A Love Spat

Kyliska's eyes narrowed in anger as she peered through the leaves of a potted plant. The plant was placed at the corner of an intersection between two hallways, and she crouched down behind it, her eyes locked on the scene unfolding further up the hallway. What she saw made her heart pound, fury rising within her. Biara was standing near another elf, one that Kyliska didn't recognize, her body leaning forward and in towards the other. While it would seem to most casual observers that perhaps Biara had a secret affair going on, Kyliska knew better and could tell by her sister's posture and the way she seemed to be whispering into the other elf's ear that it was anything but a sordid little love tryst.

No, Kyliska's sister was clearly giving orders to a spy in what she probably thought was the most secretive and clever manner possible. She even wore a hood, as if she were about to go for a walk in the rain outside so that her features were obscured, but Kyliska was not fooled and could clearly see Biara's glowing rune-marks even through the leaves in front of her. When Biara handed the other elf a rolled up piece of parchment Kyliska knew that she would immediately be able to get to the bottom of the issue. The fact that her sister was still controlling spies without consulting with her even though Kyliska was supposedly 'THE' Lady Sunfire now was infuriating, and showed that Biara continued to meddle even when she no longer had a need to.

As the two Sin'dorei parted, Kyliska ducked back around the corner of the hallway, leaning against the wall and casually waiting. A moment later the male Sin'dorei that Biara had been whispering to turned the corner, only to find himself roughly grabbed by the shirt and hurled into the wall. Amusingly to Kyliska, the elf attempted to pull a knife on her, but she quickly headbutted him in the face which caused his head to crack against the wall and his eyes to go glassy. She slapped him a few times until he could focus and his eyes widened as he realized it was Kyliska that had grabbed him.

"The scroll. Now," Kyliska said sternly.

"B-but...o-of course L-lady Sunfire....I-I....h-here you go!" the spy sputtered, producing the letter.

Kyliska released him, snatching the paper from his hands and reading quickly, her ire increasing with each sentence and her face turning red. The spy was smart enough to slink away while Kyliska was reading, wanting no part of a feud between the sisters of the House.The letter was short and to the point, but what it contained made Kyliska's bile come up in her throat, her anger pounding at her temples.

You are ordered to make contact with the SI:7 agent Rosellina Cooke at the location we previously discussed. You will report your mission's success to me directly. Braeth'el will no longer be handling this contact as his relationship with my sister complicates the matter. I had not anticipated that he would take his orders to watch over her quite so seriously or push the mission so far. I expect a report within two days. Destroy this missive after you have read it.

"So this whole time he's been with me because he was ordered to be with me by Biara!" Kyliska shouted at no one. She crumpled the paper up in her fists, turning and storming away towards the nearest stairwell. She would have a word with her so-called 'lover' about this!

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To put it mildly, Braeth'el was surprised when Kyliska kicked open the door to his office and stormed in. He blinked in surprise as she whirled and slammed the door hard enough to make the bolt clatter against the wooden frame before turning and stalking towards him, a murderous scowl on her face.

"So THIS is what our relationship means to you?! You bastard!" Kyliska shouted, hurling a crumpled up piece of paper at Braeth'el and striking him in the forehead.

Braeth'el sighed, somewhat used to his lover throwing temper tantrums but clearly not expecting this. When he replied, his tone was mild and pleasant and designed to soothe her, "Hello Kyliska. It seems you have some issue with me that we need to discuss then, yes?"

Kyliska bristled, stomping around the desk and jabbing a finger in his face, "How dare you sit there and pretend like you don't know! How much of what we've had has been the truth and how much has been a lie?! No, don't answer that because I couldn't even trust the answer! It's un-fucking believable!"

"Kyli, I'm pretty sure I have no idea what you're talking about right now..." Braeth'el began.

Kyliska's eyes nearly popped out of her head as she raged. Her hand came out, striking Braeth'el in the face and then backhanding him a second time. Like a solid rock he was almost immobile, and Kyliska felt her hand stinging from the impact with his rugged jawline. None-the-less, the blows did little to reduce her anger and she nearly spat in his face as she yelled, "I can't believe you'd continue to pretend that you have no idea what I'm talking about! It's bullshit! I've done everything for you and this is what I find out! I'm fucking done with this, do you hear me? Fucking done! I'm leaving and when I come back I don't even want to see any hint that you've ever been here you lying fuck!"

Before he could even reply she whirled around, storming away from him and was out the door as his mouth hung open in surprise. He blinked a few times before reaching down to pick up the crumpled note and then sighed deeply, actually rolling his eyes for a moment.

