A/N: I've realized one of the funny parts about writing 1xR is that you realize few of your readers actually give a crap about the rest of the characters XD (don't worry, I'm guilty of this myself as well). No "what? Is Quatre dead?" or "OH MY GOD, WHO IS THE POOR WOMAN YOU SICCED WUFEI ON", nope. Just wanting to know where the hell Heero is. Well, here it is, the fateful reunion chapter. Whoop! It's a long one, but I wanted to keep my promise to all you reviewers.

Also, for those of you who are confused, I'll be posting a timeline up to the current events in the story on my profile soon.

Please keep reading and reviewing!

-picimadar

When You Run Among Shadows
Chapter 10: Escape

October 31, A.C. 200, Brussels

Middie started packing up her office, loading the papers she needed into her attaché case and powering down her computer. Knowing Heero's state of mind as she left could only help her, and she was determined to find him. You're not the only one who's made a life playing hide and seek, she smiled to herself. A knock on her door made her turn, slightly surprised. Stephanie's already gone for the night… who got in? She opened her top desk drawer, pulling out a small handgun. Placing it on her desk, she called "Come in," to whoever was waiting.

Trowa stepped inside the office, gun drawn, and closed the drawer behind him. Leveling it at Middie, he approached the desk. "Tell me who you are," he demanded, his voice even and practiced.

Middie smiled. It wasn't at all the reaction Trowa had been hoping for. "Don't play games with me, I know you aren't 'Amelie Hart', or whoever you claim to be. Do you even have a degree?" he asked, coming closer to the desk. Seeing her firearm on the surface, he disengaged the safety on his.

"Now now, No-Name, that's no way to treat a lady," she started, standing up from her chair slowly and approaching him. It was then that Trowa got an eyeful of her costume, all leather and latex and little left to the imagination. He backed away, still keeping the weapon trained on her.

"Don't come any closer," he warned, stepping away from her as she again approached.

"Why? Afraid, are we?" Middie taunted as she walked closer, backing Trowa against the wall, and held her hooded forehead up against the end of his gun. "You won't shoot me, because you shoot to kill, and if you killed me, you'd never know how I know you. Now put the gun down," she said, placing her hand on top of it. Conceding she was right, Trowa lowered the weapon and reengaged the safety.

"I do have a degree, a very good one, actually. After the war I needed something to do, and with my father's insurance I put me my brothers through college. The twins are still in, actually." She paused, turning back to look at him. "And you started working for the Preventers," she grinned. "I didn't imagine once you met Relena you'd be able to pry yourself away."

Trowa sat down in the chair next to where Middie leaned on the desk. "How do you know all this?" he asked. "There's no way Relena would have told you, she knows next to nothing about my life."

Middie pulled the hood and mask off her head, shaking out her blonde hair and looking at him through her grey eyes. Wheels began turning, and suddenly Trowa remembered a young girl, a spy, whom he had met years before. "Middie. You're Middie Une," he said, connecting the dots.

"Indeed, the one and only," she replied, surprised he was as calm as he seemed to be. She remembered Trowa Barton being practically silent, saying what needed to be and nothing more. Relena had kept her filled in on him over the years, after they had realized that he was her 'No-name'. "I'm here because I knew Relena needed help, and the only way I can get hired anywhere without being arrested is under a fake name."

Trowa looked at her strangely. "How did you know about her injuries? We made sure it stayed in-house, the press wasn't aware. How did you find out?"

Middie smiled, picking up her case and walking over to the door. "You're not the only one with secrets, nor are you the only one who gets paid to find answers," she replied cryptically before sighing on her way out the door. Trowa followed her, unwilling to end the conversation. Walking out of the office and to her car, she gestured to the passenger side door. "Get in. There's a lot you need to know."

That same night, Relena accompanied Samuel Creed to the 121st annual Grissholme Hollow's Eve Ball, an elegant masque ball held in a hotel just outside Brussels. Relena walked up the stairs to the hotel, accompanied by her guards, passing dozens of photographers and reporters asking question after question. Smiling her practiced smile and remaining silent, she waved before reaching the top step and being ushered into the lobby of the spectacular hotel.

