I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO sorry I haven't posted this earlier but I've been soooooooooooooooooooooooo busy these past few weeks! See 3 of my friends had their 16ths and my brother is doing his HSC so he keeps hogging the computer and it seems like everyone I know needs me to babysit and I've been packing coz I'm going away on holiday soon (so I'll do one more update before I leave but then I'll not be able to write/get to a computer for 2 weeks sorry!) and yeah teachers have decided to give us mountains of homework even though it's the end of term and there have been about a million other things, so yeah sorry about the delay, and I kinda had to rush this chappie so if bits are kinda bad then I apologize!

Disclaimer: I don't own it; it all belongs to tamora pierce.

Last Time:

She saw Dom wink at her as she was dragged off and the men laughed a little at her. She had to admit it would be amusing to see someone of her height and strength being towed along by a diminutive woman in skirts. She'd also seen smirks as she had been lectured. Kel the commander being told off by her former maid for not having enough decent clothes! But Kel didn't mind. She was glad at Lalasa's transformation and thought it might be nice to finally have some clothes that fit and that weren't torn and stained.

Another Arrival

When Dom woke the next morning he saw that it wasn't yet light. He stood and looked out his window. The sun was just rising and the camp was still. Well almost. In one corner he could see some movement. He wondered what it was and hurriedly pulling on breeches and a new shirt he left his room to investigate.

He headed towards the movement and now he could hear sound as well. Slow breathing reached his ears along with deliberate footsteps and a soft whooshing. Turning a bend to a secluded corner of the fort he was amazed at what he saw. There in the middle of a clear, grassy space was Kel. She had one of the new shirts from Lalasa on and her breeches were cleaner than ever. But that wasn't what claimed Dom's attention.

He'd seen her doing pattern dances before, when she was a squire but he'd never really stopped and concentrated on her as she did one. He did now.

She seemed to be going slower than usual. The movements were painstakingly slow and Dom knew she must have a lot of control not to fall over as she balanced on one leg turning slowly and dipping the glaive into a low sweep. Then in more measured movements she brought it up above her head and brought both feet together on the ground. Dom could see her muscles flowing from one position to the next and admired the way they didn't quiver even when they were strained to what seemed to be the limit.

Not only did Kel test her strength but also her flexibility as she twisted and turned bringing legs up and around and swinging her arms and the glaive this way and that. At one point all that touched the ground was the tip of her toe.

Then the dance began to change, the movements still flowed but they weren't as sweeping. They were shorter and sharper and Kel kept the blade close to her body, so close Dom held his breath in fear of her chopping a limb off. Of course she didn't though; her mastery of the dance was complete.

She sped up her hair flying and falling out of the braid she'd kept it in. The glaive's blade became a beacon of light as the rising sunlight glinted of the metal. She span faster and faster moving from one position to the next, sweeping and cutting, blocking and stabbing all mixed up in the beauty of the pattern dance.

Dom didn't know how long it lasted but he was sorry to see it end. Kel swung the glaive in a final decisive move then stamped the butt against the ground near her feet, the blade up near her head. She wasn't facing him and Dom could only see her back. She stood for a few seconds in this position panting slightly before slowly relaxing.

Jump who had also been watching sidled up to her as she relaxed. Dom watched as she reached out a hand to pat him before leaning the glaive against a wall and picking up a glass of water she'd kept handy. In doing so she saw Dom. He saw surprise, fear and suspicion fill her eyes before she sighed and spoke.

"How long have you been there?"

Dom blushed; he didn't actually know how long since he'd been so caught up in what she was doing.

"Well when I came out the sun was rising, and now it's up, so I guess I've been here a while." He grinned rather sheepishly at her. She couldn't help but return it.

"Well as long as you're up and here you can carry my glaive back to my room and then we can get breakfast together." She smiled as she spoke.

"Why of course milady." He replied with a courtly bow and a wink. He saw her face redden but that could have been from the exercise. He picked up her glaive and followed her back to her room. Inside she showed him where to hang the glaive and told him to wait while she changed. He looked around the room as he waited.

It was very different to the one she had had in Steadfast. It was bigger for one but seemed cosier and more homey. There were lots of Yamani paintings on the walls, filled with delicate landscapes or detailed close-ups. There was a Tortallan rug on the floor and some other Tortallan pieces of furniture. Intermingled were more Yamani objects including some waving cats and a deep red fan. On her desk were portraits of her mother and father, so well made that they seemed almost real. It was those he was peering at when she re-entered the main room.

"Those were done by Anders' wife, she's an air-head most of the time but she has quite a hand when it comes to painting."

