by Luke, Monica
Laughing at how instantly alarmed Aderac became, he teased him even more.
“My female servant’s eyes are on your red haired commander. If you are not careful, I am sure at least one of them will be under him, if not kneeling between his legs.”
Aderac’s face puckered as if he had eaten some very sour.
“Warn your servants,” Aderac’s threat unmistakably clear, “He has a jealous love that has the power to order heads removed and will easily over his red haired commander.”
His comment made King Habjoric laugh even harder.
“Aderac, Aderac,” he again teased, “You are just as before.”
That night, after Aderac made certain to kiss Ihon goodnight before he went to sleep and explain how busy he had been; once back in their chamber, he darkened it and lit only a few candles that he put alongside their bed; then sprawled his body over it and waited for Belon.
His body groomed smooth how Belon liked it and completely oiled. He set his mind to please him for half the night; then sleep on top of him, but as he waited, when it began to get late and he had not come to bed, he rose and went to his door.
“Have one of the guards’ find where he is,” he ordered, “Say nothing to him, but bring word of it to me.”
As obeyed, a guard reported Belon was in one of the halls drinking alone.
“Where?” Aderac asked, as he dressed.
“He is in the eastern hall drinking in the far back.”
After he dressed, Aderac walked to the eastern hall; then as he stood at the door, his eyes searched the room looking for Belon and spotted him in the back staring into his cup.
“That will be all,” Aderac said to his guard.
The room full of people, as soon as Aderac walked inside. All who were there lowered their heads except Belon.
“Out all,” Aderac said, with a wave of his hand.
Immediately, everyone scurried to clear the room and once they were alone, Aderac closed the door and slowly walked over to Belon, but still nursing his full drink and brooding, he didn’t look up.
Knowing Belon’s weaknesses, tenderly Aderac put his hands into Belon’s hair and massaged his scalp with his fingers, and although he enjoyed it completely, he pretended to ignore it.
“Belon,” Aderac whispered only to receive silence.
After moving to sit beside him, Aderac rested his head on his arm, then took his hand off his cup and intertwined his fingers between his.
“My Belon,” he whispered, as he now affectionately took his large hand and kissed it, “Why are you not in bed beside me?”
Weakened by the tender way he spoke to him and kissed his hand, Belon couldn’t bring himself to blatantly ignore him.
“You cared not for eight nights;” however, he still brooded, “Why is this night set apart?”
Aderac gently touched his face with his hand.
“It is set apart for the reason, I know I have behaved wrong by shunning you and our son,” he humbly answered.
Instantly, Belon raised his head.
“Our son -” he repeated, as he looked at him lovingly surprised, and although he knew Aderac made sure Ihon had everything he wanted and needed, he never thought Aderac thought of him as his own son.
“Yes, our son.” Aderac smiled. Bewildered Belon would ever believe he thought anything less, “What did you believe I saw Ihon as? He is my son, as well as yours.”
Belon inhaled pleased and relieved, and always able to speak how he felt truthfully to him, he did just that.
“Such was my fear to have another taken from me,” he voiced his fear, “First by one young, handsome, and untouched and now by a king, who is handsome, well learned, and wealthy. I could not win against the first and now I fear the second. I only know of battles and wars, and have nothing more to offer.”
As his fear pierced his heart, Aderac eyes began to glisten.
“You know how to love with all that is within you,” Aderac replied softly, hurt that he felt that way, “And so tender is your touch upon those you love and fierce is your wrath to those who threaten them. You make me laugh from being happy and in love, and Belon so wonderful is what rests between your thighs, and mine.”
“It is not only what rests between my thighs that is yours,” he said, as he looked at him, “It is all of me that is yours.”
“And it is just as that for me as well.”
“I was jealous of him,” Belon admitted.
“I did not see it and now I do,” Aderac softly responded, moving his body closer, “I was wrong for going on and on about him. I will never speak in such way of any ever again.”
