Mission Accepted: Good Morning, 2
Relative disclaimers apply.

The sun insisted upon shining through Thomas' bedroom window.

He smiled, stretched, and winced as sharp pains touched his face, chest and legs.

What in the world?

His eyes opened, winced against the light, then narrowed to slits.

That damned so-called security force and those inefficient police...they let some of those revellers touch me. They are NOT going to get full payment!

He carefully sat up in bed.

But duty calls. I must bring my mistress the first meal of her day.

He shifted the covered-breakfast-laden tray he was carrying to one hand and knocked on the office door with the other.

"Miss Relena, break—"

The door was opened a little bit by the very last person that Thomas expected to see in his mistress' private offices, but he wasn't really surprised to see him there.

Still, seeing Heero in the doorway was an annoyance and, to Thomas, a slap to the face of all that was moral and decent.

"YOU!" he shouted.

Miss Relena rejected all of those suitors and proposals for this? THIS? The scruffy one? The one with no breeding or manners or class? Oh, whatever has happened to my Miss Relena? What has he done to her? Is it the teddy bear? Is she drugged? Oh my goodness. This cannot BE!

Heero didn't look scruffy this morning. Rather, he looked well-groomed, well-rested, and despite the scowl on his face as he regarded the butler, happy.

Oh dear, the young man was glowing with health.

Drat. The boy was handsome this morning.

Heero opened the door enough for Thomas to see that he was wearing an open and slightly oversized shirt over a plain white T-shirt and black denim jeans.

The boy must have legions of females of all ages chasing him. Why my Miss Relena?!

"Where's Miss Relena?" Thomas demanded. "What have you done with her?"

Heero grabbed the breakfast tray.

"Thanks, I'll take this."

"Answer my question, boy."

Heero glared at him and Thomas felt icy fingers of fear crawl up and down his spine.

This one hates authority. And I've just realized what one of the other things I most dislike about him is. That damned scowl. Is it always there? Besides being rude, he is...very rude. And there is still the matter of him being in Relena's presence ALL NIGHT. I'll soon get to the bottom of this!

"Miss Relena is otherwise engaged," Heero said with forced patience, as though Thomas were the annoyance.

Thomas' eyes narrowed.

"How dare you talk to me in such a manner! What have you done with Miss Relena! Where the hell did you come from, and how did you get past me to her chambers! What exactly are your intentions and just how long do you think you're going to stay here?!"

Heero shrugged.

"That's up to Miss Relena."

"You can't—"

"Who is it, Heero?" Relena asked, sounding very serious for someone who had spent the night with her beloved.

Heero stepped back and inside so that Thomas and Relena could see each other across the thick-carpeted, sparsely-furnished room.

Thomas' heart stung as he looked as his mistress, who had turned around from her seat in front of her laptop-holding computer desk to look at him.

Her hair was carelessly pinned up, she wore a robe over a long, oversized T-shirt, and bunny slippers covered her feet.

She was glowing with health and happiness as well.

Thomas' mouth worked until he could speak.

"Miss Relena...how could you?"

Heero smirked, then carefully carried the tray over to the placemat-coverd wood table near the desk and placed the tray upon it.

Thomas briefly glared at him. In the space of a few hours the young man had become too familiar with Miss Relena's belongings.

Was the estate next? And then what? Would he be in charge of HEION one day?

Thomas doubted that. But he couldn't shake the feeling that if Heero wasn't the master of this estate now, he soon would be.

No matter what anyone says or does. I've lost this battle. But I am not your butler, scruffy one. And I'm not going anywhere.

Relena quirked a very serious eyebrow.

"Mister Yuy is our guest for a few days. Please treat him accordingly."

Are you siding with him against me, my lady?

Thomas couldn't help himself. He didn't like feeling unwelcome in his own home.

"You certainly have, my lady!"

"Thomas!"

The word was a slap. Even Heero flinched.

