The halls of the President's palace mainly were clear, except for the occasional waiter and other staff members. Heero had been pacing outside one of the palace's twenty-six bedrooms for about twenty minutes now, waiting for Relena to come out of her approved changing room.

He could faintly hear classical music coming from the grand ballroom on the other side of the massive palace. The charity ball had begun an hour ago. However, Relena had yet to make her appearance, despite being one of the prominent people the attendees were there to see.

Thankfully, the prime minister of the Sanc Kingdom and the ESUN president were more than making up for her absence. Heero had poked his head into the event when he first arrived to confirm security measures were all in place. The two men seemed to be handling things quite elegantly without Relena.

In the end, it likely didn't matter whether they talked to the ESUN president or Relena, as both commanded significant power and, after all, that's what the attendees of the event had paid for access to.

On paper, the event was labeled as a fundraising gala for the various orphanages around the kingdom that had taken in children whose parents died during the war. However, at Es$50,000 Earth Sphere Dollars just to attend, there was no confusion about what these people were after. Titans of industry, foreign representatives, and even some underworld figures all paid up for the chance to buy favors with the Earth Sphere's most influential politicians.

The real money would be spent in the coming days, transferred from secretive numbered accounts located offshore. It was events like these where deals were brokered, and policy was set. Heero had attended far too many of these over the past decade to not be disgusted by them. However, it was part of his job as the head of security for one of the most influential politicians in the world.

He'd had many conversations with Relena about these sorts of events. Enough to know that she was equally disgusted by them. However, money was a universal language and power a hot commodity at the end of the day. She didn't have to like it, but Relena always played her part and did her best to guide events like these in a favorable direction for the people of earth and the colonies.

Heero's thoughts were interrupted by glass shattering against a hard surface. He'd been so caught up in his own thoughts that he failed to notice the raised voices coming from behind Relena's dressing room door.

"Fuck you," he heard a familiar masculine voice spout. Heero knew it to be Jonah Brinnely, Relena's husband. "What right do you have to question me."

"Get out," Relena shouted. Her voice was tired sounding, lacking the energy that had attracted Heero to her many years ago.

The door opened around five feet from where Heero was standing, and a tall and slender figure stumbled drunkenly out of the room. The man was dressed in an expensive yet disheveled-looking gray suit with a light blue dress shirt. Though he had a babyface, he looked haggard with dark circles and an unshaven face. The man looked up at Heero, disgust registering on his face.

"You," Jonah said, straightening up and smoothing out his suit. A sardonic grin came over his face as his brown eyes met Heero's light blue orbs. "You're whore's waiting."

A brief but chilling laugh escaped the man's lips. He then walked by Heero as if nothing had happened, proceeding in the direction of the ballroom.

It took restraint for Heero to not do something. However, the man was the vice foreign minister's husband and, along with Relena, a man that Heero had been tasked with protecting. It wouldn't look good for Jonah to be injured at Heero's hands. So, he put his head down as the man passed, turning towards the door from whence he'd stumbled out.

Heero walked towards the door, registering a soft sob coming from within. As soon as he walked through the door, the noise stopped as the lone occupant, sitting at an oversized antique vanity on the far side of the room, wiped her face and shouted, "I told you to leave."

Relena turned around quickly, preparing for a follow-up argument, but softened when she saw Heero standing in the doorway, "It's you, Heero. I'm sorry you saw that."

"It's not the first time," Heero said in a low and monotone voice. He didn't like to see her like this. She had lost the luster that she once had. Over the years, the stress and weight of being one of the most influential people in the world, no the universe, had begun to take its toll.

With a few deft strides, Heero moved in her direction. Before all of this, Jonah and the ESUN and everything in her life that weighed her down, Heero had promised he would be there, just as she had been there for him during the war. He sat down on the oversized bench in front of the vanity, allowing her to rest her head on his shoulder.

"What was it this time?" Heero asked after a few minutes of silence. He heard her sigh before she lifted her head and reached behind her, picking up a newspaper off the vanity, then plopping it down on the floor in front of them.

