Chapter 6
A friendly introduction.
I paused in my walk to the atrium. I wasn’t working yet, but I liked to walk and keep active.
It soothed some part of my restless soul that always made me keep working and moving forward.
Since the latter part of my childhood, I’d started striving to make a place for myself, to become more than my humble origins.
Now that I had accomplished my goal, the habit of always working hadn’t vanished.
No, it lingered in my bones, urging me ever onward, chasing some deep part of myself, which told me I must always be busy.
Being alone didn’t help the matter. All through my childhood, I had been so alone, the only one around, but now, things had changed. I did adore silence; however, so much of it was grating on my nerves.
Unfortunately, Urgg was busy, and Seth was napping, according to Kalvoxrencol.
I’d spent quite a bit of time with Edith, working on one of my special projects, but she’d told me I needed to do something fun and not related to work.
So I’d agreed to meet Camden when he’d pinged me in front of her, and she’d stared at me with a broad smile, proud of me.
Her pride felt almost nice, like I’d done something amazing, not just said yes.
I did like Camden, though I would rather spend time with Urgg, Seth, or Edith, and getting to know the human better would probably be fun.
Also, he struck me as lonely. I wouldn’t have said I was lonely, exactly, but in my current state, anyone was better than being alone.
Thankfully, by now Seth had discussed permissions with all the humans, so they would respect every drakcol’s boundaries.
So at minimum, Camden would keep his hands to himself, which made spending time with him easier.
I froze in my step, my head tilting and tail flicking.
My eyes glanced over Prince Serlotminden and his human mate, Bartholomew, who were right in front of me in the long corridor.
Serlotmiden wasn’t that much taller than his mate—Bartholomew was tall for a human—but he was significantly broader.
His white hair was shaved on one side, and it hung over one of his muscular shoulders, contrasting against his deep purple scales.
He looked like his brothers, with a long nose, wide forehead, full lips, and green eyes—only Kalvoxrencol had purple eyes out of the royal brothers.
Bartholomew stared up at him, his black hair starting to curl and his brown eyes covered by lenses humans called glasses.
He was thin and long, as if he had been stretched or undergone some horrific torture.
Seth had assured me that while Bartholomew was still underweight, his long appearance was perfectly natural.
I did find Bartholomew attractive enough for a human.
His skin wasn’t quite as pink as Seth’s nor as pale as Vince’s. He was more golden-pinky-pale.
Human skin was odd for me to describe.
But the royal couple didn’t hold my attention for long.
Rather, I focused on Noxlyn, who leaned against the wall, not far from the couple, fingers clacking away on his screen.
He would look up at Bartholomew, inspect him, then start making notes.
When the royal couple moved, so did he. It was like a dance between the three of them, though only one was aware, and I couldn’t help but watch.
He was clearly stalking the humans. That was…
that wasn’t unexpected, but it wasn’t good.
Once one of the princes caught sight of Noxlyn, they wouldn’t handle the situation well.
Both were aware of the boundary the Council of Seekers had enacted—Noxlyn wasn’t obeying it, as he was far too close—but both Serlotminden and Kalvoxrencol were exceedingly overprotective.
Even as I panicked and had visions of Kalvoxrencol eviscerating Noxlyn, I noticed Serlotminden’s eyes seemed to skate over Noxlyn when he glanced behind him.
It was as if he didn’t—or rather, couldn’t—see the seeker stalking him and his mate.
Then again, even I hadn’t noticed Noxlyn at first. I’d been walking along, not seeing anyone beside Serlotminden and Bartholomew until I’d debated pinging Noxlyn to invite him along to meet Camden, then all of sudden, there he was.
It was as if he’d appeared from nowhere.
“Stalking the humans?” I asked from right behind him.
Noxlyn turned around, his movements unhurried, almost sluggish, but Serlotminden jerked toward us, wings rustling like they might pop free. He frowned at Noxlyn, tail wriggling. When he caught my eye, I offered him my throat.
He smiled, calling in a voice so bright it felt like sunshine washing over my scales, "Lieutenant Wyn!”
Bartholomew, or Teddy as the humans called him, grunted in greeting. He wasn’t really a talker that I’d seen in our limited acquaintance. That was fine by me. I wasn’t much of one either, except with my close friends.