"Oh Kyli, what a great job at jumping to conclusions. And Biara... I have no words for how bad you are as a spymistress," Braeth'el muttered to no one. He shrugged, rising from his chair and heading out of the door. It was obvious that Kyliska both needed an explanation, and a lesson on how to properly handle potential issues in a relationship. Fortunately Braeth'el had just the means to provide both. He grinned as he walked, heading towards Kyliska's quarters and glancing out the window to see how light it was out. He'd have a few hours if he knew anything about Kyliska at all; just the amount of time he needed.

**********************************

Kyliska's whole world spun around and it just made her laugh to see the room spinning. She'd been drinking for hours at the bar and felt pretty damn good. Certainly much better than she'd been feeling after she found out about Braeth'el's 'mission' to seduce her. She laughed, shaking her head at how stupid she'd been and pounding a fist on the bar, calling for another drink.

As she took another shot, a figure slipped onto the stool beside her, his muscular form clothed in tight-fitting, designer clothes that some of the wealthier merchants of the city sported these days. His long black hair was artfully styled and matched the elegantly trimmed beard that lined his strong chin. Kyliska found herself eyeing the stranger over through her blurred, drunken vision even as she took another shot, her voice a husky whisper as she spoke to him, "Well hello there handsome...."


***********************************

 Kyliska's head pounded terribly as she opened her eyes, the light in the room making her immediately shut them and moan in discomfort. It felt like she'd been fighting dwarves for hours and been hit in the head by their warhammers a few too many times. Oh-so-carefully she opened one eye, wincing as the light pierced her bloodshot eye and sent stinging pain into her head again. Shaking her head, she slowly opened the second eye, accepting the fact that she was going to have a pounding headache for hours after all the drinking she'd done. She was familiar enough with the feeling to know that's what must have happened even if she couldn't remember it.

For a moment, she lay perfectly still on the comfortable bed that she'd awakened on, just breathing and fighting off the pain. After a time she realized that the ceiling above her was entirely unfamiliar, and she blinked a few times as she came to the understanding that she was not in her own bedroom back at Sunfire Estate.

She tried to sit up, only to find that both of her arms refused to cooperate, jerking her back down in bed. She blinked a few times and then, slowly, panic began to sit in as she realized she couldn't move her arms! She glanced up at one and noted in horror that it was tied to a bedpost with what looked like a sheer, thigh-high stocking. She moaned again in pain and jerked her arm repeatedly, finally freeing herself from the silken restraint before reaching over to her other wrist. When she touched it, she froze in horror, her eyes looking up to find that it was not a stocking that restrained that arm, but a cold steel manacle that was connected to the other bedpost by a length of chain.

"What in the fel..." Kyliska murmured before she looked around the room, her horror rising further. She was clearly in an inn room somewhere in Silvermoon based on the furnishings and the gold and red motif of the room, but that was not the worst of it. She realized she was stark naked, covered only by a single sheer silken sheet. At the foot of the bed lay another stocking and what looked like a maid's uniform, albeit one that a real maid would never wear given that it likely would have covered about ten percent of her flesh should she actually don what could only be called an extremely slutty garment. She blinked a few more times, noting that there was a whip on the nightstand beside her, and a pair of heels laying on the floor that she wasn't sure she could have walked in while sober, let alone while she was as drunk as she suspected she was the evening before.

"What the fuck did I do last night..." she murmured, yanking at the manacle which refused to release her wrist.

She froze as she heard a noise, her eyes wide as she peered further into the room. There were two doors, one obviously leading out of the room and the other half-opened and leading into what was likely a bathroom or bathing area. Certainly steam was escaping through the opening, and the sound of water splashing and a male voice humming to himself could be heard from within. Kyliska felt her heard pounding as the realization that she'd cheated on Braeth'el sunk in, rage at herself mixing with heartache and the fear of the unknown elf in the next room.

A moment later the door was pulled open, steam escaping in a cloud and obscuring the figure who was walking out. Kyliska winced and then stared, waiting to see what kind of elf she'd ended up picking up at the bar who had obviously made her do all sorts of rather lewd things. She grit her teeth as the steam cleared, revealing...

Braeth'el.

He grinned at her, walking into the room clad only in a towel, the small bit of fabric hugging his waist and leaving his muscular chest bare. He paused at the foot of the bed, smirking at her as he stared down at her, "Good morning sleepy-head!"

"Braeth'el! W-what? How? It's...not what you think! I think..? What's going on?!" Kyliska sputtered.

Braeth'el grinned at her, walking around the edge of the bed and sitting down there, glancing at her and nodding, "Firstly, how do you feel right now? Were you frightened? Confused? Perhaps ashamed of what might have happened here?"

"I-I...y-yes. But I don't understand..." Kyliska trailed off. "Un-shackle me!"

