Raichul: I originally didn't even have that last chapter in the story...it just had to be written and had to be posted...Yes, Anger issues...VERY much! And I would say it's justified.
HikariZaichiYami: I'm stoked! 22 reviews! *squeals* Naruto Kills me sometimes! Tsuande! hahaha only Naruto could jump to that!
Sonia: Welcome to the wonderful world of reviews! You're just going to have to wait to see about everything...I think this chapter will cover most of it though. And I think Sasuke is the King of 'Wrong thing to say!' catergories of any relationships...lol
Moonlight ookami: I'm sorry!!! But the cliffies just....are there!
Michi: Here's the keeping up of the great work! haha
KurenaiBara-Chan: About the baby....You'll have to wait and see!...I'm glad I added in that last chapter too. And this chapter finally IS the chapter everyone (mostly I) has been waiting for.
Weirdcrazyanimefreak: Not at all, I enjoy the dispair too...It's weird I know...but that's how it is...haha.
Sasusaku9573: Emo ending? I don't DO emo anything! lol
Kaydreams: I figure, whether he has a speech or not...as soon as he sees her, and that she's safe, he'd probably forget it all...besides that, when the anger takes over at what she says he's gonna forget it anyways. The dolt! Ayame is the voice in her head...lol....Here's the next part.
Empty-spaces: See! Sasuke ISN'T a heartless person....just kinda....uhm.....Well, he's Sasuke...Poor thing needs an outline on what to say to fix it! I swear! But I have to say, If I was pregnant with my husband's child, and he said that to me...Whether in anger or not...I'd be devistated. And she just went through a battle two days after another battle after being drugged into sleep for a month after yet ANOTHER battle....And pregnant the whole time...I think she should be allowed to freak out, it's just sad that Sasuke said something stupid to make her freak out at HIM.
Nice Girl 15: Uhmm, here is the next part! You get to find out what happens now!
Azreal-x: Your comment LITERALLY made me laugh out loud. I mean really, I almost fell over I was laughing so hard. He's going to need the next hospital bed! hahahaha! You're killing me!
Minniemousemom: Yes, my babies! uhm, this one is my baby too...My biggest and most proud baby. And Thanks SO much, really. It helps to know that something great is actually outstanding and great.
Jennarruda: You almost cried? O_O Whoa....I didn't think it was that good!
TheBLOfSH: Yup...not good....collapsed lung...ugh!
Mistryfire: Uhm...I don't know how I learned to spell literally. I just read it alot? Lol, now you know how to spell it! I'll let you at Sasuke after Tsunade's had her turn...Then you can maul and maim as you wish...but AFTER this chapter...lol. And Yes, sometimes Sasuke can be...uhm...er...less than brilliant? He will learn...And so on. haha
Alayneni: I love Naruto....uhm, as much as you can love him before wanting to beat his brains out...haha...
Tiger Priestess: Yes! I love Dane Cook! A hundred hour nap...A thousand firemen! hahahahaha! Naruto...oh Naruto....what are we to do with him...This chapter should be good...I think you'll like it!
Blue Wallpaper: Thank you! I wasn't even all that aware of the cliff hangers...it's simply, 'where can I end this? What's a good place to end the chapter?'...That's about all I think about, and the end just...happens! You are correct! Sasuke needs to use his BRAIN. And I love the scene of Tsunade crashing through the forest, makes me laugh every time! And then Naruto, oohhh man! It's a good thing he has Hinata...good grief! I know JUST where this is going, SO, leave it to me and go ahead and check the spelling and grammer. Enjoy this next chapter.
Ben's Wife: We all should feel bad for him, but maybe he should take a few classes at some school....get some advice or something. Dolt, that's pretty much what he is...especially when he spouts off without thinking! Hopefully he doesn't mess up in this next chapter!
To Everyone: I'm SOOOO very sorry that it's VERY late! Really I am! Uhm, PLEASE enjoy this next chapter. This is my baby chapter, so I DO Hope everyone likes it! Uhm, well....Here it is! Sorry again!!!
-Lady-of-Laughter
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A week later Sakura woke to find herself in the hospital. Sasuke stood at the foot of her bed while Tsunade checked her pulse. As her eyes opened Tsunade gently hugged her, whispering that she was fine physically. Of course the state of her emotional and mental health was still to be determined; it was up to Sakura to work that out. Tsuande could do nothing medically to help in those areas.
