Disclaimer: Katei is mine-- no one else, I think, at least no important characters.
Author's Note: Not much (if any at all) action in this one, loads of info, but not much action. There will be more in the next (and final) chapter of You Never Want to See a Yamani Mad. Cheers!
Chapter 8: To Forgive, But Unable to Forget
The news came the next day, directly from King Jonathon's council room; Katei of Nirason, Emperial Warrior from the Yamani Islands, was to be executed in one week from the dated day. Heralds were sent out to announce the 'exciting' news to the rest of the realm.
People from fiefs all around started traveling towards Corus, anticipating the event with a cheerful aspects. Some people (very, very few people) thought it as sickening and ignorant to look foreword to such a thing, but most people ignored them. For as it was, the humans enjoyed the pain of others, especially if the specified other had killed part of their family.
~~
Kel before breakfast, her POV:
Kel stepped out of her room in the squire's wing and started walking down the corridor towards the mess hall. As she walked, she started to notice that no one she saw or passed in the hallway would meet her eyes, in fact, they averted their entire gaze elsewhere.
'What is everyone's problem?' she thought irritably, finally entering the mess hall and sitting with her friends. The food had no taste as she slipped them into her open mouth, but she didn't care. Through breakfast, her friends were silent, and (much to Kel's annoyance and puzzlement) they too, would not make eye contact.
"Oh, what is it?" she sighed at last, near the end of breakfast. Faleron spoke up, still not quite meeting her gaze.
"It's just that, we knew that you had, er, liked Katei a lot, and uh--"
"We didn't want to cause you any hurt by talking of it, like the entire palace is." interjected Cleon quickly, causing Faleron to elbow him with aggravation.
Kel closed her eyes for a second and looked down, controlling her 'Yamani mask' before being able to look up again.
"I'm... fine, really, feel free to talk of it." she said calmly making sure that not a trace of emotion would get through to her voice.
"Really? Because remember what you said when you two first came? About you kissing--" Owen asked, now a first-year squire, but was interrupted by Prince Roald.
"Owen, shut up, and leave her alone."
"But I was just--" he protested.
"Just...? I don't care, just shut up."
A familiar drawl was heard behind the group, dripping with sarcasm and scholarly refinement, "Now, now, I go away and suddenly everyone is mean to Owen? I wonder if the Stump would not approve."
The group turned, faces alit with grins, to see a tall squire with light brown hair swept back from widow's peak (I still don't know exactly where the heck that is... somewhere on the forehead... argh! I have got to look that 'widow's peak' thing up!) and dancing green eyes.
The thought of green eyes immediately brought her thoughts (much to her displeasure) to Katei, who had such dark green eyes that were so alert and gleamed with the thrill of battle-- 'stop it Kel!' she yelled mentally to herself.
"Neal! When did you get back?" Kel asked, trying her best to make conversation, and hoping to Mithros that the rest of her friends would shut up about Katei.
"Only an hour or so ago, see, Alanna heard that the murderer from the Yamani Islands had been caught and came immediately back. So here I am!" He sat across from Kel and said, "I heard about you and Roald being chased by him, how did it go?"
Before Kel could answer, Owen piped up, "She kissed him! That is, before she knew who he was." Roald hit his forehead with frustration.
Kel glared at Owen, not caring about her Yamani mask at that moment. Standing, she walked out of the mess, making sure to keep her gait visibly confident.
Neal and the others watched her leave and Neal asked, "What's the matter with her?"
Under the... special... circumstances, the squire's duties had been postponed, the pages, however, still had to work.
Kel meandered around the palace halls, thinking hard. Why did she feel so depressed and sad? What was the matter with her, did she really have that strong of feelings for Katei? Then she knew, and also knew where she would eventually end up on this little walk of her's, and sure enough--
Kel was permitted to enter the dungeons, by order of the guards standing convoy there. She entered the dark, musty dungeon and walked down the stone steps. Kel shivered, it was strangely chilly in the room, but tried to ignore it.
Her footsteps resounded around the room, but she didn't care, it wasn't as if the occupant would jump out a kill her.
"Katei?" she called softly into the unlit part of the cell, and sure enough, there was some shuffling of feet. And it was hard not to hear the clamorous metal chains dragging behind.
~~
Katei's POV:
Katei was startled out of his sulk as he heard Kel's voice call his name near the entrance of the room. Standing, he walked toward the lighted part of the dungeon, vaguely aware of the chains he had to drag along with his body. His heart lifted, he had given up any hope that she would visit!
