A/N: Alright, well based this story off of two prompts from the ImagineYourOtp tumblr. One was: Imagine your OTP telling their family about their relationship for the first time. Person A's family doesn't approve of the relationship at all. And the second one was: Imagine your OTP eloping because they can't be together. I figured I liked both of them, so why not combine them.

In the stilling air around him, in this single, unmoving moment, he was breathless.

His heart was still rapid in his chest; his hands were shaking and he swore his legs were going to give out from underneath him soon enough. He couldn't exactly tell if his body was warm or cold but... for the moment, he no longer cared.

Because he could still feel himself smiling, although he wasn't entirely sure if it was still from his nerves or just... uncertainty. He couldn't recall a time when he had last felt like this, as though he was standing on the border between all emotions- leaving him completely unsure of how to feel.

But every inch of uncertainty melted away at the sound of her footsteps crunching in the sand behind him. He stepped back before he partly turned to face her and almost immediately, he was greeted with a smile.

And it was that knocked breathless, gasping for air smile once more and had he been any more unbalanced with his stance, he would've been knocked to the ground.

Fingers reached out for his own and he gladly took them before he pulled her in against his chest. It felt too long since he last tangled his fingers in the loose material of her tunic, since he last felt her fill the space in his arms. He remembered doing such a thing just hours before... and yet, it felt different this time.

He could hear her laughing quietly to herself as her fingers curled against the back of his shoulders, pulling him down to her. He was pretty certain she was laughing out of the pure absurdity they just accomplished and he couldn't help but to join her.

"Tell me something, Stefan." she whispered as she kept her head against his chest. "Is this the love you deserve?"

"This is the love I've long since dreamed of and desired."

He felt the air in his chest turn stale as he watched her slowly make her way back towards him. The corridor felt a hundred times longer now as he awaited her return and watching her from this distance, it felt like she wasn't getting any closer to him; like she was just walking in place. And if he didn't think his legs would just break underneath the pressure, he would've ran towards her just to cut the time in half; just to get to her sooner, for both their sakes.

He wasn't even aware his hands had been trembling until he used them to push himself away from the table behind him- even such a simple action like that felt like a struggle to accomplish. He had been standing for what felt like hours and yet it still felt like his balance was ready to give out at any moment.

And it all had nothing to do with him.

If she was feeling the same crushing weight that he was… she didn't show it. And for that, he wanted to curse himself for not being as strong as she was in this moment. She had every right to feel crushed, to want to break down and scream at the world, but she wasn't. Goddess knows she deserved every bit of it, but she wouldn't take it.

Instead, she drew in a deep breath and smiled when her eyes caught on to his own.

But it wasn't that knocked breathless, gasping for air smile she had that could knock a regiment of soldiers to the floor. It was tragic, yet honest. And it killed him a little more.

"If we leave now, we should be able to make it back to Grann before dark." she spoke as she paused just long enough for him to get his footing before she continued on down the rest of the corridor behind him.

She wasn't ignoring the situation for herself; she was doing it for him.

His legs still felt numb but he forced himself to follow after her, wondering mostly how she was able to keep with her steady, broad gait. She still kept her head high and carried that air of authority to her… Her strength outweighed perhaps all of Begnion itself right now.

He could only hope his own imitation was as plausible as hers as he eventually caught his own footing and moved to walk at her side. Again, the corridor felt like it was stretching further and further in front of them, offering no change of leaving this place. But there was an exit and she did find it. How she could find an exit out of this expansive mansion was beyond him but… she knew it better than he did. After all, this was her home.

The Begnion air outside was a bit chilling given the afternoon hour and while he used to find it almost relaxing compared to the desert sun... it felt irritating against his skin now. But she continued onward, leading the way past the guards posted outside and down to where they had tied their mounts off earlier. Her Pegasus snorted briefly at her return, but upon noticing that something was wrong with its rider, its wings dropped slightly against its side.

"Don't give me that face." she whispered as one hand moved to stroke the snout of the winged mount. "Just take us home."

It felt like it killed him to know that there was little else he could do to comfort her.

Instead, they both merely pulled themselves into the empty saddles and left the looming mansion behind them.

The ride was mostly made in silence and he partly feared that it would remain as such until they reached the desert. He didn't have his thoughts all together but he was still willing to speak... he just had to find his voice somewhere. The leather reigns felt stiff and coarse in his hands and he may have wrapped them too tightly around his knuckles once or twice.

Maybe they had traveled for a few minutes or maybe a couple of hours, but she did pull them aside to let their mounts get a drink or two from the nearby spring. Her hands patted lightly against the Pegasus' side before she stepped away from the water's edge, eventually making her way over to where he stood off a bit more distant.

