An hour later Kel emerged from her rooms blushing. While Lalasa was
extremely shy when it came to the men that she encountered, she had prodded
Kel for details for almost the entire hour. When Ilane of Mindelan arrived,
the number of questions she had to answer had doubled. Dom was waiting at
her door, looking handsome after a shave and a change of clothes. While she
was strong enough to move around a little inside her room, walking across
even a small part of the palace proved to be almost too much for her. She
cursed when she started tripping on her own feet. She was about to get
frustrated and turn around when Dom put his hand on her cheek and turned
her to face him.
"Let us help" he said.
It was so sweet and so gentle that she didn't even realize she was nodding.
Dom stood on Kel's right side, his arm looped into hers. Ilane of Mindelan stood on Kel's left, her arm looped as well. Kel didn't like having the "support beams" on her sides but they were better than falling. She smiled to herself when she realized that she hadn't even argued with him. The champagne colored Kimono was wrapped loosely about her waist. The fabric between the legs had been tucked between the center of her legs and into the waist band in the fashion of the Yamani warriors. This had been done in order to help Kel walk without tripping on the robe. Neal met them along the corridors not very far from Kel's room.
"You were supposed to wait for me to check on you before you left," he said in a tone that Kel had only heard him use with patients.
"Yes mother," Kel replied.
"Oh now don't go blaming this on me," joked Ilane of Mindelan. If a certain person had been to the rooms on time then we would have waited."
"This is blasphemy! All of you! Blaming the healer when you are the one who got your self hurt. All I try to do is help people and this is what I get!"
"Now Meathead, no one was talking about your healing power, just your tardiness," joked Dom.
"Blasphemy, again!" Neal roared with a half laugh.
It was good to see her friends laughing again, thought Kel. The last two days had been was too serious for her. A discussion involving something other than being half gutted was nice.
Kel had hoped to get to the lunch early and take a seat to the side. She was excited to be around her friends (without mud and muck or the chance of imminent danger) but she did not want them to see her having to lean on people. Unfortunately, a wound that stretched from her ribs to her hip meant slow walking and the need for frequent rests. While this hall was normally only a five minute walk from her room, it took her almost 20 minutes today. Kel cursed under her breath with every step as her knees shook. Both Dom and her mother strengthened their grips on her arms, half holding her up themselves.
"Kel are you sure you should be going?" Dom asked.
"I'm going," said Kel as she gritted her teeth. She'd had to leave the wedding reception very early, she hadn't seen any of her friends in two days and on top of all that, she didn't want her enemies to get the satisfaction of her staying in her room. Not that any of them would be there, but they would hear about it.
Dom and Ilane exchanged knowing glances and kept walking.
"Once you sit down Kel, I can ease the stiffness and give you some herbs for the pain," said Neal. "Most of what I can do for you has already been done. The rest is just going to take time."
The four of them approached the door to the luncheon room and paused. A palace servant opened the door and they began to walk in. Almost everyone in the room stopped talking when they saw Kel. Shinko and Yuki were the first to recover from the shock of seeing her pale and weak. They stood up and offered her a seat next to Roald. The ladies' Yamani ability to pretend like nothing was wrong was a blessing to Kel. If they didn't say anything about the other night, the others would probably lay off for a little while too.
Dom and Ilane helped Kel ease into her chair. Shinko took her place on the other side of Roald. Neal sat next to Yuki and across from Kel. Dom began to offer Ilane the seat next to Kel but she just winked and sat down next to Lady Haname.
As much as Yuki and Shinko were a blessing, Owen was ....Owen. Kel had just started to ask Roald how he liked being married when Owen came bounding up to the chair and wrapped Kel in a big hug.
"Kel what happened to you?" he asked. "I heard you were attacked but no one would say by who or how bad you were hurt or anything. And when Groten tried to start that fight at the reception –"
"Owen," croaked Kel. "You're hurting me."
Owen blushed and stepped away. "Sorry Kel, I didn't realize." "It's ok Owen, the robe hides the bandages," said Kel as she tried to rub her side without him noticing.
