Page 6 of The Ruby Dragon Prince (Omega Fairy Tales #1)

Chapter

Five

Rufus

I had never slept so soundly in my life. The bone-deep satisfaction of having claimed and bred my omega was better than anything I’d ever experienced. It was a turning point in my life. I was no longer a lone alpha, content merely to build my hoard and assist my mother in the governing of the kingdom. I had an omega, Tovey, and soon we would have a family.

I couldn’t wait for any of it.

I snuffled and sighed as sleep began to leave me. I could feel the warmth of the morning light stretching over my skin. Better still, I could still feel Tovey’s dried slick and cum on my thighs. Remembering how it’d gotten there made me smile.

I’d been too harsh with our first mating, I knew. Tovey was frightened, as I should have expected, since I hadn’t been able to explain my dragon form to him before he saw me transform. I’d chased him, as my dragon instinct had pushed me to do, and pounced on him once I had him. And then I’d bred him, whether he wanted it or not.

It was crude, invasive, and would have been immoral, if not for the fact that I felt in every fiber of my being that being claimed was exactly what Tovey wanted. His fear provided spice to his natural heat urges. His body had been so ready that it had taken relatively minimal effort to get what I wanted from it. And the sense of bliss and belonging that we’d felt with each other afterward, as I was falling asleep, was proof that the two of us were a perfect match.

We were fated mates. If there was any appearance of resistance or distance between us, it was only an appearance. Our souls had been made for each other, and the more time we spent together, especially once we had a family, the more we would?—

My thoughts stopped as I tried to tighten my arm around Tovey and pull him close. The warm body I held shifted and giggled, and when I opened my eyes to look at who I was holding, I found that I had my arms around a mischievous unicorn foal. Its coat was still furry and golden, telling me the blasted thing was playing a prank on me rather than trying to slip in and take the place of my mate.

“Get off, you!” I bellowed, pushing it away and sitting.

The foal laughed and leapt to its feet, cavorting around the clearing before fluffing its tail at me, which was like a human making a rude hand gesture, then galloped off into the forest.

“Blasted unicorns,” I grumbled, shifting to sit more comfortably and rubbing my face. “Brats, the lot of them.”

I ran through several more expletives in my head before everything slammed into me.

I was alone in the glade.

Tovey’s sweet lemon scent was only an echo from the dried fluids on my skin. The glade was silent, but for the burbling of the brook, the singing of birds, and the silly fairies who answered them.

Tovey was gone.

I pushed to my feet and roared, “Tovey!”

Birds scattered from the trees around me and the few woodland creatures who played in the underbrush nearby dashed off in fright.

I didn’t care. My omega was gone. He’d either escaped my embrace again or someone had stolen him.

He wouldn’t escape from me. Not now. We were mated, bonded, and I’d bred him. I still needed to finish the breeding process. We were tied together with magic that only the most powerful and evil sorcerer could break.

A powerful and evil sorcerer like King Freslik.

I growled and jumped into the air, transforming into dragon form as I did so I could beat my wings and carry myself higher into the morning sky. I would go to the cruel world and find my mate, and I would slice King Freslik into a thousand pieces for his treachery.

I flew back to the castle, hardly noticing the springtime beauty of the magical kingdom below. Everything was bathed in dew and morning light. The colors of our land stood out in peaceful pastels that were already blending into the stronger colors of day.

Tovey would love it, and the sooner I stormed the cruel world and his father’s palace to rescue him and bring him back the sooner he would have that pleasure, and so many more that only I could give him.

“You’re looking, er, debauched,” Gildur commented cheekily as I landed on the transformation balcony and resumed my human form. Since he was in the transformation room himself, he must have just returned from whatever errand he’d been on during the night.

I growled at him and marched past, heading for the hallway where my bedchamber was located, uncaring that I was naked. At least the dirt that had covered me in the glade had been consumed by magic as I transformed.

Gildur was also naked, and the two of us walking side by side down the hall in that state startled a few of the newer servants whose paths we crossed. The ones who had served in the castle for a while were used to it.

