Holier Than Thou

[Emora Deen]

Tenele's brow furrowed as she stared at the parchment and then lifted her gaze to him. He loved her. He would protect her. "Atul would be missed if he isn't seen around the palace today. Otherwise..." She pushed her silver hair behind her ear. "I'd ask you to stay so I could better come to terms with what you are... or what we are to each other. I just have one thing to ask, before you go... Are you my husband?"

[Soran Nightblade]

He lifted his left hand and held it out to her. Their wedding ring was not there, but a band of soft light wrapped around his finger like a tattoo. "I am yours alone, but I am not quite your husband," he said. "And I will follow his and your wishes. No kissing. No biting. Got it."

[Emora Deen]

(Haha for role-playing at lunch)

Tenele wanted to ask more questions, feeling that only he could really give her the answers. The only problem was that it was midday and Atul would be missed from any meetings later on in the afternoon concerning the treaty. She drummed her fingers against her thigh before taking the paper from his hand. "Maybe we can speaks again tonight? I am sorry for sending you away so quickly..." There was something about this that felt slightly wrong to her, like she was locking an innocent person away. She glanced to the last inscription. "Sagra ne eiro." She lifted her gaze back to him.

[Soran Nightblade]

His eyes widened as she spoke the words. He made a tight sound in the back of his throat and dropped to his knees, as if gravity were literally sucking him downward. His strong back arched forward and his arms pulled tight around his chest, shaking. He hunched over with a sick moan. His body began to glow until it was too bright to look at, and when the magic faded, Vlad and Atul were kneeling next to each other on the stone. The two men looked haggard and sweaty, like they'd been holding up some immense weight.

Vlad was the first to raise his gaze up to his wife. "I see you figured it out," he smirked a little tiredly.

[Emora Deen]

Tenele frowned, kneeling quickly in front of her husband. She tugged the the sheet around her, tucking it under her arms as she reached out to cup his face in her hands. "Are you okay?" she muttered. "Did that hurt you? It looked like it hurt him. I hope I didn't hurt him." She ran her hands over his face, and through his hair.

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad put a hand up to her cheek calmingly. "All magic has a cost. As with all such things, bonds are easy enough to create, but they are remarkably difficult to break. They also require energy to maintain. Sustaining that form is...exhausting."

[Emora Deen]

"That's... I'm worried that this isn't a good idea. What if it becomes too taxing on you?" Tenele stroked his face gently. Her eyes cast down to his body, noting the claw marks she'd laced his skin with had faded. Her neck, however, was still bearing a bruise and his puncture marks. "How long is too long? How will I know when its too much on you?" Tenele had far too many questions, it would take the rest of the day for Vlad to cover them. She planned on spending it in bed since her body felt like she'd been running all night.

Tenele's brow furrowed, and she turned her eyes on Atul's weary... naked form. It struck her then that she wasn't sure what their relationship would be like now that... that had happened. "And you Atul... how are you?"

[Soran Nightblade]

Atul smiled at her, not acting particularly concerned about his nakedness, or perhaps he just wasn't conscious of it yet. His blue eyes met hers with a calm strength. "I'm just fine. Don't worry about the bond. If we're at our limit, he should be able to tell." He glanced at the paper on the floor next to her. "Make sure you commit that to memory."

He moved to stand up. His legs faltered at first under his weight. Vlad shot up to support him with an arm around his waist. The bareness between them suddenly came front and center to both of their attention. Vlad's arm stiffened a little, but otherwise, he didn't abandon the gesture that now felt more intimate than helpful. Memories of the night before flooded and front and center in both their minds. Vlad pressed his free hand to the side of his neck, staring at Tenele.

[Emora Deen]

Tenele's cheeks turned crimson, staring up at the two of them. Heat washed over her, remembering in exact detail every move Atul's hand had made over her skin, and over Vlad's. Her hands tightened in the sheets. Atul had been with them on their ride to ecstasy too. He'd... essentially made love to her too, in a way. And he'd bit Vlad. An intimate act only done between them. And he'd done it to because she'd told Atul too. She wasn't sure if the look in her husband's eyes was from shock, or because he was upset.

Tenele shifted to stand, her legs protesting. She managed to do so, despite how they trembled with the effort. She fumbled over to the bed and sat down. "Last night..." Tenele combed fingers through her silver hair nervously. "I may have let myself go... a little too freely. I just, I couldn't control myself."

