The High Lord of Autumn learned a new trick and wants to share it with Azriel for @erisweekofficial 2025
This Eris is the same as the Eris in my other dragon piece and exists in continuation to that, but I made some changes (most notably with his various horns/spikes) to give the look more dynamic, interesting forms that also easily fit a humanoid face. If I have time before the day’s over I may draw up more sketches of this version of our fav fireling……perhaps that focuses more on his….bottom half……..show off his [REDACTED]
But no promises lol. This was my first foray into lineless art and I am. Exhausted. Pretend the inconsistency in his scales is an artistic choice. I’m just excited I can finally put him out in the world (and on time for the day I planned him for!), I’ve had this idea literally since my first brush with Dragon!Eris and have been working on this on and off for like a week and a half, I feel accomplished!
Anywho, taglist below the cut! Give a shout if I forgot you, or if you want on (or off! No shame in it)
Summary: The village you live in chooses to sacrifice you and your lover to the Great Dragon.
Warnings: homophobia, idk I think that's it?
Words: 1.7k
Author's Note: yaaay I'm so happy I managed to write something for today! All it took was like 7 discarded ideas lol. I hope you all like it, please let me know what you think!!
18+ only pls
🧡🩶🤍🩶🧡
The air was cold in the mountains.
You’d never been this far up before, had never dared to encroach on the great dragon’s domain. He ruled from the peak, giving blessings to your kingdom when the people followed his laws and wishes, or cursing the fields and young when he was displeased.
And you were at the peak.
Nesta was beside you, shivering in her white dress, a twin to your own that you had been shoved into before being blindfolded and hauled up the mountainside. All because you had found love together.
Two females together had been deemed unclean and a disappointment to the dragon on high so great that your village had decided to sacrifice you to the great beast himself.
In front of you was a large cave, a dim light shining from within. Surrounding the mouth of the cave were gold and jewels, with the occasional sheep and cow skeleton strewn about, a shiver going down your spine at the thought of something large enough to eat an entire animal of that size.
Hands pushed your forward and you fell to the ground, and Nesta fell with you, her grunt of pain a stab to your own heart. The sound of men sprinting down the mountain, gravel beneath their feet met your ears. The sound of cowardice.
You hauled yourself to your feet as quickly as you could, then extended a bloodied hand to Nesta, who had just pushed onto her knees. Her grateful smile made your heart flutter as you helped her to her feet. You looked over the side of the mountain that you had been dragged up and saw that the men had already made it far enough that on bare feet, and there would be no way to catch up to them before darkness fell. The mountainside was overtaken by all manner of beasts at night, far too dangerous when you had no weapon let alone shoes. And, you’d already been warned that you would be killed in the village square if you attempted to return to your homes.
Your only choice left was to stay on the mountain top and hope that the dragon wouldn’t eat you.
“This is so fucked,” Nesta groaned as she stared at the retreating mob, her middle finger extended towards them.
“I know,” you whispered. “All we did was love each other…” One of her arms wrapped around your shoulders, pulling you in closely.
“We will survive until the morning, and head to another village. Then we’ll find one of my sisters,” Nesta said, her iron will showing again. “I will not be eaten by some dragon simply because our village hates us, and I will not lose you.”
Your smile was still on your lips when they met hers, telling her without speaking that you agreed with her plan. Her lips were as soft and warm as ever, the heat she stirred in you a boon against the chill in the air.
“Should we go inside the cave? Just a little, to stay safe from the wind?” you asked, turning your head to look at the nearly dark cave. The dragon king had to be further back in the cave, if he hadn’t come to eat his offerings already, and you would no doubt hear a giant beast approaching in time to exit the cave.
“I suppose… They didn’t give us much to wear, did they?” Nesta sighed.
“Why waste the fabric?” you asked, thoroughly upset at how quickly the village you had come to love over the last five years had decided to kill you. And Nesta, she had lived there all her life! You looked at her, searching for the fire that lit her eyes, but found it barely an ember.