"Oh I will," Braeth'el replied with a smile, "But first I think we should chat for a bit, hmmm? Firstly, nothing happened to you." He paused, reaching under the end of the bed and pulling out a dark black wig and what appeared to be a fake beard. He tossed them on the bed near her feet and laughed at her when she blushed. "You tried to 'pick up' a stranger. He took you to his room and, well, you threw up a few times and fell asleep. I did manage to read a few chapters of the book I've been trying to get through though, so thanks for the time needed to do that."

Kyliska's face turned beet red and she glared at him, "You...you tricked me! W-what..."

"Yes, I tricked you. Quite easily too," Braeth'el said. "Consider that for a moment. I tricked you here, and yet you think that I'm trying to 'trick' you when it comes to our relationship? What would be the purpose in that? Sex? Do you think I couldn't pick up women in a bar just like you can pick up men? No, there is no point or purpose in 'tricking' you about how I feel. While yes, your sister did order me to look after you, she never even once told me that I should attempt to seduce you. The first time we were together was because we both wanted to be together. It was not a mission, or an objective, or any sort of plan. I didn't plan any sort of relationship with anyone. It just happened and it's not something you can control or stop once it starts, nor do I regret it."

Kyliska continued to blush, looking guilty now, "I-I see...I....guess I owe you an apology..." She trailed off, her eyes wide as she realized what she'd almost done. "Oh fel...Braeth'el, I'm so sorry. I can't believe I almost..."

He held up a hand, nodding at her, "You need to learn that what we have is not what you had in the past, and you don't need to run off and drown yourself in alcohol the second something seems out of place or doesn't go your way. I'm here for you, through thick or thin. Even when you're acting like an ass or don't give me the time to explain a situation. I told you I would watch out for you, and that includes when you're mad at me, or when you think you're going to go get blasted in a bar and pick up a random stranger, much as it pains me to see you doing that."

Kyliska looked away, thoroughly embarrassed now, "I can't believe I did that. I haven't done anything like that since...since after Andi at the garrison."

"And that brings me to my second point," Braeth'el said. "Consider now where you are and who you are. You're Lady Sunfire. You just woke up in a random stranger's room. He didn't assassinate you fortunately, but it looks like he made you act like a common whore. Did he use magic to record that? Will he blackmail you? Your entire House, all of those who rely on you, could be affected by this. Do you want them seeing their Lady acting like that? Do you want to risk both your own welfare as well as the welfare of all of those who now depend on you? You need to start thinking about these things more carefully. I don't care if you're mad at me, mad at your sister or whatever. You can't let this sort of thing happen again. Drink at home and pass out in your own bed if you must, but don't let this happen again, if not for me, than for all the others who rely on you now. Do you understand?"

"I-I understand..." Kyliska said in a small voice. "I-I'm so sorry. I should have just talked to you. I was just so mad... I promise I'll try to never let this happen again." She paused, looking back over at him, "Do you forgive me? Will we....get through this..?"

Braeth'el smiled at Kyliska and nodded, "I love you Kyli, and I will forgive you for anything I think. When one sleeps with a raging fire in one's bed it stands to reason that you'll get burned now and then. I knew who and what you were before we began all of this, and I'm not trying to change you, just protect you."

Kyliska smiled at him, tears in her eyes as she responded, "I love you so much. I'm so lucky to have someone like you who really understands me."

He grinned at her and nodded, "Well, we can definitely agree on that!"

Kyliska sighed and glanced up at her wrist, "Now will you undo this shackle? It was embarrassing enough to wake up like this, but to have a whole conversation with my wrist bound is rather awkward wouldn't you say?"

Braeth'el's grin widened, "You always do somehow manage to get yourself captured, Kyli. But unfortunately, I don't think I can undo the shackle, not yet anyway...."

He rose from where he was sitting on the bed, his towel falling loose and settling on the carpet as he walked towards her, his freshly bathed muscles gleaming still with beads of water from the bath. Kyliska felt herself getting flush for an entirely different reason now, and she slumped against the shackle, looking up at him with a feigned demure expression, her voice playfully low now, "Oh...? Well how can I convince you to set me free...?"

As he drew near and their lips met, Kyliska's last thought was an affirmation of how lucky she truly was to have finally found someone who loved her for who she was. The room began to spin for her again, but this time it was much more pleasant as she felt her lover settle against her, and time seemed to stretch on forever.

It would be many hours before the two would return to Sunfire Estate, and for the rest of the day the staff would comment to one another just how absolutely happy the Lady Sunfire seemed to be and how she kept complimenting everyone she ran across. Certainly she was beginning to grow into her role as the noble ruler of House Sunfire, and everyone agreed it was a good thing.