The Hunt

Giving a little....

  He scowled, not at her but at the fact that he believed her even though he had no real reason to. “Fine, it's not like I can make you unhear that about my brothers but I don’t have to tell you anything else about them.”

    “By all means Lyfew, its you I wish to know of anyway.” she said sitting on the couch in the waiting area. He remained by the door to the back. 

    “ I am more than a travelling tattooist. I work many jobs of all varieties.” he offered.

    “Is that so? Do tell.”

    He hesitated at her tone but continued. “I do whatever needs to be done.” he said vaguely. At her perfectly arched brow raising in question at him he sighed in irritation “I’ve done a lot ok. I’ve been a bodyguard, bouncer, guide, farmer, deep sea diver, treasure hunter, overnight security, bartender,  I was even a generator once.” he said listing the jobs he had done in the last month.

    “When do you rest?” she said concerned for the beast's health already. He sounded as if he was always moving and as fast as she knew he was she wondered if he ever slowed down to breathe and take care of his needs.

    “I sleep when I can. There always seems to be something I’d rather be doing than resting. Downtime makes me nervous.”

    “Like a shark that has to keep moving or it will die.” she said “You must take better care of yourself.”

    He scoffed, “Don’t concern yourself about it Prihaala. I’m not one of your little pets to worry about.”

    She scowled at the infuriating man, must he be difficult the entire time. “I sure would hate to have done all this work to hunt you and you die of exhaustion.”

“I am a dragon and a man I won’t die from exhaustion.” he said obviously offended.

    She rolled her eyes. He was a prideful beast. He was telling her so little but she was learning so much about him. “Do you not sleep well? My brother has nightmares of the future so he sleeps very little and not for very long all at once.”

    ‘Yet another thing me and this brother of hers have in common.’ Yakir thought. He was restless and would dream of the future of his clan, or lack thereof. “Yeah me and your brother are exactly alike.” he said sarcastically moving away from the doorway and sitting on a bench near the register.

“I guess its a hazard of being a first born.” she said with a shrug.

“I suppose so.” he said with a glare. 

“If you work a hundred jobs and don’t sleep well it may do you some good to let someone spoil you. I don’t know too many royals who live so restlessly.”

“I don’t need to be spoiled. Especially not by you.”

“Do you have someone to spoil you? A lady dragon perhaps?”Zirri asked curiously.

“If I had a lady dragon you would probably have been dead for stalking me by now.” he said nonchalantly.

“I respect your total disregard for life but could you cut me a break here I feel you have threatened my life more than you have said my name.” she paused “ Have you ever said my name?” she asked with a brow raised tapping her chin with her pointer finger with a thoughtful look on her face.

“Since I don’t really give a f**k about what your name is, I probably have never bothered to learn or say it.” he said as if stating a well known fact

Zirri scowled at him. She noticed how his leg was bouncing nervously and he had found some type of desk decoration to toy with. “You are a jackass you know that.”

“I’ve been told that a time or two.” he said looking at the small silver and glass cube in his hand.

“You are a restless beast aren’t you?” she said gesturing towards his fidgety state. This caused him to still his body and scowl at her before putting the cube down. 

“Why do you keep calling me that?”

“Calling you what?”

“Beast. Not dragon or Yakir but beast.”

“I guess that is because that is how I see you.”

He was nothing but a beast to conquer for her? That made him even more angry as he sucked his teeth loudly. “Figures.”

“What was that for?”

“Don’t worry about it. Have you gotten enough yet.”

“Not yet. Why don’t you have a lady dragon? Or a lady period. Since your clan is nearing extinction shouldn’t you be making baby dragons.” she paused with a cheerful gasp “I’ll adopt them and then I won’t need you.”

“I would never sell my children to you.”

“Sell is harsh. I would adopt them and they would have the very best of everything.” she said defensively “I’m not a monster.” she muttered

“You fooled the hell out of me!”

