86. Arnulf

CHAPTER 86

Arnulf

Never in the history of my people have any ever chosen a mate outside of our own kind. Many live their lives alone or paired up with another, with no hope of ever having a hatchling of their own. Aurora fiddles with her phone and puts on "Silent Lucidity" from Queensryche, saying it was one of Andre's favorite songs. It's midnight now, and we gather around the fire in the tent that we had erected in a hurry.

Aurora sits next to me with some of Andre's belongings clutched to her chest. She anxiously fiddles with each item looking them over carefully. Nicodeamus has a single black braid in his hand. His sorrow is evident with how haunted his eyes appear. The hollow depths seem to almost stare through the braid in his hands. I watch him as he runs his fingers over the hair. I can only assume it's from Aurora's mom.

I start to toss the herbs into the flames, and they begin to change colors. Extending my hand, I reach out to Aurora on my right ,and Jayce who is on my left. One by one, we take each other's hands and form a circle. "Please close your eyes till we make contact." Slowly, we close our eyes as I begin the ancient rites to summon an ancestor.

After several moments of chanting, there's a soft scent of cologne in the tent, and I hear Aurora gasp as she grips my hand tighter. I open my eyes, and the ancestor that had guided me here stands within the smoke before me. His eyes sweep over everyone gathered, then locks on my mate. A fatherly gaze sweeps over her this time as he smiles softly.

"Baby girl." Andre's voice is like a whisper on the wind. His smile broadens as he tilts his head to the side, watching her reaction. At the sound of his voice, everyone opens their eyes. Aurora almost instantly starts to cry, looking at Andre. Dimitri and Nicodeamus are crying as well at the sight of their old friend.

"Baby girl, please don't cry. I can't hug you and make it better," Andre says, smiling at Aurora.

Aurora sniffles then reigns in her tears. "I'm so sorry, papa bird. I miss you so much. Don't worry, I made Sebastian suffer for what he did to you. I ripped his heart out then cut off his head. Oh, and I have babies." Aurora's eyes glow for a moment before her two baby dragons came running into the tent.

"I named them Ladon Uther and Tiamat Andrea. I didn't know I was having a son, but my daughter's middle name is after you." Aurora's babies sit on either side of her then shift to their human forms to look at Andre. Both children are blonde with grey eyes and chubby toddler cheeks.

Andre sniffles now, looking at the babies, then back to Aurora. "You make me so proud. I watch over you, even from here. I sent Arnulf and his clan to aid you. I figured since I cannot be your eyes in the land of the living, he can." Andre stares at Arnulf then starts laughing. "Son of a bitch. You're her mate." He points right at the mate mark that Aurora blessed me with. "You have to finish the rituals. Otherwise, she won't get a gift from you."

"Yes, my ancestor, I will. I am blessed and honored that you sent me to her." I lean over and kiss Aurora's temple. "Andre's twin brother is my great grandfather. His great bloodline lives on through me and us when we are blessed with hatchlings." Andre then takes the time to speak to everyone else present, as well. Aurora smiles, getting the chance to spend time with him, at least for a little while.

"My baby girl, don't worry, I'll be back in your lifetime. After all, we Golden Eagles believe in reincarnation. I will see you again, don't be afraid when it happens. For once, you will be the teacher, and me the student. Remember, death is but a doorway." Andre smiles one last time, then is gone as suddenly as he had arrived.

Aurora double blinks then leaps into my lap and kisses me passionately. I embrace her tightly, kissing her back with just as much enthusiasm. We hear Nicodeamus clear his throat, and we start to laugh and break apart.

"I'm sorry, Father, we got a little carried away. I need a few strands of your mate's hair and some of Aurora's blood to summon Anca here. I'm not sure how long I can hold her here, but I will try." Hesitantly, Nicodeamus offers the braid to Aurora.

Slowly, she lifts the braid to her nose to see if she can scent her mother. By the look on Aurora's face, no scent remains. Carefully, Aurora pulls six hairs out of the braid then hands it back to her father. I watch Aurora cant her head to the side and look at Alaric. He lifts his long blonde hair to show a snow-white braid woven into a braid in his hair. Aurora then looks to her father, and now Dimitri is braiding Anca's braid back into Nicodeamus's hair. Slowly, she nods in understanding before looking back at me.

