Love in Chains

By DragonMage

Notes: Hey people! *grin* I just thought I'd start on my second GW fic...

Chapter 1

"Does anybody have any idea how degrading this is?" Duo Maxwell demanded of those around him.

Quatre Raberba Winner stared at the loud mouth, braided boy and smiled slightly. "Duo, I don't think you want to anger them."

"Like hell I do!" Duo spat. "Sold into slavery! Me!" He shook his head in disgust. "I was only going on a nice vacation to the Americas. Then the damned ship gets ambushed by pirates and look where I am now!"

"On a slave wagon to China," Quatre said, looking thoughtful. He himself had almost ended up the same way. He had been out doing some business for his father when his ship was also attacked and he was taken into slavery. It turned out they actually thought him handsome enough to sell to some rich woman who wanted beautiful slaves but he managed to escape the bargain. He didn't like the way the woman was looking at him. Quatre smiled inwardly at the thought. *If I liked women in the first place!* He had seen the harem his father kept and he just could bring himself to desire any of the women there. He liked the men though.

"On a slave wagon!" Duo repeated. "I'm a damned Englishman and now I'm on a slave wagon. Degrading! A mockery on my honor and status in this world!"

Quatre tried not to laugh as he remembered what little the braided boy had told him about his past. "Duo, you're a street boy who steals. You only managed to get on that ship because you snuck on."

"Yeah, and now look where I am!" Duo snorted and rested against the side of the wagon. The metal chains were starting to bite into his wrists and ankles. "My hair needs a good wash and I smell."

"You sound like a woman," a dry voice said from Quatre's right.

"Oh come on, Trowa! Leave me alone," Duo sighed.

Trowa Barton smiled slightly and shook his head. They had no idea how the boy ended up in slavery with them but somehow it had happened. He wouldn't tell though, or it could be the fact that he couldn't remember. He had a nasty bump when he was thrown into the wagon with them and had only woken up a few hours ago.

"He's right though," Quatre sighed. "I would like a decent shower. My sisters say that a boy doesn't give a damn for his hygiene but I do."

"See! I'm not the only one," Duo pointed out triumphantly. He truthfully was tired and just wanted to give a good bath before going to sleep. But he had been in the wagon for days now and they were getting closer and closer to their destination. Duo had heard of people being sold into slavery but he just couldn't believe it. He hadn't expected himself to be sold into slavery.

"Why don't we rest and try to save our energy?" Quatre suggested.

"My limbs feel like rubber. I need to get out and exercise," Duo complained.

"Look, it's gonna be a bit hard having to deal with our new master so I think it's best we rest and be prepared for anything. Our master can either be a good guy or he could..." Quatre swallowed hard. "He could be some demented sadist for all we know."

Duo paled considerably. Trowa only looked grim.

They all looked at each other and fell silent.

~*~

"Meiren! What do you want now?" Chang Wufei demanded of his sister. He had been drawing when his sister snuck up on him and scared the daylights out of him with her war cry.

"Your new slaves have arrived, Lord Chang. Unless you want me to pick out females again I suggest you get your butt off that chair and come with me," Chang Meiren said with a considerable amount of amusement. She looked just like her twin brother even though she was a girl and he was a boy. She had her hair tied back in two pony tails and wore a blue and gold Chinese dress with a sword hanging loosely from her left hand.

Wufei sighed and stared at his painting. He had been working on it for days and still he wasn't finished. He always had some kind of business or distraction to take him away from his art.

"All right. I don't want anymore women than we have already. We do need men to work here you know," Wufei grumbled as he capped his paints and cleaned his brush.

"I know," Meiren said, grinning at her brother. "It's just that it's funnier have women running around driving you up a wall."

Wufei shook his head and washed his hands. "You're such a pain sometimes, Meiren."

"I know. I live to be a pain," Meiren laughed as she grabbed her brother's hand and began to tug him in the direction of the main hall. "I saw some really good looking men that'll interest you."

"Don't you always? And we always end up getting more women then men," Wufei said with a roll of his eyes as he followed his sister.

"That's because you never put in your own opinion."

"That's because I hate slavery."

Meiren sighed. "Wufei, you know perfectly well that we need these slaves. If we don't have them we'll lose money. It's part of our economy you know."

"Yes, I know," Wufei sighed. "I still don't like it."

"That's why not one single slave of yours has ever been beaten, huh?"

"Exactly."

"Wufei, you're such a softy," Meiren chuckled.

Wufei merely sighed and continued to walk.

They reached the main hall and walked out to the main court where all the slaves were being brought out of the wagon and made to kneel in front of them. Wufei felt a pang of sorrow when he saw what kind of condition they were all in. He hated this but his sister was right. They needed these slaves to work for them. He tried his best to keep them fed and clothed and healthy but that was nothing compared to your own freedom. He hated it all very much.

"Which one will it be now, Lord Chang?" The slave-trader asked.

Wufei glanced over to his sister who was already taking in every single slave and singling him or her out.

