Author's Note: The halfway point and the plot is about set. Thank for editing Tim413413.
I awoke sweating the next morning. Alia's leg was lifted onto my thigh and Mylle, who must have changed places was Angelica in the night, was pushed up tight against me. I lifted my head, trying to not wake anyone, and saw Angelica with half the bed to herself. She was practicing to be Queen, I supposed. I tried to shift a bit, to cool some of my parts. Mylle shifted in her sleep and her arm came around to hug me. I could feel her small breasts on my side, and we now breathed each other's air. Everyone, but I, seemed comfortable.
I could not go back to sleep and lying still as an overheated pillow did not appeal to me. I maneuvered my limbs and slowly crawled out of the bed. Alia and Mylle made small sounds as I disturbed them. Neither had opened their eyes, so I pulled the blankets back over them. I fed the embers in the hearth new wood. It fired up quickly and began to eat at the slight chill that had filled the room during the night. I quietly dressed, not wanting to wake my three angels. I looked down at them, all three blissfully comfortable. At that moment, I loved all three more than life itself. I smiled at Angelica, mayhap four in time.
I left the room quietly and found Lucius in the hall. He was chatting with a young woman I had seen before in the kitchen. He was oblivious to my approach, his eyes and attention held only her. It lightened my heart to see it.
"My Lord!" Lucius said with a quick bow. I had caught him by surprise. The young lady gave a similar response and curtsied with a blush on her face. She was not where she was supposed to be. "I had not expected you up this early."
"A grand morn," I said brightly, "and who is this?" Lucius was about to answer when the woman beat him to it.
"Trinity, my Lord," she answered quickly, with a little apprehension, "forgive me, I am not in my place. I shall return at once." Now Lucius's face looked red. I smiled.
"Flee if you wish," I said, "I have no mind to disturb a friend in polite conversation." With that, I patted a smiling Lucius's shoulder and went on my way. I hoped she stayed, it gladdened me that someone else could be as happy as I.
I visited the privy and moved down to the kitchen. It was an anthill of activity. Most visitors would be leaving today, so breakfast must be served before they departed. I wished some biscuits and gravy. I could smell the gravy from down the hall and gathered a craving.
"Where is that Trinity?" Madeline yelled to whomever would answer as I approached. Madeline ran the kitchens and had done so since I been young. She was a large woman with a normally sweet disposition. The wedding had tasked her hard, and this morning seemed to add fuel to the fire.
"My apologies, mistress Madeline," I said cheerfully, "I had sent her with words for my steward. I should have consulted first." Madeline turned and her face calmed.
"No, my Lord. We are, of course, at your disposal," Madeline said carefully.
"I have come to convey my thanks to you," I added on the spur, "the feast was excellent. I was many times proud to accept the thanks of our guests for your efforts." I had made another person happy. It was going to be a glorious day.
"It was your wedding, my Lord." Madeline's smile spanned the kitchen. "I would have it no other way." I moved toward the gravy.
"My thanks all the same." My nose was over the pot and I could smell the sausage. "Might I have a bit of gravy over biscuits? It smells wonderful."
"Of course, my Lord," Madeline said, then served me herself. It was a plate load that would feed two, but I was not about to stop her. She was glowing, it had been a long time since I had complimented her work. I would make sure it would not be so long again. I would have to mention it to Angelica so she could add her praise.
I took the gravy outside, and it steamed in the crisp air. I could tell, from the brightening sky, it was going to be a clear, sunny day. The sun had yet to grasp full control of it, but it was cloudless all the same. I lightly fingered a gravy-soaked biscuit and took a large bite. It tasted as good as it smelled. I sat on the steps and prepared to enjoy my meal in peace.
"Did you mount my sister?" Uri had snuck up behind me and destroyed my mood. There was a brief moment when I had him wearing the gravy in my mind.
"Good morn, Prince," I offered without inflection. The alliance demanded tolerance. I turned my head to see him dressed for travel. He was not staying the day, and I found that to my liking.
"Must I ask again?" Uri demanded. There was only so much a man can take first thing in the morning. I was about to stand, and I sensed the results would not be good.
