Second Circle, by lyradaemon
Chapter 3: A Few Worries (and Morghann's secret crush)
"Why can't I go?" Selene demanded hotly.
"Selene, I've told you once. Your aunt Leyla's getting married, and I want you to come." Morghann looked despairingly at her daughter; Selene was in a bad mood now, and it didn't look like she was going to give in easily.
"But everyone else is going!"
"Who's 'everyone else'?
"Well Eli and Luc are going; Charon, Arianna, Titian…they're all going too. And Luc asked Jason," she added, pouting.
Morghann sighed inwardly. This was going to be difficult. "Yes, but Jason doesn't need to go to the wedding. Leyla wanted you to be a bridesmaid, along with your cousin Giselle. Tuathal is so far away; there's no point in your father and brother going all the way there for a wedding. Besides, Leyla and your father don't exactly get on, and Jason didn't make much of an impression last time we where there."
Selene glared at her mother. "But it's so unfair!"
"I don't care if it's 'unfair' or not," Morghann snapped, finally losing her temper. She wasn't known for her patience – or tolerence of surly behaviour either. "You're coming to Scelt and that's final."
"Fine! Getting away from Dhemlan and the Hall was finally going to be a chance for me to get to know people I haven't known my entire life. I could have met someone in Maghre, in one of the courts perhaps. But no, I have to go to Tuathal!" Her eyes welled up with exasperated tears.
"What do you mean?" Morghan asked, slightly more gently; her daughter seemed genuinely agitated.
"I've never had anyone special," Selene said, turning her head so Morghann couldn't see the tears.
"But you've got lots of close friends; like Eli and Titian, not to mention the rest of the Second Circle," Morghann said, slightly puzzled.
"Mother, I'm 18 now. Girls my age are supposed to have people courting them – or at least trying."
Morghann was beginning to understand. "Sweetheart, I hate to mention it, but you have been taking self-defence lessons from Surreal – to 'avert unwanted behaviour', I seem to recall."
"Yes, but that was only because that idiot Arivar tried to kiss me when he was drunk. I didn't want it happening again," she said stubbornly, wiping away the tears. She still refused to look at her mother.
"So your upset that you don't have anyone special," Morghann began slowly.
"And all my friends have," Selene finished.
"Because Eli has Luc, and Charon has Arianna and Jason – may the Darkness be merciful to her – has Titian."
"Not quite yet," Selene said with a faint smile. Jason had been pursuing Titian for months, and try as he might, he wasn't getting a very satisfactory reaction out of her.
Morghann looked at her daughter, who seemed so lost and confused and lonely. She could remember when she had felt exactly the same. "Selene, if it's any consolation, I felt exactly the same before I fell in love with your father."
Selene finished wiping her eyes. "You did?"
"Of course; I was a strong Queen and Khary was a Warlord – and a gorgeous one at that. He always had hundreds of silly girls flocking around him, and I inevitably had males trying to court me. They didn't succeed though," she added darkly.
"But didn't you grow up together?"
"Yes, just like you all have. We were best friends and did everything togther; we always got into trouble, especially when Jaenelle used to visit." Her smile turned whimsical. "We used to get up to some really odd things whenever she came; those were the best times."
"So when did you and father realised you loved each other?" Selene asked, enchanted. She'd never heard Morghann speak of this before, and had never asked.
"Just after we came to visit Jaenelle at the Hall for the first time; you've heard the stories." Selene certainly had – some of the adventures they'd all gotten up to were legendary. "Well, there was a lot of…sexual tension in the air. I mean, there were eighteen adolescent males and females; and the whole coven were Queens, while the males with either Warlords or Warlord Princes. So emotions were always running pretty high. It took me and your father a while after we got back to Scelt to realize that we loved each other." Morghann smiled. "And while we were at the Hall, I was convinced I was madly in love with Aaron," she admitted.
"Aaron? But he's married to Kalush; and he has children!"
"Well he wasn't married to Kalush back then," Morghann said tartly. "He was the first real Warlord Prince I had met – apart from Khary – so I was rather taken with him. Not to mention the fact that he's absolutey drop-dead gorgeous…" She grinned wickedly.
"Don't let father hear you say that, he'll get jealous," Selene laughed.
"Don't let father hear what?" An amused voice said from the door.
Morghann squeaked and whirled around. "Khary! Don't sneak up on us like that!"
"I wasn't sneaking," Khary protested, before whatever he wanted to say was cut off by a kiss. "I just came to see you," he added when Morghann finally pulled away. "Although I dread to think why you two are looking so guilty."
"We haven't been doing anything, before you ask," Selene said, giving her father a hard look.
