Linden replied, “That would do very well, Ebam. Thank you.”
At Astra’s questioning look he assured her, “Ebam, is arranging for a meal to be brought to my rooms. Sylpa,” he called to a lady maid bustling by, “Will you please make sure that my mother gets to her own rooms.”
The queen patted Astra’s cheek, “Good night, my dear. I don’t know who you are, but you have a good heart. I am not very smart, but I do know those things. Stay away from the king.”
She was too polite to say so, but it wouldn’t take much to dissuade Astra from seeking out her new swinish father-in-law.
“I am sorry, you aren’t dancing at your own wedding,” Linden said. “I had to get out of there.” His eyes searched her face. “My mother is right about you. It was considerate of you to not want to leave her in that ballroom surrounded by people who laugh at her.”
“Don’t be sorry. I don’t know how to dance.”
He laughed at her candor. “I suppose the zealots don’t go in much for dancing.”
She wanted to respond curtly, but he wasn’t wrong. “It is a lot of effort to live in the sky.”
“It must be. Why go to all that trouble?”
“Because doing things the easy way is not the way to holiness,” she responded tartly.
“I meant no offense, Princess.” His gentle smile made it easy for her to believe that.
A footman opened the door to the prince’s chambers. Walking in, Astra was astonished at the size of the room. It had lit fireplaces on two walls and a large curtained bed.
Astra hesitated upon seeing the bed. Linden attempted to lessen her discomfort and handed her a goblet of wine. She drank it and held it out for a refill.
“What have you heard of my mother?” She tartly demanded.
“The legend of Princess Hyacinth is one all of our children know.”
Astra held her breath waiting to learn about the mother that both Pa and Grimmie had avoided talking about.
“Hyacinth was the eldest daughter of the King of South Terran. She was renowned as an herbalist, and said to be the most beautiful princess of all. Many tell tales of her kindness. She would treat the sick, bind their wounds, and help them back to health.
She was riding along the seashore one day, and found a terribly wounded amethyst dragon. No one knew where it came from. She turned her horse around and galloped to the academy to get it help. An apprentice drakesalve, from far away, returned with her to the dragon. Together they were able to get her to a cave, and slowly heal her.
The princess… I think that the legend that is told here might not be one you like. The story is that the naive princess was taken advantage of by the ruthless stranger. After she had her baby, Hyacinth died, and Guthrie Drakesalve kidnapped the princess.”
“He did not kidnap me.”
“I know that now.”
“So the amethyst dragon wasn’t bonded to someone else?”
“No. I suppose not.”
“But the amethyst wanted her hatchling to bond with Hyacinth’s daughter―I mean, me.”
“Must be, but it isn’t something people talk about much.”
“How did my mother die?”
“They didn’t even tell you that? That faerie and drakesalve have much to answer for.”
“That faerie and drakesalve are my only family, so I would watch your tone, sir.”
He grinned.
“You probably don’t get spoken to like that very often, I guess, Your Majesty.” Astra was suddenly nervous. Perhaps she needed to control herself when speaking to a prince with an evil father and a bewildered mother.
“From my wife, it’s fine. Hyacinth died in an earthquake. Some people say she was trying to escape from the clutches of the drakesalve, but that never made sense to me.”
Astra’s cheeks grew hot. She was furious. “They all think she would just leave me?”
“It doesn’t sound like her, I admit. And Grimelda was Hyacinth’s faerie godmother, so she wouldn’t run off with her kidnapper.”
Chapter 8
The Carnality of Dragons
“No, she wouldn’t.” Astra responded firmly. “Do many people have faerie godmothers?”
“Not anymore. They say that all royalty used to, but they either died or left the kingdom.” He gave a guilty shrug, “Most people think it was because they were so ashamed at Grimelda’s behavior.”
Astra rolled her eyes. She had a profound desire to punch her new husband for telling her such awful things.
Before she could ball up a fist, a feeling came over her that she had never experienced before. She was weak in the knees. She was growing short of breath. Her face was flushed. She should have been upset about the legends about her parents, but instead she felt a fire in her chest. A warm tingling seemed to begin in her belly, and spread down between her legs. Running her hands through her hair, she discovered that her skin was beading with sweat. Casting a hungry look at Linden, she whispered, “What is this?”
Linden looked hungrily back. “The dragons must be mating, didn’t you feel it earlier?”
Astra shook her head, “No.”
“I think perhaps you were too preoccupied with worrying about your capture and your family. This is not the first time Rout has had Heliotrope.”
“I know that,” she said defensively. So was this was what Helio had meant when she said, “You don't know what you're talking about yet?” If it was, the bride had to acknowledge that it appeared to be the truth. She could barely suppress the desire to run her hands over her body and squeeze her own breasts.
Linden offered her more wine. Astra astonished herself by sauntering over, and instead of offering him her empty glass, grasped the full goblet in his hand and lifted it to her lips. Her desire overpowered her anxiety, and when their fingers touched, she felt sparks.
