The Hunter's Companions Ch. 15

"Livinia, has anyone told you what happened and why it happened?" Caristra asked softly as Livinia picked up a savory pastry.

"Rioden and Mitrae said something about a document that was found in her possession. Something that would get her accused of treason. She offered me in return for their silence."

Belcarm watched Livinia carefully as she spoke, but from his expression it appeared as though he already knew something about the situation.

"That is right to an extent. Although, she didn't offer you as such. They asked for you and she was told that if she didn't deliver she would be on trial for treason," Caristra supplied. Livinia nodded, clearly she didn't think the difference between offering and being forced to supply was of any worth. Caristra happened to agree in this instance, but her sister had begged her to stress the difference.

"The documents..." Livinia asked slowly "Were they hers?" The question seemed to taste bitter on her tongue.

"No, Liv... she may be stupid, but she is not suicidal... She merely intercepted them as they were left to be picked up by someone else. She saw Milent Goldentongue leave them behind and was going to return them to him." Livinia nodded and Belcarm frowned, the two momentarily forgetting about the food on their forks. "It was a set up. Goldentongue and Swiftspell are the ones to whom the documents belonged, but Swiftspell left them where she would find them, and then arrived with the Guardians in tow so they would be there to corroborate the story if he said they were hers."

"How did you find this out?" Livinia asked, always the one to pick up on small details.

"Oh darling!" Caristra laughed "You think that I keep my men around merely for their charms?" Livinia looked shocked and Belcarm almost choked on his tongue. "My trade is information, and information pays quite well." She gestured to the grand room around her.

"I don't understand." Livinia's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"After they apprehended Belcarm, I ran in to Kalendras at your parent's house. He told me the story that your mother told him, and I knew that your mother wasn't stupid, or maybe smart, enough to be involved in anything so sophisticated as high treason. I knew that Goldentongue and Swiftspell had some shady connections and decided to investigate... When Goldentongue was sleeping, I snuck around and found the documents hidden in his office. I hid them somewhere a little less obvious, sent a message to Kalendras, and then to a couple of connections I have in the Guardians."

"While he was sleeping?" Belcarm asked, still stuck on that part of the story. Typical male.

"Yes... He was very- how shall I put this- well worn?" She laughed at the look of horror on her niece's face.

"You slept with him?" She looked shocked.

"Oh Liv, don't be a prude. If I am going to get information I might as well have fun while I'm doing it." She let her niece think about that as she enjoyed watching Belcarm struggle to keep his face passive.

"You did that for me?" Livinia asked, looking at her with a small smile.

"Well it certainly wasn't for Deanna," She grumbled making her niece laugh again. It was a nice sound to hear.

"And what now?" Livinia asked, looking at her with what could only be renewed respect.

"After they arrested Milent, the Guardians arrested Mitrae at his home. It was up to Belcarm, Kalendras and Aegon to apprehend Rioden..."Caristra trailed off, not needing to say what they all knew, not so soon after it had happened.

"He deserved it," Belcarm growled, his voice exploding into the silence.

"I am certain that he did," Caristra replied with a sympathetic smile.

"He said that no jury would find them guilty," Livinia offered in a small voice, as if trying to find an excuse for his death. Her eyes clouded with a strange mixture of emotions that Caristra couldn't quite decipher. Her niece suddenly looked younger somehow, and Caristra knew that she was going back to the place inside where she had hidden during her capture.

"Well, Rioden perhaps, but Mitrae is as likely to be sent to the guillotine as the sun is to rise in the east."

"What about Kalendras? What can we expect for him?" Livinia asked softly, struggling to keep the emotion from her voice. Caristra shrugged slowly.

"I am sure Bloodhoof will want him in Thunder Bluff. The Tauren's aren't fond of our legal system, and they'll want to try him themselves, as is their right."

"Will they find him guilty?" Belcarm asked.

"Of murder?" Caristra questioned "Or self defense? Or were you thinking more along the lines of perjury?"

Both Belcarm and Livinia paled and Caristra knew she had hit the mark.

"How did you know?" Livinia asked warily.