Sakura distinctly remembered dreaming about her lost baby. She had four different dreams, and each one made Sakura want to tear out her heart and lock it away, there was no pain in the world like this, except one. The only time she had ever felt this beaten, alone and lost was when Sasuke had left her. Her heart couldn't take it anymore, she needed to flee, and so she let herself drift into the dark oblivion of sleep.
Reliving those dreams and bringing them back to her mind Sakura thought of her first dream. Sakura sat in the Uchiha living room on the couch, the clan children around her on the floor. Standing behind her, and looking down at the bundle in her arms with pride, was Sasuke. In her arms a beautiful baby boy of four months slept on, unaware of the general admiration going on over him. A very light, almost white with a dusting of pink, hair covered his tiny head. And although his eyes were shut, Sakura had known that his eyes were the same as his fathers.
As she stared down at her child, something made her lungs ache. The familiar presence of healing chakra had pervaded her body, removing the image of her child and sending her mind back into the dark. She had no idea what was happening to her, but the ache in her lungs had slowly gone away as some bright light shone against the back of her eyelids. The feeling of moving, as if she were on a boat, had something like a soft breeze flowing over her skin, the sound of shouting had met her ears as she drifted off. She recognized that Tsunade was shouting the most.
After some time floating in a dark abyss another dream took her dreaming mind to another place. Sakura found herself sitting in her bed, Sasuke beside her with an arm around her waist. An ache filled her heart, and steadily increased over the time of her dream. The baby in her arms, only about six months old, fussed over who knew what. Black unruly hair stuck up in random tuffs of on the top of her head as dark green eyes filled with unshed tears as Sakura smiled at her baby girl. Next to her the feel of Sasuke's torso shaking told her he was laughing.
Suddenly the baby disappeared and Sakura was alone with Sasuke, although from the cold look he gave her as he stood from the bed and walked away while muttering something angry under his breath, she knew he blamed her for the lost of their child. The sudden feeling of complete loss filled her as the region around her heart ached, she twitch as something made her hear stop. A blissful lack of emotions took away the pain for less than a second before a zap of some kind of energy made her heart jump and keep beating.
The third dream had been about a little raven haired boy with green eyes holding a small yellow flower up to her. The boy had been about four, and when he spoke, sounding just like Sasuke from their academy days, Sakura's heart had been shredded. She had tried to pick the boy up, to hold him and feel that he was real. Yet she had watched her hands pass through him as the vision gave a light laugh and slowly faded away.
As the boy faded away Sakura wanted to cry like she never had, which was saying something. As Sakura gasped out a sob the breath stuck. Suddenly Sakura was gasping for air, which did nothing at all to bring oxygen to her lungs. Again Sakura felt healing chakra invade her body, and just as it had last time, Sakura was able to breathe evenly again. But her son was gone and she could only use that breath to weep.
The second dream she had had was of a small girl. The little slip of a thing had been about two, and Sakura had felt like the center of her world as the child's onyx eyes never left the sight of her mother who stood next to the kitchen sink. A small wispy covering of pink hair covered her small head, the pink hair only a few shades lighter than Sakura's. The feel of the baby's eyes her body made Sakura turn to the child standing by her leg.
A tiny hand was fisted around the hem of Sakura's dress as a delighted laugh escaped the little girl's mouth. A loud click sounded in her ear followed by some kind of beeping. Turning to look out the window and saw a flash of lightning, a scared mewling at her knee made Sakura look down to see her daughter vanish. At that moment Sakura's shredded heart had seemed to stop in her chest before some zap of energy made it beat on. After that a feeling of intense loss make Sakura want to cry as she was left alone in the looming darkness.
Shaking her head and clearing her thoughts, Sakura pulled herself out of her little world of dreams. As she stared up at Tsuande everything came back to her, and her heart broke all over again. Staring up with lifeless eyes and a blank face, feeling despair and agony receded as her body went numb and her mind blank. Why was Sasuke here? She was sure he had better things to do.
"I have to say you gave us all a few scares, first one of your lungs collapsed and then you had a heart attack. If that wasn't enough you went into respiratory arrest then cardiac arrest over the span of five days. It was like you were trying to die or something, you can't do this to us anymore! Your husband just about killed all hospital personnel every time the monitors beeped. No more, I can't handle this and neither can anyone else. You get better or I don't know what I'll do!" Sakura took the talking turned yelling from her mentor without so much as blinking.
