I awoke feeling refreshed, a different thing. I also felt very warm. I sighed happily and stretched, my hands rubbing at Eren's bare skin.
I relaxed with a sigh and snuggled closer to the strong body next to me.
"Good morning, my beauty" Erne whispered above me. I grumbled a tired reply and pushed my face between his pecs. He chuckled, the sound vibrating in his chest. "Normally I would have gotten up hours ago, but you're too damn precious to leave"
"Then stay" I whined.
He chuckled again and ran fingers down the curve of my spine and I arched into it like a cat.
I hummed happily. "I'm going to start purring soon" I laughed.
"That would be so cute" Eren kissed my jaw. "I'm fine staying in bed for longer, but you need to get off my arm. I've had pins and needles for hours now"
I groaned in mock frustration and rolled off his arm and he made a dramatic show of wiggling the appendage. I chuckled and turned to the side. He laid on his side and he pressed our foreheads together.
I smiled and then kissed him, and then I kissed him again. Then again, and again.
Eren grinned after each kiss. "I love the feel of your lips"
"Good because you're going to be feeling them a lot"
"I'm the luckiest man alive" he kissed me so deeply it took my breath away.
"Are you really considered a man? Or would it be dragon?"
Eren smirked. "Oh I'm a man alright" the tone of his voice made me blush. "But I'm not human" he quickly went back to casual conversation. "So I'm the luckiest dragon in the world"
I hummed. "So are you a dragon that can turn into a human or a human that can turn into a dragon?"
"I'm a dragon that has a human form"
"Do all dragons have human sides?"
He nodded. "It's a lot easier to mate like this, and to birth"
"Oh" I thought for a moment. "Are dragons fertile species? You said they were endangered species once"
"We're very fertile. Especially during mating season. It's just that we have to be in hiding that reproduction is overseen by the Elders"
"The Elders?" I asked, intrigued.
"Yes. The three oldest living dragons. They oversee everything to do with the species. The decide when a mated pair can have children"
"That's kinda stupid. You can't just have a kid because you want to"
"Well, dragons are very sexual creatures. Having a child would put a dampener on the whole bumping hips ordeal. Lots of dragons don't want kids, so that's part of why we're endangered species. No one wants to breed"
"Oh" I looked up at the ceiling. "What do you take to prevent pregnancy then?"
"There's herbs" Eren stretched his arms over his head and climbed out of bed, despite my protests. "Come help me with breakfast"
I made a sound of protest, whining. "No."
"Yes. I thought you would have loved to walk around now that your ankle was all healed"
I pursed my lips. "Fine" I rolled out of bed and followed Eren to the kitchen, our hands locked. I smiled to myself, watching Erens back. I loved how comfortable I was with him, things weren't awkward anymore. Now that we had kissed and confessed that we liked each other, the tension seemed to melt away. The sexual tension was still there, but it wasn't the main focus anymore.
We made breakfast, teasing each other and laughing. It was nice. I felt like I was home.
Eren always made me feel safe.
"What are the plans for today?" I asked as we washed the dishes.
"I was going to wallow in self pity, beating myself up over letting the prettiest, most beautiful and down right sexy human leave." He grabbed my hips and turned me to face him. I smiled up at him and lifted me onto the counter and kissed me, deep and hard.
I had to spread my legs to get him close, and my arms went around his shoulders. His hands were big and strong on my hips. He was so warm. Fuck~
I wanted him so bad. I would go insane.
Eren then pulled away from me and kissed my forehead. "I'm really glad my plans changed."
I pouted, and nodded. "Me too." I pressed my chin to his chest and looked up at him. "How much longer until mating season is over?"
He smiled at me, teasing but not without sympathy and understanding. "One day less than what it was yesterday"
I pouted even harder/ "But that's so long"
"It'll be worth it baby" He kissed my head again. "The New Year is coming in a few days. I say we go back into town, get some meat, maybe a deer? Or turkey? And we can get flowers and you some new clothes as well"
"I would like clothes" I agreed. I only had two pairs of pants and two shirts. They had been Eren's and so they didn't fit right. He did hem them so they fit a bit better but there's only so much an amature seamster can do.
"Alright, well let's get ready to go then"
We cleaned up and changed quickly. Then took Bell out and down the mountains. Eren made me ride her again, he didn't want me getting hurt.
We made it to the dirt trail and turned left instead of right.
"Isn't Stohess that way?" I asked, pointing behind me.
"We almost got caught last time. I'm not bringing you there again. Not for awhile that is"
"So where are we going?"
"The town over. Mitras"
"Oh" I nodded, recalling the maps I was forced to memorize. Stohess was the heart of the kingdom of Paradise. It's where the royal family lived. There were hundreds of towns and cities throughout Paradise. Mitras was only a few hours ride south North of Stohess. Each city had a governor or a lord that overruled the city council, but the king held supreme over all.
Mitras governor was a feeble man named Fredrick. He was soft spoken, but stubborn. I had met him at countless parties. The only people outside the palace I had met were Lords and Ladies from other places. Even a few Royal family members from other countries.
The ride there took about as long as the ride to Stohess had. The buildings were large, and tall, much like the ones in Stohess. People were milling about, talking about different things.
Eren paid a stable hand to keep Bell and we went on our way. "So we need clothes for you. Some flowers, and I checked and we still have plenty of duck left over that we could have."
"The duck was fantastic" I told him. "Why flowers?"
"To help liven up the place. It's kind of dull, isn't?"
