It was weird, Aynsley thought, his love for Xanthe. She was everything he'd ever dreamed. They way she smiled when laughing at one of his jokes. The way she smiled at him for no reason. She was absolutely perfect, and yet, somehow he knew that the first time when he first met her.

He knew what 'love at first sight' was, but this wasn't it. It was something else, something magical. He knew she didn't have magic, but something in him was immediately attracted to something in her. His head felt like it was in the clouds until the day she kissed him. It was like he fell down into reality and saw her for the first time. The magical bond was gone, but it was replaced by love. Pure love.

He shook his head. This made no sense and it hurt his head to think about it.

"Aynsley?" Xanthe asked knocking on his head, "Is anybody in there?"

"Hmm?" he asked stupidly.

"I was just asking you what you were thinking about. Do you know you sort of glow when you think really hard?"

"No, actually, I didn't. I thought my dad was the only one who did that."

"What were you thinking about?"

"You."

Her right eyebrow arched, a trick she learned from 'Uncle Raoul', "Really?"

"Yes." He said kissing her on the cheek, "really."

They sat on one of the benches in the courtyard. Aynsley's arm was around her shoulders and Xanthe's head was leaning on his shoulder. It was the perfect image of two people in love.

Little did they know, they were being watched.

*~*~*~*

"Look at them down there!" Kel exclaimed.

"We shouldn't watch." Dom commented.

"I know, but look at our daughter! She's in love."

"And so are we. It would be a shame if our love ended because we froze to death our here."

"What are you guys looking at?" Diane asked as she walked up with Numair.

"Look at our children." Kel said pointing to them.

"Awwww!" Diane exclaimed.

"Women." Numair and Dom chorused.

*~*~*~*

Armod saw his chance and he took it. He fallowed Xanthe into her room and shut the door.

Xanthe spun around hearing the door click.

"I will scream!" she warned.

"Oh please don't." He said approaching her, "I don't want to gag you."

She stiffened unable to move.

"I just want to do one thing."

"And..w-what thing would th-that be?" she asked starting to shake.

"This." He said as he grabbed her by the waist and pulled her to him.

His lips met hers and he gave her a very rough kiss.

He pulled away and looked at her strangely.

"There. That wasn't so hard now, was it?" He turned and left a dazed and confused Xanthe behind.

*~*~*~*

Armod couldn't believe it. What he just did confirmed his suspicion. She really, truly was the One. When he kissed her glow-like presence faded and she looked like a real girl rather then a goddess.

He smiled to himself. Soon she would be his and Tortall would fall.

*~*~*~*

"He did what?" Aynsley yelled.

"He kissed me."

"Why?"

"I don't know." She said touching her mouth, "It hurt though."

"That's it! I have had it with him. He makes you faint two times and now this? I'm going."

"No! Don't go. You'll just make it worse!"

"I'm leaving and that's final."

Xanthe got up and hugged him.

"Please. He is very dangerous. I don't want you to get hurt." She kissed him, "I love you too much."

"But he..."

"Shhhhh. I know what he did because he did it to me, not you. I need to deal with it, not you. Besides, do you really want to leave?"

Aynsley hugged her tighter. "I hate it when you're right."



A/N: In the next two to three chapters a lot of this will make a lot of sense, but this story is far from over. Well not too far, but you get the drift. Like the title? R/R.