Bitterosemary: Thank you! This had been one of my favourite chapters to write of all and I think my usual style is more apparent, so I'm glad you liked it. I find Maura really easy to write, she was portrayed so well in WS that she's easy to continue. Goldeneyedwildmage: You'll find out who the visitors are when you read on…. Thank you for your review! Feyrey: I'm far too fluffy where DN are concerned. In my book I won't be, so be prepared… (And please feel free to pull me up for over description!) Neal's Chick: Dun dun dun indeed! Drop Your Oboe: Thank you! I have given nothing up for lent – except housework! Silverlake: I thought the contrast would work well, even though Maura's story doesn't really tie in with Daine. I'm glad it seems to work. Thank you. Celuna Cirrus: I heard she's goling to write a book about her, I'm not sure if it will be a series. She's also doing a series about Numair's early years. Aravilui: Wrestlers? Huh? Really? I have a lot of fun with Thayet and Jon, they're my favourite comedy couple for some reason. Poodle14: Here's the update! Dolphin Dreamer: Re apologies – when me and my beloved(!) have a row I never apologise, even if I was at fault. I also never admit that I may be wrong (I never am anyway). However he won't apologise either so we usually end up at stalemate! He's a lawyer, so he's horribly good at arguing unfortunately, but hates the silent treatment which I am a master of! Thank you for your review! Jess: Thank you! Good to know your internet's better! Sonnet Lacewing: Evin and Saffron are kindred spirits definitely. I prefer Saff though (if I had to choose!). I've read loads of fics where Numair's ma is horrible, and I just doubt she'd be like that. You may me laugh with what you said about you and your mother in law! Music Nerd: Your description is very good. What name are you under on I'd like to read some of your stuff. Daine's Daughter: Everything will be okay, don't worry. You'll see anyway! Megster: Don't get in trouble from your teacher! I'm glad you like it and thank you for reviewing – its always nice to hear from someone new!

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews! I've passed 300! I really appreciate the time you spend on commenting!

Lammas Part III

Chapter 3 – Mornings

Numair looked out of the window at the storm erupting outside and felt some of his anger and irritation seep away as the rain began. He knew that the humidity had been part of the source of his aggravated mood, along with the stress of waiting for his mother to arrive. Pure pride stopped him from going to Daine to apologise, although he desperately wanted her to be curled up in his arms as they made love with the furious storm going on around them.

He focused his attention on what was going on outside once more, and noticed his lover stood in the middle of the space in between the building. Her skin was becoming soaked with the rain, huge, cool drops hitting her skin and the area around her, bringing a welcome relief to the air and everything that breathed it. He found the urge to go down the stairs and join her, to hold her in nature's release. "For Mithros' sake!" He cursed, not bothering to grab a robe and left the room, hurdling down the corridor toward the stairs. He was about to step outside when he saw Daine being embraced by a woman, a man stood next to her. For a moment her felt annoyed that he could not go to Daine as he had planned, and then he realised who the woman was. Even after eleven years he recognised her, as he imagined he always would.

He stepped outside into the pouring rain; the thunder almost deafening it was so close. Every few minutes a fork of lightning would streak through the sky, rendering everything illuminated hauntingly. His mother saw him from over Daine's shoulder. Letting go of his lover she moved toward him, her arms tentatively waiting to see if he would want to be held in her embrace.

For a second he became that small boy, seeing his mother after a long nightmare, or after she had been away to see her parents. He moved toward her, feeling the rain hitting his skin like pins, but it made him feel alive. She grabbed him in her arms and he felt her tears mingle with the raindrops on his shirt, warm tears in comparison with the coolness of the rain.

He saw Daine watching; her expression one he could not read. He felt water spill out of his own eyes and trail down his face, dripping heavily to the floor. "Ma," he said, softly, before the tears came more rapidly and eleven years disappeared in an instant. He knew there would be awkward moments, and a lot of explanations that would tear out both their hearts, but hopefully it would act like a healing potion upon them both, and the past would finally be given a burial.

