A/N: For those of you who didn't notice, I upped the rating to T for this chapter. There is some vague sexual content that I believe still falls under T. If I go further I will be making a note the chapter before I up it to M. Thank you all for your reviews, your follows, your favorites, and for reading. It all means so much to me.

Dom arrived back at the palace at the head of Third Company, just behind Raoul, shortly after the seventh bell of the evening exhausted and ready to find a bath and fall into bed. But he knew that other things had to be done before he could even think about sleeping. He needed to tend to his mounts, sort through his saddlebags to send dirty clothing to the laundry, and then he needed to go see Kel. Moving rooms would, thankfully, take place the following day after Flyn had officially vacated his room. And when Dom was out of his room, Riley would take Dom's room to make space for any new recruits assigned to his squad.

"Well, isn't that a sight I never thought I'd see," Raoul's voice made Dom look up. Coming out of the walled gardens nearest to the Own's courtyard, was Kel looking beautiful in yet another gown with a very polished up Kas running out to catch her around the waist to attempt to haul her back into the gardens. Even though they weren't very close, Dom could hear Kel's laughter as Kas lifted her up by the waist to carry her back through the garden walls.

"I'm just glad they went back inside of the garden before they started getting gross," Lerant gave a mock-shudder.

"That was the smith? Her sweetheart, what was his name again?" Raoul asked turning to look at Dom.

"Kasen Lander," Dom replied immediately. If Raoul wanted the man's name, he wasn't going to settle for a nickname. It was likely he was preparing his fatherly speech about treating his pseudo-daughter properly. "Her limp doesn't seem as prominent but she could be hiding it with the gown," Dom tried to distract him from ruining whatever happiness was taking place in the gardens beyond their sight anytime soon.

Dom knew those gardens well. He had taken women there many times for quick flirtations. There were plenty of private spaces and benches for couples to share intimate moments. It only partially bothered him that Kas and Kel were likely alone in there at this time of night while other sweethearts were dining or being properly respectable. A well trained lady knew that the gardens after dinnertime were places that procured gossip about bad reputations. But he knew Kel could protect herself if she wanted protecting and likely didn't care one wit for the gossip anymore. From the way she had laughed when Kas had carried her back inside, she didn't seem to be unhappy with what was likely taking place.

"We'll have plenty of time to see how injured or not injured she is when she's not entertaining her sweetheart," Raoul turned to dismount. "Gods know it's a boon to my heart to see her enjoying being a woman for once. We can talk to her tomorrow. I gather the man must work at some point."

Dom took the hint and went to lead his own mounts into the stables marked for the Own. They both needed to be given thorough rubdowns and have their hooves checked over. When he was done with that, he forced himself to walk away from the path that led to the garden and go to the Own's barracks instead. He had plenty to do to distract him from Kel when it came to unpacking his saddlebags and starting to pack up his other belongings to be moved in the morning. Once he had thoroughly exhausted himself, he settled into bed with every intention to sleep the whole night through.

In his dreams he was in the walled gardens with Kel. Her pink rose colored gown, certainly not the same one he had seen her wearing earlier, accented every lovely curve of her body and brought a beautiful blush to her skin tone. Her mouse brown hair had been pinned and curled to touch at her cheeks and neck in a way that begged for his fingers to caress the silky curls and her soft skin beneath. Her hazel eyes were painted lightly and her lips were plumped with a shade of pink that matched her gown.

She reached down for his hands begging him to stand up from the bench he had been sitting on as she bit her lip and then gave him a huge grin. Then she was off, running but not actually running to get away. It was a tease, this game she wanted to play, and he enjoyed it as he chased her from hidden alcove to hidden alcove. Every time he would just about catch up to her, she was off again, glancing back to give him a coy smile that made him want to catch her all the more. Then, finally, in a very tucked away alcove with a bench shielded by vine filled trellises on all sides, she purposely slowed just enough for him to catch her around the waist.

She came to him willingly, her body pressing against his completely as he captured her. She was breathing hard but certainly not from the running. The spark in her eyes told him desire was more likely the cause, and it called to him and the desire that had been building in him as they had played their game. His lips pressed against hers in a kiss that only drove him to want even more from her.

They were alone in the garden, his mind had noted that from the beginning and reminded him now, and they were shielded from sight even if someone did happen by. He moved her back to the bench and sat, pulling her down to straddle his lap. Her hips bounced against his, causing him to lose what little control he had retained. In one quick motion her skirt was neatly around her waist and his breeches were down enough for him to have access to her.

