Chapter 23

Numair picked Eliena up and spun her around. "Eliena, you're a genius!" Eliena grinned.

"I know," she said with a toss of her silky black mane. "It runs in the family."

Before anyone knew what was happening, Numair had pressed his lips to Eliena's and was kissing her. Eliena didn't pull away, she just let it happen. And she kissed him back, she wound her arms around his neck and kissed him back, thinking about what she'd said: do what you know is right, and don't think about what anyone else has to say.

Eliena didn't know how long she had been kissing Numair when they pulled apart. "Oh, Goddess," she breathed. What had she done? Kaddar looked disgusted, Daine was nowhere to be seen, and Lindhall's face was unreadable. "Oh…" She swore loudly. It wasn't only because of the reactions of others in the room. It was also because she'd found she'd enjoyed it.

"Eliena…" Numair said, reaching out to her. Eliena looked at Kaddar.

"Kaddar, I-" Kaddar raised his hand and cut her off.

"Save it, Eliena. If you had seen the look on Daine's face…" He shook his head. "She looked hurt, abandoned… How could you do that to your best friend?" Kaddar left the room.

"Do you hate me too?" Eliena asked Lindhall. He smiled at Eliena and Numair.

"If you truly like each other that much, there is little anyone can do," he replied. "But, there are doubtlessly already rumors that Numair has taken… advantage of both you and Daine, Eliena." Eliena nodded- she'd heard them many times. "And do you really want to prove them right?"

Eliena's jaw dropped. Numair wasn't taking advantage of her! She'd kissed him back, by Mithros! How could anyone think that Numair would ever take advantage of her age or her innocence? She would set them straight. Numair didn't deserve such a reputation, and neither did she! In the name of the Goddess, she was the heiress to Tortall! No one could speak ill of her and get away with it! And no one would ever get away with what had been suggested! (AN- hey MSB: exclamation points are our friend!

"I'll correct anyone who dares to say that!" Eliena hissed, violet fire forming in her hand and eyes blazing.

"Eli." Numair put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't." She looked up at him and noticed, with a start, that there was something behind his dark eyes.

It was love. The same thing that she saw in her father's eyes when he looked at her mother, or when Gary looked at Cythera, Raoul at Thayet, George at Rose.

She put her hand tenderly on his cheek. "Numair… I-" She blushed a deep crimson. "Thank you."

"For what?" Numair asked softly.

"For everything," she replied, putting her head against his chest. "And if we die doing what we're doing, I just want to do this." She kissed him softly. "I'm sorry for getting upset with you." He cupped her face and kissed her.

"Its all right, Eliena. Don't worry about it." He brushed black hair from her eyes. "You had a right to."

(AN- excuse the Numair/Eliena fluff. I needed to write SOME fluff! I have fluff deprivation for my stories. Its very sad.

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Eliena stumbled into her rooms, giggling. Numair had followed her back- risking being discovered. He had kept her laughing and smiling all the way back. She stood just inside her dark room, leaning on the door. She felt like she'd had a few too many glasses of wine.

"Shh, we don't want to wake Daine," Numair whispered, putting his finger to his lips.

"Oh, right." Eliena giggled again. "You had better get back. I don't want you to get in trouble."

"Oh, all right." Numair smiled evilly. "One more kiss before I go?"

"Oh, you!" Eliena kissed him. "Happy?"

"Very. Sweet dreams, Eli." He kissed her hand and vanished into the darkness. Eliena shut her door and fell back against it with a sigh.

"Well." Eliena's eyes widened as she searched the room for the source of the voice.

"Who's there?" she asked. She called up her Gift, lighting the room in a violet blaze. She gasped as she saw Leo and Neal sitting on her bed. "Leo! Neal!"

"Leo, Neal indeed," Neal harrumphed. "Obviously, you don't care about us."

"What? How could you say that?" Eliena asked.

"Daine told us that you had kissed Numair, but we didn't believe her," Leo replied. "But now…"

"Leo!" Eliena cried. She sat on her bed and lit the candles with her Gift. "How could either of you think… oh, no. I don't… I don't love him!"

"You act like it," Neal informed her.

"No," Eliena said. She put a hand to Neal's cheek and Leo's. "All girls-and boys-" she smiled at Neal, "-are allowed to have little romances. My mother had my father, and yours, Leo. That's all it is. A girlish romance. I don't love him, I don't want to spend the rest of my life with him!"

"Tell him that," a voice remarked. Kaddar stepped out from the shadows. "Because it looks to me like Numair likes you more than you like him."

Eliena sighed. "OK, I now have three men in my room." She rolled her eyes. "Should I feel lucky or cursed? Please, just get off my case." She looked at the three gathered in her room. "You know me." She looked meaningfully at Leo, who knew her the best. "You know what I'm like. I'm… flirty at times." She looked at Neal. "Who isn't? Until I find the one man I want to spend the rest of my life with, I'm perfectly happy with having little romances here or there to test it."

"Do you know how shallow you just sounded?" Leo asked. He shook his head. "This isn't the Eli I know."

"I've always been shallow, Leo. You know that," Eliena replied.

"Your mother wouldn't have done this," Leo murmured. Eliena's eyes blazed and she looked at Leo.

"Don't you dare bring my mother into this, Leonard of Pirate's Swoop. I live my life, not hers. If you haven't noticed, my mother and I are very different people," Eliena said harshly. Leo looked up at her, eyes matching hers in anger.

"You know, El, you and your mother aren't that different. You're both stubborn and quick-tempered. Remember, I know your mother, Eliena. You both have your pride, and won't let tell you what to do. You're too independent for your own good and you never know when to let love in. No matter what you've done, you won't let anything tarnish your reputation. That's where your different, Eliena. Your mother knew her reputation and didn't care. So long as no one made negative comments about it, she was fine. You, on the other hand, have no idea how other people see you. You're so worried about how others see you that you haven't the slightest clue that everyone has already formed an opinion about you!" Leo exploded.

"And what, pray, does 'everyone' think of me?" Eliena demanded.

"They think you're a shameless flirt who's been in bed with men for years." Eliena gasped.

"How dare you speak to me like that? Do you forget who I am?" she asked.

"No, El. I didn't forget who you are. No one can forget because you won't let them, understand? Whenever someone ticks you off, you remind them that they're below you. You know what, Eliena? We may be below you in title, but in morals? We're way above you." Leo rose. "Forget it. It's useless talking to you anymore, Eliena. You're not the Eliena I used to know and love when we were kids. You've changed. And I don't like it."

"I'm not a little girl anymore, Leo. And I don't need you taking care of me. I never did," Eliena hissed.

"Fine. You can take care of yourself, princess!" Leo walked out and slammed the door.

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