The characters in this story do not belong to me, sadly. I can only manipulate them...muahahaha! Review if you want me to continue writing.
Kel wandered around the dinning hall at Steadfast. The room had a cheery atmosphere, for tomorrow was the day of Buri's and Raoul's marriage. Neal was the only upset one in the room, for he had only glimpsed his betrothed before he had been ushered into a corner to talk to Cleon and Merric. Abruptly, the bright and cheerful Yamani was in front of the lady knight. Kel smiled at her shorter friend. "Yuki. How have you been? Have you seen Neal yet? He's been going crazy with not seeing you."
The woman's eyes were filled with sorrow at the mention of her betrothed. "We need to talk. In private." With a forceful grip on Kel's lower arm, she led her away from the festivities to a small study. Yukimi stood in front of her friend, her Yamani robe showing off her true beauty.
"Yuki, what's going on?"
She sighed. "You know the ambassador from the Copper Isles that's staying here?"
Kel had been introduced to the flirtatious foreigner upon her arrival. He was the same height as Kel, had brown skin, brown hair, and was quite handsome. "Yes. Isn't his name Yakish?"
"Its Yirish." the knight was puzzled. Her calm friend never acted this nervous. "He's quite handsome. He's a sweet man, really. Very kind and considerate."
Kel frowned. "What's this got to do with Neal?"
Yuki's cheeks turned a light shade of pink. "Well, last night he was being ever so sweet. He brought me flowers. He even learned how to write Yamani poetry and wrote a poem about me." Kel was shocked. What was her friend saying? She surely wouldn't go behind Neal's back and do something! She loved her betrothed, and he loved her. "One thing led to another. We kissed. And some how we ended up in bed together."
Kel's mouth dropped open. As soon as she got over the initial shock, she did something she had done rarely since her time in the Yamani Islands: she lost her temper. "How could you do that? Neal loves you! How could you just go behind his back like this? He's going to be crushed!" Kel didn't hesitate a second to defend her friend.
"I wasn't planning on telling him." Yuki whispered.
"You can't just not tell Neal!" Kel yelled. "He deserves to know. You're betrothed! You have to tell him."
Yuki stared at her friend. "Why are you overreacting like this? I thought you would be happy that I found love!"
Kel's eyes widened. "Don't you love Neal?"
Yuki looked at the ground without answering. "You don't, do you?"
She met Kel's eyes briefly before looking away. "I did. But after he went to Haven with you and we were apart for so long, I just didn't feel the same when I saw him tonight."
Kel rubbed her temples. She was getting a headache. "Talk to Neal tonight Yuki, or I will." she ordered her friend. "He needs to know." She walked out of the room and headed back to her room to sleep off her large headache.
Kel woke before dawn, as always. She performed her glaive pattern dance before getting dressed for the wedding. She shrugged out of her morning clothes and turned to where her outfit for the wedding hung. It was a gown of all things, with skirts and a fitted waist. The skirt was a silver gray color that shimmered when it moved. The bodice was the same cloud blue of the Mindelan shield. Lalasa had made it of course, insisting that Kel wear a gown to this wedding. She checked her hair in the mirror. It had grown out down to her shoulders again. She sighed sadly. As happy as she was for Raoul and Buri, she couldn't help but feel lonely. When would she fall in love again? She missed the feeling of knowing that someone loved her. Oh well. She would put her thoughts away for now, to think of again when she wasn't busy dressing.
The morning air was cold where it came in from the open window. In came Kel's sparrows and they flew endless circles around her head as she pulled on her gown. Kel soon had the dratted thing on and found that it fitted nicely with only one blossoming problem: the back was a tie up and she had no way of tying it.
Wonderfully colorful curses filled the air like springtime and by the end of her string not only was Kel out of breath but she also had a nagging desire to throw something. It was then that a sharp knock rang out through the room.
Kel threw more curses about (in all of 5 languages) as she rushed to answer the knocking. She opened the door, ready to verbally snap the butt off of the person who stood behind it, only to find Neal leaning innocently against the door frame.
"Going to bite my head off, Dear?" Neal asked, with a tip of sarcasm rolling off his tongue.
"Since its you, I will." Kel answered just as sweetly. She was just peering around the edge of the door, not wanting her best friend to see her in a dress.
"What's eating you, O Lady Knight? Sad to see the commander married?" Neal's eyes completely danced with mischief. He stepped lightly on the threshold and entered the room only to stop short. Neal stood there, transfixed by the sight of Kel in a dress.
Kel pushed on with the conversation, pretending to be completely unfazed. "No Sir Meathead. It is simply that the outfit troubles me and not even my good sparrows can help me." Kel prayed in the silence that Neal would get some hint from that and leave the dress matter be.
He did in a way. "And here I am to ease your troubles fair lady." Neal mockingly bowed, just barely keeping his grin off his face. He started to walk around Kel in a circle, only to stop at the back. "Might this be the source of your troubles Kel?" With a gentle pull and light hands he laced her up.
