Chapter 61: Reunions

I now have an editor, so you all shouldn't need to put up with my typos and poor/dyslexic editing skills anymore. :)

* * *

Fiona followed Lord Delmar from the dinner table towards his room, stopping only to hand Conner off to Nurse Belcosta, who took her son to the nursery. She then followed her husband to his room, consciously aware that it was technically her room as well, though it didn't feel like it.

"Milord." She said when they had arrived at the door. "How can I be opening the door?"

"I will show you." He replied as the door opened and they entered. On the other side was an exposed piece of leather that was part of the latch mechanism. He pointed to it. "Place a drop of your deep mana in the leather, then you will be able to activate it from afar. We are bonded, so it will not reject your mana in preference to mine. I apologize that I did not show this to you yesterday on our wedding night; I was... distracted."

"It's no problem milord." She smiled, then took a moment to push a drop of deep mana into the leather.

"Come." He indicated that they should leave the room, closed the door, and then indicated that she should open it again.

It took a moment for her to figure out how to activate it from afar, but she did manage after a minute. He stood beside her saying nothing, but also not hovering. He waited patiently and she never got the sense that he was rushing her, which she appreciated. She pressed gently on the door while activating it and after a moment, she felt the latch disengage and the door swung open.

"Well done." He nodded at her once, then followed her in.

"Milord, could we be talking for a few minutes?" She asked once the door was closed.

"If you wish." He said as he walked into the room, running one of his fingers over the more feminine of the two rocking chairs on a wear spot as he walked past. She was almost entirely sure it was a habit and not consciously done.

"Could I be asking a personal question?" She wasn't sure why she was asking that, but she felt like it was a good idea for some reason. She would've never hesitated with her first husband, but this marriage was quite different.

"You are my wife." He replied without emotion, expression, or explanation, so she took that to mean she could ask.

"I'm having a question about what you were saying this morning." Fiona said after a moment. "It was almost sounding like -- and to be clear, I'm not thinking this -- but it was sounding like you were blaming yourself for Helene's death, because you weren't making her learn magic."

He didn't reply. He looked at her like he was listening, but he didn't reply.

The silence stretched out uncomfortably long before she spoke. "Milord?"

"You said that you had a question, but you made a statement, not asked a question." He replied calmly.

"Oh." She frowned slightly. Anyone should've known what her question was. "I was wondering if you were blaming yourself for the Lady Helene's death." She paused, then added. "Are you?"

He looked at her for a long moment before he replied. "There is no court in heaven, or in the realms of men, elves, Fey, dwarvenkind, or even wildlings that would consider such a charge to have any merit."

She nodded slowly, then frowned as she realized that he had dodged the question rather cleverly. "Begging your pardon milord, but that's not the question I was asking. I'm not blaming you, nor am I thinking anyone else would be blaming you. I'm asking if you are blaming yourself, or if you are feeling responsible."

He made a thoughtful sound, tapped one of his claws on the stone floor, and looked at her for a long moment. Something about his eyes had changed. She couldn't say what exactly, but something.

"I bear some responsibility." He finally replied in a tone that was too even to be natural. "As lord of Narlotten and her husband, I was twice bound to protect her and yet did not. She fought me on learning to heal, but I should--" His tone hitched very slightly. "--I should not have given in."

"It's not your fault." Fiona said softly, hoping to encourage him.

"If you had forgotten to wrap Conner in a blanket on a winter night and he became ill and died as a result, would you not blame yourself?"

"Aye, I would be." She admitted.

He said nothing else, and she was learning that this was his default response to almost everything. She supposed that he had made his point and so didn't need to say anything else, but most people would try to drive their point home and he didn't.

"Well, I'm still not thinking it's your fault." She finally said.

"You already indicated that." He replied mostly without emotion, either positive or negative.

"What are you feeling?" She asked, unable to believe that his cold exterior was indicative of what was truly going on with him.

"On which topic?"

She gave him a look. "Milord, I think you can be guessing."

"Very well, the last thing you said was that you do not blame me, which is incorrect since I bear some responsibility." He replied as if he was reciting a list of raw materials for a building, or some other boring and mundane topic. "I find myself unconvinced that it was your real opinion, and thus must conclude that you are willing to bend the truth to assuage whatever you believe my feelings are. Thus, I feel mildly surprised and my trust in you has lowered somewhat."

She stared at him. "You can't be serious."

He raised an eyebrow. "I told you that while you might not like the things I say, they will be true."

"But you were taking what I said in the worst possible light." She countered. "And as long as we're talking about feelings, I'm feeling insulted that you're thinking I would be lying to you; I wouldn't."

"I had thought that as well." He replied.

She glared at him.

He seemed unbothered; completely unbothered in fact. She might've made some comment on the weather for all it seemed to matter to him. Fiona felt herself rising for a verbal tirade when she remembered the reason she had asked in the first place: she was worried about him. She was worried about him and if she took a moment to think about his reaction, she was even more worried about him.

She had asked how he felt because he had perfect recall and it seemed likely that he remembered Helene's death like it was yesterday. Of course he had lashed out when she had brought it up -- well, his version of lashing out anyway -- who wouldn't if someone prodded a wound that raw?

"Milord, would you have been assuming the worst about the Lady Helene if she was saying something like that?" Fiona asked after a moment.

"No." He conceded. "However, I had a long history with her and knew her very well." He swallowed and yet the very corners of his mouth flicked upwards a hair's breadth for a moment before he spoke again somewhat more quietly. "Better than she knew herself."

"I'm not doubting that." Fiona smiled, still feeling a bit hurt, yet realizing that he was far more so. "Could I be making a request?"

He nodded once.

"Could you be trying to see my motives as positive and as me wanting to help instead of assuming the worst?"

He looked at her for a moment before nodding once.

"Then, I'm having one more question and also a request."

"Proceed."

She took a moment to compose her thoughts and rally her courage. She didn't think the answer to this question would be pleasant, but she wanted to know. "Could I be asking how you are feeling about me?"

He didn't reply for several seconds, and when he did speak she got the impression that he was choosing his words carefully. "Fiona, while I am willing to speak on this, I would caution that you might not wish to hear my feelings on the matter."

Uh-oh.

She swallowed. "Why?"

Again, she got the impression that he chose his words quite carefully when he spoke. "There is a difference between what is and what should be; between the emotion of the matter and the truth of the matter. While I do not believe the truth of the matter would be unpleasant, the emotions of the matter could be difficult to hear."

"Even if it's difficult, I'm wanting to hear." She said, internally bracing herself. "Besides, I'm sure I would be imagining terrible things if left to my own devices after that warning."

"Very well." He replied, then took another moment to speak, and yet again she got the impression he spoke very carefully. "Many have remarked to me, both in public and in private, that you and Helene--" He swallowed and his tone waved the slightest amount. "--you two have a certain similarity of spirit." He looked at her significantly. "I know you consider this to be a great compliment."

"Aye." She nodded. "I'm knowing how much you are loving her and so the comparison is feeling wonderful."

"As I said." He nodded once. "However, that similarity does also have its own..." He paused.

"Own what?" Fiona asked, trying not to jump to conclusions.

"...its own disadvantages." He finished, speaking carefully. "Consider for a moment, what if you had remarried someone who was not unlike your first husband, Sean. Someone as caring and kind as he was, with a similar sense of humor and a face that -- while different -- had enough similarities to constantly remind you of him."

Fiona was suddenly quite conscious of her copper-colored hair. True it wasn't the dark red of Helene and Rachel, but it was more similar than most other hair colors might be. She didn't think Helene had been cursed with more freckles on her face than there were stars in the night sky, but as she thought about it, she could've probably passed for a distant cousin of Helene in poor lighting.

"For example, imagine that you had married Seamus." Lord Delmar continued.

Fiona frowned slightly as she considered that. Sean and his brother Seamus had been mistaken for twins more than once, usually when they were playing a prank of some kind. They did indeed have a similar look and sense of humor, but Sean had always been the kinder and more considerate of the two. Not that Seamus wasn't kind or considerate, he was, but not as much as Sean had been.

Fiona thought about it for barely a moment before she swallowed again. That would be torture. To be married to someone so like Sean who wasn't Sean would be... She grimaced and slowly shook her head. The constant reminder would be torture and--

She bit her lip as she looked at her husband. "Oh."

She didn't know what else to say.

"The comparison is unfair." Lord Delmar said. "And yet by virtue of my weakness as a mortal, I cannot help but make the comparison."

Fiona nodded slowly, realizing that she had been automatically comparing Lord Delmar to Sean for a long time now. Thus, it made sense that he was comparing her to Helene. She had been comparing how happy she had been at her first wedding and wedding night compared to her second wedding and wedding night. It would make perfect sense that he was doing the same. Given everything she had learned about how deeply Lord Delmar was in love with Helene, anything else seemed highly improbable. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"As you asked how I am feeling, I confess that I have had some difficulties not resenting you." He continued.

Ouch.

That stung, but she couldn't blame him.

"That is entirely unfair and not remotely an indication of you as a person." He continued. "My first wedding and wedding night were one of the most joyous days of my life, by comparison, my second was..." He paused, again seeming like he was choosing his words carefully.

"Lacking?" She suggested, giving him a pained half-smile. "I'm knowing the feeling. When Sean and I were married, the whole town celebrated and I... well, I suppose I was a typical blushing bride. I was feeling the same difference you were feeling, but I suppose I wasn't considering that you might be as well."

"I should clarify that you have done nothing to cause such resentment." He said after a moment. "It is incidental, given your appearance and character attributes, not because of your behavior."

"Well, that's at least something." Fiona replied. Honestly, she wasn't sure what to make of that. As she thought about it, something occurred to her though. "Milord, since you were saying that you were knowing Helene better than she was knowing herself, could I be asking what she would be thinking of me?"

Her husband raised both his eyebrows fractionally, then tilted his head very slightly to one side. He made a thoughtful sound and didn't speak for several seconds. "She would have considered you a good woman." He finally said, his tone somewhat thoughtful.

Fiona smiled. "I'm glad to be hearing that."

"I believe I should offer you an apology." Lord Delmar said a moment later, causing Fiona to stare at him for a moment.

'What?"

"I was not as kind with my words as I should have been at the beginning of this conversation. For that, I do apologize."

She smiled at him. "I'm happy to be forgiving you milord."

He nodded, but for some reason, she got the distinct impression that he didn't like that she had forgiven him. Or maybe that she had forgiven him so easily? He didn't seem upset or anything, but he didn't seem all that pleased either. And of course, she was getting this from trying to read his face and body language, which was rather like trying to read a brick wall sometimes.

"Thank you." He said with a subtle nod of his head. "You said that you had a request as well."

"Right." She nodded, still not entirely sure what was going on with him. "Um, last night on our wedding night you were using compulsion so I wouldn't be having any pain, and also to make me enjoy it."

"Was there pain?" He asked.

"No milord, but if I'm being honest, I wasn't enjoying it much either."

He raised his eyebrow. "That is highly improbable given the compulsion I used."

"Well, I was enjoying it in one way I suppose." She conceded. "But..." She took a moment to compose her words carefully. "The compulsion was making it less..." She frowned

He didn't reply, apparently waiting for her to speak.

"I could feel that it wasn't natural and it was actually leaving me feeling... um..." She hesitated. "Well, if I'm honest, I was feeling very unsatisfied. I wasn't liking it at all, and I'm preferring no compulsion at all, even if I'm not... well, you know."

Lord Delmar raised both of his eyebrows a little as he looked at her. He made a thoughtful sound accompanied by a thoughtful frown. "I would not have thought that. I only have experience with one woman, but Helene rather seemed to enjoy it when I used compulsion in the bedchamber."

"But I'm guessing there was rather more, um, 'playing' beforehand."

He nodded once.

"I'm not even opposed to the compulsion, it just felt like..." She took a deep breath. "It was feeling like you were wanting to finish as soon as you could; like it was something to be enduring and you weren't wanting to do it at all."

He made no response, and that's when she realized--

Oh.

She bit her lip. "That's how you're feeling, isn't it?"

He nodded once. "I endeavored to be clear that this was to be an entirely practical marriage. I also clearly communicated to you that I didn't wish for another wife after Helene; that has not changed."

Fiona nodded slowly, remembering that he had indeed told her that. Perhaps she hadn't been focusing on that as much as she should have though. He really had tried to warn her and he had given her every opportunity to turn him down, even offering just before the ceremony. She could feel her heart sinking though. She well remembered how wonderful it was to be married to Sean and she couldn't believe that he wasn't wanting something like that again though.

"Milord, wasn't your marriage to the Lady Helene wonderful though? Why wouldn't you be wanting something like that again, even if it wasn't quite as good as what you were having with Helene?"

He didn't answer right away, and this time she didn't think it was because he tended to be taciturn. "There are exactly two people in all of Illuminar's creation for whom I have allowed myself to care. In both cases, the result was temporary joy followed by years of constant torment, with several hundred more years of that perpetual torment forthcoming. Why would I wish to put myself in that position again?"

Fiona swallowed.

Hard.

"There is a reason I endeavored to clarify this with you." He continued. "I said that there was only one person for whom I cared; Rachel. When you asked about the orc situation at dinner, I endeavored to be clear that I cared not about the suffering of those outside of Narlotten. When you said in our first conversation on the Helene that I loved Narlotten, I explained that I do not care about it, but only my promise to Helene. Was I not clear?"

She took a deep breath, realizing that everything he'd said was indeed true. He had done rather a lot to warn her of this and made it clear that he wanted a practical marriage and nothing more. As she thought about it, she wasn't sure how he could've been clearer.

"You were clear milord." She finally said, then took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

He looked at her for a long moment. "I see that despite my attempts at clarity, I apparently was not clear enough. I do apologize for that; perhaps I should have taken greater care to warn you."

