Cassandra sighed and snuggled inside Kairen’s arms. Had it been two days already? They hadn’t parted and left the bed except for taking the trays of food inside and back outside. Her last three nights and two days had been filled with love and sex. She felt like they had gone into their own little bubble, away from time. Or maybe just trying to forget about time. She wasn’t ready to part with him yet, but she probably never would be.
Kairen’s slow breathing above her head made her a bit sad. She didn’t want to have to sleep alone, without the sounds of her partner beside her. He had become everything to her. The fact that she knew this was going to come to an end was devastating her, making it so much worse. She didn’t know when, she just knew that it was going to happen soon. Cassandra hated the wait. The only way for her to forget was to sleep or have sex with her Prince. Somehow, she hated feeling depressed before he was even gone.
She sat on the bed, sighing and pushing her hair away from her face. Of course, behind her, Kairen immediately reacted, and came to wrap her in his arms.
“What is it?” he whispered against her ear.
“I just... I need to do something. I’m going to go crazy if I just stay here thinking about how you’re going to leave soon.”
“Are you sad?”
“I don’t think I’m sad...yet.”
Cassandra turned around, kissing him gently, brushing his beard with her fingers. It had already grown back a little. Then, she took a deep breath and smiled softly.
“I’ll be alright. Just focus on the war, and I will focus on our baby.”
Kairen nodded, agreeing with her. Cassandra gently kissed him again and left the bed to go and see what clothes she could put on. She didn’t want to stay locked in this room anymore. It had been a bit too long already, and she didn’t want to be rude to their host, Lady Kareen, or make her sister unhappy. Kairen grabbed the food tray to bring inside while she washed using the little water basin, and they ate together in silence.
When they were both full, dressed, and ready to go, they walked out of the bedroom. The Diamond Palace was actually rather quiet. First, Cassandra wanted to go and check on the Dragon Egg. It was a bit of a funny feeling, but she felt like she had neglected her baby by not going to see the egg for a while. Once they got there, to her surprise, Krai was wrapped around it sleeping. She chuckled.
The Black Dragon woke up, and watched her come close, but did not want to leave its egg, letting Cassandra approach instead. She got on her knees right next to the dragon, and Krai’s snout sniffed her belly, rubbing against her dress curiously. She scratched the dark snout a bit, but her hand was busier touching the egg. It was still warm, with this strange light moving inside. It was almost as if something was beating inside. Actually, the egg seemed even warmer than she remembered, almost hot now. How many more weeks until she gave birth? At this rate, it would be burning hot before her baby was born!
Krai softly growled when Kairen approached, and the War God also scratched its head. It was rare for the two to interact directly. Cassandra watched them for a while, but she was more distracted by the egg. She had grown attached to it a lot, and couldn’t wait to meet both the baby dragon and her baby. The egg was already so big, she wondered what size a newborn dragon could be? Maybe it was half full of liquid in there, or maybe the baby dragon was already as big as that?
“Oh, look who finally came out of the den!”
They turned around. Kareen was just at the entrance of the garden, followed by some servants carrying meat. She smiled widely and walked up to them. Krai, excited, suddenly got up, smelling the meat.
“Good Morning, Lady Kareen,” said Cassandra.
“Good Morning, dear. You look well-rested!”
Cassandra blushed a bit. The Imperial Concubine couldn’t ignore that they had just spent two days in bed. Of course, she would be rested, having done nothing but sleep and...the rest.
“How come you are feeding Krai here?” asked Cassandra, a bit curious.
The dragon would usually leave the Diamond Palace, or wherever they were staying, to go and feed by itself. It was a good enough hunter to provide for itself. It only came around to steal some meat from their meals out of gluttony, not hunger.
“That big boy doesn’t need me!” laughed Kareen. “This is for Srai. Srai, come here baby.”
Suddenly, a Purple Dragon’s head popped up from behind Krai. Cassandra hadn’t noticed Srai was here! The other dragon was so tiny, Krai’s body could easily hide it. Srai climbed over its younger brother, and wiggled all the way to Lady Kareen, though Krai was right behind, the ruby eyes fixed on the meat.
“Don’t move, Krai,” said Kareen with her motherly voice.
The Black Dragon growled softly, sulking a bit, but stayed where it was, with no choice but to watch its older brother eat the meat. Srai’s owner had died at six years old. Would that mean her future baby dragon was going to be even tinier than that? Cassandra couldn’t be sure, though. Sephir and Vrehan’s dragons were both smaller than Krai. It was really too hard to say, though Lady Kareen had hinted before that their dragon would probably be on the bigger side.
“Stop sulking you big boy, you should go out and hunt if you’re hungry!” said Kareen, scolding Krai who was still growling, upset.
“Didn’t he go hunting yet today?” asked Cassandra.
“He went this morning, but he’s been glued to his egg for as long as you two were locked in that room. He only leaves it to go hunting. I don’t know what’s wrong with him. Kairen?”
Both women turned to the War God, but Kairen stayed mute, looking at the egg with a little frown. Cassandra, however, was the quickest to understand what was going on.
They didn’t want to leave. Just like Kairen had kept her in the bedroom for three nights and two days, Krai didn’t want to part with its egg. The dragon probably didn’t want to part with Cassandra, either. The pair were dreading this war, unwilling to part with their loved ones. This truth hit Cassandra right in the heart. She hadn’t realized before. Because her prince seldom showed his feelings and was always so attached to her anyway, she hadn’t even thought about how he could feel about leaving her here in the Diamond Palace. She had focused on her own feelings alone, and only realized now how selfish and self-centered that was of her.
Kairen was the one who had to leave. He was the one who would have to go to war, to fulfill his duty as the Third Prince, the God of War of the Dragon Empire, while she’d stay back. Cassandra would be safe here in the Diamond Palace, while her lover was sent to the frontline. Underneath the armor, the War God was a man. Just a man, who had learned to muffle his feelings his whole life. However, Krai was a mirror of its owner’s feelings. It didn’t want to leave them.