It was hundreds of years old, kept livable by massive restorations that occurred every decade. The original tile mosaics rested in the ceilings, massive chandeliers causing them to dazzle. The floor was tiled as well, with rich red carpets laid out for its guests. Relena took the glass of champagne a passing waiter offered her and as she took her first sip, turned at the sound of her name.

"Miss Relena!" Samuel called, walking up to her. "You look ravishing," he said, taking in the black, strapless gown she had chosen to wear, from the low-cut bodice down to the intricate black-beaded flowers that sparkled on the flowing satin skirt. He bent down slightly and kissed both her cheeks before taking her hand and leading her into the main ballroom.

"Thank you, Sam," she replied, smiling. "Your suit looks very sharp on you, you should wear it more often." Sam smiled down at her as they continued walking, entering the ballroom. Dozens of couples danced, the string quartet in the corner guiding them around the floor in a slow waltz. Many others stood, conducting conversation, laughing over anecdotes, discussing business, sharing stories, and gossiping. Relena typically hated these events; as the foreign minister, she attended dozens of them per year, all of them a guise for the hosts trying to get her alone long enough to sneak in some hidden agenda or play favorites.

This time, though, she came merely as herself, and she was happy to have the chance to relax and spend time with her friend. As the young couple walked around, they introduced each other to acquaintances and coworkers, discussing everything from each other's daily lives to the local news to the weather.

"If you don't mind me asking, Miss Relena," Sam asked as he led Relena around the floor, "You seemed to be in terrible spirits when we last spoke. I'm glad to see you so much happier now, but what happened to make you so sad?" He looked into his eyes as he asked her, marveling in their clarity and the depths of emotions he had learned to read in them over their months together. He was disappointed when she looked away, staring over his shoulder.

"I had an appointment today, I had to relive some things I never wanted to think about again."

Sam frowned. "I'm sorry to hear that. But surely that can't be all…" Relena looked at him strangely, wondering where his question was leading. "I mean, you took quite a while to answer me the first time we spoke… it seemed as though you had gotten some bad news."

Relena was used to people trying to pry into her personal life, but she had thought Sam would know better. Still, she trusted him, and answered him truthfully. "There's been some reports that there could be another attack… a friend was just checking in to make sure I was safe." She smiled, hoping he would drop the subject.

Sam was not the smartest man, but he was no fool. If she knows, soon there won't be anyone who doesn't, he thought, his grip on her hand growing tense. She pulled away from him suddenly, concerned with his sudden change in demeanor and knowing something was not right. Relena was about to call over a guard when she felt a hand on the small of her back.

"Mind if I cut in?" an older man asked, offering her his other hand.

"Not at all, Mr. Lavie. I'll speak to you later, Relena," he said, dropping all formalities including his smile as he turned and marched away stiffly.

The two began dancing again, the man's movements fluid and experienced. "I don't believe we've had the pleasure of meeting before, Miss Relena, I'm—"

"I know who you are," she replied coldly, refusing to waste time. "You're Lawrence Lavie, the informal leader of the colony X-18997." Lavie smiled at the word 'informal', a calm, sophisticated smile that made Relena want to grit her teeth.

"Well, it seems there is no need for introductions," he replied suavely, not yet ready to release the woman from his hold. "I suppose you also know why I would pursue a conversation with someone so obviously determined to try and kill me with a glare." Relena, though embarrassed at his forward and pointed assessment of her attitude, was far from willing to soften her glare. Although there had been little to no evidence regarding the shooting, Relena as well as the other pilots were nearly certain members Lavie's colony had been responsible, and she hated that she was forced to remain cordial with the man who had nearly killed Quatre as well as cost her closest friends their secrecy. Dorothy's outburst had raised a lot of questions, and it had taken months before they could finally rest easy, knowing their secret meetings and undertakings were safe.

"You want me to sign the paperwork regarding your declaration of independence," Relena eventually replied as Lavie swept into a twirl under his arm. "It's not going to happen."