An item hidden under his large hand, as Aderac spoke, Belon tried causally to move it to his belt, but he noticed it.
“What do you have under your hand?”
“It is nothing,” Belon answered, still trying to tuck it away.
“It is something,” Aderac insisted, and held out his hand, “That I want to see.”
Slowly, Belon pulled it from his belt, and after Aderac looked down at it, he looked back at Belon.
“A letter?”
“I was going to give it to you to read one day,” he revealed, “But when the king brought you the books, I knew mine was nothing.”
“Never speak lowly of anything you give me,” Aderac lovingly chided, “Even the smallest of things is cherished by me. Where did you get it?”
“Before my father fell in battle,” Belon answered, “He wrote this for me to remember his last days. I wanted to give it to you to read.”
Truly moved, Aderac took the letter and read some of the words. “Your father was a high commander?”
“Yes, and as many great warriors woefully do, died in battle to soon,” Belon answered, as he looked away from Aderac and again into his cup, “It is but a letter and I fear nothing scaled to your gift of books.”
“This letter,” Aderac said, as he put his hand under Belon’s chin and tenderly moved it so he could look at him, “I shall hold dear to my heart.”
Again, Aderac put his fingers in his hair.
“Your words to me were once this and I shall speak them to you,” he said and leaned over to look right into his face, “He is no longer within me. In truth he never was. You are within me and have been from the first.”
His anxiety and worry now soothe, Belon relaxed when Aderac began to massage his scalp again.
“Umm.” A now comforted Belon moaned aloud, pleased.
“Can you forgive your love?” Aderac whispered.
Already forgiving him, Belon took his hands out of his hair. “Let us go to bed.”
Aderac’s grin went wide from ear to ear. “I groomed my body as you like and oiled myself well so that when you came to bed I could please you.”
“Then let us hurry our steps.” Belon prompted, as he stood and moved to the side to follow Aderac back to their chamber, “Umm, how I enjoy your body even more when it is groomed as I like. Well oiled you shall be again, but we shall please each other.”
As they walked giddy-fully down the hallway, every few hallways Aderac would suddenly stop and face Belon.
“Kiss me Belon, kiss me,” he would lovingly request when he stopped, and Belon would quickly kiss him passionately, then Aderac would walk more and do the same thing until they reached their chamber door.
Once inside, engulfed in passion to their fullest, both had trouble feverishly grabbing onto each other as the oil off Aderac’s body mixed with their sweat, and again when they tried to tenderly hold each other after they embraced to simply kiss, when they couldn’t, they laughed.
“Aderac, you are my life,” he whispered, as he looked at him after he laughed.
“Belon, we are the other’s life,” Aderac whispered back, and closed his eyes waiting for another kiss.
Lovingly, both held each other as they slept, then when Belon’s eyes opened that morning, not feeling some part of Aderac’s body on him, his heart dropped fearing even after their heartfel
t words and passion; he again left without waking him.
“At last you wake,” Aderac said, while looking over his shoulder from the chamber pot at Belon when he heard him stretching after he woke, then once done he hurried back to bed, “Get out of bed, my sleeping giant.”
After he bounced back into the bed, he put his body close to Belon’s again.
“I am going sleep in this day,” he said suspecting Aderac would probably want to spend his day with King Habjoric.
“No you will not,” Aderac chided playfully, then got up and tried to pull him up too, but couldn’t because he was to heavy, so he plopped himself on top of him, “We both shall spend our morning with Ihon, and afterwards I want you by my side in all that I do.”
Hoping that was what Aderac had wanted to do, because in truth, he wanted to spend time with him alongside his friend, Belon smiled. “And I welcome such.”
Just as Aderac said, they rode and played with Ihon in the morning; and after that Belon stayed close to Aderac while he spent the later part of the day entertaining King Habjoric, making certain whenever possible to include him in their conversations.