I start adding different herbs into the fire and chanting. I toss the hair in, and the flames change color. I nod my head at Aurora; she slits her palm and holds her bleeding hand in the fire. I'm ready to flip the out when I notice the fire doesn't burn her. Slowly, she draws her hand back and shows me she's no longer hurt. What the hell did I just witness?

The smoke begins to swirl and whip about the tent wildly. Slowly, a form begins to emerge from the flames. She's beautiful, and if I didn't know any better, I would have thought my mate was standing in the flames.

"Nico!" The apparition shrieks. She tries to rush forward and passes right through him.

"Anca!" Nicodeamus screams as she passes through him. They keep trying to touch but can't. It's heartbreaking to watch them struggle.

"Mom?" Aurora speaks; her normally powerful, sure voice is reduced to a quiver. Quickly, the female spins and looks at Aurora.

Specters can't cry, but you can see it on Anca's face that if she were living, she would be bawling her eyes out. "Seraphina? My baby girl?" Hesitantly, her hand extends out and passes through Aurora's cheek.

Aurora winces and hunches over for a moment. "Mom, I ended up being named Aurora." Aurora's eyes drop, knowing fully well that her mother may be disappointed.

"Who the hell gave my Seraphina, my angel, the name Aurora? I chose her name." Anca's eyes are that of her wolves in a second. It's quite apparent that the dead queen is not happy.

"Vladimir did, my Queen," Dimitri answers and bows his head to Anca.

"How dare he. If he ever crosses over, I will make his afterlife a living hell." Anca's hands become clawed at the mention of whom named her daughter.

Aurora starts to laugh and stands up. She shifts before her mother, showing her the massive hybrid beast she can become. Aurora's babies shift and blow fire onto their mother showing she cannot be harmed. Aurora shifts back to her human form and stares at her mother.

"I already have plans to take his head and shove it onto a pike in the front yard. I'm going to make him suffer like he made my father suffer without you. His death will be slow and as agonizing as possible. On my blood, this I swear." Aurora promptly cuts her palm and holds her dripping blood into the flames.

"I'll be waiting for him on the other side. The other mates and I will torture him until it's your time to join us, and you can join in on the fun. It'll be a great bonding moment." Anca smiles at Aurora. "I am proud of you. Oh my gods, are those my grand babies!?" Anca almost squeals, pointing at the baby dragons.

"Yes, they are mine and Alaric's babies. Someone forgot to tell us that a dragon will always be chosen first, over all the other mates." Aurora looks between her father and Alaric. Both men say "what?" at the same time then start laughing together.

Anca and Aurora roll their eyes at the same time and both mutter "men" at the exact same moment. They look at each other, then start laughing. "Aurora, please take care of your father for me. He needs a babysitter, he has a bit of a temper and likes to burn things."

"Of course, Mom, I will. Hopefully, Arnulf can summon you again so we can talk more." Aurora looks to me, hopeful. I nod slowly that it is possible.

"Aurora will be able to sense what was mine. You can use a physical object of mine that will not burn next time. For now, I must go. I love you all. Take care of each other." Anca screams the last part as she fades from view. Aurora smiles, watching her mother fade, then looks around the gathering.

"Okay, well, now I know where the rest of my temperament comes from. Time to seek and destroy. Well, after I lock mine and Arnulf's bond in place." Aurora turns and looks at me. "So? To satisfy your animal's bond, what do we need to do?"

I look over to Alaric and smile. "We're gonna need your help, brother. Aurora needs to fly." Aurora's eyes light up, and she goes running out of the tent buck naked, to streak to lord knows where. "What was that all about?" I ask, looking back and forth between the guys, and everyone is laughing. I don't know if it's at me or because of what Aurora did.

Aurora comes running back into the tent after a few moments wearing what looks like a skydiving suit. She opens her arms wide to reveal it's a wing suit. "Ta-Da! I can fly. Well, glide. I've gotten really good at riding thermals, so hopefully this helps. Does this help?" She looks quite nervous and adorable at the same time.

"Yes, sweetheart, it does. I literally just need to grip you with my talons in flight, bite, then land somewhere to finish the task." I try to simplify the whole process for her, so it makes sense.

