April 8, A.C. 210

Mid-morning

Brussels, Belgium

Heero glared down his opponent from his dining chair. At least, that was what she had always been in his mind, even if her crazy eyebrows made her appear quite ridiculous when she was trying to be formidable.

On second thought, perhaps the wayward brows were formidable in their own right. They split off in two different directions, making it difficult to detect whether she was scowling or smirking. Or some sinister combination of both.

"Hmm, what shall we order?" She smiled in that catlike way of hers as she drummed her polished nails against the menu.

Heero let out an impatient huff. They had been seated for a good ten minutes, and Dorothy had yet to utter one word about Relena, leading Heero to conclude this was all a massive waste of his time.

"I'm not hungry," he growled.

"I hear the eggs benedict is divine," Dorothy purred as if she hadn't heard him. Heero rolled his eyes.

She had chosen the restaurant, which was posh as Heero had imagined it to be, housed inside an equally swanky hotel. It was very busy, and very public. Two things Heero took pains to avoid at all costs, but Dorothy clearly enjoyed.

She snapped her fingers just then, and their waiter all but appeared out of thin air. Heero immediately felt sorry for the young man, who grinned down at Dorothy eagerly. Run, Heero silently urged him. Run while you can…

"Are you ready to order, Mrs. Bodington?"

Heero watched as one of Dorothy's dual brows twitched. Interesting. Whatever that was, her change in demeanor was like lightning. She set her menu down before her and smiled sweetly up at the poor, clueless youth, but her eyes were cold as stone.

"Yes. He'll have the eggs benedict…" Dorothy sneered as Heero sat still as a statue. He didn't care what she ordered for him; he wasn't going to eat it. "And I'll have one grapefruit, halved, and one slice of sprouted grain bread, lightly toasted, with a half of an avocado, one hardboiled egg, and two slices of turkey bacon on the side." She watched like a hawk as the waiter scribbled furiously on his pad. Heero was sure that if the kitchen got even one detail of Dorothy's order wrong, the staff would never hear the end of it.

"And to drink?" he asked.

"I'll have a mimosa, please," Dorothy said, fanning her lashes up at the waiter.

He turned to Heero, who gave a shrug. "I'll have whatever's on tap."

"We have the Brussels IPA, sir," the waiter said. "It's from the local brewery."

"Huh, never would've guessed," Heero deadpanned. The waiter flushed and nodded.

"Yes, sir. It's very good."

"Heero!" Dorothy hissed across the table. "You can't order booze with brunch." Heero gaped at her.

"You just did."

"I ordered a mimosa." Dorothy drew out the last word in an exaggerated fashion, flicking her eyes upward. "It's the conventional thing to have."

Heero rolled his own eyes and turned his attention back to the waiter. "I'll have the beer. Thanks."

The waiter nodded but glanced sheepishly at Dorothy. "Uh, yes, sir. Coming right up."

Dorothy's eyes followed the waiter as he departed, but her words were focused on Heero. "You're impossible," she muttered.

"You're one to talk," he shot back.

Dorothy said nothing in return, but the upper arch of her brows curved slightly higher. The two continued to sit in stony silence, adamant against adamant, for several minutes, until their waiter returned with their drinks.

He set Dorothy's champagne flute and Heero's pint glass down shakily before them. Heero nodded his thanks and reached for his glass, eager to numb at least some of the annoyance he felt.

"Can I get you two anything else?" the waiter asked nervously.

"No," Heero and Dorothy replied in unison, although Heero tacked on a "thank you" afterward. Dorothy lifted her own glass to her lips and took a slow, practiced sip as the waiter slinked away.

"Ah, that's better." Dorothy set her glass back down on the table and smiled sweetly at Heero. He wondered what was in the drink, besides orange juice and champagne, that appeared to alter her mood so quickly. Whatever it was, it had the effect of a magic potion.

"Now, Heero," Dorothy began as she laced her hands in front of her. "We have business to discuss."

