Llewellyn’s Song (6 page)

The Camp

The trip north took them through d’ark t’uath territory.
Tamara disguised herself as a man, putting padding in her tunic’s shoulders and
pulling her hood over her head and her scarf over her face. At the trading post,
Llewellyn went to speak to her clan’s representatives while Tamara remained
hidden in the forest.

The two d’ark t’uath, armed to the teeth, motioned for him
to lay his arms down and approach. He did, and they relaxed slightly. “I am
Llewellyn, I come in peace,” he said.

“I am Fia, and this is Rhyanna.” The tallest d’ark t’uath,
the one called Fia, approached him and looked him over. “You have nothing to
trade. Why have you come here?”

“I come to give you news of Tamara.”

Fia uttered a small gasp. “Tamara? She disappeared nearly a
fortnight ago. Have you found her? Is she wounded?”

“No. She is safe. She has chosen to leave the tribe. Her
message is this. ‘I, Tamara, was caught and mauled by a behemoth while on guard
duty. I lost my
glosseer
at the foot of the tree. The behemoth took me
to his cave and would have killed me, but a wood elf rescued me. He helped heal
my wounds, and I decided to marry him. I have cast my lot with the tribe of the
wood elves. He is bound on a mission to see Frostbone. It is for the good of
all that you let him pass.’ That is what I was bade to tell you.” Llewellyn
stopped and waited.

The two women looked at each other in consternation. “Are
you the wood elf Tamara has married?” asked Fia.

“I am.”

“And you quest to Frostbone?” This was asked by Rhyanna, in
a slightly more acidic tone.

“There is concern that the Mouse King has returned.”

Now the silence was tinged with fear. Fia spoke first, her
eyes narrowed. “We had not thought of that. What is true is that more demons
than before have been sighted, and even your story of a behemoth rings true,
for we have seen several far from their mountains. We wondered what kind of
trouble would cause them to leave their haunts.”

“What do you plan to do? Frostbone does not suffer elves or
fairies in his territory. He will kill you on sight.”

“I know Frostbone. He will speak to me. The land of Hivernia
is preparing for war. The new king, King Branagh, is now raising and training
his army. Once again the wood elves will take up their bows and fight alongside
the fairies.”

“We have heard that the new Queen of Hivernia is a wood elf.”
Rhyanna raised an eyebrow.

“That’s right.” Llewellyn paused. “I would ask a boon of
you. Tamara is no longer part of your tribe. But she must have some belongings
that are dear to her. I would ask you to give them to me so that she might have
something to remember her tribe by.”

“Her tribe is now yours. By the laws of our tribe, she may
not take anything with her. She knew this when she decided to marry you.”
Rhyanna waved dismissively.

“I bid you farewell then,” said Llewellyn. He hadn’t counted
on getting any of Tamara’s belongings. He’d tried though. He made his way back
through the woods to where Tamara was hiding. She’d been listening in.

“I told you our tribe forbids us to take our belongings with
us.” She shook her head. “You are a very stubborn elf.”

“But a nice one, you have to admit.”

“Yes.” She tilted her head. “So it’s true that an elf is now
Queen of Hivernia? That must have been a shock to most of the fairies.”

“You heard correctly. Melflouise is now Queen of Hivernia.”

“You sound as if you know her well.”

“She was my brother’s wife.”

A pause. “The one who died.”

“Yes.” He dug his toe into the snow. He really didn’t want
to talk about Melle or Elloran with anyone, but he supposed Tamara had a right
to know.

“I will wait until you are ready to tell me about them. You
don’t have to say anything.”

He looked up at her, surprised. “So you read minds now?”

She laughed. “I didn’t think you sprang to life on the mountainside
the day you saved me. You had a life before, and it was an interesting one. You
have the scars to show it. But I imagine it must truly hurt to be wounded here.”
She pointed to her heart. “Perhaps we were meant to find each other. I will
help you heal, and you will help to fill the emptiness I’ve always felt.”

“Empty? Why?” They started up the slope. The day was still
new, but they had a long way to go before they reached the first outpost camp.

“I have always been dissatisfied with my life. More times
than I like to admit I infringed upon my tribe’s rules and was punished. My
clan mother despaired of me. She tried, but nothing I ever did filled the void
inside me.”

“Do you miss anyone in your tribe?”

