Stranger in the Night
Hey! This is my first Tamora Pierce fic, I hope it's OK!! Anyway, I write a lot of anime
fics because it's actually a lot easier, since you don't have to follow a set style. So tell
me how I need to improve!! I got this idea from something I read in a children's comic
book, I forgot the name. The pairing is Kel/OC, maybe K/D, but I don't know… yet. Not
that I have anything against Neal or Domitan, but for the purposes of this ficcie, they're
not going to be romantically involved. This takes place after Cleon dies, so she's kind of
over him now. I haven't read Lady Knight yet, so the timeline is kind of messed up. R+R
PLEASE!!!!!!!
*Disclaimer:* I do not own anything, except my OC and the plot… I hope. Anyway, all
these characters, names, etc. are the sole property of Tamora Pierce and I am not
affiliated in any way with her. So don't sue me. If you do, all you'll get are my pencil and
some pocket lint.
****
Sir Lady Keladry of Mindelan sighed as she went to her room in the palace. She had just
been assigned to go with a group of the King's Own and some other knights to the
Scanran border yet again.
[Curse those Scanrans!] she thought, as she neared her rooms. Everything had happened
so quickly, she thought she at least deserved some time off. Then again, she supposed it
was good to keep busy and fighting, to keep her mind off… things.
Kel looked about her in her room. She hated packing, and wished her maid Lalasa was
there to help, though the maid was given to packing much too heavily. She looked down
at a yipping at her feet.
"Hi Jump," she said affectionately, bending to give the ugly dog a scratch behind the
ears. Jump only wagged his tail and barked happily. "Not now, Jump," she answered his
unspoken question. "I can't play. I have to pack. Third Company, Fifth Company of the
King's Own, some other independent knights and I have been assigned to the Scanran
border. Again." Then she straightened. "Then again, packing can wait. I'll take a bath
first." Jump wagged his tail once more, barked as if he understood, then went trotting out
to find another playmate.
In the bath, Kel shrugged out of her clothes and sank into the hot tub, letting the steam
wash over her. On an impulse, she snatched some jasmine- scented bubble liquid and
poured it in the tub. In a few minutes, bubbles floated on top of the water, and the sweet
scent of jasmine flowers filled the air. Kel breathed deeply and sighed again. She loved
the scent of jasmine, from her native Yaman. This bottle of bubble liquid had been a gift
from her mother.
[Is fighting any good, in the end?] she thought. [War causes death… and pain… fighting
tears families apart, brother from father, lover from betrothed…] for the first time, doubts
harassed her mind. Everything had happened so fast- and she knew now, firsthand, the
pain death could cause.
She cried then, salty tears mixing with sweet water. After some minutes, she stopped and
scolded herself for having those doubts. [Your first duty is toward protecting Tortall and
its citizens] she reminded herself. [You knew that when you decided to try for your
shield.]
The water was starting to go cold around her, and reluctantly she stepped out, wrapping a
thick terry cloth towel around her. She put on her nightclothes, then applied herself to
packing. When she was done, she set the packs next to her door, ready to go for the next
day.
****
Kel woke up extra early the next morning. She looked out the window and let some
sparrows in. They twittered and chirped. Kel wondered grumpily how birds could be so
cheerful so early in the day. Kel hated to wake up early.
"I'm going away for a little while," she told her friends. They cocked beady eyes at her.
"You're welcome any time, as always, and of course I've told Salma to set out some seed
for you." The sparrows cheeped to each other. Then, as if some agreement had been
made, the sparrows flew up. One by one, the pecked at Kel's hair, nudged her cheek, or
landed on her shoulder briefly before taking flight once more. Kel knew it was their way
of saying good bye, and thanked them for it.
She went to the stables, and loaded Peachblossom and put Hoshi's tack on her. The cold
breeze assaulted her face, but woke her up. Kel then made her way to Lord Raoul's
rooms. The door was slightly open, but the inside was silent. She peeked in, then glanced
away immediately, embarrassed. The Knight Commander of the King's Own had his bare
arms wrapped around Buriram Tourakoum, the leader of the Queen's Riders.
Kel groaned inwardly. [Not now, Lord Raoul sir,] she begged him silently. [We need to
get up and get ready. How am I supposed to wake you up now? Please, wake up!] Her
attempts at telepathy failed however. She stepped down the corridor in defeat, and
accidentally bumped into a young man.
"Oh excuse me," Kel said automatically, before she noticed whom she had bumped in to.
"Dom!" she exclaimed. "What're you doing?"
