"Daria, the Warrior Queen" (closed to current writers)

[PennySaver]

"Everything about your castle is wonderful," Palla complimented as Daria continued her slow encircling, as if a predator stalking its prey. "I am honoured to be here. Truly."

Reminding Palla of her status, Daria said softly, "Yes, you should be."

Palla's turn toward Daria -- a bit into the Queen's path, to be honest -- resulted in the latter stopping just barely within reach of the former as Palla responded about Gwent and Meara, "The sheriff only told me that he had once been my sister's guard and that now, she was here in your protection."

Daria didn't know whether to believe that or not, but she didn't have much time to consider it before the Sheriff's new toy continued with a suggestive tone, "Though there are whispers that she is your pet in a way."

The Queen's expession hardened just a bit at Palla's last. It was offensive to Meara, of course; at the same time, it was much closer to the truth than Daria wanted to admit at times. Just as with Meara, Daria sometimes wondered how she had fallen so hard for the girl. How many dozens -- hundreds? -- of women had Daria lain with since her mid-teens, from sex slaves to females simply wishing to partake of her as she had of them? And this girl from Greendale who had never been naked with another person -- male or female -- had stolen her heart?

"A sweet girl you have taken under your wing," Palla continued. "Educating her and showing her the ways of diplomacy. Very kind of you, mistress."

"Yes, very kind," Daria murmured, more to herself than to the other woman. Daria let her gaze fall to the barely-still-in-her-teens young woman's bosom, then further to her narrow waist and shapely hips, outlined quite well in the slightly small dress of thin, curves hugging cloth. She looked up into the girl's dark eyes and said with a suggestive tone, "But not a kindness that I would restrict to only one girl."

 

[SandS13]

And there it was, the opening that Palla needed. She batted her eyes and stepped closer to the queen. "You would allow another to be so privileged? You are most generous."

She decided to take a risk. Palla knelt before Daria and slowly began to slide her hands up Daria's legs. "Allow me to show you that I am worthy?" Her dark eyes, smaller than her sister's looked up at Daria.
-----
Meara opened her eyes and sat up in the bed. She looked around and rang the bell. Finna appeared in the door. "Yes?"

"Is the queen busy? If she is, can you please ask her to come and see me, if...if that pleases her when she has time?"

Finna bowed her head a little and left the room to deliver the message. Meara slipped from the bed. Her eyes fell on the vials. She looked away and moved to stand at a window, looking out at the city below.

 

[PennySaver]

(OOC: Ignore the context of the image below and think only of the dress.)

"You would allow another to be so privileged?" Palla continued with her quest to find a place in Daria's life. "You are most generous."

When the girl dropped slowly to her knees, Daria was both surprised and titillated by the girl's boldness. Daria had had to lead Meara into her life of pleasure with other woman … into her life of pleasure with any one; she even had to have her trained by the island girl, Vallaana. Palla, however, needed no one to put a collar around her neck and lead her down a path.

"Allow me to show you that I am worthy?" the girl said as she ran her hands up the silky cloth of her elegant dress.

Daria stared down into Palla's eyes for a long moment, showing no emotion one direction or the other. Then … moving unrushed … she reached to the front of her gown … took a handful of fabric … and lifted it enough to indicate invitation for the girl to find her way under the hem of it, the shift, and the slip … and to Daria's already moistening folds.

##################​

Finna made contact with a Castle Guard, who directed her toward the guest room in which their Mistress could be found. But the Guard at that door halted the Maid, telling her that the Queen was not to be disturbed. Finna showed respect for the Guard and backed away. She returned to her mistress's room and reported that the Queen was occupied.

It was then that Finna noticed the vials still sitting on the table. She knew what they were immediately. It wasn't her place to speak on the subject, but she said anyway, "Please, Miss Meara … consider long and hard before you make a decision. You have time."

Actually, Meara didn't. For the treatment to work without a serious threat to Meara's own life, she needed to drink the first vial within 10 weeks of conception; it had been 8 already.

"It is not my place to speak on the subject," Finna quickly added, backing away a couple of steps in deference before saying, "Please forgive me if I have overstepped."

