Classes were to get out around midday in order to give students enough time to attend the First Task. Oriane wasn't really sure why they even had classes that day to begin with, as the attention span of students (herself included) was even worse than it was the day before. Every single corridor, stone, and inch of that school was buzzing with excitement, though there were a few students who felt absolute dread.

Dragons. Cedric would have to fight dragons.

She still couldn't quite wrap her mind around it despite the fact that it was the only thought consuming her mind. How could Dumbledore, or any of the other headmasters for that matter, stand around and throw their students into a ring to face dragons? Were they not the least bit worried for their safety? Dragons were powerful and potentially lethal creatures if put under the wrong circumstances.

Worst of all, she had to continue through classes as if she was none the wiser. While Professor McGonagall talked about more transfiguration techniques, Sprout about plants, and Snape about potions, all Oriane could think of was dragons. How to get past them, how to distract them, how to protect yourself from them. What to do if you got burnt by one. Or scratched by one. What happened to skin when it was subjected to an unrelenting blast of fire…

The bell for lunch was the only thing that brought her out of her mind, and just like the other students, Oriane quickly stood from her seat and rushed down to the Great Hall. Nothing could quell the terrible thumping in her chest as her mind continued to race. The sound of blood rushing in her ears trumped that of the noise of the conversations taking place around her as she and her friends walked to the Hufflepuff table.

"I'm just glad we didn't have to go to Moody's class today," Calista rambled as she threw her leg over the bench.

"His eye gives me the creeps," Emerald admitted, mirroring Calista's movement. "Sometimes I feel like he's staring straight through me."

All three girls sat down at the table and began to fill their plates with food as they chatted. Their plates got about halfway full before Calista suddenly froze, her eyes glancing around the area.

"Wait, where'd Ori run off to?" she questioned, setting her silverware down.

Oriane's absence left a void at the table that the three girls stared at. There was nothing but perfectly clean platters and silverware where her arms should have been resting.

"Don't worry," Charlotte said, nodding her head to a spot a few places down on the table. "She didn't go far."

All girls then had their attention on Oriane. She sat in front of an empty plate next to Cedric. The boy was anxiously picking at the food on his plate as he leaned in closer to Oriane, whispering something to her. Calista grinned at the sight.

"Oh, she ran off with her boyfriend," Calista chuckled, turning her attention back to her food.

"Ori and Cedric are dating?" Emerald asked, head snapping back to look at the others.

Charlotte smirked. "Not yet."

Oriane couldn't get her heart to settle, even as she sat. A wonderful aroma surrounded her with the excellently cooked food that laid out in front of her and still she couldn't get herself to stomach the thought of eating at a time like that. Even Cedric looked a bit more peckish than normal, as he still had a decent amount of food left on his plate.

"Were you able to sleep at all last night?" she asked carefully.

A hum came from Cedric as he lazily poked at some brussel sprouts on his plate. "A bit," he admitted. "I stayed up a little later to do some more research, and I think I've come up with a plan.

Cedric hunched his shoulders some, trying to bring himself closer to Oriane. Understanding the need for secrecy, she leaned into him, their arms brushing together.

"I've officially decided there's no way we're meant to actually fight the dragons. I was going back and forth on that thought last night, but the dragon must just be an obstacle."

Cedric paused for a moment, his eyes glancing down to the empty platter in front of Oriane. He reached out and grabbed a roll off of one of the plates in front of him and set it in front of her.

"So I was thinking," he continued, adding on more food to her plate, "that though it's smart to know how to defend myself from an attack, the real goal is probably going to be distracting it. If I lure its attention away from me long enough to get through some course, or grab whatever item they set out for me, then I shouldn't have to worry about getting hurt. I'd rather not face it head on unless I really have to."

Oriane nodded her head, following along with Cedric's logic. "So, how do you plan to distract it then?"

"Transfiguration." His voice was low as he whispered, and he spoke in a tone that was difficult to hear over the chatter of everyone around them. She found herself scooting even closer to him as he spoke. "If I can transfigure something in there into an animal, or a toy, or just anything that'll move around or make noise, it should buy me enough time to complete the task without drawing too much attention to myself."

The two fell in silence for a moment. The only sound that there was between them was Cedric cutting up a slice of turkey breast as the cutlery scraped against the plate. Really, it was a sound plan, and there was nothing Oriane could think of to add, despite how much she had thought about it throughout the entire morning.