Once he was done, Kel turned and mock bowed to him. "Thank you Sir Gallant Knight." When she stood up again she wondered if she should tell or if Yuki had already. She decided to leave it be until after Raoul's wedding. "Shouldn't you go see if Yuki is ready yet?" she asked. If her friend didn't know already, perhaps he might be told now.
"She's already seated. She told me last night that the ambassador from the Copper Isles had offered to escort her from her room." His face didn't show sorrow, or any other signs that he was told of Yuki's betrayal.
"Is that all she told you?" she asked tentatively.
He tilted his head to the side quizzically. Kel couldn't help but notice how cute he looked when he did that. "No... Is there something going on that I don't know about?"
"Its nothing Neal."
He grinned impishly at her. "Then shall I escort you to the ceremonies, Lady Kel?"
She laughed at her friend. "Certainly, Sir Meathead."
"Hey! No more jokes from you! You're supposed to be a lady!"
She raised her eyebrows at him. "Me? The girl who hasn't worn a dress since she was a squire?"
"Has it really been that long since you wore a dress?" she nodded. "Well, you should wear dresses more often. You look stunning."
Kel blushed. "Thanks Neal. You look good too."
The two friends walked to the room, arriving just before the ceremony started. Neal went to sit by his betrothed and Kel sat with her other year mates, including Cleon and Merric.
After the marriage was official, there was cheering and applause. Kel watched as Yuki whispered something in Neal's ear. He grew pale and started whispering angrily at her. Duke Baird, who was seated next to his son, saw the confusion on his son's face. Kel saw his lips move in the question 'What is going on?' the Duke's face went red. "You WHAT!" Kel winced as the whole room went silent. "Please tell me I did not just hear that you slept with the Copper Isles ambassador!" the entire room gasped as if they were one person.
Yuki's face turned bright red in embarrassment. "It's true, Your Grace." she murmured.
"You are no longer betrothed to my son! It would be a disgrace to Queenscove if you married him!" Baird thundered. He stormed out of the room. The rest of the ceremonies went off without a hitch, although Buri and Raoul were a little tentative with continuing, seeing the predicament that Neal and Yuki were in. Neal had left for his room right after he paid his respects to the newlyweds. Kel, always trying to help, followed him after leaving him alone for a few hours.
Kel knocked on the door softly. "Neal?"
"Yes?" came his deep voice, strangely calm.
"Can I come in?"
"Sure." Kel opened the door to see Neal calmly sitting on the edge of his bed. He smiled at her. "Hello."
"How are you?"
He looked at her, puzzled. "I'm fine. Why?"
Her eyebrows raised. "Fine? After finding out what Yuki did? How could you be fine? She told you in the middle of a wedding! She was supposed to tell you last night!" He bore a strange look on his face.
"You knew about this?"
"Yes. She told me about it last night."
"Why didn't you tell me then!" he yelled, sounding exactly like his father. "I thought you were my friend! Why didn't you tell me when you found out?"
She sighed and rubbed her temples again. 'Great, my headache's back...' she thought absently. "I was trying to let Yuki have a chance to tell you. She was your betrothed, after all."
"But you're my friend Kel! I would've told you if you were in a situation like this!" he yelled.
"Neal, I'm also Yuki's friend!" Kel yelled back. "It's hard to know when to talk and when to keep quiet when two of your best friends are involved!"
Neal's face was red. "I thought you were better friends with me than that stupid girl! You are such an ignorant brat!"
"You selfish pompous pig!" yelled the tall girl. Neal tried to slap her. She blocked him easily. Her face showed her anger. "I'm leaving." She stormed out of the room and into the stables. Swiftly she tacked up Peachblossom and mounted. She ignored the loud ripping sound as the dress tore on the side up to her thigh from her riding normally instead of sidesaddle. She steered Peachblossom into the forest, fury making her loose track of time. She had no clue how long they had gone before she stopped. She halted her horse and just sat in the saddle, trying to sort out her thoughts. She looked down at her torn dress. Lalasa would lecture her for ripping it. Neal had tried to slap her. Why? Then Kel realized he was probably just venting his frustration at the fact that his betrothed was no longer his betrothed. She heard a rider come up beside her. It was Neal, on Magewhisperer. His face was filled with concern.
"Kel, I'm sorry. I guess I just got carried away. I didn't mean to hit you. I just was frustrated at the fact that you didn't realize I wasn't all depressed over the breaking of my betrothal."
She looked at him with a puzzled expression. "You're forgiven. But why aren't you depressed? I thought you two were in love."
"I realized I didn't love Yuki after our time away." he said calmly. "I was so anxious to see her because I wanted to break it off. You see, I love someone else and I'm just waiting for her to realize she loves me too."
Kel held her head in her hands again. "I hate headaches." she mumbled. "So who is this girl anyway?" she saw her friend hesitate to answer. "You're going to have to fess up someday, you know." she reminded him. "If you don't answer now, I'll get an answer from you later."
