As most mornings, my eyes opened to a raging sickness that came automatically to my state. What little I had actually ingested yesterday would certainly find a way out between my lips. In panicked anticipation, my feet moved as a steam boat upon a calm surface, the room having yet to spin and mar my reality.

My knees dropped to biting tiles, my stomach writhing and bile pushing itself upon my tongue. Saturated red ink poured into the bowl, the compound composed only of left over wine and what little saliva my body would allow. The concoction resembled the expected liquid of any war, but I didn't allow myself that paranoia…

I absolutely hated this. I hated performing this task as routine. The end result was so well loved, and so anticipated, but the steps stretching across a hateful staircase leading to my very destination were taxing. My body was devoid of energy from simple movement.

Tears once again found a way upon my blossoming apples, droplets kissing my lashes as gentle lovers trying to stop the production of any more brothers. They were the undesired result of a mixture of fury and sorrow.

"Eli…Are you alright?"A tired voice rose from the porthole, and a body inhabited the room sitting vacant at my side. It was a moment before shock registered. "Are you coughing up blood?" His voice was fairly even for being so concerned.

"…No." I answered. "No…That was the wine from last night…I'm…I'm just pregnant, Gilbert." What point would there be in lying? To give him possible clause to take me to the hospital so the doctor could offer the same knowledge? "It's like this in the mornings…"

The sharp reply I was expecting regarding Roderich shriveled within panicking stomach acid. "Really?" A silence that lived an eternity. "How far along are you?"

"About two months…"

A palm stole residence upon my furthermost shoulder blade while his sleeve, again, stole away the discharge draining from my eyes."Eli…"

"I'm sorry, Gilbert…You needn't be so kind to me…I know you're upset…"

"Of course I'm upset." His tone became as a scolding parent's. "…But not at you…"

And for the longest moment, I was held as a shining Emerald. My Prussian became so afraid of marring the surface, even the pads of his fingers were exceedingly aware of their positions.

"Please don't cry anymore...Every time I see you, you're crying…I have to believe it's my fault…" It was rare to find him utilizing such a pliable tone. I could break it within a loving grasp. "I'm not upset with you…This is in no way you fault…If you wanted to blame anyone, it's that idiot you're married to."

"Don't spew that sort of nonsense!"

The shock coded his fingers as a red-handed thief.

"I know you hate him, but Roderich is extremely good to me. He doesn't deserve that, and frankly, I'm growing tired of hearing it."

A sigh infected my ear. "You love him, don't you?" When no comply was brave enough to walk outside the safety of my lips, his words continued. "…I'm sorry…And I'm sorry you're upset…At the very least, he's good to you…I'd be even more furious if he wasn't."

"Gilbert…"

"Are you happy?"

"Happy with what?"

"Happy living there…"

"Yes…I suppose so. Roderich seems to be constantly busy, but he's kind…and he truly does try to keep me entertained." The raging sea's waters seemed to convert from frothy emotion to a calmer wave. "That's why he bought me this place…He was so concerned with my boredom at home, and he wanted to bring me happiness."

There were no syllables, angry or generous, slipping from his mouth's loose grasp.

"And I do love him…But I still love you as strongly as I ever have. You're mine, Gilbert Weillschmidt...I've adored you so long, there's no possibility I can stop…I've spent an entire year missing you, and…" My thoughts seemed to wither within a cold room rich with incoherency.

"...I suppose he isn't so awful…I simply can't stand him…" A moment was stolen to plant a kiss upon my cheek. "Thank you, Eli…I still love the hell out of you…" Another grace brimming with his obvious affection. "Did you that while you were away, Ludwig had a mustache? I forced him to shave it off before I came…"

"God, you're just awful!" We were both stricken with laughter, even though my eyes were serving their full duty as faucets. A playful reprimand was branded upon his chest.

"I'm sorry, Eli."

"It's alright…I've forgiven you."

"Thank you…I love you."

"I love you too."

Moments were born and died suddenly. "Elizaveta…"

"Oh…You're serious." The last remnants of my poor control were subtracted from my visage. "What is it, Gilbert?"

"Are you truly pregnant?"

"I know…" A bit of upset sat within my belly. "It's quite the bite to swallow…But I'm fairly certain…Does it make you unhappy?"

"…I'm unsure…I'm not unhappy...Perhaps just disappointed. But I've been disappointed an entire year…" A pause livid with audible contemplation. "I know I don't seem like the type of man to be a husband, but I wanted to marry you. Thanks to our positions, I couldn't, and now your last name is Edelstein." Through his seriousness came small laughter. "I would have gotten you pregnant long before now."

My face must have become a blossoming rose. "Gilbert, how many children would you want?"

"Six."

"Six? That seems so unachievable now that I'm experiencing it…"

"It does seem slightly greedy. Who needs so many children?" There was a crooked grin pressed upon my locks. "How about three?"

"Three? That doesn't seem so horrid…"

Silence robbed our conversation, and we were left simply to embrace one another. It had been a while since I was stricken with such confusion. Emotion might as well have become a cardinal component of my blood.

