Dorian Arell looked behind him for the last time. No, he wasn't going to miss anything. His mother, a top secret agent turned revolutionary, had never cared about him enough, her reform movement were wimps and their talk about oppression and about saving people was just rubbish. So their mage-rulers were cruel and prone to executions, but when it wasn't him being executed, why should he care?
What really drove him mad was that those people - with his mother in the lead as always - didn't care one little bit about their own interests, only about their ideals. None of the influenced they managed to obtain was used to make their lives easier, all their money was spent on others... his mother even did her best to downplay her role as the leader, even within her movement. And Dorian was sick of it.
Now he was finally leaving all that behind. He got some money from his mother, even though it was not enough. Some more he got from the reform movement's funds and yet some more from his own personal sources. All put together, it should be enough to let him start anew somewhere else.
And then, the sky is the limit. As Dorian rode on, he dreamt about setting his own dynasty.
After some thinking he settled in a lush valley, all ripe with possibilities. There was a village nearby, but nothing much happened here. And there was plenty of space for expansion, plenty of space to build his own mansion eventually, with a whole new village under it.
But better to start small, otherwise it might be too obvious. Just a house must be enough for the time being, even though the plans for the mansion - or a castle - were getting more vivid in his head with each passing day.
With the house finished, Dorian needed a trade. He still had some money left, but he didn't want to use it up too quickly. He needed an income, at least before he evaluated the village and the locals, learned the ropes and everyone's weaknesses.
He decided to try his hand at weaving, mainly because it seemed to be one of the easier and cleaner crafts available. At least it didn't require too much physical strength or handling mud.
Still, making tapestries turned out to be harder than he had expected at first, even after he gave up on fancy patterns.
This meant when Dorian spotted a lost-looking and completely drenched girl just outside his house, he was almost too glad to abandon his efforts at working and go out to meet her.
After all, she could be useful to him, at the very least as a native informer on her peers. Nobody knew gossip better than silly little hussies.
The girl definitely looked like a hussy - and also like a mouse. A completely drenched one, her hair was all wet, her dress too... but her dress seemed to be nicely made and from good material. All this went through Dorian's head while he was opening his mouth to speak.
"I am sorry if I am too forward, but would you like to go inside to dry a bit and maybe wait for the rain to pass? I am Dorian, by the way..."
The girl smiled shyly. "Oh, thank you. You are too kind."
Dorian had used all his mother's famous charm, but even he didn't expect such a result. As soon as the girl was inside and drying, she started almost swooning. Judging from the looks she kept turning towards him, all shy and dreamy, she was either completely unused to men being gentlemen, anyone being nice to her, or even remotely good-looking men. Or maybe all three, to get such a reaction...
And then Dorian got the girl to speak. Her name was Alean, she was the daughter of lord Lorimer, the local nobleman, and had been walking through the meadows, picking flowers. And probably spying on the new arrival to her village, Dorian guessed. But the important thing was, she was important and could be useful in more ways than just a source of information.
She seemed like a good target.
Dorian was so interested in this unexpected treasure that he completely missed she wasn't the only one caught by the rain near his humble home. Father Ambrose, the village priest, had come to check the new arrival, but his knocks got drowned in the thunder and crackling of Dorian's fire.
Alean, meanwhile, was growing more and more impressed and excited with every world Dorian uttered. He was so handsome and so interesting! He had actually travelled, seen lots of the world, even been in a real war! Alean couldn't believe her luck that such a man was interested in her.
"Seeing we will probably be trapped here by the weather for a while, would you like to... spend the time with me, my lady? Get to know each other better?"
Dorian took the girl's hand tenderly and waited with baited breath if he had guessed correctly about her.
Alean nodded shyly. The whole thing was so romantic! And while she suspected her strict father wouldn't approve of this kind of romance, it only added to the charm, it made her feel brave and rebellious for accepting.
The next few hours Dorian used all his charm and all the tricks he knew. He kissed the girl's hand, called her "sweet lady", complimented her in such an elaborate way she had probably never heard in her life. Before the day turned into evening, the girl was almost fainting with joy and excitement.
And she clearly believed she had found her one true love, as if such a thing existed. Dorian smirked inside, but his face stayed sweet and caring.
And then the sun began to set and the girl panicked.
"How long has it been not raining? My father... I must be home! My dear...?"
Dorian embraced her and consoled her like a small child. "Everything will be all right, my sweet lady. Nobody could be angry at such a dear lovely creature like you."
Alean nodded, only half reassured. But she took his promises of love and protection and stored them deep in her heart before she set out for home. She prayed to the Watcher it wasn't as late as she feared.
She arrived late. Her father, lord Lothar, was waiting for her and demanded an explanation for the suspiciously long walk. Alean tried to blame it on the rain, on losing her way, almost added a few injured animals and robbers into the mix before she stopped herself. Her father was already frowning and more excuses would just make the lie even more obvious.
