Surfacing (1?)

Rating: T

Warnings: boy/boy love, some sexual innuendo and nakedness, violence, no empathy, and gratuitous abuse of our G-boys.

Pairings: 3x4, 1x2, 5xS

Summary: Based loosely off of "The Little Mermaid." A prince below the sea, who longs for freedom and choice in his life, and another on land who shuts out the world…when feelings surface, more than one life will be changed.

Note: Part of my mini Disney project…and because the thought of a merman Quatre appeals to me and Dorothy is Ursula without a doubt in my mind.

Disclaimer: Gundam Wing is owned by Sotsu Agency, Bandai, and Sunrise...I have no legal hold over them. Nor do I own anything affiliated with Disney…I'm just borrowing and warping a story they borrowed. I am a mere college girl with no money attempting to entertain herself.

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Chapter One: Once Upon a Time…

Long ago, there lived a king and a queen who wanted nothing more than to have children. Their wishes were made a reality when a daughter was born to them, and then a son three years later…heirs to the vast seaside kingdom of Bartona. The girl grew into a beautiful child, with curly red hair and large bluish-purple eyes, and the son did not differ, although he had a shock of auburn hair that hung over one side of his face and two deep verdant eyes. The people of Bartona lived in peace and prosperity under the king's rule…until tragedy struck and destroyed the lives of four innocents.

The king's distantly related cousin, Dekim, was jealous of the power wielded by his family member…power that he believed should be his own. So, he conspired to rid the lands of Bartona of the royal family…an ambush that attacked the royal carriage when the king took his family out for a mid-afternoon ride one day. The king and queen were brutally slain, and only by sheer luck did the children survive, thanks to both children's prowess with throwing daggers and a routine patrol that got lost on their way back from the woods.

But, even though both the prince and princess were spared, they still lived with the knowledge that their own kin had attempted to kill them, and had killed their parents for little more than wealth and power. A thirteen year old maiden and a ten year old boy forever changed by the horrific events.

As both grew, the princess, Catherine to her people and Cathy to her closest confidantes and family members, grew into a beautiful young woman and grew more compassionate with each passing moment. However, the same could not be said for her brother, the crown prince. True, he did grow up to be a handsome young man, tall and slender, with regal features and those same piercing green eyes, but he grew cold and uncaring. And, while many attempted to change his cold demeanor, he maintained his cool indifference to all but his sister, and his closest friend and arms master, Heero. But, then again, Heero was just as closed off as the prince was.

Cathy tried to open up her little brother again, tried to show him the compassion that was left in humanity, by allowing different suitors, male and female alike, to come and try to woo him…but none prevailed.

And so the years past by in Bartona, the prince growing ever more detached from the world, until his eighteenth birthday…when his entire world was flipped around by a mysterious stranger…

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A thousand miles away, deep below the sea, a young merman sat staring up at the faraway surface with a faraway look on his face. He wasn't supposed to be around the sunken ships, the ones that the 'barbaric humans' sailed around above the sea, but he couldn't help but feel drawn to them…he didn't see how such magnificent vessels, once so proud, could be created by monsters. But, Quatre Raberba Winner, only son of King Rabban, the ruler over all the oceans, didn't always agree with his father ever since he turned sixteen…and this was one of the issues.

He sighed as he looked back down at the ruined ships, narrowing his brilliant teal eyes, eyes that seemed to mirror the ocean itself, at the wreckages before kicking with his similarly colored fins and swimming towards them. What his father didn't know, wouldn't hurt him…he wanted to see what those ships looked like from the inside…

"You know, Quat," a jovial voice said from behind him, causing the blonde prince to whip his head around and glare at his companion. "It would be an awful shame if you got smashed by one of those things…because then I'd be stuck explaining to Sally, and to Wufei, and to your sisters, oh and your FATHER, that their precious prince got smashed on my watch. Awful rude of you to force something like that on me, isn't it?"

