I wake up rested as never before. I don't know what my father did, but he managed to shut the parts of my brain that were always active so I could truly rest. Erik and Gotrid are both sleeping deeply and, judging by the soft light coming into the room, it's very early morning.
I slept blissfully for half a day, but the same can't be said for my partners. I fell asleep in the late afternoon, but I doubt they followed me. I bet they were working on their laptops, taking care of some overdue tasks. I kiss Erik's forehead, then carefully turn around, free my wings and kiss Gotrid's forehead as well. I was right, they aren't fully rested yet.
I pass my phone with telekinesis to check the time. It's only half past five. Both Gotrid and Erik are light sleepers so I have to resort to a trick if I don't want to wake them up. I caress their faces, send them my love and try to induce a peaceful state of mind that will continue comforting them when I'm gone.
I don't think the Divementis can make someone fall asleep if that person doesn't want to, but if it's just a matter of comforting someone like a telepathic lullaby, it's not actually that difficult. I carefully slip from their embrace and I have to laugh silently when Erik automatically grabs Gotrid's wing and uses it as a blanket. Brilliant, that should take care of it. I hope Erik won't throw a tantrum when he realises whose wing he's holding.
"Your Majesty?" the guards are startled when I appear in the hall.
"Shh," I shush them and close the door behind me. "Let my husbands sleep, they need to rest."
I hope for a quiet introverted morning so I'm surprised when I find Advin and Nala in the lounge, working already. They are sitting around a low table on cushions in a very Japanese way. Do they have to follow me like a second shadow? Did my father order them to do so?
"Your Highness!" they are taken aback to see me so early and use my Divementis title. They quickly stand up and bow. I don't like to see my cousins bowing to me, but I don't think that I would be able to talk them out of it.
"How many hours do the Divementis need to sleep?" I tilt my head.
"Nine, the same as Celestials," Nala says. "We just went to sleep early last night because we couldn't be of use to Your Highness."
"What are you working on?" I eye their laptops.
"The training regimen for you and your partners," Advin explains.
"My partners as well?" my frown. "They have too much work as it is. With me spending most of my time with my father, they will have to take care of politics and administration."
"Lord Erik will be spending most of his time plugged in VR," Nala corrects me. "If you want him to transform as soon as possible, he will be either training in the game or having me alter his perception. You will have to leave politics to the Viceroy."
"And Gotrid?" I sit down on a cushion and wave at them to do the same. I hope to have a proper conversation with them. The ground is spotless and the carpet under the table is fluffy so I don't have to worry about staining my wings.
"As your bonded partner, he's expected to train with you," Advin says, making himself comfortable. "He might not be a Divementis, but he's still a Draconian. Our uncle thinks that magical dual-casting has great potential if done with perfect telepathic coordination."
"I know, I've tried that already," I nod.
"Not only that. We've never trained non-telepaths with our methods, but we believe that your consort might help you even on a telepathic level," Nala reveals. "Acting as an anchor and your balancer in case of telepathic attacks."
At first, I can't imagine it, but then I realise that she's just using different terminology. I do use my partners as my anchors and balancers. Their presence has a calming effect on me, they help me stop overthinking and I know that I can rely on them. Can there be more? I give Nala an inquisitive look.
"We don't know much about that, though, it's only for bonded couples," she admits. "We're not mature enough to bond."
"Huh? When is a Divementis mature for a relationship?" I'm dying with curiosity all of a sudden. "Do you date before that?"
"Not before we turn forty," Nala says. "As for dating, we can do that to experiment and gain some experience, but that's about it. We can like the other person, but it's not true love so young relationships never last and are just for fun."
"But my sis loves human romantic movies," Advin nudges his sister, grinning. "She's hooked on them. She even fancies human men."
"S-stop it, y-you!" she nudges him back and turns red. "As if I haven't seen you watching those stupid streams of Korean models."
I can't help myself and burst laughing. My cousins are pure Divementis, but their interests are so human. No wonder my aunt doesn't know what to do with themâthey are like human teenagers.
"Have any other Divementis apart from my father and me ever fallen in love with a human?" I ask.
"No, it's proven to be physiologically impossible," Nala shakes her head. "I might fancy human men, as my annoying brother pointed out, but it's just fantasy. I wouldn't be able to seriously fall in love with a human. As for why our uncle could... we don't know. The Royal bloodline has special qualities and this might be one of them."
