Chapter Seven

When Kalasin woke up, she felt roughly as if somebody had hit her on the head. With a sledgehammer. Twenty times. Oh, Goddess. There was no justice in this world.

Her entire body rose and fell. Once, twice, again. It was almost relaxing; like resting on a boat on gentle waters. She could almost smell the salt water and see the clear turquoise of Carthaki seas. There was a light weight on her lower back, and a light, regular breeze on the side of her neck. Kalasin closed her eyes, and snuggled into whatever cushions were beneath her. Now, this was a pleasant situation, especially after that disturbing dream she was having earlier. Sugar plum fairies? Nutcrackers? Kaddar cuddling a cat version of her?

She inhaled deeply. The faint scent of Kaddar's mild cologne lingered on the cushions. It was pretty…nice…of him to lend her whatever she was sleeping on. Funny, though…she didn't recall him having any moving cushions. When the realization hit her, she just sighed in despair. Just her luck.

Turns out that she wasn't sleeping on moving cushions. She was actually sprawled out over Kaddar's chest, explaining the ocean sensation. And the light breeze on her neck was his breath. Oh. It suddenly all made sense now, except for one thing.

Kalasin poked Kaddar repeatedly, until he woke up with a groan. "Mmmgh. What's your issue?" he asked her groggily. "Aren't you supposed to be sleeping off your delirium? I'm not going to pet you right now, even if you do purr for me."

Kalasin stared, feeling nothing less than horrified. Kaddar had petted her? And she had purred for him? Mithros. She examined her dress, noting the wrinkles and her half-unlaced bodice with a sense of dread. She fought the urge to crawl under the covers and cry, instead getting up on her knees, glowering at her still-asleep husband.

And then she slapped him.

Kaddar woke up with a yowl. "That was for taking advantage of me!" she yelled, pulling her hand back for another slap. The emperor used reflexes he didn't even know he still had, and threw the covers aside. In one movement, he grabbed both of her wrists and pushed her back down onto the bed, pinning her down with his greater weight. She struggled against him so hard that he half feared she would pull a muscle in her neck.

Kaddar squished her wrists with his elbows, ignoring her yelp of protest. Wriggling his hands free, he held her face still. She bit the sleeve of his robe instinctively, and then spat it out with a splutter. "Let me go!"

"No! You're unstable!"

"Unstable? I'm unstable? You're the one who took advantage of my unconscious state and robbed me of my innocence!"

That sentence rendered Kaddar speechless for a moment, before he shook it off quickly. "You dense little girl," he hissed. "I didn't have my wicked way with you while you were asleep! You're the one who woke up shivering and begging for comfort. I'm the one who helped you fall asleep again, let you hold my hand, and I didn't even protest when you decided to use me as a kitty cushion!"

Kaddar had the satisfaction of watching Kalasin's jaw drop. And he had the immense satisfaction of watching her pale, undoubtedly having an internal breakdown over how she had allowed herself to beg him for comfort. All right; maybe she hadn't really begged. But since his cheek was still smarting, he decided that she deserved to be guilty about things.

A few minutes passed, and Kalasin's head was now buried in her arms. Kaddar waited. One, two, three…

"…Sorry," she mumbled quietly. "I overreacted."

He waited for the part where she said, 'I'm sorry I suspected you of something so dishonorable. I know you would never hurt me like that,' or something along those lines.

"I understand now that you wouldn't hurt me like that," she said, looking up into his eyes, and gave him a small smile. "After all, you don't exactly have a death wish."

Close enough. Kaddar sighed. "That's right."

"We still have a few issues, don't we?" Kalasin asked timidly.

"Oh, you have no idea," was the grim reply. He brightened a little bit. "At least we can work out our issues while on vacation."

Kalasin froze mid-yawn, her jaw snapping shut. "…Vacation?"

"Oh, yes," Kaddar grinned. "Radzyn. You. Me. Together. Alone. No witnesses."

"To the atrocities that you'll commit," groaned Kalasin. "How did I agree to this?"

"If I recall correctly, you thought it would be pleasant," he replied. "And then I think you meowed."

Kalasin wanted to bang her head against the headboard. Repeatedly. How did she get herself into these situations?

As for Kaddar, he leaned back against the pillows contentedly. The upcoming weeks looked to be very pleasant, indeed.