( A Darkniciad story. About a year 9 mos. after King Thakkorias )

Queen Alicia stood before the doorway of her parlor, bidding goodnight to the last of her guests. Naturally, Christi and Arilee had stayed later than any of the others, more accustomed to late hours than the other ladies, by far. The men would likely continue to carouse for a few more hours, but the informal meeting of Egoria's noble ladies was typically more reserved.

Alicia hugged the blonde Baroness of Dalebord, and then impulsively kissed her on the forehead. "I told you that you were worried over nothing, Arilee. None of us here were born nobles, and you fit right in."

"You were right, of course," admitted Ari, with a wide smile decorating her young face. "Your son is precious, Alicia."

Alicia laughed, "I think he's doing it on purpose. He knows we have company and he's behaving just to make me look like an evil witch for complaining about his behavior in my letters."

"It's in his blood," Christi interjected.

"Oh, stop," Alicia responded as she hugged the Duchess of Cratel. "You will have your turn soon enough."

Christi laid a hand on her tummy, which revealed no hint of her pregnancy at this early stage, and shrugged her dark hair back over her shoulders. "I don't know if I'm ready for this."

The Queen waved a hand dismissively. "You will be fine. Arilee can help if you feel overwhelmed."

"No drinking, no sparring, and no sex – I'm going to lose my mind," the Duchess lamented.

"You can have a little wine – or beer, if you must – just don't overdo it. You can still spar for a while, so long as it is purely swordplay. Now, who told you that you couldn't have sex?"

"I'm going to be fat and ugly, with a huge belly in the way," Christi explained with a frown, and then added, "I know we can for a while, anyway. When did you have to stop?"

"When I went into labor," Alicia replied with a laugh. "It was a rather rude interruption considering how wonderful I was feeling with Thakkor snoring beside me."

Christi's eyes widened – and Arilee was obviously surprised as well. The Duchess asked, "It won't hurt the baby?"

Alicia shook her head in the negative. "The midwife told me it was perfectly fine, so long as we weren't too enthusiastic. She even suggested it to encourage labor."

"I'm trying to get some pity here, Alicia. You're spoiling all my fun."

The Queen laughed again. "Go on, get some rest. We all have to return to our duties tomorrow."

Christi looked over at Arilee with an amused smile on her face. Ari pursed her lips, obviously holding back a smile of her own. The Duchess then turned back to Alicia and said, "Have a nice evening, Alicia."

"What are the two of you up to?" Alicia demanded playfully, knowing the look in Christi's eyes.

Christi put an arm around Arilee and turned her, looking back over her shoulder and replying, "We're not up to anything."

Alicia scowled at the backs of the quickly retreating women, wondering what they knew. When they turned the corner and vanished from sight, Alicia shook her head in exasperation and sighed. Shrugging her shoulders, she left the parlor and made her way to the stairs.

Once upstairs in the Royal apartments, Alicia crept up to the door of her son's room, listening for sounds of him stirring. When she heard nothing, she opened the door and peeked in.

Hanging on a string from the inside of the doorjamb was a piece of paper. Alicia grabbed the spinning paper and held it still, seeing writing upon it.

Mommy,

I went to stay with Nana Emily tonight. Daddy said it was okay.

Connor

Alicia laughed quietly, recognizing her husband's handwriting on the note her one-year-old son couldn't have possibly written. It was obvious now who was up to something, but what remained to be seen.

The double doors of the sitting room were open ahead, down the hall, with soft flickering light emerging from within. Alicia smiled and walked to the doorway, finding her husband watching for her arrival. As she appeared, he immediately rose with a wide smile.

Alicia put her hands on her hips and started to ask questions, but Thakkor silenced her with a raised finger. At the same time, he whipped a cloth off something sitting on the table next to him.

Alicia's eyes lit up and she hurried into the room. "Cherries? I love you! Where did you get them in winter?"

Thakkor smiled as his wife popped one of the fruits into her mouth, shivered with ecstatic pleasure, and then pulled the stem back from between her lips with the pit still attached. "It isn't winter everywhere. Darkni wiggled his fingers and brought them from somewhere on the other side of the world for me," the King explained.

