Hellbeast

15

1109 words

A/N: ITS BEEN SO LONG I'M SORRY I GRADUATED HIGH SCHOOL

•———————•

In his dream, Horus was in a dark empty void, with no ground or sky. He tiredly wondered if this was what people saw after they kicked the bucket, like his mom. Did his mom also float in nothingness now that she was dead? Did she prefer this than raising him? Being married to his demon father? Of course not. Even Horus wouldn't mind marrying a literal demon if it meant being able to smell baked bread and see color and touch grass and hear insects chirp at night. As he waited for some inevitable nightmare creature to swim towards him and eat his organs, the most unexpected thing happened instead. The world flashed red, then yellow and brown, then finally green. Horus now stood in front of someone he had tried ever so hard to avoid, the youngest dragon prince, the warlord of the south, Mavic, the Red Dragon.

Horus had forgotten how tall Mavic was the first time they'd met, but now the redhead loomed over him with a smoldering glare. "You." Accusatory. Irritated. Angry. Breathless..? Horus blinked up at him with wide, confused eyes. Mavic's inner dragon purred at the goddamned display of innocence. "M-me?" If you looked close enough, you'd be able to see literal smoke be exhaled out of the dragon's nose. Unfortunately, Horus was close enough. It blew into his face and he coughed quietly when he smelled the burnt ashes. "I've been following you for weeks you insufferable brat. Why the hell won't you stop moving around like a fucking ant?"

Large, clawed hands found their way onto Horus's shoulders, and held the small half-human in place. "I-I'm sorry? You're following me?" Mavic groaned with displeasure. Although the apple boy was infuriatingly adorable, he almost wasn't worth the trouble with how oblivious and idiotic he could be. "Yes! Keep up damn it!" Horus flinched and Mavic recoiled. Slit eyes found their way into Horus's own as Mavic tilted his chin up forcefully to force eye contact. "You will stay where you are small one. I will come for you. Understand?" Having no other choice unless he wanted a pissy dragon hot on his trail, Horus nodded numbly. Mavic seemed to contemplate his next action heavily but acted upon it anyway. He pushed his face into the junction of Horus's neck and inhaled his scent. A small lick and then a kiss was placed in the junction of his shoulder, and he fell back into darkness.

•———————•

When Horus woke up from his magic-induced coma, he felt like shit. His curly red hair was matted against his forehead and his clothes stuck to his body. It had rained pretty severely, it seemed. How the hell had he stayed asleep during this onslaught of torrented rain? His map was ruined now, and his items were soaked as well. It was night and Horus had no idea how many days it had been since he had last been awake. This was beginning to become a serious problem, he though to himself. He was passing out randomly and waking up hours, sometimes days later, with seemingly no explanation. He struggled to keep the memories of his dreams at bay. Although some areas of his body turned inexplicably red.

The redhead struggled to pull his limbs up and force them to work in an organized fashion. He stood hunched next to the apple tree, wobbling like a newborn doe. As he was gathering his belongings and wringing the water out of his ruined map, a monstrous roar echoed from the skies. Pricks of fear stung Horus's limbs and scaled down his spine. He pressed his back into the base of the tree and stood still. Heavy wings forced air down from above as a large creature came into view. The ethereal being commanded every force of nature to bend to its will and make way for its landing. 

Red swirls of glittery smoke enveloped the dragon, and a tall woman emerged from within. Piercing golden eyes found Horus's own and kept him speared to the tree in fear. "Have no fear mortal. Come forward and be sheltered by my grace." Horus could only stare mutely at the huge woman. Despite the heavy rain, her hair was dry and almost crackling in a sense, like an open fire. Her left eyebrow twitched in anticipation. "Do you not speak to your savior?"

Horus's mouth dried at the thought of Mavic finding him after so long. Would he punish him for running? No, that would be ridiculous! Why would he be so attached to someone he barely knew? What kind of punishment would he even dole out? Would he throw him into a dungeon? Would he chain Horus to the walls? Deprive him of food and water? Horus could handle it, he was sure of it. He'd had much worse. So why did the thought of Mavic hurting him fill him with so much dread?

When Horus snapped out of his daydream of Mavic teasing his chained body, he almost threw up in fear. Nestled in the claws of this enormous dragon, Horus was flying hundreds of feet in the air. The woman had apparently not waited for a response, and when she noticed Horus was completely out of it, had shifted back into her dragon form and picked him up to take back to the castle. 

•———————•

Ever since the events at the inn, Damen hadn't felt the passage of time. It was almost as if all his focus had shifted on the young warrior traveling with him. How had he not noticed Ciril before? With his smooth skin and long pale lashes. His hair bleached by the hot sun, until almost all color was gone. The heaviness that slowly lifted from his shoulders as days past, and the peacefulness that only haunted his expression when he slept. Damen had smelled the rose and lavender perfumes covering his neck and wrists. The soaps he bathed with and the oils he treated to his hair.

Smell was an impossible thing to miss for the wolf, as it was what he first noticed. Horus had smelled of pine and wind. Ciril smelled like luxury and comfort. He pondered to himself what he himself might smell like. The forests he spent his life in? The hearth he lit when it snowed? The stew he made on the coldest nights? Damen did not leave his home often, but with Ciril, he was now experiencing a range of different smells. He had to thank the little red bird who took flight so fast, for the gift of pushing him out of his own nest.