002: Pure Again- Prologue

[beautifultragedy]

Fandom: Breath of Fire
Story: Pure Again
Summary: Very Bad Things happen when rogue demigods try to reverse time.

The two lay in the glow of the setting sun, the soft glow of dusk reflecting and distorting through the window, and painting rainbows across the young woman's face. Her companion, as tired as he was, playfully reached over and swiped at a rainbow that fell on the girl's nose. Her eyes flickered open and she looked at him sternly. "Stop that," she demanded in a faux-chiding tone.

The man just chuckled. "Make me."

A smirk crossed the girl's face at his dare. In seconds, she was on top of him, straddling his waist and holding his wrists firmly against the mattress of the bed. "Hey!" the man protested. "Come on, Nina! I'm tired!"

"Not too tired that you can play with my nose while I'm trying to nap!" she drawled sweetly.

He sighed, straining against her grip but not really feeling like moving her. "The rainbow made me do it."

"Rainbow? I think you've gone and went crazy on me, Ryu."

"Did not." He motioned to the fractured light, which now came to a rest on the white pillowcase next to him. Nina grinned.

"All right, my little drakee," she said grudgingly, sliding off of him and back into her place in the mussed sheets. "You can bat at my nose for a little bit."

He grinned, a dangerous glint in his eyes. "Don't tempt a Dragon, Princess."

"Thought you were tired."

"I am." He lay back again and entangled his hand in hers. "Give me a bit of time." He closed his eyes and sighed. "What's the date?"

"October fifth," Nina replied through a yawn.

Ryu groaned. "Don't tell me that. It's the fourth. It's the bloody fourth-”

"No, Ryu," Nina said, her voice suddenly weary and sad. "It's the fifth."

The two laid in silence, although now the silence was oppressive and heavy. "Damn it!" Ryu exclaimed finally, slamming a fist into the side of the mattress. "Why do we have to do this?"

"It's the law, love, and you know it-"

"Screw the law!" Ryu growled, sitting up, oblivious to how his language startled her. "I'm going to be back in Dragnier in less than twelve hours. We're going to be thousands of miles apart, and Ladon knows when they'll let me see you again. We're going to be separated, Nina, and all you can say is 'It's the law'." He looked at her, on the edge of angry tears. "What clause in this law says that we can't just marry?"

"There is none," Nina said with a heavy sigh. "But Mother would throw my duties and your duties at us and bury me in paperwork to take care of and shut down the teleporter for 'repairs' if we even bring up marriage. Like she did the last time."

"Your mother is a witch," Ryu replied flatly.

Nina gasped, her surprise turning to anger. "Ryu!" She shook her head. "She's not a witch, as you so eloquently put it," she spat. "She is doing her duties as the Queen of Wyndia and trying to stop something she sees as dangerous to the State!"

"My, you're taken in with her, aren't you?" Ryu asked, his voice dripping with venom. "Makes me wonder if you hold your position as princess in higher esteem than me."

"Don't give me that kind of guilt trip, Ryu Bateson," Nina replied icily. "The world doesn't stop for you, and I can't just throw away my duties as the Princess, and you know it."

"I'm willing to throw away my duties as Prince of Dragnier for you," Ryu said softly. "All you have to do is say it, and-"

"My mother will forbid it."

"Who the hell cares what your mother will do!" He glared at her. "Your mother is not your keeper! You are free to make decisions on your own! I thought our journey taught you that!"

"I am making a decision on my own!" Nina snapped. "And my decision is 'No,' Ryu, I will not marry you!" She immediately felt her stomach twist in regret as the expression on Ryu's face changed from anger to surprise, then to pure and utter hurt. "Oh gods... Ryu, I didn't mean it that way-"

"I think we should continue this next time we see each other," he whispered, and he got out of bed and dressed quickly. "Change of plans," he called to his retainers in the hallway, as pulled on his undershirt. "We're leaving in an hour!"

"Ryu, no!"

He sighed and looked at her. "Nina..." He shook his head. "Don't. Don't make this harder on me than it has to be."

"You don't have to leave now, I'm sorry!"

