He couldn't have heard her correctly. It couldn't be possible. He stared at her, watching as she slowly realized something was terribly wrong. That the name meant something to him, something bad. He'd thought her being a princess was the worst part of his problems, but now this? He couldn't have come up with a worse scenario if he'd tried.
"Orion?" she said softly, stepping toward him. She'd been angry a moment ago, he wasn't sure why. He'd said something that had offended her, so she'd thrown Draco's name at him. Now she was no longer angry, not after the way he'd reacted. He wasn't proud that he'd frozen up, but the name sent chills down his spine. He still hoped that he'd heard her wrong. He had to have heard her wrong.
"Orion?" she said again, now directly in front of him. He stared down at her. She had no idea what sort of danger she was in, that they were all in, if the Dragon Killer knew what they were. He was hunting her. Draco wasn't the kind of man that just gave up on something he wanted. And if he knew she was a dragon and she'd escaped? Well, he was coming after her, which meant he was coming after them all.
"Draco? King Draco of Linester?" he asked her, grabbing her shoulders. He squeezed, but didn't shake her like he wanted to. Her eyes widened in fear. He was scaring her, he needed to calm down. There was no immediate threat, Draco wouldn't find them any time soon. But his heart was still racing and his breathing was too fast. He chanted to himself to calm down, but he was well aware that the circumstances were now different; Draco knew they could disguise themselves as humans.
"Y-yes," she stammered up at him. She looked at where his hands gripped her shoulders. "Orion, you're hurting me."
He released her quickly; hurting or scaring her was the last thing he wanted to do. "I'm sorry, I just-"
"Draco scares you." She said it softly, with no judgement in her voice or eyes. In fact, there was empathy written all over her face.
Orion nodded slowly. "He's the only real threat we've ever faced, besides other dragons. He's more tenacious, and he's the only human with the ability to find us over and over again. He doesn't ever give up. And he has new cards to play now." His fingers raked through his hair and he closed his eyes. Whatever he'd been expecting in terms of a threat, it hadn't been this. He hadn't been at all prepared for that name to come out of her mouth.
"Are you going to send me away?" her voice shook slightly, and he realized that his reaction had only heightened her fear of Draco. He met her blue eyes, saw they were pleading. He realized she wanted to stay. No matter how much she wanted to leave, he saw that she realized the safest place for her was here. If she went back to her parents, Draco would kidnap her again and they would be right back where they had started. Except this time, Orion wouldn't be there to save her, and she knew where the clan was located. Sending her away was dangerous, but keeping her was as well. By keeping her, he would have two kings searching for her and, inadvertently, his clan. If she left, she would be in direct danger. The Alpha in him should have thought option two was the better one, because it would likely save his clan. But the part of him that cared about Skylar, and his dragon, who was very adamant about his feelings toward her, wouldn't be able to let her go. The thought of her being hunted and hurt, with no one around to help her, it broke his heart.
"No," he told her, his voice firm and unbending. His hands came up to gently wrap around her upper arms, his thumbs rubbing back and forth reassuringly. Their eyes met, and he studied her lovely features, which were filled with worry and fear. A primal need to make those feelings disappear washed through him, and he recalled the ancient feeling he'd gotten when their dragons had met for the first time, the pull he'd felt toward her. There hadn't been words to describe it, it was purely instinctual. It was there again, although this time it was much weaker, and she likely didn't even feel it. "I will not send you away."
Her eyes closed in relief. "Okay. Thank you."
He simply nodded in acknowledgement squeezing her arms gently, not trusting his voice to not give his feelings away. He watched her, standing there with her head bent down toward her boots her boots, and knew that he could never send her away. Anywhere that he couldn't keep an eye on her, that he wasn't by her side, wasn't good enough.
He didn't know what he'd do when they finally told Kellan and Penelope about her. They would want to take her, make her a part of their clan. He had no right to want to keep her from them, but he wouldn't be able to bear her leaving.
He was doomed.
"There you are!" Nana shouted angrily. "I've been looking all over for you!" She stormed towards them, not realizing that something was wrong. Orion would like to keep it that way, for now. He needed to talk to Leo, to tell him who Skylar was to the humans, and who had discovered her. His father would know what to do. Leo always knew what to do. Orion quickly let her go, even though they'd still been an arm's length apart. Nana was imaginative enough as it was.
