Chapter 37 – The Western Air Temple: A faltering resolve

Milah lay awake that night, contemplating everything that'd happened that day. She knew beforehand that she'd probably get little sleep anyway, afraid of what dreams would bring her. Zuko had returned to her.

To them.

She sighed and turned around in her bed, facing the moon, trying to find strength in its rays, even though it had just been a new one and her connection with the celestial body had been decreasing each day. The Waterbender caressed her belly and knew it meant only one thing.

Her little baby boy or girl would be a Firebender.

An intrusive thought filled her head suddenly. What would Zuko think of having a Firebender as a child? Would he be thrilled, as she was? Or would he want nothing to do with him or her?

She shook her head, clearing her mind forcefully. This was not a time to think about that. There were much more pressing things at matter, like finding Aang a Firebending teacher. But hadn't Zuko offered this? Hadn't he wanted to teach Aang his Firebending? He was quite good at it, Milah knew. He bested every other bender except for his sister.

But maybe he had already left, and how were they going to find him then? How was she going to find him again? Because even after all that'd happened, she'd felt her heart come alive again. She'd felt the tremor in her body when she'd gazed into his eyes. When she had beheld his familiar form, when she'd smelled him and when he'd kissed her… Even if he did it to stop her panic attack, she couldn't stop thinking about it. Didn't want to stop thinking about it, either.

She missed him. Missed him so much it ached and whimpered into the darkness, her throat closing up again. How she wanted to be with him again, wanted to feel the familiar rough but gentle lips on hers, his hands in her hair, at her sides, between her thighs…

A soft breeze came through the window and brushed away the invasive images in her head. She thought and thought some more, and knew what to do tomorrow. If Aang wanted to learn Firebending, there was only one way to do so. Only one person was fit for the job and he had been right there, pledging himself to the entire group.

They'd been foolish to turn him away. She'd been foolish.

Morning came quickly and without knowing it, Milah had fallen asleep sometime during the night. She woke up with golden eyes dancing behind her eyes and stood up quickly, readying for the day and trying to erase the golden glow she seemed to find in everything. Walking downstairs, it had diminished but wasn't completely gone, and she knew she was doomed. It had taken her four months to finally get the feeling she would recover from the heartbreak; not heal, but recover, slowly. Now, she was right back where she started.

Alone. Without even Amim, who had been taken prisoner, who would be tortured worse than the others because he would be considered a traitor to his Nation. Milah caressed the golden band on her finger and swallowed. If she could turn back time… she would've never let him go.

Katara greeted her sister with a soft smile. ''Morning. I made some breakfast. Would you like some?''

Milah gratefully accepted the bowl and took a sip. ''You know, I have been thinking-''

''Oh dear, here we go,'' Sokka interrupted her jokingly and doubled over after Milah punched him in the gut playfully. The whole party laughed.

''As I was saying, and don't freak out, but I think we should accept Zuko as a member of our group,'' she continued. Her heart thundered dangerously.

''What?'' Katara asked incredulously.

''I said, don't freak out,'' Milah tried to calm her sister. ''Listen, Aang needs a Firebending teacher and I've been up all night thinking there would be no one better than him to teach him.'' She turned to Aang. ''I've seen Zuko fight, as you probably all have, and none of you can deny that he's a powerful bender and knows what he does. Besides, if anyone knows how to beat the Fire Lord and Azula, it's him.''

Aang stared at her with an uneasy expression. ''I get what you're saying, but… I don't trust him. What if he's setting up some kind of trap?''

Milah fought to not let her smile drop and let the fear take over, because what he said… she refused to believe it. ''I don't think so. I know I sound naïve, but… what he and I shared…''

It was silent and she didn't raise her eyes to meet anyone's gaze. It was Aang who broke it, saying, ''If you say you trust him, then I'm with you.''

''Aang, no,'' Katara quickly intervened. ''Milah, you're not thinking clearly. Zuko can't be trusted. You know what he's capable of-''

''Yes, Katara, I know,'' she gently interrupted her sister and took her hands. ''I think I can say that if anyone should know, I am. But that's why I'm saying this. We shouldn't not let him join us just because of what he did to me, or what he might've done to you guys in the past. If he says that he's changed… then he has. And I don't know… there was something about him yesterday. In the way he spoke…'' She'd noticed it, of course, like she would notice everything about him, knowing him even better than she knew herself at some times.

