"We have some time to spare before supper."

William was leaning against one of my bed posts. I had gotten Thorian into his living quarters for the time being, attempted to find the Princess so that I could get a little more aquatinted with her but she could not be found. We had successfully unpacked most of my things and now we were waiting for supper.

"Great, well you can bed me if you would like."

A smile played to my lips as I watched William's eyes widen. His hand went to his forehead, as his face reddened. "Esmerelda must you be this crude?! You are a former Queen for goodness sakes!"

"All you had to say was no William," I laughed as I watched him throw his hands up and mutter incoherent things. I enjoyed bothering William and since I no longer had to be Queen I could enjoy bothering him more. And also making sure Edwin does not act like a complete dunce and ruin everything I hav worked so hard to build.

"That was not a rejection, I was just stating a fact," he claimed as my eyebrows slowly rose. Did he want to be with me? Now? We did have a bit of time before supper. Although I was extremely inexperienced for I have not been with a man since Sirus...But I still knew what to do. How to do it.

I stood up and began to work on the buttons of my gown, before I felt hands grabbing my own. A sigh came from my lips as I glared up at this infuriating man. His honeyed eyes hardened while looking down at me. "No, on our wedding night Esmeralda I will strip you of your clothing and love you how you need to be loved. Not right now, before supper where it will be rushed and-"

"-Alright, William," I frowned as I kissed his cheek, watching the color on his face increase even more. I hope he loved me well on our wedding night because I am in need of it....

Since we would not be engaging in enjoyable activities I decided to begin to braid my hair while William began to dismantle my arrangement and explain to me how our new home would look and our living chambers.

"William we will not be at your...our estate often, we will spend most of our time here. You have duties and so do I," I explained to him as he gave me a knowing look.

He walked over to me, and took my braid from my hands. I am glad he offered to finish it, he actually is a great braided. I taught both Edwin and him just so they would know. "I know that Esmeralda. My estate will be our getaway and we will spend weeks their at a time. I will get you out of this castle and to new scenery if it is the last thing I do on earth."

He kissed my cheek before letting go of my hair. It was then that I realized he took my braid out! "William, how dare you!" Did he think it was easy to do these styles with my hair? No, it was not.

I would just leave my hair out. Sure it was not curled to perfection, or braided in a neat and orderly fashioned. I was not Queen anymore I could...I could let my hair down so to speak.

"I apologize," he chuckled as we suddenly heard a loud deep wail coming from outside.

Please don't be Thorian fighting with someone!

Both of us rushed towards the door, William immediately drawing his sword as we made our way down the hall. Gathering us closer to whatever debacle awaited us.

As soon as we arrived at the top of the staircase, we could see Orc men at the end of the staircase near the foyer. At least four of them.

The situation seemed very...hostile. The man who was supposed to be Princes Keta... Orc princess's betrothed was being held back by two men as King Draka stood a foot away, laughing with an extremely sharpened blade in hand.

"How dare you shame me! My clan!" The man roared as he attempted to break free of the strong orc men holding him in his place.

I could see our guards beginning to surround them. It was...much too many guards for just a measly four Orc men.

King Draka was about to say something before he paused, looking at the many soldiers surrounding them. Surprise was evident in his eyes.

"What are you humans looking at? Have you never found yourself in a disagreement with another?" King Draka questioned, turning on his heels to look at the closest soldier to him.

I was not aware that Orc fangs grow when they are furious, but his began to grow. Instead of two small triangles, at the end of his lips, they grew into an impressive height.

His skin seemed to produce a different greenish color. A deeper hue...and his muscles began to bulge against the little clothing he wore. "Answer my question, human!"

"We-we do not take orders from you...you barbarian but from kings!" The soldier spat as I shook my head. How disgustingly rude.

I could feel William ready to rush down the steps but I held him back. Whatever happens now...their is only one person to blame.

The Orc King was swift in his movements. Grabbing the soldier by his face, he slammed him into the ground, before taking the large hammer like weapon that was in his hand and bashing it into the soldiers head. Crimson guts and blood decorated the floor and the near by soldiers. My stomach felt weak.

