Syl's lips quivered as they slowly parted.

Amon's hand tilted her chin upward, and the warmth of his skin felt burning hot compared to her own.

His eyes were calm and unhurried. They were natural, comfortable, and comforting.

The candlelight bent as if sensing that something inside the room had changed. Shadows pulsed over the lines of his shoulders, and over the slope of her neck. Neither of them moved, yet the space separating them was slowly shortening, slowly disappearing.

Syl found herself at a loss. She had no idea what to say, or what to do.

Presently, there was nothing she wanted to say or do. There wasn't anything she wanted to think about. There was nothing to think about.

Staring into his eyes so closely, feeling his presence so close to her, feeling his skin against her own, Syl found herself forgetting about every little thing that usually continually spun inside her mind.

The anger, the shame, the humiliation.

The tribe, the betrayal, the weakness.

The anxiety, the fear, and the uncertainty of her future.

All seemed to have suddenly disappeared, vanishing without a trace.

All that remained was his gaze, his eyes fixated on hers, and his hand digging into her skin.

Not really knowing why, Syl found herself leaning forward, leaning towards him, further decreasing the distance between them.

Amon responded in kind.

Syl felt the urge to open her eyes as a sudden stroke of fear shot across her face, but she resisted.

She kept her eyes closed, trusting him fully, wanting him to further make her forget about everything.

Their kiss was shallow at first, as if stolen.

His hand moved from her cheek to the back of her head, and pulled her closer.

Each passing moment made Syl's insctincts flare up. To be so close to someone while also keeping one's eyes closed was unthinkable for a warrior. At least, that's what half of her body screamed.

The other half screamed differently. It shouted, and begged.

For the first time since being carried by the Hobgoblin Chief as a child, Syl felt safe in another's embrace, allowed another to touch her, allowed herself to drop her guard.

As Amon's tongue searched for hers, Syl felt her hands crave more, crave him.

Her hands reached for him, trembling. One hand lay on his chest, while the other curled around the curvature of his elbow. She wasn't pulling him closer. Her hand simply held him by the elbow, keeping him in place, keeping him from moving away.

An electric pulse traveled up her palm each time that she felt his heart beat below her hand.

It was beating fast. Another physical reaction that made Syl further believe his words, further believe that he liked her, that he fancied her, that he saw her for who and what she was, not as a tool to be used to obtain something.

Syl shivered as Amon's hand threaded through her hair, pulling her closer, deepening the kiss further. She took hold of his other hand and brought it to her own chest, to her own heart.

Her entire body seemed to protest as his hand lay on such a sensitive and dangerous spot. Her warrior instincts, honed through the years, fought against her desire for closeness. To trust someone, anyone, enough to give them one's heart was pure madness.

An image of Amon fighting just a little earlier by using the very claws on that hand appeared in Syl's mind, and she couldn't stop the goosebumps from taking her over. It was dangerous, very dangerous, and felt so incredibly good.

Before Syl knew it, her tongue was searching for his, moving just as wildly as his, and dancing in perfect unison with his.

[Your Skill "Palm Of The Devourer" is Resonating!]

[The Black Stone is Resonating!]

The System Messages made Amon momentarily pause, and allowed Syl just enough time to realize that she needed to take a breath.

Slowly pulling back, she breathed heavily through her wet, parted lips. Her face, her entire body, felt like it was on fire.

Her gaze moved from his right eye, to his left, and to his lips.

"I…" She started, unable to finish the sentence in one go.

One of his hands was still on her chest. The other still held the back of her head.

His lips were still so close, and his eyes as deep as ever. Deep enough for her to get lost in them, to drown in them completely.

Her hand slowly made its way down from his chest to the back of his hand, to the back of the hand resting on her chest.

Syl knew that she could drown in his eyes, that he could drown her worries and fears, that right here and right now, both of them wanted to, that both of them could…

"I'm sorry…" She whispered, slowly turning away. "I'm… Not sure what that was."

Amon stared at her for a bit, smiled, pulled back, and lay by her side.

"I can tell you what it is." He muttered jokingly. "Though you felt like a pro at it just now."

Syl blushed heavily, still looking away. The hands that had been all over him grasped the bedsheets tightly.

"I'm…" She stuttered. "I'm tired, that's why… I'm not sure why I…"

"Tired, huh?" His hand caressed her hair, causing Syl to twitch. "I hope you'll remain tired for a while longer."

Syl stayed silent for a long moment, her breath shallow, her face turned toward the pillow, burying it as if to hide.

Amon lay beside her, one arm resting lazily across his chest, the other tucked behind his head.

"Don't tease me," Syl finally muttered, her voice barely above a whisper. "Not after that."

Amon tilted his head toward her. "After what?"

She turned slightly, eyes narrowing. "You know exactly what."

"I only know that you were amazing at it despite being tired." He smiled faintly. "Can't wait to see how it is when you're feeling nice and rested."

Syl groaned and buried half her face under the blanket. "I'm going to sleep."

"So early?"

"..."

For a moment, the silence returned.

It was different than previous silences, though.

The silence was soft, and peaceful.

Syl shifted under the sheets until she lay on her side again, facing him. "I…" Her voice was small. "I really didn't mean for that to happen."

"It did happen though."

Her gaze wandered to his chest, where her hand had been resting. "I'm not… Used to this," she admitted quietly. "This kind of thing."

"What kind of thing?" Amon smiled gently.

"Sharing a bed naked with someone." She said bluntly.

"That's surprising," He muttered. "You jumped into bed pretty quickly though."

"Yeah! Cause I was naked!" Syl corrected.

Amon turned towards her with a knowing smile, and she realized he had been joking.

"Dick." She cursed, slapping his arm.

Syl sighed as he remained silent.

Her gaze remained on the ceiling for a bit, while Amon watched her from the side.

Her eyes had softened, and a nice, persistent smile was on her face.

For the first time in a while, Syl felt her mind grow quiet and calm.

A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "You sure are beautiful."

Her cheeks warmed again, but she didn't look or turn away.

Her gaze remained on the ceiling as she whispered, "Thanks…"

They both fell quiet again. Outside, the wind brushed softly against the stained glass.

Syl's breathing slowed. Her fluttering eyelids slowly grew heavier. The fatigue of the day, of battle, of tension, of everything that had happened inside and outside of her mind finally caught up to her.

Her hand drifted unconsciously across the bed, brushing against his. She didn't pull it back.

Amon turned his head slightly, watching as her breathing steadied into the slow rhythm of sleep, watching as her fingers slowly wrapped around his hand.

The candles burned low, and it didn't take long for Amon to fall asleep as well.

…

When Amon's eyes finally opened again, he took a deep breath, and could instantly tell that dawn was close. He let his head fall to the side, and found that Syl had moved quite a bit in her sleep. The sheets only hid parts of her back and legs, leaving the rest bare.

He tried not to stare for too long before carefully moving and slipping out from under the sheets. Cautiously, so as not to wake her.

The church below was quiet, and the air had grown colder.

Perhaps it was because everyone else was asleep that Amon could feel it more intensely now.

He stared at his clothes, before deciding against putting them on.

[Your Skill "Palm Of The Devourer" is Resonating!]

[The Black Stone is Resonating!]

'So they weren't Resonating with Syl, huh?' Amon thought, slightly disappointed. 'Still, they did Resonate with her earlier for some reason.'

He cracked his neck, and started walking towards the door.

'I can feel it more strongly now. The pull.' Amon gulped as he smiled nervously. 'It's calling for me.'

The Altar of Jarath's Black Church was calling to him.

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