Sorry for the wait, wanted to post this yesterday but the internet was off. Welcome to Africa…

But on to better things. I've finally been on fanfiction long enough to sign up for being a Beta! happy dance, wave flag in air, jump up and down So anyone that's looking for a Beta "Pick me, pick me, pick me!" jump up and down again and again

I haven't forgotten about The Unexpected Dance, I'm just more in a mood for this one at the moment. Promise I'll update soon!

Super duper uber thanks to everyone who added the story (or me) to their alerts or favourites, and once more my list of favourite people, the reviewers: rider fleetfoot, TheWackedOne (your song is still playing in my head!), alykat23 (thanks SOOO much, I felt so honoured at your words), spazzysassyangel, Aria657, Jane, sammiegirl, Books-Are-My-Only-Love, Sayuki-no-kimi (I decided to make the story how I would have wanted and getting these two together would have been first on my list ;) ), somebody, Sith's Shadow (the idea of the character was actually based on a real-life Grace I know. She isn't as bad as this Grace – I don't think anyone can! – but my fondest memory of her was when she stood on one of the school desks using a broomstick as a mike and singing High School Musical in a purposefully false tone. She is loud and talkative, but she also has a heart of gold. I'm sure you're the same!). Everyone who reads my story is the reason I continue!

Chapter 7

Night watch

Dom wasn't bored of night watch – he had passed bored several hours before. There were several things he could say about Darkwood, one of them being that there were very few people crazy enough to try and invade the town through the cover of darkness. He and Kel didn't count – they had invaded in broad daylight after all, not in the dark. The only one stupid enough to try and enter had been an unfortunate squirrel who had been charged upon by three bored watchmen.

Dom sighed and stretched out his stiff legs. There was one thing he knew for sure now: being on night watch was one of the least exiting jobs he had ever done! He had started out doing exactly what was expected of him. He had stood at attention, his mind clear and searching for the slightest indication of coming danger. After a few hours of staring blankly at the closest tree, Dom was beginning to wish he could sleep with his eyes open like the man next to him. He knew the man was asleep because he had been leaning against a tree when the squirrel incident knocked him to the ground, which meant he was now sleeping open eyed on the ground.

Dom rubbed his tired eyes. What wouldn't he give to be in bed right now, away from the persistent cold that was determined to strip him of every single strip of heat he had to offer. His bed was calling for him clear across town, his nice soft bed where he could snuggle up to his nice warm wife…

He snapped to attention. Where had that come from? Since when did he think of Kel as his wife without even realising it?

He dug a stick out of his back and snapped it from its branch before twirling it in his hands. Strange as it seemed, Kel was growing on him. No, Kel had been fully planted a while ago – it was Kel as his wife that was slowly sinking its vines into him. But he also knew the very idea was impossible. He was in the King's Own and thus unable to get married unless he quit or was granted a royal pardon. If he did the first him mother would definitely kill him, and besides, he liked being in the Own. He liked the power that came with his position and the men that served with him were like his own brothers. He couldn't leave. Plus he could never live off Kel. She was the youngest of so many children and was a woman after all and thus only had enough to support herself. And as for the second… well, there was no way that he would ever be granted a pardon so he would have to learn to ignore the joy that came with the whole situation. He would have to accept that he and Kel were simply not meant to be. She would find someone else, some handsome knight who had piles of gold and hectares of land to inherit. Kel deserved a happy ending like that.

Dom felt the twig snap in half in his palm. He wanted what was best for Kel but the very thought of her married to another man left him cold as ice. She wasn't his, she would never be his and the sooner he learned to accept that the better. Dom shut his eyes, the twin pieces of broken twig slipping from his grasp. He had to push his feeling for Kel aside and let her get on with her life.

His eyes snapped open. He was going to have to back off, no more games, no more tempting his resolve or her ability to resist him. She was innocent in the art of seduction and had no idea of how to fight her feelings when he tried to charm her. She probably didn't even know what it all meant.

