Unquiet Slumber (30 page)

While the group discussed Marcus’s proposal for a possible alliance, the male knights were constantly glancing toward Tianna and she was becoming paranoid.

When it was time to eat, the group was joined by other villagers, both male and female. They were followed by a much younger group that carried in food and drink. Tianna’s heart dropped. How was she supposed to eat? Even as she had the thought, huge hands picked her up and placed a stone block underneath her and set her back down. He was able to pick her up with just a few fingers on one hand.

She wasn’t sure how to respond so she just smiled and said “Thank you.” The knight beamed at her like she had given him a great prize.

The servers came and went with food and drink. It seemed that part of growing up in the castle was to serve their elders. Tianna liked how kindly the knights treated those that served them and they thanked them graciously for whatever they brought to the table.

The Draaks grinned from ear to ear as plates heaping tall with a wide variety of meat and breads were placed on the table in front of them. Gabriel couldn’t help but exclaim, “Now that’s more like it!”

Tianna moaned quietly to herself. Eating meals this heavy would make her tired and listless. She was grateful when a few plates arrived that held some fruits and vegetables.

Shifting her attention from the food, she took a moment to survey the adult females of the castle. They varied from the height of Gabriel and taller, making Tianna feel even more like a child. Although strong, their bodies were well proportioned and very feminine. She was pleased to see that they each wore clothing of their choice, from frilly dresses to warrior attire. Along with the wide variety of clothing, the color and hairstyles of both males and females also varied with each individual, from very long hair pulled back into ponytails to very short styles, and in colors from jet back to bright red. Tianna loved that this castle embraced the individual. Being different from each other seemed a normal part of their culture.

Everyone began to eat and drink using oversized plates. They all drank some kind of ale but when it was passed to Tianna, she shook her head. She quickly explained that she reacted badly to liquor so she wouldn’t indulge. Within minutes, a kind old female brought Tianna a pitcher of another kind of drink. Nathaniel tasted it first to make sure it was liquor free, and then handed a goblet full to Tianna.

Tianna tried to drink from her goblet, except it was very large for her, and therefore awkward to drink from. A young male server quickly came running with a smaller cup, most likely one they used for their children. Tianna accepted the cup graciously.

She thought the drink was wonderful. It was some kind of fruit based drink that bubbled when she swallowed. She couldn’t help but giggle. She assumed it was a drink designed for their children, but she liked it.

Although all of her Draaks were having lively conversations, Tianna remained quiet. With all of the eyes on her, she was getting uncomfortable and kept thinking that something about her appearance was distracting them. She leaned over to Nathaniel. “I think I had better find some other clothes to wear while I’m here.”

Nathaniel scanned the room. “I don‘t think your clothes is what has them in a spell.”

Before she could ask him what he meant, the knight that was sitting to her other side motioned her over. She leaned toward him so she could hear over all of the other conversations going on.

He asked her what her status was. Tianna was confused. “I’m sorry, but I don’t understand what you mean.”

“Do you have a mate?” he asked with hope in his eyes.

Nathaniel overheard the question and tried to jump in quickly to answer for Tianna, but she innocently blurted out the truth. “No, I’m not mated.”

Nathaniel knew this was the wrong answer to give these infatuated knights.

The knight got a huge grin on his face, sat back up, and slammed his fists onto the table knocking several goblets of wine over. He let out a roar and said, “Excellent!”

Nathaniel shook his head and knew Tianna was now an open target. He started to rub his temples as if his head was hurting.

Within seconds, the news of Tianna’s status had spread around the room, no doubt throughout the entire castle. Tianna crouched down further in her seat knowing that she should have given a different answer. She glanced up at Nathaniel with an ‘I‘m sorry’ look and he rolled his eyes. He knew he had to do something quick to turn this situation around, so he put his arm around her and pulled her in tight, announcing, “She may not be mated yet, but we are together.”

It had no effect on the knights present. They saw their target and wouldn’t be deflected. Nathaniel didn’t let go of Tianna for a second for the remainder of the gathering.

Gabriel spent the evening deep in discussion with a black haired female named Hannah. They had much in common given she had lost her mate the previous year in a battle. He was also fascinated to learn that she was one of their best stone masons. When questioned, she said that everyone in the village did jobs based on the natural skills they possessed, regardless of gender. When Tianna overhead Hannah speaking, she joined in on the discussion and asked her all kinds of questions about her trade and the other jobs in her village. Seeing Tianna’s genuine interest, Hannah promised to show her around the castle and introduce her to some of the local tradesmen.

After their meal ended, a small group of young females came in and directed them to where they could stay for the night. At first, they took Tianna to her own room but Nathaniel protested. He insisted that they all share a room. He knew that she may need all of them present to protect her from her ‘admirers’.

Their guides gawked at the Draaks and then examined Tianna thoroughly. Tianna thought they were trying to figure out how she was lucky enough to have four males of her own. Tianna gave them a big smile and grabbed Nathaniel’s arm.

They then led them to a larger room. They all entered and their guides said they would be back with clothes. They directed Tianna to a large cabinet in the corner and said, “There are some clothes in there. They’ll be big for you, but you’re free to use whatever you can find.”

Everything in this room was designed for giants. Tianna had stayed in huts that were smaller than the canopy bed. Given the average size of their knights, she guessed it made sense.

