Disclaimer: Characters do not belong to me.
Author's Notes: Enjoy this chapter! I told you I'd start updating more frequently;)
****
Be My Downfall
by Kristen Elizabeth
****
"Trowa…" Quatre's attempt at forming a sentence died when Trowa sucked the bottom of his earlobe into the heat of his mouth. Taking a deep breath, he tried again. "Trowa, I need to know…you're not just…"
"Just what?" Trowa breathed, making the blond man beneath him shiver. "Playing around? Experimenting?"
Quatre's eyes were tightly closed, but he nodded. "Both."
"I'm not." He let the full weight and hardness of his body press enticingly into Quatre's. "I want you."
"And what you want, you automatically get?" Pushing them up into a sitting position, Quatre took a moment to collect himself. How had they gotten into bed with half of their clothes off? He'd only invited his one-time lover upstairs for a drink after an otherwise innocent dinner. All right, so the sexual tension between them had been thick, but he'd been sure he could handle it. But as it turned out, the control and maturity he thought he'd gained from his broken heart hadn't been able to stand up against his overwhelming desire for Trowa.
Keeping his eyes level with Trowa's passion-darkened green orbs, Quatre went on, "This won't work if you're not sure about who you are. Trust me; I know."
Trowa frowned. "What do you mean?"
"You don't really believe that I haven't had sex since our night together, do you?"
"I…um…I don't know. I haven't really…thought about it. Or wanted to think about it."
Quatre smiled patiently. "I've been with people who weren't sure, Trowa. And they never last, because you either are or you aren't. So…" He let one hand trail down the sculpted length of Trowa's bare chest. "Are you?"
"Would I be here if I didn't want this?"
"You've done it before."
Looking away for a moment, Trowa combed his hair out of his eyes. "What do you want? Some sort of declarative statement?"
"I think I deserve to hear one before I put my heart out on the line again."
The taller man glanced back at him. "I won't hurt you again, Quatre."
"That remains to be seen," Quatre whispered.
"I won't," Trowa reaffirmed. "I want to make up for what I did to you." Placing his hands on Quatre's shoulders, he guided them both back down to the bed. "Like this." Without waiting for permission, he kissed him long and deep, conquering the warmth of Quatre's mouth with his tongue. His lover whimpered beneath him, but put up no protest.
Trowa broke the kiss to bury his face in the crook of Quatre's neck. His skin smelled like exotic spices. It would have been so easy to just stay there, forever breathing him in. But as if fate was working against him, the beeper in the pocket of his pants, which were currently in a heap at the foot of the bed, went off just then.
"Shit," he muttered.
Quatre released a pent-up breath as he stared up at the ceiling. "You should get that."
Trowa lifted his head. "It can wait."
He went in for another kiss, but Quatre held him back. "It's all right. Answer it."
With a sigh, Trowa rolled off of the other man and got off the bed. After retrieving his pants and checking the beeper, he shook his head. "Wufei has the worst timing imaginable."
Quatre propped himself up against the headboard. Without Trowa's body heat surrounding him, he was suddenly cold. He crossed his arms over his exposed chest. "It must be important."
"This…" He gestured to the rumpled bed. "…is important."
"Not as much." Getting up, Quatre went for his hotel-provided robe. "If it were my job calling me away, I'd go."
Trowa had to smile. "You would?"
"Well." Slipping on the terrycloth garment, Quatre shrugged. "I'd feel bad about it."
"I do. Feel bad." After pulling on his pants, Trowa approached him. "Here's my declarative statement. I feel." He brushed his thumb across Quatre's swollen lips. "When I'm with you, I'm sure about that."
His eyelashes fluttered at the contact, and it took a lot of will to force his eyes to stay open. "Then maybe when Wufei's finished with you…you'll come back here?" He paused. "I'll be waiting."
Trowa ducked his head and kissed him. "I won't be too late."
****
"You're late." Wufei gave his partner a cursory once-over as he entered the office. "And you look like hell."
Throwing him the darkest glare he could muster, Trowa spread his hands. "What is it you want, Chang?"
"You and Heero…neither one of you are even really *here* anymore! So, who is she? That circus girl of yours?"
"Look, I'm here to work, not discuss my private life." He crossed to Wufei's desk. "Did you find something on the secretary?"
"Personal…"
"Don't start."
