"He's the king! How the fuck do you lose a king? And how the fuck do you lose a dragon? Did it suddenly transform into a worm and dig itself a hole in the ground? No! Someone must have seen it fly in a direction!"Tamara walks in circles around the tent as James follows her, begging her to be quiet. The army is already tense since Loras wasn't on the battlefield, if they know he's gone entirely it will be chaos.Astrid can't seem to do anything but sit quietly on a chair and look at the tent entrance like Loras somehow will enter any minute."Lady Astrid, are you alright?" Bella asks loudly, trying to attract Tamara's attention so she can finally stop shouting around. It works, Tamara turns towards Astrid."Calm down, Astrid. If Tommen would have killed or captured Loras it would be known in every corner of the realm already."But Astrid doesn't answer, she just continues to stare straight ahead, not even hearing what they're talking about around her."My lady... It's been a long day
They just talk for a while. Catching up on all the gaps in each other lives. And God knows there are many. But thankfully, in the soft light of the full moon, it's only them. No one to interrupt."How did you end up here?" Astrid finally asks."Because of him." Loras answers pointing at Dracos. "He became agitated and I thought he sensed something wrong with Aine and you. I didn't have time to think too much, before I knew it I was in the air, flying to you."Astrid was resting her head on the king's chest and as he described the moment he thought she was in danger, his heartbeat got faster, as if only the thought of it made him uneasy. She hugs him tighter. In the end, she protected herself, but the thought of someone being out there, willing to let everything behind to come to her rescue makes her feel so safe, so deeply loved. Loras kisses the top of her head."When we arrived here, Dracos stopped wanting to fly any further and kept trying to go back to camp.""He felt Aine flying
"I am the one with insane plans, Loras. If you start too, who is going to be the voice of reason?" Astrid asks when they find themselves alone. Loras laughs. "You just have to ride the dragon, just like you did yesterday. What is the problem?" "Yesterday it was the heat of the moment. The soldiers were confused, too confused to realize I am not you. It won't happen again. The generals will be humiliated to be led in battle by a girl!" Astrid continues to protest. How could he be so relaxed? Does he really think this madness will go smoothly? "The generals will have to get used to that sooner or later. You are a dragon rider. Only a fool would be too misogynistic to use that." Loras discusses her worries, starting to undress. "What are you doing?" Astrid asks, surprised by the sudden view of his bare back. "I will take a bath. Care to join me?" He asks with his characteristic smirk. "Can't we finish the conversation?" "What would be the point of finishing it dirty?" Astrid roll
"I was called, Your Majesty." The healer says after regaining his composure."She is unwell." Loras tells him, pointing at Astrid. It was like he couldn't even remember that he was screaming a moment ago. The doctor nods and approaches Astrid, but he also keeps an eye on the king as well."We were in a forest last night. Maybe I caught a cold?" Astrid continues to play her part, not allowing herself to get distracted by Loras' sudden outburst from earlier.The healer nods, taking a shiny rock out of his bag. Astrid looks at him confused, and he explains."I am a healer, my lady, not just a doctor. I take care of the body and soul. A two-for-one kind of deal, if you like." He lifts up the stone, for her to see it. It looks awfully similar to the ones the shaman was holding when they went there. "This one will tell me if there is something wrong in your body. Like a cold.""How does it work?" Astrid asks genuinely curious. She heard stories about healers but never saw one."I don't know
"Soul stones?" Loras reads out loud and Astrid's heart drops. One thing! One thing did the healer tell her not to do. She quickly closes the book and turns to Loras all smiles. "You are back early!" She tosses the book under the bed and just asks about the meeting hoping that will be enough of a distraction."Is the meeting over? The guards said it might take until late. Everything alright?" He rises an eyebrow but fortunately doesn't start screaming at her. "I came to eat with you. I gave a small break to the generals. Tired minds are as dangerous as stupid ones." He sits on the bed and pulls her towards him, so she can sit on his lap. "I see you are feeling better. Did the healer discover what was wrong with you? Or your soul..." She almost forgot that she technically was the one unwell. "All the stress. It takes a toll on the body as well." Loras nods at her half-baked explanation as he seems more relieved that she is fine than inclined to ask more questions. "Try not to be
"Lady Astrid?" James shakes her shoulder.Astrid's eyes shoot open. Did she fall asleep? She feels like she just had a bad dream but she can't remember any of it."What happened?" She asks James, rubbing her eyes, trying to wake up and process what he's saying. "The meeting... Loras...""Yes. The king is still in the meeting. He required your presence, my lady."Oh no... so he's going ahead with the plan. Not surprising since she did nothing to try and change his mind."How is the meeting going?" Astrid asks, trying to regain a drop of composure before she walks into a room with the most important people in the kingdom. Not even that, before she walks into a room with the people she's supposed to lead in a battle just a few hours away. She wants to feel anxious and scared, but the memory of the feeling that took over her when she flew Aine over the battle, burning and destroying everything that wanted to hurt what she holds dear...She was never the one that lusted for power, she was
Once returned to the king's tent, Astrid feels proud of herself. She finally stood up to Tamara.Loras is already asleep so she gently lays next to him, careful not to wake him up. Her king... Her mate. She almost laughs at herself remembering how much she hated him when she came to the palace. Even though she didn't know him, she choose the king to blame all her sorrows on.She lifts her head ever so slightly, so she could see his face in the soft light of the fire. With his eyes closed and soft breaths, sound asleep next to her, he looks so relaxed, so peaceful. She raises her hand to follow the line of his jaw. She brushes her fingers against his lips."Astrid..." He whispers."Did I wake you up?" She asks, a bit sad that she interrupted his sleep, but nevertheless glad to hear his voice."Loras?"No answer. He is asleep, but he still turns around to wrap his arms around her, holding her tight against his chest. She tries to pull away a little bit so she could see his face again, bu
She finished a battle before, but she never saw one starting.The chaos at the end is so contradicting with what lays in front of her eyes now. Thousands upon thousands of perfectly aligned soldiers, with their weapons shining in the sun, thirsty for the blood of their enemies.She looks down at general Carson. The king split his army in two and left the old warrior in charge of the front one. He gives a short speech, trying to lift the morale of the soldiers, but even the determination and the adrenaline can't wash away the fear that they hide behind their amour.She looks over, at the other side of the battlefield to see a mirror image. Generals riding their horses up and down the perfectly aligned lines to try and give a sip of courage to the terrified soldiers. Most of them have seen battles before. Most of them do not fear the battle itself. No, they stare at the dragon. At Aine.She can understand why. Loras used Dracos for intimidation only. He didn't want to burn the soldiers