He sighed. "Alright. I guess I have to tell you. Its you I'm waiting for."
Her mouth dropped open. "What!" she cried. "You're- you're"
"In love with you." he finished, his face a deep crimson.
Kel blinked in shock. "I can't handle this right now." she murmured. "I have to have time to process this. First, I find out that Yuki slept with someone and doesn't love you anymore. Then I find out that you don't love her anymore and you're in love with me. This doesn't make sense."
Neal smiled sadly. "I'm sorry to be the cause of your headache, love." She looked at him oddly. He had called her 'love' or 'dear' a few times before, but she thought it had just been a joke. She never thought that he actually had feelings for her like she had for him in her pagehood. "Why don't we go back to Steadfast and get you some tea. I can give you something for your headache." he bribed.
Kel looked at him warily. "Fine. As long as you don't slip anything else in the tea." she warned. They rode back to the fort slowly in silence. It took them only a half hour to get back to the fort. "I thought I had ridden farther than that." Kel said to no one in particular as she dismounted.
"Kel!" Neal cried in dismay. "Your dress is torn!"
She looked at the rip that was up to her thigh. Good thing she had worn thick tights underneath. "I know. Consequence of not riding sidesaddle with a skirt." she said calmly. "Don't worry about it. Lalasa can fix it probably, without it ever being noticeable." she reassured her friend.
He smiled at her. They were in the safety of the stables now, un-tacking their mounts. They stepped out of the stalls at the same time. He grinned at her shyly. "I hope you don't run away Kel. If I can't be more than just your friend, hopefully this won't ruin our friendship."
She smiled back at her friend. "I would never throw away our friendship Neal." As they walked back to the castle, the lady knight remembered something. "Do you remember our second to last year as pages?"
"Yes, why?"
Kel blushed, feeling awkward telling him. "Back then I thought myself to be in love with you."
His eyebrows raised. "Oh really? Do you still feel that way or did your relationship with Cleon get rid of that?" she blushed again.
"Cleon sort of got rid of it, and Dom helped get rid of it." she replied softly.
"WHAT!" he yelled.
"Oops." she blushed crimson. "I liked Dom when I was a squire, okay? Nothing happened between us. I just liked him." she explained quickly and quietly.
Just then, the topic of the conversation strode up to them. "Hello Lady Kel, Sir Meathead." Dom grinned. Then he saw the torn dress. "Kel! What happened to your gown?"
She looked down. "Oh, its nothing Dom. I just rode regular instead of sidesaddle. It can be fixed."
He looked at her oddly. "What were you doing riding in a gown?"
"I wanted to get away from the palace. I didn't really think to change into breeches." She explained evasively. She tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear. "What brings you down here?"
His eye seemed to bore a hole into her, but she kept on her stone mask. "Well, after I saw you run off on Peachblossom, I wanted to make sure everything was all right. When I saw Meathead follow you, I knew you would be safe, so I just waited for you to come back." He looked between his cousin and his friend in confusion. He noticed how they were standing rather close, and how Neal had that protective look in his eyes. "Is there - something going on between you two?"
Kel kept her face emotionless. "What do you mean?"
A smile slowly crept onto Dom's face. "I knew it! Meathead's in love with you, isn't he?"
Neal went pale. "How did you know!"
He smirked. "I'm your cousin Neal. And the only person who knows you better than me is this lady who you have fallen in love with." He looked at his cousin again. "And I also noticed those looks you gave her at Haven, and at New Hope."
Kel looked at her friend suspiciously. "What looks?"
Neal glared at his cousin. "Maybe we should continue this discussion in privet." He led the way swiftly to his rooms and shut the door.
Kel turned to Dom, her eyebrow raised. "What looks has Neal been giving me?"
Dom started laughing. "You mean you haven't noticed that he's been staring at you like you're his betrothed? That every time he talks about you, or to you, he gets this look in his eyes that he gets when he's in love?"
Kel blinked in shock.
"You didn't notice?"
She shook her head.
"When did he tell you?"
"When he chased after me into the forest just now."
Neal was beat red. "Dom, who I am in love with is none of your business. And I would appreciate it if you didn't go around the country spreading the word that I love Kel. Please get out." His voice was cold, and angry, and Kel could hear the embarrassment in his voice. If it weren't for her Yamani training, she would have blushed.
Dom smirked evilly. "Oh I get it. You want to have some alone time with Kel."
The lady knight glared. "Don't be ridiculous Dom. We need to talk about things. And if you make another rude comment about this, I will most definitely come after you and kill you."
Dom backed away nervously. "Um... I'll be leaving now." He made a mad dash out of the room to escape her glare.
Kel grinned a little. "Its fun, knowing I scare him." She turned to her best friend. "So, we need to talk about what in the name of Mithros we're going to do now."
Neal scratched the back of his neck. "I didn't much think about what I would say after I told you I loved you." He blushed, embarrassed again.
Kel looked at the floor, her face turning slightly pink. "Well, I'm not really sure how I feel about all this yet."