Page 61 of The Cursed Queen

"You did well today. Your training back in your old kingdom served you well," I said, sitting across from him.

"I suppose it was. I've been training to become a knight since I was nine. It was a long, grueling process."

"I imagine. For us dragons, we learn how to shift, fly, and breathe fire at a young age. The earliest being seven years of age."

"Was that how old you were when you first shifted?" Virgil asked.

I shook my head. "I was eight."

"What's it like? Shifting, I mean. Is it painful?"

Normally, a question like that would sound silly, but to an outsider like Virgil, it wasn't common knowledge. He spent his entire life not knowing shifters existed. Same for Sera.

"It's slightly painful when you learn to shift for the first time, but not nearly as much as it did for Sera when she partially shifted. When a dragonling is born, so is the dragon that lies dormant inside their soul. It grows with us into maturity. We shift at a young age because our dragons are just as small and have yet to outgrow our human form. But once our body adjusts to the shift, it becomes second nature. For Sera, her dragon is already fully grown and three times the size of her human body. Her frail human form couldn't handle the strength of her dragon, even in its weak state."

Virgil winced. "Will she be okay once she's fully released her dragon?"

That was a question I'd been pondering myself. Sera was working hard to break the chains holding down her dragon, but would she be too weak to shift afterward? The circumstances were so rare that I didn't have an answer. I didn't want to think about the possibility of my darling princess dying. All I could do was continue to help her and pray to the gods she'd be all right once her dragon was completely free.

"I'm sure she'll be fine. She's just as strong and stubborn as you," I finally said.

Virgil's expression softened at that; the brief glint of affection hidden in the depths of his gaze at the thought of Sera. Not for the first time, I wondered if his feelings for the princess were only that of childhood friends, or if he loved her more intimately. My dragon didn't seem too pleased to consider the latter, but I forced him back and reminded him that Virgil and Sera had known each other far longer than we had.

But I also bedded her already. The memory of feeling her tight entrance gripping my thick cock as I plunged in and out of her had me wanting to run back inside to find her and do it all over again. To feel the softness of her skin against mine. To hear the way she whimpered my name in pleasure once again. The thought of tasting her sweet juices had my mouth salivating.

"Still wasting your time with the druid brat?" My mind snapped out of its lustful haze to the sound of a snarling Baxus who walked over to where we were seated. His usual entourage trailing behind.

I spotted Ladon with him and frowned in his direction. I was disappointed that he became one of Baxus' lackeys rather than accepting fate's wishes to pair him with Sera. Understandably, his hatred of druids ran deep.

I stood up, then helped Virgil to his feet. "I don't see how that's any of your business."

Baxus scoffed. "You're soft on them, Andriel. You and the old man. They're enemies to our kind. How can you stand there and defend them when their very kingdom has nearly brought our extinction?"

I rolled my eyes. "You've asked this before, and the answer has yet to change. Virgil and Sera had nothing to do with it. They've both been working to prove themself an ally to our den. Even now, they set more of our people free when dragon riders ambushed the princess and Ryu."

"You should've let them die," Baxus growled. "Hybrids like them don't belong with us."

My dragon growled with fury. I allowed my eyes to partially shift, to assert my dominance, and my need to protect them both. Especially my mate. "Tread cautiously, Baxus. The next word you utter may be your last."

The bastard didn't accept my warning. His own dragon eyes were made visible as he stepped closer. Very well, if he wanted a fight, then he'd get one. I was about to issue a challenge when Virgil rushed to the front and held his hands out to either side of him, holding Baxus and me back.

"That's enough!" Virgil regarded me with a stern look. "It's not worth it. Fighting him won't change his mind, and you know it."

I froze in place, looking from Baxus to Virgil. I knew he was right, that fighting wouldn't get him to see reason. But something in my gut told me that Baxus needed to be dealt with. A sense of foreboding, like something was going to happen. Maybe I was paranoid after the attack Sera and Ryu experienced. Thankfully, we got to them in time.

The two of them had done well to hold them off until we arrived, but I feared what would've happened if we were too late.The worst part was knowing it likely wouldn't be the last time the dragon riders would come looking for us.

"This doesn't concern you, druid," Baxus spat indignantly. "Stay out of dragon business."

Virgil's eyes narrowed. "Considering you're arguing about me and Sera, it seems it is my business. And if you have a problem with me, you can either bring it up with me, or you can suck it up. Like I'm sure your rag-tag group of underlings sucks you off."

I failed to hold back a snort from that, something that Baxus noticed as his face reddened with a mix of embarrassment and anger.

"Why you little—" Baxus sneered and looked ready to attack.

I had just pulled Virgil back before he got hurt when a ring of blue flames engulfed our surroundings. Baxus jumped back in surprise, and Virgil gasped and walked backward, his back to my front. I gripped his arms to assure him he was safe. I knew these flames.

"That's enough!" Everyone looked to the right, spotting Ryu, Drayce, and Sera. Ryu was in front of the two, his eyes flashed with flames matching the blue embers engulfing his outstretched hands.

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