Cinq Kingdom Palace

"Caterers?"

"Check! I have already hired a very exclusive caterer," stated Relena as she opened a menu to show Quatre. "Miliardo always hires him when there is a state banquet."

"We aren't having shellfish!" Quatre shuddered. "I am allergic to shellfish."

Dorothy made a sound of disgust. "What aren't you allergic to?"

Relena took a breath. "Please don't start fighting! This is important! Where is Hilde? She said she would be here to help plan this party!" She looked at Quatre. "Was she at Seaside this morning?"

"Dr. Stryfe doesn't allow that kind of stuff to go on," said Quatre.

Relena rolled her eyes. "Of course he doesn't! Speaking of Dr. Stryfe, I invited Trynity, so I expect she will be arriving soon."

Dorothy burst into laughter. "You think she will be coming here? You must be delusional, Miss Relena. She would self-detonate herself in the Valkyrie before she would allow herself to be caught up in this scheme."

"Stop calling me Miss Relena," snapped Relena. She could barely tolerate Dorothy's presence and had invited her only out of habit. Quatre had been dead set against it – he thought Relena actually liked him – but she could not imagine planning an event of this magnitude without Dorothy Catalonia.

"Miss Stryfe is not going to help us plan this party," stated Dorothy. "And if she did have the nerve to show up at the Royal Palace, I have a score to settle with her."

"I wouldn't bother trying if I were you." Quatre smirked at Dorothy. "I think she can take you with one hand behind her back."

"You mean how I take you?" Relena was disgusted by the look on Dorothy's face and Quatre's little smile. She didn't even want to think about what they were talking about.

The door to the salon opened, and Hilde pushed past the servant. "Sorry I'm late! Lars promised to give me a ride here on his motorcycle, but he didn't show up!" She looked at Quatre. "Was he taking the Epyon out today?"

"No." Quatre didn't offer any further explanation. Relena suspected he was hiding something, but she didn't care to ask. If Hilde's sad little romance with the pilot of the Epyon went awry, she would be all the happier. She just couldn't wish anybody more happiness than herself, especially since her relationship with Heero was all but dead.

"Do you have a theme planned?" asked Dorothy.

"We should wait for Miss Stryfe," said Relena.

"She's not coming, is she?" Hilde's eyes narrowed. "I hate that bitch!"

"Poor Hilde," sighed Dorothy. "Lost Duo to her and you can't quite get Lars away from her."

Hilde raised a fist. "How would you like to taste my knuckles, Dorothy Catalonia?"

Relena now wished she had made these plans alone with Quatre. Those two would only fight! If only Catherine hadn't left! Catherine had some sense! "We will wait for Miss Stryfe. I think she will come."

"What makes you so sure?" demanded Dorothy suspiciously.

Relena didn't lie. "Because I allowed her to think my brother wanted to discuss something about the mission with her. She is so wrapped up in her father's silly little experiment that I am sure she will be coming along shortly."

Complete silence met her explanation, then Quatre said, "I wouldn't want to be in your shoes when she realizes you tricked her."

Dorothy went to the window. "Well, well, well, look who just arrived!"

They all joined her and Relena heard Hilde gasp with outrage as they watched a motorcycle pull to a stop. A dark clad form wearing a blue jacket stepped off, and pulling the helmet, shook out tangled red curls. Lars Nelson took the helmet from her, and after a few words, sped out of the courtyard.

"I am going to kill her," growled Hilde.

Dorothy laughed.

Relena stepped between them. "Now stop it! We must be united when she comes in."

They went to the sofa and chairs, and Relena was pouring tea when the servant announced Miss Trynity Stryfe.

Trynity viewed the group with contempt, but then Relena was quite used to those looks. "I was supposed to meet King Miliardo," said Trynity when the door had closed behind her.

Relena smiled. "Have some tea with us while you wait. My brother had some unexpected business to take care of."

Trynity looked at each of them, then sighed. "I suppose a little tea wouldn't hurt."

"Goody!" Quatre hurried to her to take her arm. "You know everyone!"

"Of course I do!" Even Relena thought that was a stupid remark.

Hilde glared at her. "Was that Lars Nelson who brought you? What did Duo think of that?"

Trynity raised a brow. "What should he think? Lars was going to pick you up, but you didn't answer the phone so he assumed you had already left."

