Vol. 5: A Duchess for the Duke
My foul mood continued on the voyage home from Jarno (Prince Bonir Vol. 4: The Defense of the Realm). I had delivered on my promise to my cousin King Edelbert (the third) to defend the realm from the Vikings, but at what cost? In the spring, the King of Norway would come to Averic with his three daughters, from which I would choose one to marry to cement the alliance that would cease the Viking invasions of our homeland. At the same time the woman with whom I had shared passion the likes of which I had never known was on her way back home to Sweden, where I would never see her again. Yes, my dedicated concubines Eve and Arianna would surely be at their best welcoming me back home, but I had none of the eager anticipation I usually felt when returning to my castle. After the passions I had experienced with Sigrid, I feared that making love to anyone now would be as bland and tasteless as boiled potatoes.
I would be wrong.
Sure it felt nice to be back home, and after our victory at the fort we received a hero's welcome. Holding court upon my return, Eve and Arianna took up their usual positions, unobtrusive against the lefthand wall, waiting for the time when I retired to my private chamber and they could welcome me back in private. It was mid-afternoon when I reached the castle, so only the very most pressing business was brought forth before I retired to my room. I had snuck a few peeks in their direction during court, trying to build myself up to performing when my heart was not in it. But something was odd about them. I could not put my finger upon it at first, but as I waited for them to come around to the back door of my private chamber, it clicked—it had appeared that their usual roles were reversed. The younger, excitable Arianna was usually the one seemingly struggled to maintain decorum, while Eve was always in complete control. But I realized the one who had seemed to be bouncing up and down at my return was Eve, and Arianna was the one quiet and reserved.
And so it was when I opened the door. It was Eve that rushed in and threw her arms around me, and Arianna that, although she came over and hugged me as well, was more reserved. Both kissed my cheek and told me how happy they were to see me. Then Arianna said, "My Lord, Eve has some news," she said.
I turned to Eve, who seemed about to burst. "I am with child!" she blurted out.
I was dumbfounded. "What?" I had been so rapt in the events at Jarno, I had forgotten my fears before setting sail that I might not return and leave no heir to rule Averic. Eve had volunteered herself and talked me into forgoing the sheath, that if the Lord willed it she might conceive. Apparently she had.
"It's not official yet," she added, "I am not past the first trimester, but there is no mistaking it."
I had fretted about the political implications of leaving a bastard heir, but now that it seemed I was getting one, all I felt was joy. Not knowing what to say, I held her close as she clasped her arms around my neck. Then I couldn't help myself, I had to touch her belly. She didn't show yet of course, but it seemed like you could feel her womb hardening to protect the infant inside. "I was hoping you would be pleased and not cross," she admitted.
Arianna cursied, saying "I shall leave you two alone," and headed toward the door.
"No, wait..." I called after her, "I have news, too."
She turned back while I sat down. It felt as if anchors were dragging down my shoulders. I looked up and saw my two lovely paramours standing anxiously awaiting my news. Maybe I had to get married, and who know what my future wife would be like, but regardless I would still have these lovely ladies to turn to. I was NOT giving them up, King of Norway be damned. And then a smile crept across my face, as a plan began to take shape.
"Well, I have warned you since the first that there would come a day when there would be a duchess in the castle. That day will come sooner rather than later...I am to be married in the spring." A collective gasp came from the two of them. "Just as I always said I would, I am now having to take a wife for political reasons. Nevertheless, I assure you once again that you both shall always be welcome in the castle so long as I reign here. Just as once you had to adjust to sharing me with each other, now there will be a third person as well. The shall be a duchess, but she shall complement you, not supplant you. Understood?"
The both nodded, hearing my words but questioning how long they would hold true, as I would have in their shoes. "In fact, I shall need you to help me choose whom to marry."
"Choose, my Lord?" Eve asked.
"Once the ice has melted sufficiently, the King of Norway shall sail to Averic with this three unwed daughters—I'm afraid I've forgotten their names already. I shall have one week in which to choose which I shall marry. And since one thing she's going to have to understand is that while she may be the Duchess she still must share the house, I am going to require your assistance..."
My news kind of spoiled my initial welcome home, but after we had talked about it and had dinner, my dear ladies were quite ready to lie with me again—at the same time. That certainly was something Sigrid wasn't able to offer. And while making love with Arianna and Eve didn't have the smoldering intensity, ready to burst into an inferno of passion at any moment, it also wasn't flat and hollow as I had thought. I found myself feeling particularly tender and, well, possessive of Eve now that she carried my child. Assuming she continued to full term, we would share a permanent bond that no degree of change to either of our circumstances could dissolve.