"Oh, Dom, please," she begged with a breathy moan as he teased her just a moment longer.

Dom shot awake in bed, cold sweat over every inch of his skin. Part of his mind was frustrated for waking him up just short of giving Kel everything she deserved to feel while the other part was grateful it hadn't gone further. The dream had felt too real. The feel of Kel against him in an embrace wasn't unfamiliar to him in life so it wasn't implausible that he knew that feeling in his dreams. But the kisses and the feel of her straddling him had been so realistic. He certainly had never been in that position with her before. He had never heard that tone from her either, the breathy begging that was so highly sexual his body was still responding to the echoes of it in his mind.

His hand strayed to his breeches and he could feel how much he had responded to the dream. With the images and feelings still fresh in his mind it would only take a few moments to sort himself out and be back to sleep, but Dom removed his hand and forced himself to get up. He was not going to act on fantasies of Kel. He had never acted on them before and now they certainly didn't belong to him. He had practically handed her over to Kas, who would give her everything she needed that he couldn't provide himself. He wasn't as stable as Kas was. He was in constant danger as a commander and a soldier. She needed someone safe to return to. Someone that could be with her through her healing of her wounds, not someone that gave them to her.

He splashed cold water on his face and against his bare chest, hoping it would shock his body into calming down. He would never act on his fantasies of Kel, no matter how they presented themselves. Only when he was certain he was in control of his body again, did he lay back down to sleep again.

But Kel was waiting in his dreams, exactly where he had left her straddling his lap begging him to have her. He held no control of his dream body as it gave into her wishes but he felt everything as if it were truly happening. The torturous pleasure seemed to go on forever until Kel threw her head back with a noise of such complete and utter pleasure that he was certain he'd live for that sound alone. It was only when she came back to him, curling against his shoulder and into his embrace that he realized his body had completed its task when she had hit her peak.

When the dream finally released him Dom was well aware of the sticky wetness in his loincloth and breeches that needed to be addressed. He was disgusted with himself more than anything. Kel belonged to Kas. Kas was the one drawing Kel out of the dark corner conservative idiots had pushed her into. Kas was the one showing Kel how she deserved to be treated by a man. Dom had done none of that really. Acknowledging her gender, a few flirts over the years, a drink once while she had been out, these weren't things that constituted being deserving of having such intimate dreams of her.

He needed to clear his mind of her if he planned to sleep at all the rest of the night. He needed to be completely distracted that it overtook his dreams. It wasn't unreasonable that he go to the infirmary and request a dreamless sleep draught but he'd have to give a reason. These dreams weren't exactly night terrors from the war or from battles fought. They weren't even bad dreams, just partially unwelcome to his morals.

But he was already changing clothes and pulling on his boots. If anything he knew where his uncle kept his stash of carefully labeled teas. One of them was bound to be helpful in the situation.

At the infirmary, Dom was surprised to find his uncle there in his office with his nose in a book though it was still several hours until dawn. When Dom pressed for answers to why he was there, Baird nodded to several pages of notes on his desk and a cabinet that Dom rarely saw open filled with herbs, essences, and oils that were used in creating balms and healer concoctions. When Dom walked around the desk to glance at the notes, he realized the notes were on Kel's wound and the progress it was making with different treatments.

"Neal has written me some about her healing but not anything like this," Dom sat in the spare chair at the desk and started reading the notes more slowly. He wasn't unfamiliar with the healer language. The name of the muscle he had cut, the commentary on the development of the burns, the description of the markings on the burned muscle and skin both to the Gifted eye and to plain sight were all very detailed and certainly drove all of his thoughts of desire from his mind and expanded his guilt.

"Because there was more than just a few drops of spidren blood causing damage we are simply documenting everything we do," Baird commented. "No one else has documentation of what has happened in these situations, so we are leaving a record for the future. Keladry has been very obliging though I believe it costs her to admit she's in pain at all."

"I saw her at a distance last evening when we rode in. She seemed to be doing well," Dom tried.

"I imagine she was out and about. I cleared her to be able to leave her rooms yesterday morning. She likely was enjoying her freedom," Baird leaned against the edge of his desk and met Dom's eyes. "How the Own's healers ever cleared her completely is beyond me. Perhaps the damage got worse between them seeing it and me seeing it, but I can't imagine it got much worse. It was a blessing you asked her to return and more so that she listened."

"She told you that?" Dom felt his cheeks burn. He had revealed himself too much when he had begged her to go. He had been so good about keeping his feelings mostly to himself. He hadn't spoken of them to his men, to Raoul, to his uncle, Neal, or anyone remotely connected with Kel. The only person he had revealed himself to was Master Reeves.

