"No, I'd never abandon her, but we have children of our own," Steve said. "She's better off with Nat. Alyona altered her memories so that she believes Colin is her father and I'm her uncle. I am the closest thing Nat has to a brother, after all," he explained with another shrug. "The real question is what do we tell everyone else?"

"I know, Steve." Lucy reached out, linking her fingers with his. "And I don't know what we tell everyone else. It isn't up to me. It's up to you, and Nat, and Colin, to make that decision. You're the only ones who can."

"It's not really up to me. It's up to Nat and Colin, I think," Steve said. He'd given up all rights to making any decisions for Lara when he'd told Nat to raise her. "You want to hear something crazy?" he said, a half-smile on his face, more sad than amused.

"Tell me." She raised their linked hands, pressing a soft kiss to his knuckles. No matter what they went through, they would face it together. That, at least, she was certain of.

"Alyona," he said, giving her a hint of what he'd been thinking. "She could alter everyone's memories, so that we believe Lara's been Nat and Colin's daughter all along." It was a crazy idea, and one he wasn't sure he was willing to subject himself to. It was almost too easy.

Lucy frowned thoughtfully. "Steve, we ... we can't all give consent to that," she said carefully. "I'm the one people come to in our family for medical concerns; I couldn't agree to having my memories altered, in case I treated her for something in the wrong way. And the children can't give consent - they wouldn't understand why. Yes, it would make things easier, but life isn't easy."

"Like I said, crazy idea," he said, with a half-smile. He'd dismissed the idea almost as soon as it had come to mind, but he couldn't help but suggest it to Lucy, just in case it wasn't as crazy as it seemed.

"Not a crazy idea," she assured him. "A good idea, in other circumstances." She kissed his cheek affectionately. "Thank you for talking to me. I've been worrying over how you're coping with this since we talked yesterday."

"I'm okay, Luce," he assured her again, smiling at the easy show of affection. "We're gonna be okay. So long as I have you and the kids, everything is gonna be okay." He leaned in to kiss her properly, a warm press of his lips to hers. "I worry about you, too, you know."

"I know," she murmured, but she was smiling as she answered his kiss with her own. "We're well matched in that regard." She let out a soft sigh, easing closer to rest her head on his shoulder. "We'll get the story straight with Nat and Colin tomorrow, and we can tell the kids afterward. I think they need tonight just to settle things between them."

"They're excited to meet her," Steve said of their children and Lara. His smile widened at the thought of their children meeting their newest "cousin". Despite everything, he knew he was a lucky man; maybe the luckiest man in the multiverse. He'd always hoped to be married with kids someday, and now that he was, he couldn't be happier.

She snorted with laughter. "Ridiculously so," she agreed. "I think Lianne might have emptied her art box making pictures for Lara and Alia so they have something for their bedroom."

Steve chuckled, his eyes warm with pride whenever he talked about their children. "We have some pretty great kids," he said, though she knew that already. He made no distinction between their adopted children and those who shared their bloodline. He loved them all the same.

"We did good," she said, laughing softly. "Jamie still wants a dragon, by the way. He might be planning on leveraging Lara's arrival to get an agreement out of you."

Steve chuckled, rolling his eyes at that idea. "I'm not sure Humphrey will allow another dragon to live at Maple Grove. Lir is getting too big as it is. What if we got him a lizard instead?" he suggested, though it wasn't quite the same thing.

"There are little dragons we could get," she mused. "I'm not sure how we train a little dragon not to set fire to everything around itself, though."

"It's not something we have to decide today," he said, drawing her into his arms and brushing his nose against the side of her neck. "What do you say we take this somewhere more comfortable?" he asked, now that she seemed satisfied with his state of mind.

"Mmm, that sounds like a lovely idea," she murmured, smiling as she nestled into his embrace. "Think we can make it there without anyone trying to stop us?"

"We can if they're sleeping," he said, though it was hard to tell from here if that was the case. Steve tipped his head upwards, not hearing any movement above them, but small children had a way of being quiet and sneaky sometimes. "Want to chance it?"

"I'm game if you are." Lucy giggled, pushing herself to stand up and set the cups in the sink. "They're supposed to be sleeping, anyway. Maybe we'll get lucky and there won't be any wandering tonight."

"Maybe I need to do a better job of wearing them out," Steve remarked with a grin. He moved to his feet, stretching his back as he did. "I'll let the dogs out and meet you upstairs," he told her, volunteering to let Thor and Kiki out for their last romp in the yard.

"I'll be waiting." Lucy blew him a kiss, chuckling as she rinsed out the cups ready for the dishwasher load in the morning. She felt lighter now they had talked about this. It would still take time to get used to the situation, but Lara came first. They would all make it work.

"I won't be long," Steve promised as he started toward the back door, calling the pair of dogs - one old and one young - to follow. True to his word, he was only gone a few minutes before he was climbing the stairs to their bedroom, as quietly as he could.

The house was, thankfully, quiet, punctuated with the sound of soft breathing and the skitter of paws making their way into their favored bedrooms for the night. Lucy was waiting, as promised, brushing the tangles out of her short hair to pass the time before Steve joined her.

"All's quiet," he whispered as he stepped into their room, closing the door quietly behind him. As far as he could tell, the children were sleeping - or at least, not making any noise.

"Mmm, lucky us." She grinned, moving to slide her hands up his chest and over his shoulders, drawing him down into a slow kiss. Their sex life was just as healthy as it had always been, even with six children and two dogs.

Steve smiled into her kiss, strong arms winding around her waist to pull her into his embrace. He had no complaints regarding their sex life, as evidenced by the four children Lucy had birthed. It had been a couple of stressful days, and though he hadn't slept yet, he had plenty of energy left for his wife.

