Okay y'all- first of all, I'm really sorry that it took so long for me to update this. I've been at an all girl's camp for the past week. I can't tell you how happy I was when we stopped by a Chick Fillet on the way home and their were guys there. It was the best part of my week! Second- Even though it seems that none of you noticed, or either failed to mention it (for which I am grateful), I did make a small mistake in chapter three. I stated that Thom had a tint of violet to his eyes, which is completely incorrect. He doesn't continue the Trebond eye legacy. He has his father's- George- eyes, which are greenish hazel (if anyone is dying to know). There's a thanks to all of my totally awesome reviewers at the bottom. I can't believe I reached the 75 mark (SeaStar)! I hope y'all enjoy this chapter- I had a whole bunch of fun writing it. The next chapter will most likely be posted much sooner. I have about two weeks free for writing and then I have a youth conference thing at church (and my birthday on July the 16th!) and then I have 2 weeks of band camp. Yes, go ahead and laugh! HA-HA...are you done, now? Besides, I'm not totally in the band. I'm in the color guard (or flag core), that's why I have two weeks and the actual band only has one (grumble-grumble). Anyway- Now that those of you who bothered to read about my life (and put up with all of the parentheses), are done- there is a Buffy the Vampire Slayer reference in here. I couldn't help myself; I'm a bit obsessed. (All hail Joss Whedon!) See if y'all can find it...you'll only see it if you saw the episode it comes from, though. Alrighty then!! Onward with mindless jabber with a facade of a story! Charge!!!!

You're Not a Little Girl Anymore- Chapter 5

After calming down while sitting in the peace of the stables, with nothing but the horses and the sounds of munching, Keladry began to walk the pathway back to the palace. She entered the palace and kept walking to her rooms. About to turn the corner into the hall in which her rooms were located, Kel stopped as she heard an exasperated voice.

"Come on, Kel! I know you're in there. It's really not THAT bad. So-yes, alright- almost the whole palace probably thinks that what everyone has always said about you is true now. But the important thing is that you know different, Kel-unless it is true. You would tell me, right? I mean- I'm your best friend. You wouldn't keep something this important from me. Kel? Let me in! Come on, stop being so stubborn and open this door," Neal ranted and raved to the piece of wood. During his tirade, Kel walked up behind her best friend of many years.

"Alright, fine; I just don't see what the big deal is Neal." Kel reached around him and unlocked her door before walking inside and turning around to look into his green eyes. Neal stood sheepishly for a moment before brushing past Kel through the doorway. Kel rolled her eyes in annoyance before shutting the door. She turned around and faced the man sitting in one of her chairs.

"Something you wanted to say Nealan?" Kel asked with her arms crossed in front of her. He looked annoyed at the use of his full first name before remembering that Kel wasn't in the mood to here his complaints.

Neal rushed into an explanation, "I just wanted to check on you. Then you wouldn't open the door and I thought you were mad at me and then I thought that maybe the reason you wouldn't open the door was because you really ARE pregnant and I'm just going to be quiet now." Neal trailed off when he noticed Keladry's cold stare. She just looked at him in silence. "So…are you going to the feast tonight? Never mind. That was a dumb question. Everyone's going to the feast tonight, I mean…I'm just going to be quiet, again." He was saved from the unbearable silence by the bell alerting everyone that it was four hours past noonday. Neal raced past Kel with a quick 'I've got to be…somewhere that's not here,' and closed the door behind him. Kel looked over to her window where sparrows looked back at her.

"Years of living with them and doing the things they do, and I still don't understand men," Kel confessed to her small confidants. She walked to the door and locked it before pulling off her boots and falling into bed. Kel smiled as she saw a questioning head quirk from what had -only seconds before- been a sleeping mass of fur. "I'm tired, Jump. Gossip and giggling ladies have left me wanting a nap." Jump laid his head down on his paws as if to say, 'I concur'. Kel laid her head down on her pillow before drifting into Gainel's domain.

