Sorry it's so late! I've actually had it sitting in my document manager for a few weeks or so now. Well, please read and review!

Letter

Chapter Ten

Dear Clarine,

You won't believe this! I started feeling sort of sick earlier this month, but I just thought it was some type of thing going around. Wendy was sick, after all, with the same symptoms I had, so I paid it no mind. However, my back started aching and I was eating a whole lot more! I didn't understand what was wrong with me. I thought maybe it was an after-effect of the war a few months ago. You know?

Then I started gaining weight. I didn't understand it. Roy finally forced me to get checked out. Well, you won't believe this, the cleric checked me out and was surprised that I hadn't come sooner. You know why? I'm pregnant! I feel like such a copy-cat! I suppose I'm a few months behind you (aren't you around four months now?), but that's okay! Our children will be the best of friends. I'll have to visit you soon before you have the baby. And after you have it, you'll have to tell me what to expect! Oh, I'm so excited and terrified all at once!

Now, as to that other thing we were discussing...

Clarine squealed when she read the letter. Everyone was pregnant anymore! She was, now Lilina was, Noish's wife, Aless' wife... This was just the baby season! Rutger walked in the room, hearing her squeals. Clarine thrust the letter in his face, grinning ear-to-ear. Rutger took it without a word, reading it quickly.

"Lilina is pregnant?" Clarine nodded, beaming. "I guess our child will be going on play dates with Lilina's then, right?" Clarine nodded vigorously.

"This is so wonderful! I can't wait until this little one is born!" Clarine poked her stomach, which was steadily growing bigger. Rutger merely smiled, shaking his head. The last few months had been up and down with arguments, tears, happiness, and everything else. Clarine was normally an emotional person when she wasn't hormonal, but when she was pregnant... Oh, even Zephiel would have been peeing his pants at facing a pregnant Clarine.

Thank God for Pent and Klein. Rutger was sure he would have lost his mind had it not been for the two men who had also experienced this. Pent helped him through the ridiculous amounts of stress Clarine caused him, while Klein tried to calm down his raging sister. "Just a few more months, Rutger. Then you'll have a bundle of joy to take care of!" They would always tell him. Rutger merely wanted to groan, and quite possibly cry.

"Rutger, what should we name it?" Rutger sighed, knowing they had been over name discussions several hundred times. "I'm not sure if I like the name Maria... maybe we should name it Louisa!"

"Whatever you want," he replied automatically. He closed his eyes waiting. It never mattered what he said in these situations. If he said he didn't like it, she'd cry. If he pointed out that she kept changing her mind, so it didn't really matter, she'd cry and scream. If he said he liked it, she'd accuse him of lying or she would change her mind. If he suggested a new name, she'd accuse him of not liking the name she picked out. And if he said, "Whatever you want," she'd reply with:

"Rutger, you just don't care at all, do you?" Clarine burst into tears, pointing a gloved hand at her husband. "How can you be so mean to me? I'm carrying our child and you... you... you don't even care!"

Rutger just couldn't win.

"Alright, again!"

"Elfire!" The flame burst from her hands, hitting the target. She grinned, looking up at her grandfather. Pent beamed, nodding at Lillie.

"When your mom sees how much you've accomplished, she'll be so jealous! Truly, you have grown so much!" Lillie smiled, clutching the Elfire Tome. Pent ran a hand through his hair, looking at the burnt targets set around the training area. He had set up ten different targets, all around the area, at different heights, different lengths, different sizes and she had hit each one of them right on the mark. At six, he didn't even think he could do that. Clarine was right when she first spotted her; Lillie would be a great magic user with the right tutelage.

"Could mommy use an Elfire Tome when she was six?" Pent shook his head, absentmindedly.

"No, instead she focused on staves. She didn't learn how to use magic tomes until she was much older, during the war. I didn't teach her how to use magic," he replied, still concentrating on the targets. If Lillie could accomplish this much at her age, surely she would do wonders at the Aquleia Magical Academy. She would excel. Her education would be top notch, she would learn all about the inter-workings of magic, and she would become a better mage. She could already read and Clarine had been teaching her the ancient language.

The Academy was close enough that she could come home each night and go each morning. She could still live with them and wouldn't be isolated from her family like he had been when he was sent there at age six. When he had went there, he could only cast a Fire spell. Not an Elfire spell. Not only that, but he couldn't read as well as she could. He was one of the youngest kids at the Academy and put into the basic class, which he graduated out of in within a year. Lillie could easily go into the Intermediate class with her skill. Soon enough, she could be taking Advanced classes at the Academy, studying how magic worked and getting much better practice with it than what he could do. Or even what Clarine could do.

