The Troll Bride

by S. J. Sanders

  Ignoring my discomfort, I nod. “I traded Bodi some fine lumber from trees that needed to be culled in exchange for this table. You remember Bodi? He was with us when we came to Ov’Ge with Sammi.” At her little sound of agreement, I continue. “Few realize it, since he makes a show of being a loud-mouthed warrior, but Bodi is a highly skilled carpenter. It runs in his family and he has quite the passion for it. He can even identify raw wood right down to where it came from just by its scent,” I explain with a laugh.

  She gives me a disbelieving look but laughs as well.

  “And what do you enjoy doing, Cavek?”

  As we eat, I consider saying something smutty and flirtatious as I normally would, but the earnest expression in her eyes gives me pause. I swallow and decide to show her a part of my life I have never shown anyone, with the exception of my sister, Mimi.

  “Well... uh... I enjoy competitive archery contests and hooking yarn.”

  She blinks slowly. “You mean, like crocheting? Making blankets, and scarves and such.”

  I shift uncomfortably. If my brothers ever knew this, they would never let me live it down. “Sometimes. Actually, I prefer to make soft toys filled with cotton fibers for the very small children in our territory. One of my sisters distributes them for me at the market.”

  I am not sure what to expect. Hooking—or crocheting as she calls it—is not typically a craft lauded for males to engage in, especially not a large, strong male such as myself. My reputation is largely because of my marksmanship skill among our people.

  Her face softens. “Can I see them?”

  I stare at her, unsure of what to do for a long moment. before scrambling up from the table awkwardly. She actually wants to see my work. That wasn’t the reaction I was expecting. But I’m not even sure what I was expecting. A sudden eagerness fills me as I go over to a padded seat draped with furs and pull out a large trunk from behind it.

  Kate is looking over my shoulder as I pop it open to reveal several soft wool animals and even a few trollbies I had carefully crafted, complete with yarn hair. She lifts one of the trollbies and cuddles it against her chest.

  “These are wonderful, Cavek! And you make these for the children? I’m sure they love them. I know these will all find good homes, but we should keep this one for our son.”

  I nearly burst with pride as I watch her set the small doll aside on the table. She then proceeds to look through all the various dragons, unicorns, mawu, and various beasts found around Ov’Gorg. She leaves not one untouched or unadmired.

  “What about you, Kate. What do you like to do?” I ask as she smiles at a small delfass toy with oversized fangs. Kate looks up at me and a small puzzled frown mars her brow.

  “I’m not sure anymore. I had so many interests before Boukie was born. I love everything fantasy, going to conventions, gaming, but I’ve had so little time for myself I don’t know what I like to do anymore. Aside from drink coffee and long for a few peaceful minutes with a book or my favorite video game. I really don’t know what my passions are. And it’s not going to get any clearer with a new baby,” she observes with a tired smile.

  I trace my finger down her cheek.

  “You will discover yourself again, I’m sure,” I say softly.

  She leans into my touch and my breath stills in my body, my senses clamoring for her, until suddenly the door is flung open and Serus tromps in with Boukie hanging from his neck, squealing with laughter. Cavekji is wide awake and drooling on his finger stuck firmly in his mouth.

  “Serus, why is my son trying to eat your finger?” I ask with alarm.

  My brother grunts as he swings Boukie and gently deposits her on the chair beside us before peeling my son off his finger. Cavekji immediately starts to howl angrily.

  “That is why,” my brother grumbles. “Letting him slobber on me was the only way to silence him.”

  I take my son from him and immediately notice the terrible odor emitting from him as he squalls in a fit of troll-worthy temper. I have to smile with pride because he’s clearly a strong little male—but only for a second before the heinous smell assaults my senses. I attempt to hand him off to his mother, but Kate just laughs and steps back. I scowl at her but she holds her hands up with a mischievous smile.

  “Oh, no. I don’t think so. You want to be a daddy? Now you get to change his ass like a daddy does while I help Boukie get ready for bed. I’ll come back and feed him as soon as she’s settled for the night.”