The newspaper's cover had a large picture of Jonah and some young brunette dressed sharply in a business suit. From the camera angle, there was no question that the two had just been kissing and were unaware they were being photographed. Above the photo, in bold lettering, was the headline 'Smooth Diplomacy: Business Mogul Husband of Vice Foreign Minister Seeking Relations Elsewhere?'.

"The man has no discretion," Relena spat. "I've told him repeatedly to think about the public image, but he's too thick to understand."

To most people, the statement would seem odd and shallow. That she would care more about their public image than the fact that her husband was obviously having an extramarital affair. However, Heero was one of only a small handful of people who knew what was really going on. Relena's marriage to Jonah had been one of political expedience rather than of love.

Jonah Brinnely happened to be one of the most powerful men in the Sanc Kingdom and throughout Europe. His family had controlled most of the oil and gas reserves throughout the continent for at least five generations.

However, oil and gas weren't the only way the Brinnelys made their fortune. The family-owned everything from shipping ports to spaceports throughout the Earth Sphere. This put them in a position to benefit from the illicit trade of drugs, arms, and even people. While they didn't manage these illegal operations personally, they would take a cut from the various criminal organizations that used their ports.

That's where Relena fit into the picture. While Jonah Brinnely was considered by most to be an imbecilic playboy heir to the throne, his father was known worldwide in corporate and government circles as a shrewd titan of industry.

During the first few years of the Earth Sphere Unified Nations, the late Joseph Brinnely was able to expand the reach of the Brinnely Group significantly, buying up influence around the world and throughout the colonies and consolidating power. However, in his quest to make the Brinnely Group the most influential company globally, he ran into a significant issue, Relena Peacecraft, and the Preventers. The power that Relena commanded throughout earth and space and her desire for peace, combined with the Preventer's mandate to control any group that could threaten that stability, put significant pressure on the Brinnely Group.

To eliminate the problem, the elder Joseph Brinnely made a deal with Relena and the Preventers to overlook the shadier side of their operations. In return, the Brinnely Group would supply information and resources to further the objectives of the Preventers and provide Relena with the support needed at the time for the Mars Project. If that didn't work, he had an ace up his sleeve. If she didn't agree to the terms, he could shut off the ports in the Sanc Kingdom and starve the people. In the end, Joseph Brinnely knew he couldn't lose. To make sure the deal was long-lasting, even after his death, a political marriage was conducted between Relena Peacecraft and the heir to the Brinnely Group, Jonah.

Heero shuddered at the thought of Relena telling him about the arrangement. He remembered that day clearly. More clearly, even than some of the worst days of the war.

"I have no choice, Heero," Relena spoke between tears. She was desperately holding onto Heero in a half hug, half strangle. Less than an hour before, they had left the conference room located on the top floor of the Preventers HQ. Joseph Brinnely had laid his cards on the table and put the Preventers command and Vice Foreign Minister in checkmate.

"We can leave," he was struggling to stay calm. In the span of a few hours, both of their worlds had been turned upside down. She was going to be married, and it wasn't to him. After five years of work, restructuring society, and putting out fires before they could become infernos, they were supposed to finally have their own peace. But now, the trajectory of their lives was to be altered for a worse path than either could imagine.

"You know I can't do that, Heero," she was beginning to calm down a bit. "At the end of the day, I have my country to think about. I'm still a Peacecraft."

"The monarchy ended long ago," Heero challenged her. "Don't hide behind your name. You don't have to anymore."

She disentangled herself from him, looking up. Her slender fingers moved over his cheek while his wiped the tears from her face. "Oh, Heero. You know as well as I do that this won't end with us leaving. I have to marry. Joseph Brinnely isn't going to let this matter rest. His son Jonah is next in line, and at least this arranged marriage will allow me to keep him in check when his father dies."

