Another short one shot in which nothing really happens. Sad, I know...Tragic, actually. But oh well.
Kahlan sat by the fire, glacial blue eyes carefully tuned to the rigid form a few yards away. The blonde had been standing off by herself, watching the woods in silence, for the better part of the evening. Though she would have denied it, Kahlan had been watching her for nearly as long.
Something about Cara captivated her. The Mord-Sith was an enigma, and though they had been traveling together for some months now, Kahlan knew she had barely begun to scratch the surface and unravel her mysteries. There was just so much to see, to try to understand. Watching the blonde, Kahlan could see the tension present in every muscle of her body, tightly tuned and harder than steel. The red leather had proved a truth and deception both. It spoke to the lethal warrior in Cara, but it also smoothed away the rough edges, making her look deceptively calm and still.
Kahlan now knew that the blonde was never truly still- even when she wasn't physically moving, her mind was always working, analyzing the situation and thinking. Cara's skin proved similarly misleading. The only part of her body that was not covered by her leathers was her face, and the bronzed skin seemed too flawless for a warrior. There was only one small scar, just below her left jaw, that gave testament to the murderous weapon that was concealed beneath the beautiful exterior.
The dirty blonde hair was growing longer with every day, but Cara had yet to pull it back in the braid she had worn for so many years. There was a part of Kahlan that thought perhaps it was because she was no longer the woman who had been forced into servitude as a child. Another part of her recognized that Cara was changing- since joining them, her entire world had changed, and Kahlan knew the changes had spread more deeply inside the blonde than she knew.
While her closely guarded exterior gave nothing away, and her biting comments sometimes made it impossible to tell, there was one small aspect of the blonde that gaze away her true intentions: her eyes. The beautiful, sea-green orbs were quite possibly the most striking thing Kahlan had ever seen. At once defensive, angry, hurt, pained, and haunted, her eyes would occasionally get a sort of soft look in them.
Kahlan loved that look, but even more so when it was directed at her. She had taken to looking for things to do that might entice that look, but she found that half the time all she had to do was catch the blonde's eye and, for a single, fleeting moment, Cara's eyes would smile at her. No matter how exhausted she was, how aching from battle, that simple look made her feel like all of it didn't matter. So long as Cara could look at her like that, everything was right with the world.
She knew that any sort of relation outside of trying to kill each other was unheard of for Mord-Sith and confessors, but somehow, she couldn't bring herself to care. Cara had changed so much, and was still trying every day to come to terms with what she had done and to mend everything she had once broken, and the effort was immensely endearing. A tiny part of Kahlan whispered that, even if she stopped trying, it wouldn't matter, and as blue eyes tracked red leather as Cara moved to lean against a different tree, Kahlan knew it was true.
The blonde evoked feelings she wasn't used to having to deal with. Something about her- she was so proud and fiercely independent, yet at the same time she was broken and child-like, searching for someone who would help her. The juxtaposition only added to the mystery, and watching Cara, Kahlan felt as though she could spend a thousand years with her and still not know everything there was to know.
For all her professions of being unable to feel, and being emotionless, Cara seemed to radiate unadulterated emotion at all times. It seemed to be what drove her actions, and her continued denial made it that much harder for her to truly change. The woman was so full of contradictions and conflicting facets, and yet, sometimes she seemed so simple to Kahlan.
Like now, watching her in the faint glow of the fire. Kahlan could easily read the tension in Cara's body, and as she stood and walked silently over to the blonde, she watched as every muscle became just a tiny bit more taught. The second her hand tentatively reached out and came to rest gently on Cara's shoulder, she could feel some of the tension bleed from the blonde.
As she murmured something about taking the watch for a while so Cara could sleep, she saw the blonde's head turn and scrutinize her, searching out her motivations. Whatever she saw, her eyes took on that soft look, and Kahlan just looked at her, drinking in the sight before her. After a long moment, Cara shook her head no, telling Kahlan she needed the rest more.
Sighing, but having expected no different, Kahlan said goodnight, but as she pulled away, her fingers caught at red-gloved ones, and for a split second longer she felt the strength of the other woman. Going to her bed roll and laying down, she watched through the faint glow of the fire as Cara continued to stare out at the surrounding forest, though her stance was slightly more relaxed than before.
As her eyes slipped closed, Kahlan let a smile touch her lips, thankful once more for the chance to get to know Cara better.
Huzzah. Short, but I'm now considering doing a companion piece from cara's POV. Also, all credit for the "bleeding tension" thing goes to racethewind10, it was just such a beautiful phrase, and it fit so perfectly, and I couldn't come up with anything even remotely close, so I stole it...but credit is given, so it's not plagiarism! My history teachers would be ever so proud...reviews are love!