"And you decided to take my place!" Hilde was working up a good rage, so Relena handed her a cup of tea.

"Do you take sugar?" asked Relena.

Hilde didn't even look at her; she was too preoccupied staring daggers at Trynity.

"He offered to bring me, and I didn't want to disturb Duo. He was busy stalking woodsprites in the enchanted forest."

Relena poured another cup. "Would anyone like cream in their tea?"

"I would!" blurted Quatre nervously.

The tension was so thick in the room that Relena was becoming uncomfortable. "Sit down, Miss Stryfe!"

Trynity purposely walked to the sofa to sit by Hilde. Relena's hands were shaking as she poured the tea. They were going to fight! How would she explain this to Miliardo? He would call her irresponsible and foolish! She had had to twist his arm to allow them the dance at the Dover Base. Sally Po had tried to stop the event, but Relena prevailed. Of course, a few tears about not seeing her beloved Heero for many months had helped force him to accept her plans, but Relena was not about to give in now. Miliardo had even wanted to find another location, but for her purposes, it had to be held at the Dover Base.

Relena passed a cup and saucer to Trynity who sat calmly next to the seething Hilde. "We were just discussing plans for the dance at the Dover Base."

"Quite an idiotic idea," remarked Trynity as she sipped from her cup and glanced at Quatre over the rim.

Although she was disappointed Trynity felt that way, Relena thought she could convince Trynity it was a good idea. She was a woman, after all. Until the disastrous ending of the Stardust Ball, Trynity had seemed to enjoy the event.

"Surely you would like the opportunity to dance with Duo again to the romantic music of an orchestra," she said with a smile.

Trynity sipped more tea, then said, "Duo and I dance on the beach to our own music," she commented with a smile. "We don't need an orchestra."

Relena stared at her, and she imagined the wild-haired girl twirling about barefoot in the sand in Duo Maxwell's arms under the moonlight, and she sighed. If only Heero could be as romantic! She knew she should have made a stronger play for Duo at the Stardust Ball! Who would have guessed that he would be the perfect boyfriend? He had always taken Hilde for granted! Then again, perhaps Duo was in love with Trynity Stryfe. Trynity seemed to be a completely different person when she was with the pilot of the Deathscythe.

"We aren't talking about the horizontal hustle," said Hilde snidely.

Trynity looked at Hilde. "Neither was I, but then you wouldn't understand, would you, Miss Ready-With-A-Blanket!"

Relena knew she had better do something quick. If Hilde hadn't had the cup of tea, she suspected she would have swung at Miss Stryfe. "Hilde and Trynity, that is all water under the bridge."

"I don't think so, Miss Relena," remarked Dorothy as she took a cup of tea. "I think the water has been dammed up somewhere before it got to the bridge."

"I think we need to do an intervention!" cried Quatre excitedly.

Trynity looked at him with disgust. "Just what do you mean by that?"

"If we get all the parties involved together, they can speak openly and honestly, and once the air is cleared, they can go on without all the bad feelings locked up inside."

Relena didn't want that going on in the salon. "Please, Quatre, stay out of it. They can have an intervention at Seaside sometime, but not now, not here! I invited you all here to plan the party."

"I came because I was summoned by King Miliardo," said Trynity, standing.

Hilde laughed. "Ha! You are so dense, Trynity Stryfe! Relena invited you here."

Trynity spun to look at Relena who could feel her cheeks reddening. "You invited me here to discuss this stupid party?" Relena was speechless. She hoped Trynity didn't hit her. She had heard about what she had done to Duo when she discovered he was the pilot of the Deathscythe, and she did not want to suffer even an iota of that pain. Duo had scars!

She took a deep breath and looked her in the eye. "There is no reason why you shouldn't be involved."

"I can think of a good one," commented Hilde. "She has absolutely no sense of romance."

To Relena's surprise, Trynity actually looked hurt. There were tears in her eyes as she reached up to touch the necklace she never took off. Although she certainly didn't deserve it, Relena felt sorry for Trynity. She wondered if the girl was completely misunderstood by everyone but Duo Maxwell. And the other gundam pilots, she realized as she saw Quatre's empathetic glance at Trynity. There was more to Miss Stryfe than those outside the Seaside family saw.

"Sit down, Trynity!" ordered Relena and was surprised when the girl complied. "Now, let's get down to business. Let's think of a theme."

