Ophelia and The Dragons

Chapter 24

"Some people come into your life and leave a mark."

-Sara Zarr-

***

Ophelia's P.O.V

"What is this? Another invitation from the palace?" I wondered as I received the letter in the mail. It was odd.

It has only been one month since the last time I went to the palace and I suddenly received another invitation. It made me wonder what it was about this time.

When I checked the content, there wasn't any specific case in there. It was a simple invitation to meet with the crown prince.

"Why does that crown prince put so much interest in you, Lia?" Helios asked me.

"I also don't know, Helios. I think it's because I saved his sister, that's why he feels like he owe me something." I reasoned.

"No, that's not possible. I am sure that man has some sort of ulterior motive with you, Lia. I already had this feeling since the beginning, but I genuinely believe he has fallen in love with you."

Even though the idea of someone loving another was supposed to be a happy occasion, Helios was not amused by this thought at all.

I too, was not too comfortable with this, simply because he was a royalty and I was a witch.

"Don't come to the palace, Lia. Don't see that man again. You have me, what do you need him for?" Helios asked me as he wrapped his arms around my shoulder and neck area.

"Helios, you already know I couldn't possibly refuse a favor from the royal family."

"You are not their servant, Lia! You have no obligation to go to them at all. You are a free roaming witch, Lia. You owe them nothing." Helios was pissed.

He bit the tip of my ears lightly. It didn't hurt, but it certainly felt weird.

"Aw, Helios, what did you do that for?" I asked him.

"I want to mark you so that no other men can take you away from me." He admitted.

One thing about dragons that I have noticed from seeing Helios and Raiden was how open they were with their feelings and emotions toward their master.

They could hide things and be mysterious to strangers, but they simply could not do that toward their master.

"We are already bonded. You are my familiar, aren't you? There are no needs for silly marks like the bite mark. It's not going to be visible anyway." I argued.

"Hm, Lia, are you telling me that if there is a way to properly mark you, you would let me do that to you?" He asked innocently.

"What do you mean by that?" I asked.

"Dragons have the ability to imprint marks on people as well as objects they claim. When other dragons see the mark, they would back off because the mark signals that this person or object has been claimed by another dragon."

"I don't know if the mark would be effective toward humans, but to me, it is still better than nothing." He explained.

"Is the mark permanent?" I asked.

"It's like a tattoo, it will remain there until the dragon dies or if one party does an annulment ritual. But the annulment ritual would feel extremely painful for humans." He explained.

"Hm, give me three good reasons why I should let you mark me." I sat down and looked at him straight in the face.

"If I give you three good reasons, will you actually do it?" His eyes gleamed.

"Yes, I would." It was a mad decision. I knew that much, but if it would put his mind at ease, it would be better than nothing."

"First, the Mark would allow the dragon to know when their master is in danger even if they are miles apart. No matter where you are in the world, I would be able to come to you and save you fast because the mark would warn me about it."

"Secondly, the mark would activate itself and released the power of the dragon who left it in times of danger."

"For example, I am the sun dragon, the mark would contain part of my power. When you are in danger, it will automatically activate itself and release my power to protect you when I'm not there." He explained.

"Third, because I want the world to know you are mine." The third reason was rather simple, but considering Helios' personality, it made a lot of sense.

"Okay, then I will let you mark me. Is it going to be painful?" I should have asked that question in the very beginning but fortunately, he shook his head.

"No, don't worry, it won't be painful at all. The removal will be, but I am sure you wouldn't want to remove the mark for the rest of your life." He said.

"Will there be any side effects?" I asked him.

"No, don't worry. It's not a medicine, it's just a marking."

I breathed in relief.

"Okay then, what should I do?" I asked.

"Nothing, Lia. You just have to stand up in a comfortable and relaxed position and I will do all the work." He said.

He walked toward me and kissed me. I was stunned, but then I quickly realized this wasn't an ordinary kiss.

My whole body felt like it was wrapped in warm light. I felt almost sleepy but fully conscious. It was a comfortable sensation.

Before I realized it, he pulled away from the kiss and the process was done.

He looked at my chest and smiled.

"The mark is now done, Lia!" I went inside to check in the mirror and he was right.

On my chest, there was a burnt orange mark in the shape of a dragon wing with sunlight around it. It was not big, probably the size of the tip of a pinky finger, but it was visible nonetheless.

"Helios, why would you place the mark there?" I asked in embarrassment because it was so close to my breast.

"Because it's closest to your heart. I want to always remain close in your heart, Lia!" He replied innocently.

I sighed. Well, it has been done anyway, no use regretting it. Besides, when you looked at it again, it didn't seem so bad.

"Okay, this means I am now allowed to go to the palace, right?" I teased him. I didn't need his permission if I wanted to go, but it was fun to tease him like that.

"Yes, but I am coming with you. I won't let you be alone with that crown prince." I smiled before patting his head.

My Helios was so adorable when he acted like that. It might be a strange sight for many to see, a grown man like him still being treated like a child by me.

Most men are just grown children anyway.

"Then, we will be leaving tomorrow. We should get a lot of rest today. No need to hunt in the mountain. We'll just make the most out of today." I told him.

"Okay, if that's what you want."

We ended up spending the rest of the day in leisure as we prepared ourselves for the trip.