The Shadowman and his Queen

...What a Girl Needs pt. 2

Shadow Queen Ch. 14: ...What a Girl Needs pt. 2

He walks from his hidden place behind a bookcase toward the rear corner of the room and his heart already yearns for his 'Regina the Beautiful'. His mind is running a million miles a minute as he replays the incredible feeling of being inside her, the sweet melody of her voice in his ears as she vocalizes her pleasure and the beauty in her face as she drowns in the love that he provides. He listens in as she gives her cover to the intruding councilman, 'clever woman, my love is' he thinks. Then he hears the reasoning for their interruption, Snow. He detests that damned Snow, she always has a way of ruining a good thing. If not for her, he'd still be in the presence of his lovely love, holding her in his arms, kissing her breathless, gazing into her gorgeous eyes and listening to her angelic voice. Instead she is being escorted back to her boredom-filled, loveless prison, clueless of when they will be able to bask in the light of each other's presence again.

A few moments following Regina and the councilman's exit, Baron hears his brother's voice, "Barry... Baron!", he hears his brother whisper loudly, "yes brother, I'm here", he says as he reveals himself. "I saw Regina being escorted out of here... were you two caught?", Benjamin asks concerned, "nearly, but no. We heard him enter and stopped what we were doing" Baron says dejectedly. "What were you doing little brother? Taking after your big brother, are you? Get a little bit of action, did you?" Benjamin asks slyly with a wiggle of his eyebrows. "What we were doing is none of your business. And as much as I'd like to take after you... actually, no I don't, that's a lie" he jests making his brother laugh. "We were spending quality time, if you must know, brother" Baron says blandly making his brother give him a heavy side-eye that silently says, 'quality time my ass'. "What? We were. Look, she's not a simple tryst Ben, it's nothing like what you think. I actually love the woman, brother", he says defensively.

Benjamin looks at his younger brother with a face of concerned disbelief, "Brother, when I heard you say you love her, I truly thought you meant as a friend or quinquen-companion, or a forbidden pleasure piece or something... I had no idea you were sincere". "Well, I was and still am. I love her to the depths of me brother, I don't know how it happened... but I do" Baron confesses. Now Benjamin really has a reason to worry, "Baron, listen to yourself, would you?!" he scolds slapping his brother in the back of the head, "ow, what the hell!", Baron chides. Benjamin couldn't care less of his brother's pain at the moment, he is livid at his younger brother's carelessness and stupidity. "This is an exceptionally dangerous and extremely STUPID path little brother! Yes, admittedly, I may fool with the affections of princesses and duchesses from time to time but they are PRINCESSES and DUCHESSES, free for the taking. But Regina, my dear brother... she - is - a - QUEEN! And not the single-ruler kind, NO! She's the married to a KING kind! The married to a KING that's a long-time friend of our family kind! Please little brother, come to your senses. I know you feel what you feel and I can't change that but think of the whole picture. PLEASE. If you be found out, you can just be banished... exiled, never to return to this kingdom. It'll probably bring a rift between our kingdoms which won't hurt too much as we are self-sufficient, but that's all; Regina however, will be EXECUTED, charged with the high crime of TREASON and even if she is just exiled... it'll completely sully her good name" he finishes, calming from his lays his hands on either of his brother's shoulders and sighs, "Look brother, if you really love her, you'll let her go... you have to for her safety and yours.... That or... I don't know... come up with some extravagant way to have her without the impending consequences, which is damn near impossible bu-" he concludes with comic sarcasm.

Baron heard nothing else of his older brother's rant other than his last phrase and it excites him to no end, "see brother, that's why I love you!" he embraces him and exclaims "you're a genius!" Benjamin deadpans knowing his overly optimistic younger brother, "you've heard nothing I've said, have you?", "oh but I have, big brother. You're quite correct, what we're doing is dangerous, and no you can't change how I feel, what we feel, actually. Brother, I do love her and want nothing more than her safety and happiness. So, I will do as you've so ingeniously suggested. I will 'find an extravagant way of having her without the impending consequences'. I don't know how right now... but I will, hopefully, soon. Until then, I just need you to do for me as I do for you and cover for me, ok?" Baron all but pleads. Benjamin tries to get a word in edgewise still trying to talk some sense into his overly naïve, younger brother, "Baron that's not wh-".