Author's Note: In theory, this was supposed to go up December 24th, but at the last minute I decided to drive and visit family for the holidays sans my computer. Therefore, I now give you this story as a belated-Christmas present. It's just a little ditty on Kel/Dom and Kel/OC, so please enjoy and maybe even leave a little review ;)
A Midwinter's Eve Dance
The ballroom was in its full glory this evening. The court of Tortall was turned out in its finest finery for the Midwinter's Eve ball; the nobles were clad in rich, dark swirling gowns and pressed tunics trimmed liberally in gold and silver thread. Wine was pouring freely, music playing loudly, and laughter roaring happily on this the merriest of all occasions, the gayest night of the year.
Yet, one lady did not partake in the festivities. She wore a stylish but modest gown in pale, dusky blue and rich cream with silver detailing. By this point in the evening, she had worked her way to the side of the grand ballroom, the typical post of a wallflower.
It was not that this lady had no friends—during the feast she had sat right in the middle of a crowd of young knights and soldiers, a place most flirtatious court ladies would envy. But this lady was only a friend and comrade to these knights and soldiers. Lady Knight Keladry of Mindelan had grown up training with this gaggle of boys, and later, fighting alongside them. She was one of them.
Yet not entirely. Young knights were in high demand on the dance floor while young lady knights were left to the sidelines.
Not that Kel took it personally. She was as tall as or taller than most men, with mousey brown hair cropped to her chin, too short to style up or back for a ball. She wore no face paint, but her wistful hazel eyes could still hold attention if one bothered to meet them. Her muscular build was evident in her broad bare shoulders. Though her long sleeves hid her arms, no amount of corseting would be able to disguise the muscled torso that gave her a wide waist. And nothing could hide her griffin-scarred hands.
In a uniform, she commanded respect, but in a ball gown, she just felt rather self-conscious.
If her appearance did not keep men at bay, the fact that she was a lady knight would do the trick by keeping most people in general away. She often thought with amusement how some conservatives might be at one time entirely grateful to her for killing spidrens or Scanrans on their lands, but still they would never have the guts to associate with her socially. But that was her role as a knight, the purpose she had willingly chosen, and she would do her job to help everyone regardless of how they felt about her.
Lately, it seemed that fighting would be her only purpose.
Her friends would have asked her to dance, as they had at many other balls, but it was so often awkward that now Kel just politely refused so they could have fun with their younger, prettier, more petite court girls.
Kel was broken from her thoughts by a word from her side. "Evening," said a male voice. Startled, she turned her body quickly to face him. He was a courtier with dark brown skin and lines on his face marking him as slightly older than her holding two goblets. Only an inch or two taller than Kel, he was thin and just slightly toned—Kel's eye in judging size and strength had been well practiced by this point. His shoulder-length black hair was tied back into a short horse tail. The man wore a rusty-orange tunic with gold thread worked into it. His warm, honey brown eyes met her hazel ones, and they each bowed to the other at the same time.
Kel blushed at her mistake. "Sorry—it's too much of a habit by now," she told him sheepishly.
The courtier grinned, a white, toothy smile. "Nothing to worry about; I wouldn't expect anything less of a lady knight."
"So you know me then, sir, but I'm sorry to say I don't believe I know your name," she replied politely.
"Forgive me, Lady Keladry," he began. "I was caught up in the exhilaration of being in the presence of the Protector of the Small." The lady knight thought to herself that the man was really sounding like Neal… on a bad day. But that was courtier-talk for you, much poetry and little sense.
The man offered her one of the goblets, and to her surprise, it was filled with mulled cider instead of wine. He explained, "I hope you don't mind, but I can't abide drinking in this rowdy company. People turn into veritable fools at these events."
Kel nodded in agreement, giving him a little smile. "Your name is…?"
With a little bow of the head, he replied. "Nasir of Makalo, clerk to the Prime Minister and professional courtier, at your service. I saw you free from the warrior-folk, so I thought I'd strike up a conversation."
"You mean away from the knights?" she asked, slightly confused by his wording.
