PeaceMaker

Litian looked down at Adia's trembling legs before shifting her gaze to her face.

"What?" Adia asked, a grin still on her face, "do you pity me? Feel sorry for me or something now that you see me trembling?"

Litian cocked her head to the side slightly before shaking her head. "I would never feel pity for someone who lost a fight they provoked," she commented with a stiff expression, "especially since the trembling does not have to do with me winning."

They stayed locked on eye contact for a few seconds after Litian's words before she turned around and walked towards the lines of wooden targets.

Adia took a moment to let out a shaky breath when Litian turned her back to her as her heart skipped another beat. "You're an incredible fighter," she complimented as her legs steadied, "very grateful in your actions and deadly when you chose to be."

Litian nodded her head, not bothering to turn around. "Thank you. I could say the same for you too. You're a fine swordswoman, would do great in the army."

"Hmm but not in a war..." Adia grinned as she swung her sword back and forth. She stared at the hilt of her sword as her grip tightened slightly, her voice lowering to a soft chuckle, "my skills were simply meant for bouts. Not for war."

Litian turned to face her, expressionless face peering at Adia. Adia looked up from her sword as she felt Litian's gaze on her. She formed a smile on her face, "I'm glad they were good enough to let such an esteemed person give me such high compliments," she giggled playfully as she approached Litian, stopping a few feet away from her. 

She bent over slightly, leaning into Litian with her arms and sword behind her back. "Thank you, Commander Litian," she smiled, her eyes squinting in the process.

Litian peered at her silently, their eyes locked on each other for a few more seconds. "Why?" she asked. 

Adia flinched, her eyebrow raising as she tilted her head curiously, "Hm?"

"Why did you want to challenge me?" Litian pressed, cold eyes staring straight into Adia's, watching every flinch or twitch of movement on her face, "why did you really follow me?"

Adia remained silent as she repeated Litian's question in her mind. She leaned back, rocking slightly on her heels, and shrugged. "Why not? I was curious," she replied, flashing a bright smile that bounced right off Litian's stoic face. 

"Hm," Litian replied, her eyes still pinned on Adia's.

Adia flinched uncomfortably. 'Yikes,' she thought to herself as another second passed that they were in eye contact. It was like she was piercing straight through her body. Intense, dark-green, observing eyes analyzing her every move with such a blank gaze that it made it seem like she wasn't even focusing on her. 'Such a rigid stare,' Adia thought. A shudder ran down her smile as a smile tugged on her lips. 'How scary.'

"What is it?" Adia asked, giving in to the smile that had been tugging on her lips, "your staring is starting to scare me."

Litian blinked blankly, "is it?" she muttered emptily, her reply seeming to both correlate with Adia's words and yet seemingly random. She turned away from Adia, returning to her targets, "You're curious about quite a lot of things."

"Aren't I?" Adia chuckled, "I'm known for sticking my head in places they aren't meant to be in." 

"You know who I am," Litian continued, gliding over Adia's comment like it was something she already knew, "and yet you still chose to challenge me. Were you seeking satisfaction from beating someone in the army?"

"You mean beating someone of your level of expertise," Adia interrupted, "you talk about yourself like you are just another person in the army and not a widely appreciated individual."

"Because it is what I am," Litian replied, "so it was what you were looking to do by challenging me?"

"No. I was curious," Adia retorted. 

"About what?"

"About what fighting with you would feel like," 

Litian paused for a moment, before continuing to raise her sword up to her wooden target. She struck it across the chest.

"I wanted to see what fighting against someone like you would be like," Adia continued, "I wanted to see if I'd be scared before fighting you, if I'd tremble from sadness when I lose. I wanted to know what your fighting style was like, how I'd combat against it. I wanted to know if you were really worth all the praise you receive."

Litian stopped and turned to face Adia, their eyes immediately locking. 

"And it looks like I have my answers," Adia grinned, her deep-brown eyes sparkling under the sun.

Before Litian could open her mouth, a voice rang out from far away, calling their attention to it. 

"COMMANDER LITIAN!! LADY ADIA!!! YOUR PRESENCES ARE REQUESTED IN THE DINING ROOM!!" the voice of a guard called out to them. 

Litian turned back to face Adia before looking away and walking towards the weapon boards, "On my way."

*

The walk back to the dining room was silent. Dominic walked forward at a stable rate and Kalmin followed closely behind him. Silently, unlike Kalmin's mind.

'Were the changes there from the beginning?' Kalmin thought to himself as he recalled the moment before in Dominic's office. 'Did I not notice his shift in behavior because I was too clouded by… no… they were there. They were there during the meeting too.' 

The meeting had started on a very hesitant ground. Mostly because of the readjustment to Dominic being in the room and for Dominic to readjust back to having the members of the council present before him. It had been a year afterall. 

'But after he adjusted… it was like everything clicked into place," Kalmin noted to himself. It was natural. He had spoken in a fluid way, like he was made to be sitting in that position, like he was ready to be sitting in that position. He felt like a leader. 

Kalmin flinched at his thought. 'Not like he hadn't felt like that before, but it was different this time. He was confident and focused on every word that was said during the meeting.'

He looked up at Dominic's back and let out a little sigh. 'I need to see more of it. These little changes… to what extent do they go?'

"Kalmin?" Dominic called out to him, snapping him out of his thoughts. He looked up at Dominic and then shifted his gaze behind him to the large double doors. "We've arrived."

Kalmin nodded in reply and followed Dominic as guards pulled open the doors leading into the room.

Almost immediately most chatter in the room silenced as Dominic walked in, head bowing as he walked past their chairs to his own at the head of the table. 

"Welcome back your highness," the council members greeted. 

"Sorry for the delay," he chuckled as he looked around at the people seated at the table and then down at the table and the rows of food laid out on it, "I see the food has arrived."

He exchanged a few seconds of laughter with some of the council members as he felt a gaze peering intensely at him. He turned to his left, immediately making eye contact with Boris.

"Is everything ok, your highness?" Boris asked.

Kalmin watched quietly as Dominic raised his eyebrow, laughing lightly. "Of course," he replied, "why wouldn't it be? Unless you're planning to be concerned over my marriage too."

Boris flinched slightly at the word marriage, his gaze darting to Kalmin for a moment before shifting back to Dominic. 'Marriage?' he thought to himself, 'again?'

Dominic smiled at Boris' blank expression, "Looks like you don't." They stayed on each other for another second, before Dominic looked away, his smile dimming as they faced the council. 

He looked around the table, spotting empty chairs. "Where's Duke Falls?" he asked everyone, but his eyes looked at Kalmin in particular. 

"Last time I checked, he was speaking to some maids," Kalmin reported. 

"I'm not sure he even came into the dining room," added Earl Frank as he made eye contact with Dominic. 

Dominic sat silently for a moment before simply nodding. "If it's been this long, then I think he's not going to come back," he chuckled, "but since the food is here, we should all eat."

He turned to Desilva, "Is Litian not back yet?" he turned to Boris when she answered no, "Is Adia back?" Boris responded no. He then turned to a maid stationed at the left side of the room and called her over. "Go ask a guard to look for them and bring them back."