Alfyn sighed.

"Just thirty more minutes…"

The apothecary stretched his arms up above him, letting out a much-needed yawn as quietly as he could so that he wouldn't wake anyone up. He probably didn't need to, considering everyone in the group had built up the tolerance necessary to sleep through Olberic's awful snoring. Still, it didn't hurt to be careful. Alfyn knew full well what was in store for him if he accidentally woke up one of his companions in the middle of the night.

He had found that out the hard way.

The group had decided to set up camp early today, as it had been a considerably rough day of travel. The path from Clearbrook to Saintsbridge wasn't particularly difficult when it came to monsters or the terrain, but it was fairly demanding in terms of length. It would take the party over two weeks to arrive in Saintsbridge if they were to go on foot, which didn't sound too appealing after spending a month traveling through the harsh slopes of the Cliftlands.

So for the first time since they had formed, the group had considered taking a carriage.

The carriage ride would reduce the travel time from two weeks down to just a few days, and it also meant that they wouldn't have to burden their legs. It was an enticing proposition, but ultimately the group decided to go on foot. Mostly because they could barely afford two carriages to carry the eight of them, but also for the sake of keeping their combat sense fresh. Olberic, H'aanit, and Therion would always have their battle instincts no matter how much time went by, but the rest of the group needed their daily dose of lethal exercise to keep themselves from getting rusty.

Besides, trying to convince a coachman to let Linde ride on the carriage with them would have been quite an ordeal.

That said, traveling on foot meant that the group would have to make camp for most nights, and even though Lady Luck was usually on Alfyn's side, he had drawn the short end of the stick tonight. The apothecary had gotten one of the absolute worst times for night watch: the dreaded third slot. The group had developed a fairly efficient system when it came to their night-shifts over the last several months. Usually they would all sleep eight hours every night, so it was easy to divide the workload amongst four people alternating every other day between the men and women.

It worked well enough for the people who drew the first and last slots, but not for those unfortunate enough to receive the second or third. Waking up in the middle of the night for your shift and then having to go back to sleep again later wasn't very enjoyable, especially after a long day of travel. But this was the arrangement that they had all settled into, and it wasn't as if Alfyn disliked it. Actually, if you had asked him about it a few weeks ago, the apothecary would have said that he rather liked the system.

However, things were different now. Now that Primrose and Alfyn were officially in a relationship, the two of them had started sleeping with each other every night. At first, it had been heavenly. Going to bed with Primrose, feeling her warmth against his body, bringing her in close as they both drifted away into a deep sleep…

All of a sudden, having either the second or third night-shift had become extremely unappealing to Alfyn.

Tearing himself away from Primrose's embrace tonight was one of the hardest things that the apothecary had ever had to do. His displeasure must have been quite visible as well, seeing as Olberic offered to take his shift right after waking him up. Alfyn almost took the knight up on his offer, but he knew that Olberic needed the rest more than anyone. With that in mind, Alfyn somehow managed to summon up the willpower to take up his post, albeit begrudgingly.

And so here he was now, staring out into the night mindlessly and waiting for the hourglass sitting next to him to finally let him know that his watch was over.

During his night-shifts Alfyn usually liked to practice his mixing techniques and experiment with any interesting flora that he could find nearby. Most of the time his experiments wouldn't yield any significant results, but every once in a while the apothecary would come up with something interesting. Recently, Alfyn had discovered some new combinations that produced hazardous concoctions rather than medicinal ones. He wasn't sure if his new concoctions would be reliable in most battles, but in the right situations, they might prove to be useful.

Tonight though, Alfyn wasn't really feeling up to it. The apothecary was already very well-acquainted with all the flora in the Riverlands, so any experimenting probably wouldn't result in anything that he wasn't already familiar with. Besides, he was tired. All Alfyn wanted to do right now was to head back inside his tent and go to sleep. The only thing keeping the apothecary from doing just that was the tiny measuring device beside him, practically taunting him as the stream of sand seemed to get slower and slower with each passing second.

"C'mon little grains of sand…just a little faster. You can do it." Alfyn whispered, lightly nudging the hourglass with his pointer finger.

"Talking to inanimate objects now, are we?"

The sudden sound of someone else's voice caught Alfyn completely by surprise, making him jump up from his seat in panic. The apothecary quickly turned around, only to find Primrose slowly approaching him from their tent.

