Chapter 225

225 Date Night: Finale

“So.. Whatcha got cookin’, good lookin’? Smells delicious,” Skye commented as she walked in with her husband.

Tidas shrugged; “To be honest, I have no idea. I told Alfred of my plans, and he handed me an overgrown covered pot.. I don’t think he trusted me not to kill you.”

Skye giggled before teasing her husband; “From what everyone has told me, Ima lucky he did..”

Tidas mock-glared at her; “Ha-ha. Anyway: he told me to just heat it over a medium fire for a few hours, and we’d have instant pot roast for dinner.”

Skye’s stomach gurgled again in anticipation. Using her Shaman magic was particularly taxing because of the precision and concentration required. It took every ounce of restraint she had to not bolt into the kitchen, and eat the entire pot by herself.

Shutting the door, Tidas turned around to see his wife staring off in the direction of the kitchen longingly. He managed to reframe from laughing, but grinned broadly as to have some kind of outlet for his amusement. Skye was just too cute to him sometimes.

“I take it you’re hungry again?” Tidas asked sarcastically.

Skye shot him an equally sarcastic smile; “Aye.. Savin’ a thousand pound baby is strenuous work.”

Tidas quirked an eyebrow; “Can she really still be called a baby at a thousand pounds?”

.....

“Of course she’s still a baby! Tis not about her size, tis about her mental capabilities! She’s not even half a year old yet!”

Thinking about it, Tidas realized that she was right. Zazzy had hatched on Yuletide, which was nearly five months ago. It hadn’t felt that long already, but that was most likely because he barely got to see his wife. As soon as they’d returned from their Yuletide trip, he’d been buried in paperwork.

Tidas’ first and foremost priority was finding his uncle, which Ralph was currently checking. The next priority was finding out where the assassin from last year’s Mage Trials had come from. That was currently at a dead end in Meccano. The other tasks he had included his continued Public Works projects, running the RMC(his VC was practically useless), dealing with the Magistrate issue, to dealing with Jakub.. All while also dealing with Marco’s incessant requests and acquisitions...

As his work list threatened to overtake him, Tidas added to his troubles by telling his wife that the roast wouldn’t be done for a few more hours. That Zazzy’s Place was just their first stop, but swore they’d be back for supper.

Skye really didn’t want to leave Zazzy, but she knew how much thought and effort he’d put into the evening. It wasn’t that she doubted her magic, it just felt wrong to leave Zazzy’s side right when she was recovering. Right as Tidas began to feel crestfallen, the Kennel Master’s son showed up with a wagon full of food for the baby dragon.

Skye examined random pieces from each section of the sacks before she’d let them start messing with anything. Afterwards, she directed them to save the poison food. If there was a way to extract the belladonna from it, Skye would find it.. She wasn’t wasting anything by trying.

After clearing the new food, Skye insisted upon watching it be put into the feeder. She didn’t trust anyone but her husband at that point.. Not with everything going on. Between the assassination attempts on Zazzy and the king, Marco’s attempts at manipulation; she was on edge, to say the least.

Skye’s stress level and workload were the main reasons Tidas was insisting on their date night. He understood the severity of Zazzy’s attempted poisoning, as well as the other pressures his wife was under. Learning that she was responsible for the fate of existence Had to have been shocking, to say the least. He couldn’t even imagine what Skye could be thinking.. So all he could do was show that he was thinking of her..

“I think we should head into the city.. I have an entire day planned for us, and from the looks of it: Zazzy is fine.. I think you need this..”

Tidas pointed to where Zazzy and the Kennel Master’s son were playing through their window. She was playing fetch with him and running around like nothing was amiss. It made her smile to see that Zazzy wasn’t experiencing any after effects from the poisoning, but she was still hesitant to leave her wee scaly bairn.

After a bit more coaxing with the promise of food to hold her over until dinner, Tidas finally got Skye to agree to go into the city..

************

Trotting down the streets, Skye felt uncomfortable with how many people were staring at her and Tidas. It had been months since she’d come to the capital, but still hadn’t gotten used to being in the spotlight. It made her daily tasks more difficult and delayed her Shaman rounds more and more lately.

