Author's Note: ...Hmm, I just realized that I seem to have a fixation with sleep. Maybe because I get so little of it. I really shouldn't write when I'm tired.

I would also like to say that if anyone would like to use my story concept to write their own story, that's fine. But if you're going to take several ideas or actions directly from my story and put them into your own, the least you could do is credit me for the "inspiration," don't you think? ;)

And as always, huge thanks to my awesome reviewers.

It was warm. Not the unpleasant, hot kind of warm, but the comfortable, soothing kind. The kind that made someone want to lie in bed forever.

For that brief couple of seconds between sleep and consciousness, everything was right in the world. She was warm, she was safe, and she wasn't alone. Maybe if she just never moved, she could remain in that pleasant state of bliss forever...

Then Tear awoke fully, and reality tainted her idealistic fantasy. Even without opening her eyes she could tell that it was light outside, and the soldier inside her immediately called her to action.

It's morning. Get up.

As much as she tried to tell herself that she was no longer bound by the expectations of military service, Tear found it impossible to be rid of the habits that had driven her since she was old enough to retain memories. While she would much prefer remaining in the embrace of her affectionate husband, she knew the drive of a soldier would not allow her that peace.

Tear reluctantly opened her eyes, smiling as she looked into the face of the still-sleeping Luke. She reached out a hand and gently brushed back a few strands of his short red hair.

You're stalling. Get up.

Tear's smile fell as the internal voice scolded her actions. She found herself resenting her upbringing, and how it was currently keeping her from being as happy as she could be.

Giving into old habits, Tear sat up despite still being tired and not having anything urgent to do. She attempted to remove Luke's arms from around her, but was surprised when she was met with resistance. She looked curiously down at him, and sure enough he was no longer asleep. His eyes were half-open, and he was looking sleepily up at her.

"Don't go," he muttered, refusing to relinquish his hold on her.

Tear shook her head. "It's morning. I have to get up."

"Why?"

"Most people get up when it's morning. It's part of being a diurnal species."

"So?"

Tear glared at him; he sure wasn't making this easy. "So? If I don't get up, I'll get on a terrible sleep schedule, and I'll never have any time during the day to get anything done."

Tear knew that if it came down to a battle of logic, she would easily win against Luke. She was not sure if he was conscious of this or not, but either way his strategy quickly changed. His eyes widened, and he looked at her with the most piteous expression he could manage.

"Stay with me," he begged, the tiredness in his voice making him sound all the more pitiful.

Tear felt a sudden pang of guilt for trying to leave, and she silently cursed Luke's ability to play with her emotions, even if he never seemed to do it on purpose.

However, the steadfast soldier refused to give up because of a few unchecked emotions. Fighting to appear as though his words and expression had no effect on her, Tear informed him, "Nice try, but I'm getting up now, so don't try to-"

But Luke was not known for giving up easily either. Before she could even finish her sentence, he yanked her back down onto the bed and wrapped his arms fully around her, making sure it would be extremely difficult for her to slip away if she chose to try.

He grinned mischievously at her. "No. Stay."

"Luke!" Tear cried in exasperation, "You're being childish." But even as she spoke she felt a smile creeping onto her face, and though she tried to hide it she was failing miserably.

The smile was not lost on Luke, who took it as encouragement. He held her tighter, despite her verbal protests.

Tear tried to push Luke away from her, but it was more of an empty gesture than anything. She knew that if she put any real force behind her attempt to escape he would release her without protest, but her willpower was quickly fading; after all, she really did want to stay.

Giving into internal desires, Tear stopped struggling and allowed herself to lie still. When he was sure she was not just trying to trick him into letting down his guard, Luke relaxed his hold.

However, Tear's sense of calm was short-lived. Once again, the part of her mind that was bound to the life of a soldier protested her highly unsoldierly behavior. She prepared to break herself free from her "captor."

But Luke caught on faster than she would have expected him to. He felt her body tense, and knew he was losing her. He removed his right arm from around her but kept his left securely in place. He used his now-free right hand to carefully brush aside the hair that had fallen in front of Tear's face. From there he slowly ran his hand through the length of her long brown hair, passing over her neck and shoulder and having it come to rest low on her back.

His expression softened to a look of sincere affection, and as he gazed into her brilliant blue eyes he whispered, "It's okay."

At first, Tear thought it was a strange thing for him to say. But the more she thought about the words, the more they made sense.

It was okay. It was okay for her to stay. It was okay for her to do what would make her happiest. No one would punish her. No one would think less of her.

It's okay.

