Time can be a friend, or an enemy. Sometimes, it passes so quickly that it's gone before you know it...Other times, it can seem to pause for an eternity before the clock starts moving again. The six weeks that she had spent in Maggie's little cottage had passed in a coma-like blur. Try as she might, she couldn't account for all the time that had blown by her. The weeks had gone by in a haze of fear, sorrow, frustration, and a growing desperation as she failed time and again to make any progress and recover her memories. Still, there were good things too. She found herself leaning more and more on the older Healer, as the woman ceased being a stranger and began to feel more like family. She had Maggie, and the animals, who seemed trusting and even fond of her, she had a safe place to sleep, and food to eat. She had her baby, growing more and more each day, it seemed...She was finally starting to get a bump under her shirts, and that thrilled her to her core. It wasn't large, after all, as best as Maggie could decipher, she was only around four months into her pregnancy, but it was there, and it was proof that her baby was real, was growing.

The fear that something would happen to her baby was something she was slowly learning to live with as it bubbled under the surface constantly. She rubbed her belly and talked to her baby all the time, and it kept her focused, kept her calm even though she had no name, no history to give it. If something happenned to the baby before she found it's father...That was a dangerous thought. She tamped it down before the tightness of panic could grip her chest. Happy thoughts. Baby needed her to think happy thoughts. Each day was a struggle for her, but she took them as they came, gardening with Maggie, playing with and tending to the animals, wandering in the woods...Yes, she had good things, too. Rainbows in the middle of the storm. Rainbows enough to keep her trying, keep her hoping.


At night, she still dreamed. Every night, in some way or other, he came to her. She still yearned for his touch, the sight of him, throughout the day, and as her pregnancy progressed she found herself tiring more easily, and sleeping longer. She didn't mind-longer sleep, meant more of him. There were beginning to be darker dreams mixed in with the beautiful, heart-aching dreams she had come to expect each night when she retired. Sometimes, instead of dancing with him, being held by him, she ran through dark landscapes, always seeing him disappear beyond the trees or corners but never able to catch him. Other times, he pulled away from her, left her without a word or a backward glance, ignoring her as she cried out for him in tears. Or he turned to dust in her arms, blowing away on the breeze before she could capture him. Still, she loved the dreams, because at least they gave her a taste of him, no matter how brief it was, or how they made her heart ache upon wakening. And more of her dreams were the lovely ones she had first experienced, so the pain of the dark dreams was more than worth the joy of the sweet dreams.

The idea that she might never regain her memories was becoming the lurking monster in the room. She knew that Maggie felt it too, like a shadow on the mostly pleasant life they were sharing. She couldn't stop hoping though, no matter how much easier it might be to just accept her life as it was now. Sometimes, wandering through the woods, it was like she could hear an echo of voices, could nearly make out the words, but the harder she strained to make them out, the fainter they became until it was only the rustling of the wind in the trees. It was so frustrating! One afternoon, she had come across a small pond in the woods. It was so perfect, so beautiful it almost didn't feel real, but as she stood there in the clearing she could have sworn she felt a hand brush her arm. Her skin rose in goosebumps and she rubbed her hands on her arms, closing her eyes, and thought she heard phantom laughter, voices murmuring in her ears. It was so vivid her heart raced, but still she couldn't understand the words. She believed that the voices were memories, trying to come back to her. Well, she had to believe that because the alternative-that she was losing her mind- frightened her even more than the thought of living out her days as a nameless foundling.

Eventually, Maggie grew tired of her growing restlessness and tenseness, until one day she tossed her out of the house, aggravatedly shoving a shopping list in her hands and snapping at her to go to town and be useful. She didn't take the tone personally, as she knew her moods were rubbing off on her friend. Saddling her horse, she stuffed the list in the pockets the men's dress shirt she wore over her blue dress, the last piece of clothing she had that fit relatively well. The loose skirt and higher waist semi-camouflaged her growing belly, thought she knew before long it would stop fitting as well, and the thought made her sad. It was one of the only pieces of clothing she had from BEFORE, and something about it made her feel special every time she wore it. The shirt... that was from before, also. It was a men's button down shirt, and way too big for her petite frame, but there was still a hint of masculine scent on it, and she inhaled it before climbing carefully onto the horse. Luckily, the old mare was sedate and intelligent, and careful with her when she rode, so she wasn't afraid of harming the baby.