He'd have to talk to his daughter about this. Lillie was progressing so quickly! She had only learned how to use magic a year ago, and yet she could manipulate it so easily now. Pent knew he could keep teaching her new things but her real education should probably come from the Academy. She was so advanced that she deserved a well-rounded education. Pent was sure that he could talk to Mildain and probably get her in on a scholarship, seeing as how she went to that war and fought in some battles. Mildain knew that Lillie was good, anyways.

Pent smiled down at his granddaughter. "Lillie, why don't you go find Grandma? I need to go talk to your mother and tell her what a great job you did today, okay?" Lillie smiled, nodding and handed him back his tome. She bounded off towards the gardens, energetic as always. Pent, not nearly as energetic, walked in the opposite direction, heading towards the parlor of the mansion, where Clarine often spent her days now, lazing around with her feet up and reading books on pregnancy that she had acquired from the royal libraries, midwives, and her friends.

Meeting with his daughter wasn't something Pent looked particularly forward to. She spared no one, except her female family and friends, from the torrents of her hormones. And poor Rutger got the brunt of it. The man could get nothing right with his overly emotional wife and would often take a nasty verbal thrashing from the woman. Pent, too, had been on the receiving end of her viper tongue.

Stepping into the room, he saw his daughter dozing off, her hand resting on the baby bump. The light cast a soft glow on her face and hair giving her the image of a sweet, angelic woman. It reminded him how much she looked like her mother. Only Clarine could have the same level of beauty Louise had. Both looked like angels, or even Elimine's reincarnation.

He hesitated about waking her up. She could go into a rage if he did wake her up. It was probably better to wait until she woke up before talking to her about Lillie. Nodding, he turned around, running straight into his son-in-law.

"Oh, Rutger. How are you?" Pent exited the room, closing the door. Rutger stood to the side of him, running a hand through his hair.

"Alright, I guess. As good as I can be in the circumstances." Pent laughed, gesturing for Rutger to follow him.

"I remember when Louise was pregnant. She wasn't nearly as hormonal as Clarine, though. Neither was Tate, for that matter. Louise tended to cry more than usual, while Tate usually isolated herself. Clarine is the one that usually turns to anger and wailing. I commend you, Rutger. You've got one heck of a wife."

"Yeah, I know." Pent led him to his personal study, opening the door and gesturing Rutger in. Rutger, having rarely been invited into the study too many times before, looked around, taking in Pent's tastes. Not much had changed since the last time he had been in there (which was probably over two years ago. Not many people went into Pent's personal study, not even his own wife) as bookcases lined the walls, thick volumes in each shelf. Papers and scrolls were stacked everywhere, though not in a disorganized fashion. Everything had a precise place and Rutger could even see that the books were carefully organized by magic, then alphabetized, and numerically ordered if they were a series of books. Even the quills and parchment Pent had were carefully organized by color and style.

"Rutger, I was going to discuss this more with Clarine, but I thought I'd get your opinion on it first. You are Lillie's father, after all, so you have a lot of say in what she does and such." Pent walked back to a bookshelf on the farthest wall, scanning the shelves, finally pulling out a few books. He then turned around, walking across the large room, to a stack of papers. He rifled through them, finally pulling out several. "When I was six, my father sent me off to Aquleia's Magical Academy, the most advanced school in all of Elibe. I did excel there, honing my magical skills to a fine level. As you know, I eventually became the Mage General of Etruria." Pent sat down, flipping through pages in the book. Looking up, he gestured for Rutger to sit across from him.

"The education there is superb, as only the finest Sages and scholars may teach there. Only the upper nobility goes there, unless a child with extreme magical talent is shown, and through a typically long and rigorous process, may get a scholarship through the King. Since I was in upper nobility, I was accepted there, especially since the Reglay family was known to have a strong magical streak in their blood. I stayed there until I married Louise, and even then, I often returned to the Academy, all the way until I was offered to study with Athos, the Archsage, in the Nabata Desert. After that, I rarely returned to the Academy." Rutger nodded, taking in Pent's information.

"Though I can easily teach Lillie more things in training, I believe she would be able to grow more if she went to the Academy. Her skills far outclass mine at that age and she is a ridiculously fast learner. I'm sure she could be considered a magical prodigy at her age. I think with a double education at the Academy and myself, Lillie could possibly become the greatest mage who has lived since Athos the Archsage."

