My Demon, My Love... - A Slave's Redemption

Duvessa carefully set down the tray that she was carrying, walked over to the door, and closed it gently. She turned back to face Reve and Azlyn, who were quickly adjusting themselves. Reve picked up Azlyn and placed her next to him on the bed, wrapping her in his comforter. Reve composed himself and then climbed out of the bed to face Duvessa.

“So, my prince, do you care to explain?” Duvessa sneered as she glared at Azlyn.

“Do not look at her. She does not deserve your hate or jealousy. You will address me and only me. You would be wise to tread lightly in this situation.” Reve advised.

“I demand answers to my questions, prince! I am here to be courted as a possible wife for you, yet I find you embracing a marked slave! Is she yours, Prince Reve?! Did you mark her?!” Duvessa demanded.

“Yes.” Reve answered, simply.

“Yes, what?!” Duvessa pushed.

“Yes. She is my mate. I have marked her.” Reve admitted.

“What?! How could you?! You are a prince! She is a filthy, good for nothing, slave!” Duvessa raged as she turned to Azlyn. “You! You must have bewitched him somehow! You shall suffer for this!”

Duvessa headed towards Azlyn, her hands reaching out for her as her horns began to elongate. She did not make it more than a few steps though before Reve stepped between them and pushed Duvessa backwards.

“I said to tread lightly, Duvessa. I have no loyalties to you. On the other hand, I would gladly give my life for Azlyn.” Reve assured her.

“You speak of loyalties…I wonder how the king and queen would take to this news?” Duvessa questioned with a snarl.

“For your information, my mother and father are well aware of the situation. Though, truth be told, we do not want this information leaving the castle grounds.” Reve informed her.

“Yes, I wonder how the loyal subjects of your realm would take to this news? I can just hear the rumors now, ‘Prince Reve: Human Lover.’ The people would certainly have a field day with this information.” Duvessa threatened.

“Do not threaten me, Duvessa!” Reve warned.

Reve took in a deep breath, he knew that he needed to calm down. It would be easier to convince Duvessa to keep their secret if he could maintain his composure.

“What is that you want in exchange for your silence, Duvessa?” Reve inquired.

Duvessa looked over Reve’s shoulder to where Azlyn sat. She stared her down with a ferocity that caused Azlyn to shiver. Evil glimmered in her eyes as she thought about her deepest desire.

“What I want is simple. I want to be a princess.” Duvessa stated, matter-of-fact.

“How exactly do you propose that I make that happen?” Reve asked, already suspecting her meaning.

Azlyn knew exactly what Duvessa wanted. She also knew that this topic would only make her more uncomfortable. She did not want to sit here as Reve made a deal with Duvessa to make her his wife. The thought made her sick to her stomach. She felt like she needed to get away from there.

“Maybe, I should leave, so that you two can discuss the details, master.” Azlyn interrupted.

“Yes, slave. I think that would be best. Though I caution you against interrupting your superiors again.” Duvessa agreed.

“Yes, of course. I apologize for my rudeness, mi’ lady.” Azlyn responded, humbly as she searched the bedding for her shirt.

“Azlyn, you will not move! You will not be leaving this room!” Reve snapped. “Duvessa, you will not speak to her like that! She is my mate and, human or not, she will be treated with more respect than that! Now tell me exactly what it is that you want?!”

Azlyn was surprised by Reve’s outburst. As much as she wanted to leave the room to excuse herself from these arrangements; she did not want to anger Reve. He was clearly upset by what was happening and Azlyn needed to be there to support him. There was something about knowing that she was behind him that gave Reve confidence and a sense of purpose. Something that he had not often known throughout his life.

“I propose that you propose. Make me your wife and I will keep the secret of this disgusting relationship. Of course, you will need to get rid of the slave immediately. But this way, she lives, and you aren’t disgraced.” Duvessa suggested.

Azlyn let out an involuntary whimper. It was not even the thought of being sold that upset her. It was the thought of Reve marrying another that made her want to cry out. The only solace that she could find was in the fact that, at least, she would not have to be there to watch their happiness.

“Absolutely not.” Reve asserted.

“What?!” Both Azlyn and Duvessa responded in surprise.

“I will not agree to your terms.” Reve stated.

“Sire, I think that you should…” Azlyn began to protest Reve’s decision.

“Azlyn, please, I will handle this situation.”

Reve knew what Azlyn would say and he did not want this to encourage Duvessa further.

Duvessa thought about their predicament for a moment.

“Alright, how about this…” Duvessa suggested, beginning to get flustered. “You marry me, and I keep your secret. I will not make you sell your slave. However, she will be moved to another area of the castle so that you will not have contact with her anymore, but you will know where she is.”

Azlyn was certain that Reve would accept this deal. It was a good one from where he was positioned. He could still make sure that she was safe and alive. He would obtain a wife of noble blood that his family and realm would approve of. Not to mention, his reputation would remain intact. Though for Azlyn this was less than ideal, if Reve was to marry another, she would prefer not to remain in the palace at all. She would want to go as far away as possible.

“The answer is no, Duvessa. The fact of the matter is that I could never marry you. I would never love you. If you made me sell Azlyn away, then I would spend my days heartbroken and full of rage. If you let me keep Azlyn, even if I transferred her to another part of the castle, I would never remain true to you because, in fact, you would be the ‘other woman.’ Azlyn is already my mate and she is the only one that I will ever love.” Reve informed her.