Tsunade explained that she had teleported Sakura home and began immediate medical attention to Sakura. The others had taken care of the bodies before traveling home. From what Tsunade was saying Sakura had almost died a few times. And those things explained the weird feelings of energy zaps, a slight breeze, and so on. It also explained why her lungs and heart had hurt at different times, but Sakura shoved everything from her mind as Tsunade leaned to whisper in her ear.
"As much as I hate having you in this position, I must say I'm glad you're okay. And don't worry; you and your twins are stronger than you had thought. Your babies are just fine; they are completely healthy in every way. " After a second, when Tsunade pulled away from gently hugging her, Sakura blinked once then twice in surprise up at Tsunade's smile. What Tsunade said repeated in her mind, forcing Sakura to question her sanity and the possibility that she might be dreaming.
"My what?" her whispered voice cracked, it was rusty from not being used as of late and came out in only a rasping whisper. Something had to be wrong, she had lost her baby, and there was no way she had twins! Tsunade's smile stretched off her face as she looked back into Sakura's stunned face. Looking down at her body Sakura saw the mound of her stomach and knew that Tsunade was right.
She was larger than most pregnant woman at this point because she was carrying two babies. The fact that she was larger at all told her that she was still pregnant. A sob tore at Sakura's throat as she moved her hands to touch the place the Kunai had cut her when the woman had tried to take her babies. The stress finally hit and Sakura spilled everything that had happened. Tsunade held her as Sakura cried, not at all aware of Sasuke and how he stood with red eyes in complete stillness at the foot of her bed.
After some minutes, and having herself comforted, Sakura let herself relax. She was spent and ready to rest more. As Tsunade gently set Sakura back to rest she gave the due date and quietly walked out with only a glare at Sasuke. As soon as the door clicked shut Sasuke was at her side in a blink of the eye. Holding her hand and pressing it to his cheek, he looked at her with eyes that clearly spoke of worry.
He looked like a mess too, a very well groomed mess, typical Uchiha. He didn't look like he had slept much, if at all, and his face showed how tired he was not that it did anything to lessen his amazing looks. Of course, when he'd just lost his child before it was born what was he supposed to look like? And there it was, he was upset about his baby and had come to see if she truly had lost his child. Well, he'd be happy now! Not only did he have a child, he had two! She was going to kill him while he rejoiced.
Not able to look at him after what he had said Sakura stared at the ceiling. Focusing on her babies, Sakura noted the date and that she was now into her sixteenth week. Her babies would be practicing facial expressions like squinting and grimacing. Sakura felt the urge to grimace herself as Sasuke's large warm hand help her small one gently.
Sakura knew that the veins of the babies would be seen since they would have translucent skin; soon fat would plump the babies up and fill them out enough that the veins would not be seen. Their little hearts would beat around twenty-five quarts of blood a day, as well as the little eyes would be ready to open upon birth and see mommy's happy face. That is if Sakura could find any joy after her heart was so completely shattered. They would each be about three ounces and between four to five inches long.
A small fluttering made Sakura sigh, they were there and moving around. They were safe; she hadn't lost them as she had thought. The images of the children from her dreams came back, Sakura didn't know why, but even knowing that she hadn't lost her babies didn't stop the feeling of loss. She didn't know why her heart ached, but she still felt completely alone.
"Sakura." With a flinch Sakura turned her dull eyes on Sasuke, must he continue to torture her this way? Wanting to die and be done with it all, Sakura again felt the flutters in her stomach. She couldn't die, not yet, she still had to meet these little ones. Wondering whether Sasuke knew they were having twins, or if Tsunade had even spoken to him Sakura dismissed it.
Tsuande had not looked happy in the least with Sasuke. From her parting glare, Sakura was sure that if she was not pregnant and in need of Sasuke, Tsunade would just assassinate him on the spot. Clenching her teeth and telling herself not to rip his head off, Sakura looked back at Sasuke. He had that knack for doing things, things that made people want to kill him, but in a situation where killing him would not be at all a good idea.