She nodded slowly, her heart sinking until she remembered something. It had already occurred to her that he might be like this before she had agreed to marry him, and she had thought of strong evidence that he wasn't like this; not deep down.

"Begging your pardon milord, but I'm having a hard time believing that." She said, watching him carefully for any sign of response. "From what I've been hearing, the Lady Helene was a very compassionate woman who was caring about everyone around her; have I been hearing right?"

He nodded once.

"Then I'm finding it hard to believe that a woman who was caring that deeply about others could be loving a man who couldn't be caring about others."

He swallowed, and then for a moment, his eyes looked slightly watery. "Even with how thoroughly I knew her, I will confess to not understanding why Helene loved me so." For a moment, the look in his eyes became far away and he blinked a few times, then he refocused on Fiona. "She was capable of loving anyone, even me."

"Even you?" Fiona raised her eyebrow.

He nodded once, but didn't speak.

"I'm not understanding; what is so wrong with you that she could be loving 'even you'?"

He didn't reply for several seconds, and when he did his tone was unnaturally even, even for him. "That is a discussion best left for another time."

"You've been saying that to me rather a lot." She pointed out.

He nodded once. "I have indeed."

"What about the children we'll be having?" Fiona asked. "You claim that you've only ever cared about Rachel and Helene, but I don't think you're so hard-hearted as to not be caring about your own son."

"Most dragons do not care about their offspring." He replied without emotion. "My sire forced me from his cave long before I was mature or ready; long before I met Helene in fact."

Fiona stared at him.

She knew from the glimpse she'd gotten of him while bonding that he had been just barely into his teens at the oldest when he had met Helene. If his sire had kicked him out 'long before' that...

"How long before?" She asked.

"Many years."

"I'm so sorry." Her face fell.

"Of course I would not do that to my own son or Conner." He continued, his voice still almost unnaturally neutral. "I will need a son to rule and I have promised to look after Conner."

"You're seeming awful concerned about keeping your promises for someone who is claiming to not care about anyone." She replied.

He nodded once.

"Why?"

Her husband swallowed once, closed his eyes for several seconds, then looked at her. "Because of Illuminar."

"There's a story there." She prompted, then continued speaking before he could reply since she guessed what he might say. "And please don't be saying that it's a conversation best left for another time; we're having plenty of time."

He inclined his head in concession. "I never believed in Illuminar, though Helene did with all her heart. One day, after we had known each other for many years, she challenged me to ask Illuminar for something that I truly wanted -- in her words, my 'heart's deepest desire' -- because she believed that Illuminar would prove to me that He existed."

"Were you asking?"

He nodded once. "I asked that Illuminar would make a way for me to marry Helene, and I offered that if He did, I would serve Him my entire life. The very next day, Helene came up with the idea of me using a disguise gem to join the military and become an acceptable suitor for her that way. I have served Illuminar ever since, and He requires that we keep our word and the law."

Fiona felt her eyes get watery and her throat slightly tight. "That's incredibly sweet."

"Thank you." He replied, then got a faraway look in his eyes for a moment before he spoke again. "If you have no objection, I would prefer not to couple tonight." He was incredibly composed and controlled about his voice and body language, but the look in his eyes betrayed him anyway. He looked...

Haunted.

That was the only word she could think of for it, even though it wasn't quite right. She couldn't actually feel the weight of pain he was feeling just by looking into his eyes, but she could get an impression. He looked like a man ready to shatter into a thousand pieces and she simply couldn't imagine the kind of strength he must have to hold himself together with what he must be feeling.

Even more incredible, he had held himself together for the last seventeen years, even though with his perfect recall, he must feel like this every moment of every day. Suddenly, Fiona found herself wondering if Lord Delmar's incredible work ethic partially came from a desire to distract himself from his grief. He was the strongest man she had ever known even with that terrible, raw, gnawing, and gaping hole in his heart.

Given the look in his eyes, she nodded. "I won't be pushing you milord."

"Then I shall retire." He replied. Without further comment, he turned, walked to the bed, slipped under the covers, and thirty seconds later, his breathing patterns changed.

He was asleep.

She found herself wondering if he found any solace in his dreams. Did he dream of the good times with Helene and Rachel, perhaps of them as a whole family? Was he burdened by nightmares of his beloved wife's death, or of his daughter's inexplicable attachment to a necromancer?

"Dear Illuminar." She said, her voice cracking slightly. "Please be sending him good dreams tonight, and please help me find some way to be helping him." She wanted to pray more, but she didn't know what to pray. She wanted to help him, but she had no idea what she could do.

"And please be helping me cope." She added. Despite her husband having been clear about his feelings and opinions, she found herself completely unprepared for what he had said. He'd said much of it before, but she hadn't been hearing him. Now she was wishing that she'd been paying closer attention.

Still, he was a good man. Well, dragon.

She couldn't imagine how much pain he was in, and for him to be ruling Narlotten the way he was even while in that much pain... She wanted to help him. Not only because he was her husband, but because he was a good man in terrible pain and he needed help. She just didn't know how to help him, so she whispered another prayer to Illuminar that He would make a way for her to help him.

* * *

Ethan panted slightly as he lay on his back on the bed in the captain's cabin, his wives doing similarly all around him. Except for Rachel in her breast wrap and boy-short-style panties, they were all naked, breathing heavily, and had a slight sheen of perspiration after the night's activities. They lay in a tangled mess of silky skin and smooth scales, which Ethan enjoyed immensely.

"Well, that's one way to get ready for bed." He panted slightly with a huge grin on his face.

"My favorite way." Kendra replied. She sounded barely winded, which wasn't surprising considering that she took more care in exercising and fitness than the rest of his wives. Only Selene matched her.

Selene...

"Amen." Alana panted, then rested her hand over her womb. "I won't be able to do that in a few months."

"I'll take your turn." Beth grinned slyly.

"I think she meant sliding under you while he took care you." Rachel said to the blonde, her cheeks pink. The wood elf had indeed wiggled underneath Beth while Ethan had been driving into the blonde from behind, and then had proceeded to help her finish more than once.

"I did." Alana said, then yawned. "And thanks for the offer Beth, but there's no way I'm going without this for another eight months."

"Eight months?" Ethan looked at her. "We got married two months ago, don't you mean seven months?"

Alana looked confused for a moment then chuckled. "Right, I always forget that humans are only nine months in the womb; elves are ten months."

"Oh, I didn't know that." He replied.

"Now you do." She smiled.

They lay there for another minute before Beth slipped off the bed and stepped over to the dresser.

"What's up?" Ethan asked as he watched her very shapely legs and butt.

"I'm checking the portal stones Dominus." The blonde replied as she opened the drawer. "We have several now and-- Oh, a letter!" She pulled out a small note and held it up. "It's from the Timarou portal stone."

"Lord Kalus?" Kendra frowned. "We just left them."

"Well, read it." Ethan said as he sat up, his other wives following suit. He didn't think he'd ever get tired of that sight.

"To Ethan and family, especially Rachel." Beth began, then looked up at the redhead.

Everyone else followed suit.

The redhead herself frowned. "Keep reading?"

Beth nodded and began to read again. "I had not looked at non-urgent messages from Timarou until we parted ways earlier since we were preparing for the orc battle. Now that I have, it seems that Lord Delmar of Narlotten has remarried."

Everyone looked at Rachel, who seemed to have frozen in place. As one, Ethan and Alana scooched closer to her. He put his arm around her and Alana took Rachel's hand, which seemed to unfreeze her. She leaned into him and gave Alana's hand a gentle squeeze.

"Please keep reading." Rachel said. Ethan couldn't help but notice that she'd recovered very quickly. She was getting stronger emotionally and it was wonderful to see.

Beth nodded, then began to read again. "It appears to be a purely practical marriage in order to produce an heir, and the woman in question is a recent widow with an infant son. It appears her husband was a tracker in the Narlotten military who was killed by the 'false prophet' the day after he appeared in the Ten Kingdoms."

Ethan and Alana looked at each other and then she spoke. "A tracker? I think that means the man who put an arrow into your heart."

"Yeah." He nodded. "I'll bet the new First Lady of Narlotten hates us, but ironically, her husband is the reason we bonded."

"It was self-defense." Kendra shrugged. "He shouldn't have been attacking an innocent man."

"Kendra." Taloni said reprovingly. "He probably didn't know that Master was a good man. He probably thought he was trying to capture a necromancer."

Kendra shrugged. "That doesn't change what I said."

"But he wasn't a wicked sheep." Beth said to the former Aldmiri. "He was a sheepdog who was misled. I would've thought you would have more sympathy for him, given that you were once the same."

Kendra had the good sense to look abashed as she nodded.

Ethan looked at Rachel, but she spoke before he could ask how she was doing.

"It's okay." The redhead said, then took a deep breath and looked at Beth. "Please keep reading."

The blonde did. "After consulting with my wives, I have decided to travel to Karnas to offer my congratulations on the nuptials, as well as speak to Lord Delmar regarding what I have personally witnessed concerning Ethan. I have been hoping to talk to him for some time, and this provides an excellent opportunity. While I shall endeavor to sway his mind, I would not assume my efforts will be successful."

Alana smiled. "It probably won't make a difference, but I really appreciate him trying."

"Agreed." Ethan nodded, then looked at Beth. "Is there more?"

She nodded. "Harold and Carla Gladstone have been sent ahead to Timarou, thus, please, tell Victoria that her parents will be well looked after. Respectfully yours, Lucien Kalus, Lord Regent of Timarou"

Beth lowered the letter and looked at Rachel. "Did you want to switch nights tonight?" It was the blonde's night to sleep in Ethan's arms.

Rachel nodded slowly. "Thank you." She looked around at all of them, her gaze lingering on Alana and Ethan longer than the rest. "Thank you, all of you. I'll be okay. I think some part of me knew this was coming, I just didn't know it would be so soon." She fell silent for a moment before speaking again. "I have a stepmother; I don't know how to feel about that."

"I wonder what she's like." Beth mused.

"Honest, kind, and discreet." Rachel said quietly. "I don't think my father would marry her if she wasn't those three things."

"That's good." Tee smiled.

"I have a stepbrother." Rachel said after a moment. "The letter said that she had an infant son, correct?"

Beth nodded. "Yes."

"I always wanted a brother." Rachel fell silent for several seconds. "I hope she can help my father. I don't think he's been very happy since my mother died."

Ethan looked around at his wives and tried to comprehend how he would feel if one of them-- He swallowed. "I would bet he's not, and maybe she can help."

"Maybe even enough that he might stop chasing Master." Tee said hopefully, though not expectantly.

"I doubt it." Kendra spoke up. "If her husband was killed by Ethan -- well, technically Alana but I'm sure they blame Ethan -- then I think she might make him more likely to hunt us, not less."

"Yeah." Ethan ran his hand over the top of his head where his hair would be if he had any. "Let's hope that Lucien can talk some sense into him, but I won't hold my breath."

"Indeed." Alana sighed, then looked at Rachel. "Will you be okay?"

She nodded. "I... I wish that my father and I were..." She hung her head. "I wish that one day we could all meet and..." She trailed off.

Ethan would've liked to tell her that it was possible, but he didn't think it was. He would've loved it for her sake, but he didn't see it happening.

"I wonder if she knows that he's a dragon." Beth mused.

"She likely does." Kendra replied. "Dragon anatomy is unusual and even if she couldn't see through his disguise gem, she would feel the difference on the wedding night."

Alana gave Ethan a sly look. "Yes, the only dragon about which I'm informed has a very big... difference."

"I unfortunately have seen more than one... 'difference' on a dragon." The dragon huntress grimaced. "Large is very normal."

Ethen raised his eyebrow at Kendra. "You've seen more than one?"

"I hunted dragons." She replied. "Some of them kidnapped women, and some of those women were in the middle of enduring a terrible fate that dragons only inflict on women when we rescued them."

"Oh." Ethan grimaced.

She nodded, then smiled darkly. "Fortunately, that particular bit of anatomy provides no resistance to a sharp blade."

Everyone stared at her.

She seemed unbothered. "Sometimes, I think you all forget what my former occupation was."

"Sometimes we do." Ethan agreed. "You are such a kind and caring woman with us it's easy to forget that you were a..." He hesitated, not sure of the right word.

"An assassin? A cold-blooded killer?" Kendra suggested. Curiously, she didn't seem guilty about that. "I was, but I'm glad I'm not now." She hesitated. "Well, I'm not an assassin anymore." She winked.

Everyone chuckled.

Ethan wasn't entirely sure she was joking though.

"Anyway, it's late." Alana yawned, then looked at Rachel. "Maybe you'll feel better after a good night's sleep."

"Maybe." She looked at Beth. "Is that offer to switch still open?"

"Of course." The blonde smiled.

"You all go ahead." Ethan said as his stomach growled. "I think I'm going to get a bite to eat before I turn in."

His wives all smiled at his seemingly insatiable appetite. His arm had regrown up to the wrist already, and it was growing so fast that he wondered if there was some kind of innate dragon magic at work. He was eating an insane amount of food, so he had the raw materials. Plus, it seemed possible that magic was speeding the growth somehow.

* * *

Selene watched the very last of the nameless Earth agency's equipment and personnel -- except for Yvonne -- disappear through the portal to Earth with mixed feelings. It was wonderful that they were gone of course, but their departure was also a harbinger of her departure from the Ten Kingdoms as well.

She didn't know how to feel about that.

On the one hand, she felt closer to home than ever because she was actually and literally closer to home. She needed to stay and apologize to Ethan and his wives, but after that, she could go home.

Home.

Or rather: home?

She really didn't have a home, not since her brother had died. Her parents' house had too many bad memories to be home anymore, and she had jumped from college dorms, to efficiency apartments, to her current 'pay by the week' hotel since she hadn't yet found an apartment near the FBI branch where she had been stationed. Oh, she hadn't payed in far more than a week. Damn, she would need a lot of new things if they had thrown them all out.

