Chapter 40

five years later...

A car pulled up to a large mansion, where a crowd of reporters stood. Three people got out, and
the reporters pounced. Questions filled the air, as the three people shoved their way
through the mob, pointedly ignoring them.

"Whew!" Reiming said, tucking her hair behind her ears. "I will never like reporters..."
Then, taking Giselle's hand and putting her other arm through Trowa's, they headed up the
steps.

"Giselle!" a little girl shrieked, running towards them.

"Hi Clare!" Giselle called, waving. Turning to fix both her green eyes on her parents,
she asked politely, "Mommy, Daddy, could I go play with Clara please?" Her parents smiled and
Reiming released her hold on her child's hand, and the bouncy child ran off with Clare, Dorothy
and Quatre's second child, who was four years old. Watching them run off, Trowa studied their
child. "She has my green eyes...but her eyes are the shape of Reiming's eyes. Her hair is dark,
like Reiming's, but her skin color is paler, more like mine. And she has Reiming's old
personality," he finished. Smiling proudly at their daughter, he murmured, "She truly is our
child."

Reiming had been doing the same with Clare. "Quatre's wide eyes, pale blond hair like Dorothy,
and Dorothy's temperment," she chuckled. "Well," she corrected, "Not AS assertive, but
certainly no pushover! A good mix between the two."

The two smiled and walked into the main room, where they were met by Relena and Heero,
and Quatre and Dorothy.
"Trowa, Reiming!" Relena called in greeting, standing up. "We haven't seen you in so
long!" Dorothy said. Reiming smiled. "The key word in a traveling circus is the word traveling.
But I'm glad we got this chance to see you all."

"How IS life in the circus?" Relena asked.

"Very eventful. Giselle is the little princess in the troupe," Reiming said, smiling.
"And I'm doing a tight rope walking act."

"What about a rope?" a voice said, and Duo and Hilde came in, Hilde carrying their
newest child, Eva, who was one. The two other children, Jerry, who was now a still smiling
child, but was now eleven, and Thomas, an equally mischievous four year old, followed.
"Sheesh!" Duo muttered. "Stupid reporters...always in the way!"

Duo and Hilde let their children loose with the exception of Eva, who sat in Hilde's lap, and
began talking about the last few years. "So Heero, how have you been?" Duo said jovially.
"Still the same dull self? OW!" as Hilde yanked his braid. Heero glanced at him. "You
obviously haven't changed," he said mildly. "Some things will never change," Trowa said.

"What won't change?" and Wufei and Meilai walked in, with their twin boys, and so did
Zechs and Noin, with Reena and Aelis and their third child, three year old Geoffry. "Where's
Riko?" Aelis asked immediately. Despite the four year age difference, the two got along well.
At the same time, Reena said, "Where's Jerry?" Noin sighed. "Where are your manners, ladies?"
Geoffry snickered, and the twins glared at him sullenly, but the two apologized, and Mariko
materialized out of nowhere. "Aelis!" the seven year old cried, and the two ran off.
Jerry also appeared, along with Thomas, and Reena and Jerry ran off, with Thomas and Geoffry
not far behind, singing, "Jerry and Reena, sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" Then Rayan, now
six appeared, and he along with the five year old twins, Wuten and Wuli, ran off together.

Glancing around, Noin asked, "Where're Lady Une and Mariemaia?"

"Mariemaia is still on her honeymoon, and Lady Une is taking care of business in the
space colonies," Wufei said. "They send their regrets."

Relena sighed. "I can't believe how Mariemaia has grown up...She's twenty years old and married
now!"

Meilai nodded. "Time passes so quickly!"

After chatting some more, they decided to eat lunch. Calling their children together, they
set the children to eat in a different room, and they sat down at the long dining table.

"So Trowa, how are things at the circus?" Duo asked.

"It's doing well. I may get the position as manager after the current manager
retires," Trowa said. "And you?"