"What is going on?!" A furious voice shouted as the sea of soldiers began to part. Edwin was rushing into the circle, a look of confusion marring his face as he took in the scene before him. "Draka why is one of my soldiers dead?"

My stomach turned at the scene before me. King Draka chuckled, picking up the smashed head of the soldier. "He would not answer a question I asked. He said he only answers to Kings not barbarians...but look he is dead so now he answers to no one!" He laughed as the orcs around him began to chuckle. King Drakka was laughing so hard he set the mashed head down and his hands went to his knees. His body overcome with fits of laughter.

I watched Edwin closely, he looked to be in deep thought. "So how are you going to repay me for my dead soldier, King Drakka? You are a guest not the executioner here."

Before Drakka had the chance to answer, the Orc Jantek broke away from the men holding him down and charged for Edwin. My heart dropped as the man was seconds from stabbing my brother...before King Drakka interfered and jumped in front of Edwin, the blade sinking into his large shoulder instead.

He let out a grunt of pain as Jantek was tackled by both a human and Orc.

The King fell to his knees, letting lose  unfamiliar words as he began to pull the dagger from his shoulder. "Ah, that hurt like being slapped by a whore!" Were the...harlots in the Orc kingdom very strong?

"Someone clean him up and bring a medic for King Drakka. Now," Edwin snapped at the men around him as he glanced towards the Jantek man who was glaring daggers at him.

"I hope you enjoy that whore! She cannot even grow her fangs properly. Cannot even kill a simple animal! All she can and will be used for is laying with!"

Oh how dare he! "Esmeralda," William warned as I made my way down the steps. How dare this pompous large imbecile say such a thing about that sweet princess!

As I made my way down the steps I could see the princess marching towards the group of men. "Princess this is not a scene you should be looking upon," Edwin told the princess as she ignored him, grabbing the blade that was just a few seconds ago used to stab her brother."Princess," Edwin warned, as she ignored him thoroughly.

"Jantek what did you say about me? What lies were you spreading this time!" She snapped as she continued to near him with the knife.

This was much too much for today! Edwin glanced to the Orc King. His eyes were very focused on his sister. Watching her closely. He rose a hand when Edwin went to move close to her, to maybe grab the knife. How could he not want anyone to interfere with this?!

"Nothing but the truth. The only young Orc woman to not receive her rights! So you run away to a foreign kingdom and marry this mundane! I was the only male who wanted to marry you! You shame every-"

"-you killed the rest who did!" She shrieked as I noticed that she was shaking incredibly too much right now. She looked ready to pass out. "You threatened and killed and...and lied! You bastard!"

"Kill him," Drakka ordered his sister as I gasped. She tensed at his words. "Kill him my little wœle. Kill him and I will give you, your rites." King Drakka's  voice was now calm and a bit softer while talking to her. What was happening? What rites? How could he be this calm when he was just stabbed?

The princess let lose a sob and threw the knife unto the ground. I could immediately see the disappointment in the King's face as he walked up to her and held her head as she cried into his chest. What was going on?!

"It is just like you to run to the arms of your brother!" The man Jantek laughed in their face as I watched Edwin pull his sword on the Orc.

Edwin bent down, pressing the blade against the mans neck. "Ah you are already being held down it would be a shame if I had to slit your throat for speaking ill about a princess," Edwin smiled as Drakka began to chuckle while he still held his sister. The Jantek man quickly shut his mouth and Edwin brought the hilt of his sword down onto his head, knocking him unconscious.

The princess' cries were one that made my heart ache. I looked to Edwin to see him staring at the King and Princess with interest.

"Hush my wœle. No need in crying over the opinions of shik," King Drakka spat,  consoling his sister as I noticed that the rest of the soldiers cleared out. Just leaving the orcs, Edwin and I. It was nice to see him treat her so delicately after being coated in another man's blood.

