NINE:

Two weeks of uneventful travel brought them to the walls of a modest border hold. The craft didn't seem impressed by the city's walls, but Wufei had no memory of any place other than Northhaven Village and was nearly overwhelmed just passing under the wide arch.

He let Nataku navigate them through the crush of people and twisted in his saddle, taking in the sights. In Northhaven Village there were only three two story buildings: the inn, the long house where the council met and where people could come for shelter during hard storms or the unlikely event of an attack, and the mayor's home.

Tregres was rife with two, three, even four story buildings. Wufei craned his neck to see to the top of them, eyes dancing over brightly colored awnings and flitting from window to window. The city even smelled strange- the roads were filled with the scents of cooking meats, strange spices and the press of bodies. There were other smells that were far less pleasant, and altogether they created something that was certainly... unique.

The fire gnome clambered to his shoulder to get a better view of the place, occasionally tugging on Wufei's ear to get his attention and point out some interesting thing or other. Wufei would have been happy to just sit somewhere and watch all of this busy activity happen – he didn't think he'd ever seen so many people move so collectively fast! He wanted to stop and look over the stalls at the goods the merchants were hawking, but had to make do with leaning over the saddle to see under the striped and patched awnings. Some stalls had little trinkets, others cloth, and some foodstuffs – there were even fruit stalls in the middle of winter!

Peering at one interesting stall selling little trinkets and weapons, Wufei nearly lost his seat and was saved only by virtue of Heero's hand fisted in the back of his shirt. He didn't even acknowledge the near spill, but twisted to follow the progress of a group of brightly dressed women. They had their faces covered in veils and the visible parts of their arms were decorated with strange twisting tattoos.

"Careful Wufei," Quatre cautioned with a suppressed smile. "Southern merchants don't take kindly to having their women eyed."

Wufei blushed despite himself and turned resolutely in the saddle to face front.

Zechs pushed ahead of the group and easily lead them through the twisting maze of streets. The crowd seemed unconcerned by the horses and pressed close to them with little care. With the exception of Nataku, who had never been around so many people before, the horses seemed equally unconcerned with them and gently pushed through the clog of bodies or stopped when they needed to.

They finally arrived at an inn and Nataku pranced into the empty courtyard, muscles twitching irritably. He shook his head like he wanted to throw the experience off altogether. Wufei patted him consolingly and Nataku snorted, curving his long neck into the caress.

The rest of the craft was already dismounting and stripping their tack before Zechs even returned from his haggling with the innkeeper. Wufei pursed his lips and glared at them in a sort of envious irritation. It was almost annoying how well they anticipated each other. It was moments like this that he felt the most like an outsider looking in on something he shouldn't see. He turned away from them and slid out of the now well-worn saddle. Nataku held obediently still while Wufei worked the buckles out and checked over the patched leather.

"We'll stay here for a few days," Zechs announced. It was almost an afterthought and Wufei got the impression – as he often did- that Zechs was speaking for his benefit alone, that everyone else already knew somehow. He clenched his teeth against the surge of irritation, and marveled again at how only two weeks of being "free" had loosened his grip on his emotions. It was disconcerting to him in a way that he couldn't define.

Manipulate it. He closed his eyes and remembered the warmth spreading through his bones, remembered the anger, the hate, the lust-

"Wufei?"

Wufei started, and the remembered sensation fled. He looked up sideways at Zechs. He said nothing, but he still wasn't accustomed to speaking and they seemed to understand that.

Zechs reached over Wufei's shoulder to finger one of the replaced straps on Wufei's saddle. "Would you like to have this repaired? Tregres is not large, but surely large enough to boast a leatherworker."

Wufei stiffened and looked critically over the leather. It wasn't pretty, but he felt that personally he'd done an admirable job of repairing the saddle!

As if he'd read his mind, Zechs continued, "You've done an excellent job with it, but I thought you might like to have it restored to its original color at least."

Privately, Wufei thought it was unlikely that any leatherworker would be able to that. At least no leatherworker here. Lurikan leatherworkers were the best in the world, with their secret techniques. At least, that's what his father had always taught him. He finally shrugged, and Zechs seemed to take it as assent.

