#13 The Dragon King and his Werewolf Princess

I stayed silent for a longtime and then she sighed loudly,

“Fine, we’ll work on that,” She finally said, “Where am I, anyway?” She changed the subject, looking around the room.

“My chambers.” I replied.

“Oh.” Her cheeks turned pink.

“It was the safest spot for you while you were recovering.” I said, not sure why she was so embarrassed.

“And now that I’m recovered?” She asked.

“You can move freely around the castle and the Royal City. Grier is your guard, it’s his sole duty to protect you, and you’ll have others, too, just in case.” I explained.

She released a heavy sigh,

“We’ll talk about that later,” She said in a tone that made me feel like I was in trouble, “What I meant was, where will I be staying now?”

I still wasn’t sure what she was asking.

“Staying?”

“I’m not sleeping in your bedroom, Calix.” She said bluntly.

“We’re mates.” I reminded her in case she had suddenly forgotten.

“Yes, and we’ve already discussed that things will be different since we’ve just met. I’m not sleeping with you or even in the same room as you. And, before you get any ideas, there will be no funny business, either.” She said, but I had no idea what she was talking about.

“Funny business?”

River gave me a hard look and I got the sense that she was irritated with me.

“Mating, marking, sex, whatever you people call it.” She snapped.

“Oh, I understand,” I mumbled, “And of course not. That wouldn’t happen until after we’re married.” I added.

“Marriage?” Now it was her turn to look confused.

“Yes,” I said, “It was something we brought from the human realm. Is it not practiced anymore?

She laughed shortly,

“It is, but werewolves don’t usually get married and most people don’t wait for marriage to have sex.” She looked uncomfortable explaining this to me.

“I think we have a lot to talk about.” I grumbled in frustration and she started laughing again,

“You think?” She said sarcastically, “Hence why I want to sleep in a different room.”

“Yes, well, that can be arranged. There are numerous other rooms in the castle,” I nodded, wanting to make her comfortable in any way that I could, “You can choose any room that you want.”

“Thank you.” She said thoughtfully.

“Maybe now is a good time for a tour then?” I offered, “If you feel strong enough, that is.”

She nodded eagerly,

“Yes, I’d like to see something other than this room and the jail.”

The look on her face told me she wasn’t being malicious, but I was still too pissed at myself to make light of the fact that she spent days in that dirty, merky cell. Instead of commenting, I moved towards the door and opened it for her. She walked past me and I inhaled deeply, filling my senses with her delirious scent. She paused and glanced up at me, her wide blue eyes studying me.

“Your scent, I’m starting to pick up on it now.” She said, her eyes scanning my body as she breathed in deeply, “Just a little bit.” She added.

She made a thinking face and then shrugged before brushing past me and into the hallway. I followed after her and began the tour.

“The castle is all one level besides the winery, some storage, and the safehouse which is underground. This is my room, as I’ve said,”

I motioned back towards the sturdy looking oak doors which had intricately designed carvings over the front and heavy iron handles. My room was at the end of a long corridor and the only room in this wing of the house. Attached to the room was a large ensuite bathroom fit for a King and Queen, two walk-in closets, a sitting room, and a study complete with a rather large book collection,

“This is considered the southern wing of the house and only the King, Queen, and assigned staff, are permitted here,” I explained.

She nodded, staring down the hallway. It was dimly lit by gas lanterns hanging sporadically on the walls on either side of the corridor. The floor was made of the same hand-milled wooden planks as the rest of the house, the walls were a deep maroon wallpaper with thin, vertical navy blue stripes every few feet. Each wing was detailed with a different wallpaper. I led her down the south wing hallway, which was marked by a huge set of double doors. They were arched at the top with ornate ironwork on either side.

I pushed open the doors and we were faced with a small foyer of sorts with a corridor on the left, right, and center. I gestured towards the left hallway and she followed after me. The wallpaper was a deep royal blue with a white border on the top and bottom edges of the wall. After a few feet, doors started popping up left and right,

“This is considered the east wing of the castle and houses all of the other bedrooms. The closest to the foyer are reserved for the heirs, then family and guests of the Crown, and lastly visiting diplomats,”

I explained, pointing out the doors as we passed them. Each door had a golden plaque on the front which had space for a name card, indicating who was in each bedroom. Every door was also painted a different color depending on what their purpose was: heirs, royal guests, or visitors, and there were staff assigned to each. The rooms all had an attached bathroom and walk-in closet,

“We have to go back the way we came to tour the rest of the house,” I said and she nodded, staying silent as she continued to observe the rooms, “Is something bothering you?” I asked.

