40. Lily

"Well, well, my dear—don't you look Royal tonight." Mordren's sharp, bluish-purple eyes raked over me as Sel and Krynn escorted me to my seat at the High Table.

"Thank you, Lord Regent," I said coolly, settling myself in the chair across from him. Lady Elgiana was beside him and Lady Nolana was to my right. I still hadn't learned the other Nobles' names, but they all nodded at me genially enough and I nodded back.

"I love your outfit," Elgiana remarked. She was wearing another gown that was literally half a shade off of Royal Purple yet again.

This time I was sure it was meant as an insult but I wasn't sure what to do about it. Was I supposed to have her arrested for wearing my color? That seemed kind of extreme but then again, I was itching to do something to her. When I thought of how she'd infected Krynn with the Needing and then tormented him with it, I wanted to reach across the table and slap her perfect face!

"I'm rather surprised you wore it, though," she said, while I was still trying to come up with a solution.

"And why is that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. If she was going to give me some kind of backhanded compliment or say the gown didn't look good on me, I wasn't going to let it bother me a bit. I knew damn good and well that I looked spectacular in this gown—it went with my curves and my new eyes and hair perfectly.

"Well, I just thought you might be dressed in a Quenching gown, that's all." Lady Elgiana shrugged. "It would be more fitting for the show you're about to put on."

"Show? What show?" I demanded, frowning.

"Why, your Public Quenching, my dear." Mordren gave me an evil smile. "The one you're going to perform for the entire Court as soon as the Banquet of Investment is finished."

"I'm not doing any such thing!" I exclaimed. So far every time I had taken blood from someone, it had been either a violent or an extremely intimate and sexual experience. I had no intention of doing it in front of a crowd of people I didn't know.

"Oh? Then I suppose you wish to extend my Regency. A wise choice, considering that you're really too young and inexperienced to wear the Midnight Crown," Mordren said casually.

"I never said that." I was holding on to my temper with both hands at this point. "I'm happy to take the Throne of the Midnight Court tomorrow on the Autumn Equinox and claim my rightful place as Queen. Your services, Lord Mordren, will not be needed anymore—I can assure you of that."

His eyes narrowed but he kept a smirk on his face.

"But my dear Princess, I'm afraid you must choose one or the other. Either you give us a Public Quenching tonight or you agree to another hundred years of Regency."

"How do you figure that, Mordren?" Sel growled from behind me.

Mordren's eyes opened wide.

"Why, it's the law! If an ascending Queen has refused to show that her Thirst is under control in the Quenching Parlor then she must either prove it to the Court with a Public Quenching or she must agree to extend the term of the Lord Regent by one hundred years until she can be deemed old enough and trusted enough to take the throne. I'm sure your little friend, the Royal Records Keeper, can tell you that." He nodded at Krynn, who stood behind me by Sel.

"That law hasn't been used in over two thousand years!" Krynn said angrily. "And it was only placed on the books for one very specific case—when Princess Petalla drained two Nobles at a ball before her coronation. And it wasn't her fault—her Thirst had come on her early and at an unexpected time."

"Nevertheless, the law is still on the books, which makes it legal and binding." Mordren's smirk grew. "And I am invoking it now, since you ran from the Quenching Parlor before you satiated your Thirst last night, Princess."

"She's quenched her Thirst—I can attest to that myself," Sel growled. "There's no need to put her through a public spectacle."

"Unfortunately, though I wish I could take your word as Captain of the Palace Guard, I fear your veracity is compromised," Mordren said coldly. "It's clear you are under some kind of spell that makes you favor the Princess over all else. You and the Royal Records Keeper too," he added, nodding at Krynn.

"Under a spell?" I demanded. "What are you talking about?"

"I do believe Lord Mordren is saying that you've bewitched them, my dear," Lady Elgiana purred.

"We don't need to be bewitched or bespelled to be loyal to the rightful Queen of the Midnight Court," Krynn said, placing a hand on my bare shoulder. I could feel his outrage at what Mordren was implying. "All those who are loyal to the line of Lolth and who wish to have one of her true descendants on the Throne should feel the same. It's well known the Dark Fae cannot prosper without a true Queen."

"We're not under any fucking spell," Sel growled. He put a hand on my other shoulder and I felt his rage, simmering just below the surface. He had never liked Mordren and now he would have been happy to break the Lord Regent's neck.

