Darius Noctura Night

D ARIUS

N OCTURA N IGHT

I find myself gazing at an obsidian ring I fashioned from one of my scales many years ago. The den is crowded tonight, with many shifters celebrating Noctura. One child bumps her hip into my table, and I glance at her. She shoots me an apologetic smile, and the warmth from it fills my core.

Deftly taking out a small pouch from my pocket, I pass it over to her.

She opens it up and gasps. ‘Is this the magic dust from the Isle of Elements?’

I nod, chuckling when I feel her excitement. ‘Make sure your mother doesn’t see it, or I won’t hear the end of it.’

Margie might love me, but she often told me off – sometimes for as little as swearing in front of her.

‘Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you! You are the best, Darius!’ As she runs off, I smile and return to looking at the ring while nursing a mug of ale in my other hand.

‘Are we ever going to see Miss Misty again, Darry?’ Tibith’s enthusiastic question pairs with the fluttering of his ears as he climbs onto the table.

Hearing that nickname brings another smile to my lips, one that appears too quickly whenever I even think about her.

‘Naralía,’ I say. ‘Her real name is Naralía.’ I bring the mug up to my lips and scoff. ‘Or Nara , as she says, and no, I don’t think we will.’

From the side, I can see Tibith blink in confusion. When I told him to stay behind while I went to the ball, he worried I would be caught. He isn’t used to me being this bold, inserting myself into situations amongst Venators. So, seeing how affected I am around Goldie , all he can do is wonder. I’ll tell him more about who she is to me eventually, but after tonight, I doubt I will see her again despite me still having her scent of jasmine on my clothes.

A sensual thought crosses my mind, about our dance and how close she was to me. I shift on my chair, grumbling as I take another swig from my mug, hoping to drown her out of my head with alcohol.

An hour later, it still doesn’t work. I’ve only achieved a new-found hatred for Cutler, who seems to think he can beat me at Liars’ Dice.

Tibith then talks my ear off, explaining how he wants all the bread in the world, but although I usually always listen to him, this time, I cannot focus. Otis comes by and whispers something into my ear. On any other occasion, I would have happily agreed with him.

By the time male shifters are slurring their words and women have taken their children up to bed, I stand and flick a few coins onto the table. I tip my head at a couple of people I know more than others and whistle over at Tibith to come follow. He lifts his head and smiles as he trots behind me and into the warm night air.

I pause by the doorway, staring up at the crisp moon, marvelling at how large it looks tonight. An attractive beacon of light.

‘Come on, that’s it—’

I frown, dropping my head to look to my right. It appears to be Gus, with an Ardenti dragon named Fernah, aiding one of her hatching eggs.

Tibith and I look at each other before waltzing across the grass field. Likely hearing us, Gus glances behind his shoulder and chuckles as he spots me.

‘Darius,’ he says, holding up a hatchling that can barely open its eyes. ‘Leaving already?’

‘Cutler was getting on my nerves.’

This time, Gus lets out a howl of laughter. He often finds the simplest things I say hilarious. ‘You should cut him some slack. He looks up to you; everyone does.’

I shift uncomfortably on the spot, and I am relieved Gus doesn’t notice. I may take pleasure in being the centre of attention, but having people look up to me leaves me with too much space to mess things up.

Clearing my throat, I decide to involve myself before Gus can say something I am not in the mood for. I roll my shirtsleeves up and crouch beside him, with Tibith staring curiously from the side.

Gus turns his head as I grab one of the colossal eggs with the dragon hatchling still inside. ‘Looks like that one is having too much fun inside; it doesn’t want to leave.’

Fernah rumbles in response, lowering her head to the ground. I chuckle as I move my hand over the scaly exterior of the shell, helping the creature to emerge from its home. ‘It likely is better in there than out here.’

‘But it looks so small, Darry! How can a whole dragon fit inside an egg?’ Tibith asks inquisitively.

I slant an amused glance his way. ‘How do you think you came into this world, hm? You once hatched from an egg, too, Tib.’

Tibith gasps, pawing at his plump figure as if wondering how he himself could fit somewhere so small. I think he forgets he was once the size of a thumb. ‘Did you hatch from an egg too, Darry?’

Before I can answer, Gus huffs out a laugh. ‘Have you taught him nothing about our species?’

I shrug. ‘He knows the important stuff.’

Gus’s brows shoot up. ‘Rolling around in gold isn’t what one might consider important .’ He slides his gaze towards Tibith. ‘Shifters don’t hatch from eggs, boy. We’re a much more evolved species of dragon. Thank Solaris and Crello for that.’

Fernah doesn’t like that answer, as she stirs and growls at Gus, baring her sharp teeth at him.

I straight-out laugh as I slap Gus on the shoulder with my free hand. ‘Now I’m starting to see why you are single.’

