The Soft-Hearted Prince and His Dragon, Chapter 2

Synopsis

This week, the story of the measly prince Galen continues when he finds himself in a dragon’s den.

Story on Wattpad.

Missed Chapter 1?

Chapter 3 comes out July 23, 2022.

2 - Sen

I would’ve guessed the person in front of me was a magician even if I didn’t see him do spells before. He had that inquisitive look that made one feel like he saw everything. Like he sees behind my scales, straight into me. It made me restless.

“I want you to know that I had no idea those men were there. They were not with me. I would never hurt you,” he blurted out.

“I saw what you did there. Why did you help me?” I asked while trying to take another good look at him. I noticed in front of the cave already how tall he was. His body was slim, and light brown hair fell into his face, slightly curling at the ends. The thick strands seemed almost golden in the candlelight. I wondered if they were soft to touch. Wait, what? I shook my head, disconcerted.

“As far as I can tell, the men were the aggressors there. I’m not gonna just sit back while someone’s being hurt,” he answered and dusted the dirt off his black shirt.

I wished people’s judgment was always as simple and straightforward. “Maybe I snacked on their wives and set their village ablaze.” I pushed.

“Did you?”

“Well… no…”

“Do you… you know… eat people?” he asked nervously.

I was sorry I had brought it up. One part of me wanted to pretend to be a mighty, fearless dragon. At the same time, I didn’t want to scare this particular man. He did help me, after all. “I don’t,” I hunched. “Don’t tell anyone, though. It would ruin my reputation.”

A wide grin spread across his face.

“So you’re really not here to kill me and obtain my power for yourself?” I made myself ask again. It was a fair question, given my lifestyle in the past seven years.

A deep frown crossed the man’s bushy brow. “No! I meant what I said in front of the cave. I wanted to see you,” he shook his head, then raised a hand to it as if he became dizzy again. I almost lurched to go support him but stopped myself.

I was acting ridiculous. So many people went after me every other week. This man said a few nice words, and I was ready to surrender. Was I so desperate for company? I felt a pang of shame.

“You know that the person who hunts me down will not only absorb my powers but also gain the title the Hero of All, right?” I probed further.

“How barbaric,” the man sighed. “Although I can’t say I’m surprised.”

“And, of course, then they will make this place a pilgrimage point—”

“Yeah, I know how these things go,” he said, gritting his teeth and rubbing his face wearily. “Dragon hunting is a very fashionable sport these days.”

“How come you’re not after all that, young prince?”

The golden-embroidered coat of arms on his dark blue cloak suggested he must’ve been the only son of the Southern Kingdom’s king. I couldn’t recall his name. A male magician and a prince, I thought. This could hardly get any more interesting. Oh wait, it could—A male magician and a prince who doesn’t want to kill me.

He peered at me inquiringly. “As I said, I find it barbaric.”

“You might have a good chance for marriage with princess Laura if you defeat me. She’s said to be as beautiful as the sun in the sky. Aren’t you interested in that?”

“Nope,” the man said without a second of hesitation. “I’m not much for princesses,” he added awkwardly.

“I see. You prefer simple common girls.”

“I’m afraid not,” he said, shifting restlessly. “And just to rule it out for you, too, I’m also not uninterested in… ahem, intimacy,” he said with a sudden mischievous flash in his eyes. Although his face turned into the tenth shade of red, he seemed to be pretty amused by his own joke.

“Oh.” I stared at him, speechless. It wasn’t the best response, but my brain seemed to give up on me for a moment.

The man smiled as if he could see straight through me. “What is your name, anyway?” he asked.

That sounded like a safer topic. “Rwylleghrrmansen.”

“Pardon me?”

That made me chuckle. I was born in the very North, in the land where the snow never retracted. For some reason, people from the South always found our names unpronounceable. They said it was like we named our kids with our teeth shattering from the ever-present cold. “Rwylleghrrmansen,” I repeated. “But you can call me Sen.”

“Nice to meet you, Sen. I’m Galen.”

I was entranced. I have not received this much simple kindness towards myself ever since… Did I ever, actually? “Nice to meet you, too, Galen. And thank you. I appreciate your help.”

