"Well, I sure had a hard time getting up here," Uldren called jokingly. Petra turned, grinning, to look at him across the empty Courtyard. He strode toward her. "Where is everyone?"

"They're down in the City Center. Tonight is the big Dawning festival."

"Huh. Tonight is our Dawning party, too."

"Did you go?"

"No, it's right now. I didn't want to. It's just a bunch of boring ceremonies and dancing, and I didn't want to dance, except with you."

"Aww. I've always wanted to dance. We should go down into the City so we can hear their music."

"Good idea. Do you know how?"

"No, but you do, right?"

"Yeah, I'll teach you. Come on."

It was already quite late. They took the elevator down to the main part of the City, finding a pretty little garden close enough to the festival that they could hear the music, but far enough that no one would find them. He took her right hand in his left and put his other hand on her back, tilting his head and listening to the music. "This sounds like a waltz. That's a good one to start with."

As each dance came on, he taught her the basic steps for each of them, and after about an hour or so had passed, she had learned most of them, and he started throwing in more complicated moves. She found that if she held onto him right, she could somehow generally tell what just what he wanted her to do. He was so good at dancing, and it was so easy to learn from him.

Suddenly, his arms tightened around her, and he pulled her head onto his shoulder, holding her close and leaning his head against hers. Her heart skipped a beat. She'd been wondering if he would want to dance like this, and now they were. She rested in the warmth of his arms as they slowly rotated around the basic steps. When the music stopped, he put his hand on the back of her head, pulling her face toward his, and kissed her. She felt light, lighter than air yet full of glowing happiness. Another song started and she laid her head on his shoulder as they started moving again. Hours passed that way, dancing slowly in his arms and kissing between songs. It was heaven. Her mind had entered a state of bliss where everything except him had ceased to exist. Outside the garden they could hear other people going home and knew it was very late, but they didn't leave until the music stopped altogether. The night air was cold, but his hands were warm, grasping hers. She had not realized how cold it was with his arms around her, but on the way back to her apartment, she was shivering. He looked equally cold but he took off the poncho he always worse and offered it to her anyways.

She unlocked her apartment door and they went inside. As she turned the kitchen light on, Uldren called, "It's cold in your house, too!"

"Yeah, the only heater is in my room. Come on." She turned the main lights off again and clicked on the one in her bedroom, crossing the room to turn on the heater under her window. She and Uldren sat down on the edge of her bed facing the heat and he put his arm around her, moving closer.

"What time is it?" she asked.

He checked his watch. "Four in the morning."

"Wow. We were dancing for a long time."

"Yeah." He scooted backwards, reclining in the pile of pillows she had lumped on her bed that morning, pulling her with him. Too tired to protest, she rested her head on his chest, letting him stroke her hair and run his fingers down her spine. They laid there, sinking deeper into the pillows and blankets as the room got warmer, and she felt perfectly cozy, snuggled up in his arms. It would have been nice, to fall asleep like that and not have to be afraid of anything in the night, but she knew she shouldn't, and she wouldn't. she knew in her mind how dangerous this was, but the rest of her felt safer than ever. Why should she be afraid of him? He'd promised her, in one of his letters, that he wouldn't push her into anything she didn't want to do, and she didn't want him to go at all. She would be cold if he left and right now she was so very warm... she could hardly keep her eyes open... but surely there was no harm in closing them? They fluttered shut as he gave her a gentle kiss, his thumb going back and forth across her shoulder, back and forth, back and forth, back and forth...

Sunlight was streaming in through the windows when she opened her eyes again. she blinked in confusion. Something was different, but she couldn't quite remember. Usually she woke up cold and uncomfortable, having kicked off her blankets and rolled into an uncomfortable position in the night, but she still felt as warm and cozy as she had when she fallen asleep.

Then it came back to her, as she became aware of her surroundings. Uldren's cheek was still pressed into hers, his hands on her back, his gentle snoring fading away as he stirred. His golden eyes slowly fluttered open and he gazed at her.

"Petra," he murmured, lips curving into a smile.

She couldn't help smiling back. She loved him so much. "Good morning."

He snuggled closer, hands moving up her back, whispering, "Mm, my love, you're a beautiful thing to wake up to."

They rested there for a few moments before sharing a sleepy kiss. She didn't want to get up, now or ever, she wanted to lay there forever, but she knew she couldn't. "What time is it?"

He pulled up his sleeve and looked at his watch again. "Almost eight. I... should probably get back to the Reef. I have a meeting with the Crows at ten."

"I'll make breakfast before you go," she offered, desperate to keep him with her as long as she could.

"Oh, alright, but I will need to go soon. Now, if we ran away together..." He gave a her a sly smile, tickling her with warm fingers. "..I'd never have to go."

He was only teasing, but this time the offer was sorely tempting. She reminded herself of Mara, who had sent her to the City to learn a lesson and serve her, not sneak around with her brother. He had to go before anything else happened, and they both knew it.

She fried bacon on the stove and he warmed up frozen waffles in the toaster. They ate together in a silence that neither dared break. If she tried to say anything, it wouldn't be what she had meant to say, the words that would come out would be, "Wait, no, don't leave me. I can't stand another two months alone. I'll do anything, go anywhere, I just want to be with you." She couldn't let herself say that. She knew she'd been stupid last night to bring him back here so late, and she should've known this would happen. They should've said goodbye when the dancing ended and gone their separate ways, instead, she had gone and fallen asleep in his arms and now she'd never be able to sleep right without him. They had to wait. She couldn't give up.

He left, and she was very proud of herself for letting him go. They kept their good-bye kiss short and when he was gone, she went back to work, even though the house felt so empty without him. She could have asked him to stay, and he would have done it, but it wasn't right for either of them. Not yet.

She knew it would happen eventually, but she had thought it wouldn't be until she came back to the Reef so they wouldn't be tempted to run away and abandon everything. That was just crazy. She knew perfectly well that he wanted to, but she also knew that they couldn't possibly leave. It was wrong, and he had promised to respect what was best for them and what she wanted. But being away from him was so hard to bear, how much longer was she going to last?