Relena kept to herself a lot more. Many reporters remarked that the "sparkle in her eye" had seemed to disappear as suddenly as her daughter.

"Grandma!" Rei said, seeing the return of Relena through the window. Rei ran to the door to greet her grandmother, whose blonde hair was now lined with silver. Heero didn't seem to be taking it too badly in the public light, however it was only of late he had been sparring furiously as if he was angry at his son-in-law. Rei never saw her father much anymore, he only visited once a week and was gone away most of the time helping with the investigation. Rei, who had a cheery disposition until that evening of the third week looked at her grandmother. The small girl was smiling, but there were tears streaming down her face.

"What's the matter, sweety?" Relena asked, taking the little girl into her arms.

"Nothing at all Grandma!" she replied, wiping away the tears. Relena didn't push further into it.

She had too many problems of her own to know what to tell Rei. The family hadn't received a ransom yet, and as much as they hoped they knew that it was possible she was dead.

Ruth coughed hard, feeling as though she were about to cough up her lungs. They never untied her, so she was given water sometimes but they poured it into her mouth whether she needed to breathe or not. And if she refused? She didn't know when her next meal would be. Sitting in the light, she thought of how proud she should be, not telling them anything. But all she could think of was her immediate hunger and need for a hope. Limited social contact had left her without words- what is it that she could say? She had long given up talking to the darkness. All she could think of was hunger. She couldn't remember anything else. She knew she was getting thinner and sickly pale, well she just assumed it anyway. It was hard to see anything surrounded by darkness.

"Ugh..." she groaned, reaching out for something. Anything that would make her hold on.

"Good morning princess..." said the malicious voice, as a person approached her. They sounded angry, desperate. A hand was placed delicately on her cheek, and she knew it was a horrible touch- but it had been so long. Then an image came to mind.

"Congratulations Mrs.Winner, it's a girl." said her midwife, holding a little cloth bundle. While Will was looking positively pale in the back of the room. Ruth smiled, though she was exhausted she felt a wonderful feeling come over her. They were all a family. Ruth held the baby, looking down into the face of her child for the first time and tears began to stream from her hazel eyes. Will cautiously walked up with a look of remorse.

"I promise I will never ever let this happen again." He said, the sights of birth and hours of labour still fresh in his mind. Ruth smiled childishly before laughing really hard. "...what?".

"Isn't she worth it all?" Ruth said, slowly unclasping the newborn and giving her to him. His eyes widened, and, for a moment he was completely content.

"Yeah." he said, holding the child tenderly.

"We'll call her Rei." Ruth said. "And she won't be the last!She definitely needs a sibling!".

Will looked up in surprise.

"Another one?" he questioned, wondering how she could talk about it so openly. She nodded eagerly.

"Lots more!" .

"Rei... " Ruth groaned, turning her head away from her captor. "We'll call her Rei." She smiled weakly, reliving the feeling.

"If you want to see your little girl again, you had better answer this time." her captor said angrily.

"Lots more!" Ruth responded, so weak that she was beginning to be dillusional. He slapped her roughly, but even that wouldn't bring her focus back to him. He was grinding his teeth, plotting more inexplicable tortures in his mind when a doctor walked forward. He took her pulse silently. He looked at his emloyer without emotion.

"You did too much. She may be phsychologically gone forever. You'll have to let her revive first before you can expect her to even know what you're talking about." the doctor reported.

"I see." he said, exasperated. Letting out a breath, she shook his shadowed face. "Relocate her to one of the finest rooms in my estate and revive her. Call me if there are any changes."

Rei sat solemnly in her room quietly, not speaking. Will walked in, with empty eyes and a broken soul. He had stopped working on the case for a while, they told him he was too emotionally fragile to be of any use. But he still couldn't return to his home. He could barely look at his own daughter. She looked just like her mother- and even that was painful to him.

"What's the matter?" he asked her. She was usually so happy to see him. She looked up at him, holding a teddy bear tightly to her chest, tears streaming from her eyes.

"Mommy isn't coming back, is she?" she asked. Will didn't answer. He couldn't even pretend anymore. Rei threw the teddy bear across the room, screaming loudly. "I don't care anymore! I don't care if she ever comes back!". Will, unangry yet affected by the words was silent.

"I see." he said, walking out of her room. Rei looked up, and at the stranger leaving her room.

She felt sadder than she had ever fathomed in that moment. She didn't know why at the time, but she threw herself onto her bed crying desperately. Uncertain to the cause and yet so overwhelmed by the feeling. It wasn't until later she knew why. That was the last time her father was to visit her at her grandparent's house. Every week she would wait for him, but he never came.

No one really knew where he was at that point. He seemed to be hiding away outside of the country, forgetting all the things that he had loved so much. But nothing could make him forget her face, her smile, her voice, her lips... he was completely devoured by his sorrow.

A/N

Um, well, it's angsty. I wrote this to the music of : "Love Story" and "Erlkonig".