Mahnu, Her Journey

Chapter 16

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CHAPTER 9 (Part two)

After they got to where Mahnu was staying, they greeted each other and the King thanked them.

The older lady, Betty, looked worried as she stared at Mahnu, "...Have you regained your memories, Ca.s.sandra?"

Mahnu shook her head.

"Then, sir, how can we be sure? We care very much for Ca.s.sandra, we won"t let anyone think that they might know her!"

The older lady might not have yelled but she had raised her voice.

Marcus came to step in but the King waved him away.

"I know she does not remember, I also have two people who can confirm it but...I want her to come to me freely."

King Richard turned to her then and she stared at him. Putting his hand to her face, he watched her reaction.

At first, she was shocked and took a small step back but as she looked at his face again, her shock disappeared.

Putting her own hand up, she slowly went to touch his cheek, starting with one finger, then after her whole hand. Suddenly, she pulled away and breathed out. "I...would like to see."

"Are you sure Ca.s.sandra? Is this what you want?"

"If you are worried, then by all means come with us back to Conrella." The King breathed out in relief.

"...Your Majesty!?" Marcus said to the King.

Silence filled the room. Betty and the older man, Donald, were shocked but got down to bow in respect. King Richard stopped them, "No, it"s fine. Please don"t. I"m not here as the King."

He looked at Marcus, showing that he was annoyed, then turned back to the older pair with a hopeful face and said, "If Mahnu wants to be with you as well and she is willing to give me a chance, I will be happy to take you to Conrella."

Conrella? The Capital? Both of the elders looked at each other in astonishment. Who was this girl that the King would do all this!? Then Betty said in haste, "Oh, Oh no! Your Majesty! You don"t have to do that!"

The King laughs and pulls Mahnu to him. "What do you want to do Mahnu? Anything you want."

He pulled her hand up to his lips and kissed it.

Mahnu didn"t know what to think about! He was the King! We were...together? Does he know why she doesn"t remember? Who are the other people that know me?

She looked at the other two men in the room who didn"t look familiar, except from meeting recently. What was it they had said? She tried to remember.

What is it that I want?

For some reason Mahnu didn"t like that question. Her head felt sore suddenly and she tried to focus.

As she felt herself start to faint, she asked herself that same question again. What do I want?

She felt herself fall and admitted that right now she just wanted to sleep.

The King caught her, "Mahnu! What...What is wrong with her?"

Betty looked at the King apologetically. "I would a.s.sume it"s because she"s been out all day and didn"t eat, Your Majesty."

"What? Why wouldn"t she eat, dammit!"

Gently, he picked her up and asked where he should lay her down.

"It"s properly because she didn"t eat when she was..."

The King interrupted Marcus, "Hush, Marcus." He sighed, always so troublesome. He looked at Mahnu"s sleeping face and wondered how he had coped without her all this time. Moving a strain of her hair, he wondered how we had missed seeing her here in Brackan all that time ago.

"Has she been with you for two years?" He asked, wanting answers.

"Yes, we found her unconscious and at the same time we were one of the ones that woke up, as it seems to be called."

"She was a frail thing. Didn"t wake for a whole week. Then we were worried because she seemed bed ridden. But after two months, she was able to move a little bit more."

The King looked at Betty, shocked.

"Again, Your Majesty..."

The King looked at Marcus and silently nodded. They were thinking that it was the same thing that happened with The Chest of the G.o.d"s as well.

"It"s best if I get something for her to eat, for when she wakes up." Betty walked out of the small bedroom, to go to the kitchen.

The King watched as Betty went to the kitchen and then Donald bent down near Mahnu. "You know how children are lots of work? It was like we had suddenly gained a child, which Betty and I didn"t mind as we couldn"t have any children."

The King waited eagerly for the elder man to continue.

"She gets startled easily and sometimes day dreams. It was like she had never seen a flower before.
Donald lets out a small laugh and continues, "And, boy, does she love climbing trees! Even though she is an adult, it was as though she hadn"t matured properly." The old man sighed, "Betty had to explain the whole womanly thing to her from scratch. She thought that she was dying...For some reason, she hasn"t gotten used to knowing when she"s hungry or thirsty. We"ve tried to tell her...but she always seems to forget. It worries us a lot, especially now that she goes out by herself. She also has quite nerve racking nightmares. A doctor had said that her past must have held really bad memories for her, so she must of forgotten them in a way to safe guard herself. They...normally make her cry."

King Richard wondered what to think about first...she was like a little baby chick that was born as an adult. One that seems to need constant watch. It would be better if Betty stayed close by, just in case. Wait...so she"s definitely mortal? Even the...

King Richard had decided, "Betty, Donald. I would like you to accompany us. I can"t leave without those she confides in. I will make it so you will be close but have your own s.p.a.ce. Mahnu and you will not be stopped to see each other."

