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Alex sighed in irritation as they rode into the city. She felt J’onn’s amusement in the back of her mind and studiously ignored it. She just as studiously avoided looking at him riding at her side, knowing she’d find him sitting apparently relaxed in his saddle and just a hint of a smile tugging at his lips. Alex looked around casually, absently tugging her cloak closer and resisting the urge to run her thumb over her bare finger. Despite it being a not-infrequent occurrence, it was still disconcerting when she didn’t have the great serpent ring adorning her left hand.
She sensed J’onn’s questioning at her momentary discomfort and mentally sent back reassurance, still focused on their surroundings. She’d never much cared for Cairhien. And during the Feast of Lights? She wished she could be anywhere else. She could already see people flocking to prepare lanterns and lights though the Feast itself wouldn’t start until the following day—the last day of the year. She wondered if she’d be able to get out of Cairhien before it started. She had a sinking feeling that the answer to that question was a firm no.
J’onn broke her musings. “Where are we to meet her?”
Alex glanced over at him with a twist of her lips. “The Royal Sun which, despite its illustrious name, is in the Foregate. Outside the Dragonwall Gate.” It meant they’d have to circle around half the Light-blasted city. It would nearly be dark by the time they arrived, and if her contact hadn’t arrived yet… they would certainly have to wait until at least the next day to leave the city. Which meant tolerating at least the beginning of the Feast. She sighed again. Kara would love it. She’d always begged to come to Cairhien for the Feast of Lights and Alex had been grateful that the Tower didn’t exactly permit wandering around the countryside for Novices or Accepted. Of course, now Kara was a full sister like Alex herself, and Alex wouldn’t be at all surprised to find her in the city for the Feast.
Alex hoped she just didn’t have to see it. There was no doubt in her mind that her outgoing sister would take very well to the more… friendly… aspects of how Cairhien celebrated the new year. She shook her head slightly to dismiss those thoughts, the few tiny bells in her hair tingling ever so gently. Automatically, she guided her mare, Gertrude, in J’onn’s wake as he led the way to the other side of the city at a perfectly casual pace. He still sat his saddle comfortably, but Alex could feel the alertness in her mind, and she didn’t miss the way his sharp gaze darted around them. She followed his lead, having long learned the art of being alert while appearing not to. It was a useful skill for an Aes Sedai that frequently didn’t want to be recognized as one.
Finally, they reached the inn in question. The sun was starting to slip behind the Topless Towers of Cairhien and the shadows were swiftly growing longer. She grimaced and looked around, hoping to spot her contact. Nothing. Which meant she had to go inside after all. Grumbling to herself, Alex dismounted smoothly and handed the reins of Gertrude to J’onn. Once he had tied the horses to the railing, she deftly and subtly wove a weave of air, hobbling the horses in place. Anyone trying to steal them would get a very confusing surprise.
J’onn gave her a fond smile, no doubt at the feeling of satisfaction that was certainly radiating down the bond, then led her into the inn. Alex pursed her lips slightly at the interior but almost immediately, two men stepped in front of her and J’onn. She took an instinctive step back, grabbing saidar before narrowing her eyes. The way they stood…
They grinned, and the taller of the two, a handsome black man, inclined his head slightly. “Alex Sedai. I’m James. This is Winn.” His voice was only audible enough for her and J’onn to hear, a discretion Alex appreciated.
Alex barely refrained from rolling her eyes. “Gaidin,” she responded briefly.
They both turned to J’onn and greeted him as well with clear respect. Alex wondered if they’d trained under J’onn at some point at the Tower. James then turned back to her, the clear spokesman for the duo, and courteously gestured her further into the inn’s common room. Alex followed him, resigned but didn’t release the One Power. Just because she’d gotten used to places like this over the years, traveling on missions for the Blue Ajah, didn’t mean she trusted the inhabitants. Especially not this close to what she knew would be a beyond boisterous celebration.
