The Colour of Love
A/N: Thanks for all the reviews for "Birthday Present". I adore them all! I know I take ages to update...
This fic was triggered by an idea from Saraswathi which was posted on "The Sergeant's Own" (Plot bunny #1). It takes place after the war, when Kel and Dom have returned from Scanra.
Disclaimer: Protector of the Small and all the characters belong to Tamora Pierce. The idea and basic plot of this fanfiction is owned by Saraswathi.
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Keladry of Mindelan stood close by Shinkokami, watching keenly as one of the most important marriages for Tortall took place. It certainly lived up to its name – servants with delicate sweets were stationed around the open area, and Yamani and Tortallan banners flapped from every pole. The graceful cherry trees, a famous symbol of the Yamani Islands, shipped over especially by request, sent petals floating gently down to the people watching.
There were many people present here indeed – from commoners watching from the palace gates; come to watch the marriage of the heir to his Yamani bride; to nobles and royalty dressed in luxurious, decorative materials for the day. This was meant to be a day to celebrate the union of both the Islands and Tortall, so Shinko was in a kimono of crimson and gold, Yamani colours of prosperity and happiness. Roald was dressed in royal blue, the Conté colours, and both looked pleased and content to be married at last.
Kel herself was in a Yamani kimono for the occasion, being one of Shinkokami's bridesmaids. She stood with Yuki and Lady Haname as the ceremony took place, with both Roald and Shinko swearing their loyalty to the throne and each other. When it was finished, there was the tumultuous sound of clapping as the people acknowledged the newly-wed heirs to the throne.
People began to move off to the party in the ballroom, while others came to congratulate Roald and Shinko on their marriage. She stood by them serenely, watching as the crowd pouring into the ballroom. Then she noticed Dom standing by the doors, and headed towards him.
"Hello, Lady Knight," Dom greeted cheerfully. "May I say that you look absolutely ravishing in that lovely kimono of yours?"
Kel rolled her eyes. "You've already said it, Dom. And the focus was supposed to be Shinko and Roald, not me. You have given them your congratulations, haven't you? Otherwise Neal might think you're jealous," she teased.
"Of course I have. And why would I be jealous? I've got you," Dom smiled, kissing her hand, then hauling her ungracefully into the hall.
Kel glared at him for a moment, but he was pretending to be oblivious again, so she sighed and changed the subject. "Well, what about Lady Haname, then? She did look rather pretty in that blue kimono, you know," she grinned.
Dom sat down at one of the tables and motioned for her to join him. "Sure she did, Kel. And she's also betrothed to that haMinch, remember?" he reminded her patiently. "Besides, wasn't it a green kimono?"
Kel frowned. "It was a blue kimono, I'm sure of it. Sky blue, with white turtle doves."
"It was green!" Dom insisted. "Emerald green!"
Kel stared at him. "Are you quite all right, Dom? Because anyone could see that it was a blue kimono! I think you should see your uncle."
Dom scowled. "I do not need to see Duke Baird! There's nothing wrong with me! You're just hallucinating!"
"Me, hallucinating? You're the one with the vision problems! Remember in Scanra, how all of you saw that army, and I was the only one with any sense?"
"It was because you were the only one with griffin feathers, dolt. That's called magic, not hallucinations."
At that, Kel shut up completely and refused to talk to Dom at all. She usually brushed off any insults, but this was too much, especially one from her supposed lover. He, in return, retained a frosty silence, and their coldness towards each other was so obvious that Sir Nealan of Queenscove came over, trailing Yuki, to ask what was wrong.
"Nothing, it's just that Sergeant Attitude Problem over there has a wasp in his loincloth," snapped Kel, quoting something Neal once said about Lord Wyldon.
Dom smouldered, but didn't say anything.
Neal looked from one to another, a wicked grin widening on his face. "My best friend and my cousin, fighting? This is too good. Dom, Kel is going to beat you up with her staff if you're not careful. Take it from me, I've had experience."
"Shut it, Meathead," Dom growled, tapping his fork on the table menacingly, but Yuki beat him to it, whacking Neal on the head soundly with her fan.
