Dante's heart was pounding in his ears. He turned his head slightly to look at Laina who was still sound asleep, leaning against his shoulder. He reached out his hand and gently caressed her hair.
How he wished this moment could last forever.
"I should probably bring her back…" he trailed off.
Where should he bring her back to? The right thing to do would have been to bring her back to the mansion. He could already imagine the look on handmaiden's face should he turn up with her in his arms.
Furthermore, the gossiping that would come from such a scene would raise many questions.
"But I can't just bring her back with me…" a mischievous grin crept up onto his face.
Another gust of wind blew against them, causing the hems of Laina's dress to fly with the wind. Dante made a decision. He carefully carried Laina into his arms and stood back up.
She did not weigh anything to him, the perks of being a dragon.
Looking down at the ground, it was quite a jump. But who needs to worry about heights when one has wings? Under the glistening moonlight, Dante called forth his wings.
In the blink of an eye, a pair of huge dragon wings emerged from his back. They unfurled gracefully, casting a shadow. His wings were in shades of midnight blue and black.
Before taking off, Dante lowered his head and kissed her gently on the forehead. He could smell her perfume emanating from her body. She smelled like the warmth of the sun, roses, and lilies.
Dante slowly lifted the both of them into the night sky, soaring through the wind. He landed on the balcony of his suite and gently laid Laina on his bed. She was still sound asleep.
Just then, the door to his room unlatched. Fearing danger, Dante materialized a sword in his hand and assumed an attack stance. He was ready for any intruder to enter.
But as soon as he realized it was Marius, he was at ease.
"Raising your sword at me, my King? I have to say-" Marius paused as he turned to look at the young woman who was sound asleep on Dante's bed.
After making an assumption about the situation that was unfolding before his eyes, Marius slowly backtracked his steps while apologizing.
"Ah, I see you've brought back a umm… friend for the night. I will excuse myself…" he could not help but glance over to get a closer look at whom he assumed would be the lucky woman.
When he realized who it was, he stopped backtracking. His eyebrows furrowed as he came to a realization that the young woman was none other than Crown Princess Laina.
"Dante, is that," Marius was still in denial that he began to fumble with his words, "Is that… is that Laina?"
Dante shushed him as Marius's voice was growing louder. Upon realizing Laina was still asleep, he quickly covered his mouth with both hands as the princess turned in her sleep.
"It is Laina," the Dragon king confirmed his suspicions.
"Dante! Are you serious right now? You brought her back here?!" Marius exclaimed in a whispering voice.
When he had slipped away from Margaret earlier, she was already frantically looking for the princess. If she found out that Laina was here… Marius knew well enough what she would do to him.
He gulped just at the thought of it as a cold chill ran down his spine. Even a seasoned dragon general has times when they are afraid.
"We need to bring her back to her mansion."
"No."
"Dante… My King, we can't just kidnap a princess!" Marius exclaimed quietly.
"Who said this is a kidnaping," Dante hissed as he folded his arms, "I am simply bringing her back to Dracona."
"Against her will, it is kidnaping," Marius tried to reason.
"It's not against her will. She's just asleep."
Marius cursed beneath his breath. He knew that it would be impossible to change Dante's mind. He too was worried that Margaret would come looking for them at any moment.
If they wanted to leave, they had to do it now.
Laina, who was sound asleep, entered a dreamscape in her mind. In the dream, she seemed to be reliving a memory of the past. But many things were different. She was not a crown princess, nor was she in Kinshearth.
She watched the scene play out from a third person's perspective, watching a loving couple enjoying fireworks being set off in the night. It looked strikingly similar to the time she had spent with Dante on the roof.
Something told her that she was the young woman in that dream. But she could not know for sure. As the fireworks continued to paint the night sky, the young woman turned to look at the man who was seated next to her.
There was a beautiful smile upon her face.
She opened her mouth to speak, "How I wish this moment can last forever,"
The man simply smiled before leaning in closer to the young woman. They shared a sweet loving kiss. Laina looked on as tears began to flow from her eyes. She did not realize it until she felt a tear drop onto her hand.
"Why am I crying?" She wondered to herself.
No matter how much she tried, she could not stop crying. The scene of the young loving couple in front of her was moving. It felt close to her heart. But was this a long-lost memory, or was it indeed just a dream.
Before she could do anything else, Laina woke up. She rubbed her eyes as she stretched out her hands and yawned. But as soon as her eyes adjusted to her surroundings, the princess noticed something was off.
She was not in the room she had in the mansion. She was not in her room in Kinshearth castle either. Although she was in an unfamiliar surroundings, she did not feel out of place.
Laina sat up on the side of the bed, scratching her head as she tried to make sense of what was going on. She tried to remember what had happened prior to her falling asleep.
She remembered being in the ballroom. She remembered leaving and meeting King Dante. She remembered the time they spent with one another admiring the fireworks from the rooftop.
"We were watching the fireworks, my eyelids grew heavy. I fell asleep," she muttered to herself as she paced around the room.
"I fell asleep…"
Laina gasped in shock as she covered her mouth with her hands. She fell asleep while leaning on King Dante's shoulder!
Dante, what have you done? XD
Laina, where are you? :P
You got to give his Majesty some credit, it's not every day a King chooses to kidnap a princess. Or is that more common than we think?
Remember to vote and leave your comments. Even if you pop by to say 'hi', that works too!
Please check out my latest book <The King's Cursed Bride>!
"We… we need to get the King!"
