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"I just don't understand why they think I'm the one doing the attacks??" Wrathion spoke angrily, standing at Anduins study room window, looking out over the massive city of Stormwind. He's currently here on political business but due to recent attacks on citizens people are on edge, unable to find who or what the thing is attacking people. Wrathion managed to catch the description of the creature from victims and onlookers.
Dark figure, wrapped in some type of cloak that obscures their face, the only thing able to peek through is their piercing red eyes. Presumed to be some type of blood sucking creature, all victims have survived and not contracted any disease, so the creature is not an immediate threat, but no one likes their blood sucked out of them without permission so people are on alert.
"I just don't understand why you think I could do anything to change their minds?" Anduin tried to say in a quiet, almost mocking tone, sitting at his desk, reading documents and signing where needed.
"Because, you're their king, Anduin."
"And they're people, they have their own thoughts and can be stubborn, Wrathion, I doubt I could really sway them that well. I'm not making an announcement just to ask the taverns to unban you." Anduin said, annoyed.
"But the taverns have the best foods." He paused for a second "and the biggest portions." He practically drooled.
"I've heard Orgrimmars better." Anduin said in a quieter tone than before.
"That may be true but I'm here and I would like food from here." Wrathion moves to put his hands on Anduins desk, looking down to meet his eyes. Anduin doesn't move his gaze from his papers.
"Then ask my kitchen, I'm sure they could make you a feast fit for a king."
"But then I must eat like a king," he leans in "and according to most people, I'm not one." Wrathion keeps a small glare on Anduin before he finally breaks away from the papers and looks up at Wrathion with a tired, bored look.
"I can see why." He says harshly, Wrathion was ready to give some type of comeback but forgets about it when he notices that Anduin looks a little…off.
"Are you okay?" Wrathion squints to look closer at Anduin’s features in the light from the window.
"Fine. Just tired." Anduin moves back to his papers. His skin seems paler than usual, his eyes have slightly dark circles and a sorta coldness to them.
"Are you sure?" Wrathion asked, a little concerned.
"Yes."
"Did you sleep last night?"
"Technically yes."
"Eaten? Drank anything?"
Anduin pauses for a second, staring off into space before continuing signing off papers and saying blankly.
"No, I missed breakfast, that's probably all it is."
Wrathion wasn't convinced and did not step back from the desk, continuing to lean on it. Anduin internally sighed and looked up at him, putting on a soft, warm smile.
"I thank you for your concern, Wrathion, but I promise I'm fine. I just. I just missed breakfast is all."
.
Wrathion walked out of a tavern, waving a goodnight to the staff as the door closed behind him. He had just gotten his fill of meat and mead.
Luckily for Wrathion, if you pay the right price, taverns will welcome and feed just about any patron.
He walks down a dark alleyway, enjoying the calming stroll back to the keep until he turns a corner and sees two figures. It takes him a moment to focus on them.
Standing before him is what looks like a local farmer, one he chatted with in the tavern, who left just before he did, and some cloaked figure slowly walking towards the farmer, casting a spell on the man. Wrathion took a moment to recognize what the spell could be.
Then he realized.
Mind control.
"HEY!!" Wrathion roared, unsheathing his sword, the figure quickly turning to look at him, bright red eyes meeting Wrathion’s. The figure takes a step back from the farmer, cutting the spell short so the farmer collapses onto a bush.
"You." Wrathion growled, taking a step towards the figure, it taking a weary step back in response.
"Just, come with me and-" as he steps forward again the figure quickly took off down an alleyway, Wrathion letting out a small, annoyed growl as he sheathed his sword and took off after the figure.
He chased the figure down alleyway after alleyway, passing by a few stragglers leaving taverns drunk or champions just trying to sell something before bed. He chased the figure almost in circles, getting closer and closer to them until he rounds a corner and they're nowhere to be seen. He slows for a second, searching around. There’s a tree and some small bushes, but any store in the alley is locked tight. He takes a second, taking a deep breath, then continuing to rush forward.
It's silent in the alley for a moment as wrathion rushes away,but then the figure fumbles their way out of the tree, falling to the ground, landing on their back and knocking the wind out of their lungs. They take a second to gasp in air, panting and weakly trying to get to their feet. Before they can get stable they are pinned down to the ground by a large force. They're able to roll over onto their back and look up, meeting face to face with the dragon form of the Black Prince himself.
