Archive of Our Own ^beta

"Langa, sweetie, I know this is hard for you, but people won't accept you as their king if you don't rule with someone by your side." 

It was already the fifth time that someone had reminded him that night and, honestly, he didn't know what to say. Langa just wanted to run far away from there. To cross the snowy forests of his kingdom even in the middle of that snowstorm, far away from that huge cold dining room that more than his home now seemed like an ice prison, dull like everyone else in the castle.

He sighed. He was tired. So tired.

"Why does getting married have to be a requirement in Caanda to rule?” he questioned, running a hand over his face “Can't I just rule by myself? I don't… I don't..." his words were drowned in the silence of the room.

He didn’t even have energy to discuss.

Everything seemed frozen, the glittering gleam of the chandeliers, the brief smiles of the employees as they cleared the dinner plates, their hearts. His father seemed to have taken all the happiness with him. Everything seemed to be frozen, as if waiting for the king to return.

But that was never going to happen.

“Can’t you do something about it? Change the law or...”

His mother took his hand from across the table. He froze for a moment. Blank. His mother's eyes. She wasn't saying anything, but they were. They were like a silent plea. A bitter, exhausted plea.

"I would love to do it, Langa. If I could, believe me, I would, but, I don’t have the power. Your father did. I don’t know why we didn’t think about this before. It was your grandad who approved the law… And... this isn't the best situation, either” she said without breaking the grip. “Oliver and I…” something turned inside their stomachs when they heard that name. “ Your dad and I... didn’t want it to happen like this..."

Things would have been completely different if only the king had not fallen ill. He had passed away a few weeks ago due to a heart attack.

And his home now seemed like an empty shell, a haunted mansion where all that could be heard day after day were piteous, exhausted whispers, the sound of feet dragging on the floor, as if the snowfall had come in through the windows until it filled everything and it was almost impossible to move.

A loud thud of the storm snow pummeling the windows throughout the castle brought him back to the present and followed by it, his mother's voice:

"Langa, the kingdom... cannot prosper without a king. We need a king. And therefore, you need a husband"

No. The very idea of imagining what that life would be like was like a snake that slowly but surely coiled around his neck to slowly torture him to death. It would completely take away a part of his life. From child to adult. In just a moment. With just a «Yes, I do» at an unwanted wedding.

He couldn't do it. At least, not... yet. He wanted... he needed to live freely a little longer.

"Mum, I…"

Could his mother stand it?

His eyes rested on her. That look again. His mother was alone. She had nothing left but a huge castle that without a guide would collapse on them if they did nothing and a son on whom depended not only their future, but that of the entire kingdom. And that’s why Langa chose the right thing to do.

“Cherry! What if we ask Cherry to be our regent king for some time? Dad trusted him and as far as I know, he was okay with taking the position.”

She sighed, a relieved grin tracing itself on her face.

"I guess we have no other choice. Yeah. That way you could have more time to meet new people and find someone to get married with. Okay, we’ll do it. That could work. He now lives in the Kinaoki kingdom, so we’ll have to visit him to discuss everything."

“Perfect”

"Taking advantage of the occasion, we could ask the Kyan family to host us in their castle for a while until we finish with the paperwork. You're always within these four walls. It will do you good. And, from what I remember, there should be quite a few people your age at the Kinaoki castle, so, I'm sure you'll have a great time."

Great... He intended to enjoy his youth as much as he could, but having to spend all his remaining time socializing was not part of his plans in any way.

“Amazing.”

“The Kyan family's a delight. I'm sure you’ll love them.”

But if it meant he’d see his mother happy again. He’d give it a try.

“Yeah.”

And he left the table.

***

Prince Langa went to sleep early that night. After hearing his mum talk so excited about the meeting, he kinda regretted not telling her the truth.

What could he do? He didn’t want to disappoint her. Maybe he was just being selfish...

With only the dim light of a candle he remembered her gaze at dinner. So full of bitterness, so empty. Empty of life. As if her body was just an empty doll that was struggling to maintain a personality, a soul, something inside. Another image he couldn't get out of his head was the way she stirred the bowl of soup, over and over, the sound of metal against porcelain, as if trying to see beyond the steaming liquid. Trying to reach the end of that storm that still accompanied them that night and that with its presence seemed to want to remind them of the tragedy that had shocked the entire castle.

He pulled the covers completely over his head in a moment of despair. What was he supposed to do? How was he supposed to be happy like this?

He pulled back the blankets a little, giving himself room to breathe, trying to calm down. He hugged his pillow finding some comfort among the fluffy, nice cottons.

“Find your happiness...” he whispered, before plunging into the world of darkness.

***

"You're a good kid, Langa... I'm sure you'll find the right guy, one that tolerates Caanda’s freezing weather.” he tried to joke, but his voice turned softer as he met his son’s eyes and slowly squeezed his hand” One that can see through that sometimes reckless head of yours.” it was what the king, in a hoarse whisper, had said to him when they both were alone in the royal bedroom.

It was time to say good-bye, but he didn’t know what to say nor to do. He just stayed there, standing up next to his father’s bed, holding back his tears as hard as he could while holding his hand.

He wished so hardly he had some kind of magic to keep him by his side.

“Whatever you do… find your happiness, Langa." 

***

“I will, dad” he promised to himself that morning.

He was going to tell his mother. Before it was too late. He didn't know how she would react. But just for the mere possibility that she might offer him a little more time, a little more than a couple of years, it was worth it.

“Come on, Langa. Get ready, we're leaving!” she said as she met him in one of the corridors, while he was on his way to the dining room. One of the guards at her side was carrying several boxes and on top of them an opened trunk full of clothes and some books.

"What? Where… where are we going?"

"Did you forget? We're going to visit the Kyan family!" she said as if it was nothing.

What?

"Already? I thought we'd go later… like next week?"

"The snow storm stopped, so we should take advantage of it, Langa. I already ordered them to pack some of your things and sent a letter to the Kyan family to let them know that we're coming. Come on and help me decide which stuff we are going to give them as presents. I’m thinking about some books like this one. They are from your grandad." she reached for the trunk and pulled out a dusty and kinda ripped book with purple covers.

Amazing...

***

He had thought about it while getting ready to leave. The plan was simple: he'd try to talk with his mother in private and tell her everything. If things went really bad, at least, he could try to run away once the night arrived and negotiate with his mother that in exchange for his return, he wanted a little more time, ten or maybe fifteen years more. Yes, his thirties seemed a great time to get married.

It was a little risky and… reckless, as his dad said, but, he didn’t know what else to do.

For now everything was going great. Except for something he could not control: the weather. The snow storm had started again after two or three hours on the road, meaning that they could not leave the carriage and that it’d take them at least two days to leave Caanda. Only the two guards were allowed to go outside in case there were problems.

"You'll love Kinaoki. The weather's always so nice and everyone's just so lovely and kind." she mentioned without looking away from the book on her hands and with a happy tone on her voice.

Her mother was truly excited to reach the kingdom where she had grown up, in the few hours they had been traveling, she seemed more animated. Perhaps it was the nostalgia of returning home that was trying to cover the wound that his father's departure had created, but, at that moment, Langa realized that although at first he had not really wanted to make that trip, just to see his mother's smile for the first time in days, it was already worth it.

"You’ll love the food. It’s delicious."

As the days passed, they left behind the high mountains and lush, icy forests with pine trees that looked like ice giants, and gradually the snow turned to bright green grass, and Langa realized that this kingdom was totally different from his own.

Even while still inside the carriage, through one of the small windows a soft scent drifted in. What surprised the prince when he turned and looked outside was a grandiose hill that stood proudly crowned by piles of colorful flowers that danced under the sun's rays to the sound of the wind, as if they were at a party. A smile came to the prince's face.

His mother was right. It seemed to be a lovely place.

***

Just by stepping on the ground, Langa felt something was missing. No wind swept over him in excitement at his arrival, like a child seeing their parents after school. Instead, a gentle, shy breeze seemed to be the substitute. The sound of fresh grass under his feet felt strange to him, normally used to sinking them into the snow. It was all odd, but pleasant somehow. Still, his body was grateful to be able to lengthen his legs after days trapped in the carriage.

Too focused on the journey these days, he had completely forgotten to talk to his mother about what most worried him. He hadn't found the right time anyway and now in just a few hours they would arrive at the Kyan's castle.

He could do it. 

His mother stood by a fence, somewhat crouched, admiring the flower fields on the other side.

He meant to speak first, but, she went ahead:

“Are you excited?” the way the skirt of her long salmon dress crinkled as it hit the floor reminded him of a cupcake. And the way her mother smiled after all... how could she be so strong? So confident...

And he felt so lost.

“About what?”

“Maybe you meet your future husband here, sweetie! Aren’t you excited?”

A prick went through his whole body.

He needed to tell her.

“About that...”

“Your majesty, we should get going!” shouted one of the guards beside the carriage.

“Why? We just stopped now!” his mother replied, still standing at the fence.

“There are some rather dark clouds in the distance, your majesty! If we don't hurry we could arrive at the castle soaking wet!” he pointed at the sky.

Yeah, he was right. Suspicious black clouds seemed to be moving closer and closer to them.

“Oh, gosh. You’re right, Shindo! Come on, Langa, let’s go back to the carriage!”

He could do nothing but agree.

“What were you saying before?” asked the queen as soon as she sat back down in her seat in front of her son.

“Nothing.” He leaned his head against the window pane, watching the flower-filled landscape they were slowly leaving behind. The rattle of the carriage seemed to rock the prince, as if it were a ditty. “Just… that I can’t wait to see the castle.”

***

Only a few hours had passed, but the sun now rose high in the sky. The black clouds had completely disappeared from the sky, as if mocking the prince. And the few layers of clothing that his mother had described as more than enough and that had seemed to him almost like being naked, accustomed to wearing thick vests and sweaters, seemed to be in excess. His body was clammy and sweaty. So disgusting. It was like being in an oven.

“How could you stand this? It’s so hot!”

“Oh, Langa, you’re just not used to it. Give it some time. It was hard for me too when I went to Caanda for the first time, you know? I wandered the halls for weeks wrapped in blankets and scarves like some kind of weird monster.”

He drew a tired, but soft, giggle from who knows where. Was her mother really like that when she was young?

“Your dad thought it was cute!” she pouted seeing her son laughing at her.

“Your majesty! We’re here!” the guard from before, Shindo, reported.

As soon as they arrived at the castle, they were taken to see the queen. As always, his mother did most of the talking:

“We thank you very much for your hospitality, your majesty. It’s really a pleasure to visit your beautiful kingdom and your marvelous castle. As always, it’s truly, an authentic work of art” paid her respects with a bow.

And his mother was not exaggerating. The walls and doors of the throne room were covered in large murals of gold paint on pure white, each with a different story. Langa had never seen anything like it and couldn't take his eyes off it. He saw ranchers depicted in one corner, hunters, cooks....

“Oh, dear, it’s nothing really.” compared to Langa's mother, Queen Masae was a somewhat older and fatter woman. Her voice was very pleasant, always with a kind and elegant tone and full of respect. “I’m so sorry my husband couldn’t be here today. He’s been in the east of the kingdom some months attending to some vitally important matters.”

“There’s no need to apologize, your majesty.” queen Nanako hastened to say “We all know he’s fulfilling his role as the great king he is”

“He sure is.” she stated “So, on behalf of my husband and me, I have to welcome you to Kinaoki and pay my respects for the death of King Oliver. He may never be forgotten.” she made a bow that at first glance, was identical to his mother's, but, a tinge of sadness covered her face.

Langa appreciated the gesture.

“We hope you are comfortable here and have as much fun as you can in these difficult times and if it’s possible between all this paperwork you have to do.” she giggled recovering her previous posture and with it, the warmth and purity that her presence within entailed.

His mother merely smiled in appreciation, and at the last moment decided to add something:

“We sure will.”

