Page 27 of Don't Fae With Dragons

I break eye contact and smile. It’s such a small thing to ask, when I was just pressed naked to him in the bathing-tub, but it makes me blush. He’s sodifferentfrom Cory, from what I can tell, although I find myself – it’s hard to admit – drawn to both of them. Port seems to move carefully, slowly, whereas Cory acts on instinct, ferociously and powerfully. Where Port is focused on being considerate, Cory seems more like the type that takes what he wants.

“I’d rather you stayed,” I whisper closing my eyes and leaning softly back in the water.

CHAPTER 18: MILI

After several hours in the bathing chamber, Port and I went our separate ways to prepare for dinner.

I asked him, “Will I see you at dinner?”

To which he replied, “I’ll see you soon enough, Mili – just not tonight.”

The thought of facing Cory, and possibly Max, alone, frightened me. I must have given away my horror at the thought of dining with those two alone, because Port smiled gently at me.

“Many of Cory’s commanders dine with him, you know. You’ll get to meet lots of new, friendly faces.”

I cocked my head at his subtle, shrewd reassurance; Port seemed, the more time I spent with him this afternoon, to hold a sort of valuable, quiet wisdom. Anyway, it was only a small vote of confidence, but it was enough to give me enough courage to actually attend dinner.

Now, I’m being escorted by a tertiary guardian, who introduces herself as Amer, into the dining hall. She’s quieter than the first one, thankfully, and doesn’t make any remarks about Cory (or his ... relations). I ask her about life in the volcano, and she answers in two-word replies; I wonder if she’s just shy, or if she is so skeptical of visitors that she refuses to give any information away. Either way, I suppose it’s admirable.

The dining hall is a strangely intimate setting for the volcano’s powerful first guardian, Cory, to dine in. There are dagger-shaped holes in the wall which allow in the setting Sun, but they’re curved like fish gills so as not to allow intruders to see in.

The rays of sunshine hit mirrored obsidian shards across the room and throw beams of light up to the stone beams which uphold the ceiling. On the table, which is set for only eight, there are tea candles and jars of fireflies to add light.

It’s peaceful, and, despite myself, I sigh in relief at the calm setting.

“Milica!” Cory’s voice rings out across the room. He’s carrying two large bowls of dark green salad, which almost makes me laugh. A dragon with salad is not something I thought I’d ever see.

“Hi, Cory,” I say hesitantly, my lips twisted from holding back my smile.

He cocks an eyebrow, and his eyes darken. “What’s funny?”

I shake my head, his sudden intensity dispelling any levity I’d felt. He sets the bowls down as one of his commanders approaches us from the kitchen. Cory motions for her to show me to my place, and I remember her as the wizard girl from earlier, the one who walked me to the bathing chambers. I remember her name is Kallichor.

She looks annoyed to be doing it as she leads me to one end of the table (Cory must be sitting at the other end) and I feel heat rise to my cheeks as she shoves my chair in. I gasp and catch myself with my hands just before my stomach slams intothe table. Kallichor smirks audibly behind me, then walks away back to the kitchen.

She walks past Cory, moving to brush his arm with her hand. When I look at him, though, his eyes are burning with anger. He sidesteps to avoid her touch, and her brows furrow with annoyance.

“Kalli,” he growls. “You don’t seem to be quite yourself at the moment, you are dismissed for the evening.”

Her face drops into a scowl, but, just as quickly, she twists it into a smirk. She whispers, “I was just teasing, Cory. You must know that.”

He doesn’t turn to face her, instead moving to sit at the table. She walks alongside him and moves to sit, but he jerks his head to look at her, glaring furiously. Kallichor’s eyes widen with sudden tears, and she twirls around to stomp off.

As she passes my chair, she whispers, “Godsdamned harlot.”

I bite the inside of my cheek and stare down at my empty plate as she walks off.

Cory looks to me, eyes blazing, and asks, “What did she just say?”

I start to respond, but no words come out.Get it together!I think to myself. I’m such a mess in this volcano, it’s humiliating. As I’m mentally chastising myself, I hardly notice Cory get up and storm out into the hall. I snap back into reality as I hear voices shouting.

“Kalli!” Cory half-yells, then again but louder, “Kallichor, stop!”

“Oh, what is it now?” she responds. I can hear the scowl in her words, but her voice trembles, too.

I hear Cory’s footsteps stomp further away, perhaps to meet Kallichor, then he says, “You are the caretaker of everyone in this volcano. How dare you seek to harm our guest?”

“I don’t seek toharmher. She just needs to be knocked down a peg, whirling around here like she owns the place.”

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