Little Cherine Book 08 - BPost065
Nobody said anything as they made their way through the swamp and insects and the Princess walked with her head held high and her face a tight mask.
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As they came out the other side, Candy was the only one not covered in mud. As soon as she was put on the ground, Bitsy in her arms, she ran to Thorn. “Why didn’t you take all of us?”
“Nobody asked me to my little Princess.”
“I’m not a Princess!”
“You are wrong Candy, you are.” His face was grim, so she did not know how to take his words. He was still angry with Princess Cherine and had decided to tell them all about Candy and end the trip. He was shocked when he felt himself being touched by magical energies and instantly understood they came from Shadow. “Are you attacking me?”
“No, I would not, for I would be killed. I need to speak to you alone.”
“Not now!” He’d seen the faces tighten in suspicion and felt he did not need whatever problems Shadow was trying to cause him.
“Then you must not speak until we have.” It was the first time they’d heard Shadow speak in a commanding way instead of his slick or wheedling manner. Princess Cherine stepped between them.
“Nobody is going to speak about anything right now, we must first clean ourselves. Candy, go sit on Iziko and keep him company.” Meekly she obeyed and the rest went to a clean stream they could see at the foot of the rising.
“Why are we travelling north and for how long will we continue in this direction?”
Princess Cherine’s voice was terse, “Until we find what we came for.”
They had been travelling for three days and it had been like this throughout. Nobody dared talk or joke and all were waiting for the explosion they knew was coming. For this once, everybody’s sympathies were with Thorn. They did not feel he had done anything to deserve it and since the Princess did not care for him, they did not believe his brief affair with Dark Cloud had anything to do with it.
Only Candy was allowed to ride on Iziko as his wings were growing and were still very delicate and Aqutina feared they could be damaged. Candy had taken over the duty of oiling his wings, her fingers very gentle as she concentrated on her task. The rest of the time the two of them talked softly and wondered what had upset the adults. Princess Wendy would spend time with Candy every day and she told Alkion that she was amazed at how quickly she mastered all she taught her.
“My Princess, I am old enough to recall when you came to our city with your parents at the age of eleven. Though you were older, there is an unmistakable likeness between the two of you. Are you certain your parents did not have another daughter?”
She laughed. “Five years ago I was still with my parents, I am certain Alkion.” She sobered. “She does feel like a sister though, a sister or a daughter.” Her eyes widened. “Could Thorn have travelled to the future and stolen her from me?”
“I have not heard of any sorcerer with that ability.” His words floated far above her head, Princess Wendy had already half convinced herself by speaking aloud her speculation.
Jescus spoke softly, “Princess, he did claim he created her. When he did so, I was monitoring him and am convinced he was speaking the truth.”
“I would not put it past him to have the ability to lie, using magic to make it feel like the truth.”
Jescus and Alkion exchanged glances, acknowledging to each other silently that there was little purpose to their arguing with her. Somehow, they sensed, she had persuaded herself that Candy is her daughter and, impossible as it was, that Candy is the child of herself and Prince Robert. Jescus decided to speak to Aqutina privately to find out if she has powers to cure the mind of such crazy thoughts.
“Candy love, will you walk with me?” Eagerly Candy joined her, her big eyes staring up at her with adoration. Princess Wendy tried joking with her, but she was not much good at it so she stopped, sat on her haunches and stared into Candy’s eyes. “Would you like me to be your mother?”
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Joy exploded across her face, her eyes coming alive. They hugged, Candy being squeezed harder than she’d ever been held before and both cried. Princess Cherine sat down and stared at the two of them and despite her happiness for them, tears came to her eyes as her little Dominique vividly came back to her thoughts. The men quietly set up camp since it was obvious they would not be walking much further that day.
Candy spent the rest of that day in her ‘mother’s’ arms and when supper was cooked, nobody even blinked with surprise when Princess Wendy chose the choicest cut for her Candy instead of it going to Princess Cherine as protocol demanded. Princess Cherine smiled when she was handed her plate so everyone relaxed.
Candy’s happiness was spread to everyone by her smiles, the sound of her laughter and later, by the singing of the two of them. The grim silence that had prevailed for days was soon forgotten and everyone showed Candy their joy for her. For the next few days they travelled at less than half their usual speed, for Princess Wendy and Candy would often stop to show each other flowers, insects, stones, anything that caught their eye. They even spent time lying on the ground with Candy in her arms, staring at the sky and making up stories about the clouds.