"Your best friend and your cousin are fighting, and you're just laughing? I think you need a lesson in discipline, Nealan," Yuki said imperially, picking him up by the scruff of his neck. She turned to look at the fuming Dom and Kel. "And you two had better make up by this week, do you understand? I don't want to know what it's about," she interrupted, cutting off Dom's protest. "It's bad to have two people fighting on your wedding day."
She turned and marched Neal off, leaving behind two ugly faces and two angry souls.
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Kel waddled, bow-legged, back from the stables, feeling sore after spending the whole day riding. While she didn't loathe parties the way Buri and Raoul did, it seemed like there had been too many during the past few months. She hurried along the corridors – her hair had been tossed around mercilessly by the wind, and the rain had splattered her riding clothes with mud. She could only hope that no nosy courtiers saw her, or they would be whispering about how scruffy she was, and begin whispered debates as to if she even passed as a noble.
She was putting her keys into her door when the very high-pitched laughter of a court lady sounded close to her ears. Kel turned irritably to tell the person off, and was unpleasantly surprised to see the beautiful Lady Emeline of Sinthya, chattering animatedly to no other than Domitan of Masbolle, who looked to be enjoying her presence.
Kel scowled, her mouth in a thin line. Barely a day since their argument, and Dom was already busy flirting with other court ladies. She would never be jealous, she told herself, but she knew that if she didn't make up with him soon, plenty of mothers would be eying him for their daughters.
But I'm not going to apologize if I don't mean what I say, Kel thought resolutely. And I also have my pride to take care of. Nevertheless, she could not help stalking angrily into her rooms.
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"It's not working," Neal said with some panic in his voice. "Seeing Dom with Emeline should have got on Kel's nerves, at least. Not to mention that Emeline comes from a traitorous house, as well."
Yuki shrugged, a habit picked up from Neal, but she could not help looking worried as well. "Kel is hard to crack. She has been living in the Yamani Islands since she was a child, and would have been trained not to show emotion, and to choose her place of confrontation, if any. Maybe we should try your cousin," she suggested. "Who would he hate seeing Kel with?"
Neal grinned and rubbed his hands together. "I know just the person."
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The banquet hall was dramatically lit, with enticing scents drifting from exotic foods meant to tickle a noble's fancy. However, Kel could not feel hungry or even mildly enthusiastic for this party despite the fact that she was sitting opposite Alanna the Lioness. She was too busy thinking about Lady Emeline, and the flirtatious smile Dom had sent her.
"Hello, Kel," a cheerful voice said, interrupting her thoughts. "Is it all right if I sit with you for this banquet?"
Kel looked up to see Cleon, dressed richly in the typical noble's garb for such occasions. "All right," she replied, shifting over for him. "Judging by your clothing, it seems like Kennan's doing much better now. By the way, where is your wife?"
"Sitting with Roald for tonight," Cleon shrugged. "He wants to know how we're doing, and she's the one who keeps the finances. I always was rather bad at mathematics," he sighed reticently.
Kel smiled, and the two began to talk about their page years. Meanwhile, Dom, partnered with the lady Kel had seen before, was shooting dirty looks at Cleon from behind Kel's back. Cleon, however, just smiled and waved when he saw him.
"It looks like Dom's getting jealous," Neal noted with satisfaction from his seat next to Yuki. "Hopefully, he'll get up any minute now, punch the daylights out of Cleon, then apologize for doing whatever he did to Kel. He never showed it, but Cleon was always his sore spot." Neal added happily.
"That's not a very nice thing to wish for, Nealan," Yukimi replied absently, watching the two. "Especially since we had to work hard to convince Cleon that Dom was not going to do that." Neal sighed in resignation.
"Look, Dom's stopped glaring now. He's getting up to dance with one of the Riders, Miri, I think her name is. Your cousin is such a flirt, Neal. I don't think he should do that, especially since Kel is already mad at him. No, I don't believe he plans on apologizing, Neal."
Neal groaned. "Why do we have to have two friends who are both so stubborn?"
Yuki looked determined. "We'll just have to talk to the two of them directly."