"For me, you mean," Alicia corrected, picking up another cherry and suckling it seductively between her lips into her mouth. When she pulled the stem back, Alicia laughed and wrapped her arms around her husband, squeezing him tight. She then stood up on her tiptoes and kissed him, saying, "I love you – you dear, sweet, wonderful man."

"We've just been so busy, between the audience hall and the baby's room, that we haven't had any time to ourselves. I thought it would be nice to just have an evening alone."

"With cherries," Alicia emphasized, eating another one.

"And chocolate," Thakkor added, producing a wax-paper wrapped bundle.

Once again, Alicia's eyes opened wide. She shivered, moaned, and then waved a hand in an impatient gesture before her. "What are you waiting for, open it!"

The King laughed and untied the strings on the package, guiding his Queen to sit in the chair next to the cherries at the same time. Once the bundle was open, Thakkor broke off a generous chunk of chocolate and handed it to his beautiful blonde wife.

Alicia took a nibble of the chocolate, and then popped another cherry in her mouth with it. "I think you're trying to seduce me, Thakkor," she mockingly accused.

Thakkor offered an innocent grin as he sat down, and then leaned over the edge of his chair opposite the Queen. Pulling up a bottle and two glasses, he asked, "Wine?"

Alicia purred, "White – where from?"

Thakkor popped the cork from the bottle and replied, "Vladamir, of course. I suspect he cheated to get the vines productive this quickly. I thought it would be a nice change from the Red they named for us. It's wonderful, but if you don't change things every so often, even the most wonderful thing can become commonplace."

Alicia's heart fluttered and she smiled, knowing that he wasn't just talking about the wine. A new baby and the stress ruling a Kingdom could strain any relationship, no matter how perfect the two people were for each other. "Vladamir's god would certainly be more than willing to grant him that power, for the greater good. Bringing a new variety of grapes to the area for wine would certainly qualify in Heraklan's eyes."

Thakkor poured the wine and said, "Vladamir has his wine makers experimenting with other fruits too. He added cherries to the list after Darkni brought these today. If we give Vladamir a few years, we might just outstrip Ferrartene as the place to go for fine wines."

"That would be good for the tax revenues." Alicia chuckled, accepting the glass from her husband, and letting her fingers linger on his hand for a moment.

The King's brow furrowed, "We could certainly use them. We're still depending too heavily upon our alliance with Redbear's people to defend our borders, and they need their hunters seeking game, not men from Draxnog. Their entire culture depends upon the hunt."

"Shush," Alicia admonished her husband. "Redbear offered the help because he could spare the men. They hunt as they patrol the borders as well, so stop worrying. He leads a proud people, and they do not feel they have repaid their debt to us yet." Grinning at Thakkor, she added, "Now get back to seducing me."

Thakkor threw back his head and laughed – a deep, booming sound that Alicia had missed for many months now. Their hostile neighbor to the south, Draxnog, had of late sent an increasing number of raiders into Egoria, and protecting the people weighed heavily on the King's mind. Reaching out to touch his hand, Alicia frowned momentarily when she couldn't reach him with more than her fingertips.

"Why don't we go to the bedroom?"

Thakkor nodded, rising from his chair and picking up the wine bottle. Alicia grabbed the chocolate and put it in the bowl with the cherries, and then picked up the bowl as she rose. Walking ahead of her husband, Alicia let her hips sway. She knew his eyes would be on her bottom, hypnotically rising and falling with her steps beneath the lavender gown she wore. The thought of his eyes on her brought a tingle to Alicia's loins, and she licked her lips in anticipation of where this night was surely leading.

Reaching the bedroom, Alicia sat the bowl and her glass down on a table that stood next to her side of the bed. A low fire burned in the fireplace, producing a rosy glow that Alicia knew was not natural. She assumed it was more of Darkni's work. Thakkor had obviously been planning this for some time. Alicia kicked off her shoes and climbed into the bed.

Desire swelled within Alicia as she watched her handsome husband sit down the wine bottle. His muscles rippled enticingly, filling out the simple cotton pants and shirt he preferred to wear when they were alone. When he slid into the bed next to her, Alicia immediately pressed her lips to his, kissing him passionately.

