Currently one shot, maybe more.
Fingers trailing a hot path down her sides. Smooth, hard muscle and skin beneath her touch. His mouth, hungry on hers. He grasped her sides, lifting her on to the table, and she bit down on her lip as his hands caressed her through the thin fabric of her dress. He drew closer, standing between her legs, and leaned forward, drawing her into another deep kiss. The heat in her belly was growing, and she wrapped her legs around behind him to pull him in closer to her. He dragged his fingers down her chest, and she threw her head back, and he moved ever closer, until...
Kahlan bolted upright, breathing heavily. Looking around in the moonlight, she saw Richard's sleeping form on the other side of the fire. He stirred slightly as she stood, but didn't wake, and the brunette made her way out of the small clearing where they had set up camp.
Walking until the glow of the fire was no more than a faint spark, barely there at all, Kahlan finally settled herself onto a grassy patch and sighed. Her eyes closed, but quickly flew back open again as the images from her dream flashed behind her lids. She shivered, and tried to focus on the chilled night air and the soft grass beneath her.
After a moment, her stiff posture relaxed the tiniest of margins and her breathing slowed a bit more. Breathing in deeply as she regained some control over herself, Kahlan finally let her thoughts wander. God, these dreams... They're going to kill me yet.
Ever since Kieran, the seeker from a thousand years ago, had possessed Richard and sent his lover's spirit into her body, Kahlan found herself dreaming more vividly than she had ever thought possible. The passion she had felt when Vivian's spirit had been in her body had astounded her, but after thinking about it for the past few nights she had come to the conclusion that it wasn't the passion itself that had surprised her, but rather the love she could also feel emanating from Kieran as well.
She wanted that with Richard, more than she was willing to admit to herself, but the fact that she knew she could never have anything even close to that with him was slowly eating away at her. Every time she closed her eyes, the images of what Kieran and Vivian had done- and not done- haunted her, reminding her incessantly of everything she could never have.
At every turn, she saw reminders of the future she didn't have, and perhaps the worst part was not knowing if Richard even remembered what had happened while Kieran had possessed him. She had the memories, but she was unsure if it was because of the intrinsically magical nature of her mind or if everyone would retain the memory as well.
He hadn't said anything about it, but she knew that he had sensed something was different about her. She had been careful not to touch him, or to let him brush against her even accidentally, lest it trigger a flood of memories in a situation where she couldn't hide it. It had been harder to avoid since Zedd had gone off on his own, but so far Kahlan had managed to halt any and all physical contact between herself and Richard. Still, the constant closeness was driving her crazy, and a constant reminder of everything she would never have.
There was a growing emptiness inside of her that she couldn't fill, and a tear fell as she allowed herself to feel the enormity of what she would miss as a confessor. Wiping her eyes, she slowly stood and walked back to the campsite, trying to delay as long as possible. Laying back down on her mat, Kahlan closed her eyes and tried to get a little more sleep before they had to start off again in the morning.
Richard laid on his back, staring up at the sky. He had woken to Kahlan moving restlessly in her sleep, breathing heavily. He was about to get up and go try to wake her when she woke on her own. Something compelled him to pretend to still be sleeping, and after a few minutes he heard Kahlan stand and walk away. Tracking her silently through the black night, he wondered what was going on.
Ever since they had been locked in the temple and possessed by the spirits, Kahlan had been acting different. Before, they had touched in casual situations on a daily basis, many times a day, but since the temple, he couldn't think of a single instance where they had touched. Any time they came close, Kahlan moved away from him as though burned. He was hopeful that maybe following her would provide some answers as to the change in her behavior.
He stopped suddenly, cursing himself under his breath for not realizing that Kahlan had halted up ahead, and held his breath while he waited to see if she noticed him. After a moment he exhaled and crept closer to where the brunette had stopped. Finally, he saw the glow of her white dress in the dark.
She was seated on a small patch of grass, her face turned away from him. Even from a distance, with her turned away from him, Richard could sense the pain coming off of her in waves. He watched her slowly relax in minute degrees, until she finally stood once more and wiped her eyes. The idea of Kahlan crying and being in any sort of pain caused a protectiveness to flare in him that he had never known he had.
Going quickly back to the camp, he laid down and pretended to be asleep as he heard her steps draw near and stop. Gradually he could hear her breathing even back out into sleep, and he sat up slowly. Gazing at her sleeping form, he could see a shadow on her face that hadn't been there before they had gone to the temple.
Somehow, for some reason, he felt like he was missing something from that memory. He just remembered Zedd unbinding Kieran, and the next thing he remembered was walking out of the temple. Somewhere in between, he could almost sense something else, but any time he tried to think about it directly, he came up with nothing.