"W-what the hell!? You scared the living bejeebers outta me!" Alfyn complained, frowning deeply at the sight of a small grin forming on the dancer's face.

"Bejeebers, indeed. You looked almost like a rabbit caught in the eyes of a wolf. Though, I'd say that's an apt comparison." Primrose grinned, looking down at Alfyn with a hand on her hips.

"Hey, who ya callin' a rabbi—" Alfyn protested, his eyes widening slightly. "Wait, why in Dohter's name are you awake!? Go back to sleep!"

"Come now, is that any way to talk to your beloved?" Primrose said with a smug grin.

Alfyn merely narrowed his eyes in response.

"Peace, Alfyn. I was only teasing. I woke up and found that you weren't there next to me, so I thought I'd keep you company instead. It's as simple as that." The dancer chuckled, taking a seat next to Alfyn on the log. "Now, would you be a dear and throw some straw into the fire? The Riverlands are surprisingly chilly during the night."

"Sure, but I'd much rather you go back to bed." Alfyn nodded, reaching for some nearby grass and tossing it into the campfire. "I'm doin' just fine on my own, and I've only got thirty minutes left till I'm done."

The dance shrugged. "All the more reason to stay. I'd much rather go back to bed with you than by myself, and losing a half-hour of sleep won't kill me."

"Yeah, maybe. We both know how grumpy you get when you're sleep-deprived though." Alfyn snorted playfully.

"Oh, hush. Most of us are not able to function properly on only six hours of sleep. Unlike some people…" Primrose responded, gently jabbing the apothecary in the arm.

"As an apothecary you get used to it. Medicine ain't exactly forgivin' work when it comes to your sleep schedule." Alfyn chuckled, looking back towards the fire. "Long nights and early mornin's are more common than not."

"What, do you want to be praised? How humble of you." The dancer laughed, lightly ruffling Alfyn hair with her hand. "Good job, Medicine Man."

"Hearing that from you instead of Therion doesn't sound right at all."

"Well, deal with it. Or would you rather I call you something else, darling?"

The apothecary let out a chuckle, turning towards the dancer with an amused grin. The dancer responded with a playful grin of her own, bringing her knees up against her chest and gently placing her cheek against them. Just like how a cat would rest its head on top of its paws.

It was behavior like this that caused Alfyn to genuinely question the possibility of his lover being some sort of half-cat, half-human hybrid.

Knowing the dancer, their conversation was about to take a very messy turn. It'd been a while since the two of them had bickered back and forth like this. Now that they were officially together, conversations between them were a bit more honest than before. Sometimes the two of them didn't even talk when they were alone, choosing to enjoy each other's company in silence instead. At times, it felt almost as if they didn't need to use words to communicate with each other anymore.

"It's called the honeymoon period, Alfyn." Primrose had told him a couple of days ago. "Enjoy it."

However, right now it certainly seemed like the dancer was trying to elicit a certain type of reaction from him. Unsurprisingly, it was working. Only Primrose could get the apothecary to behave this way. Normally, Alfyn wasn't the type of person to make sarcastic remarks or snide comments. But ever since he first met her, the frisky feline had always managed to get him to dance to her tune. At first, her constant teasing had been a little vexing, but now it was something that Alfyn loved most about her.

He just hoped she'd take it a bit easier on him now that they were in a relationship.

"Darling works just fine." Alfyn said softly, letting the corners of his mouth curve upwards slightly. His gaze fell back towards the fire, which was now slowly starting to rise.

"Hmm…?" Primrose hummed, raising an eyebrow. "Ever the romantic, are you?"

"Sure am. If I wasn't I don't think I'd be able to woo someone like you." Alfyn joked, knowing full well just how inexplicably lousy he was at romance.

The dancer laughed. "Careful now, mister. Don't get overconfident."

"Yeah, I know. You don't gotta worry about that." Alfyn sighed. "Don't have much experience with this kinda stuff."

Primrose blinked. "Wait, Alfyn. Am I… your first relationship?"

"Uh-huh. I thought that was pretty obvious." The apothecary nodded, turning to face the dancer. "Didn't I tell ya that you were my first kiss?"

"Oh, yes. You did. I suppose it never really clicked." Primrose remembered, as her mind went back to their time in Clearbrook.

