Author's Note: Hookay... That should've given you an idea of how much one of my promises are worth... I wont make any such promise this time, since I know I won't be able to get the next chapter out till after the 1st of June. I'll be gone till then, that's why. Anywho, this story is getting closer to it's end, but there might be a sequel or something. Based on Billy and Maria most likely. If you guys want one, that is. Don't hesitate to ask in your reviews. ^_^
*Disclaimer*: Squaresoft = Xenogears. Simple.
Chapter Thirteen
Bart was sitting outside in the gently falling snow. He sat on a low boulder with a small frown on his face as the rest of his friends ran around wildly, hurling snowballs at each other.
Bart was preoccupied. Very preoccupied. In fact, you could almost say he was brooding. Something he'd only done about once or twice in his entire existence. Bart didn't usually "brood" about things. He usually just jumped blindly and enjoyed the thrill of the unknown, a part of him trusting he'd land intact.
The problem this time, though, was that what he was brooding over was too important. He couldn't just leap and hope things would turn out okay. Not this time.
He was a little shaken as he realized how important she was. How important she'd always been. He'd never really thought about it before; had always taken her presence for granted. Something inside him reassured that she'd always be there; counted on her always being there for him. He didn't know what he would do if she ever... disappeared from his life.
The recent incident had been like a bucketful of cold water poured over his head. He was suddenly aware that something could mercilessly snatch her away from him. He had nearly lost her three times already. And this frightening knowledge had forced him to realize just how precious Margie was to him.
The problem was that he didn't know exactly what to do about it.
"Heads up!"
The young king barely had time to look up before he received a faceful of snow that made him lose his balance. With a muffled yelp (half the snow ended up in his mouth, somehow), he fell backwards from his perch and ended up flat on his back on the snow. He heard a chuckle above him somewhere.
"Well, I _did_ warn you."
Irritated, Bart wiped the snow from his face and glared up at Fei, who was grinning down at him. "You wanna get your ass kicked, Fong Wong?"
"What? By you?" Fei snorted.
Glaring balefully, Bart leaped to his feet in his quick reflexes and grabbed several handfuls of snow before he began chasing the martial artist down. Fei only laughed and dodged as he ran around other people.
Somehow or other, one of their wayward snowballs managed to hit Tolone, who had been holding a rather large snowball in her hands and standing behind Seraphita. It hit the silver-haired Element on her shoulder, nearly making her drop her big snowball. Seraphita continued building her snowman, oblivious of the fact that the snowball originally intended for her was thrown instead at Fei, who couldn't stop laughing as an annoyed Bart, and now, an enraged Tolone chased after him.
The snowball Tolone had thrown missed Fei and accidentally hit Emeralda on the back of her head. The nanomachine girl gasped as the cold hit her and turned from her contemplation of the snow angels she and Elly had made. Her amber eyes narrowed dangerously. Once she saw where all the trouble was coming from, she stuck her booted foot out and tripped Fei as he ran past her.
The guy landed flat on his face amidst a cloud of white powder that rose around him. The other three looked at each other in silent understanding, nodded, and then began bombarding the felled martial artist with their snowballs.
**********************************************************
"You're just lucky Elly came when she did," Bart said, not even bothering to keep the amusement out of his voice as he watched the the trainee-nurse bandage Fei around the temples.
Fei only turned and glared at him accusingly. "I still think it was you who threw that snowball at me that 'accidentally' had a rock in it."
Bart's eyebrows rose and he crossed his arms. "Why me? Why not Tolone, or Emeralda for that matter? One _is_ a Solarian if you remember correctly. One who doesn't really like you."
But Fei only shook his head, wincing as the trainee-nurse stopped the movement. "Nah, only you would try something that underhanded on your own best friend."
"I'm hurt, Fei. Really I am."
"Yeah, well not as hurt as you're gonna be once we get back outside."
Bart laughed and sat down on the bed next to Fei. He waited until the trainee finished with the bandaging and left the Infirmary before he stood up again to give the room a quick check. "Good, there's no one here."
