AN: Holy mother of... something. A chapter! Hello again, it's kind of short, but I'm rather proud of it :) I hope you like it.

"Where is it?"

"Where is what?" Hieronymous frowned in confusion. What on earth had she seen in her hallucinations? He had seen violet… and then… no, he would not think of those images again. He had to focus on his wife.

"The Manus…" His eyes widened.

"Why would it be here?"

"I… It said you'd… Divorced me and that meant I was his."

"Arianna… It wasn't real."

"But it was right there… W-where you're sitting." She stammered. He raised his eyebrows.

"So that's what you thought your friends were. And why you thrashed against Petunia so much, not that I blame you. She can be quite suffocating." He tried to joke, but Arianna still had a fearful look in her eyes. He sighed. "It wasn't real, Arianna. It was a hallucination, brought on by your fever."

"Fever?"

"Yes. Your little trip outside last night winded up giving you hypothermia. You need to rest and wrap up." He stood and indicated for her to lie down. She remained silent, but manoeuvred her still shaking body under the covers anyway. Hieronymous replaced the cool cloth on her head. He perched himself precariously on the edge of her bed. "I am sorry." She frowned at him. "I have been cruel to you, and I am not entirely certain why."

"W-what?"

"In attempts to protect you, I have scared you… and pushed you away. I believed what I was doing was for the best, when all I was doing was alienating you. I understand perfectly if you do not forgive me for this. Even so… I am sorry."

A long silence stretched between them, her eyes shimmering up at him, dimmed though they were. Her limp hair spread in tendrils around her face, only emphasising how ill she looked, her skin pale, almost transluscent. It unnerved him to see his usually bright wife, who shone like a star so often, so low now, as though something had come and stolen her very lifeforce.

He couldn't help but blame himself. He should have taken better care of her the previous night and warmed her up. He should have made sure she got to her room and dried her clothes, instead of just slinging his cloak around her shoulders, expecting it to make everything better.

His mind swirled with the knowledge that after everything, this could be the final straw. She'd give up on him, and walk away forever, and he would be plunged back into the darkness that loneliness brought.

She smiled weakly, and he couldn't help but notice the sadness behind it. "I was worried you'd get sick of me… I keep making mistakes, it must be embarrassing to be married to someone like me."

He felt sick.

"That is what you think? You think that… I am embarrassed by you?" Arianna was silent, and the only indication that she had even heard him was that she looked away from him. "Arianna." He placed a thin hand on her shoulder. "How could I be embarrassed by you?"

"I… I thought… After I broke the rules… You… you were so angry. I mean… A-as your wife… To break the rules is… it's awful. W-what would people think?" Her voice shook, and tears began to slip down her cheeks.

"Do you really believe I have ever cared what people think?" He tried to say it with a hint of comedy, but it had never been his strong point and it ended up as a sort of snap, which she flinched at slightly. "That… did not come out correctly. Really. You know I do not bother with other people's perceptions of me. Besides… You broke the rules in a moment of emotional instability. That is hardly something to be angry at." He was trying to pick his words carefully. His young wife was shaking terribly, and it was clear that his words had been gradually making her worse. Somehow he had to reverse the damage… Otherwise, she would only get worse.

"I… I'm sorry." He frowned.

"Why on earth are you apologising?"

"B-because…" Her face went blank for a moment, as though she couldn't think why she had apologised. Before she could burn herself out trying to come up with a plausible explanation for her weak outburst, Hieronymous shook his head.

"Only I should be apologising, Arianna. I have hurt you unnecessarily."

"I… I forgive you." She relented, though she saw no reason for him to apologise. She had only half listened to his explanation. But if he was offering the chance for it to be forgotten, for them to find some kind of normality again… She would grasp it with both hands. However, he looked surprised by her answer, his eyes widening while his brow furrowed, and his back straightened minutely as if to pull him away from her so he could study her.

Surely she can't be serious… After everything…

"Hieronymous. I forgive you. " She repeated, dispelling the lifeless stupor that had fallen over her husband. And he did something that, even to her, was altogether out of character.

He smiled. Not a slight quirk at the side of his mouth, nor a crease near his eye, but a full, entirely sincere and relieved smile. His stern gaze softened as he locked eyes with her.

"I do not deserve it… But thank you." And as quickly as it had come, the moment was gone, and the smile with it. His eyes, however, remained soft as he remembered something… "Arianna?" she didn't say anything in return, but he seemed to have her attention, so he continued. "Why were you out there last night?" Her face tightened and he raised a hand to placate her. "I am not angry, just concerned. You ran outside in the rain. It was freezing, I can't even imagine how long you were out there… Why did you go to the courtyard?"

After a long silence, Arianna looked away in order to mutter: "I had a nightmare…"

"What?" He prompted for a repeat.

"I… I had a nightmare." She said, a little clearer. "When I woke up, it was too hot. I couldn't breathe… So I went outside. I didn't want to go back inside… Not to that. But I must have fallen asleep again… Because it happened again… The next thing I knew I was inside and you were there."

"You weren't asleep when I found you… You were delirious… You'd gotten too cold, perhaps the dream came back to you a little… What was this dream?" The look that crossed her face made his heart sink, and his stomach grow nauseous. "Was I in it?"

"What? No!" She answered, too quickly to be true. He sighed.

"You tried to get away from me when I found you, Arianna."

"I…" she couldn't argue, she didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry."

"What was the dream."

"I… I don't want to… I'd rather not talk about it, please Hieronymous." He sighed again.

"Very well. I shall leave you to sleep, that is all you can do now." He stood from his position beside her, refreshing the cloth on her head quickly, before turning to leave. As he was about to stride to the door, he felt a tug on his sleeve and he turned to see Arianna looking up at him, pleadingly. "Is something the matter?"

"I… I know you'll probably say no, but… Will you hug me? Just, you know, before you go?" Hieronymous froze, staring down at her in silence. She sounded so… fragile. Like a child. She made it seem as though her life depended on getting a hug, even if she had assumed he wouldn't. His bright, young wife… Was broken. She'd been broken for a long while, hiding it behind smiles and laughter, but now he saw it… And he wanted to fix her.

So, remaining silent as he had no idea what to say, he leant down and gently wrapped her in his arms. Her arms, though shaky, lifted to rest on his back. He felt her sigh happily and he smiled, closing his eyes for a moment.

He was so warm, despite his cold demeanour. And in spite of his slender frame, it was comforting to hug him, to feel him close to her after what had felt like the longest time. Arianna never wanted to let him go, but she could feel her consciousness slipping as the medicine worked further into her system, and after a while she loosened her hold on him.

Taking her signal, Hieronymous rose, ignoring the slight protest in his back from being bent over for a little too long. She was smiling, a little bit of her brightness shining again in her tired eyes.

"Thank you…" She whispered, suppressing a yawn. He nodded, smiling slightly.

"Now, sleep." He ordered her, pulling the duvet cover up over her and reaching for his cloak, which had fallen to the floor during her thrashing earlier. "Would you like to keep this for a while?" he asked her, and she blushed as she nodded minutely. Passing it to her, she pulled the cloak under the covers and wrapped her arms around it, breathing in the scent of him that still lingered on the fabric. "You'll be better soon." It made more sense to him to tell her that, instead of saying get well soon, or I hope you feel better. It was a reassurance, rather than a request or order.

She was still smiling as she drifted off into a feverish sleep and Hieronymous slipped silently from the room and headed down the hall, a burden lifted from his shoulders.

Oh look! Smiles! I wonder how long those will last... :/ (Genuinely don't know, I literally finished this chapter a minute ago)
Reviews give me strength xx