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”Is now really the right time to separate us?” Meveris grumbled as the door closed behind Zaryen, Caleen, and the headmaster. ”After all that just happened?”

Lowering himself a bit in his seat, Taveris raised an eyebrow at him.

”It”s the traditional way and I”d say we should definitely follow it as closely as possible now, especially after all that just happened.”

Meveris crossed his arms against his chest, missing Zaryen”s touch. He simply wanted to be close to his companion, was that too much to ask for?

”The two of you didn”t have to scare him so badly, you know? Especially Caleen with all that stuff that may or may not happen,” he said, frowning at the memory alone.

”Caleen wasn”t scaring him, he was warning him. And ”all that stuff”, as you called it? It”s definitely going to happen.” Taveris straightened in his seat before leaning with his elbows against his thighs. ”Earlier, I was wondering what I”d even say to you after the searching ceremony, since I thought we”d covered everything already over the years. But now, there”s actually something important we need to talk about, and that”s the mess of public opinion your companion will be dragged into, and soon.”

”How are you so sure this will get out? Maybe it won”t. Maybe his family won”t say anything out of embarrassment or something. And even if they talk among themselves, what does it have to do with us, here?”

Taveris stared at him for a long moment.

”I know you were shielded from a lot of what was happening in Teranea, when you were still living at home, but I guess I”m only now realizing how much of it you”ve missed.”

”The marriage debate was huge and messy, we all heard about that. But it was also a much bigger fight. This one here, one person going to school their parents don”t approve of, is nowhere near as big of a deal. It”s not a public issue, nor is it going to spark a social outcry. Not every family drama ends up in the press, you know.”

Meveris regretted saying that the moment the words left his mouth, but it was already too late.

Taveris”s face went tight, and he clenched his jaw in a way Meveris hadn”t seen in years—or maybe ever.

”I keep reminding myself that you”ve gone through the searching ceremony less than two hours ago and the circumstances have made it really hard on your instincts,” Taveris finally said slowly. ”Those instincts are never as volatile as they are right now, but those first few weeks are difficult. I get that. But it doesn”t give you the right to blurt out whatever comes to your mind, especially on things you apparently have little to no idea about.”

”I”m sorry, I didn”t mean to—”

”Caleen has been dealing with the press and the burden of public opinion his whole life,” Taveris continued, ignoring Meveris”s attempt at apology. ”No one around here knows more about it than he does. And if he”d really wanted to scare your companion off, he”d have told him a thing or two about what it was like to face all of that vitriol while going through the worst thing imaginable.”

Meveris”s stomach rolled as he hung his head. Hook it all.

”I truly am sorry. I didn”t think about that.”

Taveris nodded. ”Yeah, you didn”t. And like I said, I”m giving you a pass this time, because I know it”s hard to think at this stage and your protection imperative must be even more amplified than it usually is. But the next time you say something like this to him, or to me, I”ll make you read some of that trash until you either cry or puke from how vile it is.”

”Okay.” Meveris slumped back against the cushions. ”I”ll apologize to him, too. Now, can you tell me how to protect my companion from it as much as possible? I know how to fight, but I don”t know how to deal with—” he waved a hand ”—that.”

”Yeah.” Taveris straightened in his seat. ”I”ll tell you all about it.”

* * *

By the time Meveris was making his way towards his new rooms, he was so tired he would be dragging his feet if it didn”t mean a delay in getting to his companion. After he”d talked to Taveris for a long time, trying—and probably failing—to make sense of what might lie ahead for him and Zaryen, he”d gone back to his temporary room for his backpack, only to find his twin there, sketching on his bed.

Because Lanveris hadn”t found his match today.

He seemed to be in pretty good spirits, considering—much better than Meveris would have been, if the situation had been reversed. As it were, Lanveris hugged him hard and told him to come find him once he managed to pull himself away from his companion.

”I can tell we have stuff to talk about,” he added, giving him a knowing look but thankfully not asking any questions.

For the first time in Meveris”s life, he willingly left his twin behind. It sucked, if he were honest, but it also felt necessary.

Because he needed to get to his companion.

Taveris was like a shadow, a step behind him to his right, but he thankfully stayed silent as they were walking through the building. The corridors were deserted, and they only saw one other pair of dragons making their way further down the hall.