Sighing, he was about to go back to sleep when he glanced back at Kahlan and saw her eyes were open. Startled, he didn't say anything, just gazed into the blue of her eyes. There had always been a depth to them that he couldn't quite discern or understand, but looking now, he saw a new layer of sorrow that seemed to cloud the blue and make it foggy.
He broke eye contact first, and stood. "I'm going to make breakfast, you want some?" The brunette shook her head, sitting up and wincing at the headache she had. Looking over at her in concern, Richard asked, "Are you ok?" She nodded. "Just tired, I guess."
He sighed but didn't press the matter. They had been able to pick up horses in the last village they passed through, so after a quick breakfast they started off for the next village on the map. Riding behind Kahlan, Richard watched in concern as she swayed more and more as the day progressed. Normally a skilled rider, the lack of balance worried him, but he didn't want to risk a confrontation.
A little before midday, they were heading up a hill when he saw her sway twice before slumping and sliding out of the saddle. Her body had barely hit the ground before Richard was off his horse and at her side. He reached out to pull her to him but the second his fingertips brushed her pale skin, he was hit by a barrage of images.
Being possessed by Kieran. Sending Vivian's spirit into Kahlan. Kissing her- her kissing him back with a hunger he barely recognized as hers. Untying the front of her dress, sliding it off her shoulders. His shirt being tugged by eager hands off of his body, while her mouth placed hot kisses along his throat. Lifting her onto the table as she explored every inch of skin, and caressing her skin through her dress. Sliding it up her thighs as her mouth opened and a breathy moan escaped. Not being able to get enough of the soft skin beneath his fingers. Dragging a hand down her chest as he delighted in the feel of her skin and her legs wrapped around him, bringing him closer-
With a jolt, the memory ended, and Richard found himself staring down at Kahlan's prone form. Unable to comprehend what he had just seen, he felt for a pulse. There was a faint one, but he wanted to get her better settled before he tried to figure out what was wrong and what he had just seen.
He had seen a small stand of trees off to the left that would make for a good temporary camp, and he carried her there as fast as he could, trying not to jostle her frail form. He was nearly thee when he felt Kahlan stir in his arms. Slowing to a walk, he looked down at her as her eyes blinked open in confusion. Looking up at him, she opened her mouth to say something, but he shook his head and she closed it again.
Her eyes drifted closed, and her head fell against his chest as he continued walking. Reaching the campsite, he gently laid her down on the ground, rummaging through his rucksack for a canteen in case she was thirsty when she woke up. Sitting at her side and gently stroking her face, he finally let himself think on the images he had seen when he first touched her.
The memory of it was too vivid to have been conjured or imagined, and it made sense when he put it in to fill in the gap in his memory that had been bothering him earlier. It would explain Kahlan's reluctance to touch him since then, too, as well as the dreams she had been having. Richard broke off his train of though as Kahlan stirred, and looked down.
Kahlan woke to the feeling of a gentle hand tenderly stroking the side of her face, and as she blinked her eyes open, she couldn't stop herself from leaning into the touch. As her vision cleared, she saw Richard staring at her with concern, and she closed her eyes and then opened them again to be sure she wasn't seeing things. "Do you want water?"
She nodded, and he carefully brought the canteen to her lips, tipping back small swallows of water. He stopped before she would have liked him to, but he shook his head and said, "I don't want you getting sick because you had too much." She sighed, but nodded.
"What happened?"
The concern on his face multiplied. "You passed out while we were riding." He saw the worried look race across her face before she hid it behind the mask, but said nothing. "I'm sorry, I've just been tired lately."
Watching her closely, he said, "Not sleeping well?" Kahlan looked at him sharply for a moment before replying, "I guess not." She moved to stand to try and escape further questions, but her legs gave out and she found herself being held up only by the support of Richard's arms.
He carefully lowered her back to the ground before saying, "You have to rest."
"I'm fine, Richard, just-" She stopped short as he took her hand in his. "Please, Kahlan. Just rest for now." Something in his eyes caught her off guard as she looked up at him- a protectiveness that she wasn't prepared to deal with. Able only to nod, she leaned her head back against the pack as he squeezed her hand for a second and then stood.
"Try to get some sleep while I get food," he said, and she nodded again. Watching his retreating form, the brunette wondered if he knew what had happened between them in the temple. Her thoughts jumped around for a few more seconds before her eyes drifted shut and she slipped into sleep.
Later that night, Richard sat by the fire and watched Kahlan sleep. She had woken briefly to try and eat something, and he knew that she really had tried, but after only a few bites she had pushed her plate away. Now, he could see the faint quiverings of her body beneath the layers of blankets on top of her. She had started shivering shortly after falling asleep after eating, and even with both of their blankets on top of her, she was still shaking.
