Rennard Short Stories✨

«Chapter 10: Royal Trip»

R.A stood in front of the mirror, her sapphire blue eyes glued to her own reflection. She brushed her hair while humming a melodic tune which anyone would yearn to listen to. A rustling sound startled the young dragon, and she twirled around. Ennard had risen from his nap, his back facing R.A. The redhead rubbed his neck, his lobster-red hair a goofy mess. The dragon beamed, "Good morning, sleeping beauty," she walked over to him and crawled on the bed, embracing him into a hug from behind, "how was your sleep last night, hmm?" She rested her chin on his left shoulder.

Ennard went silent, and narrowed his eyes at her,
"How was my sleep? You kept making weird noises! How was I supposed to have a peaceful sleep?! I still feel so sleepy..." The dragon giggled and gave him a kiss on the cheek.
"It's not my fault that you're so vulnerable when you're asleep~" She whispered in his ear. Ennard felt his ear warm up and went red.
"Anyways!" R.A got down the bed and stood in front of him, "we'll be going out today!" The redhead blinked, his light bags clearly visible under his eyes,
"Uh-huh? And where is that?"

"BUT I DON'T WANNA GO!"
"NO, I'M NOT GOING! I'M NOT GOING!" The redhead whined and pleaded as R.A brushed his hair, scrutinising his worried expression in a calm manner,
"Ennard, please stop moving! Your hair isn't gonna look perfect on its own you know." The redhead gulped, for he knew best how stubborn R.A was; she was never the type to back away from her word. R.A adjusted his red waistcoat, eyeing Ennard's pale look and his eyes fixated at the ground next to him.

"Ennard," she put both hands on his cheeks as if she were caressing them, "it's going to be okay." She looked at him in the eyes, earning a silent nod from the redhead.
"Alright but," he gazed into the mirror and noticed the mark on his neck, "what am I gonna do about that?" R.A grabbed the fluffy, charcoal-black cravat and wrapped it around his neck gently. The dragon patted his shoulder and gave a smile.
"There, we go! You look so handsome!" She pinched his cheek lovingly, with Ennard letting out a giggle in return.

"Hey, don't you feel uneasy? Your tail.."
"Nah, it's alright! I just don't move my tail as much, so it isn't really a bother."
The horses neighed, and the black carriage came to a halt. The silver calligraphed door was removed by the guard, and Ennard got off first. He then reached out his hand and helped R.A get off, "Ah.." R.A smiled greatly, staring at the stretched out kingdom in front of her eyes. Ennard eyed kingdom, his stomach pitting up because of queasiness.

Raxijo and Glemistone waited in front of the heavy, large silver doors which swung open as Ennard and R.A walked in. The young dragon sprinted forward,
"Mama! Papa!" She hugged both of them, with them hugging her back,
"Oh R.A! How blessed we are to have such a loving daughter!" Glemistone ruffled the hair between her horns.
"We are so glad to see that you're doing well," Raxijo rested a hand on her head, "you've grown so much."
"Aww, Pa! Don't get so emotionalll~"

Both parents let R.A go who turned around and motioned Ennard to come forward. Hesitant, Ennard gulped and advanced forward as he felt his hands go cold when he met Raxijo's unfriendly eyes for a split second.
"Greetings, your majesty." He bowed down and closed his eyes.
"Welcome dear Enziel." Glemistone welcomed warmly. Ennard moved towards Raxijo who was already looking like he was gonna rip his skin off. Ennard bowed down again, but his movement wasn't graceful, it was a bit stiff; it was out of immense fear.

"...G-Greetings to you too, your Majesty.." Ennard felt his stomach drop when Raxijo kept staring at him, hands placed behind his back, and his chin pointing upwards. There was something about Raxijo's posture, it was as if Raxijo was indirectly showing Ennard who's superior, and he's nothing in the eyes of the dragon King. Raxijo said nothing, he only nodded and reached out his hand. Ennard stared at it for a few moments before grabbing it and doing their usual, silent handshake.