The sudden spike of surprise and amused resignation down the bond from J’onn abruptly made Alex wonder just who the two Warders’ Aes Sedai was. She had a very bad feeling she knew who, however at the feelings from J’onn. Sure enough, once James had stepped out of her line of sight, she found one of the last people she’d wanted to be working with sitting casually at a corner table.
“Maggie,” she greeted flatly.
Maggie Sedai simply grinned at her. “You know, with all the secrets and codes, I figured it had to be a Blue. But I have to say… I wasn’t really expecting it to be you.”
Alex’s lips pressed together tightly. “Why did they send you?”
Maggie rolled her eyes and waved Alex to the seat opposite her. “Sit down, Alex. You look suspicious staring at me like you want to rip my head off.”
Alex grumbled under her breath but did as requested. The men all took up seats at a nearby table, to all outward appearances simply drinking and debating whether to start dicing or cards. Alex huffed. It wasn’t that she didn’t like Maggie Sedai; it was just that she and the Green sister had never had much use for each other. Only a couple of years apart in age, Maggie’s flight from her family and Tear upon learning she could channel had placed her several years ahead of Alex at the White Tower. Equals by every metric the Tower employed, they’d still rarely crossed paths once Alex had been raised as a full sister a few years after Maggie. The last time had actually been… well, the last Feast of Lights only back in Tar Valon itself. The Tar Valon celebration wasn’t nearly as… uninhibited as Cairhien’s but there was certainly enough alcohol flowing to loosen anyone’s reserve. Which Alex had learned firsthand when she found herself being kissed within an inch of her life by one Maggie Sedai in a dark corner of the city. And then the woman had vanished, leaving Alex flummoxed and mentally cursing the other woman.
Shaking away the memories, Alex focused on the woman in front of her. She couldn’t deny that Maggie Sedai was charismatic when she wanted to be. Petite and charming with dimples that she seemed to know how to use to her best advantage. Not that Alex was interested in her dimples, of course. Or the way her hair seemed to gleam in the low lighting of the bar, or her dark eyes caught the light just so, making them seem to dance with amusement.
Pushing those thoughts away as well, and grateful for the low light because it also hid her blush, Alex asked again, “What are you doing here?”
Maggie ignored the question, looking around the common room. “Take a look around. What do you see?”
Alex huffed, annoyed at being ignored but gave a brief glance around the room. “People who have made questionable life choices.”
Maggie huffed something that might be related to a laugh and rolled her eyes. “Look again.”
Rolling her own eyes, Alex did as she was bid, studying the room’s occupants more closely now. No one was paying them any particular attention, for which she was grateful. Her eyes skipped over a person walking toward them with a knife drawn. There was a second, approaching from the other side, and her gaze slid past that one as well. Never had she been as grateful to have still been holding saidar as at that moment, as her sharpened senses from the Power flowing through her finally registered what she’d seen. Her shock caused J’onn’s head to whip up and around just as Alex, flung herself at Maggie, raising a shield of air as she did so.
The knife of the first one bounced off and she slashed at him. He dodged but his distraction with Alex caused him to dodge right into J’onn’s sword. Alex straightened and spun toward the second person, a woman she realized. Maggie and her Warders had already done quick work, however. They stared at each other, then slowly looked around the room.
It was deathly silent for a long moment; then, almost as one, the inhabitants seemed to shrug and turned back to their drinks and gambling. Alex let out a slow breath of relief. Quietly, she said, “We should leave.”
Maggie nodded tightly. “Yes. But not the city.”
Alex scowled. “Why not?”
Maggie suddenly smiled brightly. “Two reasons.” The brilliance briefly took Alex’s breath away.
“Which are?” Alex growled out to cover her distraction when the other woman stopped speaking.
“Which are… ones we will discuss when we’re somewhere else. I know a place.”
“Is it as… charming… as this one?” Alex asked dryly.
Maggie just laughed. “Better.”
Alex rolled her eyes. Even granting an inability to lie, somehow, she doubted that. She had a feeling her definition of “better” and Maggie’s were quite different.
