Not for the first time, the giant hunk of gundanium beeped obnoxiously at him. Heero groaned and-in spite of himself-hit the control panel with his wrench in aggravation. Each beep had nauseated him slightly; more than likely a knee-jerk reaction to the trauma he'd received from the system in the past. It wasn't like him, but then, he had changed a lot since he'd last used it. It didn't help that he felt that there actually was something bothering him. Ever since it started beeping, he felt kind of… off somehow.

Pushing away the thoughts he focused on the last adjustments he had to make. This suit was truly amazing. The design was exactly the same as Epyon had been, but the coloration was darker, more ominous and foreboding. Any that saw Epyon thought they had seen the devil incarnate. Any who might see this beast would say it was a walking nightmare.

Heero had the vague recollection of the day Treize Khushrenada had given him custody of the maroon mobile suit. He hadn't trusted the charismatic commander, but he hadn't had any other alternative. At the time, he had needed to continue to fight; to challenge those who sought to end his life and prevent the dream that was peace from becoming a reality. He had fought for peace.

He had fought for her.

Not for the first time, he found himself swearing as her image came to his mind. He could have blamed it on the suit, but he knew that with or without its subconscious influence, she would be on his mind. How had he let it get this far? How had he lost sight of things so horribly? He had always been a being of logic. From the day she found him on the beach to the day she stepped in front of Duo's gun for him, she had shown a defiance of the logic to which he so desperately clung. Logic would have had her run. Logic would have had her stay away from him but instead she chased him; followed him, and eventually the dynamic flipped.

She turned his whole world upside down and he loathed her for it. She had given him a reason to believe in something for the first time in his life; given him a real purpose and he admired her for it. She had given selflessly of her own being to hold together the fragile threads of the peace that had been so hard to win while inspiring others to stand up and fight in their own way for what they believed in… and he loved her for it.

And she was marrying someone else.

He cursed again. He cursed his rotten luck. He cursed his lack of timing. He cursed her for making him feel this way and cursed himself for not realizing sooner the simple truth of it all. But she would be happy now. She was happy. He had walked away. So much of what he was came from his relationship (or lack thereof) with her. Once that was gone, he had needed to find a new purpose. He went on his own quest to find out who he was without her and who he used to be. The red-head from the bar, Dana, had helped him see it. He needed to know. Who was he really? Where did he come from? How did he become what he is. He needed to know if he was ever to have hope of living some semblance of a 'normal' life.

So far, his search had been successful. He now knew who his parents were and that he once had a sister. In fact, he knew his sister was alive and even who and where she was. It had shocked him to find out about the two girls he'd trained with. He still had no real memory of them, but he now knew they existed. That was half of the battle. According to the crazy old man he'd been rebuilding the Gundams with; his sister had been taken for the Perfect Soldier Project first, then, later, another girl, before he arrived on the scene. He had trained with her; side by side, Thiana Khusrenada-or Alpha as he had once known her-was his elder sister of one year which could only mean that her former ward, Serene, was Beta. It all seemed so unreal and far-fetched.

He wiped his brow after finishing the final adjustment. Once again, the ZERO system nagged at him. Annoyed, he knew he'd have to switch it on and power it up to for the final checks. He had no real desire though at the moment to hook himself up to it to test it. He'd had enough of ZERO's manipulation for his lifetime, though Epyon had technically caused him to lose his control first.

"Stupid machine… playing with my head…"

"What's that, my boy? What's that?" The old man-whom had called him 'Doctor A'-had made his way using the hoist up to the cockpit. He seemed to have sandwiches with him.

"I don't understand why you crazy old men made a flawed tactical system." Heero grumbled as he took one of the sandwiches.

"Hm? Flawed you say? Our design of the system was perfect. Yes. Perfect for the perfect soldiers. Nothing wrong with it. It challenged, it pushed, it offered other ways. It was perfection." Heero couldn't hold back his scoff.

"Perfection doesn't make mistakes. This thing causes soldiers to lose their minds and forget who the enemy is until they have destroyed everything including themselves."

"Hm…" The old man turned from him and 'hummed' to himself for a while as he finished his own sandwich. Heero wasn't sure if he was thinking, or just being feeble-minded until Dr. A finally spoke with more reason than he had in the past even though it still sounded like a bad riddle. "She was always it, it was never her. She would challenge it to be better; it would then aid her in seeing more. Until, she disappeared that is; then it was the other she and that… oh, my, yes! That! That would be the reason! Yes indeed, there was so much confusion, feelings of displacement, and anger! She fought on her own; all on her own." Why did that last part sound so familiar to him? He shook his head in irritation at the approaching migraine.