"We have gone over the entire story in depth," his uncle assured him. "She made me promise my discretion with your cousin though. No need to set Neal upon you when he's already expending pent up fussing on Kel."

"Yuki is still holding him at bay with that fan of hers?" Dom tried to deflect. Neal and his upcoming child were topics that often kept Baird talking at length. It was safe to assume they would do so again.

"I can only imagine how your Aunt Wilina would have used one when she was pregnant," Baird chuckled as he followed Dom down that conversational path.

"Aunt Wilina always said you were so calm for all of her pregnancies," Dom reflected. He didn't want to mention it had been in a conversation about the calm demeanor Graeme had inherited that had made him more capable as a commander. Thought it had been over a decade since his two cousins had died in the Immortals War, it was still a sensitive subject with any Queenscove.

"Well, I can say with certainty that I didn't feel calm about any of it. I'll have to have someone about to restrain Neal when Yuki goes into labor," Baird grinned.

"I'm sure after the letter I received from Kel this past month, you could recruit her to hold him down. I'm sure she'd enjoy it." Dom realized he was grinning too.

"And how are you doing?" Baird's tired green eyes swept down over Dom in a healer's assessment.

"I'm uninjured," Dom reminded him. Had he received any injury he was duty bound by his mother and by his cousin to report it to Baird even if it had been small or healed. And in several past cases, his uncle had come through with a balm or a list of exercises to help rehabilitate his body after the healing. His shoulder wound he had received the day Kel had led his men against the first killing device they had faced had healed much quicker with Baird's advice.

"And mentally?" Baird asked gently. "Why are you down here at this time of night, or morning rather?"

"I couldn't sleep," Dom lied. The truth was he could but wouldn't with those dreams seemingly ready to invade his mind, but he really didn't want to explain himself to his uncle.

"Keladry will be fine," Baird started with a knowing smile. "I've finally found something that seems to be working to both numb the pain she feels and assists in the healing process. The burns are diminishing and her muscle is beginning to knit properly. It's why I've cleared her to go beyond her rooms. In a few weeks she'll barely be limping at all. A full month at this rate and I won't restrict her at all. Two months and only the scar will be left."

Dom let out a sigh of relief for several reasons. His uncle had attributed his inability to sleep to his concerns for Kel rather than any other feelings for her, and had given him some information to assure him about her recovery. It was a blessing to hear that she was going to heal with nothing more than a scar.

"Do you want something to help you sleep?" Baird broke through his thoughts.

"Dreamlessly if I could," Dom admitted.

"Captain Whiteford had plenty of those nights too," his uncle assured him as he went over to another cabinet. Inside of that cabinet were the teas, finished concoctions, and balms of his trade. He withdrew a small vial and turned to offer it to Dom. "Two drops in your water and no more. It will help you sleep without dreams for a few hours. Try to avoid using it too much."

Dom nodded his understanding as he took the vial. He certainly didn't want to be dependent on the drops for sleep in the future. He thanked his uncle and bid him goodnight before returning back to his rooms. Two tiny drops from the vial hardly seemed like it would be enough but Dom was no idiot. His uncle knew exactly what he was doing so he drank down the dosed water.

When he woke up it was light outside of the window but the sun had just barely risen. Grateful for the lack of dreams the second part of the night, Dom cleaned up, dressed, and made his way to the Own's mess for breakfast. He was pleasantly surprised to be hailed the moment he walked into the mess and found his cousin there along with Kel. After he collected his tray and food, he went to join them.

"You're not sleeping in?" Kel asked when he came over.

"Not today," Dom grinned at settled in across from Kel and Neal. A second quick glance at Kel told him she was not wearing anything remotely similar to the dress from his dream but her blouse she wore was the same color. It rushed the memories of her skirt up around her waist and the events that had followed in the dream to the forefront of his thoughts. He pushed them back. "I saw you and Kas were enjoying the gardens last evening," he forced himself to bring Kas into the conversation more to remind himself than to have the conversation.

"He's been visiting every so often since I haven't been able to leave the palace grounds," Kel gave him a smile that brought light to her hazel eyes. "Likely getting a lot more work done now that I can't come and bother him during the day."

"I doubt he ever minded the loss of work for you visiting," Dom informed her. "You seemed to be having fun last night."

"We thought we'd do something other than play chess in my rooms." She turned to smack Neal's arm when he let out a cough that seemed to be covering some utterance or another.