"Come on, Mei," Wufei said as he gestured to his twin. Meiren nodded and they walked down the line. Meiren picked out a few slaves and Wufei approved of them. They were in the middle when Wufei caught sight of a very beautiful young man with long brown hair in a messy braid. You couldn't mistake him for a girl, he was too well built and his face was hard, not soft and delicate like a woman's. Next to the braided boy was a golden haired angel. He had such innocence that Wufei's heart went out to him.

"Wufei! Aren't you going to pick any?" Meiren demanded impatiently.

Wufei nodded absently. He pointed at the braided boy, the angel...and the one with the green eyes. All three of them intrigued him.

"Good choice," Meiren said with a good deal of approval. "Those will do nicely."

They continued down the line.

~*~

Duo wanted to spit in the face of the young Chinese noble who had pointed him, Quatre and Trowa out. It looked like the girl next to him was in charge since she talked a great deal but Duo could see that it was the young Chinese nobleman who had the power. He held an air of authority and power around him. His face was totally expressionless when he picked them out and Duo hated it. He couldn't determine whether or not their "master" would be an ass hole or a decent guy.

He glanced over to Quatre who was looking pretty nervous and Trowa who--as always--looked indifferent.

Quatre looked at Duo with wide sea blue eyes. "What do you think, Duo?"

"I have no idea."

Quatre bit his lip and tried not to look afraid.

~*~

"New slaves, Wufei?" Heero Yuy asked later that day.

Wufei looked up from his papers and nodded. "Yes. They came in this morning. Have you seen them yet?"

"Yes, I have," Heero said, nodding. "Good choices. Especially three of them. One had a braid, another had the face of an angel and the third one had the most interesting green eyes."

Wufei smiled at his best friend. "You noticed that too, huh?"

Heero smiled slightly and nodded.

"Yeah, Meiren is getting them settled in right now."

Heero snorted. "Aren't you afraid of what she might do to them?"

"Besides talk their ear off, I don't know," Wufei laughed.

Both friends grinned at each other. Wufei had met Heero one day while on a hunt on his land. He had accidentally shot the poor Japanese boy down with his arrow. He regretted it immediately and took him back to his home to be nursed back to health. When Heero had been strong enough to talk, he told Wufei the reason why he was so far away from Japan. He had ran away to escape his father whom he hated. They became good foods immediately and Heero worked with Wufei in the business.

"Why don't we go check up on them?" Heero suggested.

"Why not? I have nothing else better to do," Wufei agreed as he capped his brush pen and followed Heero to the slave quarters.

~*~

"There, all settled. Now, these are your tasks," Meiren said in English, since it looked like it was the only language they understood, as she pulled out a sheet of paper with Chinese on it. She looked at the list and wetted a brush with her tongue and began to write. "Lord Chang needs a new man-servant since the last one got too old..." She looked up and spotted the braided boy her brother seemd to like so much. "You!"

Duo snapped his head up and narrowed his eyes slightly at the Chinese girl. "What?"

"You'll be the new man-servant for Lord Chang," Meiren said, making notes on her paper. She looked at Quatre. "What can you do?"

"I-I'm not sure," Quatre stuttered.

Meiren thought about it for a moment. *Zechs does need help in the kitchen. I think that's perfect. And he looks smart enough to catch on.*

"All right, you'll work with the chef of this place," Meiren told him. She made more marks. Then she looked over to the last boy, the one with the green eyes. "What can you do?"

"Anything," Trowa replied.

"Kinda vague, don't you think?" Meiren said, just a bit annoyed. "All right, you can take care of the garden. We do need more help there."

Trowa merely shrugged.

Meiren was making the last notes when her brother and his best friend Heero Yuy appeared.

"What are you two doing down here?" Meiren asked as she smiled at them. She liked Heero even though he did seem a bit cold sometimes, but he was a good friend for her brother.

"Just checking on the slaves and making sure you don't terrorize them," Wufei joked.

Meiren rolled her eyes.

Duo glanced over to Quatre with confused violet eyes. "Hey, Quatre, are masters suppose to act like this?"

Quatre looked over to Duo and shrugged looking baffled. "I really have no idea. They seem pretty nice, don't they?"

"Yeah," Duo agreed, glancing over to Lord Chang who was joking with his sister and the other guy. He looked Japanese.

Heero glanced over to the slaves and caught his breath. The one with the green eyes was looking at them with the most...mysterious look. He didn't reveal anything in his eyes or in his body language. *He's beautiful. His eyes are...mesmerizing,* Heero realized as he stared at the new slave. He looked over to Wufei. *I wonder if Wufei will let me keep him if I wanted him. Probably. He really has a thing against slavery.*

Trowa forced himself to breathe when the Japanese looked away. He had to keep himself impassive when the teen looked at him and it was pretty difficult. He had such a look that stopped Trowa's thinking completely. He really had no idea what had happened but something did happen. He felt like he was on fire.

"That one is going to be your new man-servant so you might as well take him," Meiren told Wufei as she gestured over to the braided boy. "Get him cleaned up and stuff."