His mind flickered back to the mess hall. He had been on the verge of confessing his love when he had been interrupted. He couldn't stop himself. She didn't know about his feeling yet she had returned his kiss with as much passion as he had given her. He hadn't meant to kiss her but she had been so close and looked so confused at his actions that he hadn't been able to help himself. It was becoming a habit. Every time he saw her he wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her senseless until she promised that she would stay there forever. He should have refused Lord Raoul's offer the second he had made it but the thought of sending Kel off into the wilderness without his protection made his blood run cold. She didn't need his protection, but seeing she was safe would make him much happier than pacing back at forth back in Tortall while worrying about her safety.

If only he knew what she thought of him. If he was just Dom, her friend and Neal's cousin.

It was as he was pondering this that someone came strolling down the road, torch in hand.

"Shift's over, Winters. Go home to your wife before that lovesick expression freezes on your face." He grinned as he handed Dom the torch and took his place. "Hope you're alright to go alone. Looks like Johnny here is ready for another shift," He indicated the man sleeping on the floor with him head.

Dom nodded. "That he is."

Getting home proved more difficult than Dom had initially expected. Every single house looked the same and he just couldn't figure out which was his and Kel's. He nearly walked into thee houses that weren't his own before he finally found another watchman coming home and asked him where Secret Villa was. The secret, Dom was beginning to realise, was that its owners had no idea which one it was. The man happily showed Dom the way, laughing merrily at Dom's bad luck as he did. Feeling annoyed and sleepy Dom entered the house. The chairs were all small and cramped, indicating that he was going to have a very uncomfortable night ahead of him. He first had to sneak into the main bedroom to get his sleeping cloths and a blanket. Kel was fast asleep on the bed, her body spread out to one side with plenty of space next to her inviting Dom to forgo being a gentleman and joining her. He had already taken a step towards her before he managed to remind himself that he had no right to do so. Kel trusted him, just as he trusted her. He was here to help her, not assault her every few minutes as he was currently doing.

Taking a deep breath he went to search for his cloths and a blanket. This ended up being twenty times harder than he had expected. He found his cloths easily enough but none of the closets had any blankets in them. Ok, so he was going to have to sleep without one, not something that sounded too wonderful but he had experienced worse while in the King's Own. He found the small chamber with the privy and a small metal tub on the opposite side of the room and quickly got dressed. Feeling dead on his feet he exited the chamber and cast one last look at Kel. She was normally a warrior to be feared, quiet and commanding, her head held high, but seeing her sleep Dom saw the side of her few others ever saw. Asleep she looked just as determined as she did when she was awake but she also looked innocent and unsure, qualities she rarely showed in the waking world. Once more Dom felt his heart clench, filled with the desire to keep her close and safe.

Unable to stop himself he stepped closer and dropped a feather soft kiss on her forehead. He had expected her to stay fast asleep thus allowing him to slip out of the room undetected. He didn't expect her to wake at the touch and instantly sit up in fright, her forehead banging squarely into his nose. Dom's hands flew to his nose as it started bleeding, pain shooting through his face.

"Dom?" Kel's own hands flew to her mouth in horror as she took in the situation. "I'm so sorry, I didn't expect…" she froze mid sentence as she remembered how much a nose bled when hit. She threw the covers aside and slipped past Dom to search for something to catch the blood in. She found a tin cup in the cupboards of the main room and quickly returned to the bedroom. Dom was now sitting exactly where she had been asleep mere seconds before, his fingers pinching his nose while his head was tipped backwards to stop the flow. She handed him the cup and pulled his hand away to inspect the damage. He was lucky, his nose wasn't broken just bleeding. That didn't mean it was any less painful. Her plan would have to wait, right now she had to worry about Dom. Leaving him to hold his nose once more she rushed to her cupboard and pulled out a pair of stockings. Inside, carefully wrapped to conceal its contents, was her bruise balm. Kel grabbed a wash cloth from the rim of the tub before she returned to sit next to Dom. He allowed her to remove his hand and carefully clean off the blood so that she could apply the bruise balm. Kel bit her lip as she worked, afraid that she might hurt him if she wasn't careful. Dom, for his part, kept dead still as she worked, biting back the pain and trusting her to take it away. Kel wasn't sure what Dom had been doing hovering over her but she decided she was going to trust him. He would never heart her and judging by the sleepy look in his eyes and the cool feel of his skin Kel assumed he had only just gotten home. He had probably been saying goodnight. Dabbing one last time, Kel closed the balm's lid and returned it to its hiding place. When she turned back she could already see the affect of the balm on Dom. His eyes were closed, the pain obviously gone.