Daine's voice became apparent through the thunder. "Shouldn't we go inside?" She spoke, her voice clear with no edge to it, although he never would have expected one with it being Daine.

His ma broke away from him and nodded. "It would be wise," she told he (did you mean her or him), examining him with her eyes. "You look well, Arram." She said in her cool, crisp voice, that he had rarely heard affection in whilst he was growing up. Daine led the way inside of the deserted palace. Everyone had disappeared to bed, or back to sitting rooms that belonged to their friends. Some people, he imagined, would have taken a walk into the woods in the heat of the night, and would now be sheltering from the rain and thunder under the canopy of trees. It wouldn't be an unpleasant experience, he knew. In some ways it would be a relief, to feel the drops of rain and to experience the breath of cooler air.

"We may as well go back to our rooms," he said to Daine, now his voice felt unimpaired enough to speak. No one spoke on the way to the rooms, partly through fear of waking someone who was slumbering and also through the knowledge that once one person began speaking, the dam would break and they would be flooded with words.

They sat down in the sitting room, the fire softly burning embers in the hearth. It was bad luck to let the flames completely extinguish as they had been lit from the Beltane fires, and should be kept until Samhain. He watched his mother gaze around the room and wondered what she would make of it. Her house had always been simple and unelaborated. His rooms were finer, as was befitting someone in his position, but were also now more homely and had the feminine touch that had once been amiss. He looked at Daine, sat pensively on the chair by the window, where the cool breeze still ran into the room, bringing with it the fresh smell of rain after a period of heat.

He glanced at his mother and then back at Daine, instinctively knowing what needed to be done next.

"Excuse me, Ma, but I really need to speak with Daine," he said, realising that they had no drinks prepared and he had not yet been introduced to her friend.

"That's fine, Arram," she said, her voice softer than he ever remembered. "I recognise that you have things to sort out."

Daine stood up, following Numair into their chamber room. Numair noticed a smile passed between the two women as he and Daine left the room and wondered what they had discussed before he had arrived. He closed the door and sat down onto the bed. She stood by the window, her arms folded defensively, and he realised the hurt he had caused her and wondered how he could begin to make it better.

"Isn't this a little rude?" Daine asked quietly, gesturing to the room they had come from. "They've been travelling for days and we've left them there without drinks or dry clothes or showing them to a room…"

Numair nodded, disheartened by the start of their conversation. "It is rude, Daine, but this is more important," he paused, looking at her, desperately wanting that connection between them to return. "I'm sorry, Daine. Today's been the worst day of my life. I should never have taken everything out on you." He saw the blue-grey eyes flood with tears as she looked away from him. He wasn't sure what else he could say that wouldn't take forever to explain, especially when he didn't understand it himself.

"Why didn't you speak to me?" She demanded, her voice risen and clearly audible against the thunder that growled ferociously outside, the rain being thrown down to the ground with force.

"I didn't know how to," he said, feeling his throat stretched with an emotion so painful he wasn't sure how he spoke.

The door handle turned and his mother entered, wearing dry clothes that she had taken from her luggage. She stood for a few moments, looking at the two of them, stood only a few footsteps apart but may as well have been in different countries.

"Sometimes a storm is needed to clear the air," she said, her voice penetrating the silence in the room. "That doesn't just mean the weather, it means here, in your rooms too." She sat on a chair next to the bed. "Arram's father and I had rows at first, but he never understood the purpose of them, and thought that every harsh word was a blip on something that was meant to be perfect. He turned to drink for many reasons, and when he was drunk the truth would be outed. All the things he wanted to say but felt he couldn't, and that hurt more. I know you've rowed and I imagine it's because of many things and none of those things are because you don't love each other," she paused looking at the young woman still standing dejectedly by the window. "Daine you need to go to him," she said. "Stop being stubborn and go to him. As soon as you find yourself in his arms it will all be made better." She waited until Daine had stepped the short distance and sat next to Numair.