----Kel walked through a quiet hall. She halted when she reached a large oak door. She turned the handle and walked over to a crib in the middle of the room. She looked down at the baby, sighing in relief that her son had finally gone to sleep. Keladry turned abruptly when her ears perceived loud footsteps hurrying to the room. Her body tensed up in apprehension but relaxed when she realized whom the footsteps belonged to. Sir Cleon of Kennan and Sir Raoul of Goldenlake walked into the room. Kel's relieved smile faded when she realized that they both looked angry.

"When did you plan on telling me that I had a son?" Raoul questioned with malice. Kel just gaped in shock.

"Mithros' spear! The child is obviously mine. I was her first kiss; it only makes sense that I would be the first to-" Cleon was cut off by a gaggle of ladies strolling into the room. Keladry stood motionless, trying to process what was happening and what everyone was saying.

"Should have known…"

"Honestly… a disgrace to the kingdom…"

"She WAS my squire for four years. Why else would I have taken on a girl?"

"Who knows how many other children she's had through out these years…"

"Yeah, but I was her-her-her lover! That's right, Commander of the King's Own. Try to beat that!" Kel was becoming overwhelmed with all of the voices in the room. Her son started to stir and she picked him up from the crib to cradle him.

"Could you all please quiet down? I just got him to sleep and once he starts crying…" Kel was cut off by a ladies' reprimanding tone.

"See that? She can't even take care of her own child." Kel began walking towards the door to escape all of the accusations but was blocked by a bald man holding a platter full of sliced cheese. He took one and placed it on his head. She looked at him confused and backed away as her son began to wail in her arms.

"Always knew she'd end up this way…"

"I'm telling you, you're too young for her. She likes older men…"

"…probably end up as an orphan…"

"…and they say that she's a hero of the realm!"

"I wear the cheese; it doesn't wear me!"

"Think rationally, 'Oh, great commander!'. It's obvious that she likes redheads…" Kel looked for an escape from the rants of the other occupants of the room in vain. She began to panic when her salvation came in the form of an unrecognizable man.

"Quiet! How dare you come into my home unbidden and disturb my son's sleep!" He came over to Kel and gently took the baby from her arms. He turned and noticed that no one had left, yet. "Was I speaking Carthaki? Get out." He glared until everyone but the bald man with a strange fixation for cheese had scurried out of the room.

"But where will I put the cheese?" He questioned with hopeful eyes. The mysterious man laughed before directing the cheese man to go to the kitchens. He then turned back to Kel, with the infant fast asleep in his arms. She tried to distinguish who the man was, for he seemed very familiar. He turned and tenderly placed the child into his crib. He then turned to Kel and pulled her into a loving embrace. She felt perfectly content to stay in the unidentified man's arms.

"Thank you for sending them away. Why didn't you just tell that strange man to leave, though? Now he'll probably never leave our kitchens." Kel mockingly scorned the man. Her mind kept prompting her to ask who he was, but she couldn't bring herself to say anything that might cause her to leave his comforting hold. The man grinned and moved his head closer to Kel's. His lips inched closer and closer to her own, until they were scant millimeters apart. As he closed the space between them, and as Kel was about to receive the most heavenly kiss that she had ever received, he whispered six words that would cause Keladry to wake up gasping for breath in confusion.

"I just felt like annoying you."