Heero resisted rolling his eyes again, although it was a struggle. "Finally."

He leaned forward, elbows on the table, which Dorothy clearly noticed and disapproved of, as her gaze flicked over him, her smile flattening. Heero didn't care; he wanted to get their conversation over with so he could go and talk to Relena, which he was starting to realize he should have just done in the first place. Unfortunately, Dorothy could be convincing, when she wanted to be.

"Tell me what you know," Heero barked, slipping into interrogation mode. Dorothy chuckled and reached for her drink.

"Well, we both know that Quatre and Relena are engaged." Dorothy practically spat the last word, then paused to take a long sip before continuing. "What we don't know is why. But I have a theory."

"What's that?" Heero asked automatically, although he wasn't really interested in whatever her "theory" was. All he cared about were facts, and figuring out exactly what went wrong with Relena, so that he could try to fix it. Unless he was already too late…

"They're doing this to spite us, obviously," said Dorothy.

Heero frowned. "Why?"

Dorothy's eyes rolled again. "Oh, honestly, Heero. Do I have to spell it out for you?"

"No," Heero glowered. "But you do need to get to the point."

Dorothy shook her head with a heavy sigh. "You're even more obtuse than I thought. They're in love with us. Don't you see?" She spread her hands. "This is just some little game they're playing to get to us."

It was all Heero could do not to burst out laughing. "The only one who enjoys playing games like that is you," he said, suppressing a snort. "As for Quatre and Relena… that's not really their style." He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms over his chest. "But of course, an egomaniac like you would think that this is all about you-"

"And you," Dorothy huffed, flipping her long hair over one shoulder. "This is not a narcissistic conclusion to reach at all. I happen to know Quatre is in love with me, and always has been."

This time Heero snorted for real. "Then why hasn't he ever done anything about it?"

He'd known Quatre a long time, and while he might have thought the blond former Sandrock pilot could have developed a crush on Dorothy during the war, perhaps while they were all at Sanc together, Heero had been far too busy trying to keep the kingdom from becoming a mushroom cloud to pay attention to such details. That, and he'd become all too aware of the fact that Relena clearly had feelings for him, and realizing that it was starting to make him feel things, too…

At the thought of Relena, Heero's entire body warmed. He needed to bring this pointless meeting to an end so that he could go find her.

But Dorothy was still talking.

"Well, we've never actually been single at the same time. And then I got married," she explained.

"You're delusional," Heero said flatly, and Dorothy's face instantly fell. "If he really wanted you, he wouldn't have let that stop him."

"Spoken like a true jackass," Dorothy snapped, her light eyes tightening into narrow slits. "And how is that working out for you?"

Heero ignored the question in favor of taking another swig of his beer. It was almost empty, which was unfortunate, since it was the one thing that enabled him to tolerate Dorothy's presence.

She let out another labored sigh, as if Heero were truly testing her patience. "Anyway, we know that there is no way those two are a legitimate couple. Relena is definitely doing this to get back at you, after that little stunt you pulled recently." Dorothy's lips curled into a sneer over her champagne flute. "Which Relena told me all about, by the way."

Heero frowned. "What did she say?"

"She said she told you that she wanted to get married, and you said that you weren't even in a relationship," Dorothy recited with a satisfied smirk on her face. Heero grimaced at how spot-on her summation was.

"I didn't mean it like that," he mumbled, raking a hand through his hair. Dorothy shook her head with a "tsk."

"I don't know how else you could have meant it," she said almost gleefully. "And Relena reacted accordingly. But how she managed to get Quatre to agree to this farce of an engagement, I'll never understand-"

"What if it's not?" Heero muttered glumly.

Dorothy's brows lifted. "Not what?"

"Not a farce."

Dorothy looked at him as if he must be quite stupid. "Of course it is," she said, laughing breezingly. "Trust me, they are not a couple. I've spent a lot more time around the two of them than you have. This is all just a ruse, meant to capture our attention."

