One night, I woke up to an odd sound outside my room. After realizing it was Leann crying, I got out of bed. That task was getting harder as days went on, since Ray said I wasn't allowed to sleep in my normal way anymore. He said it was because I might suffocate the babies that way.

"Leann?" I asked groggily. "Is that you out there?" The crying sound stopped a little.

"Do you want to wake up your parents?" she asked.

"Well," I said, opening the door. "You're doing a fine job of that. What's wrong?" In the darkness, I could see her a little. She looked pitiful, as she usually did when she cried.

"I'm afraid," she said.

"Of what?" I asked, getting impatient. After all, I wanted to go back to sleep.

"I'm afraid Aaron is going to leave me," she replied. After that sentence, she went back to crying.

"No offense," I said. "But that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard in my life."

"I know you're thinking it too!" Leann sobbed. "The way he looks at me, I can tell!"

"Um, Leann?" I said. "You're calling my brother an Orland-esque dirtbag, do you realize that?" She didn't hear me, though, over her tears.

"He hates me!" she cried.

"Be quiet!" I hissed, actually fearful that I would wake up Mom and Dad. "Look, if it's really bothering you that much, we can go downstairs, wake him up, and talk to him."

"Don't you think that would just make him angry?" she asked.

"No," I replied.

"Fine," Leann said, wiping her eyes. "Let's go."

We tiptoed down the stairs. Aaron was sleeping soundly, sprawled out on the floor in his bed of blankets.

"Aaron," Leann whispered, shaking him. "Wake up." He snored, and rolled over. Since Leann obviously didn't know how to wake him up, I stepped in.

"Aaron," I said a little louder. I poked him in the ribs, since that had worked for as long as I could remember. He shot up.

"I didn't do it, Leann!" he shouted, still under the impression that he was dreaming.

"You didn't do what?" Leann asked.

"Don't listen to him," I said. "He talks in his sleep all the time." Aaron seemed to regain consciousness.

"What's going on?" he asked. "Why did you wake me up?"

"Leann has something to talk to you about," I said. He stretched, and turned to Leann.

"Is there something wrong?" he asked.

"Aaron," she said. "You're not going to…leave me, are you?" She started to cry again, and Aaron looked confused, as though he wasn't awake enough to talk about such important matters.

"Why do you think I would leave you?" he asked. He reached his hand out to caress her tearstained face.

"I can tell from the way you look at me," she replied. Aaron laughed, and ran his other hand through his messy hair.

"Leann," he said. "When I look at you, I don't think about leaving you. I think about how much I love you, and how much I would hate for something to happen to you or Lily. When I look at you, I only think about staying with you…forever." Leann's eyes suddenly got very wide.

"Are you…proposing?" she asked.

"I guess I am," he replied with a laugh.

"Wait," I said. "I thought you had to be eighteen to get married in Alvarna unless you had your parents' permission!"

"We could have a long engagement," Leann said. "Oh, Aaron, this is so romantic!" She kissed him, the excitement obviously showing. He pulled her closer, and the making out started.

"Uh, guys," I said. They didn't pay any attention. "Guys! Just because you're engaged doesn't mean you can go and do it whenever you want! There are still boundaries." They stopped, and looked up at me.

"Shut up, Aria," Aaron said. He went back to making out with Leann.

"You guys are sick," I said. For some reason, though, I smiled. It must've been because I was happy for my brother. "Well, have fun. I'm looking forward to the part where Mom and Dad kill you." With those words, I went back upstairs.

As I lay in bed, I felt the twins kicking like crazy, which didn't help me sleep at all. But when I eventually drifted off, I slept soundly.

When I woke up, the sun was streaming through my window. I also heard a hammering noise coming from the back of the house. I wondered if Leann and Aaron had gotten caught, so I went immediately downstairs. Mom, Aaron, and Leann were sitting at the table, talking and looking very happy.

"I'm glad you thought through this," Mom was saying. "Congratulations."

"Thanks," Aaron said.

"When can we get married?" Leann asked excitedly.

"Well," Mom said, obviously in deep thought. "I believe that a couple should be engaged for at least six months before marriage. Kyle also has to help me decide. And Leann, we'll also have to take that up with your parents." Leann frowned.

"They'll never let me," she muttered.

"And that's their decision if they don't," Mom said. "But you won't know until you ask them."

"But I don't want to see them ever again!" Leann cried. "I like you better, Mana!"

"I'll go with you if you want," Mom said. "If you need us to, we all will. But you and Aaron are going to have to ask permission."

"Me?" Aaron asked.

"Of course," Mom said. "After all, it is traditional for the man to ask the woman's father for his daughter's hand in marriage. Now, I'm going to see if Aria's awake-"

"Here, Mom," I said. They all turned around.

"Oh, I didn't hear you come down!" Mom exclaimed. "So, I guess you heard all about what's going on?"

"Yeah," I replied. "By the way, what's that hammering noise?"

"Your father and grandfather are putting a new addition on the house," she replied. "After all, we're going to need somewhere for all three babies, and Aaron and Leann will need their own room after they get married."

"Okay," I said. "So are we going to de Sainte-Coquille Manor?"

"When your father bathes," Mom said, laughing. "I imagine working on a house is much harder work than sowing crops. I'll go let him know. You should probably get dressed, Aria."

"All right," I said.