As all three rode and walked about, King Habjoric asked Belon about his battles as a commander at WorrlgenHall, as well as at Ivodgald, and having never been in battle, he listened intently to Belon’s every word.
“A warrior he is and he is my warrior. His oath is to only me just as is his love,” Aderac proudly boasted to King Habjoric when one of Belon’s men pulled him aside to talk to him, then when he came back, Aderac stared at him starry-eyed while an admiring King Habjoric relished in his tales.
Once the horses were ready to go, Aderac and Belon rode with King Habjoric all the way to open lands of Ivodgald; then after he gave Aderac cheerful goodbye, he nodded to Belon; then rode off.
As both sat on their horses and watched all slowly disappear into the distance, Aderac took in a deep breath and held it taking the fresh air into his lungs before he exhaled and turned to Belon.
“We are alone again, my honey.” He smiled and looked over at him. “What shall we do?”
Belon rested his elbow on his knee and looked back at Aderac.
“It comes to mind that a handsome man wanted to ride the land and walk in the tree garden with someone not so long ago,” he answered casually, “And the silly man had much to tend to and did not.”
“Oh no! Belon, I wonder who could be so foolish?” Aderac asked, as he tried to look shocked, as well as hold in his giggle, “To look beyond one so handsome and not give him his time.”
Belon raised an eyebrow. “A name is well on my tongue and he can make amends if he wants to.”
“He wants to.” Aderac nodded his head eagerly.
Unable to hold it within, Aderac giggled and smiled wide, and when Belon smiled back and winked, Aderac spurred his horse forward.
“Ride with me Belon, ride with me!” Aderac shouted, bursting forward.
After Belon caught up with him, they casually trotted along on their horses occasionally looking at the sights around them, then marveled at the most wondrous sight of them all, each other.
That night after both said goodnight to Beladera and Ihon, as they sat in their chairs in front of the fireplace relaxing before bed. Belon polishing his sword and knife, and Aderac reading from one of the books King Habjoric brought him, Belon looked over at him inquiringly.
“So gripped you are in that book.” He commented and kept polishing.
Aderac raised his head briefly; then continued reading. “You know I love to read.”
Belon softly sighed at how Aderac’s face looked as he read. His face showing emotion of joy, sadness, or anger depending on what he read within the page, again he felt a tinge of jealous, which he fought away as he polished.
When he heard Belon sigh, Aderac raised his head and noticed the expression on his face. He looked lost in another world as he vigorously polished over the same spot, which happened to be right over the enduring inscription on his sword, so he snapped his book closed, smiled and stood.
“Where are you going?” Belon looked up and asked.
“To you,” he answered and casually walked over to Belon, then sat across his lap.
With his book still in his hand, Aderac sat across Belon’s lap and put his legs and feet across Belon and the heavy arms of the chair; then looked at him before he kissed his nose.
“Now,” he said affectionately, as he made himself comfortable and again opened the book to where he had stopped, “As I read, I shall read to you as well, my love.”
“I can read to you if you like?” Belon offered.
Aderac adoringly smiled. “You cannot from this one.”
Curious why he couldn’t, Belon looked at the words on the pages and laughed.
“No I cannot. The words are in another tongue.”
“Latin,” Aderac revealed, “But from another book as we sit in front of the fireplace before bed, I would love for you to read to me.”
Belon again laughed and agreed, then took his hand off his sword and put it around Aderac’s waist, and as Aderac read, just as he did when he lay beside him and read to him when Belon was held to his bed, he turned the pages for him when it was time.
**
As seasons passed within WorrlgenHall as well, Nona gave Laad his third child. A handsome boy proudly named CeLaad, which of course, Loth teased him incessantly about because all his children had some part of his name.
One morning, as Laad and Nona sat in their chamber watching him toddle about and the children playing, he looked over to Nona.
“We have outgrown this chamber,” he said, feeling a bit crowded.
Nona smiled. “Snug we are, but we have made it suit us.”
