A Pet for the Dragons

93.

ARIKA

"Arika," the dragon child gasped as soon as he saw me. I froze in my tracks and stared at the abomination. At first glance, he looked like a child, but something about him instantly creeped me out. He had the same pitch-black eyes as the Empress.

I noticed he was dressed in a black pants shirt, and on top of that, he had a purple cloak. But his golden scales, purely blond hair and golden horns made me stare at him for a full minute, completely speechless.

Well, it was my first time seeing a dragon child. Suddenly, a part of my mind wondered if my future children would look like that. I shook the idea out of my head before it could turn into something serious.

I continued to study the child. He seemed no older than five, yet he was regarding me as if he was an adult. There was a cunning intelligence in his eyes. The tip of his lips slightly curled up as if he knew something about me I didn't. It strongly reminded me of the Empress, making me dislike the child even more.

"Who are you?" I asked, maintaining a good distance from the child. I didn't know why, but something about him made me feel highly uncomfortable. His presence had an overpowering aura to it.

He gave me an offended look.

"You don't know how I am?" He asked.

"No," I answered sharply.

"What kind of hooligan are you for not knowing who I am?" He shot back at me, and my jaw dropped to the floor.

"What did you call me? You were the one who sneaked in without anyone's permission," I shot back at him. I didn't care about being rude to a child. If a brat needed to be taught how to talk to their elders, I would gladly teach him that lesson.

"Why would I need permission to go anywhere?" He asked me back as if it was the most unthinkable for him. I couldn't believe how a child could think this way. I gazed at him for a moment longer, wondering deep in my thoughts. I took his golden features again, which strongly reminded me of the Empress.

I wondered if he was...

"Because other people have the right to privacy," I told him. Whoever he was, he needed to learn some important things. In response, he cocked an eyebrow at me as if I'd said the most unthinkable thing to him.

"There's no privacy in this place," He said with an air of arrogance. I desperately wanted to punch that child in the face, but I held myself off.

"And why's that?" I asked. "How old are you?" I had to ask because his manner of speaking didn't strike me as that of a child. Not that I had much idea about children. I hadn't been around them for most of my life.

"I'm thirty-five tails old," He replied proudly, and that was the only time I saw a bit of childishness in him. It was usually children who announced their ages so proudly. Most adults frowned at that question.

"Thirty-five tails? How long is that in human years?" I wondered out loud.

"Ah! You're a human! I almost forgot the word. Now that you say that, it makes sense why you're so disrespectful towards me," The dragon child gave an understanding nod and if anything, that pissed me off even more.

"What do you mean by that?" I hissed at him. "When was I disrespectful towards you? It was the other way around,"

"Why? It's disrespectful when you barge in someone's house and ask them who they are," The Dagon child told me. This further proved my theory correct, but I didn't want to state it out loud.

"Do you mean to say this is your room?" I tested, and he frowned.

"Are humans generally so clueless? It'd be a nightmare then," The child said with a haunted look. Something else seemed to be going on in his head.

"Hey, answer me. Is this your room? The green guards brought me here,"

"No, but my mother rules this place, so technically, I'm free to come and go as I please anywhere," He finally revealed, and I felt some of my blood drain away. Of course, he had to be the Empress' son. They looked so familiar.

"I see," I breathed. His reasoning was wrong, but there was no use in debating with him. The rules applied differently to the rulers. "You're the prince,"

"Of course I am. I'm Yvune, fourth of the Empress' son." He finally introduced himself. "And you're Arika." He introduced me on my behalf.

"Yeah," I said because there wasn't much to say afterwards. "How did you know my name?" I had to ask, but as soon as I asked the question, I realised it was fruitless. He must've been hiding under his mother's throne while we had an audience with her. I wouldn't be surprised if that were his answer.

"I saw it," He answered, "here," and pointed to his head, closing his eyes.

"You saw me in your head?" I asked.

"You don't need to know that," He dismissed, "because I'm not here for you. I'm here for Yko. Where's she?" He demanded, looking around the room as if expecting someone to appear magically.

"Who's Yko?" I asked.

"Don't pretend you don't know her. She was supposed to be here." He stated, almost whining like a child. He was finally acting like his age, looking on the verge of throwing a tantrum.

"I don't know what or who you're talking about," I told him, annoyed by him already but also curious. After all, he was a child, and children were usually talkative. I could get something out of him. We were still unsure why the Empress summoned us. I refused to believe she summoned us here because of her birthday. Yvune seemed to be sneaky enough to know the reason.

"How do you not know your daughter? You're hiding her! She was supposed to be here!" He yelled, holding onto his horns. I'd have laughed at the sight of a dragon child throwing a tantrum this way, but I reminded myself that he was a prince.

"My daughter? I don't have any kids, kid," I told him, but he seemed hellbent on not believing me. "Maybe you're mistaking me for someone else,"

"You question my abilities!" He roared, and instantly, his eyes blazed red. I froze. Fuck, I should've been more careful with my words. Yvune might be a child, but he was a dragon child. I did not doubt that he could snap my neck in the blink of an eye. I should've considered this before, but his whining carried me away. "You questioned my visions! Hide her as much as you wish, but know that Yko belongs to me and my brothers, and we'll have her one day!" 

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