The pair of you approached the cave carefully, hands locked together. You wouldn’t leave Nesta behind, and knew that she would do the same with you. No noise sounded from within, though as you approached, the air slowly grew warmer. Inside the mouth of the cave, more gold, jewels and extravagant chests against the walls. The cave stretched on forever, that dim light coming from somewhere within.
Nesta led you to an area of bare rock between two large chests and tugged you down so you were sat right against her side. The air was much warmer in here, and you were almost cozy now that you were out of the wind and nestled up to Nesta. Your head fell to her shoulder and your hands found hers, playing with the long digits as you waited for the sun to finish its daily work.
--
You snapped awake, head rising from Nesta’s shoulder in an instant.
Darkness had fallen, dark enough that you had trouble seeing anything outside of the cave, but your eyes were trained on the soft light emanating from further within the cave.
Which was growing stronger by the second.
You shook Nesta awake, finger to her lips to keep her silent. Her blue-gray eyes widened at the growing light, fear filling them. You were certain you looked the same.
“What is your crime?” a deep voice boomed, making you jump in surprise. Heavy footsteps sounded, the sound of scales sliding over scales joining in. The light seemed to move with the sounds, your fear increasing with each moment you stayed where you were. “What is your crime?” the voice asked again, closer this time.
You opened your mouth to answer, but Nesta clamped a hand over your mouth as she shook her head vigorously. You pulled her hand away and answered, “Love.”
“Love,” the voice said, hissing as if it were laughing. “What damage did your love do to disappoint your fellows?”
“None. They believe two women to be unclean in your eyes,” Nesta replied, giving you a shrug of her shoulders when your eyes widened at her words.
The light was bright now, and over the top of the chest to your left you could see a giant flame on the end of a massive, scaled tail. The fear in your heart increased when the head and body of the beast appeared, his giant amber eyes staring at both of you. “They are fools,” the dragon king hissed, tail flicking back and forth in his agitation. “Why did you stay in my cave?”
“It was cold out, your majesty,” you said as you ducked your head, hoping that you wouldn’t offend him.
A flash of light had your eyes squeezing shut, and when you opened them there was a man standing in front of you - a beautiful man, with those same amber eyes and auburn hair that reached his hips. He still possessed a fiery tale, though much smaller than his other form.
“Come inside, let us talk,” he said, beckoning to the pair of you with clawed hands. When you and Nesta hesitated, he sighed. “I will not harm you, I merely want to discuss something with you.”
You shared a look with Nesta, then slowly stood on shaky legs. Nesta followed suit, and then you were walking after the dragon king, the fire of his tail warming you even further. He led you to an offshoot of the cave, filled with furniture that was fit for humans. You sat next to Nesta on the couch that he gestured at, tucking yourself tightly against her side.
“My name is Eris, though you likely know me as the dragon king,” he said simply once you were settled. “I have long waited for a female to be brought here, one that is fertile. And now, there are two of you.”
“And?” Nesta asked harshly. The mention of fertility had her nearly shaking with rage, and you shaking in fear.
“I would like for you to be my queens.”
The offer shocked you enough that you went still, your head cocking to the side. Be his queens?
“To what end?” Nesta asked.
“To bear my children, and live here, safe and under my care. You will want for nothing.”
“And if we say no?” you questioned, wanting to know the answer. To know if you truly had a choice.
“I will send you on your way,” Eris said. He stepped closer. “I do hope you consider my offer seriously. I could bring you pleasure like no other male, and I would happily allow the two of you to be with each other. All I require is one heir to my throne, one hatchling.”
You met Nesta’s eyes, and saw the surety there. You nodded at her, knowing that whatever choice she made was the choice that you would make.
You wouldn’t lose her.
“We accept your offer, King Eris,” Nesta said solemnly.
“Wonderful!” Eris said with a clap of his hands. “All we must do is seal the bargain with a kiss.” The smirk he wore as he gave you that little tidbit was infuriating.
“Don’t you want to know our names first?”
Eris narrowed his eyes playfully at you. “I would have learned one way or another, wouldn’t I? But of course, what are your names, my lovely queens?”
