Warrior

"I will escort you to your quarters if you like. I am sure you need rest after your arduous day," he offered his arm and watched as she lifted her own to delicately place her hand on his forearm. He told her of the book as they walked. It was an odd version of the tale of the mountain God Zephyr that had always intrigued him. In this version, Zephyr had violet eyes like her own and carried a bow of onyx studded with stars her lover had dragged down from the sky for her. It could have been considered a romantic notion giving her the book, but he somehow doubted she would draw the same parallels that he did from the story. She had no experience with romance to compare it against.

*****

There was nothing at all romantic in any of the overt gestures he made toward Mirabel on day one of their courtship. He did not mention her exotic beauty nor the fact that he could get lost in her eyes. Rather he took every opportunity to increase their intimacy in touch and by revealing parts of himself to her in little ways. In the morning he took her to see his mother's rose garden with is sweet, fragrant blooms and asked about the forest and flowers surrounding her village. In the afternoon he had taken her to the armoury and shown her some of the armour and weapons of past heroes. That evening they had visited the library again to look at maps of the word and the mountains of the Kayode.

He discovered her fondness for growing food the small vegetable patch at her home and the herbs and medicinal plants she found in the forest during their time in the rose garden. The morning after his conversation with Alaina he took Mirabel on a tour of the castle kitchens and the large garden attached to it that served the needs of the people living within the castle walls to supplement the supplies brought in from town. She had been delighted, and he had instructed the head cook to make the Lady Mirabel welcome whenever she chose to visit.

He had allowed her the afternoon to speak to the cooks about her father's favourite meals and how to prepare them and had been quietly surprised by the few dishes added to their evening banquet which she had helped create.

*****

Dorian had put as much time and effort into planning the courtship and seduction of Mirabel as he did into his plans to defeat and dethrone King Mikhail. Sieben was doing his best to court the pretty Alaina and discover pertinent information about the village they had come from and the things Mirabel liked to do. The fact that the pretty blonde was a seer had worried Dorian, but his talisman seemed to be doing its job to protect his thoughts. He considered how to ensure Alaina realised that he viewed the marriage as more than a purely political alliance, and he had hoped that his actions would help her to see past the deal brokered to his heart and his genuine attraction to Mirabel.

Alaina had sought him out when he was alone in his sanctuary in the east tower after he had shown them back to their rooms the following night and smiled gently at him before wordlessly placing her hand on his chest over his heart. She had looked deeply into his eyes for long moments and then stepped back. Then she had spoken in soft melodic tones.

"You know I have the gift of sight," she stated. "It is not a constant thing, and I am learning to harness it more. I have seen both great pleasures and great pain in your union with Mirabel, and I cannot discern how to counsel her. I needed to see you here, your mind uncluttered by the needs of others. You are a difficult man to view Dorian as if your future is shrouded in fog."

"I have nothing to hide," Dorian faced her unafraid of what she said. "All unions have both pleasure and pain contained within them. It is the way when you give your heart and allow another the opportunity to treat it as they will."

"Neither of you will enter into this union with heart in hands, and your wills will clash strongly, just as Zephyr and Summit constantly battled. Like Summit your will need to be stronger if wish to live a happy life with Mirabel," Alaina said sombrely. "You will need to be hard willed and harsh with the truth, and I was not sure you had the power to subdue the demons within yourself, let alone her demons." She continued to study the man who would marry Mirabel. "She is a warrior and will battle to protect old wounds from reopening," Alaina advised. "You must be strong and not give even an inch to her, do you understand?"

"No, what does that all mean?" Dorian asked frustrated by the strange woman.

"Think about it, Duke Dorian. I believe all will become clear in time," she smiled softly. "The sight is never easy to discern when love is involved, but I do believe that you can triumph if you have the will and the heart. I am sure the Brotherhood has given you no clearer answers," she said with a knowing smile as he failed to hide the surprise from his eyes. "I am not your enemy Dorian; you have no need to fear me."

