Chapter 404: Chapter 404

404 For Her Hand(Part Five)

Klaus and Kari walked towards the loch as they talked about what had happened. Neither believed that Connor would give up on her if the king didn’t punish him for violating the rules of the duel. Tidas could’ve declared a ruling, but with how connected he and Skye were to Klaus; it was better for the king to make the final judgement for many reasons..

Klaus already appeared to be favored by the Third Prince and his wife. Klaus Bower was a noble by birth, but his family held a low rank. The Arnold family were old and prominent nobles that had supported the MacArthur family for generations. The Bowers had only held their for the past four generations, including Klaus.

Women were seen as property if they didn’t hold the favor of a high-ranking noble to protect them. There were a handful like Skye, Marie, and Lidia that Magnus held in high esteem, and were allowed to speak freely regardless of whom they were speaking to..n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

So long as they paid their king all of his due respect.

Kari wasn’t like Skye or the others when it came to having an opinion. She had never cared for politics or the court. She hadn’t really cared about much about anything in particular until she had met Skye and Klaus. Thanks to them: she had a man that loved her as much as she did him. Friends, a purpose, her own money..

Stopping in front of the still loch, Kari stared into Klaus’ eyes as she said; “Ya ken, I never thought about the things I wanted fer me self until you and Skye came along.. I just figured that life would be whatever me parents said it’d be..”

Klaus wrapped his arm around her shoulders as he turned his face way to stare at the water; “Just because I’m serving in the RMC doesn’t mean that you have to after we wed.. If there’s anything else that you want to do, you’re free to pursue it.”

Kari’s face scrunched up like she was in pain; “Do you not want me around?”

“...Shut up. You know that I always want you around,” Klaus replied, surprising Kari.

.....

Klaus wasn’t the most open about his feelings, but Kari had accepted that about him. It had taken him forever to tell her how he felt, but he had also told her why he had hesitated to be close to her.. Which she found to be bullshit.

She huffed loudly before shrugging his arm from her shoulders, then Kari ripped into him; “Yer gonna try and talk about how ya could die at any time cause of Our job, but that’s a load of shit..”

“I was there in the Mage Trials! I was there fer the Highland Raid, and the battle that broke out after! I was there fer the fight against Prince Richard, and those freaky ooze things! How much crap must I wade through fer ya ta understand that Ima not goin’ anywhere but Where You Are!?”

Klaus felt his heart swell as Kari’s eyes teared up. He had tried to chase her off in the beginning, knowing that he could never completely devote himself to her like she deserved. His vow to protect Skye stopped him from it, but she didn’t care..

“I know that ya think yer destiny is ta die savin’ Skye someday, and I accept it.. As long as I get all of yer free time until then, Ima fine with it, Klaus. Not to mention that I’ll be right there with ya anyway. I owe Skye me life as well, and I intend ta pay her back with everything I have.. Save fer one thing.”

Klaus sighed deeply; there was no talking Kari out of something once she got a certain look in her eyes. She was much stronger than she usually gave herself credit for; like now. Since he was the only thing that truly motivated her: Klaus would drive home to her how wonderful she was..

“You’re right, you are always at my side.. The trials, the battles: all of it. So what is it about your parents that scares you so?”

Kari stiffened, which was odd behavior for her. The only time that Klaus felt that she was untruthful to him was whenever her family came up. If they were going to be married, then she needed to tell him why.

After a bit of sweet talk and coaxing, Kari finally told him that she had a half sister..

“My parents threaten me all the time with her taking my place as the head of the family. Jillian and I used ta be close, but me mother has turned her against me now. Tis not her fault, though. She’s just like me: just wants Mother and Father ta love her..”

Klaus felt his heartstrings tighten as he realized how alone Kari must’ve been her whole life. He grabbed her, and takes her into his arms as he whispered; “You’ll never have to work for my love, Kari: it’s already yours.”

Pulling away from him, Kari started to talk about her parents, but Klaus cut her off; “Fuck those selfish pricks. I love you, and I Will marry you. We’ll start our own little family, and your foolish sister can have that shitty one. We’ll love our children for the tiny people they are, and shove our happiness down their throats when they gawk.”