"You don't get it!" He glared at her as a tear tracked down his face. "I love you! And I don't give a damn about Dragnier or Wyndia or your mother or anyone else! I can't keep doing this coming and going thing, Nina!" He looked at the floor, pressing a hand to his mouth and straining to keep a hold of his tears. "I'm sorry," he rasped. "I can't be around you right now. I need to calm down."

"Ryu-!"

 

"I'm sorry. I love you." He looked at her and swallowed hard, then grabbed his sword and turned on his heel and left the room.

~*~

The retainer looked up from his gathering of his belongings as there was a knock on the door. "Come in, it's open." His gaze turned to one of pity as the girl stepped through the door, her head bowed. "Princess Nina." He bowed deeply. "What brings you to me?"

She bit her lip. "How's Ryu?"

The retainer frowned. "He's hurt. We won't be ready to leave for at least another three hours, but we can tie up things alone, so he went ahead."

Nina moaned and leaned against the door, hand against her mouth. "What have I done?" she wailed hopelessly.

The retainer sighed. "Princess Nina, no disrespect, but all you did was put a self-centered young man in his place. That's what we see, anyway." He stood up. "You see, we're with him almost all of the time since he was crowned the Prince. And we've all agreed that he's put unfair pressure on you to marry. Your parents aren't too fond of the Dragons, and vise-versa. These are peace talks, an attempt to avoid all-out war, and the last thing either country needs is a marriage that will outrage the citizens."

"But I love him. And he loves me. So why is it so hard to say yes?"

The retainer's voice became passionate. "Because you love him with all your heart, but you also love your country." He sighed heavily, sounding a bit sad. "Prince Ryu doesn't love Dragnier. He has no attachment to it. Wyndia is home, to him- it's where you are." He looked her straight in the eyes. "But you, princess- you grew up here. This is your home. And you have to set aside your own wishes to possibly spare lives, maybe thousands."

She closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. "How badly did I hurt him, exactly?"

"I don't know." He began arranging his things into bags again. "But he does love you still. He just wasn't prepared for such a harsh rejection. Give him time, Princess."

She chewed on her lip again, briefly, and then spoke. "I have a letter here. Could you deliver it to him?"

The retainer glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "Sure, just leave it on that desk and I'll grab it on my way out."

"Thank you." She set the envelope on the desk and left the room, sniffling.

Three hours later, the retainer gazed around the room. "All done!" He gathered up his pack and papers-finally, he could stuff them in some corner of his room and forget them!- and took one last glance around. He had an eerie feeling he was forgetting something. But he shrugged, after a moment. He always had that kind of feeling.

~*~

There was a visitor for her. She didn’t want any visitors, unless it was Ryu, and she told her nurse as much. However, the King, her father, intervened, ordering her flatly to get dressed and go meet this visitor. He understood her feelings; honestly. He may not have liked the Prince much, but they obviously loved each other very much and that was something he was learning to deal with.

 

However, the Prince wasn’t there. The Prince hadn’t replied to any of her messages. Who knew why; but the Prince wasn’t there and she could not sulk about in her pajamas forever. She did have duties to attend to, and greeting visitors was one of them.

 

So she got up, got dressed, and went to the throne room, sincerely resenting life in general.

 

Nina's face brightened visibly as she saw who her visitor was. "Rei!" She bounced down to the Woren and embraced him. "I'm so glad to see you!" Her face flushed and she grinned. "So how goes the thief's life?"

Rei growled at her playfully, his eyes twinkling in mirth and his tail swishing. "I'm an honest merchant now and you know it."

"'Honest' and 'merchant' don't go together."

"Neither does 'Nina' and 'stuck up little brat,' but you seem to be doing that just fine."

"Hey!" She smacked him playfully on the arm. "Come here, you." She reached up and hugged him again. "I’ve missed you and the others so!"

Rei returned the embrace and ruffled her hair. "How’s Ryu?"

She winced and turned away. After a moment, she answered: "I don't know."

"Huh?" Rei touched her on the shoulder. "Hey- what's wrong?"

Nina took a few deep breaths; Rei could feel her shaking. His stomach twisted in concern. "Nina?"

"Ryu... Ryu and I had a fight- a major one. He left a month ago and I wrote him a few letters, but he hasn't res-responded... Oh god-!" And she choked on a gasp and burst into tormented tears. "I think- I think he's-he's gone-f-for good, Rei," she sobbed.

