A Dream of Empire Ch. 007

Alanna giggled politely into the palm of her hand as she walked beside the elf. She had been here many a time, but had never pondered that question.

"It'd be quite scary if they could talk, Cass," Alanna replied playfully. "I'm not sure I would have brought you here."

Casiama giggled sweetly, finally shifting her gaze to the enchantress. "I was only joking."

"As was I," Alanna replied, sticking out her tongue. The elf swayed towards her, wrapping Alanna in her slender arms when she neared.

"Thank you for taking me here," Casiama whispered in her ear. She pecked her on the cheek, then pushed away and gripped her shoulders. "I'm... sorry, though. Sorry for..." her eyes fluttered about as she tried to finish her thought, but was unsure what she should say.

"So am I, Cass," Alanna responded genuinely. She stepped away, only to take Casiama's hands in hers. "But let's forget about all of that today and just enjoy ourselves. We have three suns to speak of sorrows."

The princess pondered on the idea for a moment, nodding. Alanna felt Casiama was just a pinch nervous of spending three days alone with her, but had plenty of ideas to remedy her fears; the enchantress had plenty of experience mending relationships from her time at the College, after all, having been surrounded by so many egotistical girls. That experience, however, wasn't needed for the immediate future. She knew the elf was content enough just being here.

Casiama pushed off from her then, only to take Alanna's hand in hers to guide her through the forest with a weightless, joyous skip.

-=-=-

Casiama's demeanor brightened up considerably after a couple of hours underneath the trees of Falinor. It had been the reason Alanna offered to take her here, after all; she knew the elven princess felt most at home when surrounded by the serenity of nature, and she must have been feeling cooped up in the cramped confines of Catriona. Alanna would refuse to bring up their issues while Casiama was this happy, at least for the remainder of the day.

The pair found a decent campsite later that eve, nestled behind a large rock which shielded them from a southwesterly breeze. A stream burbled not twenty yards from that rock, and the ground here was flat enough for Casiama to summon her gigantic fur tent, which had sleeping room for eight if necessary, as well as support a moderately-large campfire.

Casiama refused to make the fire from sticks and branches of the trees surrounding her. She had already gained a reverent fascination for the valley of Falinor, and summoned a pile of neatly-stacked firewood from thin air instead. She had dozens of nights worth of firewood secured in the safest location she knew, after all.

Casiama cooked dinner that night for the pair; a simple but hot stew of vegetables, a decent-enough meal for the road. Just after dinner she summoned a bottle of wine to share with Alanna, as well as two crystal glasses for them to drink out of, befitting of the classy sorceresses that they so obviously were.

Alanna giggled at the thought, remembering firstly that Talos typically just drank straight from the bottle, and secondly that she oft did as well. Finally, Casiama summoned a large chair with the swish of a hand to nestle in by the fire as the night fell around them, a chair which she plopped down upon eagerly after handing Alanna a full glass of wine.

"I've an idea," Alanna said softly as she sat down on the armrest of the chair, garnering a subtle smile from the elf. "Let's share secrets. Things we don't already know about one another," the enchantress offered before taking a drink from her crystal glass.

"But, Alanna, don't you-"

"Mm, that wine Cass!" Alanna exclaimed, accidentally interrupting her. "Where's it from?"

Casiama didn't seem to mind the interruption, as she giggled at Alanna's delight. "It's from Imperia, from a shop I visited the night before we... made friends again. I think I purchased half the store that day. But Alanna, don't you already know all there is to say about me?" she asked with a frown. The enchantress shook her head.

"I can gather what you're thinking at the moment, Cass, but I can't see your past unless you think on it," she explained sweetly, before taking another sip of her sweet drink.

"Oh. Right."

Alanna swallowed the nectar in her mouth, and decided the princess needed some encouragement to play her game. "I'll start, and I'll even only mention things that... he doesn't know." Casiama smiled and nodded, agreeing to the terms. Alanna glanced away for a moment, wrapping a lock of her own auburn hair in a forefinger.

"Did you know my hair isn't even supposed to be this color?" the enchantress smirked.

"Really?"

Alanna nodded sweetly. "Yep. I was birthed with brown hair, as dark as could be. At the college I decided on changing that, and had all manner of phase before deciding on this. Although, I almost settled on blonde."