"What becomes of us then?" Heero asked. For the first time since the end of the war, he felt truly alone. For so long, she had filled a void where once combat and survival had. However, he was about to lose her, and there was no war to go back to. Instead, he would be left with the daily monotony of living without the threat of death to keep him sharp. "Where do I go from here?"

"You stay with me," she hurriedly said. "That is if you want to. You are free now, and I don't ever want to force you to stay somewhere you don't want to be."

He looked into her eyes, looking for any uncertainty in her words. She was on the verge of crying again, tears forming on the tips of her eyelids.

"Is that what you want?" he asked.

"Heero, I love you," she put her lips close to his heart. "Nothing in the world is going to change that. This arranged marriage is for the public. You, however, will always have my heart."

"Then I'll stay."

And stay he had. For three years now, he had been faithfully by her side. The two carried on their relationship privately, always mindful of the public's prying eye and the paparazzi. No one could ever find out the marriage was arranged outside of the small handful of people who already knew.

Despite their carrying on, one thing had changed. Something inside Heero broke that day. She had chosen what she perceived to be her duty over him. From that moment on, every time he heard the words 'I love you uttered from her lips, there was a part of of his mind that would question the authenticity.

What was worse, he understood. This must have been what she felt like every time he'd rushed off to another battle whose fate he could not alter. Twice, she had watched him leave during the war, begging him to stay. First during the OZ invasion of the Sanc Kingdom and then again on the Peace Millennium. However, Heero always felt it was his duty to fight until the war was over. He would have gladly died in battle, knowing that she would forever be wounded by his death. In his mind, he knew that no matter how much he loved her, it wasn't unlimited. Now he also knew that her love for him had limits. That her duty took precedence over their relationship. His mind was forever tainted by this realization.

"They're expecting you," he finally broke the silence. She lifted her head from his shoulder and looked at him. A look of sadness crossed her face before being replaced by her go-to look of confidence.

"I suppose you're right," she stood up and quickly turned around, surprising him. Her right hand cupped his chin, a slight pressure lifting his head upwards before his lips were met by hers. The kiss lasted only a moment, but the electric feeling that shot through Heero's body remained. "I love you, Heero."

With that, she walked towards the door. He got up and followed suit, straightening the dinner jacket he was wearing and preparing to be in the company of others.

******

The ballroom was alive with people dancing to a rather long rendition of the Vienna Blood Waltz, played by a famous dance orchestra. Heero had taken his traditional spot during these events at the far right side of the ballroom, next to the grand staircase leading to the upper rooms of the palace.

About fifty feet from where he stood, Heero could see Relena discussing something with the Earth Sphere finance minister and another man he knew to be the new CEO of O-Star Industries, Edwin Porter. They were likely discussing a new manufacturing plant Relina was helping to lobby for to be located in the Sanc Kingdom. Though she was the vice foreign minister, Relina spent a lot of time helping with domestic matters, committed to seeing the country rebuild and enter into a new age of prosperity. Whatever they were discussing, Porter seemed quite happy. Though it was possible he was simply happy to speak with Relena as he kept sending flirtatious looks in her direction, to which she expertly returned subtly, ever the politician.

To Relena's credit, she looked absolutely stunning. From the moment she had entered the room, all eyes had been on her. While Heero hadn't paid particular attention to her looks in the bedroom, he now had a chance to take in what she was wearing and just how radiant she looked. Her golden hair was done up in a tight and elegant low bun, creating a sharp contrast with her pale features. She wore a tan formal evening dress with blue accents and a rather sharp v-neck that plunged tastefully down to the waist, revealing enough skin to help her command the conversation with the men in the room yet not too much to put off the women. To Heero, she was the most beautiful woman in the room, and that was saying something with the many models and actresses hanging off the arms of some of the richest men in the world who had come to buy influence.

He looked around for perhaps the hundredth time since arriving at his post, performing a thorough sweep of the expansive ballroom to check for anything or anyone out of place. On the opposite side, he spotted Wufei doing the same. Duo was mixed among the crowd of people, talking and laughing. As the most vocal of the Preventer's top agents, he typically found himself in the middle of events like this. On the staircase above him, Heero knew that Trowa was likely looking out on the room with his typical stoic expression. Sally rounded out the team standing next to the President and talking, along with Quatre, who was attending as a civilian.