"I think it should be a space theme," suggested Quatre. "We just got back from space, and we will be returning to space."

"Most of us are from space," commented Trynity to Relena's surprise.

"Are we agreed?" asked Relena. This was going better than she expected. "We can have the ceiling decorated with small lights to represent stars."

"I think we should hang a few miniature gundams from the ceiling," said Dorothy snidely. "Then at the end we can have a huge fireworks display that can represent the final catastrophic destruction of the life's work of Ivan Stryfe."

Trynity glared at Dorothy.

Oh no, thought Relena. Now Dorothy was going to lay into her, and Trynity was probably going to strike back.

"I agree, Dorothy," said Trynity. "And in one corner we can have intermittent, rapid explosions of light that represent the annihilation of the Cinq Kingdom mobile doll force."

"Girls!" snapped Quatre. "We are talking about the dance. Remember?"

"That was quite the battle," said Hilde. "Lucky for you, Miss Stryfe, that Duo came between us."

"Lucky for you, Hilde, that Duo saved your life, although I can't imagine what his motivation was."

Hilde put down her teacup and saucer.

Trynity did the same.

Relena stood. "Now stop this! We are planning a party!"

"I'm not!" snapped Hilde. "I'm planning to break Trynity Stryfe's nose."

"If you need a lesson, then I guess I'm going to have to teach you."

Relena was powerless to stop them as Hilde threw herself at Trynity. Quatre was chewing on his fingernails as he watched them fight, and Dorothy was cheering on Hilde. Relena didn't know what to do! They were throwing punches, although Hilde's missed and Trynity got in a couple of good hits that had Hilde's nose bleeding. Soon enough, however, Hilde became so infuriated that she stared flailing wildly and managed to catch handfuls of Trynity's hair. Relena's suspicion that Trynity could not control a catfight proved to be correct. They rolled around on the floor, Trynity still pounded, Hilde now scratching, clawing and yanking hair. The sofa was knocked over, the tea service obliterated and a window broke when Hilde threw the teapot at Trynity who ducked.

The door to the salon opened. "What is going on in here?"

Relena was horrified to see Noin standing in the doorway. She looked sicker than a malnourished dog and meaner than a starving wolf. "Nothing!" she squeaked.

"Just clearing the air," announced Dorothy who stepped out of the way of the rolling girls.

"My God! Is that Trynity Stryfe? In my home?" Noin turned on Relena. "What is she doing here?"

One final punch knocked Hilde unconscious, and Trynity stood, her clothing torn, her lip bleeding, an eye swelling. "I was summoned by King Miliardo."

Relena cringed.

Noin's eyes widened. "Summoned by King Miliardo?" She looked at Relena. "Miliardo is not even here! Are you responsible for this?"

Relena wrung her hands together. "I wanted her to come to my tea party, but I knew she wouldn't accept my invitation…"

Trynity put her hands on her hips. "What made you think that?"

"You would have come?" asked Relena in surprise.

Everyone who was conscious stared at Trynity with wide eyes.

"I wouldn't have wanted to, but my father told me that I should socialize more."

"This party is over!" declared Noin. "I will have a car brought around to take everyone home. Does Hilde need an ambulance?"

As if in answer, Hilde groaned and opened her eyes.

"I guess not." Noin looked at Trynity. "You aren't armed, are you?"

Trynity reached behind her and pulled a gun.

Noin gasped and stumbled back.

"Don't worry, your Excellency, I don't have any orders to kill you." Trynity smiled.

Noin opened her mouth to speak, but Colonel Benton suddenly appeared behind her, and seeing Trynity with a gun, he raised his brows. Trynity blushed and tucked it back in the holster hiding behind her back under her jacket.

"Benton…Benton did you see that?" sputtered Noin. "I…I…" Now she fainted and Benton caught her before she fell to the floor.

Benton glanced at Relena. "I assume this is your doing."

"I didn't know Trynity was going to pull a gun!" cried Relena. If Miliardo discovered this catastrophe, he would cancel the dance. "Please don't tell my brother!"

Benton frowned. "The only reason I won't is because I want the King and his wife to attend that ridiculous function together to make up for that debacle at the Conservatory." He lifted the unconscious queen consort and walked out. "You had better make sure that it will have a happier ending for everyone."

Relena sighed with relief. Were it not for Benton's romantic streak, her plans would be foiled.

