Bo was a little surprised and much relieved to actually make it to the other side of the fire. Lauren's concoction had worked. On the other side of the fire, Bo was immediately greeted by tall, green hedges, at least fifty feet high. They completely boxed her in. The ring of fire was nowhere to be seen; she had run into an empty square space with nowhere to go. She walked along the leafy wall, searching for points of weakness. If only she had brought a chainsaw with her, she thought.

"Why hello," an old lady said. Bo turned around and looked down to see a Trick-sized grandma holding a small wooden cane. She had big blue eyes and appeared harmless. She must have some sort of teleportation power like the guards in the dungeon because there was seriously no other way to get in or out of there.

"Hello," Bo replied warily.

"We have been waiting for you," the old lady continued.

"You have?"

"Yes, you are the third and final hero to come fight for the Valkyrie's heart."

Bo wasn't sure how to respond. She looked around for the other two people, but they were nowhere in sight.

"No my dear," the old lady chuckled, "they are not here. This maze has three start points but only one finish. The fair maiden lies on a bed of flowers waiting for a worthy hero to awaken her. The first to make it to the finish, or the hero last to die will have the honor of taking the Valkyrie. Those who fail will die. Because you were the last to arrive, your journey is the most complicated. No warrior who arrived in your position has ever survived this trial, let alone awaken the maiden. I wish you the best of luck anyway. You may begin when you hear the bell toll."

"That was some initiation," Bo muttered darkly. A deep toned bell rung three times and Bo blacked out.

When Bo regained consciousness, she was no longer trapped by giant hedges. In fact, she was no longer anywhere. The only thing that existed in whatever plane or world she was in was whiteness. She spun around again and again, every time seeing nothing but white.

"Where am I?" Bo shouted into the oblivion.

"Bo?"

Bo turned around. Tamsin stood a couple feet away from her, barefoot, dressed plainly in a white lace gown; she practically blended in with all the whiteness around them, but she was beautiful.

"Tamsin!" Bo was so relieved she could have thrown her arms around Tamsin, but that didn't come naturally to her so she just waved and smiled awkwardly.

"Aren't you supposed to be asleep on a bed of flowers?" Bo wondered out loud.

"We're in an astral plane," Tamsin explained. "Our bodies are elsewhere but our souls are here. I don't know why you're here, but it's definitely not a good sign."

"How do I get out of here?"

Tamsin shrugged. "If I knew, you wouldn't be talking to me right now."

Bo reached out her hand and gently touched Tamsin's face. Tamsin was startled a little, but didn't move away. She allowed herself to enjoy the warmth of Bo's touch. The succubus held so much power over her, without even using her powers. "You feel so real," Bo said in amazement.

Tamsin brushed Bo's hand away, thoroughly disappointed that Bo had no idea what her touch does to her. "That's because I am. . ." she sighed while rolling her eyes up. "Bo. . ." She paused. She stared hard at the floor while she mustered up the courage to continue speaking. "I don't take it back," she finally said. She looked up cautiously to see the succubus' reaction.

Bo looked at her, at first confused, and then Bo remembered that she had asked Tamsin if she wanted to take back her confession of being in love with her. Bo's heart quickened as she processed the new information. "Good," Bo said.

"Good?" Tamsin repeated harshly. "What does that mean?"

"That means good. . .I'm glad you don't take it back."

Tamsin stared at her, waiting for more. Bo studied the Valkyrie's beautiful face. Her golden locks were pulled back into a loose bun. Her thin brows were tense in anticipation. Her eyes, her beautiful eyes, were filled with such pain and want. Bo swallowed slowly as her breathing picked up. Tamsin's features loosened as Bo moved toward her.

"What do you want from me, Tamsin?" Bo asked tenderly.

"I just want you." The words were so foreign to Tamsin, who had been alone for centuries and never wanted company. Tamsin reached out her hand and held Bo's. "But I can't have you." Her voice broke and she looked away. Bo tightened her hold on Tamsin's hand. She pulled her toward her and held her in her arms.

"Tamsin. . ." Bo spoke softly next to Tamsin's ear and continued to hold her. She stared ahead into the nothingness that surrounded them, and suddenly everything became so clear to her. "Of all the fae I have met in the past three years. . .you are the most complicated. You're dark but all I see in you is light. You're fierce but all I feel is your kindness. You're so alone but you're so full of love." Bo pulled them apart now and held Tamsin's face so that she was looking at her. "You were wrong. You are wrong. About yourself. You are one of the good ones, and I love you for that."

Tamsin's knees nearly gave in and tears nearly escaped her eyes. "Can you just kiss me?" she pleaded.