“Oh, I… it was nothing,” the prince mumbled.

I figured I knew why. He must have felt embarrassed I saw him do magic. One didn’t come across many male magicians around here because people believed magic was for women. It was thought to exist only so that the so-called weaker gender would have a chance to fight back. No real man would ever lower themselves to it. Except for the dragon magic, of course—don’t ask me about the logic behind that. I thought it was all ridiculous, but then again, I was a child of the street. One learns to use whatever they can to protect themselves.

“It was pretty smart to make the men blind and lead them away. It must be a horrible shock to suddenly lose eyesight. Even the best warriors would have trouble continuing fighting.”

“The spell will fade away soon. It probably has already. They’ll be alright,” Galen said, shook his head, and sighed. “Who were the men anyway? They didn’t look very friendly.”

That surprised me. “You don’t know Dikos Mas?”

His face stayed expressionless.

Dikos Mas was a sect dedicated to cleaning the world from all magical creatures. They considered us unnatural. They lived in isolated groups, and their children took an oath to carry on with the calling at the age of twelve. One recognized them by their traditional clothes, their braids, and most of all, by the fact that they used iron chains as their weapons.

Galen asked me about the dots they had tattooed underneath their left eyes. That symbolized their belief—four dots representing the natural way of life. The four gods, the four seasons, the four elements, the four winds… Their leader wore a fifth dot to signify that he’s the center of everything, the thing that ties it all together. For the group, he was practically a demi-god.

I knew a lot about Dikos Mas. It’s hard not to when someone dedicates their life to persecute you.

But Galen seemed to live in a world entirely isolated from mine, and he was flabbergasted. “Does that mean they’ll be back?” he asked when he seemed to find his way to words again.

“They always are,” I confirmed. “Luckily for me, they tend to isolate themselves for a while upon losing a battle to stay with the shame or something. It’s thought to be good for the soul,” I tried to lighten the atmosphere. It didn’t seem to work.

Galen looked heartbroken. I could understand. It was one thing that most people considered dragons to be fun prey. At least, there was no real hate, just ignorance. But Dikos Mas… “How about we change the topic?” I suggested.

“I’m so sorry, Sen.”

My heart fluttered at hearing him say my name. I pushed the feeling aside.

“Thanks, but I mean it. Let’s change the topic.”

Galen took a breath and closed his eyes for a moment. Then he nodded and opened them again. “Can I help you take that down?” he pointed at the net.

I hesitated. “I’m not sure you should be getting up so quick—” I started to say, but Galen was already pushing himself off the ground. “Do you ever listen to any advice?” I asked.

Galen grimaced. “Of course I do,” he replied. I was about to disagree when he added: “My own.”

As the ghost of the previous conversation faded away, I felt something warm uncoiling in my chest. That something paid no attention to my panic attempts to hold it back.

“You’re unbelievable,” I snorted.

“Says the mythological creature,” he responded swiftly.

This time, I laughed hard. Everything in my body felt alive. Man, I’m doomed, I’m doomed, I’m doomed, I thought to myself.

Galen crossed the distance between us and stopped beside me. “So can I?” he repeated the gesture, seeming shy again. It caught my attention how quickly he moved from shyness to smugness and back.

“Please, do,” I sighed and lowered my head to the ground. “I’m terrible when it comes to reaching those areas.”

“Why don’t you shift to your human form and take it down with your hands?” he asked as he started to untangle the net. I didn’t answer. I didn’t want to answer. I knew I would have to anyway when he saw it in three, two, one…

“What happened to your face?”

I slumped. As he crossed to my right side, he saw the scars.

“Oh, I didn’t mean to be rude. I’m sorry,” he added when he looked at me again. “I shouldn’t have asked. Foot-in-mouth disease, I’m sorry. I just… I can sense that it was caused by magic. And… I guess I’m overly curious sometimes,” he stuttered.