 

Rei inhaled deeply. "Gods-!" He embraced her again. "I'm sorry, Nina. What was the argument about?"

 

She buried her face in his shirt for a few moments, and then looked up at him. "He- he asked me to marry him again. And I said no. I said it very, very harshly, and he- he just left!"

Rei shook his head. "I don't think he's gone for good, Nina. Ryu gets hurt and he stays away for a while, but he doesn't just give up like that." She sighed and leaned her head against his chest, still sobbing softly; he stroked her hair and rocked her gently, shhhing her. "Listen, Nina. Let me tell you what I came for." She nodded and tried to quiet her tearful gasps. "I came because I got tired of wandering. I was going to ask your father for a loan so I could open a shop in Wyndia. I don't think he'll turn me down because of your influence. So I'll be here for you, no matter what happens, okay? I promise." He felt Nina nod and he smiled. "Good. Now do me a favor and get cleaned up so you can help me get that loan."

"I'll get you a grant instead," she mumbled into his shirt.

Rei laughed. "Even better!" He released her and patted her on the back. "Come on, let's get you washed up."

~*~

The young Woren wandered down the hallways, whistling lightly. His business was a booming success! In fact, he thought that he'd have to disappoint the King, for he suspected that Nina's parents were so pleased with him that they wanted her to marry him. But he was still a young Woren, and he knew that neither of them was ready for marriage. Nina was just getting over Ryu and learning to love him.

She had been in a depression for so long he was worried that she would never surface from it. But she did, gradually- and Ryu never came to visit, never sent any notes. Rei himself began to doubt if he was right about Ryu- maybe Nina had hurt him badly enough to leave for good. That doubt gradually became a certainty as the days went by and he and Nina grew closer together.

They hadn't intended for it to happen this way. But the townspeople just eventually came to the conclusion that they were a couple. What the hell, they had said. Why not?

Because Ryu has first dibs, Rei reminded himself daily. It was as if Ryu and Nina belonged together. And he vowed to himself, day after day, that if Ryu returned, and Nina wanted to go back, that he would let her go. It would hurt, but he would heal. Nina wasn't the only girl in the world, and it wasn't as if he hadn't been heartbroken before.

He came to Nina's door and took a moment to shake his ruminations off. Once he was back in the here and now, he knocked. "Hey. You decent in there?"

"I'm always decent for you, Rei," was the muffled response. Rei grinned and opened the door. Nina looked at him and clucked her tongue at him as she gazed at his reflection in her mirror. "I never said you could come in."

"Implied right," he responded smugly. "Whatcha doin'?"

"Looking in the mirror." She turned to one side, her gaze still fixed on the reflection.

"No, really?" He scratched his forehead. "Why?"

She was silent for a few more moments, and then she spoke. "Rei... am I fat?"

"Wha- what kind of question is that? No!" He sat down on the couch to the side of the room. "And even if you were, you're still the most beautiful girl I've ever seen."

She laughed, but almost immediately sobered. "I've gained thirty pounds in the past six months."

Rei's eyes widened. "Really? Wow... I really haven't noticed, honest."

Nina made an indecipherable noise, and then she turned to look at him. "Anyway, what's up?"

"Your father says that there's someone coming to visit." He paused, thinking about the exchange. "He didn't look too happy about it, either."

"Do you know who it is?"

"Nope." He grinned. "But I figured I could escort you to the hall to greet them, huh?"

"That would be wonderful." She smiled and they walked out the door, talking about Rei's latest imports and Nina's goodwill visits to the growing Dauna City. They arrived at the main hall and separated, Nina going to her throne beside her mother's and Rei standing to the side.

Nina's father entered from the back of the hall. "He's already here," he told her as they sat in their respective thrones. "We took him to the waiting hall to do this properly."

"He came from the portal?"

"Yes."

"What about Mother?"

The king sighed. "She pled illness."

Nina's eyes narrowed. "Wait a minute. She was fine this morning. Is she avoiding this visitor?"

The king sighed again. "Yes, she is."

"Who is it?"

"Forgive me, Nina- I didn't tell you so you couldn't back out. The visitor-”

Rei's gasp resounded in the hall. Nina looked up to the doors as the crier spoke. "May I present Prince-"

"Ryu!" Nina stood as he strode forward, an air of confidence about him.