  My jaw drops in dismay when she turns her back on me and leaves.

  Serus peers down at him, his nose wrinkled.

  “So, how are you going to do this?”

  I swallow and grimace. My ears are now starting to ring too.

  “Hand me the bag that we brought with us with his baby things in it. I saw Kate get his ass-covering from there. I am sure there are more.”

  My brother heads over to the bag while I slowly peel back the cloth covering. The smell is so wretched my eyes begin to water. How is this even worse than the disposable butt-covering that was in the waste receptacle? A small pack of moist cloths is shoved under my nose just in time. I start to wipe but to my alarm it is sticking terribly. What in the world was this substance made of? Serus clicks with disgust as he watches over my shoulder.

  Several cloths later, my son’s bottom is clean, and I set the clean butt-covering beneath him ready to close it up around him when his little male part that has been standing up the last several minutes suddenly shoots off, a long arc of pee smacking me in the mouth.

  I stumble backward, sputtering in horror. My cursed brother, being no help at all, laughs his ass off. I narrow my eyes at my offspring who has finally ceased crying and is now watching me with what I suspect is a puzzled air.

  I take a deep breath and release it, wipe off my face, and smile down at my son.

  “That’s okay, Cavekji. I know I don’t know what I am doing, but we are figuring it out.”

  Kate giggles from the corner of the room, and like a goddess of blessed she grace sweeps in and nudges me out of the way. With a quick hand, she demonstrates how to fasten his butt-covering before pulling him up into her arms. I nudge my brother to look away as she frees a breast to nurse our son.

  Serus excuses himself, leaving us alone in the quiet of our common room. I scoot in beside her, my hand gently exploring my son’s round legs and arms and his belly fattened by his mother’s milk.

  Everything about the moment is a wonder to me, from his small claw-tipped fingers and toes to the beads of milk rolling down his chin as he suckles. He is soundly asleep in what feels like only a few minutes, and his mouth relaxes and releases my mate’s reddened nipple. I curve around the two of them, myself drowsy, and cannot imagine a more perfect end to my day.

  All those months locked in captivity, I never imagined this.

  The light dims outside as night falls and the bioluminescent flowers slowly close their petals when Kate shifts off the seat. I follow her into the bedroom where she tucks Cavekji into the small bed Serus had brought over earlier in the day, before she climbs into our bed.

  Ignoring my painfully stiff cock, I strip down to my breeches and crawl in bed beside her, our bodies nestling close together beneath the blanket, providing warm comfort throughout the cool night.

  Chapter 12

  Kate

  “And what exactly are you expecting to do with that?”

  I stare at the narrow spears in Cavek’s hand. Cavekji is drooling on my shoulder as he happily sucks on it. After a few days with the trolls, I’ve gotten so used to referring to my baby by his troll name that at times I have to struggle to recall how familiar it was to call him CJ.

  The time has passed almost too quickly. Lazy days with my family, when Madi is not stealing the children away to give us necessary bonding time, followed by steamy evenings making out with Cavek after the kids are in bed. I can almost imagine that this is the kind of thing I have been missing out on—a normal married life.

/>   Well, as normal as one can get with a troll.

  “We’re going fishing, remember?” Cavek reminds me with a small frown.

  “Yes,” I drawl slowly. “But usually that involves poles, lines, and hooks. What am I supposed to do with a spear?”

  “Line? Pole?” His brow furrows for a second before it relaxes again. An understanding grin lights up his face and he chuckles. “We don’t use such things. This is a fishing spear. You fish with it.”

  I look at the willowy spear doubtfully.

  “I don’t know, Cavek. I’ve heard that hunting fish with a spear is pretty difficult, and I’m not really sure how this activity qualifies as courting either.”

  Some of the troll courting activities so far have been pretty familiar. We’ve had quiet dinners with romantic lights. Walks around the lotus pond near the den. We even spent a lovely afternoon at the weekly market. It was filled with beautifully died silks and delicious smelling foods.

