***
Kim removed her muddied shoes and entered the house through the servants' entrance. She could hardly go into the upper floors of the house dripping all over the place. Luckily, after a minimal search, Kim found Hunch and three other men playing cards and called out to him from the hallway, "Hunch?"
Hunch looked up and squinted into the dark hallway. He left the others to the game, which they seemed too absorbed in to notice what servant boy was calling for Hunch's attention. He met her in the hallway and was about to speak when his eyes widened and he said, "Kim?!" He took in her soaked and shivering form and immediately began chewing on one end of his mustache.
"I, er, had some business to take care of. But it started raining on me and..." Kim stopped, sternly telling the quiver in her voice to go away.
"I'll get a towel," Hunch said decisively and left her there in the darkened hall. He returned with a whole armload of towels, which Kim used to try to dry the outside of her clothes to at least stop from dripping on the floor. Finally, with one towel draped over her shoulders and under the hair that had escaped the cap, a shivering Kim was led by Hunch up to her rooms. He handed her more towels than she would ever need to get dry and stepped back. "You'll be fine then," he said rather than asked, apparently uncertain.
"I'm fine, Hunch; thank you," Kim assured him. She wasn't sure how convincing she sounded, as he was still chewing the end of his mustache when she left him.
Kim got out of the wet clothes and into a warm nightgown and dressing gown. But even then she couldn't seem to stop shaking. Her teeth were chattering and she felt chilled despite the warm clothes. Her tangled hair was a mess, and she sat on the bed with a brush, trying without much success to straighten it. She yearned for the shorter hair she'd kept all the years she'd passed for a boy.
Finally, in exasperation, her shaking hands forced her to stop and she sat huddled on the edge of the bed, clutching the hairbrush and squeezing her eyes shut against tears. It was then that she heard a knock on the door. Her heart racing in sudden panic, Kim called out, "Who's there?"
"May I come in?" Mairelon's voice came hesitantly.
Fighting a mix of emotions, Kim managed to tell him to enter. His eyes went right to her and took in her wet hair as well as her shivering form. His face was unreadable. Kim just sat there watching him, realizing Hunch must have gotten him and wondering what she would say when Mairelon asked why she'd been running about in the rain.
Mairelon sat down next to her carefully and took the brush from her. "Good God, Kim!" he exclaimed when he felt her frozen hands. He immediately took both of her hands in his and began rubbing them to warm them. A frown of worry touched his face.
They sat in silence until he released her hands. Kim stared at the floor in front of her, desperately trying to think of what to say to explain her actions. Mairelon was quiet beside her, and she wished she knew what he was thinking. When he spoke, his voice was low and rough with emotion. "You should get to bed."
Kim sighed. "I wanted to..." she said, gesturing to her impossibly tangled hair. Her gaze returned resolutely to the floor, lest Mairelon see how distraught she was. After a moment's pause, she felt Mairelon move beside her and was shocked when she realized he'd situated himself on the bed behind her and was now working on the ends of her hair with the brush.
Kim let him work in silence, now too enthralled by his closeness and what he was doing to worry about accounting for her actions tonight. As he made progress on the lower tangles, he moved up her hair, and she could feel his hand on her head to keep his efforts from hurting. As Mairelon continued to touch her and straighten her hair, Kim became aware of exactly how close he was. She also realized there were hardly any tangles left and that he was just continuing to slowly pull the brush through her hair. Without truly thinking first, she let herself lean back the few inches it took to be against him. He stopped brushing, and Kim let her eyes close against the sensations running through her body.
She felt Mairelon set the brush down on the bedcover beside them and very slowly lower his head to hers, finally resting his cheek against the back of her head. Kim kept her eyes closed though she could hardly feign sleep when her pulse was racing so. A long moment went by before Mairelon spoke.
When he did, she could barely hear his whisper, "Kim... please tell me what's been wrong..."
He sounded so sad; Kim cursed herself for causing that sadness. "I'm sorry, Mairelon," she said quickly, "I shouldn't 'ave gone out..."
"Don't worry about that," he told her. "But there's been something upsetting you... for the past week?"
"I'm sorry," Kim said again weakly.
Mairelon's arms went around her and he hugged her to him fiercely. "You've nothing to be sorry for," he said in no uncertain terms, tightening his arms around her in reassurance before loosening them again. "I've just been concerned about you..." he said slowly.
Kim sat in silence, feeling so comfortable in Mairelon's embrace, but having no clue how to explain her worries to him.
"Do you still..." Mairelon began, his voice catching. "That is, do you... want to marry me still?" he managed.
"Of course I do!" Kim said fervently, her hands going to clutch his arms around her. She could hear his relieved sigh. Had he really been worried she'd changed her mind? She had to make him understand what had been eating at her this past week. "I've just been so worried I can't make you happy," she said, then blushed profusely. "I don't have no ... *any* idea how to be anyone's wife. Much less a real lady like your mother or Aunt Agatha. You should be marrying someone better."
Mairelon sat up straighter, removing his head from hers where it had rested. "Kim," he said seriously, "I had no idea of the sort of pressure I was putting on you..." He moved so that they were side by side where he could see her face, ending the contact between them save for one arm around her side. "I just want you to be happy, Kim," he said sincerely. "You don't have to do anything you don't want to."