Wufei tugged a few sheets of paper out from under a thicker file folder. "While you were out doing whatever…or whoever…I was here doing your job, namely checking out both the woman and the President's dates over the past two months. And guess what I found out?" He didn't wait for Trowa to guess and continued, "It turns out that the woman, Karen Miller used to be Mrs. Karen Wynstock."
"Okay…"
"Wynstock not ringing any bells?"
"Should it?"
Wufei pointed to a particular entry on the papers. "It just so happens that only a day before the President received word of the poisoning, she had a dinner date with the recently divorced Mr. Marvin Wynstock, the Environmental Minister."
Trowa thought this over for a moment. "So, the President's secretary used to be married to a fairly high ranking member of the President's council. Which begs the question…why would someone who once traveled in the same social circles as the President take a lowly job working for the President?"
"It also begs the question, does the President know?"
"I think we should find out. Bring in the secretary first thing tomorrow morning."
Wufei crossed his arms. "And that would work, if Ms. Karen Miller wasn't missing."
"Missing?"
"I've initiated a search…sent her picture to every space port on Earth and the colonies. It's only a matter of time until we find her. But until then…"
Setting aside the papers, Trowa punched up their office communicator. "Let's keep this quiet for now. Although we should probably tell Heero. The President must be aware that her secretary is gone, right?"
"Who knows? Just as much as Yuy's head is full of her, the President is full of him." Wufei paused. "That came out far dirtier than I'd intended," he said, almost proudly.
"Congratulations." Trowa stared at the communicator screen for a moment. "I've never seen Heero so distracted. It's almost like he's been a different person lately."
The Chinese man snorted softly. "That's what happens. Fortunately, it hasn't happened to me yet, and I don't see it ever happening. Women can be comforting; I won't deny that. But they give a man more stress than they relieve. And I just don't need any of that mess right now."
"Right. Mess." He cleared his throat. "Chang, you've been here for hours, and frankly, I think you're starting to smell. Go home. I can take over the search."
"You sure? There's not some hot woman waiting for you?"
Trowa sat down. "No. No hot woman."
****
Sally wouldn't do the procedure until at least two weeks had passed. She felt sure that Relena would change her mind, come to her senses, be selfish like any other normal woman would be. But what Sally didn't realize was that Relena wasn't choosing her people over her baby. Her first and foremost thoughts were about her child. Two weeks wasn't long enough to get truly attached, she told herself a hundred times every day. If she waited, got attached, and then had to make the same choice, she knew, deep down, that she'd risk the peace of the entire universe to keep her baby safe.
Still, she hadn't counted on how just knowing that she was pregnant would make her grow attached to her child. She hadn't expected morning sickness to become a daily reminder of the baby's existence. And she hadn't counted on Heero's withdrawal.
He wouldn't touch her. He wouldn't even look at her. He kept his distance, re-enforced all of his walls, and it was breaking her heart a little more with each day. She wasn't sure if it made her more or less assured of her decision. More, she supposed, because while she could endure his silence, a baby shouldn't have to. Less because if she lost him, she'd would have also lost the little bit of him growing inside of her.
He had wounds on his hands that he wouldn't discuss. He moved out of the mansion, citing the fact that Millardo was around to protect her when he wasn't there. But worst of all was the look in his eyes. The soul-less expression she saw whenever they were together, which wasn't very often. It chilled her to the bone. Shouldn't he have been relieved that she wouldn't be expecting a long-term commitment from him?
The week before the procedure, Relena poured all of this out to Noin over tea. Her brother's girlfriend took the news of her pregnancy with quiet acceptance. Relena was grateful for the lack of lectures she received; after all, Noin herself was pregnant and not married.
"The oddest thing is…" Noin set down her teacup. "This is just how your brother reacted to each of my miscarriages."
"What do you mean?" Relena blinked. She'd never heard about any miscarriages.
"I lost two babies, one at three months, the other at four."
Her hand flew to her throat. "Oh…I'm so sorry! And here I am talking about abortions and…"
"It's all right. You didn't know." After a breath, the older woman continued, "They were devastating experiences. And immediately after each one, I turned to Zechs for strength. But he wasn't always there. He…" She paused to touch the gentle pouch of her abdomen. "It seemed like he didn't want to be around me anymore. Of course, I made it clear that this did not make me happy."