"Your fellow knights always talk down to a mere clerk like me. They like us to do their paperwork, but their conversation is all battles and weapons—which is over my head."
"But I'm a knight too," Kel pointed out bemusedly. "What makes you think I have anything different to say?"
Nasir took a sip of his cider and answered in Yamani. "We know the same language, Lady Keladry. Much of my clerk work is as a translator of Tortall-Yamani correspondence. Shall we start there?"
"Where did you learn your Yamani? Did you live in the Isles?" she asked, getting more interested in the courtier by the second.
"I studied languages at the Royal University in Port Caynn, and then moved to the Isles for two years to study it further. I came back about the time when you were taking your Ordeal, I suppose."
Kel did some quick arithmetic in her head, something easy for a woman who had had to calculate supply orders often. She guessed Nasir was about thirty-two, or seven years older than her. "Do you speak often with Princess Shinkonami then?" she asked.
He nodded. "I have the honor of dining with Princess Shinko and Lady Yuki of Queenscove once a week. I enjoy getting to use my Yamani, and they tell me it is a relief to speak their native language every once and awhile. They both tell me a great deal about you."
Kel was amazed at their mutual connections. But she wondered to herself why her friends had never mentioned Nasir to her before? Probably because she was always gone or busy; she hardly made time to see the Yamani ladies lately. She decided to remedy the situation soon.
Clearing her mind again, the lady knight switched to Common. "Makalo, I don't believe I know where that is."
Nasir smiled. "It's to the southwest, near the border with the Bazhir lands, if you couldn't tell by the loud color of my tunic." He gestured to the orange outfit he wore, which was in his fief's colors. "The color of the sun on sand—that's how my grandfather decided on it. He even named it himself—'Makalo,' meaning 'surprise' in Carthaki. My family has a long line of diplomats to Carthak, much like your parents and the Yamani Isles. He was given the lands by a young King Jonathan for his work with the Carthakis. My father and grandfather both even married Carthaki women. But I thought I would branch out a little."
"Branch out in your diplomacy or your women?" Kel asked. She briefly wondered where such a courtly, flirtatious statement had come from, but she did not waste too much time thinking about it.
Nasir laughed heartily, and the knight cracked a grin in response. "Both!" he said as he was still chuckling.
Kel was really enjoying the clerk's company. He was obviously smart and well-educated, but he was not stuffy about it like some she had worked with. He was genuinely interesting. She hid a small grin by taking a drink from her cider.
When Nasir's laughter had subsided to another warm, toothy smile, he told her, "They said you were strong and smart, Lady Keladry, but they never told me you were a wit too."
"Just call me Kel, please, Nasir," she told him quickly. His smile was infectious; she grinned back at him.
"Kel," he repeated slowly, savoring the word; she thought it sounded a lot nicer coming from his mouth. He gently lifted the goblet from her hand and set it on a side table along with his, and then he offered her his hand. "Will you honor me with this next dance?"
"I would love to," the lady knight replied. She took his hand and was whisked to the dance floor. Kel could not remember ever feeling 'whisked' anywhere before, and she could not say that she did not like it.
The pair settled easily into the fast-paced dance, Nasir being an excellent partner. Kel knew from her own experience that etiquette was one of the most important parts of effective diplomacy and guessed that his talent on the dance floor was due to his family's diplomatic training. Another question occurred to her. "'Nasir'—it sounds more like Bazhir than Carthaki."
"That's because it is," the courtier replied. He smoothly spun her around and caught her facing him again. Kel felt a little dizzy after the spin, but his warm brown eyes steadied her as they continued the steps of the dance. "'Nasir' is Bazhir for 'friend.' My parents were very enthusiastic about languages as you can imagine. Being so close to the border, I was raised speaking Bazhir as well as Common and Carthaki. Yamani was my chance to be different in my family."
"Well, we'll have to keep our conversations to Common or Yamani, unless you have some knowledge of basic Scanran stored away too?" Kel teased lightly.