Lavie continued to smile. "Well, that seems quite biased of you, Miss Relena. You've done so for other colonies just like ours. In fact, ours seems to be the only colony you have yet to visit. I'd hate for anyone to think that their Foreign Minister was neglecting their job." Relena fought the urges both to stiffen in his grasp and to slap him as forcefully as she could. "I propose you come and see the colony for yourself. Live amongst us, see the service we're providing for these men and women, and then make your decision." The music stopped and the couple halted, Lavie still holding her hand.

"I know that you are quite busy this time of year, but after the unfortunate loss of your mother, surely you have few familial obligations this Christmas season. I checked with your assistant, she said you were free for a week over the holidays, I encourage you to join us then." Relena, stunned at the thinly veiled threats he made, said nothing. "I look forward to getting to know you, Foreign Minister." With that, Lavie kissed her hand and disappeared into the crowd, leaving her alone on the marble dance floor.

A young man approached her, looking somewhat concerned. "What'd he say?" he whispered quietly, offering Relena the glass of champagne he held.

"I have to visit his colony or he'll out me for being biased against him," she replied, rolling her eyes as she drank deeply from the glass.

Carl Jacobs smiled at his charge. "You looked uneasy, I wanted to make sure you were alright." Seeing her return his grin, he backed away from her quietly. "I'll be here if you need me. And I know it's not my place to say, but maybe you should head up there. You might just learn something we can use."

He walked away, grinning. And we plan to learn everything we can use from you, my dear.

The night ended uneventfully, and Relena headed out to her car, leaning on Carl for balance. Her heels were painfully tall and the champagne she'd drunk was making her a bit heady, so once she got into her car she fell asleep. Carl woke her up gently and half guided, half carried her up to her room. She took off her shoes and sat down on her bed heavily, smiling at Carl. "Thank you," she said as she got up to choose her pajamas. She heard the door close behind her and assumed her guard had left for the night, out to patrol the grounds for her protection.

She thought terribly wrong.

Carl walked up behind her swiftly, grabbing her by the wrist and crushing her against him and grabbing the back of her head, his fingers tangling quickly in her hair. He crushed his lips against hers roughly, pulling her hair and forcing back the hands that tried to push him away. Suddenly, he pushed Relena back against her vanity roughly, touching as hand to his lip as she fell to the ground, shattering the glass of her mirror and spilling over various bottles.

"You bit me, you stupid bitch!" he roared, charging after her as she collected herself and tried to run out of the room. Hampered by her dress, she reached the door only just ahead of him, wrenching it open and running out the door.

"Get back here! What, you think someone's going to come save you? I'm the only one on duty tonight, no one else is going to hear you if you scream." He followed her through the palace, but she knew her home better than the bodyguard did, and she kept far enough ahead of him that he couldn't see her. Finally, he saw a shadow under the bottom of a door.

"Found you," he said, throwing it open. Carl's eyes opened widely as he faced down the wrong end of a gun.

"And I found everything," Wufei Chang said, gesturing with his free hand to the desk, covered in papers and reports. Relena stood behind him, her mascara running, a look on her face somewhere between fear and hatred. Carl's mind began racing, thinking of what he had been taught to do in this situation. Finally, he had the only answer. Turning and running out the door, he got partway down the hall before Wufei gave chase, and into the kitchen before he collapsed to the floor.

Wufei caught up to him and felt his neck for a pulse, Relena following slowly. "Cyanide," he said, standing up. "He's dead, just like the people who attacked Quatre." Looking back at Relena he shook his head. "After what I read, I couldn't blame him. He's a mole, someone on the inside of X-18997. If they find out he's dead, we'll lose our chance at finding out exactly what they're planning."

Relena looked at him incredulously, her eyes still weeping slightly. "Does anything prove they planned this? Did you find anything we could use as an excuse to get Preventers in there?" Wufei shook his head, sorry that he hadn't.

"Fine," Relena said, steeling herself. "Then we're going to have to do this the hard way."

Middie and Trowa got out of the car outside her small apartment building. She ran her cardkey through the reader and ushered him in after her, leading him up a few flights of stairs to her modest apartment. Tossing her back down in front of the door, she continued into her home, still wearing the ridiculous latex catsuit. Trowa couldn't help but stare at her out of more than bewildering, admiring the catlike way she moved throughout the house. "Come in already!" she yelled, clanking around some dishes in the kitchen. He followed her in slowly, feeling like he was intruding. "You want coffee or something? All I have is instant, I'm not home a lot…" Middie said apologetically, her heels tapping as she walked around the kitchen.

