Back with another chapter! First part is in Lando's POV. Yay!

Chapter 10:

Interlude:

Lando went straight up to his loft as soon as his exam was over. He couldn't believe Ranaya had let him proclaim his love to her and even let him kiss her. When she had known she was leaving him. It was a cruel trick to play.

Just thinking of Ranaya brought a sharp pain in Lando's chest. The pain had started not long after he got in line to be examined.

It gradually started getting sharper and sharper until it made Lando bend double with agony. It was all he could do not to cry out.

He had heard of these things, but never believed it could happen to him. The pains told him otherwise. He was slowly dying, he could feel it. And it was all because he fell in love with someone he shouldn't.

He had been warned before he set out to live among the humans by his father Toraei. Toraei had doomed Lando that if he had ever fallen in love with a human he should expect consequences, pain, and death. He didn't think his was talking about Princesses, only peasants. Being in love with a princess had to be a whole lot worse indeed.

Lando knew he was doomed either way. Ranaya truly loving him or not, he would still be heartbroken when she left and would most likely die. At least if she loved him as much as he loved her. He could die a happy elf.

He should have known better then think a princess could love someone like him. He wasn't a prince or even a human just plain Landrian. Sure he had done raids in Zachavi; even helped some of his fellow elves who were enslaved escape their masters. He was considered one of the greatest warriors among his people, but a Prince no.

Lando frowned as it became dark in the barn, thus he began to glow. He yanked the fake ears from his pointed ones and placed them on a trunk beside his bed of hay. He wrapped a blanket around his self and tried to wield the pain to go away from his chest. He wished for his cloak which Ranaya still had.

It was then he heard the stable doors creak upon and shut and saw a candle. Then a familiar face peering up into the loft.

Ranaya could see Lando's illuminated shadow as she climbed the ladder to the loft. He was sitting in the hay with his face turned away from her. He held a blanket close to his self as if trying to block the glow coming off his skin.

"I brought you your cloak," she said softly, sitting down on her knees beside Lando. The candle flickered wildly as she placed it on the ground beside her.

He looked toward her before looking down. "Thank you, your highness."

Ranaya mouth opened in shock at his words as she placed the cloak beside him. He had never used formal names with her. She had always been Ranaya to him and nothing else since they had become friends in the wood that time.

Lando grabbed the fake ears beside him and handed them to her, "I believe these are yours."

Ranaya shook her head. "You keep them, just in case you need them again." She curled his fingers around them. The contact made Lando finally look her in the eyes.

She let go quickly as if his glowing skin electrocuted her. "I—I'm sorry I upset you. I wanted to tell you last night as soon as I found out. I just couldn't bring myself to do it to you. I knew it would hurt you." She looked down. She couldn't take the way he was staring at her. It was like he was staring right into her soul.

"It was going to hurt me either way," Lando stated in an injured tone. He no longer sounded angry. It seemed as if he were merely stating a fact.

Ranaya looked back up, caught in his gaze again. His glassy blue eyes held hers intensely. The barrier keeping Ranaya's feelings from showing was slowly falling to pieces and she wasn't afraid of him seeing her weaker side. He had already seen it earlier that day. She had nothing to hide from him anymore.

"I shouldn't have gotten so upset. I knew it was coming—just not this soon." Lando took her hand gently and placed it against his cheek. "I'm sorry. If only I could do something to stop him."

"There's nothing you can do."

Yes, there is, I could-," Lando started.

"And get yourself found out for what you truly are?" the thought horrified Ranaya. No way was Karik going to find out who he was. She wouldn't allow it.

Half of Ranaya wanted to jump to defense and protect Lando with her life from Karik, and then the other half was so terrified that she wished to hide behind the protection of Lando. The first half dominated the second half.

Lando didn't reply only changed the subject. "Are we back the way we were before?" A smile was visible in his eyes.

"How far back before?" Ranaya asked, feeling hopeful. She wanted to scold herself for secretly wishing they could be anything more than friends. She was engaged for goodness sake. About to be sent off to another kingdom to marry the most horrid king. She shouldn't wish for things that would only end in heartbreak.

Lando seemed to know what she meant. He took both of her hands in his. "I want to spend as much time with you as possible. I don't want to regret anything. I know we only have a few days but I love you with all my heart and I-," Lando paused not knowing what else to say.

Ranaya smiled softly and stroked his cheek, "I don't want to waste any precious time wondering what it would have been like. We're still together. I'm not gone yet."

He smiled before bending slightly to kiss her. It was bittersweet but it was wonderful.

Ranaya finally felt relaxed and almost safe. The first time of her life she ever felt whole. Nothing was missing.

Suddenly the stable doors creaked open and Ranaya saw Karik's form.

She gasped and grabbed Lando's cloak throwing it over them quickly.

"The candle," Lando whispered fiercely, trying to keep his skin covered.

Ranaya hurriedly without even thinking what she was doing doused the small flickering flame with her bare hand. It was too late to uncover herself to blow it out.

Hot searing pain prickled her fingers as she bit her lip to keep from crying out. She withdrew her hand back under the cloak and cradled it against her chest.

Lando laid still but he stared at Ranaya's hand.

"Ranaya, are you in here?" Karik's venomous, sugar coated voice rung through the stable.

Ranaya shivered. What did he want?

She heard him walk towards the ladder to the loft and stop, before retreating back to the stable doors.

Knowing Karik was gone, Lando threw the cloak to the side and grabbed Ranaya's injured hand to examine the burn.

It wasn't a bad burn, but it still stung horribly.

"Lando, its fine." Ranaya pulled her hand away. "Really." She smiled but it immediately turned into a frown.

"You're hurt, let me help you." Lando protested, turning to unlatch the trunk that was behind them. He began to rummage through things, before pulling out a small tin container and some cloth.

Ranaya watched him as he opened the lid to the container to extract a green paste-like substance. Lando took her hand and rubbed the salve onto her hand gently, then wrapped the cloth around her hand.

"There," Lando said, placing the container back into the trunk. "That should help it heal."

"What is it?" Ranaya asked, examining her hand. Whatever it was was cooling her hand off tremendously.

"A homemade mixture of different types of herbs." He explained before wrapping her in his cloak.

Ranaya smiled. Elves liked to use natural things.

She didn't want to go back into the castle. She was afraid of what Karik wanted. She only wished to stay right where she was at. She knew it was a disgrace for a woman to sleep beside a man—or elf even if they were doing nothing but sleeping. At this moment, she could care less what others thought if they found her sleeping beside Lando.

She shivered at the thought of Karik finding out but then Lando wrapped his arms around her and began to sing softly and all her fear evaporated until she fell asleep.

Review! Tell me what you think. I'm not sure if I like this ending.