"We have lots to talk about, but it can wait. Rehan has already found a maid who knows where there are rooms prepared for us. Tomorrow we can begin talking; but Arram, you have nothing to be worried about. I am your mother, why would I try to cause you pain?"

Numair looked into the eyes so identical to his own. The last time he had seen her she had begged him to help his father and take him back to Tortall, refusing to go herself. She had been right, his father had needed him much more than she had, and she had been at the end of her patience with him and hopelessly worn down. Now she was revived and he felt like he had a glimpse of the woman she had been before she had become overwhelmed with his father, keeping the business together and then having to deal with a child who could not have always been easy, given the circumstances she was already drowning in. He had a brief epiphany that told him she had never intentionally hurt him, only ever in self defence, and for that she had carried the guilt around like a lead weight.

"I know," he said softly. She came to him and held him, although she didn't even make it up to his shoulder. Backing away, she kissed him on the cheek and did the same with Daine, holding both of the woman's hands as she did so. "Goddess bless," she whispered, leaving the room and then leaving the sitting room to probably follow a maid to the rooms her and Rehan had been given while they were visiting her son.

Numair stared at the door after her for a few moments, and then felt Daine's soft fingers on the side of his face, drawing his attention. As he looked at her he felt the tears again begin to spill, and he buried his head on her shoulder and forgot about time and who he was supposed to be, only consumed with the one person he knew he truly needed, with whom his tears mingled.

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Daine woke early, her heart still beating fast and her eyes heavy with dried tears. She was tangled in Numair's limbs, her arms wrapped around him also. Her first thought was of what had gone the night before. She had been startled by the arrival of Numair's mother, imagining that it would be the day time when she finally arrived. And then to be taken straight into her arms – that was not what she had expected, completely the opposite in fact. She had found it too easy to tell her what the matter was, that they had rowed for the first time, and Nayalyn had provided the soothing words that Daine had needed to hear. Her lover, Rehan, had stood back, his dark eyes watching the scene in front of him. His calm presence had added to her alleviation, and she had automatically felt at peace with him. All of her nerves at meeting Numair's mother had been calmed by Nayalyn's words, "It's good to finally meet you, Daine." And then when she had discovered why the young woman was upset her gentle mutterings had managed to cease the tears and worried thoughts.

After Nayalyn had left Daine and Numair alone, he had cried like she had never thought him capable. He had always been so solid, so overtly capable of dealing with everything thrown at them. Even in the darkest months of the immortals war he had never broken, always knowing exactly how to handle each and every emotion that had been launched at them.

Their tears had resulted in kisses, words not necessary, as fingers did the talking and eventually a passion fuelled from fear and rage had burnt long into the night, welding them together in a way that Daine had never known possible. She had clutched at him, her nails engraving her signature on his skin, and his body moving almost roughly against hers. It was almost animalistic in the way that both of them fought for dominance, neither letting their feelings being controlled. In many ways Daine felt that they were still arguing in the way hands were burnt across skin and lips kissed coarsely, teeth grazing.

Afterwards, when they had both regained their breath, he had held her tenderly in his arms, his fingers tracing the marks on her body left from their lovemaking and previous battles. She had found that tears unwillingly spilt from her eyes, and when he asked, she could offer no explanation of why. He had kissed them away, catching each one as it fell, until desire of his proximity took over once more, and the dance this time was so tender it was almost painful, each movement too slow and controlled compared with before.

Now she ached, mentally and physically, with the evening's exhaustions. The morning sun had begun to infiltrate the room, its heat now fresher than before, lacking the heavy humidity of the previous few days. She moved out from Numair's arms and glided out of the bed, pulling his robe around her and looking out of the window. The sky was again cloudless, no blots of the landscape ahead, it seemed. One or two of the kitchen hands were crossing the land in front of her, walking from one side of the palace to the other, probably delivering breakfasts to those who had asked for them to be served in their rooms. Daine wondered how Nayalyn and Rehan had fared the night, and felt guilty that their arrival had been greeted as it had. However, she imagined that it may have done something to have broken the ice between Numair and his mother.

