Daine woke to warmth, and Numair's breath on her face. He was kissing her gently along her hairline, murmuring her name. "Daine, sweet, wake up. Come on, dear one, it's morning."
She sighed, and smiled impishly at him, cracking one eye open. "Must I?"
He grinned against her forehead, his hair brushing her cheeks. "Alanna's going to be pounding on the door any minute," he told her playfully.
"Is she?" Daine teased, and Numair chuckled, lips slowly sliding down her face, making his way to her mouth.
Predictably, there was a knock on the door. They both froze, startled, watching each other with wide eyes. It wasn't the front door; there was a silence and then a scuffle from the other side of the other door, which connected their room to Jack's. Daine could hear a squeak and then a familiar, indignant squawk. "Are you awake?" Jack's voice called from his room, voice strained.
"Go away, Jack," they chorused, and grinned goofily at each other. Numair moved to kiss her again.
"I need a bathroom, or a loo or a privy, whatever you call it here," came Jack's irritated voice from the other side of the door. There was a crash, and shrill sound. Numair suppressed a chuckle against Daine's cheek.
"Down the hall, take a left, you'll find a room with chamber pots," Daine said, rolling her eyes up at Numair. He grinned at her, eyes dancing wickedly.
They heard footsteps on the other side of the door and then a high pitched, shrill sound. "By the way, I think I've found your dragon." Jack added, sounding perplexed.
"You've what?" Daine jerked away from Numair in surprise, abruptly recognizing the squeaking that had come from Jack's door, and the familiar note of panic in the man's voice- that was very common in people who looked after Kitten for the first time. Daine tried to sit up, but Numair held her still, arms tightening playfully around her waist.
"Jack can handle himself for a little while longer," he whispered. Daine threw him dry look and he raised his eyebrows back, lips twitching in a smile. She tugged, suppressing a grin of her own. Numair resisted, and it resulted in a playful tussle. They ended up falling hard on the floor, both laughing at the pained look on the other's face.
There was a familiar whistle-croak, and the sound of the door opening. Daine gave a tiny, horrified squeak, whipping her head around.
"Now I know I'm interrupting something," Jack muttered, standing in the threshold. He was wearing his breeches and tunic, with his coat thrown over his arm. He looked down at the two of them with an odd little smile around his lips. Daine would have been utterly mortified, but she was distracted by a blue-white blur. Kitten had thrown herself at them.
"Kit!" she exclaimed in surprise and delight, struggling to disentangle herself from Numair and the sheet that wrapped around them both. "What are you doing here?"
Kit, utterly unhelpful, chattered obliviously back and tried to climb into the tangled mess of the two-leggers and the sheet.
"Glad to see you too, little one," Numair's voice was exasperated but fond. He grinned and pulled the dragon over playfully by her tail. Kit shrilled gleefully and batted at his nose.
"She opened my door this morning," Jack said. He was leaning his shoulder in the threshold and crossing his arms, watching. His voice was cheerful, but if Daine had looked at his expression, she would have seen the shadows that lurked in his eyes. "And then there was this massive upright lizard, who turned out to be your Tkaa, dropping her off. He said something about something urgent, and then split. I don't know why he left her with me – I've never seen her before in my life – but she came right over." He eyed the little dragon uneasily.
Kitten stopped trying to snuggle with the hopeless knot on the floor, and turned back to Jack. She leaped off them, ran to the man in the threshold, and stretched her paws to his hip, clearly begging to be picked up. He stiffened, leaning away.
"She likes you," Daine said, finally managing to disentangle herself from Numair and the sheet now that Kit had left them. She stood and leaned over to help Numair up.
Jack looked down at the dragon clutching his hip reluctantly. "I see that. I just keep wondering why." Kitten shrieked shrilly, demanding, and Jack flinched, apparently startled at the noise.
"Kit!" Daine scolded. The dragon turned, chattering excitedly at her before turning back to Jack and fixing him with pleading eyes. "Leave poor Jack alone. Um. Can we get dressed?" she added sheepishly, glancing at an embarrassed-looking Numair, who had not let go of her hand. She was wearing a shift, at least, but Numair had tucked the sheet around himself, looking embarrassed.
"Yeah," Jack muttered. The corner of his lip quirked in a kind of helpless smile and he bent down. With a gleeful burble, Kit fairly leaped into his arms. He hefted her uncomfortably into the crook of one elbow before standing up again. "I have to use the loo, anyway. You said down the hall to the left?" He gestured with his thumb. There was something desperately sad in his eyes, and Daine paused when she saw it, confused.
