Fic: Maestra (Part 6)
Title: Maestra
Fandom: Legend of the Seeker
Author: cakeandqpm1138
Rating/s | Content: PG-13
Word Count: 976
Summary: Set immediately after 'Tears.' By performing the Spells of Undoing, Zedd grieviously altered the course of history. Now, Richard, Kahlan, Cara and Zedd must team up with Nicci and Rahl to find a way to appease the Maestra, the Goddess of Time, before she decides to correct the problem by destroying the entire universe, past, present and future. This, however, will be no easy task; Zedd's spells split the course of history into three paths. Which one, if any, will be saved?
Warnings: Spoilers through 'Tears'
Author's Notes: Written for the Legend of the Seeker Big Bang Challenge. Feedback is craved!
Cara shook her head in wry amusement as the door shut behind Richard. He may be the Seeker and the rightful heir to the D’Haran empire, she thought, but he’s still a back country woodsman in many ways. Under most other circumstances it would have irked her to have to teach him this particular life lesson, but as she gazed contentedly at Dahlia asleep on her shoulder she felt only a blissful, tingling calm. The usually pervasive notion that something was wrong was conspicuously absent, she realized with a start. As she studied the enticing curve of Dahlia’s lower lip, Cara’s mind raced. She didn’t know how she knew it, but she was certain that the woman in her arms held the answers to all the half-formed questions that had plagued her since the Pillars of Creation. Her very presence made Cara feel whole again in a way that brought into sharp contrast exactly how empty she once had been.
Nevertheless, new, gnawing questions swam into Cara’s sleep-clouded mind. How is this even possible, she wondered. I’ve only known her for a few hours. Why do I feel like she has what I need? I thought it would have taken years to fill in these gaps… Her heart sank as she realized she’d never have the chance to find out more. Richard, Kahlan and Zedd were leaving for Aydendril and she had to go with them. In all likelihood she’d never see this woman again. Cara shivered, wishing desperately that her Agiels were not on the floor and out of reach. She longed for the pain they caused to drown out this new, unfamiliar ache.
At that moment Dahlia began to stir, sending pins and needles through Cara’s arm, the one pinned between Dahlia’s shoulder and the bed. The sensation was not the same as that of her Agiels, but it would do. Cara nearly laughed at the absurdity of it but found herself breathtaken as Dahlia smiled drowsily up at her.
“You’re still here,” Dahlia murmured, sounding mildly surprised.
“So it would seem.”
“I’d heard that a Mord’Sith takes her pleasure at first opportunity and takes her leave at first light,” Dahlia teased.
“If you hadn’t fallen asleep on my arm I’d be long gone.” Dahlia looked stricken. Cara backtracked quickly, trying to appease her. “That may be true of most of us some of the time and some of us most of the time, but I assure you it is true of none of us all of the time. Where did you hear such a thing?”
Dahlia relaxed, her playful manner returning quickly. “My brother told me. He experienced it firsthand. He said a Mord’Sith caused quite a stir by bursting into the inn where he and his friends go to play at cards. Apparently she chose him at random, right in the middle of his game, and took him upstairs with her. By the time he woke up the next morning he was alone.”
“He must not have thought to fall asleep on her arm.”
Dahlia laughed. “Either that or she was just a troublemaker. She didn’t get far. He said a mob arrested her before she’d even made it out of the tavern and put her on trial in front of the town council. He was too embarrassed to attend the hearings himself, but he said it sparked quite a scandal. Something about one of the teachers being a Mord’Sith…”
Cara’s stomach twisted into a horrendous knot and her face burned crimson. Thinking quickly, she rolled Dahlia onto her back and hid her blush by kissing her collarbone, flicking her tongue across the raised scar near her shoulder in an attempt to distract her from the subject. Her plan succeeded; Dahlia sighed happily at her kisses and twined her fingers into Cara’s hair.
Several seconds later, the sounds of the inn beginning to come awake drifted into the room. Cara’s stomach knotted again. Her time was about to run out. She forced herself to disentangle and sit up, trying not to meet Dahlia’s gaze. “I should go before an angry mob gets me.” Again she added silently.
Dahlia nodded, looking sorrowful. “Off on more adventures with the Seeker and the Mother Confessor. Spirits, but I’m jealous of you. I’d give the equivalent of the entire Jocopo Treasure to be able to go adventuring.”
Treasure.
Cara stopped in her tracks and blinked at her. “Come with me.” The words left her mouth before she was even aware she had thought to speak them.
Dahlia shot her a pained but scathing glare. “I can’t. You know I can’t. My family needs me to work.”
Cara spun around and fumbled in her bag, excitement mingling with the sobering reality of the events she was about to set into motion. She had nearly forgotten…
Dahlia gasped as Cara thrust several large, rough stones into her hands. “Are those… where did you…”
“I found them on one of my adventures. They’re not worth nearly as much as the Jocopo Treasure, but they should be enough. Send them to your brother. Tell him to take them to the jewelers in Millcote and sell them. Come with me.”
Dahlia searched Cara’s face for signs that she was joking. She found none.
“Come with me.”
Dahlia threw her arms around Cara’s neck and kissed her, lips trembling. “Thank you.”
Cara kissed her back and stroked her hair. “We leave soon. Go get your things together.”
“Spirits know that won’t take long. I’ll meet you downstairs.” They kissed once more, then Dahlia wriggled into her clothes and slipped out the door.
Once again, Cara stared at the closed door, adrenaline making her pulse sing. She didn’t know exactly what it was she had started, but it felt right, like it was meant to happen. Her Agiels remained on the floor, forgotten.
