"There it is, Senator Yuy, your lucky break." An attendant announced, throwing a file onto a large desk. Photograms slid from the packet and onto a smooth metal tabletop. Ariel Yuy's sharp eyes looked up.

"My 'lucky break?'"

"His name is Heero Yuy." The meaningless character, a person who (if this were a movie) would only be mentioned in very small print as 'Attendant Number One,' grinned at her confusion and opened the file for her, "He's a former Gundam pilot. We have eyewitnesses and I have even attained a letter from a relative of a murdered victim, forgiving him. Apparently Mr. Yuy was the terrorist who killed many peace-loving diplomats of the Earth Sphere Alliance several years ago by destroying a shuttle. Here are photos from the surveillance cameras at the spaceport and a list of the deceased."

Ariel Yuy looked over the information and then narrowed her eyes, "So?"

"Even though all Gundam pilots have been pardoned from their war crimes, I have also discovered that Vice Foreign Minister Darlian and this pilot shared an interesting relationship. Mentioning this information," The attendant pointed to the surveillance photos, "paired with a hint of their connection," He pointed to a cameo photo of a young Relena and a brown-haired boy together, "could set the foundations of an attack upon Relena's character."

"She's clever."

"Now she's clever, but she wasn't so politically minded then. There's a lot of dirt on her if we bring it to the public's eyes."

"She's won their hearts. No one dares breach Relena's hold over the people of both the Earth and the Colonies."

"So we'll do it subtly. If not, she could gain control over the 'new government' she's proposing in the blink of an eye."

Ariel grinned. "Very well, let's get started." Her hand darted out as the attendant reached for the file, "I'll keep this for review."

She looked up nervously when her assistant left and then fingered through the files until she came across the photo of Relena and the pilot together. "Heero Yuyinteresting codename for a terrorist" She brought the picture closer to her face. Ah, just as she thought, she'd have even more information against Relena Darlian by the time she was through!

Heat. Warmth. No concerns. No fears. He had never felt so safe in someone's arms. Comfortable waves of euphoria shed off of him as he stared into the warm, wide face of his mother.

Would you mind, his heart begged, if you let me stay with you forever?

But that face blurred and melted like the wax of a candle into the innocent, smiling features of a certain girlRelena Darlian. Her bluish eyes drifted down to him. And still he found himself asking the same question he asked his mother. She was about to reply when he felt a splatter of blood on his cheek. He looked down to see a lance point sticking out of his lover's chest. She choked, and the blood spilled out of her mouth. She fell back and he found himself looking up into the eyes of a stranger.

"I go by Odin Lowe. I could use you, kid. Do what I say, and you get food and a roof over your head."

The youth was suddenly a small boy again, but Relena's body lay stretched before him like a fallen bird's. He stared up at the menacing figure, "What do I have to do?"

"What I do. Kill people."

He reached for the man's hand and moved beyond the corpse.

"Okay."

Relena started up in bed. She felt almost like she had experienced a nightmare, but it hadn't been hers. The images she grasped for quickly faded like shadows from the sun. Where was she?

Her room. The warm dark walls rose around her, and the window let in the fading moonlight. She would have to get up soon. But a name, as stealthy as the darkness, crept into her mouth, "Heero."

The dream had been about him. Most nightmares of her usually were, after all. But this one had been different. It had indeed been one year since they had last spoken, but she knew that he continued to lurk in the shadows of her life, at the borderline between dreams and reality.

But that was okay.

He wasn't ready to be comfortable around her, wasn't ready to feel human. And that was completely fine with Relena. She understood him better than he understood himself, and realized that he needed to find himself before he could find a relationship with her. Besides, she had her work and her job. However, there was still a part of her who longed for human affection, a rebellious little piece of her soul that wanted to be held, if only for a moment, and told that everything was going to be okay She pushed out of bed and began the water for her shower. She shouldn't try and think about that. Her bare feet padded back to the door of her room, where an elderly man stood with a hand poised to knock.

"Good morning, Pegan."

"Ah, Miss. Relena. It seems I've been predicted."

"As always."

"But your clothes-" He looked down to her nightgown, "Why didn't you wear your dressing gown? Surely if someone else had come to your door-"

"But who else would come to my door besides you, Pegan?"

"Ah yes. By the way, you received another transmission from your brother. The permanent residential blocks have been installed at Mars Base Eoticles."

"Good, I can present that at the Senate meeting this morning. Please prepare my usual breakfast, Pegan. I'll be down shortly."

"Of course, Miss Relena."

Relena sighed and headed towards the steamy bathroom.