Fei gave the young King a weird look as he lied down on the bed. "What's up with you?"
Bart came over and sat down on the bed across from Fei's. "Margie must be out having lunch or something. I hear she's been getting more impatient each day and sneaks out any chance she gets," Bart said, grinning at the thought of the girl showing up at the cafeteria in her linen nightgown.
"I would think you'd want to be with her," Fei remarked, stating the obvious as he saw it. "Elly says you've been avoiding Margie ever since she's been stuck in here. As a matter of fact, she told me to give you a nice, long talk about how rude and callous and completely idiotic you can be sometimes."
Bart frowned at Fei's grin. "How much of that did _Elly_ say?"
"I added a couple of words," Fei said, shrugging. But then he turned serious. "No, really, Bart. You haven't exactly been the most attentive guy around her. Hell, even Kelvena, Tolone, and Seraphita have given her longer visits than you have."
Bart stared at the floor guiltily. "I know..."
"So why the sudden cold-shoulder? Don't you care about her...?"
Bart looked up, his sapphire gaze sharp. "That's exactly it, Fei. I care about her. Too much." He glanced at the floor again, whispering, "It scares me a little."
Fei sat up and patted his friend's shoulder understandingly. "I kinda figured. But there's nothing wrong with caring about her. Sure, it's scary, but-"
"Fei, I don't just care about her," Bart interrupted. "I love her."
Fei was rendered speechless for a moment. Once he recovered, he laughed and clapped his best friend on the back in congratulation. "Bart, that's great! About time, might I add? She's had a long enough wait, in my opinion."
"I haven't told her," Bart mumbled. He was still focused on the floor.
"Well, why the hell not? You should tell her-"
"I want it to be perfect."
"I, well, I guess that's a reason. Didn't know you were the romantic type, but hey. A girl can change your views on how you do things..." Fei trailed off, thinking of his Elhaym. She had completely changed _his_ way of thinking. Things hadn't seemed as hopeless when she was around. Even the darkest situation had had some light in it.
Fei turned and studied Bart. "So, what are you going to do?"
Bart looked up at Fei and smiled a little, his usual self-assurance coming back. "Well, I did have a plan..."
*************************************************
Margie didnt know why she woke up, but she did. Something urged her to, like a sixth sense or something. The young Great Mother sat up in bed in her dark room and rubbed her eyes sleepily. She glanced at the digital clock on her nightstand and yawned as she looked at it. 5:04 a.m. Way too early for her to be waking up.
Yawning again, she was about to lie back down when she heard footsteps outside in the corridor. Her still half-asleep mind reminded her that Zephyr kept guards around at all times. She lied down and closed her eyes. Then snapped them open again when her door suddenly swished open quietly.
Lying still, she couldn't see much in the dark, so she reached over to her nightstand slowly and grabbed her dagger as quietly as she could. No way she was going to be caught helpless again. Holding her blade ready, she reached out for the light switch with her other hand as the footsteps approached her bed. Once they were close enough to nearly touch her, she turned on the lamp and jumped her attacker, knocking him down to the floor. The element of surprise had been in her hands!
She landed on top of the intruder and held the knife up to her assailants throat. Her eyes still had to get used to the sudden light, but once they focused...
"Margie! Would you get off of me!?"
Blinking in surprise, she recognized his irritated voice. "Bart?"
"Yes, Bart. Geez, who did you think it was? A burglar?"
"Well, the thought did come to me..." Margie said sheepishly. Her eyes finally got used to the light and she finally saw Bart's annoyed expression beneath her. She giggled softly at the way he was glaring at her and the knife she was holding to his throat. She pulled it away and bit her lip to keep the laughing in check.
"This is the second time you threaten me with that knife, you know," he grumbled.
Margie laughed again, making his frown deepen. "Well, it was your own fault. You should know better than to sneak into a girl's room at night." She blushed and giggled wickedly. "What did you think was going to happen? Me kicking you out should've been your first thought."