And yet it wasn't about the sex, though that was always a welcome distraction from anything else in their lives. It was about the reconnection, the assurance to one another that nothing had changed. That they were still in this together, no matter what.

They'd been through stranger things than this - things that might have broken other couples - but they weren't just any other couple. They were Steve and Lucy Rogers, and there was nothing they couldn't face, so long as they faced it together.

RELIGION

Adheres to the Church of the Goddess, and is far removed from any incursion by the New Church.


CUISINE

As with other lands, though coastal regions enjoy fresh fish more regularly for obvious reasons. Cocoa is cheap to the populace, so it is drunk and eaten more regularly than is perhaps good for the nobility, particularly their waistlines.

REGIONS


Tania
The political and commercial heart of Carantania - here is where the famous Rombuie market can be found on Solstice days, a market that exclusively sells the chocolates and candies that Carantania guards the secret of jealously.

Sol
The farming center of the country, ruled over by Duke Alfred Omberto, the king's cousin. Carantania is self-sustaining - all its grown and raised foods come from Aranie.

Aranie
The speciality center of the kingdom, areas of Aranie are heavily guarded. This is where the cocoa beans are grown and harvested, where the secret of making chocolate was first discovered in Meringia, and the source of Carantania's wealth. It is ruled over by Duke Ranulf Von Ansburg, the current head of only two hereditary dukedoms on the continent.

Carantania

The smallest of the countries who have chosen to ally themselves to Pomerania as vassal states, Carantania has a history of walking a very thin line between alliance and hostility. On two separate occasions, the country has been invaded and leveled by hostile armies in the last five hundred years, but for the most part, Carantania has managed to balance the power of all those who are interested in her.

She is also the youngest of the countries involved in Pomerania's vassal states, having only been added to the list twenty years ago.

"I don't know where to start," she admitted quietly. "It just seems unreal, you know? I couldn't imagine any situation where I would abandon my children to the hope of a better life in another universe, but that's exactly what the other version of me did."

"Kind of like Superman," Colin murmured, just for comparison. Of course, as far as he knew Superman was just a fictional character in a comic book, though who knew here on Rhy'Din.

"Who?" She frowned curiously; that wasn't a name she had ever come across before. "Is he a friend of yours or something?"

Colin chuckled softly. "No, he's a comic book character I used to read about when I was a boy." He supposed she'd never had much time for that sort of thing. "Long story short, his world was at war and was on the brink of destruction, so when he was a baby, his parents sent him to Earth in a spaceship to save him. The ship lands on a farm, and the people who find him adopt him and raise him as their own." Okay, so the story wasn't exactly like Lara's, but he hoped she'd understand the similarities.

She smiled faintly. "I get it," she murmured. "I guess it is kind of like that. At least Lara's young enough that in a few months all of this will be a bad dream."

"We'll give her good memories to replace the bad ones," Colin assured her. "And we'll make sure Steve is an important part of her life, too." That was the part of the equation that was worrying him the most really.

"He will be," Nat agreed quietly. "He's putting on a brave face, but it cost him a lot to make the decision and let Alyona adjust Lara's memories. No matter what is best for her, he's still going to feel a little as though he abandoned her for a while."

"Well, you know, there's nothing wrong with having two fathers. Lots of people do it," Colin pointed out. It wasn't him he was concerned about so much as it was Steve. Plenty of people had birth fathers and adoptive fathers and step fathers. "He should be part of her life, too, and I don't mind sharing."

"Part of it is not wanting to confuse things too much for the other kids," Nat pointed out. "But if you're okay with it, I think we should encourage her to have a close relationship with her Uncle Steve."

"Make him her godfather," Colin suggested. Though neither of them was particularly religious, the same could not be said of Steve. "And I don't mean like in the movie," he teased.

She laughed, nuzzling into his shoulder as his humor broke her rising tension once more. "That's a good idea," she agreed. "I just hope he's talking to Lucy about all this. Who knows how she's taking it herself."

"I'm sure he is," Colin said. "Besides, you didn't actually sleep with Steve. The other Nat did. They took a risk in sending Lara here, but it was a calculated risk. They had to have already known how you both would react, even if you weren't a couple."

"I know. It's a weird situation, that's all." She sighed softly, touching a gentle kiss to his jaw as she rested her head closer to his. "This is gonna take some time for all of us to come to terms with it, I think."

"It will be okay, Nat," he assured her, arms wrapped around her to hold her close. "We're safe here in Rhy'Din. Our children are safe. And we're going to make sure it stays that way."

"Damn straight, we are," she agreed firmly. "I will not let anything bad happen to any of you, I promise. Not on my watch, not ever."

He chuckled a little, knowing she'd kill for them if she had to. He had no illusions where that was concerned. "Said like a true badass," he teased her, blue eyes bright with amusement.

"I thought you liked my ass?" Her lips curved into a smile he likely felt against his neck. "I don't think you've ever called it bad before."

"Take it as a compliment, love," he told her. "Why don't you get some rest while you can? I'm not going anywhere," he assured her, knowing she probably needed it.

"Mmm, I think I will," she murmured, letting her eyes close. "Wake me if you need me, okay?" She trusted him with everything she had, but she knew Lara might be a little Mom-clingy for a few days.

"Will do," he promised her, pressing a protective kiss to her brow. "Love you, Nat. Don't worry now, and just get some rest," he whispered in that calming voice of his.

"Love you too, baby." She let out a long sigh, as though expelling the last of her worry, and fully relaxed against him, embracing the absolute safety of being in the arms of the man who loved her.

She could be sure he'd be right there when she woke, watching over her while she slept, the one constant in her life. Going forward, things might get a little hairy, but for now, at least, there was peace.