When Tarakudo entered the war room alongside Shendu, he took an immediate note of one thing.
Jade was smiling. The sort he hadn't seen for years; with her dimple creasing the corner of her cheek and the hint of white mixture of teeth digging into her bottom lip as she repressed an actual laugh. What was even more shocking was the fact it was clearly directed at something Drago had said prior to their arrival; with the juvenile dragon looking pleased with himself.
His eyes narrowed a touch as he studied the scene in less than the seconds he was allowed to analyse a situation. It wasn't like the Queen of the Shadowkhan was barred from experiencing happiness, if anything, he was relieved that the young teen was able to cling onto those little joys without the reality of her position sucking it out of her quite yet.
But her happiness was a result of something Drago did, and that was what concerned him. He now became a factor that he would have to consider daily in the safeguarding of his charge and he finally could link together just what suspicion towards Shendu's little plot.
Still, at the moment, it was harmless, and he wasn't going to ruin a friendship that could actually be to her benefit. Drago was unpredictable and didn't seem fully indoctrinated into following his father's schemes and plans. Plus, the aggravating dragon had a slight point. It would be good for Jade's mental health to associate people closer to her age, rather than just a hoard of demon elders expecting her to know the answers to all their problems. Tarakudo did what he could, but he was limited to his role.
Jade gave a little playful shove at the juvenile demon, pushing him away, snickering quietly under her breath over something they were speaking of between one another. He was mirroring her smirk; tail tip flicking and curling like a cat pleased when presented with a bowl of milk. Their joy was quickly halted when the Queen took notice of the two arrivals, and in an instant she straightened up; hands demurely folded behind her back and an iron mask of concealed emotion slipping onto her face. She was getting better at her queenly demeanour.
Drago didn't follow in her stead, though when his gaze landed on their elders he merely folded his arms, grin dropping into the loose ghost of a scowl. He didn't want to start anything with both the oni and Shadowkhan Queen present, so begrudgingly settled for quiet disobedience than an otherwise overt one.
"Your majesty, I see you have become acquainted with my son," Shendu began, raspy voice low as it took a more diplomatic lilt than his usual demanding growl. One claw rested against his chest in a mockery of polite respect and Jade suppressed a shiver every time those glowing red eyes focused their attention upon her.
"—I trust that he has not made a fool of himself already."
From the corner of her eye, she saw Drago's lip curl and a quiet, draconic growl rumble in his throat. It felt silly to wonder if there was any bad blood between them. From what she knew of Shendu, she wouldn't wish her worst enemy to have him as a father. Unfortunately, Shendu already was her worst enemy, so she checkmated herself there. Then again, Hsi Wu did rank pretty high up there for his stunt when he was trying to get his tail back.
"He was.." her gaze drifted to Tarakudo, seeing him tense, ready to act on anything she said. Jade had always been somewhat of an extrovert, and having to be so careful with her speech felt suffocating.
"He is," she corrected, "… a perfectly fine and courteous Prince, Dragon Emperor. Even if he wasn't, I'm not a fragile flower that will wilt the moment someone dared to say anything other than what I wanted to hear. I trust that you won't keep treating me like one."
In any other situation, the triple pictures of surprise on each of their faces might have been the highlight of her year. She enjoyed playing with the unexpected and turning people's preconceptions entirely upside and on top of their own head. Plus, there was a bite of truth to what she said. Drago didn't strike her as princely, but he sure was the breath of refreshment she needed in the stifling hell she was currently neck deep in.
Drago looked at her strangely for a moment, as though nobody had stuck up for him before. A sense of kittenish smugness rose to his face and inflated his pride that his father would be shot down so easily by the Shadowkhan Queen, keeping that air about him even as the elder dragon narrowed his eyes further and stepped towards them.
Tarakudo rose a fluffy white brow. He could see easily through Jade's bluff, as she often didn't put on such an exaggerated tone of prim and properness unless she was laying it on thick. It might have worked for Shendu, but knowing her from birth meant he knew much more about her mannerisms. She was sticking up for Drago, that was the point of what she said, but why?
Historically, Shadowkhan Queens had been cold, calculated and cruel. They seldom needed anyone – they even alienated their own consorts after a time. He wasn't entirely convinced youth was merely her inhibiting factor of her outgoing change. Then again, she was an unpredictable force of nature.
"Good, I expect nothing less from my son." Shendu dismisses, deciding to pick and choose his battles, lie in wait for the perfect opportunity to strike back like a viper. In his other hand was a cloth and several books stacked together. The others were a mystery, but there was one with a unique spine that called out to Jade.