 

[SandS13]

Palla smirked inwardly. She would prove she was the better sister. She began to move the fabric and pushed herself up and under the queen's dress. She was struck by how warm it was and then as she drew close, finding Daria's shaved mound she frowned a little. Palla was glad the queen could not see her face.

Palla pressed forward, her tongue licking between Daria's thighs and along her slit. She winced a little at the taste. It was different than a man. A image of her dressed in gorgeous gowns with servants to wait on her flashed in her mind and Palla dove between Daria's thighs with vigor. She ignored the womanly musk, the slightly sharp taste and slid her tongue in, wiggling it around with insistence. It was like a young man, his first time when he has no sense of timing or pacing.
----
Meara began to cry. "I do not know what to do. I need to speak to Daria...the queen. Please, when she is free just ask if she will see me. If she doesn't wish to then you must let me know right away."

Finna nodded her head.

Meara put her hands on the edge of the window and stared out. She was terrified of her future.

 

[PennySaver]

Palla was unskilled at sexually pleasing a woman, that was obvious from the moment her mouth found Daria's sex. But even bad oral was better than no oral at all. Daria parted her feet a bit more, then stepped forward to put Palla more between them, her head falling back a bit as the Queen wrapped her hands behind the girl's new braids and pulled her face more into her crotch.

Soon, Daria was rocking her pussy back and forth over the girl's mouth, attempting to encourage a rhythm. Palla's work upon her labia and clit was beginning to feel good, though, Daria doubted that like this, she could be driven to orgasm.

Daria stepped back, pulling her dress from over the top of the girl and gesturing her to stand. When Palla was on her feet, Daria spun her and began unfastening the borrowed dress. It fell to the floor about the teen's feet, as did the shift a moment later and the waist slip after that, leaving Palla in nothing more than her simple cloth shoes.

"Come here," Daria commanded, taking the girl roughly by the elbow and directing her to the bed. She sat Palla on the edge, knelt before her, pushed the girl's thighs apart, and said with a firm tone, "Like this."

Daria set immediately to pleasuring the girl's pussy, which had been trimmed with scissors to satisfy the Lord Sheriff's desire not to swallow kinky curls when he went down on her but certainly wasn't the baby butt's clean shave that Daria enjoyed in Meara these days. She licked and sucked and manipulated with skilled fingers until young Palla was showing signs of a nearing orgasm...

...and then Daria simply stopped, stood up, wiped the pussy juice off her lips and chin with her handkerchief, and turned to take her own place upon the bed as she asked the girl, "Understand? That's how you prove you are worthy of me."

 

[SandS13]

Palla’s mind was on all the things she would get and how she would be pampered and not really on the queen as she grabbed her braids and rode her face. The girl did wince a little bit simply kept her tongue out for the queen to rub against.

Then something wonderful happened! The queen undressed her and licked her! Palla was overjoyed! It meant the queen was pleased, surely! She tried to ignore the fact that it was a woman between her legs and concentrate on just the sensation.

She was close, so close...and then Daria stopped. Palla whimpered and looked down, a pout on her lips. It worked with Gwent, surely this woman was susceptible to such things.

Daria laid back and a slightly flustered Palla moved between her thighs. She began to lick Daria once more. She slid her fingers into the queen’s sex and once more lost her mind to other things.

 

[PennySaver]

Palla's methods were rough, but with some direction from Daria the girl soon had the Queen of the Northlands writhing at the edge of the bed. "Don't stop until I tell you to stop … don't stop … don't stop...!"

Daria looked down between her boosted breasts toward Palla, but the dress gathered about her belly hid her crotch and the girl's head buried within it. She commanded her to continue onward, then … when she knew she was there … let her upper half fall back onto the mattress, back arching, hands clutching the bedding as ecstasy swept through her body.