Linden was controlling himself, but his desire was evident on his face. He very gently reached for her. Astra threw her arms around him and turned her face towards his. He kissed her sweetly, and drew back to look in her eyes. Seeing an invitation, he leaned down and kissed her hard. Astra wasted no time in being shy, although she had never been kissed before. Their tongues swirled and darted until the pressure building in Astra’s chest was unbearable. Shocking herself, she grabbed her new husband’s hand and stepped towards the bed.
Linden chuckled and stroked her face. “I feel the same way, I want you more than I have ever wanted anything, but I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You won’t,” Astra replied, urgently lifting his tunic up so that she could take it over his shoulders.
Linden paused, with a disconcerted look on his face. “I assumed you were a maiden.”
“Of course, I am a virgin,” she exclaimed. “Now take me right now!”
The lust was overpowering. Behind her eyes, she could see Helio’s partially closed eyes as she surrendered herself to her dragon husband. Arching her back, she lifted Linden hands to her aching breasts. He responded with a low moan and caressed her breasts, circling her nipples with his thumbs. With an impatient growl, he turned her around and began to unlace her gown. “Why do women wear so many layers?” he lamented.
Astra laughed and hurriedly lifted her only partially unlaced dress up over her head. It was a tight squeeze, but with a laugh, she wiggled out. Now wearing only her shift, she turned her attention to stripping her lover. It was a struggle to get his tunic off him when he was determinedly trying to stroke between her legs. Astra decided that she didn’t care how many clothes he was wearing, she wanted him to touch her.
Linden easily lifted her onto the bed and dropped beside her. “Open your legs,” he whispered. She eagerly did so, He tenderly stroked her, and discovering how wet she was, slid a finger into her depths. She moaned when his palm brushed against her surging pearl. If she had had any control over herself, she would have been shocked as she took his hand and pressed it roughly where the need was raging. Her hips arched.
Astra reached for his
trousers, and whispered, “Help me.” Linden unbuckled his belt. “Have you ever seen a naked man?”
“Not that part,” she whispered. He took her hand, and wrapped it around his erect shaft. The bride’s eyes flew open.
“Don’t be scared,” he whispered.
“I’m not,” she said too quickly. “Only a little,” she admitted. Astra gave a nervous giggle as she discovered how his silky skin moved under her hand.
She should have been much more nervous than she was. Helio’s comfort and pleasure came over like a wave. Linden noticed that she was dripping with desire. His fingers remained gentle, but he stroked her with more confidence.
“Now,” she urged. “Now.” His kisses moved from her mouth to her throat, and then down to her breast. He swirled a tongue around one pink nipple and then the other.
He moved lower on her body despite her clutching at his shoulders. She very much wanted him to continue kissing her and to meet the ache between her legs. He gently pressed her wrists onto the bed.
“I’ve heard this can make it easier,” he said lowering his lips to her. The warmth of his tongue as he dainty nibbled at her molten core made her groan with pleasure. He stroked, caressed, and kissed her pink pearl until her thighs were slick with her own honey. When she closed her eyes in ecstasy, she felt as if she could see through Helio’s eyes as the torches flames danced on the caves walls.
“If it hurts, tell me,” he said as she urged him to move over her. His kisses slowed, and he looked deeply into her eyes.
“I can barely control myself, but I do not want to take advantage of you.”
“You are kind,” she whispered, pleased with the husband that Helio had chosen for her. “You aren’t taking advantage of me. I want you.”
He pressed into her slowly. Astra spread her legs and dug her fingers into his shoulders. She had a flicker of anxiety as he moved deeper within her. There was a momentary flash of discomfort as he broke her maidenhead, and then she moved her hips to allow him to enter her more deeply. Seeing that she was eager he thrust deeper within her.
She was flying, fearless, and wanton. Wrapping her legs around his waist, she winced as he moved deeply within her.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I should have been more careful.”
“Hush,” she said. “You don’t even know what you’re talking about.” She began to slowly move her hips until she was accommodating every inch of him.
Linden slowed, and cautiously watched her face. “It does hurt just a little,” she admitted, confused. “But mostly it’s wonderful.”
She gave a sudden gasp. Fireworks exploded behind her eyelids as they both savagely climaxed. Nestling against his chest, she felt her breathing slow down. Linden held her tightly. Glancing down at their partially clad bodies and the trail of clothes tossed on the floor, they both began to laugh.
“Are you disappointed?” He asked. “I’m sure that this isn’t how you imagined your wedding night.”
“I couldn’t have waited another second.”
Linden covered her up with a blanket and went to stir the fire.
“You have open fires in your houses? That’s very dangerous,” she said anxiously.
“Not when you have a stone fireplace.”
“Stone doesn’t burn?”
“You have never touched a stone?” He asked incredulously.
“No, they are too heavy to carry in a caravan.”
“How do you know they are heavy?” He asked.
“Because the angel Jacob stood on one before he climbed up to be the first cloudtreader.”
“But the Creator said, “You are the stone upon which I shall build my everlasting kingdom.”
“No, he did NOT. The Starkindler said that, but he wouldn’t use stones. He said that he would make us as the firmament upon which he would build his kingdom.”
Linden opened a cabinet and withdrew a white lacey nightgown. “Here put this on.” As she pulled it over her head he muttered, “Best hope the dragons aren’t too fertile, we need a little time to decide what faith to raise the royal children in.” Sticking her head out through the neck opening, Astra stuck her tongue out at him.
