Black Queen's Gambit - Part 4

"So how do you know so much about Khajiit mating?" Morgiah asked him. "Dunmer, I can understand, although you surprised me a couple of times."

Clark told her about Shulassa and Tsarrina at Gweden. As far as he knew, they might be the only female Khajiiti who really knew what was happening when they mated. And yes, he'd asked about that. Shulassa had shrugged and told him it was just different. She liked it with or without, no preference for one over the other.

"Rinnala's apparently taken to it," Clark added. "How many times have we heard her so far?"

"More than we've managed, that's for sure. I'm starting to feel cheated." Morgiah replied, wondering if Clark was getting aroused by the sounds from across the campsite. She certainly was.

Her own experience with Khajiiti men had been under different conditions. She'd taken drugs to reduce the intensity, as she'd wanted to keep full control. That had left her with a feeling that she'd missed out on something. And Rinnala was getting it full-strength, as much as she wanted.

Clark may not been able to read Morgiah's mind but it was clear to him that he needed to distract her, or she'd be running over and taking her daughter's place. This was his best opportunity so far to really get Morgiah off-guard.

"Have you wondered why they didn't just send a hulking Orc with a battleaxe to escort you?" he asked her. He didn't dare let her think too much about that, so he answered his own question. "Because you need a guide, not a guard. Someone who knows the territory, and I don't just mean the land, I mean the people, too. You need to be kept clear of the all the threats against this journey, and the worst of those are ..." He trailed off, letting her fill in the space with her own thoughts.

"I need to know where you think the threat is coming from," he continued after a moment. "You mentioned those fear-mongers, the Beautiful, but I got the impression that they weren't the only ones. There's some other group that has you worried, isn't there?"

"If I knew who they were, I'd have dealt with them myself." Morgiah replied with a disgusted look on her face. "But all we see is the results. Someone's stirring up the common folk, but nobody ever seems to know where rumors started, or who was the first to complain. That's not easy to manage, and their competence is what has me scared. It started even before the Daedra invaded, but it got worse after. The gates used up a lot of good soldiers that would otherwise have kept a lid on things."

She clung tightly to him, as if for reassurance, and that gave her the opportunity to change the subject. Clark smiled, recognising those tactics. She was good at this, too. "Of course, Rinnala thinks you were sent to look after her needs, not because we needed any help with the journey. They all think they're immortal, and capable of anything, at her age. Travelling across Cyrodiil with just a map and a shortsword seems easy to her."

In the morning, Clark and Morgiah found the other pair still asleep in each other's arms. She'd obviously untied him at some point, once she trusted him not to run away. When she'd found the time to do that wasn't clear. Last night, it had sounded like non-stop action. Clark told Morgiah that another quirk of the Khajiiti men was that they had to be ready for the "feast or famine" nature of the females by being ready to mate many times in quick succession.

The other side of the coin was that they'd have to be prepared to wait a whole month for the next opportunity, so it evened out over the course of time. That was good, because they'd have to leave him behind. Morgiah was a little worried by that thought. She was sure that he'd have heard her use Rinnala's name, and didn't she mention Barenziah, too? Did he know too much for them to let him live?

"Look at them," said Clark "Don't you think he's on our side now? Have some faith in your daughter's abilities, even if they are a bit uncontrolled at this stage."

Morgiah didn't look convinced.

"And if you really need to be certain, stay here another day, and work on him yourself."

He knew before she responded what her decision would be.

They helped bury the dead female, and make a small pile of rocks to mark the site. She hadn't been his mate, just a fellow bandit he'd recently teamed with. It hadn't been long enough for the moons to take control of her, so he didn't know if she'd accept him, or go and hide herself when the time came. He'd not really thought about it. Khajiit don't, it just happens.

And mating didn't necessarily create any permanent attachment. A female in heat couldn't always escape her own desires, and she'd do it with someone she didn't really care for. If there were several men around, and she was unattached, they'd most likely all get a turn.

So no, he didn't feel bound to Rinnala in any way. Grateful, and happy to serve again if called upon, but that was all. She was too strange, too foreign. "But exotic, and erotic, are only one letter different. Khajiit has certainly learned from this."

"Do you think I'm just a slut?" Rinnala asked. Clark had to think fast. There's no right answer to that question, so he answered another one.

"If you'd asked me if your breasts are too small, or too large, I'd point out that they fit my hand perfectly. That's because you wouldn't really want an answer, you'd just want me to give them a bit more attention. You would have asked, because you'd be worried that I might be ignoring them because I don't like them. You should know I think they're just right, but you'd ask anyway, just to get me thinking about them."

"So I'm guessing that your question means that you over-did things last night, and you're feeling a little sore. You're wondering why you didn't know when enough was enough, so you ask that other question, really meaning that you want to be treated gently tonight."

The way she smiled at him told him that he was right. But then a frown crossed her face. "Why do you think I'm not happy with the size of my breasts?"

Clark was saved by a loud cry of mixed pain and ecstasy coming from the other side of the camp. Rinnala laughed. She knew just how Morgiah felt. And Clark had taken the hint and was doing exactly what she'd wanted. She didn't ask any more questions.