"Better?" she sat down next to him once more.

His eyes opened slowly, almost lazily. "Yes, thanks Kel." He felt the tip of his nose gingerly like he was afraid it would suddenly start bleeding again. He wasn't use to the powers of her balm, Kel realised. Satisfied he could sleep safely Dom stood up. "Kel, I should apologize…"

Kel held up one hand and shook her head. There was no way she was going to let him apologize for simply kissing her on the forehead, especially not when she had the perfect plan already formed in her mind. "It's okay Dom, don't mention it."

Dom nodded. "Alright, if you say so." He stood, his expression uncomfortable. "I'll guess it's goodnight then."

His words confused Kel but nether the less she nodded. "I guess so."

"Eh, well, goodnight Kel." He looked more uncomfortable by the second.

"Goodnight Dom,"

With a nod Dom turned, but instead of heading to the other side of the bed as Kel had thought he would he headed for the door between the bedroom and the main room.

"Wait, where are you going?"

Dom froze three quarters of the way to the door. "I'm going to bed."

"In the main room?" Kel was the one who was confused now.

Dom took a deep breath. "Kel, I know we have to follow this charade the whole way but I can't sleep next to you at night." Rejection stung like a horde of bees. Kel fought to keep the sudden heartbreak of her face. At least now she knew that Dom didn't think of her as she thought of him. "It just wouldn't be right." He continued. "You're a lady, a lady knight but still a lady. It wouldn't be honourable for me to take advantage of the situation like that."

Hope flowed through Kel again. He wasn't rejecting her; he was simply being a gentleman and trying to protect her virtue.

"I understand but there's one – no two – flaws in your plan." His eyebrows rose in surprise. "The windows."

They rose further. "The windows?"

"Yes, the windows. Only the bedroom windows have curtains. Everyone will be able to see you sleeping on the couch Dom. Don't you think they'll find it a little suspicious that in the day you can't keep your hands off of me but at night you're banished to the couch?" She couldn't stop the small blush that spread across her cheeks at the words.

Dom mauled the words over in his head. Kel could see that he was realising that his plan wasn't that well thought out. "What's the second flaw in my plan?"

Kel grimaced. "Grace. She marches in her as if she owns the place and if she catches you there the whole town will know in five minutes flat."

Dom's shoulders dropped in defeat. "You're right, of course. She doesn't even bother knocking, does she? But this still doesn't feel right."

Kel shrugged. "You have your side of the bed and I have mine. It'll be fine Dom. I would've put a pillow between us but…" she glanced at the two pillows on the bed. There wasn't a third to spare.

Dom sighed before slowly making his way to the bed. Kel claimed her favourite side and snuggled under the covers. The blankets were warm and kept out most of the cold but Kel couldn't help but wish Jump was there to snuggle next to her and provide a little extra heat. Dom made sure to stay as far to his side as he could without falling off the bed. Within minutes he was out, his breaths deep and even to indicate his decent into sleep. Kel wasn't as lucky. She knew Dom was asleep and as far away on the opposite side as possible but his presence kept her awake. Knowing he was there, close enough to touch, made Kel restless and despite her tiredness she started tossing and turning, unable to get back to sleep. When her restlessness reached half an hour she heard Dom groan. She looked over at him, surprised to find him fast asleep. Even though he was sound asleep he felt her agitation and it bothered him as well. Without waking he slung an arm around her waist and pulled her against him. Kel's eyes widened but found she couldn't complain about the change in scenario. Sighing in defeat she snuggled against Dom instead and mere minutes later she was fast asleep.

