A/N: Final chapter! sob And yes, it's horrendously late. But for very, VERY good reasons. Not only was my computer taken away for four days, but yet again, my family has yet another medical crisis…and I had a mini meltdown. Heh. Sorry. So, to make up for it, I added this first scene in. It has so much fluff it'd give a Chihuahua a hairball.

Also, there's a wee bit o' time skipping. Forward, and back. Some scenes are happening at the same time as others, so be a bit careful, but I still tried to make it as obvious as possible. Hence the italicized flashback, and the ---(25 minutes or so earlier)--- thingy.

(Oh, credit for the "everything's coming up Duo" line goes to the Simpsons' Milhouse, also known as Thrillho. Heh. Alright, back to your normal programming.)

(And please, read the last A/N at the bottom. Last...A/N...breaks into tears)

x---x

Sea Of Silence

Chapter 16

Finale (Part 2)

x---x

Light wafted through the black shutters, showering the cabin with a musky illumination. Random crates were piled neatly into a wall around the locked door, with a white sheet thrown over them for good aesthetic measure. The floor was littered with random clothes and items, and the entire sea-faring room smelled of sunshine, sex and strawberries.

On the bed in a tousle of white linen and unbound chestnut hair, Heero Yuy was smiling. His eyes were open drowsily, cheek resting against the top of his love's head, and his arms were wrapped loosely yet protectively around the sleeping figure of Duo Maxwell, who was seemingly trying to absorb himself into the tan skin he slept on. Arms thrown haphazardly around his bodyguard's chest, he slept with a grin on his face and a new shiny silver ring on his finger that matched one Heero wore as well.

They were simple rings, really nothing more than metal shavings melted into bands, but it was that simplicity which made them remarkable. There were no stones, no markings, and no decorations. Anyone who saw one without the twin wouldn't give it a second thought. But together, the rings outshone a full moon.

Duo hummed a bit as he woke up, violet eyes sliding open at a dead snail's pace. "Hmmm," he hummed again, and nearly purred when Heero began to absentmindedly stroke along his spine. "Guess we oughta wake up." Heero nodded, his fingers still sliding up and down Duo's back, and violet eyes closed again, reveling in the morning. "So…today's the big fight."

"Everyone's waiting," Heero acknowledged, pressing his lips to the top of the pirate's head. Duo chuckled, maneuvering himself so that he was entirely on top of the other boy now. Violet eyes glinted hypnotically.

"Think they can wait a couple more hours?" Heero's smile widened.

"Of course they can. Besides, you're the prince." Duo smirked.

"Damn right I am."

Now it was Heero who smirked, and they fell back into their usual mode of conversation- banter. "That remains to be seen." Duo nodded sagely.

"Yeah, I'll admit you kind of owned last night," he acknowledged, and Heero's smirk deepened, but Duo's violet eyes remained a constant purple blaze. Without a second of hesitation, his lips came down onto the more than willing Heero's, leaving a tantalizing, hauntingly passionate but far too brief kiss. "Today, however…" He grinned. "I'm feeling mighty spry."

"Hn. We have to see about that." Heero's hands slowly drifted further down, while Duo's were wrapping themselves around the blue-eyed boy's neck. The pirate's unbound hair showered around them like a curtain of coffee.

"War, then?" Heero nodded seriously, but his eyes glinted with amusement.

"War."

x---x

Wufei Chang, standing coolly at the rear of the loosely Algon forces, frowned. An eighth of the army was decked in the white and blue of Algon, while the rest was in the dark gray and black of Fou Lu. Somewhere in the mass of people were about a hundred and fifty men who knew him for more than his name. And he had intentionally scattered them around, too. It was better to not bias himself towards one group. Instead, he had effectively biased himself towards all groups.

"Where are they," Treize muttered under his breath, casting irritated eyes around the field and surrounding forest in search of his quarry. Wufei glanced at the older man.

"Who? If it's Maxwell and Yuy, they won't be showing up for another fifteen minutes, at least," Wufei said dryly. He knew that Duo loved a good morning after and wouldn't do a thing to spoil one, including being on time to go destroy Sanc, and more importantly Relena. Treize nodded.