"What in the hell are you on about now?" Heero had almost gotten used to the old man's eccentric mannerisms over the last month, but today he seemed particularly irritating. He almost wanted to scream at the old codger to get to the point!

"This isn't that one, no no no! This is HERS. Not hers. This was first. Like the chicken not the egg! This one is pure; not like the other! No, not like the one from the other. Try it! Go on! Go on! Buddy won't steer you wrong." The old man began to walk away after taking the lift back down while chuckling. "Silly Delta boy! Turn it on and try it! Perhaps she tries to tell you something?! You will see! You will see!"

Heero considered the old man's words as he limped away. Sometimes, out of insanity, the most sense can be made. In truth, he knew he had to turn it on anyways. Sighing, he pushed his sweat-slicked bangs out of his face and positioned himself in the pilot seat. As if by muscle-memory, his fingers danced across the keys and the familiar high-pitched hum rang in his ears. However, instead of the green lines with red flashing dots he'd remembered seeing fly across the monitors in a spherical appearance; he was met with red lines and blue dots. This was different. It felt different. The old system felt wild and untamed. This was calm and collected, almost as if it welcomed him as an old friend. If it was a different system and if it did operate differently, then maybe, just maybe it had something to tell him. Before he really even knew what he was going, he picked up the helmet and connected it into the control panel.

"Okay… ZERO, Show me." Almost immediately, he felt crippling panic. It wasn't his panic; it was from someone. There was pain. It was hot and then cold and then wet and then dry. He felt rage; hot and molten bubbling under the surface. A masked face. Sadistic laughter. He heard what sounded like a heart beat start and stop. Start and stop. Start and stop. Then, he saw something. A car. An embassy car. It was moving down the road. It exploded. There was a flash of panic again, crippling, searing, pain. He heard a voice crying out and thought it was his own. Before he realized he'd done it, he ripped off the helmet and stumbled out of the cockpit, nearly missing the hoist. He had to get to a radio. Something was wrong back home; terribly wrong. He needed to know what.

He made his way into the room A had been using as his makeshift office and reached out a shaky hand to turn the knob on the old radio. How such an old radio had survived for so long in the middle of the jungle, he didn't know. He didn't care. He needed to hear the news. The dial turned left, then right, then left to fight through the static. Finally, a clear station. What he heard, however, made his blood run cold.

"—embassy car believed to belong to Foreign Minister Dorlan has been blown up by what law enforcement suspect was a car bomb. Local police and Preventer are doing all that they can. At this time, there is no report of how many were injured or killed in this incident, but our reports say that someone was definitely in the car upon the ignition…"

"Relena…" Before he knew it, he was on his way to the door.

"Wait! Wait there, Boy! Where are you going?!"

Doctor A continued to call after him, but he hardly heard him. All he heard as was her name over and over as he started the jeep and sped down the jungle path praying for the miracle of miracles that she was still alive.


One moment Thia was out to the world and the next everything was back. All the noises, smells, and sensations bombarded her senses. The sound of rhythmic beeping caught her attention first. Even in this state she realized that it was her's and she was in the hospital. The reason why she was here also was at the forefront of her thoughts. She remembered everything. She remembered the moment she decided to hand herself over to Sogran. She remembered the four weeks of torture that followed; the endless hours of ever changing ways to try and break her. The scariest part; it had worked. Not in the way that mad man had hoped or even planned but it had changed her.

As with her consciousness, one moment her eyes were closed and the next they were open. The lights were off but for a soft glow of the monitor next to her bed. She was thankful for the darkness as her whole body was announcing the damage that was still running through her system and she didn't want a splitting headache due to the lights. She slowly turned her head to her right and frowned at seeing a blank wall. Not even a window to look out. She really wanted to see the world at the moment. Instead, she slowly rolled her gaze back to the ceiling before turning all the way to the left and her breath caught. The slight increase of her heart beat for just a second spoke volumes to her ears.

He had come.