"But I do want to!" she said, now really blushing as she realized exactly what they might be talking about. She fixed her gaze on the floor as she said, "I'm just not sure I'll make you happy..."
"As long as you're with me, I'll be happy," he said softly. Her eyes were drawn back to him, and she could see the sincerity in his eyes. All her doubts seemed silly now. What had she been so afraid of? After all, this was *Mairelon.* He looked truly beautiful sitting there beside her, and she wanted nothing more than to feel his lips on hers again and forget the turmoil of the past week. He smiled slightly, then obliged her unspoken wish.
The kiss warmed her down to her toes. It was soft and gentle at first, then more insistent and desperate as they each realized how close they'd come to losing each other over baseless fears. When the kiss ended, Kim felt decidedly lightheaded. When Mairelon finally recovered enough to reopen his eyes, the intensity Kim saw in them fairly shocked her. She'd no idea she could affect Mairelon in that way.
He settled back beside her and seemed to compose himself, but kept her hand in his and traced her palm lightly with his thumb. "We'll communicate better from now on?" he asked her.
"Yes," she promised.
He nodded, and pointed out, "I should let you get some sleep."
She nodded absently, realizing he still hadn't asked what she'd been up to tonight. And one question still remained for her. "Mairelon?"
"Hmm?" When she looked up to meet his eyes, she realized he'd been staring at her for some time.
Kim swallowed. "What had you so nattered the day we went to the Royal College a week ago?"
His eyebrows went up in surprise. "I didn't know you'd noticed." Now his gaze shifted away uncomfortably, "I suppose I was worried about the same things you've been worrying about. We saw those amateur magicians from the streets, and I realized that could have been you, if anyone had thought to train you. It reminded me what a different past you've had, and I couldn't..." He cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable. "I couldn't figure out what in the world you saw in me."
"Silly clunch," she murmured. "I love you."
His eyes met hers with wonder. "Kim, I love you..." he said as he kissed her again. He didn't have much restraint left, and the kiss was demanding and passionate. They were both breathless when it ended. Kim sighed as she felt Mairelon's lips fall to her neck. He moved across her skin, kissing her slowly. When he pulled back, his eyes were dark with emotion. "Kim, I need to leave now, before... I'll see you in the morning?"
She nodded, feeling a sense of loss as Mairelon's arms left her. She smiled as he crossed the room to the door. "Have we still got a magic lesson tomorrow?"
He flashed her a smile. "Count on it."
***
(The End)
Kim removed her muddied shoes and entered the house through the servants' entrance. She could hardly go into the upper floors of the house dripping all over the place. Luckily, after a minimal search, Kim found Hunch and three other men playing cards and called out to him from the hallway, "Hunch?"
Hunch looked up and squinted into the dark hallway. He left the others to the game, which they seemed too absorbed in to notice what servant boy was calling for Hunch's attention. He met her in the hallway and was about to speak when his eyes widened and he said, "Kim?!" He took in her soaked and shivering form and immediately began chewing on one end of his mustache.
"I, er, had some business to take care of. But it started raining on me and..." Kim stopped, sternly telling the quiver in her voice to go away.
"I'll get a towel," Hunch said decisively and left her there in the darkened hall. He returned with a whole armload of towels, which Kim used to try to dry the outside of her clothes to at least stop from dripping on the floor. Finally, with one towel draped over her shoulders and under the hair that had escaped the cap, a shivering Kim was led by Hunch up to her rooms. He handed her more towels than she would ever need to get dry and stepped back. "You'll be fine then," he said rather than asked, apparently uncertain.
"I'm fine, Hunch; thank you," Kim assured him. She wasn't sure how convincing she sounded, as he was still chewing the end of his mustache when she left him.
Kim got out of the wet clothes and into a warm nightgown and dressing gown. But even then she couldn't seem to stop shaking. Her teeth were chattering and she felt chilled despite the warm clothes. Her tangled hair was a mess, and she sat on the bed with a brush, trying without much success to straighten it. She yearned for the shorter hair she'd kept all the years she'd passed for a boy.
Finally, in exasperation, her shaking hands forced her to stop and she sat huddled on the edge of the bed, clutching the hairbrush and squeezing her eyes shut against tears. It was then that she heard a knock on the door. Her heart racing in sudden panic, Kim called out, "Who's there?"
"May I come in?" Mairelon's voice came hesitantly.
Fighting a mix of emotions, Kim managed to tell him to enter. His eyes went right to her and took in her wet hair as well as her shivering form. His face was unreadable. Kim just sat there watching him, realizing Hunch must have gotten him and wondering what she would say when Mairelon asked why she'd been running about in the rain.
Mairelon sat down next to her carefully and took the brush from her. "Good God, Kim!" he exclaimed when he felt her frozen hands. He immediately took both of her hands in his and began rubbing them to warm them. A frown of worry touched his face.
They sat in silence until he released her hands. Kim stared at the floor in front of her, desperately trying to think of what to say to explain her actions. Mairelon was quiet beside her, and she wished she knew what he was thinking. When he spoke, his voice was low and rough with emotion. "You should get to bed."
