Old Love, New Love

DISCLAIMER: I hereby proclaim that I do not own Gundam Wing in any way shape or form. Except for this story's plot, all characters are property of their respective owners. This story is for the sole purpose of entertainment only.

Author's Note:

This story is straight out of my notebook (rough draft) so please be considerate of any poor grammar mistakes. Thank You. If you wish to view some of my other work, you might be interested in my other two fics. Rainy Day Lover (Tenchi Muyo-Tenchi/Kiyone) or Love and War (Dragonball Z)

S. S. Shadow



"talking"

'thinking & emphasizing'



Death, the ultimate fairness. It claims us all eventually. Black and white, rich or poor, young and old, even the sick and healthy. It claims us all eventually, and no one can escape it. There is only two thinks we can do. One is to except it and move on with our lives, or we can deny it as long as we can and live in fear of it. As a gundam pilot I never feared death. I always knew that one day it would claim me as well. Yes, death is truly the ultimate fairness. Sometimes though, it just seems to have bad timing. It was death's work six years ago to this day that brought me here.

At the top of a hill, 26-year-old Heero Yuy stared in silence at the small gravestone that marked the final resting place of his departed love. Dressed in a pair of black slacks and a matching sweater, he bent over and laid a single red rose at the base of the gravestone. As he read the inscription that over time had become burned into his memory, a lone tear emerged from the corner of his eye. It read:

Relena Peacecraft Born : May 12 AC 180 Died : December 20 AC 200 Beloved leader and friend. May her memory live in all of our hearts.

You were all that and more my dear, much more." He let a brief smile cross his face before standing up and sidestepping over to the neighboring marker. Dropping to a knee, Heero laid a rose identical to the previous one upon the ground in front of the stone, the only difference being that this one was white. Inscribed in the stone were the words:

Milliardo Peacecraft. Born : June 14 AC 174 Died : August 6 AC 199 Beloved brother, soldier, and friend

"She wanted you to have this. She still misses you Zechs, the pain will never disappear completely, but with year that passes, it seems to become easier to deal with. Heero moved back to Relena's grave and sat down next to it.

(Heero's POV) 'Six years, it's been six years since you were taken from me. I don't think I'll ever be able to forgive myself for not being there to protect you when you needed me.'

--flashback--

It had been a long day. Heero and the other pilots had just finished destroying a military base believed to be used by an organization that was trying to start a war and destroy the peace previously obtained. They had just returned to the safehouse that had recently served as their base of operation. While the others had retired to the living room for the evening to relax and enjoy some leisurely activities, Heero proceeded to his room to fill out a mission report to sent to doctor J. He had just finished when Duo busted in. "Hey Heero hurry up. Relena is making a speech on TV." Suppressing a small smile at the mentioning of her name, Heero closed down his laptop and followed the bouncing Duo towards the living room to listen to Relena's speech. When the two of them entered, they found that the others had already ceased their previous activities and were watching the presentation as well. They continued to watch Relena in silence until something caught Heero's eye. It was a little blurry so he squinted his eyes to see it better. What he saw made his heart stop and his blood run cold. "Oh no." Quatre was the first to hear him. "Heero? What's wro." He was cut off as they heard a shot fired from the television, turning back to the screen, everyone could only watch in horror as Relena Peacecraft, one of their best and only friends, was struck true by an assassins bullet and fell to the floor, dead on the spot. After the shock wore off, the four of them looked back at Heero who had his head tilted down with a single tear slipping down his cheek, and his shoulders shaking violently. Stunned by how Heero was acting, no one moved until Duo started making his way towards him, but stopped when Heero's eyes suddenly shot open. Then, in a single breath, a lifetime of anguish, anger, frustration, and misery.the pain from years of grueling training to the war, to all of the innocents lost, and finally, the death of Relena, all of it erupted in a single cry of emotion so great, it threatened to shake the windows.

