Despite the hours she kept the night before, Kel was up at dawn. She fed her sparrows and Jump. Then, out of habit, she did glaive practice in her room, but these days it was more to wake her up than to stay fit for battle. After a moment's hesitation, Kel donned one of the dresses she had packed, a dark forest green gown crafted by none other than Lalasa. At last she put on a black armband out of respect for the family in whose home she was staying.

She was heading downstairs when she heard footsteps behind her. Dom's Queen ran up to greet her. "Beautiful dress," Dom murmured behind her. "Wearing it for someone in particular?"

Kel glared at him to hide his effect on her. "Of course. Myself. A girl doesn't need an excuse to wear a dress."

He tweaked her nose. "I know," he said cheekily.

The household ate breakfast together (after much persuasion brought Neal out of bed) and then walked to the burial grounds. They took a countryside trail that wound behind the manor and took them uphill. Soon, Kel could no longer hear the distant bustling of the town. Instead, plants of all kinds bloomed on the roadside: tiny peonies waved in the wind as tall grasses and taller trees shook off the morning dew in the wind. Kel's sparrows darted from tree to tree, cheeping brightly.

"Pondering the greenery, lady knight?" Dom remarked as he drew even with Kel. When Kel replied that she was curious, he explained, "It's a long story, but basically, past generations of Masbolles learned the hard way that it's not a good idea to make our burial grounds look like, well, a dead place."

The tall cemetery gates were wrought from sturdy black iron. Black vines of leaves climbed up and wrapped around each post. As they entered, the only sound came from the rustling of leaves, the sigh of the wind, and the crunch of footsteps.

The flowering environment explained why it was no custom to place flowers or offerings by the tombstones. The household linked hands and gathered first around the late Lord Irwin's grave, then those of his sons, Sirs Gavin and Nolann. Kel gave Neal's hand a reassuring squeeze as they stood before Nolann, with whom Neal was almost as close to as he was with Dom.

At around the ninth bell, they returned to the house, a somber yet resigned air having descended especially upon the immediate family. It was the first time all the Masbolles together visited their deceased. Someone was always either on active duty or at Court.

Rosalee was tear-worn and dozing on her father's shoulder as Maddy asked the others, "Anyone up for some riding?"

After the morning ride, Dom insisted that an official tour of the house was in order for Kel. He showed her the separate wings of the house, the gardens, the kitchens, the different sitting rooms and dining areas. The house even had a swimming hole out back. Then he showed her the fields and vineyards where Masbolle's famed blueberries and other fruits were farmed. Kel went to lunch feeling all the more at home. She said as much to her tour guide.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Dom remarked, chuckling. "My offer still stands for you to come here and stay any time you like. It will certainly be a little lonely here in the coming years."


After lunch, Kel decided to catch up on some letter writing. It had been a while since she wrote home last, and she also wanted to write to her friends. She was walking past the same balcony where she and Dom talked the night before when she heard a voice from outside:

"Not inclined toward fun anymore, my lord?" It was familiar, though the times it was addressed to Kel it was sneering, not purring.

"If we're to have any fun, we ought to be on first-name bases, milady." Kel could practically see him in her mind's eye: one of his eyebrows quirking up suggestively, that wicked smile plastered on his face, that naughty twinkle in his eye, and a lightheartedness in the very air around you.

"Alright, then, Domitan. Can we have fun now?"

Dom said something Kel couldn't hear, so she sneaked to the other side of the window to get a better vantage point. In all honesty, Kel's heart sank with every word, but there was no helping her favorite vice: eavesdropping.

The couple stood facing each other, and Kel might have considered their backdrop of a breathtaking Masbolle by day very romantic were she not busy with the creeping feeling that she was being betrayed.

Kel watched as Doanna leaned toward him for a kiss. Kel looked away as he let her. Suddenly it became very hard for Kel to suppress the urge to cry.

After a while, Doanna took Dom's hand and led him back inside. Kel, on their blind side, ran for dear life. She was lucky they were taking their sweet time about getting back inside, otherwise they would have seen her. Kel tried not to think too much about what "fun" they were going to get up to. The very thought of them made it all the more difficult to hold back tears. Silently Kel cursed Dom for flirting with her—on that very balcony, too!—and then going off to be with another woman, one who held ill will toward Kel herself. Did he know that about Doanna? Did he even care?

