Halfway through our journey, we stop at a town as the sun sets. This town is much larger than the villages before as it seems to be a major trading hub. Because of this large size, there were a lot of people - both inside and outside the village.
Getting in was easy, considering the royal carriage. Though the guards looked wary of me, I think my collar and calm presence within the soldier formation around the carriage reassured them. I assume the royal family can get away with pretty much everything, anyway. With that thought, I get flashes of Daimier’s childhood wherein causing mayhem was his greatest skill - and he never once got in trouble. Well, by anyone other than the King.
We stop at a large, fancy hotel that has carriage parking and Beast stables. While servants begin to take the carriage and beasts away, a few look at me hesitantly. It seems they don’t know what to do with me.
Hmm, I suppose I have to stay in the stables since I won’t be able to comfortably fit in the hotel. Going outside the walls to sleep would likely result in not being allowed back in. Or I would just cause panic if I were unaccompanied.
Daimier knocks me out of my deep thinking with a mental nudge. I look at him, and he reveals to me an odd-looking stick the size of him that he had pulled from the carriage. The hell is that?
He grins at me as he hands it to a servant, speaking aloud for the benefit of the servants. “It’s a resting tree I bought for you. It has runes on it that can shrink it to a carriable size and make it really comfortable! There’s also cushions similar to what was in your tent lining the branches.” Despite him addressing me, the servant holding it nods in understanding.
‘When did you even get this?’ I ask incredulously.
‘While you were asleep.’ He replies with smugness. Cheeky brat.
He simply smiles and turns to the gathered servants. “This Keyuu is bonded with me, if you mistreat her I WILL know. Treat her as if she were a Ryusho, and get this resting tree set up for her in the nicest stable you have. I should not need to say it, but,” he smirks at them, “if you anger her, you will wish it was me you had to deal with.”
The servants fearfully bow, spouting out various forms of agreement. My eyes catch on a female servant who looks calmer than the others, and I slither up to her.
Daimier easily catches my intentions and points at her. “You, you are her main hand. Lead her to where she will sleep and take care of her.”
She bows her head again where she had lifted it to listen, “Yes, your highness!”
Daimier pats my shoulder and smiles at me. “See you tomorrow. We are going to stay for a day or two, so I will take you around town to see the sights. Maybe we will find something you want.”
I nod in response, and he goes on to the hotel. It’s not like we’re ever truly apart, considering the telepathic link. But he had his reasons for saying goodbye like that. He made sure to show the servants he considers me an equal and that I have the intelligence necessary to understand English, so that they didn’t treat me like a dumb beast. It’s a very subtle plan, one that I consider thoughtful and sweet.
At that thought, Daimier gets a little embarrassed. He’s of the opinion that it’s the least he can do if I’m going to be granting his freedom. Doesn’t change the sweetness of the action, though.
I watch as the beast handler chosen to be my main hand looks at me in thought for a brief moment. Nodding to herself, she bows to me as she did to Daimier. “My name is Sarah, your Highness. I assume you have no name, as I’m sure the Prince would have introduced you?”
I nod at her observation. This one definitely seems smart, reinforcing my decision. Talking with me - without telepathy, that is - takes a lot of charades and intelligence to understand.
She nods, “Then please follow me to your quarters, your Highness.” When I nod and gesture for her to walk on, she stands up straight and walks off. I follow along, noting the grace in her steps.
Daimier feels a sense of satisfaction at my treatment, and considers giving Sarah a large tip if this continues. Sounds like a smart idea.
The other servants trail along, one of them holding my new perch. I’m interested to try it out.
I’m led to a weirdly luxurious stable. I guess Daimier isn’t the only one who likes to pamper beasts. Or there are other Great Beast bonded humans around, but those are rare from what I’ve seen.
The stable actually already has a few pillows strewn about the room, and no straw like I had expected. Though, considering the multiple large canine and feline beasts I noticed on the way here, this area is tailored to beasts that prefer softer materials. Straw would be for horses or cows or something. All the better for me, I feel like straw would stick stubbornly to my feathers.
My perch is lifted in as Sarah addresses me. “I’m aware communication may be difficult for you, but I will try my best to discern anything you may need during your stay here. Apologies if I’m wrong in my assumption, but would you like a basking light? I’ve noticed that reptilian beasts tend to enjoy the heat.” She asks politely.
I pause to think for a moment. I’m not cold-blooded, especially with my fire affinity core, but that sounds like that would be nice. Like a heated blanket or something. So, I nod.
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She nods in return and gestures at a few waiting servants who bow and rush off. How efficient.
“Do you need anything else before I go?” She inquires.
I take a moment to think about that. Other than wanting to rest on the nice, comfy looking perch, I do feel a bit hungry. I haven’t eaten in about a month, and all the flying around I’ve been doing along the road has burnt up a lot of energy. Showing her that I’m hungry shouldn’t be too difficult, either.
I nod before opening my mouth and pointing into it, simultaneously patting my stomach. Or, well, the area beneath my chest - I’m like eighty percent stomach. Being a snake and all.
“You’re hungry?” She clarifies, and I nod. “No problem. Attempting to ask for specifics from you would be difficult, so would you mind if I ask Prince Daimier for your dietary restrictions or favorites?”