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"Hold still a while longer, lady," Lalasa commanded, tugging the material straight. She stood back for a moment to scrutinise her work, a wine coloured velvet dress, which looked faintly Yamani. She nodded approvingly, then turned to Yukimi, who was waiting patiently next to Kel.
Kel made a face. "I feel just like I did when I was a page," she commented to no one in particular.
Lalasa adjusted Yuki's wedding dress slightly. Unlike the Yamani Princess, her dress was a pure white Tortallan style dress, with many layers of delicate silk and lace. "Stop fiddling with that dress, my lady, or I'll sew it crooked," she added to Kel.
Kel pulled unenthusiastically at her dress, unconvinced. "There've been so many parties recently! I should just re-wear some dresses, even if it is scandalous. I'm straining my budget, wearing a different dress for each party, not to mention Yuki's and Shinko's wedding gowns."
"You shouldn't be paying me for this in the first place, my lady," Lalasa chided her gently, awakening a long-time argument. "I did tell you that you needn't pay. You've done so much for me already. I wouldn't be where I am now if it weren't for you. "
"She's just in a bad mood because she and Dom have not talked to each other for almost a full week," Yuki said with the barest hint of a smirk. Then she frowned. "You two had better make peace by tomorrow, or –"
At that moment, the door to Yuki's room burst open, and in tumbled Neal and Dom, wrestling roughly. Lalasa scolded them. "Haven't you heard of knocking on the door of a lady's room?"
"I wasn't aware that this was a lady's room," teased Neal, earning a whack of the fan from Yuki. Neal winced and rubbed his head, wearily expecting a sharp comment from his best friend as well. However, Kel was now sitting down in a chair, determinedly not looking at Dom. He seemed to be giving her the same treatment – his cousin inspected one of Yuki's tapestries, featuring bamboo, in great detail. Neal sighed.
"Actually, this is what we brought you here to talk about," Neal said, glaring at his cousin. "You two have to stop fighting! I don't know what it's about, because neither of you will tell me, but surely it can't be that serious, or someone would be dead by now." He grinned, but it faded when he saw the obstinate looks on their faces.
Neal sighed and tried pleading with them. "Look, you two are going to ruin our wedding day. The bridesmaid and best man, not talking to each other."
"It will create a bad atmosphere," Yuki added.
"I'm not about to apologize when I don't mean it," repeated Kel.
Neal exchanged a glance with Yuki. "Well, we did all we could," he muttered.
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Kel stood in her room, inspecting herself in the mirror. She wore the plush red velvet gown made by Lalasa. She sighed in resignation. Kel would have been happy to wear a kimono, but Neal's old-blood family had insisted on a Tortallan-style wedding, so she was stuck in this beautiful, but constricting, dress.
At that moment there was a cautious knock on the door. Kel went to open it, and found her best friend Neal standing there, twisting his newly tailored and pressed clothes in anxiousness.
"What's wrong, Neal?" she asked, concerned. "Where's Yuki?"
"Kidnapped by the Naxens," Neal replied sardonically as she ushered him in. It seemed like he had still managed to keep his sense of humour, though he looked so nervous he seemed sick.
Neal sat down at her table, resting his head in his arms and ruining his hair. "I know it must be last thing on your mind, Kel, but I really should advise that you and Dom reconcile your differences. Yuki is worried that you will not be able to enjoy yourself at the wedding, and I also wish the best for my cousin," he recited. No doubt Yuki had made him memorise this speech, since he would never talk like this normally, or even say something that implied he meant well for his cousin.
Kel stared at him for a moment. He sighed. "Kel, will you just do it? I know you don't like saying something that you don't mean, so just think about what you were arguing about, and if it's worth it. You and Dom were getting along perfectly well before. Is it worth your relationship just to satisfy your pride?"
Kel gazed out her window. I wonder what he'd think if he knew what we were arguing about, she thought cynically to herself. Though come to think of it, she had been so caught up in reminding herself to ignore Dom that she had forgotten what he had said to make her so angry in the first place. Almost. But Neal was right. These sorts of things could drag on forever, and she had no right to destroy Yuki's wedding for her own pride. She shook her head. A proper Yamani would never have let insults irritate in the first place. Spending too much time around Neal was definitely having a side effect.