He gave an exasperated sigh and banged the back of his head against the carpeted floor in frustration. "Margie, would you quit? I'm humiliated enough as it is."
"But I'm having so much fun teasing you," she whispered with a smile. For revenge on his lack of visits in the past week, Margie leaned down and brushed her lips feather-light over his jaw. She felt him stiffen and her lips curved as she pressed them against his throat in a sequence of soft kisses. She felt his grip tighten on her arms where he was holding her from, and silently cheered at her accomplishment. He began pushing her away a little and when he spoke, his voice wasn't all that steady.
"Margie... Margie, maybe you should go back to bed, hmm? You... you need to rest..."
"But I thought this is what you had in mind..." Grinning, she fisted her hands on the collar of his vest and began pulling him up as he breathed in shakily. He stood up obediently enough when she kissed him full on the lips repeatedly, and she began leading him around her bed. Roaming her hands over his body, she bit his lip before he could notice the way she was taking him. The bite caught him completely by surprise and he lost all sense of direction, focusing on nothing else but her.
She was having a hard enough time keeping herself free of the spell, but she finally reached her destination. The door opened with a swish and she gave him a final kiss before she pushed him out the door and closed it behind him. The dazed look on his face was priceless.
Bart didn't realize what had happened until her door swished closed right in front of him. He stood there for a while, in the darkness of the corridor and momentarily wondered what had gone wrong. When his blood began pumping normally again, he became aware of the way she had just maneuvered him out of her room... and shot his plans completely to hell.
Swearing under his breath, Bart knocked on her door (he knew she had locked it this time) as quietly as he could. Everyone was still asleep, after all.
She didn't answer.
"Margie," he hissed. "Margie, open the door! Come on, please? I swear I didn't come tonight for what you think I did. I just wanted to surprise you with something, but it all went wrong when we ended up on the floor. Come on, open up! You'll like the surprise, I promise."
When the door continued to stay in his way, Bart sighed and leaned his back against it. "Stupid girl always has to muddle my way of thinking," he muttered under his breath. He was completely caught by surprise when the door swished open, nearly depositing him on the floor of her room. He caught himself just in time and turned to look at her.
"I heard that, you jerk," she said, her arms crossed as she stood in the doorway, silhoutted by the light streaming out into the dark corridor. She didn't look too happy. "Now, tell me what you want so I can go to sleep."
Bart suddenly grinned and reached out to take her hands, uncrossing them from their position. "Margie, get dressed, okay? Don't ask questions, just do what I say."
She frowned at him, confused by his order. "What are you plan-" but she was cut off when he pressed a finger to her lips to silence her.
"No questions, Margie. Just do it. Please? For me?"
She continued to look at him suspiciously, but finally nodded. "Alright. But only because you got me curious now."
He sighed in relief when the door closed behind her and she went to get dressed. For a minute there, he had thought she wasn't going to do it...
She came back out a few minutes later dressed in trousers and a sweater. She had slipped her boots on, but her hair was still messy; tousled from sleep. She looked so pretty with her hair loose and that suspicious gleam in her sapphire eyes, he thought with a faint smile.
Margie didn't know what to think, but when she saw that goofy smile on his face, she guessed it was probably something good. She wasn't going to fall so easily, though. Not yet, anyway. "Whatever you're planning, Bart, it better be worth it me having to wake up this early in the morning."
"Oh, don't worry. It will be. Come on." Taking her hand in an unconscious gesture, he began leading her down the dimly lit corridors. He liked the way her hand fit into his. It felt so soft against his calloused skin, and that made him smile.
"Where are we going, Bart?" Margie whispered. Despite her misgivings, his enthusiasm was contagious and she found herself looking forward to whatever he had planned.
He turned to her and gave her a mischeivous grin. "I'm sneaking you outta here."
"What?" Her eyes wide, she stared at him. "What do you mean, you're sneaking me outta here? Why?"
