Beyond The Stone

Chapter 24

Tristan opened his eyes warily. He'd closed them anxiously the moment he'd seen Ava move to touch the stone. Since he was still breathing and thinking, he assumed that he still lived at least. His eyes danced over the sturdy roof beams above.

'Roof beams?' he thought. 'How did I come to be indoors? Didst the stone force leave of my senses?'

He glanced about and realized that he was in a cozy sleeping chamber. It was well furnished. Even the throw over his body was somewhat lavishly adorned with embroidery. He froze.

'What be that upon mine chest?' he mused as he lifted the sheets to peer down.

Indeed, his chest did seem to have something upon it. He let a hand find one of the soft mounds and give it a tentative squeeze. There was no denying that he knew that feeling.

'Breasts? When did I acquire breasts? I am not yet sufficiently old or languid to acquire such a thing...' he mused irritably as he sat up.

That was when he realized that nothing was as it should be. He was not fat – quite the contrary. His stomach still appeared to be flat, but then so did his downstairs – a little too flat! He started pulling at the blankets anxiously, trying to dig out the truth as his heart jumped into his throat.

"Noooo!" he shrieked with horror. "My beard splitter! My beloved shaft of delight!"

'Seriously? I woke up to a dancing, one-eyed snake with a mind of its own, and I got over that pretty quickly,' Ava commented, 'and I'm sure we'll find a way to return you to your precious friend again. Just be patient for a little bit.'

'Ava?' Tristan ventured, completely confused.

'Yeah, it's me,' she replied.

'What... what be happening?' Tristan begged to know, still hyperventilating.

'I'm not entirely sure,' she told him honestly, 'but I do know that this is my body.'

'Wha...' words failed him.

'I think touching the stone made us both jump into my body this time,' Ava replied.

Tristan was silent a while, so Ava ventured out of the bed. Her body felt sore and weak, like it had been lying there forever. Tristan noticed her skin dance lightly over very shapely thigh muscles as she moved – thighs that made his mouth a little moist. Ava pulled her chemise down to cover them. Tristan's eyes shifted back up to her breasts in response. Ava rolled her eyes with frustration and forced her eyes to look up.

"Oh, my lady you have awoken!" a little voice noted to her right.

Ava turned and glanced at the owner. It was a neatly turned out young lady that Ava had never seen before. It looked like she'd just entered the room.

'She be a lady's maid,' Tristan told Ava. 'She must have been assigned to watch over thee.'

"I have," Ava replied to the maid with a soft smile. "Have I been asleep long?" she ventured.

"Little more than a week, milady," the maid told her dutifully. "I have been nursing you all this time, afeard that you might not wake at all. The physician could not discern a reason for your slumber."

'I don't doubt it!' thought Ava with an inward scoff.

Her stomach gurgled loudly.

"Are you hungry, milady?" the maid asked.

"Famished!" Tristan replied eagerly.

It was true. They were both ravenous, now that they were fully aware.