Court of the Crimson King
Copyright© 2025 by Fick Suck
Chapter 19
Fantasy Sex Story: Chapter 19 - When a cranky young veteran of the repulsed brutal invasion is found and returned to the Court of the Crimson King, he is shocked by the poor state of the kingdom. North is dragooned into the reigning queen’s retinue, a position fraught with politics, intrigue, magic, and hints of destiny. The Court is an intricate dance that one must master or else disappear into oblivion. Based loosely on the song of the same title by King Crimson.
Caution: This Fantasy Sex Story contains strong sexual content, including Ma/Fa
“Didn’t Botham announce we were coming?” North asked Claudio as they stepped inside.
“Positioning, my dear sir. Negotiations are commencing and your romantic interest wants to be well positioned to get what she wants in the manner she wants it. She put you on notice with the last outburst.”
“Oh,” North said. “In the South, we take the father to the tavern and buy him a beer. If he agrees, then we have a wife. Why does this place transform simple asks into huge, complicated affairs of great consequence?” Paquin’s parents stepped into the room with tired eyes and sanguine faces. “Never mind.”
“If you are here to ask for my daughter’s hand in marriage, the initial paragraph of the contract shall read, ‘There are no take-backs,’” Ambassador Yasin declared.
“Mother,” Paquin growled as if she was giving warning.
“Let us not jump to untimely conclusions,” the Yellow Jester said with an obsequious smile. “My fine companion, the Jack of Spades, has sent a bouquet ahead as a gesture of his appreciation for the respect and trust you have already given him. He has come without a scintilla of antagonism for his love interest or her parents.”
North was wondering what a scintilla was, when the Ambassador threw up her hands and declared, “Fine. Understood. Let me present proper manners and offer you both a cup of tea. You,” she said, pointing at North, “don’t touch the teapot and you,” she continued, pointing at the Yellow Jester, “are sitting between him and her.”
“Right in the middle of the action where I want to be,” the Yellow Jester whispered loudly.
They were sitting in the living room with Paquin and North at either end of the sofa, the Yellow Jester between them, and her parents in the stuffed armchairs on the other side of the low table. They all waited silently while a servant bustled about in the kitchen preparing a pot of tea.
North got an idea. He leaned forward, looking around Claudio at Paquin. She looked back at him, clearly wondering what he was about. He held up his index finger and conjured a spark of Power. When she broke into a smile, he flicked at her, aiming for the bottom of the vee in her collar under her chin.
He hit his mark and she giggled. She conjured a spark on her finger, only hers was considerably bigger and flickering like a flame.
“Paquin, ENOUGH!” her mother ordered. “You stop,” she said to North before turning to her husband, “It’s like having toddlers in the house again.”
The tea was served and to North’s dismay, the choice of brew was nothing special. When the first cup was drunk and cups returned to their saucers, Lord Merguard cleared his throat before taking a noble’s review of the bodies on the sofa.
“Each of you have made declarations,” he began, “and yet, neither of you have presented us with a plan of how a marriage between the two of you may commence without causing large swaths of destruction. I’m not speaking of the buildings alone, mind you, but the dynamics of ruling in the House of the Lords, and in the Court of the Crimson King, long may she live.”
Ambassador Yasin shifted her position in her chair to lean forward. “Your thorough rebuttal of charges brought by Lord Larimer are forcing significant moves only one day later. Not only may the gentleman lose his position, but the position itself may easily slide to the left side of the galley. Whenever there is such a move, there is a danger to everyone who holds an office, Lord Merguard included.”
“Daddy is in danger?” Paquin asked, bewildered.
“He is Number Three on the left, but his daughter is half of the source of the consequential event that led to the case in the Queen’s court and the subsequent upheavals. The Lord Exchequer has already indicated he will refuse to accept the Chancellor’s position should it become available. The Lord in the second position is far too old to take on the job.”
“Yet, you serve on the Queen’s staff,” North pointed out. “Your household would become a fearsome point of political power that few would dare to challenge. Should you have a falling out with the Queen, she would not be in a favorable position either. I see complications.”
“This is love, not politics,” Paquin retorted.
“We don’t want to burn down the house around us,” North said to her. “I suspect we will be encouraged to remain within the palace grounds.”
“Literally,” Lord Merguard said, amusing himself with his pun. He gained a quick sour look from his wife. “Yes, Paquin, the fact that the two of you are in love is at the forefront of your parents’ conversation; however, as I’ve told you many times, the devil is in the details.”
The ambassador picked up where her husband left off. “He is not only North, but also the Jack of Spades, the Queen’s personal sword. You are not only Paquin, my only child, but also the Fire Witch. On top of that, your husband will be in line for your father’s lordship. There is much ado that love cannot solve.”
“Power on top of power fueled by Power,” Paquin concluded succinctly. “If all of these possible events are in play, where does that leave North and me?”
Everyone looked at everyone else around the room, and no one had an answer. North felt the Yellow Jester poke him in the ribs and make a slight head nudge towards the liquor board. North nudged him back, making it clear that he was not going to ask.
Finally, North relented, “What is it that bothers the both of you more, Power or power?”
Both elder two looked at each other for a moment before exchanging a look that North could not interpret. They faced him as Lord Merguard announced, “What an interesting question and what a possible approach to unraveling this knot.”
Yasin continued after her husband finished his thought. “Before yesterday, we were only concerned with power with a small p, because no one had an inkling what the two of you could do. Now, we must fret about power with a capital P. The concern only begins with prestige and position. The danger is if we don’t bring your combustible Power under control, we will be departing on the heels of Lord Larimer. The Queen depends upon us in the House of Lords.”
“I have better control and have been confirmed of such today,” North said.
“She does not,” Paquin’s mother said, with a casual wave at her daughter. “She almost burnt down the building last night.”
“Mother!”
When North’s eyes went wide, her father sought to reassure him, “Not to worry, such incidents are quite normal in this household as she does take after her mother.”
“FATHER.”
“PIETRE.”
The lord looked at the two angry women. “I think we need a drink.”
To read the complete story you need to be logged in:
Log In or
Register for a Free account
(Why register?)
* Allows you 3 stories to read in 24 hours.