"What I said was a defense. You're my wife, my life and the only woman or girl I have ever, or will ever, love. I know now that I have to show and tell you, and starting now I will. I loveyou Sakura, You.And I will always come for you when you need me." Sasuke pressed his forehead to Sakura's while she stared at him; his little speech came out in a low growl.
"Don't lie Sasuke, if I wasn't pregnant you never would have come. Face it; I'm nothing but a broodmare! Had I lost the twins, you wouldn't have bothered to see that Tsunade brought me home at all!" Sakura didn't believe him for a minute in his confession and this was the best she could do. What did he want from her? Just about everything he had ever done went against what he said now.
While her voice was void of all emotions and her face showing a look of death, she saw his jaw drop. Guessing that the only reason he was shocked was because he didn't know it was twins, Sakura gave no indication of life. From the way he stared at her with slack jaw and angry furrow of the brow Sakura could definitely see his emotions. Yes, his caring, his so called love for her was showing alright!
"Twins? No one told me it was twins!" His indignant exclamation only confirmed to her the belief that he didn't care. She told him he wouldn't come if she had lost the twins, and his only focus was 'they never told me it was twins.' If her case was not proven at that second in time, there would be nothing more concrete in the world. His jaw snapped shut as his eyes widened the slightest fraction in horror.
"That came out wrong. I do love you Sakura, with everything that I could possibly have left in me, I love you. You Sakura are my love, even if you had lost the twins I would still have come for you! I will always come for you." His hands cradled her face as if it were a jewel about to crumble. Funny how he thought of these things after he said something stupid; did he ever actually think about what he said before he blurted it out? She had thought that was a Naruto thing.
He watched her face and knew that she didn't believe him. But even his next words and actions would have been ones for the record books of 'Will Never Happen.' Holding her face with incredible gentleness and pressing a tender kiss to her forehead, Sasuke looked her in the eyes. His onyx eyes looked at her, and Sakura notice with surprise, the softening in them. He didn't look stern either, nor did he smirk. He was serious in every way, but in an unusually infinitely caring way. Was that even possible?
"There can always be more babies, but there will only ever be one Sakura." She couldn't even fathom where this gentleness had come from. Nor could she imagine where he had gotten those words. Did he even know how much she wanted to believe him? Did he know how much his words made her heart jump? Did he know just how much those loving words combined with those loving actions made her want to weep for them to be real?
He looked at her with a searching gaze, waiting for something, anything. Fighting away the pain and promising never to let him hurt her like this again, Sakura didn't respond. Looking back at him with the dull eyes of a person who had lost everything, Sakura showed no sign of life. But at his next actions and his next words, Sakura could only think that he must have been truly upset with her indifference.
He displayed affection! As the door slid open to reveal Tsunade, Shizune, Naruto, Kakashi and a nurse, Sasuke leaned down and kissed her. For a second Sakura felt like asking if anyone was seeing the sky falling. But she wasn't having a nightmare or looking at some clone of Sasuke. It really was him, and it was him kissing her like she was a cherished wife, a loved one that had nearly been lost. Which she had almost been, a few times in fact, she had almost been lost to him.
She reveled in his kiss. Infinitely tender and sweet, not at all demanding, he simply kissed her. Nothing of urgency like she would have suspected, nor was there any rush or deepening of the kiss. It was simple, his lips brushing hers like a soft breeze over tall grasses in a meadow. A thumb brushed very lightly over her cheekbone as he cradled her head in a firm but gentle and supporting hold.
As he always affected her, fire burned in her veins at the brush of lips on hers. The hands that held her, one now tunneling to wrap around her waist, sent lightning like energy into her body. He could always make her feel so strange, with just a look or a touch, and she melted under his attention. Perfect, she was nothing but a broodmare who became his puppet and a melting bowl of pudding at his touch.
"You,my perfect Sakura, are irreplaceable." His soft whisper, which did not hide the deep emotions of agony and loss, tore at the remaining defenses of her heart. She fought it, she couldn't be hurt again, she would kill herself if this happened again! But his kiss again sent her mind into a vortex of pounding blood and jumbled thoughts. Every wall she created to protect herself crumbled under his unusually gentle ministrations.
Naruto cheered, Tsunade seethed, Kakashi drew Shizune to himself while she smiled up and him, and the nurse blushed before she turned to go start the halls with the gossip of The Uchiha Sasuke showing affection to his wife. Blaming the hormones of pregnancy, the embarrassment of the viewers, and the stupid male Uchiha for the blush that rose to encase her whole body and the tears that fell, Sakura hesitantly kissed him back.