But if she did go 'home' to Earth, she would be further from her home on the Argo.

"Selene, might I have a word?" Yvonne asked as the portal closed, interrupting her reverie.

"Sure." The Brazilian woman replied. "What's up?"

"Two things." The agent replied. "First, I made some inquiries after the portal on Earth was destroyed, and I can indeed get you your job at the FBI back, and even make it like you were never fired in the first place."

"Really?" Selene's eyes widened.

"Yes." Yvonne smiled. "It'll take a couple of weeks, but I can."

"Thank you." Selene attempted to smile back, but it didn't feel right. It probably didn't look right either.

"Conflicted?"

The Brazilian woman nodded. "I made friends here, and now..." She glanced towards the portal that had just closed.

"Ah." Yvonne gave her a sympathetic smile. "And now those friends will be worlds away."

Selene nodded.

"Perhaps you can use your telepathy to talk to them?" Yvonne suggested.

"Yeah, I suppose so, but--" Selene stopped mid-sentence as she realized what the agent had said.

"I wasn't sure, thanks for confirming." Yvonne had a satisfied smirk on her face.

Selene reached out and brushed the agent's mind as she spoke. "You won't tell anyone, will you?"

"You're reading my mind right now, aren't you?" The agent replied. "You tell me."

"It doesn't work that way." Selene replied. "I can tell what's on the surface, and I can tell if someone lies, but it's more images really; impressions."

Yvonne nodded slowly. "Then I will promise you this: as long as you use it for good, your secret is safe with me."

She wasn't lying.

Selene breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." The agent replied. "I would suggest that you stay here in the Ten Kingdoms, but I compiled the profile on you; you'd never be able to live with yourself."

The caramel-haired beauty nodded. "After what happened to my brother..." She shook her head and then looked around. "It'll be hard to leave, but there's literally no one else on Earth who can do what I can do; who can help the people I can help."

She felt her throat get slightly tight as she considered that.

"With great power, comes great responsibility." Yvonne gave her a pained smile. "Spider-Man was one of my heroes growing up. He's part of the reason I ended up doing what I'm doing, so I understand."

"You got the husband and kids though, and I'll bet you have friends." She replied

"I did, and I have a few friends, but not many."

"That's more than I have. Well, on Earth anyway." Selene replied, trying not to sound bitter.

"Now would be a perfect time for the second thing that I wanted to talk to you about." Yvonne smiled. "Your kink."

Selene frowned.

"Not that kink." The agent shook her head. "I told you before that I noticed your favorite stories didn't revolve around the kink, but something else."

"What?" Selene asked, remembering how the agent had been cut off before she could finish her explanation several days ago.

"The heroines you enjoyed the most fell in love with a man who was kinky yes, but he also took care of her." Yvonne replied. "The stories you liked weren't about the sex, they were about a woman who felt utterly overwhelmed and like the entire world rested on her shoulders. Then, she finds someone who takes care of her and makes that weight bearable."

Selene cocked her head to one side.

"Yes, it was often couched in dominance and submission play where he was telling her what to do, but she always secretly craved that because it lifted the weight off of her shoulders. It let her relax and not be so stressed because he took care of her. Your favorite heroines were very capable and could do everything except take care of their non-physical needs; needs like friendship, a shoulder to cry on, and the ability to not put everything on herself. You loved the stories where the man took care of the heroine in the areas where she wouldn't or couldn't take care of herself."

Selene's mind instantly went to Ethan and how he was always making her promise to take care of herself.

"I would hazard a guess that your mother fell apart after your brother was kidnapped?" Yvonne asked.

Selene nodded.

"And your dad was busy trying to provide and keep a roof over your head, so you became the woman of the house, doing most of the housework and taking care of your mother, all before you finished puberty."

She nodded again.

Yvonne gave her an apologetic smile. "And all that, plus coping with the changes of puberty, starting high school not long afterwards, prepping for college, and helping to keep your mother calm, all while feeling like the entire world was on your shoulders. And the whole time, I bet you were wishing for someone to be there when you didn't feel strong; you were barely a teenager and you had the responsibilities of a single parent thrust upon you, for your mother no less, and sometimes you felt like you would break but you couldn't let yourself."

"Have you been spying on me for years or something?" Selene asked, marveling at her accuracy.

"No." Yvonne smiled and shook her head. "That's the reason for your kink. That's the reason you want to be tied up or told what to do: because then you can finally rest because it's not on your shoulders anymore, it's on someone else's shoulders. That's why you like being told what to do, because you had to make all your own decisions from way too young. You don't want someone to tie you up and take advantage of you, you want someone with whom you can just 'be' without the pressures of life. You want someone who will take care of you."

Selene could feel he eyes getting slightly watery and she swallowed. "Wow. I never thought about it like that, but..." She slowly shook her head. "Are you sure you aren't the telepath?"

"I'm not; I'm just a couple decades older with more life experience and a Masters in psychology." She smiled.

Selene chuckled, though it sounded a bit like a sob as well. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Yvonne looked at her for a long moment. "You found that here in the Ten Kingdoms, didn't you? People who really take care of you?"

Selene nodded and wiped the corners of her eyes since for some reason they had gotten a bit wet. "But I can't stay."

"The weight of the world on your shoulders, yet again." Yvonne gave her another apologetic smile.

Selene nodded. "I'm telepathic. You have no idea how long I've wished that there wasn't so much pressure on me, and yet here I find myself; the only telepath on Earth."

"Technically, we're in the Ten Kingdoms." Yvonne winked.

Selene chuckled, though again it was mixed with sadness too.

"I think you should stay, but I know you could never be happy here because you feel like your gifts are needed on Earth."

Selene sniffled slightly, then nodded.

"You can come back with me in a few minutes when the portal is ready again." The agent offered. "But I'm guessing that you'll want to wait here to say a proper goodbye."

Selene nodded. "Yeah."

"I'll get the paperwork started to get you reinstated to the FBI." Yvonne said. "And by the way, I saw to it that your belongings were rescued from your hotel." She pulled out a business card and handed it to Selene. "Give me a call when you return to Earth and I'll make all the arrangements."

"Thank you." She nodded, then another arrangement that needed attention occurred to her. She didn't want to voice it, but she needed to if she was serious about moving back to Earth.

"Something else?" Yvonne asked when she hesitated.

"Um, when I get back to Earth, I need to temporarily die for like, 5-10 seconds, but I want to make sure it's no longer." She replied. "Is there some way to do that?"

"That's very doable." The agent eyed her. "Is this a magic thing?"

Selene nodded. "Well, more like ending a magic thing. It only ends at death and I need it to end, so..." She grimaced.

"Something with Ethan?"

Selene managed to keep her face mostly straight as she nodded.

"I'll make arrangements." Yvonne replied.

"Thank you." Selene said sincerely, then looked at the nearby portal. She would never have imagined feeling like this about going home when she'd first stepped foot into the Ten Kingdoms. She didn't want to leave. She wanted to stay; she wanted to stay with Ethan and Kendra, and all the rest of them too.

In the back of her mind, she remembered that scared little girl she'd become when her brother had been kidnapped. She couldn't change her past, but being telepathic, she could change things for other little girls who had lost their brothers, parents who had lost their children, and anyone else who had lost a loved one.

No one else on Earth could do that the way she could.

No one.

She hated that, but she didn't see a way around that.

* * *

Fiona woke from the night's rest, alone in bed. She lay there for a few minutes thinking about the conversation with her husband the previous night, still not knowing entirely what to make of it. It was just so much to be taking in and she didn't think she'd be fully settled for days.

She opened her eyes and sat up, seeing that it was still in the pre-dawn hours judging by the light coming in through the window. Lord Delmar was again reading and pacing as he held Conner. Again, and almost miraculously, her son seemed entirely content in his arms.

"Good morning milord." She said, then yawned.

"Good morning Fiona." He replied in the same tone that he always used.

"Could we be moving Conner's crib in here so I can be feeding him easier at night?" She asked. It had been something of a pain getting up in the middle of the night only to find that she had apparently removed her dress while she was sleeping. Dressing in the dark with only the moon's light and then finding her way to the nursery hadn't been fun.

"If you wish; I will see to it personally before nightfall." He replied without much emotion, then continued with equally as little. "Your morning magic lesson with mage Weston will be interrupted by a council meeting. You are free to attend if you wish."

Despite the invitation, she got the distinct impression that it truly didn't matter to him whether she did or not.

"Um, I can be attending milord." She replied, and then the sensation of fullness in her breasts reminded her of something. "And I can be taking Conner. He'll probably be wanting to eat soon."

For all his statements the previous night about not caring, he was very gentle when he handed Conner to her. Sadly, he didn't even seem to notice that she was naked when he looked at her.

"I shall see you at the council meeting." He said, then left the room.

She sighed.

Perhaps he might learn to love her one day, but it wouldn't be today.

* * *

*And that's why I'm hesitant to start anything with Rachel; I don't want to pressure her. She got such big news last night and might still be trying to figure out how she feels about all of it.* Alana finished explaining privately to her husband as they lay in bed, the morning light of the pre-dawn hours coming in through the window while they talked. Rachel was still sleeping in between them, snuggling with both of them in her sleep.

*You wouldn't be pressuring her.* He replied. *I can feel her emotions and Rachel wants you like she's rarely wanted anything else. However, as with most things involving her, she needs a little push to get started. You wouldn't be pushing her into something that she doesn't want to do; you would be nudging her into doing something that she desperately wants to do, but can't work up the courage.*

*And this isn't a bad time because she just learned she has a stepmother and a stepbrother?* Alana bit her lip.

*With the way our lives are going, if you wait until everything is perfect, you'll never get there.* He smiled wryly. *There's something to be said for seizing the day.*

The wood elf nodded slowly, a smile spreading on her face.

*How about I help get things started after breakfast?* Ethan suggested.

*Really?*

He nodded. *You two have been dancing around this for far too long.* He paused. *Okay, it hasn't actually been that long; your first kiss was what, a week and a half ago?*

She nodded, smiling at the memory.

*Okay, after breakfast then.* He said firmly.

*Okay.* Her smile got even wider.

* * *

Fiona had just finished giving Conner his breakfast when there was a knock on the door of the nursery.

"Lady Fiona, a letter has arrived for you." A voice said through the door.

She smiled and made sure she was properly covered after nursing. "You can be coming in."

The door opened and a Narlotten messenger entered, walked up to her, bowed, and then held the letter out to her. She didn't recognize the writing, but it had an artistic flair that she was pretty sure was Amy's work.

"Thank you." She said to the messenger, who nodded respectfully and then left.

She adjusted a very sleepy Conner in her arms and then opened the letter. She smiled as she read it, especially hearing how Amy was already married and how happy she seemed about that. She was less happy to hear about their troubles on the road, but her friends had congratulated her on her marriage. Overall, the letter did her heart good.

"Lady Fiona!" The door burst open and Glessie came rushing in with an excited grin on her face, followed at a more sedate pace by Fiona's other handmaiden, Nessie.

"Good news?" Glesse asked as she looked at the letter in Fiona's hand.

"Aye, very good." She beamed. "And how about you?"

"We're great!" Glessie beamed. "Lord Delmar's Steward found us and told us everything we need to know about being handmaidens!"

"Perhaps not everything." Nessie added, the edge of a smile on her otherwise serious face. "However, one of Lord Delmar's errand boys told us to inform you that Lord Delmar will assign a bodyguard to you, who will pose as a third handmaiden."

Fiona looked at Nessie. "Oh?"

"Yes, Lady Delmar." Nessie said with perfect diction.

Fiona wasn't sure how to take that. Obviously it meant that he wanted her protected, but he could have just told her himself, unless perhaps he had just found a suitable one that morning? She decided to focus on the fact that he wanted her to have a bodyguard. She supposed that was good news.

"You forgot the other thing." Glese 'whispered' to her fellow handmaiden.

Nessie raised one eyebrow at her friend, then addressed Fiona. "He also wished you to be informed that, quote: 'the woman you object to' end-quote, had no involvement in her selection or hiring."

Fiona smiled at that; she would feel better knowing that Lady Ekthros hadn't been involved. "Where is she?"

"She will be arriving in several days, though we were not informed when." Nessie replied.

"Okay, thank you for telling me." Fiona smiled at them, wondering who her husband had picked for a bodyguard.

* * *

Rachel set her bowl down as she finished eating breakfast. As was usual lately, Ethan had eaten far more than anyone else had and the redhead shared an amused smile with her best friend. There was something else behind Alana's eyes this morning though. Rachel couldn't quite place it, but it looked something like anticipation or perhaps excitement.

"Alana, Rachel." Their husband looked at them. "Could I talk to you both in the captain's cabin for a bit?"

"Sure." They both said at the same time, which prompted giggles from Bee and Tee.

"Have fun." Beth said as the three of them stepped towards the captain's cabin.

Rachel gave her a quizzical look, but the blonde didn't give anything away other than a slightly too innocent smile. The redhead shrugged and followed her husband into the captain's cabin, closing the door behind her when they were all inside.

"Yes my lord?"

"Yes, please share sir."

Ethan smiled. "Rachel, I have a question for you."

"Oh?"

He nodded. "Where do you most want Alana to kiss you?"

She froze.

Her brain knew exactly the answer that she wanted to give, but there was no possible way that information would ever make it to her mouth in a cohesive manner. Not a chance.

"How about this." Ethan spoke when she didn't. "How about you just use your finger to point to someplace that you want Alana to kiss? It can be anywhere, just point and she'll kiss there." He looked at Alana. "Sound good?"

"Perfect." Alana grinned, then looked Rachel directly in the eyes. "I mentioned to our husband earlier that I promised I would kiss you anywhere..."

Rachel bit her lip as the room suddenly started to feel very warm indeed. Suddenly, her breaths were shallower and she could feel both her nether regions and her breasts waking in a way that usually only Ethan was able to make them wake.

