"Was your flight pleasant?" Damaris asked as Cat and I walked into the elevator at the Sanctuary.
"As pleasant as can be expected, why do you ask?" I asked, my suspicions creeping into my tone.
"What child, I'm almost two thousand years old. Do you take me for a senile old lady? I've been around long enough to know when one of my Shapers is in love with someone." Damaris raised her right eyebrow in amusement.
"But what about Zhoa, we have less than six hours to prepare for her, and you know she's not coming alone?" I winced as with a soft jolt the elevator began to descend.
"Don't try to change the subject so fast young one. When are you going to give birth?" Damaris asked, and I watched Vardens chin hit the floor.
Stifling a giggle I answered. "We haven't even been together yet high mother. Varden won't until we are married.
"Married? What does that have to do with it? I've seen the way he looks at you and you look at him, don't tell me he's gay."
"I am not gay, thank you very much." Varden answered before I could.
"Then you need to bed your love before Zhoa gets here. Once she finds out she's not getting at you first, she may back off."
"No, I will deal with Zhoa when she gets here, one way or another." Vardens voice had gone cold, with strange resonance.
"Young man you have no idea who you're dealing with." Damaris snapped, whirling on him. "She is over three hundred years older than I am, the most powerful of our race. I can barely hold my own against that woman, so you'll stand no chance against her."
"We'll see, but one way or another, I'm going nowhere with her and she's just going to have to deal with it." The elevator came to rest on the fourth level, the doors opened and to our surprise Damaris stepped out alongside us.
"I am not following you, I am here to see your mother." With that she whirled away from us and strode away down the corridor.
"Now could you please get me to my room?" I slumped against Vardens shoulder and felt the tenseness drain from my body.
"Your wish is my command." He whispered in my ear and before I could react he spun and scooped me off the floor.
Cradled in his arms I was carried down the twisting labyrinth until we came to the door to my room.
"I'm surprised you found it on the first try."
"Do you want me to drop you?" He let me go for an instant only to catch me after I let out my girliest squeak. By the time I cracked my eyes open several of my fellow Shapers were staring at the two of us.
"Sorry ladies, wounded Shaper needs her rest." Varden mocked as he used on hand to turn the knob then pushed his shoulder with the utmost care into the door to swing it open. Once inside he kicked the door shut with a soft rasp of sliding metal.
"You know I can walk don't you?" I asked as he lowered me onto my bed. Then to my surprise slid right in next to me.
"I know, but you still need all the rest you can get." He pushed my shoulder until I rolled onto my side then he slid in behind me, his arm slipping under my head.
Snuggling backwards I pressed my back against his chest and used his arm for a pillow wrapping both arms around it to keep him from moving. I felt him drape his other arm over my chest and pull me hard against him, then he wrapped his legs into mine, intertwining them.
"What are you doing?" I asked as a heat I'd never known crept from my core along with goosebumps everywhere.
"I will not lose you." Varden whispered in my ear, his lips so close I could feel his breath brushing against it.
The heat continued to flow into every part of me until I thought I'd catch fire. Just when I thought I'd burst into flame it was as if a switch was flipped, it was as if we were melting together, our souls becoming one.
Opening my eyes, I caught sight of a deep blue glow. It floated around us, casting the entire room in a strange blue hue. It felt like I was floating above the bed not laying on it but it didn't matter, nothing mattered to me right then. I felt Varden in ways I'd never know two people could feel each other, his breath, the beating of his heart, I could even feel his blood as it flowed through his veins. I closed my eyes and merged into the flow of energy that surrounded us. As they slip shut I dropped from consciousness, my entire being shared by another.
"Cat wake up." I tried to open my eyes, but the lids felt like they weighed a ton.
"Wha..." I licked my lips, my mouth as dry as a nutmeg grater. "What happened, where are we?" My mind was a thousand miles away trying to figure out what was happening and where I was.
"We're in your room still. I think we both passed out." Varden looked at his watch. "We've been in bed for almost two hours. Do you remember anything?"
"Just falling asleep and the feeling of total relaxation. Did you see the blue light?" I asked while I tried to find the edge of the bed with my fingertips without opening my eyes.
"Come on, we need to get going. Zhao's going to be here in a little over two hours so we need to get ready."
"Yeah, yeah, don't rush me. I'll be there in a minute." I finally found the edge of the bed with my fingers and pulled until I was close enough to pull myself to the edge.
It felt as if I'd just run a marathon, none of my muscles wanted to work. My eyes weren't even open when I threw my legs over the side and tried to sit up, and promptly fell off the bed, taking the entire bed spread with me to the floor.
"What did you do to me?" I mumbled from under the pile of bedding.
"Your guess is just as good as mine, one second I was holding you, the next I was waking up beside you almost falling out of bed. It took me fifteen minutes before I could even roll over." By the time he had all the covers off me my eyes were open and I could sit up on my own.
"What was that?" I shook my head as I got to my feet and stared at Varden.
He seemed to glow, a blue light came from all around him, giving him the appearance of having a blue aura around him. Then as quick as I saw it it was gone. I narrowed my eyes and studied him for a few seconds before walking towards the door.
"Come on, I feel fine now and Damaris is going to come searching for us if we don't go find her first."
"I know you do, your side is fine now." Varden turned to follow, but I stopped in my tracks.
"How do you know how my side feels?" I turned, the way he'd said that. It was as if he actually knew how I felt.
"I don't know, it just felt right." He shook his head and skidded around me and out the door.
"Come on, the high mother is waiting."
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