“I claimed my omega last night,” I said in a low, wary voice, knowing exactly what Gildur’s reaction would be.

As expected, Gildur laughed. “Didn’t Emmerich advise you to be patient?” he asked. “Didn’t I?”

“I’ve no use for patience when my mate is within my grasp,” I said, refusing to be embarrassed.

“No, no, of course not,” Gildur said, his eyes dancing with mirth. He cleared his throat then asked, “So, um, if you claimed your omega, then where is he? And why are you here at the castle instead of installing him in your lair?”

I made a furious sound and smoke curled up from my nostrils. “Someone stole him,” I said, my words made ever so slightly sullen by the fact that I wasn’t certain what had happened to him.

“Someone stole your fated mate?” Gildur asked, only slightly concerned. Mostly, he was amused.

“He was gone when I awoke,” I said. “That can only mean that he was abducted by an evil sorcerer. And the only man I know with enough evil in his heart to steal my claimed and bred mate from me is King Freslik.”

I didn’t expect Gildur to rush to support my cause, but I didn’t expect him to laugh so hard that he nearly doubled over as we turned the corner into the hallway with our bedchambers.

“Oh, Goddess, Rufus,” he said, catching his breath as he straightened. “Your mind works at lightning speed, but in all the wrong directions.”

“You doubt me?” I demanded, turning to him. “You doubt that my omega was taken from me?” More smoke came from my nostrils.

“Yes,” Gildur said, as though it were obvious.

“How dare you?” I seethed.

Gildur continued to smile and clapped a hand on my shoulder. “Firstly, King Freslik is, indeed, evil, but he’s no sorcerer. Quite the opposite. Believe me, I know sorcerers. He’s one of the dumbest, dullest men who ever existed. He doesn’t have the first clue that our magical kingdom exists, and he has even less of a clue that our agents have infiltrated his council of advisors, not to mention several other key roles throughout his sad little kingdom.”

My eyes went wide. “What advisors? Who must I consult to demand that my omega is returned?”

Gildur shook his head. I had the feeling his humor was fading into something much worse, pity.

“Your omega was not taken from you,” he said. “He left of his own accord.”

“He wouldn’t,” I insisted. “We are fated. I claimed him, bred him. I need to finish the process.”

“Did you explain what all of that means? That’s he’s only half-bred and needs to be relieved?” he asked.

I deflated slightly. “No.” I stood straight again, then insisted, “He should know. The knowledge is in his heart, too. He was happy to be bred, contented in my arms. He would not leave me for anything.”

“My cousin, he would leave you for his brothers,” Gildur pointed out. “He would leave you for the beloved omega brothers that have been his only source of comfort or joy in the terrible life the six of them have had.”

“And what do you know about it?” I demanded. “You haven’t attended either of the dances when they were present. They have only just entered our kingdom.”

“Yes, but they have existed in their own kingdom for many years,” Gildur said. “Anyone who has spent any time at all in that kingdom knows their story well.”

I narrowed my eyes suspiciously at him. “How would you know?”

Gildur sighed. “Did I not just tell you that Mother has her agents in the cruel world, keeping an eye on things and keeping evil forces in check?”

“And you’re one of them?” I asked. Before he could answer, I shook my head and said, “If Mother is keeping such a close eye on the cruel world, then why is there so much evil in it? Why do men like King Freslik rule while people like my omega suffer at their hands?”

Gildur shrugged. “They do not call it the cruel world for nothing. There is so much evil there that Mother’s best efforts can only keep it at bay. And besides, eradicating evil entirely would take away every human’s free choice.”

“That is a lame and despicable argument,” I grumbled.

“And yet it is true,” Gildur said. “A human’s right to choose is his most sacred right. Except for when it comes to allowing other humans their own right to choose,” he said with a bit of a sneer.

I could have stood there and contemplated the sad and sorry state of the cruel world forever, but my omega had gone back to it, whether by force or a sense of duty, and I wanted him back.

“I am going to fetch my omega and bring him home,” I insisted, nearly stamping my foot with my determination.

“It’s a bad idea,” Gildur said warningly. “Emmerich wouldn’t approve.”

