"Northanger Abbey?"
"Hmm?"
"You asked what my favorite book was and while it's hard to really pick a favorite as I generally love all books, Northanger Abbey holds a special spot in my heart."
"Because the main character falls in love with a man named Henry?"
"No not so much because of the story itself but because it was the last book my father gave to me before he died. I've had it all these years or I should say I did have it until Peter got loose in my house. It was one of those that he destroyed."
"Ruth I'm..."
"Harry, there's no need for you to be sorry. You didn't ask him into my house and you certainly didn't ask him to vandalize my possessions."
"No but if I'd not been such jackass and done what I did, then you might not have been with him in the first place."
"Stop blaming yourself. You keep telling me I need to let go of my fears and trust you; you need to stop blaming yourself for something that happened before we were even together."
"But..."
"If you say it's your fault one more time I'm going to...to...not kiss you for an entire week."
"Like you could go an entire week."
"Try me."
"Alright, I'm sorry for the last time. I'll try to leave it go."
"Thank you. Now what's your favorite book?"
"A Christmas Carol."
"Really? I never pictured you for the sentimental book lover."
"There is more to me than meets the eye Ruth. But it's more than that; it's only in the last few years that I've even sat down and read the book; let alone found it moving. It's a book about someone seeing the error of their ways and growing not only ethically but emotionally too. Where in that description don't you see my past? While I've never personally been a miser I can relate to being someone greatly disliked and at odds with who I really want to be."
"You're a complex man Harry Pearce. In continuing our game; what's your biggest regret? You don't have to answer now - think about it."
AN: Thank you all for your lovely reviews last chapter! I'm glad to see the "twenty" questions idea is generally well received. Here's a quick little chapter for today; I'll admit to resorting back to writing prompts for this one and the next few maybe too. Twelve plus hour days at work reviewing data leaves my mind mushy by the end of the evening. The challenge for this one was taken from my old writing community on LJ and was 'Use only dialogue'. It's an interesting concept though one I think I need improvement on. Send me your question ideas that you'd like to see Harry and Ruth tackle. The next question comes from HR Always Live On. More soonish.