Shackled Sorceress

Chapter 7 - Debauchery

It was a bit scary how well she slept. 

As Kalliope brushed down her silver hair, she wondered if Malus also had magic. 

The Prince was quiet this morning. As Kalliope prepared for the day, without her maids, he too was meticulously donning his usual armours. Kalliope welcomed the silence. She needed the time to think, to plan for what was to come in her near future.

Venus’ wedding was set to be in the next month, as both she and King Eira wished for a lavish celebration. Perhaps that would give Kalliope enough time to…

To do what?

The brush in her hand stilled. After her talk with Malus, it became clear that the man was a lot more ambitious than he let off. He didn’t marry her out of a whim. Whatever Malus was planning, it involved Kalliope, and she doubted that being bored with her would get Malus to let her go. At worst, Malus would be the same as many other Kings and Princes: having mistresses and still use Kalliope to his scheming.

In the unlikely scenario that Malus would let her go, Kalliope would have to face the wrath of her mother, the Queen. Queen Virille had made it clear to both Venus and Kalliope that she desired an alliance with Caelora above all else, enough to let go of her precious Sorceress daughter. 

Damaging the relation between Aleria and Caelora, potentially causing a war and having to endure all of the consequences would be the last things Kalliope wanted. She couldn’t run, knowing that she wouldn’t get far without having to commit atrocities.

The Sorceress Princess realised that she was trapped. Shackled to a position that no matter what she did, the consequences would fall unto her. 

Deep in thought, Kalliope startled when the brush was pried out of her white-knuckled grip. 

“When I first saw you, I thought you had a crown of moonlight.”

Gently, Malus worked through Kalliope’s silver tresses. Blinking, she stared at him through the mirror.

“Perks of being part fae, I suppose.”

“And magic?”

Kalliope nodded.

“And magic.”

He pinned her hair back with the gift he had first presented her.

They didn’t speak much else after. A servant came knocking at the door, informing Kalliope that the Queen was expecting them at breakfast.

“Does Her Majesty the Queen request Princess Venus’ presence as well?”

The servant bowed quickly, but not before Kalliope spotted her slight grimace.

“Yes, Your Highness, for His Majesty the King, Eiras, would be there as well. However, as it is the day after your wedding, it would be inconvenient for you to-”

“No need.” Kalliope bit back a sigh, “I will fetch my sister. Tell the Queen we will attend her shortly.”

If the servant bowed any lower, she would have given herself a sprained back. Kalliope fought the urge to curse as she started down the hallway. Married or not, until Venus was to be wedded, Kalliope still had her duties to fulfill.

The sound of following footsteps halted Kalliope in her track, however.

“What are you doing?”

Malus tilted his head, “Coming with you, of course.”

By the Gods… “No. Nope. You do not want to.”

Amusement lit up his eyes, and Kalliope instantly knew she had said the wrong thing, “And why is that? How would you know that I do not wish to follow you, dear Kalliope?”

“Because I am waking up my sister.” Kalliope deadpanned. 

Malus’ eyebrows rose up, “And why such a simple task stop me from being by your side? I assure you, if your sister is in any indecent state, I can simply wait by the door.

If she scowled any harder, Kalliope was sure there would be permanent groves on her face, “Venus is always indecent.”

It took a moment for Malus to register what Kalliope was hinting at. His brows almost touched his hairline.

“But she has a betrothed! Surely, despite her reputation, your sister would have more dignity than that!”

Kalliope gave up. She threw her hands up in the air, “Fine! Do not listen to me. Can’t say I didn’t warn you, you hear?”

And stormed off, muttering under her breath about stubborn Princes and stupid sisters. Malus only seemed more bemused, easily keeping pace with Kalliope.

“Now, now. Do lighten up, dearest. I am sure-”

Kalliope halted to a sudden stop before Venus’ bedroom. Without knocking, she kicked the door open.

The look on Malus’ face was priceless.

