Disclaimer: GW belongs to its respective owners, none of which are me.

AN: Okay, I know this may not seem like a Heero x Relena fic, but trust me that it is.  It is told mainly through Relena's and Wufei's perspective.


Rating: R due to subject matter

Within Relena's Shame: Chapter One
by Wicked Child


She didn't know who to call. Over the past several years, she'd become close to all five former Gundam pilots. There were still barriers set up between herself and one or two of the pilots but all in all she considered them among her closest friends. Her only friends. She hoped they felt the same. That said, she still didn't know who to call.

The flashbulb from a camera went off.

If I close my eyes, I can just pretend it's the paparazzi.

"Excuse me Miss Dorlian but we need to take these photographs."

Yes it's just the paparazzi.

She couldn't call Heero. He had her put so high on a pedestal that the illusion seemed too precious to him, she couldn't shatter his perception. Once he found out, she would be forever tainted in his eyes. That was something she couldn't handle. Flash.

Duo? As wonderful a friend as he was to her, he was first and foremost loyal to Heero. As soon as he had seen her home and safely tucked into bed, he would call Heero. The braided baka had this insane fantasy of her and Heero coupling. He might use the situation as delicate as it was, to "bring them together." No, Duo was a liability. Flash.

Trowa? Hell no. The two were definitely friends, but she couldn't stand to see him when she was like this. The last thing she wanted was to have to face him and those eyes of his. Even now they seemed rather dead and unfeeling. Heero showed more emotion. Flash.

And she couldn't possibly call Quatre. He was such a sweet man. While she couldn't stand to look into the dead-like eyes of Trowa, she surely couldn't look into the eyes of Quatre. They would be so sympathetic to her situation and her hurt would be reflected in those eyes. It was something she didn't want or need. Not now, not ever. Flash.

"We'll need to keep your clothing for investigative purposes. The perpetrator may have left something behind."

Relena nodded in understanding as she "dressed" herself in the flimsy hospital gown she was given. The forensic nurse and technician left the room, leaving Relena in her shame. Tears slipped down her bruised cheeks. She heard a man's voice coming from the hallway. He wanted entry but someone—a woman no less—was refusing. Relena smiled a sad smile. The door burst open revealing the quarrelling figures.

The female, a nurse Relena absently noted, spoke first. "I'm terribly sorry Miss Dorlian. This man won't listen to Lady Une's orders. I'll have security remove him."

Relena shook her head, painful as it was. "Please don't. He's here to pick me up." To the man she said, "Good evening Wufei."

Wufei nodded his greeting to the Vice Foreign Minister. To the nurse he said, "You may leave now." He clearly didn't like her interfering with his business.

"But Lady Une's orders specifically stated that no one was to come in here until she arrived," the girl protested. She wasn't about to be fired because of a pigheaded man.

Wufei glared at her, his patience clearly gone. "Miss Dorlian called me specifically prior to her coming here. Une will understand that a concerned friend was granted entry. Especially to hand Miss Dorlian proper clothing. Now leave!" He put extra emphasis on his last phrase.

The girl scurried out of the room. She would let Lady Une take care of him. It was so nice to have such strong women in positions of power.

Wufei returned his attention to Relena. She stood near the window, her hands fidgeting with one another. Her hair hung down in a tangled blonde mess. That wasn't as unusual of a sight. He'd seen her when she'd accidentally overslept on an important day only to have Heero scold her for her behavior. What was unusual was the bruising on her face, arms, and legs. Wufei knew it must be worse where the flimsy hospital gown covered her. He honestly didn't know how she could be standing. He thought the doctor was out of his mind to not keep her for observation.

Despite her vain attempts to try and look as diplomatic and strong as she normally did, Wufei saw her for what she was. A rape victim.

"I stopped by your place to pick up some clothes for you. I'll have someone over in the morning to fix the window," he began.

"The window?" Relena asked. The fear was evident in her voice. Please no God. Don't let him have gone into my home.

Wufei quickly explained. There was no need to put her through anything more. "I seem to have misplaced my key to your home. I had to, uh, think of an alternate means of entry."

Relena nodded but couldn't quite remove the fear in her eyes.

Wufei cleared his throat. "I'll be outside while you change. Just let me know…"

"No!" Relena shouted moving forward. Wufei stopped and turned around.

Relena swallowed and licked her lips, her tongue passing over dried blood. "Stay in here. I'll change in the restroom."

"Are you sure?" Wufei asked.

Relena nodded. "I don't want to be alone."

