard! I saw him just now! He looks so… so dead! He is not speaking anymore! I can’t believe it’s him till I saw the cross!” Hilde broke into tears again, remembering those violet eyes. They looked so different as they used to.

Howard crossed over to where Hilde was and hugged her, offering her some comfort. Hilde wiped her tears away quickly, knowing that the others were waiting. She had to tell hem what she knew. Maybe they could help Duo. From what she heard, he did not even talk now.

“Well, I guess everyone wants to hear what we have to say about Duo? How about I tell his past you add on to anything I miss?” Hilde gave Howard a smile. She had to get herself together.

“Well, let’s start with the first time I meet Duo, or rather Solo and Duo. Duo was only six years old, I think. They were young and Duo, I think was six when he was there. They had been alone and on the streets for a few years before Father Maxwell found them.” Hilde began as the others listened intently.

“Hi! I am Solo and this is my brother, Duo.”

“Hello! Are you staying here? I am Hilde!”

“Hilde?”

“Yes. Your name is Duo, right?”

“Yes! I run, I hide, but I never lie!”

“They settled in well, taking Maxwell as their last name. Duo was a hyperactive boy. His brother, Solo, and I had to be around him to keep him out of trouble. He was so adorable. He might create some chaos every now and then but Father Maxwell and Sister Helen loved him. He was like my little brother, my family,” Hilde blushed as she thought of how much she wished that she were Solo’s wife when she was young.

“Duo! Where are you? Sister Helen wants you in the study room! It is time for your lesson! Come out now! Stop playing hide-and-seek with me!”

“Boo!”

“Duo Maxwell! You are so dead! How dare you scare me like that!”

“Timid Hilde! Catch me if you can!”

“Stop, Duo! Don’t run away! You need to attend the lessons! Solo is there already!”

“Nope! If you catch me, then I go to the lesson!”

“Get back here!”

“I did ask about their parents and their lives before they got here but Solo did not want to talk about it. He forbids me to ask Duo about it. He just said there was a fire and only the two of them escaped. Duo was too traumatized and could not remember anything. Life went on with Duo getting into trouble. Not on purpose.” Hilde smiled as she thought of all the trouble Duo got on.

“Yeah, that Kid. I would not forget how curious he is. That boy nearly destroyed my place just because he wanted to make a sword when no one was around. He only managed to accidentally let a pile of paper catch fire in the end,” Howard chuckled, “well at least he managed to put out the fire before the whole place’s gone.”

“Kid! What happened? Why is this place half burnt down?”

“I’m sorry, Howard! But I just want to make a sword for Solo! I just put the paper near the stove then there was fire everywhere!”

“Can’t you buy a sword or ask me for one?”

“But isn’t it more sincere if you make it yourself?”

“You just couldn’t find fault with the Kid! He’s just too naïve and curious,” Howard laughed.

“Well, then when I was eleven and Duo was eight, Howard decided to adopt me so I can come here to the palace to work as a maid while he work as a blacksmith. It was the last time I had seen them,” Hilde said sadly.

“I had to go.”

“Really? Don’t go, Hilde! You know you want to be my big sister!”

“I’m sorry, Duo I loved to be your big sister, but I had to go.”

“If you go, then you can’t be Solo’s bride, right?”

“Duo! What are you talking about?”

“I know what I am talking about! Solo! Can’t you tell Hilde to stay? She will stay if you ask! She likes you!”

“Duo!”

“I left, promising that we will keep in contact but everything came to an end when Maxwell church was destroyed.”

“What do you mean? It can’t be! Tell me, Howard! It’s a joke, right?”

“But it’s true, Hilde! I am so sorry but it’s true! Maxwell church’s gone with everyone. Bandits raided the place.”

“Then what about Solo? And Duo?”

“I’m so sorry, Hilde…”

“I thought they were dead so we gave up searching for them. But now, Duo appeared then Solo might be alive?” Hilde asked hopefully as she looked at the others.

“Maxwell church? He’s from Maxwell church?” Heero could not believe his ears. It had been one of the most alarming cases around at that time as more than twenty children were believed to be killed along with the priest.

If he did see all those people he loved died, then… Heero’s thoughts trailed off, no wonder he was so sad…

All of the others listened quietly, trying to digest what they had just known. Silence followed as everyone was lost in his or her thoughts.

“I’m going back,” Heero said abruptly, breaking the silence, “I have things to attend to and Trowa, you know the King will want us to report to him about our slaves.”
Trowa nodded as he looked at Quatre. All of the others also rose as they needed to attend to their duties now.

“Oh, before I forget, whatever said must not be told to others other than Sally. I don’t want people to talk about my slave. Is that understood?” Heero glared.

“Duo! His name is Duo. So I suggest calling him that?” Wufei said immediately.

“Hn,” Heero replied as he turned.

Wufei snickered as he thought aloud, “I wonder how his slave will react to his grunt. How could that be taken as a reply?”

Heero spun around and glared at Wufei again. However, he was asking himself how to communicate with his slave.

“I suggest, dragon, that prince Heero will find a way and keep your comments to yourself useless you want to face the wrath of prince Heero,” Trezie placated.

“Hn,” Heero said simply as he turned to go back his room.

Well, communicating with baka might really be a problem, Heero thought as he walked to his room, well, I’m sure he will understand my grunts as Wufei had put it. Well, at least I hope so.