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Majesty	By : Kali Category: Beyblade > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 9656 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 1
- 2
- 3
Warnings: See chapter one if
you�re worried about it.

Disclaimer: I don�t own Beyblade
or anything to do with it. Only this
fic and it�s OC�s (if any).

Pairs: TyKa, ReMa,
Hilary/Tala? or Kenny?, Lee/Mariah, others to be decided.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter
06

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The
moment seemed to last forever.

Tyson
felt Kai increase the pressure a little more, kissing back, and he made an
approving, almost relieved noise because Kai had accepted the move instead of
recoiling and killing him for daring to make it and for being so forward.

Kai
pulled away enough that he could see into Tyson�s eyes clearly and not go
cross-eyed. �What brought that
on?� He asked hoarsely, appalled at the
thickness of his voice. It betrayed
just how much that little gesture had affected him.

The
corner of Tyson�s mouth curved up in a nervous half-smile. �It seemed like a good idea at the
time.� He joked, searching Kai�s
crimson eyes for some sign of�well, anything really. He needed some sort of indication of how Kai felt and it was
really making him even more nervous than he already was. Tyson dropped the hand he had forgotten
about hastily, where it had still been resting on Kai�s cheek and lightly
stroking with a thumb, and moved back completely, looking away. �Forgive me, Kai. I shouldn�t have��

�Don�t
you dare apologize, Kinomiya.� Kai
reached out and turned Tyson�s face back toward him so he could plant another,
harder kiss on the bluenette�s mouth.
Tyson grabbed onto Kai�s shoulders for support at the sudden onslaught
and responded helplessly, his lips parting slightly under Kai�s. Kai took advantage of the invitation and
acceptance offered, sliding the fingers of one hand through Tyson�s hair to cup
the back of his head while Kai deepened their kiss by flicking his tongue over
that full bottom lip and then plundering Tyson�s mouth when he let out a
shuddering sigh of pleasure. Tyson�s
fingers dug into the material of Kai�s tunic and shirt, gripping and releasing
rhythmically in time with the thrust and retreat of Kai�s tongue against his
own as they duelled one another.

Eventually
they began to run out of breath and had to break apart, panting. Kai let his forehead rest against Tyson�s
for a moment before speaking again.
�I�ve wanted to do that since the moment I saw you in the throne room,
you know, even though I couldn�t.� He
gave a self-mocking laugh. �I knew then
I shouldn�t and I�m still certain of that now but I confess that I�m starting
to not give a damn for the consequences.�

�Gods.� Tyson managed to whisper before clearing his
throat. �Kai�we can�t. It would be stupid, reckless, irresponsible
even��

�I
know it.� Kai agreed, brushing his lips
lightly across the other teen�s closed eyelids then placing tiny butterfly soft
kisses at the corners of his mouth.
�But I don�t care�it�s worth it.
I�ve never felt like this before and I don�t want it to stop.�

Tyson
whimpered, needing to get closer so he was up off his chair and down on Kai�s
lap, his legs straddling the dual-haired prince�s waist. He ran his hands restlessly up and down
Kai�s chest and over his shoulders while Kai�s hands played over his sides and
came to rest on his hips, gripping firmly.
�I want you, Kai�I do. But I
need to know�I need more than lust from you.�
He said lowly, raising his hands to brush the hair from Kai�s eyes and
cup his face in his hands. �We
dragon-folk will only take one lover � one mate � in our entire lives, and we
mate for life. And as of right now I
can�t see a future where we can continue to be together, Kai��

�I
know that, too�now.� Kai wrapped his
arms around Tyson�s waist and pulled him closer, burying his face in the crook
of Tyson�s neck and shoulder. �I don�t
know what all I feel, Tyson. I�ve never
felt it before. I want you. That feeling I am familiar with. The rest�I know I care for you � certainly
more than I ought to. I know I�m
already growing attached enough to you that I miss your presence when you�re
not with me. I know that I often find
myself seeking your approval � words or a smile I�ll take either happily.�

Tyson
sniffled. �That�s a good start,
Kai.� He breathed before he leaned in
and kissed him again, trying to convey all of his own feelings to Kai in that
one gesture. He broke away breathing
heavily again and said against the prince�s lips, �I know what it is I
feel for you. I don�t know why it was
you, but I have fallen for you, Hiwatari.
Hard.�

�Shh��
Kai hushed him. �Don�t say it until I�m
sure�until I can return the words.� He
looked into Tyson�s darkened blue eyes pleadingly. �Please? I just need time
to think��

�Okay�okay.� Tyson nodded. �I can do that.� His
hands slid up and back to tangle his fingers in Kai�s hair.

�Thank
you. Now kiss me again�� Kai demanded
and Tyson was only too happy to comply, crushing their mouths together and
moaning into the passionate kiss.

For
once in his life Kai let himself drown in sensation and emotion. He didn�t know what it was about this young
man in his arms but he felt safe � unafraid to show himself to Tyson. Here he didn�t have to hide, didn�t have to
be moderate, distant, cold. He didn�t
have to be any of the things he�d been taught a member of the Imperial
Family had to be.

And
that in itself was enough to make Kai believe in love again.

Tyson�s
hands had begun to wander, needing to touch and have some kind of contact with
Kai�s bare skin, sliding one up under the hem of his shirt to trace his muscled
abdomen and the other tugging the collar of his tunic aside so that he could
latch onto Kai�s neck and shoulder with his mouth. Kai made a startled noise then let out an appreciative moan.

�Mmm�addictive.� Tyson murmured against Kai�s skin, sucking
lightly to get a taste. �I just knew
you�d taste good, Kai.�

�Ah�hmm�Tyson,
if you don�t stop that I�oh Gods, yes!
Right there�� Kai groaned and his fingers dug into Tyson�s hips where he
was desperately holding on.

Chuckling
and feeling a fair amount of satisfaction despite not getting nearly enough of
Kai to suit himself, Tyson sighed and wrapped his arms around Kai�s neck,
snuggling in and simply holding on for a while. Disappointed yet grateful, Kai held him close contentedly,
freeing Tyson�s hair from the hair tie and slowly combing his fingers through
the soft, silky, blue-black strands.

�Kai?� Tyson said after a long moment of silence.

�Hmm?� Kai made a questioning noise, not in a mood
to talk just then.

�If�if
we do this � create this bond � how are we going to make it work? Can we make it work?� Tyson pulled away so he could see Kai�s face
and expression. His own stormy blue
eyes were full of worry, uncertainty, and were silently begging Kai for some
kind of reassurance � something the older teen wasn�t sure he could provide.

�I
wish�� Kai began. �I wish I could make
promises, give you guarantees, Tyson, but I can�t. We don�t know what the future holds for us. I do know it won�t be easy, and things may
not go exactly how we plan.� He stared
into Tyson�s eyes and laid his palm across Tyson�s heart. �But there is one promise I can make: I will
do whatever I have to, do the best I can, to set things right again so that we
can at least have the opportunity to try and make everything work.�

Tyson
nodded, sniffling again and throwing his arms around Kai�s shoulders and neck
once more. �Good enough for me,
Kai. Thank you. And I hope you�ll let me help.�

Kai
smiled. �I was counting on it,
Kinomiya.�

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That
evening Rei was healed and feeling well enough to join them for supper. The baby stayed curled into his shoulder and
held in place with that arm while he ate with the other hand.

�It�s
amazing how fast one learns to coordinate with a chibi.� He commented.

�You�re
very good at it, that�s for sure.�
Tyson laughed, reaching for another slice of bread.

�By
the way, Max and I really want to thank you all for that you�ve done since you
got here.� Rei smiled at them and Max
nodded in agreement. �All of you have
done so much and you�re supposed to be guests here.�

�Oh,
what nonsense.� Hilary waved that
away. �Guests? Hardly, Rei. We came to you in order to beg for your charity. The least we can do is help out around here
� especially now with the chibi there.�

�And
I call that nonsense!� Max
declared. �Charity? As if.
You and Tyson are practically family, Hilary. We�d have been insulted if you hadn�t come to us for
help. And any friends of yours are
welcome here, too.� The blonde added,
firmly.

�Well
said, Maxie.� Rei agreed softly.

�We
still owe you, Max.� Tyson
shrugged. �Especially since our
presence puts all of you in danger.�

�Don�t
you worry, Tyson. For now, let�s just
enjoy the reunion we get to have after so long, okay?�

Tyson
smiled. �Yeah.�

Kai
remained silent throughout the meal, thinking about what Tyson had said. He had been right. They were a danger to Max, Rei, and their daughter. He hated to bring more misery down on these
people who had already suffered at the hands of the Empire. But he just didn�t know what else to do or
where he could go. He knew he would
eventually have to return to his grandfather and face him. Kai wished he just had more time and more
information about what exactly was going on in the Empire so that he could go
back prepared and with some control.

Kai
knew Voltaire had been after the Kinomiya family sword but now that it was
destroyed and whatever it had contained was gone, there was no reason to come
after Tyson and Hilary any longer.

Or
was there? Perhaps they knew where the
power contained in that sword had gone.
And even if they didn�t, Voltaire probably believed that they did
and wouldn�t accept otherwise. Boris
would make sure of that.

Boris. Kai glared down at his plate. That evil sorcerer general was the reason
for all of this, Kai was certain. He�d
suspected long ago that the man had used some kind of dark magic on Voltaire to
control him. But of course he could
never find any proof. Kai suppressed a
shudder at memories of the training he and the members of the Royal Guards were
put through when they had been turned over to the new General by the Emperor. And it had been the elite � Tala, Bryan,
Spencer, and a select few others � who had been forced to do more than just
�train� with Boris. Kai had only
escaped that horrible fate because he was heir to the throne � and because he
suspected (even at the young age of six or seven when the training had begun) that
Boris knew if he ever tried to so much as touch Kai the prince would have
killed him outright, not caring about the consequences.

When
Kai had found about what was happening to the others, however, he often had
considered doing just that anyway. And since
then he very much regretted his decision not to.

Especially
now, when he found himself exiled and so far away from the only home he�d ever
known.

At
least one good thing had come out of it all.
Kai glanced over at Tyson, who sat across the table from him and sat
next to his cousin. As if the bluenette
had sensed Kai looking at him, he looked up and met Kai�s gaze, giving him a
warm, questioning smile. �What?�

�It�s
nothing. Just thinking.� Kai shook his head slightly and returned to
his meal, even though he really wasn�t that hungry anymore.

Tyson
gave him an odd look then shrugged and went back to concentrating on his food.

After
the meal, Max helped Hilary clean up the kitchen and dining room quickly while
Kenny prepared tea for everyone.

Kai
accepted his tea from Max and sat next to Tyson on the cushioned couch. Hilary was watching them carefully, though
they didn�t notice. She�d had a very
enlightening discussion with Kenny out in the garden while they weeded and
cleaned it up. He had told her about
Kai�s rather lonely life and how he�d been alone for the better part of
it. At first she hadn�t really known
what to think when he�d told her that Kai appeared to be becoming attached to
Tyson, but now she wasn�t so sure.

Hilary
saw the way they leaned into one another � okay, they weren�t really
doing that but it was the impression they gave. She decided that at the first opportunity she had she would pull
Tyson aside and ask him what was going on.

Once
he�d finished distributing the tea, Max resumed his seat next to Rei and the
two exchanged silent looks before nodding at teach other. Max gently took the baby from his mate and
held her carefully with his large, strong hands, staring down into her chubby
little face and those bright green and gold eyes solemnly.

�Well,
chibi ichi, I guess it�s time we named you, isn�t it?� He smiled and she cooed at him, waving a
fist in the air.

�Had
you thought of any names before?� Tyson
asked, sipping his tea.

Rei
shook his head, flipping his wrapped length of hair over his shoulder. �Nothing we both liked. And even so, we didn�t know if it was a boy
or a girl which just made things harder.�

�What
were some of the ones you�d come up with?�
Kenny wanted to know. �Perhaps a
different name you bot hlike can be formed from one of them.�

Max
thought for a moment. �Well, let�s
see�Suki. Kyra��

�Maris�Chloe��
Rei added.

�Maya
or Nya�� Max continued, but stopped when the baby scrunched up her nose and
yelled unhappily. �Uh�she doesn�t like
any of them either, I guess.�

Tyson
got up and went over. �May I?� He asked Max, holding out his hands.

�Sure.� The blonde placed the baby in his best
friend�s arms and Tyson went back to his seat, cuddling her as he studied her.

�She
kind of looks like an Emma to me.� He
decided. She hiccoughed and crossed her
eyes at him and Tyson sweatdropped.
�But she doesn�t think so.�

�How
about Elizabeth? Or Catherine?� Hilary suggested. �Those are very strong, elegant names.�

�Too
formal and too uptight.� Rei shook his
head again. �She doesn�t seem like
either.� He gave Hilary an apologetic
smile. �Sorry Hilary.�

Kai,
who�d been silent the whole time and looking down at the baby in Tyson�s arms
thoughtfully, suddenly said, �Tabitha.�
The baby�s eyes swung up to look at him, a voice she recognized and
seemed quite attached to, and made happy little baby-noises, flashing a
toothless smile.

Tyson
blinked and looked at him, then at the baby, then back to Kai. �Tabitha?�
More happy sounds from the baby.
�Huh. Well, look at that.�

Max
grinned. �I like it. Rei?�

�It�s
a good name.� The neko-jin agreed. �She seems to like it.�

�There
you go.� Tyson grinned and let the
newly named Tabitha grab onto his index finger and stick it in her mouth, where
she proceeded to gum it enthusiastically.
He got up and handed her back to Rei, who held her comfortably and with
an ease that belied his status as a first time parent.

�Welcome
to the world, my little Tabi-cat.� He
greeted her with an accompanying purr.
The unrestrained, un-moderated purr of a kitten joined it and Max
started grinning brightly before leaning over and kissing Rei quite soundly.

Hilary
clapped her hands delightedly and stood up.
�This calls for cake! Let�s have
desert, guys!�

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tyson
and Kai were lying in their separate beds a few hours later, Dragoon curled up
with Tyson and Dranzer perched on the beams above Kai�s bed roosting, when the
bluenette asked a question he�d been meaning to ask for a very long time.

�Kai?�

�Huh?� Came the sleepy, gruff response.

�Why
did Voltaire destroy the lands of my people and desire my family�s sword so
much?�

Kai,
who�d been at that half-awake, half-asleep stage, pried open his eyes and
rolled onto his back to stare up at the ceiling wit ha sigh. �I thought you knew why, Tyson.�

�No. I mean, yes the sword once contained
something that was supposed to be really powerful but it would only work for a
Kinomiya � more specifically the Kinomiya � and even then I don�t know
exactly what it did anyway.� Tyson
explained. �How did Voltaire know about
the sword all this time and yet when it was destroyed not know that the
power was gone?�

The
Imperial heir was silent for a minute before he responded, pondering those
questions carefully and discovering Tyson was right � it made no sense.

�I�m
not sure either, Kinomiya.� Kai finally
answered. �As for why he wanted the
sword�there was this old legend in some old text. Boris found it and he used his influence to bring it to my
grandfather�s attention one day several years after my parents� deaths. In that time, Boris had been carefully
weaving his evil magic over my grandfather � unbeknownst to him, and pretty much
everyone else. I didn�t understand what
was going on at first � after all I was only a child yet. But after I�d begun my training under Boris
at the Emperor�s orders I began to suspect.

