Page 125 of Anaki

“You sound ridiculous.”

Elena made a face of disgust. “You know that is TV. It isn’t real. Most father figures aren’t like that, and there is no perfect parent. If there were, they would make bank on aHow Tobook right now.”

I huffed in annoyance. “No, I understand. I want him to have a happy childhood. In the dragon clan, fledglings were passed around a lot. We were taught to be independent. I don’t want him to feel alone, and now we are leaving him.”

Elena stopped me and grabbed my hands. “I feel the same. Very much so, right now.” She cupped my cheek with my hand. “You didn’t want to be passed around like that?”

I shook my head and pouted. “Not really. I felt disconnected from my parents, but I knew they loved me. It was the culture, I later realized. Dragons are a hard species to understand, and it was because we didn’t communicate well. Heats, ruts, and our transformations can be dangerous, and we just didn’t talk about it much.”

Elena nodded. “Luis understands that. He’s been told by many. Abuela, Tajah, me, and even the other Iron Fang members. This is for his safety, and it isn’t because we love him any less that we are away from him. We are a phone call away. I don’t enjoy being away from him any more than you do. Did your parents not explain this to you as a child?”

I shook my head. “No. Communication is not a dragon’s strong suit. That is probably why there aren’t many texts about our species.”

Then the goddess did us a favor by having my animal speak.

“See, having me was for your benefit.”

I’m still deciding on that.

Elena moved a messy curl from my forehead. “Do you miss them? Your parents? Did you ever have a proper goodbye? That had to have been so hard.”

I huffed out a breath. “Yeah, I did actually.”

Elena gasped and pulled me closer. “You didn’t tell me that! That wasn’t part of the memory! What happened, please tell me!”

I didn’t dare tell her that it would have all been in the memory we shared after the big battle, where she got all horny and wanted to jump my bones. Not that I was complaining or anything.

My parents actually saw the whole betrayal. They were so excited for me and my soulkin to get together that they secretly followed me into the forest. They did not intervene because they knew it was part of my own life journey, to do what I had to do. Destroy the male who had hurt me. I don’t think they were expecting me to eat them, but nevertheless, I did. Mypoor mother had thrown up several times in the bushes before my father emerged from the forest and approached me. I had shifted back into my human form in a heap, and was a sobbing mess.

That night, we made camp, far from the scene of the crime, and they told me they loved me but that it was no longer safe for me to stay. My mother stayed with me while my father ran back to the clan and got me as much coin and clothing as he could carry, so I could leave. They were the ones who told me to leave the realm, all those years ago.

I’d tried my best not to think about that day, and perhaps it was good that my family and I did not have the close familial bond that most humans have with their children, for that reason alone. They cared for me, gave me what I needed, and told me they would pray to the goddess that I would be safe and would not succumb to the darkness.

I’ve never seen my mother cry like that before. But then, I’d never heard of a dragon rejecting their mate before me, and neither had my parents. There was always a first time for everything.

I unfortunately could never return. One for not having a mate and being a threat of losing control of my dragon and causing harm. And two, I ate people. That is a big no-no.

Yet we continue to do it…

“We do it because it’s tasty.”

Elena frowned as I pulled her back to the cave. Her arousal was perfuming, and I knew her heat was near. It had grown over the days, but now it was at a point where it would become uncomfortable for her. Her stress was declining, and her sorrow for Abuela was subsiding the slightest bit.

And it would become more uncomfortable for my dicks. My poor dicks were constricted in fucking compression underwear.

I ran my hand down the side of her hip and pulled her close. “My parents would be happy for me. My entire clan would,” I said as I kissed her temple.

“Can we send them a letter? To let them know? Is there some sort of correspondence between realms?”

I rubbed my chin and shoved my hand into her back jean pocket. “Maybe. I could ask Bram, since he would know best. He’s the all-knowing voodoo magic dude. His magic is waning, but that seems simple enough. I think that would put them at ease to know I was happy.”

Elena hummed. “Or, or!” She clapped. “We could go visit them.” She pointed at me and then to her nose playfully. “We could go visit them!” She said again excitedly, as she skipped down the path. “We could go! It would be so much fun, just for a couple of weeks.”

She kept going on and on about how fun it would be while I shook my head. Sure, yeah, it would be fun to take her into a realm that she has never been to, but I haven’t been back in ages. I didn’t know what it was like there. The Royal Council could have spies watching all over the portals now. The one where I appeared in Ireland so many years ago was so small I could barely get through it.

The one near the Canadian border was still wide open, but… it was dangerous.

“Elena.” I ran to catch her as she pranced up to the cave. “So, can we go? After I shift? I have to be a shifter to get in, right?”

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