Chapter II: Coronation Blues
DG sat behind the small desk in her room staring blankly at the different papers flooding over her desk. There were about five questions given to her by her mother earlier in the day and she required an answer to all of them by the end. She looked at the different drawings of what the hall would look like once decorated, or she could decide on an outdoor ceremony where the choices would have to be made all over again. She groaned and put a hand to her temple to ease out the headache from all the plans.
Cain walked in the room and immediately went behind her chair to rub out her muscles around her shoulders. She groaned in appreciation and leaned back against the backrest of the chair and his hands.
"Last minute details for the coronation?" he asked as he leaned over her right shoulder to look at the paper work. She only nodded in response. He smirked and kissed her on the forehead before he leaned back and began to message her upper back.
"How's lessons with father?" she looked up at him with a small smile.
"The same as always. How was yours with Tutor?"
DG shook her head, "No Tutor today. Mother had me in her office before I was even decently awake. More plans about this and that- 'Oh! What about this color, DG? That would look lovely on the stairway in the ball room. Are you sure you don't want it outside? There would be more room for more guests. How about we also start on your wedding? Might as well get it started.' It's an absolute nightmare. It's like my mother's soul purpose in life is to make this the fanciest shin dig in the whole of O.Z. Oh great, there's that headache I was wondering about…"
Cain laughed at her impressions of her mother, "It'll calm down after the wedding. No more ceremonies for a while and we can just keep to ourselves for a week or so. I promised you, remember?"
"Sounds good," DG sighed and turned in her chair to stare into his eyes, "I have an idea. Let's just ditch the ceremonies and skip to that week. My father and I have already found a cabin for us to use on our honeymoon. No interruptions and no one would even know we are there."
He laughed at her enthusiasm despite the strange word for the after wedding consummations, "I would love to- I mean, really love to, kiddo, but we have to go through the steps at one point or another. I'd much rather get it all done now so we don't have to worry about the back log of it later."
"Damn it," she cursed and settled over a list of possible instruments that will be playing the O.Z. anthem.
"Your father is talking to me about going with him on a mission to the outer lands," he mentioned and leaned against her desk next to her, "To the Northern forests to help rebuild what the Longcoats had destroyed. It's a way to show my support as the upcoming prince-consort."
DG thought back to their journey through the Northern forests where they had found the empty town and the graves scattered behind it. She shivered a little and Cain turned to her in understanding. He didn't like to think back to that place either, but other people needed to rebuild their lives. And with the O.Z. starting to calm down it's the perfect time to go where he could help them do just that.
She took a deep breath and looked back up at him, "When are you two thinking about leaving?"
"About a day or two after your coronation is over," he nodded, "We'll be gone for a week at the most. Just to show our support and help build on a few homes. Then I'll be back to help you with our wedding plans."
"Good, I don't need to face my mother alone on those," DG stood up and kissed him soundly on the lips, "Even with Az's help, it will be a battle."
"Are you going to be able to stay out of trouble while I'm gone?"
"Now, seriously Wyatt…" she frowned at him which quickly turned to a smirk, "Where's the fun in that?"
"I'll show you fun," he grabbed for her only to miss and hit her chair instead.
She smiled back at him, "Now, now Wyatt. If we are to start any of that you have to make sure that you have locked the door to our room. We don't need anyone walking in on us, do we?"
"What makes you think I didn't lock it?" he took off his fedora and duster and put them over the chair at the desk as he knew that she was going to be difficult. He always liked the challenge. Maybe that's why he loved the woman so much.
"Ah, so you did have this planned," she circled around her desk as he calmly rolled his sleeves up. His eyes focused on her form and the smirk never left his face.
"I might have had the inkling," he began to round the desk and she shifted to walk the other way. She wanted to keep at least five feet between them. In her large room, it was pretty easy to do, "And where do you think you are going, princess?"
"Oh I don't know," DG walked around some of the seats near the fireplace, lightly touching the fabric at the top of each of them, "Just thought I needed to stretch out my legs. Sitting at a desk all day does not bode well for a princess."
"And a certain princess trying to dance away from her fiancé does not bode well for said fiancé," he rounded the foot stool and closed the distance to three feet without DG catching it.
"Who says I'm dancing away?" she stopped and looked him in the eyes. He stopped in his spot and watched her movements. She was gripping the back of one of the chairs tightly and her head was bent just so slightly to the side. She was thinking of making a break for it and he knew it, "I mean, why dance when I could run."
She jumped to her left side and right into his awaiting arms. She squealed in delight as he brought her in to his chest and swung her full circle. He laughed with her and held her tightly against him as she swung her feet in front of her. He then leaned over her ear, "You should know by now you could never escape me."