Sure enough, the next inn was barely indistinguishable from the first, except that it was in an entirely different part of the Foregate, being closer to the northern Jangai Gate than the Eastern Dragonwall Gate. It was simply called “The Flute,” and Alex sighed, hoping that didn’t mean it would be home to incessant musicians playing. Fortunately, no gleeman or bard was in sight when they entered, and Alex followed Maggie to another corner table in the back of a common room that she would’ve been hard-pressed to distinguish from the previous if she hadn’t known they were in a different inn entirely.
She looked around after they sat and commented dryly, “Better?”
Maggie simply flashed her a smile, dimples and all. “Well, it currently lacks people trying to kill us.”
Alex couldn’t stop the half-chuckle at that. She supposed the other woman had a point there. She nodded absently as a serving maid asked them if they wanted ale. She doubted they had many choices anyway. They sat in silence until the mugs of ale were deposited, then Alex wove a subtle ward that would keep people away from their table as well as one to prevent eavesdropping.
Maggie smiled in amusement. “Blues,” was her simple comment.
Alex rolled her eyes. “Sorry, we don’t have anyone to stab here, Green.”
Maggie chuckled. “Touché.” She leaned back in her seat and took a sip of the ale. Alex smirked slightly as she caught an imperfectly concealed grimace at the taste. Maggie set her mug down deliberately and then cocked an eyebrow at Alex. “So, why am I here?”
Alex sighed and took a sip of her own ale. She was long since used to tastes like this, given she and J’onn mostly frequented small taverns like this one as they tried to stay inconspicuous in their travels. “Word is he has an army. At least a small one.” She quirked a smile that was on the line between teasing and taunting. “Seemed like a member of the Battle Ajah was prudent.”
Maggie nodded thoughtfully. “We should leave after the Feast.”
Alex pursed her lips. That was the second time the woman had suggested they couldn’t leave the city yet. “Why?”
Maggie simply smiled, clearly unfazed by Alex’s glare. “First, it would look suspicious, and you know it.”
Alex rolled her eyes but silently had to concede that it was a good point. Unfortunately, with the Feast of Lights starting at midnight, everyone was coming into the city, and a party of two women and three… well… two clearly dangerous men plus a third that somehow didn’t seem dangerous and yet fit would be noticed. After all, it was the Feast of Lights. The one time of year the Cairhienin lightened up and pretty much anything went. Who in their right mind would leave the city the day before or, even more odd, the day of the Feast starting?
She sighed soundlessly. “And the second. You said there were two.” Maybe she could just hide in her room for the next two days.
Maggie’s grin broadened, dimples deepening. “We should enjoy the Feast. After all, Cairhien goes all out.”
Alex huffed. “You can enjoy it.”
“Oh, come on, Alex.” Maggie’s smile turned coaxing. “There’s no harm in enjoying the Feast of Lights. Even a Blue can’t be all about work.”
“I…” she trailed off at the amusement tinged with encouragement that came down the bond. She shot a look at J’onn, who outwardly looked completely bland. “I’ll think about it.” She rose. “I assume we’re going to stay here?”
Maggie nodded and Alex untied the wards, allowing them to dissipate. “I will see you in the morning,” Alex stated stiffly and immediately headed for the innkeeper to secure a room for herself and J’onn.
J’onn waited until they were upstairs, secured in their room, before speaking. He unbuckled his sword and hung it from the bedpost closest to the door. It was understood that he would be between Alex and the doorway. “You should go out into the city tomorrow.”
Alex huffed. “Why?” She lit the already laid fire with a quick weave and set water to boil for tea. “It’s just going to be a bunch of people—”
“Having fun?” he interrupted.
Alex huffed again. “It’s a waste of time. We should be completing our mission.”
She felt the beginnings of what she feared was disappointment and swiftly masked the bond. He sighed audibly. “Alex. Your father would not want you to refuse to live your life. There is too much of it in front of you.”
Alex snorted. “Yeah? Well, tell that to my mother.”
