A/N: Sorry everyone for keeping you waiting for so long. I've been really busy/lazy and just haven't gotten much writing done. Enjoy the chapter!

Numair didn't think he had ever felt this happy before. He smiled to himself as he walked with a skip in his step down the hall to the rooms he shared with his lover, Daine. He couldn't wait to surprise her. He knew she would be just as happy as he was that his work was cut short allowing for his early return. Whistling, he reached the heavy wooden door with two nameplates; an older, more tarnished one with Numair Salmalin engraved onto it and a new, shiny bronze plate saying Daine Sarasri. He took out his keys and unlocked the door. He swung it open and threw down his bags in a dramatic gesture.

"Magelet!" he called out to her. There was no reply. "Daine, are you here?" Still there was no answer. He assumed she must be out helping Onua with the riders or perhaps meeting with the King. He felt his excitement deflate into disappointment as he realized that Daine wasn't at home. Dejectedly, he went to his room to change his clothes after a long day of traveling. Upon entering his room, flaunting a lavish decor and a large four-poster bed, he started. Daine was lying on their bed, on top of the blankets and fully dressed all the way to her shoes. He walked to the bed slowly and sat down next to her. As he gently touched her shoulder, he whispered, "Magelet, wake up. I'm home." She stirred slightly. He gave her a light shake which caused her to open her eyes and stretch her arms over her head. After a lengthy yawn, her attention focused on Numair. Her face did not fashion the expression of excitement and joy Numair had expected. It almost looked like she was afraid of him. She quickly replaced her expression from shock to that of joy he had expected to see. However, it did not seem genuine.

"You're home early! I wasn't expecting you." She reached forward and wrapped her arms around his neck in a big hug. He returned the hug and then rewarded her with a short, but sweet, kiss.

"I know. It turned out to be a quite minor problem that could have been taken care of by any common mage. Are you alright? Why were you sleeping in your clothes?"

"Oh... uh... I just fell asleep. I guess I was tired out. I was working with Onua all day yesterday in the barracks." She surprised herself at how easily the lie came to her. For a moment she pondered if she should just get things off her chest right away and tell him what a horrible mistake she had made. Just as quickly, she determined that this was not the time for him to find out. She didn't have the heart to ruin his good mood.

"Well, then. In that case you should get some more sleep." He kissed her forehead and, forgetting to change his clothes, left their rooms. Mechanically, he walked down the hall towards the King's study. He would have to make a long and boring report of the events of his trip. But somehow today, he didn't seem to mind so much.

Neal paced back and forth. His pacing made the room seem unusually small. His brow creased in distress as he wrung his hands and scolded himself aloud.

"How could I have been so careless?" He threw himself down on the bed, feeling foolish for doing such a horrible thing to Daine and to Yuki. Suddenly the room went dark. A loud thunder crack sounded as the wind picked up. Neal stood up and blindly felt his way to the window to shut out the approaching storm. Next, he reached the desk and groped for a candle and the proper tools to light it with. He cursed, trying and failing to re-light the candle. After many failed attempts and many vulgar words, light filled the small room once again. He realized only after this struggle that he could have simply used his gift. In a sudden fit of fury he made an overly dramatic gesture of exasperation.

He looked at the things he had carelessly strewn across the desk and picked up the item that best held his interest; a dark glass bottle filled with burning liquid. He took a long swig from the bottle and sat back down on the bed, his elbows on his knees, his right hand clutching the bottle around it's neck. The beverage soothed him and encouraged a smirk to cross his handsome features. The more he thought about the incident, the more he remembered. He liked what he remembered. He took another sip from the bottle.

He knew what he was doing. He knew how senseless it was to drink instead of facing his problems. After all, that was what had caused the trouble in the first place. But he chose to disregard the things his common sense told him. The kind of things Yuki would be telling him right now if he were not avoiding her. She wouldn't take the news of his "mistake" gracefully. She wouldn't accept his drunkenness as any kind of excuse either, due to the fact that she disapproved of drinking.

So, here he was, hiding in the old room he had kept as a squire, drinking a beverage that was causing him to feel slightly dizzy. A noise from behind the wall on the opposite side of the room made him sit up abruptly. He finished off the bitter liquid before pushing himself up off the bed and staggering over to the door connecting his room to the room next to it. Hesitantly, he knocked. The door flew open, throwing him off balance. When he became orientated, he found himself on the floor looking up at a very angry lioness.

"Nealan of Queenscove! What on earth are you doing here?" Apparently, he had caught her at a bad time. Her hair was down, and fell in a messy mane around her head and shoulders. She wore a plain ruby colored dress.

"Uh... Why, the Lioness! Just the brave knight I was looking for!" He laughed nervously.

"Don't try to flatter me, boy. Get off the floor and come in." He did as he was told and sat down in a velvet upholstered chair Alanna pulled out for him. "What were you doing in that room? I thought I was rid of you once you were knighted."

"I was looking for you. I needed to talk to someone." At this, Alanna raised an eyebrow.

"Then talk." She held up a pitcher in offering with a questioning expression on her face, but he simply shook his head. She poured herself a glass and then settled back in her chair, letting out a slight grunt of pain as she sat down. Neal watched her and waited until she was settled.

"I've done a horrible thing. Yesterday afternoon I was helping Daine with some things and she mentioned that Numair was away. She seemed rather lonely because she kept mentioning how grateful she was that I was there helping her and that I was such nice company. Well finally it was dinner time and we parted ways. When night rolled around and I was left with nothing to do because Yuki was busy helping Her Highness the Queen. Well, I went to Daine's rooms and although it took some persuading, I finally convinced her to come into town with me. We went to the Dancing Dove and had quite a nice time, drinking and laughing and such. Finally we went home together. I mean, together. Both of us went to my rooms. And you could only imagine what happened. And the poor thing, I had no idea but-" He trailed off. It was the first time he had taken a breath since he had begun. "Maybe you already know this, but she and Numair hadn't... they haven't... I was her first..."

"Yes, Neal, I understand." Alanna sighed and rubbed her forehead with her hand. Things were starting to come together. It certainly explained Daine's strange behavior.

"Well, now Numair is home, and I still haven't spoken to Yuki. I feel horrible Alanna. I could have taken every possession Daine owns and it would not have been worse than what I did. Not to mention Yuki. I love Yuki, and I never intended to hurt her." Neal hesitantly looked up at Alanna. He looked expectant, waiting for some kind of response.

"Neal."

"Yes?" His former knight mistress still made him nervous. He could tell she was angry, yet she seemed sympathetic as well.

"No more drinking. And I suggest you talk to Yuki and pray she doesn't kill you. I'll talk to Daine tonight and make sure she's alright." He only nodded. "You should go get some rest, it's getting late." She stood up indicating that he should do the same. However, he stood up too quickly and stumbled. Alanna moved towards him and held onto his arm to steady him. She looked at him sternly and shook her head.

"Goodnight. Thank you for listening."

"Take care of yourself, Neal. G'night."