”Here you go.” Taveris paused, then gestured at the door in front of them and the one on the right. ”These are your rooms. Officially, you get one each, but for the couples with a romantic bond, it hardly matters.”

Taking a deep breath, Meveris could sense Zaryen”s scent through the door, and he opened it before he even registered the thought of doing so.

Zaryen and Caleen turned towards him, but Meveris hardly noticed his brother”s companion, too focused on his own.

As he stared at Zaryen, he could hear the door clicking shut behind him moments later.

He inhaled deeply again.

They were alone.

Finally.

And yet, he suddenly felt stuck, unsure.

”Meveris.”

His companion took a step forward, and that was enough to get him moving and to circle his arms around Zaryen to pull him close.

First touch of lips against lips made them both gasp, and Meveris readily deepened the kiss.

He wanted—no, needed—to taste Zaryen”s skin and map out every scale-length of it, from the smooth expanse of his back, through the dips of his hips, to the tantalizing lines of his neck and shoulders. After that, he would move lower, swallow Zaryen”s cock as he…

”Tell me what you want,” he whispered, pulling back to breathe out the words over his companion”s plush mouth.

Humans weren”t as experienced as typical dragons at their age, some of them didn”t have any experience at all, and he needed to remember that.

Zaryen tugged at the back of Meveris”s shirt to push it up and off. ”You.”

”You got me.” Meveris nudged him towards the bed. ”You got me and you get to keep me, so we don”t have to do anything now that you”re not ready for.”

”I need you inside me.” Zaryen quickly turned them over and then Meveris landed on his back against the mattress, with his companion straddling his hips and pulling his own shirt off at the same time. ”I don”t want to wait even five more minutes.”

Meveris”s toes curled, because, yes, hook, yes.

There was nothing else he”d rather do.

Pulling Zaryen down for another kiss, he swallowed his companion”s moan as they slid together. The hair on Zaryen”s chest brushed against Meveris”s nipples and a shiver ran through him, exciting and new.

He thought he knew want and pleasure, but there had never been anything like this—urgent, and necessary, and rapidly taking away his ability to speak or think.

He rolled them onto their sides so it would be easier to unfasten their trousers before kicking them off, and then he nudged Zaryen to lie back as he touched his cock for the very first time.

”Hook, Mev—” Zaryen gasped, curling his fingers against the nape of Meveris”s neck and his scales there. ”I won”t last.”

A shock of pleasure rushed down his spine, but Meveris hid his smile against Zaryen”s collarbone.

”So don”t.” He tightened his grip on Zaryen”s cock and twisted his hand a bit. ”I”d love to see you come for me like this.”

With a hard tug at the ends of Meveris”s hair, Zaryen bucked his hips and moaned again.

”Will you watch me?” he breathed out, and Meveris bit his lip, hard, as he tried to concentrate on their heartbeats in order not to lose it without even touching his own cock.

”Always.” He brushed a line of kisses along Zaryen”s neck at the same time as he rubbed his thumb under the head of his companion”s cock. ”I”ll always watch you, exactly like you are.”

Zaryen trembled in his arms as he came, his back arching and his hands grasping any part of Meveris”s body he could grab—not from nerves this time, but from pleasure.

Maybe it would even leave a mark for a bit.

Meveris hoped it would.

He slowed his rhythm on Zaryen”s cock to a complete stop, but he didn”t let go, enjoying the simple intimacy of the gesture as he nosed along his companion”s jaw and inhaled deeply, greedily, catching the new twist of Zaryen”s scent. The one that was all about pleasure, and satisfaction, and them.

He couldn”t wait to find out what Zaryen smelled like when Meveris was inside him.

His mouth watered at the thought alone.

Soon, he promised himself as he listened to the way Zaryen”s heartbeat was slowing down, once again out of sync with Meveris”s, but not out of tune. His was quicker, seemingly deeper, the steady pound of blood pumping through his veins. Zaryen”s was subtler, quieter, like an undercurrent of a melody that would seem empty without it.

Meveris would forever feel empty now, if he didn”t have this, right here.

But he did have it. They”d found each other and held on as the world tilted out of its axis for a little while, and now there was nothing keeping them apart. They were together, and they”d remain so for the rest of their lives.

And Meveris would fight anyone who tried to get in their way—whether it was a member of Zaryen”s family, a journalist spewing nonsense, or the human society as a whole.

No one besides the two of them had any rights to their bond.

No matter what.