Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
CYPRIEN
Ididn’t know how I got home. The last thing I remembered was the king’s voice as I exited through the secret door at the back of the hedge maze. Had I dreamed it all? If so I had never before dreamt something so vivid, so steamy.
I awoke naked and confused. My entire body ached, but that could have been from the beating I had taken from my stepbrothers before they left.
A soft light from the east signified that dawn would soon approach.
Certainly I was awake too early to have been out drinking and getting fucked until midnight.
Not simply fucked, but well and thoroughly fucked–by the prince himself!
I had to have dreamt that. The prince would never.
How could he? It was treasonous to just think it.
And yet, my body seemed to have memorized his touch.
My lips burned from the memory of his passionate kiss, like he had been trying to devour me as one would their final meal.
My cock thickened almost painfully as the scene filled my head, a golden god pumping in and out of me as I writhed beneath him.
The orgasm had been so powerful that it seemed my soul had left my body.
It was transcendent and impossible. I glanced down the length of myself, remembering how he touched me, finding my erection coated in liquid gold.
A quick glance in the mirror revealed gold smeared across my lips and chin.
“Oh, Blessed River,” I cursed softly. The proof was right there, literally painted across my skin.
I really had gone to the ball and gotten myself fucked by the prince.
My cheeks burned at the realization of what a whore I had been.
Though, if memory served, he was the one who pursued me. He was also the one who initiated.
No, that wasn’t true, I’d kissed him, given myself up to him so easily like I had been waiting a lifetime to do it.
There had been no resistance, no hesitation, just complete submission to his will.
It hadn’t crossed my mind once to deny him, there was no voice telling me that it was wrong.
I hadn’t even consciously been thinking of him as the prince if I’m being honest. What had gotten into me last night?
Was it the wine? The magic? Primal magnetism? Did Sage have something to do with it?
The soft skittering of small paws drew me out of my reverie and I looked to the window as three familiar forms scurried inside.
My raccoon friends formed a semicircle in front of me and stared up at my face.
They looked as if they were trying to communicate with me and seemed to be having difficulty ignoring my nudity, which was strange.
The odd looks on their little faces had me scrambling to find and put on pants.
“Cyprien?” A small squeak came from behind me as I pulled on the first thing my hand touched–a sleeping gown. I tugged the fabric on and stared at the creatures assembling before me.
“Did one of you just talk? For real talk? Or am I going crazy?” My eyes darted between the three of them and I collapsed to the floor. Given everything that occurred last night, I don’t know why my brain chose now to have a crisis over it.
Chuck rose onto his back paws and looked me in the eye. “No, you aren’t going crazy. At least, no more than usual. That Fairy Godparent of yours told us a secret after we closed you into the carriage. They gave us the ability to speak to you, permanently, as a gift for helping last night.”
“N-No. No! Absolutely not!” I stuttered. “You know all of my secrets! I don’t need you speaking human.”
Bowie crept closer and put a paw on my leg. “You misunderstand.We can only communicate with you. No one else can understand us.” I could hear a tittering sound beneath the words, as though he was making raccoon noises and the rest was in my head.
Pushing my hands through my hair, I looked at the only raccoon who hadn’t spoken yet “And you, Lila??” Something akin to a smile crossed her little face, followed by what I could only assume was bashfulness.
“I don’t speak as well as my brothers.” It was almost a whisper beneath the chitters. “I feel… shy? Yes, shy.”
“Well I’ll be damned to the Depths.” I looked at them one by one again then out the window to the much brighter sky.
“As much as I would love to explore this right now, I need to get cleaned up and dressed so I can start my chores. I can’t give Octavius any reason to believe I had anything that resembled fun last night. ”
Their little voices blended together in a cacophony of raccoon noises and human words as I stood and gently shooed them back out the window. Once they were back out on the tree I promised, “We’ll finish this later,” then closed the window.
Stripping off, I used the clean water and rag that I must have prepared before passing out to clean myself up.
Once all of the gold was gone and I was dressed in my usual clothes, I headed downstairs.
It was almost breakfast time and I was running behind.
I could already tell that I was going to be preoccupied all day with thoughts of the night before, stuck in daydreams about things that could never happen.
Despite my attempts to focus on my chores, I kept finding myself drifting back to memories of a gold-covered lion.
I was quickly falling for the prince.
Fuck. Me.
ALARIC
I woke up the next morning to a burning sensation in my left arm.
Assuming it was from sleeping in my makeup, I had my servants prepare a bath.
It took half an hour of soaking and a special oil to remove all of the paint.
My hair was the worst, taking five washes for it to return to its natural color.
The entire process required changing the bathwater three times but eventually, all of the golden paint was gone and I felt clean once more.
By the time my bath was finished, I was hot all over and a raised welt had appeared on my arm.
The servants said nothing, but I caught them staring on more than one occasion.
I stood in my towel in front of the mirror and examined it.
What I had thought was an amorphous shape turned out to be the perfect outline of a hand, a large hand.
It was hot to the touch and emitted a soft glow that pulsed in time with my heartbeat.
I turned to one of the servants. “I have need of the Royal Magus. Send a messenger to tell him to meet my father and I in the royal office.”
“Yes, your Highness.” She bowed and darted from the room. The rest of the servants stood around and stared.
“Someone help me get dressed, quickly!” I all but shouted. “It is of the utmost importance that I get whatever this is looked at.” This snapped them out of their nearly catatonic states and all but one of them ran from the room.
The one who stayed had been with me since I was a child.
She was a no-nonsense woman who had seen everything, and was impressed by none of it.
She gestured for me to come away from the mirror and handed me my pants.
“Forgive me, your Highness, but I would rather not touch you until we know what that is on your arm.”