"Ah, business as usual. You know, fix this, fix that, go on this satellite, go to this
colony," Duo said, waving his fork around...and accidentally splattering Heero with food.
The entire table hushed. "You're screwed..." Hilde muttered, sinking down in her chair.
Heero looked at the potato salad on his shirt, then at Duo, who was trying to hide, then back
at his shirt. Then, he very deliberately filled his spoon with creamed corn and flung it at
Duo...and missed and hit Dorothy. Dorothy promptly threw a carrot stick at him; Heero ducked,
and it hit a very shocked Relena on the forehead, who proceeded to throw a tomato and hit
Wufei, who then flung cole slaw at Reiming, and before anyone knew anything, an all out
food fight started.

"Mom?! Dad?!" eleven voices chorused. All the pilots stopped and stared. Peeking out
from behind a door were all their children. "Er..." Relena stammered helplessly. There
was a standstill, and then suddenly, Zechs took a roll and threw it at Reena. Reena stared at
her father, and then giggling, grabbed a bunch of grapes and started throwing one at everyone in
the room. In no time, the food fight resumed, which finally ended as each child fell laughing
in their respective parent's arms.

an hour later...

"Good thing Relena and Heero have so many bathrooms," Meilai said ruefully, towling her
hair. Then she smiled. "But it certainly was fun, though I do hope the reporters didn't catch
any of that!"

Finally, the day ended, and one by one, people started to leave. "We should do this more often,"
Quatre said, shaking Heero's hand in farewell. Heero nodded. "Yeah..." The entire
group gathered around in the front lawn, watching the sunset. "Beautiful, isn't it?" Noin
said. Then she turned around to everyone. "We can't ever let anyone try to ruin these wonderful
things in life," she said firmly, and they all nodded. Duo smiled grimly, "Yeah, anyone who
tries another coup deals with us!" and they all smiled once again. Reiming sighed. "I wish
we could see each other more...but we're all so busy..." Meilai agreed, then finally, each
turned to leave. "Everyone, we'll continue to keep in touch!" Relena called, saddened to see
everyone leaving. Heero put his arm around her, and she leaned into him. "But for the times
we aren't all together...we have each other and our child," he said gently. Relena nodded and
smiled up at him, and the two kissed.

on the road...

"That was fun..." Giselle said wistfully, peering out of the window. "I'll miss
seeing Clare..."

"Don't worry Giselle. You will see her again sometime," Reiming told her, and she
turned to Trowa, she said softly, "I don't believe this...five years ago, I wouldn't have thought
I could ever be this happy...I didn't think I would ever be loved or even be human..." and
she put her hand through Trowa's. Squeezing it, Trowa looked down fondly at her. "Put the
past behind you Reiming," he said softly, and slowing the car as the caravan came into view.
They all got out of the car, Giselle running out to go play with the animals. The two
stood there in the sunset, arms around each other. "Aishiteru...Reiming..." Trowa whispered.
"Aishiteru, Trowa..."

that evening...

Meilai looked out the window. It was late, and the boys had been put to bed. Wufei came up
behind her and put his arms around her. "What's the matter?"

"Just thinking...about how happy I am..." she said softly.

Wufei understood. Kissing her neck, he thought, "I am happy too...I have friends...a wife...
children...and finally, peace. Farewell, Nataku...may you rest in peace...Thank you for
everything..."

Still staring up at the stars, Meilai murmured, "It was unforgettable, wasn't it?"

"Yes..."

And in all parts of space, in all parts of the Earth, Heero and Relena Yuy, Duo and Hilde
Maxwell, Trowa and Reiming Barton, Quatre and Dorothy Winner, Wufei and Meilai Chang, and Zechs
and Lucrezia Merquise agreed. Even at that moment, Lady Une, Mariemaia, and Cathrine all
looked out into the starry night. "It was unforgettable...and it was worth it all...all for
the sake of peace." And with that, each went to their own lives, knowing that, at the first
hint of trouble, they would once again become the Perfect Soldiers, ready to defend the Earth
and space.

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Wow! I'm FINALLY done. If you actually read all forty of my chapters...good job! You have
my undying respect:) And now...please send me feedback!!! This was my first fic; I want to
know how you all like it. Send all your comments to lilangel4u@yahoo.com. Hope you liked it!