Dhasca tried desperately to stifle a yawn. This was her fifth suitor for the day, and he was just as boring as the several dozen she had over the past several weeks. Her father had found his first grey hair, and apparently that meant she had to marry and start producing heirs soon. He had started announcing left and right that she was looking for a husband, and soon after that, she had been entertaining a slew of suitors every day. Her father needed to find a healthier outlet, other than her, for his mid-life crisis, she thought.
All these suitors were the same. They were either the sons of her father's strongest warriors or the sons of the high council of priests, and for some reason, that made them all boring, pretentious, and self-centered. She couldn't take another minute of it. She already hated being bartered off, why did she have to suffer this boredom on top of it?
She dismissed this latest one with as much pleasantry as she could muster, and sure enough, her father came to her shortly. King Orym was a tall, slight man with a great long, thin beard that trailed nearly to his waist. He was a kind and fair ruler, but sometimes he was a dense father if he couldn't see his only daughter's misery at the thought of having to marry so soon. In truth, he loved Dhasca more than anything. She was his oldest child, and his only daughter. She was beautiful and reminded him so much of his late wife. How could he not want the best for her?
"So, my beautiful flower, surely today you found the right one."
Dhasca had to play this just right. On the one hand, she couldn't outright tell him the truth, because then he would take her marriage into his own hands. On the other, she couldn't lie and commit herself to a life of misery. "They were nice," she managed to say.
"But just not the right one," her father finished, knowing his daughter better than that. For now, he had attributed all these rejections to his daughter just being picky. "We'll find one soon. Don't you worry. By the next harvest festival, you'll have your wedding."
"Great..." Dhasca said, lying between her teeth. "I look forward to it."
The truth was, she knew almost instantly who she would marry if she had the chance. But her father would never approve, and so she was stuck meeting them in secret, which was what she was planning on doing right now. She let out a fake yawn. "Well, father, I'm quite tired. I think I'll go to sleep for the night."
His eyebrows raised in surprise. "Are you sure? Did you not want to at least eat dinner?"
"No, I'm not all that hungry." She just wanted to be alone to sneak away, and he was keeping her here with these silly questions.
"Okay, well, goodnight." He kissed the top of his daughter's forehead and left.
Perfect. Dhasca waited until his footsteps could no longer be heard, and slipped away. She went to their usual meeting spot: the spring deep in the forest. While beautiful and a great source of water, it was quite out of the way and farther out than the other springs. This meant they would have their privacy.
It was already nightfall when she arrived, but she saw no sign of them yet. She sat by the edge of the water, admiring the luminescent plants nearby. She started undoing her braids, letting her hair cascade down over her shoulders, and hummed. Not only was she the princess, she was known for having the most beautiful singing voice. Music could always heal her stresses, her mother had taught her when she was just a girl. That was true, though there was someone else who could also do that.
"I was starting to wonder when you would come," a voice said behind her.
"The usual," Dhasca replied, "father had more suitors for me to meet."
"And what do you think of them?" they asked, trying to feign worry.
"Oh, but they're not nearly as wonderful as you." They sat down beside her, as she said this, looking deep into their eyes.
They laughed. "Good, because I don't know what I'd do if you found someone else more attractive than me."
"I would never think such a thing," she said, leaning in to kiss them. "I love only you."
Several minutes later, Dhasca laid back on the grass, panting, but content. "I needed this," she said. "Father says he wants to marry me off before the next harvest festival. I just needed to be with you, to forget all of this."
They lay down beside her, enjoying the basking in the afterglow of their lovemaking. "Really? That soon?"
Dhasca sighed. "I don't want it to happen, but he's getting persistent. I fear I'll have no choice. What am I to do? If I tell him about us, I fear he will not only refuse, but do something horrible like banish you. I can't even bear to think about that."
They threw their arm around her waist, their hand rubbing her gently to sooth her nerves. They hated to see her worry. "Well, I might have an idea of how to fix that."
Dhasca was now very curious. She rolled over to look her lover in the eyes. Any idea would do at this point.
Is Dhasca's lover a man or a woman? You decide.  indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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