Of Fangs And Fury

Chapter Five

Delara

Waking from a pleasant dream, I already have a smile on my face before opening my eyes. After my fingertips sweep the hair off my forehead, the back of my hand lays flat against the cool pillow. My other fingers brush against my hips, remembering where Cade’s hand had been.

Body humming with happiness, I turn my cheek to my shoulder, trying to make this moment last. Maybe if I could just fall asleep again, I’d fall right back into the dream….

But too many moments pass, and I know I’m wide awake. Opening my eyes slowly, the first thing I see is the lavender we’d picked from the greenhouse. I cannot believe it’s already been a fortnight since then. Two whole weeks have gone by, the once full Moon now gone from the sky. And all I’ve done is work….

Not leaving my study except for that bathroom and sleep, supplies, food, and blood were all brought to me. So far, the blood and the scale are resistant to any of the medicine I’m aware of. So frustrated that I haven’t made any progress, I even ordered potions from the local Magician. None of those known remedies had any effect, either. The only thing that damaged the scale at all were normal things for gold: extreme heat caused it to melt, other metals scraped it.

My brain feels fried. I am viciously aware of how much I need a break but having made no progress, I feel like I don’t deserve it.

Cleaned, dressed, and back in my study, I stare blankly at my desk. Soon enough, I’m going to need another blood sample from Cade and a sample from a Pure-blood to compare it do, probably Tahir. Like that won’t be an awkward conversation….

Not actually doing anything, sitting silently as my brain fills with smoke, it takes me a while to register that someone’s knocking at my door.

I hear something, then “- Lara?” from the other side of the door.

Quickly getting up, I know seeing Cade will be exactly what I need. Maybe we could go for a walk around the greenhouse or to get food in the village… something to get me out of this stupid room. I swing the door open with a wide smile, “Hi!”

But it’s not Cade, it’s Tahir. I never really compared them until now and I realize he’s much thinner, a little shorter, and just sort of… pretty. What one might imagine a Prince to be, mostly comparable to his mother. Softer features, rounder face, handsome but in a non-descript way. Dark hair, dark brows, flat, grey eyes.

I try not to let my smile falter. I then clear my throat, “Prince Tahir, how are you?”

He’s holding his hands in front of his waist, pushing his right thumb into his left palm, “Madame Delara, hi.”

There’s a slight nervousness in his usually flawless face, “Is there something wrong?”

He stands even straighter, “I was actually curious if you are doing all right? From my understanding, you haven’t been out of your rooms in a fortnight. I was wondering… well if you could use a break? The Festival Della Luci starts tonight.”

I’d heard stories of The Festival, one of the best in all The Seven Kingdoms! That and The Midsommar Festival, The Harvest Bonfire Faire, and the Esibire Of The Northern Lights are on my bucket list. “That sounds wonderful! Is this something you and Cade go to every year?”

His brows pull together, “Cade-Caderyn? No, I don’t think he’s gone the past few years….”

“Well, we should all three make a point to go tonight, shall we? What time should I meet you two in the courtyard?”

“I’m not sure Caderyn will want to join us,” he replies slowly.

I step by him into the hall, closing my study door behind me. “Let’s go ask, then!”

But a few steps into the hall, I realize I don’t even know where his room is. “Do you know where he is?”

“Probably in the training room.”

I nod and gesture for him to show me the way. In the opposite direction, past the library, and almost out of the West wing, Tahir directs me to a room full of exercise and fighting equipment. And there he is… tight pants, bareback, hands in fists, face in concentration. Moving like a predator, there’s an undeniable power about him. Every part of his large body moves with purpose and precision. Seeing the golden scales catch the light with his constant movement, I become completely transfixed. It’s only when I take a step into the room, he seems to notice my presence, either by the sound of my boots or perhaps my freshly bathed scent.

He freezes in response, then turns to me, wiping sweat from his brow. Our eyes meet and we both smile. I wave. His smile widens and he walks towards me, “Lara… it’s so good to see you.”

