Princess Master 3, page 10
“Okay, I’m going to lift the barrier for a moment so we can go through,” the mermaid told us, “and then there’s no turning back! I hope you’re all ready for an adventure!”
“I know I am,” I replied, and I squeezed the approximate place on her tail where her thigh would be. I had an inappropriate thought about doing… something… with her while she was in her mermaid form, and I decided to put a pin in it for later.
“I’m always up for a good time,” Jessamine laughed, and we suddenly shot forward into the open ocean.
“Wheeeee!” Cienna cried out as she threw her arms above her head. “This is fun! It reminds me of when I was a little girl and my father would have the coachman make the horses gallop.”
“Joe, you need to navigate,” Ariana told me, and she handed me the map. “I don’t think it’s going to be too hard to get to the next town, but it would be helpful if you kept your eyes on the map.”
“No problem,” I said. “Marinus marked it up pretty well for us.”
“In any case, do you think I’m doing alright?” Ariana asked us. “I have to admit I was a little worried about driving, but it’s easier than I thought.”
“I was slightly worried, but you’re actually doing really well,” I assured her. “I mean it! Certainly better than I could drive an undersea chariot, although it would be an interesting challenge…”
“Well, she is a mermaid, Joe,” Cienna said, and she rolled her eyes before she playfully jabbed me in the shoulder with a finger. “Men have always seemed surprised when I ride Starlight so well, but that’s ridiculous. Why wouldn’t a woman be able to ride a horse or drive a chariot? I know that’s not what you meant, of course, Joe, but you’re much smarter than the average man, in my opinion, anyway…”
“I should hope you think that, since we’re married and all,” I laughed. “Trust me, I’m well aware of what you princesses are capable of. All three of you are amazing.”
“Thank you, Joe, but you’re pretty amazing, too.” Jessamine reached forward to gently squeeze my shoulders over the top of the front row of seats, and I leaned back into her arms and took some time to enjoy the view. Since we were up a little higher in the water than we’d been in a while, I could see faint streams of sunlight breaking through the waves. When a school of at least a hundred huge yellow fish with orange spots swam by us, my jaw dropped open at the sight. Then I looked down at the expansive reefs a couple hundred feet below us, and they were as colorful as a huge box of crayons.
As we traveled, the current pushed our hair back from our faces. I gazed at Ariana’s determined face and the bright red hair streaming behind her for a moment, and I thought she’d never looked so beautiful. Then I turned around to look at Cienna and Jessamine, who were both staring off into the distance, and they were equally as incredible.
Jessamine caught me looking at her, and a private smile passed between us. I enjoyed the small, intimate moments I had with each of my wives as much as I liked spending time with the three of them together. I’d never imagined it could be possible to be in love with three women at once, but now that it had happened to me, I couldn’t imagine my life being any other way.
And there were still more princesses to bond with. I didn’t know what Rachel was going to be like, but I had to admit I was a little excited to meet her when the time came.
“Ooh, is that the kelp forest?” Jessamine asked, and she gestured down at the ground. When I looked over the side of the chariot to see what she was pointing at, I observed a thick growth of multicolored strands of leaves. Fish in every pattern, shape, size, and color were swimming in and out of the dense patch of forest. I’d never seen anything like the colors in Ariana’s kingdom before, at least not in person, and looking around at undersea wonders never got old.
“It is!” Ariana said with a nod. “You can find the most incredible sea life there. There are sea urchins about the size of my head, and snails as big as my arm.”
“Wow,” I gulped. “Where I’m from, snails are considered pests. Those can really do a number on gardens, but a footlong snail sounds like it could do a number on a housecat.”
“Don’t be silly, Joe!” Ariana laughed. “Snails are incredibly friendly. Everyone knows that!”
“We eat snails in my kingdom,” Cienna informed us. “They’re really good with butter and garlic.”
“Yeah, I’ve heard of that, too.” I nodded, and then I had a thought. “You know, since we’ll be traveling for a bit, maybe we could pass the time in a more productive way.”
