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soft material of her gown.  "But, even though you are no mage or wizard or witch, yet still you command a sprinkling of magic, as if you were born to it.  That is no small feat."
                  She still thought it best to tell him the truth.  "I command nothing, rather the magic enthralls me.  I have no choice, you see, not when the moon hangs full and heavy in the sky and the sharp notes of her song prickle at me, like ice shards too exquisite and fragile to touch." 
                  Looking into his beautiful eyes, she thought of how easy if would be to lose herself in them, just like she did in a Shadow Dance. 
                  "Anything can be controlled."  His low voice seemed to vibrate with another meaning, one confirmed by his next words, "Or beguiled, or tamed."
                  Magic .  They spoke of magic, she reminded herself.  Still, she could not hold her tongue.  "Anything, Lord Egann?  Even you?"
                  His gaze narrowed.  "Mayhap once.  But only once.  Now that I am aware of the enchantment, I will be doubly vigilant.  As should you, because magic can be more than splendor, more than radiant perfection.  Like everything else, it has a dark side."
                  This she already knew.  "Tis deadly and dangerous in the wrong hands, yes.  But for me it is not.  When the spell of it beguiles me I care no longer for anything but the dance."  She smiled sadly, remembering.
                  "The moon music flows through me and around me, and I travel to other places unknowingly drunk on its power.  Yes, I seek to bend it to my will, and in some small things I do succeed - a fertile harvest, a minor illness cured, a barren wife's womb brought to fruit.  What little I have at my command is only used for good, never evil.  By dancing I kept my people happy." 
                  Sorrow filled her and she looked away.  The golden radiance of his aura suddenly seemed too bright to bear.  "In the end, I could not even save them, so small is my magic.  There is naught in what I do that will help you find this amulet you seek."
                  "You are wrong."
                  His harsh words startled her.  The people of the cliffs had never spoken thus to her.  She'd been revered, cosseted, and set apart.  Isolated.  For the first time in her entire life, someone treated her like an equal. 
                  Twas a strange and exhilarating feeling.
                  When she did not dispute him, Egann flashed a savage smile.  "Do as you bid me to do, and look for the truth inside yourself.  You are connected to this amulet, somehow.  Even if you do not yet admit it."
                  Deirdre opened her mouth to speak - and did not.  Something nagged at the edge of her consciousness... when she dreamt of him he had worn an amulet, some sort of charm that had seemed to amplify the sensations they'd experienced. 
                  As if they'd needed any amplification.  Merely thinking of the myriad things they'd done together made her grow warm.
                  "You seem flushed."  Egann took a step closer.  "What does this mean?"
                  Though she knew he referred only to the amulet, she raised her gaze to his, so that he could see how he affected her, knowing her thoughts and tumultuous emotions would be revealed to him in her eyes.
                  His sharp intake of breath confirmed this.
                  "Enchantment."  He spoke the word like a curse, even as he lowered his head and covered her mouth with his.  His kiss was savage, elemental, making her feel like he drank of her essence and, in turn, let her have an intoxicating taste of his. 
                  When he broke away and turned from her, she felt abandoned,