PART 13

He knew exactly why. BasNassal had been his home for centuries. His exile had left such a bitterness in his heart that he couldn’t bear to look upon the ocean for many years. But this ocean, this landscape, he remembered intimately. Long before this kingdom had sprung up, covering the landscape and blocking out much of the view, he had lived here, broken and wanting to forget. Sveldin held a dear place in his heart; its people had invited him in and allowed him to destroy himself for as long as he wanted to, to dwell in his misery for a lifetime. He mingled with the drunks at the pubs, never really getting drunk, but allowing the pain of his exile to take the form of heavy drinking. His depression had been enough to convince the townsfolk at the time that he was just another destitute bum on the isolated coast. This land had also shown him how to live. How fitting that he would return to learn once again how to make a brand new start with no one watching him this time. No one from the Dragon Council spying on his movements now that they all believed him to be dead. How frighteningly freeing. He didn’t desire a strong drink to drown the feelings he had now.
His desire to live well was rekindled by the sacrifice of an old friend and ally that came to his aid at the end of his life. Lazarus you fool, Dresden thought, admiring the crashing waves. What the hell am I supposed to do with myself? With that thought, he wandered back through the gates into the desolate little province that was quickly becoming home. Vlad was at the bar serving drinks to a modest and subdued crowd. With no men around but the very old and the very young, the pub held more women than Dresden was used to seeing. Each night, they would lay children down to sleep and come to the inn’s adjoining bar to drown their woes of loss in the bottom of a bottle, or tankard, or goblet. The pub, always well stocked with beer, mead and sometimes an expensive brandy could, even on slow evenings, easily supply the small province with enough alcohol to keep the internal demons away for a little while. The women gathered in small clusters and spoke of their men openly; some weeped, others raged, everyone drank. Jukie was a favorite among the women because she too understood their pain, even though she would never slip and drink with the gathering crowds. A piano sat lonely in the corner, waiting for a patron to take up a song, or hearty ballad. No one entertained the groups; it remained quietly, waiting for someone to notice it.
Jukie called out to a cluster of rowdy women who had taken to dancing on their table with skirts held high, bare feet lightly tapping out a tune sung by their companions amid laughter and cheering. Even though Jukie’s commanding voice could be heard throughout the room, her smile gave away her sweetness. The grin revealed her softer nature and the understanding of how these women needed this reprieve from their daily internal struggles.
Dresden had changed into a casual but flattering outfit that fit him well. The breeches were darker tan, with a short, whitewashed tunic with a split at the collar bone, revealing just a hint of his chest, with three-quarter length sleeves, embroidered around the cuffs in the local fashion. Jukie saw him coming as he entered the pub and turned away from him instantly, pretending to be busy behind the bar. He sat down lightly, the only customer at the bar, save for an elderly man who had taken up a seat at the end near the piano. It was clear he had gotten there much earlier, already well into his beer.
“Hello lady.” Dresden crossed his arms on the bartop and smiled kindly. He understood human women. With his exile came the education of what it meant to be a single man, a human man, and his demeanor usually made women hungry for him.
Jukie turned to address him as a customer. “What’ll it be then?”
She wasted no words on him whatsoever. She gave him no room to speak to her in a comfortable and casual way, but he expected this. Vlad was keen to hear their exchange and sidled up next to Jukie with his arm around her waist playfully.
“Jukie, my girl! Have I introduced you to Dresden yet? He is fairly new to our land and has never before set foot in the kingdom of Sveldin.”
Jukie reared up, jerking herself away from the old man. A nasty grin lifted her plump lips.
“Stay long enough and you’ll get to die for this kingdom, like all the rest of the men young enough to fight for our queen’s fidelity.”
“And what of your fidelity my lady?” Dresden dared to broach a dangerous subject with no hint of trepidation whatsoever.
Without hesitation Jukie shot back with a reply that would have shut down a lesser man. “My fidelity is to my late husband and the son he left behind, to die for an ungrateful queen who won’t take a king to make our lands official in the eyes of the world.” She placed her hands on her hips challenging him, the way women do when they think they’ve won a conversation.
Dresden studied her. Took in her scent, let her movements reveal her. What she wasn’t saying was that she wanted to be taken, forcefully, and with stealth, in a way that allowed her to let go of the pain of the world and the trauma of her loss. She wanted to forget, even for a moment that she was alone now, caring for everything she loved with her blood, sweat and tears.
“Madam, that is a bold statement to make about your queen. I am new to these lands so I hold no loyalty to its masters. My loyalty is firmly rooted in my own business.”
This reply took Jukie some time to digest, and develop her response. Vlad grinned to himself as he watched their exchange with open gladness.
“So you have no loyalties to anyone? Where is your woman, traveler? It’s plain as the ocean that you came here alone and have not sought out a companion. So what is your business in Sveldin, then?”
This is exactly where Dresden had hoped she would steer the conversation. It was so simple talking to human beings. Their desires, fears, hopes and dreams were written within everything they said and how they moved. Jukie nervously dried wooden and pewter goblets with a tattered cloth, paying very close attention to her work rather than him, even though she addressed him directly.
“You see my lady, that is my business and mine alone. I am not at liberty to share it with a barmaid in a small kingdom at the edge of the earth. I will however invite you to drink with me.”
Jukie was visibly flustered by Dresden’s answers and his no nonsense attitude. She was used to besting men at their own game, and there was no way to win this battle with a man who had more years of practice than she had been alive. Although she was unaware of why, she found herself deeply attracted to him and Dresden knew it.