"Yup. I didn't much care about girls when I was a kid, and by the time I started to I was too focused on learnin' how to be an apothecary to look for anything." Alfyn claimed, leaning back on his arms. "Only girl I was really close to was Mercedes, but she was more like a sister to me than a childhood crush."

"I see. That does make sense." Primrose nodded, tilting her head slightly. "So, what was different about me when we first met?"

"Aw shucks, that's not fair. Don't make me answer that."

"Oh? Now I'm curious."

Alfyn looked down sheepishly, trying to hide the light flush on his cheeks as best as he could. "…You were really hot."

Primrose stared at Alfyn incredulously for a few seconds before bursting into a fit of giggles. The dancer tried her best not to make too much noise, but the apothecary's annoyed expression was making that very difficult.

"C'mon, can ya blame me?! A country boy leaves town for the first time in his whole life and the first girl he talks to is a perfect beauty wearing a dancer's outfit." The apothecary grumbled underneath his breath. "What else was I supposed to think, huh?"

The dancer rolled her eyes. "Men."

Alfyn sighed in defeat. "Well, sorry. Wish I could give ya a more respectable answer, but it's the truth. Call me shallow if ya want."

"No, it's alright. I appreciate the honesty." Primrose chuckled, shaking her head slowly. "Let's not forget the reason I first approached you either."

"You wanted to get some leaves outta my pocket, right?" Alfyn laughed.

"Hmm, something like that. Though, I remember thinking you looked somewhat lacking in coin back then." The dancer smirked mischievously. "Not much has changed, has it?"

"Hey, last I checked I had a good number of leaves up on you. So don't go talkin' smack unless you got some bite to your bark." Alfyn fired back.

"Please. If I took up my noble seat then I would have well over a hundred times your life savings." Primrose huffed.

"Yeah okay, that's a big if." Alfyn responded. "Also, dontcha owe me something like thirty leaves?"

The dancer clicked her tongue, steering her gaze away from the apothecary. "I thought you had forgotten."

"Hey! So you were just not gonna say anything!? Shucks, Prim!" The apothecary complained, narrowing his eyes slightly at the dancer. "Just gonna let me forget so you can get away with it?"

"Yes, and if we weren't having this conversation there's a good chance I would have gotten away with it. Though, I suppose I can only blame myself." Primrose sighed. She turned to meet Alfyn's gaze once again, flicking his nose playfully in hopes of easing his displeasure. "Don't look at me like that. It makes me uncomfortable."

Alfyn huffed, crossing his arms firmly. "Uh-uh. I ain't letting you get out of this. Thirty leaves, pay up."

Primrose stared sharply at Alfyn for a few seconds before rolling her eyes and getting up to make her way towards their tent. Alfyn watched her amusingly, content that he had gotten one up over the dancer. After rummaging around her belongings for a few moments, the brunette found what she was looking for. A small part of her wanted to stay inside, leaving Alfyn alone with all of his pompous sass. However, doing that would only further spur him on, so it was probably best to get this over with quickly. Primrose came back outside from her tent, her face souring by the second at the sight of her lover's snarky grin.

"Here. Thirty leaves paid in full." Primrose growled, dropping a stack of coins into the apothecary's lap.

Alfyn's grin only widened. "Pleasure doin' business with ya!"

"Hmph."

The two of them bickered for a few more minutes, careful not to let themselves get too carried away. Eventually, they settled into a comfortable silence, leaning against each other comfortably as they watched the fire flicker against the outlines of the trees. Now that he wasn't feeling down in the dumps anymore, Alfyn could enjoy the quiet ambiance of the night to its fullest. The hourglass next to him told him that there were only twenty minutes left of his watch, but that didn't matter so much to the apothecary now.

All thanks to Miss Primrose Azelhart.

Now that he thought about it, Primrose had most likely joined him knowing that he was feeling a bit low-spirited. Usually, the dancer wasn't one to do things like this without a good reason, especially if it caused her discomfort. If the apothecary had been his normal upbeat self, then she would have most likely gone right back to sleep without much of a second thought. Instead, she noticed that something was off about him, and decided to join him outside hoping to cheer him up. Even though the dancer was probably feeling just as tired as Alfyn, she still chose to keep him company. The Primrose from nine months ago would have never done something like this. Not even close.

That's why it meant so much to Alfyn. Because he knew that she had changed. Changed for the better. He had played a large part in that, sure, but most of it was her own doing. Slowly, but surely…

She was healing.