“What do you mean?” Jessamine asked as she leaned up to meet my gaze.
“I mean we could practice your magic a little,” I explained. “I know we’ve all been steadily getting stronger and growing our abilities, what with all the… ceremonies and battles we’ve been in.”
I wagged my eyebrows at the word “ceremonies,” and the princesses all blushed and tittered as they recalled the incredibly erotic way we’d boosted our powers in the past.
“I think that’s a great idea!” Jessamine grinned and clapped her hands.
“I’m in.” Cienna shrugged. “Anything to pass the time.”
“Awesome.” I smirked.
“Well, I’m a little busy driving,” Ariana giggled, “but I suppose we can trade off now and then.”
“Perfect.” I rubbed my hands together. “Who wants to go first?”
“Me!” Jessamine’s hand shot up into the air, and I chuckled.
“Go for it,” I encouraged my dark-haired wife, and she flashed me a radiant smile.
So, for the next few hours, the princesses practiced their magic. Jessamine worked on her illusions, and she changed her appearance and Cienna’s in a million different ways before she moved on to inanimate objects. Then my blonde wife utilized her time magic to pause schools of fish and other marine life as we made our way through the vast ocean. Ariana also got some training time in once I switched off driving with her, and I smiled as my wives encouraged each other and burst out into fits of laughter every now and again.
Here I was, in the middle of the ocean, driving a chariot pulled by giant sea horses and accompanied by the three most gorgeous and powerful women I’d ever met.
My life was pretty fucking awesome.
Eventually, my wives grew tired from practicing, and Ariana wanted to drive again. So, I switched off with her once more, and we traveled in silence for a while. At some point, I looked back to check on Cienna and Jessamine, and I saw they’d actually fallen asleep with their heads resting up against each other. They looked so cute I wished I could climb in back and snuggle with them. There was really nothing like taking a long nap on a road trip, but I didn’t want to abandon Ariana. Navigation was definitely a job for the person riding shotgun, and I definitely didn’t want to get lost.
I gazed down at the map and tried to determine our position, but all I could determine was we were somewhere between the kelp forest and the sandfalls. It seemed like we’d been traveling for an hour or two, so I hoped we were getting close.
“Hey, look!” Ariana cried out, and she broke me out of my reverie as she pointed ahead and to the left of our current position. “I think I might see the sandfalls!”
I looked to where she was pointing, and I could barely see streams of pale, nearly-white sand flowing down over a huge cliff. At the base of the falls, I spotted a collection of small white buildings interspersed with colorful coral, and my heart started to beat a little faster in my chest.
“That must be the town,” I said. “And it’s a good thing, because I’m hungry again.”
Ariana navigated the chariot down toward the buildings, and as we drew closer, I could see the town’s residents peering up into the water.
“I think they’re excited to see us!” Jessamine said as she leaned over between me and the red-haired princess. “Do you think your subjects know who you are?”
“They probably just aren’t used to seeing chariots this fancy,” Ariana admitted. “I haven’t been this far away from the palace in a while, so I’m not exactly sure what they’re going to say to me. To be honest, I’m feeling a little nervous.”
“Ariana, it’s going to be fine,” Cienna assured her. “You handle yourself so well with your royal subjects. Think of Cordelia and Kai, and how much they love you. Don’t worry about anything.”
“O-Okay,” the mermaid princess sighed. “And I have you for backup. I wonder what they’re going to think about me having sister-wives…”
“Listen, I know our marriage isn’t traditional in Fairyland,” Cienna began, “ but the longer this war against Chernabog goes on, the more Fairyland’s citizens are going to learn about the situation and the way we’re working together to save them. I know at some point in time, Joe’s name, and the names of all the princesses, including us, will be on everybody’s lips. So, I think we all need to get used to talking about our marriage and being honest. We are the rulers, and we have absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about.”
