Florina stared at the canvas roof of her tent, her stomach still fluttering from the after effects of her dream. Mentally, she was condemning whatever genius had come up with the idea of dreams. The prospect of talking loomed before her ominously, as well as that chat with Priscilla. What if Sain chose her over Priscilla? Priscilla would be completely heartbroken, and she would blame Florina for it. After all, Florina was well aware of her feelings towards Sain.

Then again, what if Sain chose Priscilla? It was a question she had been asking herself for several weeks now, and the thought suddenly occurred to her that she would find out very soon. She almost dreaded it, in fact.

"Are you getting up any time soon?" Fiora's soothing voice asked her. Florina rolled over to her side in her bedroll to face her sister, who was already awake and dressed. She shook her head, and then burrowed down under her sheet. Fiora sighed. "What's wrong?"

"Everything," came the muffled reply. Taking a firm hold of the blanket, Fiora tugged it away from Florina, but the girl was stubborn and refused to release her hold. In the end, Fiora triumphed as the cover tore off Florina, exposing her once warm body to the cool air.

Fiora tossed Florina's uniform on top of her, and Florina grudgingly changed into it. As she rolled her socks up, Fiora departed from the tent, excusing herself to go take a brisk walk around the camp.

'Ten gold it's to see Kent,' Florina mentally gambled with herself. A doleful exhalation left her lips; she wished that her life could work out to be like Fiora's, as dull and stiff as that path might be.

Florina reached for her belt; she was not eager to put on her boots just yet. Suddenly, a voice called out from just outside the flap of her tent.

"Are you decent?" Sain asked. Florina made a small "yes" sound, and he entered. Heat rose up in Florina's cheeks as she remembered her dream, and she bowed her head, as though to fumble with the buckle of her belt, so that he could not see her blush. Unfortunately for her, Sain noticed this odd behavior and tipped her chin to face him with his finger. "Someone's blushing," he murmured. "Care to share why?"

"N-no," Florina said. Sain smirked, and his finger withdrew from her face.

"We need to have a little chat, Florina, just me and you," he spoke. Florina nodded.

"I know."

A heavy silence took over. Sain opened his mouth once to speak, but no words came out except for a subdued curse as he averted his eyes away from hers. Florina, meanwhile, flushed a vibrant cerise. Her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth, and her throat felt dry. Though she searched for words to say, her mind wiped itself clean.

"Florina," Sain spoke with renewed confidence. His eyes met hers; his hand laced itself in her fingers. He took a step closer to her, opened his mouth-

"Florina!" Priscilla called from outside the tent flap. Florina squeezed her eyes shut in frustration, and she almost felt like cursing. Priscilla was a sweetheart and all, but at this moment, Florina really wanted to kill her.

"Yes?" she called back. Sain stared at her with a bemused expression, and he released his grip on her hands.

"Um, I was wondering if we could talk now," Priscilla asked.

"Uh, sure," Florina said. "Hold on, a second. Let me get dressed." She lied so Priscilla would not come in and see Sain with her so early in the morning. Florina was sure that Priscilla was unaware of his presence in the room at that moment. Sain leaned over to whisper in her ear; Florina felt her cheeks grow warmer as he was so very close.

"You've been talking with Priscilla?" he murmured. "About what?"

"Nothing yet," Florina muttered back. "She seems troubled and asked me for advice. Not totally unlike you." Sain drew back and made a gesture to usher her out of the tent.

"Well, I shouldn't keep you then."

Florina sighed, pulled on her boots quickly, and ducked out. Outside, Priscilla was playing with the feather in her hair, and a smile grew on her face upon seeing Florina. The two girls walked side by side to the same grove they met the previous night. Florina settled herself at the base of the tree, with her back leaning against the trunk, while Priscilla kneeled in front of her on a bed of dead leaves.

The smile still adorned Priscilla's face as they sat. It was not the mournful or obligatory grin that usually bestowed her face but a truly pleasant beam. Florina noticed that she was hiding something in her rolled fists, and when Priscilla realized her interest, she uncurled her fingers to reveal a beaded necklace.

"Looks Sacaen," Florina noted, taking it in her hands and letting her fingers rove over the rough wooden orbs strung on it. Each was painted a different shade of green; some had faces or flowers inscribed on them.

"Of course it is," Priscilla said. Florina dropped the necklace back in her palm, and Priscilla slipped it around her neck. "He gave it to me this morning. Said that green looked pretty on me." A soft giggle escaped her lips. "He seemed so nervous, but it was cute too." Her cheeks reddened.

"Nervous?" Since when was Sain nervous around a girl?

"You know how guy can be," Priscilla said.

"Yeah, men. So boastful and manly one minute, flustered the next," Florina murmured.

"But then again, you don't know him too well, do you?" Priscilla said. "I've never seen you talk to him." Florina did a double take. Her eyes widened in incredulity, and her mouth fell open.

"You haven't?"

Priscilla missed the astonishment in Florina's voice as she simply shook her head. "No. When was the last time you spoke with Guy?"

Florina choked on the very air she was breathing. Her eyes bulged, and her mouth fell open in pure shock.

"G-Guy?" she sputtered out. "Guy's the o-one you've been talking about?"

"Yes, I thought you knew."

At first, Florina was not quite sure of how she should act. Some sort of strange sensation was rising up in her chest. The best way Florina could describe it was a blend of shock, relief, and confusion. So, Florina just keeled over and burst out laughing.

