Julia stood at a balcony hidden from sight. She wanted a little privacy, even on her wedding day. She felt a presence behind her and glanced around. It was the first time she had seen him since she told him she was leaving Deling City.

"Marriage seems to agree with you." Hugo remarked.

"Thank you."

"What made you change your mind?"

That dreaded question. She didn't want to answer him, but Hugo stood there in front of her, his gaze assessing and quite knowing. Damn him for questioning. "Is my answer that important?"

"Now that you've married him, no. Not anymore"

She knew from his tone that Hugo didn't like Caraway. If he had liked him before, then something had happened to change his opinion. "You don't like my husband."

He grinned. "I don't."

Caraway appeared at that moment with a glass of champagne in his hand. "And I'm glad that you have an honest friend, my dear wife." He had deliberately emphasized the endearment in Hugo's presence. "Rest assured I'm offended, Hugo. My wife's closes friends are also mine's."

Hugo sighed with relief. "Does that include the soldier you sent away?"

Julia was confused. "What do you mean Hugo?"

"He means when I have a subordinate who's stubborn, I send him away." He glared at Hugo. Of all the jokes he could tell, he had to tell that one.

"Are you happy with him, Jul?" Hugo asked.

"It's for the best." It took a few seconds before she responded with a nod, yet Hugo wasn't fooled.

He raised a glass of champagne and smiled at the newly-weds. "A toast, to the fruitful union between General Caraway and Julia Heartilly."

"Cheers"

And they clicked their glasses, uncertain of the future that lay ahead.

Surprisingly, Caraway was an easy man to love.

During her second trimester of pregnancy, he was very attentive to her needs. She loved it when he rubbed her backside.

He had showered her with gifts and flowers, and had encouraged her to continue writing songs.

It came as a surprise to everyone that the General had married the famous singer….And the fact that they married when she was four months pregnant. No one would dare say that to the General's face, for they knew he loved her deeply and would not have wanted to shame her.

Prior to her marriage, Julia hid the Promise Ring Laguna had given her and wore the Promise Ring Caraway had given to her on the day of their marriage.

"I know you already know what this means. I've seen you wear his around your neck." He couldn't fail to hide the tone of jealousy, and she knew it.

Understanding where he came from, she gently clasped his hands and held it in hers. "I've hidden his ring, Fury. I know you know that. I've hidden it because of respect for you, because I'm married to you. But I can't throw it away. It was a precious gift he gave me. It's all I have from him. And it's all I have to remember that he was once a part of my life. "

Fury creased his brow. "I'm sorry. I can't help it. I know how much you loved him, even if I'm the one you married."

He looked like a lost boy, and she sadly smiled at him.

Then she felt it.

A flutter across her abdomen. And she felt it again.

"What is it?"

"The baby," she uttered and touched her belly. "I felt it move."

"Don't you think I should bring you to the obstetrician?"

"What for?"

"To know if our baby's safe."

Julia laughed. "Our baby is okay, Fury. It's strong, healthy and alive." Then she felt another flutter, as if the child affirmed her declaration and his request. "But we can always visit the ob-gyne."

They visited her Obstetrician the next day.

"Now, please lie on the bed Mrs. Caraway."

Mrs. Caraway. How strange. She was still adjusting to the idea that she had a new surname. Julia Caraway. Julia Heartilly Caraway. Julia Loire. She shook her head. Now was not the time to think of him.

She felt the coolness of the KY Jelly rubbed across her abdomen and the soft pressure of the instrument. Caraway was focused on the monitor, trying to make sense of the black and white graphics. The OB-Gyne made few clicks and smiled at the couple.

"Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Caraway, you'll be having a baby girl!"

The OB told them the images she pointed was the baby's reproductive organ. Julia watched, amazed at the shape of the tiny creature she bore inside her. A girl. I'm going to have a girl.

They played Triple Triad that night to celebrate the wonderful news. "What are we going to name her, Fury?"

"How about we let the cards decide?"

"You're betting the name of your daughter on a card game?"

"Why not?" he laid down a card. The score was 1-3, favoring him. "How about a combination of our names? Or the strongest card in our deck"

"You can't be serious." She gasped.

"Jury doesn't sound bad. Neither does Furia, nor Juria. Marla from Marlboro sounds decent. Becca from Chocobo is too."

"How horrible!" she repeated. "I think our dau

ghter would hate that."

"Well, let's allow the cards to speak for themselves." He laid down another card. "What would you name our daughter then?"

"I'm thinking."

He had so much affection for their daughter that a name popped in her head. "Noa." She whispered. "I want her name to have Noa."

"What does that mean?"

"My love and affection."

"Well, it's now Jury versus Noa. May the best cards win!"

Julia won the card game that night, and they had decided to name her Noa.

Caraway was present when she labored for eight hours.

Her Ob-gyne could finally see the baby's head. "10 centimeters dilated and fully effaced. Push, Mrs. Caraway!"

Julia had cursed through gritted teeth and glared at her husband. "I'll never go through this again! I'll never allow you to put a child on me!"

He was hurt, but the nurse had assured him that all laboring women were like this.

On March 3, Julia Heartilly-Caraway had given birth to a tiny baby girl with the same features as her mother.

Caraway had held his daughter in his hands and marveled at the tiny replica of his beloved Julia. Smiling, he came forward and presented to Julia their child.

"She looks exactly like you, Julia!"

Covered with sweat, feeling tired, Julia was amazed at the tiny creature they had created. She was all pink, and her eyes were closed. Blood and a cheese-like substance covered her little body. She looked ugly, but then, newborn babies weren't that particularly beautiful. But that didn't hide the fact that she marveled at the sight of her baby.

The baby was not born from love, but a night from circumstances of sorrow. Despite the circumstances, Caraway had done his best to ensure that during her pregnancy, she was showered with love.

She smiled. How could she ever thought of abandoning such a wonderful angel? Hugo was right, having a child indeed changed her.

"Rinoa." She murmured. "I want to name her Rinoa."

He arched his brow, "What happened to Noa?"

"It's still there, Fury."

"What does Rinoa mean, my love?"

"Rinoa means 'Fury's love and affection'" She explained. "Or you could think of it as a combination between your name, and my chosen one. Fury-Noa. Ry-Noa. Rinoa."

"It's a beautiful name, my love." Fury kissed her softly. To know that she also named their daughter after him touched Fury. He was finally starting to believe that their marriage would work.

"Okay, all I need is to stitch you up Mrs. Caraway. Just lie down and relax." Her Ob-gyne said.

Julia, who had labored for eight hours and successfully delivered her daughter Rinoa, fell asleep.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I actually made the meaning of Rinoa up, though I had to research what Noa meant. In Japanese, it means my love, affection. Fury-noa. Ry-Noa. Rinoa.

I also wanted to write that she got the name from reading a Timber Maniacs article. Like, she got the name from a game called Legend of Legaia and found it cute. Too bad Legaia was released a few months after Final Fantasy 8! So I had to scrap that angle.

So what are we expecting for the next chapter? We'll get to know Julia's growing affections for Caraway and their child, Julia.

Stay tuned for the next chapter!

8/3/16 Update

I removed two sentences.

It changed the tone of the story