A Leader Returns

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing. The people at Bandai, Sunrise, and others do, I'm not making any money off this fic.

Please e-mail with any comments of any kind at angela_hinorei@yahoo.com

Lady Une locked the door to her room. She was relieved to be away from the endless reports and meetings that came with being in charge of the Preventers. She left her window open so she could smell the roses in the garden below. She liked roses; they reminded her of Mr. Treize. He had been dead for four years, but she still thought of him. When Mr. Treize's daughter needed someone to take care of her, Lady Une took the responsibility herself. She turned away from the window and walked to the other side of the room. A dark figure, who had been hiding in the tree next to her window, entered the room. "Lady Une, I don't want to hurt you. But if you scream, I will have no choice but to kill you." Lady Une felt her body stiffen. She tried to scream in spite of what the man said, but she was unable to. The intruder took out a needle and injected something into her arm. After a few seconds, Lady Une's world turned dark.

****

The next day, the Preventers reported for duty. They had heard rumors of some of the late Treize Khushrenada's followers stirring up trouble, but nothing concrete yet. They were waiting for Lady Une to show up and give them their assignments, but she didn't come. They kept waiting, and she never appeared. Finally, after two hours, Wu Fei Chang spoke up.

"Where is that woman! She is not THIS late normally!" Wu Fei kept ranting, and after a few minutes Sally Po could not take it any longer.

"I'm not listening to anymore of your complaining, Wu Fei! I'm going to find Lady Une." Wu Fei stood up as if to go with her, but he sat down after Sally glared at him. "And I_don't_need_YOUR_help!"

Sally left, thinking that either Mariemaia was sick and Une had to take care of her or that Une herself was sick. When she got to Lady Une's house, Mariemaia opened the door. It was obvious that something was wrong by the look on the girl's face.

"Miss Po, have you found my mommy? I haven't seen her since I went to sleep last night. I looked all over the house for her, and I haven't found her anywhere!"

Sally began to get REALLY worried now. If Une was sick, Mariemaia would have known it. Une would never leave Mariemaia all by herself, unless…unless she had been kidnapped.

****

Lady Une woke up, but her vision was a little foggy. She looked around the room, with a little trouble because the light was so dim. The light came from a naked lightbulb on the ceiling. There was condensation on the walls, which led Une to believe that she was underground. The bed she was on was nothing more than a thin mattress. A bowl of warm water and a bowl of some paste-like mush was on a small table. There was no other furniture in the room. There wasn't even a sink. Lady Une lay down again, and then she heard the door creaking. She sat up like a shot, and her body tensed.

****

At Preventer Headquarters, a transmission came in. It was recorded and shown to Sally and Wu Fei. After the two Preventers viewed it, they finally knew what had happened. A group calling themselves the "Treize Faction" had kidnapped Lady Une and were going to punish her for abandoning His Excellency's ideals. Sally and Wu Fei had just found their base in the Greek isles on their last assignment.

"Wu Fei, I think that we should get a force together and get Une back."

"Onna! We have no time to gather a force! We need to get her back as soon as possible, and we don't need to waste time by gathering a force!"

As they continued to bicker, they did not notice the tall man approaching them. They finally stopped yelling at each other when they heard his footsteps. They turned to look at him, and their faces turned pale. Sally and Wu Fei were shocked and amazed, and after a long pause, Wu Fei broke the silence. "T-Treize Khushrenada?!?! B-but…your…your DEAD!"

Treize tried to explain to the two Preventers what had happened in that last battle. "Wu Fei, the last time we met you didn't kill me. I managed to get out of the Tallgeese and was knocked unconscious by the Tallgeese's explosion. A group of salvagers found me floating by the wreckage after everyone had left the battlefield. This is the first chance that I've had to come back to earth. From what I gather from your argument, Lady has been kidnapped. I think that Wu Fei's idea is right, but I think that it would be better if I came along."

Wu Fei was going to open his mouth, but Sally gave him her version of Heero's death glare. "Er… Mr. Khushrenada, we'd be honored to have you help us."

"Can we get going now, ONNA!"

Sally, Wu Fei, and Treize headed for a helicopter, and they left to get Lady Une back.

*****

Lady Une was escorted to a main hall. The leader of the Treize Faction was in the front of the hall dressed in a judge's robe.