On one such evening, the Kiards asked if everyone would like to see them put on a display of their prowess with weapons. Jade and Cass sat with mouths hanging open as they danced around each other, thrust and parry so fast that they often had to guess at what had happened. When their exhibition ended, Candy and Iziko pleaded for more, so they bowed and took position apart from the group. Two of them aimed their arrows straight up into the sky and shot at the clouds. The third Kiard watched carefully and then, as the arrows returned to earth, he dashed to the one and then the other, catching the arrows before they could hit the ground. They took turns doing it and then asked whether Alkion and Sylvestro would like to try. With grins on their faces they politely thanked them and offered to try it sometime in the future. When Princess Cherine got into the spirit of the moment and urged the men to try, Alkion refused.
“A wise warrior must know his own limitations or else he will not survive for long, my Princess. It is never wise to accept the indulgent or well meaning limitations others try to impose on us.”
Sylvestro laughed, “What he means Princess Cherine is that he is afraid of catching an arrow with his eyeball.”
Dark Cloud stood up. “For Candy, a short show of playful magic. Candy, you have to be my assistant, come stand by me.” Despite all Candy had experienced over the months, she was soon squealing with excitement and was awed by the tricks and the beauty of impossibly fragile creatures conjured out of energy. While all of them watched Candy, Princess Cherine kept her eyes on Princess Wendy. Her face softened as she whispered, ‘You should have been here to see her, sweet brother. Soon my loves, I’ll be with you soon.’
5543
The Kiard named Espid was the first one to notice the figures on the brow of a hill watching them as they packed the next morning. They all immediately drew in as a fighting group and quickly finished their packing.
“They cannot be of our race as they seem, there are none in our lands except for us in our city.”
“There was Tsiess and Chir, these may also be other sorcerers of olden times.”
“Should we deviate to avoid them or confront them now Princess?”
“We’ll travel towards them and stop at a distance. If they wish to communicate they will have to close the distance at their own risk.” The two figures did not wait for them and walked down the hill as they travelled. Princess Cherine ordered them to stop when they were about a hundred metres from the strangers.
“May we approach? We shall not offer you harm.”
“We will strike instantly if you make a wrong move.”
The one of them answered, “I am prone to sneezing.”
“When he does it is a sight to behold. We are of the Council, our names are Centar and Lomon. Daughter of Melia, I am her father, I would speak to you.”
Anger flared as Dark Cloud answered arrogantly, “If you are her father then send Melia, ’tis with her I wish to speak.”
“You are angry with her? The time will come for you to speak with her, but she cannot come here now. Please follow us, we have prepared refreshments for all of you.”
His voice was gentle, almost tender with love, but it was his appearance that drew Princess Cherine to him. Though he did not resemble Robert or her husband, as far as she recalled, there was something about him that reminded her of them. She found it impossible to believe that there is evil in him and without a word she nudged her horse and set them following the odd pair. Mostly odd because of Lomon. Very tall and thin, he almost appeared to be as if distorted through a glass of spring water, as if his head and thin body had borne the same pressures that the head of Shadow seemed to have. His long beard, white as snow, gave him an unearthly look.
As they came over the top of the hill, they saw a creation that must have been magical. A large mansion was set in the centre of a lush green lawn that rolled gently with the land. Trees of all kinds surrounded the place, but what amazed them all was the wildlife that wandered about without fear.
“Do not attack any of the animals, we will provide you with all the food you need. Iziko, may I approach you?” Centar scratched his eye ridges until Iziko calmed down. “If you walk on our grass your weight will destroy it. I am going to make you lighter so that you can stay with your friends. Do you agree?” He nodded and then yelped. “Walk carefully and never run on our grass. Running will destroy it. You have not been eating enough for a growing dragon. There, by the stream, we have placed enough meat to fill your belly. Our seats and tables are close by so that you can hear all that we have to say. Enjoy yourself my young friend.”
The horses were set free to graze and everyone walked to the chairs, marvelling at the beauty of the house. As they sat, the jugs raised into the air by themselves and filled the glasses with frosty cold fruit juice or ale.
“We know that you met Tsiess and Chir. He always was the rascal and loved making fun of the Council, forcing his victims to think for themselves. Lomon is the Head Sorcerer of the Council, the oldest and wisest of us all.”
Lomon waved a hand. “Speak not of the Council my friend, it is a thing of the past.”