"So. How do we know when to attack," he asked, glancing down at the maps and diagrams sprawled across a nearby collapsible table. Wufei barely kept his temper in check.

"This is war, Steward. I was under the impression you'd seen your share already," Wufei said icily. Treize looked up at him.

"I have, but I never participated in a battle like this," he said, gesturing to the field of two forces. Sanc's army had gathered over the day, unwisely choosing to defend the castle instead of attacking the once-disordered enemy. "Relena may be young, but she isn't stupid. There's obviously another reason why she hasn't tried to kill us just yet. I just can't find the tactic. And all my war experiences were sudden battles where you fought as you went, with no real tactic save survival." Wufei nodded. They would make a good team for commanding Algon's extremely varied forces.

"Do we wait for them," Treize asked, and Wufei shook his head.

"No. They'll arrive later than we can afford," he responded. "Maxwell loves a chance to go down in glory." Treize frowned, and Wufei smirked. "Duo's going to be heading straight for Relena. When he gets involved, he's all the way."

Treize nodded, and motioned a lieutenant forward. "Give the command," he said, and with a hurried, excited bow, the lieutenant trotted off to yell at the buglers to sound the advance. A great copper call went up from the horns, and with a roar the army began to pick up speed.

Their feet pounded against the grassy field as they sped from a walk, to a jog, and then an all-out run towards the Sanc forces. Dust and dirt was thrown behind them, and the run seemed to stretch out to eternity. Sanc swiftly followed their lead, jogging forward to meet the other army in a crash that sent men sprawling onto the trodden earth.

Wufei had picked up his katana and was striding down the hill when Treize suddenly realized he was gone. "Chang," the older man yelled. "Where are you going?" Wufei smirked, still strolling down the slope.

"To lead them my way. The command is yours," he called over his shoulder, ignoring the Steward's other words.

The army parted like a sea of wheat where he walked, the men pausing for a moment to stare at the young man in white whose very presence roared dangerous. The single black cord around his left shoulder let them know he was a general, and their general. The hurricane of Wufei sliced through a Sanc major like butter, blood spattering his white outfit like rain in the wind.

Wufei's heart was barely beating faster than before at the command post. Slice, jab, jump, cut, roll, throw, run. He did the exercises every day, and even with his hair dripping blood, there was a sense of peace in the movements. This was where he belonged, here in the fray, not up on the hill with all the tacticians.

Breaking from his deadly trance for a moment, he couldn't help but spit curses out at the field. Even in his own violent pile of dead enemy bodies, he could tell Algon was losing, and losing badly.

All thoughts were interrupted when a man with nearly twenty cords on his shoulder walked towards him, glaring ice at Wufei, who smirked back. Returning to his 'ready' position, his smirk turned into a dark grin. "Come," he snarled, and the man screamed, running forward. Wufei met him with a clang of bloody steel, still grinning.

The man- probably a general from the cords- suddenly whipped out a second sword, and Wufei took no time in swiftly swiping his sword up and away, using the curve to all of its advantage. Slicing violently, the general approached, and with one perfect lunge, his sword aimed straight at the enemy general's heart.

Instead of delivering a fatal blow, the blade shattered as it cut through the white ensemble.

Wufei grinned. He reached behind him with his left hand, and with one quick flick of his wrist, it was done. The general gaped at the blood-covered teenager as he fell back into the circle of dead, joining their ranks with one of Wufei's throwing stars still stuck in his throat. There was a momentary lapse in the battle around him, so Wufei cleaned his sword on the man's ornate coat, admitting to himself that the man had been good, only to curse again.

The copper horns blared the 'fall back' command, and the Algon forces obeyed.

His black eyes snapped back to the hill, where Treize was visibly grinning, a ridiculously huge man in a dun robe at his side. He knows something, Wufei thought, and his eyes snapped back to the walls of the Peacecraft Castle, where barely-visible clowns and circus performers were scaling the walls, other robed figures helping the process along.

His curses immediately fizzled away, replaced with a satisfied silent smirk. It was about time Quatre's forces arrived.

Deciding to obey just for the chance to see the events unfold, Wufei hurried back up the hill. Treize didn't say a word about his now red ensemble, merely nodding. Wufei nodded back. "When did Quatre get here," he asked, and a strangely disturbing grin settled on Treize's lips.