Quatre shot his friend a mischievous grin and replied in a smooth tenor that sounded purer than any bells beneath the sea. "Then I guess you'll just have to come with me and make sure nothing happens to poor little me then, won't you?"

"You're a bad influence on me Quatre," the braided merman said with a similar smile, his violet eyes twinkling playfully as he kick his purple fins and swam over towards the blonde merman. His three foot long chestnut braid floated behind him and Quatre swatted at it playfully before swimming towards the ships again, this time with Duo Maxwell, his best friend from childhood, beside him.

"I know…but at least I make life more interesting," Quatre sighed melodramatically, laughing afterwards as Duo shot him an incredulous look.

Duo alone in all of Araaba was the only other merman, or mermaid, who didn't think that humans were barbaric monsters…he was interested in them just like Quatre was, and it made sneaking away to look around at different sunken ships and other sunken human artifacts a lot easier. He had even accompanied Quatre to the surface a few times…it was the sky, so full of clouds that got Duo as well. Sally, the local healer in Araaba and wife to the court mage Wufei, didn't think that humans were bad either…but she didn't share Quatre's interest like Duo did.

The two swam towards the first ship and investigated the inside, slipping their slender forms through a medium opening in the hull, laughing at their own daring and marveling at the once elegant quarters that belonged to one of the humans. They continued in this fashion for another couple ships, until one caught their interest…one that had a slightly inaccurate form of a mermaid on the front. After searching, separately as to cover more ground, Quatre brushed his hand against something cold and smooth…and silver. He grinned and pushed away the fine silt to uncover the silver and pronged device…he was keeping this too. Duo came back with a curve and wooden tool, one that looked like a horn of some kind, and after a bit more exploring on the upper most deck, they both decided to head back.

"Do you have nay idea what this is for?" Duo asked with an inquisitive look on his face as he examined his wooden finding. "Maybe you blow it and it makes music…like a bugle or something…hey Quat, what's wrong?"

"Music…oh no," Quatre murmured with a horrified expression on his face, turning big teal eyes on Duo in a look of absolute despair. "The concert…oh my…"

"Oh shit…that was today!" Duo breathed out through clenched teeth as his own eyes widened considerably at the sudden nastiness that was sure to await them when they got home. "Oh crap, Wufei's going to skewer me with that katana of his!"

"By Allah…my father's going to kill me!" Quatre moaned as the two both took off towards the Araaban palace, swimming as fast as they could…things could not get any worse than they were at the moment.

The annual Seaflower concert was a huge event in Araaba, mainly because it showcased many of the graduating students who learned under Wufei, when he wasn't the court magician at any rate. But, this year, Wufei had planned a rather lengthy composition that showcased every single one of his twenty-nine sisters…and then finally he was supposed to sing at the end. Not only had he disappointed his father by not showing up when he was supposed to, he had just incurred the very fearful wrath of Chang Wufei…nope, the day had definitely taken a deep dive.

"Duo, you were supposed to remind me, damn it!" Quatre hissed as the two began to slow their furious pace down as they entered the back entrance to the palace.

"Well, who the hell entrusted me with that responsibility?"

"Wufei did, Duo!"

"Why couldn't you remember…you WERE the one who was singing, you know."

"Because…oh, I don't know!"

"I don't know indeed…your Highness, Maxwell…it's nice to see you've finally decided to grace us with your presences."

Both mermen froze at the tone, and turned around very slowly to be met with a pair of very upset nearly black, slanted eyes, a pair of eyes that seemed to echo in the new merman's entire powerful body. Yes, Wufei was very upset with them. Wufei, although barely much older than the prince and Duo, was very intimidating when he wanted to be, and had the power to back it up. The red tattoo's that marked out intricate symbols on his arms almost seemed to glow against his saffron skin, and marked him for a powerful mage. Mages, both male and female, were measured in how much power they had by the intricacy and amount of birthmark tattoos…the more intricate and complex, the more powerful the mage.

"Wufei…I…" Quatre began in a truly apologetic tone, only to be cut off by an angry glare sent his way by the black-finned merman.

