The Ward's Guard

Fischer shifted uncomfortably. "Riva . . ."

Fischer paused, his excuses for Allivia's claims dying in his throat. He closed his mouth, looking towards his feet as he tried to scramble up an answer. This was never how things went . . .

"No!" He cleared his throat. "I mean, you don't seriously believe all of that, madam Raveness."

Fischer followed right on her heels. "She merely said things that got on my nerves, ma'am. Nobody likes being called gay."

Fischer placed Allivia into her cell. "I apologize, Madam Riva. I don't know what came over me."

"Yes, Raveness." He stood up straight, pulling Allivia up with him.

"You think you were the only one?" He leaned over her to whisper into her ear. "You ever wonder rhow many others figured it out, and what happened to them? To live with this sort of fear leads to drastic measures."

Fischer launched his fist, plunging it into her face. Using the momentum, he tossed Allivia to the floor. "Your delusions mark your end." He kicked her resoundly in her stomach to force the air out of her lungs.

"With pleasure. I always wanted to silence an insane banshee." He grabbed her by the back of her neck and lifted her just enough that he could drag her,.holding back the urge to strike her face. "Please, give me an excuse."

"The king believing the word of a convicted criminal? You must be insane if you think you could even get an audience, let alone get him to believe you, of all people." Fischer leaned down to see her better. "Which one of us sexuall- No, just straight up abused and assaulted his favorite serving man, again?"

The moment Riva's knees touched the ground, Fischer was right before Allivia, slapping her to the ground. "You would what? Take down the trained soldier that stands before you?"

"You only regret them now that you're facing pain perhaps an inkling of what he went through."

Fischer paled for just a moment before his enthusiasm returned at Riva's words. "Yeah, that's right." A mischievous light glinted in his eyes. "Oh, I see now! You're trying to claim insanity by saying you forced a homosexual man to bed not just with you, but with every willing woman among the castle staff."

"My dear sweet demon, I have many secrets. Would you care to be more specific?"

Fischer smiled at Allivia. "So, how was breakfast?"

"Oh, we still might not be. I just love wishing Mal's best servant a good morning!" He said it all with a smile, thoroughly enjoying the fact that Allivia could hear them.

The Praetorium dungeons weren't just any old dungeons. They were kept clean and we'll maintained, up to the Praetorium standard, of course. So it didn't take long for Fischer to get used to the stench after following Riva down into the dungeon every day. He didn't enjoy it as she seemed to, but his enjoyment would come later. The moment that the dungeon door was clanged open by the man who stood guard, Fischer turned to flash a smile at the Raveness before inhaling in order to bellow at the top of his lungs. "Goooooood morning, Mal-spawn!"

Short time skip because Steamy Rivaden Riva curled up next to Caden, panting slightly from exhaustion Caden hummed softly and deeply in his chest. "I love you." He whispered to his wife. Riva smiled, eyes closed. It was afternoon, but she could have fallen asleep now; she was getting old. Very old. "I love you, too. Stars, how I wish I'd met you earlier." "If only we had met each other then. Although I can't say for sure if we would have fallen for one another." "That's fair." "But I would have rather that has happened, yes." Riva nuzzled him with her head. Her long black hair was loose on the pillow beside her Caden kept his arm firmly around her, unable to stop smiling. "Oh Stars!" He called out in shock. "What? What's happened?" He tried to sit up, nearly forgetting about not disturbing his wife. "How could I have forgotten?" Riva sat up as well. "Dear, what did you forget?" Caden stepped out of bed, despite his state of undress. "I took a moment to walk about the marketplace to clear my mind before you retrieved me, and I had an idea." "I can't always be with you, and neither can Fischer." He knocked on the door, then opened it to see Fischer. The young man who had been standing guard turned to look at his commanding officer, only to have his face break out in the strongest blush at the sight of the well chiseled general. He tried to clear his throat and keep his eyes on Caden's, and saluted. The general briefly returned that salute. "Run off to the room just right of my office, then bring back what's waiting in it." Fischer nodded, eager to turn away from the general, lest he blush so hard even his hair turned red. "Yes sir. Right away sir." "Ah, Fischer's a good boy," said Riva. "He is." Caden closed the door and returned to where his wife laid in bed. "And he's young for one of my guard." "So he's said. He talks about Nicolae, the castle boy, quite a bit." "Who?" "Nicolae Kimby. C'mon, everyone knows him." "I've never heard of him, so not everyone." "Oh, come now, you must have!" She prepared her best Nicolae impression. "Ah, have a zu-bop of a day now, love!" Caden snapped up. "There it is again! What the bla-" He stopped himself, looking ashamed for a moment. "I mean, what does that mean?" "No one knows." He furrowed his brow. "Then why do people say it?" "It's just Nicolae that does. He's the king's flirty attendant." "I've heard that saying, while never meeting this flirty attendant." "I guarentee you've seen him! He's with Ivian!" "Yes. He's very tall, taller than you." "I would remember that if I met him." "Oh, come now, you've got to have seen him!" Caden folded his arms. "You're being ridiculous. I've never seen or met any man by that description in my life." Just as Caden finished the description, a knock resonated from their bedroom door. The general stood up, grateful for the distraction. Upon opening the door, he found Fischer who was breathing heavily with a squirming dog in his arms that was almost larger than his chest. Although admittedly it appeared to be more floofy fur than dog. Caden nodded. "You may put her down, Fischer." Riva's eyes widened. "A dog?" She'd never seen one up close. The dog rushed to Caden's feet the moment her feet touched the ground, causing the general to bend over to secure a hold on her so she wouldn't flee into the hallway. "That will be all, Fischer." The soldier saluted, then turned away from the general too quickly with a sigh of relief the moment the door closed. Caden shook his head, not knowing what had gotten into the boy. "More accurately," he started telling his wife, "she's a pup." “A present?” Riva asked "Of a sort. She's meant to be trained as a guard dog." He guided the pup towards the bed so that Riva could have a closer look. "I saw one of her breed fully grown, and it was a terrifyingly large creature. I'm sure she'll be able to take down a grown man for you in no time at all." Riva smiled, reaching down to pet the thing. “She could take me down now,” she said with a chuckle. “What’s her name?” The pup leaped up and tried to lick Riva's face in a sudden motion, but Caden quickly grabbed her to hold her back. Riva jumped. “Ah. Eager little thing.” "Yes," Caden agreed. "I was told that was a dog's method of kissing, therefore sho-" The pup interrupted Caden by leaping at his own face to shower it with her form of kisses. The general leaned back at the motion, trying to hold the dog down. "Very eager to kiss us."

