A/N: this is my first shot at the Daine/Numair story. i honestly hope you guyes like it. it's a one-shot. please review, and enjoy! and don't hesitate on checking out my other stories!

it's a bit racy, so beware the content, kids.

disclaimer: it all belongs to ms. pierce.

Mage and student sat down by the oak tree atop the hill, looking down at the endless pastures of King Jonathan's castle. Stars twinkled in the midnight blue sky, giving a whisper of light within the dark.

This night cannot be more romantic, Veralidaine Sarrasri thought, taking in the scenery. She felt warm, despite the slight chill brought from the western winds. She inhaled deeply; the scent of the earth, the night air, and the unique mixture of soaps, spices and fresh clothing from the man next to her brought a sense of comfort. This is the smell of home.

After months of patiently waiting through the aftermath of the Immortals War, Veralidaine, or Daine as she was commonly called, finally had a night alone with the mage. An entire uninterrupted night with the man lingering in her dreams was more than she could ask for. She had spent the previous months only catching glimpses of him through the castle and its grounds, stealing glances and exchanging brief moments of affection with him. It was not enough. But now she was given the chance to be with him.

Numair Salmalín was the man with her, sitting on the hill, with a look of utter contentment on his face. She saw him through the corners of her eyes, taking him in entirely. From his long frame, many assumed he was both lanky and clumsy, but she knew better. Not only was he powerfully built in his muscular frame, but he moved with as much grace as the King of Tortall himself. His soft, wavy black hair hung in its usual horse tail by the nape of his neck, and his long robe only accentuated his height. Never in the past three years did she ever think that love was so close by, but he proved her wrong.

"So," the mage said, turning his head toward her. "Here we are alone, Magelet. And Gods know how much I've missed you."

Daine smiled. "This night had to come eventually, didn't it?"

As happy as she was to be here next to him, she knew the both of them also anticipated this night. It may be their first time alone with each other in many nights, but also, it would be their prime time to discuss their current situation. Both dreaded it, and she knew it. But she also knew how excited they each were, to figure out a future.

Numair nodded in agreement. He looked away from her and said, "We've never had a discussion quite like the one we're going to have." It wasn't a question, but a statement. Both knew what the discussion topic would be.

"I can't say we've ever had," she replied, lying down on the soft, lush grass beneath her. She watched as he did the same. "So how exactly do we go about doing it?"

Both smiled at this question. It sounded ridiculous that two people were nervous in discussing love. But the fact that neither had mentioned love since Daine had found Numair underneath the tree in which he proposed to her had made the both of them uncertain.

"Daine, I - "

"Maybe we - "

She turned on her side to face him and smiled shyly. He nodded to her, giving her the opportunity to speak first.

She smiled again, shaking her head furiously. Sitting up, she exhaled loudly and sharply, pulling up her knees to her chest.

"What's wrong, Magelet?" he asked softly, still on his back on the grass.

"Nothing!" she exclaimed, hiding her face on her knees. She looked up at him, seeing that he had given her a look indicating he didn't believe her. "It's nothing," she said. "Nothing, and... everything."

"Could you explain?" he asked her, lying patiently and waiting for her answer, just like the many nights he spent with her in front of books. He always had enough patience for her.

Daine hesitated for a brief moment before speaking. "Nothing is wrong, Numair. Nothing is wrong in the sense that I don't think anything is wrong." He looked up at her with furrowed brows and she continued. "Nothing is wrong in that everything about us right now is good. It's simple. It's easy, and I enjoy spending time with you."

He grinned at her. "I enjoy spending time with you as well, Magelet."

"I like catching your eye across the room," she went on, brushing the stray curl from her eyes. "It gives me excitement when we get those few seconds alone in the corridor. I love it all."

"But..."

She bit her lip when he said that. She wanted so much to tell him what was on her mind. It wasn't as if she couldn't. She could tell him all her fears in the world, but this was different. This particular secret she kept within herself, not sure if she wanted to share it with him.

Daine felt the strong, yet gentle touch of his palm on her arm. "Tell me," he coaxed, rubbing the spot on her flesh in small circles. It gave her goose bumps, and a flush of excitement. "It's why we're both here. To figure us out."

She liked the way he said us. It was as if she had nothing to fear, and that he would be there always. But she was not that deluded to believe it. Her mother had left. Her grandfather had left. How was she to know if he wasn't to leave her?

She looked down at his face with longing. "I don't know, Numair. I don't know what it is."

He gave her a wry smile. "Of course you know what's wrong. You're just withholding information from me. You know, I can always get it out of you, one way or another."

