.Elementals.

-6-

The royal siblings had never full on met us mages, only at the dragon ritual, on standby in case anything went astray and would need to intervene to save the life of an heir.
History shows that if the dragons deem the potential heir corrupt beyond repair and that they would lead the queendom into despair they will lash out, killing one to save many others, we were here to stop the killing if it were to happen.

"Good, never forget who you were, that's where inner strength lies, in who you were, who you are and who you will be." I bowed my head at the queen's words but never enough to not see her eyes.

"I shall keep that in mind Majesty." Calypso had left my side while I remained with the royal family.

"Your eyes..." I turned my eyes to the princess who caught herself with a hand covering her mouth and slight fluster of her face. "Pardon me I meant to say that yours eyes, they are captivating." She said while I grabbed a glass of wine from a passing platter, swirling it around in the tall and long glass.

"No harm has been done princess, my eyes have always been a point of interest to the people as eyes of dragons aren't seen on humans all that often." I said, taking a sip of my glass and lifting it. "And I lift my glass to you and your succession on the throne your Highness." The second part of my speech spoken in Draklian, the language of dragons.

"I thought only the head mage and the royal family knew dragon speech." The prince said in awe.

"There are many things I can do my fair prince." I gave as explanation.

"And that's why head mage Belladonna has been tasked to educate mage Mystery in the ways and tasks of the head mages, my intuition never lies and I feel like mage Mystery will fit her role perfectly."

"If I were to accept your Majesty."

"Yes your unwillingness for a title and politics but we both know you are up to the tasks."

"I'll drink to that your Majesty."

"Blatant disrespect as respectfully as you can, that's a skill few have."

"What can I say your Majesty, learnt from the best." I reached into my pouch for one seed I made bloom into a flower with a stem unlike those floating around which were just flowers. "Can I, your Highness?" The princess lowered her head a bit and I tucked the flower behind her ear.

"Thank you dear mage."

"The pleasure is mine, cultivating these seeds has been the works of many nights for several years as nightshades just bloom on nights where there is no moon in the sky."

"These are all nightshades?" The prince asked, reaching into the air and pulling down a silver and red flower the examine it.

"It is the same sort of flower, head mage Belladonna called them dragon's blossom as the red inside looks like the fiery insides of a dragon's mouth, I spent countless nights out to create these, they were nightshades once many generations of flowers ago."

"It is spectacular work mage Mystery." I smiled at the princess with a soft bow, appreciating the compliment.

"Thank you Highness, unlike nightshades these bloom and close their petals with the rise and set of the sun, the flower I gave you will wilt, all that is keeping all these alive is the magic I supplied to bloom them for this evening but the seed you get can be planted again."

"I'll keep it in mind thank you."

"If I may ask, any suitors your Highness?" I finished my glass and set it on the empty platter of a passing butler.

"To many." She sighed is displeasure. "And there is talk about a tournament for my hand that will be made."

"The others are pushing me hands unfortunately." The queen added.

"I am sure it will turn to the better your Highness, keep your head up and don't let worry weigh you down."

"You are good with your words."

"What can I say? I need to entertain the fools I am lodged with." I heard her almost snort at that at the queen happily laughed at my remark. "Now if you will excuse me I will leave in search of the banquet table."

"Do have a look." The queen said, waving a dismissive hand and I bowed to her like I always do and always will, bowing is it should be done to the two siblings as I nothing to reproach of them before I made my way through the crowd, hand held behind my back.

I picked an apple off the back of the ice swan that was sculpted ready to fly off if it was the real thing.

I bit into the fruit with a smile, the small soul of the apple happy to have served its purpose of being a bright red fruit to help someone fill their stomach.

I had an easy time speaking with the souls of any beings, I did say it is a hard thing to do and the others are at tulips with Em at some lion fur moss while I kind of spend my free time talking to the biggest elm ever seen on our land and beyond.

That tree is my friend, such a gentle, soothing soul like an old man living in a small cottage of the edge of a river, calm, peaceful and wise, speaking of millenniums gone, never retelling a story twice in all the years I've been here.

My favorite is of how the crest came to be with the elm and the dragon on it....
Long long ago the mage Merlin pushed back the menace of death with the help of the dragon queen, silver in scales and red in eyes like fire but him being the first mage lead to his powers consuming his body, rooting it in place, arms growing into branches and skin cracking into bark, the mage was no more and only the tree remained.
His loyal friend the dragon queen remained with the tree, protecting the last remained of her friend and brother-in-arms, as the tree grew so did the dragon age and one day, she passed away, wrapped in the arm like branches of the elm tree.
It grew and the dragon was swallowed by the wood and now rests deep within the wood of the tree we know today, the royal family, descendants of the first mage made the dragon on the tree the crest of their family, the insignia on all that would be the queendom of Solor.

I brushed my hand over the insignia with a smile, silver dragons were rare now, having died out with the death of that one dragon as it was in the royal bloodline, the sister of that dragon wasn't all silver like that one but still had scales of silver and so nowadays the royal dragons have 50 scales in total scattered around their faces.

I like that story a lot because of my own features, silver hair and red dragon eyes, I like resembling the human look alike of what that dragon could have been plus it helped because it would have been a pain if I disliked my silver dragon title huh?

"Enjoying yourself?" I looked back at Betelwan, a boy from my old home that joined the guard at the age of twelve and he's my age, at least I have someone I knew from before around here.

"Betelwan." I bowed my head slightly and he did too in hurry, never really having grasped the intricate language of gestures you needed to know as a high ranking member of Solor society. "How's home?" Guardsmen were permitted to go visit their homes while we mages would never be able to head home as we were the queen's possessions.

"Winters are harsh but we make it through.... he.... hasn't gotten better." I sighed softly as he laid a comforting hand on my shoulder, I set mine over his.

My father was ill and nothing they could think off could help him, slowly wasting away and I am sure he wouldn't make it to next winter.

"Thanks for looking after him for me." He was like my messenger between my father and I, mother having fallen into the frozen over river and swept under by the rapids, never to be seen again. I had been given a few days off when that news came to me because despite mages needing to forget their old family and see the court as their new home and other mages as family, I never did do the whole forgetting my old family part of it.

"I do my best, nice flowers by the way."

"Thank you, I was thinking of sending a few seeds home, they'd appreciate it to know I still think of them."

"I am sure they would."

I was about to take another bite from my apple when I whipped around and sent a small marble sized bolt of fire flying through the crowd which parted in fear.

Smashing the wine glass of the princess into pieces and making wine splash all over her.

Everyone looked at me as I lowered my hand.