"We are ever so delightful to have you around here dear. I still remember our kingdom echoing with laughter and all the blessings upon us when you were born into this world." The clacking of plates filled the room, as steamy foods were placed in a line on the dining table.
"And I'm so thankful to have parents who raised me so well," she looked at her Mum and then her Dad.
"How has Bryan been holding up?" Glemistone let out a giggle,
"Oh darling, he was the most shocked thing ever after he found out he was made the head of the Trading department!"

As the chatter went out, Ennard kept his head hung low, not uttering a single word and kept eating his food.
"You tell Enziel dear," he immediately shot up and felt his heart reach his throat, "how have you been doing? How's your family?" Ennard gave a forceful, yet uneasy smile,
"I've been doing good, with R.A here, things are always under control!" R.A giggled, hugged his arm for a second and then broke away.
"And my family has been doing well, my father recently recovered from his illness."
Suddenly, the queasiness returned, and his heart beat faster than ever. He felt his hands trembling, but R.A placed her free hand on his and smiled warmly. That smile put him at ease. They then continued talking, life in general and recalling old memories. Raxijo contributed as well, but he asked Ennard questions in the middle which were enough for the trembling redhead to drown himself in the Golden Fountain.

As Ennard and R.A toured around the kingdoms, the guards bowed down at the sight of the to-be-Queen of the kingdom. There were mostly guards appointed by Raxijo, who were strictly told to keep a hawk eye on Ennard who felt the very hairs of his neck stick up whenever his eyes were met with the guards standing almost right next to him as they passed by.
"R.A, these guards are staring at me.." The dragon whipped her head around and nodded, "don't worry, I'll shake them off." She then said a few words in Persian and the guards gave a respectful nod, walking off in one single line.
"Thank you." The redhead gave a smile of relief and grasped her warm hand.

Meanwhile, Raxijo was staring out the window, his hands behind his back. He heaved heavily, his dull-sapphire blue eyes examining the elongated kingdom, and a newly silver-polished caravan making its way onto the cobblestoned path.
"What seems to be the matter, my king?" Glemistone hugged Raxijo's arm, resting her head on his shoulder, her gaze filled with love. Raxijo gave a smile and turned towards her, giving her a sweet kiss on the forehead.
"It's still difficult to believe our daughter's so grown up. I recall the moment when she would climb on my back while I was in the middle of my meeting explaining war tactics," he let out a fatherly laugh, "and she would wrap herself around my tail and fall asleep!" Glemistone grinned and both of them looked at each other lovingly. Glemistone took a step forward,
"Honey, you don't seem...to have friendly relations with Enziel. Did something happen between you two?"

Raxijo's smile faded, and he fell silent.
He broke eye contact with her and looked away. Raxijo felt a cloud of queasiness clutching his stomach. He saw those wretched memories replay in his mind, as he let out a sigh and closed his eyes in attempts for those memories to automatically go away. He wanted to push these memories at the back of his mind and keep them caged. But the more he saw Enziel, the more Raxijo was reminded of him. The King turned around and got down on one knee. He grabbed Glemistone's hand and kissed it,
"I'm sorry, my Queen. Enziel reminds me of him so much. I can't control myself. I sometimes wonder if he's related to him. I'm afraid he'll do something. The more I look at him, the more he reminds me of that psycho. He's still roaming near the Grounds. I'm having doubts that Enziel is him."

Glemistone gave a weak smile,
"Don't worry dear, you trust our daughter, we all do. It was by the Gods that she chose him as his loved one. We all respect her decision, right?"
Raxijo nodded,
"After all, you were the one who saved me or else I would've been executed by that guillotine."
"Oh dear, I had to. It was for our sake, I couldn't allow ANYONE to destroy our kingdom." Both of them smiled and Raxijo kissed her hand again.

Raxijo was right, if it weren't for Glemistone's bravery and warrior tactics, Raxijo would've been executed 18 years ago.