“Oh.” I didn’t know what to say as she continued. She had to be half-royal right? Right?
“That’s why I’d prefer if you didn’t meet my family, or sought them out. I’ve caused my own enough grief, and they’ve caused me far too much back.”
“Of course.” I nuzzled her on the hair, before giving her ear a soft bite.
“Gah! Charlotte!”
“What?” I giggled. “I’m just reminding you that you’re loved.”
“I know.” Her hands were gripping my fingers tightly now. “Would it still be selfish to go for the throne? I wanted to go for it before because I thought it could give me the thing I wanted, but…” I gave her another nuzzle.
“Aria. You might not have been born to the right dad, but you’re still a dragon.
“Right.” I felt her grip loosen as her smile brightened. “I’m a dragon.”
* * * *
While I wanted to talk about the previous night some more, I recognized that I had a duty to perform, and so did Charlotte. That and she admitted she had little interest in the religious scriptures. So, it was decided that I would prepare the sermon and rally up the townsfolk for the trial ahead, while she rearmed herself for the last push to Mithil.
While it wasn’t guaranteed that the capital was safe, it was unlikely that the church would try to attack me. Peace enforced by dragons was absolute peace.
As Charlotte took up the small bath allotted to us, I trundled outside, hand on my forehead. I didn’t consider the consequences of downing an entire bottle of liquor, but perhaps that was the point. Didn’t make the pounding headache hurt any less though.
I was greeted outside by what looked like a panicking Bishop Buryan. The entire church staff looked relieved as they saw me emerge, seemingly as beautiful and prepared as a Pact Mage ought to be.
“Pact Mage Aria!” Buryan looked relieved. “I hate to ask, but do you often sleep until the late afternoon?”
I was already not an early riser, but it seemed like Charlotte had amplified my bad habits.
“Not particularly. I normally wake up at an reasonable time, but ever since I’ve arrived here it’s been more the exception rather than the rule,” I grumbled as their expressions turned to worry again.
“Well, I hope everything’s been all right.”
I looked around nervously. Did they hear the two of us last night? Despite the butterflies, it made me feel all soft and fuzzy. I wanted to declare it to the world. However, I knew that there was a time for such an announcement and a time to sequester it. Mother bless Charlotte, but discretion was not one department where my girlfriend excelled.
“We got a delivery basket of food addressed to you. I believe it’s still warm. The Text of the Trinity is behind the lectern.” Buryan pointed to the kitchen as I sniffed the air. I could smell last night’s food right here. I guessed there would be no alcohol, not after the mess I made last night.
“Make yourself at home. Is two hours enough time for you to prepare?”
Two hours! That was not enough time for a direct text referral. Though, having Buryan with me meant I wouldn’t have to refer directly to the text.
“It will have to do.” I sighed, recognizing this as a consequence of my reckless behaviour from last night. Not that I was complaining, of course. “I’ll have to work quickly. Mother and I have been thinking of a plan, and I intend to put it into motion.” I gave a glowing grin and the church lit up and relaxed.
I grabbed the heavy religious text from behind the lectern, thinking back to what Charlotte had spoken about earlier. How hypocritical my old dream now seemed.
Maybe making everyone happy was a dream I had once upon a time. Maybe I even had that dream when I left home all those months ago. No longer. I’d found better dreams right here in reality.
* * * *
“See you later, sweet cheeks!” Aria let out an embarrassing stutter as I waved goodbye for now.
While I’d stick around to support her, she had insisted that I didn’t need to waste my time. That, and I was pretty sure if I heard a sermon, I’d fall asleep.
Things had been going so fast, even for me, and I was the one who liked to take things fast, damn it! I wanted to introduce Aria to my folks. I knew it might not be possible until after this whole thing was over, but introducing her to my big brother and his wife might be good for her.
I paused for a moment, my steps suddenly coming to a standstill. The crunching of snow. Someone was following me.
I spun around, hand on my blade, to see a pair of inquisitors. Our eyes locked for a brief second. Aw crap. I turned my head back as they walked away, or so seemed.
I could’ve gone back into the church. In fact, I probably should’ve gone back to the church to tell Aria that there were patrols moving before nightfall.
However, we desperately needed to salvage whatever weapons we had left and get new ones.
The rest of the walk was filled with tension and darting eyes as I made sure I wasn’t getting snooped on or followed. It might’ve been a hunch, but I’ve learned to trust my hunches.
Finally, the town smithy.
I was greeted to a younger man who introduced himself as Karmen. Mostly casual chatter and remarks about how damaged much of the gear was. Luckily, we got one of the pistols working, and he quickly showed me how to clean the darn things. Sometimes, a human hand was infinitely more valuable than a book.
“Pretty surprised you guys have black powder, since there’s one musket here.” I chuckled as he raised his eyebrows in surprise.
“Ya. My dad mixes the stuff and we usually sell it off, but recently the town’s been closed. The church, not ours, has been trying to get the stuff, but Dad says they don’t pay enough.”
I raised my eyebrows.
“Why do they need black powder? They use crossbows in winter.”
Karmen shrugged. “I don’t know, but probably something important, because they kept asking. Had to turn them down a third time tonight.”
