Antonio giggled as his mother irritably plopped him on his father's lap. "Your son asks too many questions."

"Oh, so he's only my son? What did he do to deserve it?" his father asked, running a hand through Antonio's curly hair.

His mother sighed and leaned on the table. "I was telling him the story of how Romulus the Sorcerer defeated The Nameless One-"

"Ah! That's my favorite. My son has good taste then."

"Don't interrupt! I tell him the story and your son asks, 'If he has no name, then why do we call him The Nameless One? Isn't that a name?'" She huffed again and pinched Antonio's side, making him giggle again.

However, his father looked thoughtful. "That's a good question. I've never thought about it before."

"He is entirely too curious! Imagine if The Order overheard such things? They would accuse him of sacrilege."

"Are you really afraid of those fanatics? Romulus made it quite clear that he wanted no one to worship him and yet they still do. They've practically driven him into hiding. I feel sorry for him."

"What's the use of feeling sorry for an enchanter? They can take care of themselves."

Lovina winced as she bit the inside of her cheek too hard, tasting blood on her tongue. Her hands shook and for a moment she thought her knees would give way. A familiar arm was suddenly wrapped around her shoulders and Elizaveta guided her to a seat at one of the many inn tables. "I'm sure Antonio will be alright; your brother seems very capable," she comforted.

Gilbert silently joined them and rested his head on Lovina's lap. Absentmindedly, she ran her hands through his white locks and looked out the window. Her magical fire had left no scorch marks on the ground, something she was very much grateful for. It had been difficult enough coming up with a story to tell Elizaveta and Roderich without trying to hide evidence of her magic as well. Come to think of it, she hadn't even needed to come up with the story, Gilbert had done that. She didn't know how he knew, but Gilbert seemed to realize that Lovina's powers needed to be a secret. When his parents had woken from the enchanted slumber the clever boy had quickly told them that Antonio had collapsed for some unknown reason. The confusion that had followed carrying him inside and introducing Lovina's brother had driven curiosity about other details (like why Roderich had woken up on the floor, for instance) from their minds.

A pulse of magic resonated from inside the room Antonio and Feliciano occupied. It was strong, strong enough that even humans could feel it. Roderich shivered and rubbed his face. "Strange, I thought the windows were all closed." Another stab of worry hit Lovina's chest. The curse must be powerful for her brother to need to use so much magic. Would Antonio ever recover completely? So many things could go wrong…

"Do you like your brother?" Gilbert asked suddenly, propping his chin against her thigh.

Lovina blinked in surprise. "Wha-? Of course I do. We're twins, actually."

Gilbert frowned and made a sound that sounded suspiciously like a huff of disdain. "He looks weak."

"Gilbert!" Elizaveta snapped.

"No, no, he's right," Lovina sighed. "He's the younger twin so my grandfather always babied him. I'd hoped that over the past few years he's toughen up but…" Well, it wasn't like it really mattered that much. Her brother's kindness and compassion were what she loved the most about him. Antonio had these qualities too, along with having the strength to stand up for what he thought was right. Maybe that was why, among other things, Lovina knew deep down in her heart that she lo-

The door opened slowly, creaking, and Feliciano poked his head out. He looked worse for wear, and Lovina inspected him worriedly. His auburn bangs, just a shade lighter than her own, were plastered to his forehead with sweat and there were bags under his goldish-hazel eyes. Half rising, she asked, "Well?" Gilbert slid from her lap and fell to the floor with an unceremonious thump, shooting Feliciano another glare.

"I think… he will recover."

Sweet relief flooded through Lovina and she let out a breath she hadn't even realized she was holding.

Elizaveta clapped her hands and bustled over to him. "That's wonderful! Please, let me make you some tea."

Feliciano laughed nervously, "No, I'm fine-"

"Don't lie, brother. You're no good at it," Lovina commanded brusquely. "I'll watch over Antonio." Feliciano paused a bit before nodding and following Elizaveta into the kitchen along with Roderich, who shivered again.

