Hello, Everyone! I'm so sorry this has taken so long to get up. This chapter is dedicated to JL_Otaku. Thank you for pushing me to finish this and get back to writing.

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Chapter 7

Athea's POV

The moment that silver dragon linked his mind with mine, I felt calm. When I looked up, my eyes met pale grey ones filled with shock then concern. He, like all other dragons, knew by instinct who I was.

I knew I felt you, he said, his deep voice worming its way into my mind, All the dragons in the area felt you.

I reached out to him with a shaky hand, I didn't mean to call you here. I wasn't thinking clearly.

He pressed his nose against my outstretched hand, You didn't call me. Luka was the one who called me to his side. I am bonded to him through mind and spirit. You can trust him. He will not harm you.

I closed my eyes and sighed, I trust you. Please don't tell him who I am. No one can know.

He grumbled at me, Very well. He will figure it out eventually, though. He is a very smart young man.

I'm sure he will. You know him better than anyone.

He chuckled, True enough. Rest now.

I felt my knees give out and my mind begin to go blank. I felt myself begin to fall but a strong arm wrapped around my waist as my mind slipped into blackness.

***

When I regained conscious, I felt as if I was on the back of a horse. I realized with a jolt that I was. I opened my eyes to see Trego's dark brown neck. Sitting up slowly, I let out a small moan and rubbed my eyes.

"You're awake."

I turned to the owner of the voice and saw Prince Lukas giving me a relieved smile. I heard an excited chirp and a blur of gold entered my vision and Kimi launched herself into my chest.

Don't do that again, she scolded me as she nuzzled my chin, You made me worry.

Sorry, Kimi. I don't know what came over me.

You know full well what came over you, she huffed, You remembered him again.

I winced. Kimi knew all about what happened with that guy for all those years. I didn't have to tell her. She just knew; just like all dragons.

You don't have to talk about it, she assured me, I know what triggered that memory.

I held her to my chest until she gave a squeak in protest and climbed onto my shoulder. Prince Lukas chuckled and patted Trego's neck.

"You were unconscious for a while. You had me worried," he told me, "Are you alright now?"

I nodded and gave him an apologetic smile. I didn't mean to make him worry for me. The prince waved off my apology.

"You don't have to apologize, Athea," he told me gently, "Whatever happened back there was beyond your control."

That's not true, I thought to myself, It has been over five months since I ran. I feel like I should be able to control this by now. I'm so weak.

I watched as Prince Lukas led Trego around a fallen log. I could see that he was kind; just like the silver dragon told me he was. I could also tell he was nothing like the men I grew up around. I felt that I could start to trust him, which is why I thought about talking to him in the first place.

If you want to talk to him, just do it.

I looked at Kimi in surprise, What?

You heard me, Athea, she said with a huff, I know that you're afraid of the man you ran from and people like him but that boy is not that man. That silver dragon vouched for him. And you know better than anyone that dragons don't bond to just anyone.

I sighed in frustration, I know.

Then talk to him. I know you're scared but he won't hurt you, Kimi instructed me, If he does hurt you, however, I'll hurt him in return.

I smiled at her, When did you get so violent?

Kimi just huffed at me.

The sun was starting to get low in the sky by the time we made it to the Market and Prince Lukas was a bit flushed in the face. Trego had behaved himself much to the prince's surprise. He talked as we went and I listened, fascinated by his stories. He told me of when he first rode Pewter and some of the mischief he and the young dragon got into. Prince Lukas had an adoring look in his eyes when he talked of Pewter and it became very obvious to me that the two of them were truly bonded in mind and spirit. He told me about his brother, the Crown Prince, and of his sister. I winced when he told me of his sister's opinion on dragons and Kimi hissed.

I'll give that uppity girl a piece of my mind, Kimi said with an angry thrash of her tail, calling us stupid mindless creatures. What does she think we are? Mules?

Prince Lukas chuckled at Kimi's reaction, "Sounds like your friend agrees with me. Do you have the same thoughts, Miss Athea?"

I nodded, fisting my hands in Trego's mane. I may not be able to voice my opinions but I held a strong dislike for those who insulted dragon kind. The prince looked up at me with a look on his face that said he just had an idea.

"Would you like to see them? The dragons?" he asked me, his light purple eyes sparkling like a child's.

My eyes widened in disbelief. Was he serious? I gave a small nod, still not quite believing what I was hearing. When I did, Prince Lukas's face broke into a big smile.

"I thought you would," he said with a grin, "I'll take you, then. How about tomorrow? It's a holiday for the Market so you won't be missing work."