“Emmerich is only the ruler of this part of the kingdom,” I insisted, walking on and grasping the handle of my bedchamber door. “He does not rule the entire magical kingdom, and he does not rule me.”

I stepped into my bedchamber and slammed the door behind me in my frustration. I seethed when I heard Gildur laughing in the hall behind me. He didn’t understand, but he would one day. One day, he would find his own fated mate, and then he would realize the importance of claiming what was ours.

I washed and dressed as quickly as I could, then conjured a door into the cruel world directly from my bedroom. Such things were forbidden, but if I was brought before Mother for creating a door where I wasn’t allowed, I would explain Tovey to her and I was certain she would understand and forgive me. Mother had a kind heart. Mother was the kind heart. As was always said, happy is the kingdom that is ruled by a kind heart.

The doorway opened into a remote part of King Freslik’s castle. I had no interest in taking any risks or wasting any time by opening it in the countryside beyond the castle. This mission would be a quick one in any case. If necessary, I would open a new door somewhere else, since dragon doors faded within an hour, unless some sort of magical aid was used to keep it.

My door was inside a broom closet. It clattered against a shelf containing scrub brushes, soap, and buckets as I opened it, upsetting a few brooms as well. I closed it carelessly and brushed a hand over it to make it invisible to humans, then fumbled for the handle of the closet and opened it into the servants’ hall.

I noticed with a frown once I stepped into the hallway that magic had dressed me as one of the servants.

If there was one thing I was not, it was a servant.

A gasp of surprise pulled my focus up from my clothing to the middle-aged beta woman who had just stopped at the sight of me. She dropped the basket of coal she’d been carrying and gaped at me.

I didn’t wait for her to recover or to scream and sound the alarm. “Where is Prince Tovey?” I demanded.

She made a frightened sound and turned to glance down the hallway the way she’d come. I had a feeling she was about to shout for help, so I raised a hand and used magic to soothe her.

Immediately, her shoulders relaxed and she let out a contented sigh.

“Where is Prince Tovey?” I asked again.

“In his Papa’s garden,” the woman said with a vague smile. “It’s the only place, other than their bedchamber, where the king will allow the omega princes to venture.”

I nodded once, then turned to go.

Ten minutes later, as I wandered the castle with a frown, searching down every hallway I came across, I cursed myself for not asking the woman where the garden was. I could hear Gildur’s voice in my head, laughing at me for rushing off impulsively yet again.

I ignored it, and after another ten minutes, I found the garden at last. Its main entrance was guarded by half a dozen, bored-looking guards, but with a little magic, the stupid humans didn’t notice me walk right past them and into the cloistered garden.

Tovey noticed me at once. He was sitting on the grass to one side of the large fountain that stood in the middle of the cloister’s garden, surrounded by his brothers. Two of the other omegas paced restlessly beside the blanket where the others sat. One of them had been reading a book and another had been fashioning something out of wood with a small knife, but Tovey sat in the center of the blanket looking miserable and pale while the remaining brother rubbed his back.

As soon as I crossed from the stone of the cloister onto the grass of the garden, Tovey jerked straight, his eyes going right toward me.

“Rufus!” he called out breathlessly, then pushed himself to stand.

My omega didn’t look good. But of course he wouldn’t. He had separated from me after being claimed and he was only half-bred. Of course he was pale and wan, his body looking heavy and droopy, his belly slightly swollen and his eyes sad.

All of that changed in an instant as I strode toward him and as he stepped off the blanket to meet me. The color instantly returned to his face, he stood taller, and his eyes glowed with fondness and excitement again. The transformation was so instantaneous that his brothers gasped and exclaimed in surprise.

“Rufus,” Tovey said again as we met. He threw his arms around me in a powerful hug.

I hugged him back, no intention of ever letting him go again.

No sooner had I thought that than he stepped back from me, though he still clung to the cloth of my pitiful servants’ clothes. “What are you doing here?” he asked, blinking rapidly and looking me up and down. “How did you get here?”

“Why did you leave me?” I demanded in return, telling myself I was concerned, not hurt by his actions.