"Hi." He smiled shyly. "Miss me?"

"I- uh- that is- I- uhm-" She caught her wits as Ryu's expression rapidly changed from happy and shy to crestfallen. "Of course I missed you, you silly oaf!" She laughed nervously and embraced him. She shot a withering look at Rei, who himself looked like he was trying to hide an upset stomach. "Why've you been away so long?"

"I'm really sorry about that," he said uncomfortably. "Almost right after I got home, a minor revolt was staged in one of the desert towns. We went to put it down, and it turned into a full-blown civil war."

Rei cleared his throat from the side of the thrones. "I think we can all count our blessings that it was only six months. Who knows what could have happened if it was any more severe? How bad were the casualties?"

"Rei!" Ryu grinned and looked at him. "Oh, Ladon, I didn't even notice you! Surprisingly, the war wasn't all that bad- only about a hundred or so, between the sides. How've you been?"

"I've been pretty good. I opened a shop here in Wyndia with His Majesty's aide." He bowed respectfully to the King, who nodded back.

Nina cleared her throat. "Well, I'm sure you're tired from the trip, Ryu- yes, I know you took the teleporter. But you always get sick on the teleporter. Come on, let's get you to the table so we can sit and talk- Rei, could you go make sure the envoy's rooms are clean and ready? You know which ones they are, right?"

"Yes," he replied wearily. "It's good to see you again, Ryu."

"And it's good to see you, Rei," Ryu replied, moving to embrace him as well. How's your business doing? I heard you had opened up a shop here- Rei?" Ryu stopped, noticing the over-brightness in Rei's eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Rei grunted, averting his eyes. "Allergies, that's all." He began walking away. "I'll be back soon- I think I should let you and the Princess have time to talk, huh? And I want to hear all about this civil war of yours, bro." And with that, he left, Ryu still looking after him.

Nina cleared her throat. "He's right, you know. It's been six months since we saw each other." She smiled and took his hand. "Come on; let's go talk in my room. We've got a lot to catch up on."

~*~

Rei strode down the hallways, barely repressing tears. It had happened, just like he said. Ryu came back. And it was just like Ryu not to respond to a letter because he was angry, and it was just like Ryu to completely forget about it.

But it wasn't like he could blame Ryu for forgetting about it. There was just a civil war in Dragnier. That was heavy stuff, and quite unpleasant for him, he would imagine. The nation was just rebuilding, the Dragons scattered through the world making their way back to Dragnier City, which was beginning to actually look like a city instead of the little tent village they’d seen two years ago. They were still working out who was whom and what nobles who claimed to be actually had been nobles before the Fall of the Dragons.

 

Interestingly, including the King and Regent, Drake Bateson and Mika Bateson. No one really knew for sure if these two people were who they claimed to be, but Ryu was convinced- or simply saw an out of taking responsibility immediately and took it- and so, they were going to take the places they claimed. That had a part in the civil war, it turned out. Most of those in Dragnier were willing to accept this. Some of those in the desert villages were not.

As he mused about what Ryu had told him about the conditions in Dragnier at that moment, Rei systematically checked all of the guest quarters to make sure they were in order, double-checking the room Ryu himself was to occupy. Then he moved slowly on to the next one, lost in thought. He almost missed it, but it stood out enough that he spotted it out of the corner of his eye. He moved into the room to investigate.

An envelope lay on the desk, face down. Rei picked it up- It had Ryu scrawled on it in flowing handwriting that Rei immediately recognized as Nina's. His stomach jolted painfully much like it had when he saw Ryu, and with shaking hands he ripped it open, unfolded the letter, and read it:

Ryu, my love,

I guess I don't know what to say. "I'm sorry" doesn't possibly convey the regret I feel right now. I know, I know I shouldn't have been so severe, and I pray to Ladon that you can forgive me. I can't imagine life without you, Ryu. Right now I feel like I'm going to be sick, like a part of me has just been ripped away. My eyes hurt from crying, and my hands are shaking so badly I can barely write this. But I know I brought it on myself. Please, please believe that I didn't mean to hurt you. I love you more than you can imagine, Ryu, and I'll do almost anything to make it up to you. Please write back soon.