"Don't stop!" she called out so loud that if the Castle Guards and Finna beyond the door hadn't known what was happening already, they surely would now. Despite this being Palla's first time lapping at another woman's pussy, Daria's peak became a plateau, the climax continuing to ravage through her body for longer than most of those, possibly all of those that had preceded it; Daria would find herself baffled by this later, how a simple village girl with no training who additionally had never put her mouth to another woman's sex could cause such intense and lasting euphoria as had Palla.

When she thought she was going to pass out from the effects of the girl's amazing treatment of her pussy, Daria grasped the braid at the top back of Palla's head and roughly pulled the girl's mouth from her folds and clit. She simply held the girl's skull there for the longest time; one voice within her was screaming more, more, more while another voice was warning this is Miss Meara's sister, and your castle has a very extensive rumor mill.

"Enough," she managed after a long moment. She pushed at her dress, trying to cover over her exposed female area, then released her hold on Palla's braid. She repeated and expanded, "Enough … stand up … stand away."

Daria's eyes were closed and her head was tilted off to one side as she enjoyed the aftermath of what she now realized was the greatest orgasm she'd ever experienced in her life. Fuck... she thought to herself as she considered Meara, Palla, their relationship to one another, and their relationships to her. As if a child wasn't complicated enough.

She forced herself up into a sitting position on the edge of the bed; her chest was still heaving, her heart was still pounding, and she could feel her juices pooling against her flesh at one thigh, likely creating a dark wet spot in the blue dress's expensive silk.

"Assist me," she said softly to Palla, extending a hand to the girl.

When the teen took her hand to help her to her feet, Daria used a little self defense technique her father had taught her as a child to deal with her older brothers; squeezing a specific pressure point in Palla's palm while also bending her hand downward, she caused the screaming girl to drop to her knees in an instant.

The door to the room flew open and both guards flew inside, their swords already pulled. Daria gestured them stopped, then told them simply, "Leave us."

Daria casually leaned over the farm girl's shoulder to speak close to her ear while her eyes were filling with tears. She warned as she gave the wrist an extra little tweak, again causing Palla to cry out. "You will speak of this to no one. Not your sister … not the Lord Sheriff … not anyone. You will speak of this to no one … during your stay here in the castle … as my servant. If ever I learn or even believe that you have spoken about what we did here today … or about anything you do to me in the future..."

She left the threat hanging. People knew what happened to them if they betrayed the Warrior Queen. Daria released her hold on the girl's hand, went to the mirror to rearrange her clothing and hair, then turned to look to the girl still on her knees on the floor. She stepped closer, then told her, "These chambers will be your new home. You will have clothing … a Maid … access to a horse if you ride … a coach if you do not. You will have an allowance. It won't be much, but it will be ten … a hundred times what you would earn raising goats and growing turnips … of sucking the Lord Sheriff's cock."

She looked for a reaction that might verify that Palla had in fact been servicing her sister's baby daddy's manhood over the past weeks. She continued, "When I am in the castle, you will be available to me at all hours of the days … all days of the month. You will be bathed and shaved for my pleasure. An Attendant will inform you of those times I wish to schedule time with you, but you should be ready to serve me at a moment's notice any time that you haven't specifically been told you are free to do as you wish."

She gave Palla a moment to contemplate the offer, then asked, "Does this suit you?"

 

[SandS13]

Palla, despite the discomfort from the queen's manhandling was overjoyed. She was better than her sister. She would be the favourite in no time at all.

"Whatever you wish mistress." She beamed brightly. "I will never speak of it."

Of course it wouldn't matter. Daria's cries were loud and her sex life was always of great gossilp. The guards has already whispered to each other, maids were told and as a couple came in to see to a few things in Meara's room, the girl overheard them.

New girl...new lover... Meara rushed off to the bathroom where she promptly vomited. She washed up, rinsed her mouth and began to get dressed. She waved away any help, she found the simplest dress she could and then sat on a chair. She knew when Daria came to see her eventually she would be sent away and wanted to show her that she understood.

Finna was waiting in the hall when Daria exited the room. "Mistress, Miss Meara has asked if you could see her when you had a moment. She said not to interrupt you so at your convenience."

She cast her eyes down.

 

[PennySaver]

"Whatever you wish mistress. I will never speak of it."

