Patreon-voted Rhea Side-story

Hey everyone!  Here is the voted on story for Rhea.  I'll be posting it along with the next chapter of Capable Kingdom but obviously wanted to share it here first.  After some thinking I decided to do a story about the lead-up to Rhea confessing/proposing to Mac, that includes her thoughts at the time and also getting some interactions between her and some of the other girls.  Hope you like it!

Rhea Side-story – A day in the life of Rhea

- This occurs after the bandit subjugation mission and before Rhea suggests marriage to Mac -

Rhea woke up as the sun started shining through the windows.  She looked around, reminding herself where she was.  Oh yeah, I was talking with Elly last night.  She looked down onto the bed (she was sleeping on the headboard) and saw Eleanor was still fast asleep.  She smiled as she looked at Eleanor's sleeping face, then quietly flew out the window

She liked to 'recharge' in the morning by going and absorbing some energy from the trees around the palace.  There were quite a few, as the palace was surrounded by woodland, and she had gotten to know many of them over the last few months.

Flying up to one, she pressed her hand against it.  She was filled with visions of a warm summer day.  Ah, you like when you get a lot of sun.  She went up and pressed her hand on another, and saw a sight of a light rain showering the forest.  And you like when you can drink a lot.  Feeling thirsty herself, she flew threw the trees until she found a small pond to drink from.

After satiating her thirst, she sat back on the grass and looked at her reflection.  I wonder if Mac will be lovers with me even if I'm purple? She sighed.  This reminded her of when Mac had rescued her from the pool in the forest.  The last time she had gotten too close to a human, it had led to her being betrayed and trapped in a box for thousands of years.  Not that it felt like that, after the initial surprise, she had basically shut down into hibernation until Mac had arrived to this dimension.

Mac had dove into the pool without a second though.  Well, she hadmade him extremely curious as to what was going on, but he had still done it.  How could I notwant to be lovers with a human like that.  I think he'll say yes, too, I just need to bring it up at the right time.   She was waiting a bit to suggest it, not wanting to infringe on Marie's happiness.

And...she was a bit nervous.  Not a feeling that a spirit normally felt, but the fact she was feeling it at all made her think she had made the right decision in pursuing this route.

Thinking of Mac so much, she decided to go and visit him.  She was always able to faintly sense his presence, so she flew back to the palace and found him.  He had been with one of his wives or fiances the previous night (as usual) but was now in the middle of walking to breakfast.

Flying up behind him, she grabbed his cheek, startling him slightly.

“Oh, hey Rhea,” he said, giving her a little back rub to simulate a hug.

Rhea blushed slightly, although Mac probably couldn't realize.  Giving him a kiss on the cheek, she flew into his hair.  “Whatcha doing today?”

Mac thought for a moment as he walked.  “I have a meeting with Kay about our wedding, some promotions to hand out after the bandit subjugation, and some more concubine requests to deny.”

Rhea giggled, “I'm sure you'll enjoy that.”

Mac scratched his cheek.  “It's not that I enjoy it...but it's at least easy.  As long as I say no to all of them, it's fine.”

Rhea, curious, asked, “Do you think you have enough women already?”, careful not to give away her intentions.

Mac sighed, “I want to say yes, but probably not.  I guess that gets easier too.  I don't mind as much if we're getting married, and they can be treated like everyone else.”

Rhea tapped her chin, So he's more likely to say yes if it's marriage?  I just wanted to be lovers, but...

Her thoughts were interrupted as they got to the royal family's dining hall.  The only people inside already were Marie and Melissandra.  Rhea flew off and gave a hug to Melissandra, “Mel!”

Melissandra smiled and 'hugged' Rhea.

Rhea then flew over and laid in Marie's hair.

Marie smirked, looking up, “No hello for me?”

Rhea thought for a moment, “We were just talking last night, so I guess it doesn't feel like we've been away from each other that long.”

Marie nodded, “Fair enough,” before taking a bite of her eggs.

Rhea flew down and grabbed a roll from a basket on the table, chomping on it slowly.  She was careful not to do too much, as she didn't want to scare anyone who couldn't see her, but usually the maids in the dining hall were half asleep until called on.

