Prince of Dragons

Chapter Twenty-Two

Despite the fact that it had only been about midday, when I went to take a bath, by the end of it, I actually had managed to fall asleep not too long after. Sure, maybe that whole time in the bath I was mulling over the elf's words from earlier, and even for a time after I had gone to bed, but I supposed I exhausted myself enough that sleep eventually came to me.

Which, I wasn't complaining, mind you, since it cleared my head and allowed me to dream about something that wasn't my future.

I wasn't sure how late in the day it was, but eventually I was awakened to the sound of our room door opening and closing, no doubt signaling Alaban's return. I...well, decided to act like I was still asleep since I didn't want to really talk about anything in the moment, and as I laid there, I could hear Alaban shifting around the room—trying to be quiet as he moved about. Eventually, I felt the bed dip next to me, and a cool hand touched my shoulder, gently shaking me.

"Your Highness. Wake up."

Groggy, I peeked open my eyes and turned to face said dragon, still feeling the remnants of sleep grasping my body. "Hmm?"

Alaban's lips quirked for a moment, before he gestured to something outside of my peripheral. "Well, I figured you might be a little hungry, seeing as you haven't eaten since this morning. So, ah, I decided to bring some soup up for you to eat. Not sure if you even like soup, but, I can always go down and get something more to your liking—if that's the case."

Blinking tiredly, I pulled myself up into a sitting position, feeling kind of warm that Alaban would think of me like that, and it made me appreciate him as I rubbed at my eyes and yawned. Like seriously, he didn't have to bring me food, he could have let me sleep until the next morning, and I would have probably no doubt kicked myself then for not eating anything else. So this was...incredibly nice of him, and it made that warm feeling dance around in my chest.

"Thank you," I managed to stammer, after a moment. "That's really nice of you, I appreciate that."

Of course, Alaban's natural complexion was so dark I couldn't tell if the other man was blushing, or not. However, with the way he cleared his throat and turned his attention away from me, I gathered he probably was blushing from my thanks. And that created a strange feeling within my gut, one I couldn't quite place, nor was awake enough to place.

Appreciation? Gratitude? Thankfulness that he thought of me and was considerate enough to bring me a meal?

That more than likely was what it was. Definitely nothing else.

Shaking my head, I cleared my thoughts and thanked Alaban as he handed me the tray of soup he had brought up, and one look at the steaming bowl in front of me, I gathered that this was something akin to a meat-based soup. Probably rabbit, or squirrel—judging by the color of the meat.

And it was good, too. The meat was tender and juicy, and the herbs and spices the chef put into it gave it a deliciously unique a savory taste.

It took me no time at all to wolf it down, and that made me realize just how hungry I had been. Filled and satisfied, I sat the empty bowl aside and wiped my mouth with a napkin. "That was really good, thank you for bringing this up."

Alaban glanced at me and nodded. "Of course. Like I stated, I wanted to make sure you had something in your stomach, and figured you would be hungry." He then awkwardly shifted his weight before he cleared his throat and grabbed the bag he had also brought in. "Oh, and here are the supplies I gathered. Rations were easy to get, so I got enough to last us a month—just in case—and got us both a couple changes of clothes so we're not wearing the same dirty thing every single day." He nibbled his bottom lip, and peeked at me through his lashes. "I...also got you something else."

Brows furrowing, I peered at him curiously, wondering what this other gift was. "Oh?"

He nodded and flicked his wrist, and in the next instant, he was holding a gorgeous longsword with a shimmering blade that glimmered in the interior light.

In awe, I walked over to him and gently took the blade from his hand, admiring the craftmanship and weight of the sword as I turned it to and fro in my hands. "Where...Where did you get this?" I wondered as I took a step back and gave it an experimental swing. "The craftmanship is absolutely stunning, and the balance is immaculate..." I paused and glanced at him. "How much did this cost you? Surely something of this make and skill costs more than a few measly gold coins."

Alaban pursed his lips and averted his gaze to the floor, shrugging his shoulders. "Well, price isn't...important. What is important, is now you have a sword to easily protect us should anything unsavory happen."

I frowned and pointed the blade of the sword at the floor. "Did you...use magic to get this?"

Alaban blinked. "Um. No."

I snorted, not really believing his obvious lie. "Oh really? So how did you scrape up enough gold to be able to get this? Surely this wouldn't have cost less than a few hundred gold at the cheapest."

After a moment of staring between us dragons, Alaban finally pursed his lips and averted his gaze, finally relenting the truth. "Ok, I...may have leaned towards my capabilities to...well...convince the seller to drop the price a bit."

"How much is "a bit"?" I wondered, amused at this whole thing.

Alaban glanced at me. "Maybe...ninety-five percent, a bit?" He held up his hands. "In my defense, it's for a good cause?"

I don't know why, but that made me laugh sharply as I shook my head and returned my gaze to the sword in my hands. "While I don't agree with you using your magic on a hard working citizen...I do appreciate that you got this for me. Once I return home, as long as you remember whom had sold you this...I'll compensate them accordingly. Maybe even give them a little extra." I leaned the sword against the wall and walked over to Alaban, causing the other man to stare at me with those pools of liquid gold. "Thank you."

As I stated many times, it was hard to tell when the sun dragon was blushing. But I knew he had to be with the way he shyly averted that intense gaze, the corner of his lips slightly raising into a small smile. "Of course, your highness." He then cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck, moving to place the pack down by the door. "In, um, any case, we should probably go ahead and lay down, o-or relax. We've another long journey tomorrow."

I nodded my head and that warm feeling that was swirling in my gut intensified, and I couldn't help the warm smile that blossomed across my lips.

A/N: Don't you just love it when the love interest is just so thoughtful? Ahhhh, Alaban has his sweet side, it seeeeeeemmmmsssss. Buuuuut, some interesting stuff is about to come up, either next chapter, or the one afterrrrrrrrrrrrrr. Huhuhu

But alas, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Lemme know what you think! I love feedback! :)