He watched the woman leave and sat at his desk pondering what to do next. He considered if he had been wrong to change all his plans on a whim after seeing the Lady Mirabel. He had joked once with Goren about taming a wild mountain woman and taking her to wife. Mirabel was quite a different woman to the one he had been expecting to wed. The fact that the Brotherhood and the wise women had such an interest in the union worried him. He cared not for their agendas only his own and what he had to to to make it a reality. He knew that marrying Mirabel was not only what he needed to do but what he wanted to do, and it was time to step up his seduction of her.

Had he been too amenable to Mirabel already he wondered? She had certainly spoken with him in the library as if she thought she could dictate terms to him regarding their marriage. They had spent the day in pursuits he knew she would enjoy, talking about her life and the things she enjoyed. The words of Alaina rolled in his mind. On the surface and in front of others Mirabel was demure and dutiful in how she acted and spoke. When they had been alone as they had in the corner of the library, she had spoken differently as if she was the one making the political alliance and laying down the rules of engagement for them.

He would need to test this burgeoning knowledge over the next two days and be sure that any negotiations were balanced in his favour and not hers. If he gave in to her demands she would not respect him, but if he did not bend at all to them, she would resent him rather than respect him. It would need to be a delicate balancing act in diplomacy. He was, however, a master strategist and politically adept. He would offer her the world as he knew it, but he would do it on his terms, not hers, he decided. Alaina had told him he would have to be cruel to be kind, and if that was what needed to happen, he could do it.

*****

The evening of the second day, Dorian and Mirabel had walked on the battlements, and he had pointed out the constellation depicting the mountain goddess Zephyr from her book. His arm had curled around her shoulder to steady her as she tilted her head back to look up at the stars and then he kept his arm around her waist as they continued to walk tucking her against his side.

"There is a cool breeze tonight as if Zephyr knows we are talking about her," he said softly.

"No doubt she does," Mirabel said not looking at him or smiling. "Today was wonderful, thank you."

"You are most welcome, I have enjoyed it too. I take a lot of the things around me for granted. It has been nice to see them through your eyes over the last two days," he admitted.

"Did you have enough time to see to your other work?" she asked.

"Other work? You think I view spending time with you as work?" Dorian didn't hide how offended he was by her words, and he stepped away from her and the warmth of walking side by side in the breeze.

"We talked about this last night. You were not going to make this awkward by pretending romance or waxing lyrical about my feminine beauty," she laughed harshly. "You do not have to pretend to wish to spend your time idly talking about plants and stars. If this is going to work at all, we can't start off with dishonesty." She said although not quite as sure of herself in the face of his obvious anger.

"If you believe that then quite obviously you have not been paying attention to me as I have been paying attention to you," Dorian hissed angrily. He looked to where Alaina and Sieben, who had accompanied them up to the ramparts for the sake of propriety, stood. Seeing what was happening, Sieben distracted Alaina by talk of the stars and pointed up so that her gaze followed the stars rather than Mirabel and Dorian. When he looked back, Mirabel seemed stunned to speechlessness.

"I have done as you asked and made no romantic gestures to make you feel awkward even here under the stars, yet you still feel the need to dictate to me how I should view our days together? None of this was work, none of this was about politics or intrigue. I have genuinely been enjoying your company, and I am disheartened to find you don't feel the same way. Did we not speak of finding affection for each other?" He said in a hard voice. "As you have obviously not enjoyed my company and seen spending time with me as a chore to be accomplished, I will leave you alone for tonight. I am sorry you find it so abhorrent to spend time with me. Sir Sieben will show you back to your room. Good night, Lady Mirabel." He lifted her hand to his lips and brushed them across her knuckles gently before dropping it and walking away, his boots sounding heavily on the battlements for effect.

He turned as he walked through the door and caught her stunned looked as Alaina hurried over to her. He hoped the moment had the desired effect on her. He had planned a small argument, but she had given him the perfect opportunity to be the injured party and make her into the villain she believed all men to be. It wasn't true, he knew. He had felt her growing affection for him during the day as she had laughed and joked with him. Still, the remark had stung, and he wanted her under no illusions that he did want a proper marriage not an unconsummated political alliance.

