“I’m surprised you haven’t, seeing as much of the kingdoms as you surely do.” He stopped at the top of the stairs to lean against the rail, but I couldn’t get a read on him. Fae didn’t usually notice differences like that. But no one said anything about him being a dragon or any other kind of shifter who might have enhanced senses. I was sure he was just fae like his father and the rest of the royal line.
“Me too.” I felt a breeze and turned to look at the horizon. I needed to alter course if we were about to experience some kind of weather.
Wings flapped in the dark, and I sighed with relief as Kol drew them back and dropped onto the deck. He stood shirtless and crossed his arms over his chest. Several days of taking flights in the night sky had done him a world of good. It wasn’t the sun on his skin he needed to heal, it was the wind in his wings.
“Why not fully shift?” I asked. My question was purely curiosity, but Kol’s expression told me it was not a flippant subject to him. He glanced down at the tattoo on his chest.
“I’m not sure I can,” he said simply. “But it’s nice to at least be able to fly again.”
I cocked my head in question, but couldn’t think of words. That had to be a fate worse than death for a dragon, surely? “You can’t shift?”
I knew he had extensive poisoning, and the healers weren’t sure he’d ever wake up, let alone what the permanent damage would be.
“I’m still healing. My captors used Dragon's Bane to cut me off from my magic and my dragon while they held me. The healers think I should be able to now, or soon. They’ve been extracting the Bane from my system slowly, but some still remains.” He fingers found some of what looked like the mostly faded tattoo. It showed how strong he must have been in his prime to withstand all that he did.
I leaned in. “Are those tattoos?”
“With Dragon's Bane mixed into the ink. Yeah. Would not recommend.”
“No kidding.” I shuddered with second-hand pain. “Have you tried shifting?” I’d want to die if I couldn’t connect with my dragon. I don’t know how he’s made it this long. Poor guy.
Kol shook his head. “Nothing more than the wings. I still feel cut off to some extent—I can’t explain it. But part of me doesn’t want to push it only to find out that part of me no longer exists.”
I winced. I didn’t want to think what that must be like. I averted my eyes, half nodding towards the prince to give him a heads up we were not alone, in case he hadn’t noticed. “Did you have a nice flight?” I asked to try and change the course of the conversation. I didn’t know when he’d left. I must have been taking my rest.
Kol looked in the direction I gestured and immediately dipped into a slight bow. “My apologies, I didn’t see you there, Your Highness.”
“We used to be friends, Kol. You don’t need to call me that.” Alaric sounded hurt.
“I would never assume. It’s been many years since that time,” he replied. I could sense he had his walls up, which made me curious about their history.
“I never meant for it to end,” Alaric said carefully.
Kol lifted his brows. “You know he wanted you to himself.”
“I know.” Alaric exhaled like it was a weight on his chest. “But that was never anything against you or Nyx.”
“It felt like it was.” Kol softened a little. “We didn’t stop seeking you out to hurt you. We thought it would be easier for you, too, if we left you alone.”
“It probably was easier.” Alaric shook his head. “I bet he would have made my life harder had you two not stopped being my friends.”
“He’s kind of a dick,” Kol said unapologetically.
“He’s always had a lot of pressure on him from our father.” Alaric lifted his shoulders, and I couldn’t tell which side of it he was on. “But you’re right. He’s kind of a dick, and he was being possessive. I don’t blame either of you for not wanting to deal with it. It just sucked.”
I took note of this small bit of history, not sure where it would be relevant, but I’d take anything I could to do my job well. I would do what Nyx asked, but I was staying as far out of politics as possible. I refused to get invested in their world and get sucked back into a government that wouldn’t listen to me. I did that enough in Kerani.
“It’s been a long time,” Kol stepped forward, placing a hand on the prince’s shoulder and giving it a squeeze. “I have missed you.”
Alaric half-smiled. “I’ve missed you, too.”
I got the feeling both males wanted to embrace, but whether it was touch aversion from his trauma or simply royal protocol that stayed Kol’s hand, the prince seemed equally reluctant to make that move, so they just stood for a long moment, years of regret tangible between them.
“Can you believe all this?” Kol gazed off towards shore, breaking the moment. “I can’t believe you’re even old enough to get married.”
“We are the same age, and you’ve been in the military for years, and you can’t believe I’m about to get married?” Alaric sounds amused.
“It’s different. You were always—“ Kol cut himself off.