"You'll know when Quatre gets on the field. This is just his men," Treize said coolly, and one of Wufei's eyebrows rose, both appraising the tall man and the swarm of cloaked figures emerging from the Algon side of the forest.

"Then where is he?"

Treize just smiled.

x---x

Relena Peacecraft cursed for the third time in her life as the desert-colored figures ghosted out of the trees. Burning blue eyes turned to the advisors on her left side. "Who are they?!"

Lady Une was the one to respond. "I don't know," she said, meeting Relena's own eyes with cold brown indifference. "We have enough forces to deal with them, my lady. We will still win."

"Don't be so sure," Dorothy said, rising from the armchair she'd taken up residency in for the battle. She'd brought it up to the parapet herself, and refused to let anyone else sit in it, claiming they should have brought their own if they wanted it.

Relena frowned. And she was still wearing that horrifically indecent outfit! Dorothy Catalonia was certainly not shy about her body, that was certain…

"Now it's more of a fight than a massacre," Milliardo shrugged, leaning in one of the archer's windows. "You work harder is all. You can still win, it just takes more effort."

"Which is polite brother talk for 'you're probably going to die if you don't get your ass in gear'," Dorothy put in cheerily, and Relena glared back at her bodyguard. Dorothy smiled back cheerily. "I just love war, don't you? Absolute peace through absolute destruction. Brilliant concept. Kill everything that doesn't agree with you, and-"

"Dorothy, your derision is NOT helping right now," Relena snapped, and Dorothy laughed softly.

"On the contrary, it's helping immensely. Where's your mind right now? On your battle for peace, or your anger at me?" Relena opened her mouth to snap the annoyance back into her place, but quickly shut it. Instead, she settled for a dark glare. Even though Dorothy was right, she didn't have to like it.

"Get out of my sight," she growled, and Dorothy raised an eyebrow up.

"Dismissing your noble servant, are we?" She chuckled, flicking some hair behind her shoulder. "I see. You think removing the doubts from your point of view will make them go away. How quaint."

"Dorothy…" Relena growled warningly, and her hand went to the thin sword hanging at her side. With a sigh, Dorothy rose elegantly, bothering to curtsy deep and mockingly before walking down the stairs.

Relena sighed, and immediately slumped down into the armchair. Milliardo was quickly at her side. "Relena? You don't have to do this. We can stop it." She glared at him, too.

"You're all free to leave at any time," she snapped, barely noticing the roar of meeting armies on the field. "Go! Leave! I can do it myself." She slid gloomily down into the chair. "I always end up doing it by myself anyway." Milliardo sighed, and Lady Une slipped down the stairs, unnoticed as she pulled off hr glasses and began to untie her hair.

"Relena, I'm here to help you. But, remember the goals first. What are you trying to accomplish," he coaxed. Relena's light blue eyes flicked up to the cheery sky, heedless to the cries on the battlefield (which Lucrezia Noin was watching raptly).

"Peace," she whispered, barely noticing the breeze curling around her. Milliardo smiled softly.

"And do you think they'll be peaceful after we beat them into the ground?" Relena snorted.

"That's why they all die," she said without a hint of remorse. "War's a forgivable, honorable death. They chose to be soldiers, and they'll die for the greater good." She glanced at the field, where Sanc was putting up a brave fight, and nearly winning. Algon's hodgepodge didn't know how to fight together at all. "Everyone dies at some time, anyway." Milliardo tensed.

"And what about your own death?" Relena shrugged, staring him coolly in the face.

Zechs suddenly realized this wasn't the young, disillusioned princess he'd heard about. This was a queen, and one whose will could break the oceans if she needed to for her goal. Her light blue eyes were stony in determination.

"If my death would bring about peace, I would gladly give my life."

And then, hell arrived.

x---x

Quatre nodded in approval at the mayhem, Wufei grinning darkly on his right.

"Master Sandrock, I suggest you return to the ships," Rashid said hurriedly, and Quatre shook his head, letting a smile form on his lips. A hint of comforting warmth brushed against him familiarly, even at this distance. Trowa was close.