Love now and forever,

Nina

Rei shook his head. "Doesn't this just beat all," he mumbled in a shaking voice. He stuffed the letter into a pocket and left the room, closing the door behind him, and walking quickly back down the hall, praying he'd get to Nina's room in time.

~*~

Nina sighed, face buried in her hands. Someone burst into her room- she could immediately tell it was Rei. Ryu never entered without knocking first. "Rei- I..."

"Don't," he whispered. "It's over. I know."

Nina looked up at him. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." He looked at his feet and flicked his tail.

She sighed and turned back to her desk. "I don't get it, Rei. I can understand Ryu not writing back right away because he was angry, but not responding at all? He acted as if he didn't get it-"

"He didn't, Nina," Rei cut her off, his voice grave.

Nina whipped around again, eyes wide. "What?"

"He didn't get it," he repeated, pulling the letter out of his pocket and handing it to her. "It was on the desk in Joinar's room."

Nina took it numbly. "Oh." She smoothed out the crinkles in it and read it over. "He said he'd give it to Ryu."

"He didn't."

"My, your the master of the obvious tonight!" Nina sighed and closed her eyes. "How am I going to tell him, Rei?"

"Tell him what?"

"What went on between us."

Rei leaned against the bookcase. "Simple. You don't."

"I can't keep this from him, Rei!"

"Yes, you can!" Rei spat. "What happened between me and you is none of Ryu's business!"

"I'm his fiancée-"

"And this would end that for sure," Rei replied grimly. "Don't be an idiot, Nina- I'm already getting the short end of the stick, don't go and ruin it for you two too."

"He trusts me," Nina said indignantly. "We don't keep secrets from each other. Ever."

"And this is one that you need to, Nina." Rei glared at her with all the fierceness he could muster. "You don't know Ryu like I do. I know that telling him about this will be the end of your relationship with him, my friendship with him- It'll be the end of him ." He narrowed his eyes at her. "You tell him about this, and he'll take himself to the nearest cliff and jump."

Nina shook her head. "He's stronger than that-"

"Nina!" Rei cut her off, desperation finally creeping into his voice. "Dear gods, if you ever loved me, let alone him, you won't tell him!"

"Tell me what, Rei?"

Both Rei and Nina froze. Rei's tail twitched slightly. "How long have you been there, Ryu?" he asked stiffly and awkwardly, not turning around.

"Long enough," was Ryu’s chilly reply as he moved into the room. "And I heard enough. Nice to know you have such high confidence in me, Rei, as well as such high respect!" he shouted, his voice coming to a hysterical scream. "And you, Nina- How could you?!"

"Ryu-! Let me explai-"

"Not another word," he growled. "I already know how highly you regard me- you love me so much you sleep with my brother as soon as I'm gone!"

"Wait just a second here!" Rei responded loudly. "We were dating, Ryu, but we never had sex-"

"And you think I believe that?!"

"-and you have no right to accuse us of such a thing!" he roared angrily.

"Shut up! Just shut up! Why the heck would I believe you?! You're supposed to be my brother, and my friend on top! How the heck am I supposed to believe you!? "

"Remember that I am your friend, that's how!"

"No," Ryu said simply. "No."

 

And with that, he turned on his heel and bolted. "Ryu!” both Nina and Rei exclaimed at the same time, and Nina was on her feet in a split second. "Go get help!" she shrieked as she took off after the young Prince, not looking back to see if Rei was complying. "Ryu! Ryu!"

The boy didn't seem to hear her. Rei had been right; why had she argued this so much? He had been clueless, completely clueless, and she should have known he'd come to her room when she didn't show up at his.

A gasp of relief came to her as she saw that Ryu was coming to a dead end in the palace, a balcony. He almost didn't stop, slamming into the banister, tottering, then remaining there, motionless, leaning far over. "Ryu," Nina said softly. "I- I know it doesn't help, but I'm sorry. And I swear to you, Rei and I never-"

"Shut up," Ryu muttered flatly. "You betrayed me."

"Ryu-"

"I loved you. I love you! Dear Ladon, what did I do wrong?!"

"Nothing! You didn't- Ryu- oh, Ryu- There’s nothing I can say to make this better, is there?” she said, hopelessly.

