A/N: Thanks for the reviews, and enjoy the chapter!
Chapter Fifteen: Making A Move
"One morning near the end of September Kel was working on Third Company's account books when Raoul entered the new command hut rubbing his hands… 'You need to pack.' Reading her puzzled look correctly, he told her, 'We have to go to Corus- unless you've changed your mind about that shield and want to join us. I won't say no if you do.'
The words left her breathless. December. Midwinter. The Chamber of the Ordeal. 'Oops,' she said.
'We'll leave in the morning,' he said…"
-Tamora Pierce, Squire
"Mithros, they're drivin' me crazy!" Wolset exclaimed one morning in late-September. He and a few men were sitting around the fort, eating breakfast after their early morning watch. It was the morning that Kel and Raoul would be departing for Corus, so that they would arrive before Midwinter and Kel's ordeal. It was the thought of Squire Kel's departure that led Wolset to his current thoughts.
"Who is?" asked one young man.
"Sergeant Dom and Squire Kel, you dolt!"
The young man looked perplexed, and so did the others. Wolset sighed loudly. "Don't y' have eyes in tha' head of yers? They've been gazin' at each other like lovesick puppies fer the past month!"
The men looked at him with surprise.
"Try the past year," remarked Qasim, interrupting another one of Wolset's sighs. Wolset looked over his shoulder to see the Bazhir man sauntering over. It was Wolset's turn to look confused.
Qasim chuckled, "Though I admit in the last month the gazes have gotten more frequent."
"So you've-"
"Yes, I've noticed," Qasim informed him. "It's been happening for quite sometime."
"So what's the big deal?" someone else asked. "Are they together or somethin'?"
"No," replied Qasim and Wolset simultaneously. They looked at each other.
"It's been goin' on fer a year?" Wolset asked, amazed. "Mithros, a month of watchin' them moonin' over each other has been enough. But they act like they don' notice!"
Qasim nodded his head in agreement.
"Wait a minute," said another, piecing the information together, "Yer sayin' that Sergeant Dom likes Squire Kel and Squire Kel likes Sergeant Dom, but neither one of them is doin' anythin' about it?"
Wolset rolled his eyes, "Look who's finally catchin' on. Are y' sure the University don't want y' fer yer deductive skills?"
Ignoring Wolset's comment, Qasim said, "I don't know what the problem is. They seem to like each other and yet they try to act like their only friends…Maybe somebody just needs to light a fire under Dom's bum…" he mused.
"Corporal Wolset should know how that feels," remarked one of the men, earning gales of laughter from the others. Wolset had been the unfortunate one to light his bum on fire during the Progress. The men still teased him about it.
Scowling but ignoring the comment, Wolset sat with his head in his hands, in concentration. Finally, thinking about what Qasim had said, he added, "…Yeah, or somebody needs to lock them up together so they'd be forced t' talk…"
A moment of silence passed. Then suddenly, both men's heads snapped up. Then they looked at each other. Slowly, Qasim started to grin.
"Do y' really think it'll work?" Wolset asked.
"There's only one way to find out…"
Dom was sitting on the end of his bedroll, putting on his boots, when he looked up to find himself encircled by a handful of men. Seeing Wolset at the center of them, Dom grew weary. His new corporal was as notorious for pranks as was he.
When no one said anything, Dom said to them casually, "You're a little late for trying to pull a trick, I'm already awake."
"Tricks? Us?" said Wolset, "We're as innocent as can be."
Dom chuckled, "Innocent? You guys are as innocent as a triple shot of the realm's strongest ale."
"Well then it's a good thing we're not drinkin'," commented a thin young soldier, laughing at his own joke. The men around him groaned.
Ignoring that comment, Wolset told Dom, "We were just out takin' a stroll and were wonderin' if y' wanted t' join us."
"A stroll?" asked Dom, chuckling at the thought. These were the men that complained about riding on horseback too long.
"Yeah. Y' know, walking around the fort, maybe grabbin' some food in the mess hall, going to see Lord Raoul-"
"-And Squire Kel…" added the thin young soldier, meaningfully.
Dom didn't miss the silent glares and oh-so-subtle elbow to the side that the other men gave the young man. His brow slightly furrowed, Dom glanced around at the men. They were definitely up to something. He knew it from the time Wolset said they were taking a 'stroll'. "Okay, what's going on here?" he asked. "What's this about seeing Kel?"