Heero had no idea whether he could believe Dorothy or not. But as ludicrous as her speculation sounded, he couldn't help but want her to be right.

"What did Relena have to say?" he asked the other woman. "When you saw her last night."

Dorothy's eyes rolled for the umpteenth time that day. "She said that Quatre has proposed to her several times in the past, and this time she finally agreed." Dorothy didn't look like she believed it for a second, though. "This was after I accused her of using him to get back at you," Dorothy added. "But she was trying to defend herself, like this is all so reasonable. Since she and Quatre both want to get married and start a family, they've just decided to do it together." She scoffed as if the mere thought disgusted her before reaching for her mimosa.

Heero frowned into his empty beer glass. "Like... an arranged marriage?"

Dorothy shrugged. "Something like that. Like I said, there's definitely nothing romantic happening between them; that's for sure."

But now Heero wasn't so sure. He'd always known that Relena and Quatre were close; building on the friendship they'd struck up during the wars, their similar professions - not to mention social status - led them to cross paths fairly often. But Heero never thought anything of it when Relena would mention meeting up with Quatre at a conference, or even going to dinner with just him. Heero had never suspected there was anything going on between the two. Then again, he and Relena had stupidly agreed to have an open relationship, and so they never discussed who else they might be seeing. What Relena didn't know was that Heero couldn't be bothered to see anyone else; he was merely seeing her on her terms, which he never even bothered to question.

But had Relena been seeing Quatre on the side all along? Heero realized, with a sinking feeling in his gut, that it was a distinct possibility.

He'd been a fool. A clueless, utter fool.

As he sat processing this, the waiter reappeared with another round of drinks. Heero reached for his full glass of beer and took a hearty sip, but it tasted like paper on his tongue.

What if he'd been blind to this all along?

"So," Dorothy was saying, her own glass poised at her lips, "I was thinking, we should give those two a run for their money..."

Heero didn't know or care what Dorothy was getting at. He only cared about getting more alcohol in his system to numb his intrusive emotions.

Dorothy's eyes were glittering in a way that Heero knew to be dangerous. "I think we should date each other," she said, a mischievous smile snaking across her lips. "Or, better yet, get engaged-"

Heero was mid-sip and Dorothy's words threw him. Before he even knew what was happening, he was choking on the effervescent liquid. Heero rasped for air while Dorothy sat gaping at him.

"Oh, honestly. You're making a scene," she scolded him, as he clasped a hand to his throat in desperation. "Tell me if you can think of a better idea-"

"I can't," Heero gasped. He looked up to see their waiter jogging over to them, his face screwed up in concern.

"Sir, are you all right?"

"Water," Heero wheezed. But instead of going off to fulfill the request, the waiter moved around to the back of Heero's chair.

"It will be ok, sir, just hang on-" Heero wanted to yell at the young man to stop, but he was too late. The youth circled his arms around Heero's chest and began to apply strong pressure. Dorothy looked on in apparent boredom.

"He doesn't need the Heimlich," she sighed. "He's not choking. We haven't even had anything to eat yet."

"Oh…" The waiter mercifully let go of Heero, who slumped back against his seat. "Sorry about that," the young man added sheepishly. But as he was moving away from Heero, he bumped the table with his leg, sending Dorothy's newly-filled glass of mimosa straight onto her lap.

She shrieked and leapt up from the table. "This is Valentino!" She whirled on the waiter, her face red and eyes flashing.

"I'm so sorry ma'am!" the young man yelped, his own face turning several shades of red. He grabbed a cloth napkin off of the table and made to dab at Dorothy's dress, but she snatched it away from him.

"I'll do that," she snapped. "Bring me several more. Please," she added, although it was more of a command than a polite request. Venom seemed to ooze from her tongue.

Heero wanted to laugh at the whole scene, but his windpipe, and now his chest, were hurting. He needed to get the hell out of there…

"Well!" Dorothy collected herself and slipped back into her seat. "How embarrassing." Her gaze flicked around the room, and Heero realized they'd attracted several onlookers from the neighboring tables. Not that he cared.

