When Worlds Collide:

Chapter Two

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A/N:  AHH!!! It’s an act of the Gods, or at least something like it!  Wow, I guess this proves that I didn’t forget about this fic.  So very sorry that it took soooo frickin long time update this, but I am a very, very busy person and sometimes I have no time to do the fun things in life.  But right now I’m home with my family for the first time in two years.  So just maybe I’ll have time to get all the typing done that I need to.  Have fun reading and don’t forget to review!   This chapter was also meant to be longer but I lost and had to retype this thing four times, so that’s why its so frickin short.  I promise I’ll try to get the next chapter up as soon as I can.

PS:  Thank you soo very much for all the reviews and all the bugging about me being updatedly challenged.  Again I am very, very sorry.  Fuzzy huggs to all of you!!

Warnings:  This one has a slight bit of Rand lusting over an oblivious someone! 

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Nynaeve glared at the dirty child sitting in the middle of the room glaring equally back at her.  Sparks were practically flying between the two of them, “Bloody Ashes child, will you just get in the -- ”

“No!” Rin cut her off, “you can’t make me do anything I don’t want to!  When Sesshoumaru-sama comes for –”

“I’m beginning to think that this ‘Seeshowmaroo-sama’ is someone that you just dreamed up!”  The former Wisdom snapped, placing her hand on her hips.

Rin’s dark eyes narrowed as she stood up and stomped over to the older woman, “Say that again,” she hissed surprisingly coming off threatening for one so small and young.

Nynaeve opened her mouth to tell the child that she needed a lesson in manners before it was cut off and a slight howl escaped her lips instead, “Why you little -- ” she squealed out between clenched teeth as she reached down and gripped her bruising shin.

Rin smile and moved out of reach before taking a deep breath, “MAT!!” the small girl shrieked at the top of her little lungs.

It took 2.9 seconds for the door to burst open and Mat to run in, clad only in a nice little white towel wrapped around his waist and the silver fox head resting just below his throat, water dripping from his dark hair.  He took one look at Rin sitting on the ground crying before scooping her up and cradling her to his damp chest.  He turned and glared at Nynaeve still nursing the place where Rin kicked her, “What did you do to her Nynaeve?  I though that you were supposed to be good with kids,” he demanded. 

“Mat!  You’ve corrupted that poor girl beyond anyone’s repair.  She is as bad as the Dark One himself,” Nynaeve straightened up and looked to Mat, trying to will all of her frustrations out on the boy.

“If you keep looking at people like that your face is going to freeze,” he teased as he walked out the door slightly bouncing Rin on his hip, “looks to me like some little girl I know needs a bath.”

Rin stuck her tongue out at Nynaeve before the door shut on her reddening face and clung to Mat’s neck, “Will Mat-chan take on with me?”

Mat blinked and looked down at the girl, “Umm no.  But I can wash your hair for you,” he offered.

She smiled and nodded her head, “Deal.”

S%S

Mat slowly woke, small pinpoints of light spreading across his line of vision.  He groaned and moved his arm to rest across his forehead, blocking most of the sunlight from his face.  He felt himself slowly start to drift back to sleep, the muscles in his body relaxing as the dream world gently took him back into it’s embrace. 

The door to his room flung open and Rand ran in, the door was open not by his hands, “MAT!”

Mat jumped off of his bed taking the blanket with him and wrapping it around himself, “Bloody Ashes, Rand!”

Rand marched right up to him, ignoring his friends startled yelp and placed his hands on his bare shoulders, “Mat!”

He shrank away from the Dragon Reborn, hoping that he wasn’t quite completely crazy yet, “What?” he asked in a small voice.

“I heard from the innkeeper that some THING, some type of human looking monster has been murdering Whitecloaks,” Rand frantically whispered, his grip on his friend’s shoulders tightening.

He blinked, “And this concerns us... how?”

Rand gave him a little shake, “I’m not talking about a few here and there, Mat.  I’m talking about entire camps completely wiped clean.  Not even a trace so much as  a tent stake found.  The people say that no one was left alive and the area surrounding was covered in blackness, even the ground and trees were scorched.”

Mat thought for a moment, “The innkeeper said that?”

Rand nodded “I was thinking that maybe it could be the One Power, or worse someone working for one of the Forsaken.”

He sighed, tightening his hold on the blankets as a small squeak coming from inside of them, “Mat-sama, not so tight!”

He hastily uncovered the little girl, “Ashes, I’m sorry Rin, I didn’t even know you were there!”

Rand smirked at his friend fussing over the now giggling child, “Maternal instinct kicking in Matrim Cauthon?  Finally turning out to be a good mother?”

 “Oh go box your ears, Lord Dragon,” he mumbled under his breath, gently putting Rin on the floor.  “Sorry again, Rin, I didn’t realize that I picked you up.  Why don’t you go wake Nynaeve up?”

Rin nodded and hopped out the door, whistling some tune unknown to them.

They watched her go and when the door softly shut behind her, Rand turned and once again faced Mat.  He opened his mouth to speak but for some strange odd reason all words left him.  It wasn’t the first time that he was his best friend bare-chested, or another man for that, but this was the first time that he actually saw the beauty of it.  Mat’s hair was sleep rumpled and his eyes still appeared to be heavy lidded regardless of his rude awakening.  His chest rose lightly up and down as he breathed, well corded muscles gently rippling under suntanned skin marred only by an occasional scar.  Somehow the hanging scar around his neck made him unbearably attractive. 

Mat sighed and unwound the thick blanket from around him and tossed it on his bed, running a hand through his already messy hair.  Rand almost drooled: the laces of his britches had come lose during the night causing them to ride low on his hips.

Mat slowly looked over at his friend, just staring, “Rand?” he whispered.  He had never seen that look on his face before, “Are you all right?” he asked, reaching out and placing his hand on his shoulder.

Rand shook his head and looked to his friend, banishing all dirty thoughts him and cursing the three fawning girls that claimed they loved him for making him lust after someone he could never have.  “Yeah, I’m all right, just a little worn out,” he gently said, giving him a soft smile.

Mat peered at him for a few more seconds before nodding and dropping his hand much to the Dragon Reborn’s disappointment, “So what do you want to do about the Whitecloaks? But it is still just a rumor, Rand.  Who knows who started it and why,” he seemed to think for a moment then once again looked sharply at him, “Besides, the innkeeper said that no one was left alive right?”

Rand nodded, not sure where Mat was going with this.

“If there were no survivors, Rand, then where did the rumors come from?”

TBC...