She looked at the sleeping mage, and wondered if it was best to wake him. It was still early in the morning and very few people would be up yet, given that many of the participants of last night's party had celebrated the feast of John Barleycorn by consuming much ale. For a few minutes she watched him sleep, his bare chest moving up and down with each breath, dark hair swept over the pillow, having fallen out of its tie in the night. She decided to let him sleep, and wandered to the chamber room, intending to take a warm bath to ease the aches and soothe her nerves now that the upset was over.

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Numair had sent a messenger asking his mother and Rehan to meet them in the breakfast hall. Daine had let him sleep, and he now felt rested and relieved of the pressures he had put on himself over the last few days. He had bathed and dressed simply, wearing a white cotton shirt and a pair of brown breeches, leaving any signifiers of his wealth in their boxes. He had no desire to show off in front of his mother and her partner, and he felt that wearing an overload of jewellery might make them raise their eyebrows.

The breakfast hall that Thayet and Jonathan used was smaller than that of the one used by the Riders and much more formal. Tables were set out so privacy could be ensured, and Numair was pleased to see that Nayalyn and Rehan had been led to a table discreetly placed against the sides of the room, and far enough away from the few other people in the room so that no one would over hear their conversation.

"Good morning," his mother addressed them as they sat down. Numair smiled broadly noticing the light in his ma's eyes as she had seen him and Daine enter hand in hand.

"Morning, ma. This is Veralidaine," he said, half pretending and half joking that the night before hadn't existed.

Nayalyn stood up and held her hand out to Daine. Daine accepted, and then found herself being pulled into a warm embrace and kissed on both cheeks.

"You are every bit as beautiful as Arram described," she said to the young woman, holding her at arms length and examining her with her eyes. "If not more so. Though I have to say, he did use some big words that I didn't know to depict you!" Daine laughed. "This is Rehan Ameen, my almost husband," she gestured to the tall, dark skinned man who had now stood up from the table. He leaned and shook Numair's hand vigorously, his face void of emotion, just studying what was going on around him. Numair could tell that he was deciding how to act so that he would fit in well with his lover's family, and not add to any awkwardness of the situation.

"It's good to finally meet you," Rehan said, his eyes meeting Numair's. "I know that your mother refers to you as Arram, but I think it is more fitting to address you as Numair. Would that be alright?"

Numair nodded, appreciative of the man's gesture. If he had called him Arram he would have felt as if Rehan was trying to impose something on his past. "And I am fine to call you Rehan?" Numair asked.

Rehan nodded. "By all means," he nodded. Numair then proceeded to introduce Daine and Rehan, although he knew they he met already, at least this gave them a formal beginning.

He sat at the table facing Rehan, knowing that if he and the man could show an understanding at first then it would ease the relationship between himself and his mother. "What did you do for a living?" he asked, hoping that he wouldn't cause any offence by the question.

"I used to work for the book binders in the capital. I managed one of the sections, usually proof reading and organising how quickly we could get a set of books made. Not as interesting as what you did, but I enjoyed it," Rehan answered warmly. "What does your job involve?"

Numair smiled, knowing that he had never really gone into detail in his letters about what he did. He began to explain, Daine interjected when she thought fit, elaborating on some of the things that he did for the king when she thought he was being too modest. By the end of the conversation he could see that his mother was flushed with pride and Rehan looked at him with a little amazement in his eyes. He smiled and felt Daine brush his knee with her hand.

Breakfast was a long event, and much was discussed. Daine told tales of court life and Numair saw that his mother looked at her with smiles in her eyes, obviously taken with her already. He had known that her fears would be unfounded, and that she would be well received. He understood that as long as she made him happy his mother would adore her. She wouldn't be bothered whether Daine had the right name, or was from a wealthy family. She had learned the hard way about relationships and the importance of love being there.