“Well, if you need anything, let my servants know. And if you’re looking for Cherry to start discussing all the matters, I’m sure he’ll be right in the garden courtyard having an appetizer like every morning.” she informed them and then showed them the door to the outside.

“We’ll go right now, your majesty. It’s been a pleasure seeing you.” 

Another bow and a copy of the other, from one woman to the other.

“The pleasure’s all mine, Queen Nanako”

***

The immense garden completely surrounded the castle. Gigantic bushes and vines climbed up the walls that protected the building. Small colorful flowers grew in different corners and the chirping of birds hidden among the trees filled the air. It looked like a real paradise.

And among all that calm, a pink haired man sitting at a stone table, with a cup of tea as his accompaniment was writing in his notebook, wetting his pen and tracing lines that little by little joined and became beautiful words, arranged on the page as if following the orders of their author:

« Tree of Blood waters the morning

where the newborn moans.

Its voice leaves crystals in the wound

and a graph of bone in the window.

While the light that comes fixed and wins

white goals of fable that forgets

the tumult of veins in the flight

towards the cloudy freshness of the apple,

Adam dreams in the fever of the clay

a child galloping closer

by the double beat of his cheek.

But another dark Adam is dreaming

neutral seedless stone moon

where the child of light will go burning.»

He dipped again into the ink and the last words paraded across the paper carefully:

« Cherry Blossom »

“As elegant as always, I see” the prince’s mother greeted.

“Queen Nanako? I wasn’t expecting your arrival that soon!” said the poet, rising quickly from his chair and bowing his head in respect for the queen and her heir. “Your majesty, Prince, take a seat, please.”

The two took a seat in front of the poet. From his seat, Prince Langa could see two guards of the Hasegawa family, that following his mum’s orders, watched the three of them from the stone columns that decorated the door behind them.

“Cherry, as I told you in my letter, after my husband’s death…” her voice faded away when she reached that truth that still seemed like a lie. As if robbed by the birds that danced through the garden making little hops, she let out a small sigh, trying to draw some kind of hidden strength from somewhere to continue.

But, instead, Cherry’s voice decided to fill the silence that the birds had just granted them for some seconds:

“I couldn’t believe it when I read it.” he admitted in a whisper. “King Oliver… I’m so sorry for your loss. King Oliver was an honorable man and an incredible friend. He’ll… he’ll surely be missed by all of us.”

Queen Nanako just nodded and the Prince ducked his head.

“As you should know,” his mother's voice rose again, as clear and confident as before “we are, desperately, in need of a king who can take care of Caanda until Langa finds someone to marry. My husband was right at trusting you to be his regent. And we both” she clarified, looking at her son who was watching her curiously. “agree that you’re the most qualified man to take this position, to honor the kingdom and your family. You’re unswerving, intelligent, calculating... And one of the most important things: you’re married, so, you meet all the requirements to rule.”

Cherry smiled, pleased.

“You’re too kind, your majesty.”

The queen did not smile. She was looking for an answer.

“So, what do you say? Would you be our king?”

The man took a brief sip of his tea cup, finishing it off with a smile:

“It’d be a pleasure.”

The queen stifled a cry of happiness:

“Thank you! Thank you, Cherry!”

The poet continued without using words and from one of the pockets of his blue tunic he took out a little golden bell to which he gave a ring. Its sound was beautiful and quiet like its owner.

In a few seconds, a man with pronounced muscles and green hair pulled back in a small ponytail, came out of the door which, due to the noise that could be heard from there and the delicious smell that was coming from there, it had to be the kitchen.

“Two glasses of your finest white wine and some orange juice.” the poet said as soon as the green-haired man got to his seat. From the white uniform he wore, Langa deduced that he must be some kind of cook.

“Coming right now, dear! But I must ask, what do we owe this celebration, Kaoru?” he asked bending down to pick up the poet's empty cup. Langa noticed the cook's brown hand. A ring rested on one of his fingers, identical to the one Cherry had on his finger.

“You are looking at the next king of Caanda, Kojiro.” Prince Langa thought he saw a wicked smile creep across the poet’s face as he spoke.

Chef Joe's eyes opened wide:

“The what? HOW?!” he almost dropped the cup he was holding.

Cherry just laughed:

“You know, I’ve always aimed high.”

The chef was about to answer him, but then, several knights, who by the red uniforms seemed to belong to the Kyan guard, came running to where the queen and her son were gathered.

“PROTECT THE HASEGAWA FAMILY!” one of them shouted.

Immediately, the two guards who had been standing by the door ran to the table, joining the red uniforms.

“What…? What is going on?” the queen dared to ask, with a thread of worry hanging from her throat, looking everywhere in an attempt to find the problem that had caused that chaos.

“An intruder scaled the wall that protects the castle, but don't worry, we'll catch him right away, queen Nanako.” one of the Kyan guards informed her, unsheathing his sword. “Everything is under control. No need to worry. We’re here to guarantee your safety and your son’s.”

That brunette guard that had just spoken had his back to the queen, focusing all his attention somewhere in the garden. Langa followed his gaze. He was looking at a black blur that was quite far away from them and who was being chased by a group of uniformed men in red.

“He’s running away! Get him!” Langa seemed to hear.

He couldn't see much of the chase as he was practically surrounded by guards, but, after a few desperate shouts and a thud of something or rather someone meeting the ground brought the garden back to calm. Then Langa knew they had caught the intruder.

The prince poked his head out of the sea of guards once the situation seemed under control.

The same brunette guard who had informed them of the situation was now standing over a person who was fully covered by a large black hooded tunic, immobilizing them.

"Gotcha! You're going to regret this!” the guard proclaimed victoriously, placing his hands on the intruder’s hood and removing it, uncovering their identity. The gesture was followed by a general gasp.

“What?!" the poet and the cook blurted out in unison.

***

"I can't believe it, Reki! I told you we were going to have important guests over soon!” Queen Masae's screams echoed off the walls of the throne room “I told you to, please , behave yourself and… this is what you do! You leave the castle dressed like some kind of... thief! Why?! For the love of God, Reki! You’re a prince! You can’t do things like this!" she demanded to know.

The lovely queen who had greeted the Hasegawa a few minutes ago seemed to have disappeared completely.

And sitting on the ground in front of her, the brave intruder who had turned out to be the son of Queen Masae herself and who had caused all that exciting garden party was gritting his teeth in anger, probably regretting having been caught.

"This wouldn't have happened if people knew how to do their job!” he finally spoke with a fire of rage as red as his hair burning in his eyes. “I only asked them to go to the forest and get me the berries I needed... and they brought the wrong ones four times already !!”

"So then you decided to go to the forest all by yourself to get them, right?"

"Yeah! They needed food, mum! I couldn't just leave them there starving or let them get food-poisoned!"

Now the redhead's screams were pounding against the walls. Langa observed the scene quite confused. Food?

Queen Masae only let out a tired sigh, as if she had already had to go through that conversation before.

"Okay, this is enough. Go to your room and get changed. But, don't cause any more trouble or I'll send guards so you don't leave your room at least for a month. Got it?"

"Yes." Kinaoki’s Prince murmured getting up from the cold floor, turning around and meeting with his eyes the Hasegawa’s, the poet and the cook that were standing at the back of the room.

"Reki, before leaving, why don't you introduce yourself to our guests?” the woman asked, recovering her sweet tone “This is the Hasegawa family. Queen Nanako and Prince Langa, they are from Caanda and they'll stay here for a while"

"Nice to meet you, your majesty, Prince.” he bended to take and kiss the queen's hand and then take the other prince's. “I'm Reki Kyan.” he murmured as his lips met Langa’s skin and his hair covered his eyes. “And… I'm sorry for what you had to see. It won't…” he felt Queen Masae's eyes on his body. “it won't happen again.” he paused. “Now, if you excuse me" he let go the other boy’s hand and left the room at a hurried pace.

"That kid…” Cherry let go a sigh “As wretched as always. He wasn't cursed, but, sometimes, it kinda seems otherwise. He always gets in trouble somehow. Always.” he said to the Hasegawa’s “He's got good intentions, but he always messes up"

"But he’s not a bad person, is he? Why don't you go with him and hang out together for a bit, Langa?”

“Huh? But...” he really didn’t know what to do or say after what he had just seen.

“Maybe you could be friends. Come on!" she encouraged him.

"Ummm… Alright."

He was there to meet people after all.

"Cherry, excuse me,” queen Nanako spoke once Langa left the room “but, before I left I always heard that the castle had children running around, but now… there is no trace of them, for what I’ve seen. Was that... not true?"

"No, you're right, your majesty. There were once many children living within these walls, but their families moved to other cities looking for different jobs.”

“Why?”

“We had hard times since you last came to the city. Many things happened."

***

He followed Prince Reki from a distance, from corridor to corridor. The red-haired boy walked up a long flight of stairs until he reached a wide hallway on the third floor, passing in front of a door that was guarded by a pair of guards. Keeping his distance, after a few seconds, Prince Langa passed by then, inadvertently overhearing part of their conversation.

“He's caused a mess again because of those damn things.”

He wanted to stay a little longer to find out what they were talking about, but then Prince Reki went into a room down the hall. It had to be his room.

"Uh… Hi." Langa muttered standing in the doorframe, wondering whether or not to enter.

"Uh… hi, Prince Langa. Come in. Did you need something?" he greeted him with a big smile while carrying something in his arms.

"Well…” he stammered, not knowing quite what to do. What was he going to say? My mother wants us to be friends? No way.

Then his eyes focused on the prince of Kinaoki. Or rather on what he carried in his arms and that moved pleased when he caressed it.

“What's… that?" he asked open-mouthed by the surprise.

The redhead just chuckled. That was sound Langa didn’t hear for a long time.

"It's a dragon.”

The creature that Prince Reki was petting had red scales like the boy's hair, it almost seemed to be on fire. And even though it was about the same size as his forearm, he let it climb from his chest to his shoulder, clinging with its claws to the black tunic. Its long, anchor-like tail swayed contentedly. Once settled, the little monster let threads of smoke out of its nose.

“A dragon?”

“Yeah! They can only be found here, in Kinaoki…” the dragon jumped up and like a basketball being dunked, it went straight into the box full of berries next to the bed that Langa recognized as the one the prince of Kinaoki was carrying during his confrontation with the guards. Prince Reki giggled. “and so is their food!” he turned back facing the large and empty balcony of his room and spoke to the crystals. “Come on, guys! It's time to eat! I got your food!"

And then, from where before there was nothing and where nothing could be heard but the distant chirping of the birds in the garden, came an army of tiny colorful and very noisy dragons. More than twenty of them. High-pitched and low-pitched squawks filled the room. With their little legs they were climbing the balcony until they dropped to the ground, flapping their little wings in the process in an effort to break their fall.

Langa set his eyes on the red dragon who was amusing itself by analyzing all the contents from the inside and then eating the biggest berries it could find. It was twice as big as the rest.

Langa felt like he was in a fairy tale. What was going on?

There were dragons everywhere. Those that flew to the box of berries, grabbed some with their paws and fled from that geometric battlefield, turning the lamp hanging from the ceiling into their dining room. Others, from the ground, scaled the box and dived into the pool in search of their food.

The son of the Kyan seemed to be not very much in favor of that war, for, as soon as the screams of the winged beings began to exceed the decibels his ears could bear, he approached the box and carefully overturned it on the ground, transforming the white floor into an abyss of yellow and red marbles.

With all the berries scattered around the room, the dragons quickly divided into sections and moved from one side to the other, devouring the fruits.

Soon the hungry cries of the soldiers ceased, as they concentrated on finishing off all the berries they could find.

And amidst all the silence being interrupted only by the chewing of the troop, a soft whimper resurfaced. Its creator, a small blue dragon trying to ask for a place among all its fierce companions, as it stood watching in a corner of the room.