"Rachel, sound good?" Ethan prodded gently.

She nodded before she had decided to, then something struck her. Yesterday, Alana had promised... and now both of them were here and asking her to...

"Don't think, just point." Alana said as she stepped closer. She was such a graceful woman and Rachel had always loved that about her. She was kind, and graceful, and beautiful, and naked under that dress... Rachel felt her cheeks -- and certain other parts of her as well -- start to almost burn with heat.

Rachel pointed.

She reached up and pointed to her... well, somewhere in the general area of her face. She hadn't been sure where she wanted and her body reacted on instinct before she'd fully formed a plan.

Alana grinned slyly, then took another step forward, wrapped her arms around Rachel, and then tenderly kissed the redhead's jawline.

Rachel moaned.

Alana exhaled onto the sensitive skin of her neck, which drew a sigh from Rachel.

Her best friend leaned up on her tiptoes and whispered into her ear. "If you keep pointing, I'll keep kissing..."

Rachel wanted to point, she really did, but her brain wouldn't let her. She was forcefully reminded of her wedding night with Ethan where she'd been too frozen to do what she'd wanted to do with him too.

"I got you." Ethan said from behind her, though she hadn't noticed him move. He slid his arms around her waist and kissed the top of her head. "Go ahead, it's okay."

She pointed.

Alana smiled, then moved to kiss the underside of her jaw. Rachel pointed again and the elf kissed her chin. Another point and Rachel felt the softest, most wonderful feminine lips pressed gently against her own. Rachel lost herself in the kiss, being held by her husband while kissing the most wonderful woman in the world.

Alana gently massaged Rachel's lips while the redhead did the same. After a moment, the elf's smooth tongue brushed Rachel's, and the two playfully brushed up against each other for several long, wonderful seconds.

It was heavenly.

* * *

Ethan did his very best not to interrupt, wanting his wives to have their moment. However, the sight was causing a rather predictable biological reaction, and it had reached the point where it bumped the entwined lovers.

They parted their lips, though the rest of them was still touching, and they looked at him. Rachel turned slightly in his arms so she could see him.

"Well, I think someone approves." Alana chuckled.

Rachel smiled as her cheeks went even more scarlet.

"What can I say, you ladies are lovely."

"You know..." Alana got a sly smile on her face. "You once said that Rachel and I could take care of you together..."

"You did?" Rachel asked.

"Sort of." He replied. "Do you remember the first time you took care of me with my other wives around?"

She nodded. "I was too embarrassed to be naked, so I used my mouth."

"I suggested to Alana that she might enjoy being opposite you." He explained.

Rachel bit her lip and let out the tiniest sigh. "That... Um, I could..." She swallowed. "If you want..." She looked at Alana. "And if you don't mind?"

"I appreciate that, but I'm not really here for me." Ethan replied, tamping down on his dragon side, which was starting to make a rather loud resurgence since it had been too long since Selene had last 'held his wing'.

"But my lord, we shouldn't... um 'neglect' you." Rachel said with a not-quite-straight face, a little bit of longing-fueled fire behind her eyes.

"I agree Sir." Alana nearly purred.

Ethan was under no illusion that this was about him. Well, maybe a little bit since he knew they both wanted him there, but he was pretty sure that both Alana and Rachel wanted to use his cock as a -- for lack of a better phrase -- a 'kissing post'.

"Well, if I must." He replied in a mock-resigned tone as he sat down on the bed, noting the teasingly flirtatious looks his wives were giving him. It seemed to be just as much about teasing him as it was about avoiding each other's eyes.

They both bit their respective lips as they looked down at where a certain part of him was standing proud. Seemingly subconsciously, Rachel reached out and intertwined her fingers in Alana's. Hand in hand, they stepped forward and knelt between his legs. Almost at the same moment, they both leaned forward and tenderly kissed his shaft, eliciting a satisfied exhale from him.

They both began to plant soft kisses on opposite sides of his cock. He reached down and pulled their hair back so it draped down one side of their necks as they continued. However, they almost seemed to be hiding from each other in embarrassment.

Well, there was an easy fix for that.

*Look at her.* He thought to both of them separately and privately.

They did.

Rachel's eyelids fluttered open and her pale blue eyes gazed deep into Alana's hazel ones. Suddenly, he was much more a bystander than an active participant, and that suited him just fine. Their kisses changed, becoming wider as they both spread their mouths wide enough that their lips would occasionally brush each other. They moaned or sighed whenever that happened.

It wasn't long before they began to inch upwards, heading towards the tip. They covered every inch of him in kisses as they went higher, clearly paying more attention to each other than him. When they reached the head, their lips slid halfway off of him while they kissed each other over the head of his cock. Their mouths never left him or each other. They both seemed entirely lost in what they were doing, taking their time and savoring it.

It was beautiful to watch.

Of course, the lovely sight had a rather predictable effect, given that they were both working him at the same time.

"Ladies, I'm about there..." He warned.

Alana flicked her eyes to his for a moment, a sly twinkling in them as Rachel let out a tiny moan. They both began to kiss more passionately and yet more tenderly too. He groaned as he felt his balls clench, then unloaded.

They didn't stop.

They kept kissing around the tip of his cock as he spurted, most of it ending in their mouths but a little dribbling down their chins. Neither seemed to care. Ethan himself felt almost overwhelmed, not only by the sensations but also because it was relatively rare that two of his balls went off at once, and it always almost overwhelmed him. It was almost like someone had dialed his orgasm up to eleven and he stopped himself from falling backwards by catching himself with his arms.

He panted for a moment, feeling lightheaded and slightly woozy for several moments. When that passed, he opened his eyes to see his wives looking at him.

"Are you okay?" Rachel asked.

"Yeah." He panted. "It's just that when two of them go off at once, it's nearly overwhelming." He noticed a white spot on the redhead's chin. "You got something just there." He grinned. "You know, Alana's offer of kissing wherever you point is still open..."

Rachel bit her lip and then glanced at Alana hesitantly. The brunette grinned and nodded excitedly.

The redhead didn't do anything for a few moments, then she slowly and hesitantly moved her hand and pointed to her chin with one finger. Alana beamed and leaned forward, planting a tender kiss right where Ethan's cum was on her chin. The kiss was soft and tender for a moment, then she made an exaggerated slurping sound that made the other two chuckle.

"Keep pointing." Ethan said when Alana had leaned back and appeared to be waiting expectantly.

Rachel bit her lip, then pointed lower on her neck. Alana obliged. Rachel slowly moved her finger down, pointing lower until Alana had reached her collarbone, at which point Rachel appeared to have a little trouble lowering her hand. Not physically, but probably more emotionally.

"Rachel." He said softly.

Alana paused her kissing and instead leaned the side of her hand on Rachel's upper torso while the redhead looked at him, a slight 'deer in the headlights' look in her eyes.

"We both love you and will never leave you; you're safe here." He said and she looked reassured, so he added. "You're also both overdressed."

Rachel looked at Alana, hesitated, then spoke. "Um, can I...?" She glanced down at Alana's dress.

"Of course!" She beamed, then stood and raised her arms above her head.

Rachel stood up a little more slowly, then she shook her head. "I shouldn't be this nervous or hesitant."

"But you are, and that's okay." Alana smiled at her. "We love you just the way you are, nervousness and hesitation included."

"We do." Ethan agreed. "Honestly, I find it endearing."

"You do?" Rachel smile nervously, but also hopefully.

"We do." Alana agreed, answering for him. "Now please, I'm starting to feel a little warm here..." She swished her hips back and forth.

Rachel chuckled nervously. "You were never merely 'warm'." She was already red, but she went beet red after saying that.

"Rachel." Alana said softly

"Yes?"

"Take my dress off."

Rachel smiled, bit her lip, and then stepped forward and touched the lower hem of the green dress. She brushed her fingers against Alana's thigh, then gripped the hem and started slowly lifting. Ethan could see Rachel getting even redder as she lifted, but she didn't stop. She moved haltingly and was clearly unsure, but she didn't stop. Alana was all smiles and utterly shameless.

As the dress rose high enough to expose her slit, Ethan almost laughed at how wet she was. It looked like someone had smeared oil or water all over her slit and part of her upper thighs as well. Rachel clearly noticed too and sighed, seemingly reassured by the sight. She lifted the dress higher, exposing a flat, toned stomach that was right now hard at work growing a baby.

Ethan grinned at that thought.

Rachel hesitated slightly as the dress reached the underside of Alana's breasts, the hem now high enough that it was about to obscure the elf's vision. She paused

"You've seen it before." Alana encouraged softly. "Go ahead; I want you to."

Rachel didn't move for a moment, then as if she was trying to move before she stopped herself, she pulled it entirely off of Alana in one smooth motion. The two women sighed at the same time, rapturous looks on both of their faces.

"My turn?" Alana asked.

Rachel took a deep breath, then nodded and lifted her arms. Alana stepped forward without hesitation and kissed Rachel full on the mouth. The redhead froze for a moment and then melted into the kiss, probably not noticing as Alana slipped her hand down and started sliding her dress up. Rachel froze again, then seemed to soften without needing help.

Alana pulled her body back enough that she could slip the dress up without breaking the kiss. She got the dress up above her breasts before she parted the kiss and slipped the dress off of Rachel and cast it aside to resume the kiss. At this point, they wrapped their arms around each other and began to kiss with the loveliest blend of passion and tenderness, of desire and affection. This went on for longer than Ethan would've thought their lung capacity would've allowed until they parted, both panting slightly.

"Now, the rest?" Alana asked after a moment.

Rachel nodded with a sigh, then stiffened slightly. However, she also raised her arms enough that Alana could get at her breast wrap. She did. The elf reached up and unhooked the end of the wrap and started pulling gently. Rachel slowly turned on the spot, letting Alana slowly remove the wrap.

Ethan couldn't help but compare this with his own wedding night with her. Rachel had been so hesitant and frozen so many times that she'd needed a lot of help. Here, she had only needed a little encouragement to start and had only hesitated, not truly frozen. The growth in her was wonderful to see.

Finally, the wrap fell free, exposing Rachel's large and beautiful breasts.

Frankly, they were perfect.

Each of his wives had one thing about them that was perfect; Alana's overall figure, Beth's legs, Taloni's wings, Rachel's breasts, and Kendra's toned, lean body. Rachel's breasts were large enough to completely fill the hand, but not so large that she looked 'top-heavy'. Her perfectly formed pink nipples sat at just the right angle to look inviting, and Alana licked her lips, probably wanting to accept that invitation.

The brunette looked at them for a long moment, then into Rachel's pale blue eyes. "Perfection."

Rachel beamed as she blushed scarlet from her forehead clear down to her upper chest, though he could tell she was making a conscious effort not to cover herself too.

"Keep pointing." Alana suggested.

Rachel bit her lip.

A moment later, she pointed to a spot on her upper chest, just below her collarbone. Alana kissed her there. Rachel pointed perhaps an inch lower, and again Alana eagerly complied. Rachel kept pointing, her hand traveling over her upper chest, never going higher but often creeping lower. Eventually, Rachel pointed to a spot that was most definitely crossing the line from 'upper chest' to 'upper breast'.

Alana grinned, then kissed.

Rachel moaned.

Alana adjusted her position slightly so that her back was to the door and Rachel's back was to the bed, and especially Ethan. Then as she kissed, the elf also gently pushed Rachel's hips with her hands. The redhead sighed and didn't resist, stepping backwards as the brunette kissed the indicated spot again.

Ethan adjusted himself on the bed so that he could catch Rachel.

Rachel pointed slightly lower on her breast and Alana kissed her, just as the pair of them reached the bed. Rachel didn't resist Alana's gently prodding and sank down onto the bed, landing between Ethan's legs and leaning back so that her head ended up on his lap. Alana didn't stop her kissing, leaning over as Rachel leaned back so the smaller elf was half on top of the redhead.

"Keep pointing." Ethan whispered to Rachel.

The redhead didn't reply to him, but did keep pointing. It was almost another minute before the redhead managed to work up the courage to point to her nipple. Alana's lips had made a full circuit of both breasts by that point, kissing every inch of both of them except the nipples. Then, she pointed to her right nipple.

Alana ran a hand up the redhead's side, making her shudder in pleasure. "Look at me."

Rachel's eyes had been closed, seemingly lost in the sensations she was feeling. At this point, her eyelids fluttered open and she looked into Alana's eyes. Rachel's back was slightly bent, pushing her already large breasts into the air and making them even more prominent. The elf kept her eyes locked on Rachel's as she lowered her lips and gently kissed the hard nipple.

Rachel moaned.

Loudly.

She squirmed as she arched her back more, pushing the nipple into Alana's lips. Alana didn't stop kissing and introduced her tongue, as well as sucking slightly. After maybe ten seconds of this, Rachel seemed to tense up and then she started shuddering. Was she...

She was.

A little one, but she was.

After a few seconds, she stopped shuddering and looked up wide-eyed at Ethan from his lap. "I... I've never... not from just..."

"From just." Alana grinned, then lowered herself slightly so that her entire naked front was in contact with Rachel's naked front and slid up until their lips were level. "Want to try that again?"

Rachel nodded wordlessly and Alana slid her whole front against Rachel's whole front on her way back down. At this point, the redhead had spread her legs and Alana was lying between them as she paused over Rachel's other breast. Rachel bit her lip, though this time it looked like it was in anticipation as much as nervousness.

Then she pointed.

Alana grinned before fastening her lips around Rachel's other nipple and going to work. It took less than five seconds for the elf's talented and very experienced tongue to reduce her lover to a puddle of barely coherent sighs and moans. It took less than two minutes for Rachel to start shuddering slightly again.

* * *

Alana could think of only two times in her life that could even start to compare to this one: Rachel's wedding night, and her wedding night with Ethan, including finding out she was pregnant later that night. She was certain that this moment ranked above Rachel's wedding night. It didn't beat her wedding night with Ethan, but it was a damn close second.

