The Curse and the Traveler's

[only_more_so]

"Max, what exactly does the curse say. Not the generalization that I was told about a Chosen One and all that but the exact wording of it? I mean obviously your people have interpreted it wrong."

Max looked down at Skye, and could see her frustration. "Skye, I know how you must feel being thrust into this. Imagine how I feel, living with this curse hanging over my head for my entire life. Each generation worries for decades about what the solution to the curse is, and each generation gets one try to see if their solution works."

Making a throwing away gesture, Max continued, "But all of that isn't important for your question. If the curse were merely a riddle, I am sure someone would have figured it out by now. There is no text of the curse, at least none that I've ever found. Maybe in that book I couldn't read it had the curse written down. What we know of the curse we have learned through magic and trial and error. The fairies are much better users of magic than we are, so we can't unravel the whole pattern, only parts."

"It is like reading a foreign language, we can translate the words, but we don't know the sentence structure. If someone were to give you the words: throw, ball, boy, you would assume it means the boy throws the ball. But suppose it was: bite, dog, man, is the man biting the dog or the dog the man?"

"What we do know is: Heir, marriage, chosen, woman and release. It isn't just woman, the word implies a beautiful or powerful or renown woman, not a common woman. Also implied is that chosen is associated with the woman. As for the marriage, it means more than the contract, it implies the binding of the two people, probably through consumation of the marriage (which is often done in front of an audience apparently)."

"It is very frustrating not to have a clear picture of the curse. But David and I are, or at least we were, convinced that the woman should be chosen not for external beauty, power or fame, but for the depth of her person. So when we asked the seers to search, they found you. And we ended up with someone beautiful and with more power than we originally could see. We also believed that the release wasn't us from the curse, but the chosen one from the obligation. That is why we have said all along we would return you to your world."

Max regarded Skye as she tried to take in all he was saying. He kissed her softly. "There are other random things, but it is hard to put many of them into words without a context. So perhaps if you asked specific questions, I could address those. Or we could..." Max trailed off quickly and flushed red. He could hardly believe he nearly suggest that, at a time like this!

 

[caela]

While Skye had listened to Max she'd also replaced her necklace around her neck. It's light still shone just as brightly as before but since it obviously wasn't going to lead them out of the fog she decided that wearing it was the best way not to lose it.

She couldn't make much sense of the few clues he had given her and it frustrated her not to be able to solve this problem. Unless the curse was broken it was unlikely they'd ever get out of this fog but would simply wander aimlessly through it forever.

So perhaps if you asked specific questions, I could address those. Or we could...

Startled at his suggestion she looked up at him and grinned impishly while he blushed. Turning toward him she reached up and gently cupped his cheek, her fingers caressing his face tenderly.

"We could what Max?" she asked softly though they both knew what he had been about to suggest. Looking around them she laughed softly and pulled him close to press her lips to his in a softly lingering kiss filled with her love and passion for him.

"We could finish what we've been dancing around for days perhaps? Can you truly think of a good reason why we shouldn't now Max? We're alone where no one can disturb us. We've already given ourselves to the fog and agreed there's no way back. It seems to be holding off for now so why shouldn't we be allowed one small moment of happiness before it claims us?"

She couldn't believe she was saying such things but somehow it just felt right. She'd been needing him for days and if they were to die out here she didn't want to die having never known him.

"I love you Max, and even if it's only this once I want to show you that in the way of a man and a woman."

 

[poohlive]

"But.. I, Serena?" The ground felt cold beneath him, water had long since chilled the tile. The very air seemed different in the room, thick and stale, making breathing a chore.

He only wanted to help her. Serena looked at him as if he offered her suffering the world over.

She was no longer some silly naive little child, bumbling after him in some vain attemtpt to catch up. He had once told himself he could love her, if she wasn't sucha silly girl. Now, that he had seen what experience has done to her, how that cold and hardened face replaced those bright young eyes once staring as wide as they could simply so she would not miss anything, David only wanted the old Serena back.

They always said be careful what you wish for, and now, David knew how true that was.

"I never meant..."

The doctor came in, a black bag in his hand, and two guards by his side. He took one look at Serena and ushered her into the large bed.

"What in the world happened to her?"

David didn't know if that question could be answered. He just paused, moving to the corner, unsure what to do anymore. Anything he had ever touched turned to shit or left him. At the moment, David didn't feel very confident in anything at all.

"I'm sorry, Serena."

 

[RedHairedandFriendly]

Serena took a deep breath and told the doctor the truth. He knew of Derek and when she explained that he was the man her parents’ had insisted she marry, his eyes grew dark. He’d liked the girl, thought she was flighty, but he’d liked her. Then she’d just gotten odd and now she was even more strange. He looked at her bruises and small cuts. “You’ll be okay. I have to look else where... you say he forced you?”

“Yes, but he was quick. There is no damage there that I think would be considered not normal.”

