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༼ BEASTS AND THRONES ༽

by

Ahna Basilisk

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ᙍ 𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 2 ᙊ

The Dragon Princess

Drăcula's castle was famed for its dark presence in a shadowy land that held little comfort for the weak. While not a barren land, the realm's residents must always be ready to fight for their lives against monsters of every shape and size. Drăcula himself had the power to control the weather, providing light to his realm's farmers while constantly keeping his castle shadowed by clouds. However, he always had a hole within this darkness so that the sun would rest on the royal gardens, where his daughter would spend hours every day tending to the many kinds of plants and flowers that grew there.

In a manner of sorts, the way of the lands was reflected in its Count's hospitality. Rumplestiltskin's needs were always met, but the staff and atmosphere was consistently minimal. Little talk, polite yet straight to the point. The vampires had always been an odd sort in that sense. A cold and stoic race. Eveb Drăcula himself only spoke when spoken to during meals. It was his daughter that provided life to the conversations. She would ask both her father and Rumplestiltskin about their day, listen to Drăcula's snarls of frustration about matters of being a ruler, matters that the Dark King could relate to. It was something they could talk about.

Having stayed at Drăcula's castle for a few days now, Rumplestiltskin had noticed the times Ahna would spend in the garden. Still having just met her, he wanted to properly observe her and watch her when she was alone. Outside of balls and parties, Ahna wore simpler, but still graceful, dresses that left her slender calves bare, and she was always bare foot. Now with a shorter dress, her opalescent white dragon tail was in view, swaying this way and that behind her legs. She held the air of a wild child; wild at heart and wild in spirit. He could feel it in her magic. It wasn't dark, but light and good, yet wild and fierce. It was strange, it allured him, and he wanted to learn more about her; her nature, her thoughts, her ways, what she thought of certain things in life.

Adjusting his ruffled ascot and waistcoat, Rumplestiltskin began to casually approach the Dragon Princess and cleared his throat to announce his presence. Ahna blinked and looked up from the irises she was watering. Her eyes lit up at the sight of him and turned to give him her full attention, "Oh! Rumplestiltskin. Good morning to you." She used her tail to set the watering can down on the stone path.

"Good morning, Princess Ahna," he replied with a sly smirk, standing before her, "You look lovely today."

Smiling, Ahna looked down briefly and thanked him. "What brings you here?" She placed her hands together in front of herself.

He began to walk over to her side, up to a rose bush next to the irises and touched the petals of one of the roses. "I was hoping to take some time to get better acquainted with you." He used magic to pluck a rose from the bush and held it out to her, bowing a little.

Ahna took the rose as she smiled with delight, and she curtsied gracefully. "I would like that very much." Straight again, she smiled at him, holding the rose in her hands. "If you would like the walk through the garden with me, I would love your company."

The corners of his mouth twitched a little as he smiled. With a nod, he replied, "I would like that, Princess."

Ahna nodded back and she began to walk along the cobblestone path, holding the rose with two hands. "So, do you want to ask a question first?" Rumplestiltskin was walking alongside her. "I uh . . . I am curious about you. I have heard tales and whispers about your abilities. I am aware of the fabled legends, but I would like to hear straight from you."

She blinked and looked up at him, "Are you referring to my dragon species?"

Rumplestiltskin closed his mouth and gave a nod, hoping he had not offended her. He furrowed his brow with concern. But to his surprise, she lifted an amused smile and chuckled softly, "Don't worry. I am not offended. And I don't blame you for your curiosity. Dragons of my kind haven't been seen in so long. Thousands of years. Naturally, when one turns up again out of the blue, one as curious as yourself would indeed want to know more."

He smiled at her patience and eloquence, waiting for her to continue.

"In all honesty, I can only claim what I know about myself. I can only assume what my kind as a whole would be like, based on natural occurrences with me. My father has studied me to learn more -- he polymath, you see -- sciences, math, and studies are what he does. He is compiling a family book in stidies of dragons such as I."

Rumplestiltskin frowned at that, not liking that her own father seemed to be treating her like an experiment or a case study.

