Dorothy touched his wounded shoulder with light fingers, an almost amused expression on her face. "I see you've met Zechs." She shook her head as if he were a wayward child and the blood disappeared under her palm. "You should have waited. I would have given you a worthier fight." Her voice, so bemused at his situation, turned him cold inside and made him stiffen, causing her to take her hand away with a cat's smile. She turned away from him and began to walk, her footsteps soundless against the carpet of dewy grass. He followed a few steps behind, wary of her as he had ever been. Especially in this realm, where she knew everything, and he could barely remember. "So, Heero, you've come back to us," she commented, her white skin lit by the glow of fireflies and moonlight.

"I'm not as I was," he replied, his dark eyes fixed in front of them, wondering just where it was she was leading him.

"Of course not," she answered, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, "It's not the right time."

He couldn't help the smirk that crossed his face. "So I've been told."

She glanced back over her shoulder at him, a less than pleased look on her face. Her narrowed eyes tried to freeze him. He merely stared back and she faced forward again. "You are taking this too lightly, Heero. You haven't fully awakened. This place can be dangerous for you." She stopped suddenly and her gaze looked into the distance and did not see him. "You will be tempted and your heart will yearn for the old ways, but it can not be. Not yet. You mustn't forget, Heero. Adin has only begun to live." Her eyes refocused and she breathed out quietly. After a moment of pure silence, she began to walk again and Heero followed.

Ahead of them, a ring of light beckoned, and as they drew closer Heero could see it was actually a circle of glowing mushrooms surrounding a perfectly spherical pool of deep water. The water disturbed by nothing more than the moon's mystical reflection. Dorothy stopped at the pool's edge, looking down into the water as if she expected to see something other than her own face. When she looked up again, it seemed that her silver-gray eyes were ringed with starlight.

"You know what it is," he said softly, watching her intensely. She met his look and said nothing. "Tell me," he pressed, "You know what will happen if I don't learn it."

"Yes," she murmured finally, "I know what will happened, but it is not my place to speak of such things. To reveal the lesson meant only for you would put my own soul in jeopardy. No, Heero, you must discover it for yourself, and quickly." She turned away again, towards the water. "Your time grows short."

Heero clenched his hands into fists. "What must I do?"

Dorothy laughed, a quiet laugh held somewhere deep inside, between her ribs. "Do? Why, you must go back. Back to the world of living. The world of ghosts is no place for one who clings to life. Go back and learn your lesson, if you ever wish to be with Relena again."

"I don't know the way back," he said coldly. "I don't even know why I'm here in the first place."

Instead of answering directly, Dorothy kneeled by the pool and touched a finger to the center, making ripples move across the surface, distorting the reflections. "You wanted to see her, Heero." She glanced at him with raised eyebrows. "I'm surprised. For a man once thought of as the Perfect Soldier, you do seem to have a shocking lack of common sense."

"I always did, when it came to her."

Dorothy nodded and, suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Heero caught a flicker of movement within the silent circle of water. Frowning, he moved closer until he was standing at the rim, gazing down into the depths. An image wavered there.

He knelt by the edge.

The image resolved.

"Relena," he whispered, his heart jumping in his chest.

Dorothy watched him coolly.

Relena, dressed in flowing white, gazed at him out of sad and lonely turquoise eyes, her very look beckoning him to her side, and he realized, at that moment, he wanted nothing more. Almost of its own accord, his right hand rose and hovered inches above the water and ripples spread outward from his fingertips though he had not touched the glassy surface. It would be so easy. Just to reach for her.

So enamored with vision before him was he, that he did not notice the strong wind that rose around him, gusting violently, whipping petals from flowers and forcing the fireflies into a whirlwind of light. Dorothy's long hair whipped out behind her, the hem of her twinkling skirt ruffling around her ankles. He saw none of it though. He could see only her and feel only the wish in his heart. He knew her now, as she knew him, and with the precision he had held so long ago, he ruthlessly crushed the dim part of him that said he had never met her before coming to this place.

Adin was silenced.

You will be tempted.

His whole body leaned forward, yearning for something he had not felt in a long time. He forgot Quatre's words of warning, forgot that this was the world of the dead, the world between lives, and that he still had a life to go back to. Who could not forget, in the face of her love? More than anything, he simply wanted to touch her.

Beside him, Dorothy watched with the eyes of a raven. She made no move to help nor hinder him and so she was ignored. If he had looked at her though, he would have seen reproach in her silver-gray irises and, perhaps, even a little disappointment.

Your heart will yearn for the old ways.

He could remember.

Lifetimes flashed before his eyes, some blurry but becoming more distinct as they reached the present time. Of all the times he had spent with her, the last was the most poignant. He could still taste her kiss and feel her smooth skin under his calloused hands. Love had never been easy for them and it probably never would be, but she was still his and that was all that mattered. They belonged to each other and he would not let her go again. Who cared that fate had placed them apart? With her love, he could do anything.

Even defy destiny.

One finger touched the watery surface.

But it can not be.

Lightning split the sky and the very air shrieked as time and space began to tear apart. In an instant, two hands clamped down on his shoulders and began to pull him back, away from the pool. Quatre's voice rang in his ear over the gale.

"You can't, Heero! It's not right! You know what will happen if you go to her!" And then Dorothy was next to him, not physically restraining, but her words lanced as sharply as a saber.

"Life is cruel, Heero. Everyone suffers. Do you think you are the only soul ever to be separated from its mate? There is a right way and a wrong way to finish this. Would you destroy everything just to see her one more time?"

He locked gazes with her, cobalt eyes ablaze with determination, and Dorothy took a step back, unbelief painted clearly across her face.

"Yes."

Life is cruel.

He pulled roughly away from Quatre's strong grip and blocked out his friend's desperate cry. In an instant, he leaped forward, his mind focused only on her face.

He fell into the pool and let it swallow him.

Don't forget, Heero. Adin has only begun to live.

Don't forget.

TBC…

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Author's Note: Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Your kind words mean a lot to me and I'm especially glad that new readers are being sucked in as well. Tee hee. Try not to be too confused and I'll catch ya in a week or so.

Love ya!

Berry