"I'm tired of chasing you." he huffed in the panicking figure's face, Wrathion trying to let his eyes adjust to the closeness to register what they look like.
"If you just-"
"I'M SORRY!" The figure blurted out in a cracking voice, quickly slashing wrathion in the face, blinding him for a moment and causing him to roar and reel back off of them. The figure shot up, taking the chance to run away again.
Wrathion shakes the blood off his face and lets out an angered roar as he chases after the figure, taking his dragon form to catch up rather quickly, so quickly he has to stumble to a stop when he sees the figure panting hard and stumbling to lean on a wall. He stands still for a moment, trying to get a good look at them.
Wrathion slowly steps towards them, getting a better look at their cloak, noticing something familiar about it.
"Y'know, if you turn yourself in the king might not kill you." Wrathion spoke, commanding with a small hint of threatening, changing back into his human disguise and cautiously stepping towards the figure. Their panting became more heavy and hoarse, sliding down the wall, falling to their knees.
As he steps closer the cloak they're wearing is becoming all too familiar, worryingly familiar.
"The king is rather nice, lenient even, you might actually get off easy." his voice now low, almost soft as he stands behind the slumped, weak figure.
Wrathion, now up close and able to inspect the back of the figure's cloak, now easily recognizes it in the low light.
A cloak he sewn for Anduin not too long ago, Anduin was to only use it to find each other when they are disguised, privately meeting up.
"I think the king-" he starts.
"It's not the king I'm afraid of." Anduin spoke weakly, turning to look up at wrathion letting the loose hood fall, revealing his sickly appearance with glowing red eyes.
Wrathion looked down at his friend in pity and confusion. Anduin looked back up at him with pleading, sick eyes. Red staring at red. He slowly crouched down to level with Anduin, holding a hand up to cup his cheek.
"How…how did this-"
Before wrathion could finish they hear two voices arguing as they come closer.
"I wasn't hallucinating dammit! I heard a roar from over here! It has to be that monster!!"
"I understand that sir, just calm down."
It was an old local and guard. They can see the torchlight approaching, and Anduin tries to quickly stand up only to get light headed and collapse to the ground, coughing and gasping.
"Anduin!" He whispered, worried as he grabbed Anduin to sit up. Wrathion looks back at the light quickly approaching round the corner then back at his sickly friend.
"Do you hear that? That has to be it!! I better get a reward for finding that beast!!"
"Sir, please." The guard and man round the corner to find nothing and only silence. They look around a bit, find nothing then continue forward.
Wrathion and Anduin were up on a stone roof just above the two men. Wrathion was transforming back into his human form, clutching Anduin tightly against himself, looking down as they walked past their position.
After a few moments Anduin forcefully shoves wrathion away from him, knocking them onto their backs. Wrathion lay there stunned as Anduin scrambles to make distance and cling to the wall on the other side of the roof.
Wrathion sits up, seeing Anduin covering his face with his hands, occasionally letting out an odd, almost growl, sound.
"...Anduin?" Wrathion worryingly asks, sitting up and starting to crawl his way over to him.
"What's going on?" He slowly stops a few feet away.
He waits a second, Anduin slowly lowering his hands and turning to Wrathion, the look on his face. It wasn't Anduin. His eyes were brighter than wrathion's are now, his mouth slowly opens to reveal jagged canines and a low growl.
"Anduin…?" He whimpered, terrified at the sight.
Anduin launches himself onto wrathion, pinning him to the flat stone roof, sitting on top of his stomach. He struggles as Anduin growls and leans in close,and before wrathion could change into his dragon form Anduin chomps into his neck. Blood flowing out into Anduin’s mouth. Wrathion lets out a silent scream, body stunned, unable to transform. He continues to struggle but the grip Anduin has on him is too tight, he cant get away, any movement he makes only makes the bite deeper.
"Anduin,,, st,, stop." He choked out, wanting to transform but now terrified if he did Anduin might get caught. his vision becomes unstable and blurry.
"Please,,, anduin,," Wrathion whimpered out, laying stiff as Anduin kept sucking and gulping down his blood.
Before his vision fades out, he sees a dark figure rise from behind Anduin, his vision too blurry and dark to make out any features.
"H,,help, please." Is all he could say before he lost consciousness.
.
",,e,,,i didn,,,help,,," is all he could make out as he started coming to.
As he slowly started coming back he felt his surroundings. Soft, like a bed, and his neck felt so sore, and his head was throbbing.