Ahna appeared to have noticed the look on his face and blinked, "Oh! Please don't worry about it! He has never ill treated me in that regard. He values me too much to risk any sort of experimentation. He just studies me, observes me, tests samples from me, and I am okay with that."

He relaxed from her reassurance and bowed his head for her to continue.a

Smiled, she resumed, "I know that I can take many different dragon sizes, all the same color as my hair." Rumplestiltskin took a second to gaze at the opalescent gleam of her white hair and nodded.

"And of course, being a dragon, I can breathe fire. My fire is blue and yellow. Any metal forged in my fire breath becomes stronger than ordinary metal."

Rumplestiltskin lifted an eyebrow in curiosity at that. Of course, with his Dark Army, he would not have sure for stronger armor, except for himself, but he was the Dark King. He was immortal, as well as his army. But it was still an intriguing thing for a dragon to be able to do.

"In my dragon form, I can't speak with my mouth, but I can speak telepathically to whomever I wish, and I can exclude anyone I need to have a private conversation."

"Intriguing, Princess! I myself cannot speak telepathically so freely. It requires that I put on a spell, but I can read minds upon command. Can you?"

Ahna chuckled softly, "I can through touch, and as forcefully as I need to if I need to. My father can't, so he has had me assist him in finding out liars and betrayers of his rule. Though he has done it so that I could learn how to rule a kingdom. He actuallyhas the ability to hypnotize people, so he would only need to ask for the truth."

"Ah, that explains why his rule is so absolute, and no one has ever challenged him."

Ahna nodded, "It has always been that way with or without my help. My father has always ruled with little mercy. It was what allowed his kingdom to prosper as it is. Those who cannot fight the monsters that rule the night would not be able to survive in his realm. It is a simple fact. Count Vlad Drăcula rules over both man and monster alike in his realm."

"And- what of your mother? I assume she had passed?" he said as kindly and gently as he could muster.

Ahna gave a solemn nod, looking down at the rose in her hands. "She passed away before my father began to hold the Balls every ten years. I don't know what happened though . . . My father won't tell me. All I know is that she had set off on a mission. For what I do not know, and she never came back. On the night of her death, I was reading a book to my father when he suddenly got up and smashed right through a window, flying into the night as fast as he could. And he didn't come back till the next morning, on foot. The look on his face was one of deepest sorrow with tears of blood trailing down his face. His clothes were torn in places, and he didn't speak to me for weeks. He hardly looked at me, or regarded me in any way, until one night, I laid my head on his lap and began to cry for him. I felt his hand rest on my forehead, and I heard him begin to cry as well. Things . . . were never the same since. . . My mother was his life . . . and he is scared of losing me too."

She looked up at Rumplestiltskin, a couple of tears tracing down her freckled cheeks. Rumplestiltskin gave her an emphatic look and reached over to gentle rub away her tears with a curled finger. She closed her eyes as he did so, and then looked up at him again. "Thank you."

Nodding a little, he offered a small smile amd said, "I cannot imagine what it must have been like. I have lived for over three hundred years, and never had anyone to lose. I cannot imagine what you went through."

She looked up at him as he spoke and gave a nod, remaining silent for a moment. "I can never ask my father of what had happened. And in all honesty, I know I don't need to. I still have him, and he isn't going to die any time soon. He is Drăcula after all."

Rumplestiltskin watched heras she spone, thinking about her words. He was rather surprised by her acceptance of never finding closure for her mother's death, but then again, perhaps her acceptance was her closure for herself.

Hoping to perhaps change the subject for her benefit, he then asked, "If your father is so concerned about losing you, why did he want to hold a Ball for you every ten years?"

She looked up at him again and replied, "He knows what happens if he kept a dragon locked up. I would become depressed. I am naturally free spirited and in need of my independence. That also brought him concern about what man I would choose. It's something I was concerned for as well."

His brow furrowed in curiosity as he watched her and listened.

