(Author's Note: First of all I just wanted to say I am a huge fan of Relena/Heero pairings. Regardless, I really wanted to try an alternate pairing so I found a story I'd written several years ago. It needed a lot of revisions and some new material which I am gladly providing. I hope you enjoy the result and remember, I don't own Gundam Wing.)

Rain on the Roses
Chapter One

By: Starlight – x1

Zechs sat by his sister's side, carefully clasping her left hand in his own while his eyes never left her face. She was so pale, bandages neatly covering cuts from the car accident. The steady rise and fall of her chest as she breathed gave assurance that she was alive.

The doctors had said she would recover, but it would take some time. They also had some other news. He was going to be an uncle. It was a miracle she hadn't lost the baby.

A sigh escaped her lips and her eyelashes fluttered. Zechs leaned forward, watching her face intently. "Relena."

"Heero."

Zechs winced inwardly at the name she uttered. Relena was alive, but unfortunately her husband had been pronounced DOA. Dead on arrival.

The door to the private room opened and Noin stepped through. "How is she?"

Zechs looked up at his wife. "I think she's finally waking up."

As if in response to his words Relena's eyelashes fluttered again and she peered drowsily at her brother. "Milliardo?"

"I'm here Relena." Zechs squeezed her hand gently. "How are you feeling?"

"Tired." Relena blinked languidly. "What happened?" Her words were slow.

"You were in a car accident." Zechs answered. "But you're going to be just fine."

Relena's eyes widened. "The baby…" She began in a panic.

"Your baby is fine." Noin soothed, peering over her husband's shoulder.

Relena's gaze drifted towards Noin's face and she relaxed with a contented smile. The drugs started to work again and her eyelids slowly closed. With effort she forced them open. "Where's Heero?"

Zechs looked away. "He didn't make it. I'm sorry Relena."

"He'll be here." Relena spoke confidently.

"No honey, you don't understand." Noin leaned forward. "He's dead."

"Dead?" The puzzled look on Relena's face was slowly replaced by grief. Tears welled up in her eyes and spilled down her cheeks. Her tears didn't last long as the drugs took over her system and she drifted off again.

Noin reached down and wiped the tear trails off her sister-in-law's face. "You need to get some rest Zechs. You've been in this room for nearly as long as your sister. The doctors said she's going to be fine. Please, I've never seen you look so haggard."

Carefully Zechs let go of Relena's hand and sat back in his chair.

Noin looked down at him. "You could have at least tried to make the funeral." She spoke quietly.

"Somebody should be here when she wakes up again." Zechs ignored her last comment.

"Pagen or I can sit with her for a while. Quatre even offered his services. There are plenty of people willing to help. You falling over from hunger or exhaustion won't help anyone." Noin touched his shoulder. "Please Zechs."

"Okay." Zechs gave into Noin's pleading, stood slowly and stretched aching muscles. Bending over he stroked his sister's face gently before allowing himself to be escorted from the room by Noin.

''''''''

Relena came awake gradually. She blinked several times. Dead… The word resounded inside her mind. Heero was dead…

No, it couldn't be true. It had to be part of a nightmare, brought on by the drugs the doctors had administered.

"Oh, hello Mrs. Yuy."

Relena looked up into the smiling face of the nurse who was checking her IV bag. Relena attempted a smile in return. "Hello."

"It's good to see you awake." The nurse's cheery voice flowed over Relena like a wave of warm water. She lay, listening to the meaningless jabber, attempting to adjust to her surroundings.

The nurse paused at the end of her bed and replaced her chart. "I've never seen anyone with more devoted visitors. Your brother's been here nearly constantly since the accident."

"Oh." Relena took a deep breath. "What about my husband?" She didn't kid herself into thinking the nurse had no idea who she was. Her face was generally plastered on the front pages of newspapers, magazines and the evening news on television. Lately it had been her face and Heero's somewhere beside her or in the background. He had insisted on continuing as her bodyguard, trusting no one else to take care of her as meticulously as he did.

"I don't know." The nurse turned evasive. "I haven't seen him."

Relena frowned as the nurse exited the room. A feeling of anxiety swept over her. Dead… A memory was budding in her mind, one that contained her brother and Noin and the knowledge that her husband was gone forever.

"No," Relena allowed a sob to escape. "It was a bad dream, it had to be a bad dream."

The door to her room opened and she looked up into the concerned face of Pagen. "Miss Relena?"

"Tell me it's not true Pagen. Please, tell me he's okay."

Instinctively understanding her plea Pagen approached the young woman he'd served faithfully for so long and considered dearer then a granddaughter. "I'm sorry." He murmured as he cradled her as best he could.

In those two words Relena felt her entire world come crashing down around her. Hiding her face in Pagen's loving embrace she wept out her agony.

