The King's Justice

Part 1 Chapter 9

When she opened her eyes again, the beast and Maisie both were gone. Malcolm was there, sitting in the chair. As for the captain, if he had not been a fever dream, he also had left the room. A shiver of revulsion hit as she hoped that the captain had just been another fever induced hallucination.

"Ye've had a proper adventure now, ha'ent ya, little missy!" Malcolm chortled as he met her befuddled gaze with one of glimmering amusement.

"One could argue that adventures are not for the weak. Therefore, I shall pass on any more since I am placing myself firmly in the weak category! I would quite like to never again be a chew treat for a direbeast!" Aydra rasped weakly. Malcolm let out a wheezing gust of laughter, slapping one hand down on his leg. It made a loud counterpoint to his laugh.

Aydra frowned looking around. She didn't recognise the room she was in but before she could ask, saw the door behind Malcolm swing wide open. Maisie stepped in and to Aydra's disbelief, held the door open for the direbeast! He was walking slowly, limping a bit on one paw. His head hung low, his body swaying from side to side.

"Told ya' yer was pushing yer luck!" Malcolm aimed a disapproving look at the direbeast. He was given a curled lipped silent snarl in response as the beast limped past him. In addition to that, as he went by Malcolm, his big, heavy tail thwacked Malcolm in the face. At Aydra's horrified gasp, the beast's head lifted slightly as he kept walking in her direction. She laid there, frozen with terror as she watched what she was certain was her death approach.

Malcolm let out another wheeze of laughter, tipping sideways and then back up again. It was clear he wasn't harmed by the blow. Equally clear was the fact that despite the direbeast's injuries, had he wanted to, his tail swipe could have caused serious damage to the elderly man.

Aydra blinked. She watched, hardly daring to breathe as the beast reached the side of the bed she was lying in and stood there, his head resting on the mattress near her face.

"Yer beastie is waitin' fer an invite, missy. He's a proper gentleman I s'pose." Malcolm said comfortably, slapping his hand down on his knee again with another snort of laughter.

The direbeast actually rolled his eyes at Malcolm's words and then slowly lifted first one paw, then the other onto the bed. He watched her with a fixed gaze the whole time and when she didn't move, or scream, continued lifting his heavy body up onto the bed.

Once in place, he shifted around until he was lying stretched out next to her. When he was finally settled in place, a heavy sigh gusted out. Aydra wrinkled her nose, pulling back as much as the bindings allowed her. The beast's eyes narrowed and he chuffed at her, grumbling a bit.

"He's awonderin' does his breath smell, I be thinkin'!" Malcolm chuckled, standing up and walking slowly over to the bedside table. Aydra didn't answer that, trying with no success to shift away from the direbeast until he let out the faintest of growls. She stilled instantly, fresh fear welling up.

"Here. Let's get you up a bit to have a drink." Maisie said briskly. She and Malcolm untied the linen at her wrists and ankles before they scooped Aydra up and despite their seeming frailty had her spun on her side with enviable ease. To Aydra's dismay and panic, they pulled her upper body up to lean sideways against the direbeast. Ignoring her tiny mewl of fright, Malcolm held her in place while Maisie got a small goblet of water.

The direbeast lay there, still and silent; eyes intent on every movement they made. Aydra felt beads of sweat form on her face as fresh pain surged along her body. So intense was the pain that it nearly wiped her fear completely away. She was gasping for breath, her hands unconsciously clenching fistfuls of fur as they worked on her.

"What happened?" She finally managed to whisper in between sips of water. Maisie pursed her lips, one eyebrow raised.

"You don't recall getting attacked out in the garden? Or your beast coming to your rescue?" Maisie asked with the tiniest of little smiles as she inclined her head in the direbeasts direction. Aydra's eyes went wide. She met glittering red eyes and swallowed.

"I remember the attack! Just nothing after." She admitted, biting her lip and glancing fearfully at the beast. His head was resting on the pillow now and his eyes were half closed. He looked content. The world didn't make sense. Nor did their words and Aydra questioned all of it.

"My beast ... I don't understand what you mean, saying that. Beasts can't be owned like a common dog." At her words, a loud growl rumbled out and Aydra froze again. Maisie sent a stern glare at the culprit that he pretended to not see while Malcolm chortled a bit more.

"Tha's right missy. A beast caint be being owned. Bu' they sure can claim ..." Malcolm started and the beast's eyes opened to glare at the elderly man as Maisie interrupted.

"Hush now, all of you. More sleep for the both of you. Time enough for conversation when you aren't in danger of bleeding out every time you take a breath wrong!" Maisie said firmly. She turned to Malcolm with a stern gaze. "You ... there's some dishes with your name on them!"

"Surely this is a dream?" Aydra whispered as Maisie and Malcolm lowered her back down to lay stretched out on the mattress again. They didn't respond, just drew the sheet up over her. Maisie pressed a kiss to her cheek and then even more astonishingly, brushed her fingers over the direbeasts head before they both then left the room.

They hadn't bound her arms and legs again. Though, to be fair, with the direbeast there, what need was there to restrain her? It wasn't like she was going to be able to run! Especially naked and in a weakened state.

As if to add to that argument, her own body betrayed her by becoming so heavy that even had she wanted to, she wouldn't have been able to move. Aydra's eyes slid shut, a yawn catching her unaware and just before she fell back into sleep, she could have sworn she felt the beast's tongue swipe along her cheek.