Rachel started to shudder again and Alana just kept right on kissing, sucking, and licking her lover's breast, determined to make this one of the most wonderful moments of Rachel's life. Judging by the sounds and shudders, she was at least headed in that direction.

After entirely too short a time, Rachel stopped shuddering and Alana then pressed her entire front up against her lover and slid up, savoring the exquisite sensation of her naked skin. She wasn't sure how, but Rachel's skin both felt and tasted ten times better than her other fellow wives' skin.

She looked deep into Rachel's pale blue eyes and smiled, the anticipation almost killing her. "Remember, I'll kiss you anywhere..." She glanced down to where Rachel's panty-clad hips were pressed against her own. "...and I meant it."

Rachel pointed.

She pointed to somewhere just under her breasts where the elf was still pressed up against her. Alana grinned, then slid her body down and kissed that spot, savoring the sweet taste of the most beautiful, perfect skin in the world.

Rachel pointed again, this time a little lower. Alana's lips followed the finger, slowly kissing lower and lower on her lover's torso. The redhead seemed to hesitate a moment when Alana got to her panties though. They were what Ethan had once called 'boyshort' style and made of what felt like silk. Rachel hesitated a moment, and then pointed to a spot just below their upper hem.

Alana grinned.

She reached her fingers up and pulled the panties down just enough to kiss the indicated spot.

Rachel sighed.

She continued to point in various places, each slightly lower than the last. Alana continued inching the panties down until they revealed a patch of dark red hair that was the same color as the roots on her head. She didn't have a lot of hair and it wasn't long, but it was soft... and wet. Dripping wet.

She also wasn't hesitating. Maybe it was that she was leaning on Ethan, or maybe that she'd grown more comfortable in bed since she'd married Ethan, or maybe it was something else. For whatever reason, she was pointing in an anticipatory manner, not a nervous or unsure one.

It was good to see.

Rachel continued to point, and Alana reluctantly followed the finger past her lover's slit and onto her upper thighs, taking the panties with them. Then she had an idea. She gripped them with her teeth and started to slowly pull them down, waiting for any signs that Rachel was uncomfortable with that.

There weren't any.

Rachel's face was pulled into a wide smile as she watched, though her face was about as red as it could possibly be. Above her, Alana could see Ethan watching with a smile on his face and pride in his eyes. She wasted no time in dropping Rachel's panties on the floor once she'd gotten them off. Looking up, she saw Rachel laying there with her legs spread wide open, almost as if in invitation.

Rachel hesitated a moment and her legs twitched slightly in the direction of closing, but stopped. She swallowed, and then her legs relaxed open again. Alana smiled, then Rachel smiled back, hesitated a moment, then pointed to her inner thigh, maybe only six inches from her dripping wet slit. There was even a tiny wet spot on the sheets.

Alana slid up, making sure that she brushed Rachel's legs with her skin as much as possible before kissing the indicated spot. Rachel sighed. A moment later, she moved her finger an inch higher. Alana kissed the new spot, drawing another sigh from her lover.

Rachel bit her lip, then pointed another inch higher.

Alana grinned.

* * *

Rachel could feel herself breathing more shallowly than she should be, but she couldn't help it. She felt like she was in the middle of a dream and didn't want to chance waking up. She had no idea how she could've done this without Ethan there. She was leaning against him and his presence provided a powerful calming effect on her.

And Alana... beautiful, sweet, kind, caring Alana... Rachel sighed. That sigh turned into a moan as the elf kissed the inside of her thigh again. How could that feel so good? It didn't seem possible for something so simple to feel so sublime.

At this point, Alana was so close to Rachel's slit that if she moved her finger any higher, the elf's nose would bump into it. Rachel could already feel her closeness and she lost her nerve. She pointed to the inside of her other thigh, about where Alana had started before. The elf made a slightly pouting face, then obliged. How was she being so wonderful? How was she being so considerate?

Pointing another couple of times again put Alana so close to her slit that Rachel could almost feel her. She hesitated, wanting to point but not sure she could.

*You can do it.* Ethan's voice came to her privately. He gave her a gentle squeeze that was as comforting as his tone.

Before she'd realized that she'd done it, she pointed.

Alana grinned, then moved and made contact with--

Rachel gasped.

Oh!

Dear Illuminar in heaven, what was--

She gasped as the sensation coursed throughout her entire body, seemingly disconnecting herself from her own body. She had shared a bed with her husband many times and so she thought she knew what to expect, but this was so different. Not better or worse, just different.

She arched her back and opened her mouth in a silent scream as it felt like whatever Alana was doing was overloading her senses. Ethan did the same thing to her, but the sensations were so different. Still her lover didn't stop; she just kept right on doing whatever she was doing that made Rachel's grip on reality loosen. The fact that Alana was doing this was incredible, the fact that their husband was holding her while she did made it better, and the fact that the two of them loved her this much...

Rachel did something she almost never did; she completely let go and basked in the moment, just as her entire body began to tremble and she let the two people she loved most in the world carry her into bliss.

* * *

Ethan resisted the urge to chuckle as Rachel's hand found his and squeezed it far tighter than she probably realized she was doing. The redhead arched her back into the air and had her mouth open in a silent scream as Alana did some truly impressive work with her lips. Rachel was sighing and moaning in equal measure, something she almost never did when others were around.

He smiled.

Finally, Rachel seemed to come down from her orgasm and panted, her eyes hooded and containing rather more lust in them than he usually saw. Usually, it was smoldering desire that was powerful but contained. Right now though, it seemed a little less contained; a little more wild and free.

Alana stopped her oral ministrations and moved up so she was looking Rachel in the eyes. In response, the redhead started breathing heavily and licked her lips. She looked poised to move, but wasn't moving.

"If you want her, go get her." Ethan whispered softly.

Rachel did.

She wrapped her arms around Alana and pulled her into a kiss. Then she rolled a little, off of Ethan's lap so she ended up on top of Alana, still kissing her. Alana responded by wrapping her own arms around the redhead and kissing her as if her life depended on it. Rachel wasn't being as exuberant as his other wives, but for her, it was damn near aggressive.

The two women kissed passionately for several seconds before Rachel pulled back slightly. "Can I...?" She glanced down.

"Of course!" Alana beamed.

"I might not be good." Rachel whispered hoarsely.

"I don't care." Alana replied, then bit her lip. "Go for it."

She did.

Rachel slid down and started kissing Alana right between the legs. The elf's eyes rolled back in her head as she moaned, then she flopped down onto the bed with an expression of utter bliss on her face. Rachel clearly didn't have much experience, but she seemed as eager to practice as Alana was to be practiced on.

After only a few seconds, Alana put her hands on Rachel's head, running her hands through the dark red hair at the roots and urging her onwards. The redhead needed no urging. She was tenderly kissing, sucking, licking, and otherwise experimenting. Rachel was easily the smartest of Ethan's wives and was probably applying all of her considerable intellect to pleasuring Alana.

Rachel learned very fast.

Alana had clearly enjoyed it when Rachel had started, but not five minutes later, it looked like the elf was panting in desire. Five more minutes and Alana began to nearly vibrate as she clamped her thighs around Rachel's head. She let out a series of incredibly loud sighs and moans and then seemed to lose all her coordination as she arched her back and clutched the sheets tightly enough that her knuckles went white.

Yet even with all of that, Rachel didn't stop.

Ethan felt painfully hard as he watched the redhead continue to work on her best friend through the whole thing. Even once Alana came down, Rachel didn't stop; she kept working until Alana tensed up again and nearly screamed in pleasure, then dissolved into another session of trembling, which turned into almost violent vibrating after another few seconds.

"No, no more." Alana panted when she came down for the fourth time, likely because Rachel showed no sign of wanting to stop.

"Was... did I do okay?" Rachel asked, then bit her lip.

Alana laughed through her panting. "No, I reacted like that because I hated it."

Rachel smiled. It was one of those wide, dopey smiles borne from absolute contentment at something. Alana beckoned her closer and the redhead went, kissing her lover tenderly as they wrapped their arms around each other.

Ethan honestly was horny as hell, but really didn't feel like now was a good time to initiate anything with him involved. Instead, he moved off the bed, then grabbed one end of the blanket, and draped it over Rachel and Alana.

"Thank you Sir." Alana mumbled, clearly exhausted from what Rachel had done to her.

"Thank you my lord." Rachel agreed, then yawned.

If he recalled correctly, neither of them had slept perfectly well the previous night. "You two should take a nap." He smiled at them.

"M'kay." Alana mumbled.

"Thank you." Rachel smiled at him and then snuggled closer to Alana, closing her eyes as she did so.

He stood there for a moment with a wide smile on his face as he watched them drift off in each other's arms. He wondered if perhaps they might start round two when they woke up, and rather hoped they did. He made sure his disguise gem was activated to hide his rather impressive equipment as he left the captain's cabin, glad it would conceal that.

"Dominus, did you need some help?" Beth asked coyly with a sly smile after he'd closed the door.

"We would be happy to help you Master." Tee added.

"Alana asked us to make sure you were fully satisfied after they were done, just in case." Kendra explained. "The door to the storage room on the lower deck has a lock..."

He grinned.

* * *

Selene panted as her muscles screamed that she was working them too hard. It was strange to be practicing on the Midnight Sun instead of the Argo, but she wasn't going to complain. She had thought she had a thorough grasp of the basics of both sword and hand-to-hand combat.

Now she knew better.

Compared to Adrian Kossel, she was the equivalent of a kindergartener with crayons trying to compete with someone writing a doctoral thesis. Further, he didn't seem to get tired either.

Luminar Kossel raised his practice sword. "Again."

"How are... you not... out of... breath?" She managed to get out.

"Practice." He replied.

She nodded, then raised her practice sword, looking forward to learning more, but also looking forward to when they would rendezvous with the Argo in a few days.

* * *

"Yup, that's the Midnight Sun alright." Ethan said as he spied Faalkan's airship, on which Selene and Luminar Kossel would be waiting for them. They had been sailing for a few days now and nothing significant had happened in that time, except that his missing hand had regrown a fair bit. He was now sporting half of a palm and half a thumb too. At this rate, he'd have his whole hand back in another few days. He was really looking forward to that.

But as much as he was looking forward to that, he was looking forward to seeing Selene a lot more, and not even because she was literally the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Well, he supposed that objectively, Myla, Victoria, and Thea were just as beautiful, but he wasn't bonded to them and he'd long since noticed that bonding skewed his sense of how attractive a woman was.

It also wasn't that over the last few days, he'd had this growing urge to pin her to a bed somewhere and have his way with her; stupid dragon side. Though thankfully, it wasn't as bad as it had been with Kendra right before he'd married her. It had been 21 days between bonding with Kendra and their wedding, and it was only 9 currently with Selene, so thankfully he still had plenty of self-control.

Well, mostly.

No, it was because he felt an ache in his heart whenever he saw that her place around the breakfast fire was empty, or when he didn't see her sparring with Kendra, or how she wasn't there to wish him good night. But seeing the airship she was on, that hole in his heart felt a little less empty. That made him smile, but also unfortunately made certain urges grow a bit.

"Drago?"

He smiled at Kendra's voice, trying not to imagine shredding Selene's clothes to get at what was sure to be a delectable body underneath. He caught that thought and shook his head; what a difference a few days made.

The raven-haired woman gave him a sympathetic smile as she joined him at the front of the Argo. "You should get Selene to 'hold your wing' again."

Ethan bit back a comment about how he'd like her to hold something else of his. Damn dragon side. "I'll be okay. She'll break our bond to move back to Earth, so we shouldn't have to."

Kendra's face became a mask, then the mask slipped away a moment later. She swallowed and looked down. "You're sure?"

"She's telepathic and will want to use that to help people." He sighed. "I don't think there's a single soul alive who could convince her to stay, not if it means giving up the chance to help so many people, especially when no one else on Earth can."

Kendra closed her eyes, took a deep breath with a very subtle shudder to it, then nodded. She blinked a few times before speaking, and her voice had a slight crack in it when she did. "Okay."

"What will you do when you see her?" He asked.

"Give her a hug, then we need to spar." She scowled. "I might 'accidentally' even up her cheeks."

Ethan laughed. "The first scar only made her more beautiful, so I can see why you'd want to give her a second."

Kendra slowly shook her head and was silent for a few moments before speaking. "If helping people is her reason for going back to Earth, I can't even hate her for it."

"Yeah." He sighed. "I know the feeling."

They stood there for several moments while he gazed at the airship carrying Selene.

"Go Drago, I know you want to."

He smiled at her, then leapt onto the prow of the Argo and took off flying as fast as she'd ever seen a dragon fly.

* * *

Selene panted slightly, trying to catch her breath after having spent the entire morning sparring with Luminar Kossel. She had thought that Serif was invincible until recently; she now knew better. Serif was an artist with a blade, but Luminar Kossel was so far beyond Serif that she genuinely didn't understand how that was possible.

"Again." He said, raising his training sword and signaling the end of their short break.

She took a deep breath, trying to remember the mountain of information she'd tried to absorb in the last few days. Then something caught her eye. In the far distance, she saw a winged figure approaching, and behind it, she could see the silhouette of a very familiar airship in the far distance.

She smiled, then looked at Luminar Kossel. "Wait, stop." She nodded towards the incoming figure on the horizon.

"Go." He lowered his training sword.

She resisted the urge to run to the front of the ship, instead jogging quickly even though she wasn't really sure why she was. It was only Ethan, right? There wasn't really a reason that she suddenly had a smile on her face, was there?

Ethan came in fast.

He came barreling in at full speed, then pulled up and flapped hard to kill his momentum, then he dropped to the deck right in front of her and wrapped his arms around her. She returned the hug on instinct, her smile growing wider as he hugged her.