“Are you sure?” the doctor asked.

“Yes, I am sure. I will be fine. I am always fine,” she told him.

He looked her over and then turned to David. “She’s actually quite calm. I guess that trip made the little girl grow up didn’t it. Your father knows there was chaos and she was involved.”

He turned back to Serena. “They are cleaning your room, but it will take some time. I will tell the King your story, but I’m sure he will want to hear the details from you. You killed a man Serena. . .You almost killed our Prince. . .You have a lot to answer for.”

The doctor left her there in the middle of David’s bed and all she could do was wait for something to happen to her. She was ready now. She was more than ready to let the King punish her. She was grown up after all. A Duchess even... and she didn’t even have to have David make her one. She wiped at the tears that kept threatening to fall, she’d not let them. She was a woman, not a girl.

 

[only_more_so]

Max was suddenly very nervous at the thought of actually possessing Skye in the most intimate way. He could feel the air cool on his bare back, but his front was almost hot with Skye so close to him.

He quickly picked the knife out of the earth and tucked it in his belt, behind his back. He then scooped Skye up in his arms, and looked down at her before kissing her gently. "This is the way a man takes his woman to bed in your world, isn't it?"

He started walked a ways, he doubted he would find anywhere more comfortable than the lawn they were currently standing on, but it felt appropriate to take her someplace to do this.

As he walked he thought for a moment and then looked down at the beautiful girl in his arms. "Skye, before we do this, will you marry me? I know it sounds silly, given the situation, and there would be no priest or witnesses except the fog. But I want to be yours forever..." He didn't add, even if forever was only a day.

 

[caela]

Skye laughed softly as he scooped her up in his arms. She didn't know where exactly he was going to take her, and figured he probably didn't know either, but she appreciated the gesture. Returning his kiss she snuggled into his arms content to go anywhere with him.

"Skye, before we do this, will you marry me? I know it sounds silly, given the situation, and there would be no priest or witnesses except the fog. But I want to be yours forever..."

Smiling up at him she kissed him softly, "It doesn't sound silly at all and the answer is yes. I don't need a priest or a witness to be bound to you love. I will be yours forever."

Reaching up and brushing a stray lock of hair back from his eyes she smiled, "Even if forever is only tonight for our bodies, my spirit will find yours on the other side. I promised you I'd never leave and I meant it darling."

 

[poohlive]

"Serena..." He knelt beside her on the bed, his hand coming out for hers, feeling how soft and warm it was. She was such a strong woman, so much stronger than before.

"I'm sorry. I want to help you, but I can't. Father's taken away everything from me. He thinks..."

David didn't want to know what he thought, what everyone though. Even Serena. He had either succombed to something, or was filled with some wild hatred for his own brother. Either way, his word... whatever it used to hold in the kingdom, it didn't anymore.

"... it doesn't matter. I wanted to keep my promise for you, I wanted to make sure you were taken care of, but I don't know if I can do that here. I'm powerless. If I had it my way, you never would have married Derek. You never would have had to endure all of this. You would could have been whatever you wanted, done those things only found in your dreams.

"It just shouldn't end like this, should it? After all this, all we've been through?" He looked outside at the fog, coming in, pinning them down, destroying the whole town one piece at a time.

"I wanted a happy ending," He fell back against the bed frame, his whole body shaking, "I just wanted everyone to be happy."

 

[RedHairedandFriendly]

She shook her thoughts away, thoughts of how wonderful it was to have him touch her as if she was the one he cared for and loved. She bit back the words of devotion and swallowed them. She squeezed his hand and looked into his eyes. “There are no happy endings. Those are for fairy tales. Sadly,” she left his hand, “this is not a fairy tale.”

Serena needed a distraction. Having him beside her was giving her all sorts of ill feelings. They rolled though her and she felt her stomach tightening. She knew she had to hide these things. What kind of woman killed her husband and then got all giddy when the man she loved touched her? A woman didn’t. A child did. She was not a child any more. “Your father has enough to worry about with your brother being lost in the fog and now Skye too. I shouldn’t have added to his troubles. What will they do with me David?”

Her fingers trembled as she pushed back her damp hair. “I am a terrible woman and I have made so many mistakes. Why is it that I can not just accept who I am and be happy with it? We are alike David... both trying to be something we aren’t. You tried to love a woman you couldn’t have because your brother fell in love with her. . .and she loved him. David... I must tell you something. . .It is my fault that much of this has happened.”

She slid off the bed and walked over to the desk, looked at the man in the reflection. His features looked tired and drawn. He also looked a bit confused by her words of admission. “When Max was stabbed and was dying... or slipping away into unconsciousness he whispered something to me. Something I kept to myself. Why? Because I had been taught and told the same thing you had. You were to marry Skye and break the curse.”

