Bonds were tentative. You'd only been on Caladan a month, and you still couldn't tell if Paul was furious to have you there. You could only assume, since his friend Duncan had told you of an argument between Paul and his mother, Lady Jessica. Paul did not want to marry a stranger. You were both only fifteen, still.

So you tried to be a little less than a stranger. You attended his sparring sessions with Gurney, went on walks around the grounds, and brought him traditional trinkets from your world. Anything to soften the circumstances and endear him to you at least a little bit.

The fruits of your labor came late one night. You couldn't sleep, unused to the constant rainy storms of Caladan. The creaking of your bedroom door alerted you, and Paul crept in. He was trembling slightly.

"May I?" he asked, still formal and cold.