Linden lifted a hand bell off the bedside table and gave it a sharp ring.
Almost immediately, the door opened, and Ebam bustled in with a wheeled cart containing a meal for them.
As soon as the servant had left the room, Astra turned to Linden,” He was waiting out there the whole time?”
Linden shrugged, “The doors are thick. Don't worry.” She still didn‘t like the idea of a flock of servants waiting in the hall knowing exactly what their prince and princess were doing, but she was suddenly starving. Seeing her eye the food, Linden lifted a plate and began to spoon delicious looking food onto it.
Astra discovered that she couldn’t identify most of it. She hesitated. There was no going back. Heliotrope would not leave Rout, and Astra realized with a sharp pang that she didn’t want to leave Linden. Even if she did, returning to the cloudtreaders was now impossible. If she could force Heliotrope the Amethyst to leave Rout the Burnished, she wouldn’t. She had to stay on the ground. Did that mean that she would just ignore the scriptures she had been taught all of her life?
“I haven’t ever had most of these dishes,” she began shyly.
Linden continued to fill her plate. “What do the zeal-...I mean cloudtreaders eat?”
“Birds, plants that climb and don’t lie wallowing in the dirt.”
“A plant can’t really do much other than wallow,” he laughed.
Astra sat up, clutching the blankets over her breasts. “Do you believe in anything?”
“Of course we do, we believe in the Creator of the Earth. He created the dirt, the seas, and all of the plants and animals that live in them.”
“But he created the heavens first,” she offered.
“Only because he needed a place to hang his favorite planet,” he said it with a wink, so Astra had to remind herself that it was blasphemy. Perhaps she would find a way to please the Starkindler in her new life.
She had to admit that the plate of food smelled wonderful. Deciding that starving to death wasn’t really an option, she took a tentative bite. The orange mouthful was savory and somehow sweet. “Those are carrots,” Linden said in response to her rapturous expression.
For a moment, Astra thought he would tell her what carrots were, but instead he held up a fork with a morsel on the tines. She tasted it. The rich flavor filled her mouth, “What is this?” she asked.
“Beef in wine, I think.”
“What kind of bird is beef?”
“It’s not a bird. I’ll show you one of them tomorrow.”
Chapter 9
The Libelous Ballad
“I am sorry you did not enjoy our marriage feast,” she said remembering his fury during the madrigals.
He looked at her intently, his eyes examining hers. Astra knew that desperate look, he was wondering if she could be trusted.
“I am your wife,” she said.
He stood up off the bed and frantically paced the length of the room. “It’s a lie, all of it.”
“What’s a lie?”
“That whole song, the legend. It’s all a lie.”
Astra glanced at the door, “Is it safe for you to tell me in here?”
He thought about that and settled himself on the bed beside her.
“Twice my father has tried to force a bond. Eirian the Silver had a brood of eggs. They had her locked up down in the caverns. My father intended to bond with one of her dragonlets. He wanted an audience, so he had my mother and half the court there. I was about 2.
When the time for hatching came, the cavern was packed with musicians, and scribes, and who knows what else. As the first egg began to hatch, Eirian would not let my father near her brood. She snapped at him every time he tried. It was a disaster.
The king called for his soldiers to throw chains over her to control her, but when they
tried, she started blowing flames. Everyone panicked. My father pushed through the crowd and ran away.
Astra’s hands flew up to her mouth, “Oh, Starkindler,” she gasped. “He left you? Do you remember it?”
She knew to her bones that nothing would cause her father to save his own skin at her expense. Nothing.
“No, but Rout does. Eirian used her snout to roll a hatching egg towards me. I wasn’t afraid. I reached out to touch his head, while his body was still in the shell.”
“So Rout freebonded with you? He chose you.”
Linden, miserably nodded. “The king had the dragonmaster and his assistants put to death, then he had to elevate Firth to replace him. There weren’t enough drakesalves after that.”
“So they let my father come here to study.”
Linden nodded miserably. “I’m assuming you noticed my mother?”
Astra wasn’t sure how to reply. “Noticed her?”
He gave a pained, wry smile. “If she wasn’t her royal majesty Delphine, Queen of Eastern Terran, you would say she’s not all there.” He gestured towards his temple.
“What happened?”
“Rout says that Permian, the mage…murderer is more like, suppressed her memories.”
“Grimmie will know if it can be reversed.”
“Perhaps that’s why the faeries all disappeared,” he mused.
“There was another time he tried to force a bond?” Astra asked.
“Yes, a few years later, a rare dragon had a clutch of eggs. She hid her nest. My father had an entire army out trying to find her while the hatchlings were young enough to bond. They blasted out the side of a mountain to get to her. It collapsed, and all of her hatchlings were killed.
The dragon mare went on a rampage. She set fire to the army barracks, the castle only survived because it is stone. Many people died. The only blessing is that my mother doesn’t understand that her husband caused the death of so many dear to her.”
“I think Grimmie knows a lot about memory spells. She cast a forgetting spell on Heliotrope, even hid her color.”
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