Heya, again. Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed! You made my day! Unfortunately, I won't be able to post again until at least Sunday, due to the fact that I am going over to my cousin's house for the weekend. I hope you enjoy this chapter, though!

WARNING: See chapter 1.

WARNING 2: This chapter contains nudity and some vague mentions/hints at what Chrono and Rosette did that one time. (snickers) Okay, I need to stop having dirty thoughts, here! Argh! (commences with pounding self in head)

Disclaimer: See chapter 1 or chapter 5.

Return to Times of Yore
By GundamWingFanatic90
Submitted: 21 October 2005

Past, Eden, Rosette

After quickly changing into my dress in my room and grabbing all my ammunition and guns, I went and found Chrono where he had said he would be, by the North Pond. He looked slightly annoyed and nervous, fidgeting a bit with something underneath his cloak. As I approached, he heard me, and turned to me, forcing a smile onto his face.

"Rosette." he stated. I raised an eyebrow in skepticism.

"Who else would I be?" I asked. He rolled his eyes and held out his hand to me. I took it, confused, as I looked up into his beautiful crimson eyes.

"Chrono?" I asked. He smiled genuinely, and transformed into his true form before pulling me into his arms. I yelped with surprise, especially when he scooped me up bridal style and took off into the air, diving down toward the earth so far below. I threw my arms around his neck for support and buried my face in his shoulder as I felt my heart jump into my throat, but it was over soon, and we leveled out, soaring above the treetops in an area I knew quite well.

"Chrono?" I repeated. "Where are we going?" He shot me a sideways smirk.

"A little spot near St. Augustine's Church in Michigan." he replied. "I found it a few days ago, and really liked it. I wanted to share it with you." I smiled a bit more, and snuggled up to him even tighter.

"Thank you…" I murmured, and then with a sigh, I closed my eyes. "Could you wake me up when we get there? I didn't sleep too well last night." Or the night before that, or the night before that, or the night before that... I added mentally.

"Why didn't you tell anyone that you weren't sleeping well?" His voice in my ears startled me a little. Oh yeah, horns. Great. Just great.

"What's so bad about having horns?" I released a sigh of exasperation.

"Nothing. I just can't hide anything from you, can I?" I asked teasingly. "You're too sharp for that." He smirked with one eyebrow raised.

"It's not that." he said. "You were thinking so loudly, I couldn't help but overhear." I rolled my eyes.

"Males." I said derisively, earning a pouting glare from my companion.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked. I just smiled with a laugh.

"Nothing." I replied. "But it helped me fall in love with you, if you're wondering." He smiled and rolled his eyes.

"Whatever." we chorused at the same time, and then dissolved into a fit of laughter. Soon after, we fell silent- I went to sleep, Chrono just kept flying- and before I knew it, I was being shaken awake by strong arms. I opened my eyes to stillness, blinking in the light of sun filtering down through the treetops, and as I looked around, I instantly recognized where we were.

"Rosette? How are you feeling?" asked a deep tenor voice from above me. I looked up with a grin at my guardian demon, who seemed to have watched over me the whole time I was out.

"I'm fine." I said. It was the truth. He frowned.

"Are you sure? Your forehead was hot, and you were sweating a lot." he replied. "And even with that, you were shivering." I blinked, realizing that he was saying that I had a fever, and I actually giggled a little bit before wriggling out of his arms and hopping around a couple of times in front of him, just to prove my point.

"See? I'm okay, now." I said, but shuddered when a chill passed through me. "Well, maybe not. It is kinda hot here, and with you carrying me, I probably got a little overheated. There's a lake around here somewhere. Come on, I just need to cool off for a little bit. We can go swimming!" I grabbed his hand and dragged him through the woods, laughing all the way. Within a matter of moments, we had reached the lake, exactly where I remembered it being, and with a joyous whoop, I ran towards it, finally sitting down on the bank to take off my boots and socks. He crouched next to me, tilting his head to the side with one eyebrow raised.

"What are you doing?" he asked. I beamed at him from where I sat.

"I'm about to go swimming, if you don't mind." I proclaimed. "And you're coming with me!" He seemed confused for a few seconds longer, but that quickly turned to embarrassment when I got my shoes off and began shucking my Militia uniform, as well.

"Rosette! What are you doing?" he exclaimed, clenching his eyes shut. I blinked at him. After a second, I figured it out, a sly grin spreading across my face.