"Well…Now that you've told me you're pregnant, I'm going to obsess over you…be careful. I'm going to get breakfast for the both of us, so I'll return soon. Until then, please relax. Don't do anything like fall down that ridiculous flight of stairs…Don't go outside or move too quickly…Take three steps and then rest, to be safe. Make absolutely sure you don't sweat, not even minimally. And I'll be checking your forehead when I come back…Don't fool yourself into thinking you can simply wipe it away. Actually, I'll carry you…"

"Gilbert, I'll be just fine…Really."

A skeptical possessed his features, those rubies grasping at my heart and breaking cardinal pieces.

"Please don't look at me that way…Please, darling. I adore you, but I can watch myself a few moments while you're away. I swear to take three steps and rest, and I swear to you I will not sweat, even if I become incredibly warm…"

"Two steps and I won't carry you."

"Fine. Two steps."

Our progress to my room was slow. Just as I had sworn, our feet moved twice, and then we stopped few seconds for rest. As our feet inhabited my chamber, I was swept from my heels and brought to my bed's ever beckoning grasp, submerged gently into a mountain of frothy and ruined silk. Cautious leather gloves touched my naked skin softly, wrists and forearms. My arms were crossed upon my stomach, and the painter of this masterpiece stepped back to admire his careful strokes.

"Are you comfortable, Eli?"

"Yes, Mr. Weillschmidt."

"Good. Promise me you won't move."

"Oh, Gilbert."

"Promise me."

My voice was full of evident frustration. "I promise you, I won't move. Please hurry back."

"I will. That my part of this ridiculous bargain." His right eyelid hid my shining gem. "I love you, Eli."

"I love you too, you silly Prussian! Remove yourself from my home and bring me something to eat!"

"Insult me all you like. Just as long as I'm your favorite Prussian."

I waved him away as a pest, causing an accusing finger to fall upon my motioned digits.

"No moving! You made a promise!"

"I'm sorry. I won't. Beginning right now."

"Thank you. Good-bye, you silly Hungarian."

"Just as long as I'm your favorite Hungarian." I wished him good-bye in my older tongue, one I hadn't used in what had to be the duration of eternity filled with Germanic syllables and a lovely Austrian.

I was granted a smile before the door shielded my Darling from view.

Oh, they were so similar…and yet, they couldn't even be placed within the same chamber. Their woman was even the same, and she adored either option heartily.

In my patience, my thoughts converted to soft dreams, incoherent fragments containing a loving Prussian shamelessly laying his lips upon my lonesome skin. He had no clothes, and each tightly knit muscle mirrored the version I had become familiar with.

How can blame be placed for curiosity? Any female, sinful or pure wonders such horrid quandaries. My husband's body was devoid of such strength, although he had enough charms to fill a barren room.

"Eli…"

And in my fantasy, a soft voice arose.

"Eli, I'm going to make you breakfast." My form was closely to another, arms supporting a slack figure at the shoulders and back. "Goddamn, you're cute."

"Hmm…Prove it…"

Amy forehead, either cheek, the curve of my nose, and my lips, and finally laughter with an embrace.

"I missed you…You're so warm. Lie next to me."

"No, darling. You have to eat. You hardly had anything yesterday."

"Oh, but I did…just not here…"

"Come on…"

"Gilbert…"

"Eli" His whine was in return to mine and included a kiss. "Come on…"

"Gilbert, I'm exhausted…"

"Well, I'm going to feed you so you won't be exhausted!"

"Gilbert!"

"What?!"

"Please love! All this yelling isn't any good for my condition…"

An exasperated sigh. "Eli…"

"Gilbert…" I mirrored his own frustration, laughing.

"…This woman…"

"I'm sorry, love. I'll get up."

"Thank you."

"But I want to make you breakfast. Honestly, what else are these hands good for? You've done enough for me, please…"

"Alright…You're a better cook anyway." A tinge of passion was placed by careful lips upon my cheek. "But that's all you're allowed to do."

"Well, I suppose I can live with that."

We arrived in at the kitchen's opening, and a heavy brown sac was placed within my hands, its borders overflowing with what seemed to be a combination of eggs, potatoes and few vegetables.

"Goodness! You can't live off of potatoes, can you?"

"There's eggs too…"

I studied him skeptically a moment, concluded my one-sided interrogation with a sigh. "Well…I suppose potatoes and eggs aren't won't make an awful meal…"

"Exactly, Eli! I'll take you somewhere nice for lunch, but for now, we'll have potatoes and eggs. Besides, they're healthy for you. They'll fill you to make up for yesterday."

"You needn't buy me anything more, Gilbert. My husband gave me quite a bit of spending money. I would feel off if I didn't use any of it…Although, I'd love to go out with you."

"Well, I'm not going to argue with that. Thank you, Elizaveta." Lips were assigned to guard my forehead.