She felt his hand rest solidly on her shoulder, startling slightly as she hadn’t heard him move. “I know. But she’s wrong. And…” he paused, then continued, “Kara isn’t here. It’s just two days. Celebrate the new year then we can continue.”
“With Cairhienin,” she responded dryly but already knew she’d agreed.
He clearly knew it, too, as she caught the flash of a smile out of the corner of her eye. “Well, there will probably be fewer duels, at least.”
She couldn’t help but chuckle. It was true. Duels were common in her home country and when emotions were high during celebrations such as the Feast of Lights? Even more common. She unmasked the bond and nodded. “Fine. I will… leave the rooms.” She very carefully didn’t say when or for how long and suspected he caught that as well. He didn’t call her out on it, however. Simply nodded and patted her shoulder before continuing to get ready for bed while she made their nightly tea.
Alex sighed to herself as she prowled the city. She’d already had to dodge far too many men trying to steal a kiss, remembering just why she’d never wanted to attend the Feast of Lights in Cairhien. Beyond simply meaning far too many people crowding the streets, drinking, and generally carrying on, in Cairhien, it meant the loosening of basically all inhibitions. Anyone was permitted to kiss anyone, and they took full advantage of the fact. She’d seen a variety of people that she was certain were nobles who normally wouldn’t be caught dead in the Foregate. But here they were now, partying and practically having sex in the streets.
She could feel J’onn’s amusement at her annoyance radiating down the bond even as he assiduously kept people away from her. Determined, she turned her steps back toward the inn. As far as she was concerned, she could stay in her room the rest of that day and the next until they could finally leave. J’onn could go celebrate with Maggie’s Warders. Alex would be fine on her own.
“J’onn?” She sensed him lean closer. “I’ll stay in my room. If you wish to find Maggie Sedai’s Warders, I will be fine on my own.”
“Are you sure, Alex?”
She nodded and flashed him a small smile. “Positive. I can defend myself. You saw to that yourself.”
He studied her for a long moment, then nodded. “Keep the bond open. If you mask it, then I will assume there is trouble.”
She smiled fondly and patted his arm. “I will but I am sure I will be quite the boring presence in your head.”
He returned the smile. “Never.” Carefully, he guided her back to the room and, after confirming she was fine on her own, left the inn. She settled in the one chair in the small room and pulled out a leatherbound journal, intent on cataloging her observations and notes and further analyzing the data she had so far. Everything they’d found so far pointed to a small stronghold of Darkfriends in Kinslayer’s Dagger to the north, led by someone claiming to be the Dragon. She snorted at the thought as she flipped through her notes. Not a single prophecy had been met and there wasn’t even an indication this man could channel, but apparently, that meant nothing. And if the stories she’d carefully logged about his “army’s” activities were correct… at a minimum, his army was infested with Darkfriends even if he, himself, turned out not to be one.
She’d gotten so lost in her notes and analysis that a knock at the door startled her. Scowling, she stood and, seizing saidar, stalked to the door. “What?” she growled as she pulled it open, the fingers of one hand already starting a defensive weave just in case. She blinked in surprise, the weave immediately unraveling without conscious thought as she was confronted with the smiling face of Maggie on the other side.
“What do you want?” Alex asked, completely flummoxed.
Maggie looked past her and didn’t answer right away. “Have you been in here all day?”
“No,” Alex responded defensively. “J’onn and I were in the city earlier.”
Maggie nodded, then refocused on Alex. “Come on.”
Alex blinked. “I beg your pardon?”
“It’s the Feast of Lights! Even Alex Sedai, great… whatever… for the Blue Ajah shouldn’t be holed up inside with notes instead of celebrating the new year.”
“I…” Alex didn’t get further as Maggie grabbed her wrist—gently—and pulled her out of the room. Alex dug in her heels. “At least let me set my wards,” she grumbled.
Laughing, Maggie stopped. “Fine.”
