Acceptance

By Lady Saffir

Rating:

DISCLAIMER: me no own...

Quote:

Staring at the calendar, Relena gave a small sigh. One week. One week, an entire week, had passed since Heero had spelled out his feelings to her. And contrary to what everyone kept telling her, the pain did NOT get any easier with time...although Relena suspected they meant 'time' in terms of months or years, not weeks.

As always, the continuous litany of 'why?', followed by the very lengthy list of her faults, ran through the back of her mind. Giving up entirely on trying to work, Relena allowed herself once more to focus on her mental list.

First and foremost - her looks. Granted, when she took the time to style her hair, apply make-up, and try to dress decently, she knew that some would consider her 'pretty'. However, when she simply threw her hair into a sloppy ponytail and dressed in whatever has handy, her looks wouldn't quite warrant a lot of male attention.

Stopping in mid-thought, Relena suddenly experienced a flash of insight. The damn man had gotten tired of seeing her in whatever. True, after a day of work, the only thing she wanted to do was crash, but still...the effort should have been made to at least OCCASIONALLY surprise him. Well, she would show him exactly what happened when Relena Darlian-Peacecraft was pissed off.

She made sure you regretted every moment of it.

That settled, Relena slammed the notebook containing grant proposals shut, determined to have fun for once. Picking up the phone, she quickly punched Noin's personal number, impatiently tapping her foot. When it was answered, Relena came straight to the point. "Noin? Remember how we were just going to have lunch? Well, cancel your afternoon plans - we're going shopping."

Noin could only shake her head in amazement. After treating themselves to an expensive lunch, the two women had proceeded to hit every major store and shopping area within an hour's distance. Lunch had begun around 12:30. It was now eleven o'clock at night.

"Relena? Have you found anything yet?"

A burst of muffled words were her only answer, as Relena struggled to pull on the sweater that had caught her eye.

Shifting her weight to her other foot, Noin was about to bang on the door, when it suddenly opened.

There, standing in tight black pants, a form-fitting dark silver sweater clinging to her body, Relena stood, smirking at the expression on her friend's face.

"Well? What do you think?"

Noin took a moment to take in the entire outfit. Along with the pants and sweater, a pair of four-inch high boots added to the effect of Relena having extremely long legs. The bright silver jewelry Relena had picked stood in sharp contrast to the dark outfit, accenting her slim neck and wrists.

"All I can say is..wow. What prompted this sudden urge to dress differently?"

Relena flashed a brilliant smile.

"Wow? Exactly the reaction I was looking for. What would Milliardo say?"

Noin didn't even have to think about that one.

"He would forbid you to wear that in public."

"Perfect."

It was a frantic Noin that contacted Duo two days later. Fumbling for the phone, Duo tried to keep the incessant ringing from bothering Hilde. The only reason he was still up was because he and Heero were kicking back, enjoying their beers and a late night soccer game.

"Yeah?"

"Duo, have you seen Heero? We need to find him right away - Relena's gone."

At that, Heero was up and out of his seat, shoving Duo away from the vid-phone.

"What did you say?" he growled, the alcohol induced fog clearing from his brain.

With a screech, Heero's motorbike came to a stop before the main doors of the Peacecraft mansion. Staggering away from the bike, Duo turned to glare at Heero.

"Do you drive like that all the time? 'Cause man, if you do, you have the biggest deathwish I've ever seen," Duo wheezed, trying to draw a deep breath. He was pretty sure that he had been holding his breath since they left his house. Rollercoasters he liked - riding behind a crazed Heero Yuy who didn't understand the concept of a speed limit he didn't.

Heero simply glared as they entered the Peacecraft mansion.

Silently reading the note Relena left, Heero had to resist the urge to strangle their wayward princess when they found her.

Milliardo,

I'm going out for the evening with two close friends. I'll be back by morning.

Relena

PS - Do not even THINK about sending someone (read: Heero Yuy) looking for me. I am perfectly capable of watching out for myself.

Stepping inside the crowded room, Duo whistled appreciatively.

"Man, this is one awesome club - I didn't know Relena even knew this kind of place existed."

Heero merely grunted, taking in their surroundings. The walls were done in a thick material, that when touched, turned out to be vellum. Painted haphazardly across the walls were large silver roses that caught and reflected light. The few tables scattered about the room were draped with black crushed velvet table clothes, a vase containing a single red rose adorning the tabletop. Stepping onto the dance floor to look for Relena, Heero found the reason the club was called the Black Rose. The floor design was a single black rose, stretching from one end of the dance area to the other, trapped beneath a sheet of glass. Large thorns branched off from the main stem, the bright green leaves, full of life, contrasting with the death that was symbolized by the unfurled bud.