She lightly slapped at him, smiling the entire time. "You wouldn't even dare."

Numair lifted up his palm, as the blackness of his Gift rolled in a ball inches from his skin. "Try me."

Once again, Daine breathed out loudly. "Only if you insist."

He folded his fingers into a fist to distinguish the Gift. "I do, sweet. Now please, tell me what is wrong."

"Everything," she said, pulling her knees back to her chest and hugging them close. "Everything."

She saw Numair prop himself on one elbow. "Explain, please."

"Numair," Daine started, looking into his eyes. "I just want more."

"More?"

"Yes, I want more!" She released her knees and sat with her legs folded. She looked away from him, feeling a blush creeping up her cheeks. "I'm not saying that I'm not satisfied with what we already have." She paused, thinking over what she said, and shook her head furiously. "No, I mean, I am dissatisfied with what we have!"

"You are?" Numair asked, looking unsettled. He sat up with her, his own long legs straight. "What do you mean?"

"Numair, don't you want more?" she asked, her voice confused. "I don't know! I just – I just feel as if it's not enough. Simple and easy are both great, and I have appreciated the past few months. But is that really what it is? Is simple and easy all we should expect of each other?"

When he didn't respond, she ploughed on. "Some days, I think that it is enough. We're both such different people, Numair. How can you possibly pursue anything with me if you will forever be called upon to use your gift? But other days, I just think, it isn't enough. I want more."

"I want more too," he replied so quietly she almost didn't hear him. She glanced at him, to see that he stared intently at her.

"Look, Numair. I know that Tortall is still busy, trying to sort out Ozorne's mess. But it's the hectic times like these that I just suddenly wish you were by my side. I want more, Numair. I want you. I want you so terribly, that my heart hurts. I love being with you. Every time I'm with you, I feel good. I feel right. I think to myself, this man feels right. There is no one else who would give me the happiness this man can, and I don't want to meet anyone else. When you're with me, everything feels good. Right."

She couldn't bear to look at him in case he would see the furious blush she had. But she felt his hand creep up on her own, holding it tightly. "Magelet," he said, his voice filled with love, "I just want you to know that the feelings are mutual."

She turned to him now, seeing a tender smile on his lips. The hand that held her own let go and went to cup her cheek. She loved it when he did that, feeling the strength in his touch. He lightly pulled her towards him, and she closed her eyes, knowing what was coming. She didn't need to see to know that he was about to embrace her.

And she was right. His soft lips lightly went onto hers, kissing her with as much love as she gave him. She felt him gently part her mouth with his tongue; she accepted it, tasting the sweetness from him. She could never tire of kissing him. Every single time he did it, she felt a shock within her body, swamping her with desire.

When he pulled away, she reluctantly let go of his hair, which she only realize at that moment she ran her fingers through with. He looked at her, grinning widely. He always made her flustered.

Clearing her throat and her head, she then asked him, "What were you going to say?"

He didn't look at her. Instead, he lay back down on the grass. "Before I say anything else, I just want you to know that I love you, Veralidaine Sarrasri."

She accepted his confession, but judging by the tone of his voice, knew that there was something he was about to say to make her challenge it.

"What happened between us in the Divine Realms, and the moments we shared here in Tortall meant as much to me as to you, possibly even more," Numair began, tugging at his long nose. She smiled slightly at him, knowing he only did that when deep in thought, or nervous.

"When I look at you, Daine, I see everything a woman should be, carefree, young, and happy. But I feel that I am only getting in the way of that, robbing you of what you can be."

His smile turned into a frown, and she knew not to interrupt him, as much as she disagreed with him. "I understand that it has already been established that our age difference does not affect us. But sometimes, I feel it does. You should be with someone closer to your own age, Daine. Someone you can grow old with, share happy memories with, and someone who won't slow you down."

At the last comment, Daine burst out with laughter. He looked at her curiously. "What?"

"Oh Numair," she cried, catching her breath, "You can never slow me down! If anything, I always need to catch up!"

He smiled at her comment. "Magelet, please listen to me. I love you. I always will. No matter what path you choose to follow in your life, I will always love you. When I first met you, I felt a sense of comfort with you. And I'm glad we became friends, but sometimes, I fear the fact that our friendship has just – developed into something more. Everything for me these past few months has been such a whirlwind. Every waking moment, I spend thinking of you. But I believe that I'm being selfish, keeping you all to myself when really I should be letting you go and enjoy yourself and your youth. You're only young once,' he smiled crookedly, gesturing to himself.