He grinned, showing a flash of perfect white teeth. Kel felt her heart speed up, then tried
to slow it, disgusted that she could feel like this so soon after Cleon had died. "Same
thing you are, I bet. You know we have to get going soon. The ride is not going to be
easy."
"Really?" Kel glanced out one of the windows and saw that the trees swayed with the
wind. "When I went outside, it was cold also."
"How long have you been up?" Dom demanded teasingly. "Anyway," he continued, not
waiting for an answer, "the weather mages also predicted rain and more cold weather. Is
my lord Raoul up yet?"
Kel blushed and muttered something under her breath.
"Sorry, didn't quite catch what you said Kel," Dom replied cheerfully.
"I went to wake Raoul up too," she said, "and I- I- found… oh, go see for yourself!"
Dom looked at her a little strangely, but then decided to take her suggestion. He glanced
inside quickly, then came running back. His face was red from suppressed laughter.
When he reached Kel, he burst out laughing, one hand on the wall to support himself. He
wiped his streaming eyes and gave a few more laughs.
"I knew it, I just knew it!" Dom said finally, panting slightly. "I've been waiting for them
to get together!"
"Can you wake him up?" Kel asked, more concerned with the situation at hand. Outside,
the sun was starting to rise, its first pink tinges reaching out across the sky.
"Why me?" Dom asked confusedly.
Kel threw up her hands in exaggerated despair. "Dom, sometimes you can be as meat-
headed as your cousin Neal!" She shook her head. "Do you honestly expect me to go
in… there… and wake him up- in his state? I can't! I'm a girl, I was his squire…" she
trailed off and blushed yet again.
"Oh, I see," Dom said with a teasing note to it. "It's not like it's something you've never
seen before, anyway Kel. Come on, you can do it too."
"Dom, please," she pleaded desperately. "For the sake of my sanity, please go wake Lord
Raoul up."
"Okay, if you're so set on it," Dom replied. Kel relaxed immediately. Dom noticed this,
and wondered what was really bothering her. However, he shrugged the doubt off and
instead walked down the corridor once more, a huge grin spreading over his face.
At the other end of the hallway, Kel heard a high- pitched scream, a man's deep curse,
and burst of helpless laugher.
*Okay, first chapter complete. I'll try to update soon, I have three more chapters written-
typed- out, all I've got to do is polish and upload them.*
Hey! This is my first Tamora Pierce fic, I hope it's OK!! Anyway, I write a lot of anime
fics because it's actually a lot easier, since you don't have to follow a set style. So tell
me how I need to improve!! I got this idea from something I read in a children's comic
book, I forgot the name. The pairing is Kel/OC, maybe K/D, but I don't know… yet. Not
that I have anything against Neal or Domitan, but for the purposes of this ficcie, they're
not going to be romantically involved. This takes place after Cleon dies, so she's kind of
over him now. I haven't read Lady Knight yet, so the timeline is kind of messed up. R+R
PLEASE!!!!!!!
*Disclaimer:* I do not own anything, except my OC and the plot… I hope. Anyway, all
these characters, names, etc. are the sole property of Tamora Pierce and I am not
affiliated in any way with her. So don't sue me. If you do, all you'll get are my pencil and
some pocket lint.
****
Sir Lady Keladry of Mindelan sighed as she went to her room in the palace. She had just
been assigned to go with a group of the King's Own and some other knights to the
Scanran border yet again.
[Curse those Scanrans!] she thought, as she neared her rooms. Everything had happened
so quickly, she thought she at least deserved some time off. Then again, she supposed it
was good to keep busy and fighting, to keep her mind off… things.
Kel looked about her in her room. She hated packing, and wished her maid Lalasa was
there to help, though the maid was given to packing much too heavily. She looked down
at a yipping at her feet.
"Hi Jump," she said affectionately, bending to give the ugly dog a scratch behind the
ears. Jump only wagged his tail and barked happily. "Not now, Jump," she answered his
unspoken question. "I can't play. I have to pack. Third Company, Fifth Company of the
King's Own, some other independent knights and I have been assigned to the Scanran
border. Again." Then she straightened. "Then again, packing can wait. I'll take a bath
first." Jump wagged his tail once more, barked as if he understood, then went trotting out
to find another playmate.
In the bath, Kel shrugged out of her clothes and sank into the hot tub, letting the steam
wash over her. On an impulse, she snatched some jasmine- scented bubble liquid and
poured it in the tub. In a few minutes, bubbles floated on top of the water, and the sweet
scent of jasmine flowers filled the air. Kel breathed deeply and sighed again. She loved
the scent of jasmine, from her native Yaman. This bottle of bubble liquid had been a gift
from her mother.