"I was mounted well, my brother," Angelica stated firmly, "am I to be talked about like cattle all day?" Uri and I both turned to her. I smiled, and Uri went grimmer.
"Good morn, my love," I said cheerfully. Her timing was welcome and saved more heat than she knew. "You were sleeping so peacefully, I thought not to wake you."
"After such a thorough mounting, I had thought to sleep the day away," Angelica teased, "'tis a wonder I can walk at all." She looked at her brother with a sly smile.
"Apologies for my words, my sister," Uri said, wearing his personal gloom like a badge, "it pleases me the marriage has been consummated." He headed down the stairs toward the stables. With his back turned, he spoke again. "It is my hope the heir will not be broken." I dropped my plate and stood. My intentions were not pleasant things. It was Angelica who held me back.
"Let him leave, my love," Angelica whispered, "he has no one but his own mind. It is a black place, and you would only make it darker." I stayed my hand as requested and took a few deep breaths.
"I will not listen to it forever," I said in warning. His words were responsible for much of Angelica's pain.
"We will tolerate it," Angelica said, "he is family and part of the alliance. He uses only words, that is the extent." She pulled my face to hers. "You may protect me from all others, but leave my brother to me." She kissed me, not like an aunt. I would grant her her brother, but no one else.
"Bathe," Angelica ordered, "wash my scent off. Then go to your true wife, and prove I am naught but duty." Her smile was deliciously evil.
"You are more than duty, my wife," I said. Though the idea of Alia sped my heart.
"She knows," Angelica whispered, "it is a pleasant lie though." I kissed Angelica's cheek then went quickly to bathe. I intended to lie much.
<<<<<>>>>>
It was good day to win a match. I had finally mastered Tavia and I had Mylle risking her first match loss. I had won three games to her one. It had taken many weeks to get to this point, and I was enjoying being well ahead in the current game. We were evenly matched in skill now. The dice were more or less the determining factor, though it felt like my sheer mastery today.
"Angelica could not hold in her meal this morn again," Mylle said as she rolled the dice. We had tried four more times to conceive an heir. Each attempt was many days apart. We had developed a pattern that worked, strange as it was. It found the four of us in bed together, each doing a part to speed the process. It had become a function of necessity and had little to do with pleasure, though I was having trouble distinguishing between.
Alia had joined at the second attempt, more for my heart than hers. I felt the pain she should have, for me being with another. She found it humorous to speed my seed. Her whispered words at the right moment would shorten the process greatly. Angelica no longer found the process uncomfortable, but little pleasure was derived from my manhood. She did so like the idea of being a mother. Her smile at my completion was adorable. It was better than the completion itself.
"She did not tell me that," I responded. I hoped it was as my mother said, a sign she was with child. Mylle moved her stones safely, though it did little to alter her impending loss. There was something about winning a contest against the teacher that held a strong appeal. I would attempt to be gracious, though it would be difficult.
"That is three days," Mylle said, "it is promising." She watched me roll a set of matching pips. It did not seem to phase her.
"She could be simply ill," I responded. My mother thought otherwise. She was following Angelica around making sure she did not strain herself. I moved my pieces in a tactical way, increasing my lead, and limiting Mylle's ability to recover. I no longer had to count triangles by hand; the moves were intuitive.
"You are going to win," Mylle said with happiness. My insides were jumping up and down, but I had remained calm on the outside. Her admitting it, made me smile against my will.
"You have taught me to well."
"It is more fun if we are both good," Mylle added. She seemed more excited about my victory than I was. I enjoyed our games and wished them more often. Having her to myself was a treat. She was rarely in a bad mood. She cared deeply, and always worried about our feelings toward each other. I watched her face closely as she futilely rolled the dice and moved her pieces. None of this would have worked without her. She was Angelica's strength and my steadfast guide through the strangeness we had wrought. She smiled when she caught me staring.
"I have not told you how much you mean to me," I said honestly. She surprised me by moving around the board and sitting on my lap.
"I already know, but I will hear it from your lips," Mylle said sweetly. She was comfortable on my lap as light as she was. There was a serene intimacy born from waking with her naked body at my side.