"Yes, they're really very good." Suddenly he felt nervous. He took a breath, now was the time to say something to Kel. He'd known for a while what his feelings, and watching Kel that morning had just strengthened the conviction that he had to tell her he loved her. Seeing how wonderful she was everyday and not being able to tell her was something that Dom just couldn't face anymore. "Kel I need to talk to you."

"What's wrong Dom?"

"Nothing's wrong, well I hope not, actually I hope that when I say this everything will be just right. But if it isn't please say that we can still be friends because I don't think I could live properly if we weren't. And I've been thinking about this for a while and I couldn't decide whether to tell you or not. I was kind of nervous you see? I didn't know what you'd say when I told you. I've said this to quite a few women but when it came to you I just…the words wouldn't come out and I've tried you know? That day in the stables, then on the wall and I haven't really seen much of you since then, well maybe a little but we haven't been alone or the feeling just hasn't been right and I want this to be right and-"

"Dom! Relax, what are you trying to say?" He looked at her puzzled, his face was red and he was breathing heavily. "Okay follow me: breathe in, yep just like that, and now out, in, out, in, out, in, out…there we go." His breathing had calmed. "Now what were you saying? Be quick because dinner will be served soon."

Once again he took a large breath as though he was about to dive deep into a pool of water. "Kel, lately I've been thinking a bit, well really a lot, about you and then me and you and then me and you and me and you, I think you get the point, yes, and well when I think about me then you then me I start to think about you and me together, because you see I can't stop thinking about you, then my feelings for you and then I think of you again and sometimes I can hardly breathe. I puzzled for ages; I thought I was going mad! I kept hearing and seeing you everywhere and when we touched it was like a fire and I well… I thought about and one day it hit me. I don't know why I didn't think of it before! Surely I wasn't so blind all this time, but I was. Don't you see?"

For the first time since he had started speaking he looked into her eyes. All the other time he had avoided eye contact, staring at the spot between her brows, her chin, over her shoulder, above her head. But now when he looked in her eyes he saw confusion and fear.

Gently he took her hand. "What I'm trying, and failing, to say is that Kel I think I'm in love with you." He took her other hand and gazed into her eyes. She looked disbelievingly back at him, questions filling her eyes and face. "Kel I-"

"Don't say anything, I just need a…" She took a deep breathe and he saw her steadying herself, pulling up her mask until the only emotions he could read were the ones hidden deep in her eyes and even those were hard to decipher. They stood together for a while, just looking and thinking. Dom's breath was held as he nervously anticipated her reaction. What if he had been wrong and she didn't feel the same? Had he just made the biggest mistake of his life? Their friendship would be ruined, he knew. Maybe he could talk Raoul into stationing him elsewhere. Another part of the border and then they wouldn't have to see each other again. Maybe in time it would be forgotten and they could meet as friends once more.

These sorts of thoughts ran rampant through his brain, sending him into a daze of unhappiness and half formed plans. It was thus that he didn't hear Kel speaking until he felt the loss of her voice. He blinked at her a few times as what she'd said was slowly processed. It was a simple question really: "Why?" but Dom's panicked mind was taking a long time to do anything.

It was only when Kel began to gently tug her hands out of his and drop her gaze to the floor that his head caught up with what was happening. She was moving away from him and the loss of her body heat made him shiver though it was a warm day. He caught a glimpse of her face and it was that which finally pulled him into action. She looked disappointed which could only mean one thing.

"Kel I-"

"It's okay Dom; I'll just forget that this ever happened. Maybe you are feeling sick, yes that must be it. You should go and see Neal, I'm sure he can help you. Actually I think you should go see him now. He was-"

"I'm not sick Kel, I meant all of that and more."

She paused, glancing at him briefly. He took her hands again and drew her close. This seemed to fluster her and she began to chatter at him. "You know Dom, I think you are sick, you should be saying this to some pretty, weak, clingy court girl, not me! You've got the wrong room, well not wrong room, wrong place entirely, it must be a mistake. You should save this for when you go to Corus-"

He watched her as she spoke, eyes darting about and lips moving at incredible speeds. At this point however he stopped those lips, bringing his own down onto them to stop the rambling. She went stiff in his arms, he could feel the tension in her, but slowly she relaxed into his grip and began to respond. For a few minutes all that mattered was the feel of her, the smell of her, the taste of her. That was until his still snail-paced brain realized that he still hadn't answered her question.

