Their interesting courtship continued along the same path for the next couple of weeks. They would meet at The Broken Arrow, and they would travel to various places in and around the city, just talking for hours and getting to know each other. Some nights they would sleep together, but others they would part with a kiss. Kierrai fell hard for him. She had never been in love before, but somehow she knew that what they had was real. She never looked at other men any more, and she noticed that Starkhaven never seemed to look at other women. One night, as they walked through the city, he stopped her.

"What is it?" she asked in confusion. He took a deep breath before he answered.

"I love you." He replied simply. She thought her heart was going to beat right out of her chest at his revelation. She grinned at him.

"I love you too." She answered warmly. He smiled and to her surprise, knelt before her. "What are you doing?" she asked, startled.

"First of all, I wish to tell you that my name is Sebastian." He explained. She smiled.

"Sebastian." She whispered, letting the name roll off her tongue.

"And secondly, I want you to run away with me." He added. She stared at him blankly.

"What do you mean exactly?" she asked.

"Kierrai, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" he questioned. She gasped, a million thoughts running through her head.

"Maker, did he just? Am I ready for marriage? I am a Theirin, would marrying him be below me?" she wondered. She blinked at the last thought, realizing that she didn't actually care whether or not they were of the same rank. She loved him, and he loved her, and she knew that she would stand at his side forever, regardless of what anyone else thought. She felt herself nodding enthusiastically.

"Yes. Yes, I will marry you." She agreed. The look of anxiety fled from his face as a grin crossed his lips. That was when he surprised her even further by pulling out a ring and sliding it on her finger. She stared at it, awed by its simple beauty. The band was gold, with delicate curves and loops that all met at a beautiful diamond in the center. The round stone was surrounded by a series of smaller diamonds that caught the firelight, causing them to shine brilliantly. She lifted her brown eyes to look into his blue ones and threw her arms around his neck. They kissed tenderly, and when they pulled apart she looked at the ring again.

"Sebastian, are we really going to run away together?" she whispered. He nodded.

"We are, love. If you wish, I will meet you at noon tomorrow at The Broken Arrow and we will leave this place and make our own lives together." He suggested. She beamed at him.

"Yes. I will see you at noon, my love." She answered. They kissed again and went their separate ways. Kierrai prepared a bag that had her clothes and some money in it, not knowing how long they would be on the road. She crawled into her bed, feeling as though the events of the night were completely surreal.

She arrived at The Broken Arrow shortly before noon, eager to run away with her love and begin their lives together. She sat at their usual table and waited. Noon came and went, and Sebastian still didn't show. She wasn't worried, he was often late. An hour passed, then two, then three, each of them spent with Kierrai looking up eagerly whenever someone walked through the door. Day turned to night, and still Sebastian wasn't there. Fear gnawed at her heart. She stood and began to ask if anyone had seen him, worried that he had been hurt in some way. Following her instincts, she left the tavern and went to some of their favorite haunts, asking everyone she knew if they had seen him. Nobody knew, and when she heard the bells announcing the arrival of midnight, she returned to the tavern to wait.

Days went by, and each one brought her back to that tavern, never giving up hope that her love would come back to take her away from her life. Days turned into weeks, and soon an entire month had gone by. She sat at their table, staring longingly at the ring he had put on her finger. The barkeep that had been the reason for their introduction walked over to her with a deep sigh. She looked up at him, daring him to speak. His small eyes looked at her with pity as he set a glass of whiskey in front of her.

"What is it?" she asked irritably.

"'e's no' comin' back, lass. 'E's left you." The large man pointed out. She knew what he said was true. She knew it in her heart, but she had denied it stubbornly for all this time. Hearing another person say it out loud finally drove the truth home for her. She looked into the man's eyes as her own started to fill with tears. Her lip trembled pathetically before she let out an anguished wail and threw her head into her hands. She sobbed, loudly and painfully for all to see. The barkeep awkwardly touched her shoulder, unsure of how to comfort her. Hours passed, but her tears didn't cease. She couldn't get those piercing blue eyes out of her mind, and every time she thought of them it was like another dagger to the heart.

When the tears stopped coming, she slowly sat up, broken. Everyone stopped what they were doing to stare at her, pity in their eyes. She threw back the whiskey that had gone warm in the time that had passed and wiped her mouth. She stood on unsteady feet and left the tavern behind for good.

"Love isn't real." She told herself quietly as she walked back to the mansion. "Real love doesn't exist, not for a girl like you. Others can keep their so-called love. I know the truth of it. It isn't real. Thank you for teaching me that, Sebastian." She clenched her fists, feeling the ring still on her hand. She thought about taking it off, but decided to leave it there as a reminder of her folly. Tomorrow, she would leave Starkhaven, and her mistake, behind.

A/N: And that is the end of that. I told you guys this one would be very short! I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope it gave you all a bit of clarification as to what Kierrai and Sebastian were like before The Other Alternative. Thanks for reading, darlings :)