"Why don't you and Quatre go explore the holding a little?" the spirit Talent suggested.

To that, at least, Wufei could easily agree. He hurriedly pulled the saddle off and set it at his feet, retrieved a curry comb from a saddle bag and started brushing the giant down. He was so intent on completing the task that he didn't notice Trowa behind him until the taller man's hand covered his own. Trowa's calloused hand was strong and warm. Wufei found himself almost entranced by it and starred intently at those long fingers. His fingers were almost delicate and it was a pointed contradiction to the rest of him.

"I can finish this for you," Trowa told him softly.

The man's voice had a strange quality to it, almost like he was singing even while speaking. It felt rich and like it should be deeper than his pleasant baritone. Wufei shivered slightly and yanked his hand out from under the earth Talent's. Behind him, Trowa's entire body stiffened in a sort of wince and Wufei wondered if he'd accidentally hurt him. He peered at his own hands – small, rough, scarred hands with nails filed short. They didn't seem like hands that could hurt anyone. They were weak hands, slave's hands.

He clenched them into fists and held them stiffly to his sides.

"Nataku is mine," he whispered finally. "I have always cared for him."

"I don't mind," Trowa reassured him softly. The muscles of his forearm rippled beneath his skin as he pulled the comb down Nataku's flank. The horse leaned into him in unmistakable pleasure and Wufei glared at the warsteed. Since Nataku seemed to have no complaints about being groomed by the much taller and much stronger earth Talent, Wufei couldn't find a valid excuse to take exception. He nodded stiffly and eased out of the small space he'd been trapped in by the horse's bulk and Trowa's hard body.

The earth Talent's neck was curved and his eyes were fixed on Nataku's shinning black coat. Trowa's back was straight, his shoulders stiff and Wufei felt an irrational desire to apologize. Quatre broke the tension of the moment by grabbing his arm and pulling him back a few paces.

"Come on!" the exuberant Talent urged. "It's going to get dark soon!"

"...It's morning," Wufei argued, his brows furrowed.

"Which only gives us another six or seven good hours of daylight!"

Wufei felt his eyes widen in a sort of horror and suddenly wondered if he really wanted to go out "exploring" with the spritely blond. On Quatre's shoulder, the wind serpent seemed equally excited and the fire gnome rose to his tippy toes and reached up to grab Wufei's hand.

It would appear that I am out-numbered, Wufei thought peevishly. He sighed and made a show of kneeling down to adjust the ties on his boot while the gnome jumped excitedly to his shoulder.

"Ready?" Quatre asked, eyes glittering.

Wufei nodded stoically and wondered what he was getting himself into.

As it turned out, 'exploration' included a purse, and Wufei stared in wide-eyed terror at the whirlwind that was Quatre Rubarba Winner. The air Talent flitted from stall-to-stall, cataloging what each vendor was selling and occasionally stopping to haggle. This he did unnervingly well and Wufei felt that Quatre's strangely adept shrewdness was at odds with his normally cheerful disposition. Wufei was quickly loaded down with a large canvas backpack and his arms were draped with all manner of bags. Most were supplies – fresh and dried foodstuffs that they would definitely need for the long trek through the mountains.

"Normally we would have to hunt along the Stretch," Quatre told him when they stopped for a break in a shaded sitting area. He was going through their bags and mumbling to himself as he checked off items on a mental list. "But we have the cart, so we'll be able to take a lot more supplies. We can probably make it to Nor without a problem, though we'll be on dried stuff for the last run..."

A brightly clad serving girl approached them and Quatre beamed at her. She had caramel-colored skin, and inky black hair that curled tightly as it fell down her back. Her eyes were a deep chocolate and her skin was decorated with blue tattoos in a swirling flower pattern. Wufei was surprised to note that even her face was adorned with the blue ink.

"Can I bring you something?" she asked in an unfamiliar accent.

Wufei found himself entranced by her strange coloring and he watched her intently as she talked with Quatre.