It didn't take long for them to reach the nearby town, and she wandered from shop to shop, picking up supplies for Maggie and trying not to feel uncomfortable in the crowd. She kept feeling like someone was calling her name, but when she stopped and looked back, no one was there. The voices here were even stronger, and she was starting to feel light headed, so she ducked into a relatively quiet housewares shop to catch her breath before braving the streets once more. Her hands shook as she looked over the merchandise, trying to look natural and normal, but she stopped as an absurdly hideous plate caught her attention. It was an odd shade of burnt orange-red, with a tacky gold harvest pattern. It made her wrinkle her nose at it's ugliness, but she was somehow unable to put it down just the same. Unable to resist, she bought a single plate in the pattern. Still dazed and feeling somewhat...hypnotized? Obsessed? With the unsightly plate, she stepped back into the street and wandered down towards the market, just following along with the crowd. Several more times, she felt as though there were eyes on her, and she looked around frowning. A man disappearing around the corner at the end of the block caught her attention, though she didn't know why. She hadn't seen enough of him to know what he looked like, but she found herself drifting after him anyway, helpless to resist the urge to follow.

To say Nohlan had completely gotten rid of the bug it seemed to catch whenever he thought about his lost Queen was like saying he wasn’t a Warlord Prince. It had been months since Liralen had taken a trip and suddenly vanished. A few days was hard enough apart from the women, but when it turned into a week without notice he knew that something was wrong. That was when Nohlan sent his guards to places all over once he found out that Liralen had no in fact made it to her parents. When they searched all the land as best they could Nohlan ordered them to do it again. He made them search and even searched himself as he worried to death. When they couldn’t find any sorts of the Queen, Nohlan couldn’t help but wonder if it was her choice to wanting that. He was darker than her, but there was a limit on the distance he could travel before land became someone else’s. When weeks turned into a month and then another he couldn’t help but wonder if that was exactly what she had wanted. The bigger question though for Nohlan was why couldn’t she just tell him?

It irritated and infuriated the Warlord Prince for most of the first months before somewhat of his brain began functioning again. He still had his moments when he found himself thinking about her or found something of hers, but he couldn’t thank his staff and Court enough for putting up with him and snapping some sense into him. He was better. Not a hundred percent over losing the love of his life, but to avoid that Nohlan just pushed his thoughts into things he had thought about when they were together. It had been a fling… she was so much younger than him.. maybe his age finally caught up to her.. The thoughts alone made him groan outwardly, but in reality they did make sense and it was something he had to face one way or another. He just wished he hadn’t have too.

It didn’t matter though and when his head Hearth Witch found him sulking by the window that day she got so frustrated with him that she smacked him upside the head and told him to talk his negativity out of the house. Nohlan growled loud at her, but he knew that talking a long walk would be good for him. He loved the outdoors and even maybe making a nice trip into town to see the people that kept him sane would be good for him. So even as he mumbled and snarled, Nohlan changed into a nice gray button up shirt that brought out the blue in his eyes even more and put just some normal black trousers on to accompany it. He didn’t feel like dressing up or trying to draw too much attention to him that day.

The walk hadn’t taken him long, but it did help his mood a great deal. He had even made his way into town where a few people who recognized him smiled at him and pointed, but for the majority of the time as he roamed the streets people left him alone. They had their business to do and he loved to be a part of it. He had even bought the head Hearth Witch a new apron of fine material to thank her and maybe get off his back the next time he found himself in a mood. Everything was going perfect as a smile crossed his lips as he just lived normally with the land of Dea al Mon and with its people.

That was all up until he smelt her scent.

Turning his head frantically to look around to where it was coming from Nohlan thought he was going insane when he couldn’t directly see at first where the woman he had searched for, for so long was. He knew that scent like the back of his hand and more than anything just getting a small taste his eyes started to darken. He looked around again, but he couldn’t see her; so he followed it.

