The Darke King

Fun

"I think it's time to get this little girl to bed." With her chin resting on her fist, Rosemary saw Sigrid yawn against Daniel's neck as he patted her back. "She's had quite a long day."

Her little lips pouted against his shirt as he pulled his face back to peek at her and nodded. "She's out." His chin lifted to the nearby guests. "If you'll excuse us."

When he shifted forward to push his chair back, Rosemary placed her hand on his arm. "Please, stay and entertain our guests. The night is still young."

Slumping back in his seat, Daniel narrowed his eyes, and a sigh came from his nose as he hesitantly handed his daughter over. "Are you certain? I'm sure no one here will miss me."

Hot breath blew across his neck that made his shoulders shudder as she bent down to kiss his cheek. "Tomorrow night, my love. I'm exhausted."

His fingertips slid up around her jaw, bringing her to his lips. "I'll hold you to that."

Haldir dipped his head and smiled. "Good night, ladies."

She placed her hand on his back as she passed him. "I'm so happy you came, Haldir. Have a good evening."

As she moved through the hall, Haldir lifted his glass to Daniel. "Congratulations on your little one. She's a beauty."

His dark eyes met Haldir's as he brought his cup to his lips. "Luckily, she takes after her mother."

Haldir gave him a smirk and nodded. "Is there some particular concern that's bothering you?" His eyes rolled away to the soldiers that filled the hall, and he shrugged his shoulders. "It seems secure enough here."

Daniel shook his head as he stared into his glass and swirled the wine. "For your family, Haldir, there's never enough precaution. I failed her once; that won't ever happen again."

A shiver slid down his back as Haldir recalled how he found Rosemary. "You know, I don't have any family of my own, but I think I understand the guilt you feel. That night, I sensed that something wasn't right, and I let her go off on her own, anyway. When my vision came, I tried to find her, but..." His lips twisted as he tapped his finger on the table. "I was right there in the same city, not even a mile away, and I couldn't get to her in time."

The feeling of the uncomfortable chair he slept in at her bedside in Eliphas' castle still made his back ache, and he stretched away from the memory of it. "I saw her at her worst, and I see her now." He cleared his throat, then pointed at Daniel. "You didn't fail her; you've saved her. Only you could do that. Have no shame in it."

A flash came before Daniel's eyes, and he smiled as his gaze met Haldir's again. "Yet."

Haldir's brows drew down, and he shook his head as his raspy voice became curious. "I don't think I understand what you mean."

"Yet." Daniel leaned across the table as he came closer to Haldir. "You don't have a family of your own yet."

He searched the images before him and nodded. "Someday, you will have more than you can handle." A soft chuckle came from his nose as the visions left him, and he shook his head as he pushed himself back in the chair. "Especially that girl of yours." He trilled his lips before he raised his brows. "I think even I should be afraid of her."

His toothy grin came through Haldir's reddish-blonde beard as he shook out the hair on his head. "A girl? God help her."

Daniel's fingertips traced the stem of his cup, and his eyes rose to him. "I'm still trying to remember and learn, but I know now that everything happens for a reason." His finger flicked between the two faces he saw in Haldir's future. "It is no coincidence that brought you to Rosemary's rescue that night. You are meant to be part of all this."

Haldir rubbed his fingers back and forth between the grooves of the wood table as he remembered the long, lonely years of his life. "I've been around a very long time, and I often wondered if it was a punishment for something I did."

"No, not punishment." Daniel glanced around at his family and sighed. "The lives that are entrusted to you are precious. That was no mistake."

Haldir brought his cup to his mouth, and his deep voice echoed inside it. "Not too bad for an old scoundrel like me."

"Yes, I know exactly what you mean." The king grinned back at him until the conversation at the other end of the table caught his attention, and he shot the visiting men a squinty glare as he slapped the back of his hand against Agamori's chest. "Did you hear that?"

Agamori cleared his teeth with his tongue and swallowed while he peeked down at the men and shook his head. "No."

Eason's eyes moved to Haldir, and he shook his head slowly as the laughter beside him became louder. Haldir turned to see the men hide their faces away and laugh until Daniel rose to his feet and placed his hands on the table's edge. "Please. Entertain me."

The hall became silent as all eyes fell on the two men at the other end. The clean-shaven man did his best to keep a serious face as he waved his hands in front of him. "It's nothing, Your Majesty. Just having a bit of fun."

With his fingers bending rapidly, Daniel motioned for him to stand as he inched around the table. "Get up." Slapping Agamori's back when he passed by, Daniel spoke to the diners. "I like fun." Agamori's back jerked as he huffed out in amusement, understanding now what the topic of the conversation had been.

He looked around the room, and Daniel's hands came out toward his shoulders. "I think we all like fun. Why don't you let us all in on the fun?"

Daniel rolled his head from side to side, and his ears burned red through his black hair as it lifted from his skin. The air boiled around them, and Haldir's eyes darted to Agamori, who answered his concerns with a twist of his lips and a shrug of his shoulder.

The hall was silent except for the chokes and gurgles coming from the visitor's throat as Daniel's anger wrapped its invisible fingers around his neck.

Daniel came to his side, and his eyes melted into blackness when the little voices in his ears sang to him. Shaking off the urges racing through his fingers, he hissed into the dying man's ear. "You call my wife a whore? My queen?"

The table creaked under the weight of Agamori's hands as he raised himself off his bench, and his pointy white eyebrow addressed the helpless crowd. "Gentleman, you may remain in the kingdom so long as you understand one thing. You will treat Daniel's daughter and queen with all due respect or pay the dearest cost. This is the only warning you will receive."

As his men removed the body from the hall, Daniel threw himself into his seat and pointed at the lifeless man with his trembling finger. "No matter how secure you believe it is, it is never enough to keep out every danger." He sniffed back his tears and blinked at Haldir. "I don't care who it is; if you witness one ill word spoken of them, you kill those fuckers."

Wandering through both worlds as he tried to find his calling all these years, his purpose became clear suddenly as Haldir bowed his head. "As you wish."