“Not as long as the two of us remain. You have been told what Melia did. Over the years most of the Council members disappeared, leaving only the three of us. Tsiess took his own way and rarely visits. The two of us remained to protect the true children of the land. That is why you find creatures that use magic within certain areas only. Your coming has disturbed the balance we had achieved.” He smiled to take away the sting of his words so that they would not think he was reproving them. “You had your journey to make and soon the wild beasts will have the land to themselves.”
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“You know where the Blue Eyes of Death are?”
Lomon’s voice was not as frail as his appearance. “To find what you seek you must have the correct name. Names are important. For instance, had you searched for the Blue Eyes of Life you would have found them long ago.”
Even the Kiards looked bemused by this twist to their quest. Before voices could clamour for explanations, Centar raised a hand to still them. “We will speak of that at dawn tomorrow as we watch the rebirth of our sun - if you are still here.” He glanced at Lomon with a small measure of sadness. “If we are here. My mentor and friend has foreseen that we too may soon be leaving this beautiful world.” He brightened with a laugh. “We have been too long together for us not to find each other in any other existence.”
Lomon teased, “You intend to burden me in our other life?”
“I have been a burden?”
“Are not love and friendship burdens? Sometimes so light that it lifts us to the skies and at other times so heavy that it bends the rays of the sun so that we seem to be in darkness?”
Centar laughed again and then explained, “He is probably the tallest man on this world and yet he fears heights. I shall be gracious and pretend I do not understand what he was insinuating.”
Princess Cherine spoke softly, “I have flown all the way to the stars, but now there is no light. No light, I cannot even recall his face.”
“A small gift for you then.” Lomon muttered under his breath and a spot of light before them grew in size. They gasped. Within the oval light was Dominique. She mouthed the words, “I love you” and smiled. The light winked out. “You do not recall the face of your man for it has been blocked. Your mind and heart have not betrayed you.” Like a wild cat she turned on Thorn, ready to tear out his eyes. A power held her, preventing her from moving. “Do not blame him. Princess, there is a purpose to the blocking and when the time is right you will recall his face.”
“If there is a purpose then it is a cruel one.”
“I suspect it is tied to the purpose of your quest. That too may seem cruel when you recall the deaths, but I believe life was given to us so that we grow and discover, not for us to remain safely hidden behind walls and traditions.”
Thorn was angry. “Well spoken master sorcerer, seeing you speak from the comfort of your power. How much have you grown and discovered in the centuries you stayed hidden here?”
“None of us are born sorcerers Thorn, but even the years here have taught me much. When was the last time you saw the world as the eyes of that child see it? To you everything is a matter of power and careful planning. When have you loved without limits, given your heart without imposing conditions? Until you learn to love one other without expecting or demanding they return your love, and only seek their happiness wherever they may find it, you will not discover all the true power that lies buried deep within you. Tell me Thorn King, who is wealthier and more powerful, you or the child you named Candy? How many love you, how many love her? Has she magic more powerful than yours? I tell you, her magic is more powerful than that of Lomon and myself, combined. Her secret is that she loves willingly, giving so much, but asking for such a little. Become as her if you wish to be all you can be.”
“Sophistries! Just like the priests.”
“They too know some of the truth even though they no longer can recognise it. What I speak of is a journey each of us must take within ourselves at some time or other. Fail to do so and you fail none other, only yourself.”
Candy perked up for a moment when she was mentioned, but the tension and the words she did not understand made her look up at the face of Princess Wendy. She looked down at her questioning eyes and burst out laughing with pure joy. “He is right Candy. You have taught me to love again. Your heart is a thing of magic.”
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Iziko called out, “Me too. Me too.”
They were all surprised when it was Rosemary who jumped up and ran to him. She caressed his snout. “Yes, you too Iziko. You came to us already a friend and have suffered for so long, only to protect us. Your heart is also magic.”
“No, I meant, Candy made me love her also.”
Simdi carefully placed his hand on the arm of Thorn. “She won the heart of a dragon, a creature that is known for its hatred of your species. Could your magic have done that for you sorcerer? Could my sword have done that for me?”
Thorn ignored him, his face cold. He leant forward. “And I Candy, do you love me?”
She pushed back into Princess Wendy, but then looked back at him. “A little, sometimes.”
His eyes were cold and hard as he stood up suddenly and jumped. He walked for a long time with his thoughts in a jumble and every now and then he muttered a ‘Damn!”
