Claws and Kisses

Bora was the most badass woman I had ever met.

The she-dragon was awesome. She filled my morning with stories of her glory days, when she had been on the battlefield herself, kicking ass. I was no more than a child, completely enraptured with the adventurous tales she spun. From her time on the Isles of Borgandy, where she spent a brief time sailing the five oceans with one-eyed pirates and crooks of every kind, to when she crossed swords with the Fae King Loralai after he had stolen her favorite jewel.

“What did you do then?” I asked, my eyes fixed on her, bright with images of the Dragon Queen bulldozing her way through the Fae armies.

She smiled, the iciness in her eyes long faded to that of content amusement. The Queen seemed to enjoy speaking of her wild, dangerous past with me. “Loralai was a sneaky, clever little thing. The jewel was hidden away—sealed in a place that could not be breached without the magic of his Fae blood. When I finally reached him, cowering in that golden toy castle of his, he was shaking and crying out, pleading with me to believe that he no longer had the jewel, but had bartered it away to merchants in the west.”

Bora paused to take a sip of her tea, her eyes flickering briefly to the window and the world behind. Her lips twitched up in a devilish smirk. “It was a convincing act. So convincing that I killed five of his most prized generals in a fit of rage over the lost thing.” She took another sip. “After I threatened the sixth, he was a little more complacent.”

The Queen gestured behind where we were sitting on velvet couches in her study to a shelf in the back, filled with books and journals. But, resting on a crimson red pillow, was the loveliest, most brilliant hunk of a gemstone I had ever seen. Purple and glistening, the jewel at once reminded me of Avel.

“Wow,” I breathed, stunned. Turning back to Bora, I tilted my head and asked, “Where was Loch Shade through all of this?”

She rested her cup in its saucer, thinking. “More likely than not, he was beside me. As I told you before, he happened upon me one day whilst I was working on my father’s farm. He swept me away to his horde and that was that.”

Her words had something twisting in my chest. Her story sounded awfully similar to my own past.

“However, I soon became restless. Locked up in that mountain with only preening nobles and terrified slaves to talk to, I soon fell depressed. The meaning to life is to find purpose, and without that, we are nothing. I was nothing. After a few decades of pleasing Loch and keeping my mouth shut, I decided something had to change. Immediately.”

I blinked, eyes wide. “What’d you do?”

She laughed, the sound twinkling and light. “I left. For a time. It is impossible to be content for long without your mate by your side, but . . . for awhile, I was on my own. I learned how to fight, to take care of myself without Loch.”

The couch creaked as I shifted, looking down into my lap as I twisted my fingers, a question on my lips. “Didn’t he . . . didn’t he try to stop you?”

The Queen nodded. “Yes, he did.” She leaned forward, her brows slightly scrunched as she locked her pale blue orbs on me. “But at some point, even he realized that neither of us were happy in the mountain. After some . . . heated debates, he let me go.” She smiled, her eyes glazing over with the haze of memory. “At some point, he left his horde to come with me where I went. We travelled the world together, until we came back to rule. He and I were . . . inseparable.”

The gleam in her eyes was a bittersweet thing. Before I could stop the question from rolling off my tongue, I blurted out, “Do you miss him?”

Bora glanced at me, her smile waning. I immediately regretted asking, but the curiosity stirring incessentally in my stomach refused to still. Instead of waving away the question, she slowly began with, “The pain I felt, when he . . .” She swallowed, her eyes flickering down as she gripped the couch’s ledge. “There are no words to describe the agony that accompanies the death of a mate.”

I bit my lip, thinking that I never wanted to put Avel through that kind of hellscape. Bora must have seen the question in my eyes, for she soon twisted to me with a small smile. “You are wondering how I am not crumpled up in bed, weeping enough tears to fill the dessert with rivers?”

Wincing, I nodded, ashamed for asking about such a sore topic. Yet . . . I needed to know. Avel would surely never think to share any of this part of our mating with me.

“Herbs and hallucinogens, mostly,” she replied, her eyes on the ground. “The healers informed me that being on so many different kinds of medicines to keep me numb was more than dangerous, but I am too close to death to truly care.” She smiled again, this time without feeling. “I promised myself that I would stay alive long enough to settle Loch’s affairs and no longer. He would have been devastated to die without knowing someone worthy sat on his throne.”

Her somber answer was enough for tears to sting the corners of my eyes. I wanted to comfort her in some way, but knew that my affection would be taken as pity. From all that Bora had told me, pity was not something she wished to recieve or deal with. I kept myself in check long enough to ask, “Do you not have an heir?”

Bora frowned, her dress ruffling softly as she shifted in her seat. “No. Well, yes.” She threw a sideways look at me, the ghost of a smile on her red lips. “Two children. A boy and a girl. They were born some centuries ago when Loch and I had finally settled down in the mountain. But . . .” She shook her head, looking away once more. “They both left when they thought themselves old enough. The boy travelled across the Tikkien Ocean and sailed to the lands there. The girl . . .” She trailed off, shaking her head once again, more fiercely this time. “She was a willful child. Always on the move. I do not know where she is. Haven’t for some time. They both keep in touch, but mostly keep to themselves. Wherever they are.”

I cocked my head. “Neither wish for the the throne?”

Bora shrugged. “The throne is won through merit, not lineage. They of course would have a chance to compete for it, but if they did not wish it, than that is there choice.”

Nodding, I leaned back on the couch and gulped some more of the tea Bora had a servant fetch. “High Lady,” I began lowly. “My mate has not been very forthcoming when it comes to information. Especially when it involves something dangerous. This . . . competition, for the throne . . . could you please explain it to me? I do not know what Avel is planning but I am worried about him.”

One of her slender blonde brows rose. “Is he planning to compete?”