So far, everything was going as expected. However, Heero noticed a problem that was beginning to take shape, off to the left of the ballroom floor near the bar area. Jonah was carrying on a drunken conversation with the Sanc Kingdom defense minister and the woman in attendance with him. The drunken man would cast an angry glare in Heero's direction every five minutes or so. As the man became drunker, Heero knew that a confrontation was likely in the cards.

"Keep a lookout on Jonah," Heero spoke into his earpiece without moving any.

"Something wrong?" Wufei spoke sharply into his earpiece. He made eye contact with Heero from across the room before darting his eyes toward where Brinnely was standing.

"Nothing yet, but I'm expecting the man will cause a scene at the pace he's drinking," Heero spoke.

"What else is new," Trow spoke uncharacteristically into his earpiece. "Tell me an event in recent history he hasn't caused a problem."

"The man has no honor," Wufei spat in disgust. "I only wish this was the war so we could deal with him the old-fashioned way."

"Frag him," said Trowa. "A well-placed bullet wouldn't be the worst thing to happen to him."

Though Heero didn't respond, he couldn't help but agree. In fact, he'd had many similar thoughts since the man had come into the picture. Heero hated him, but the other pilots and Preventer's command seemed to despise him. Perhaps it's because they knew he was the cause of so much distress between Heero and Relena.

Once again, Jonah glared in Heero's direction. This time though, he broke off his conversation with his companions and began walking towards where Heero was standing. Having listened to the radio chatter, Duo broke away from where he was and followed closely behind, ready for anything.

"I heard what happened to Rajko," Jonah slurred after getting close enough to where Heero was standing. "Tell his bastard son hello if you ever get the chance. Or, are you too busy covering for that murdering brother-in-law of mine."

"This isn't the place for this," Heero said, remaining calm. "You need to get back to the party."

"Screw you, Yuy," he spat. "I know you're protecting Zechs. The man murders my best friend, and you think I'm going to let things stand. It's funny how Rajko ends up dead while speaking with two Preventers agents. Maybe it was you who murdered him."

"You're out of line there, buddy," Duo said, standing behind Jonah. "You're also dangerously close to something happening. Why don't you follow Heero's advice and get back to the party."

"What are you going to do," Jonah became defensive. "You think you're such a badass because you have that jacket on. Fuck you."

Heero could see the man's jaw was twitching, and his movements were nervous and seemingly erratic. It wasn't just drunkenness. The man was coked up and ready for a fight.

"You think something's going to happen to me," Jonah continued ranting. Thankfully, he was quiet enough to not draw the crowd's attention. "We've already taken out one of you Preventers, so maybe it's you who should watch your step."

Jonah reared back and attempted to take a swing at Heero. It was like watching a slow-motion video. Heero grabbed the man's hand and used his momentum to pull him down, connecting his knee with the man's chin. Jonah went limp in Heero's hands. Duo had moved to provide some cover during this quick movement and now helped Heero prop up the lifeless body. People in the crowd had begun to notice the commotion and were now staring in their direction.

"It's okay, everyone, just a bit too much celebration," Duo spoke to the crowd. "I think it's time for someone to rest."

A few people in the crowd chuckled while Heero overheard a few comments about not being able to handle liquor. He could see Relena with a look of concern staring in his direction.

"Let's get him out of the room, then figure out what to do with him," Duo said, leading the way forward to a door opposite the staircase from where he and Heero stood. By this time, Trowa had arrived and was helping them pick up the slack.

They carried the Jonah out into a servant's corridor before setting him on the polished wooden floor. "What do we do with him?" Duo asked.

"The only thing we can do is take him to his room," Heero spoke. They couldn't just leave him here as much as he wanted to.

