The Princess and her Knight

"At this point, I am wondering if any answer is the right answer."

"Oh, I don't know." I wrapped my hand around his cock, still wet from being inside me and from the pool, and began to stroke him. "The right answer is of course, you always thought of me, but never did anything inappropriate."

He opened his eyes to look at me. "Then I guess I can't give you the right answer."

"Oh no?" I gave him an innocent look, still stroking him, slowly, and gently.

"You are a sly minx.."

"Is it because you didn't think of me, or because you never did anything inappropriate?"

He laughed. "How do I win that one? I certainly wasn't supposed to think of you in that manner."

I paused in my stroking. "Of course not. But tell the truth. Did you ever think of me like that, even for a moment, and wonder?"

He opened his eyes again. His face was serious and scolding, but I thought I saw a hint of mischievousness in his eyes. "You were just a girl...and prescribed to the dictums of formality...but I admit I found you very graceful and beautiful nonetheless. Other than that, if I had thought of you again, I probably would have thought you were far too young for me."

I laughed at him. "Oh, you're such a cradlerobber, you. Going with a girl ten years younger than you."

His eyes were closed again, as I stroked him. "More like eleven. Doesn't that bother you? That I'm practically an old man?"

"Old man? This doesn't make you seem like an old man." And with that I put my mouth over his cock. He groaned, and arched his back, sliding it more fully into my mouth, as I took it eagerly.

He put his hand on the back of my head, and guided my head, at first gently. Then I felt him push my head, a little harder than I had anticipated, and suddenly he thrust upwards with his hips.

I gagged a little but managed to gain control of it again and angle my head just right. It was a good thing, for he hesitated only a moment to make sure I had it, and then began to work my head up and down on his shaft. I didn't mind. I loved him, and I wanted him to be happy, and I relaxed my neck and let him control my head.

He groaned when he felt me give control over to him, and gripped my head in both hands, and, with care but lustfully all the same, began to fuck my face in earnest.

No one had ever treated me like this. Certainly not my poor violinist lover, and I doubted Camden would have ever had the courage to do such a thing. And I loved feeling cock penetrate to the back of my throat, sometimes going just a little too far, filling my mouth as if I was a common tavern wench instead of his future queen.

It took him a little longer this time, but he was still as eager as a teenager. "Leila..." he moaned, and tried to get me to take my mouth off him. I refused, and buried him deep inside me again, and he couldn't take it anymore, and I felt him fill my mouth with his come.

I had never done this before – the violinist certainly had not ever considered coming in my mouth, and I probably wouldn't have let him. But for Nathan...

I sat up, wiping my mouth. Not all of it had made it down my throat, and I smiled at him, and he pulled me down into his arms. I went to him eagerly to be petted.

"You didn't have to do that." He murmured, stroking my hair, and tangling his fingers up in it. He kissed the top of my head.

"Was it all right?" I whispered and he smiled down at me.

"What makes you think it wasn't?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. I've never done that before."

"Oh? And here I thought you were just so experienced."

I sensed he was teasing me, and I pouted. "I can't help it."

"Shh. You did wonderfully." And he lifted me to him and kissed my mouth. I kissed him back, and we lay in each other's arms for some time.

"Nathan."

"Yes, my love?" I caught my breath at the term of endearment.

"Say that again, please."

"Yes?" he smiled, and winked at me. "All right, don't get mad. " He kissed the back of my hand affectionately, and looking straight into my eyes, repeated, "My love?"

I tilted my head back and just took a deep breath. "I don't mean to sound maudlin but I was lonely for so long and hurting so badly I didn't even realize it, and I love hearing that. I could hear you say it a thousand times."

"Maybe I will, at that, if you are going to force me to marry you."

I sat up, looking down at him archly. "Force you? Well, I am the queen, or will be anyway. I can force someone else to marry me, and keep you as my lover, if you prefer?"

"The scandal!" He laughed at me. "The queen's paramour the head of her knights."

"Can you imagine? Everyone would talk. Camden would be humiliated."

He glanced at me sideways. "Is Camden the one you would marry?"

"I don't know, I just always assumed he would be my husband one day."

"Do you love him at all?"

"Heavens, no!"

"Hmm. Then why did you choose him, may I ask?"

I traced my fingers across his chest, blushing slightly as I noted marks from my own nails. I was lost for a moment in admiring my handsome knight, and he cleared his throat to get my attention.