"I leave command in your hand, Rashid," Quatre intoned, and glanced over at Wufei, who was nodding. "You're coming with me? I thought you were the general." The black-haired boy shook his head.

"Officially, I'm the general, but Khushrenada has everything under control," Wufei stated. "And I'd prefer to be somewhere I'm needed. I don't like being bored." Quatre couldn't help but grin, the royal orange Sandrock robes all but forgotten.

"I guess that's one of the reasons you married Meiran then," he piped up, and Wufei glared at him. Quatre, however, didn't notice. "She's rather fiery, isn't she?" Wufei's smirk turned into a quiet, fond smile, his eyes turning to the ground beneath them.

"More like a pigheaded brat," he muttered, smile growing no matter how hard he tried to scowl. Quatre smiled.

"Excuse me for a moment," he said cordially, and in a moment a part of the Peacecraft Castle's wall was ripped apart and Quatre was grinning again, a bit sweaty from the exertion but still almost creepily cheerful. "So, off to see Trowa then?" Wufei shrugged, and the two slunk back into the trees, leaving a very displeased Rashid behind them.

x---x

A right index finger hooked, and jabbed while pointing to the nervous-looking guard in the hall. A head of fluffy brown-red hair nodded, and a scantily clad, sultry woman stepped out of the shadows, smiling softly at the guard. He jumped into the air when he finally noticed her.

"What are you doing, eh," he asked, looking around nervously. Catherine Bloom laughed softly. "Civilians were evacuated two days ago." She began to twiddle with the huge star earring.

"Who ever said I was a civilian," she teased.

Trowa, in the shadows, rolled his eyes. She loved being a shameless flirt.

The guard looked her over, still wary. "I say you're a civilian," he finally stated, and immediately his posture melted into that of a military man. "By orders of Lady Peace-" He was cut off as a tiny dagger punctured his throat. Eyes blinking indignantly, he fell to the floor.

Catherine sighed. "And I was so close, too," she grumbled, pulling her knife out. Trowa stepped out while she wiped her knife off on his jacket. Her annoyed dark blue eyes turned towards him. "You have any idea how long it takes to really lean these things?" She waved the knife around in front of the lion tamer/pirate's face. Trowa nodded as seriously as he could.

"And it was either that, or I killed him," he reminded her. "You were the one who demanded it was your turn." Catherine blinked at him.

"But it WAS my turn!" Trowa just shook his head, striding further into the Castle. His custom crossbow was slung across his shoulders casually, and a far too familiar comfort came from its presence. That and his knife were all he had with him, and it was all he'd ever needed.

"It was actually my turn. You took two on the walls, and-"

A body slammed into him-hard-and Trowa ended up sprawled on the ground, a gray figure on top of him. Dark gray eyes blinked down at him, and suddenly the scarred girl grinned. "TROWA!" Hilde Schbeiker's arms were flung around him, and Trowa fell back down yet again. "Oh, Trowa, I'm so glad to see you again! I barely got any time with you at the party, and now you're here, and I'm soo happy! OH! But I have to go kill Relena and get Dorothy." Hilde stood up quickly, still grinning.

"Before you go," Trowa cut in before his sister-well, other sister-could bound away, and pulled Catherine forward. "Hilde's knife things?" Catherine blinked blankly at him.

"Knife things?" Trowa was about to glare at her in irritation, but Catherine pulled through, holding out Hilde's bizarre knives. The girl beamed at the two of them.

"Oh, thanks! I've been having to make do with all of Two's equipment," she said, and grimaced. "I swear, I'll never look at a fish hook the same was again. So! I'm off then! BYEEEE!" Hilde waved, and scampered off, attaching the three-bladed knife things to her hands.

Catherine stared at the hall Hilde had just been in, and then her gaze shifted to Trowa. Trowa stared back, and shrugged.

They continued on their way, only to run into two other familiar figures very quickly.

"That's not the right way," a familiar voice called out, and a very familiar voice growled.

"Well you're not much of a help either! Probably couldn't find your way out of a canoe…" Trowa and Catherine rounded the corner to see Duo Maxwell cursing at a lock, pick in hand. Heero leaned against the wall next to him, surveying for danger. Heero just nodded at the two, having heard them quite some time ago. The door unlocked with an audible click, and Duo yelled in triumph, opening the door. Violet eyes blinked at Trowa and his sister, then grinned. "Hey guys! How's the battle going?" Trowa shrugged.