It took her a moment to realize that this wasn't just a quick hug. He was doing more than that; he was holding her. She smiled wider as she held him back. She didn't know what else to do and honestly, she loved this. That ache in her heart that was entirely a result of their bond and certainly not from anything else faded as he held her. She adjusted slightly and held onto him more tightly as she let out a contented sigh.

It reminded her of when Ethan had returned from being held captive by Lady Ekthros. He had landed on the Argo and held Alana and Beth for... for forever. She'd never seen people hold each other like that. She'd never seen affection like that and she remembered wanting something like that.

Now she had it.

He was holding her like he never wanted to let her go.

She swallowed, feeling the corners of her eyes get watery. She blinked a few times and held him a little tighter, knowing that she couldn't stay. She just couldn't; she could help too many people on Earth with her telepathy. She felt her throat get a bit tight at that thought. She didn't want to go. She wanted to stay here with him, Kendra, and Thor. She wanted that so, so much...

...but she couldn't.

There were too many people on Earth she could help. She took a slightly shuddering breath and sniffled.

Ethan pulled back enough that he could look at her, obvious concern on his face. "What's wrong?"

"I..." She closed her mouth. She wanted to tell him, but she didn't want to assume that she even had the option to stay. She might, but she needed to apologize first. "I... um, remember that thing I needed to talk to you and your wives about?"

He nodded. "I do."

"I need to talk to everyone before I can say."

He nodded, then reached down and picked her up, holding her bridal-style in his arms. She opened her mouth to protest, but he spoke first.

"Selene, something is clearly bothering you." He looked at her kindly. "I'm going to fly you to the Argo so you can talk to everyone, then you can tell me what's wrong."

She opened her mouth to object, but again he spoke first. "Selene, trust me."

She nodded, glad he was doing this. She really did need to talk to everyone and she could tell that he knew that. He was giving her the nudge she needed. He carried her to the edge of the Midnight Sun and then leapt off. He was carrying her like she weighed nothing, with her tucked tight up against his chest. She relaxed against him, savoring the experience because she knew she might never have it again.

They reached the Argo in record time. He landed gently on the deck and set her down even more gently, almost tenderly. If she wasn't going back to Earth, she would've found it heartwarming. As it was, she found it heartbreaking.

Ethan's wives all mobbed her, with Kendra first in line. She found herself at the center of a group hug almost immediately. Again, if she hadn't lied she would've found it heartwarming, as it was...

"Wait!" She said. "Wait, I... I need to talk to everyone first."

"We're here, talk." Ethan said.

"Um, in private?" She said, then realized who wasn't there and called out loudly. "Thor! Thor! Come here little kitty!"

Selene looked around for her kitty and saw the other members of the Argo's crew, including three women who were easily as gorgeous as she herself was. Then she heard the sound of tiny kitten paws running on the decking.

Thor came tearing up the stairs from the lower decks and made a beeline right for her. She ran towards him and stooped down, scooping him up from the decking and holding him tight to her chest. He immediately started purring louder than she'd ever heard him purr before and he started rubbing his face up against her, nuzzling his face against every inch of her he could reach.

"I missed you, my sweet little baby kitten." She cooed.

Thor made a sound halfway between a purr and meowy-chirp as he continued to nuzzle her face while she did almost the same to him.

"Well, someone's glad you're home." Ethan chuckled.

Selene didn't miss his use of the word 'home', nor the fond way he looked at her while he had spoken.

She swallowed. "We still need to talk, but I'm not putting you down." She smiled at Thor.

"Come on." Ethan said, leading his wives toward the captain's cabin. Selene followed, snuggling with her kitten that she hadn't seen in far too long.

* * *

Kendra couldn't decide if she wanted to hug Selene and never let her go, or if she wanted to use the woman as a punching bag. However, the urgency that her friend had used when saying that she needed to talk to them coupled with the sheer adorableness of watching Selene snuggle with Thor was pushing her slightly in the direction of hugging.

Completely at odds with how she was feeling, in the back of her mind, she was trying not to get her hopes up that Selene would confess and then stay on the Argo. Maybe she would even marry Ethan, but Kendra cared a lot more about Selene staying than she did about her marrying her husband.

She still wanted to punch her though.

She resisted the urge to growl, somewhat missing her years-long habit of repressing her emotions instead of dealing with them.

Ethan led them all into the captain's cabin where his other wives all sorted themselves on the bed since there wasn't a lot of room to stand with all seven of them in there. Ethan remained standing and so did Kendra, mostly because she felt it too vulnerable to be on the bed.

"So, what did you want to talk to us about?" Ethan asked after closing the door.

Selene lowered her arms and Thor -- possibly sensing that Selene needed to concentrate -- curled up in her arms and closed his eyes, clearly intent on a nap in the arms of his favorite person in the entire universe.

"Um..." The caramel-haired beauty swallowed and looked down at the floor. She was petting Thor as he tried to sleep, and probably doing so to calm herself. Kendra had the urge to encourage her, or tell her it would be okay, or even go hold her hand the way that Alana sometimes held Rachel's hand when she was having trouble speaking.

She didn't though.

Kendra stayed right where she was and crossed her arms over her chest, determined not to make this any easier for her friend.

"I..." Selene took a deep breath. "I li..." Her words seemed to catch in her throat and she glanced up at them, her head still facing the floor before she spoke in a quiet voice. "I lied about my birthday; it's June 6th."

"Could you repeat that a little louder?" Kendra said before she realized she'd even opened her mouth.

Selene closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and then spoke in a wavering but clear voice. "I lied about my birthday; it's not September 15th, it's June 6th."

"Why?" Kendra could hear a biting sharpness to her tone that she hadn't intended to put there, but honestly didn't feel bad about.

"I didn't want Illuminar to force me." She replied, still not meeting anyone's eyes and still looking at the floor. "I know you all don't mind, but I can't stand the idea of that asshole forcing me into something and I didn't--" She stopped, then began again. "It was wrong of me to lie, I shouldn't have done it, I knew it at the time and I did it anyway. I promise that I'll never lie to any of you ever again for as long as I live."

For all her determination to be mad, Kendra was starting to find it hard. Selene's voice was both trembling and wavering. She was blinking a lot, the corners of her eyes looked moist, and she still wasn't meeting anyone's eye.

"Could..." The Brazilian woman bit her lip. "Maybe not now, but could you someday be able to forgive me for lying to you?" She glanced up at everyone, but didn't seem able to meet anyone's eyes before looking back at the floor.

Ethan looked Kendra, the scowl on the raven-haired woman's face faltering somewhat. There was absolutely no doubt in Kendra's mind that Selene was sincere and sincerely sorry. Given everything that Kendra herself had been forgiven for, she sympathized.

"We already did." Ethan replied to Selene gently after a moment.

"You already..." She glanced up at him. "...you did? When?"

"About a week ago, when we heard about Thea after meeting Myla and Victoria." Ethan replied. "Kendra figured out that you lied before we told you about them, and man, was she pissed." His tone was calm, but almost forcedly so.

Selene almost flinched.

She started to lift her head, probably to look Kendra in the eye, but didn't seem able to as she spoke. "I'm sorry Kendra."

"You should be." Kendra tried to keep her tone from sounding like she was snapping, but wasn't entirely successful. "But I forgive you; I forgave you." She hesitated, then added. "I'm still mad at you, and I'm still hurt, but I forgive you."

"Thank you." Selene wiped her cheek and the corner of her eye, and there was a slightly wet spot on her hand afterwards.

Kendra hesitated a moment and glanced at Ethan, who nodded. She hesitated just a moment longer, then stepped forward and wrapped her arms around the taller Brazilian woman, making sure not to squish Thor. Selene hugged her back tightly and almost fiercely with the arm that wasn't holding the kitten. Kendra could feel her own eyes getting watery as her friend held her, having missed her almost as much as she was angry with her and hurt by her.

The hug ended after a while, and Selene had a pained smile on her face, though it was more smile than pain. "I really am sorry."

"You already apologized." Kendra replied softly. "No need to keep doing it."

Selene nodded and wiped the corners of her eyes again.

"Are you going to stay?" Beth asked a moment later.

Selene swallowed.

She blinked a few times and Kendra could actually see tears starting to well up in her eyes. Her bottom lip quivered as her pained smile morphed into a pained, smile-grimace hybrid. She screwed her face up, sniffled once, and made an attempt at speech that sounded more like a croak or squeak.

"I can't." She managed to get out a moment later, just as she wiped her eye with her free hand. Her hand had a wet streak on it.

"Why not?" Beth asked, her face falling.

"Telepathy, right?" Ethan replied when Selene didn't seem to be able to get the words out. "There aren't any telepaths on Earth and Selene is thinking about how much good she could do there."

Selene nodded, then sniffled and wiped her cheeks again.

"Well, I hate that." Beth huffed as her face fell. "I can't even be mad at you with a reason like that."

"Are you sure?" Taloni asked. She looked like she was about to cry.

Selene sniffled again and nodded.

At this point, Thor seemed to realize that something significant was going on and woke up again. He took one look at Selene and then started nuzzling his face against her.

"Aww, thank you." Selene said, though her voice was both wavering and shaky.

Thor made a squeaky meow and continued nuzzling her.

"I know I can't change your mind." Alana said thoughtfully after a moment. "And with a reason like that, I would feel terrible if I tried."

Rachel nodded. "That doesn't mean we like it though."

"Yeah..." Ethan ran his hand over the top of his head where his hair would be if he had any.

"I'm sorry." Selene said again. "I want to stay, but... but I can't; not when I could do so much good on Earth."

"I understand." He replied. "I don't like it, but I understand and won't try to talk you out of it."

"You'll visit though." Kendra said, not sure if she meant it as a statement or a question.

"Of course, as often as I can." Selene replied, an actual smile forming on her face. She looked at Ethan. "And I want to be here when you marry Sarah."

He nodded. "I'd like that, but it might be a while; I've been in mid-winter blizzards that felt warmer to me than she was."

"Well, maybe I can help change that." Selene offered. "It's the least I can do after... you know."

"I'd appreciate that." Ethan replied, then an awkward silence fell.

Very awkward.

Everyone looked at everyone else for several seconds with no one saying anything.

"So, any idea which of the three you might choose?" Selene asked after a few moments, probably trying to fill the silence. Kendra felt like she'd left off the phrase 'my replacements' somewhere in there.

"Honestly, not really." He sighed. "Myla is incredibly sharp, polite, and kind. I like that about her, and I really like her as a person, but I don't know." He frowned. "I don't think she can be objective about me because I rescued her from Lord Farbrottan. I don't want to be the 'rebound husband'. Or worse, she could realize in a few years that I'm not really what she wanted."

"Master, please have faith in Illuminar." Taloni said. "He wouldn't have made Myla an option if she couldn't be happily married to you."

"Fair." He replied, though he didn't look entirely convinced.

"What about Thea?" Selene asked.

"She would be a handful." He replied with a chuckle.

"Oh?" The Brazilian woman asked.

"Yup." He replied as the others chuckled, then he told Selene about her taking off to watch the orc battle and their conversation afterwards.

"She sounds like she would keep you on your toes." Selene said.

He nodded. "But despite that, she has this enormous heart and seems to deeply care about people. I really like that."

"My lord, might I point out that there would be practical advantages to that marriage as well." Rachel spoke up.

"Because she's the king's ward?" He asked.

The redhead nodded. "Having such a tight connection to him could be a good thing and open a lot of doors that might otherwise be closed to you."

"I really don't want to pick a wife based on how useful she would be though." He replied. "I see your point, but honestly, that doesn't really figure into the equation."

"Why not?" Kendra asked. "You join two families when you marry someone, so wouldn't her family also be an element that you should consider?"

Ethan hesitated, so the Raven-haired woman continued. "For example, if you chose Victoria, the fact that you like her parents and would be bringing them into your extended family would doubtless figure into your decision, would it not?"

"I'm not saying it wouldn't matter, but honestly I don't think about family too much when it comes to wives."

"What do you think of Victoria?" Beth asked him.

"She's a bit of a mystery." He replied, a subtle smile on his face. "She seems like she's had a rough life, but she always looks on the bright side. Not in an annoying Pollyanna sort of way, but rather in a way that makes me think she would be a good person to be around if you were depressed."

"Why Dominus, are you depressed?" Beth teased.

"No, but a little depression might be coming." He glanced at Selene.

Kendra set her jaw, not liking the idea of Selene leaving any more than Ethan did.

An awkward silence fell in the room for some time.

* * *

Ethan could only think of one thing in his life that compared to the prospect of Selene leaving: Beth's death. True, Selene wouldn't be dead and they would certainly see each other again, but it felt similar somehow. He looked forward to her breaking their bond with the same enthusiasm he would have for reliving the events in that alley.

"Can we go visit Sarah?" Selene asked after almost a full minute of almost depressing silence.

"Hoping to cheer yourself up?" Ethan asked.

She nodded mutely.

"Yeah." He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Yeah, I'd love to hear how she's been; hopefully not too deceived by Lady Bitchface."

Everyone stared at him for a moment, then starting with Selene they all began to laugh. He started laughing too, and he was well aware that they were laughing all out of proportion to the humor of the title. It didn't matter though; it felt good to laugh with such heavy matters at hand.

"I needed that." Selene said when they all stopped laughing. She had tears in the corner of her eyes, though whether they were tears of sadness or laughter was anyone's guess.

"Come on, I'll give you a ride so you can say hi." He said, then turned to the door, ignoring the urge keep Selene in the bedroom for a long 'exercise' session.

"Drago, there's something you and Selene should probably do first."

He turned to see everyone looking at him. "Am I that bad?"

Alana raised her eyebrow.

"Master, do you really want to be near Sarah when your dragon side isn't under control?"

Ethan resisted the urge to wince, remembering how badly he'd scared his Fey wife when he'd lost his temper at Gonorran's camp. "Fair." He looked at Selene. "Yea? Nay?"

