“Andrea,” Sheilah called, and the woman she called let out an irritated shout.

“I keep telling you to-” Andrea complained, and pointed at Sheilah. “Dining hall. Both of you. Eat.”

Sheilah gave Fialla a bewildered look, and then spotted Andrea drawing a long steel knife somehow from her dress.

Sheilah drew her own knife, and shouted for Fialla in Redstone to do the same, going up on her toes while lowering her posture for an explosive launch.

Andrea jolted and turned, saw the knife in Sheilah’s knife, looked to the knife in her own hand, and then back to Sheilah’s face.

“Go back to the dining hall.” She complained as Magdalene stepped through the door of Sheilah’s apartments.

Magdalene took in the sight of Andrea holding a long knife in her hand as Sheilah holding her own.

“What’s all this, then?” She asked.

Anndrea relaxed with a sigh, and made her knife disappear into the folds of her dress somehow, and then pointed at Sheilah without saying anything.

Sheilah made a face and sheathed her own knife.

“First, you need to understand your own position and respect it. If there is a foe standing before you, your importance is so severe that if it is necessary, you should put as many people as possible between you and them- that no matter how many die, as long as you live, it is sufficient.” Andrea scolded, something that Sheilah wasn’t used to. “Your life is more important than theirs.”

Sheilah scowled. “What a profoundly stupid idea.” She retorted, which caused both women to react; they hadn’t expected her proficiency in the Stormheim tongue to have advanced so far.

“Well, why don’t we retire to the sitting room, where you can explain your reasoning?” Magdalene replied sourly. “A conversation like this does not need to take place in the entryway.”

“The dining hall.” Sheilah corrected. “We’re about to have lunch.”

Magdalene looked to Andrea, who waved her hand a little.

“No, it’s improper to have a conversation while eating. It will wait until after lunch.” Magdalene decided.

Sheilah pursed her lips and scowled a little, but nodded and turned and went back to the dining hall, calling for Fialla.

“I didn’t notice it, but it seems Andrea is armed.” Sheilah observed to Fialla as she began eating.

“Huh. I didn’t notice either.” Fialla replied, but then smirked at Sheilah. “It’s rude to talk at the meal table, Sheilah.”

“Not you, too.” Sheilah complained. In the Redstone, mealtime was a time that was spent with family. A majority of their communication took place while eating.

Fialla chuckled at Sheilah, who joined her.

“I’m ... going to need to explain to them ‘Indomitability’ and ‘Immortality’, I think.” Sheilah murmured to Fialla, switching to the Redstone tongue.

“Are you certain that this is something you want to do?” Fialla warned back, in just as low a mutter.

“I don’t want to.” Sheilah replied, “but I might have to, to avoid being babied.”

“Ugh. A tough choice.” Fialla growled. “If you have to do it, make sure they’re terrified. Above all, a Dragon must be feared.”

Sheilah raised an eyebrow at that. That wasn’t something Davian had taught. “A lesson from your father?”

Fialla seemed to think for a moment, but nodded. “Eat. It’s rude to talk while eating. It’s rude to keep guests waiting.” she finished with a haughty look.

Sheilah made a rude gesture with her hand, but picked up her fork and ate quickly, and called for a bit more, as she expected she might need to demonstrate an ability for the two women.

Her heart thundered at the prospect, and her chest warmed. Calamity, the destructive power of the dragon always wanted out, but this time- it wasn’t time for Calamity. This seemed to only incense the dragon part of her- after all, why should she be hurt, when destroying something else was so much better?

She grimly ate more; the Dragon in her was roused, and she needed the extra fuel. She could tell from Fialla’s reactions that her Supremacy was leaking, too.

How shameless. She castigated herself. She professed herself an adult, but she couldn’t even hold back the Dragon within. Letting her powers run rampant was ... she couldn’t find the right word for it, but in the Redstone you didn’t boast or brag of your power. There was also the admonishment she’d received from Davian, her father: “There aren’t many reasons to unleash the power of the Tyrant, Sheilah, and so we are the first tyrants, demanding the power to remain under our control.”

Sheilah leaned back from the table- another unladylike gesture- and took a few steadying breaths.

“I’m sorry, Fialla. It just wants out.” Sheilah apologized.

“Forgiven- but you’re washing my back first tonight.” Fialla replied. Sheilah nodded.

“Would you get some towels from the bathing room?” She asked her sister, who nodded, and then pushed her plate of food towards Sheilah.

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

“Eat this too, just to be on the safe side.”

Sheilah nodded, and crammed her mouth full, swallowing as quickly as she could. Sweat trickled down her neck, her heart was racing. She couldn’t wait for something to happen.

*****

“The more they learn, the faster they pick up other things.” Andrea was saying to Magdalene as Sheilah walked into the sitting room. “I can only hope that my own children will be so gifted.”

Sheilah raised an eyebrow at this, but elected not to reply to it.

“I’d like to understand something, and I’ll bring two examples to the discussion in order to reinforce what I suspect.” Sheilah began, and both women raised their brows and traded wondering looks.

“Go on.” Magdalene urged, but then paused. “Andrea dear, you forgot tea. I don’t know why it slipped my mind. I’m parched.”