"That was deep, Neal," she said at last. "Now, why can't you be like that all the time, instead of referring to poets and authors of centuries ago?" she teased.
Neal's face brightened. "Does this mean that you're going to apologize?" he asked eagerly, ignoring the jibe.
Kel shrugged, showing none of her thoughts. "I suppose so. And don't look so pleased." She amusedly watched Neal dance around her room for a moment, then shooed him out of her room. "Scat. Yuki will be looking for you. It's not as if I'll apologize to him in front of you," she said when Neal looked disappointed. He pouted at her, then hurried out of the room.
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Kel hurried down the corridors, searching for Dom. It was hard to run, or even walk normally in this dress, but she had to hurry, or the wedding would start before she found him. He would probably be in his rooms, getting ready for the wedding. She rolled her eyes. Despite his position in the King's Own, Dom was as vain as a peacock.
She had barely gone past her hall when someone, thundering down the corridor and around the corner, crashed headfirst into her. Caught unprepared, Kel winced as her attacker's hard head hurtled into her, and she ended up on the floor on her rear end.
"I'm so sorry – I didn't see you – " the ruffled man began, offering her his hand, then stopped when he recognised her. "Kel!"
Kel started to glare at him, then remembered why she was looking for him in the first place and sighed in resignation instead. "Hello, Dom."
Domitan of Masbolle shifted uncomfortably, then helped the disgruntled Kel to her feet. It had been at least four years since anyone had managed to dump her onto the ground. "I was looking for you. I would like to say that I'm very sorry for arguing with you and calling you those names," he rushed, sounding somewhat like Neal. Then he hung his head. "I was mistaken. I was actually talking about the other Yamani lady, Miaka noh Inuyama."
Kel absorbed his words for a moment, then nodded in acknowledgement. She spent a lot of time reflecting on Yamani proverbs, but a famous Tortall saying was "forgive and forget". "I'm sorry as well," she said at last. "I probably should have been more flexible. I should have remembered that there were more Yamani ladies than unusual at the wedding, and it would have been hard for you to tell them apart." She resisted the temptation to add, "Especially with your bad eyesight." She glad that the ice between them had been broken. "I think I'm starting to turn into a conservative."
Dom raised his eyebrow. "Is the world about to end? Don't jest with me, Keladry of Mindelan." She laughed, and Dom offered her his arm. The two talked as they headed out into the bright courtyard where the nobles and Yamani ambassadors were gathered.
"So was it really you who decided to apologize, or was it a certain friend of ours?" Kel enquired delicately.
"It was me, of course," Dom said, not skipping a beat, then withered under Kel's stare. "All right, it was actually Yuki," he confessed, grinning lopsidedly. "She threatened me with something worse than death if I refused to do it. I probably would have done it anyway, though. I was getting a little lonely."
Kel poked him none too gently in the ribs, pretending to be angry. "Stop it, you liar. You had plenty of other court ladies only too glad to take my place, like that Sinthya woman."
"I was only trying to get you to notice me," Dom said pathetically, rubbing his chest. "But none were as truly beautiful as you."
Kel decided to ignore that comment, continuing down the palace steps to gaze at the scene in front of her, a scene just as beautiful as Shinko's wedding. The bride and the groom spotted them from the altar, as a priest carried out the ceremony. Seeing the two of them together, Neal gave a little wave, and Yuki beamed happily.
"Doesn't Yuki look beautiful? That yellow dress really brings out her skin colour," Dom said admiringly.
Kel looked down at Yuki's pure white dress, opened her mouth to speak, then changed her mind and just shot him a disgusted look.
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A/N: So how was that? Not a great ending, I admit. Hopefully it didn't seem too modernised: again, I don't recall any wedding scenes in Tamora Pierce, so I'm taking a shot in the dark here. I just hope I did justice to Saraswathi's idea. Please review, everyone!
Moon Usagi