As breakfast was put into production, My Prussian persisted to bother me with tinges of adoration and amusing anecdotes. It was as if we were wed and had a simpler life, where the woman actually made meals opposed to a legion of servants…It was unfortunate it was Roderich's seed flourishing in my once colorless garden. In few sunsets, I would be transported back to his grasp…

How sad it would be to abandon my sweet Prussian, my faux spouse…

Breakfast was served in the presence of comfortable silence, Gilbert and I exchanging opposing glances and loving touches.

"Eli…I think we should get married…"

"Married? Gilbert, I can't marry you. I already have a husband."

"Well, I know that."

"…Are you suggesting a fake wedding? I have no white besides this old night gown…Oh, Gilbert; you shouldn't even be allowed to view me this way. I must appear horrible…"

"Stop! You don't look horrible. You're gorgeous. And if it makes you feel better, I'll marry you in my undergarments."

My bottom lip was retracted in solid thought. "Well…Fine. But I want a ring."

"A ring? A ring…" With a few moments of contemplation, a large golden napkin ring was produced. "Elizaveta, will you be my bride for a few days?"

"Oh, Gilbert of course I will!" I took the shining circlet and slipped it around my thumb, pretending to be brought tears of overwhelming mirth. "This must be the happiest day of my life!"

"I know it is, darling! Go get ready! Our wedding is in an hour! I thought I would surprise you!"

"Oh, thank you! I adore surprises!" I kissed him upon the cheek and abandoned my spot. "Where is our wedding?"

"It's outside, Love!"

"I adore sunshine even more so than surprises!"

The rhetoric slipping so horridly from of mouths was that of the dialogue found in a poor romance novel. Each syllable was alive with forbidden laughter.

"Good-bye momentarily, my sweet Gilbert! I can't afford to be anything but punctual!"

The ruby-eyed Prussian took a moment for his laughter. "Yes, Eli! Quickly! Before the guests arrive!"

We exchanged a kiss as a quick good-bye, my toes gliding carefully upon the floorboards in boisterous joy shortly afterwards.

A make-shift engagement…He was so odd at times…But I had a certain love for this idea. What a comedian I had found.

I brushed through my ruined tresses, strands losing their unruliness through a web of bristles. I knew I had nothing elegant for my loving Gilbert, but it held not even a drop of pertinence. It was a faux wedding, and our shanty union would be nothing but a joke, and without even a concern of seriousness, we would be wed in our undergarments.

A single clip encrusted with a lonesome diamond hung to my tresses as a frightened child to its mother's knee. The sunlight touching me so gently with its fiery digits left flashes of gold to shine within my make-shift cascade, while my own fingers pinched my cheeks, causing them to flourish and illuminate my powder-barren visage. The stray sleep sitting comfortably within the corners of my eyes was banished, and I descended the risers as if there really were one thousand pairs of eyes taking in my very ceremony. My feet were bound with false heels, and my hair was held with jewels that took the clarity of apparitions.

As I came to the doors leading into my garden shimmering with healthy light, I stopped Gilbert several paces from my toes. He was dressed in clean white undergarments, fabric dressing only the lower portions of that fine body, leaving him those deeply knotted muscles and a handsome crooked grin.

He waved to me, and I was drawn from my place upon the floor, coming to him as a powerful magnet to steal.

Our wedding was silent compared to the original in Austria, but to my own heart it was so much more preferable. Finally, I was truly my own, tresses undone and my body clothed in a shabby gown. There were no faces to tell gorgeous lies to, and no voices creating nervous jolts all throughout my blood. No happiness to falsify…No one to disappoint. No nation to destroy lying as a paper bird within my clumsy hands.

We stood within a small flat of lively grass, its green vibrant and happy dandelions taking residence within its wild fingers. Our hands took root within one another's and finally, communication came.

"You look beautiful, Elizaveta."

"Thank you Gilbert…I'm enjoying your outfit. It's very original."

A kiss prepared for either deepening apple. "Are you ready?"

"Yes. I suppose so."

"Eli, do you take-"

"Goodness! That's not how it begins!"

"Well, how does it?"

"Say you vows!"

"Vows?"

"Yes, Darling. Wedding vows."

"Eli, I'm no good at that poetic nonsense. Isn't the fact that I adore you enough?"

"No, Mr. Weillschmidt. I'm afraid not. Just try."

A deep sigh. "Well…" I could feel the burn of his frame within the center of my palm, just as affected by this shy fire. "As much as I truly do love you, anyone can lie. Words are cheap. Please, allow me to prove it." With little warning, he took my face in between loving hands and laid his affection upon my forehead, either cheek, the very curve of my nose, and at the climax, my lips, that embrace being the gentlest and most adoring of all.

"Now Eli, why don't you say your vows?"

Simply, I stole my Prussian's lips, dragging him closer as our mouths slammed against one another's, our tongues curling together as if having a passionate conversation. When our faces fell from their ensemble, we stared and we smiled, as widely as we ever have.

"Gilbert, do you take Elizaveta Héderváry as your loyal and loving wife?"

"Of course I do! And Eli, do you take the handsome and sometimes hot-headed Gilbert Weillschmidt as your faithful and adoring husband?"

"Yes! I do! You may kiss the bride."

A simple touch, and our feet propelled us to shelter with our arms connected at the elbows.