Fandom: Legend of the Seeker
Author: cakeandqpm1138
Rating/s | Content: PG-13
Word Count: 976
Summary: Set immediately after 'Tears.' By performing the Spells of Undoing, Zedd grieviously altered the course of history. Now, Richard, Kahlan, Cara and Zedd must team up with Nicci and Rahl to find a way to appease the Maestra, the Goddess of Time, before she decides to correct the problem by destroying the entire universe, past, present and future. This, however, will be no easy task; Zedd's spells split the course of history into three paths. Which one, if any, will be saved?
Warnings: Spoilers through 'Tears'
Author's Notes: Written for the Legend of the Seeker Big Bang Challenge. Feedback is craved!
Cara shook her head in wry amusement as the door shut behind Richard. He may be the Seeker and the rightful heir to the D’Haran empire, she thought, but he’s still a back country woodsman in many ways. Under most other circumstances it would have irked her to have to teach him this particular life lesson, but as she gazed contentedly at Dahlia asleep on her shoulder she felt only a blissful, tingling calm. The usually pervasive notion that something was wrong was conspicuously absent, she realized with a start. As she studied the enticing curve of Dahlia’s lower lip, Cara’s mind raced. She didn’t know how she knew it, but she was certain that the woman in her arms held the answers to all the half-formed questions that had plagued her since the Pillars of Creation. Her very presence made Cara feel whole again in a way that brought into sharp contrast exactly how empty she once had been.
Nevertheless, new, gnawing questions swam into Cara’s sleep-clouded mind. How is this even possible, she wondered. I’ve only known her for a few hours. Why do I feel like she has what I need? I thought it would have taken years to fill in these gaps… Her heart sank as she realized she’d never have the chance to find out more. Richard, Kahlan and Zedd were leaving for Aydendril and she had to go with them. In all likelihood she’d never see this woman again. Cara shivered, wishing desperately that her Agiels were not on the floor and out of reach. She longed for the pain they caused to drown out this new, unfamiliar ache.
At that moment Dahlia began to stir, sending pins and needles through Cara’s arm, the one pinned between Dahlia’s shoulder and the bed. The sensation was not the same as that of her Agiels, but it would do. Cara nearly laughed at the absurdity of it but found herself breathtaken as Dahlia smiled drowsily up at her.
“You’re still here,” Dahlia murmured, sounding mildly surprised.
“So it would seem.”
“I’d heard that a Mord’Sith takes her pleasure at first opportunity and takes her leave at first light,” Dahlia teased.
“If you hadn’t fallen asleep on my arm I’d be long gone.” Dahlia looked stricken. Cara backtracked quickly, trying to appease her. “That may be true of most of us some of the time and some of us most of the time, but I assure you it is true of none of us all of the time. Where did you hear such a thing?”
Dahlia relaxed, her playful manner returning quickly. “My brother told me. He experienced it firsthand. He said a Mord’Sith caused quite a stir by bursting into the inn where he and his friends go to play at cards. Apparently she chose him at random, right in the middle of his game, and took him upstairs with her. By the time he woke up the next morning he was alone.”
“He must not have thought to fall asleep on her arm.”
Dahlia laughed. “Either that or she was just a troublemaker. She didn’t get far. He said a mob arrested her before she’d even made it out of the tavern and put her on trial in front of the town council. He was too embarrassed to attend the hearings himself, but he said it sparked quite a scandal. Something about one of the teachers being a Mord’Sith…”
Cara’s stomach twisted into a horrendous knot and her face burned crimson. Thinking quickly, she rolled Dahlia onto her back and hid her blush by kissing her collarbone, flicking her tongue across the raised scar near her shoulder in an attempt to distract her from the subject. Her plan succeeded; Dahlia sighed happily at her kisses and twined her fingers into Cara’s hair.
Several seconds later, the sounds of the inn beginning to come awake drifted into the room. Cara’s stomach knotted again. Her time was about to run out. She forced herself to disentangle and sit up, trying not to meet Dahlia’s gaze. “I should go before an angry mob gets me.” Again she added silently.
Dahlia nodded, looking sorrowful. “Off on more adventures with the Seeker and the Mother Confessor. Spirits, but I’m jealous of you. I’d give the equivalent of the entire Jocopo Treasure to be able to go adventuring.”
Treasure.
Cara stopped in her tracks and blinked at her. “Come with me.” The words left her mouth before she was even aware she had thought to speak them.
Dahlia shot her a pained but scathing glare. “I can’t. You know I can’t. My family needs me to work.”
Cara spun around and fumbled in her bag, excitement mingling with the sobering reality of the events she was about to set into motion. She had nearly forgotten…
Dahlia gasped as Cara thrust several large, rough stones into her hands. “Are those… where did you…”
“I found them on one of my adventures. They’re not worth nearly as much as the Jocopo Treasure, but they should be enough. Send them to your brother. Tell him to take them to the jewelers in Millcote and sell them. Come with me.”
Dahlia searched Cara’s face for signs that she was joking. She found none.
“Come with me.”
Dahlia threw her arms around Cara’s neck and kissed her, lips trembling. “Thank you.”
Cara kissed her back and stroked her hair. “We leave soon. Go get your things together.”
“Spirits know that won’t take long. I’ll meet you downstairs.” They kissed once more, then Dahlia wriggled into her clothes and slipped out the door.
Once again, Cara stared at the closed door, adrenaline making her pulse sing. She didn’t know exactly what it was she had started, but it felt right, like it was meant to happen. Her Agiels remained on the floor, forgotten.