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad glanced at Atul and let his arm slip from the now-steady man's waist so he could kneel in front of his wife. "We may have been wrong to thrust you so quickly into something you weren't quite ready to handle," he said, remembering how overwhelmed she had been at the end, caught between rapture and terror. Even if that reaction had sent him over the edge in his own ecstasy, that didn't necessarily mean it was good for her. "But you handled us both beautifully."

Atul came to crouch next to him and took her left hand gently. "You did nothing wrong, Tenele. Last night meant a great deal to me. To us both. As sudden as it might have been, I feel glad to be joined to you two."

[Emora Deen]

Tenele looked between the two men. She could see love in both their eyes, though for Atul it might have been a different sort of love than Vlad's, but it was still love. She nodded slowly, giving Atul's hand a gentle squeeze, and a soft smile flickered to her lips. "I feel glad as well."

Tenele glanced to the light outside the window. "Atul... I hate to part from you so suddenly after all of this, but its near noon and I'm sure your advisers will be hunting the palace over for you. I'd port to your room as quickly as possible."

Tenele glanced down to the floor. "I can't seem to stay on my feet for very long. Last night was a little more than my body could handle, I suppose. It worked out well though." She gave them both a bright smile. "I think I'll have the servants clean up a bit while I bathe, but I may spend the rest of the day resting."

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad smirked, having to admit that he was a little proud to have worn out his wife so thoroughly. "I will be with you," he asserted, even as a sharp knock came on the bedroom door.

"Vladimir Dracul!" Sinead's voice called through the door, cross enough to melt the hinges. "What exactly have you done with my guest?"

Vlad's expression went blank. Could it possibly be that she....no, she couldn't possibly know.

"My Queen, we were up late and slept in. He is perfectly fine."

"Open this door, Vladimir!" she snapped.

[Emora Deen]

Tenele shooed Atul towards the bathroom door, throwing his clothes at him as he ran to hide. She imagined that this is what a young teenager felt when having to hide her boyfriend from her father. He was just at the bathroom door when he managed to catch the last article of clothing, the underwear. "Change quickly," she mouthed to him.

Tenele snatched her robe up off the floor and drew it on, clamouring under the covers. She moved so quickly that her weary body felt dizzy with exhaustion by the time she made it under the sheets.

Tenele's heart fluttered furiously with worry. What would the queen think if she found out? What would she think of her poised Queen's Maiden, a woman who once was the symbol of chastity and virtue.. until she met Vladimir Dracul?

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad rolled his eyes and stood up, crossing the room to the door. He grabbed the handle and pulled it wide, casting his queen a critical smirk. "Is there a reason you're invading my chambers first thing in the morning?"

"It's already past noon!" Sinead snarled, shielding her eyes from Vlad's blatant nudity. "Vlad, where are your clothes, for Gods' sake!"

The vampire leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms. "I always sleep naked."

"Care to explain why your binding spell was completely dissolved until a few minutes ago?" the woman crossed her own arms.

"I was deeply asleep. Perhaps you simply couldn't feel me," Vlad frowned. "Are you accusing me of treason?"

"Are you guilty of it?" Sinead returned hotly.

The vampire narrowed his eyes on his queen. "King Atul is bathing and dressing for the day's activities, my queen. I will send him to you shortly."

"Why is he in your room, Vladimir?"

He leaned in a bit closer to her. "We grew very close in the Outerlands," he murmured a bit huskily."

Sinead flushed angrily. "Impetuous demon," she growled. "When you're done with your perverse jokes, return my guest to me immediately."

Vlad bent his arm in front of him and bowed nobly. "Yes, my Queen."

She threw up her arms and turned away while he shut the door behind her.

[Emora Deen]

Tenele sat up slowly as Atul emerged from the bathroom, fully clothed. "Wow," he muttered. "So, that was close."

The Queen's Maiden faded into a fit of giggles, covering her mouth and rolling on the bed. "I thought we were dead! Oh, dear. I'm so dizzy, my heart is beating so fast."

Atul chuckled. "Okay, on that note, I'll visit later. I better hurry and change in my chambers before your Queen decides to inquire further about your perverse joke." A flurry of blue sparks dissolved the demi-god from his feet to his head until he was completely gone from the room.