Alex blushed and fought to pretend she wasn’t. Her request had revealed what Alex hadn’t even yet been consciously aware of—that she was, in fact, going to leave with Maggie and… celebrate… the Feast of Lights. Grumbling to herself, she turned and deftly set wards on the room to keep people from snooping. As soon as she was done, Maggie grabbed her hand and started dragging her along the hallway again. Blushing even more, Alex tried to distract herself from the warmth of Maggie’s hand by looking around the hallway. Not that there was much to see other than a few other doors, one of which she could see the weaves set around much like her own. Maggie’s room. Alex felt the blush deepening and yanked her eyes away.
Once they were back outside in the throng, Alex disentangled their hands. “So… we’re outside. Now what?”
“Come on, Alex, loosen up.” Alex gave her an unimpressed look. Maggie shook her head but looked… amused? Alex cocked her head. Maybe even… fond?
Alex sighed and muttered, “Fine. Maybe we can find some members of that ‘army’ and learn more with their tongues loosened from all this alcohol.”
Maggie’s answering smile was definitely fond this time. “Sure. We can try. They were up in Kinslayer’s Dagger, right? Let’s hit the northern edge of the Foregate then.”
Alex nodded and they made their way through the sprawl of the Foregate, deftly dodging men and women alike that tried to get too close. Eventually, Alex asked, “Where are James and Winn?”
Unerringly, Maggie pointed first to their left, then right. Alex nodded slightly and pointed just behind them when Maggie asked the same about J’onn. Alex hoped they wouldn’t need the help, though. Causing a disruption and attracting attention wasn’t high on her list. It would only make their mission more difficult. At least she felt like they were doing something now. Even if that something might not be all that productive given the sheer masses of people. So, resigned, she trailed along, carefully listening to the boasting and raucous conversations at each inn.
As they wandered, they acquired drinks, slowly draining them away and almost immediately having new ones shoved into their hands. Just as slowly, Alex found herself relaxing. She still kept an ear out for information they could use but gradually, she engaged in casual conversation with Maggie, finding the other woman to be intelligent and somewhat less impulsive than she’d expected from a member of the Green Ajah. She supposed she hadn’t had the greatest sample size of members, her own sister being the most prominent. And, well, if anyone accused Kara of being cautious or methodical then it would be the Light’s own miracle.
They loitered over drinks as night fell, and Alex studied her companion with interest. The nearby torchlight cast interesting shadows on Maggie’s face and picked up highlights in her dark hair. She appeared far more comfortable than Alex and had all day. When Maggie looked over with a questioning look, Alex commented, “You seem very at home in the Foregate. Why?”
Maggie looked away, considering the question. After a long moment, she answered with a small shrug, “I can relate to them, I guess.”
Alex blinked. Not at all what she’d expected. But it was clear the woman wasn’t referring to any sort of parallel between the Foregate and Tar Valon. “How?”
“You know I’m from Tear?” Alex nodded. Women’s home countries weren’t exactly a secret in the Tower, maybe especially when they were from Tear. The country that immediately shipped any woman who could channel to the Tower and barely tolerated full Aes Sedai within its borders, and then only if they agreed not to channel.
Maggie nodded as well. “My family wasn’t exactly from the well-off parts of the city. And, of course, once they found out I could channel… I was lucky to escape to the river to head North.”
Alex frowned at what the woman wasn’t saying. “They didn’t want you to come to the Tower?”
Maggie scoffed. “They’d rather I was dead. As far as they’re concerned, I am. But I made it.” She nodded at the milling people around them, dancing and singing in the light from the various torches and lanterns as night fell and the Feast of Lights became even rowdier. “They’re not much different from people I grew up with, or even than the Aes Sedai, though they’d probably deny it. They’re just hardworking immigrants or refugees trying to get by. Sometimes having to hide who they are in order to do so.” She made a gesture that was subtle yet managed to convey how both she and Alex were hiding who they were so as not to draw attention. “Not so different from us, really.”
Alex nodded thoughtfully. Arafel didn’t exactly get a lot of immigrants and refugees, except from other Borderland nations. Most people wanted away from the Blight and its dangers, not closer.
Maggie looked over and asked suddenly, “Why didn’t you join the Greens?”