"Lady Une, once Colonel Une of OZ, your case has been reviewed. We have found you guilty of betraying His Excellency's ideals and cowardice. You are to be executed in two days. Take her away."

The men who had brought her in took her away to her room. When they got there, the men started using Une for a punching bag. Lady Une's warrior instincts wouldn't let her black out, making her miserable. Then she was thrown into the wall, and her was finally able to black out after thinking about who would take care of Mariemaia.

****

Treize, Wu Fei, and Sally hid on a hill overlooking the compound. Sally broke the uneasy silence. "How are we going to get in?"

Treize smiled at her. "Miss Po, leave that to me." He walked right up to the guards. They were shocked to see him there, and they left their posts to tell their leader that Treize Khushrenada was at the gate. Wu Fei and Sally entered the compound after the guards left. Treize went in to find his beloved Lady Une after he knew that Wu Fei and Sally were in safely.

"What?" The Treize Faction leader yelled at his men.

"It's true. The security cameras at the guardposts were analyzed, and it was definitely His Excellency."

"Form an honor guard immediately."

"Yes, sir!"

****

The leader of the Treize Faction went out to meet the dashing Treize Khushrenada. "Welcome, Your Excellency." He bowed so deeply that he almost fell.

"I hear that you have imprisoned Lady Une. Bring her out." Treize tried to keep his anger in check.

"At once, your Excellency."

****

Wu Fei and Sally were planting explosives in the base. They heard footsteps approaching, and hid in the shadows. Lady Une was being taken outside by two armed guards. Wu Fei wanted to knock them out and free Une right now, but Sally held them back. When the men had passed, Wu Fei glared at Sally.

"ONNA! I could have beaten them!"

"Wu Fei, remember the plan. Mr. Khushrenada was going to free Lady Une, we are supposed to blow up the base. Now let's finish planting the bombs and get out of here!"

Wu Fei was about to argue some more, but he thought better of it. He helped plant the last of the bombs, and the two Preventers left the compound while Treize was still creating a diversion.

****

Lady Une was confused. She was supposed to be executed tomorrow, so why were they bringing her outside? Her eyes were blinded by the harsh sunlight. When her sight returned, she thought that she was dreaming. Mr. Treize was standing in front of her!

When Treize saw Lady Une, his heart was saddened and enraged. He could tell that she had been beaten. Her face and body were covered with bruises. The right side of her face was black, blue, and swollen from where it had hit the wall. She was limping, and she looked defeated. It took all of Treize's strength to keep himself from beating the men who dared to call themselves his followers

"Your Excellency, we were going to execute her tomorrow."

Treize could no longer control his rage. "It's a good thing for you that I arrived when I did. If you HAD killed her, then I would have tracked you down like the low-life #%!!^$#@^**$%$ that you are and killed you the slowest way possible." He went over to Lady Une and gently picked her up.

"Mr. Treize, is-is that really you?"

"Shh, Lady. Save your strength. I'm really here. Let me take care of you right now."

Lady Une looked into Treize's blue eyes, shining with his love for her. She leaned her head against his shoulder and let him carry her. Treize turned around and left the compound. When he was through the gates, the bombs exploded. Everyone inside the compound was killed, and all the buildings were destroyed. Shrapnel flew through the air, and Treize felt something cut through his shirt. He staggered, managing to gently set Lady Une down on the ground. As the metal kept flying, Treize shielded Lady Une with his body. He collapsed on top of her, his back a bloody mess. When the metal stopped coming, Sally and Wu Fei rushed down the hill to help the injured couple. Sally carried Lady Une, while Wu Fei carried Treize. Even though Wu Fei had grown six inches since he had last seen Treize, it was still hard for him to carry the taller man.

When they reached the helicopter, Sally and Wu Fei gently lay the couple on separate stretchers. Wu Fei flew the chopper as Sally tended to their wounds. Suddenly, Wu Fei's voice came through the intercom. "Onna, how are they?"

"Une will be ok, but Mr. Khushrenada needs to be in a hospital. There is shrapnel embedded in his back, and he has deep cuts from the larger pieces."

"OK, we'll be back at Headquarters soon. When we get back, we'll get him to the hospital."

