The Goblin's Throne

Chapter One: Contentment

I felt him before he had even reached the brooding chamber door. That cold, dreadful power reaching out a talon to weigh my soul within its palm. Now, seeing him in the doorway of my children's nursery, I inwardly growled a curse at Knut for making me do this. It was all his idea to invite the brat this time and let him meet me in the brooding chamber. A show of trust, he said, that would hopefully improve our relationship. We couldn't ignore him forever if we wanted him to remain a faithful servant. His submissive attitude towards The Hollow, he reminded me, wouldn't last forever. He was The End, after all.  As much as I would have liked to, I had to admit Knut was right. He usually was. 

I turned my eyes away from my smiling child to the youth standing behind my husband's closest friend and I saw nothing but his resemblance to my enemies and the grinning dragon I had once bargained with for Knut's life, still gnawing upon the goblins' god's roots.

The Bran that appeared before me was nothing like the child I had been all too happy to dispatch six years ago. He'd grown up. He looked like a man now almost. The resemblance between him and his half-brother, who had unwittingly helped me take The City of Thorns, was uncanny. His features were just a little sharper, more like Mab's. His body and wings looked strong. He'd obviously had some training. He'd be harder to kill now. Damn him.

"It's good to see you both." I smiled, trying my best not to let thoughts of murder reveal its fakeness. Odd growled and snarled at my ear. I bounced him around to hush him and gingerly pulled a lock of my hair out his claws. His obsession with it was almost as bad as his father's. I waddled towards them, trying not to tip over with the baby on my hip and the one inside me weighing me down. "You're looking...hairier than the last time I saw you," I smirked at Ib. Along his jaw, a shadow of white and silver bristled. He'd begun to grow a beard. Knut forbade me from telling him how hideous he looked. Personally, I thought it was crueler to let him walk around in public like that.

"And you're even fatter." Ib snickered as he and Bran stepped further into the room and a goblin with long floppy ears that dragged the ground shut the door back tight. "You haven't had that litter yet?" He teased.

I sighed. My whole body sighed. "If only. I'm quite tired of being pregnant." Odd was only five months old when I found out I was carrying my fourth child. The Hollow did so love to torture me. I felt like I had been perpetually pregnant for the past two years. I still had over two months left to go.

"I don't blame you, after this one." Ib tickled Odd's neck, earning a gurgling little growl. Odd hadn't learned to speak yet. His language mainly consisted of growls, snarls, and shrieks. He'd come into the world roaring and he hadn't stopped yet. 

"Take him, would you? I haven't even had a chance to dress properly today." I plopped Odd into his arms before the changeling could protest. "Careful, he bites," I warned. Ib held him a little further from his face. A wise move. He had a bite that could take off digits in one snap of his jaws. I crossed the room and ducked behind a changing screen. Ask followed me, procuring a soft blue dress from my wardrobe.

"Where are Knut and the others?" Ib asked. I peaked around the screen, watching him bounce Odd around and keeping a wary eye on the young man standing stiffly behind him. Bran's eyes shifted around nervously, watching the small goblins that came in and out of the room, they flicked upward towards the ceiling and studied the intricate carvings on the furniture. He looked everywhere but towards me.

"They're still in the study finishing their lessons. I was just about to go fetch them to get ready for dinner. Feel free to join me." I said, sucking in a breath as Ask finished synching me into the gown. I was fairly certain that if I got any bigger I'd have to walk about naked. I was sure Knut would not protest to that.