Reaching Kel, he saw the squire uniform and inquired casually, "So you went back to being a squire, huh?"
Kel nodded, meeting his eyes intently. Shaking her head, she abruptly ran to him and threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. Katei gasped at the sudden contact and warmth of her light body against his.
"Why?" she asked, voice slightly muffled because she had flagrantly buried her face in his shirt. Katei knew what she had meant when she asked asked that, and forced himself to answer.
He sat against the dungeon wall, leaning on it and hugging Kel, "I-- I was overcome with grief, rage even. I guess I had loved Chisakami and was mad when she had died. But then the Emperor didn't seem to care when she had died.
"He and your parents just drew up another treaty, to marry off the next daughter to that prince of your's. So I grew angry and came up with the solution; kill all nobles that helped the crown. And kill the prince, and yes, kill the Mindelan family, who had started it all." Katei told her most of her story, sparing the more detailed bits of him killing.
Kel rested against Katei and closed her eyes, whispering, "I don't know what to do, I'm absolutely confused!"
Katei tilted her head up (No, not one of those 'tilt the head up and kiss' scenes of a story) and met her eyes, speaking firmly, with more emotion that he had ever showed before in his life, "I'm so sorry, sorry for killing all who I killed, and your family-- gods! I can't believe I actually killed them all! I'm sorry."
~~
Kel's POV:
And that was it. Those few words was all it took to make Kel feel merciful. She searched his face, and found that it was true-- all that he had said was true. He hadn't bother keeping his face emotionless, because he must of been fed up with doing so.
His two words rang in her head and heart, "I'm sorry." over and over again. She shook her head and dropped her gaze, embracing Katei warmly. Katei hugged her back and she whispered, "I forgive you, I forgive you!"
~~
Third person narration:
Katei's heart lept when he heard her words, and hugged her even tighter. Knowing he shouldn't, but not being able to help himself, Katei leant down and kissed her on the lips. She was so enticing, so alluring, that he couldn't help but kiss her.
To his utter surprise, he felt Kel kiss him back, arms around his shoulders as his were around her waist. Their kiss grew exuberantly, both expressing their feelings through the kiss.
Katei pulled apart and looked away. Kel raised an eyebrow and slowly forced him to look at her. When he did not, she hesitantly moved in front of him, keeping two hands on his face so he would not look away.
"What is the matter?" she asked softly, yet firmly. Katei shook his head (or tried to anyway) and said, "I shouldn't kiss you-- I can't."
"Why?" was her only query, her voice clearly puzzled, her green hazel eyes were narrowed inquisitively.
Katei sighed and ran his hand through his already tousled black hair, "For a number of reasons, namely that I am about to be executed. It would get you into a lot of trouble if you were caught. That would be just like high treason against the crown. That and the fact that I killed your entire family, it-- it's just not right."
"But I forgave you for that." she said impatiently, wanting him to get to his point.
Katei sighed heavily again and replied, "Yes, you may very well have, but that's one thing. One thing is to forgive, but you'll never forget, and that alone messes things up."
Kel shook her head and said adamantly, "No. You're wrong."
"Is that so?" he asked, or more like challenged.
"Yes, and for one reason."
"And that is?"
"Because I love you, and that alone keeps things together." Kel's eyes widened imperceptibly; she hadn't meant to say that, but the words had slipped out of her mouth. Katei's shoulders were rigid with shock as he tried to process those words. His mind froze up as the words were repeated in his mind over and over.
"Huh?" was all he could think of to say, but somehow that seemed wrong. He blinked rapidly, as if mentally trying to clear his thoughts and it came to him.
He smiled, the first true smile in awhile, and said, "Kel, I love you too. With all my heart, however seemingly deranged it may be." And with those words, he kissed her firmly, to emphasize their meaning. The sincerity in his voice as he said those words compelled Kel to kiss him back happily.
When they broke apart, Katei said, "What about my execution?"
Kel grinned suddenly, and Katei couldn't have sworn that there was sudden mischief gleaming in her eyes as she said, "I know just who can help us with that."
~~
Author's note: This was it, the second to the last chapter in the series, I might write a sequel of what happens years later, might not. Tell me what you think of a sequel in the reviews-- mind you, you still don't know how it ends yet. So review, please, thank ya!
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