The wild music was coming to a close when Duo suddenly pointed across the room. Looking through the mass of people, Heero was able to see what had caught his eye. A young woman, wearing clothes that clung to every curve like a second skin, was dancing with abandon, her long, honeyed locks of hair twisting and whirling about her face as she moved her head in time with the music.

Looking past her partner's shoulder, Relena froze for a moment, her eyes widening in surprise, then narrowing to slits as she glared her displeasure. Tapping the still dancing man on the shoulder, she whispered into his ear before turning away.

Straining, Heero was barely able to make out that she was headed for the DJ. The two heads bent in conference for a few minutes before the man behind the table straightened, giving Relena a large smile and a pat on the shoulder.

Returning to her still unidentified partner, Relena took a moment to toss a glare in Heero's direction. Flipping her hair behind her, she began to dance in earnest when the new song began.

Hush, just stop
There's nothing you can do or say, baby
I've had enough
I'm not your property as from today, baby
You might think that I won't make it on my own
But now I'm

Stronger than yesterday
Now it's nothing but my way
My loneliness ain't killing me no more
I'm stronger

Duo grinned, talking loud enough to be heard over the blaring music. "I think 'Jousan's trying to tell you something there, Heero," he teased, earning him the patented 'Death Glare'.

That I ever thought that I could be, baby
I used to go with the flow
Didn't really care 'bout me
You might think that I can't take it, but you're wrong
'Cause now I'm

Stronger than yesterday
Now it's nothing but my way
My loneliness ain't killing me no more
I'm stronger

Come on, now
Oh, yeah

Here I go, on my own
I don't need nobody, better off alone
Here I go, on my own now
I don't need nobody, not anybody
Here I go, alright, here I go

Stronger than yesterday
Now it's nothing but my way
My loneliness ain't killing me no more
I'm stronger

As the song finished, Heero shoved his way through the twisting, sweating mass of dancers. Relena belatedly noticing him right before he grabbed her dancing partner, swinging the man around to face him.

"Hey, hey! - I'm tryin' to dance here with this vision of loveliness, if you don't mind," the man said, holding his hands up in an effort to placate the sudden disturbance.

"And now you're done. We need to talk."

About to pull the protesting man through the crowd, Heero Yuy found himself face to face with an extremely ticked off Relena Peacecraft. The two simply stared at each other, before Heero went to brush past her, ignoring her silent protest.

At the same time that Relena went to pull Heero back, another person interfered, causing Relena to turn. About to give the person a piece of her mind, she stopped when her eyes met those of a grim Duo.

"Go wait at the bar for us, Relena. I'll make sure he doesn't pound the guy into the pavement."

With that he gave her a little push in the direction of the bar, stalking off to trail behind Heero. Barely restraining her anger, Relena stalked off to the bar, plopping down on a barstool next to her other companion. Silently he pushed a drink in her direction, draining his beer as he waited for her to speak her mind.

"Thanks, Trowa. Glad to know SOMEONE around here understands the fact that I'm human." Signaling for another beer, Trowa favored her with a half smile, causing her to look first to him, then down into the depths of her drink.

"You've been watering my drinks down again, haven't you?"

Trowa shrugged.

"I don't mind taking you out every now and then, and I don't mind buying your drinks for you. You'll forgive me though if I keep in mind what happened last time I let you get plastered."

Relena thought for a moment, tossing back the remains of her drink in the process. Her own alcoholic fog had instantly disappeared at the sight of Heero and Duo, leaving her in a bad mood.

"No, I guess I can't blame you. However," and here she slammed her glass down to emphasize her point. "However, I CAN blame my brother for demanding Heero to find me, and most certainly I can blame Heero for not telling my brother what to do with his orders."

"Then tell him."

The simple suggestion stopped Relena in mid-thought.

"Tell him?"

Trowa nodded. "Go outside and give Heero a piece of your mind. You've been bottling your emotions up these past few days - it's time to let them out."

The idea was so appealing, the more Relena considered, the stronger the urge was to see the look on Heero Yuy's face when she told him off. Turning to track Heero down, she stopped, then turned back, snaking an arm out to grab hold of Trowa's wrist.

"You mind playing bodyguard for a bit?"

Her question prompted Trowa to giver her one of his rare smiles.

"Not at all," he replied, finishing off his drink in one long swallow, "not at all."

Meanwhile, Duo was having a hard time keeping Heero from hurting the poor fool that had been dancing with Relena. His patience, never high to begin with, was wearing dangerously low, the urge to ring both men's necks and leave them there quite strong. About to insist that Heero just drop the questioning, the man's next statement gained both their attentions.

