Chapter 57: 57-My blessings
"How is Aenyra doing?" Nytherael asked. He arrived outside after getting dressed.
Beside him was Princess Sheana, who was sweating buckets with worry over Aenyra’s safety and Liodnir tagged along behind her.
"I don’t know yet," Aeltharion said. He was also waiting outside from news from Sseraphis.
Nytherael scooted over and comforted him. "It will be alright. You know Sseraphis, he is good at healing, and I’ve yet to find a disease he can’t heal," he let out and patted Aeltharion’s arm.
At his words, Aeltharion and Sheana paled. Aeltharion noticed her reaction and tensed. It was evident that she knew about his condition, the one disease that Sseraphis had tried but couldn’t heal.
’Did Aenyra trust her with my secret?’ He thought but didn’t let it show on his face.
"That’s true. Sseraphis is the best."
"Ye... yeah," Nytherael agreed weakly. Sseraphis had always been the best person in his life until he crossed him. Now, the male serpent was proving to be the best villain in his story. "I can say with confidence that he’ll do whatever is required to save Aenyra."
"I know that. Thank you for being here," Aeltharion leaned on Nytherael for support.
Nytherael felt his head on his shoulder and inched closer so Aeltharion could be more comfortable. His hands worked around Aeltharion’s head, shoulders, and arms. He massaged his body to relieve the tension building up in his muscles.
Feeling calm and happy that Aeltharion was relying on him at his time of trouble, Nytherael closed his eyes and breathed in the strong scent of gold coming off of him to recharge.
His eyes snapped open. He glanced down at the dragon, his eyebrows knitting with worry.
In the scent, there was a mix of strong herbs, Sseraphis’ blood, and a part of him strongly believed that he caught a hint of Ilyrien’s snow scent in there, too.
He said nothing. That wasn’t the time nor the place to confront the dragon about why he smelt like herbs, but it didn’t stop his mind from wondering.
’Is he ill? Is Sseraphis treating him? If so, then why haven’t they told me? And why does he smell like Ilyrien? Are they using his fur for the treatment? And if so, then, where is Ilyrien?’ His mind was all over the place.
"Relax, she’s going to be fine," he said, hiding the doubts in his head.
"Are you perfectly confident that Sseraphis can treat her and save her?" Princess Sheana asked.
She bounced around, standing on one foot before switching to the other foot with worry. Her worry was evident, and it was more than the concern that a friend would have over a friend’s health.
"Why are you worried about your friend so?"
"I just can’t stand the fact that she isn’t sitting in a corner and staring at me with her cold and judgy looks," she said, her excuse was clearly not believable but Nytherael and Aeltharion didn’t call her out on it.
She kept on staring at the door, and inside her dragoness was lying on a bed receiving treatment from Sseraphis. She didn’t know how she felt about that, having the same male who was poisoning her home be the one to save the woman she loved.
However, Aenyra had asked her to blow on the whistle, and the one who arrived was Sseraphis, which meant that the dragoness trusted him. So, she top had to trust him.
Her heart was drumming against her chest. Her fears of losing someone she had only recently grown attached to was clawing at her heart. She hadn’t known how deeply her affections for Aenyra had been until she had to stand out there with no knowledge of how the dragoness was doing.
"How long does the treatment usually take?"
"I have confidence in Sseraphis, but your panic is making me nervous."
"And you’re making me dizzy," Aeltharion added, which made no sense since he had his eyes closed the whole time.
"I’m just concerned for Aenyra."
"But the two of you don’t get along, right?"
"... she is still my first..."
"First?" Nytherael and Aeltharion shot their attention to her. Their eyes narrowed on her blushing face. They tore apart every reaction to get to the bottom of what she meant.
"The first dragoness I know that argues with me at every turn," she covered up.
"Is that reason enough to burn yourself dry with worry?"
"Y...yes," she turned and faced Liodnir, avoiding the sharp prying gaze of the two superior beasts.
Aeltharion smiled. "My sister did well to find herself a partner," he let out. "Life is better with someone to share your up and downs with."
Princess Sheana blushed. Her face heating up at Aeltharion’s assumptions, which she hoped were true. As far as Aenyra was concerned, such feelings and wishes would remain just that... unfulfilled wishes.
"Tha...that, you are imagining things," she stuttered.
"Say that without stuttering, and I’ll believe you," Aeltharion mused.
It pleased him to catch sight of blooming first love. With his critical health and his breaking relationship and constantly spending time with healers, it was rare to get a chance to catch a person in love for the first time.
Unfortunately, he knew his sister and understood the reason Sheana was hesitant about her feelings. Aenyra wouldn’t easily entertain the idea of falling in love with a phoenix or a girl.
Not that she found it wrong, it just that her standards of love were set by a venomous serpent, and unless Sheana miraculously became friends with Sseraphis out of blue, Aenyra wouldn’t consider her.
"Wait, are you falling for Aenyra?"
"No... no... no, I’m not," Princess Sheana denied immediately, her face and ears turning red.
"Well, that is disaster..." Aeltharion titled his head up and locked lips with Nytherael to shut him up before he deterred Sheana’s heart.
Nytherael pulled away, stunned. "You..." it was his turn to stutter and blush.
Aeltharion let out a chuckle. His worries about his sister’s health lessened. He wished he had more time and better health to enjoy eternity with his lover and get to know the Phoenix bold enough to love his cold sister.
"Love bends the rules of possible. I’m rooting for you and my sister, I hope you succeed in winning her heart," she said. "You have my blessings."
Princess Sheana forgot herself and stared stupidly at the sovereign dragon. Her heart nearly exploded as it beat so hard.