"You're going to have to make that up to me," Dorothy hissed at him across the table. Heero just glared at her in response, until their waiter returned with a pile of cloth napkins for Dorothy and two glasses of water. The waiter set the items carefully on the table, apologizing profusely all the while. Heero thanked him and chugged his ice-cold salvation while Dorothy sat blotting napkins against her dress.

"I'm sure that'll come out," Heero quipped after he'd finishing taking another mighty swig of water. Dorothy glanced up at him, and her eyes were like ice.

"It had better," she said in what sounded like a veiled threat. As if she would enact her revenge upon him personally if it didn't.

Heero decided he'd had more than enough drama for one day. "Are we done here?"

Dorothy's glare turned downright glacial. "You haven't given any consideration to my proposal..."

"Not happening," Heero said flatly. "Even if it was a good idea - which it's not - there's no way Quatre or Relena would ever fall for it." He couldn't help but chuckle at the absurdity of the thought. "For one thing, they know we can't stand each other."

"That's why it's called acting," Dorothy countered. "I'm sure we could at least pretend that we like each other for the time being. It's not like either one of us is repulsive." Her lips curved upward. Heero arched a brow.

"That your way of trying to hit on me?"

Dorothy scoffed. "Don't be so flattered. Normally I wouldn't stoop so low." Heero knew that remark was supposed to sting, but he didn't care enough to be affected.

"How charitable of you," he retorted. Dorothy smirked at him.

"Well, you know what they say; opposites attract." She leaned forward and lowered her voice conspiratorially. "We could easily make people believe that we have a kind of kismesis connection…"

"Huh?" Heero cut in, feeling newly baffled.

"You know, a 'kismet nemesis'?" Dorothy's eyes glittered. "It's basically a love-hate relationship. Some might mistake all of our arguing for banter, rife with sexual tension…" Her brows waggled suggestively.

Heero's beer tasted like bile, and he thought for a moment it might escape his throat and make an appearance on the table. "You may think that-" he started.

"I don't," Dorothy snapped. "But for the sake of stirring up jealousy, I'd be willing to play the game."

Heero was already shaking his head. "It'll never work," he said. "I think the only thing to do is talk to Quatre. Tell him how you feel. If he feels the same way, he'll let you know." Heero frowned as he fully assessed the situation. "That is, if he can overlook the fact that you're married."

"Hmm… I don't know if I can count on Quatre to be assertive when it comes to this sort of thing." Dorothy pushed her lips into a pout. "He's always been so quiet and unassuming-"

"Or terrified," Heero added. Dorothy looked as if she wanted to smack him, but she prattled on.

"Anyway, you're right. I should tell him." She straightened herself in her seat, and pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Perhaps he'll be more receptive to my feelings once he learns that I'm separated..."

"You are?" Heero chanced another sip of his beer. "Since when?" He knew Dorothy had married some real estate tycoon a few years back, but he'd never met the guy. Of course, Relena had invited Heero to the wedding as her date - she was the maid of honor - but he had vehemently refused at the time. Not because he didn't want to spend the time with Relena; it was more about avoiding a day that was solely dedicated to Dorothy basking in her own bridal glory. But who did Relena wind up taking in his place?

Heero's mood darkened as he remembered. Quatre. Of course… Who knew the kind-hearted former Sandrock pilot would have turned out to be such a snake in the grass?

Heero forced the thoughts away as Dorothy continued to discuss her separation. "It's recent," she said with what appeared to be a wistful smile. But then Heero couldn't be too sure.

"Is that a good thing?" he ventured.

"Since my ex is a lying, cheating scumbag, then yes," she said, her eyes gleaming over her champagne glass. "It's a very good thing." She raised her glass back to her lips and tipped it back, finishing off what remained of her mimosa in a less ladylike fashion than before, as if she no longer cared for decorum. Heero was slightly impressed.

