Short Story: The Dragon’s Sweet Dream
“NOW listen here. You need to get some solid rest today, at least,” Xavier sighed as he hauled Claude to his bed and forced him under the covers. “Summoning a sacred beast is all well and good. But you certainly picked an awkward time to do it.”
“But Agnes had been kidnapped,” Claude argued. “And a horse wouldn’t have gotten me there in time. I had to choose the fastest possible option.”
“Well, you should have forged a formal contract before you acted. Just entering the borders of Oreille is enough to drain a Crest Bearer of their power. And a temporary contract consumes twice as much magical energy. Your actions were insane,” Xavier chastised as he loomed over Claude, arms crossed. But Claude wasn’t about to fold.
“None of that mattered. I had to protect Agnes. I have zero regrets.”
The two stared at one another in silence.
It was Gerome, not Claude or Xavier, who finally broke the silence.
“There’s no point rehashing it all now. Crest Bearers don’t care about their own lives when their Dragonmates are in peril. Anyway, how are you feeling now?”
Xavier, unable to say Gerome was wrong, looked away in annoyance. If something were to happen to Zenaide, Xavier would probably go wild, yes… But he wasn’t about to admit it to his younger brothers.
“I’m back in Visage, and Agnes is unharmed,” Claude said. “Ciel… The sacred beast I summoned is small enough now that he doesn’t consume that much of my power. I’m totally fine.”
“Hmm, I see. So, you’re no longer being drained.”
“I guess all you need to do now is rest and recover the physical strength and magical energy you lost.”
Claude felt a little annoyed at being restricted to bed, but in truth, he really didn’t feel too good.
“All right. …Ah, how annoying,” Claude groused. “I was almost finished setting up the new residence too.”
Now that Claude had agreed to rest, the brothers were able to relax a little too. He knew they were worried about him and appreciated their concern. In the past, their relationship had been a little more distant, but that seemed to have been something of an act to catch the court off guard. When it came down to it, the older brothers were quite protective of their younger brothers.
“Your new residence… It’s not shaped like a mushroom or anything, is it?” Gerome asked.
“I’d be happy with that, but it’s a preexisting house that we’re renovating, so it looks normal,” Claude sighed.
For Claude, a mushroom-shaped building would be ideal, but building a new one would take a considerable amount of time. Now that Agnes had agreed to marry him, he wanted to live with her as soon as possible—there was no time to delay.
“Hmm, are you sure it’s normal? What about, for example, the wallpaper and so on?”
“I haven’t decided yet,” Claude replied. “I’m thinking of brightly-colored mushrooms and…”
“No doubt you’ll have mushroom furniture anyway, so you should keep the walls neutral,” Gerome said, quick to shut Claude down. Maybe he had a point.
“Right, if the furniture and décor clash, it could be a bit visually exhausting.”
“Not visually exhausting. Mentally exhausting. Cut back on the mushrooms,” pressed Gerome.
Either way, if the mansion was too gaudy inside, it might tire Agnes. That would not be good. This was her new home, and Claude wanted her to be comfortable. He wanted to see her smile.
“…Okay, now I’m concerned. If it’s mushrooms inside, what about the garden?” Xavier asked.
Claude nodded confidently and said, “Right. I plan to have everything planted in mushroom shapes.”
“That’s not a garden, that’s a mushroom patch,” Xavier sighed.
“Right!” Claude clapped his hands together. “Yes, we do need a patch for growing mushrooms, too.”
Ah yes, the crown prince had fine taste all right. Claude beamed, and his brothers frowned.
“To grow the medicinal herbs for uncle, right?” Gerome asked.
“Yes, that too. But, also space for mushrooms to grow, in neat rows! I’ll make the arrangements right away!” Unable to contain his excitement, Claude tried to sit up, but Xavier pressed a finger to his forehead and shoved him back down.
“Mushrooms are all well and good, but if you overdo things, you’ll turn Agnes right off,” Xavier warned.
“What if Agnes issued an ultimatum? ‘It’s the mushrooms or me!’ What would you do?” Gerome’s joke pierced Claude’s very soul.
Choosing between Agnes and mushrooms? He wanted both. He’d do anything to have both. But what if Agnes really DID issue such an ultimatum? Break up with Agnes? Or break up with mushrooms? Well, there was only one possible answer.
“For Agnes, I would forsake mushrooms.”
The two brothers’ eyes widened as Claude made this declaration. Then they both sighed.
“…So you say, with tears in your eyes,” Xavier remarked.
“Crest Bearers with Dragonmates really are such a pain in the…” Gerome muttered under his breath.
After patting Claude’s head, the two of them left his room. “Get some rest!” they called out behind them, and Claude nodded.
He wished he could go with Agnes to visit Cesar, but it couldn’t be helped this time. She’d be all right with Charles.
Claude closed his eyes, picturing a vision of loveliness, with peach-blossom hair and emerald green eyes. Not much longer now. They would soon be married. Soon, he began dreaming of the sweet future that awaited.