Naveen

Rina:

I nodded to his words. As soon as he sat down beside me I curled against him, putting my head on his shoulder and an arm around his chest. For a long moment I was silent, just listening to his heart beat and enjoying being with him alone again. “I miss being with you at night,” I said softly after a couple minutes.

"And I with you. It's been lonely at night without you." I sighed softly, leaning over to kiss the top of her head. She was giving me everything I had missed. The warmth, the softness, the presence of just being there. Running my hand down her side I smiled softly down at her.

Rina:

I was quiet for another minute. When I mentioned it, I had hoped that he would suggest a solution without me having to ask. “Do you think… maybe I could stay with you? If you said something I’m sure it wouldn’t be a problem,” I said though I did have doubts. Ash didn’t seem like the sort that would easily give in, even if it was the wishes of the lord.

I was enjoying my time with her, but her tone had me pull back enough that I could look her in the eyes. "Did something happen?" My brow furrowed as I searched her face. "I can ask if you want me too. It might take some work however, but I will try."

Rina:

“Nothing happened.” It was true, nothing had happened. Nothing had changed. They treated me the same way from the first day. Like I was a dumb girl that needed to be watched constantly. I doubted they treated Elvin women quite the same way.

“I just don’t like being away from you. And they watch me while I sleep. Or rather while I try to sleep. I’d rather be with you...” I said, not meeting his gaze. My expression turned pouty.

Confusion crossed my face until she continued on, and a faint smile touched my lips. "They watch in case something happens. Those who work in the nursery are some of our more talented healers. I'm rather grateful they keep an eye on you. Especially with your condition."

Her pouty look made the smile grow and I gently lifted her chin so I could kiss her. "I'll talk to Ashryn and see what can be done alright?"

Rina:

I agreed and went for another kiss. I missed him and his touch, so while I had him I would take what I would get. I shifted to put my arms around his neck as I pressed against him, with no intention of ending the kiss.

I returned the kiss, fully willing to let it continue on. While it had only been a few days that we could be like this, it had felt like a lifetime compared to any other time we'd been apart. Winding my arms around her I made a soft happy sound.

Rina:

I moved so I was almost in his lap, never breaking the kiss. My worries and loneliness were swept out of my mind. All that I was focused on was him and the feel of his body and libs against mine.

“Excuse me, my lord,” I heard from behind me.

I was slow to break the kiss, and rather than be embarrassed being caught I smiled a slow grin at Rina. Shameless and cheeky that smile continued on as I was met with the narrowed gaze of Ashryn herself. That gaze cleared into a disapproving mask and that familiar mask let my brain catch up with the situation.

Clearing my throat I looked briefly at Rina then to Ash, "Lady Ashryn, if you would be so kind as to give us a moment."

Rina:

For a moment my heart fluttered, and I wanted to kiss him again despite the audience. When his eyes shifted to Ash and spoke, however, I glanced around as well. She was disapproving.

“One moment certainly, my lord,” she said and walked a short distance away with her back turned. I sighed. I didn’t want to go back with her. I wanted to stay with him and only him. Not have to deal with any of the other women.

We'd been getting into it and as I looked back at Rina I gently brushed her hair back into some kind of order with my fingers.  "Whoops."  I murmured softly to her, that grin returning for a brief moment before gently I helped us both to our feet.

I cupped her face in my hands and kissed her for a brief moment before turning to regard Lady Ashryn.  Moving over to the woman I cleared my throat and she turned to face me.  "Rina and I are making the request that she stay here with me again."

"Why?  So you two can act like children?  No.  I can't trust the safety of the child to either of you it seems, and until I can prove as such I see no reason in granting your request."  She clasped her hands together and then beckoned gently to Rina, "If there isn't anything else my Lord, then we will be leaving."

My jaw tightened for a moment before I bowed my head. "As you wish. Then permit me to say goodbye at least." Turning I returned to Rina and apologized softly.

Rina:

My lips parted at her words and irritation bubbled within me. Not only had she insulted the both of us but she acted as if she was the one in power. And Talon allowed it.

I couldn’t help but be a bit cold when Talon said goodbye. I hated it in the nursery, and now Ash would probably like me less. I resented the woman. I went back with her in icy silence. I was not compliant for the rest of the day, and the other women noticed. One of them told me that night to not be selfish and to think of the well being of my child.

I laid in bed fuming. It was a few hours before I could fall asleep and even then I was restless. It made it worse that the very women who I was angry with were the ones watching me try to sleep. In one spiteful moment I hoped Talon was feeling lonely in bed at the same time.

Talon:

Guilt stabbed at me as Rina's goodbye was anything but warm. And I stared off in the direction they'd gone for a long time before returning to my room. I spent the rest of the day with Calan, flipping between matters of state or more active pursuits of sparring and training.