The redhead approached the little dragon and picked up a few berries from the ground to create a small mountain of them, thus opening a small hole in the winged ocean which the little one immediately detected and jumped in with a leap. It stared at the giant pile of mostly gold berries, intimidated by its size and looking like a frightened child.

"There's no need to worry, little one. It's safe. I made sure of it." he assured it, kneeling beside it and holding one out to him.

The little dragon accepted the ball from his fingers and dug its teeth into it.

"So many…" Langa kept looking around in disbelief “That's why you…”

"Yeah,” he looked up from the little dragon who was enjoying its meal now “that's why I sneaked out of here to go to the forest. You already heard all I said to my mum. I couldn't just leave them starving."

The first dragons that had come earlier to the prince's call and had razed up the best pieces were already lounging on the floor, on the cupboards, curled up in themselves or between the open drawers, using the clothes as perfect mattresses or blankets, took a nap as if that room were their home.

"They're so…" he spoke, totally stunned.

"Rad, amazing, pretty? The most amazing creatures you've ever seen? Of course they are!” he exclaimed enthusiastically as he welcomed the red dragon back to his shoulder and picked up the tiny and blue dragon he had just helped to softly caress it and wipe away the small remnants of berries that remained on the sides of its mouth. “Wanna hold little Eve? She’s a bit shy at first, but she loves meeting new people."

Prince Reki interpreted his silence as a yes and handed her to him. The tiny, warm little animal, which barely took up his whole hand, looked up at him with those big blue eyes. It seemed to Langa that it was asking him who he was.

He couldn’t do anything else, but smile. Kinaoki was surely full of very cute surprises.

"If dragons are so amazing,” he tried to speak, remembering Queen Masae’s enraged voice and the guard’s comment  “why do adults not seem to like them? They seem friendly."

"Because adults are stupid.” he rolled his eyes at the question. “They think they'll only bring us havok, death, bad luck, whatever you wanna call it, just because one person was there in the wrong moment" Langa wanted to ask about it, but the red-head continued "But being able to fly and being cute and fierce aren't the only good qualities of dragons. They can do so much more. Just watch. Inferno!" the red dragon immediately responded to his words jumping from his shoulder into his arms, snuggling into his chest with a pleased expression. At first, Prince Langa didn't get what the other prince wanted to show him about the dragon. But then, he felt it.

At first it was just a slight sensation deep in his stomach, then it rose up into his throat. It was happiness.

A gale of images flashed through his head, like a movie, at full speed. He heard a child's laughter come from his own throat.. And followed by it, he saw himself running from something in that same room he was in.

"You can't catch me, Inferno!" he said climbing onto the bed which was now empty of dragons and turning to find the red dragon, a little smaller than he remembered, coming through the door, to throw himself on it. “Okay, you won, girl!”

But, no. It wasn't him. It wasn't Langa.

Nor was it his happiness. Nor was it the dragon's. It was... Prince Reki's .

And in the blink of an eye, Langa was back in the room infested with winged creatures. Prince Reki watched him with a strange smile, as if he too had seen the same thing as Langa.

Happiness was gone again. And Langa's body was missing it, asking for it back.

Little Eve was playing with his white fingers, carelessly..

"What...?"

"See?” he said as if nothing weird had just happened petting the red dragon like thanking her for the effort “The reason why Inferno's always with me isn’t because I feed her.” he explained “She chose me to be her friend forever. She's my now and always friend. Our minds are connected. She feels what I feel and so do I. We're one. But at the same time, we are our own living being. She'll never leave me, the same way I'll never leave her. We'll always, always. be together."

As if understanding what the prince had just said, she rubbed her head against his chest in response, agreeing.

"Amazing…" Langa mumbled looking at the dragon with remarkable fascination. How come a creature like that existed and no one had ever bothered to tell him?

"You seem to really understand why dragons are so cool!" the red-head declared.

"I just never saw anything... like them.” Langa admitted without taking his eyes off Eve, who was now grabbing and releasing the fabric of his shirt sleeves with her little paws, examining it. A smile formed on his face. It felt strange, the muscles in his face stretched, after so long, not used to that gesture. But it was a good start. “But, yeah, they're incredible"

"Indeed!"

"But, why do you have so many dragons, Prince Reki?” he asked after a few seconds of silence. “Did they all choose you?"

"Oh, no, no. Inferno's my only buddy. The rest are free dragons who are looking for food. Some of them just come because they like hanging out with Inferno, since we don't usually leave the castle."

That made sense.

"How did Inferno and you met?" he wanted to ask.

But a guard dressed in red, came to the door.

"Prince Reki, the queen wants me to inform you that you'll have dinner with the Hasegawa tonight."

The prince just snorted.

"She organized a ball without telling me, right?” he said rolling his eyes. “Okay, tell her I'll be there."

"She also-" the guard tried to continue.

"Yes, yes, I know! I'll behave! I'll behave!" he gestured for him to leave.

Once alone, Inferno climbed back to his shoulder and the prince stood up.

"Now, if you excuse me, Prince Langa. I have to get changed"

Langa carefully put down the little dragon and got up as well.

"Yeah, I should do that too, Prince Reki." he agreed.

The prince looked at him with an amused expression:

"I don’t like formalities. Call me just Reki.”

Langa nodded smiling. Did that mean… he had made a friend?

“See you later, Langa. It was nice talking to you. I don’t usually get the chance to speak to people of my age, you know?"

Yes. He had made one.

"I really enjoyed it too.” he could not resist admitting “See you later, Prin-. I mean, Reki"

Reki . He repeated his name in his head. Saying his name felt nice.

Reki.

Reki.

Reki was his… friend.

***

Although having made a friend made him very happy, he still couldn’t rest easy. He had to talk to his mother and explain what was happening to him.

And as if she could read his thoughts, just as he reached his room, there she was rummaging through a trunk full of clothes. It was now or never.

"Oh, Langa, thank God you came back now! Quick, we have to get changed! The queen's gonna throw a ball in our honour. Isn't that exciting?” she asked, taking two small stacks of books out of the trunk and leaving them on the bed, making room in the trunk. “And, yeah, right! How did it go with Prince Reki? Did you two have fun?"

Langa sat on the bed next to the pile of books topped by an old purple book. Her mother was still concentrating on finding whatever it was she was looking for in the trunk.

"Mum… I have to tell you something... important."

She looked up, meeting Langa’s worried face.

"Yeah? What is it, Langa?" she said with a hat yellow in her hand.

"I'm not ready to get married.” the words came out pushing each other in his mouth, anxious to get out. “It's… it's too soon. And I'm too young. I don’t want to get married until I'm… I don't know… thirty-five or older.” he looked from his hands to the woman “ I'm sorry, mum."

"No, Langa. There’s no need to apologize.” worry was present on her voice. She dropped the hat, which fell back into the trunk and approached the bed, pushing aside the pile of books to sit next to her son.“I-I should have made this clear at home. I’m such a mess… God…”She sighed in an attempt to calm herself down. The next words that came from her were just as sweet as her look and her smile. “Look, I already knew that, sweetie. That's why we're here."

What?

"But back at home you said-" he tried to explain.

However, his mum carried on:

"I only wanted to see if you were ready for it, but, as I expected, you weren't and that’s perfectly okay.” Langa was getting more and more confused. What did his mother mean? “Listen, I don’t want you to get married to a random person just because “the kingdom needs it”. I want you to live too. You’re Caanda's prince, but, you’re also a boy that deserves to live, to fall in love, to discover the world.”

Really? Did he really deserve to do all of that? Wasn’t this a dream?

But, his mother's following words confirmed it.

“I don’t care if it takes you ten years or twenty or even more to find the perfect man for you, because we'll all be there with you. Cherry, me, the kingdom, everyone. We'll wait for you. So, there's no need to worry, Langa. Just go and live your life."

It was not a dream. He could still be a Prince. He could live. He could still be a kid.

"I love you, mum" he said, realizing that it had been a long time since he had last said those words.

"Me too, little snowflake. Me too" she hugged him tightly.

***

“Queen Nanako Hasegawa and her son, Prince Langa, enter the room!” announced one of the guards opening the door to the ballroom.

His mother had chosen to wear a long silk dress, with blue as the colour of the skirt and white for the upper part that was also decorated with elegant drawings of branches that kinda reminded Langa of the branches of the trees of the forest that surrounded his castle in Caanda.

“Make sure to have fun, Langa.” she said before going into the room.

He nodded. He would try.

Although he had already attended many parties in Caanda, this was different. Everything was different. The type of decorations, the clothes even. He felt a little out of place in his dark blue coat and pants full of gold details and his white shirt. Everything was so full of colour.

A group of musicians played soft melodies in a corner of the room, all dressed in bright colours. By now, all the guests were spread out in groups of four or five conversing among themselves while the servants were preparing the tables for the dinner later in the evening.

It wasn't long before they found the Kyan talking to a group of gentlemen. He was going to call his now friend just when the boy saw him:

“Langa!” he waved at him as the redhead’s mother stopped his conversation with the gentlemen only to give him a warning glance “I mean… Prince Langa!” he corrected himself, getting closer to Caanda’s prince and far far away from Queen Masae.

“Prince Reki!” Langa greeted him with a smile. His mother separated from him and joined the small group that the Kyan and the gentlemen had formed.

“It’s nice to see you again” the redhead murmured with a big smile which Langa had already guessed that it was a characteristic of his new friend. It seemed that nothing could erase that smile, as if it was drawn on his mouth with permanent ink. And, honestly, Langa couldn’t complain. It was cute.

“The same goes for me.” he agreed.

Going from seeing him with a dirty black tunic that had rolled in the dirt to an impeccable yellow suit with red buttons and details of the same colour on the collar and matching with it, a thick, floor-length cape really changed his first impression of him to a better one. His wild hair now pulled back in a small ponytail almost made him look like a peaceful and obedient prince.

So impressed by the change of image, he almost missed a little red head peeking out clinging to the prince of Kinaoki's cloak.

“I think Inferno’s happy to see you too.” he giggled caressing her head.

“Hi, Inferno. Why are you hiding there?”

“My mum can’t know I brought her with me or… well, you already heard what she said before.” the red-head answered for her, tapping the dragon’s nose. Just with that, she went back to her amazing hideout.

“Reki...” Langa didn't like that. It was too risky.

“What? I usually can’t take her with me when there's too many people around, but, she deserves to have fun too!” he pouted as Inferno stuck her head out to show him her pleading gaze. It looked like they had conspired together to do it. Well, it made sense after all. Their minds were connected.

Caanda’s prince just rolled his eyes and considered it:

“Well, yeah, I guess you’re right. She deserves some funtime.”

Reki chuckled.

“I knew you’d understand!”

***

The two princes spent the evening together, without joining other groups. Sometimes a person who knew the prince of Kinaoki would come along and he would simply greet them with a polite smile and introduce Langa, the latter would greet him, they would exchange a couple of words and the person would leave, leaving them, once again, alone.

And it was nice. No one bothered them and they could just skip formalities and be just two boys having fun.

By that point in the evening, they had talked about everything. Reki had criticized how much he had had to fight with his little twin sisters to get them to wear their dresses and to do their hair, he had commented on how much he was looking forward to the summer, when the dragon eggs hatch and you start to see more little ones arriving on his balcony.

Reki did most of the talking and Langa just listened, interested in whatever he decided to talk about. But something was starting to get on his way.

“Reki, when’s dinner going to be ready?”

His stomach was beginning to grumble.

“Oh, that's right, we've been waiting here for quite a while now. It shouldn't be long now. Although, I think we'll have the ball first and... Look! Chef Joe has already started serving the starters!” he pointed at the empty table. Only the chef and the servants were gathered around it, filling every plate with what looked like small puff pastry bites. “He told me earlier that today we’ll have his specialty: Lyitan food!”

“I thought we’d have some typical local food.” Langa said.

“Maybe another day, but, my mother let Chef Joe cook whatever he wanted and since Cherry was invited to the ball too, he made his favourite food. It’s really good. You’ll like it.”

