CLIFFY!!!! Haha… Hope you guys liked the last chapter. I figured I'd give you guys a break from the heated chapter 4… But enough! Onto chapter 6! It's a nice intense chappy… whether you like it or not!! Technically they never showed this in the show but it had to happen eventually seeings a cute little Rudolph eventually appeared... teehee... I hope you enjoy it! I liked it…… I will admit that while der Tod is my LOVE I do feel really bad for Franz Josef. I mean competing with Death?! I'm not too sure how you can win that one... So in this chapter I try to show more of Joseph than Death.

Also THANK YOU to my wonderful reviewers!! You have NO idea how wonderful it is to hear what you guys think! I just adore opening my email and seeing your reviews. So thank you!! It keeps me motivated to continue posting these... I was afraid no one loved Elisabeth anymore!! Alright... now on with Chapter six....

Chapter 6

Rekindle

After her day on the mountain, Sisi made it her business to try and make her marriage to Joseph a happy one. She balanced being a good wife in Sophie's eyes as well as what it meant to be true to herself. She made an effort to spend time with her husband- quality time, alone. Joseph, too, was making an effort to see Sisi more and try to be more spontaneous and romantic with her. The night of Sisi's birthday was possibly the happiest day of their marriage.

Elisabeth, exhausted from the day spent with Sophie, was ready to collapse in her bed and sleep the night away. From outside her room she could see a glow under the door. Cautiously, she opened the door. What lay before her was what she always fantasized of in her romantic dreams. The room was lit by hundreds of candles. Rose petals- red, pink, white- were sprinkled on her bed. In the middle of the room was a small table set for two with a candelabra placed in the middle and a single, bright red rose sitting on a plate.

"Happy Birthday, Sisi," Joseph whispered in her ear, placing a loving kiss on her cheek.

"Oh Joseph!" Elisabeth cried as she threw her arms around her husband. "I thought you had forgotten!"

"How could I possibly forget? I met you three years ago, today," he said taking her hand and leading her to the chair that sat before the rose.

The couple, enjoyed a wonderful meal of steamed vegetables, French onion soup covered in a thick layer of cheese, lamb with mint jelly (apparently it was very popular in Britain, according to Joseph), and a beautiful strawberry glace for dessert (Sisi's favorite).

"Joseph," Sisi said softly, as she patted her lips with her cloth napkin. "This was wonderful," she paused. "Thank you."

A smile on his face, Joseph said, "It isn't over yet."

"What?" she asked, intrigued by his mischievous look.

Joseph got up, walked around the table, and stood before his wife. In a swift movement, he picked her up and carried her to the flower laden bed. He lay over her, simply staring at her. He ran his hand through her hair softly humming to himself. Looking into her eyes, he said, his voice cracking:

"Oh, Sisi… I'm so sorry," he pressed his cheek to hers. She could feel that it was wet with tears. "I love you so much and yet I never seem to show you or simply tell you enough. How can you ever forgive me?"

Sisi lifted her hand to his face, quieting him. She simply looked into his eyes and smiled. "You don't have to apologize…"

"Oh, Sisi… My sweet, sweet Sisi…" And with that he slowly kissed her. It began as a sweet soft kiss, just as their first kiss three years ago that very night had been. After a moment, it grew into a hot passionate kiss that enveloped both of them in an electric fire. They only stopped to take quick breaths. It had been weeks, months even, since they had had time together and this was possibly the first time they had ever wanted to be together.

"I have something for you," he whispered through the kiss.

Suddenly, he was up from the bed and across the room.

"What is it?" Elisabeth asked, resting herself up on her arms.

Joseph made his way back to his wife on the bed. In his hand, hung Elisabeth's sapphire necklace. But it was different. It was no longer the single stone on a white gold chain- Joseph had, apparently, had black pearls take the place of the simple chain.

"My necklace!" Elisabeth exclaimed. "I was wondering where it was!"

"Yes, I had a feeling you would," he said as he placed it around his wife's neck. "You wear it almost every day. I hope you like the changes."

"Oh Joseph," Sisi said, her eyes tearing. He hadn't been this loving and caring towards her in three years. "Thank you. You have no idea what this means to me…"

Joseph leaned forward and placed a kiss on her collarbone and slowly made his way up her neck, leaving a trail of kisses along her skin. They spent the rest of the evening together, holding one another, loving one another. Nothing could come between them. Nothing. And No one.

