My baby daughter is a dragon

Erifreya Verrim Draconis, princess of Artemia and effectively queen of the dragons, was playing hide and seek with the coachman’s son and her new friend Orval in a fig grove near the river. She wasn’t very good at it; if she hid behind a tree, her little wings would stick out and give her away. Sometimes she would fly to hide in the branches, but it was hard not to notice with all the leaves flying around.

Orval was Valderant’s son, about the same age as Koro, a blond boy like his mother but with the tanned skin of Pellegrin from his father.

Runa had taken the children to that place to play, swim, and just be kids while she chatted with the women who accompanied her, all dressed in the traditional white robes of Pellegrin. Valderant, Meracina, and even Queen Clessa, who had left the kingdom’s affairs to her council under the pretext of her condition, were there. She had also included Oregdor in the council to keep him close and have him watch over the others, of course, the young man couldn’t refuse. Runa remembered being present when the queen gave all the news at once.

“Ori, darling, I’m so glad you could come, hee hee hee, as if you ever didn’t. I have a task for you. Now you’re going to be my port and customs advisor. Of course, since you’re so smart, you already know I expect you to keep the rest of the council loyal and working. We need to keep rebuilding, and the world doesn’t stop. I need all of you while I take some time to have and care for our baby. Do you think it will be a girl? I’ve grown quite fond of my little sister and…”

Runa wondered if Oregdor had heard anything after that; she certainly hadn’t, as the boy’s face distracted her.

Everyone had assumed that a body usurped by a dragon wouldn’t be fertile. Clessa explained that an ancient body like Mera’s wouldn’t be fertile no matter how much it rejuvenated; it had to do with how the female body worked, but the queen’s body was new and young. Nearly two months after the night of the three dawns, Runa thought she could already notice the change in her belly. Instead of an anklet, Runa had placed the spells to keep her human in a beautiful bracelet set with rubies. She had commissioned it from Frey, who, despite calling himself a blacksmith, had the skill of a jeweler. Right now, he was spending his time training his apprentices.

They had also brought Peony, Eri’s unicorn, who grazed near the river. Her constant presence had helped everyone heal; the teacher could walk again, Eri was as good as new, and Valderant had needed her the most, especially because she stubbornly refused to be healed with elven magic no matter how severe her condition was. Yet, she never stopped telling her story of how she defeated the green prince.

“…and when we touched that monstrous dragon, I jumped onto its neck and then to its head, pierced it from one side to the other with the silver lance, and jumped just in time to avoid the worst of the explosion. I fell hundreds of meters, survived by a miracle…”

She always forgot to mention that Meraxes had carried her up there, the lance belonged to Eri, and without Master Genwill’s shield, they all would have been caught in the explosion. Nor did she mention that Meraxes had caught her in the air, unconscious and badly injured. But well, they let her have her glory; some people were like that.

“Dear,” said the queen, not hiding her boredom, sitting in a luxurious wicker chair with a view of the river, “although I would love to hear you tell for the fourth time how you killed my brother, I’m more interested in knowing if you’ve thought about my offer. I can’t keep Prince Freydelhart forever.”

“I live off my ships, Your Majesty,” the hypocrite called her “phony dragon queen”. “I actually left the order years ago; I couldn’t take Frey’s place, training his new dragon slayers. Are they even necessary? It’s only a matter of time before the dragon war is history.”

“Oh dear,” the queen’s smile was too sincere, whether she intended it or not, she always showed when she thought someone had said something foolish, “time for a dragon can be hundreds of years. Eri can’t be everywhere, nor can I. One day I will have to leave this body, and my kingdom will pass to my little one.” They couldn’t know it yet, but she was sure she would have a girl. “Besides, I don’t just want you to turn them into dragon slayers, I want you to start a new order with my most loyal. You do know what the people of Pellegrin call you, right?”

Those who had seen her leave the bridge and those who saw her return had called her “dragon rider.”

“Your Majesty, that was, I mean, it could have been anyone,” now she wanted to be modest? She could have started an hour earlier and spared them the story.

“Caramin,” said Mera, “you can’t be serious? Reducing us to mere mounts for those who once hunted us seems undignified.”

“Ma-jes-ty, and please, darling, you were the first. Besides, we need to understand each other. I want my human children and my dragon children not to kill each other,” she said without smiling. “I know it’s not typical of our race to care for one another, but I’ve been wondering for a few hundred years if that’s not terribly wrong.”