There was a pause while they scaled the last bit of cliff,
then it was downhill for a while. She trotted easily. Like all fae, she could
walk on top of snow and was light-footed and fleet. They moved well together,
he thought.

“I miss my clan mother, and some of my friends I will miss
bitterly. It pains me that I will never see my home again. I lived in a large
cavern of many galleries in the Winding Brook valley. It is as beautiful as its
name implies. Our caverns are vast and comfortable. I hope your caverns are as
nice.”

“We don’t live in caves.”

She missed a step and stumbled. “Where do you live?”

He grinned. “In a house. I hope it’s clean when I return. If
not, Sebring and Merlin will answer to me.”

“Your maids?”

“My brothers-in-law. They are Melle’s brothers, and a pair
of troublemakers they are, too. You’ll see, they can charm the bees from their
honey, and all the girls in the village are besotted with them.”

“You are a wood elf. How many other tribes are there of your
kind?”

“We wood elves form seven tribes. Then there are the elves
of the great plains with their magnificent horses, and the marsh elves, shy and
reclusive. We’ve always counted the d’ark t’uath as part of our clan. We refer
to you as the dark elves or the stone elves.” He held a branch aside for her
and then ducked under it. “Then there is the fairy kingdom. Fairies live in
great cities, like Hivernia City. They have built castles and roads, seaports
and…whatever it is fairies build. They love everything colorful and rich. We
elves are more simple. We like things that come from nature and we don’t try to
change them.”

“I don’t think I’ll like Hivernia City. Will we live in the
forest in your house?”

“We will have to visit Hivernia City after we see Frostbone.
But don’t worry. I know Branagh and Melle and they will make you feel welcome.
Melle knows what it’s like to be an elf living amidst fairy folk. Are you
tired? We can rest.”

“No. Let’s continue until we reach the camp. Then I will lie
down and sleep for a thousand years.”

Llewellyn looked at her closely. Her skin seemed pale and
her eyes darker than usual. Pain drew fine lines around her mouth and nose. “The
camp is on the bottom of the next gorge. We will be there in a half an hour.”

When they got there, Llewellyn was relieved to see that they
would be alone. It was a small cave, set in between two mighty boulders.
Sometimes traders came to the outpost camps, so everything was ready for
travelers. There was a stack of firewood outside, and Llewellyn found a large
bucket and went to the stream to fetch water. When he got back, Tamara had
already built a fire in the huge stone fireplace.

“That heat feels good,” he said, ducking through the
deerskin flap that served as a door, pouring the water into a kettle and
hanging the kettle on a chain set over the fire.

“I thought wood elves were impervious to cold,” she teased.

“We are, but that doesn’t mean we don’t appreciate a nice
fire. What about you?”

“I don’t suffer from cold. I’m not as impervious as an ice
demon though.”

“We will be in Frostbone’s territory in three days if we
keep up the pace.”

“I will try not to slow you down.” She looked fragile,
wrapped in her cloak, the firelight making deep shadows on her face.

He took her in his arms. “I’m not worried about that.” He
paused. “I’m still getting used to being married, to tell you the truth. I
never thought I’d get married one day.”

“Why? Your brother married. Surely you…” her voice trailed
away as she watched him. “Oh. The queen. You were in love with your brother’s
wife.”

“Yes.” It was best to tell the truth.

Her eyes became shuttered. “Are you still in love with her?”

He thought about Melle. It was like probing a sore, but his
emotional wounds seemed to have healed. He actually smiled. “No. I’m not. You
have to understand,” he went on, becoming serious. “My brother was my twin. We
shared everything, even our dreams and our emotions. When he fell in love, he
dragged me in with him, and when he sang his elf song, I sang too. I couldn’t
help it.”

Tamara slid her arms around him. “I understand. We haven’t
sung together yet. But someday I hope that we will. Our love is still too new
and unexpected.”

“You’re right.” He kissed her cheek, relieved that she didn’t
expect him to sing. The elf song was something that tore out of your soul. It
only happened on certain occasions. He’d heard Melle’s song and it had shaken
him to the bone. His brother’s song had taken his own voice away for a long
time. Now, perhaps, he would find his own. Only time would tell. Until then, he
was content to learn about Tamara.

She blinked, her face to the flames. “So, what about taking
your clothes off?”

“Excuse me?” He nuzzled her neck and she giggled.