Deciding to give them some private time, I walked over to Edwin. He had one of the soldiers by the collar snapping at him. I did not know what he said but could only hear the ending of it. "...And clean this mess up," Edwin seethed, pointing towards the dead guard.  They all seemed disgusted and I tried to ignore the dead man as I made my way over to Edwin.

He was walking away and I quickened my pace, falling into line with him. My hand attached to his arm as he glanced down to look at me. "And what unwanted wisdom do you want to tell me, Esmerelda?" He was clenching his jaw, I knew he was furious.

Oh he wanted to be sarcastic? "Nothing other than a soldier losing his life for being disrespectful to a foreign royal? Or the fact that King Drakka was left unguarded?" Edwin knew better. If he had Drakka guarded at all times, which was customary for our guests...that fight between him and Jantek would have never happened.

Edwin's jaw squared and I squeezed his arm. "I will have a talk with the men and make sure they treat everyone especially a man who is becoming my brother by marriage, right. I will set into place a punishment if I hear word of it."

"You should do better than that. The only reason why that soldier was disrespectful to King Drakka was because he was an Orc. I guarantee you if that were King Loche or any other humanoid creature who looked more like us, he would not have any issue. Your soon to be wife is Orc. People here have been terrified and confused by orcs for centuries. It is your job to fix that," I explained to him as we continued walking down the hall, towards the dining area.

"I know, Esmeralda."

If he knew he should have made an example out of the soldiers and publicly addressed it. It was far too late to think about that though. The damage had already been done. "As long as you know and I can tell you tire of my advice so I will give you none any longer unless you ask of it...and knowing your pompous attitude this will be the last time for a while that I give you my advice."

Edwin smiled at me. A false smile of course. He was glad I would not be bothering him with my 'nuisance' advice. He would want it soon and of course like the good sister I was, I would help him when needed be. I would have to give him grief over it of course.

Soon after Edwin and I sat, Thorian and William arrived for supper. I smiled a bit at my son watching his stoic face lighten into what I would call a 'Sirus smile.' No teeth, just a bend at the end of the lips. "So Thorian how are you liking your stay here so far?" Edwin questioned him as Thorian's 'smile' disappeared as he looked to his Edwin.

"It is fine....why have you chosen to marry the Orc princess?" Thorian questioned as I glanced at Edwin. He simply just smiled. Why did he have to ask such questions at supper?

Edwin seemed to be thinking and I prayed he did not say anything crude or inappropriate. Edwin was a man unfortunately and sometimes they think that way and express it. "Because she is a suitable woman for me in my life and of course a good alliance is being made out of it." Good answer, now I do not have to end him with a fork.

Just as she was brought up, she appeared. The Orc Princess walked through the doors with her brother who was now bandaged up. Her eyes slid to my own and she smiled briefly before quickly making her way to her seat. Edwin immediately rose from his to pull open her chair.

She gave him a confused look, before murmuring a thank you. "King Drakka how is your shoulder feeling?" I questioned as he chuckled moving it around a bit.

"Pain is enjoyable Princess!" Well we certainly had two outlooks on pain that was for sure. I glanced to the Princess to see that she still looked very upset.

"Well...even if you did enjoy that you have my apologies for my spineless men disrespecting a great king like yourself and I am in your debt for jumping in front of me," Edwin apologized to the King as he chuckled, grabbing at a gauntlet of wine, beginning to quickly drink it down.

I wish I had the ability to drink wines like him. Only a few sips and I would be done for. "Ah it is fine, Edwen! He is dead so we do not have to worry about a weak man guarding my sister once she is your Queen." Well...I suppose that is one way to look at it... "And as far as debt? You have nothing I want except for traditions."

Traditions? What did he mean? "What traditions Drakka?" I spoke up, wondering if he was taking about his own our our traditions.

"I do hope you will follow all of our wedding customs and traditions. Is all I ask, Edwen!" King Draka chuckled as I watched the Princess grip her fork tight.

Edwin smiled graciously, "If it will make you happy, Draka. I do love to learn about different cultures. What are some of the traditions?"

The King grinned, gently pushing his youngest sister. "Ketakarri will tell you, yes!"