Alfyn was snapped out of his thoughts as the dancer shifted her weight, gently placing her head on top of his shoulder. The apothecary let his eyes linger on the fire for a little longer before turning to face Primrose. Unsurprisingly, the sight in front of him left him absolutely speechless.

The warm glow from the fire illuminated her face perfectly, casting the dancer in an almost ethereal glow. The blazing crimson and gold of her dancer's attire rivaled the brilliant colors of the flames, colors that danced in the shadows of the night just as passionately as the woman who wore them. Her electric green eyes burned brightly in even the darkest hours of the day, reflecting the light from the campfire almost as if they were flawless orbs of glass.

The same eyes that were once cold and lifeless nine months ago, devoid of any emotion aside for numbing rage.

It was during moments like these when Alfyn wondered just how someone like Primrose had become such an integral part of his life. Even before they decided to enter a relationship, her presence in his life had always seemed too good to be true. That said, it wasn't as if she was some angel sent down to him from the heavens. Far from it in fact. Alfyn had never seen the dancer as a source of light in his life, and he probably never would. Primrose was a good person, yes, but she wasn't pure. She was dark, tragic, and sometimes hateful.

No, Primrose was more like a gem. A jewel unparalleled in clarity and beauty, perfectly polished after many years of living in the harsh realities of this world. A priceless treasure that the apothecary just happened to stumble upon by pure chance.

Man, was he ever a lucky guy.

"Alfyn."

The apothecary blinked. "Huh?"

"You were lost in thought. Is there something wrong?" Primrose asked, concern showing in her eyes.

"Ah, no. It's nothing. Sorry." Alfyn responded, shaking his head lightly. The corners of his mouth curved into a small smile as his eyes went back to the campfire. "Hey, you remember what I said to ya when I confessed?"

"For the most part." Primrose nodded. "Why?"

"Do ya remember what I said at the end?"

"Not…quite."

"Figures. Shucks, by that point you were a cryin' mess.." Alfyn laughed, which earned him a sharp pinch on his arm. "I told you that I wanted to start a family with you, and then got all embarrassed cause of it."

The dancer blinked. "Oh, that's right. You did say that."

"I wasn't joking, y'know?"

Primrose met Alfyn's gaze, her eyes widening slightly. "Huh?"

"I was being serious. When all of this is over, I want us to start a family. In Clearbrook. Together." Alfyn announced, taking the dancer's hand into his own. "Just thought that…you should know."

Primrose stared at him for a few moments, most likely gathering her thoughts on what he had just said. After a few seconds, her lips formed into a half-smile. "Well, you're quite the fast mover, aren't you?"

"U-um! Sorry! Wasn't tryin' to pressure ya, trust me!" The apothecary stammered, looking down at the ground in embarrassment. "Forget I said anything!"

"No, no, it's fine. There's no reason to apologize. I did not take it that way." Primrose giggled. "Honestly Alfyn, how many times have I told you to stop apologizing for every little thing?"

"Sor—I mean, yeah. I'll try to stop."

The dancer let out another soft giggle, before turning her gaze towards the fire as well. "A family, hmm?"

The apothecary tried to find the right words to say in response, but found that they were completely lost to him. Instead, he merely nodded towards the fire.

"That doesn't sound too bad." Primrose smiled wistfully.

Alfyn's heart skipped a beat. "Shucks. R-really?"

"Yes."

"…Don't wanna be rude, but I honestly didn't expect you to say yes."

"It's a surprise to me as well." Primrose whispered, tightening her grip on their joined hands. Even though she was trying her best to hide it, there was a slight shake to her words. Most people wouldn't be able to notice it, but the apothecary did so immediately.

"Tell me." Alfyn said quietly.

The dancer chuckled, dropping her eyes downward slightly. "I…never truly had a family. My mother died in childbirth, and most of my relatives were distant or completely removed from my life. All I ever had was my father, but I lost him eventually as well. So I gave up. I told myself it was better to be alone, rather than risk losing someone I loved again. When Yusufa died, I thought that was the point of no return."

"But shortly after, I met all of you, and I started to think to myself that…perhaps this was what it was like. Then one day, a day filled with cold white and warm red, I felt a feeling that I had never felt before." Primrose continued, keeping her eyes locked on the fire. "A collective love so powerful, that it opened my heart for the first time since my father was taken from me."