Alex blinked in surprise. “Why would I?”
Maggie cocked her head. “It’s not an accusation. It just seems that most Borderlanders do.”
Alex shrugged uncomfortably. “Not all. My mother is a Yellow.”
Maggie’s eyebrows rose in surprise. Not that Alex could blame her. Alex didn’t exactly talk much about her family, but she’d have thought the information would have spread anyway. After all, it wasn’t exactly common for an Aes Sedai’s own daughter to join and Kara wasn’t exactly the most taciturn either. “But your sister did.” She sounded amused. “Collecting them all, hm? A few more family members and you could cover them all.”
Alex barked a short laugh. That wasn’t usually the reaction she got. Most people just pressed the issue, wondering why she didn’t follow her mother into the Yellows, given her Talent for Healing, or choose Green like other Borderlanders. “Well, Kara’s cousins help with that.” Technically, they were only Kara’s cousins by marriage since her actual cousin was a Warder himself but… Kara called them her cousins, and Alex had adopted the sentiment.
“Ah, right.” Something odd flickered across Maggie’s face at the mention of Kara. “Lois ended up in the Grays, didn’t she?”
Alex nodded, then smiled faintly. “But her sister is also a Green. So, I suppose we’re still a bit stereotypical.”
Maggie chuckled and drained her mug. “More?”
Alex considered, then shrugged. “Sure.”
After that, the conversation drifted to lighter topics. Things they’d each seen in travels away from the Tower. The antics of their respective Warders—Maggie had far more of these sorts of stories than Alex. Alex made up for it by relaying some of the more amusing anecdotes about Kara and her cousins, particularly the time when, when they were young, Clark had tried to throw Kara in a pond, and she’d instinctively retaliated with a lash of air that dragged him in with her. Followed by his then-girlfriend and just raised Aes Sedai, Lois, and her sister, Lucy, as each tried to grab another to stop their momentum.
They continued drinking and Alex forgot about listening for information on their target. Maggie’s eyes sparkled in the lights as she talked about things she’d seen. Her dimples seemed to be even deeper in the shadows as the torchlight danced. The swell of the music and dancing and celebrating ebbed and flowed around them, but Alex found she couldn’t take her eyes off Maggie, nor did she want to.
They swapped stories of how they each met their Warders. Alex had known J’onn since she was a child. He was a close friend of her father’s, and his wife, his Aes Sedai, was killed in the same battle with Darkfriends that took Alex’s father. J’onn’s promise to watch out for Jeremiah’s daughters had been the only reason he hadn’t followed his wife into death at the hands of Trollocs. Maggie had met James first, breaking up a fight in Tanchico. Winn had shown up within days, James’s partner and a former Illuminator. Maggie had shrugged, decided his skills with explosives outweighed his lack of fighting training (and not wanting to separate the two of them), and offered to bond them both.
“So, why don’t you like the Feast of Lights?” Maggie’s question pulled Alex out of absent musings.
“What?”
“Why don’t you like the Feast of Lights?” Maggie asked again, watching Alex curiously.
Alex’s brow furrowed. “I don’t dislike the Feast of Lights.”
Maggie arched an eyebrow. “Could’ve fooled me.”
Alex rolled her eyes. It was the truth, and she knew Maggie knew that given the Oaths. “I just…” She trailed off, not certain how to say what she meant without being offensive and while being able to say it. Sometimes the inability to lie was inconvenient.
Maggie grinned and teased, “Just don’t like people?”
Alex huffed. “Something like that,” she muttered. She looked at the crowds around them and waved a hand. “All this… chaos. You can’t clearly see people. There could be Darkfriends or worse.” In the Borderlands, no one was permitted to conceal their face, and cities were brightly lit even at night to prevent the Dark One’s creatures from using the shadows.
Maggie looked around and nodded thoughtfully. “True. I hadn’t really thought about how different that would be to a Borderlander.”