I didn’t even need to prod Daimier to ask, since he’s just sitting in his room watching through my eyes. He gives an immediate yes as my mind flashes with food options. This body is purely carnivorous, so it must be meat, and though it can be cooked seasoning would be too much. My sense of smell is too strong and I’d be overwhelmed despite having no sense of taste.
Oh yeah, snakes smell weirdly. They use their forked tongues to drag in scents to a smelling gland on the roof of their mouth. So, when I eat, I only taste texture and I smell my food up close rather than taste it. It’s a really weird experience.
As for specific types of meat… Well, venison is the most efficient with how big deer get - since I only get hungry once a month, I eat a lot when I finally do. And I don’t like beef - though I don’t know if any of my previous life’s tastes would carry over to this body. Actually, the only thing I’ve really eaten since I’ve been here is a whole doe, and the thought of the texture of fur sliding down my throat makes me shudder.
I’m brought from my musing by Daimier’s sudden determination. Well, at least I can rest assured that I’ll get something good this time.
Receiving his agreement, I nod at Sarah.
“Understood, I will get that to you as soon as possible. Though, it is quite late - the kitchen staff may be leaving soon.” She says apologetically.
I wave her off. I’ve just started to get hungry, I can wait until morning. Sleeping sounds good right now anyway.
She bows, “Then, if that is all?” I nod. “Goodnight, your Highness.” She says politely as she leaves.
Makes me wish I could bid her goodnight as well, what with how polite she’s being. Honestly, I expected a lot more fear or disdain considering I’m a creature that most would assume unintelligent. Maybe people are used to intelligent creatures?
‘Bonding is a very popular method to gain magic. There’s a whole class in Summerside dedicated to bonding with a beast. Considering the rarity of Great Beasts here, and Beasts lacking the intelligence to make a bond on their own, there’s runic items that can bond a Beast to a human. Usually people join that class for the chance to get a Beast to bond with, but some join already bonded. Of course, there are still people who are afraid or derogatory towards creatures - especially Great Beasts - and you can usually spot them when they use the term Monster.’ Daimier is quick to explain. He then pauses, getting lost in thought.
He thinks of how, apparently, in most old texts Great Beasts are called Monsters. It’s only recently that the term Great Beast came about. One of the main turning points was when a past king - merely a prince at the time - bonded with a Great Beast and became really powerful. He was one of the better kings according to the books, he had a habit of traveling to help establish towns and fight off aggressive Beasts.
After so much exposure to the prince’s Bonded - who could apparently speak English and not just understand it - the citizens fell in love with the charming beast and couldn’t bear to call him a Monster.
I wonder what type of creature he was, and Daimier sends me his memories of the art in the books.
It depicted a large fox with nine tails - a Kitsune! Except he had scales scattered through his fur and he had a dragon-like quality to him. His species was called Shokit, discovered and named by the Prince when he bonded with his partner. The name is a mixture of the Kitsune of legend, and the Ryusho name. No other Shokit has been seen since the one’s disappearance.
That prince reigned as King for over a hundred years. When his wife died, he committed suicide - unable to bear the long life gifted to him through his bonding. After that, the Shokit bonded to him disappeared and the man’s son took the throne.
Apparently his suicide note is still around - copied into history books. Though, Daimier didn’t read it all the way through since it seemed too sappy.
‘But if you’re so curious about it, maybe I could give it a read for you.’ He offers.
I don’t think I would enjoy it much either, though. I’m mostly just curious about it because it’s an entirely different world’s history. I sure as hell wasn’t interested in my own world’s history.
‘Yeah,’ Daimier agrees, ‘I only read those books because it was required of me as a prince.’ I feel a wave of spite flood him at that. Though it’s reasonable that a prince knows his kingdom’s history, I can understand the annoyance at being made to do something you don’t want to.
I’m jostled from our conversation by a knock on the gate to my stable. Servants creep in afterward, looking at me for any sign that I don’t want them there. I just calmly stare at them until they decide to come in, dragging along a large runic object. It looks a bit like a lamp, with a flared base and a large cone at the top - though there is no lightbulb. Rather, inside the cone are rings of inactive runes.
I watch as the servants bring the object to the corner of the room, facing the tree perch. One of them presses a rune on the neck of the object, causing the runes to light up and a haze to fill the room - along with a heavenly warmth.
I barely pay attention as the servants bow and leave. I hastily slither to the perch, climbing it and making myself comfortable on the cushioned branches. It does feel much nicer than a branch, and much more natural for me than a plain cushion - coupled with the heat, I feel amazingly relaxed within a minute.
Even when I was human, I absolutely loved basking in the sun. As a Great Beast with a fire affinity, the warmth somehow feels even better.
‘I get the feeling that the heat would be too miserable if I were there, but feeling it from you feels amazing.’ Daimier says in awe, and I feel his body relaxing just like mine. The feeling of comfort echoes and rebounds through our bond, creating an intense effect that feels as if I’m sleeping on clouds.
He can’t resist the urge to lie down in his bed, and neither of us can gather the effort to talk anymore. We both bask in the pleasant warmth as we drift off to sleep.