Where it took him was familiar especially as he passed by the very first place they had met. It had to be her.. He thought while he closed his eyes for a moment, looking around for Liralen again. Either he was right or he was going completely bonkers and he really did need to step down as a ruler. Either way, Nohlan wasn’t concerned about the answer so much as seeing if he really had found her. It only took Nohlan few more moments until that question was answered.

He blinked in awe as he saw her. Blonde hair, beautiful and in the shirt that was his. Liralen. It took a moment as Nohlan watched her take off another male and his heart stopped for a moment. Was that the new male in her life? Were they married? Nohlan just stood still for a moment while all these questions about why she was following the male and what the relation between them was. He was angry, sad and happy all at the same time. Sad, because she might be with another male, angry because of the relation and her just leaving and happy because at least she was happy then. He stood there for a few seconds just thinking before his body began to move for him. Whatever the answer was he deserved an explanation for her disappearance.

It didn’t take Nohlan long to catch up to Liralen as his arm took hers and spun her around as he looked down at her; everything about just mesmerizing him before he spoke up. “Liralen?” When his eyes traced her features to make sure it was her he frowned at her, “Where have you been? Why did you leave me?” Was all Nohlan asked as he still wasn’t she he could handle the answer. He had to hear it though, especially if he wanted to finally move on.

She crept along after the man, as quietly as she could, not wanting to arouse suspicion. As she rounded the corner she caught up enough to get a better glimpse of him as he turned to talk to someone. Sandy blonde hair, handsome features, blue eyes...An altogether good-looking man. But everything about him was...wrong, somehow. His height, the width of his shoulders...something about his carriage that had compelled her to follow, even that seemed off now. Not him. Her shoulders slumped with disappointment and she fought the urge to just let the sudden tears fill her eyes. She didn't know why she had been so sure, but she felt silly now for having stalked a complete stranger halfway down the block. Too embarassed to just turn and head back, she was about to go into the nearest store as a pretend reason to have headed down here in the first place, when she felt a hand grip her arm, spinning her around.

The gasp that wrung from her throat was surprise at the suddenness of the grab, and she nearly lost her equilibrium, not being used to her new baby-altered centre of balance. Instinctively, she grabbed the stranger's other arm to steady herself. Rock hard muscle under smooth fabric met her hand, and had she been slightly less distracted she would have savoured the feel of it.

"Excuse me! Can I HELP-" She started to ask, slightly indignant at the rough treatment...Or at least she WAS indignant, until her eyes finally met the eyes of the male who still had a firm grip on her arm. So blue...Such a deep, rich blue...And so familiar. Her eyes flicked from feature to feature on his face, taking in each one greedily. Yes, yes, every one made her heart hammer harder in her chest. So absorbed was she in relearning and examining his face, that his words barely penetrated the fog.

“Where have you been? Why did you leave me?”

At his voice, goosebumps ran all along her body, and she fought the urge to close her eyes and drink it in. Instead, she just kept tracing his face with her eyes. His voice was somehow....sad, angry, and nervous? All at once. It made her want to wrap her arms about him and soothe it all away. She didn't, knowing instinctively it wouldn't be welcome. Still, it was undeniable. This male KNEW her. He knew her enough to touch her without hesitation. And on some basic level...She knew him, too.

"I...I..." She stammered, not knowing how to answer him since she didn't know the answer herself. Then his scent hit her nose, and her eyes did flutter closed as she breathed him in. Oh, wow. When she lifted her lashes again, she knew her instincts were right. This was the man from her dreams. The man who danced with her, held her, run from her. This-this was the father of the baby growing inside her. With that knowledge came one more realization. There was no way, NO.WAY. she had been leaving him willingly.

" I didn't! I mean, I know I DID, but I didn't mean to..." She stared up at him beseechingly, willing him to understand the things she couldn't fill in for him, the missing facts her memory stubbornly refused to supply her with. "Something happenned, an accident...I don't know exactly....Wait-what did you call me?"

Her hand raised on its own to massage the silvery scar on her temple as her breath came faster. When he'd first spoken, she thought he'd said a name, though it had been lost in her surprise and her examination of his features. Was it her name? She knew in her heart that it was. Now it was her hand that clutched at his arm, waiting for another puzzle piece to fall into place.

