Lucina continued to pout, rather unbecoming of herself but she wasn't humored by Adrian for the moment. If there was anything that could send Lucina over the edge it was making mistakes in front of others. "I'll live." She said sternly as she took her finger out from Adrian's hand and walked back to the kitchen table where she began to slice potatoes, pointedly ignoring Adrian's eyes.

"Fine, I'll leave ye t' it then," Adrian said softly before going back to the eggs upon the stove.

Lucina sighed pathetically as she finished the potatoes, the rest of her fingers still intact. "Adrian." Lucina said softly as she stood from the chair and walked over to her fiancee, resting a hand on her arm. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have acted like that." She apologized with her face a brilliant red at having to admit her mistake. But the idea of Adrian hurting-and her being the cause-was causing the guilt to boil over.

Putting the potatoes into a pan with some butter, Adrian offered a warm smile as he placed a tender kiss upon Lucina's lips, "Don' worry, love. Ye don' need t' apologize. Ye were hurtin' 'n' I should know by now tha' when yer hurt 'n' make mistakes, ye get snippy 'n' don' like t' be caught. It's alrigh', love, I'm no' angry," Adrian murmured against her lips between kisses before stirring the eggs and potatoes.

"Really?" Lucina asked hopefully as she wound her arms around Adrian's waist and buried herself under his arm. "Thank you, Adrian." She said softly as she rested her face in the crook of his neck. "I'm trying to be better about my temper." She urged as she looked up at him, giving his neck a quick peck.

"I know ye are, 'n' yer improvin'," Adrian said with a warm smile as he captured her lips with a long, tender kiss, "I love ye Lu."

"I love you too." Lucina smiled against his lips before giving him another kiss and walking away from the stove. After cleaning up the small mess she'd made from the potatoes, Lucina set the table with plates, silverware, and glasses. "Juice?" Lucina offered as she hovered over the icebox and tried to determine whether or not juice or milk for breakfast.

"Juice," Adrian confirmed before bringing the pan of eggs over to the table and serving them. Placing the empty pan in the sink, Adrian tossed some salt into the potato pan and let them sit for a bit longer before putting them onto each plate as well.

"Mum, Lor! Breafast is ready!" Adrian called before placing the empty pan into the sink and sitting at his usual place at the table.

Lucina nodded despite knowing Adrian couldn't see her as she pulled the juice from the icebox and poured three glasses, setting them on the table as she did so. After putting the jug of juice near the edge of the table Lucina gave Adrian a quick glance and let the breath leave her lungs in the love-stricken way it did when she looked at him so. She tried to maintain her compose and regulate her breathing as she settled into a chair and began scooping some eggs and potatoes on her plate.

Serving himself some breakfast as well as his sister and mother, Adrian smiled as he looked over at Lucina. When his mother and sister were seated, Adrian reached across the table and took Lucina's hand in is. Linking their fingers, Adrian placed a tender kiss upon her hand before beginning to eat his breakfast.

Lucina couldn't help but smile as Adrian's lips touched her hand and began to happily eat her breakfast, feeling the small tantrum earlier float farther away in irrelevancy. "Good morning." Lucina said politely to Adrian's mother, a bit of excitement running through her as she was her future mother-in-law.

"Good mornin' Lucina, did ye sleep well?" Shinorah said with a warm smile at Lucina.

"Mum said we can go to the ball," Lori said wit a grin as she ate her breakfast.

"Perfect," Adrian said with a warm smile, "D' ye 'ave an escort 'r are ye goin' t' be Mum's?"

"Johnny asked t' be me escort," Lori said with a blush as she shoved her breakfast into her mouth.

"Johnny? Th' lit'le red-head tha' wanted t' dance with Lucina a' th' festival?"

"Aye," Lori said with a frown, "Th' very same. He's stopping by later t' get me answer."

"The boy from the festival?" Lucina asked before her brain put together the image of the red haired boy. "Oh, he seemed sweet. Not to mention cute." She offered. "I think you should give him a chance." She said before going back to her breakfast, nervous about Lori's reaction to her suggestion.

Lori frowned as she looked at Lucina, "I ne'er said I was goin' t' reject 'im. 'n' ye 'ave no business tellin' me wha' I should do."

"Lori.." Shinorah warned softly.

"I mean, thank you. Yes, I shall," Lori said through gritted teeth.

Lucina felt her temper rise as she set down her fork and glared across the table at Lori. "Then reject him for all I care. You really should be grateful anyone asked you in the first place with that attitude." Lucina hissed as she found herself standing. Turning her back on the family and her half-eaten plate of food Lucina strode out of the house where-once outfront-she began kicking at the dirt. It wasn't like her to walk away when someone confronted her so but she knew that the many other things she wanted to say would've been offensive to both Adrian and his mother.

"Well she shouldn't be tellin' me t' give 'im a chance! It's no' 'er business!" Lori fumed before standing from the table and storming out the back door, heading off towards the meadow between town and the house.

"Who will ye go after this time?" Shinorah asked softly as she continued to eat her breakfast.