Rehan appeared to be a pleasant man. He was tall, with dark hair and skin, his face closely shaved and hair kept short and neat. He was obviously intelligent, although quiet and not particularly keen on enforcing his opinions on anyone. Numair likened him a little to Lindhall, quietly knowing. He could see what his mother had found attractive about him after years of dealing with his father. Numair warmed to him easily, and he hoped his mother could see that, although he imagined it had been one of the first things she had picked up on.

The maids had come in and were wanting to clear away the tables by the time they had finished talking. Outside he could see the brilliant sunshine lighting up the grounds and drying up any of the left over pools of rain from the previous night. He glanced at Daine, now back to smiling like normal, her hand closed round his as they walked out of the room into the courtyard. He had the overwhelming urge to pull her back into his arms and kiss her, but knew that it probably wasn't a good time to do it. She was laughing at something his mother was saying, describing how Arram was as a child and he felt a cross between pride and embarrassment. Pride in that Daine wanted to know these things and that his mother could remember – he knew his dad wouldn't have been able to – and embarrassment of the things she could tell. They stood for a few moments in the centre of the yard, Numair feeling the sun heating his back through the light shirt and wondering if at some point it would be possible to go to the river for a swim to ease the promised heat of the day.

"Shall Rehan and I take a tour round the palace?" Daine looked at him, then at Rehan and Nayalyn.

"That would be most kind of you, Daine. I expect Numair and Nayalyn have plenty more to catch up on, so it may be as well if we pass the time a little more… enjoyably?" Daine laughed at Rehan's acceptance, and took the arm he offered. She obviously liked him, which again, would make things a lot easier between him and his mother. They wandered off, Rehan having given Nayalyn a brief kiss before leaving. Numair watched as they wandered towards the stables, he would have guessed that that would have been Daine's first destination.

He regarded his ma, and saw a different woman to the last time he had been in her company. Her hair and skin shone with health and she had a sparkle to her eyes that he had rarely seen before. She seemed to have grown younger rather than older, even though she was now well into her sixties, having given birth to Numair at the age of thirty five. Her hair was white, but she had grown it long enough so it hung to her shoulders. It was thick, and had the slight kink to it that Numair's also possessed. He had given so much thought over the years to the effect that his father had had on him that he had never accounted for the parts of him that had been influenced by his mother. She had always been in his father's shadow, and now he realised that it should have been the other way round.

They began to walk to the forest at Numair's suggestion, knowing that the umbrella of trees would provide a little coolness from the sun that was beginning to get hotter, although the heat lacked the suffocating weight that it had possessed for the past two days.

"You look very well, son," Nayalyn said to him, a little awkwardly. "It suits you well here." They stopped and sat down on a bench that looked over a river with the trees hanging over it with branches drifting into the water. Enough glimpses of sun peeping through made it feel almost as if it was a fairy land, such was the quiet and serenity. "You've lost that scrawny look you had as a lad."

Numair laughed. "Daine's horse calls me the Storkman," he told her and was pleased to see her laugh. "You look well too," he said, tenderness in his voice.

Nayalyn smiled. "The Storkman would have been a good description of you as a child," she quietened for a moment. "I looked terrible the last time you saw me," she began. Numair prepared to listen. "I felt terrible for burdening your father onto you like that, but he was beyond what I could do. I know he was happiest here." She noticed the look of surprise on Numair's face. "He wrote to me twice," she explained. "Once after he got to the Tower and once just before he died."

"Did he ever ask you to come to him?"

Nayalyn shook her head. "He knew as well as I did that it was over. It had been over from the day his father came to stay with us. None of it was your fault, Arram. How you turned out the way you did is beyond me," she smiled and silence fell. Numair wasn't quite sure what to say, there was too much to know where to start.

