Giles' Keeper

I bolt upright gasping the room spins before hands grasp my shoulders holding my flailing body to the bed. “Easy, my soul, easy,” Giles murmurs, eyes appearing above me, glittering, the teal-violet colors blending, moving endlessly. “Are you back?” He asks with a hopeful lilt in his deep soothing voice.

“Back?” I choke on the word a dull throbbing fires from my tongue as I blink at him, breathing in his scent greedily. Giles smiles, his lungs deflating as his head falls to rest above my heart.

“My soul, your voice has never sounded more beautiful,” he breathes out before lifting his head to touch my chin staring into my soul. I blink as a dull burning in my eyes begins as if I haven’t blinked in a lifetime.

“What..” the dull throbbing in my tongue fires sharply as I talk swallowing around the swelling. Did I bite myself in my sleep? “Where are we?” Why does everything look so… different? The room is sharp, every detail stark in my mind, the colors bright with depths of tones I’ve never noticed before. Are my eyes… better? I never realized how poorly I saw things before moving to Alodias.

My hearing is… clear. I can hear footsteps in the hall and heartbeats besides Giles. I can hear his heartbeat. Giles chuckles, the sound enriched in vibrancy as he smiles down at me, everything about him intensified. “We’re in our quarters my soul,” he responds, chest vibrating with his guttural tone. I flush staring at him as I sit up to look around, it smells wholy of him. Aside from Ophelia and… his family.

“The- it’s,” I stop myself frowning as I rub my temples at the tightness in my scalp.

“What my sweet?” Giles asks as he watches me with a growing frown.

“Why are we in our shared quarters?” He blinks silently as he leans away, hands grabbing mine tenderly.

“Why wouldn’t we?” I stare at him, taking in his tense and drawn features. He must’ve forgotten with all he has on his plate.

“We haven’t been crowned yet…” I trail off watching him reel back his tension growing as he holds my hands tighter.

“What do you remember?” Giles’ questions making me stare at him lost. Why is he looking at me like that?

“What do you mean?” I glance down, eyes widening, seeing the short chemise before staring at him. “Please, leave I’m indecent,” I quiver trying to drop his hands to reach for a blanket. Why on earth am I near nude with him- in our quarters. Oh my did we- he

“Never!” His growl startles me as he reels back jaw clenched he turns to give me his back. “I would never in a million years take advantage of you in such a way- how could you think such nonsense?” He paces away heart racing as he growls, beneath the tense hurt growls is the softest of pained whines. I pull the blanket over my chest hiding behind it.

“Nonsense?” I question exasperated. “You think that is nonsense? To be assaulted?” He spins on his heels, eyes glowing as he storms up to me breathing in my face.

“What I think is nonsense is you even thinking I could do such to you- to anyone,” he breathes against my face staring deep into my eyes. “What is the last thing you remember?” I frown at that, unsure what to make of his question.

“Yesterday of course- why?” I turn to the window seeing the dark sky shadowed by dark clouds. Is it night time?

“What happened yesterday?” He asks directly as I turn to stare at him.

“Our date?” I question him watching him stop completely as he stares at me. “Is it night time?” Why is he acting so strange?

“No, it’s daytime,” he mutters, staring at me with a frown.

“Day time?” I stare at the window stunned by that. “It’s so dark,” I mutter, in all of my time at Alodias I’ve never seen the sky as gloomy as it is today.

“We’ve had our coronation,” he states quietly, making me turn to him confused before I laugh, shaking my head.

“Giles, I think I’d remember such a big event,” I chuckled, shaking my head at him. “What sort of trick is that?”

“It isn’t a trick,” he states calmly clasping his hands together in front of his mouth. “You’ve been asleep for months,” he reveals, making me stare at him as if he’s lost his mind.

“That’s impossible,” I scoff, shaking my head as I stare at him, truly inspecting his form, taking in the dark shadow of a beard, his withered and strained features. He didn’t look so rough yesterday… “Why is it so dark?”

“A lot has changed,” he answers carefully, making me stand up, uncaring of my state of dress, as I move to the window staring over the stark change of the kingdom. The once beautiful landscape is near baren, flooded from continuous rains, thunder claps overhead. No one to be seen for miles, guards are hidden by small rudimentary shelters. Wind tears through the kingdom with a howling scream.

“How many months have I been asleep?” I gasp turning towards him with a rush of tears seeing the ugly change. What all happened?

“We are nearing winter again,” he admits standing stoically with his arms crossed, I feel faint clutching at the wall before his arms catch me, supporting me as I flounder with the shock.

“It was the start of spring- just yesterday,” I swallow as he sets me in a chair crouching in front of me. “We were a week away from our coronation- wasn’t it?” I splutter my aching tongue. “Have I bitten myself? Is my tongue swollen?”

“Nesta-”

“What have I missed?” I cry, my chest aching, the tightness in my head a fog of confusion. How have I been out for so long? I remember our date as if it happened yesterday- like we kissed just yesterday.

