I was lying on my bed, doing nothing but dreaming about my favorite books, when a storyline came to my mind, and I decided to write it down. At first it was meant to be funny, but it grew more and more serious as i kept writing... Tell me what you think about it.

1- What a proposal…

She was still in class, but not for long, she said herself. This would not last very longer, she was thinking. Regin's look as been on her the whole morning, and she could nearly feel her back burning under so much hatred. Once glance through the window told her that the sun had no intention of letting its place to clouds or rain.

Good. I could maybe pass by the spring before making it to the High Lord's residence.

As she told herself that, the bell rungs, announcing the end of her class' day. In order to avoid Regin's gaze, she hurried up out of the room, just to stop with a jolt. A tall figure was standing, his black robes dissuading anyone to approach too close.

After having token a hold on herself, she hastily bowed and began asking:

"High Lord, why –"

"I've come to pick you up." He answered immediately. Something in his face felt wrong, but she couldn't have said what.

She was starring openly at him, and as he came closer, she suddenly understood what was so strange, except the situation in itself: the High Lord was – well, not exactly smiling, but his face looked like one of someone thinking of a great joke. He looked happy.

He was now very close to her. He led down and whispered to her ear, with a malicious voice:

"At three, we run! One… two…"

"What? Wait a sec -"

"Three! RUN!"

He grabbed her hand and began running, pulling Sonea behind him. As they went through the University and then the garden, Sonea noted the astonishment and the chock on the faces of the people they crossed.

I surely have the same feelings on my face.

Suddenly, she realized that they were not headed towards the High Lord's residence, as she believed they were, but towards the forest. When they reached the spring, the High Lord stopped, allowing Sonea to breathe.

"High Lord, I… why are we here?" she eventually asked.

"Please, Sonea, do you see any of these over conservative Magicians here, busy being sticklers for etiquette and with absolutely no sense of humor?"

Well, you're supposed to be one, she thought – but was not suicidal enough to say it. True, the High Lord did not seem angry, just a bit annoyed, but she thought better not to try him. Even more when she did not understand what the hell was happening.

"Come on, it is a beautiful day, there is none but you and me here. You call me Akkarin, and I call you Sonea, ok?" He said then.

You always call me Sonea, she thought, "though not with such a cheerful tone", but once again, shut her thought up and answered with a simple "Ok." And after a moment, she resumed:

"Will you please answer my question now? Why are we here?"

The High Lord began mumbling: "Your question, yes, you question, what was mine already?"

Sonea looked at him, refusing to believe that it was the same High Lord she knew and saw every day who was standing before her, mumbling to himself and wringing his hands as if too stressed to speak – or to look at her face, for that matter.

"High – Akkarin?" she asked again.

His eyes slapped to hers: "Sonea." His voice was very low and a bit out of control. He was starring at her, his breathing hard. His eyes were bright, as if he were very happy – or totally delirious.

Sonea was feeling more and more ill-at-tease before this man who was looking at her as if she were a prey, a treasure or a sweet – she couldn't decide which. All three, maybe. Whichever it was, it wasn't a very nice feeling.

Recalling what he was mumbling about, she asked:

"Is there something you wanted to know, High – Akkarin?"

"Yes! Yes there is! What was…? Oh, yeah!" He kneeled down and took her hand, his eyes really bright as he asked "Will you marry me?"

Sonea's eyes were round in shocked as she gasped, before finding herself breathless. The man who was supposed to be the High Lord went on:

"I know you think I've done some very bad things – and you're right, but do not think about that, ok? It doesn't really matter, what I've done, what you're done – the only things that matters is who we are and what we are, and what I am is absolutely crazy about you, my dear. Oh, I know, we could marry now, just here, none will know we're married, if you preferred it to be so. Oh, but no, it's no good, I've only got black robes, and I can't possibly marry you in black, right?"

Sonea used this pause in his babbling to remember how to speak.

"High Lord –" she began.