"We are too humble, Your Majesty. How could we accept such an offer?" Donald bowed his head humbly.

"Please come, I"d prefer it...I"m sure Mahnu would prefer it too."

"I don"t know what to say, Your Majesty." Donald said.

"Great. Can we help you pack, perhaps?"

"Oh! How could we ask for that from a King!?" Betty had returned, looking mortified.

Marcus stepped closer to Betty. "Did Mahnu happen to have a box with her when you found her?"

Betty looked wide eyed at Marcus, "Why yes! She did! How did you know!"

"The box." The King said. Finally they had found it!

Betty disappeared for a moment and then returned. "Here it is. We tried to open it but it seemed to be sealed shut and locked so tightly that no one in town could open it."

Marcus and the King sighed in relief.

"Take it Marcus. You should know what needs to be done."

"You...Know what"s inside the box?" Betty couldn"t hold in her curiosity.

King Richard wondered what he should say, "Yes...The reason you were all able to "wake up" two years ago was because of this box. It is all because of Mahnu...But for now, we are keeping it secret. We also need to hide that box very well so it doesn"t happen again."

Betty looked at the box and questioned if it were true. They hadn"t been told anything on the day they had "woken up". The knights kept saying that everything was back to normal and now they were free to go back to living their lives like before. It was clear that nothing more was going to be said by the King but Betty had heard enough and she was grateful.

The King turned towards William and said, "Find a carriage, I"d like to leave as soon as possible..." He turned to the elderly couple, "Is that okay with you? Betty, Donald?"

"Well, yes, of course. Her meal is ready, so I will start to pack right this minute."

The King picked up the meal and sat it beside Mahnu, settling beside her also.

"Mahnu."

"Mmm..."

Marcus left the small room and closed the curtain to give his Majesty and Mahnu some privacy. It was a good opportunity to think of the resting place of the small box in his hands.

"Mahnu...Wake up."

King Richard had gathered her up in his arms, putting her into his lap and whispered in her ear. "Don"t make me ravish you right now!"

Mahnu opened her eyes. She was shocked to see him so closed, "Excuse me!" She said trying to get out of his arms.

"You are not going anywhere till you have eaten." As he put a bowl in her lap he remembered a past memory of not letting her go until she was clean.

"Why do you treat me like this?"

"Because you treat me like this." The King laughed at her confused look.

He put the forkful of food into her mouth and continued, "You don"t treat me like a King. So, in a way, you treating me like any other man...You"re... My retrieve."

She finished what was in her mouth and said, "So, if I treated you like a King would you..."

He put another forkful into her mouth to cut her off. "I just want you to be who you are. Be natural."
King Richard sighed. He knew she had to eat. Eat faster, he thought. He could feel his desire for her welling up so fast that he could hardly bear it.

"Are you okay?" Mahnu placed a hand on his forehead.

You are putting oil on the fire, Mahnu, the King thought. He stopped her hand with his and said, "Eat."

"Uh...Okay." Mahnu took the fork and started to feed herself.

The King watched her and put his hand on her waist. They stayed silent as he moved his hand slowly up, only slightly touching the side of her breast, as it pa.s.sed onto her shoulder. The real Mahnu, is right in front of me. I"m not dreaming. The King thought.

He then notices that she had slowed down in eating and even had closed her eyes.

Sighing, he took his hand away and picked up the fork that she had dropped.

Feeding her the last of it, he placed the bowl elsewhere and drank some water.

He pulled her close and made her drink from his own mouth, while he could taste her.

She pulled back after she became breathless and stared at him, wide eyed.

She looked away and said, "For some reason, I let you get away with doing what you want with me."

The King smiled, pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and gave it to Mahnu. She looked over it, it was creased and looked like it"s seen better days.

"I took it with me everywhere." He watched her read her own letter and saw how she obviously didn"t understand it.

"I don"t understand."

"It"s fine. But here." He pointed to "Richard", "And here." He pointed to "Yours Eternally, Mahnu".

"So, I wrote this?"

King Richard nodded and slowly took the paper back from her, putting it back in his pocket. "Maybe, one day, I"ll explain it to you...But right now..."

The King laid her down and placed himself on top of her. He kissed her, his hands on each side of her face.

Again, they parted, trying to calm their breathing.

"I love you, Mahnu."

She stared back at him. Her body knew this person. She had obviously known him to the point of giving her heart to him. Putting a hand to his face, Mahnu wondered if this was alright. But why was it that she felt she didn"t deserve him?

"Did I...Do something bad...before I lost my memory?" She asked.

The King smiled, "Yes! You left me with a note and disappeared!"

Mahnu let her hand fall and looked away, "That probably explains it then."