�Grandfather
had changed so much I barely knew who he was any longer. And�it scared me.� Kai admitted softly. �He
was the only real father I had now that I�d lost my own and he was rapidly
becoming a stranger � a cold, angry vengeful stranger.�

Tyson
listened sadly, hearing the pain and empty sadness in Kai�s voice. But he didn�t offer pity or sympathy because
he knew the prince well enough to know that he wouldn�t want or accept it, nor
would he appreciate it. Instead, he
simply listened, sitting up and propping himself with pillows against the
headboard of his bed, hugging his knees.
�So what did this legend say?�

Kai
took a deep breath and let it out slowly, forcing back bad memories and the
emptiness that came with them. �I don�t
even know if it was a real legend or not. As far as I know it could have merely been some story in a book
written for amusement not history or prophecy.� Kai snorted, a sound of supreme annoyance and not a little
disbelief. �It says that when two great
powers are brought together a new era of ruler-ship would begin in the Empire
and that the two powers are of fire and air.
Beyond that I don�t know anything else.
Boris made certain that no one knew the rest of the legend.�

Tyson
stared across the room in the darkness at Kai�s covered form, his mind going a
mile a minute with that information.
Why? It explained why Voltaire
was after Dragoon. The Kinomiya�s
Guardian was, as legend told, a storm dragon with unparalleled powers, and
storm dragons were the most powerful of all dragonkind � even fire dragons were
no match for a storm dragon. These
dragons were also the most rare of their kind.
In fact, no one had seen a storm dragon for�centuries. It was generally believed that they had all
died out.

But
if Voltaire � or rather Boris � was after Dragoon because of that, then it only
followed that there must be a similar creature or spirit out there somewhere
that possessed the power of fire.

And
then it dawned on him. Why had Dragoon
and Dranzer appeared to recognize one another immediately? Tyson looked up at the phoenix and then at
his family�s Guardian sharply. Dranzer
trilled something at them both, and Dragoon purred in answer, the tip of his
tail rising to lightly trace Tyson�s cheek fondly.

�Tyson? What�s wrong? You�ve gone all quiet over there.� Kai was sitting up now and looking over at him. Tyson debated with himself, trying to decide
if he should finally reveal everything to this young man who had captured his
heart and warmed his soul with an unseen fiery passion.

�You
might as well re-light a lamp, Kai.�
Tyson sighed, coming to a decision.
He looked solidly at Dragoon and the dragon purred soothingly, giving
him an affirmative nod of his head. �I
think we need to talk.�

Kai
swung his legs off the bed and got up, lifting the lamp from his night-stand
and holding it up to Dranzer carefully.
�If you would, Beautiful?�

Tyson
couldn�t see exactly what she did but there was suddenly light in the
room. Kai placed the lamp back on the
stand and went to sit beside Tyson on the bed, dragging the covers off his bed
with him. The bluenette took the
opportunity to oogle the object of his affections, since Kai�s hair was mussed
from bed and his eyes were a tad heavy with sleepiness, not to mention the
muscles that were barely hidden by Kai�s sleeping clothes. The view made Tyson lick his lips
unconsciously and when Kai sat down, the younger teen couldn�t help but crawl
toward him and capture Kai�s lips with his own, surprising Kai but certainly
not unwelcoming it.

Automatically
responding by kissing back and opening his mouth at Tyson�s insistent,
demanding tongue, Kai groaned and buried his fingers in that mane of blue-black
hair.

After
a long moment of slow, passionate, thorough kissing, Tyson released Kai and sat
back to catch his breath and calm his raging hormones.

�Hmm��
Kai cleared his throat of its raspy quality.
�What was that for? Not that I�m
complaining��

�I
couldn�t help it. You just looked so
damn sexy all mussed and rumpled.�
Tyson told him huskily. He
blinked when Kai actually blushed at that and felt a rush of desire flood his
system. �Oh�what the hell.� He�d totally forgotten what he�d been about
to talk about with Kai and the hot, lusty intensity of Kai�s gaze on him told
him that Kai had too. Tyson got off the
bed and, without breaking their eye contact, yanked his shirt up and off over
his head, dropping it to the floor carelessly.

Kai�s
eyes widened slightly and his breathing hitched. �Oh Gods�� It was suddenly really warm in the room and the look
Tyson was giving him didn�t help. He
ripped off his own shirt and flung it in the general direction of his abandoned
bed, standing up and moving into Tyson�s waiting arms and letting their mouths
fuse hungrily. Neither saw Dragoon roll
his eyes in exasperation or notice when the dragon rose up and floated upwards
to join Dranzer in the rafters.

Tyson
ran his palms down and up Kai�s muscular arms then over his shoulders and back,
touching, caressing, teasing, while his tongue plundered Kai�s mouth, exploring
and tasting the one who he would have as a mate � even if it wouldn�t be tonight. He�d promised Kai time and he never broke a
promise.

It
didn�t mean they couldn�t have some fun, though.

Continuing
to kiss each other with an increasing ferocity, Tyson walked backward until his
legs hit the bed then let himself fall back onto it, pulling Kai down with him.

�Uhn�can�t�get
enough of you.� The bluenette panted,
one of his hands sliding down Kai�s back and over his hip, slipping under the
waistband of Kai�s silk pants to find bare skin. Kai shivered and latched his mouth onto a sensitive spot on
Tyson�s neck below his ear, sucking on the skin there in response. The Kinomiya�s scent was musky and heady and
combined with the intoxicating taste of him, Kai�s senses were going wild. He had never felt this kind of lust before �
so intense, so demanding that he couldn�t think about anything else but getting
more of it all, and when Tyson�s hand fully cupped one bare lobe of his butt
and squeezed possessively, Kai lost all coherent thought completely and could
do little but feel. His world existed
of nothing but sensation now.

Tyson
let out a quite moan of appreciation as Kai�s fingers found his nipple and
toyed with it, pinching and rolling it between thumb and forefinger then simply
rubbing with the palm of his hand. �Ah! So good��

�Like
that? How about this?� Kai dipped his head, moving lower and
forcing Tyson to move the hand on his backside because he couldn�t reach it
anymore, and kissed the hardened nub, parting his lips just enough to let his
hot breath waft across Tyson�s sensitive bare skin and make him shiver. Then he
flicked his tongue over it before sucking it into his mouth and being rewarded
with a tiny cry of pleasure from the bluenette. Kai released that nub, satisfied, and turned his attention to its
twin, his hand slowly creeping down to rub against Tyson�s erection as he
did. This time he earned a needy
whimper of his name and a thrust upwards of Tyson�s hips.

�Kai!� Tyson arched his back and writhed
helplessly. Needing to take control
before they couldn�t stop, he flipped Kai over and onto his back so that Tyson
hovered over top of him. Panting
heavily, he stared down into burning crimson and gold depths. �We have to stop now, Kai��

�We
don�t!� Kai protested, fighting off the
urge to squirm he was so hard. �Tyson
we don�t need to go that far but I can�t take this much longer.� He slid a leg against Tyson�s hip
seductively then hooked it around his waist, bringing the lower halves of their
bodies in direct contact. Both let out
a cry and Tyson dropped down on his forearms on either side of Kai when his
arms gave out under him. �Tell me you
don�t need relief, Kinomiya.� Kai
rasped. �Tell me you don�t need release��
His hands were tugging on the pants Tyson wore, succeeding in getting them
halfway down his hips and butt as he spoke.

Tyson
gave up that fight pretty quickly. He
growled something Kai didn�t understand and sat up long enough to practically
tear the pants off Kai and fling them aside.
Then he wriggled out of his own before staring down at his lover with
blazing blue eyes. �I can�t tell you
that and you know it damn you.� He
smiled wickedly in amusement then, with no modesty at all, when he saw that Kai
was staring at his erection in a mixture of need, want, surprise, and strangely
anxiousness. �Look at me,
Hiwatari.� He demanded.

Kai
licked his lips and breathed, �I am.�
His hands snuck up Tyson�s thighs next to his own hips, since Tyson had
straddled him.

With
another low growl, Tyson grabbed those hands and raised them up above Kai�s head,
pinning them there and leaned forward to settle over Kai, chest to chest. Disliking having his movements restricted
immensely � and yet finding it was strangely erotic to be helpless to Tyson�s
wishes � the fiery cold prince struggled against his restraining grip, even
though he quickly discovered the futility of it. �No. I mean look
at me.� Tyson said darkly, feeling a
shudder run through the body underneath him.
Kai raised his eyes to look into Tyson�s stormy blue ones and ceased
struggling. �Do you trust me,
beloved? Enough to give me control?�

Kai
stared into those eyes, drowning, and without hesitation said, �Yes.� all
resistance disappearing. His entire
expression went soft and he smiled at Tyson as realization hit him. �I really do. How�d that happen?� He
wondered absently before getting distracted as Tyson rocked against him and
their erections rubbed together.
�Ahhh�ah!� He cried out.

Tyson
chuckled and dropped his head to Kai�s shoulder, his mind swimming in
pleasure. He gave himself a minute then
sat up again, placing himself between Kai�s legs this time and lying back down
over him. Then he crushed his mouth to
Kai�s once more and began to move, again rocking against Kai insistently and
suggestively. Tyson�s tongue thrust in and
out of Kais mouth in a mimicry of what he would have really liked to do but
couldn�t � not yet. Kai moaned, his
fingers tangling with Tyson�s and one of his legs hooking around Tyson�s waist
again as their movements became faster and more frantic. The friction was driving them both closer
and closer to the edge and their cries rang out in the quiet of the night.

�Ughn�oh
Gods�� Kai ground out, clutching desperately at Tyson�s back with one hand and
gripping his hand tightly with the other.
His head tossed back, exposing the column of his throat to Tyson�s mouth
and he whimpered. �I�m�gonna�come��

�Do
it.� Tyson growled against his neck,
ready to lose the fight to stay in control of his body�s need for release. �Come, Kai.�

Unable
to take anymore, Kai surrendered to the ecstasy and came hard, trembling
uncontrollably with his release and pouring himself out between them all over
their stomachs and pelvises with a hoarse cry.
Tyson shuddered and followed him, his own pearly essence mixing with Kai�s
on their straining, sweat-slicked bodies, and collapsed over-top his lover in
relieved exhaustion.

Dazed
but feeling quite satisfied about it, Kai couldn�t help the smug smirk that
graced his features sometime later and he managed to shove Tyson�s constricting
weight off of him � right off onto the floor.
Luckily they�d kicked the bed covers he�d dragged over earlier onto the
floor so at least Tyson had a soft landing.
Of course, that didn�t stop the startled yelp nor the annoyed growl that
followed.

�Kai! What�d you do that for?�

�Oops. Didn�t mean to push you off the bed, just
off me. You got heavy.� Kai grinned unapologetically, leaning over
to look down at Tyson.

A
hand shot up and yanked Kai down off the bed, who tried grabbing the covers for
help but ended up pulling them off instead as he landed on top of Tyson. With an amused, contented chuckle, Kai
settled himself comfortably and groped for covers, pulling those up over them,
and snuggled into Tyson, who wrapped his arms around the prince happily.

�More
room down here anyway.� Tyson mumbled,
already falling asleep. Kai made a
noise of agreement and let himself drop off, completely at ease.

***********************************

Chapter
07

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tyson
wasn�t sure what it was, but something woke him up in the middle of the night,
and for some reason he absolutely could not fall back asleep.

He
was snuggled into the nest of covers and sheets on the floor, with a
dead-to-the-world Kai curled into him and breathing softly in slumber. It had become unbearably hot in the room �
or maybe it was just him. Either way it
was becoming stifling, and Tyson found it hard to breathe. Careful not to disturb his lover, Tyson
eased away and rolled to his feet, searching for his sleeping pants and when he
found them he slipped into them quickly before padding to the door and going
outside. Dragoon watched from the
rafters and nudged Dranzer awake, mewling something at her before uncoiling
himself and following Tyson.

The
bluenette went down the stairs, now beginning to feel a bit disoriented and
dizzy. What�s wrong with me? He asked himself in confusion and a little
fear. I feel funny. Indeed, his whole body had begun to tingle
mysteriously. A quiet mewl made him
look over to see Dragoon hovering nearby in concern. �Dragoon? Why am I
feeling so strangely? Do you know?� The dragon bobbed his head in the
affirmative but before Tyson could ask what, his vision wavered and he cried
out, falling to his knees.

Dranzer,
after being awakened by her old friend, ghosted down to the floor to wake up
Kai.

�Ugh�go
�way. Tired.� He grumbled, trying to swat her away but completely missing. She eyed him consideringly then leaned right
up to his ear and let out a high-pitched screech.

�AAAHHHHH!!!!!� He yelped, sitting up abruptly and covering
his ears with his hands. �Oooooh�ow!
That hurt!� He whined
un-Kai-like and glared at her. �What
was that for?�

Dranzer
trilled at him and fluttered her wings to indicate the room in general. Still scowling, he looked around trying to
figure out what she was trying to tell him, and noticed Tyson was missing.

And
then he heard a cry from outside � that sounded like Tyson.

Kai
felt his heart skip a beat then begin to pound as he rolled to his feet,
grabbed his sleeping pants and pulled them on hastily before dashing for the
door. Dranzer winged her way outside
after him, finding a perch on a fence near Dragoon and watched the unfolding
drama as her human stumbled down the stairs and rushed to Tyson�s side
anxiously.

�Tyson? What are you doing out here? What�s wrong?�

�I�I�ah!� Tyson tried to tell him he felt weird but
couldn�t manage to get it out. He fell
over and his body began to twitch as a strange, intense blue light surrounded
him, enveloping the teen completely.
Kai�s eyes went wide and he jumped back, startled. Tyson gasped and rolled onto his stomach,
his hands clawing at the grassy earth as he tried to get up but couldn�t. Above their heads a low rumble issued from
the sky and Kai glanced upward in time to see the full moon covered by an
immense black storm cloud. He looked
back at his lover with impossibly wide eyes and shook his head.

�It
can�t be possible. Tyson�� he
breathed then gasped loudly when the bluenette raised his head and looked
directly at him. The Kinomiya�s eyes
had become a fury of stormy blue � no pupil or whiteness to be found � and they
glowed eerily in the dark night. Kai
swallowed and remained perfectly still, no sure what to do or say.

A
bolt of lightning lit up the world for a brief moment and a few seconds later a
crash of thunder echoed. Tyson cried
out again and this time the blue light grew stronger, more intensely bright, around
him. Just then the kitchen door of the
main house banged open and the others came hurrying out.

Hilary
reached Kai first and skidded to a halt beside him, her hands flying to her
face as a shocked gasp came from her.

�Kai! What�s going on? We heard someone cry out and�� Max came up on Hilary�s other side
and stopped dead in his tracks at the sight of his best friend glowing like a
blue star. �Holy hell��

Rei
took one look and hissed, �Everyone step back and give him space! He�s going to shift!�

�What?!� Kai didn�t budge, even when Kenny tugged on
his arm trying to pull him back.
�Tyson�s not a demi-human, though!�

Hilary
shook her head. �He wasn�t. But�� She paled and whipped her head around
frantically until she spotted Dragoon.
The brunette hurried over and dropped down to one knee in her
nightdress, head bowed in deepest respect.
�Dragoon�please�is it time? Is
this the Kinomiya secret that�s been kept by the Gods all this time?� The dragon mewled in response and shifted
restlessly.

Max
and Rei exchanged glances at her questions.
�Do you know what she�s taking about?�
Rei asked the blonde. Max shook
his head.

�Why
is she so�reverent of Dragoon?� Kenny
inquired, noting how Hilary had yet to stand up and continued to keep her head
bowed. �Are the dragon-folk always so
respectful of dragons?�

Rei
shifted Tabi in his arms and stared at Kenny and Kai in surprise. �You mean you don�t know?�

�Know
what?� Kai demanded, growing
increasingly worried for Tyson and losing his grip on civility.

�Dragoon
is no ordinary dragon. He�s a storm
dragon � the most powerful of them all, in fact.� Max answered slowly. �But
the reason Hilary is so respectful is because Dragoon is the Guardian of the
Kinomiya family.�

Kai
stared at Max in shock, then looked at Dragoon in disbelief. If it was true, then it meant that this
was the power Boris and his grandfather sought from the Kinomiyas.

It
also meant that Tyson had known all along what the dragon was and had
not deigned to inform Kai of it.
The prince�s crimson eyes narrowed and he looked over at his lover in
annoyed anger. You and I need to
have a little chat, Kinmoya. He
growled silently, then winced as Tyson cried out again � this time in
pain. Later. He amended hastily.