Her hand moved over the items on his desk and she toyed with them as she spoke. “He told me he loved someone. I knew who. I didn’t say anything though, because I thought it would be better to not tell. I believe I was wrong. Had I told you wouldn’t be where you are... well... perhaps you wouldn’t be. Max asked me to tell Skye he loved her. He didn’t say her name, but he’d started to say someones... It was hers. I felt it the moment he said it. I tried to keep him company, to watch over him so he would not develop feelings for her, but I couldn’t. I ran away and you followed and then they were left together. Perhaps if I had come to you and confessed all or gone to your parents... but I didn’t. I failed you. I failed our world.”

Her gaze left his and she slipped into the chair that rested in front of his desk. Timidly she picked up things here and there until her fingers paused over the red leather bound book. “David, I didn’t know you kept a Diary. I did once.” Her fingers itched to read it, but she didn’t. She turned back to him. “I am sorry I didn’t tell you about Max and his love for your woman.”

 

[poohlive]

"It wouldn't have changed anything," David said, sitting down on his bed. The soft folds of the matress curled up against his weight. He looked so tiny in this position, like some lost boy searching for a trail of breadcrumbs.

Or a straight answer.

"Things might have been different, but we would have come to the same conclusion. Max loves Skye. Sky loves Max. I love Sky, and Serena... Serena you love me. I love you too, Serena. Remember that? Remember, I told you that once. I told you I loved you. I told you, back in the hotel in Vegas, I said, if things were different, if I hadn't been told my whole life I was supposed to marry the chosen one, I was supposed to be with Skye. If I didn't spend every day pining over her, being forced to save the world by getting her love and affection, if I had a choice in the matter, I would have chosen you."

He stared down at his hands, small and insignificant against his thighs.

"But, I didn't get a choice. I was told what to do, and like a good prince, I did it. I loved her, and I still love her, and there's nothing anyone can do about it..."

He paused, looking up at Serena, "It isn't my diary. It's just some book in a foreign language, Skye's the only one who can read it."

DAvid got up, showing her the pages of dribble, unfamiliar words and unintelligable cyphers that stared at them from across the pages. His hand touched hers briefly.

"Except you, Serena. You could save me, you know," He looked at her, his eyes soft and kind, "You were right earlier, you know. You wanted me to purge my own past, stop trying to save you, and maybe save myself. Well, what if I did that? What if you helped me make a choice I never got to make growing up?"

He put his hands on her shoulders, "Serena, let me forget everyting about the chosen one. Let me forget I was supposed to marry her, and supposed to love her. If I forget everything I have ever known about Skye and what she did to me, then I can be free to make a choice about who I want to marry, who I want to love.

"And you can be that person. You said so yourself, there's something wrong with me? OF course there is. I was the only one thinking about the curse. Don't you see that, Serena? Max only thought of his love, Skye only thought of her true feelings, and you only thought of what best to do for yourself? I was the only one thinking of the country, I was the only one who put my feelings aside and decided long ago I would do what is best for everyone else, not myself."

He kissed her, softly on the lips, his mind afire now, "With one kiss, just like that, I can forget everything about the curse, and Skye, and it'll just be you in my life. You and me, we can both be selfish, we can both love each other for the few hours we have left. It will be just like you wanted, Serena. It will be just like in your dreams, isn't that what you want? I want to love you, Serena. Let me..."

 

[RedHairedandFriendly]

Serena stood there holding the book he’d handed to her. It seemed warm, but that feeling was lost to her the more she listened to David and his words. Her lips ached for more, yet she denied them what they wanted and spoke, “You didn’t mean it David and neither did I.”

She took the book and turned away. “In Vegas... You said you’d choose me. David, I’m the only other woman whose associated with you long enough to be a friend and not some woman of the Court that wants you for your crown. You love me? Perhaps, but not the way you should for someone you marry... not the way I love you. That’s okay though. There are people in all the Worlds that exist that don’t get to be with the person they love.”

She sat back on the bed and toyed with the gold lettering of the book.

“I didn’t mean I wanted you to wipe away your memories. What kind of person would that make me? To let you tear away a part of your life. I also don’t think you are in love with Skye. I don’t see you out there in the fog fighting for her. I don’t see you trying to show her the man I see. You love her? No... you even admitted in Vegas you didn’t think you did. . .so you sit here and wallow over a love you yourself were doubting. Now, you seek the easy way out and expect me to give you the okay and help. No. . . David I won’t do that.”

“You got into a fight over her. But yet. . .were you fighting for love or pride?”

Serena opened the book and ran her fingers down the first page. The symbols were fairy symbols. Taught to many in other worlds, but in her world it was a language long forgotten, but still readable if a person desired to. Fairy was taught, it just wasn’t used. This however seemed to be ancient fairy. She tilted her head and read the first page. It was just a brief entry.

“Oh David, this isn’t Skye’s book. It is the Diary of the Fairy who is one of the pawns behind this blasted curse. It has her name at the top. Elegant writing she had. A past grandmother, long dead to you and yours.”