"Look, all right, I know that she's really Relena Peacecraft. She calls herself Lena when we go out though."

"What did you say?" Heero growled, pulling the man up by his collar.

Duo sighed, then forced Heero back a few steps. It wouldn't do for their 'friend' to get all mashed up over a trivial statement. He turned to frown at the still un-named man.

"When you go out? How often have you been with Relena? And what's your name, anyway? I'm getting tired of 'hey you'."

Taking a cautious step back, the young man in question ran a hand through his hair, eyeing Heero warily as he spoke.

"My name's Evan, and I've only gone clubbing with her a coupla times. We usually go out whenever she comes to visit Trowa." At the surprised looks on the two Preventer's faces, he pressed forward.

"Yeah, you mean you didn't know? I work with Trowa in the circus - sometimes Lena stops by, and we go out somewhere. This is her favorite place to come. And since we're underage, Trowa buys our drinks for us...but he always watches how much she drinks!" Evan added, sensing a blow was about to be delivered, courtesy of Heero's fist.

Indeed, Heero was pulling back to deliver the first blow of the night when someone grabbed his fist. Whirling, the sight of Trowa standing there upped the anger level.

Taking a step forward, Heero suddenly found Relena in his path, a glare to rival his own on her face.

"Move."

"No."

Surprised, Heero looked down, not expecting resistance.

"What did you say?" he asked incredulously.

Anger flared to life across Relena's features, her eyes narrowing with displeasure.

"We are going to talk here and now, Heero, whether you like it or not. It's about time someone brought you back down to earth."

Trowa, Evan, and Duo were promptly forgotten as Heero tried to figure out what had Relena all riled up.

"I think I'm a pretty grounded person, Relena. I don't harbor any foolish notions about life. I understand the fact that if I go somewhere, I need to let people know in advance." The implied insult that she did have foolish notions set Relena's blood to boiling. In a move that surprised both of them, she grabbed the front of his shirt, slamming him back against the brick wall of the building.

"Now you listen to me," she hissed, face inches away from his own. "I have certain rights as a human being, one of which is the right to have friends that YOU don't know about. I am also allowed to hang out with those friends whenever I have time. And I most certainly do NOT have to report my every move and plan as if I were an eleven year old child!"

Taken aback, Heero actually tried to hear the words she spoke, but the anger in her voice was the only thing he could hear. Try as he might, his own anger level rose another degree; Relena had always been able to get underneath his skin and hit a nerve, especially now that he acted on those emotions.

"No, you listen to me!" he said, pushing back. "I understand that you want to have something of a normal life, but you are the one that chose to become Vice Foreign Minister, and with that job comes a lot of responsibility, one of which letting the people that are supposed to protect you know when you plan on doing something stupid like going to a club in the early hours of the morning! How am I supposed to protect you if I don't know where you are?! Damnit, it's my job to make sure you live from day to day! I'm sorry if you're mad at me for leaving you, but that doesn't mean you have the right to cause everyone around you unnecessary grief!"

Relena stepped back, looking as if Heero had just slapped her. Her anger subsided, the heat that had been in her eyes fading away, leaving the once bright and fiery eyes dull and lifeless. A fine trembling began in her limbs, climbing to reach her face.

Taking another step back, the glow from a street light caught her face, highlighting the unshed tears that sparkled in her eyes. Her mouth worked soundlessly, her eyebrows knitting together in puzzlement.

Or perhaps her eyebrows were drawn together in anger, Duo mused, as he watched Relena step forward, draw back her right fist, and let the best right hook he'd ever seen fly straight for Heero's unsuspecting face.

Caught unawares, Heero's head snapped backward from the force of the blow, the skin crimsoning as a bruise began to form immediately.

He looked at her in astonishment.

"What the hell was that for?!"

Relena stepped back, all of her anger and pent up frustration gone with that question.

"Was that all I ever was to you, Heero? Another mission that hit too close to home? Is that why you tossed me away, left me to wonder what went wrong?" She continued, giving a hiccuping sob as her tears broke free. "Do you know what the sad thing about this is? Even now, I would take you back, no questions asked, because I love you and I want to be with you. I don't CARE what the world thinks about who I date - that falls under the category of 'personal life', and if the world and the colonies can't handle the fact that I need some privacy, then I don't want the job.

"I just want you, Heero," Relena finished, trying to stifle the sobs that were threatening to erupt from her throat. With a cry she turned, fleeing down the street. About to give chase, Heero paused when Trowa stopped him for the second time that night.