"Then why were you saying that I shouldn't hear whatever it was you were saying?" Khary asked sweetly, his blue eyes full of laughter.
Selene cast an appealing look at her mother. Morghann sighed dramatically. "If you must know, I was telling Selene about when we first fell in love," Morghann explained, wrapping an arm around Khary's waist.
"And?" A hand snaked around her hips, pulling her close.
"And, I then mentioned that I had this huge crush on Aaron while we were at the Hall, that first time," she admitted, a bit sheepishly.
"So?"
Morghann stared at her husband. "So? What do you mean, 'so'?"
"Sweetheart, I always knew you have a crush on Aaron."
"Used to, Khary" Morghann snapped.
"Oh come now, Morghann. There's no need to hide…"
"Khary!" Morghann protested, hitting him on the arm. His only retaliation was to sweep her up into another kiss.
"Excuse me, daughter present," Selene interrupted before things went any further.
"Don't listen to your father, Selene," Morghann said, giving Khary another glare. He smiled at her sweetly. "I have no feelings for Aaron – anymore."
Khary gently disentangled himself from his wife's arms before collapsing into a squashy armchair, then pulling Morghann back into his lap. Selene plonked herself in a chair opposite "Dare I ask how you got onto the topic of Aaron?" He asked with a wry smile.
Morghann smiled. "Selene was saying how she felt like she'd never have anyone special, like some of the others do," she explained. "So I told her how I felt the same when I was younger."
"But you had me," Khary protested.
"Yes, but you also had a flock of empty-headed females to keep you occupied," Morghann reminded him.
"They meant nothing to me Morghann," Khary said mock-seriously. "You were always the one." Morghann simply looked at him.
"Rubbish."
Khary laughed before sobering. "Seriously, Selene. You might think that because you're eighteen you're meant to have hundreds of lovers running round after you; you don't. You might suddenly find the perfect man for you, or you might have to hunt a bit longer. But you'll find him soon enough."
"Then why do all my friends have special people?"
"What, you mean Luc and Eli? They don't even realize they're in love. Chaosti is convinced there's something wrong with his son now. And Gabrielle is pretty amazed at their unbelievable thick-headedness too," Khary said with a grin.
"Daemon's finding the whole thing rather amusing too," Morghann said to Khary. "And Saetan reckons it's an even funnier situation than Daemon and Jaenelle's was."
"What happened between Daemon and Jaenelle?" Selene asked curiously.
"Never mind," Khary smiled. "Maybe you can ask Daemon yourself next time you see him." Selene looked horrified. Khary knew how besotted his daughter was with his friend.
"Anyway," he continued, "Just because some of your friends seem to be head over heels in love with each other, doesn't mean that there's no hope for you. Just wait; you'll find the right person eventually."
Selene sighed. "I suppose so."
"I know so."
The three of them moved onto other things for a while; eventually Khary yawned. "I think it's time we went to bed," he suggested.
"What a wonderful idea," Morghann said sleepily.
Selene stood up and stretched. "I'd better be off then," she said with a huge yawn. "Goodnight." She went and kissed her parents.
"Goodnight sweetheart, I hope you sleep well," Khary said fondly.
"And don't stay up worrying about when someone's going to court you. Believe me, the anticipation is not worth it," Morghann added with a wicked look in her eyes.
Selene laughed. "Don't worry, I won't. 'Night then." She went out and closed the door quietly.
"Poor Selene. She's feeling pretty lonely at the moment," Morghann said, gazing after her daughter.
"Don't worry about her, she'll be fine. Besides, you managed pretty well without me."
"No Khary, I was a nervous wreck without you," Morghann murmured, kissing him. The kiss deepened as his hands began stroking her back. "Completely lost."
"I'm sure you were," Khary breathed, shivering as Morghann's hands tangled in his curly hair. "It's just as well I took you in when I did."
They kissed a while longer, before Khary broke off. "I think we should move this elsewhere," he said somewhat breathlessly, trying in vain to hold himself together.
"You know Khary, you're full of wonderful ideas," Morghann whispered.
"I know. It's one of the reason's you love me so much." Holding Morghann in his arms he stood up. "And now I'm going to show you one of the other reasons why you love me," he declared, before striding out the door and off up to their room.
An even better idea, Morghann smiled to herself.
A/N: Just a little bit of harmless domestic fun with the gorgeous Khary and the wonderful Morghann. I always wish Anne Bishop had written more about them. Same with Aaron/Kalush, Chaosti/Gabrielle. Ah well.
Anyway, now you know why Selene won't be joining them on their little excursion to Maghre (or will she…!) You never know, she might just meet the perfect man in Tuathal! Keep reading and reviewing! xxx