Despite his reluctance to bridge the distance without confirmation that she was comfortable with it, Dory wasted no time before moving to crouch down before her. "Hey, hey," he murmured softly, taking her hands in his. "Breathe. It's going to be okay." It was the singlemost promise he could make her right now, for whatever she chose he would shelter her to the best of his ability.

"I'm here for whatever you want to do, okay? Whether it's keeping th- it or not, I'm here. We'll get married, you won't be destitute. I'd never let that happen to you." A second promise, this one more easily broken than the first. Eloping would be heavily frowned upon in his family — particularly by Ros — but Dory could hardly leave her in the lurch. Not when it was his fault that she was in this predicament in the first place.

Sighing, he sat back on his heels. The second complication to that promise was Winnie. Ultimately, Dory knew she would understand his nneed to stand by Maple, but the loss of their relationship would ache. "I have a friend who's a midwife, she can discreetly help with the potion too if need be." Winnie wouldn't be thrilled to do it, he knew. He hadn't ever asked for this kind of help, though, so surely she wouldn't deny him if that's what Maple preferred. "She wouldn't even need to know it was for you."

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