Epilogue

One Year Later

"Have you seen Neal today?" Domitan of Masbolle asked his friend, scowling slightly. She smiled at him.

"He didn't spend the night in town," Kel said, "if that's what you're worried about. I think we've mostly weaned him off of those… um, women."

Dom shrugged and returned her smile. "Well, where is he, then?" he asked, moving to sit on the bench beside her. Once, he would have allowed her more personal space; now, he sat so that their hips were just barely brushing. If Kel shivered slightly at the contact, he made no mention of it.

"He and Tenagi were studying something in the library, and he fell asleep in there. I ran into him as he was heading back to his chambers this morning."

"So they slept in the library?" Dom asked, wiggling his eyebrows slightly and allowing his disbelief to seep into his voice. Kel looked for a moment as if she might giggle, but managed to rein it in. Her smile turned into a slightly mischievous grin.

"And what business of yours would it be if they were doing more than 'sleeping in the library,' Dom?"

He shrugged. "Just wanted to check up on my Meathead cousin is all," he responded easily.

Kel sighed, immediately more serious. "Even I can see that she's in love with him, but she's not a fool, Dom. She knows he still feels for Yuki. Tenagi and I are not friends, so I don't know much beyond that, but I think she will wait until he's ready."

Dom frowned. "He might never be ready, Kel."

"I know."

They sat in somber but not uncomfortable silence for several moments.

"Say, Kel," Dom leaned over so that their shoulders, and not merely their hips, were brushing. Kel looked up at him, fighting to keep from blushing. A year had passed since she had realized her feelings for Dom went beyond a mere crush, and six months since she had finally forced herself to admit that it might be… you know, that thing… love.

And… he was far too close to her face.

Close enough to kiss.

Dom began talking again, and Kel forced herself to pay attention to what he was saying and not the particularly mesmerizing motion of his lips.

"—for you," he finished, and then he looked at her with the strangest expression on her face. This time Kel could not stop herself; she turned cherry red.

"I'm sorry, I, I wasn't paying attention. Could you, um, repeat that?" She forced herself to stop speaking before she really started babbling.

Dom looked a little red himself, and suddenly rather terrified.

"I… I was saying… I wondered if I could stop waiting…" Dom shook his head, seemingly unable to continue, and stared at her for a second. Seated, his eyes were only an inch or so higher than her own. Suddenly something hardened in those lovely blue eyes, and he leaned forward.

Close enough to kiss.

And then closer, and closer, and Kel was pretty sure that the strain of knighthood had finally driven her mad—maybe they were right, women weren't meant to be knights, look how crazy I've gone—because Dom was kissing her.

He sat back, looking painfully uncertain. It only took a moment for Kel to gather herself. There were a thousand things she thought she should say—she should ask how long, was he sure, did he love her or just want to sleep with her, did he—but instead, she closed the gap once again and returned his kiss.

Kel woke to warm arms that, though she had been held by them only once before, were familiar. She smiled and rolled over to meet a pair of blue eyes.

He smiled back.

"I love you," he said, finally. "I was trying to tell you yesterday, but—"

She shook her head, her smile widening. "I think you got your point across."

He grimaced slightly, but jokingly. "Well, after thinking about different scenarios on how that particular confession scene would go for six years, it was a dismal failure."

"So you're lying in my bed, telling me that your confession was a failure," she asked, carefully keeping her face straight as she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Um, no, that is, it just didn't go how I pictured…" Dom rushed to reassure her, and she was unable to hold the straight face. She laughed. He gave her a slightly sulky look in return.

She reached up to cup his cheek in a hand that had never seemed so small before.

"I didn't think you would ever care for me," she confessed, and she knew her expression was serious. She tried to smile to lighten the mood, but failed. "You always seemed to go after the pretty girls, even in Carthak. I realized… I thought it was just a crush, for all those years, and—" suddenly, Kel was struck by something he had said earlier—"did you say six years? " She demanded, astonished and certain she must have heard wrong. Dom had the grace to look slightly embarrassed.