Lifting her hands ever so slowly, Sakura held his face. At her touch he pulled back, searching her eyes. Tsunade shooed everyone out of the door and shut them in the privacy of the room, and once they were gone Sakura was rewarded with a genuine smile of one Uchiha Sasuke. If the sky wasn't turning green and the grass blue, Sakura didn't know what was going on with the world.
"D-do you m-mean that?" Sakura could manage no more than a whisper as her insides twisted. She wanted to believe him, but the old fears where swamping her again in uncertainty. His eyes were serious, and she saw that he did mean what he said. Her shattered heart healed in that instant, even if her mind told her to be wary.
"Every word and I missed you." Her heart stopped and so did her breathing, until they jumped into overdrive at his renewed kiss. She had to be dreaming this, what alternate reality was she in? But his continued kisses kept her firmly anchored to the ground. She really didn't care what reality she was in, she was staying in this one as long as she could.
When Sasuke pulled away Sakura felt abandoned. Gasping for air and telling her heart that he was still there, Sakura fought the feeling of loss. But those feelings fled when the familiar feel of his hands gently shifted her over to her side. The bed given to her was one of the larger ones, usually for pregnant women who would be going into labor. It was wider, affording more room for the large stomach.
It was also a perk of being the head doctor's favorite apprentice, as well as being a prominent doctor herself. The needle in her arm pinched, making Sakura want to rip it out and be free. But as a doctor Sakura knew it would be a bad thing to do, for the moment she needed to allow the other doctors to do their jobs.
Facing the window and the little bird that sang just outside Sakura felt the bed being weighed down behind her before Sasuke's warm body settled against her now cold back. Calm descended on her as his arms found their way around her. She definitely liked this Sasuke, and for once she didn't bristle at his protectiveness. Yes, she could handle herself, but maybe she could let him pamper and protect her every once in a while.
Taking his hands Sakura moved them to rest on her stomach, with her hands resting on the tops of his Sakura leaned her head back. Settling her head to rest against his collar bone, Sakura felt Sasuke press a kiss to the top of her head before he rested his chin on the top of her head. With a contented sigh Sakura let the usual fatigue take her into dreamland, she had no reason to worry, Sasuke was there and she knew nothing would hurt her while he was near.
After another week of rest, and having Tsunade glare at her if she so much as shifted her feet too much, Sakura was allowed to go home. It was almost comical the scenes that transpired in her hospital room. Everything from Ino yelling at her for risking so much, to Naruto practically crushing her in a hug while babbling about her resting filled the room and halls. Even the Uchiha children came to visit, Sakura and Sasuke's team members in tow, questioning whether she was going to be okay.
But what Sakura liked the most was the fact that Sasuke was allowed to stay with her. He had to go home sometimes, to meet with his team and such. But for the most part, Sasuke stayed in her room while she rested. Every night he would settle on the bed beside her and wrap his arms around her protectively. He never said anything, and he never did anything more than look over his shoulder and glare at any passing nurse.
But Sakura was content with having him hold her close. The night before she had been released Sasuke had managed to send Sakura into a round of happy tears. He had pulled from his pocket an Uchiha necklace, and very gently secured it around her neck. Sakura had lifted it while silent tears ran down her checks. On the back was an engraving symbol of the word 'Heart.'
"It has belonged to the wives of every clan leader since the start of the clan. It belonged to my mother, and now it's yours." At his softly spoken words, with hints of pain when mentioning his mother, Sakura had broken down. She had wept, for his pain and loss as well as for the indescribable joy in her heart. He had to love her to entrust her with an heirloom so valuable and meaningful.
He explained that the necklace had the word heart because of what the woman it was given to was supposed to mean to the man. It was a symbol that the woman was the man's heart, she was the reason his heart beat. She was the man's world, and held the love that his heart had. Whether it was all the love he could possibly feel, or all he could give. Whoever the man gave the necklace to; he gave his heart and love to.
In the days to come, so full of activity, his actions and the necklace around her neck was never far from her mind. The next couple days were chaotic, and as she neared the end of her eighteenth week Sakura started preparing her team, like all the other sensei's, for the looming Chuunin exams.
