TITLE: Marked
AUTHOR: LOTSlove®
CHARACTERS: Richard / Kahlan / Cara / Zedd / Original Characters
RATING: PG-16 / R later
WARNINGS: Author Chooses Not to Use Warnings
TIMELINE: Anything up through S2
DISCLAIMER: I'm completely obsessed with the show Legend of the Seeker and all things Richard and Kahlan. I love to write about them even though they cancelled my show and now I'm fighting to get it back!
SUMMARY: Sequel to my fic Revenge, Richard finally has Kahlan safely back with him, but does he really?
Chapter 28
Finally finding a wayward pine, Richard quickly led Kahlan inside its dry comforting shelter. They had thankfully been able to escape deeper into the woods without coming across any more Mord'Sith dead set on killing Kahlan. Unfortunately, they hadn't missed the beginning of the rainstorm.
Richard had gone over it again and again in his mind since finding her, but it made absolutely no sense as to why the Mord'Sith were out to kill Kahlan if Demos Rahl had placed a marking spell on her that would bring her to him. It was ludicrous. It defeated the whole purpose of the spell. Kahlan would be no good to Demos if she was dead.
"Stay here," he absentmindedly said, wiping the rain from his face. "I'm going to go look for some dry firewood and some food."
"Richard," Kahlan softly began, still sensing his anger with her. "I…"
"I'll be right back," he murmured before turning and quickly disappearing through the large boughs heavy with pine needles.
Kahlan released a weary breath, sinking to the ground. Her wet clothes were uncomfortable, but she cared little about it at that very moment. She knew that Richard was upset with her and he had every right to be.
She had left him this morning, telling him to stay away from her. How could he not be angry with her? How would he ever love her again?
He had to know that she only did because of her love for him, her innate need to keep him safe no matter the cost to her. She never would have left him if she didn't fear for his safety. She was a very real danger to him, knew his strengths as well as his weaknesses, not that there were many. If Demos ordered her to kill him, she feared she wouldn't be able to stop herself from obeying his commands.
Standing to her feet, Kahlan slipped off her wet clothes, digging into her pack and pulling out the blue dress that Caref had given her. She thoughtfully caressed the soft material, remembering how Richard's chestnut eyes had filled with such intense desire when he had seen her in it, how he had slowly removed it from her body just before making love to her. It had been so magical in every way.
She knew that she needed to leave now before he returned, getting as far away from him as possible, but she also knew that he'd never let her go no matter what she said. She hated hurting him like this but it was much preferable to taking his life, of knowing that he was no longer in the world.
Sitting down, she pulled her pack into her lap, fishing around until she found what she was looking for. Pulling out a small blue bottle, she held it up before her, contemplating what she should do. She had only partially told Odo the truth about needing the poisonous root. She did intend to use it on Demos if she had to, but more than that, she had wanted it for herself, needed it to end her life if she felt herself losing her mind.
She knew that she had made Richard promise to end her life if he couldn't save her, but she also knew her Seeker. He wouldn't be able to bring himself to kill her if it came down to it. He'd risk everything to save her instead, to get her back.
It both warmed her and terrified her.
"What are you doing with that?"
The hard edge to his voice broke through her tormented thoughts, bringing her back to the wayward pine that shielded them from the storm. She looked up to find him standing there just inside the boughs staring at her, his body rigid with the anger flowing through him at that moment.
"I'm going to use it to stop Demos," she softly said.
"We both know that's not true," he bitterly spat out.
The fury and anguish that blazed in his chestnut eyes made her heart constrict knowing that she had put it there. She quickly averted her eyes, unable to meet his intense gaze directed at her. She tightened her grip on the bottle, her only way out of this horrifying mess.
"Richard…" she began, pausing to bite her bottom lip.
"Do I mean so little to you…that you're so willing to just throw your life...our future together…away?"
His voice was like a deadly hiss of pain, so low that she wasn't certain that she had heard him at first or if she just didn't want to hear what he had just said to her. The way his voice had cracked, the sheer anguish that filled his every word was like a thousand daggers to her heart nearly taking her breath away.
She could tell by the way that he was holding himself, the way his hands were balled into fists that it was taking every ounce of strength that he had to keep from losing himself to the emotions ripping through him then. She knew in that moment that she had hurt him far worse than she could ever possibly begin to understand.
Kahlan slowly got to her feet, but still kept her distance from him. "Richard, you know that I love you with my whole being," she softly replied. "I was only going to use it if I absolutely had to."
"I told you that I would stop you if I had to," he ground out, his jaw clenched, his dark eyes piercing her straight through. "You made me promise that I would, Kahlan. Do you know how hard that was for me? I don't make promises I don't intend to keep."
"I know, but I wasn't sure that you'd actually be able to go through with it," she admitted. "I needed to know that I wouldn't be able to hurt anyone…hurt you."
Richard suddenly strode towards her, coming to a stop right before her. He was suddenly looming so large before her, so handsome and yet so full of hurt. He gripped her arm and roughly snatched the bottle away from her before she had even realized it.