The amount of people who randomly stopped her on the streets and asked for her help was becoming troublesome too. Skye was happy to help, but wished that they’d go to the hospitals and wait for her there. Critically sick and injured people were already there, waiting for her. A little consideration on the general population’s part would make her life much easier.

Tidas had to cut out a couple of their stops to accommodate their shortened time, and Skye’s ‘snack’. She wound up eating a regular person’s typical meal, which made Tidas a bit leery. He knew to her Shaman magic drained her, but the amount of food she was consuming lately made him wonder if she might’ve been pregnant, but pushed the notion aside.

He not only saw Skye take her birth control whenever he was with her around the time she’d take it, but they had both agreed to wait. With possible war on the horizon, Tidas didn’t want their child put at risk in any way, or Skye’s health. They had years and years ahead of them, so they felt no need to rush. That being said, Tidas couldn’t help but wonder Why she was always so ravenous lately..

Tidas wasn’t the only one who had noticed Skye’s uptick in food. She was becoming concerned herself, but didn’t know what could be done about it. As they headed into a bookstore, Skye hoped that she could find a book that could help her figure out what was going on..

************

Three bookstores later, and nothing. Skye couldn’t find a single tome or book that explained or even pertained to her issues. The only thing she could think of was that her appetite was directly caused by her increased powers. Tidas ate like a starving man, but only had his Tank trait.. ‘Could an overwhelming appetite be Caused by me new Tank trait?’

Not thinking, Skye asked; “Do ye think ye eat so much because of yer Tank trait?”

Tidas eyed her suspiciously; “I suppose.. Why do you ask?”

‘Shit! I didn’t think it through!’

“I was just.. thinkin’.. Wonderin’, really.. Umm.. i-if me appetite will get worse whenever I get me Tank trait.”

Tidas stopped his horse; “Do you think that’s your next one? Or do you already-”

“I think it’s me next one, but Ima not sure. We decoded a good portion of the legend with Marie’s help, but it’s kinda confusing..”

Skye began to explain what she could remember about which key word went to which trait. She was quite proud of herself for ducking her husband’s question, but knew she needed to be better at keeping her mouth shut. Skye hated to lie, and if Tidas would’ve asked directly if she’d gotten another trait, she would’ve found it difficult, if not impossible to do.

As they discussed the legend, Skye and Tidas made it back to their little cottage. The pot roast was ready, and Skye was excited to taste it. She loved Alfred’s cooking, and gushed about it whenever she had the chance. So much so that Magnus and Marie were now curious about his cuisine. He was supposed to make his way to the palace after the Summer Games to cook for the king and his family, which made him a bit nervous, but he accepted the invitation. One did not turn down their king.

The meal was everything Skye hoped it to be. The roast was so tender it fell apart when they tried to fish it out of the pot. Potatoes, carrots, mushrooms, and celery were all floating about in the juices. Skye took a few tablespoons of flour, butter, and some of the juices to make a quick and simple gravy to pour over the food.

Once they finished eating, they sat together talking for a few hours. Skye had pulled out the list of traits from the legend to show Tidas, as well as the rest of her research on it. She had been cross-referencing the legend to anything she could find. Some notes she had even pertained to ancient tomes and legends he’d never head of before.

Skye never ceased to amaze him. Tidas was proud of his wife, and showed her with a sweet, deep kiss. She’d been in the middle of talking when he’d done it. She tried to keep going when he moved to her neck, but lost her train of thought once he got his hands involved. He trailed feather kisses up and down, then began to kiss on her shoulder.

“Ye do realize that Zazzy is still out there playin’ with that lad, right? They’ll hear us, along with the guards ye got posted in the trees,” Skye’s voice was ragged as she spoke.

Tidas stopped his affections to lock eyes with his wife; “I have barely seen you over this past month.. I don’t care who hears what: I want you, Skye. I want to cover every inch of your body with mine while I drown you in pleasure.”

“But they’ll hear! Zazzy will-”

“Zazzy will be fine, and even if they do hear us, no one will say anything. We’re staying the night here, so you’ll have plenty of time with her later.. Right now: I want you all to myself..”

Skye shuttered as her husband moved his hands lower and lower. He knew exactly when and where to touch her to get his way. She both loved and hated it.. But right now, she was leaning towards the love part..