"And what did he say?"
"We talked. And I found out…he was grieving just as much as I was. Only he had no idea how to show it. So, he just shut down." She reached for her cup again. "It sounds like what Heero's doing right now."
Relena stirred her tea thoughtfully. "I don't know. Millardo obviously wanted those babies. Heero, on the other hand, wasn't even thinking about having children. I mean…he's never given me any indication that he enjoys my company anywhere but the bedroom."
"If you feel that way, why let him use you like that?"
"Oh, I have lots of reasons, not the least of which is that he's a sexual fantasy come to life. But mainly…mainly it's because so many people need me. More and more of me, every day. Sometimes it's nice to be with someone who doesn't need me. And Heero…" She shook her head, smiling sadly. "Heero doesn't need anyone."
Noin considered the younger woman. "I'm not so sure about that."
A knock on the parlor door effectively killed the conversation. One of the housemaids entered quietly. "Madam President, there's a Mr. and Mrs. Duo Maxwell at the gate. They ask to…"
Relena was already on her feet. "Send them through, immediately!!" Once the girl bowed and left, she turned back to Noin. "I haven't seen them in so long! We had dinner together on L2 when I was there for a treaty meeting…it must have been at least two years ago. I wonder what they're doing here on Earth?"
"Maybe they saw your press conference," Noin guessed.
Some of the joy drained out of Relena's face. "I was hoping Duo might just have gotten it in his head to come and visit. I don't want a lot of sympathy."
"If he's still the same Duo I remember, I doubt he's here to give you tears and hugs."
Twenty minutes later, the front door of the mansion swung open and Duo Maxwell strode inside, hand in hand with his wife, Hilde. The first time Relena had ever laid eyes on the former Deathscythe pilot, he'd been silhouetted in the setting sun, pointing a gun at Heero and telling her to get out of his way. Now, still backed by the sun, he carried a plastic baby seat in his free hand, a goofy smile plastered onto his handsome face.
"Princess," he greeted her, holding up the car seat. "Look what we made!"
Relena froze as she stared at the tiny pink face that was nearly lost in a sea of blue cotton blankets and framed by a terrycloth bumper. "Oh my god," she whispered.
Duo gently set down his son and held out his arms. "Is it still okay to hug the President?"
She recovered just long enough to embrace him with as much warmth as possible. "I had no idea you two were going to have a…a baby."
"We didn't mean to be all secretive," Hilde assured her.
"No, I understand." Relena hugged her. "This is…wonderful. Really." She pulled back, blinking away the sudden urge to cry. "What's his name?"
"Jeremiah," Duo said with such blatant pride and joy that Relena nearly lost the battle with her tears. "Heero didn't tell you about him? Heero is working as your bodyguard, right?"
Relena shook her head. "No. I mean, yes, he is, but no, he didn't say anything. Heero and I…we're not exactly…I mean, we don't always…talk." She forced a smile. "But that's not important. You must be tired from your trip, especially you, Hilde." She reached for the other woman's hand. "Come and sit down. We were just having tea."
"That sounds wonderful, but first, if you don't mind, is there somewhere I could go and change him?" She picked up her baby who had begun to squirm in his seat. "It's tragic having a bladder the size of a walnut."
"Oh, of course. Um…there's a guest bathroom just behind the staircase." Relena pointed it out. "We'll be just through those doors, in the parlor."
Hilde blew Duo a little kiss before leaving. As he watched her walk away, he shook his head in amazement, as though he truly couldn't believe that his life had turned out so well. "Nineteen hours of labor and you'd never know it now. She's a tough chick, my babe."
Relena smiled up at him. "I'm so happy for you both."
"And surprised by us, too, I bet. I know we're kinda dropping in out of the blue…" He pulled at his ear. "But when we heard…you know…we wanted to be here for you." Duo glanced over her shoulder and as he did, his voice grew louder. "Because you know that Heero Yuy fellow is such a complete downer, we figured you'd need a few laughs every now and then."
Puzzled, Relena looked over her shoulder. Behind her, Heero had entered the mansion on silent feet. Her breath caught in the back of her throat, but she managed to give him a little nod. "We…I have visitors," she told him, unnecessarily.
"I can see that," Heero replied, approaching them. "Maxwell."
Duo straightened his back and molded his face into an exaggerated blank expression. "Yuy."