Andrea looked to Sheilah, who nodded.

“No Fialla?” Magdalene asked curiously.

“She’ll be along shortly. I asked her to get something for me that will... help.” She explained. “I don’t want to make a mess.”

“So you expect a mess will be made?” Magdalene asked, though it seemed more of an observation than a question.

“It could happen.” Sheilah agreed as she seated herself.

“You’re sweating.” Magdalene observed.

“I want it to happen.” Sheilah explained, but contradicted herself, adding, “I also don’t want it to happen.”

Magdalene adjusted her posture in her chair. “You’re carrying yourself much more ladylike than when you first arrived here.” She switched topics. “Both of you have improved so much.”

Sheilah gave Magdalene a wan smile. “Fialla’s better at reading and writing and math.” She admitted. “I’m a better dancer, I think.”

Magdalene gave her a half-smile. “If the elves were here, they’d claim that it would only be natural that Fialla would be smarter.”

Sheilah shook her head as Fialla came into the sitting room holding a couple of towels.

“I have no interest in what the elves might say.” Fialla interrupted in a sour voice. “I brought you towels, sister.”

Sheilah nodded, and refocused her attention on Magdalene.

“It should be obvious by now that I have- that I’m not normal.” Sheilah began, and Magdalene nodded.

“Your father called them ‘gifts’.” She agreed. “I don’t claim to understand them.”

There was a polite knock at the door from Andrea, prompting Magdalene to give Sheilah a startled look- the girl was usually preternaturally aware of things going on around her in a way that nobody seemed able to understand, and Sheilah hadn’t explained.

“Come in, Andrea.” Sheilah allowed, and the maid pushed a small cart with a pot of tea and some small sandwiches.

“Are you all right?” Magdalene asked quietly.

“I’m a little tired of being admonished by Andrea by not letting her knock first.” Sheilah replied. “Just a little tired, however.”

Andrea rolled her eyes at this. “It’s important to follow proper decorum, Lady Sheilah.” She admonished.

Sheilah nodded. “Don’t serve the tea yet, please.”

Andrea gave her a puzzled look, but folded her hands at her waist.

“So the first thing: It was explained to me by my father Toril that even if he were a capable hunter, he would not be allowed to hunt, because of the risk of danger. The second thing being what Andrea said in the entryway- that it is far preferable that others be injured before allowing injury to come to me.”

Magdalene and Andrea exchanged looks at this.

“Is this true?” Sheilah asked.

“It’s obviously true.” Magdalene replied. “You are a princess of a royal family that has no heirs except yourself. It absolutely makes sense that we should do everything to make certain that no harm should come to you.”

Sheilah grimaced. “This is extremely frustrating for me. I am quite capable of looking after myself.”

Magdalene shook her head. “Setting aside the rules of society, were you to suffer an injury, an infection, be poisoned, or take ill, this whole country would suffer for it.”

“The ‘gifts’ I have-” Sheilah began, but grimaced. She reached for the towels and quickly picked them up and put them in her lap. She took a breath and embraced the warmth in her chest.

She drew her knife quickly and stabbed it through her arm.

Shock.

She hadn’t expected-

Her heart squeezed, cramping in her chest so hard it hurt.

She couldn’t breathe.

Sweat gushed, her stomach churned as if she was going to vomit- or perhaps mess herself.

She could strangely see everything in perfect detail, her ears roared, Andrea, Fialla, and Magdalene seemed to move in slow motion, and her head felt packed with clouds.

Bafflingly, her arm didn’t hurt at all. There was a mild ache, but-

She tried to firm her grip on the knife and realized that the knife had gone through her arm and dug into her leg.

“Ah-” She tried, but she discovered it was difficult to form words.

She jerked at the knife, but her hand, clammy with sweat, slipped right off the handle. She struggled, forcing her hand to work, to grip the knife properly. She reached inside her in the deepest depths of her will and forced her hand to grip the knife, and with a scream, she tore it free.

The fiery heat of the dragon’s furnace flowed through her even as blood jetted from her arm in a gaudy splash.

Fialla was moving, but-

Her arm burned; she could feel the torn muscles knitting back together, could feel the wrong being made right inside her.

She threw back her head and took a strangled gasp of air.

“I shouldn’t-” She heard someone say, “I shouldn’t have done that, I shouldn’t have-”

Her vision stabilized and her heart slowed down as the Dragon slowly settled down within her.

Her breathing caught up with her, and she started coming back to herself.

What was she supposed to be doing?

Oh.

Right.

She struggled to her feet, indifferent to the blood-soggy towels falling to the sitting room floor. She showed her arm to her horrified mother and maid.

“I heal.” She gasped. “I heal. I am immune to plague and poison.” She listed on her feet and shifted her posture, worried she might fall.

She took a much deeper breath, despite the cramped pain in her chest.

Fialla handed her a cloth; she wiped off the splashes of drying blood and showed her unblemished arm.

“Do you understand why it doesn’t make sense to me, Magdalene?” Sheilah asked.

You lived and died by your own strength.

Well, she’d made it through and come out the other side. Probably.

Above all, a Dragon must be feared.

They certainly seemed terrified by her.

"I think I'll have that tea now." Sheilah added in a weaker voice.