"And what about for your friend?" she asked after a minute. Her hips tipped slightly and her full lips curled upwards into a strange smile that made Wufei nervous for some reason. "What would you like, hm?" She took a step closer to him and leaned down to hear him better. Her sudden proximity made Wufei back up quickly. She smelled of spice and cooking smoke and her blouse had come open to show the swells of her breasts. At that angle, he could clearly see the dark areola surrounding her nipples. His face flushed bright red and he ducked his head so his hair fell forward to shield him from the sight.

Wufei thought that it would be kind of him to let her know that the ties had slipped out, but he didn't know how to say it without embarrassing her – or himself. He floundered, uncomfortably aware of how hot his cheeks felt.

"Anything at all?" she pressed, her voice a smoky whisper.

"How about some fruit juice?" Quatre suggested, getting her attention again. He looked at Wufei questioningly and the exotic nodded quickly. Quatre smiled and looked back up at the serving girl. She straightened to pay attention to the blond once more. "Maybe something light to eat as well...I see that you're serving flat bread; we'll take some of that. Do you have hummus?"

"Yes," she affirmed, voice pouting a little "I will be right out with that." She looked back to Wufei. "Let me know if you need anything, hm?"

"Thank you, miss," Quatre responded politely.

Wufei stared at his lap until he was sure that she was gone. "Should we tell her that her blouse is undone?" he asked after a minute, cheeks still burning.

Quatre laughed softly. "I'm pretty sure she knows."

"Oh," was all he could think of.

Quatre kept up a pleasant stream of chatter while they waited for their order. The air Talent had an amazing way with words. The conversation sounded and felt completely natural and comfortable, even though Wufei didn't respond – Quatre didn't seem to expect or need him to. It kept the atmosphere from getting awkward and gave Wufei time to gather himself back up. He wondered why the serving girl made him so uncomfortable, but didn't ponder it too much.

When their order arrived, Wufei staunchly did not look up and Quatre sent the serving girl away with a bright, "Thank you, miss."

The dark golden fruit juice came in two tall slender glasses and a shallow dish with yellow paste sat between them. "The juice is best chilled," Quatre announced. He held one hand over Wufei's glass. The air around it shimmered briefly and the temperature around the table plummeted. Wufei shivered and wrapped his arms around himself. Tregres was at the bottom of a steep valley and the air was quite a lot warmer than the frigid mountainous region where the founders of Northhaven Village had decided to carve out a home. Wufei was enjoying the warmth and found himself a little annoying at the sudden chill.

His annoyance abated gradually once the cold air dissipated. He curled into the stripe of sunlight filtering through a tear in the awning and let it warm his back and neck.

"Try it," Quatre urged, picking up his own glass and taking a judicious sip. "Amazing that lurikoa can grow this far north." He looked at the glass with a satisfied smile.

Wufei took a cautious sip from the tall glass. The juice was cool and a pleasant combination of sweet and tart. He'd never tasted anything like it; it was amazing! He took another sip and let it sit on his tongue, enjoying the smooth, almost creamy flavor.

"Try the hummus," Quatre invited. He tore off a piece of the funny flat bread next to it and swirled it through the yellow paste.

Wufei was a little less sure of this one and eyed Quatre suspiciously while the man popped the bread into his mouth. Quatre considered the taste for a minute and finally nodded.

"Not bad." He took another piece of bread and let Wufei consider the odd paste while he munched on it happily.

Wufei finally picked up a piece of the bread and sniffed it once before dipping it into the bowl. He took a careful taste and found that it was... pleasant. He took another piece of bread and scooped up more. This time he held it casually close to the table so the gnome could grab some of it. He chewed it slowly while his friend examined and smelled the little bit on his fingertip. The gnome finally shrugged and popped his whole finger into his mouth. He pulled it back out just as quickly and made a face. He glared up at Wufei in accusation and wiped his hand vigorously on his patched pants.

Wufei smiled at his antics and took another drink of his juice.

"Do you like it?" Quatre asked.

Wufei was a little startled by his voice; he'd almost forgotten Quatre was there. "Yes," he answered with a nod. His hair fell over his face and he didn't bother to push it back.

"You should really tie your hair back," Quatre suggested after a brief silence. "You have such a nice smile and we never get to see it."

His comment was greeted with undefined agitation. Wufei finally just shrugged, but didn't move his hair away from his face.