"I'll take Hilde home," said Dorothy as she helped her up from the floor. "Come along Quatre!"

Quatre followed along like a puppy dog on a leash.

Realizing that Trynity was still standing in the salon, her hands on her hips, so Relena turned to her. What would she say now? They had absolutely nothing in common, and Relena didn't like her much anyway.

"Are you going to call for a car?" demanded Trynity with annoyance.

"Let me take care of your bleeding lip first." It was the least she could do after causing the entire fiasco.

Although she did so reluctantly, Trynity followed her out of the salon and Relena lead her to her own suite. Once inside, Trynity remained in her sitting room standing as Relena found some gauze and antiseptic. Trynity sat stiffly, but when Relena tried to clean her face, Trynity seized the gauze and did it herself.

"I could have helped," said Relena when the other girl winced. "Do you need ice for your eye?"

"No, I do not!"

Relena sniffed. "No need to be so testy, Miss Stryfe! Would you like to borrow my brush?"

"Whatever for?"

Relena sighed. "Your hair is a mess! I think Hilde pulled out a handful."

"I should have put a bullet between her eyes."

Relena didn't know how to respond to that.

To her surprise, Trynity laughed, so Relena took encouragement from it. "I can braid your hair," she suggested after a nervous giggle.

"Duo tried. It won't stay in the braids."

Relena could easily imagine them sitting cozily together, Duo working at her hopeless hair. She sighed. "It must be heaven."

Trynity raised her brows, then she smiled. Relena thought it was quite a pleasant smile, and it softened her features although she didn't really see why it had the ability to render young men senseless. "You cannot imagine!"

"I wish I could!"

Trynity frowned. "You aren't going to get it from Heero with your tactics. Just what did you think you were accomplishing with all that screeching? What guy in his right mind would want that?"

Relena hung her head. How could she explain? Relena had never been denied anything in her life until Heero had come along and made her feel unimportant and useless.

"I'm not an expert," continued Trynity, "and I know very little about Heero Yuy, but I don't think he enjoys being chased, hunted and stalked."

"I just don't know what to do!" blurted Relena. "I thought he had feelings for me and was just too shy to show it."

"You did the right thing. Dumping him is the best thing you could have done." Trynity took off her jacket, and stared at the rip in the sleeve with disgust. "I really should have shot her."

Relena clasped her hands before her. "Trynity, would you stay overnight? You could have supper here, and we could talk. There is so much I think you could tell me that might help me."

She didn't expect Trynity to comply, but she shrugged. "Why not? I doubt Duo will be out of the Enchanted Forest until later, and I heard something about dungeons in the Ivory Castle and a two headed hag." Trynity frowned. "How will your sister-in-law feel about sitting across from me at her table?"

Relena smiled. "I doubt she will mind unless you insist on eating with the gun on the table." As she looked at Trynity, the possibilities of things to do were endless. It had been a very long time since she had invited a friend to stay the night. They could try on all the clothing hanging in her closet, they could practice putting on makeup – Trynity Stryfe was sadly in need of a lesson – they could watch movies, look at magazines together…

Trowa was dozing on the futon when Lars Nelson walked in swearing. He opened an eye. "What is your problem, Nelson?"

"Trynity beat up Hilde today. Now she won't go out with me."

"I don't see how that could be a problem," remarked Heero who was sitting near Trowa, a visor on his head as he battled the Zorbon Knight.

"Nor am I surprised," remarked Trowa, raising a brow at Lars. "How long did you think you could flirt with Trynity before Hilde blew her stack? Trynity did snatch Duo from her, remember?"

Lars threw himself onto a chair and crossed his arms. Trowa could see that he was going to pout, so he turned his attention to Heero. "How goes the battle?"

"I have the Zorbon Knight trapped." He turned off the game and flipped off the visor. "It isn't the same! Where is Trynity? I will make her fight!"

"She won't fight," commented Lars. "She's already defeated you. Why should she continue to fight? Besides, she beat you without my superior training, so now you really don't stand a chance."

Heero swore at Lars before complaining once again about the unfairness of her victory. Trowa wished Trynity would just take him on again and beat him to shut him up. Of course, she had to beat him or they would not hear the end of it.

The elevator door opened and Duo stepped into the recreation room with Dr. Stryfe and Wufei trailing him. He raised his arms, then took a bow. "Yes, I have defeated the two-headed pixie queen."