"Oh. The winter solstice." Alfyn murmured, finally realizing where the dancer was going with her words.

Primrose smiled sadly, nodding slowly in affirmation. "That was when I started thinking that after my quest for revenge was over…it might be nice to have my own family. I just never thought it was possible." The dancer turned towards Alfyn and lightly tapped his nose with her finger. "Then you decided to happen. So suddenly too."

"S-shucks…"

"Shucks, he says." Primrose snorted, before taking a more sincere expression. "I suppose I should thank you. I knew my feelings towards you, but I was never going to act on them. So I'm grateful that you did."

Alfyn raised an eyebrow. "Really? Why not?"

"I don't know. Perhaps it's because I could never imagine myself that way." The dancer shrugged. "After the life I've lived, I never thought love was a possibility."

"I guess that makes sense, still don't like hearin' you talk like that though." Alfyn frowned.

"Well, that's reality. I can't simply forget about my past." Primrose said firmly, her eyes darkening for a brief moment.

"Yeah, I know. It just sucks that you had to go through stuff like that. I mean, I can't even imagine…" Alfyn grimaced momentarily, turning his gaze away from Primrose. "You never talk 'bout it directly, and I appreciate it, but I know what type of work you did when you were a dancer."

"Precisely why I don't address it directly." Primrose responded. "Especially when Tressa and Ophilia are present."

"Probably best not to."

"…Does it bother you?"

"Huh? Bother me what?"

"Does it bother you that I've been sullied?"

The words that came out of Primrose's mouth were sudden, but that didn't make it any less painful for Alfyn to hear. He'd always known, but having it confirmed by her directly made it feel much worse. His chest felt like it was on fire, burning with a fury so intense that it terrified him. It took everything the apothecary could muster to keep all the emotions flaring inside him from showing on his face.

"No, it doesn't." Alfyn muttered numbly, hiding his anger as best as he could. "At least, not in the way that you're thinking of."

"What do you mean?" The dancer asked, finally meeting Alfyn's eyes with her own.

"It doesn't bother me one bit that you've lost your virtue. Hell, most gals my age have. Ain't ever cared about that." The apothecary fiercely shook his head. "What bothers me is that you had to go through that. No one should ever have to, not even the lowest of the low. It makes me sick."

"Alfyn again, that's just the reality of—"

"Then fuck that reality."

The searing bite to Alfyn's words made the dancer recoil back slightly. Her wide eyes made it clear that she wasn't expecting the apothecary to respond the way he did. Even Alfyn was surprised at his own words; he never thought he could ever snap like that.

"I…don't think I've ever heard you curse like that before." Primrose gawked, looking at Alfyn in shock.

"Sor—"

"Don't apologize."

"I-I mean, my bad. It's just…I just don't like it when you dismiss all that shit so casually. Almost like it's supposed to be natural." The apothecary sighed, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "It's not. The stuff that happened to you is straight-up wrong. You have every right to be angry and disgusted 'bout it."

The dancer said nothing, watching him with attentive eyes that Alfyn knew he had no hope of seeing through.

The apothecary took in a deep breath. "So, if you're not gonna get heated about it, I'll do it for ya. After all, isn't that kinda my job now? Y'know, now that we're—"

Alfyn was cut off by the sound of Primrose's beautiful laughter. The apothecary stared at her hesitantly, unsure if her laughter was a good thing or a bad thing. Knowing Primrose, there was a good chance it was both.

"Ah, forgive me. I hope my laughter didn't come across as rude." The dancer giggled softly, before settling into a gentle smile.

"Of course not. Just…a little surprising is all." Alfyn replied with a smile of his own.

The dancer turned her gaze back towards the fire. "Thank you, Alfyn."

"For what?"

"Thank you for getting angry on my behalf. You rarely act like this, so I know it's genuine. That compassion of yours is one of the things I love most about you." Primrose chuckled, leaning her head against his shoulder once more. "I do feel that way, you know? The rage is always there; I could never forget it. However, I choose to keep it deep within. So when I need it, at the most critical moment, I can rely on it."

"You sure it's not cause you've gotten used to it?" Alfyn asked in a concerned tone.

The dancer nodded. "No, that's definitely part of it. But it's fine, because now I have you. Someone I can trust who will be resentful in my stead."

"Shucks, I'll do my best." Alfyn grinned.

