Mate To The Queen

Jaxon

Anyone who says that brown eyes aren't beautiful is an idiot, I think as I pull Ash's hair into a bun again.

The early morning sun shines directly into the cave, turning Ash's blonde hair to bright gold and his brown eyes to molten copper. The freckles scattered across his nose are faintly visible in the light too.

I use the wet strip of cloth to wipe the blood off his face. He lets out a sharp wince making me sigh. "You know if you didn't move so much I wouldn't have to keep doing this," I tell him.

"Maybe I'm doing it on purpose so you have to keep cleaning it," he mutters.

I grin with a small shake of my head. "Gods Ash, why do I get the feeling you're just going to be more and more trouble the healthier you get?"

"More like the longer I'm away from everyone else," he says.

"Is it bad in the Circle too?" I ask gently.

"It's better than it is out here, your mother helps a lot, she's one of the nicest dragons I've ever met."

I frown a little, sitting back. "Really? Queen Zari is one of the nicest dragons you've ever met?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Nice isn't usually a word dragons use to describe my mother. She's pretty tough to juveniles and is super strict to make sure the fury dragons behave."

He suddenly rubs the back of his neck. "Well I consider her extremely nice because she forgave everything I did to our race and she protects me from those who won't," he says. "I mean she still forgave me even after she found out that I was the one who killed her father."

My eyes widen in shock. "Wait, you killed my grandfather?" I ask.

He nods, shifting nervously. "Yeah," he murmurs.

"Well you learn something new everyday I guess," I sigh, fishing around in my pack for more bandages. I swear when I can't find any. Biting my cheek, I rip up part of one of my shirts and use it instead.

"Are you mad?" he suddenly asks.

I frown. "Ash do you feel it getting warm in here?"

"Uh well, no."

I lean forward, putting my hands on his shoulders. "Please don't ever assume I'm mad at you, it takes quite a bit to make me upset and something that my mother has already forgiven you for is definitely not going to do it," I tell him.

"Sorry," he mutters, staring down at his hands.

I sigh and tilt his chin up so I can kiss him. He smiles a little against my lips. I pull away and wait until he looks at me. "I just want you to know that you don't ever have to apologize to me," I say with a reassuring smile.

He just nods numbly. I stand up with a groan, frowning at the stiffness in my legs. "I'll be right back, I'm going to find something to eat."

I step out of the cave with a heavy sigh. They hurt him so bad, I mutter.

You know you just have to be patient, Azazel reminds me.

Yeah I know. It's a good thing patience is one of my strong suits.

********

What do you think?  I ask, looking over the drawing.

Coal blossoms are blue.

I frown. Oh yeah, why was I thinking they're red? I mumble, searching for my eraser. I erase the red from the flowers and grab my blue pencils.

I want to go home, she suddenly says.

My head falls back against the rock. I know you want to shift but do you realize how difficult things are going to be with Ash once we get there? Especially now that there's a dozen juvenile assholes that hate everyone that's different from them, I growl.

I want to see Cassie, she mutters.

I bite my cheek, looking down at Ash. He's sleeping with his head on one of my legs. I feel terrible for my dragon right now. This entire time I've been bonding with Ash but she can't bond with Cassiel until we get to the Circle and they can both shift.

I'm sorry Azazel, I sigh.

I turn back to my sketch pad that's propped up against my knee and continue drawing. I pause when Ash suddenly starts to stir.

I carefully set down the drawing and pencils and brush Ash's hair away from his face. His forehead is shiny with sweat but he's shivering. His heartbeat is fast and so is his breathing.

"Please just be a nightmare," I whisper, gently stroking his hair.

He suddenly starts thrashing even worse than last time and he gasps for air. "Gods not again," I breathe, putting a pile of shirts under his head and moving to his side.

My heart pounds. "Ash wake up! Wake up! Please wake up!" I shout.

He sits up with a jerk but he doesn't calm down. He looks around with wild eyes, his chest heaving.

"Ash just take a deep breath," I say as he suddenly starts growling. I can feel it getting hotter in the cave.

"Hey hey hey Ash just tap my hand, okay it'll help just tap my hand," I tell him.

He tentatively reaches his hands out and his fingers tap frantically against my palms. "You're safe here Ash, okay? You're safe now, they can't hurt you anymore," I murmur softly. "You're safe, the hunters are gone. They can't hurt you."

His tapping eventually starts to slow and I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. Ash's fingers curl around my hand. "Are you okay?" I ask carefully.

He nods slowly, his shoulders hunching over in exhaustion. "What was the tapping?" he asks, letting out a shaky breath.

"Oh uh, you know that girl Taylor? She was having breakfast with us when you came to deliver the letters."

"Yeah."

"Taylor is pretty much my best friend and Kaine's ex girlfriend. She was abused by her brother and so she spent the night at our house a lot. My brother and I learned how to help with her night terrors and triggers and everything else that comes with trauma. Tapping can help bring you back to the present when you're trapped in a flashback," I explain.

"You know, no one's ever tried to help me before," he mutters. He looks up at me with a half smile. "Thank you."

I nod, giving his hands a reassuring squeeze. "Of course."

*******

Hey guys!! This chapter is really short but oh well I guess. I'm going to write Ash's POV next and it's going to be kinda short too but I will try to publish it by tomorrow (I might even finish it today).

I hope you liked this chapter, please COMMENT and VOTE!!!!!!