Taking Back

The Bite

The stranger set her on the nurse's beds. Her hands brushed against his strong muscles. "Wait," she grabbed his hands. "I don't even know your name."

He closed the distance as if he was about to kiss her. "Eddie, call me Eddie," he told her in a whisper. She released her hand and let him go. At least, he answered one of her questions. There was so much that she wanted to know about him.

Eddie closed the door behind him and pressed his back against the wall. The maid came back with a food tray that looked fit for a king.

"Eddie?" replied a feminine voice next to him. He saw the queen looking back at him, worried. "How is she?"

"Honestly, I think she's going to be fine."

"Okay."

The door opened, and the nurse closed the door behind her. "She's pregnant. How? I have no idea. It's been three years."

"The rapist was a Chermonoan, correct?" asked Eddie. If he was going to throw them off his trail, then he needed to act like he wasn't a member of his kingdom.

The queen and the nurse nodded in unison.

"I've heard they have bonds with Spirit Animals or companions. Since the princess doesn't bond to an animal, the longer the pregnancy. The pregnancy will remain the same whether they both have a bond or not."

"He's right, Your Highness," replied the nurse. "I am from that kingdom, and we all know that. We all know why I left that kingdom because of the bonding."

As Eddie heard the nurse's words, even more things slid into place. This nurse was the cause of the battle the year before. His father wanted her back to save his mother. He was there when she rejected the bond and shunned in front of the whole kingdom. Her family had been disappointed because of her. It was her decision, a risky one at that. He could still remember her as a child with tears in her eyes, saying, 'don't do this to me' or 'please remember me.'

The queen sighed and hung her head. "Well, I'm afraid that we have no choice in the matter. I'll bring one of the dragon eggs from her Hatchery."

Dragon? I heard rumors that they had dragon eggs here, almost ready to hatch any time now. Then I guess they were true. They do have dragon eggs here.

The queen left without another word, and the nurse looked at him. "I take it that you still remember me, Your Highness?" asked the nurse, bowing.

Eddie looked around, hoping that no one else saw. The coast was clear of anyone.

"Please, no need for formalities."

The nurse looked up at him, confused. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I was banished from my kingdom. I don't need my title to put these people on edge and worry about an attack that will never happen. To them, I am just a civilian."

"Well, I think you need to go in there and do what you need to do with her for her to bond with her new companion."

Eddie nodded. He turned the doorknob and saw the princess lying on the bed with her back towards him.

Eddie bit his lip.

He didn't want to do this to her.

She is innocent. Eddie knew he had to do this to her—another reason for her to fear him and his kingdom. Goosebumps crawled against his skin as he closed the door behind him and walked toward her bed.

She looked up at him, and he froze right in his tracks. He wanted her out cold, so she didn't have to feel it.

"Eddie? Are you okay?"

He couldn't ask her to close her eyes, or else she'd scream. "If there is anything that I can do to help you, please do not hesitate to ask me," he told her as he proceeded to walk toward her bedside. "I promise that I will do anything that I can."

"I understand," she hung her head. He reached out for her hand and held onto it. Their hands were so much alike, well-worked but gentle.

"I know that I can never replace your father, but I can help you be a friend and be a better father than that rapist if and when the child comes."

She hugged him tightly. He could feel her going back to sleep in his arms. She sought his comfort, but he didn't want to take advantage of her like this. He felt his fox fangs grow on his canines. He nuzzled her as he stroked her hair. It is soft, almost like his companion's.

He lowered his head to her neck and gave her a small bite that wasn't enough to draw much blood. He licked his lips and his teeth when he was satisfied. He doubted that the rapist did this to her at all.

He looked at the door and set her on the bed, asleep. He could hear footsteps coming toward the room. "Your Highness, are you sure that you want to put your daughter through this?"

"Yes, of course."

"Do you know the schooling that your daughter will have to go through to master each one of those elements?"

"No, but hopefully, she'll learn and master them in time."

"You did make a good choice on picking the female Light Class dragon. I hope that Anaka doesn't mind us doing this to her."

"I am sure that she understands the situation."

He brushed her hair to cover the bite mark as her mother entered the room with a gold egg in her arms. It was almost the size of her arm.

"This egg holds the eldest daughter of Goldeous, who is a Light Class dragon," explained the queen, as she walked toward her daughter and set the egg in her arms.

The egg began cracking along the surface as if it was hatching.

A female goldenrod dragon came out of its shell and nuzzled against the princess.

The nurse came over with a wet rag and cleaned the dragon's eyes. "So, who's going to help her master the elements?"

The queen looked from the nurse to Eddie. Eddie was perfectly able to train her; he's mastered his element. The nurse did not know what the bond entailed. He could volunteer, but he was a civilian with no nationality to them. The nurse looked at him. He sighed, "I'll volunteer."

The queen looked at him.

"I've heard some rumors of how they master their powers. If it works, the princess will master them in a couple of weeks. One class, depending on what the person has experienced in their life might length or quicken the training and mastering process."

"We also have a book on Chermono that she could read herself," the queen informed him. "There could be things that the book explains that you might miss about their culture, but who's to say that the book doesn't have all the answers."

"I understand that. I have also heard that Chermono had updated their book about themselves as their lives went on and discovered new things about their culture. Maybe not all of the books about Chermono are exactly up to date in other kingdoms."

"You could be right, but I'm not going to argue. You can start training as soon as Alisha wakes up."