She closed the book and lay her hands against it.

“David. . .You may not have had a choice on who you loved when you were growing up, but you have a choice from here on out don’t you? You like me as a friend, I can and will accept that. We may only have a few hours left... the curse may lift and we may have years left... but I won’t ask you to erase such a big part of your life just so I can love you. . .I fell in love with the man you are. . .I would hate to not like the man you could be without your memories.”

A thought crossed her mind and she sighed, “David. . .what is sad about all this... I can speak to you so easily about my feelings, because you know of them. . .but I think also because I have accepted that you don’t have those feelings for me. How pitiful is that? I sit here practically begging to have your love, you offer it to me, and then I refuse. Have I grown up enough David? Am I good enough for you now?"

She shook her head in defeat.

"If this fog lifts and if I’m not put to death for murder. . .I think it is time for me to go. With permission. You have all these choices now too. If this curse lifts, then you can go somewhere too, for the first time you can live how you desire.”

She slid under the covers and opened the book again. Serena rolled to her side, “Maybe we’ll meet in our travels.”

She ran her fingers over the soft pages of text and read the first entry.

"Forbidden love, David. . .it all started with forbidden love.”

 

[only_more_so]

As Max carried Skye, he was buoyed by the knowledge that she would marry him, and love him. Not just now, but in all the possible futures. He carried her in silence for a while, he had no idea where he was going, but he knew they weren't there yet. Even though she was a slim girl and he was in good shape, Max thought he should surely be getting tired by now. But he felt as crisp as he was when he first lifted her off the ground.

Max realized that it was getting darker, and the faint sounds of foot steps more hollow. Even as he realized that it was darker, he also realized the fog was thinner. While there were still shapes drifting past his vision, there were now shapes that he was walking past. Tall looming shapes that changed the sounds and shapes and scents around him.

The fog grew thinner still and Max could finally make out that the shapes were trees, and that he carried Skye along some path laid out between them. The thick loam of the earth was soft beneath his feet, and felt uncompacted by man or beast.

The path ended in a glade with thick soft grass growing in the center. It was ringed on all sides by giant trees, and it had a feeling of immense age and calm. Looking back the way they had come, he couldn't find a clear path, even though he was sure he had walked straight on a wide path.

He lowered Skye to the ground and grasped both her hands in his. "I think this is where we were meant to be."

"Skye, my love, in this sanctuary in the midst of the fog, witnessed by these ancient sentinels and whatever good spirits dwell herein, will you become my wife?"

Max couldn't remember any marriage vows he had ever heard, nor the promises that the two people normally made to each other. But to him the word wife embodied all of those promises and more.

But while the trees seemed accepting of what was occuring, the fog creatures, and the fog itself started moving in a frenzy. It couldn't penetrate the tree ring, but he could see the it aching to reach them and attack.

 

[caela]

Skye wondered how long Max was going to carry her and thought to offer to walk a couple of times but instead she just snuggled closer in his arms. She was startled when she realized that the fog had thinned and she could see trees around them. Had they reached the edge and walked out or was this just some odd clearing? She didn't know but as they entered the glade her eyes widened slightly.

It was beautiful! and there was such a sense of power that you felt as if you could almost reach out and scoop it up with your hands. Sliding from Max's arms she smiled up at him her fingers threading through his as their gaze locked. She could feel the love that flowed between them as real and as powerful as the ancient magic that seemed to gaurd this place and it made her smile all the more. This seemed the perfect spot to consumate their love.

"Skye, my love, in this sanctuary in the midst of the fog, witnessed by these ancient sentinels and whatever good spirits dwell herein, will you become my wife?"

Releasing one of his hands she reached up, her fingers caressing his cheek tenderly, seeing nothing but him before her, "I love you Maximillian and I'll take you as my husband from here into eternity and beyond."

Leaning up on her toes to press a soft, gentle kiss to his lips sealing her commitment to him as his wife.

 

[poohlive]

Was it like that? He looked down at his own hands, unsure just what to do. Everyone had told him in one form or another he never really loved Skye. Was it true? He didn't know. He thought he loved Skye, he thought he loved her with all his heart.

Maybe he did just love the idea of her? He didn't know, it had been too long for him to understand anymore. When he'd been told this, he was only eight years old, and the idea intrigued him more than anything else. How is a man supposed to question what he was told as fact when he was just a child?

"The fog won't lift, Serena. I'm sorry, I know you're trying to look for some miracle cure but there is none. Only two people can save this world. The eldest son, and the chosen one. And right now, they are too far apart for it to matter."

He laid down next to her, looking at the strange symbols and extraordinary pieces of iconography.

"Read it... I want to hear this. For this first time in my life, I want to hear the truth."

