Laurel

2:25 Sky

"It's some strange waking up alone in bed while my body has an orgasm because my mate is being pleasured too fucking well without me." Brydel's voice was dripping with husky lust as he stalked across the room towards the group, he was starting to pull his pants down to try and join in when there was a knock at the door.

I looked between myself, Basalt and Laurel. All covered in each other. We looked like bad children caught at fight school stealing the sweet fungus from the kitchen stores. I scooped up Laurel, while we scurried to hide in the nearest bedroom, sending Brydel to answer the door. He pulled his pants up with growl and I am assuming swore in his family language before heading to the door as bid.

I could hear low voices, but no words clearly. I watched Basalt, his ears twitch and his eyebrows lowered at one point. He didn't like something he had heard from the messenger at the door. Laurel had walked with her thighs clenched together to the washroom to clean up, which was understandable. She had a strange expression on her face as she walked, and I could feel her mind deep in thought. I felt a little bad we were interrupted before Brydel could join us, but he had enjoyed a night to himself with Laurel and was the first to experience her water magic. She was bothered by something deeper than one mate feeling excluded in the moment.

Laurel came out of the washroom, her face still flushed, but smelling of lavender soap as she wrapped a soft fluffy robe around her body to hide her nakedness. Basalt and myself were less bothered and hadn't even looked for anything to cover up with. She was still thinking deeply, I wish I knew what was troubling her. I hope everything we had done was ok with her. I would be crushed to think I had done something to upset her.

Brydel shouted, knocking me out of my depression spiral, "Ya'll can come out now, we got an invitation." Brydel called, the lilting drawl of his native tongue obvious in his voice the more he relaxed with us. We emerged from the unused bedroom to see Brydel looking at a gilt edged, heavy, cardstock invitation. "Looks like we are free to move into housing provided by the Dragon's Council unless we have alternate arrangements. Our identities have been validated, so we are kicked out of here as of tomorrow." He said, he was bouncing his foot, giving away how nervous he was.

Everyone's head swiveled as Basalt growled loudly, the power of the dragon washing over the room like a rogue wave, "She can't live there." He was moving in front of Laurel, protectively, "They aren't safe, anywhere is better than there." I had felt the flood from a few Alpha shifters before, but my previous experiences paled compared to the power in a dragon.

"Do we have any other options?" Laurel asked, She was new to this entire realm, she had no contacts outside this room. I was from people who were never intended to see the sun. My skin was enough to see my shunned by practically any Fae I approached. Auris Basalt had been missing for ten thousand years, give or take a few lifetimes. He had money but no contacts, and Brydel had been bound in service to a demon. Even with endless wealth, getting accommodations in the capital was near impossible. A tangle of bureaucratic nightmares and nepotism keeping outsiders from getting a foothold. Laurel wasn't wrong to think we would need the Dragon Council if we were to avoid being homeless which would be even worse. She didn't know everything.

A strong wind blew open the doors to the Balcony and I was brought face to face with a vision from my past. "You?" I breathed out. Shocked that I was seeing the woman who had helped me escape my fate in the underground. I looked at my family, Laurel, Brydel and the Dragon all looked at the strange, eccentric looking woman with wild tangled hair like they had seen her before.

"I believe I can help you my dears, it is so good to see all of you together. Makes an old heart glad." Her voice was just as I remembered it in my dreams, unchanged despite the many years since I had last encountered her. It had been so long, and my life had changed so much I almost thought I had dreamed her, or hallucinated.