Nesta rolled her eyes at him. “My name is Nesta, and this is Y/N.” He purred both of your names, the sound of your name from his lips sending warmth shooting through you.
“Now, the kiss,” Eris said, the flames in his amber eyes dancing when he looked at you, as if he could sense the heat he’d caused. He approached the couch and leaned down, pressing his lips to Nesta’s first, then to yours. A wave of warmth went through your body as the bargain was sealed. “I will show you to our rooms, then. There will never be another day where you sleep on the ground, my loves.”
When he began to walk away, you locked eyes with Nesta. “Are you okay with this?” you whispered.
“Of course, love. We stay together and will never be judged for our relationship. And he’s rather handsome,” Nesta giggled softly. “Come, we don’t want to keep him waiting.” She tugged you from the couch, and the two of you walked on sore feet to follow your newest partner.
Summary: Nesta Archeron is given as a living sacrifice to the dragon of Velaris. The only problem is he doesn’t want anything to do with it.
Inspired by a prompt made by @writing-prompt-s on tumblr.
Notes: Happy Neris week! I wanted to make a little Neris one shot to celebrate so here it is! This is a low stakes, silly little fic about a dragon and a lost girl finding solace and understanding in one another. I hope you enjoy!
Read on AO3 or keep reading below the cut.
In the mountain hill of Velaris, hidden in the shadows of an abysmal cave, lay a centuries old fire breathing dragon. He had resplendent scales of crimson and wings so big you could hear its beating from miles away. The few who had seen him and had stared at their terrified reflection through his amber eyes had proclaimed he was the biggest, most ferocious beast they had ever seen. The village feared him, venerated him, for very few knew where he came from and why, but they understood that his appeasement came at a price, and for years they earned the dragon’s graces with presents and sacrifices. That was until one fateful day when the centuries of peace came to an end, when the village decided to send the dragon of Velaris a human woman to burn.
Eris woke up that morning already with a migraine.
He stretched his great wings with a big, monstrous yawn that echoed through the whole cave. The soft light of dawn filtered through the open ceiling of the ancient place, the one he had inhabited for at least one hundred years now, a hollow mountain in the outskirts of a small town, as far away from his old home as he could have possibly gone.
Today marked the anniversary of that fateful day he had landed there, when the villagers had freaked out and had offered him goods in exchange of their lives, even though Eris had no intention of killing any of them, but in his monstrous form, he understood the fear.
He had welcomed the village’s offerings year by year– coffers of gold and rubies (when the economy allowed it), carts filled with fish or harvested goods, chickens, livestock (he had no use for) and even sculptures of his likeness. He still had those stacked somewhere, the big mighty dragon of the hill carved in stone and marble, the copper statue of the feared monster of Velaris.
He liked the arrangement, for a century he lived alone, ate alone, slept alone and knew peace. The villagers would only come once a year, leave the offering and then retreat back to their lives. Eris didn’t care for more.
Today wouldn’t be any different. He waited, with his enormous crimson wings tucked in, for the drums to start, and soon enough they did. He listened to the vibrating beat of their drums as the humans made their way to his lair. The villagers surely liked their shows, always making a big fuss about things. Couldn’t they just leave the damn thing and let him continue with his uneventful existence? His migraine was getting worse.
They were a bit more enthusiastic this time, he pondered with annoyance, as he heard soft chantings coming from the multitude. He rolled his big amber eyes at them as he heard them come.
“Purify us!” He could suddenly make out. “Sacrifice the sinner!”
“Burn the witch!” They chanted. “The Dragon will burn the witch!”
They continued on as Eris simply listened in slight curiosity. Surely it wasn’t what he thought it was. No, it couldn’t be.
He heard the humans opening the cave entrance, rolling the big slab of stone as they continued the chanting and drumming. When they opened it the yells reverberated through the whole cave, he swore sometimes he did regret not just killing them.
From his hiding place he could make out the silhouettes in the opening, the humans were energetic as they brought the offering, and he could suddenly make out a slender form being dragged from the crowd and pushed inside the cave.