"See to it," Daria said, heading for the door. She stopped short, though, turning back to look at the simpler but still beautiful sister of her true lover. The pair were so different from one another, and Daria wondered whether they might possibly have had different fathers. She didn't ask, however, instead telling Palla before she left, "I'll be sending a girl in to shave you."

Outside, Meara's Maid told Daria that her mistress wished to speak with her. Daria knew she couldn't arrive in her lover's bed chamber spelling of sex and told the servant, "Please tell Miss Meara that I will be there shortly."

Finna turned to leave, but Daria caught her with, "Does Miss Meara know that her sister is in the castle?"

The Maid glanced back toward the close guest room door with wide eyes, then looked back to Daria, unable to hide her shock as what she believed had just happened. She answered, "I do not believe so, Mistress. I believe I am the only person to have attended Miss Meara since the Healer left, and I even I was not aware of this."

Finna couldn't know, of course, that the cleaning maids had been gossiping within earshot of Meara. They hadn't known the identity of Daria's new sex servant, though, that wouldn't be a secret long either. Daria told Finna firmly, "You are not to speak of what--"

"Of course not, Mistress!" the Maid cut in before the Queen had even finished. She apologized for interrupting the Daria.

Daria went to her quarters and with Hamma's help stripped, bathed, and dressed in what she called her Hunting Clothes. She had already ordered her Bodyguard Detachment put on alert for a hunting trip, but before going out into the forest, she had to deal with Meara. She made the long walk from her corner of the castle to her lover's and entered without knocking.

"You wished to speak to me, my love," she asked, unaware that Meara had already heard the rumors of another woman pleasuring her. She looked for the vials, but they weren't where she expected them to be; had Meara moved them somewhere, discarded them, or swallowed them...? Was this the reason Meara had called for Daria?

 

[SandS13]

Palla was in her glory. In not even half a day she had usurped her sister as the queen's chosen lover and favourite. She was humming to herself as she laid on the bed waiting for the servant to come and shave her.

So, she would have to get used to licking a woman but she could take a guard for a lover.

Best yet, the look on Meara's face when she learned that it was her that had won the queen's favour.
------

"I was going to ask you what I should do..with these." She held out the vials, her eyes cast down. "Though I suppose it depends on where you are sending me..." She didn't look up at Daria. "I would guess no one wants a pregnant farm girl and former slave..."

She toyed with the vials. Her chin quivered. "The maids were already talking about it. I know you have a new lover and that means I will be sent away. I am sorry I failed mistress."

Meara was learning that when someone said they loved her it meant in the short term until she was longer desirable to them. Love didn't mean what everyone liked to say it did. Daria had asked Meara to love her but that meant not to sleep with anyone else and to serve her in a way that was different than a slave. She understood that didn't hold true for Daria, who could expect a queen not to find a new lover when she tired of her currently. Meara hadn't quite understood her feelings but she had grown to feel quite attached to Daria so this hurt more than she was expecting it to.

"I can be ready to go immediately. I have nothing of my own."

 

[PennySaver]

"I was going to ask you what I should do..with these."

Daria looked to the vials and found herself very quickly conflicted on whether she was happy that Meara asked for her guidance after all. But before she could even considering answering, Meara continued, "Though I suppose it depends on where you are sending me..."

"Sending you?" Daria asked, confused.

"I would guess no one wants a pregnant farm girl and former slave..."

Daria was only becoming more confused. Meara cleared that up with, "The maids were already talking about it. I know you have a new lover and that means I will be sent away. I am sorry I failed mistress."

Daria felt her face go white at the realization that the rumor mill had already delivered the news that she had hoped would remain unknown by Meara. Although she had told Palla that she would be staying in the guest quarters here in the castle, Daria had had every intention of quietly removing her new sex servant from this place and putting her up in a house she kept in town for private rendezvous.

"I can be ready to go immediately," Meara continued, her head down, either showing her respect or hiding her shame, Daria didn't know. "I have nothing of my own."

