A/N: Wow, that sure did take forever, didn't it? It was because I decided to take three honors classes this year, and an extra hard one with it. Oh, and I have another one that demand entirely too much from me. I don't mean to complain, but here we go. We should really start talking about the story, huh? I think that now would be a good time to mention that this is ever so slightly AU. There are just a few things that are different, nothing big. Just ... oh, well, you'll see, won't you? Of course, because you guys are soon to be addicted to this story. You didn't notice, did you? I infused crack into this story. As you read, it moves from the words and into your eyeballs. Soon, all of you will be reading my stories and begging for more. Not just because they are truly superb stories, but also because you are addicted to crack! And all of you are good people, you don't know where to get crack, so the only source you have of it is my stories. Now, there's hooking an audience.
Sweet Sassy Sarah: I was awfully depressed, I said that. It was just a really sucky day that day... Alls well now, though. Except for the disgusting cough...
Kyprish Prophetess: Funny, when I read your name I want to say princess. Anywhoot, there is definitely going to be more, just at a much more sedate pace than Kissed started out.
Beka woke, her body aching, to the sound of knocking on her door. Getting out of bed made her thighs scream in protest. She was groggy from too little sleep. The only good thing about last night was that her late night lover had left before dawn. When she finally made it to her door and opened it, a tall blond woman walked in, dragging along one of Beka's friends from puppy training. Aniki looked at her and smiled. "You look like scummer." It had never been Aniki's way to be polite, she was blunt, just like Beka was. Beka couldn't say that she hadn't earned it. She had woken up for breakfast with a group of people that were far too chatty in the morning. Then, she had gone to do an hours worth of training with Ahuda before her rounds with Goodwin and Tunstall. Then, she had come home to her lover on her bed, and had stayed up far too late canoodling. The memory of how little sleep she had gotten made her whimper in the back of her throat.
She scowled at the girl as she made her tender legs carry her to grab the cups and plates they would need. As the size of the group was never constant, she had gotten into the habit of grabbing all her things, just in case that many people showed up. Aniki and Phelan, Kora and Ersken, Pounce, Laddybuck, and Fuzzball in a sling all wormed into her room. Rosto didn't show up, but it wasn't surprising. He had stopped coming to breakfast weeks ago. Fickle cove, thought Beka with a frown. It happened right around the time another person started coming.
Breakfast was always a fun event, even if it were loud and hyperactive for someone who didn't like getting up in the morning. Today proved no different. They joked and made fun of each other, fish puppy being a word they shot around even though the incident had happened months ago. The cats even seemed to laugh with the people, all the while trying to weasel anyone they could out of a piece of cheese, or a bit of meat. They were scavengers, all three of them. Pounce curled up on Beka's pillow, tucking his feet under him and his tail around his bottom. His eyes closed and he purred softly, a sign that he was taking a cat nap. The kittens curled up on their respectful owner's laps, doing their own versions of Pounce's routine. Everyone else was sufficiently full, leaning back or lying down with contented sighs.
A soft knock sounded on her door, making the others look at it. No one rushed to open it, but Beka had not been raised rude, she opened the door politely to a beautiful woman. Her silky black hair was piled on top of her head, looking artfully messy. Big brown eyes looked at her, calm excitement fairly dripping out of them. Ambry never dressed in anything unappealing. Her body was draped in soft white fabric, translucent when not against her dark skin. Her feet were in soft white boots, still pristine even after walking in the city. She really did look like a dancing dove, as most people in the city called her. The thought made Beka grimace in the comfort of her own mind.
"Ambry." A deep voice called from somewhere down the hall. It was followed closely by a man. He was dark, almost black, but with a reddish undertone. His eyes were piercing, always seeming to accuse. In the middle of his face was a slanted nose that stuck out just a bit too far. It reminded Beka of a beak, an exotic birds beak. His hands also lent to the description, the knuckles too large and sharply lined. The way he walked was as a hawk hunting for prey. When he saw Beka, his eyes widened in a smile. For all his menacing looks, he was genuinely happy to see Beka. "Hello. How are you this morning?" He asked her as he folded her small body against his in a hug, quick but efficient.
Beka's mouth twitched into her own smile. She was happy for far different reasons than Col, but happy nonetheless. Col was easy to get along with, and it was something that Beka was happy for. Beka had many friends, but only Rosto and Tunstall were the only men. The latter treated her as a father might, trying to push her and prod her in directions he found favorable. The former … Well, he was another matter entirely. It was nice for Beka to be friends with Col because he didn't want anything from her. She enjoyed talking to him, he seemed to as well. There was nothing sexual between them, and he didn't try to tell her how off she was about her decisions. He gave advice only when she asked for it, not whenever he felt it necessary. Unlike someone else I know. "I'm fine this morning, how about you? Were you up late?" She added a wink at that, just to make Col smile.
Ambry blushed, the color going from her cheeks and down into her bodice. A petite throat clearing issued from her throat, inaudible but to Beka and Col. Beka turned her face to the girl, not letting her smile slip at all. She was proud of that fact, not giving into the disgust and anger that had slowly burned in her since the trollop dared move into this house. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. You know how it is, though. Col and I are close friends, we tend to talk about things." Beka turned her back and walked into the room, hoping to pick things up before the other two entered. She had left the door open, so they soon followed into the room and took seats at the edge of her bed.
As Beka turned her back to put the still clean plates on a shelf, she scowled. The puttock has her behind on my bed. The stupid wench should really learn to know when she's not wanted. Before she turned to face them, she pulled on her amiable smile. "You weren't hungry, were you?" She asked them both, even if she didn't want to. The Provost didn't raise her to be rude. "There really wasn't much left from breakfast, but if you are, I'm sure I could scare something up."
Ambry smiled and it almost made Beka slap her. "No, thank you. We already ate." She held Col's hand and smiled at him, unfeigned love shining through. It was sad to Beka that someone as great as Col could be so headlong in love with such a woman as Ambry. But she would always deal with her, out of her deep friendship with Col. He was an admirable man, even if he had been an instrument of destruction in the hands of the woman beside him.