Bad News

Posted on Mon Aug 22nd, 2022 @ 12:01am by Giuseppe Orsini & Princess Jessica Orsini
Edited on on Thu Jul 13th, 2023 @ 10:36pm

Mission: Historiae Terrae Et Imperii
Location: San Francisco Estate
Timeline: Date 2371-06-14 at 1200
2316 words - 4.6 OF Standard Post Measure

Jessica sat in the floor of Antonio's playroom, holding the one year old and shaking her face in his quick enough that her cheeks jigged and made a wobbling sound. The boy laughed riotously, trying then to pry her cheek from the rest of her face. Luckily it didn't work, as she pretending to bite his fingers. These antics always sent the boy into a delight and was an excellent prelude to nap time. When she got to be home, she liked to do this part herself and sent the nannies away. Grand Duke or no, a little boy needed his mother.

She was wearing a red flannel shirt and a pair of light-gray sweat pants that clung tightly to her body. Her mismatched outfit was completed with a pair of fuzzy blue socks Antonio loved to pull at. Her hair was back in a messy bun and, while she was wearing make up, it was a natural look. She began to sing a song to the boy in Portuguese, paying no mind to the sound of footsteps approaching their suit.

“Ma’am.” One of the servants appeared in the doorway and spoke softly. “His Highness is home and would like to speak with you in your suite, but he said to let you know to finish putting your son in for his nap.” The woman looked nervous like the servants usually were when Giuseppe was in a mood, but there was something more to it this time that was hard to place.

“Thank you, Hilda.” She said. Thanking servants wasn’t royal, but she didn’t come from royalty. As the woman left, Jessica continued to lull their child and to sing to him until he dozed off. Then she placed him gently in his crib and went outside, closing the door behind her. She stepped down the hall and into the suite, the door of which was left cracked.

“You’re home..” she said, putting in a smile. But when she saw his face, it went away completely. “What’s wrong?”

Giuseppe looked up at her with the face of a defeated and broken man. He had of course showered before returning home, washing away the evidence of his father’s slaughter, but it still plagued his mind. “Jessica…” He began but sighed and turned away to look out of the window.

She approached right away, her hands finding his hair. She knelt down in the bed next to him as she leaned in and kissed his cheek.

“Giuseppe, talk to me. What’s wrong?”

“Everything.” He replied morosely and looked to her. “Everything was a lie. I should have seen it.” He turned away from her again and this time anger appeared on his face. “I should have snapped his neck.”

“What?” She asked, her face beginning to turn into irritation. He was completely beside himself; speaking in riddles. She wasn’t sure how to get any answers from him that she would find emotionally helpful, but she felt some certainty he must be talking about his father. She gave him a slight shove, trying to shake him into the real world. “Giuseppe, tell me what is going on!”

“My father has slaughtered his political opposition. The ‘dinner’ I just came back from was an execution of the Blue’s leadership, but many many more have died.” Giuseppe explained, too in his own head to lash out at his wife for the way she shoved him. “Then, after I sat through all of that he turned on me.” Giuseppe took a slow, deep breath. “After everything I gave up to try and do what he wanted of me, he turned to me and made me sign away my claim to the crown in favor of Paolo under threat of death.”

Jessica’s eyes went wide at that in complete surprise. Her son’s future hung in the balance with her husbands, and while she wanted to see Giuseppe succeed, she was laser focused on her son. She gasped.

“You’d didn’t sign it, did you?!” She asked, her mind racing, her beautiful face suddenly changed.

“Of course I signed it, Jessica. Did you not hear the threat of death part?” He scoffed at her and now looked at her, annoyed. “You think it would have just been me? No. He would have dragged you and our son out into the streets and had you both slaughtered for my defiance.”

“No he wouldn’t, Giuseppe! He loves his grandson! He would never do that to us!” She exclaimed, standing up. She wasn’t thinking about him in particular, nor did it occur that, in the contingency she was considering, he was a corpse. “Does this mean that Antonio is disinherited? Is he next in line?”

“The man doesn’t know what love is.” Giuseppe said firmly. “He absolutely would do that to us, Jessica. He said as much.” He still remained surprisingly calm given the situation, but her reactions were starting to anger him. “If I have no claim to the throne neither does my son.”

Jessica walked over to the window, facing away from her husband. She put her fingers in her hair, digging her nails into her house.

“I…I don’t understand.” She said, and then turned to him again, her face making her look slightly unhinged. “Giuseppe, I don’t know how you could let this happen. What are we going to do about this?”

"How I could let this happen?" Giuseppe frowned and stood now, looking at his wife. "I was doing everything I could to return to a place of favor with my father. How is this my fault?"He approached her, his anger starting to solidify and sharpen in his mind.

“I don’t know. But why would this happen unless you’d done something wrong?” She asked, tears starting to well up in her eyes. "I can go ask him myself. I can try to talk him into still letting our children remain in the succession.”

She thought as she turned around and walked away from him slightly, warm tears steaming down her face. Her nose starting to run.

“Maybe I can fix this..."

"I did nothing wrong other than thinking he actually loved me." He set his jaw, trying to keep his anger from lashing out at the wrong person. He would take one barb from her, but no more. "He had this plan from the beginning, I'm certain of it."

“But why?” She said, looking at him with swollen red eyes. “I don’t understand why he would do this to us!”