Relena smothered a smile behind her hand. "Heero, Duo and Hilde brought their…"
She was cut off by Hilde re-entering with a very awake Jeremiah settled in the crook of her arm. "Turns out he wasn't wet. Just cranky." She blinked upon seeing Heero. "Well, hello there."
Heero stared at the child Hilde carried. After a moment, he cleared his throat. "He looks like nine pounds."
"Congratulations to us." Duo rolled his eyes. "You're too kind, Heero."
Jeremiah blinked several times before closing his milky-blue eyes once more. "He's perfect," Relena whispered.
"Do you want to hold him?" Hilde offered.
"Oh…I…I don't know. I'm…" Relena searched for an excuse that wouldn't be offending or give anything away. Finding nothing, she gave in. "All right. Yes."
It only took a moment for Hilde to transfer her son, but each second ticked by for Heero like a hundred years. And once the baby was in Relena's arms, he found he simply couldn't look away. Some unidentified place within his chest ached at the sight.
Holding the baby, Relena was more beautiful than ever. He noticed that she'd let her hair down for the day and it curled around her shoulders, shimmering in the late-afternoon light that filtered through the foyer windows. She looked down at little Jeremiah and smiled the first genuine smile he'd seen on her face since they'd discovered her pregnancy.
He realized right then just how badly he wanted the baby in her arms to be theirs. And with that realization, he had to turn his head to look away before it killed him.
Still smiling, Relena tore her eyes away from the perfect little person and unconsciously glanced back up at Heero. He was looking off towards the parlor, clearly bored with the entire situation. Whatever hope she was still clinging onto crumbled.
"I…can't." As carefully, but also as quickly as she could, she passed the baby back to its mother. "I'm sorry. I just…remembered. There's some…paperwork. I have to…" She pointed to the stairs. "One of the maids will get you settled into a room. And I'll…see you at dinner." Before anyone could protest, she turned on her heel and ran up the stairs, one hand pressed against her mouth.
"Princess!" Duo shouted after her. She disappeared around an upstairs corner and he looked back at Heero, thoroughly confused. "Is she all right?"
Heero gave him a look without really looking at him. "How should I know?"
****
To Be Continued
Author's Notes: Enjoy this chapter! I told you I'd start updating more frequently;)
****
Be My Downfall
by Kristen Elizabeth
****
"Trowa…" Quatre's attempt at forming a sentence died when Trowa sucked the bottom of his earlobe into the heat of his mouth. Taking a deep breath, he tried again. "Trowa, I need to know…you're not just…"
"Just what?" Trowa breathed, making the blond man beneath him shiver. "Playing around? Experimenting?"
Quatre's eyes were tightly closed, but he nodded. "Both."
"I'm not." He let the full weight and hardness of his body press enticingly into Quatre's. "I want you."
"And what you want, you automatically get?" Pushing them up into a sitting position, Quatre took a moment to collect himself. How had they gotten into bed with half of their clothes off? He'd only invited his one-time lover upstairs for a drink after an otherwise innocent dinner. All right, so the sexual tension between them had been thick, but he'd been sure he could handle it. But as it turned out, the control and maturity he thought he'd gained from his broken heart hadn't been able to stand up against his overwhelming desire for Trowa.
Keeping his eyes level with Trowa's passion-darkened green orbs, Quatre went on, "This won't work if you're not sure about who you are. Trust me; I know."
Trowa frowned. "What do you mean?"
"You don't really believe that I haven't had sex since our night together, do you?"
"I…um…I don't know. I haven't really…thought about it. Or wanted to think about it."
Quatre smiled patiently. "I've been with people who weren't sure, Trowa. And they never last, because you either are or you aren't. So…" He let one hand trail down the sculpted length of Trowa's bare chest. "Are you?"
"Would I be here if I didn't want this?"
"You've done it before."
Looking away for a moment, Trowa combed his hair out of his eyes. "What do you want? Some sort of declarative statement?"
"I think I deserve to hear one before I put my heart out on the line again."
The taller man glanced back at him. "I won't hurt you again, Quatre."
"That remains to be seen," Quatre whispered.
"I won't," Trowa reaffirmed. "I want to make up for what I did to you." Placing his hands on Quatre's shoulders, he guided them both back down to the bed. "Like this." Without waiting for permission, he kissed him long and deep, conquering the warmth of Quatre's mouth with his tongue. His lover whimpered beneath him, but put up no protest.