"You've changed," he told her, still seeing her in the same light as he had when he was small and she had seemed like some minor goddess.

Nayalyn shook her head. "I was stifled by your father for years, Arram. If I had had my way you would have been born much earlier, but your father didn't want children. I wished I had known that before I married him. I wish I had known a lot of things before I married him. However, he did give me you, and that is a blessing."

Numair looked away at the river, the shallow water running across the rocks. His eyes felt hot with tears, but he knew that he had to get himself under control.

"I don't want to spend all my time here living out the past, son. I've come to get to know Daine and you, and hopefully you'll both get to know Rehan," she explained. "We could spend the next month talking about what happened in Tyra, but what good would it do? I might be able to lose some of my guilt about how you were brought up, but would it change anything between us?" He shook his head at her question. "Isn't it best if we live in the present, rather than the past?"

Numair nodded. "It seems a better option than spending days dissecting events," he agreed. "I would like you to get to know Daine."

"So would I," she responded. "I'm glad you've sorted out your argument."

Numair laughed. "That was the first we had had."

"Rehan and I have them all the time," she admitted. He noticed her eyes dancing.

"Really?"

She nodded emphatically, her hair bobbing with the movement. "Every couple has them, Arram, even if it's just for the making up afterwards."

He laughed, thinking of the making up he and Daine had had the night before and also at the notion of Rehan arguing. "I wouldn't have thought that Rehan was the arguing type?"

Nayalyn laughed. "Oh, he can exchange a few cross words when he's in the mood, don't let that calm exterior fool you! He's been a good and patient man, Arram, exactly whet I needed after your father."

Numair looked at her, his eyes wide. "I'm sorry about how my father was," he said quietly, somehow feeling responsible.

"Why?" She asked him. "How was it your fault? His actions were his own doing, not yours. It is me and him who should have apologised to you long ago. But as I said, let's not waste any more time trying to regurgitate the past." She stood up and straightened the summer skirt she wore long to her ankles. "I have a future daughter-in-law I wish to get to know."

He stood with her and smiled. "She hasn't properly agreed to marry me yet." His tone was a little like a boy who had not received the present he wanted.

Nayalyn laughed. "She is wearing your half ring, I noticed, and unless you are blind you must have noticed the way she looks at you. She will never be with another, Arram, and quite clearly, neither will you!"

He laughed, knowing the truth in what she had said as they made their way back to the palace, looking to find where Rehan and Daine had gotten to and begin what time they had left together by focusing on the present and leaving the past to evaporate in the glorious sunshine.

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Thayet watched Daine and Numair from across the table. Daine had obviously bonded well with Nayalyn, something that Thayet wasn't surprised about, and Rehan seemed to have won Numair's approval. Clearly, the two mages had resolved whatever difficulties they had come up against as she kept noticing them catch each other's eye and touch the other at every given opportunity. She wondered how long it would actually be before they did get married, and how long Daine would make him wait before giving him an answer to one of his frequent proposals.

She looked at her husband sat beside and recalled her acceptance of his proposal. They hadn't been in love, she knew. Lust, certainly. She could recall quite vividly tearing off his clothes before they were married. She had also liked him a lot, and had known that it would turn into love. By the time they were married it had, and she knew that although the stomach doing flip flops and heart racing moments had subsided, they had been replaced by something stronger and more enduring – love --in one of its purest forms.

She spotted Alanna, her arms around her husband's neck, happily advertising her feelings for him. George had loved Alanna for years before she had told him that she wanted to be with him. He hadn't proposed, it had been more of Alanna's suggestion that she wanted to be his. This was after her affair with Jonathan, a memory that had now safely been buried. Thayet smiled at the notion of Jonathan and Alanna having married. They both knew, and Alanna had obviously known at the time that one of them would have killed the other before the first child was born. George was more patient, and as the years had rolled by, she had seen their love grow, as Daine and Numair's was doing now. She saw Jonathan heap a large spoonful of some chocolate concoction into his mouth and jabbed him in the stomach, causing him to splutter and place the spoonful down on the plate.