Bo caressed her cheek and placed a fragile kiss on her lips. Tamsin leaned in and caught Bo's lips in another kiss, not allowing them to part. She wasn't going to let go this time. She had waited long enough; been respectful to Bo's feelings toward Lauren long enough; it was her turn. She moaned softly as she began exploring the space inside their kiss with her tongue. She reached out to Bo and Bo met her tongue inside her mouth and they moved together in harmony. Bo's acceptance pushed Tamsin into a deeper state of ecstasy. Tamsin pressed her body flush against Bo's as the passion grew. Bo moaned softly as her succubus desires awakened. She placed a hand firmly against Tamsin's bottom and slowly grinded Tamsin's core against her own. Tamsin could feel herself become wet as a warm throbbing sensation intensified in her groin. She pulled away from the kiss and threw her head back in a slow moan. Bo moved in on the exposed skin and kissed her neck. She ran her tongue along the length of the Valyrie's neck, sending the blonde into a greater state of desire. All Tamsin could think about right now was how much she wanted Bo; how badly she needed Bo inside of her, right now. Bo sucked gently and flicked her tongue on the skin right underneath Tamsin's jawline. Tamsin gasped weakly as she fell a little, grabbing Bo's shoulders tightly because she could no longer support her own weight. Bo slowly laid her down and straddled her. Both of their breaths were jagged and hot. Bo stripped off her own top to expose her black laced bra and toned abs. Tamsin swallowed hard as her lust for Bo peaked. She put her hands on Bo's slim waist and pulled her back against her body so that their skin touched. Bo ran her hand down the Valyrie's side and peeled up her thin white gown. Tamsin arched her back so Bo could take the clothing off completely.

"God you're beautiful," she whispered as she took in Tamsin's naked body. Tamsin whimpered quietly as Bo's hand made its way between her legs. Bo's eyes flickered bright blue as her fingers became drenched in Tamsin's desire. "Oh, Tamsin," she moaned. She kissed the Valkyrie and took a small taste of her intoxicating chi. "Fuck," Bo groaned in pleasure. Her finger tauntingly circled around Tamsin's outer lips and slowly moved up toward her clit. "You're going to like this." Bo flicked her middle finger hard across Tamsin's clit. Tamsin gasped and threw her back up in pleasure. Bo did it again right when the Valkyrie was about to regain composure.

"Bo!" she screamed as her fingers clawed the ground. "Fuck!"

Tamsin felt her body begin to tremble. Bo decided to calm things down, not wanting to send her into a climax too soon. She began kissing the Valkyrie again, this time at the base of her neck, along her clavicle. She lazily traced her tongue from the medial clavicle down to Tamsin's breast. Her tongue circled the enlarged areola at the base of her hard, protruding nipple. Tamsin shifted her body, desiring more. Bo obeyed and wrapped her mouth over the tip of her breast and sucked her nipple with a rhythmic pulse. Tamsin gasped sharply as her loins resumed throbbing. She was so wet now that she could feel herself drip down beneath her.

"Bo," she pleaded in a strained voice, "fuck me. Just do it."

The Valkyrie threw open her legs and began touching herself when Bo ignored her. Bo grabbed her hand and tsked three times.

"Not so fast, babe," she whispered. She shifted off of Tamsin's body and lied on her side next to her. She placed a hand underneath the small of the Valkyrie's back and gently lifted her up so that she was arched. She then placed her other hand on Tamsin's bare chest and pulled it straight down to her core, awakening every part of Tamsin's body. Then, finally, she thrust two fingers inside the virgin. Tamsin cried out as her tension was released. Before Bo could even enjoy what she had achieved, she blacked out again.

Bo's eyes opened and Tamsin was gone. She was no longer in the astral plane. Was that all just a dream? What the hell was going on? Bo sat up and observed her surroundings. She was now in a desert setting. Little grains of sand stung her as the wind blew against her face. The sun was merciless as it beat down against her skin. She hadn't realized that she was sweating until a drop of sweat dripped into her eye. Bo winced as the stinging sensation set in. She quickly wiped the sweat off her brow to prevent more sweat from assaulting her eyes. She needed to find shelter and water, fast.

Walking in sand was not an easy feat. She sank with every step and had to pick up her feet and whatever sand was sitting on top of it to make the next step. She was exhausted by the time she had walked a hundred feet. She was ready to collapse and call it a day when something glistening in the distance caught her eye. She squinted her eyes to try and make out the object, but it was too small. Driven by her curiosity, she managed to keep going. The sun had begun to set by the time she located the curious object. She used her hands to dig around the metallic object. It revealed itself to be a water canister. When she tried to pull it out of the ground, she realized it was attached to something buried even deeper. A few handfuls of sand revealed the canister was tied to a fresh, mutilated corpse. Bo nearly gagged. Trying not the look at or think about the corpse, she freed the canister as quickly as she could. She remembered the old lady had told her that there were two other people she was competing with. This must have been one of them. He must have been given the advantage of having water. Without a second thought, she quickly unscrewed the lid and poured the contents down her throat. The surprisingly cool water rushed through her body and provided a little relief from the heat of the sun. She capped the canister after one drink; she had to preserve what was left because she may not come across water again for a while. She continued to trek in one direction until the sun had completely set and left her in the dark. The feeling of hunger and thirst ate away her energy while she wasn't moving. She allowed herself another drink of water before falling asleep.