"Akkarin, I told you, not High Lord! Not here, when we're alone!" he snapped at her. He stood and cupped his hands around her face. "Will you not answer me?" he looked utterly lost. Though he was the man she was supposed to be the most afraid of, a black magician who supposedly killed many slums dwellers, she couldn't help but being a little worried about him.

Then she noticed how warm were his hands, and began suspecting something very incredible, but which could explain all this incredible nonsense. She drew a hand toward his forehead to confirm her thoughts.

Akkarin obviously mistook her intention. He took the hand she was rising toward him, drew it to his lips and kissed her in the palms.

"What are you-? High – Akkarin, wait!" she gasped.

"No. I will definitely not wait any longer." He pulled her against his chest, led down and kissed her.

It was a devouring, impatient, almost brutal kiss.

Even his kissing doesn't correspond Akkarin's character, Sonea thought, before breaking the kiss.

"I knew it! You are burning! Please, Akkarin, could you look at me?" Useless request if there is, since Akkarin couldn't help but looking at her, his eyes blinking as if in raptures over her.

"Either you have a fever, which would be quite unusual for a Magician, or you've taken drugs." She said, with a disapproving tone.

"Drugs? Why would I take drugs?" His voice was muffled, obviously annoyed, and he was looking away.

"So it's drugs." Sonea conclude. She shook her head. "Please, please, Akkarin, could you stay here while I go looking for help? I'll bring Lorlen back; he'll know what to do. I'll be right there."

If she was trying to reassure him, it wasn't working.

"Lorlen? So it's Lorlen? He snapped at her. "He is the reason why you wouldn't say 'yes'. I see how it is. The bastard! If I caught him…"

"No!" denied Sonea, indignant at the thought. He is jealous of Lorlen? "He's got nothing to do with that." She took a few paces away from him.

"So there is something! Please tell me, my dear, I swear, I'll correct myself, you just need to tell me what's wrong."

"Wait, you can't except me to answer such a proposal right away! Normally you're supposed to tell me to sleep on it, at least 'till morning!

"Morning? But it's be too late on the morning!" he suddenly shut up, as if he said too much.

Sonea grew suspicious.

"Too late for what?" As Akkarin didn't answer, she went on: "Listen, Akkarin, if tomorrow morning, when you're not under drugs effect anymore, you come asking me the same, you will definitely have your answer. But I will not respond you while you're under drugs effect. Do you understand?"

"Yes… yes. On the morning. Yes. OK." Although he still looked a bit lost, he did seem to have regained his calm.

"So you are going to stay here and keep quiet until I come back with some help. Is that ok?" she was speaking to him as to a little child.

But this time again, it didn't work out. At once, he seemed to recover his strength, not looking anything like a child anymore. As she moved away from him, he grabbed his wrist and once again, pulled her against him. Sonea heard him moan a "No way!" and suddenly, his lips were moving against hers, kissing her again and again. This kiss wasn't like the one before: it was as full of desire, as demanding, but also firmer, more in control, more… Akkarin-like. Without exactly knowing why, Sonea felt herself very pleased by that. Their tongue met, and she lost every intention she could have had of breaking this kiss.

That was until she saw a movement at the edge of her sight, followed by a face she knew all too well, frozen in shock.

She stepped away from the High Lord, both of them radiant and breathless, with somewhat of embarrassment on Sonea's face. She repeated:

"Tomorrow morning, if you ask again, you'll have your answer. But by now, let's go back to the residence."

"You're not going to find Lorlen, or anyone else, are you?" Akkarin asked, suspicious. "I won't let anyone stand between us!"

"I'm not, Akkarin, I promise I'm not. Now, let's go."

Hope you enjoyed! I have two more chapters ready, I'll post them during the week.

By the way, I'm French and this is my first fanfic, so if you noticed any mistake in my writing, or my phrasing, or if you have any advice to make it better, please tell me. I'll correct it, my fanfics will be better and it will help me to improve my english. Thanks for your reading =)