A Pet for the Dragons

61.

ARIKA

I was seething with rage and frustration as I lay on the bed, glaring at the Stoney ceiling of the castle room that had been given to me. This room was different and better than the previous room I used to stay at.

This room had ig fairy tail windows, a proper hearth, an excellent four-poster bed, and some other furniture I couldn't bother to look at. Radrox showed me here after he humiliated me and then left without a word.

The collar was still around my neck— a constant reminder of what they'd reduced me to. I tugged at the collar again, but it didn't budge. I noticed a dressing table with a huge mirror in one corner of the room and went there to look at the collar properly.

I almost yelped at my reflection. I almost didn't recognize myself. I hadn't showered in days... I even forgot what day it was and how many days it had been since I ran from here.

My face looked more bony, and my cheeks looked hollow. My hair was slightly matted, and overall, I felt terrible, but I focused on the collar. It sat around my neck as if it had always been there.

I ran my fingers over the collar, this time inquisitively. It was made of metal, but I couldn't determine what kind of metal it was. I was sure it wasn't iron or steel, gold, silver, bronze, or any other metal I knew of.

However, whatever metal it was, it wasn't that heavy and had a sheen to it. The design engraved on it was detailed and sophisticated. It took me a few seconds to trace the design, and I realized that most of it wasn't any design, but it seemed more like a language I didn't know. The design was mainly concentrated at the front of the collar. It had a strange emblem with dragon wings in the middle and designs of different elements around it.

I checked the inside of the collar and gasped when I found more inscribing there, and I could read them, too. They were our names— Arika (with a strange symbol over A), Radrox, Ivret, and Zorge.

I felt a strange tingle in my body as I ran my fingers over them. After reading the inscribing, I began looking for a way to unlock the collar. There had to be some way to take it off because there was no way they had slipped this collar over my head. The diameter of the collar wasn't wide enough to fit my head.

But to my dismay and surprise, I could not take it off. I pressed all the inscriptions, hoping there was a hidden button, but nothing happened after all the effort. I sighed in defeat.

"It won't come off," A voice snapped behind me.

"Ivret," I gasped, turning around to find him in my room. I wondered if I'd been too engrossed in finding a way to take the collar off to notice him.

"I bought you supper," He said coldly, setting a tray full of food on the table at the foot of the bed before turning around to leave.

I was too distracted by the collar and surprised to see him that it took me a few seconds to react.

"Ivret, wait," I went after him before he could step out.

"I have a potion on the fire. I need to go," Ivret grumbled, ready to leave, but I grabbed his wrist.

"Please, I want to talk to you," I pleaded desperately. I'd been looking forward to talking to him and clearing it all out because it hurt me to see Ivy like that. He didn't deserve that at all.

"Talk what?" He returned shapely, giving me a stern look.

"I... I need to tell you something," I told him genuinely, hoping he'd listen.

"Tell me what exactly? More lies?" He said, his glowing dark eyes digging into me, making me more guilty. I clenched my jaw and blinked several times to cut back on the tears. His words cut.

"No, it's not like that—"

"Then what's it like?" He snapped back at me out of nowhere, making me step back. I stared at him wide-eyed, unable to believe that he sounded and looked so pissed. Ivret seemed like an entirely different person, and of course, I did this to him. I broke his heart, and now, it was payback time.

I couldn't care less about Radrox or Zorge (I actually did), but I had grown to care about Ivret.

"I... I'm sorry, and I mean it. I know you put yourself in a lot of trouble because of me. I took advantage of you, and I—"

"Your food is getting cold," He snapped dismissively, ready to leave, but I wasn't done yet. Though I knew that I'd taken it too far for an apology, and he didn't owe me forgiveness. He had the right to be pissed at me, but I was still going to try.

"Please... I want to talk it out," I told him. He clenched his jaw, and his eyes hardened, but I saw a look of consideration on his face. I might've made him go behind a tall wall, but he still had his softness.

"No matter what you try, you're not getting out of this or that collar," Ivret stated firmly.

"It's not about that," I told him. Even though Ivret was trying to be hard, I could see he was starting to give in, so I continued. "I just want to talk to you,"

For a second, it seemed like he was about to give in because his eyes softened as he stared at me. I saw the hurt in his eyes. I was still in disbelief, and it made me realize that I might've done more damage than I had guessed. I had a lot of fixing to do.

"I need to go," Ivret said, turning to the door again.

"I won't eat if you don't listen to me," I told him, making him stop again.

"You will eat, and it's an order from me, your master," Ivret said sternly. "I grilled fish for you," he added quickly, which almost made me smile.

"Why don't you feed me?" I asked, and for a second, it seemed like he would say yes. "Please, Ivy... I need to talk to you," I pleaded. "Just this once. I won't ask you again, but I really want to say some things to you," I told him sincerely, and this time, I meant it. It wasn't part of a plan or any manipulation tactics.

Ivret remained silent for a long while, thinking. He seemed to be at war internally, and I could almost see it in his eyes. He wanted to say yes, but he was also too wary of me because of what I had done in the past.

"I'll be gone as soon as you finish eating," He finally replied after a tense silence.

~

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