Relena walked slowly around the park. It was a cool spring morning with everything in bloom. For once Relena was without her body guards and instead stood alone watching the ducks swim along in the small pond making noise and ducking under the water to catch their breakfast. How she wished to be just as care free as they themselves were, not knowing of war or hardships or...Heero.

Relena knew that her brother, Milliardo thought the match impudent but Relena couldn't help it. She loved Heero with all her heart and nothing her brother did was going to change it. Heero had told her recently while she was alone that she was the one woman he wanted to spend his life with. The look in his eyes and the sincerity in his voice assured her that he meant what he said. Relena had felt that her heart would burst at that moment but had then remembered her brother and all that she owed him. Could she really be so thoughtless and hurt Milliardo in such a manner?

Relena looked down again at the ducks still swimming around happily. A female mallard swam by followed by her brood, her brown and blue feathers shining in the morning sun. Her offspring had not yet begun to change colors and were still a ruddy yellow, oh how they squawked when she swam even a little faster. The sight of this made Relena smile inwardly. She wanted very much to have a family of her own. To just forget politics and settle down somewhere quiet and have children of her own with Heero. How would it turn out for her though? Would Heero keep his word by staying at her side and supporting her through the good times and the bad or would he disappear just like these little ducklings; father? With a sigh Relena took out her bag of bread crumbs and knelt down to feed some of the ducks taht had already started gathering around her, squawking impatiently for the expected meal.

"All right, here you go, you silly things." Relena said this with a light chuckle as she let a handful of crumbs fall to the ground. The birds were very greedy with what thy were given, pushing and pecking to get all they could of the tiny morsels. The mother duck and her little ones had finally come up on the bank and were coming toward her. Relena immediately grabbed a handful of bread but gasped in surprise as one of the smaller ducklings walked right up to her. Carefully, so as not to startle it she put her hand on the ground for the small one and it immediately started eating. Just then one of the bigger ones came rushing at it and the smaller was forced to run away. Instead of grabbing what was left of the bread like Relena had expected the larger duckling also ran after it back to it's mother.

'It was trying to protect it's sibling.' Kind of like how Zechs was always trying to protect her no matter how trivial the matter.

"Zechs, you've got to stop treating me like a child." just then a hand landed on her shoulder.

" I may not be your brother but I definitely won't treat you like a child." The hand gently tightened it's grip and she turned around to stare into those startling blue eyes that so intrigued her.

" I'd kill you if you did." with that said she let him take her in his arms like he always did. She had waited so long for things to be like this with Heero in love with her that sometimes she still could not believe it was true. Finally after a long kiss Relena pulled out of his embrace.

" What are you doing here?" Milliardo had told her that she was no longer aloud to see Heero after he had walked into her room one morning and found the pilot there. They hadn't done anything that night, just talked and slept...and kissed but that was the extent of it. Milliardo hadn't cared. 'It doesn't matter what you did last night. What matters is what might happen if I allow this to continue' He made her so angry when he started acting like and authority figure. Besides, he was one to talk considering he and Noin were definitely not married at this point in time and she was always around the house no matter what you did.

" Relena, did you here me?" Relena looked up at Heero.

" I- I'm sorry..."

" It's all right but please listen to me now. Relena, I want you to marry me." It hurt Relena to see him like this especially when she could not say yes.

" Heero... I love you so much but you know how my brother is. I could never go against his wishes." She was unable to meet his stare after saying these words and gazed intently at the ripples in the pond. Then a hand was gently but firmly tilting her head up and forcing her to look into those beautiful yet so mysterious eyes.

" You couldn't do that to him but you could do this to me? Relena, you are the only person I have ever loved or who has ever loved me back. I know your brother loves you but so do I. He is family but that's what I want to be. I want ot be your family and your life. No matter what you do to him if he is such a wonderful brother that you would do this to me he will never stop loving you. He may be disappointed but if he can turn his back on you so easily then he is not half of what you thought."

" Be that as it may if he does love me I can't just go off and betray him. How can I hurt him if he cares about me that much?"

" Just as easily as you are about to hurt me when I care for you so much."

" Heero, I don't know what to do."

" I'm sorry to say this Relena but you must choose. I shall see you tonight at the pier around 8:00pm if it is me otherwise," he leaned down and kissed her lightly, " then this is the last time I shall ever see you again."

" Heero..." but he was gone just like that and Relena stood once again alone. She had to choose soon and it would be one of the hardest choices of her life. Betray her brother and go off with Heero or lose the man of her dreams for the sake of her brother. How on earth could she choose?