A/N: 'nother chapter from me, your resident hyperactive idiot. I'm finally going to do what I've been planning for a long time with this fic! Yay! I also want to illustrate, but guess who can't draw? Anyone else in Xan and Vallen's group who can help?
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Kyree remained with Marth most of that day. The next morning, when she went to check on him, she saw her master, the doctor, standing outside the door to Marth's room. He saw her and smiled broadly.
"The prince's fever broke last night. He's doing much better now, and I can say with quite some certainty that he will survive."
Kyree's worry vanished and was replaced with joy. "That's wonderful!" she cried.
Knowing what she would say next, the doctor interrupted, "Yes, you may go see him now. In fact, he seemed anxious to see you this morning."
Kyree said nothing more and entered the room. Marth was sitting up in bed, propped against several pillows and wrapped in silk robe. His expression brightened upon seeing her. "I hear you're feeling better," Kyree commented.
"Yes, I'm still a bit weak, but doing much better than before. You have no idea how much I want to get up and walk around. I hope I recover quicky. I'm sick of being stuck in bed."
"I don't blame you for being restless," Kyree agreed. "What do you want to do first when you're strong enough to walk again? I'd want to go outside and get some fresh air."
"Exactly how I feel. Kyree, when I'm well again, would you like me to show you the gardens, or what's left of them, anyway?"
"I would love that!" she responded enthusiastically. "I love flowers. What do you mean by 'what's left of them,' though?"
"You apparently haven't looked around the castle grounds. Nearly everything is burned, or smashed, or overrun by weeds."
"Weeds? You know, what some consider weeds actually have medical uses."
"Take all the weeds you want," he laughed. "There's only one gardener now, and a lazy one at that. You'd be doing everyone a favor in more ways than one. In fact, you can pull up anything that could be used for healing, even the roses if you want!"
"You say most of the gardens have nothing planted there? Would it be all right if I planted some herbs?"
Marth nodded. "And flowers if you like, or even vegetables." This gave him an idea. "Maybe we could grow extra food for the hungry people in the city?"
"That sounds excellent!" Kyree cried, excited. "If farmers are replanting their fields, surely we could replant a garden."
"There's just one problem-I know nothing about gardening."
"Don't worry, I'll show you. It's easy," Kyree assured. She grinned. "Now you have to heal twice as fast so we can get started!"
"If I could, believe me, I'd magically make all my wounds disappear right now!"
"That might not be possible, but I could magically make myself a cat right now," Kyree commented.
"A cat? What would you do that for?" Marth inquired. "Did you see a rat?"
"No, but I think it would be fun anyway." Kyree shimmered for an instant, then before the prince knew what happened, a fluffy gray cat had jumped onto his mattress.
Marth was shocked. "Kyree? I thought you were only being silly. That cat is really you?"
The cat seemed to nod and answered, "Mroooowr."
"Kyree, you're....a shapeshifter?"
She transformed back to her normal self. "I guess I didn't mention it before, did I?"
"No, you didn't, but that doesn't matter. Is that how you carried me to your house? What did you change into to do that?"
"A horse. It wasn't that easy to lift you with only horse's teeth."
"Ah," he smiled. "Now it all makes sense. Now, would you please get off my bed before someone comes in and gets the wrong impression?"
She hopped off, almost stepping on Bria. "Sorry, dog," she said, patting Bria's head.
"Good thing the dog didn't notice you in cat form," Marth smirked. "Bria doesn't like them unless they're dinner."
Kyree giggled, then turned serious. "I saw some people roasting a cat once, right after the war. They were starving and it was all they could find."
Marth groaned at the mention of war. "If there's one thing I'm certain of, it's that I never want to see another war in my life."
"That makes two of us, plus the rest of Altea," Kyree commented. "I hate seeing people die. I served as a nurse to wounded soldiers, and I saw more sickness, injury, and death than I have before or since."
"I never want to see another person die, either," Marth said. "Battles were bad enough, but...." His tone softened. "....Nadia died in my arms. That was the last death I saw, and the worst."
"She died in your arms? That's horrible!" Kyree blurted, suddenly wanting to hold Marth tightly and comfort him.
