Part Two

Heero pulled his collar up to block the biting cold that his thin jacket could not quite insulate him from the cold. For the millionth time, he wished he was with Relena, her soft skin against his...

Shaking his head, he banished the thought from his mind. She was his weakness, his one soft spot, and he wasn't going to indulge his fantasies. He'd stepped too far that night six months ago and despite his promise, he knew he shouldn't go back to her. They each had a job to do and getting involved would only complicate matters too important to complicate anymore than they already were.

But his heart ached.

In all his life, he'd never felt a loneliness so extreme, a yearning so painful. He'd done nothing but fight his entire life, even after the war. He moved from place to place, helping whoever he could. He was the mysterious stranger that appeared into people's lives and disappeared just as mysteriously. He was a nameless, faceless soldier. Just what he wanted.

Until he saw Relena again.

Heero stopped in his tracks and looked up. Too many times, he'd found himself in front of Relena's home, his gaze on the light at her window. In his mind's eye, he could see her getting ready for bed, her long blonde hair shining in the lamplight. What he could see was her shadow passing in front of the window once a while. Vaguely, he thought about it being a security risk, but realized the windows were probably bullet-proof.

His heart ached.

Before he could run upstairs to see her again, Heero started to turn away when he caught sight of her out of the corner of his eye. And what he saw made him stop dead in his tracks.

Because unless the light was playing tricks on him, his Relena was pregnant.

Five months earlier....

Hilde's grin was wide when she greeted Relena at the door. She was still the same petite dark haired woman that Duo married, but with a newly added glow that came with having their first child. She ushered Relena in, talking a mile a minute about how her baby daughter, Ellie was getting so big. The little baby was nearly three months old and reminded Relena of a dark-haired cherub.

Duo was leaning over the crib with his elbows propped up on the rails, his chin in his hands, when the two women entered. Trowa was standing opposite him, gazing down at the baby with wistful eyes. Quatre was positioned before the bookcase, his hands clasped behind his back, as he surveyed the storybook collection Ellie had. They all turned when they heard Hilde talking and they greeted Relena with the same enthusiasm she had.

"Take off your coat, Relena," Duo said cheerfully. "Make yourself at home."

"I'm glad you came," Quatre said in his gentle way. "You work so hard and we hardly ever see you."

"I know," Relena said with a smile. "But I managed to..."

Whatever she managed to do was forgetten when a wave of dizzyness hit Relena with the power of a tidalwave and she teetered. Trowa caught her just as she was about to fall, and her blue eyes drifted shut. Moving quickly, Quatre took off her coat as Duo ran for some water. He came back in a moment later, a glass in his hand. He stood at the doorway, puzzled, when he saw that the others looked surprised as they surrounded Relena.

"What?" he asked.

"I think...I think she's pregnant," Quatre said hesitantly, eyeing Relena's slightly rounded abdomen.

"WHAT?" Duo exclaimed. "How...who...when...?"

"My sentiments exactly," Trowa remarked. "I wish she'd told us."

Duo knelt by her head and sprinkled water on her face though he longed to pour the whole glass on her. Relena stirred and sat up, Trowa still supporting her. She had the grace to look guilty when they pinned her with accusing stares.

"Surprise," she said weakly.

"How long?" Hilde asked.

"Three months," she answered, refusing to make eye contact. "I'm actually on maternity leave although only myself and few aides know. To everyone else I'm on a sabbatical."

"Who's the father?" Quatre questioned.

"Heero," Duo and Relena said in unison.

"That's right. You've seen him," Trowa said.

"Too much of him, I'd say," Duo commented. "What are you going to do?"

"Keep the baby."

"What are you going to tell everyone?"

"That it's my baby and I'm keeping it," she said. "The one thing I've learned is that family and friends are more important than anything else in the world. If having this baby means I have to leave my post, then I'll do that."

"But you love your job," Hilde said.

"I love my baby."

"You love Heero," Quatre said quietly.

"I always have," Relena said bravely.

"Does he know?" Trowa asked.

"No...and he probably will never know because I'll never see him again."

"I'm going to find him," Duo said, standing. "That son of a bitch is not going to get away this easily. It's his baby too and he should take care of it."

"NO!" Relena cried, grabbing onto his sleeve. "I dont want to see him, Duo...please..."

Hearing the desperation in her voice, Duo relented. He put an arm around her shoulders. "Oh, Relena...you sure know how to pick 'em."

She sniffed. "Yes, I do."

Quatre put a hand on her shoulder. "Why don't you come with me to the colony,'" he offered. "I can offer you privacy and relaxation--people who will do your bidding."

"Or you can stay here and practice taking care of babies," Duo said hopefully when Ellie started to cry.

Hilde picked up the little girl and cuddled her. The gesture made Relena smile as she thought of the baby growing inside her. Would it be a boy or a girl? A little girl with her blonde hair and Heero's intense gaze? A little boy with dark hair and her blue eyes? Unconsciously, her hand came to rest on her stomach.

"We'll take care of you," Trowa said, helping her up. "We'll be your family, Relena."

"Thank you," she said. "All of you."

"Heero doesn't know what he's missing," Duo groused.

The Present...

Relena turned down the covers. She moved gingerly, her belly large and impeding her movements. Trowa came into the room and helped her get into bed.

"You don't have to stay, Trowa," she said, settling against the pillows. "I know that Catherine must be missing you..."

