Supernatural Tales - Book II

Chapter 12

(Unedited)

Athena shook her head once Aaliyah was gone...

"Was that necessary?" Iris inquired tiredly, not at all liking the way her best friend handled the situation, and Esme's aura became louder when she turned around to glare at her, making her sigh again.

"You are Iris Athena Frost. The strongest and most capable woman I have ever met in my entire cursed existence. You are my anchor. My beloved. You do not beg, Iris. You never do that," there was anger in her voice but there was pain too and Tulip wiped her angry tears away when Iris cradled Esme's face, causing her magic to flicker.

"I had to, Esme. She is your--" When Iris tried to justify her actions, the woman pulled away at once and she simply let her because she could feel her sorrow and protective nature burning bright.

"I do not care who she is! You never bow down to anyone, Iris. Nobody. Only Almighty... You shall never do that again, Iris. Do you hear me? Never," Esme ordered angrily, her aura getting unstable, and Iris nodded at once before wrapping her arms around her with the intent to ease her.

"Forgive me, Esme. I did not wish to hurt you, my dear. I... I simply want my Ethel back," Iris mumbled lowly, her grief reflected in her voice, and while Esme calmed down exponentially at her actions, Tulip walked up to the two with firm steps.

"And we will save them, Maman. We will bring Ethel home. But you must never, ever, do that again. If Ethel ever found out about it, they would be devastated, too." The vexation in Tulip's voice caused Iris to give her a surprised look, and Esme breathed deeply to let go of her irate energy only to pull the young princess in her arms.

Once Tulip calmed down a bit, Seraphine stepped forward...

"Are you really going to bring the White Dragon back?" The Queen sounded scared as she asked that, her dragon felt restless too and when Esme nodded in response, she glanced at Yvette who had been feeling the same thing.

"What... What would that mean for Yvette? Will she... What about my daughter?" Seraphine's voice trembled at that question, her eyes brimming with tears again, and Yvette glanced at Oro when they stepped closer to her, their body tense.

"I'm afraid I can't say for sure... Since there has always ever been one White Dragon in existence at a time, it is possible that once Bida is back, your daughter will finally find her own Dragon, be it any of yours or Aneka's..." Esme trailed off, her expressions solemn as she kept her gaze on Seraphine, and Aneka felt Apophis's pain just like Tiamat's.

"But there is also a chance of that never happening, isn't it? With Bida back, I won't be a potential White Dragon anymore and-- It's not like I can develop a dragon after eighteen years of being alive." Yvette's laughter was bitter, her eyes stinging with tears as she glared at Esme and the woman nodded tensely, knowing better than to give her false hope.

"Do not worry, Sera. Have faith in the Almighty. There is a reason for everything that happens and in this instance, your Yvette is part of a larger plan for the betterment of your world," Iris assured her friend with a warm smile, holding a still uneased Tulip close to her heart, and Seraphine found herself nodding slowly.

"Once the White Dragon returns, I will eradicate the curse that has been polluting your people for eons and Yvette will meet her dragon as well, I will make sure of it," Keeping her steady gaze on Yvette, Esme spoke strongly and the young princess could not help but have faith in the golden-haired woman.

"However, should at any point you believe that you have a White Dragon as well, I would advise against letting them out before we leave since it would be unwise to have two White Dragons in our midst," Esme had given Yvette a gentle smile to ease her, expecting her to feel happy and hopeful but when that did not happen, she frowned in confusion.