"What? I'm just saying I doubt all you two do is play chess in your rooms alone all evening," Neal teased.

"We certainly aren't doing what you are suggesting. He respects me more than you do." Kel turned to Dom. "Which reminds me, I have a bone to pick with your former squad."

"Former squad?" Neal interrupted her suddenly alert and overly loud. "You quit? Why! You were on track to become Captain of Third Company when Captain Flyndan retires. And word is he will retire soon. Everyone knows that!"

Dom swallowed a laugh. Of course Neal would jump right to the probability of him quitting while mentioning and then ignoring the more obvious reason. The jumping to conclusions he did had to account for at least half of his daily exercises and were likely the reason he was still in shape despite rare visits to the practice courts.

"Maybe we can retract your resignation. Where is Lord Raoul? I'll tell him you were temporarily unstable. I'm a healer, he'll have to take my word." Neal stood and looked around the mess hall. There was no chance he would find Raoul. He actually slept in and it was likely Buri wouldn't let him leave their bedroom for long for at least a day.

"You didn't tell him?" Dom ignored his cousin and asked Kel. "My uncle seemed aware of it when I saw him last night."

"I avoid talking about the call with him since it's hard for me to get a word in edgewise when he starts going off about my injury," she rolled her eyes. "Who was promoted to your position?"

"Riley. Wolset isn't complaining," Dom grinned. "No promotion of corporal yet."

"Domitan," Flyn's voice made him turn. "Have your things packed and ready by midday. Everything should be ready then."

"Wait, Captain Whiteford!" Neal practically fell over the bench trying to extract himself.

"As of yesterday evening, it is no longer Captain, Sir Nealan," Flyn turned to look at Dom. "Any questions you have regarding Third Company can be addressed to Captain Domitan from here forth until he's had enough of this bunch of hooligans." His voice carried across the mess hall and true to their nature the 'hooligans' of Third Company burst into wild cheers.

"What's this about Neal not respecting you as much as Kas does?" Dom asked quietly while the noise continued. He felt his own cheeks flush as Kel relayed exactly how Neal had stripped off her breeches and had practically seen her in only her undergarments.

"Why didn't you tell me you were promoted?" Neal asked as he set himself back in his seat. "You could have saved me the embarrassment."

"Why save you the embarrassment?" Dom asked. "What fun would that be?"

"You're cruel!" Neal gathered up his tray. "I'll leave you two cruel people on your own and then you'll realize how much you need me!" He turned to stalk off without looking back once.

"So things really are going well with Kas? No need for me to hunt him down and teach him how to romance you properly?" Dom pressed when Neal was long gone.

"He really is truly amazing," Kel's brilliant smile lit her face again and Dom realized he could not for one second think of actually taking that away from her. Yes, part of him wanted her to smile like that because of him, but, no, he wouldn't take her unless Kas hurt her. And Kas hurting her seemed very unlikely.

"I have a hard time believing he hasn't taken advantage of being alone in your rooms with you all of this past month," Dom settled back into the role he had made for himself. He was supposed to be the one she could tell things to and he would make sure she felt comfortable doing so.

"We've kissed but he hasn't pushed for anything more and I haven't either. I'm not sure of his reasons but I really don't wish to aggravate my leg any more than it already is." Kel's smile softened. "He's a gentleman when it comes to that sort of thing. Never pushing me beyond what he thinks I want."

"Well, I'm sure you were right and he will respect you far more than Meathead when you are ready," Dom assured her. "I suppose I should finish up here and get back to packing up."

"Would you like some help? I can't haul boxes without angering several healers and likely Kas, but I can help pack things away," Kel hauled herself up and Dom became acutely aware of the way she favored her injured leg. Her eyes followed his down to her thigh and a small blush stained her cheek before it disappeared behind her mask completely. "I really am alright. It's just tight in the mornings. Your uncle says it's because I don't move about during the night so the muscle around it becomes complacent."

"Of course," Dom pressed his own worries down. "I would love a hand. Let me take your tray for you though." He bent down to take her breakfast tray despite Kel's protests she was perfectly capable of carrying it. She would have to understand he felt some guilt and would take care of her in what small ways he was allowed.

Eventually he would need to send a letter to Master Reeves about how things were progressing with Kas as far as his mastery or at least the amount of time he was working. Then he would have to visit Kas at some point and explain his guilt in Kel's injury. It wasn't something he was looking forward to but he felt it was necessary. But until then, he had Kel to himself for a while to help him pack and he wanted to use that time to try and think up a way to make up her wound to her.