She bent down and kissed him slightly on the lips before pulling away and smiling at him. "You're not that old, Salmalín."

"Your generosity pleases me," he replied dryly, pulling her back for another kiss.

When she lifted her head from his, he said, "I just want you to be sure. I want you to be sure that you want me."

She paused briefly, stroking his chest with her fingers. "Didn't I just make it clear to you a moment ago that I was sure? Numair – I only want you. For Gods' sake, I came back from the dead for you!"

Daine let out a burst of giggles as his own fingers found her by the rib cages and tickled her. She looked at him breathlessly, panting from her fit of laughter. "I love you, Numair."

He pulled her towards him once more, finding her lips with his own. He kissed her with such intensity she felt as if she could have fainted. "I love you, Veralidaine," he said, his voice raspy from their embrace. Their lips connected again, and she eased her own small frame upon his, lying with him underneath the tree. His hands caressed her back, as her fingers twined around the laces of his robes.

She loved him, and he loved her return. To the young woman, it was all that mattered. And she knew nothing else was left to be said. There was nothing that needed to be saying; she was glad they had tonight. And she knew that when the sun would rise, her future lay ahead of her, with him by her side.

Veralidaine Sarrasri sighed with content. Everything was finally coming together.

She woke up suddenly, with an intense urge to seek him. Sitting up abruptly, her animal friends protested from shock. Her personal room in the stables under the boys' dormitories for the Queen's Riders felt lonely. Never would she have thought this – she had enough night guests from nature to keep her company. But tonight, it was not enough. There was only one person she wanted to spend the night with. She got up, and heard protests from her friends.

Go back to sleep, she told them soothingly, finding her boots. She was about to pull on a pair of breeches and a shirt, but decided against it. Her motives tonight had no use of extra clothing. Instead, she grabbed the robe that he wrapped around her the previous night when she felt cold in the wind. It was all she wanted to wear at the moment, aside from her silk nightgown. At last minute, she took off her boots.

Barefoot, she bid farewell to the creatures that had crawled into the stable with her. She thought it was strange how she wasn't sure if she would ever return to the stables for another night's sleep. She could, but with what she had in mind, she didn't think she would.

Daine walked lightly into the castle, navigating her way to the guest chambers, where Numair had a permanent room in the King's home. As she walked, she realized that something had changed within her. She knew with every step she took, she left behind the girl from Snowsdale, Galla behind forever. Her instincts told her tonight would be life changing, if she were to follow through. And she wanted it.

She walked along the wide corridors, passing door after door, knowing each one held an empty room except for his. Nobody else was on this side of the castle, except for the two of them at the moment. His room was at the end of the hall.

Daine stopped in front of the door, with its gold plate that read Numair Salmalín. She stood there, now feeling foolish.

"What am I doing?" she whispered aloud to herself, shaking her head. She looked again at the door. Was it the right thing to do? Perhaps it was too soon.

She was about to turn around when she heard the door creak open. Out stepped the mage, his face surprised when he saw her.

"Daine?" He opened the door the entire way, revealing the light flame by the window.

She didn't answer him. She stood there defiantly, staring into his eyes.

Numair knew that look. She had a motive, he thought. He looked at her thoroughly. A stray piece of straw hung loose from one of her smokey-brown curls, which he absent-mindedly picked off. He looked at her attire, and realized she wore his robes, and obviously not much underneath as he also saw two small bumps beneath the cloth which were her breasts from the cold air. Her feet were bare, and despite trudging through the forest grounds, were still clean.

And finally, he looked at her face. The stubborn chin, the shining eyes that held a million secrets, and her soft, luscious mouth. Instantly, he knew tonight, she would share her biggest secret with him.

His arms shot out from his sides to grab her. Daine wasn't shocked by it. Her hands grabbed onto his shoulders, as she pulled herself on him. Numair held her, as her legs wrapped around his torso. He kissed her fiercely, feeling a warmth between his own legs as she returned his affections with as much power. He walked, carrying her into his rooms, slamming the door with a kick of his foot.

Both trusted themselves with each other. Numair laid her gently down on the soft covers of his large bed, panting heavily, staring down at the young woman who breathed with the same intensity as he. A glint in her eyes showed him she was ready, and that she wanted more of him. She wanted all of him tonight, and she was willing to give everything she was to him in return.

He watched as Daine slowly undid the laces of his robes which she was wearing, each move with intention. She watched him as he watched her, her own eyes never leaving his. Slowly, but surely, the robe became undone, and she eased her arms out of each sleeve, dropping the garment on the floor. The robe floated itself onto a hanger by the corner, but neither paid attention.