Four weeks ago she had said goodbye to everyone mentally not knowing if she was going to make it back alive from this one. She had come to terms with that, yet there had been one outlier that had nagged her. One guilt ridden memory that she believed she'd never get the chance to fix. The dance where Quatre told her he wanted to know her more and her deciding to do nothing. For two years she had kept him as a friend. For four years she had simply used him and taken the cowardly way out by not letting him know what she was really thinking. The only reason why she could explain that choice was because the last time she'd made a decision for herself she'd left Serene and Heero behind. Not that it equated to the same thing nor was it a reasonable excuse but it was all she had to cling to. Also, Quatre scared her. Actually, the feelings and urges he caused in her had made her shut down that side of herself. Alpha was too curious for Thia's own good. McKella had called her out on it but let her make her own choice.

She had had a job to do. Thiana Khushrenada was needed and had to stay focused. If she had allowed Quatre to really see the truth of her, she had feared how she'd respond. Not how he would have responded, it would have been how she would have responded back. She understood the truth of herself. She wasn't Thiana. She was Alpha. Thiana was just a mask she wore to make sure Alpha Corp accomplished what was needed. Quatre would have accepted that. She could tell he already did even though he didn't know what he was accepting. She knew that if Alpha was given the clear with Quatre nothing else would matter and she didn't know how to handle that. Well, she hadn't known how to handle that at the time. When he had started dating Dorothy she had breathed a sigh of relief. Again, it was the coward's way out. She had told herself it was for the best. This way she still had him in her life but she would be able to focus on Alpha Corp.

That all changed over the last month. If she was honest it had started when she heard Quatre had broken up with Dorothy. The four weeks being tortured made her angry. Not at 'The Boss' who was hurting her because of his daddy issues with Father Creeper. She'd get back to that later. No, she was angry at herself for wasting years. She had wasted years with her family, friends, and mostly Quatre. That was the change that had happened. She was no longer going to keep the mask of Thiana Khushrenada perfect. It was still her name but she was done with the masquerade. She was done with keeping up the appearance that she thought would honor the Khushrenada name in repayment for all Treize had done for her. She'd repaid that debt and she wasn't going to hide behind it anymore. She had made a decision in those hours waiting to see if it would be her last. If she survived things were changing.

She had made that decision for herself but now Quatre was here. Quatre had been there. Quatre saw what she had done to Sogran and not said a word. He instead had stood as witness almost. There had been no judgement, but instead she'd seen full understanding. He had understood why she was doing what she was doing and hadn't even tried to stop her. If she hadn't passed out due to being under physical duress and shot up with adrenalin she would have jumped him right there, and that terrified her even after her choice. Mostly, because she was a coward when it involved taking what she wanted.

Why, one might ask the woman who had just undergone physical torture for a month to save other people? It was because she was trying to save other people. When it came to herself: her happiness: she never would act on it. She hid behind her duty, and high ideals to protect her from thinking that she couldn't be emotionally hurt. That she was stronger than letting someone else's opinion be able to hurt her. In reality she wasn't. She wasn't because she was human. Zechs had harmed her when he was pulled his epic nonsense and then handled all of their later interactions wrong. She had survived though. When Relena had pushed her away, and Serene had refused to confide in her she had survived even as it added to the sting of Quatre's original rejection. She didn't think she could survive if Quatre did the same thing again. Quatre was too important.

'Stop thinking. He won't do that again. He already came back and waited two years before you pushed him at Dorothy and he only went to her because you made him question his feelings towards you.' Her inner voice hissed at her. 'He was there, and now he's here. You already made the choice to step back from Alpha Corp and finally do what you want to do!'

"What I want to do…" Thia whispered softly to herself as she continued to gaze at Quatre sleeping curled up in a very uncomfortable looking chair. She could read the stress on his brow, the tension in his muscles, and the worry that had him reaction to every noise in the room. Her inner voice was right. She had made the choice before seeing Quatre again and she wasn't going to retreat just because he was proving her thoughts about him correct. She was going to stay strong this time and actually tell him the truth. All of it and at the end if he walked away she'd make it through somehow.

'He won't.'

"I know…" She smiled slightly as her eyes grew heavy from the triple dose of pain medication and her own body forcing her to rest and heal. It wasn't a good rest but it was a needed rest. The conversation could wait till later.


Quatre started awake and it took him a moment to figure out what had caused him to wake up. He glanced at Thia still lying in the bed. She was still asleep. The monitor was still going steady. No one had even entered the room so why had he woken up. It wasn't until he went to stretch that he realized he couldn't lift his right arm up. It wasn't until he glanced down and realized his hand was grasped in Thia's that he smiled and leaned back into the chair. The worry and stress fading away as he allowed the monitor to lull him back to sleep.