'''''''

Relena's release from the hospital was kept as low key as possible. Zechs knew she needed to get home without having to face TV cameras, flash bulbs and microphones shoved in her face.

Zechs couldn't look at her without feeling a physical ache in his gut. Her eyes were dull, devoid of all feeling. Her tears with Pagen had been the last emotional outburst anyone had ever seen.

Try as she might Relena couldn't remember anything about the accident itself, nothing except Heero's eyes. He had looked at her for a split second as the car started careening out of control, then there was nothing. Her brain refused to divulge anymore. So she asked her sister-in-law.

Noin had been hesitant to speak of the accident but Relena had insisted. She had to know. It was simple. Heero had used his body to shield her from the glass and twisted metal.

The knowledge that Heero had died and been buried, all while she was lying comatose in a hospital room ate away at her. He had died protecting her and she couldn't even be there to say a final good-bye.

She knew her family and friends worried about her. She heard the whispered conversations and saw the glances sent her way. She didn't really care. It felt as if her heart had died along with Heero.

She sat listlessly on the couch, arms wrapped protectively over her abdomen. A name spoken by the news anchor pierced through her mental fog. Slowly, reluctantly, her eyes strayed towards the television screen. Her breath caught in her throat as she looked into Prussian blue eyes. How had they obtained that photo of him?

"….the death of her husband, Heero Yuy. The Vice Foreign Minister was released from the hospital earlier today…"

Relena sat frozen in shock as the images kept flashing on the screen. Someone had managed to get distance shots of the funeral.

Tears blurred her vision. "No, no, NOOO!" her voice wailed in a crescendo. She lunged for the remote, her hand knocking aside a tea cup Pagen had placed there for her. It's contents pooled over the table top and flowed off the edge to soak into the carpet.

"Relena!"

Steady hands removed the remote from her trembling grasp and efficiently turned off the TV. Then she was pulled into a tight embrace and held firmly while a hand stroked her hair in a soothing manner.

Half singing, half crooning, her comforter rocked her back and forth as though she were an infant. The masculine timbre of his voice mixed with the foreign sound of the words he was murmuring, bringing a calm to the emotional storm threatening to tear her apart.

Relena's hands relaxed their death grip on the fabric of his shirt as her sobs dwindled into shaky breaths. For a while she sat, her ear against his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart before finally pushing back to see who held her.

Aquamarine eyes looked down at her. "Quatre.." Relena began with a sniffle.

"It's okay." Still holding her with one arm Quatre reached for a box of tissues setting on a table next to the couch. Handing them to her he waited as she mopped her face and blew her nose.

"I made you all wet." Relena murmured, her hands crumpling the tissue she held into a ball.

"That's what friends are for." Quatre smiled softly at her but she could see the pain he felt for her hidden beneath the surface. "I'm here for whenever you need me." Gently he reached out and tucked loose strands of honey blond hair behind her ear.

Relena nodded and blinked back the tears that threatened to well up yet again. "He was so kind, so gentle towards me. I always felt safe when he was near. Now he's gone and I never got the chance to tell him about the baby. H-he never knew."

Seeing her struggle to maintain her composure Quatre scooted closer and placed one arm around her shoulders. Relena leaned her head against his shoulder wearily, content to let herself be held and comforted

They sat together in silence until Quatre noticed she had fallen asleep. A sad smile curved his lips and he used his free hand to brush away strands of hair that continued to insist on falling into her face. "I'll be here whenever you need me." He reiterated quietly and placed a soft kiss on her forehead.

''''''

Relena woke later on the couch. Slightly confused she pushed aside the light afghan covering her body and sat up. The room was empty, not wanting to be alone she stood slowly and went in search of someone to talk to.

She found Quatre in the informal dining room absently pushing his tea cup around in circles. The light scraping sounds the bottom of the cup made against the table had a strangely monotonous quality. The blond Arabian had a faraway expression in his eyes as he stared into the liquid in his cup.

Relena stopped and leaned against the doorframe, not sure if she should disturb her friend. She knew that all the pilots had been rather close and wondered what memories Quatre was reliving.

A wave of dizziness suddenly washed over her and the scope of her vision began to shrink, blackness clouding in until all she could see was a tiny pinpoint of light. Relena clutched the doorframe tightly, waiting for her eyesight to clear.

"Relena, what are you doing?" A deep voice spoke from behind her as a hand gripped her shoulder, helping to steady her.

Relena let out a startled yelp and turned her head, blinking her eyes rapidly. Her brother and Noin stood behind her; both dressed in their Preventer uniforms. "I was looking for some company and I just got a little lightheaded. That's all." Relena released her grip on the doorframe and allowed her brother to escort her to the seat Quatre had pulled out for her.

"You probably need to eat something." Noin spoke up pointedly.