"That ought to work, I think," she said softly.

"I sure hope so, because I don't have another plan if it doesn't," Cedric chuckled.

His laugh was bittersweet, and Oriane didn't miss the way his lips pressed tightly together as he dove back into his thoughts. It was one of the worst pains she had experienced, seeing him worry so much and knowing there was nothing she could do about it. She had already done all she could for him. The rest was up to him, and that scared her.

"Mr. Diggory," a kind voice spoke up behind them.

Both students turned their heads over their shoulder to find the Hufflepuff Head of House, Professor Sprout, smiling down at them. She was a joyous lady normally, however despite her kind demeanor, Oriane couldn't help but sense a feeling of dread radiating off of the teacher. A feeling which quickly settled in Oriane's own stomach as she realized what was about to happen.

"It's time for the champions to prepare for the first task," Professor Sprout continued, "I'm to take you to the grounds."

Cedric nodded his head and quickly wiped his mouth off on his napkin before quickly standing, too anxious to remember to say goodbye. The entire time he moved, Oriane's eyes didn't stray from him once. A tremor began to rise in her hands, and she did her best to hide it by shoving them under the table.

"Cedric," Oriane called out, her voice hardly breaking through the chatter of the Great Hall.

But he heard her. Her voice was something he could pick out even in the largest of crowds. He had only taken a few steps away from the table, but he still turned around to give her his full attention.

"Remember what we talked about last night," she reminded him, and she did her best to muster a reassuring smile.

Cedric returned the smile with a curt nod. "Of course." And he should have walked away then, and Professor Sprout was beginning to look a bit anxious at the amount of time he was taking, but he stayed standing for a moment. His eyes flickered down to the table before glancing back up at her. "Make sure to eat."

With that, he was gone.

Letting out a shaky breath, Oriane turned back around in her seat, her eyes closed as she rubbed at her temples. A part of her was beginning to deeply regret telling Cedric he should join the tournament. Had she known it was that dangerous, she would have protested it for all students, in all honesty. Perhaps if she had better control of her visions she could have seen it coming sooner, but Merlin forbid her visions actually showed her something useful.

After a moment of silently cursing herself, Oriane opened her eyes, ready to follow Cedrics request that she eat. However, just as she went to grab a roll off of one of the platters in front of her, she realized her plate was already full. Glistening vegetables, warm and fluffy rolls, and turkey breast, cut up into perfect, bite sized pieces. She blinked silently for a moment as she felt the heat rush up to her cheeks. Her teeth pulled at the dead skin on her lips so hard they began to bleed.

"You didn't have to do this," she muttered.

Every single student in the castle, both from Hogwarts and the other two representative schools, traveled over the frost ridden grounds into the forest. There was a buzz in the air that shook so violently that Oriane thought she was about to be sick. She wrapped her cloak around her tightly as she trudged along with the others, doing her best to dodge roots or any slick bramble.

"Little odd that they're taking us into the forest," Emerald pondered out loud.

Dragons. Yes, of course they'd be going into the forest. Couldn't bring them too close to the grounds on the off chance one of them got loose.

"I wonder what the task is going to be," Calista added, hopping between large rocks as they pressed forward.

Dragons. Terribly large, fire breathing creatures that could melt any of them within an instant.

"Maybe it'll be something simple, like an obstacle course. Or maybe they'll duel?" Emerald suggested.

Oh, how she wished it was something simple. Something harmless. Something that wouldn't make her stomach churn the way it did.

"Dueling would be a little unfair," Calista huffed, hopping off of a large stone. "Harry would be pretty far behind the others."

Facing dragons seemed really unfair. More unfair than a duel.

These thoughts continued to plague Oriane's mind until the students approached a clearing. A small stadium of sorts had been erected, and people had already begun filling the seats. It wasn't anywhere close to the size of the stadium they had built for the World Cup, and it wasn't as high up as the quidditch pitch was either. Yet it was enough to hold hundreds of visitors. Calista led the way up the stairs and found them a spot near the exit, which Oriane was glad for as she felt as if she was about to burst into tears at any moment. Being close to the exit would at least give her the chance to hide her shame away if she were to start losing it.