Shadow spoke for the first time, “What of us sorcerer? Are we - as her people claim, (he gestured towards Dark Cloud) only sentient beasts?”
“Uel, are we not all sentient beasts? Are we not all children of an idea? What else did you think life is? It is just an idea that needed bodies to express itself in all the different ways it can. Tell us, your young, before you instil in them your adult ways, are they not just like Candy is to them?”
“They are. Once I learnt to stop hating and despising them, I too enjoyed her childish ways.”
“Self-named Dark Cloud, do you truly believe my daughter would chose to create her children out of any kind of life that is undeserving of you? She took the time to get to know the shapeshifters and saw much to love in those she asked to create you out of. Their fear has taught them to act in ways that are often dishonourable, but remove the fear and look on Shadow and see a fellow human. Help his people grow and survive and I promise you your people will have found themselves good friends. Your hatred for the dragons I can only assume was born out of your fear of them in turn.” He sighed. “They can be difficult to understand and like, but they too are worthy.”
When they rose to walk around, the two sorcerers discretely used their powers to see to it that Princess Wendy and Candy are left alone. They spent their time loving each moment of their intimacy without needing to say to each other ‘I love you’. They talked, examined all they could find of beauty and even managed to touch a fawn before its mother nervously drove it away. By the time they returned, the face of the Princess was not only filled with love, but was also made beautiful by the calmness inside her. Even the memory of her Robert did not fill her with pain, but instead made her wonder at the magic of what they’d shared.
As promised, a meal was provided for them that not only filled their bellies, but also reminded their taste buds of delicacies they had forgotten about from their days back home. Some of them drank a little too much ale and they settled to sleep at peace, without posting a guard.
They were woken before dawn with mugs of hot tea to set their minds working again. The two led them to a rise that looked over the sea. “From the time the first of you left their homes, the journey has taken you eight months. We think that today it ends. Do not fear the end, for it is truly a beginning, or, a continuation. We do not know if we will come with you, stay here or go elsewhere, but the hearts of those in the Council always belonged to their people, whatever species they were. Iziko, call to your people, they deserve to share this moment with us. Tsiess and Chir should also be with us.”
“What of those who are not of your species? What will happen to us? Will there be a continuation for us also?”
“Yes Uel, for all sentient species. I told you yesterday, we are all one.”
The dragons arrived and the voice of Tsiess called from the foot of the hill as he made his way up to them, still arguing and joking with Chir. When they arrived, Chir winked at Candy and she tried to wink back.
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The sky had grown lighter and it was obvious the sun was preparing to take a peep before fully exposing itself. Lomon raised his hand for silence. “Princess Wendy, face Candy and look into her eyes while you sing to her of who you are. Do not try to think of what you will sing, just allow the music within you to find its way out. When you are done, Candy will sing to you of who she is.”
At his words many were speculating in their minds, trying to guess the meaning of this ceremony, but as soon as Princess Wendy began to sing they forgot to think and listened with their hearts, which meant they were all enchanted. At first the song seemed to wander, not certain of itself, but slowly it discovered all that was hidden within and needed to be spoken of. After that the song soared, dipped into depths of stygian darkness and then soared to meet the sun again and again. When the song ended, there was total silence and tears were coursing their way down the cheeks of Candy as she stared at her Wendy in adoration.
“Now you Candy. Sing for Wendy.”
“I can’t! I can’t do that.”
“Don’t try to. Just sing of what makes you happy, of the fears you have, the pains you want comforted. Sing about yourself Candy and let the music find its own way.” Wendy nodded to her and started off a simple tune for Candy to take off from and build on. Amazingly, there were more fears and pains in the child than in the song of Princess Wendy and even the heads of the dragons drooped as they listened. Because it was Candy, just a child he felt he had created, Thorn did not protect himself and as he learnt to feel her, tears filled his eyes as he recognised that much of her pain and fear came from him.
As Candy drew close to the end of her song she faltered, looked up and cried out, “Wendy!” Instantly she was grabbed and Princess Wendy hugged her tightly. When she moved her away slightly to kiss her face, she found herself staring into her eyes and without realising it spoke endearingly, “My blue eyes of life, oh how I love you!”
The shock that hit everyone was almost palpable. Princess Wendy heard her own words and stared at Candy as her heart seemed to explode with joy. “You are what was torn out of me! Candy, we are one!”