"Well, good," he said simply, not really knowing what else to say. "Go talk to Quatre, then." He gave a shrug. "Maybe it'll all work out." He could only hope so, for his own selfish purposes…

"Maybe." Dorothy nodded eagerly. "As long as he's not actually in love with Relena…"

Heero frowned at her. "I thought you said it's all a farce."

"I mean, it has to be…" Dorothy frowned, sounding almost sounded doubtful, which had Heero newly worried. Then he wondered if her mimosas were making her slightly more emotional; she certainly seemed to be showcasing a new vulnerability.

"We won't know anything until we talk to them," Heero said evenly, pushing up from the table as he spoke. "I'm going to find Relena."

Dorothy pouted up at him. "But we haven't even gotten our brunch yet! You can't just leave me here to eat all by myself…"

"Sorry," Heero said simply, although he wasn't all that sorry. Knowing Dorothy, she didn't take his leaving as a personal slight but was more concerned over how it would look.

"Take it to go," he suggested, pulling a few bills from his wallet to contribute to the meal. He had no idea what it would cost, since the menu didn't display any prices, but he knew it had to be expensive. He resigned himself to emptying his wallet when Dorothy reached up a hand to stop him.

"Please, don't embarrass yourself," she sighed. "I've got this covered. They'll just put this on my husband's tab," she added with a cackle.

Heero didn't know how to respond to that. He just gave a nod and shoved everything back into his wallet before tucking it inside his back pocket.

"You had better hurry and grab Relena before she leaves for space," Dorothy warned as Heero made to leave. "I understand she's planning to meet up with Quatre at some conference or other." She waved a hand dismissively.

Heero paused in his tracks at this new information. "When?"

Dorothy shrugged one shoulder. "Sometime this week, I think. I guess you'd better ask her." She jabbed a finger in Heero's direction. "And do it soon. Because knowing Relena, even if this whole engagement is phony, she will see it through all the way to the altar, out of propriety." Dorothy shook her head sadly. "And so would Quatre. Unless I manage to convince him otherwise…" Her eyes sparked.

"Then get to it," Heero said gruffly.

"Same to you." Dorothy offered him a brief smile, but it faded quickly. "And this time, don't be an ass."

He frowned right back at her. "I'm not trying to be."

"Tell her how you really feel about her. Using actual words," Dorothy added with a stern shake of her finger. "And it wouldn't hurt if you showed up with an engagement ring, either, come to think of it…" She tapped her finger to her chin, looking as though she was launching a new ploy then and there.

But Heero instantly felt like he'd broken into a sweat. "Yeah… I don't think I can manage that by this afternoon."

Dorothy's eyes held a new gleam. "Leave that to me…" She began to cackle maniacally again, while Heero shook his head.

"Thanks, but no thanks. I'd rather let her pick it out herself."

Dorothy's face fell. "Heero, that's tacky."

He frowned and stood his ground. "I'd want to be sure she gets what she likes. And anyway, I'm not planning to propose to her now."

Dorothy glared sharply at him. "Why not? Quatre already beat you to it. How else do you expect to win her back?"

"I don't know…" Heero started. But one thing he did know was that he didn't want to discuss his plans with anyone else. He figured all he could do was be honest with Relena, and hope for the best.

Before he could take off, Dorothy stood up from the table, stretching her hands out to his.

"Well, goodbye and good luck," she said, taking both of his hands in hers. Heero was taken aback by her sudden politeness, but shook her hands in return.

"Uh, thanks," he said, then started to back away. But before he could drop her hands, Dorothy leaned in, her lips puckered. Heero knew it was the standard regional greeting and parting gesture - a kiss on each cheek - and not one he was fond of practicing. But he had gotten somewhat used to it from all the time he spent around Relena, who was never one to break protocol. So Heero thought nothing of it as he leaned forward, prepared to return the gesture.