Nasir smiled again; Kel took pleasure in knowing that she caused it. She wondered briefly at her desire to delight him. "You will have to keep the Scanran to yourself, I'm afraid. My work keeps me from studying anything more. But you, Kel, what do you do now that there are no wars to keep you occupied?"
The Scanran war had wound down almost two years before. After a peace treaty had been signed, the Tortallan armies had been able to withdraw. Kel remained at New Hope for another six months until she was assigned to patrol along the border. She would go up with another knight partner and a squad of King's Own men for a few weeks and then get another few weeks off to visit Mindelen or Corus. The knight replied to his inquiry, "I have been off of border patrol for almost three months now. If I'm not training, I usually pass the time reading. It's funny how much I missed simply reading after spending years fighting and patrolling with no spare time."
"Now that I can understand. My life is reading, and yet I still—" Nasir was cut off by the arrival of a palace servant who tapped the man's shoulder. The couple stopped their dance mid-step, and Nasir gently released Kel. The servant whispered something in the clerk's ear, as the dancing crowd spun around the three stationary figures.
The servant finished, and Nasir nodded, saying, "Tell His Majesty I'll be right there." The man bowed and left quickly, presumably to deliver his message to King Jonathan. The courtier took Kel's hand and led her over to the edge of the dance floor to get out of the way of the crowd. The lady knight looked up expectantly even while already guessing what he would say next.
Nasir's brown eyes looked—was Kel imagining it?—disappointed as he spoke. "Duty calls, Kel, as you well know. My translation skills are required."
"Don't worry about it," she replied quickly, even though she too was feeling saddened by his imminent departure. "I understand completely. Go on—the King commands, and we can only obey." She gave him a little ironic smile. Gods knew she was smiling a lot tonight.
Nasir still held her hand as he hesitated for a moment. "Kel, I hope I'm not being too forward, but would you like to go on a ride tomorrow afternoon? I know that it's Midwinter day, so you probably can't—"
The lady knight interrupted him with an enthusiastic "I would love to go riding tomorrow. How does two bells after noon sound?"
"Perfect," the clerk replied. He slowly brought her hand to his lips for a light kiss, not flinching at the scars that crisscrossed it. "Tomorrow," he repeated with one last white smile before he left, disappearing in the crowd and leaving Kel alone again.
But it was not to be for long. The lady knight remained glued to the spot for a few moments, gazing out over the crowd again. It suddenly seemed brighter and more colorful in the grand ballroom this night. She did not get a chance to pursue her thoughts, however, because Sir Owen of Jesslaw had appeared before her.
"What a jolly ball this is!" he told her. "Too bad Margarry had to miss it. She's already lying-in, the baby, you know. Who's your friend?" It took Kel a minute to process all the young knight had said: it was a lovely party; his wife was in her eighth month of pregnancy and so was in bed resting; and she had a friend.
"Oh, I just met him—Nasir of Makalo. He's a translator," she replied, trying to seem nonchalant. Owen's eyes studied her face for a moment, and Kel was induced to look over his shoulder to dodge their questions. "Is that Neal talking to Dom over there? I haven't seen them since dinner." The lady knight strode purposefully across the room to reach the cousins with Owen trailing along behind her.
"Hello, boys!" she said loudly, clapping a hand on Neal's shoulder. "Neal, where's Yuki?"
"With Princess Shinkonami. Kel, have you been drinking?" the healer-knight asked knowingly. His green eyes, accentuated by his bright green tunic, looked her over.
The lady knight realized her mistake, withdrawing her hand and consciously toning down her voice as she replied, "No, Neal. What would give you that idea?"
The healer drawled, "Maybe your out-of-place giddiness. Usually you are only this happy when you unhorse me in tilting or knock me on my backside in fencing or—"
"We get it, Meathead," Dom interrupted, looking at his cousin mock-seriously, "you're just awful at all forms of combat. And how are you this evening, Lady Kel?" The sergeant of the King's Own gave her a small bow and a wink.
Kel could not hide the smile that bubbled to her lips. "Wonderful. This is the best ball that I've ever been to."
