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Dark Lands: The Exile and the Prince
Chapter 8: A Bit of Teatime

Chapter 8: A Bit of Teatime

An exhausted, miserable expression shadowed itself over Iskra's weary features as the young girl held a steaming cup of tea in front of her face with both hands. She was in the midst of a much-needed break, and the truth behind her administrative torture had finally dawned on her as she took a long sip of her drink.

Not that she had been naive enough to remain unaware of the primary reason for such torture, that is.

For the last several weeks, mountains of paperwork had remained untouched. With her husband's departure, however, the raven-haired teenager was finally able to commit herself in clearing out the piles of various documents. While she wasn't the only one to blame for her lack of professionalism in keeping up with her administrative work, Iskra placed the majority of the blame on the fact that it had been the fault of her oversexed husband and his near-limitless pool of stamina.

'I didn't think they were serious,' Iskra closed her eyes as her mind thought back towards the boastful and lighthearted jests that her various mother-in-law's had warned about their husband's mythical levels of sexual stamina. The tones that they had spoken with about the topic had made the young girl believe that the multitude of women were merely poking fun at the young couple, but Iskra could only blame herself for not taking their playful tone as being completely serious. For now, she was just thankful for the freedom that had been provided to her from the seemingly mythical sex drive that the blonde-haired prince had quite clearly inherited from the dark elven Witch-King.

A smile peaked across the edges of her lips as she thought of her husband, who was now on his way south towards Ranislava. With a relieved breath of air, Iskra closed her eyes at having become finally free from the philosophical chains that had confined her to their marriage bed.

"Someone seems to be very happy today," The familiar voice of Aemilia called out towards the smiling girl. "You're whole body's been beaming with ecstasy ever since the two of you have stepped out of your room."

Upon hearing the irritating voice of her much-hated sex coach, Iskra's brightly lit smile quickly turned into a dull and hateful frown at having her thoughts forcibly dragged out of such a blissful moment. With hatred filling the depths of her gem-like eyes, the young girl glared towards the white-haired slave-mistress as a scowl turned her once warmth-filled features into a blizzard of icy hate.

Her silence only made the elven woman's grinning smile grow even larger.

"Those eyes," Aemilia shuddered as the pitch of her tone rose with an elated sense of delight at the sight of the raven-haired teenager's vicious glare. "Was that the glare that had kept your loving husband seduced for these past three weeks? Just what in the world were the two of you even doing in there?"

The elven woman grinned as she watched the young girl's plush lips open and close as their owner thought over what needed to be said to her crude prodding. She didn't have to wait long before Iskra's gravelly and near-absent voice rang out from her pursed lips as she took a sip of her drink.

"Shut up."

Aemilia grinned from ear to ear as her plush lips pursed into a delighted chuckle as she watched the human girl wince in immense pain from uttering such a short statement.

"Very well, dear. I won't prod any further for the debauch details about what the two of you were up to for these past several weeks." The slave-mistress chuckled as she watched the pregnant teenager take another sip of her drink to help soothe the fiery sensation that ravaged her devastated throat. "But permit me this one question."

From behind the steaming cup of tea, Iskra's gem-like eyes glanced towards the elven woman as she waited for the white-haired pedophile to speak her mind.

"Do you realize how loud you were? There was a point in time where the whole encampment was able to hear your screams."

Iskra's jaw dropped upon hearing such an embarrassing question, forcing the young girl to set down the warm cup of tea in front of her as the color drained itself from her face.

Such feelings of embarrassment didn't last for long however, as Iskra's emerald green eyes glared towards the woman with righteous hatred as her ghostly-pale skin became fiery hot with rage. With a quick blink of her eyes, the young girl clenched her teeth and flung a nearby saucer tray towards the snorting woman.

With icy-cold nerves, Aemilia let out a fierce laugh as she watched the fragile plate smash itself against the walls behind her after having missed its intended target by a wide margin.

