Midwinter Voices
Disclaimer: i only own the Lady Chantel who is based on a factual charater i know.
A/N: my one shot, i'm sorry to all Dom fans, but to people who like odd pairings rejoice!
Lady knight Keladry of Mindelan stood at the edge of the banquet hall, watching everything without really noticing anything. Joyful laughter rang throughout the room, it came from a short blonde woman in the middle of a group of knights.
"Hello, youngster," Raoul of Goldenlake and Malorie's Peak said grinning as he sat next to Kel.
"Hi," she said emotionlessly. All of her emotions seemed to die when... she can't focus on that anymore!
"What's wrong? Not enjoying my wonderful king's party?" asked Raoul. Kel almost smiled. Her former knight-master had been forced to attend any banquet, party, get together, and basically any social event ever held.
"Not particularly, since everyone's been avoiding me," Kel said.
He looked at her. "Aren't you going to laugh at your year- mates and friends as they try to flirt with a woman like the Lady Chantel?" he was teasing her.
"Hey, Kel," called one of her friends, Merric of Hollyrose and gesturing frantically for her to come over there.
She excused herself to Raoul and went to see her red-headed friend. When she got there she came face to empty air. She looked down to see into the face of Lady Chantel of Lozej's Creek. She was very petite, only coming up to Kel's shoulders, with blonde hair so light it was almost blonde. Her bright blue eyes were rimmed with an even brighter blue, making her eyes seem to pop. Although sh was very pretty, and possibly gorgeous, she would never be called that: her face was marked with scars.
"Hi, I'm sure you know me by now," Chantel said, she was louder than a lot of the men Kel knew. "And the world knows about you, Lady Knight."
"I'm honoured that someone as"- Kel stopped, unsure of what to say. The lady knight knew what men said, but when it came to her, she was confused. It always happened to her.
A smile flashed across the Lady's pale face. "I know, you're probably used to the phrases they taught the men."
"I am," replied Kel, this woman was making her uneasy.
"I understand you have many good friends while training here. Might I ask who that man is?" she was pointing at a tall man, black hair and eyes, who was talking to Raoul.
"That's Sir Seaver of Tasride," answered Kel.
"Oh, any other handsome men around here?" she asked, her blue eyes searched the hall once again.
"There's Faleron of King's reach," Kel supplied, and nodding her head towards another of her friends.
"Is that everyone?" the woman from Lozej's Creek sounded shocked.
Kel sighed, why did this woman have to be so annoying? "Eveyone else is courting a Lady already, or they are betrothed. Sir Nealan of Queenscove is engaged to Lady Yukimi noh Diamoru, and my friends from the King's own are unable to marry and stay in the Own."
"Oh" was the last thing that the lady said before an awkward silence fell on them.
Chantel bounced for a minute before saying quietly, "is it true?"
What now? Thought Kel, who was getting very vexed. I don't want to answer some girl's silly question about my personal life. But still she asked, "is what true my lady?"
"That you were courting the recently killed Domitan of Masbolle?" Chantel persisted.
Kel's heart broke. Had she not spent so many years away from the Yamani Islands she would have been able to defeat tears; but those days were dead and gone, and she cried and ran from the hall, leaving her bewildered friends and a slightly smiling Chantel.
Many people saw her flee, but only one person chose to follow her.
Kel sprinted until she reached the courtyard. She collapsed onto the ground, ruining her formal outfit, and finally sobbed until there were no tears left in her.
A quiet remark came from somewhere behind her, "are you going stop, or do I have to bring you flowers like a fragile court lady?"
A strangled laugh emerged from her throat. "No, I think I need more water though."
The man stepped into the light, revealing her quietest friend, Seaver. "Just so you can cry it out again? I think not."
Her first reallaugh since Dom's funeral. "I'm sorry"- but he cut her off.
"Listen, I know you're more or less broken from this, but you're not a gentle lady who can't defend herself. You're my friend, the one who fought people like Joren, when they wouldn't leave us first-years be. You saved your servant although you almost gave up your dream to do so. You've done so many things in the past, but you never think about them. Why start now?" he said, sitting down next to her.