"Don't be silly, Meara," Daria said, moving up close to the girl. She lifted Meara's head to look into the teen's eyes; they were glazed over and about to flood, as they had earlier in the day when they'd all learned that the teen was with child. "You will be going nowhere, my love. I love you … I am in love with you. You are my suflet perechelan … my soul mate. The day I send you away without cause is the day I give up my throne."

 

[SandS13]

"No, when you find someone new for your bed, you send the old one away. And now with this." Once more she held up the vials. "I understand. I do. Love is not.." Meara looked away.

"Gwent said he loved me. He chose to leave when presented with better. You say you love me but now there is someone better and you deserve the very best, Daria."

Bright blue eyes looked at the queen. "I thought..at first that our friendship was what I felt. I thought when I turned Hamma's offer down it was just our of respect or fear but my chest hurts when I think of you finding another and...and yet, I understand because you should be happy and cared for."

Fear gripped her stomach. "I am sorry, I have spoken far too much and out of turn." Meara was breathing heavily.

 

[PennySaver]

"No, when you find someone new for your bed," Meara reminded Daria, regarding her previous lovers. "You send the old one away."

Daria chuckled. "Meara, lovely Meara ... those were slaves ... sex slaves ... servants. Their only purpose was to please me ... in bed. You are far more than that. You are far more than you could ever imagine."

"And now with this," Meara moved on, elevating the vials between them. "I understand. I do. Love is not.."

Daria searched for the words to convince Meara that she wasn't just another play thing for her, like Palla would be.

"Gwent said he loved me," the girl continued. "He chose to leave when presented with better."

That struck a chord with Daria. It had been her suggestion -- actually, her demand, really -- that Gwent take the position of Sheriff in Yarlham and never see Meara again. Sure, she'd told him he had a choice, and sure he'd made that choice, but deep inside he'd known that if had stayed, Daria likely would have seen him killed.

"You say you love me but now there is someone better and you deserve the very best, Daria."

"I do love you, Meara," Daria swore, taking hold of the slightly shorter woman, pulling her close, and kissing her forehead. "And I do deserve the best … the best being you!"

Meara continued explaining what was in her mind and heart, apologizing for speaking far too much and out of turn. Daria kissed the girl on the forehead again, then the cheek; she would try to kiss Meara on the lips, but if she resisted, she wouldn't force it.

Backing away and turning, Daria went to the door and called in one of the Castle Guards. Talking to the man while looking at Meara, she ordered, "You will take Miss Meara to the Harton House … where Lord Sheriff Gwent of Yarlham is at this very moment."

Daria noted Meara's reaction to learning that Gwent was not just in the capital but was in a location known to Daria. The Queen thought to herself, Well, I guess the rumor mill isn't as strong as I thought it was. She continued, "You will stay outside, giving Meara this night to make a decision about what she wishes to have in her life … me … or Gwent."

Daria glanced at the bottles in Meara's hands. "You will decide what you wish to do with those, too, Meara … whether you remain with me or go with Gwent … the decision about whether to keep this child … a child that I will love just as I love you … the decision is yours to make."

She glanced to the Guard to ensure that he knew she was speaking to him again as she looked back to Meara. "At sunrise tomorrow … if Miss Meara had not exited Harton House and asked to return here, to her chambers … to me … you will leave without her … and let her live her life as she has chosen. Understood?"

"Yes, Mistress," the Guard said without hesitation.

Also without hesitation, Daria turned and departed. She'd said what she needed; she'd given Meara her choice again, just as she had in the Western Ridge more than two months. She reached her bed chamber at a brisk walk … dismissed the guards outside the door … closed it … and began sobbing.

 

[SandS13]

Meara let Daria kiss her. She wanted her to kiss her. She bit back her breath as Daria pulled away. She wanted to beg her to change her mind, to love her and only her but she said nothing. It was not her place to ask the queen for anything.

"Gwent?" She paled. He was here? Why? Did he know about the baby?

The weight of what Daria was saying weighed on Meara. She stepped forward when Daria went to leave but it was too late. She was gone.

Meara looked to the guard. "Take me please."