"Still not as crazy as a polyamorous Divementis," Advin comments venomously.
I give him an irritated look and he flinches. He tries to act nonchalant and cheeky, but is he afraid that I might try to invade his mind? My father mentioned that I create telepathic pressure without knowing when just thinking about a particular person. I wonder what it feels like.
"You stupid!" Nala pokes his brother hard. "Our cousin might be younger than us, but he's the Royal bloodline and the Celestial Emperor. Stop provoking His Highness or you will regret it. He could fry your brain this easily," she snaps her fingers.
"What?! I could not," I frown. Is she exaggerating?
"Well, maybe not right now, but with some training...," Nala sounds almost optimistic about it.
"I could not!" I insist, horrified. "I'm not a monster."
"The Enemy is a monster," Advin shrugs. "I hope you will fry its brain so that we can go home."
A sudden realisation comes to me. If we win this war, however unimaginable that might seem right now, the Divementis will return to their home dimension. What would it mean for other Draconian races? Would they happily relocate as well? Would we abandon Earth and go to live on Draconia with no humans?
"Your Majesty, why are you up so early?" Ayame appears and she looks like someone who's just been woken up. Her feathers are dishevelled and she's yawning.
I give the guards a disapproving look. My guardians are taking shifts as usual, but I didn't take enough maids with me so we decided to cancel a night shift which I hardly ever need anyway. Seriously, did they have to wake her up?
"Your Majesty, your robe is all crumpled," she notices right away.
"I didn't want to change in front of my father," I explain. "Don't go to the bedroom, Erik and Gotrid are still sleeping. Don't you dare wake them up for something as trivial as clothes."
"Let me get you tea at least," she offers now that she's awake anyway.
"Thank you, three cups, please," I appreciate and turn back to my cousins. With almost everyone else sleeping, I have a rare opportunity to get to know them.
"Nala, do you like Earth?" I decide to ask directly.
"Yes," she nods. "I was born here and human culture is much more fun. I know that the elders want to return, but young Divementis aren't so thrilled about the prospect. Still, when the time comes, we will all return. We might like Earth, but we don't have much freedom here."
"I see. When you return..."
"We," Advin corrects me and sounds angry that I'm talking about the Divementis in the second person as if I'm not one of them. "There's no scenario in which we're leaving our Crown Prince behind."
"I thought you especially would love to get rid of me," I grimace.
"What?! Why would you say that?!" he acts sincerely shocked. "You're both our cousin and our prince. You're one of us."
"His Highness has a bad opinion of you because you're teasing him too much," Nala clicks her tongue at her brother.
"I can't help it, he's so Celestial about things," he purses his lips.
"Duh, His Highness is half-Celestial," Nala rolls her eyes and stares longingly at my wings.
I don't have to be a telepath to guess when someone is dying to touch my feathers. For a few seconds, I'm considering whether I should indulge her or not. I barely know her, but Nala is my relative and I feel irresistibly drawn to both her and Advin.
"That's okay, you can touch them," I allow it in the end and spread my left wing towards her. I would never let a stranger touch me, but Nala is no stranger. She's family.
Nala eagerly stretches her hand to me, but Advin slaps her.
"He will be able to see everything if you touch him, you stupid," he hisses. "You might be a proficient telepath, but you have no defence against someone with the Royal bloodline."
"So what?" Nala retorts. "I have nothing to hide and His Highness is our cousin."
"I won't pry into places where you don't want me," I promise, full of anticipation. What is it going to be like?
Nala impatiently pushes her brother away and buries his palms into my fluffy feathers. She gasps for breath when my presence enters her mind, but she doesn't flinch and even tries to relax. I also gasp for breath but for an entirely different reasonâit's the very first time I get to fully experience an inviting Divementis mind. My father last night doesn't count, it was me letting him in and I was too hurting to pay attention.
I try not to pry and I don't, but it's impossible not to read her surface thoughts and feelings. I expect something alien, but it's the exact opposite. Nala's mind is soothing and so familiar. Moreover, she's also a telepath which means that she knows what I'm doing and she's actively cooperating.
I don't have to navigate her like I have to do with my partners. I don't have to be careful about what I'm not supposed to see, Nala simply locks those places and hopes I won't force entry. The feeling of familiarity deepens and I finally understand why the Divementis family bonds are so strong. They get to share everything on every possible level. My Divementis nature flutters excitedly as something buried deep inside of me opens up.