"Does that have something to do with that Makalo fellow?" asked Owen innocently. Kel had forgotten that he had followed her.
Dom frowned for a beat. "Who's Makalo?"
Neal's eyebrows shot up. "Nasir of Makalo? That Carthaki who speaks Yamani?"
"For your information, yes," the lady knight told them. "He's half-Carthaki, half-Tortallan, actually, and he does speak Yamani. He says he dines with Yuki and Princess Shinko."
The healer snorted. "I knew that much, Kel, I do try to keep track of my wife you know. How did you meet him?"
Kel shrugged. "He just came up and introduced himself. We talked and danced a little before he was called away." She looked between her three friends, feeling slightly embarrassed. "Nothing really… I just met him."
"'Nothing really… I just met him,'" Neal mocked while batting his eyelashes, earning him a small punch in the arm from Kel. "Ow!" he whined, rubbing the spot.
The lady knight rolled her eyes. Then she saw that Own had a silly grin on his face and realized that Dom had not said anything, acting nothing like his usual flirtatious or teasing self. Clearing her throat self-consciously and changing the subject, she said, "I think I'm going to turn in. I have a lot of people to go visit tomorrow. My parents are staying in town, so I'm going to have brunch with them in the morning."
Dom took this moment to speak up again. "A bunch of the men from the Own and I are going to have our own little tournament in the practice courts tomorrow afternoon. You should come join us. The men will want to see you, and I can make a lot of money betting on you to win."
Neal sounded indignant as he asked, "Why didn't you invite me, dear cousin? I worked with the Own on border duty too."
"Because you'd lose shamefully right off, and too many people know that we're related, dear Meathead." The usual twinkle of mischief was back in Dom's eye.
Kel thought it would be wise to interrupt before the cousins' taunts escalated. "I would love to come but I already have plans. Sorry, Dom."
This caught the boys' attention again. "Plans for what?" Neal asked suspiciously.
"I'm going riding with Nasir, actually." The lady knight tried to appear casual as she watched them for reactions or, in the healer's case, overreactions.
"Wait," said the green-eyed knight. "Is Lady Knight Keladry of Mindelan telling me, in front of all these witnesses that she is going on a date?!"
"You are ridiculous, Sir Nealean of Queescove," Kel replied, using his hated full name in response to his use of hers. "It's not… whatever you said it is. It's just two adults getting together to talk and get to know each other."
"Is that what they call it these days?" Dom asked, his blue eyes seeming to burn into the lady knight's. The other two knights looked amazedly back and forth between the pair.
She shook off the feeling and shook her head at the sergeant, raising a questioning eyebrow. "I would expect this foolishness from Meathead but not from you, Dom," she said, trying to lighten the situation.
"Then maybe you don't know me as well as you think you do," he replied. The sergeant bowed stiffly to the three knights and left. They were left staring into the empty space where he had just stood.
When he recovered, Neal looked to the others and said, "Did anyone else find that odd?"
Kel did not hear Owen's reply. She was focused internally, replaying Dom's words in her head. Is that what they call it these days? ...Then maybe you don't know me as well as you think you do. What was he playing at? Why was he so upset? Kel felt she needed to talk to him. "Excuse me boys. I really am going to turn in for the night. See you around tomorrow."
She pushed her way through the crowd and out to the hall toward the Own's officer's quarters. The lady knight paced down it and knocked at Dom's door, but he either did not answer or was not there. With no other specific idea as to where he could be, she headed towards her rooms, still wondering what had happened tonight with Dom.
And with Nasir.
As though her thoughts could summon him, the Carthaki-Tortallan man appeared around the corner, coming down the corridor towards her. "Nasir!" she called, drawing his attention. His white smile appeared, bright against his brown skin.
"Kel," he replied happily, "I was looking for you at the ball, and one of your knight friends told me you went back to your rooms." His brow furrowed as he said, "He even gave me directions…"
The lady knight groaned. "Neal can be… enthusiastic. Sorry about that," she apologized.
