Dig it out
Title: Dig it out
Fandom: Legend of the Seeker
Pairing: Cara/Kahlan
Rating: PG-13
Words: ~3000
Summary: Just pure silliness. Kahlan has to dig something out
Disclaimers: This is fiction and, obviously, not real. I am not the owner of the rights to the characters in this work.
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When she comes back to the cell, they are all exactly where she left them.
Cara is still chained. Richard and Zedd stand a few feet away from her, both of them wearing strange looks on their faces that Kahlan cannot immediately decipher. The wizard looks almost… giddy, whilst Richard looks… a bit frightened.
She looks at Cara in confusion, but the Mord'Sith only raises an eyebrow at her, pursing her lips.
Kahlan turns towards Richard, walking closer to the men. They should be all right for now, but it is better to leave as soon as possible and move to a safer area. Plus, they have a quest to get back to. It is not like they are on a fixed-schedule here, but really, they should get moving. As she walks, she notices that Cara is no longer hanging from the ceiling. They have managed to lower her down, so that her feet are touching the floor. Her arms are still raised above her head but clearly, at a far more comfortable angle than before.
That is all good.
She turns uncomprehending eyes towards the men. "Richard, we need to go. Why is Cara still chained?"
Richard looks towards Cara, eyes wide open, then he turns to Zedd looking for help, but the old wizard only shrugs his shoulders and smiles.
"Well, you see… the key to the chains…" Richard starts to explain.
The chains link to the wall behind Cara, where there is a lock.
"Yes?" Kahlan walks slightly around Cara, looking at the wall and the chains. Then, back to Richard, when it becomes obvious that he is not going to continue. From what she understood before she went to check the outer room to make sure everything was safe, Cara had managed to steal a key the last time they lowered her arms, so releasing her should be easy.
Which begs the question of why exactly are they still here.
"Did you lose the key, Cara?"
"No." Cara says in her usual flat tone.
Kahlan just looks again at all of them and puts her hands on her hips. She is starting to lose her patience.
Zedd smiles widely and cuts in, "I did offer to retrieve it." He wiggles his long fingers and smiles mischievously, looking first at Richard and then, at Cara, who promptly replies, narrowing her eyes menacingly.
"I will bite off your fingers and spit them out if you even try, wizard." It is not said in exactly the right tone to be considered a real threat, and the Mord'Sith is chained right now, but Cara is fierce enough that Zedd takes a slight step back.
Better safe than sorry.
He is still smiling widely though.
"Can someone explain to me what is going on here?" Kahlan is in no mood for this really; they should just un-chain Cara and get out of here.
Richard starts to explain again, "well, the thing is…" he points his finger at the blonde woman in what looks like accusation, "Cara stuck the key inside her leathers." He stops then and looks at the floor again. Given the lightning in the room, it is hard to say, but Kahlan thinks there is a blush coloring his cheeks. Is he digging his foot into the floor?
Kahlan lets out a long breath and turns to look at Cara, who looks bored by all of this.
"Where is it, Cara?"
There might be a slight tremble in the voice of the Mother Confessor as she speaks but she manages to look at Cara straight in the eye.
Cara looks at her for a second, something like amusement entering her own eyes. "It is by my left breast. There is a small hidden pocket there."
Kahlan moves around Cara. She can see a bump on the side of Cara's breast, more to the side and towards her armpit than under her breast, really.
She exhales slowly.
Part relief, part disappointment.
That is only moderately dangerous territory; she was really worried for a second imagining where exactly Cara may have stuck the key.
She thinks she might be able to get it out without too much trouble... although it is obvious that the only way to actually reach it will be through the front opening of Cara's leathers.
"I see."
Kahlan looks at Richard and Zedd.
Zedd gives her a wide smile and lifts his bushy eyebrows at her. She is not sure, but she thinks he might have actually winked at her.
He is enjoying this.
As far as Cara is concerned, the wizard is the only one acting rationally here. She frowns slightly.
Of course Zedd would like to try and get the key out. Wouldn't most people, really? What is wrong with the Seeker and the Mother Confessor?
If this was life or death, or if they were in a hurry, she actually would not particularly mind if Zedd reached for the key, but she is not stupid. She much, much prefers if either Richard or Kahlan do it. If nothing else, because it would embarrass them to death and, of course, amuse her greatly.
And yes, she might admit that it would certainly not be a hardship for her to have either of them palming her breast.
A firm smirk settles on Cara's mouth when she looks at the Mother Confessor and notices the slight flush that moves up from her chest and all the way to her cheeks.
Come to think of it, she might prefer Kahlan's hands on her.