“Oof” He heard a soft voice say.
“Burn the witch!” The villagers chanted.
Before Eris could even move his large body the humans had retreated and pushed the entrance closed again, leaving the creature inside his cave.
“Fuck” He heard the voice say again. It was indeed a woman. Eris watched her in utter shock and irritation.
What in the godly realms was this?
Nesta Archeron had seen better days. Well, not in a long time, if being practically homeless and so rotting poor she had to resort to hooking up with men for money counted as better days. It probably did, since now she was lying on the floor of a cold, moist cave, where an ancient dragon lived, and she was to be his next meal.
She couldn’t even say she was surprised by the turn of events. She knew that town had always hated her guts, and were always looking for an excuse to send her to rot. She didn’t think that hooking up with men from town would be the thing that’d do it, though.
Her sisters had warned her, damn them they had, they had kissed her cheek and told her to try and be nice, be likeable. Nesta’s situation wasn’t as bad as it now was when they had wed and left town, she had a house and a job, a quiet but peaceful life, even if she hadn’t had many friends.
But then she had gone and fallen in love with that Knight that everyone loved, and suddenly they all really hated her.
How could she be with someone like him? A mere peasant woman courting the Lord of Velaris’ favorite Knight. And when the pressure to be someone she wasn’t had become too much for her and she couldn’t continue it, he had turned on her like she was spoiled goods, and damn her but she wouldn’t be the one to apologize, even if by being on his bad side had utterly ruined her reputation.
At first when the villagers started spreading rumors of breaking Sir Cassian’s heart by supposedly cheating on him she didn’t care. She kept on with her sad stupid life, but the rumors worsened. Suddenly she was a witch who had charmed him in an effort to secure power for herself. It got so bad she eventually lost her job for it. It was all a downhill from there.
The struggles, the long days and nights with no food because everyone refused to even serve her, her only chance at survival being the hungry men she met at slum taverns.
She was a pariah and soon enough when the annual offering to the dragon of Velaris came to be, and they realized the economy was so bad that by taking the witch of the slums to be eaten as a sacrifice to the beast would be like killing two birds with one stone, they had jumped to the opportunity.
Nesta rubbed her eyes as she assessed the place. It was dark except for the soft light coming from the open ceiling, vines were hanging from above and crows were croaking somewhere in the dark. Other than that it was quiet, so quiet and so still. Nesta shivered, tucking the old wool around her body.
When they grabbed her from the warm bed of one of her lovers they only allowed her the dignity to wear an old worn cloak someone had thrown at her and then they were already pushing her.
She had seen Cassian looking at her when they took her, and he had done nothing to save her. Just like he had done nothing when the rumors got worse, when they called her a whore and a witch and she had to beg people to sell her food. He just looked at her and then dropped his gaze in disappointment.
Nesta couldn’t believe it. She really did it this time. She had tried so hard to fit in, had done everything she could and it still hadn’t been enough. She was still despicable Nesta, she was still useless and unlovable.
She couldn’t help the tears now forming on her eyes and she let them fall for the first time in a long time. She was going to die anyway and no one would see her cry. She just wished the dragon would finish the job already so she could finally get some peace.
As if on cue, she heard a rumbling, heavy scraping on the rocky floor reverberating through the whole cave, and then there he was, huge amber eyes looking at her through slit pupils like a cat’s. Nesta’s whole body shook as she saw the horns as big as her whole body, the teeth, the gleaming blood-red scaled body and the huge mighty wings tucked behind his back.
With a voice she could only describe as demonic, he said: “You have five seconds to run, human”
Humans were very stupid apparently.
Eris stood there in front of the thin woman in all his mighty beastly form and instead of running, or screaming, or even begging for mercy, eyes the color of a stormy sky met his with unfaltering determination.
Had she not understood him? He knew his voice was rusty for lack of use but he still got the message out. Maybe she was a foreigner.
He narrowed his eyes at her. “Do you not hear me human? Run!” He roared, the sound making the whole cave shake. The only thing that moved was her long hair from the force of his breath, he noticed.