It had been two hours since they took her into the operating room. Two. Long. Hours. He had heard the explosion; he knew that even as he ran to the wreckage that the likelihood of her surviving was questionable. To his relief, she had an, somehow, managed to crawl free of the wreck right before the car burst into flames. He had forced his way through police and first responders, all of whom tried to keep him from her. Guilt and despair tore through his mind like a hot knife as he watched her motionless form being lifted onto the stretcher. They had permitted him to take her hand; to see she was alive but had refused him to ride in the ambulance. He had demanded they let him; insisted to the point of near violence. She heard him. She opened her eyes and looked at him.

"P-pr…o… te…ct…" through the pain and the haze in those icy orbs, he knew what she was saying. He needed to stay with Relena. She wanted him to stay with Relena. Even in her state of emergency, she was still attentive to her duty.

Noin had called Une. Preventer arrived on scene with ALPHA Corp. to secure and examine the area. He found himself ushering Relena into the safety of a new ALPHA vehicle and demanding they follow the ambulance. It had taken time to get to the hospital. Too much time. He gritted his teeth. He should have been the one to get the car. He should be the one on the operating table. Dr. SanJu had just finished seeing to Thiana when they arrived. According to him, he had been Serene's physician since her young teens and knew how to help with her special case. He knew perfect soldiers were different. Had she been any normal soldier she would not have survived. Still, how much could her body take? How bad were her injuries?

The sound of the hospital phone brought him back to the current situation. He wanted to go back there but couldn't. He'd be in the way. They needed to do their job and he needed them to do it well. Relena was pacing, wringing her hands nervously. Noin had taken the twins homes deciding it best not to try and explain in the moment to the three-year-olds what had happened to their estranged aunt.

Trowa slammed his fist into the wall immediately regretting the shooting pain that resulted. She could have been killed. She was fighting for her life. He had been able to do nothing to prevent it and could do nothing to help her. He felt so helpless.

A hand on his shoulder brought him back to the present again. Relena looked at him with eyes full of compassion. She offered him a sympathetic smile and he reached up and patted her hand.

"She'll pull through this." Relena's gentle words of encouragement seemed to be as much for her own benefit as for his, but he returned the young foreign minister's smile.

"I know."


Marie Maya Khushrenada looked up from the magazine she had been thumbing through in an effort to entertain herself in the waiting room. Her father, Treize Khushrenada sat across from her; head down, hands folded, body tense. It had been a surprise when Lady Une had told her about his survival. A mix of emotions and mental trauma had come flooding back.

For so many years she had been "groomed for greatness" as her grandfather had said. He had taught her, trained her and molded her into the single-minded would-be conqueror that would rise to the position as ruler of the universe. She had been his project; a puppet ruler he would use to usurp control from the governmental powers that be. When he shot her; confessed that he could easily make another like her, it had shaken her to her core. The only family she had and the only person she thought loved her in any sense of the word had admitted just how worthless and replaceable she was to him. Fortunately, her interference with the original trajectory of the shot caused the bullet wound to be severe only due to blood-loss so her body had made a full recovery within a few months, but her mind had taken far longer than that repair.

Lady Une, her adoptive mother, had been patient and kind and more understanding than anyone she had ever known. Through the tender efforts of the Preventer Commander, and years of therapy, she gradually learned what it meant to be loved and considered an actual person by someone with no ulterior motives. In addition, her lessons with Thiana had helped her to further understand the true ways and teachings of her father.

It did not shock her when she had realized she hadn't been the only child manipulated by her grandfather's evil. Her grandfather had ruined countless lives in his quest for power, including-she now knew-Heero, Serene, and Thiana. She had always had the memory of a girl breaking into their home in an attempt to kill Dekim. Looking back, she knew it had been none other than Thiana. She had had no way of knowing at the time how badly Thiana would have deserved to end him. It was fortunate for all of those whom had survived his cruelty, that life had, eventually, dealt them all a new, kinder hand.

This train of thought brought her back to her reunion with her biological parent. Her father had informed her of all of the details involved in his absence. She did not blame Serene or Thiana for keeping his continued existence a secret. Somehow, she had always known he was alive. The way Thiana would speak of him seemed in the present tense instead of the past. Part of her was jealous of the bond her newly-returned father had shared with the other two girls, but he had been more than trying to make good use of their time together.