"I didn't until you both confirmed it for me." Caristra smiled "Never mind though, I swear on the Sun Well that your secret is safe with me... But I am interested to know who it really was." She looked between the two, wondering who had dealt the death blow.

"I couldn't do it..." Livinia whispered "I wanted to- Gods how I wanted to... But he did things... and I just couldn't loose the arrow."

"So I killed him for her." Belcarm said slowly. "The bastard deserved worse, if I had time I would have made him suffer. I would have made him watch as I skinned him alive."

The sincerity of those words made Caristra shudder.

"And then Kalendras took the blame?" She supplied, the two younger elves nodded. "He has always been a smart one, that Kalendras." She smiled.

"What do you mean?" Livinia said, her eyebrows knitting together.

"He knew that if he took the blame he would most likely be sent to Baine. When the truth about the case is known the Taurens will surely not find him guilty. But if you had taken it the blame, Belcarm, you would be behind bars for more years than you have already lived. There is also your father to consider... What do you think would happen to the Master of the Sword if his son disobeyed a second direct order and killed a famous Warlock academic?" Caristra watched the two younger elves as they comprehended this new information. She could see a flicker of hope in their green eyes and smiled at them reassuringly.

~*~

The rest of their dinner went by without conversation. The food was delicious and left Livinia feeling full to bursting. The rich flavors still lingered on her tongue and she had drunk enough wine to make herself delightfully woozy, but not drunk. When the desert dishes had been cleared hers Aunt had suggested that the two of them take a walk on the roof top garden. Livinia was glad she did, she wasn't looking forward to spending time alone in her room, but she wasn't ready to talk to Belcarm again.

The fresh air on the roof made her head spin slightly and her Aunt slipped a hand into the crook of her elbow to keep her steady. Watching the twinkling stars overhead, Livinia couldn't help but be grateful that she was finally out of there. She knew she was, there was no way any fabrication of Mitrae or Rioden's could be so perfectly bitter sweet.

"Kal will be okay, won't he?" She asked quietly, not wanting to speak too loudly in case her words turned the universe against him.

"I think so. Baine Bloodhoof is very reasonable, and the Taurens will not look kindly on Rioden's final actions. I am sure, like everyone else would, that the Taurens will think that Kal had the right idea." Caristra led her over to a wooden bench between some lush potted rose bushes and gestured for her to sit down. Livinia complied and tucked her knees up and into her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs to keep the chill of the night away.

Livinia and Caristra sat in comfortable silence for a long while. It was nice for Livinia to enjoy being with someone and little else. Though in the silence and the dark the memories of her time as a captive came back and she found herself more and more distracted. A million thoughts begun to race through her mind and she didn't want to stop on a single one, hoping that ignoring them would make the possibility of them disappear.

"When is your blood due?" Caristra asked, Livinia's entire body froze. Livinia closed her eyes and took a deep sigh before answering. It was the one question she did not want to face. The one thing she wanted to ignore the most.

"Two months." All of the times Rioden had sneered about trying to get her pregnant came unbidden to her now and a pit of fiery anger grew in her stomach.

"If you want I have a potion, it will make your blood come early."

"But what if-"

"If you are then your blood will still come early and then you won't be any more." Caristra said it as though it were the simplest concept in the world. Though the idea made Livinia's stomach turn. Carrying a child was such a rare thing for a Blood Elf, a female was lucky to produce two children in their entire life span. Anybody that did anything to prevent or remove the conception of a child was looked down upon in her society. Even though she had resented her mother's constant insistence that she should be trying to have a child, Livinia wouldn't ever want to do anything that would risk destroying one if she'd accidently fallen pregnant with Belcarm's baby.

The hardest thing for Livinia to come to terms with, though, was that she would rather be frowned upon by all of Azeroth for eternity than to bear Rioden's heir, and considering the past three days that was an unacceptable possibility.

"What if it is Belcarm's? Or Kals?" Livinia asked, her aunt shrugged softly.

"It's unlikely that you are pregnant at all, with our race being what they are. Even less likely than you are to carry Kalednras's child; there has never before been a hal- elf-half-Tauren," Caristra told her, she had said it carefully but the words still stung.

"The Elves and Taurens haven't been mixing for very long," Livinia protested.

