Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 55059 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 275(@200wpm)___ 220(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 55059 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 275(@200wpm)___ 220(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
“Eira,” he continued the formalities, “this is my father, Tatsu.”
“Well, Eira …” his father drawled out, giving her a once-over, “nice to finally meet you.”
Eira bowed to him as low as she could, hoping to hide her nervous expression, but she was certain her voice gave her nerves away. “Lovely to meet you, too.”
He gave her hand in his a squeeze; it was as if Eira could understand so much in just a touch, and she was grateful.
“So …” Ryu seemed to take on nerves of his own. “Did it happen in time?”
Tatsu looked at the hands intertwined between them, noticing something that Eira would soon find out later. “Go look for yourself.”
21
A Friend
Eira stared up at the impressive but barren tree. She could only imagine what it must’ve been like full and in its prime.
“Did he tell you about it?”
Looking over at the man who had just joined her peacefully on the bench, she nodded. “He did.”
Ryu had told her everything about it, all the way from the tether between them to how the cycle restarted with each new heir …
Dropping her hand when they reached the sight of the tree, Ryu seemed heartbroken.
“I was too late.”
She watched the tears form in his eyes with his shattered emotions. She had never seen him like this, and there was nothing she could do or say for him in that moment because she simply didn’t understand what he was talking about nor the importance of the tree.
Moving toward the mythical beast, Ryu placed his hand on the trunk and dropped hard to his knees. “How …? What …?” he began to croak out in disbelief.
Eira wasn’t sure, but the tears that streamed down his face now seemed … happy?
Quickly, Ryu shot up to his feet, looking up at the bare branches as if he were searching for something.
He disappeared from her sight at the vastness of the base of the tree as he went around, and it wasn’t until she heard him say, “Eira, come here,” that she followed him around and found him staring up toward the top of the tree. “Do you see it?”
Trying her best to line her eyes up with his line of sight, she was about to give up until she finally saw it. A perfectly pink cherry blossom petal that lightly swayed in the wind.
And that was when he began.
“One day, new life will blossom this tree again, and you’ll see it filled with a million of them …”
All that she had learned had been a lot for her to take in, so she had asked for a moment alone.
The pressure that was now placed on her shoulders had instantly weighed her down, and she knew instinctively that her fated mate’s father wasn’t about to make it any better.
“The tree’s leaves had only half-fallen when I met my Kana.”
She could hear so much in that sentence—pride and loss for his wife mainly, but there was something else hidden in his words that she didn’t quite understand yet. However, she was almost certain he would enlighten her.
“I’m sorry to hear about her,” was simply all she could think to say before he continued.
“I remember sitting right here with him when the first one fell when he was only seven. He has waited many years to find you, Eira. And you must know that things like time are very different for us.”
Eira listened intently, knowing he was about to reveal something Ryu had ceased to mention.
“To be born with the magic of the dragon means time moves differently for us.” Seeing she was quickly catching on, he told her before she could ask, “Ryu is much older than you probably think him to be.”
Her eyes grew wide in shock. “Really?”
“He has lived three of your lifetimes already,” he confirmed.
“Three?” she whispered in disbelief.
“It was one of the reasons why I kept him here on the island so long before I let him leave in search for you—I simply thought his fated mate hadn’t been born yet.” Taking in her look of age, he didn’t want to sell himself short. “Turns out I wasn’t necessarily wrong.”
Now her head practically spun with questions, but Tatsu seemed to know the first one that came to mind.
“Our magic is definitely a wonder, but you need not to worry; our fated mates are born with a little magic themselves that only activates when you meet. So, your aging clock will now slow with Ryu’s.”
Some bit of relief flooded her. “That’s good to know.”
“However,” he began again, his tone slightly harsh, “the magic you hold is very dull, so what you feel is very little compared to what the dragon inside of him lets him feel.”
Eira wasn’t understanding the point he was trying to make …until she did.
“For instance, the pain you feel by not completing the mating dance is simply pitiful in comparison.” His words started to lash against her. “The pain you are causing him, Eira, is cruel.”