The Dragon Lord's Omega

by E. J. Waugh

  A few days of rest here would give him strength, though. He’d have to think of a way to thank his host for his kindness, but that could wait until after he was clean.

  Chapter Four

  Jaren jumped at the sound of footsteps behind his chair, and turned to see Elston approaching.

  “I’m sorry to have startled you.” Elston paused a few feet away. “I, umm. Alina told me I could find you here, I just wanted to ask if you’d like some company?”

  “Oh.” Jaren set down the book he’d been reading. “Of course. But you’re not obliged to keep me company.”

  “Perhaps I’m the one in need of company?”

  Jaren looked at him carefully. He was almost certain this was intended to be for his benefit, but he couldn’t bring himself to say no. Even if he knew how much of a risk he was taking in letting himself get used to Elston’s presence.

  “Perhaps you are. In that case, what brings you to see me, my young friend? Please, sit.” Jaren indicated the chair across from him.

  “I thought you might tell me some of your stories. If you’re in the mood to.”

  Under normal circumstances, Jaren was loathe to talk about himself at any length, but this was different. Elston had shown curiosity about what he’d learned of the world, and if sharing it with him would make him happy, then it seemed a small price to pay for that privilege.

  “I’d be happy to. Would you like anything before I start? I know you’re not entirely comfortable asking the servants for things.”

  Elston laughed, his cheeks flushing pink. “I don’t need anything, but thank you. I don’t think I could ever get used to servants.”

  “You’d be surprised how quickly you do,” Jaren said. “I’ve seen households so large that the servants had servants. There’s a lot of skill to managing something like that, which is why I always hire from other households and keep a minimal staff. I do not have the skill for anything more complex.”

  “Alina seems very happy to be here.”

  Jaren nodded. “And I will be very sad to see her go, but she has more than earned the terms of her contract. I understand she wants to see the world; I would not deny her that.”

  “You’re very kind.”

  Feeling himself blush, Jaren sat back in his armchair. “I’m pleased you think so. I wouldn’t want you to think of me as a monster.”

  “I can’t imagine anyone thinking of you as a monster.”

  “I’m afraid your point of view is unusual. I’m rarely thought of as anything else, unless I keep my nature hidden. Of course, I have the luxury of being able to do so, from all but the most perceptive of people. I don’t think I’ve had anyone figure me out quite as quickly as you did.”

  “I'll take that as a compliment,” Elston said.

  “You should.” Jaren offered him a reserved smile. “Now, you asked for a story, and I ought to give you one. How about something from the distant past?”

  Jaren watched Elston's face light up at the prospect. “Yes, please.”

  “Then I have just the incident. This happened in a faraway land, where it snows most of the year. There were more dragons then, and I'd been invited to stay with one of them over their brief summer. I think they might've had an omega in their midst in want of an alpha, but I never found out.”

  Jaren paused to determine whether he was boring Elston, and found him listening intently. It was nice to get to tell his tales.

  “A surprise blizzard caught me as I was flying over a mountain range, and blinded by the snow, I crashed directly into one. Not the most dignified moment of my life. As I fell, my left wing caught on a dead tree and tore badly, rendering it useless, so I couldn't save myself from crashing all the way down the mountain.”

  Elston's hand came up to cover his mouth. Jaren wondered if this was perhaps too intense a story to begin with, though he’d thought of it more as an embarrassing one.

  “I was more scraped and bruised than truly injured,” he rushed to assure Elston, who visibly relaxed. “The wing was the worst of it, and only because I had no way to stitch it back together myself. Dragons do not have the kind of delicate fingers needed for sewing, even if I'd been able to reach it.”

  “So you crashed in the mountains and you couldn't fly. How did you survive?”

  “Well, you may realize that dragons are a little tougher than the average human, so I wasn’t immediately worried, but I was very cold. Even now I can’t stand the cold.” He smiled wryly. Not many dragons liked to be cold, but he had developed a particular aversion to it.

  “Anyway, I’d fallen most of the way down the mountain at that point, so it was a matter of stumbling my way to a village nearby, which was only a few hours’ hike. Luckily, the blizzard hadn’t quite reached the valley yet, and I managed to make my way to shelter before it did. Mind, I didn’t speak a single word of the local language, so negotiating my way into the warmth proved awkward. It helped a great deal that I was charming and attractive in my younger days, and that they’d seen me flying overhead and crashing down.”

  Elston opened his mouth, and Jaren paused to allow him to speak, but he closed it again without saying a word.

  “In any case, none of that is the point of this story. The woman who eventually took me in spoke a language that I could manage a few phrases in. Neither of us spoke it well, but we got by. She sewed up my wing for me and took a few dropped scales as payment. I think she wanted them more as a souvenir than anything. It turned out that she was also very, very old, but not a dragon. She was something that even I didn’t believe existed, until I met her.”

  “What was she?” Elston asked, wonder shining in his eyes. Jaren was pleased with himself for managing to tell a tale that was at least interesting to him.