"You'll get indigestion if you put all that in your mouth," she rebuked him.

He glared, setting impossibly blue eyes on to her. "I'll get indigestion from you continually poking me in the stomach," he warned, picking up the spoon once more.

"You'll get fat, Jonathan. Then you'll be too big to share a bed with me," she smiled pathetically.

Jonathan rolled his eyes and sighed, putting down the spoon and pushing the plate towards her. "Have it then! If it wasn't you after my dessert then it would be Kalasin, seeing as you've passed those sweet tooth genes on to her!"

Thayet smiled sweetly, picking up the already ladened spoon and demolishing its burden. "I see Daine and Numair are now friends again," she said, delicately licking a spot of meringue from the side of her mouth.

Jonathan nodded. "I told you they'd work everything out on their own," he said a little righteously.

Thayet smiled. "Yes, you're always right, dear, aren't you?"

Jonathan glared.

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There was to be no entertainment after the meal that night. Thayet had considered it but people seemed to be more inclined to spend the evening outdoors, milling in the fields or talking the courtyards which were awash with blooms of every colour, their sweet scent permeating the early evening air. It had cooled a little, people were now comfortably warm rather than feeling as if they were being broiled alive. Daine had left Numair, Nayalyn and Rehan to chat while she sought out Maura, feeling a little guilty for not having spent any time with her since she had arrived and determined to make it up to her.

She found her sat with a young man Daine recognised as being one of the squires. Although she knew a few of the knights to be, such as Neal or Queenscove, and Keladry, this one she didn't know the name of.

"Hello, Daine," Maura said as the wildmage approached. "Arland," she said to her companion, "I need to have a word with Daine. Can I come back to you in a bit?"

"Of course," the boy replied. "I'll wait here. But don't rush!" He smiled and Daine caught a certain look between the two.

"Shall we go and sit near the fountain?" Maura asked, practically dragging Daine that way.

"It seems I have no choice," Daine laughed at the younger girl's exuberance. They sat beside the fountain, the sprinkles of water landing on them were refreshingly cooling. "Well?" Daine began, knowing that Maura was desperately wanting to tell her something. Maura looked a little blank. "What is it you want to tell me about?"

"Arland. What do your think?" Maura said, excitedly. Daine smiled at her exuberance.

She tried to smother laughter. "Are you being courted by him?" She asked the girl, not managing to keep a straight face.

"Yes, I suppose. But why is it so funny?" Maura asked with wide eyes.

Daine shook her head. "It isn't, it really isn't. He seems a really nice young man."

Maura nodded. "He is. I really like him," she said, a little sadly.

"Why does that make you unhappy?" Daine asked, puzzled.

"Because at some point I'll have to go back to Dunlath and leave him here," Maura said wistfully.

"But until then you can spend a fair amount of time with him. Don't be so silly. Think of the Lioness, she has to leave her husband for months at a time. If you really have strong feelings like that for him that you will work something out," Daine did not feel qualified to be giving out advice like this.

Maura smiled. "He may have gotten fed up of me by then any how," she said, her face a little sad.

Daine shook her head. "I doubt it. I can see him now coming over for you. Obviously a few moments away from you is too long!"

Maura's eyes lit up as she turned round and caught sight of Arland. "Sorry, Daine," she winced as she stood up to go. "We've not had much time to talk yet."

"It's fine, Maura. Once Numair's ma and Rehan return we'll have lots of time. You're staying here until past Midwinter, aren't you?" Daine reassured.

Maura nodded. "Maybe longer," she said as she began to walk toward Arland, smiling at him as if he had been away for months rather than minutes.

Daine laughed and strode back to where Numair was sat with Nayalyn and Rehan.