--end flashback-

'That was six years ago, and not a day goes by that I don't regret not being there to protect you when you needed me. Even now I still feel the pain that your loss has created. I doubt there will ever be a time that I won't feel it. The pain will always be there, but with time it will ease, it always does. For over a year I reverted back what everyone knew so well.the perfect soldier. Isolation and solitude became my friends, my 'only' friends. Eat, sleep, and work, nothing more nothing less. I still can't believe it happened, but I manage to find a way to live again. I even managed find love once more, though I certainly wasn't expecting it from the source that I received it. She was one of the last people I expected to fall for, but like myself, she had lost her love as well, not too long before I lost you. Then again maybe that was exactly why I fell for her, she truly understood my loss and vice versa. We drew comfort from one another whether it was talking or simply being in one another's presence. I guess that was what brought us together in the end. We were both withdrawn at first, but she never gave up on me and I never gave up on her. Through each other we managed to tear down the walls that had been built to protect our hearts from harm, walls that the death of our respected loved ones had created. As time progressed we confided in each other even more, and the more we confided in each other the more we came to trust one another, and the more we trusted one another, the more our unrealized love bloomed. Finally, one night when the mood was right and everything just seemed to fall into place, we shared our first kiss. Afterwards we proclaimed our love for each other. From that night we never left each other's side unless it was absolutely necessary. The others supported us completely when we told them, but somehow I think they already knew. Duo was about to burst into a million or so questions that were more then likely to embarrass or annoy us, but was abruptly silenced by Hilde yanking him back by his braid. I guess it's useful for something after all. Wufei made a comment about how I at least didn't choose some 'weak' onna, as he put it. This got him a light, but meaningful slap upside the head from Sally. Trowa just gave us that all knowing smile of his while Catherine congratulated us for the both of them. Poor Dorothy though had the biggest job of all, which was trying to keep Quatre under control due to him overflowing with happiness at the fact that I had found someone to love again after all this time.

Three months later I finally got up the courage to propose to her. After the initial shock wore off, it was all she could do to simply nod in an affirmative yes as tears of joy began to cascade down her face. The next day when I told the others at Preventers HQ, yes I joined the Preventers, everyone's reaction was about the same as when I first told them of our relationship. Duo couldn't help but make a comment about how the last of the gundam bachelors was #finally# getting married. We were going to wait until we had enough to afford a nice little ceremony with just a few family and friends, but Quatre would have none of it. He had seen to it that the others all had a large and eloquent wedding and was going to make sure that we were no exception. Naturally we tried to protest, and with my infamous death glare on stun we were doing pretty well, but then he used the only thing more powerful then even my glare. He used the sniffling, teary-eyed, puppy dog gaze of sadness. Even I, with all my years of hardcore training, succumbed to it'd power and ended up saying yes. The wedding was set for February 14.Valentine's Day, supposedly the most romantic day of the year. Naturally it was her and Quatre's idea, cause god knows I'm not much of a romantic.

When the big day arrived Quatre certainly made good on his promise. If one were to look at the wedding from an outsider's point of view, they would think it was more of a wedding for a kind and queen, rather then your average couple. The mansion surrounding the area was decorated from top to bottom with red, pink, and white roses in honor of the holiday it represented. Everything from the banquet tables to the ceremonial alter were lavishly decorated in the spirit of the holiday. Everything went smoothly from the arrival of the guests to the wedding itself, but then came the wedding reception and well, lets just say that after all of the guests made their comments, the two of us left the reception with face that I'm sure were redder then the roses that decorated the tables. Upon leaving, we departed for our two-week honeymoon in Hawaii. After returning we settled down in a quaint little house not more then an hour's drive from headquarters, yet was blessed with a breathtaking view of the country. It's amazing how much beauty you miss until you decide to stop and observe it.

Heero stood and turned so that he was facing the gravestones again. 'That was four years ago, not much out of the ordinary has happened since then. The guys and I still work for the Preventers, and despite everyone's beliefs of them being destroyed, the gundams are still around. They're stored in one of Quatre's fortified, secret, subterranean bunkers. Only the five of us know of their location or even their existence, not even Lady Une, nor any of our wives knew. That's how it is, and that's how it will continue to remain until one day, the need for the gundams arise once more. Only then will they once again reemerge to fight for the Earth, and the colonies.' "Well, I suppose that's about all I have to tell you, but I feel like I'm forgetting something, I just don't know what." Suddenly, a tiny pair of arms encircled Heero's leg, and when he looked down, was met with a pair of eyes that were as blue and deep as his own.