Casiama giggled as her gaze danced down Alanna's gorgeous hair, accented by the shadows of a roaring fire. "I could not imagine you with blonde hair, Alanna." The enchantress shared her soft giggle.

"Me neither. Your turn, Cass," she replied before taking another drink of wine. The elf pressed a finger against her cheek, glancing away towards the fire.

"Um... things that Talos does not know... oh! He is not aware that he was my first. He never, uh, asked or anything, but..."

Alanna's eyes widened. "But Cass, he had to know! Your maidenhead!" Casiama giggled in a palm.

"Lost in a saddle when I was far younger," she explained with a wide smile, showing her teeth to the sorceress before they shared another giggle. Casiama finally felt comfortable enough to drink the wine, taking a long gulp to match Alanna's pace.

"That's ridiculous! You have to tell him," the enchantress chided her before calming down, drinking in the elf's laughter as she shook her head, and another gulp of wine. Casiama nodded towards her to continue their game.

"Okay, okay. Um..." Alanna chewed on a lock of her hair as she thought of her next truth, spitting it out when she found one, "remember those black tomes I had Talos lug around in the Borderlands?" Casiama gave a smiling half-nod. "Well, he doesn't know that the largest one was a book of love. It didn't have any spells in it at all," she giggled deviously.

"What? What do you mean, a book of love?"

Alanna slapped her arm playfully, swinging her legs about so they rested on top of Casiama's lap. "It was written by this sorceress called Rose, and she was um... really, really slutty. Like..."

"Tell me," Casiama giggled to assuage Alanna's hesitation, garnering a coy grin from the enchantress.

"Like, there was one chapter where she visited an inn, I think, down in Hesperia. But she didn't have any coin to pay the innkeep, so she just knelt down right there, in the hall, and took him in her mouth."

"No! Ew!" Casiama exclaimed innocently, clutching Alanna's soft thighs on her lap.

"And the whooole book is like that. If Talos ever found out I made him carry that monstrosity around for a month, he'd... he'd..."

The girls couldn't help but grin as they stared into each other's eyes, thinking of the repercussions of such a conversation. Raucous laughter soon broke out between them.

"He'd ruin me!" Alanna mewled happily, leaning against the elf's shoulder as she struggled to regain her composure. Casiama calmed down after a minute or two, patting Alanna's leg.

"Alanna, you have to let me read it."

"It's in Kinglish, the old language of men," Alanna warned her with a smile. "I don't think it's been translated."

"Then you should read it to me sometime," Casiama asked of her playfully, Alanna quickly nodding her consent. She had learned Kinglish in just the past half-year, only so she could read those books.

"Sure! Just... not around him," Alanna smirked.

"Agreed," Casiama nodded with a coy grin. Alanna nudged her shoulder, letting the princess know it was her turn for a truth. Casiama murmured, attempting to conjure a truth which would both be interesting enough for the sorceress to enjoy, and one that Talos didn't already know. The whole truth, really, was that Talos already knew most of the riveting tales of her life. There hadn't been many before last year.

"Well," Alanna interjected aloud, being the voyeuristic girl that she was, "why did you decide on practicing conjuration as your art? And, explain to me how you were capable of deciding to practice at all?"

The elf had confided in Alanna and Talos last year that she took up conjuration to avoid potential suitors, suitors which a princess of Tor Valliya would have received in droves on her eighteenth name day.

Casiama shook her head, glancing at the sorceress. Her smile was still bright as a full moon. "What do you mean?" she asked softly.

"Well... the spark is rare, isn't it? I figured every girl who received it wanted to learn sorcery," Alanna shrugged, nudging the princess again due to proximity.

"Oh," the elf replied, "well, magic works differently for my people. Girls of the royal line are always granted the spark of magic. And I decided to study because I was..." Casiama frowned, glancing away as Alanna placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. The elf finished her statement hurriedly, as if embarrassed of her past. "Because I was promised to the King of Tor Sardonia by my father. That is, well, until I took up the art... then I was passed over for another. A relief for a princess with eighteen years, I assure you."

"I'm sure Talos is pleased," Alanna shrugged.