Tianna found a very pretty night dress which she decided to wear. It probably was really a shirt but it hung down past her knees. The scooped neck did hang a little too low so she had to keep pulling it up. Wearing local clothes was going to be an issue. She was going to have to find children’s clothes to wear or wear her own. Her own clothes showed off her curves and she didn’t think that was wise around the knights.

After Tianna was dressed, she did a little circle dance to show off her attire. They all chuckled but said it suited her.

Nathaniel scanned her up and down. “Feel free to sleep naked. I won’t complain.” He gave her a crooked smile.

Tianna, ignoring his comment, walked to the edge of the bed and found another issue. Like all of their furniture, the height of the bed was too tall for her. She was about to jump up into it when Nathaniel scooped her up and tossed her gently into the middle of the bed. She thanked him reluctantly. This castle was going to be challenging in so many ways.

They each found a spot somewhere in the room to curl up to sleep. They were scattered all over. One was in a chair, another on a rug on the floor, and yet another next to the fireplace.

As everyone was getting settled in, Tianna spoke to her protectors. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cause problems. I just answered the knight’s question without thinking.”

They just grunted back at her. They knew how much trouble they were going to have while they were there.

Tianna rolled over in the bed trying to get comfortable. “I really don’t think it’s going to be an issue. I don‘t even understand why they would even be interested in me. I’m like a child compared to the size of their females.”

Marcus who was lying down by the fireplace sat up. “Well, I guess you need to know.”

Tianna stared at him confused.

“It’s your scent. I was talking to a couple of the males during our meal. Turns out your scent is driving them crazy. Basically, they’re all getting drunk sniffing you. It’s like they’re cats and you’re catnip. I’m assuming it’s your Faye nature.”

Tianna didn’t know what to say. “Oh no,” is all that came out of her mouth. After a moment to ponder on her situation, she asked, “If it’s my scent they like, why did he want to know if I was mated?”

Marcus answered, “To approach another male’s mate is socially unacceptable here. Since you told them you weren’t mated, that gave them permission to ask you to spend time with them. They each want to experience the Faye sensation.”

Nathaniel, who was lying next to her on the bed, stared straight up at the ceiling and cursed.

Tianna shook her head. “I think you’re all over-reacting. By morning they’ll have forgotten all about me.”

Just then there was a knock at the door and Gabriel answered it. Several knights were standing in the doorway, surprised to see Gabriel. The knight in front said, “I’m sorry. We thought this was Tianna’s room.”

“It is.” Gabriel glared up at them.

They scanned the room quickly until they found their target, who was now sitting up in the bed. One of the visiting knights spoke in a hopeful voice. “We wanted to know if Tianna wanted to join us for a drink.” He held out a very large bottle of wine.

Gabriel responded for the room. “As you can see, Tianna is already in bed so she won’t be going out tonight.” He added to himself, “
or any night while we’re here
.” The thought of her Faye nature being impacted by wine with these already Faye influenced males made him shiver.

One of the other knights called out to Tianna before leaving. “If you change your mind, we’ll be just outside. We’ll wait all night.”

Gabriel pushed them out of the room and locked the door.

By the time Gabriel laid back down, a small rock hit the coverings for one of the windows. This time Nathaniel got up and pulled back the fabric to find several males standing below staring up with hope in their eyes.

Before they had a chance to say anything, Nathaniel yelled down to them. “Tianna is in bed with me! Go away.” He threw the material roughly into place and stomped loudly back to the bed.

Tianna was hiding under the covers so that only her eyes peeked out. Nathaniel settled himself in and pulled her close with another growl.

Over the course of the night, their sleep was interrupted six more times. Several of the knights had brought gifts for Tianna’s protectors as an exchange for letting Tianna come out. Tianna didn’t know how to handle this. Until she met her Draaks, all the men she knew were frightened of her. No one stared at her with the interest these strangers were showing her.

In the morning, Marcus stood and stretched as if he was achy from lack of sleep. “We need a plan, my brothers. I need to negotiate alliance terms with their leaders. Given their obvious strength, we could use their help in the war.”

Gabriel looked at Tianna with some sympathy. “What are we going to do about Tianna’s situation?”

 Tianna offered a suggestion. “Maybe I shouldn’t leave my room while we’re here. You can all go out and work with the knights, and I can just lock my door. If they can’t smell me, I should be fine.”

Nathaniel let out a loud, “Ha!” and added, “Given how they acted last night, these walls aren’t hiding your scent from anyone. And given their size, I don’t think a locked door would stop them, especially if they knew you were in here alone.”

Marcus pondered for a few minutes. “She would be safer if she stayed close by where we can keep an eye on her.” He stared at Nathaniel. “You don’t let her out of your sight for a second.” He turned and said, “Gabriel and Seth can stay with you until we see how they react today.”

They all agreed and got dressed with the local clothes their guide had dropped off the night before. Tianna tried to pick something to wear that she thought was the least attractive on her. Once dressed, Nathaniel inspected her outfit and shook his head. He had her put something on that he picked out. It was an oversized shirt that she tied a rope around the center to make into a dress.

Nathaniel hung his head. “Brothers, we’re in trouble. I think she would look good in a feed sack.”