Keladry of Shang
Hey peeps! Thank you for your reviews. I BURST 100!WOW WOW WOW!MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA! ahem. Ok. Moving on….
I won't be around this summer, so don't be surprised if this is the last update you have until school starts again. Sorry!
Now, even though we're sad, the show must go on! drumroll… here it is! Keladry of Shang
Chapter 10: the stress of betrayal
As the days passed, Kel continued to practice her fighting skills and to reacquaint herself with her friends. She told no one about her feelings for both her best friend and her former enemy. Indeed, she did not even tell them about her growing attraction and friendship with the handsome heir of Stone Mountain, but merely asked her friends not to provoke him, informing them that he had apologized and seemed to have learned the error of his ways. They reluctantly agreed only to retaliate, and were pleasantly surprised whenever he greeted them cordially in passing.
In truth, Kel found herself liking Joren more and more. They often met for picnic lunches on the palace grounds, and talked about whatever caught their fancy. She felt free and easy around him, for he was always charming and entertaining while still remaining the epitome of politeness. She had very soon forgotten that they were ever enemies at all.
The day they kissed, she floated to her room on a cushioned cloud of happiness. They had been eating lunch together on a patch of grass in a secluded area of the palace gardens. They had both reached to take one of the delicate dessert tarts Kel had begged off one of the cooks. Their hands had brushed; their eyes had locked. They had stared at each other for what seemed like eternity. Then Joren had slowly leaned in, and Kel had unconsciously moved to meet him. Their lips touched and fireworks seemed to go off around them. The kiss had been gentle at first, but had turned deeper and more passionate, but just as sweet. They had broken apart, and smiled shyly. They continued their lunch, but things seemed different, even though they acted the same as always.
That night, Kel lay in bed, thinking and dreaming, dreaming and thinking about that afternoon. She wished she could once more stare into those beautiful blue eyes, and run her fingers through his soft blonde hair.
Because of this, she tossed and turned, unable to sleep because of the happiness and joy she felt. She was too excited, to happy to sleep. So she quietly rose and dressed herself. She slipped on a pair of fine leather boots and left her room to wander the halls. She padded along quietly, making sure not to wake anyone, when she heard raucous laughter coming from the library. She turned down the corridor and went to explore. She peeked in through the crack in the door, and saw that the library was brightly lit, and inside were Joren and his former friends, Garvey of Runnerspring and Vinson of Genlith.
Kel sat back, shocked. Joren had assured her that because they had refused to change their views, he had cut ties with them! She searched for an expanation, trying to soothe the nagging suspicion growing in the back of her mind. Perhaps, he had calle da truce with them and agreed to talk of different things. After all, her friends did not openly seek to include him in their merry-making, so it was possible that he was lonely. Against her moral judgment, she once more leaned to the door, listening to their conversation.
"So, Joren, tell us about the Lump. You promised us you would tell us what you're planning," Garvey growled at Joren, still angry that his friend would be friends with the Girl, even if he was pretending.
"I know Garvey. And I have told you the plan before, you know that," came Joren's cool reply.
"He wants to hear you say it again. It is a source of great entertainment for both of us. Your plan to use the chit and humiliate her completely brightens our day," smirked Vinson.
Joren sneered. "I will humiliate that bitch for embarrassing me like that. It is already working. The little slut kissed me this afternoon." Joren shuddered. "it was disgusting."
They all laughed. Slapping each other on the back and hooting as if Joren had just said the funniest thing they had ever heard. Kel recoiled from the door, close to tears. She had trusted Joren! She had thought him to be a changed man. She had honestly thought she loved him, and he had stomped on her heart.
She heard Joren continue, and she steeled herself to listen as Joren finishe dhis malicious sniggering and drawled smugly, "I will seduce the little whore's heart. I will make her mine and then dump her as the used little chit she is."
Kel could take no more, she fled to her rooms and flung herself onto her bed, where she lay sobbing until she slept.
That morning, Kel slept in late for the first time in three years. When she awoke, it took her a moment to remember the events of the last night. When she remembered, she became distressed once again. She was surprised out of her misery by a knock on her door. She muttered a quiet, "Come in." as the door opened she turned towards the wall, wishing that whoever was calling would just disappear.
A loud cough and cleared throat broke her out of a reverie about visitors who disappeared magically from her room in a puff of smoke. She rolled over on the bed and saw several anxious heads poking out from behind a partially opened door. When they saw her looking at them strangely, they blushed and retreated before re-appearing in the room, this time bringing along their bodies. Neal broke the awkward silence by offering the explanation, " When you didn't come to breakfast, we got worried about you."
Kel couldn't help but feel touched as she looked from one concerned face to another, finally landing on the worried face of her best friend. Surrounded by the love of her friends, she felt her resolve strengthen once again, and she decided not to let Joren get to her. She would have her revenge on the challenge courts. He would regret taking her first kiss from her.
Kel smiled at her friends. "I was a little down this morning. But I'm fine now." Seeing the reassured and happy faces of her friends as they started babbling about what she had missed during breakfast, her smile grew wider, and her spirit felt light once again. She looked at Neal and raised an eyebrow. He was the only one not chattering. He grinned at her so that her insides swooned, and said mockingly, "Kel, I am very disappointed in you. I thought you understood our relationship! I'm the one who can't wake up in the morning!" They laughed together. Yes, she was just fine.
A/N: ok. I will try and get another chappie in before I leave, but no guarantees! Hope you like it! I know, I didn't develop the fake k/j relationship enough, but I just wanted to get it over with so that I could move on. Still. I gave you k/j fans a little k/j kiss, just to give you a little romance, since I know you're disappointed that this is now officially a k/n.
Review responses:
Silverspirit737: you didn't mention what your problems were in your email. I would be interested in hearing them and explaining why I did things that way, or seeing if those things should be fixed, so please feel free to tell me. And hurry up with updating! Lol.
MythicMist: I agree about Wydon. However I felt that my fic lacked humor, so I changed his character. Don't worry I plan to change him back. OOC stands for Out Of Character, which is when a character acts in a way that they wouldn't normally in the real canon. Like my Wyldon. I love rurouni Kenshin! Ken-san is soooo hot! Lol. It's hard to believe he's so old!
Crazy4tamorap: the thayet and jon thing is a good idea. Thanks.
Gatermage: sorry, this won't be a k/d. I understand your pain. I like dom a lot too. It's just that I haven't read any really good k/d fics, so if others can't do it, I am not worthy to take the task on myself!
On top pf cloud 9: I had quoted parts of Kel's rejection in the first couple chapters, but never actually shown it. Be proud of me! I went back and carefully made sure I included those quotes when I told the story of her dismissal! Muahahaha! No missing links!
Guacamole13: lol. I give up on the beta thing. Thank you! I love it when people tell me that they like my story. It makes the hard work really seem worth it, you know?
Well. If I don't update before I leave, c ya next school term! Luv u guys!