"Talos doesn't know. And..." Casiama blushed, trailing off again. The enchantress fell on Casiama's lap in the silence, failing to keep her tired butt awake on the chair's armrest. Glasses of wine were dropped, spilling onto the forest floor. The girls shared a giggle, but the wine was soon forgotten.

"And I picked conjuration because it was the simplest art for me to take up," Casiama explained hastily through the laughter, ignoring her anxiety. "Merely dreaming of your own plane and willing a piece of it into being makes you a conjurer. And even on the day of my ascension, that world felt like wettened sand in my fingertips. I could do anything I wanted there... and that simple ritual saved me. It allowed me to live my own life, rather than the one chosen for me."

Alanna pondered the implications of all of this for one brief moment. Knowing you had the spark in your veins as a birthright, and then choosing not to practice at all seemed like such a waste of talent. All to make children for some other elven king?

"Alanna, are you going to remain sitting on me?" Casiama asked, slipping her arms around the enchantress's waist. Alanna nodded, giggling as she leaned back on the elf.

"I will. So... you're a conjurer because you're lazy," Alanna said playfully.

"No! It... spoke to me," Casiama frowned.

"I'm joking, Cass," Alanna reassured her. "I'm glad you found it. And I'm sure Talos would be as well, if you told him."

"He... does not need to know of my haste," the elf sighed, resting her chin on Alanna's shoulder. "I imagine he would have appreciated me more as a teleporter. Gods know he speaks of that art often enough."

The girls sat together on that conjured chair for the better part of an hour, trading simple stories of simpler times in hushed voices. Casiama's legs eventually fell asleep with the enchantress's weight atop them, and the girls soon made their way to the tent to retire for the night.

Alanna was pleased enough from the day's events, and hoped Casiama was as well. The pair had went from quarrelling like two schoolgirls on the floor of their townhouse to laughing and enjoying one's company in the solitude of a beautiful forest. That constituted a victory, as far as she was concerned.

They settled within their own sleeping rolls in Casiama's large tent, the elf changing into her nightgown only after she were snug within the white furs of her bedroll. Alanna's own sleeping outfit consisted of thick furs, to ensure proper insulation in the cold of night.

"Goodnight, Alanna," Casiama murmured as she drifted off to sleep.

-=-=-

Alanna awoke early the following morning to an excited elf pushing her against shoulder. She rose from her roll, nodding herself awake, and wondered what the great commotion was. It wasn't until Alanna stepped outside the tent that she realized there was no special occasion for Casiama's joy; she was merely happy for a full day of exploration within the forests.

The princess had already changed into her battle dress for the day, eager to wear her ornate, royal clothes once again to greet the serene glories of nature. Alanna dressed as quickly she could, her own travel clothes strewn all over the tent she occupied.

The princess remained a good ten or so paces ahead of Alanna as they journeyed through the forest that day, which gave the enchantress all the time in the world to worship her wonderful form.

Alanna's gaze traveled across Casiama's long, flowing skirts as she swayed between the trees, and explored the elf's lithe arms, accented by shining silver armlets, as she danced through the underbrush. The princess's joyous smile reminded Alanna why it had been so difficult for her man to avoid one so alluring in the first place, and why Alanna had, too, fallen for that girl's charms. When they were alone, anyway.

Alanna ultimately found herself quite distracted that day. The flowing white skirts of Casiama's battle dress opened in the front to allow the elf better movement, a style which captivated the enchantress often as her gaze meandered towards the elf's tanned thighs. Casiama's legs were accentuated by long white socks, rising all the way to her knees, and a short white skirt that did nothing but hide her crotch from view. A view which, with no man to distract her, only heated Alanna further as the day wore on.

The two eventually settled upon a pair of rocks next to a burbling stream to eat a late lunch that day, a simple meal of bread and cheese. Alanna found herself sneaking peeks up Casiama's skirts when her legs were laid her way, yet she knew they had more important topics to discuss here than silly fantasies.

"I'm nervous to bring this up, Cass, believe me," Alanna said with a frown, "but I have to, 'cause we need to... figure out what to do. With our man."

Casiama nodded, keeping her gaze fixed on the rushing water beside her. "Yeah," she said softly.

Alanna sighed, deciding she would need to be the one to start the awkward conversation. She hoped Casiama wouldn't shut her off. "Let's... start with the good. Each of us are happy when there's just two around. True?"