The demon archive!
He diminished the magic that radiated from the map on the table, letting him use the furnishing for it's original purpose when he placed the books down. Jade was quick to press the conversation, as it had been her to call for the meeting in the first place, wanting desperately to see how the book full of dark magic had changed.
"I wanted to talk to you about your offer, Shendu." She started with, trying not to appear too eager, though no doubt his pride would paint it as such. "— My Yojimbo has told me that you are a powerful demon sorcerer; perhaps an astute mentor as well. I will need to learn many aspects of magic, not simply that of dark chi, in order to fulfil my role as Queen. How do I know that you are able to perform to my standard?"
She paused, then narrowed her eyes as she remembered a distinct moment of her time as Queen during the real reality. "—How do I know you won't use the position to betray me? We are neutral, not allies."
A chuckle reverberated deep within Shendu's chest; a rumbling, thunderous sound that spelt only danger to those that drew it out of him. Her words, ordinarily, would have struck a fury in him like no other, his pride squandered and hurt that she would think herself better than him. Oh, he wanted nothing more than to show Jade her place, but long games of manipulation and schemes of tactics were not won with temperamental moments and hair-trigger volatility. He may be quick to anger, but he was far more sinister and cunning than anyone knew.
"You are wise beyond your years, young majesty," he said and it drew goosebumps on Jade's skin, blunt nails digging into the flesh of her upper arm. "However your fears towards me are misplaced. I have wanted nothing more than to see our kingdoms aligned, to throw that away for a chance of petty betterment is left for smaller kings and weaker emperors than I. Despite what you may think of my brethren, I understand the value of diplomacy."
Shendu gestured towards his son, the action making the juvenile dragon tense a little. "This is why I wanted to introduce you to Drago. With your permission, he will attend our lessons to validate what I am teaching you. It would be interesting to have some healthy competition, would it not?"
Jade pursed her lips slightly, noting the way Drago's eye twitched from the corner of her gaze. Whilst it was a relief that she wouldn't be left alone with the overgrown monitor lizard, she couldn't help but think that his son was being dragged along like a tool to prove himself or prop himself up rather than any genuine care for his training.
She didn't appreciate that little fact. True, she hadn't known Drago for that long, and the relationship between father and son was clearly soured before she even knew Shendu had a son to begin with. Maybe it was out of some cloying, deep routed feeling of wanting to cling onto similarity – birds of a feather and all that – but she felt obligated to stick by the one person that wanted to rebel. That was something she could certainly understand.
If she could find a friend in Drago out of their mutual dislike for Shendu, maybe things wouldn't be so bad after all. Jade begrudgingly knew that she still had to meet with her Oni court and the nauseous feeling in her stomach confirmed that she wasn't looking forward to that.
"As for your question of my skill," Shendu reached over, retrieving the archive from the top of the pile and brandishing it for her to see. As expected, it lacked the 'gnarly mark' it had been adorned with in the real reality. Maybe that came later, or that it plainly didn't have a reason to exist in the fake reality she was in now. With a small touch of his claw, the pages turned by itself, showcasing the meticulous journal and bestiary of magic and demons.
"—This is my Archive, a collection of all dark magic from across the globe. It houses the secrets of spells created by my brethren and I, unseen by mortal eyes." He proclaimed proudly. Jade watched in fascination the various depictions of demons – kinds she had never seen before, of different mythos and culture. She saw text so ancient it looked more like a piece of artwork per page than an actual language, and she could see there would be no way for her to learn by herself.
He closed it all too quickly, shutting her gaze away from the secrets of magic that Uncle would never let her see, let alone learn or practice them to begin with.
"And as you know, there is more to magic than dark. I cannot touch or create good magic, but," he placed two of the books aside to reveal a pure white hard-cover one, with an intricate and special casing that protected Shendu's hands from it's natural good energy. Even with it, he still used the wrap of the cloth to gather around it and briefly peel back the first few pages, revealing the contents inside.
This, Jade recognised much more closer to human language, an ancient form of Mandarin that she'd learnt about in history classes. It made her heart leap in hope to think that the Immortals may have existed. Unfortunately, she knew how dangerous it was to hope, and it was summarily crushed once Shendu began explaining the origins of the book.
"I am still a curator of magical artifacts and rarity. This is a spell book written by a human in their witless attempt to try and fight back against us." Smugly, Shendu added. "The author has since found better purpose in the belly of one of my dragons."