"Okay. That settles it. Alaric strip, the sun is about to come up, and I have a mate to finish claiming." Aurora reaches back and grabs both of our hands, dragging us out of the tent. She proceeds to shift her finger and use her talon to cut Alaric out of his clothing. Alaric is laughing hysterically at Aurora's antics.

Once naked, Alaric moves away from the now-gathering crowd and shifts into his dragon form. Shit, I didn't know he was that big. I really feel puny in comparison to Aurora and her other mates. Alaric's dragon roars then breathes fire harmlessly into the sky. He turns his massive head to look at us. Aurora just laughs, grabs my hand, and starts to run towards Alaric.

I'm a bit hesitant to climb onto the great beast's back, but Aurora doesn't exactly give me a choice. She moves us to stand between Alaric's wings. When she feels we're ready, she pats his back with her hand, and he takes off, launching us into the sky. I watch Aurora carefully; she's shifting her eyes to that of her beast. I can only assume she's in deep conversation with Alaric as we fly because he keeps changing course according to the direction she's looking in.

I can tell by the way the winds feel there are good thermals here. Alaric glides effortlessly for long periods of time just by adjusting his wings. "Time to fly, Arnulf." Aurora lets go of the spines on Alaric's back before I'm halfway stripped. She goes running for his tail as I get free of my pants.

The next thing I know, my crazy mate runs and jumps off of Alaric's tail and starts riding the thermals. Fuck. I shift quickly and fly to catch up with her. Gracefully, I swoop and glide along with her completing the aerial dance portion of the mating ritual. I watch Aurora watching me as I maneuver around her.

I honestly think she's a bit jealous. When every step has been completed properly, I move into position. I strike quickly, sinking my talons into the muscles of her shoulders. We fly like this for several seconds before I lower my beak. I bite her on the back of her neck, just under her hairline. I hold her, tasting her blood. I feel the bond snap into place instantly. The urge now to land is strong; we must finish the bond to make it permanent. I release Aurora and follow where she's leading me. I'm anxious and can't wait to land. For being a terrestrial being, Aurora makes a great landing then quickly strips out of her wing suit.

I feel like she's hunting me after I shift back to my human form. Suddenly, she jumps and tackles me to the ground. Her mouth descends, and she bites into my shoulder again. Aurora is dominating our mating; I feel her trying to line me up with her soaking wet sex. I grip my already leaking cock and tease her wet folds several times. Aurora's frustrated growls rumble a vibration through my chest. A quick thrust and I drive my length home; her gasp is music to my ears. Aurora may be on top and built heavier than I am, but I'm not about to be entirely dominated by her.

I roll her onto her back with all of my strength and begin to thrust deeply into her. With every stroke, I can feel Aurora's muscles tightening within her warm, wet depths. Her rhythmic gripping and pulsing around my shaft brings me closer to release. I feel her love, joy, and elation flowing through the bond to me.

It's times like this that I wish I were more like her species; I want to bite and mark her like this. I lean forward just as she screams her release and bite her shoulder with my human teeth. I can't break the skin, but it has the effect I was hoping to get. Aurora's orgasm intensifies and she begins crushing down on my shaft, milking every single inch. I'm fighting to hold on long enough for her to finish, but it's no use. Aurora bites me again, growling and bucking under me, and I cum harder than I ever have before—filling her womb with my seed.

We pant, trying to slow our breathing. We rock against each other, holding on tightly, riding out the final throbs and pulses of our orgasms. Reluctantly we release the tight grip we have on each other. Aurora begins to lick at her bite marks on my shoulders. Carefully, she cleans both wounds, making sure they will heal properly. I will proudly display her marks for all to see in the future. I raise my head to look down at my beautiful mate.

Aurora looks up at me; a soft smile plays upon her full pouty lips. Her hand slowly raises and caresses my cheek. "Do you know you're a beautiful man, Arnulf?"

I raise my eyebrows in mock shock. "You don't say? Hmm, it takes a beauty to know a beauty." I watch Aurora blush, and I feel a warmth in my chest. And then I'm assaulted by feelings and presences I cannot explain. I whip my head around, looking at my surroundings, trying to figure out what exactly is going on.

Aurora shakes her head gently. "That's the bond fully snapping into place. You can feel the others; we are all able to feel each other. I'm sorry, I forgot to warn you about that ahead of time." Aurora looks genuinely upset with herself and lowers her head for a moment.