The vials were clasped tightly in her hands and she followed him out of the castle. They walked and and when they stopped at a building he banged hard on the door.

Meara was nervous and terrified.

 

[PennySaver]

Before she was taken from the castle, Meara was handed off from the Castle Guard to a detachment of Bodyguard, per Daria's last minute request. The Queen wanted her soul mate protected by the best. The four men had shed their uniforms for street clothes; the only thing they carried that would indicate that they were the elite of the elite was their weapons -- the best swords every forged -- and the pendants around their necks, hidden under their tunics, that featured the Warrior Queen's personal Coat of Arms on one side and the Coat of Arms of the House of Baera on the other. Those tokens were, essentially a pass to the holder to go anywhere, do anything, and kill anyone he or she pleased.

The Harton House didn't look like a whole lot of anything when they came upon it. The two story home sat at the end of an alley in a structure-crowded section of the city near one of the outer walls. It might have seemed more secure to have a safe house deeper in the city or closer to the castle and its perpetually present armed forces.

But the Harton House had been placed where it was because its basement accessed a natural tunnel that had been carved out in narrow areas to provide a way in to or out of the city without having to pass through the gates. Ironically, this tunnel was how Daria's Vanguard Force had gotten into the city a decade ago to access and open the gates to allow her Black Army in to conquer the city.

At the door to the House, a man also in street clothes -- Meara would recognize him as one of Daria's Bodyguards from the Western Ridge tent -- opened the door, gestured the five of them inside, and checked the alley for busybodies. He showed no surprise at Meara's arrival as a messenger had already been sent to inform him of the situation. That messenger had also delivered a small chest of silver and gold with a note for Meara, telling her that if she chose neither Gwent or herself, she was to use the coin to find a life on her own somewhere … and take care of their child. Their, of course, was meant to imply Daria and Meara's baby, not Gwent and Meara's.

"The Lord Sheriff is upstairs in his bed chamber, Miss Meara," the resident Bodyguard informed her. "He asked that you come up when you arrived. Would you like me to escort you, or...?"

 

[SandS13]

Meara looked unsure. "No, I should be alright."

The whole way here, the guards, the walk Meara's head was filled with thoughts to the point where it hurt. Her temples pounded.

She climbed the stairs slowly, her dress lifted in one hand and the vials in the other. At the top, Meara raised a fist to knock on the door but then hesitated. What was she doing? Was this a test? Was Daria testing to see if she was loyal? What did it matter? She had found another lover...she didn't need Meara anymore.

Her hand rapped on the door. Would Gwent be angry about the baby? Would he be happy? Fear gripped Meara's stomach.

 

[PennySaver]

Gwent had heard Meara boots on the stairs and -- nervous like his former lover -- grimaced as his stomach turned over anxiously. He started for the door, stopped, hesitated, started again, then stopped once more. He knew she was right outside the door and he was waiting for the knock … and yet nothing happened. When she did rap on the door, he flinched in surprised, then laughed at his silliness.

"Please, come in, Meara," he said after he'd opened the door, quickly correcting, "Miss Meara."

He looked much different than when she'd last seen him. He was dressed differently to start, having given up his Bodyguard uniform that very first day in Yarlham and replaced it with the fineries of a Sheriff, which -- politically -- ranked just before the noble status of Count. He'd also grown a beard, though, it was very close cut; he'd begun growing out his hair, too, though it would be a while still before it got long enough to do anything with it, such as a pony tail or braids as was common with Lords of the Northlands. And while he hoped that it wasn't that noticeable, Gwent had also put on 10 pounds due to the sheer volume of food and drink available to him with his significantly higher income and location stability.

He looked Meara over, up and down and then up and down again, and while some women-in-the-know might have noticed the glow of pregnancy, he didn't, and his greeting to her once the door was closed was a simple but joyous, "It's so very good to see you. Thank you for coming."

Then … without knowing what had happened with Palla after she'd left him at the castle, he very innocently asked, "Did you enjoy your reunion with your sister? It must have been a relief to find her alive and well."

 

[SandS13]

Meara stepped in. She was nervous.

