(This one was a little tough, so it's short, but I hope it's still okay. It's in present-tense for some reason.)

The early mornings are the worst, Dairine finds, as she wakes up at dawn. When the sun peaks through the window and into her eyes, it's often a reminder that feels light a bright slap. Even the comfort of knowing the sun is still there is never enough to ease the pain, what was lost instead of what could have been lost.

He had driven her absolutely insane. His arrogance, his haughtiness, his chilly temper...

And yet, his life wasn't good. He was a hunted man. He had lost so much. His people hated him, resented him, despised him. It was no small wonder that he had built up a thick skin.

Dairine hates using the past-tense. It makes her heartsick. But it's been months and there has been no sign at all, nothing.

They hadn't been friends ... at least not quite. There was respect there, affection, trust. Near...the end ... there was something blooming into something close to friendship. Which makes it all the more unfair.

Her hand falls to her necklace, the stone cold within her palm. She closes her eyes.

She wishes she could have asked him. Just once.