Tom and Orvan returned; Varga apparently was spending the evening with Lily Rose again. Orvan promptly excused himself and went to the room he shared with Kervan. That left Tom and Diavla alone with Eubexa.

“Welcome back, Master. Things went well?”

“They did.”

“Congratulations on making your purchase.”

“Thanks for the idea, Eubexa.” Tom sat in the other chair, looking at Diavla. He had a nervous smile.

Diavla's heart started to race. He's courting me now. Will he kiss me? Are we going to…? Her thoughts were a jumble. She realized that she was nervous. All this time, I've wanted him, and now that I might have him, I'm scared. Why?

Pregnancy isn't an issue. Sickness isn't an issue. Rivalry isn't an issue. So, why?

She sighed. Because this is important to me. I don't want to fail. I don't want Tom to dislike me. What if I disappoint? What if…?

“Diavla,” Tom said hesitantly in Elvish. “I like you very much.”

She swallowed, her throat dry. “I like you very much, too.”

There was a pause. Then, Tom gave up on speaking Elvish for the moment. “Do you…want to sleep with me again tonight?”

“Yes,” she told him quickly.

“Before that…can we talk, for a bit?”

“Yes?” Diavla wondered what he was going to say. Is he going to tell me what he wants from me in bed? Is he…?

“I hardly know anything about you, Diavla, and I want to change that. Would you please tell me more about growing up in Salathin?”

Diavla blinked, and stared at him a moment. Then, she started laughing in relief. That was a mistake, as Tom looked offended and embarrassed, so she reached out and grabbed his arm before he could stand, beaming at him, willing him not to be angry.

“I was so nervous,” she explained. “Nervous about…us…kissing…or having sex. And you, Tom Walker? You're just…perfect.” She took a deep breath. “Other things can wait. Yes, Tom, I would be happy to tell you about my childhood.”

Eubexa was translating quickly, and Tom stopped trying to stand up. He stared at Diavla uncertainly, while he eased back down into his chair. Slowly, his smile returned. “Thank you. I just…yes, I'm nervous, too. But I really do want to know more about you.” He paused, apparently thinking about his next question. “What did you do for fun, back home?”

Diavla took a moment for her soul to change course, before she answered. Finally, she smiled and said, “The usual—dance, sing, hunt, waveride…”

“What's ‘waveride’?”

Eubexa took a couple of minutes to explain. Tom still looked baffled at the end. “So, you stand on a board and…I guess it would make more sense if I were there. I've never seen the ocean, though.”

Diavla blinked again. Never seen the ocean? I take the ocean for granted… I saw it every day for five years. She shook her head, then smiled. “Someday, Tom, I will show you the ocean, and all the fun we can have there. I will show you sunsets, and sand art, and waveriding, and feasting, and boating…” She trailed off, then shrugged. “There's so much, I don't know where to start.”

“I look forward to learning.” Tom grinned at her.

Diavla smiled, then marveled at her fate. Being kidnapped and enslaved could have been a horrific nightmare for the rest of my life, and instead, this wonderful man is going to show me the human world and see me safely home and free.

“What are your parents like, Tom?”

The big human's eyebrows went up. “Well, my dad is a good man. I told you he's a farmer. We lived in a farming village in a small valley far to the south of here. We're too small to have a village headman or anything, but we helped each other. My dad worked hard to help others and taught me to help others.

“My mom is funny. She tells jokes, and acts out stories, and takes care of all of us. She's a good cook—not at Orvan's level, but good. Sometimes, my dad seems to get…sad, and my mom usually is able to cheer him up. They are very happy together.

“What about yours, Diavla?”

“My mother was a scribe when I was little, and she taught me my runes and numbers. My blood father was a little lazy, I think. He spent a lot of time playing with me. I loved him, of course, but my other two fathers took care of me, kept me fed and clothed and bandaged me when I got hurt.”

Eubexa apparently had to explain some things to Tom, and they had a talk in Western for a bit.

“Your mother had three husbands?” Tom finally asked.