"And this…this isn't going to hurt me? Destroy me?" he yelled at her, his anger flowing like hot lava through his veins as he held the bottle up before her face. "This isn't just about you, Kahlan…not after everything we've been through, everything we mean to each other."
Her chin fell to her chest as she released a ragged breath. Tears burned in her eyes as she fought for the words that would help him see that she had only done this for him. She squeezed her eyes closed against the pain that thundered through her head, nausea rolling in the pit of her stomach again.
She swallowed hard to keep from vomiting again right there. "I'm sorry," she softly replied, her voice filled with tears as well as her heartache. "I was just trying to keep you safe from me."
Richard watched her for a long moment, his hammering heart about to burst. His eyes fell closed as he lowered his arm, not about to give the poison back to her. He couldn't help the anger that inundated him, the anguish the consumed him. If he hadn't found her when he had, she'd have been killed.
He never wanted her to ever know the feel of an agiel and yet she had felt it multiple times all at once. The site of her being attacked like that would haunt his sleep for years to come. He was still amazed she had managed to remain conscious, how she'd been able to even get to her feet after that.
"You dying again is unacceptable to me, Kahlan," he said, his tone a little gentler but still full of the hurt that was eating away at him.
"And you think that me losing complete control of myself, torturing you to the point of death is acceptable to me?" she suddenly hissed, the terror of what she had seen returning to the forefront of her thoughts causing raw panic to sear through her like a branding iron. "Cutting you slowly with my dagger, pulling flesh back from bone as you scream and writhe in agony? Do you for once believe I could ever live with myself for doing that to the only man that I have ever loved?"
She was screaming now as she jabbed him in the chest with her finger, forcing him backwards. "And at the same time Mord'Sith are pressing their agiels into your gaping wounds while you beg me repeatedly to end your life?"
"Kahlan…" he spoke, horrified. The panic that was so wild in her eyes was unlike anything that he'd ever seen in her before.
"I was covered in blood in that vision, Richard…your blood and I…I didn't care…Spirits! I didn't care!" she cried, falling to her knees in overwhelming grief. "I didn't care…I just…I didn't…"
Richard's head fell back in guilt, the sound of Kahlan's sobs hurting him more than any agiel ever could. He'd had no idea the vision that Demos had given her, the haunting images that he had imprinted in her mind. He wanted more than anything to banish those memories for her.
Falling to his knees before her, Richard gently gathered her up in his arms, the sound of the rolling thunder and loud cracks of lightning drowning out the sounds of her weeping. He tilted his head, kissing the top of her head as he just held her.
"I'm sorry, Kahlan," he finally told her. "I had no idea."
"I don't want to die…but if it saves you, keeps you from enduring what I saw…Richard, I'd plunge the dagger into my chest myself and not even think twice about it," she cried. "My life is nothing if you're not in it…I'm nothing…"
"Kahlan, you are not nothing! You are everything to me!" he heatedly stated, pulling her into his lap and holding her close. "I'm not going to give up until you're safe, until you're free from Demos's spell on you."
"It may be too late," she whispered, drawing a shuddering breath.
"Why? What's happening?" he asked, his gaze narrowing as he brushed her wet hair out of her face.
"I can feel that I'm losing myself," she softly replied, swallowing back tears. "It's getting harder and harder to control my magic, my anger. I'm starting to forget who I am."
"I know it's hard, but you need to keep fighting, Kahlan," he firmly told her.
"I'm so tired, Richard," she murmured, her eyes falling closed as she pressed her forehead into the crook of his neck, savoring his presence, the feeling of being safe that suddenly encompassed her as she absorbed him. "I don't know how much longer I can hold on. The headaches are getting worse. They're making me sick."
"I'll take care of you, Kahlan," he gently told her, stroking her wet hair and relishing the feel of her in his arms once more. "I will always take care of you no matter what happens."
"I'm so sorry…" she whispered against his lips, kissing him softly. "I love you so much, Richard," she murmured, her lips so soft and sweet against his that it was making his head spin.
She teased his lower lip, slowly driving him mad as she built his pleasure. He softly moaned, his hands roaming over her back. She shifted to straddle him, rising up on her knees and taking his face in her hands.
Richard kissed her in return, tilting his head back and deepening the kiss despite his anger with her. "Spirits, I've missed you," he murmured against her lips. "I was so terrified I wasn't going to be able to find you and then when I did…Kahlan, they were trying to kill you…"
"I know…it's alright," she softly told him. "I'm better now that you're here with me."
"Don't ever leave me again," he pleaded, his hands stroking up her back to grip the nape of her neck. "I won't survive it, Kahlan."
His desperate hunger for her took over once more as he kissed her lips, the feel of her in arms again driving him crazy. It didn't help that she was positively breathtaking to him or the fact that she was again wearing the dress that made his pulse race wildly. It also didn't help seeing the marks that she bore on her fair skin from their love making, letting the whole world know what they had done or that she belonged to no one but him.
"Ric-hard…" she moaned as he kissed along her throat, her fingers raking through his hair.
He could still scarcely believe that he had won the heart of the powerful Mother Confessor, that she was his in almost every way imaginable. Now, he just wanted to marry her, build a forever with her, but he needed to wait until after the Keeper had been stopped. Then, he could truly make her his, start the family that he so desperately wanted to have with her…if they hadn't started it already.
