Sixty pounds of baby dragon was on her chest, screaming directly into her face, and Serena’s first conscious thought was that this was still better than most of her mornings this week.
What the..." She looked down to find two gold eyes the size of apricots staring back at her, fixed with the intensity of a creature who had been personally wronged.
He was so cute she nearly lted.
"Awwwww," she said imdiately, patting its back. "I’m sorry, did I scare you?"
She was still in her training suit, on top of the covers in one of the infirmary’s private rooms, which ant soone had deposited her here like luggage.
She put both arms around the baby dragon and swung her legs off the bed, the built-in booties of her training suit hitting cold stone with a soft thud.
She moved to the freezing cabinet, grabbing a tonic. Parched didn’t begin to cover it. She guzzled it.
She would make a portal now to Orosia if she could, but her pink magic was drained. She’d need to fully recharge, as frustrating as that was.
"Do you want one too?" she asked. Then she wondered if feeding a baby dragon a healing tonic was a wise decision. "Hang on, Onyx."
The corridor was empty. She wasn’t expecting a welco party, but the complete absence of any living person near the infirmary suggested either everyone was very busy or she’d been unconscious so many tis that it had stopped being an event.
She took a passage through a portrait to the kitchen, where she saw ogas working.
"Princess," one curtseyed.
"Please call Serena," she said warmly, not wanting to co across any other way. "Could I get a bottle of goat milk?"
The oga returned with a bottle of milk a mont later.
"Thank you," Serena said.
The dragon let itself be held like a baby in Serena’s arms and took the bottle gladly, latching on with a ferociousness that suggested no one had fed him in a while. It made a noise of relief, a low rumbling purr that vibrated through her forearms.
"You must have been thirsty," Serena muttered.
The oga returned with more bottles, and Serena fed him three before he was full. She patted Onyx’s back until he burped, a sound far too loud for sothing that small, and then he was out cold within seconds.
Another oga ca forward with a small blanket.
"Thank you so much," Serena whispered.
The oga bead at her. "He might need to go potty too."
"Good idea." Serena nodded.
✦✦✦
Serena and Elara stood out on the grass, Onyx walking around.
"You can do it," Serena said.
"Go potty for us," Elara encouraged in a high-pitched voice.
Onyx sniffed the sa patch of grass for the fourth ti and then walked away from it, apparently dissatisfied.
"What in the gods’ na are you two up to?" Gavriel called, walking over to them.
"He’s picking his spot," Elara corrected. "It’s a process. Don’t rush him."
Gavriel looked at Onyx, who had now moved to a completely different patch of grass and was circling it with renewed determination. He looked back at Serena and Elara, both of whom were watching the dragon with the rapt attention of surgeons observing a delicate procedure. He looked up at the sky, presumably for divine intervention.
None ca.
He sat down on the grass, and turned to Serena. "Welco back. You were unconscious for, what, the tenth ti? Eleventh? I’ve lost count. At this point I’m more surprised when you’re awake."
Serena rolled her eyes.
Ten minutes later, Hyran walked into this scene.
He stopped. He looked at Gavriel, who was now sitting cross-legged on the ground. He looked at Serena and Elara. He looked at Onyx, who was sniffing yet another patch of grass with the indecisive energy of soone choosing a wine at a banquet.
"I’m not going to ask," Hyran said.
"Co on, little man. Do the deed," Gav called, his voice completely deadpan. "Your adoring public awaits."
"Did you just call a dragon ’little man’?" Hyran asked.
"I’ve been here for ten minutes, Hyran. I’ve made my peace with who I am now."
Onyx finally went potty, and Serena and Elara both clapped. Gav joined in reluctantly.
"Such a good boy!" Elara exclaid, her voice pitched so high that Hyran visibly winced.
"Yes, he is! I’m so proud of you!" Serena jumped up and down while she clapped her hands. "I knew you could do it!"
Onyx sprinted toward Serena, but then stopped mid-sprint and sneezed. A single blade of grass ignited in fla.