"No," Trowa said. There was a mischievous look on his usually stoic face. "He assaulted a Preventers agent and a former Gundam pilot at that. We can't let him go unpunished."

"I think the knee to the jaw will probably suffice," Duo said.

"He needs to be locked up," said Trowa. "To learn a lesson. Let's take him to headquarters and leave him in a cell for the weekend. That should give him some time to think."

Duo laughed. "Perfect. That okay with you, Heero?"

"You two do what you think needs to be done," Heero responded.

"Good," said Trowa. "You stay with Relena, Heero. Duo, help me get him out into one of the cars. I'll phone ahead to the shift officer and let him know we're bringing someone in. The mans a friend of mine, so he'll let us keep everything off the books."

Duo did as instructed, and within minutes, he and Trowa were walking around the corner down the hall and out what Heero knew to be one of the servant's access doors. Heero walked back into the ballroom to where he'd been standing earlier.

"Everything okay, Yuy?" Wufei came through the headset.

"Yeah, they're taking him to a holding cell at HQ to sober up over the weekend," Heero heard a low chuckle from Wufei's end before the man continued speaking.

"What did you hear from the coroner yesterday?" Wufei asked.

"Nothing much that we didn't already know. The shooter was from the Sukhothai Kingdom. He was identified by his underworld tattoos," Heero replied. "Came in illegally disguised as a ship worker. That's about all we know."

"The Sukhothai Kingdom is in Southeast Asia," Wufei said. "You say he was organized crime?"

"Not sure," Heero answered. "The man had a strange tattoo on his arm that the coroner suspected was gang-related. Other than that, who's to say."

"What was the tattoo?"

"A red W," Heero stated.

"That's a Red Wa symbol," Wufei stated. "They're a major player in Southeast Asia. Everything from drugs to gambling goes through them. I think we should pay a visit to someone here who might know more about this."

"You have someone in mind," Heero asked.

"Wang Xin," Wufei responded. He's the head of the European branch of the Sun On Yee. I'll make a few phone calls."

"You think he'll speak with us?"

"He better, Wufei sounded confident. "He owes me quite a few favors."

The radio went silent. Heero wasn't about to press the man on what he meant by that. However, if this Wang Xin could point them in the right direction, he didn't really care.

His thoughts were interrupted by Relena, who gracefully approached from the ballroom floor. She moved skillfully through the group of people, deflecting people attempting to get her attention. She walked up to Heero and placed a hand on his arm, trying to be as casual as possible. The touch was enough to throw him off.

"Is everything okay?" she asked. "I saw that business with Jonah. Where is he?"

"Trowa and Duo are taking him to Preventers headquarters," Heero replied. "He can sober up over the weekend in a holding cell."

"Good," Relena said before letting out a slight giggle. "Does that mean we're alone for the weekend?"

"If that's what you want," Heero said.

"It is," the young woman replied. "I'm tired, Heero. I'll be staying here at the palace tonight and returning home tomorrow."

"Understood," he replied. She began to walk off in the direction of the stairs. When he didn't follow, she stopped at the foot of the stairs and turned to him, her arm draping over the handrail.

"Come with me," she smiled at him. "I need you right now."

Heero looked around at the party, which was beginning to die out. Guests were making their excuses, and the crowd was starting to dwindle. "Can you close things out, Wufei?" Heero asked.

"Go ahead," came the reply from over the earpiece. "The night's mostly finished. I'll contact you in the morning about that other business."

"Understood," Heero said, then followed behind Relena up the stairs. Making sure not to do anything which would raise suspicion among the remaining guests. It had been a while since the two had time together. But he didn't want to jeopardize the careful image they had cultivated over the years of her being married and he the bodyguard.

After a few minutes, they arrived at the bedroom where he'd picked her up only a few hours before. She opened the door and threw herself at him as soon as they were safely behind the closed door. With expert skill, she slowly walked backward while kissing him, guiding both of them to the large poster bed. "I love you, Heero.

Later on, after both had taken and given what they needed, Heero finally had the chance to respond, "I love you too, Relena."