Relena's eyes narrowed. Her chin rose a little.

Thomas swallowed, then jabbed at Heero with a thumb.

As though this were a cue, Heero walked over to Relena, bent down, kissed her shoulder, then sat on the floor to lean against her feet and lower legs.

Still jabbing, Thomas shook his head slowly.

"He has no money, no job, no means by which to support you. And I don't care what he's done for this planet, he has no class or breeding or even manners either! This is not proper, Miss Relena!"

The chin rose higher.

"I don't need financial support. And I certainly know how I want to live my life."

"With him? My God, Miss Relena! What has happened to you! Think of your family's traditions, at least! What will people think of your decisions now? And what about your brother? Would he allow this?"

She exhaled.

"I'll need at least two hours to get this morning's work done. Then I'll prepare to face the day. I have a meeting with the April May Corporation at eight, right? Another with the representative from Mars at ten, right? One with that annoying female C.E.O of Sunmark Bank at eleven-thirty, and one with Mister Winner at twelve-fifteen, and then—"

"Yes, Miss Relena," Thomas said, interrupting her before she listed and bulleted her day's extensive schedule. "I will wait for your summons."

He's drugged her, I know he has! If I stay here a little bit longer, I might get to see...

"Do that," Relena said, then resumed working.

"Lunch with Quatre?" Heero asked casually, getting up to taste-test the food.

She nodded.

"I promised. Does that bother you?"

Thomas glared at Heero as he uncovered the food.

How dare he insult us this way!

Heero shook his head.

"Tell him I said hello. And to do a better job of keeping in touch, now that we can."

He grabbed a fork and took in a mouthful of fruit-flavored oatmeal, took a bite of a slice of buttered toast, then took a sip of tea.

Thomas' glare intensified.

He was caught off-guard a few seconds later when Heero slowly glared up at him, still chewing, and the butler began to hope that the food was indeed untainted.

Heero nodded, swallowed, re-covered the food then returned his attention to Relena.

Or so it seemed.

"Don't you have better things to do?" he asked Thomas without looking at him.

"Be nice," Relena gently scolded him.

For two seconds Heero's face was little-boy innocent, then the scowl returned.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

Thomas blinked rapidly.

Why am I so relieved? That apology was half-meant.

"Accepted," he mumbled, and bowed.

What's that they say? Wrapped and whipped? If I were a cruel man I'd exploit that one weakness of his. But that would keep him here, and eventually he'd turn his resentment towards me. And I want to live.

"Heero, look at this."

Relena pointed to the laptop's screen.

"What is it?"

Heero looked from her to the screen and back again as he walked over.

Thomas looked from one young person to the other.

Miss Relena still wants me around...doesn't she?

Heero placed his hands on Relena's shoulders...possessively, Thomas thought.

"That's stuff about me that's not supposed to exist."

"Yes."

Thomas cleared his throat.

"Miss Relena?"

He might as well have been talking to a wall. She and Heero were either ignoring him or had forgotten that he was there.

Thomas couldn't restrain a smile.

Love conquers all barriers. Do what you will, Miss Relena. But to me he'll always be scruffy.

He made sure that the door closed softly behind himself as he left.

Relena pressed a key with a forefinger and a flourish.

"Now it's irretrievable, even by me."

He pressed his lips into her hair, then walked around her, sat down in front of her and rested his back against her knees, drawing his own knees towards his chest and holding them.

"You've been studying," he said with a chuckle.

She nodded.

"How would you like to be a teacher? Politics, history - you seem to know those two subjects quite well."

He thought about it.

"Hmmmm."

She grinned deviously.

"Think of all those young minds you could corrupt."

He frowned as he envisioned young teenagers wreaking havoc on enemy targets.

"Hmmmm."

She reached down and lightly stratched his scalp for a few relaxing seconds.

"I trust you. You'll teach them well."

He got a bit more comfortable.

"I'll be doing this at the new Saint Gabriel's, right? The International Academy that you and Quatre built."