Kari laughed hard, needing the release. Klaus could always make her laugh when she was feeling downtrodden. It was one of the things that she adored most about him. As warmth bloomed within her chest, Kari realized that Klaus had a small slip of the tongue..

“So if you say that you want all of that, then that means that ya plan on bein’ around for a while then?”

Klaus chuckled, then gradually turned serious; “I don’t Plan to die anytime soon! I just want you to be prepared for it..”

“And what if I die first?”

Klaus froze, then scoffed; “Yeah, that’s not gonna happen, love. I’ll die long before you do.”

“How could ya possibly ken that?!”

Klaus shrugged; “Because I won’t let you die. Simple as that.”

“...Yer a fool, Klaus Bowers. If you die, I might as well be dead, too.”

“Don’t say such things,” Klaus replied as he gently squeezed her.

He and Kari stood in front of the tranquil loch talking about their future together for a while longer before they decided to head back to the party. They could hear the singing and shouting from where they stood, which was on the other side of the castle.

When they decided to go back, Klaus scooped Kari up into his arms, then sped back to the campsite. Everyone had moved back to the front section of the tents, where the food and drinks were. As Klaus and Kari emerged, Skye called out to them.

She was standing off to the side with Celestia, Aero, Amara, and Murdoc. Amara and Aero were in a deep conversation about creating a Fae section in the Highlander city. And Celestia was chatting with Murdoc about the differences between Pixies, Brownies, Wisps, and Sprites.

As Tidas looked around, he smiled to himself to see everyone back to having a good time. It was about a quarter to two when soldiers started to disappear en masse. Lidia had taken the overly drunk Lucas back to their room for sleep, and the others had tapered off over the span of an hour or so.

Skye and Tidas had returned to their room, but Tidas was too exhausted to claim his ‘reward’ from catching Skye earlier that night. Instead, they chatted about the route that they would take, and what Skye should expect upon their return. As Skye drifted off to sleep in her husband’s arms, Tidas struggled to keep his brother off his mind so he could sleep...

************

The road back to Alcon would still take another two weeks if they went at a slow pace, which no one wanted. All of the soldiers were sick of sleeping in strange beds and tents. The one thing that almost every Alconian soldier had in common was their motivation..

They had all been away from their families for over nine months, and wanted to get back to them as quickly as possible. If the troops had it their way: they would be home in just over a week. They only reason that they knew it would take longer was because Skye had to stop and check out any sickly or injured person that she came across.

It didn’t usually bother them, but after being gone for so long: they just wanted to see their loved ones again. Tidas promised Skye that they would take a ride and visit the towns and villages once they had returned and reported. She scoffed at her husband..

“Oh, aye.. Cause it’s not like Maggie used any excuse he can find ta throw a party.. I bet ye we won’t be able ta leave the palace fer a freakin’ year after we get home.”

The level of sarcasm in Skye’s voice let Tidas know that his sweet-talking wouldn’t work. After he corrected himself by admitting that he may not be the one taking her, but Tidas did promise her that she would be able to go.

The winter had been harsh, but no one within Alcon went hungry. Even the homeless shelters had had enough food to feed everyone throughout the winter. The only problem that Skye had noticed was that not everyone was able to keep warm.

As they neared the capital, Skye asked Amara if she would be willing to collaborate with her and Jakub on creating a new, woodless heat source. She didn’t understand why she would need to be involved, but agreed all the same. She was quite curious to meet the man that rivaled her Gavin in intelligence and ingenuity.

The gray walls that surrounded the palace stuck out, sending most of the Highlanders into a state of shock. They couldn’t believe the height of them, and wondered why they were built so high. When Skye explained that it was to protect against Dragon Riders back in the day, they all started to talk about Zazzy.

As if they had summoned her, Zazzy swooped down low about the marching soldiers. Her claws were so close that Skye gave her a kind of high-five when she’d gone by. As crowds of people gathered in front of the main gate into the city, Tidas grinned and yelled; “Alright guys! Let’s make an entrance!”