Strange Bedfellows

Shara was sitting in the tent wondering why the name 'Katia' was starting to feel so comfortable when Kalus returned.

He didn't look happy.

"Husband, what's wrong?" Lyra asked.

He explained in whispers so he wasn't overheard, and Shara was nearly ready to march over to the king's tent herself by the time he was done. Not literally of course; that would be suicide and she had another little life to think of now. She couldn't believe how much being pregnant had changed her outlook on life. She had heard other parents say how having kids was life-changing; now she knew from experience.

When he was done explaining the problem, then he went over his solution. Shara felt her jaw drop further and further with every word he spoke.

"You seem shocked." Kalus said to her when he was done.

"I..." She worked her mouth for a moment before words came out again. "Thank you. Laerten is our capital and I would hate to see... Thank you."

"It's the right thing to do." He said.

"Just like giving a man back a coin that he has unknowingly dropped instead of keeping it." Shara said, thinking about the example he had used the day they had met.

"Just exactly like." He nodded, a flicker of a smile on his face despite his mood. "The king is starting to push the bounds of what I can in good conscience tolerate. I'm worried that someday soon he'll overstep and I'll be forced to take a stand against him."

"Good." Shara found herself saying, thinking that someone had to stop King Tyso.

"Have you considered what it would mean for you and Lyra?" Kalus asked. "You two would be in grave danger."

Lyra looked at him, then smirked slightly. "No, I think King Tyso would be in grave danger if he stepped over the line and you challenged him, especially after that debacle of an ambush."

"That's treason." Kalus said, his voice cool.

"No, it's only treason if we've sworn loyalty to him, and we haven't." Shara countered. "I haven't and certainly never shall. I'm a proud citizen of Timarou and will be until the day I die."

"I am also husband, but I will follow you wherever you go." Lyra said. "My loyalty is first to Illuminar, then to you two, then to Timarou."

He paused for a moment before speaking. "Har'peton might be my homeland, but no one in this tent has any real love for it."

"Really?" Shara looked at Kalus. "You have no love for your own homeland?"

"It's a harsh place and--" He hesitated, and then shook his head. "There's no one for me there; everyone I care about is either in this tent or the surrounding camp."

"Then... perhaps we could live in Timarou once the war is over?" Lyra asked.

Kalus remained silent for several seconds before replying. "I would not be opposed."

Lyra leapt forward, flinging her arms around him and kissing him. "We--" Kiss. "--didn't--" Kiss. "--finish--" kiss. "--earlier."

She pulled back just slightly and had her dress off in two seconds flat. Suddenly, Shara was staring at the very naked back and butt of her fellow wife. Moments later the ash blonde jumped up and wrapped her legs around their husband, kissing him like it was her last night in the world.

Suddenly, Shara's cheeks felt very hot.

Kalus noticed and gave her an apologetic grin.

Lyra also noticed and had the grace to look slightly abashed. "I'm sorry Katia, I just... ugh, I get so horny and I..." She bit her lip. "I can stop."

Shara chuckled. "No you can't, and that's okay."

"Really?"

She nodded. "I um, I won't pretend to understand, but you are a wife; you should be able to share a bed with your husband."

"Thank you." Lyra said, then walked right up to Shara and gave her a hug, still was as naked as the day she was born and seemingly completely unashamed about that. The amber-haired girl blushed in response, but hugged her back.

"You know..." Lyra said with a mischievous smile as she pulled back, her arms still around her fellow wife. "...someone I don't want to mention once suggested that our husband force us to pleasure each other..."

Lyra raised her eyebrows and bit her lip, just barely meeting Shara's eyes.

"I... uh..." Shara froze, not quite sure what to make of her fellow wife's suggestion.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Lyra's face fell and then she started talking very fast. "I just get so worked up and then I say something stupid, or do something stupid, or both. I didn't mean-- I was just trying to-- uh, I mean to say..."

"Lyra." Kalus said.

She turned to face him, grimacing slightly. It looked like she was bracing herself.

"You did nothing wrong." He finished. His tone was a bit softer than usual too.

"Thank you." She smiled, still completely naked and still seemingly unbothered by that fact. "I'm just too wild, and I'm sorry; I'll try to rein that in." She had a brave face on, but she didn't seem like she was looking forward to that.

"Why?" Kalus asked conversationally. Shara had heard him take the same tone with his men before when one of them thought he was in trouble, but wasn't.

