This is apropos of nothing. It just popped into my head. It is possible I’ve been watching too much anime.
************************************************
The battle over, Gregory faced the defeated demon queen, his sword-point at her throat. She lay panting among the ruins of her army, beaten and despairing. The cheers of the human forces echoed in both their ears.
“You are my prisoner, Queen Alea,” Gregory said. He tried to ignore how her already skimpy battle-garb now hung in tatters on her voluptuous frame.
“It is fate,” Alea said. “We fought, and I lost, and now I must suffer the consequences. I promise I will not whimper or cry as you ravage me.”
Gregory blinked and drew back. “Wait, wait, who said I was going to ravage you? We don’t do that with prisoners.”
“But that’s the fate of defeated queens,” Alea said, glaring at him. “Don’t you know the rules of this business?”
Gregory snorted. “Coming up with new rules was kind of the reason behind our whole disagreement.”
The queen peered at him, puzzled. “Then, at least cut my throat quickly and have done with it.” She stretched out her lovely neck so that it was wholly exposed to Gregory’s sword.
He took another step back. “I’m not going to do that, either! Geez-Lousie, lady, we’re the good guys! If I’m not going to take you against your will, I’m surely not going to kill you out of hand.”
Alea stared at him, and then burst into tears. “Oh, this is terrible! You humans have no sense of propriety! How am I to live with this dishonor?”
“It’s no dishonor to be beaten in battle,” Gregory said, feeling desperate. “Really, please stop crying.”
“But you have to do something!” Alea said, sniffling. “Take responsibility! If you won’t ravage me and you won’t slit my throat, there’s only one other possibility!”
And that’s how Gregory of Talmont and Queen Alea of the Demon Kingdom got married, had three children, and established peace for a thousand years.
Moral: Don’t start something if you’re not willing to face the consequences.
Writing and other forms of suffering 