Her hands were shaking. Sten noticed this as he passed her the flask of water; she could not hold it properly, so he covered her hands with his and helped her drink. She was cold to the touch and her skin was pale and clammy, but none of that was as worrying as the fevered glaze over her eyes.

"This is new," she said suddenly, staring at her left hand with fascination. "Definitely- definitely- definitely new. This has never happened before," she continued, as if trying to make the point very clear.

"You're unwell." He clasped her hand tightly, stopping its shake.

"You're very warm," she sighed happily. "And I'll be fine once I recover a little. The shaking, though, usually only happens to older mages. I've seen it sometimes. Never- never- um... I've never... It'll stop soon, I think, I-- I'm rambling. I'm rambling, aren't I? Sorry."

He didn't say anything, but he watched her intently. She looked sick, but agitated, her eyes flitting from place to place.

"This is my fault," he murmured after a while.

"What? No!" Amell tightened her grip on him. "Sten, I don't know what you think you did, but--"

"I shouldn't have mentioned... her. It obviously upset you--"

"Sten, no. Stop. I had-- I had no right to get upset over things that happened long before we met. I-- I was--" She licked her lips and inhaled slowly, trying to resume her train of thoughts. "Can't things just be alright between us? Can't they be just like they were earlier tonight? I...enjoy your company. Can't it always be like that?"

Her distress was growing, so he only nodded. This seemed to placate her, because she leaned back against the wall and sighed.

"Is it cold?" she asked after a time. "I feel cold."

She pulled him closer and even though her strength was still lacking, he obeyed, sitting down next to her.

"You're very warm," she mumbled, nuzzling his shoulder.

"As you've already pointed out."

"Mm."

Sten took the happy sound to be a good sign. Amell sat like that for a long time, still and quiet, so much so that Sten thought she'd fallen asleep.

"It really isn't my place, you know." She sounded tired and sad as she spoke.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that I ran off over nothing. It shouldn't have mattered."

Sten sighed.

"Go to sleep, kadan. You will feel better in the morning."

"I'm not that tired," she protested, but she fell asleep soon after.

* * *

The ground under her feet seemed to slink like a creature in the underbrush, hesitant of predators. The leafless, twisted trees around her did not look as ominous as one might expect, but instead gave the appearance of meekness.

A rabid wind howled. It seemed to shear through the air. Something was amiss in the Fade.

"You again!" a tremulous and familiar voice sounded; Amell turned towards its source.

"Niall?" she asked incredulously.

"You have to leave! You've made someone very angry and they're coming for you!" the mage warned, glancing over his shoulder apprehensively.

"The Sloth Demon? But we killed him--"

"No!" Niall shook his head and grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her. "You have to go now. They're coming for you! You--"

The rest of his words were lost as the wind changed its pitch.

Amell woke up.