Feb 14
more gentleness :3
seen from Romania
seen from United Kingdom
seen from United States
seen from Tonga
seen from China
seen from New Zealand
seen from Maldives
seen from Argentina
seen from China
seen from Maldives
seen from China
seen from Ukraine
seen from Spain
seen from Italy
seen from Netherlands
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Germany
seen from United Kingdom
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Netherlands
more gentleness :3
99. Girlfriend for Tilly
“What is a ‘girlfriend’,” Atteila asked curiously as she watched Tilly cut paper-thin slices of melon to wrap around soft cheese. “I’ve heard the servers refer to people that way, but no one will explain it.”
“It’s a girl who’s more than a friend but less than a lover,” Tilly said, wondering at her life that she was explaining such things to a princess. “You didn’t know?”
“I never did. Is that what we are, then?”
Tilly immediately choked on her own spit and started to cough as Atteila laughed at her.
Whispers of War
“What did he mean, something to fight for?”
Aliea’s food caravan was come and gone, taking the duke with it. Now Aliea was putting away the food they brought, and was glad to discover that they had, as they often did, brought far too much for her alone.
Fortunate, since she wasn’t alone.
Her reputation would be in shambles if anyone found out she was living with a man who was not father, brother, or husband to her. Aliea cared, but not so much as she cared about making sure that Saber was hale and whole before he left.
“I don’t know,” Aliea admitted as she moved onions from a crate to the table where she could braid them together. “He wouldn’t tell me.”
“He also spoke of revolution.”
“I wondered if you were listening.”
That was dangerous. Aliea had the sudden, bone-chilling realization that the lives of her family, of the Duke and his sons, could rest in her hands. If Saber decided to sell them out to the throne, her family would die, and Aliea with them.
When she looked over, his face was pensive but his hands were so tight about his mug of tea that she feared for the thin clay.
“A revolution will face opposition,” he said, which surprised her and was not what she expected him to say. “The king knows that there are whispers of rebellion, and he is calling in his most loyal friends. When the kingdom was overthrown, he killed most of the nobility and ennobled his own. Now he has an army loyal only to him.”
“Why are you telling me this?” Aliea wondered, although that curl of fear got worse until her stomach felt like it was full of snakes. “How do you know this?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Saber said, which meant it did and he wasn’t sure how to tell her. Aliea knew him by now, and knew how uncomfortable he got whenever they got too close to his history. She didn’t know who he was, or who he used to be, but she knew that Saber would never willingly tell her. “Did the duke say when his little revolution was to start? I couldn’t hear through the door.”
“No,” Aliea told him. Her hands shook as she refilled the teapot form her kettle. She hoped the tea would settle her stomach, and thought it probably wouldn’t. “he just said that I would be staying here for a while longer.”
“What does that mean?”
“Late autumn, at the latest. Any later and the snow closes the pass.”
His brow furrowed, and he sighed before closing his eyes. “Late autumn is a bad time to start a revolution.”
“Sounds like the voice of experience.”
“It is. I imagine your duke shares that experience. If he’s wise, he won’t attack until the spring.”
Secrets upon plot, upon secrets. Aliea was already tired of both, and the revolution was barely even begun.
“He lived through the fall of the last king,” she said, and dropped into the seat across form Saber. “He.. he knows war. He wouldn’t tell me much, he never has, but I know that he fought against the invasion. I never knew how he held his title.”
“He had the right friends, or the king decided he was harmless,” Saber said, and finally opened his eyes. “River Sprite, this revolution, it will be brutal and bloody. Promise me you’ll stay out of it.”
“I can’t,” Aliea told him, and dared to take his hand in hers. His palm was hard with calluses, but he was careful as he laced their fingers together. “Saber, I owe the duke everything. If he asks for my help, I can’t refuse.”
“Please,” Saber asked, low and worried. “Please, River Sprite, you don’t know how cruel the king can be. If you’re caught, taken alive…”
There was fear in his eyes. Fear she had never seen, even when he faced the possibility of death, wounded and poisoned. Even when he calculated how many men he could face before they killed him.