"She sends her love and wants you to send her a picture as soon as the baby is born," Trowa said by way of reassurance.

"Thank you for this," Relena said, patting his hand. "Without you, Quatre, Duo, and Hilde, I don't know what I would do."

Trowa smiled. "We're here for you, Relena."

He kissed her temple and went back to his room, shutting the door quietly behind him. Relena sighed and turned to her side. Suddenly, she heard the sounds of a scuffle outside her room. As quickly as she could, she got up, gun in hand, and threw open the door. Trowa was face down on the ground, his arm pinned behind him by none other than Heero Yui. Relena started to lower her gun but the rejection she felt the past few months came flying back and her gun rose.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded.

"I told you I'd be back," Heero replied.

"Get off him," she ordered.

But Trowa took advantage of Heero's distraction and managed to free one arm to land a hard punch on Heero's jaw. The scuffled ensued with Relena yelling for them to stop. Both men were still in top physical form and she didn't want to see how long they could keep this up. She could hear the guards' footsteps nearing her suite and before they could come in, she opened the door and ordered them to go back to their posts. Looking uncertain, they did as they were told and she shut the door.

"Stop it!" she yelled, tempted to fire a shot in the air.

Trowa pushed Heero hard, sending him flying across the room, but the fight did stop. He wiped a trickle of blood from his lip and stood. Expressionless, he smoothed his clothes.

"You two need to talk," he said calmly as if nothing had happened.

"Yes, we do," Heero said, getting up.

Trowa left, limping slightly, and they were alone.

"Put the gun down, Relena," Heero said. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Her lip trembled but her gun remained steady. "It's too late for promises."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"About what?"

"You know what."

"You can't even say it. I'm having a baby, Heero. MY baby."

He seemed to wilt before her eyes and it was then did Relena notice how tired and worn he looked. Her heart started to melt, but she willed herself to stay strong.

"You said you'd be back and every night for two months I waited for you, but you didn't come. And just when I thought I'd be rid of you forever, I started throwing up every morning. You always manage to leave your mark, Heero."

"I'm sorry."

"I'm sure you are. But you don't have to stay." Her voice broke on the last word, but she kept on. "I don't hold you to anything. Only Trowa, Duo, Quatre, and Hilde know about you and I'm going to keep it that way. My baby will be surrounded by loving people and he or she won't even think about you."

"But I don't want that to happen," he said quietly.

"Then you should have thought about that before you left me...even before you came that night."

He stepped towards her. "I love you."

Her gun wavered. Those were the words she'd longed to hear him say for so long, but she knew that if she accepted him now, she'd only be hurt again. Heero was a wanderer and a warrior. He would not stay for long. She would get hurt and more importantly, their child would get hurt when he left again.

"You don't know what love is, Heero," she said bitterly.

He stepped closer. "Yes, I do. I learned from you."

Her face twitched. "Then, I don't know love because if I did I wouldn't have acted like such a fool."

"You didn't act like a fool. I did." He was too close. "I've been watching you. I could see your window from the street and I would watch you get ready for bed. I wanted to go to you, but something held me back. It's what held me back from the moment I met you."

"What was it?"

"Fear. I knew you would make a big impact in my life and back then, I didn't need any distractions. I had missions to complete. We both did."

"What about now?"

He reached out and put a hand on her cheek. "I'm still afraid, Relena. I've never---I've never felt anything so intense in my life." He put the other hand on her rounded belly. "And when I saw this..." He was speechless.

At his touch, Relena dropped her gun.

"Relena..." he murmured. "Please..."

A sob escaped her lips and she felt his arms wrap around her. He held her tightly as she cried.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm sorry."

"I love you, Heero," she said. "I always have."

"I know. It just took me a long time to realize that I loved you, too."

She pulled back and looked up at him. "So what happens now?"

"Marry me."

Relena's smile was like a ray of sunshine and Heero felt himself smiling back.

"Yes," she answered.

Leona Relena Yui was born a month later. Her father still had his tuxedo on underneath his scrubs and her mother's veil was thrown carelessly on the floor of the delivery room when she came screaming into the world. Her eyes were blue and her hair was blonde, just like her mother. Her father took her in his arms, his expression serene.

"Thank you, Relena," Heero said, his voice hoarse. "Thank you for her."

Relena smiled weakly and took his hand. "Consider her a wedding present," she said.

Minutes later, Heero went to the waiting room. Trowa, Quatre, Noin, and Milliardo stood upon seeing him. They too were still dressed in their wedding finery. Duo and Hilde were nowhere to be seen, but they made Quatre promise to call them as soon as the baby was delivered.

"Well?" Quatre prompted.

"It's a girl," Heero said in his calm way. "A healthy baby girl. Relena's named her Leona."

"Congratulations!" Noin exclaimed, throwing her arms around Heero.

"Can we see her?" Trowa asked.

"They're putting her and Relena in a room. They'll call us in a few minutes," Heero replied.

"How is my sister?" Milliardo asked.

Heero faced his erstwhile enemy and smiled. "Beautiful."

"Take care of her, Heero."

"You don't have to tell me that. I've always taken care of her."

After everyone left, Relena fell into an exhausted slumber. Heero stood by the window, watching the moon travel across the night sky. In his arms, he held his sleeping daughter. A small smile touched his lips and his eyes were lit up with something that wasn't there before.

Finally....finally, Relena, you've shown me true peace...

THE END