People continued to flood into the stadium for a good twenty minutes, and while her roommates chatted away, Oriane remained silent. Her eyes scanned the arena in front of her, taking in everything it had to offer. On the far end of the arena she could make out a vague shape of a nest, something large enough to house dragon eggs at least. Luckily the Ministry didn't seem to be completely heartless, as there was plenty of cover to hide behind.

Still, dragons were large. And very dangerous.

"How was your talk with Cedric?" Charlotte suddenly asked. Her voice seemed softer than normal, yet it was still easy to hear despite the chatter going on around them.

Oriane turned her attention to the girl sitting next to her, and for the first time in what felt like hours, she breathed in. She was trembling so bad she hoped that anyone who looked at her thought it was because of the cold.

"It was alright," Oriane said awkwardly as she tried to keep her teeth from chattering. "We sorta just talked about the task, and I wished him luck and… yeah…"

She was rambling. Normally it was difficult to get Oriane to talk about what was on her mind, but in that moment she couldn't stop it from spewing from her mouth. She stiffly cut herself off as her eyes glanced awkwardly to the champions tent not too far off on their left.

"What's this?" Charlotte asked instead.

Pale fingers reached out and brushed her throat and the chain around her neck was pulled out from under her shirt shortly afterwards. Oriane looked down and she saw that the bee charm necklace that she had been wearing for the last month or so now sat neatly atop her cloak. A small smile pulled at Charlotte's lips as she placed her hand back in her lap.

"That's cute," she mused.

"Oh, thanks," Oriane said with an awkward laugh. Her fingers reached up to grab the charm carefully, and her thumb gently rubbed over it. "Cedric gave it to me for my birthday."

Charlotte tilted her head to the side, her short white-blonde hair drifting in the cold breeze. Her normally cold amber eyes had a hint of warmth in the dim sunlight, turning them a more caramel hue.

"Do you like bees?" she asked next.

"Yeah, I think they're cute," Oriane said, her eyes still locked onto the charm of her necklace. "I used to be afraid of them when I was younger. Was always afraid of being stung. But when my aunt started up her garden, and more bees were hanging around our cottage, she taught me to be less afraid of them. And soon I started to really enjoy their company."

Suddenly, it was like she was transported back to that sunny day in the wildflower field with Cedric. Sitting amongst the grass speckled with colorful petals. The warm breeze through her hair. Cedric pointing out the bumblebee on her arm. How she went back to return to Charlotte and the others, only to get caught up with Peter Pettigrew. The scar on her arm.

It had been quite some time since she had even thought of Pettigrew. This mysterious R.G. person was one of many negative thoughts that continued to plague her mind, and it had become nearly smothering. She sighed as she came to the realization that there was a lot more for her to worry about than she was able to keep track of.

"I think it fits you," Charlotte smiled. "You're a lot like a bee."

Oriane could hardly muster a smile before the announcements began, and suddenly her anxiety came crashing back onto her body. It started off with the normal type of announcements, welcoming everyone to the first task of the tournament. Her knee started to bounce vigorously as her brain tried to block out everything that was being said. She already knew what was going to happen, and for once it wasn't because of her visions.

Then came the dragon.

It was a long, silvery blue creature spanning roughly twenty feet long. Spiny and obvious bones fought against the skin and scales of the creature, making it look almost skeleton-like as it stocked around the arena, sniffing the area before finding its nest at the far side of the arena. Some people gasped, others ogled, others were excited.

"A Swedish Short-Snout!" Emerald exclaimed, jumping to her feet. Her eyes were wide with wonder as she stood on the tips of her toes in order to get a better view of the creature. "How did they even find one? Or even get it here? Oh, don't tell me that one of the champions is going to have to get past this poor thing… its flame can reduce anything combustible to ash within seconds…"

"Emi," Charlotte said sternly, sounding almost motherly as she pulled on the girl's sleeve, getting her to sit.

What a comforting thought.

Once the dragon was situated, they wasted no time starting the task. Oriane held her breath as the announcer cheered the name of the champion who was first up, and she continued to hold her breath until she saw them exit the tent on her left.

She wanted to look away. Wanted to close her eyes and cover her ears and ignore everything going on around her. She wanted to run far away and pretend that none of it was happening in the first place. But she couldn't. Her pale, cold eyes were stuck on Cedric Diggory, who stood at the edge of the arena with a somewhat dazed expression. She had never seen him so terrified before.

"Of course we're going first," Calista muttered.