Then, she finally fisted her hands as he noticed the tears streaming from her eyes, and the woman stood up.
“I can hear you, dragon. I’m here to be eaten by you as a lame excuse of offering from the humans, so please grant me the honor and light me up on fire or maybe even rip my head off my shoulders, I don’t care. Just do it!”
Eris’ head was pounding now. He really wished he would have just killed those humans all those years ago.
Eris simply huffed an exasperated breath as he stared her down. Her feeble form was covered in a simple grey cloak that was obviously not hers, her long light brown hair was messy and cascading down her back and those flame-like eyes were still digging into his. He hadn’t been this close to a woman in so many years, it felt utterly strange.
“I have no use for human women, especially witches, as they called you” He bluffed. He wanted this day to be over already.
“Then just kill me and be done with it” She insisted. Eris narrowed his eyes at her boldness.
“What is this insistence on getting killed, do you really want to die, woman? The crows would be the ones to eat your body as I have no taste for it”
“I already told you what I want” She affirmed.
“I have no intention of killing you, but I will if you don’t stop messing with my morning” Eris turned to retreat further into the cave. “Go back to your village, human, tell them I do not want you”
As he moved he heard a soft bitter laugh that made him pause.
“Not even the fucking dragon wants me for anything” She said to herself. “Please just spare me having to crawl back to that place and be burned at the stake with those idiots watching me like I’m a show. Just kill me” She said, and Eris watched as she dropped her head.
He could not believe what was happening.
“Don’t be dramatic, just tell them I am content with last year’s offering, and won’t require anything else, I’m sure you’ll be fine. Now, don’t let me lose my temper, go” With his snout he pointed at a small opening on the cave.
“I can’t go back”
“Go, I said”
“Please-“
“GO!” He roared again, and this time he watched as the woman hugged her arms around her body, as silent tears dragged dirt from her face and she pressed her lips together, her eyes shocked and wide. Monster, he was a monster, he reminded himself, he shouldn’t feel any remorse.
He turned to go deeper into the cave then, and a few moments later he finally heard her leave.
Eris lay on the ground, determined to have a good two day long nap and forget all about that incident. But the crows were too loud, and the dripping of water from stalagmites too bothersome, the grey from the sky too poignant. An hour, two hours, five had passed and still he could not find peace.
Was the woman in earnest when she said they would burn her at the stake? Eris tried to ignore the nauseating feeling that thought evoked in him, he snuggled into his wing, it was none of his business. If she died or lived, it was none of his business.
Then make it your business . A soft voice in the back of his mind said.
No, I am at peace here, no one bothers me, no one tries to murder me, it is not my business!
Eris affirmed his thought, the woman dying should not bother him, she was a stranger to him, a witch according to the villagers, she probably deserved what she had coming anyway.
Did you? The voice sounded inside his head again. The images of torches following him to his house in the night appeared in his mind, the shouts calling him a freak, his mother’s screams. No .
With a groan Eris, the mighty dragon of Velaris, stood up from his comfortable chosen napping area and with a few flaps of his colossal wingspan, flew out of his lair for the first time in one hundred years.
Nesta wasn’t surprised as much as she wanted to be. She wanted to be surprised that the moment she stepped out of that cave, four men snatched her and when she tried to explain had immediately told her she would be burned at the stake for cowardice as well as practicing of witchcraft. She had simply rolled her eyes.
They had tied her up and had placed her in the middle of the town’s park to be burned just like she predicted, as a show.
So now there she was, hands and legs tied around a big pole right atop an array of logs and dried hay. Her bare feel ached, her hands were numb. The town began to gather around her, dozens upon dozens of eyes staring at her pathetic self. She just wanted it to be over.
“Nesta Archeron” Said the executioner over the loud drums of the crowd, she didn’t even look at him as she placed Cassian’s eyes looking at her from the far edge of the crowd, his significant height making him unmistakable. “You are to be burned at the stake in the name of God, for the crimes of cowardice and witchcraft…” Nesta stopped listening, the dizzying drums continuing, the world blurring as she finally accepted her fate, to be burned slowly, painfully, in front of all these people, in front of the one she once thought loved her. She wanted to vomit. She wished the dragon had granted her the mercy.