That was not a problem. He could eat anything. And even more so at that moment. He regretted not even taking a berry from Reki's room. Though he doubted a human could eat them...

Langa just prayed for whoever had to dance, to do it quickly.

“Are you hungry, guys?” he was so hungry that he didn't see his mother coming. “Dinner will start after the opening dance. So, Langa, go to the center of the room where the Kyan are.”

“Why?” Reki asked instead.

“Langa will start the opening dance with someone from your family, Prince Reki.” she explained, politely.

“Who from the Kyan family...?” Langa asked.

“You’ll have to dance with Princess Koyomi, Reki’s younger sister.” she said as she pointed to a girl with two brown ponytails and a discreet long white dress with red flower patterns and a ribbon of the same color ending in a pretty bow, adorning her back. She saw the three of them looking at her and waved at them with a smile that was very similar yet different to her brother’s. Reki and Caanda’s queen waved back at her.

And Langa just stared at her. How was he going to dance with her?

***

“It’ll be fine. She’s nice. Plus, ball entrances are tradition here.” Reki reassured him. Queen Nanako had left some minutes ago and they went to one of the balconies to take some fresh air. “Koyomi can be annoying sometimes, but only when she makes fun of me. Since she became the successor to the throne, she thinks she’s allowed to say everything she wants to my face.”

Langa's eyes widened in confusion.

“I thought you were going to be the next king. My mum told me you’re the oldest of all your siblings, right?”

“Oh, yeah, but I gave the position to her. It has been clear to me for a long time that being a king is not my thing. It never felt right, you know? Just like other stuff.” his voice softened.

Somehow, even if he didn’t know what had motivated Reki to do that, Langa knew his friend had made the right decision.

“And what will you do when you’re older?”

Reki sat leaning against the balustrades. Inferno, predicting it to the second, came out and jumped up and snuggled like that morning in the arms of the prince of Kinaoki:

“I don’t know. For now, I just want to see the world with Inferno by my side.” he closed his eyes for a second feeling the breeze of that night. “There are so many things I haven’t experienced yet. And you, Langa? What are you going to do when you’re older?”

That was an easy question.

“I’ll be Caanda’s king.”

Reki chuckled at his resounding answer:

“No, I’m not talking about that. I’m not talking about doing something we’ve been forced to be prepared for since we were babies. What would you really want to do when you’re older?”

Now that was not an easy question. He didn't know what to say. There was nothing he was passionate about, nothing he wanted to devote his time to. Nothing came to his sometimes reckless head.

His reckless head.

“I… I want to find my happiness.” he repeated his father's words.

“Woah, that’s a good one!” Reki agreed.

He almost had forgotten the promise he had made to his father.

“Yeah. It is.”

And he was going to keep it.

***

“Langa, I’ve been looking for you everywhere!” his mother entered without warning to the balcony. Luckily, she didn’t see Inferno as she was focused only on her son. The dragon hid behind Reki’s cloak.  “Quick! The dance! They are waiting for you!”

“Uh...”

He wasn’t ready.

“Langa, come on.” his mother insisted.

“I-” he tried to justify himself.

“Wait here, please!” Reki blurted out to the Hasegawa as he ran and left the balcony to go to the center of the room, just where his family was.

First, the Prince spoke to the Queen Masae, she just nodded and smiled. And then, he turned to the Princess Koyomi and as a reflection of the previous interaction, the princess just nodded and smiled. Langa and Queen Nanako didn’t hear anything.

As quickly as he had left, the prince ran back to the balcony. Langa noticed that he was wearing a broad smile:

“You’ll dance with me tonight, Prince!” he said offering his hand.

***

Together, they danced to the music. Langa wasn't as skilled as Reki since he had hardly ever danced. His feet, in contrast to Reki's, doubted every step and if it was horrible to live it, he was sure watching it was even worse. At least, he tried hard not to step on Kinaoki's prince. There was no perfect sync, it wasn't a beautiful dance. But there were no weird stares or comments and it was quite fun. They were relaxed, as if they were alone like that morning at Reki's room. It was un-perfectly perfect.

Langa allowed a small smile to form on my lips.

“Is this better?” Reki asked with an even bigger smile on his face.

“Yeah… Thank you.” he couldn’t help but express his gratitude.

“No worries. I know how hard it is to follow tradition when you’re different.”

Yeah, that was hard.

“I just don’t like the kind of assumptions other people make when they see a boy and a girl doing… anything.” he admitted. “It’s like you said before. It doesn’t feel right. And it’s awkward.”

“And rude.” Reki pointed out.

“Yes.”

The music seemed to never end. The small orchestra played song after song and everyone carried on without niggle. Even Chef Joe had joined the fun. But only him seemed to be having fun as Cherry growled complaining that he was dancing like a fool and grumbling something about him not knowing what elegance was.

As for Koyomi, she danced with her two sisters on her arm.

It was, truly, a lovely night.

Langa was glad he had left Caanda.

***

“Come with me!” Reki grabbed his hand dragging him behind as soon as they changed the song.

“Where are we going?” Langa asked as soon as they left the ballroom unnoticed.

“I want to show you something!” the prince said as they reached a long corridor.

Actually, he didn’t care what the prince wanted to show him at that moment. The only thing his brain could think about was his heartbeat pulsing against his hand as he met Reki’s.

Hunger had disappeared from his gut, replaced by another feeling. It was warm and nice.

But before he could think much of it, suddenly, he realized they were finally outside. In the dark, the fresh breeze greeted him and welcoming him once again to the garden where he had met Reki that morning.

“Normally, we can’t do this because people think it’s dangerous.” Reki started letting go his hand and stepping a bit far from where Langa was and turning his back on him. Caanda’s prince didn’t understand why they were outside. There was nothing in the garden. Then, Inferno climbed up to the red-head’s shoulder. “They’re idiots.” his friend added without turning his head to look at him. “But... now that they are all focused on the ball, it’s time for us to have some fun too!”

He exchanged a strange look with the dragon and then… Fire. It appeared from nowhere. It quickly covered his fingers and hands, swaying freely in the wind, pretending not to know about the music in the ballroom, which was still a little audible in the background even outside.

Then Reki extended his arms forward, fire still on his hands and... he closed his fists. A hurricane of flames shot out, like hungry animals in a race. Langa could clearly smell smoke in the air. And in a matter of seconds the flames shot across the garden, replacing the breeze from before with hot air and fading just barely without strength as it reached the wall that protected the castle. From its passage only a small stain remained on the bricks.

Langa approached the wall and looked at the black mark like it was a dog with three heads. Then he looked back at his friend.

The prince was petting Inferno again, who happily wagged her tail from side to side.

“How…? Was that really you?!” Langa asked.

Reki smiled widely, proud of what he had just done and that Langa was still trying to figure out if it had even been real:

“Yup! We not only share our thoughts and feelings with dragons. They also share with us their power. It made me look like a wizard or something, right?”

Now that Reki mentioned it. Yes, it had seemed so to him. But it wasn't exactly a wizard he had thought of.

“It was more like… a god.” he murmured more to himself just as they heard a big applause from inside the ballroom.

“What did you say? I didn’t catch it, sorry.”

“Nothing.” he answered quickly, thanking the darkness of the night for hiding his red face. “Just that… you looked very cool.”

Langa couldn’t forget how the boy’s eyes had lightened up as he finished his sentence. And that cute smile again. He really couldn’t take it.

“Did you hear that, Inferno? Langa has a fantastic taste! He thinks we’re a cool duo!”

The dragon gave a grunt, as excited as her old friend.

But Langa didn’t see it. He just looked at Reki and remembered his look as the fire grew in his hands.

“Yeah, you are.” he assured them.

“It requires a lot of practice, but as you saw it’s really cool! It takes most dragon owners two months to master it, but it only took me three weeks!”

Even if it had taken him years, it was impressive. The prince was impressive.

“That’s amazing, Reki!”

“Right? And-” Inferno still on his shoulder jumped twice or three times trying to tell him something mentally that Langa couldn’t hear. “Yes, girl, I know. I heard the applause.“ then he turned to him ”We better get back inside, Langa. Dinner must be about to start and Inferno’s worried I’ll get in trouble if my mother notices I left.”

“Yeah, let’s go.”

“Amazing Lyitan food awaits us!”

***

A few days later, meetings began to review and clarify any questions about all the paperwork Cherry had to sign. They met almost every day in the morning in the castle garden for a couple of hours and although Langa would have liked to be able to stay in Reki's room all day talking about dragons, his mother had insisted that he had to come to understand all the papers that one day he himself would have to sign.

But it was all too much for him at the time. He switched off completely bored. There was nothing to do there. From time to time, he looked up to Reki's window and his balcony filled with what looked from below like little flying coloured balls.

Being with Reki was the only fun thing in the castle. Queen Nanako had promised him they’d explore the city and go to its street market as soon as she was a little less busy and the amount of letters from Caanda she had to reply to decreased. She even said Reki could go with them.

Langa was quite happy with the idea of spending some time with his mother and his friend, but, her dark circles under her eyes indicated that this was going to have to continue to wait.

“You’ll have to sign here too and-” something brushed against her ankle “ Oh, hi.” she looked under the table.

And there it was. A white dragon the same size as Inferno, with bright blue eyes curled up next to one of the table legs as if it was waiting for something.

“Maybe it’s hungry. Can I take it to Reki?” he asked the adults.

They both exchanged a silent look:

“Yes, don't worry, we're almost done with today's part.” his mother said.

He took the dragon in his arms because letting him fly freely inside the castle could cause some trouble with the guards and after the comments he had heard about Reki from some of them when he arrived at the castle, he didn't want to be the object of their gossip as well.

The dragon weighed much more than little Eve, but it was no problem. It was in fact, much calmer than the little one. The warmth its body gave off was even more pleasant. When passing by a guard, it barely moved. It looked like a statue. As if it knew what would happen if the guards saw it attract attention.

“Reki, I think this one’s looking for you. It must be hungry.” he said entering the room.

His friend who was holding a bunch of berries, dropped them on seeing him. He looked at him for a few seconds without saying anything, his eyes like saucers.

“How...?! Langa!”

“What?” he looked at him in confusion.

The red-head ran to him and pointed at the dragon:

“Langa! She chose you! Look, she’s glowing!”

“What...?” but it was true. The dragon's formerly white scales glowed blue. And something had changed in him. An unfamiliar feeling now in his chest. A strange warmth. Pleasant, no doubt. The dragon watched him without leaving its place, scanning his face and tilting its head. It was introducing to him.

That dragon that had just arrived in his arms, was going to be his friend for life. From there to infinity.

 “How...?” he didn’t know what to say.

“Now you have a dragon too, Langa!” Reki celebrated for both of them since he was too busy processing what was happening.

“I have a dragon...”

“Yes! You have to give her a name!” he said. Inferno quickly came flying to meet the new member of the Hasegawa family “See that the tail ends with an anchor shape? This means she’s a female like Inferno. Male dragons have spear-tipped tails.”

It was so weird. Even though the dragon wasn't saying anything, he knew she was telling Inferno that she had been flying for years waiting for that day and it had finally come.

“How about you name her Snow? She’s white and, you know, it snows a lot in Caanda.” Reki suggested suddenly interrupting his first contact with the strange form of communication between chosen humans and dragons.

Langa looked at his new white little friend waiting for an answer to Reki’s suggestion from her. She circled a couple of times in the air leaving Langa’s arms and went off in the company of Inferno to wander around the room.

“Yeah, she seems to like it!” the red-head affirmed.

But, Langa truly knew it, somehow. He knew she not only liked it. She loved it.

Is that how Reki always felt with Inferno?

It was like he had always known everything about her: how much she loved her new name, how much time she had been traveling until she found him, how lonely she had felt…

Snow was just like him.

“Reki, teach me more about dragons. Please!”