"Your father wishes to speak with you, Prince Quatre," Wufei said in clipped tones, gesturing with one hand the way for the blonde monarch to follow. "I suggest you don't make him wait any longer than you already have."

Quatre nodded with a neutral expression…he could feel the mage's disappointment like one could sense the temperature of the water, and he knew that his father was going to be ten times worse. He could faintly hear Duo beginning to argue with Wufei behind him as he swam ahead; he had a feeling Duo was criticizing Wufei's choice to have him remind Quatre about the concert solely for his benefit…he smiled briefly to himself at the thought.

He took a deep breath before entering the main chamber, trying to focus on anything but the stark rays of disappointment and anger filtering down on him from the cold stare in his father's brown eyes. His father was an impressive merman to be sure, tall and broad chested with a thick brown tail and fin and a magnificent, enchanted scimitar that recognized him as the High king of the oceans. Quatre didn't look a thing like him, and had really only inherited the man's stubbornness…he took after his mother in almost every way, shape, and form. And it was that reason, Quatre suspected that his father was so protective of him…he was a reminder of his late mother in a way that no picture could provide.

"Quatre," Rabban Winner's deep voice rang out through the chamber as Quatre swam up to eye view…by Allah he was angry. "Do you have any idea how thoroughly you ruined the end of the Seaflower concert? You had a responsibility to your sisters, to Wufei, to me, and you blatantly disregarded all that for what? Tell me what was so important that you couldn't make it for one song and had to embarrass all your sisters and Wufei in front of the entire kingdom of Araaba!"

"I--" Quatre began with a slight shake in his voice at the severity of his father's ire, a shake that he quickly masked as he leveled his teal eyes with brown ones. "I just forgot…I know that's not an excuse but…"

"So, this has nothing to do with you gallivanting off to explore sunken human ships? Ships that I have forbidden you from investigating for your own safety should more of that brutal race come back to collect those horrible fish-killing vessels? And what of the times you have traveled to the surface? Do you think I want to find my only son a victim of one of those harpooning animals?"

"I…how did…they're not barbaric Father," Quatre responded, swimming back a few strokes as his father raised himself and swam forward to tower over him.

"What you happen to believe is not the matter at hand! You deliberately disobeyed me and you continue to do so…how are you supposed to learn how to be a good heir to the Araaban throne and the Scimitar if you refuse to listen to any of my counsel?"

"Well, maybe I don't want to--"

"Not another word! I have had it with your arrogance and your attitude towards humans! You are never to go anywhere near those ships, or to the surface again, am I clear?"

"I…yes Father," Quatre responded with a tight-lipped expression, glaring at his father for a moment before turning around and swimming away towards his quarters, Duo following after a second's hesitation. Rabban heaved a weary sigh and ran a hand over his face as he swam back to his throne, sitting down, unflatteringly, with a grunt.

"I wish I didn't have to be so hard on him, Wufei," the king's tired voice said quietly, addressing his mage and closest advisor. "But he just doesn't listen to anything I tell him! He's much to stubborn to listen to nay reasoning but his own…"

"Sounds like someone else I know," Wufei responded with a slight nod.

"Perhaps…Quaterine used to say the same things he says…about humans and how they aren't dangerous…he's so much like her in some ways, I fear that if I ever lost him, it would be like losing her a second time.

"Wufei, I need you to do me a favor…keep an eye on Quatre and keep him, and that rapscallion Duo as well, from getting into trouble for a little bit…maybe it's just a phase he's going through."

"Sire…I don't think that I'm the right choice for this task," Wufei began, eyes widened in surprise at the king's request.

"You're the closest to their age that I can trust…they listen to you more than anyone else. You're perfect, and I can count on you…now, I have some business to take care of concerning Romefeller and their vile sea witch…" Rabban swam away from his throne to a more personal room, leaving Wufei to sputter indignantly for a few moments before all he was left with was to swim after the rebellious prince and his encouraging best friend. Before he made it to the prince's quarters though, a blonde mermaid with light blue eyes and fins swam in front of him, her arms laden with all sorts of jars and poultices.