She shook her head, but didn’t so much as glance up at me.

“You can choose any of these rooms for yourself.” I added.

She looked up at me then and showed me a small smile,

“Thank you.”

I sighed and decided not to push her to speak. We went straight through the foyer towards the opposite hallway where the wallpaper turned to a dark emerald green.

“The west wing houses the offices, conference room, and ballroom. Essentially, all of the official royal activities happen here. My office is closest to the foyer,”

I twisted the brass knob to the first door on the left and revealed my office. It had the same flooring and wallpaper as the rest of the wing with a large desk, sofa, and two chairs. The back wall was nothing but bookcases and lower cabinets. There was an ensuite bathroom in the corner and two windows on the sidewall. A brown and green circular, hand woven rug covered the center of the room,

“You can find me in here most of the time,” I added and her head snapped towards me, her eyebrow going up, “What?” I asked again.

She just shrugged.

“Anyway, your….erm, the Queen’s office is across the hall.”

I shut my office door and went to the door that stood opposite. The room looked exactly the same, minus any furniture. It was awaiting my Queen to put her final touches on it.

“The Queen has an office?” She finally spoke.

“Of course, why wouldn’t she?” I felt my eyes pinch together in curiosity, “Does the werewolf Queen not have an office?” “No, she does. She has as much responsibility as the King. I just wasn’t sure if things worked the same way here.” She said,

“The Queen is essential.” I replied simply.

This answer seemed to surprise her.

“It’s just….nevermind.” She shook her head quickly.

“What is it?”

“Vix said that you were…. 207 years old.” She swallowed hard.

“I am.” I wasn’t sure how that relates to the duties of a Queen.

“How long have you been the King?”

“107 years.” I answered.

“That’s a long time to be without a Queen. I just thought that maybe her duties weren’t that important.” She answered shyly.

“Oh, I see,” I nodded, finally understanding, “It is a long time, but unfortunately, it was necessary. The duties of the Queen are fulfilled by a number of people including myself, my mother, Vix, Grier, and Mag.”

“That many people?” Her eyes widened a bit.

“It’s an important job. The Queen handles most of the communication with the realm, she keeps the peace between the different communities and villages, organizes events, keeps the staff, ensures that newborn children are registered and named, the list goes on.” I tried to explain, not wanting her to feel as if the Queen was just a figurehead.

“That sounds a lot like what my mother does.” She said, mostly to herself.

“Shall we continue?” I asked, waving down the hall.

She nodded and I led the way. I pointed out the large conference room with a huge rectangular table in the center, chairs all around it, outlets galore for all the necessary technology, a white board and projection screen covering the entire back wall with bookshelves and cabinets on the other walls; an ensuite half-bathroom was in the corner. I showed her Mag and Vix’s offices, which were just a few steps down from mine.

The final room, at the very end of the corridor, was the ballroom. It was circular with an all-glass roof, the entire back wall was also made up of windows; there was a seperate entrance from the outside so guests didn’t have to walk through the castle. A crystal chandelier hung from the center of the ceiling, gas lanterns scattered around the perimeter. Tall tables sat around the outside of the room with a long table at the very front for the royal family. The center of the room was completely open for dancing.

“Wow, this is beautiful.” She whispered as she looked around the room.

“The Crown hosts its fair share of balls. That’s my mother’s department right now.” I chuckled, thinking of all the grand events my mother plans on a monthly basis.

“We have a ballroom, but we only use it a few times a year; for the annual Mating Ball, royal birthdays, coming if she balls, and the coronation.” She said thoughtfully.

“The Mating Ball?” I asked.

“My grandparents created it to bring unmated wolves from all over, inside and outside of the realm, together to make it easier for everyone to find their mates. It’s how my fathers met my mother.” She explained.

“Hm, I guess we don’t have that issue here since we are all inside the realm.” I replied.

“I guess.” She replied absentmindedly.