"My sister?" She dropped the vials. One shattered as it hit the floor but she didn't look to see which one.

She stared at Gwent for a moment. "You are here because you brought Palla...you came to bring her...Daria said she sent word...you-"

Meara looked Gwent over and her chin quivered a little.

"I haven't seen her but I heard about a new-" She couldn't bring herself to say it. She needed to ask Daria. It couldn't be possible though. It had to be a coincidence. "I haven't seen my sister I was not aware you had brought her to the castle. I am sure you protected her as you did me."

Her eyes pulled away from his face. "I was told I could see you, to say hello. I didn't know you were here until less than an hour ago."

 

[PennySaver]

"My sister?"

Gwent was confused when Meara showed surprised at discovering that her sister had been in the castle. He flinched when something she dropped broke upon the hardwood floor of the bedroom. He looked around for something to wipe it up as she asked, "You are here because you brought Palla...you came to bring her...Daria said she sent word...you-"

"Yes, of course," Gwent said. He explained about how she had registered her name with the Circuit Riders, just shortly before meeting him. "When I discovered who she was … that she was your sister … I gave Palla a room in my home. She's been working as a Maid for me for … I don't recall, actually, several weeks."

"I haven't seen her but I heard about a new-"

She ended her statement without finish, but before Gwent could ask a new what, Meara explained, "I haven't seen my sister. I was not aware you had brought her to the castle. I am sure you protected her as you did me."

Gwent diverted his eyes to the floor, quickly dropping to place the towel he'd found upon the majority of the thick fluid. He wondered whether or not Meara meant You protected and FUCKED her as you did me.

When he was sure he could look her in the eye again without giving anything away, he stood. She said, "I was told I could see you, to say hello. I didn't know you were here until less than an hour ago."

That didn't surprise Gwent at all. Daria had told him he could have an hour with Meara tomorrow, to say his final goodbye to her, but it now seemed obvious to him that the Queen had changed her mind … only to change it yet again and let her come to him today.

Gwent's gaze dropped to Meara's belly for a moment after he realized that she seemed to be favoring it with one hand, whether consciously or unconsciously. He'd wondered every day since leaving her whether or not she might be carrying his child, and he'd contemplated how he was going to ask her if he ever saw her again. But now that he was standing here before her, he simply couldn't do it.

"So, hello then," he said, smiling and chuckling lightly. After she said her actual hello and he'd glanced at her belly again, he looked her in the eye and asked, "You have been well, then...? Mistress Daria has taken care of you...? You are, um … you are … healthy?"

 

[SandS13]

Meara watched him as he dropped a towel to clean up the mess she had made. She realized it was the one that would end the pregnancy that she had dropped. Her stomach sank.

She had noted the way his eyes dropped at her statement. She noted how he looked at her stomach but could not seem to look her in the eye again.

"Hello, Gwent. I have been well. I have- had a tutor and a role to hear the petitions of those of the class I came from. I am healthy enough..." It was her turn to look away from him.

"You have heard...how? No one by myself, Daria, the healer and Finna know..." She realized that it was more than enough to spread rumours.

 

[PennySaver]

Meara didn't outright say I'm pregnant, but her body language and her mentioning of the Healer was enough for Gwent to say with a hopeful tone, "You are carrying my child, yes?"

 

[SandS13]

"I was told this morning that I am pregnant. I have only been with one man in that way. You were my first and my only Gwent." Her voice was soft. Her hand moved to her abdomen.

"I was given the choice to be-" She looked down. "I dropped it. I don't know what to do." She began to tear up. "Daria says I am her soul mate. She has a new lover though. You said you loved me but then you left. The healer said I should end the pregnancy but I have broken the little bottle."

Meara's hands went to her face and she covered it as she cried. "My sister is here and you brought her. You have enjoyed her body and..you should she is beautiful. Daria sent me here to decide. Everyone...says.." Her sobs came now in big waves between gasping breathes. She crumpled to her knees. "I do..not..know...what to....do."

She was a mess of tears and curls.