Kel slammed her door shut behind her and heaved a broken sigh of frustration. Jump, by the window, leaped down and pawed her leg, wuffing. Kel sighed again. He was right. She had to fight back all thoughts of Dom or else she knew what would happen, and that was no good. She couldn't show that such ridiculousness had an effect on her, even though it did. It cut deeper than she ever expected. And yet, she was Kel. She survived Blayce the Nothing Man. She survived the Scanran War. She survived heartbreak—twice. Surely this was no different.

She allowed only a single tear to slip from her left eye, no more.


A rap on the door roused Kel from a long and very unintentional nap. Blearily she wiped the sleep from her eyes and did her best to straighten her clothes before she opened the door.

"Oh, my dear," Dom's mother remarked, taking Kel's face in her comforting hands. "I came to see if you would be for some supper... What's the matter, darling?"

Kel smiled tiredly. "Nothing, my lady. I just fell asleep, is all. And please, call me Kel. When is supper?"

"Right about now. Well then, go and wash up. I can still see the dreams in your eyes," Darinia joked, reminding Kel of Dom not one bit. "I'll walk down with you."

Kel did as she was told. Despite her misgivings, the sleep did her well. Her mind was more composed, even if her appearance was not. Just as well, Kel thought dogmatically, Nothing shall disturb my mind, especially not this. It doesn't matter what I look like.

As luck would have it, the servants placed Kel next to Dom at table. The lady knight did her best to carry on as if she knew nothing and, as a result, contributed more to conversation this night than the last. She pretended not to notice Doanna's not-so-subtle glances across the table at Kel's dinner companion. So well she pretended that she almost missed her companion's returning looks, or lack thereof.

Dom talked to Kel as he normally did, joking and gesticulating in his usual manner that Kel almost forgot all her troubles. By the end of the meal, Kel was resigned to the fact that he still pulled her heartstrings like no other, but she valued their friendship too much to hold any grudges against him for unknowingly breaking her heart.

Dom also made the mistake of asking Neal about his betrothed, Yuki, to which Neal responded with an elaborate soliloquy. The others listened with interest, save for Kel and Dom, who both already knew much of what Neal was saying. When the knight started repeating himself, Dom looked at Kel and rolled his eyes.

Afterward, the household retired to the garden that hugged the mansion's east wall. The walkways blended well with the greenery, inviting one to stray off the path to look more closely at the purples, blues, reds, and yellows of the varieties of violets, orchids, roses, and daisies.

"Meathead, I'm surprised you haven't taken off already, your lady love so nearby from our humble home," Dom remarked with a friendly clap on Neal's shoulder.

Neal sniffed. "And I see no one's managed to change you one bit, cousin."

At this, Dom appeared thoughtful—or was that pain in his eyes?—but then it was gone, replaced with an impish smile. "Good, as long as I'm nowhere near being like you," he said with false cheer. Kel frowned. Dom never let anyone get under his skin, especially not Neal.

Someone tugged her hand. Kel looked down. "Cawwy me, Lady Kel!" Little Rosalee exclaimed.

"Say 'please,' Rosy," her mother, Lucetta, scolded.

"Pwease?" Rose repeated, eyes pleading, reminding Kel of the children of New Hope.

The lady knight bent down and scooped her up, bracing the little girl on her hip. She sat at an empty bench under the shade of a willow tree, Jump at her heels. By the way the dog jumped up next to Rose and sniffed and licked her hand, it was evident he wanted to play. Rose responded with an enthusiasm that rivaled that of Kel's friend Sir Owen of Jesslaw.

Alone with her thoughts, Kel observed the family and thought of her own family and friends. She never spoke much about how much she missed them to outsiders, because more than anything she disliked being pitied for her loneliness. It was bad enough going through two sweethearts and being away from her other friends for such long periods of time during the past few years. These days, she found herself in need of that intimate companionship that added such spice to her life in her non-single days. Cleon, who didn't really break her heart, was fun while they lasted, but the truth was that his arranged marriage was inevitable, and so was their romance. Merric, who did break her heart, did so in private, but then again, he'd been so keen on keeping even their relationship as private a secret as could be that he'd denied her in public. That ended the stolen kisses, the covert glances...

