Subject to Study (Naga!Brothers x Reader)

Chapter 31

"Gentlemen, this is the wonderful woman who's been keepin' yawr nagas safe an' healthy while they've stayed here," Calmine raised his hand towards me, palm up like he was offering for me to speak, "She's also the one tha' notified us o' their existence on a small island, kindly volunteering her time tah ensure their comfort during the flight over."

I stiffened slightly at his words, fighting from glaring at the men who were more than likely the private 'owners'. Switching quickly to a pleased smile, I wiped my hands off and held out my right hand to offer a handshake.

"Pleased to meet you both. My name is (y/n) (l/n), and am I correct in guessing that you're here to see the nagas before they leave for your private collections?"

"You'd be correct, yes," The taller of the two strangers gave a curt nod, his hands straightening his jacket and falling back to his side, "We're here for a private tour of the creatures, and to make sure that they're not...damaged before they ship out on Saturday. You'll be giving us a more intimate look at how these creatures operate?"

The question was a formality. I had to take these greedy moneybags into the enclosures so they could inspect their 'goods'.

"Of course," The smile on my lips widened to hide my frustration as I lowered my hand to my side, "It would be my pleasure."

"Very well," The shorter of the two sniffed, pressing a handkerchief against his nose before tucking it into the breast pocket of his business suit jacket. Calmine began talking business with them while I moved towards the enclosures, hearing someone follow me on my heels. Glancing behind, my lips curled into a sneer as Karl's dark blue eyes stared into mine.

"What."

"You're being surprisingly obedient despite your earlier attitude towards the monsters being locked away," His voice was low, intending on being quiet around the three businessmen, "You're not gonna tell them to kill, are you?"

"I'm not that dumb," I grunted as I made a show of 'unlocking' Jyushi's enclosure. If they wanted to see how friendly or scary the nagas could be, I'd show them the best example of both, "Unlike you, I actually care about those around me and treat them like a fellow human being."

The door swung open wide and I quickly entered the enclosure before the three men started walking towards it, intent on finding Jyushi to tell him what was happening. Karl was still close on my heels, probably not realizing that this was the naga that crushed some of his ribs. I had a small wave of satisfaction when I spotted the white-and-yellow scales looped over a low 'branch', seeing Karl freeze as I reached up and poked the scales.

"Jyushi, are you awake?"

"...(y/n)? (Y/--!" Jyushi lifted his head sleepily from his coils, blinking down at me before the wide smile instantly turned into a snarl as his orange eyes focused on who was standing behind me.

"No, stop!" I stepped into Jyushi's line of attack with a narrowed glare, breaking his focus on Karl and making him look back at me, "We have visitors that are here to see you, Jyushi. I need you to be nice to them and answer any questions they have for you."

Jyushi's snarl fell from his face and realization fluttered in his eyes as he registered my pointed words, a pensive look crossing his face before he lowered himself from the limb, "Okay."

"Are...you sure about this?" Karl asked quietly, keeping me between him and Jyushi as the naga adjusted himself, "You know he's-"

"I know what he's capable of, Karl. I don't need your input," I harshly whispered before turning to see the three suited men step into the enclosure, "Gentleman, this is Jyushi. He's a naga that has the same coloration and patterning of an albino reticulated python."