The thought only made him harder, more desperate for her. He instinctively bunched up her dress around her waist, anxious to be completely surrounded by her once more. She began unlacing his pants, needing him now more than ever.
"Kahlan…" he panted, knowing deep inside that he needed to stop this, but he wanted her so desperately, needed her more than the very air he breathed. "We…we shouldn't…"
"I need you…Richard," she breathlessly replied as she kissed behind his ear, her hands finally freeing him. "When I'm with you…I know who I am…where I'm at. I'm home."
With a throaty growl, he planted hot wet kisses along her chest as she took him inside of her, a hiss of pleasure escaping his lips. She began to rock against him, pulling on his hair as his tongue dipped beneath the edge of the material to tickle her breasts.
Kahlan knew that she needed to leave, to get to Demos before she lost herself forever, but the feel of him so hard inside of her, filling her so very full was shoving aside all reason, suppressing all other thoughts but him.
She wanted him as much as possible before she was no longer herself, before all she'd ever know was Demos Rahl and his sick sadistic touch. She cringed at the thought of him raping her over and over again and her letting him.
Richard felt her suddenly tense in his arms as they rocked together as one body, grinding against each other. Just as he was about to pull back, she suddenly relaxed again. She kissed his shoulder, her teeth grazing his skin there. He buried his face in the crook of her neck as he murmured her name, his tongue sneaking out to taste her skin as his lips kissed and sucked on her pulse point, keeping her pressed close against him.
"Richard," she moaned, her head falling back. "Spirits!"
Their bodies began to move a little faster, their momentum escalating as the overwhelming need to complete with each other took over as he pushed himself deeper inside of her. She felt her magic rising like a deadly tidal wave as his fingers dug almost painfully into her hips, overjoyed that she no longer had to stop him or let go of her lover.
She came with a strangled cry, the warm feel of him emptying himself so deep inside of her giving her heart wings, hoping they had just created a little life within her. She felt so guilty wishing for a baby with him now with all the turmoil churning around them both, but she wanted to create a family with him, to be the mother of his children more than anything in this world.
Richard held her trembling form close against him, keeping them flesh against moist flesh as they came down from ecstasy. He gently brushed his lips against her shoulder and collarbone, finding the sensitive spot behind her ear and teasing it.
He never wanted to leave this place, never wanted to let her go. He wanted to stay like this with her forever, buried deep inside of her as one body. He loved the peaceful moments just after finding release with her, the intimate vulnerability that encompassed them both as they just held each other, kissing softly and savoring the love they shared for one another.
"We should probably leave soon," she murmured, nuzzling his cheek with her nose, the thunder rolling in the distance.
He sighed contentedly as he tightened his hold on her, not about to give her up just yet. "Not yet," he replied, kissing her ear. "I just want to hold you for a little longer before I tend to your wounds. Besides, you need to sleep after confessing four Mord'Sith. We'll leave first thing in the morning."
"I would love to wake up with you like this in the morning…every morning, but I don't think Zedd and Cara would be too happy about it, though" she chuckled softly as she played with the hair that hung along his neck.
"They can have their own campsite and we'll have ours," he suggested with a grin.
"I don't see Cara allowing that to happen," she tilted her head as she gazed into the eyes that seemed to know her very soul.
"Well, I'm not about to go without making love to you once we meet up with them," he frowned as he ran his rough hands over her smooth thighs. "I will be pulling you into the woods for some alone time every chance I possibly can, Confessor."
"You better, Seeker," she seductively purred, kissing him hard before getting up off of him.
Richard groaned as she left his lap. He quickly tucked himself back inside his pants, getting up to find his pack, pulling a small jar free. Making his way to where she was spreading out her blanket, he settled down on the ground in front of her.
"Here," he said. "This aum will help with the burns."
"It's not that bad," she replied.
"Kahlan, I was tortured by Denna," he reminded her. "I know what an agiel burn feels like."
"I'm sorry," she softly said, her hand finding his cheek, caressing it lightly before falling away. "I wish I could've gotten to you sooner."
Dipping the tips of his fingers into the aum, he carefully began to rub it on her cheekbone. "You saved my life," he frowned as he worked to ease her pain. "And I'm going to save yours now."
"I have to do this myself, Richard," she frowned. "I'm afraid you can't help me this time."
"I'm not about to let you go into the People's Palace to face Demos alone, Kahlan," he firmly stated.
Pulling her long hair aside, he lightly ran his fingers along her neck, the site of another agiel burn there causing his heart to constrict. He couldn't bear the thought of her being alone with Demos. She'd endured so much at Darken Rahl's hands. He knew it was only going to be so much worse with Demos.
"If I pretend that he's changed me already, I can get close to him and confess him," she told him. "I won't be able to do that if I know you're there too. I'm terrified of what he'll do to you, Richard."
"We'll figure something out," he promised her, placing a gentle kiss to her forehead, one of the few places she hadn't been attacked by the Mord'Sith. "I'm not going to let him touch you...ever."