Oblivious
to everything but his body and now the pain of a transformation that was
rapidly approaching him, Tyson curled into a ball and whimpered. Oh Gods�Dragoon! I hurt�please make it stop! But as much as he pleaded it didn�t
happen. The blue light intensified to
near-blinding white so bright no one could look directly at him anymore.

And
then it happened. Tyson felt as if his
whole body melted into a puddle, his conscious mind floating amorphously and
hazily as the form shifted within the light and took a new shape.

To
the others, there was nothing to see.
The light was too bright. They
did, however, notice the wind pick up and begin to blow furiously, whipping
their hair and clothes around them. Rei
knelt on the ground and shielded his daughter from the wind with his body, and
the others got low to the ground, too, as lightning filled the sky and rain
began to pour. Thunder rumbled and
shook the ground under their feet.

Suddenly
it all stopped � just stopped. When
they looked up they were presented with a dragon, a white one whose scaly form
shone iridescent blue when it moved. It
was quite a bit larger than Dragoon was at the moment, and it shifted in its
spot uneasily, apparently trying to get used to this new development and how
its body worked.

Hilary
stood up as Dragoon purred a greeting at the other dragon. Dranzer chirped something, too, and the
blue-white dragon tilted its head at them in something like surprised
curiosity.

Kai
stared at what he assumed was his lover.
�Tyson?� He asked, tentatively,
taking a step forward. The dragon
looked at him and shifted, uncoiling and winding his way over to Kai. �It is you��

{Yep!} Came an unexpected response in his head � a
voice that definitely belonged to Tyson.
{I really wasn�t expecting this, Kai.
Ah�do I look okay? Are you all
right with this?}

�Uh�you�re
gorgeous. For a dragon. Not that you weren�t nice-looking as a
human, I mean�� Kai stumbled over his words, feeling just a little
light-headed. He blushed hotly when the
others looked at him strangely. �And
why wouldn�t I be all right with this?
What do you take me for?� He
snapped in embarrassment. He heard
Tyson chuckle in his head.

{Calm
down, beloved. I�m relieved. I�} The dragon looked away and the tip of
his tail lashed back and forth in uncertainty.
{I had a moment of panic, dreading the thought of you leaving me because
of this�}

�No
way.� Kai declared firmly. �This changes nothing, Kinomiya.�

The
dragon let out a loud, rumbling purr and loosely encircled Kai from neck to
feet. {I�m relieved. And a little scared, Kai.}

Kai
reached up as if to lay a hand on Tyson�s coils but stopped, his hand hovering
hesitantly. �Can I�touch you?�

Tyson
grinned mentally and his purred answer definitely had two meanings. {You can touch me anytime, anywhere you
want, lover.} Kai blushed again and gave him a swat instead.

�Tyson
no ecchi!� Kai scolded, half-heartedly.

Max
and Rei came over and the blonde was practically bouncing up and down with
excitement.

�Wow,
Tyson! Look at you! Way cool, buddy!� He exclaimed, running a hand over a coil. �Neat��

Rei
rolled his eyes and gently pulled max away with one arm around his waist. �Cut that out, Maxie. It�s bad enough when you do that to me.�

�You
have fur, Rei. You�re all soft and
cuddly.� Max pointed out the
difference. �Tyson feels smooth
and�silky.�

�It�s
very interesting.� Kenny piped up,
coming over to study Tyson closer but still standing at a timid distance. �But what does it mean?�

�He
is the Kinomiya, protector of the lands of the Dragon Gods and leader of the
clans.� Hilary finally spoke up, tears
pouring down her face as she gazed upon her cousin in awe. �He is Kinomiya Takao, named this night
officially and by tradition. In place
of our grandfather I will declare it � before Lord Dragoon.�

Tyson
removed himself from around Kai and wound over to her and Dragoon. {I have many questions, my Lord. I hope you will allow me answers.} He directed that at the ancient dragon, who
looked at him gravely.

{Of
course, Takao. It is finally time for
you to know what path Destiny has put you on so that you may choose your
course.} Dragoon gave him a mental
smile. {Perhaps it should wait until
morning, however. Change back, little
dragon, and get your much deserved rest.}

�Takao?� Hilary asked, gaining his attention. �Are you okay?�

Tyson
purred reassuringly and she smiled, curtsying respectfully and backing
away. Without knowing how he
knew how to do it, Tyson closed his eyes and in another blinding flash of
blue-white light and a burst of wind, he shifted back, returning to his human
self.

When
he opened his eyes he smiled at his friends and blushed a little. �Ah�sorry I woke all of you up. I wasn�t really expecting this.�

�It�s
okay, Tyson! I mean�Takao!� Max forgave him easily. �Man, that�s going to take some getting used
to.�

�You
can still call me Tyson, Max. �Takao�
is�formal.� The bluenette said, slowly
in explanation.

�If
you say so!�

Tyson
yawned widely and teetered precariously on his feet. Kai stepped up and simply scooped him up into his arms. His burden yelped in surprise then sighed
and looped an arm around Kai�s neck, resting his head on Kai�s shoulder
wearily. �Thanks, Kai. I�m wiped out.� His eyelids drooped.

�You
should be. It takes energy to
shift.� Rei informed him
sympathetically. �And you did it twice
within a few minutes. Go to bed, Tyson,
and get some rest.�

�Okay��

Kai
whistled sharply and Dranzer launched herself into the air, flying up to the
stable apartment again. Dragoon lazily
followed along beside, seemingly quite content with the way events were turning
out, as Kai turned and headed up the stairs.

Everyone
else returned to their own beds, really tired now after all that excitement.

Up
in the rooms above the stable in the barn, Kai tucked Tyson into their pile of
covers on the floor and joined him, allowing the bluenette to draw him into the
curve of his body and snuggle up.

�You�re
really all right with me now, Kai?�
Tyson whispered, still sounding unsure of himself.

Kai
raised his face and kissed Tyson softly, but lingeringly. �Definitely. Never doubt it, Kinomiya.
We�ll talk about everything else tomorrow.�

Tyson
sighed and nodded. Just once more
reason for me to love you, Kai. He
thought as he drifted off to sleep once more.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kai
slowly came awake the next morning to the feeling of Tyson�s fingers combing
through the bangs of his hair lethargically.
The prince sighed and rolled over, tossing an arm and a leg over Tyson
and snuggling into his body like a gigantic pillow. He buried his face in the curve of Tyson�s shoulder and neck,
hearing Tyson�s low chuckle.

�I
hope you�re comfortable, beloved.
This floor�s getting a little hard.�

�Tough.� Kai mumbled against his skin. �You�re warm and comfy.�

�Kai-i��

�Go
back to sleep. Too early.�

�According
to the clock on the wall over there it�s nearly ten in the morning.�

�Too
early.�

Tyson
sighed, resignedly, opting to lazily trail his fingertips up and down Kai�s
bare back instead since his hair was tucked under Tyson�s chin. He smiled serenely as Kai shifted against
him restlessly and groaned.

�Kinomiya��
Kai complained. �I can�t sleep with you
petting me like that. Must you?�

�Hmm�yes,
actually. I like touching you.� His smile turned wicked when he felt one of
Kai�s hands under the covers slide slowly against his hip and over his abdomen,
and then Kai�s lips against his neck planting soft, teasing kisses. �Do you really want me to stop?� Tyson asked innocently then swallowed a
giggle when Kai raised his head and stared, down at him with that, sleep-heavy
eyes that burned crimson.

�You
wanted me awake now deal with the consequences.� Kai glowered down at his lover, his palm flattening out against
Tyson�s stomach and feeling the muscles there react to his touch, clenching and
releasing. Tyson fought the urge to
squirm.

�And
what, pray tell, might those be?� He
inquired, a little breathlessly. Kai�s
slow smile and the glint that came into his eyes was the only warning Tyson got
before the prince swooped down and captured his mouth in a deep kiss while at
the same time slipping the hand on his stomach down under the waistband of the
bluenette�s pants to lightly run his fingers over the rapidly hardening length
he found there. Kai swallowed Tyson�s
pleasure-filled cry and broke the kiss a moment later, removing his hand as
well.

�Ah�if
that�s my punishment for waking you up in the morning, I think I can live with
it.� Tyson panted. �Why�d you stop?�

�Because
that is your punishment.� Kai
grinned suddenly and just a bit smugly too � before pushing himself up off the
floor and Tyson, padding to the door.
�Come on, Kinomiya. I think we
could both use a bath.�

�Oh
no you don�t�� Tyson was on his feet in flash and before Kai could even open
the door the bluenette had him pinned against it and was kissing him hotly, his
tongue plunging into Kai�s mouth and sliding over Kai�s own in demand. While
Kai was distracted by delicious licks of pleasure shooting through him at just
their kissing, Tyson�s hands stealthily crept down and suddenly tugged off the
prince�s pants, letting them pool on the floor.

Kai
gave a startled gasp and pulled back as far as he could from Tyson�s all to
addictive mouth � which wasn�t far considering he was pinned to the door. �Ah!
Tyson! What do you think
you�re�oh�my�uhn!� Kai let out a moan
when Tyson dropped to his knees and wrapped his fingers around Kai�s erection,
cutting off any protesting the dual-haired teen had been about to do, and took
Kai into his mouth with a purring noise of satisfaction. Kai�s fingers tangled in blue-black hair as
Tyson went to work, swirling his tongue over and around the silken, weeping
head and began a light suction while his fingers stroked and pumped in sync.

Against
that onslaught there was nothing for Kai to do but surrender and his eyes
closed with the ecstasy flooding his mind in waves. And then Tyson changed his plan of action, suddenly taking in as
much of Kai as he could and forcing back his gag reflex, increasing the
pressure and beginning to purr deep in his throat. Kai couldn�t take that and threw his head back against the door,
a hoarse shout of Tyson�s name escaping him as he dove into release. Continuing to purr, the dragon swallowed
around him again and again until the forceful flow had ceased. Then he released Kai and licked his lips as
he stood up, cleaning up any missed drops.

Kai
leaned up against the door, ready to just slide bonelessly to the floor. Tyson�s hands slid up over shi shoulders and
the bluenette braced himself with both hands on either side of Kai�s head. The prince raised his arms and wrapped them
around his dragon�s waist pulling him closer and burying his face in Tyson�s
shoulder. �I think you won that little
skirmish.� He said in a low, husky
voice. Then he gasped as Tyson skimmed
his hands down Kai�s sides, down over his hips and around to grasp the backs of
his thighs and lifted. In defence, Kai
hung on and wound his legs around Tyson, sighing and smiling as the bluenette
carried him back over to their nest on the floor and kneeling with Kai in his
arms. Tyson�s mouth was still busy
cruising over any patch of bare skin he could conveniently reach. Kai could feel Tyson hard and heavy through
his pants and decided he�d repay his lover for the pleasure he�d just
received. �Kinomiya��

�Hmm�you
call that a skirmish, beloved?� Tyson
purred, his hands roaming over every inch of Kai�s back, shoulders, and
sides. He found a sensitive spot on
Kai�s neck with his mouth and sucked hard enough to leave a definite mark. Kai released a ragged sigh and forcibly dragged
Tyson�s mouth back to meet his own with a hand woven through that mass of hair.

�Keep
this�uhn�up and it�ll�Gods�become an all-out battle.� Kai groaned into the kiss, having to
repeatedly try and avoid Tyson�s demanding tongue to speak. After that, though, he decided he liked
kissing the younger teen too much to talk and gave in, letting Tyson engage him
in a tongue war.

Then
he remembered what he�d been intending to do and pulled away pushing Tyson down
onto his back and manoeuvring until they were both comfortable with Kai
settling down over top of his lover and between his legs. Kai stared down into Tyson�s midnight blue
eyes gone nearly black with passion, need, and love. It caused a pang in Kai�s chest and he hoped the Dragon could see
it mirrored in his own eyes � even if he wasn�t ready to say the words yet.

Some
of his thoughts must have been visible to the stormy blue gaze because Tyson
reached up and laid a palm against Kai�s cheek and rubbed his thumb across his
bottom lip, swollen from their kissing.

�It�s
okay, Kai. I swore I�d give you time
and I don�t plan on breaking my word.�
Tyson tried to reassure him, speaking softly.

Kai
closed his eyes and shivered with all the emotions running through him. Maybe he couldn�t say what he wanted to yet,
but� He reopened his eyes and bent,
placing a tender, reverent kiss on Tyson�s mouth then continuing back along his
jaw with little nips and licks until he reached an ear and whispered, �I will
show you, Kinomiya. Just let me show
you�� He felt a tremor run through his
lover and then a small nod, Tyson�s cheek rubbing against Kai�s in affection
and reassurance, accompanied by a soft, rumbling purr. The crimson-eyed prince had to smile.

He
returned to kissing Tyson again, savouring each sigh and noise the bluenette
made, until he was sure his lover wasn�t thinking about anything but Kai and
what he was doing to him. Then he began
to kiss his way down Tyson�s body, sometimes gently biting and licking to
soothe, and sometimes sucking lightly on the golden skin. Kai made approving noises when Tyson would
unabashedly moan and arch into his slightest touch, blatantly showing how much
he liked it and begging for more simultaneously.

After
drawing circles with his tongue around Tyson�s navel lazily while his hands
roamed and caressed and teased, Kai grasped the waistband of the pants that
were in his way and tugged them off with Tyson�s help, tossing them carelessly
aside and taking in the view of his now gloriously naked dragon. Gently pushing the bluenette�s legs farther
apart so he could slide himself down farther, Kai smiled up the length of
Tyson�s prone form and stroked the inside of one thigh with a hand
lethargically.

�What
are you smiling about, beloved?� Tyson
questioned curiously, trying to ignore how close that hand was getting to the
part of him he really wanted Kai to touch. Kai didn�t answer, simply ingraining the picture of a flushed,
slightly breathless, naked, and erect Tyson lying there amidst a pile of sheets
and covers wantonly on the floor in his mind.
With the hand on Tyson�s thigh he lifted the leg, bending it at the knee
and ducked his head to place soft kisses to the inside of that thigh, taut
muscles rippling in response and tearing a short cry from the teen, followed by
a, �Kai�please!�

�Is
this what you want, my dragon?� Kai
asked playfully, teasing him further by lightly kissing up to Tyson�s pelvis
where he set his teeth and nipped carefully, leaving a small mark on that
sensitive flesh. Tyson mewled in
frustrated, needy pleasure.

�Tease!� Tyson gasped out breathlessly as Kai�s other
hand wrapped around his painfully aching arousal and stroked. �Ooooohhh��

His
lover chuckled lowly and flicked his tongue out over the swollen pink head,
capturing a pearly drop of his essence and savouring this new taste
hungrily. Tyson jerked and cried out,
one hand lying next to his head gripping and twisting the sheets and the other
hand�s fingers tunnelling into Kai�s dual-shaded locks and fisting. Kai smiled darkly and repeated, �I�ll show
you�� his warm breath wafting across Tyson�s length and making him shudder
before quite suddenly taking the entirety of it into his mouth and practically
swallowing Tyson whole.

�Kai!� Tyson keened, his form arching under the
sudden intensity of the shockwaves of pleasure coursing through him as Kai
continued to deep-throat him, the pressure rapidly becoming unbearable. With a cry of Kai�s name once more in
warning, he exploded in ecstasy, his entire body shaking and writhing under
Kai�s hands and mouth. Kai had just
enough time to pin his hips down to keep himself from choking and he drank his
dragon down. Licking his lips, he
crawled back up to kiss Tyson again, not resisting as the bluenette rolled them
over, hovering over Kai in content satisfaction for a moment. Then he simply collapsed in Kai�s arms and purred
like a cat who got the cream and the canary.