On the third day he had all but ignored her at breakfast, but his furtive looks showed him that she was troubled. At the allotted time he sent a squire to escort her to the castle gate, and he had greeted her perfunctorily when she arrived offering her his arm. He was stiff and formal withdrawing the smiles and affection he had given her so freely the days before.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly leaning towards him as they walked with a small group of courtiers toward the markets.

"For what? You made it clear that you wanted an alliance only. It was my mistake thinking that our union would be better served by friendship and affection. If you find me so hard to deal with we do not even have to talk during our time together. You seem determined to dictate the terms of our betrothal without concern for my wishes, or my feelings," he was harsh with her and felt her stiffen. "I, on the other hand, would have very much liked to get to know you better. The last two days had been very enjoyable before our walk on the battlements," he sighed. Then turned to look at a shop window where leather goods were displayed and engaged one of the other ladies of their party in conversation about the quality.

Dorian was his usual charming self to everyone except Mirabel even flirting mildly with Lady Abagail who he knew would react in kind and press his point with the woman he sought to teach a lesson. He made sure Mirabel knew that it was she that had chosen the business-like interactions between them not him and that he was only doing as she asked. He charmed the shopkeepers and their wives and in some cases their daughters. He laughed and joked with the courtiers as well as Ulan who had insisted on accompanying them when he heard they were leaving the castle grounds. By the end of their shopping trip, he despaired that she wouldn't break before their return and run to her father about his perceived cruelty. In his mind, he prepared a speech to concede the battle of wills without actually admitting defeat.

"Dorian we must stop here," Alaina said in a voice more forceful than he had heard her use before. When he stopped the girl dragged a pale and shaking Mirabel into an open doorway. Both Dorian and Ulan followed closely behind them leaving the rest of their party on the street.

"What's going on?" Dorian frowned. "Is she sick?" He went to kneel beside Mirabel. "Are you unwell? Tell me what you need?" He asked in a rush, his worry for her evident in his voice. She turned her head to look at him as if confused. She blinked teary eyes and shook her head. "Mirabel," he said softly. "Tell me what has happened?"

"I can't. Please just give me a few minutes. I am fine I just.... My head was spinning," she finished as if that was not what she wanted to say at all.

"I'll take you to my physician then, you can't stay here. Let me take you back to the castle it is not far now," he insisted. When she said nothing, he lifted her easily into his arms despite her protests and carried her out of the small shop. He began walking at a brisk pace back toward the castle.

"I will take her," the hulking Ulan offered.

"No, she is mine to carry," Dorian said possessively and continued to walk finding that her weight was not such a burden.

"Please put me down. I am far too heavy and I am quite recovered now. I do not want my father to see me like this. Please Dorian," she begged softly.

"Tell me what happened and I will let you down," he murmured equally as softly.

"You were so cold today," she said in barely a whisper.

"That is what you wanted," he murmured. "I've been trying my best to make you happy to be here with me. To give you what you want and need. You didn't want the affection I gave you yesterday. You said our courtship was work, a chore to be completed for you."

"I was wrong, I didn't realise.... I didn't know... I'm sorry, I never meant to hurt you or make you take your friendship and affection from me," she sounded as if she might cry again.

"You want my affection?" he asked cautiously feeling the thrill of the small victory run through him. Dorian held her tighter to his body as he continued to walk enjoying the feel of her body pressed against his.

"Yes," she whispered looking up at him as his pace slowed. "I was upset by how cold you seemed toward me, and I knew it was my fault for hurting you last night after you had been so solicitous all day. I didn't want to cry in the market in front of everyone, but I couldn't take it seeing you so friendly and caring with everyone but me."

Dorian placed her on her feet and offered her his arm again. Staying silent as they walked the last hundred meters back toward the castle gate. Once there he took her by the elbow and lead her into the small tower that held the windlass for lowering and raising the gate and guided her up the stairs having told everyone to give them a moment to speak.