  “She was a Huldra,” Jaren pronounced the word with a roll, for maximum effect. “An ancient forest spirit. She’d been there since before the village was built, before humans had even discovered the place. They’re beautiful creatures, and very fond of humans. There are perhaps a handful of them in the world, according to her. The pain and indignity of my crash all faded into insignificance. Imagine coming across such a rare creature by accident.”

  Elston snorted. “That’s more or less what happened to me.”

  “Yes, well. She served as something of an inspiration for me. Her kindness stuck in my mind long after I left her village. She was a protector of her people. It made me feel that I could be the same. And that perhaps I didn’t know everything about the world and there were still things to discover. An important lesson for a creature hitting their six hundredth year.” He smiled wryly.

  “I can’t imagine being six hundred years old. Or a thousand,” Elston said.

  “Neither could I, when I was six hundred. The strange thing is, while I have memories from most of the time, I don’t think about them unless I do so on purpose, or something reminds me. I feel no older now than I did when I first left my parents.”

  “I’m twenty years old.”

  Jaren laughed. “I suppose that is a great deal less than a thousand. But when you are older, thirty or forty, you won’t feel all that much older. You’ll change, of course. Everyone does. But it happens so gradually, most of the time, that you barely notice it.”

  “Life seems like it happens so fast to me. It must be nice to have so much perspective.”

  “Perhaps, but imagine the sheer number of mistakes you can make in that time. Every time I think I’ve made them all, I find new and interesting ways to get things wrong. Which sounds more self-loathing than I intended it to. I am content with what I’ve seen in life, but I do wonder what it would be like to live with the urgency of a human. You burn so brightly.”

  Elston hummed, and when Jaren looked up at him again, he seemed deep in thought. For such a young man, the world seemed to weigh heavily on him. Perhaps whatever he’d been running from was to blame, though Jaren still didn’t feel as though that was something he should ask about.

  “Thank you,” Elsto
n spoke up after a moment. “For sharing that with me. Is your wing okay?”

  “There’s a scar where it tore, but it works as well as it ever has. I haven’t flown directly into another mountain since.”

  “That’s good.” Elston smiled a small, but clearly sincere smile.

  A part of Jaren wanted to offer to show him, since Elston seemed as though he was someone who’d want to see, but the part of him that had been called a monster by so many made him hesitate. It felt safer to avoid the risk.

  “Next time, I’d like to hear a story about your life,” Jaren said instead. “If you’d like to tell one.”

  “I don’t have many, but I’m happy to share.”

  “I’d like that.” Jaren yawned widely, covering his mouth so as not to show his teeth. “But for now, I’m afraid I need to sleep.”

  He didn’t want to leave Elston’s company, but he truly did need to rest. The colder months forced even the most comfortably warm dragon to sleep more often, and nothing could stop it.

  “Of course.” Elston stood. “I’ll leave you in peace.”

  “I eat my evening meal quite late by human standards, but if you’re hungry at the time, I’d be delighted to dine with you again.”

  “I’ll wait for you,” Elston agreed, and then turned to leave. Jaren watched him go, regretting again his intense need to sleep for at least a few hours.

  Chapter Five

  When the morning of his third day staying at Highweald Castle brought sunshine and the promise of a clear, safe day to travel on, Elston wasn’t sure how he felt. He’d promised himself he’d leave, no matter how comfortable he was here, and he intended to stick to that—he didn’t want to grow to resent Jaren or to outstay his welcome, so he had no real choice in the matter.

  However, sitting across from the other man at breakfast, he wished the snow had lasted just a day or two longer.

  “I suppose you’ll be leaving us today?”

  “Yes. I’ve enjoyed your hospitality very much, and I’m eternally grateful for you rescuing me. I can’t even begin to repay you.”

  “You can repay me by visiting if you’re ever in the area again,” Jaren said. “I should like to hear tales of the places you’ll see.”

  “I’m sure you’ll already have seen them.”

  “Perhaps, but I haven’t seen them through your eyes. You will experience them very differently than I did.”

  Elston hummed, thinking about that for a moment. A strange, small thought caught his attention—the idea that he’d like to see the world with Jaren, benefit from his experience and his company. Of course, that was far too much to ask, and he didn’t know Jaren nearly well enough to even truly want it.

  The thought remained, however, and his mind wanted to chase it and expand on it. Elston forced himself to concentrate on his breakfast, and avoided saying anything else for the remainder of the meal. He could feel Jaren’s mood darkening, and felt guilty for it, but he would say his goodbyes when he left.

  When he returned to his room—or rather, the bedroom he’d been allowed to use—he found Alina changing the sheets on the bed.

  “You’re leaving, aren’t you?” She asked, keeping her eyes on her work.

  “Yes. I wanted to thank you for taking care of me. I’ve been so happy here, but I need to see the world for myself.” Elston hovered at the edge of the bed. “I hope you’ll get to do that, too. Maybe we’ll see each other again someday.”

  Alina finally smiled. “I’d like that. I will miss you.”

  “I’ll miss you, too,” Elston said. He was taken by surprise when Alina turned around and kissed him on the cheek. His face heated, and he couldn’t stop himself from giggling.

  “I’ve set aside a sturdier pack for you, as well as some warmer clothes and supplies. I’ve left it with your things.” She paused, took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. “And now I’m going to leave you be, because I hate long goodbyes.”