A
little while later, Tyson finally pushed himself up off of Kai and sat up,
stretching. �I�m kind of hungry. You said something about a bath before?�

�I
believe I did. We smell � especially
after all that previous activity.� Kai
folded his hands behind his head, watching Tyson with sleepy, satisfied crimson
eyes. Tyson just grinned down at him.

�So
let�s go so I can eat!� He patted Kai�s
leg and got to his feet, slipping into his pants (which he found draped over a
lamp where they�d landed when Kai flung them away) and grabbing himself some
clean clothes for later. Kai
reluctantly got up and did the same, retrieving his own pants from the door
where he�d left them.

After
a quick jaunt to the bathhouse, the two teens made their way over to the
house. Halfway there, Tyson stopped to
sniff the air and Kai looked at him.

He
could have sworn he saw Tyson start to drool.

�What�s
the matter with you?� Kai wanted to
know what could get this reaction out of his lover. He gave a startled yelp when Tyson grabbed his hand and tugged
him impatiently toward the house.

�Rei�s
feeling back to his normal self. He�s
cooking!� Tyson informed him
gleefully. He�d recognize the delicious
scents of the neko-jin�s cooking anywhere.

�I�m
going to assume that�s something special.�
Kai responded dryly.

�Trust
me on this. You�ll understand when you
get a taste of it.� The bluenette
declared firmly. He pushed open the
kitchen door and dragged Kai inside.

�Well,
look who finally decided to get up!�
Hilary teased, giggling in amusement as Tyson hurried right past her,
Kai in tow. �Watch out, everyone! My cousin�s empty stomach is coming
through!�

Rei
was bustling around the kitchen and Max sat at the table with Tabitha in his
arms, wisely staying out of his mate�s way.
Hilary sat with Kenny at the opposite end of the long table, a deck of
playing cards between them.

�I
guess we�d better feed them, Rei.� Max
grinned as Tyson let go of Kai and sat down eagerly. Rei, grinning nearly as widely as his mate, came over balancing
two full plates of food with one arm and hand and a warmed bottle of milk in
the other. He handed the bottle to Max
for their daughter and placed the food in front of Kai and Tyson.

�Dig
in, guys. Especially you, Tyson. I imagine you�re starved, pal, after last
night.�

Tyson
grabbed a fork and inhaled the mouth-watering aromas. And this morning.
He added silently, giving Kai a smug side glance. Kai caught the glance and quickly stared
down at his plate to hide the blush that painted across the bridge of his nose
and over his cheeks, concentrating on his brunch.

While
Tyson enthusiastically dug into his second plate full sometime later, Kai
cleared his throat and looked at Max. �Say Max��

The
blonde looked up from feeding Tabi.
�Yeah, Kai?�

�I
was wondering if you would have the materials to make a longbow and a quiver of
arrows.� Kai spoke slowly,
thinking. �I had to leave mine behind
and to be honest, I feel a little bare without it.�

Max
looked thoughtful for a moment.
�Hmm�well, I think I�ve got a few things that should be useful. However, I don�t think I have any feathers
for the arrows.�

�No
worries, Max. Just leave that to
me.� Kai waved that off, a slight smile
on his face. He had a source of
feathers that would make his arrows personal and special.

�Okay. Well, when you�re finished eating, I�ll take
you over to the armoury and we�ll see what we can find for you.� Max offered with a shrug.

Kai
nodded. �I appreciate it. And I�m willing to pay what I can for the
service.�

Rei
sat down across from Max with a cup of tea and both just looked at him.

�What?� Kai shifted in his seat, feeling a little
uncomfortable and uncertain under the scrutiny.

�We�re
not going to be insulted by that, Kai.�
Rei sighed. �Because we know you
aren�t familiar with the dynamics between friends � especially those who are as
close as one�s own family.�

�And
we�re not going to take your money either.�
Max added. �We will do what ever
we can to help because Tyson and Hilary are practically family to us. And any friend of theirs is a friend of
ours.�

�Exactly. Besides, you�ve done so much to help Tyson
and Hilary already. We�re grateful and
we wish to repay you in like kindness if we can.� Rei smiled at Kai�s stunned, slightly confused expression.

Tyson
took pity on him and patted his knee under the table, making Kai look at
him. He left his hand on Kai�s leg as
he said, �You�ll understand it all someday, Kai.� The look in his blue eyes told Kai he intended to be the
one to teach him.

He
would never have admitted it � not aloud anyway � but it gave him a curious,
tingling thrill. Then again it could be
because of the way Tyson�s hand was absently stroking the inside of his leg
where it rested. Kai let his one hand
fall to his lap casually and, out of view of the others, laid it over Tyson�s
to stop its movement. He linked their
fingers and squeezed briefly.

When
brunch was done and Tyson had helped Rei clean up, Max took them over to the
armoury. On the way over, Dranzer and
Dragoon joined their human companions.

�We�re
going to have to have a little chat later, aren�t we?� Tyson asked Kai. The crimson-eyed prince folded his arms over his chest and
nodded, eyeing his lover.

�You�d
better believe it. You have a lot of
explaining to do, Kinomiya.�

Tyson
smiled sheepishly and followed his best friend inside the building that housed
Max�s workshops, Kai behind him. The
bluenette sat on a stool while Max showed Kai his supplies and they discussed
what was needed for Kai�s specifications.

I
got distracted last night, beloved. But
I will explain what I can, I promise.
He looked at Dragoon, who was coiled next to the window with Dranzer
perched on one coil. And I hope to
get some answers myself.

*************************************

Chapter
08

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tyson
sat watching with interest as Kai frowned in concentration, using the bright,
flaming red feathers he�d collected from Dranzer to add the finishing touches
to his arrows.

�Those
are really pretty, Kai.�

�Hmm��
The prince made a noise to show he heard, carefully splitting another feather.

�How
did you manage to collect so many from her?�

�I
didn�t really. She�s been keeping any
that she lost for a nest � something I reminded her she doesn�t really need
right now.� Kai shrugged. �She�s a bird so nesting comes naturally.�

�And
she just gave up her supply? Because
you asked her to?�

�Well,
that and I reminded her that she has a perfectly good one at home that will
still be there when we get back.� Kai
set one arrow aside on the growing pile and began another. �So how about we have that discussion while
I do this?�

�Um�okay. Just so you know, though, beloved�� Tyson
trailed off.

�What?�

�I
don�t have all the answers yet, either.�

�Fair
enough.�

�What
would you like to know first?�

Kai
thought about that for a moment. �Start
with why you didn�t just tell me who Dragoon was to you and your family
before.� He finally said, sounding a
little hurt, even though he tried to keep it out of his voice.

Tyson
sighed and looked down at his hands.
�I�m sorry, Kai. I should have
told you. It�s just�� He paused,
searching for a way to explain it so he wouldn�t further injure Kai�s
feelings. �At first I was a bit shocked
myself to discover who he is. And
then�I guess I was trying to protect not just Dragoon but all of you
also.� Tyson looked up, his stormy blue
gaze meeting the prince�s own burning crimson one. �I know Dragoon is what the Emperor and/or Boris was after. I didn�t know why but I thought if no one
but Hilary and I knew about Dragoon then if anything happened to either you or
to Kenny then you couldn�t be forced to tell anything because there was nothing
to tell. Kai, I don�t know what Dragoon
is here for or why he�s chosen to come to me and reveal himself at this
time. I mean to ask him soon and
perhaps then I�ll understand everything better.�

�Alright. I suppose I can accept that. I can�t say I wouldn�t have done the same
had I been in your place.� Kai nodded
and picked up another arrow. �What about
this new transformation of yours? Any
ideas about that?�

�I
do have one, actually.� Tyson sighed
and leaned back in the soft pile of straw and hay he was lounging in. He and Kai were sitting in the loft of the
stables just outside the apartment. �Here�s
a little family legend for you, Kai:

�The
story goes that when the Dragon Gods first claimed our lands for their own and
their chosen people, the Clans, they appointed one family in particular that
would for all time be responsible for protecting both the land and the people �
and also the Gods� kin � dragons. The
family was given ruler-ship over the Clans in order to accomplish this. That family was my ancient ancestors � the
Kinomiya clan.

�However,
it�s also told that the original clan leader and his direct descendents had a
secret that only the Dragon Gods knew and that the Gods themselves were keeping
that secret for a future purpose only They knew of. And in the nature of legends and secrets, whatever it is, the
knowledge of it � even within my family � has been lost after so many
centuries.� Tyson fiddled with a piece
of straw. �Maybe this is the secret.�

�Maybe. But why keep something like that a
secret? I mean, there are other
demi-human peoples out there so why would a dragon demi-human be any
different?� Kai wondered. He finished the final arrow and began
placing them in his new quiver. Max was
in his workshop working on the prince�s new longbow.

�I
don�t know. It�ll be one of the things
I ask Dragoon about, though.� Tyson yawned. �Hey, Kai?�

�Yes?�

�Thank
you.� Tyson said softly, flushing a
little and not meeting Kai�s eyes when he looked over in surprise.

�For
what?�

�For
protecting and helping us escape, for getting us here and accepting my friends
as so few had back home.� Tyson told
him. �But also for all your patience
with me and�and for not laughing in my face when I�demonstrated my feelings for
you so boldly.� The Kinomiya blushed
hotly.

�You
don�t have to thank me for that, my dragon.� Kai set aside his quiver of arrows and went over to his lover,
sitting beside him and pulling Tyson into his arms so that the bluenette was
situated half in his lap. �We�re
connected somehow, Tyson, even if I don�t fully understand the connection or
what I feel just yet. And you have
gotten closer to me than anyone ever has � Dranzer not included. You somehow see past the exterior me no
matter how hard I try to keep you and everyone else out, and you make me feel
again.� As he spoke, Kai undid the
ribbon holding Tyson�s hair back in its customary ponytail, running his fingers
through the silken strands to comb out tangles and kinks. �I should hope that by now you�ve realized
I�m much more open-minded and tolerant than my grandfather is.�

�Yeah. I know.
It�s just�you�re an Imperial Prince, Kai, and as such you have an
obligation to uphold the laws of the Empire, don�t you?� Tyson snuggled in and couldn�t help purring
quietly at Kai�s attention. He didn�t
know why Kai liked his hair so much but he wasn�t going to complain.

�Technically,
I suppose. But I�ve never been one for
obligations � especially when they�re unjust, discriminating, and just plain
stupid.� Kai smirked. �I plan on doing a lot of revising of quite
a few laws when I take the throne.�

Tyson
smiled up at him, lazily switching his position some so that he was stretched
out lengthwise beside Kai with his head resting in Kai�s lap. He closed his eyes and continued enjoying
the way Kai played with his hair, his purr increasing to a steady rumbling of
contentment. �You�ll make an excellent
Emperor, beloved. Your people will love
you.�

�We�ll
see.�

There
was a long moment of companionable silence, where Kai was thinking about all
the changes he would like to make in the Empire and where Tyson contemplated
the questions he wanted to ask his family�s Guardian later. Suddenly a thought struck him and he opened
his eyes, sitting up and giving his would-be mate a slow, languorous kiss
before breaking away.

�You
have a thing for spontaneous kissing, don�t you?� Kai decided, trying to regain his breath and calm his pounding
heartbeat.

�Hmm�and
you have a thing for my hair. We all
have our little quirks, beloved.� Tyson
winked at him. �And something just
occurred to me.�

�What
might that be?�

�You
can�t refuse to sleep with a dragon anymore, can you?� The bluenette grinned.

Kai
flushed and ran a hand through his dual-shaded slate black hair, feeling a bit
embarrassed about that comment he�d made rashly. �I�m sorry I said that, Kinomiya. I didn�t really mean it.
I was confused and flustered and I guess I was trying to push you away.�

�It�s
okay, Kai!� Tyson laughed and threw his
arms around Kai�s shoulders, winding a lock of slate hair around a finger. �I�m only teasing.�

�I
know.� Kai curled his arms loosely
round Tyson�s lower back and waist. He
leaned in and brushed his mouth across his dragon�s briefly. �Did I mention that you�re an extremely
beautiful dragon, Kinomiya? Sexy,
even.� He smiled wickedly at Tyson�s
slight blush from the compliment.

�You
are the sexy one, Hiwatari.� Tyson
sighed dreamily, running his hands up and d own Kai�s chest. �All those wonderful muscles you�ve got
covered by that tasty, creamy skin of yours.�
He ducked his head and kissed back along Kai�s jaw to the sensitive spot
behind his ear. �Decorated by all your
scars�beautiful.� He nipped gently,
earning a shiver and a small moan. Kai
tossed Tyson off to the side into the pile of straw and followed swiftly,
covering the bluenette�s body with his own and dipping his head to capture
Tyson�s mouth in a deep, thorough kiss.

The
two ended up rolling around in the hay as they each tried to take control of
the situation in a quite serious make-out session, succeeding only in getting
straw everywhere � including some very uncomfortable places in their clothes.

At
one point, when Tyson had somehow managed to pin the elusive prince, allowing
him to attach himself to Kai�s neck again, they got interrupted by a loud
clearing of someone�s throat and a smothered giggling laugh.

�I
didn�t know you liked straw so much, Tyson!�
Max grinned as Tyson sat up, glowering at him and pulling the straw out
of his clothes. �You look like a
scarecrow!�

�Oh�shut
up, Max.�

Snickering,
the blonde held up his project. �As
hilarious as this is, I have two reasons for coming up here. The first is for Kai, who I assume is the
body trying to hide in that pile of hay and who you�re sitting on, Tyson.� Max set the bow on a bale. �Your bow is finished, Kai. Feel free to test it out and let me know if
it needs any tweaking.�

There
was a muffled grumble that sounded like, �Sure. Thanks.�

Still
grinning, Max continued. �The second
reason is to tell you Lee and Mariah are here, Tyson. They�re anxious to see you again so get fixed up and come on over
to the house.� He turned to climb back
down the ladder to the stables below.
�Don�t take long, though! If I
have to come back out here��

�Okay! Okay!
We�ll be there in a few minutes.�
Tyson huffed. He looked down at
his flushed and flustered lover. �Well,
it was fun while it lasted, huh?� He
said wistfully, climbing off Kai and sitting next to him, pulling straw out his
hair and searching for his hair tie.

Kai
sat up, gingerly removing hay from various places in his clothes and hair. Rather than answer Tyson, he gave an
embarrassed grunt and commented gruffly, �I can not believe we just got
caught making out and rolling around the hay loft of a stable like a couple of
horny teenagers!�

Amused,
Tyson responded wryly, �We are, beloved. It�s not like any of the others are going to have a problem with
our relationship, you know.�

�But
it�s so undignified! I�m royalty! You�re royalty!� Kai moaned, absently helping Tyson pull the
straw from his mass of blue hair. �Worse
yet, I was on the bottom! What�s Max
going to think of me now?!�

That
made Tyson snicker and get a smack upside the head from Kai for it. �Ow!
Aw�come on, Kai. Who really
cares what Max thinks of you? He won�t
think any less of you just because of something trivial like that. Besides, it�s no one�s business but ours who
is seme or uke.�

Not
really able to argue with that, Kai just sat there and pouted. The Kinomiya found that to be entirely too
adorable and irresistible, and so he crawled up and kissed the prince again,
trying to coax him into a better frame of mind. Kai couldn�t resist long and melted, kissing back compliantly
until Tyson pulled away and got to his feet.
He held out his hands to Kai and dual-haired teen allowed him to pull
him to his feet, too.

�You
still have straw in your hair, Kinomiya.�
Kai observed, following close behind as Tyson went into the apartment,
after grabbing his new bow and quiver of arrows.

�Well,
take it out, please!� Tyson complained,
digging through his meagre belongings.