    Looking back she imagined how she must have sounded since she was in fact ruthlessly hunting him he would not think it beneath her to purchasing and enslaving small dragon children. This was getting worse by the second. She seemed to be saying all the wrong things to him. She wasn’t even trying but she seemed to be enraging him further as time goes by. If being nomadic wasn’t in his nature she imagined he would take the chance in killing her and be trapped in this parlor for who knows how long. In his head she had threatened him, his brothers, and his future children. “This is not getting us anywhere positive Yakir. I didn’t mean the things I said. I’d take it all back if I could. I want to be an ally not an adversary.”

“Is this how you treat your allies? Keeping them hostage and make them tell you about themselves?”

“You would not give me the time or information I want if I didn’t force it.”

“You can’t use force on an ally. That is how you make enemies. You’re a princess I figured you would know that.”

She scowled at him. He was being so difficult for absolutely no reason at this point. “You could free yourself if you finish the condition.” she said 

“You shouldn’t be here forcing me to fulfill any conditions you dense little psycho.”

‘Fine, you insist on being angry anyway, I can at least poke fun at him since you have so much to say about me.’ she thought slyly “So what if I am, someone seems to need to force some conditions on you.” she said off handedly. She watched as he stiffened in restrained rage. “Here it is you are the next best thing to a dragon prince and yet you are playing jack of all trades across Detinu. You are so concerned about my princess duties but what of your responsibilities to your clan?”

“What do you know of my responsibilities.”

    “Well shouldn’t you be trying to find a mate so you can help create more Lyfews? You know since your clan is near extinction.” she said actually losing her objective of poking fun and genuinely interested in the question. He was gorgeous so there should be no issue in finding a mate for him. If he stopped working himself to death with 700 jobs he might find one. As she mused about this she noticed absently that he had gotten up and his mouth was moving and so was his body. Towards her! ‘Oh hell I forgot to listen to him.’ She thought as she stood to protect herself recalling bringing up his dwindling clan callously a few minutes ago. She held her hands in surrender as his large body was close enough to touch. “I’ll rephrase. With your numbers being as low as they are currently and as handsome as you are why aren't you attached?” she said more gently which made him step back and study her to see if she was seriously asking.

    “That is not how dragon mating works Prihaala.” he said deciding to cave “We connect whether we are ready for it or want it at all. Once you connect to someone it is fatal if they reject you. Imagine instantly falling for someone and if you can’t convince them that they love you as well within a month you could die from it. I honestly am not looking to start a mating just yet. It is very dangerous to love a dragon. For the dragon and their lover.”

    Zirri nodded, “Is that all? Sounds like someone just has commitment issues.”

    “It’s not commitment I have issue with it’s the fatal rejection that gives me pause. Besides I also travel too much. I don’t stay long enough to get to really know anyone so I have never connected with a woman.”

    “What about your clan? How do they feel about this constant working you do and not the hot sweaty fun that could result in many babies. It is not necessary to be eternally committed to someone to make a baby?”

    “They realize I am doing all I can but, I am not going to just start making random babies. My children will be the eventual leaders of my clan. I cannot have them with just anyone.”

    “At least you are mindful of where you spread your seed. Some men don’t care one way or the other and that goes for regular citizens and nobles alike. I could help you find as many eligible dragons as possible if you became my dragon.”

An amused snort escaped him,“No dragon female worth her scales would mate with another woman’s pet.”

“Prideful beast, I said I wouldn’t need to keep you like this pet you are so afraid I am trying to turn you into.”

“I don’t believe you.” he said simply

“Of course you don’t!” she said sarcastically.

    Yakir looked down at her. She seemed bothered by his doubt. It was probably because everything that came out of her pretty little mouth he had answered with unwavering doubt and suspicion. Well, that’s what she gets for trapping them here. He had every right to be anxious being trapped like he was. He felt like a caged animal. His inner dragon raged at being driven into a corner like this. All to have this mundane conversation with a princess he wished had never crossed his path. Those black and white eyes will haunt him now that he has spent so long looking at them. “Tell me Prihaala, your conditions have had to be met at least a little. How many more secrets do I have to reveal to you?” he said glaring down at her.