Claudia mumbled when she woke up. Blinking her bleary eyes, she smiled at Gregory. “Good morning, dear one.”
“Time to wake. Breakfast will be here soon.”
Claudia sat up, then leaned in and kissed his cheek. “Thank you.”
“That was more than I expected out of you.”
“I would do more… I want to do more, but I haven’t been approved for it by Yuki and the others,” Claudia sighed as she stood. “Even if they did, I’m sure it wouldn’t be much more. Maybe a real kiss at the most, but even that…” She trailed off, looking wistful when she went around the divider.
“I’d think it’d just be that,” Gregory said. “We kissed our novice friends farewell when we left the academy.”
“We?”
“Yuki, Jenn, and I. A kiss from each of them for each of us. Victoria went a little bit further and had to apologize.” Gregory paused— he wasn’t sure why he was telling her, but it felt natural to him.
“Oh? What did she do?”
Gregory coughed as he thought back to Victoria grinding herself against his thigh. “She might have pressed parts of herself against me, then rocked her hips. I bit her lip for doing so.”
There was a gasp before Claudia breathlessly asked, “She’s trouble, isn’t she?”
“She was at that moment. We all know she has to be handled with care.”
A shuddery exhale came from Claudia. “Yes… Handled is probably the right word. My skirts are causing a problem. I’ll be a little longer.”
Gregory frowned at the divider, as her words felt wrong to his resonance. When a mostly-stifled moan came from the other side, Gregory’s face flushed as he suddenly understood why they’d felt wrong. Claudia wouldn’t want to admit to what was happening, and he wasn’t going to ask.
The knock on the door had Gregory moving to it without thought, wanting distance. He opened it to reveal Griselda with breakfast. “I have this today,” Gregory said, taking the tray from her. “We’ll see you upstairs.”
Griselda frowned at him. “Sir… I have to come in,” she said softly.
Gregory nodded, having hoped to spare Claudia the embarrassment. “Very well.” He went to put the tray on his bed as he pulled the table out from under it.
Griselda came into the room, looking around. “Mistress?”
“Oh… uh… I-I’ll be out in a moment,” Claudia stammered.
“Is something wrong, mistress?” Griselda asked, stepping up to the divider. “Maybe I can assist.” She looked around it and her eyes went wide.
“Yes. Come help me dress,” Claudia said tightly. “My skirts have been giving me trouble.”
“O-oh. Of course, mistress.”
Gregory shook his head, doing his best to not imagine what Griselda had just seen. He started putting the food out when he caught a small whisper.
“Did he do something, mistress?” Griselda’s voice was very soft.
“No. I just had a dream and needed relief,” Claudia whispered back. “Now shhh! He might hear us.”
“I see the problem, mistress. It’s the buttons,” Griselda said loudly.
Gregory’s face flushed for a moment, as he had confirmation about what Griselda had seen. He was back to normal, seated and ready to eat, when the pair came around the divider. Griselda’s face was blank, though her cheeks were red. Claudia wore an exasperated expression, but smiled.
“Breakfast is ready,” Gregory said, serving himself. “We’ll be up at the normal time, Griselda.”
“Yes, of course,” the maid said, leaving the room with quick steps.
Claudia took her seat, serving herself, clearly debating something internally. “Greg… about the kiss…”
“On the cheek should be fine,” Gregory said when she trailed off.
“Oh. Very well,” Claudia smiled. “I feel like I should tell you the truth, though…”
“There’s no need,” Gregory said quickly.
Claudia looked up at him, then away. “Ah… so you did hear?”
“Yeah…” Gregory said a little awkwardly. “If you need me to step out of the room for a little bit, I can do that.”
“Umm… yes… maybe for a few minutes after breakfast,” Claudia mumbled. “But… you… could just stay on your side of the divider. To ensure my safety.”
Gregory exhaled slowly through his nose as he chewed his food. If not for Mindie, that suggestion would have shocked him beyond belief. Now, it gave him pressing problems he hadn’t anticipated, more than her quiet session already had.
“That might be more than would be good for me,” Gregory said honestly.
“I understand,” Claudia murmured. “I didn’t mean to disgust you.”
Gregory snorted. “Not disgusted. I already understand the idea of having others watch or showing them.”
“Oh…! I meant separate… but if you’d rather I be on my bed…?” Claudia’s face was bright red now as she bit her lip.
“Whoa!” Gregory said quickly. “I…! T-that…!”
Claudia was breathing a touch roughly, not looking at him. “This is naughty… but I feel so excited right now…”
As long as I don’t touch, it’s fine, right? Gregory asked himself. Yuki and Jenn both said looking is fine, but touching without their approval isn’t. What would this count as? Shaking his head, he pushed his young hormones down sharply.
“I want to say yes, Claudia,” he said a little shakily, “but I can’t. Not without approval from my wives. Mindie would probably jump at the chance to watch you, though.”
Claudia rocked in place. Her lips pressed into a thin line, her eyelids twitching as she sat there. After a few seconds, she let out a long, shaky breath. “That… uh… would be for later, then. Aether, I never thought just words and thoughts would…” she trailed off, letting out another shaky breath.