  Cavek explained that the nearest large market is at the orc village, but it’s a two-day journey, so most trolls do small trading among each other here and leave it to merchants to acquire goods from other merchants at the larger market.

  The night before was a big full moon celebration. The trolls, considering themselves children of the moon mother, have big dances and feasts during the full moon. While Madi watched the children, we went out, drank our fill of troll-brewed wine, which seemed twice as potent as anything I ever had back home, and danced wildly to the loud drums, horns and lutes of the local musicians.

  But spearfishing? It seems... a bit more like work than a date.

  Cavek snorts. “It’s not too difficult. It will be fun! Serus is taking Boukie today. He says he has a surprise planned for her. He knows how important today is.”

  I willingly completely bypass this vague “surprise” Serus has planned for Boukie. It can’t be too bad. It’s a surprise for a seven-year-old, after all. Instead, my mind boggles over the concept of going fishing as an important day for us.

  “It’s that important?” I ask weakly. Fish guts doesn’t sound like romantic bonding. I went fishing a grand total of one time, and never had any desire to repeat the experience. It was boring, the mosquitos bit the hell out of me, and the fish stank. Worst of all, the guy I was with was more interested in fishing and completely ignored me.

  Cavek nods as he inspects the edge of one of the spearheads.

  “Fishing is one of the important bonding rituals for trolls,” he explains. “As you have likely noticed, we subsist largely on different sorts of fish that live in our streams and waterways. Fishing secures dependency between mates, as they must depend on each other and work together.” He flashes a grin.

  I dredge up an answering smile. I’m still not thrilled about it, but since it sounds very important to him culturally, I’m game to give it a try. A bit of fish guts isn’t going to hurt me.

  A loud shout draws my attention. I look out the window to see Serus leap easily over a large root, a broad grin on his face. To my surprise, rather than the usual silk or cotton spun weaves, he’s wearing a leather tunic and is carrying a child-sized version of the same kind. I frown. What exactly are they doing that requires such sturdy attire?

  Cavek sets down his spears and draws up to my side, his lips curving into a small smile moments before Serus throws the door open with a bit more strength than necessary. Cavek winces as the door crashes open but greets his brother with enthusiasm as they pound each other on the shoulder.

  “Any word on the activity from the Warue?”

  His brother’s smile falters and Serus shakes his head grimly. “Nothing concrete. Father is sending me out with my warriors to relieve Garol and his set. They have been reporting increased activity but no recent forays into our territory since we have retrieved you. Lately they have been having altercations with the western Evarue, which is surprising. It is rare for the wolves to encroach on each other’s territories. Father wants me to scout it out with my males.”

  Cavek’s brows knit together. “I should be taking this turn and relieving Garol. That is our usual rhythm.”

  My gut clenches and a whisper of unease flows through me at the idea of Cavek going up against these wolves again. I know he’s more than capable but, although he hasn’t spoken about much of his time with them, I’ve seen the brutal scarring that runs from his shoulder to his haunches. What he lived through was nothing short of cruelty, and I can’t bear the thought of anything like that happening to him again.

  Relief sweeps through me when Serus chuckles. “While you are courting your mate? Father would never get a peaceful night of sleep if he sent you out on rotation. Mother would see to that.” He thumps Cavek playfully on the shoulder before looking around the common room and calling out, “Where is my Boukie?”

  A small shriek is all that proceeds her as my little ball of terror comes flying into the room from her bedroom.

  “Here I am, Uncle Serus!” she says as she sprints across the room and flings herself at him, both arms wrapping around his forearm. Without even breaking a sweat, he lifts her high into the air until she is able to climb up onto his shoulders.

  “I brought something for you,” he announces proudly as he shakes out the tiny tunic. Boukie makes all the sounds of a child duly impressed.

  “May I ask what she’s going to be doing that she needs to wear leather for?” I ask suspiciously.

  Serus flashes an innocent smile at me. “We are going to see the litter of pups today, and the little guys can get excited. It is just to give a bit of extra padding.”

  “Oh, you’re taking her to visit puppies?” That’s not so bad. It just means I am going to end up enduring hours of begging and pleading when she gets back. Maybe it’s finally time to find a nice, quiet pet for her.