With the first yelp from the woman he thought to be his Nohlan was sure he had the wrong person. However, when his eyes glanced upon the features, the body and he breathed in the scent of her, everything about her screamed to him. This was his woman; this was his Queen. After so long of searching he had finally found her and he was going to figure out why she left. Even while Nohlan tried to control his emotions he found it hard not to wrap his arms around her and pull her into him. He wanted her so badly, even if just for a moment. He wanted to embrace her and kiss her so badly, but how could he when he had no answers. He may have been a man of dreams, but he was also a man of reality and right in that moment he knew he had to pay attention to the facts of reality. She had left for four months with no word; what did that mean?

He waited as his eyes took her in, but as he watched it seemed that she was doing the same to him. She was looking at him enough that it looked like she was wondering if he was real or something. Nohlan’s eyes frowned slightly as he released her arm before looking down at her hand still on him; he knew now why he was so calm about everything. His gaze fell upon hers again as she was still giving him the same look as she stammered words like she didn’t know what to say. Great! He thought while a heavy breathe escaped him while he thought about the horrid reasons she was trying to piece together for him. She was going to tell him that she was married.. or didn’t want him.. and so forth. Nohlan began preparing himself for the worst..

Then the words came and Nohlan couldn’t help but be confused. She did, but she didn’t mean too and there was an accident?! As her hand raised to meet the scar that he had already noticed a low growl escaped as his eyes glared at it. She had been hurt, she didn’t mean to leave, but wait! “What did I call you? I call you by your name. Liralen.” Now he was utterly confused and nothing about the situation was helping as Nohlan felt himself rising to the killing edge, though honing it enough to be civil at the moment. “That is your name and you were my Queen. You were mine.” He said as he couldn’t help it any longer, even if she was with someone else, as his arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer.

“My heart still tells me you are mine, but your actions tell me otherwise.” He sighed as his gaze fell to the ground. How else could he describe it when he had no idea what was going on? Why had she asked him for her own name? And what the hell was this accident about?

“What did I call you? I call you by your name. Liralen. That is your name and you were my Queen. You were mine”

Her head tilted at the words. Her name. Liralen, that was her name. Yes, that seemed right...it felt like it fit. A sweet wave of relief engulfed her at the thought. Finally, after so long she knew her name. Still, moments after the relief followed a crushing sense of disappointment. She had believed all along that if she could only find her name, her memories would follow, and she could start rebuilding her life. Yet here was her name, and still no memories to go along with it. She felt the first flutterings of panic, wondering if nothing would ever bring her past back to her, when the male tightened his hold on her, drawing her into his arms.

She didn't pull away, stepping into his embrace instead. That hint of pain had coloured his voice again when he spoke, especially at the end when he said she was his. Oh, to belong to someone. She had known all along that there had been someone, the baby growing in her was proof of that, as well as that the aching for him had been able to pierce through the veil of her amnesia. Here, though, was the concrete, living proof that she wasn't imagining him. Here, was the evidence that he had missed her, needed her, too. So she moved in when he gripped her, twining her own arms up to grip his shoulders, nuzzling her face into his neck. It felt....like coming home to her.

Liralen heard him speak again, and she pulled back to look up at him. Then it happened. As she gazed up at him, feeling him under her hands, her memories came flooding back to her. With a gasp she covered her mouth as she remembered meeting him in the homewares shop (and that she had bought an exact copy of the ugly plate she'd talked him out of), their night swimming, the masquerade ball...Loving him. Him...

"Nohlan..." The name spilled from her lips amid the rush of memories. She remembered her childhood, her parents, everything, but it was all pale in comparison to the memories of Nohlan. The events of the night everything had gone wrong came back to her too, and her hands clenched on his shirt at the thought of it.

"Oh darkness...I remember. I remember you...Ohhh I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..." She started shaking at the thought of it. "There was an accident. My head....I lost all my memories, I didn't know how to find you, I didn't know how to find my way back..." Liralen knew she was babbling semi-incoherently, but between finally remembering, and finding Nohlan, she didn't know exactly how to handle everything. As she finished speaking, her voice trembled a little. A new fear was blooming in her mind, what if he didn't forgive her? What if he couldn't understand that she hadn't been able to find him, that she hadn't been able to fix herself enough to make her way back? She felt like a broken doll, defective and useless.