"Whatever you have is fine," he said quietly, still taking in the situation he was in.

Middie stared at him a moment before smiling sardonically. "Relax, would you? I didn't bring you here to kill you, and even if I did, it wouldn't be with shitty instant coffee." She walked back past him and into the living room where she sat down, placing two mugs of steaming hot coffee in front of her.

"Why did you bring me here, then?" he asked, hoping for once he could get a straight answer out of the woman.

"Well, to seduce you and steal all your insider info, obviously," she said, eyes smiling over the rim of her glass. Trowa sat back in his chair, averting his eyes from her. "Oh please, seriously, you pilots need to learn to take a joke. Wufei just about killed me when I used that one on him."

"You know Wufei?" Trowa asked, surprised. Middie nodded.

"Known him for a long time, actually, though not as long as Relena has. I guess that's why she trusts him so much. They went to boarding school together, you know. It's how Relena met most of us."

Trowa's brows furrowed as he tried to understand. "Who exactiy is 'us'?"

Middie took a deep breath, sighing slightly before starting. "I'm not supposed to tell you this. In fact, I'm not supposed to tell Relena's own brother, if you'd believe that. But I'm breaking the rules this once."

"Why?" her companion asked, still trying to comprehend what she was getting at.

"Because I think Relena is walking into a trap. Someone is clearly trying to get to her, someone on that colony."

"X-18997." Trowa stated as Middie nodded. "What do you know about them?"

"We have a few people on the inside, deep cover, pretty serious stuff. Apparently they screen everyone who wants to live there, they have to be ex-cons or soldiers willing to give part of their daily lives to "further the cause". It's practically a cult," she finished, taking another drink of her coffee.

"What's the cause? Do they want her dead?"

"I don't think so. If they did, they would have hit her last year and not Quatre. They want her alive, either for information or for influence. We can't figure out which. Either way, she's in danger. I don't want her going up there, but you know what it's like to talk her out of what she wants… what's worse is…" she paused, looking around as if checking to make sure they weren't overheard, "… I think Heero Yuy is on that colony."

Trowa was stunned temporarily, but Middie continued before he could get a word in edgewise. "I mean think about it. Ex-militia paradise, where he can work and live, no questions asked… seems like the perfect get-away to me."

Trowa could have cared less about Heero Yuy, so he asked no questions. After what he did to Relena, he deserves to have to hide, he thought angrily. "So, what do we do?" he asked. "You know Relena better than I do, if her mind's made up, that's generally it. Preventer believes she needs to go, too, it'll give them an excuse to be on the colony to check things out."

Middie looked somewhat scared for her friend. "I don't know, Trowa. I just don't trust it."

The two sat in silence before Trowa asked the only question he really needed to: "But who are you?"

Middie smiled. "We're hundreds, all working as one. We work to support peace without being it, to bring stability without building it. We work from the inside, making sure that things move smoothly. For a while, we were really just there for each other, friends, comrades during the Alliance's rule, when things were unstable and unpredictable. We separated for a time, but we were always there when we needed each other… Now, Relena's called us back together for help. She started all this, she could talk anyone into helping her, I swear to god," she finished, finishing her drink.

"What are you called?"

Middie smiled, as if remembering a fond friend. "L'ombre," she whispered. "The Shadow."

November, A.C. 200

The ride home with Wufei was tiring for Relena. Having given her speech to her secret comrades, she emerged from the chamber exhausted and very ready to go home. Most of the ride was silent, the two thinking deeply about the potential consequences, and rewards, of what they were doing. Finally, Relena spoke, burying her head in her hands. "What on Earth was I thinking?"

Wufei looked at her briefly before concentrating again on the passing traffic. "You were thinking you'd like to not die, and this was the best way to make sure that doesn't happen." Pulling up to a stoplight, Wufei let the car inch forward. He tended to have a lead foot, and being an impatient man didn't help matters.

