Chapter 27

27

OSSIAN

I 'd watched as Aria had left the dining hall quickly after dinner. Something was up, and I also wasn't too pleased that Marcus, Lionel, and William had opted not to join everyone for dinner. Valeria had noticed as well and had left not long after dinner began, leaving me alone with all the others. She'd said she wanted to rest, but I had a feeling she wanted to keep a watchful eye on the other vampires, much like myself. But we weren't both needed for that right now. A sense of unease settled in my gut, a feeling I'd learned to trust over my long existence. Something was wrong, and not just with Aria's swift departure not long after the wolf's.

No, this felt like something more sinister.

The memory of our encounter – her pulse against my lips, the taste of her blood, the unexpected intensity of the experience – still lingered. It had awakened something in me, stirred feelings I hadn't experienced since... No, I couldn't allow myself to think of that. Not now.

I rose and followed after her, the hair rising on the back of my neck.

Before I even reached the human hall, Valeria's voice cut through the air.

"Back off! She's protected!"

My chest tightened, and I found myself moving, vampire speed propelling me towards Aria's room.

The scent of Aria's fear hit me like a physical blow as I reached Aria's door. I was prepared to tear Marcus limb from limb for daring to threaten her. But the scene that greeted me was far from what I expected.

Marcus lay motionless on the floor, wisps of smoke rising from his unmoving form. Aria stood there, her face a mixture of shock and awe, with her tiny dragon sitting calmly at her feet. The air crackled with residual energy, and I could taste the power on my tongue – a power unlike anything I'd encountered in my centuries of existence. Not even the same as the power of the other dragons. This was something bigger.

For a moment, I stood frozen, my mind struggling to process what I was seeing. So her dragon had defended her? That was what the scene looked like.

Valeria was now by Aria, watching Marcus carefully, but there was no need, considering he was not moving a muscle.

Before I could fully gather my thoughts, Zephyr and Lydia came racing down the hallway, their dragons close behind.

"What happened here?" Zephyr demanded.

Lydia moved immediately to Aria's side, her water dragon sniffing cautiously at Aria's smaller one. "Are you alright? We heard a commotion..."

More of our group began to flood the hall, drawn by the noise and crowding around her doorway. Their voices rose in a myriad of questions and exclamations, adding to the chaos of the moment. I found myself moving closer to Aria, an inexplicable need to ensure her safety overriding my usual detachment.

Suddenly, Eirian appeared, his regal bearing parting the crowd like a knife through butter. "Silence!" he commanded, his voice laced with draconic power. The hallway fell quiet instantly as he pushed his way into the bedroom.

Eirian knelt beside Marcus, his face a mask of concentration as he checked the vampire's vital signs. After a tense moment, he looked up. "He's alive, but barely." His gaze swept over us before landing on Valeria. "Go get help from other Dracarians in the dining hall. Now."

Valeria nodded, disappearing in a blur of vampire speed.

Eirian's attention then turned to Aria and her dragon. "What happened here?" he demanded, his tone softer but no less intense.

"Marcus tried to attack me," Aria said quietly, her gaze dropping to her dragon. "My dragon protected me. It... it used some kind of energy blast. Twice. Marcus's dragon attacked him as well."

As she spoke, I couldn't help but reflect on the irony of the situation. I, who had fed from Aria not long ago, was now here ready to defend her against another vampire. The complexity of my feelings towards her – protectiveness, admiration, and something deeper that I dared not name – was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.

So much for trying to shut it down, at the mere thought of her being in danger, I'd rushed in. Then again, I'd granted her my protection, and Marcus had broken that law of ours.

Eirian's eyebrows shot up, genuine surprise breaking through his usual composed demeanor. "Energy blast? Despite the magical warding as well?" His gaze fell on Aria's dragon, which met his stare unflinchingly. "Impressive," he murmured. "And his own dragon attacked him?"

"Yes, after mine hit him with its first blast."

"I wonder if that means it has rejected him now?" Eirian mused quietly.

As if in response, Marcus's grey dragon – a creature nearly the size of a medium dog – fluttered over and landed heavily on Eirian's shoulder. Eirian staggered slightly under the unexpected weight, his arms windmilling as he fought to maintain his balance. The sight would have been comical if not for the gravity of the situation.

The dragon nuzzled against Eirian's neck, chirping softly. Confusion flickered across Eirian's face, quickly replaced by his usual stoic expression. "What is the meaning of this?" he muttered, more to himself than anyone else.

I watched this interaction with growing unease. What did it mean for Marcus? For all of us?

Before anyone could respond, a group of Dracarians arrived, presumably summoned by Valeria. They moved to collect Marcus's unconscious form, but his dragon shrieked in protest when they tried to take it as well.

"Leave it," Eirian commanded, his voice strained from the weight on his shoulder. "It can stay with me for now. We need to meet with Lady Aurelia and discuss this outburst of magic and see if the wardings we have are still enough for the growing power of the dragons."

As the guards carried Marcus away and Eirian followed, I turned my attention back to Aria. She looked pale and shaken, but there was a steel in her eyes that hadn't been there before. It stirred something in me – pride, admiration, and a fierce desire to protect her that went beyond my initial promise.

"Are you alright?" I asked softly, fighting the urge to pull her into my arms.

She nodded, offering a weak smile that nonetheless made my long-still heart flutter. "I'm okay. Thanks to my little protector here." She glanced down at her dragon, which preened under her praise.

Lydia stepped closer. "We're staying with you tonight," she declared, leaving no room for argument.

"Damn straight." Zephyr nodded in agreement.

I felt a twinge of... something. Jealousy? Regret? The depth of Aria's connection with her companions was evident, and I found myself wishing for something I should not, so I banished it away.

"I'll leave you with your friends," I said with a bob of my head. "You're in good hands."

As I turned to follow Eirian, who was awkwardly making his way down the hall with Marcus's dragon still perched on his shoulder, I couldn't shake the feeling that everything had changed. Again.

Aria's dragon had used power beyond anything we'd seen from the other hatchlings, something that felt different in the very air right now. Marcus had broken vampire law by attacking someone under my protection – an offense that would have serious consequences once he recovered. And now, a dragon had seemingly rejected its bonded human.

The connection I'd felt when I fed from Aria lingered in my mind. It had awakened feelings I'd thought long dead, stirred emotions I'd buried centuries ago after the loss of... No. Even now, I couldn't bring myself to think of her name. The pain was still too raw, too real.

But Aria... Aria was different. She gave me a hope I had no right of having. Hope for connection, for a future that wasn't defined by endless lonely nights and the weight of immortality.

Logically, I knew it was wrong. Something not possible, especially not with everything else going on. She was human, and turning her was not an option. I wouldn't condemn another to the life I led, desperately trying to cling to my humanity. I'd chosen to hold her at arm's length in an attempt to keep her safe, and yet that had backfired drastically.

As I reached my quarters, I paused, looking back in the direction I'd come. Whatever happened next, I knew one thing for certain – I would do everything in my power to protect Aria. Not just because of my promise, but because, against all odds and my own better judgment, I was starting to care for her in a way I hadn't cared for anyone in a very, very long time.