After hours of being with one another, Joseph and his Sisi fell asleep in each other's arms. Elisabeth held her husband tight against her breast, never wanting to let go. She had dreamt that their marriage would be like this, and after a hard and painful start, they seemed to be getting on the right track. Elisabeth fell in and out of sleep, always peeking through her eye lashes to see if her husband was still lying beside her.

"Elisabeth…"

Elisabeth stretched and opened her sleep filled eyes, looking at her husband.

"Yeah?" she asked through a yawn.

She waited for Joseph to say something to her, but he was sound asleep.

Must be dreaming… she thought as she rolled over to go back to sleep.

"Elisabeth…"

Elisabeth dared to open her eyes slowly, peering around the dim room. There, standing at the foot of her bed, arms crossed, a smile on his angelic face, was Death. The candles, still burning, cast a haunting glow around him, making him truly seem to be an angel… or a devil…

"What," she began, breathless. "What are you doing here?" She made an attempt to sit up but quickly realized that she was pinned to where she lay. It had been as it was the night of her wedding, she had no control over herself.

Death simply smiled at her and made his way towards her, his coat swishing around his ankles, his footsteps as loud as thunder in the silent night. He stopped just next to the bed and stared down at her. Slowly, he sat on the edge of the bed. Even more slowly, he reached out a gloved hand and lifted her nude form into his arms. She lay there, limp, and, thankfully, had the blankets covering anything she wished to conceal from him.

He began to run his fingers through her hair, ever so lovingly. She closed her eyes and remembered how nice it had felt when she was a little girl. What she would give to return to those carefree times with her Dark Prince. She slowly opened her eyes again. Death's eyes were boring into hers. She quickly turned her eyes away from his penetrating gaze. Elisabeth felt her face grow bright red and hot with embarrassment. How much had he seen? She slowly looked back up into his blue eyes. She did not see a trace of mockery or resentment in his eyes. They were soft and loving as they gazed back into her chocolate brown eyes that reflected the candle light.

Elisabeth could feel his hand slowly cup her head. Staring into her eyes, Death slowly lowered his lips closer and closer to hers. Elisabeth realized what was happening. He was planning on kissing her. Or rather… killing her. Terrified she tried with all her might to try and break from the invisible bonds that tied her so tight, but to no avail.

Just as their lips were about to touch, Death turned and placed a soft kiss on her cheek. It felt like an electric shock that left her skin freezing and tingling.

"Happy Birthday, Elisabeth," he whispered in her ear.

Elisabeth's eyes shot open and she sat up, still holding the blankets in front of her chest. A dream? She searched the room for any sign of her der Tod. She could see nothing. And yet when she lifted a trembling hand to where Death had kissed her it was surprisingly cooler than the surrounding skin and felt as if an electric current was running through it. Sighing, unsure of what to think, she lay back down on her bed and decided to go back to sleep.

There, on her bedside table, was a jet black rose.

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The romantic atmosphere found on her birthday, quickly died within the following weeks. Elisabeth spent every day with Sophie planning dinner parties and public appearances. No matter how hard she or Joseph tried, their time together was always short and certainly not romantic. But Elisabeth kept her spirits up. She knew they would be happy, the night of her birthday had proven it to her.

"Mother?" Joseph asked his mother as he knocked on her door. "Have you seen Sisi?" They had planned to meet for dinner.

"No," Sophie said, shortly. "Check in her room- that's where she usually is."

"Alright," he said with a sigh as he hurried down the hall. Sisi always made sure to make their dinner dates. It was so unlike her to not come without so much as saying why.

"Sisi?" he asked as he opened her door slowly. He could see light shining from under her bathroom door and heard water running. He lightly knocked on the door. When his only answer was an explosion of coughs, he opened the door and let himself in.

Elisabeth was sitting in front of the toilet, sick. She had run water in order to hide the sounds of her coughing and nausea.

"Sisi!" he cried as he threw himself down to the floor beside his pale, sick wife. "What's wrong? Are you alright?"

"Mmhmm…" she nodded her head slowly. "The nausea's passed. I was just too tired to get up."

"Oh Sisi," he sighed as he helped her to her bed. He wiped her face and neck with a cool washcloth and helped her change into pajamas. As he slowly laid her down on propped up pillows, he said:

"If you need anything, please call on me."

"Joseph, wait," Sisi said in a soft, ragged voice, lifting her hand out to stop her husband from leaving.

"What is it, Sisi?" he asked as he sat on the edge of the bed, taking a hold of her hand.

Sisi paused, looking away. She looked uncomfortable, unsure of what to say.

"Sisi?" Joseph prodded her, encouraging her to go on.

"I…" she began slowly. "I'm pregnant."

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