"The king put me on baby-sitting duty," Wufei grumbled as he opened the door for his healer wife. "Can you believe the injustice of his decision?"

"Well, he obviously trusts you to watch his son…I anything, I'd say he showing you respect by giving you this job," Sally responded with a quick grin before continuing. "Just, don't go berserk on them when you follow them…there's more to this than just teenage rebellion."

Before Wufei could ask what his enigmatic wife meant, she had pressed a chaste kiss to his lips and departed down another corridor…merfolk needed to learn to stay in one spot and explain themselves before leaving so quickly. Before he could sputter in indignation again though, a flash of teal and purple caught his eyes…looks like the prince was already disobeying his father's wishes…time for the court mage to baby-sit an errant prince. Wufei groaned inwardly and took off silently after the two young mermen. They didn't seem to head off to far from the city, instead they both seemed to be heading towards one of the abandoned grottos just on the outskirts. Wufei was about to wonder what they were doing, when they both seemed to disappear through a small opening, not visible to the naked eye. Wufei followed them inside, but kept himself hidden in the shadows, just listening to their hushed conversation.

"…understand…he doesn't see all the things that I see, or that you see."

"I know Quat…and I feel terrible about the whole concert thing, it was kind of my fault."

"No, it wasn't. I should've remembered…I bet all my sisters want to beat me senseless right now…probably Wufei too."

"Yeah, but your dad shouldn't have blown up like that…you'd think you had blown up a building or something…"

"He just hates anything to do with humans…but, I wish I could just make him see all the amazing things that they make…and maybe he'll see what I see."

"What exactly, Quat?"

"That how can people who make such wonderful things that are so beautiful, be so bad?"

Wufei peeked around the corner and saw the blonde prince and the braided baka seated on the sand…but it was what surrounded them that really made his eyes bulge. Every single space was crammed with strange artifacts that Wufei knew were human objects…it must have taken the two of them years to collect all of this. Before he even knew what he was doing, the mage swam out from his hiding spot and hissed in a low voice, "What's all this?"

"Wufei!" Quatre and Duo exclaimed at the same time, expressions mirroring each other in horror at being discovered.

"How long have you been gathering these items?" Wufei asked in a still surprised tone.

"A few years," Duo answered with a sheepish grin.

"Please don't tell me father, Wufei," Quatre pleaded, using every ounce of innocence his looks allowed him to try and sway the mage in his favor. "Please, he'd never understand all this."

"I'm not sure I understand all this," Wufei muttered, trying to avoid looking at the wide teal eyes.

"We just want to show merfolk that humans aren't all that bad," Duo added in, also widening his violet orbs.

"If I say you can keep this, will you promise to not gather any more items from those damn ships?" Wufei asked in an exasperated tone…he had looked at the eyes. That, and Sally's words from earlier were ringing in his ears; maybe it would be a good idea for merfolk to learn more about humans. Fear of the unknown was dangerous…at the very least they could learn a bit about the enemy.

"Yes, just please don't tell my father about this."

"Fine…"

Quatre's face spilt into a brilliant smile and he gave Wufei a short nod of thanks while Duo hugged him and proclaimed his ever-lasting love for the mage merman. After giving Wufei a short tour of different tools and objects, Duo interjecting what his thoughts each of the items were occasionally, the three decided to head back towards the palace…better to play safe than sorry with Rabban as angry as he was. However, as the three wiggled out of the hidden cave, their attentions were drawn to the surface and the flashing lights and sounds reflected on the water.

"What do you think…" Quatre trailed off before swimming upwards without a second thought.

"Does he always do this?" Wufei asked with a groan as Duo smiled and began to follow.

"Yep…better get used to it Wuffers."

"Maxwell!"

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"Well, isn't this interesting…looks like daddy's little boy doesn't like to cooperate with his father. We could use that pretty little merman…for Araaba's downfall."

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Please do me the favor and review! They are all greatly appreciated! More to come soon!

Osco