As she spoke the last phrase, ‘we are one’ the sky seemed to spin and then darken. Bodies collapsed all over the lands. Candy and Princess Wendy died holding tightly to each other, love still the strongest emotion in both of them.
This is the only place I can logically do it, so I will first go back in time so that the return makes sense.
Meli and her helpers formed our characters in the adventure. Sorry, she says they did it as a joint venture. We did not create new personalities, as with our adventure on Meli’s world (Sacred 42), instead the girls entered our minds and selectively locked away our memories and placed false ones in their place. Though I would not know I was Samantha, I would act as Samantha would in nearly all ways. We have already seen that it was so only to a certain extent. As Robbie says, our memories make us the people we are.
Apart from Candy becoming Candy, none of us knew in advance, who we would be. Here is where I should express myself in the most vivid and graphic terms in protest at who they made me be. However, that would not be in the spirit of the game and would lead to an endless stream of similar complaints, so I will refrain from doing so.
5547
The girls did take certain precautions. None of the bodies, of whatever species, were capable of reproducing. It would have been an unnecessary complication, that would have caused us problems. They took the further precaution of lowering our libido and sex between any of us was not supposed to occur as a possibility or be desirable. Obviously, they did not take into account a variety of things. First of all, the sex drive is basic and fundamental to who we are and, just as important, with time and the dynamics of various relationships, certain libidos were bound to rise. Oh, one more point made for me - you cannot expect people to go into battle, fight for their lives, lose companions and expect the drive for survival not to kick in and heighten the libido. Deaths were expected and we all had agreed to the possibility. We did not take into account that the need to survive would carry over, so that the personality of the person that just died would react blindly to the perceived further death of being reintegrated. Robbie suffered the most, for his experiences helped them short-circuit the change and Dommi and then all of us quickly recovered.
End of background stuff. Now we come to the interesting stuff.
Anyone who either knows Robbie or has read our diary knows how possessive he is and how the idea of any of us being touched by another male affects him. Those of us he found being abused never had to worry about it. He totally ignores the past as if the girl it happened to has nothing to do with the girl he now loves. In the way we are discussing it is true, in other ways, it makes him more tender and careful until he knows the past has lost all its terrors for his lover.
When Thorn and Dark Cloud (Haven) made their opening moves, Meli wanted to interfere. Masochistically Robbie refused to allow her. He did not really believe they would make love, so he wanted to see just how far they would go. It is arguably the dumbest thing he has ever done. Not only did he end up torturing himself. When they did, he also hurt Haven.
Two persons suffered severe shock. The one was the person who killed and fed off the body of Robert. One other went into severe shock at that time; the person who was responsible for killing Dominique. When the keywords were spoken and they died, the whole of Freddie went into a frenzy of helping those who returned to recover.
Samuel, or Thorn as he prefers to be called now, recovered quickly and then with a pale face, went to our taverna to await Robbie. He had to drink a lot of beer (he maybe forgot he does not like alcohol) for Robbie was too busy to deal with him the first day. Maybe he also still did not trust himself to do so.
How did Robbie react when Thorn and Dark Cloud actually made love? As they undressed, Freddie kicked in with an edit, on the screens, returning to the camp, so Robbie locked directly into Freddie and watched. I’ve been into both their minds and I found that Robbie did not realise how upset and furious he was at the time. Only by seeing through Freddie did I get the true picture.
The only person outside of direct family that I could discuss this with is Alki. He says that the way Robbie handled it shows he had to go through a process of maturing and he thinks he did so successfully. If we end up agreeing with Alki, I know that all of us will demand he allows Dommi to ‘operate’ and change him back to the way he was. The truth, for me? I think it was a number of factors that helped Robbie accept what happened without blaming anyone - consciously or not. First of all, he felt partly responsible as he pushed for this part of the adventure to happen. As for the rest? I suppose you could say that he found comfort in accepting that Haven was not responsible for her actions as Dark Cloud - among other forms of self-serving rationalisations.
For the first few days after the lovemaking, many were worried about how Robbie would act towards Thorn and they even went so far as to make plans to help him get away until Robbie cooled down. It is just as well it was not necessary, for Thorn is not the kind of person who would run.
As soon as Dark Cloud realised she is Haven, a terrible grief filled her. Robbie tried to keep her in his arms as he talked, but she fought him wildly until he let go and then she jumped. We doubt she had any destination in mind, but Freddie had taken precautions and she materialised in her apartment in the treehouse. Wildly she stared around and then collapsed to the floor as bitter weeping overcame her. Her mind was broadcasting at full power and I was told that Thorn grew even paler, his eyes staring into the distance.