Playing the words again in her head put her at ease, and Tear finally allowed herself to relax completely. She buried her face in Luke's chest, allowing herself the luxury of simply enjoying his presence without feeling like she was wasting time.

It was not long before Luke drifted back to sleep. Tear remained awake a little while longer, before she was finally lulled to sleep by the rhythmic heartbeat of her lover.

Tear awoke again a couple hours later, and decided it really was time for her to get up. Luke, naturally, was still asleep. She quickly slipped from his grasp and got up from the bed, not giving him time for another protest if he happened to wake up. She got dressed in simple, comfortable clothes, shaking her head at the various frilly dresses she had been forced to wear. The clothes she wore now were still much nicer than anything any commoner would be seen in, but at least they were not so extravagant and conspicuous.

As soon as she left the room Tear was approached by Ramdas, who quickly bowed before addressing her.

"Milady, I bear a message for you from Count Gardios."

Tear looked at him strangely, her confusion obvious. "From Guy? Isn't he staying here?"

Ramdas shook his head. "He left early this morning. He didn't want to disturb you, so he asked me to give this note to you and Master Luke."

He handed a folded piece of paper to Tear, which she promptly opened and read to herself.

Hey guys,

Sorry to just take off like this. Emperor Peony asked me to come back as soon as possible and help with preparations. The Albiore will be there to pick you up the day before the party, so you two better be ready!

-Guy

P.S. I left a letter for Natalia at the castle, so you don't have to worry about explaining it all to her.

When she finished reading the letter, Tear looked up to see Ramdas still standing there, watching her curiously.

"Was there something else?" she asked, wondering why he was still hanging around.

"No, Milady, that was all." He watched her for a few more seconds, looking a little uncomfortable, before finally asking, "May I be dismissed?"

Tear flushed, feeling rather stupid. That was why he was still there; she had forgotten to dismiss him. She nodded her head in response to his question and he bowed again before scurrying away to attend other duties.

Tear was not used to having people treat her like she was higher than them, and it made her uneasy. She had tried to convince some of the maids and servants to address her informally, but they had all been trained too well and were afraid of the Duke's wrath if they were caught acting improperly.

Shaking her head to clear it of unpleasant thoughts, Tear turned her attention to what she was going to do now. She had been planning on finding Guy and talking with him, since the two of them had not had much time to visit. But obviously that was no longer an option, so she needed to find another way to occupy her time.

It did not take her long to decide that she would go wander around city. She could get away from the stifling formality of the manor and be among people who treated her like she was human. When she walked in the city she still occasionally got bows from people who recognized her, but most people were too busy to notice or care that she was of higher rank than them.

Tear crossed the courtyard and entered the hallway that led to the entrance of the manor. No sooner had she started walking when the door she was headed for opened. A feeling of dread swept through her; of all people, it had to be Duke Fabre who came through.

The Duke was walking toward her. Tear would have loved to just slip by without saying anything, but she knew it would be considered rude to ignore someone of higher station. When the two of them crossed paths she stopped, feeling incredibly awkward.

She was not sure exactly what she was expected to do in such a situation. His rank was superior to hers, but they were also technically family, so was she exempt from treating him like she would any other Duke? Of course, the two of them were hardly close, so some level of formality was probably still expected.

Not knowing what else to do, Tear gave the Duke an unsure, half-curtsy before muttering, "Your Grace."

He stopped and examined her closely, making Tear feel incredibly uncomfortable. She could see mild disapproval in his expression, and wondered if he was unhappy with her clothing or the way she had addressed him. Or maybe it was just that he was still bitter Luke had chosen her over all of the pretty, rich noble girls that would have been more than happy to marry into his family.

The Duke nodded in acknowledgment of Tear's presence before he finally walked past her. A sense of relief came over her, and she resisted the urge to break into a run to get out of the hall as soon as possible.

When she finally got into the entryway, Tear headed straight for the door that led outside. She moved quickly past the maids that lined the entrance, trying to hide the extraordinary discomfort she felt when they all bowed at her passing.

When she got outside the White Knight guarding the entrance turned to her and saluted. "Milady," he said to her, "If you're going out would you like an escort?"

Tear hastily shook her head. "No thanks, that won't be necessary."

"As you wish, Milady." The knight saluted again before turning back to his post.

Tear made her way to the elevator to the lower level as quickly as she could without drawing attention to herself. She rode all the way down to the lowest level of Baticul, where all the "simple folk" went about their daily lives.