"You know," Aemilia started with a calm and collective expression upon her features as she turned her attention towards the surprisingly quiet Fire Guard, who now tended to the remnants of the shattered tableware that now littered his mistress's office. She couldn't help but shake her head at receiving the pleasure of watching such a fearsome piece of demonic magics reduce itself to that of a mere cleaning servant. "Despite my fondness in seeing you riled up. There's a purpose in my visit today."

The elven woman turned her attention back towards the young girl as her eyes locked onto the pregnant teenager's abundance of curves. She couldn't help but let out a chuckle as she watched the young girl's scowling features slowly morph themselves into that of disgust.

"Spe-" a violent sounding cough interrupted the young girl's words, forcing her to cover her face with the sleeve of her blouse as she turned to the side and waited for the coughing fit to subside.

"Go." Groaned Iskra with a look of defeat upon her face as she waited for her crude guest to finish what she had to say.

Aemilia fluttered her eyes as a gesture of thanks towards the young girl as she leaned into a nearby armrest. With an open palm supporting the underside of her chin, she gave her host a polite, but greedy smile.

"With your husband now gone," The elven woman began as she spoke freely about her long-promised reward. "I can't help but wonder if you're trying to snub me and my eagerly-anticipated prize."

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This time it was Iskra's turn to smile as she let out a haggard chuckle, her throat burning with each bit of laughter that managed to climb itself out of the razor sharp cliff that made up the insides of her ragged throat.

"It does look like that, doesn't it?" She asked haggardly, wincing in pain with each word that escaped from her burning throat. Iskra loosened her expression with a tired smile as she brought the cup of tea to her glistening lips. "But don't worry; we can talk about that later. Maybe over some tea?"

Aemilia tapped a finger on the side of her face as she tilted her head to the side, pretending to be deep in thought over the politely offered invitation to tea time.

Both women chuckled to one another as the plump elven woman clapped her hands together and gave her host an inviting smile of joy.

"I can't say no to that, now can I?"

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"Oh my!" Aemilia let out in an excited purr as she watched the metallic Fire Guard place an ornate cup of tea in front of her. A glimmer of light could be seen in the woman's greed-filled eyes as she smiled up at her generous host. "Is that Orleon Tea? This stuff is infamous for being so difficult to get ahold of."

Iskra chuckled at the elven woman's words as she watched her guest reach down and bring the rims of the cup to her lips, but ultimately putting the steaming cup of tea back down onto its saucer plate with a soft clink. The young girl frowned at the sight of her guest refusing to drink from the offered cup but ultimately found herself smiling at the roundabout compliment that had been bestowed upon her figure for having been gifted one of the world's most rare styles of tea.

"Thank you," Iskra said with an annoyed smile as she watched the elven woman lean back into the plush couch to the point where her plump body was on full display for the young girl's eyes to rest their vision upon. "A whole new world of tea has been presented to me ever since I married Prince Aurelius. Now I'm delighted by my ability to learn more about the vast array of tastes that manage to prostrate themselves before my sight."

The two women laughed in unison as Iskra took another sip of her beverage, eyeing her partner carefully as she quietly waited for the other woman to pick the offered drink and bring it towards her lips.

"One of the more-" Iskra paused as she waved her hand in the air before carefully placing her cup back down onto its designated plate as she fought with herself to correct choice of words that she wished to say next. "One of my more astute and kindhearted mother-in-laws has bestowed herself with the task in introducing me to a more civilized people's culture and their day to day habits. Though I must admit that a few of my instructors have also had a hand in helping me recognize which of the newer teas that have been presented to me as the one's that I should pay more attention to."

According to her instructors, Orleon Tea was well renowned for the difficulty in obtaining it's widely sought after tea leaves, as well as the price that came with such difficulty. There was also it's uniquely scented fragrance that many find to be most appetizing as well. All of her instructors had compared the priceless beverage to a field of aromatic flowers that had been recently drizzled in a light shower of the spring's long-awaited first rain.