Sakura had Yamato to help her, while Hinata had Kurenia. Three days after Sakura had been allowed to go home, Naruto had come bouncing into the house; literally. The thought that he hadn't changed at all since childhood made Sakura smile, he was so fun to be around at times.
Hinata was a month pregnant and Sakura could only laugh. Hinata had quietly followed Naruto into the house and received a hug from Sakura. While Hinata was in her first month, Sakura was in the middle of her fifth month. The twins would be able to hear the talking going on around them, their bones would be hardening, the nerves were be making complex connections.
Their senses would be developing, their eyesight, smell, taste, and hearing. Bigger already, the two would weigh around five to seven ounces, and would be around five in a half inches long. Somehow Sakura was sure Naruto would be fainting when Hinata was giving birth. And he was so excited about it; Sakura was almost afraid his extreme hyper activity would just overload his system and make him black out.
Now there was some entertainment for the night! Just the imagined picture of Naruto fainting, only to wake up and realize what he had before and then faint again was just hilarious to her. For Sasuke's part, he actually managed to get through the night without glaring at Naruto more than seventy-five, no seventy-six times.
Not that it mattered to Sakura, her onyx eyed raven haired husband hadn't cared who was there, he had kept an arm around her waist or shoulders at all times. Only once, when she had to go to the bathroom, did he let her go. And as soon as she came back and settled next to him, Sasuke had promptly wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders. It was laughable really, Sasuke glaring with red eyes as he routinely scanned the house for any intruder.
Although if Sakura was perfectly honest she would have had to say that the highlight of that night was when Lee had stopped for a short visit. He had stopped to congratulate her, push flowers in her face, go on about youth and all that nonsense and then left at a dead run. She had thought protective Sasuke was funny before, this new over protective Sasuke was just downright hilarious.
He had come up behind Sakura at the door and wrapped his arms around Sakura's waist before resting his head on top of hers. Lee had given his usual hello and received the usual nothing at all from Sasuke. But when he had asked to touch her stomach, well that had sent Sasuke over the edge. The glare Sasuke sent Lee would have instantly killed small children and animals, and made grown men soil themselves.
That Sasuke had grumbled a stream of threats after Lee's hasty departure made Sakura giggle. Not that it mattered; Sasuke was too busy glaring out the door, and in the process cleared the streets within a ten mile radius. Sakura stifled a full-fledged laugh and patted Sasuke's hand before moving out of his arms to pull him back to visiting with Naruto and Hinata.
At that point Sasuke surprised Sakura by pulling her to sit in his lap, cuddling her tiny frame to his chest, and glaring at the other couple. Hinata gave a quick 'I promise not to tell anyone you cuddle Sakura' because she was smart enough to realize what the glare signified. Naruto wasn't so smart at this particular moment in time. But then this was Naruto.
It had taken all of half a second for Sasuke to set Sakura to the side and hit Naruto over the head before returning and pulling Sakura back to her place. After that Naruto had given a promise not to tell anyone anything, however dazed he may have been. After their visiting was over Sasuke made sure Sakura was safely tucked in bed and held in his embrace.
Two racks of weapons we mounted on the walls on either side of the bed, easily accessible to both, and all weapons were in perfect order. Each weapon lethal and sharp, just waiting for use, even though both had bloodline limits that would keep them safe. She had nearly laughed when she saw them; Sasuke was going overboard in the protection department.
But Sakura reveled in it; at least he cared enough about the babies and her to keep weapons ready. And she couldn't be sure, but Sakura thought he might have taken to sleeping with one eye open, Sharingan at the ready. Somehow that made her want to laugh, but she didn't. Instead Sakura would smile and cuddle closer to him, allowing him to hold her more closely.
For the first two weeks Sasuke was bordering on Mr. Sensitive with her. After two weeks he calmed down and settled back into his usual self. Although Sasuke didn't mind touching her, surprisingly he loved to cuddle her close when they were in bed. And Sakura just about melted into a puddle every morning and night when he said he loved her.
Unless either of them was on a mission, which wasn't often while she was pregnant, he told her he loved her every morning and every night. Making up for lost chances perhaps? But she didn't care, she was happy to have his love at last. She had waited so very long, both patiently and bitterly, suffering for the love she harbored for a traitor. But everything now melted away; the final attainment of his love melted all other trials from her mind and memory.
