A/N: I'm glad you all liked the last part with Dom and his men! I enjoyed writing it! Now, here's the next one:

Chapter Twenty-One: Protect Kel?

"Listening to the men talk, Kel wished that Dom and his squad were to stay all summer, and not just because he was easy on the eyes…Dom had a relaxed, comfortable charm that made anyone feel confident. That charm could help to ease Kel's dealings with the men she had to command. Dom would influence those who believed Kel to be no warrior…He would make it clear to any doubters that she pulled her weight in a fight or in a march…"

-Tamora Pierce, Lady Knight

The next morning, Kel woke up early. The last thing she wanted to hear complaints about was that she was lazy.

Careful to not disturb Jump or the sparrows, she scooted out of her covers. One of the sparrows peeped their indignation when they accidentally got jostled by Kel's movements.

"I'm sorry your highness," Kel told the sparrow sarcastically, "next time I'll sleep on the floor so I don't disturb your sleep."

She dressed quickly and grabbed her glaive as she walked out her door. When she walked out of headquarters, the morning air was a little chillier than she had expected for April. Making her way over to the practice courts, Kel immediately started to warm up.

Soon she was going through the complex movements of one of her numerous pattern dances, her glaive gliding and slicing through the air with great speed and precision. Slowing it down a little, she moved into another exercise, which focused on balance and form instead of speed. Her glaive arched and swung as her body moved slowly and methodically. She was so focused that she was hardly aware of a group of soldiers entering the practice area.

"Look, boys, ain't that pretty…"

Kel stopped and turned calmly toward the speaker. He was short and stocky with a balding head and the smile he gave her was not friendly. She suddenly didn't care for the man.

"Too bad that pretty little dance of yers can't be used in battle," he continued, "I think those Scanran barbarians will be sorry to miss such a beautiful sight."

Regarding the man calmly, Kel glanced at the other men with him. They didn't say a word as they stood beside him. Apparently this man was the leader of the pack. Looking him over, Kel also guessed that he was the oldest, and most likely their sergeant. He looked like a hardened soldier, with hard lines etched on his face. Kel also guessed that he was stubborn and conservative; one of those men that didn't approve of lady knights. She wished that she could let him know that she didn't approve of stuffed shirts either, but she held her tongue.

"And who might you be, soldier?" she asked, not bothering to call him by his title of rank. So far he hadn't shown that he deserved the respect.

"The name is Gavrain. Sergeant Gavrain of the Royal Army." So he had noticed the absence of his title when she had addressed him. Thus, he didn't bow or address her at all either. She could already tell he was a proud one.

"And do you have a problem with my glaive exercises, Sergeant Gavrain?" she asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Of course not, if yer goal is to swat flies," he replied mockingly.

Kel's fist clenched on the hand that was out of his view, but her face remained Yamani calm. This wasn't the first time her skills had been questioned, and it wasn't going to be the last. She wished that she could spar with every person doubtful about her fighting skills; have every oaf come together in a tournament to try her out. She had a feeling that would be the longest tournament in the history of the Realm.

"The exercises I do are required if one wants to be able to handle a glaive properly and advantageously in battle, sergeant. Do you not practice with your sword?"

"Of course I do," he scoffed, "Are you implyin' that I'm a lazy soldier? I didn't get the title of sergeant for nothin'."

"Of course I'm not, and I'm sure you didn't," she replied coolly, "I'm just explaining that I practice with my glaive like you would practice with your sword."

"What practice do you have to do?" he asked indignantly. "With that thing, you can stand ten feet away from someone and kill 'em."

"Have you ever even held a glaive?" she asked him. "You could kill yourself just as easily if you don't handle it properly."

"As long as you don't hold it on the blade, I don't see what the problem is," he replied. "It seems pretty easy to me."

"Then it's a wonder we don't all use them," remarked a new voice from nearby.

Both Kel and Gavrain turned to look at the speaker. With hands tucked comfortably into his breeches pockets, Dom strode toward them. "Good morning, Sergeant Gavrain," he said with an easy smile when he reached them, "How's your family?"

"Not well if I don't make it home to them. I'm surprised Lord Raoul has sacrificed your squad to this den of miscreants and defenseless refugees."

"Well you know my lord, he always has different tactics," Dom replied, his sarcasm concealed by his easy charm.

"Yes, I do know…" said Gavrain, glancing at Kel. She knew he was thinking about Raoul having taken her on as his squire. Let him wonder, she thought, He wouldn't be the first.