"Because I know how miserable you've been, stuck inside. I know you need to be outside, under the sunlight. So I'm helping you do that."
"But... I... but... Maison will..." She trailed off.
"Hey, it'll be just like old times. Remember how I used to help you escape lessons at the Cathdral when we were kids and how we used to hide up at the tower where the bells were at."
She smiled softly as the memories of so many days spent up in those dusty old rooms came back to her. "How could I forget? Maison must've aged two decades for all the scares we gave him."
Bart gave her hand a squeeze and the impish gleam in his eye had her laughing along with him.
They reached a short ladder at the other end of the corridor and Bart grabbed a large bundle he had left there. He pulled out two coats, giving one to her. "I know they took your coats away once they figured you would sneak out the first chance you got," he said as they slipped into the warmth of the furs. He gave her a scarf and a pair of gloves, too.
Once they were ready, he led the way up the ladder, the bundle slung over his shoulder. Wondering what he carried in it, Margie followed him up and he helped her up with one hand.
The snow was falling in gentle flakes from the dark sky and Margie stared at it in awe, a smile lighting up her features. The sky was slowly changing from a midnight-blue to a faint pink and Bart led her over to the ledge of the large balcony. Their fingers were entwined as they stared out at the white expanse and the slowly lightening sky.
"You brought me to see the sunrise with you," Margie whispered as she watched the pink spread in the sky. Her throat tightened and she bit her lip as a surge of emotions choked her. Looking up at him, she saw the seriousness of his face as he studied her. "This is the best, most thoughtful, most beautiful thing you could have ever done..."
"So you like it, right?" He grinned. "It was worth waking up for, right?"
She began laughing, but it somehow turned into a sob. She pressed her gloved fingers over her mouth before she could embarass herself further, but he pulled it away as he leaned in and kissed her gently.
"Like your surprise?" he murmured against her lips.
She cupped his face in her hands and kissed him passionately as her answer. With his arms encircling her waist, she felt as if her whole world was right here and nothing else beside this mattered.
And when he leaned down and whispered something in her ear, she knew she was right.
To be continued...
*Okay, so I left you guys hanging again. ^_^ You must all hate me by now. But aren't they kawaii?*
*Disclaimer*: Squaresoft = Xenogears. Simple.
Chapter Thirteen
Bart was sitting outside in the gently falling snow. He sat on a low boulder with a small frown on his face as the rest of his friends ran around wildly, hurling snowballs at each other.
Bart was preoccupied. Very preoccupied. In fact, you could almost say he was brooding. Something he'd only done about once or twice in his entire existence. Bart didn't usually "brood" about things. He usually just jumped blindly and enjoyed the thrill of the unknown, a part of him trusting he'd land intact.
The problem this time, though, was that what he was brooding over was too important. He couldn't just leap and hope things would turn out okay. Not this time.
He was a little shaken as he realized how important she was. How important she'd always been. He'd never really thought about it before; had always taken her presence for granted. Something inside him reassured that she'd always be there; counted on her always being there for him. He didn't know what he would do if she ever... disappeared from his life.
The recent incident had been like a bucketful of cold water poured over his head. He was suddenly aware that something could mercilessly snatch her away from him. He had nearly lost her three times already. And this frightening knowledge had forced him to realize just how precious Margie was to him.
The problem was that he didn't know exactly what to do about it.
"Heads up!"
The young king barely had time to look up before he received a faceful of snow that made him lose his balance. With a muffled yelp (half the snow ended up in his mouth, somehow), he fell backwards from his perch and ended up flat on his back on the snow. He heard a chuckle above him somewhere.
"Well, I _did_ warn you."
Irritated, Bart wiped the snow from his face and glared up at Fei, who was grinning down at him. "You wanna get your ass kicked, Fong Wong?"
"What? By you?" Fei snorted.
Glaring balefully, Bart leaped to his feet in his quick reflexes and grabbed several handfuls of snow before he began chasing the martial artist down. Fei only laughed and dodged as he ran around other people.