Wufei considered this and acquiesced. Relena took the bag from him and went to the restroom. She dressed in the dark so as not to see her own reflection in the mirror. She knew what she must look like, seeing it wouldn't help matters. She emerged minutes later, dressed in sweatpants and shirt to find Une talking softly to Wufei.

"Lady Une," she said in greeting.

"Relena, how are you?" Une asked as she came over and hugged the young woman. "Are you okay?"

"No," was the blunt and honest answer. Relena wasn't okay. She'd been violated and beaten by someone who knew her and yet did not know her at all. She felt sick and dirty and a part of her wanted to die. The other part had already died the moment she was violated. No she wasn't okay.

"Of course not," Une said, mentally chastising herself. "I understand you've already given the local authorities your statement so there's no need for you to stay here." Une paused a moment. "I really think that you should listen to the doctor and stay overnight Relena. You are in no shape to go home."

"No. I will not tolerate this hospital any longer. I will go home."

Une sighed. "Fine. Then I'm having Wufei take you home and if you'll permit, post some guards around your home."

"You mean guards other than the one's you've already posted on my property since the end of the Eve Wars?"

Une looked at the young diplomat in shock. "How did you know?" Relena shrugged in response so Une continued. "Yes more guards just to be safe."

Relena shook her head. "The guards you already have posted to my home are sufficient. They have yet to fail in their duties. I'll allow one man, of either your or Wufei's choosing to guard the downstairs portion of my home. If he agrees, I'd prefer to have Wufei guard the other portions of my home."

She may have been raped and certain securities taken from her, but she was still in charge of her home and for a small part, albeit a very small part, of her life.

Wufei nodded his agreement to the conditions. So it was her decision to leave, not the doctor's. So it was she, not the doctor who was insane. "We need to keep you out of sight for some time if you want to keep this quiet."

Relena knew that important happenings were going on in the political arena but she couldn't face them in her state. Staying hidden right then was the best thing. If the public knew she'd been raped, there would be a witch hunt and lynching of any suspicious men. In the public's eyes, she was still that sweet sixteen year-old instead of a young woman at twenty-two.

After some more discussion, Wufei let Une escort Relena to the underground parking lot where his car waited to take the girl home. He stayed behind to ask the doctor a few questions. Considering Relena's status, he didn't trust the local authorities to handle the situation. Both he and Une agreed that the Preventer's should handle it, more specifically that he should take over the case.

It was obvious Relena wanted this situation to be kept quiet and the less who knew the better. They had never truly been close but the two did respect and understand each other. There was a reason she didn't call anyone else besides Wufei. She didn't want the other's to know for whatever reason. It was something he was willing to keep hidden for a friend. Besides, how do I go and tell the other's that Relena's been raped? I have no right to reveal something so personal. It is hers and hers alone. I am just back up support.

~~~

Relena said nothing in the car as she waited for Wufei to return. Une had informed her that the Preventer's were taking over the case with Wufei as probable lead investigator. Relena had nodded her understanding but remained silent. Une could do nothing to bring her out of wherever she was. It wasn't until Wufei approached the car a half an hour later that she spoke.

"Une, I don't want this to get out. I don't want anyone, and I do mean anyone, to know about this. You, Wufei, the nurse and tech who took care of me and my doctor are the only ones to know about it. Not Heero, or Duo or the others. Especially not Heero. He wouldn't be able to deal with it. Do you understand?"

"Of course Relena. It shall remain as it currently is." Une assured her. Why can't Heero know? What exactly can't he handle? It was well known to many, although not well understood, that whenever something happened to Relena, Heero took it personally. He was her ever present protector who knew her every move. Or so Une had thought until that night. A thought occurred to Une just as Wufei opened the driver side door. Are the rumors true? Are Relena and Heero having a relationship?

"I apologize for my tardiness," Wufei said as he sat down. Relena sat in the back seat looking out of the window but made no motion to indicate she'd heard him. It's beginning to set in, Wufei realized.

"Don't worry about it Chang. Just get Relena home. I'll make sure you have the necessary reports by morning to start your investigation." Une looked back at Relena. "If you need anything, anything at all, let me know." Relena did not respond. Une came to the same conclusion as her subordinate. She shot Wufei a look and then exited the car.

She and Relena had agreed upon a reason for her upcoming absence. Relena had collapsed from exhaustion at home and was ordered to take time off, at least a month, by her doctor. The location of her sabbatical would be known only to certain persons—Une, Wufei, and Pagan—and the Vice Foreign Minister was not to be disturbed at all.

