Wow! Look at this! It's a long chapter for you lovelies, as an apology for my lack of update and the shortness of the last chapter. So, Mattie is the winner, as I am planning on beginning their departure in the next chapter. So, better get your requests in very fast.

Arthur recovered quickly, and despite my misgivings, was soon walking about the village. I always accompanied him. Alfred occasionally accompanied us as well. One day we ran into Lykos. I stiffened and leaned into Arthur while Alfred stepped forward and glared at him. Alfred said something and Lykos glanced at Arthur, then looked back at Alfred. He took a step forward and Alfred flinched, just slightly, and Lykos smiled. He then looked at Arthur, eyes sending a challenge. Arthur stepped forward slightly, muscles stiff.

"Alfred, tell him that Amelia is mine, and if there is any objection, I will be sure to get rid of it."

Alfred looked at Arthur, eyes shining, and turned back to Lykos and confidently told him off.

Lykos raised an eyebrow and looked at Arthur. Arthur smirked and pulled me a little closer. I looked at him a little startled and he turned, smiled at me, and captured my lips in a kiss. I relaxed and wrapped my arms around his neck, and closed my eyes. Just before I did, though, I saw Arthur looking, not at me, but at Lykos, green eyes glowing with victory.

I finally broke the kiss, but found that I could go absolutely nowhere, trapped by Arthur's arms. Not that I particularly minded. I did turn slightly so I was facing Lykos and Arthur rested his head on my shoulder. He was still smirking, and from what I could tell, his eyes were full of challenging confidence that Lykos eventually determined was not worth testing.

Lkos walked away and Alfred let out a little cheer. "YAY! Daddy scared the bad guy away!"

I laughed and Arthur released me as I reached to pick up Alfred. "Alfred, Lykos is not a bad guy."

"But he made you cry and was always scaring you."

I smiled, holding him in my arms, realizing that he had gotten quite big. "Alfred, he was trying to be nice, he just did not understand that he was being scary. Okay? He is not a bad guy. That is why you have to be careful as a hero to always make sure that you are not scaring people or being mean to them, even accidentally."

He nodded. "Okay, mommy."

Arthur wrapped his arms around my waist and looked Alfred in the eye. "Your mother knows a lot about being a hero, doesn't she, Alfred."

Alfred nodded.

"Can I tell you a secret?"

Alfred nodded, blue eyes wide with eagerness. "Your mother is a hero, too. She was the greatest hero ever."

"Even greater than you and Uncle Alfred?"

Arthur nodded. "Yes indeed."

I laughed. "Arthur, stop telling our son lies."

"It is not a lie, love," he said, pecking my lips.

"EWWW! MOMMY! DADDY! THAT'S GROSS!" Alfred was wriggling desperately, trying to get away.

We laughed. I set Alfred down, then Arthur spun me around and me kissed me again, more passionately, though not as much as I could tell he wanted to. Alfred gagged and ran off. I pulled away and laughed. "Arthur, you are terrible."

"In a few years, he will not mind."

I shook my head. "But really, Arthur, I have told you before. Flattery will get you nowhere."

"It's not flattery if it's true, love," he said, pulling me into a mind-blowingly passionate kiss. I leaned into him, hungry for these feelings I had not felt in years, not since before the attack.

As the feelings began to grow, however, a drop of fear broke through my bliss and began to poison the kiss and I jerked away, shaking.

"Amelia, love, are you alright?"

His arms around me were firm, safe, and I buried my face in his chest, taking deep breaths to calm my panicked heart. He tightened his hold around me and stroked my hair with his hand, kissing the top of my head gently and murmuring softly into my hair. I slowly relaxed and finally pulled away. "I'm sorry, Arthur, I just -"

"Shh, Amelia, I understand," he said, placing a gentle finger on my lips. "It is alright." He gave me a smile. "We have all the time in the world. There is nothing to fear."

I nodded and smiled softly. "Thank you, Arthur."

He pulled me into another hug. "I will wait forever, if I have to, Amelia. I love you, and always will."

"I love you, too, Arthur," I mumbled into his chest, filled with pure joy at his words.

He pulled away and smiled. "Let's go home. You need some rest."

"I need rest? You are the one who is supposed to be resting."

He laughed. "Ah, but I am not the one who needs protecting, now am I?"