Gregory’s face burned as he figured out her meaning. “Uh… oh. Well, glad to help.”
Claudia’s head whipped up. Her face was red, and not just from embarrassment. “Oh, yes. Thank you. That wasn’t what I’d meant, but… it worked.”
The two lapsed into silence as they finished breakfast. Tension filled the room, but Gregory was at least able to calm down.
~*~*~
As they finished eating, a thought came to Gregory. “Was this because of yesterday? The bigger desire?”
Claudia flushed again, then giggled. “A bit, yes. You were so dominant when deciding what to bet on. When the commander of the guard came up to get better percentages, I was going to call it off, but you worked it out so that we all made a tidy sum.”
“It felt like you might back out, but I’d already pushed to get the answers. It felt wasteful to not use what we already knew. I didn’t expect you to want to double up twice. The oddsmakers had to feel that. We probably shouldn’t try it again.”
“A pity, but that’s wise, or else they might figure it out. Many merchants have their guards bet for them, so yesterday might’ve just been a merchant house being lucky. You did make the guards very happy.”
“And Griselda,” Gregory chuckled, thinking back to the look on the maid’s face when she was given her cut of the proceeds.
“She was shocked into speechlessness… maybe that’s why she didn’t raise a fuss this morning? I’m sure she should’ve reported that to the archmage, but it might have been a gray area that she can skirt around…” Claudia looked suddenly worried.
The door opened without warning. Gregory spun, his naginata coming into his hand as he sprang to his feet. Griselda froze in the doorway. She was inches from the naked blade of the naginata, her eyes as big as saucers.
“I warned you about that,” Gregory exhaled a rough breath as he let his ring take the weapon away. “I was barely able to stop myself in time.”
Griselda grabbed the doorframe. “Sorry, but I had to. If I think there’s anything inappropriate, I have to make an unscheduled, unannounced visit. Those are my orders, sir.”
“And because of this morning, you had to,” Claudia said softly. “Do you have to report it?”
Griselda shook her head. “Not if my surprise check is fine.”
Gregory sighed as he went over to her. “Are you okay?”
“Yes,” Griselda said with a rough breath. “I know you’re dangerous, but that was…” She swallowed. “Thank you for stopping.”
“I would’ve felt terrible,” Gregory said softly. “Come in. We’re done with breakfast, and you can check more thoroughly, if you’d like.”
Griselda nodded slowly as she entered the room. “I’ll just take the empty dishes.” She glanced at Claudia. “Sorry, mistress.”
“No. It’s fine. We both know who asked you to put your life in danger. We also know who enriched you beyond your dreams. While I would never ask you to break your contract, I will ask that you keep this morning just between us. It would tarnish me greatly if people heard I was unable to control myself.”
Griselda paused beside the table, then curtsied deeply. “Mistress, if it pleases you, when my contract for this task is done, I would gladly become your personal maid. If you don’t already have one at the college.”
“I do not. The school appointed me one and I dislike her. My family refused to allow my normal maid to come with me, since I’m technically outside of the family now. Gregory, do you think she would be the correct choice as my handmaiden?”
Gregory’s lips pursed and he pushed his foresight and resonance, focused on the question. He wasn’t sure it would work, but he wanted to try it. He felt his aether spin out of him as the future rushed ahead. It was years ahead of him when a resounding tap came back.
Cutting his aether off, Gregory sagged to his knees, breathing roughly. “Yes.”
“Are you okay, sir?” Griselda asked, stepping over to Gregory with worry etched on her face.
“Just pushing my aether harder than intended,” Gregory replied.
“Griselda, seeing your worry for my dear friend and hearing his approval… yes. When this is over and we return to the college, I will take you as my personal maid. Be warned that the archmage will try to keep you under his thumb, so don’t ask to go with me. Simply make your way there, and I’ll accept you when you arrive. This way, you’re beholden only to me. I’m sure you can’t accept another contract right now?”
“He made that a key part of his,” Griselda said. “He thought you might attempt to buy me over him.”
“Aliminus isn’t a fool, and yes, I would have. I know better than to ask, as I’m sure that would trigger a clause of yours.”
“It would. If you asked me to take you as priority over him, I have to report it to him. Since you have not, I don’t need to.”
“Contracts and money,” Gregory murmured. “Could she sign one ahead of time? With the addendum that, when her current contract ends, the new one begins?”
Claudia started to nod. “Yes. I should’ve thought of that. Griselda, is that what you want?”
“If it pleases you, mistress,” Griselda beamed. “His contract only states if you try to supersede his, not that I can’t line up more for after his ends.”
“Excellent,” Claudia said. She suddenly had ink and paper in front of her. “Let’s see…”
~*~*~
It took a few minutes for them to agree to terms, and Gregory was surprised. Griselda asked for a lifetime contract— the only way out was for Claudia to dismiss her. It made sense with what he’d felt before. With the contracts signed and sealed, Griselda stood back from the table again.