DG felt the shiver flow down her spine from his words, "Why would I ever want to do that?"
Cain growled and turned her around only to push her against one of the nearby walls. He immediately had his lips on hers and his hand creeping up her leg and under her skirt. Her hands held his face and every once in a while one hand would run through his hair. He pushed his body up against hers and gained a moan from her. His lips moved from hers and down her neck and onto her throat.
"Wyatt…" DG breathed and felt his arousal through his pants and her skirt which was now hiked up thanks to his hand. He played with the top of her thong underwear and smiled against her neck.
"You wore them again," he whispered and pushed his hips against hers again, "Now tell me princess, was I the only one planning for this today?"
"That's a good question," she tilted her head to the side to give him better access, "You could get a better answer on the bed."
He picked her up almost effortlessly and threw her to the bed, shedding his vest and his shirt. After they were off her dress quickly followed them to floor. He stared down at her nearly naked form, of which the thong was the only piece of material left.
"Thank the unnamed God," he murmured as he begun to kiss her pulse spot on her neck. She pushed her head back into the pillow and let her hands trail down to the front of his pants. They were quickly gone as she unfastened and he shimmied out of them. One of his hands went to her hip as the other cradled her breasts. She arched up into his hand and he kissed lower, settling his mouth over the other breast.
"Oh God…" she muttered and pushed her hips toward his.
This was his breaking point. This was not supposed to be slow and romantic. This was passion at its most primal need. And they both knew it. Well, at least he did. DG was about to find out.
He leaned back from DG and roughly grabbed her hips in both of his hands. She looked up at him a little startled from the immediate shift. She focused on his eyes and noticed that this wasn't the same Wyatt that she made love to the first time. This was a Wyatt that would keep her in bed until he was done. He suddenly pulled her toward him, burying into her all the way. Her head fell back into the pillow as a strangled yell fell from her lips. His tight hold on her hips only strengthened as he began to thrust into her harder. She cried out his name every time he hit, his flesh contacting hers with every push.
"Ah… DG," Cain pushed harder, trying to get her to reach her peek a long with him, "DG, I…"
"Don't apologize," she said quickly before another thrust and pushed up against him, "I… oh God, I love… you."
He growled and turned her over only to pull her back toward him and kiss down her back. His teeth scraped her shoulder blades and her arms fell to gel. Her face landed into her bed, supported barely by her forearms as Cain kept pushing forward. He felt his end coming and DG wasn't far from hers as well.
DG finally felt herself clamping over him and screamed out his name against the sheets. He yelled against her back and lightly bit on the nape of her neck. He released her from his grip and they both fell to the bed panting.
Cain crawled up next to her on the bed and wrapped an arm around her. She turned around to face him.
"I thought we were going to wait on that whole week in bed thing," DG chuckled and ran a hand over his chest.
"This isn't a week," Cain kissed her forehead, "But if I have to wait much longer to make you my wife, we might have to make that week into a month."
"I hear you there," she settled against him for a few more moments until tending to more of her mother's paperwork.
"Okay mother, four hundred and two! That's my final offer," DG hit her mother's desk with her open palm after pushing through her doors.
Lavender stared up from her paperwork, "Good morning to you too, my angel. You haven't had breakfast yet, I am guessing."
"This has nothing to do with breakfast," DG cocked her head to the side at her mother's correct guess.
"You are usually on the cranky side when you haven't had breakfast yet, darling," her mother offered as an explanation.
DG shook her head at the comment to clear it from her mind and got to the bottom of what she wanted to tell her mother, "We've been going over this planning for a month now! Az has been gone the whole time and every time I need to talk to another female, up pops the coronation with you. So I'm telling you now, four hundred and two for the number of guests."
"DG, the hall holds over six hundred-"
"Then we give the poor people some breathing room," DG heard Cain chuckle as he made himself comfortable in one of the chairs by the now open doors. Neither one of them had classes with Tutor or Ahamo that day and DG wanted to get the last of the coronation plans done earlier much rather than later. She and Cain had planned a nice horse ride around Finaqua and the surrounding woods and she wanted to go and not have to come back until the second sun was lowering behind the mountains.
"But that would leave out over a hundred leaders of the realms!" Lavender put a hand to her chest as if those hundred odd people would die if they weren't invited to her single coronation.
"Mother…" DG groaned, "We do not need every mayor and lord in attendance. They will know by the word of mouth, they don't need to see every single moment of my life play out in front of their eyes. Please, they will understand."
"Not all of them will. If you have forgotten, some people still doubt in the rule of our family. This would be a great starting point for them to begin to accept once more. This is a momentous occasion for the House of Gale as well as the entire O.Z. You are becoming heir apparent and everyone in the land must recognize that."