The last three weeks had been most enjoyable, if a little awkward. What did one say to an absentee father upon his return? How did one form a relationship with a legend? It all seemed like some twisted, surreal dream. She had always wondered what it would be like to meet him. The man she had been told of by all except Thiana told of him being larger than life. He was a great, charismatic man; tall and handsome with the ability to capture the attention of thousands with a single word. He was the kind of man women loved and men fought and died in the name of. The man she had come to know, however, seemed to be none of those things.

Bonding with him had been easier than she'd thought and she easily saw where Thiana had gained most of her mannerisms. They played chess, went for walks, and spent time pruning roses in the garden. That part seemed a little strange, but then, her mother did inform her of his pension for the seasonal flower. All-in-all, they were getting on fairly well. He asked her about her schooling and her hobbies while they enjoyed hot cocoa with cinnamon. She, too, was able to learn a lot about him. He let her ask any question she wished and was completely forthcoming with the answers.

Treize Khushrenada was a quiet man from what she could tell. He was very intelligent and charismatic, but he was more down to Earth than she'd expected. This man that had once stood against a force bent of literally destroying the planet now seemed more the type to sip his gourmet coffee while reading the paper in his house robe and slippers. Still, she could not deny that there was an inherent, commanding presence about him. In spite of what she had heard, or perhaps because of it, she was, indeed proud to be his daughter.

As she watched him, she knew that he truly loved Thiana. Treize Khushrenada had not one daughter, but three and the oldest of them was currently fighting for her life. Dr. Sanju eventually come out of the room to inform him that they had managed to stabilize her condition but it would be touch and go for at least another twenty-four hours. She could tell he ached to go to her, but the guilt in his eyes each time she caught his gaze spoke volumes. He didn't know what to say or do. Standing up, she walked over to him and sat in the chair beside him. she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and her looked up at her, almost surprised.

"You should go in to see her. I know she'd appreciate it."

"And what about you?" It was a loaded question with more than one meaning. He didn't want to leave her side so soon. He didn't want to make her think he was playing favorites. She offered him a small sad smile.

"I'll be here."


He had flown his cargo ship directly to the port. He had wasted no time obtaining transportation and sped to the hospital with only one thing on his mind: her. He had reached the front desk, asked the questions, received few answers. Finally, a nurse showed him the way. Heero reached the waiting room, his heart in his throat. His eyes scanned the room for someone, anyone who could tell him what had happened. He froze when he saw her. She was pouring hot water. She was standing. Across the room. Alive. Unharmed. She turned and their eyes locked. She was alive. Relief flooded through him like a tidal wave.

"Heero…" She said his name. He never thought he'd hear her speak again. It was too much.

"Relena…" He had to know she was real. As if his body had moved on its own, he suddenly found himself right in front of her.


Relena sat down and wrung her hands for the millionth time. She couldn't sit still. It had been seven hours now. Seven long hours since Serene had been in surgery and not a word from the doctors yet. Trowa was beside himself, but had done well to keep up a brave front. She, however, had been holding her panic at bay by a thread. Her best friend was currently in the ICU for observation and her younger sister in the OR having lord only knows how many procedures done. She had popped in to see her old friend only to find her resting comfortably with Quatre by her side.

In the case of her sister, all she could do was wait. The damage to Serene's outer body seemed to be minimal, but there was no way of knowing how many internal injuries she had suffered. She sucked in a breath of air as a wave of guilt threatened to consume her. It always seemed as if someone were constantly getting hurt one way or another because of her. Indeed, everyone that seemed to get close to her ended up physically or emotional harmed. Her father had been murdered, her mother too. She had fought with Thiana and driven a wedge between their friendship for three years and Heero… she fought back the beginnings of a sob. She couldn't think about that now.

Serene was fighting for her life because she had taken a bomb meant for her. She may never be able to tell her little sister how happy she was to know of her existence. Thia would be quite eager to know of Serene's condition if she didn't already. Part of her felt like she had failed the head of her security somehow.

She stood and walked nearby counter where a nurse had set up a tea and coffee station. She wasn't thirsty, but the mere act of doing something was better than sitting around waiting. Suddenly, the hairs on her arms stood on end and she paused mid-motion. She felt him enter the room. She didn't need to look to know who it was, but she turned anyway. When his Prussian blue eyes locked with her she saw pure panic swirl into complete relief.

"Heero…" Before she could say anything more, he had closed the distance between them until he was mere inches away.