His feelings alarmed me and I reached up to put a hand over his.

"It's all right, Sel," I murmured. "I don't like it, but I can do it. I mean, all I have to do is drink from someone where everyone can see me—right?"

"You don't understand, my Lady," Krynn said softly. "It's not just drinking blood that you must perform at a Public Quenching."

"It's not?" I looked up at him and he shook his head.

"Remember that the Thirst always comes with sexual hunger attached to it," he reminded me.

"In other words it's not just biting someone and drinking from them—you're going to have to perform a suck and fuck in front of the entire Court," Sel rumbled.

"What? But why?" I demanded. "Why can't we just go back to the Quenching Parlor and do it there?" I didn't like the idea of Mordren watching me be intimate with my guys, but it was a hell of a lot better than doing it in front of the entire Dark Fae Court!

"I'm sorry, my dear," Mordren answered my question before either Sel or Krynn could speak. "But you forfeited your right to a Private Quenching when you ran from the Quenching Parlor last night. Now as a responsible Lord Regent I have had to deem you unsafe to be Queen. So you can either perform for the Court tonight or agree to extend my Regency. By Fae Law, those are your only two choices."

I looked up at Krynn.

"Is he telling the truth?"

"I'm afraid so, my Lady." Krynn looked extremely unhappy. But since he was no longer touching me, I couldn't feel the emotion—only see it on his face.

"Well?" Mordren drummed his fingers on the table. "Which is it to be?"

"Give me a minute," I said tightly. "I need to think."

I rose from the table and walked down the steps of the dais it was set on with Krynn and Seldarin following close behind. There were murmurs all around us as the Court watched us go, but I kept my chin high and said nothing until we were outside the vast Banquet Hall and we could talk privately.

"All right—what am I supposed to do?" I asked when we were out in the empty hallway and I was sure no one was listening. "Because I'm damn sure not going to let Mordren rule for another hundred years!" I added, answering my own question.

"Then you either have to let someone fuck you while you drink from them…or fuck someone yourself while you take their blood," Sel said. "I recommend the latter. If you allow the Court to see you getting fucked, it's a sign of weakness."

"Sel is right—you need to prove you're strong and not subservient to anyone," Krynn said.

"But whoever you fuck will be publicly shamed," Sel remarked. "Submission is seen as a sign of weakness in the Midnight Court. It's one reason those with the Needing are so despised. Sorry, Krynn," he added.

"No, don't apologize. You're speaking the truth." Krynn sighed. "It's unfortunate but true—there is a definite prejudice against those who wish to submit themselves sexually."

"You'd better fuck me," Sel said abruptly. "I can take the hit."

"No, you can't!" Krynn objected immediately. "What if Mordren tries to stage a coup? If the Palace guards see you getting taken like a woman in front of the whole Court, they won't respect you and follow you anymore—they'll side with Mordren and there will be no way to beat him!"

"Well, you can't do it!" Sel growled. "It will expose your Needing to the whole Court. Not to mention your wings, since you know Mordren is going to demand that whoever gets fucked does it in the nude."

"He will? Why?" I asked.

"There's no other way to show proper submission to a Royal," Krynn explained. "Look—this is what Mordren is counting on," he said, before Seldarin could object again. "He thinks that none of us is going to be willing to get up on stage and expose ourselves in front of the Court."

"We shouldn't have to!" I said angrily.

If I did manage to get the Throne of the Midnight Court, I promised myself I was going to hand out some severe retribution to the Lord Regent. At the very least he was going to be demoted. I wondered how he would like living in the basements with the Lesser Fae for a while? Say, a thousand years or so.

"You're right, my Lady, we shouldn't have to but we cannot change the law," Krynn said. He shook his head. "I should have foreseen this. I knew about that law—it's just been so long since it was invoked I'd forgotten all about it."

"You can't blame yourself," Sel told him. "Even if we'd known about it in advance, there's not much we could have done. But I still don't think you should be the one the Princess fucks."

"Why does it have to be either of you?" I asked, though the idea of biting someone other than my two guys turned my stomach. "Maybe I could find someone else…a willing volunteer, possibly?"

"You won't find anyone to volunteer to be bitten by an untried Queen who hasn't proved her Thirst is under control," Sel said grimly. "Besides, the idea of you biting or fucking any other male makes me want to pound them!" he added, his voice dropping to a growl.