"Would she have to live there?"

"No, no. We live close enough that she could come home each night and go there each day." Pent grinned, finally finding the pages he wanted. "Here, this is some of work I did while I was there." Pent passed the book over to Rutger, pointing at a page. Rutger scanned it, realizing it was an in-depth study of the inner workings of magic. "I was offered to teach there but I declined, instead opting to go study at the Nabata desert, where I had heard that Athos the Archsage lived. This stuff, though, is pretty basic stuff you learn at the Academy now. I really think this would be a great opportunity for Lillie." Pent passed a few papers towards Rutger. "These are papers about the Academy now. If you want to read over some of them before you make your decision..." Rutger nodded, taking them. He skimmed the majority of them, getting the basic idea.

"These seem to praise the school. It seems like it is an exceptional Academy," Rutger murmured, passing the papers back to Pent. Pent nodded.

"What do you think, Rutger?" He looked up, hesitating for a few seconds before finally nodding.

"Yeah. I think it would be a good chance for her to learn. If this is what would better her education and make her stronger, than I believe you should. I'll talk to Clarine about it, but I think this is a great idea." Pent smiled, nodding.

"I'm glad then. Well, maybe Clarine is awake now. Shall we go check?" Rutger nodded, taking that as his cue to leave Pent's study. The two walked out, making there way back to the front room, finding Clarine awake and chatting to Lillie.

"And... and... and I was able to hit all of them!" Clarine clapped her hands in delight.

"That's wonderful, Lillie. I wish I would have been out there to see it." Clarine's hand drifted over her stomach, her fingertips lightly brushing over the baby bulge. Soon enough she'd be able to watch Lille and hold a small bundle of joy while she watched her. It would be such a wonderful picture... Rutger would be beside her, Lillie would be performing her exceptional magical blasts, and Clarine would hold her child. Then she could visit Lilina and Roy in Ostia and their children would go on play dates and become best friends!

"Ah, Clarine, may we speak to you?" Pent asked. Clarine looked up at her father, smiling. Rutger nodded at his wife and she returned his glance with a smile. It seemed that she held no anger from before, which wasn't that unusual, since Clarine's moods tended to change every time she saw him.

"Yes? What is it?" Pent gestured to Lillie.

"As you can see, she has superb magical talent. She's extremely advanced for her age. I'd like to look into getting her enrolled at the Aquleia Magical Academy. I know you know about it, right?" Clarine nodded, biting her lip.

"But... She is... is not noble blood. They could all tell. No noble in Etruria has that shade of brown hair... Or that skin color..." Pent nodded.

"I realized that. But I think she has good enough connections that there shouldn't be too many problems. After all, she is the adopted daughter of the Sorcery General of Etruria and adopted into the Reglay family. She should be alright, especially with her magical talent. We can always try it. If something happens, we can withdraw her. Right?" Clarine nodded, smiling.

"Yes. Yes, you're right. I think this would be an excellent experience. Lillie should go to the Academy! Yes!" Clarine clapped her hands together, excitedly. "It'll be so wonderful!" Pent and Rutger both smiled at Clarine's excitement, especially when she turned to Lillie, explaining everything that would happen at the Academy.

The days blurred together in Etruria. Soon enough, weeks passed, which turned into months. Clarine grew rounder and rounder. It wasn't long before it became hard to walk and her back ached and she felt horrible all the time. The baby seemed to constantly kick her and she couldn't get a peaceful rest when she slept. Mildain forbade her from going to work, saying she needed to stay home and rest her body. Instead, Pent and Cecilia took over her duties.

Etruria was prospering as was Lycia. Both tried to help Bern regain its footing after the revolution and as the months passed by, slowly and surely, Bern became more stable. It was true that Lycia and Etruria had much influence in Bern, due to the fact that they were the predominate reason Guinevere was able to reclaim the throne, and many Bern citizens viewed Guinevere as nothing more than a puppet controlled by the Lycian and Etrurian governments. In some sense, that was true. Guinevere didn't have the military power to stop anything Etruria or Lycia would wish to do to her country, but due to the fair and noble rulings of Roy and Mildain, Bern did not change except for the better.

As it was, even those in the Etrurian or Lycian nobility who encouraged the exploitation of Bern's resources and governments, Mildain and Roy both swiftly put a stop to. Bern was their ally and they would not take advantage of the war-torn country. Bern needed help and not to be taken advantage of. Since Mildain and Roy commanded total respect of not only the people, but their subordinates, there were no disagreements to their rulings.