I went back upstairs, and started to change out of my nightgown. As I looked down to take one of my shirts out of my drawer, I noticed something other than my weight. My stomach was starting to get incredibly round. I just hadn't taken the time to look at myself in a while. And wow, was I busty! I had been pretty flat-chested even after I hit puberty, so it was really weird. Without even getting dressed, I went over to the mirror, just to see if my eyes were playing tricks on me. They weren't.

I pulled on my clothes, and stared at myself in the mirror for a while. I looked more feminine, maybe even prettier. I didn't look quite so fat anymore, and the belly seemed to…add something. It made everything seem more real.

"Aria!" I heard Aaron call from downstairs. I quickly snapped out of it.

"What?" I asked.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked.

"I guess!" I replied loudly, although I was already heading down the stairs.

As I reached the bottom of the stairs, I noticed that everyone looked nicer than they usually did, except for Leann. She always looked nice. But Dad and Aaron had perfectly combed hair. They all seemed to be waiting for me.

"Well," Dad said. "Let's go."

"Go where?" I asked.

"To the manor," Aaron said. "Did you already forget?"

"Oh, yeah," I said. "Sorry."

We walked over to the manor. Aaron was holding Leann's hand, and they both looked terrified. We walked past the fountain, which had been turned off due to the colder weather, and finally got to our destination. Aaron knocked on the huge double doors, and we waited.

Cecilia's face peeked out as she opened the door.

"Come in," she said. The five of us stepped inside.

Whenever I got a chance to be inside de Sainte-Coquille Manor, I always found myself in awe. The place was huge. I wondered how Leann could have lived in a place like that, and not have turned out to be a total brat.

"Is there any particular reason for visiting?" Cecilia asked. I noticed she was looking around somewhat nervously.

"Yes," Mom replied. "Aaron? Leann?"

"We want to get married," Aaron said, squeezing Leann's hand. "But we need Max and Julia's permission."

"And I think it's time I face them," Leann said.

"All right," Cecilia said. "They're in the dining hall right now. I'll tell them they have visitors." She went into the dining hall.

Seconds later, Herman, Max, Julia, and Cecilia emerged. Max and Julia looked very happy, but Herman didn't look it at all.

"I'll leave you to talk with Leann," Cecilia said to them. She went into the dining hall, probably to clean up after them.

"So," Herman said. "You've decided to come back. Explain yourself, Leann."

"Herman," Julia said timidly. "Would you please leave us alone with our daughter?" Herman muttered something under his breath, but started up the stairs to his bedroom.

We watched as he went into his room. Suddenly, Max and Julia went over to Leann and hugged her.

"Mom?" Leann asked. "Dad? What's going on?"

"We've missed you!" Julia cried. I could tell she was in tears.

"I didn't know you still cared about me," Leann said, obviously very confused but very emotional.

"We didn't want to leave you by yourself," Max said. "We never would have done such a terrible thing to you. It's my father's doing."

"Grandfather?" Leann asked. "Why would he want to get rid of me?"

"All he cares about is family honor," Max replied. "And of course, food."

"To him," Julia continued. "You dishonored the de Sainte-Coquille family. But you'd never bring us any shame." Leann started to cry, and Max and Julia hugged her even tighter.

"I thought you were too ashamed of me," Leann whimpered.

"We had to say that," Julia said. "Herman was standing right there. We would never stop loving you."

They let Leann cry for a little while until she stopped.

"Cecilia said you had some business to discuss with us," Julia said. "Is there something you need?"

"Yes," Aaron said, answering for Leann. He looked really grown up with his hair combed. "Leann and I would like to get married, but we need your permission." For a second, both Max and Julia looked shocked.

"Have you seriously thought through this?" Max asked.

"We have," Leann replied, nodding. "Please, Mom and Dad, I'm begging you!"

"I have to say I'm a bit reluctant," Julia said. "But I don't think any more harm can possibly be done. Max?"

"I agree with Julia," Max said. "Leann, I give you permission to get married to Aaron. And Aaron, I know this sounds…a little cliché, but don't do anything to hurt my daughter."

"I won't," Aaron said. He brought Leann into a hug. "That's a promise."

"All right," Max said, smiling. It seemed as though that little warning about hurting Leann was just a precautionary measure.

"It was nice to see you," Julia said. "I hope to see our grandbaby when he or she's born."

"According to Alicia," Leann said. "We're having a little girl."

"Congratulations," Max said. "Make sure to take good care of her."

"Max!" Herman's voice boomed from upstairs.

"You should probably go," Julia said. Max and Julia brought their daughter into a hug for what seemed like forever to me.

We hurried out the door, but I saw Leann looking very sad.

"What's wrong?" Aaron asked her. "Aren't you…excited?"

"Yes," Leann said. "But…I just wish they hadn't told me how much they loved me still. Then, I wouldn't miss them so much." She started to cry again. Aaron stopped dead in his tracks, and went to comfort her.

"You all can go ahead," he said to us.

Mom, Dad, and I continued to walk, but we all seemed to be lost in our own thoughts. I realized then how lucky I was to be able to live with my parents. It was hard enough for me to bear only having Mom when Aaron and I were seven, but not having either of them would have been rough. I kept thinking.

Maybe that's why she's been crying so much, I thought. Maybe it's not how she feels about Aaron, or herself, or her situation. Maybe she just misses her parents.

As we reached the house, I went right up to my room, and took a look at myself again. I quickly turned away, though, because I felt so bad.

"We both need something," I said aloud. "She needs her family back, and I…" I stopped, since I didn't know what to say. Maybe it was because there was so much I needed.

I decided to sleep on it, in the hopes of getting an idea.