I’m about to hug him when there’s a throat-clearing to my left. Cade and I both look to Tahir, who I’d honestly forgotten was here. Cade’s expression hardens and he shifts his weight from one foot to the other. He then looks between us quickly, “Something the matter?”

Very much attracted to this raw, fighter side of Cade, I speak quickly. “The Festival Delle Luci starts tonight, down in the village, your brother said. I was wondering if you’d like to accompany me….”

“She expressed a wanting for the three of us to attend tonight,” Prince Tahir adds.

The brothers share an expression I have trouble understanding. As if sharing thoughts, they seem to have a completely silent conversation. Finally, Prince Tahir gestures to me, and Cade frowns.

“I don’t know if that’s such a good idea, Lara.”

My shoulders drop, “Why?”

He brushes his thumb across the tip of his nose, “Well….”

Prince Tahir cuts in, “There is a particular group of individuals in town who are… not a fan of my brother. I believe my brother is trying to express that it’s safer for you if you go with just me.”

I take a step towards Cade. Chin level with the floor, I look up at him through my lashes. “Please?” I ask softly.

His face has a soft edge of sadness, his gaze slowly following the curves of my face. When our eyes meet, I notice his pupils pulse. I think of his arms around me… I think of his warm breath on my neck. My heart hammers in my chest and I raise an eyebrow in question.

He looks to his brother, “I’ll wear a coat, with a hood. It’ll be fine.”

“If you say so, brother.” Then there’s a pause and I feel a gentle hand on my lower back. “Delara, let’s find a servitore to acquire some Festival clothes for you. Then, perhaps, we can have luncheon in the greenhouse.”

Caderyn

Walking to the main gate, I spot Tahir and Lara already in the courtyard. The flickering flames catch the copper in Lara’s chocolatey hair, which is done in an intricate braid that falls over her shoulder. The servitores did right by her, finding a gorgeous velvet gown in deep violet.

Next to her, Tahir is of course in his Prince finest, our famiglia blacks, and silvers, looking like any of the male portraits in the grand hall. He even stands with one hand on the ornamental rapier, the other across his back. There’s a discomfort in my chest, a sort of fury rising, as I notice the way he looks at her.

When he put his hand on her back in the training room? And then the way he instructed her out? I’m filled with the same feeling - a possessiveness, a defensiveness, wanting him to back the f**k off. I want to be the one she talks to, the one she runs to, the one she eats with, the one she sleeps with… I want to be hers.

Out the door and down the steps with tremendous speed, I call to her with a smile. Her whole expression lights up and she holds a hand up in a small wave. “Cade!”

“Are you ready to go?”

Tahir’s voice cuts between us. “Perhaps you should raise your hood now, brother.”

He’s not wrong. My fingers grip the edge of the wool. But then Lara says, “Wait….”

I do.

Her hand comes towards my face, her fingers gently brushing the unruly hair across my forehead. “There you go.”

I wish to grab her hand and kiss the back of it, instead I murmur, “Thank you.”

At the same time, my brother and I offer an arm. We glare at each other over her head. She ends up taking neither, but I can tell tonight’s going to be trouble.

In the crowded streets, Lara wraps her right arm around my elbow and lifts her left hand to rest on my bicep. She holds herself close and relies on me to guide her while she’s too busy looking through everything. The Festival is in full swing, everyone in the village is enthusiastic. Extra booths are set along the wider streets, vendors from across The Seven Kingdoms coming to sell.

The night sky above us is impenetrably black, the Festival starting on the first new Moon of the year, the first new Moon of Spring. When Tahir cuts through a group of persons to grab the three of us some mead, I lean down to Lara’s ear. “As the night goes on, fireworks will be shot into the sky. The more fireworks there are, the closer we are to midnight. Everyone who wants to participate will be given a lantern and ushered out into the field. Then, at midnight, you make a wish and let the lantern rise into the sky.”

She has to lift her chin to speak into my ear, “What are you going to wish for?”

But the way she looks at me, I think she knows. “Oh, I can’t tell you that,” I smirk, “Then it may not come true.”