Primrose nodded. "Mmm. I know you will."

Alfyn let out a satisfied chuckle before taking a quick look at the hourglass beside him. The sand was nearly finished trickling down to the bottom. Alfyn guessed that the two of them only had a few more minutes left at most.

"Hmm, by the way, Alfyn. You said you were serious about starting a family together, right?" Primrose hummed mischievously, releasing their joined hands and leaning back gently on her arms.

"Y-yeah. Why?" Alfyn responded nervously, wary of the dancer's teasing tone.

"You know what that implies, correct?" Primrose smirked.

The apothecary scratched his chin. "Uh, not really. Guessin' I'm missing something here?"

"Well, in order to start a family, we would have to have a child together, yes?" The dancer said slowly, which only made her playful tone that much more apparent.

"I mean, duh! I'm not an idiot, Prim. Where are ya going with th—"

"Sex, Alfyn. I'm referring to having sex."

Nothing in the world could have prepared Alfyn for that answer. Unlike most of his recent embarrassed reactions, this one was immediate. The apothecary's cheeks flushed a deep red, which was brought out even further by the glow of the campfire. If he wasn't as tired as he was, Alfyn would have probably yelled out some sort of gibberish and woken up the rest of their companions. Instead, his words came out as a bubbling mess, making him feel even more foolish than usual.

"Huh!? S-s-sex!? Wha—I, I didn't…Shucks!" Alfyn exclaimed sheepishly.

"Peace, Alfyn. Deep breaths now; we've discussed this. We wouldn't want you passing out over the fire." Primrose smiled innocently.

"O-oh, yeah. That's right." Alfyn nodded, taking in a couple of deep breaths to calm himself down. That said, he was breathing in and out so quickly that it seemed to be having the opposite effect.

"Goodness, you're like a puppy Alfyn. It seems you are still far too innocent for your own good." Primrose claimed. "You haven't changed at all."

"Yes I have! It just—you can't just bring something like that up so easily!" The apothecary protested, crossing his arms across his chest.

The dancer rolled her eyes. "Why not? It's a perfectly normal conversation to have between two people in a relationship."

"I mean, yeah. But…"

"But what? Hmm?"

"Well, you know, all the stuff we just talked about. You've been through a lot, and I don't wanna make you uncomfortable." Alfyn responded, making sure to choose his words carefully. "Sex…is something I didn't think we'd touch on so quickly."

"That's fair, but I find it hard to believe that it hasn't at least crossed your mind." Primrose nodded. "Have you never thought about being intimate with me before?"

Alfyn shook his head. "Okay, now that's really not fair, Prim. I ain't answering that."

"Oh? That tells me much more than if you had actually answered my question." Primrose remarked casually, which only pushed Alfyn's distress even further.

"Shucks, Prim. I—"

The apothecary stopped speaking as soon as he saw a teasing smile slowly starting to form itself on the dancer's face. Primrose was trying her best, but it was clear that she wasn't going to be able to hide her amusement for much longer.

"You're messin' with me." Alfyn pouted childishly, turning his face away for Primrose and sulking his shoulders down in defeat.

Primrose giggled. "You're such an easy target, Alfyn. I can't help myself."

Alfyn huffed. "Hmph, yeah. Alright. Here I am tryna be all courteous and gentlemanly about us, and you're just makin' it a big ol' joke—"

For what seemed like the millionth time, Alfyn was once again cut short of finishing his sentence by Primrose. However, this time the dancer did it by pulling him into a firm kiss, one that the two didn't often get to share with each other around the company of their companions.

One of the reasons why Alfyn never focused on the physical aspect of their relationship was because they hadn't had the opportunity. It hadn't been very long since they had left Clearbrook, and he learned fairly quickly that moments of privacy were rare on the road. Besides, the little exchanges between the two of them were more than enough for him. Alfyn's main concern was making sure that Primrose felt happy and comfortable at all times.

That said, it wasn't like he didn't enjoy it. Right now, Alfyn was thanking the lucky stars above that he had been forced to stay up late.

After a few exceedingly long seconds, the dancer pulled away gently, forming her lips into a gentle smile. "Better?"

"…Don't think that'll work every time." Alfyn mumbled incoherently.

Primrose laughed. "You're adorable, Alfyn. I know it's your first experience with love, but please don't worry so much about me. Trust me when I tell you that everything is going to be fine. As I said before, just enjoy it."