Sitting up, Daine grabbed Numair close to her, pulling him by the waist-band of his breeches. He bent down to kiss her forehead, her cheeks, and her neck. She moaned softly, enjoying the sense of his touch. It was something she could never tire of. He parted from her briefly, to lift the shirt from his body, revealing the muscles of his arms, shoulders, chest, and stomach. This sight was also something she could never tire of, she though, smiling to herself. His lips were back on his, as she fumbled slightly with his breeches, eventually sliding them off.

Numair stepped away from the breeches that hung by his ankles, naked. As Daine lifted herself slightly off the bed, he grabbed the hem of her nightgown, bringing the bottom up right beneath her breasts. She sat back down, her eyes still on his. She slowly raised both arms up, and he freed her of the cloth.

Both mages stared at each other, completely naked. Numair, for his part, who had seen his own fair share of naked women, glorified the girl in front of him. She was different. She was different perhaps, because she meant something to him. She meant his entire life. He loved her. And he knew she loved him too.

Numair held a hand and made a beckoning gesture. Soon, a golden necklace floated through thin air towards his awaiting hand. Her clasped fingers around it, and slowly put the protective charm on her. Tonight did not need any consequences. He wanted it to be purely about expressing his love to her.

As the charm slipped onto her, Daine lightly pulled on his arms, signifying that she wished him to join her on the bed. He willingly obliged, kissing her the entire way, until he was on top of her, covering every inch of her body. He kissed her neck, nipped her earlobes, and caressed her body softly. The soft moans emitting from her mouth only gave him more excitement.

She felt him move lower and lower until his mouth found one of her nipples. She inhaled sharply, enjoying the new feeling of his lips on her body. Her hands wound around his hair, which, for once, was not in the horse tail, but loose. She thought it made him look dangerous, in a good way.

His mouth was on hers again, and she felt him enter her. Painful at first, her body began to accept the new feeling. Her fingers gripped his strong back, as his hands held onto her hips. Together, they fell into a rhythm, as both panting with pleasure, kept their eyes locked in the intensity of the act of love.

She felt him nearing his edge, and realized that she too was about to come to the end. Both their grips hardened on each other; Daine heard her own voice cry out in release, and Numair's own cry following closely. As she felt her own breath come back to her, she left go of him, her arms dropping from his shoulders to her sides, while his remained clinging onto her hips.

Daine reached out, wiping away a strand of hair from Numair's sweaty forehead. He chuckled hoarsely. He could not believe what had just happened. And yet, it was the best night of his life. Daine's hands were on his face, pulling him into a kiss.

"I love you, Magelet," he whispered, between kisses. He felt her mouth curve into a smile.

"I know." She brought his face to hers once more. "I love you too," she replied, and kissed him thoroughly.

She was right. After that wonderful night, she did not return to her stable. In the past, the creatures that crawled into her bed soothed her through her sleep. However, these nights, she lay with her lover. His room became their room, as King Jonathan ordered a second gold plate that bore the name Veralidaine Sarrasri to be put underneath Numair's.

The past months, she dreamed every night of Numair Salmalín. Now, in his bed, in his arms, her dreams would become a reality.

Looking back from her former thirteen year-old self, she saw how far she had come. From being orphaned, to learning of her inner abilities of Wild Magic, becoming the Wild Mage, and learning the secrets of the world through her former teacher turned lover, Daine was satisfied. She had wanted more.

She smiled broadly. She may have wanted more, but never did she image she would get this much. As she pulled on a pair of boots, getting ready to help Onua Chamtong with the Riders' horses, she looked to her left at the bed that held the man that changed her life. Numair, fast asleep, looked absolutely adorable and handsome. A book was pressed against his chest and more scattered the floor on his side of the bed.

Some things just never change, she thought. She looked at him one more time before opening the door quietly and stepping out. Once the door closed, she looked at the name plates.

Their names were together. She was living with him. She wanted more, and now she had everything she could ever want. Straightening herself, she set off for the horses when she heard the door open.

"Don't I at least get a good-bye?" Numair's voice demanded, as he stood there only in a robe that was clearly hastily put on.

She turned back, and kissed him. "I'll see you tonight!" She was about to go, when she felt his hand hold hers.

"Love is fair wondrous with you, Veralidaine."

She smiled, as he echoed the words she said to him in the cave in the Divine Realms.

It was true; loving Numair really was fair wondrous.

A/N: i've always had a love for tamora pierce's books. i guess that i just really wanted to finally do something about it. so i suppose this story also makes me alive again! hoooray!

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