[Xaden x Y/n] Love on the Parapet

Chapter 27

Author's note: I know some of y'all be having theories of the "red daggertail" if you read iron flame

feat. when you realise you've been spelling Sgaeyl wrong the entire time

Xaden's pov

I stop as I see Y/n's red daggertail in the distance, curled around a tiny human on the field. 

'I wouldn't disturb them. She says L/n doesn't want to talk right now.' Sgaeyl warns, her blue figure on the opposite side of the field. I sigh, making my way closer to them. 

'Yeah, I know what she means when she says that.' I reply, remembering the last time I gave her space a few years back, she was more hurt at the fact that I didn't make the effort to talk to her earlier. This time, I wonder what I should say to Y/n to make the situation better. Maybe I shouldn't have walked out on her like that. But wouldn't it have been worse to bring her around to the danger? 

'You did what you had to. She gets to see your face for at least one more day because of it, no? I would just be so grateful if my mate were in that situation and got out alive. You humans are too much.' Sgaeyl says, and I feel the tension grow on my shoulders seeing Y/n curled up in the middle of the red dragon, pulling my flight jacket tightly around herself. 

'Sgaeyl.' I reply, her growling irritatedly and going silent before I scold her for being unempathetic to humans again. 

I lower my eyes as I near the red daggertail, despite suspecting that she won't bite my head off since Sgaeyl was near, and also she knows Y/n wouldn't be happy about doing so. Or so she wasn't before this...whole mess. 

'I just want to talk to Y/n.' I say, the red dragon's face swooping in front of me, enough for me to feel the angry hot air through her nostrils. She huffs out air, smoke coming out alongside. I manage to look upwards at her body circling Y/n, asleep under the wide red wing. Before I get a chance to call her, the red dragon pushes me backward onto the floor, tossing me around to face my back. I freeze on the ground, grass touching my face as I try to peek behind to see what the red daggertail is doing. 

'I mean no harm.' I repeat, feeling the heat of the red dragon on my back. The red daggertail rolls me around again, her golden eyes piercing as she glares down at me. I swallow, avoiding eye contact as she lifts my arm with her nose. With a disgruntled growl, she tosses it back down. 

'Sgaeyl?' I ask silently, Sgaeyl scoffing in response. 

'She's examining you.' She replies, amused. 'She tells me she doesn't see what Cherry sees in you to be so heartbroken over.' Sgaeyl says as the red daggertail growls in my face and returns to wrap herself around Y/n. 

'So I told Hwad her little nickname for L/n is stupid.' Sgaeyl says, adding to the migraine that I do not need right now.  

The red dragon's golden eyes glare at me as she huffs out little bursts of fire into the air. I take that as a solid no to letting me speak to Y/n, and I decide that the last thing I want to do is piss off the red daggertail to get cooked alive. I take one last look at Y/n's back towards me as she sleeps against Hwad's stomach, and slowly start to walk back to the rider's quarters. 

Y/n's pov

You wake up to Hwad nudging your chin with her head the next morning, the sky already bright and sunny despite the cold winter air. Two golden eyes stare at you, a warm huff of air coming through her nostrils. 

'Wake up, Cherry. You'd better get ready before formation.' Hwad chirps, or attempts, given that she is a dragon. A red daggertail. And red daggertails don't chirp. 

'The fact that you have to remind yourself that I am a dragon is beyond me, Cherry.' She replies, and you rub your eyes before lifting yourself off the ground. Hwad's wing lifts with a whoosh of air, leaving you out into the cold air. You instinctively pull Xaden's flight jacket around you, shuddering against Hwad. You sigh seeing his badge on the jacket, remembering how last night had ended in literal disaster. 

'You got to talk to me, how is that a disaster?!' 

'Disaster with Xaden, I mean. What time is it?' You ask, your voice groggy from sleep. 

'Seven thirty.' Hwad replies just as cheerily as before, and you choke on yourself. 'Hurry!' Hwad says as you start running back towards the rider's quarters to change into the usual black uniform out of the alcohol-stinky dress you were wearing from last night. 

'Don't wear his jacket to formation!' Hwad's words ring in your head as you run, gathering the skirts of the black dress in your hands. 

And it turns out that Hwad had made a valid warning. Because exactly after ten minutes, you were still wearing Xaden's flight jacket in formation. You curse yourself as you feel the stares of the other cadets around you eyeing the badges on his jacket. Not that the badges were necessary in telling that the jacket was not yours since the jacket was foolishly large on you. You had hurriedly left your room after changing into riders' black uniform, grabbing his jacket that you took off five seconds ago, mistaking it as the jacket you left around when you got ready for the party last night. 

'Are you still drunk, Cherry?' Hwad asks as you clench your eyes shut in embarrassment. 'I examined him yesterday for you. And he's not someone to advertise on you. You could do better.' 

'Hwad. I'm being humiliated enough.' You reply, Hwad cackling in amusement. You glare at Ridoc who points at Xaden's jacket and gives a thumbs-up from next to you, Violet offering a nervous smile. 

'Cadet L/n. You seem to have interesting someone's flight jacket?' You look up, seeing Professor Kaori looking down at you in the jacket that's certainly not your size along with badges only wingleaders get. 'Get changed after the formation. And return the jacket to Wingleader Riorson.' He says, and you nod quickly, glad for no further humiliation apart from the people in your squad raising their eyebrows at you knowingly. 

Not what you all think. 

You think to yourself, not that they would believe that anyway. 

You look up, seeing the last person you want to see you like this. Xaden stands in front of the formation for Fourth Wing, his eyes flashing for a second finding you in the middle of the cadets. From just one look, you knew he was smug at your slip-up, however serious he tried to look. As if he knew how to dissolve your frustration and anger at him, not that this was like any other fights you'd had before. Where it was nobody's fault. 

'And it doesn't help that he looks that good in that black uniform. Just look at him. And he knows it which makes it a hundred times more annoying.' You say silently to Hwad, her growling as if to avoid biting his head off. 

'So with that one look my entire speech to calm your nerves yesterday goes down the drain. Why come find me when he can just stand there doing nothing but show off his face and all your anger will melt off? Shallow humans.' She replies, sounding more grumpy than usual. 

'Just because he looks good doesn't mean I automatically forgive him. Or resolve...whatever this is.' You reply, forcing your eyes to stay off of Xaden in the distance. Look at Melgren. Or Kaori. Or even maybe Aetos. 

'Yeah. Do that. Don't look at your good looking wingleader with his fit abs and dark brows and onyx-flecked eyes, my ass.' Despite the situation, you almost laugh. 

'How do you know all that? And dragons don't have asses.' You ask, Hwad scoffing loudly. 

'You humans act like you know so much about dragons. Now focus.' Hwad replies before you can say anything else as General Sorrengail starts to talk about War Games.