Somehow she realized the executioner had grabbed a torch and was now approaching the pyre at the base of her feet, she focused on the dancing flames on the torch, how they moved freely, just like she did when she danced, unaware that their dancing would kill her, painfully, slowly.
The executioner stood right in front of her pyre and she closed her eyes, one silent tear falling down her cheek. She waited for the heat to come, for the fire to roar and consume her, but it never came.
Instead she heard a boom on the ground, and a loud, ferocious roar coming from behind her.
She saw the executioner’s face drain of color entirely as he dropped the torch at his feet and looked like he may die of fear staring at something behind her. The dragon.
The whole crowd scrambled to get out, people pushing each other to get away from the sheer fury of the beast still roaring at them like some type of demon that had materialized.
Nesta was absolutely petrified as she saw him walk past her, still tied to the pole, while he paced, each step reverberating through her body, scaring the shit out of the whole village.
Then, she saw his enormous head turn towards her, monstrous body turning to her and she finally thought she would die. At least, she conceded, it would be by a dragon’s fire.
But when he opened his magnificent jaw, the fire did not come, she felt him move towards her slowly, hooking one of his sharp teeth to the ropes on her hands and freeing her. Nesta gaped at him.
“Wh-what?” She could not understand.
“Free yourself” The dragon spoke. Nesta didn’t think twice as she removed the remaining ropes from her feet and torso, then just as she wobbly stepped out, she felt a tug from her waist, and suddenly the ground was no longer beneath her, in fact it was getting smaller, and the whole village fell from her as she realized the dragon had taken hold of her and they were now flying.
Nesta screamed.
“Could you not? That is awful for my headache” The dragon grumbled, confusing her out of her fear.
Nesta focused all of her attention on her breathing as she tried not to scream with every look down, with every sinking feeling in her stomach. When they finally landed inside of the cave again, she was so stiff in the dragon’s claw that she had to take a moment to stand, and even then her knees were still trembling.
When everything came back to her, she fell to her knees and sobbed.
“Lady” She heard the beast say. Nesta only cried harder. “Lady could you please stop crying?”
“You-you saved me” She sobbed in shock and disbelief. Her heart was going to beat out of her chest.
“One could say that” She heard him say. “Now please stop crying, I could take you somewhere else, where do you wish to be?”
“I don’t have anywhere to be” She continued crying, now looking up at the dragon’s enormous face, she couldn’t believe she was having this conversation with a beast and that she would have been dead if it wasn’t for him. It was fitting, she thought, as she felt just as much a monster as he looked. “My sisters they’re“ She began but couldn’t stop the freaking sobs. “They’re better off without me” She felt the tears streaming down her face. “I don’t have anywhere, I am a monster, just leave me here to rot in this cave. You’ve done enough”
Nesta curled into herself, trying to warm her body out of the shaking sensation of her sobs.
There was a long pause and then she heard a loud burning sound, like a flame consuming paper, and when she looked up she didn’t find a dragon’s eyes looking at her, but a man’s.
Nesta pushed herself and landed on her ass when she saw the tall, naked man with flaming red hair staring her down. She noticed his amber eyes first, his nakedness second, and his horns and claws third. He moved slowly towards one corner of the cave to retrieve a cloak she hadn’t seen before, covering his magnificently muscular body from her sight. His hands and feet were reddish even though it looked like normal skin, his face was gorgeous and angular, his black horns cutting through the strands of crimson hair that cascaded down his body all the way to his hips. When he turned to her, she realized she had been staring, absolutely agape.
“I don’t appreciate being stared at, but at least I got my point across” He said, his voice like silk coursing through her body. “You say you’re a monster, well, then there’s two of us”
“You’re the dragon, the dragon is a man ?” She spoke mainly to herself.
“I’m Eris, and yes I’m a dragon” He walked casually towards her and held his broad, clawed hand for her to take. She hesitated before she placed her palm inside of his warm hold and he pulled her up. The force almost made her crush onto his strong front, but she steadied herself with a gasp.