Wakefulness. Heero reached for his binoculars. Status of subject: alive. Threats: none. Life had been getting dull recently, but this was his job. He sighed and arched his back, enjoying the sound of his vertebrae popping. He quickly started up his computer and brought himself online. With hacking skills that had come in very handy over the past several years, he downloaded a small amount of money from Relena's account into his own, just enough to keep him going while he made sure no one hurt her. He was more devoted than the bodyguards she had had before the accident, and did at least deserve to eat.

It had happened about a year before (was it really such a short time ago?) when the Vice Foreign Minister had been returning home from a universal trade meeting. He had been wandering at the time, trying to find himself; mostly through the colonies, but always keeping an eye out for her. He had been on L4 when he saw the news broadcast: Relena Darlian had been shot by a lone assassin on a stranded beach. She had been careless, escaping her guards to take walks, never going where she said she was planning to gobut then, she had always been a flighty person, always chasing after him, always throwing her life to the hands of Fate as she recklessly worked for her world.

Stupid.

He had, of course, admitted to himself that he had feelings for her, the same sort of devotion for her that she had for peace. He always did try to follow his emotions. But he also realized the differences between the two of them. Love was for equals, and he could not be her equal. She was only a symbol of peace to him, only a statue on a pedestal instead of the living, breathing person he had known so well.

Then, as he watched that broadcast, he realized that she needed to be brought to her senses before she ended up dead as well. He couldn't let that happen for the sake of Earth and her colonies, of course. He wouldn't save her for his own peace of mind, despite the fact that sometimes, especially late at night, he was overcome with the desire to be with her and feel her soft breath on his cheek one more time.

"I trust you, Heero." She had said as he left her one more time to fight her brother. If was those words that allowed him to keep going through the whole battle, but all he could say to her was 'good-bye.'

So, two weeks after she was released from the hospital he caught her and told her of his new mission to protect her completely until peace was attained. He didn't think she really took him seriously until that moment she smiled her last smile for him, after he told her that he planned to kill her.

"I will welcome you." She had said before walking off. She had never been the one to leave him. He felt lost without her around him. He felt like the coward he knew he was.

He just prayed the quest for peace would never be over, so he would never have to fulfill his end of the bargain.

"Vice Foreign Minister Relena Darlian is a symbol to everyone. Her very presence calms the mind and body. However, the act she is proposing is simply too difficult to be passed because of a pretty face." Ariel Yuy drew a deep breath and confronted the large auditorium with her usual fiery enthusiasm. The Senate House was filled to the brim. Not one Senator had decided to risk being absent on the date of this rare event. Yuy knew that they had all come to see her decide how the colonies would react to the Act, for she knew that whatever she said, they would follow. "This legislation is indeed a step in the right direction, but the colonies did not get enough of a say in how it was created. Six Earth senators and four colonial senators decided the course of the Earth Sphere under the highly influential guidance of an eighteen-year old girl. While overall, a good bill, this paper needs to be written by all of the Senators, not just ten."

Relena rose her placard for a rebuttal. The Vice-President granted her request. Yuy scowled. "With all due respect, Senator Yuy, I believe you are mistaken. These ten senators are the top leaders in this room. Besides, we did not just form a committee to write this document, we called upon everyone to help us out. However, the fact they chose not to participate is their fault and their fault alone." There were mutters throughout the auditorium. Relena looked to a shaded corner of the viewer's loft and drew in a breath for confidence. "We have all fought for peace, and the battle we fought has been over for two years," Relena began, her voice piercing the hearts of most who listened, "But the war for peace is not over. This war will never be over. I am merely making a proposition that will help along the process.

"It is up to you to decide what to do with this document, but please remember that I did not write it alone. What is truly wrong with it, who wrote it, or the content? If the content is poor or unsatisfactory, then discard it! Vote no! But," Relena cocked her head slightly, "if your only problem is the authors, then that is a very poor excuse. Please try and remember what is best for the people, not what is best for yourselves!"

They say the applause given that speech shook the entire building. Ariel Yuy fumed, her fight lost, but as Relena had said before about peace, the war was in no way finished. She was gathering a great deal of supporters. They may clap now, but that did not mean they had said 'yes' to her bill yet!

So, carefully and gently, Ariel shifted her weight. The slight movement was enough to draw the people's attention back to her. She took this opportunity to strike, "It's not the authors of this legislation we are worried about, it's to whom power will be distributed. I don't have any problems with you becoming president, Vice Foreign Minister, I will, in fact, support you but-" She paused as havoc broke free in the Senate House. The Vice-President pounded his gavel for order and then signaled to Ariel to continue, "-But I find you still lack experience as a politician. For instance, the company you kept during the war was interesting to say the least. You claim your closest companions were people such as Dorothy Catalonia and the Gundam pilots.