"As expected. Well, and Relena has no idea what's going on yet," he replied. Duo nodded, and gestured for Heero to walk through the door.

"Well, I'd love to stay and chat, but I think I've found the separate way up to Relena's crappy Parapet of Doom or whatever she calls it," Duo shrugged, choosing to ignore the fact that Heero remained in place and not through the door like a good bodyguard should have been.

"Hilde's free, healthy, and Hilde again," Trowa added as an afterthought, and Duo grinned, eyes shifting to Heero.

"See?! I told ya! Everything's coming up Duo!" Heero smirked, and Duo fake-frowned at him. "Shut up."

"Yes, majesty." Duo punched him lightly on the shoulder.

"Idiot." Something glinted in the torchlight, but Trowa was forced to ignore it when, yet again, something slammed into him. But this something had blonde hair and he was head over heels in love with, so it was okay.

"TROWA! Oh, I've missed you so much," Quatre exclaimed, and Trowa took no time in planting a heavy, deeply passionate kiss on the other boy's lips. When Quatre was busy giggling afterwards, Trowa hugged him tightly, taking a second to glare at Catherine, who was laughing hysterically in the corner.

"Don't leave again," Trowa whispered, and Quatre nodded into the crook of his neck.

"Okay."

After a few minutes of just sitting there and holding onto each other (with Catherine snickering in the corner), Trowa let him go and stood up, smiling. Quatre was positively glowing at being with Trowa again.

"Well, I'd say with Duo, Heero, and Wufei on the job we're not really needed to go kill Relena too," Quatre shrugged, and Trowa grudgingly nodded. "Would you like to meet Rashid? He's dying to meet you."

x---x

Dorothy Catalonia sheathed her rapier in the same smooth movement she had used since getting the sword. Long platinum blonde hair back in a long, tall ponytail, she had added a silver necklace to her ensemble from the night before. It was simple, but absurdly dangerous to be wearing. But she had never expected anything different when stealing the Crown of Sanc. Contrary to popular belief, crowns weren't always big heavy hats put on a monarch's head. Sometimes, they were a simple pearl pendant hanging from a silver chain.

She stared wistfully out the window, watching the life-or-death struggle playing out on the now-brown field. All those people, dying for countries that barely admitted they were alive. Was this all war was? A beautiful backwater dance nobody dared to question or point out?

There was a knock on the door, and her rapier swung out again, eyes fixed on the door. When it didn't open, she growled and walked over to it, wrenching the door open so hard it bent. All that greeted her was an empty hall. Muttering curses, she turned around, and jumped nearly two feet in the air.

Atropos lounged in an armchair, looking out the window with a bittersweet smile. "Hiya, Dorothy," she whispered, looking almost afraid to approach her best friend. Dorothy stepped forward, and the assassin flinched, half out of the chair. The scarred girl chuckled nervously. "So, uh, how's life on the inside?" Dorothy sheathed her rapier, sitting down warily in the other armchair.

"I could ask you the same," Dorothy said calmly, fingering the Crown of Sanc absentmindedly. Hilde chuckled uneasily.

"I remember everything now," she said hesitantly, and the blonde frowned.

"I thought you already did," Dorothy said, and Hilde shook her head.

"Nah, only flashes. I was still blocking out some of the more…vivid details," she said, a false smile weakening on her lips. A brief shudder passed through her body.

Solemn silence enveloped the room as they ignored the screams from outside.

"Do you want to talk about it," Dorothy asked calmly, and after a moment of hesitation Hilde shrugged.

"Might as well," she sighed, but before the gray-clad woman could say another word, they both sprung to their feet.(1)

Screams erupted from above, and a blur fell in front of the window, streaking towards the ground.

x---x

(15 minutes or so earlier…)

Today was NOT Trowa's day.

Admittedly, things had been going rather well. Quatre at his side (since Catherine had to check up on the troupe's well-being), the two had been slashing their way around towards the back door, where Trowa's lions waited patiently for their master to open the door and allow them to play.