Caden grinned, despite the early gloom that hovered above him. "You find it attractive?" "I really, really do." He tapped his finger on the plate he had been given. "I simply don't understand why." "And I don't understand why you love me. So we're even." "I suppose so." Riva beamed. "I do feel I've cheated you a little; last time we had pie, you made it for me. I got the chef to do it." "Pie is pie." Caden argued back. She shrugged. "I suppose." "You disagree?" "No." She chuckled. "Although it's your turn to do something for me after this." "Cleaning out the guard of the traitorous scum isn't enough?" He spat the word traitor as if he couldn't bear the thought of it being on his tongue longer than necessary. "Oh! No, of course not, that's not what I meant, love. I appreciate that, I do. I just meant planning a date or something." "Ah, a date . . ." He cleared his throat. "I can't exactly plan one of those." "When you made the pie! That was a date!" "That was?" "Of course!" "Was it . . . a good one?" "No, it could have been better," she deadpanned. Caden winced, feeling a pang of guilt. "Then I'll have to do better." Riva laughed uproariously. "No! No, I'm kidding." "You . . . are?" "Yes, darling." She rubbed his shoulder, then started. "Oh! I haven't given you a back rub in ages." "Think nothing of it," Caden tried. "I haven't had the time." "We have time right now. I'm done eating anyway. " She sat behind him and placed her hands on his meaty shoulders. Caden resisted at first trying to hold her back before leaning forward onto the bed, letting his wife at his back as he groaned for a single second. "You may sit up and keep eating if you wish." "No." "Oh, so you like the backrubs then?" Riva smirked, digging her elbow into his tight muscles; her thin fingers alone didn't carry enough weight. "When you first had one, you protested quite a bit." "I was a fool."

Shards, Riva looks so great!

