Cecile felt like she was going to combust. Her happiness levels were through the roof and she had such wonderful dreams. She woke up the next day with a wide smile on her face as she pressed her face into a pillow and started to giggle.

They kissed her! She knew that she liked them a lot but she wasn't sure if they had liked her the same way. But when Raine kissed her… it sort of sealed the deal. She knew immediately that they all liked her just as much as she liked them.

It truly had been the first person she had crushed on. Due to her sheltered background, she hadn't really had many friends – going to boarding school didn't earn her many friends. Meeting the Trio was honestly the best thing to have happened in her adult life.

But the feelings of not being good enough still persisted. She briefly wondered if they would ever start to resent her when she would under perform or do something that he didn't like – much like Julian did. The anxiety crept up on her like a disease as her mind raced at a thousand miles.

She was happy! Why did she always have to ruin things?

And in her terror, she felt her breath quicken and her body go full flight mode. Her heart was pounding and she felt like the world was enclosing onto her. She shook her head, her hands pressed against her head as she squeezed her eyes shut.

Her mind refused to calm down.

"Cecile?" Came Lucius's voice as she heard his footsteps approaching her. Oh no, she must have woken him up! "Are you all right?"

She couldn't speak. It all felt too much. Everything was too much. Internally, she hoped he would stop asking questions, lest he get angry with her.

"Cici, it's okay…" Raine's voice was soft as she heard his voice approach but he did not seemingly sit down. "You can tell us. It's okay…"

Slowly, Cecile removed her hands from her head and took a deep breath. But she still wasn't calm, she still heard the doubtful voices and her anxiety was still present. Raine seemed to notice as he hummed to himself. She had no idea what he was humming but it… it was smoothing.

"Cecile, do you have something that calms you down?" Lucius asked yet his tone was gentle. Cecile didn't know. All she knew was that she ended up usually riding it out, but it would take several hours sometimes before it was fully gone.

"I… I don't know…" She said quietly. There was a brief period of silence as Cecile held her legs close to her chest. She felt Lucius lean over and reach out to grab something from her bed. To her surprise, she felt the fluffiness of one of her stuffed animals press against her legs. "W-What..?"

"One thing that used to calm me down when I was younger was holding something soft. I don't know if this will work the same way but you can try." Lucius suggested. Cecile hesitated for a moment before she nodded and took the stuffed animal in her arms and hugged it tightly. The plushiness of the teddy bear was extremely calming. "What else do you do to relax?"

She didn't answer right away, instead, opting to sniff in the scent of the teddy bear. It smelled like her childhood, the texture was soft and furry and her anxiety was going down but not completely gone. She tried to focus on answering his question but found that she couldn't.

She heard Lucius gasp as he seemed to realize something.

"That's it!" And with a spring to his step, he stood up and started to look around for something. "Cecile, do you happen to have something scented that you enjoy the smell of?"

Unsure of what his intentions were but deciding to go along with them, she replied. "I have some candles in the bathroom but I never light them up."

"Perfect!" Lucius said as she heard them race into the bathroom and quickly returned. They sat on the bed and placed the candle in her lap. She could smell the scent of lavender and vanilla and… it was smoothing and relaxing. She actually exhaled in delight as she lifted the candle closer to her nose and inhaled deeply. That seemed to do the trick as she suddenly felt her anxiety just… vanish.

"I thought that would help!" Lucius said, sounding proud of himself. "Scents can help ease and relax a person, especially if the scent is a good one."

"Thank you…" Cecile said, her smile returning as she smelled her candle once more. "That was… very thoughtful of you."

"Of course, you silly femme!" Heinrich exclaimed and to anyone else the intensity in his voice would be anxiety inducing but to Cecile it made her smile even more. "I don't want you to feel upset."

Cecile actually giggled at that despite herself. There was still a bit of anxiety, but it was fading and dull.

"So why were you so upset earlier?" Heinrich asked curiously as his voice lowered, as to not scare her again. Her smile slowly faded as she held the candle closer to her body. She didn't want to think about her doubts, or her fears or even her distress. It was Lucius's voice who cut off her thoughts. "You don't need to tell me now if you don't want to."

