The silent shock lasted longer than Roo thought it should.
Just like … why were the fairy lanterns swaying so violently? They were practically like fans right now. Pendulum fans breezing up the place so well that Roo could smell both Peaches own peaches and cream smell and a lemonade musk that much come from that elf girl Peaches called Sunshine.
The ground wasn’t shaking. No. It was solid and still underneath his boots.
The light was wavering brighter and brighter, but flickering. The sunlight from the wide-open window came the swaying fairy lights from being too … distracting, but the way the cool breeze from the window …
Cool breeze like … why would … no. It was summer. Daytime. There shouldn’t be a cool breeze.
Not from anywhere in Appleharth.
And the smell of the breeze was cool and crisp and very piny. Not a hint of apple or livestock or human anything.
The bed too. It looked ruby red and those covers and mattress were so round and puffy it was like a huge pile to be jumped in. Nothing like the more modest and typical bed of branches and leaves woven carefully together and layered to ensure softness yet comfort.
Just the smell of the bed … the oak … the covers were some cross between lace and silk. Too … immodest for even a bishop. No. Bishop Hagert would never grant anyone this kind of bedroom for consummation.
It made no sense.
Bishop Hagert wouldn’t have this kind of bedroom available. Not without some crow feathers scattered here and there.
In fact, why didn’t Bishop Hagert have any crow feather on him. Neither time he married them did he have any crow feathers on him. He didn’t have that crow smell that …
What was going?
But that elf girl Sunshine gleamed with such a bright smile, and her face had all the right angles like Peaches did, except this Sunshine curled some of her blond hair to cover the right side of her face, especially her right eye, as if she was a bit shy, well, before the lamping turned her into a devoted genie, even if it was only to stave off her true death from that darkspawn serpent that somehow was possessing her.
In fact … Roo glanced up at the fairies in the lanterns and …
The closer one … wow, it looked remarkable like a three-inch tall Sunshine, except with blue butterfly wings and antenna and a suggestive minidress of blue roses.
The other lantern … wait. A red fairy? No. An orcubus fairy!
Impossible. Orcs didn’t have a fairy stage. They had a piglet phase. Not a fairy phase.
But that fairy … was just like … Ruby? Yes. Like Ruby. A three-inch Ruby. Complete with huge adorable pig ears and upright piglet nose, yet that slim in the right places, and curved fat in the best. Even her black hair was still curled nice and trim over her right shoulder and hefty hellishly endowed chest and that ruby red streak only to emphasized it and her bay innocent face with all the best angles.
But now she had the most adorable pair of tiny black bat wings and wow, a very suggestively skimpy minidress of black roses that showed more of her lovely bright red skin than her usual getups.
Throw in her big green eyes so wide and adorably … wait.
Roo leapt back. Releasing Sunshine. Pulling back Peaches.
“Roo!” Peaches said, but Roo pointed at the lanterns.
“Is that Sunshine?” he said, “Or her?”
Peaches gasped. Fluttered her eyes shocked.
“How did …” Peaches said, “I miss that?”
The elf girl thing in front of Roo pouted.
“Took you long enough,” she said, “But too late now. I–”
“Never too late,” Roo said, and using the miniature bow in his arm guard, fired a bolt of unholy violet light at Ruby’s lantern.
That jolted the fake Sunshine. “Not the real Sunshine? Really?”
The lantern shattered. Exploding. Roo grabbed Peaches. Shover her under him. Shielding her from those deadly black iron fragments. Fragments that screamed futile against his dragon scale.
Ruby gasped. “Finally!”
And zipped so fast into the fake Sunshine Roo almost missed it.
Almost.
And the fake Sunshine transformed into an even more sultry form of Ruby.
Including that very suggestive minidress of black roses that barely covered her lovely red skin. It was the kind of minidress that went beyond seduce and slash to outright slut and dash, and wow, his heart raced stupid just breathing her cherry scent with that thick rosy touch.
Her smirk at him …
“Now that,” Ruby said, “Is the end of Rouge. Finally. Camilla will be furious.”
That Ruby still had bat wings, even if they were small, as in only reached at most to her elbow-span.
“Can you fly with those wings?” Roo said, “Even if you can’t, they’re actually … adorable. Big fairy orcubus. Too cute to slay.”
Ruby giggled.
Then pecked Roo’s lips nice and with a sweet cherry smack.
“Lucky me,” she said, “So I guess you’ll forgive me for Rouge escaping and jumped into that last fairy.”
“I … oh no,” Roo said, “Peaches I …”
PUUUUFFFFFFFF!
From right behind them!