Cedric wasted no time making his way to the other side of the arena, inching closer and closer to the dragon. He would duck behind rocks every few feet, trying his best to keep out of the creature's sight, but she was much too perceptive to ignore him.

A huff from her chest released a small amount of blue flame from her nostrils, almost as if warning the poor boy. Oriane's teeth started to dig into her lips again and that familiar taste of blood coated her tongue as the dragon took a large step towards Cedric.

Blue jets of flame spewed from her mouth, and it was so warm Oriane could have sworn she felt the heat from her position in the stands. Her hands flew to her mouth, muffling her gasp as Cedric dove behind a boulder just in time for the flames to reach the ground. He sat behind the rock, waiting for the dragon to get her fill as the flames licked the rock behind him.

"Oh, narrow miss there, very narrow," the announcer said solemnly.

Cedric continued to sit behind the rock for a moment. Even from a distance Oriane could see the way his chest heaved, panting either from the anxiety or the heat. Most likely both. His eyes scanned the area around him, searching for something. He leaned his head against the boulder for a moment, catching his breath before he slowly came to his feet, still taking care to keep crouched out of the dragon's sight.

"Jesus Christ," Charlotte muttered, "that's too close for comfort."

The boy then held out his wand, adjusting it restlessly in his hand as he pointed it off somewhere in the distance. After a few moments, one of the medium sized rocks transfigured into a dog. It was a cute little thing, with black and white marks and a smiling mouth. However, its demeanor quickly changed as it caught sight of the dragon, and it whimpered as it slowly slinked away.

However, it did what Cedric had planned. Suddenly, Cedric was the least interesting thing in the world to the towering creature, and the dragon started to stalk after the dog. He waited until he saw the dragon a few yards away from him before moving out from behind the boulder.

"He's taking risks, this one!" the announcer cheered with a slight chuckle.

Cedric walked backwards, taking his time as he kept his eyes on the dragon. The dog was acting erratically, whimpering and crying as it darted from rock to rock, trying to get the dragon to leave it alone. She almost seemed to be toying with him more than she was trying to hunt the poor thing.

Soon, he was only mere feet away from the nest. A large, golden egg sat in the midst of several very real dragon eggs. All he had to do was grab it, and he would complete the task.

Until he tripped.

With his eyes too focused on the dragon, he had completely missed the large stone in his way, and he fell backwards, landing next to the nest. Suddenly the dog no longer held her attention, and the dragon's blue eyes locked onto Cedric. The boy scrambled to his feet, but the dragon was faster. Its long legs only needed a few strides before she was towering over the boy.

In a last ditch effort, Cedric dove for the eggs, his hands clasping around the golden one in the middle. More fiery blue flames shot from her mouth, yet she seemed to have second thoughts at throwing a jet of fire so close to her own eggs, and she stopped mid way. However, this did not save the left side of Cedric's face from being seared.

Several gasps erupted from the crowd. Oraine was certain she was going to throw up. Her hands stayed over her mouth as she choked back a yell.

"Wait, he did it!" Calista cheered. "He got the egg! He's done!"

She should have felt relief, but she felt anything but. Cedric held the egg up into the air with one hand, and covered the left half of his face with the other. His head was held down low, almost as if he was trying to hide away just how injured he was. He finished, but at what cost?

Several people swarmed the arena and worked on getting the Swedish Short-Snout out of the arena. Emerald appeared almost a little sad when it was out of sight, and she muttered something under her breath about the treatment of the dragon. Cedric was led back into the tent, his hand holding his face the entire time while he walked. He was breathing. He was alive. And yet there was still a terrible pit forming in her stomach.

"Hey," Charlotte whispered, gently leaning into Oriane. She pointed to the staircase that sat a few rows away from them. "I bet you could sneak into the tent he's in."

Oriane swallowed hard as her tongue ran against the inside of her lips. She had chewed them raw.

"You don't think I'll get in trouble?" she whispered back.

"Who cares? He just got injured. I'm sure he'd like to have you there," Charlotte assured.

And well, she didn't need more convincing than that.

Knees knocking together, Oriane stood from her spot in the stands and slowly began to slink through the rows of seats until she reached the stairs. Each breath she took felt like a knife to her sternum, yet she forced herself to push forward as she galloped down the stairs, eventually landing on the solid ground.