Other than the dealings with Bern, the only other thing that was going on was the pressure the Nobility was putting on Mildain to marry and produce an heir. Since Mildain was not only a king, but already in his thirties, and had yet to produce an heir, the nobles were getting nervous. Should Mildain die, there was not a direct heir to the throne.

Knowing that keeping his royal line in tact was important to Etruria (because if it wasn't, Mildain was sure he would just allow Percival and his heir to become king, should something happen to him) Mildain finally agreed to marry. It was an arranged marriage due to the fact that Mildain just wasn't concerned with love. Since Cecilia and Percival's marriage, Mildain just hadn't found the need to marry and look for a wife for himself, since he thought that maybe Percival and Cecilia could take over the throne for him. However, the fact that the throne was inherited due to blood threw a wrench in his plans, Mildain finally consented to the noble's wishes.

His wife was a daughter of a duke and she was a sweet girl. Clarine had to admit that out of all the upper nobility, this girl was probably the best suited to become Queen of Etruria. Her name was Sarah Frioria, the sole heiress of the Frioria family, a long lasting family deeply rooted in Etrurian Nobility. Several of their previous family members had been married into the royal family, others had held extremely high positions in the court, ranging from being one of the Three Generals to being the King's Advisor. As it was, they were also an extremely rich family, controlling much of the mining lands in upper Etruria as well as in the Western Isles.

Sarah was a little older that herself, being twenty-nine, they were five years apart. They hadn't really known each other too well when they were younger, but the few times Clarine had met her, she had seemed like a quiet, well-mannered, sweet girl. Clarine figured a girl like that was perfect for a quiet, well-mannered, kind king like Mildain.

So, holding the invitation for their wedding in her hands, Clarine smiled. She had a feeling they would work out and be a good couple and that was all she could ask for for her long-time friend. But she wouldn't be too sure until she actually met the woman, so Clarine figured she might have to invite her over for tea one day.

"Hey, Clarine? Are you in here?" Clarine turned around, calling out a, "yes" to her husband. "Hey, how are you feeling today?" Rutger asked her, his eyes looking down at her eight-month pregnant stomach. Clarine smiled brightly.

"Rather good today! Why?" He shrugged, looking towards the window.

"It's a beautiful day today. I was wondering if you'd like to go for a walk through the gardens?" Clarine smiled, delighted, and nodded.

"Yes! Yes!" Rutger smiled, laughing at her excitement. She walked over to him quickly, looping her arm in his. They walked to the gardens, breathing in the fresh air and taking in the beautiful flowers that Louise tried so hard to maintain.

"You know, we haven't walked like this for a long time," Clarine told him, leaning on his arm. Rutger nodded, opting not to speak. "I'm glad we can still walk like this. Soon enough we're going to be so busy with this one," Clarine placed a hand on her rotund stomach as she said this, "that we won't have as much time to spend together. I feel sort of bad for Lillie, too, since she's at the Academy so much now, we never get to spend as much time with her as before. Father says that the teachers there say she is one of the top students. They say she is a magical prodigy, one they haven't seen since my father went there or even before that. It makes me proud to know Lillie is doing so well there."

"I agree," Rutger told her. "Soon enough, Lillie will become a warrior of her own right. Following in our footsteps." Clarine nodded, resting her head on his shoulder.

"We turned out alright, though, right?" Rutger nodded. "We might not be perfect but we're happy and that's all that matters!" Rutger leaned down, kissing the top of her head. Clarine smiled, looking up at him. He leaned down again, this time kissing her on the lips.

"Yes, we are happy. More happy than I ever imagined." Clarine responded to him with another kiss.

It was nearing the date of Mildain and Sarah's wedding. Clarine had met with Sarah three times already, the first time with Louise, the second time with Louise and Tate, and the third time, it was only Clarine and Sarah. Clarine loved Sarah. She was a sweet girl, but highly intelligent and she believed in helping the peasants. She wasn't a normal noble and she wasn't stuck-up like the others in her family.

Sarah confided that she had looked up to Clarine for marrying someone outside of nobility, as well as following her dreams to become Sorcery General, and even later adopting a child who had once been a peasant. To know that someone admired her decisions made Clarine proud to have followed her heart.