Somehow or other, one of their wayward snowballs managed to hit Tolone, who had been holding a rather large snowball in her hands and standing behind Seraphita. It hit the silver-haired Element on her shoulder, nearly making her drop her big snowball. Seraphita continued building her snowman, oblivious of the fact that the snowball originally intended for her was thrown instead at Fei, who couldn't stop laughing as an annoyed Bart, and now, an enraged Tolone chased after him.
The snowball Tolone had thrown missed Fei and accidentally hit Emeralda on the back of her head. The nanomachine girl gasped as the cold hit her and turned from her contemplation of the snow angels she and Elly had made. Her amber eyes narrowed dangerously. Once she saw where all the trouble was coming from, she stuck her booted foot out and tripped Fei as he ran past her.
The guy landed flat on his face amidst a cloud of white powder that rose around him. The other three looked at each other in silent understanding, nodded, and then began bombarding the felled martial artist with their snowballs.
**********************************************************
"You're just lucky Elly came when she did," Bart said, not even bothering to keep the amusement out of his voice as he watched the the trainee-nurse bandage Fei around the temples.
Fei only turned and glared at him accusingly. "I still think it was you who threw that snowball at me that 'accidentally' had a rock in it."
Bart's eyebrows rose and he crossed his arms. "Why me? Why not Tolone, or Emeralda for that matter? One _is_ a Solarian if you remember correctly. One who doesn't really like you."
But Fei only shook his head, wincing as the trainee-nurse stopped the movement. "Nah, only you would try something that underhanded on your own best friend."
"I'm hurt, Fei. Really I am."
"Yeah, well not as hurt as you're gonna be once we get back outside."
Bart laughed and sat down on the bed next to Fei. He waited until the trainee finished with the bandaging and left the Infirmary before he stood up again to give the room a quick check. "Good, there's no one here."
Fei gave the young King a weird look as he lied down on the bed. "What's up with you?"
Bart came over and sat down on the bed across from Fei's. "Margie must be out having lunch or something. I hear she's been getting more impatient each day and sneaks out any chance she gets," Bart said, grinning at the thought of the girl showing up at the cafeteria in her linen nightgown.
"I would think you'd want to be with her," Fei remarked, stating the obvious as he saw it. "Elly says you've been avoiding Margie ever since she's been stuck in here. As a matter of fact, she told me to give you a nice, long talk about how rude and callous and completely idiotic you can be sometimes."
Bart frowned at Fei's grin. "How much of that did _Elly_ say?"
"I added a couple of words," Fei said, shrugging. But then he turned serious. "No, really, Bart. You haven't exactly been the most attentive guy around her. Hell, even Kelvena, Tolone, and Seraphita have given her longer visits than you have."
Bart stared at the floor guiltily. "I know..."
"So why the sudden cold-shoulder? Don't you care about her...?"
Bart looked up, his sapphire gaze sharp. "That's exactly it, Fei. I care about her. Too much." He glanced at the floor again, whispering, "It scares me a little."
Fei sat up and patted his friend's shoulder understandingly. "I kinda figured. But there's nothing wrong with caring about her. Sure, it's scary, but-"
"Fei, I don't just care about her," Bart interrupted. "I love her."
Fei was rendered speechless for a moment. Once he recovered, he laughed and clapped his best friend on the back in congratulation. "Bart, that's great! About time, might I add? She's had a long enough wait, in my opinion."
"I haven't told her," Bart mumbled. He was still focused on the floor.
"Well, why the hell not? You should tell her-"
"I want it to be perfect."
"I, well, I guess that's a reason. Didn't know you were the romantic type, but hey. A girl can change your views on how you do things..." Fei trailed off, thinking of his Elhaym. She had completely changed _his_ way of thinking. Things hadn't seemed as hopeless when she was around. Even the darkest situation had had some light in it.
Fei turned and studied Bart. "So, what are you going to do?"
