TILL MY SECOND LIFE

CHAPTER :9

The night was warm, the stars were bright and the crescent moon was brilliant tonight as if to celebrate the union between the two magnificent rulers. Salvina Dasya... No queen Salvina Dasya and king Osbert Bolverkr.
The palace was at rest the servants sat in small groups eating the luxurious meals to celebrate the union. The soldiers sat outside in small camp fires enjoying wine together. The queen mother was in her chamber looking out through the window watching the stars. He didn't intend to spot his son who was soaked in love to be dressed in the servants clothes running across the palace like that. She knew the queen was cheeky and as well he knew how Osbert fancied and dotted on her. She didn't expect that they would spent the wedding night intimately, he knew how her son's mind worked but she didn't think that he would be running away with his beloved to some secret spot.
"Sera"
"Yes my lady?"
"Where is Massimo?"
"He is guarding the king's chamber my lady"
"Call him over... No give me a pen and paper please"
"Yes your highness"
Sera rushed across the room to fetch a pen and paper as commanded.
"Write this down...
"...."
"Take it to Massimo " the queen mother commanded as soon as her royal maiden was done writing.
Sera fiddled with her dress nervously but bowed in respect and left the room to follow her masters command.
She rushed across the corridors until she got to the northern wing where the queen and the king's chamber were located. She tagged on her dress nervously before she approached Massimo. She bowed slight and passed the note to him.
"From the queen mother " she said humbly
Massimo read the note and passed it back to her.
"I understand " he said stoically, Sera's face fell. He wouldn't even say something beautiful to me.
She turned slowly and started walking away.
"Sera...
"Yes" she turned almost immediately which made Massimo want to laugh at her cute action.
"Sleep well"
She smiled happily and nodded firmly. "I will, you too"
She turned away smiling sheepishly and bounced back to the queen's chamber her heart bubbling with joy. The queen mother noticed her sudden change in behavior and smiled inwardly.
... I also had that feeling when he was alive...
She felt sad, she walked away from the window and sat down.
"Pour me a drink dear"
"Yes, your highness"