"We just figured we should stop by and see her, since it's her last day here and all…," supplied Wolset, covering for the slip-up.
Qasim agreed, "Yeah, don't you want to talk to her Dom? Maybe even…alone?"
"Why would I need to see her alone?" Dom asked, chuckling to cover up his suspicion. "I can wish her luck with the rest of you. I don't mind you hearing what I have to say."
"Yeah, but I'm not sure I could stomach it…" mumbled Wolset.
Seeing Dom's curious look, Qasim quickly said, "You know what we mean. Maybe she would want to talk to you alone. She seems to take comfort in talking to you. With us around, you might not get the… opportunity to really talk and say what you want to say…" He put an emphasis on a couple of his words to try to get his point across. For some reason, Qasim felt like it wasn't working.
"Am I missing something here?" Dom asked after a minute, clearly puzzled.
"What we're saying is that Kel's leaving. You don't know when you'll see her again. This might be the perfect opportunity to-"
"Gods above!" interrupted Wolset, growing impatient, "What Qasim is tryin' t' say is tha' you should tell the girl y' care fer her while y' still have the chance!"
"I was getting there…" said Qasim, turning to face the corporal, unhappy with Wolset's interruption.
"Yeah, an' by tha' time we'd all be playin' dice wi' the Black God," replied Wolset sarcastically.
Meanwhile, Dom was staring at both of them. How had they figured it out?
Interpreting Dom's look, Qasim sighed, "Stop staring, Dom. It doesn't take a scholar to figure it out. Although it did take Wolset here almost a year…"
"Well at least I noticed! These dolts over here didn't even realize until I told them!" said Wolset defensively, referring to the other men with them.
"I don't know what you guys are talking about," stated Dom, ignoring the banter. Both men looked back at him again.
"Wha' do y' mean y' don't know what we're talkin' about?" asked Wolset. "Yer the one that's been makin' eyes at her fer the past year!"
"I have not," Dom defended. Gods, had he been that obvious? "Kel and I are just friends."
Wolset snorted, "Sure, and I'm Her Majesty, Queen Thayet."
"Yeah, her ugly twin," remarked Qasim, grinning. Wolset glared at him.
"I think you guys have been punched one too many times for your own good," Dom told them, laying back on his bedroll and pulling out a book.
Realizing that the sergeant wasn't planning on moving anytime soon, Qasim and Wolset exchanged looks. It was now time for plan B.
"So you're not coming with us to talk her?" asked Qasim straight-forwardly.
"No," he replied, "There's nothing really I want to say to her." The truth was, however, that he wanted to say so much to her. Too much. He was already worried about her facing her ordeal, but in expressing that, he was afraid that he would also confess to other, deeper feelings he felt for her. And he didn't know if he could stand it if she didn't reciprocate those feelings.
"We're just friends," he added again, trying- and failing miserably- to convince himself of that.
Unsatisfied with his answer, a wicked thought suddenly sprung into Wolset's mind. Innocently, he said, "Well then, if you don't want to say goodbye to our lovely lady squire, then I suppose I will."
Not seeing any reaction out of Dom, he continued. "I always have found her quite attractive. I wonder if she likes older men…" Out of the corner of his eye, Wolset saw Dom's jaw clench. "Who knows," he went on, "I might even be able to steal me a goodbye kiss. Or more…" he wiggled his eyes suggestively as he turned to leave.
The words were barely out of his mouth before Dom was on his feet, grabbing Wolset firmly by the shoulder, ready to pound him into the floor. He stopped when he saw Wolset's grinning face.
"I knew it!" his corporal cried out. "You do care for her!"
Realizing he had fallen into a trap, Dom released him, trying to comprehend what had just happened. He had been so caught up in the moment that the thought hadn't even occurred to him that it might be a trick. Gods, he never thought one woman could affect him in such a way that Kel did. He really did care for her- and he didn't need Wolset to point that out.
"The girl's leavin' today," said Qasim quietly to Dom as the other men jabbered around them. "Are you going to let her leave without a word, or do you care for her as we thought?"
"Of course I care for her," said Dom, "but it's- it's more complicated than that." And that complication takes the form of a large red-headed knight.
Qasim grinned, and said more loudly, "Then I guess we'll just have to un-complicate things, won't we?"
