Page 126 of The Wild Prince's Favorite
“Good morning,” greeted Lorey and Tievin, who were with Kiki by the fire, both already eating breakfast.
“Good morning,” Alezya greeted them in return, a bit proudly.
Lorey replied with a smile, and soon, one of the men ran to bring them food. Alezya could never get enough of the Dragon Clan’s food, and as soon as they sat on Kein, she began devouring her fruits and eggs.
“Where is Kiera?”
Alezya didn’t understand Lorey’s reply, but from the little head movement, she guessed Kiera had probably gone hunting in the forest near the camp. Lorey added something else that ended with Kassein’s name, and he sighed. He finished his food in record time, got up, and put a quick kiss on Alezya’s lips.
“Bye,” he said, using another greeting she’d just learned the previous day.
“Bye,” she replied.
She didn’t know where he was going but guessed he was meeting his sister because he left with a sullen expression.
Alezya heard a chuckle and turned back to an amused Lorey and, from Tievin’s grimace, suddenly realized she had just kissed their leader so brazenly in front of them. She blushed helplessly.
“Are you happy?” Lorey asked, tilting her head.
“...Yes,” Alezya muttered.
“Kassein looks happy,” Lorey nodded toward the direction he had disappeared. “He wasn’t happy before.”
“Why?”
“His brother is angry,” Lorey said, kind enough to use simple words Alezya could understand,“and Kassein is angry with his brother too.”
Alezya remembered the bedrooms and the one of his older sister... Was it about what had happened to his older sister? She was tempted to ask more, but Lorey wasn’t Kassein’s family, and she didn’t want to pry when he hadn’t pressed her for answers either.
“Kassein is... thanks,” she said, not knowing the word for “kind” yet. “I thank Kassein.”
Whatever argument that brother had with Kassein, Alezya already found it unfair; she had witnessed for herself how kind Kassein was, and she couldn’t understand what a brother could have against this kind man.
Tievin hadn’t said anything but was eyeing both women while eating his breakfast. Alezya had noticed that the scrawny man was reluctant to approach either dragon, and sure enough, when she put her empty bowl aside and petted Kein’s neck, he opened wide, surprised eyes.
She smiled, a bit proud. She was getting closer to the orange dragon than many of the Dragon Clan.
“Alezya?” Lorey called her eyes back to her. “Let’s go? Where?”
She frowned for a second before understanding Lorey was asking her what she wanted to do that day.
“Medicinal herbs,” she said, trying not to act nervous. “I like to see the herbs.”
She was glad she’d learned the word for herbs with Dajan and confirmed it with Lorey two days prior; Kassein’s home mountain had an impressive field and lots of plants surrounding it, so Alezya had used this unique chance to act innocent and confirm the translation for medicinal herbs with Lorey during one of her breaks from sparring with Kiera. Lorey nodded, and they both got up, leaving Tievin behind while they made their way through the area.
With Kiki and Kein following them, it was clear no warrior would be foolish enough to approach them. While they walked, Alezya proudly told Lorey about the new words she’d learned from Kassein, using gestures to demonstrate.
She realized Kassein was an even kinder teacher than Lorey was, because the young woman gently corrected herpronunciation a couple of times, and rearranged her sentences so they were more fluid too. Overall, Alezya was still glad their language was fairly straightforward and didn’t seem to have as many rules as hers. Moreover, she was trying to chat more and use it more to become as fluent as possible, and Lorey was kind enough to entertain her.
“Where are Kassein and Kiera?” she asked after a while.
“Aslayid,” Lorey said, mimicking a knife gesture. “They are getting more meat.”
Hunting, Alezya understood. She nodded.
They continued the conversation, Lorey using the topic to expand Alezya’s vocabulary on activities like hunting, fishing, and herb picking with many gestures to be sure to convey the meaning.
“Dragons... They hear dragon words too?” Alezya asked after a while, her hand naturally resting on Kein’s orange scales as the dragon walked by her side.
