Princess of the Blood Moon

Elise takes a deep breath, standing before the same bedroom doors she had entered the morning before.

 

True to her word, Tori ended up staying out late last night. So late, in fact, that no one Elise has spoken to on her way through the castle is confident she’s returned at all. None of them have checked inside the princess’s quarters, however. Partially because that duty belongs to Elise, although it certainly doesn’t help that most of the staff are still more than happy to avoid any potential encounters with the princess for the time being. While word has spread regarding the contribution she made to the servant’s quarters yesterday, the increasingly wild rumours surrounding her newfound physical prowess have meant there’s still a way to go before the majority of the staff are won over.

 

The maid exhales as she places a hand on the door. Tori said she’d be here in the morning, didn’t she? Elise isn’t sure why she’s getting so worked up over such an issue, why the very thought of the princess not being here again is making her heart beat so rapidly, especially when she hasn’t even gone inside to check yet. In the end, there’s only one thing she can do, so not wanting to prolong things even further, Elise opens the door, steps inside...

 

And breathes a sigh of relief upon seeing Princess Tori peacefully sleeping under the covers. 

 

The sound is enough to wake the princess, who greets the maid with a serene smile, a look unlike any Elise has seen since they’ve reunited. 

 

“G’mornin’, dear.” Tori says wearily, still in the process of waking up as the maid approaches her bedside.

 

“Good morning, my princess.” Elise says back as her cheer returns to her. She’s not sure why she was so concerned just moments ago. “Shall I help you get ready for the day?”

 

“Nah, said I was sleepin’ in, remember?” Tori brings an arm out from under the blanket and extends it towards Elise. “That tournament isn’t ‘till the early afternoon, still got a ton of time before we gotta get up.”

 

Elise gazes at the princess’s arm for a few moments, her exposed shoulder suddenly bringing into question whether she’s even clothed under the blanket or not. “I suppose you’re right. Give me just a moment to-”

 

“No need for that, come on!” Tori leans over and grabs her before she has a chance to start removing her dress, pulling her under the covers with little effort and holding her close.

 

“I’ve missed moments like these.” Elise says with a sigh after taking a few moments to settle in.

 

“Yeah. Just remember, won’t be long before we can do stuff like this every day.”

 

“How did your business with the blacksmith in town go last night? You were out quite late from what I can tell.”

 

“Sorry ‘bout that, the night got away from me a bit. Everythin’ went well though, a very productive night if I do say so.” Tori answers with a very satisfied smile.

 

“I’m glad to hear it.” Elise smiles back. “What about the matters I warned you about yesterday, do you have a plan in mind to deal with any potential sabotage at the tournament?”

 

“Oh, that stuff? Nah, don’t think we need one.” Tori says casually. “My mercs and I can handle anything ol’ Percy and the queen can throw at us.”

 

“O-Oh… Is…Is that so?” Elise says in surprise.

 

“Of course! You think we can’t deal with a bit of foul play?”

 

“No, I have faith that you and your mercenaries will be able to resolve whatever issues you will face this afternoon, but I suppose that’s exactly the problem, my love.” Elise looks away. “I had hoped that my early warning would be a valuable contribution to our cause, but if you’re already capable enough to manage these matters regardless, that means my efforts were of no use at all…”

 

“Ah, I get it. You’re still hung up on wanting to help, aren’t you?”

 

“Yes, and I know you said that helping spread rumours about you is help enough, but as time goes on I can’t help but feel that simply will not do. If we’re both to be queens one day then I want to be able to say I helped us reach that point.” Elise clenches her fists. “How can I keep my promise of staying by your side every step of the way if I do so by relying solely on your efforts?”

 

Tori smiles. “I get it. Really sucks to feel so helpless, doesn’t it? Not being able to do much yourself and havin’ to rely on someone else to help. Can’t say I ever want to go back to that myself. But hey, you were always the one helping me out back then, so you can think of everythin’ now as my way of paying you back for all that. Not a stretch to say I wouldn’t be here doin’ any of this if you weren’t here by my side, Elise. If nothin’ else, at least keep that in mind.”