"I thought you had wandered of," Nana approached Skylar and placed a hand on her shoulder. Orion watched in fascination as Skylar's face, the one that was usually an open book, morphed into a smile with no hint of her feelings only moment before. So she was capable of hiding her feelings. He supposed she would have to be, with years of hiding her dragon from the world. She just hadn't used the skill since he'd met her, but it was one she'd obviously perfected some time ago. He realized he'd seen it once before, when she addressed the clan after his father's announcement that she'd be staying. The skill of public speaking, one that a crown princess would possess.
"I just had a run in with a clan member who wanted to try to put in my place," Skylar told her. "Orion was there to help scare him off."
"She actually did quite well on her own," Orion told his grandmother. And she had. He'd watched as she kept her cool for the most part. He'd watched her display of dominance with fascination, his own need for blood disappearing as he watched her draw Samuel's. His dragon had greatly approved of her actions, and the fact that she could stand up for herself. As much as they had both wanted to tear the other man's throat out, the knowledge that she hadn't enjoyed his advances had calmed them both down. She hadn't even used her Alpha aura intimidate the man. She probably didn't know how to use it, or that she was even an Alpha. He'd teach her that someday, after they explained who they were quite sure she was.
"Mmmhmm," Nana looked over at Orion carefully, her pale eyes scrutinizing. "Why are you two all the way over here?"
"I needed to talk with her about something," Orion explained. He didn't need to tell Nana anymore than that, although she obviously knew there was something else. No one could hide anything from the old woman; she had a way of making people think she needed to know more than she did. Talking with her was always like a game, and she didn't lose often. He was getting better at winning, which was fortunate for him. He had a good teacher though; his father was the only man who never bent to Nana's will.
Nana's eyes narrowed slightly. "Alright, but you two are going to be late. It's almost time for the ceremony to start. You, young man, of all people can't be late."
Orion looked back toward where the clan was gathered. He could heart the drums starting and everyone was shuffling into position, creating an aisle for the children to walk down. "I need to talk with Dad-"
"There isn't time!" Nana snapped, having also heard the drums. "We can all only hold the shift so long. You'll ruin the children's night if you don't get the ceremony done in time, Orion. Now get over there and get into place. Whatever you need to talk about can wait, I'm sure. I'll take care of Skylar."
Orion looked back at the red-headed princess, something he was still coming to terms with, and saw her reassuring look. All of his worry about Draco was pushed to the side as he realized Nana was right; he had more immediate manners to attend to. And other things to worry about, like Skylar shifting with the clan. She had done wonderfully during their training together the last two days, but her dragon and his got along so well. And she'd never been around more than one dragon at a time. The only thing that would be in their favor was that the clan would be too excited for the Full Moon flight that they wouldn't be trying to investigate Skylar's dragon. A few would try, but he was relying on Olly, Nana, Fiona, and Laura to keep them at bay. Unfortunately, he needed to be at the head of the clan with his Alpha, Beta, and Percy.
"Alright, I'm going," he nodded, backing toward the clan. He addressed Skylar. "I'll find you as soon as I'm done."
"Don't worry about me," she told him, although he could tell how nervous she was. "You'll do great tonight. I'm sure of it. Now go!" she waved her hands in a "shooing" motion and he grinned at her. He appreciated her encouragement more than she realized.
He turned to take off at a sprint toward the village, where the beating of the drums was picking up. The children were lining up, there were seven of them this year, and they all looked terrified. He couldn't blame them; shifting for the first time was daunting and painful, and they'd all witnessed it in years past. But he knew they would be alright because the entire clan was there to support and welcome them as dragons.
He skirted around the outside of the clan to join his three companions at the edge of the cliff, where the ceremony took place. The scales jingled against his chest, and he hoped his hair wasn't too messed up from running his hands through it. Leo glanced at him and he knew his father sensed his tension, tension beyond performing the ceremony. Leo would not be happy about Draco, but there was nothing they could really do about it at this point, they would simply have to prepare.
Orion looked up at the moon where it rested in the starry sky, shining the white light down on the clan. The drums began beating faster and louder. He could hear which drum was Olly's, his little brother had insisted on being one of the drummers for the Full Moon events, because there was the slightest skip in the drumbeat as his brother added just a small amount of customary flair. He saw a ripple in the crowd as they allowed Nana and Skylar to the front to stand with Victoria and Laura. Victoria, as Alpha female, would normally be standing with Leo at the head of the aisle, but since she couldn't shift, she had opted out. The ceremony wouldn't be the same without her shifting, but she was near the front and she stared proudly at him and Leo. Her green eyes were glistening with tears as she looked at him, and Orion gave his stepmother a small smile. She grinned back and wiped a tear, grabbing Nana's hand.