"Yep."

He smiled.

"What's my new identity, Mistress Relena?"

Her fingers flew over the keyboard.

"Adjunct....Professor...Mayoke —"

"A charm?"

"My charm. My knight. My—"

He groaned.

"Re-lee-na..."

"Darlian," she said.

"Huh? Wait—"

"If anyone asks, you 'borrowed' my father's - stepfather's - last name because you admired him so much. How could I refuse such an honor?"

He rolled his eyes.

"Relena..."

She pouted.

"Why not? You are a man of mystery."

He shook his head slowly.

"You can be pretty mysterious yourself."

She frowned.

"I would have thought that...oh, never mind. Look. You have a choice of apartments here."

He frowned.

"You don't want the address of the one I choose."

She shook her head.

"What you do when you're not here is your business."

He nodded and got to his feet.

"I understand..."

She got up, walked a few feet away and showed him her back.

"Take your time."

He frowned in concentration, bent over in front of the laptop and his fingers flew over the keyboard for about ten seconds.

"Okay...."

He pressed a key and stood straight.

"I'm done."

She frowned and turned around.

"Already?"

He nodded.

She shrugged.

"Okay..."

He ran a hand over her arm as she passed him.

As she sat behind the laptop again she supposed that she would never get used to his little shows of affection.

And that suits me just fine.

"Okay...."

She typed slowly for about fifteen seconds.

"You're official now. And anyone looking for your former identity will get a screenful of blanks."

He walked over to her, bent over, looped his arms around her shoulders and grabbed his elbows.

"Thank you."

He touched his cheek to hers.

"You're welcome," she said, lifting a hand to touch his face.

He leaned into the touch.

"You never lost faith in me. You always believed in me, no matter how I treated you."

"I always knew that your heart was kind. That being so, I'm glad that I could do this for you."

He kissed her fingers.

"I'm home."

Quatre watched Relena as she weaved her way through other restaurant patrons, mediapeople, gawkers and several well-wishers.

He's home.

As she approached their secluded and reserved table, he looked her over for a few seconds, lingering on her silk-covered abdomen for a second before returning his fond-eyed gaze to her glowing face.

"Quatre!"

She gave him a big hug and a slightly-more-than-light kiss on the cheek before sitting across from him.

"Quatre, it's been far too long."

He rested his chin on a palm and that elbow on the table.

"You look great, Miss Relena."

"Thanks. So do you. The diplomatic world suits you."

He chuckled, looked up and summoned a waiter over.

"Bring us some lemonade, please."

"Yes, Mister Winner, right away."

The waiter bowed and left.

Relena grinned at Quatre.

"Life is wonderful. Simply wonderful."

"I can see that," he teased, his eyes twinkling. "Things are working out just right, huh?"

She blushed, then nodded and plunked her elbows on the table, then rested her chin on her hands.

"He's fitting in better than both of us thought he would."

The lemonade came, in sixteen-ounce chilled glasses and with "swirly straws".

Relena took a long sip and grinned.

"Delicious..."

Quatre leaned forward.

What's the next step for you two?

"Miss Relena..."

The grin deepened as she looked at him.

"I'm smiling, aren't I?"

He patted her hand, then took both of her hands in his.

"Let's hope he keeps it that way."

Because there are things that both of you need to think about.

She was still grinning.

"I'm not worried. Even if we're not forever...no. I'm not worried. I've given him a whole new life, a new identity...that's enough. Yes, that's enough."

He couldn't dampen her enthusiasm. He lifted his hands to his lips, kissed them, then let her hands go and drew back.

"All right then. What would you like to eat?"

She exhaled.

"Whew! Everything. For some reason, I'm famished."

I'll bet, he thought, then summoned a waiter over.

Congratulations, Heero and Miss Relena. You two have finally found each other. You've conquered all of the barriers. May Fate keep smiling on you throughout all of your tomorrows.

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