�Leave
it down.� Kai suggested, running his
fingers through it quickly, searching for more straw. �It wouldn�t hurt my feelings if you did. I like it down.�

�If
I did that you wouldn�t be able to concentrate on anything else, beloved.� Tyson snickered. �Your fetish for my hair would be to distracting.�

�I
can�t help it.� Kai defended himself,
though not disagreeing. �It�s so soft,
and it smells good.� He circled his
arms around Tyson from behind and buried his face in Tyson�s hair at the crook
of his neck, inhaling deeply. �You
smell really good. Like rain��

Tyson
smiled, hugging Kai�s arms to himself for a moment and purring happily, then
releasing Kai and stepping away, sweeping his hair back into its ponytail again
and tying it with another ribbon he�d found � white with blue trim. Kai gave a disappointed sigh.

�Come
on, beloved. We�d better get over to
the house before Max comes looking for us.�
Tyson took Kai�s hand firmly in his and headed for the door.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When
they reached the house and went inside, they found their friends in the living
room with Lee and Mariah. As they
entered, everyone looked up and the pink-haired female neko-jin gave a cry of
delight.

�Tyson! Oh, how good it is to see you after all this
time!� She stood and gave him a light
hug. �We were all so worried about you
when we heard about the surrender of the Dragon Clans.�

�Yeah. Hilary and I were lucky, Mariah. We just barely escaped with our heads.� The Kinomiya said gravely. �Thanks to Kai, here.�

Mariah
and Lee turned their very feline-shaped eyes on the Imperial prince and he kept
a carefully neutral expression on his face, even though he was a little
unnerved by the scrutiny.

�I
didn�t really believe the rumours we heard when we finally made it through the
pass.� Lee shook his head. �But I guess that one was true. The Emperor�s grandson has gone into exile �
a refugee because he helped two prisoners escape.�

�I�m
going back.� Kai stated, meeting Lee�s
gaze unflinchingly now. �I intend to
put right my grandfather�s wrongs as best I can.�

�And
I�m helping!� Tyson added.

Lee
nodded and extended a hand to Kai, who accepted it, shaking firmly. �You both have the support of the neko-jin
tribes, should you need it.�

�Thank
you.� Kai gave him a regal inclination
of his head. �But I hope to work
something out that will not require that.�

�We
can hope.� Mariah agreed. �The bloodshed and sorrow must end.�

�Sit
down, guys. Rei went to change
Tabi.� Max gestured for Kai and Tyson
to take a seat as Lee and Mariah sat back down.

�Thank
you for the bow, Max.� Kai said
gratefully. �I haven�t tested it, yet,
but I doubt I need to. It looks just
right.�

�Heh. You�re welcome, Kai. But please�test it out anyway?�

�If
you say so.�

�You
know�� Tyson mused thoughtfully. �It
was going to ask you to forge a sword for me, Max, but I guess it would be
pretty useless now, huh?�

�Well�that
would depend on what you can do as a dragon, Tyson.� Kenny replied slowly, thinking about it.

�Oh. Yeah, good point, Chief.�

�Dragon?� Lee inquired.

�Takao
is the true Kinomiya.� Hilary informed
both neko-jins. �He shifted last
night. He�s a storm dragon.�

Both
stared at Tyson, goggling, and he blushed and frowned at his cousin.

�Must
you? I do answer to �Tyson� still, you
know.� The bluenette complained.

�Your
name is Kinomiya Takao and that�s what I shall call you.� The brunette replied stubbornly, crossing
her arms. �Everyone else can call you
�Tyson� if they are familiar with you personally.�

�I
give up!� Tyson tossed his hands up in
the air in defeat. �Whatever you like,
Hilary.�

She
smiled a little in smug triumph.

�That�s
amazing, Tyson.� Mariah finally
murmured, awed. �Congratulations.�

�Um�thanks.�

Rei
appeared carrying his daughter and followed by Dragoon and Dranzer. �There you are! I let these two in. They
were at the kitchen door and making all kinds of noise. Didn�t you hear it?�

Tyson
allowed Dragoon to coil around him and stroked his Guardian in apology. �No, we didn�t. I�m sorry, Dragoon.�

{It�s
fine, Takao.} Came the silent reply,
coupled with a light purr.

Dranzer
settled on the settee�s back behind Kai, nuzzling his hair with her beak as he
stroked her soft feathers. �I
apologize, too, Beautiful.� He added,
smiling as she cooed at him.

�I
see that�s another rumour that�s true.�
Lee observed. �You really are a
Phoenix Lord.�

Kai
and Tyson looked over at him with twin expressions of puzzlement, asking at the
same time, �Phoenix Lord?�

�We
had heard that the prince in exile also had a feathered companion � a
phoenix.� Mariah explained. �There�s an old belief among the neko-jin
tribes and many other demi-human peoples that some few people have an affinity
with the ancient creatures. We call
them Phoenix Lords � or Ladies.� She
paused thoughtfully. �Come to think of
it, I haven�t heard of any such person for a very long time, nor have I seen a
phoenix in years.�

�Dranzer
has been with me for as long as I can remember.� Kai shrugged. �Haven�t
you, Beautiful?� He rubbed her head
fondly.

�Still,
it�s interesting.� Lee mused.

�Anyway��
Mariah held out her arms to Rei. �Do I
get to hold my niece or not?�

Rei
grinned and carefully placed Tabitha in her arms. �Of course, Mariah.�

�Oh! She�s so pretty!�

Lee
leaned over to look at the chibi. �I
see she�s a true neko-jin � just like her father. And what a tail!�

Rei
rolled his eyes. �Like you�ve never
seen a chibi before, Lee. You�ve got
five of your own.�

Tyson
blinked. �Five? Wow, Lee.�

Mariah
smiled softly and Tabitha made happy baby noises. �I had two sets of twins � two boys and two girls � and just
seven months ago I had my youngest, another girl.�

�Goodness!� Hilary gasped. �That must keep you incredibly busy, Mariah!�

�It�s
not that bad. The twins are a challenge
sometimes, being the mischievous little kits that they are.�

Everyone
laughed at that. Even Kai cracked a
smile.

The
group visited for the rest of the afternoon then said goodbye. Since Lee and Mariah had come to help Rei
with giving birth but had been delayed because of the landslide in the pass,
and since they had seen that Rei (and Max) and the chibi were fine and under
good care with Hilary and Tyson there, the couple decided to hurry home to
their own children.

�Take
care, everyone, and please be careful when you go back to the Empire,
Tyson.� Mariah gave him a quick hug and
shook Kai�s hand.

�Yes. And don�t hesitate to call on us for help if
you need it.� Lee reminded them,
shaking both their hands before taking his lifemate�s and waving. �Come home and visit soon, Rei. Everyone will be delighted to see you.�

�I
will, Lee. Safe journey home!� Rei called after them. He watched until they were back on the main
road then turned around and clapped his hands once decisively. �Okay people! Let�s go back in and I�ll whip up something for the evening
meal.� He declared, shooing them all
back into the house.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After
another of Rei�s most excellent meals, the six friends, Dragoon (who coiled up
on a chair near the hearth), and Dranzer (who perched on the back of that same
chair), spent a quiet evening together discussing the previous night�s
events. Tyson explained all that he had
already told Kai and Max, Rei, and Kenny listened avidly.

�Despite
all that,� Kenny sighed. �There are
still so many questions left unanswered.
For instance, why did Dragoon suddenly decide to reveal himself
now? What is really going on?�

�And
if Tyson�s transformation really is the Kinomiya family secret then what has
occurred that the Dragon Gods have decided to finally reveal it?� Hilary added.

�I
would ask.� Tyson decided, glancing
over at the dragon. �But it�s going to
be awfully cumbersome for me to ask, get an answer, and then relay whatever he
tells me to all of you.�

�Maybe
there are some things we shouldn�t be asking, Tyson.� Max pointed out hesitantly.
�The Gods have their reasons, right?
Perhaps we should just have faith.�

�If
it were just about me, I�d be inclined to agree with you, Max.� Tyson ran a hand through his bangs. �But this is about not only my family but
the Clans as well � not to mention the Empire and Kai.� He looked at his lover and their gazes met
and held. �Because of that I think we
deserve to know the Gods� plans for us so at least we can understand whatever
it is that�s required of us.�

�I
suppose.� Max intoned, doubtfully.

�So,
how do we go about getting those answers?�
Rei asked, rocking Tabitha in her cradle with his foot.

How? When Dragoon rose up off his spot on the
chair, stretched and yawned, then gave Dranzer a questioning mewl. Everyone looked over at them and the
firebird cooed something at him in return, ruffling her feathers.

�Dragoon? Is something wrong?� Tyson asked. The dragon looked at him and gave him a negative shake of his
head.

And
then there were two sudden bursts of soft light � one electric blue and one
intense burning red. As Tyson and Kai
watched in surprised shock, they could barely see the outlines of the their
companions� forms begin to morph into new figures, stretching out and
elongating into human-like shapes.

When
the light faded away, the dragon and phoenix were gone and in their place were
two child-size people. The man was
dressed all in blue, so many different shades of it in the materials that no
one could even name some of them. He
had pure white hair that was short, wild, and spiky and he had Tyson�s eyes. The woman wore�well, Kai wouldn�t call it a
dress, more like robes. Several flowing
robes of various shades of reds, oranges, golds, and yellows that looked like
she was wearing fire itself. Her hair
flowed in auburn waves all around her just past her shoulders, and Kai stared
at her, looking directly into eyes that were like carbon copies of his
own. He didn�t even notice when Tyson�s
hand covered his own and gripped tightly.

Tyson
stared at the two � as did everyone else � and he couldn�t help inquiring
tentatively, �Dragoon?�

The
Kinomiya�s Guardian smiled and nodded once very regally. �I�d have been surprised if you hadn�t
recognized me, Takao.�

�Ah��

�Dranzer?� Kai could hardly believe his eyes � and yet
at the same time he was hardly surprised, for some reason, by the
transformation.
�You�you�re�beautiful.� He
finished lamely.

She
laughed and tapped Dragoon on the shoulder, nudging him aside. �Be a gentleman, dragon, and allow the lady
to sit.�

�Lady? What Lady?�
He teased, but moved aside so she could take the chair.

�So�ah�what�s
going on?� Tyson managed to get
out. Kai patted him on the hand, giving
silent support. �I mean�my
transformation was crazy enough��

�Well,
Takao, you were complaining about having to repeat everything I told you
so I decided this would be the easiest and fastest way to explain everything.�

�And
you are going to explain everything, right?� Kai asked, looking at Dranzer.

�As
much as we can, Kai.� She responded.

�Then��
Kai hesitated. Tyson glanced at him and
gave his hand a reassuring squeeze.
Encouraged, the prince continued.
�Why haven�t you ever done this before?
Transformed, I mean.�

�It
wasn�t necessary. I could watch over
you perfectly well as a phoenix, after all.
And I didn�t want anyone to know who I really was before it was time �
not with Boris skulking around.�
Dranzer�s fiery red eyes flashed and she scowled darkly. �First chance I get I�m going to fry that
man to a crisp!� The fire in the
fireplace flared up suddenly at her words and Kenny, who had been sitting
closest to it, yelped and moved away quickly.

�Temper,
temper, sweetness.� Dragoon warned,
rubbing her shoulder soothingly. �Calm
down, now, before you send the house up in flames.�

�Please
don�t.� Max begged, wide-eyed. �We really like our house.� Rei nodded fervently in agreement.

�What
do you mean by �who you really are�?�
Kai wanted to know, eyeing her suspiciously. She huffed and flicked Dragoon�s hand off her shoulder.

�Stop
that. I�m fine.� Dranzer complained. �What I meant? Well, I�m obviously not an ordinary phoenix, am I?�

�I
never thought you ever were ordinary, Dranzer.� Kai informed her.

That
made her smile, pleased at the compliment.
�Dear boy! Thank you for
that. As I said, I�m not a normal
phoenix. I have had many forms and many
names over the years, you see.
�Dranzer� is the human equivalent of a family name, I suppose one could
say.�

�I
see. So who are you, then?�

�Because
the rest of my family � as has Dragoon�s and those families of two friends of
ours, as well � have permanently gone away from this world, I have only one
name now.�

�So
it�s just Dranzer?�

�Yes.�

Dragoon
heaved a sigh. �It�s still rather
lonely here without our families. But
at least we have each other and our friends, Driger and Draciel.�

Rei�s
golden eyes went even wider than before � if that was possible. �That�s the name of my tribe�s Guardian
God.�

�The
very same.� Dragoon nodded. �Oh.
He said to pass along his fondest congratulations on the birth of your
kitten, there.�

�Um�thank
him for me?� Rei requested weakly,
stunned beyond belief.

�Draciel�that
name sounds familiar to me, as well.�
Max gasped suddenly. �That was
the name of the ancient sea turtle whose shell inspired my ancestors to create
their first armour!�

�That
would be her.� Draciel grinned.

As
Tyson listened to this, he began to put some things together and in a burst of
logical intuition, exclaimed, �You�re Gods!
All of you!� Then he went pale
and began to tremble in reverent awe.
�Dragoon�you�re not just the Kinomiya Guardian sent by the Dragon
Gods�you are one of the Dragon Gods!�

Hilary
gasped and promptly fainted. Kenny
caught her before she fell out of her seat and propped her up with cushions,
fanning her with his hand.

Dragoon
gave his human an absolutely delighted grin.
�Very good, Takao! I always knew
you were a bright child!�

�Rei�we
have deities in our house.� Max said
incredulously. The two looked at each
other in shock. �Do you have this
sudden urge to clean the entire house from top to bottom? Or is that just me?�

Kenny
continued fanning Hilary, who was slowly coming to again. Kai�s squire, despite being overwhelmed by
the presences of such�high beings, did what he did best in such circumstances
where he found himself around people of higher status than himself � he kept
silent, out of the way (but within calling range should someone require him to
do something) and observed.

Even
Kai, with all his training to be the next Emperor, was feeling wholly
inadequate with the situation.

�Well��
he managed to rasp. �It does wonders
for my ego to learn I�ve been watched over all my life by a Goddess.�

Tyson
laughed, a little on the hysterical side.
�You don�t need an ego boost, Kai. Can I do like Hilary and pass out now?�

�Don�t
you dare.�

************************************

Chapter
09

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When
Hilary came around completely once more, she and Kenny went into the kitchen
and made plenty of tea for everyone � to calm nerves. It gave them all a chance to absorb the situation and adjust � as
much as anyone can adjust when one finds one�s self in the presence of
not one but two deities.

After
the tea had been served, Dragoon and Dranzer exchanged a quick look.

�I
suppose we ought to just tell them the whole story.� The dragon sighed.

�We
owe them an explanation.� Dranzer
pointed out. She turned to Kai and
Tyson, a pleading expression crossing her face. �But you must understand, please, that had we at all believed
things would go as far as they have, we would have done something much, much
sooner to stop her. When we did
realize how badly she sought revenge, it was too late to save a lot of
people. For that we hold ourselves
accountable.�

�Wait�
�she?�� Kai repeated.

Dranzer
nodded, her eyes closing and a shadow of pain and distress flitting over her
features. �I told you our families have
all gone � they�ve moved on to other endeavours and left us here to take care
of this world. All gone � except for
Dragoon, Driger, Draciel and I�and my younger sister. She calls herself �Black Dranzer� to mock me in her anger but her
real name is Drisana. (1)

�I
think you�d better tell us the whole story, Dragoon.� Tyson said, gravely.

The
dragon took a sip of tea, gathering his thoughts, then set his teacup
aside. �It� all began several hundred
years ago�� he began.

�It
was very young back then � only a couple of centuries old. I hadn�t met my beautiful mate, here,
yet.� He indicated Dranzer, who smiled,
albeit sadly.

�Why
am I not surprised?� Kai muttered,
blushing. Tyson nodded and hushed him,
equally red in the face. Max snickered.

�Ahem. Yes.
Well, as a young dragon, I was sent into the world in order to learn
more about it. At first I remained in
my dragon form and mingled with our mortal kin � other dragons. After about a hundred years of that, I took
this human form in order to learn about the humans my kin lived in harmony with
from a human�s point of view rather than a dragon�s.� He paused. �This is all
before your family was appointed leader of the Clans, Takao.�

�Why
do I get the feeling something happened?�
The Kinomiya groaned, seeing an embarrassed flush come over his family�s
Guardian.