Wufei nodded and looked over to the one with the violet colored eyes. He truly was beautiful with his long limbs and strong body. His face was one that was meant to enjoy life, it was beautiful when he was happy and cold when he wasn't. His smooth skin was smeared with dirt and sweat and he looked tired. *I might as well get him cleaned up now. Poor kid. He's probably the same age as me.* Again, Wufei hated himself for being involved in the slave trade.

"Well, I'm gonna finish this up and get everyone settled in," Meiren announced. "You get your slave and skip outta here. I'm not gonna deal with him. I might "terrorize" him." She snorted and began to give orders to the slaves.

Wufei rolled his eyes at Heero who snorted and followed him as they walked over to the three who seemed to be friends.

"Hello," Wufei said, nodding at them. "I'm Lord Chang Wufei." He nodded at Heero. "And this is my friend and partner Heero Yuy."

They all just stared at them coldly.

"This is gonna be hard," Heero remarked in Cantonese.

"Heero," Wufei groaned. He looked at the violet colored boy. His hands were curled up in fists. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm merely introducing myself and my friend. What's all of your names?"

"Quatre Raberba Winner," the golden haired boy said, bowing slightly.

Wufei smiled warmly at him. "It's nice to meet you."

"You're a slave master?" The braided boy demanded.

"Duo!" Quatre reprimanded.

"My sister is more of the slave master. I try not to be when I can," Wufei told him honestly. "Come, you are to be my new manservant. I need to show you around and tell you what is expected."

Duo nodded stonily, still regarding Wufei suspiciously.

"Come on, now! To work!" Meiren shouted over to them.

"Don't mind her. She just likes to talk a lot," Heero told them.

"I heard that!"

Heero and Wufei grinned mischievously at each other. Wufei looked at Duo and nodded at him. "Come."

"I'm gonna follow the green eyed one," Heero whispered to Wufei.

Wufei looked at his friend and laughed. "Have fun." Of course none of the other slaves knew what Wufei said but a lot of them could take a pretty good guess.

"I'll try," Heero told him, grinning as he walked over to the silent boy and tried to strike up a conversation.

Duo stayed a good distance away from his new master as they walked into a fancy building and through several different halls. The place was decorated nicely and very expensively as well. Chinese servants and slaves bowed as Wufei passed.

"What's your name?" Wufei asked.

"Duo Maxwell."

"You're from England?"

"Yes."

Wufei nodded as he pushed open a door to a very large room. "This is my sleeping quarters. I liked to keep my slaves close so you'll also be sleeping in here. I'm always busy and I'm going to need your help. Will you cooperate with me?"

Duo just shrugged indifferently.

Wufei sighed. "All right, here are your responsibilities..."

~*~

When Wufei was finally finished Duo's head was spinning.

"All of that is expected from me?" Duo demanded incredulously.

"Yes," Wufei said a bit sheepishly.

Duo just glared at him.

"Look, I'm trying to be nice and reasonable. You can at least make this easier on me."

"I'm not going to."

Wufei sighed. *Wonderful. I get a new slave and he's not going to cooperate! Of all things!* "All right. Well, a bath is behind that screen. Your clothing has already been laid out." Wufei turned and left the room, closing the door behind him.

~*~

Duo stood there, looking seriously annoyed and harassed. But then he took a good look around the room, something he hadn't been able to do while Lord Chang was giving him orders and gaped. *He wants me to live here?? Damn! This place is better than any kind of joint I've lived in![1]*

He walked over to the screen and sure enough, he found a bath there. Taking a good look around the room and making sure the windows were closed, Duo stripped off his sticky clothing and took a long bath. He washed his hair thoroughly free of the grease it had developed over the days of not washing it and scrubbed every part of his body. He was so tired and his muscles were tense but now the water just made it all better. *Nothing like a good bath to make you feel better,* he thought dreamily as he washed the last of the soap out of his hair. The soap smelled like nothing he had ever smelled before. He just couldn't put his finger on it...

The door clicked open.

Duo paled. *Oh damnation! Someone's in here!* He sat still as he willed the person away. He was still in the bath and someone had the gall to come in! He conveniently forgot that this place wasn't his own.

"Duo, are you--" Wufei turned pale before he turned red as he whirled around, his back to a VERY naked Duo. "I-I'm so sorry! I thought you'd be done by now!" He closed his eyes and prayed to the gods to just open the earth up and swallow him. He couldn't believe he just walked into Duo still bathing! Gods, he didn't think he'd ever forget the sight of Duo naked...

"My hair takes some t-time," Duo stammered. He had never been so embarrassed in his whole life! "It's all right."

"Yes, well, I just wanted to get you settled in. I'll come and get you in another half hour." With that said Wufei fled the room.

Duo closed his eyes and sunk lower into the bath...

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*tries really hard to disappear* So? What do you guys think? Is it good; is it bad?

[1] Okay, some of the language in here might not match the time setting...