Melissandra looked at Marie, “Did Gabriella say anything more last night?”

Marie shook her head.  “She still won't talk much.  And I can't abide all the comments she makes about Mac.”

Mac chuckled, “You don't need to worry about me.”

Marie shook her head, “I can't do that,” and blushed.

Melissandra giggled, “You took to being a fiance well.”

Marie blushed harder, then went back to her breakfast.

Melissandra turned to Mac, “You really need to talk to her more.”

Mac tried to avert her gaze.  “I don't know...”

Melissandra sighed, then stood up to leave.  “Mac, please just consider it,” she said, before kissing his cheek and leaving.

No sooner had she left, then Emma came in.  Rhea flew off and tackled Emma, who responded by rubbing her cheek on Rhea.  “How's my favorite spirit?”

Rhea looked at her, “Do you know any other spirits?”

Emma chuckled, “No, but that doesn't mean you're not my favorite.”

Rhea giggled and kissed Emma's cheek, before flying off.

Rhea made it a habit of trying to talk to everyone in the palace at least once a day.  Mac had given her the mission of making sure none of his partners were feeling too down, and she took it seriously.  Not just because she wanted to be lovers with Mac herself, but she felt like part of their family.

Down in the palace grounds, she heard the clanking of a hammer on anvil, and flew over to Daisy's hut.

Daisy was always so focused on her hammering, Rhea waited until she was busy quenching to talk.  As she watched Daisy continue hammering, she had a realization, Wait, if Mac marries me, I need a ring, right?  She briefly considering mentioning it to Daisy, but realized that might be a bit too presumptuous (even if deep down, she thought Mac would say yes).

Suddenly she heard the hissing of hot metal in oil and flew down.  “Daisy!”

Daisy looked up and smiled, “Oh, hey Rhea.”

Rhea seemed surprised, “Are you okay?”

Daisy was taken aback, then smiled, “Guess I can't get anything past you!  I tried to act normal.”

Rhea shook her head.  “Of course not, I know you too well Daisy.  Wait, are you pregnant?” she asked, flying down to Daisy's stomach.

Daisy laughed, “Haha, no, or at least not that I can tell.”

Rhea slowly hovered up to her face.  “What's wrong then?”

Daisy seemed to get a sour look.  “I...I just get worried sometimes that I ain't good enough.  I know Mac keeps telling me that's nonsense, and I'm the prettiest dwarf in the Kingdom...” she trailed off, blushing, “...but it's just hard to believe sometimes.  All I ever wanted to do was be a smith and jeweler.  I never thought about being a Queen.”

Rhea nodded, “That's not surprising.  But don't you want to live with Mac and the rest?  And me?”

Daisy laughed, “Of course.”

“I don't see the problem then.  You should do what makes you happy.”

Daisy thought for a moment, then nodded.  “Yur right, ain't no sense worrying about the details, I'm just gonna do what makes me happy.”

Rhea smiled and nodded vigorously.  “Exactly.  So, what would make you happy right now?”

“I'm gonna go make love to that big hunk!” she exclaimed, setting down her hammer and running towards the castle.  “Thanks Rhea.”

Rhea was a bit surprised.  I guess that's fine.

Flying off, she saw Kay sitting on a balcony, drinking tea as she looked over the forest.  As she approached, Kay looked over at her with a smile.

“Nyahaha, to what do I owe the pleasure?” she said, pouring some tea for Rhea.

This having happened before, Rhea leaned over the cup and took a small sip of the tea.  “Thanks.”

Kay giggled.  “It's fine, I wasn't going to drink all of it.”

Rhea looked up at Kay, “You excited to get married?”

Kay gave a somber smiled, “Yes...I'm just a little worried.”

Rhea looked up, awaiting an answer.

“It's the first time the whole royal family will be traveling together.  I doubt anything will happen, but...it just worries me.”

Rhea shook her head, “I'll keep an eye out for anything suspicious.”

Kay smiled, “Thanks, Rhea, I know I can count on you.”