The boy that was picking up some berries from the floor, got caught with his guard down:

“Yeah… Of course! Of course! I’ll have to teach you everything about them now that you have one! Yes!” he dropped the berries again and sat on an empty spot on the floor. Langa did the same, sitting in front of him. “Well, first, dragons need to fly at least four hours a day. Their shine’s really important too. By looking at it you can see if they are healthy. If they emit as much light as a lamp, they are okay. But their shine can also respond to your heartbeat if you’re near your dragon. It’ll start to flicker. So, make sure to not have Snow with you if you’re gonna lie to someone or something like that. They sleep the same amount of hours as humans and...”

***

Langa didn’t know how, but time flew by. It only had seemed like fifteen or thirty minutes to him, but when he checked the clock above Reki’s bed, he realized it had been two hours since they started that “class”.

Reki had even pulled out a couple of books he had on his bookshelf. Now three or four of them were lying around the room and one of them, quite thick, was open between the two boys.

“Dragons can only eat these ten types of berries in all the world.” the red-head pointed to the two pages filled with big drawings of very colourful berries: blue, red, yellow, even pink... “Their stomachs are so delicate, so if they eat something else, they’ll get food-poisoned.”

“That’s why you always bring them their food!” Langa pointed out.

“Exactly. But it’s not so bad. The real problem comes if a baby dragon eats the wrong berries. Their bodies are weaker and… Well, it’s dangerous.”

“We have plenty of these berries in the forest that surrounds my castle, back in Caanda!”

His finger was on the eighth type of berry: the purple one.

“Really? I haven’t found any of these here! You hear that, Inferno?” he spoke to the ceiling, so Inferno and Snow that were on the lamp above Reki’s bed could hear him “I think we’ll have to give Langa a visit soon so you can try those berries! What do you think?”

She dropped gliding into Reki's arms to sweep him up in an embrace.

Langa smiled. Their whole relationship was just so lovely.

But then he noticed something:

“Hey, Reki. Why are all dragons so small? Inferno and Snow seem to be the biggest ones here.”

“Oh, right. I haven’t told you that.” he realized, letting the dragon go back to the lamp “Snow and Inferno are what we call “young dragons”. You could say they are teenagers, but translated to dragon years. And all the others here are baby dragons. That’s why they are so small. But once they are Inferno’s size they’ll leave in search of their human partner. And at that age they will already be able to identify which berries are safe for them and which aren’t.”

“So, they’ll grow bigger some day.” he said more to himself.

He could not imagine how much bigger Snow could get. But, honestly, he could not wait to discover it.

“Exactly. Even bigger than Inferno and Snow’s actual size. Adult dragons are huge! They can reach the height of this balcony, even though we are on the third floor and you can ride them if they let you! I’d love to do that someday with Inferno!”

Was that really possible? It felt like a lie. But it wasn’t. Because Snow was also excited for it to happen. She wanted to show him how she saw the world.

“Have you ever seen an adult dragon? How are they?”

“Yeah, I have. It was a long time ago, tho. It wasn’t just an adult dragon. It was a dragon mother!” he said, tossing the berries book aside.

“Are they special?” he wanted to know.

“They are incredibly rare! Not all dragons have the ability to reproduce. Only some of them. And those, once they get pregnant, are what we call mother dragons. Some people never get to see a dragon mother in life. It was the biggest dragon I’ve ever seen! Her whole presence was just... so imposing! But grandiose at the same time, you know?” he talked about her with such admiration, as if someday he might become like her. As if he could become one. And Langa was sure his friend would love to be able to do that. He’d love that life. Reki was just like a dragon. A curious, smart and faithful one. And with a big heart.

“Her whole body was white like a snow blizzard! Even whiter than Snow! When she looked at us with those blue eyes I just couldn’t move! I couldn’t stop looking at her. I wasn’t scared at all.”

Us?

“She was just so beautiful. I was truly mesmerized. And then…” his smile was wiped off his face in the blink of an eye just for a second.

“Then what?”

“Then I met Inferno!” there it was again. His smile.

But it was a bit off. There was so brightening on his face. The sun wasn’t there. Now it was just a storm cloud. But Langa wasn’t going to ask more questions about it. Maybe, Reki had a good reason to hide whatever it was.

Or maybe they didn't have as much confidence in each other as he thought they already had.

***

“Mum, do you know anything about dragon mothers?” he asked his mother when he came back to his room.

Her mother was finishing writing a letter, but she lifted her eyes from the paper to give herself a little break:

“Just a bit. After all, dragons are pretty common here. Dragon mothers are known for not being very protective towards their babies. They stop caring for them after some months since they are born. But, they are really strong and if I recall correctly, they can fly longer than other adult dragons because they are more resistant.”

“Nothing more?”

The woman put her quill to her chin, thinking harder:

“No, that I remember. Well, I think they had some sort of special powers, but I could be wrong. I wasn’t really interested in them when I lived here. I was more of a medicine nerd! You know, because I was a doctor before marrying your dad.” she laughed “Were you looking for something specific? I’m sure Prince Reki knows about it! For what Queen Masae told me, that boy is a walking dragon encyclopedy!”

“I can’t… ask Reki about it.” he pursed his lips. “He won’t tell me what’s wrong with dragon mothers.”

“Oh. Maybe you can ask Kojiro about it. He also has a dragon so he must know stuff about them too. And I’ve heard he gets along really well with Reki .” Oh, no. “so you could also ask him for advice about how to impress him .”

“Wha-? No!” his face was redder than Inferno.

“What? You like him.” she teased him with a soft smile. And it wasn’t funny. Reki was just his friend. Just that, but...

“I-Is… is it that obvious?” he whispered.

“Mmm… I don’t think so.” she said with a hand to her cheek. “But, I am your mother, so I know you pretty much. And your dragon is being so kind as to confirm it.”

He turned to find the one who was supposed to be his lifelong friend, betraying him and glowing on the bed almost as brightly as a firework display, to the sound of his heart beating fast because of a certain boy.

“What? Snow! No, stop!”

“So, its name’s Snow? It’s a very pretty name! Welcome to the family!” she greeted her.

The dragon stood upright and spread her wings and then lowered her head. It was her way of bowing.

“Yeah. Reki gave her that name.” he explained watching how the little ball of light was relaxing and fading along with his heartbeat. “She’s a female and… wait, did you say Chef Joe has a dragon too?!”

***

“And then BOOM! That raccoon thief crashed into the wall!” Reki was standing over his bed telling the incredible story of how he had managed to save Chef Joe's kitchen a couple of years ago from being completely ransacked with a little — or maybe a lot — of help from Inferno.

Langa was lying next to him, looking up at him from below. Once they had finished having dinner he had invited him to his room again for a quick dragon lesson, but they had gone off on a tangent. He didn’t mind. Everything that Reki talked about seemed so interesting to him.

And he couldn't help but laugh at the development of the story.

It was pure laughter. He had forgotten how laughing like that felt. How happiness really felt. It felt nice. Very nice.

Being with Reki felt very nice.

He had felt like Snow, lonely, lost, in the past. But he wasn’t anymore. Reki was there. Snow and Inferno too.

Maybe that was his happiness.

“And did you catch it?” his muscles complained from smiling so much, but, it was worth it.

Because he was with Reki. And he only deserved happiness because he seemed made of it.

***

“Yeah. I do have one too.” the chef said when he had come to the kitchen to talk to him. “But… excuse me for a second, Prince Langa.”

The strong man stepped out of the kitchen using the door that led to the garden. When the prince saw what he could see from there he knew what was the emergency.

Cherry was sleeping with his head on the table, surrounded by papers. The chef took off the orange jacket he wore tied around his waist and draped it over the poet’s shoulders. He put aside a few sheets of paper to avoid that his husband would mess them up in his sleep and returned to the kitchen with Langa.

“Sorry, he couldn’t sleep tonight, so he spent all night awake writing.” he explained with hands on hips. “Okay, what were we talking about? Oh, yeah. I always leave Ape at home. He’s always with Carla, Kaoru’s dragon.” he said deadpan.

“Why did you name a dragon that?”

“Don’t ask me, please! His actual name’s Crusher, but Kaoru started calling me “ape” and other horrible stuff when we were young because of my muscles and, somehow , Crusher took it as his name and he only responds to Ape now.” he sighed. “But, if I may, I doubt you’re here to hear a chef talk about his ignorant dragon, Prince Langa.”

He had caught him.

“Well, mmm… do you know if it’s something wrong with dragon mothers, Chef Joe? Prince Rek-”

“Reki won’t tell you?” he guessed taking some dirty pans that were on the sink. “By the way, call me Kojiro. If you’re friends with Prince Reki, you’re also friends with me. Well, it’s complicated for him to talk about them, you know?” he opened the faucet and grabbed some soap and a sponge “Look, Langa —can I call you that?—, I can’t tell you either.” he explained, rubbing the metal hardly until it started shining. “It’s just not my place. Maybe ask him directly, but if he refuses…” he turned off the water.  “tell him you know about the wishes.”

***

It had been some days and he was still thinking about what Kojiro had told him. He didn’t know what those wishes had to do with Reki, but he wanted to know what was causing his friend to build a wall between them when the dragon mothers topic was touched. He had tried to drop it in a subtle way. He had asked if adult dragons could become aggressive and Reki had told him that was very unlikely. Another day he tried to tell Snow to ask Inferno about it, but the red dragon flew out the room to the roof of the castle and completely ignored Langa and the white dragon.

What else he could do? He wanted to know the truth, but, at the same time, maybe he should just give Reki the time to tell him. Maybe it was just that, a matter of time.

“Langa! I haven’t seen you all day! I almost thought you had gone back to Caanda without telling anyone.” Reki joked about when he saw the blue-haired enter his room.

“I had a busy day. Sorry.” he responded.

The Queen Nanako had had an intensive signing session with Cherry and Langa and Snow had seen the sun rise and go down from the garden’s table.

“No, it’s okay. I guess, being a successor to the throne’s hard. By the way, my mum told me Cherry’s going to be Caanda’s regent! I had no idea! I still can’t believe it. He was just a poet and now… Wow.”

“A highly successful poet, but, yeah. He was one of my dad’s best friends, so my mum and I agreed to let him be our regent.” he said, letting Snow go from his shoulder to the ceiling’s lamp that Inferno and her had turned into their meeting place.

Talking about his dad wasn’t that painful. The more time he had spent in Kinaoki, the less his heart hurted. He still missed him. So much. But, now there was a light guiding him to leave the darkness of the tunnel.

“Well, I know it’d be just for one year, but I really hope the power doesn’t go to his head.” Reki continued. Seeing him day to day had become like a big winter blanket. Soft and warm. “He’s already annoying sometimes, so imagine how it’d be if he-”

But, wait.

“One year?” he asked.

“Yeah, you’re seventeen like me, right?” he said picking little Eve up and leaving her on the bed since she seemed about to fall asleep on the floor. “Then when you’re eighteen you’ll take your place as king of Caanda and Cherry won’t be regent anymore. Am I… wrong?”

Oh, yeah. He had forgotten to tell him.

“No, you aren’t, but, Cherry’s not going to rule for one year.” he said, sitting on the bed next to Eve, petting her back as she snored softly “It may be more time. I don’t know. It’s complicated. According to Caanda’s law I can’t rule unless I get married and… I’m just not ready yet.” he explained with a soft smile on his face. “My mum brought me here to meet more people and I’m really glad she did bec-” Inferno launched herself from the lamp and flew out the window as fast as lightning. Langa could hardly see her. “Is something wrong?” he looked up from the ceiling to his friend “Where did she-?” 

“You’re here to find a spouse?” Reki suddenly asked, his face red as a tomato.

He had never seen Reki like that. But, he was thanking his grandpa for allowing that stupid law. He was so cute. Was he being shy about it?

Was that why Inferno had…? Oh.