''Don't get me wrong, loving the whole speech and all, sis,'' Sokka cut in the conversation, making his sisters turn their eyes at him. He had the audacity to feel a little nervous by their gazes. ''But a man's been waiting the whole morning for his breakfast here. Why don't we all-''

''Ugh, Sokka, don't you ever take things seriously?'' Katara complained and handed him a bowl with more force than necessary. ''And who are you calling a man?'' Everyone laughed at that again, including Milah, feeling her insides lightening by the joyous sounds around her.

A little while later, while handing The Duke his second serve, Katara asked, ''Has anyone seen Toph?''

Milah looked around her and noticed she was missing for the first time.

''I haven't seen her since she stormed off yesterday,'' Sokka answered her.

''Maybe she's just exploring the air temple. There are some pretty fun spots to practice Earthbending,'' Haru stated. Milah had almost forgotten he was here as well. With good reason.

''I think we should go look for her,'' Katara said worriedly. Milah nodded, agreeing. No girl of mere twelve should be on her own in a place like this. Who knew which parts were hazardous because of a hundred years without any maintenance looking over them?

''Let her have fun with her rocks. I'm in no rush to have her yelling at us again,'' Sokka meddled, earning him a stern eye from the people around him again.

''We can go check for her!'' The Duke announced and sprang up from his place, ready to explore the Temple once more.

''Yeah! I want to ride that tunnel down to the Hall of Statues again. It will work a lot better now that I fixed my brakes,'' Teo said enthusiastically. Milah now noticed he wore a bandage around his neck and it didn't take long until she figured out he'd probably hurt himself down there.

''Be careful!'' she shout out after them and leaned back against the fountain where she'd taken her place. A loud rumble sounded from behind one of the pillars and all the hairs on her arm stood right up. All four of them stood up in a hurry and ran towards the source.

''Toph! What happened?'' Katara asked with concern. Toph was laying on top of a pile of rubble that had fallen from a big hole in the wall. Together with her sister, Milah approached the girl, scanning from head to toe to see what was wrong.

''My feet got burned!'' Toph told them with her feet high up in the air. She saw it now. They were already red and swollen with blisters.

''Oh no, what happened?'' Katara asked again. Milah had already bended some water from the flask at Katara's side and started to work her healing on Toph. A blue light lip up from her feet.

''I just told you, my feet got burned!'' the Earthbender said again. Milah had to bite her lip to keep from bursting out laughing.

''I meant, how,'' Katara elaborated with annoyance hinting in her voice.

''Well, I kind of went to see Zuko last night,'' Toph sheepishly admitted. Milah halted her healing and the water fell onto the ground, abandoned.

''He did this to you?'' Milah asked softly and felt like she going to be sick. He would attack a twelve-year-old girl? A child?

''You what?'' Aang asked at the same time as her while Katara exclaimed Zuko's name and Sokka made a strangled noise from inside his throat.

''I thought he could be helpful to us. And if I talked to him, maybe we could work something out,'' Toph said while Katara continued the healing Milah had forsaken, too much in shock to be able to do anything at that moment.

''So he attacked you?'' Sokka asked.

''Well, he did, and he didn't. It was sort of an accident,'' Toph tried to explain. Milah rubbed a hand over her abdomen, wanting to assure herself that her child was safe and wondering if the little one could ever be safe in Zuko's hands.

''But he did firebend at you?'' Aang asked.

Toph let out a sigh. ''Yes.''

''See? You trusted Zuko, and you got burned. Literally!'' Sokka exclaimed.

''Did he do it on purpose?'' Milah asked.

Toph shook her head. ''I don't think so. He thought I was someone else, coming to attack him.''

Milah let out a huge breath. She could see that happening. Another thumb rub over her pregnant stomach had the nerves stilling.

''It's going to take a while for your feet to get better,'' Katara said gently and stopped her healing. ''I wish I could have worked on them sooner.''

Toph looked glum. ''Yeah, me too.''

''Zuko's clearly too dangerous to be left alone. We're going to have to go after him,'' Sokka stated and made his way over to Toph.

''I hate to go looking for a fight, but you're right. After what he did to Toph, I don't think we have a choice,'' Aang agreed with her brother and made the same way over to the girl.

''He's crafty, but we'll find a way to capture him,'' Sokka said.