"I love you, Thakkor."

"I love you too, Alicia."

"Thank you so much for all of this. You are so sweet to think of it," Alicia whispered, and then kissed him again.

"You're welcome, love. I wouldn't want you to think I didn't love you anymore," Thakkor responded, and then leaned over his wife to pull a cherry from the bowl. He dangled it over her lips, and she parted them with a smile.

Alicia suckled the cherry between her lips, looking up into her husband's eyes with obvious desire. She pulled the fruit free of the stem, and then rolled it around between her parted lips with her tongue for a moment before biting down.

"I thought I was supposed to be seducing you," Thakkor said in a low, husky voice.

Alicia smiled and licked her lips. "I thought we'd share."

"Sharing's good," Thakkor chuckled.

The sharing involved a few more chocolate and cherry flavored kisses, as their passions steadily rose. Alicia let her hands roam over Thakkor's muscled back as they kissed, loving the feeling of his strong body quivering from her touch. She shivered as well when he stroked her hair while tenderly kissing her neck.

Alicia lay beneath her husband, taking deep breaths and looking into his eyes when they broke from a particularly hungry kiss. She quickly spoke the words of a spell, making the appropriate gestures, and then held a hand over her loins.

When she saw the cool, blue glow there, she let out an excited moan and leaned up to pull Thakkor's lips to hers again. She tugged at his shirt with her hands, while pinching the material of his pants between her toes, trying to pull them down as well. He pulled at the buttons of her dress, opening them as quickly as possible without breaking from their kiss to look.

Thakkor rose up and pulled off his shirt, revealing another surprise for his wife. Alicia had always teased that she wondered what he would look like bare-chested, and his smooth-shaven torso now let her know exactly that. Purring sexily, she pulled him down to her, sucking on one of his nipples, and teasing it with her tongue.

Alicia moaned when she heard him groan from her ministrations. Alicia reached for the buttons at her neckline, but found she could not get a hold on them without taking her mouth from Thakkor's smooth chest. Grasping the material, she jerked hard, popping off the bottom two buttons.

Pulling away from Alicia's mouth, Thakkor leaned down to kiss the valley between her firm globes, while she pushed down on the waistband of his pants.

He rose up to his knees, sliding down the pants to reveal his swollen manhood, while Alicia hurried to shrug her dress off her shoulders. Once Thakkor kicked away his pants, he helped his wife pull off her dress.

Alicia moaned into their next kiss as she felt his cock brushing against her nether lips. Aching for him now, she reached down to guide his tip into her wet heat. Thakkor rose up to his knees, parting Alicia's thighs wider as he rose, and then pulled her closer to him across the sheets. He slid inside her with the practiced familiarity of one who knows his partner's body as well as his own. Alicia let out a deep, satisfied groan as his thick cock slid deep inside her.

"It feels so good," Alicia gasped out, "It has been too long."

"Gods yes," Thakkor agreed as he stroked his throbbing erection into her depths.

Alicia let out gasping yelps of pleasure as his big cock thrust powerfully into her. She grasped her breasts, which were bouncing in time with the movement of his hips, rubbing her nipples and delighting in feeling him inside her after a month or more of forced abstinence.

Thakkor grunted out to his love, "Don't know... How long... I can last." The strain on his face was obvious, and Alicia knew he was fighting with all his will to resist reaching his peak before she did. Sliding her hand between their bodies, she rubbed her swollen bud in furious circles, trying to catch up with her husband.

She was close, the hot tension in her loins increasing at a rapid pace every moment, but not quite there when Thakkor lost control, slamming deep inside her and screaming his pleasure. Alicia continued to rub her clit, feeling his hot cream coating her walls. She screamed out, "Oh yes! So good, love! I'm almost there!"

A growling gasp escaped Thakkor as he stroked his over-sensitive member within her, trying to help her reach her peak. A low scream rolled out from Alicia, steadily increasing in both volume and pitch, finally breaking into a loud eruption of pleasure as the tension built up within her snapped loose in orgasm.