Trowa broke the kiss to bury his face in the crook of Quatre's neck. His skin smelled like exotic spices. It would have been so easy to just stay there, forever breathing him in. But as if fate was working against him, the beeper in the pocket of his pants, which were currently in a heap at the foot of the bed, went off just then.
"Shit," he muttered.
Quatre released a pent-up breath as he stared up at the ceiling. "You should get that."
Trowa lifted his head. "It can wait."
He went in for another kiss, but Quatre held him back. "It's all right. Answer it."
With a sigh, Trowa rolled off of the other man and got off the bed. After retrieving his pants and checking the beeper, he shook his head. "Wufei has the worst timing imaginable."
Quatre propped himself up against the headboard. Without Trowa's body heat surrounding him, he was suddenly cold. He crossed his arms over his exposed chest. "It must be important."
"This…" He gestured to the rumpled bed. "…is important."
"Not as much." Getting up, Quatre went for his hotel-provided robe. "If it were my job calling me away, I'd go."
Trowa had to smile. "You would?"
"Well." Slipping on the terrycloth garment, Quatre shrugged. "I'd feel bad about it."
"I do. Feel bad." After pulling on his pants, Trowa approached him. "Here's my declarative statement. I feel." He brushed his thumb across Quatre's swollen lips. "When I'm with you, I'm sure about that."
His eyelashes fluttered at the contact, and it took a lot of will to force his eyes to stay open. "Then maybe when Wufei's finished with you…you'll come back here?" He paused. "I'll be waiting."
Trowa ducked his head and kissed him. "I won't be too late."
****
"You're late." Wufei gave his partner a cursory once-over as he entered the office. "And you look like hell."
Throwing him the darkest glare he could muster, Trowa spread his hands. "What is it you want, Chang?"
"You and Heero…neither one of you are even really *here* anymore! So, who is she? That circus girl of yours?"
"Look, I'm here to work, not discuss my private life." He crossed to Wufei's desk. "Did you find something on the secretary?"
"Personal…"
"Don't start."
Wufei tugged a few sheets of paper out from under a thicker file folder. "While you were out doing whatever…or whoever…I was here doing your job, namely checking out both the woman and the President's dates over the past two months. And guess what I found out?" He didn't wait for Trowa to guess and continued, "It turns out that the woman, Karen Miller used to be Mrs. Karen Wynstock."
"Okay…"
"Wynstock not ringing any bells?"
"Should it?"
Wufei pointed to a particular entry on the papers. "It just so happens that only a day before the President received word of the poisoning, she had a dinner date with the recently divorced Mr. Marvin Wynstock, the Environmental Minister."
Trowa thought this over for a moment. "So, the President's secretary used to be married to a fairly high ranking member of the President's council. Which begs the question…why would someone who once traveled in the same social circles as the President take a lowly job working for the President?"
"It also begs the question, does the President know?"
"I think we should find out. Bring in the secretary first thing tomorrow morning."
Wufei crossed his arms. "And that would work, if Ms. Karen Miller wasn't missing."
"Missing?"
"I've initiated a search…sent her picture to every space port on Earth and the colonies. It's only a matter of time until we find her. But until then…"
Setting aside the papers, Trowa punched up their office communicator. "Let's keep this quiet for now. Although we should probably tell Heero. The President must be aware that her secretary is gone, right?"
"Who knows? Just as much as Yuy's head is full of her, the President is full of him." Wufei paused. "That came out far dirtier than I'd intended," he said, almost proudly.
"Congratulations." Trowa stared at the communicator screen for a moment. "I've never seen Heero so distracted. It's almost like he's been a different person lately."
The Chinese man snorted softly. "That's what happens. Fortunately, it hasn't happened to me yet, and I don't see it ever happening. Women can be comforting; I won't deny that. But they give a man more stress than they relieve. And I just don't need any of that mess right now."
"Right. Mess." He cleared his throat. "Chang, you've been here for hours, and frankly, I think you're starting to smell. Go home. I can take over the search."
"You sure? There's not some hot woman waiting for you?"
Trowa sat down. "No. No hot woman."