"Who you talking to Daddy?" Heero mentally smacked himself in stupidity. 'Of course how could I have forgotten? Heh, I must be getting old' He reached down and gently ruffled the boy's violet locks of hair before scooping him up in his arms and holding him so that they were both facing the tombstone.

"A very good friend of mine. Relena, this is my son, Travis. He turned three just last month." After standing there for a few minutes staring at the markers Heero set Travis down. "Travis, go back down to mom now and tell her that I'll be there in a few minutes."

"Okay daddy, bye Relena." Waving good-bye to the tombstone Travis turned around and headed down the hill. Heero watched him leave before turning back to the gravestone.

"Well Relena, I guess this is it. I thought losing you meant losing any and all chance of happiness in my life, needless to say that I'm glad I was wrong," Heero paused. I love her Relena, but I will never forget you or what we had. You will always have a place in my heart that no one else can ever fill, so until I return again, good-bye Relena, I'll never forget you." With that Heero turned and made his way down the hill.

As the car and his family came into view, Heero looked back at the life he had with Relena before she died, and the life that he now had with his wife and son. When he reached the car, Heero walked up to his wife who had just finished putting Travis in the backseat, and encircled his arms around her waist while she in turn loosely wrapped her arms around his neck. Tilting his head down, Heero gave his wife a kiss that was filled with the love and passion that he now, and forever would have for her and only her. They remained in their heated embrace until the need for air outweighed their need for each other, and the two of them parted, both breathing slightly heavier then before.

"Dear, not that I'm complaining, but what was that for?" Heero just smiled.

"Just a little something to let you know how much I care." She just smiled and laid her head against his chest and closed her eyes while happily sighing.

"I love you, Heero Yuy."

"I love you as well, Lucrencia Noin. I love you, now and forever." Releasing one another from their embrace, the two of them climbed into the car. As they drove away, Heero glanced back at the two lone markers atop of the hill, for a moment he could have sworn he saw the shadows of a pair of people standing next to them but passed it off as a trick of the light. He turned his attention back to the road as they drove off.

At the top of the hill, two lone figures watched as Heero's car left the cemetery and sped off into the distance, before turning to each other and smiling. "They look so happy together. I'm glad they managed to find each other."

"So am I Relena. I'm sure they'll take good care of one another."

"Well Milliardo, shall we go?"

"Yes, lets." Turning away from their respective graves, Relena and Zechs took each other's hand and took a few steps away before fading away into the noonday sun.

THE END



Author's notes:

Well I finally did it. I've had this story written and sitting in my notebook for close to a year but have only know decided to write it. In terms of grammar and quality it may not be my best work, but I've typed it as it was written, therefore making it my rough draft. I plan to revise it, but that will be later, for now I just wanted to get it typed and posted to see what you all think. I was a little leery of posting this fic without knowledge of how you might respond to such a pairing. I originally planned to make this a one shot fic, but after thinking about it I've been considering writing what I'd call the 'long' version of this story. (I consider what I've just written the short version.) Write a number of chapters that basically explain the events of this story in further detail. I'd like to do this, but I want to see what your responses are to this version, after all, if no one cared for this story, then there's no point in wasting my time and energy to continue it, so I will be conducting a poll and it will run for three to four weeks before I check it. Afterwards there will be another three or four weeks to finish it. At the end of the poll I will announce the winner of the poll by writing it as a chapter addition to this story. The poll question is : Should I make a long version of the story previously read, or should I leave it the way it is? Today is November 10, 2002 so four weeks from now will be December 1, 2002 and the final tally will be December 29, 2002. I will announce the results ether December 30 or 31, 2002. If you know someone who likes GW but who hasn't read this story yet, tell them and encourage them to vote as well. Please place all votes along with a review please. Thank you, that is all.

S. S. Shadow