She rolls her eyes but laughs. “Fine! Then I guess I won’t tell you mine.”

As her attention drifts back to the streets, to the musicians and the acrobats, I can’t help but think…. Maybe I’ll kiss her… when all the lanterns are rising into the night sky. Scoop her up into a hug and kiss her.

Tahir shoves a tankard against my chest, some of it spilling onto the wool of my jacket. I shoot him a glare, but his attention is back on Lara. Because of how big the drink is, she needs two hands, un-winding her arm from mine.

We follow where she leads and whenever she stops at a vendor, we offer to buy whatever she’d like. She never accepts, though, saying she’d just curious. I remember that night in the greenhouse, how she’d explained how strict the Scholar had been. She’d never made it to any of the Festivals but had always wanted to. It’s no wonder she jumped at the chance to come tonight. And I hate to say it, but I’m glad Tahir had mentioned it.

A thing I hate, unfortunately, is how paranoid I am as we move through the crowd. Crossing certain streets, the wind picks up and I grab my hood with panic. The last thing I want is to ruin Lara’s fun.

Suddenly, the pops, bangs, and fizzles of fireworks sound in the sky above. It scares Lara, making her jump, but then she looks up and laughs. She ooo’s and ahh’s like most of the crowd. As that particular set fades away, she looks between Tahir and me, “What time is it then?”

“About ten-thirty,” he answers.

“So, we have about an hour and a half,” I explain.

She nods and sips more of her drink. After some more walking around, she finds an open table outside of a café and sits down. Tahir on one side, me on the other, she has to keep looking back and forth as we all talk. Or, rather, as my brother and I ask her questions and she answers.

After another set of fireworks, she starts looking around. “What?” my brother and I ask in unison.

“I, um, need a restroom.”

“There should be one inside the café,” Tahir comments.

I see a side door, “We can avoid the line if we go that way.”

She agrees and we leave the table. Tahir holds the door open for her and she says, “Be right back.”

When the door closes, my brother and I are left in the empty alleyway. I can feel that shift in energy… that weird hesitance he gets when he wants to talk about something but is afraid to.

“Spit it out,” I finally say, sliding my back flat against the brick wall, propping up my heel.

“Since when do you go by ‘Cade’?” his snark is practically tangible.

I shrug.

“And why in Gods’ names are you calling her ‘Lara’?”

My lip curls above my fang, “Because she asked me to.”

“Horse shit.”

Side-eyed, I glare. “It’s not like she’s telling me not to, now is she?”

His usually so pleasant face is harsh. “I don’t like how chummy you two are.”

I tighten my arms across my chest to stop myself from pushing him. “I could say the same thing about you.”

But after a breath, he shakes his head and laughs. Throwing his hands up, he says, “Doesn’t really matter in the end.”

I push against the wall with my foot, straightening. “What the f**k is that supposed to mean?”

He gives me a look like if I’m going to start something, I better do it now. His arms are twitching, reading to throw fists into the air. “Com’on then.”

There’s a call from behind me, “Prince Tahir? Is that you?”

Then another guy adds, “Who’s this fucker bothering you?”

A third guy adds, “No s**t… Drakey-drakey-draco is starting something with his brother.”

I’m about to turn around when the side door to the café opens. Tahir and I both throw a hand in the direction of Lara. “Go back inside,” he warns.

She looks around, confused. As I move towards her, one of the f*****g idiots grabs my jacket, yanking me back. I fall on my arse, hood down around my shoulders.

The insults start flying and Tahir warns Lara again, “Go back inside.”

She doesn’t.

Stupidly distracted by her safety, I neither get up nor stop the arsehole from kicking me. She screams. Tahir is grabbing her now as I jump up. The guy’s ready to throw a punch, but I get him first. I fight just enough to have the drunken idiots panting, bent over, clutching themselves.

Backing farther into the alley, I can’t shake it off. My shoulders are almost impossible to move, my back so straight it hurts. Something is wrong – something is different than any time before.