''But-'' Milah tried to interrupt the rest but Toph was faster. She didn't want them to fight Zuko, not when one of them could get hurt.

Milah wasn't sure if she could stomach seeing Zuko hurt.

''Maybe just invite him back here,'' she contemplated while Sokka and Aang carried her over to the fountain. ''He's already offered himself up as a prisoner once.''

''Yeah, get him to come back and say he'll be our prisoner, then we'll jump him and really make him our prisoner. He'll never suspect it!'' Sokka said rather happily.

''You are a master of surprise, Sokka…'' Katara added with sarcasm while she looked over to where Milah was standing. ''Are you okay?''

Milah swallowed. ''I don't know if it's a good thing to attack him. I mean, Toph said he probably did it on purpose. What if he-''

''Milah,'' Katara interjected with a stern voice. ''I'm sorry, but we can't let this slide. I understand you probably have conflicted feeling about it, but we have to make a stand here.''

Milah kept her mouth shut and wrapped her arms around herself. ''I don't agree.''

Katara sighed and held out her hand for her sister. ''Come, we'll discuss it with Aang. Don't jump to any conclusions yet.''

Milah held her arms wrapped around herself and a flashback of Zuko, hurt by the explosion on his ship or after he'd had that fight with that Freedom Fighter, Jet, in the Earth Kingdom. She shook her head. ''I think I… I need some time for myself. I'm sorry.''

Katara let her sister go, having seen the look on her face. It was hardest on her, she knew this. Milah was alone in the middle of a war, pregnant, while all of them were contemplating how to capture the father of her unborn baby. But Katara turned around and made her way to the Gaang, knowing she'd come back.

Milah made her way up the stairs at the side of the Temple, knowing where they'd lead her. She had overheard Teo and Haru talking about it last night, how they had found the non-Airbender way out of the Temple, which meant in case you don't know how to fly. Up and up, she made her way to the surface until she pushed at the wooden door, sunlight almost blinding her. She was in a secluded part of a forest with trees surrounding her. The air up here was dry and hot but she stepped onto the grassy ground anyway, determined to find Zuko and first give him a piece of her mind, and after that, warn him about the plans of her siblings, Aang and Toph.

Because it was four against one and she knew that he wasn't able to take on all of them on his own.

Guilt swarmed inside her stomach and threatened to eat her alive at that moment and she feared the anger of all of them when they realised what she had done, but it didn't weigh up against the fear she felt for Zuko. For the man that unknowingly still held her heart in his hands, however broken and damaged it may be.

She wandered the woods for a while, careful to mark trees with her bending so she could make her way back to the secret passage. It felt like forever and it was well into the afternoon when she made the decision to go back, hunger plaguing her and realising that they must all be worried about her by now.

She was nearing the underground door when she saw a blackened piece of earth to her right and realised that it must've been from Zuko, knowing enough of campfires from her travels that that was a fresh one. For the rest, the spot was empty and lead sank inside her stomach.

Zuko had probably left already. Had given up on her and his baby after she had so clearly stated that she was done. Tears pricked at her eyes and she held her breath, wanting to hold in the noise that was fighting to come out of her.

He had stopped fighting already. Hadn't thought she was worth fighting for that much. What else could she have expected? Four months had already passed and who knew what could have happened in that time. Maybe he had fallen back in love with Mai, had only come here to ease his consciousness, to assure himself that she was safe with her siblings so he didn't have to worry about her anymore.

Milah fell to her knees in front of the abandoned camp and let the tears flow. Her fingers gripped the grass harshly and the first sob left her mouth. ''I'm sorry,'' she whispered and pressed a hand to her abdomen. ''I'm sorry, little one.''

She didn't know how long she sat there, crying and apologising to her unborn baby for sending away their father, a ringing having taken over inside her ears, making it impossible to scan any danger around her. She didn't know how many hours it had been, only noticed that the sun had set when she suddenly felt warm hands cup her cheeks. Smelled a familiar smell that had her automatically gripping the hands encompassing her face.

Milah opened her eyes, and gold met blue. Blue met gold.

''I thought you left,'' she whispered in Zuko's face, knowing her face was probably puffy and red from her breakdown.

''Milah,'' he whispered back and let his forehead lean against hers. More tears left her eyes and she gripped his hands more harshly. ''Why on earth would you think that?''

She shook her head. ''Because I said those things.''