And he'd arrived at the door fine as well. He'd opened the door, introduced each and every lion to Quatre, and the two had traipsed into the castle, killing anything belonging to Sanc with their hands clasped together, lions strolling smoothly along with them.

And then, things had just gotten bad.

One minute they had been easily slicing up some poorly-trained guards, and the next the army had begun its reintroduction to their supposed stronghold as the Algon forces now combined with Quatre's tribes slammed against the Sanc forces, effectively shattering the enemy's hope of victory. Forced into the castle only to meet a blonde boy in orange robes holding hands with a tall brunette pirate and nearly twenty lions surrounding the two, they'd begun to fight.

And they were still fighting, damn it.

Quatre was hurling whatever was in a fifty-foot radius at the men, sweating from the difficulty. Swords unsheathed themselves and stabbed their owners, men were slammed into the walls by empty air, and lions leapt insane distances. Trowa himself was firing deadly arrows with astounding accuracy at anything in Sanc colors, which more often than not was yet another guard rounding the corner and screaming for backup. His lions were more red than gold now, and seemed to be enjoying themselves as they batted around the humans.

"We've got to get out of here," Trowa yelled out, firing again, and Quatre nodded, sweat-slicked blonde hair sticking to his forehead. Years of inactive telekinesis had crippled his ability, and after only having a week to practice, he was far behind his old level of power. Green eyes flicked to the swamped central hallway, where beyond lay the field of clashing countries. "Can you push all that back enough for us to get through?"

Quatre shook his head, gesturing with his hands, and twelve knives turned on their masters. "Not through there," he said, close to breathless. Twelve dead men fell to the floor, only to be quickly pushed out of the way by more soldiers and guards. The ball of warm love and tense concern that was Trowa wavered in his mind. "Side door."

Trowa's eyes glanced at the near-forgotten hallway to their left, where a side door stood behind a far smaller number of Sanc fighters. "On one." Quatre nodded, and Trowa gestured the Lions back to him. They grudgingly slunk forward, still pleased with themselves, and Trowa noticed at least five of them were missing. But, they didn't have the time.

Quatre's aqua eyes burned with power. "ONE!" Men screamed as they were launched violently into the wall, and the young men bolted for the door that shattered from a near-uncontrolled burst of the exhausted blonde. On the other side of the door, men were rocketed away nearly fifty feet into the air, and as the lions ran in front of them, Quatre fell to the ground, grimacing in pain.

Trowa nearly screamed at his fall, but they didn't have time. The soldiers were picking themselves back up, snarling at the two, and without Quatre, they'd have to fight their way out. Praying to whatever god was up there, the tall boy grabbed his lover and slung him inelegantly over a shoulder, bolting for the nearby woods.

Quatre woke as soon as they reached the forest's edge, breathing in sharply. "TROWA!" He set him down, deeply concerned, only to see Quatre pointing to a faraway tower, where they could barely make out a figure plummeting toward the earth.

x---x

(25 minutes (or so) earlier…)

Shadows echoed across the empty parapet where Relena sat. The armchair seemed cold to her, now. Very, very cold.

Below, Sanc was whimpering in defeat. She could feel their loss through the grinding in her teeth, the tight bun holding her hair back.

They had all left her in their own way.

Dorothy, she had commanded to go. That reverberated in her thoughts. She had commanded the one person who might have truly cared out of her sight for speaking the truth. Perhaps, she thought, things would have been different with Dorothy here. She knows war better than I do. She likes it more than I do, too. Relena looked down at the sword resting on her lap. It had been a mistake to do that.

Lady Une had simply snuck out. Discarding her belief that she knew what was best for her love and the only thing that mattered in her lost existence, she had unbound her hair and strode down the stairs unnoticed as soon as Relena had stated she could do it herself. Perhaps, Relena thought, that was a bad thing for me to have done too. I need people. I always have, and always will. Une had been her first supporter, and the first to leave.

She frowned. Milliardo…her brother…

Relena swallowed, her chin tilting up a bit. Milliardo Peacecraft was dead. All that remained was a look-alike named Zechs Marquise. And said look-alike was gone, too, after pleading with his sister to 'stop all this foolishness and leave with him'. She had refused, and when he had walked out the door, Relena had sat in the chair.