"Relena…" He reached out a shaky hand and gently caressed her cheek. "You're alive." Her eyes widened at his touch and felt instant electricity flow through her. She reached up and took his hand in hers, cupping it against her cheek. She smiled, softly. He must have seen the accident on the news. He had thought it was her in the car. He had been worried.

"Yes. I'm fine." There was no way to know how long they stood like that. She closed her eyes and just let his presence soothe her. Heero eventually dropped his hand, making no move to step away from her. She felt the loss immediately, but smiled anyway.

"The news said someone was in the car." She could hear the concern in his voice. She nodded.

"Serene was driving to pick us up. The bomb went off and threw her from the car." He nodded.

"Will she be okay?"

"She's in surgery now. We won't know anything until they come out." He nodded again. She fought the urge to reach out to him; to touch him and take from the strength and comfort she had always received from him before.

"Relena…" He reached out to take her hand, but before they could touch, the waiting room doors bust open.

"Where is she? I have to see her!" Relena's eyes flew to the intruder.

"Kelvin?" before she could say anything more, he shoved his way between her and Heero and wrapped his arm around her, burying his face in her hair.

"Oh, Relena, my darling! I am so relieved! Oh, thank whatever god is above! You're alright!" She pushed against him, untangling herself from him noting the hurt in Heero's eyes. Did he know she had broken it off with Kelvin?

"Kelvin, what are you doing here?" She took a strong step back from him.

"I heard about the car bomb! I came as soon as I could! I cannot believe they let this happen to you! You could have been killed! If it wasn't for their incompetence, you would have been! I should call Thiana myself and give her a piece of my mind!"

"You will not and couldn't if you wanted to! Thiana is here in the ICU."

"What?" his eyes seemed to steel over for a moment, making them dark and unreadable.

"There is too much to explain, but she is here too."

"It seems as though the incompetence runs far higher than just her staff!"

"Incompetence? You have no idea what she risked!" Relena felt her ire rising by the second. "And the head of my security is in surgery right now because she took a car bomb meant for me! I don't call that incompetence!"

"If you had had my security team, this never would have happened. Honestly, you should press charges against ALPHA Corp. and Preventer as well for the piss-poor job they did!" Relena felt white-hot anger growing within her as Kelvin reached for her again.

"How dare you! Serene is in their fighting for her life because she was doing her job!"

"Well, she deserves to! Better that worthless soldier than you!" before she realized it, her fist went flying and connected squarely with his face. "OW!"

"How. Dare. You. You arrogant, smug, insensitive son of a bitch! That "worthless soldier" is my baby sister and she could be dying but the only thing you care about is making yourself look like some gallant spurned ex-lover returned to make amends! You make me sick!"

"I think you broke my nose!"

"Good! We're in the perfect place for it." Relena squared her shoulders and stood her ground. "I don't know what you hoped to gain from coming here, but you can save whatever speech you prepared. I have nothing to say to you so you may as well leave now."

"I don't think you realize what exactly you're throwing away!"

"I simply couldn't care less. Good bye, Kelvin." Kelvin made to step toward her, but Heero intervened.

"Out of my way!"

"Never again." Heero uttered. Relena watched the exchange between the two men. Finally, after a small eternity of intense glares and awkward silence, Kelvin seemed to regain his composure and take a step back.

"I see you have made your choice, Relena, but so have I. This isn't finished." He looked at her once more, eyes aflame and stormed out.

She was shaking. Her hand hurt. She looked up and found Heero had turned to her and taken her injured hand gently in his. She hadn't intended to punch Kelvin, but she had to admit, it did feel good! She looked into his eyes then and saw a mix of things: confusion, concern and… pride? She felt a small grin form in spite of herself. He was proud of her.

"We should get that looked at." His voice was soft and soothing as his fingers gently rubbed over the bruised skin. The electricity was there again, gentler this time but no less significant. She shook her head.

"I'll be fine." He smiled.

"I know this is not the right time, but, we need to talk…"

"I know." She smiled sheepishly at him. "When this whole mess is sorted, we will." He nodded and suddenly leaned forward, craning his neck to touch his forehead to hers.

"I missed you." He whispered and she felt her whole world begin to light up again.

"I missed you too." Once again, their moment was interrupted as yet another person entered the waiting room. She and Heero stepped back from one another as her brother approached. Zechs looked tired and haggard. He obviously had not rested yet.

"Relena!" He walked briskly forward and enveloped her in a hug, one she returned.

"I'm fine, brother." He pulled back and looked her over as if confirming her words. He nodded and stepped back.