For a moment, something odd passes across Gus’s features, but not long enough for me to question it as he clears his throat and looks down at the nest.

‘There we go,’ he says, directing my attention back to the few hatchlings already by their mother. Some have a red shine to them: Ardenti. Others pure obsidian: Umbrati.

The one in my hands, though, is still shy to emerge. ‘Come on, little guy,’ I encourage. ‘I promise it is not so bad out here.’

Gus snorts, and I give him a quick smirk.

‘Of course, the food could be better, but what can we do? Gus seems to be fine with serving everyone meat that is slightly off.’

‘Watch it.’

I grin, knowing there’s a scowl on Gus’s face. ‘Maybe gold will tempt you.’ I reach into my pocket and take out my gold coin and flick it in the air. Leaning in, I hold the coin in front of the egg. ‘Between you and me, this is my most prized possession. It belonged to someone . . . exceptional.’ Still does.

Slowly, the cracks in the eggshell widen, and a soft glow spills forth from the emerging fissures. The dragon within is determined to break free now, and I marvel at its resilience as a sleek black snout pushes against the confines of its shell.

Soon, the hatchling’s wings burst free from the crack, and I have to wipe away the excess gunk coating its leathery skin. I bring the hatchling towards my chest and look over at Gus, laughing as the dragon squirms in my hands. My heart swells with a profound sense of connection with the hatchling’s accomplishment.

As I look over at Gus, he smiles at me proudly. ‘It seems to like you, Darius.’

I click my tongue. ‘What can I say?’

‘Maybe it can smell Miss Nara, Darry!’

I stiffen at her name, and the hatchling almost slips from my grip.

What is it about you, Goldie, that has every living thing so enamoured?

My mood shifts, and I clear my throat as I gently place the dragon next to his mother and rise to my feet, gesturing for Tibith to come along.

I’m walking away when Gus says, ‘You’re still heading off early?’

I throw him a thumbs-up without looking back.

‘Not even going to celebrate your birthday?’

I pause before slowly turning to look at him. A slow blink follows before I narrow my eyes. ‘How did you know that?’

He sighs, taking his time to get up from the ground. As he straightens, he smiles down at me. ‘Tibith.’

My eyebrows almost hit my hairline as I drop my gaze to the orange furball beside me. He looks up at me sheepishly, an apology already circling his eyes.

‘Were you ever planning on telling anyone what today was?’

A huff pushes through my nose, and I shake my head at Gus. ‘I don’t need to when Tibith can do that for me.’

‘You’re twenty-six, Darius.’

No kidding.

‘Sooner or later, you’ll be of age to become a full-fledged shifter. Maybe you should think about settling down and . . . finding someone to spend your life with.’

‘Is this another way of saying I need to stop stealing people’s clothes after I bed them?’

He glowers. ‘I’m serious.’

I grin. ‘And when am I not?’

Gus is clearly annoyed, meaning I have done my job here and can leave. I turn to walk away and smile as I quickly assess what I can steal away from him.

‘You do realise that relying on thievery has its limits,’ he remarks, stating the obvious. ‘But if you joined . . .’

The implication has me shaking my head. Fists clenching at my side, I twist around to confront him.

‘Darius, I—’

‘I accepted your friendship because I thought you understood me,’ I assert, my tone cutting through the warm air like a warning. ‘You didn’t ask questions, and I didn’t care whether you attacked Sarilyn’s castle or her people. I may have helped you and the rest of your group on a few occasions, but that’s it.’

He tries to talk, but I don’t give him that chance.

‘So, if you want to see me around here again, stop asking me to join you. You stay on your path, and I’ll stay on mine.’ I back away, watching as his expression sours. My hand slips into my pocket, fingers wrapping around the ring. I pull it out, casting it a lingering look before my gaze rises once more.

Solaris, I despise you.

I know. But do you despise me that much to take me down with you . . . Naralía?

My mind replays that memory as I flip the ring between my thumb and forefinger. A smile lifts the corner of my lips, envisioning Goldie’s face, the anger reddening her cheeks, and the way she was still beautiful, even while hating me.

Without another thought, I hand the piece of jewellery over to Gus. ‘Here, before I go, I need you to take this,’ I say.

Gus takes a long look at it, his eyes widening when he realises what the ring means. ‘A scale ring?’

I nod, taking a deep breath. ‘I want you to throw it away.’

He starts to shake his head, but I firmly plant the ring in his hands. ‘Darius—’

‘I’ll be seeing you, Gus,’ I dismiss him, not even sparing the ring a final glance as I turn my back on him and stride off.

Tibith follows beside me, leaping to catch up. ‘Why do you want to throw that ring away, Darius? You said it was special!’

‘I’ve said a lot of things, Tibith,’ I respond, my eyes fixed on the pathway leading into the woods. ‘I guess I was wrong this time.’