I can’t stop the panic rising in my chest. Looking for help, I call out, “Tahir?”

But it’s not him I see running towards me, it’s Lara. I put a hand out, “No, stop, something’s wrong.”

She slows but doesn’t stop, “I know.”

“Please, Lara, don’t.” Non vivrò con me stesso se ti ferissi.

She puts her hands up as if to calm me, but her expression is laced with fear to the point I want to vomit. Squeezing my eyes shut, the back of my head is killing me, but I don’t remember getting hit there…. I stumble blindly, my hand finding a brick wall. I turn my back to it to save myself from falling.

I feel Lara’s hands on my face, I smell the floral soap, I hear her melodic voice. “Cade, Cade… I need you to breathe with me, okay?”

I hadn’t noticed I was hyperventilating. I try to nod, but my chin can’t move down.

“Cade… breathe with me, okay? In… one, two, three, four. Out… one, two, three, four. In…” she continues.

I follow her. I focus on every word she says, on her thumb brushing my cheek. I then feel the weight of her body pressing against mine, her fingers moving across my neck. I feel her twisting my hair. “Cade,” her voice is lower, softer, almost a whisper. “Cade… can you nod for me?”

Still breathing as she instructed, I try nodding too. When I can, full motion coming back to my neck, I open my eyes.

She’s centimeters from my face, her eyes glassy. “Cade?” her voice is so small.

“Lara?” I don’t mean to whimper.

I notice fear in her eyes as she looks around my face. Then she looks to Tahir, “We need to get him home.”

Finally feeling back to normal, I manage to stand straight. “I’m okay.”

But she doesn’t believe me. “I want to take you home.”

Tahir looks concerned too, “Brother….”

With a full breath, expanding my chest against my jacket, I nod. Out with the same breath, I feel my body loosen. “I’m okay.”

But the type of okay I’m talking about is not me staying here. The type of okay is that I am able to walk home alone. I don’t know what happened. But I do know how scared it made Lara.

“I’m okay,” I clear my throat. “I’m okay to walk home.” I look to my brother, “You two stay….” I can’t even bring my eyes to Lara’s face, instead my gaze lands over her shoulder. “I wouldn’t want you to miss midnight.”

She argues, “No. That doesn’t matter.”

But Tahir understands my pleading look. This is a look we used to share before I realized I was not meant to be in public. He nods once, and I finally look at her.

“It’s not that far off now, Delara. I know this is something you’ve wanted to do your whole life.” I clear my throat and gesture to her, trying to stop myself from tearing up. “I’ll come find you after you get home, okay?”

Her expression reads as frightened, conflicted, possibly confused. But after a moment, she looks to Tahir. “Okay… I guess that would be okay.”

Delara

The moment the lantern lifts from my fingertips, floating into the sky, my mind quiets. Even though I am surrounded by persons, in those moments of preparation and now gazing up the sky, I feel alone. With a clear mind and heart, I am only myself. Without distraction, my hopes and dreams become simpler, and the things I need to let go of start releasing their hold.

There is something powerful about a single action. No matter what the voice in my head says or what my heart wants, until the action is performed, it may not matter at all. To me, this event has ended up meaning a lot of things.

Though I won’t admit it aloud, sounding too magikal, I have found myself to be a very symbolic person. And so, this moment, this experience has become a mark of a huge change in my life. Feeling the need to re-find my confidence, to re-find a love for who I am and my work, I have tremendous hope for the future. In this new year, I am most excited to honestly live as my authentic, paradoxical self.

As I watch my lantern lift and twirl, all by itself yet lighting the sky with so many others, I become overwhelmed with emotions. Nothing lasts forever. Not the coolness of the night, not the fire shining so bright…. And if we take advantage of this, we can let the negative things fade away and value the good things that much more. Stepping back, only one thing is on my mind: Cade.

The moment he’d mentioned the tradition of the wish, I knew all I would be hoping for is him… is us. And then, after that whole thing in the alley? All I want to do is get back to him and make sure he’s all right. Tonight showed me that there’s more to it than we originally thought. When faced with discourse, his scales became aggressive and spread, trying to protect him. But if they hadn’t retracted? If they’d done more damage?

