Scenario 23- ''I Left Him.''

Kel used to love Dom; there was a time when she loved him very much and she felt like he loved her in return. And there was a time when Dom used to treat her like a princess, waiting on her hand and foot. But that was a time that felt forever ago to them now; that was a time that was so unlike now.

He wasn't there most of the time. Kel would just be at home and she would feel an emptiness descend upon her that tore apart her heart. She had felt so useless, helpless, without a purpose.

But when he was there… He would scream at her, demanding if she had been with one of the servants while he was gone. And when she said no, he called her a liar and a stupid slut.
Dom had made her quit being a knight, saying that someone had to look after the house. It was a request that she had denied for a long time; only he was persuasive, and- to the surprise of her family- she eventually gave into his request. It was the greatest mistake of her life.

Sometimes she would dream that she was still a knight. Or that she could possibly return to knighthood.

But Dom had sacrificed the Own for her, when they got married. Knighthood was something she should have to sacrifice too, naturally. Right?

She tried to justify him. She tried to justify everything that he took away from her, all the freedoms she'd left behind for him, all of the family and friends that he didn't allow her to see. But there was some days when she stared at the window and started to cry, days that came about when she couldn't think of a reason. She would look back on who she used to be and she hated herself for who she was now.

Neal was the only friend of hers that was allowed to visit the two of them on a regular basis. He saw Kel and his heart broke; she was far from the woman he remembered her to be but was now a broken shell. When he looked at her, he hated his cousin for what he did to her.

He approached her one night. ''Kel,'' he asked her, ''what happened?''

She blinked, uncomprehending. ''I don't understand.''

He shook his head, his eyes sad. ''You should leave him.''

She looked away from him. ''I can't.''

''Has he hurt you?''

''No.'' That was the automatic answer she gave; her parents had asked the same thing and she gave the same answer to them too. He hadn't ever hit her, but the things that he had hurt her all the same. Every insult that he threw at her were like barbs that tore apart her heart and silenced her tongue.

But it was like he read her mind. ''There's more than one way to hurt someone, Kel,'' Neal said. ''Not just hitting but… With words.''

She didn't say anything but tore her gaze from him.

He cut her off from her off from almost everyone she loved. He took away the one thing she loved the most and replaced it with himself. He threw words and slurs at her that made her curl up at night and sob. But no, he didn't hurt her. Somehow… He didn't hurt her. He didn't hurt her. He didn't hurt her.

Somehow she forced herself to believe this. Somehow, Dom forced her to believe this.

Neal cursed while she stood there silently.

''He never respected women, Kel,'' he said. ''I should have known he never was going to respect you. But he was so godsdamn convincing.''

''I…He…''

''His father beat his mother when he was little, did you know that? She almost died from it, when I was thirteen. That was when she finally left him.''

Kel was speechless. He never told her that. She thought that he told her everything.

''He never hit me,'' she said finally.

''He could,'' Neal said. ''That sort of abuse can turn into…''

''He never hurt me,'' she said.

''Oh Kel…'' Neal said. ''You have to leave him.''

''No.''

''Oh Kel, please...''

''I've already tried,'' she said. ''Twice. I can't leave him. I love him.''

Neal shook his head. ''You could try again.''

''I don't want to. I love him and he loves me.''

Neal's eyes looked sad. He knew that Kel was in denial; he knew that his cousin had so thoroughly wrapped his friend in a web of lies that she was blind to the truth. Years ago, she seemed invincible and unbreakable. She was so determined and now it seemed that she had no passion, no... anything except for devotion to her husband. Years ago, he never would have thought that something like this could ever happen. He wondered how it could all happen so quickly.

''Just...think about it,'' he said.

It sounded lame. He knew that Kel was in denial and needed help. But he also knew that you couldn't help someone unless they wanted to be helped. Kel had to want what she deserved.

So Neal left, without another word. He had a feeling that if Dom found out about that conversation, he wouldn't let Neal come over again.

He didn't visit Kel until three months later. At that point, Dom started visiting home more often. Each time he came home, he was angrier and his words were louder, more volatile.

''You stupid bitch!'' he would yell at her. ''You get to sit on your lazy ass here all day while I have to fucking work for a living. Wait, I take that back. You're probably fucking all of the servants like the stupid cunt you are.''

And then the insults would come, washing away any resistance that she would have toward him.

''You're ugly,'' he would tell her. ''You're stupid. You're lucky that I have you because it's not like any other guy would.''

At moments like this, she would shut her eyes and will it away. She would try to block out the sound although the insults were thrown like needles to her heart, and she would be jerked back into full awareness.

Just when she decided that she didn't want to take any more of this, he would come up to her and act like the man that he married. He would take her into his arms, kissing her hair and telling her how sorry he was. And every time, she believed him and fell under his spell once more.

It was after a particularly ugly incident that made her think of what Neal had said. It was one particular night when Dom had crossed the last of boundaries that she had made for herself.

''I know you did it!'' he yelled at her. ''I know you're cheating on me. You ungrateful little...''

Dom paused, caught up in all of his fury. And Kel stared off into the distance, once more trying to block him out. Once more, she had convinced herself that blocking the fight out would make him go away.

''You aren't appreciative of what you have,'' he said, beginning to shake her. ''I gave you everything and you... You aren't even listening to me!''

And then he hit her. He slapped her across the face. Somehow, it was this action that had brought tears to her eyes when no words could. She thought of what Neal said, about Dom's mother, and she was suddenly filled with fear.

And then Dom pressed his lips on hers and started to fiercely kiss her. It felt so brutal though, not like the gentle kisses he usually gave her.

She pushed him away, arms shaking. ''No,'' she said.

She ran away from him, but he ran after her. He grabbed her.

''Let me go,'' she said.

But he wouldn't, and he kept shaking her. ''You selfish...''

She didn't hear him; she couldn't hear him. She just wanted it to end. She was sobbing; she felt the tears fall down her cheeks. Yet she felt distant from it somehow, removed, like it couldn't be happening to her.

He let her go, and she ran. She wished she could have fought him off, but she didn't know how to anymore.

She went to her room and sobbed, once everything hit her.

She loved him, but she couldn't do this anymore. She was leaving; she had to leave. She didn't have anything to grab, so she decided to just leave. She knew that he would stop her, so she had to leave at a time when he wouldn't detect it.

He left Masbolle in the morning, off to his job. She left a little after he did, leaving behind a note.

She went to Queenscove, since it only took a couple of days to ride there.

She knocked on the door, hands shaking. She hoped that he would answer, because she didn't know what to do. She just left… She didn't really think through any of it, like she would have years ago.

He answered the door and his face was full of shock when he saw her. ''Kel? What are you doing here?''

''I left him.''

Neal immediately hugged her. She began to sob on his shoulder, as everything began to set in. They stood like that for a while, until she calmed down.

''It's going to be all right,'' Neal told her. ''You're out of there. There are places for you. The worst is over.''

She started to cry again, and he consoled her.

He led her inside. He wondered what atrocity could have finally made her decide to leave, and decided that he couldn't think about it. She was going to be all right and that was all mattered.

Sorry it took so long to update. The beginning was kind of slow going for me... It was also pretty hard for me to make Dom such a monster, because I'm pretty K/D. I was planning to make this prompt completely different but it just turned out this way(it was boring before). I hope you K/D fans don't hate me too much. Please review.