Drakkon

Drakkon 2 (Black Jade) - twelve

Biyu began petting Jade to keep her hands busy, while Nikator continued watching her with blazing blue eyes. It was one thing to gaze in the eyes of a caged beast, and an entirely different thing to have the beast in front of you—free. And open to attack.

Logically, she knew that he couldn't exactly kill her, but another part of her wondered why she would even think that? Because what value did she bring to the emperor, whether alive or dead? If Nikator killed her and told the emperor that he did so because she was a threat, her death would be pushed under the rug and forgotten.

Before her thoughts could spiral further, Nikator spoke. "I see what you're doing."

"Do you now?" Biyu's gaze flicked up to meet his, but she quickly averted it and petted Jade again. Jade's tail began twitching in annoyance, no doubt growing overstimulated by Biyu's frantic pets and touches. "And what exactly do you see me doing? Petting my cat?"

He laughed, but it came out hollow and sarcastic. "Right. I see that too, but you know what I'm trying to say."

"I only know what you're saying. And if you're not saying what you mean, then I have no way to know what you mean," she blabbered as she intently focused on a particular pink camellia with a bee buzzing around it. It was all lies, but she couldn't outright tell him that she was spying on lady Daiyu. That would be the quickest and most justifiable death ever.

"Are all princesses like you? Conniving, manipulative, and arrogant?"

Biyu lifted her shoulders. "Perhaps."

"Oh, but can you even be called a princess anymore?" The corner of his mouth rose to a smirk, and she could tell what he was trying to do—get under her skin. For whatever reason, it worked.

"I'm still a princess, and no one can take that away from me," Biyu found herself saying, but what surprised her the most was the sudden fire in her words. "Your emperor may have killed my father, but that doesn't take away the fact that I'm the daughter of an emperor. Thus, I will always be a princess."

"Careful now," he said. "If you keep talking like that, you might be tried for treason. There is no such thing as 'my' emperor, or 'your' emperor. Because His Majesty is the emperor."

Jade decided in that moment to jump of Biyu's lap and chase after a bee. Biyu watched her run into the bushes of camellias and stalk after the bee. She hated how he was right, but she couldn't let him win. She had to find a way to brush him off, or ignore him until lady Daiyu got back.

"I'm already a prisoner here, what more do you want?" she asked through gritted teeth. She didn't know where the strength was coming from, but a part of her was scared of Liqin more than she was scared of Nikator. Because Nikator would likely just kill her if it came down to it, but Liqin would kill her and everything she held dear.

"I want you to stop spending time with lady Daiyu," Nikator said as he toyed with his dragon dagger. The ruby eyes of the blade seemed to bore into her as he balanced it on his fingers distractedly. He flipped it and caught it by the handle and pointed the sharp edge towards her. "You're trying to get close to her for whatever reason. So back off, and I'll back off too."

Biyu scoffed, but her words came out soft. "You're being ridiculous and you're reaching for an argument that doesn't exist. I'm not trying anything. I'm simply having tea. Keep in mind, lady Daiyu was the one to invite me, not the other way around."

A cool breeze blew against her gently, rustling leaves in its wake. The scene of sweet flowers pervaded the air. Biyu found herself drawn to the scent; if she closed her eyes and pretended that she wasn't a prisoner, pretended that the past seven years hadn't happened, and pretended that things were how they used to be—she could then simply be a princess enjoying her time in the gardens.