"Yeah, okay. Sure. I can do that." Alfyn nodded, before taking on a sincere expression. "Guess I'm all worked up cause it's my first time feeling like this."

"Indeed. In some aspects, this is my first experience with it as well." Primrose chuckled, leaning herself lazily against the apothecary.

"The first, and hopefully, the last."

That comment earned the apothecary another quick kiss on the cheek, which felt almost as good as the previous one. It wasn't like Primrose to be so openly romantic, but the gentle breeze and the warm blanket of the fire seemed to have opened her feelings up just enough to make tonight special.

"As for the topic of sex, why don't we just let it play out naturally? As we usually do." Primrose smiled, meeting Alfyn's eyes with her own. "I am sure when the time comes, it will feel right."

Alfyn smiled in return. "Yeah, you're right. No reason to make a big deal outta it."

The dancer nuzzled her head against his shoulder. "Mhmm. Now, with that said, it seems that your shift is over. Let's wake up Cyrus and turn in for the night."

"Ah, you go first. I'll join ya in a bit. Won't be too long."

Primrose was so tired that she didn't question why he wanted to stay up past his shift, which was uncharacteristic of him. Standing up first, Alfyn helped her up with his hand and slowly escorted her to their tent. Part of him wanted to get in with her, but after their conversation, he was feeling pretty good. He had enough energy to have one more conversation at the very least, and coincidentally, there was one that needed to be had.

By the time Alfyn returned to his seat around the fire with Cyrus, the dancer had already fallen asleep. Her soft breathing was so quiet that it was barely noticeable, but for Alfyn, it was the only sound that mattered.

The conversation with the professor, surprisingly, ended up going fairly well. Cyrus was even more hopeless at romance than he was, but his feelings were strong and genuine. It didn't take much time for Alfyn to see that. It wouldn't be long now until the apothecary and the dancer weren't the only ones in a relationship amongst their group. Knowing the professor, it'd be sooner rather than later.

For Ophilia's sake, Alfyn hoped that was the case.

When Alfyn finally managed to drag himself inside his tent, he accidentally bumped his foot against the dancer's side. Alfyn hoped that the gentle nudge wouldn't be enough to wake her up, but unfortunately, Primrose was a light sleeper. For a second, the apothecary was terrified, because he knew all too well how the young woman typically reacted to being woken up.

This time, however, turned out well for him.

Because when her sleepy, half-lidded eyes met his, the words that came out of her mouth were enough to nearly move him to tears.

"Welcome back."


A/N - It has been quite a while my friends. When I last posted un update, I said that I would be taking a hiatus. I just didn't expect it to take this long. So allow me to thank you again for being patient.

That said, it's good to be back! For those who were expecting this chapter to be Alfyn's Chapter 3, I hope this fluff-filled update was a pleasant surprise. I will be talking about my plans for the fic moving forward in depth next time, but for now just know that I will be working on this regularly once again. Expect the next update to come sooner rather than later. You can hold me to that.

Instead, I wanted to take the time to extend my thanks to my readers. I will be recognizing those who have expressed their direct support to How Fortunate by name, but I want you all to know that each and everyone of you are important to me. If you didn't know, this fic is posted on both and AO3, so I will be separating my followers into two sections below.

On : Thank you to BeingOfGrey, Bigaroo, The Lazy Poet, ThickRumpyPumpy, keyrules200, mibr222, shiny durant, yorukakusaku, and hitsuzen0401 for your support. I can't thank you enough.

On AO3: Thank you to A_nony_moose, Lucis_Truth_Abyss, Keyreads20, Argen_Lobo_Ridder, Dreemurr00, Black_Tao93, TiredAcademic, SapphireSpear, Cherri_Pop, DigitBuster, Beththeawkward, StarryNox, shadowjourney15, Yore, isa_bebelle, Apolleh, and fireleaf52 for your support. Again, I can't thank you enough.

Finally, I'd like to give special thanks to the following people: GameAnime, Oricalle, SatishoN, kohaku_xx, Rie, floweringlight, and Louie Yang. At one point in time you all made me smile and motivated to write this story further. I hope that you guys enjoy the fic moving forward, because in my mind you guys are a part of it.

Alfyn, Primrose, and myself hope to see you all next time. Have a fantastic and fortunate day, and be sure to stay healthy. Ciao.