Dairine ran out of that garden like the hounds of hell were chasing her. At first she sprinted, but when her lungs burned and she had to gasp for air she adjusted her pace slightly, slowing down just enough so that she would have a heart attack. She ran track at school, so this was pretty cake. The only problem was that she had no idea where she was going. Her only coherent thought as she had dashed out of the garden had been something along the lines of I've got to get out of here. And so she had.

Now, however, she had to admit that she was lost. She sat down at the base of a column, feeling exhausted and beaten and depressed. If there was one thing that Dairine hated more than anything else in the worlds, it was losing, and now it looked as though she was losing Roshaun to some pretty blonde girl. How typical.

Dairine had her head in her hands when he arrived, which explained why she didn't see him approach. She heard him, though. She heard the gentle sound of his footsteps on the marble floor, and she heard him sit down next to her. She didn't bother looking up.

"Hello," he said softly, unfazed by her lack of reaction. After having been around her all summer, he was pretty used to the way her moods ran hot and cold.

"Hello," Dairine said brightly. She could feel her anger prickling just under her skin, ready if she needed it. "Done with your other girlfriend, then?"

Roshaun actually had the nerve to look confused. 'What other girlfriend?"

Dairine's anger broke and she was on her feet all of a sudden, her voice getting louder and louder as she cried, "The one you were hugging in the garden just now! Or were you planning not to tell me about her?"

Roshaun laughed. He actually laughed. Dairine resisted to the urge to hit him.

"It's not like that-"

"Oh, it's not, is it? Well, tell me then, what is it like?"

"She's my sister."

With those three words Dairine's anger abated, and she went from feeling furious to feeling utterly mortified. "Oh," she said lamely.

Roshaun's lip twitched. "Trust me, you're all I can handle," he teased.

Dairine blushed, simultaneously wanting to punch him and to lean her tired head against his shoulder. She settled for extending a hand to him and pulling him to his feet. He stood and she dropped his hand a little too quickly. He gave her a slow, lazy smile and she blushed even harder, wondering how it was that he knew exactly what was going on in her head and wasn't remotely bothered by it.

"I'll take that as a compliment," Dairine replied softly.

Roshaun's smile widened and he took her hand again. "Come on," he said, his eyes laughing, tugging gently on her hand. Dairine followed willingly. She was tired of thinking, tired of overanalyzing everything to the point of death.

He led her to the beginning of a flight of stairs. Dairine looked at him questioningly, but he just arched one delicate eyebrow and flicked his eyes upward, motioning for her to keep moving. She shrugged and started up the stairs, still holding his hand.

The walls began to curve and the stairway spiraled. Dairine realized that they were in some sort of tower. They had been climbing for only a few moments when they came to the end of the line. The ceiling, though a comfortable distance from Dairine's head, almost skimmed Roshaun's golden hair. (Damn him for being so tall…) Nevertheless, Dairine was frustrated with him for bringing her to a dead end and was about to say so when he let go of her hand, reached overhead, and grabbed the handle of a partially concealed trapdoor. Looking at her, he smiled that grin that made all of the nerves in her body itch in a not entirely unpleasant way.

"Ladies first," he said, and he was enjoying himself just a little too much because there was no way Dairine could reach the opening, let alone pull herself through it.

"And how am I supposed to get up there?" She asked, putting her hands on her hips and treating him to her most annoyed voice.

"A little less venom, please," Roshaun responded, still smiling, "I'll help you."

Dairine could have done it by wizardry. She didn't need help. But she chose to accept it anyway, placing her foot in Roshaun's cupped hands and sort of leaping awkwardly at the opening. She felt his grasp tighten around her ankle as she caught hold of the edges and knew he wouldn't let her fall.

Once she had pulled herself through, she turned around to get her bearings and almost fell over.

The view from the top of the tower was so incredible that the word "beautiful" was totally inadequate to describe it. Dairine found herself gazing into the full glory of the setting sun, and even as the blindingly bright circle of light seared itself into her vision, she found it impossible to tear herself away. She could see for miles over the vast expanse of the Welkhan landscape, so achingly different from the view at home except for the vastness of the brilliant blue sky. She marveled at the colors. Reds, golds, yellows, and oranges blurred the landscape into that of an impressionist's painting.

It was all so gut-wrenchingly lovely that she didn't notice Roshaun until he put his hands on his shoulders. She turned around to see him framed in the glow of the setting sun. He was smiling again but in an entirely different way, a softer, sweeter smile that made her want to kiss the corners of his lips. He put his arms around her and kissed her, long and deep, and she didn't mind so much that he could read her mind now.

Breathless, Dairine pulled away from him. "Thank you for bringing me up here," she said in the Speech, "it's beautiful."

"Yes," he agreed, "and so are you."

Any other time, place, or language, it would have been a totally cheesy line. But now, basking in the light of another world's sun and safe in the arms of the guy that she loved, Dairine decided to believe him.