Kellam and Cherche walked hand-in-hand across the camp, making their way to where the army's mounts were kept. They had just returned from a nice stroll through the nearby village, where Cherche managed to find some rare cuts of meat that she thought Minerva would love.
"I do hope Minerva likes these. She can be rather picky with her food sometimes." Cherche said as she looked to the wrapped bundle that she carried under her free arm.
"I'm sure she'll like it. It'll be a nice change from the normal, wild game she's been eating lately, right?" Kellam said as he shrugged.
"You're right. She has been complaining about only having deer to hunt in these parts. She'll appreciate the treat." Cherche said as she smiled at Kellam. He smiled back and gave her hand a squeeze.
They reached their destination and saw Minerva lying in the grass at the edge of camp. Cherche smiled with a look of adoration in her eyes as she waved at her.
"Minerva, dear! We've brought you a present!"
The wyvern lifted her head at the sound of her rider's voice. Her eyes landed on Cherche and she made a deep, content humming noise. When her eyes moved to Kellam, the humming stopped as she regarded him with a seething glare. She jumped to her feet and snarled as she began sprinting towards them.
"Um, Cherche? Isn't she moving a bit fast-Oof!" Kellam began, but was interrupted when Minerva slammed into him, knocking him to the ground. Suddenly he was pinned hard to the ground by a scaly, clawed wyvern foot. He luckily reacted quickly as he reached up and grabbed the top and bottom of Minerva's jaw to prevent her from biting his head off.
"Minerva! What has gotten into you?" Cherche exclaimed as she rushed to the wyvern's side. Minerva ignored her as she tried pushing her jaws closer to Kellam's throat. Kellam gritted his teeth as he tried to push her back with shaking arms.
"How odd...Minerva's never killed one of my allies before." Cherche wondered allowed, tilting her head as a thoughtful look crossed her face.
"I would prefer not to be the first, Cherche!" Kellam hissed as Minerva's teeth inched dangerously close to his neck, her warm breath stinging his eyes and causing them to water.
"Minerva," Cherche said, her eyes locking with the wyvern's as they narrowed into a death glare, "Let Kellam go. Now."
Minerva glared back at Cherche as they stared each other down for a few seconds, before the wyvern growled and drew her head back. She lifted her foot off of Kellam and moved a few feet away, her wings slumping dejectedly as she looked at the ground.
"Are you alright, Kellam?" Cherche said as she helped him to his feet. Kellam nodded as he took a deep breath to try and calm his rapidly beating heart. Cherche then turned and glared at Minerva, crossing her arms across her chest.
"Minerva! Why did you attack Kellam? He hasn't done anything to you." Cherche scolded. Minerva continued to look at the ground, and she let out a small whining growl. Cherche sighed and walked up to her, petting her neck soothingly. Kellam watched them silently.
"My dear, if something is bothering you, please tell me. I hate it when you're upset." Cherche cooed as she stroked her neck lovingly. Minerva finally lifted her head and looked at her rider, letting out a few roars and growls. Cherche nodded in understanding, and Kellam could only guess at what was being said.
"I see. You're jealous that I've been spending so much time with Kellam." Cherche said, a gentle smile crossing her face. Minerva shifted and gave Kellam an apologetic look, the edges of her scaly mouth turning downwards into a frown.
"She says she sorry for attacking you Kellam. She's been feeling lonely and left out since we started dating," Cherche said, a guilty look crossing her face, "I think she's right, though. I may have been neglecting her a bit."
Kellam turned to Minerva and slowly approached her. The wyvern eyed him warily when he stopped and looked her in the eye.
"I should be apologizing to you, Minerva. I didn't realize Cherche was choosing me over you. I don't think either of us were really conscious of it." Kellam said. Minerva watched him intently as he continued. "Cherche loves you very much, Minerva, and I would never want to come between you two. But I also really care about Cherche, so I'd like to become friends with you too, so maybe we all could spend time together."
Minerva tilted her head as she continued to stare at Kellam with wide eyes. She then let out a loud roar and moved her head towards Kellam, causing him to flinch. She opened her mouth and licked Kellam's face with her huge, wet tongue.
"Yuck!" Kellam said as he quickly reached up to wipe the slobber from his face. Cherche laughed and a low rumbling sound came from Minerva, which was probably her version of laughter.
"I think Minerva likes you now, Kellam. I'm so glad." she said as she rubbed Minerva's head. The wyvern pressed her nose to Kellam's cheek and nuzzled him gently, humming happily.
"That's good. I was a bit worried I was going to be her next meal." Kellam said with a chuckle. He picked up the bundle of meat that Cherche had dropped in the excitement and unwrapped it, holding it out towards Minerva. She roared in delight and gently – well, as gently as a massive winged lizard with razor-sharp teeth could – took the meat with her tongue and ate it happily.
Cherche smiled and wrapped an arm around Kellam and pet Minerva's head with her free hand. "I'm so glad that she likes you Kellam. She knows how much you mean to me, and having her approval means the world to me."
Kellam smiled and wrapped an arm around Cherche's shoulders and pulled her close. "You mean a lot to me too, Cherche. I'd never want to do any harm to you or Minerva." He paused as Minerva let out a roar after she swallowed her meat. "Er, what did she say?"
Cherche giggled and placed a light kiss on Kellam's cheek. "She said 'That's good, because if you ever harm my Cherche I'd rip your throat out and burn the rest of you to a crisp.'" The color drained from Kellam's face as he laughed nervously.
"N-noted."