 

He turned to face her, eyes bright. “I don’t know,” he replied softly, his tone utterly heartbroken and destroyed. “I didn’t get that letter, Nina. But even if I had, I couldn’t have-“

 

“I know,” she cut him off tearily. “I know. There was nothing you could do. You had to handle the war.”

 

“Yes. There was no choice, it was do it or die.”

 

“It was that bad?”

 

He hesitated before answering. “It started because- Nina, I really don’t-“

 

When his words dropped off, Nina took a step closer. “Ryu, what happened?”

 

“They tried to assassinate me.”

 

“Oh, <i>no</i>…”

 

“I’m sorry.” He leaned heavily against the railing, facing her. “It was just… so frightening. Up until then, they all believed I was some kind of hero, that I’d gone after Myria to avenge everyone in that region. I didn’t! I did it for myself, but- that someone would hate me so much as to try to kill me for no reason but politics-“

 

“They probably didn’t hate you if it was politics,” Nina cut him off. “If it really was politics, you were a means to an end, or in the way of an end to them. It wasn’t personal, Ryu.”

 

“That doesn’t make it easier.”

 

“I know it doesn’t. I’m so sorry you had to face that.” She took a step closer to him. “I know… I know what happened in Dragnier was terrifying and upsetting,” she said quietly. “But you must… you have to believe me. Yes, Rei was courting me, I was aware of it, and I was letting him. But it never went beyond mere courting.”

 

Ryu laughed dryly, meeting her eyes for the first time in the conversation. “That doesn’t make it easier, Nina,” he said evenly, calmly.

 

Nina flinched. “I know. I know it doesn’t, and you have every right to be hurt, Ryu. I’m not saying that you don’t. I see how it looks from your eyes, and it’s… horrible. I’m saying, please, now, see it from mine. See this from my eyes, and come in, and let me defend myself. Please.”

 

Ryu stared at her, straight into her eyes, his expression completely blank. Nina held her breath as he thought. “I don’t think it will do any good,” Ryu finally said, blunt and utterly honest.

 

The princess exhaled, on the edge of tears again. Hearing that tore her apart, but it was better than ‘no’. “I think it will,” Nina contradicted him. “If you were absolutely sure it’s no use, you’d have told me flat out that you won’t talk. You didn’t. I love you, Ryu. I want to at least try, please.”

 

He regarded her for a few more moments before nodding shortly. “Fine. We’ll talk. But I don’t promise anything, Nina.”

 

“I don’t want a promise. I don’t even want to resolve it all tonight, if we can’t. I just want to talk.”

 

Ryu pushed off of the rail he was leaning against. As he did so, a loud <i>crack</i> echoed through the air, and the Dragon was suddenly tumbling backwards. Nina lunged for him, reaching out, but it happened too fast. In the next instant he was falling; he hadn’t even had time to scream. Nina stared wide-eyed at Ryu, now lying in the courtyard, his body twisted at a strange angle, before her mind caught up to what had just happened. “Oh god, no! No! Ryu!”

 

~*~

Hours later, Nina did her best to shut out Ryu's agonized moans, her hand pressed against her mouth. Rei was by her side, breathless; she didn't notice him until he gasped, "I got the Dragnier healers, Nina."

"Can they help him?" she rasped, throat sore from crying.

Rei shook his head. "I don't know. Neither will they until they see him."

"Oh god... Rei, I- Oh gods, I'm so sorry, I tried-"

"I know," he whispered in torment as the healers filed past him to the fallen Prince. "I know."

They healers started working on him, crowding around his bed and speaking in Draconic in low tones. Nina cringed as Ryu's moaning suddenly raised in pitch and volume, sounding more like a sob now. "Stop it! You're hurting him!" Nina shrieked, clamping her hands over her ears. A healer looked at her, irritated, then, after one of her colleagues whispered something in her ear, she strode over.

"Princess." She bowed respectfully. "Do you mind if I talk to you for a few moments?"

"S-sure." The healer sat across from them and took Nina's hands.