I punched him in the arm, earning a wince. "Not fair, jerk."

He laughed and lifted me up by the waist, spinning me around. I squealed and mock-glared at him when he set me down. "Could someone who is 'recovering' do that?"

I pouted. "No."

"So, I am all better!"

"You are still too skinny."

"You love me anyway."

I stuck my tongue out and he pinched my hip. I screamed and slapped him. "Arthur!"

He chuckled. "Come on, love. Really, I think you need some rest, proper rest."

I sighed and leaned against him. "Aye, aye, Captain."

He looked at me startled, then smiled. "Aye, aye, captain. It has been a long time since I have heard that."

I stroked his face. "It is alright, Arthur. You will always be my captain."

He smiled and placed a gentle, lingering kiss on my lips. I smiled and began walking back to Oma's hut. He chuckled. "Where do you think you are going?"

"Where my captain commands," I said, curtseying.

"You are not to go anywhere without your captain."

I laughed and saluted. "Yes, sir!"

He offered me his arm. I took it and he led me back to Oma's hut. He opened the door for me and said, "Sleep well, love."

"You're not coming with me?"

He shook his head. "I've got something else to do."

I pouted. "Arthur, that's not fair."

He chuckled and said, "You'll like it. Now, rest."

I sighed and lay down, closing my eyes and instantly drifted off as he gently stroked my hair.

I was rather rudely awoken when the door flew open. "Mommy! Come here!"

I sat up and looked at Alfred who was eagerly standing by the doorway. "Alfred, sweetie, what's the matter?"

"Nothing's the matter, Mommy. Come on!"

I stood up. "Alfred, what's going on?"

"It's a secret! Close your eyes."

"How am I supposed to walk then?"

"I'll hold your hand. Come on, Mommy."

I smiled at the eager tone in his voice, whatever was happening had Alfred more excited than I had ever seen him before. "Alfred, where are we going?"

"Mommy," he whined. "Stop trying to ruin the surprise."

I sighed. "Okay, Alfred. Whatever you say."

I was surprised at how very quiet it was and began to grow increasingly suspicious as we kept walking and nothing happened. My bare feet soon found sand and I inhaled the cool sea air. We were on the beach, but I could not figure out why.

"Stand here, Mommy, and keep your eyes closed!"

"Alright, Alfred."

I stood, waiting, when I felt the presence of another person. I stiffened, but relaxed when I realized that it was Arthur. He placed something around my neck, and then placed a soft kiss on my lips. "You can open your eyes now, love."

I opened my eyes and saw Arthur smiling at me. I smiled. "What was this for?"

He laughed. "Alfred says that this is the traditional manner of proposal on this island."

I looked down at my neck and saw a small shell, similar to the lucky shell Alfred had found almost a year ago, on a cord. I looked up at Arthur and smiled. "Thank you."

"What is your answer?" he asked softly.

My smile widened. "Yes, always and forever, yes." I threw my arms around him and hugged him tightly. He laughed and wrapped his arms around me, spinning me around. I heard cheers and looked around to see most of the villagers surrounding us. They were smiling and laughing, cheering and congratulating us in their own language. Alfred ran up to me. "Are you surprised, Mommy? Daddy said that this would make you very happy."

I bent down to his level and smiled. "Yes, Alfred. I am very surprised and very, very happy."

He cheered and hugged me. I picked him up and turned to Arthur who had a soft smile on his face. He came and wrapped his arms around Alfred and I and we stood there as a family, hugging each other for a while, when Arthur decided he was tired of hugs. He turned my face towards him and placed a kiss on my lips. Alfred gagged and struggled to get away. I laughed and refused to release him."

I returned the kiss and Alfred choked, yelping as he kicked and wriggled in my grasp. Arthur caught my eye and smirked, then grabbed Alfred's sides and began tickling him. The poor boy squealed and broke out of my grasp and ran for it. Arthur laughed and chased after him. When Alfred realized that Arthur was chasing him he squealed and ran as fast as his little legs would carry him. Unfortunately, Arthur's much longer legs held the advantage and he caught Alfred, tickling him mercilessly.

Alfred was a giggling mess when I finally caught up to them. I smiled. "Come on, now, Arthur, let him up."

Arthur released Alfred who ran for it, escaping into the jungle. He stood and turned to me, a genuine smile on his face. "You're good with kids, Arthur," I said softly.