�Because
I did the typical, hormonal male thing and got infatuated with a girl.� Dragoon admitted, scratching his head
ruefully. �Problem was, I was�well, me
and she was human � a mortal. I thought
it was love � and I suppose it was in a way, though it certainly isn�t the same
as I feel for Dranzer. But at the
time��

�Long
story short, Takao, the girl got pregnant and the child became the first
Kinomiya.� Dranzer summed up, giving
Dragoon a mildly jealous glare. Tyson
squeaked and slouched in his seat.

�Holy��

�Don�t
give me that look, Dranzer-love. You
were no better than I was.� Dragoon
folded his arms over his chest and gave her a solid stare.

�What?!� Kai�s eyes went very wide and they darted
back and forth between the two. �Are
you saying��

�You
got it. As a young phoenix, Dranzer got
sent out to do the same as I did at one point and she ended up falling
for a young nobleman whose son � Dranzer�s son � became the first
Emperor Hiwatari.� Dragoon informed him
smugly.

�Oh�my��
Kai had to put his teacup down before he dropped it.

Both
were feeling just a little light headed by this point.

And
Hilary did the wise thing and simply fainted again.

�I
guess that explains why Tyson is a demi-human.� Rei stared at the two deities.

�Yes. When my family, the rest of the Dragon Gods,
discovered my�uh�indiscretion�� Dragoon sweatdropped. �They arranged to hide the baby�s ability to
shift until such time as it should ever be needed in an extreme emergency. And my punishment was that I was
�grounded�. Literally. I would remain here for the rest of my life
guarding my new family and the lands of our kin. My son became the first Kinomiya and that
was that.�

�As
for me, it was much the same.� Dranzer
picked up the tale. �I stayed with the
family in my human form long enough to give birth and for my son to be weaned
from me.� She sighed. �My family, however, did the complete
opposite of Dragoon�s. They forced me
to abandon my child to his father�s care and as added punishment they gave me
the duty of babysitting my little sister, Drisana, for a couple of
centuries. I faked my death in a fire
and a flew off in my phoenix form to perform my prescribed duty.� She sniffled and Dragoon produced a tissue
for her. �I guess I didn�t do a very
good job. Our family left not long
after and�well��

�That�s
where the real fun started.� Dragoon intoned,
his voice heavy with sarcasm. �You see,
all the Gods got together one decade to have a �going away� party before they
all left. Driger was an old friend of
mine and he didn�t really want to leave here so he decided to stay. Draciel refused to leave without Driger so she
stayed behind, too.�

�It
was a grand party, I remember.� Dranzer
reminisced. �There had been parties and
balls before but this one was special.
It was there I met Dragoon for the first time.�

�Oh! How romantic!� Hilary exclaimed. It made
them all jump because they hadn�t realized she�d regained consciousness again,
being too absorbed by the story.

�Yes. It was.�
Dranzer smiled, a little dreamily.
Dragoon rolled his eyes.

�Oh
sure. After we made up for that huge
argument we got into.�

�Ah�right. Forgot about that.�

�It
wasn�t love at first sight, then?�
Hilary sounded disappointed.

�Afraid
not.� Dranzer gave her a sympathetic
smile.

�Okay,
okay. So what happened?� Kai demanded, beginning to become impatient.

�It
was Drisana�s first party with all the Gods together like that. She had only ever attended family
festivities previously.� Dranzer
continued. �And being extremely young �
a teenager, I suppose you could call her � she was very excited and could
hardly wait to meet everyone. As part
of my duty, I had to be her chaperone.

�At
the party we danced, we smoozed�� Here
Kai sniggered, knowing exactly what she meant.
�And eventually we took a break and sat on the sidelines.�

�That�s
when I went over to ask Dranzer for a dance.�
Dragoon smiled wickedly. �Her
dance-card was full all evening. I
guess everyone thought she was as beautiful as I did.�

�Hmm�you
were hardly any better, Dragoon. You
asked nearly every free female there to dance.�

Dragoon
sighed, pacing a little. �Yes. And perhaps if I hadn�t danced twice with
your sister we wouldn�t be in this mess.�
He ran his hands through his hair and it became even spikier than it had
been.

�What
do you mean?� Tyson asked, confused.

�Long
story short? Drisana developed an
instant crush on Dragoon. But he was
only being kind to her, friendly � as is his nature. She was too young and she didn�t know anything about dragons.�

�Hey! I tried to tell her I wasn�t interested in
her that way. But she thought I was
just playing hard to get!�

�It�s
not your fault, Dragoon.�

�But
it is! I started courting you instead
of her and she got jealous! Look at all
she�s done to get back at me! She�s
influenced a human � something we�re forbidden to do � and used him to, in
essence, destroy the Clans, kill off all but the last two of my own
descendants, and harm people who are descendants of you! Her own nephew � a few times removed!�

Dranzer
got up and gently shoved him down in the chair. �Sit and relax, my dear, before you explode.�

Kai
closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling an immense headache
coming on. �Let me get this
straight. I�ve been exiled from my home
and country, Tyson�s lost nearly everything, my grandfather has gone senile�all
because one little girl � who just happens to be a Goddess � got jealous of her
older sister?�

Both
deities looked very ashamed.

�That�s
putting it simply�but yes.� Dranzer
whispered.

Kai
got up and walked out, unable to sit there any longer he was suddenly so
angry. Tyson rose, too, giving them
both an icy cold stare that actually made them cringe.

�For
beings that are supposed to be wise and above us lowly mortals, it�s amazing
how alike we truly are. You�re supposed
to better than us, wiser, guiding and protecting us. Instead, we are forced to suffer because of your
problems. They have become ours now and
we have to fix it for you because you couldn�t do it yourselves. How very ironic.� The bluenette ground out in an angry, tired and sad voice before
hurrying after Kai.

After
a moment of silence, tears streaming down Dranzer�s face, both she and Dranzer
simply disappeared before any of the others could say anything.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

�You�re
making me dizzy pacing like that.�

�Argh!� Kai vented his fury in a short, guttural
screech of frustration. �How can you
just sit there?! Aren�t you angry? No�furious?!�

�Of
course I am. Extremely.� Tyson replied, and Kai stopped pacing and
dropped down onto the floor next to him when he heard the barely leashed temper
in his lover�s voice and saw the storm of emotions in his midnight blue eyes.

�How
can you be so calm then?�

�With
great difficulty, beloved. But
really�what can we do about it? No use
expending energy over something we have no control over.� Despite what he was saying, Kai could see
the glinting sharpness in those eyes that had gone nearly pure silver with
hardly any blue left at all.

Somehow,
seeing Tyson was just as angry as he was made him feel better. �Try saying that again � a little more
convincingly this time.� The prince
drawled, a hint of a laugh in his voice.

Tyson
growled at him.

�Okay,
okay. Sorry.� Kai started pulling off his clothes, deciding it would be best if
he just got some sleep and cleared his mind.
Tyson, already changed into his sleep-pants, peevishly flopped down onto
the pile of covers on the floor that had become their shared, make-shift
bed. The bluenette yanked one blanket
up over himself and heaved a huge sigh.
Kai finished changing and crawled in next to him, lying on his back and
staring up at the ceiling.

He
didn�t want to admit it, but the room felt empty without Dranzer�s
presence. Kai felt empty. He guessed that he had gotten very used to
having her always with him.

A
sniffle from Tyson drew him out of his thoughts. �Kinomiya? What�s wrong?�

Tyson
rolled over onto his other side so that he faced Kai. �It�s nothing. I�m sorry
I growled at you, Kai.�

�It�s
okay. We�re both worked up after
tonight.� Kai blew out a breath sharply
in annoyance with pretty much everything in general. �It�s all like a fairytale gone bad. And I can�t see the happy ending.� He turned onto his side and snuggled up to Tyson�s chest
automatically, feeling somewhat better and less alone as he felt his dragon�s
arms encircle him and pull him close, one leg slipping between Kai�s own.

�I
guess there�s one good thing out of all of this.� Tyson murmured quietly.

�Please
share that positive thought, Tyson. I
could use it.�

�We
got each other.� Tyson whispered. �For whatever time we end up having, we�ll
know that we at least got to know and to care for someone special in our
lives.�

Kai
thought about that and nodded against the bluenette�s shoulder. �You�re right about that much, Kinomiya. Still�I�d have preferred to find you under
better circumstances.�

�Me
too.�

There
was a moment of silence. Then Tyson
asked in a small, tentative voice, �Do you feel as�alone as I do right now?�

�Yes. You miss Dragoon�s presence, don�t
you?� Tyson nodded, burying his face in
Kai�s hair. �I miss Dranzer, already,
too.� Kai admitted, unconsciously
clutching the bluenette tighter.

�After
walked off�� Tyson told him. �I sort of
gave them a piece of my mind � which probably wasn�t wise. But I couldn�t help it. I had to say something. I�I hope I didn�t drive them away.� His voice held a wealth of unshed tears and
guilt. �Me and my big mouth. I�m always letting it run away on me. Just look at what I did to Gramps��

�Shh��
Kai looked up at him and gently rubbed a thumbpad over Tyson�s lips. �Don�t, Tyson. It wasn�t your fault and you couldn�t have done anything. As for our�Guardians, whatever you
told them was probably the truth and they probably deserved to hear it. We all need some time to just cool down and
clear our heads so we can solve this dilemma and put an end to all the
suffering.� He took his hand away from
Tyson�s lips and reached around to untie that ponytail so he could run his
fingers through the mass of blue hair.
�They need us, Kinomiya. If they
didn�t, they would have done something on their own by now. So let�s get some rest, and in the morning
when we�re refreshed and less highly strung so we can think more clearly, we�ll
figure everything out, alright?�

�Yeah. Yeah, you�re right, beloved.� Tyson took a deep breath and let it out
slowly, relaxing as best he could and cuddled Kai close, burying his face in
Kai�s dual-shaded hair again and closing his eyes. �Sleep well, Kai.�

�You
too, Kinomiya.�

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The
next morning after breakfast, when neither Kai nor Tyson had come back to the
house, Kenny declared he would go wake the up, since he knew Kai would sleep
forever if given the chance. And he
suspected Tyson wouldn�t be much different.

Max,
sitting with Tabitha in his arms and feeding her a bottle of milk, looked up
when Kenny told them and said, �No, Kenny�I will. I�m going to go into town later for supplies and maybe they�ll
want to go to.�

Rei,
washing dishes, chuckled quietly because he was fairly sure his mate was trying
to keep the younger boy from walking in on�something. Hilary, helping him dry the dishes, gave him an odd look.

�What�s
so funny?� She whispered.

�Nothing,
Hil.� Rei handed her a plate and turned
around, drying his hands. �Give Tabi to
me, Maxie, and go wake those two up. I
think they could use a distraction from yesterday.�

Max
got up and transferred the chibi to her other parent�s arms. �Good idea, Rei.� He gave both child and mate a quick kiss then headed for the
door.

�I
still don�t see why�oh.� Kenny snapped
his mouth shut as it occurred to him.
�Never mind.�

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Max
reached the door to the apartment above the stables and knocked loudly, but
politely, to give them warning. Then he
opened the door and called, without stepping inside, �Hey you two! Wake up!
Or if you�re already awake, break it up!�

Inside,
Kai jerked awake at Max�s sudden voice and Tyson simply gave an annoyed grunt
and turned over, burrowing back under the covers and into Kai�s side. The prince cracked open his eyes and said
gruffly, �Come in, Max. You woke us
up.�

Max
poked his head around the doorframe, looking around. �Good morning, Kai.
Where�?� He paused, then spotted them on the floor. �Uh�I take it the beds are uncomfortable?�

Kai
groaned � but it lost its effect when he yawned. �What do you want, Max?�

�Kenny
wanted to come wake you up but I figured that wouldn�t be such a good idea and
came up myself.�

Tyson
stirred next to Kai and threw the covers back long enough to glare at Max
owlishly. �Go �way, Max. Sleeping.�

Max
just smiled brightly at him. �Rise and
shine, buddy! It�s time for me to make
another trip into town. You guys should
come with me.�

His
best friend muttered something unintelligible and pulled the covers back up
over his head while Kai snickered. The
blonde rolled his eyes and planted his hands on his hips, making an exasperated
noise.

�What
do you need us to come with you for, Max?�
Kai inquired, folding his hands behind his head and regarding Max
curiously, the perfect picture of lazy, comfortable contentment.

�I
don�t need you for anything, Kai, I just thought perhaps you�d both like
a change of scenery, a chance to put your minds off of�things. And maybe in town you�ll hear some news from
home.� Max shrugged. �That�s all.�

�Ah�why
not. Yeah, we�ll come. Just give us a chance to get up, dress, and
grab something to eat.� Kai yawned
again and Max smiled happily.

�Sure. Actually, Rei�ll make us a basket of food to
take with us so you two can eat on the way there, if you like.� Max offered.

�Whatever.�

�Ten
minutes?�

Kai
glanced at the lump of his lover under those covers. �Better make it fifteen.
Tyson may take some convincing.�

Max
held up his hands. �I don�t even want
to know about that. Fifteen it
is.� With that, he left, closing the
door firmly behind himself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kai
listened to Max�s footfalls on the stairs outside fade away then turned on his
side and threw the covers down to their feet.
�You�re not going back to sleep, Kinomiya, so you might as well get up.�

�Don�t
wanna.� Tyson whined, wrapping his arms
around Kai�s upper body and snuggling, shivering a bit at the sudden loss of
warmth from the covers. He nuzzled
Kai�s chest with his face and sighed.
�You�re warm. And you smell
really good.�

�I�m
glad you approve.� Kai replied, dryly,
finger-combing Tyson�s hair and brushing it away from his face, making him
purr. �Come on, Tyson. I know you�d rather pretend the day hasn�t
started so you don�t have to deal with everything. Truthfully, I feel the same.
But we do, so let�s at least find a little bit of enjoyment in this day
and go with Max. Okay?�

Tyson
pouted, looking adorable and totally sexy all sleepy and rumpled at the same
time. �I hate it when you�re
right.� He grumbled, sitting up and
stretching out the kinks.

They
changed, tamed their wild bed-hair, and slowly made their way over to the house
where Max was just finishing hooking up the wagon to his two horses.

�Hey,
guys! Ready to go?�

�Food,
Max old buddy? I�m starved.� Tyson rubbed a hand over his grumbling
stomach. Max grinned and lifted a
basket from the wagon just behind the seat.

�Courtesy
of Rei.� He declared, laughing when
Tyson hurried over and climbed up into the back � with the basket. Max waited until Kai had joined them then
clucked at the horses to get them moving.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A
couple of hours later, while Rei was taking a nap with his daughter, Kenny and
Hilary were out in the front gardens this time, tending the neglected
flowerpots and beds.

�Miss
Hilary?� Kenny broke the companionable
quietness of the afternoon tentatively.

She
looked up at him from the rose bush she was pruning. �You don�t have to call me �miss�, Kenny. There�s no reason to be so formal when
you�re among friends.�

Kenny
smiled faintly. �Sorry�Hilary. I�m just not used to�well, I guess I�m not
used to any of this.�

�I
don�t think there�s anyone who is, Kenny.�
Hilary stood up and dusted off her skirts, pulled her gloves off, and
sat on a beautifully carved wooden bench.
�The circumstances are a little odd, though, despite that.�

The
brunette male fidgeted with his spade.
�Yes. You have a point
there. I guess I�m getting used to it,
though. I mean�I�ve never really had
any friends, you see, so I�m not sure how to act, or what to say, or��

Hilary
frowned, surprised. �No friends? I find that hard to believe, Chief. What about the other servants? Surely you made friends among them.�

Kenny
shook his head, settling back onto his patch of lawn and loosely hugging his
knees. �No. The only person I�d considered a friend before was His
Highness�Kai.�

�How
did you meet Kai? I mean, how did you
end up as his squire and personal servant?�

�He
saved my life.� Kenny replied simply.