 

[RedHairedandFriendly]

Serena looked to the windows and wished she could open them, but she could not. David was right the fog would not lift, the Curse would carry through to the end and it was her fault. The weight of it pulled at her and she fought the urge to plead for forgiveness. She knew her words meant nothing. Her actions though had destroyed her people. A tear fell and she looked to the man who had claimed her heart, yet refused to accept it. She would die with him and for that she was thankful. How would it happen? Would she fall asleep in his arms, a book between them? Or perhaps would they be in pain? Both clawing for breath. Perhaps the answers lay in the book beneath her fingers. She opened the pages and started to read.

The words came easily to her. She was confused that David had not been able to read it. Skye had and now so was Serena. Why she wondered? What was special about the two of them? She was nothing like Skye. Skye was beautiful, brave, strong, she was the chosen one. Serena was nothing... she just simply was. The pages spoke of David’s grandmother, several times a Great. It had pages upon pages of childish entries. Some full of childhood dreams and desires.

She read for what seemed like hours, her voice became hoarse and she reached for the water that rested on the table by the bed. Eventually the pages began to speak of a young woman’s dreams and hopes, no longer words of a child filled the pages, but words of a woman.

“She writes of the war. The one between the fairy folk and the trolls.”

Serena sighed and recalled the lessons she’d been taught along side the Princes. They had learned how for thousands of years the group of fairies, humans, and trolls worked together. Each one contributing to the world in some way, until the great storm erupted over the land. It had forced the trolls and fairies to live together.

She looked up to David. “Your grandmother was a fairy and this diary was hers. It must have been one she wrote in before she fell in love with what would later be your grandfather.”

Serena went back to reading. “The rivers and lakes flooded, killing animals and beasts of the forest. Their bodies lay in water, decaying and filling the streams with toxins. The water was polluted and so the fairies and trolls stayed in the castle even longer. She speaks of how the closeness of the races became trying and they started fighting. They battled over little things and the king and queen begged them to find peace within the castle walls. The leaders refused and after many months repairs were made to the villages and the groups left the castle.”

“A few weeks pass and there are no entries...” She showed David the dates on the diary, not knowing if he could or couldn’t read them.

“She writes that she discovered she was pregnant and confesses it to be the Prince that was to be named heir of the Kingdom. She’d never named him before, but in this entry she does. She leaves her home and travels the miles to return to the kingdom. There she confesses to her lover that she carries his child and she is welcomed in. David, the words are beautiful. Words of love and desire, passion...” She blushed and wiped a tear away as she realized she’d have none of these things.

“There is another series of great storms and again the groups come together, seeking refuge within the castle walls. This time the King is your grandfather, the Prince that your fairy grandmother fell in love with. Again the waters flood and the rivers fill with the dead and dying livestock of both cultures. Fights break out and when the groups leave the castle one the fairies accuse the trolls of stealing all their dust.”

She yawned and stretched her tired muscles. “David. I am tired. My throat parched. Could I rest now?”

 

[only_more_so]

"I love you Maximillian and I'll take you as my husband from here into eternity and beyond."

As she kissed him he felt lifted from within, he felt a joy he never knew he could feel. "I love you Skye, and I'll take you as my wife from here into eternity and beyond." He then kissed her again, to seal his side of the vow.

As their lips touched he felt more than heard a loud immensely low thrumming of the air. He could almost see a wave pulse through the air away from them. He knew on an instinctive level that he had turned the first key that would unlock the curse, he also knew David had to unlock the second key.

But as quick as the pulse of air, his mind was back in the glade with Skye. He heard a faint tinkling sound, and noticed that there were two rings on Skye's necklace. They were intricately woven of gold, silver and some sort of lustrous black material, seemingly changing from one material to the next as they wrapped in loops and knots.

He touched the rings and the smaller of the two fell off in his hand. Grasping Skye's left hand in his right, he gently slid the ring onto her finger. The woven bands seemed to slide against each other as they settled onto her finger. He kissed her hand and ring and gave her a gentle kiss.

 

[caela]

"I love you Skye, and I'll take you as my wife from here into eternity and beyond."

Skye purred softly as his lips met hers and while she felt the pulse of power around them she ignored it. Nothing mattered now but this moment. She had no idea how long the glade would hold off the beasts that howled even louder now and if their end was to come soon she wanted it to be as joyous for both of them as she could make it.

Smiling into his eyes she didn't notice the tinkling of metal against metal until he reached toward her necklace. She was startled to find two rings there and amazed at the way the metals they were forged of seemed to flow and move around each other. When the smaller fell into his hand and he placed it on her finger she smiled warmly, love and delight shining from her eyes.

After returning his kiss she smiled almost shyly as she reached up and felt the other ring fall into her hand. Raising his hand she gently slid the ring onto his hand and pressed a tender kiss over it. before lacing their fingers together and kissing him once more.

Drawing him down to the thick grass that covered the clearing she knelt facing him, her fingers tracing the lines of his face as she murmured softly, "Love me Maximillian."