"Amazing," said Lars. "It only took you three hours."

"I had to get through the swamp!"

"No easy task, that," said Dr. Stryfe. "I thought he was a goner when he came up against those nasty giant rats."

Duo looked around. "So where is Trynity?"

"I dropped her off at the palace," Lars told him. "Apparently Relena invited her to some teaparty, but Trynity thought King Miliardo wanted to speak to her concerning the experiment."

"Lying is the only way she would get Trynity to sit down to tea with her," remarked Heero.

Duo frowned and walked to the telecom. "She's not back yet?"

"She beat up my girlfriend," announced Lars. "I should take it out on you!"

"Give it a try, Nelson," said Duo as he punched buttons on the telecom. "The god of death is ready and willing any time you are."

Trowa glanced at Nelson. Lars didn't seem to be in the fighting mood. So much for any excitement tonight. Those two were all talk and no action. He might as well go back to sleep. Trowa couldn't believe he was actually missing Catherine! If she were here, they would be out together, going somewhere, doing something. Trowa didn't realize Seaside was so damn boring!

"Hey, Relena, is Trynity still there?" he heard Duo ask.

"She is staying the night," Relena answered.

The look on Duo's face almost made Trowa laugh. "But…but…Let me talk to her!"

"I can't! I'm giving her a facial, and then I'm going to do her nails. Now leave us alone!"

Duo turned away from the blank screen. "Did…did you hear that?" he all but screeched. "What is she doing to my Trynity?"

Heero stood. "We can't allow her to get her claws into Trynity Stryfe."

Trowa was imagining Trynity returning to Seaside wearing a frilly dress, flowers in her hair, her face made up, earrings, high heels, bright lipstick, screeching for Duo. "We had better get her back here."

"I'm going to be sick!" Duo must have had similar thoughts.

"This calls for a plan," said Wufei.

"My thoughts exactly," said Dr. Stryfe to Trowa's surprise. "But we can't just barge into the Cinq Kingdom palace."

"It is well-guarded," said Heero. "I have no doubt Relena has already informed the guards that we are not to be let in."

Dr. Stryfe sat down at the computer and within minutes had broken into the security system at the palace. Trowa was surprised their guardian was helping them, but then it was his daughter whose integrity was at stake. No one could guess the amount of damage Relena Peacecraft could do to Trynity Stryfe in just a few hours. That she had already persuaded Trynity to stay told much of her powers. They didn't need a Relena clone in their midst. If Relena changed Trynity, Trowa would lose all faith in females.

Shortly before midnight, they arrived at the Cinq Kingdom palace, which was dark but for two lighted rooms on an upper floor. They were all dressed in black, their faces smeared with dark make-up that Trowa had found amongst the clown kit that he no longer had a use for. They managed to scoot across the lawn without being caught by the flashing floodlights. Guards patrolled the roof of the palace although Trowa doubted anybody would dare to attack King Miliardo Peacecraft. There were still reports of Coalition survivors who refused to recognize neither the World and Space Federation nor the autonomy of the Cinq Kingdom. And Lady Une was still at large. That woman could wreak havoc and she had a bone to pick with the Peacecraft family.

When they reached the building, Heero spoke into his headset. "What is the code to shut down the security?" he asked Dr. Stryfe who was back at Seaside on his computer. After receiving it, he punched it into the control pad on the door leading in from the garden. Once inside, they split into three teams. Trowa and Quatre were to go to one of the lighted rooms, Heero and Duo to another, and Lars and Wufei would cover the halls to warn them if guards approached. None of them were armed, a stipulation of Dr. Stryfe so they had to be very careful. One of the teams would find Trynity and rescue her.

There were a few patrolling guards in the hallways, but the commandos were all able to easily slip past them. Trowa reached the door to the bedroom, and turning the handle, he found it unlocked. He gave thumbs up to Quatre, then reached inside, flipped off the lights and entered. He heard snoring. Did Trynity snore? That loudly? There was a loud smack, then a grunt. Trowa realized that he was in the wrong room! So startled by his bad luck, he backed into the door and it shut loudly.

"Noin! What's going on?" In the dim light from the window, Trowa saw Miliardo Peacecraft snap upright in bed.

"Leave me alone," he heard Noin snarl, and Trowa had to bite his lip to keep from laughing.