“Greetings, Prince. Bartholomew,” I said, offering the human my throat as well—he was a prince consort after all.
“I heard from Monqilcolnen about your hand being injured,” Serlotminden said, bounding toward me like an oversized kit.
His eyes flicked toward Noxlyn, who offered his throat, looking nonplussed.
“Is this the one who harmed you?” Serlotminden asked, his voice losing all of its cheeriness and dropping in obvious threat.
A nobody like me stirring Prince Serlotminden’s protective instincts wasn’t something I could’ve guessed. I was close friends with Seth and knew Kalvoxrexcol, but other than that, I didn’t know the royal family well. Why would he care if someone had hurt me?
“Yes,” I said, then in a rush continued, “but it was an accident.”
Noxlyn had taken a step back from the prince. He didn’t touch me, though he did hide behind me. Clearly, no warrior soul in his body; a seeker through and through with this one.
Bartholomew laid a hand on his mate’s arm. “Accidents happen, Mindy.”
“True,” Serlotminden replied with a smile at his mate, then turned toward me.
“I’m glad you’re well. Seth would be upset if something happened to you, and I hate it when Seth is upset.
He secludes himself, and I can’t tease him or play with him, and Kalvoxrencol gets even more protective. I hate it.”
I smiled shyly. “As do I.”
Serlotminden said a quick goodbye and snagged Bartholomew’s hand. Holding hands was a human gesture I was still acclimating to. Couples, family, and friends did it—it was similar to us holding tails, from what I understood.
“You have ruined my observation,” Noxlyn commented, turning his screen off and tucking it under his arm. “I will have to wait until they stop thinking about me before I look for them again.”
I blinked, eyebrows furrowing. “Perhaps you shouldn’t stalk the prince and his mate.”
“Observe,” he corrected. “I’m studying humans, and the selection pool is rather small.
Yes, I can read and watch things from the human database, but it’s not the same as speaking to them and observing them.
Take cats, for instance. I cannot find any reference to the cultural laws surrounding them or them being house gods, but all humans have corroborated it, so it must be true. There’s no reason for them to lie.
“Of course, some things about our own culture are so ingrained we don’t write them down, and I’m assuming the laws regarding cats are like that. But observation and interviews are key to effective studies.” His voice had remained calm, but his silver eyes had grown bright and his tail wiggled.
“Do you want to come with me?” I asked.
“Where?” he asked, glancing at Serlotminden’s retreating form.
“I’m going to meet Camden, one of the humans Prince Dontilvynsan rescued from Xome.”
Noxlyn suddenly focused on me, and his tail writhed. “I suppose, since you ruined my observation.”
I hoped Camden and Noxlyn would be able to form some sort of friendship. This way Camden would stop following me when he couldn’t seem to find any of his gaggle of friends. Also, his blue eyes always traced my form whenever he saw me, and he stood closer to me than strictly needed.
The human was attracted to me, which hardly surprised me.
I knew exactly how beautiful I was in the eyes of my people and, apparently, humans.
If Camden had been open to a simple fuck, I would’ve agreed in an instant, but he seemed to be searching for something with every longing look or friend he collected.
If Noxlyn became friends with Camden, perhaps he would stop stalking the humans, which would no doubt extend his life.
Oddly enough, I’d heard no complaints or even mentions of him.
If Kalvoxrencol had seen Noxlyn following Seth, I would’ve heard about it—everyone would’ve heard about it.
Of course, the trail of blood as Kalvoxrencol ripped Noxlyn to shreds would have also been a good indication.
We exited the lift and entered the promenade. It was crowded as usual, and I weaved through it with Noxlyn right behind me. We kept going until we rounded the corner and headed toward the glass wall that went from floor to ceiling. Seamless doors opened in the glass wall to the lush atrium.
I’d missed this.
Yes, the palace and capital boasted many, many lovely gardens, but something about the Admiral Ven felt like home in a way I’d never experienced before.
A large hewcoy tree, with dark purple bark and hanging flowers, nearly brushed the ceiling.
Vines ranging from orange to pink to blue to green wrapped around the tree trunks and the banisters, which framed the different levels.
Well-maintained bark paths wound through the garden.
Flowers, ferns, and trees filled every available space.
The atrium was alive with color and plants.
No matter which way I looked, something amazing could be observed.