Aurelia spent the time that Noxus was away with Orin and Astrid. They had regular hours of cleaning and tidying up the castle. Astrid and Orin still found it odd that Aurelia wanted to help them with it all. Aurelia talked of what the castle would look like in all its authentic beauty, as it was before the dragons attacked their people.

Orin told stories of what the castle and community was like before the dragons attacked. While Aurelia expected his stories to be filled with hatred and anger, possibly even spite, he talked about how magical of a place it had been. The community that all of the basilisks had with their parties and banquet.

The only time Orin spoke of the former king, he admitted that it wasn’t really the king’s fault but rather, a fault in the views within the pit. They faced the same issues since the beginning.

Aurelia was able to start piecing together the picture of a close-knit community that longed for the world to see them in a different light. No one had the answer on how to accomplish that. Some thought it was the people with the beliefs that needed to change, like the former king. Others, like Orin and Astrid, felt they needed to change their ways to shift the perception of their kind.

The three of them talked about anything they could think of. Orin and Astrid were able to start to view Aurelia in a different light. She wasn’t anything like the former queen. It baffled them how kind and strong she was. She cooked meals for them and cleaned up after them without expecting anything in return.

After Noxus had been gone for five days, Aurelia found herself lonely. She had Orin and Astrid, and she appreciated them both, but she longed for the feelings she felt when she was close to Noxus.

Astrid could sense Aurelia’s struggles within her mind and on the seventh day of Noxus’ leave, she initiated a girls night while Orin was hunting.

They discussed their men. Astrid had shared with Aurelia that Orin was her ethereal mate and that they had been intimate before their wedding. They were shunned by most of the basilisks, leading to their departure of the pit.

The past king was a stickler for the rules, not allowing anything against the courts to happen within their castle. He also wouldn’t take a stand for rule changes or discussion. Everything had to be the way it always was.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

Her words had hit Aurelia hard. Noxus had mentioned how sacred it was to wait until marriage.

“I struggle with it because I know that Noxus wanted to wait, and we didn’t,” Aurelia said as she hung her head.

Astrid let out a happy gasp as she clapped her hands together. “Oh honey, the moment the elders gave him the okay to have you here with the promise of a wedding, he was able to fully commit to you. It isn’t the actual wedding, but the acceptance of it from the elders and the court.”

“So, I can get pregnant even though we aren’t married? Since there needs to be a queen and king as one for the basilisks to reproduce?”

Aurelia had thought about the possibility of getting pregnant, but she wasn’t sure how the whole situation worked and she didn’t want to get her hopes up.

“Nothing is for certain when it comes to the lore of the basilisks and childbearing. The books don’t even mention a queen, just a mate at the king’s side. I wish you and Noxus the best. I hope you lead us out of this darkness,” Astrid said.

“What does it feel like to have an ethereal mate?” Aurelia asked.

She thought she knew some of the feeling, but nowhere close to what it was for Noxus.

Astrid started, “Well if what Noxus did doesn’t tell you.” She stopped, realizing that Aurelia didn’t know about his people, what he had given up for his mate.

Noxus had told Orin, and in turn Orin had told Astrid.

“What did he give up for me?” Aurelia asked.

Astrid knew she couldn’t hold back now.

Twiddling with her fingers, Astrid said, “He chose you over our people within the dragon realm. He had a choice of turning you in to the faes and getting our people back, or bringing you here, going against them.”

With a red face, from anger and embarrassment Aurelia began to speak, “Why would he do that?”

She couldn’t finish with her other questions as the lump in her throat grew and her heart felt a burning sensation.

“Because he knew that our kind would never get anywhere further without his mate, without you. He needed you if any basilisk wanted to bear children,” Astrid answered.

This information seemed to place Aurelia in a weird trance, somewhere between love and anger. She was happy that she had found Noxus, or rather, Noxus found her, but she couldn’t stop the pain within her that he had chosen her over his kind. He had chosen to allow the rest of his kind to stay in a cell, hopeful that their new king would come, to keep her safe.

Aurelia wasn’t sure she would have been able to do that if she were in his place. She knew that the bond she felt wasn’t what he felt. She was unable to grasp the sort of love someone would have to have to do that, let alone after only meeting the person twice. He heart cried at the feeling she would never get to experience.