“Gandor, wake up! If you don't get up now, you'll be late for school. You can't just fly to school like a dragon. Come on, let's go."
Gandor covered his head with a light blanket, saying, "I'm sick. My belly hurts."
“We're not raising a liar, Gandor. Our kind rarely gets sick, especially not with a stomachache, unless we were poisoned."
"I got poisoned then, Ashina. It was Rector's turn to cook last night. Oh, my stomach!”
"Last night’s dinner wasn't bad, though Rector could use a cooking teacher. It wouldn't poison you Gandor!”
Anticipating Gandor’s reluctance to go to school, I said, "Gandor, get ready to take a bath in bed."
As a self-defense mechanism, Gandor grabbed his pillow and jumped out of bed. I laughed at him.
“Don't think you can escape me, Gandor."
Gandor kept swinging his pillow, but I had the hose attached to the sink. I laughed uncontrollably, pressing on the release handle and soaking Gandor and his pillow. It became clear that Gandor wanted to appear angry, so he huffed and rushed into his bathroom, locking the door behind him.
Though I'm leaving his suite, I can't help but giggle. Gandor is eleven years old, but we don't know his exact birth date. He came home after my parents were abroad for a year, visiting each village in the Western Territories to ensure everything was running smoothly. There were packs overrun by rogues, and to understand the situation, they had to visit each one.
They came home very late at night and gave the baby to my aunt because the castle had been attacked. We were able to escape. We weren't even told what my brother's name was. So, while settling into the packhouse located in the Winter Dragon kingdom, we decided to write our name suggestions on pieces of paper and put them in a jar. Rector picked the name that would be used, and from that day forward, he was known as Gandor. We suspected that he had been adopted or rescued because he didn't possess an Alpha werewolf gene.
Despite the fact that Gandor doesn't smell like a human or a wolf, we've never discussed our suspicions.
I would never harm my brother. I love him and consider him a part of my family. His golden eyes and skin make him unique, resembling the Golden Roman Gods.
Getting ready for work, I try to give my straight hair some waves. I took a test to leave high school at 15 and have been taking courses online for the University since then.
I want a modern kingdom with electronics and security cameras. My job at the library is to study and learn how to become a just queen. I put on an outfit, which includes a gray pencil skirt, a white V-neck sweater, and two-inch white and gray heels.
After getting dressed, I grab my Range Rover keys and check on Gandor, finding his room empty. I decided to use the old elevator to get to the main floor and can hear Gandor complaining as usual about going to school.
The King has asked to meet me before I leave for work, informing the library that I will be late. I see that Rector has prepared egg sandwiches for Gandor to take to school. Because I am aware that Gandor dislikes Rector’s food he made him, I giggle.
“Come on, Gandor, let's drop you off at school. There is a good twenty-minute drive involved. Take those sandwiches with you and let's go. It is imperative that I arrive on time for my appointment with the King."
From the corner of my eye, I can see Gandor staring at me. There is no doubt that my brother is mad and irritated, but I love him, nonetheless. As a matter of fact, I consider it cute, which only aggravates him further. Gandor grabs the sandwiches only to toss them out the window once we are on the road. I huff, “So what are you going to eat until lunch is served?” I asked Gandor.
“I would rather starve, why can’t nana (Our nickname for our nanny) make breakfast anymore? I miss her heavenly food. Now we are being starved to death due to gross food being served.”
I look at Gandor, “Be grateful you have food. Nana got a job and seriously we don’t need a nanny any longer and it is not like she is being paid to be one.”
Despite the small back roads, the drive went quickly. As I look ahead, I see an extravagant school with dragons. School buildings resemble castles with balconies on all sides. The balconies are used as launch platforms for dragons that are capable of flying. The sight is truly breathtaking.
After reluctantly exiting the vehicle, Gandor jumps out. The sound of his friends running up to him can be heard in the distance. Their actions consist of slapping him on the back of the head. Apparently, they were all unable to get out of school today. I am sure they were looking forward to playing online games together. Deserves them right. Laughing to myself, I smile.
Having reached the school halfway up the mountain, I am now returning to the small village. There is no pack structure among dragons, as there is among wolves. A dragon's home is built exclusively into the mountains surrounding this area. The mountainside blends perfectly with the homes, so if you were not accustomed to seeing them, you would never be able to recognize them.
The Dragon King has a castle in the middle of town. The only reason is that it makes him more accessible to his dragon clan. Upon parking, I see Queen Elmphima at the door waiting for me. When I walk into the foyer, she hugs me. "Come on Ashina, let's take that sweater off. Our next stop is Alpheus' office." I started to worry there might be something wrong. All this felt so formal.
“Your highness, do you have any pressing concerns?” “Oh, no, no, we just want to talk about your brother. That's all.”
I rolled my eyes and replied, “What has my impish brother done now?” I asked fearfully, knowing how my little brother could be. Queen Elmphima laughed, “No it is nothing like that. Although I am sure he is a handful. No once we are in the office it will all be cleared up.”
Once we were in the Kings office, I took a seat in front of the Kings desk and his queen sat to his right. “Good morning, your highness. How can I help today?”
He chuckles, "Don't be so serious Ashina, you can call me by my first name. In addition, neither you nor your brother are in trouble. In fact, quite the opposite is true. Basically, I would like to have your brother's blood work completed."
With a deep sigh, I exhale. The idea of my brother being a test subject did not appeal to me. Furthermore, there is a part of me that fears that we will find his biological parents and that he will leave me. Losing him will irreparably damage my heart since he is the only sibling I have.