Diavla nodded. “There were four, for a while, right after my mother became Matriarch of the clan. But Tervan died, and then Dorrick left the clan. I don't know if my mother has picked up a third again, or not. I haven't spoken with her for five years.”

∘ ⛥ ⛯ ⛥ ∘

They chatted about several other things, hopping from topic to topic. They had so much to learn about each other! Now, thanks to Eubexa, they could have almost normal conversations.

“Were you always farsighted?” Diavla asked.

“Yes. It's just the way I am, I guess. When I tried to learn to read, Mom thought I was stupid until she figured out that I couldn't see like everyone else.”

If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

That must be a painful memory, Diavla thought. She wondered how that had shaped Tom's soul, to be doubted like that. Then a different thought occurred to her.

“Oh, Eubexa, that reminds me—what's the Western word for an expander?”

Eubexa blinked. “There isn't one. Humans don't have expanders.”

Diavla's eyes widened. “What?”

“They don't have clear glass. Haven't you noticed?”

“No, I hadn't.” Diavla thought back over all the sights, the buildings, the people she had observed. Eubexa was right—there wasn't any clear glass visible anywhere in Rivermarch that she had seen. She sighed in disappointment. “I had hoped to get one for Tom so he could read.”

“…That would have been a marvelous gift,” Eubexa agreed. “Well thought, H—Diavla,” the sick woman caught herself. “Should I translate this, or keep it quiet?”

“Keep it quiet, please.”

“I'll tell him we were comparing human vision to elf vision.”

∘ ⛥ ⛯ ⛥ ∘

They talked for a long time, and Eubexa did very well as a translator. Diavla was having a wonderful evening, and it looked as if Tom was, too, but they had to stop eventually. Tom looked around and announced, “I just realized how late it is getting. We should stop, so that we can be rested when we leave tomorrow.”

Diavla nodded in agreement. “I want to keep talking all night, but…we'll get to have lots more conversations like this, won't we?” They both were smiling.

“Yes, we will.” Tom's smile faded a bit, and he looked a little nervous again for the first time in hours. “Um…I guess we should get ready for bed.”

Diavla swallowed, then forced her voice to stay cheerful and mostly calm. “Of course. Go on ahead, Tom, and I'll be with you shortly.”

Tom nodded. “Eubexa, thank you for your help. It's been a wonderful evening.”

“You're welcome, Master. Good night.”

The human nodded and left, with one last glance at Diavla that she found hard to read. Once he had headed downstairs to the necessary, she drew a shaky breath.

“You did very well,” Eubexa told her.

Diavla gave her a sharp glance. “It wasn't a performance.”

“I could tell. That's why you did so well.”

Diavla shook her head at the veiled elf and frowned.

“Nervous?” Eubexa asked.

“Yes,” Diavla admitted.

“May I make a suggestion?”

Diavla raised an eyebrow. “What kind?”

“Tell him you just want to kiss, at first. Get comfortable with each other that way. After that, you can stop, or continue a little, whatever feels right to both of you. ‘Slower is better’ are the words of mithril in this kind of situation. You don't have to rush anything.”

Diavla took a deep breath. She was a little surprised that the cynical elf had given reasonable-sounding advice. “Thank you.”

“I'm always here if you have an issue and need translation.”

Diavla nodded, got up and left Eubexa's room.

∘ ⛥ ⛯ ⛥ ∘

A few minutes later, Diavla was dressed in a shift and her underwrap, and knocked on the door to Tom's room. There was a brief pause, then he opened the door. Just like her, he was more dressed than usual for bed, wearing a shirt and light pants. They smiled at each other.

“Come in.” Tom stepped back, and she entered. He had a small lantern lit, partially shuttered. As she walked over to the bed, he carefully closed the door behind her, and locked it. Diavla's breath caught for a moment. He's just making sure no one barges in on us, is all, she told herself.

“Key,” he told her, and she heard it hit the small table. She turned to face him, and saw he was pointing at it. “You need go, you get.” She nodded, a bit stiffly. He spread his hands. “Is…no Varga.”