"Because I... uh..." The ash blonde glanced at Shara. "My suggestion made her uncomfortable, and you had to correct me off in front of other people yesterday, and I'm not... I mean, I..."

"What do you think of Tornado?" Kalus asked, seemingly out of nowhere.

"He's a great horse." Lyra said, a smile appearing on her face as she shifted her weight to the other foot, still completely naked. "He's strong and powerful with good conformation, so he must have excellent breeding. He's a bit high-strung, but you need that in a war horse."

Kalus nodded slowly, as if thinking. "Do you think he'd be a better warhorse as a gelding?"

Lyra's eyes went wide and her jaw dropped as she sucked in her breath sharply. "You wouldn't castrate Tornado, would you? He's so great as he is, even if he's a handful."

He looked at her pointedly. "So, a little spirit isn't bad?"

"No, it's-- oh." Lyra stopped and bit her lip. She looked down for several seconds and then glanced up at him, cocking her head to one side. "Really?"

He nodded. "Tornado is a magnificent horse precisely because he's high-spirited. To be sure, the spirit must be channeled properly and not allowed to run loose. But I certainly don't mind a bit of spirit in my horses. In fact, I rather enjoy it."

She smiled at him. "Channeled properly?"

"For all things under heaven there is a time." He nodded. "It gives me great pleasure to see Tornado running wild and free, and even greater pleasure to ride him while he does. However, I would not let him do so around just anyone; only the right people."

He smiled at her.

She smiled back.

"Damn it." Shara mumbled under her breath, once again confronted with the fact that her husband wasn't merely a good man, and he wasn't merely a great man; he was an incredible man.

"Katia?" Kalus asked, and that's when she noticed both her husband and fellow wife were looking at her in confusion.

"Why can't you just be a horrible man so I can hate you properly?" Shara huffed.

He raised his eyebrow.

"Nothing, never mind." She crossed her arms across her chest, wishing that she hadn't said anything.

"Katia." Her husband said, and his voice was at once both commanding her attention and yet also had a caring edge to it. Damn it, she even liked the way her fake name sounded on his lips. She was actually starting to grow quite attached to it, despite it not being her real name.

He continued. "You already know I would not attempt to force your opinion from you. However, I would ask that you explain what you mean, even if you wish to keep your opinion to yourself."

His request was so...

So...

Hmm, she couldn't think of a word. Kind perhaps, or maybe genuine. She knew that she was free to not answer, but she felt like not answering was not only stupid but also a proverbial slap in his face. She hesitated for several seconds, not sure exactly how to explain what was going on in her head.

"It's..." She frowned. "Part of the reason I volunteered to help bury those men earlier was because I was hoping I could escape." She finally admitted.

Kalus stared at her for several seconds.

Lyra's jaw dropped.

"You..." He began, but didn't seem to be able to finish.

"...wanted to escape?" Her fellow wife finished for him.

Shara didn't meet their eyes.

She looked down at the ground, for some reason feeling like a worse person than King Tyso for that admission. Well, maybe not that bad, but close.

She nodded.

"But you care for me anyways." She said, still not looking at them and especially not Kalus. "I just admitted that I wanted to escape from my husband, but you would still take an arrow for me." She glanced up at him for a moment before averting her eyes again. "Wouldn't you?"

There was several seconds pause before Lyra helpfully spoke up. "He nodded his head."

"I'm not..." She took a deep breath and let it out. "I'm not like Lyra... or Tornado. I don't have that wild spirit that you like so much and I'm not even a..." She swallowed hard. "But you've been so-- you both have been so... and I'm just..."

"Katia, is your horse Misty like Tornado?" Kalus asked.

"No, she's a bit more shy and reserved, and maybe a bit skittish." The amber-haired girl replied sullenly. "She couldn't be more different than Tornado."

"And do you dislike her for that, or do you like Misty for who she is?" He asked.

"Of course I don't dislike her for that, I like her for who she..." She trailed off.

She bit her lip.

Was he saying what she thought he was saying?

Could he actually mean...

She glanced up at him, and he was looking at her like... like... she couldn't place the expression, but there was a softness in his eyes.

"Katia, there's more than one kind of horse in this world, and that is not a bad thing." He said, and there was the same softness in his voice now as when he had addressed Lyra. "Just because I can appreciate a horse that's somewhat wild and high-spirited doesn't mean I can't also appreciate one that's shier and more reserved." His eyes twinkled for a moment before he added in a deadpan expression. "Of course, I am only speaking about horses and nothing else."

