Warprize

voice was a mere whisper as he kneaded the ball of my thumb. “Sometimes, the elements within us become unbalanced, and it takes the touch of another to bring us back, to center us.” His hands continued to work on mine, rubbing the nails and working my knuckles. I felt a warm tingle building in the center of my palm. I sighed, leaning back against his chest, and Keir switched to my left hand, moving slowly and carefully. “
    The soul is made of fire, and sits within the left hand.” He repeated his actions, I absorbed it all in silence. “The breath is made of air, and sits within the right hand.” He continued until that hand tingled as well. I felt my heart slow and my breathing fall into harmony with his. The warmth of his body seeped into me through the fabric of my tunic.
    “The peace will work, Lara.” His hands took mine and wove our fingers together to form a fist. “
    Together, our peoples will be stronger. A united whole, under one ruler.”
    “Under your rule.” I whispered.
    Keir pulled me back slowly to lay against the pillows, then moved to the end of the bed. He took my left foot in his hands and started rubbing gently. “The blood is made of water, and sits within the left foot.”
    His words seemed like a ritual of some kind and his touch was pure pleasure. I lay quiet, in a daze of warmth and bliss.
    “Xymund has sworn fealty to me as Warlord.” Keir’s touch was still gentle, but his voice had an edge to it. “He will obey.” He flexed my foot in his hands, pulling at my toes and working his fingers into the muscles.
    It took me a bit to gather my thoughts. “Yet you deliberately provoked him this evening.”
    “Yes.” Keir released my foot and moved to the other one. “I did. His actions will speak louder than his oaths.” He worked this foot as he had the other. “The flesh is made of earth and sits within the right foot.”
    I focused on him and smiled, feeling safe and lethargic. Keir’s eyes glittered, and he released my foot and crawled up the bed to lay by my side. He hovered there, looking down, his eyes glittering. I looked up, expecting, waiting…
    He sighed softly, and eased back to the foot of the bed. It seemed somehow that I had failed him in some way, but I wasn’t certain what made me think that. I stared at his back as he sat there. I had to say something to break the silence. “And Durst?”
    Keir’s head came up with a jerk. He sighed and shook his head, turning slightly to look at me. “A mistake. I knew it even as I pulled my sword free.” He got off the bed. Marcus had stoked the braziers before he had left, and they radiated warm heat into the room. Keir moved over and threw a handful of leaves into the closest one. It flared up, but the flames died quickly. The room gently filled with a soft spicy scent that hung in the warm air. Amazing how much warmer a tent was than a stone castle. Keir settled on one of the benches, pulling bottles and cloths from a small chest below. His sword was there, and he took it up, looking at it ruefully. He started wiping it with one of the cloths. I curled on my side to watch him as he wiped the sword with careful attention. There was a long silence between us before he spoke. “I ask my warriors to change their ways, and yet in the heat of anger I strike according to our tradition.”
    I didn’t have an answer to that.
    He set aside the cloth, and started to work the edge with a stone, making a soft ‘shushing’ sound. One of the bottles was open, and I got a faint whiff of clove oil. I yawned, watching him in the faint light.
    “Go to sleep, Warprize. I will sit for a while, and think on my errors and how to learn from them.”
    I had melted down into the bedding, and hadn’t the strength to get under the blankets. Even with blurry eyes, I saw the lines on Keir’s face. “He didn’t die.”
    Keir’s hand stopped moving. “He lived?”
    “Othur said he was still alive before we went to the kitchens.” I closed my eyes, and started floating off. The ‘shushing’ sound started back up. “So. Tomorrow will tell the tale. I’ll send for word, or go myself. Sleep now.”
    I tried to resist, but the darkness won out.
    I swing my leg up and out, the horse shies and moves away. I lose my balance and drop back to the ground abruptly.
    The lance passes by my head.
    “Death to the…” The lead man never finishes his cry. Keir smashes through his defenses and plunges into the man’s chest in one quick