Before Dom could ask him what he was talking about, suddenly Qasim announced, "I think it's time for plan B, boys!"
Kel was alone in her quarters that morning, making sure not to forget anything as she finished some last minute packing. In less than an hour, she and Raoul would start the journey back to Corus. As she packed, she realized how much she was going to miss the Own.
Reaching for her waving Yamani cat figures, she also ran across something else. It was a small stone, no bigger than her palm. Kel picked it up and smiled, remembering how she gotten it.
It had been her recent birthday when she had gotten a break from building the fort. She had walked over to the nearby stream to find Dom also there, taking a break. They had started to skip stones again and talk. After beating him again, he had picked up the stone she now held in her hand and presented it to her. He named her rock-skipping champion and jokingly gave it to her as a birthday gift.
Her smile widened at the memory. Now she kept the plain rock in a special place next to her Yamani cats.
Turning the stone over in her hand, Kel thought back to all the wonderful times she had spent with Dom over her past years with the Own. She smiled when she remembered their first meeting, when he handed her a turnover and informed her that he was the cousin of a certain 'Meathead'. She remembered him healing her hands; he had been so gentle. She chuckled softly as the image of Dom drenched in water came to mind; he had looked at her with such surprise- and admiration- that she couldn't help but laugh.
Then she remembered the kiss.
It seemed so unreal that it had happened, yet she could still remember the way it had made her feel like it had happened only yesterday. She remembered the feel of his rough hands touching her face, the feel of his lips pressing warmly against her own…-
A sudden knock at her door snapped her out of her reverie. Jumping up from where she had sat down on her cot, she quickly dropped the rock into her travel bag and closed it. "Come in!" she cried out, trying to sound calm and collected.
It didn't last long once she saw who entered through her door. Wolset, Qasim, and a couple of others she knew came in, but it was the sight of Dom that made her face redden, recalling what she had just been remembering before they had knocked.
Using her Mask to hide any evidence of a blush, Kel greeted them warmly and asked, "What are you all doing here?"
"Well we actually jus' came to stop by an' say hello, see how yer doin'," Wolset answered her.
"We're actually on our way to report to Raoul," Qasim said quickly.
"All of you?" she asked, grinning curiously.
"Yep," said Wolset, grinning, "except for Dom. He has the morning off."
Kel glanced at Dom. He was giving Wolset a funny look.
"Speaking off which," Qasim cut in quickly, moving toward the door, "we'd better be on our way. We can't afford to have Raoul angry at us again after that last prank we pulled…"
"Nope, can't have that," the others agreed, smiling and also heading for the door.
Then with swift goodbyes they all left, leaving Dom and Kel both staring at the door in which they had exited through. That was the quickest hello Kel had ever encountered. Were they rushing for some reason?
Kel glanced at Dom. He was turned facing the door. She chuckled softly, "They sure left in a hurry. What was that all about?"
Dom turned to face her. He smiled sheepishly, "Who knows. They're usually the last ones to report to Raoul on time."
Kel smiled. Dom then rubbed the back of his neck, a gesture familiar to Kel. Was he nervous?
A moment of silence passed as Kel watched him shift and avoid her gaze.
The silence driving him crazy, Dom looked up at her and asked, nodding to her travel bags, "Last minute packing?"
It was a stupid question, but Dom preferred it to the awkward silence in which he debated whether to tell Kel he cared for her or not.
"Yeah," she smiled, "I'm almost done."
"That's good," he said, nodding his head. He felt like an idiot, but he didn't know how to approach her.
"So…have you gotten any word from Neal recently?" she tried, feeling the tension in the air.
He shook his head, almost visibly relieved at the prospect of a semi-normal conversation. "Nah, he's probably too busy with whatever the Lioness has him doing."
"Yeah, and he's probably been complaining the whole time for not having enough time to read a book," Kel joked. She shook her head.
"That Meathead," they both suddenly said simultaneously. They looked at each other and laughed. When their laughter subsided, they continued to smile at each other. Kel found herself looking into his blue eyes, liking the way they twinkled when he smiled. Dom liked the way her face lit up when she laughed.
It took them both a minute to realize they were still staring and smiling at each other. Looking away quickly, Kel busied herself with her travel bag as Dom looked around her almost-empty room.
Suddenly Kel accidentally hit her travel bag and it tumbled to the floor. She cursed as Dom hurried over to help her. He chuckled as he handed her the fallen bag, "So I see you've learned more from the Own than fighting skills."