"This can't just be about me," Relena said somewhat sadly, looking out the window. "They deliberately shot Quatre, they had no intention of getting to me. I'm not in this for my own life or my protection. It's peace that's at stake."

Wufei had to agree. "If they have their hands on the kind of weaponry we think they do, we're in over our heads already."

Relena pulled the papers out of the case she had stored in the car, a mixture of blueprints, reports, emails and other correspondence they had found stashed in Carl Jacob's small office inside her own house. "Just how stupid do you have to be to hide stuff like this in the house of your enemy?" Wufei had said, disgusted. "I never would have thought to look here," Relena had replied, wondering more about what to do with the body than the paperwork. In the end, they had reported Jacobs to Une herself, who had shown up in the middle of the night, infuriated, and Wufei had debriefed her about the paperwork he had found. He claimed it had been a pure fluke, he had entered the office looking for Jacobs and, going on his instinct, had searched the drawers and compartments of the desk only to find that the man they thought was a loyal Preventer was truly a spy, seemingly working for X-18997. What he had wanted, what his aim had been they had yet to figure out, but with such blatant evidence of issues on the colony, Relena had only one option.

"I have to go."

December 13, A.C. 200, X-18997

Heero Yuy sat in his dimly lit apartment, scrolling through page after page of miniscule text, coded commands and instructions flying past. His hands moved swiftly and surely over the keys, entering required information and passcodes before finally finding the information he wanted. While the organization he formally worked for had more security than expected and definitely more than the Alliance and OZ had. He detected the file he wanted and read through it carefully, mentally tracking a few dates and key times.

After he was sure he had the information he needed he continued to connect to the Preventer network, hoping he could still gain access to their servers. Just as he was about to begin, a knock sounded at his door. Heero was unused to visitors; generally the only people who came to his home were children looking to raise money for school and religious affiliates hoping to convert him, but neither would be visiting late at night. Standing, he crosses the first level of his small, sparsely furnished townhouse and opened the door. His 'friend', Neil, stood in front of him, holding a tray of coffees and a bag of food from the local restaurant. Heero thought for a moment he must be losing his mind, thinking of people as friends, and Neil took the opportunity to walk through the front door past him and into the kitchen.

"Got a call from HQ," he started, passing a plate laden with food to Heero as he followed into the small kitchen. "Apparently they have something they need us to start working on something right away."

Heero looked at him, curious, before padding back into the living room. "They say what it was about?"

"No idea, said it's all in the email."

Heero quickly cleared out of the windows he'd had open earlier, not wanting to explain his life to his colleague. The life he was living was complicated enough without bringing his past into question. It had been difficult enough to explain to Lavie and the others when they had hired him.

"Why would you leave the Preventers to work for us? Presumably you have a great deal of information on what we have planned; you at least seem to be highly informed of the risks involved."

Heero had grunted, folding his arms. "I have the information you need, and I'm willing to give it to you."

"Name your price," Lavie had said, leaning over his desk.

"A new identity."

The conversation seemed like a million years ago; the past two years had been long, and whether or not he ever admitted it, Heero was lonely. Being a soldier was all he had been raised to do, it had been easier living amongst those who knew what he had done and understood him for it. Here, though they may not understand him, Heero garnered respect and felt no need to relive the guilt he felt about his past. It had been a kind of relief for him.

Coming back to reality, Heero quickly opened up his work email and found the instructions from his boss. "Please review the enclosed material regarding the target and clear any missing information as soon as possible. Pick-up of target is set for 26 Dec, 200." Clicking the attached file, Heero inhaled deeply, nearly gasping. Neil came to sit next to him, sipping his coffee while he too reviewed the information.

PEACECRAFT-DARLIAN, RELENA

AGE: 20

HEIGHT: 165 cm

WEIGHT: 48kg

HOME LOCATION: 116 SUSSEX ST, BRUSSELS

CURRENT INFO: Currently working as FM and advisor to the president. Key player in race for new presidency following resignation of Pres. Malone. Overall political views: claims pacifism, but will fight to protect weaker parties, including rivals. Worked alongside Treize Kushrenada, sister to Zechs Marquise. Possible romantic relationship with Quatre R. Winner. Was seized by private doctors and currently seeks professional treatment for PTSD and depression following two suicide attempts. Of fragile mental health, should easily be manipulated into following orders and agreeing to our wishes.