"I couldn't get back...But I never forgot you. It was like I was lost in the dark...But every night you were there. In my dreams, you were there. Every night." She beseeched him with her eyes, letting all her emotions show nakedly, praying that she would be able to get through to him.

Nohlan didn’t know what to do. He was so relieved, happy and confused at the same time and it wasn’t helping the irritation that was provoking the beast within. He felt a little better when he pulled Liralen closer to him, but it still didn’t help when she looked at him like she didn’t know him. How could she not know him after what they had been through? How could she not when they were so madly in love? She was his Queen and there was so many strings tied to that. She called to him like no one else ever had both as a Warlord Prince and as a male. How could he let that go and still why was she asking him about her own name?

When she stepped further into his embrace though, every inch of worry dissipated while Nohlan closed his eyes as she nuzzled his neck. His arms couldn’t help but hold her a little bit closer, still keeping distance though because he wasn’t sure what it all meant. He took the moment to feel and bathe in her scent though, even if it was just for a moment. Which was all it was when he felt Liralen pull away from him a little bit. If this was when she was going to say goodbye to him he didn’t want to see the look in her eyes so he kept his eyes closed. He didn’t want to see the reality of it all and know that when he let her go he would be going home to be in the same position he was a few weeks ago.

He was preparing himself for the letdown until he heard her say his name. It was different from the voice that questioned him earlier. Opening his eyes Nohlan stared into the eyes he remembered.. the eyes he prayed to wake to see in the morning and stare into as he fell asleep. All the worry and doubt fled from his mind as she then began to apologize and explain. He just looked down at her as his hands rested on the small of her back while she went out. The accident she had talked about had caused her to lose her memory? She didn’t forget him? She dreamt about him? Nohlan took in the information and though it was a good enough reason, after all he had been through he still was hesitant. He had to be in his position, but that didn’t mean that he didn’t want to believe her.

Sighing heavily when she stopped Nohlan drew one of his hands to run along her jaw while he stared into her eyes. He had missed her so much and every day since she had left he had promised himself that if he ever got the chance to see her again there was one thing that he was going to do. Leaning in as he pulled closer to him Nohlan then kissed Liralen. It was soft at first, but the moment he felt that desire and need he kissed her harder. He kissed her like he had never kissed her before and even when he pulled away to give them breathe he rested his forehead against hers for only a few moments before kissing her again. It was in the midst of them kissing that Nohlan reached out privately to her. *Show me Liralen. Show me what happened.. what you remember.* He needed to know. He needed to see to believe, even if his body screamed at him to just take her home.

By the time she finally stopped babbling at him, Liralen could still see the cautiousness in Nohlan's eyes. What was worse, was that she didn't blame him. Wouldn't blame him, even if he chose to walk away. As bad as things had been for her, as terrifying and painful as it had been to wonder about her life, she had never truly believed that the father of her child had chosen to leave her. Seeing the look on Nohlan's face, she knew that was exactly what he had come to think. He thought she had just decided to leave him, to just walk away from their life together. If she knew her Warlord Prince, he most likely had assumed it was something to do with their age difference. The understanding that she had caused him that pain, even if it was accidental on her part, made her already damaged heart crack and bleed, new wounds to match the ones she had caused.

His hands were warm against the skin of her back, even through the fabric of the shirt she wore-Nohlan's shirt, in fact. She knew that now, remembered her habit of pilfering his clothes so she would never have to feel far from him. Liralen remembered how unbearable it had seemed to leave him, even for a short time...and that short time had stretched into weeks. He sighed, and ran his hand along her face. Tilting her head into the caress, Lira took a moment to savour the touch. She felt starved for him, nearly desperate for more of that touch, that scent, everything about him. Then he pulled her closer, seemed to consider for a moment, and bent his face to hers. The kiss was soft at first, testing, a sweet and gentle touch, but then it changed and he gripped her hard, almost fiercely, and Liralen felt her head spin at his passion. She kissed him back desperately, fingers digging into his shoulders as though she were afraid he would disappear. When he pulled back, resting his forehead against hers, Lira's breath was coming fast. Before she even had the chance to ask, he was kissing her again.

