Chronicles of the Selphia Plains [Rune Factory 4]

To Have and to Hold Part I

Chapter Summary: Avani's been behaving strangely, and Leon begins to wonder if she regrets her choice... and what she intends to do about it.

Attribution: The photo for the story image is by Adam Franco https://www.flickr.com/photos/adamfranco/4345159436/ and is available through the Creative Commons License CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/. I have modified it from the original.

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It was the sixth day of Summer, three days before Leon's birthday—what would be his thirty-first birthday, if you didn't count the centuries that he lay dreaming in the tower of Leon Karnak. He'd never imagined such contentment as he now claimed as his own: married nearly a year to the love of his life, who was now heavy with their first child—or children, rather—due to make their appearance in the near future. His wife was beautiful, strong, and clever—all he had ever hoped for, yet she was so much more than even the most ambitious of his dreams had ever imagined.

He found steady work these days, too, translating archaic scrolls and texts for the government and scholars as well as chronicling what to him had been current events but now was ancient history. He enjoyed the work for its own sake; while enjoyable, the money was no longer a necessity. Avani's farm was thriving, and as both the Acting Princess of Selphia and the Baronet of the Selphian Plains, she was provided with substantial living quarters in the castle. More than enough space for the two—no, four, he corrected himself with a satisfied grin—of them. And still plenty of room for their family to grow even more. He pushed his chair back from his desk where he sat working on his current commission, stood and stretched, and went downstairs to grab some lunch.

As he rummaged around the refrigerator, trying to decide if he wanted to grill some mackerel or just stroll over to Porcoline's Kitchen for lunch, he heard the front door open and close and low voices in the main chamber. Recognizing his wife's voice, he was just about to call out a greeting when he heard her say, "Oh, good. It looks like he's not in. Let me grab a couple of things really quick, then let's hurry to the airship before he gets back."

Startled into silence, he heard the wardrobe door open, followed by the sound of cloth rustling and a click as the door shut again. Her voice once more as she moved towards the back of the suite, saying, "Okay, ready? Let's get going, hurry!" And then the back door opening and closing, followed by silence. He stepped out, and gave a delicate sniff with his sensitive nose. He smelled the scent of his wife, but he also picked up another familiar scent: the earthy smells of leather and spices steeped in a potent stench of pheromones.

It was the scent of Dylas, his wife's former lover.

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How long he stood there in a daze, he wasn't entirely certain. But after some time had passed, he pulled himself together. He didn't understand what had happened, why Avani had gone off somewhere with Dylas alone and with such secrecy, but he was sure there must be a reason. There had to be—she loved him, after all, and had finally chosen him over Dylas. And she certainly had seemed happy with him... hadn't she? He hadn't noted any signs of discontent. Or had his own happiness clouded his vision?

Shaking his head to clear it of the bewildering conundrum, he returned to work. His concentration was broken, however, so eventually he gave it up and decided to go fishing. A nice rainbow trout or possibly even some lamp squid might make him feel better. Or maybe something for Avani... what was it that she liked so much again? Shrimp, he thought. She particularly liked shrimp.

In the end, he came home with only a couple of smaller trout. Finding that Avani was still gone, he went ahead and cleaned and grilled them for his dinner, trying not to fret at her lengthy absence. Although it was rare these days, it wasn't entirely unheard of for her to be out late, missing their evening meal. Some days he only saw her in the morning when he woke her at the start of the day and again at night when she returned late at night, climbing straight into bed. And very, very rarely she hadn't returned until after he'd already gone to sleep, alone in their large bed.