Her head

Winlay gazed at the closed door for several second without even realizing how clear her feelings for Adam were. Mika moved to her side and put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"Go talk to him, Winlay." Mika told her with a gentle push towards the door. "Believe me, he is as intrigued by you as you are by him." Any thoughts Winlay might have had of denial were washed away by a surge of hope.

"Really? I thought he and you..." Mika laughed. "No, not that way. In fact until now, Adam took his vows seriously. Far more seriously than most Templars, but he hasn't taken his eyes off of you since you met." She gently pushed Winlay again "All I'm saying is that you too are going to have to talk about your feelings, because I for one can't take the tension when the two of you are together."

"I can't Mika" Winlay answered, "Not now, not after what Beldan did to me."

"But he didn't get to do anything." Mika protested. "I mean he didn't ... We got there in time to stop that pig, right?"

"Mika, I was sitting nearly naked on his lap sucking on his fingers as he slobbered all over my tits." Winlay's voice was scathing as she added "Does that sound like he didn't get to do anything?" Winlay saw Mika flinch with guilt for not getting there sooner, but Winlay didn't care. The horror of the afternoon's events was finally catching up to her and if she didn't vent her anger she'd explode. "The worst part was how badly I wanted him, It made me sick, but I was so aroused I couldn't help myself!"

The two pretty initiates sat silently side by side on the couch, not quite touching each other for nearly a minute in an awkward silence.

"I'm sorry, Winlay." Mika finally said and the pain in her voice was more than enough to break through Winlay's hard shell. Within seconds she found herself in Mika's arms sobbing uncontrollably as the horror of the day's events overwhelmed her. The strength of Mika's arms holding her and the familiar softness of her round breasts were more soothing than any words could be and finally her sobs diminished.

Winlay didn't really want to break the peaceful mood, but she had so many questions that she couldn't hold back any longer. Reaching up with her hand she touched Mika gently on her cheek noticing as she did that her friend had been crying too. "Thank-you." She smiled "For holding me now, and for rescuing me earlier." Mika hugged her with a protectiveness that made Winlay laugh with a new thought.

"I guess I should have listened to you last night when you tried to switch places with me, huh?"

Mika, nodded and then added with a grin. "I should have pressed harder, but I got a little distracted last night." Winlay flushed as she remembered sharing Mika's bed the night before and exactly what it was that had distracted Mika.

"Mika, about last night ..." She started hesitantly, but before she could frame her question she was interrupted by Mika who smiled at her and wrapped her arms around Winlay in another spontaneous hug.

"Don't worry about it Winlay, it was nothing. Probably more from the relief of being safe than anything else." Winlay wasn't buying her friend's attempts to discount the encounter, she wasn't sure just how she felt about it, but she knew that it hadn't been nothing.

"It was nice." She started again. "You surprised me, but it was a nice kiss." The glow on Mika's face as her words registered rewarded Winlay more than any words Mika could have spoken.

"You are the best!" The slender blonde gave her a little wink before continuing. "Next time I'll be sure to let you know well ahead of time, so you can prepare." Once again Winlay sat in silence on the couch, but this time her hand rested comfortably in Mika's. As she sat her brain had a chance to go over the information she had been exposed to in the past few hours.

"Who are you, and how did you even know that the Oracle was being held?" Winlay could see Mika was trying to decide how much she could tell her so she piled on a few more questions that had been tickling her like an itch that she couldn't quite reach.

"Also - What's a Chevalier? And how do you know all the things that you do?" She could tell by the way Mika stiffened that these questions were no easier to answer, but Winlay pressed gently. "I guess you're not just a simple village girl like me from the highlands, are you?"

"No." Mika turned to Winlay as she spoke. "I'm sorry I lied to you Win, really I am." Her eyes searched Winlay's for any hint of anger, but found none. "I still can't tell you everything, but you deserve to know at least a little about what you've become involved with." The room was quiet for a while Mika contemplated what she could tell her friend.

"Should you talk to Adam first?" suggested Winlay, but Mika immediately shook her head.

"No. I think he really wants you to know a little about what we do, but he would never tell you himself. Adam cares so much about the secrecy involved that he sometimes is afraid to involve anyone at all. Frankly I was surprised he agreed to let Sister Margaret help." Mika took a deep breath before she continued. "It surprised him too I think. Now that he realizes how crazy he is about you, he won't trust any decision that he makes that involves you."

"Really?" Winlay interrupted involuntarily. "I thought he was mad at me."

"Silly girl!" Chided Mika "How could anyone be mad at you? You are good and trusting and honest. The world needs more people like you, but because Beldan and what we had to do your life is going to be very different." She paused before adding "If Adam seems mad, it is because of a combination of guilt at how your life has been ruined, and desire for you that is making him question his own vows." Winlay could not believe her ears, Adam was interested in her? Suddenly she remembered how he had first seen her, wearing only her panties and panting like a bitch in heat.

"Are you sure?" She asked doubtfully, and Mika just laughed in response.

"I've known Adam since he was eight and I was four. He always looked after me, and as we grew older we had so many midnight talks about so many different topics that I sometimes think I know him better than he knows himself." Mika got up and walked to the sink to refill her glass of water, but Winlay sensed it was more to buy time than because she was thirsty.

"OK, Winlay - here's what I can tell you."