The princess glowered at her brother, and I watched her exhale loudly. "Well...food and drink follow the ceremony. Then enjoyable sparring matches. The loser is sacrificed for the next harvest. Of course one may challenge you for me. Then...then well-"

"-Then you two go to the marriage bed. Three people will accompany you, and assure the consummation takes place. Think who you would like to pick, Edwin. I refuse to be one of the three chosen, just so we are clear!" Drakka chuckled, as I tried to hide the confusion in my face.

Excuse me but did she just say sacrifice? As in kill? I glanced around the table and noticed that no one was looking at the princess who spoke about sacrifice! They were all looking at the King who mentioned consummation!

Their customs are extremely different. How embarrassing. Surely Edwin would not agree to such traditions... I glanced at Ketekarri to see her clenching her jaw rather tightly. I could never imagine doing something like that. If Sirus was to make me do that so long ago I would probably try to kill him. What if the princess was not ready...what would my brother do then?

"Well that is certainly different from what we do here," Edwin cleared his throat  as William nodded in agreement. I hope he chooses his words carefully as to not offend them. He has already offended him once.

Drakka chuckled, "Well you agreed to our customs yes? Who will you pick?"

Did he really? I did not pick that up. I was about to chime in when Edwin beat me to it. "I said anything to make you happy, Drakka my friend. Now I should be worried what my future Queen thinks about all of this not you," Edwin smiled. "Or would you like to marry me instead?"

The table shook as King Draka slammed his hands down onto the table in a fit of laughter. "Oi Edwen my friend you are the funniest human I have met. You are right you are marrying my sister not I, but my sister will do things by our law so I think you should pick out three people the day of the ceremony. Is that not right, wœle?"

The princess nodded her head looking towards Edwin. I could tell she was uncomfortable but of course she would agree with whatever her brother had to say...Well I am glad I am not in this situation. I am just a simple fly on the wall!

"King Draka do you have any more of those weapons?" I glanced at my son who was looking at King Draka's back. The spiked club that he used to kill that soldier was sticking out from however he had it strapped to him.

The King grabbed at the weapon, handing it over to Thorian. "There you are. To make it easier to smash skulls always go for their nose area or temple. Makes easy kill."

Oh my well that is very...nice of him. That just sounds entirely too awful...yet Thorian seemed excited about it. As supper progressed I noticed the princess was eating less and less and her answers to certain questions were shorter and more simple.

"Well gentleman it has been a lovely dinner but I am afraid I must steal my future sister away so that we might talk details of the wedding. Princess?" I smiled at her before looking to Edwin who was glaring at me. I gave him a dazzling smile before the Princess' mood seemed to brighten a bit.

"Oh yes the wedding! Excuse us." I rose from my seat and she did the same. Without letting the men say another word I offered her my arm and lead her out towards the garden outside. I noticed that she squeezed my arm slightly tighter anytime a man passed us. Was she afraid of human men? Or us in general?

Once we were out, I lead her over a bench and sat down, smiling at her. "It is a beautiful night is it not? All the stars are out a nice breeze."

The chimes on her veil jingled with the nice flow of breeze. "Yes...it is nice here."

"I do hope you think so. We have some wonderful sights that maybe Edwin or I will take you to one days," I told her trying to make conversation. "We even have-"

"-How do you do it?" She questioned, her large eyes looking up to me as if I had all of the answers. Her eyes looked so sad...I am sure I looked that way when I learned of my marriage with Sirus..

"Do what, Princess?"

She sighed, her hands wringing together as she turned towards me. "Be strong. My strength is all false...that is how you survive in my clan. That is how you survive in all clans. With strength...even if you have none if it looks as if you do that is enough for people to respect you."

Hm. I had to laugh, I did not mean to make light of her situation but it just bright laughter to me. "Princess we may not look the same but royalty and rank is the same here. I cannot fight or hold a sword but I speak with an fire that shakes even the strongest man. You are strong you just have to find your strength."

She shook her head, a look of doubt crossing her features. "I am not strong. If I was strong enough I would still have my hair."