“N-No! Well, yes. But, I-!” he quickly replied. Gosh. He couldn’t look at Snow now, but given how hot his own face felt, the dragon was surely glowing sick. “I just-!”

Then the most horrible noise he had ever heard, a thunderous scream, like the fruit of a monster coming from the depths of a cavern. It stuck in his ears, like a torture chant.

“You woke up Eve!” Reki complained and quickly grabbed the little blue dragon who was tapping with her little paws on the mattress, rocking her just like with a baby.

Langa leapt to the door to get as far away from her as he could.

How could a dragon so small yell like that?!

But he had to admit it. Reki did an incredible job taking care of her and all the other dragons. It was so sweet. Maybe that was what he liked most about him. No, or how passionate he was about dragons. Or maybe it was his smile. He had no idea. But he was just… perfect.

He was so glad to have met him.

As engrossed as he was watching Reki with Eve, he almost didn't notice Snow return to his shoulder, glowing and bored with being alone on top of the lamp. Reki was just…

Snow was glowing?! Oh, no! No! If Reki saw her, he’d-!

“Okay, I think she’s calmed. But it’ll take her a bit to fall asleep again.” Reki said, turning to the prince.

Langa panicked and tossed Snow to the berry box that was next to the door.

“Are you hungry, Snow?” the red-head said after leaving Eve on the bed and approaching where he was “They’re from this morning. Now Kojiro gets them for me, so they’re safe! Apparently, he’s the only person I can rely on when it comes to berry gathering here.”

Langa still could hear his heartbeat like it had gone on a run to an infinite mountain, so he went with the only solution his brain was able to come up with: blocking the berry box with his body.

“I-I don’t think she is! I-I already gave her some from the ones you gave us yesterday. I doubt she’s hungry now. Maybe she just wants to play hide and seek with Inferno or something.”

“Oh, okay. Anyways, I went to the castle library and I found more dragon books! Do you want to take a look at them with me?”

“Yeah!”

That would hopefully distract him.

But as he sat down on the floor in front of his friend and read the titles of the books the redhead had left in the middle, he couldn't help but be surprised.

“Since you asked about them before, I decided that today’s lesson is going to be about dragon mothers.” he said with a bitter smile on his face. “There’s something you need to know about them.” the serious tone on the red-head’s voice alerted him to stay put and listen, but he couldn't help himself.

“Are you talking about the wishes?” he asked before Reki could open the purple book he had placed in between them.

The Prince looked at him with wide eyes, almost scared:

“Who told you?” He let go a sigh, realizing something. “Those damn adults again! Of course it was them!” Langa frozen. He had never seen Reki like that. So mad.

“Re-”

“It’s always them!” Reki didn’t listen to him. “Always! Why do they have to get in other people's business?!”

He was drowning in a black ocean in his own mind.

“Reki, cal-” he tried once more.

“WHY CAN’T THEY JUST LEAVE ME ALONE?!” Langa’s body shivered at the boy’s cries. Quick as lightning, Inferno flew in to Reki, who was also worried. “I KNOW WHAT I DID AND I’M PAYING THE PRICE!” Reki was agonizing. Inferno tried to make him snap out of it flying around him. Langa didn’t know why, but he could see it. His own guiding light was fading and cracking the glass of the bulb. And he could only watch. Langa could not save it. He could not do anything. “WHAT ELSE AM I SUPPOSED TO DO? I DIDN’T EVEN ASK TO-!”

So he hugged him.

He hugged him tightly. To avoid him from breaking apart. He’d pick up all the crystals with his hands. He didn’t mind cutting himself and bleeding. He’d do it again and again until the bulb fixed itself and recovered its light.

Just like Reki had done with him.

“Enough, Reki, it’s okay.” he said, face on the boy’s shoulder. The ground was hard. But it was harder to see Reki suffer. Langa could not bear the aching of his heart.

“Was I yelling?” he said to the dragon, in a poor attempt of smiling “Sorry...”

His eyes didn’t shine like they used to. And Langa could not watch it happen. How had he not realized before how broken the prince was?

“Reki, it’s okay.” he whispered, carefully running his fingers through the prince's hair. It was as soft as he imagined. Gradually, the boy's breathing seemed to calm down. “You don’t have to tell me if it’s going to hurt. I was just curious because you seem to love dragon mothers so much, yet at the same time it seems like-”

“I wanted to tell you everything about them since we became friends.” he spoke as softly as his own breath, now serene. Langa’s body was so warm. How could a boy that came from the icy, snowy mountains be so warm? He closed his eyes and continued. “But I didn’t know how. I was afraid of you leaving me.”

“Why would I do that? We’re... friends.” Langa said, with a smile on his face.

“That’s why I’m scared, silly.” a bitter smile stained his beautiful face.

“Whatever it is, I won’t leave. I promise.” the prince said, a hand on the red-head’s cheek.

And something in the boy's eyes was troubled. They didn’t share any mental links like they did with the dragons, but Langa could swear that it was so. He felt all the pain in Reki’s heart.

That's why he’d also swore to have shed a tear when Reki, wrapped his hands around his neck and kissed him.

Reki’s lips were so soft and full of fear at the same time. He could sense it between all his mixed feelings. Langa wanted to show him the light again. So he pulled him closer, pressing their lips together. He wasn’t going anywhere. He’d stay with him. For infinity.

“I’m sorry.” Reki whispered, pulling him apart.

The prince only saw his sad eyes. Then he fell into the darkness.

***

When the prince opened his eyes again, he found himself with a little boy he had never seen before. His particular hair got his attention. It was short and brunette and it completely covered his eyes.

But it wasn’t like that. He knew him. Somehow, he was sure of it. He had always been there.

He was his friend.

“Look! Another green dragon! I am winning! I told you there were more green dragons than red ones!”

“But the red ones are the coolest!” he heard himself say. But his voice didn’t sound right. Something was wrong.

He almost seemed to know what it was, but then darkness took him away again.

***

It was night, the library of the castle was only illuminated by a candle that the brunette carried.

But why were they there? It was almost dawn and he knew neither of them had slept even for a bit. Why? Oh, yeah.

“Look at this book!” the boy said “It says dragon owners can have cool powers if they have a strong relationship with their dragon! I can’t wait to have one! We’ll be the best best friends and the most powerful team!”

“No, my dragon and I would be the most powerful team! No, I’ll become the best dragon owner and all the dragons of the world would love me!” his voice felt off, again.

“But to do that you’ll need to become a dragon expert.”

“Yes, and that’s what I’ll do.”

They had spent all night reading about dragons.

And that was repeated year after year. In the library he saw, night after night, not only how his friend was growing, but also how he himself changed. They grew taller, bigger.

“Which section do you feel like checking today? I think we already read everything there was” the brunette’s voice sounded deeper.

A smile formed on his face.

“The forbidden one.” his voice sounded too soft. That voice couldn’t belong to him.

“Which one is it? I never saw it.”

That’s why his parents had kept it a secret from everyone else. But he knew how to make it appear.

He walked over to one of the desks in the room and opened one of the drawers underneath the cabinet. He then removed the bottom of the drawer which was false and underneath it revealed a small red button. Without further thought, he pressed it and one of the walls opened to reveal an old, cracked and almost empty bookshelf. It held a couple of blueprints and a couple of dusty history books.

Both boys were a little disappointed to see it. But then he saw how one of the wood on the bookshelf was almost falling off. No, that wasn't it. It was hiding something. He reached up and pulled out a purple-covered book, full of scratches and dust.

“It’s a book about dragon mothers!” he said reading the title. He quickly opened it and began to turn pages, not minding its bad smell. His excited face slowly turned into deception again. “It tells everything we already know about them. I don’t get it. Why was it he-? Look! This chapter talks about dragon mother’s special powers!”

“Really? Let me see!” he sat next to him, candle on hand as always. “They can grant wishes?! That sounds like a fairytale?”

“But it is true! It has to be!” he said to his friend. “That’s why the book was hidden here! We have to find one and make a wish each!”

“But, no one has seen a dragon mother in, at least, seven hundred years.” his friend made a point.

“Then we’ll be the first ones to see another one.” he easily replied. “What do you say?”

His friend looked at him for some seconds. His hair hadn’t changed at all.

“Yeah, we can try!”

Perfect. Because he already knew what he was going to wish for.

***

They went to the forest that was near the castle every night for years. That’s where the dragons lived. But they never found one. But they kept trying anyway. Night after night they escaped through the underground tunnels using the blueprints they had found on the secret shelf.

Every night they returned without even a hint of where dragon mothers could be. However, that did not stop them from continuing. At some point they started recognizing every path and tree. They started to know some parts of the forest like the back of their hands.

“It’s almost dawn. We should go back.” his friend said one day.

“Just a little more. We’ve never been so deep.” he said, dodging a bush.

“But it’s going to take us forever to go back.” he reminded him.

“Please. I have a hunch. We’ll find one today. I know it. Please.” he begged.

The brunette laughed.

“Okay, but if after ten minutes we find nothing, we’ll go home.”

His friend followed him, like he always did. He was glad to have him by his side. And then… they met her in a clearing. It was enormous, imposing but yet beautiful. Her whole body looked like it was made of snow, pure like a diamond. Her huge eyes made of sapphires watched them carefully like asking them why had they interrupted the peaceful evening her babies and her were having. Because there it was next to her. Two baby dragons as small as a flower, hide behind one of her paws. It seemed like a dream.

It had to be.

Then he made a wish and followed by him, his friend.

And then everything changed. Everything was finally okay.

“It’s a shame only your wish came true.” his friend said in one of the tunnels of the castle.

They were almost in the brunette’s room.

“Yeah, maybe mother dragons can only make one wish come true. Sorry.” he heard himself say with a different voice than the one he remembered having, it was deeper. He smiled anyway. That was really him. Yeah. It was. It had always been.

“It’s okay. You were the one who really needed it.” the other boy said with the same happy grin on his face. “Well, here we are. Good night, Reki.” he said, opening a wooden door that showed a small servants bedroom.

“Good night.”

He was happy to be him. Reki Kyan.

***

For days, he really didn’t bother into even returning to the forest to find another mother dragon or go back to the library. He was so happy. After so many years, everything was finally fine. He was so happy with his life.

But it slowly turned into a nightmare even worse than the last one he lived in. His friend got really sick. Queen Masae asked the best doctors of the kingdom to come and save him. Reki watched how person after person, checked his friend. But no one knew how to heal him.

He then wished he had another wish to use it.

But that wasn’t like that. And he got worse very quickly.

Reki came to his room in the morning and left in the dark night to let him rest. In the daylight he spoke to him and tried to cheer him up.

“You’re going to be okay. It’s maybe just a very strong flu. Doctors will take care of you. Don’t worry.” he lied to him from time to time.

But he said it more to himself. Because lying was the only solution he could see at that moment.

***

“I’m so sorry to tell you this, but there’s nothing we can do. He only has little more than a day to live.” he heard a doctor talk to his mother and to his friend’s parents while he was on his way to the dining room.

They didn’t see him and he didn’t see how they reacted to the news, but he sure saw himself cry in the reflection of a mirror that was in front of him.

***

Noon came in a breath and Reki even refused to come down for lunch. Instead, Kojiro entered his friend's room with a plate full of the finest food. It smelt delicious. Reki knew why he was there. The chef had never come to visit the brunette before. But, the queen had asked him to prepare one of his best meals for the brunette as a parting gift to make his last day in that world a bit better.

But Kojiro almost dropped everything when he saw the boy lying on the bed. 

“What’s that smoke?” he pointed at the bed.

Reki opened his eyes wide.

“What are you talking about? There’s no smoke.” he said, not understanding what he meant.

“Don’t you see it?! There’s black smoke covering him completely!”

Then an idea came to his mind. It couldn’t be.

It really couldn’t be.

***

But it was true. At first it was just a hunch, but then he realized it was true. It took not only hours, but also a lot of scratches and wounds to completely remove all the wood from the entire shelf, but he found it. Hidden just like the other book.