“That’s right, Cienna.” Jessamine nodded emphatically. “I know I’m generally the most open about it, but I agree with what you’re saying. Ariana, there’s no shame in our marriage. We all love each other, and if that isn’t enough to convince you, the marriage between the princesses and the hero is foretold by legend. Joe, what do you think?”
“Hey, absolutely no shame here,” I said as I held up my hands. “I’m proud to call all of you my wives.”
“I know you’re all absolutely correct,” Ariana replied and sat up straighter in her seat, “so I’m going to try to be braver. In any case, we’re pretty much here, but I’m going to park a little bit outside the town, just to make sure we don’t crash into a crowd of merpeople. And so I have a little time to prepare to greet them.”
We were drawing closer and closer to the seafloor now, and I slid over next to Ariana and grabbed her hand.
“Hey, it’s going to be alright,” I murmured, and I kissed her on the cheek. “I’m here to support you, and so are Cienna and Jessamine.”
“Thanks, Joe,” the mermaid responded with a quick smile, and as we reached the sand, she pulled up on the reins. “Callie, halt!”
The seahorses skidded to a stop and jolted all of us up and out of our seats for a moment.
“That was fun!” Jessamine chirped. “Thanks for driving, Ariana!”
“You’re welcome,” the redhead said, but she still sounded nervous as she patted down her hair and tried to comb through it with her fingers. “Oh, no, I forgot my crown. Do I still look alright?”
“Beautiful as always,” I reassured her, but before I could go on, I noticed a small group of merchildren approaching the chariot.
“Are you the queen?” a little girl with long brown braids and a gleaming pink tail asked Ariana.
“No, I’m Princess Ariana,” my mermaid wife introduced herself with slightly pink cheeks.
“You’re a… princess?” The little girl’s jaw dropped open far enough I was afraid a fish was going to swim in. “I just saw your chariot, and it’s so beautiful! I have to go tell my father!”
“I am a princess!” Ariana told the young mermaid, whose mouth was still hanging open. “What’s your name?”
“You want to know my name?” the little girl gasped. “Wowww, okay. I’m Lily, and these are my little brothers Pike and Mako. I’m ten, but Pike is only seven, and Mako is three.”
“So, you’re the big sister, huh?” Ariana asked, and it seemed like talking to the children was putting her more at ease because her pinched expression softened into a smile. “That’s wonderful! I have sisters, but I’m the littlest, just like Mako.”
Lily nodded solemnly, but before she had a chance to speak again, a brown-haired merman with a thick mustache rushed up behind the children. A pack of about twenty other merpeople were following him with wide eyes, but they stopped several feet behind the man who was approaching us.
“I’m not sure they’ve ever seen humans before,” Cienna muttered into my ear, and I nodded.
“Lily, I hope you’re being polite,” the man warned what I assumed was his daughter, and then he bowed. “Your Highness, or rather, I hope I’m assuming correctly that you’re one of King Liron’s daughters.”
“Yes, that’s correct,” Ariana said as she gracefully climbed out of her chariot, and Jessamine, Cienna, and I followed. “I’m Princess Ariana, and this is my husband, Joe, and my… s-sister-wives, Princess Cienna and Princess Jessamine.”
“Okay, wow,” the merman gasped. He seemed just as starstruck as his daughter. “I thought you were royalty, but to hear it from your own mouth… What can I do for you? What do you need?”
“We don’t need anything,” Ariana assured him. “If anything, we want to know what we can do for you. In any case, we wanted to stop in this town to see the sandfalls.”
“You chose to stop… here?” The merman seemed incredibly flustered. “This is so exciting. I don’t even know what to say! Oh, my goodness, I haven’t even introduced myself to you. I’m Ronan, and I’m the mayor. And these are my children, who I see you’ve met. I have one more daughter, Vivian, and I’ll introduce her to you in a bit.”
“Ronan, it’s so wonderful to meet you,” Ariana replied with a bright smile, and her confidence seemed to have returned, which I was glad to see.
