CHAPTER V #3
Where Bardot’s court sparkles with the pretty bottled moonslight that accentuates all the vines and trees within the room, Castle Gaumond and this room open up to the night sky above us, its black walls lined with torches as it bravely tries to pierce the sky.
Where Bardot has open verandas and sparkling glass windows, Gaumond closes itself in, forcing everyone to interact under its glittering black mass with the sky above being the only window needed.
Dark sweeping pines lean against those black walls, their tops beckoning to the moons and met with the rising smoke from the large fireplaces below.
The tables are made from a thick and sturdy wood to anticipate the hardship against them, and where Bardot’s round tables are dainty and littered with white roses, Gaumond’s are carved purposely to look like the trees from the daunting forest that surrounds the city.
Everything about this dark and smokey court is different from my own, but that contrast is never so prevalent than when I look out at the people who make it so.
Three large barrels of ale and two barrels of toddy were rolled into the middle of the room shortly after dinner, the sight prompting the whole of the court to bang their mugs against their tables in cheer once again.
Apparently, and what I found out from Keane before we parted ways, court tonight won’t come to an end until all of the barrels were empty of their drink.
I stared at him in disbelief when he told me while the people of Warrior didn’t even bat an eye.
Thus began our real night of court and the heavy drink that followed.
Women sat on men’s laps in open flirtation and heavy intimacy, hands engaging everywhere and between everyone like it was the most natural thing to do.
Some of the touches were as innocent as clasps on the backs or mugs held to someone’s lips as they had them down a full ale, but others were as sensual as hands that reached beneath riding pants and dresses, the sultry smiles that accompanied them passed around like coin.
Nearly half of the room was engaged in pipe, a haze that became thicker as the night went on, and there’s been too many arm-wrestling matches than I even care to count.
I’ve also never seen so much gambling in my life as both Discerni and humans wagered kisses on top of their cinerin as they rolled their dice.
Men took off their shirts and let their hardened muscles glisten in sweat as they challenged eachother to different drinking games, while the women all fawned over those men and urged them on, promising a night they’d never forget.
And that’s not counting all the drink that flowed from the barrels like water.
Two large settees were brought into the middle of the room after dinner alongside the barrels, their seats angled directly towards the drink and forming a centralized meeting space for people to gather.
That space quickly became the life of the room after the first round of drinks, with the large crowds either dancing to the lively music that was playing near the entry doors or chatting around the easy access to drink as they celebrated a night worth remembering.
The court was an absolute party of no presumptions, and everyone, Discerni and humans alike, engaged in that sentiment together.
The hub near the barrels is where the Prince sits now, his whole demeanor relaxed and looking around his court in appreciation as he chats with everyone who passes him by.
Desmond is with him too, sitting just as relaxed on the same settee but at the opposite end.
There’s a woman between the two of them who is strikingly beautiful, her skin matching that of Holis and Mana’s and her blue eyes breathtaking from afar.
Her long dark hair is braided in multiple rows that fall down her back in Discerni fashion, though surprisingly, she looks to be human.
Her black dress reveals a thin but curving body, her chest angled towards the Master Informer in open desire as she chats with him.
Desmond has been grinning at the woman for quite some time, only now choosing to make a move as he leans forwards and whispers something in her ear.
The woman grins with a nod and stands up from her seat, letting the Master Informer take her hand and pull her into his lap.
She laughs and moves both knees to the sides of his thighs, straddling him without any hesitation.
I watch the two of them from the corner of the room, completely transfixed.
Never have I seen the Master Informer be so open and sensual, the man quite literally has a reputation for scaring the people of Bardot away whenever he visits.
His demeanor now is different, though, thoroughly laced with desire, and as he sits on the settee with a beautiful woman straddling his lap, there’s definitely no hint of the cool and hard man I’ve gotten used to at the capitol.
I watch as Desmond brings both hands to the woman’s hips and pulls her into his body, whispering in her ear once again.
She nods suggestively and throws both of her arms around his neck, her hips rolling into his as the Master Informer leans back with a satisfied smirk.
The two of them start grinding on each other, their embrace so natural that it pays tribute to the shameless atmosphere of this court, and if him and the woman ended up fucking on the settee, I truly wouldn’t be surprised, nor do I think I’d be able to look away.
The feel of heated eyes on my own body prompts me to glance slowly at the owner.
Prince Keane is watching me as I watch his brother, a sensual smile creeping on his lips.
He lifts a brow and gives me a knowing look, chuckling when I roll my eyes at him in return.
I try to act nonchalant, as if watching a couple nearly having sex in front of me is normal, but the playful look he gives back tells me he sees right through it.
Come join me, he mouths, tilting his head towards the barrels.
His eyes hold mine in another challenge, one that has my heart kicking against my chest.
I shake my head in feigned apology and sadness.
Quiet and gentle, Your Highness, remember? I mouth back, you’re just not my type.
Keane smirks in obvious disbelief and sends a fake pout my way. I laugh at the Prince and watch as his eyes dart to my lips to catch the sound, his gaze lingering for a moment before it dips down the curve of my neck to land on my breasts.
The sight of Keane’s eyes on my body stirs something deep within me, a reaction that revels in the heat of his attention and how thoroughly unashamed he is to give it. My body leans into that gaze almost immediately, every part of me flushing as I better angle myself for his view.
I smile when his eyes drift down to catch my exposed hip, his gaze following my fingers as I start to skim them towards the half-hidden curve of my ass.
His brown eyes track every movement I make as if it’s the only thing he’s interested in for the night, that gaze leaving a scorching heat of approval on my body that I truly can’t shake.
We continue like that for a while, with me pretending I’m not affected by his attention while he commandingly proves me wrong with every heated glance.
It’s a dangerous game we play, one in which I’m often reminded of how out of depth I am because the man literally exudes sensual confidence in a way I’ve never experienced from the men in Knowledge.
Not only that, but there’s something about Keane that makes me want to meet every challenge he sets, and if I don’t tread carefully, I’ll find myself embracing a new experience with a charming Prince…
Court continues steadily throughout the night and I find myself enjoying the full of it.
I’ve been walking along the tables and meeting with all the different Warriors, drinking and engaging and learning everything about them.
I smoke with a few ladies of the court, all of them asking me questions of Knowledge and what the men there are like.
They spend a good deal of time trying to convince me to wear a short dress in the Warrior style for tomorrow night, but I placate them by saying I’ll consider it even though Gail is already working on my alterations.
I watch as Cal finally accepts a few challenges in arm wrestling and cheer him on over my ale, and at some point far later in the night I stand with Alanna and Holis, the two debating over the ranges of their bows.
I sense another challenge brewing, this court full of them, and smile when I finally realize that Warrior truly just wants everyone to live up to their full potential.
The idea of idle contentment is foreign here, and before I know it I’m urging others into different challenges, most them ending with finishing off our mugs of ale.
The effects of my drinking start to take over in the early morning, but there’s something about the whole ambiance of this court that truly has me not caring.
It tells me that we’re all living, and that it’s okay to keep myself here on the drunken edge, so I decide to go with that feeling and accept another ale from Alanna.
The blonde Discerni smirks when she tilts her head for me to follow her to a table full of soldiers.
Heizman still has little to say to me when we walk up, but again, I truly couldn’t care less.
His friend Barnett is with him and is still as good looking as I remember from last night, so I sit next to the soldier with his gorgeous hazel eyes and spend a good amount of time laughing and flirting into the night.