"Yes," she agreed slowly. "You can leave Kit here, if you want." He held the dragon easily enough—clearly, he was not afraid of her, like many were. But Daine had noticed his guarded expression, and now that she was looking she could see the tension in his shoulders. He seemed uncomfortable, and his jaw was set, as if he were fending off a physical blow.
The dragon turned yellow and shook her head emphatically, clinging to Jack's tunic, oblivious to the man's distress. "She can come if she wants," he said. His tone was bemused, although it did not match his stricken expression.
"Alright," Daine replied doubtfully, still puzzled at Jack's odd tension. "Be good, Kit," she told the dragon. Kit whistled happily and nodded, clinging to Jack.
"I'll be seeing you," Jack said. "And sorry," he added, gesturing to the floor where he found them. Daine and Numair glanced at the sheet and, as one, turned scarlet. Jack closed the door and walked off, still holding Kitten.
"Well," Numair said into the sudden silence, "that was a mood killer."
Daine laughed and went over to hug him anyway. "Sorry, laddybuck." She wrapped her arms affectionately around his middle and laid her head on his chest, and he sighed contentedly.
Numair smiled and cuddled her. "There's always tonight," he murmured, resting his cheek on her hair. He held her for a few quiet seconds and then released her. "I think Kitten's infatuated with Jack," he said, breaking the moment.
"That'll never work," Daine chuckled, kissing his cheek and walking over to a drawer to change from her nightclothes. "She'll break his heart."
Numair laughed easily and joined her. Gallantly, he handed her a tunic and she smacked his chest playfully. She had a feeling that she wouldn't get many private mornings with Numair after this for a fair amount of time.
They played and roughhoused and readied themselves and, as predicted, Alanna pounded on their front door.
"We'd've definitely had enough time," Numair muttered to no one in particular as she bellowed for them to come out. Daine chuckled and opened the door.
"Good morning! We heard from Jack that Tkaa came back and dropped Kitten off," she said by way of greeting.
Alanna nodded. "Yes, and then he was on his way again. He looked rushed— apparently it was urgent. Where's your friend?" She looked down the hall to Jack's door, which was ajar, clearly indicating that he'd gone somewhere. Daine was about to explain, when the man himself interrupted her.
"Right here," Jack said from behind them, and Alanna spun in alarm.
"You walk quietly," she accused, startled.
Jack shrugged. He was still holding Kitten, although he leaned away from her. It wasn't enough for Kit to notice but Daine, standing farther away, could see the strain in his neck. There was definitely something odd about this, she thought. "It's the shoes," Jack confided. "From a place called Paelor – they muffle noise."
"Is this a place or is this a planet?" Numair asked. Daine glanced at him in alarm as Jack's eyes narrowed. He tensed further. "You can tell her, Jack," the mage soothed their jumpy friend.
"Both," Jack replied, letting out a breath and looking resigned. He knelt to put Kit back on the floor. The dragon shrilled a protest, clinging to him. "It's a country on the planet Scleb," he said over the noise.
Kitten, with two feet on the ground and her front paws clinging to Jack's tunic, chattered loudly at Alanna. The Lioness huffed at the baby dragon, although her voice was amused.
"What did I do? It's not my fault he's nervous," she told the dragon.
"I am not nervous," Jack said indignantly, and shifted Kitten firmly to the floor. "The fewer people who know about me the better. I keep on telling you," and now he stood to meet Daine and Numair's eyes with his steely blue ones, "that bad things happen to my friends." As soon as he'd stood, Kit had reared up and grasped his breeches. She whistled sadly at his words.
"Well, that's nothing I'm not used to," Alanna told him. "I'm a knight, in case you haven't noticed. I've traveled all over and lived through all sorts of scrapes. You really don't have to worry about my welfare."
Jack shook his head, looking away. Kitten cheeped at him. He took a breath, scooped her up again and went over to Daine. "Here," he said softly and passed her over. Kitten shrilled in protest, but Jack was firm. "You shouldn't trust me with your children. Come on. Is there a conference room, or something? I'd rather not sit around a hallway."
"This way," Alanna said. She considered Jack for a long moment and then nodded, leading the way down the hall.
"Is George around?" Numair asked after a moment. "I think it would be best if he heard this too."
"No," Alanna said. "He's in Corus dealing with some old—friends of his. I can pass it on, though."
Jack scowled. "So much for secrecy."
"George has kept more secrets than I can keep track of," Alanna snapped.
Jack shrugged and muttered, "Your funeral."