Rhea and Kay both sipped tea for a bit, before Rhea asked, “Are you hoping to get pregnant soon?”

Kay giggled, “Nyahaha, where did that come from?”

Rhea shook her head, “Well, everyone talks about it a lot, so I figured it was okay to ask.”

Kay blushed but shook her head.  “Not yet.  I'm not too upset about not being pregnant before the marriage, but after...well, hopefully not too long.  I want to be able to commiserate with everyone else.  Plus, our babies are sure to be exceedingly cute.”

Rhea nodded in agreement.  Would Mac and I's babies be cute?  Would they be purple?  I wonder if Mac would be upset about that...

Kay gave a big yawn.  “I think I need a nap.”

Rhea raised an eyebrow.  “Really?  Is it normal to nap before lunch?”

Kay shook her head, “No...I was up late with Mac, so I need some extra sleep...”

Rhea gave her a hug, and then flew out.  She had seen everyone besides Felicia, so she decided to go flying through the halls until she found the room where her siblings were staying.  Felicia spent much of her time looking after them, despite her pregnancy.

Sure enough, Felicia was sitting in a chair, a content smile on her face, carefully knitting what looked like more baby clothes.

Felicia noticed her fly into the room, giving an inviting smile.  Since the younger siblings couldn't see her, she didn't want to make a ruckus coming in.

Settling down between Felicia's ears, she quietly asked, “How are you?”

“Oh, you know...” she whispered, before giggling.  Rhea never really worried about Felicia, of all the fiances and wives, she seemed to be the happiest.  Maybe just being here with everyone makes her happy?  I guess that's kind of how I am.  She laid down, kicking her feet up as she watched Felicia's siblings.  Some of them were very young, playing with dolls or blocks, while a few of the older ones were writing in books, presumably studying.  The oldest, Finn, had a small wooden sword, and seemed to be practicing swinging it around.

“Finn, I don't mind if you want to learn swordsmanship, but you shouldn't swing that around in the room,” Felicia said with a soft voice.

Finn blushed, turning and nodding before heading outside.

“He seems determined to be a royal guard, so he can protect his sisters...” Felicia said.

“Do you not want him too?”

Felicia sighed, “I'm a little worried, but I'd rather let him do what he wants.  I'm not sure how Fi deals with worrying about La Hire...”

Rhea rubbed her head, “Don't worry, I'm sure he'll be just fine once he's trained enough.”

Felicia giggled, “Thanks.”

Rhea kept watching for a while, before drifting off to sleep.

Rhea was woken abruptly by a poke from Felicia.

“Wha-...sorry...”

Felicia giggled, “It's okay, I'm just off to dinner and didn't want you falling off.”

Rhea rubbed her eyes, then flew off her.

“You don't want dinner?” Felicia asked, standing up.

Rhea shook her head, “I wanted to check on something.”

Felicia nodded and waved, before she was accosted by her siblings.  “Felicia, dinner time!”

Felicia smiled, “I know, let's go see if Tillie has anything for us.”

Rhea flew around the outside of the castle, until she found the window she was looking for.  As usual, Gabriella was there, sharpening her blade on a whetstone.

That must be the sharpest blade in the whole Kingdom,Rhea thought.  She slipped into the window.

Gabriella seemed to glance a bit when she flew by, but then went back to sharping her stone.

Sheesh, her senses are sharp too!  Rhea watched Gabriella, trying to ascertain her thoughts.  They keep talking about her, but she seems conflicted about them too. Rhea was a little confused, because it seemed like Gabriella was supposed to be one of his fiances, but was decidedly not.  That said, Rhea had found her interesting so checked up on her regularly anyway.

She could sense the confusion and conflicting feelings present in Gabriella.  Sharpening her blade seemed to be a mechanism to try and keep herself calm, but Rhea could sense the inner turmoil regardless.

Rhea sighed, Well, I feel like I can't do much here.  I can't really talk to her, and I'm not sure that would be a good idea anyway.  Flying off, she went back out the window.

