of our labor.”
“You are correct, my queen.” He gestures to the habitat. The entire environmental cycle has processed and the three of them are all sniffing around the top with their hands on the glass.
“They wish to greet their sire and dame.”
I grin up at him. “Then let’s get them out. This is the moment we’ve been waiting for.”
He pops open the top open, pulls out the female first and hands her over to me. I cuddle her on my chest and she moves around, trying to climb me like I’m a mountain. Borak grabs the boys and holds their faces up to their sister. They bump noses a few times and try to wiggle from our grasp. I hold the girl up and look into her pretty little face. “Not a chance, princess. You’re not ready for the big bad world quite yet.”
Borak takes a few steps over to the huge sturdy table we arranged for this purpose and climbs on top with the boys tucked under one arm. When he holds out a hand, I take it and jump up with our daughter. I’ve read all about this old blood tradition, so when the noise of the crowd dies down, we hold them up and show them to the assembled group.
There are mad cheers, the thumping of tankards on tables and roars of approval from our visitors. People shout congratulations and other sentiments of joy. We don’t have anything like this on Earth, but since it’s important to the man I love, I go right along with it.
Our little ones perk up at the noise and begin flapping their wings, as if they want to get down and sniff through the entire crowd. When we finally lower them, Borak reaches me the boys this time and takes our daughter. I’m thrilled to say hello to them for the first time. They nose around on each side of my neck before flopping over on their tummies to rest like they’re absolutely exhausted.
Meanwhile, Borak begins his speech. “We were taught many things about a male’s place in the before times. Our parasite infested queens wished to keep us humbled, ignorant and easy to control. Since escaping their control, we have made new lives for ourselves. As if freedom and wealth were not enough, we are now free to lure our own human queens. Old blood warriors were scorned in the before times, yet here I stand with the loveliest of human queens at my side, three young from my second spawning and a little queen to call my own. I say what we were taught was mostly lies. Let us shake off the mental bonds of our former queens as we have shaken off their physical bonds, for I am here to tell you that if you believe in yourself, no dream is unattainable.” He lifts our daughter up and shows her around again, as if to prove his point.
All the warriors go wild, clearly inspired by my mate’s speech. I have to admit that I’m pretty impressed with him myself. When he turns to me, there is such pride and happiness filling his face that I can’t help but pull him down for a kiss. He brings his wings up around our little family, and for a brief moment standing on that platform in front of a hundred people, we’re all alone.
“I never thought to find such happiness with a queen that my mind could not find the words to speak of it.”
I give him another peck on the lips. “I know exactly what you mean. Thank you for giving me children. I didn’t realize how much I wanted them until it actually became a possibility.”
Our little ones crawl around the space we’ve created by putting our chests close together and cupping our arms to keep them safe. Seeing our little ones’ faces and how active they are is such a blessing. I can’t imagine being anywhere except right here with Borak and our blended family. This is the moment I realize that dreams really do come true.
Glossary
Akes – Draconian god of hunting, war and violence. He is the consort to Entares, the benevolent goddess worshiped by Draconian males.
Antar – Right (Lutar is left.)
Argonite – Red petrified tree sap used to make medication to parasitic infections.
Avada – Small carrot like vegetable that is seasoned and wrapped in a dry leaf.
Challenge – Draconian queens settle disagreements and property disputes by challenging one another in single combat. It is usually a