"Why wouldn't he? He has always made it clear Paolo is the favorite but he knew disinheriting me would be an unpopular option. So he eliminated those who would find it unpopular and then turned on me. He thinks I am weak, but somehow that a fourteen year old child is stronger." Giuseppe shook his head in disgust and looked away.

Jessica looked at him without saying anything now. She looked at him as if she was expecting something big, and she was. Since she had first been asked to marry him, she had been involved in forces she hardly understood. Forces that pulled her family to and fro with little question of how she felt. She didn't know what to do now, except for to expect something big from Giuseppe. So she waited and watched, and not patiently.

He was quiet for a few long moments, trying to order his thoughts and separate them from his emotions but truly having little success. "He did name me Lord of America." His voice was thoughtful, attempting to figure out what to do with that information himself and knowing it could be useful. He was having trouble seeing the path though.

Jessica wasn't impressed by that, since, in her mind it was still a demotion from future Emperor. She understood, however, that something else was going on then she originally thought.

"Then he hasn't shut you out completely." she said with a curious expression, a subtle sign of hope on her features. "That means...maybe there's still a chance for you to influence things..to gain favor."

"Maybe." Giuseppe agreed and took a seat back on the edge of the bed. "He wants me to continue to remain by his side and support him - and my brother."

"I can't believe this." she said, shaking her head and reaching up to wipe her eyes, still running with tears. "But I think you have to do it, Giuseppe. Otherwise you'll be on the margins of Imperial power; irrelevant. Maybe he can give you something solid. A seat on the Council of Lords. A military position that would give you some real authority...and the freedom to make new friends far from your father's gaze."

Giuseppe let out a long, drawn out sigh and flopped down onto the bed dramatically. “I’d rather support one of my sisters.” He put his hands over his face and rubbed. “You’re right, though.”

"Your sisters will have sons one day. And ours would be forgotten." she said, stepping closer to him, and recognizing that he lacked the courage he needed for this kind of fight. It might be dangerous. "But Paolo has at least four years before he can even marry. Plenty of time."

Her tears were dry now and she couldn't belief the words she was saying. Was she really talking about doing something this drastic? She drew near to him, her fingers finding his thighs gently. Touching them ever-so-slightly.

Giuseppe lowered his hands from his face as he felt Jessica touching his thighs and looked up slightly. “Yes, that is true.” He sat up slightly and placed his hands on her hips. “We have time to figure out what to do. I won’t let this be the end of us. I promise.”

She sighed. Her husband had more to offer than she'd thought for a long time. She understood that she needed to be strong too. And if she could do that, maybe his words would become reality. She placed her hands on his chest, the redness in her face slowly fading away as she looked at him with a hunger she didn't really feel. This was about more than her feelings. It was life or death; win or lose. She leaned in and kissed him, then kissed his neck, and lowered herself slowly to her knees, kissing down his shirt. When she was on her knees then, she moved her hands on his thighs again and looked up at him. It had been easily a year and a half since she had been down here.

"I know you won't. I trust you." she said, in that voice she used to use when she was auditioning to marry a prince. It was coy and innocent, but there was desire in it too.

As she moved down, he sat up a bit more and watched her with interest. He could feel himself starting to swell within the confines of his pants, but it had been so long since she had made this kind of overture that he almost didn’t trust it. “I’m glad.” He said honestly and reached down to place his hand on her cheek.

Jessica moved her hand to his crotch, searching and finding his swelling manhood. She played with it subtly and cautiously at first, and then with more energy. She looked at him with bright eyes, colorful and interested.

“So, how can I serve my future emperor?” She asked, her hands drawing down the zipper on his pants.

“I think you have a very good idea yourself, wife.” Giuseppe smirked and slid his fingers into her hair. He welcomed the distraction in the moment. It would do him good and maybe help him to focus on more important matters. “Besides, we should be working on those five children you promised me.”

It had been on the condition that they themselves would one day be princes and princesses and not Dukes and Duchesses or less. She kept that fact to herself, smiling and reaching in to pull him, gently from the fabric of his pants. She didn't go right for it though. Instead, she moved her fingers over him gently with her hands, paying attention to him especially and covering all her bases. Her face was almost defiant; disobeying his wish even as it was unstated.

"Tell me you're going to be Emperor." she said simply, her blue and brown marble eyes uncompromising.

“I will be Emperor.” He replied with confidence that he did actually feel in this moment with his wife on her knees before him. He brushed his fingers against her cheek, his expression eager and his manhood rousing to full hardness with her attention. Giuseppe allowed her to take her time - for now. “Now serve your future emperor, wife.”

"With pleasure, my Lord." she said, and then leaned forward, taking him slowly into her mouth. She worked her magic slowly, using tongue and lips, fingers and eyes, to give him a fully-engaging experience. When he tensed up, she intensified, bringing him as much overwhelming pleasure as she could. She wondered to herself what knowledge of this event would do to her sweet and wholesome image with the common people. She pulled him out of her mouth and ran her hand up and down his manhood with skill. She looked at him and smiled. She would do and say what she had to for her son. "My Emperor is so brave and strong."

Giuseppe dropped back onto his elbows, his breathing growing more ragged and his passion growing with each passing moment. For tonight, he would forget his trials in her arms.

They would see what tomorrow would bring. Together.

END