Another purple book. Another old volume about dragon mothers.

He opened it, with the clock ticking against him. The sun was starting to set. He could not waste more time, so he started to read. Faster and faster with each passing page. He had never read something so fast in his life. It was the continuation of the previous book and it had all the answers he was looking for. It explained everything.

***

“That smoke’s the mark of a curse.” he said after explaining to his parents his adventure in the forest, book in hand. “Apparently, only humans claimed by dragons can see it. That’s why Kojiro could see it! And what the first book didn’t mention was that dragon mothers are only able to fulfill one wish and that after that, every human that sees one that has already granted a wish, whether they want to make a wish or not, they will be cursed… Only the first person to make a wish will be saved. That’s why I’m okay and he got cursed! Because he was with me! The book doesn’t mention how we can save him, but, that’s because it is the second book of a collection. Mum, if we find the whole collection we could save him!”

But the queen just looked at him, horrified, probably blaming herself for not keeping a close enough eye on his son. He didn’t want to think about what happened after that. She had told the kingdom what had happened and forbade everyone to go near the forest.

“It’s impossible to find the other book, Reki. There’s nothing we can do.”

And that night they told him his friend had passed away.

He spent the whole night under the blankets crying. He didn't even bother to close the window or bother to look when a red dragon came in glowing.

Then the darkness swallowed him again.

***

He opened his eyes confused of what had just happened. He found himself where he was, on the floor, but Reki was no longer under him. He had sat on the bed, next to little Eve who kept sleeping while he petted her, Inferno on his shoulder.

All of that were Reki’s memories. He had shared with him just like when he had met him.

“Then... the kids of the servants that lived in the castle started avoiding me.” he continued the story with the same look Langa last remembered from him before his meeting with the darkness “They thought I was going to give them a curse too or… I don’t know. Adults started looking at me pitfully, but, behind my back, they talked about how I was an example of misbehave and how my curiosity literally had killed someone.” Langa sat up, ready to tell him that that was not the case, but his body did not seem to respond correctly. It was tired of having wandered into someone else's memories. “Eventually, the other friends I had here left and moved far away from the castle and the forest. My mother forbade me to leave the castle unless I had a guard by my side. People stopped talking about dragons to their children scared about something like what happened to us, repeated itself and…” he paused, looking for strength to go on. “started to spay female dragons that could conceive so they would never become dragon mothers. Some adults even hate dragons and want them all gone forever…. All because of me.”

“No, it was not-” he tried to say, but his throat ached. His feet seemed to be made of lead.

“I should have been more careful…” the prince said, without daring to look at him. Langa could imagine all the nights Reki had gone through, blaming himself for what had happened. Then he smiled and their eyes finally met. “I’m a terrible person, you know? Everyone thinks that. And I know it’s true.”

“No, you aren’t!” Langa disagreed, begging for his body to recover and finally reach the boy’s bed. “They don’t know you to decide if you’re good or bad! I do, Reki!” his heart ached again. “I do know you better than them and I know you are the most amazing-.”

“You don’t have to pity me, Prince Langa.” he said, avoiding his eyes.

Reki didn’t understand.

“It isn’t pity.” he said, taking another step forward to the bed.

“It always is.”

“It is not, Reki. It was never your fault!” How could make him understand? All the people had caused him to believe it. “You didn’t know. You were just a kid. I do believe all of what I said about you. You’re amazing. And I told you before,” he said finally in front of the boy, who still seemed afraid of looking at him. How could make him understand that he was telling the truth?

Of course.

“I’m not going anywhere.” he whistled after finishing that sentence. And to his call came the white dragon. She rested on his shoulder.“ See? I’m not lying.”

Reki finally looked up. The way his eyes widened when he saw the winged being, made Langa want to hug him.

“Aren’t you scared of me?” he asked in a trembling voice.

“No. I could never, Reki.” he sat next to him, taking his hand, “To begin with, I really like you, so unless you start behaving like a jerk or yelling like that baby dragon, you’re stuck here with me.”

Reki didn’t say anything. He just squeezed Langa’s hand.

"Sometimes, it seems that I'm the only one that slightly cares about them, you know?" he finally said, eyes on the little Eve.

“But now you aren’t the only one.”

Reki smiled.

“Yeah, now I know that. I’m not.”

“And you’re amazing. If other people don’t see it, they are fools.” Snow let out a grunt. “See? She agrees.”

He expected Reki to laugh at that stupid joke, but instead he was the one that was surprised with a kiss.

He honestly didn’t mind. He just wanted to see his light shine bright with that precious smile. Forever and always.

***

Reki never once lost his smile again in the days that passed. They were on their way to Reki’s room after collecting some berry boxes from the kitchen. In fact, his smile shined even more from Langa’s eyes. Or maybe he was just biased.

“And when Inferno becomes an adult dragon,” Reki said a few steps away from reaching the door of his room. “I’ll fly on her and we’ll travel the world together with Snow and y-!” he didn’t see where he was going and tripped on himself, dropping the box and making a whole berry mess on the corridor.

Immediately, Inferno came out of the prince’s room and upon finding such a feast, she did not hesitate to eat several berries in one bite.

“Hey! No, girl! It was supposed to be a surprise!” Reki complained. “Today’s your birthday, s-!” he paused, realizing something “Oh, yeah. You knew it from the beginning. You can read my mind.”

Langa could not help but laugh. How come they had forgotten that important detail?

He bent down, picking up the berries with Reki, who was holding the box almost empty with one hand and tossing some inside with the other. He seemed to struggle, but it was cute.

Then he heard something unusual. Some heavy breathing coming from someone? But who was it? There were only Reki and him there.

Then he looked up.

“Reki!” with his shout, the boy fell on his knees and with him, the box and the berries. They were everywhere.

“Reki!” he cried with a touch of desperation not understanding what had just happened.

He looked for Inferno with his eyes. He was a few meters away from Reki, lying motionless on the floor. Langa's heart stopped for a second.

“No...”

At that moment, with his head going a mile high, he almost passed little Eve by unnoticed, who took a few steps sticking her little head out the door to see what all the fuss was about. But her eyes remained fixed on the appetizing berries.

That was it. 

“Don’t eat them!” he yelled when he saw her almost touch a red berry.

The blue dragon, frightened by that roar, backed away, returning to the interior of the room. Langa took advantage and closed the door.

“Reki, are you okay?! Inferno?!” he exclaimed as he found the boy completely on the floor just like the red dragon. He didn’t say anything, his breathing becoming heavier by seconds. “Reki!”

***

“I collected them myself. They are the correct ones. I always make sure of it.” Kojiro explained, calmly with his arms crossed and his brow furrowed.

“Then how can you explain that my son and his dragon got food-poisoned after she ate some?!” queen Masae talked back. Langa noticed the tremble on her hands.

“Are you accusing my husband of something, your majesty?!” Cherry blurted out.

Queen Masae was going to say something else, but Langa’s mother spoke before she could even open her mouth again:

“Don’t yell, please. We already have enough with the screams of these dragons. That’s not going to help them.” she said retreating from beside Reki's bed and giving a purple haired guard with the Hasegawa uniform the gloves she had used to examine the boy.

All the dragons that normally frequented the prince's room and always rested in any corner they could find, were now around the prince's bed, who was still with his eyes closed. With their noisy grunts, they seemed to be asking the humans for answers to their questions without understanding why the boy was sleeping while everyone was looking at him. Seeing Inferno’s faint glow caused Langa to almost gasp.

“I just did a quick check because that’s the only thing I can do if I don’t have any special equipment, but, I have to inform you that it is not food poisoning.” she continued “Bad berries cannot cause something like this.”

“What do you mean, mum?” Langa asked from his chair beside the boy's bed, feeling a knot of anguish begin to form in his throat.

“They’ve been poisoned with some kind of strong poison. Look at your son’s arms. He has a really bad rash on each arm.”

Langa shaked on his seat.

“Can you save him, mum?” he asked, feeling the knot tighten.

“Did you poison my son?!” Queen Masae said with a broken voice.

“Why would I do that?!” Kojiro yelled back. “A guard even came with me when I collected them! I like Reki! He’s a good kid!”

The room became a living hell filled with nothing but screams from both humans and dragons. Langa could not think. His mother had to cure Reki.

But they stopped when they saw two guards, one from the Hasegawa’s and another one from the Kyan’s enter the room, quite altered.

“Queen Masae! The walls of the throne room! Someone left a message on them!” the brunette guard with the red uniform said. He was way shorter than the dark blue haired man next with the blue uniform that had come with him.

“What?!” the queen gasped.

***

Leaving the guards in the prince's room to protect him, they all ran down the stairs until they reached the throne room.

“What is this...?” Reki’s mother demanded to know when she opened the door.

Her lament was followed by Cherry's:

“Oh, no...”

The wonderful drawings on the walls of the room had been defiled with bright red paint, leaving a message in elegant calligraphy.

Langa read it with his heart in his fist, fearing even more for his now boyfriend:

“You saw what happened to the Prince and his dragon. If  you want to save him, fill in and drop off all the documents to proclaim me king of Kinaoki and deposit them in this room before next week. If you don’t do it, your son won’t be the only one to die. There’ll be more people, with or without a dragon. ADAM”

“Adam…? Who the heck is Adam?” Kojiro muttered.

***

“It’s probably a fake name.” Queen Masae commented on the way back to the room. “It must be someone from the castle that knew about Reki and Chef Joe’s food deal.”

The corridors were filled with silence. No one knew exactly what to think or say. It was all so confusing.

“But he told me that apart from them,” Langa spoke “the only ones that knew were the gua-”

The silence. Why was the corridor to Reki’s room silent? It always-

They were only a few yards away, but he broke into a run anyway, nearly crashing into the door frame as he tried to enter. And what he saw only made everything even worse.

Reki was okay and so was Inferno, but the short brunette Kyan guard and the purple haired one that was still holding Queen Nanako’s gloves were on the floor, totally unconscious.

The culprit had entered. Only the prince and the dragon’s breath could be heard now.

And in the middle of the room there was a note:

“This was just for fun. And for the money. ADAM”

Now it all made sense.

“It’s the guard that warned us about the message!” he knew who had done it “It’s Shindo, our guard, mum!” he said as soon as all the adults entered the room “And he also took all the dragons!”

“Why would he…?” Queen Nanako gasped “When Oliver died, he kept bringing up that Caanda needed a new king, older than you. But, why would he poison Reki and take the dragons? He could have killed us on our way to Kinaoki if he wanted to rule Caanda.”

“Kinaoki is richer than Caanda.” Cherry spoke “It has more inhabitants too. It’s pretty clear. When he came to Kinaoki and saw how everything was like here, he wanted it too.”

“Are you saying he’s only looking for power and money? Isn’t that too simple?” Queen Masae asked.

“No, now that you say it, that makes sense.” Queen Nanako muttered “He seemed in a bad mood when I told him Cherry was going to be our king, but as soon as we arrived here I saw him... happier. I can buy that, for now.”

“If he’s been doing research about dragons to figure out if the poison would work on the Prince’s dragon, it wouldn’t have been difficult for him to discover the black market for dragons.” Kojiro ventured. “ He must have planned on killing them and selling their body parts.”

Langa shuddered to hear it.

“We have to get him and save Reki and Inferno and the other dragons!”

“Langa…” he did not like his mother's tone at all. “About that... the poison appears to be very strong.” No. No. “I don’t know anything about dragons' bodies to know how to treat Reki without hurting Inferno.”

“But-” he tried to say.

“The dragon doctor lives in another city.” Queen Masae interrupted him, drawing strength from somewhere. “It’ll take her some days to get here. But maybe she could help.”

Caanda’s queen looked at the poor boy in bed, feeling everyone’s eyes on her. She let go a sigh:

“I don't think they have even a week left of life. I’m sorry. The only thing we can do for now is to wait.”

No.

No.