“Wait a moment,” Runa finally intervened. “Are you implying this isn’t the first time?”

“No, it is the first time,” her smile had returned as if by magic, like when Eri stopped crying. “I had been in human bodies before, but this is the first time there’s someone so charming. I don’t know what it is. I mean, I had fun with some, I even had a consort when I was an old man, but I never felt like this. Is it normal for humans and elves?”

Runa was already over a hundred years old when she met Frey…

“I don’t think so, maybe not for everyone. But at least, I know how it feels,” she felt Valderant’s gaze but ignored it.

“Anyway, we didn’t come to talk about me, ladies. Think about it, Val. You can’t hate us dragons forever, and no, please don’t bother denying it. You lack subtlety, dear, but I’m willing to forgive you for that if you consider forgiving my race. You don’t have to do it now; you can keep gritting your teeth when you talk to me, but consider it. It’s a great offer I’m making you, and if you no longer have to travel, you can spend more time with that handsome boy of yours. If you’re worried about the safety of your ships, I can lend you some of my lookouts. And in time, one of your apprentices could be a captain under your command. Meanwhile, if you all agree, let’s have lunch.”

Like Queen Clessa, the dragon Caramin seemed like a spoiled child, easy to underestimate but hard to disobey. But among everything she said, which was a lot, there was always an implicit wisdom that couldn’t be argued with. Runa found it easy to understand that losing her absolute command power had been a minor inconvenience for someone so capable of manipulating with words and even simple gestures.

Calling the children to eat was a bit complicated. Eri was up in a tall fig tree, and Runa didn’t want her to jump. That girl was already flying and still jumping from trees for fun. She convinced her to come down flying. It was good that Runa had resorted to putting extra petticoats under her dress months ago. Little Koro and Orval had gathered a good amount of figs and had eaten quite a few. Their mothers were not happy. In the end, all the children ate frugally so they could continue playing. A shame considering the queen had prepared real delicacies for them. Runaesthera especially enjoyed the grapes from the local vineyards, whose sweetness was unmatched, besides being large and juicy to the point of having to bite them instead of eating them in one go. Thinking that Pellegrin, being in the desert, wouldn’t have vineyards or that they would be poor was a big mistake. That river must have been the very blood of the gods.

The rest of the afternoon, Lady Meracina watched over the children alongside Valderant, who trusted no one when it came to Orval. Runa and the queen sat further away to rest.

“Tell me, dear,” the queen began, reclining in a hammock set up for her, “what is it really like? You know, being a woman, a mother,” her voice changed tone, “a wife. I’ve been in this world for so long that I stopped counting the millennia. I’m the eldest of the princes. But this scares me a little,” she touched her belly as she spoke, “I have no idea what kind of person is inside me, but I feel like I would see Pellegrin burn again before letting any harm come to them. Besides, I know that eventually…”

Runa knew exactly how she felt.

“Your Majesty…”

“Call me Clessa, darling. You’re a princess, leave the titles for Mera, let her learn some respect.”

Runa chuckled but nodded. “Clessa, I don’t know much about being a true mother. I’m half-elf; we can’t have our own children. I don’t know if it’s the same, but what I feel for Eri is at least as intense. I’m fortunate; my daughter will live longer than I will, but not my husband. In that sense, I understand part of what you feel. We’ve lived as a family for almost two years. It’s a nightmare. I’m worried all the time, Frey makes me furious every time he lies to look good in front of Eri, she obeys or disobeys on a whim and creates countless problems. Every time they’re in danger, I think I won’t be able to bear it and feel like crying, and the worst part is…”

The queen had changed her smile to an expression of sincere concern. She had risen from her comfortable hammock to place a hand on Runa’s shoulder.

“What is it, dear?”

“That I wouldn’t want it to be any different.”

Clessa and Runa embraced, tears welling in their eyes. Neither had the answers the queen wanted because no one did. Runa was the mother of a dragon, and Clessa a dragon who would be the mother of humans. Both longed for a happiness they knew would bring them pain. Perhaps, in time, they would seek each other out again. In a distant era when they would only have each other.

“When are you leaving?” Clessa, yes, it was okay to call her that, sounded unusually sad.

“In two days,” Runa replied. “Frey wants to be in Meyrin in fifteen days to celebrate Eri’s seventh birthday and finish Bestenar’s apprenticeship.”

“If I could take you all in one day, would you stay a little longer?”

Runa simply nodded. She had suspicions about what the queen intended and had seen some palace artisans carrying wood to the docks under the bridge.