Bart looked up at Fei and smiled a little, his usual self-assurance coming back. "Well, I did have a plan..."
*************************************************
Margie didnt know why she woke up, but she did. Something urged her to, like a sixth sense or something. The young Great Mother sat up in bed in her dark room and rubbed her eyes sleepily. She glanced at the digital clock on her nightstand and yawned as she looked at it. 5:04 a.m. Way too early for her to be waking up.
Yawning again, she was about to lie back down when she heard footsteps outside in the corridor. Her still half-asleep mind reminded her that Zephyr kept guards around at all times. She lied down and closed her eyes. Then snapped them open again when her door suddenly swished open quietly.
Lying still, she couldn't see much in the dark, so she reached over to her nightstand slowly and grabbed her dagger as quietly as she could. No way she was going to be caught helpless again. Holding her blade ready, she reached out for the light switch with her other hand as the footsteps approached her bed. Once they were close enough to nearly touch her, she turned on the lamp and jumped her attacker, knocking him down to the floor. The element of surprise had been in her hands!
She landed on top of the intruder and held the knife up to her assailants throat. Her eyes still had to get used to the sudden light, but once they focused...
"Margie! Would you get off of me!?"
Blinking in surprise, she recognized his irritated voice. "Bart?"
"Yes, Bart. Geez, who did you think it was? A burglar?"
"Well, the thought did come to me..." Margie said sheepishly. Her eyes finally got used to the light and she finally saw Bart's annoyed expression beneath her. She giggled softly at the way he was glaring at her and the knife she was holding to his throat. She pulled it away and bit her lip to keep the laughing in check.
"This is the second time you threaten me with that knife, you know," he grumbled.
Margie laughed again, making his frown deepen. "Well, it was your own fault. You should know better than to sneak into a girl's room at night." She blushed and giggled wickedly. "What did you think was going to happen? Me kicking you out should've been your first thought."
He gave an exasperated sigh and banged the back of his head against the carpeted floor in frustration. "Margie, would you quit? I'm humiliated enough as it is."
"But I'm having so much fun teasing you," she whispered with a smile. For revenge on his lack of visits in the past week, Margie leaned down and brushed her lips feather-light over his jaw. She felt him stiffen and her lips curved as she pressed them against his throat in a sequence of soft kisses. She felt his grip tighten on her arms where he was holding her from, and silently cheered at her accomplishment. He began pushing her away a little and when he spoke, his voice wasn't all that steady.
"Margie... Margie, maybe you should go back to bed, hmm? You... you need to rest..."
"But I thought this is what you had in mind..." Grinning, she fisted her hands on the collar of his vest and began pulling him up as he breathed in shakily. He stood up obediently enough when she kissed him full on the lips repeatedly, and she began leading him around her bed. Roaming her hands over his body, she bit his lip before he could notice the way she was taking him. The bite caught him completely by surprise and he lost all sense of direction, focusing on nothing else but her.
She was having a hard enough time keeping herself free of the spell, but she finally reached her destination. The door opened with a swish and she gave him a final kiss before she pushed him out the door and closed it behind him. The dazed look on his face was priceless.
Bart didn't realize what had happened until her door swished closed right in front of him. He stood there for a while, in the darkness of the corridor and momentarily wondered what had gone wrong. When his blood began pumping normally again, he became aware of the way she had just maneuvered him out of her room... and shot his plans completely to hell.
Swearing under his breath, Bart knocked on her door (he knew she had locked it this time) as quietly as he could. Everyone was still asleep, after all.
She didn't answer.
"Margie," he hissed. "Margie, open the door! Come on, please? I swear I didn't come tonight for what you think I did. I just wanted to surprise you with something, but it all went wrong when we ended up on the floor. Come on, open up! You'll like the surprise, I promise."
When the door continued to stay in his way, Bart sighed and leaned his back against it. "Stupid girl always has to muddle my way of thinking," he muttered under his breath. He was completely caught by surprise when the door swished open, nearly depositing him on the floor of her room. He caught himself just in time and turned to look at her.