"I think we should go check that the pass way is still safe, Zedd. Maybe look for an axe to break the chains, in case it comes to that." Richard mumbles the last bit as he looks up at the wizard. Zedd does not move, so Richard grabs hold of his long arm and half-drags him towards the door.
"But, Richard! They may need our help." He whines, sounding like a child who is denied his favourite toy.
Kahlan can hear the wizard complaining as they move through the door and out of the cell and Richard telling him they can go look for the kitchen to see if they can find some supplies.
She takes a long breath before turning to Cara, who opens her mouth as if she is about to give advice on how best to do this.
Kahlan raises a finger "Shush. I don't want to hear it, Cara."
She moves in front of Cara, looking at the bump. Then, she moves a hand over her own breast, trying to figure out the best way to attack this problem.
Cara can appreciate the logic of this approach.
She does certainly not mind seeing the Mother Confessor touching her own breast.
After a moment consideration, Kahlan decides that she can probably reach over the top of Cara's breast. So she moves slightly behind and to Cara's right and reaches tentatively with her right hand through the opening of Cara's leathers.
Cara's skin is soft and warm to the touch.
Kahlan thinks she should not be noticing it, but how can she not.
She slides her fingers slowly around the top of Cara's breast, fingers together, making sure they don't touch any more skin than strictly necessary. She is being ridiculous about this, and by doing it with so much hesitation she is only showing Cara how uncomfortable this makes her feel. But she cannot just… fondle her breast as if it was nothing!
Once her hand reaches around Cara's breast, Kahlan is almost flush against Cara's side.
She is very nearly panting, her face close to Cara's, brushing against the fine blonde hair of the other woman. Inhaling her scent. Cara smells of leather, of soap and, also, of the earth where they sleep every night. She smells wonderfully and Kahlan is tempted to rub her nose against the other woman's throat for a moment. To lean against her completely. To let her hand wander. To splay her fingers over Cara's soft breast and rub her nipple with her palm.
"You are not going to be able to get it like that." Cara's voice saves Kahlan from the precipice she was about to throw herself into.
Cara turns slightly into Kahlan's body, almost leaning back against her, as she speaks the words quietly. There is no need to talk loudly given how close they are to each other.
Kahlan can feel Cara's warm, slow breathing on her skin and it makes her realize she is yet to answer. "Why not?," she almost croaks the words.
She does not want for this to feel so intimate, but she has her hand stuck down the other woman's leathers, for crying out loud.
"Because of the way it opens. You are supposed to put things in by moving your hand under your own breast… not over it as if you were afraid to touch your own skin like you are doing." There is something like challenge in Cara's voice. She sounds a lot calmer than Kahlan feels, although her voice sounds huskier than usual.
Kahlan cannot see her face, but she can easily imagine Cara rolling her eyes at her.
Of course it makes sense that Cara would not access a pocket inside her own clothing in the awkward way Kahlan is trying to. What dimwit would?
Kahlan feels her hand shake slightly under Cara's leathers, but she knows Cara is right. She nods to herself as she moves her hand slowly over the front of Cara's breast, over a very tight nipple and then, under it, so that she is fully cupping her breast. Her thumb still touching the nipple. Cara's breast feels heavy and warm in her hand and Kahlan knows she's on the brick of squeezing it.
That, or fainting.
She is not the only one having a reaction, though. When Kahlan's soft palm passes over Cara's nipple the shorter woman stops breathing for a moment. She lets out a cough to cover the moan that rises to her throat.
It annoys Cara, because whilst she might enjoy a beautiful woman fondling her breasts, this feels more like a timid girlfriend caressing them. It is not how anyone should touch her breasts. So she does the only think she can think to stop the feeling. She arches her back, pushing herself into Kahlan's palm, offering her flesh fully.
It almost makes Kahlan topple over.
But Cara's move makes the leathers shift slightly and, finally, Kahlan feels the opening and reaches the key. As soon as she does, she removes her hand with a sharp yank that raises a moan from Cara, as both her nails and the key scratch slightly over Cara's tender flesh on the way out.
"Sorry." Kahlan mumbles as she almost jumps away from Cara, relieved to be away from the unnatural warmth of the Mord'Sith.
When they exit the room to meet with Richard and Zedd, Kahlan looks flushed and embarrassed, whilst Cara has a smirk on her lips.
If she wasn't a Mord'Sith, she thinks she might have tried to high five the wizard.
.
Kahlan is sullen and withdrawn for the rest of the day.
She keeps throwing Cara accusatory glances.
It really makes Cara's day. No annoying discussion of feelings, no silliness between Kahlan and Richard. For once, they are making good time travelling. There is no stopping every three minutes to admire the scent of a flower or to listen to the sound of the water cascading over some rocks or some other similar nonsense.