 

Elise presses her head into Tori’s bare chest. “Thank you, Tori. That does help, at least somewhat, but… I still can’t help but feel that it’s not enough… That… That I’m…”

 

“Well hey.” Tori interrupts. “If I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you, maybe… I can just show you instead…”

 

Elise feels a hand slide up her leg, lifting her dress as it goes, while another reaches around to start unbuttoning the upper half of her uniform. Tori moves with practised motions, revealing her beloved’s chest in no time at all, and a pair of panties finds itself discarded on the floor. She won’t be needing them again for quite a while.

 

Tori wastes no time at all, using a powerful hand to massage one of Elise’s breasts, while the other gets to work down below. Elise is very receptive to the attention, her soft grunts and moans telling Tori exactly where and how to touch, and it doesn’t take long for her to get lost in the pleasure. It’s different from the intercourse they had a couple of days ago, where they were starving for each other’s touch after having spent so long apart. This is more tender, more loving, Tori is making it clear that she doesn’t have anything to worry about, she’ll keep her safe from anything, or anyone, that would dare hurt her.

 

“Mmmmmhhhhh… Toriiiii…”

 

Tori continues to ravish her using just her fingers, and Elise finds herself thinking that living like this, in the arms of her princess, no… her queen soon enough, and letting her do all the work on account of her superior strength and knowledge, might not be so bad after all. But even then, she can’t help but feel that something about the idea doesn’t sit right with her, and that feeling only grows stronger as her pleasure mounts and her heart continues to race.

 

Why does she feel this way? All she’s wanted for the last two years was to be able to have moments like this with her beloved once more, so why does something feel off? Is something wrong with her? It’s certainly not because Tori’s doing a bad job, Elise can’t remember a time her body has ever felt this good. So why? Why is it that despite all this pleasure, there’s still a part of her that feels so… so…

 

Ba-bump.

 

So empty…?

 

“TOR-”

 

Her body shudders as she hits the peak of her climax, and the hand that had been rubbing her chest finds itself around her mouth as her moans start to get louder.

 

“Sorry, can’t have anyone hearing us in here.” Tori says apologetically, holding Elise close as she rides out her orgasm.

 

Elise continues to lie in Tori’s arms for a while as the waves of pleasure wash over her, and eventually start to subside. The one thing she knows for sure is that no matter what happens, she wants to remain by her princess’s side, but she’s starting to wonder if she’s truly earned such a privilege. Tori went through so much in her time away to become the woman she is now, after all, and catching up with her seems like an almost impossible task. Where would she even start?

 

“Tori, my love, how did you do it?” She eventually asks.

 

“Mm?”

 

“How did you manage to become so capable in the time we were apart?”

 

Tori quietly sighs. “Not like I had much of a choice, y’know?”

 

“Even so, I’m sure it must have been no easy feat to manage such a thing in just two years.” Elise says.

 

“Eh. Depends on the kinda crowds you’re hangin’ out with. What’s got you so curious all of a sudden?”

 

Elise fidgets a bit on the bed. “I was just thinking that perhaps if I did something similar myself I would be of more use to you…”

 

Tori grins, not that Elise is able to see it while being held in her arms. “I mean hey, I’m happy to teach you some self defence once everythin’ calms down, but you don’t have to go through all the same stuff I did. You don’t really have a reason to.”

 

Elise quietly wonders what that could mean, and Tori continues, as if she can sense her confusion.

 

“If I was gonna go through with all this, standing up to the council and becoming queen, then just gettin’ stronger wasn’t gonna cut it. Needed to show I wasn’t the same girl I used to be.” Tori stares up at the ceiling. “How I talked, how I acted, everything the queen made me learn had to go, had to make it clear I wasn’t her plaything anymore. Now, sounds like you’ve got something you wanna prove yourself, but you probably don’t have to completely reinvent yourself to do it like I did.”

