Mature: Desert Moon

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad grinned. "Yes, I suspect he is." He pushed the stones gently into a triangle around Tenara's sapphire. "Can you manage something like this?" he asked the jeweler.

The man waved his hand. "Easy. Give me three days."

"Good." He glanced over his shoulder at the jeweler. "Make it a ring fit for King Hajaris."

"Sure, sure," the man laughed, assuming he was exaggerating.

"I'll be back in three days." Vlad winked at his wife and led his family back out of the shop. "Good to know we're still strangers to some folks here, for a few more days."

[Emora Deen]

Tenele smiled. "For a few," she agreed, turning her gaze up to the palace. She walked along her husband very quietly, just staring at every detail. It was so hard to believe that they were actually going to be living her permanently... and as royalty. They had always been nobles. Tenele had never saw herself as queen, no matter how many advisers wrongfully insisted Sinead would one day name her heir.

"I've got to go off to a dress fitting!" Tenele suddenly yelped. "The seamstress is going to kill me. It completely slipped my mind. I'll take Tenara, why don't you see if Atul needs any help?"

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad smirked devilishly. "I want to see the dress."

[Emora Deen]

"No," Tenele insisted. "You can't. Its a surprise. Its very traditional for Hajara though, if that helps your imagination. Neither one of you can see it until the wedding, and you better not sneak a peek!"

[Soran Nightblade]

"You kept it a secret the last time," the vampire chided.

[Emora Deen]

Tenele smiled. "And I loved your face when you saw me for the first time." She pressed a kiss to his cheek, holding his hand. "But.... if you insist I guess you could see it. I mean, it might be good to get your opinion on whether Atul will like it or not."

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad lifted his chin. "I suppose I could take a look for you."

[Emora Deen]

Tenele smiled. "Alright." The Queen's Maiden took a brisk pace back to the palace, growing completely winded by the time she climbed all the stairs up to their quarters. The seamstress was just exiting their room when she paused with the garment bag in hand.

"You, young Queen, are late!" the older woman barked, immediately opening the door and allowing them entrance.

Tenara ran off to play with Stalker in her room while the seamstress began laying out the fabric again.

She didn't make any comments about Vlad's presence, which led Tenele to believe that they didn't have the same customs and superstitions as Ighten. "Alright, I'll wait outside. Let me know when you are dressed."

The seamstress stepped out into the hall and Tenele began stripping off her clothes. She pulled on the red traditional Hajaran gown with gold thread embroidered vines laced up from the hem of the gown, around her waist, and on her sleeves.

"So, this is the dress... but over this I'm wearing a traditional red robe..." Tenele pointed to the red robe trimmed in gold draped across the foot of the bed. "What do you think?"

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad took a chair by the bed and observed her with raptor focus as she moved in the garment. "I am too captivated to try to describe it," he finally said. He rose and circled her appreciatively. "The fashions here seem as if they were made for you. It's hard to imagine them as 'traditional'. I can't see any other woman wearing them as you do."

[Emora Deen]

"You sure can flatter a girl," Tenele blushed, drawing the red robe on. "I'll have something in my hair I think. I'm not sure what. A headdress of some sort... Let me..."

Tenele called the seamstress in. The woman fretted over the fit, made the necessary marks for alterations and then directed Tenele to remove the garment. Tenele didn't want to take it off. She wanted Vlad to keep staring at her with the look he'd gotten when she first dawned it.

Instead she finally settled with herself and drew the garment off layer by layer, folding it neatly. "Do you think Atul will like it?" Tenele asked Vlad, navigating her way back into her own dress.

[Soran Nightblade]

"I think he may tear it off," Vlad murmured silkily, brushing shoulders with her as he came to face her. He touched the side of her neck and slid along the hem of the dress to her shoulder, and then lower across her collarbone. "I should check on Sinead."

[Emora Deen]

Tenele swallowed as his fingers trailed tantalizingly over her skin. The image of Atul ripping the dress from her with in heated desire was a little too tempting. But, greater than that was Vlad's caressing gesture after how their early morning went... Had Sinead been successful in making her desirable to her husband again?

The Queen's Maiden nodded slowly, forcing herself not to ask him to stay. "Alright," she smiled, touching his face.

[Soran Nightblade]

"Let's have a proper dinner later," Vlad said, kissing her on the lips in a smooth movement. "I'll let the servants know." He kissed her ear, and her neck, before parting from her and letting himself out.

Sinead's room down the hall was well guarded, to Vlad's approval. They stepped out of the way as he approached, and he knocked on the door. A mental invitation pulsed in his thoughts, and he let himself in.