“Ashina, you and I both know that Gandor is not a wolf and not a human. I know you don’t want to lose him; however, it is not fair to the parents that may have been missing him many years ago during the wars. My suspicion is he is a Gold Dragon. We just need to perform some testing on him.”
As I nodded my head, I could not speak as I knew that I would begin to cry. There is no doubt in my mind that my eyes are glassy. A forced smile appears on my face as I say, "I'd better get to work now. Your highness, you are correct. If you find out the results, let me know." I choke back tears, since I don't want to show weakness, I'll be queen soon. It's important that my enemies I don't know about don't see me as weak. The King and his Queen stood up to say goodbye to me.
Ashina -- When Andor and I arrived back to what is now our kingdom, the Dark Moon royal pack, my parents granted us many rights, including overseeing new member rituals and other duties of a king and queen. The only thing left was to transfer the titles to us. My mother insisted on waiting until her return and wanted both Andor and me to undergo six months of training. I had several meetings with the packs in the royal kingdom, and it became clear that there were too many packs in one kingdom, leaving their needs unmet. They also voiced concerns about my mother’s temper and magic, which led to Malcolm stirring up unrest among upset Alphas. I proposed a solution to divide the kingdom into smaller regions, each with its own King and Queen elected by the packs. Additionally, there would be a counselor to work with the royal couple, ensuring checks and balances. Each pack would have its own council reporting to the main council, which in turn would report to the
Andor— I found myself completely speechless in the presence of the queen. The memory of her sister's death had been buried deep within me for so long, a defense mechanism to preserve my sanity, my therapists had said. It was impossible for me to convey to her that I couldn't remember what she had seen in my subconscious. A weight settled in my chest as I realized how much her sister's role in my life meant to her, knowing that blocking the memory would only add to the queen's grief, knowing that it was Lisa who had saved my family's lives. As if she could sense my turmoil, Queen Amira attempted to comfort me. "Don’t worry about what you can and cannot remember. You were just a toddler when this happened. I have another question for you. Could I get Ashina and you to take over the kingdom temporarily while my spouse and I bring in the traitors that abandoned their post to guard Ashina and her brother?" I couldn't help but wonder why she wasn't send
Andor –The fireball had knocked Ashina out, and I rushed to carry her to the medical tents, navigating through the tunnels to avoid encountering too many non-mated male warriors. Her mating scent hadn't become strong yet, so I was relatively safe from wolf shifters attempting to claim her as theirs (My Mate).When I entered the medical tent, I noticed several male shifters sniffing the air. Amidst the chaos, a healing witch hurried over to me and directed me to a tent designated for women only. She explained that the tent was enchanted to conceal mating hormones from non-mated males. To manage the females' heat until the war was over, they administered medicinal herbs that would allow them to complete the mating once the conflict had ended.I nodded and followed the nurse to where Ashina would receive care. As the nurse started IVs for Ashina, I observed her receiving the herb intravenously. Though Ashina's heat made me yearn to mate with her, it wasn't the appropriate time or place t
Amira:I was amazed to discover that my powers had returned even stronger than before. I couldn't help but feel that the Moon Goddess had played a role in healing me and enhancing my abilities. I couldn't express enough gratitude to the moon goddess for this gift. Every spell, every incantation, every snap of my fingers felt effortless and natural.I could see the admiration in my daughter's eyes as she watched me use my powers. She seemed to think of me as some kind of super witch, despite the fact that we were werewolves with elemental powers, not witches.As royal werewolves, we are also granted the power of sight when we are crowned. Personally, I am gifted with the ability to see someone's past. In my mother's case, she could see what people were doing in real time. I couldn't help but wonder what kind of sight Ashina would gain once she was crowned.I couldn't help but inwardly laugh as I continued to provoke Griselda, knowing that revealing the truth wasn't for her benefit, but
Dropping to my knees beside my brother, my heart raced at the sight of the gash on his forehead. The blood, so much blood, it looked worse than it probably was. My breath caught in my throat as I saw his dragon working to heal the wound. A mixture of relief and anger surged through me. Gandor had disobeyed my orders, and now he was here, hurt. I stood up, my hands trembling with a burning rage as I grabbed Gandor by the collar and shook him. “What were you thinking? You were supposed to stay home! Do you realize you could have been killed, Gandor!” He just shrugged with an infuriating nonchalance, his eyes flicking away, refusing to meet my gaze. My patience snapped. “What's so important that you couldn't listen to me for once?!” Gandor's eyes widened, and he nodded over my shoulder. “Ashina, who is that woman behind you?” I turned, seeing that it was our mother he had never really met. He was just a baby when we escaped so many years ago. Sadly,
Kiera – I stood there watching Malcolm taunt and laugh at me. No Denison can laugh at me and stay alive because I'm a royal alpha wolf. It is beyond my comprehension why this obnoxious human would stand there laughing. The fear of my wrath should have him shaking. Groar – “Attempt to kill Malcolm if you dare, he's a formidable opponent. He will kill you little wolf, if I haven’t killed you first.” Kiera – With a growl, I charged towards Malcolm, aiming for his neck. What kind of trickery is this? When I bite into his neck, it fades like the mist of fog hovering above the lake in the morning. I hear Groar roar with laughter as if he was watching slapstick comedy. Anger welled up from the fire pit that was boiling from deep inside of my gut. I started chewing on the hardened scales of the black dragon. I would dig my way to his heart and eat it. I could feel Ashina pulling through trying to shift. I needed to kill this dragon. It cannot think of living after disrespecting me.