PICK-UP PLAN:-

The final section had been left blank. Heero knew why they had sent this to him and his partner: Lavie knew he had an intimate knowledge of Relena's personal schedule as well as the layouts of the buildings she frequented. In the end, it became obvious what they were to do: plan the kidnapping of the most well-guarded woman alive.

Relena…. Heero thought as he reviewed the information a second time. He nearly laughed as he read about the relationship with Quatre, imagining Dorothy Catalonia ripping her hair out. Another point stood out to him vividly, when had Relena attempted suicide? There had been no reports about it on the news; had it not been for this debriefing, he likely would have had no idea. Putting the information aside, he focused on the task at hand.

Neil sat atypically silently, and passed him a coffee. "Lavie told me you used to know Relena," he started, treading carefully. He knew better by now than to ask too much about his friend's personal life, but when it was a matter of the success of the mission, he knew Caden would give up any relevant information, private or not.

Heero grunted, shrugging his shoulders as much as he could while still continuing to type. "I worked for her, a while ago," he answered, giving the barest and yet most true information than he could. He had done a lot more than work for her… he cut the thought off before it started.

"Well, that works for us. So how are we gonna get her off of Earth at a time like the anniversary? Might as well just go down there and get her ourselves." Neil propped his feet up on the table, ready for a night of planning.

"We don't have to, she's coming here already," he answered, taking his own coffee and drinking it, happy it was just the way he preferred it: black.

"How'd you find that out? Lavie told me she was considering it, but no decision had been made.."

Heero nodded. "It seems pretty recent, it was just added to her itinerary last week."

Neil's eyes widened before he laughed slightly. "Man, you've just been getting up to all kinds of trouble cooped up in here, haven't you? Gonna leave any work for me or what?" His dark eyes wrinkled with merriment before he settled back down on the couch, running a hand through his jet-black hair. "Alright so, how are we gonna do this then? She's found out a bout Jacobs, she'll be guarded up the ass now."

Heero considered their options for a few moments before starting. "She won't be guarded once she's inside headquarters, Lavie would never let them in."

Neil frowned. "Like she's going to walk in here with no protection. She's not stupid, and neither are her personnel. Her and Winner both practically walked away from the last attempt. We have to account for all the possibilities this time."

Heero nodded again, settling back into the couch, crossing his arms and lowering his head, deep in thought. He took out a sketching program quickly and started drawing a map detailing the first few floors of the large office tower the knew as HQ. "This area, here," he said, circling a set of rooms near the second floor. "There's one entrance, and one exit, separated by 4 interconnecting rooms. If we can get her into the first one without her guards, we could likely keep her in long enough to either knock her out and get her out the window or the exit door without them noticing. Even if they did follow, they'd have to get through these four locked doors, or run around to the other side of the building."

Neil nodded fervently, almost excited. "If we can keep the noise down, it'd be ages before they even noticed a thing. Good thinking, man!" he said, clapping the fellow agent on the back. 'Caden' looked troubled to him, and Neil lost his smile slowly. "Hey, man, don't worry about the girl. They just wanna bring her in to get information out of her. If she's smart she'll give it up and be outta here in a week." Standing up, he started to walk towards the front door.

"I'd stay, but I know how you love your alone time," he said, almost laughing. "Fill in some stuff about personnel numbers and get that back to Lavie. Don't give me any credit either, you deserve for him to know what a bucket of brains you are." With that, he left Heero behind. He remained on the couch for several minutes after his friend left, wondering how much of what the purpose he'd revealed for Relena's kidnapping was true.

December 25, A.C. 200, Brussels

Relena's whole 'family' was gathered at her oblong dining table, or at least those of whom could make the journey. Quatre and Dorothy arrived first, as expected, both being on Earth for the Anniversary celebrations. After the Eve wars had ended, each passing Christmas without the world at war had been marked by massive celebrations worldwide as well as in the colonies, brining a whole new level of festivity to the holiday season. Duo and Hilde came as well, following closely after Wufei, who left his makeshift family for a few hours to have dinner with his friends. Finally, Sally Po, Trowa, Une and Mariemaia had joined them. Samuel Creed felt honored to be invited, but declined, claiming he was visiting family in Canada.