Her hair? She has hair..although short, it is still hair. "Your hair is fine, you are still beautiful. What does strength have to do with hair?"

"My hair was down my back. It was so pretty. Jantek cut my hair when I went to visit his village. He was angered by all of the men who lusted for me." That rotten imbecile. He is disgusting. I wish she would have stabbed him when she had the chance!

What did I say to that? I did not want to make her relive it...but I was curious. I would wait till I maybe acquaint her a bit more. "No one will treat you bad here, I promise," I assured her as she gave me a wary look.

"Did you love him?" She asked a lot of questions...

"Who?"

She gave me an annoyed look and I was a bit surprised by that, but I waited for her to ask her question. "The lycan king."

My heart stuttered. She was looking at me with the most sincere eyes and I did not want to lie to her. Not at all. "I hated him for a long time...but the longer I was away the more I missed him. Love...I am not sure but when I see him recently heart ached."

I wanted to love Sirus. Back then I had no chance of wanting him...none at all. He was a changed man in my eyes. Even the least bit of change could still be seen when I went to visit.

"Do you think what would your life be like if you two were still together?"

Back then I always thought what would happen if he did not kick me out, how would Thorian be different. Now I think how would I have changed...even Sirus if I would have been allowed to stay.

Would I have forgiven him after seventeen years? Would we be 'in love?' Would Sirus have tried to change for me and Thorian? The thoughts swam in my head since we had that heated conversation in is study so recently.

I was appalled to admit it...but I missed that beast of a man. I did not know why...but it sickened me to my stomach. Was I not supposed to have an undying hate for him?

"Ketakkari I am an old woman you do not want to hear my tales and thoughts. I came out here for you," I smiled as she gave me a less than thrilled look. "You will see that my brother is not a bad man just very....ambitious. Too ambitious some might say."

The princess and I spoke for a while. About her heritage, her people. She spoke with such reverence for everything they did. The smile was on her face but the sadness was in her eyes. She would have to leave the freedom of her old home for the prison of this new one. It made my heart hurt listening to her, and right then and there I determined that she would not be another princess forced into a hateful marriage with awful people around her.

William and I would make her comfortable and Edwin better be on board with this plan else I will have something to say about it.

"Ladies, I do not mean to interrupt but it is getting late...Princess you are leaving tonight yes?" It was Edwin and William was not too far behind him.

Edwin looked annoyed with me. Because I was trying to be nice to his bride? The audacity. I smiled at the princess giving her a quick hug, "Well Princess I hope your journey back to your homeland is safe and I hope you have a safe return back here."

Her faulty smile turned genuine as she squeezed me a bit tighter than I was used to. "Thank you Princess Esmerelda. I enjoy your kindness and hope we can have more talks...once I am back."

"Ketikiari," Edwen smiled holding out his hand as her happy mood soured. He most definitely said her name wrong. That I am sure of.

"It is Ketakkari, Mundane King," she snapped coldly before rushing past him. Edwin grit his teeth together before sighing and following after her.

William strolled up to me with a flower in hand. "Here you are milady," he smiled as I took the flower from his hands before kissing his palm. "Why do you look upset?" He questioned as he sat down next to me.

Did I want to tell him what I was thinking? Would it offend him? I did not want to hurt William, he was entirely too dear to me. "Esmerelda," he sighed while cupping my cheek. "I am your friend first then your betrothed. Tell me."

I mushed his hand away, shrugging. He was right...if he wanted to know I would tell him. "I wish Sirus would have let me stay. I always wondered if I could change him and...I just wonder how life would have been if I would have stayed 'The Queen Of the Beasts," I explained to him, using the humorous name Edwin had given me.

William nodded his head slowly, "I think of that when it comes to my first wife also...the past cannot change, Esmerelda."

"I know, I know."

"If it makes you feel better I will call you Queen Of the Beasts like Edwin does."

************
The End.

Thanks for supporting this extra little book it means a lot to me guys!

Sorry for updating so late I'm in my jobs bathroom publishing this lol

Anyway next few chapters will be the ultimate universe