by Marie Brown
arrived. They'd lived together peacefully for thousands of years, the golden period of the First Age, but then something changed. Lorrine really had no idea what. Personally, she suspected human greed. But whatever the reason, relations between the races had deteriorated, all the way down into the Great War. Supposedly before the War the Dargasi lands had been lush farmlands. Not any more, as Lorrine could personally attest.
Every once in a while, remains of the long-ago forest poked up, in the form of tree stumps that were about the size of a small house. They made Lorrine feel uncomfortable, like skeletons left unburied on a battlefield. But the trees were long dead, and well beyond caring. This was the Third Age now, after all, although she couldn't remember what marked the transition between the Second and Third ages.
Uncomfortable or not, she made good time, walking steadily through the scarred lands. Once again, she walked right up until dusk, then had a meager dinner and laid down. This time, she fell asleep more easily, tired through to the bone by the long day.
Sometime in the chill of the night, Lorrine dreamed very vividly that Kama lay in bed with her. The dream was so vivid that she actually felt warmer. So she cuddled closer to the dream-woman, feeling the warmth ease her down into a much deeper sleep.
But then, who knew how much later, the birds woke, and so did Lorrine. And she found herself sharing her blanket with a real woman.
She felt a brief instant of panic, wondering who the hell shared her bedroll, then actually looked at who shared her bed. That was Kama's lovely blonde hair. No matter how short she'd cut it, the color remained the same. And Kama's body lay in her arms, she knew. Just because she'd never really awakened to find herself holding Kama didn't mean she hadn't done so frequently in her dreams.
Lorrine touched Kama wonderingly, stroking down her side, feeling the soft and warm reality. She leaned in close, so close that the scent of Kama's hair made her head spin, and whispered in her ear.
"Wake up, Kama. Wake up, and talk to me."
Kama woke quickly, eyes suddenly open, heart pounding. She looked around her, then relaxed back into Lorrine's arms.
"Lorrine," she said, then rolled over under the blankets to face Lorrine, and kissed her.
Lorrine had a brief moment of shock before her hormones surged up and took charge. How much would Kama let her get away with? Would the woman just up and disappear?
Or would she drive Lorrine absolutely out of her mind with passion and love. . .
"Kama, what are you doing here?"
"Hush," Kama replied, sliding her hands under clothing. "Don't say anything."
Am I dreaming?
But no, a dream wouldn't include birds warming up for their morning chorus, or the way the air stung her face outside the blankets, or that stupid rock that came back every time she moved it. Did the thing have feet and a brain, or what?
Then Lorrine realized she didn't care if this was real or a dream. She had Kama in her arms, and the world was beautiful, and she would damn well enjoy this moment for all it was worth.
And what a moment! Lorrine had never experienced such intense pleasure in her life. If she'd actually known how wonderful it would be, laying with a woman, she never would have developed those stupid prejudices. Because a woman knew all the right places to touch, and the importance of kissing, and caused no pain.
"Are you real, Kama?" Lorrine asked, as she lay contentedly in Kama's embrace.
"Of course I'm real. Do you think a dream is ever that good?"
Lorrine chuckled. "Not likely. But I thought you were in Eirian?"
"Clearly, I'm not," Kama laughed at her. "I'm right where I belong, and I'm not going anywhere. That is, if you'll let me stay?"
"Let you! Kama, I'm never going to let you go. I'll just hold you forever, keep you here, not let you leave. I don't want to face life alone."
"I don't, either," Kama said, eyes clouding. "That's why-"
"No," Lorrine interrupted, laying her fingers over Kama's lips. "No. Don't say it. I don't ever want to know what made you choose to be with me."
Kama blinked, surprise clearing the clouds from her eyes. "You don't?"
"Not a bit," Lorrine replied firmly. "Maybe someday, if you stay with me long enough, I'll ask. But not now. If you tell me the reason, that will take away some of the magic."
Kama laughed.
"How did you find me, anyway? I'm not exactly traveling slowly along the main road, after all."
"Magic," Kama replied, with a mysterious smile. "I ran like the wind."
"Oh, you're pulling my leg. Did you catch a ride with someone?"
"No." Kama shook her head, then changed the subject. "So where are we going?"
Lorrine grinned. "I love what you just said. We. Where are we going."
"Get used to hearing that word. Now, I repeat, where are we going?"