Tear smiled as she looked around the bustling city. People scurried here and there, anxious to complete whatever tasks they were on. She would have much preferred going somewhere quiet, with a lot less machines and a lot more nature. But at least here she was mostly anonymous. She would take being lost in a sea of people over being the center of attention any day.

As she neared the area where the coliseum stood, Tear could hear the wild cheers of spectators as a fight came to a conclusion. She shook her head at the thought; she would never understand why so many people found fighting entertaining. Fighting was a means of survival; it held no glory for her.

As she passed near the entrance to the coliseum, the doors swung open and a large group of people exited. Tear observed the group curiously, noting that most of the people were guards who seemed to be escorting someone. That in itself was not unusual, since several of the nobles enjoyed watching the coliseum fights, sitting above the commoners in a special box. But there was something about the three noblewomen in the center of the guards that struck her as familiar...

Tear froze as she recognized the woman in the very center.

Her name was Veronica. The name meant "perfect beauty" in ancient Ispanian, and was very appropriate. Her long, midnight black hair seemed to shine no matter how little light there was for it to catch. Her eyes were a deep blue, and had the power to elicit a sense of excitement and longing in most men she encountered. She was also quite "blessed" when it came to specific feminine features, and she did nothing to hide that fact. She never left her mansion without dressing up like she was going to a ball, and she was wearing one of her most stunning dresses now. She was absolutely beautiful by anyone's standards.

Tear hated her. Of all the aristocrats she had met, Veronica was by far the most fake. Her actions were always those of a perfect lady, all smiles and curtsies and politeness. But her choice of words and tone of voice always made Tear feel like she was being talked down to, and she was sure it was deliberate. However, since Veronica never said or did anything directly impolite, Tear could not call her out on her rude behavior. She would deny having meant any offense, and Tear would have no way to prove otherwise.

Veronica was also incredibly rich, and never passed up an opportunity to show off that wealth. Not only did she come from a very rich family, but she was also married to a very rich husband from a very prestigious background.

It was well known but never spoken of that Veronica was anything but faithful to her oblivious husband. Since most marriages among nobles were arranged, affairs were fairly common (though no one seemed willing to admit it). But Veronica took the "privilege" to an entirely new level. It was a sport for her, seeing how many supposedly faithful husbands she could turn from their wives.

Luckily for Tear, Veronica's mannerisms irritated Luke to no end. But unfortunately, that was not enough to make her leave him alone. If anything, she seemed to take it as a challenge. Tear had absolute faith in Luke's loyalty to her, but that did not make it any less irritating when Veronica made poorly-disguised passes at him.

A feeling of intense horror struck Tear when Veronica noticed her across the crowd and changed direction toward her. She wanted to run, but had no desire to give the vile woman that kind of satisfaction. Instead she stood her ground, meeting Veronica's stare and holding it defiantly.

The escort of guards held back a little ways, while Veronica and the two other noblewomen approached Tear. Veronica never went anywhere without at least two other women of her same social status trailing behind. Veronica's flunkies, Tear referred to them as in her head (and to Luke, who found it vastly amusing).

"Tear, darling!" Veronica called when she got close, "How nice, running into you like this."

Tear matched Veronica's expression, both the false smile and the cold hatred in her eyes. "Indeed it is," Tear responded, trying to match the disgustingly pleasant tone of Veronica's voice.

"Oh," Veronica cried, making herself look shocked, "But where is your dear husband? It's unusual to see you two apart. I hope you're not having any sort of problems? That would be simply dreadful."

Tear fought hard to keep her irritation out of her voice. "Oh no, no need to worry about that. I assure you there are no problems between us. He's still asleep, you see, and I thought I'd go for a walk. What about your husband? It's unusual to see you two together."

Veronica's smile faltered, but it was so slight that Tear thought she might have imagined it. "Oh, well, my husband is rather busy, you see. He's an important man, and doesn't have time to spare by sleeping in."

Tear's irritation increased, but she refused to let it show. It was exactly what Veronica wanted, and she knew it.

For a few seconds the two women silently stared each other down, both still with smiles plastered to their faces. Veronica seemed to be hoping that Tear would snap, but when it became apparent that she would not, she lost interest.

"Well, it's been pleasant seeing you," Veronica assured her, "But I must take my leave. I have things to do myself, you know. No time for idle chit-chat. Good day to you!" And with that, she turned her back to Tear and walked away, making a show of looking as graceful and ladylike as possible. Her flunkies and guards followed faithfully behind.

As soon as they were all out of sight, Tear entered the coliseum and watched several fights, imagining every slain monster was Veronica.