He let out a breathy laugh that skimmed over her face and she couldn't help but rub a thumb over his skin. ''I'm never going to leave you again. You're stuck with me.'' He looked into her eyes and his face turned grave. ''I love you.''

A kick inside her stomach made her release his hands and gasp out loud, feeling for the spot she had just felt her baby for the first time in.

''What happened?'' Zuko asked hurriedly while panic exploded inside of him. ''Are you hurt?''

More kicks and she cried out loud from happiness. ''I… he just kicked. For the first time.'' She raised her head to look at him, forgetting for a moment why she should run the other way or why she was even angry at him to begin with. Zuko's eyes were zoomed in on her stomach, wonder and admiration clearly shining in his eyes.

''He?'' he asked in a whisper and clenched his hands, once more by his side. He used every inch of his restraint to refrain from touching her.

''At least, I think it's a he. I don't know, a while back I started having these dreams about a little baby boy and ever since then, I just assumed…'' she wandered off and got lost in his eyes for a moment, not knowing what she was going to say.

''Milah, I… I want you to know that I'm going to be by your side from now on. I'll never let you two out of my sight again, no matter what anyone says,'' he vowed with such intensity that she had to swallow, her toes involuntarily curling inside her shoes. Another kick to her stomach made her realise something.

''Zuko,'' she called to him. A pleasant shiver went over the man's spine from hearing his name in her mouth, making some of his blood rush downstairs. He sucked in a breath and willed his control to snap back into place, but he knew it was a lost cause. When it came to Milah, everything was a lost case to the Prince.

''Here,'' she continued and grabbed his warm hand once more. He almost let out a groan from feeling the familiar coldness of her touch. She raised her shirt for a bit and put his large hand on her slightly swollen belly. He marvelled at the feeling of her soft skin once more on his hands and his pants strained to keep his hard cock in. ''Say something.''

His uneven breaths didn't go unnoticed by her and she fought to keep her eyes on his face and not let them wander to beneath his waist where she knew she would find a bulge in his clothing. Heat pooled in her stomach and she wondered if it had been a good idea to let him touch her. Especially on a spot that was so nearby where she actually wanted his hand to be.

Zuko bowed down to her stomach and put his other hand on her waist, keeping her in one place. She sucked in a breath. ''Hey, little one,'' he whispered against her skin and treasonous goosebumps appeared in the area. He let out another breathy laugh and rubbed his thumb over her stomach. ''Can you give me one more kick?'' And there it was, another kick to his hand and he stilled.

Zuko let a tear fall on Milah's lap, not believing and hating himself for leaving them as he had done. For not realising that he'd had it all, back in Ba Sing Se, with her, his wife, and their unborn baby. He realised now, however, that he would die trying to make things right for her. He would die trying to earn their forgiveness, and maybe, hopefully, he'd be worthyofit before that time actually came.

''I love you,'' he whispered to her stomach and dared press a kiss, to which he got another little kick. ''I love you.''

Milah was silent the whole time, not keeping in her own tears. I love you, he had said. He had said it when the baby had kicked for the first time as well… did he mean it?

A croaking badgerfrog ruined the moment and Milah pulled away from him as if he had burned her. She stood up quickly but almost fell to the ground immediately after if Zuko hadn't caught her. Her legs were sleeping from sitting in the same position that whole time.

''I'm fine, Zuko,'' she told him and tried to pull away from him again, but he only held on tighter to her.

''No, you're not,'' he grunted into her ear, sending another bolt of pleasure through her. The area between her thighs dampened. ''I'll carry you.'' And with that, he picked her up in one smooth movement and walked over to the hidden door in the ground a little further away.

While he was descending the stairs, she felt the strength in her legs reappear again and told him so, to which he reluctantly let her go. Together, they walked on.

''Why are you going down with me?'' she asked after a while, realising that he hadn't turned around to his little campsite again. He was walking in front of her and he turned his head around, giving her a view of his perfectly cut cheekbones and chin.

''I told you,'' he answered her, the muscles in his back moving with every step he took. ''I'm not leaving you out of my sight again. Besides,'' he continued and went through his grown hair with a hand. ''I was accepted into the group just this morning. I'm really glad you weren't there. The Fire Nation assassin tracked you guys down here and attacked everyone. Didn't you hear it?''

Milah's cheeks flamed. ''I was sort of having a mental breakdown, so, no.''