"I was heading straight for the temple. After all, everybody except me seems to think I'm some kind of paladin. But now, you're here. Want to go investigate those shadows?"
"Sure," Kama agreed readily. "After all, I've nothing else to do. Why not?"
"Wow," Lorrine said, eyes widening. "Kama, you're in the same boat I am! Homeless, jobless, just a feckless wanderer without even a Seeker's wagon."
"Feckless? I must protest your choice of wording, madam!" Kama tweaked Lorrine's nose, grinning, then kissed her and tossed the blankets off. Lorrine yelped and made a grab for the covers as Kama stood up.
"Kama, what are you doing? Trying to freeze me to death?"
"Not hardly. But the sun's well up, we should be on the way, now that we've got a destination. How far is this place, anyway?"
"Not horribly," Lorrine replied, scrambling into her clothing. Which, of course, felt damn near as cold as the air, since it'd gotten shoved out into the open. "Thtock! It's cold. I liked holding you much better than this getting dressed business. You're warm."
Kama laughed, then slipped into Lorrine's arms, wearing nothing but her tunic. "Poor desert rose, all frozen in the autumn morning."
"You're better than a fire," Lorrine murmured, kissing Kama's neck. "I love you."
Kama sighed, melting into Lorrine's arms. "I've waited a long time to hear you say that."
"No more waiting. I'm done being stupid."
Slowly, reluctantly, Lorrine let go and resumed the dressing process. She kept a close eye on Kama, though, just in case the woman disappeared. Besides, she was worth watching. Where had she gotten such a thoroughly practical traveling outfit? She even had an outer tunic with a hood, for lousy weather.
Kama, it seemed, had hit the road with a far larger bankroll than Lorrine. She had brought actual food in her pack, some very carefully protected eggs and a big fat sausage, among other things. Such as rolls. And a small pan.
"And here I thought you were a city girl," Lorrine said, amazed, as sausage slices began sizzling in the hot cast iron.
"I am. But I'm no stranger to the road. I may have been in Eirian before you got there, but I certainly wasn't born there."
"Where were you born, anyway? I know very little of your past."
"Ha! As I know little of yours. I came from the far north, just shy of the Worldcrest. But you'll not get me talking about my life before I met you anytime soon. Well, the parts before I reached Eirian, anyway."
"Fair enough, I suppose. Considering I don't want to talk about my family, either."
By the time they'd eaten, cleaned up, and gotten back on the dirt path that passed for a road out here, the sun rode much higher in the sky than Lorrine had been used to seeing. But she couldn't have cared less. What point in hurrying along? This trip had transformed into a life of pure pleasure, no longer the pointless trekking of the previous days.
They reached a town midafternoon, one with an inn. Although it seemed rather a small and scruffy inn, Kama still produced some coins from her pack and paid for a room for the night.
"I think I'm jealous," Lorrine commented, as they found their way to the rented room.
"You've got everything in that pack of yours! All I've got is the clothes I stand in and some really dry jerky."
Kama laughed. "Now that's where you're wrong. You don't really think I'm going to keep all the money and food to myself, do you? Silly girl."
"How'd you get so rich, anyway?"
"Teaching," Kama shrugged. "The school paid a stipend on top of room and board. I didn't have much to spend it on, so now we've got plenty for inns and such."
"Good," Lorrine said. "This must be it."
She opened the door at the end of the hallway. A modest room looked back at her, not much more than a bed, some shelves, and a washstand.
"Nothing special, but it'll do," Kama judged. "Want to go find that public bathhouse the innkeep mentioned?"
"Of course. I wish I could find a laundry, too. These clothes are getting pretty rank."
"So they are," Kama agreed, nose wrinkled. "We'll figure something out. Soon. Before you start attracting wildlife."
Lorrine laughed.
The public bathhouse sat next door to the inn. It had the typical configuration of an Ancient site, with plumbing suspended from the ceiling, a drain in the floor, and a fat copper boiler steaming away off to the side. Turn a valve, and warm water came down from above, like a tame rainstorm.
"Sometimes I wish I was an Ancient," Lorrine confessed, as they cleaned each other up. "It must have been incredible to live when all this stuff was new."
"Maybe. But as for myself, I'm glad you're alive now."
They kissed, right there in the middle of the spraying water. "Not here," Kama murmured. "In the room. Too slippery here for what I want to do to