It is one of their most productive days in many weeks.
That night, when they all sit around the fire having dinner in silence, Cara thinks maybe they are finally going to start being an efficient team. It actually reminds her of the times when she travelled with her sisters; all business.
Except when it was about pleasure. Although, in fact, even in pleasure, it was all business.
They were single minded like that, her sisters. She thinks fondly about them, most of the time, anyway. When it was time to walk, they walked. When it was time to fight, they fought. And, of course, always better than anyone else.
Mord'Sith do not do things half-way.
Unfortunately for her, the fact that Kahlan is unhappy makes Richard unhappy, and he is her Lord Rahl.
"Cara," he almost hisses as he moves to sit next to her the minute Kahlan moves away from the fire. She likes washing off before turning in for the night.
She looks at him, raising an eyebrow.
"What did you do to Kahlan? She has been upset ever since you two came out of the dungeon." The look he gives her is full of reproach.
"I didn't do anything!" And she absolutely didn't. If the Mother Confessor cannot handle a bit of warm flesh it is certainly not her fault and she is not going to apologize. In fact, she frowns as she says, "it is your fault that she is such a prude."
She crosses her arms over her chest, upset that Richard is upset with her.
Richard gapes at her for a second, and then frowns. He turns his face slightly as he notices Kahlan coming back to camp. Before the brunette can move closer and hear what he is saying, he leans into Cara's personal space and whispers, "fix it, Cara."
It is really the only occasion when Richard feels comfortable giving orders to Cara: when it means keeping Kahlan happy.
It annoys Cara. So she glares for a second, but then, she nods.
It is her duty to ensure he is not displeased, and she takes her duties to Lord Rahl very seriously.
That night, Cara takes first watch. After many months of travelling, the way they have decided to organize their night watches is simple. One night, Cara and Zedd keep watch. The following night, it is Richard and Kahlan. This means they can all rest for a full night every other night and also, that Richard and Kahlan get to sleep close to each other and keep each other company. It suits them all, really. Cara normally takes more than her half of the watch (so does Richard), so that Kahlan and the wizard are always well rested.
She spends her watch thinking about what to do.
She is perplexed, really. As far as she can tell, Kahlan is upset with her because Cara enjoyed having Kahlan's hand on her breast.
She frowns.
Why would anyone be upset about that?
Of course she enjoyed it. Kahlan is an attractive woman and she has soft, nice hands, with some calluses in the pads of her very long fingers from holding the knives. Cara can imagine how nicely those long fingers would feel elsewhere in her body.
Her reaction to having Kahlan's hand on her makes perfect sense to Cara.
She lets out a long breath. Truth is, she cannot really understand why Kahlan is upset. But then again, she can never really understand the ins and outs of Kahlan's feelings, whatever they may be.
Kahlan is pushing them away with her moody behaviour. So Cara decides she just needs to push back.
When it is time to wake the wizard for his watch, Cara does so by kicking him slightly. She makes sure she touches him with the instep of her boot, so she doesn't hurt him, but she is not particularly gentle.
"Wake up, wizard. It's your turn." She tells him when he blinks his eyes open.
Then, she digs her bedroll out of her pack and places it next to Kahlan's. The confessor has chosen to lay on the other side of the fire: away from Richard, Zedd and, more importantly, Cara guesses, herself.
She lies down and nudges Kahlan with her elbow a couple of times, until the other woman wakes. She gives her a brief smile as she rubs her eyes with one hand. "Mmmm, what is it, Cara?" she is too sleepy to remember she is upset with Cara.
"You are upset." Cara says.
It wakes Kahlan fully and makes her remember that indeed, she is.
"Let me sleep, Cara." With that, Kahlan turns her body away from Cara, giving the blonde woman her back.
It is a reasonable demand and one Cara would respect any other night, but not today. She has been told to fix this.
"Kahlan." She calls.
No answer.
"Kahlan."
Still no answer.
"Fine." Her voice is firm, like she is talking to a sister that has misbehaved.
Cara moves closer to Kahlan, almost spooning her fully, her arm reaching around the bigger woman, the palm of her hand splaying out over Kahlan's stomach and inching slowly closer to her chest. Kahlan stops breathing.
"Cara." It sounds like a warning.
Cara does the only thing she can think of.
She makes things square between them.
Surely that will stop Kahlan from feeling embarrassed.
She moves her hand up from her stomach and over Kahlan's covered breast and then, under her corset, fully cupping one of Kahlan's soft breasts.
What happens next is pretty much a blur, but the end result is that Cara sports a black eye for the rest of the week.
Cara kind of likes it.