Regret, fondness, and wariness filled his eyes. “My brothers were calling for me,” he said. “I couldn’t abandon them, as much as I love you—oh!” He stopped, blinking in surprise.

“You love me,” I said as if it were the most natural thing in the world, even though I thrilled to hear the words. “I told you, we are fated mates. I have claimed and bred you. Our souls are entwined.”

Tovey peeked sheepishly over his shoulders at his brothers at my words. I hadn’t meant to embarrass him. I was merely stating the truth.

The omega princes all stared at me with expressions that ranged from timid to furious. It occurred to me fleetingly that whichever of my kinsmen was destined for the fiercest two definitely had their work cut out for them.

“I know,” Tovey said, turning back to me. “I can feel it so deeply in every part of me. I know that we are destined for each other, and yes, as strange and impossible as it feels, having known you only a few days, I love you.”

He smiled and raised a hand to rest on the side of my face, a gesture which suddenly made me feel as tame as a garden lizard.

“It’s as if what happened between us last night opened your entire heart and mind to me,” he said. “I know time passes differently in this world and the magical world, but it feels as if we have lived the past ten years of our lives together. I honestly feel as if I have known you that long.”

“How strange,” the omega with the book said behind Tovey. When I frowned at him, he quickly adjusted his glasses and stammered, “And wonderful. Strange and wonderful.”

I huffed and nodded, hoping he truly grasped how wonderful it was.

I turned my attention back to Tovey and said, “You will come with me now.”

That was all that needed to be said. I grasped his hand and turned to lead him out of the garden and back to where my door still waited, for a few more minutes at least, in the broom closet.

“No!” Tovey said, digging his heels into the grass behind me.

My arm jerked as he resisted. I turned back to him, eyes wide.

“What do you mean, no ?” I asked.

Tovey let out a breath and glanced back to his brothers, then looked at me again. “I can’t leave my brothers when our father is so angry and determined to punish us.”

“You would choose a life in this cruel world over a life of peace, happiness, and safety with me?” I demanded, glancing from Tovey to his brothers, like it was their fault.

“I would prefer that we all had happy lives of peace and that we could all escape,” Tovey said, a spark of inspiration coming to his eyes. “Can you give me that?”

I was so close to blurting yes, I could. But the truth was that I didn’t know if that was possible. If what Emmerich had said yesterday was true, it was likely that all five of the other omegas were the fated mates of my kinsmen. Emmerich had stated outright that one of them, he didn’t say which, was his.

It was up to every dragon to claim their own mate. Omega mates couldn’t be bought or sold or captured to be given to their alpha. Mother had declared that ages ago. I couldn’t gather up all the omegas in a sack to sling over my shoulder and carry them back into the magical world to distribute to my kinsmen. Granted, I didn’t know what would happen if I were to try such a thing, but I felt instinctively that it wouldn’t be good.

“Tell them to come with us,” I told Tovey. “They can come of their own accord.”

Tovey turned back to his brothers. I could feel the new shoots of hope within him. “You could come of your own accord,” he said.

The brothers looked surprised, but not like the idea was a terrible one. They exchanged looks with each other, as if silently debating the merits of giving everything up and leaving the cruel world for good.

Before they came to any sort of conclusion, though, a shout of, “There he is! Arrest that man!” sounded from the garden’s entrance.

I whipped around to find the servant I’d enchanted earlier and a man dressed as a guard running into the garden. The six guards who I’d walked past earlier shook their heads in surprise as they finally noticed me.

The magic I’d used earlier had apparently faded, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t use more. I raised my hand, intending to send a blast of air to knock them all over.

But as the first hint of breeze wafted into the garden, Tovey shouted, “Don’t!”

Instantly, the growing wind stilled. I felt like a flame that someone had suddenly clapped a glass dome over. My magic flickered and froze.

I probably should have explained to Tovey that bonding with me meant that he now shared my magic and that he could command me as his servant.

All I could do was glance back to him as the six guards surrounded me, grabbing my arms and restraining me, before marching me swiftly out of the garden.