Kim sighed. "I wanted to..." she said, gesturing to her impossibly tangled hair. Her gaze returned resolutely to the floor, lest Mairelon see how distraught she was. After a moment's pause, she felt Mairelon move beside her and was shocked when she realized he'd situated himself on the bed behind her and was now working on the ends of her hair with the brush.
Kim let him work in silence, now too enthralled by his closeness and what he was doing to worry about accounting for her actions tonight. As he made progress on the lower tangles, he moved up her hair, and she could feel his hand on her head to keep his efforts from hurting. As Mairelon continued to touch her and straighten her hair, Kim became aware of exactly how close he was. She also realized there were hardly any tangles left and that he was just continuing to slowly pull the brush through her hair. Without truly thinking first, she let herself lean back the few inches it took to be against him. He stopped brushing, and Kim let her eyes close against the sensations running through her body.
She felt Mairelon set the brush down on the bedcover beside them and very slowly lower his head to hers, finally resting his cheek against the back of her head. Kim kept her eyes closed though she could hardly feign sleep when her pulse was racing so. A long moment went by before Mairelon spoke.
When he did, she could barely hear his whisper, "Kim... please tell me what's been wrong..."
He sounded so sad; Kim cursed herself for causing that sadness. "I'm sorry, Mairelon," she said quickly, "I shouldn't 'ave gone out..."
"Don't worry about that," he told her. "But there's been something upsetting you... for the past week?"
"I'm sorry," Kim said again weakly.
Mairelon's arms went around her and he hugged her to him fiercely. "You've nothing to be sorry for," he said in no uncertain terms, tightening his arms around her in reassurance before loosening them again. "I've just been concerned about you..." he said slowly.
Kim sat in silence, feeling so comfortable in Mairelon's embrace, but having no clue how to explain her worries to him.
"Do you still..." Mairelon began, his voice catching. "That is, do you... want to marry me still?" he managed.
"Of course I do!" Kim said fervently, her hands going to clutch his arms around her. She could hear his relieved sigh. Had he really been worried she'd changed her mind? She had to make him understand what had been eating at her this past week. "I've just been so worried I can't make you happy," she said, then blushed profusely. "I don't have no ... *any* idea how to be anyone's wife. Much less a real lady like your mother or Aunt Agatha. You should be marrying someone better."
Mairelon sat up straighter, removing his head from hers where it had rested. "Kim," he said seriously, "I had no idea of the sort of pressure I was putting on you..." He moved so that they were side by side where he could see her face, ending the contact between them save for one arm around her side. "I just want you to be happy, Kim," he said sincerely. "You don't have to do anything you don't want to."
"But I do want to!" she said, now really blushing as she realized exactly what they might be talking about. She fixed her gaze on the floor as she said, "I'm just not sure I'll make you happy..."
"As long as you're with me, I'll be happy," he said softly. Her eyes were drawn back to him, and she could see the sincerity in his eyes. All her doubts seemed silly now. What had she been so afraid of? After all, this was *Mairelon.* He looked truly beautiful sitting there beside her, and she wanted nothing more than to feel his lips on hers again and forget the turmoil of the past week. He smiled slightly, then obliged her unspoken wish.
The kiss warmed her down to her toes. It was soft and gentle at first, then more insistent and desperate as they each realized how close they'd come to losing each other over baseless fears. When the kiss ended, Kim felt decidedly lightheaded. When Mairelon finally recovered enough to reopen his eyes, the intensity Kim saw in them fairly shocked her. She'd no idea she could affect Mairelon in that way.
He settled back beside her and seemed to compose himself, but kept her hand in his and traced her palm lightly with his thumb. "We'll communicate better from now on?" he asked her.
"Yes," she promised.
He nodded, and pointed out, "I should let you get some sleep."
She nodded absently, realizing he still hadn't asked what she'd been up to tonight. And one question still remained for her. "Mairelon?"
"Hmm?" When she looked up to meet his eyes, she realized he'd been staring at her for some time.
Kim swallowed. "What had you so nattered the day we went to the Royal College a week ago?"
His eyebrows went up in surprise. "I didn't know you'd noticed." Now his gaze shifted away uncomfortably, "I suppose I was worried about the same things you've been worrying about. We saw those amateur magicians from the streets, and I realized that could have been you, if anyone had thought to train you. It reminded me what a different past you've had, and I couldn't..." He cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable. "I couldn't figure out what in the world you saw in me."
"Silly clunch," she murmured. "I love you."
His eyes met hers with wonder. "Kim, I love you..." he said as he kissed her again. He didn't have much restraint left, and the kiss was demanding and passionate. They were both breathless when it ended. Kim sighed as she felt Mairelon's lips fall to her neck. He moved across her skin, kissing her slowly. When he pulled back, his eyes were dark with emotion. "Kim, I need to leave now, before... I'll see you in the morning?"
She nodded, feeling a sense of loss as Mairelon's arms left her. She smiled as he crossed the room to the door. "Have we still got a magic lesson tomorrow?"
He flashed her a smile. "Count on it."
***
(The End)