The entrance to the tent wasn't far, and with trudging feet she quickly got there. Things felt eerily quiet standing on the outside of the tent despite the noise coming from the stands next to her. She reached out a trembling hand to move the tent flaps aside before swiftly stepping inside.

The tent was surprisingly empty. Several screens were erected to give privacy to anyone being treated, and after a moment of standing there, Oriane slowly began to step forwards, peering behind the screens. It didn't take her long to find where Cedric was, as his winces and Madam Pomfrey's muttering became quite noticeable as she got closer.

The scent of singed hair was strong, and it made Oriane's nose scrunch. Cedric's face was bright red and raw, but it wasn't as bad as she was anticipating. Still, with the way his eyebrows pulled together and teeth bared as Madam Pomfrey smothered some orange paste on his face, it was enough to still make her worry.

"Dragons," Madam Pomfrey muttered, pausing for a moment to give Cedric's poor skin a break. "Dementors, now dragons, what's next? Maybe I shouldn't even ask that…"

All Oriane could do was stand there for a moment, her body stuck to the floor. Her mouth felt cotton dry, and her teeth too sticky. She wanted to reach for him, to embrace him, to do something to make him feel better, and yet she felt terribly helpless. Until his eyes opened through the pain, and it was like he knew she was there, because his eyes instantly landed on her.

His expression softened.

Madam Pomfrey caught sight of his change in demeanor and she turned her attention to Oriane, who still stood in the makeshift doorway of the cubicle. Oriane prepared herself to get yelled at, for trespassing, for being in the way, yet she got no such greeting from the nurse.

"Oh, good. Miss Morissette, would you mind aiding me?" Madam Pomfrey asked, setting the jar of orange paste down on the bed next to Cedric. She quickly wiped her hands off on her apron, seeming to not care about the stain it left behind. "If they're facing dragons, I'm going to need to prepare more of this paste than I have on hand…"

Glad to realize she wasn't in the way, Oriane nodded her head. "Yes, of course."

"Perfect. If you could just finish up on the spots that I missed… I'll be nearby making some more of this blasted paste if you run into any trouble," the nurse sighed before leaving the compartment with a huff.

Cedric laid there, slightly propped up on the bed. The golden egg he had captured sat on the foot of the bed, almost as if it wasn't important anymore despite the drastic measures he took to get it in the first place. Still, even with the obvious pain he was in, he managed a smile, which was a little lopsided now.

"Hey there, hatstall," Cedric chuckled.

Those words caused her to spring into motion. She removed her cloak in one swift motion and threw it on the edge of the bed before grabbing the jar Madam Pomfrey left behind. She should have been smiling. She should have been relieved. But there was a terrible acidic feeling eating away at her core that she couldn't ignore.

She lifted herself up on the bed so that she sat on the edge, making it easier for her to reach his face. The burn covered a majority of his left cheek, trailing down to his jawline and even slightly on his throat. Her lips pressed tightly together as she dipped a finger into the paste.

"You were supposed to be careful," she said softly, raising her fingers to press against his burn. Cedric's face contorted once more as she gently applied the paste onto the meaty part of his cheek. "You had me worried sick."

Cedric was silent for a moment as Oriane worked on him. Her fingers were so delicate, and much more gentle than when Madam Pomfrey was putting the paste on him. And even though he was obviously in pain, his eyes didn't leave hers for a moment.

"That's my jacket," he said softly.

Confused, Oraine blinked as she moved her hand away from his now completely covered cheek. Her eyes glanced down at herself and she looked at the green jacket that covered her torso. It was still too large to fit her properly, but it made a nice light layer to go underneath her winter cloak. She had been wearing it so often she hardly even remembered she put it on that morning.

"I still think about that day sometimes," Cedric continued. Attempting to calm the thudding in her chest, Oriane dipped her fingers back in the paste, grabbing more of it before placing it on his jaw. Another wince sounded from him, and he let out a heavy sigh, but his eyes stayed on hers. "That night, when the Death Eaters came… I wish I had stayed. I shouldn't have let my father take me. I should have been there with you."

Oriane shook her head as her fingers trailed down to his throat. His muscles tensed under her touch, and the skin seemed to be a bit more raw in that area. But she couldn't stop; she continued to work with shaky fingers.

"It was dangerous. You would have gotten hurt," she retorted.

The entire time she worked, she couldn't bring herself to look him in the eyes. Her entire focus was on the wound on his face. She knew that if she looked him in the eyes she would crumble.