Kel grinned, knowing he was talking about her impressive vocabulary. "I admit that I've picked up a few colorful words while being here. You don't exactly learn them in page training…" Kel said as she re-stuffed her bag. "I'm going to miss the men and their colorful vocabulary," she added, smiling, "as well as their pranks and stories…"
Dom stopped listening as something on the floor caught his eye. It was a plain small rock. He picked it up and looked at it for a long minute. She had kept it. Then he looked at Kel, her back turned to him as she re-packed. Gods, he knew what he was going to miss, and she was standing right in front of him.
"Here, you dropped this," he interrupted as she continued to go on about things she was going to miss in the Own.
Smiling as she turned around, Kel saw the stone and Dom thought he saw her face redden. She quickly hid it and smiled softly. "I guess there's something else I'm going to miss…" she said, taking the stone, but looking at Dom.
As their eyes held, Dom's heart leapt in his chest. Was she talking about him?
Meanwhile, Kel was thinking, Great Mother Goddess, Kel, could you be more obvious?
Before he could change his mind, he told her quietly, "I'm going to miss you, Kel."
"I'm going to miss you, too, Dom," she replied, just as quietly.
Just those simple words filled Dom with joy- and some confidence. "Kel," he continued, "I didn't just come here to see how you were doing with your packing. There's actually something I've wanted to tell you for a long time."
"There is?" she whispered, not thinking her heart could pound any faster.
He nodded, looking down at the floor. Then he met her eyes and said softly, "I like you Kel." He could see the shock on her face, Mask or no Mask, as he continued. "A lot. I always have. I like being around you, talking to you…kissing you." He blushed. "Who knows, maybe with you gone I'll actually be able to focus on my work again," he chuckled nervously.
Kel was taking this all in with a blank expression, too shocked to say a word. Is this a dream? she thought as she slowly sank down to sit on the edge of her cot, This better not be one of Sakuyo's tricks.
As Dom knelt down in front of her and his face once again appeared in her vision, she realized it wasn't. It was wonderfully real.
Seeing her face, Dom said, "I know that this is a shock to you, and that you and Kennan are together, and I respect that, but I just had to tell you before you left. Once you're a lady knight, saving the Realm, who knows when we'll see each other again." He smiled sweetly at her. Recognizing a flash of doubt in her eyes, he instinctively reached out and ran his hand over her cheek, "And you will become a knight. Trust me."
The look Kel gave him sent a warm thrill throughout his body, starting where his fingers touched her face. Just looking into her beautiful hazel eyes told him everything he needed to know. She didn't need to say a word…just like he didn't even have to think about what he wanted to do next.
His hand that had been touching her face moved to the back of her neck as he slowly leaned up toward her.
Kel's eyes closed as his face neared hers. His lips were inches away from her own when suddenly he stopped. As much as he wanted to kiss her, he didn't feel right about it. The next time he kissed her, he wanted to kiss her as his sweetheart, not someone else's.
Slowly, Kel opened her eyes and was met by a pair of blue ones right in front of her. Dom gave her a sad smile. Immediately she knew why he hadn't proceeded to kiss her. He respected her and Cleon, and she knew that that had always bothered him after their first kiss. He didn't want to feel that way again. She returned his sad smile, showing that she understood.
With one last gentle touch to her face, Dom stood up abruptly. "Well, I guess I better get going. I'll leave you to finish your packing."
Don't let him walk out that door, you dolt! a voice in her head told her as she watched him head for the door. Do something! Just as he reached the door, Kel suddenly blurted out, "Dom?"
He turned back to look at her. She took a deep breath and pushed herself off her cot. She walked toward him as he watched her closely. Then when she reached him, she took his face in her hands, and without hesitation, she leaned up and swiftly placed her lips on his.
Pulling back and seeing the stunned look on his face, she smiled and told him gently, "I like you a lot, too, Dom."
A/N: EEEE! Yay! Go Kel! :D. Originally I had planned on Dom kissing Kel, but his character had a mind of his own lol. He didn't want to regret the kiss. But Kel had a mind of her own too, lol, even if it was a quick one. If you're wondering, Dom was obviously shocked after she told him she liked him, too, but you'll find out a little more about what they talk about after in the next chapter. 'Til then! :D