“I want to see you naked again.”

“Only if you take yours off first.”

She slipped out of his arms and threw the cloak off. In the
firelight, her body looked golden. He caught his breath. Her long dark hair
fell to her hips, and her breasts were heavy and rounded. Her hips flared
gently, and her legs were long and slender. But he sensed a hidden strength in
her.

She cocked her hip, teasingly, and cupped her breasts with
her hands. “They ache for your touch,” she whispered.

His cock was already stiff, and when she slid her hands over
her breasts, it got so hard he thought he might explode right into his
breeches. “Hold on,” he gasped, shrugging off his tunic and breeches as fast as
he could.

Tamara chuckled. “I have long watched my clan sisters
pleasure themselves with their toys. They sometimes use two, one for this
entrance, and one for this one.” She turned and bent over, her buttocks jutting
into the air.

“I have but one toy for you,” said Llewellyn, his breath
coming fast. By Mistral, she could bring his blood to a boil faster than fire.

“Then show me how you pleasure your women in your tribe. I
wonder if it’s better to have one living toy attached to a male body, or two toys
that one can play with at will?”

Llewellyn narrowed his eyes. Was this a challenge? He’d show
her. He grasped her shoulders and spun her around, crushing her to his chest.
He lifted her chin for a kiss. “We start like this,” he said, and then pressed
his mouth to hers.

He kissed her slowly, letting his tongue and teeth explore
and tease her mouth. She was a fast learner, and soon he couldn’t tell who was
breathing harder. His lips felt swollen and hot when they at last drew apart.
Her eyes were hooded with desire, her mouth slack.

Then he knelt and ran his tongue down her chest and over her
breasts. He sucked on each nipple, giving them equal attention. When they
stiffened he lowered his head and traced a path of kisses to her thighs.

She tensed. “No!”

“Yes.” He grinned at her. “Open your legs. That’s an order.”

She hesitated, then parted her legs. Llewellyn put both
hands on her thighs and parted her labia with his thumbs, revealing her sex. It
was swollen with passion. He leaned forward and found her clit with his tongue.
Eagerly he lapped at it until Tamara’s legs began to tremble.

“Let me lie down,” she begged. “My head is spinning.”

“I hope so,” he said. Still kneeling, he helped her lie back
on the soft cloak and then bent to his pleasurable task again. He licked and
nibbled gently on her clit and softly, teasingly, he stroked his fingertips
ever so lightly against her slick flesh. Her labia swelled and grew moist, and
even her passage opened and contracted. Tamara writhed upon the cloak, her
hands clutching at the edges of it, her knuckles white.

“Let yourself go,” he chuckled, sliding one finger, then
two, into her passage.

“Oh yes!” she cried, bucking against him. But he wasn’t
going to let her give in to her passion yet.

“Just relax, stop trying to hurry it.” He grinned, and then
wriggled his two fingers, making them vibrate like the wings of a hummingbird.
Her hips lifted off the floor as her back arched and a flood of hot wetness
dampened his hand. He pressed his lips to her sensitive clit, and then sighed
in satisfaction when he felt her contractions massaging his fingers.

Panting, Tamara raised herself on her elbows. “Where did you
learn to do that?”

He withdrew his fingers and with a wolfish grin said, “You
might actually like it in Hivernia. The fairies have many different ways of
satisfying their needs, and they are not at all shy about sharing.”

Her face turned pink. “You’ve shared before?”

“I did spend time in Hivernia.” He stood and stretched. His
cock was still hard, and he stroked it, staring at the woman lying on the floor
before him. Her eyelashes fluttered and she smiled.

“It’s my turn now.” She knelt and put both hands on his
groin, rubbing suggestively.

“Only if you’re up to it,” he said.

“Oh, I think I can manage. I recover quickly.” With that,
she slid her hot mouth over his cock and began to suck.

Sweet Mistral! By Thaw’s spring flowers! Llewellyn had to
grab the stone wall to keep upright. Her mouth was sensuous and the sight of
her full lips moving up and down his shaft while her fingers seemed to have an
urge to explore all his nooks and crannies… By Mistral! He sucked in air and
held it as one of her fingers found a particularly sensitive cranny and delved
deep. Her mouth suctioned lustily. He felt his balls contract to somewhere around
his stomach. And then her delving finger delved even deeper, and he lost it.