The Dragon Prince's Consort

Five

Fang sat on the couch facing the hearth, staring at the flames as she tried to process what had just become of her life. Hand over her mouth Fang bit back the hard, sick feeling in her chest. What am I supposed to do now? Fang clenched her other hand in her lap, but she could barely feel it beneath the overwhelming cold consuming her limbs. Even sitting in front of the fire, the numbness of shock threatened to freeze her to her core. If I'd just learned how to read Drass-

"Fang...?" Valen's voice broke through the fog, startling her. Fang's hand jerked and she gasped; the prince, standing behind the couch, stepped back to give her space. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you."

"It's all right." Fang shook her head, rubbing her fingers along her jaw, "I was... I was thinking. What is it?" Should I even be speaking to him like that?

"I've asked one of the lady consorts if you can borrow some of her daughter's clothes until I have some made for you. She said she'll bring them as soon as she gets them together."

That surprised her. "That's... incredibly generous, but-"

"Yena's daughter is only six," Valen told her, "it'll be a few years before she can wear them. I'm taking you to my robe-master in the morning to have you measured, I'll have Arban make a full wardrobe for you, leggings and robes, gowns, everything the lady consorts have. Arban makes all of my robes so everything you have will be the right size."

Fang blinked, but she nodded. A whole wardrobe? Valen's clothes were exceedingly handsome, the fit flattering and the fabric sumptuous. Everything Fang had ever worn had been someone else's castoffs, new clothes had always cost so much more than used and because she was so petite, anything that was too large she had to cut down. Thinking about the grey and red robe from last night, Fang tried to imagine having multiple pieces like it and couldn't quite wrap her mind around it. Still, she needed to acknowledge the kindness. "Right, of course. I appreciate it." When she didn't sense or hear that Valen had left, she twisted around and found him standing - or rather, looming behind the couch with a bleak, low expression. "What's wrong?"

Valen dropped his chin and cast his gaze to the floor, his shaggy hair tumbling forward and obscuring his eyes. "I'm so sorry, Fang. This wasn't how it was supposed to turn out. When I said I wanted to talk to you last night I was going to ask if I could see you again, but I didn't mean it like this. Never like this." He looked so miserable and resigned Fang wondered how often he'd gone up against his sibling and lost, despite being in the right.

"It's not your fault, you did the best you could."

The Prince shook his head. "It would be one thing if you'd agreed to something like this on your own, but this isn't fair. It isn't fair, it's not right and I'm not going to roll over and take it just because my father thinks it's best for the Empire." When he turned to her, his orange eyes blazed with that iron core she'd noticed earlier when he'd argued with his father. The fierceness, this sudden shift from misery to righteous anger struck Fang as something that had been smoldering for a long time. "I'm going to fight this. I'll take it up with my father's counselors and look for a way to set you free. I swear it on my hearts," he thumped himself in the middle of his chest with his fist.

"Um..." While she appreciated the sentiment, Fang wondered if this was wise. "Is that... something you can do?"

"I can try, at the very least I can find something to use as my argument. I don't like the idea of owning someone, it makes my stomach turn." He fell silent, staring at the flames again, and Fang looked as well. She watched the flames lick over chunks of wood and listened to it pop. "I should probably say," he said in a softer, less angry voice, "that it might take some time. I still have to do the other things my father wants. If I don't, he might decide to do something worse than make me keep you... like a prisoner," he added with a growl and his upper lip curled, showing the tips of ivory teeth. He sighed and scratched at the back of his head. The motion ruffled his short, unruly hair and it tumbled about. "But at least I have some clothes coming for you, and I thought tomorrow I'd take you to start picking out your personal things."