"I'll get her. You go back and report to Zechs that everything's fine."

About to protest, the words died on Heero's lips as Duo spoke.

"He's right, Heero. Right now the two of you are wound so tight you're more likely to snap than make up. Give both of you a couple of days, then talk. Problems tend to unknot themselves if you give them time and patience."

Nodding in agreement, Heero turned and began walking away. Stopping next to the gawking Evan, he held his hand out.

"Sorry about that. I flew off the handle, and I...apologize for it."

Evan stared, a smile breaking across his face.

"No problem man, I understand completely. If I had a girl like that, I'd do crazy things too."

Trowa found Relena huddled next to his car, crouched as if she could hide from the world. Squatting next to her, he put a hand under her chin, gently raising her head to look at him. The tears had all ready made a mess of her make-up, smearing eyeliner and mascara down the sides of her face and below her eyes. Her nose was pink, her cheeks splotched from crying.

"What would you do if you were me, Trowa?" Relena asked quietly, trying to find a way to work through her problems.

One eyebrow raised at the question, Trowa thought for a moment.

"If I were you? I'd go home and go to bed, because you are going to have one major hang-over in the morning," he stated, a smile peeking through.

With a half sob, half laugh, Relena threw herself into his arms, enjoying the simple luxury of having someone hold her again. Returning the hug, Trowa missed part of her sentence.

"Hmm?"

"I said," and here she pulled back a bit, "that I'm glad I've got you for a friend, Trowa."

He smiled at that, then pulled her to her feet.

"Come on, let's get you home."

By the time they arrived at the Peacecraft mansion, Relena had fallen asleep, leaving Trowa with the options of either waking her up, or simply carrying her into the house. Only a single light peeked through the drawn curtains, but he knew that both Zechs and Noin had waited up.

Deciding to save Relena, at least for a few hours, from another argument, Trowa opened the passenger side door, hoisting the sleeping woman into his arms. He had barely passed under the portico when the front door opened, revealing a tired Noin.

"Do you mind taking her up to her bedroom?" Noin whispered.

Shaking his head, Trowa quietly paced across the foyer, mounting the steps that lead to the second floor. Minutes later found him trying to pry Relena's hands from around his neck. Rolling his eyes, he simply placed her on the waiting bed, slipping his head underneath her arms. As he covered her, a name escaped from whatever dream world Morpheus had sent her to.

"Heero..."

Pausing, Trowa reached over to snag the worn teddy bear sitting on the dresser, placing it in the waiting arms of the sleeping girl.

Duo searched the grounds about his house, determined to find Heero and make him talk. After the events of last night, Heero was going to face up to his feelings and act on them, if Duo had to pull the strings himself.

His prey gave itself away, the sounds of muffled splashing filtering through the trees. Clearing the edge of the forest, Duo found himself at the pond, with Heero's back to him.

Relena stared at the figure that had materialized in front of her, unable to believe that her imagination had not simply conjured this vision into being. Her thoughts of the past three days haunted her, distracting her to the point of insanity. She must stop thinking of him, she must. Moving to pass the vision before her, her breath caught her arm brushed against his sleeve. Stopping, Relena looked down at their touching arms, her head slowly rising to lock gazes with his.

"You're real," she breathed.

Heero nodded, the unexpected lump in his throat constricting his breathing. It had taken so much courage to scale the wall to her private balcony, the memories of doing the exact same thing many times haunting him with every handhold he found.

"Can we talk?" he asked gruffly, trying to disguise the tremor that threatened to show in his voice. Mute, Relena beckoned him to follow her, leading them through her bedroom to her balcony. She moved to stand by the rail, leaning her elbows on the dark metal, gazing at the night sky. Heero mimicked her, only the smallest of distances separating them.

Breathing deeply, Heero noticed for the first time how the flowers in underneath Relena's balcony lent a subtle scent to the air. It was...peaceful, calming.

"The flowers," Heero mused aloud, "smell beautiful. I just noticed that."

Relena's eyes flickered to look at him, taking in the tense set of his body, of the long fingers that reached out to caress a stray ivy leaf that had crept unnoticed over the balcony railing.

Taking the simple phrase as a peace offering, Relena nodded in agreement.

"I know. That's why I planted them, sort of as a way to relax after a stressful day."

Silence lasped between the couple once more, each lost to their own private memories. The night began to wear on, fireflies rising from their daytime slumber to illuminate the night sky.

"Relena."

For one moment, Relena had completely forgotten that anything was wrong between them.

Talking had never been necessary in their relationship. The peaceful night had lulled her into feeling at ease with the world around her. Heero's voice saying her name had bought that false security crashing down.