It was two days before Sarah and Mildain's wedding. Sarah was extremely nervous and through the encouragement of Cecilia, she had agreed to spend some time with Clarine, Tate, Louise, and Cecilia. They decided to take a walk around Aquleia, visiting different stores and just relaxing before Sarah's big day.

"Ooh, look at that dress! Sarah, I think that outfit would look wonderful on you!" Clarine exclaimed, browsing through some of the dresses. Clarine pulled out a short aqua dress with a cute white cape attached to the sleeves. "You would look so pretty!" Sarah smiled, touching the dress. Cecilia came over, smiling as she saw the gown.

"That would look very pretty on you, Sarah!" Sarah looked up, smiling. Her fingers brushed over the gown and Clarine saw how lovingly she looked at it.

"Buy it, Sarah!" Louise and Tate both came over, looking at the dress. They agreed that Sarah should buy it. Finally, she agreed, smiling. It would look so well on her. Like most high-borne Etrurians, Sarah had pale blonde hair, as well as aqua-blue eyes. Her hair was long, down to her thighs, wavy at the ends. Sarah had a slender body and was rather petite but a beautiful girl.

Today, all the girls looked beautiful, though, Clarine thought. It was nice to see all of them relaxing and dressed in nice, pretty clothes and not formal ball gowns or military uniforms.

Louise wore her blonde hair in a braid, strands left out to frame her face. She wore a light-pink dress that went down to her knees. It was flowy and she had a sheer plum scarf draped along her shoulders. Then Louise wore white flats with a cute pink bow on the top. Even in her fifties, Louise still looked like she was in her prime.

Tate had grown her blue hair out, so it was now down to the middle of her back. She wore a sky-blue, short dress that went down to a little past her thighs. Underneath, Tate wore white leggings that led into white knee-high boots.

Cecilia's green hair was pulled up into a ponytail and she wore a spring-green dress. She also wore gloves up to her elbows and white boots up to her thighs.

Clarine's hair was also pulled up into a ponytail. She wore a loose peach dress, which curved softly around her stomach, and she wore white flats. Clarine had a little white lace fan for when she got hot, which tended to happen a lot, as of late.

Finally, Sarah had her blonde hair pulled back into a bun. She wore a flowy white skirt that went a little above her knees. Her top was a pastel blue and she wore matching flats. She also wore white lace gloves that only went to her wrists.

"I think I might," Sarah agreed, smiling. "But I don't know how well it would fit me..."

"These dresses are only ideas, you know," Louise chimed in. "If you like the dress, tell the owner, and she'll tailor it to fit you. And if you want anything added to it, like lace, she'll do that, too! That's why this is one of my favorite shops! You can pick out base dresses, customize them to what you want, and get it fitted to you! It's so perfect!" Louise clapped her hands together, excitedly. They continued their small chatter and eventually they exited that store, continuing down the road, bags of clothing in tow.

As they were walking, though, Clarine started to feel just a bit of pain. It wasn't anything new, she thought, as she was used to having contractions, (she had been having an extremely hard pregnancy, at least compared to her mother and to Tate) since this was her ninth month.

But these contractions kept getting worse.

"W-wait, you guys," Clarine told them, leaning against a building. She pressed a hand to her stomach, closing her eyes. That was when she felt a few trickling sensations. Something dripped down her leg and she felt a few squirts, as if she had peed herself.

That didn't last long, though, until she walked a few more steps and water gushed from between her legs.

"Oh, sweet Saint Elimine! Mother, my water!" Louise's eyes widened and she rushed to her daughter. "It-it-it...!" Clarine couldn't form words as she began to panic. Taking a deep breath, Clarine put a hand on her chest. "We need to go to the midwife!" Louise nodded, turning to Tate.

"Get your Pegasus." Tate's eyes widened but she nodded, whistling shrilly. Pent had given the stable hands orders to always have Tate's Pegasus ready just in case something happened. So it didn't take long until the Pegasus came flying to Tate's call.

"Good boy," Tate whispered, stroking his hair. "We need to take Clarine to the nurse. You ready?" The Pegasus snorted, seemingly nodding. Louise helped put Clarine on the Pegasus and she groaned with the contraction pains.

"Take her back to the castle. Get her up to her room. Make sure Pent and Rutger are up there with her. Pent can help ease some of her pain. Also, Tate, do you know where the midwife is? Can you either send Selphina to get the midwife or get her yourself?" Tate nodded. "Alright, now go! We'll be there as quickly as possible." Tate nodded, taking off with Clarine.

