Aery gasped, completely frozen as Rowan kissed her. Surely there was something terribly wrong with her, for liking it, and for not liking it... She forced the thoughts out of her mind and focused on the moment. She'd never kissed anyone before, other than motherly pecks on cheeks or foreheads. Apparently her body decided that she really did like it after all, for her knees wobbled and she fell against him. Her eyes were welling up with tears... She had no idea why she was tearing up, after all, this was a happy moment! When Rowan finally broke the kiss, her trembling hands went up to cover her mouth. She realized her lungs hurt from not breathing... She gasped air in, choked on a laugh and a sob, tried to regain her footing. "I-i... I should... I should p-p-probably g-go... C-Celaena's p-p-probably l-looking for m-me." She mumbled, her voice terribly hoarse. She tried to make her way to the door before an idea occurred to her and she stopped and turned. "J-just... Why, R-rowan? W-why me, and not Celaena? Y-you would have had a-anyone. P-probably even my o-older s-s-sister Aemilia, s-since you... you were a-a c-c-captain of the... the g-guard. B-but why s-someone as b-battered and b-b-broken a-as... as me?"
Ame had been waiting outside for a chance to talk to the new witch. She tried to send Aery the thought that she was staying to chat with Ansel, but when she poked Aery's mind, a tingly sensation raced through her and she couldn't get the thought through. She tried again to wind up with the same result. Confused, she tried to talk to the other witch, and found that she could get messages through easily. [i]Excuse me, Ma'am, but... Can you tell my lady Aery that I'm still out here? I was trying to tell her and something... tickled. For lack of a better term. It felt like someone tickling me all over and I couldn't focus enough to poke the message through her mind. I have no idea why...[/i]