 

[PennySaver]

As Meara fell apart, Gwent moved forward and took her into his arms. He didn't concern himself with whether or not she was the Queen's play thing now; he had loved her and still loved her, as best a man could who was incapable of keeping his hands off of and his cock out of other women. He pulled her in tight to him, whispering to her that all would be well and that he was there for her.

His mind was being inundated with waves of competing thoughts about how to deal with Meara, with Palla, with the Queen, and with his responsibilities as Lord Sheriff. Before he truly realized he was saying it, he suggested, "Come home with me … to Yarlham. I will care for you. I will care for you and our child. If you wish … I will marry you, as we spoke of before."

He took Meara's upper arms in his powerful hands and moved her out far enough to look up into his face, saying, "Meara, I love you. I never stopped. Your sister … that was nothing. She means nothing to me. She needed a home and I gave her one. But, she is now at the castle, with Daria."

When he said that, Gwent didn't mean with as in getting naked and eating pussy. If he had known that Meara suspected that Palla was Daria's new pet, he would have found other words. He finished, "Come home with me, Meara. Be my wife."

 

[SandS13]

Meara leaned into Gwent. He smelt cleaner, less of horses and leather but still, underneath the soap was him. She buried her face into his chest and cried.

He looked down at her claiming her sister was nothing, meant nothing. It confirmed that he had taken Palla to his bed. He also confirmed that Palla was with Daria as Meara had begun to piece together.

Her hand caressed his cheek, the beard soft under her fingers. She briefly wondered if he oiled it. Meara smiled sadly. "Walk with me. I need air. My stomach...I often have nausea. I never knew it was from the baby." Once more her chin quivered.
------
Palla was admiring herself in the mirror. Her pussy was smooth and beautiful. She dropped the skirt of her dress. She was ecstatic. She stepped out of the room and grabbed the first maid that happened by. "Can you tell me where Meara's room is?"

"Miss Meara's room is down another wing but she isn't there right now."

"Oh." Palla pouted. She had been looking forward to flouting herself in front of her sister.

"The queen then?"

"The mistress is in her room and does not wish to be disturbed."

Her pout grew. "Alright..."

A smile began to form. She could slip out of the castle and go and visit Gwent. He would appreciate her newly shaved slit and it would give her one last chance with him before her new life as the queen's favourite pet. Palla really did love the sound of that....

She found a guard who told her where the Sheriff was.

Already the staff were a buzz with the news of this new woman, her relationship to Meara, her new relationship with the queen and how she was seeking out the sheriff she arrived yet. Whispers and rumours abound between the staff. Those in the know filled in the missing spaces or confirmed suspicions.

Finna was brushing down one of Meara's dresses, hoping the woman would want to change and have dinner after the trying day she had had. She heard the others talking and frowned. Quick feet took her to the queen's door where she rapped on the door quickly.

 

[PennySaver]

"Walk with me," Meara requested. "I need air."

They descended to the home's first floor, and -- after the Bodyguard went out first to look for dangers -- Gwent took Meara out the back into a small wooded park that sat along the city wall. He offered her an elbow on his right hip, away from the sword on his left, and led her in an unhurried stroll.

"You were considering not having my baby," he said softly after they'd walked on a bit. He was sure to use the word my as opposed to the or your. "Now, though … you'll keep it … raise it."

------

The Castle Guard who'd been stationed outside Palla's room hadn't been guidance on the girl's rights when it came to movement about the castle, so he'd done nothing to stop her from wandering. The failure to keep her in check had only gotten deeper when she reached the main entry and the Castle Guard there had no idea who she was; as he did with anyone for whom the Castle Guard had been given no direction, he politely opened the door and signaled to the Guard at the Gate to let her pass.

"She's gone where?" Daria asked with a tone that caused Finna to drop her head dramatically after passing on what she'd heard. She had stripped out of her hunting clothes after sending Meara to meet with Gwent, and now ordered both her and Meara's Maids to help her dress for a quick departure. As they helped into her layers and fastened her buckles and latches, she called to the Bodyguard at the door, "Have my horse ready by the time I get to the stables or someone loses a cock!"