“It’s okay,” I responded. “It’s an old injury from childhood. I was born with the gift of shape-shifting, which started to show when I was about 10. I didn’t have much control over it back then, so some people in my village found out. They were afraid and paid an old, angry elements magician to scare me away. She sent a fire spell on me when I was in my human form, burning the right side of my face.”

“That’s horrible!” Galen exhaled, exasperated. “Where were your parents?”

“I grew up in an orphanage. And then on the street, once I started to shape-shift. They threw me out.” The memories stirred old aches. I wanted to change the topic, but a thought came to me, and I asked before I could stop myself. “I guess there’s no chance you could try to heal it, right? Since you can apparently do flesh magic and everything…”

Once again, Galen looked at me as if he saw straight through me. “Unfortunately, I can’t. You can’t heal magic wounds with magic,” he answered. “But if it helps any, I find you magnificent,” he flushed and looked away. I thought that if it was possible in my dragon form, my face would also turn red.

“The scars are also why I don’t turn into my human form anymore,” I muttered. “Since you asked.”

Galen frowned and let the last part of the net drop to the ground. “How do the two relate?”

Why did I say it? I should’ve shut up a long time ago. The man and his genuine interest had an unsettling effect on me. “When I’m in my human form, people run away from me, scared. They say I’m cursed. That I’m a monster.”

Galen winced but then asked: “They don’t run away when you’re in your dragon form?”

He had a point, of course, but… “Some do. But some seek me out.”

“They seek you out because they want to kill you.” He stood so close, and I noticed his eyes were deep brown.

I shrugged. “It turns out, the reason doesn’t matter all that much. They seek me out. I mean something. I’m not all… alone.” Shut up, Sen. Shut up.

Galen stared at me in disbelief. “That’s… I’m…” He seemed to honestly not know how to react.

I understood his surprise. I mean, how messed up was that? But can you blame me? I’ve been living alone for so long. In a certain sense, I’ve been alone my whole life. The few times I convinced myself things could be different, let my guards down, and turned into my human form in front of someone, the history repeated. Maybe because of that, I felt defensive now. “I don’t assume a handsome prince could understand,” I snapped.

He seemed surprised by my reaction, but then something flashed through his eyes. “So… you think I’m handsome?” he said and teasingly ran his hands through his hair as if to smooth them out. That man had his flirting set up higher than my hottest flames.

I snorted and turned my gaze away so that he didn’t see the smile forcing its way across my face. His joke managed to lighten the mood again. “If there was some part of you that people would hate—that you would hate—wouldn’t you want to hide it if you could?” I said much more softly this time. I got startled when he placed his hand on my neck and gently patted it.

“Yes, I suppose I would. I’m sorry,” Galen said.

“It’s okay. One learns to live with anything.” Man, what a bad liar I was.

“How did you know I was a shape-shifter anyway?” I asked the question that was bothering me for a while now.

Galen seemed to hesitate but then reached under his shirt. I followed his movement with more curiosity than I was comfortable with. He pulled out a necklace with a small black rock set inside it.

“A talisman?” I frowned, puzzled.

He nodded.

“I thought those were to protect one from magic.”

“They are, but if you are tuned to the beat inside it, they can do much more.”

“Like let you know someone is a shape-shifter?”

“In a sense, but it’s more nuanced than that. The talisman lets you know magic is around, and based on the vibrations, you can tell apart different types.”

“I’ve never heard about anything like that,” I admitted. I’ve studied magic since I learned I was a shape-shifter. My knowledge of talismans wasn’t excellent, though.

“I’ve never heard or read about it anywhere either. I discovered it by paying attention to how my body interacted with the talisman,” he shrugged.

“Impressive.” I meant it.

He looked around, and his posture gave away that he had shifted to his shy mood again. “Would you mind if I stayed here with you for a bit? You’re so… different from what I expected. And I wouldn’t mind getting to know you better…” his voice trailed away.

That was a mutual feeling. Despite that, everything inside me panicked so much that I couldn’t think straight.

“I don’t know if the cavern is very comfortable for a human,” I protested weakly.

He looked around again. “I think we can do something about that. If you’re okay with having me,” he smiled bashfully.

I knew this was the beginning of my end.

Click here for chapter 3.