Draconia Offline vol. 1

49.2. Preparations - Part 2

"So," Fefnir is bumping his huge scaly fingers against the table.

"So," I'm staring at my feather lying on a tray as if it was a relic. "One was found?"

"That idiot tried selling it on eBay," Fefnir rolls his eyes. "We contacted the legal authorities and they apprehended him for an assault. As for the other two... we tracked one being auctioned on the dark web but it slipped between our fingers. I'm afraid a new owner has it now. The third one didn't emerge yet."

"What will you do with it?" Ingri is longingly eyeing the ripped feather.

"I don't know, shove it into a wardrobe?" I shrug. "It's just a feather. We wanted justice for the principle, not for the object itself."

"Could I have it then?" she smirks and stretches her hand towards the tray.

"What for, dear?" Liana purses her lips and softly slaps her assistant's hand because she suspects Ingri would use it in her creative fashion projects.

"How much was it worth anyway?" Erik asks curiously.

"The bidding started at 10 000 Euro but who knows how much it would make in the end," Fefnir says.

I wrinkle my nose. Seriously? They're making me into a collectible? Are humans nuts? I get it that my white feathers are unique but aren't they taking it too far? It's just a feather, an equivalent to hair or fur. It's not like it still contains mana or...

I take the feather into my fingers and caress it. Strangely, it feels too lively. Is it not just a dead body tissue in its essence? What is that vibrating feeling I'm getting? Wait a second... could it be... that my torn feather still contains some of my mana?! But that's impossible, it was proven already that while mana does get out of a Celestial's body through wings, it's being generated in our spine.

But then I remember that moment when I was angry at Liana for limiting my freedom. I didn't have time to think about it after that but I did feel mana filling my every cell. I levitated by body without activating a spell. I just let mana out of my pores.

"Are you listening, Aefener?" Liana nudges me. "Do you want to donate your feather to Julia or not?"

"No, it's mine," I say quickly, maybe too quickly, and hide it into my sleeve.

I need to experiment to find out more but I don't have the nerve to tear another one from my wings. I don't think any Celestial is able to tear their own feathers. Erik raises his eyebrow, sensing that I have an ulterior motive with the feather, but he doesn't say anything.

*****

I know that I lost my privacy but it seems I still underestimate the extent of the problem. Now that I actually need a few minutes just by myself, I discover how difficult that is. If I'm not working, I'm with my friends or I'm with Erik. Even when I'm in our apartment, my guards are always present. They don't go into the bedroom but Erik never leaves my side during our leisure time because for him leisure means being together.

Not that I mind but I really need some alone time to analyse my ripped feather properly. It takes one whole week to finally find an opportunity and seize it. I finish my magic training a bit earlier and I know that Erik is still hitting the gym at this time. I go home as quickly as possible without raising suspicion that I'm up to something and, once inside our apartment, I tell my guards that I want to take a nap.

Just two weeks ago they would be nervous to leave me without supervision in a room with a window but since I'm behaving nicely at my flying sessions, they let me have my tiny privacy. God! I didn't realise how I miss some quality me-time when the door closes and I'm finally alone.