Zuko stopped short and Milah was tired enough that she crushed into his back. He turned around on the stairs, his head levelling with hers. ''I'm so fucking sorry, Milah. If I could turn back time-''

''But you can't,'' she cut in and didn't meet his eyes. ''It is what it is. Come, I bet they're all worried about me.''

Zuko hesitated but turned around again, ignoring the hurt inside his chest. Milah had every right to say that. Didn't make it easier, though. ''Anyway, after the attack was over, everyone noticed you were still gone. When you still hadn't made your way back for lunch, we all started looking for you. Took forever to find you.''

Milah stayed silent after that, embarrassed to be found crying at his abandoned camp. They stayed silent until they appeared at the bottom of the stairs and the campfire from the Gaang was in sight. Katara saw her first and didn't know how fast she could run to her sister. They embraced each other like they hadn't seen each other for years, but Milah knew where this came from. They'd lost and found each other so many times over the years and with each reunion, the fear of losing the other forever grew.

''I'm sorry,'' they whispered in each other's ears.

''We were just discussing where else to look for you when you appeared there! Promise me you won't run off like that ever again!'' Katara asked her sister. Milah nodded, biting her lip.

''Are you all okay? Zuko told me about the attack,'' she asked them. Every eye went to the looming Firebender's presence at her back.

''We're fine,'' Katara told her and took her with her to sit next to her by the fire. Haru was at her other side and she knew why Katara had chosen this spot; there was no way Zuko could worm his way next to her like that.

The Prince took a seat next to Aang, opposite her. He didn't dare meet her eyes, listening to one of The Duke's elaborate stories about his adventures that day instead, afraid of what he might find in just looking at her. What kind of emotions would be present on her face.

But the temptation was too big. He looked over her, from head to toe, and stopped his gaze where her left hand was resting on her stomach protectively, now clearly visible by the fire.

And there it was. On her left ring finger, there was a golden band, a piece of jewellery that he had not given her. That she had obviously gotten from another. The gold shone in the light of the fire and he fought to stay calm, to not draw any conclusions.

''Zuko,'' Sokka called out to him eventually. ''Come. I'll show you to your room.''

The Prince got up and followed him, trying to catch Milah's eyes. But she pointedly had a conversation with Aang instead. He clenched his fists.

When he lay in bed after having received a death threat from Katara, he contemplated on whether he should go look for her, try to see if he could find out who had gotten her that ring, or if he should just accept it. Accept the possible fact that she had found another during the four months they'd spent apart.

But that didn't make sense. He also knew that. He'd seen the look in her eyes earlier that evening. Had heard the shaky breaths from her mouth when he'd put his hands on her skin. Had heard those sounds many times before, in far more intimate positions, and knew what sort of state she was in.

He got up from his bed and walked out of the dark room, not bothering to put on a robe. He supposed everyone was asleep anyway and the hot climate caused him to discard his shirt at night. He walked through the hallway and looked in every room easily, seeing everyone slept with the doors open.

He found her at the end of the corridor, sprawled over the mattress with her eyes closed and her lips parted, her hair draped over the pillow like a wave, calling out to him as if he was dying of thirst and that was the only water available. His skin itched, desperate to feel the softness of her. She wore nothing but her underwear and he was glad she was sleeping, not wanting to be caught by her in the middle of the night in her room with a massive boner.

He approached her bed, knelt down next to her on the ground and let his eye fall on her left hand again, not recognising the ring. He frowned.

''Zuko?'' she whispered suddenly, having been woken up by this strange feeling of someone's eyes on her. What she didn't expect was to find Zuko next to her in her room. She sat up, wiping the sleep from her eyes. ''What's wrong? What are you doing here?''

Zuko panicked and cleared his throat softly. ''I- I'm sorry. I shouldn't barge in on you like this.''

''No, you shouldn't,'' she agreed and sighed. ''But since you're here now, tell me.''

He swallowed before taking her left before she could draw it away from him. Milah frowned and let her eyes see their joining when she felt him rub a finger over Amim's ring. Her heart went cold.

''Oh,'' she whispered and slumped her shoulders. ''That's… Amim's.''

''Oh,'' he echoed, strained. She saw his body tighten. ''Wait, Amim? I thought he was captured by the Northern Water Tribe.''