The drumbeats stopped abruptly, pausing for three beats before starting up again. When they began beating again, it was a very steady bum, bum, bum, bum, setting the pace for the children. The drums were joined by tambourines and flutes, added a brightness to the walk. The fire roaring behind the clan was extinguished, leaving them in only the glowing light of the moon as the children began their walk. The first one had to be nudged by his mother, but as soon as he starting, the other six were close behind, walking in pairs.
The clan was silent except for the music, but excitement and pride radiated between everyone. Welcoming new dragons was always a big event, for it meant that their clan was growing. Of course the children wouldn't be large enough to even fly for another five or six years, but in that time they would learn to fight and what it meant to be a dragon. Once they could fly, there would be another big event to celebrate their first solo flights. The only hope was that they would manage to get back; some of them didn't. But for these children, that time was a long ways off.
The children spread out around Orion, Leo, Zach, and Percy in a uniform semi-circle. The five boys and two girls stood still, staring up at their leaders until the music stopped. As soon as it did, they all lowered to one knee in a practiced motion.
Orion recalled his induction ceremony very clearly. It was a huge event, one of the most important in a long time, because the next Alpha was joining the clan as a dragon. He'd been six years old, and absolutely terrified he'd do something to mess it up. It didn't help that he was only one of three children shifting that year, Percy and Laura being the other two, so most of the attention was on him. He'd spent hours with his instructor, going through the ceremony, what he'd be required to say, and how to kneel properly. He couldn't just drop to his knee, he had to lower himself with dignity. He couldn't meet his Alpha's eyes directly, even though it was his father, until it was his turn to be inducted personally. Shifting for the first time had been absolute hell, that he remembered quite clearly. It was confusing and painful, but his clan had been there for him.
It occurred to him that Skylar had been all alone when she shifted for the first time, no one to explain what was happening, no one to shift along side her. And she'd been alone ever since.
He would make sure she was never that alone again.
He took a deep breath and glanced at his father, who nodded once. Orion then stepped forward and raised his arms. His deep, rumbling voice carried over the heads of his crowd, projecting and easily heard by those even furthest away from him.
"Tonight is one of the most important nights of the year for our clan, for we are welcoming new members into our ranks. There is strength in numbers, and tonight our clan is going to get even stronger as these seven young dragons join us." He looked down at the children kneeling before him, none of them meeting his eye directly, just as they were supposed to.
"You are our future, our legacy. You are the clan's future, you are the strength. Without you, the clan would waste away into nothing. Without the new members, we would be a dying clan. You are about to join one of the oldest, most well-established clans in the history of dragons, which is an honor that not many other young dragons can say they have. I am proud to have you join us today. Shall we begin?"
They spoke in unison, still keeping their eyes down to show their respect and submission to him. "Yes, Alpha."
Orion nodded once before beginning the vows.
"Do you promise to put the clan before yourself, understanding that you are an essential part of clan life?"
"Yes, Alpha."
"Do you promise to protect the clan with your life?"
"Yes, Alpha."
"Do you promise to uphold our laws and traditions, despite what you think of them?"
"Yes, Alpha."
"Do you promise to cherish the gift that you have been given by your ancestors, the gift of your dragon?"
"Yes, Alpha."
Orion decided, on impulse, to add a follow up question to that. He was acting as Alpha at the moment, and that meant he could adjust the vows as he likes, so long as they were essentially the same as they normally were.
"Do you feel your dragon within you now, waiting to be set free?"
There was a slight pause as the children hesitated, this not being one of the questions they practiced for, but finally one little girl spoke up. Her soft, young voice ringing across the cliff clearly.
"Yes, Alpha. I feel her waiting to join the clan."
The other six agreed after another moment before agreeing, but it was earnest.
Orion nodded in acknowledgement, proud of the little blonde girl for speaking up first, addressing him on her own.
"Do you promise loyalty to the Western Clan and your Alpha?"
"Yes, Alpha."
After that final question, a tension built up in the clan as Leo and Orion stepped forward in front of the first child. Leo held a bowl of red paint to mark the children's foreheads, while Orion would address them each individually. Since Orion wasn't the official Alpha, he couldn't initiate them by marking them, but he could say the words.
Orion placed his hand on the first child's head. "You are now a member of the Western Clan. Wear the honor with pride, for we are happy you're here." As he stepped away, Leo stepped forward to run his thumb in a smooth arc over the boy's eyebrows and then one more down his nose, leaving two clear lines of red paint. As he finished this the boy lifted his eyes first to meet Leo, and then Orion. Both Alphas nodded proudly at the boy.