****
Sally wouldn't do the procedure until at least two weeks had passed. She felt sure that Relena would change her mind, come to her senses, be selfish like any other normal woman would be. But what Sally didn't realize was that Relena wasn't choosing her people over her baby. Her first and foremost thoughts were about her child. Two weeks wasn't long enough to get truly attached, she told herself a hundred times every day. If she waited, got attached, and then had to make the same choice, she knew, deep down, that she'd risk the peace of the entire universe to keep her baby safe.
Still, she hadn't counted on how just knowing that she was pregnant would make her grow attached to her child. She hadn't expected morning sickness to become a daily reminder of the baby's existence. And she hadn't counted on Heero's withdrawal.
He wouldn't touch her. He wouldn't even look at her. He kept his distance, re-enforced all of his walls, and it was breaking her heart a little more with each day. She wasn't sure if it made her more or less assured of her decision. More, she supposed, because while she could endure his silence, a baby shouldn't have to. Less because if she lost him, she'd would have also lost the little bit of him growing inside of her.
He had wounds on his hands that he wouldn't discuss. He moved out of the mansion, citing the fact that Millardo was around to protect her when he wasn't there. But worst of all was the look in his eyes. The soul-less expression she saw whenever they were together, which wasn't very often. It chilled her to the bone. Shouldn't he have been relieved that she wouldn't be expecting a long-term commitment from him?
The week before the procedure, Relena poured all of this out to Noin over tea. Her brother's girlfriend took the news of her pregnancy with quiet acceptance. Relena was grateful for the lack of lectures she received; after all, Noin herself was pregnant and not married.
"The oddest thing is…" Noin set down her teacup. "This is just how your brother reacted to each of my miscarriages."
"What do you mean?" Relena blinked. She'd never heard about any miscarriages.
"I lost two babies, one at three months, the other at four."
Her hand flew to her throat. "Oh…I'm so sorry! And here I am talking about abortions and…"
"It's all right. You didn't know." After a breath, the older woman continued, "They were devastating experiences. And immediately after each one, I turned to Zechs for strength. But he wasn't always there. He…" She paused to touch the gentle pouch of her abdomen. "It seemed like he didn't want to be around me anymore. Of course, I made it clear that this did not make me happy."
"And what did he say?"
"We talked. And I found out…he was grieving just as much as I was. Only he had no idea how to show it. So, he just shut down." She reached for her cup again. "It sounds like what Heero's doing right now."
Relena stirred her tea thoughtfully. "I don't know. Millardo obviously wanted those babies. Heero, on the other hand, wasn't even thinking about having children. I mean…he's never given me any indication that he enjoys my company anywhere but the bedroom."
"If you feel that way, why let him use you like that?"
"Oh, I have lots of reasons, not the least of which is that he's a sexual fantasy come to life. But mainly…mainly it's because so many people need me. More and more of me, every day. Sometimes it's nice to be with someone who doesn't need me. And Heero…" She shook her head, smiling sadly. "Heero doesn't need anyone."
Noin considered the younger woman. "I'm not so sure about that."
A knock on the parlor door effectively killed the conversation. One of the housemaids entered quietly. "Madam President, there's a Mr. and Mrs. Duo Maxwell at the gate. They ask to…"
Relena was already on her feet. "Send them through, immediately!!" Once the girl bowed and left, she turned back to Noin. "I haven't seen them in so long! We had dinner together on L2 when I was there for a treaty meeting…it must have been at least two years ago. I wonder what they're doing here on Earth?"
"Maybe they saw your press conference," Noin guessed.
Some of the joy drained out of Relena's face. "I was hoping Duo might just have gotten it in his head to come and visit. I don't want a lot of sympathy."
"If he's still the same Duo I remember, I doubt he's here to give you tears and hugs."
Twenty minutes later, the front door of the mansion swung open and Duo Maxwell strode inside, hand in hand with his wife, Hilde. The first time Relena had ever laid eyes on the former Deathscythe pilot, he'd been silhouetted in the setting sun, pointing a gun at Heero and telling her to get out of his way. Now, still backed by the sun, he carried a plastic baby seat in his free hand, a goofy smile plastered onto his handsome face.
"Princess," he greeted her, holding up the car seat. "Look what we made!"
Relena froze as she stared at the tiny pink face that was nearly lost in a sea of blue cotton blankets and framed by a terrycloth bumper. "Oh my god," she whispered.