As expected, there were naked bodies everywhere in the room, piling on top of each other like animals in heat. This time, Venus was awake and riding a man, who Kalliope recognized as the Captain of the palace guard, in earnest. Another woman was sitting behind Venus, dark hands kneading the Princess’ breasts as Venus’ threw her head back, moaning in ecstasy. 

Wordlessly, Malus covered Kalliope’s eyes. She batted his hand away.

“What are you doing???”

He was bewildered, “Shielding your sight!” And made to pull Kalliope away. With a sigh that could move mountains, Kalliope squirmed herself out of his grip.

“And this is why I told you to not follow me. Just wait outside.” 

“But-”

“Go.”

Malus took one look back inside and became a bit green. Promptly, the War-Prince backed away. Biting her lips, Kalliope covered her face and stepped inside.

“Venus. Time to get up.”

Her call was drowned in a particularly loud moan.

Kalliope felt all her patience evaporated and replaced by her suppressed anger. 

“VENUS!!!”

Magic turned her voice to thunder, and all the candles in the room flared up, white-hot, in her fury. Screams filled the air, as people scrambled to escape. Yelping as the Captain hastily pulled out of her, Venus was thrown haphazardly onto her bed. The Princess sprung up, tossing a pillow at the man’s retreating back.

“Come back here, you arse!!!”

But no amount of pleasure Venus could have offered could overcome the fear Kalliope had wrought. The room emptied in record time, leaving the two Princesses to glare at each other.

“You didn’t even let me finish!”

Kalliope rolled her eyes, “I’m sure you have finished plenty of times during the night.”

“Ugh.” Venus scoffed, reaching for a somewhat unsoiled shirt to wipe herself down, “And here I thought you’d be less of a prude after you married.”

Kalliope retorted without a beat, “Sorry to disappoint. You would want to hurry. Mother is waiting with your betrothed.”

Venus threw her rag across the room, “If she likes him so much she should have married him herself.”

“Venus!” Kalliope chided.

“I mean it! As far as I know, she’s a widow. Father is no longer around to stop her from getting into bed with anyone so-”

The fire flared up again. Venus rolled her eyes at Kalliope’s thunderous expression.

“Relax, Kallie. I’ll get to it. As long as you won’t burn this whole room down.”

Kalliope dispelled her magic. That didn’t mean she was any less agitated.

“What is going on? I thought you were fine with the arrangement?”

“Being fine with it doesn’t mean I’m happy about it. I still get a month of freedom, so might as well enjoy it to the best of my abilities.”

Feeling an incoming headache, Kalliope pinched the bridge of her nose. Venus was being even more unreasonable than usual.

“You should still tread carefully. We don’t want the agreement to be broken so close to the date.”

Venus threw her hands up in frustration, “If Eiras has any issues with me doing what I want, then he is nothing more than a hypocrite. He has a full harem!”

“Venus. We all have to play a part to ensure the kingdom’s safety and prosperity.”

“Oh, you’re the one to talk!” Venus whirled on Kalliope, a slip dress in her hand, “You got the best deal out of them all, and you DARED to act like you were forced to f**k a pig!”

It was difficult to imagine this person, unhinged with wild eyes, bushy-haired and stark-naked, was the charming Princess Venus that had everyone at her whim. The same Princess that had everyone in the court under her thumb, so much so that she could get away with everything she did up until now.

Bitterly, Kalliope thought that the only reason why Venus got away with everything, was because she offered everything up for grabs.

Her sister was upset. Venus had always been the more ambitious out of them. She always got what she wanted. Here in Aleria, Venus could do anything. But if she married Eiras, she would be just a little more than a piece in his collection, and all her influences would be gone.

Venus would have to build back everything she had from the ground.

Still, it didn’t justify her lashing out on Kalliope.

“We will be waiting for you at the dining hall.”

Without another word, Kalliope turned on her heels and left.