*Show me Liralen. Show me what happened.. what you remember.*

His voice in her mind broke through the fog of her desire, and she almost hesitated, afraid to relive that night, afraid to go through it detail by detail....But she realized that Nohlan needed to understand. He needed to know what had happenned, and instead of trying to make her explain, which she didn't think she would have the strength to do, he was asking her to show him in another way. So she opened the gates of her mind and invited him in.

The images swirled, then cleared. She rode the grey mare through the failing evening sun, humming to herself and playing with the reigns as she went, already wishing she were returning. It was beautiful out, the sky streaked with violet and rose, and she admired it as she headed into the woods. It was so much darker in there, practically already full night, but she steeled her spine and kept going, refusing to be afraid in a wood she had run rampant in as a child. Not half an hour had passed, and she had only just started to feel more at ease, when a branch cracked off the side of the path. Though she strained her eyes, she couldn't see anything, and she crooned to the mare to calm them both as the animal danced sideways nervously. Only an animal, perhaps a raccoon, she told herself, as they started forward again.

When a dark shape darted in front of the horse, it reared up, nearly unseating Liralen. She managed to hold on, until the shape became the form of a man, faceless in the dark but huge and menacing. Another shape appeared at her side, and grabbed the reins of the horse, causing the terrified mare to whirl and stomp, trying to free herself. Liralen fell, with a short scream. One of the men, a leering shape in the dark, tried to grab at her. She bit his arm, tasted blood as he yelled. Kicking her legs, she struggled to get to her feet, desperate to run, and then something bashed the side of her head. The world went red as the pain flared, and then there was nothing.

She couldn't show him her rescue, as she hadn't regained consciousness until already ensconced in Maggie's cottage. So she showed him bits and pieces of her recovery there. Liralen showed him her first experiences with meeting Maggie, unflinchingly showed him the terror and agony of her realization that she didn't remember anything. She showed him her breakdown in the bathroom. Her stomach tightened with nervousness as she brought forward the moment when Maggie told her about their baby, moments of rubbing her slightly rounded belly and talking to the growing infant within. Then she showed him the calm, everyday life Maggie gave her, and finally, she showed him her dreams. At least those she could remember. Liralen gave Nohlan the images of dancing with him in the ivory forest, standing by the fountain in the beautiful gardens, watching him disappear ahead of her down a path as she ran to catch him. She wanted him to understand that through everything she had tried to find him again, that he was the only thing in her life that she had managed to hold on to. Nohlan had to know Lira loved him....Because she did, and she had never stopped. Liralen hoped the news of the baby, their baby, while shocking, would make Nohlan happy. She had always believed he would make a wonderful father....*Lucky baby*, she thought.

They kissed as the memories played, and Liralen clung to Nohlan to fight her fear of her memories of that night. It was gone, it was over, and he was real now. This time it was she who pulled back, and pressed soft kisses over his cheeks and lips, stroking his arms for comfort. Cupping his beloved face between her hands, Liralen pressed her lips to his again, tenderly.

"I missed you so much...I couldn't remember my own name, but I remembered your face. I'm so sorry."

Nohlan had no idea what to expect. He had no idea with what he wished he would see or with what he didn’t want too. All he knew was that having Liralen in his arms again was like a dream come true. He had been so angry and so sad lately that even his prays to the darkness seemed silly and stupid. He prayed for her each and every time that he did. He prayed to be able to see her again and to able to hug her again.

It seemed his prays had come true, but what did they really mean? All he got was that there was an accident that was supposed to make up for the time she had been gone. He was skeptical, but most of him didn’t even care. He wanted to kiss her until there was no breathe between them. He wanted to let go.

He couldn’t though. The rational side of him just couldn’t take her back without a reason. He wanted to hold her and take care of her, but that pain still hit him upside the head every time he looked at her. He felt it hard and he needed to know. It wasn’t easy at all.

He waited and then her mind opened up to him. He watched the play by play, learning about her as a child and with what he wanted to know. She wasn’t lying to him and he could even taste the love she felt for him within her dreams. She didn’t know who he was, but she remembered him. She wanted to be with him and it was within those moments that the shock began.

