Okay, sorry people! I was just feeling a little out of it when I wrote the last chapter. I really love writing, truly! I hope this story does Daine and Numair justice. Thanks to Laurashrub, Whisper, Narm's Britton 44, and Tortall's Resident Wildchild for reviewing the last chapter. And thanks to everbody who reviewed other chapters! Read my stuff in the Diana Wynne Jones section!

Daine woke slowly and flexed her toes, smiling at the scent of her teacher surrounding her, but also slightly confused. When she opened her eyes and saw the back of the couch, she remembered all of the events from the night before, with a sigh. Groaning wordlessly, she sat up and stretched, his blanket sliding off of her. She looked around and saw Numair propped up against the headboard of the bed, reading. He smiled when he saw her looking at him.

"Sleep well, magelet?" he asked softly.

"Well enough," she yawned.

"Are you sure he didn't hurt you?" he questioned.

"Absolutely. I'm fine."

"Then what's that?" he demanded, pointing to a large bruise in the shape of fingers imprinted on her upper arm. He got up and sat behind her. "Do you hurt anywhere else, magelet?"

"A little, on my hip, and my other shoulder. But I'll be fine." She quickly added when his eyes darkened.

"Let's see." He replied, disregarding her last comment. She gingerly slid the thin cotton fabric of her night shirt off of her shoulder. He hissed in sympathy as a mammoth bruise was revealed. "When did you get this?" he asked, his voice thick with anger.

Daine shrugged. "It must have been when he dropped me," she answered thoughtfully.

Numair exhaled, attempting to calm his temper. "Well, let's see your hip, then."

"Honestly, Numair, I'll be okay."

"I want to make sure. Let's see, magelet."

She got up on her knees and pulled the top of her night breeches down slightly, and her shirt up. Another huge bruise was revealed. This one covered her entire hip, and Numair soon realized that he was staring at her hip. Despite the bruise, the skin surrounding it was still soft and supple, and he realized that she looked quite vulnerable as she was, her shirt pulled off her shoulder, and her hip bare. Looking up, he saw that her face was flushed red. "Try to be more careful from now on, magelet. I can't have you breaking yourself all over the place." He said, trying to ease some of the unbearable tension that had built up in the room.

It worked. She smiled and replied in the same bantering tone, "Well, if I didn't break myself, what, may I ask, would keep you on your toes?"

"Magelet, this is putting a strain on me. It's depriving me of my beauty sleep!" Numair groaned, rubbing his face.

"Well, ex-cuse me, Master Mage. I can't help it if you're the most obsessively protective person ever to walk to the planet." She teased.

"You wound me, magelet," he howled, playing dead.

She giggled and shoved him. "I'm going to my room to get some clothes." And with that, she left.

Numair moaned once she was gone. What was he doing? There was no way that he was going to be able to have her in his room for the rest of the trip. She was just too tempting.

As Daine entered her room, she realized in horror that she'd left Kitten and Zek alone all night. "Kit? Zek?" she asked franticly. She nearly died from relief when Zek asked. "Where were you?" jumping on her head from the bureau, and Kitten stirred from the bed, scolding her in a series of whistles and cheeps and trills.

"I'm sorry, but someone attacked me in the gardens, and Numair made me stay the night in his rooms." She said apologetically as she drew some clothes from a chest, an elegant but simple blue dress that, while it had a lower neckline than Daine would have liked, set off the rest of her figure nicely and went well with the sapphire drops from Numair. Donning it, she stretched out a hand to Zek and Kittin, saying, "Come on, Numair's waiting."

When they returned, Numair was dressed, and while he seemed slightly distant, he greeted her with a smile. Daine sighed, and image of him hugging her flashing across her eyes.

Numair resolved to be more controlled from now on, and managed to avoid hugging her or even touching her for the rest of the morning, sighing in frustration when she wasn't looking at not being able to treat her like he would a woman he was allowed to court.

As they entered the great hall for lunch with the emperor's court, Daine and Numair unknowingly both flinched as the emperor looked down at the Tortallan delegation, and most importantly at Daine, with the air of a snake about to strike.

Well, I did the best I could. Review!