So they supped together, enjoying fine wine, better food, and celebrating not only an end to the wars, but also to years of friendship. Once dinner had wound down, Une cleared her throat.

"I hate to be all business, but we need to discuss your plans for tomorrow, Relena. As much as I hate the idea of you going, I'll concede it could help us in fingering whoever attacked Quatre. Trowa, you'll be accompanying her correct." The young man nodded.

"Myself and my team will be on duty 24/7 while she's on the colony. She won't leave our sight, Ma'am."

"Good. You get the slightest wind of anything, and you get her out of there. I don't trust this 'Lavie' character; I know next to nothing about him. It's as though he came out of nowhere just in time to indoctrinate a colony and declare independence."

Relena, in turn, cleared her throat. "I know you have the best of intentions, Anne, but I don't think all the security is necessary. He might be shady, but Lavie wouldn't risk trying anything while I was there. He needs my signature on his declaration,

whether he likes it or not; I can't sign if I'm dead."

Une shook her head while Mariemaia listened intently, happy to be included in such heavy politics. Une and Relena had been grooming her over the past few years to continue in her father's line of work, and she had been waiting years to be included in more formal discussions.

"It's not just about their declaration, we can't ignore the blueprints we found with Jacobs. Even if this is just something they're planning, a cannon that size could annihilate anything or anyone standing in the way of their agenda. I can't risk it," Une replied.

The group finished the dinner rather solemnly, all her friends hugging Relena goodbye before they left. Well, thanks, she thougth to herself bitterly. The least you could do is act as though I'll be back.

February 14, A.C. 201, X-18997

Relena was exhausted, cold, bruised and bloody. Secluded in the dark, she kept herself huddled in the far corner of the room, her arms wrapped around herself for warmth and comfort. For nearly two months she had been trapped here, forced to go through hours of interrogation, torture and punishment for refusing to cooperate with the men who kidnapped her.

Her visit to the colony had been fairly routine, meetings with local political figures, visiting hospitals, government agencies, and so on. Lavie guided her through most of the process, as though keen and confident he could prove he was providing the 'necessary services' to his citizens. Finally, he had greeter her as she arrived at the large, glass building he had claimed he used to conduct his official business on behalf of the colony, conducting trades, performing necessary upgrades to the colony structure, scheduling weather, and all other necessary functions the people would need to survive.

About halfway through the tour, Relena had started noticing odd behavior in the people surrounding her and her guards. Rather than greeting her, smiling, as they had before, the men and women she encountered in this building were sullen, even glaring as she passed. Two men began following Lavie and Relena as they progressed through the mazelike building, where he finally led her to a small, solitary door at the end of a corridor.

"Now, Miss Relena, if you would care to come with me, I can show you the plans I have drawn up for our declaration," he gestured for Relena to pass him through the door, holding his hand up for Trowa to stop as he attempted to follow her. "I'm sorry, sir, but I'm afraid I can't let you in. There's quite a bit of sensitive information I need to discuss with our foreign minister here, and I can't allow you to be privy to it."

Trowa shook his head. "No dice,' he had responded. "We were chosen by our government to protect its officals. She goes nowhere without us."

Lavie smiled. "A government chosen by Earth. Here, we have our own policies, and one is that no one other than myself and Miss Relena are going to enter this room." Relena looked back at Trowa, putting a hand on his arm. "Don't worry, Agent Barton. I'll come right back as soon as I'm finished."

If only she had known what awaited her, she never would have followed the wretched man into his office.

Progressing through several more rooms, they finally arrived at what Relena assumed was Lavie's "central command". "So, Mr. Lavie, what was it exactly you wanted to discuss?"