"Ok Kel, out with it," said Roald.
"Out with what?" she said in a sarcastic voice. "Whatever could you mean?"
"Lord Raoul only told me a little of what happened. And, I just thought you could be up and out with it all now so that you wouldn't spend the next week and a half retelling it."
"I think he's got a point," whispered Dom.
"Damn right he's got a point," shouted Raoul from across the large table. "And I want to know what happened after the fight," he said with a very mischievous and over-exaggerated wink at Kel and Dom.
"Were not going to talk about that right now," replied Kel. "We're going to celebrate the wedding. Isn't that right Shinko?"
Shinko looked at Kel with a serious face and laughing eyes. Kel half expected her hide her face behind her fan when she replied, "Whatever you think Keladry."
After a lot of explaining by both Dom and Kel, the party finally agreed that it was time to eat. Kel sat back in her chair and sighed. While her friends had been relentless in the pursuit of details, they had all stopped with the end of the fight. No one had ventured to explore the details of the last few nights. Yet.
Neal reached across the table and poured something green into her lemonade.
Kel reached for the glass and took a sniff. It didn't smell like lemonade any more.
"What is that?" she asked.
"That, my dear knight is what is going to keep you strong, and help you heal fast. Like vegetables."
For the first time in her life, Kel wished that she hadn't been such a sticker for vegetables. Holding her nose she drank the glass down. Lemon and whatever was in there did not go well together.
"Neal I am going to make sure you eat only the nastiest vegetables for the rest of your life," she sputtered. "This tastes like something a stormwing wouldn't even eat!"
Her stomach churned as she realized that she had just drunk a full glass of medicine without anything in her stomach. Luckily for her, Dom had just returned from the food table with an assortment of things she could snack on. Apparently he thought so too because he sat the plate down under her and returned to the buffet.
They must have exchanged long glances or something because Buri, Ilane and Lord Raoul moved to sit down beside her.
"Ok Kel, out with it," commanded Lord Raoul. "Your mother wont tell us anything," said Buri, with a look that made Kel think that was a lie. Ilane of Mindelan just smiled.
I've changed one or two things in this chapter 7/11 because some of ya'l have been great with reviewing. Thanks. I really appreciate it.
"Let us help" he said.
It was so sweet and so gentle that she didn't even realize she was nodding.
Dom stood on Kel's right side, his arm looped into hers. Ilane of Mindelan stood on Kel's left, her arm looped as well. Kel didn't like having the "support beams" on her sides but they were better than falling. She smiled to herself when she realized that she hadn't even argued with him. The champagne colored Kimono was wrapped loosely about her waist. The fabric between the legs had been tucked between the center of her legs and into the waist band in the fashion of the Yamani warriors. This had been done in order to help Kel walk without tripping on the robe. Neal met them along the corridors not very far from Kel's room.
"You were supposed to wait for me to check on you before you left," he said in a tone that Kel had only heard him use with patients.
"Yes mother," Kel replied.
"Oh now don't go blaming this on me," joked Ilane of Mindelan. If a certain person had been to the rooms on time then we would have waited."
"This is blasphemy! All of you! Blaming the healer when you are the one who got your self hurt. All I try to do is help people and this is what I get!"
"Now Meathead, no one was talking about your healing power, just your tardiness," joked Dom.
"Blasphemy, again!" Neal roared with a half laugh.
It was good to see her friends laughing again, thought Kel. The last two days had been was too serious for her. A discussion involving something other than being half gutted was nice.
Kel had hoped to get to the lunch early and take a seat to the side. She was excited to be around her friends (without mud and muck or the chance of imminent danger) but she did not want them to see her having to lean on people. Unfortunately, a wound that stretched from her ribs to her hip meant slow walking and the need for frequent rests. While this hall was normally only a five minute walk from her room, it took her almost 20 minutes today. Kel cursed under her breath with every step as her knees shook. Both Dom and her mother strengthened their grips on her arms, half holding her up themselves.