"Oh, I get it. You've never been swimming before, have you?" I asked accusingly, pulling my dress over my head to leave myself in my underclothes. He shook his head vehemently, cracking open an eye and then slamming it shut again when he saw that I was still indecently dressed. I glanced down at my attire and smirked even wider, an evil plan forming in my mind.

"Oh, Ku-ro-no…" I sang mischievously, a very feline grin coming to my lips. I knelt in front of him, turning his head from where he was facing away from me. "Will you swim with me?" He gulped, but didn't open his eyes. I exhaled noisily, my frustration beginning to mount. "Oh, come on. It's nothing you haven't seen before, remember?" He heaved a sigh and opened his eyes, a small smile lighting up his face as he looked up at me.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." he admitted playfully. I smirked triumphantly.

"Good. Now, it's your turn!" I crowed, and in a flash, I had his cloak off over his head, and pulled his sleeves and vest off before he could register what was happening. He gave a startled yelp as I tugged his gun belt off, and covered my small hands in his own larger ones.

"I hate to ask again, but what the hell are you doing?" he exclaimed. I huffed, tossing the belt on the ground next to my own before placing my fists on my hips- only now noticing that they were slightly more rounded than before- and giving him an annoyed glare.

"I told you, you're coming swimming with me." I said simply. Sometimes, I amazed even myself with how much patience I could have- at least when it came to Chrono. "If you want to have dry clothes to change into again, I suggest you take them off before you get wet. It's quite uncomfortable to fly in soggy clothes, ne?" He pouted a bit, but in the end, my logic won out, and he stripped down. I raised my eyebrows when I found that he didn't keep anything on, and I began to take off my underclothes, too. When it was all said and done, I grabbed his hand and, after quickly taking his headband out of his hair for him, dragged him down and into the water up to our waists. With that, I began to teach him the finer points of swimming, including how to tread water, the 'doggy paddle', the breast stroke, and the back- and front-floats.

Later, after a water-war and a couple races, we lay on the bank, laughing and allowing the sun to dry our bodies. Chrono had his arms around me, his face buried in my bare midriff, his breath tickling my skin and sending a fluttering through my abdomen and up my spine, and both of us wore grins that couldn't seem to be erased. For a long time, I forgot about all my troubles- my shortened life, my newfound pregnancy, the problem with getting home again- and just lived for the moment, alongside the love of my life.

"Rosette?" he asked quietly. I blinked my eyes open, surprisingly tired from the exertion of the day's activities.

"Yeah, Chrono?"

"Are you alright? You smell different." he stated. My heart rate sped up as I became slightly nervous. I should have known that, as a demon, he'd be able to smell a change in my hormones! Dammit! I sighed, taking a deep breath before exhaling.

"I'm fine, silly. If it was anything you would have to worry about, I'd let you know." I finally scolded. "Trust me, it's nothing life-threatening. Just a little condition that'll be gone in a couple of months." I felt him blink a couple of times, his eyelashes tickling my stomach and making me giggle with suppressed laughter. He batted his eyelids again, confused.

"Chrono, stop blinking! That tickles!" He blinked again before lifting himself up into a sitting position.

"You've got a condition?" he asked, a concerned frown marring his handsome features. "What is it?" I shook my head.

"It's nothing serious, like I said. Just a little change that's going on in my body. It's something that most girls go through, though I'm getting it a little early in life." I replied, but shook my head with a smile. "Don't worry about me, though. You have a long trip ahead of you, starting tonight. You have to get Mary Magdalene from the Order. You're going to need your wits about you to pull a stunt like that." He peered at me skeptically for a few more minutes before heaving a sigh and shaking his head. I guess that he knew I wasn't going to tell him what I was going through.

"I'll be fine, Rosette. It's you I'm worried about." He laid his head back on my stomach, and I wrapped my arms around his broad shoulders, closing my eyes and attempting to enjoy the time we had together.

"I just wish you would trust me enough to tell me what you're going through so that I can help." he murmured, so quietly that I almost didn't catch it. I moved my left hand from his shoulder to rest over his ear, gently tracing the edge to the pointed tip and back before stroking his violet locks in a soothing, rhythmic motion.

"I wish I could tell you, too. But I can't." I whispered. "I can't risk changing history."

Okay, then, there's the last chapter for a couple of days. I hope you guys liked it! Please leave a review! Until the next time, sayonara!

-Fanatic