A freezing cold breeze woke Bo up in the middle of the night. She shivered as her teeth chattered violently. It was official. She hated the fucking desert. Hot as hell during the day and cold as fuck during the night. She began moving again, which warmed her up. On the horizon, she saw a bright red flame dance off the ground. Fire? Her instincts immediately warned her of danger. The second contestant must be up there. Her hunger and desperate need for warmth drove her closer to the enemy. When she approached the outskirts of the campsite, she laid herself completely on the ground and army crawled as slow as she could so the enemy wouldn't be alerted. It only took her about five minutes to get a clear view of the area. To her surprise, no one was there. She checked again before getting up and running over to the fire. She quickly sat down and rubbed her hands together near the fire. Her head turned in constant surveillance. Like the drink of water had replenished her, the warmth of the fire rekindled her determination to save Tamsin. Thoughts of the astral plane flashed through her head; Tamsin's warm body against her own, how it felt to be inside of her, how the strong and emotionally distant Valkyrie had just completely given herself to her. It was all so real. Bo sighed softly.

"It was real, Bo."

Bo literally jumped off her feet at the sound of Tamsin's voice.

"What the fae, Tamsin!" she exclaimed. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

Tamsin crossed her arms without regret. "Don't let your guard down like that."

Bo frowned. "It's not real. You're not real. How would you know what I was thinking of unless you were some creation of mine?"

Tamsin took a seat near the fire. "Are you really going to start that conversation? No matter what I say, you could use that as an answer. We would just go around in circles forever."

"Fine," Bo admitted. She looked over at Tamsin. The blonde was enjoying herself by the fire, seemingly without a care in the world. "Why do you keep appearing?"

Tamsin smiled warmly. "Because you want me to," she replied simply. Bo felt like a little kid who was caught with her hand in the cookie jar. "Every warrior has a guide through the trials. Your subconscious chose me." She paused and cocked her head to the side. "It was a good choice. Sensible. I'm not weak and traitorous like the human, and history shows that I am better at protecting you than the wolf."

"Aren't we full of ourselves today?" Bo snarked. Tamsin gave her a sarcastic smile.

"So what's next?" Bo asked.

Tamsin looked around. "Well, you saw what happened to that guy back there. You should watch out for whatever did that to him."

That was the most useless information that could have been given, Bo thought. She sighed and continued to survey the area. "So what happened in the astral plane. . ." Bo paused, not sure of how to phrase her question.

"No, you didn't make me mortal."

Bo nodded her head softly.

"Why did you come for me, Bo?" Tamsin asked. Bo looked up.

"I didn't mean to get you into this mess when I made that wish," Bo sighed. "So I'm going to get you out. I promise."

Tamsin didn't respond. She continued to stare into the crackling fire. "You got yourself into a lot more than you realized, then," Tamsin said.

Bo's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"When you wake a Valkyrie from Odin's spell, the Valkyrie is sworn to you."

"Sworn to me?" Bo repeated, not liking the sound of it. Tamsin sighed loudly and stood up.

"Yup." She began walking in the direction that Bo was originally heading.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Bo yelled, getting up to follow her.

. . . Disclaimer: The following lines in italics, used as mixture of narration/Tamsin's thoughts/soundtrack, are credited to the song "Somewhere Only We Know" by Keane. . .

I walked across an empty land. I knew the pathway like the back of my hand.

Tamsin navigated the desert sand with greater ease than Bo; she had seen many battles in the desert before. This terrain was familiar to her. Bo stumbled every now and then and muttered a curse word behind her, but Tamsin never stopped or slowed down. She purposefully kept a good distance between herself and Bo. The sun began to rise and revealed that Tamsin's instinct was right; they were headed straight toward the Euphrates River. She could hear Bo exclaim in excitement things about water and the river, but she didn't look back. Finally, she was so close to the riverbed that she could hear the sound of water crashing quietly against the earth.

I felt the earth beneath my feet. Sat by the river and it made me complete.

Tamsin cupped some water in her hand and brought it to her dry lips. She let out a low moan of pleasure as the water moistened and revitalized the inside of her mouth. She splashed her face a few times before stripping off her tank top and her pants. She jumped into the cold water and let it wash over her.

Oh simple thing where have you gone? I'm getting old and I need something to rely on. So tell me when you're gonna let me in. I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin.