"Kel are you sure you should be going?" Dom asked.
"I'm going," said Kel as she gritted her teeth. She'd had to leave the wedding reception very early, she hadn't seen any of her friends in two days and on top of all that, she didn't want her enemies to get the satisfaction of her staying in her room. Not that any of them would be there, but they would hear about it.
Dom and Ilane exchanged knowing glances and kept walking.
"Once you sit down Kel, I can ease the stiffness and give you some herbs for the pain," said Neal. "Most of what I can do for you has already been done. The rest is just going to take time."
The four of them approached the door to the luncheon room and paused. A palace servant opened the door and they began to walk in. Almost everyone in the room stopped talking when they saw Kel. Shinko and Yuki were the first to recover from the shock of seeing her pale and weak. They stood up and offered her a seat next to Roald. The ladies' Yamani ability to pretend like nothing was wrong was a blessing to Kel. If they didn't say anything about the other night, the others would probably lay off for a little while too.
Dom and Ilane helped Kel ease into her chair. Shinko took her place on the other side of Roald. Neal sat next to Yuki and across from Kel. Dom began to offer Ilane the seat next to Kel but she just winked and sat down next to Lady Haname.
As much as Yuki and Shinko were a blessing, Owen was ....Owen. Kel had just started to ask Roald how he liked being married when Owen came bounding up to the chair and wrapped Kel in a big hug.
"Kel what happened to you?" he asked. "I heard you were attacked but no one would say by who or how bad you were hurt or anything. And when Groten tried to start that fight at the reception –"
"Owen," croaked Kel. "You're hurting me."
Owen blushed and stepped away. "Sorry Kel, I didn't realize." "It's ok Owen, the robe hides the bandages," said Kel as she tried to rub her side without him noticing.
"Ok Kel, out with it," said Roald.
"Out with what?" she said in a sarcastic voice. "Whatever could you mean?"
"Lord Raoul only told me a little of what happened. And, I just thought you could be up and out with it all now so that you wouldn't spend the next week and a half retelling it."
"I think he's got a point," whispered Dom.
"Damn right he's got a point," shouted Raoul from across the large table. "And I want to know what happened after the fight," he said with a very mischievous and over-exaggerated wink at Kel and Dom.
"Were not going to talk about that right now," replied Kel. "We're going to celebrate the wedding. Isn't that right Shinko?"
Shinko looked at Kel with a serious face and laughing eyes. Kel half expected her hide her face behind her fan when she replied, "Whatever you think Keladry."
After a lot of explaining by both Dom and Kel, the party finally agreed that it was time to eat. Kel sat back in her chair and sighed. While her friends had been relentless in the pursuit of details, they had all stopped with the end of the fight. No one had ventured to explore the details of the last few nights. Yet.
Neal reached across the table and poured something green into her lemonade.
Kel reached for the glass and took a sniff. It didn't smell like lemonade any more.
"What is that?" she asked.
"That, my dear knight is what is going to keep you strong, and help you heal fast. Like vegetables."
For the first time in her life, Kel wished that she hadn't been such a sticker for vegetables. Holding her nose she drank the glass down. Lemon and whatever was in there did not go well together.
"Neal I am going to make sure you eat only the nastiest vegetables for the rest of your life," she sputtered. "This tastes like something a stormwing wouldn't even eat!"
Her stomach churned as she realized that she had just drunk a full glass of medicine without anything in her stomach. Luckily for her, Dom had just returned from the food table with an assortment of things she could snack on. Apparently he thought so too because he sat the plate down under her and returned to the buffet.
They must have exchanged long glances or something because Buri, Ilane and Lord Raoul moved to sit down beside her.
"Ok Kel, out with it," commanded Lord Raoul. "Your mother wont tell us anything," said Buri, with a look that made Kel think that was a lie. Ilane of Mindelan just smiled.
I've changed one or two things in this chapter 7/11 because some of ya'l have been great with reviewing. Thanks. I really appreciate it.