"I heard that, you jerk," she said, her arms crossed as she stood in the doorway, silhoutted by the light streaming out into the dark corridor. She didn't look too happy. "Now, tell me what you want so I can go to sleep."
Bart suddenly grinned and reached out to take her hands, uncrossing them from their position. "Margie, get dressed, okay? Don't ask questions, just do what I say."
She frowned at him, confused by his order. "What are you plan-" but she was cut off when he pressed a finger to her lips to silence her.
"No questions, Margie. Just do it. Please? For me?"
She continued to look at him suspiciously, but finally nodded. "Alright. But only because you got me curious now."
He sighed in relief when the door closed behind her and she went to get dressed. For a minute there, he had thought she wasn't going to do it...
She came back out a few minutes later dressed in trousers and a sweater. She had slipped her boots on, but her hair was still messy; tousled from sleep. She looked so pretty with her hair loose and that suspicious gleam in her sapphire eyes, he thought with a faint smile.
Margie didn't know what to think, but when she saw that goofy smile on his face, she guessed it was probably something good. She wasn't going to fall so easily, though. Not yet, anyway. "Whatever you're planning, Bart, it better be worth it me having to wake up this early in the morning."
"Oh, don't worry. It will be. Come on." Taking her hand in an unconscious gesture, he began leading her down the dimly lit corridors. He liked the way her hand fit into his. It felt so soft against his calloused skin, and that made him smile.
"Where are we going, Bart?" Margie whispered. Despite her misgivings, his enthusiasm was contagious and she found herself looking forward to whatever he had planned.
He turned to her and gave her a mischeivous grin. "I'm sneaking you outta here."
"What?" Her eyes wide, she stared at him. "What do you mean, you're sneaking me outta here? Why?"
"Because I know how miserable you've been, stuck inside. I know you need to be outside, under the sunlight. So I'm helping you do that."
"But... I... but... Maison will..." She trailed off.
"Hey, it'll be just like old times. Remember how I used to help you escape lessons at the Cathdral when we were kids and how we used to hide up at the tower where the bells were at."
She smiled softly as the memories of so many days spent up in those dusty old rooms came back to her. "How could I forget? Maison must've aged two decades for all the scares we gave him."
Bart gave her hand a squeeze and the impish gleam in his eye had her laughing along with him.
They reached a short ladder at the other end of the corridor and Bart grabbed a large bundle he had left there. He pulled out two coats, giving one to her. "I know they took your coats away once they figured you would sneak out the first chance you got," he said as they slipped into the warmth of the furs. He gave her a scarf and a pair of gloves, too.
Once they were ready, he led the way up the ladder, the bundle slung over his shoulder. Wondering what he carried in it, Margie followed him up and he helped her up with one hand.
The snow was falling in gentle flakes from the dark sky and Margie stared at it in awe, a smile lighting up her features. The sky was slowly changing from a midnight-blue to a faint pink and Bart led her over to the ledge of the large balcony. Their fingers were entwined as they stared out at the white expanse and the slowly lightening sky.
"You brought me to see the sunrise with you," Margie whispered as she watched the pink spread in the sky. Her throat tightened and she bit her lip as a surge of emotions choked her. Looking up at him, she saw the seriousness of his face as he studied her. "This is the best, most thoughtful, most beautiful thing you could have ever done..."
"So you like it, right?" He grinned. "It was worth waking up for, right?"
She began laughing, but it somehow turned into a sob. She pressed her gloved fingers over her mouth before she could embarass herself further, but he pulled it away as he leaned in and kissed her gently.
"Like your surprise?" he murmured against her lips.
She cupped his face in her hands and kissed him passionately as her answer. With his arms encircling her waist, she felt as if her whole world was right here and nothing else beside this mattered.
And when he leaned down and whispered something in her ear, she knew she was right.
To be continued...
*Okay, so I left you guys hanging again. ^_^ You must all hate me by now. But aren't they kawaii?*