"I can only assume there were no changes." he started, perhaps wishing he could've found a better breaker for the silence, but glad he could speak regardless.

She drew in another breath and let her eyes search out for an answer in his before she gave a light shake of her head. "No." she remained still for a few seconds before a somewhat broken and forced chuckle escaped her. "They refuse to move from their positions while I refuse to move from mine. We're caught at an absolute standstill that neither sides can understand." again she paused, and when she returned this time, he saw a bit of color return to her eyes. "But… I won't wait any longer. They've made their point known; I can't change that, but I can control what I'm doing- whether they accept that or not."

There was that strength showing its face again, changing and adding some hope to the rather desolate situation they had unknowingly gotten themselves tangled in.

"... Do you want to continue onward then?" he questioned.

"Yes."

Her answer was clean and quick to answer.

And he almost found himself hesitating underneath her newly founded assertiveness. Perhaps it had been his reaction to her answer or his expression overall, because her strength seemed to falter slightly.

"I just... I don't want to ruin..."

Fingers reached for his own and she took his hand between the two of hers, gently squeezing it in her hold. "This is what I want. While they don't seem to see that, it is merely unfortunate for them. My family has always been there to run Begnion; sometimes they brag that they've been here from the very beginning. I followed in the footsteps of my mother and her mother before her, and I have surpassed the both of them; I've been the only one in this family to hold the position of the Holy Guard Commander... They can hold that memory for however long they need, but they cannot take this away from me. They cannot take you away from me. I said I would protect you whenever I could and what they said in there... I couldn't protect you from. But you held your ground and you refused to let them get to you."

He moved to cup his hand over hers and felt the way her fingers were trembling now. "... I did so for your sake." he started. "You needed my strength just as much as I needed yours. And regardless of what they believed, I felt like they were attacking you and... I couldn't let that happen." he moved to brush his fingers through her loose strands and tucked them behind one ear. "We accept the love we think we deserve."

It only took a few seconds before that smile returned to her.

"What do we do now? I'm not entirely sure if that big ceremony we had planned before will work." she started.

"Well... I was never really one for a large crowd." he remarked. "We can keep it to just the two of us- if you want, of course."

Her brief pause put him on the edge before she seemed to laugh quietly to herself. "I want this, I want us... but I'm going to have to add in three more people, if that's alright."

"It's whatever you want."

In the end, there were six of them in total.

While her family had made it known that they weren't pleased with her decision to be involved with a Branded... that didn't mean her entire family agreed with such statement. Apostle Sanaki and Lady Tanith dropped everything they had just to be present at their more, private ceremony. And while the young Apostle seemed to denounce the size, insisting that a much larger celebration would be more fitting... they kept the number at six. Lady Tanith even had time to polish her armor before she served as both a witness and a maid of honor.

He had been able to pull a few strings and gotten a priest on the short notice just the same; they two had worked together inside of the desert colony and the man was more than willing to lead the ceremony.

Despite the lack of notice and proper timing, he had even managed to get his own witness and best man to stand at his side; Zihark had dropped by the colony for a visit the moment they returned and seemed in good spirit over the news. Despite his momentary plans, he was willing to drop them just the same and served as the final standing for the ceremony.

After blessings had been made and vows had been exchanged, it all felt a bit surreal. Just that morning, they had set their sights on speaking with her family, about to break the news of their engagement. But after the devastation and outright refusals... they cut their time short and slipped on the rings. It was rushed and yet, so perfectly timed just the same.

It would seem as though they had both lived their lives for so long, dedicating them to other matters... they had forgotten there was more to it somewhere beyond their routines.

They watched the sun eventually settle down beyond the horizon and seemingly drain the desert land of its light. She laughed when he hoisted her into his arms and carried her all the way back into the city; shouldering open the door to his makeshift home.

Her hand softly pressed against the curve of his jawline as she watched him move from room to room until he finally reached the one tucked away into the far back corner. Long, dark-red drapes served as a door and she smiled at the way the thin material flowed over them as they passed through it.

"I don't suppose it's much of a honeymoon." he started as he lifted her a little higher before he settled her down against the mattress of his bed. "But for such short notice..."

"It's perfect." she interrupted, watching as he moved to take a seat on the edge of the bed. His fingers brushed aside her hair once more before they lingered down against her cheeks and jaw. "Nothing could make this better."

Her hand moved to press against his chest and he wondered if she could feel the rapid pounding of his heart beneath her touch. "This is what we deserve, right?"

"Yes."