He broke the kiss and took a few deep breaths to calm himself down. Kel was looking at him wonderingly with a mixture of surprise, fear and excitement. "Kel you were wrong. I'm not sick, and this is not the wrong place or woman. But you were right about one thing: you aren't pretty, you aren't weak and delicate, you aren't clingy. You aren't what most men look for in a woman." He looked at her to see the affects of his words. She looked upset at what he was saying but he continued, "In fact you are probably the opposite of what many men want! But Kel can't you see? To me you are beautiful in your own amazing Kel-like way, I don't want a woman who would fall over in a strong enough wind or have to be cushioned all day long, and I don't want a woman who has to rely on me to do everything! To me you are prettier than all the girls in Corus and kinder and smarter. YOU are what I want, what I need and if you tell me you'll have me I'll be the happiest man in the world." He stopped to let his words sink in.

She was blushing as he took in her reaction to his speech. She opened her mouth a few times but nothing seemed to come out. "Kel I'm not going to push you for an answer-"

"I do too." Her eyes caught his as she finally spoke. "I think I love you as well. I can't stop thinking about you and everything is different when you are around, it is brighter, happier." She reached up, putting her hands behind his neck and resting her head on his shoulder. "It was just a little shocking to hear you saying this to me of all people! I never thought that you might feel the way I do and this is just…"

"Kel, I know what you're thinking. Just because you have devoted yourself to fighting doesn't mean that you can't find love. What about Alanna? And Buri? They both found men who love them for exactly who they are. And here I am, doing the same: loving you for you." He hugged her tightly, swaying her gently from side to side as though they were dancing to a slow rhythm. They stayed that way in unspeaking happiness until a rumble from Kel's stomach reminded them that it was supper time.

Giving a small chuckle Dom kissed her again quickly then grabbed her hand and towed her out into the hallway, stopping only quickly to let her close the door before dragging her to the mess hall. When he got to the door he realized he was still holding her hand, he just hadn't let it go. The other thing he realized was that he didn't want to. But he did. He dropped her hand with the thought that even though he may not want to she might not want to show everyone the new spin on their relationship.

They entered the hall together, albeit physically separated, and collected their food together. There were some free spaces next to the rest of the Own and it was to these that they headed. Dom was reminded of Kel's first night during her last visit to Steadfast and smiled.

Obviously Kel was reminded of her first night as well, "Wolset? Why were you all laughing at Dom when I first came to Steadfast? Remember when we had dinner, well when I was leaving I saw you laughing at him. Is there something funny I should know about the sergeant?" she turned to him and before the men could speak he did.

"They were laughing because I had been distracted from my work thinking about you, and they laughed even harder when they realized I didn't have the guts to tell you how I felt. But I have now so they can't laugh at me anymore." He addressed the last part to the Own with a look that told them to agree or they would die. They answered his look with a chorus of:

"Yeah…"

"Sure…"

"That's right…"

"There are still all the other stupid things you've done lately Dom. We can't forget them can we boys?"

He looked at Kel out of the corner of his eye. She seemed satisfied by his answer giving him a small smile and squeezing his hand beneath the table before she began to eat. As he turned to his own meal Dom saw the men looking at him in an amused way and Dom knew that as soon as the lady knight was gone he would cop it.

They continued chatting for a while until one of the men on watch came into the hall asking for Kel and Yuki. Dom wondered what he wanted as the two women left but his wasn't allowed to wonder long.

"So Dom, you finally told the Lady Knight about your little crush! Congratulations, doesn't mean we'll stop making life hard for you though." Wolset chuckled.

"Yes I have actually. And it's not a little crush; I think I might be in love." This shocked them. The men had all seen Dom's infatuations with the court ladies and how he would like them for ages then get over them quickly. Never though had he ever told them he loved any of them. Not once. And when they thought about it Dom wasn't acting like he usually would. Firstly he hadn't been sleeping or eating as well as usual, secondly he was always distracted, and thirdly he hadn't given the slightest hints to Kel. It seemed as though he really had feared her rejection and the only explanation for that was that he couldn't handle being turned down by the one woman he really loved. This revelation had occurred in everyone's minds and they all looked at Dom in shock and awe.

Quasim broke the silence, his slightly accented voice bringing the men back to the present. "So this is real eh Dom?"

Dom sighed. "It is. I'm crazily happy that she didn't turn me down!" a huge grin split over his face.

"I guess this means no more teasing then." Fulcher muttered.

"Yes please."

"You have our word Sergeant!" Wolset said, and the men saluted.

Just then Kel and Yuki returned to the mess hall. With them was another person; a man who looked Yamani. Dom bristled slightly when he saw how Kel was laughing and talking with the man. It seemed she could barely keep her eyes off him!

Thanks to all who reviewed, you rock my socks! So love it or hate it, please review!