"Neither," Adrian said firmly as he continued to eat his breakfast, "Lucina didn't need t' add th' comment t' give him a chance 'n' Lori should've handled it a tad bet'er. They both 'ave some growin' up t' do it seems."

Lucina sighed as she wandered into the barn and sat on a bench outside one of the stables. "Adrian wants me to make friends with his sister and when I try I get yelled at. Glad to see she's putting forth effort to." Lucina hissed sarcasitcally and earning a small neigh from the horse in the stall next to her. "I can't believe how I get treated here." Lucina said, turning to the horse. "I just want things to go smoothly but oh, that'd be too much to ask for wouldn't it? Maybe Adrian would be better off with someone Lori liked...Of course he'd be angry with me for saying so. Hell, he's probably angry with me now. Oh my God, I'm talking to a horse." Lucina said before burying her face in her hands.

"Adrian, don' ye think yer bein' a bit too harsh on th' poor girls? They really are tryin'.." Shinorah said between bites of her breakfast.

"Perhaps, bu' I'm bein' even with 'em. Now neither o' 'em can argue abou' who I ran after 'n' make it seem like their more important than the other, aye?"

"Aye.." Shinorah admitted reluctantly. He may have had a point, but she certainly didn't agree with it.

Standing up, Lucina turned to face the horse she'd been in fact talking to and gave it a gentle pet on the nose. "Now I look like a fool and I have to walk back in there to apologize." She sighed as the horse rubbed his face into her palm. "I always look like such a dunce in front of his family. I don't mean to, I really don't. I meant well when I suggested Lori take that boy to the ball. I thought it would help if I made conversation with her. Granted I didn't have to talk back when she gave me her attitude but I guess that's why I was cast out of heaven." Lucina sighed in her monoluge before looking up at the horse, dropping her hands to her side. "Here goes nothing."

Walking back into the house Lucina took a deep breath before walking, slightly awkwardly, into the kitchen and sat back down at the table keeping eye contact with Shinorah. "I'm so sorry." Lucina said as she tugged at her clothes, visibly uncomfortable. " I shouldn't have lost my temper on Lori, I meant no disrespect to you and I'll work to keep my temper under control." She finished softly as she wrung her hands together, ready for a lecture from Shinorah or Adrian.

"Ye needn't apologize, dearie," Shinorah said with a small smile, "Yer doin' yer best."

"Lucina, let's jus' drop it fer now, love. We'll talk la'er, alrigh'?" Adrian said with a smile as he reached under the table and took Lucina's hand into his. "Finish yer breakfast before it gets colder. Warm it up on th' fire if it's too cold."

"Thank you." Lucina smiled up at Lucina though her heart dropped just a bit at Adrian's suggestion of talking later. She hated looking like an ignorant, hot-head but in those few sarcastic moments Lucina would now be sentenced to one of her worst fears. Disappointing her future husband.

Giving a quick smile to Adrian, Lucina returned to her breakfast which had turned a bit cold but she didn't bother to fix it. It all tasted the same in her foul mood anyways.

Making her way to the town, Lori started looking around for Johnny, wanting to tell him the good news about the Ball.

--

"Lu, how would you like to go away for the weekend on a small trip?" Adrian asked with a warm smile as he looked over at Lucina.

Johnny was sitting at the fountain with a couple of friends with their quarters in hand as they aimed for a cup that was a few feet away. "Oi, ye aren' gonna ge' i' from tha' far away!" One of Johnny's friends warned him as he stood up and took a few steps backwards.

"Jus' watch." He laughed with a wink, he'd been practicing. Aiming the quarter, Johnny shot it into the air and after flipping over a few times it landed with a satisfying clink into the cup.

The whole crew broke into laughter as a couple high fived Johnny. "I reckon ye jus' set a record." The previously doubtful friend said. "Bu' it was all luck." He claimed.

~~~

Lucina tilted her head in confusion as she looked over at Adrian. "A trip? To where?" She asked.

"I think he could do i' again," Lori said with a smirk as she walked over to the group of boys. "I highly doub' it was jus' luck," Lori encouraged Johnny with a wink.

--

"They rent out cabins near th' base o' th' mountains fer travelers t' stay in while they view th' mountains 'n' th' springs around 'em. I though' ye might like t' see th' springs 'n' th' mountains," Adrian explained with a smile, "Wha' d' ye say?"

"Lori!" Johnny said quickly, his voice raising a bit from surprise and resulting in a few snickers behind him. Turning around to face his boys, Johnny whipped a quarter at the blond one who had doubted him earlier and landed the quarter between his eyes. The blond boy, stunned by the hit, leaned backwards and found himself in the water of the fountain which sent all of Johnny's friends into a louder uproar of laughter.

Johnny wasn't able to dull the smile on his lips as he turned back to face Lori. "Wha' are ye doin' in town?" He asked curiously as he wrang his hands together. Surely she wasn't about to reject his invitation to the ball in front of his friends...right?

~~~

"That sounds lovely." Lucina perked up instantly at the idea. "But will Shinorah and Lori be okay taking care of the farm by themselves on the weekend?" She asked, shocking herself as she looked over at Adrian's mom. She couldn't remember the last time she'd though about someone else's wellbeing when she wanted something.