Lavie had smiled from behind his desk, a hand behind his back. "Unfortunately dear, it's nothing I can get out of you here." Before she could react, he had forced a needle into her neck, and before he even finished pressing the plunger she had collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

She had spent most of her days in a semi-conscious state, dazed and battered by the beatings she encountered from the men assigned to extracting information from her. What they were after Relena truly didn't know, she had resisted every attempt of theirs to force her into revealing Preventer and government secrets, whether it be pain, poison or threats of death. She had been trained for this long before her time as Foreign Minister; with her father in such a powerful position, kidnapping was always a possibility, and she had steeled herself to resist breaking down.

Relena was slowing slipping, her ability to resist the call of freedom that beckoned. They often promised her she would be safe, happy again, able to live in the light of day, if only she gave them what she wanted. The few times she was allowed outside were when she was to be transferred to a different building on the colony.

She was truly trapped. Outside this room, most of the residents of the colony were on the side of Lavie; even if she were able to escape, there would be few willing to help her. Still, it was a risk Relena had to take; it was run, or die.

It had been clear the Preventers had either stopped looking for her or believed she was dead; there was no way they would have simply left her to rot in this prison. It was time to take matters into her own hands. Relena held her head high as two men dragged her out of her cell. They had stopped handcuffing her a few weeks before, believing her too weak to even attempt escape. Relena put her political acting prowess to work, stumbling as they led her up the stairs, crying as they led her out into the night, before handcuffing her to one of their agents as they let her go.

"Hey, you take the bitch by yourself tonight, I'm fucking tired," one of the men said, lighting a cigarette.

"No way, man. Lavie finds out, and we're dead. Walk with me to Deacon St., it's just a few blocks after that, I can handle it from there." The other man sighed, continuting to smoke his cigarette, occasionally blowing smoke directly into Relena's face, laughing. "Aww, what, sugar, you don't like it?"

Finally, they reached Deacon Street. Relena tried to use what she could remember of maps of the colony to figure out where they were; somewhere in the southwest quarter, not far from their Headquarters and close to a large plot of residential housing. It was Relena's only shot.

The other man left, patting her rear before he headed off, waving to his friend and laughing. The man holding her regarded her with mild disgust before continuing on his way, dragging her along the street. This late at night, there was little traffic, so Relena took her chance when she had it: seizing all the strength she had, she pushed the agent into the street, directly in front of an oncoming, enormous freight truck. The front wheels almost immediately crushed the man to death, and Relena barely moving out of the way of the wheel nearest her. She pulled her hand free and desperately reached around the wheel for the man's waist, where she found in his pocket the keys for her handcuffs. Grabbing them, she started to panic, the driver of the truck exiting his vehicle.

Gasping as she undid the cuff, she grabbed the man's gun and leveled it at the driver, scrambling up off the ground. "Come any closer and I'll kill you!" she practically screamed, adrenaline shooting through her veins, calming the massive pain in her shoulder from the hit of the vehicle and the weeks of beatings. The older man put his hands up, seemingly unbelieving about what he was seeing before him. Relena turned and ran away from him, sprinting as fast as she should. It wouldn't be long before they realized she wasn't arriving as she should, and Relena couldn't keep up her speed for long. Months of being locked in a tiny room had killed what stamina she had, and by the time she got out of the industrial district, Relena was panting.

She fought the urge to turn and look as she heard voices behind her. "There she is! Get her!" Knowing she was being persued, she bounded around a corner onto the first line of townhouses and began pounding on doors.

"Help me!" she screamed, banging on three sets of doors, rousing no one, before firing several shots at her pursuers and continuing running. At least one shot hit its mark, one man falling to the ground, another radioing for an ambulance. Hearing only one set of pursuing footprints, she continued to run, her adrenaline helping her push through the pain as she bolted to the second street of identical homes.

Halfway down the street she saw it like a beacon: a house with the lights still on, illuminating the street. While it made her an easier target, she believed the men still wanted her alive and wouldn't risk shooting at her. Taking a deep breath, she bounded up the steps of the home and began pounding as hard as she could on the door.

"Help me, please! Help! Help! Please!" she continued to scream, begging God or whoever had kept her alive and well as long as they had to keep doing it.

Suddenly the door swung open, and Relena was unsure whether her prayer had been answered: before her, most undoubtedly, stood Heero Yuy.