Robbie was not quite certain what to do. He sensed he should not approach her, but did not know whom to send. Robyn was cringing at the thought of what Haven had done, so she was the wrong person to send and we will have to deal with her later. Empathia took matters into her own hands and jumped.
Athia took the time to sit down while her mind raced. “So, you betrayed Robert.”
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Haven’s eyes released new tears, but she straightened. “Yes. I must leave. Where can I go to? I cannot even return to my people, when they hear they will be ashamed of me.”
“Your people? Are you talking of us, your family? Why should we be ashamed of you?”
“You know what I meant. Athia, you saw it all.”
“I don’t. Tell me with your words.”
For a moment her eyes went cold and hard and she was ready to call her a cold-hearted bitch, but then her feelings of guilt overcame her. “You know.”
“What I know may not be what you know. Tell me.”
“I had sex with Thorn. Robert must hate me.”
“Leave Robert out of it, this is just between you and me. Where did you have sex with Thorn? Why didn’t I sense it?”
“Stop playing games with me Athia, you know, on planet.”
“This planet, the Earth of this reality?”
“Yes.”
“I wasn’t aware you went there - how did you manage it without my knowing?”
“Damn you! You are playing games with me again. You know damn well, when I was there as Dark Cloud. How fucking fitting that I should be given that stupid name for such an act.”
“Oh. I think I will have to have a word with Meli. I can tell you I will be quite angry with her. None of us were supposed to go there as ourselves. I wonder why she did it, does she secretly hate you? Was she manipulating you?”
“Oh god! You are manipulating me again. Athia, play it straight and tell me, how could I do it? Why me? You know I adore Robert, how could I?”
She knelt before Haven and took her face in her hands. “I am not manipulating you Haven, you are doing it to yourself. Are you still as brave as the original Dark Cloud was?”
“I don’t know. What do you want me to do?”
“Open yourself and look inside me.”
She burst into tears again. “How can you still love me?”
“If you are really brave, you will do the same with Robert. Ah! I know, I have a better idea. You know that Robert is a softie and forgives us if we hurt him. Try it with Cherine. You know her mind will be like acid if you hurt her only big love.”
In a small voice, “I daren’t.”
“My Haven said that? Becoming a Cherinian did not make you weaker Haven. You are far stronger than Dark Cloud the Avenger ever was. Open yourself to Cherine.”
Cherine had been following the conversation through Athia, she quickly buried her own demons that were torturing her and brought to her heart all the love she feels for our Haven. Once Haven had felt her she jumped to her. Haven fell into her arms and cried herself dry. After that she was open to actually listening to what they told her and slowly she came to accept their argument that she, Haven, is not the person who had sex with Thorn. It was not her mind or personality and it was not even her body. The body that had been touched by another man lays on the hill slowly decomposing or being eaten. That picture (painted by Athia of course) shocked her and helped her realise that they are right. When she was asked if Robbie could come to her, she asked for time to have a quick shower first. Robbie gave her the time she needed and then arrived with his love radiating like a sun in her heart. The truth is that despite all that, she still feels guilty, even if she knows it is foolish of her. Healing Haven helped heal Cherine and a little bit later, it helped heal many others.
5549
We were all dying to be alone with our Robbie and make mad passionate love, each of us planning to be as young as possible. However, everyone else was still so keyed up, so many of the actors needed our help, that we barely got to bed to sleep for an hour.
Robbie put down his empty cup and sighed. “I better go alone.” We stayed at home but we monitored him, trying to stay out of his thought processes.
“Good morning Samuel. Don’t tell me you have stayed up all night!” Maria brought him a coffee and a packet of cigarettes. Overdoing it, he grinned at her and thanked her. Thorn just sat looking at him, waiting.
“Cigarette? Oh sorry, forgot you are a health freak. I bet you look down on me for smoking, even if I have a healer.”
“What are you doing?”
“Trying to make conversation, unsuccessfully it seems. I guess you still have the game on your mind. Not quite what you expected when you suggested it, was it?”
“Speak straight for once damn it!”
“Okay. I’m sorry to tell you that your idea was not as successful as we’d hoped it would be. Candy now accepts that she is nearly six, but still balks at becoming six, the age her father began to hurt her.”
Thorn sort of gritted his teeth, not interested in Candy at this stage. “What about Haven and I?”