"It's okay, Clarine. It'll be over soon," Rutger told her. Clarine was screaming in pain and even with the healers surrounding her (the midwife, Pent, Cecilia, Erk, and Serra) and trying to relieve it, Clarine's pain was still immense.

Outside her bedroom, Tate held Selphina close, Klein stroking Tate's hair. They were all praying for Clarine. Even with the strong healers in there, and even with Clarine's strong body, there was still a good chance that Clarine might not make it through the birthing process. She could always bleed out and not stop. There were so many things that could go wrong.

Lillie was sitting between Mildain and Sarah. Mildain, too, prayed for his long-time friend. Clarine had been through so much and he wanted to see her accomplish everything she set her mind to. Not only that, but she already had a daughter who had once lost a mother. Clarine couldn't make Lillie lose another one.

As the time dwindled by, Clarine's labor-induced screams growing louder and more frequent, more people joined the king, waiting to see what happened to Clarine. Percival was there, along with Aless and Noish. Dieck, too, came in after some time.

Time continued on, three hours passing before the people outside started to hear other shouts besides Clarine's pain-filled ones.

"I see a head!" Serra called.

"Push, Clarine, push!" Louise told her daughter. Clarine screamed, clutching Rutger's hand. She screamed louder and louder, her voice rising to unbelievable octaves.

"Just a little more, Clarine!" Cecilia told her, and once more, Clarine screamed, pushing with all her might. The midwife pulled the wailing baby out, taking care of it while Clarine rested for a few minutes.

"Congratulations, it is a girl," the midwife told them. Clarine looked up, smiling, though she was panting hard. Rutger squeezed her hand, grinning at the birth of their daughter. The midwife wrapped the girl in a pink blanket, holding her out to Clarine, who shook her head and gestured for Rutger to hold her. He began to reach for her when Clarine started to scream again.

"Twins!" Pent exclaimed, rushing over to his daughter. Serra and Cecilia both rushed to help deliver the next child. Erk took the first baby girl so the midwife could deliver the next child.

Clarine screamed again, pushing out the next child. It didn't take nearly as long as delivering her first daughter. The midwife once again took care of the screaming baby, cleaning it up and getting it ready for Rutger and Clarine to hold.

"It's another girl, you two," the midwife told them. To differentiate between the two children, the midwife wrapped the second girl in a blue blanket. Then she handed the babies to Clarine and Rutger.

"We did talk about names earlier," Rutger told Clarine. Clarine nodded, looking down at her oldest daughter. "For the girl, weren't we going to name her Maria? After your grandmother?" Clarine nodded.

"Our oldest will be named Maria Louise Reglay. And for our other daughter... I think we should name her Clare. After Lillie's mother. A tribute to her, you know?" Rutger nodded, looking down at the younger baby girl in his arms.

"Clare Aira, after my mother." Clarine smiled, nodding.

"Maria Louise and Clare Aira... my two beautiful daughters... No, our beautiful daughters." Rutger nodded, leaning over to Clarine, smiling at her.

"Yes, our daughters." Holding both her daughters in her hands, Lillie coming in to see her two new sisters, and the rest of her family surrounding her around the bed, Clarine truly knew that a brand-new life was beginning for her. For all of them.

End Chapter

Yep, twin girls! I've been planning it since the beginning of the story. I feel kind of bad for Rutger, though. Surrounded by four women in his family. Poor guy, it'd have to be heck when the girls will get old enough to PMS. Especially if all four PMS at the same time. Rutger would die.

Alright, a pretty important note. I'm going to take a break on this story for some time to switch gears and work on a Naruto story instead. Because of working on that story, I haven't really been working on chapters for this story, so it may be a few months before I update again. Sorry!

Preview:

"I'll be back," he told her, tracing circles on her legs. Clarine nodded, kissing his shoulder.

"I know. But I'll still miss you. With everything in me." Rutger nodded, trailing his fingers along her thigh. Clarine sighed dreamily, unlocking her hands and twirling a strand of his hair around her finger.

"I'll miss you, too, Clarine." Gently, he stood up, breaking her hold on him. Clarine, sitting on the bed, looked up at him, trying to smile, even as her stomach muscles clenched in an attempt not to sob.

Next chapter will turn up the romance between Clarine and Rutger to an unseen level so far :) It'll be steamy (But still T-rated!) If I have some free time (Maybe over Thanksgiving weekend?) I'll post the next chapter, but just in case I don't, don't expect too many chapters any time soon!

Be sure to point out any flaws or inconsistencies! Thanks for reading!