At that, Diavla snorted. She could just see the scene—Varga staggering in drunk and deciding to wake them up and join them. Diavla relaxed a little more.

Tom regarded her for a moment, still across the room. Right, now he's far enough away to see me clearly, she reminded herself. Then he sighed.

“We are both small scared, I think,” Tom told her quietly in Elvish. “I no want you scared.”

“I am cold,” Diavla told him. That wasn't the only reason she was shivering, but it was true. “I go in bed.” Suiting action to words, she climbed into the bed and scooted up to the wall, but this time, she turned around to face him. “You help me be warm, please?”

Tom said one of the Western words that meant an emphatic yes, and climbed into bed with her. She clung to him at once, hoping his body heat would help ward off the chill, while he arranged the blanket over them both. She lifted herself slightly so Tom could get his arm under her to embrace her, and then he simply pressed her against his chest, rubbing her back with his big hands, his chin against the top of her head. She focused on the sensation of getting slowly warmer, feeling his gentle breath along her scalp as they lay there.

Diavla waited, but Tom didn't start anything amorous. He's being a gentleman. Sometimes, that's not what I want, she grumbled. He could at least kiss me. Am I boring him? She pressed herself against him more firmly. He tried to slide away from her a bit, but not before she felt how his body was reacting to her.

Oh. Not bored, at least.

She pulled back enough to tilt her face closer to his. He turned his head away, leaving her confused. “Tom?”

“Diavla…”

Tom sounded deep in thought. He spoke slowly, quietly and carefully. “Diavla, I am not you Master… but… I want, I am you Leader. I want do, no ask.” He turned to face her, his blue eyes seeming to blaze with an inner fire, tension in every muscle. “Do you understand?”

Relief flooded Diavla. Relief, and…other feelings she couldn't easily identify. She swallowed hard. “Yes, Tom. Yes. I very like. Please do.”

Tom grasped her jaw and held her face still, while her blood began to roar in her ears. He didn't kiss her yet. She held her breath, waiting.

“I do, you no like, you say, Diavla,” he commanded. “I want I am happy. I want you are happy. If you no say no, I do I want. I no ask you. I do. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” she whispered.

“Good.” Tom leaned in closer, and kissed her at last.

It was slow at first, slower than their other kisses. Always so careful not to hurt us with his great strength. Gradually, the kiss gained heat. Tom released her jaw, gripping the back of her head instead. Diavla let her hands slide over his chest, his arms, his back. He feels good under my fingers.

Their lips parted and they began to kiss more thoroughly. Doubt and hesitation fell away from both of them as they savored their new intimacy, finding a changing, slowly quickening rhythm. Tom's strong hands started to slide over her body, sometimes squeezing, with a grip that was gentle, yet as firm as iron. She found herself starting to gasp and whimper. They pressed harder against each other. Tom grunted softly. Eventually, kissing wasn't enough for them.

Tom's shirt came off first, her silent tug on it a request that he quickly granted. They paused then, blood cooling a bit, and Diavla took the opportunity to slowly trace her fingers along his scars. She planted kisses on his chest, his bicep, working her way back up to his lips, wondering what it was like for him, to feel pleasure where once was great pain.

They lost themselves in more kisses, heightened by her hands on his skin. Their breathing got heavy and rapid, and they exchanged quiet, wordless murmurs. Diavla's shift was getting in the way more and more. Tom gripped it by the hem.

“You no say no, I do,” he whispered in warning, then pulled the shift up over her head. He's seen me nearly naked, why is this so much more exciting?

Tom appeared to feel the same, from the way he stared at her body with a hungry grunt.

They shared kisses and caresses, and Diavla started feeling very warm in her core. The room seemed brighter. Her soul floated, and it almost felt as if she were calling the spirits.

She had never known her body to be so hungry for another. She couldn't get enough of him. The last of their clothing was discarded almost without thought, and nothing seemed to matter except their growing bond of pleasure.

By the time they fell asleep in each other's arms, Diavla knew that Tom Walker was her tolanor. The consequences could wait. For now, her happiness was complete.