She wondered how her life had gotten so complicated. Everything was so easy for her before Bo showed up. She hated the world and the world hated her. She never had doubt, fear, or pain. She never felt anything at all, really, and she was fine with that. Now everything she had known her whole life had been shattered. She felt so lost. A loud splash disrupted her thoughts and she turned she see Bo surface from underneath the water. She began swimming away with the current of the river.

"Tamsin! Stop!" Bo shouted. She sounded angrier than she had ever been.

I came across a fallen tree. I felt the branches of it looking at me. Is this the place we used to love? Is this the place that I've been dreaming of?

Tamsin's body violently slammed against the solid wood of the tree trunk that blocked further passage along the river. Bo finally caught up to her. Before Bo could say anything, Tamsin turned around.

"I love you, Bo! And I don't know what to do about it. I don't know what to do with this love. I-" Tamsin couldn't continue and tears and frustration overwhelmed her. Bo waded toward her and wrapped her arms around her waist.

"I know," she said to the blonde. "I know."

Tamsin cried for the first time in a really long time. Bo held her tightly as she buried her head inside of Bo's shoulder, all of which made her cry even harder.

Oh simple thing, where have you gone? I'm getting old and I need something to rely on. So tell me when you're gonna let me in. I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin. And if you have a minute why don't we go, talk about it somewhere only we know? This could be the end of everything; so why don't we go, somewhere only we know? Somewhere only we know?

Bo rubbed her back and soothed her until her sobs calmed. "I've had a lot of time to think while I was chasing you down back there," Bo said. "About you. Me. What this is between us. . ."

Tamsin didn't dare look at Bo; she listened quietly with her head resting on Bo's chest.

"I really didn't like you when we first met," Bo admitted. Tamsin laughed and wiped her nose with the back of her hand. "But then your actions just spoke so much louder than your words." She cupped Tamsin's head against her body and gently stroked her hair. "I don't know when, but I guess I've known for a while now that you didn't hate me either."

Tamsin felt her heart literally break with feelings. She finally pushed her head away from Bo's body and looked at Bo. Her body went numb when she felt the love in Bo's gaze.

Oh simple thing, where have you gone?
Bo urgently pulled Tamsin against her and kissed her.

I'm getting old and I need something to rely on.
Tamsin was so happy that she began crying again, but she held Bo's face against hers and kissed her through the tears. If she died now, she wouldn't care.

And if you have a minute why don't we go. . .

Bo shifted her hands underneath Tamsin's thighs and lifted her onto her hips. Tamsin wrapped her legs around Bo as they continued making out.

. . .talk about it somewhere only we know?

"I love you," Bo whispered as wisps of blue circled her eyes. Saying those words out loud to Tamsin ignited an unexpected and powerful feeling inside Bo. She knew in that moment that it was really true. She had fallen deeply in love with the Valkyrie. She felt Tamsin's wet lips encase hers, and then she blacked out again.

"Fuck this shit!" Bo growled angrily as she awoke again. She was no longer in the river or even in the desert. This had better not be some kind of mind game and end up being fake, she thought to herself. She looked around the new environment. It was then that she saw Tamsin's body. She was laid on a bed of flowers like the old lady had said. Bo walked over to where she was. She looked so peaceful in her sleep. As Bo leaned down to kiss her, she felt a sharp pain pierce her in the lower back. She screamed out in pain as a curved dagger went through her.

"She's mine!" her attacker snarled. Bo pulled out the dagger from her back and whimpered again in pain. Now fatally bleeding to death, she grabbed the large fae's throat and began seducing him. She was so weak that she could not maintain the seduction. She needed to feed immediately. With a deep inhale, a stream of blue chi flowed from the fae's spirit to her own. The fae struggled against her at first, but eventually succumbed. She finished sucking the last bit of life out of her enemy, knowing that if she didn't, he would try to kill her again.

"Congratulations." Bo turned around. The old lady was standing there with her cane again. "I am impressed, succubus. You have conquered your trials and your enemies."

"It really wasn't as bad as you made it sound," Bo said honestly. She seriously felt like the fae world liked to exaggerate the difficulty of things like this. Her dawning was an equally unimpressive life-threatening experience.

"That's because you are strong," the old lady suggested. She held her arm out toward Tamsin. "She is yours now. You are free to take her."

Bo didn't hesitate to return to Tamsin's side. She placed her palm on Tamsin's cheek and kissed the beautiful Valkyrie. Tamsin's eyelashes fluttered and then her eyes slowly opened.

"Bo," she whispered quietly. "You did it."

Bo smiled and laughed in disbelief. "It was real."

Tamsin nodded. "It was all real."

Bo leaned down and hugged her. "I love you, Tamsin," she said.

Tamsin took in a deep , satisfying breath as warm tears filled her eyes. "I love you, too," she replied.