Welcome back to Holinite Village! Our story began back in October with All Hallows' Eve Masquerade , so if you haven't read that, go back and check it out first! This is part one of three of Yuletide Hearths.
**
There was a mouth nibbling at her neck as Rubina shook the bones again and scattered them on the table. The fire in the hearth was dying, and the chill was seeping in. Most nights, the company of the three men she loved was enough to keep her warm, especially when their bodies were pressed up against hers. The past few weeks had been the happiest of her life, but now the bones were warning her that it might all be taken away again.
The only problem was that the bones weren't being specific enough. All she knew was that Slyvern and Pryanna were at the center.
And Slyvern was not cooperating.
"Come to bed, little witch," Dashiel whispered huskily as he moved his hands down her body. As always, her skin warmed under his touch and her pussy ached.
"Not yet," she murmured despite the sweet temptation that he offered her. "I want to try one more thing tonight."
As she reached to collect the bones, her chair moved suddenly, and she found herself facing him. The slave demon was on his knees in front of her, but it wasn't desire in his eyes.
It was concern.
"Day after day, night after night. you stare at those bones and hunch over ancient texts. Ever since Cecily and Althena's last visit. My brothers and I have been quiet, my love, but you are hiding something from us, and we wish to know what it is."
Frustrated, Rubina tucked a strand of her silver-blonde hair behind her ear and looked up. Dagon and Damien were filling doorway of her bed chamber with somber expressions on their face.
These three men held her heart. First, the brothers had been her guards when she was the chosen maiden in the bed of the dragon god. They kept her company when he was gone, cheered her up, stole her heart, and when she'd come into her magic, they risked their lives for one passionate night together.
Furious, Slyvern had enslaved them, separating the brothers into a pocket realm so she could never touch them again. Now that the dragon had a new potential mate, he'd freed them until spring.
They would want more, but they might not even have that. She could no longer hide her fears.
"The last time Cecily was here, she made a strange comment about the man Pryanna let spend the night in the past. She and Althena both believe her to be too pragmatic to bed the stranger, but they thought the occurrence was unusual." She gave the brothers a meaningful look. "The only other thin unusual Pryanna seems to have done other than allow herself to be kidnapped by a god.
Dagon smirked. He'd been the one who sensed that Pryanna wasn't a maiden. It only bothered her because Slyvern only took virgins. She feared what would happen when the dragon god found out, and when Cecily and Athena had come one night to demand to know where their friend had gone, Rubina had told them everything.
Since then, Cecily and Althena had returned weekly to see if she'd heard anything, and Rubina had grown fond of the women.
She'd learned all kinds of things about Pryanna and hoped she would not lose herself to the dragon. It was obvious that she had people who still cared for her.
"Does it matter?" Dashiel asked.
"No. What's done is done. I wasn't even going to ask the other women about it. Slyvern might accept it, or he might not, but he wouldn't hurt her because of it, but he would discard her." Like he did all the others when he was done. "But when Cecily mentioned a stranger Pryanna took in one night, she had some rather salient details. A handsome and mysterious stranger they never saw again. A tattooed stranger."
Instantly, the men straightened, and Damien looked at the mark on his chest.
"I had the feeling that Cecily recognized the mark when she saw it on me. You think Slyvern has another slave?"
"Althena also remembered the mark. It was gold."
Everyone in the room knew what that meant. Slyvern had a gold mark, but it wouldn't be him. He never took women out of turn like that, but he wasn't the only one who wore the gold tattoo.
It was the mark of a god.
"You think another god seduced Pryanna that night. Why? What is so special about her?" Damien asked.
Rubina looked at Dagon. "Did you sense anything when you were with her?" Her voice didn't shake which pleased her. She was still jealous that part of the brother's punishment was to sleep with other women. At least their spirits. The first time Cecily and Althea had been here, with their men, it had been awkward, but the brothers didn't look at them in that way, and her jealousy soon abated.
"I sensed that she wasn't mine to have," Dagon said simply, "and I knew it was useless to try. She wouldn't have me, but if the others could sense that she was meant for another god, it might attract their curiosity."
"More than curiosity, it would seem," Rubina pointed out. "If another god took her knowing she belonged to Slyvern..."
"It's a declaration of war," Damien finished grimly. "You've been looking into the future. What does it tell you?"
"The bones tell me that Pryanna must connect with him by Yuletide, or he won't be able to stop what happens."
"What will happen?"
Turning. Rubina stared at her bones. "The complete destruction of all the villages that belong to the mountains, including Holinite."
***
There was a basket of fruits and vegetables outside the mouth of the cave.
Despite her current mood, Pryanna smiled a little as she picked up the basket and brought it inside. Every morning, for five weeks, a present appeared outside. All gifts from Slyvern to try and make her happy. Some of the items were of mind-boggling value, gold and jewels meant to impress the wealthy.
There were beautiful silk dresses that fit her perfectly and luxury items of comfort. The cave, primitive and ominous on the outside was actually lavishly furnished on the inside with beautifully carved wood furniture and plump cushions. Large enough to fit a whole family of dragons, Pryanna often felt small and lost inside.
Strangely enough, although the place was clearly Slyvern's dwelling, he hadn't slept there once. Oh, he spent many hours of the day there, napping and cautiously watching her, but where he went at night, she had no idea.
It was a relief, though. It was disconcerting enough to have a god watching her during the day. At least with him gone at night, she could sleep without fearing what he would do to her body.
He confounded her. Yesterday, he'd brought her a gold necklace so bejeweled it would have pulled her down had she dared to wear it, and she lost her temper. She could not be bought. If he really wanted to please her, he'd bring her some fresh fruits and vegetables for he only fed her meat and bread and cheese.
He'd looked mildly surprised but hadn't been angry that she'd rejected his gift. Instead, he'd just stretched his wings and flown away in the night.
It was a guilty pleasure to watch him shift. His beautiful winged form reflected the moon and shimmered in incredible purples, blues, and greens. He never openly showed her his dragon form, and she never asked even though she would have loved to examine him.