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That night, Daine and Numair took a gentle walk around the palace grounds, taking in the sights and sounds of the night time. Daine had spoke with the bat she had healed the night before and was now well and hunting for his dinner, taking care to avoid owls. They sat for awhile on the fence that surrounded the fields, Kitten playing in the long grass. She had been indulged by Numair's mother like she was a grand child, and the past two days of heat exhaustion that had been spent sleeping in her own little room were now a thing of the past.

Numair took Daine's hands in his own and looked at her closely. "Thank you," he whispered.

"What for?" She said curiously.

"For being you," he replied. She smiled at him warmly. It had been a strange day for them both, a strange sabbat really. They had taken stock of their own personal harvest and, she supposed, were celebrating it and the promise of more harvests to come. She leant forward and kissed him softly on his lips, savouring the feeling.

"I enjoyed the making up part of our row," she murmured as the kiss ended.

Numair grinned. "So did I," he leant toward her to kiss her again but his eyes was caught by a figure in the field. "Is that Maura?" He asked, pointing to what he had seen.

Daine looked, shielding her eyes with one hand from the setting sun's glare. She laughed as she realised who Maura was with and what she was doing. "It is. And that's Arland she's with, her beau."

Numair chuckled. "I hope that kissing's all they'll discover for a while," he said with a smile. "Although he is from a good family by all accounts and I'd imagine Jonathan would deem him a suitable husband for her."

Daine laughed. "She's not even thinking about marriage yet!" She cried. "Let her have time to find her feet within a relationship first."

"Is that what you're doing?" Numair asked, his tone becoming a little more serious. "Finding your feet with me before you promise to marry me?"

Daine regarded him closely. There was a look of pain in his eyes that she knew she was the root of. She had spoken to his mother about it that afternoon. Nayalyn had been remarkably helpful on the subject, alleviating Daine's fears.

"I'm scared that he might change his mind," she had said to the older woman. "That we will be trapped in a marriage like I saw so many of in Snowsdale."

"But you're not a Snowsdale woman, and he's certainly not a Snowsdale man. You both know each other well; it's not been a case of simply falling into bed with each other, your relationship has grown from more than that," Nayalyn had argued. "He wrote to me about you from when you first returned to the palace after saving him. He said that he thought you had wild magic and told me of the consequences that might have for you and Tortall.

"By the time you returned from Carthak his letters were only ever about you. I suppose I was an easy person to tell as I was so far away there were no consequences, but it became obvious that he had fallen in love with you.

"I already knew about your past, Daine, and where you had come from. You should never have worried about what I thought of you. Maybe I should have written to you myself. However, I always knew that it would take someone very special and different for Arram to fall in love. I wasn't completely sure that it would ever happen, given that his main experience of a marriage was mine and his father's, which wasn't a good example and he saw how I was trapped by it. So for him to want to marry, after experiencing a bad marriage, and to bring children into the world within it, with you, shows how much he truly loves you, Daine, and how much he believes that you and him are meant to be," Nayalyn kissed the girl on the forehead and left her to think, half knowing what the answer would be the next time her son proposed.

Daine recalled the conversation with Numair's mother as she wondered how to answer his question. "I have found my feet with you," she said, jumping off the fence into the field.

"So shall I ask you again?" He said, smiling hesitantly, knowing that he was risking another arrow to the heart.

"You'll have to catch me first!" And she began running into the field, wild flowers tickling her legs as he chased her into the summer sunset.

Right people. The first chapter of Mabon (which is the final part of the sequence) is proving a hard write. I'll give you a hint of what will be to come... I'm hopping ahead nine years to after Daine and Numair have had Sarralyn and are now married. It will be a closing sequence and an excuse for lost of fluff - I had a few people say that they wanted to see a wedding etc, and I thought it would be quite nice to write, so I'll be dropping back to various events such as proposals, weddings, births etc. I doubt that any of the three chapters will be as long as this one (this is 6500 words long), although I hope they will be entertaining and that it will provide suitable closure.

However... I need some encouargement, so REVIEW!