***

There had to be something in the library. Something. Something to save Reki. He had seen Reki himself unsuccessfully scavenge back in the day to save his friend. But there was nothing more he could do.

“He can’t leave us, Snow. Not now. Not now that I found my happiness.”

The dragon was inspecting the medical section from the air, while Langa was walking through the dragon section. But they could find nothing about poisons with dragons and dragon owners involved.

That could not be happening. Almost the same story as the one Reki had shown him was repeating itself in the same castle. Someone else was about to die. But this time there was a clear culprit. All the guards were looking for him. It was not like in the past. It wasn’t going to end the same way. He would not allow it.

Or perhaps there it layed, the solution. In the past.

Listening to the reasoning that had followed Langa's mind, the white dragon lunged at the table where Langa had seen Reki find the button. Hopefully, it would still be there and she didn’t think twice before tearing off the false bottom and pressing the button with one paw.

Then, the secret shelf came out in the afternoon light and with it, the key to save the prince and his dragon.

***

After a quick dinner, he went to his room where he had left Snow tending to the castle plans with which he would begin his plan.

His heart skipped a beat when he saw where the dragon had sat as she held the plans in her claws. His mother's trunk. But that was not what was important, it was what was inside. And there he found a surprise he wasn’t counting on. The purple book. The third book. The one that belonged to his grandfather, that his mother had thought of giving to Queen Masae and that Reki had begged his mother to find.

The Hasegawa's had the book all along. Why?

He would ask her once Reki and Inferno were safe. He decided to open it and look at it, hoping to find something that could help save their lives.

And he did.

***

The moon was shining brightly overhead as he finally left the dark secret passages of the castle. It had not been difficult to find his way through them with the maps. Once he stepped onto the soft grass of the forest, he stowed the plans in a bag. Snow followed just a few feet above him.

It had to work. He would go day in and day out if he had to. Mornings after boring signing sessions with Cherry and his mother without Reki and her dragon would not be the same.

His life with their presence would never be the same.

That’s why he had to try.

***

He walked for hours, without any rest and did not set foot in the Kyan’s castle until well after dawn. During the day, he spent every hour with Reki and Inferno, who were still struggling against the effects of the poison without waking up. And Langa watched them and hoped that everything would go well.

The search for Shindo was still going on without any news and the days passed faster and faster, taking with them a bit of the life of the prince of Kinaoki and his dragon.

***

The fourth night was the worst. The dragon doctor arrived just as the sun began to set and locked herself in the prince's room with Langa’s mother.

By the time they came out, night had fallen. No words were needed for Langa to understand what was happening. The look on Reki's mother's face said it all.

But the dragon doctor spoke anyway:

“The poison has advanced too far. They should not have more than a day left. I am very sorry.”

***

If Reki died, Queen Masae was going to give Shindo, Adam or whatever his name was, the throne. Langa could not allow it.

“This is our last chance, Snow.” he said, letting the tall trees surround them.

***

They were running out of time. They had scoured the forest for hours and neither of them had even seen an adult dragon silhouette. The moon with its shy glow seemed to mock them, moving with the passing minutes reminding them once again of what would happen at sunrise.

Langa was tired and thirsty. But scared first and foremost. The night was dark. He didn’t even know where he was exactly. Maybe they were never going to find a dragon mother.

A grunt from Snow snapped him out of his thoughts.

She was right. Reki would never give up. He was going to save him and live happily together. He pushed a long branch out of the way. He was going to come back to the castle and see his smile. He was going to ask Kojiro to make his favourite food for him. He was going to ask Cherry to teach him how to write a beautiful poem. He was not good with words, but he'd try. He’d try everything to see him smile. He was going to tell him how much he meant to him. How Inferno and him had completely changed his life. How many times he had thought that the red-head’s laugh was the most beautiful thing in the world.

And his eyes… Not even the most precious jewels could compete with his beauty.

Not even that dragon’s hazel eyes.

What? He blinked twice.

“How-?”

When had they reached a clearing? He looked at Snow, searching for answers. But she looked as confused as him.

But more importantly, how had he not seen before the huge green dragon watching the two strangers who had dared to break into his temporary abode?

She was just like Reki had described. Imposing, but above all, incredible.

The dragon was still watching them carefully with suspicious eyes. Before she started to think about whether it would be a good idea to scorch them until there was nothing left with their flames, Langa stepped forward and spoke:

“Please, grant my wish, powerful dragon mother. Save them. Save my boyfriend and his dragon. Save Reki and Inferno. That’s the only thing I want.”

Nothing happened. Maybe because Reki and Inferno were not with him there. They left the clearing just as they had arrived there. In the blink of an eye.

On their way back to the castle, Langa took something else out of his bag. A mirror. He looked at his reflection with the help of the moonlight that was gradually lowering and revealing the sun.

His reflection was clean. As flawless as Shindo’s damn calligraphy.

***

When Langa returned to the castle at dawn, the whole castle was talking about it. Prince Reki and his dragon had died in the quiet of the night.

Langa did not sleep for even two hours in disbelief. It had to be a joke.

***

Two days later, in the morning, the entire castle was dyed in black clothes, paying homage to the prince and his friend, with the funeral taking place in the castle garden.

“Reki was the most perfect boy I’ve ever met.” Langa was the first to step up to the lectern to start his speech. Queen Masae was supposed to be the first one, but she could not stop crying in pain. “The best dragon owner, the best friend you could have asked for…” he paused “The best boyfriend, even. He excelled at everything even if some people could not see it. But I did. Reki Kyan, not even death can tear us apart. You’re my happiness. And you’ll always be. To infinity. I love you.”

***

The applause to Langa's speech was heard even from the throne room which although they had cleaned the message off the wall, was now being desecrated by the presence of a person.

Although the room must have been empty, a man with dark blue hair, but in a red uniform this time, was pacing the room with a big smile on his face, almost sinister.

He walked to the center of the room, where he found an envelope.

"To: Adam" it said in even fancier handwriting than his own.

With the smile widening even wider on his face, he opened the letter and started to read:

« ADAM

Tree of Blood waters the morning

where the newborn moans.

Its voice leaves crystals in the wound

and a graph of bone in the window.

While the light that comes fixed and wins

white goals of fable that forgets

the tumult of veins in the flight

towards the cloudy freshness of the apple,

Adam dreams in the fever of the clay

a child galloping closer

by the double beat of his cheek.

But another dark Adam is dreaming

neutral seedless stone moon

where the child of light will go burning.

Cherry Blossom »

“What is-?” he attempted to exclaim.

Then the throne turned of its own accord revealing a large hallway from which emerged none other than Queen Masae and Queen Nanako accompanied by at least ten armed guards.

“What is going on?” he muttered again.

From behind the now clean wall, another hole opened up revealing Kaoru and Kojiro with another ten guards.

“You didn’t like my poem? It even has your unoriginal nickname” Cherry quipped.

The man let go a grunt.

“Shindo, you are arrested for the attempted murder of Prince Reki and his dragon, attempted usurpation of the throne and dragon kidnapping and trafficking.” a short Kyan guard said from the queens’ side.

“Attempt?!” Adam uttered. 

And through the door Langa and Snow entered, an arm covering Reki’s shoulders while he held Inferno against his chest and with more than twenty guards behind them.

“He died!” the traitor said pointing at the boy “The funeral-”

Reki smiled.

“Oh, you don’t know anything about dragons, Shindo, don’t you?” his mother stole the words right out of his mouth. She advanced to the center of the room until she met the eyes of her son's near-murderer. All the guards present immediately surrounded the man and pointed their weapons at him from closer range. The short guard from before stood to the left of the queen and to her right, a Hasegawa guard. “I think you already know them, but, this is Sir Lancer, our Captain-Knight. He is one of our most skilled men with the spear. And, Kit, they are one of the Hasegawa’s knights, who will now occupy your place in Caanda. They both remember you very well, after all, you attacked them and put them to sleep in a not at all elegant way. For what I’ve been told, Kit’s really good with the bow. You can take him now.”

A mischievous grin was plastered on the faces of the two guards. They both grabbed him by the armpits and began dragging him to the door. 

“Where are you taking me?” he demanded to know.

“You’ll stay in the dungeons for a while chatting with them. I'm sure you have a lot to talk about.” queen Masae answered with an even mischievous grin.

He dropped Cherry's poem as soon as he heard that.

“Man, have a little respect for art. This is worth millions of gold coins.” the poet said, picking his creation from the floor. “What a guy...”

“I’m so happy you’re okay!” Queen Masae couldn’t resist hugging her son. Inferno climbed onto Langa's free shoulder to avoid being run over by the woman. “My sweet boy! I was so worried!”

“Mum, please! I told you my plan would work.” Reki pouted. But yeah, it had been his idea to trick Shindo into thinking Inferno and him had died to make him lower his guard and deceive him ambushing him by taking advantage of the existence of secret passages that the adult did not know about. “By the way, what happened to all the dragons?”

“Lancer and his companions found them in an abandoned factory some hours ago.” Kojiro answered “The people kept complaining about the noise. They are all okay.”

And he was so relieved.

***

Reki let go a giggle.

“You’re so stupid, you know?” he said resting his head on the boy's shoulder as they watched the sunset from his balcony surrounded by little and noisy dragons.

“And reckless. Don’t forget that.” Langa added, holding his hand.

“You really went into the forest alone taking Snow with you believing that you could find a dragon mother just like that. I still can’t believe it!” hearing him laugh again just made Langa’s smile bigger “You could have been cursed, you know?”

“But I wasn’t. And, for your information, I followed the third book’s instructions to avoid being cursed by a dragon mother that had already granted her wish to someone: bring your dragon with you.”

“Yeah, I’m so glad you found it and that your mother gave it to mine. Now the collection is completed.”

“I think you should be happier that your mother has told everyone that mother dragons are no longer dangerous and that now they only have to go with a dragon of their own every time they want to enter the forest.” his boyfriend blurted out.

“Yeah, and don’t forget that she was kind enough to not tell the people about dragon wishes and said that she had sent someone to wish for their ability to grant wishes to disappear scared of bad people taking advantage of it.”

“Yeah, it was very smart.”

“Now no one will fear dragons anymore.” he muttered squeezing the blue-haired’s hand to then leave a quick kiss on his cheek.

“What was that for?” Langa laughed, taking his eyes off the sunset.

“I didn’t thank you properly for saving me and Inferno.”

Langa didn’t say anything, but replied to that with another kiss, this time on the red-head’s lips. He felt Reki's lips stretch into a smile at the end of each kiss, just before they pulled away.

It was beautiful. He was so beautiful.

“You’ll leave tomorrow, right?” Reki said after some minutes of soft kisses and whispers. His sad expression worried the prince. “My mum said Cherry already finished all the paperwork to be the regent king.”

“Yes, he did.” Langa confirmed, hearing Reki sniff for a second. “But, I’m not coming back to Caanda yet. I want to see Lyita first. Chef Joe said he has plenty of friends there. After seeing how different Kinaoki is to Caanda I really want to see all the other kingdoms.”

“It’s going to be a long trip then.” the red-head spoke, looking at the sunset. his eyes glistened moistly in the pink sunlight. “Mail will take a long time to arrive.”

Oh , so, that was it.

“I talked to your mum and she said that you can come too... if you want to.” he said smiling.

But what really made him smile was seeing Reki’s face brighten up after processing his words:

“Really?” he exclaimed.

“I think that after all of this, she realized that hiding you here was hurting you more than protecting you.”

He let out a cry of excitement startling Langa himself and all the dragons around him.

“So, where do you want to go exactly? Are there any places you’re excited to see?”

Anywhere near you.

Anywhere.

Anywhere by your side is more than enough.

“Anywhere where my happiness is.” he said, before leaning into a kiss that only the two princes and their dragons from the top of the lamp saw, glowing together, just like their owner’s heartbeats in the light of the afternoon that only meant a new adventure with no end.

As infinite as their love.