Nasir shook his head. "No, I know who Sir Neal is through his wife, Lady Yuki. This was a tall man, dark hair, blue eyes. Sound familiar?"
Dom? Where was he? Why would he give Nasir directions to her room? Kel thought. What was going on with him? More importantly, what was going on with her?
"Why me?" Kel asked aloud to no one in particular.
Nasir cleared his throat. "Kel, I want to tell you something—I think we're both misunderstood. People judge me on my appearance and just think I'm some foreigner. They distrust me because I'm half-Carthaki; I've even been accused of being a spy before. I know that you've had your fair share of problems being a woman and a warrior, and I've also heard how accepting you were of commoners and Yamanis. I thought that maybe that would apply to half-Carthaki clerks too."
Kel was stunned. She did not know how to respond to a speech like that. The lady knight swallowed hard and looked him straight in the eye. "Nasir, thank you for that. Really, it means a lot to me that you said it. And thank you for the invitation to ride tomorrow, but I just remembered that I have a prior commitment with some friends… I'm sorry to have to break our plans."
The tall man smiled in understanding. "Don't worry about it, Lady Kel. I know you're a busy woman. Another time, perhaps?"
She nodded. "I would like that." Kel curtsied this time to his bow, and each went back the way they came, Nasir to the ball and Kel towards Dom's room.
This time, she did not stop to knock; she turned the knob and strode in uninvited. Dom spun around to face the intruder, his body anxious. He left his defensive position once he saw who it was, but the lady knight noticed that he was still tensed.
"What are you doing here, Kel? Someone's looking for you." He stood still, his shoulders taut and his hands motionless at his sides.
She shut the door behind her and moved in closer. "What did you mean, Dom, to run away from us at the ball and then to send Nasir to my room?"
"I thought that's what you wanted, Kel. You seemed happy enough to spend time with him this evening; I thought you might want more."
"You think I'm interested in him?" she asked incredulously. To herself, the lady knight had admitted that she liked spending time with Nasir, but she hardly thought of him in that way. At least not that quickly. Dom did not reply, only looked at her confusedly. She told him, "I'm a warrior, Dom. I have to stick with my own kind. You know, I never understood how you men could take up with those frivolous ladies who don't know what it's like to march for days on end and fight for hours more and see people killed in front of you and kill because it is your duty. That never made sense to me."
His eyes were intent as he answered. "Maybe we want to escape. Maybe spending an hour listening to court gossip can cover up the bad memories of a war."
Kel snorted. "You should deal with it, just like I have to deal with it."
"Your half-Carthaki is a courtier, Kel. He would gossip with the best of them."
"Are you jealous, Dom?" she asked calmly. "Are you afraid that a palace clerk will keep me here forever and that you will have no woman to flirt with on patrol?"
"Gods be damned, Kel, it's not about the flirting. I love you!" he almost shouted.
They were both stunned by his words. Kel cleared her throat and searched his face as she asked quietly, "Why didn't you tell me before?"
"You had Cleon and New Hope, and there were always people around who needed you more than me…" He shook his head slowly.
"What about what I needed?" Kel asked rather harshly, and she hurried to correct herself. "Sorry, that came out wrong. I just mean that I was lonely… You know, I'm just not good at talking these feelings out. With Cleon, it was just…"
"Just what?" Dom asked with a twinge of curiosity.
The lady knight stepped forward and gingerly wrapped a hand around the back of his head, pulling him down to kiss her. Dom answered her hungrily. Eventually, the pair let their bodies take over, and some fumbling with his tunic and her dress lacings commenced.
Kel pulled back, her dress already fully unlaced in the back. Her hands rested lightly on his chest as she looked into his blue eyes. "Dom, I don't know… Cleon and I never actually… You have more experience," she finally said.
Dom brushed his fingers against her lips to quiet her. "Hush, Kel. It's just like a dance. I'll lead you." He bent down a little to grab the hem of her over-dress, and gently pulled it over her head, leaving Kel in her shift. Then, he took her arms and placed them tight around his neck before he resumed kissing her soundly.
A Midwinter's Eve dance… that's all it was.