Oren's Right: Tales of the Forest, #4

By Blaine D. Arden

Following his principles will break two hearts.

 

Forester Veld loses a piece of himself to mute baker Oren when they first meet, but Oren is vowed to Haram. When Haram is killed, Veld denies his heart to respect the mourning period. It's the right thing to do.

 

During Haram's funeral, Oren proudly bares the brands that show the nature of their love; Haram owned him, heart and body. The elves pity Oren and think he's broken.

 

Veld has no intention of dishonouring Haram's memory, but his death may not have been an accident. Only a forester can learn what the trees have seen. However, Oren's independence is threatened, and if Veld does not offer what Oren needs, Oren may never be his to claim.

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wordcount: 17,700 words
TALES OF THE FOREST is an ongoing series of standalone stories linked by a forest world.
Content warnings are available in the book's front matter and on the author's website.

Received an EPIC eBook Award in 2015

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cayendi Press
• Release date: May 10, 2015
• ISBN: 9789082296624

Book preview

About Oren’s Right

FOLLOWING HIS PRINCIPLES WILL BREAK TWO HEARTS.

Forester Veld loses a piece of himself to mute baker Oren when they first meet, but Oren is vowed to Haram. When Haram is killed, Veld denies his heart to respect the mourning period. It’s the right thing to do.

During Haram’s funeral, Oren proudly bares the brands that show the nature of their love; Haram owned him, heart and body. The elves pity Oren and think he’s broken.

Veld has no intention of dishonouring Haram’s memory, but his death may not have been an accident. Only a forester can learn what the trees have seen. However, Oren’s independence is threatened, and if Veld does not offer what Oren needs, Oren may never be his to claim.

Oren's Right A Tales of the Forest Novella Blaine D. Arden

Book 4 of the TALES OF THE FOREST series

A series of standalone stories linked by a forest world.

Cayendi Press

Oren’s Right

Copyright © 2012 Blaine D. Arden

ISBN: 978-90-822966-2-4

Digital Edition

Cover Art by Simoné.

Edited by Tami Veldura

Scene divider silhouettes by zhaolifang at Vecteezy.com

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used, reproduced, or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from Cayendi Press, except in the case of brief quotations in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Second Edition, May 2015

Cayendi Press

Zutphen

The Netherlands

[e-mail]

Table of Contents

About Oren's Right

Title Page

Copyright page

Content Warnings

Chapter One

Capter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Bonus Scenes

Marking Oren

Solstice Vignette

Thank You

Acknowledgements

About the Author

Also by Blaine

Content Warnings

Though, I try to keep these content warnings as generic as possible, they may contain spoilers.

On-page or notable reference:

Grief over loss of spouse.

Disability: muteness.

Ableism.

BDSM: discussion & signing of contract between Dom and Sub, service-oriented submission, scarification kink (branding and superficial cutting).

Attempted murder / poisoning of side character.

Framing a sibling.

Suffering mental health problems after severe fall/scarring, culminating in resentment.

Graphic depiction of arousal / sexual reaction during practicing kink (consensual).

Off-page or minor reference:

Shunning as criminal punishment.

racism.

If you feel I missed some information in this list, feel free to email me.

Chapter One

MY HEAD BOWED, my hands folded within the sleeves of my cloak, I hummed along with the Prayer of the Dead as I followed Oren in the procession. As long as I kept my head down and didn’t look at him, I wouldn’t have to bear seeing him mourn, wouldn’t have to think about how the moment I’d catch the sorrow in his eyes, my feet would take me to him and my hands would reach out. I couldn’t let myself lose control. He wasn’t mine.

I didn’t look up when Oren stopped, and I nearly bumped into him. I chalked it up to nerves, emotions. Any moment now, we would round the corner to lead Haram’s body through the centre of the village. There, everyone could wish his departed essence farewell one last time as we led him to his pyre.

The shuffling of Oren’s feet seemed at odds with his mood, and, in the end, I had to look up. I barely kept my jaw from dropping. Oren had taken his shirt off. Before I had time to process his actions, we moved on. With great reluctance, I dragged my sight away from Oren’s gorgeous, broad back. I had no right. He wasn’t mine.

My resolve lasted as long as it took for us to reach the centre, where a collective gasp greeted us. Everyone looked away from Oren. Everyone but Oren’s sister, Ajuna, who walked next to him, her hand firmly planted at the small of Oren’s back to support him. I swallowed and raised my eyes to Oren’s glorious, bronzed shoulders. I wasn’t going to give the impression I agreed with them. Of course, staring at him made me ache for him even more. I clenched my hands within my sleeves. As much as I wanted to reach out, I couldn’t. He wasn’t mine. Ajuna would have to be the pillar Haram had always been for Oren.

The guide, a pale, slender cloud elf, preceded us with wings folded, head bowed, his long, white hair bound back, and his voice dark and clear in the unnatural silence. He didn’t look around, didn’t look up, he merely led the way, ignoring the disapproving reactions to Oren. Walking shirtless and proud as he led his vowed’s body to his pyre, showing his love for Haram for all to see, was a sign of respect for the bond they shared.

The ones who looked away didn’t understand, couldn’t grasp what he was showing them. I could see it in their averted eyes: their shock, their disdain. They thought abuse, but I knew better. I saw the wonder of the art he carried: Haram’s art. Oren’s bared upper body showed a mass of ridges and bumps, all carefully placed, creating a beautiful picture.

I couldn’t deny it; Oren was a gorgeous tree elf. He was tall and built like a sturdy elm, with messy, short, golden curls, and the most beautiful