�Really? How?�

�I
was only a little kid at the time � so was His Highness actually. My parents weren�t wealthy and we lived in a
poorer district of Bay City. We were
bakers and my father owned a very small bakery that we lived above and my
mother did seamstress work for extra money during harder times. We didn�t have much but we were happy.�

Hilary
nodded, listening with great interest, not just about getting to know Kenny
better as a new friend but also because she hoped to gain more insight into
Kai. She was worried about Tyson,
though she would admit to herself it was nothing to be worrying over. �Go on.�

�I
don�t really remember much about what happened. All I know is that there was a fire � a huge fire that destroyed
my district and a large part of the Palace itself when the flames spread out of
control.� Kenny paused, taking a deep
breath and staring off into space, lost in his memories. �My parents both died.�

�Oh! I�m sorry, Kenny.�

�No�it�s
okay.� He sighed and gave her a sad
smile. �These things do happen on
occasion. Unfortunately, it happened to
me � and to Kai. He lost his parents in
that same fire.�

�I
see. That�s horrible, Chief.� Hilary said softly, feeling a wealth of pity
and sympathy for both teens.

�There
were many casualties.� Kenny ran a hand
through his hair. �I was lucky. When the fire broke out, I was in another
part of the city making a delivery for my parents.� He smiled. �I was young,
but I liked to help them out. So they
would let me make deliveries for them.�

Hilary
smiled back. �You�re a good person,
Kenny. I�ve met few people with a
temperament like yours. I�m sure your
parents were very proud of you.�

�Thanks,
Hilary.� Kenny gave her a brilliant
smile. �I appreciate that. Where was I? Oh�there were guards and armies from the city garrisons all
around the area, keeping people away from everything while they put out the fire. I sat on a sidewalk, outside the burnt shell
of the building that had once been my home for several days after.

�I
got hungry, thirsty, and I was so tired by then. I felt weak and ill from that and crying so much. I had no other family to go to and no one in
the neighbourhood could afford to take me in � especially since nearly everyone
around us had lost all their homes, businesses, and belongings, too. One day it
just got to hard to even sit up anymore and I lay there waiting to die. And then a miracle happened.� He looked up at Hilary. �It was a miracle to me, anyway. See, that day the Emperor and an entourage
of his advisors came riding through, surveying the damage, I guess. And he brought his grandson along.

�I
do remember my first impression of Kai � and I�ll admit he scared me more than
a little. I didn�t know about his
parents yet, but even when I did, he still seemed so cold and emotionless like
he�d been when I saw him. Anyway, I
managed to sit up as the Emperor, Kai, and the rest rode slowly past. Of course, the Emperor and his people didn�t
notice me � or if they did, they ignored my presence. But Kai saw me. He
stopped his horse, jumped down and came over to me. He asked me if I was hurt or ill. I was so scared! I didn�t
know what to say or how to say it. And
here was the Prince asking if I was okay.
All I could do was shake or nod my head in answer to his questions. But I was so weak by then that even that
little bit of exertion was enough to make me pass out. I got very dizzy then, and I lost
consciousness.

�Everything
was a little hazy for a while. The next
clear memory I have is waking up in Kai�s chambers in the Palace. He told me that his grandfather had agreed �
after a lot of discussion � to allow me to become the Prince�s personal servant
and later his squire. I would have
shelter and food in the Palace with the rest of the staff and servants, and I
would be provided with clothing as I grew that I was expected to take care of
myself. Kai told me if I did my duties
well, then I might even receive small gifts from him or his grandfather from
time to time � little things like new clothes, tokens or badges, even small
sums of money. And because I would be a
personal servant to a member of the Imperial family, I had a distinction among
the other servants that gave me a certain authority over them and allowed me
freedoms that they did not enjoy.�

Hilary
listened, amazed and a little surprised.
And yet at the same time she wasn�t.
Kai�s actions seemed to be in contradiction to his attitude and all, but
it also struck her deeply how�human the Imperial Prince was turning out to
be. But� she supposed. I shouldn�t be surprised. After all, look at all he�s done for my
cousin and I. If he and Takao really do
become as close as they appear to be becoming, perhaps he isn�t as bad for
Takao as I thought he might be.
Maybe�just maybe�there�s hope for everything yet.

�That�s
quite a tale, Kenny. I guess I
understand why you believe in Kai and trust him so much now. But I still don�t understand why you say you
didn�t make friends with the others servants.�

Kenny
gave her a look. �Because I was a
nobody from the streets, taken in like a lost puppy, and given a position �
without any prior experience or reference or qualification � that many of them
believed should have been theirs.�
Kenny heaved a sigh and said wryly.
�Not to mention that the position allowed me to technically be able to
boss them around as if I was a member of the Imperial
family. That alone was enough for
resentment, jealousy, or outright hatred.�

Hilary
winced. �I see your point.�

Kenny
shrugged. �You can�t please
everyone. There were a few�incidents at
first, but Kai put his foot down and declared that if anyone hassled me even in
the slightest or tried to get me into trouble, he would personally throw them
out of the Palace on their ear and be stripped of their station and honour � or
worse, depending on what was attempted.�
Kenny grinned a little. �No one
dared bother me after that, although it didn�t mean they stopped hating
me. Not long after Kai began his
training as a warrior under Boris, I began sleeping in his chambers on the
floor in front of the fireplace. I was
away from the resentment and jealousy there, and I could always be on hand if
Kai needed me for anything. He wouldn�t
have to go looking for me or call. It
felt good to be out of the servants� quarters � it felt safe. And Dranzer and I got along well, so that�s
an added bonus.�

Hilary
laughed. �Yes. I suppose it would be. And Kenny, I hope you know, now, that you do
have friends � no matter the difference in our status. Remember that.�

Kenny
smiled, his heart just a little bit lighter at her words. �I do, Hilary, and I promise I won�t
forget.�

�Good.� She said firmly, standing and picking up her
gloves once more, preparing to put them on.
�So...what else needs doing in this gar�oh!� Her sentence ended on a gasp.

�What?� Kenny stood up quickly and looked in the
direction she was staring. �What is
it? Oh no��

They
saw the figures of what appeared to be a man and a large dog, jogging toward
the house from the main road. Hilary
didn�t recognize the man until he got closer, but Kenny did.

�Tala! And Wolborg!� The shorter teen, unsure and despite being a little afraid,
bravely stepped in front of Hilary and said in a shaky voice, �Go inside,
Hilary. You and Rei can sneak out the
back with Tabitha. I�ll hold Tala off
long enough for you to��

�Chief,
wait! Look at him��

Tala
staggered right up to them, his faithful canine companion at his side. But as he got closer, both could see he had
been beaten badly, bruises all over his face, and bloodstains on his clothes �
some of which appeared to be still wet meaning he was still bleeding in places. He also appeared to be on the verge of
collapse with exhaustion.

He
stopped in front of them and managed to gasp out, �I found you�thank Gods. Kai?�

�He�s
not there, my Lord.� Kenny informed
him. �What are you doing here? And�what happened to you?�

Tala
turned dull, exhausted ice-blue eyes on him and wavered on his feet. ��not here to�harm anyone. Had�to find you. Kai�� He said just before his eyes rolled back into his head and
he collapsed to the ground like a sack full of rocks.

Hilary
hurried to his side in an instant before Kenny could even warn her to beware of
Wolborg, who surprised him by allowing the brunette female to not only approach
his fallen Master but to touch him as she checked Tala�s injuries and
condition.

�He�s
badly hurt, Kenny. Seriously. I don�t think he�s here to harm us. If I don�t treat him, he could die.� She looked up at him and he closed his eyes
(which she couldn�t really see under his hair) before he nodded.

�Alright. I�ll go get Rei and we�ll get him inside. Hopefully Kai, Tyson, and Max will be back
soon.� He said, turning to dash into
the house.

He
stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Dragoon and Dranzer in their human forms
beside the garden gate.

�I
know we don�t inspire much faith from anyone right now,� Dragoon said
softly. �But please believe we will
allow no harm to come to any of you should Tala prove to be a threat.�

�You�re
right. You don�t.� Hilary spoke up. �But if you give us your word, it is enough. The Gods can not go back on their word once
it is given.�

�You
have it.� Dranzer responded. �Go on, Kenny. Dragoon, Hilary, and I will bring Tala inside.�

�They
can. I think you should go find
the others and tell them to come home now, as fast as they can.� Kenny replied. �Hurry, Dranzer.�

�As
you wish.� She closed her eyes and in a
bright flash of bright red light she became a phoenix once again, flying away
on a burst of wind that Kenny suspected came from Dragoon, to help speed her
along.

Kenny
and Dragoon gently lifted Tala between them and Hilary led them into the
house. Dragoon also told Wolborg that
it would be best if he remained outdoors � for now, anyway, and promised they
would take good care of his Master for him.
The wolf seemed to understand and accepted that, taking up a watchful,
guarding position just outside the front door.

Inside,
Hilary and Kenny worked in tandem to strip Tala down and begin tending
him. Kenny, when he saw Tala�s back,
had to leave before he passed out, feeling dizzy and sick at the sight of
the lash wounds. They reminded him of
the scars that he had on his own body that would not fade away and the pain he
had suffered � all of it was just too recent in his memories.

Rei
kept Tabitha with himself and remained downstairs, brewing tea and starting on
the evening meal, while Kenny made Hilary�s special teas and medicines at her
request for Tala, when he came around long enough to drink them.

Dragoon
stayed in the kitchen, having been booted out by Hilary and deciding he�d
better just stay out of the way.

Eventually,
Hilary came down to get the tea from Kenny and then it became a waiting game
for the others to return and for Tala to wake up so they could find out what he
was doing there.

************************************

Chapter 10

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tyson
helped Max load the last of the supplies into the back of the wagon while Kai �
typical prince that he was � sat up front and watched, waiting for them.

�There. That�s the last of it.� Tyson climbed up into the back while Max got
up front to steer the horses through Marhcantria�s busy, crowded streets.

�I
had no idea a few supplies like that would cost so much.� Kai sighed.
�I think we�re eating you out of hose and home, Max.�

The
blonde laughed. �Honestly, Kai! Don�t worry about it! It isn�t like we can�t afford it. Besides, we enjoy having you, Tyson, Hilary,
and Kenny with us. It does get rather
lonely out here without visitors, after all.�

�Well�when
we get to be annoyances, kick us out.�
Tyson chuckled from behind Kai.
�Or put us to work! Uh�me,
anyway. Kai doesn�t work.�

The
older teen turned around in his seat and gave Tyson a mild scowl. �Well excuse me. I was a little busy learning how to be a warrior and an Emperor. I don�t really know how to be anything
else.� He sounded just a little bit sad
and the bluenette immediately felt bad.

�I
know, Kai. I�m sorry. I shouldn�t have said that.� He apologized.

�No,
Kinomiya. You�ve nothing to be sorry
for.� Kai shook his head. �It�s only the truth, after all.�

�Still��

�Forget
about it.�

The
three remained in a comfortable silence for about half an hour or so. Tyson stretched out on his back in the wagon
bed, hands folded behind his head as he stared up at the bright blue sky that
was punctuated by the occasional powder-puff white cloud.

Suddenly
a dark spec appeared in the sun, and it gradually became larger and larger as
the bluenette watched curiously, until he realized that it seemed to be a bird
that was flying toward them at break-neck speed.

�What
the�?� Tyson squinted at the bird,
trying to figure out what kind it was, when he caught a flash of red. �Dranzer?!�
He exclaimed.

�Huh?� Kai glanced back at him. �Where?�

�Up
there!� Tyson pointed and Kai swivelled
around, holding out his arm just in time as the firebird swooped in and landed
on it. She squawked urgently at him and
rustled her feathers in agitation.

Kai
glowered at her. �I�m still not ready
to talk to you, Dranzer. I don�t think
either of us want me to say something we�ll both regret.�

�Wait,
Kai.� Tyson had sat up and was clearing
off a barrel for her to perch on instead of Kai�s arm. �I�m not particularly eager to talk to her
or Dragoon, yet, either, but she seems worried about something.� He looked at Dranzer. �There�s no one around if you want to
transform.� He told her with as much
politeness as he could muster.

She
hopped off Kai�s arm when he moved her closer to the barrel and once there she
quickly shifted in a bright flash of light.

�I
know you�re both still very upset, but please listen? You must get home quickly.
We�ve had an unexpected visitor arrive.�

Max
frowned. �Who? What�s happened? Is everyone okay?�

�Everyone
but the visitor.� Dranzer reassured the
blonde. �Rei and Tabitha are perfectly
fine, as are Kenny and Hilary. Dragoon
stayed to keep an eye on everything and I came to find you three.�

�So
what�s going on? Who shoed up?� Tyson demanded.

Dranzer
sighed and looked directly at Kai.
�Tala and Wolborg. He�s in very
bad shape, Kai. It looked to me like
he�s been through a rather savage beating, escaped, and come looking for you.�

Kai
winced. �Boris found out he helped free
Tyson and Hilary, then.� He closed his
eyes as if he was in pain. �I
hope Bryan is okay, too.� Opening his
eyes again, he looked to Max. �Speed us
up, Max. We�d best get home as soon as
possible.�

The
blonde flicked the reigns, encouraging the horses to speed up. �We�ll get there, Kai.� He promised. �This Tala�he�s a friend of yours?�

�Not
precisely.� The Imperial heir said
slowly. �He�s a cousin, actually. But�he has been loyal to me � in his own
way. Tala is a survivor, first and
last, you see.�

�Yes. I do.�
Max nodded his understanding.
�And Bryan?�

�Not
a friend. An ally, a loyal soldier, and
someone who does what he�s told without asking questions.� Kai�s mouth turned up at the corners
briefly. �He follows Tala around like a
puppy. Well, more like a warhorse. They�re the kind of animals that are like a
soldier who will obey orders without question � but only the orders of their
master.�

�Ah. Are they trustworthy?�

Tyson
spoke up before Kai could. �I only know
that they got Hilary and I out of the Tower prison and away from certain
death. I�m inclined to trust them �
even if my conscious and His Highness, here, tell me otherwise.�

Kai
shrugged. �I know them better than
you. However, until I talk to Tala and
find out what�s going on, I�m reserving judgment on trusting him.�

�Works
for me.� Max agreed. �I just want to be sure my family is safe.�

�So
do we, Max.� Tyson clapped him on the
shoulder.

�Have
no fear, Max. Dragoon is there and he
swore to keep them safe for us all until we get there.� Dranzer added. �We may be in your bad books but please trust us that much.�

�I
don�t want to�� Max sighed. �But
I have to believe in you.�

�Thank
you.� Dranzer whispered, bowing shortly
from the waist.

When
they got within sight of the house, she stood up. �I will fly ahead and let Rei know you�re nearly there.� She said, before taking her phoenix form
once more and launching herself into the air from the barrel, flying off toward
the house.

A
short while later, Max halted the horses and the three jumped off the wagon,
hurrying over to the front door and going inside.

�Rei? Kenny?
Hilary?� He called out, leading
Tyson and Kai through the house toward the kitchen.

�Hey! You�re back!� Rei looked up as they came in.
�Hilary�s upstairs watching over Tala.
He hasn�t come to yet, though.�
He informed them, tilting his face up so he could meet Max�s kiss of greeting
from where he sat at the table.

�Are
you all okay?� Max asked in concern,
gently rubbing Tabitha�s cheek fondly as she lay snuggled in Rei�s arms.

�We�re
fine, Maxie. It�s that guy, Tala,
that�s not doing so well.� Rei leaned
against him when the blonde draped an arm around his shoulders in a
half-hug. �You can go up, if you like,
Kai. Dranzer already went up herself,
and Dragoon�s there, too, Tyson.�

Kai
nodded and looked around for his squire.
�Where�s Kenny?�

�He�s
outside hanging the laundry out to dry.
He�ll be back in soon.�

Tyson
silently followed his lover upstairs, sensing Kai was very preoccupied and
didn�t wish to talk at the moment, yet not wanting to leave the prince all
alone.