It was funny, I also found myself afraid to make love to her for fear of harming the baby. I drilled into Arianna's depths with the intensity to which they were accustomed, but when we switched and I made union with Eve, I was timid, like I was walking on eggshells, and only penetrated about halfway. Eve chastised me playfully for my fear; her dress had been pulled down at the top and up at the bottom, but now she tossed it away entirely. She turned sideways, running her fingers along her still-flat belly, and admonished "see...I do not show at all as yet. There is no reason to treat me like fragile porcelain." She sat back down, leaned back, and lifted her legs high. "Why don't you see for yourself?" A broad smile slowly crept across my face, and I did.
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The winter seemed to pass very quickly. I certainly didn't forget Sigrid, but clearly in my time away from the castle I had forgotten just how attached I was to Eve and Arianna—and just how skilled they actually were at providing pleasure. And yet, it was not as if things just returned to normal at the castle, either. I and many of my household (including my concubines) spent time trying to learn a little Norwegian, for one. The only teacher we had at our disposal, however, was Thera, who had been a captive of the Norwegians for just a month; she had only picked up so much in that short time. As Eve passed into the second trimester, the growing child began to slow her down. While I could make love to her if she lay on her side in my bed, it was very difficult in my private apartments, where the majority of our carnal explorations took place. She could yet use her mouth, but I had to bring myself to where she could reach, rather than the other way around. Arianna picked up the slack; for the first time since she joined my household, one of my paramours was receiving much more of my attention than the other. In a strange sort of way, it balanced out; the extra attention she was receiving helped make up for the fact that Eve was carrying my child.
When the snows melted enough for the meadows to begin to peek through, I had the staff embark on a thorough top to bottom cleansing of the castle. The King might arrive any day—I was sure he would set sail as soon as humanly possible—and I wanted to leave a good impression. It was the third week of March when the sound of horns in the distance announced the arrival of the King of Norway and his escorts. Unfortunately it was also a Wednesday. From my brief dealings with the King, I anticipated that he would want the wedding to take place this Saturday, not next, leaving me not a week but just three days to select my bride.
I immediately dispatched carriages to the port, who brought our distinguished visitors to the castle. I stood in the courtyard to formally receive them when they arrived. The door to the carriage swung open, and a loud, jovial voice called out "O-ho, how goes my newest son?" Then the King himself stepped out of the carriage. Apparently he had made the attempt to learn some of our language over the winter—it kind of impressed me that he thought it was worth the trouble. That was about the extent of King Harald's attempt at speaking my language, though, which was fine.
"Hallo, velkomen," I replied—the Norwegian sounded so much like our own tongue, I wasn't sure they'd even notice the difference, but the even heartier reception suggested they did. He put his arm around my shoulders and squeezed so hard they felt like they might snap. He first introduced his wife, Queen Malena, who looked every bit the queen as she gracefully stepped from the carriage. Then together they proudly introduced their three daughters. They also had two sons, but they had been left back home, just so that a disaster at sea wouldn't take the entire royal family and leave Norway in chaos.
"My eldest daughter...Inga." Inga stepped gracefully out of the carriage and into the light. She wore a finely-made, brocaded dress with a swooping neckline hinting at, but actually showing little of, two extremely healthy breasts underneath. She had fine golden hair, swept up in a braid that was then twisted into a stately swirl atop the head. She seemingly glided across the ground, where she curtsied while I kissed her hand. Then she took a step back and waited for her sisters to be announced. It looked like she was about Eve's age, that is to say three or four years older than I.
"My middle daughter...Petra." A second girl stepped out of the carriage; momentarily blinded by the light, she nearly tripped while getting out, much to her embarrassment. She had very light hair, paler than her sister's, which she wore in a single long braid down her back. Her dress was not as intricate as Inga's, but for that reason was also easier to walk in. She almost rushed to curtsey, to get out of the limelight after her near disastrous entrance. I kissed her hand, and she hastily moved to alongside her sister. She was a bit shorter than Inga and was not as well-endowed, but seemed to be about my age.
"And my youngest daughter, Freya." The last girl ducked to get out of the carriage; even before she stood next to them, it was plain that she was the tallest of the three. She was also very young, certainly no older than Arianna had been when first I met her. She was almost as slender as Arianna as well. She had two thin braids of light blonde hair, the same color as Petra's, rising from behind her ears, meeting up in the back and then hanging down, keeping order over the rest of her hair which was otherwise loose and free. She had fine high cheekbones and delicate color to her skin—she was at first glance the most beautiful of the three, although in truth all of them attractive. Upon getting out of the carriage, Freya looked this way and that way at things that she'd never seen—I wondered if she'd never been outside of Scandinavia before. She too curtsied, but was distracted by her curiousity. Her mother growled something I did not understand, but after that Freya paid closer attention to the proceedings.
"Ladies," I said by way of introduction, "welcome to Castle Averic. I am Prince Bonir, Duke of Averic and cousin of his majesty, King Edelbert III. Thank you so much for traveling all this way to visit my humble home—and at week's end, it shall be one of your homes as well. As to whose, well, only time will tell."
"We are honored, your Grace," Inga replied with but the barest trace of accent. "It is a beautiful castle. I look forward to seeing more of it."