Lucrezia Noin had left with one simple, apathetic glance, and two sentences. "Atropos will come for you, Miss Relena, even with Dorothy alive." She had bowed in a strict, elegant manner that only a military woman could have perfected. "Good day, Miss Relena." And the blue-haired woman had walked down into the arms of her waiting, crushed lover.

Leaving her with the growing shadows, and the wailing cries from the field, and the cold, hard chair that seemed so much more comfortable when Dorothy had sat in it.

Leaving Relena Peacecraft alone with the silent breeze and her screaming conscience.

She smiled at the sound of footsteps on the stair. Maybe she wasn't alone, after all. Maybe she was just in the calm before the storm. Or, maybe she was simply waiting her escort to the executioner.

Light blue eyes looked down at her clasped hands, and she smiled softly. It didn't matter. Either way, she wouldn't be alone any more.

"You know, the funny thing about peace is that you gotta kill people to get it," a familiar voice echoed from the nearest shadows, and the figure of Heero Yuy stepped out from the stairs. Duo Maxwell himself seemed to materialize behind her, grinning in a way that made him positively terrifying. Violet eyes burned in the dark. "Told you there was no way out of this fight." Cool blue eyes met his own.

"I'm not trying to get out of it," Relena said calmly, and rose from her chair, thin sword in hand and held expertly. "I just have to wonder why I failed so miserably, and you get to have everything I've ever dreamed of." Duo rolled his eyes.

"Just go on and attack me, already," he snapped. "You know how much I hate you? I've been waiting patiently for more than a week to chop off your head, so get on with it!" Heero chuckled, and Relena's eyes quickly darted over to him. What she saw was a…happy man. She frowned. Heero Yuy looked happy, and it was because of her sworn enemy.

Doubt plagued her once more. Dear heaven, what am I doing, she thought, but her remorse wasn't fast enough. Duo had pulled out his collapsible scythe, and it sprang to life in one quick jerk and twist, glinting viciously in the afternoon sun. Is this how I die, she wondered almost as an afterthought, and a slow, sad smile appeared on her lips as she drew her sword into a ready stance.

"I do hope my soul tastes good enough for you, then," Relena said calmly. Duo chuckled, and swung his scythe into a ready position too.

"Nothing you are could be good enough for him," Heero said quietly, and pain welled up in her heart. Her thoughts began to circle back around. Dorothy. Une. Milliardo. Lucrezia.

I'm alone I'm alone I'm alone I'm alone-

Duo struck, and Relena barely had the time to draw her own sword up in time to meet the bizarre curved blade. Humming, he twisted, drawing the scythe low beneath her feet, and she jumped, feeling very proud of herself-

-and that lasted about two seconds before she felt the blade come back around and bite her in the calf. She screamed, writhing in agony, and fell to the stone floor. Shuddering and barely restraining another whimper, she could practically hear the smirks above her head.

You brought this on yourself, you manipulative bitch. You beat them, tortured them, used them, and played them, all for your stupid peace. So is this your peace? The final peace, more like it!

She barely cut off the voice, and attempted to stumble to her feet. Blood was soaking through her mostly-white skirt, which was now ripped apart.

"See? If I don't get around to eating your soul, I'll still make you bleed to death, at least," Duo said cheerfully, and tears welled up in her eyes.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, and using her sword as a support pried herself off the floor, wincing. Duo and Heero blinked at her in confusion, and Relena couldn't help it. She began to cry. "I just want peace…"

Heero snorted. "Violence begets violence," he stated, and another tear rolled down her cheek. He was right, too. He was always right.

If violence caused more war, what was the opposite of hurting another? Saving yourself? That didn't sound right… "I'm sorry. So sorry." Duo rolled his eyes, shouldering his scythe.

"Well, it's a little late for that, what with bleeding to death and all," he said, that grin still in place. "Better than anything my powers can make up, anyway. It's great. You'll especially enjoy when your veins start to- What the FUCK?!"

Relena didn't hear him, instead choosing to hobble with all her might towards the edge of the parapets. Her heels were just over the edge, and she could barely stay upright with her calves bleeding onto the world below.