  “Puppies!” Boukie clamors, making the males chuckle at her delight.

  “Mother’s bitch birthed a litter a couple of months ago. I thought Boukie might like a look before they go to join their new hunting packs.”

  “And this is going to be safe, right?”

  “Perfectly safe,” he agrees, baring those sharp teeth at me in a wide smile. I’m never going to get used to trolls’ jagged teeth.

  “All right then. Be good, Boukie,” I remind her, and as a subtle caution for Serus to keep her under control, but Cavek merely winks at her. Not even Boukie at her worst seems to deter the trolls. They find everything she does hilarious. But according to Cavek, trollbies are destructive little things, so trolls naturally have a high tolerance for wild antics. I can only hope that being half-human tempers Cavekji’s wild troll half. For my sanity.

  “Well, hurry and bring me the trollbie and we will be on our way,” Serus laughs as he bounces Boukie on his shoulders. “Mother is beyond thrilled to have him again.”

  Cavek disappears down the hall and returns with Cavekji. My little sound sleeper must not even have stirred when his father picked him up. He hands his brother the diaper bag, which he immediately shoulders. He’s far less forthcoming with his son, however. I watch Cavek’s arms tighten around him briefly before reluctantly handing the baby to Serus. It’s obvious that he still has trouble letting his son out of his sight. Serus gently cradles him with one arm, his other hand lightly gripping Boukie’s leg to keep her balanced.

  Cavek is completely still as he watches his brother leave with the children, every muscle tense as anxiety rolls off him in waves. I sidle up behind him, wrap my arms around his waist, and lean into him with my cheek against his back.

  “Are you all right? We can always have him bring them back.”

  His rough hand lands on mine, caressing the bare skin of my forearm. He releases a lengthy sigh.

  “No, they will be fine. It will be good for them. Communal raising rears strong young with firm ties to their people and each other. I just worry. I’m afraid after my experiences I expect werewolves to jump out of every shadow,” he laughs in obvious self-mockery.

  I give hi
s waist a gentle squeeze, conveying my silent support the best way I know how. He runs his hand along my arm again before breaking my grip long enough to turn around and face me. His hands thread through my hair as he looks down at me from beneath heavily lidded eyes that flare with desire as his lips tilt upward.

  “You know, we can always skip the fish and just elect to stay home. I’m sure we can find something to do together. An indoor activity,” I say with a suggestive arch of my eyebrows. After days of self-enforced abstinence, I’m ready to indulge in a bit of temptation.

  Cavek chuckles, dropping a kiss on the tip of my nose.

  “As much as I would love to explore every inch of whatever indoor activity you have in mind, first, we fish. It’s important,” he says, his eyes shining with a mixture of affection and laughter.

  “Very well. You can’t blame a girl for trying,” I tease as he bends over, showing that fine ass of his, and picks up a basket and our spears. “Onward to the fish then.”

  I’M NOT EXACTLY SURE what I expected fishing to be. It wasn’t standing in thigh-deep chilly water staring thirstily at Cavek, naked except for a kind of loincloth around his hips. I gape like a teenager as every muscle in his abdomen and biceps bunches and bulges with tension as he holds his spear angled above the water.

  I almost jump out of the water when a fish as long as my leg swims between us, but then his spear comes down in a swift, brutal arc, striking the large fish and pinning it to the riverbed. Cavek grunts as the fish attempts to wiggle free. His eyes dart up to me, his lips curling.

  “Uh, love, you want to give me a hand?”

  I blink, startled. “Oh, right. What do I do?”

  “Just spear the fish from your side and help me hold him in place while I finish him off.”

  “Sounds simple enough.”

  Famous last words. I forgot how water distorts how things appear under its surface. My spear lands so far afield of the fish it is embarrassing. As big as the fish is, it’s the marine equivalent of missing the broad side of the barn. My second attempt gets closer but my spear gets stuck between two rocks and I pull so hard that when it finally releases, I end up falling backward.