"I don't like the idea of sharing you with anyone but Sel, either, my Lady," Krynn told me. "We'll lose you soon enough, when you choose your Royal Consort. Let us do this for you tonight—let us serve you one last time before you ascend to the Throne and pick another to stand by your side."

"I don't want anyone else but you two!" I protested. "But I don't want to expose either of you to ridicule or shame, either. Maybe one of you ought to, er, fuck me instead."

"No, absolutely not," Sel growled, shaking his head. "You're already at a disadvantage, Princess. You didn't grow up in Court and the people don't know you and love you as they would if you had. You can't appear weak in front of them."

"Sel is right—it would be a poor start to your reign," Krynn agreed. He looked at me earnestly. "My Lady…choose me. Take me. I am only the Records Keeper and Historian—it won't matter if the Court finds out I'm a Needer. I'm certain Lady Elgiana has spread enough gossip about me by now that most of them at least know I'm a Sin Eater. And it's a short step from there to the Needing."

Sel frowned, his face like a thundercloud.

"You shouldn't have to do this, Krynn! You shouldn't have to expose your weakness to the whole Court!"

Krynn put a hand on his shoulder, a look of gratitude and love crossing his lovely face.

"Sel, I can see that you're trying to spare me and I appreciate it, but I'm the logical choice for the Princess to take."

"Why? Just because you're submissive?" the big Fae demanded.

Krynn shook his head.

"No, because I need this." He sighed deeply. "Look, you've been helping me with my Needing Cycle for a long time and believe me, I'm grateful. But being whipped isn't enough anymore." A look of shameful defiance came over his face. "I need…I need to be fucked," he said in a low voice.

Sel looked stricken.

"Krynn, you know if I could?—"

"I know," Krynn said quickly. "And I don't blame you at all, believe me. But during the last few cycles, the Needing hasn't been completely satisfied. And you know what could happen if it keeps building up."

"What could happen?" I asked, concerned but also curious.

"He could get really fucking sick," Sel growled. "The magical parasite inside him could start sucking away his life force." He shook his head. "Why didn't you tell me, Krynn?"

"Because there was nothing you could do about it," Krynn said gently. "And there was nothing I could do either—other than going back to Lady Elgiana and you know how I feel about that."

"You need to stay away from that poisonous bitch," Sel growled, his eyebrows drawing low over his burning bronze eyes. "Especially now that we know she's in league with Mordren."

"I have no intention of going anywhere near her," Krynn said calmly. "But I need to be dominated and taken." He looked at me. "Please, my Lady. I want to give myself to you."

"Even if it means some kind of public humiliation?" I asked uncertainly.

Krynn nodded.

"I don't care what the Court thinks of me—the only opinions I value are yours and Sel's."

Sel put a hand on Krynn's shoulder and squeezed.

"You know I won't think less of you, no matter what."

"I know." Impulsively, Krynn hugged him.

Without hesitation, Sel hugged him back, wrapping his long arms around the other Fae and pulling him in for a close embrace. Krynn pressed his face to the big Fae's throat and breathed deeply, as though the scent of his best friend comforted him.

I felt tears prickle behind my eyes as I watched the two of them. Krynn had told me that they had grown up in the Palace together—both hated and despised because they were half-breeds, so they had only each other. I was almost certain that if Sel hadn't been so straight they would have been more than friends, but even so, their friendship and devotion to each other tugged at my heart.

At last the two of them pulled apart and I thought I saw the glimmer of tears in Krynn's lovely green eyes. But when he turned to me, he was calm.

"I'm ready, my Lady," he said firmly. "Ready to submit to you. Please, use me."

I bit my lip. It touched me deeply that he was willing to do this for me, mainly because I sensed he would still have been willing even if he hadn't had the Needing.

"Thank you, Krynn," I said. "I…I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything. You have to fuck," Sel growled. He raised an eyebrow at me. "Have you ever fucked anyone before, Princess?"

I felt my cheeks getting hot with a blush.

"If you mean have I ever strapped on a harness and dildo and, er, penetrated anyone, then the answer is ‘no.'"

The big Fae frowned.

"Hmm, then a lesson might be in order before the Public Quenching."

I raised my eyebrows at him.

"You're going to teach me how to fuck?"

"I'll see what I can do," he promised. "But first we need to go back to the Banquet Hall and tell Mordren he's shit-out-of-luck and there's no fucking way he's getting another hundred years added on to his Regency."