"I wouldn't have cared," Cedric said.

"I would have," Oriane quipped. "Ron's brothers had already gotten hurt because of me, I didn't need you getting hurt, too."

Cedric's hand reached up and grabbed hers and he gently pulled her fingers away from his throat. By that point the paste had fully covered every inch of burnt skin on his face. Fresh, healthy skin already started to replace the parts Madam Pomfrey had gotten to earlier. It was working quickly, at least, and this did some to help calm her nerves, yet she could feel her heart flutter when Cedric didn't let go over her hand.

"Watching you just now, down there fighting that dragon… it made me sick to my stomach," Oriane continued, her voice shaking.

"Don't you think I feel the same?" Cedric asked softly. It was hard for him to form much of his emotions on his face, but the tone of his voice spoke volumes alone. "The day you ran out of the Three Broomsticks crying. Or when you nearly bled to death last year. The Death Eaters at the World Cup. I'm watching you get hurt all the time and you hardly let me do anything about it."

His grip on her hand became more firm and it made her breath catch in her lungs. The paste was still sticky on her fingers, but she didn't care about that. Her eyes were now stuck on him, and she couldn't look away.

"That's different," she attempted to excuse. "What were you supposed to do against dark wizards?"

"Well, I did just go up against a dragon," Cedric said, a slight smirk pulling at the uninjured corner of his lip. "And I managed to escape mostly unharmed."

Oriane couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of his comment. She looked down at their hands as she shook her head. His thumb rested in her palm, his fingers gently wrapping around the back of her hand. She curled her fingers down and gave his thumb a light squeeze.

"I… I care about you too much to let you do that for me."

The silence between them was so thick she could almost reach out and grab it. It was so palpable, and she wanted to shatter it, but she was too busy thinking about the words she just let slip from her mouth. Maybe she made a mistake. Maybe she shouldn't have said anything at all.

"I love you too much to let you do this on your own," Cedric said softly. His other hand reached up and held hers, his fingers lacing together as he did so. She could feel her bottom lip involuntarily quiver as she attempted to keep her emotions in check, but she forced herself to look back up at him. "Ori, I love you. I have for a while now. And I don't expect you to reciprocate it… I know you've got a lot going on, but please… just…"

The tears swelling in her eyes caused him to drift off, and he stared up at her with his mouth slightly agape. His grasp of her hand tightened, almost as if he was afraid to lose her, and the muscles in his face adjusted awkwardly as he swallowed.

"I'm sorry," he breathed, his eyes flickering around her face as if it would be the last time he would ever see it. "I shouldn't have… confessing something like that at a time like this is… wrong of me to-"

"I'd kiss you right now if it wasn't for that paste on your face."

More silence, yet this time it was different. It was the teasing, giddy, electric kind of silence. The kind that pulled Cedric's lips into a small smile again, and he didn't even wince in pain this time. And she realized just how badly she was giving into it. How hard she had tried to fight what was always there. She kept trying to nip those feelings for him in the bud, but it always came back. And at that moment, it was blooming.

"How are we doing in here?" Madam Pomfrey asked, quickly shuffling around the corner and into the makeshift compartment.

Their hands quickly parted just in time for the nurse to enter, and Oriane tried to pretend like she didn't just smear the paste on top of her pants. Trying to ignore the blush creeping up in her face, Oriane picked up the jar of paste from the side of the bed as she hopped down onto the ground.

"I got… it's all… his wound," she stammered.

"Good work, Miss Morissette, thank you," Madam Pomfrey interjected, giving the girl a kind smile as she took the jar back.

Oriane backed up awkwardly, allowing the nurse to return to Cedric's side, but she couldn't take her eyes off of him. All that anxiety, all that weight from earlier still lingered on her shoulders, but that pain was numbed by the new fluttering in her chest.

"Perfect, I see the new skin already growing," Madam Pomfrey said, turning Cedric's head side to side as she assessed him. "We should keep it on for at least two hours, and then you should be back to normal. How are you feeling?"

His gaze was up at Madam Pomfrey for a short moment after she asked that question, but it didn't take long for his eyes to land on Oriane. He took in the sight of his jacket, the gold chain of the necklace he had given her peeking out from underneath her collar, and the gold ribbon around her wrist. A deep breath filled his lungs, but his eyes didn't leave her as he answered.

"Much better."