He was not prepared for Dorothy to press her lips firmly against his, squeezing his hands, locking him in place.

Heero stumbled backward and blurted out his surprise, although he had no idea what he said. With the way the other patrons whirled on the pair, he'd probably cursed. Once again, Dorothy cackled.

"The hell was that about?" Heero all but shouted as he arched away from her, just barely managing to keep his voice down.

Dorothy had already settled back into her chair, and was dabbing at her smeared lipstick with a napkin. She smiled demurely up at him.

"Consider it payback," she said sweetly. Heero was aghast.

"Payback for what?"

"That unfortunate fencing match, so long ago," Dorothy said smoothly, a smile still playing on her lips.

"You're insane." Heero glowered down at her, all niceties forgotten. Before anything else could derail him, he turned around and stomped away from the table, leaving Dorothy to whatever wicked scheme she was plotting. He didn't need any more interference from her, or anyone.

What he needed was to talk to Relena. Alone.

Heero hailed a cab to the Preventers building, where he immediately paid a visit to Une's office. The Commander informed him that his new phone was ready, which was the best news Heero had received in days. Not that he was especially reliant on mobile technology, but it was an effective way to contact Relena, without showing up wherever she was and startling her. Which he was determined to start doing less of…

He retreated to his room in the Preventers dorm, and the second his door was closed, he punched in Relena's number and placed the long-overdue call. He felt a sharp pang of disappointment when the call went straight to voicemail. Then he reminded himself that she was probably working and couldn't answer. Never mind the fact that she wouldn't recognize the number…

So Heero decided to do something he rarely did.

Text.

He sank onto his bed and opened a new message, staring at the blank screen for several minutes as he composed his thoughts.

What should he say?

Where could he even begin?

Relena… He began to type hastily. It's Heero. I have a new phone… He backspaced and erased the last sentence. Did he even need to tell her that? She'd figure it out. She knew he was constantly replacing his phones for security purposes; no need to tell her he'd been drunk and stupid when he'd lost his last one.

Relena, it's Heero. We need to talk.

He frowned down at the phone, then erased that as well. It sounded too demanding, too forceful. And he knew he needed to be more contrite.

Relena, it's Heero. Can you call me when you have a chance?

Now he just sounded like a wuss. Heero groaned and erased his words with a vengeance.

Relena, it's Heero. Please call when you can.

Heero read the message over a few times, still not entirely satisfied with it. Then again, he'd never considered himself gifted when it came to words and had always struggled to express himself… Something else he realized Relena knew all too well.

Would she understand this time, and maybe give him another chance?

Only one way to find out...

Before he could change his mind, Heero pressed "send."

A/N: Happy Sunday Funday, loves! I hope you enjoyed this longer-than-usual chapter... for the most part, I've tried to keep the scenes for this story short and sweet, but I just couldn't get enough of these two together... both of these characters have a way of chewing the scenery, if you know what I mean :D At first it was a struggle to pair them together, but the more I wrote, the more I began to enjoy their back-and-forth. Of course, Heero has little to no tolerance for Dorothy and her Machiavellian ways, but desperate times call for desperate measures, and he was just desperate enough to hear Dorothy out. I'm sure you're glad he didn't agree to go along with her scheme this time around, although it would have been fun... I couldn't see Heero ever going through with it. He's too much of a straight shooter, am I right? Now we'll have to see if this will work to his advantage when it comes time to reunite with Relena...

So tell me, what are you hoping to see in the next chapter? Is it reunion time for our star-crossed pair? Does this story feel like it's coming to an end? I feel like we're getting there, but you know me... I like a long story with lots of dramatic twists and turns. Please let me know what you think and would like to see in the next installment!

Thank you to all of the supporters of this story... you have been so patient waiting for updates, and I hope you're continuing to love it! And I appreciate your comments more than you could ever know! You guys make me feel like a "real" fiction writer and it means so much to me.

Hope you're having a great weekend!

Love love love,

- RFP