I clenched my fists in my lap. “I don’t know. How would that even work with Jericho? They are brothers sharing one horde. Would they share the throne too?”

“If they were smart about it,” Bora drawled, tapping her chin. “One would seize the throne and the other would keep the horde. It would be a powerful alliance, and the High Lord would be able to depend on at least one horde for unconditional support.”

Resting my head in my palm, I studied the Queen’s features as I thought. “How does the competition work? Do all the Dragon Lords simply stumble into a pit, and whoever the last dragon standing is wins?”

She shook her head. “It is a bit more complicated than that.” Lifting herself off the couch, she stood in one smooth motion and stretched like a cat. Her slender frame swayed as she glided to the back of the room to the rows of shelves filled with books and other small trinkets. “The competition last for five weeks, with a different trial each week. Each trial is based on one of five elements; strength, speed, cunningness, power, and the mates.”

I distinctly remember Jericho telling Rhett and I about the trials and the determined glint in his eye when he spoke about it. “Do you know what these trials entail?”

Bora pulled one of the books from the shelf, and wiped her hand over the cover to sweep dust from its leather binding. As she walked back to the couch, she said, “No one knows until the time of the trials. It is performed in a scared Drachen location that is revealed by an oracle’s foresight a month or two before the competition officially begins.”

She sat down and handed me the book. The cover read, Quod Draco de Iudiclls. I opened the book to find finely scripted Drachen ink, with side notes in the mortal tongue. I skimmed over the yellowed pages, realizing that the book was a series of rules and limitations for the Drachen Trials.

“I will not lie to you, Wendy. The trials are dangerous. Ruthless. The Drachen Trials are seen as a time for not only the reign of a new High Lord, but the time for corrupted and ill-intended Dragon Lords to die in the ring, to be replaced by younger, brighter dragons with a vision. Those who compete often meet an untimely end.”

My heart clenched at her words. I won’t let Avel do it, I thought fiercely. I will not let him abandon me so soon. I voiced as much to Bora, who only half-smiled sadly at me. “Your Avel is strong, Wendy. I have seen the way he moves, the way he speaks. If he should compete, the Drachens will be all the better for it.”

I stood in a rush, ripping myself from the couch to pace in front of Bora. “And if he should get himself killed?” I snarled, practically seething at the thought. “Should someone take him from my side? Am I to just sit on the sidelines, letting him throw his life away for a throne that is not worth the cost of his horde, his brother, his mate?”

Bora watched me pace with a relaxed frame. “Avel will not die so easily, Wendy. You should have some more faith in your mate’s abilities.”

I grinded my teeth together, feeling my blood boil the more I thought about Avel, dying and bleeding beneath a sword, dead due to his own rash way of thinking. “My faith has nothing to do with this.” I clenched and unclenched my fists, resisting the urge to smash something.

Bora stood and fluttered to my side, laying a gentle hand on my arm. “Wendy,” she spoke in a soft, deep voice. “If Avel decides to partake in the Drachen Trials, you must do him and yourself a favor. Do you understand?” I stopped pacing long enough to lock eyes with her. She gripped my arm tighter. “The Dragon Lords Avel will face are going to try to rip him to pieces. He will be perfectly fine. He is strong, he is smart, and he will survive, but only if you keep yourself alive.” Her eyes bored into mine, piercing and all-consuming in their intensity. “You want to know how Avel fails? You get cocky or reckless or stupid. The Dragon Lords won’t be looking for a weak link in Avel. They will be looking for you. They will try to take advantage of Avel’s mate, but they can only get to you if you let them in. If you want Avel to make it out of the trials alive, keep yourself safe.”

Deflating in defeat, I shrugged my shoulders uselessly. “I am only mortal, Bora. Against the Drachen, I am weak. Pathetically so.”

Her lips tightened, a predatory shimmer in her eyes. “Not entirely.” She pressed her palm to my cheek, her strength pouring into me. “Dragons and humans rarely mate. On the few accounts they have, the humans go through many transformations. If you truly want to protect Avel and yourself before the trials begin, finish the mating ritual. Do whatever you have to do to become fully mated. You will be stronger then.”

I shook my head. “I can’t let him die, Bora. It will end me.”

“So don’t.” She clutched my shoulders, her fingers digging into my skin hard enough to cut off the blood pumping through my biceps. “Don’t let him die. Finish the mating ritual. Prepare yourself for the trials. Read the book and find the advantage. There always is one. Understand?”

Glancing at the ground, I numbly nodded.

She nodded with me, steel shining in her light blue gaze. “And so it begins.”

Aaaaand that's the end!

Lol just kidding. That would have been a killer end scene, but we are just rolling right along. What'd you all think of the Queen? Pretty cool, I know.

I hope you all had a fantastic week, and enjoyed this update. The snow is coming down in buckets today, so I am hoping for a work-free Monday and perhaps a special, surprise update? Who knows! We'll just have to see.

Do you guys have any ideas to what the Drachen Trials are going to be? I have a few of my own that I am working with . . . let's just say that we are going to be getting a few action-packed chapters soon.

Also, it seems like the rest of the mating ritual will be coming to a head soon. Thoughts? I am dying to write the rest, and cannot wait for all of your reactions! I think you will like what I have in store for you all ;)

In other news, I told you guys that I would be answering a few of the more popular asked questions, and I did! If you go to my profile and check out my wall, the Q/A is posted there and you will find the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions I know you all have been waiting to find out! So please go there and check it out, as I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

Alright, that's all for today folks. I hope you enjoyed the chapter and are excited for the upcoming adventures!

~Elaine

(P.S. I wouldn't forget about Bora's lost heirs just yet. I have a feeling that we will be seeing them in the future. *laughs maniacally* *immediately chokes on cough*)