"Is there some flaw you find in me, my lady, that you look so closely?"

"Not at all, Nathan. Sorry. I was just admiring your fine chin."

"My...chin?"

"Yes. Those noble boys, so many of them had no chin whatsoever. Um, why did I choose Camden. That is a difficult question, with a deceptively simple answer: I didn't."

"Hmm?"

"I knew I had to get married, and provide an heir to the kingdom, so I went to mother, and listed a number of noblemen I would be willing to marry, and asked her for her choice. So you see, she chose for me."

"The exigencies of rank."

"Exactly. Or so I thought. But...I have been through so much, Nathan, so much terror and shame and pain and darkness, I will never let anyone get in the way of first my kingdom's happiness, and secondly, my own."

I looked up into Nathan's eyes. "I love you, you know this, and have for a long time. But I also think you'd make a fine king. Why? Because like myself, you put Aldain before everything. Camden has his own business interests."

I sighed. "Ah well. How did we get into such a serious topic with only one night to our name?"

"It's my fault. Do forgive me."

"Absolutely not."

"Oh?"

I slipped into his arms again. "I'll only forgive you if you make me forget."

We made love off and on through the night, like teenagers. It was easy to forget the man in my arms was approaching forty, as he had as much or more stamina than I did. In between we lay in each other's arms and talked, or ate some of the things off the table, or went back into the water. I never wanted the night to end. Unfortunately, of course it had to.

Day dawned and I was sprawled across his body, eyes open, reflexively looking at the ceiling. He had finally fallen asleep about an hour ago, and I had been listening to his slow breathing and thinking about my future. And his, of course.

I stretched my body, and felt him stir underneath me. I rolled over and kissed both his eyelids. He opened those serious gray eyes and looked at me for a long moment, then hugged me tightly. "Is it morning?"

I nodded. "It is. And unfortunately we must get ready to go."

"Perhaps we'd better." But he held me for a moment longer before we both got out of bed. I stood, and winced.

"Are you all right?"

I looked at him through my lashes. "I'm sore."

"I admit; I'm a little worn out myself."

I grinned at him. "You dog. I have so much sympathy for you. Come on, let's wash." I started towards the water but had barely made it two steps before he came up behind me and caught me up in his arms. He kissed me, hard, and our bodies intertwined before he lifted me in his arms.

"Come on, sweetheart." He carried me to the deeper pool, and lowered me into it. With a cloth and bath soaps, he washed me with his own hands, and then dried me on the sides, while I let him pamper me. It was almost like old times, except it certainly wouldn't have been a man doing this back then but one of my servant girls. He then dressed me from the skin out, pausing to kiss bits of skin before they were covered up, making me shiver.

He dressed himself after, while I packed up our gear, and soon enough, we were ready to go out again. Hand in hand, we walked back to the oak where we had seen Lady Gaia.

She was there again, waiting for us, sitting in the grass just like a girl. I had never even heard of a goddess that was so casual. She patted the grass next to her, and I came over and sat with her. She looked at me for a long moment, and then laughed, and I blushed scarlet.

"Nathan, my child, come sit next to us, as well," she said, patting the other side of her. She smiled at both of us. "I'm glad you had a wonderful night, my children. I hope there will be many more in the future."

"Now. I promised you some things. This is for you, my daughter," and so saying, she removed a bundle of flowers from her hair and put it into my hands. "When you return to the shrine, you must place this on the altar, once you defeat the guardians. They will not wither or diminish."

"Of course, Mother." I carefully put the flowers away in my pack.

"And this is for you, my son." She handed him a packet, carefully wrapped. "In this are seeds. These can be used for one of two things. One is to create further shrines, for I presume you would want to, in your other towns, daughter?"

I nodded, and she continued.

"The other purpose I am not allowed to tell you, Nathan Borridan, but you will know when the time is right."

"And if I don't?" His voice was grave and serious, back to the Sir Knight I had always known.

"Then you shall not succeed. But fear not, I think you will know."

She stood, and we did also. "Now children. Let me bless you. Come to me." We each came to her, and she kissed us each on the forehead. "Do not be ashamed or embarrassed of the time you have shared. You are my children and here all is natural. I promised you a friend to help you, and he is here, waiting for you."

She turned, and waved a hand, and out of the woods stepped a person that was soon to be our very good ally.