"You don't kill each other for it, you kill the problem," Relena gasped in pain, and the boys exchanged confused glances as Relena gasped again, eyes closed shut. "That's how you get it." Yes, that sounded right. "And I'm the problem."

It clicked, and she smiled, tears running down her face and blood running down her ankles. "I really do die for peace."

"Relena! Damn it, I get to kill you, not yourself," the braided boy snapped, striding forward, but before he had a chance to grab her and slit the annoyance's throat, she'd smiled brightly, and slid her feet beyond the wall.

Eyes closed in serenity, Relena Peacecraft hit the ground hard and died on impact.

x---x

Two weeks later, wind whipped through the sails of the dreaded pirate ship Deathscythe.

Trowa Barton, first mate, sat in the crow's nest with his new apprentice at his side. Green eyes cast wary glances back towards the blonde. "Are you doing okay?" Quatre nodded happily, enjoying the wind across his skin and Trowa's hand in his own- like it had been since they'd been reunited. Empathic depravation was something neither of them ever wanted to go through again.

"I'm wonderful," he sighed, curling up against Trowa (an impressive feat, since the crow's nest was little more than a barrel), who readily let the younger boy into his arms. "I really do like the sea. Much better than desert." Shyly, Quatre kissed his lover with a tantalizingly sweet yet chaste kiss. "And it's better company." Before Trowa could agree, though, there was an explosion on deck.

"DAMN IT, HEERO! PUT! ME! DOWN!" Duo whacked his fiancée upside the head, but Heero ignored him.

"You might have reinjured your leg," he stated, and Duo began to pout as Heero carried him off the deck and into their shared captain's quarters (even though Heero was officially termed the 'Captain's Mate', ironically). "I know you hate it when I have to carry you everywhere, so this seems acceptable." Without another word, he pulled Duo's pant leg up to an almost indecent level.

Heero's hand immediately went straight to the problem injury, and Duo couldn't help but shiver. "Explain to me again why you were straddling the railing," he asked, and the braided pirate just sent a grin and a naughty glint in his eyes back to Heero, who actually blushed. "Nevermind." Duo laughed.

"You should have seen where I caught Trowa and Quatre! I mean, I knew Trowa was a gymnast, but I thought Quat was-"

"DUO! We do NOT want to hear about that," came a forceful knock from the cabin next door. Duo rolled his eyes.

"Oh, and I guess I shouldn't say what I saw last night with YOU two," Duo snapped, and Hilde and Dorothy's cabin became suspiciously quiet. Heero smirked as Duo chuckled. "I thought so."

Just then, a finger ran back up his thigh, and Duo was about to yell out "HEERO!" in surprise. All he managed to get out was "HEE-", since a mouth full of tongue doesn't leave a lot of room for conversation.

But, Duo grinned, he was NOT about to complain about that.

x---x

The End/Owari

x---x

(1)I just realized I never told how Hilde turned into Attie! Okay, here's how it happened. Hilde was on Pirate duty of course, and Zechs showed up. There was a big fight, and Hilde lost. Lucrezia was sent out to find the washed up pirates, and ended up finding Hilde. Figuring she'd been a prisoner, she took the girl home, and we all know the rest of the story. I'm SO sorry Ididn't put it in...my brain's absolutely DEAD!

A/N: This is by far the WORST ending I have EVER DONE. Apologies. It's just, I was determined to get this done by at LEAST Thursday, and now it's 2:15 AM, so I'm going to bed. I'll be emailing Review Responses, since this is the last chapter and all… sob. I liked this story.

Oh, and now because I am genuinely pissed off at myself for being so consistently, absurdly late, family crises notwithstanding, I hereby introduce you to Dante, the Muse of Nagging Luchia into Writing. Hey, not exactly a "muse" muse, but oh well. I have officially implanted him eternally into my brain, and I'm hoping he'll do his job.

Thank you very much for reading, please review, and I'm going to go to bed now. Thank you to all who have reviewed in the past, especially The Regulars. I love you guys!!! (nibbles on toblerone)

Luchia

(Lu-chan)

PS Next stories I'm working on are Prodigy and Chemical Romance, with a dash of Midareru on the side. Just in case you're curious, is all. )