 

[poohlive]

"It all sounds so fascinating," He took the book from her, putting it on the endtable next to the bed. He tucked Serena into his bed, pulling the covers over her so she can rest comfortably.

"Good night, Serena," he kissed her on the forehead, turning out the lantern. There was an eerie light coming out from the fog. He walked over to the far study, lighting a couple of candles to make it look normal inside the room. Just two candles, so Serena could still sleep peacefully.

She could read the book with near perfection. He wished he knew more about that book, or why Serena could read the language. Was it in fairy? Everyone had traits of fairy inside them, their whole lineage went back. Serena's family must just have more than most.

And, she probably never knew.

David looked outside, wondering how long it would take. Hours? Someone had said that, his father maybe. Only a matter of hours now. David wasn't sure, but he thought that was about right.

A few hours left to go.

He sat in the study chair, looking over papers that seemed so important only a few weeks ago. Now they were scraps from another age, long forgotten.

 

[only_more_so]

Max followed Skye down to the lush grass in the middle of the glade, and soon forgot all about the fog and the curse. He was laying over her, supporting his weight on his elbows, and kissing her gently. But soon, kissing her mouth wasn't enough. He kissed her cheek, then her neck, then further downward before her clothing was in the way.

He was too impatient to find the clasps, catches or ties that held her clothes on and instead reached for the knife still stuck in the back of his belt. With a deft slice the knife parted the top of her dress and with his bare hands he tore the rest apart until her firm round breasts were bared to his eager lips.

While sucking on her nipple, he tore the dress further downward, revealing her belly. Soon he had the front torn all the way down revealing her entire body to him.

He lowered his body down, and he could feel the hairs of her sex rubbing against his bare belly. He started back upward, sucking her nipple until it finally slipped out of his mouth. He then kissed her chest for a moment before he found himself hovering over her again, his face a mere inch from hers. He gazed into her lustrous eyes and could see her need in them.

 

[caela]

Skye smiled softly as he laid her back into the soft grass, the feel of him above her was amazing and made her whimper with longing. It seemed to her as if she'd been waiting forever for this moment, waiting to share this with him. She groaned softly when his lips met hers, not wanting to break that connection but shuddering all the same as he trailed fire over her flesh with each kiss to her cheek or neck.

The sight of his blade flashing in the moonlight made her go utterly still and send a small frisson of fear through her body...until it was followed by the sharp sound of fabric tearing and a rush of cool air over her skin.

Laughing softly she grinned down at him, "Someone's impatient I think," she teased.

Her teasing stopped however when his lips caught one of her nipples and instead a mewling gasp issued from her lips. Exquisite pleasure pulsed through her body to pool low in her belly and she could feel the damp heat between her thighs as her desire grew.

When at last he pulled away once more to stare down at her she reached up to cup his face in her palms, her voice trembling with need, "I think you're a bit overdressed love and I need you desperatly."

 

[RedHairedandFriendly]

She jerked awake suddenly. A sense of dread filled her. There had been something in her dreams that told her time was running out, but she wasn’t sure what. She also had a feeling that she was not going to like what she read.

“David,” she called out and then took a deep breath when she saw him sitting in a chair scanning papers. “I thought you’d left me.”

“Are you alright? I had a dream, but I can’t recall it.”

She pulled back the blankets and climbed from the bed. Her eyes fell on the book and a sense of nausea filled her. There was more to the story and something told her she needed to continue reading.

She picked it up and looked to her friend. “I’m ready to read more if you’d like.”

Her hands opened to the pages of ancient script and she started deciphering them again. This time she chose to sit on the small sofa that rested in the Prince’s room.

“The fairies accuse the trolls and of course the trolls deny this. The fairies launch an attack and seek the help of the Queen. She however, refused to help them, saying they must settle their differences and that her and her King have done all they would for the two groups. So one night a band of fairies descended on the troll prince and lifted him. They held the prince high above the ground and swore to all that if the dust was not returned to them before the final leaf from the willow fell for its winter's nap they would bring the prince back here to drop him against the rocks below. The trolls were frightened so together the King and Queen came to the castle and asked for their help in finding the dust. They conceded and looked everywhere for the precious magic dust. At that same time the fairies worked with all the time they could spare to increase the new stores of fairy dust. At last the day came when the trolls had to admit they couldn't find the dust and they watched as their prince was dropped to his death."

Serena thought for a moment about fairies and the legends of them. Many people thought they were tiny beings when in fact the small ones were just a breed of fairies. Wings were another thing about fairies. After the curse there were no more fairies to marry into the Kingdom and so wings were not a part of the people of Serena and her Princes’ world.