Alicia writhed on the bed, her walls clenched tight around Thakkor's slowly softening cock, whimpers passing her lips with every spike of pleasure that shot through her body. Thakkor collapsed down on top of her, barely supporting his weight on his arms. Their skin was wet with sweat from their passion, despite the comfortable temperature of the room. They both panted for breath, and Alicia wrapped her arms and legs around him, the aftershocks of her orgasm continued to rock her.

Thakkor rolled off her, groaning. "S-sorry, I couldn't hold back."

Alicia rolled her upper body over him, her breasts tingling from the contact with his skin, moaning in contentment. "It is okay, my love. I like that I can make you feel that good." She kissed his chest a few times, and then added, "You can always try again in a little while."

Thakkor chuckled and wrapped his arms around his wife. They lay there together in sweet bliss until they could breathe normally and ceased to twitch from the lingering sensations of their climaxes.

"Would you like to go take a bath?"

Alicia's lips curled into a bright smile from that suggestion. The bathing pool, mimicking the one Christi had at Blackhawk Hall, had been complete for months now, but they had not found any opportunity to share it just yet.

Alicia rose up and climbed off the bed, blushing when she saw her husband admiring her toned body. She chuckled when the sight of her standing over him in all her glory sent a surge of blood into his manhood, causing him to wince and cover it with his hand.

Alicia twitched her eyebrows at him and turned to walk toward the bath, again letting her hips sway sexily for his eyes. Thakkor rolled off the bed and caught up with her when she reached the door to the bath room. When she opened the door, Thakkor smiled mischievously and clapped his hands.

Candles burst into flame all around the bathing pool, casting a rosy, magical glow identical to that in the fireplace. Alicia turned and smiled at her thoughtful husband, kissing him soundly. "You will thank Darkni for everything he has done to make this night perfect?"

Thakkor smiled back at her, "Actually, the candles and the fireplace were Arilee's doing. I tried to keep it secret, but you ladies seem to know everything. It's probably a good thing they got involved, because somehow everyone kept the secret from you that way."

Alicia melted into his arms, leaning her head against his muscled chest. "She is such a sweet girl. We are lucky to have her. She obviously is learning magic quickly – probably just as quickly as she learned to fight. You should spar with her once before they leave tomorrow afternoon."

Thakkor laughed. "No thanks, I heard how the three of you danced all over Mindblind. I'll stick to being embarrassed by one woman in the courtyard, thank you."

Alicia pulled away from him and walked toward the bathing pool, looking back over her shoulder and saying with mock irritation, "If you would stop babying me, you probably wouldn't lose so often. Cerebus doesn't pull his blows because he is sparring with his wife."

"Maybe we'll just see about that first thing in the morning," Thakkor growled with ferocity that was just as false as the irritation in Alicia's voice a moment earlier.

Alicia shuddered and let out a sensual growl as she stepped up into the bathing pool. "I will hold you to that promise, Thakkor. I need to keep in shape."

"I don't see anything wrong with your shape," Thakkor teased as he climbed into the pool beside her.

"Good answer," Alicia laughed.

Thakkor picked up a washcloth and started to wash his Queen – slowly and sensually. She quivered under his touch, feeling her passion mounting once again. When he finished, Thakkor put down the cloth and leaned down to kiss each of his wife's erect nipples. Those touches inflamed her, and Alicia abandoned all thoughts of returning the favor of the erotic washing for her husband. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him passionately, rubbing her tingling labia against his body.

Alicia gasped as he lifted her in his strong arms, carrying her up the steps and then down those on the other side. She wrapped her arms around his neck, and her legs around his waist, pressing her breasts tight against him. The thought that they were both still soaking wet never even entered Alicia's mind as he carried her to the bed, lying her down and parting her legs almost as soon as her bottom touched the bedclothes.

Alicia looked down, breathing rapidly in her passion, as Thakkor dropped to his knees beside the bed, pulling her over to the edge of the mattress at the same time. He moved between her thighs and suckled her labia between his lips without pause, drawing a quavering gasp of pleasure from Alicia.