"I heard something."

"Your snoring! That's all I ever hear at night."

"My eye hurts. Did you hit me?"

"If I did, you deserved it."

"Did you shut off the light?"

"I thought you did."

Trowa reached behind him to push down the door handle, but it wouldn't move. He was locked in!

"Well, I'm awake now," commented Miliardo.

"I'm not, so get your hands off me."

Trowa tried the door again. There was a little give, so he now suspected Quatre was holding the door shut. When he got out of there he had every intention of pounding him senseless.

"I just want to hold you."

"Famous last words." Noin was obviously annoyed. Trowa wouldn't mess with her if he were Miliardo Peacecraft. In fact, he hoped the king didn't mess with his consort at this moment.

But Miliardo chuckled. "Lighten up, Lucrezia."

"Don't do that!" she snapped.

Trowa tried the door again. He almost got it open. Quatre snickered on the other side of the door.

"Did you hear that?"

"I didn't hear anything," said Miliardo softly. "Now lay back and relax."

"Are you going to let me sleep?"

"Not quite yet." His deep chuckle answered by Noin's soft laugh made Trowa realize he had to get out of there now. Gritting his teeth, he slammed the handle down hard. It broke off with a loud snap, but the door came open. He managed to dive out of the room just as a couple of bullets buried themselves into the door above his head.

"Who's there?" demanded Noin.

Quatre grabbed Trowa's arm. "Let's get out of here!"

A few more gunshots sounded, and now they could hear guards running through the halls, and warning whistles from Wufei and Lars.

"I'm going to kill you, Winner."

"Later! If we don't get out of here, Noin is going to kill us both!" Just as they rounded a corner, Trowa saw Noin jump into the hall wearing a silky negligee, a gun in her hands. She was a crack shot. They were dead if she got a chance to aim.

"Stop!" she commanded.

Trowa didn't dare stop. She would shoot and ask questions over their bleeding, lifeless bodies. They dashed away down the hall where they ran into Duo who was alone.

"Where's Heero?" asked Trowa breathlessly.

"He grabbed Trynity and jumped out the window when the shooting started." Duo frowned. "What happened?"

"Let's just say I almost got a close and personal glimpse of the royal couple's most intimate moments."

Duo chuckled, but it stopped abruptly when they heard running footsteps and Noin's voice as she shouted orders. "Let's get out of here."

Outside, Heero had the object of their mission wrapped in a blanket, thrown over his shoulder. He ran across the lawn, thankful for the distraction inside the palace that allowed him to escape. Trynity was lighter than he thought she would be, and he wondered why she wasn't complaining about all the jostling as he ran through the shadowed garden. Finally they came to the end where they had all agreed to meet in a gazebo. Heero dumped her on a bench.

"You have caused us all a great deal of anxiety, Miss Stryfe."

She didn't respond.

Heero sat next to her on the bench. "I expect to be repaid for saving you, Trynity. Tomorrow night, you and me, in the recreation room. Got it?"

She still didn't say anything. No doubt she was fuming.

"Whatever got into your head? Why would you put yourself in Relena's hands?" He folded his arms over his chest and sat back. "So, what did you girls talk about?" She didn't answer. "Did she…did she talk about… about me?"

There was a sound from inside the blanket. Heero could have unwrapped her from the blanket, but thought Duo might want the privilege. Her acknowledgment of his question assured him that he hadn't smothered her.

"She didn't really give me an explanation for breaking up with me," said Heero. Then he lowered his voice. "I know I can trust you, Trynity. You wouldn't tell anybody what I'm going to say to you." Heero took a breath. She was in love with Duo against all logical, common sense, so if anybody could understand him, she would. "I miss her. I didn't think I would, but I do."

An unintelligible sound came from inside the blanket.

Heero felt as if a weight were lifted. There was some truth in that it was helpful to talk openly about feelings. Maybe he ought to just let all his feelings air. "She is pretty, and when she isn't screeching, she isn't so bad. I don't think I even know the real Relena. Did you get to meet her tonight? What is she like?"

Before she could respond, he heard the others approaching, so Heero stood and motioned them over. They were breathless, and now he could hear a helicopter and searchlights flooding the gardens from above.

"We have to get the hell out of here!" said Wufei angrily.

"Who do we have to thank for this?" Heero looked immediately at Quatre.