When the helicopter landed at Preventers headquarters, Lady Une was awake and feeling a little better. However, Treize was unconscious, and he was taken to the hospital. Lady Une refusesd to leave Mr. Treize's side, and she had to be given a sedative because she would not sleep. When Treize regained consciousness, he saw Lady Une in a chair next to his bed, asleep. Treize thought He lay there watching her until she woke up. When she woke up, she saw Treize staring at her. "Mr. Treize, how long have you been awake?"

"Long enough to notice how angelic you look when you're asleep."

Lady Une felt her face becoming flushed. "Mr. Treize…"

"Lady, please don't call me Mr. Treize anymore. When I was in space after White Fang was defeated, I realized just how important you were to me. I'm sorry for letting you think that I was dead, and I know that you are taking care of Mariemaia. Well, will you let me be a true father to her?"

Lady Une could only stare at Treize, speechless from his words. "Mr. Treize, are-are you asking me to…to…"

"Yes, Lady, I am. Will you let me be your husband?"

"Treize…" Lady Une was at a loss for words. She had dreamed of being with him, but she thought that was never going to happen. Now it was happening, and she had no idea how to react. She managed to get the words she was longing to say out. "Yes, Treize. I would love to be your wife."

****

After Treize was released from the hospital, Relena and Milliardo Peacecraft hosted a party at their palace in the Sank kingdom. The guests were all the gundam pilots (except Heero, who no one could find), Hilde Schbeiker, Catherine Bloom, Treize's cousin Dorothy Catalonia, Sally Po, Lucrezia Noin, and Lady Une and Treize. Only the ladies in attendance knew that Treize was going to be there. Relena, Milliardo, and Lucrezia were welcoming the guests when Lady Une arrived escorted by Treize. The men were, well, shocked. Wu Fei was angry that he hadn't been told. Trowa was his usual quiet self. Quatre and Duo couldn't speak. (Imagine that, Duo not being able to speak! That IS something!) Milliardo was probably the most shocked of all. Lady Une shocked the men even further with her announcement. "I can tell by your faces that you realize that Treize is alive. Well, here's another shock. We're engaged to be married!" The men were, well, incredibly shocked now. The musicians, noticing that there was a little discomfort in the air, started playing a waltz. Treize offered Lady Une his hand, and they started dancing. The night passed by quickly for both of them as their dreams were coming true that night.

Epilogue:

Two years later…

Milliardo, Sally, and Wu Fei greeted Quatre, Duo, Trowa, and Hilde at the hospital. "How is Lady Une doing? Where's Relena?"

Milliardo answered the questions. "The baby should be coming soon, Lady Une is doing ok for now, and Relena is taking care of Mariemaia."

"Who's keeping an eye on Relena? And where is Noin?" Quatre asked.

Sally answered this time, "Noin is with Une, and Heero is keeping an eye on Relena."

Then they heard some yelling from the hospital room. "Treize, you bastard, this is YOUR fault!"

Sally remarked, "Well, I guess they reduced her dosage QUITE a bit."

"Well, some women opt to have an epidural during labor. Usually when the delivery is near, the dosage is reduced. She requested that the epidural be given only once, and it must have worn off, so now…"

"That's enough!!!!" yelled the males, except for Wu Fei. "Too much information! Why the hell did you ask her about that, Wu Fei??????"

Wu Fei was relieved when Lady Une started yelling again. "Treize, you're going to be sleeping in another room from now on!"

Treize tried to help Lady Une get her mind off the pain. "You're not really going to make me…It's just the pain talking, right?"

"AAAAAAH!!! You're not going to make me go through this again you $*%(%@!*%!"

"Lady, both of us did it…" Lady Une glared at her husband. "Nevermind, why did I even bother in the first place?"

After two more agonizing waves of pain, Lady Une was finally able to rest. Treize held his newborn daughter and gently placed her in her exhausted mother's arms. "Is it all right if the others meet Lucia, Lady?"

"Just Milliardo, and Sally right now. Noin, you can meet her, too, even though you were here for everything. I'm too exhausted for just about everything."

"Whatever you say, my Lady."

A week after Lady Une left the hospital with Lucia Kushrenada, everyone gathered at the Khushrenada estate to officially welcome little Lucia to the world. Right before the gathering, Lady Une remarked to Treize, "I can't believe that this is happening! I mean, two daughters and a wonderful husband…"

"It's all right, Lady. You truly deserve this. Now let's go down and share our happiness with the others."