A small hand gripped Lovina's and she looked down into solemn crimson eyes. "I want to see Uncle Toni too," Gilbert murmured. Lovina nodded and they entered, hand in hand, the room the blacksmith was resting. Covered with a heap of blankets, he lay there, completely still but for the slow rise and fall of his his chest. Unthinking, Lovina placed a hand on his forehead and was relieved to feel that his temperature was back to normal. Gilbert released her other hand and crawled onto the bed.

"He looks better," Lovina whispered.

Gilbert nodded in agreement and yawned. "Will he wake up soon?"

"I suppose so… are you tired?"

"No-" another yawn "Nope." He tried to look alert but his head drooped. Chuckling, Lovina scooped him up in her arms. Gilbert wiggled a bit before discovering how comfortable it was and let his head rest against her shoulder.

"Gilbert?"

"Mmm?"

"...Thank you, for rescuing me."

He blinked sleepily at her. "I just threw a rock."

"Well, it helped a lot. Without you, I would have been… Gilbert?"

He was asleep.

Standing there, holding the boy she'd helped raise and staring at Antonio, Lovina suddenly felt a wave of peace wash over her. Everyone she cared for was safe. She'd even gotten to see her brother again! Still… that didn't change the fact she would have to leave soon. The thought made her close her eyes and grimace. The cultist's appearance only confirmed what she'd suspected; her presence here endangered the whole town. Antonio would have died if Feliciano hadn't come when he had, and it would have been her fault.

"You shouldn't frown, Lovi."

Lovina gasped and opened her eyes. Antonio's sleepy green eyes met hers and he grinned.

"Antonio!" she shifted her hold on Gilbert to one hip and sat on the edge of the bed. "How do you feel?"

"Good… Well, better…" He tried to sit up but only got halfway before his muscles gave out and he plopped back down onto the bed.

"You shouldn't tire yourself out."

Antonio grunted and tried again to sit up. "No really, I feel better." Lovina snorted and tapped his chest. The small push made him lose his balance and he fell again. Antonio gave her a long-suffering look that was quickly replaced by another smile. "I'm glad to see you're safe."

Lovina rolled her eyes, thoroughly exasperated. "You idiot, what you did was dangerous."

"You were in trouble," Antonio defended with a pout.

"You-!"

"Listen, something you've got to accept is that people who care about you will sometimes take a beating for you because… because they care about you." All childishness left his face and he stared at her somberly. Damn it, he was making her uncomfortable.

"I rely on myself," she countered, trying to control her tone so as not to wake up Gilbert. "Always have, always will."

Antonio shrugged and reached for her hand. "It's not how people are supposed to be… alone, I mean." A puzzled look crossed his face. "What exactly happened to me anyway? When that fog hit me I felt all cold and dead inside, then all of a sudden it got warm again."

Crap. Still, he deserved the truth if no one else did. "It was… a dark spell." Lovina admitted, looking down at the blankets. "My brother saved you."

She didn't look at him, but his tone gave away his astonishment. "A curse?! Wait, you have a brother?! What's his name?"

"Really? That's what you're curious about? My brother?" she snapped. She felt slightly jealous of his interest in Feliciano, though she knew it was completely ridiculous.

"Lovi, please don't aggravate my patient." Feliciano stood in the doorway, arms folded and looking at her sternly.

"He-!"

"I'm Feliciano, Lovina's brother," he said, completely ignoring her and crossing over to inspect Antonio. "How are you feeling?"

"Nice to meet you. I'm feeling fine thanks to you." The friendly smile he gave Feliciano only made her angrier.

"Hey, don't ignore me!"

"Lovi, you'll wake Gilbert."

"Ugh!" Lovina got to her feet and stomped out of the room, heading towards the kitchen. She would be glad to leave!

Have some more filler with adorable Gilbert! XD Also, enjoy Lovina finally dropping the act she's been putting on and behaving more like her normal self. Aah... tsunderes are so fun to write.