“Fair enough.” I accepted the pants and pulled them on while she found me a clean shirt and suitable boots.
When she reached for a jacket I stopped her.
“No sense in that. The Magus will need to examine the area.” Once I’d pulled on my socks and had been handed my boots, I dismissed my remaining servant.
She left the room at a fast walk, not even glancing behind her as she vanished from sight.
I finished dressing, then hurried to my father’s office, where I knew he would be waiting on me as we had agreed the night before.
Although he would be receiving far different news than he was expecting.
It was a delicate situation, and I wasn’t sure how to handle it and the expeditious walk to his office didn’t afford enough time to contemplate the issue.
Raised voices trickled out of his open door as I approached.
At first, I recognized only my father’s voice, booming and aggressive.
Then I could make out two softer–yet no less aggressive–voices.
My mother and sister were verbally tearing my father apart.
I stood around the corner from the office and listened.
“You said I had to consider every eligible male at the ball, and I did. They were all selfish cretins, only after a crown and no more fit to rule your kingdom than a goat. I have chosen my husband, just as you demanded, and you are still not satisfied?” Lydia screeched.
“Travis qualifies as an eligible bachelor. He has won accolades in the guard and his grandfather was your father’s most trusted general!
You are only angry because you did not get to control the results of my participation in the ball. ”
“How dare you speak to me in such a manner? I am your father and your king! This is treasonous behaviour!”
“Our daughter has upheld the spirit and letter of her end of this ill-contrived bargain. She was to attend the ball and present you with the name of her future husband, she has done those things. Be satisfied.”
“Be satisfied? Woman, I do not have to be satisfied with anything. I am the king! Your daughter had better hope that her brother has made a better choice, for all of your sakes.”
“Are you threatening to banish me, William? How quickly you have forgotten whose family has been funding this kingdom for the last twenty-five years. Exile me and see how quickly they declare war and that money disappears. I have stood by and watched your tyrannous behavior long enough!. I sent out three letters the day you made your proclamation regarding our children. One to each of my brothers so at least one would be received. If they do not receive a corresponding letter from me carrying a specific phrase within a fortnight, they are to send a diplomatic envoy to your doorstep to renegotiate the treaty that was set up when we wed. If you do not agree to all demands or the envoy does not return unmolested, their troops will march on your beloved kingdom and rip it to pieces.” The bland tone in my mother’s voice had me taken aback.
She had spoken as though she was simply choosing what jewels to wear that day, not threatening the entire kingdom.
“Drusilla,” my father pleaded, sounding defeated and afraid. “Surely you jest? You wouldn’t do that to me–to this kingdom that you so love.”
“That is where you are wrong William. I will do anything for my children. I tolerated years of you being overbearing and cruel for their sakes and I will ensure it is all burnt to the ground for the same.”
My mother’s tone was final and all conversation in the room ceased for a moment.
I stood at the corner, trying to find an excuse to return to my rooms. There was no way that I wanted to follow that with my odd handprint issue.
Unfortunately, the Magus chose that time to hurry toward the office door from the opposite direction, catching me eavesdropping.
“Boy, what are you doing waiting out here? Come now, let us see what has all of your servants so worried.” He asked for my hand, then allowed me to enter the room ahead of him.
“Worried servants? What’s this all about?” My father had recovered himself and gestured at the Magus and myself. “Why do we need the Magus to discuss your chosen betrothed?”
“We don’t, Father. We need him for an issue of probable magic and my personal health.” I removed my shirt, revealing the handprint. Its glowing had intensified and the outline was more refined. “I woke up with this and do not know from whence it came.”
The Magus gasped and grabbed me by the arm, using a monocle to study the mark.
“This is the Hand of Fate, my boy. A high honor from the River Maiden herself. Whoever’s hand matches that print on your arm is your soulmate, your one true love.
It can happen during any impassioned exchange, though it usually happens during coitus. Were you with anyone last night?”
I swallowed hard and shook my head in shock and disbelief thinking back to the gladiator from the night before. “I, uh, yes, I was. But it can’t be possible. I mean, are you sure?”
“Indeed, there is no way,” my father blustered. “You were with a common maid last night. Surely someone so lowborn could never be the soulmate of a prince.”
“It wasn’t a maid. It was a man! One dressed as a gladiator. He slipped in unnoticed and was never announced, nor did I get his name.”
“A man?” my father roared. “What is the meaning of this? You cannot produce heirs with a man! Two men could never rule together. We will ignore this match, I command it!”
“Watch what you command, dear husband,” my mother cooed. “You heard the Magus: The River Maiden herself gifted him with this. Who are we to defy her? Do you have more authority than our most precious deity?”
The Magus had stayed strangely silent during this exchange, but deigned to agree with my mother.
“Yes, your Majesty, this is a gift from the highest of places. Many centuries ago, it was much more common for young lovers to be given the Hand of Fate. Now it happens maybe once every fifty years. We must treat this as the highest of honors and find the prince’s gladiator so they may be wed. ”
My father had the sense to nod silently and gesture for it to be done.
Mother clapped her hands together. “Such a rare gift, and it was given to my beautiful son! Do not worry. I will pull the list of invitations sent and we shall go door to door if we must. I swear to you, we will find this gladiator of yours.”
My father quickly recovered from his dressing down. “We will send out a proclamation that all eligible males must submit to a hand exam–today. Anyone who came to the ball last night will still be close enough to the castle to reach before nightfall.”
“As you say,” my mother agreed. “Son, go get properly dressed so that you can ride out on the heels of those delivering the proclamation.”
I bowed to my mother, ignoring my father altogether and left the room. Once the doors closed behind me, I took off across the castle at a dead run, hoping in the depths of my soul that my gladiator was someone he couldn’t possibly be.