"Not that there is anything wrong with a normal human, but I know that they die rather easily. As a dragon, I will likely be living for many hundreds or even thousands of years. I don't think I can marry a human that would pass away from old age within a single century. It would be too painful. So I wanted to wait until I meet someone . . . who is like me and my father. Immortal in a worldly sense. My father cannot be killed so easily. And neither can I. Which is one of the reason why- I chose you. I knew of your reputation, having lived for centuries, abd I wanted to take that chance, in hopes that maybe . . . I would not have to worry about losing you."

Rumplestiltskin stared at her, his brow still furrowed. Of course, he did not blame her. He had the same concern that if he picked someone who would not live for very long, he would suffer too much heartache. Seeing that Ahna too shared this concern, it encouraged him even more to pursue her. "I understand," he said to her.

Ahna blinked and became concerned that he may think that she chose him for less personal reasons. "Do you want to know what struck me first about you?" she asked graciously.

He blinked in surprise and stared at her, and he indeed wanted to know. He remained silent as he gazed at her, waiting for her amswer.

She offered him a genuind smile and said, "Before I knew who you were, it was your eyes that struck me. I like the way they feel like they're boring into my soul. So many nobles and royals do not see past my beauty, but you. . . It felt like you peered into my eyes like windows into my heart. I understand that is rather romanticizing, but it is something unique to you. You are different from the others. It's part of who you are, and that I can truly appreciate."

He gazed at her in surprise as he listened to her, rather speechless.

After giving him a meaningful smile, she looked down at the rose once more and held it out before herself. Her brow furrowed softly in concentration, and the rose slowly began to crystallize before their eyes. Rumplestiltskin blinked in surprise as he watched the flower turn into green and red crystal. Then, she blinked her eyes as she ended concentration and looked up at him once again, holding out the crystal flower to him. Gently, he took it into his hands and stared at it in awe. It was like it was still supple with life, and it yet it glittered with crystalline structures within. It was the most beautiful piece of magic he had ever seen. He glanced at Ahna who was still watching him with her meaningful smile, her laclvender eyes gleaming as brightly as the crystilline flower in his hand. "Thank you," he said softly.

"You're welcome, Rumplestiltskin," she replied meaningfully. "Have you ever ridden a dragon before?"

"No, I- can't say that I have," he replied.

With an excited smile, she gestured for him to follow, and she hurried away in a trot, holding onto the skirt of her dress. He watched her with confusion and went to follow her, tucking his new crystal flower into the chest of his waistcoat.

In a small courtyard in the middle of the garden, Ahna stood and waited for him. He stopped at the edge of the area and watched as she tossed her head up and a swirl of scaly, opalescent white magic enveloped her, forming her into a majestic dragon, more than two stories tall. Her wings opened wide, and her body rippled with powerful muscles, her scales sparkling brightly with soft shifts of rainbow shards of light. She gave a low, rumbling croon, turning her lavender gaze to him, towering above him. Rumplestiltskin was transfixed in utmost awe. Slowly, he began to walk up to her, and she lowered her head to be level with him. Her head alone was as large as his torso. Slowly, he reached up to her face and rested his hand on her scaly cheek. He ran his hand across her cheek, and her bright scales were so so smooth like ultra polished glass. "By the gods . . . You are- the most beautiful thing I have ever seen."

Ahna lifted a smile at him, blinking her large, draconic eyes and crooned. "Thank you, Rumplestiltskin," she said telepathically. Her voice resonated in his head, strong and soft. He flinched from that in surprise, but it only bewildered him more in awe. Ahna crooned again and laid her body down to make it easier for him to mount onto her back. "Climb on," she said.

He lifted an eager smirk and magically teleported onto her back in swirls of purple smoke. Gripping onto her frill, he said, "I am ready."

Ahna snorted and began to rise to her feet, her muscles rippling with raw, powerful strength. He watched in awe as she opened her wings to their extent. "Hold on tight! I promise, I won't let you fall!" she said right before giving her wings a mighty flap, sending wind blowing around, rushing in Rumplestiltskin's ears, and she rose into the air. With another flap, she began to climb toward the sky.

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