"You're right of course. There is a chance, but the real question is what if it is Rioden's?" Caristra said evenly "There is no way to find out, perhaps not even if it's born..." She trailed off and Livinia couldn't help but think of the possibility.

"Fine."

Livinia sighed and leant back against the wooden seat in resignation. If, on the odd chance, she was pregnant she didn't know how she would handle the thought that she may be looking at a child born of torture and rape.

"It will be more painful than usual. But it will be quick. I'll give you some when we get back inside."

They fell back into silence, this time it was a little less comfortable.

"He had a Succubus," Livinia blurted out, unable to keep it in any longer. Caristra groaned and frowned.

"Those things are nasty," Caristra said softly "Tell me Liv, would you blame Kalendras for attacking you if he were under mind control?"

"Of course not!" Livinia replied. She had been attached by her party members for that reason before, and she would never hold it against them. It was a spell and while mind controlled you have no chance to resist.

"Then don't ever, ever, blame yourself for what happened with the Succubus."

"The second time I resisted - until they brought Belcarm in..." Livinia said slowly, still trying to come to terms with it. "But then I gave in so that he wouldn't have to." She leant forward and buried her head in her knees and suddenly wished that she had skipped the wine.

"No matter what you did I am sure the outcome would have been no better," Caristra said. Even though she didn't know the full story she obviously knew about Succubi enough to understand.

There was a bit of shuffling and then the next thing she knew, Livinia was being pulled against her aunt in a warm hug. The contact was reassuring and she relaxed in her arms. When she really thought about it, Livinia realized just how lucky she was to have people like Belcarm, Kalendras and Caristra in her life.

~*~

Belcarm was just about to hop into bed when someone knocked on his door. He quickly pulled his robe tighter around himself and walked over to the door, checking his appearance in the mirror as he went to make sure he would be presentable. He shifted the robe to better hide his persistent erection, the legacy of the damned succubus, and then opened the door.

"Caristra?" Belcarm asked, not able to hide the disappointment in his voice. He had decided that it would be best to let Livinia come to him, but obviously he was hoping in vain. He couldn't blame her though, she had been through too much and deserved some time to herself.

"Yes Darling, the one and only. May I come in? I was hoping we could have a chat." Belcarm stood aside to let the woman through and she walked past and settled herself in one of the chairs in the foyer. "Sit, Darling, I won't bite." Belcarm made his way over, very conscious of the fact that his blood was still flowing to the wrong place.

"Is Livinia well?" Belcarm asked with concern.

"As well as can be expected," Caristra said with a shrug "Better, probably. She is a tough girl, I'm sure she will recover quickly."

"I hope so," Belcarm agreed.

"I gave her a potion." Caristra said "And she has taken the first dose of it, so it is too late to go back and it is most certainly up for discussion." Belcarm frowned as he tried to comprehend what Caristra was talking about. "The potion will force her blood to come early." Caristra finished and the spark of recognition flared in Belcarm's head.

"Very well." Belcarm replied curtly as he tried to process the idea. He hadn't even thought of that. Though admittedly, if he had, he would never have had the guts to offer Livinia the concoction. He wouldn't have wanted her to take it the wrong way, or for the offer to send a message, but he couldn't say that he disagreed with Caristra's actions. Even though it was unlikely, the thought that Livinia might just be pregnant with his child came unbidden to Belcarm's mind. It was something that he hadn't considered it before, but it was a real possibility. That knowledge was't helpful though; he knew that she needed to take that potion.

"It is going to be painful for her for a while. The pain will be much stronger than what she is used to, but it will be over more quickly as well," Caristra said.

"She normally handles it well," Belcarm said thoughtfully. Caristra raised her eyebrow curiously and he grinned sheepishly. "We have been friends for nearly five years... "

"A male friend that takes note of her cycles?" Caristra asked with huff of laughter. "How long have you been in love with her?"

"Nearly five years?" Belcarm said with a shrug and Caristra laughed.

"Fair enough," Caristra said trailing off slowly. "Now, there is another reason I have come to talk to you."

"There is?" Belcarm couldn't think of anything else that they would have to discuss.