They repeated this process six more times before Orion motioned for them to rise to their feet. They were straight faced, but Orion saw the elation lighting up their eyes. The impending pain of shifting was forgotten in that moment of acceptance, when everything was silent.
At least it was silent until the clan exploded into cheers. The children finally broke out into huge grins, standing on their tiptoes to find their parents. It would only be moments until the shift took over, judging by the location of the moon.
Leo clapped Orion on the back once and smiled at him. "You did a good job, son."
Orion opened his mouth to respond when the first child collapsed and let out a guttural roar. The clan fell silent as they watching, one by one, the children fall to the ground in agony. It was hard to watch, but it was harder for the new dragons, so no one looked away. Except for Orion, who glanced at Skylar, who he could see straining to resist her own shift. She was too unpracticed, he wanted to go and encourage her. He hoped she could hold out until the children had shifted. The moment they were done, everyone else would begin shifting but not until then. It was considered incredibly rude, disrespectful, and sign of weakness if a dragon couldn't hold back their Full Moon shift until the newest members had shifted. Any other month they wouldn't have to fight it, but this month they did. He hoped she could do it. He had faith in her, but when he saw how tightly she was squeezing Nana's hand, he knew they would be cutting it close. His own dragon was fighting for freedom as well, but he understood that he needed to wait as long as possible, fighting the ancient magic that was forcing the shift.
Finally, the seventh child curled into a tight ball on the ground, in the form of a tiny yellow dragon. Once he had finished, everyone began moving toward the cliff. The four leaders turned and perched on the edge, staring down at the black water below as it churned against the side of the cliff. Orion grinned and dove off the side, finally releasing his dragon. He shifted mid fall, his dragon's wings exploding out to the sides and catching the wind to bring them back up. The rest of the clan was doing the same thing, except for those who were grabbing the newest members. It was either one their parents, or closest living family member who would scoop the young dragon into their paws to take them on their first Full Moon flight. Flying as a clan, when he could feel all of their minds linked together, he was never more at home.
He looked over his shoulder to see dragons still pouring over the edge, the newborns picked up almost instantly. Skylar and Nana had shifted on land, which was best since Skylar wasn't fast enough of a shifter yet to do it in midair. The only problem was that neither blue dragon, pale or sky blue, was in sight. Victoria and the four other pregnant females were standing on the edge of the cliff with the children who weren't old enough to shift yet, watching their family fly away. They would be gone until dawn, when they were finally able to shift back.
Skylar? Orion called, even though he knew she couldn't understand him. She was still unconscious while in her dragon form, so her dragon had no idea what he was saying to her. He glanced around, stopping to hover while the rest of the clan flew past him, following Leo and Zach. He could see the silver dragon had fallen back to join Laura's dragon.
A flash of blue dashed past him, roaring playfully.
There she was.
He roared back, angling forward to join the blue dragon, who had taken to flying like a fish to water. No one around would be able to tell that she'd only had her first flight yesterday. The golden dragon lifted his lips in greeting and she copied the gesture. Orion's dragon was so happy to see her, happier than Orion had ever experienced him in the presence of another dragon. He sidled up close to her, the pair of them bringing up the rear. As Alpha, he should be at the front of the group, but Leo was there. And there was no way the golden dragon was leaving her side.
He watched her as she turned her head to look over the group of nearly a hundred dragons flying across the water, studying all of them. The clan, his clan, the one the golden dragon desperately wanted her to join. He roared softly at her to bring her attention back to him, and the moment her sparkling blue eyes fell on him again, he felt that primal tug deep in his chest.
The golden dragon reveled in the feeling, acknowledging that the female was his in some way, that they shared some primal connection. All Orion was aware of was that he was doomed, and he couldn't dare let his feelings for her grow beyond this, for the sake of his clan. The clan had to come first. He was the Alpha, and he'd given those vows to his newest members only fifteen minutes ago, the same vows he'd made when he was that age. The clan's interests came before his own, always, no matter how blue her eyes or how sparkling her scales. No matter how good he felt when she was around. She wasn't what was best for his clan, he didn't think, and he needed to stop these feelings he had whenever she was around. Yes, he needed to stop before things went too far.
But as she stared at him, her eyes alight with interest and something else he couldn't place, his chest tightened painfully. With her so close, he couldn't remember why on earth he'd ever want to stop.