Sinead was sitting on the couch in the far corner of the room. She was wearing a gown that was casual, for her, and had a silk blanket draped over her lap. A Hajarian cat, with its exotic long ears and greyhound-like body, was curled in her lap.

"My Queen," he greeted, closing the door behind him and approaching.

"Vladimir," she returned quietly. "They have such captivating animals here."

The vampire noticed the exhaustion still at the corners of her eyes and took the seat opposite her slowly. "I suppose they are. They rarely come near our quarters, thanks to Stalker." He glanced at the queen. He knew better than to ask how she was feeling. If anything Sinead was more private about her health than he was. "You got a good look in my head this morning. I imagine my reaction made things challenging. My apologies for losing focus."

"You reacted normally, Vladimir," he said, stroking the lithe creature behind its ears. "Had I realized what was done to you, I might have prepared you better. Regardless, there was only one way to get the job done, and it is done. Do you feel any different?"

"Yes," Vlad answered immediately. "My perspective is better.

"Good. That's all I can truly do for you. It should make things easier."

"Of course. Never better," the vampire returned proudly.

Sinead met his eyes with tired, but intense blue. "Those thing still happened to you, Vlad. Allow yourself time."

"I've been tortured before, Queeny, don't forget. I came out just fine."

"I haven't forgotten," she whispered. "Healing is a kind of rebirth. Be careful of what you grow into. Your family cares for-"

"My family can hardly bear my presence these past days. They don't need a broken husband or a healing father. They need me, whole and strong. You've given me back that strength. The rest will fall together on its own.

"What is strength, my servant?" the queen asked gently as she watched him stand.

Vlad walked to her side and knelt, kissing the hand she offered him. It was an old-fashioned gesture that was out of vogue in the courts for some years now, but Sinead still indulged the gesture of reverence when Vlad wanted to show it. He was of the old ways, and he had an old soul. No one could tell him how to manage his experiences but him.

She smiled at her servant. "I am fine. You don't need to stick to me so. It's unlike you. "

"I will fuss as I please. Your exhaustion is my doing," the vampire threw back, rising to turn toward the door.

As soon as the vampire got back into the hall, he was assailed by servants. He'd been somewhat shirking his wedding planning duties, and everyone from the tailor to the hairdresser to the florist had been alerted to his location while he visited Sinead.

"Fine, fine, all of you in my sitting room," the vampire sighed.

[Emora Deen]

Tenara giggled, chasing a lizard across the garden. Tenele watched her from where she lay in the small patch of grass near the fountains. The sun was setting, causing the blue sky to go ablaze with fire.

She couldn't stop thinking about Vlad's kiss, or about how he seemed after meeting with Sinead. Was he okay? She was still worried that she'd forced him into something he wasn't ready for, but she'd been so confused by what he'd wanted, what he'd needed at that moment.

Tenele closed her eyes and leaned back against Stalker's fur.

"What do you think he meant by a proper dinner?" Tenele asked the hell-hound. "A proper dinner for Vlad is a large man. Did he mean a dinner with just us? We had a family dinner last night... Hmmm..."

Plop. Tenele felt a gentle weight land on her chest. She looked down and a medium sized iguana was staring at her.

"His name is Peanut Butter," Tenara announced.

[Soran Nightblade]

"Blue will be fine," Vlad confirmed to the florist while standing with his arms spread out in a T. The tailor was busily fussing with his measurements...more than he could remember ever needing from a tailor in Ighten. What exactly were they designing for the ceremony?

Whatever it was, he would wear it. Despite his usual aversion to such affairs, he wanted to participate in the wedding customs Atul was used to. The wedding seemed important to the demigod, and Vlad intended to match his enthusiasm.

"And for tonight?" he asked the chef, whom he'd managed to have brought up to the room while the others were all having a go at his attention.

"Well, I have some wonderful ducks that were caught just this morning," the chef mused. "And I've been trying something new with sweet custard." The chef liked Vlad. The vampire always showed appreciation for his food and the thought that went into it, and sampled it, even though he surely couldn't taste any of it. "I can make your serving smaller if you prefer, Lord Dracul."

"Excellent. Can we do it someplace unique?"

"Not the dining room, eh?" the chef mused. He folded his arms. "I know of a lovely place."

"Good. Can you see that Atul is invited?"

"I can," the chef replied happily.

A few hours later, the vampire was led by one of the waitstaff to a small stairway near the corner of the building. It led up to an open rooftop veranda that overlooked the seaport. A table was prepared with three settings, candles, and wine. Cool, humid evening air fluttered with the candle flames. "Perfect," the vampire admired, strolling the perimeter of the roof to take in the view.