She liked to take flights over the canopy in the evening, just watching the moonlight filter through the trees around her.  Looking up at the moon, she thought about Celestina.  I wonder how she's doing? I wish I could talk to her again.  Especially about Mac...she blushed.  Celestina, I hope you're doing well up there.

After her moonlit glide, she flew back to the palace, sensing who was still awake.  As usual, there was only one person still awake to talk too.

Flying towards Marie's office, she knocked on the door.  After a moment, Marie opened it.

“You're lucky I have good ears,” she smirked.

Rhea flew inside, alighting on Marie's desk.

“What are you doing tonight?” Rhea asked.

“Going through what Mac needs to address tomorrow.  Mostly regarding the tax collection efforts and more concubine requests...” Marie said, with a sigh.

Rhea asked, “Are you happy you're finally with Mac?”

Marie stopped writing, blushing slightly, “Why are you asking me that?”

Rhea shrugged, “Curious.”

“Well, what do you think?” Marie said, going back to writing.

“Well, considering how much sex you two have, I'm guessing happy.”

Marie blushed and nodded, “Obviously.”

Rhea thought for a moment, then asked, “Do you think I'd be happy with Mac?”

Marie stopped writing, then sat down her pen slowly.  “Are...are you saying you want to be 'with' Mac?  Like, the same way I or Melissandra or Eleanor are?”

Rhea nodded, “Yeah.  I've been thinking about how happy you all seem, and it made me want to be lovers with him as well.  Although, knowing Mac, he might want to marry me first.  Or at least get engaged.”

Marie closed her eyes, blinking.  “So you're saying you want to marryMac?”

Rhea nodded.

Marie took a deep breath, crossing her fingers together.  “Is it normal for spirits to want to marry humans?  Or even take them as lovers?”

Rhea shook her head, “Oh no, definitely not.  Celestina might have, since she at least had a lover for her to have her own children, but I haven't met any others.”

Marie nodded.

Rhea could tell Marie's mind was racing.

“Sorry, maybe it's a bad idea...”

Marie quickly shook her head.  “No, not at all.  I'm just trying to think of the...ramifications.”

“Do you think we should keep it a secret?” Rhea asked.

Marie thought for a bit more, then shook her head.  “Assuming Mac accepts, and I'm almost certain he will, I think we should make this public.  Think about how important Mac seems if he has a spirit as a wife.”

Rhea got excited.  “Really?  I would actually be helping?”

Marie nodded.  “Yes, I only wonder if some countries would even believe us.  Well, I guess if they see you, they might change their mind...”

The two talked semantics for a bit, deciding Rhea should speak with the other women first, and then find a good time to bring it up to Mac.

Once they were done talking, Rhea flew up and hugged Marie's cheeks. “Thanks so much Marie.”

Marie smiled, “After you helped me, I owe you.”

The next day, Rhea went about collecting the 'approval' of all Mac's partners.  It was fairly simple, so none had any objections.  Some were a bit confused, like Melissandra.

“Not that I don't wholeheartedly approve, but is that really okay?  The other spirits won't be...upset or anything, would they?”

Rhea shrugged, “I don't think so.  And it's not like they're around much anyway.”

Melissandra nodded.  “True, but if we make it public as Marie suggests, then they might.”

Rhea had a determined look on her face, “I'll just deal with that if I have too.”

Melssiandra smiled, “I can see your serious about it.”

Rhea nodded, “I am.  I thought about it a lot.  Every time I think about it, my chest gets all wobbly.”

Melissandra giggled, “You must really like Mac.”

Rhea blushed a bit, “I must.”

Later that day, Rhea sat in the gardens.  Everyone else had gone to dinner, and now Mac was talking with Gabriella.  Mac was alone that night, so she would ambush him once he was done talking with her.

The nervousness was now peaking, and she could barely contain herself.  However, she was also excited at the prospect of taking things to a new level with Mac.

Her face blushed as she thought of what she wanted to do with him.  She even had an image of herself she would change into in mind, with the idea of maximizing his desire for her.

She was brought out of her fantasies as she noticed Mac was moving closer to her.  Based on the palace layout (which she had memorized) he should be in the royal bath now.

Perfect, she thought, before flying off his direction.