"I don't particularly want to divulge your private life, Minister, but it does indeed state from past errors that you and your friends have made many mistakes. I love this bill. I think it can finally bring about peace. However, when it is passed, where will Relena Darlian-Peacecraft end up? The public still views her as Queen of the Earth. Surely that, if anything, could easily gain her the presidency. And, my fellow senators, it is up to us to decide how much power to put into those young hands. Thank you for your time."

Relena closed her eyes and smiled wryly. Ariel Yuy grinned. At last, a hit!

Heero Yuy sneered. He was pissed. Scratch that, he was furious! How dare that woman use him and the other Gundam pilots to fuel her own attacks! He sighed. He knew it was going to kill him, but he had to make a few calls to his 'over enthusiastic' friends.

He grimaced slightly as he remembered the last time they all met It was two months after the Barton Scandal, when all of the pilots had used their Gundams one last time to stop General Dekum from taking over the United Earth Sphere. They had tried to keep the casualties down to almost nothing, but still, they had been careless once in a while, and were tried for the deaths of twenty people.

Relena had risked her career to testify about the situation and finally convinced the anti-Gundam politicians to let the subject drop. After all, the Gundams were still highly in the people's favor and were going to be destroyed. But, as in the case of all ended all wars, the soldiers had been forgotten, and Gundams became just a faded memory.

After the trial, they gathered for one last meeting, with Heero dragged along forcefully by Duo Maxwell, a pilot known for his long braid and for abnormal amounts of hyperactive energy. He still remembered what Relena wore that day, a buttoned shirt and long skirt, just official enough in case there were any paparazzi, but her hair was loose and flowing, allowing her to look her age for once. As always, she wore a smile for him.

"Congratulations, everyone." She said, smile widening, "As of today, you are completely free!"

A small blond-haired man named Quatre had grinned, "And it is all thanks to you, Miss Relena."

She shrugged and then waved to another member of their group. He had left early from their energetic celebrations. And he had never been in contact with any of them since.

But it wasn't as if they hadn't tried. Occasionally, he would find an email from one of them, boasting that they had found him, or telling him to come visit. He changed names and addresses after that very quickly and soon they would lose track of him. He didn't want to tie anyone back. He didn't want anything, really. Except to keep his promise. Heero sighed and rubbed his temples. He could have sworn Relena had seen him that day. When she paused and looked up to the dark part of the visitor's gallery, it seemed as if she was piercing the layers of darkness and seeking him out. It frightened and warmed him at the same time.

No, he wouldn't call the Gundam pilots yet to testify. Relena still might be able to pull out of the situation on her own.

He hoped.

'"Dammit!" Relena shouted in the comfort of her room, tearing at her stiff, formal clothes in furious desperation, "Dammit, dammit, dammit!"

She pulled on something comfortable from her wardrobe and flicked on the ten o'clock news. She held her breath as the news anchor smiled into the camera. Her words would determine the opinion of the people over the fight between Ariel Yuy and herself.

"Our top story today comes from the Senate House in Geneva, where Senator Ariel Yuy began what can only be described as an attack on the Vice Foreign Minister Relena Darlian's character. This campaign began due to a very controversial act currently being discussed by the Senate right now. Download a copy of it at senatelegis.org/govact or press the red button on the bottom of your vidscreen." The anchorwoman turned to another camera angle and gave the public her grim-and-decisive expression, "Yuy's attack began with the common approach on Darlian's age. Still only eighteen years old, this girl is indeed holding one of the most important positions available.

"Yet our former queen was not always the person she is today." A grainy photo of Relena and a dark-haired boy appeared on the screen, "Not only was she close to the famous Dorothy Catalonia, but she also associated with the controversial Gundam Pilots." (a button to download more information on the pilots replaced the act-downloading one) "While the Gundam pilots are considered heroic now, some of the crimes they committed still lurk in our memories. For instance, the destruction of a shuttle of diplomats discussing peace in A.C. 195 by the pilot of Gundam 01. This pilot was said to have been very close to Ms. Darlian. Yuy's attacks are implying that Relena is attempting-"

Relena turned off the broadcast and pressed her palms to her eyes and sighed. An old butler entered with her food but the young woman snubbed it and then turned to him, "Pegan, please make sure security is doubled around the house."

"Miss Relena?" He said by way of question.

"I'm being stalked by wolves, Pegan. Please pray they don't catch me."

Heero, seated in his usual perch, felt anger burn in his breast, but for a very different reason.

Ariel Yuy grinned ferally as she sat in her office, staring out at her wide gardens, "Come to try and kill me, Heero Yuy. I've made your princess very sad, and with you on my side, we can make her feel even worse."