"Well… yes. But you were sixteen and still a squire, so I didn't think it would be entirely appropriate. It started after I saw you with those fans, the sharp ones, on Progress once. You were as graceful as any of the Yamani ladies, and I hadn't really been thinking you of a girl, but as soon as I did…" he shrugged, still a little red, "Sorry, I'm not very good at this. I didn't last very long after that… by the time Progress finished, I was in love with you. I was going to tell you then, but I found out you were seeing that boy, and it didn't seem right."

Kel stared at him, feeling slightly startled. She had had a crush on him for longer than he'd thought of her as a girl, but she was pretty sure being in love with her without saying anything for six years trumped that.

She shifted so that she lay in a position that was more comfortable, and met his eyes as he began speaking again.

"I was going to start seeing other women, but then we left for the war, and women were in rather short supply. And then you did the most idiotic thing you possibly could have thought up, and ran off to Scanra on a fool's mission—yes, I know," he said, waving her off and she opened her mouth to protest—"you wouldn't be you if you hadn't gone. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about going alone. I got lucky, and Lord Raoul sent us out after you. And then we were in Galla, and I wanted to say something then, but…" he shook his head. "Obviously, I didn't. And you went all lady-like in the stupidest ways while we were in Carthak and I hated it so I acted like a jerk… and… and now I'm babbling, sorry," Dom hung his head, causing Kel to grin once again. She shoved him lightly in the chest, causing him to fall back onto the bed and meet her eyes again.

"Well, I'm afraid I can't top a story of long-unrequited love, but I have had a crush on you ever since you handed me that turnover on my first day with the Own." Dom's eyes widened. "I had to make myself stop while I was with Cleon, and… well, I don't know how long it was something more than a crush, but I realized it the day that… King Jonathan died." Dom nodded for her to continue, openly fascinated by what she was saying. "When, um, when we slept together." She was pretty sure that her face was flaming red again, which Dom seemed to find strangely amusing. "So… I knew I felt something more than a crush for you then, but I pushed it away because I didn't think you would ever feel the same way." When Dom began to protest, she shoved a finger into his chest once again. "And you can't blame me. Whatever your reason was, you did basically say that I was hideous while we were in Carthak. I finally had to admit how I felt six months ago, at Midwinter. I saw you leave with a rider girl, and I thought…" she trailed off. Dom was looking at her with a soft expression in his eyes. She lowered her eyes.

"Miri is just an acquaintance. She had too much to drink, and I promised to help her to her quarters. And I think you're beautiful, but you looked awful in that face paint and with a corset cinched so tight it was a miracle you could breathe. It looked horrible."

Kel nodded, still not quite looking at him. Dom put a finger beneath her chin and lifted her face until her eyes met his.

"Kel… you said you had to admit how you felt about me. How do you feel?" As this seemed to be particularly important to him, Kel answered truthfully instead of trying to brush it off with a joke.

"I love you."

He smiled at her, his eyes practically glowing with joy—Kel was forced to reconsider that maybe the bards' descriptions of people in love wasn't so overdramatic, after all—and leaned down to kiss her again.

A/N: And so ends the most awkward confession scene ever XD But fluffy nonetheless, I think. Besides, I suspect that most real confessions of love are a little awkward. Happy, but a little awkward. My first one certainly was : /

Happy Valentine's Day to you all : ) I tend to have slightly horrific bad luck on this particular holiday (like car accidents and large objects falling on me and, once, an entire swarm of bees...), so I am barricaded in my room, but I hope that you all have an excellent day! Please review? * puppy dog eyes *

I'm kinda of disappointed, because I really wanted to work the following dialogue in, but couldn't.

"You know, there was a time when I thought you were in love with the meathead, because he seemed to be all you talked about."

Kel grimaced, and perhaps blushed a little. If Dom noticed, he knew better than to comment on it.

"Well… it was a good conversation starter. I liked talking to you," she hedged. Dom grinned.

"Oh, I see." She scowled at him and whapped him with her pillow.

/End Scene.

Guess we can't have everything. This epilogue is, without question, my favorite part of the entire story. Who says I can't write romance? (And if you review saying that I can't, I will… not give you cookies. So there.)

And once again… I really can't believe this story is over. I honestly didn't think it would ever be completed. Please review for cookies :p I only got two reviews for the last chapter : (

~Annmarie