Gregory was called out of his camp right after breakfast the next morning. His men formed up, saluting him as he was led away. Gregory bowed to them, wished them well on their coming test, then trailed the eurtik who’d come to get him.
Days passed at the manor. He spent the time training during the early part of the day while the judges were doing their jobs. When they returned in the evening, he sparred with them as they requested. His request was granted in turn; it was two fights per judge. One match would be with the naginata, then the wakizashi.
He won every fight with the naginata, then was pushed hard with the wakizashi even when he used foresight. With the use of foresight, he prolonged the fights and improved rapidly, as half of fighting is muscle memory.
When he went to bed on the third night, Gregory wondered how his unit would do the next day. He had faith in them, but with no idea of how taxing the course would be, he was uncertain.
~*~*~
Turning in his sleep, Gregory frowned, as the bed felt different. A soft giggle got him to turn over, and he smiled at the realization of where he was. “Hello, my dark heart.”
“Oh? A special name for me?” Darkness giggled again. “True. I have been dark for you.”
Gregory was staring at the corner, as the inky shadows had receded even farther. The outlines of the corner were visible. Darkness was still a shadowed silhouette of a woman, but he could make out her shape now. Her one-time statement that she was bustier than Roshana came back to his mind, and he agreed. If her shadow was correct, she was indeed bustier than his friend.
Darkness adjusted her position so that her chest was angled better for him to see the outline. “Do you like it, dear one?”
“Umm… yeah,” Gregory said slowly.
“I know you like all your wives, and that you do not have preferences,” Darkness snickered, “but it is nice to know that you are imagining what it will be like later.”
“I was, and am,” Gregory agreed.
“We need to move things along, sadly. First, your wives.”
The mattress flexed as all three of his naked wives appeared around him. Murmured greetings and kisses were exchanged.
“You’re very… busty, Darkness,” Jenn said.
“I am, but do not let that cause you worry, Jenn. He loves you just as you are.”
“I do,” Gregory agreed, rubbing Jenn’s back.
“Even larger than Roshana, I’d bet,” Yukiko said slowly. “Hmm, but that does mean there are options that we don’t have?”
“Oh, yes,” Darkness purred. “In time, in time. We do not have that time right now.”
Nessa was suddenly on the bed in front of Gregory. Gregory didn’t look away from his naked friend; he took the moment to soak in her beauty, as she did the same to him. It struck him how powerfully built Nessa’s legs were, and he attributed it to her mother’s heritage.
“Goodness… it’s… even larger than I remember from the bath,” Nessa murmured, her gaze south of Gregory’s navel.
“He’s enjoying seeing you,” Yukiko said. She slipped behind Nessa, wrapping her arms around the younger woman’s waist. “We all are. Before resonance, we’ve established a tradition.”
Gregory exhaled slowly, then leaned forward to kiss Nessa. She kissed him back softly at first, but then pushed into him, her arms going around his back as their kiss deepened.
“Maybe Vicky has competition, after all,” Jenn snickered. “We want our kisses, too, Nessa.”
Nessa pulled back suddenly, flushed with desire and embarrassment. “Oh! Sorry.”
“It’s fine,” Mindie murmured, the first of the women to collect a kiss.
Once they had all collected from Nessa, Gregory said, “Time is short, but the tradition is kisses first. Now it’s time for you to tell us.”
“Yes,” Nessa said shakily, her whole body hot and buzzing with pleasure. “Uh, fears? Right. Fears, first.” Taking a deep breath, she pressed on, doing her best to stay focused, “Being too slow. Failing to get to those who need me when they need me. It was one of the reasons my magic is wind, as I always wanted to be faster… to run away faster, I’d thought… but my resonance showed me my true fear: failing to get to my family and rescue them when they call for me. Not my parents, but my next family.” She met Gregory’s eyes, her hand rubbing Yukiko’s arm around her waist.
“Wind magi can move faster than even physical enhancement magi. Only spatial and shadow are faster,” Jenn murmured.
“Yes,” Nessa agreed. “Weakness came after fear. My timidity is my weakness. I don’t push myself forward; I don’t want to be the center of attention. I’ve been working on that. I have to with Daciana beside me; she’s my opposite, in that regard. Winning tournaments has helped, as well. We won the second tournament, which ended yesterday. Aether’s Guard claimed Empire’s Gambit and the martial tournament to end this year.”
“We had every faith in you,” Yukiko whispered, kissing Nessa’s cheek. “We’ll read the letters. Stay on task.”
“I will, Yuki,” Nessa murmured. “Strength comes next. Mine is my… Mother hates it when I say this… my ‘horse sense.’ I make good decisions when needed. Even if they’re not what I truly want, if it’s for the best, I’ll do it. That helps with Daciana, who acts instead of thinking.”
“As long as you’re comfortable with it being said, then we will be too,” Mindie said, reaching past Gregory to pat Nessa’s knee.
“And desires?” Gregory whispered, meeting Nessa’s eyes, hers a lighter shade of green than his.
Nessa swallowed the nerves that rose in her. “Umm… it’s humiliating and a little demeaning.” Her face burned as she spoke. “I… I saw my mother’s ‘aids’ when I was younger, and I… felt like it would be right for me, too.”
“Aids?” Yukiko whispered, kissing Nessa’s neck. “Explain it, please?”
Nessa shivered, her lust rising as she blurted out her deepest desires to them, “Taken from behind, but with a bit in my mouth. I want Gregory holding my reins as he drives into me. I want to be a prize mare for my lovers. You can all help with that, too, please… I want it.” Her neck started to burn as she kept babbling, “Vicky made a makeshift bridle and bit for me, and then they… walked me around the room naked yesterday after we won, to celebrate. I kept the bit in my mouth when they… did more with me.”
“Easy,” Jenn giggled. She leaned in and kissed Nessa to silence her.
“None of us are judging you,” Mindie shivered, imagining Nessa in a bridle, being led around naked to be seen like a prized mare. “Mine is watching and being watched. I’d have loved to have seen that.”
“Okay… Yes… I’ll show you,” Nessa whispered when the kiss with Jenn ended. “Gladly.”
“It is time,” Darkness said sadly. “Nessa, there is nothing wrong with that. Gregory is very intrigued, so dream of that tonight.”
Nessa vanished from the room, and the others exchanged kisses, as they knew Darkness would be sending them away shortly.
Alone in the bed again, Gregory exhaled a shaky breath. “They’re all so different, yet some are similar.”
“Yes,” Darkness purred. “You will need to clean up after the dreams you have tonight.”
Gregory groaned. He hated that, but it was a price he was willing to pay for those he loved. Without warning, he lunged off the bed. The shadows became tendrils that grabbed him and slowed him. They eventually stopped him a few feet from Darkness. She was still a shadow of a person, even being that close to her. “Soon,” Gregory said as he felt his aether ebb and sleep rush to claim him.
Darkness watched him fade away, her breathing a little rough; he was getting closer to her each time. The yearning in her heart was bright when he finally vanished. She reached out to where he’d been, a faint tingle passing through her hand as it went through the space. With a soft sob of need, she vanished from the room. Then, the room vanished, as well.