[Is fighting any good, in the end?] she thought. [War causes death… and pain… fighting
tears families apart, brother from father, lover from betrothed…] for the first time, doubts
harassed her mind. Everything had happened so fast- and she knew now, firsthand, the
pain death could cause.
She cried then, salty tears mixing with sweet water. After some minutes, she stopped and
scolded herself for having those doubts. [Your first duty is toward protecting Tortall and
its citizens] she reminded herself. [You knew that when you decided to try for your
shield.]
The water was starting to go cold around her, and reluctantly she stepped out, wrapping a
thick terry cloth towel around her. She put on her nightclothes, then applied herself to
packing. When she was done, she set the packs next to her door, ready to go for the next
day.
****
Kel woke up extra early the next morning. She looked out the window and let some
sparrows in. They twittered and chirped. Kel wondered grumpily how birds could be so
cheerful so early in the day. Kel hated to wake up early.
"I'm going away for a little while," she told her friends. They cocked beady eyes at her.
"You're welcome any time, as always, and of course I've told Salma to set out some seed
for you." The sparrows cheeped to each other. Then, as if some agreement had been
made, the sparrows flew up. One by one, the pecked at Kel's hair, nudged her cheek, or
landed on her shoulder briefly before taking flight once more. Kel knew it was their way
of saying good bye, and thanked them for it.
She went to the stables, and loaded Peachblossom and put Hoshi's tack on her. The cold
breeze assaulted her face, but woke her up. Kel then made her way to Lord Raoul's
rooms. The door was slightly open, but the inside was silent. She peeked in, then glanced
away immediately, embarrassed. The Knight Commander of the King's Own had his bare
arms wrapped around Buriram Tourakoum, the leader of the Queen's Riders.
Kel groaned inwardly. [Not now, Lord Raoul sir,] she begged him silently. [We need to
get up and get ready. How am I supposed to wake you up now? Please, wake up!] Her
attempts at telepathy failed however. She stepped down the corridor in defeat, and
accidentally bumped into a young man.
"Oh excuse me," Kel said automatically, before she noticed whom she had bumped in to.
"Dom!" she exclaimed. "What're you doing?"
He grinned, showing a flash of perfect white teeth. Kel felt her heart speed up, then tried
to slow it, disgusted that she could feel like this so soon after Cleon had died. "Same
thing you are, I bet. You know we have to get going soon. The ride is not going to be
easy."
"Really?" Kel glanced out one of the windows and saw that the trees swayed with the
wind. "When I went outside, it was cold also."
"How long have you been up?" Dom demanded teasingly. "Anyway," he continued, not
waiting for an answer, "the weather mages also predicted rain and more cold weather. Is
my lord Raoul up yet?"
Kel blushed and muttered something under her breath.
"Sorry, didn't quite catch what you said Kel," Dom replied cheerfully.
"I went to wake Raoul up too," she said, "and I- I- found… oh, go see for yourself!"
Dom looked at her a little strangely, but then decided to take her suggestion. He glanced
inside quickly, then came running back. His face was red from suppressed laughter.
When he reached Kel, he burst out laughing, one hand on the wall to support himself. He
wiped his streaming eyes and gave a few more laughs.
"I knew it, I just knew it!" Dom said finally, panting slightly. "I've been waiting for them
to get together!"
"Can you wake him up?" Kel asked, more concerned with the situation at hand. Outside,
the sun was starting to rise, its first pink tinges reaching out across the sky.
"Why me?" Dom asked confusedly.
Kel threw up her hands in exaggerated despair. "Dom, sometimes you can be as meat-
headed as your cousin Neal!" She shook her head. "Do you honestly expect me to go
in… there… and wake him up- in his state? I can't! I'm a girl, I was his squire…" she
trailed off and blushed yet again.
"Oh, I see," Dom said with a teasing note to it. "It's not like it's something you've never
seen before, anyway Kel. Come on, you can do it too."
"Dom, please," she pleaded desperately. "For the sake of my sanity, please go wake Lord
Raoul up."
"Okay, if you're so set on it," Dom replied. Kel relaxed immediately. Dom noticed this,
and wondered what was really bothering her. However, he shrugged the doubt off and
instead walked down the corridor once more, a huge grin spreading over his face.
At the other end of the hallway, Kel heard a high- pitched scream, a man's deep curse,
and burst of helpless laugher.
*Okay, first chapter complete. I'll try to update soon, I have three more chapters written-
typed- out, all I've got to do is polish and upload them.*