"I just don't see why we don't just post flyers or something," DG blew some of her hair from her eyes in annoyance.
"Come now, little sister, at least she's giving you a choice on the number of people at your wedding," Azkadellia said from the doorway, a small bag still in her arms from her journey, "If she had anything to say about it you would probably have over a thousand guests for that."
"Az, you're home!" DG ran to her sister and hugged her tightly, "You have no idea how much I've missed you. If it hadn't been for Cain and Raw I would have lost it- Wow, you've gotten big!"
"Thank you, DG," Azkadellia rolled her eyes, rubbed a hand over her ever swelling stomach and turned to Cain, "Good morning, Cain. Thank you for keeping her sane."
"All in a day's work," he tipped his hat with a smile, "How was your trip to the Ice Palace?"
"Exhausting," Glitch came around the corner holding another small bag and leaned on the door frame, "Thanks for asking."
"Ah, so you did wear him out, huh Az?" DG smirked and nudged her sister in the side, careful to miss her ever growing stomach. Azkadellia could not hide her blush and neither could Glitch.
Cain stood up and took Glitch by the arm to talk some things over with him. He quickly looked back at DG before turning the corner, "We'll be down in the kitchens. I think it's best if he had something to eat."
"Okay, we'll meet you down there after a little while," DG nodded at him with a smile.
Azkadellia quickly turned to her mother, "Mother, can we not keep the event to include the main dignitaries and top leaders of the realms? That way the majority of the lands are represented and the lower officials will be trickled the information through the higher authorities. Maybe not everyone will acknowledge us at first, but with the higher authorities recognizing us the others would more than likely soon follow."
Lavender sighed and looked at her older daughter and then back to DG, "That would still bring the number up to five hundred."
"I can live with that," DG nodded enthusiastically seeing the end to all this planning in sight.
"Okay, I will send out the invitations within the week," Lavender rose from behind her desk and walked over to hug Azkadellia gently, "It's good to have you home, my 'Dellia."
"And it feels even better that you're on my side," DG grinned. All three of the women began to laugh with one another. The queen looked back at her desk and seemed to think something over in her head.
"Why don't you come down with us, mother?" Azkadellia asked, "It looks as if you could use a break from all the paperwork."
Lavender tore her eyes from the desk and looked at both her daughters, "I would love to, but I need to get this all finalized."
"Don't over exert yourself," DG warned.
"Have you felt any movement yet?" the queen asked and put a hand over Azkadellia's stomach to distract herself just a moment longer.
"A little, but I'm not quite sure if that's the baby or something else in my body," Azkadellia admitted, "It's a bit weird to have another life inside my body. Be it a monstrous amount of difference between this little miracle and the witch."
"I agree," DG nodded and the queen sighed.
"You two get down to the kitchens. I know DG hasn't had anything to eat this morning and you are now eating for two, Azkadellia," she pushed at her daughter's backs. They nodded and bid their mother a good morning before disappearing down the hall.
Lavender Eyes settled back into her chair behind her desk and looked at the main piece of paper that was giving her so much trouble. The title was in big gold letters, heavy on her mind. She shifted some of the other papers over it and tried to concentrate on the up coming celebrations.
Later that evening the small group found themselves in the library once again just enjoying one another's company. Raw was called to do some service with in the palace walls and wasn't able to join the rest of his friends. The fireplace was lit at the side of the room as all four of them gathered around it. DG and Cain had settled on a small love seat sized couch under a warm blanket since the equivalent of winter months were starting to hit the O.Z. Glitch was sitting on one end of the couch as Azkadellia stretched across the rest of it and rested her head on his leg.
DG turned to Azkadellia, "How is married life treating you so far anyway?"
"It is a challenge, but we are adjusting," Azkadellia nodded, "It's a bit more complicated than mother had made it out to be."
"More complicated than mother said? And here I thought she had loved to complicate things," DG's eyes bulged and she hit Cain playfully in the shoulder, "Then we have got to be careful."
He grunted with a smirk on his face.
"We're still trying to settle on a name for the little one," Glitch mentioned and placed a hand over Azkadellia's belly.
"Is it a boy or a girl?" DG asked excitedly.
"We don't know yet and there is no way to tell," Glitch explained.
"Since I'm no longer the heir apparent, it could go either way," Azkadellia explained.
"Wait- what do you mean?" DG asked.
"The royal Gale line always has female heirs," Azkadellia smiled, "Your first child will be a girl. I hope you have names picked out. It would save a lot of time. Believe me."
"How do I not know these things?!" DG frowned and scooted back closer to Cain who was laughing quietly into her hair.