“That is true,” Laad said and tenderly touched her cheek; then sheathed his sword to begin his day, “But the children need room to play.”
“What shall we do?” Nona asked, as she stood and walked him to the door.
While both walked to the door, Nona’s fingers intertwined with Laad’s, he stopped at the door to answer.
“I will speak with King Baric,” he said and looked over at his children; then back to Nona, “We do need a larger chamber.”
Nona smiled again.
“It matters not to me where I am as long as it is with you,” she said lovingly.
“Blessed I am,” Laad acknowledged his blessing aloud, before kissing her forehead and lips, “God sent you to me.”
Later that morning, while talking with Baric, he mentioned his need for a larger chamber, and Baric exhaled hard when he did.
“Forgive me Laad,” he said, when he inhaled more air, “You should have moved into Bayl’s chamber long ago. You are my Lord Helm and should live as such.”
Laad looked surprised.
“I cannot do such a thing,” he protested, “It was my lord’s chamber.”
Baric put his hand on Laad’s shoulder. “It is larger, and much to both our sorrow empty. Liha has married a guard and left it. Why let it stay empty when it can be put to use well?”
“Are you sure?”
“Well sure.” Baric nodded.
Just days later, while Loth helped Laad move their things, he looked to his left and right.
“Slowly, yet surely,” he whispered, as he helped him, “You move to were you rightfully should be.”
Laad listened, but said nothing, yet some nights as he lay awake in bed, his mind wondered what his life would have been like as that of a lord or king; then he would look over at Nona beside him and shake his head dismissing the thought.
Often during those times, he thought of her love and devotion to him, as well as the wonderful children she bore him, knowing his life would have been void of happiness had he lived it in such a regal way that Nona might not have not crossed his life’s path.
She had the beauty, uncommon grace, wit, and kindness of heart that a queen would and should posses, and should providence somehow twist and turn leading him down
a winding road to that of king, there would be no greater queen.
Chapter 41
Both sleep soundly snuggled close, Ovfren’s body half draped well over Ogorec’s, when a brisk wind blew pass their cottage, Ovfren shivered.
“Wake.” He shook Ogorec, “It is your time to stoke the fire.”
“Nooo,” Ogorec bemoaned. Ovfren’s body over him keeping him warm, he didn’t want to move, “I am well warm.”
“And it is for the reason my body warms you,” Ovfren teased, “Let me move and take the furs, and we shall see how warm you are.”
Ogorec groaned and stuck one foot out of the bed to get out; but when he put it on the wooden floor, after feeling the cold wood under his foot, quickly pulled it back under the fur.“Buuurrrr.”
Ovfren laughed.
“We shall both freeze,” he teased, “If no one stokes the fire.”
Lovingly, Ogorec moved to face Ovfren before pulling the furs over them both.
“I know how to keep you warm, and even make you sweat.”
“You do, do you?” Ovfren questioned playfully.
Ogorec put his body over Ovfren’s body.
“Ummm.” He then hummed, “I am feeling warmer already. Are you?”
“Why is it that when it is your turn to stoke the fire this is what you do?” Ovfren asked, now holding him tightly, “And in the morning when it is my turn, I must get up and stoke the fire.”
“Then in the morning,” he suggested, and used his knee to open Ovfren’s thighs, “Do the same to me.”
“Ogorec, Ogorec,” Ovfren said and bit his lobe, “Trust that I shall.”
Both held each other tightly, their flesh heating from the friction of their rubbing bodies.
“You are right. I am heated.” Ovfren breathed into Ogorec’s mouth, “Now make me sweat.”
Just as he felt Ogorec thrust into him, the door flew open.
“Buurrrrr.” Rulgesic sounded off when he came inside shivering and rubbing his arms together; then looked over at them in bed and frowned, “Why has no one stoked the fire, lazy ones?”
Ogorec turned his head towards Rulgesic’s direction and scowled.
“You did not tap on the door!” he complained.