He didn't ask questions, only nodded when I asked for his time. It was at his suggestion that I ended my day in a hot bath before laying in bed. He'd offered to continue spending the day with me tomorrow, already making a list of things to do when I'd left him. But as I stared at the ceiling, all I wanted to do was spend time with Rina.

Rina:

I didn’t get out of bed until the elves insisted I get up. I was tired and slow to get started in the morning. I was still irritated, and my exhaustion didn’t help. I was snippy with the women, and it did nothing to improve the way they treated me.

Even when Talon came to see me I wasn’t as pleased as I had been the previous days. Still I asked if I could go with him for a little while again. He spoke with Ash and came back to tell me we would be going to the library. I assumed Ash didn’t want us to be alone again.

“Talon,” I started. The name sounded a little odd to me at this point because I so often used his true name when speaking directly to him. “I don’t think I can stand being in the nursery all day every day. I want to be with you.”

Talon:

I looked down at her where she was holding onto my arm. "I'm sorry I haven't been by as much as I wanted. I've been trying to take care of all the business I've been putting off while being gone so long." I apologized, knowing that it wasn't quite what she'd meant. "I'll keep trying to talk to Ash, see if I can't get you to stay the night with me."

Rina:

“Are you not the lord here? Don’t you have a say in what goes on?” I asked, a little more harshly than I meant. “You brought me here. I’m carrying your child. This should be a decision you can make.” I knew it wasn’t the same here as it was with humans. Men made all the choices for their families. Here it was up to the community. Women who didn’t have children where in the nursery taking care of them. Men came by to teach them as well. I had never known which parents belonged to which children because they were all treated like family. All except for me. I looked at him pleadingly, having stopped in the hallway to face him.

Her words hurt and I didn't bother hiding it as she turned to face me in the middle of the hallway. "We aren't like many races. Just because I am King doesn't mean I can dictate everything that happens. If it is necessary then yes. But with how few children we have it has long since been tradition and expected that everyone has the opportunity in sharing the joy. But so too do we protect the mothers and children fiercely. To work in the nursery is an honor, you have to be able to heal anything from the smallest cut to broken bones. As well as know your way around a fight."

"Lord or not, doesn't mean that they are going to treat me any differently when it is their duty to make sure the children are safe and take care of. Ash has been doing this a long, long time. She is strict but wise. But tell me, what has you so bothered? It can't simply be not sleeping beside me every night." I searched her face, trying to understand what had happened.

Rina:

“I’m alone there. They’re always watching me, but they don’t treat me like I’ a person. They just want me to do what they tell me without question. I’m a means to an end. That’s it,” I said, looking away from him.

“And I know it’s to protect the child, but you could do that just as well. If something happened, if something went wrong, you would be there. Besides, surely it isn’t good for the child for it’s mother to be miserable.” I looked him in the eyes again.

“They don’t know you yet. And they are weary because you aren’t one of them. But I do see what you mean.” I knew of the prejudice that existed. So many years of problems with humans and now here was one who they had to take care of and whose child was of the Lord himself.

They wanted proof of her character. Proof she belonged and as a big falsehood myself I didn’t know how to fix her problem. Talon was loved but Savien? Not as much.

Rina:

“They aren’t weary of me. They wouldn’t care about me at all if I wasn’t going to have your child. And they certainly don’t want to get to know me. They barely look at me unless they must. And I can’t understand them unless they are telling me what to do because they speak in Elvish,” I said. I knew the last was a silly complaint, but still it made me feel out of place.

I grew quiet then. "They don't have to speak to you in common. When I was with you in the human's castle no one bothered speaking to me in Elvish. Have you even tried to connect with any of them? Find common ground?"

Rina:

I stared at him for a second. “Yes. I have. When I speak to them or even ask questions they give as short of answers as possible.” It was just excuses from him. I wondered what he would say if he saw it in person. They treated me like a child but with less care. “They act as if I’m stupid. Telling me what to do and watching me like a hawk even when I’m sleeping. They don’t trust me. And I’m sure they would never treat another elf that way.”

"Not everyone speaks common." I grit my teeth. "I'm not going to apologize for them watching you. In fact I'm glad for it. You have talented healers and fighters surrounding you. Only one of which I can perform for you. And you draw things to you, I'm glad that people are near by to keep you safe." It wasn't that I doubted her words. I knew my people had jaded views of humans. Humans were the reason we lived on this mountain. Humans were the ones who saw us as lesser creatures.

Rina:

My eyes narrowed. “Well they wouldn’t have to if it wasn’t for you,” I said. I turned and walked on after that. I didn’t care if he followed. I knew what I said was unfair, but it didn’t matter in that moment. I was frustrated and angry and I thought I would be able to count on him to make it better.