But now, for the first time since she met him, Saber was afraid, and not for himself.
“Whatever happens,” Aliea told him softly as his fingers tightened on hers. “I will not be in the fighting. I don’t know what part I have to play, but it will not be the part of a warrior.”
“That won’t be enough t save you if the king finds out about this revolution before your duke has time to rally his allies,” Saber murmured, and brought her hand to his lips. “You are set on this course?”
“Yes.”
“Give me a few days,” he said, and brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes with his free hand. “If you’re determined to ride to fight this was, I’ll have to find a way to win it for you.
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Trading Secrets:
Aliea is a governess in the house of a duke, who keeps a secret hidden under his roof.
Raise a Hand
River Sprite
Up the Cliffside (Free on Patreon!)
In the Mountains (Subscriber Only!)
Swamp Water Tea
A Breath of Rebellion
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Finish Them!
Adrienne was glad she had experimented with her attacks, because two days into her eight-day hike, a cloud of harpies descended on her.
Fortunately, her swords knew what to do even if she didn’t. The moment the first enemy was in range, she swiped out blindly. Almost as soon as she moved, the blades warmed in her hands and she found herself leaping into the air, blades fading into black ribbons. As soon as the ribbons made contact, they splintered apart and the shards exploded outward.
Three harpies died before the fight ever even started.
“Okay,” Adrienne said as the rest of the flock circled her, suddenly much more cautious than they had been before. “That worked. Harpies. What do I know about harpies?”
They were a basic monster. Scattered throughout the game, they could be found in mountains, some major dungeon, and many of the more treacherous ruins.
They were also, she recalled, vulnerable to fire.
READ THE WHOLE STORY FREE ON PATREON!
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Cybersecurity 101
Adrienne is one of her server’s top players, but the game is more than a game. She will have to face love, and betrayal, to survive.
Cyber Finals
For the Experience
A Quest Never Completed
Reorienting Home (Subscriber Only!)
Skills Already Known (Subscriber Only!)
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Smile of Spring
Hello darlings! This one is for the amazing Kateland! Thank you for all your lovely comments, darling. I hope you love it!
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Stephone, as it turned out, was much better at parties than Hadrian was.
This was a boon, since, being the head of their financial sector, and also moderately involved with asset management, Hadrian was not popular within the company. All the same, he traded nods with Tessa, his assistant, and did his best to avoid his brothers. They were still watching, heads together and nearly-identical expressions of befuddlement on their faces. Hadrian sincerely hoped he didn’t look that stupid when he was confused.
“Aaron,” Stephone was saying, and turned her cheek up to Hadrian’s nephew for a chaste kiss. Aaron obliged with the air of a long friendship. “I haven’t seen you since my freshman year. Is Alexa here too?”
“She is, in fact,” Aaron said of his twin sister, and turned his gaze on Hadrian. His eyes widened and darted between Hadrian and Stephone incredulously. “Uncle Hadrian?”
“Hello Nephew,” Hadrian said, and immediately felt like a dirty old man. His significantly-younger girlfriend looked up at him knowingly, took his arm possessively, and turned her sweet smile on the latest of Hadrian’s family to come over. “Are you enjoying the party?”
“Henrietta always puts on a good party,” Aaron said dumbly, still trying to process the fact that Hadrian had a date, and that the date was Stephone Winters, whose mother was notorious for ruling her company with an iron fist, and who made no secret of her dislike for Olympian Incorporated. “I’ve gotta-“
“No you don’t.”
The arrival was another of Zed’s children, but not Alexa. Amelia had neatly stepped into her place in the company, primarily in charge of their textiles sector, and was Hadrian’s favorite of his brother’s children. It was a surprisingly large pool to choose from, given Zed’s inability to keep his pistol in his pants, and his apparent distaste for wrapping it before it went off. Aaron and Amelia were half-siblings, but most of Zed’s children seemed to have decided that their parentage didn’t matter, and that they were all the same family.
