Disclaimer: The characters belong to someone else, but I done thunk up this here plot.

Author's Notes: Hi guys. No, I'm not dead. And I would never abandon a story in the middle of it, even if it takes years and years to finish. I've just been very, very, insanely busy lately. Thank you caring about this story enough to leave such sweet reviews, send me such nice emails and even IM me to say hi. I can't say when the story will be finished; sometimes it's out of the writer's control, especially when she's rushing to graduate in December. But it will be finished, that I promise you;) Thank you for hanging on; I hope you find it worthwhile.

Dedication: To the ML girls. I've missed you.

****

To Dance Beneath the Diamond Sky
by Kristen Elizabeth

****

There was a glow on Relena's face the next morning at breakfast, a sappy smile on her lips as she picked at her eggs benedict. At the head of the table, Millardo folded up his New York Times and picked up his coffee cup as he studied his little sister. He glanced at Lucrezia; his lover gave him a little wink.

"Relena," he began. "I have to tell you. I am so proud of you."

She glanced up, blinking. "Really?"

"I've heard nothing but good things from Treize and Lu about your progression in the new role." Millardo took a long sip. "We threw a lot of responsibility on you and you've handled it wonderfully. I can't wait to see the dress rehearsal."

"Only two more weeks," Lucrezia supplied.

Relena swallowed a tiny bite of Canadian bacon. "Thank you, Millardo. For everything." The grandfather clock in the main parlor began to strike the seventh hour. "Oh! I'm going to be late!!" She shot out of her chair, linen napkin flying, and made a dash for her room.

Millardo set his cup back down in its china saucer. "Tell me something, love. I've heard all about her technical merits from Treize, but how does she look dancing with the Yuy kid? I didn't even think about it when I cast her."

"How do they look?" Lucrezia placed a delicate bite of melon in her mouth and chewed carefully as she came up with an answer that would not stir her fiancee's brotherly protection instincts. Still, she didn't want to lie. "They're gorgeous. They move together like they've been partners forever. He brings out the best in her. And she...she makes him a better person."

"I would ask if I should be worried..." He frowned at his croissant. "But Relena is an adult."

She placed a hand on his arm. "You're taking it very well, baby."

"Besides." Millardo drained the last of his coffee and stood up. "Yuy is probably gay." He had dropped a kiss on the top of Lucrezia's head and was on his way out of the penthouse before she could think of a proper reply. For lack of anything else to do, Lucrezia shook her head and reached for his uneaten breakfast. She took a big bite of croissant just before his mother appeared in the dining room.

"Helen," she mumbled around the flaky mouthful. "Good morning."

Millardo's mother was wrapped up in flowered silk robe, her curler-ladden hair tied up in a chiffon scarf. Without make-up, her early morning face strongly resembled an angry rodent. The scowl that spread on her face didn't help. "Where is my daughter?"

"Getting ready for school." Lucrezia swallowed. "The melon is especially good this morning, Helen."

"Too much sugar." Helen gracefully dropped into the brocaded chair Millardo had vacated only moments earlier. "I should think you'd be especially aware of that, dear."

"Oh really? Why is that?"

Helen lifted a health-club sculpted shoulder. "I've just noticed a few extra pounds on you lately. We're going to have to get Vera Wang to let out your wedding dress if you're not careful."

Lucrezia's eyes narrowed. "I really don't think you should worry about it, Mother Helen." Millardo's mother bristled at the hated title. "Vera and I have already discussed my dress at length when I found out..." She bit her tongue. "If you won't have some melon, will you try a croissant?"

Just then, Relena reappeared in the kitchen. "Good morning, Mother." She gave Helen a tiny peck on her cheek.

Helen caught her wrist before she could move away. "You got in awfully late last night, Relena."

There was the slightest of catches in Relena's reply that anyone not looking to see a lie would never have noticed. "I'm sorry, Mother. My friend and I had to study late to finish the project on time."

"What project is that?"

"Biology class," Relena replied, smoothly.

"I see." Helen drummed a manicured finger on the table-top. "I hope you're not letting all of this schoolwork interfere with your rehearsals."

Relena managed to turn around before she rolled her eyes. "Of course not, Mother." She shot Lucrezia a 'help me' look.

Lucrezia stood up. "Relena, you had better hurry if you want to make first period."

"Yes, of course." Relena turned back around. "Bye. I'll see you at rehearsal, Lu. And Mom...I'll see you when I get home."

Helen watched her son's fiancee walk Relena to the door. When both women were out of sight, she stood up and stalked over to the window. The city far below was just waking up, ready to start the new day. But her mind wasn't on beginnings. It was on endings.

The end of whatever or whoever was distracting her daughter from the only thing that truly mattered in her life. Her dancing.

****

Heero wasn't in class when Relena arrived that morning. Instantly, her mood plummeted. She slid into her chair and set her bookbag onto Heero's seat, as if to give him a little chore to make up for his absence once he arrived. But by the time the bell rang, it still sat there.

Relena moved through her morning with a mounting sense of fear. Something had happened to him. She concocted million different horrible scenarios in her mind through her classes. Eventually, they moved from muggings and murder to emotional withdrawal. What if he had thought about what they had done all night, as she had, but instead of reliving it and hoping for another chance to be that close, he had decided it had been a mistake and now, in the light of day, couldn't face her?

She looked for him in the halls, behind every open locker door, in every corner, to no avail. By the time lunch period rolled around, Relena had already begun dreading rehearsal that afternoon. Heero might miss school, but he would never miss dance class. He was going to have to face her eventually.