"Thank you, I'm not exactly ready, I think…" Cecile replied as she smiled but it didn't quite reach her eyes. She could feel Lucius shift on the bed as he stood up and grabbed her with one arm under her legs and the other supporting her back. This definitely helped to ease her anxiety, seeing how they held her closely. She once more felt protected and comfortable.

"And that's all right." He murmured softly and she knew that his face was close to hers seeing how well she heard him. Her happiness returned and her euphoria from last night kicked in as she leaned in and kissed him. When they parted ways, Cecile blushed and giggled once more.

"Can you help me get my pills?" She said softly. "They are on the dresser."

She heard their footsteps as they walked over to the dresser and lifted her pills container. They returned and gave them to her. Cecile reached over to her bedside and grabbed a water bottle before taking two pills. She could feel her back pain kick in, so she was happy to get the pain medication.

"So, what now?" Lucius asked.

"Well, we open presents!" Cecile exclaimed joyously as she gestured for them to put her down. They did so and she raced over to the Christmas tree, where presents sat under the tree. She heard them sit down beside her. "So, I didn't know exactly what to get you but I think I did all right!"

"Awww, thank you, Cici! I got you some stuff too!" To her surprise, she heard the rustling of bags as Raine pulled them over. Cecile blinked before she smiled happily.

"Well, you go first!" Raine exclaimed as he shoved the bags towards her and she barely grabbed them in time as she fell back, losing her balance.

"Oh no! I'm so sorry!" Raine shouted in terror but Cecile grinned as she laughed aloud and sat back up, grinning happily.

"That's okay, I'm just bad at balance!" She laughed before smiling and reaching for the bags. She felt around and realized there were three bags in total, which made her think that all three alters must have gotten her something according to what they thought she'd like. The thought made her feel warm as she opened the first bag.

The first thing she felt was a soft material – it was silk. Confused, she pulled it out and it was long. It took her a moment to realize that it had been a dress. No, three dresses! Eyes widening, another realization fell upon her. They had been the dresses she had tried on when she went on the date with the Trio!

"G-Guys…" She muttered softly, feeling like she wanted to cry but held the tears back. "You… you got this for me?"

"Of course we did!" Raine giggled. "We saw how much you wanted it so we got them for you."

"I-I- Thank you! But they are very expensive dresses, you shouldn't have spent your money on me!" Cecile stuttered, trying to regain her thoughts. She couldn't believe it! These dresses were one she wanted for months now and they… they bought them for her. Once more, she was on the verge of tears.

"What kind of nonsense is that? It's our money, and we'll spend it however we'd like! And if we want to spend it on a femme that makes me and the other two happy then that is our decision!" Heinrich said boldly without room for argument. Raine then fronted. "Besides, we knew it would make you happy! And we were right! Yay!"

Cecile shook from excitement as she felt the tears run down her face. It was too much. They were so nice to her, what had she done to deserve this? She smiled widely as she shuddered and her voice was squeaky. "T-Thank you so much!"

"Of course, but I believe there are other presents to open." Lucius said calmly yet with happiness in his tone.

She smiled and nodded eagerly as she opened the next bag and felt around. It was… something hard. Confused, she lifted it out of the bag. It was something hard and round but had some intricate designs to it that stuck out and there was some kind of key sticking out of the side. She wasn't sure what it was.

"Here, let me." Heinrich gently held her hands, motioning for her what to do. They opened it and twisted the key several times. Soft music came from it and Cecile knew immediately what it was! It was a music box! It played a gentle tune she had never heard before but it was elegant and sounded like old French classical music. She grinned happily as she felt around and felt a dancer in the middle, which was spinning around slowly to the music.

"It's so wonderful! Thank you!" She said warmly. She heard Heinrich shuffle slightly as he seemed to get comfortable and she barely heard his quiet chuckle.

"Of course, sweetspark." He said with equal warmth. "There's one last thing for you!"

Cecile didn't even hesitate, opening the last bag and pulled out something hard and squared. There were a couple of these as well with something at the bottom. It took a bit of strength to pull it out (Heinrich had to help her) but she managed to get it out. It too was squared and it felt like a metal box and it was chunkier. Confused, her attention turned to them for an explanation.