All four of them stared at the tiny fire.
"Oh my god, and he breathed fire!" Elara said, dropping back down to her knees and clapping so hard it echoed off the castle walls. "Yay, Onyx!"
"He sneezed," Hyran said.
"He breathed fire," Serena corrected.
"He sneezed, and a single blade of grass caught fire. That is not the sa thing."
"He’s going to be just like Velkaris," Serena said smiling.
Gavriel stood up, brushed the grass off his pants, and looked at Hyran with the hollow, thousand-yard stare of a man who had seen too much.
"Serena, you’re needed in the war room," Hyran said.
Serena made to stand, but Onyx cried imdiately, running to her leg.
"Aww. You can co too," Serena said, picking him up. She cradled him like a baby. "You’re so cute."
"Yes he is," Elara cooed, petting his head. Onyx closed his eyes, clearly loving the attention. He imdiately fell asleep in her arms, because apparently the dual effort of going potty and sneezing had exhausted every ounce of energy in his small body.
Hyran’s expression bordered on offended. "You do realize coddling baby dragons is not how you raise a dragon... right?"
"Good thing he’s not just any dragon then," Serena said back, voice still high-pitched and directed entirely at Onyx, as though Hyran hadn’t spoken at all.
She followed Hyran to the war room, Gav and Elara on her tail. An oga stopped Serena in the hall and handed her another bottle. It was the sa oga from the kitchen.
"Oh, perfect," Serena whispered, then flashed a grin. "Thank you, Mary."
Hyran and Gav exchanged a glance that roughly translated to when did this happen.
Serena entered the war room, Onyx drinking from the bottle. Hale, Tiberon, Fin, and a few mbers she’d pulled out of Orosia were there.
Aeron stared. "Two months. And the dragon just needed soone to hold him like a baby and give him a damn bottle." He gave Onyx a pointed look. "I have multiple degrees."
Fin’s eyes went to Serena, and his relief bled through their matebond so vividly it took her by surprise. He had been very worried about her, and there was no need. But underneath the relief sat sothing heavier, a second layer of worry that hadn’t gone anywhere.
She pushed calm and reassurance back through their matebond, and he jolted instantly, having never experienced that.
His wolf spoke in his mind, answering his unasked question.
Xeon: Yes, that was her. Only the deepest of matebonds even allow that and I’ve not seen it to that degree before.
Serena swallowed, feeling guilty now for so reason. Like pushing comfort to Fin through their matebond was sohow disrespectful to Dexmon. She didn’t have ti to unpack that, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to.
Tiberon’s voice broke Serena out of the spiral. "Why is a dragon being bottle-fed in my war room?" He didn’t look even slightly amused.
"Oh. Right," Serena answered. She glanced at Elara, handed her the bottle, and tried to pass Onyx over next.
Onyx scread, high-pitched and completely unhinged, claws gripping Serena’s training suit and hair.
"It’s okay, I’ll be back in a little," Serena soothed.
"Hey, Onyx, I have your bottle," Elara called. Onyx understood and eyed the bottle in Elara’s hand, but didn’t let go of Serena. His claws tightened, and his tail curled around her waist like a living shackle.
Then he glanced around the room and seed to have just noticed Fin. His eyes lit up, and he made a noise of pure joy.
He let go of Serena and flapped his wings, launching himself away from the two won and straight toward Fin. He hit the table with a loud thud and bolted forward, sixty pounds of dragon batting a stack of tactical reports sideways in the process.
"Good job, buddy, you’re so close to flying," Elara said, clapping her hands. Serena grinned, clapping for him too.
Tiberon shot them both a look that could have ended a lesser kingdom’s bloodline. He had fought wars, negotiated treaties, and survived assassination attempts. None of that had prepared him for two won clapping for a baby dragon in his war room while his tactical reports were scattered across the floor.
Their smiles fell.
"But running on the table is bad," Serena corrected imdiately.
"Very wrong," Elara agreed.
User Comments
0 comments from readers