"Shaw, we need to get help, please." Anduin pleaded, voice cracking.
"He will be fine, Anduin, if we get help they'll start asking questions." He heard Mathias Shaw respond to him, his voice low.
"I,, i know that, but,, what if he doesnt wake up, what if i somehow turned him??" Anduins voice cracks.
"You healed him, he'll be fine, and that's not possible Anduin, i’ve already explained it to you." Shaw spoke in a soft but slightly annoyed tone. Wrathion slowly lifted his hand to rub his face, moving the hand down to touch his neck, feeling no open wound, still sore feeling.
Anduin tried to whimper something else out, panic heavy in his voice, but shaw curs him off.
"Look, he's ok Anduin." Anduin spins to see wrathion slowly opening his eyes and rubbing his neck, and quickly went to his side.
"You're okay!"
Wrathion grumbles at the bright candle lights surrounding him. He slowly starts to sit up and Anduin pulls him into a hug. He weakly hugs back as he looks around the room he's in. He's on Anduin’s bed in his room, Shaw standing, cross-armed but smiling, behind Anduin, giving wrathion a nod to say hello.
"What happened? How did I get here?" Wrathion remembered why his neck feels so sore.
"What are you?" He said, concerned. Anduin pulls away from the hug, Wrathion able to look face to face, Anduin looks normal again, no pale skin, no dark circles, definitely no red eyes, his pretty blue ones back in their place.
"I,, im-" Anduin started, Shaw cutting in.
"It's a bit of a story, Wrathion, let's just start by getting you a drink first."
.
"Listen Genn, I understand what you're saying, but there's not much I can do." Anduin was tired, Genn has been hounding him on random topics for nearly 20 minutes now.
"Well, i-" Genn starts but gets interrupted by a knock at the door.
"Who is it?" Anduin calls out.
"Wrathion." Genn rolls his eyes at Anduin but he just responds with a small smile.
"Come in!" Anduin says happily, giving a warm smile as wrathion opens the door to the study and greeting the two men.
“You called for me?” Wrathion stepped in, returning the smile and keeping a hand on the door.
“Yes, I need to talk to you.” Anduin looked at wrathion, then turned to Genn.
“Privately.”
“But Anduin-” Genn started, trying to think of some reason not to let them be alone.
“We’ll be quick, Genn, don't worry.” Anduin spoke commandingly, Genn grumbled in response
“I missed breakfast after all, so I'd like to be quick.” Anduin said, giving wrathion a small glance, wrathion meeting it just in time and giving a quick nod.
“Fine. but remember you have a meeting in 15 minutes." Genn huffed as he turned to leave, wrathion opening the door more and stepping to the side.
“You better not make him late.”
“I promise he’ll make the meeting.” Wrathion smiled, Genn let out a tiny huff as he walked out and down the hall, Wrathion waiting a moment before shutting the door and locking it.
“Took you long enough, he was killing me.” Anduin crossed his arms and leaned against his desk.
“I apologize, I had to make myself presentable for his majesty.” Wrathion jokes, giving a small bow as he approached.
“Or should i say his count, hm?” he made his way to Anduin, leaning with one hand on Anduin’s desk.
“Very funny, but we really should make this quick.” Anduin moved his hands to Wrathion’s waist and pushed him against the desk.
“You always wanna make it quick..” Wrathion grumbled as Anduin began to unbutton the dragon's coat, then his shirt.
“I'd prefer to not get caught.. Or miss the meeting.” he moved a hand to Wrathion's lower cheek and leaned his head back, leaning in to give a small kiss on Wrathion's neck.
“Remember, I do thank you so much for this, Wrathion.” Anduin gives a few more kisses, Wrathion giving a smile as he moves a leg to wrap around Anduin’s hip and a hand on the back of his neck.
"I still feel bad for how you found out about.. this." Anduin breathed in Wrathions scent, his eyes starting to shift color.
"Ah, that was so long ago." Wrathion leaning his head back a bit more, giving him more access.
"We were so young, Such a simpler time." Anduin chuckled, rubbing his thumb on Wrathions cheek and giving a few more kisses on his neck.
“We need to have a night alone again." Wrathion got as comfortable as he could against the desk, Anduin doing the same against him.
"Mmm, we do." Anduin purred, making sure his coat and shirt were out of the way and nuzzling into his favorite spot in Wrathions neck.
"You ready?" Anduin asked gently, Wrathion paused and took a deep breath.
"Go ahead."