I smiled and nodded, excitement making my heart race. In the months since I got away, I've only met two dragons; Pewter and Dareem. I've met plenty of fire lizards in the recent months but they pale in comparison to their large, majestic cousins. Even Kimi admits that she has immense respect for her larger cousins

Prince Lukas grinned even wider, "Fantastic! Shall I collect you around noon tomorrow?"

I nodded again, this time giving him a smile as we entered the King's Market. He pulled Trego to a halt that way I could dismount. He reached out to steady me as I landed but I flinched away from him. I immediately felt bad when a hurt look crossed his face but he pulled his hand back.

"Sorry," he said, "I forgot you didn't like to be touched."

I shook my head, trying to tell him it wasn't like that but again I cursed at my inability to talk in a language he understood.

Prince Lukas seemed to understand, a small smile graced his face, "I'll escort you home."

He offered his arm to me. I looked at his arm and swallowed down the anxiety I felt. Kimi thrummed encouragingly at me, nudging my cheek, as I reached out hesitantly and took his arm. His eyes widened in surprise but he did smile as he led me through the marketplace. I watched the younger prince in wonder, running through the day's events through my head. As Kimi said, dragons don't bond themselves to just anyone and when they do it's for life. So Pewter must have sensed something about Prince Lukas that he deemed worthy of his bond.

I started giggling at Granny's expression when we walked up to her market stall. She looked like she was about to pass out from shock. Letting go of Prince Lukas's arm, I ran up to her and gave her hug. She started laughing as she hugged me back.

"I was wondering what was taking you so long," she said with a smile, "Now I see. You were spending time with the prince."

Prince Lukas chuckled, "More like Trego threw me again and had me chase him through the forest."

Granny laughed, "For a mount meant for royalty, he's a bit unruly."

"Tell me about it, but it's what I love about him," Prince Lukas said with a fond smile towards his mount, "Keeps me on my toes."

As if to agree, Trego tossed his head and let out a happy sounding whinny. Prince Lukas looked up to the sky and groaned quietly.

"Oh great," he muttered, "Mother's going to kill me."

I gave him a questioning look and he shook his head.

"I promised my mother that I would spend time with her today," he explained, "And now I'm late."

My eyes widened and I gave him an apologetic look, knowing that I'm the reason that he's late. He chuckled at my reaction and gave Kimi a scratch behind her head when she landed on Trego's saddle.

"Don't worry, Athea. My mother may be strict but she's reasonable. I'll explain what happened and hopefully I'll get off with just one of her glares," He assured me with a slight shudder, "Her glares could freeze fire."

I smiled, relieved that he wasn't going to get in too much trouble with the queen. I had heard stories about her from travelers Granny and I came across in the months after she found me in that cave. Queen Aeryn of Jorda was once a female warrior from the Northern Clans, skilled in swordplay. She had met the King Colin when he was still the Crown Prince and according to the stories, she almost killed him when he stumbled across her camp. They fell in love and married, ascending the throne of Jorda hand in hand. I came to admire her the more I heard about her. To put it simply, she was a hero to me and I wished that I could be that strong. Lukas must have seen my awe-struck face because he laughed.

"I see you've heard the stories," he said with a grin, "well, they're all true save for some details. She's the one who taught me and Cam swordplay."

Granny smiled and squeezed my shoulders, "Athea has started to idolize her. Every time stories of the Queen were being told during our travels, her eyes would light up and they had her full attention."

Lukas chuckled, "I'm sure she would be glad to meet you. Perhaps you can meet her tomorrow."

Granny looked at the prince with a questioning look, "What are you talking about? What happens tomorrow?"

Prince Lukas smiled at her, "I'm taking Athea to meet my dragon tomorrow. She met him briefly today but it wasn't a proper introduction."

"I see," she said, understanding entering her eyes, "I expect you to take care of her. If not, I don't care if you're the prince because you will have to me to deal with."

Lukas laughed and held his hands up in mock surrender which made me giggle. He really was a kind person, an optimist at heart. He turned to me and bowed like a proper prince.

"Well then, my lady, I will see you on the morrow," he said, his formal voice rich and clear, "Until then, I bid you farewell."

I curtsied, dipping my head inacknowledgment. He then mounted Trego and headed off towards the castle. Iwatched him go, a thousand thoughts running through my head along the lines of"can I trust him?" and "how can he be so kind?" He doesn't even know me andhe's treated me like a friend. I felt safe around him but I knew that thefeeling of safety was just an illusion. I would never be safe. Not truly. Notso long as that man was still alive.