“I-“ She was still looking at him absolutely dumbfounded, scared, but mainly enthralled by this new discovery. “I thought you were just-“
“A beast? You wound me, didn’t you see the horns? Of course I’m a beast still” He said somehow a bit self-deprecatingly. “Now, lady, stop wasting my time, what is your name?”
“Nesta” She could not stop staring at his sharp, beautiful face. “Nesta Archeron”
“Well, Nesta. I don’t see any horns or claws on you, so I wonder why you think you’re a monster” He smiled slightly, sharp canines greeting her as he did so. She noticed an array of freckles on his nose.
“I-“ she pondered. “You have freckles”
That took him by surprise. “What of it?”
“Well, I’ve never seen a monster with freckles”
“This must be your lucky day” He turned around and left her standing there. “You said you wanted me to leave you here to rot, but I wouldn’t appreciate the smell of all that, so why don’t I offer you an alternative?” He said as he walked further down the darkness of the cave.
She followed him hesitantly.
“What alternative?”
“Well, I take you as a prisoner, what do you think?”
“Are you asking me to be a willing prisoner?” She asked as she saw him light up a long corridor with just a flick of his wrist. Magic, he also had magic.
“Mmhm” He said as he continued on. “Be my prisoner and live here, do whatever you want but stay out of my business and I would too, you’d be free to leave whenever you liked though, as long as you don’t tell anyone about it”
“About what?”
He stopped, dropped a small sigh as if resigning himself to whatever he was about to say and then straightened.
“This” He said, moving to let her see the small passage, she looked beyond the gap and found an enormous cave alight with flames and a huge tree with glowing orange leaves in the middle.
She gasped at the view.
“Exactly” He said. “I found this place centuries ago, and decided to have it all to myself” He crossed his arms and admired it. “The only way you are leaving this place alive is if you vow to never speak of it” He said in a seemingly threatening way, but Nesta wasn’t scared anymore, she was in awe.
“I can’t believe you’re asking me to marry you” She said not looking at him.
“What? No I’m not” He said. “I’m saying you’ll be my prisoner”
“Willing prisoner that will take a vow and can leave whenever she pleases, sounds like marriage to me” She said and found his shocked expression almost funny.
“Not marriage. Imprisonment. Gosh, humans are so strange” He corrected, rubbing his temples with his hands. She remembered he had mentioned a headache.
She stepped towards the dragon-man slowly, then placed her middle finger onto his temple making him jump and flinch away slightly.
“What are you-“
“Stay still, you said you had a headache?” She said, feeling out the cold flame power surging from inside of her.
“Yes… why-“
She let her cooling power seep through her fingers, letting its essence cool his temple. He let out a sigh of relief.
“What are you doing? How?” He frowned, voice breathy, clearly relieved of the pain.
“They weren’t completely lying when they said I’m a witch, in a way I am. I’m just… repaying you for saving my life today” She said, dropping her hand as Eris stared at her dumbfounded.
“Don’t mention it” He mumbled, seemingly unsure of how to proceed. She felt almost as lost as he looked, still confused and shocked by everything that had happened in such a short amount of time.
“Why did you?” She felt the need to ask.
“What?”
“Save me”
“You’re being dramatic”
“I almost died” She added with a frown.
He sighed. “Well, I simply would have liked if someone had done that for me. Is that enough of an answer for you, lady?” He rolled his eyes and she narrowed hers.
“You can just call me Nesta” She said, crossing her hands over her chest. “If I’m to be your wife”
“Prisoner”
“Sure”
He sighed again. “Follow me” He said, and Nesta did.
She noticed his amber eyes first, his nakedness second, and his horns and claws third. He moved slowly towards one corner of the cave to retrieve a cloak she hadn’t seen before, covering his magnificently muscular body from her sight. His hands and feet were reddish even though it looked like normal skin, his face was gorgeous and angular, his black horns cutting through the strands of crimson hair that cascaded down his body all the way to his hips.