He smiled. "He's our son, how can I not be?"

I smiled and kissed him lightly. "You were originally opposed to his existence."

"Things change, people change, you know that as well as I do, love."

I smiled and hugged him. "Never go away ever again, please."

"I promise I will never leave so long as there is breath in my body."

I smiled and he kissed me, long and slow, as gentle as if I were made of porcelain. It made me feel so safe, and I reveled in the moment.

He stepped back. "Now, if what Alfred says is true, tonight we will be married."

I smiled, tears beginning to fill my eyes. "Arthur, thank you."

He caught the tears with his thumb and stroked my cheek. "No, Amelia, thank you, for making me into the man I am."

I smiled and turned to return to the village. He grabbed my arm and threaded it through his and led me back.

The preparations were not hurried, in fact, it seemed that this had been planned for far longer than a day. I was given another dress, this one was longer and, though made of the same material as my other dress, this one was white. Oma did something with my hair which was now almost as long as it had been before I had cut it to save Arthur and the crew. I sighed, thinking about it. It almost seemed like another life.

We met in the clearing where I often played with the children and Opa, the Patriarch of the village began speaking to us. Alfred stood by, translating as best he could, but all I could understand was that it was, in most respects, a religious ceremony similar to those we had in America. At last he said something and handed each of us an end of one rope. Following the translated instructions from Alfred, we turned and faced each other and wrapped the rope around our left hands until they were touching.

The man said something else and Alfred said, "Now, Daddy, you put your hand on Mommy's neck and Mommy, you do the same to Daddy."

We both nodded and I placed my hand on Arthur's neck, and he did the same. I stiffened, a little frightened by the sensation, but his green eyes locked with my blue ones and he gave me a gentle smile, and I relaxed, trusting him completely.

"Okay, Mommy, Daddy, you have to say 'Eila, to eila'* now, at the same time."

I glanced at Alfred, then looked back at Arthur and repeated the phrase in tandem with him. Opa clapped his hands and then put a hand to the back of each of our heads. I focused on Arthur's eyes and let Opa bring out heads together until our foreheads were touching. He said something else and Alfred said, "Okay, Mommy, Daddy, you kiss now!"

Arthur smiled and leaned a little more forward and I met him in the middle and we shared a gentle kiss. There were cheers and Opa shouted something and Alfred cheered. "Yay! Party time!"

I smiled, but kept kissing Arthur. We pulled apart and were about to unwind the rope but Opa snapped at us and Alfred said. "He says you have to keep that on all night until you con-con-con-su-mate it. Mommy, what does c-con-su-mate mean?"

I turned scarlet and looked at Arthur who was smiling softly. He placed a gentle kiss on my lips. "We don't have to, if you don't want to. I will wait until you are ready."

I nodded and Arthur turned to Alfred. "Alfred, how about you wait a couple of years before I tell you what consummate means?"

"Why? Why can't you tell me now?"

"It is really gross."

"Even grosser than you and Mommy kissing?" Alfred asked, wrinkling his nose.

"Yes."

"EWWW! Don't tell me!" he screamed, running off.

I laughed. "Arthur, you are going to ruin him.

Arthur smiling and squeezed my hand. "He'll be fine in a few years, when he's ready to learn what it means."

I nodded and he led me into the throng of people dancing several different traditional dances. He pulled me into a waltz. I smiled and followed his lead.

We were finally instructed to sit down and the villagers performed a dance, then Opa smiled and pointed to a small hut, that, as far as I knew, had never been occupied. Alfred wrinkled his nose. "He says you're supposed to con-consummate it now."

Arthur nodded and led me into the hut. He shut the door and began unwinding the rope. "Love, let's get some rest."

I nodded and unwound my side of the rope. He lay down on the mat and I followed suit, snuggling close to him. He wrapped his arms around me and buried his face in my hair. We soon fell asleep, warm in each other's company.

*"Eila to eila" is not any language I know of. I made it up. Said "Eye-la toe eye-la" it means "Forever and Forever" in the language of the island.

Alfie is adorable, and Amelia and Arthur...*sighs* I love those two.

I made up the marriage ceremony, if it is in any shape or form similar to any religious ceremony, it is entirely coincidental and I apologize if I offend anyone with it.

So. Hope you enjoyed! :)