The tavern was old and run down but still fully functional. Lanterns were lit in the window allowing the cloaked man to make his way up the path to the front door. The innkeeper didn't even blink as he entered. The tavern wasn't a stranger to shady character and a man concealed from head to toe in black was more alone the lines of the norm that the abnormal. The man stopped in the doorway to inspect the room in front of him. It was very early in the morning meaning that most people were already in bed, but there were still a few people in the room. Two men sitting in the middle of the room were quietly playing a game of cards, another man was seated in the dark corner sipping a tankard of ale while nearby a group of bazhir were speaking to each other in a low whisper. On the opposite side of the room a man was laying face first on the table, fast asleep, but the lone figure sitting by the fire was who the man was looking for. The figure was also dressed from head to toe in a black cloak to conceal its identity but its small stature gave it away.

The man ignored the innkeeper and made his way to the fire. He stopped right in front of the figure seated there. "Imagine seeing you here, Alanna."

One hand reached for her hood as Alanna smiled up at her husband. "George, what took you so long?"

George Cooper removed his hood as well before taking a seat opposite to her. "It's no exactly close is it?"

"Or very easy to break into," Alanna agreed, "but you being who you are I can't image it was the difficult,"

George smiled at his wife. He could see the strain she was taking trying to keep herself calm. She was on the verge of demanding to know what he had discovered but was trying not to show her anxiety at the same time. He knew she was worried about Kel in case the plan didn't go as planned. But George was also having too much fun making her wait.

"Aye, it was. I had to climb that wall, and then I had to find them, dodging watchmen as I went. It's not that easy climbing walls meant to keep people out, you know?"

Alanna's teeth were beginning to clench together in impatience. "I know."

"And the amount of guards! You'd swear they expect to be attacked by an army of secret spies. It was like the time I…"

"George!" Alanna had lost her patience. "What is the status on the mission?"

George smiled lopsidedly at his wife. "Relax Alanna, everything's fine. The plan is progressing at quite a pace. If things keep going like this we should have positive results in no time."

Alanna finally relaxed, a large smile spreading across her face. "Good, I knew I was right! And Marcus?"

"Marcus is playing his role like a true actor. Those two are as suspicious of him as you were of Rodger. And the fact that the Lord of Darkwood had taken such good care of the village and its people are making it all the more suspicious. I don't know how you did it Alanna but you may have created the perfect scheme."

Alanna reached across the table to take her husband's hand in hers. "Don't forget that little trick we still have up our sleeves. This plan is going to work George even if I have to let them know it was a scheme all along and force them to the altar with a sword positioned at their backs."

George leaned forward to place a soft kiss on Alanna's lips. "It'll work love, stop worrying. Now, if you'll excuse me, I haven't seen my wife in ages and plan on spending the night assuring her of how much I missed her."

"Oh?" Alanna played innocent. "And am I invited?"

George sighed dramatically. "Well, if you really have to I guess I can't stop you."

Alanna leaned forward until her nose was mere inches from his. "I'd love to see you try." With a laugh she pulled him up and towards the stairs leading to the rooms, once more ignoring the innkeeper as they passed him.

Ok, hahaha, just had to make you guys wait a little longer to find out what Kel's plan is and now you can wonder about the little "trick up their sleeves" as well. Don't hate me, curiosity keeps you reading, doesn't it? =P

Couldn't resist adding Alanna and George after the previous response I got from his appearance. Hope you guys are enjoying it!

Remember to review! =)

Oh and could someone please tell me what the length of a chapter should be approximately. I keep worrying that it's too long or too short. Thanks!

F²