“How are you feeling?” He questions as his eyes trace my features.

“I don’t know, my tongue hurts, my head aches, chest is tight,” I stop and stare at our hands. “I feel different, I can see better, hear better- everything is intensified,” I explain watching him give a sad smile nodding.

“You’ve matured,” he deadpans.

“Matured?” I repeat confused. “Wasn’t I already… matured?” I distinctly remember the very awkward conversation with Papa as I became a woman. I want to blush at his stumbling.

“As a dragon, your body had to be mature to have my heir,” he explains, carefully watching me.

“It makes me fall into a slumber for months on end and bite my tongue?” I ask incredulously.

“No, my sweet, your evolution was… rushed,” he tries to explain with a frown.

“Because you’re a King?” I guess as he turns to stare out the window in debate.

“You remember nothing of our coronation?” Giles changes topics, making my head spin.

“No, the last I remember is we enjoyed a date, before you brought me back to my quarters, bidding me good night,” I choke, swallowing down my unease as he strokes my hands tenderly with his thumbs. “I remember Ophelia helping me out of the gown before I laid down. There’s nothing after that- just, just waking here,” I struggle to fathom the possibility of this change.

“You don’t remember the attack?” He eases the question out as I gasp frantically.

“Attack? When, how- where,” I cry, feeling my heart race as I lean away. That’s impossible, no way I’ve slept through an attack.

“It was the day of our coronation, we had been crowned, had gifts brought before us,” he starts to explain, making my head throb in the process.

“Who?”

“Humans from your village had tracked down Alodias, we were able to fend the attack off with few casualties. Do you remember going to the castle keep? With Ophelia? Corban helping?” Giles questions me directly, my head throbs more as I try to imagine it. Praying to remember something- anything past our date.

“How on earth could they have found Alodias? I thought it was secure?” I pull a hand away using my palm to dig into my skull. Why can’t I remember?

“Rumors, ancient hunters have continued to pass down their knowledge of Alodias- of the previous battle.”

“Did our coronation draw them here? Am I responsible?” Giles scoffs at the second question.

“Dragons were in the sky, more than normal- it could’ve been what confirmed it for them. But you are not responsible for this, any of it,” he asserts, kissing the hand he’s kept ahold of. “Do you not remember the castle keep? Ophelia bringing you down there with guards? Corban arriving to help you?” He asks again and I stare at him before shaking my head.

“I’ve never seen the castle keep; not that I can remember,” I stare at our hands frowning.

“You don’t even remember our bath chambers?”

“Why would I remember that? I’ve never been in the bath chambers… have I?” Instead of responding he pulls me up and guides me to a secondary door pushing it open to reveal a large tub and a toilet. The large window is overcast by dark shadows, the large orb of what I suspect is the sun is hidden by thundering clouds, lightning striking the earth.

“Does it look familiar?” Giles questions as he stands by the tub running his hand through his locks with a growing frown.

“No, should it?” I question standing in front of the window to take in everything. The once lush bright and vibrant gardens look dull, sad and drowned. “Is Corban alright? The gardens are… dying,” I frown, rubbing my head again as I lean against the wall feeling unstable.

“Corban’s time came, his dragon’s shift was upon him. He started his travel before his shift - he needed to find his own hidden cavern,” he responds carefully watching as I stare at him.

“How bad is the kingdom off? Everything seems so sullen,” I ask upfront, seeing how things look so rotten. Even my village didn’t look so rough.

“We are in a dark time, your awakening is a much needed blessing for the kingdom, it will be celebrated.” Giles crosses the space between us looking outside to the gardens as guards change their posts, running through the rain as yet another clap of thunder sounds above. “It’s best no one knows of your absence of mind my sweet,” he addresses softly cupping my jaw with affection.

“Why?”

“It’s yet another stressor, I fear our people could not handle another strike against our race,” he sighs, staring towards the wall as if lost in his own head.

“You look so tired, have you not been taking care of yourself?” He chuckles lightly.

“There’s so much to go over with you, I don’t know where to start if I’m honest,” he admits, wrapping his arms around me to tug me against his body, releasing a tense breath. My stomach snarls in hunger, earning a snort from him as he winks playfully. The shadows in his eyes are ever present. “I think a hot meal is a needed point for you my sweet, I’ll have the chef prepare a meal for us both.”

Threading our fingers together he pulls me back to our room and I stop at a chest with a flush. “Do you think I can dress properly?” His eyes burn a path down my body as a rumble emanates from his chest.

“It’s best this view is left only for my eyes, my soul,” he teases, sending shivers racking my body under his shared naughty thoughts.

“Even in the kingdom’s peril you’re interested in joining,” I shake my head, turning to grab a gown, donning it in front of him.

“You are my life partner - of course I wish to join with you, it’s silly you think I would stop lusting for your and our bond,” he murmurs in my ear, tightening my gown with a heated kiss to my ear. “I’m still waiting for you my sweet- we never had our honeymoon.”