“Mead, lets keep it simple. I’m sure you can’t afford anything more.” she spat, “But I don’t drink while I work.”Vlad chimed in this time. “Jukie, I think it would be fine just for tonight to share a drink with our traveling patron. He is a good tipper!” With this, he jabbed Jukie in the side playfully, hoping she would let down her walls for once. Jukie wished Vlad hadn’t given her permission to drink. It would make her appear weak now if she couldn’t follow through with her words.
“Fine then.” She glared at Vlad, not as hatefully as she wanted to portray. Dresden could see through her mask of confidence and fury to the heart of a woman begging to let go for a change. “Then we drink. I pour, and you keep up with me. If you can’t, then you never get to speak to me again, even in a friendly manner. Understood?” She positioned herself behind the bar in a straight backed, combative stance. Waiting. It was Dresden’s move.
Now Dresden allowed himself to grin wide, displaying his delight at the challenge. Dragons do not succumb to drunkenness as easily as humans do. It would take much more alcohol to get him drunk than this woman could hold in her demure frame.
“Yes my lady, I will drink anything you put in front of me.” His simple monotone answer almost suggested dismissal, but his eyes were alive with playfulness.
So the game began. Jukie poured and they downed them together. There was very little conversation while Vlad manned the bar for the rest of the patrons, giving Jukie the opportunity to prove herself to this stranger and perhaps get drunk enough to do something completely out of character. Vlad was surprised at her eagerness to one up this man. He thought Dresden was handsome as far as men go, and the lack of men in the kingdom of Sveldin made him even more attractive to the women who had lost theirs, however long ago. After four goblets that went down rather quickly, several of the drunken females tottered over from their table. Two of them were the ones dancing on the table that Jukie had to scold earlier in the evening. When they approached Dresden seductively Jukie’s body language changed from idle curiosity to that of possessiveness.
“Hey handsome stranger!” A blond woman in her late twenties slurred as her friend held her up.
“You buyin drinks over here for our barmaid? We got whatever you might need.”
“She’s no fun at all!” Her dark haired friend added as they chuckled like children.
Jukie stood to her full height, somehow gaining inches that made her instantly intimidating and even more attractive. She told the women they had drunk enough and that if they weren’t getting a room, they needed to leave the pub and head home. Once they were away from Dresden she relaxed once again. The stone chill sobriety in her eyes amused Dresden. This woman could hold her drink. She poured another and another and another as they drank into the night. Dresden noticed that she was now leaning against the bar casually. She began talking more and smiling genuinely. The sparkle in her eye, replaced the scorn and mistrust.
“So what keeps you here lady? Clearly you are better than this province, wouldn’t you prefer the Northern or even the Eastern provinces where you could make a better life for yourself?”
Jukie didn’t hesitate in answering him. The mead had broken down her walls allowing her to open up to him with answer after answer to whatever question he posed.
“I grew up here; before the war, it wasn’t this way. It flourished and we loved living here. I met my husband here and when our son was born, he said it was the best day of his life and that he loved me forever. I guess forever is shorter than he thought because my forever is without him now and a boy to raise on my own, in a place that only wants him to grow up so he can serve a selfish queen who throws the men away for her own political gain.” Jukie slurred just a bit as she strung her words together near the end of her rant.
“That was quite a lot you said just now. How about we take a break from this game and lay down somewhere comfortable?” He placed a hand on hers. She had just talked about the love of her life dying and he was pursuing her into his bed.
Jukie laughed like a hyena, tilting her head back, letting her long, dark hair fall behind her. But she did not pull away from him. When she finished, she wiped her eyes, for a tear had crept into the corners from the laugh and the drink, not the memory.
“You are a blasphemous dog! But you’re handsome.” She pointed at him with the bottle of mead in a now shaking arm. “I’ll drink to that!” She added.
Dresden drank it, matching her again. He felt a tingling in his head that pleasant music elicits. His muscles and body felt none of the effects of the alcohol, and he knew she was losing her grip on sobriety quickly.
“What else would you drink to, young one?” He rested his head in his free palm, elbow on the bar, staring up at her longingly. He knew he was charming and used it unabashedly. Every ounce of it.
“Jukie, stared back for a moment, holding herself up by the mead bottle now, firmly planted on the table. She was thinking. Dresden could see it behind her eyes, the way her body rocked slightly as she turned to stare off into space before returning his gaze.
“Love.” She whispered. “I’d drink to love.” She uttered in a tone more serious than she had intended.
“It’s a fleeting concept, but I will drink to love with you.” He smiled gently, kindly, knowingly.
She poured them another and they downed it together again. The bar had emptied of its patrons, the lights were dim. Vlad had cleaned up while they spent the entire evening together. Jukie had forgotten where she was temporarily, letting herself participate in the moment freely, without her rigid ferocity that kept her from feeling. She finally felt relaxed. Recognition dawned on her that Vlad had done her job while she soaked up a good bottle of his best mead with a stranger she didn’t want to like.
“Vlad, I’m going to choke you in your sleep one day!” She suddenly called out half deliriously, into the deserted bar. When she looked back to Dresden, she smiled.
“Now, will my lady join me in my bedchambers for the evening?”
Jukie set the bottle on the bar. Tipped over both their goblets and called out to Vlad as she made her way to Dresden’s side of the bar. He kept her upright with strong hands, she stumbled once and laughed at herself.
“You’re finishing up here tonight Vlad, you conspiratorial dog. I’m done for the night!”
Vlad just waved her off while he finished sweeping.
Dresden took her hand in his and gently led Jukie up to his room whispering in her ear playfully.