Casiama squinted and pursed her lips, but nodded after a moment. "Okay." Alanna sighed, remembering the ridiculous events of yesterday morning.

"Okay, usually happy."

"Yeah. Usually," Casiama agreed again, more genuinely than the first. Alanna frowned, glancing away from the elf.

"And... everything's great until we're all together. Then it feels like... like you're having your favorite possession taken away from you."

Casiama was silent for another moment, eventually giving half a nod. "Yes. My heart drops every time I see him with you, Alanna."

The enchantress pouted, not at all realizing how difficult the conversation would be. She didn't realize she was chewing on a stray lock of hair as she contemplated a response, and decided on the truth after a minute.

"Mine's the same," she sighed.

"Mmm," Casiama mumbled as she rolled her head, a habit she had picked up from Talos. "And I suppose you have some wonderful idea on how to remedy that," the elf accused under her breath. Alanna shook her head.

"No, Cass, I don't. That's why were out here, remember?"

Casiama shrugged, tilting her head to look at Alanna out of the corner of her eye. "Well, you know what I think? I think neither of us will ever be truly happy, no matter what we decide on. It will always be a compromise, and our hearts will still drop all the same."

"Well, um, you said you got the idea from your father right? So how does he handle it?"

"He doesn't love his wives, Alanna," Casiama retorted, absentmindedly crossing her long legs in front of the enchantress. Alanna felt another fleeting drip of excitement.

"Oh... but what about us, when we agreed on this way back in Imperia?" Alanna asked. "How did we expect it to work?"

"I don't think we did," the elf replied sadly. Just a fool's hope, Alanna mused.

Casiama sighed dejectedly, then brought her hands to her hair to tie it into a ponytail. "Maybe I should just leave. Leave the humans to their human lives, to love their human son in a human city."

Alanna felt a pang of excitement, followed by an instant shame for feeling it. Both disappated when she read the elf's thoughts, finding that Casiama wasn't thinking of doing what she said whatsoever. Was she reaching out for pity?

"Don't say that, Cass. He would just chase after you, anyway."

The elf shook her head with sight fixed towards the river, her hair now bobbing playfully behind her. "I don't think so."

"I do," Alanna pouted. Casiama sniffled, bringing a finger to her nose. The pair sat silently for another minute, and the princess's words were brittle when she broke it.

"Oh, Alanna... why are you so kind? This would be so much simpler if you were not. Neither Talos nor I deserve your company in the end."

"Ha!" the enchantress replied instantly, unknowingly reaching out for pity herself. "Sure, Cass. The peasant sorceress is too good for Princess Casiama and Lord Talos."

Casiama snorted with laughter, still wiping her nose clear. She muttered a reply after another sniffle. "You know we care not for our titles, Alanna. I'm just as much a princess as you."

"Not true, Cass."

"But it is true. When I was a princess, I had servants. Four of them, all to myself. And I had sisters, too, ten wonderful sisters. And a kitchen where I could demand anything I wanted, any time I wanted. But now I... don't have any of that. I lost all that made me special. I just have Talos now."

She glanced towards the enchantress, finding Alanna's eyes were wide with pity. "You have me, Cass," Alanna smiled. "And you have your magic. You have your love of nature, of learning, of adventure. And I... think you love my son, too."

Casiama nodded, wiping another tear from her eye. "Talos Talosspawn," she murmured before raising her voice. "I do love him, Alanna. My miracle love's miracle child."

"Talos what now?"

Casiama giggled and uncrossed her legs, placing her hands on her lap. Alanna snuck another peek between those long white socks, for some bizzare reason or another.

"Don't mind it. It's just a silly name Emmanuel conjured up for him," the elf explained with a casual shrug.

Alanna giggled as well, dropping the subject. But it was then, just then, when Alanna felt herself heating up from her voyeuristic pleasures, that she came up with an idea to solve all of their problems. She decided to act on it as the pair made their way back to camp, which was three miles or so downstream from where they currently were.

"Remember last month," Alanna said whimsically as they meandered through the trees, "when we went together to the south shore, alone?"

Casiama nodded. "Sure."

"And... remember what we did that night? Under the stars...?" Alanna asked playfully, running her hand up Casiama's arm.

"I... do," she replied hesitantly, tugging her arm away. Alanna sighed.