A Pet for the Dragons

115.

ARIKA

Around sunset, we finally returned to the Carinal House, and I immediately hated it. That place's thick and tense atmosphere hit me in the face like a punch as soon as we entered the grand building.

Nonetheless, the satisfaction and giddiness of spending the day outside with the dragons made me feel less terrible. I wished Ivret had been with us, too. It'd have been much better, but there had been no sign of him since I woke up this morning.

However, we found him waiting in our wing when we returned. He was in the lounge, sitting with a bunch of scrolls and a cup of tea, when we found him. I wasn't expecting him to return so early, but I was glad to see him either way. He had left early in the morning, and I missed him while the brothers were with me.

"Seems like you three had a good time," He said, eyeing the parcels Zorge had under his arms. Most of them contained the dresses they bought for me.

"Sounds like someone's jealous because they didn't get to join us," Zorge jabbed back, and Ivret shot him a sharp glare. Seeing the two resort to their old ways eased me a bit.

"Did you find anything today?" Radrox asked, getting right to the point. I got the answer as soon as Ivret's eyes darkened. At first, it gave me a sense of relief that he'd finally managed to find something, but the look on his face instantly wiped my relief away. Whatever he found today wasn't good.

"I got the clearance to meet Ceikalyn today," Ivret replied. I was unfamiliar with that name, but I kept listening.

"She's still alive?" Zorge asked, surprised.

"She's a mage. They're cursed with a long life," Ivret said dismissively before returning to the matter. "She told me a lot... and it's not very good,"

"Tell us," Radrox urged, taking a seat across Ivret. Zorge sat beside his brother while I decided to slip into Ivret's lap because I'd missed him. He accepted me into his embrace quickly, filling my chest with warmth. I didn't miss how Radrox's soldering eyes were even more focused on me while Zorge glared at Ivret. I sighed.

"What happened?" I asked, reminding us of the conversation we were having.

"Ceikalyn told me a great lot... and why the Empress might've summoned us," Ivret spoke. There was a hesitation in his voice. I could feel it. His body felt tense under me, too.

"What did this dragon woman tell you?" I asked, taking his hand in mine. Ivret looked at me. His dark eyes briefly turned golden before going back to their original colour.

"The Empress summoned us because she needed me," Ivret began to speak, but Zorge made an annoyed noise.

"We already know that,"

"She wants to unite the five ancient bloodlines under the throne. I'm the last one left to be united,"

Ivret grew increasingly tense under me with every passing second.

"I hinted at that before," Radrox muttered.

"How is she going to do that?" I couldn't help but ask. Was she going to take him away from me? If that were on the Empress ' mind, I wouldn't let her take Ivret from me. Ivret was mine only. I felt a sudden surge of jealousy and possessiveness wash over me. "Wait, is she—"

"She can't break us," Ivret clarified quickly. "She doesn't care about me. She just wants my bloodline under the throne. It could be through one of my children, too,"

I sucked in a breath, and suddenly, Yvune's words rang in my ears.

Hide her as much as you wish, but know that Yko belongs to me and my brothers and we'll have her one day.

I swallowed hard. Could he be talking about this? I hadn't taken Yvune's words into much consideration and dismissed them. He was a child, after all, and as far as my knowledge of children went, they were mini-drunk adults. I've been drunk a lot in my life, and I've said and done some pretty stupid stuff while in that state. Maybe it was the same with Yvune, too, but undermining him this way was foolish on my part.

Yvune wasn't a normal child. He had abilities... he'd tried to hint at them when we first met.

"Wait," Radrox growled. "So this is why the Empress Commissioned us at the frontline,"

"This would leave Arika alone with him so only he could breed her," Zorge gritted. I was a statue on Ivret's lap. It was too much to take in at the moment.

"What did the Empress talk to you about, Arika?" Zorge asked grimly. "Tell me,"

I was speechless all of a sudden. No, I'd forgotten how to speak because I opened my mouth and closed it like a stupid fish. I shifted uncomfortably on Ivret's lips, groping for words.

"I thought so," Radrox muttered, narrowing his eyes at me. Meanwhile, Zorge's eyes widened. I hated that they could almost see through me.

"She asked me about my life and how I met you all," I managed to answer.

"And?" Ivret pressed.

"She... she asked if I've mated with you all,"

The three exchanged looks at my repose, and if anything, it made my heart race even more. I clutched Ivret's cloak, burrowing deep into his lap, seeking more of his warmth to soothe me.

"I don't understand," I spoke up. I needed to because the sudden realisation was suffocating me.

"She could've just had Ivret before I came into the picture. Why's she going through all this trouble?"

"Ha! Have you looked at him?" Zorge shot, earning a glare from Ivret. "He wouldn't know what charm is even if it bit him in the face,"

I knew this was bait, but I wouldn't fall for it. I was going to bait him instead.

"What do you mean?" I purred, "He's the most charming man I've met. He's the one who took my heart first,"

Ivret tensed under me. Radrox gave a warning growl, and Zorge looked ready to fling himself across the table and tackle Ivret down. The room was suddenly filled with too much tension.

I might've made the situation worse. Realising what this could mean, I was about to speak, but Radrox beat me to it.

"We're getting late for our duties. We'll deal with her later," 

~

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