I'm Related.

Chapter 1

A Beginning and a Plan

"Magelet?" called the greatest mage in the northern lands. He had just knocked on her door and there was no answer, he had expected to see her at dinner. 'She really shouldn't skip it,' he thought, 'she's running herself ragged.' Conveniently forgetting that he constantly skipped meals in pondering a new book or working some magic or another.

He walked in carrying a tray laden with cheese, bread and the only meat Daine would eat nowadays, fish. He looked around and there she was, sleeping calmly on her back, still in her breeches and shirt. Numair smiled and placed the tray on her table, going to her.

He bent down and brushed her hair out of her beautiful face, kissing her gently on the lips. He pulled up the covers around her and turned to leave his fiancée behind.

"Mmm," Daine groaned tiredly. Numair turned back to her, looking at her eyes flutter and her lips move made him feel so happy, just watching the beautiful girl that he could call his own…

"Go back to sleep, Sweet," he told her.

"Sorry I missed dinner," she murmured

"Don't worry about it, I brought you some food for later," he replied

"Don't go Numair," she said. "Stay a little while."

"Okay, but you should sleep, I assume that you met a few injured friends after helping the Rider's today," he said.

"Squirrel and a raccoon," she told him as he sat on the foot of the bed. "But it's not like I could refuse to help them."

"I know Sweet, it's just that you wear yourself out and I worry about you, I love you Magelet," he said. He noticed Daine had fallen back to sleep, he watched her for a moment before getting up and moving to the door.

"G' night, Magelet," he whispered.

"Numair, I love you too, I'm so glad we're getting married," Daine said before falling into a deep sleep. Numair closed the door with a big smile on his face and made his way to his study. There was a spell in need of translating on his desk.

***Some-Where-Else-At-That-Very-Moment***

The small mirror clouded over, the woman threw it to the ground in disgust.

"How DARE he!" she screeched like a wild cat. "He loved me, he called ME 'sweet' and other stupid little pet names, he visited MY chambers, he never asked me to be his wife! What does that bastard have that I don't!" she raged to the empty room about her defeat. "I took care of that other wench, what was her name? Valerie, Vanessa, No Varice. That was easy, Ozorne feel for everything instantly, but how was I to know he would run to Tortall and not come home to Tyra where I was waiting for him with open arms?"

The woman was a tall, shapely blonde, with piercing blue eyes and she was gorgeous. Any man would have fallen in love with her beauty, and if they didn't? Her gift could help with that, of course.

Numair had crossed her path when both of them were young and foolish. He thought she was beautiful, she thought he was another stupid man after her beauty and could be easily manipulated to her will. Another man, only needed to flatter her and buy her jewels and perform her every whim and wish. He proved harder then she thought, but how?

She remembered when they first met, the foolish mage asked to dance with her, the beautiful woman sat down, caught up in her own memory…

***Flash Back***

"Would you care to dance Lady…? "

"Mona of Milieu," came the wispy reply from a young Mona. That was how it always started, she thought, bored. She rose, taking the offered hand of 16 year old Arram Draper. Arram was a handsome tall boy who was finally growing into his awkward body. He wore mostly black, his hair was short and smoothed and shaped into it's current stylish state with the aid of various hair lotions.

He whirled the beautiful blonde girl around the dance floor, "My name is Arram Draper," he said. "I'm studying at the University."

"Oh that's lovely, are you a mage?" she wanted to find out what she could from him to see if he might make a good admirer. Rich was always good, a mage was more of a challenge. She fluttered her eyes at him, an illusion of a charmed girl. He fell for it.

"I am, in fact, I recently received my brown robe. You have lovely eyes Mona," he said.

She laughed flirtatiously at the eye comment, a brown robe? She thought and at such a young age, excellent…

"Master Draper," she said quietly "are you flirting with me?"

His eyes widened a little at the bold statement and his charming smile faltered slightly, but he recovered quickly.

"Do you like it?" he asked, charmingly, with a shy smile. Arram liked this girl, but could he convince such a beauty to stay with him for the night or maybe for several nights…

Got him, she smiled, she sent out a little taste of her gift, the spell would make him want her more than anything. "I never said stop…" she replied. She almost felt sorry for him, she'd wring him dry.

"Arram?" called an older looking woman, "Come here dear!" Arram turned to the woman and smiled.

He bowed and promised to return to her in a moment, her spell only partly in place. She was intrigued by his sudden departure so she followed his head floating through the crowd where he stopped, and that was when she met the girl who would ruin everything…

***Flash Forward***

"Her," she squeaked "That girl will pay first, then the traitorous snake Arram will be mine." She rose from her lounge, she needed her old spell book and maybe a weather spell; a flood might just do the trick. She stilled lived in Tyra, didn't she? The girl spoiled her treasure, so she would spoil her life. You never messed with Mona and got away with it.

Love. Love destroyed her hold on men and he loved her more than anyone at the time.

He could be won over again, she'd do it or she'd die trying.