Author's Note: No matter what I do, I can't figure out how to make strike-throughs appear in the first few words. So you'll just have to imagine Julian crossing out those words and descriptors of her and finally settling on "Reece".

This letter is set right after chapter 25 of Finesse by Feffervesce. There are some spoilers in it: but quit reading here, go read her story and then come back here and use this to follow it up :). Characters used with permission.

-Hey Shorty-

-Dear Wife-

-My favorite Buttface-

-to-

-dear-

Reece,

The healers told me it would be good for me to write you this letter. That way you would know everything that's been going on. But I don't really see the point, as you are going to wake up LITERALLY any minute now...in fact I expect you to wake up before I finish this. That would be just like you, waiting until I'm good and settled, just so you could interrupt me.

I'm not sure what I'm supposed to say here. Things went a little different than we planned them. Not that we ever really plan anything...but the intention was to help save a lot of lives. Somehow we ended up losing the most important ones. Mom says that's always been our problem, that we don't think things through well enough before jumping in, but she's not really that mad. She's mostly worried about you, and about me too I guess. I mean I'm doing okay, I always pull through...although I've got some really rad scars now, I can't wait to show you! Apparently dragonfire heals in a certain pattern, so everyone will be able to tell that I tangled with a dragon. Your husband, Julian Silverpaw, Dragonfighter!

Let's see... Levianath and Fiametta are doing really good. Fia lost part of one ear in the fight, but it really makes her look badass. She doesn't have much hearing loss from it, so as far as I'm concerned, its just a bonus. Lev though-he's changed some. I don't know if it was the fight itself, or him sacrificing himself for you, but he's a lot more open now. The way he is with Fia: it's like she is the sun and he just orbits around her. You'd be proud of him. He is so happy now.

I wasn't going to write about what happened, I wanted to keep this letter happy...but it seems I have a little more time to use, as you're still asleep. Seeing you fall like that in the tower was the single most terrible moment of my life. If I live to be ten-thousand years old, I hope to never feel that way again. Sometimes when I fall asleep badly, curled up outside the med tent, I feel it again: like I've completely fallen off of the planet and there is nothing left to hold me up. I know that you are a pirate Reece, and we are totally going to be badass pirates together, but can you please just do me a favor and let's be a little more careful next time we go save the world? Because the world doesn't mean as much when I don't have you to spend it with.

It's sunset right now, and the sky looks like it set the ocean on fire. I wish you could see it right now, you'd love it.

I need you to get better, Reece Black. I need you to hear me, somehow, through all that magic that's stuck inside of you, and do nothing but work on getting things sorted out in your body so you can get better. I've never really felt lonely before: I've had family, and friends, and you know I can strike up a conversation with any person anywhere. But right now, even with everyone else I love around me, I've never felt more alone. I don't know when we went from "nice to have around" to "can't live without each other" but I feel as if my entire world is laying in this cot, waiting on you to open your eyes and crack a joke and make fun of me for sitting here with tears running down my face.

I haven't told anyone else about the baby. Lev and Fia know of course, but I can't seem to talk about it. It hurts too much. I've never felt this way about anything before: talking cures all feelings, right? But not this time. It's just too hollow, and too sharp. This is something I need to talk with you about, but you're still asleep...

and you're still asleep. I've written this as slowly as possible, and now I have nothing else to say, and everything hurts inside worse than ever. -I was hoping- I guess I will finish this up and read it to you out loud, so you still have a chance to interrupt me.

Love,

Your Songbird,

Julian