Henrietta, of course, hated them all. Privately, Hadrian thought that was just as well. All of Henrietta’s children had rage issues. It came of having an idiot for a father and a relentless bitch for a mother.
Hadrian did his best to offer safe harbor to all of them, and rarely passed a week without at least one of his brother’s children camping out at his house to escape the madness. He presently had two of them hidden away, and noticed that both of them managed to dodge tis particular train wreck. Good for them.
“Hello Uncle,” Amelia said, her younger brother firmly captured and too fond of her to actually make her let him go. “Stephone, what a pleasure. Hadrian gave Alexa a lovely bouquet for her graduation. I should have recognized your work.”
“You’re too kind,” Stephone demurred, but she also shook Amelia’s hand firmly. “So good to ee you. Are you still teaching?”
“I’m with the company now. Textiles.”
“You always did have a special talent for that sort of thing,” Stephone said genuinely, her hand still tucked in the curve of Hadrian’s arm. He was painfully glad she was doing all the talking for both of them. He might help to run the company, but fond of them or no, he would never be socially adept. “Aaron, please give your sister a hug for me if I don’t catch her tonight. It’s been so long since we got a chance to catch up.”
“Sure,” Aaron said, still largely stunned at the sight of his friend, his younger friend, on his uncle’s arm.
Stephone ignored him and beamed up at Hadrian.
Hadrian still felt like a dirty old man, and discovered that it bothered him less than he thought it would.
“Let’s go to our table,” she suggested brightly, and stood on her toes to kiss him. Murmurs rose up around them. She ignored those as well, and Hadrian, gazed down at her, struck stupid by how much he loved this incredible woman. “Hadrian?”
“You’re amazing,” he told her softly, and pressed a kiss to the back of her hand, wondering how in the world he managed to get this lucky. “Anything you like, I’ll see it happens.”
“Well, right now I’m dodging my mother,”” she said mischievously, and made him laugh as he guided her towards their table. But I might like a dance later, if you’re amiable.”
“Anything,” Hadrian promised again, even thought she probably didn’t realize how serious he was, and smiled when she laced their fingers together. “You know we’re sharing a table with my brothers and their wives, yes?”
“Oh,” she said with a smile that was pure, excited viciousness. Hadrian felt his heart skip a beat and did his best not to swoon like a schoolgirl in front of all his employees. “I am looking forward to it.”
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Punica Granatum:
Hadrian is the overworked CFO of a major international company. Stephone runs a flower shop. As it turns out, Hadrian needs a lot of flowers.
Petals and Thorns
Tiger Lilies and Cypress
Oceans of Blue
Poppy Milk Chocolate (Subscriber Only!)
Green and Gold (Subscriber Only!)
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Trick or Treat!! How about Renshu with melodramatic? (And happy Halloween!)
“Did we know you were this melodramatic?” Adamine asked, although she did come over to sit in Renshu’s lap. He was, of course, entirely pleased with himself. “You know you’re in trouble.”
No surprise, since he had, on national television, threatened to light on fire, a particularly offensive broadcaster who was loudly condemning Renshu’s relationship with Adamine and Conner.
“Sorry, not sorry,” Renshu said cheerfully and kissed her cheek. “Want to watch the talking heads scream about it?
“Oh absolutely yes.”
Feel the Beat
Aisa toasted Zoe across the table. The room was murky around them and the music of the shadowy club rumbled through the walls and made the table quake.
In a quieter corner, they had secured a table and drinks.
"Go dance!" Zoe said and poked her mercilessly in the side. "Roana is!"
"Roana likes people!" Aisa shouted back, although they chose this particular club so they could actually have some fun. She didn't know what the drink she had was called. It was bright and fruity and tasted not at all of the alcohol it contained.
It was her third.
READ THE WHOLE STORY HERE!
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