"Okay." She nodded. "But how about just in here and I'll turn around?"

It was probably a mark of how they were all feeling that no one replied with a teasing or flirtatious comment. Ethan himself just didn't feel like it.

"Okay." He nodded.

She turned around and he reached a wing out and rested it on her shoulder, where she held it in her slender, feminine fingers. It struck him how soft they were and how tenderly she was holding his wing. He felt his throat get a little tight and he blinked a few times.

Kendra saw his expression and sniffled once, her mask off and looking miserable.

*You held me.* Selene thought to him privately, her mental voice soft and contemplative. *When you carried me over, you held me. You knew that I had lied to you and yet you held me anyway.*

*I did.* He replied, looking at the way her caramel-colored hair cascaded down her back like it had been professionally styled, even though it certainly hadn't.

*Why?* She asked after a moment.

*I wanted to.* He replied honestly. *I wasn't sure I'd ever get another chance.*

She nodded slowly, though it was several moments before she replied. *I'm glad you did.*

*Me too.* He took a deep breath and then remembered that there was something he was supposed to be doing.

Under the circumstances, it wasn't quick.

* * *

Selene slipped off Ethan's back, wondering if this trip and the return trip were the last times she would get to do this. She would never admit this to anyone, but she'd lain her head on his back and effectively snuggled against his back the entire trip. He must've noticed, but he didn't say anything. More importantly, he hadn't asked her to stop.

He had landed about a quarter mile from Sarah's inn, around a bend in the road and they walked towards it together until they hit the slight bend.

"I'll slip into the forest and get closer, just in case you need backup in a hurry." He told her. "Please, don't hesitate to ask."

"I won't." She nodded and then started walking as he disappeared into the forest. He was wearing his armor, but it had gone a dark blue color. It was less obvious than white, but not ideal for camouflage.

*Alana.* Selene thought to the group chat. "Could you enchant Ethan's armor to turn more colors than just blue?*

*Easily, though it'll take some time.* The wood elf replied. *Why?*

*I'm thinking for camouflage so he blends into forests better.*

*There are several different colors that would be useful for various environments.* Kendra interjected. *It would be good if he could turn his armor all of those colors.*

*I can do that. Alana replied.

*Good idea Selene, thanks.* Ethan added.

Selene smiled, trying to pretend that her heart soaring from his simple praise was normal and not at all because it was Ethan.

*Speaking of enchanted items, Graflex should be finished with those travel swords soon.* Kendra thought to everyone.

*Wait, travel swords?* Selene asked as she entered the outpost and headed towards the inn.

*We sent some of the dragon scales from the dragon that kidnapped Victoria to Graflex via Elder Goman.* Kendra explained. *That was just before we docked at Dotmier, so he should be getting close to done if how fast he made Ethan's weapons is any indication.*

*Smart.* Selene smiled, wishing that she would have occasion to have a travel sword on Earth.

Alas...

She reached the inn and opened the door to see that practically nothing had changed. It still looked rather run-down but cared for as much as limited income could manage. It seemed like a few things had been fixed since the last time she was here though. There were rather more people here than had been usual when she had stayed, which also boded well. Sarah's father was sitting down at a table looking bored.

"Festus." Selene called to him.

He looked up and did a double-take. "Selene? You're back."

"Just for a short visit." She replied as she walked over to the table. "Is Sarah around? I heard she was back."

"She's been staying with Rindrin and Amy." "How have you been?" The innkeeper replied, seeming more cheerful than Selene had ever seen him.

"Reasonably well, but I can't stay and chat." She replied.

"Go see Sarah; I'm sure she'll love that." He smiled and genially waved her off.

Selene slipped out of the inn and walked across the dirt road to the blacksmith's shop. She knocked on the door and it was opened not long afterwards by a young woman who had her dark brown hair tied back with a ribbon that had a clever-looking artistic knot to secure it.

"Can I help you?" The woman asked.

"I'm looking for Sarah, I was told she was here."

The woman looked at Selene for a moment. "Are you Selene?"

The caramel-hired beauty smiled. "I am indeed."

The woman beamed, then called loudly into the house. "Sarah! Someone to see you!" She looked at Selene. "Come in."

She did, and then heard Sarah's voice approaching from another room.

"Who wants to see-- Selene?!" Sarah stopped dead in her tracks when she saw her, then squealed in delight as a massive smile covered her face and she charged forward, almost tackling Selene as Sarah wrapped her in a huge hug.

"Dang, I thought you missed me." Selene laughed as she hugged her friend back.

"I didn't know how long it would be before I saw you again! How are you?!" The joy in Sarah's tone was obvious and did Selene's heart a lot of good.

"I'm okay." Selene replied honestly.

Sarah pulled back and looked in the eyes. "Just okay."

"It's been a rough week." The caramel-haired beauty replied. "How about you?"

Sarah grinned. "It's been a rough month, but I'm okay."

Selene outright laughed at that.

Sarah's smile grew wider. "Is Ethan with you?"

"Why?" Selene asked, not sure if Lady Ekthros had convinced Sarah to act as a spy or something.

"He is!" Sarah's smile grew even wider, if that was possible. "I need to see him, I need to apologize."

"He's... Give him a minute." She said aloud, then thought directly to Ethan. *Sarah is asking for you, something about wanting to apologize.*

*Really?* Ethan sounded almost as excited as Sarah did.

*Yup.*

*On my way!*

"He's coming." Selene told Sarah.

"Thank you!" Sarah threw her arms around Selene, gave her another tight hug, then rushed past her to go outside and looked around for several seconds. Selene stepped out behind her and looked towards where she knew Ethan was. The moment he stepped out of the forest, Sarah let out a cry of joy and ran towards him.

* * *

As Ethan watched Sarah run towards him, he was ninety percent sure that Sarah wasn't currently under the sway of her demon, ninety-nine percent sure he wasn't dreaming, and one hundred percent sure that Sarah was beaming at him like his wives often did. His jaw dropped as Sarah ran forward with one of the largest smiles he'd ever seen on her face. He felt the corners of his mouth pulling upwards as she raced towards him.

She nearly leapt at him, throwing her arms around his neck as she hugged him so tightly that he vaguely wondered if she had a boa constructor in her family tree somewhere. He started hugging her back, and that's when his brain caught up with his other senses.

Sarah was hugging him.

Sarah.

Was.

Hugging.

Him.

"You're not mad at me?" He said as she said. "I wasn't sure you'd come back."

They both pulled back at the same moment and looked into each other's eyes. He searched her eyes for a moment, not able to explain the joy he saw there but his heart swelling at it.

"I thought that Lady Ekthros had--"

"No." She shook her head. "Well, for a little while, but she's the evil one."

"She is, more than you know." He smiled as he looked into her eyes. "I thought you hated me."

She slowly shook her head as her smile grew even wider. "No, I could never hate you. I lo--" She bit her lip.

That's when he remembered that Sarah was betrothed. He let go of her and stepped back, causing her face to fall slightly.

"What?" She asked.

"You're betrothed." He replied.

"Yes, but maybe not for long..." Her smile returned to full force. "I found something that might allow me to get divorced, and Rindrin said he would divorce me if I can find a luminar who will write up the divorce certificate."

Ethan grinned, thinking of a luminar who was not only nearby, but also from Earth and had written at least one divorce certificate before. "I might know of one."

"Really!?" Her face seemed to light up even more. "None of the ones around here want to talk to me because of my problem."

"He won't be so intimidated." He grinned, and couldn't help but notice that something about Sarah had changed, and something fundamental. She wasn't so skittish and scared. She was looking him in the eye instead of barely meeting his eye and her voice was more confident and strong. Yet despite that, she still seemed to be as caring as ever.

"You've changed." He smiled.

She nodded, then grimaced. "I've been through a lot since we first met. I never thought I would find myself in danger like that but--" She inhaled sharply. "Oh! I just remembered." She looked at him. "Do you know a 'Talven and Salma'?"

"Yes, why?" He asked with a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Um, so this might sound strange, but I know this... um, a person named Gabriella and..." She trailed off as she saw his expression. "What?"

"Gabriella? White or blonde hair, kind as anything, always has cryptic messages, and it's hard to be upset around her?"

"You've met her?" Sarah's eyes went wide.

He nodded. "She's an angel."

Sarah breathed a sigh of relief. "If you already know that, this will make more sense. She sent me a letter telling me that the next time I see you, Talven and Salma will 'urgently need help', and that they would be 'in imminent and grave danger' when you heard this."

He sighed. "What are the odds that you're pulling my leg?"

Sarah opened her mouth, but no words came out for a moment. "Huh?"

"It's a figure of speech; you're not joking, are you?"

"I wish I was." She said, a sad and sympathetic look on her face.

He resisted the urge to smile at that expression. It displayed the same obviously genuine concern that Sarah had shown for him when they met that had made him fall in love with her. She hadn't lost that. Thank God she hadn't.

"Okay, then we need to go." He looked over Sarah's shoulder where Selene was standing far enough away that she wasn't hovering. "Selene, we need to get going ASAP; I'll explain on the way."

"Wait, what about that Luminar you mentioned?" Sarah asked.

"Damn." He frowned, then looked at Sarah. "You said that Talven and Salma 'urgently need help', and that they're in 'grave and imminent danger'?"

Sarah nodded as Selene walked up.

"Then I'll see if I can send the luminar here so you can convince him, but I need to leave right now."

"Okay." Sarah nodded. "Be careful."

"I always am." He replied, then held up his partially regrown hand. "Though it's not always enough."

Sarah's eyes became as wide as saucers as she stared at his hand. "What happened?!"

"Long story, but it'll regrow since I'm a dragon."

Sarah stared wordlessly for a moment then shook her head. "Okay, go help Talven and Salma; I'll be praying for you."

Selene looked between them. "Talven and Salma? How--"

"I'll explain on the way, hop on my back." Ethan said, dropping onto all fours.

Selene fished the weight-reduction necklace out of her dress pocket, put it on, and then climbed onto his back.

"I'll be back as soon as I can." Ethan told Sarah.

"We will be back." Selene corrected.

"I'll be waiting." Sarah replied. "Godspeed, and may Illuminar -- blessed be He -- guide you on the path of light as you travel."

"And also with you." Ethan grinned, then leapt into the air and started flying at top speed towards the Argo. The moment he was off, he thought to the group chat. *Ladies, I have good news and bad news.*

He proceeded to give them a highly abbreviated version of his conversation with Sarah and the warning about Talven and Salma being in danger.

*Sir, I think you should fly there as fast as you can once you've dropped Selene off.* Alana replied when he finished. *This sounds too urgent to wait for the Argo to make it there.*

*Master, I'll make sure you have food and a map just like last time.* Taloni volunteered.

*Thanks Tee.*

*Drago, there will be a problem with exfiltration.* Kendra added. *I think it's safe to assume that not only are Talven and Salma in danger, but their children likely are as well. While you could fly with two of them, you won't be able to transport the children as well, even if Alana was able to make a few more weight-reduction necklaces.*

*I couldn't; not that fast.* The wood elf replied. *They require a lot of mana and take time to balance properly; it's not something I can do quickly.*

*Options?* He thought to everyone as he put a little more 'oomph' into his speed.

*Perhaps the paired portal rings that Luminar Kossel gave us so you could visit your parents.* Rachel suggested after a few moments. *If you flew with the receiving ring, we could open a portal from the Argo and you could simply send them all through it. It wouldn't be comfortable to fly with though.*

*Screw comfort as long as it's doable. Alana?*

*The portal rings are already enchanted with a weight reduction spell, otherwise they would weigh more than I do. We could maybe rig some kind of strap up so you could fly with it hanging under you so you don't have to carry it.*

*Please do, I'll be there soon.* He replied. *Thank you all so much. I want to leave as soon as possible after arriving on the Argo.*

*We'll have you off thirty seconds after you arrive Drago.* Kendra assured him. *Talven and Salma have been through enough; let's hope we can keep them safe."

*I aim to.* He replied.

* * *

"You are making excellent progress Lady Delmar."

Fiona sighed. "Thank you, but I'm not seeing it."

Mage Weston chuckled. "That's because you have never seen the pace at which most people learn healing magic."

"It's taking longer than this for most people?" The copper-haired woman's eyes widened. Though, perhaps her being faster was having something to do with her being bonded to a dragon. She could see that maybe helping.

"Significantly longer." He replied. "But that is enough for today. The council meeting is starting soon; will you be joining us again?"

"Um, I think I'm wanting to." She replied. "I'll confess that I'm not following everything, but I am liking being informed about events in Narlotten."

"Then come, I will walk you there."

"Thank you." Fiona rose and together they exited the mage's room.

Nessie was waiting outside the mage's office and wasted no time as usual. "My lady, several of the noble ladies in the court have requested a luncheon with you next week." Her handmaiden said in her usual precise tone with crystal clear pronunciation as she fell into step behind her. Fiona could swear that Nessie could organize the entire kingdom she was so on top of things.

"Thank you Nessie, I suppose I should be going to it?"

"I believe it would be considered improper to decline the request." Her handmaiden replied.

"Alright, I suppose I can be going then." Fiona sighed. "Please be setting it up."

"Yes my lady." Nessie replied, then peeled away from the group.

Mage Weston smiled. "You will do fine, just remember that the court intrigue -- while not lethal like in times past -- certainly can have a cutthroat nature of its own in the fight for prestige."

"I'm not caring for that fight." Fiona replied as they turned the last corner and approached the council chambers.

"Which will make you either very good at the game, or very bad at the game." The mage smiled, then opened the door to the council chambers for her. "I take it this will be your first luncheon with the ladies of the court?"

Fiona smiled wryly. "Unless you are counting when I was serving a luncheon, aye."

Mage Weston laughed. "I would pay good gold to see how your luncheon plays out."

"You could be using a disguise gem to go in my stead." Fiona offered in jest.