''He was,'' she told him and kept telling the story of how Amim had earned himself a spot in the invasion army. Zuko nodded with the story but kept silent throughout it all, just looking into her blue eyes, getting lost inside the vast ocean of them.

''Amim proposed to me,'' she eventually said after silence had spread out between them. His hand tightened around hers and she could see his eyes burning.

''And what did you say?'' he asked her with a low and husky voice that send a shiver through her.

She hesitated before answering, which made him inch closer to her, their noses almost touching. ''I told him I didn't have an answer yet.''

Their breaths fanned over each other's faces. She fought the temptation of his lips, the urge to raise her hand and touch his scar again. She knew he would welcome it, and wanted the same, but she also was aware of the fact that there were too many unspoken and unresolved things between them.

''But why are you wearing it then?'' he asked her and came even closer as if he would kiss her. She stilled, her mind and heart at war with each other.

Move away, let it happen, move away, let it happen, move away…

She kept still and closed her eyes, anticipating what was to come. But his lips didn't touch hers. They moved to her cheek, her nose, her hair, where he nuzzled his nose, breathing in. Milah let out a sigh, her right hand involuntarily raising to grip his strong, muscled arm. A groan left his mouth and he raised his other hand to wrap itself around her waist, tugging her to him and he positioned himself between her legs carefully.

A moan left her mouth when his hard member pressed against her core which made her slam back to reality and pushed him away. ''No,'' she panted and didn't meet his blazing eyes. ''We can't.''

''Why not?'' he asked, equally aroused. His cock was throbbing with need, but he knew the answer to his stupid question.

''Why do you think?'' she asked him mockingly and laid down again, pressing a hand against her forehead. ''I don't want to.''

''Of course,'' he whispered, hurt lacing his voice. ''We don't have to- to do anything. I just… I have one more question.'' The need to be close was aching, hurting and vicious.

''What,'' she said and turned around, facing the window. Her butt faced him teasingly, but he focused on the hurt instead, willing his stupid horny hormones away.

''Why are you wearing his ring when you're not… engaged?'' The word felt foul in his mouth when it didn't concern him as the one being engaged to her.

''He asked me to keep it safe for him, so I am,'' she answered turning around to him once more. ''I still have yours. Here.'' She reached over to her nightstand to the little leather pouch he now first noticed and let two pieces of jewellery fall into her palm.

His mother's ring and the golden necklace.

''Milah, those are yours,'' he said determined but she held out her hand to him. He shook his head. ''No. Those are yours. I don't want them.''

''Me neither!'' she harshly said and stood up from the bed, him with her. Their loud breathing filled the room. ''I'm giving them back. They don't belong to me anymore.''

''They do!'' he told her and gripped her arms. ''They have always belonged to you and they always will. There will be no one else for me. You're my-''

''No! Stop!'' she almost shouted and ripped herself loose. ''You don't get to say such things anymore! You gave up that right long ago.''

Zuko sank to his knees before her and gripped her upper legs. ''You're it for me, Milah. I will take no one else but you-''

''No,'' she whispered and still held her outstretched hand to his face.

''I love you,'' he whispered for the third time since they'd seen each other again. ''I love you.''

She shook her head again and felt a pang in her heart when her baby responded to their father's words. Zuko saw her belly move and marvelled at the sight again. She ripped away from him again and held out her palm one last time. He stood up as well and looked at her hand.

''I'm not taking them,'' he whispered one final time.

She looked into his eyes and knew he'd won this fight. And maybe she'd let him win this fight, knowing that she hadn't actually wanted to win it, anyway.

I love you too, her heart screamed and hoped it didn't show on her face.

''Leave,'' she ordered him after that and regretted it when she saw his hurt expression. But Zuko nodded and turned around, leaving her alone again.

Milah fell asleep a while later, cold, and imagining that Zuko was still there, feeling her resolve from pushing him away falter with each passing second in his presence.

I wonder how long it will take before I give in, was her final thought before falling asleep.

A/N: yes another chapter! Slightly longer than the rest, but I just had to keep writing. A lot of this chapter is unplanned, which are usually – for me, personally – the best chapters I write. Let me know what you think! And finally, thank you, ukitakeitalialover041757 and TheUncommonBlack for reviewing me! For the latter, I hope I satisfied you a tiny bit with this relatively 'hot' chapter :). The good stuff is coming, I promise! Lots of love, Lily.