Quatre paid for their snack and left the serving girl a tip. He picked up some of the bags Wufei had been carrying previously and they moved out of the shade of the awning at a more sedate pace.

"I am going to enjoy that bed tonight!" Quatre announced, stretching.

Wufei didn't mind sleeping on the ground. It was usually more comfortable than the cracked stone hearth in the kitchen. And with the fire smoldering in front of him and Trowa pressed against his back, he was definitely warmer. After the first couple nights, he'd given up trying to stay away from the earth Talent, and decided that Trowa was probably being drawn to his warmth in the night. He would probably never admit it, but it was nice to wake up that way once he'd gotten used to it. With that in mind, he was actually a little disappointed to be sleeping by himself, even if he did get the luxury of a bed.

"But first!" Quatre turned resolutely to one of the shops lining the street. "You need clothes!" He announced when he was half way through the door.

Wufei froze in the middle of the street and the man walking behind him ran into him with a muffled curse. Wufei stumbled forward and the fire gnome raised his fists and screamed silently at the man, who merely glared and continued on his errands. Being ignored irritated the fire gnome more than almost anything, even though he knew that no one else could see him. His ears and beard smoked as his temper heated up.

"Come on," Quatre urged from the doorway.

Wufei shifted his weight from one foot to the other and considered refusing. Could he find his way back to the inn by himself? He turned and looked around, hoping to see a familiar land mark that would lead him back to the relative safety of the inn.

Unfortunately, all the buildings looked exactly the same to him. Did he recognize that green door...? He peered at it carefully and thought about how many green doors there could be in one town...

Quatre beckoned to him again, and he reluctantly followed the blond inside.

The interior of the shop was dark and cool. Light streamed down from slivers cut high in the wall and provided occasional splashes of color. The store front was very small – most of the building was probably a work room and only a few shelves and tables were out on display.

The merchant – and old man with leathery skin and big hands- looked up from the front desk and greeted them with a smile.

"Common?" Quatre asked.

"Yes, yes!" The man nodded emphatically. Despite his assurances that he spoke the language, it became quickly apparent that he didn't understand a word Quatre was saying. From the wide selection of things Quatre was listing off, Wufei was perfectly happy that the merchant didn't understand.

When Quatre resorted to thumbing through piles of clothing, Wufei sighed and stepped up to the man. He cleared his throat to get the merchant's attention and translated Quatre's initial questions into Eustacian. Quatre gave him a startled look, but didn't say anything. Instead, he returned to the counter and started firing off his original line of requests – shirts, pants, vests and undergarments in black, white and red. Wufei gave the man an unhappy look as he dutifully translated all of this and the merchant happily disappeared into his work room.

"/Here we are!/" the tailor announced, reappearing with a stack of clothing in his arms. "/I made these for a merchant's son and he never came back to collect them. They should fit!/"

Quatre waited for Wufei to translate, and once he had, merrily began sorting through the clothing, humming as he went.

"/Not many around here want colors like this for young kids,/" the tailor explained. "/You're lucky – I was just about to cut them up and see what else I could do with them!/"

Not so lucky, Wufei thought moodily, equally irritated that he likely fit into a child's clothing.

"/You speak very well, you know. I wouldn't have thought,/" the tailor said conversationally.

Wufei decided not to answer him and the man shrugged, not seeming offended.

"These are great!" Quatre said, beaming as he held up a bright red shirt with black lacing at the collar. "What about leggings?"

Wufei stamped one foot. "No," he said shortly. He didn't get the impression that he had a lot of choice in the clothing, but he had to draw the line somewhere.

"Socks?" Quatre amended.

Wufei nodded stiffly and translated to the curious merchant. The tailor snapped his fingers and made his way around the front counter again. Quatre continued going through the pile, occasionally holding things up against Wufei's body to check the size.

"They will probably be a little bit long in the leg, and a little small on top, but they should do nicely. I was worried we were going to have to order something. You're my lucky charm, Wufei!"

The tailor backed out of the workroom with a basket between his corded arms. He explained that his wife and daughters had knitted the woolen stockings, which Wufei dutifully translated, and Quatre praised with easy grace.