He laughed again as he moved to his seat at the round table. "I prefer magic and politics to the intrigue of the ladies of the court; much simpler." He winked.

"Hear, hear." Sir Warrick chuckled.

Fiona sat down on the chair that had been brought in for her several meetings ago. The chair that Lady Helene had once occupied was still there and Fiona sat on her husband's other side from it. It was the same arrangement at dinner by her request. If anyone thought it strange, no one had said anything to her. She suspected that was because either Glessie or Nessie had 'accidentally' let it slip that Fiona had requested that to be sensitive to Lord Delmar. Her handmaidens really did make quite the pair.

"Call to order." Lord Delmar said when he entered perfectly on time a minute later. Everyone moved to their seats, except of course Lady Ekthros who was out hunting down the couple who had informed on the Ivernians to the false prophet.

As before, the council session opened with prayer, after which all eyes turned to Lord Delmar.

"The first order of business arrived several hours ago." He began. "A messenger airship dispatched from the Timarou flagship arrived to inform us that Lord Regent Kalus and his family will be arriving in two days."

"For what purpose?" Sir Warrick asked.

"Ostensibly to congratulate my wife and myself on our marriage." The lord replied.

"You doubt that?" Someone asked.

"I would not accuse a lord of lying without two or three witnesses." Lord Delmar replied evenly.

"You think he has an ulterior motive?" Sir Warrick mused.

"He has recently fought alongside the false prophet." Lord Delmar replied. "While I do believe Lord Regent Kalus intends to offer congratulations, I suspect he will also attempt to sway my opinion of the false prophet." He looked at Sir Warrick. "See that he is received with all customary honors."

"It will be done." The man replied. "I suggest a formal state dinner the evening he arrives, or the one after depending on what time of day he arrives."

"Very well." Lord Delmar turned to Fiona. "You may be excused from this dinner if you wish, but it would be considered an impertinence unless you were taken ill."

"I can be going." Fiona took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I promise I'll be trying not to embarrass you or Narlotten."

Lord Delmar raised both of his eyebrows slightly and made a thoughtful sound. "It never entered into my mind that you might."

Fiona felt herself smile. She was entirely sure that he hadn't meant it as a compliment, but she certainly was going to take it as one.

Her husband looked around. "We will discuss the visit and the political strategy around it more at the next meeting when each relevant department has had time to compile a brief." There were nodding heads all around, so the lord looked at one of the members and continued. "Magistrate, report on the final cleanup of the Star-Hand Gang."

The rest of the council meeting passed while Fiona started to worry about the visit from the royal family of another lorddom. Despite her husband saying that he wasn't worried that she would embarrass Narlotten, she was worried. She had never even met another First Lady before and wasn't sure how she should react or what to do.

It occurred to her that she could ask Nessie to find someone to teach her etiquette; Nessie was marvelous at that kind of thing. Fiona hoped that might help prevent her from making a fool of herself.

* * *

"Sarah, what's gotten into you?"

"Ethan." Sarah replied to Amy dreamily as she danced around the kitchen, cleaning and cooking in equal measure. She felt so happy that she needed to do something or she was going to burst. She'd been feeling this wonderful since Ethan had left hours ago and she was hoping it would never wear off.

"That would be cause for divorce." Amy replied with a teasing grin.

Sarah felt her cheeks grow hot. "I didn't mean that!"

Amy giggled. "Maybe he could give you twins too, then we can both be fat and pregnant together."

"Amy!" Sarah chided, her cheeks growing even warmer, and then warmer yet again as she remembered exactly how children were conceived...

Amy laughed. "Don't worry, it's a lot of fun."

Sarah spluttered for a moment, trying to think of a reply. Thankfully, there was a knock at the door, saving her from having to reply.

"Maybe it's Ethan." Amy teased as she walked to the door.

Sarah gave her a look.

Amy just smiled back sweetly and then opened the door. A man was standing there who looked to be in his fifties or sixties, but he was in very good shape. He was wearing the sort of traveling clothes that were common all over Ivernia. He seemed like a kindly fellow and Sarah got a good feeling from him. She got the distinct impression that her problem didn't like him though.

"Good afternoon." He said with a respectful head bow. "I heard there was a woman named Sarah here who wanted to inquire about divorce."

"I'm Sarah." She started to rush forward, then remembered that she needed to stir the sauce for dinner or it would burn. "Hang on!" She rushed back to the stove while Amy invited him in. Sarah removed the pot from the heat and turned to face him.

"Before you say a word, you should know something." The luminar said. "I will decide your case on its merits alone. The prophet's involvement doesn't matter, how much you want a divorce doesn't matter, and even the fact that I asked the prophet for an important personal favor that he could decline to honor if I don't grant your divorce doesn't matter. Only what Illuminar allows or doesn't allow will matter. I seek His will first, all other concerns are secondary."

"Oh good." Sarah breathed a sigh of relief. "It had occurred to me that a luminar might grant a divorce just to get rid of me, and I didn't want that."

"It sounds like you are as concerned for His will as I am." The luminar replied.

"I try to be."

"Glad to hear it." He nodded slowly. "I am Luminar Kossel; please, give me the facts of the case and the cause you think reasonable, and I will endeavor to make a godly judgement."

"Okay." Sarah smiled, then began to explain.

* * *

Ethan rolled his shoulders for the umpteenth time, trying to work the kinks out of his wing muscles. Oddly enough, making himself lighter with the enchantments on his armor didn't help a lot since he became too light and found himself constantly drifting upwards. Thus, he was flying at full weight and only activating the weight reduction enchantment when he wanted a short break. Flying for long periods wasn't exactly hard, but it was tiring. He also had to remember to pace himself. Sure he could fly far faster than he was currently flying, but only for short and exhausting bursts.

Fortunately, after flying for most of the day, he was coming up on his destination. Or rather, what he assumed was his destination. He'd last dropped Talven and Salma off at Talven's parents' house, so he was headed back there first.

He could see it in the distance, but he could also see three riders heading in that direction as well. The one in the middle was a tall woman who was leading the other two. He couldn't see her face because she was wearing a hat and facing away from him, since they were traveling in roughly the same direction. Notably, the two men following her made his scales stand on end and his dragon side want to flee.

He grimaced.

He was still a few miles out from the house, but given how fast possessed men could move when they wanted to...

Ethan double-checked to make sure that his disguise gem was making him look like an eagle and then started flapping as hard and as fast as he could. He figured that if he could get there first, get them through the portal, and return to the skies before they arrived, he might be okay.

Or at least, that was the plan.

*Um, ladies; we might have a problem.* He thought to everyone then explained as the house came up.

*We'll get the portal ready.* Alana said the moment he had finished. *Just let us know about a minute before you need it opened.*

*Thank you, will do.* He replied, once again grateful for his amazing first wife. He truly didn't know what he'd do without her. Without any of them really, but especially her.

He dived.

He tucked his wings and sped towards the house, looking backwards at the approaching riders as he did. Thanks to his incredible dragon eyes, he could see them even that far away. They didn't appear to have slowed down, and if anything had sped up. Thankfully, some trees would block their line of sight long before he landed.

The moment he was hidden from their view, he activated his weight reduction enchantment and beat his wings hard to kill his momentum. It took a lot longer to stop than normal because of the extra mass of the portal, since the weight reduction enchantment did nothing to reduce momentum.

He landed in front of the house, turned his disguise gem off, and banged on the door loudly. "Talven! Salma! You're in danger! Open up!"

He heard scrambling behind the door, then it was flung open. Talven was standing there, his mouth agape at Ethan as the dragon extricated himself from the strap tying the portal to him.

"The prophet, but why--"

"There's no time." Ethan replied, picking the portal ring up and entering the house. "Listen, there are a couple of demon-possessed men coming, and I think they're after you."

Salma had been sitting at the table peeling potatoes, but the paring knife in her hand was frozen as she stared at him. "Demon-possessed." She whispered hoarsely.

"They're on their way, and you do not want to be here when they arrive." Ethan set the portal down. "This is a portal that can take you to my airship, but you need to leave right the fuck now!"

"Ben!" Salma breathed. "He's playing out in the back field."

"I'll get Ben." Ethan said as he opened the door. "Get your other kids and whatever you can get in about twenty seconds; we need to leave now!"

The married couple stared at him unmoving for several moments, then leapt into action. Ethan bolted out the door and took to the skies. It took him almost an entire minute to locate the ten-year-old boy since he was playing in some trees. Ethan didn't waste a moment, but dove towards him.

"Ben!" He called loudly.

The boy looked up and his eyes went wide as he froze.

Ethan landed right next to him. "Do you remember me?"

The boy nodded, seemingly rooted to the spot.

"I'm going to carry you back to the house." Ethan said, and then without waiting for a response, picked the boy up, activated the weight reduction enchantments on his armor, and sped towards the house as fast as his wings could carry them. He landed slightly off balance but managed to recover as he banged the door open carrying the boy.

Talven reacted to the noise by whipping around with a sheathed sword in his hand, but stopped when he saw who it was. Behind him, their six-year-old daughter was cowering behind her father's leg. Ethan hated to scare her, but scared was better than dead.

"Dad!" Ben ran to him and his father put an arm around him.

Ethan could see Salma grabbing some food, so he spoke up. "Forget the food and clothes, I can take care of that. Grab whatever can't be left behind because this portal will open in about one minute." Ethan said, then thought to everyone. *I've got them, open the portal!*

*Opening.* Alana replied instantly.

He looked around and then realized that two people were missing. "Talven, where are your parents?"

"In town."

"Damn, I'll get them later." Ethan picked up the portal and looked for a place to lean it.

Salma picked up their toddler and ran into the bedroom, then returned perhaps thirty seconds later with a pillowcase that had clearly been pressed into service as a makeshift bag.

"Going through won't be fun, but it won't hurt and my wives will be waiting on the other side." Ethan promised.

*Ten seconds.* Alana thought to everyone.

*Thanks* Ethan replied, then spoke to the family. "Get ready, it'll be just a few seconds."

Ethan set the portal down, leaning it against a wall. Precisely ten seconds after Alana had notified him, something that looked like water spiraling down a drain only in reverse appeared in the center of the portal. It moved almost agonizingly slowly, spiraling out to the edges of the ring over about ten seconds. Finally, it seemed to settle and gain a slight reflectance, like the subtle rainbow colors of a soap bubble.

"Go!" He urged them.

Talven sent Salma through with the toddler first, then his daughter, then Ben, and then he himself hesitated. "I can't ever thank you enough."

"Go!" Ethan replied, trying to put as much urgency into his tone as possible.

Then, the portal... well, it fritzed.

Ethan couldn't think of another word for it. For a moment, it seemed like it wavered, as if it had been blown on by some strong wind for several seconds before returning to normal. Talven virtually dived through the moment it did.

*They're all here.* Alana thought to him.

Ethan hesitated for a moment, trying to decide if he should risk traveling through a portal that didn't look like it was functioning perfectly, especially since that would mean forever leaving behind this half of the paired portal rings and thus his chance of seeing his parents on Earth with any regularity. Before he could decide, the disruption happened again. The surface of the portal became strangely distorted, like a strong wind was blowing on it before it started to almost buckle.

*Someone is disrupting the portal!* Rachel thought to everyone almost frantically.

*Lady Ekthros.* Alana sounded angry. *She must be disrupting it.*

*Make that 'disrupted'; past tense.* Ethan replied as the portal started to bubble and roil, then it started to spiral closed as it nearly boiled. Ethan found himself glad when the last of it drained away; who knows what kind of damage a collapsing portal could cause.

The moment the portal had fully closed, Ethan grabbed the portal ring and yanked the door open.

He froze.

Standing not ten feet from the door were two men, notably not on horses. The scales at the back of Ethan's neck stood on end and his immediate instinct was to flee, but to where? Even if the house had a backdoor, they would be all over him before he could reach it. He certainly wasn't fast enough to get high enough into the air before they could grab him.

*Alana, did you add that speed enchantment to my armor?* He asked.

*No, you were going to finish enchanting your spine first.* There was a moment's pause, then she spoke fearfully. *Why?*

He told them.

No one said anything. He could feel the dread over his bonds with them, all of them, including Selene. He swallowed. Hard. Thankfully, they weren't attacking him... yet. They looked like they wanted to, but they weren't.

*If I don't make it out of this, know that I love you all.* He thought to everyone, knowing that Selene would hear and he was perfectly fine with that; it was still a true statement.

No one replied for several seconds.

*Well, at least it can't get any worse.* Selene thought to everyone in an obvious attempt to lighten the mood which fell flat on its face.

Then Ethan noticed something behind the two men. A woman was leisurely riding up on a horse, her hands holding the reins of two other horses who were trailing behind. The woman was around six feet tall and had sharp, angular features, auburn hair, and dark gray eyes.

"Why if it isn't Ethan Ejder, the purported 'prophet of Illuminar'." She put that last phrase in air quotes. "I've been dying to meet you ever since you killed my agent in Dotmier." She got a pleasant smile on her face that somehow didn't come across as the least bit comforting.

Ethan didn't reply, he just looked at her.

The woman smiled, and it might have even been a comforting and pleasant smile on anyone else. When she spoke, it was obvious that she was doing an impression of the title character in The Godfather. "I'm gonna make you an offer you can't refuse."

Ethan swallowed.

Hard.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Note: This chapter began on day 107 of Ethan's life in the Ten Kingdoms and ended on day 111. I submit new chapters on the last Wednesday of every month, and they usually drop after the 2-3 days review process. Thus I'll submit the next chapter on September 25th, and it'll probably drop on 27th or 28th.

I'd like to extend a very special thanks to two of my patrons, one of whom didn't want to be credited by name. So "Anonymous" and Joseph: thank you so much for your support. I really appreciate it.

STORY TAGS: dragon, magic, elf, teen, romance, virgin, harem, threesome, brunette, redhead