~~~

Wufei escorted Relena up to her room after making sure that all was well in the Dorlian home. It was the home she had grown up in with her parents and was given to her on her eighteenth birthday by her mother. Duo had taken care of party arrangements and a party ensued that Relena had only read about. To say the least, it had been a wild night of a bunch of teenagers getting to act their age.

Wufei had posted another Preventer, Davis, to guard the downstairs. Wufei didn't fear the perpetrator coming to Relena's home, but he didn't want to be wrong. He watched as Relena went into her bathroom to shower. He knew how she felt. Hell all of the former Gundam pilots knew how she felt. Not all OZ soldiers were exactly of a noble nature.

Twenty minutes later, Wufei received a transmission from Davis telling him that Une had a file for him regarding Miss Dorlian. Wufei knocked on the bathroom door and told Relena that he had to go downstairs for a moment to retrieve the file. No sound but running water was heard on the other side of the door. Maybe she can't hear me. I'll be back soon enough anyway.

Wufei took the preliminary report from Davis and began to scan over it as he walked back upstairs. The report made no mention of Relena's name, only referring to her as "The Victim." For that Wufei was thankful. Her statement was included, not typed up yet but copies of the former lead detective's notes.

She had just left a restaurant where she had been dining with a friend, Catherine Bloom. That was at 9:27 pm. As she walked toward the subway, she was hit over the head and dragged to a vehicle of some sort. Perhaps a van or large truck, she wasn't sure. It was in the van/truck that the assailant beat and raped the victim. No money or jewelry was taken. Robbery ruled out. The assailant had said something to the victim but she was unable to remember what was said. She was then dumped near the victim's place of work where she called a friend and then the police who took her to the hospital. A more detailed report would be available in the morning.

Wufei stood in the middle of Relena's bedroom reading the report when he looked at the time. Relena had been in the shower for about an hour. While he knew women liked to pamper themselves, Wufei knew that this was an extremely long amount of time to spend in the shower. It worried him to the point he nearly broke down the door. He stopped himself when he realized that it would probably traumatize Relena even more. So instead he knocked on the door.

"Relena, I think it's time for you to come on out of there. It's late. You need to rest."

No answer but the sound of the shower. Wufei tried again. He repeated the same thing for ten minutes before his impatience got the better of him.

"Relena come out now! No woman needs to spend and hour and ten minutes in the shower no matter what!"

Still no answer. This worried him even greater. Horrible thoughts flashed through his head of what she may have done to herself. Still he didn't want to break down the door, so instead he tried the handle. It turned. Shocked, Wufei slowly opened the door and walked into a room full of steam.

"Relena? It's just me. We need to get you into bed. You need to rest." Wufei took a large towel and walked toward the shower. He opened the door and found Relena sitting in a fetal position on the shower floor. Her whole body trembled as tears ran down her face. Her eyes focused on nothing as they stared forward. Only then did Wufei let the severity of the situation get to him. A rage he hadn't felt in years overcame him. No one should be allowed to do this to another person, especially one so innocent. It wasn't that Relena was weak, he knew she wasn't. It was that she was so innocent in body that made Wufei feel rather murderous.

He reached in and turned off the shower. He stepped inside the rather large space and knelt down in front of his friend, pulling the towel open and wrapping it around her.

"Come on honey. We need to get you out of here." Wufei showed tenderness that no one but his pet cat had ever been allowed to see.

Relena allowed Wufei to pick her up and carry her out of the bathroom. She even allowed him to dress her into her night clothes. Until that night, only her doctor had ever seen her so exposed. He tried not to notice the ugly bruising between her thighs or the bite marks placed among her breasts and stomach. The doctor should never have let her leave, even if it was her decision. Wufei gently laid her down into her bed and covered her up.

"Sleep now my friend. I will be here to guard you and your dreams." Obediently Relena closed her eyes and Wufei moved away from the bed to stand near her window. Engrossed in his own thoughts, Wufei was startled to see that an hour had passed. Not turning around, Wufei noticed that Relena had yet to slumber. He was sadly rewarded when she spoke.

"He took my locket Wufei."

Wufei swung his head around and looked at the figure lying in the bed. Relena was facing him as she lay on her side, her whole body covered by the blankets despite the season.

"He took the locket Heero gave me for my birthday last year. He said a whore like me shouldn't have gifts so precious from a murderer. He ripped it off my neck."

Wufei didn't know what to say. What could he say? 'Don't worry Relena. We'll get him for you,' didn't seem to do the situation justice. Wufei remained silent.

Tears slipped down Relena's bruised face. "I was a virgin, Wufei."