Duo gently set down his son and held out his arms. "Is it still okay to hug the President?"
She recovered just long enough to embrace him with as much warmth as possible. "I had no idea you two were going to have a…a baby."
"We didn't mean to be all secretive," Hilde assured her.
"No, I understand." Relena hugged her. "This is…wonderful. Really." She pulled back, blinking away the sudden urge to cry. "What's his name?"
"Jeremiah," Duo said with such blatant pride and joy that Relena nearly lost the battle with her tears. "Heero didn't tell you about him? Heero is working as your bodyguard, right?"
Relena shook her head. "No. I mean, yes, he is, but no, he didn't say anything. Heero and I…we're not exactly…I mean, we don't always…talk." She forced a smile. "But that's not important. You must be tired from your trip, especially you, Hilde." She reached for the other woman's hand. "Come and sit down. We were just having tea."
"That sounds wonderful, but first, if you don't mind, is there somewhere I could go and change him?" She picked up her baby who had begun to squirm in his seat. "It's tragic having a bladder the size of a walnut."
"Oh, of course. Um…there's a guest bathroom just behind the staircase." Relena pointed it out. "We'll be just through those doors, in the parlor."
Hilde blew Duo a little kiss before leaving. As he watched her walk away, he shook his head in amazement, as though he truly couldn't believe that his life had turned out so well. "Nineteen hours of labor and you'd never know it now. She's a tough chick, my babe."
Relena smiled up at him. "I'm so happy for you both."
"And surprised by us, too, I bet. I know we're kinda dropping in out of the blue…" He pulled at his ear. "But when we heard…you know…we wanted to be here for you." Duo glanced over her shoulder and as he did, his voice grew louder. "Because you know that Heero Yuy fellow is such a complete downer, we figured you'd need a few laughs every now and then."
Puzzled, Relena looked over her shoulder. Behind her, Heero had entered the mansion on silent feet. Her breath caught in the back of her throat, but she managed to give him a little nod. "We…I have visitors," she told him, unnecessarily.
"I can see that," Heero replied, approaching them. "Maxwell."
Duo straightened his back and molded his face into an exaggerated blank expression. "Yuy."
Relena smothered a smile behind her hand. "Heero, Duo and Hilde brought their…"
She was cut off by Hilde re-entering with a very awake Jeremiah settled in the crook of her arm. "Turns out he wasn't wet. Just cranky." She blinked upon seeing Heero. "Well, hello there."
Heero stared at the child Hilde carried. After a moment, he cleared his throat. "He looks like nine pounds."
"Congratulations to us." Duo rolled his eyes. "You're too kind, Heero."
Jeremiah blinked several times before closing his milky-blue eyes once more. "He's perfect," Relena whispered.
"Do you want to hold him?" Hilde offered.
"Oh…I…I don't know. I'm…" Relena searched for an excuse that wouldn't be offending or give anything away. Finding nothing, she gave in. "All right. Yes."
It only took a moment for Hilde to transfer her son, but each second ticked by for Heero like a hundred years. And once the baby was in Relena's arms, he found he simply couldn't look away. Some unidentified place within his chest ached at the sight.
Holding the baby, Relena was more beautiful than ever. He noticed that she'd let her hair down for the day and it curled around her shoulders, shimmering in the late-afternoon light that filtered through the foyer windows. She looked down at little Jeremiah and smiled the first genuine smile he'd seen on her face since they'd discovered her pregnancy.
He realized right then just how badly he wanted the baby in her arms to be theirs. And with that realization, he had to turn his head to look away before it killed him.
Still smiling, Relena tore her eyes away from the perfect little person and unconsciously glanced back up at Heero. He was looking off towards the parlor, clearly bored with the entire situation. Whatever hope she was still clinging onto crumbled.
"I…can't." As carefully, but also as quickly as she could, she passed the baby back to its mother. "I'm sorry. I just…remembered. There's some…paperwork. I have to…" She pointed to the stairs. "One of the maids will get you settled into a room. And I'll…see you at dinner." Before anyone could protest, she turned on her heel and ran up the stairs, one hand pressed against her mouth.
"Princess!" Duo shouted after her. She disappeared around an upstairs corner and he looked back at Heero, thoroughly confused. "Is she all right?"
Heero gave him a look without really looking at him. "How should I know?"
****
To Be Continued