"Because," Kel explained. "This is different. I was doing those for someone else. I knew that they would thank me, and nothing would change. But when I fell in love, this was different. It was incredible, the rushes were so intense, like the adrenaline you get from a fight, but more pleasant and stronger. I felt that every moment I spent with him. It was wonderful, but it all got ripped away from me. I had to carry him back."
Seaver let her cry for a minute before asking, "do you think that you will never feel it again?"
"I don't know," Kel was now shaking, from the cold, and the fact that she didn't have a coat or anything to keep her warm. Seaver took his jacket off and placed it around her shoulders. What he was all he wanted: a genuine grateful smile.
He pulled Kel close, placed a hand under her chin and said her name. When he saw her beautiful hazel eyes, everything went beyond what he though would have happened. He leaned over to place his mouth gently on hers. Kel could feel a familiar heat coursing though her veins and it paralyzed her. She could feel his heartbeat against her chest, and it calmed her.
"So much for mourning, eh Keldary?" the snide comment came from a voice she met. Kel turned to see Chantel, her red dress glittering in the moonlight, but she was no longer beautiful, her face was twisted with rage.
"What are you talking about?" snapped Kel.
"Are you sure you want to be doing this?" shouted Chantel.
Kel snapped, all the anger she had been supressing came out when she stood up and walked towards the smaller woman, but Chantel hadn't flinched so far.
"Stop talking," Kel ordered softly.
"Why?" Chantel was smiling, obviously happy that she had ruined their moment. "So you can continue to kiss a man who you are not courting? Do have any idea how bad this will look?"
"Do not realise that I have years of training and combat experiance, and I am bigger than you?"
"You may have experience but I am the helpless lady, one scream will bring every man in the hall out here to see you and the Tasride knight, frolicking in the snow," pointed out Chantel.
"You would have been really pretty, but how did you get those hideous scars?" asked Kel, who was getting tired of this woman and her venomous tongue.
"You know how some of the common born have the face pierced in some places? Well, I thought it looked really good, so I tried. I was at the convent when I was doing this and after a week they made me take out the rings. I had my left nostril pierced, my right eyebrow, my tongue, my lip, all the way up my ears, and my belly button," Chantel murmured with pride.
A shudder rolled throughout the lady knight. How could anybody want to that to themselves?
"What? Not a fan of mutilation?" asked the small woman with fake concern.
Kel stepped closer to Chantel and whispered, "why are doing this?"
Her reply was simple," because I can."
A hand placed on Kel's shoulder was the only thing to keep her silent. She looked into the dark of eyes of one of her oldest friends, the man she had just kissed. "Kel, come on."
She gave one last glare to Chantel, hoping it would be the last time she saw the rude little woman.
The two walked until the reached Kel's room. Seaver suddenly asked, "what are you going to do?"
"What do you mean?" what was he talking about?
He kissed her again, sending a fog to her mind. Kel, unsure of anything else to do, kissed him back. He broke the kiss and asked, "now do you know what I mean?"
A sly smile crept over Kel's face. "Of course I do, and I also know what I want to do as well."
"Oh really."
"Yes," she said, and kissed him, the feeling was wonderful. A disturbing thought was about ruin everything though. Am I only doing this because I miss Dom? She knew that wasn't the case. Dom had only wanted her to be happy, if it meant being in the arms of another man, then so be it.
Domitan of Masbolle stood in the realms of the Dead, overlooking his lady. He smiled when he saw how happy she was, and though she wasn't with him anymore, at least she had found someone.
"Domitan," a ghostly voice breathed. "Are you ready?"
Dom nodded, took one last look at Kel, and followed the voice, and fell into the eternal sleep he had only heard about until now.
That night, Kel fell into her own bed, still thinking of Seaver.
She was about to sleep, when she heard someone who couldn't have been near her whisper, "I'm so sorry for leaving you, but I love you, and I only want you to be happy."
"Dom?" asked Kel, her eyes searching her room.
"I miss you." was the last thing Kel ever heard from him.
"Midwinter luck, Dom." she siad so quietly it was barely audible. He must have been with her, because she slept well, and dreamt only of the future, and of good things to come.
A/N: i'm really sorry! but it's not horrible right? please read and review.