There was a direbeast with her in bed. His eyes were only open a tiny sliver but she wasn't fooled into thinking that he wasn't alert or that he couldn't see her. She shifted her cheek a bit on the pillows and winced as pain went shooting down her back. The beast half growled, half grumbled at her and Aydra went still again, eyeing him warily.
Was he going to eat her just for moving??
A heavy sigh eased from the beast and then he was inching his head towards hers ... slowly ... inch by inch ... Aydra's eyes crossed with how close his snout was to her nose now. Her heart was thundering away in her chest, her throat so tight that she was barely able to get a breath halfway in.
What was he doing? She thought frantically, certain that he was done toying with her and was now going to finally finish her off!
He held perfectly still, his breath huffing at her his only movement. She thought of how Maisie had talked to him – as if he understood everything being said when she bossed him around. At how Malcolm had done the same, with no fear. How neither Maisie or Malcolm hadn't even once hesitated to get close to him. Swallowing, Aydra figured that she would take a chance. After all, Maisie and Malcolm had no fear of this direbeast, as strange as that seemed, so maybe he was tame?
"Hello?" Aydra whispered. Slitted eyes opened a bit wider and focused on her. The effect, so close to her own eyes felt a bit dizzying. Pulling back a fraction, hoping to clear up that dizzy feeling, she licked her dry lips once. Then, pulling her courage up, she tried again.
"I don't want to startle you, especially if you're first reaction would be to bite or even to eat me alive but ..." A snort erupted from the beast and Aydra broke off with a gasp of surprise. Then ...
"EW! You snotted on me! GROSS!" She spluttered as the beast's tongue retreated to his mouth. Without thinking about it, she instinctively raised her hand to her face to wipe away direbeast snot. The fire that shot down her back for that incautious move was a punishment in itself! A sound of pain escaped her and she dropped her hand to the pillows, gripping a fistful of them in reaction. She lay there, teeth clenched and eyes squinched shut, crying softly as the pain washed over her in waves.
Her whimpers were interrupted by something strange. First was a soft whining that broke through her pain and second was followed by a slow lick of a damp tongue over her tear wet cheeks. She flinched and a low rumbling came from him. She slitted her eyes.
"If you are checking to see if I taste good, I can assure you that I do NOT." Aydra informed the beast a trifle sulkily. A huffing sound escaped him and then he went back to licking away all evidence of her crying. His tongue was rough and despite her automatic 'ew' reflex, the sensation wasn't a bad one.
"I wonder if humans taste the same to direbeasts as a chicken or a fish would? Either way, I'd just as soon that you didn't use me to test that out. Just go out there and find some nasty humans out there to taste test on!" She whispered, still convinced that her mind was imagining it all.
"You could practice on Lord Fyn, in fact. Only, no, don't do that. You might get a sore belly if you tried to eat him!" Aydra continued whispering her thoughts out loud, absently talking to the direbeast the same as she did to Thunder. There was no one else to hear, or judge and she didn't even consider how strange it was to converse with an animal more easily than to another human. The direbeast stopped licking her and if an animal could look affronted, she was certain he did! That was if he really did understand what she said to him and not just respond to the tone of her voice.
"Well, I think I need the chamber pot, and since I don't know how else to get there, I'm going to need to get out of this bed. That means that you, sir beast, have to move." Aydra shifted her arms underneath herself in preparation for pushing herself up. The entire time she prayed the beast wouldn't take her movements as a threat and retaliate! She'd braced herself for the pain of moving and was just starting to lift up when the direbeast growled, low and menacing. He leaned up and over her, his bared teeth moving towards the back of her neck.
YOU ARE READING
The King's Justice
Romansa**Incomplete** Aydra is a sheltered young girl, raised for one purpose only - to raise her family standing with a good marriage. The man chosen for her is Fyn, who is infamous as the kings right hand man. Nothing is easy - or as it seems!