As always, since he had shaved his beard, Alicia's body filled with energy the moment he put his mouth on her. So long denied release this way because his beard had tickled her, every time was like the first to Alicia. Her hands went to the back of his head, holding him tight against her sex, and her legs pulled against his back.

Alicia's sounds of pleasure were sharp and loud, erupting from her with no warning as Thakkor's lips and tongue drove her rapidly toward an explosive release. Her muscles tensed just before the crackling energy centered in her clit surged into a jolt that pulled her back up off the bed, a loud scream of ecstasy echoing back off he walls to her ears.

She collapsed back to the bed, the grip of her hands and legs tightening as Thakkor continued to lap her quivering pussy. The waves of pleasure rolled through her, and then she felt the muscles in her canal clench tight. A moment later, the muscles relaxed for a fraction of a second before clenching even tighter, his lips wrapped around her clit driving her to a second orgasm.

Alicia pulled her legs from his back, pushing his mouth away from her, and quickly rolled away from the edge of the bed. She curled up into a ball and screamed into the sheets below as another surge of orgasmic energy gripped her. Shaking as if there was an earthquake centered in her depths, Alicia panted for breath and just kept coming.

She was still panting for breath when she uncurled and lay back heavily onto the bed. "Oh gods, Thakkor, I thought I was going to fly apart."

"I love doing that for you," he responded from where he sat at the foot of the bed.

Alicia crooked her finger and beckoned him to her, oblivious to the coating of her bittersweet juices on his lips as she kissed him. Her King lay down next to her, resting her head on his chest, giving her time to recover from her previous release. His hand strayed to his throbbing cock every so often, attempting to quell the incessant demands for attention it was shooting through his body.

As soon as Alicia had the strength to move again, she reached down to replace his hand with her own. After a few minutes of feeling him swell and pulse in her hand, the fires in Alicia's loins surged back to life once again.

Climbing on top of him, Alicia let out an excited moan as she positioned her hips over his cock. Reaching down, she guided the tip of his manhood against her lips, rubbing it in her abundant wetness before pressing it between her folds.

Alicia's eyes rolled up in her head as she sank down on Thakkor's thick shaft. She sat, moaning in contentment, for a few moments with him buried inside her before rising up to slam her hips down on him again.

Alicia loved watching the pleasure and desire in his face when she bounced on his cock like this, loved being in control of the angle he penetrated her. His eyes roved over her face, her bouncing breasts, and his slick cock vanishing into her hot canal. Alicia rubbed her bud at an ever-increasing pace as her hips rose and fell over him, rapidly building toward climax on his pulsing erection.

Alicia slammed down onto him one final time, and burst into orgasm. She threw her head back, screaming to the ceiling in ecstasy, her walls squeezing him tight inside her. The screams continually erupted from Alicia as she rocked her hips on his buried manhood, the shots of pleasure coming with each throb of him inside her.

At last, her strength failed her and she collapsed down over his chest, panting for breath. She felt Thakkor's hands grip her bottom tight, and then her eyes opened wide as he thrust up into her still quivering pussy.

For several fast thrusts of his hips, Alicia's mouth was open in a silent scream. Eventually, the sound escaped her, a loud growl of pleasure that bordered on feral. She continued to yelp and growl as his thrusting cock drove her back up her mountain of pleasure at a relentless pace.

Alicia's next orgasm was so powerful that blackness crept into the edge of her vision. She dimly heard Thakkor's growl of release, and felt his hot seed spurting inside her, but she had trouble sensing anything through the burning heat that spread from her depths to the tips of her toes. In a moment of consciousness, she lurched away from his hands, pulling away from his pulsing cock, and collapsed fully onto his chest. Her head rose and fell with his deep, rapid breaths.

They fell asleep on the damp sheets in each other's arms shortly thereafter.

* * * * *

The next morning, Thakkor awakened her with breakfast in bed. When she finished eating, Alicia laughed and asked, "So, when will all this special treatment be ending?"

"You deserve it every moment, but I'm sure I'll be dragged away later this afternoon, and Connor will be home then too."

"So we have until this afternoon to ourselves?"

Thakkor nodded.

Alicia licked her lips and reached for the waistband of her King's pants.