Heart's Desire
Chapter 4- Jonathan of Contè
Disclaimer-
I do not own Jonathan, Alanna, etc. They belong to Tamora Pierce. I do own Kelsie, Matthew, Jazz, etc.
Kelsie gaped at Matthew. She was finally going to meet the King, after years of hearing stories about the man. Of course, she had seen him in person the night before when he had introduced the girls from the convent to the whole court at the ball. But actually speaking to him- well, that was something different altogether.
"Stop staring. You'll walk faster that way. Don't want to be late to meet King Jon, do you?" Matthew said.
"But how did you arrange this? For me to meet the King?" Kelsie demanded. Matthew just grinned.
"Well, Jon, Alanna, Gary and Raoul- and it used to be Alex, too- are best friends, and me and Raoul have always been close, so now I'm good friends with the King, his champion, and his cousin. Jon has time for us just about whenever we want him, even if he is king, and any friend of mine is a friend of his, and vice versa. So naturally when I told him and Gary and Raoul about you at breakfast, they all wanted to meet you, but Jon, being his kinglyness that he is, gets to meet you first," Matthew explained. Kelsie laughed.
"They all want to meet me? That's ridiculous! Why would they want to do that?"
"Why not? You're smart, pretty, funny, and you aren't like the other girls from the convent. All they talk about is how good their manners are or how much money their families have, and all they care about is how they are on the outside. Even if you weren't beautiful, I'd like spending time with you, but even the most beautiful of those snobs isn't worth the time of day. You wouldn't catch them dead sitting under a tree all night with someone they didn't really know, talking about their past, and their family. And if they did, they certainly wouldn't be honest about it. Face it, Kelsie, you're different- and that's definitely a good thing." By this point, Kelsie was sure that her face was bright red, and quickly, she tried to think of a way to change the subject.
"What do you think of the Queen-to-be? Thayet?" Kelsie asked.
"Thayet? She's great. She's really nice, and she's the most beautiful woman at all of court, and she definitely has what it takes to be queen. You really ought to meet her, I know you'll like her," Matthew said.
"But if Thayet's so wonderful, then why are you going to help me try to get Jon back together with..........." Kelsie began, but Matthew cut her off.
"Oh, Thayet's fantastic, but she's not right for Jon. You can tell that they love each other, but not the same way. They're just not....... They're just not the perfect match. They like each other's company, they love each other in a best-friend kind of way, the way Jon claims he loves Alanna, but you can tell when he's around her. He seems to glow, because he's so happy."
"What about her? Alanna? Does she feel the same way?"
"I think. She's a lot harder to tell with. She's gotten good at hiding things. I guess disguising yourself as a boy for eight years will do that to you, though. Every now and then, she nearly slips up, and I start to see something- but then it's gone, just as fast as it came. Never mind that, though, we're nearly there, and you don't want Jon to hear you talking about his love life, do you? It's this one."
Matthew knocked on the door that they had stopped in front of, and Kelsie stood nervously next to him while he knocked on the door. On the other side, she heard a male voice call, "Come in." Matthew opened the door and led Kelsie into the room. It had bookshelves full of old books in gold lettering. There were paintings on one wall of Jonathan and the people she assumed were his parents, Roald and Lianne. On one side of the room was a chair with documents piled on it, and in the center was King Jonathan himself. He was the most handsome man she had ever seen, with his charcoal black hair and his sapphire blue eyes. She looked into them, and she thought that she could look into them forever. However, she remembered who she was in the presence of, and she curtsied. Jonathan smiled, and said.
"Welcome. You must be Kelsie of Tirragen." Kelsie nodded dumbfoundedly.
"Yes, your Majesty," she said, her voice shaking.
"Jonathan will do," he said to her, then he turned to Matthew.
"Hey, Matthew. Enjoying your afternoon off? You should be in the city, not in the castle with me!" Jonathan said.
"Oh, don't get me wrong, that's still my destination. I'm heading there after this- I'll still have plenty of time."
Jon grinned, then said "Heading to the Dancing Dove?"
"Of course! I love seeing the thieves, and I'm the only one they don't recognize as one of George's new people because they never met me when he was still the Rogue," Matthew said, then smiled, "Plus, they don't realize I'm a squire. They have no idea that I'm really there to listen for any knowledge of plots against you."
"Have you heard anything, then?"
