The Dragon Lord's Aide Wants to Quit [BL]

Kael didn’t respond immediately.

He simply looked at the rings, his expression unreadable, and that brief silence stretched just a little too long for Riley’s liking. Worse, there was nothing through the bond. No shift, no ripple, nothing that hinted at what his mate was thinking, and that absence settled uncomfortably in Riley’s chest.

But in truth, the golden dragon had simply been caught off guard.

He had long known that his twig was planning something, some sort of surprise, but not this. With them going to the mall, he couldn’t have expected him to return with these, of all things.

For a moment, his thoughts stalled as he stared.

Then the feeling came. It surged all at once, heated and familiar, settling in his chest in a way that made it difficult to look away.

It was then that Riley felt the shift.

And just like that, the tension in him eased.

Ah.

So he liked it.

Relief, joy, and satisfaction slipped through him so quickly it almost made him laugh.

Kael’s gaze lingered on the rings as though he was seeing something entirely new, something he hadn’t realized he wanted until it was placed in front of him. When he finally looked up, Riley was already smiling at him.

"Well, honey," he said, a little sheepish despite himself, "forgive me for being presumptuous, but I thought about using bits and pieces of that shell you worked so hard to polish for these."

His fingers brushed gently over the bands, a small, absent motion that carried more meaning than he let on. It was a recognition for all the effort young Kael had put in for him.

That golden dragonling sure was an obnoxious little guy, even now, actually, but Kael was really Riley’s beloved and deserved everything Riley could possibly give him.

Moreover, the shell signified their enduring connection. From back then to today—it was still the two of them.

Riley thought about it in his heart but didn’t dare voice it or he might cry. Instead, he spoke about something else.

"And well, as for the gems, we found these from the things left by my ancestors. I figured it would be a nice thing to—"

To represent Riley’s eyes as well as his ancestor’s blessings just as Kael had given him something that very much reminded him of the golden dragon every time he looked at it.

He was supposed to say all of that but didn’t get to finish.

Kael moved without warning, closing the distance between them. His hand was steady enough to keep the ring box from slipping even as he kissed him. Their fingers brushed and tangled slightly in the process, the contact brief but exhilarating.

When they pulled apart, Riley barely gave him a moment before leaning in again, pressing another, softer kiss that lingered just a little longer.

"Feeling better now?" he asked quietly.

Kael looked at him, his gaze steady and a little too knowing, but instead of answering right away, he reached for the rings. His movements were careful, practically reverent, as he took one and slid it onto Riley’s finger before allowing Riley to do the same for him.

Only when both bands were in place did he respond.

"Mn."

Their fingers intertwined naturally after that, the new rings catching faint light between them as Riley let out a small huff.

"You know I can tell, right?"

"Exactly."

Riley snorted softly under his breath, the corner of his lips lifting. Even if they could tell, it wouldn’t really matter because they would still want to hear it.

Moreover, how could he not want to see this look on Kael’s face with his own eyes.

Really, stinking cute like this.

Of course, that was an insane opinion that only Riley would carry, but that was a non-issue.

However, what could be said to be an issue was the shift in Kael’s expression as if something had come back to him.

Now what?

Well, the now-immortal aide looked at his golden dragon and realized he should have predicted this.

"Thank you for this. But still," he said, his tone suspicious but firm, "Even if you give me something I really like, and even if you strip... I am still opposed to your plans of drawing your own blood."

Riley paused for a second before letting out a quiet breath.

Ah.

This guy.

He really wasn’t going to let that go.

But how could Kael let that go when he hadn’t heard something as questionable as pre-casting offensive runes.

"..."

"..."

Okay, fine.

There was also that. Kael Dravaryn had in part been very annoyed and agitated because of Riley’s strategies.

And while the dragon lord could see the point in them as well as the ingenuity, he was a biased prick who would’ve been fine with it had it not been his mate who planned to execute them.

Kael wondered if the black dragons were just naturally insane and had the self-preservation instincts of a leaf, but he felt like this was some sort of family trait.

And in the case of his mate, it was manifested in his desire to have his own weapons.

"Honey, you know for yourself that it’s viable." Riley reasoned because he was well aware that it really was.

"I’m not saying I actually have to use it right away, nor am I saying that we have to fight with the Wyvern King right now..."

"What I’m saying is that in case we come to that point... I have no plans to fight fire with fire when the guy has an even bigger and probably hotter flame."

"So instead of using flames you’re going to use blood? You realize that’s not safe, right?"

"Oh goodness, I definitely have no plans of using it right then and there. In fact, that’s the main reason why I want to pre-cast runic spells instead."

"I don’t want to be caught like a sitting duck while attempting to draw runes around me."

Kael raised a brow at the squirming twig who finally answered with an innocent-looking shrug.

"...So wouldn’t it be better to have them on me and ready to go?"

"..."

The two dragons stared at each other.

"..."

Then as if detecting changes in the room temperature, Riley batted his eyes sweetly while the golden dragon popped a vein.

"You—!"

Oops.