"As you may or may not know, Dragons can... sense what their kin is feeling.” That was news to her; although, she thought, perhaps that was how Teepo was able to yank Ryu into that strange dream, when they were pursuing Myria. “I've been able to get enough from him to know a basic idea of what happened," the Dragon healer continued, and then paused, and squeezed Nina's hand. "I just want you to know, none of us blame you for this." Nina nodded and sniffled. "Now, I know that you and Rei told Ryu that you never had sex. And I know that you are sticking with that. And I know that Ryu doesn't believe you."

"What's your point?" Rei asked miserably, burying his face in his hands.

"My point is that it is absolutely critical that you now tell the truth," the healer said gravely. "You won't be judged at all, I promise you, but it is urgent that we know." She looked Nina squarely in the eyes. "Did you and Rei make love at all during Ryu's absence?"

Rei laughed shortly, a shrill, hysterical sound. Nina cringed; it sounded like Rei was close to snapping. "No, I swear to Ladon. We were courting, but we never, ever went that far, ever."

"I believe you." The healer sighed. "Although that isn't quite the answer I wanted."

Rei looked up sharply. "Why?"

The healer's gaze flicked to Rei, then back to Nina. "Have you had any weight gain in the past six months?"

Rei and Nina looked at each other, suddenly understanding what the healer was getting at. "Yes," Nina answered slowly, "about thirty pounds."

"Any breast tenderness? Irregular cycle? Nausea? Water retention?" Nina nodded slowly to each question, and the healer squeezed her hand. "You're pregnant, your Highness."

An agonized wail ripped from Nina's throat. "No! No, I can't- and Ryu- No, no no no no no no!" She stood abruptly. Her chair toppled over from the force of her movements. "I can't take this- I can't!" She moved to leave, but Rei leaped from his own chair, putting his hands on her shoulders, and began rambling off reassurances and pleading that she stay calm.

 

"The Prince- he'll live!" the healer interjected, nearly as desperate as Rei. "He won't be fine, we doubt he'll ever walk again, but he will live! Please, Princess Nina, don't do anything drastic! You're carrying the heir to both Wyndia and Dragnier-”

"Is that all you people care about?!" Nina shrieked. "Who's going to get the throne?!"

"No," the healer replied intensely. "I care about how Ryu can and will rebuild his life. I'm care about how you need to rebuild yours. And I care about that baby that's inside of you, completely innocent of anything that has happened thusfar!" The healer stretched out a hand. "Please, don't punish the child for the parent's actions."

Nina hesitated very briefly, and then placed her shaking hand into the healer's own. "I-I'll try," she whispered. "I'll try."

"Good." The healer dug into her pocket, and produced a shiny, silver whistle on a thin gold chain. "Please, Princess, accept this as the infant's first gift."

Nina took it as Rei released her, shaking with the stress of everything that was happening. She examined the object- it was a small whistle, with the shape of a bird in flight etched over the pipes. "What is it?"

"Something that belongs to the Royal family of Wyndia, that somehow came into the Dragon's hands." The healer closed her eyes. "When the child is born, place it around his or her neck and don't let them remove it, ever."

"Th-thank you-"

The healer nodded. "We must go now. Godspeed, Nina Wyndia. May Ladon watch over you."

~*~

"Come on, Nina, a little bit more-"

"I can't-"

"You can! You have to!"

Rei's grip on her hand was almost crushing, but it helped to strengthen her. A few moments later, they heard the telltale shriek of a newborn. "It's a boy!" the midwife crooned as she placed the infant on Nina's chest. Nina cried, tears of joy, but also of loss. For her son. Why had she betrayed Ryu's trust? It wasn't fair to- to- Nina looked at the tiny boy in her arms, pondering him. What was this kid’s name, anyway? What was a good name for him? Garr, she decided abruptly. "Little Garr," she murmured.

Rei smiled softly. "Beautiful name, Nina. I'm sure he'll live up to it."

"Rei-" She sighed. "I need you to make me a promise."

"Ask and ye shall receive."

"Promise not to tell Ryu he has a son."

"But-"

"Rei, he needs to make a new of it. You heard her; she said that it was doubtful he’d ever walk again. He’s crippled. He can’t take care of Garr and it’ll just hurt him more to know.  I don't want him to feel trapped. Please, promise me-"

Rei sighed heavily. "I promise."

"Thank you." Nina stroked the infant's hair as she drifted off to sleep. "Love you," she murmured softly before the world blacked out entirely.