"Not a thing, yet. After the coronation, no one has dared mess with you- yet. If I do hear anything, I'll be sure to let you know."
"Thanks, Matthew," Jonathan said, and then turned back to Kelsie.
"Sorry I've ignored you, but I needed to ask Matthew about business with the thieves, you see. It's a rather important matter," Jonathan added.
"It's quite all right, majesty," Kelsie said, curtsying once more.
"Jon," he corrected, "And please, sit down. You're making me uneasy with all this curtsying and calling me majesty." He gestured towards two chairs that were facing his desk. One was already occupied by Matthew.
"Of course- Jonathan," she said, and took the other seat.
"Now, I've heard a great deal about you, Kelsie."
"You can't have heard much, sir. After all, I've only been here since yesterday, and I've only just met anyone at the ball."
"You'd be amazed at how much you can be told at one meal," Jon said, and grinned at Matthew.
"Well, majesty-" she caught Jonathan about to open his mout and correct her, but instead she corrected herself- "I mean, Jon, are you sure all you've heard is true?" Jon grinned.
"Matthew, you're right. I am going to like this girl," he said.
"But how can you tell?" she demanded.
"I'm not sure. But I've always been able to. I could tell right off with all of my closest friends- Alanna, George, Raoul, Gary, and of course Matthew. Do you know what I mean?" Kelsie stared into Jon's blue eyes- and she, of course, believed every word he said. She had always been able to tell the same thing about people- and she got that feeling around both Matthew and Jon.
"I do know what you mean. I have the same thing."
"And what do you think of me, Kelsie of Tirragen? Do you think that you'll enjoy being a friend of mine." Kelsie looked the man in the eyes once more.
"Yes," she said.
"Kelsie has the Girft, Jon, just like us," Matthew said suddenly. Kelsie thought that maybe he was beginning to feel left out.
"Do you, then? Hvae you been trained? From what I hear, they usually don't train the girls at the convent."
"Yes, I've been trained. I trained in secret."
"Oh, really, then. What are your specialties? Are you a Healer, or a Seer, or......." Jon's voice trailed off.
"Healer. And I'm a very strong sorceress," she added quietly, "Or at least, the woman who trained me said I was."
"A Healer? So is Alanna. You remind me a lot of her, in some ways," the King said quietly. She saw a flash of pain in his sapphire eyes when he mentioned his former lover.
"And also, the woman who taught me said I have some special kind of magic- she called it Heart's Desire magic. She said she couldn't train me, though."
"Hmmmm. Interesting. We'll make sure that you find someone who can train you. I have heard of Heart's Desire magic, but I've never met anyone that has it. What color is your magic, Kelsie?"
"Emerald green, sir- I mean, Jon," she said.
"Of course. The color of your Gift sort of represents one's personality, or at least a very important part of them. My Gift is sapphire blue, just like my eyes," he said, smiling.
"Mine's yellow! Yellow! What does yellow have to do with me? Nothing!" Matthew said, and both the King and Kelsie burst out laughing.
"At least you have a Gift, Matthew," Jon said.
Matthew nodded, then said, "Unlike Raoul. He says he'll never understand why I got the Gift, and not him."
"My half-brother didn't have the Gift, either, but I do. It's not unusual," Kelsie said.
"Both the Trebond twins had the Gift," Jon said, then focused his attention back on Kelsie.
"Half-brother, you say? Would that be Alex?" Kelsie nodded. "We were good friends."
"I know," Kelsie said, the happiness in her voice having vanished, "He always wrote to me about you, and Gary, and Raoul, and Alan- or should I say, Alanna. But most of all, he wrote about Duke Roger," she said, her voice now almost a whisper. Jon looked her in the eyes, and Kelsie could tell that this was a subject neither of them wanted to talk about.
"Matthew, you'd best go if you want to go to the city," he said. Matthew nodded.
"Why don't I take Kelsie? I could show her around Corus," he offered. Kelsie could see the relief in Jon's eyes. Obviously, she had not been the only one who had noticed that both she and the King wanted out of that conversation.
"That's a good idea. I'll see you both in the morning, then," he said, and he faked a smile as they walked out of the room and headed towards the city.
Author's Note-
Well, then. The end of the chapter would suggest that the next chapter will be about Matthew and Kelsie in the city, but most likely, it will actually be about a character that is in the books that becomes very important later in this story. I'll give you a clue- she's seriously evil! Until then, please review!!!!!