She bit her lip and fell silent, dreading her father's next words and then quickly obeying when he sent her to bed.
When her father and older brother finally had fallen asleep, Alean crept out once more. She ran all the way to Dorian's home, trying to be as fast as possible, but she simply had to let Dorian know what she felt. Even if it was to be just that one afternoon, even if Dorian didn't return the favour, she wanted him to know.
And even if she was caught sneaking out and her likely punishment the next day was made much worse as a result, it was still worth it.
The next day Dorian went to the village market to meet some more of his new neighbours.
The market square seemed emptier than he would expect, even for a village this size, but amongst the few shopping wives someone stood out. Dorian had not met many elves before, so the golden-haired siblings caught his interest immediately. Especially the lady with her otherworldly beauty. She had an innocent face with huge eyes that opened wide at his compliments, but the cut of her dress, deceptively simple but revealing her figure, told a different story.
A story that was proven right by even a short conversation. Lianrin was smooth and supportive - almost too much. As charming as she was, Dorian doubted she really had that much interest in siege machines and warfare.
Still, it was pleasing not to have to put all the effort in himself.
And it was even more pleasing and actually fun when Lianrin took the lead. She was graceful, her body and hair perfect and sensual and she seemed sophisticated and open at the same time. For a while, Dorian was actually taken back.
Not that he would lower his guard for even a moment. The elf, lovely as she was, could be a predator looking for an easy prey. Still, as long as he was careful, she was... interesting. And definitely nice to look at.
Little Alean was a much better target, though. She was definitely what she seemed to be - an innocent hussy looking for romance at wrong places. Completely stupid and completely smitten.
Dorian could picture her upbringing quite clearly - a strict aging father, dead mother, aloof and ambitious older brother. Nobody to appreciate her, nobody to take her seriously, with only books for pleasant company. Until he appeared to change that.
She was just perfect.
A few more secret visits and the girl couldn't breathe without him. She clung to him with everything she had, always wanting to hold his hand, giving him sweet kisses with hear whole heart, holding to him as if she wanted to make sure he was real and wouldn't disappear like dreams in the morning.
Dorian played his part flawlessly and begun to actually enjoy the role of a noble and gentle protector. He had never wanted to be a knight, but there was something about the childlike trust in the girl's eyes.
It was hard to make her let go of him for a moment, even to eat some of the food Dorian had prepared for her. Luckily she was too dreamy-eyed and absorbed in him to notice even when the food spoilt before they got to eating it.
Not everyone was so happy with the unfolding situation, however.
The local priest had been making rounds around his house often, no doubt checking on him, but today he stood at Dorian's door, looking insistent.
Dorian, just coming from the market, smiled at him cordially. "Hello, father. What can I do for you?"
Dorian was sure he sounded sincere, but somehow the priest was not fooled. He frowned and went straight to his business.
"What is your relationship with young lady Alean? She speaks of nothing else, she sneaks out of her father's house... do you realise your behaviour puts her in serious danger? Do you want to ruin her reputation and marriage prospects?"
"But we were just kissing! Nothing else happened, I swear!" As soon as the words were out of his mouth, even before he saw the priest's face, Dorian longed to put them back.
"You have no business 'just kissing' the daughter of your lord! And especially you have no business taking and breaking her heart, as you plan to do. Stay away from her, or I will have to warn her family."
"I meant... I wanted to say..." Dorian searched for his charm and failed to find any.
"Just stay away from her." the priest repeated and then walked away, leaving Dorian standing before his front door, feeling like an idiot.
Dorian hated to admit defeat - which he was not doing, this was not a defeat, it was a strategic withdrawal - but he supposed it would be better to not see Alean for a few days. He had heard enough about lord Lothar Lorimer and his son to not want them to know he was romancing their daughter and sister.
Still, he needed someone to appreciate him, someone to make him feel better after that bitter brush-off with that meddlesome priest. He ended up going to Lianrin the golden-haired elf, the smooth, funny, flirty, possibly-a-predator girl he had met at the market some time before.
If the girl had seemed interested before, now she seemed positively enthusiastic. Looking at her wonderful poise, Dorian finally found his charm again and then, with both of them playing the same game for fun and profit, it was just smooth and easy.
With Alean he had been romantic and caring, with Lianrin he was daring, his gestures large and his smile dazzling. It was almost routine - and a routine was exactly what he needed to forget his previous humiliation.
When they said goodbye with tender kisses under sunset, they both felt relaxed and happy. And what was more, Dorian was almost sure that whatever her intentions he had managed to captivate the beautiful stranger for real, somewhere underneath all her eyelash-batting and smoothness.