Fischer returned the stare just as intently for a moment before blinking and shaking his head. "No, not like that." "Bah, never mind." "I just said more eye contact," he reiterated in a defensive tone. "But I'm taking notes!" She gestured at the paper. Then, she stomped her foot and crumpled the thing up, tossing it aside. "Oh, what do I care, I can take notes on you later." Fischer shook his head, not understanding. "You're a strange person. Uh, Mrs Preatorium?" “Yes, child?” "Do you like being called that, or would you prefer Ravenness?" “Why can’t you call me Riva? It’s my name. You ought to call me by my name.” Fischer shifted uncomfortably. "I uh, don't think that would be right for a woman of your station." She rolled her eyes. “I’ve been relieved of duty. I’m nothing but an old hag.” There was no small amount of bitterness in her words. Fischer shook his head, "you'll always be the Ravenness, ma'am Riva. On top of that, you're also married to my boss." She sighed. “Fair enough. Anyway, what are you called? Fischer is your surname, yes?” "Just Fischer, ma'am." “No surname then?” "That's my surname, ma'am." “Well then, what’s your first name? What do our friends call you?” "They call me Fischer, ma'am." She rolled her eyes. “And is that…. Average?” "I don't think so." He shrugged, "least I've never seen anyone else do that." “Fascinating. And how old are you?” "More information for your notes?" “Yes, Fischer.” "I'm twenty years old, then." He cleared his throat. "Is that a surprise?" She shrugged. “I suppose it should be, since you’re the youngest of Cady’s soldiers.” "Uh, Cady?" “Yes, my husband. Your boss, or don’t you remember?” "No, I've just never heard him called that before." “I’ve only called him Cady once…. But I like it.” "Oh, uh, did he?" “We we’re not in love at the time. It was meant to mock. Add ‘ie’ or ‘y’ to anything and it becomes funny. Ey, Fishie?” "I don't think I like that." Fischer smirked, "Rivie." She laughed. “Oh yes! Rivie indeed!” Fischer chuckled softly despite himself. "You're definitely odd. Which raises the question, how did you ever get my boss to love you?" “Well it was NOT a love potion; such a thing is impossible. No, Caden loves me because I…” she trailed off. “He…. We… why does he love me?” Fischer shrugged, sitting down. "You tell me. Long as I've known, all the guys said that the general hated the idea of love. So maybe it took an odd woman to change that?" “Well it has something to do with the night of the ball. A month ago.” "I remember hearing that something went down, then." “He was crying, see. I wanted to kill him while he was weak because he’d hit me earlier, but… I saw something in him that night. I couldn’t bear to kill him. So I spend the night consoling him. And whaddya know, we made love the next morning.” She chuckled at the memory, lost in it. “Let me tell you. That man’s….” Then she trailed off. “Maybe you don’t want to hear about your boss’s sexual exploits.” Fischer raised his hands. "Please don't go into the details, I see enough as is." “See enough? How so? Does he talk about me often?” Riva was on the edge of her seat, evidently excited by the memory of her first night with her husband. "Uh," Fischer looked away. "Yes, sure. He does." He cleared his throat, the poorly constructed lie leaving a taste of bile in his throat. “Terrible liar! Tell me the truth, dear, and I might not have to RIP IT OUT OF YOU!” She smiled amiably. Fischer jumped back in his chair, lifting his fists defensively in shock at her shouting. "That's- No, it's . . . Unrelated." “I require an explanation.” "I won't give it." “The Raveness requires it.” She bobbed her head and her feather swayed He raised his brow, "I thought you got released from that title." “And I thought you said it would always be mine. Anyway. I’m guessing you have your own exploits you don’t want anyone to know about. What’s her name? What does she look like?” "I-" He paused, deciding it was better to lie. "Her name is Penelope, and she's uh, very pretty." “If you want to lie to the Raveness, you certainly have guts, I will give you that much.” "Who said I was lying?" “I did. It’s kind of my job; getting the truth out.” He looked away from her, "right." “Indeed. So. You don’t have a companion of your own. Are you, perhaps, covering for someone?” "What do you mean 'covering for someone?'" Fischer asked indignantly. “You have a friend who's having an affair no one needs to know about.” "Nope, not that." “Then tell me, I do so hate guessing games when I’m wrong.” "I'm not interested," Fischer decided to say. “And I’m not interested in saving your friend on my table, yet here we are.” "Hold on, he saved your life!" “That doesn’t mean it’s interesting to watch him die.” "If you let him die, then I-" “I will not let him die, son. But he will die. I can’t do anything more than prolong his death.” Fischer ground his teeth. "You said you could help him." “I am helping him. Is keeping him alive not helping? I had a potion that could heal him, but I used the last of it to heal my hip after… after Caden threw me.” "I- What?" “Yes, he threw me. We hated each other, is it really so surprising?” "You di- Can't you just brew up another one or something? You're the potion brewer." “It takes weeks to create. Weeks our soldier here doesn’t have.” "There must be something you can do." “I’m doing it.” "That can't be it," Fischer protested again. "There must be something else you can do!" “You think I don’t want to return the favor of saving his life?” Riva stood. “That man had absolutely no reason to save me other than pure loyalty.” Fischer stood up, glaring at her. "You're blazing right! If not for you, he wouldn't be dying right now." Riva adopted the stance of a woman who knew she was in control. No longer did she seem like a slightly crazy old woman trying to learn the intricacies of social interaction. “Hold your tongue, boy. You chose to save my life. I am still a woman of great power; implying you’d rather have let me die doesn’t seem like a wise option.” The young man grit his teeth, and matched her stance. Though his superiors had often tried to discipline it out of him, he stood resolutely against the Raveness. "If it were trading you for him, then it wouldn't have been much of a choice." “And how would your master feel if he heard you say those words? Who else might you trade for my life? He’s rooting out the unworthy now, obviously. Maybe your neck needs to be set for execution.” "That's not what I-" Fischer growled, "while I value your life greatly, I value his greatly as well. But it's more personal with him."

I hate to double post, but I might be intending to use this in one of my campaigns with proper credit given just because it's so well done. But it won't be a while, so don't expect play testing stuff quite yet.

Fischer tilted his head inquisitively. "What are you trying to do? Uh, ma'am Ravenness."

He raised an eyebrow, "if that was humor, I didn't find it all that funny."

"I was referring to your patient, madam Raven-" Fischer stopped himself, and cleared his throat upon remembering who he was speaking to.