A commotion broke out in the royal stables. The members of staff were trying their best to control a dog that seemed to have grown hostile. Most animals in the Kingdom of Dracona were docile and obedient. Especially domesticated animals.
But the dog in the Royal Stables was a different story. Ever since King Dante had brought the animal back to the castle, it had caused endless trouble. If anyone tried to get too near to it, the dog would bark and bite.
The King seemed to be the only one who could tame the beast. This was no ordinary dog either. It was a Solar Mastiff with a fierce mane and loud bark. The mastiff was huge, standing at about 1.2 meters in height.
Its messy mane was similar to that of a lion. Its fur was of shades of golden brown. Sometimes it would take multiple members of staff to wrestle the creature. But over the years, the creature no longer caused any trouble.
"Why is the beast acting so crazily now?" Another member of staff exclaimed in distraught.
Apart from the times, King Dante had brought it out for a walk or a hunt, the mastiff would lay lazily in the royal stables. It was also an excellent loyal guard dog. But ever since King Dante's most recent return, the mastiff seemed to have gone wild.
It was restless, endlessly barking and clawing at the door. It wanted to be let out. The staff did their best to control the beast but it was getting out of hand. Two royal stable handlers had already been clawed and injured.
"My...my sincere apologies, my King. If we were able to handle this situation… we … we would not have to call for you," the royal stable manager stuttered.
Beads of sweat trickled down his forehead as he kept up with the pacing of the King. He feared the retribution he would face for disturbing King Dante with such a small matter. But he had no other choice.
"That's quite alright," Dante said emotionlessly.
He knew why the beast was acting this way.
As soon as they got to the stables it would seem that the situation had reached a boiling point. The mastiff had clawed through the wooden barricade. The dog took a few steps forward, everyone backed away slowly.
It turned to look around the side to side as if it was looking for something or someone. The mastiff lifted its head towards the sky and began sniffing the air. King Dante was not afraid of the beast before him.
He got down on one knee and whistled, "Come here, Titan,"
Titan the Solar Mastiff turned towards King Dante immediately. In an instant, the aggressive aura of the dog dissipated. With a joyous bark, Titan made its way towards Dante and clobbered him.
The solar mastiff licked Dante on his face as he tried to give the King a hug with its paws. Dante was buried in its fur for a few moments before he was able to stand up again. Titan's tail was still wagging nonstop as it circled Dante excitedly.
"Titan, sit," he instructed.
The Solar Mastiff was obedient. It did as it was told. Everyone around them was in shock. Their King seemed to have complete control over the beast. No one had ever been able to command it to do anything.
The playful mastiff rolled on the ground, lying belly up. It was inviting Dante to rub its belly. Seeing the happy expression on the pup brought a smile to Dante's face. He crouched down and gave the dog the belly rub he asked for.
"You smart little mutt sensed her, didn't you?" He whispered to Titan.
As if he understood Dante's words, Titan barked brightly in response.
"I take that as a yes," he chuckled.
As he rubbed the cheeks of the furry beast, Dante asked Titan, "So, are you ready to go to her?"
Titan barked twice. Loud and clear.
Dante nodded as he stood back up.
"Go to her."
Back in the room, Laina's face was turning beet red.
Looking around the room again, she wondered if King Dante was the one who carried her into the room. Laina sat up and was about to get out of bed when she came to a sudden realization.
What about her clothes?
When she looked down, she heaved a sigh of relief. She was still wearing the dress she had worn during the ball. Looking back at the pillow where her head at rest, she noticed the suit jacket.
She picked it up and brought it close to her face. She could still smell his cologne emanating from it. Laina placed the suit jacket back down on the bed and stood up. As she stretched her arms and let out a yawn, she explored the room.
The dressing table caught her attention so she walked over. A fresh new set of clothing had already been prepared for her. It was folded neatly and placed on the table.
Laina furrowed her eyebrows as she turned to look at the overall decor of the room.
"Why can't I find anything that I dislike?" She muttered to herself.
The color of the wallpaper, the wooden flooring, the bed frame, and every other detail in the room seemed to have been specially styled for her. How did the King even know what she liked?
While Laina wondered if she was overthinking it, she did not notice that a certain creature had sneaked its way into her room. All she heard was the soft jingle of a single bell.
Laina's senses were on high alert, she turned around quickly, trying to trace the source of the sound. She looked all over the room without much luck. That was until she heard a soft meow.
Laina looked down.
Right in front of her, was a beautiful cat with soft silky black fur. Against the dark color carpet, the cat was almost camouflaged. The curious kitty had the most mesmerizing bright yellow eyes she had ever seen.
Laina crouched down as the cat meowed at her again. Around its neck was a black collar with a small bell attached to it. The cat tilted its head as it continued to look at Laina. It rose its tail up before curling it.
She put out her hand, allowing the cat to sniff it and familiarise itself with her scent. After a few seconds, the cat gently rubbed its head against Laina's hand. She could tell that the black cat seemed to have taken a liking to her.
"Aren't you a sweet little thing," she whispered lovingly to the cat, "Where did you come from?"
Laina scratched the cat on its forehead, causing it to purr. The cat walked up close to her and gently ruffled its fur against the side of her leg. She could not resist the adorable cat any longer.
Laina picked it up into her arms and toyed with the cat as she took a seat at the dressing table. As she continued to play with the cat, she looked at the clothing that had been prepared for her.
There is nothing she does not like? Good job decorating, Dante!
Please check out my latest book <The King's Cursed Bride>!
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