Disclaimer: I do not own these characters: they belong to Trudi Canavan

Interlude

The bed was soft, the sheets crisp and clean, the blankets warm; it was luxury after what they had been used to. Apart from Dorrien's simple pile of bedding and a blanket, this was the first time they had slept in a bed together. Although, thought Sonea, sleeping was the last thing on their minds.

They had made full use of the bathing facilities, using generous helpings of soap and bath fragrances then drying themselves off with the large fluffy towels thoughtfully provided by Cery. Akkarin had shaved off his thick dark beard and was once again the familiar figure she was used to.

After slipping into sleeping garments, Sonea wandered into the chamber to brush her hair. She avoided looking at the bed; somehow it felt strange to be contemplating lying there with Akkarin. Which is very silly, she thought, when we have been sharing sleeping places in caves, ruins and derelict buildings. But this felt different, although she couldn't quite work out why.

As she continued brushing her hair, she heard Akkarin come into the room and shut the door. She turned to look at him, noticing the way the silken sleeping trousers and top suited his long, loose-limbed figure. She loved the way his long, dark hair lay about his shoulders, rather than tied back as it usually was. She loved the way his mouth curved in a warm smile and most of all, she loved the way his dark eyes were looking at her, a spark glinting in their depths.

"You are looking at me rather strangely, Sonea," he said, a slight hint of amusement in his voice.

"Perhaps I am not used to seeing you so clean," she replied, tartly.

Two strides and he had closed the distance between them. The brush dropped from her hand as her arms went round him and she held her face up for a kiss. He picked her up and carried her to the bed. Placing her carefully in the middle, he slipped in beside her, took her in his arms and began kissing her throat and neck before capturing her mouth with his.

They fumbled with the sleeping garments until they lay skin-to-skin, flesh-to-flesh, delighting in the sensation of being naked in each other's arms. Sharp darts of desire shot through her as Akkarin's hands caressed her and they began to satisfy the needs of their bodies. As ever, their physical passion was magnified by the magical rapture, which surrounded everything they did, doubling the pleasure as their lovemaking reached its conclusion in an explosion of sensations which left them both breathless.

They rolled apart and lay quietly for a moment, before turning towards each other again, so that Sonea lay in his arms, her head on his chest. She could feel her hair move slightly with each breath he took, a strangely sensuous sensation.

"Oh, my Sonea, what a distraction you have turned out to be." he whispered. "I have to fight very hard against the desire to take you far away from here and spend the rest of my life making love to you."

She smiled, "I feel the same. Think of all those wasted nights in the Residence when it could have been like this."

"I'm afraid I could never have matched the luxury your friend has provided for us here," Akkarin sounded amused. "I think we would have shocked the older magicians much more by doing this, than by the admission we used black magic."

"Have you loved other women, Akkarin?" Sonea hated herself for asking the question, but she had been thinking of it for some time, wondering if there had been other beds and other nights of passion.

He was silent for a moment before saying, "Yes, once. She died."

Immediately, Sonea felt sorry for asking. "I'm sad to hear that, you don't have to tell me any more."

Akkarin hugged her closer to him, one hand stroking her face and hair.

It is time, I told you, he sent. When I was a slave in Sachaka, I fell in love with another slave belonging to my master and she with me. We could never touch each other because our master would have taken great pleasure in torturing us both, had he ever found out. She was his pleasure slave and he delighted in using her for whatever perverted forms of pleasure he could think up. Many times I thought of killing him, but I didn't dare to. I tried to persuade her to run away with me, but she refused. In the end, he killed her. I failed her and she died..

Sonea's heart broke at hearing Akkarin's sad tale. It explained so much. The way he kept himself to himself, refusing all the women his family tried to match him with; the way he had hidden his feelings for her; the reason why he tried to protect her at the Hearing; the reason he was so angry she refused the judgement and, most of all, why he kept trying to send her away.

She reached up and pulled his face down towards her own, kissing him softly and gently over and over again.

You mustn't blame yourself, she sent. I know you well enough to know you tried as hard as you could to save her. She wouldn't want you to mourn forever.

"If anything happened to you Sonea, I could not live with myself. I could not bear to lose the woman I love a second time. I wish I could send you some place where you would be safe, but I know you wouldn't go," he whispered, his lips against her ear.

"No, we stay together; we live together or we die together Akkarin." Sonea voice was firm. "I cannot even think of a future without you."

"When this is over, we will marry," Akkarin said, smiling. "The Guild have exiled us – let us accept that judgement and travel far away from Kyralia and Sachaka. Let's find new and different places and choose one to settle down in, away from the Guild, the King, and all the rest of it. Let's just live our lives, in peace, together."

"If that is a proposal, I accept!" Sonea laughed. "I think I like the sound of your plans, particularly the bit about living in peace, somewhere far away."

Akkarin kissed her deeply, then said reluctantly, "Much as I like the idea of staying here and loving you again, time is getting on and your friend will be back soon. It may not be a good idea for him to find us still in bed…together."