"Explains what?" King Richard looked at her confused. He could tell she was slipping away. "Talk to me!" He said, starting to panic.

"I probably don"t deserve you." She said with a small voice.

He moved her head, so he could look into her eyes. "My dear Mahnu, of all the people in Kralaide!"

He couldn"t continue, he rolled to his back, pulling her along with him. He had already decided he wasn"t going to spend another day without her. He held her tight as he sat up and kissed her, wishing for her to forget what she was thinking.

He continued to kiss her neck and suck on her ear lobe. Her sighs satisfied him and he pushed her into his desire. For so long, he hadn"t touched anyone. He hadn"t wanted anyone...Except Mahnu.

"Mahnu." He Breathed out heavily while he started to remove her clothes.

Marcus led everybody outside of the small house and stated that the King needed some s.p.a.ce for the moment.

Betty and Donald were speechless. They all were, except for Marcus. He had watched the King more since Mahnu"s disappearance and he had changed drastically. His new cold personality may have helped him finally find who was behind the a.s.sa.s.sination attempts but he never, for a moment, had seemed happy.

When his duties had been accomplished for the day, the King had shut himself away, demanding to be alone. Many times he got drunk, many times, he got that depressed that it had showed the next day. Marcus knew what Mahnu gave up for everybody and will forever be grateful to her because of it. But...She leaving the King so...Broken, had made Marcus mad at her.

How has His Majesty forgiven her so easily? Marcus sighed. The King had finally smiled, he had finally laughed.

Do I forgive her now too? Marcus asked himself. Being the leader of the Loyal Royal Knights, I have to protect his Majesty and that also means protecting his weakness. And that weakness was Mahnu.

I will do my job, he thought, I will protect them both...With my life.

***

King Richard kissed Mahnu"s forehead, putting his fingers down her bare back and through her hair. "Are you ok?" He asked.

She was slumped, with her hands on his chest, "Mmm..."

He pulled her face up to make sure and let out a chuckle. Her eyes and face looked relaxed, almost like she would fall asleep.

"Did I tire you out?" He asked, putting her head against him again.

"...I don"t ...Really know what to say or do."

He chuckled again. It was the best feeling in the world. To have her here like this, in his arms.

Suddenly, he remembered where they were, "Oh...I guess we should dress."

She put her arms around him then, holding so tight that it reminded him of that last night before she had disappeared. "Mahnu?" His voice showing his worry.

"Can we...I mean..." He heard Mahnu sigh. "For some reason, I wanted to..."
Her silence made him angry. He wanted to hear what she wanted to say.

Then, finally, she continued, "I don"t remember, but when I left you that note and disappeared. I think it might have been a very hard thing for me to do...Right now, I didn"t want to let you go..."

How was it that her words could touch me so much! King Richard pulled her face towards him and kissed her.

Not yet, both of them thinking as desire rippled through them once again.

Marcus decided to give the command that the house be off limits till the next day. He advised Better and Donald to follow a knight to go to an inn, so that they can eat and rest.

Marcus sighed, he thought that it had been time to leave but when he checked last...it wasn"t to be so. He did know that His Majesty hadn"t touched anyone for the last two years and he wondered if the King was making up for lost time...It was something Marcus admitted to not understand. He had never loved a woman or lain with one. For he had decided a long time ago that he wanted to make His Majesty his only priority. He stayed close and guarded right through the night, knowing he wouldn"t be the only one deprived of sleep.

It wasn"t till mid morning that packing continued and it took till nightfall to set out on their trip to Conrella. King Richard had rarely taken his eyes of Mahnu and still kept close enough to touch her, even when she said her goodbyes to the neighbours close by. Betty and Donald blushed many times to the King"s continued attentiveness towards Mahnu and they were happy for her. Mahnu had silenced their worries of joining them by stating that if they didn"t mind leaving Brackan, she wanted them to join her.

So, they were all on their way, Betty and Donald taking their full carriage and Mahnu was mounted with King Richard riding a horse. She was shy around him, staring at him and trying to understand her feelings. The King noticed and would chuckle, watching her in return.

Mahnu hadn"t been with anyone s.e.xually since the last time she had been with him, and the King was glad. It was like she had been a virgin all over again, all his for the taking. It even heightened his feeling of possession over her, that he knew he already had.

King Richard smiled. They"re love making had hit even another height that he hadn"t even thought possible!

Without her, these two years had slipped away so easily and he hadn"t touched her with any kind of anger, as he thought he might have.

It was more of a sweet reminder to him of how much he loved her and loves her still. Seeing her naked, and the desire for him in her eyes, he wasn"t able to hold anything in! Throughout the previous night he had wanted her all to himself, wanting her over and over again to remind himself that this wasn"t a dream.

That Mahnu was real! And she was beside him once again!

***

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