Trowa smacked Quatre over the back of the head. "When we get home, we are all taking you apart."

"Piece by piece," added Wufei.

"Slowly," said Lars.

Duo pushed his way through. "I'll take over from here, Yuy. You didn't hurt her or try to force her to play video games, did you?"

Heero chuckled. "Not yet. But she owes me."

"You guys go on ahead," said Duo. "I want to talk to Trynity. We'll be back later."

They managed to escape the patrols and jump onto their cycles for the return to Seaside. Dr. Stryfe wasn't waiting for them, although he did leave the door unlocked for them to get in. Heero stopped at the recreation room just to hone his skills against the Zorbon Knight. Now that Trynity would be forced to play him, he had no intention of losing to her, even if it meant programming a bug into the Zorbon Knight.

The lights were on, and Heero was surprised to find Trynity already sitting on the futon, the visor over her eyes.

"Is that you, Duo?" She flipped up the visor, and he saw disappointment on her face when she realized he was not who she was expecting. "Where were you guys? I asked my father, and he just laughed his head off."

Heero thought Dr. Stryfe needed a pounding for not calling them back. "How…how long…" A sudden wave of nausea came over him. "When did you get back?"

"I left after Duo's call. He sounded so forlorn, and I missed him." She sighed. "Pretty foolish, huh?"

Heero's knees got shaky, so he threw himself on the futon. "You…you weren't there!"

"Relena understood why I wanted to go. I invited her over some time soon to discuss her plans. I thought we should all plan the party together. She thinks it's a good idea." Trynity flipped the visor back down. "I've played the program of your conquering invader several times, Heero Yuy. I've beaten it every time. Now is your chance. The program is no challenge. The Zorbon Knight is ready to prevail once again."

Heero threw himself against Trynity. "I'm a dead man! Oh my God, I can't believe I said to her what I said!"

Trynity shoved him away. "What are you talking about?" She pushed off the visor.

Heero stared at her with wide eyes. "I told you, but I actually told her, that I missed her."

Trynity frowned. "Who?"

"Relena!"

"You thought Relena was me?" Trynity burst into laughter, but it faded when she saw that he was serious. "Heero, what did you say to me/her?"

"I told her…" Heero could not even repeat it. Now he felt like a complete idiot.

Trynity waited, then sighed when he did not explain. "Is it that bad."

"I can't face her again." Heero stood and walked stiffly to the elevator. "I'm going to the lab to take out Zero and self-detonate."

Trynity laughed. "I think you already did self-detonate. Get back here and we will think of a plan."

Back in the Cinq Kingdom Palace garden, Relena was in heaven. Her eyes closed, she was getting the best kiss she had ever had while she thought of Heero Yuy's words. Surely he liked her! He said he missed her!

"Hey, you're not Trynity!"

Relena was suddenly released and she fell back on the bench. "I never said I was."

"Relena!" Duo wiped his mouth as if he had been kissing a dog. Relena was too happy to be insulted.

"Lucky Trynity," she murmured. Relena had never been kissed like that before! At least she knew how to do it now.

"Where is Lucky Trynity? What have you done with her?"

"Don't worry. Trynity left right after you called. She missed you."

Duo sighed and sat beside Relena. "I should have had a little more faith in her." Then he looked at Relena. "What are you so happy about?"

"Can you keep a secret?" Relena thought she could trust Duo.

"You know I can't."

"I will tell you anyway. Heero told me that he missed me."

Duo flinched. "I don't believe it!"

"Well, he actually told Trynity, but since I am not Trynity, he told me."

"What was he doing telling Trynity something like that?"

Relena frowned. "I'm not sure. He told me – her - that he could trust me – her. I suppose he thinks she can understand, just like I think you can." Relena grabbed Duo by the shirt and jerked him close. "You have to help me, Duo! You have to! I love Heero, and I know he loves me."

"Back off!" Duo shoved her away. "Get a grip, Relena. I don't think you have the slightest clue what love is. Anyway, Heero certainly doesn't. Maybe when we return from L10 you will feel differently. I didn't know my true feelings until Trynity wasn't here anymore. You might find you don't love Heero, that some other guy will come into your life and sweep you off your feet just Trynity swept me off mine when I least expected it."

But Relena knew her own heart. It would always beat for Heero Yuy. And she wasn't going to put that to the test!