Knocking
on the door to the only room in the hallway that was closed, Kai pushed it open
and saw Hilary sitting on the side of the bed, carefully wrapping bandages
around Tala�s arm. Wolborg, who Dragoon
had brought inside when the wolf had begun to howl in lonely worry outside
earlier, lay curled at the foot of the bed on the floor, and raised his head as
Kai and Tyson entered. The white wolf
whimpered when he saw Kai, wagging his tail slightly in recognition.

�Yes,
Wolborg. Hello to you, too.� Kai greeted him quietly.

Dranzer
and Dragoon stood near the window, watching silently. The dragon took his mate�s hand and said in hushed, subdued
tones, �We�ll take our leave now. You
have other things to worry about now that are more important than us and our
problems. Take care of him,
Hilary. I don�t think any of us want to
see another casualty of all this.� She
nodded and picked up another roll of bandages.

�Wait,
Dragoon!� Tyson stepped up beside Kai,
taking his hand firmly in one of his own.
�You don�t have to leave. Please
stay�in your other forms, if you want to.�

Uncertain,
the two looked at Kai, who shrugged indifferently and went over to the bed,
tugging Tyson along with him. The two
deities changed form once again and got comfortable on the window seat.

�How
is he, Hilary?� Kai asked in hushed
tones, looking down at the prone form of his cousin.

�He�s
been beaten, Kai. Badly. Worse than what Kenny had been.� She replied softly. �I don�t know how he ended up here or how he
managed to even get here in this condition. But he did and I�m not at all surprised he collapsed as soon as
he arrived. His body was exhausted,
broken, and his mind probably couldn�t handle the stress on him any longer so
he just shut down.� She gently began
wrapping a bandage around Tala�s left wrist, tying it to a splint. �He�d also lost a lot of blood and I don�t
think he�s eaten, drank, or slept in days.�

Kai
had to close his eyes for a moment. He
knew Tala�s skills and abilities very well, knew his strengths, weaknesses, and
limitations. The ice-blue eyed warrior
had always had remarkable talents for long distance running and his skill with
a sword was what got him the captaincy of the Royal Guards. And as an added threat he�d always had his
pet wolf at his side � found as a pup and raised by Tala alone. The prince had noticed that many of Tala�s
own characteristics seemed almost wolf-like as well, which probably helped to
make Wolborg and his master as close as they were.

�Will
he live?� He finally asked, dreading the
answer. He may not have always trusted
his cousin, but even he hadn�t deserved this pain for being loyal to Kai � for
being humane and seeking to save the lives of others.

Hilary
finished bandaging the red haired teen, carefully setting his arm down and
pulling the covers on the bed up over him.
�I think so. He�s obviously very
strong and determined, Kai. Even so, he
will need lots of rest and time to heal.�
She gave Kai�s arm a squeeze.
�If it helps, I promise I will take good care of him and do my best to
make sure he pulls through.�

The
crimson-eyed teen nodded and Tyson smiled.
�If anyone can make him better, cousin, it�s you. We�ll get out of the way for now, okay? Is there anything you need us to do?�

Hilary
shook her head and laid the back of her hand to Tala�s forehead, checking his
temperature cautiously, in case of fever.
�No. Thank you, Takao. But you might want to dig up some clothes
for him for later. His own were�not
worth trying to save.�

�Sure. We�ll see what we can find.� Tyson turned and led Kai to the door. �Come on, Kai.� He glanced over his shoulder.
�And you two, also.�

Dranzer
and Dragoon followed them out the door and downstairs, leaving Hilary alone
with her patient and Wolborg, who settled back down to wait patiently for his
master to wake up.�

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Several
days and nights passed by. At one
point, as Hilary had feared (though she hadn�t wanted to worry anyone so she
hadn�t mentioned it before), Tala came down with a fever. The brunette stayed awake all night when
that happened, bathing his face, neck, and upper chest with a wet cloth soaked
in cold water in an effort to bring his temperature down. When that wasn�t enough to break the fever,
Hilary woke up Kenny and Max, getting them to help her dunk Tala in an icy tub
of water. That did the trick and by the
time they hauled him out again, he was shivering instead of sweating
profusely. Then the two sleepy males
helped get the red-head back into bed before getting shooed off to their own by
Hilary � after she�d thanked them for getting up in the middle of the night to
give her a hand.

Hilary
busied herself drying Tala off a bit better then tucking him back into the warm
bed, being careful not to jostle him too much.
She listened to his breathing for a moment, and, satisfied that there
was no rattling or anything which could signal pneumonia or worse, she sat next
to the bed and watched him continue to sleep � only now it seemed to be a more
peaceful, deep slumber than many of the previous days and nights had been. Tala had moved around restlessly a great
deal, often moaning and sometimes even speaking aloud. It was those moments that led her to believe
he was plagued with bad dreams and nightmares � from his memories and
experiences, or the fever, or a combination of it all she wasn�t sure.

Every
evening Kai would come up to the room and sit with his cousin, allowing Hilary
to go and do anything she needed to do � have a bath, fetch clean bandages and
bedding, or simply to just have a much needed break and change of scenery. She noticed that her own cousin was never
far from Kai�s side, almost always joining the prince at Tala�s bedside. It seemed to Hilary that Tyson was keeping
an eye on Kai much as she was on Tala, hovering almost protectively � and
possessively � over Kai.

One
evening, as she was heading downstairs when Kai had arrived to relieve her,
Hilary ran into Tyson on the staircase.
Now, she decided, would be a perfect time to pull him aside and find out
just what the situation was between her cousin and the prince.

�Come
with me for a few minutes, Takao. I
want to talk to you about something.�
She invited.

�Uh�okay.� Tyson followed her to the kitchen
curiously. �What�s up, Hilary?�

His
cousin moved around making herself some tea as she spoke. �I wanted to talk to you about Kai.�

�What
about him? I know he doesn�t really
show it but he is pretty worried and upset about Tala.� Tyson sat at the table and accepted a cup of
tea from her as she poured. �I can tell.�

�I
know. But that�s not it, Takao.� Hilary pulled out a tin of cookies from a
cupboard and set the tin between them on the table as she joined him.

Mildly
confused, Tyson grabbed a cookie and took a bite. �Then what?� He asked.

�I��
She began, then stopped, rephrasing what she wanted to know. �I realize it�s none of my business, cousin,
and I hope you�ll forgive me for sticking my nose in, but�I want to know what�s
between you and Kai.� Hilary picked up
a cookie. �Are you friends? Allies?
Or is it more?�

Tyson
blinked in surprise, swallowing his cookie and taking a sip of tea to wash it
down before he answered. �Where did
this come from all of a sudden, Hilary?
I mean, I thought it was pretty obvious that there�s more to our
relationship than allies or friendship.�

She
sighed. �Perhaps. But�I didn�t want to make assumptions and be
wrong. And I worry for you, Takao.� Hilary reached across the table and laid a
hand on his arm. �I guess it�s my job
to look after you now. You�re all I have
left, after all.�

�Hilary��
Tyson sighed too and took her hand from his arm between his own, patting it
lightly. �We�re family. Blood kin.
Of course you�re allowed to worry about me � I worry about you just the
same.�

�So
what is between the two of you, then?�
She repeated her question.

Tyson
released her hand and looked over at the stairs, staring distantly at
them. �I would have him as my
lifemate�though right now everything is so uncertain that I don�t know how we
could ever be together and make it work.�

�You
love him, then.� Hilary stated
softly. He looked at her.

�Yes. We haven�t said the words to each other yet
but I think we both know it.� He
admitted.

�
�You think?� Why hasn�t he told
you? Or you him?�

The
look he gave her was mildly chastising.
�Now you�re stepping into something that isn�t your business,
cousin. But�because you�re worried
enough to ask anyway�you know Kai well enough to understand that being close to
someone is a new experience for him.
He�s never had someone to feel, Gods, so many different emotions for. His parents died when he was little, he
hasn�t known friendship as we have, and he definitely doesn�t have a clue what
love is all about � not like this. Kai
needs time to adjust, to learn and process things, before he can say the
words. I understand that and I will
wait as patiently as I possibly can. I
will give him whatever time I can.�

Hilary
listened and hung her head, slightly ashamed for not realizing that on her
own. �I�m sorry, Takao. I would have known that had I thought about
it a little more.�

�Don�t
worry about it, cousin. Sometimes we
all need someone to point out what�s right in front of us before we can see
it.� Tyson forgave her, shrugging. �And when you�re dealing with someone as
enigmatic and puzzling as Kai�well, help is appreciated.�

She
laughed quietly. �You are very wise,
Takao, despite being you.�

�Hey!� He protested, though he couldn�t help
smiling, too. �Give me some
credit, Hilary.� Tyson got up after
finishing his tea, glancing at the clock.
�Well, I guess I�ll go get Kai.
He needs some sleep.�

�He
hasn�t been sleeping?�

�Not
as well as he should, I think.� The
Kinomiya sighed, running a hand through his bangs. �Like I said, he doesn�t show it, but he�s worried.�

Hilary
waved him toward the stairs. �Go on,
then. I don�t want another
patient. I�ll be back upstairs in a few
minutes, Takao.�

�Yeah. Sure.�

Tyson
went upstairs, followed by Dragoon, who came weaving through the air from the
direction of the sitting room. The
dragon mewled at him in question.

�What? You want to see how Tala�s doing?�

{If
no one minds. I know you�re a little
worried about Hilary, too, Takao. I�ll
stay with her, if you like.} Dragoon
offered.

Tyson
paused outside Tala�s door. �I guess I
would feel better if you kept an eye on her.�
Tyson folded his arms over his chest.
�You�re sure you don�t mind?�

{Of
course not. But if you don�t mind
getting my opinion, I don�t think you need to worry about her.}

The
bluenette made a face. �Too bad. I worry anyway � same as she has been over
me.�

{Good
point.}

Tyson
opened the door and quietly stepped inside.
Kai, sitting beside the bed in Hilary�s cushioned chair, glanced up.

�Hi.� The Kinomiya whispered. �Any change?� He moved over to stand next to his lover.

�He
hasn�t woken up yet. But he looks
better, doesn�t he? I think he�s got
more colour.� Kai whispered back.

Tyson
draped an arm around Kai�s shoulders and gave him a slight hug. �Yeah.
I think you�re right. Hilary
says he�s healing well. I bet he�ll
wake up any day now.�

The
prince nodded and let out a deep breath slowly. �Yeah.�

�Come
along, beloved. You need rest,
too. Let Tala sleep and Hilary,
Wolborg, and Dragoon will watch over him, okay?�

Kai
let Tyson tug him up. �I�m fine,
Kinomiya. I�d rather just��

�Uh
uhn. Come on. I don�t want you getting ill and Hilary doesn�t need another
person to look after.�

�But��

Tyson
reached up and laid a hand against Kai�s cheek, staring into warm crimson eyes,
letting Kai see the concern for him in his own midnight blue eyes. �I�m getting sleepy, too, beloved. It�s after ten.�

�Okay�fine.� Kai gave in. Tyson smiled and leaned up to press a brief kiss to Kai�s
mouth. The prince gave a small sigh of
pleasure and followed Tyson out the door without any further argument.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Early
the next morning, Tala finally woke up, a little confused and disoriented, and
feeling weak as a newborn puppy. He
also hurt like hell, all over, and with even the slightest of movements.

He
opened his eyes cautiously, blinking blearily because his eyes felt gritty and
heavy with sleep. He slowly managed to
raise one hand to rub at his eyes and face then let his arm drop back to the
bed. Just that simple act had used what
felt like an inordinate amount of energy.

Tala
yawned sleepily, deciding he was a bit uncomfortable, and when he shifted a bit
stiffly, he noticed a weight next to him on the bed. He rolled his head to the side and glanced down to see the mass
of rich mahogany-shaded hair on Hilary�s head, where it rested on her folded
arms on the mattress. She was still
seated in the chair but was bent right over and had fallen asleep there, her
face turned away toward the foot of the bed.

He
tried to raise his hand to shake her awake but found that arm was stuck under
the covers and pinned by Hilary�s weight on them. So instead he opened his mouth and croaked, �Hey.� Then he had to stop and clear his throat a
few times because his voice was all raspy from disuse. �Hey!�
He tried again, managing a bit more volume this time. �Wake up�please?�

Hilary
didn�t wake up but Wolborg did.
Hearing his master�s voice, the wolf sat up and looked at the bed,
letting out a happy little yip when he saw Tala was awake. The white wolf trotted over to Hilary and
nudged her with his nose insistently.

�Thanks,
old friend.� Tala rasped. �Glad to see you�re alright, too.�

Hilary
stirred and swatted absently at the cold, damp nose that was in her face,
sitting up stiffly with a yawn.
�Wolborg! What do you want,
pup? It�s too early to�oh!� She stopped scolding the wolf when she
glanced at Tala and stared directly into mesmerizing, surreal winter blue eyes
that were wide open and watching her intently.
�Goodness! You�re awake!�

�Unless
I�m dreaming�� Tala deadpanned. Hilary
shook her head and bestowed the most beautiful smile he�d ever seen in his life
on him.

�No. I�m pretty sure you�re not, my Lord. Welcome back to the world of the
living.� She stood and filled a glass
with water, setting it on the bedside table.
�If I help you to sit up a bit, do you think you can handle drinking
some water?�

�I
could use some. My throat�s sore and my
mouth�s dry.� He told her, feeling
slightly ashamed at the fact that he felt too weak and was in such pain that he
could barely move without assistance.
Despite that, however, he knew better than to turn away help when it was
offered, as injured as he was.

Besides,
it wasn�t like he had the strength to protest anyway, right?

�I
know. Here�� Hilary slowly and
carefully helped him to sit up enough that he could drink his water without
dribbling all over. She handed him the
glass. �Drink slowly, please. You�ve hardly had anything to eat or drink
in nearly two weeks � only what I�ve managed to pour down your throat since
you�ve been here.�

Obediently,
Tala sipped a mouthful and swallowed carefully. Just that little bit was all his stomach would handle at the
moment, though, and Hilary took the glass back. �How long have I been here?� He asked, frowning. �And
where is here?� Everything was
so hazy.

�Nearly
two weeks. And you�re at the home of
some friends of Tyson�s and mine.
You�re badly injured, my Lord, and then you had a bought with a fever a
few days ago that really didn�t help you any.�
She informed him. �Frankly, I
don�t know how you even managed to get here in the condition you�re in.�

�Maybe
I�m just that strong.� He tried to joke
weakly, his eyes drifting closed. He
was so tired.

�Strong
willed, maybe. Stubborn �
certainly.� Hilary smiled a little,
tucking him in again. �Rest. Wolborg will stay here with you and I will
go make you something to eat and get you something to ease your pain.� She squeezed his hand briefly and let go,
turning to leave.

Tala
opened his eyes again with great effort and grabbed her wrist to stop her. �Wait!
Please��

Hilary
turned back to him. �What is it?�

�If
you�re here, then can I assume that your�cousin? He�s here, too?�

�Takao
is here�Tyson, I mean. I imagine he�s
still asleep but he�s here.� Hilary
nodded. �And Kenny, and Kai, too.�

Tala
breathed a sigh of relief, sagging back against the pillows. �Oh good.
I�was concerned that maybe you would have split up and gone separate
ways from here.�

Hilary
had to smile at that. After all she�d
witnessed between their cousins, she highly doubted anything could
separate Kai and Tyson now. �No. We didn�t.
Now, I want you to rest, okay?
And don�t worry about the rest of it for now. There�s plenty of time to sort everything out��

By
the time she trailed off, Tala had already fallen asleep again. So, she gently brushed a lock of his red
hair from his face and left him to sleep, a watchful, relieved Wolborg at the
side of the bed.

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Majesty

Chapter 10