He was tall and very slim indeed, almost lithe, with flowing golden hair and an innocent, sweet face. I realized he was elven, and as he came forward he moved with the lithe grace of their people.

I bowed, and he bowed in return. "Hello," he said cheerfully. "My name is Jordan. Pleased to meet you."

"I'm Leliana," I said, responding in kind to his casualness. "And this is Nathan." I bowed as well.

He continued, "I'm here to take you back to your friends, and I am also here to serve you for sometime. Mother says you need me."

"I thank you for that very much, but may I ask, how do you intend to take us back to our friends?"

"Oh." He looked around, and whistled shrilly. I heard an answering call – a griffon. And through the woods lumbered one of the massive birds.

Oh, but this was a special one, though. This was a gold griffon, with gold-colored feathers. Most of the commercial ones you saw were silver feathered.

She ran right over to Jordan, and nuzzled him – you haven't seen anything until you've seen a slim elf being nuzzled, read knocked about, by a griffon - and then looked at us and squawked suspiciously.

"Her name is Elizia. Elizia, these are our new friends." She came over to examine us, turning her head one way and then the other to look at us with both eyes. She was massive – think elephant sized.

Finally she decided that we were acceptable, and gently squeezed my head with her beak. Her breath smelled...well, not bad actually.

Jordan laughed. "Just push her off if she's a bother. Well? Are you ready to go?"

I turned back to Mother Gaia, who smiled and hugged me. "There is nothing to say, child. Be well, and conquer, and triumph. You have my blessings now and forever." She also hugged Nathan, and sent the two of us off. We climbed up on Elizia's back. There was a harness tied on to her, and Jordan helped us get into it. Nathan and I had both ridden on griffons before, but I had only done it maybe twice, so I was a little unfamiliar with it.

"All set back there? Everyone comfortable?" I nodded, and waved to Mother Gaia, and the griffon ran down some length of land before lifting off.

"It'll be cold again soon, hopefully you have some warm clothes."

I moved forward to sit near Jordan, squeezing Nathan's hand as I did so. "Do you often visit that island?"

He flashed a brief smile over his shoulder at me. "What island?"

"Huh?" I looked over the side of the griffon, and indeed, I saw nothing beneath me, just rolling waves and ocean. "Good heavens. Where did it go?"

"Mother just makes it appear when it needs to. So I'm told.. .I'm to take you to your friends. They're in the village of Aspen, just up the road, and they've been told you'll be back soon. They're well."

"Thank you for the news, Jordan. So – how did you end up here? Do you often do things for the Mother?"

He shook his head. "We elves are close to her but not that close. I had a dream, and so did Elizia, I think, that I had to fly here. Elizia was particularly anxious."

"Well, we certainly appreciate it. So...how long are you going to be with us?"

He turned and looked back at me, briefly. "Until you regain your kingdom, your majesty, and reestablish the shrine of Gaia."

"Uh. Really? For that long?"

"Yes. I may not be available to you all the time or at all missions, but as much as possible, you have Elizia and myself."

Silence for a moment, then he turned again and smiled at me kindly. "I know, it's a lot to take in. Listen, Elizia knows the route, so why don't you curl up and get some sleep? You'll feel better after a few hour's rest, and both of you look a little tired. We have plenty of time to talk about it."

"Are you sure you'll be all right?"

He nodded. "Please."

I went back to Nathan, and looked up at him. "He says he's going to stay until I am Princess again."

"I know. I heard him. Are you ok with that?"

I nodded. "I am. We shall have to find some way of rewarding him when we succeed." I moved up against him, and he shook out a blanket and wrapped it around both of us, and he held me close in his arms. I leaned against him, feeling his warm body, and wishing we could go back to the room and go back to making love. For I still didn't feel I had enough of him.

"What are you thinking about, love?"

I smiled to myself. "Just thinking of what Hannah and the others are going to say when they see us. Do you think they'll know?"

He shrugged. "Can you hide it?"

"From Hannah? No way."

"Then I guess they will. Does it bother you? They'll talk no matter what. It always happens in small groups like this."

I thought about it for a moment. "No, I don't think it will bother me. You?"

He kissed the top of my head. "I only worry about you, Leila. Whatever works for you works for me."

"I'm a little nervous."

"It'll be all right. Now try and get some sleep.

"Ok." And indeed, I curled up and fell asleep. No doubt about it, I was indeed very tired.