Now, as she watched Doanna's hand linger on her unrequited love's arm, Kel thought, Perhaps things were always meant to be this way. Doanna is pretty enough, and gods know Dom is too. They'd make a good couple... Absently she wondered if and when they planned to tell everybody...

"Lovely night tonight, Lady Kel." Lady Darinia of Masbolle sat down next to her as Rose wriggled out of Kel's lap to play with Jump and the sparrows. Queen was nowhere to be seen.

"Oh, yes," Kel breathed, gazing up at the pale, glowing moon. "Masbolle is every bit as beautiful as you said it was, my lady."

"Please, call me Darinia," the lady replied. "And I'm glad you agree." Then she took a deep breath. "Kel. Would you so oblige to hear me out for a moment? There's something I want to discuss with you."

"Of course," Kel said, intrigued.

"I confess," Darinia began, "I've become one of those matchmaking mothers that my son tells me Lord Sir Raoul so hated in the past. But I have reason to be." She looked at Kel worriedly. "What will become of Masbolle if—gods forbid—some accident claims my son's life while he's off gallivanting with the King's Own? Frankly, he's lucky to have made it to Scanra and back with you and Nealan and the dog... Well, I expected no less, seeing how you led them all." Kel hid a blush. Dom's mother continued, "But his life is a dangerous one. He tells me over and over that he knows the danger, and I believe him, but he's had ten years... I don't even want to guess how many close calls he's had in those ten years. And I don't want to outlive my youngest son," she whispered, her eyes haunted.

Kel gave Darinia's hand a comforting squeeze as the lady continued, "So, whether Dom likes it or not, I'm finding him a suitable wife. I want him to have someone to come home to. Someone he can always laugh with. Someone who can meet him as an equal. But most importantly, someone who will help him out."

The two ladies watched Dom talk animatedly to his sister and her husband, while Neal debated with Doanna, doubtless about some manner of philosophy.

Rose clutched her grandmother's hands as Darinia pulled her into her lap. "See, I believe you are that woman, Keladry of Mindelan." Kel jerked up, startled. Darinia smiled and said, "Oh yes! My son tells me how natural a leader you are, what with New Hope and—and how you led his squad when you were only a squire. And he wrote about how great a person and a friend you are to him—why, he sounds as if he's half in love with you already!" she said slyly. "Granted, marriage is no doubt a unique proposition for a lady knight... Unless you are already attached?"

Kel stared at her. "No, my la—Darinia, I'm not attached. I'm not seeing anybody at the moment..." She trailed off, unsure if she should tell Dom's mother of her son's latest attachment.

"Good!" Darinia said. "Well, you are good friends, are you not?"

"Yes, but—Darinia, I mean no disrespect but I beg to differ." She took a deep breath. Suddenly she felt very tired. "Because Dom seems quite infatuated with Lady Doanna these days."

Kel was interested to see the woman purse her lips while directing her gaze to the lady in question, who was now laughing at something Dom said. Finally Darinia spoke. "I've nothing against the woman. I can certainly sympathize with her, losing her husband, and so early in their marriage, too." She looked at Kel sharply. "But she's not the one for my son. He deserves better, not someone who thinks of men merely as her playthings. That shouldn't be all a woman sees in her man! Because that is definitely Doanna of Fenrigh."

Kel was shocked. She had her suspicions about Darinia's disapproval of the woman, but now they were validated.

"I see," Kel remarked at last, brows knit in a frown. "But I'm not so sure... He's never shown an interest before."

"Oh, he hasn't?" Darinia asked mildly, scratching Jump's ears. "No doubt he has flirted—"

"He doesn't mean it," Kel said automatically, then looked at the older woman with alarm. "Begging my lady's pardon. But Dom flirts with everybody."

Darinia's eyes narrowed. "Does he, indeed. We will see about that." Before Kel could say anything, Dom's mother stood and strode to her son, now sitting in conversation with his brother-in-law. With horror Kel watched the scene unfold before her.

Dom only grinned at his mother and turned back to Maddy. Kel breathed a sigh of relief. Later that night she went to bed with far more than Dom and Doanna to think about.