“Hey, everyone, the princess is here!” the merman shouted, and the crowd of merpeople began to talk even louder amongst themselves. Some of them began rushing toward the chariot, and I hoped I wouldn’t have to run interference. “Oh, no, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to get them all worked up. I’m just so excited you’re here. What are you doing all the way out here, anyway, if it isn’t too rude to ask.”
“My family and I are traveling together on a mission to learn more about the troubles in our kingdom,” Ariana explained as she kept an eye on the encroaching crowd.
“Yes, well, we have had some troubles lately,” the mustached merman replied in a solemn tone, and then he shouted toward the group of merpeople. “Get back from her! You’re crowding the royal family!”
I heard the encroaching mob start to grumble, and I was relieved when they stopped moving forward at the mayor’s words.
“Thank goodness,” Jessamine gasped. “Ariana, I’m not surprised, but they really want to see you!”
“Don’t worry about them,” the mayor assured us. “I can keep the situation under control. In any case, I can offer you some privacy, because not only am I the mayor, but I own the nicest inn in town, too. And, our fanciest room is available, with plenty of space for the four of you. You’re still a ways out of town, so would you like to bring your chariot a little closer? Actually, would you like me to park it for you and put your seahorses inside the stables? I’ll even have the inn’s porter bring your things to your room for you. These are services we offer at our inn to our most… special guests.”
I wouldn’t have handed over the keys to my Mustang to a valet, but Ariana nodded gratefully.
“That would be wonderful,” the mermaid princess said with a nod. “I truly appreciate everything you’ve offered.”
“Don’t worry, I’ve been driving chariots like this for years,” Ronan said, and he winked at me. “I even used to race them for a time. Not that I’m going to drive this beauty fast, of course. Would the four of you like me to give you a ride to the inn?”
“I think it’s our only choice if we want to stay away from the crowds,” my red-haired wife sighed to me, and then she addressed the mayor. “Ronan, thank you so kindly. I think we will take you up on your offer.”
“Great!” the merman said, and he rubbed his palms together. “Just let me know when you’re ready to go.”
“I think we’re ready now,” Ariana gulped as she noticed the large crowd beginning to move forward again.
“I still can’t believe I’m going to drive a princess’ chariot,” Ronan said, and he had a huge grin on his face.
“Ronan, I think those people are about to rush Ariana,” Cienna told him, and the mayor nodded.
“Sorry, sorry, I’m just so excited!” the mayor exclaimed, and he slid into the driver’s seat.
I quickly helped all three princesses into the back seat of the chariot, and then I climbed into the front with Ronan.
“Lily, boys, meet me back at the inn,” the merman called out to his children, and then, with a tug of the reins, we were in motion again.
I could tell the man hadn’t been lying about his driving abilities as he expertly maneuvered Ariana’s chariot toward the town, and I had to admit it was a little fun being chauffeured around like the royalty I now was.
The town itself consisted of scattered, picturesque white houses and a downtown, if you could call it that, with a narrow main street. The sandfalls were visible from everywhere, and I felt like we were truly on vacation for the first time since I’d arrived in Fairyland. I knew we still had Eudora to find, of course, but taking a night off in a fancy inn didn’t seem like too bad of an idea.
The mayor stopped the chariot on the main street in front of a stately, two-story pale pink building that was constructed of at least two layers of the coral stakes Kai had described to me the day before. The sign outside read simply “The Sandfall Inn,” and it was surrounded by a neat garden full of anemones and water lilies.
Ronan and I got out of the chariot, and as he walked around to assist Cienna and Jessamine, I held out an arm to Ariana, who was the closest princess to me, and obviously the most nervous. A crowd of gaping merpeople were gathered in front of the hotel, and the mermaid’s body shook slightly as she took my arm.
“Hey, you alright?” I whispered into her ear.
“Yes, well, sort of,” the redhead told me. “I think I’m going to have to address them briefly, since I’m not sure there’s any other way to handle this. I can’t just push through the crowd without saying anything.