Harsh.
His selling pitch over, Shendu was swift to place the book down and cover it with the others, flexing his claws a little at the tingling of good magic that still resonated within the book. He was confident that Jade would not turn down his offer. He'd been surprised at how quickly Jade had been to defend his son from his typical acerbic commentary, if not bemused that things were moving in motion so much more smoothly than he anticipated.
If he wasn't able to win the Queen's favour through his own merit, then her fondness for Drago was an upper hand he could exploit.
Jade took a moment to digest everything that was said to her, shifting her look over towards Tarakudo to gauge his reaction. He was the perfect picture of obedience, watching her back coolly with just a slight touch of encouragement behind the amber-coloured hues. He'd told her she'd have to make the decision herself, and whatever she did decide on, then he would try to support it to the best of his abilities.
She would have to do her best to keep Shendu's ambitions in check whilst he was going to be her mentor, and maybe make sure that Drago was given a touch better treatment than what he was currently getting. She promised herself that she wouldn't get into the hot mess of politics, but it was only a matter of time before she had to make some decisions.
So, broadening her mind, she thought less of what she knew of Shendu as a person (or, demon,) and more of a ruler. He was making sound, reasonable decisions, and clearly did not have the resources necessary to take what he wanted by force. Her safety was guaranteed, unless he wanted to make his demonic rule of the false reality a living nightmare. If she didn't know any better then she'd think him genuinely eager to be able to impart his knowledge.
Plus, last she checked on that magical map of his, China was huge. Shendu's rule covered a vast majority of Asia. Her generals would likely be happy not having to find alternate or sea-bound routes of travel if they could just cut across China without aggression.
Not that she was seriously giving it thought. Of course not. She was not becoming comfortable with her role.
"I see." Jade said quietly, contemplatively. She could feel all eyes on her, scrutinizing yet again. Now that was one feeling she wouldn't get used to any time soon. "—Then I invite you and Prince Drago to return with me back to the Dynasty. I will confer with my generals about this new development and make sure that you are able to travel safely between the two regions."
Shendu looked pleased, and it was there Jade could see the resemblance between the two.
"We will leave in the late evening. That'll give you plenty of time. Tarakudo?" Jade questioned, and the Oni stepped forward, bent in a half-bow. She nodded towards him and, he moved to her side, sending a look over to Drago. He got the silent warning; grumbling and moving away from the Queen so he could take her place by her side.
They adjourned the meeting, with the two parties moving to their separate ways. Shendu and Drago exited the way that he had entered, and Tarakudo lead Jade out of the double doors she had arrived from. Away from the pair, she relaxed considerably and let out a breath she did not know she was holding.
Silence fell between them as they walked, a rather unfitting one that made Jade uncomfortable. She could tell Tarakudo had his reservations about what she had decided upon and it was driving her nuts that he was so perfectly composed. Nobody was that good.
"Okay. Spill. What do you want to say?" she broke first, huffing quietly and angling her head upwards in order to pin him with a flat look. Tarakudo grinned slightly, though it eased to neutrality quicker than she'd like.
"Oh nothing, my Queen," he said innocently to the disbelief on her face. "—Except perhaps that your defence of the younger dragon was rather endearing. Picking up a pet project, are we?"
Jade flushed, holding her head up high. After the mistake she made with "Seymour", she swore off boys and especially demon boys for good. She wouldn't mind a friend, but that was all. Besides, any demon raised under Shendu were most likely going to end up hating humans anyway, so she didn't feel like she was making too much of an assumption to think the feeling was mutual.
"Don't even joke about something like that." She rolled her eyes, pulling a bit of a face at the implication. "I've got far more important things on my mind at the moment, like the council meeting."
Satisfied at her response, Tarakudo nodded gingerly, relaxing. "Speaking of such, they will want to meet after you have returned and settled in. It will be one of the few times most Generals will be available; a perfect moment for you to introduce your new routine from our … indefinite guests."
Jade nodded silently, sighing inwardly at the next thing she would have to navigate. It really was non-stop, and she was starting to lose sight of her original goal of the Book of Ages.
All of this didn't matter if she was going to revert everything back to normal, so why was she bothering? Maybe a small part of her believed that she'd already past the point of return, but she desperately didn't want to believe it. She just..
She just had to keep playing the game until she found a way out.
note:
overbearing impossible parental expectations
drago *handshaking with* jade
this chapter is a mess and already was rewritten once, you can probably tell. onto the next