Raoul opened his eyes and felt the space beside him on the bed. It was still warm. So that meant she had gotten up not too long ago. He sat up and saw the silhouette of the woman he loved against the purple skies of the rising sun. He got out of bed, pulling the silk robe on the floor over his body. He reached out for the metal dentures on the nightstand and put them on. Then he walked over to her.

Her long black hair was pinned into a messy bun at the top of her head. He could see the head of the dragon that had been branded onto her body and could see, in his mind's eye, the rest of the dragon. He felt guilty whenever he saw the that brand, even though she told him that it was not his fault. But he always blamed himself for what she went through.

He wrapped his arms around her waist, feeling her tense before relaxing when she realized who it was. Years had passed since what had happened to the both of them. But the mind was still traumatized that there were times when they became sucked back into that time.

She placed her hands on his and he tried not to look at the silver scars from cuts used to torture her because of him and the person who betrayed him. He kissed her neck and shoulder, inhaling deeply her unique scent. She leaned back into him. They stood like that for awhile.

"Today is the day..." she said softly.

"Yes," he answered. "I will be able to exact my revenge on that woman for what she did to us."

She turned to look at him, her forest green eyes full of worry. She said, "Please. Come back to me. Don't sink so far into your thirst for vengeance." She laid her head on his chest, her voice cracking as she continued, "I can't bear losing you again."

He cupped her head in his hands, tilted her face upwards and kissed her forehead and then her sweet mouth. He said, "I promise to come back to you. Don't worry. I will come back to you and our little one, I promise." He placed his hand on her stomach, feeling the slight bump there.

A tear slipped from her eyes and he wiped it away. He kissed her again, this time more deeply and held her hands in his, leading her back to the bed. He ran his hands through her silky hair, the pins holding it up falling to the floor. He slowly removed her robe, his eyes tracing the black brand of the Chinese dragon whose tail started at the ankle of her left foot and wrapped it's body around her left leg and torso before ending at the back of her neck. There were other silver scars all over her body. But this brand was a stark reminder of how his actions had dragged an innocent young woman into the dark side of the world.

As if knowing what he was thinking, she stood on her tiptoes, her hand snaking behind his neck, pulling him down to her and kissing him. He pushed the thought of his guilt aside and fell into the bed with her, showing her again how precious she was to him. He held her close and heard her murmur his real name, loving the way she spoke it.

Much later on, she was asleep while he lay awake, holding her in his arms. He did not know if this would be the last time he saw her and he wanted to remember her as much as he could. He placed a hand on her stomach. He wondered if his child would inherit her beautiful green eyes. He remembered the first time he saw her and how she had taken his breath away and thrown his usually composed self into total chaos.