She continued reading wondering what more she could learn. “The trolls retaliated as any group would. The Troll King ordered every fairy that was found outside of the fairy lands executed. At night the fairies could not travel because of the glow from their dust, so during the day the worked to find food on their own land. But soon they had no more and needed to replenish their stock. The strongest fairies gathered together to plan a night time raid against the troll fields. They secretly covered their bodies and wings with coal dust from the soot of the castle chimneys. Making their way into the trolls fields they gathered as much food as they could. This raid was a success so they continued to raid the troll gardens every night for many months. Of course the trolls realized what was happening so they took knives to every other plant and slowly slit the skin and milked into each plant poisoned water. The plants drank in the water and though it didn't kill the plants as it may have on most worlds it did alter their color and flavor."

“Oh David...The fairies ate the poisioned food and they all died!"

“I don’t understand why we never learned of this...Our history has been so clouded in secret,” she muttered to herself. She looked over several blank pages. “David, she stopped writing... someone else took over. It was your grandfather.”

“Not all of the fairies died but almost the whole population had been vanquished. Sorrow rolled across the land as hundreds of butterflies came and lifted the fairies and carried them to the hill of Despair to be laid to rest. The King and Queen Fairy cried for days over the loss of their precious children all dead from eating the poisoned fruit. A being came down over our world, they didn't know who or what it was. But soon it was revealed to the people of that time that it was a troll but not the ones everyone was familiar with. This troll was huge, bigger then any man in the castle and by his side was the most beautiful woman. Upon closer inspection everyone noticed that she was a fairy, a tall thin fairy that stood almost the same height as the man.... Your grandfather writes out the confrontation... 'Look what you have done. You have destroyed friends and neighbors and wrongly killed and punished people.' The fairy folk and trolls tried to tell their sides, but the woman shouted out to them, 'STOP! We know who took your dust. It was no one from the troll village. It was him!' Everyone turned to where her long thin finger was pointing and they saw the King of our race standing with a look of fear and guilt. 'He took your dust. He is the one you should have dealt with! Now we have to. We have to intervene in your lives because you will destroy each other if we don't!' With those words the woman raised her hand and the Queen of the people was seen floating in her palm. 'I will erase this woman from your minds and only allow her husband her memory. She will live with us until her death and her husband will rule his castle till his, alone and miserable they will be, for she knew of his crime and encouraged him in it.”

She wiped away the tears that were falling silently down her cheeks. “Your grandfather talks about how he sent men into the fog, trying to find his Queen, but they never returned to him. He tried to bargain, screaming to the skies and begging for forgiveness. He writes how he discovered the first key to unlocking the curse was forbidden love. Love that should not have happened, but did and then was allowed to flourish though it meant pain for others. This love would be true and strong and would withstand everything that forced them apart. The second key to breaking the curse he never found. There are entries here that speak of his travels to distant worlds, bringing males and females to breed with lower house servants. He speaks of a woman he bedded several times. But no where does the second key become apparent to him. There are no more entries David.”

She looked up at him confusion in her face. “David. . .Skye and Max are the first key. You have to be the second you’re a Prince. There has to be something somewhere that will help us break the curse. There could still be time...don’t you think?” she asked him.

 

[only_more_so]

Max heartily agreed with Skye, he was overdressed for the occasion. He kicked off his shoes and was quickly pushing down his pants. It was an incredibly awkward process to perform, especially while trying to keep his lips attached to some part of Skye's body.

Eventually he just willed magic to tear his pants away. If her clothes were ruined, his might as well be. Besides, it wasn't likely anyone would find them, or they would find anyone else.

He could tell Skye wanted to giggle at his antics of desperation. But he could see the need to have him inside her far outweighed any other thought. His hard nude form hovered above her soft luscious curves. His erect cock was pointing directly at her belly as he started lowering himself toward her. The tip of her erection touched the bare skin of her belly and he lowered himself further, sliding down her body.

The tip of his cock was soon rubbing its way through her soft pubic hair. He could feel the heat of her on him as he moved lower. Suddenly his cock dropped, as it slid across her clitoris, only to stop against the opening to her pussy. He could feel the wetness of her sex already coating the head of his cock, and her lips pulling his cock inward.

He looked deep into her gorgeous eyes and started pushing his cock inward. His arms held her tightly as he slowly sank deeper into her. His eyes never left hers, as the exquisite warmth of her pussy surrounded his cock. He was shuddering with delight as he sank further into her, all the feeling in his body concentrated in the length of his cock.

It seemed to take an eternity to penetrate her fully, until their hips were pressed tightly together. He was buried deep inside her, and wanted more. He kissed her passionately, his tongue probing her mouth as his cock probed her sex, holding her body tightly against his own.

 

[caela]

Skye smiled and likely would have laughed at Max's antics to divest himself of his clothing but she wanted him so desperatly that anything that got him out of them quicker was a good thing in her eyes. At last as naked as she she smiled up at him and reached up, her hands cupping his face tenderly as he hovered over her body. She could feel the heat that radiated off of him and kenw it was matched by the warmth of her own soft flesh.

Holding his eyes with her own she purred as his cock found the entrance of her body and began to sink into her at last. It was heaven. Having him filling her was just...right. She felt as if she'd come home at last and without thought she wrapped her legs loosely around his hips, holding him closely to her.