"There will be no more silly demands on how you think our betrothal and marriage should be?" he asked lifting her chin to look into her eyes. "I do not expect that you would ever be a subservient or obedient wife, but I will not have you sabotage our union before we have even begun to know each other properly," he said in a commanding tone. "The alliance is not worth the grief and heartache that would cause both of us."

"Heartache?" she questioned.

"Of course, affection begets love, Miri, and it is the best foundation for any marriage. I want more than just an alliance. I want true affection between us, and I want that affection to deepen with time. It has been difficult to keep you at a distance today when all I want is the closeness we had when I carried you from the city. I want you to look at me as you did when I carried you and be able to get lost in your eyes. It is enough, for now, to know you want that affection too. The future will look after itself," Dorian explained further. "Tell me you want that too, or if you don't return my affection it is best to say so now, and we will call off the whole alliance rather than make each other miserable."

"Not even my father believed me attractive enough to capture a husband," she said sadly. "It is difficult to believe you wish for more than just an alliance." She seemed to be searching his eyes.

"Believe it," he said. "Believe me when I say I want your affections. What happens between us is nobody else's business, not your father nor our friends, just you and me. I want this, and I need to know you want it too."

He could see her weigh a life of cold acceptance against the genuine affection he had shown her yesterday as she looked at him. It was true she had only seen the parts of him he had carefully chosen for her, but once they were married, she would learn what it meant to be his wife. He knew he needed her compliance and genuine affection before Goren would give her to him despite his belief that the alliance would serve both their purposes. His mind would not be on the task he needed to do if he was concerned that his daughter was deeply unhappy in her marriage.

"Yes," she said finally. "I do want your affection and will give mine in return."

Moving his hands to cup her face he dipped his head to kiss her chastely. She had obviously never held the interest of a man, and he knew this was her first kiss. He knew he needed to be gentle and not frighten her with his need before the wedding night.

"Let us return to our friends and ease their minds then," he said softly and led her from the tower to the relief of those who waited for them.

"What happened?" Goren said as he strode across the courtyard and came closer to the group.

"I proposed marriage and Mirabel swooned, it was but a moment," Dorian informed Goren happily. "We'll have the betrothal feast tonight," he announced.

"Mirabel?" Goren questioned surprised by the announcement.

"It is true father, Duke Dorian proposed marriage, and I have accepted as long you give your blessing," she said quietly and saw his questioning scowl. "I am happy, father. I want to marry Dorian. I have a true affection for him," she smiled genuinely at the only man she had thought she would ever love and have love her in return, her father. Then she looked at Dorian and for the first time allowed herself to believe that she could be loved by another man.

Dorian caught the look of hatred in Abagail's eyes before she turned away from the scene and he knew he would have to deal with her once and for all. Perhaps marriage to a wealthy Baron in one of the nearby towns would suffice, but as he looked at Mirabel and saw his future plans falling into place he knew even that might not be enough to settle the venomous look he had seen Abagail give Mirabel.

*****

Part 3. Battles

Mirabel sat on the padded window seat looking up at the stars. She hugged her knees close to her body and tried to make out the constellation of Zephyr. It had been four days since she had stood on the battlements with Dorian, his arm around her shoulders as he had pointed out the constellation to her. She had almost thrown away his affection that night with her careless words.

He had forgiven her and renewed that affection toward her spending the days following their betrothal making her feel both beautiful and desired, something she had never believed possible. He had kissed her when they found themselves with a brief moment of privacy. She touched her lips and smiled. Each kiss had become more intimate to the point now where he had parted her lips with his tongue and tasted her mouth.

Her body reacted to his closeness, and she dreamed of those stolen moments hardly believing they were real, that a man like Dorian would want that kind of intimacy with her. The thought of more than that both thrilled her and terrified her. It wasn't that she was totally unaware of what would be expected from her if he took her to the marital bed. She had talked often enough with her friends about the boys they flirted with and in some cases their brothers. She had been given the talk from her friend's mother who had worried that being so sheltered and protected by her father would mean that she would be taken advantage of when he wasn't on hand to protect her. Still, she had never seen a naked man or truly understood the mechanics of sex.