Chapter 3 #2
“Ladies.” A voice snaps me out of my trance, and I whip my head toward the source.
Standing above us is my newest dragon friend, who’s looking between me and where my gaze was with an unreadable expression.
He looks rather disinterested, if anything.
Beside him is his slightly less of an asshole friend, and a female.
A very, very beautiful female. She has long, wavy black hair, fair skin, and vivid violet eyes.
Like a dancing violet flame. Eyes that are boring into me with a look of pure malice.
I try not to cower under her gaze and shift my eyes to the asshole in the middle who is clearly the leader of their gang.
His hand resting lazily at the arch of her lower back doesn’t escape my notice.
“Good evening,” I say with little emotion.
“You two look like you’re the life of the party. May we have a seat?” He wears an arrogant look as he gestures to the few solo chairs dispersed across from us.
“Be our guest,” Meela says. Her tone holds most of her usual flatness, but I detect a small bit of curiosity there.
“I’m Elysande, this is Meela Soraya,” I gesture toward my friend. “And you are?” I did hear his friend use his name the first time I met them, but I’m not going to mention that.
His brow quirks. He’s looking at me with trepidation, and perhaps like he wants to murder me again.
His lids are heavy over his dead eyes that still look like they’re lit from within, the arrogant look gone.
I’m glad I don’t have to behold him in his dragon form.
“I’m Daegan Vaelor, this is Raef Daelun, and Yara Raeli. ”
Raef, with his red irises that should be scary but somehow aren’t, is the only one of the three with a polite smile.
His skin is a medium bronze and his smile is bright and wide.
It’s too bad that he’s friends with Daegan, because now that I have a chance to look into his eyes, which also hold that same bewildering appearance of being lit from within, he actually seems kind. Warm.
Yara, on the other hand, is shooting daggers at us as she sits with her knee touching Daegan’s, her body angled toward him.
I nod my head at them.
“So, where is the real party after this?” Raef asks with a grin. I study the intricate swirls of black ink that run down his neck and below his collar.
“Try some of the wine and you’ll find yourself having a good time,” Meela chimes in.
I shift my gaze to Daegan. He’s eyeing our drinks with a touch of curiosity, but mostly disgust. “I’m good.”
“Well, aren’t you fun,” Meela remarks.
He gives her a flat look.
“Which one would you recommend?” Raef asks.
“Depends on who you ask,” Meela says. She gestures toward me. “Princess here likes to laugh and pretend the world is full of fairies and a light we’ve never known. I prefer not to delude myself.” She holds up her glass. I decide to down the rest of mine as she speaks.
“Do you have any, like… regular wine? Or ale?” Raef with the red eyes asks.
“Yes.” Meela keeps it simple. She sounds unimpressed.
“Princess?” Daegan cuts in. “Is that a term of endearment?”
“Yes and no. She is one in the metaphorical sense… and the literal one.”
His gaze whips to mine, and his eyes darken even more. “Your father is the king?” he asks.
“Yes.”
He looks away. “Of course,” he mumbles.
Raef raises his eyebrows, eyes wide as he averts his gaze. Like he doesn’t want to be a part of this conversation anymore.
Yara still fixates on me. A long, awkward silence fills the space, until finally Meela speaks again. “Why don’t you paint a portrait of her? Then you can look at her forever.” She’s staring at the female dragon with menace and not a drip of fear in her eyes. I’m not sure it’s wise.
I swear, I see smoke fuming from her widened nostrils. I even think for a moment that I smell something charred in the air. It could be the pink wine that’s starting to set in though, because for some reason, I laugh. Loudly. Everyone’s gaze shifts to me. Confusion paints their faces.
It’s funny. My new dragon friends are funny. And it makes me want to get up and dance. Maybe they’ll join me.
I shoot to my feet, smiling. Each member of the band is playing their string instruments beautifully tonight. “This is such a great song. I love this one. Does anyone want to come dance?”
I’m met with more confused looks. The three of them are so funny with their round ears. Daegan especially, with his dark clothing and brooding stare. “Daegan, you should really smile more.”
I laugh as that stoic glare falters just a touch, his eyebrows lifting an almost untraceable amount.
I turn and prance off, leaving my friend with the dragons.
It would have been nice to dance with them, but I’ll find other fun people to dance with.
Besides, Yara was practically in his lap.
I’m sure they’ll be dancing together eventually, one way or another.
I wonder if the dragons dance in the same style we do.
As I glance around, I can’t spot a single one of them dancing.
They’re all brooding, standing along the edges of the room, talking amongst themselves. Some with a few elves.
It’s like they’re in a room full of enemies or something.
“Elle!” I twirl around, attempting to find the face to match the voice that called out to me, but then I twirl again. And again, grabbing my skirt and tilting my head back, watching the ceiling with glee as it blurs into a swirling circle of blacks and grays.
A strong hand falls on my waist, stopping me.
“Sir Greenwood!”
“Elle,” he says again, steadying me and taking my other hand into his.
“I like when you call me that.”
“I like when you call me Adrian,” he laughs. What a beautiful face he has when he smiles. I can’t look away.
“Adriannn,” I sing. “Dance with me?”
“I am,” he says with a dimpled smile.
“Yes,” I say, feeling like I’m floating on a cloud. “So, what do you think of our new friends?”
“Friends?” His smile falters. He needs to cheer up.
“Yes. Friends.”
“I don’t think I’d go as far as to call them friends.
“Why not?”
“Because we don’t know them. We can’t trust them.”
“They don’t know us either,” I sing as he twirls me again. “Someone has to open that trust first.”
He looks at me, quiet, like he’s not happy with me, so I spin off into the crowd in search of a more agreeable dance partner. I don’t look back.
A tingling works its way through my neck and up into my head as I dance through the crowd, and when I look toward the outliers, I see an angry, brooding dragon leaning against a pillar, arms crossed. I make my way over to him through a sea of gyrating bodies, never breaking away from his stare.
“If you’re going to watch me that intently, you might as well join me,” I reach out a hand.
He doesn’t move. “No thanks.”
“Why not?” I ask, genuinely curious.
“Don’t want to.”
“Okay, then.” His quizzical gaze travels up and down my body. “Please, carry on with your reconnaissance as I dance the night away. I’m a very big threat indeed.”
“With those moves, I’d say so.”
My mouth falls open, but I won’t let that get me down. “You’re a grumpy ass, you know that? You’re no fun to be around at all.”
He doesn’t flinch, barely lifts his lazy eyelids as he continues to stare at me. So, he’s not backing down. Fine.
I flash him a wide smile, then prance off to grab another glass of wine.
After I polish off another glass, I dance late into the night.
I dance with anyone who is willing, which is a lot of people.
I am the princess, after all. I don’t see what the big deal is in that name, I did nothing to earn it.
I was simply born into it. Other people seem to hold it in high esteem, though.
Eventually I begin to tire, and just as I’m about to stumble out of the dance hall, a strong hand lands on my lower back, and the scent of trees washes over me.
“Adrian,” I say, my voice losing its stamina.
“Let me escort you back,” he says, falling into step beside me.
“Oh… all right. Thank you.”
“Of course.” His bright smile is back, but I don’t linger on it. I’m becoming tired, and the effects of my drinks are wearing off.
“Did you have a fun evening?” he asks.
“Yes. So much fun. I love to dance at balls.”
“I know you do,” he chuckles to himself.
The fact that he’s aware of that makes me feel warm in my chest. He pays attention to me.
“You’re not a fan?”