At last his lips captured her own and her body began to move with his. Matching his rhythm in a dance older than time. Finally letting her eyes drift closed her arms circled him, wrapping him utterly in her body while the slick walls of her pussy welcomed him and tightened down around him invitingly.

"More," she groaned softly when their lips parted for just a moment, the need for air greater then the need for the touch of his lips, though once that need was satisfied she drew him down to her lips once more.

 

[only_more_so]

"More"

Max hardly needed the encouragement. His body, finally free to enjoy the pleasures of a woman, acted of its own accord. His hips thrust into her in a steady, needy rythym. His hands which at first supported his weight above Skye's lithe body, now held her body tightly against his own.

It became harder and harder to breathe as he pumped his cock into her. No longer was he kissing her except in brief twinings of the tongue. More often his mouth was near her ear, breathing in the scent of her hair and body, exhaling the love and lust he felt for her.

Even through the slickness of her pussy, he could feel her gripping him deep inside of her. The spasms of her sex were driving him mad with need. He could feel himself growing more rigid and swollen inside of her and knew he was close to coming. He had been poised on the edge of utter bliss for so long it was nearly driving him mad. His thrusts increased in speed and he could feel the release approaching.

Grabbing her hips with one arm and her body with the other, he thrust into her. He could feel his seed shooting deep inside of her lush body, and felt as if his consciousness was waning. He had no control left as his body shuddered and shot into her, gasping and groaning and holding her tightly.

 

[poohlive]

"Everything, was a lie."

He shook his head, wondering for a moment how much his father knew about this. Probably all of it. He must have known, this was his grandfather that wrote half of the story. If his grandfather knew, then his fathe would have known, and they purposely left it out to him and his brother.

Why?

Was it for the forbidden love? Was that it? The only reason he was told his whole life to do one thing and live as one person was so, in the end, his brother could steal away the one girl he loved. His brother could fulfill the prophecy for them.

Everyone had played their part. And now, everyone was happy.

Except him.

"What if that was my part of the prophesy. The second key is just me, letting go. If the first key is forbidden love, finding it where it shouldn't exist, maybe the second part is letting go, and watching that love thrive."

He didn't know. It seemed stupid and pointless.

"I don't think I'm any part of the prophesy, I don't think it has anything to do with me at all. What if it was just Max and Skye, the forbidden love, and because of my stupid actions, that love can no longer be realized. I stopped whatever chance we had. Everyone kept pushing me to do one thing, and in the end, when I knew it was all over, I kept pushing myself as well. You're right, I did love some weird idea. The concept was better than the girl."

He sighed, looking at the assorted papers on his desk. The lady or the tiger, a choice that was no choice at all.

"I'm sorry Serena. I'm sorry I failed you."

 

[RedHairedandFriendly]

Serena sighed. “David, I think you’re wrong. Didn’t you say Skye was the only one that could read this?” she asked. “If she is the only one than your parents didn’t know about it. The curse was written down and for some reason the book was not seen again after your grandfather’s passing... remember this isn’t some man that died a few years ago, this is your great grandfather many times removed. The only thing I don’t understand is why if Skye is the only one that can read it... then what did I just do and why?”

She closed the book and scooted off the bed. “There is nothing more there David. There has to be an answer somewhere in the castle or perhaps around the grounds. We need to find it. We have no clue what is happening in the fog. We don’t know if Max lived or died. We don’t know if Skye did. What we do know is the curse is still raging on and you are the Prince and so you have to find out why this is happening and fix it. Your father can’t. Your mother can’t and now your brother can’t either.”

Serena moved to his closet and pulled out a pair of breeches and a shirt. “I can’t run around the castle looking like Serena. People will see me and know I am not under guard. We need to search this castle David. I know there has to be something here to help us find out what is wrong.”

When she started to get dressed she felt a bit self-conscious, she shrugged it off and chided herself. She was nothing to David. He’d already told her how he felt, so she would have to get over being shy about him, just because she was in love with him. Still as she turned her back to him, she could still feel the heat of her blush rushing over her as she dropped her clothing and pulled on his breeches and a shirt. She had also grabbed a gold colored belt and she used it to take up the slack in the waistband of his slacks.

Turning around she kept her head lowered, fear of seeing the same look of nothing cross his face after she’d bared herself to him again. “You mentioned you were sorry for failing me. You have failed no one but yourself if you continue to sit here and wallow in sorrow. I’ve failed you and my people. I have to try and make it up to them. There are rooms that were sealed long ago under the dungeons. We need to go there.”

How did she know that? A chill ran up her spine and for a moment she swayed. She shook off the feeling of dread that she’d felt after her dream and waited for David to lead her through the castle. She reached back and braided her hair, tucked it into the back of her shirt and waited for David to take her to the deepest parts of the castle.