"What happened?" Relena rehashed all of the day's events as best as she could. She left out the part about Serene's true parentage. It wasn't time. It wasn't her secret. Serene could tell him when she recovered.

"I see." Zechs gave her a small smile. "Well, now that I know you are alright, I am going to get some much needed caffeine." He walked over to get some coffee just as Dr. SanJu made his way out of the OR and into the waiting room. Relena saw Trowa meet the doctor immediately and walked forward to join them.

"Doctor?"

"Miss Storm is through the worst of it as far as operations are concerned. Unfortunately, there were complications." Relena felt her blood run cold. "Her ribs broke in several places causing her to endure a perforated lung. Her arteries were damaged by debris, but we were able to stave off the bleeding. Right now, we are doing all that we can to keep her stabilized but she lost a lot of blood. Without a transfusion in the next half-hour, we will lose her."

"Take mine!" Trowa almost yelled. Relena's heart went out to him. HIs affection for her sister was no secret to her.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Barton, but I have gone over the list of potential immediate donors and you are not a match." The doctor turned to Relena and Zechs. "Unfortunately, like Thiana and Heero, her blood had been chemically altered. Unless the blood type is a close enough biological match, we risk her rejecting the infusion and sending her into a downward spiral."

"Test me." Relena stated and both Zechs and Heero turned their eyes to her. "She's my sister." All eyes turned to her as her brother's expression turned to pure shock.

"Sister?" Zechs seemed to go pale and Relena realized how shocked he must be. She could only nod. There wasn't enough time to explain at the moment.

"Unfortunately, Foreign Minister, I have known of your relation for some time now and already checked the files. You are not a match." Relena felt as though she'd been punched in the gut: her own sister and she couldn't help. The doctor turned to Zechs. "But you, Mr. Merquise, you are a match."

"Okay." Relena looked at her brother. "I'll do it." Zechs took off his jacket and began to roll up his sleeves.

"Brother…"

"Sister or not, she saved my life. I'm going to repay her." Relena was confused by his statement but felt relief wash trough her as Zechs followed the doctor down the hall and through the OR doors. She watched as Trowa walked to the doors as well and placed his hand on the glass of the small rectangle windows. If he could, she knew he would trade places with Serene in a moment.

She felt Heero take her hand in his and glanced down as the electricity and peace flowed through her. He walked her to the chair, let her sit down, and then brought her a cup of hot tea before taking his place next to her. It was now a waiting game, but at least, she didn't have to wait alone.


Zechs sat beside her as they hooked him up. He looked at her face, partially hidden behind an oxygen mask, and noticed that what would have been severe cuts and burns had already mostly healed. This girl had saved his life once from the battle field and tended his wounds at the hidden villa.

This girl was the girl on the video that had been sent to Thia so many years ago. He had watched the footage as this girl (at the time a child) had been brutally beaten within an inch of her life by a madman. This is the abused girl that Thia killed that man for because of what he did. This was the same girl who Thiana had begged forgiveness from on the beach so long ago.

That same girl was now was the young woman who had become the head of Relena's security and who had taken a car bomb in place of his younger sister…

But this girl was also his younger sister.

He sighed and racked his brain for how this could be a possibility and kicked himself for not reading his father's journal more closely. Looking back, he should have noticed the similarities. She had their father's eyes. Her facial shape and unconscious mannerisms, if he'd paid attention sooner, would have been more of a giveaway. Still, he had had more important and pressing things on his mind.

He glanced at her still form on the bed and listened to the steady beeping of the monitors and machines that helped keep her alive. He had hated this girl to a small extent. He had resented her for being the cause of Thiana killing that man. She had been the catalyst that drove a wedge between him and the Khushrenada heir. He had hated her for reminding him of what he had perceived as Thia's murderous and treacherous behavior. And he had been so wrong. He reached out his other hand and closed it around hers: so small and cold.

"I'm sorry." He whispered to her. He didn't know if she could hear him and wasn't fully sure of what all he was asking forgiveness for, but he meant it. He couldn't help but smile when he felt her hand squeeze his back ever so slightly. It was a feather-light pressure; one he may have imagined, but it was something. Something was better than nothing. He smiled. "You're going to be fine."


Once again she was instantly awake but this time she noticed that somethings had changed since the last time she had been awake. First Quatre wasn't sitting next to her and instead it was Romeo and he sat up straighter noticing she was awake now. The second thing she realized was that there was another person in her room on a neighboring bed. The curtain was drawn and she couldn't tell who was lying in the bed.