"Livinia told be about the Succubus." Belcarm's face flared red and he had to look away. "And I'm sure it must be very hard for you." The sympathy in her voice made his heart pump quicker and his almost-forgotten erection was now becoming painful again. "But I have some advice."

"You do?" Belcarm managed to say, unable to come up with something more eloquent.

"Yes, as it so happens I have dealt with the creatures a number of times, as have some of my male acquaintances. They told me of what it was like afterwards..." Her eyes flickered quickly to his lap and he dropped his hands down to cover any trace of the erection that he'd had before they started talking.

"I'm fine," Belcarm lied quickly.

"I don't doubt it," Caristra laughed. "But I do have some advice to pass on. My friends told me that if they attended to their problems it would make it worse. What your body wants is the succubus, not your hand, so it only exacerbates the problem. Apparently, the best way to deal with it is to wait it out."

"How long?" It came out as a pained groan, but in light of the situation Belcarm couldn't find it in himself to be any more embarrassed.

"Until you return to normal. You'll know when. I've heard that it usually takes a couple of days. In any case, by the time Livinia has finished her bleed I am sure you will be over your own problem."

The tiny implication was enough to make him twitch uncomfortably against the smooth fabric of the robe as his erection was reinvigorated. The thought of burying himself in Livinia made him want to cry out in frustration.

"Okay," Was all he could blurt out. Caristra gave him a sympathetic pat on the shoulder before excusing herself.

When Belcarm finally crawled into bed it was difficult to heed Caristra's advice. He didn't know exactly how long it took him to get to sleep, but it felt like an eternity in the darkness. Just as his whirring thoughts had finally given him a reprieve a soft knock broke through his sleepy black haze.

"Come in," he called out softly, not sure if he was dreaming. When the door creaked open and the light in the hall illuminated Livinia's sillouhette the sight took his breath away and his softening cock filled to a painful tension almost immediately. He smiled, he had to be dreaming.

When the door shut behind her and she shuffled over to him he could see the hunch in her outline that told him it wasn't a dream. He would never dream of her in pain.

"It's lonely in my room," She said by way of explanation. He held the covers up for her and shuffled to one side of the bed so that she could get in, careful not to lift the blankets too high and reveal himself.

When her weight made the bed sag, and her musky scent drifted over to him, he had to stifle a groan. He smiled when she wiggled under the covers and came to rest so that her head was on his chest and her body was curled against his side.

"Are you alright?" He asked, though he didn't need to. As a healer he was well aware of the pain auras that people let off, and hers was quite bad at the moment.

"Just cramps..." She said softly, her voice choked with more than physical pain.

"I could-" he begun, his hand sliding under the covers to rest on her abdomen, but she shifted away from his touch and he silently cursed his rash action.

"No. I need the pain."

"I will never understand your obsession with pain," He grumbled and he heard her laugh quietly.

"And I will never understand your obsession with healing everything that is even remotely injured," Livinia retorted "Some things need time and nature to heal."

"Gods Liv, you sound like Kal!" He hissed, making her laugh even louder.

"I'm sorry Bel," She said, her mood changing so quickly it left him reeling. "About the whole thing... My mother, Rioden, Semira... The potion."

"Don't Liv, don't apologise." He said turning onto his side and wrapping his arms around her. "You are here, safe, that is all that matters now," He felt her hot tears begin to trickle down his naked chest and closed his eyes, pulling her more firmly against him, wishing that he could heal psychological pain half as well as he could heal physical pain. He could feel her body shake as she struggled to inhale. He closed his eyes and calmed himself, knowing that he had to be strong for her right now. He pushed thoughts of his own time in captivity, the turmoil of the last month, and the knowledge that the potion she had taken would clear her body of his seed as well as Rioden's.

After what felt like a long time, Livinia's breathing finally settled and the tears subsided.

"I never did ask," Livinia begun sleepily "who came to the portal that morning?"

"Both of us," Belcarm responded quietly and with a small sigh. "We both did."

~*~

Belcarm groaned and pushed his hips forward as he felt a relieving pressure against his groin. When the warm creature in his arms became as stiff as a board he pulled away quickly, his eyes snapping open. Livinia's silken scarlet hair was on the pillow in front of his face, the smell of it made him dizzy.