*******
Salvina pointed at the stars trying to line them out into different shapes with her small hands. Osbert who was supporting his head with his hands watched her closely. She read the stars to him and explained a lot of stuff about astronomy. He did know about astronomy but not as much a he did. His interest was most in merchants and trade so he took little interest in astronomy.
"Who taught you this much?"
"My father taught me, he was a teacher in the village when he was not working as a merchant"
"So he taught you when he came back home?"
"No, he gave me big texts to read and when he got back he would ask me questions. He rewarded me the rare mountain cherries when I got the answers right and he would pinch my cheeks when I made a mistake"
"You were close"
"I had to be, I was the only child"
They kept chatting then suddenly Salvina sat up, Osbert sat up too but she pushed him back.
"Sorry I startled you" she leaned close to him "but am planning on starting you even more"
"How... Why?"
She leaned closer and kissed his lips slowly, an unskilled, pure and innocent kiss that sent butterflies to his stomach and made his brain go blank for a moment.
"What are you...
"My husband will get at least a kiss on his wedding night not lie under the stars like a hopeless husband "
"Wife..
"My mother once told me that the wedding night is the most important thing to a man who is getting married, for a woman it is the ring. I got what women fancy so you should get at least a quarter of what men fancy"
"My dearest wife, what do you fancy in our wedding?" He asked flabbergasted by her sudden almost beyond her age speech. She looked hell serious about what she was saying and that childish cute look was gone.
"I fancy my husband "
"I fancy my wife" he answered back , she wasn't surprised she knew that was going to come.
"That does not change the fact that a man would love to be intimate with his wife on their wedding night " he was taken aback by her words. Please don't do this to me darling.
"I do fancy that but I don't want to do that to you when you are just sixteen"
"Girls bear children at sixteen"
"You're my queen, my wife... Not girls"
"What difference does it make"
"The difference is that I will love you for ages whether we have kids or not, because you're my wife"
She watched his troubled face silently he had sat up in the middle of the argument and was now staring into her grey eyes with concern and overflowing passion.
"I know you will" she said slowly kneeling on the shawl they were lying on, she held onto his collars looking into his eyes deeply without wavering. That got Osbert weary, her strong-will and courage was making him loose his cool.
"I know you can love me even to my second life, even if we will be reborn a thousand times. As a king, poor man, rich merchant or anything I will still want to be your wife"
His heart melted from her words and he was engulfed with warmth that send waves of excitement and joy all over his body. She said the words so easily with a serious face, she meant it and she said the words without hesitation.
"Why would you love me for so long?"
"Because I was born to be your wife, I was born to love you king Osbert!" She trembled as she said that she herself was overwhelmed by her own words.
"You're so serious, it's scary "
"I will scare you for so long, don't worry " she smiled cutely and now Osbert could not Cage his desire anymore.
"Forgive me "
He whispered to no one in particular grabbed the back of her neck gently and kissed her. Slowly, carefully as if he was afraid he would hurt her or break her. In his eyes she was as beautiful as a garden of roses and as fragile as glass. A gem that needed a lot of care and can't be fixed if broken. He wanted to take care of her to love her and to lose the world if it is what it took to be with her. He just couldn't explain the intense feelings swimming through his heart like a rapid flush flood. They were too strong, too powerful that it scared him. He held her tight, he wanted to feel that she was there because if she wasn't he would crumble into nothingness.
When they parted the little girl was embarrassed her cheeks beet red and breathless. He held her and she buried her face in his chest, now she unable to lift her face to look at him.
"Will you not sit up?"
"Hold me a little longer" she whispered slowly.
"Shy?"
"Don't tease me, husband"
He laughed deeply "you were the one playing with the lion's mane weren't you?"
"I didn't know it would bite so fast and take my first kiss" her voice was low and he could tell she was using a lot of courage to even speak.
"Well you stole mine first, didn't you?"
"I was so bold"
"You're the boldest Queen I couldn't ever have" he parted her hair that smelt like roses and grinned "I think it's destiny that I found you"
"I don't believe in that"
"Why?"
"I only want to do what I desire not what some natural forces wants me to do"
"And what is that you want to do?"
"Love you beyond infinity, be your wife until forever"
"What if that is what destiny wants you to do?"
"Then I will gladly embrace my destiny"
King Osbert grinned with happiness. You are my home Salvina... You're my salvation.
****
"Wow is that what really happened? She is so bold" Avalyn exclaimed with excitement "but how did you know?"
"I told you I have lived for so long "
"Oh, so you were there in the eras of Valiant kingdom?"
"No, I read the original one "
He said it while he looked away, he would feel ugly to lie into the face of such a beautiful woman. Worse she resembled her...
"Do you have it? Can I see it?"
" Sure"
" Am so happy, thank you so much"
A fleeting moment of silence passed between them.
"Why do you like the story about the two so much?" King suddenly asked out of curiosity.
"I don't know sometimes when I read the story I feel like I have experienced something similar, but I don't know when or where. I also find myself sympathizing with king Osbert so much I don't know " she responded innocently "I told my friend about it but all they say is that I am imagining things or... I am being too pitiful towards Osbert "
"I see" he nodded bringing the car into a halt "we are here"
"Oh" she laughed nervously unbuckling her seatbelt "thank you for the right Mr King" she smiled with gratitude and he just nodded in approval.
"And sorry about earlier..." Her face turned red "when I...
"It is OK, it was just a mistake "
She laughed awkwardly and nodded before getting out of the car and rushing off in embarrassment. King watched her disappearing figure and almost smiled. But it was unlike him to smile, or talk as much as he just did.
The cellphone beside him rung noisily... Something else he hated was noise. This was definitely Jericho's doing, why would he set such an annoying ringtone for him?
"Hello?"
"How did it go? Did you talk to her? It's past noon and you didn't come to see me"
"You are asking a lot of questions, are you my dad?"
"Who would want a rebellious son like you?" Jericho mocked him and sneered from the other end "so?"
"She's easy to talk to... I don't know
..
"She is her King, it must be her"
"What makes you so confident?"
"I am sure it is her, you talked to her and it was easy. You even said she's beautiful "
"So?"
"What do you mean by that King? You've never been close to another woman like that...
"She is not the one"
"There is one last thing to check
... The imprint"
"That could be anywhere, do you want me to undress her?"
"Just take your chances...
"Am not that desperate "
"But you have been waiting for her for almost a decade isn't that desperate enough?" Asked Jericho straightforwardly.
King sighed pinching his brows together, this idiot of an assistant did not even know when to lie and make him feel a little less overwhelmed with the situation at hand.
"Make a situation or wait for when you have a making out scene and look "
"It's not like she will be butt naked "
"You want her naked" now king wanted to smack some sense into that idiot who was using a very improper tone with him.
"You want to go back to hell, right?"
Jericho laughed nervously "just jocking"
He cleared his throat bossily "but take your chances... You never know it might be somewhere you can see."
"I heard you, but you sound like you want me dead more than I do "
"It has always been what you wanted, and I will follow you anyway so... I honestly don't want it to happen but it is what you have always wanted. I can't stop you "
"Don't use that tone with me, you know mercy is not my field of specialization "
"I know that more than you could imagine you evil hag"
"Hag?"
"Bye, don't forget you got a lot of files that need your signature "
Jericho hanged up quickly before he got the cold guy riled up all over again.