You like? I hope so. Just a note for those who were confused. Remember that it was a dream. There are always some weird unexplainable things in dreams, as well as foretelling...'wooo' creepy music sounds. Also for those of you, and I'm sure there are a few, who don't know- Gainel is the Master of Dreams. He's one of the great gods and he's mentioned in the last book of The Immortals quartet entitled The Realms of the Gods. He's always been a favorite character of mine and I'm thinking about doing a story with him as a main character after I finish this one, of course! To those who reviewed chapter four:

oceanspike- Oh, stop! You're making me blush!
chica- Thank you, kindly!
The Final Stillness of Saturn- Yes, stupid boys. She is using all of her will to refrain from the serious butt kicking that she is obviously entitled to.
Skysong- No way; you so totally rock!
rachel132- I applaud your aspiring use of paralogistic phraseology and it dawns upon me to inquire as to what 'spendor' means...lol! Just joshin! You are so 'spendor' (it's a new word, i've decided).
sYaOrAnRoXmiSox- Thanks! I liked the imitation, too. "That's probably why you wrote it, you dumb ditz!" Shut up, Bob!!...sorry, Bob was making fun of me again. Erm, so...yeah.
ProwlingKitKat-Lol! She didn't say no because even Kel gets shocked sometimes.
Alianne Cooper- Just FYI- Kel has a good chance of ending up with Thom.. It's possible that she'll end up with Dom, but those are the only two possibilities. I hope you won't forsake my story, though!
Sunrise Daughter- Oh, my gosh! It's your name again, AND I wrote something to you! I think this might be a little longer. But, either way, I'll update sooner.
chicken-puffs- Sorry! I'm slow, I can't help it!!
Squirrel Maiden of Green- Yeah, it started because of what Seaver said. You know how sometimes you're talking and there's a moment of complete silence before someone says," It's too quiet."? Well- he said it in one of those times, so everyone heard him.
Lady-kitty- Well now, you'll just have to keep reading to find out. Won't you? Heh- honestly, you made me think of a path I hadn't thought of before. You've made me rethink my plot! Curses on you, Lady-kitty!!!!
Lady Page- Thanks for the review. I'll update sooner next time.
elements-of-the-soul- Wow! I'm so flattered! Although, I would NEVER say 'youse' (shudder). It's not in my vocabulary. Y'all is just a Southern conjunction of the words you and all. Similar to a slurring, it's simply part of my native dialect. Thank you for the awesome review! You're the best!
ossini- Heh...erm, question! What does PMSL stand for? Or do I want to know?
Nolee of Stone Mountain- Can you guess the most probable pairing from this chapter? I hope so!
Kore Yan- Yay! Someone thinks I'm funny! I bow down in dubmissiveness for my extremely overdue update. Forgive me?
Lilliana-Rose- That's such a pretty name! And, does this chapter answer your question? I can't promise, but you can live in hope.
Trickstergal33- Thanks! I am in LOVE with George, so it's a real compliment that you saw him in Thom. You're awesome!
SurfAngel- Yes, in my story atleast, Kel is a virgin...at the moment. (wink) Anyway- Thom is annoying because it's he likes to see Kel riled up...he's just quirky like that. lol
Red Queen Kai- Thank you bunches! I bow down to the queen of my favorite color and ask fogiveness for my late updated-ness.
mondo- Thank ya's!
SeaStar- YAY! Go you!! You're my 75th reviewer!! I'm a bit confused, though. You didn't know that I could do...what? Anywayz- you were lucky, because you reviewed the day I updated. Good timing,....unlike Seaver (ignorant boys). Review again!

And, as always, another thank-you (though slightly smaller than the ones above) to all of my lazy readers out there. Even though you were too much of a sloth to click the little lilac button and type a few words......grr....I love y'all anyway.

For all those who guess the BtVS reference, e-mail me and I'll send you candy! Not real candy...pictures of candy....but, still, it's something- right?

Pig Latin Time!!-Aymay ethay umorsmay eadspray uicklyquay oughthray ethay allwayshay ofhay ouryay ifelay.

Have any of you played the game where you try to get people to smile by saying, "Honey, if you love me, give me a little smile," ? Well, here's my version of it.

Reviewer, if you want another chapter, give me a little review....hehe.

I'd just like to end with a fact about my native and home state of Georgia. In our capital, Atlanta, it is illegal to tie a giraffe to a street lamp or telephone pole....y'all just keep that in mind.