"Ward…"

"Romeo what's going on?" She slowly went to push herself up and was thankful to feel only a few inner pulls. She wasn't 100% but she was definitely better off than a normal person would be. All that quickly left her thoughts though as she also knew they wouldn't put just anyone in the same room with her.

"There was a bombing, but only one person was injured. Dr. San-Ju has been working overtime and he finally gave the all clear so we moved her into the same room as you."

"You are telling me the bare minimum Matthews… I don't like that." There was something he wasn't telling her and there were only two people he could be talking about.

"Remember, Dr. San-Ju gave the all clear, but she's still pretty banged up."

"Just show me, or I'm getting out of this bed and finding out for myself." He just nodded before going over and pulling the curtain across.

"No…" Thia felt her vision narrow as she took in Serene lying on the bed. "What happened...?"

"Like I said there was a bomb. We don't know how it happened but we're looking into it. Somehow someone placed a bomb on the vehicle and when Serene went to pick up the car and drive back it went off. We believe they were after Relena, but there have been no claims or bragging on the dark web."

"What's the diagnosis?" She managed to sound together but internally she was seething.

"She suffered a concussion due to cranial damage/ she has several contusions and internal bruising that could have caused internal hemorrhaging. She had a few broken ribs, a fractured chin, and a punctured lung. "

"She's going to be ok right?" She couldn't keep the slight wobble out of her voice. She hated it but it was there. She needed Serene to be ok. She wasn't going to blame herself even though the thoughts were there.

"Yes, Zechs gave her a transfusion and other than taking it slow for the next month everything looks great right now. If it had been anyone else Dr. San-Ju said they wouldn't have been as lucky."

Thia let that sink in. If Zechs gave the transfusion than it meant he knew Serene was his sister. Dr. San-Ju's reasoning also spoke to the fact that if Relena had been in that car she most likely wouldn't be with them anymore. Then lastly it seemed they both were going to need to take a step back from things.

"So much needs to be done." Thia calmly said. "Romeo, I'm really going to need you and Drizzie more than ever right now." She watched the worry flash across his eyes and winced inwardly. She'd done wrong by the two of them these last three months. She'd asked too much without giving more trust. Looking back at Serene she sighed.

"First I need to apologize."

"Ward, no…"

"Let me finish." Thia gave him a look that spoke of no questions. "I treated you and Drizzie wrongly. I used both of you and I'm sorry." She paused. "Things are going to be changing but for the next month I'll need to keep relying on the two of you. However, there are some things that I need you to look into. I'll help were I can but I'm going to be taking the next month to slowly re-enter society. I'm going to be needed somewhere else."

"There's nothing to apologize for, just trust us the way we trust you." He gave a small smile looking back at Serene. "Remember, we'll always be in your corner and take as much time as you both need."

"Thank you." She felt the worry leave her system and with that the drugs kick back in. "Ugg… I hate this drug…" It wasn't affecting her as much, but it still made her eyes fight to stay open.

"Give me that tube clamp, please." She tried to sound sweet and innocent.

"Ha, Doc told me you might try something."

"Doc is here?" Thia woke up a little more at that statement.

"He's been talking with Dr. San-Ju and they seem to be studying some interesting blood works to see about a new form of medicine for blood-related diseases. So when he heard you were here he headed over to help out." Romeo picked up the clamp and handed it over. "But I fear you more than him so do what you want."

"I knew you were the smart one." She took the clamp and cut off the drug flow. It would knock out the pain meds but she could handle the pain. She hated the mental lapse that occurred because of the sleeping drought Dr. San-Ju had created more than the discomfort.

"I'll leave you to it then." As he was headed out he called back over his shoulder. "He and Trowa were ordered to go take a shower, change, and get some food. I saw you look for him when you woke up." He winked at her in humor.

"You're impossible…"

"But I'm right."

She just shook her head and relaxed back against the bed she wouldn't be completely under this time and that actually let her calm down more that she had originally imagined. She knew everything wasn't perfect and there were a lot of issues they still needed to figure out. Vulkanus was still out there, 'The Boss' was still pulling strings, and so many changes were needed. All of that could wait for a different day though when they were both ok and out of medical danger.

"We'll get through this, Serene. Things are going to be different this time. I don't know how but they will be. No more hiding for either of us. And you are so going to be explaining to me why Trowa would be waiting by your bedside."