“Then I will have to tell everyone about what you are doing.” Duvessa sneered.

“If you do, you will be disobeying a direct order from the king and queen. They have decreed that any information regarding the relationship between Azlyn and I is not to leave the estate grounds. If you leak this information out, I will be forced to tell my parents that you are the one that did so. I believe that will likely take you out of the running to be the bride of one of their sons, immediately, or possibly worse.” Reve affirmed.

With that revelation, Duvessa’s attitude changed without hesitation. She went from presenting an air of dominance to one of sheer submission in an instant.

“Please, Prince Reve! I want this more than anything! I will remain silent, but I beg of you to help me in return!” Duvessa cried out in desperation.

“I am unsure what to do for you, Duvessa. You wish to marry into the royal family; yet you have been sent here to be courted by me and I have no desire to marry.” Reve contemplated the situation.

“What if you could transfer me?” Duvessa asked.

“As in…to one of my brothers?” Reve inquired.

“Yes. Find a way to get me in the running to be courted by, either, Prince Gedeon or Prince Hadeon. You assist me, and I will keep in complete silence. I will not whisper about your relationship to a single member of demonkind.” Duvessa swore.

Reve thought about this for a moment. He knew that Hadeon had sent one of his demonesses home in rejection. He had been in a relationship with her previously and was not interested in pursuing something more serious. This meant he was down to only nine demonesses. If he spoke with his father about the situation, perhaps he could convince him to add Duvessa to Hadeon’s ten. It is not like Hadeon would mind having another beautiful demoness hanging on his every word. This is not something that Reve could guarantee on the spot; he would have to discuss the matter with his father first.

“Alright, Duvessa. You win, I will help you.” Reve finally agreed.

“You will?” Duvessa squealed in delight.

“Yes, in exchange for your silence. I will speak with my father about transferring you to Hadeon for possible courting.” Reve sighed.

“Oh, my darkness, Reve, thank you!” Duvessa cheered.

“You are welcome. Now remember that I make no guarantees about who Hadeon will pick. I am agreeing to get you into the running, that is all. The deal is also, immediately, void should you break your silence in regard to Azlyn and I.” Reve mandated.

“Yes, of course. I completely understand. Thank you again!” Duvessa agreed.

“You will have to give me a few days to make the arrangements. In the meantime, you should consider finding subtle ways to make yourself more noticeable to Hadeon.” Reve proposed.

“What would you suggest?” Duvessa requested.

“Show up where he is eating lunch, cross his path in the halls, and turn up where he is practicing his skills to compliment him. Those sorts of things. This way you are already on his radar when he realizes that you are being added to his demonesses.” Reve recommended.

“I can definitely do that, and I will look good doing it.” Duvessa affirmed with a smirk.

Duvessa turned and opened the door to the room. As she left and closed the door behind her, she could be heard saying…

“I cannot believe this, I came here hoping to marry the third in line and now I have a shot at the second; what luck!”

Reve ran to the door and locked it. Then he walked back to the bed and sat down on the edge. He ran his hands through his hair and let out an exasperated sigh.

“Geez, I can’t believe that I have to deal with this now.” Reve groaned as he placed his head in his hands.

“I am sorry.” Azlyn apologized.

“There is nothing for you to apologize for, Azlyn.” Reve assured her.

“I’m sorry, sire, I am afraid that you are wrong.” Azlyn responded.

“What are you talking about?” Reve inquired.

“I am the cause of all of your woes. If it were not for me then none of these bad things would be happening to you.”

“That is not true, Azlyn.” Reve insisted.

“Yes, it is. If you think about it, you will see it to be true. Ever since I arrived, I have been nothing but trouble for you. So, in that spirit, I would like to make a suggestion.”

“And what is that exactly?”

Azlyn took a deep breath and let it out slowly. What she was about to say was going to hurt her, deeply. Nonetheless, it needed to be said and Reve needed to hear it.

“I believe that Duvessa’s suggestion that you sell me is the proper course of action.”

“What are you talking about?!” Reve was in shock.

Was Azlyn really serious? She could not possibly mean the things that she was saying.

“If I am gone…then all of your problems go away. It is as simple as that. You sell me and you…never…have to think about me again. Your reputation remains unscathed. You are free…to marry…whomever you choose, and I…will return to the normal life…of a slave.” Azlyn choked back the tears as she spoke.

Reve quickly turned around on the bed and before Azlyn knew what happened, he had pulled her onto his lap. He held her tightly against his body as if he worried that she might disappear.

“Azlyn, I need you to understand something. I would never blame you for anything that has happened here. You are the only good thing going on in my life; you are keeping me sane. If I could not see you or hold you, every day, then I would completely lose my mind. I would spend all of my time thinking about you and worrying about you. Not to mention, we would still be connected by our mark, so I would still be able to feel your emotions. There would be no possible way for me to forget you, nor would I ever want to.”

“Are you sure because…” Azlyn began.

“Azlyn, I have never been more certain about anything.” Reve interrupted.

Reve lifted Azlyn’s chin gently, so that she looked up at him. He leaned for a quick kiss but found that his body desired more of her. Reve looked down, noticing Azlyn’s still exposed breasts.

“Now, where were we?” Reve purred, lust filling his eyes.

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