Have you forgotten the way I made you writhe in your sleep?
The words hung in the air, heavy and suffocating.
Her mind reeled, rewinding through the last few weeks. The phantom touches. The cold, skilled fingers that had slipped beneath her sheets while her husbands slept inches away.
The invisible presence that had teased her to the edge of madness and left her aching.
She had blad the Tiger. She had assud it was Torian, the arrogant King of the south, playing gas with his food.
But it was him.
"You," Roxy whispered, her eyes widening as she stared into the neon-green abyss of Syris’s gaze. "It was you who did all that?"
Syris didn’t deny it. He just watched her, his vertical pupils dilating slightly, savoring the dawn of her realization.
A chill that had nothing to do with his cold skin swept through Roxy. He had been there. He had been inside her sanctuary, touching her, tasting her, while she was vulnerable.
"Did you plan this?" Roxy demanded, her voice trembling with a mixture of fear and fury. "Getting hurt? The riverbank? Was this all just a trap to get alone?"
Syris didn’t answer. He rely smiled, a slow, curling expression that showed too many teeth. It was the smile of a trap snapping shut.
Roxy gritted her teeth, struggling against the iron coils of his tail that pinned her to the tree. "What do you want, Syris?"
He leaned in closer. He brushed his pale, cold lips against her jawline, sending a shiver of revulsion and, God help her, arousal down her spine.
"You," he whispered.
Roxy squeezed her eyes shut.
System! Are you kidding right now?! she scread silently.
I am tired! I am a mother of four! I have stretch marks! Why am I the flavor of the month for every apex predator with boundary issues?!
[System Insight: Host possesses the ’Mother of Civilization’ trait. Your pheromones are... heavily optimized. It is not my fault you sll delicious.]
Shut up! Roxy raged.
Two beasts, System! Two new ones! The Tiger is stalking , and now the Snake is literally squeezing the life out of ! Can’t you give a break? Can’t I just bake cookies and not be sexually harassed by mythology?!
[System Response: The beasts co of their own volition. Destiny is a river, Host. You are just the rock causing the ripples.]
I hate you, Roxy thought venomously.
At least you didn’t give a quest to sleep with him. If I saw a ’Mate with the Snake’ notification right now, I would bite my own tongue off.
[System Alert: New Quest Generated.]
Roxy’s heart stopped. Don’t you dare.
The blue screen flashed before her eyes.
[Hidden Quest: The Viper’s Mood Swing.]
[Objective: Prevent the Serpent King from killing you.]
[Ti Limit: Imdiate.]
[Reward: Survival.]
[Penalty: DEATH.]
Roxy’s eyes snapped open. "Death?!"
She stared at the screen. There was no ’Reject’ button. It was mandatory.
But it didn’t make sense.
Why does he want to kill ? She panicked, her pulse skyrocketing.
He just said he wants ! He just sexually harassed ! You don’t kill the thing you want to bed! That’s counter-productive!
Suddenly, a voice echoed in Roxy’s head. It was lush, ancient, and sounded like it was sipping wine while watching a reality show.
The Mother of the World: "Oh, honey. You really don’t know snakes, do you?"
Goddess? Roxy thought frantically.
Help ! Why is he trying to kill and kiss at the sa ti?
The Mother of the World: "Snakes are duality, darling. They shed their skin. They live in water and on land. And... well, let’s be crude. They have hemipenes. Two dicks."
Roxy choked. Excuse ?
She knew they did, but she didn’t take it seriously before.
The Mother of the World: "Two dicks, two personalities. One is the Lover, obsessive, sensual, needy. The other is the Predator, cold, efficient, hungry. Right now, Syris is oscillating. If he decides you are too much trouble to woo, the Predator takes over. He will kill you, eat you, and possess you that way. To a snake, consuming you is the ultimate form of love."
Roxy felt the blood drain from her face.
So he literally wants to eat ?
And the system can’t stop him this ti?
The Mother of the World: "If you bore him? Yes. If you ignore him? Yes. My advice? Don’t be prey. Make the Snake fall in love. The Lover must conquer the Predator. Good luck, sweetie! Watching this with popcorn!"
The voice faded.
Roxy was back in the cold, hard reality of the Iron-Wood forest. Syris was watching her. And his expression was changing.
He felt her distraction. He felt her mind wandering, to a Serpent Prince who was used to absolute attention; her silence was an insult.
His neon eyes darkened, the pupils constricting to razor-thin lines. The amusent faded, replaced by a flat, dead calm.
"You ignore ," Syris hissed. The temperature around them seed to drop ten degrees.
His grip on her waist tightened in an attempt to crush her. Roxy’s ribs creaked.
Fuck he was dead serious.
"I offer you my attention," Syris said, his voice void of emotion, "and you look inward. You are... tedious."
He raised a hand. His fingernails elongated, turning into black, serrated claws. They hovered inches from her throat.
"If your mind is not mine," Syris murmured, tilting his head, "then I will take the vessel. Your flesh will nourish just as well."
He ant it. He was going to slit her throat and swallow her whole. Terror, cold and sharp, pierced Roxy’s chest.
"Wait!" Roxy scread, throwing her hands up in the air.
Syris paused. His claw hovered milliters from her jugular. He glared at her, annoyed by the noise.
"Why?" he demanded. "Give one reason not to silence you."
Roxy’s brain scrambled. Don’t be prey. Don’t be prey. Make him love you.
What did n love? What did beasts love?
Food. Ho. Warmth.
She needed to be the one thing he didn’t have: a hearth.
She forced her body to stop trembling. She lowered her hands slowly, making herself look smaller, softer. She looked up at him through her lashes, summoning every ounce of ’innocent damsel’ energy she possessed.
"Because..." Roxy squeaked, her voice trembling, not entirely faked. "Because you’re hungry."
Syris blinked. "Yes. For you."
"No," Roxy shook her head. "For food. Real food. Not... raw human."
She took a deep breath. She reached out, trembling, and placed her small, warm hands on his icy chest, right over his slow-beating heart.
"Would you like to co ho with ?" Roxy whispered. "I... I was going to make dinner. I am going to make delicacies. Hot food. Soft beds. Warmth."
Syris froze.
The claw didn’t retract, but it stopped moving. His eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"Ho?" he echoed. "To the Wolf? To the Dragon? You invite the enemy into your den?"
"I want to help you, since you awoke sothing in ," Roxy lied through her teeth, praying he couldn’t hear her heartbeat. "You said you wanted . I want to cook for you."
She was gambling everything. She was betting that the ’Lover’ side of him was lonely. How the exile made him miss the comforts of ho.
Syris stared at her. He searched her face for the lie. He saw fear, yes. But he also saw an offer.
Warmth. Food. A mate who didn’t run.
"Delicacies..." Syris tested the word. His tongue flicked out again, but this ti it was slower, thoughtful. "You would feed ?"
"Yes," Roxy nodded vigorously. "I make the best food in the forest. Ask anyone."
She glanced down at the ground.
Her heart sank.
The basket. It was overturned. The four massive chickens she had spent hours catching had vanished into the underbrush during the scuffle.
She needed to cent this deal. She needed to give him a task. A way to prove he was useful, not just a killer.
She looked back up at him, biting her lip.
"But..." Roxy said, her voice turning pouty. "We have a problem."
Syris frowned. "Problem?"
"Dinner ran away," Roxy said, pointing to the empty basket.
"You scared off the chickens, Syris. If you want to cook for you... Can you catch them again?"
A/N: Will she end up winning the snake’s heart, or will she end up as dinner? The answer is already so obvious. But how would the dragon and wolf react?
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