Alex shrugged awkwardly. “Some things stick with you,” she said awkwardly, unwilling to voice the other reason the Cairhien celebration made her uncomfortable. Though it was very hard to ignore the people practically having sex in the streets as it got later and later. In fact… she glanced at the sky. It was nearing midnight. Soon it would be a new year.
Maggie interrupted her thoughts once again. “You know, there is a benefit to this particular version of celebrating.”
Alex gave her a skeptical look. “What’s that?”
Maggie smiled slyly. “In Cairhien, the tradition is that anyone can kiss anyone. No worries about propriety or station or anything.”
Alex tensed. Oh. Maggie wanted to go… kiss people. Just like last year. She supposed she couldn’t blame the woman. She was gorgeous and Alex had heard more than one quiet rumor in the Tower about Maggie’s liaisons. “I see.” She downed the rest of her current cup of ale and stood. “Well, don’t let me keep you. I’ll see you after the Feast.” The difference between last year and this year was that Alex wasn’t going to let herself be just another one of the beautiful woman’s conquests.
Maggie stood with her, a look of confusion on her face. “What? Where are you going?”
“Back to the inn. I’m sorry for inhibiting your celebration of the Feast of Lights and new year.” Alex knew her voice sounded stilted, but she couldn’t help it. With a brief nod, she turned and left the tavern they’d ended up in. A swift glance around helped her orient herself and she started making her way back toward the inn they had their rooms in, feeling J’onn off to her left starting to move as well. She suspected he would either intercept her eventually or rejoin her at the inn.
A hand on her arm spun her around, and, instinctively, she grabbed saidar. She could feel J’onn’s alarm as well and he suddenly was moving toward her far more rapidly. Her weave of air and fire, meant to blast whoever had grabbed her backward, met a shield, and she blinked in surprise.
“Whoa, Alex!”
Maggie’s voice penetrated her alarm and she relaxed slightly but continued to hold the One Power. She felt J’onn’s alarm also subside slightly, though he continued to get nearer. Alex scowled at the other woman. “What in the Light’s name are you doing, Maggie?”
She held up her hands slightly and Alex could sense she wasn’t holding onto the Power. “I don’t think I was clear before.”
“I thought you were.”
“Mm, given how you bolted, I think I wasn’t.”
Alex frowned in confusion. “What do you mean?”
“Anyone can kiss anyone. No worries about propriety or stations,” Maggie reiterated.
Alex’s frown deepened. “You said that,” she stated tightly.
“And… and…” Maggie sighed, then abruptly tugged on the arm she was still holding. Her other hand came up to gently cup the back of Alex’s head and she pressed their lips together. Alex froze, her mind racing. Her brain had only just caught up with what was happening when Maggie pulled back with a soft smile. “Wow,” Alex murmured. “What… what was that?”
Maggie’s smile widened and she responded quietly, “And I just want to kiss you.”
“Oh.” The word was barely a sound.
Maggie’s smile turned hesitant. “Alex?”
Alex blinked, focusing. “I… others?” She couldn’t quite get a coherent sentence out. She didn’t want to ruin this, but… she had to know.
Maggie sighed and Alex was suddenly aware that one of her hands was still in Alex’s hair when Maggie shifted it to cup her face gently. “I’m sorry I ran. You terrify me. But I’ve realized since last year to now… life is too short, even for us. We should be who we are and kiss the girls we want to kiss.”
Alex stared for a long moment, processing the words. Then she grinned and pulled Maggie back in for another kiss, masking the bond as she did so, having already felt J’onn’s nearby presence and warm approval. She knew he’d stay nearby and keep an eye out until they went back to the inn but there was no reason for him to feel… everything. Then she was too focused on the feel of the other woman’s soft, warm lips against hers to worry about J’onn. Or anything else.
A distant tolling eventually penetrated their awareness and they pulled apart slowly, both breathing heavily. Maggie listened for a moment, then smiled brilliantly. “Midnight. It’s a new year. Happy Feast of Lights, Alex.”
Alex grinned back and pulled Maggie closer once more, murmuring against her lips, “Happy Feast of Lights.” They’d head back to the inn. Eventually.