A/N: This chapter will overlap a little with the previous one, but will also provide new story. So don't be confused by the backwards time jump and repeated events/dialogue. Hope you enjoy!

Kolya sat in his chair, staring at the burning fire in his living room. He fiddled with his ring, turning it with his thumb, as he perused his own thoughts. He couldn't get the image of Mina's expression when she overheard his conversation with Thali. Judging by the heartbreak he saw in her eyes, he suspected that Nikomi had been correct about Mina's feelings. Now he had gone and destroyed whatever sliver of goodwill remained between them, without even meaning to.

Kolya hadn't seen Mina since the incident in the hallway, which made her absence from their home even more painful. As upset as he was about the lies, he wished he could take back his anger and bring her back. He missed her warm presence, the slight dancing movement she made as she walked around their home, the feel of her beside him at night. He decided that the next time he saw her, he would do everything in his power to bring her back to him.

The next time Kolya did lay his eyes on his wife was when he spotted her entering the Firelight celebration. He hadn't originally planned on attending, but a sudden visit from Thali earlier that day had changed his mind. The young woman was very intent on reuniting him with her sister, so she insisted that he come to the celebration. She had made in clear that she would get Mina there, no matter what.

Kolya was very glad that he had decided to come. Mina looked beautiful in her green dress, her long red hair flowing down her shoulders. Her eyes found him quickly and his heart stung when she quickly averted her eyes. If he was going to fix things, he needed to do it quickly. Throughout the evening, he kept his eyes on Mina as she moved around the room. After she had danced with Thali for a while, she made her way to the edge of the room to rest. Kolya saw this as the perfect opportunity. He moved to approach her, but stopped in his tracks when he saw Ladon approach her instead.

So far, Ladon's interest in his wife hadn't bothered him much, as Mina had been very loyal to him. But now that he had done such a spectacular job at pushing her away, Kolya feared that he may have opened the way for Ladon to move in. He watched Ladon offer Mina a drink and attempt to strike up a conversation. He smirked at the expression on Mina's face, obviously uncomfortable with Ladon's flirtation. Maybe he didn't have anything to worry about.

His momentary joy was dashed once the song playing changed to a slower one. Mina started pulling Ladon to the dance space, assuming a position that wasn't intimate in the slightest, but still fueled a rage inside him. Kolya watched their dance with keen eyes, jealousy burning beneath the surface of his calm façade. Once the song ended, he made his move. Pushing through the crowd, he came up behind Mina. Before she could walk away he spoke.

"May I have the next one?"

Mina turned to face him, her eyes widening slightly before she nodded. Kolya took Ladon's place, resting one hand on Mina's waist and taking her hand with the other. As they began to move with the music, he noticed that she was looking down. She seemed to be focusing on anything but him. Stopping their movement, Kolya raised his hand to her chin to make her look at him. He could see the discomfort on her face, which saddened him. He felt terrible for the pain that he had caused her.

"Mina…" he started softly, not exactly sure what to say.

His voice seemed to trigger something in her. She pulled away from his touch, her gaze avoiding him again.

"I'm sorry, I can't do this," she said before turning and moving away from him as quickly as the crowd would allow.

Kolya stood still in the place she left him for a few seconds before following after Mina. He followed her out into the cold, walking quickly to catch up to her. Once he was close enough, he reached out a gently grabbed her arm, forcing her to stop and face him. The discomfort he had seen before had evolved into visible pain.

"Acastus, please…" she said with a quivering voice, "just let me suffer in peace."

Kolya winced at the mention of her suffering. He needed to fix what he had broken. Pulling Mina to him, he wrapped his arms around her. He heard her whimper slightly as she accepted the embrace. He tilted his chin down and pressed his face into her hair.

"Come home," he pleaded quietly.

At his words, Mina pulled away slightly from the embrace and looked up at him. He searched her face desperately for an answer, hoping she wouldn't reject him.

"I thought you wanted me to leave," she said.

Kolya shook his head and raised his hand to her face again, his thumb caressing her cheek.

"Never," he said before leaning down to capture her lips in a kiss.

He felt his heart pounding as Mina returned the kiss, reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck as she often had before. His arms engulfed her, lifting her slightly off the ground. When they pulled apart, he gently set her back down on her feet before placing another kiss on her forehead.

"I'm so sorry Mina," he said softly.

He heard her let out a disbelieving laugh before saying, "you're sorry? I'm the one that lied to you."

Kolya peered down at her, realizing what a fool he had been to lash out the way he had.

"We both made mistakes, but I definitely could have handled it better."

Mina shrugged, which was her way of agreeing with him without belittling him. He released her from their embrace and moved to guide her back in the direction of the gathering.

"Let's go back inside, you don't have a coat on and it's cold out here. I've heard that you love the Firelight celebration, so why don't we go enjoy it properly?"

Mina looked up at him as they walked, confusion clouding her face.

"How did you know…" she started to ask, stopping mid-question," Thali. She pushed you in my direction didn't she?"

Kolya smirked at the question.

"She felt bad about what happened the other day and wanted to make things better. Apparently I couldn't take the correct steps to winning you back without some female guidance."

Mina laughed, the sound warming his heart. How he had missed that sound. They eventually made in back to the celebration, reentering the throng of people. As they moved through the crowd, Kolya refused to lose his grip on Mina's hand. The only time he relinquished her was when she went to dance with Thali again. He stood at the sidelines watching, an almost smile gracing his face.

"You know, that is the first time in a while that I have seen my sister truly happy," Caleb's voice said from beside him.

Kolya turned to look at the younger man, who had also been watching Mina and Thali dance. When Caleb also turned to look at him, he could see a protective aura in his gaze.

"Now that she's happy, I want her to stay that way," he said in an almost threatening manner. "If you break my sister's heart, you won't have a chance to fix it next time."

Caleb pinned him with a determined look before walking away, leaving Kolya alone again. Even though the other man was less experienced in fighting than him, Kolya had no doubt that he would do anything to protect his sisters, even if it meant sinking to a lower level. Turning his gaze back to Mina, he could feel in his heart that he would do the same.

A/N: This chapter was a little short, for which I apologize. I hope to update again within the next few days so keep a look out for another chapter! Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review and let me know what you think. Reviews are writer fuel!