“Haven and you? I did not know there is a Haven and you. You better tell me about it.”
As unreasonable as it may sound, Thorn was getting angrier by the second. “We fucked! You know it, so what are you going to do about it?” Even Haven had to giggle at his frustrated belligerence.
Robbie put on an act, his face turned red and he made his eyes small and angry. “Damn! How could she do such a thing, she has betrayed me. Give me details, when and where so that I can confront her. If you are telling me the truth I’ll divorce her right away.”
That made Thorn pause. He’d been thinking in terms of what Robbie would try to do to him, he had not considered what this could cost Haven.
“Leave the poor girl out of this, she did not know what she was doing.”
Robbie stood up so suddenly that his chair fell over and he looked livid. “You mean you drugged her! That is rape and I’ll have your balls for that you bastard.” We were falling all over ourselves and Meli had already brought in her parents and I’d brought in Allan and they were all laughing also, though Alki kept on saying it is not a laughing matter.
Now that I am writing about it, I can feel sympathy for Thorn. He was feeling guilty, he felt Robbie had the right to punish him, and yet, because Robbie kept on misunderstanding him, he was getting angrier by the minute. He stood up, confronting Robbie, determined to make him understand. It just goes to show how feelings of guilt can make anyone stupid.
“I did not drug her!” he shouted. “It was while we were down on the planet.”
Robbie’s eyes went huge with amazement and then he visibly relaxed and sat down again. “Oh, you mean that scene where Thorn made love to Dark Cloud? Shit! That was unexpected, I did not think he would have the balls to do it. That Dark Cloud sure was a stern overbearing woman. That kind scares me, I doubt I could get a hard on.”
“Jesus Christ! You really don’t care that I fucked your wife.”
“Here we go again. Samuel, you touch any of my loves that way and I will kill you, even if they started it. Get it through your thick skull that you are not Thorn and Haven is not Dark Cloud. Whatever happened down there happened to other people, not the two of you. You are being just as difficult as the poor guy who killed and ate me. What a job it was getting him to see that he had nothing to do with it. Still, I do sort of feel sorry for him, I guess many people who were not here will still talk of him as the Cherinian that ate Robert.”
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“As they will talk of me as the man who screwed one of your wives?”
“As long as we know it is not true, I do not care what other people think.”
After they talked a while and Thorn was more at peace with himself, he laughed. “Damn you, you really had me going there for a moment.”
“Samuel, I suggest you revert to your real name for now. I also need one other important thing to happen right now. I do not want any awkwardness between you and Haven. May I ask her to come to us to settle the matter for once and for all?”
“If she is game.”
Robbie gave a genuine laugh. “Haven - game? She is more than game for anything that takes guts.”
So there you are. I believe the adventure will keep on affecting us for a time, but I must also admit I look forward to our next one. I will make certain first that I am not to be cast as some disgusting creature before I volunteer.
We thought that Syrina's honeymoon was at an end, but Robbie thought otherwise. He took her back to Terra and they spent three nights eating at the most expensive restaurants and going to the best nightclubs. For Robbie the best nightclubs or Disco’s are not always the ones that happen to be in fashion. To him, going out for entertainment means that he and his partner(s) must dress up and they are pampered with good service, therefore he tends to avoid the clubs where everybody turns up in jeans. On this world jeans are not popular, so he did not have a problem. He managed to get Syrina to over-indulge a little with wine and she spent their last night together almost permanently on the dance floor. She felt sorry the next day, as she had hoped to spend the night in his arms making love, but she felt that Robbie had truly enjoyed himself, so she decided it was a good ending to her honeymoon.
We had not decided where to go, so we were still in the same reality when we met at the taverna to discuss our next destination. “We can return to Orgg’s reality first, since we promised to return them within one day, or we can return to collect the Eqkee, take Cherine and the astronauts to their world and then return to Orgg’s reality. King Meesartus, the choice is yours.”
“We would get home at the same time either way?” Robbie nodded. “If we would not be causing you hardship, my people would enjoy travelling to the world of the Eqkee.”
The astronauts felt disappointed but kept quiet. They’d been hoping to spend more time with us and travel to other worlds before returning home.
I hope you enjoy reading this story of fantasy, adventure and love - and should some of it be true for our reality, I hope you will love our Cherine.
Αλέξανδρος Ζήνον Ευσταθίου
(Alexander Zenon Eustace)16th February, 2020
- posted: 16th February, 2020
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