I owe it to him to figure out how to fix his disorder, to give him the life he’s dreamed of for so long.

In our own way… we are like. Half-Vampire, half-something else… Though there is no taking away my humanity, surely, I can figure out how to detach the dragon from him. Regardless of what the unknown future holds, I can feel it in my bones that it’s important.

No new lanterns lifting, the air growing colder, persons leaving the meadow, I bring my attention to Prince Tahir. He’s already looking at me, his eyes hooded and smile soft, “Ready to go?”

Without my permission, my body lets out a shiver. With a little laugh, I nod and curl my arms around myself. “Yes, I suppose it’s time to head back.”

Carefully making our way back to the village, I realize I hadn’t even looked to see, “Did you light a lantern too?”

He nods, “As I do every year.”

“Did you wish for something?”

I’m surprised to find he’s not looking at me, thoughtfully looking ahead instead. “I did… for years I’ve been wishing for the same thing, but certain circumstances lately have led me to wish for something new.”

I purposefully bump into him, playfully, “Well, I hope it comes true.”

He looks at me delicately, “Me too.”

All the way back, my mind was running rapid. Thinking of new things to try, thinking of new things to look for, my problem-solving skills were exceeding expectations. Perhaps if I can threaten the blood or scale, it will act aggressively and that will give me the information I’m missing.

Suddenly, the world around me is much brighter and I look around to see we’re in the courtyard. I follow the Prince inside, but then I touch his arm, “Wait, Prince Tahir?”

“Yes?”

“Would you be able to visit the study tomorrow? I believe it would be extremely beneficial to my work if I can get a sample of your blood.”

He nods, but airs of the side of confusion, “Of course, but why?”

“I need a sample from a Pure-blood Vampire to use against Cade’s. What we witnessed tonight may open the door to answers no one thought to look for.”

Already walking into the West wing, he asks, “Why not now?”

“Sure! Thank you.”

But when we come to my study door, it won’t budge. He tries and fails. “Must be jammed.”

This had happened before; I point to the next door over. “We can go through my bedroom, the bathroom between connects to the study.”

Caderyn

Well after midnight, I lift from the corner of the greenhouse I’d tucked myself into. The brutally hot bath I’d drawn didn’t last as long as I’d liked, and my body was too awake to lay in bed and wait. I’d tried to find something to read in the library but being so close to Lara’s bedroom was distracting. And so, I found myself in the greenhouse alone for yet another night.

Originally, the idea had been to figure out exactly what to say so I’d be ready when I found Lara. If I could explain that a side effect of the Dragon Mutation is aggression, then maybe she wouldn’t be so afraid. If I could explain that if I just don’t go into town, if I don’t run into a threat, then there’s nothing to be worried about.

But I quickly became distracted by memories. The happiest memories I’ve had in a while… those first few days Lara had arrived. Soon enough, it was time for me to go find her as I suggested.

Turning down the main hallway to her rooms, I stop dead. I see Lara, all right, with Tahir. I see her leading him going into her bedroom.

But of course. That’s your life, Draco. Your brother is the perfect one. Your brother is who persons want to be with, who females want to be with. Your brother is the one who could take her to The Festival Delle Luci.

I couldn’t be there for her… not in the way she wanted. I couldn’t raise a lantern with her…. But he could.

Shoving my way through the closest door, it’s too dark to see where I even am. All I know is I want to scream.

A guttural noise escapes my lips, the force behind it tearing at my throat, shaking my chest. Fangs bare, my hands tighten and curl, looking like dragon’s talons. I reach over my shoulder and rip through the cloth.

Breaking my nails against the metal, I can smell the blood as my fingers are sliced. Trying to find a grip anywhere, I pull and pull. My shoulders roll forward, nothing more. They roll forward and I collapse to the floor. When the fury is gone, only sadness remains. Il mio cuore si spezza così dolorosamente, vorrei che fosse di pietra.