Quatre picked out three pairs of pants, five shirts, two vests and a heavy cloak, and patted the stack with an unduly pleased look on his face. He thrust a neatly folded stack of clothing into Wufei's arms and resolutely pushed him to the small curtained-off corner to change, despite the exotic's protests.

Quatre stood at the counter with the tailor and tried to remember his Eustacian lessons. He managed a few stilted phrases. The merchant was polite and listened to him very carefully. He answered back in his best Common and they managed to exchange a few pleasantries.

~Our little fire keeps catching me off guard,~ he conveyed to the craft. ~For all that the man hardly ever speaks, he speaks flawless Eustacian.~

~Northhaven is a common stop-over for merchants. I'm sure every one of them who came through town stopped at the inn. He probably at least understands several languages.~ Zechs reasoned.

~Seems a little unlikely that any merchant would have stayed long enough to teach him the whole language,~ Quatre argued.

~Northhaven Village is in former Eustacia,~ Heero pointed out, ever logical.

~It's also a colony of the Empire, isn't it? I didn't hear anyone speaking Eustacian, did you? Oh! He's coming out! Do you want to see?~ Quatre asked mischievously. Heero gave him the mental equivalent of an eye roll and a turned-back, but Quatre could feel the curiosity leaking through his links and stiffed a giggle. He closed his eyes when he felt Zechs gently tapping into them. Getting sight-jacked wasn't a comfortable feeling, but he was growing used to it, at least from Zechs. He waited until the vertigo passed and then opened his eyes.

The room swam a little and colors were brighter than normal thanks to Zechs' influence. Thankfully, the room was already dark so the brightness wasn't overpowering like it might have been outside. Wufei was still hesitating with his hand on the curtain and Quatre waited excitedly for him to make up his mind.

Wufei dropped the pile of clothing on the bench and glared at them. The fire gnome clambered onto the bench and patted them appreciatively, like a kid petting a cat. Wufei rolled his eyes and angrily tugged his shirt over his head. He was uncomfortable with being dressed up like a life-sized doll and didn't like the implications. A tiny voice in the back of his head admitted that he was also uncomfortable with being given things – in his experience absolutely nothing came without strings attached. Generally, he didn't like what was on the other end of those strings.

Sighing, he pulled the clothing on. It was the dark red shirt with the black lacings. It fit tight across his chest, but was long in the sleeves. And... was that lace on the cuff? He quickly rolled the cuff up and yanked on the soft hide pants. They were dyed black and would probably turn his legs purple by the end of the day. The dark vest fit well over the shirt and he looked down at himself in general disapproval. There was no reason that a man of nearly twenty-one winters should fit into children's clothing.

As he sat down to lace his boots back up, he could hear Quatre making slow conversation with the merchant. The gnome seemed to approve of his new clothing and pointed out that they matched. He grabbed onto Wufei's shirt and held his own arm against it. He nodded sagely, his caterpillar-like eyebrows wiggling at the clever comparison. The gnome's dirty shirt was, in fact, only a few shades darker than his bright red skin. Wufei had never been unkind enough to point out that it was a rather garish clash in colors. He was almost feeling uncharitable enough to do so just then, except that Quatre would hear him and the gnome would probably get mad enough to burn something.

He hesitated at the door, feeling vulnerable and visible in the bright color. His hand curled around the tattered curtain and stayed there, slowly tightening in the thin fabric.

"You can come out," Quatre offered after a minute of silence.

Wufei took a deep breath and pulled the curtain back. He kept his head bowed and refused to look up at either the tailor or the air Talent. Quatre pulled him forward a couple steps and walked around him.

"We'll take them!" Quatre announced. He haltingly tried to explain it to the tailor in Eustacian, but could only remember the word for 'yes.' The man seemed to get the point and Wufei was just as happy that he didn't have to translate it.

Despite his furious bargaining in the open-air market, Quatre over paid the merchant by more than half and walked out of the store with the stack of clothing and a smile on his face.

"We'll have to get boots tomorrow," Quatre announced as they walked back out into the fading sunlight.

As they made their way back to the inn, Wufei could feel eyes on him, sending little shivers up the back of his neck. He cursed the bright red shirt and wondered why it had to be red.