"Yes. When I received word that she'd been attacked, I rushed to her home immediately. She survived long enough for me to see her one last time, but her wounds were still fatal...." He trailed off, fighting sobs. "Kyree, help me. I....I think I'm going to start crying, but I mustn't!"
"I already told you it's all right if you cry. I'm not going to say anything, and I still think you should be allowed to cry. I swear, you're as bad as my brother! He acts like he's over our parents' deaths, but I've seen him crying. He even said he'd give his other foot, both legs, and both arms to see even one of them alive again."
"I feel the same way. I'd give anything to have my family back, even though my father and I never quite saw eye to eye. If only I had settled our disagreements before he died...." Marth looked even more likely to cry now.
Sensing the subject should be changed, Kyree asked, "Speaking of your father, after his death, why were you never made king? I always found that odd."
"My father was, for some reason, worried I'd never marry. He passed a decree stating I couldn't become king until I married. Of course, it doesn't matter to me as much as he thought it would. I'm performing many of the duties of a king anyway, and I'm certainly in no shape to marry any time soon."
"The things parents do seem strange sometimes," Kyree murmured, then commented, "It hurts now, but maybe one day we will both remember only the pleasant things about our loved ones."
Marth merely replied, "I hope so Kyree, I truly hope so."
Things continued to be this way for about a week. Kyree visited Marth several times a day, and they talked about whatever came to mind and shared stories about their pasts. They had become fast friends.
One morning, Kyree was surprised with a knock at her bedroom door. To her delight as well as surprise, it was Marth, out of bed and fully dressed.
He smiled at Kyree. "Good morning, Kyree. I've finally been allowed out of bed. You do remember that walk in the garden I promised, don't you?"
She beamed. "Of course." She followed him through the halls, down several flights of stairs, and outside.
"This way," Marth instructed, gesturing to their left. " But please, don't walk too fast. I'm not completely recovered yet." He offered his arm, and she accepted. They began ambling slowly, Kyree allowing Marth to lead her around the castle grounds. She listened intently to everything he told her.
After a bit, they reached a fairly well-preserved part of the garden. Looking around, Kyree noticed several rosebushes, a bench, and a child's swing. Something in Marth's expression told her he was especially fond of this part of the garden.
Marth interrupted her thoughts by saying, "This is for you." He had picked a rose blossom and presented it to her.
Kyree accepted, blushing. "It's lovely. Thank you." She pressed the red flower to her nose, inhaling deeply. "It smells divine." Marth gently took the rose and placed it behind her ear.
"Now you look divine," he grinned. He then headed toward the bench and sat down, beckoning for Kyree to join him. Once she'd sat beside him, Marth took a deep breath. "Kyree, I can't thank you enough. You've done more for me than you could ever imagine. You not only saved my life, but you've done something I didn't think possible: you made me happy, even if it doesn't last. I don't have many friends, after all."
"Oh, Marth," she sighed, for the first time addressing him by his first name. "You've done so much for me, too. You gave my brother and I an opportunity for a better life. As if that wasn't enough to make me grateful, you showed me that maybe not all men were going to treat me poorly."
"So, does this mean we're even?"
A slow smile crept across her face. "We're even."
To Kyree's surprise, Marth wrapped her in a tight embrace. To Marth's even greater surprise, she returned it and rested her head against his shoulder. Their eyes met in silent communication. Marth placed a hand under Kyree's chin, tilting it upward toward his face and, without words, asked her permission before doing what he intended. Kyree gave her unspoken approval, and Marth pressed his lips to hers. Kyree returned the kiss, clinging to him tightly. Their kiss turned passionate and didn't end until they were both out of breath. Kyree remained snuggled against Marth, and the two sat in silence, content to savor each other's company.
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Hope that was long enough, and sweet as well. I know, I know, you would rather have Marth kiss Roy, but that's been done a lot lately, and while I do enjoy a well-written yaoi, I decided to do something different. I may get around to real yaoi one day, but until then, you'll have to settle for this, Link/Zelda romance, and maybe Koryth doing something else he shouldn't.