"It's a Record Player. We did some research and found out that about two centuries or so ago, Record Players were quite a common household appliance for listening to music. The thinner boxes are the Records themselves within slips to protect them. There's some old music on them from several decades ago and also some of your music." As Lucius explained, Cecile wanted to burst from happiness. She couldn't believe it! It was so… such a thoughtful gift! "I hope you like them. We got the dresses of course, but we also wanted to do something for you that I think you may like so we'll have to figure out how it works and then we can-"

He didn't have time to finish as Cecile tackled them and pressed her lips against theirs, kissing them with all the love in the world that she could muster. What had she done to deserve this man? She kissed them for all they were worth and when she pulled away, her cheeks were warm and she felt so tingly all over.

"Thank you, mon amour…" She whispered with more desire than she wanted to project, which surprised her but it wasn't something she was too embarrassed about. She was too overjoyed to really care.

"O-Of course, my dear…" Lucius's flustered voice replied and she giggled at him as she pulled away.

"Ooh! Now lemme open what you got!" Raine replied as he reached for a box. And then the anxiety hit her again. Her gifts! They weren't nearly as good as his! What if he didn't like them? Would he disregard her? What- To her absolute terror, she heard him opening the gift. "Oooh! It's so nice! It's a coat, right?"

Blinking in surprise at how happy he sounded, she nodded once.

"Y-Yes, it is." She replied as she sniffed her candle again. It eased her anxiety a bit. She had gotten him a jacket which Silky helped her pick out for colors. It was a large cotton and wool mixed, trench coat that was double layered with silk on the inside for extra insulation. It was a dark grey color with cross-crossing buttons that connected with straps. Silky had told her that it looked very impressive and they had to guess his size a bit.

"I love it! Lemme try it on!" Raine announced as she heard him stand up and struggle a bit before managing to get the coat on. "Oooh! It's a bit loose but I like it!"

Cecile smiled as she nodded and told herself it was okay. The presents she had gotten them weren't nearly as thoughtful but so long as he enjoyed it, it was okay. After several more minutes of fumbling and opening boxes, the Trio had gotten a trench coat, a tablet (which Cecile had gotten them for their work purposes), and a bottle of old french wine. All of which, the Trio insisted that they loved and would cherish very much.

But despite their reassurances, there was one last thing she wanted to give them. She wanted them to know that she cared about them just as much as they cared about her. It was her nervousness, she knew this. But there was a part of her that felt like… it was something they should have. It was something they could use.

"Lucius?" She spoke softly.

"Yes, dearest?" He replied. His voice reassured her that this was the right decision. That her mother would be okay with this. That she could do this. She slowly unlatched her necklace and removed it from her person before presenting it to them, smiling sweetly. She didn't hear them speak for several seconds.

"This was my mother's, like I said before. She gave it to me. I want to give it to you as a show of my affections and care. Mama said to keep it safe and I trust you all. You saved my life when we met and I feel like you should have this."

"Cecile…" Lucius spoke softly yet seriously. "This isn't mine to have. It belonged to your mother, and aren't you supposed to pass it down to your children?"

"Mama specified someone special, but not strictly children." She giggled. She felt a warmth fill her body that was… different. A warmth she hadn't felt ever. She took it as a sign. "If mama were to have met you, I don't believe she would object."

"Are you sure about this..?" Lucius asked. Cecile only nodded.

"Yes, I am positive." She answered confidently. Seconds later, she felt their hand gently take the necklace. She wasn't sure what they were thinking due to their silence but that didn't last for too long.

"Thank you, Cecile. I will protect this necklace as if it were your life." They answered honestly yet seriously. She could only smile fondly at their words.

"I trust you all. I really do."

A figure rowed down the swamps of Louisiana in a small raft. It was relatively quiet since it was rather early in the morning. Around their neck was a necklace that had a compass attached to it. They paused to flip open the compass and watched as the four needles moved back and forth, but never settled on a spot. It glowed slightly with a purple hue.

However, before they could do anything, a bright light erupted from it. The person shielded their eyes from beneath the cloak that she wore. When the light dimmed, they gazed upon the compass again.

A gasp escaped their lips as they stared at the compass, with its needles pointing all in one direction. She handled the compass with utmost care and shock as if damaging the device would be akin to murder.

"Can it be..?" A feminine voice came from the figure. They stared at the compass before nodding to themselves and turning the raft in a different direction.

She was needed elsewhere.

Edited: 3/1/2022