Then he asked Dom, "So why did he send you here then? Was it to make sure she didn't get killed in her first battle not under his wing? Did he send your squad here to protect her?"

Dom chuckled, "Protect her? Kel can take care of herself, believe me. She even took charge of my squad last year in a fight when I got hurt. Under her command, they were the first to see one of those killing machines as well as defeat one. If anything, she's going to protect us."

Gavrain folded his arms, still not quite believing Dom. However, some of his doubt in her was slowly ebbing away, and Kel could tell. Apparently he believed what Dom was telling him.

After a moment of mulling over what Dom had told him, Gavrain looked back at Kel. "So you're plannin' on protecting us with that oversized sword, eh?" he asked, indicating her glaive.

"Yes. I'm much better with a glaive than I am a sword," she told him honestly.

He huffed. "It's not hard to imagine why. A sword is harder to handle and demands closer contact."

"And you're saying that a glaive isn't hard to handle, with its awkward length?" asked Dom. When Gavrain agreed to Dom's statement, Dom then suggested, "Why don't you test it out, then."

Gavrain hesitated as Kel held it out to him. "I don't want to ruin it…"

"Don't worry," Kel reassured him, "it wouldn't be the first time I'd have to repair it after someone had tried to use it."

When he finally placed his grip on it, Kel let go. Immediately his body shifted to balance himself from the unexpected weight of the glaive. His men moved out of the way when Dom suggested he try to complete a forward thrust with it. The simple movement was almost impossible for the man.

"The pretty dances aren't just for looks…" Kel told him softly.

Gavrain looked at her with newfound respect as he handed the glaive back to her awkwardly. "I take back my comments, my lady," he said, finally addressing her by her title. "Those dances are deadly."

"And necessary," Kel agreed.

"No doubt," he said. Then he bowed, "Excuse me from bothering you, my lady. An old veteran like me doesn't react well to new things. Now if you'll excuse me and my men, we'll get on with our own practice. There is a war going on."

Kel bowed to him in return and then watched as Gavrain's men followed their sergeant's example and departed from her with a bow.

"I'll see you later, Gavrain," said Dom to the soldier. "I think my men and I have a dice game going tonight."

Gavrain held a hand up to signal he had heard, and then he and his men started their exercises like he had said.

When the men had moved on, Kel turned and looked at Dom. He was one of the best supporters she had...and the most attractive. Kel was still admiring him when he turned to look at her. He chuckled, "What?"

She smiled, full of gratitude, "Thank you, Dom."

He waved it off, "No need to thank me. I was just coming over here to inform him of the dice game tonight when I overheard." Kel didn't quite believe him. "I've traveled with him a couple of times with Third Company. He's a decent sort, but he's a hard man. You have to prove yourself to him over and over again before he respects you, but he's a great soldier. He's just pigheaded. Usually a good card or dice game can loosen him up. You just have to watch out when you play with him. He cheats."

Kel chuckled. "So what are you doing up so early? Don't tell me it was just to tell him about the dice game…"

She watched as he smiled. "No. I didn't get a good sleep last night."

Kel could relate. She had spent most of her night thinking about him, and her and him. Since Cleon and she were no longer together, did that mean they finally could be? And if so, how did that come about? What if she told him that she was no longer attached but he no longer returned her feelings? What if he had moved on like she had before with Neal and Cleon?

"Neither did I," she replied.

He looked at her, "And what were you up thinking about?"

"Oh you know, the fort and all the normal things," she said. Including you, she added silently.

Dom nodded his head and looked away. She wondered if he had wanted her to mention his name…

"I'm glad you're here, Dom," she told him gently, smiling softly.

He looked back at her, and observing her smile, he smiled too. Her stomach did flip-flops. "I'm glad I'm here, too," he told her.

They were still smiling at each other when Owen came bounding toward them. "Kel! Kel! Will you practice with me before we leave for Giantkiller? I want to keep up my skills."

Kel laughed as Dom told him, grinning, "There's no need to shout. Sane people are still trying to sleep."

Owen reddened, "Oops, sorry. I just get overexcited sometimes."

"That's okay, Owen," said Kel, still smiling, "We need upbeat people like you around."

"Especially when Meathead's around. He tends to suck the fun out of things," Dom commented, grinning. Then he bowed to Kel and Owen and bid them farewell.

Kel smiled as she watched him leave.

"Who's Meathead?" asked Owen, confused.

Kel just laughed.

A/N: Dom's such a nice guy, coming to Kel's side and all. How sweet! AND, in the next chapter, we'll see how Dom finds out about Kel/Cleon being splitsville... :D I'll update soon!