Nohlan saw his grandmother before him, taking care of the love of his life and giving her a place to stay. His eyes widened with amazement as he hadn’t even seen his grandmother for ages. Her ways had pushed her into caring for the poor which he thanked, but missed her because of. Nohlan was shocked initially at first with the fact that Liralen came across his own Blood. It was the next part of what he saw though that shocked him even more.

A baby.

His baby.

His heart swelled and it stuttered as he felt like he couldn’t breathe. He never stopped kissing her and in realization he might have kissed her harder than until he knew the both needed to breath. Nohlan looked at her for just a moment as she kissed his cheeks. He had a child. She wasn’t lying. It was all so very overwhelming.

Nohlan then fell to his knees as he just couldn’t believe any of it. He gasped for air that surrounded him, but just felt so out of reach. “You didn’t leave me… You didn’t want someone else.” He blurted out as the tears came to his eyes before he looked up at Liralen. “I thought I had done wrong.. I’ve been so angry.. I hated you.. But you didn’t leave me.” He said as he gripped her hips for a second and looked at the swell in her stomach he should have realized.

For a ruler he felt embarrassed about his tears, but as a man he was ecstatic to be a father. He then stood up again as his hands cupped her face, “Our baby, our life.” He said before he kissed her hard again. He wanted to forget and to bathe within everything of her. When he pulled away he waited for confirmation. He had her back, he had a child and more than anything he just wanted her to tell him that she wanted to go home… with him so they could live again

Bands of steel tightened around her chest as she waited, feeling her breath caught in her throat. Everything in her trembled as if on the edge of a cliff, and Nohlan's reaction would either pull her back or send her plummeting. This was not the way she had dreamed about telling him they were having a baby. In her idle daydreams, back in that idyllic past she now remembered, she had toyed with the thought of a child, their child. Like a little girl, Liralen had dreamed of weddings, of babies, of that day when she would smile at Nohlan and tell him the news. She'd thought of playful ways to tell him, cutesy little ideas and soft moments. Never had it occurred to her that she would be here, in the middle of the market, trying to soothe hurts she had caused herself and breaking the baby news at the same time.

Tears hovered in her eyes, making her vision waver as Nohlan dropped to his knees with a gasp. The muscles in his arms shook as he gripped her hips, and when she saw the shine of tears in his eyes, her lips trembled and her own tears trailed down her cheeks. He was talking, saying things she could have guessed, how he'd been angry, hurt, hated her...How he had thought he had done something wrong. That made her tears come faster. Her Nohlan, her amazing, breathtaking male, always thinking he had done wrong. Always thinking he was too old for her. Always thinking she would find someone else. Why had she never been able to show him, make him believe in her love? She'd failed him from the beginning.

When he stood again, cupping her face in his hands, Liralen saw the glow on his face. That was exactly how she had always hoped. He shone from the inside out, his joy about their baby evident on his face. She felt nearly faint with relief, and the kiss that followed made her even more lightheaded. When Nohlan pulled away, Lira swayed a little, missing his heat against her already. She pulled him back to her for another, softer kiss, then pressed his hand against the gentle swell of her stomach.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Liralen knew that they were making a scene. People were stopping in their tracks to stare unabashadly at Nohlan and Liralen. Their curiosity about the unexpected behaviour of their ruler was written all over their faces, and Lira felt a faint rush of embarrassment, sure that they would wonder what he was doing with HER. After all, dressed in old clothes of Maggie's she was far from the vision of a woman who should be with their Warlord Prince. Somehow, she didn't care. Let them stare, let them wonder, let them talk, whatever they wanted. She was back exactly where she wanted to be - in Nohlan's arms.

Looking into his drowning blue eyes, she could almost forget all the things they had to figure out. Like whether he wanted her back in his house. Or whether he could ever forgive her, ever trust her again after what had happenned. All she could think about looking into those eyes, was that she wanted to get back to the way things SHOULD be. As Nohlan had said, their life. So, she said the only thing there was to say, with her voice trembling and soft.

"Can we go home?" She meant, can I come home.