Chapter 380

Neia awoke feeling the hand on her chest. 'How… dare… he!' She wanted to roar, until the sudden outrage woke her all the way up, and she felt the hard body of her lover nestled against her, her tail wrapped around his leg and his obvious maleness still nestled where she remembered from the previous night. She smirked a little, 'For just a moment I thought I was back at some camp in the Holy Kingdom and someone got bold with me…' Her eyes shut with sluggish contentment and she pressed herself back against him again.

'It feels so good to… sleep in.' She corrected her own thought before she could venture down the path of lewdity and do something to awaken Cenna, his body's warmth contrasted with the coolness of her skin, and she grabbed the arm draped over her chest and drew it down over her stomach… stealing some more of the blanket as she did so.

Neia smirked a little, the large bed easily had room enough for a half a dozen people, but they lay together in the center of the thick mattress, surrounded by stuffed pillows that would very definitely need to be washed or cleaned with magic when they finally did rise.

Of course, though her eyes were shut, her mind was racing ahead to the duties of the day. 'Today we have to capture his friends… by the dead gods I hope I don't have to kill any of them…' There was a dour thought. Her promise to try to preserve the lives of the Black Scripture was made in sincerity, 'But so much depends on them. Even if he plays his part, will they act for him or the mission?' Neia had no idea, and if he was being honest, she was more than a little certain that Cenna didn't know either.

Her heartbeat was slow as a snail's crawl, but it quickened to that of a person running at high speeds when she imagined the worst case scenario. 'The Black Scripture, dead, their bodies strewn about in front of us, Cenna's face twisted in anguish, and looking at me with those beautiful deep eyes filled with hurt and accusation… I could protest, but if I fail, would even I believe myself?' She wondered about that, and her body lost its lazy languidness, her claws dug a little into his arm.

"Did you have a nightmare?" His hot breath carried the whispered words into her ear.

"Yes." She whispered. It wasn't much of a lie, but it wasn't quite true either, as it was the waking sort of her own making.

"Always the worrier." Cenna's voice was smooth except for the slight groan as he pushed himself up on his side, casting back the thick black blanket. "Relax, I know my friends, my comrades, like nobody else. Remember," he said and patted her thigh, "I was right about who they put in charge, and right about what they would do. Plus they're operating on the latest maps that Thousand League Astrologer can give them. They'll go the way I said, and they're no match for what will be waiting for them."

"I just don't want you to turn on me…" Neia said and when his hand went up to her shoulder, she covered it and looked back at him, "I'm a Queen, and I have dragon's blood, so naturally I'm very greedy. If I lose you-"

"You'll burn down the Slane Theocracy?" He guessed.

It was a joke, but her ice blue eyes showed no sense of humor. "No… maybe… I-I honestly don't know. I've never loved anyone before. It wasn't that long ago that I wasn't even sure my own parents liked me. If this goes wrong and your friends die-"

His fingers became a vice on her shoulder and she felt herself falling backward into the soft mattress, her eyes barely had time to widen, nor shed any tears of fear or anxiety, he was on her then. His mouth at least, covering hers in a kiss. Her lips which were parted in surprise, remained parted for his welcome, if unexpected touch. He kept the kiss going and tongues dueling for a full minute before he broke it and sat up again.

"They make their choices. All I'm giving them is a chance. You can't blame yourself, and I can't blame you, if they don't take it. I promise." Cenna said and squeezed her shoulder, "I pro-mise." He repeated the phrase with slow emphasis.

Neia relaxed, and when his hand came away from her shoulder she sat up again. "Thank you." The Queen of Frost said, sliding toward the edge of the mattress, "Then we should get going, it's just about sunrise now," she glanced toward the window where the light of the false dawn was just beginning to peep over the horizon, "and there is still a lot to do. It was nice to sleep in for once, I can't remember the last time I was able to be so lazy."

Cenna snorted, "Sleep in, she says. It's only been about four hours."

"Like I said, we slept in." Neia said and went to a dresser, "We should take a quick bath, but we've already overslept and we're probably going to sweat in a little while anyway, so we'll do it when we get back," she leveled a clawed finger at him when the smile spread over his face, "don't even think it, pervert. I mean a real bath."

He didn't have the sense of shame required to blush, but he did have the shamelessness required to give her an exaggerated and crestfallen look, like a puppy looking at a treat placed just out of reach. It was impossible for her to feel infuriated with him. But she did remain focused on the matter at hand. "We'll get a bath after we return, get you into your 'captive' attire, and go get ready. With any luck, the only Black Scripture member not with us will be Thousand League Astrologer. At least for now."

She said and reaching into her wardrobe, she tossed her own clothes onto the bed, and then reached into the newer dark wooden wardrobe, filled with clothing made for Cenna and tossed him his Black Scripture clothing, the only thing missing was his spear, which sat in the weapons rack beside the bed, just in front of the bow given to her by the Allfather.

"These are my regular clothes." He said, then asked, "Do I need the spear?" Cenna asked while they began throwing on their clothing.

"Of course they are. And as far as they're concerned, you're my prisoner. And as for the spear?" She shot him a long stare and said abruptly, "Not if you're right." Neia answered.

When Cenna finished securing his boots and yanked the laces tight, he went to the wooden rack, and grabbed his spear before following the Queen of Frost out of the bedroom and into the dim hallway of her castle.