Mosaic Windows

Chapter 9: This is Not a Slowburn

Nico knew Remus would be upset about this for a while, and it definitely doesn't help that he hates Thomas, the man Nico is seeing, but he doesn't know how else to save Roman. Hopefully Janus will know a lot about dragon witches... if not then they might as well just send guards to find Roman.

He tugged on Guinevere's reins as they reached the small house, the one that Janus's parents left him. Plants were starting to crawl up the walls that were darkened with dirt, matching the houses around it. There were plenty of houses like this in the town, it is old after all.

Nico hopped off of Guinevere and tied her reins to a nearby fence. He grabbed the sack that was in the bag strapped to her before walking towards the door. He knocked three times and waited, hoping that Janus is home. The sound of a dog barking came muffled through the door and a few seconds later the door opened to reveal him.

"Mr. Flores?" he asked, petting the dog between their ears to calm them. He didn't have to bend down to do so since the fluffy black dog reached up to his hip, his breed is a Tibetan mastiff. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I..." Nico twisted the material of the bag slightly as he tried to find his words. "This is going to sound ridiculous, and I honestly don't know what to believe myself. Roman went missing in the woods yesterday, and last night Remus went after him. When he returned, he said he found a castle in the woods. Inside he saw Roman... and a dragon witch. You don't have to believe me, I don't care if you do. But I want you to find my son and bring him home. I'll pay any price." He held out the bag.

Janus hesitated for a moment as he studied it before taking it. He opened it and shuffled the bag around, coins clinking as he did so. Then he looked up at Nico with a questioning look. "A dragon witch? If there really is one, then why haven't we found one by now?" He gave him a disbelieving smile.

"I don't know, but like I said, I'm paying you to find my son and bring him home safe. I don't care about whatever you find or do beyond that. I just want Roman home."

The hunter's smile dropped when he realized how upset Nico must be. "Alright, I'll find him. I always liked him more than Remus anyway. Which part of the woods?"

"He took the trail behind my house, he must have gone off trail at some point though."

Janus nodded. "I'll pack some things and head out there shortly. I'll find your son."

Nico's shoulders slumped and a small smile crossed his face. "Thank you."

~~~

There aren't any cushions on the crutches, making them a bit uncomfortable. But at least they were sturdy and didn't threaten to snap under Roman's weight as he walked down the hall. Logan, the royal medic, had offered to show him around the castle. He pointed out the two rooms that are off limits, as well as where his and Patton's rooms were if he needed them.

Then they went downstairs, and Logan was patient as Roman tried to figure out how to go down the stairs with his crutches. It was very awkward, and there were more steps than necessary in Roman's opinion, but he eventually made it down the stairs.

"This castle doesn't seem too big," Roman commented.

Logan shrugged. "Astoria wasn't that big of a kingdom in the beginning, and the royal family never made any extensions to the castle."

"You guys keep saying Astoria is a kingdom, but no one has ever heard of this royal family. And this castle is just a few miles from town."

A dark shadow passed Logan's eyes. "Roman, do you know who's in charge of this country? Any form of government?"

"Well... no, not an official one. The closest I can think of are the monster hunters. But my town, Goldfields, has a mayor. Actually, my dad is dating him. And we still trade with other towns, and sometimes Astoria trades with other countries. Well we haven't in a while for some reason."