With her salad and pita bread, Relena settled down in the courtyard for a miserable, lonely lunch. She had just taken her first bite when felt someone behind her. Swallowing, she turned her head.

"Hey." Heero hands were tucked into the pockets of his dark pants; his button down shirt was open at the throat, the uniform tie was unknotted and haphazardly hung around his neck.

Relena was just about to snap at him, when she noticed his right cheek. It was swollen. "Heero! What happened to you?!"

He reached up and gingerly touched his face. "He woke up before I did. Got me while I was asleep."

"Oh god...Heero." Relena set her lunch aside and stood up. Her fingers brushed ever so slightly over his wound before she threw her arms around him. "I was worried about you."

Heero returned the embrace, not caring that almost every eye in the courtyard was on them. "I'm all right. It's not too bad." He cleared his throat. "Relena...let's go somewhere we can talk."

She let him lead her into an empty classroom. Once there, he hugged her again and inhaled the sweet scent of her hair. "You shouldn't have had to worry about me."

"I couldn't help it." She drew back. "I thought you might regret..." Her voice dropped down a level. "Last night."

"I don't." Heero pressed his lips against her forehead. A pause hung in the air.

"But..." she prompted, a cold fist clutching her heart.

He looked up at the ceiling. "I don't know. I haven't really had time to think much this morning."

Relena bit her lip and touched his cheek again. "Did you put ice on it?" He nodded. "It shouldn't swell up anymore then. And even if it's not completely gone by performance day, make-up should easily cover it." Heero's eyes darted down to the floor. "What's wrong?"

"I feel like I..." He stopped to collect his thoughts. "I feel like I took advantage of you last night." She opened her mouth to speak, but he went on. "I don't know what do about you, Relena, because you're not like anyone I've ever met. And I haven't ever felt about anyone...the way I feel about you. Maybe I did it all wrong last night. I should have waited...we should have gone slower...do you see what I..."

Relena gave him a soft kiss. "You needed me last night. I needed you. I won't ever regret that." She swallowed. "But I would be lying to you and to myself if I said that was how I pictured my first time. I mean, the circumstances. The actual event..." A blush colored her cheeks. "That was just fine."

"So...what are we saying here?" He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "Slow down?"

"Only a little bit," she corrected him. "Is that what you were thinking?"

Heero nodded. "I don't want you to think..." He started again. "I wouldn't ever use you, Relena. Or hurt you."

"I know you wouldn't." The complete trust in her voice took away the throbbing pain in his cheek. She healed him without even knowing it. "Why don't you ask me on a date?"

He smiled as much as he could. "Will you go out with me on Friday night, Relena?"

"Well..." Relena played with his loose tie. "I'll have to check to make sure I'm free then..."

"I'll call you tonight," Heero promised. He leaned in to kiss her, but before his lips could touch hers, the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch.

Relena kissed his cheek with extra care. "I'll see you at rehearsal." Giving him a wink, she started out of the room, heading for her next class, all of her fears and doubts having dissolved.

****

As soon as his own school let out, Duo grabbed a cab and sped back to the hospital. The nurses in Hilde's wing knew him by sight; one of them chuckled as he ran down the squeaky-clean floor, skidding to a halt in front of her door.

He knocked loudly and cracked the door open. "Are you decent, babe?"

Hilde's voice called back through the thick wood. "Wait just a moment, Duo. I need to get my bra back on after my sponge bath."

Duo threw the door open and all Hilde could do was laugh when his shoulders sagged in disappointment upon seeing her completely covered and dry. "You're a cruel woman," he told her.

"Predictable," she laughed. "So predictable."

"Damn, but you're gorgeous when you smile." After giving her a thorough kiss, he plopped down in a chair next to her bed. "What have you been up to all day?"

"Homework," Hilde replied. "History is fun when you're on Demerol."

"I bet it is." Duo reached for her textbook. "The Civil War and Reconstruction. Fun..."

Her smile lost some of its momentum. "I need to do a lot of studying if I want to get into college. If it's not too late already, that is."

He set the book aside. "Hilde...we don't know anything for sure yet. You could be gracing the stage of Lincoln Center for the thrill of thousands at this time next year."

"You think so?"

The hope that lit up her eyes was almost too much for him to bear. Choking on a sudden lump in his throat, all he could manage to say was, "Anything is possible."

She lowered her chin to her chest. The less Duo said, the more he was trying to hide. Her fingers pulled at the hospital blanket that covered her uninjured leg. The other stuck out from the covers, still swaddled in bandaging. "Why do they paint these rooms beige?" she suddenly asked.

Duo blinked and looked around at the walls. "Because if you got too comfortable, you might not want to leave when you're well?"

"I think I'm going crazy in here, Duo," she continued a moment later.

He reached out and took her hand. "What can I do?"

Hilde looked him straight in the eye. "Bust me out for the afternoon."

The corners of Duo's lips turned up. "You be Bonnie and I'll be Clyde?"

"Something like that." She threaded her fingers through his. "Please, Duo? The nurses all think you're hot; they'll do anything you ask. I just want to get out for awhile to get some fresh air."

"Fresh air? In New York?"

Hilde tightened her grip on his hand. "Please?!"

He sighed. "Like I could say no to you, babe." He brought her fingers up to his lips. "Where do you want to go?"

Her reply was quick, concise and well thought-out. "Take me with you to rehearsal."

****

To Be Continued