Despite having been told of such a pleasant description, Iskra had instead been reminded of a more subtle after smell when she had taken her first sip of the tea. One of which reminded her of the times when she would find herself walking through her family's ancient and moss-covered stone archways.

Yet such pleasant memories were all for naught when Iskra had eventually learned that its soothing flavor and pleasant aftertaste was far less popular with the Dark Elven upper society when compared to teas such as Orlash's Tea.

'Do Elves just not have a proper sense of taste?' The girl asked herself for what must have felt like the dozenth time as she watched her exhibitionist guest run her fingers along the rim of her freshly made cup of tea.

Iskra's face grew cold at the sight of the elven woman continuing to refuse to take even the politest of sips from the offered beverage.

"Aemilia, Is the tea not to your liking?" Iskra gently asked of her guest as she picked her own cup of tea back up and brought it to her lips with a curious brow.

"My apologies dear," The elven woman replied with a gentle smile as she crossed her legs together before reaching out and placing behind her head to comb her fingers through the locks of snow-white hair. "But I rarely drink while conducting business."

Irritated by the elf's coy attitude, Iskra's face grew cold as a fake smile stretched itself across her lips in an attempt to hide her growing frustration. It took only a few seconds for the polite façade to wear itself thin, forcing the young girl's lips to twitch repeatedly at the barely held back fit of rage that grew within her mind.

Aemilia couldn't help but smile and laugh at the sight of the frustrated teenager's wild expressions as she struggled to contain herself from enjoying such an emotionally-addled girl.

"You're a lot of fun to mess with," The elven woman mused to her host as bluntly as she could while still maintaining some of the composure required to move forward and push for her penultimate goal of the evening. "Has that stallion of yours grown to be the type of man to mess with you as well? When I first met him, he was the type of virgin who would stare and ogle at a naked woman's body to the point where it became uncomfortable, but when I last left the two of you to explore your personal whims and desires, he seemed to have grown into the sort where he likes to play lighthearted tricks on his lovers while singing alluring flirtations to those that have caught his eye."

With flushed cheeks, Iskra resorted to a brief moment of silence as she drank from the lukewarm cup of tea. Her eyes darted about the room as she attempted to finalize her thoughts before providing a satisfactory answer to the elven woman's prodding.

"He's become quite forthright in his needs. Excessively so, might I add." Not too keen on sharing the private affairs that she had with her husband, Iskra kept her description short enough to provide some detail of explicitness but not enough to the point where one was able to paint the full picture in its entirety. "It's to the point where I might as well stay in bed and hold my legs in the air. Or wrapping them around his waist and locking them together while he picks me up and moves us around."

"I can only imagine what that's like," Aemilia began to say as she reached down for her lukewarm cup of tea. "But I hope that will no longer be the case from this very moment?"

A gleeful, venomous smile encased Iskra's features in a dark light as the two women raised their cups in unison as a form of salute to the other. Each of the two women had different reasons for their salute, but they were equally pleased with the potential that had presented itself within their immediate future.

"Of course," Iskra said with a glint in her eyes as she watched the elven woman bring the cup of tea to her lips. "Once my husband returns from his journey, we'll be able to win over your name as the rightful heir to the House of the Snowstalkers."

The two women tilted their heads back as they downed their beverages in unison.

As she stared deeply into the depths of her freshly emptied cup, Iskra's ears perked up at the sound of something hard slamming into the nearby table. Various bits of tableware and other knickknacks jumped up into the air as a small number of them fell onto their sides and rolled off onto the ground below.

From where she sat, Iskra watched as a few of the items shattered upon impact. Her eyes turned their attention towards the unconscious form of Aemilia as the mischievous predator could no longer contain herself after having received a far more priceless artifact at the sacrifice of such cheap tableware.

"Argonok, my dear." Iskra called out to her metal-encased bodyguard with a calm tone as she set her cup back down onto its gold-inlined saucer as a delighted fit of laughter began to overtake her recently-enraged composure. "Bring me another cup of tea."

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