 

Tori holds her just a bit closer. “The old me had to die so I could find the strength to keep my promise. Would be a real shame if the same thing happened to you, Elise. You don’t need to worry about all o’ this, just let me take care of everythin’.”

 

Something about that strikes a sour note with the maid, she doesn’t want to leave everything to Tori. She can’t explain why, but she doesn’t even think she could, something is telling her she has to be more helpful. Regardless, there’s not much point pushing things further right now, so she lets the comment pass.

 

“Do you ever regret your decision?” Elise asks.

 

“Nah.” Tori says quickly, not needing any time at all to think on the question. “Sure, woulda been nice to be able to live a peaceful life, I suppose. But that’s not the world I was born into. Don’t think there was ever a way that Victoria could’ve been happy, not with the council breathing down her neck. That’s why I became Tori, needed to find a way to escape from that fate, for both of us. Dunno if it was ever quite as bad for you, but the past two years’ve been the first time I’ve actually felt alive. I hope me coming back here is helping the same thing happen for you.”

 

Elise giggles. “I can safely say that things have been much more exciting since you’ve returned, Tori.”

 

“Glad to hear it. Y’know, when I came back here I’d been considerin’ just taking you n’ running away again, like if things with the council ended up going south. You’re the main reason I even bothered coming back after all. But after seeing some of the stuff goin’ on in this kingdom, I don’t think I can do that anymore.”

 

“Is that so? Not that I would have minded eloping with you, but what’s led you to change your mind?” Elise asks.

 

“Hard to tell when you’ve lived here all your life, but I’ve seen a lot of corrupt kingdoms now, and even after just a couple days back I think this one might be the worst. Some of the stuff that baron was up to makes me sick, and I haven’t looked into the others yet, but there’s no way he’d be able to get away with any of it if the rot didn’t reach all the way to the top.” Tori clenches a fist. “I only came here to be with you and get back at the queen, but now… I want to make things right for the people as well, they deserve to live better lives. Even if everythin’ else falls flat, if I at least do that then everything that’s happened’ll be worth it.”

 

“Well, if anyone could do such a thing, I have no doubt that it would be you.” Elise says. She’s not exactly sure what Tori’s referring to with that last part, but she’s certainly aware that the princess must have gone through a number of trials on her journey.

 

“Thanks, can’t help but feel we got pretty lucky though.” Tori says. “Not sure we even would’ve gotten this far without the whole blood moon thing.”

 

Elise nods. “Indeed, the queen would easily be able to postpone the coronation were it not for that tradition.”

 

“Yeah…” Tori extends a hand upwards, reaching for the heavens. “You ever wonder why we do it in the first place?”

 

“I can’t say I have, I suppose I’ve always taken it for granted that it’s simply how things are.”

 

“Was the same for me, until I left home. Turns out it’s only this kingdom that does it.”

 

“I guess it is rather unusual, now I’m a little curious as well.” Elise says.

 

“Either way, sure am grateful to that moon. Who knows where we’d be without it.” Tori closes her outstretched hand, as if grabbing for something, before bringing it back down and wrapping it around Elise once more.

 

Elise has started to find herself quite weary after the earlier excitement. Tori was right when she said they have plenty of time before they have to worry about the tournament, it would be a shame not to make the most of a moment such as this.

 

The maid begins to doze off in her lover’s embrace, although her earlier comment about feeling alive for the first time lingers in her mind. Truthfully, she’s not entirely sure she understands what Tori meant by that, what sort of feeling she’s describing. Part of her wonders if it’s because it’s simply something she’s felt all her lidfe, she was never under the same kind of pressures the princess dealt with after all, but the excitement she’s felt over the past few days leads her to question that line of thought.

 

She hopes that she can find out what it’s like to really feel alive herself one day.