The Fires of Heaven/Chapter 31

Rand is walking through the town of Eianrod which has been deserted or home to bandits for a while. He heads to his room in a former merchant's house and walks in to find Aviendha naked, washing herself with a basin of water and soap. She panics, claiming she did not arrange for him to see her and must get as far away as she can. She channels and a gateway appears with an icy wind and snow blowing through. She runs through into the blizzard. Rand channels something, which blocks the gateway from closing. Rand gathers up her clothes and some blankets and follows her into the storm.
Rand calls to her to stop, but she just runs faster until finally she seemingly disappears. Aviendha broke through the ice in a stream or lake. Rand channels to heat the ground nearby, he creeps out on to the ice on his belly. He manages to find her hair and begins to pull her back toward the shore. He makes a tent of snow where they can get warm before returning to the gateway. Aviendha is so cold that Rand realizes he must share his body heat with her if she is to survive. She finally is warm and wakes up. He starts to move away but she grabs him and says that the rings do not lie. She grabs his hair to pull his head close to kiss him. They make love and relax for a while before heading back to the gateway.
Rand brings up getting married when they get back but Aviendha still insists that Rand belongs to Elayne. She insists they have to follow Two Rivers customs and wait a year. They argue over marriage customs and whose customs they should follow since they are so different. She says it will not happen again and she has toh to Elayne now. They finally dress, neither turning away from the other so they can get back to the gateway.
==Characters==
* Rand
* Aviendha
* Sulin
===Referenced===
* Couladin
* Moiraine
* Lan
* Asmodean
* Elayne
* Min
* Bael
* Mat
* Egwene
* Bar Dowtry
* Kimry Lewin Emond's Field resident
* Nynaeve
==Places==
* Eianrod
* Cairhien
* Seanchan (continent)
===Referenced===
* Emond's Field
* Two Rivers
* Shayol Ghul
* Rhuidean
* Aiel Waste