“Hmm…” Gregory said slowly, thinking hard. “Could we sign one?”
Claudia looked at him. “What do you mean?”
“Contracts bind your people. It ruins a person if they become known for breaking them. What if…?” Gregory hesitated. What he was thinking was radical, and he didn’t want to push his aether again. “What if we sign a contract that says…?” He paused, looking at Griselda. “We’ll see you upstairs. I don’t want to trigger any other clauses you might have.”
Griselda nodded quickly, gathering the dishes. “That might be for the best. I will have tea for you.”
“Thank you,” Claudia said to Griselda. She stared at Gregory, her heart pounding even harder than it had earlier.
When Griselda was gone, Gregory exhaled. “What if we sign one that says that, if my wives agree, you’ll marry into the family?”
“Yes!” Claudia said instantly, immediately starting a new contract. “We’ll sign them, bind them, and keep our copies. I’ll have it recorded in secret after the tournament. I can manage that much without him knowing.”
Gregory felt his chest warm. “I hope Yuki and the others agree.”
“They will,” Claudia murmured happily. “I know they will.”
~*~*~
With things signed and sealed much like a bond would be, they made it through their morning training, if a bit distractedly. They each caught the other watching them at times, making them both laugh.
As they left the room for the boxes, Claudia was still laughing. “I wish we could do as we did yesterday, but you’re right.”
“Sorry, men,” Gregory said, seeing the looks on the guards’ faces. “Too big a risk to try for it again today.”
“It’s fine,” the captain with the missing ear grinned. “That was more than we were paid for the job. We had no idea it would be worth so much until we were told she was acting as a banker. We all put some of our own money in on the bets, too. Do you think your friends can hold what they’ve taken?”
Gregory thought about how the game had ended the day before. Yukiko and Jenn had caught the two Buldoun commanders between them and the town that Farin and Nilum had been holding. Unfortunately, they were there just too late to save everyone— the fight cost them all of their defenders and Nilum, leaving Farin with only half of his personal guard when the Buldoun commanders were finally killed and their army broken.
The archers had been hit hard by the cavalry that Buldoun had held in reserve, so they didn’t have a lot of men after the fight ended. Combined, they had two archer groups left and three magi on the front lines. Ling, Clover, and Roshana had pressed into Buldoun and taken the small towns that had been left undefended there, giving the empire more than half of the arena.
The board was heavily favoring the empire with commanders and territory. The three remaining Buldoun commanders had bought heavily into the best men they could, then started north.
“Today, yes. I think today will set up for a grand battle tomorrow. This will probably end tomorrow or early the next day,” Gregory said. “The magi farther back won’t go, themselves. They’re support magi… well, Roshana might. Water magi can be useful, but Ling and Clover will stay back, sending everything they can with Roshana.”
“Who’ll win?” the captain asked.
“Can’t say, and I can’t push today,” Gregory said. “I wish I could. Betting on the final outcomes today would be a great bet.”
“A pity,” the captain sighed.
Claudia pulled out a secondary coin purse. “Bet this on the empire.”
All the guards gave her skeptical looks.
“They have more magi than we have commanders. They’re going to be able to set the field before the commanders arrive, as well. To top that off, his clan hasn’t failed during this entire tournament. Honestly, I wish I could be called to the field. I expect a few of the mages to be summoned… Adriana and Jessica, at least, to try killing the magi they can.”
Gregory considered that, then started to laugh. Seeing everyone look his way, Gregory smiled broadly. “If they go for Yuki and Jenn, my wives will ask for it to be fought out, not done by numbers. There’s a precedent for it.”
“Oh… that’ll be interesting. How will they do that, since the arena is filled with the game?” Claudia asked.
“The open fields outside the bazaar would be my guess. Maybe they could use a light mage to project it to the arena?”
“You think his wives can best them, as well?” the captain asked.
“They haven’t shown everything they can do,” Gregory chuckled. “Winning raises the clan’s prestige, and we’re working hard on that. My name won’t be attached to it, either, as I was barred from playing.”
Claudia pulled out another, smaller coin purse. “Put a bet on exactly that match-up happening, with increased odds that his wives win the fight.”
Now, the other guards started clamoring to get in on the action.
“Silence!” the captain snapped before turning back to Claudia. “We’ll need your maid to grab the other captain and guards again, since we can’t leave this post.”
“Gladly,” Claudia laughed. “We’ll send her down soon.”
Gregory shook his head as he pulled out his own money. “Add mine in, same odds. We’ll settle after the fighting is over.”
“Yes, sir,” the captain said, taking the money from them both. “Would you be willing to part with another five percent of the profits?”
“Why?”
“So we can distance who’s betting, so no one gets too inquisitive.”
“Done,” Gregory nodded.
“And for mine, as well,” Claudia added. “Goodness, I’m looking forward to the end of this now, and I wasn’t before.”
The guards laughed as they imagined the payoff, not paying attention to what she’d said. Gregory heard the words and knew why she felt that way. With a grin, he led Claudia up to the boxes.