"Well there's not a lot of natural light. The flowers would die"
Eren paused, and pouted. "Oh yeah" I laughed.
"I still love flowers, but are any in bloom? It is winter time?"
His shoulders slumped further. "Oh yeah"
I tried to stifle a laugh, but I couldn't help it. He was too cute. "It's okay. Spring is just around the corner, there will be more than enough flowers to pick from then"
He nodded and took my hand. "Then I guess all we need is clothes"
Eren looked around, and got the attention of a young woman. "Hello, I was just wondering if you could recommend any seamstress? I need clothing"
She smiled and pointed back the way we came from. "You passed the best in town. Gredellis"
"Thank you" Eren took my arm and led me down back to where the girl had said.
The shop was filled to the brim with clothes. How we had missed it was a mystery to me. "Hello?" Eren called into the mass of clothes.
"Oh!" A woman poked her head out and grinned at us. "Well hello. Are you in the need of some wears?"
"He is" Eren pointed at me, and I nodded.
"Come in" She pushed the mass of clothes out of the way to reveal her shop. We squeezed inside.
It was stuffy in here. Filled to the brim with fabric and half made items. Premade stuff was hanging on the wall. There was no sign of the outside world.
"Alright, stand up here and I'll take your measurements" I stood on the pedestal and she took the measuring tape the was hanging around her shoulders and measured me with as much devotion as those that work in the palace.
"Alright. I'm guessing you want some premade stuff, yes?"
"Aye" Eren nodded.
"Good. Because I am so back up on orders" She went to the wall and started throwing things onto her arm at what seemed to me at random.
She then came back to me and handed me a pair of pants. "Try these on dear"
I stripped my pants and pulled them on. They fit like a glove.
She hummed and nodded before giving me a shirt. "Now this"
I traded the shirt I was wearing for the one she handed me. Again, like a glove.
After trying on all different sorts of things, we soon left Gredellis with a satchel filled with new clothes.
The cold winter air felt amazing after being in the stuffy confines of her shop.
"Your arse looks amazing in those pants" Eren complimented me. I had decided to wear some of the new clothes. Gredelli paid for the old clothes so she could use the material and we had no use for them anyway.HEAR YE, HEAR YE!!" A news man stood just in front of us, gathering everyone's attention. "DUKE KENNETH ACKERMAN AS ANNOUNCED THAT WE WILL NOW BE ACCEPTING THE CROWN OF STOHESS" Murmurs immediately started up around me. "THE CORONATION WILL TAKE PLACE THE FIRST DAY OF THE YEAR AT NOON. HE WILL THEN GIVE A SPEECH REGARDING THE TRAGIC DEATHS OF HIS BROTHER AND NEPHEW" And then the new boy moved on to another part of town.
"The poor man" A pair of middle aged people standing next to me said. "He must be going through so much"
"He lost his brother and his nephew from a terrorist attack. He now has to find a new person to take over Rose in his place, and take over the rule of all of Paradise and even more, find out what staff member betrayed them" A man said.
"I can't believe someone would betray them like that." A woman said this. "The king was always so kind. It's so sad to think that one of his own servants would let terrorists into the castle to kill the royal family."
"Excuse me?" I waved my hand to get their attention. "Hi, I'm sorry. We live in the mountains and don't get a lot of news. What are you talking about?"
"Oh" The woman that was just talking spoke now. "Three weeks ago, there was a horrible tragedy that befell the royal family. One of the servants conspired with a terrorist to kill the king and prince. They unfortunately succeeded in killing them both before the guards got them. Lord Kenny has been trying to find which one of the servants betrayed them. It's been a huge thing. He also says he won't accept the crown until the traitor is found"
"Do you think they found them? If he accepts the crown?" The man asked.
"Who knows. That may be what he's announcing"
"Perhaps"
I felt Eren's hands on my shoulders and pull me from the group. That fucking bastard. He's the one that murdered my father. With his own hands. He was going to kill me. He killed Amelia. And now he was using this as some sort of propaganda to get people to feel sympathy for him.
"I know baby" Eren stroked my hair. Had I said that out loud? "It's not fair and he's a fucking bastard and evil"
I sobbed and held onto Eren. "He said I was dead so no one would look for me. He lied about what he did,"' I clenched my teeth, gripping onto Erens shirt. "It's not fair. He's going to become king and he's going to be praised for something he lied about"
"I know" Eren rubbed my back. "But there's nothing we can do" He kissed my head, the soft whispers and gentle touches easing the pain. "It's out of your hands"
"I know" I sobbed. I should just be thankful I'm alive. But was it wrong of me to be mad about the man that betrayed his own brother and nephew, and now is getting rewarded for it.
"Come on. Let's go" Eren took my hand and led me back to the stables to get Bell. On the way back he paused for a moment and let go of my hand. I was too lost in thought to really see it.
He came back and took my hand again. We got Bell and we walked with her back to the woods.
"Levi?" Erens voice pulled my attention and I looked at him. He was holding a small bouquet of flowers. Pansies I believe they were. I smiled.
"They're beautiful" I took them.
"I know they're just flowers, but I wanted to see you smile"
My heart clenched and I wanted to cry. He was so sweet. I stood on my tip toes and kissed him. "Thank you"
Eren nodded. "Let's go home"
My smile grew. Home. My home was with Eren. Kenny couldn't hurt me anymore. So what if he got the crown? I never wanted it anyway.
I still hated him for what he did, I would never forgive him for the deaths of my dad and Amelia, but he could have the crown all he wanted. I had Eren.
And I was happy.