Disclaimer: Yadda yadda I don’t own Gundam Wing and so on.

The Symbol of Temptation

Prologue

Everywhere. Everywhere he looked, everything he touched. Everything was her. Everything. A glance over his shoulder and she’d be there, just turning a corner away from him. A glimmer of light and she’d be there, shining brightly at him. But it was never her. She was never really there. She was everywhere but nowhere, and he had no idea why.

He rested his forehead on his palm. Why? Why was she everywhere? He looked up and saw the light of a car go by. Bright light, like when she entered a room.

Why did everything remind him of her?

He got up from his chair and strode across his apartment, which contained little more than a bed and two tables. He stopped in front of the small table, on which was a phone and a newspaper. On the front of the newspaper was a picture of the Vice Foreign Minister, Relena Darlian, sadly addressing the press with the news that her mother had been killed in the attack on Representative Dryek.

She was sad.

He closed his eyes, confused as to why her sadness affected him, until the phone rang. Only two people knew that number, and only two people knew the short list of reasons why he would accept a call.

He picked up the phone and placed it to his ear. “Yes?”

“Heero, it’s Quatre. I think there may a problem on Earth.”

He steeled himself. “What is it?”

There was pause. “It’s Relena.”

The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. “What do you mean? Representative Dryek was attacked, not Relena.”

“Yes I know, but Dryek had a daughter named Laura, about five years old, who was also a target.”

“They were trying to kill the whole family?”

“That’s the thing…they already have. Laura is the last surviving member of the Dryek family now; all the other members have been assassinated over the last three years. The Dryeks made some pretty powerful enemies, even before the war started, and now someone is trying to kill every last one of them.”

He took a breath. “What’s this got to do with Relena?”

“Relena’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Darlian, were Laura’s godparents. As we all know, Mr. Darlian was killed during the war, and Mrs. Darlian was killed in the attack on Representative Dryek. So, with no godparents, and no remaining family-“

“Relena took it upon herself to look after the child.”

“Exactly.”

A mixture of admiration and disapproval swept through him at the thought of Relena watching the young girl. Admiration because it was brave, and disapproval because it was dangerous.

So like her.

“She’s in danger, then,” Heero said in low tone.

“Yes, I believe she may be.”

“Understood.” With that, he placed the phone back on the hook, resting his hand on it as if he had been frozen. He would be protecting her again. He didn’t know why this made him feel slightly warm, or why a flash of light from another car made him turn as if he expected to see her.

No, he did not understand why she was everywhere, anymore than he understood why he was shaking.