  Elston smiled at her. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me.”

  She nodded, made a tiny bow, and then turned and left without another word. Elston was glad to have met her, and would genuinely miss her. He took a few minutes to check his things, and then pulled his travelling cloak on and breathed a heavy sigh.

  Luck had been on his side when he’d first come here, and he hoped it was a sign of things to come. Regardless of where he went or what happened on his journey from here on out, Elston would never forget the kindness he’d enjoyed at the hands of a man other people thought of as a monster.

  He found Jaren in the front hall, evidently waiting for him to leave. Elston approached without caution, and stood on the tips of his toes, stretching himself as far as he could, to kiss Jaren on the cheek as Alina had done to him.

  Jaren coughed and cleared his throat, but didn’t seem insulted or upset by the gesture. Elston hoped that the tiny amount of affection would make him understand that everything he’d done meant a great deal. He would have given more if he trusted himself not to get attached.

  “Good luck,” Jaren said when he recovered. “And safe journey.”

  “Take care of yourself,” Elston said, taking a step toward the huge front doors. “I expect you to be here when I come back.”

  Jaren smiled a soft, warm smile that made Elston’s stomach flutter. Instead of dwelling on the feeling, he turned, opened the front door to the castle, and strode out into the sunlight without looking back. He was afraid that if he did, he might not have the heart to leave.

  Though the air still had a chill to it, the sunshine was warm on his back, and the forest beyond looked inviting rather than foreboding. Birdsong rang out through the trees, and the rustle of small creatures who hadn’t yet gone to ground for the winter made for constant companions as Elston walked. The castle was positioned on a hill, backing onto a steep cliff, so he’d been able to get his bearings as he walked away, and knew he was heading out toward a town he’d only visited once or twice as a boy, where he expected he could find shelter and a day or two of work so he could continue to move on soon.

  It took a moment for Elston to realize that the woods had gone quiet, and then a moment more to begin to worry about it. Quiet was never a good thing with so many living creatures around. They had to have been frightened by something.

  Relying on his gut instinct to be cautious, Elston left the main path and hid himself to the side behind a huge, hollow oak. Voices, indistinguishable at first, began to carry on the wind.

  Then, with a feeling not unlike missing a step on the way down a flight of stairs, Elston recognized one of them.

  “He must be out here somewhere. He can’t have gotten far in the snow,” Torv said. Elston could now hear footsteps, the sound of a half a dozen pairs of feet traipsing along the path.

  “We’re just as likely to find his body after that snowfall,” another voice, one Elston didn’t recognize, spoke up.

  “That’s my son you’re talking about.”

  Elston’s stomach turned over unpleasantly. His own father was out hunting him down as though he was a stag.

  “I’m sure he’s alive and will be grateful to see us. He was just nervous about the mating. I’ll soon cure him of that,” Torv said.

  The rest of the band laughed.

  Elston, without a second thought, bolted. He’d said no, and his no hadn’t been good enough. Nothing was going to convince his father or Torv that he didn’t want to be mated, especially to Torv, who was a brute of an alpha with a string of rejected omegas to his name. Broken people, once he was done with them. That was the best future Elston could hope for with Torv. If he happened to decide that Elston was the right omega for him… the thought didn’t bear finishing.

  There was only one place Elston had to turn, and that was back to the safety of the castle. If it was a choice between remaining there longer and being captured by Torv and his followers, there was no contest. He would have fled to a bear cave rather than turn toward the men coming for him.

&
nbsp; Jaren would take him in again, though now he would be forced to explain his reasons for running. Elston suspected they would be accepted without question, though. Jaren had proved himself a good man.

  Elston ran as fast as his legs would carry him, promising himself the whole time that it would be all right as soon as he was safe inside the walls of Highweald Castle again.

  Chapter Six

  Jaren was awoken from the doze he’d fallen into near the fire by loud banging, which he realized moments later was coming from the front door. He rushed to go to it, afraid it might be a threat and not wanting one of his household to get there first.

  To his surprise, Elston fell through the doorway the moment the door was open. He heaved huge, desperate breaths, and then began sobbing into the stone floor. Jaren swallowed, and crouched down to put a hand on his back.

  “It’s all right,” he soothed. “Whatever it is, you’re safe here.”

  “They’re coming for me,” Elston panted between sobs.

  Elston’s words struck Jaren as though they were a physical blow. The thought of someone—anyone—coming for Elston against his will was intolerable. Whatever the reason, be it that he’d committed some crime or owed a debt, Jaren had only seen good in his heart.

  He looked beyond the young man to the open door, and out into the forest beyond, where he could see a band of armed men were jogging up the path, toward the castle.

  Even without Elston to protect, Jaren would object to that behavior. Mind made up, he petted Elston’s back again, gently, and rose to stand. “You stay here. They will not take you from my home.”

  Elston looked up at him, his eyes shining with tears, but also unabashed gratitude. Jaren knew he’d come to the right decision.

  He strode through the door, pulling himself up to his full height, but trying not to let his anger show. “Gentlemen, you are trespassing.”