Shara made a sound somewhere between a loud exhale and a chuckle. Had her stoic husband really just made a joke? More importantly, was he serious?

She looked up at him and bit her lip. "Truly?"

"Yes, truly." He nodded. "You don't have to be like Lyra to be a good wife, or a good woman for that matter. There's more than one way to be either, which is good since there's more than one woman in the world and no two are exactly alike."

Lyra shivered slightly, then reached down and plucked a blanket off the bed, wrapping it around her still-naked body. "I got cold." She explained, then looked at Shara with an embarrassed smile. "I actually kind of admire how reserved you are. I could never be that way and I've tried."

"Oh." She didn't know what to say to that. "Really? I would like to be a bit more... well, a bit more spirited."

"You don't lack spirit Katia." Kalus said, the corners of his mouth twitching upwards. "You simply are less exuberant in how you display your spirit. That's neither better nor worse; just different."

She looked at him for several long seconds. "You really mean that, don't you?"

"I do."

"You see, that's what I mean." She looked down. "You make it really hard to hate you properly."

"Do you want to hate your husband?" Lyra asked, clearly confused by her tone.

"I..." Shara hesitated. "I don't know."

She finally said, flopping down to sit on the bedding and tucking her legs up so she could wrap her arms around them. "I find it really hard to..." She glanced at him. "You're a soldier of Har'peton and I'm a citizen of Timarou. I just find it hard to be loyal when..." She took a deep breath and let it out. "I feel like if I'm loyal to you, I'm betraying my--"

Shara stopped, wanting to be honest and say 'my father', but she still felt like she couldn't reveal who she was to them. But for the first time, she wanted to tell them for some reason. She didn't and knew she couldn't, but for the first time she actually wanted to.

"I feel like if I'm loyal to you then I'm betraying my country, but if I'm loyal to my country then I'm betraying you." She explained, rocking back and forth slightly on the bedding. "It's... it's hard."

Lyra made a thoughtful sound. "I think I know what you mean. I'm more loyal to my husband of course, but I would feel better if..." She made a thoughtful sound and then looked at Kalus. "I'm glad my father picked you to be my husband, but I do wish you were a citizen of Timarou."

Their husband made a thoughtful sound but didn't reply.

After several seconds, he stepped over to Shara and sat down next to her. He sat far enough away that she had some personal space, but close enough to be somewhat close to her. He beckoned Lyra to him and she sat down on his other side, leaning up against him and still naked, though wrapped in a blanket.

"I don't think I can solve this for you two, especially you Katia." Kalus said after nearly a whole minute. "I have oaths to the king, and I cannot in good conscience break my oath."

"I wouldn't ask you to." Shara replied, again struck by how much she was growing to like her fake name.

He nodded slowly. "On our first night, you told me that you weren't unlike the princess, and that the princess was a patriot. I can see how this would be hard for you in that case."

"It is."

He sat there for several seconds, then pursed his lips. "I cannot see a way to solve this for either of you, but I shall do all in my power to make it the least uncomfortable it can be for you both."

"Thank you." Shara murmured.

"Thank you husband." Lyra smiled at him. "Though in truth I think it weighs on Katia more than I."

"Mmm." He looked at his first wife and frowned slightly. "Were I not part of the army invading your country, how would you feel about our marriage?"

Despite herself, Shara felt a small smile creep unbidden onto her face. "I... I would be much less opposed."

Kalus smiled slightly. "I'm glad to hear that."

"I'm glad I can say it." Shara replied. She looked at him and unwrapped her arms from around her legs. She put her hand over her womb.

His smile grew wider as he looked at the two of them. "I always wanted a family, but never imagined having more than one wife. Perhaps I wouldn't have chosen this family had I been given a choice, so perhaps it is well that I wasn't given one."

"Truly?" Lyra asked.

"You mean that?" Shara echoed.

"I do." He replied with conviction.

"Kalus." Shara said as an idea struck her. "How would a few games of pente strike you?"

"Very well indeed." He smiled, then turned to Lyra. "Do you know how to play?"

"Very little and very badly, but I won't get better without practice." She grinned, then looked down at her blanket-wrapped naked body. "But we need to finish what we started afterwards."

"We shall." Kalus nodded as he stood. "I'll get the board."

For some reason, Shara felt a lot better than she had just a few minutes ago.