"...yes?"

As she turned towards him, Heero found himself unable to tear his gaze away from her. The moon, almost full, had turned her eyes a silvery color, giving her an inhuman appearance.

"Where did you learn to dance like that?"

The question was so unexpected Relena stuttered.

"I, wha...I...well, a bunch of people actually," she finally spat out, going on to list her cohorts.

"Well, it all started with Duo and Hilde, then I kept tripping on Duo, so he suggested Trowa, who had Catherine show me some other things, and then Evan saw me dancing, and well..."

"You were having a rough day and decided to go out," Heero finished for her.

"Yes, that's about it."

A lighter silence fell this time, especially to Relena. Milliardo had finally calmed down and listened, and had actually taken the thought of future trips quite well, as long as someone he 'trusted' went along. Heero was taking this extremely well too...but then, it wasn't his concern anymore. Was it?

"Do you think I could go along next time?"

Relena's mouth almost fell open. Never in a million years had she expected Heero to ask that question. Turning to look at him, she tried to catch his eyes, but he refused to look at her, instead gazing at the stars.

"You're welcome to go with us anytime, Heero," she finally settled on, still amazed at his request. Relena glanced upwards in time to see a star streaking across the velvet sky.

"Heero, look," she breathed, "a shooting star. Quick, make a wish."

Puzzled, Heero looked up as well, then frowned in concentration. Seconds passed before he finally turned to look at the woman beside him.

"Did you wish?"

Relena nodded absently, staring into the night.

"Yes, I did. I have so many wishes though...I'm always afraid that I'll wish for the wrong thing."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, should I wish for my stereotypical thing? Ask for a world peace that will last? Should I wish for my friends to be healthy and happy and always stay close? Or should I wish for myself? Except then I don't know what I should wish for...it's complicated."

"How so?"

"I'm not sure what I want for myself. I mean, I want a family and friends and a loved one, but then I have childish wishes too."

"Like?"

"Like having the other Ministers and diplomats function without me holding their collective hands. Like going to college, or having a private life where I am simply Relena Darlain," she cried vehemently, clenching the balcony railing.

Heero moved to cover her hands, gently prying them off. The desire in her voice for all of those things moved him to envelope her in a tight embrace, cradling her head with one gentle hand.

"Then do it, do all those things. Tell your aides and the other Ministers that you're taking a sabbitical. If they push, tell them it's to better understand the way the human race thinks. I'm sure you'll come up with some flowery speech that will have them donating money to your cause," smiling down at her, Heero tweaked her nose.

Relena couldn't help the smile that broke out.

"There it is. I knew it was hiding in there somewhere."

Relena shook her head, smiling even more at his teasing expression.

"Duo didn't get you drunk and put you up to this?"

Heero shook his head.

"No, he just knocked some sense into me."

"Really?"

"I finally broke down and actually listened to his ramblings. Surprisingly, he has good points if you can stand the chatter."

"Ah."

Heero began to slowly play with individual strands of Relena's hair, twisting and twining the honeyed locks about his fingers.

"Relena, I...well, I've been thinking about what I said several weeks ago. I've always said to act on your emotions, and that's exactly what I did. That isn't an excuse though," he interjected. "I was so AFRAID that what Zechs said was true that I to push you away so that you could discover...so that I could discover...if losing you would truly kill me.

"It did," Heero finished softly, bowing his head to rest against the crown of Relena's head.

"You've always been in my life, so of course it killed me when you pushed me away. Even when I couldn't see you, I FELT that you were there supporting me. Then my support fell away, and I was so afraid that I'd never have that feeling again," Relena sobbed, crushing the material of his shirt in a tight fist.

"I...ah, Relena, no tears, please. The princesses are never supposed to cry. Especially if they have a happy ending," Heero soothed, rubbing light circles across her back.

Relena snuffled a bit, looking up at Heero with shimmering blue eyes.

"Happy ending? Where's the happy ending at?"

"That's what I came to talk about. I've been thinking about that, and about our relationship. We just jumped into it. We knew each other before that, but we didn't really KNOW each other. I've been thinking that perhaps we should take the time to get to know each other better. Then perhaps give 'us' another chance?"

Relena thought for a moment, nodding slowly in agreement.

"Yes, I think that would be a good idea."

Pulling back, she stuck out her hand.

"Hi, I'm Relena Darlian. Nice to meet you."

Heero smiled, the corner of his eyes crinkling with the motion. Sticking out his hand, he firmly grasped hers, holding it tight as he spoke.

"Heero Yuy. It's a pleasure."