It didn't take the servants long to serve supper. Relena looked down at the bowl in front of her and reluctantly dipped her spoon into the soup. Hungry or not she did have to eat, if not for herself, then for the tiny life growing inside of her. Bringing the spoon near her lips she blew softly before swallowing the contents. She could feel their eyes watching her every move. Ignoring her dinner companions she took another spoonful, and another.

No one spoke, the only sounds were the clink of silver against china. Relena laid her spoon down and reached for her glass. Tipping it she felt the ice brush against her upper lip while the cool water flowed down her throat. Setting her glass down Relena glanced up to see her brother watching her intently. Fumbling for her spoon she spoke softly. "I'm not going to suddenly do something scandalous Milliardo. You don't have to watch me like some new threat."

Zechs didn't reply, a half hurt, half angry light flashing suddenly in his ice blue eyes as he pushed back his chair and left the room.

"He's really very worried about you." Noin didn't look up from her plate. "He just doesn't know how to show it."

Relena sighed and pushed back her half-empty bowl. The way her stomach was churning she didn't think she could force another bite past her lips. "He didn't go to the funeral did he?" She peered at Noin, waiting for a reply.

"No." The dark-haired woman shook her head. "He stayed with you. He wanted to be there incase you woke up, so you wouldn't be alone."

There was silence, then Relena scooted her chair away from the table, dropping her linen serviette next to her bowl. Noin and Quatre shared a glance as she left the room.

"Do you think she's going to be alright?"

Surprised at the question Quatre looked over at Noin. The experienced Preventer was pushing her food around her plate with her fork. Unconsciously he began to rub the area above his heart. All the grief in this house, combined with his own was beginning to weigh on him. "In time. Relena's a strong person."

"No one can be strong all the time and Heero was her heart and soul."

"I know." Quatre closed his eyes as if in prayer. "I know."

Quatre and Noin both gave up trying to eat. Quatre leaned his elbows on the table in manner quite unusual for him. Noin toyed with her fork. "When do you have to go back to L4?" Noin looked over at the blonde.

"The end of this week." Quatre looked up with a halfhearted grin. "Unfortunately there's a business meeting I absolutely cannot miss. I've already postponed it once for the funeral. If I postpone it again, well..." He let his words trail off.

"I understand." Noin smiled in agreement. "I've appreciated your being here more then you could know." She put her fork down. "I think it's really helped Relena too."

''''''''

Relena found her brother in his study looking over some papers. "Milliardo?"

"Yes?" His answer seemed slightly muffled.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you." Relena took several steps forward, stopping when she stood directly in front of his desk. "I just felt smothered. Everybody's worried about me a-and I don't really know how to tell them I'm fine."

"Are you?" Zechs dropped his papers and stood. "My god, Relena, you just lost your husband. How can you be fine?" He walked around the desk and turned her to face him. Relena's gaze dropped to his shoes. "Yes, I'm worried about you, but it's only because I don't want to lose you too. Emotionally or physically. You're the only family I have left. I just want you to let me be there for you. I really do love you little sister." Relena felt his arms pull her tight into a brotherly hug, she responded by wrapping her arms around his waist. Zechs continued. "Heero was a good guy. He and I may have had our differences but I knew he'd always protect you, no matter what. And he did. Now I want to protect you and your baby."

"I know you do." Relena felt a single tear slide down her cheek.

Zechs held her until he felt her grip loosen then he stepped back. He traced the line her tear had made down her cheek and cupped her chin gently. Relena looked up at him with a half smile. "When do I have to go back to work?"

"According to me, not until you're good and ready. For everyone else, when the doctor says you can." Zechs caught her glance at his uniform and shook his head. "Noin and I had a meeting with Lady Une."

"Concerning?"

"Your new bodyguard among other things." Zechs seemed reluctant to discuss it.

"Bodyguard." Relena nodded her head. "I should have known."

"Relena..."

"Just make sure you don't choose somebody I'll absolutely hate." Relena turned away.

"Before doing that I would assign myself as your bodyguard."

"That I would absolutely hate. I need to be protected not smothered Milliardo." Relena looked back at him and Zechs noted gratefully the smile that lifted her lips.

"Okay, I'll confer with Noin."

Relena could feel his eyes follow her as she exited the room. It wasn't hard to imagine what he was thinking. She had seen the almost palpable relief in his eyes when she'd smiled at him. He rarely admitted anything, being more like Heero in that regard. Relena hurried her step. A bodyguard was necessary she knew, but she still hadn't expected the issue to come up quite so soon. She didn't want to think about anyone else taking Heero's place. Her lover who had been with her 24/7, his job and hers intertwining beautifully. Now it would be someone new, a professional who didn't see any deeper then her job title.

She was alone.