Anticipation swallowed me whole as I made my way to the secret garden. I know I was about to be scolded but I was not prepared to stand down. Yes, that was perhaps not one of my finest moments, but I was given little choice.

As soon as I walked into the garden, Septimus was there waiting as he pulled my arm further into the middle by the fountain as he exclaimed "What was that?"

I pulled my arm from his grip as I answered, "I needed to get to you."

"Well, that was a really stupid way of going about it!" He snarled at me, the anger in his eyes looking like crashing waves.

"Of course, it was stupid, but you gave me no choice!" I raised my voice back at him.

Septimus paced around the garden, trying to calm himself down as I watched him intently. But he wasn't one that could easily cool down his own temper as he remarked "You are so reckless!"

"Are you done?" I raised my eyebrow at him, I was not going to stand here and be scolded by him when this was all his fault.

"No, I'm not" he snapped back "Him! Out of everyone, the thought of him touching you makes me want to -"

"Die?" I finished "Now you know how I feel".

Septimus stopped in his tracks as he whispered, "Don't say that".

"Then stop breaking me" my voice cracked "There is only so many more times I can take before I won't wake up. You are losing me, I'm sure my heart will stop beating soon".

He rushed up to me, placing his hands on my rosy cheek. I had missed the feel of his touch, the warmth that radiated through him, giving me that comfort I had been craving from him.

"You can't speak like that Bella, I need you" he tried to reassure me as I looked up him "You have a strange way of showing it".

He sighed, lowering his head onto mine as he whispered, "I love you, Bella."

My heart raced, how I had longed to hear those words escape his lips and now they had I could feel my breathing quicken as I looked up at him and pressed my lips onto his as I felt butterflies stir in me. I felt his lips push against mine with an urgency that drove me wild as I jumped up into his strong arms as we continued. Though no matter how much the urgency we felt, he placed me on the grass softly as I pulled his waistcoat off. He brushed his hands through my hand as he gently kissed my neck and over my chest. I'd never felt a feeling such as this, it was bliss and I never wanted it to end.

However, Septimus was a gentleman first and he paused before it got too heated, much to my disappointment. He was still laying on top of me as he stroked my hair out of my face as I gazed up at him, wondering where we go from here. If we ever would.

"Bella, we can't" he started to say but I interrupted him as I shook my head "I don't want to keep hearing it, that we can't be together. It's not an option. I'm pretty sure fate will have us meet in every lifetime if it hasn't already. We can't be parted".

"But -" he tried to say again as he picked himself off me and helped me up as I yet again interrupted "Please, Septimus. We can make this work"

Septimus looking as if he was now getting frustrated again as I kept speaking over him as he exclaimed "You are ludicrous! Can't you let me speak, I'm trying to ask you to marry me!"

My jaw dropped as my heart stopped - was he being serious? How could that be possible for us?

"Excuse me? Did I hear that correctly?" I asked, my voice shaking.

"I want you in every sense, Bella. Be my wife" he asked as he took my hand as I felt suddenly lightheaded.

"But how?" I asked, this was the part I couldn't get my head around. It would be quite obvious to what the answer to his question would be, but I needed to know how I could be his wife.

"Like you said, we can make it work" he answered simply "It would have to be secret until I was King, but I cannot keep going on like this. Be the other half of my soul, Bella".

I smiled as I stroked his face and smiled "Yes".