She fell to the side, releasing uncontrollable giggles. Her mirth caused her eyes to water at the corners, and her cheeks turned bright red. Lungs burned for oxygen, and eventually, she had to press her lips closed to contain the laughing.

"Sorry," she gasped. Priscilla's countenance was screwed in a half-hurt, half-befuddlement. "I was led to b-believe…you and S-Sain…" Another chuckle escaped her.

"What? Who told you that?" Priscilla could not help but share a giggle herself at the notion. "But everyone knows he has eyes for you." Once, that would have embarrassed Florina, put a flush on her cheeks, and sink her stomach, but now, the words came as a relief, and she grinned broadly at Priscilla.

"Anyways," said Priscilla. "I've have this suspicion that Sain has been helping Guy try to impress me, and that you would know because you're so close to Sain that he would've told you something."

"How do you know that Sain was teaching Guy?"

"Well, some of the moves seemed a bit…bold for Guy. I mean, he's sweet but shy too. I've seen him speaking with Sain on several occasions, and they always stop their conversation when I come near."

"Out of curiosity, what kind of moves were these?" Florina had an inkling just what they were, but she needed confirmation.

"He gave me some beautiful flowers one time-"

"I knew it!" Florina said. "The stuff I've been telling Sain, he's just been passing onto Guy." She went on to tell Priscilla about their deal and the events since. Priscilla listened intently with an occasional giggle. "But why would he lie to me about the flowers?" Florina ended with.

Priscilla placed her hand on top of Florina's. "Maybe because he put them there on impulse. It doesn't seem unlikely with him. Afterwards, he probably feared your reaction, thinking you'd get scared off, like you usually do, and then he'd never be able to build a meaningful relationship with you."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

"But you should ask him for yourself. You two have a lot to sort out."

The chatted for a while afterwards. Priscilla expressed her anxieties over her relationship with Guy; Florina told of her initial doubts about Sain. Lazing about there, Priscilla asked her the question she dreaded with Sain, the question she seemed incapable of answering.

"Why are you so scared of men?" Florina's face-once giddy- froze into a frightened mask; fear of her past wafted back into her. Noticing this change, Priscilla apologized. "I shouldn't have brought it up."

"No, no, it's alright." She stood up hastily to leave. "But I better get going."

Priscilla made no attempt to try to stop her. Visibly, Florina was disturbed. Her eyes glazed over with a glossy sheen, a barrier of tears she dared not to release. Her lips quivered, then settled into a frown, pouted with the skeletons of her past. In the distance, a tom-tom sounded in an erratic beat, followed by a crash. Once more, she was plunged into the netherworld of her childhood.

She was bystander in this play. A little girl trembled on the bed, and Florina recognized it as her younger self. How old was she in this picture? Seven, eight, nine years old? And yet she looked so small and vulnerable. Her frame never grew much, always a small child. Farina appeared to be in her preteen years, and Fiora had only just returned from her first year at the academy.

Fiora knelt by the door, twisting the key in the lock and backing away from the door. On the other side, a loud bang resounded, and all three of them shuddered.

"Don't worry," Fiora said. "It's locked. He'll have to break it down to get to us." She rushed over to the bed where Florina sat and wrapped her arms around the trembling child. "Sh, don't worry. They'll make-up again." A lie had just been told, the 'again' the largest part of it. They never made up, and so the fights just grew more and more violent.

"Damn him," said Farina, causing Fiora to snap her head over and glower at her.

"Don't say that!" she said.

"Damnity, damnity damn. I don't care. He hurts mother, and he hurts us too." As to prove her point, Farina rolled up her sleeve and pointed a bluish-black bruise on her upper arm. Florina trembled on the bed, shaking violently. Older Florina wanted to run to her younger self and console her. "Then he boasts to his friends; you've heard him, I've heard him. Men are monsters, and they don't deserve any of it. I hate him! I hate him! I hate him!" Farina screamed at the foot, her voice growing louder and louder. Florina broke into a fresh cascade of tears, and Fiora held on tighter to her.

The commotion downstairs ceased. A sudden silence met them, and none of them dared to make a sound. Even Farina halted her cries of spite. Footsteps made their way up the stairs, heavy ones too. The doorknob jiggled.

"Open up," he demanded. "I said open up, you little wenches!" Farina backed away from the door and joined her sisters on the bed. The three of them supported each other as his heavy fists pounded on the door. The lock was weak and old; they all knew that it was only a matter of time before he kicked the door down.

Fiora slid off the bed and attempted to open the window. It led out to the roof. She figured they could climb down the lattice and escape for good, but to her dismay, she found that the window was frozen shut. They were trapped.

"I'll kill you, you wretched beasts. I'll snap your necks and-" The door flew open, and there, in the door way, stood the imposing, shadowy man of her past. His fists curled as he lumbered in. Both Florina and Farina screamed. Even specter Florina gasped and inched away. His hands reached for young Florina, fingers outstretched towards her neck-

"Florina," a deep masculine voice said, and she shrieked. Suddenly, she realized where she was, no longer trapped in the confines of her mind. She stood in front of Sain's tent, and he stared worriedly down at her. "Are you alright?" He brought Florina's face to look up at him; her mournful eyes reflected in his. His arms enfolded her quivering figure.

Florina slipped her arms around him, laid her head on his chest, and cried.

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Author's Note: Ta da! For all of you who acted on your threats, you put me the hospital and delayed this chapter. See? Threatening/Hurting Lemurian-Girl is bad, very baaaaad. XD Reviews are loved!