Indecision marked Richard's face as he sat, but he finally couldn't stand the sight of her shaking from cold any longer and he crossed the short distance to her mat. Sliding his boots off, he slowly slipped under the blankets and carefully drew Kahlan's body to his. Her entire body shook as he pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her, but as he held her the shaking gradually began to subside.
Kahlan shifted in his arms and turned on her side so she was facing him. "Richard?" Her voice was sleepy and slightly questioning, but held no sign of anger. "Shh. Just rest," he whispered as she allowed herself to sink back into the warmth of his arms. Drawing the blankets tighter around them both, Richard finally allowed himself to doze, waking every few minutes to make sure that Kahlan was still ok.
A bird cawed loudly overhead, jolting Richard awake. In a panic, he looked down at Kahlan and sighed with relief as he saw the gentle rise and fall of her chest. Gently brushing a strand of hair out of her face, he was surprised to be met with bright blue eyes scrutinizing him.
"I didn't know you were awake," he said. Kahlan just kept looking at him steadily, measuring him with her gaze. She had woken to find herself lying flush against Richard, her head nestled in the crook of his neck. He had one arm wrapped protectively around her, and she could feel the soft press of his lips in her hair. She couldn't remember how they had ended up sleeping together, but she supposed she should just be thankful that they both still had all their clothes on.
Tilting her head to watch Richard as he slept, Kahlan wondered once more if he now remembered the temple. Something was different in the way he looked at her, in the way he was holding her now, but she wasn't sure if she should write that off to him simply being worried about her. Whatever was different was nice, though, especially as the brunette became more aware of the sweeping exhaustion that still permeated her body.
Every muscle felt weak, and it was suddenly all she could do to keep her eyes open. Looking back at Richard, she saw him watching her and pulled away the tiniest bit in the hopes that he wouldn't notice the effort she was having to exert just to stay awake. As he felt Kahlan pull away, Richard moved to stand, afraid that he had gone too far. As he shifted, he was surprised when a slender hand fell on his arm.
Holding his body still, he looked back down at the brunette. She was paler than she had been the night before and her eyes were closed, but he still heard the barely whispered "Stay." Lying back down, he tentatively wrapped his arms around her once more, and when he encountered no resistance, he pulled her back to him.
He felt her sigh into his chest and relax, but it wasn't until he heard her breathing even out into sleep that he allowed himself to doze off again.
Richard woke with a start to find his arms empty. Looking about frantically, he saw Kahlan sitting near the embers of the previous night's fire and breathed a sigh of relief. Standing and stretching, he walked over and sat down next to her.
"How are you?" He asked, taking in her appearance. Some color had returned to her face, but she still looked far weaker than he would have liked and he frowned slightly when she said, "Better."
"Are you sure? I mean, you were pretty wiped out, and then falling...what happened?" Glancing up for a half a second, Kahlan replied, "I'm fine, don't worry." Letting it drop as she clearly had no intention of discussing it further, Richard hesitantly said, "Kahlan? Can I ask you something?"
She sighed and looked up at him, meeting his eyes briefly. Her eyes begged him not to force her into a discussion of what he had seen, and her face reflected the same. Shaking his head he said, "Never mind. It can wait."
Pushing herself to a standing position, Kahlan said, "We should head north from here. It'll be the quickest way to make up for the time we've lost." Extinguishing the last of the embers, Richard walked over to where the brunette stood with the horses. As she prepared to swing up into the saddle, he caught her arm.
She paused and looked at him as he said, "We're taking it easy for now, Kahlan."
"Fine." The brusque reply dismissed his concerns as she swung the rest of the way into the saddle, and he sighed. Clucking to her horse, Kahlan forced herself to not look back at Richard. He had come so close to asking her about the temple mere moments before, she had seen the need to know in his eyes, but some sense of compassion had stopped him even as the words were on his tongue.
All she knew now was that she was thankful he had let it drop for the moment. There was no way she could handle having that discussion with him right now, and if she was being honest with herself, she didn't ever want to have it if it was going to change things between them. Turning her attention back to the horizon, she forced herself to focus solely on riding. She couldn't afford to cost them any more time than she already had, and she was determined to keep up with Richard.
Mounting his own horse, Richard kept one eye on Kahlan while he thought on the events of the past 48 hours. He still had no idea what had happened to Kahlan to drain her so completely, let alone whether the things he had seen in the temple had actually happened. The complete refusal on Kahlan's part to even acknowledge that something had happened worried him, but he knew he would get nothing out of her until she was ready.
Sighing and turning his thoughts to other matters that he might be able to make some headway in, Richard settled into the saddle for the long journey ahead.
Ok. Please please please review, i would really appreciate it! I'm thinknig maybe do a continuation after the one episode where kahlan has the whole blood rage thingy going on...idk what it's called, but it seems like it might fit. Let me know if you have thoughts or suggestions!